The break between sets was short, and the second set began swiftly.

Aoba Johsai's lineup was as follows:

Aoba Johsai's starting lineup:

Front row—Middle Blocker Kindaichi Yūtarō, Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi, and Setter Oikawa Tōru

Back row—Outside Hitter Kyōtani Kentarō, Opposite Hitter Iwaizumi Hajime and Middle Blocker Matsukawa Issei (Libero Watari Shinji).

Niiyama Tech's starting lineup:

Front row—Middle blocker Hotta Ryōji, Outside Hitter Katsuragi Shuto, and Wing Spiker Saijō Naoya

Back row—Middle blocker Naruse Keie (libero Kanazawa Tomoyuki), Setter Koike Fumi and Wing Spiker Terazawa Kiyo.

Coach Irihata, emboldened by the dominant victory in the first set, adjusted Seijoh's lineup to further enhance their offensive power.

Meanwhile, Niiyama Tech's ace was nowhere to be seen—not in the starting lineup nor on the bench.

Their new addition, first-year outside hitter Katsuragi Shuto, had made little impact during his brief appearance in the first set. Still, it didn't seem like anyone else on Niiyama's roster could turn things around either.

Niiyama served first, with Terazawa Kiyo stepping up to the service line.

Having realized that their power jump serves posed no real threat to Aoba Johsai, Niiyama adjusted their strategy, focusing on precision to disrupt Seijoh's offence.

Boom!@@novelbin@@

Terazawa's serve targeted Kyōtani Kentarō, aiming to exploit his reputation as a heavily offense-oriented player.

Pop!

Kyōtani received the ball, though the pass was less than ideal. Oikawa quickly moved to cover.

At least our scouting was accurate this time…Terazawa sighed, retreating to his defensive position.

Yet, even faced with an imperfect pass, Oikawa showed no sign of panic. The set he delivered was as steady as ever.

Kaedehara Taichi began his approach and leapt into the air. Just the sight of him mid-flight sent a shiver of apprehension through Niiyama's players.

"Three-man block!" Niiyama's front-row players jumped to form a solid wall.

But for Taichi, no matter the odds, as long as he was on the court, he would give his all.

—Boom!—

The sound of impact echoed loudly as Taichi's spike smashed against the block.

It went over the hands—a high-flying "super spike!"

No matter how determined we are, their strength won't waver because of it…

Pop!

An unexpected sound followed.

"Save it!!" Koike Fumi's desperate shout rang out.

He had anticipated Kaedehara's spike trajectory and was already in a position to dig.

The ball struck him hard, sending him tumbling backwards, but his eyes remained fixed on the ball.

Volleyball isn't a sport reserved for the winners!

Terazawa sprinted toward the ball's landing spot, throwing himself at it.

Even if it was just one point—just one point!

They wanted to score it with their own hands!

Pop!

Terazawa managed a one-handed save, pushing the ball toward the net.

"Block him!" Seijoh's front-row blockers didn't relax for even a second, quickly repositioning themselves to follow the ball.

Horita Ryōji jumped, but he knew brute force wouldn't break through this wall. He'd learned that much in the previous set.

Instead, he tipped the ball delicately over the net, targeting the space behind Kindaichi.

Caught off guard, Kyōtani dove forward, but even those three short steps felt impossibly long at this moment...

Got it!

Niiyama's players all stared intently, waiting for the ball to hit the floor.

Pop!

A hand suddenly appeared beneath the ball, cushioning it just before it touched the ground.

It was Watari Shinji!

As soon as Niiyama received the serve, Watari had shifted toward Kyōtani's weaker side, anticipating the need for backup.

"Saved!" Watari shouted.

It was just one point.

One point wouldn't decide the winner.

Scoring it wouldn't grant Niiyama a miraculous comeback, and losing it wouldn't cost Aoba Johsai the match.

But none of that was reason enough to give it away.

Taichi, who had chased the ball out of bounds, turned back with a single-handed signal to Oikawa. Sprinting, he leapt and set the ball back toward the net.

Smack!

Oikawa jumped and struck the ball with ferocity.

Pop!

"Touch!" shouted first-year Katsuragi Shuto as the ball glanced off his fingertips.

"I've got it!" Terazawa lunged ahead of Koike to save it again.

The setter's role is to give their spikers the perfect opportunity!

Koike sent a high set into the air, and Saijō Naoya approached the ball, his body angled toward the net as he jumped.

"Triple block!" Kindaichi, Kaedehara, and Oikawa all leapt simultaneously.

Boom!

Saijō Naoya unleashed all his strength, spiking the ball with everything he had!

A sharp cross-court shot!

The ball narrowly avoided Aoba Johsai's triple block and plunged toward the ground.

Could it be…?!

"OUT!"

The referee's call was merciless—calm and direct.

[Aoba Johsai 1 – 0 Niiyama Tech]

"Hah…I thought I'd finally broken through my limits," Saijō Naoya said with a wry smile.

"Sorry!" He turned to his teammates, apologizing.

While his teammates responded with resigned smiles, their setter, Koike Fumi, suddenly gave him a big thumbs-up.

"Great spike!"

The wry smiles brightened into genuine ones.

Saijō Naoya felt a lump in his throat, but he forced himself to act strong. "Yeah, I think that spike was pretty amazing too, hehe…"

Suddenly, sporadic applause began echoing from the stands. It grew louder and louder until the entire gym was clapping.

"Let's go, Niiyama Tech!"

"Number 1, that was a great spike!"

"Keep it up! Don't give up!"

Saijō Naoya could no longer hold back his emotions. Tears welled up, blurring his vision.

"Our offense works! Let's go again!"

"Yeah!"

Niiyama's momentum seemed even stronger than in the first set.

But now, it was Aoba Johsai's turn to serve.

Oikawa Tōru walked to the service line.

"Why do they always make us look like the villains?" Oikawa sighed as he glanced at the audience.

To his dismay, he had even seen a few students in Aoba Johsai uniforms cheering for Niiyama just moments ago.

He stepped into position at the line.

"Get it straight, people! We're the protagonists here!"

Oikawa fully understood Coach Irihata's reasoning behind the lineup adjustments in the second set.

If they were going to break records, they would do it decisively.

He tossed the ball into the air.

—Boom!

Like a lightning strike, the ball shot toward Niiyama's baseline and landed squarely inside.

[Aoba Johsai 2 – 0 Niiyama Tech]

The once-raucous gym fell into complete silence after just one serve.

Oikawa pointed at Niiyama's libero.

"Now, this is Aoba Johsai's true serve power."

-----

"Tweet—!" The match ended, and the victor was clear: Aoba Johsai.

"Thank you for the game!" The players from both teams bowed to each other.

Kaedehara Taichi shook hands with Saijō Naoya, unable to help himself from commenting, "That cross-court shot of yours was really impressive."

Saijō froze for a moment, then looked at his opponent—just a first-year—and smiled.

"Thanks. If we'd faced a team as strong as yours earlier, maybe we could've improved even more."

"Maybe." Taichi nodded with a bright smile.

-----

Ten minutes later, Shiratorizawa became the second team to secure their victory.

[Shiratorizawa 25 – 6 Naraikawa]

[Shiratorizawa 25 – 5 Naraikawa]

Shiratorizawa's players, as composed as ever, displayed the calm demeanour befitting their reputation as reigning champions.

"I bet Aoba Johsai has already advanced by now," Goshiki Tsutomu speculated, unable to contain his curiosity.

The moment their match ended, he turned to their team manager, Saitō Akira, for updates.

The rest of the team, just as eager, gathered around.

"Well…" Saitō Akira hesitated, his expression somewhat unnatural. "Aoba Johsai finished their match about ten minutes ago."

"Oh? They wrapped up pretty quickly too, huh?" Goshiki raised an eyebrow.

"Hmph!" Coach Washijō snorted, far less amused. He threw a freshly acquired match report at Goshiki's face.

Goshiki caught it and took a closer look:

[Aoba Johsai 25 – 3 Niiyama Tech]

[Aoba Johsai 25 – 2 Niiyama Tech]

The second set included an additional note:

—Oikawa Tōru and Kaedehara Taichi combined for 15 direct service points.

_________

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