Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty-Chapter 365: We Walked Right Into It (Double-Length)

— If only I'd been able to score one more with my spike...

This time, they had finally felt like they were standing on the same stage as Kaedehara Taichi—but it was precisely because of that, that they felt the full weight of his strength.

"At the most crucial moment…we couldn't even block one ball."

Kageyama's gaze shifted toward Seijoh's bench, his expression hard to read. Kunimi Akira no longer looked anything like the lazy slacker he remembered.

-----

"Still no good?" Futakuchi Kenji sighed. It was a kind of suffocating helplessness that Date Tech knew all too well.

Sure, in a best-of-three match, every set mattered—but the first one always carried a special kind of weight.

A good start gave players a psychological advantage. That boost in morale often gave them the confidence to play with more poise in the following sets.

"So…what'll it be?" Futakuchi murmured, glancing toward Karasuno's lineup. "Are they going to claw their way back—or is Seijoh about to sweep them clean?"

-----

"Beep—!"

The teams switched sides. The second set had begun.

Karasuno's new lineup was:

Front row—Setter Kageyama Tobio, Outside Hitter Kita Seio, Middle Blocker Hinata Shōyō.

Back row—Middle Blocker Tsukishima Kei (Libero: Nishinoya Yū), Outside Hitter Tanaka Ryūnosuke, Outside Hitter Ennoshita Chikara.

Aoba Johsai's lineup was:

Front row—Outside Hitter Kyōtani Kentarō, Setter Yahaba Shigeru, Middle Blocker Yūki Yōji.

Back row—Middle Blocker Kindaichi Yūtarō (Libero: Nakamori Daiki), Outside Hitter Kunimi Akira, Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi.

Both teams had made some significant adjustments.

Ukai Keishin's strategy was clear—while ensuring that Kageyama's powerful serve rotation stayed intact, he positioned Tsukishima, Kageyama, and Kita at the net to form a solid blocking core, flanked by either Tanaka or Hinata. The goal was to maximise their front-row pressure.

—There's no point if we can't shut down Kaedehara Taichi.

From Seijoh's tactics, it was already obvious—trying to replicate Date Tech's prefectural strategy against Taichi wasn't going to work. Karasuno had no choice but to face them head-on. Ukai wasn't worried about their offence—what they needed was to strengthen their defence even more.

And Seijoh, for the first time this year, had placed Kaedehara Taichi in Position 1.

Coach Irihata's lips curled into a satisfied smile as the players settled into position. During their past training matches, Seijoh had never once placed Taichi in the back row. Ukai, based on those lineups, had built his counter-strategy assuming Taichi would always be up front.

He'd even finalised Karasuno's best offensive lineup to challenge Taichi's front-row presence.

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The first set had confirmed it—when directly trading blows, Karasuno wasn't exactly at a disadvantage.

"So now," Coach Irihata murmured smugly, "let's show them what it means to face an ace who excels at both offence and defence."

Almost every part of Karasuno's strategy had been predicted and countered.

In this second set, Taichi's rotation would completely miss Hinata's.

Seijoh served first. Kaedehara Taichi stepped up to the service line.

"Karasuno's really in trouble now..." said Coach Takurō Oiwake from Date Tech, beads of sweat forming on his forehead as he observed the rotation. "Ukai walked right into the fox's trap…"

With Taichi on serve, Karasuno's best receivers—Kageyama and Kita—were stuck in the front row, and even Nishinoya had been stationed on the left instead of dead centre. Against a 'quad-style' server like Taichi, reducing their back-row reception strength was practically suicidal.

"Tweet!—"

The whistle blew. The ball floated gently into the air.

Bang!

"???"

Ennoshita's whole body tensed with nervous anticipation—only for the serve to float toward the front row. A jump floater!

The target: Hinata Shōyō.

"Ah?!" Hinata's eyes locked onto the incoming ball. "Wait—how do you even receive a floater again?!"

Come on, think! I've seen this before! Just do what Noya-san does during practice!

The ball drifted slowly above the net before starting to drop. Hinata raised his arms, trying to mimic Nishinoya's form as best he could.

"—?!"

Just as his hands were about to make contact, the ball veered sharply to the right!

Thud!

Service ace.

[Aoba Johsai 1 - 0 Karasuno]

"Shōyō," Taichi said gently, walking back into position, "just knowing how to attack won't get you the win in the end."

And he intended to use this set to prove it.

Seijoh continued to serve.

Kaedehara Taichi's jump floater had left Karasuno's front row frozen stiff.

BOOM!!!

This time, his second serve came in hard—a powerful left-handed jump serve!

"Ennoshita!"

Smack!

The ball struck Ennoshita's forearm and flew straight out of bounds.

Second point.

[Aoba Johsai 2 - 0 Karasuno]

"This is pathetic…" Ennoshita gritted his teeth. "My eyes are finally catching up to the ball speed—but my body still can't respond to the spin on his left hand…"

He glanced toward Kageyama at the net and Nishinoya out wide on the left. Deep down, he knew—at this point, no one could bail him out.

Taichi served a third time.

Bang!—

Back to the jump floater!

"Left? Or right?!" Hinata was laser-focused this time.

"No change in direction?!"

Hinata braced himself, hands perfectly aligned as the ball fell toward him. For a second, it felt like time slowed.

Smack!

The ball clipped the tips of Hinata's fingers—and dropped straight down.

A vertical shift?!

"Move—move!!" Ennoshita lunged forward, arm extended.

But the ball was still a full body-length away. He could only watch as it hit the floor.

Tap. Tap. Tap...

Third point.

[Aoba Johsai 3 - 0 Karasuno]

"Damn it, that guy's completely toying with us!" Tanaka Ryūnosuke shouted, unwilling to accept the situation.

Even though they lost the first set, at least Karasuno had fought Aoba Johsai on even ground, and at one point, they'd even glimpsed a chance of victory.

But now—just by standing at the service line, Kaedehara Taichi had taken complete control of the match!

Hinata Shōyō had never, until this very moment, felt so clearly that he was the weak link in the team. So that was it—the last set, he'd only been able to go all out on offence because he had been protected so well. Without all the cover from his teammates, there was no way he could fully commit himself to the attack.

Ennoshita Chikara felt the same crushing weight, his body tangled up in a sense of helplessness.

"If you've got guts, come at me! Taichi!" Tanaka Ryūnosuke yelled at the top of his lungs. "Let's settle this head-on!"

"…Why?"

What shocked the Karasuno team even more was that Taichi actually replied.

"Tanaka-senpai, you're pretty ordinary," Taichi said flatly. "I'm not interested in you."

"Haa???" Tanaka's face turned bright red. "You little punk, say that again if you DARE!"

Taichi fell silent. The real reason he didn't want to engage with Tanaka was simple—while Tanaka's skills were average, he just might have the strongest mental game on Karasuno. If he couldn't shake him, then there was no point wasting time.

A little irritation was enough.

Realising he was being ignored, Tanaka grew even more agitated. He started swearing under his breath, nearly pulling off his jersey and swinging it in circles. He only calmed down after the referee issued a warning.

"Tweet!—"

The whistle blew.

Kaedehara Taichi served his fourth ball.

BOOM!!!

On the sidelines, Ukai Keishin silently prayed. If we can't receive this one either, I'll have no choice but to call a timeout to break his rhythm.

"Chikara, you've got this!"

Nishinoya Yū dashed right the moment he read the direction of Taichi's serve.

There was no way he'd make it in time for a clean receive—but if it was a dig, then he had to get it!

Smack!

The ball struck Ennoshita Chikara's arm and veered out of bounds, but Nishinoya was already diving after it.

"Shōyō!!!"

Receiving the serve wasn't enough—they had to score from it!!!

Nishinoya sent the ball flying toward the right side. Hinata leapt for the spike!

"Triple block!" Kyōtani Kentarō, Yahaba Shigeru, and Yūki Yōji all rose into the air. They had been waiting for him.

Midair, Hinata looked past the block and scanned Aoba Johsai's back row—"No gaps?!!"

Three pairs of eyes locked onto him—Nakamori Daiki, Kunimi Akira, and Kaedehara Taichi. It felt like every movement he made was completely seen through.

A court that once felt so spacious now seemed to shrink, leaving no room to swing.

Too late! Hinata had already begun descending. There was no time left to think.

Boom!

Smack!

Kunimi received the ball with ease.

Yahaba moved into position and set it to the right.

BAM!

Kaedehara Taichi leapt from the back row to strike.

"Double block!"

With Kyōtani drawing Kageyama to the left, only Kita Seio and a poorly timed Hinata were left to block Taichi from the front.

BOOM!!!

The ball soared past Hinata's fingertips—an overhand spike—slamming hard against the sideline on Ennoshita's right and bouncing out.

Kaedehara Taichi scored again.

[Aoba Johsai 4 – 0 Karasuno]

"Karasuno's done for."

That thought crept into the minds of more than a few spectators in the stands.

Even after finally receiving a serve, Karasuno had failed to seize the momentum.

Ukai Keishin raised his right hand halfway into the air but hesitated.

A timeout might break Taichi's rhythm…but it'd definitely break our receiving flow too…

He didn't know if this gamble was worth it.

"Let's trust them," said Takeda Ittetsu. "It's all we can do now, right?"

Ukai exhaled and lowered his arm. He couldn't deny it—as coach, he bore most of the responsibility for how things had ended up. It wasn't just the players who had to grow stronger—he still had a long way to go too.

"Tweet!—"

The whistle blew again, and the arena fell into complete silence.

Every eye in the gym was focused on one person.

Kaedehara Taichi tossed the ball high and launched his fifth serve.

BOOM!!!—

His right hand this time!

The serve came even faster than before—Ennoshita Chikara didn't even have time to react.

Thud!

The ball struck the ground.

"OUT!"

The referee's voice rang out clearly, dragging Karasuno back from the brink.

Kaedehara Taichi's serve missed.

Karasuno scored.

[Aoba Johsai 4 – 1 Karasuno]

"Well, that's rare…" Kunimi Akira teased. "Don't often see you mess up."

"Switching it up is harder than just serving one type," Taichi said, shaking out his hand. "Besides, it got too quiet in here. I'm not used to it."

"…You're such a weirdo," Kunimi muttered with a roll of his eyes.

Ukai finally let out a deep breath. His nerves relaxed just a little.

Karasuno's turn to serve.

Kageyama Tobio stepped up to the service line.

That missed serve had been like a lifeline for Karasuno. What could've become a five-point gap had now been trimmed to three.

"All yours, Kageyama!"

"Serve a good one!"

"Kageyama's serves should be on par with Taichi's, right?"

"C'mon! A killer serve!"

Kageyama gripped the ball tightly with both hands. He felt calm—but his palms were cold.

Is it just because I've been standing still too long?

He shook his head to clear away distractions.

Judging by Aoba Johsai's current formation, their back row was practically airtight. No wonder Hinata couldn't finish that spike. Honestly, the fact that the idiot had even found a spiking angle through that triple block meant he'd grown a lot.

I need to serve with pinpoint precision!

Kageyama's gaze settled on the deep right corner behind Kunimi Akira. Compared to the libero or Taichi, Kunimi was definitely the easier target.

He's aiming for me? Kunimi noticed the stare and sighed. Seriously?

Kageyama tossed the ball, stepped forward, jumped, and slammed down with full force.

BOOM!!!—

The ball shot straight toward Aoba Johsai's back row.

Kunimi kept his eyes locked on the blazing serve—

—and stepped aside.

Thud!

"OUT!"

Just outside the baseline—Kageyama's serve had missed.

Aoba Johsai scored.

[Aoba Johsai 5 – 1 Karasuno]

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