Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The moment the whistle blew, the sticky feeling in the air vanished instantly, replaced by a chilling tension.

Kageyama Tobio stood at the baseline, spinning the yellow and blue volleyball in his hand. He wasn't looking this way; his gaze was focused on the ball in his hand, and the aura he exuded was like that of a gatekeeper boss with a skull icon on his health bar.

"It's coming."

Lu Ren silently recited the warning in his mind, and a red warning box seemed to automatically appear on his retina.

These past few days, he hasn't just been doing physical training. Every time he passes by the gym, even in between being dragged by Kiyosawa Masayuki to do "physical modifications," he observes. He observes Kageyama's ball toss height, the trajectory of his arm swing, and the angle at which his wrist snaps down at the moment of impact.

For a hardcore player, the boss's skill animations are the best strategy guide.

Kageyama throws the ball.

approach.

Take off.

The series of movements was as fluid as a meticulously rendered CG animation. His posture in the air was stretched to its limit, and then his arm lashed down like a whip.

"Bang!"

A loud bang.

The sphere moved at a speed too fast for the naked eye to detect, like a cruise missile hurtling straight into the backcourt.

That's a skill only "high-level" characters like Daichi Sawamura and Ryunosuke Tanaka can handle. For a character just starting out in the beginner's village, this is enough to deliver a fatal blow.

However, just a second before the ball hit the ground, a figure suddenly appeared at the landing point.

Lu Ren stood with his feet apart, his center of gravity extremely low, and his arms straight out together. He didn't chase the ball, but instead, like a precognitive wall hanging, he stood there a second in advance—in the "certain hit zone" calculated countless times in his mind.

"Attack successful."

"Snapped!"

The volleyball slammed heavily into Lu Ren's forearm.

In that instant, Lu Ren felt as if his two arm bones had been struck hard by a hammer, and pain signals rushed through his nerves to his brain. The system seemed to be screaming in his ear: [Armor value -50, arm durability decreased, gained Debuff: Paralysis].

That force is even stronger than Captain Earth's serve! This isn't a volleyball, it's a battering ram!

The ball bounced high into the air. Although the trajectory was a bit too high due to insufficient ball displacement, it didn't fly out of bounds; instead, it floated gently towards the net.

The entire room fell silent for a moment.

Even Kageyama paused for a moment as he landed, a clear look of astonishment flashing in his sharp eyes for the first time.

"Yamaguchi! Setter!" Lu Ren shouted through gritted teeth, shaking his arm, which was aching so badly it was almost numb.

Yamaguchi Tadashi, as if waking from a dream, frantically ran towards the landing point, shouting, "Yes, yes!"

As a novice who had never played the setter position before, Yamaguchi's pass was quite poor; the ball was too close to the net and lacked height. But for Tsukishima Kei, who was already prepared, it was enough.

Despite his sharp tongue, the bespectacled man with the foul temper was incredibly quick-witted. Utilizing his height advantage, he jumped from a standing position and spiked the ball before Hinata Shoyo and Tanaka Ryunosuke could mount an effective block.

The ball passed through the gap between the two defenders and hit the opposite side of the court.

Daichi Sawamura paused for a moment, then flipped the scoreboard.

1: 0.

"They actually caught it..." Tanaka Ryunosuke's eyes widened as he looked at Lu Ren, who was rubbing his wrist. "That was Kageyama's killer serve!"

Hotaru Tsukishima adjusted her glasses, glanced back at Riku, and the mocking smile on her lips softened slightly: "Not bad luck, theoretical master. But if the next pass isn't accurate, I'm not responsible for the attack."

"Shut up, that was a prediction," Lu Ren replied irritably. "Get back to defense quickly, the BOSS is about to enter its berserk phase."

Next, it was Tadashi Yamaguchi's turn to serve.

The boy was clearly so nervous he was about to throw up; his hands were trembling as he held the ball. He took a few deep breaths and served a very basic underhand serve.

The ball flew limply over the net, posing no threat whatsoever.

"An opportunity ball!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka roared and easily lifted the ball. The ball traced a perfect parabola, landing precisely at Tobio Kageyama's position.

Lu Ren's pupils suddenly contracted.

coming.

Kageyama stood in front of the net, hands raised. And behind him, Hyuga Shoyo suddenly started moving.

That speed was completely unreasonable, like an assassin character in a game with maxed-out agility activating their sprint skill. The short guy with the orange haircut instantly rushed to the net, pushed off the ground with both feet, and launched himself into the air like he was on a spring.

"So fast!" exclaimed Tadashi Yamaguchi.

This is not the explosive power that a normal human being should have.

Lu Ren's brain was screaming in alarm. If this shot went in, the morale blow would be devastating.

"block!"

Lu Ren roared and instinctively rushed to the front of the net, jumping side by side with Tsukishima Hotaru.

The three people met in the air.

Hinata Shoyo jumped extremely high, his eyes flashing with a thrilling excitement, his right hand already raised high, fiercely swinging at the volleyball in the air.

This momentum is so strong, it's like they're going to smash the ball into the earth's core.

Lu Ren held his breath, staring intently at Hyuga's palm, preparing to meet the impending impact.

however--

"call."

A gust of wind swept by.

Hinata Shoyo's hand, with extreme precision and perfection, avoided the volleyball.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still.

Lu Ren, still in the air, was stunned.

Hotaru Tsukishima, who was standing next to her, was stunned.

Daichi Sawamura, who was watching the game from the sidelines, was stunned.

Even Kageyama Tobio, the setter, froze on his face.

The volleyball fell alone from Hyuga's empty hand, bounced lightly on the ground, and rolled out of the baseline.

Lu Ren landed, slipped, and almost fell. He stared dumbfounded at the short man with orange hair opposite him.

What kind of operation is this?

Is it the legendary "ultra-high-speed air swing"? Or some kind of visual illusion created using aerodynamics?

"Um..." Lu Ren turned to look at Tsukishima, "Was the server lagging just now? Was there packet loss?"

Hotaru Tsukishima also looked like she'd seen a ghost, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a sentence through gritted teeth: "No... I think it's just that short guy missed."

"Ahhhh! I'm so sorry!!"

Hinata Shoyo clutched his head and screamed in agony, his face turning a deep purplish-red. He bowed frantically to Kageyama Tobio, crying, "I was so nervous! I jumped up and waved! I didn't expect the ball to not even reach me!"

Kageyama Tobio's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and the veins on his forehead throbbed. He stared intently at Hinata, his eyes seeming to be contemplating whether to braise or steam his teammate. But in the end, he said nothing, simply turning away, his back radiating a suffocatingly oppressive atmosphere.

"Again!" Kageyama gritted his teeth and spat out the two words.

The game continues.

Despite the blunder, Lu Ren didn't let his guard down. The speed in that instant was real; if Hyuga had actually hit the ball, that kind of fast break would have been impossible to defend against.

Is this what they call a "stat monster"? Poor gameplay, but incredibly high stats.

Tadashi Yamaguchi serves again. Perhaps the own goal earlier gave him some confidence, as his serve was slightly more stable this time.

Hinata Shoyo on the opposite side rushed up to receive the ball.

"Bang!"

The ball hit his wrist and bounced straight towards the ceiling, landing way off target.

"Sorry!" Hinata shouted.

His catching skills were practically the opposite of his athletic ability. Lu Ren silently labeled Hyuga a "one-sided god of war" in his mind.

But Kageyama Hiroo made a move.

That genius setter displayed astonishing corrective ability. He rushed to the ball's landing point in a few steps, and even after losing his balance, he still managed to deliver the ball steadily with his fingertips.

"Tanaka-senpai!"

"Oh, oh, oh! Leave it to me!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka attacked from the left flank with overwhelming force.

This is a classic example of a strong attack.

"Stop him!" Lu Ren shouted.

Hotaru Tsukishima and Tadashi Yamaguchi jumped simultaneously to block. Ryunosuke Tanaka, though seemingly a reckless player, displayed remarkable skill in the air. Instead of forcing a breakthrough, he flicked his wrist and delivered a diagonal spike.

"Snapped!"

The ball hit the edge of Tsukishima Hotaru's palm, changed direction sharply, and flew towards the backcourt.

"The fighter is out of bounds!" Tanaka clenched his fist excitedly.

The ball is about to fly out, and the point is definitely going to be lost—that's the judgment of a normal person.

But at the instant the ball changed direction, Lu Ren's body had already moved.

Unlike the others, he didn't focus on the spike point; instead, he started retreating the moment Tanaka jumped.

In his view, this was not just a volleyball match, but more like a puzzle game full of geometric lines. The height of the block, the angle of the spike, the transmission of power... all the data converged into a clear trajectory line in his mind.

If the block is successful, the ball will land; if the block fails and the ball is hit by the hand, it will most likely fly towards that area.

This is what is known as "exhaustive defense".

As the ball bounced toward the open space in the backcourt, about to land and score, Lu Ren, like an old hunter who had been lying in wait, bent his knees, bent over, and squeezed his arms tightly together.

The movements were not standard, even a bit awkward, like a frog pouncing on its prey.

But the position was exactly the same.

"Bang!"

The ball slammed steadily against his forearm, was lifted high, and flew towards the net.

"What?!" Tanaka's smile froze on his face.

"Yamaguchi, pass the ball!" Lu Ren shouted, his voice slightly breathless from the intense running.

"yes!"

The ball was set up very high, giving Yamaguchi ample time to adjust. He then passed the ball to the net.

Hotaru Tsukishima was already waiting there.

Facing an empty defense, Tsukishima easily jumped and slammed the ball into the opponent's court.

3: 0.

A brief silence fell over the stadium once again.

Daichi Sawamura paused slightly as he flipped through the scoreboard. He looked at the boy who was bending down to brush the dust off his trousers, his expression becoming somewhat complicated.

If the first time receiving a serve was luck, what about this time?

That kind of positioning that seems to be able to see the future, that terrifying sense of where the ball will land... Is this really something a novice can do?

"Hey, four-eyed guy." Lu Ren straightened up and gestured with his chin at Tsukishima Hotaru. "How was it? You played pretty well as support this time, right? If you don't get any points, I'm really going to report you for AFK."

Hotaru Tsukishima looked at him, the disdain in her eyes completely gone. He pushed up his glasses and gave a soft snort:

"Barely passable. It seems your brain is indeed a bit better than your motor skills."

Lu Ren grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.

Although his thigh muscles were twitching slightly and his lungs were starting to feel like bellows, he felt... wonderful.

It's like finally figuring out the first phase mechanics of a boss when you're clearing out a dungeon.

"So, next..." Lu Ren turned around, looking at the three opponents with different expressions on their faces across the net, his eyes growing brighter and brighter, "How should we play in the second stage?"