Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The chilling sound of the ball hitting the ground still echoed in the stadium.

The volleyball rolled to the corner. The court was deathly silent; even breathing could be heard clearly.

That last shot was like a blast through the physics of the past few weeks. There was no watching, no adjustments, not even a thought; it was pure speed and perfect timing.

Lu Ren stood in the back row, staring at Hyuga Shoyo, who was staring blankly at his own palm, and the screenshot of that moment flashed through his mind.

An ordinary person would probably only be amazed by the speed. But Lu Ren is a data enthusiast who analyzes every frame. He saw it clearly: the man with the orange hair had no expression on his face the moment he jumped and swung his arm.

That expression only appears in one situation—when you cut off the monitor signal.

"Hey, four-eyed."

Lu Ren took two steps to the side and said in a voice only Tsukishima Hotaru could hear, "Did you see that?"

Hotaru Tsukishima pushed up her glasses, her brows furrowed deeply: "What did you see? That reckless speed?"

"It wasn't speed." Lu Ren pointed to his eyes. "That guy didn't even open his eyes just now."

Hotaru Tsukishima froze as he wiped his sweat. He turned his head and looked at Rikuren with a "Are you kidding me?" look.

"Huh? Blindfolded?" Tsukishima's voice rose slightly. "You mean he was shooting completely blindfolded in mid-air?"

The commotion on this side caught the attention of the other side of the net. Kageyama Tobio, who was in a state of sagehood after being extremely excited, turned his head sharply to look at Hinata upon hearing this.

"Hey, you idiot." Kageyama grabbed Hinata's shoulder, his tone a little creepy, "Did you watch that shot just now?"

Hinata Shoyo blinked his big eyes twice, looking completely matter-of-fact: "No."

Kageyama tightened his grip: "Huh? Didn't you see? Then how did you hit me?"

"Because that's what you said!" Hinata shouted back defiantly, his voice echoing throughout the stadium. "You said that as long as I jumped with all my might, the ball would go over! You told me to ignore the ball and just jump with all my might! So I jumped with my eyes closed!"

An eerie silence fell over the entire room once again.

Sawamura Daichi's mouth dropped open in shock, and Tanaka Ryunosuke dropped the ball in his hand.

Is this what they call "trust"? This is not trust at all. It's like treating yourself as a cannonball to be launched, completely relinquishing control as the driver, and handing your life over to the middleman.

Madmen. Both of them are madmen.

"So...it's because of this?" Kageyama Tobio stood there, stunned, staring at his hands. That feeling that he could score points simply by passing the ball was actually based on this kind of unreserved, blind faith.

"Is this what they call 'script' paired with 'cheating'?" Lu Ren mentally labeled this combination as high-risk.

As long as Hyuga Shoyo is still on the field, Kageyama Tobio, this super AI, will have the strongest execution terminal.

If we don't do something, this game can just be over.

Lu Ren turned to look at Tsukishima beside him: "Can you stop them?"

Hotaru Tsukishima coldly stared at the small figure still bouncing around on the other side of the net, and unusually spoke the truth: "That kind of starting speed is beyond human reaction time. If I try to defend against that weirdo's fast attacks, the wing attackers on both sides will be completely exposed. It's a dead end."

"If you can't react, then don't react." Lu Ren stretched his sore neck, his eyes showing no fear, but rather a shrewdness like someone playing a strategy game. "Since it's a finishing move, it must have a cooldown or a moment of vulnerability. Next time, if that orange-haired guy charges at you like that again, just ignore him."

Tsukishima raised an eyebrow: "Just emptying the space?"

"Yes, let's fire." Lu Ren stared at Kageyama Tobio's position. "Since we can't stop it, let's gamble on the probability. You guard your area. If that missile comes over... I'll intercept it."

Tsukishima gave Lu Ren a deep look, and finally just nodded.

If they don't try to change their strategy, all that awaits them is a slow death.

The whistle blew. The game continued.

Kageyama Tobio stood on the service line. That strange fast break just now seemed to have opened up his meridians, and his aura was even more terrifying than at the beginning of the game.

Throw the ball, take a running start, and jump.

A standard, powerful jump serve. The volleyball, like a cannonball, hurtles straight towards the corner of the sideline.

"This is what is called a 'backplate'."

Lu Ren's body moved the instant Kageyama hit the ball. No thought was needed; after enduring a grueling half-game, he had developed muscle memory for Kageyama's serve. He shifted his body to the right, crouched, and volleyed.

"Bang!"

The ball slammed into his arm, sending a burning sensation through him. But Lu Ren didn't even flinch, using his momentum-dissipating technique to lift the ball high into the air.

The ball flew towards the vicinity of the three-meter line.

Tadashi Yamaguchi frantically ran around, his movements clumsy, but he still managed to pass the ball towards the net: "Tsukishima!"

The pass was a bit high, but that was exactly what Tsukishima wanted. He jumped from that amazing height, using his height advantage to spike the ball before Kageyama's block could form.

"Don't underestimate your senior!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka suddenly appeared and made a diving save to retrieve the ball.

Opportunity ball.

Kageyama Tobio quickly moved below the landing point.

Almost simultaneously, that chilling sound of footsteps rang out again. Hyuga Shoyo, like an orange lightning bolt, instantly cut into the restricted area—a super-fast movement that only he could achieve.

Here it comes! The weirdo's fast attack!

All eyes were drawn to Hinata's exaggerated jump. As agreed, Tsukishima Kei didn't jump, but his taut muscles betrayed his inner struggle.

If you don't stop them, you're just giving away points.

"Fly!" Hinata waved his arm in the air.

However, at that very moment, Lu Ren saw the curve of Kageyama Tobio's lips.

That was the smile of a hunter when he saw his prey fall into the net.

At the instant he touched the ball, Kageyama's wrist subtly flipped backward. He didn't pass the ball; he didn't pass it to Hinata.

Second attack!

This guy, just when everyone thought he was going to replicate his amazing skill, actually pulled off a sneaky setter drop shot!

Did this anticipate our prediction?

"Trying to fool me? Your textures haven't finished loading yet!"

Lu Ren's brain was screaming, his nerves, already in overclocked mode, instantly taking over his body. The instant Kageyama flipped his wrist, he had already shot towards the net like an arrow.

This is not a reaction, this is consciousness.

With his body outstretched in the air, Lu Ren flew out and, just as the ball was about to hit the ground, inserted one hand between the ball and the floor.

My fingertips touched the feel of the leather.

"Up!" Lu Ren roared, forcefully flicking his wrist upwards.

The volleyball was subjected to an external force, changing its downward trajectory and bouncing upwards. However, due to the excessive sprint and Lu Ren's physical limits, the ball did not fly towards his teammate as intended, but instead flew straight backwards and landed out of bounds.

"beep--"

The referee blows the whistle. Team A scores.

Lu Ren lay on the floor, watching the volleyball roll away, and sighed heavily.

"Tsk, if I were at full health, I could have saved this ball."

He rolled over, lying on his back, his chest heaving violently. Although he had lost this point, he felt no regret whatsoever; instead, he felt a sense of exhilaration, as if to say, "This is what a boss battle should be like."

On the other side of the net, Kageyama Tobio remained in the lob shot position, cold sweat trickling down his forehead. He looked at Lu Ren on the ground, his eyes showing less contempt and more apprehension.

For a brief moment, he genuinely believed he would be rescued.

A novice actually read his feints, and even his body followed his mind. If this guy had a little more physical fitness and technique, he would definitely be a formidable opponent.

"Hey, can you still stand up?"

Hotaru Tsukishima walked up to Rikuren, looking down at him with her usual sarcasm, "You were quite the flail just now, but you still couldn't save him. What a pity."

Lu Ren didn't even have the strength to roll his eyes.

He lay on the ground, struggling to regulate his breathing, which was as labored as a bellows. He slowly raised his right hand and, with a weak but firm hand, pointed at Tsukishima's irritating face, gave him the middle finger.

"Shut up...wait for me...I'll reload..."

……

When Qingze Yazhi returned to the stadium with several cans of iced cola, the game was still ongoing.

She couldn't bear to watch Lu Ren's seemingly life-threatening condition any longer, so she ran to the vending machine to buy some supplies. Little did she know that her trip there and back would change the entire situation.

The spot that originally belonged to Lu Ren now belongs to the reliable captain, Sawamura Daichi.

"That is..." Yazhi paused for a moment, looking around.

"Over there." Kiyoko Shimizu seemed to know what she was looking for and pointed to the corner of the gymnasium.

Ya-Chi looked in the direction the finger was pointing and almost burst out laughing.

Far from the court, against the wall, Lu Ren was like a prisoner facing the wall in repentance, his forehead pressed firmly against the wall, his whole body spread out in a "T" shape.

If you don't look closely, you might mistake it for the corpse of an NPC that was forcibly logged out by the system to save video memory.

Ya-zhi shook her head helplessly and walked over.

As you get closer, you can hear Lu Ren still muttering to himself, "The stamina bar is too short... This isn't right... The developers have to nerf the opponent's stats..."

"Give."

Without saying a word, Yazhi pressed the can of ice-cold cola against the back of Lu Ren's neck.

"hiss--!"

Lu Ren sprang up like a frog that had been electrocuted, and his entire body was instantly ripped off the wall.

"Which scoundrel is trying to harm me again..." He turned around groggily and saw that it was Yazhi. His previously unfocused pupils focused slightly. "Oh, it's the wet nurse."

Without any hesitation, he took the Coke, pulled the tab with a "click," and gulped it down.

The sensation of carbonated bubbles bursting in his throat finally gave him a sense of being alive again.

"You're already done after just one game?" Ya-zhi leaned against the wall, watching the intense back-and-forth on the court, her tone slightly teasing. "You looked pretty cool when you made that save."

"That was a final burst of energy before death." Lu Ren slowly slid down against the wall, sprawling unceremoniously on the floor. "Those two guys over there aren't monsters that should appear in this version at all. That Kageyama is smarter than me; that Hinata, his physical abilities are practically a bug."

"So you're admitting defeat?"

"Give up?" Lu Ren wiped the remaining liquid from the corner of his mouth, looking at Hyuga Shoyo who was still yelling and shouting not far away, a trace of unwillingness flashing in his eyes, "What a joke. I just... let my account AFK to recover some mana."

He gripped the Coke can tightly in his hand.

"Once my stamina is fully restored, I absolutely have to find a way to conquer this dungeon."

On the field, Hinata Shoyo leaped high into the air once again, his orange figure shining brightly under the lights.

Lu Ren narrowed his eyes and stopped talking, just watching quietly as the data and formulas about volleyball in his mind began to run wildly again as his strength recovered.