Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The whistle was sharp, cutting through the noisy background sounds inside the venue, which were a mix of baby crying and casual conversation.

Hotaru Tsukishima stood behind the service line, twirling a volleyball in his hand. He pushed up his glasses, the glare obscuring the emotions in his eyes; his face, usually etched with a mocking expression, was now somewhat tense. He felt physically uncomfortable with this kind of "family-friendly" opponent.

"Smack."

The serve wasn't a powerful jump serve, but rather a flat drive aimed at the sideline. The trajectory was very straight, with no extra spin.

Kazuka Akiho, the libero from Wakuya Minami, almost slid into position, his knees slightly bent, his arms like a precisely calibrated mat, gently unloading the ball in front of him.

"In place!"

Setter Hanayama delivered a perfect first pass, and without hesitation, passed the ball directly to their captain, Takeshi Nakajima.

In the front row, Kageyama Tobio, Tanaka Ryunosuke, and Hyuga Shoyo all leaped at the same time. Karasuno's block was like a newly poured concrete wall, its shadow instantly enveloping the attacker who was only a little over 1.7 meters tall.

The height difference is visible to the naked eye.

An ordinary attacker, faced with this kind of pressure, would either force their way through or panic. But Nakajima Takeshi's posture in the air was surprisingly relaxed; he even had the leisure to move his eyes and scan the blocking fingers.

He didn't smash the ball with full force.

At the moment of contact with the ball, he flicked his palm to the side, and the volleyball, with a strong side spin, precisely grazed the tip of Tanaka Ryunosuke's outermost little finger.

"Smack."

With a crisp sound, the volleyball changed its trajectory and flew towards the edge of the boundary.

"Touch out!"

The referee blew the whistle, and the flag pointed to Minami Wakuya. 1-1.

Nakajima landed hard, clenched his fist and let out a low growl, his posture remarkably similar to that of the "Little Giant" from back in the day.

Hotaru Tsukishima landed on the ground, his brows instantly furrowing into a tight knot. He stared at the volleyball rolling away, his face showing undisguised disgust, as if what had just brushed against his fingers wasn't a volleyball, but a fly covered in bacteria.

"This kind of play..." Tsukishima clicked his tongue, his voice so low that only those around him could hear, "is infuriating."

Using the height difference of the block, instead of going head-to-head, they specifically aim for the fingertips and the outside of the arm to create out-of-bounds situations. This extremely rational, even somewhat "insidious," skill-based style of play completely strips away the thrill of high-octane collisions that are typical of volleyball.

"You can't even handle this?"

Lu Ren had somehow appeared behind Tsukishima, hands on his hips, looking at Nakajima Takeshi across from him with an excited expression of finding a kindred spirit. "That's called making good use of the game mechanics. Using collision volume to deal damage to high-armored units that can't be penetrated is a basic skill for pro players."

Tsukishima glanced at Lu Ren sideways, her tone icy: "What's with that disgusting look on your face, like you're seeing a confidant? To be honest, you belong to that type of person too."

"Oh?" Lu Ren raised an eyebrow. "Are you praising my refined technique?"

"No." Tsukishima turned back to his seat expressionlessly. "What I mean is, your personalities of exploiting loopholes and disgusting your opponents are exactly the same."

Lu Ren grinned, not taking it as a derogatory term at all. Instead, he nodded with some satisfaction: "Thank you for the compliment, A-Yue. But since we're the same kind, let's see whose patch is more complete."

The game continues.

Minami Wakuya serves Matsushima. The ball speed is moderate; a stable approach is preferred.

Daichi Sawamura received the ball steadily, delivering a perfect first pass to the net. Tobio Kageyama touched the ball with his fingertips and instantly passed it to Tanaka on the left wing.

"Watch me!!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka roared as he slammed the ball down, but the powerful straight shot was blocked by Minami Wakuya's libero, Akiho Kazuya. That guy was like a roly-poly toy, with an incredibly low center of gravity, managing to keep the cannonball upright.

"The defense is really sticky." Lu Ren squinted in the back row.

Possession changes hands. Setter Hanayama from Wakuya Minami pushes the ball to position four again.

It's Takeshi Nakajima again.

This time, Karasuno's blocking team consisted of two players—Kageyama Tobio and Tanaka Ryunosuke.

Nakajima leaped into the air, remaining suspended for an extremely long time. He observed the position of Kageyama's arm in mid-air, then flicked his wrist with remarkable dexterity.

It wasn't a powerful spike, nor was it a lob.

The volleyball, with its strange spin, slammed into the outside of Kageyama's blocking arm.

"It's thugs again!" Tanaka shouted.

The volleyball struck the outside of Kageyama's forearm, bounced off, and flew at a sharp angle towards the "GG" sign outside the court. The angle was so tricky; it flew almost sideways, making it impossible for a normal defensive position to reach it.

Some fans in Wakuya Minami's support section were already preparing to cheer. Nakajima Takeshi's lips also curled up slightly; this was his most effective scoring formula.

However, just when everyone thought the ball was doomed.

A dark shadow suddenly appeared on the ball's trajectory.

Without any warning, without any extra footsteps, Lu Ren slid along the floor as if he had been waiting for the ball all along, his body stretching into a straight line.

"Fish leaping".

Lu Ren stretched out his arm, and just as the volleyball was about to touch the ground, his palm scooped up the bottom of the ball with the precision of a hook.

"rise."

With a flick of the wrist, the volleyball was hooked high back onto the court.

"What?!" Nakajima Takeshi's upturned lips froze instantly, and his pupils contracted sharply.

When did that guy get there?

He was just in the middle of the back row a moment ago, how come he was already off the court the moment the ball hit the net? This prediction is like he has X-ray vision!

"Hyuga!" Riku Ren called out.

"Whoa whoa whoa!!" Hinata Shoyo reacted quickly, darting over like an orange monkey and setting the high ball towards the net.

At that moment, the entire Wakuya team was stunned for a split second by that incredible save. They thought the ball had gone out of bounds, and their defensive formation had become fatally lax.

"Chance!!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka wasn't about to let such a windfall slip by. He didn't even need a running start; he jumped from the spot, swung his arm, and delivered a powerful dunk over the empty backcourt.

"Bang!"

The volleyball hit the floor and bounced towards the ceiling.

The referee blew the whistle. 1-2, Karasuno scored.

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

"Hey! What was that save all about?"

"Is that number 13 a prophet? He started running before the ball even hit his hand?"

Lu Ren got up from the ground, dusted off his knees, and with that smug smile on his face, looked at Nakajima Takeshi through the net. He pointed to his eyes, then to the spot where the ball had landed, his lips moving silently.

"I've figured out your trajectory."

Takeshi Nakajima felt a chill run down his spine. As a skillful attacker, his greatest pride was in making his opponents feel the frustration of "watching the ball fly away helplessly." But now, that frustration had been bounced back exactly as it was.

That look... was like looking at a primary school math problem that had already been solved.

"Is this what they call a 'natural enemy'...?" Nakajima gritted his teeth. The feeling of being outmaneuvered in terms of intelligence and prediction was even more unpleasant than being blasted away by a monster like Ushijima Wakatoshi.

It's Karasuno's turn to serve.

Hinata Shoyo stood on the baseline with the ball in his hand, took a deep breath, and his face was full of determination, "I'm going to serve a good ball."

"Good serve, Hinata!"

"oh!"

Hyuga tosses the ball and swings his arm.

The ball floated over the net, but landed too straight, practically handing a free pass to the opposing libero. Akiho didn't even move his feet, easily rising into the air.

"An opportunity ball!"

Wakuya Minami countered. Setter Hanayama this time chose Shiraishi, the outside hitter on the other side.

Shiraishi jumps and smashes.

"One Touch!" Hotaru Tsukishima's fingers brushed against the ball, effectively slowing its speed.

"Great opportunity!" Nishitani Yuu calmly placed the ball in the back row. "Kageyama!"

Kageyama Tobio stood under the net, his gaze sweeping across the front row. Hinata was running, and Tanaka was calling for the ball. But instead of passing to anyone, he flicked his wrist backward and made a behind-the-back pass!

The volleyball flew in a very low arc towards the right side of the back row.

Is that a no-man's-land? No.

Lu Ren had already taken a running start and jumped.

This was completely different from his disheveled save earlier. Now, Lu Ren's eyes were as cold as if he were performing surgery. He soared into the air behind the three-meter line, his body like a fully drawn bowstring.

Faced with the block that was quickly covered by Minami Wakuya, Lu Ren did not choose to spike hard or hit the hand.

His wrist made an extremely subtle outward flick at the moment of impact.

"Snapped!"

The volleyball didn't fly towards the baseline; instead, it sliced ​​into the blind spot within the three-meter line at a very small acute angle.

That was a theoretically extremely difficult "vacuum zone" to defend.

The ball landed and bounced. Wakuya Minami's teammates didn't even have time to make a save.

1:3.

"Beautiful!!" Tanaka rushed over and slapped Lu Ren hard on the back. "What's wrong with your brain? How could you hit a shot like that?"

"It's just basic geometry," Lu Ren shrugged. "Once you calculate the landing coordinates, all that's left is to execute the program."

He glanced at Nakajima Takeshi, whose face was somewhat grim, and chuckled inwardly. The best way to counter an opponent who plays with their brain is to overwhelm them with an even more insane mental approach.

"One more ball! Hinata!"

Hinata Shoyo stood on the service line again. Although he had a chance to serve earlier, his teammates scored the point, which boosted his confidence.

"For this shot, I'm going to serve a magic ball that disappears!"

Flames burned in Hinata's eyes. He tossed the volleyball high into the air, took a running start, jumped, and swung his arm—

All eyes were on him.

"Snapped!"

A muffled thud.

The volleyball slammed heavily onto the white band of the net, not only failing to clear the net but also bouncing back, almost hitting Hyuga's foot.

"..."

The once bustling venue fell into a deathly silence.

The referee blew his whistle mercilessly. 2-3.

Hinata remained frozen in place, maintaining the arm-waving posture, his entire body gradually turning gray, as if his soul had left his body and floated into the sky above Sendai City.

Lu Ren covered his face, his shoulders trembling violently.

"Is this what they call... the 'law of conservation of luck'?" He sighed, walked over and patted the petrified Hinata on the shoulder. "It's okay. Even though your serve is terrible, the way you give points to the other side is really cool."

Kageyama Tobio walked over with a dark expression, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked: "Idiot! What kind of garbage serve was that?!"

"sorry!!!"