Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The first game continued, with the score tied at 16-16.

Coach Nekoma's timeout had an immediate effect. Nekoma's defensive formation underwent a subtle change, with Kuroo Tetsurou and Hishinyuki spreading out to the sides, leaving a huge gap in the middle.

The serve was in Otoko's hands.

Fukunaga Shohei stood at the baseline, tossed the ball, and swung his arm.

A very ordinary overhand float shot. The ball isn't fast, but it drops sharply after clearing the net, heading straight for the center of the front row in Karasuno's half of the court. That's Hyuga Shoyo's defensive zone.

Hinata instinctively took a step forward, lowered his center of gravity, and brought his hands together to cushion the ball.

boom.

The volleyball hit Hinata's forearm and bounced toward the setter position.

"Sorry, it's too short!" Hinata shouted, scrambling to his feet and trying to run backward.

But there wasn't enough time.

Kageyama Tobio had moved below the ball, his fingertips touching it. He glanced at the middle of the field; Hyuga had just regained his footing and had no space to jump.

The mid-lane fast break was paralyzed.

With a flick of his wrist, Kageyama pushed the ball to the left wing.

Ryunosuke Tanaka leaps to meet the ball. Ahead, Tetsuro Kuroo and Eisuke Yoku are already poised for attack. Without Hyuga as bait to distract him, Nekoma can confidently shift his weight towards the sideline when blocking.

Tanaka gritted his teeth and forced a straight spike. The volleyball grazed Kuroo's arm as it flew past, but in the backcourt, Yoruichi Eisuke was already waiting there.

It sits firmly on the ground.

"Counterattack!" The sound of grinding was not loud.

Yamamoto Takeshi leaped from the back row and smashed a powerful spike that broke through Tsukishima Hotaru's single block, landing on Karasuno's court.

17:16. Soundhorse overtakes.

In the stands, Oikawa Toru crushed the soda can in his hand.

"It's really dirty," he commented.

Iwaizumi turned his head: "What's dirty?"

"That setter, Oikawa Toru, is pulling Karasuno's teeth. Haven't you noticed? In these last few rallies, Karasuno's weird fast break hasn't worked once."

Iwaizumi frowned as he recalled, "It seems so. Because Hinata kept catching the ball."

"That's the most disgusting part," Oikawa Tetsu sneered. "Hyuga Shoyo's athleticism is too advanced; he'll reflexively try to save the ball as soon as it comes towards him. Kenma takes advantage of that. He serves, drops, and even blocks random balls, all of them are shoved near Hyuga. As soon as Hyuga receives a pass, he loses his balance and can't possibly jump up immediately to participate in a fast break."

Using a volleyball to pin the bait to the floor. That's Soundhorse's strategy.

On the field. Lu Ren stood on the right wing, wiping the sweat from his chin.

He stared at the grinding stone opposite him, quickly reviewing the three rounds that had just taken place in his mind.

The usage rate of the "Weird Man Fast Break" is zero. Hyuga's ball touches were four, all of which were defensive touches.

The data deviation is too large.

Lu Ren walked to the net and looked at Hisense, who was preparing to serve.

"Hyuga," Lu Ren said.

Hinata turned around, his face covered in sweat, still annoyed that he hadn't been able to jump.

"Don't touch the next ball unless it's going to hit you directly in the face." Lu Ren's tone was calm, but his words left no room for argument.

"Huh?" Hinata was stunned. "But the ball is right in front of me..."

"Hold on," Lu Ren interrupted him. "Your job is to attack, to fly in the air and draw their fire. If you lie on the ground to catch the ball, you're playing right into their hands. If you do the job, what will Senior Xigu do?"

Hearing this, Nishitani Yu from the back row pounded her chest: "That's right! Hinata, leave the defense to me and Daichi-senpai! Just run forward!"

Sawamura Daichi also came over and patted Hinata on the back: "We'll take care of the first pass. Get ready to jump."

Hinata nodded as if she understood, but her body remained tense.

The whistle blows.

Hisense serves. The volleyball crosses the net, then dips down with an unpredictable arc, landing just two steps in front of Hyuga.

Hinata instinctively leaned forward, his hands about to reach out, when Lu Ren's words flashed through his mind. He abruptly stopped, forcefully turning his body to give up his spot.

"I'll do it!"

Daichi Sawamura strode out from the side and rear, steadily placing the ball towards the net.

A perfect first pass.

Hinata's legs were completely freed. Without any hesitation, he cut directly from the right flank into the middle, his speed so fast that he was left as a fleeting orange afterimage.

Kuroo Tetsurou's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly moved sideways to defend.

late.

Kageyama Tobio's ball stopped precisely at the highest point of Hyuga's arm swing.

boom!

A powerful spike through the empty net. The volleyball slammed heavily into Nekoma's half of the court.

17: 17.

Moyan looked at the volleyball that had landed and clicked his tongue softly.

Kuro walked up to him: "We've been discovered. That kid has locked down Hyuga's defensive access."

"I told you he was annoying." Moyan wiped the sweat from his forehead. "He treats volleyball like an RPG, forcibly stripping characters of their secondary skills and keeping only their core damage dealers. This is troublesome."

On the other side of the net, Lu Ren looked at the grinding stone through the net.

"You're pretty good at tower defense games," Lu Ren said in a voice only those in the front row could hear. "Unfortunately, your crowd control skills are immune to my teammates."

Moyan didn't reply, but just looked down at the tips of his shoes.

The game returned to a stalemate.

Without the option to contain Hyuga, Nekoma was once again forced to face Karasuno's all-out offensive firepower. But as a traditional powerhouse in Tokyo, Nekoma's resilience far exceeded expectations. Yoru Eisuke's defensive coverage was ridiculously large, and he managed to catch Asahi Higashimine's powerful dunks several times.

The score went back and forth.

20: 20.

21: 21.

23:22. Karasuno leads by one point.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense in the crucial final moments of the game.

Nekoma attacks. Grinma passes the ball to Yamamoto Takeo on the left wing.

Hotaru Tsukishima jumped at the net. Instead of blocking all angles, he deliberately left an extremely narrow straight passage.

Seeing an opening in mid-air, Yamamoto Takeshi decisively swung his arm and spiked the ball down the line. The volleyball pierced through the gap in the block and headed straight for the backcourt.

But just as the ball was about to hit the ground, a figure appeared on that straight line. Lu Ren.

He was already waiting there, and steadily cushioned the powerful slam with both hands.

"Counterattack!" Lu Ren shouted.

A perfect defensive positioning. This was the unspoken understanding between Tsukishima and Rikuren. Tsukishima was responsible for filtering the attack routes, while Rikuren was responsible for recovering the ball at the finish line.

Kageyama Tobio ran to the ball, glancing across the entire field out of the corner of his eye.

Hinata jumped from the middle, while Touhou spread out on the left wing. Nekoma's blocking net was instantly torn apart.

With a flick of his wrist, Kageyama sent the ball flying towards the right wing.

After receiving the first pass, Lu Ren quickly got up and took off into the air with a three-step run-up.

Back row attack!

Kuroo Tetsuro desperately moved sideways and jumped up in an attempt to block him.

Lu Ren looked at Heiwei's arm in the air, but instead of forcefully slamming the ball down, he gently twisted his wrist and brushed it against the side of the ball.

The ball went out of bounds, grazing Kuroo's forearm.

The referee blew his whistle and pointed to Karasuno's half of the field.

24: 22.

Karasuno secured the game point in the first game.

A deafening roar erupted from the stadium. Kiyosawa Yashige jumped up excitedly in the stands, waving her light stick.

Lu Jianguo held up the camera, the lens steadily pointed at his son on the field.

"That kid's got a sharp mind," Grandpa Zhang remarked from the sidelines. "Was he deliberately leaving a gap for that tall guy with that ball?"

"This is called luring the enemy deep into your territory," Lu Jianguo chuckled. "In online games, it's called 'pulling monsters.' It's about guiding the enemy's attacks to your prepared defensive positions."

On the field, the Karasuno players formed a circle.

"Just one more point!" Daichi Sawamura clapped his hands. "Let's take it in one fell swoop!"

On Otokoma's side, Coach Nekomata used his last timeout.

Mojin sat in the chair, panting heavily. He was much more exhausted than usual. Karasuno's offensive pace was too fast, and their multi-pronged attack forced him to constantly calculate and run.

"Grind it." Kuroo handed over the water bottle. "Can you still manage?"

"Let's let the first round go." Mo Yan took a sip of water, his voice very soft.

"What?" Yoru was stunned.

"Kanasano's momentum is at its peak right now. That number 13 has their system running smoothly. We'll have to put in three times the effort to fight for this last point." Makoto looked up, his gaze passing over the net and landing on Rikuren. "Save your energy for the second set. Their fast attacks are very tiring. I don't believe they can maintain this level of performance."

Kuroo stared at Maki for two seconds, then grinned.

"Okay. I'll do as you say."

The timeout has ended. Both teams have returned to the court.

Karasuno serves. Tadashi Yamaguchi is substituted in to serve the crucial ball.

He took a deep breath, tossed the ball, and jumped.

A jump float ball. The volleyball suddenly drops in front of the net, looking for Hisense.

Hisense barely managed to get the ball up, and the first pass was only halfway there. The team didn't organize any complex tactics, simply pushing the ball directly to Yamamoto for a set attack.

This ball posed no threat to Karasuno's defense. Yuu Nishitani caught it easily.

Kageyama Tobio passed the ball to Hinata Shoyo, who jumped and launched a clean and efficient fast break that slammed into the court.

25: 22.

The whistle blew. The first game ended, with Karasuno taking the lead.

The two teams switched sides. As Lu Ren walked past the net posts, he brushed past Mo Yan.

"Giving up match point to conserve energy?" Lu Ren asked without looking up. "A very rational decision. However, I won't let you off easy in the second set either."

Moyan stopped and glanced at him.

"Your system has been exposed." Moyan said calmly. "In the second round, I will dismantle it."

Lu Ren smiled and strode towards the substitutes' bench.

"I'll be waiting."

Uyang Xixin held the tactics board and watched the players walk off the field.

"Well done. We won the first game, but Nekoma clearly didn't put in enough power on that last shot. They were building up their strength." Ukai pointed to the tactical board. "In the second game, they'll definitely change their defensive strategy. Rikuren, what are your thoughts?"

Lu Ren drank half a bottle of water and picked up a towel to wipe his sweat.

"He's been grinding through that host machine; he's collected enough data in the first game. In the second game, he'll start writing an antivirus program specifically for us." Lu Ren looked at the red half of the field opposite them. "The conventional approach definitely won't work. We need to introduce new variables."

"What variable?" Kageyama asked.

Lu Ren turned to look at Sugawara and Yamaguchi on the bench.

"Two setters aren't enough. We need to play with multiple cores." Lu Ren picked up a marker and drew a few circles on the tactics board. "In the second set, I'm going to completely disrupt their underlying logic."