Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The whistle pierced the air, splitting the stadium in two.

Although it was just a hastily put-together practice match, the air crackled with tension the moment they faced each other across the net. Lu Ren stood in the back row, his gaze sweeping over the opposing lineup: the "Guardian" Nishitani Yu, with maxed-out defense; the "Ace" Higashimine Asahi, whose stats were off the charts even though his mental state was still building; and Sugawara Koji, who always had a smile on his face but was full of tactical acumen.

This setup looks like the standard "tank, mage, healer" trinity, while our side consists entirely of squishy, ​​single-target burst damage dealers.

"It would be too embarrassing to lose to a bunch of old men," Tsukishima Hotaru said coldly as she pushed up her glasses and stood in front of the net.

"Huh? What discouraging talk are you spouting! Just beat them to a pulp!" Tanaka Ryunosuke slapped his thigh loudly, glaring fiercely at the other side.

Game start.

The town team served first. The bespectacled, seemingly mild-mannered man (I think his name was Shimada?) stood at the baseline, tossed the ball, and swung his arm. His motion wasn't particularly standard, nor did it have the imposing feel of a jump serve, but the serve was extremely cunning, softly floating over the net and heading straight for the edge where the front and back rows crossed.

"I'll do it."

Hotaru Tsukishima stepped forward, arms crossed. Despite his sharp tongue, his fundamentals were solid; he effortlessly deflected the ball and set it up. The volleyball was set up high, not perfectly, but good enough.

Tobio Kageyama didn't even move much, just adjusted his body orientation. He raised his hands to catch the ball the instant it fell, his fingers making a soft "snap" sound as they touched the surface.

Without any unnecessary movements, the ball, like a precisely guided missile, instantly traced a straight line across the net.

"nice shot!"

Ryunosuke Tanaka had already taken a running start and jumped. In the air, he was like a fully drawn bow, facing the double net that the town team had not yet managed to close, and he swung his arm down hard.

"Bang!"

The volleyball hit the opposite floor and bounced towards the back wall.

1: 0.

"Yay!!" Tanaka shouted after landing, clenching his fist as if he had already won the national championship.

Kageyama simply withdrew his hand coldly, his eyes still fixed on the other side, as if the precise pass he had just made was as simple as breathing.

As the game turned, Lu Ren headed to the serve position.

He twirled the volleyball in his hand, feeling the rough texture of the leather. This was his first time facing Sugawara Koji in a formal match.

"The first rule of PVP," Lu Ren narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the net and across the opposing team's positions, "In team fights, target the healers first; when killing, cut off their healing first."

While the opposing team of older men are experienced, their setting skills are definitely inferior to those of a dedicated setter like Sugawara. If Sugawara is forced to receive the first pass, the quality of his second-touch pass will be significantly reduced. If the pass is inaccurate, how much of his ability can that hesitant "ace" player still exert?

Lu Ren took a deep breath, tossed the ball, and took a running start.

This wasn't a powerful jump serve, but rather something he'd been working on lately—finding someone to serve to.

The ball wasn't fast, but it had a clear downward trajectory, flying straight towards Sugawara Koji in the back row.

"I'll do it!"

Sugawara clearly didn't expect his junior to target him right away, but he reacted quickly, squatting down and placing his hands firmly under the ball.

"The first pass is in place!" Sugawara shouted.

Lu Ren's lips curled up slightly. The setter was in place, but who would be the setter?

Sure enough, the middle-aged man closest to the ball was forced to move up. That man was clearly not good at setting; his movements were stiff, and his fingers were hard as they poked the ball.

"Sorry! The ball went too high!" the middle-aged man shouted.

The ball flew high and floated, completely lacking speed, and even left the net some distance away. In volleyball terminology, this kind of ball is called an "adjustment attack," but in Lu Ren's view, it was an easy point.

"Stop him!"

Kageyama and Tsukishima quickly closed in, forming a wall at the net. Against such a slow-moving ball, the double blocker had ample time to judge the landing point and timing.

Lu Ren set up his defensive stance in the back row, calculating in his mind whether the ball would be blocked or become a chance for Karasuno after being touched.

However, in the next second, a tall figure blocked the light from the overhead lamp.

Dong Fengxu took a running start.

His movements were not light; each step he took on the floor made a dull thud, like a heavy tank advancing. He jumped the instant the wobbly ball began to fall.

Feeling of emptiness.

That was the first word that popped into Lu Ren's mind. The big guy with the small mustache seemed to pause in mid-air for a moment. It wasn't a light flight, but rather a powerful build-up of energy.

The thick arm swung down like a whip.

"boom!"

It wasn't the crisp sound of a ball hitting the ground, but a muffled clap of thunder.

The volleyball slammed heavily into Kageyama and Tsukishima's arms. Lu Ren watched helplessly as those two blocking arms were forcefully slammed backward. The ball didn't even change direction; instead, it spun wildly and broke through the net, crashing into the floor at his feet like a cannonball.

thump.

The floor seemed to shake.

Lu Ren froze in place, maintaining his stance as if ready to catch the ball, but the ball had already bounced into the ceiling.

1: 1.

The entire room fell silent.

Kageyama looked at his slightly reddened palms, his pupils contracting slightly. Tsukishima frowned, shaking his somewhat numb wrist.

"This is... the ace?" Lu Ren swallowed.

That pass was terrible. There was no screen, no speed, and the positioning was even awkward. But Dong Fengxu, through sheer brute force, turned this "dead ball" into a score.

Is this the aesthetics of violence?

Lu Ren looked at the large man who was still scratching his head sheepishly after landing, and a chill suddenly ran down his spine. If even this monster was made to question his existence by Date Kogyo, then just what level was Date Kogyo's barrier? An iron wall? Or a wall of sighs?

"Don't worry about it! Next shot!" Daichi Sawamura's voice brought everyone back to reality.

The town's team serves.

This time, the one serving is that blond-haired guy (Takigami). His approach run is perfect, and his jump is powerful.

"Jump serve!"

Lu Ren quickly judged the landing point and moved his feet. The ball was very fast and had a strong topspin.

"I'll do it!"

Lu Ren clamped his arms tightly together, facing the incoming ball.

The moment the ball touched his arm, a heavy force came through. Lu Ren's heart skipped a beat: it was heavier than he had expected!

He instinctively tried to deflect the force, but he was a beat too slow. The volleyball hit his forearm and didn't bounce obediently towards the setter's position; instead, it flew diagonally to the side.

"Sorry! The ball went out of bounds!" Lu Ren shouted.

The volleyball flew over the net and wobbled back to the town's team's court.

"An opportunity ball!"

The people on the other side shouted it out almost in unison.

Just as the ball was about to hit the ground, an orange figure slid across the floor. It was Xigu Xi. His movements were as fast as lightning, yet as steady as a rock.

"Smack."

The ball was gently lifted, tracing a perfect parabola, and landed steadily at the three-meter line in front of the net.

That's the most comfortable position for the setter.

Sugawara Koji was already standing there.

Unlike Kageyama, he didn't exude an intimidating aura; his posture was relaxed, his hands gently raised. At the moment of contact with the ball, his eyes glanced to the left.

Karasuno's block was fooled by this glance, and his center of gravity shifted slightly.

However, the ball flew to the right.

The blond man, Takigami, already understood perfectly. He cut in from the right wing, jumped, and spiked the ball.

At this point, Karasuno's blocker hurriedly jumped, but it was too late.

Lu Ren desperately lunged out from the back row, attempting a diving save. His fingertips scraped the floor with a screeching sound, but the ball still landed two centimeters in front of his fingertips.

1: 2.

Lu Ren lay on the floor, watching the ball roll away, and punched the floor in frustration.

"Damn, these middle-aged men are working together way too well."

On the opposite side, after landing, Uncle Takigami gave Sugawara a thumbs up and smiled brightly: "Beautiful pass, Sugawara! That was such a perfect pass, it was like feeding him right to his mouth."

Sugawara smiled and wiped his sweat: "It's because Mr. Takigami made good positioning."

"Wow--!"

Over here, Hinata Shoyo was practically glued to the screen, his eyes sparkling with admiration. "That fast break! That pass! Sugawara-senpai is amazing! That 'whoosh' feeling of passing it so fast!"

Sawamura Daichi stood to the side, hands on his hips, a fatherly smile on his face, even showing a hint of pride: "Of course, Asagi is our Karasuno's proper setter, his skills are very strong."

Lu Ren got up from the ground, dusted off his knees, and rolled his eyes at his captain's "look how great my wife is" expression.

"Captain," Lu Ren said quietly, "While I admit that Sugawara-senpai is very strong, isn't this the time for team idol worship? He's practically wielding a knife against us right now. Can you tone down that smug look on your face a little?"

Dadi coughed awkwardly, then straightened his face: "Ahem! Anyway, everyone, stay focused! Don't let the other side get your rhythm out of control!"

Across the net, Nishitani Yu walked over to Sugawara and patted him hard on the back: "Suga! That pass was really cool! You seemed more decisive than before!"

Sugawara paused for a moment, looking at his hands.

In that last play, he didn't subconsciously look for the ace's position.

"Is that so..." Sugawara murmured softly, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his lips. "Being praised like that by you makes me even happier than winning the game."

"Speaking of which, it's the seniors from the town association who coordinated so well." Sugawara looked up at the adults who were panting but had bright eyes. "They're truly veterans; they managed to put on a great show even with this impromptu teamwork."

His gaze gradually hardened, no longer carrying the slight hesitation it had before.

"My passing skills are indeed far from good enough, not as good as Kageyama's talent," Sugawara told himself. "However, I must use fast breaks more often and spread out my attacking options. If I keep throwing the ball to Asahi when I encounter difficulties, like before, I will only repeat the same mistakes."

The game must not be allowed to become a one-man show that relies on "aces".

The setter's responsibility is to mobilize the entire team and clear obstacles for the attackers, not to push all the pressure onto one person.

Standing in the back corner, Dong Fengxu silently watched this scene.

Watching Nishiya shouting encouragement to his teammates, watching Sugawara calmly directing those unfamiliar adults, watching the volleyball fly back and forth in the air.

That familiar "squeak" of shoe soles rubbing against the floor, that dull thud of a volleyball hitting an arm, and the smell of antiperspirant spray and dust in the air.

"A-Jin..." Dongfeng Xu clenched his fist, his palms sweating. "You've become even more reliable since I last saw you."

He then looked at the small libero who was running around the court.

"Nishiya is still so reassuring. As long as he's behind you, it feels like the ball will never hit the ground."

Dong Fengxu lowered his head and looked at his large, somewhat clumsy hands.

"And what about me?"

"He was terrified, and he said he didn't want to play anymore, but he was dragged in and ended up standing on the court anyway."

"Returning aimlessly, waving aimlessly."

"Dong Fengxu, you're such a spineless coward."

He cursed himself in his heart.

but.

When that lousy ball flew over, my body acted before my brain. The urge to smash it, the desire to slam the ball hard onto the floor, was simply irrepressible.

"But as expected..."

Dongfeng Xu raised his head, his gaze passing through the net to look at Yingshan Feixiong, who was staring intently at him, and Lu Ren, who had a wicked smile on his face.

I still like it here.