Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The numbers on the scoreboard seemed to be dancing a tango of tension.

5: 4.

6: 4.

6: 6.

The volleyball whizzed back and forth across the net, the screech of shoes scraping the floor echoing throughout. The older men from the town's guild, though less physically fit than the high schoolers, possessed a seasoned experience that allowed them to consistently deliver the ball into difficult, unfortunate corners. Meanwhile, Karasuno, thanks to Kageyama Tobio's unpredictable playmaking and Hyuga Shoyo's erratic runs, managed to keep the score close.

12: 15.

The town team is currently leading by three points.

On the sidelines, Ukai Shishin's cigarette had long since disappeared, and he was clutching a rudimentary team roster in his hand. His rough, large hand slammed down on Takeda Ittetsu's back.

"Snapped!"

"Cough cough cough!" Teacher Takeda almost died from the slap. He staggered forward two steps, and his glasses were tilted to the side of his nose.

"These kids are pretty good!" Wu Yangxi's eyes lit up as he watched the players making their runs on the court. "Especially the setter and the libero, their fundamentals are unbelievably solid. Why didn't you tell me sooner, teacher?"

Takeda Ittetsu adjusted his glasses, rubbed his burning back, and said with a wry smile, "When I went to the store to find you before, I probably said it at least ten times... but you just didn't listen."

"Huh? Really? I probably didn't notice while I was doing the accounting." Wu Yang waved his hand without any remorse, his gaze immediately locking onto the short, orange-clad figure at the net. "But, that little guy is actually a middle blocker? Although his quick attacks are indeed ridiculously fast, if he rotates to the front row, his blocking will be a huge sieve, right?"

The 162cm tall middle blocker practically has "Come and hit me" written all over his face on the volleyball court.

At that moment, the turn on the field began. Hyuga Shoyo, knees bent, sprinted to the center of the front row.

On the other side of the net, separated by a net, was none other than the "ace" Dong Fengxu, who had just regained his touch.

Just as Dongfeng Xu was about to wipe his sweat, he felt a burning gaze fixed on him. He looked up and saw Hyuga Xiangyang staring at him with those big, round eyes, panting heavily. It didn't look like he was going to block the net; it looked like he was going to devour him.

"Uh..." Dong Fengxu felt a chill run down his spine and awkwardly turned his head away. Being stared at like that by a junior was incredibly stressful.

Hinata's mind was completely free of distractions at that moment.

—That's the trump card.

—I am now standing in the position to face off against Karasuno's strongest ace!

"Asahi!"

Sugawara Koji's voice came through.

Higashimine Asahi looked up and saw Sugawara's hand gesture. A parallel pass, creating space, then using power to overpower the opponent.

Karasuno serves. Daichi serves a steady overhand ball, and Nishitani Yuu, as if she were born to catch it, easily raises the ball.

"The pass is perfect!"

Sugawara Koji quickly moved under the ball, and without any fancy feints, steadily pushed the ball to the left wing with both hands.

"It's up to you, Asahi!"

Dong Fengxu took a running start, his heavy footsteps sounding like war drums. He leaped high into the air, his long hair billowing behind him, his whole being resembling a fully drawn bow.

The moment he jumped, the small orange-clad guy on the other side of the net moved.

Hinata Shoyo stomped his feet on the ground, and the floor made a dull thud as if it could no longer bear the weight.

"Whoosh!"

Dong Fengxu had expected a wide-open field of vision, or at most a barely manageable block with his arm unable to reach the net. But the instant he swung his arm, a face suddenly appeared on the net.

That was Hinata Shoyo's face.

Close at hand.

You can even see the volleyball reflected in his pupils.

"That was a... high jump!" Dongfeng Xu's pupils suddenly contracted.

But this was, after all, the ace's all-out attack. Dong Fengxu slammed his palm heavily onto the ball, sending it hurtling out with tremendous force and wind pressure.

"Snapped!"

The volleyball struck Hinata Shoyo's palm squarely.

But he was too light, and his strength in the air was completely insufficient. Although the volleyball was touched, it still carried enormous kinetic energy and bounced directly out of bounds.

"Out of bounds! Point!"

12: 16.

Hyuga landed, shaking his numb hands in frustration: "Damn it! The force was too great, I couldn't control it at all!"

Dong Fengxu, on the other side of the net, landed but froze for two seconds. He looked at his palm, then at the small figure bouncing across from him, and a storm raged in his heart. For a fleeting moment, he even had the illusion that he was about to be stopped and killed. Was that really a height a human could jump?

"Don't just stand there, Asahi! Serve!" Nishitani Yu shouted from behind.

The game continues.

Sugawara Koji stepped up to the service line. He took a deep breath and served a float serve, aiming straight for the ground in the back row.

"I'll take it!" Daichi Sawamura crouched down and caught the ball steadily. "Kageyama!"

Kageyama Tokio arrived.

At this point, the front-line attack points are Hyuga and Tsukishima.

Hinata had already begun his signature full-speed run-up, shouting "Give me the ball!" instantly attracting the attention of the opposing blocker.

But Kageyama flicked his wrist, and the ball flew to the right.

That's Tsukishima Hotaru.

Faced with the defensive line formed by Nishitani Yu and Higashimine Asahi, Tsukishima Hotaru did not choose to force a spike. He knew very well that his strength was insufficient to break through this combination, and his calm eyes made a judgment in an instant.

—Aim at the sideline.

When Tsukishima swung his arm, there was a noticeable flicking motion in his wrist.

"Dream on!"

Just as the ball was about to fly to the sideline of the court as Tsukishima had planned, a figure slid across the floor.

Xiguxi.

It's him again.

It was as if he had anticipated Tsukishima's prediction; at the moment the ball bounced, he scooped it up with one hand.

"That was close!" Nishitani Yu rolled on the ground and got up, grinning at Tsukishima. "Glasses, that kind of cleverness won't work on me!"

Hotaru Tsukishima clicked her tongue, her face darkening slightly.

The ball was saved and flew back to the town's half of the field.

Seeing the ball was somewhat off target, Sugawara Koji had no choice but to pass it to Takigami-san!

He took a running start and jumped from Takigami.

In front of him, Tobio Kageyama and Hotaru Tsukishima had already jumped side by side, forming a double blocking net.

Although Takigami was just an electronics store owner, he'd been playing tennis longer than these high school students had eaten rice. In the instant he was in the air, he observed the blocking. The straight line was blocked; a forced breakthrough would most likely be blocked.

—In that case, let's use a slash!

Takigami's shoulder suddenly rotated inward, instantly changing the motion that looked like he was going to hit a straight shot. His palm sliced ​​towards the side of the volleyball, preparing to hit an extremely tricky diagonal slice.

"Got it!" Takigami thought to himself with delight. That angle was a blind spot for blocking, and the back row defenders usually stood near the baseline to defend against long balls.

This ball is guaranteed to score.

However, when his palm struck the volleyball and he watched it fly out of that perfect trajectory, his smile froze on his face.

Because there was someone standing on that path where a point was guaranteed to be scored.

Lu Ren.

The kid neither lowered his center of gravity to prepare for a diving leap, nor did he nervously jump left and right. He just stood there casually, perfectly positioned at the end of Takinami's spike trajectory.

It felt as if Takigami had deliberately passed the ball to him.

"Smack."

Lu Ren brought his arms together and easily cushioned the seemingly inevitable smash.

"It's... connected?" Takigami landed, his face full of disbelief.

Lu Ren raised the ball high, muttering under his breath, "Such a big pre-attack motion, his shoulders are practically drooping, and he still wants to hit a straight shot? Does he think I'm stupid?"

In the game, this is a typical boss skill animation. As long as you understand the gesture of raising your hand, you can dodge it even without using Flash.

"Great pass!"

Kageyama Tobio gave his opponents no time to be surprised. As long as the ball hadn't touched the ground, it was the call to counterattack.

"Hinata!"

The orange figure started up again.

There are no tactics, no cover, just pure speed.

"Whoosh—Bang!"

The weirdo's fast attack.

The volleyball hit the floor of the town's team building so fast that no one could even see the afterimage.

13: 16.

"Yay! Lu Ren caught it beautifully!" Hinata shouted excitedly after landing.

Lu Ren rubbed his wrist and slowly walked back to his position: "Basic stuff, don't be ridiculous. It's just that the blond guy on the other side was being too obvious. It was like he was typing in the public chat to tell me he was going to hit a slash."

Across the net, Takigami's lips twitched: "Blonde-haired uncle... brat, I can hear you!"

Sidelines.

Wu Yangxi saw everything that had just happened clearly. He stroked the stubble on his chin, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"That kid named Lu Ren..."

Takeda Ittetsu asked nervously, "What's wrong with Riku-ren? He may seem a bit lazy, but he's actually very smart."

"It's not laziness." Wu Yangxi shook his head, pointing to Lu Ren on the court. "Look at his positioning. Just now, when most people see a double block in place, their instinctive reaction is to defend against the drop shot behind the block or the ball that was hit out of bounds. But he didn't."

"He shifted one and a half steps to the right the instant the electronics store owner jumped."

Wu Yangxi gestured with his fingers.

"That one and a half steps were crucial. He didn't catch the ball with reaction speed; he 'guessed' it. No, to be precise, he read it."

"Reading?" Takeda Ittetsu asked, puzzled.

"Observe the attacker's line of sight, the angle of his shoulders, the direction of his palms, and even the gaps left by the block." Wu Yang took a deep breath. "In his eyes, that spike probably doesn't happen in an instant, but rather in slow motion. He has already calculated where the ball will land before the opponent even releases it."

"As long as you stand in the right position, the ball will come to you by itself, even if you don't move."

Ukai Shishin looked at the boy on the other side of the field who was staring at him, and his eyes became somewhat complicated.

"This style of play is what's known as 'data flow.' Although it may seem unassuming, lacking the jumping ability of that little guy and the talent of that setter, in a match... this kind of player is often the most disgusting."

"Disgusting?" Takeda Ittetsu was taken aback.

"Ah, it's a compliment." Wu Yang Xixin grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. "For an opponent, there's nothing more disgusting than 'you can see right through everything I want to do.'"

On the field.

Lu Ren suddenly sneezed.

"Who's insulting me?" He rubbed his nose, his gaze becoming focused as he looked at the town's guild regrouping for an attack.