Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

As night deepened, the air outside the stadium carried a slight chill. A few moths circled around the dim streetlights at the entrance, making soft, fluttering sounds.

After everyone tidied up the area, changed back into their casual clothes, and walked out the door, the three middle-aged men from the town association didn't rush to leave. Instead, they stood at the bottom of the steps, either stretching their aching shoulders or looking at the group of high school students with expressions of nostalgia on their faces.

"Ah, I don't really understand the specific tactics, but that's youth for you." Shimada Makoto put his hands in his pockets, looked up at the night sky, and sighed, "Those lines like 'Call for the ball, ace,' gave me goosebumps."

Nishitani Yu, who was drinking water nearby, suddenly froze, almost choking on the water. He turned his back, trying to hide himself in the shadows.

"And that one," Mori Yukinari chimed in with a laugh, mimicking Kageyama Tobio's tone, "'As long as I'm here, you're the strongest.' Tsk tsk, I really want to say something like that on the field in style too. High schoolers have it so good, these kinds of chuunibyou lines don't feel out of place at all."

Kageyama Tobio was about to sling his schoolbag over his shoulder when he heard this. His usually cold face instantly turned bright red, and his eyes darted around.

"However," Takigami said, shaking his car keys as he watched Tanaka and Hinata playfully bickering, "that drive to experiment with new moves even at the very last moment is truly enviable. Whether you succeed or hit the net with your serve like someone else, that 'I'm not afraid to lose' mentality is probably the privilege of youth."

Lu Ren, the person named, remained unfazed, showing no awareness whatsoever of being a negative example.

Looking at the group of middle-aged men reminiscing about their glorious past, he suddenly spoke up: "Actually, I think it's better for adults."

Everyone was stunned, and all eyes were on him.

Lu Ren held up a finger, his tone as calm as if he were reading out the background settings of an NPC: "Although you often have to work overtime without pay and are used like expendable material by your boss, at least you get a system reward called 'salary' every month."

Makoto Shimada's smile froze for a moment.

Lu Ren raised his second finger: "Although this salary hasn't even been in your hands for long before you have to use it to fill the huge financial black holes of mortgage and car loan, and even to recharge the money-devouring beast, it at least shows that you have your own copy of the asset."

Mori Yukinari's lips twitched slightly.

Lu Ren raised his third finger: "Although as you get older, there are more and more abnormal values ​​on your medical reports, your hairline is receding, your uric acid is rising, you can't eat seafood or drink beer, and you have to wait three days to recover after staying up all night, at least it shows that you still have a body that can barely function."

Takigami's hand trembled, and he almost dropped the car keys.

Lu Ren didn't stop, continuing to raise his fourth finger, his eyes sincere: "Although my friends who used to play games together are now separated by work and family, and we almost never see each other except for weddings and funerals, and the avatars of my friends on my contact list have all gone gray and stopped lighting up, and my address book is only filled with telemarketing calls and delivery/takeout calls, loneliness explodes in the dead of night..."

A large, strong hand suddenly appeared and covered Lu Ren's mouth tightly.

Sawamura Daichi's forehead veins bulged, and he wore an extremely kind smile: "Alright, Lu Ren, that's enough. If you keep going, this won't be a shonen manga, it'll be a depressing social documentary."

The three adults opposite him were completely petrified.

The warm atmosphere of "youth is wonderful" was completely gone, replaced by the bleakness of being brutally beaten by reality. The three middle-aged men clutched their chests, feeling as if arrows had pierced their knees, their health bars completely depleted.

"This kid..." Takigami took a deep breath, his finger pointing at Lu Ren trembling, unable to utter a single rebuttal for a long time. Because every word this kid said was real damage, the kind that ignores defense.

Finally, Takigami could only sigh and look at Sawamura Daichi: "Although Karasuno's team still looks like a disorganized mess and their coordination is chaotic, as long as they can unite, they should be able to go further."

As he spoke, his gaze returned to Lu Ren, who was being held by the earth's throat, his expression complex.

"As for you..." Takigami walked over and patted Lu Ren on the shoulder earnestly, "Listen to your uncle's advice. When you graduate and enter society, you must be careful. Otherwise, with that mouth of yours, you really could get beaten to death. Buy an accident insurance policy, and name me as the beneficiary."

Lu Ren blinked, his mouth covered, but his eyes still conveyed an innocent "I'm stating the facts" attitude.

At this moment, Qingze Yazhi walked forward very naturally, took out a lollipop from her bag, and unwrapped it. The instant Dadi let go, she directly stuffed the candy into Lu Ren's mouth, physically silencing him.

"We're so sorry!" The Karasuno group bowed in unison, their voices booming, "We've caused you so much trouble!"

After seeing off the three traumatized adults, everyone returned to the entrance of the stadium.

Ukai Shishin was leaning against the doorframe, the scoreboard at his feet. He looked at the group of energetic kids in front of him, took the unlit cigarette out of his mouth and held it between his fingers.

Listen carefully.

Ukai's voice wasn't loud, but it was very penetrating. Hyuga and Tanaka, who had been whispering to each other, immediately stood up straight.

"Although we lost today's match, it at least revealed a lot of problems." Ukai Shishin pointed out the sore spots without reservation, "Especially the receiving. That jump float ball, apart from Nishiya and Daichi, was a disaster for everyone else. If you can't even get the first pass right, the strongest attack is just for show, you don't even have a chance to unleash your skills."

Hinata shrank back, remembering the lost volleyball.

"So," Ukai Shishin straightened up, his eyes sharpening, "starting tomorrow, we'll be undergoing hellish catching training. If we don't do well in this, everything else will be for nothing. Be prepared."

"yes!!!"

The unified response echoed through the night.

"Thank you very much! Thank you for your guidance!"

After the meeting was dismissed, everyone began to do their final stretching exercises in the open space.

Wu Yang Xixin watched as the group of boys twisted into various strange positions on the ground, let out a long breath, and slumped his shoulders.

"What's wrong?" Takeda Ittetsu walked over with his notebook, adjusted his glasses, and asked, "Are our receiving skills really that bad? Why are you sighing like that?"

"It's definitely bad, but that's not why I'm sighing." Wu Yangxi scratched his messy, dyed-gold hair and gave a wry smile. "When I was a player, I just followed the coach's instructions and only thought about how to hit the ball over there. I never thought about training plans, player condition, tactical arrangements, or any of those other messy things."

He looked at Kageyama, who was helping Hinata stretch her legs, his gaze somewhat unfocused.

"Now, as a decision-maker, what you call an 'adult,' there are too many things to consider. A single wrong instruction could ruin these guys' game." Ukai Shishin shook his head. "Being a coach is much more tiring than playing."

Takeda Ittetsu smiled: "But you don't seem to dislike this feeling."

"Well...who knows."

Ukai Shishin clapped his hands, interrupting everyone's stretching: "Alright! You've stretched enough. Let's shout one last slogan, then we're dismissed for today!"

All the team members quickly gathered together.

Everyone formed a circle, with their arms around each other's shoulders, making it completely airtight.

Sawamura Daichi, as captain, stood on one side of the circle and said in a deep voice, "For the upcoming Golden Week training and that important practice match, starting tomorrow, let's go full speed ahead!"

"oh!!!"

"Carrasno—"

"FIGHT!!!"

The roar was deafening, startling the crows in the trees into taking flight.

After shouting the slogan, everyone didn't disperse immediately. Instead, they stayed in that position, looking at each other's sweaty faces and grinning foolishly.

Lu Ren stood between Kageyama and Tanaka, with the unfinished lollipop still dangling from his mouth.

He looked left and right.

On the left is Ryunosuke Tanaka, with a shaved head, a fierce look, and a smile like a thug who has just collected protection money.

On the right is Kageyama Tobio, with a fierce look in his eyes. Because he shouted so loudly just now, his expression is so ferocious that it looks like he is planning some kind of murder.

Opposite him was Dong Fengxu, with a small mustache and long hair, and a burly build. He looked like the kind of thug leader who would ambush people in dark alleys.

Although Nishitani Yu is small in stature, her spiky hair and wild smile make her look anything but kind.

As for Hinata... he's flushed with excitement, his eyes are wide open like copper bells, gleaming eerily under the dim streetlights, like a mental patient who just escaped from prison.

Even the most refined Tsukishima, at this moment, had a sinister smirk on his lips that revealed the sinister nature of a scumbag.

Lu Ren took out the lollipop and sighed.

"What's wrong, Lu Ren?" Da Di was in a good mood and patted him on the back.

Lu Ren pointed to the group of people around him and said sincerely, "Captain, don't you think? No matter how you look at it, our setup is more like the villain's personal guard than the righteous protagonist group, isn't it?"

"Especially the one with the beard and the bald one," Lu Ren pointed to Dongfeng Xu and Tanaka, "they would definitely be questioned by the police more than three times if they walked down the street."

"Huh? Who are you calling a villain?!" Tanaka instantly bristled, striking a pose as if he were about to bite. "This is called manliness! Don't you understand manliness?!"

"Do...do I look like a villain too?" Dong Fengxu clutched his chest, his newly built-up confidence crumbling instantly. "I'm clearly very kind..."

"Alright, alright, stop joking around." Earth sighed and pushed the group away. "Hurry home! Be careful on the road!"

As night fell, the group of boys in black uniforms walked away noisily.

Although they didn't look like a proper team, something called "bonds" quietly took root and sprouted on this slightly chilly night.

"So be it, villain it is." Lu Ren followed at the back of the group, watching the backs of the characters playing around ahead, and muttered to himself, "Anyway, in the current version of the game, villains are usually stronger and more charismatic than the protagonists, aren't they?"

He bit the remaining lollipop into pieces, and the sweetness spread throughout his mouth.

A new instance is about to open.