Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

After dinner, the wooden floorboards in the dormitory hallway creaked slightly. Lu Ren walked alone toward the coach's room, feeling just like he was on the eve of his mixed doubles match as a child, carrying a failing test paper home.

Pushing open the door, the atmosphere in the room was somewhat heavy.

Ukai Shishin sat cross-legged in the center, holding a notebook with its edges curled up from repeated readings, while Takeda Ittetsu sat beside him with a worried expression.

"Sit down." Wu Yang raised his chin and pointed to the cushion opposite him.

Lu Ren swallowed hard, his gaze sweeping over the two faces as his brain raced, searching for all the "crimes" committed in the past twenty-four hours.

The moment his bottom touched the cushion, before Wu Yang could even speak, Lu Ren decided to take the initiative and confess first.

"I'm sorry, Coach. I shouldn't have told that story about the 'female ghost without a lower body' last night, which caused Hinata to act like a nervous rabbit when receiving the ball today." Lu Ren put his hands on his knees, bowed his head, and admitted his mistake with an attitude that was so sincere it was outrageous.

Uoya Shishi was taken aback, his fingers holding the cigarette trembling slightly. "Huh? No wonder those kids all had such dark circles under their eyes today, like pandas. So it was you who did this?"

"Not only that." Lu Renxin gritted his teeth and decided to finish the job all at once. "Today's curry... I didn't mean to. I just thought everyone needed to work up a sweat from training, and my hand slipped, so I poured half a bottle of chili powder too much."

"So it was you!" Wu Yang's eyebrows instantly furrowed into a knot, and his voice rose, "No wonder my stomach felt like it was on fire after eating today's curry!"

Just as the topic was about to veer from "tactical guidance" to "culinary criticism," Mr. Takeda quickly coughed twice, adjusted his glasses, and tried to smooth things over: "Ahem, well... Mr. Lu Ren, we didn't call you here to investigate these pranks."

"No?" Lu Ren blinked, his tense shoulders relaxing. "That's good. You scared me to death. I thought my account was going to be banned."

Wu Yang took a deep breath, calming his anger ignited by the chili powder, and his expression became serious again. He opened his notebook and pushed it in front of Lu Ren.

"We're here to discuss your position."

"Location?" Lu Ren put away his playful smile and looked down at the densely packed data in the notebook.

"That's right." Wu Yang looked directly into Lu Ren's eyes, his tone devoid of any politeness. "I heard from Da that you want to be an all-around support player, capable of both offense and defense, filling in wherever needed, right?"

Lu Ren nodded: "That's true in theory. In games, an all-around character usually means a high margin for error."

"But reality isn't an RPG game; there's no such thing as resetting your stats and starting over." Wu Yang's words were like a scalpel, precisely cutting through Lu Ren's current awkward situation. "To be honest, right now, you're like a piece of boiled chicken breast."

"Chicken breast?" Lu Ren raised an eyebrow.

"You're tasteless to eat, but a pity to throw away." Ukai showed no mercy. "In terms of receiving, your stability is not as good as Daichi's, and your reaction speed is not as good as Nishinoya's; in terms of attacking, your power is not as good as Higashimine's, and your momentum is not as good as Tanaka's; in terms of setting, Kageyama's talent and Sugawara's experience are both superior to yours; in terms of blocking, you don't have an advantage in terms of Tsukishima's height and ball IQ. Even that Hyuga who just runs around aimlessly can have Kageyama coordinate with him to launch an unreasonable and weird quick attack."

A brief silence fell over the room.

Teacher Wu looked at Lu Ren with some concern, afraid that his words might hurt the boy's self-esteem.

But Lu Ren listened calmly without refuting anything. He knew that what Wu Yang said was true.

In Karasuno's team, which is full of "specialized geniuses," Riku Ren, whose average score in all categories is 60, has become the least distinctive player. Without a prominent strength, it means that in crucial moments, the coach cannot find a reason to send you out on the court.

"I think you should already know the starting lineup." Wu Yang observed Lu Ren's expression. "In this team, you currently don't have a place."

"I know." Lu Ren scratched his head, his tone as relaxed as if he were discussing someone else's business. "My attributes are too mediocre. I don't have a special skill or any special passive ability. If I put me in the card pool, I'd just be a three-star fodder card."

"What are your own thoughts?" Uyang asked. "If you're just content to be a substitute, then let's end our conversation here."

"Of course not." Lu Ren raised his head, a sly glint in his eyes, the kind of gleam a player has when they discover a system loophole. "The development cycle for an all-rounder is too long, and I really can't do it right now. So, I rewrote a patch for myself."

"Patch?" Teacher Takeda was completely confused.

"Since we can't be conventional combat forces, let's be 'unconventional weapons'." Lu Ren held up one finger. "My definition is—surprise attack."

Uoyo Shishin narrowed his eyes: "Explain."

"When the team is stuck in a stalemate, conventional tactics fail, or the rhythm is completely controlled by the opponent," Lu Ren pointed to his head, "use my data analysis skills and those unconventional methods to stir things up. Disrupt the opponent's rhythm, disrupt their physical engine, even if it's just by serving a few disgusting balls or passing a few balls that overload their brains."

"You want to be the assassin on the bench?" U-Yang understood.

"I guess so. After all, I'm a gamer, and gamers are best at finding bugs." Lu Ren shrugged. "Since I can't win by going head-to-head with the numbers, I guess I'll have to resort to some dirty tricks."

Wu Yang stared at Lu Ren for a long time, then suddenly grinned, a smile with a hint of roguishness.

"That's interesting. It sounds like a cheap trick, but in a game, any tactic that scores points is a good tactic." Ugao closed his notebook. "Can you do it? This kind of role requires you to draw blood as soon as you step onto the court; there's no time to warm up."

"I'll try my best to put all my skill points into 'Making Trouble'." Lu Ren stood up, patted his butt, and said, "Coach, I'll head back to recharge my mana if there's nothing else? I still need to hand out towels to all the big shots in tomorrow's match."

"Get lost." Wu Yang waved his hand. "If you dare to put so much chili in your curry again, you'll be running on mountain roads."

……

The next morning, at the gymnasium.

The air was thick with the mixed smells of Salonpas and floor wax. Ukai Shishin stood at the front of the team, holding the starting lineup that would decide their fate.

"Now, let's announce the starting lineup for the match against Otoko."

Everyone stood at attention, the atmosphere as tense as a fully drawn bowstring.

Front row: Sawamura, Hinata, Tanaka.

"Back row: East Peak, Moon Island, Kageyama."

"Free Man: Nishitani."

The names were read out one by one, and each person whose name was called responded loudly.

Lu Ren stood at the end of the line, his gaze sweeping over Sugawara Koji, who was standing in the front row.

The name Sugawara is not mentioned.

As the vice-captain of the third-year team and the setter who has always supported the team, he was squeezed out of the starting position by the first-year prodigy, Tobio Kageyama, in the most crucial practice match.

But there was no commotion within the team; even Tanaka, the most protective of his own, remained silent. Clearly, the third-year seniors had reached some kind of unspoken agreement. It was a cruel kind of tenderness; for victory, sacrifices had to be made.

As Lu Ren was preparing to move the ball hoop after the break, he saw Nishitani Yu aggressively blocking Higashi Mine Asahi.

"Asahi-senpai!" Nishitani tilted his head back, his eyes sharp as an eagle eyeing its prey. "What's with that expression?"

Dongfeng Xu paused for a moment, subconsciously scratching the back of his head, his eyes glancing evasively at Yuanshita Riki, who was pushing a volleyball cart not far away: "Huh? N-nothing..."

"Come on, don't give me that." Nishiya stood with his hands on his hips, hitting the nail on the head. "Do you feel bad for Yorushita because you took the starting position?"

Upon hearing his name called, Yuanshita Riki, who was not far away, stopped what he was doing and looked up.

Dong Fengxu's true feelings were exposed, and his tall body shrank back, his face filled with the words "I am a sinner".

Lu Ren crossed his arms and, like a spectator watching a spectacle, slowly shuffled over. How could he, as a front-row spectator, miss out on this chaotic scene?

"Asahi-senpai," Nishitani's voice rose eight octaves, filled with unwavering determination, "Only the strong can stand on the court; that's the fundamental principle of competitive sports! If you give up your position because of this or that concern, that would be the greatest insult to Yorishita!"

"Nishiya..." Higashimine Asahi opened his mouth, but was interrupted by Enoshita Riki.

"Asahi-senpai." Yorushita Riki pushed the volleyball cart over with a relieved smile on his face. "I haven't always been working tirelessly. I've also run away before, deserting because I couldn't stand that Spartan coach's training. So, I'm not qualified to stand in that position yet."

Dong Fengxu stared blankly at this junior.

"But," Nishiya chimed in, grinning to reveal a set of white teeth, "when our physical and mental abilities surpass those of the ace, we can rightfully take the regular spot from Asahi-senpai, right, Riki?"

Yoshino Riki paused for a moment, then shook her head with a wry smile: "I didn't say that, Nishitani, don't add drama to my story."

"Well said!"

Lu Ren finally couldn't help but interject. He patted Dong Fengxu's broad back muscles and clicked his tongue in amazement: "Did you hear that, Senior Xu? This is the law of the jungle. If you keep being so sensitive, you might really get swept away by the next generation one day."

Dong Fengxu said with a pained expression, "Lu Ren, could you please stop looking at me like I'm an endangered animal..."

"Well, what can we do? Our ace is a tough guy with a girlish heart," Lu Ren teased with a mischievous grin. "I think the title 'Girl Ace' suits you very well."

"A girl's ace?!" Dongfeng Xu almost choked on his own saliva.

Just then, a bald man rushed over with a gust of wind.

Ryunosuke Tanaka grabbed Yoshishita Riki by the collar, his fierce face contorted with excited rage, forehead to forehead: "Hey! Yoshishita! Trying to steal my seat? Huh?!"

"You idiot A-Long will definitely be the first one to lose your position!" Nishiya fanned the flames from the side.

"Huh?! Just what I wanted!" Tanaka released Yoshikata, pounding his chest with a series of thuds. "Bring it on, Yoshikata! Whether it's you, Kinoshita, or Narita, my position isn't going to be given up so easily!"

Yuanshita Riki looked at the group of overly enthusiastic guys in front of him and sighed helplessly, but he couldn't hide the smile in his eyes.

"Yes, yes, I will try my best."

Lu Ren stood to the side, watching his noisy teammates, a slight smile playing on his lips.

This is Karasuno. There's no backstabbing, just open ambition and competition. Everyone is giving their all for that rectangular stadium.

"Alright! Stop acting out a shonen manga!" Daichi Sawamura's roar came from the other end of the court. "Practice begins! Everyone assemble!"

Lu Ren's smile vanished, and his eyes instantly cleared.