Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The atmosphere on the sidelines was no less relaxed than on the field.

Ukai Shishin's tactical board was almost deformed from being squeezed so tightly. He stared at the smiling old man on the opposite bench, his back teeth grinding together. The cat coach's relaxed attitude, as if he were drinking tea and reading the newspaper in his own backyard, was the biggest mockery of the chaotic situation on this side.

"Don't worry, Ukai-kun." Although Teacher Takeda didn't understand the tactical details, he could feel the tension in the air. "Everyone is tired, but their eyes are still shining."

On the field, the whistle blew.

Otoko serves.

The ball's trajectory was tricky, heading straight for the back corner. Lu Ren didn't even have time to think; his body reacted before his brain, using a side slide to cushion the ball.

"The pass is perfect!"

Hinata Shoyo and Tanaka Ryunosuke in the front row were like two bulls that had seen a red cloth, yelling and running back and forth. The net of Otoko was instantly torn open by this chaotic momentum.

"Here!" Daichi Sawamura's voice rang out from the back row.

With a flick of his wrist, Kageyama Tobio sent the volleyball flying in a steady arc to the right side of the back row, without passing it to anyone in the front row.

Sawamura Daichi leaped high, executing a textbook back-row attack.

"Bang!"

The ball hit the fingertips of the opponent's blocker, changed direction, and flew out of bounds.

23:24.

Karasuno is still alive.

Lu Ren straightened up, feeling like his lungs were a broken bellows, leaking air in a wheezing sound. He glanced at the scoreboard, mentally cursing: "Isn't this game a bit too long? Even when we were fighting in Qingye City West, the progress bar wasn't this hard to push. This isn't a normal dungeon; is this some kind of endless monster-slaying survival mode?"

Rotation in shifts.

Lu Ren walked to the service line.

The front row consists of Higashimine Asahi, Hinata Shoyo, and Tanaka Ryunosuke. This is Karasuno's strongest attacking trident lineup. If they can break through the attack with their serves this round, or score directly, they have a chance to tie the score.

"call……"

Lu Ren twirled the volleyball in his hand. Since conventional methods were all within the range of that libero named Ye Jiu, he decided to do something to make the system drop frames.

He stepped back with his right leg, and instead of staring at the landing point as usual, he looked up at the ceiling of the stadium.

Throw the ball and swing your arm.

The volleyball, spinning wildly, soared into the sky, as if trying to penetrate the ceiling lights.

Ceiling serve.

Using it at such a high-pressure point is purely a gambler's mentality.

The ball rose to its highest point, blending into the blinding lights, and then plummeted downwards.

Behind Nekoma, Yoruichiro merely narrowed his eyes slightly, shifting his position slightly with quick, controlled steps. He showed no sign of panic, as if he were catching a perfectly ordinary overhand ball.

"Smack."

It's so stable it's almost despair-inducing.

"Tsk, max-level accounts are tough to deal with." Lu Ren clicked his tongue.

The ball flew towards the net, and Kozaki Grinding didn't even jump; he pushed the ball to the left without his feet leaving the ground.

Kuroo Tetsuro has already jumped.

Although Hyuga and Tanaka managed to close the gap in time, Kuroo was too cunning. Instead of a strong spike, he flicked his wrist and hit an extremely tricky diagonal shot.

The ball grazed the blocker's arm and flew towards the sideline.

That spot is empty!

Lu Ren was still three meters away from the landing point during the return to position after serving.

"Don't even think about landing!"

Lu Ren gritted his teeth, his leg muscles tensed, and he darted out sideways like a wriggling crab. Just as the ball was about to touch the ground, he flung himself out, his right arm outstretched.

There is no standard passing technique; it relies entirely on physical instinct.

The ball hit my wrist bone, the pain was excruciating, but it bounced back up.

However, the posture was too awkward, and Lu Ren fell to the ground in a twisted manner, like a model with a bug.

"Kageyama!"

The ball flew towards the three-meter line.

Kageyama Tobio quickly got into position. At this moment, the Hyuga's fast attack rhythm was disrupted; the previous defensive maneuver had thrown everyone into disarray.

We cannot take the risk.

Kageyama's gaze instantly locked onto the left flank.

"Senior Xu!"

Dong Fengxu jumped up amidst a loud shout. He was the ace, and this kind of chaotic play was the ace's responsibility.

This slam dunk was executed with all his might, as if the air itself was being torn apart.

However, in Otoko's half of the field, that red figure appeared again.

Yoruichi Eisuke.

It was as if he had foreseen the future and was already on the path to a heavy blow.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the ball was caught. Although the force was so great that the ball flew directly back onto Karasuno's field, it was still alive.

"A golden opportunity!" Ukai Shishin shouted from the sidelines, "Spiked it!"

The ball is above the net.

After landing, Dong Fengxu immediately jumped again, trying to pin the tennis ball to the opposite floor.

But in front of Otoko's net was an impenetrable net. Yamamoto Taketaka, his eyes red, jumped up to block it, while Fukunaga Shohei behind him was already prepared to protect him.

The ball hit Yamamoto's hand, bounced to the backcourt, and was caught by Fukunaga.

He's not dead!

Do these cats have nine lives?

The ball flew back to Karasuno's side again.

Ryunosuke Tanaka made a diving save, raising the ball high.

"It's not over yet! It's not over yet!"

Hinata Shoyo's voice was a little hoarse, but he kept running. His eyes were fixed on Kageyama.

Kageyama looked at the orange figure.

The previous fast break failed, the teamwork went awry, and they even got humiliated.

But now, there is no other way but to believe.

Kageyama took a deep breath and touched the ball with his fingertips.

This time, he didn't pursue extreme speed. In that instant, he added an extremely subtle spin to the ball.

The ball flies towards Hyuga's highest hitting point.

It wasn't the kind of bullet that flashes by, but rather a gift that seemed to have braked in mid-air, hovering and waiting for its owner.

Hyuga jumps.

This time, he did not close his eyes.

His amber eyes were wide open, and the world seemed to slow down in his field of vision.

Before him stood Inugami Kakeru's towering figure and his arms that blotted out the sky.

If you close your eyes, the ball will definitely hit the wall.

But now, he sees it.

There is an extremely narrow passage between Inuoka Kakeru's arm and the net marker pole.

That's it!

Hinata slammed his palm hard onto the ball.

"Snapped!"

The volleyball bypassed the block and precisely slipped through the gap.

"Good shot!" Lu Rengang shouted as he got up from the ground.

That shot was from such a tricky angle, it was a sure point!

However, just as the ball was about to hit the ground, a hand reached out.

It's Yoru Eisuke again!

Does this guy live on the floor?

The ball was bounced up, hit the net, and landed.

Hisense rushed over to make a one-handed save, and the ball wobbled and flew out of bounds.

"Out of bounds!" Tanaka shouted.

If the ball touches the ground, the score will be tied at 24.

Just when everyone thought the ball was beyond saving, an unexpected figure moved.

Grinding with a single claw.

That setter who stays still whenever possible, walks instead of running, and has power-saving mode ingrained in his DNA.

He actually rushed out of bounds, leaping into the air like a fish.

"Bang!"

He scooped the ball back with one arm before his body collided with the GG sign.

The ball flew in a high parabola towards Karasuno's backfield.

The ball was high, slow, and not aggressive at all.

It was like a slow-motion joke, gently falling towards the back row of the Karasuno stadium.

That was the midpoint between Nishitani Yu, Hinata Shoyo, and Riku Ren.

"I'll do it!" Nishiya shouted.

"Mine!" Hinata exclaimed.

Lu Ren was still dizzy from the fall, and as soon as he regained his footing, he subconsciously took a step as well.

The three people started at the same time, and upon seeing each other's movements, they all hesitated for a mere 0.1 seconds.

It was this 0.1-second "system conflict".

The ball landed on the floor between the three players.

"Thump."

The sound wasn't loud, but to Lu Ren, it was even louder than Dong Fengxu's heavy slam just now.

The referee blows the whistle.

The gesture points to Yinju.

23:25.

The first game is over.

Lu Ren felt his knees buckle and collapsed to the ground. Sweat dripped from his chin onto the floor, forming a small puddle.

"This game experience is terrible..." He looked up at the ceiling, panting heavily. "The boss was clearly at low health, but they managed to heal him back to normal. Was that pudding-head guy cheating with that last hit? He's definitely got invincibility."

Sawamura Daichi walked over and reached out to help Lu Ren up.

"Are you alright?"

"It's nothing, it just feels like the CPU is fried." Lu Ren waved his hand, used the momentum to stand up, his calves still cramping.

This is much more tiring than fighting in the west of Qingye City.

Aoki's strength lies in Oikawa Tetsu's command and Iwaizumi Ichi's power; that strength is traceable. But Nekoma is different. These cats are like slimes with their "clingy" attribute maxed out; no matter how you attack them, they are impossible to kill, and you have to whittle down their health bars every minute before you can defeat them.

This playstyle, known as "maintaining the connection," is the bane of explosive teams.

The teammates around him were in the same situation, each with their hands on their knees, their chests heaving violently.

"I lost..." Tanaka scratched his bald head, somewhat unwillingly.

Just then, a vibrant voice broke the silence.

"One more round!"

Everyone turned their heads.

Hinata Shoyo stood there, panting, but his eyes shone with an alarming intensity. He stared at Otoko as if he were staring at a stray dog ​​that had just stolen his bone.

"One more time! Please do it again!"

On the other side of Otoko, Kozume Kenma was already preparing to find a corner to shrink into and recover his health, but upon hearing this, his face instantly scrunched up into a bun.

"We still have to fight..." Moyan muttered softly.

Kuroo Tetsuro, on the other hand, smiled like a villain: "Oh? You seem quite energetic."

On the sidelines, Coach Cat put down his teacup with a smile.

"Sure," the old man said slowly. "Since it's a practice match, let's play until you're satisfied. That suits me perfectly."

"Yay!!!" Hinata jumped up excitedly.

Lu Ren felt a wave of dizziness as he watched this scene unfold.

Still want to fight?

It's like you've just finished a hellish difficulty dungeon all night, and before you've even had a chance to save and exit, your teammate presses the "One more round" button.

"Um..." Lu Ren raised his hand shakily, turned to look at the bench, "Tsukishima, it's your turn to play. My mainframe is overheating and needs to be shut down for maintenance."

Hotaru Tsukishima pushed up her glasses, a mocking expression on her face that said, "I knew you'd do this," and slowly walked over with a towel in hand.

"It burned out already? It was jumping around quite a bit just now, number 13."

"Enough with the nonsense." Lu Ren took the water bottle and gulped down a large mouthful. "This kind of physical work isn't suitable for brain-teasing players. You'll know what it's like to be stalked by that pudding-headed guy on the other side."

Although he said he was burning out, when the second round started and Lu Ren stood on the sidelines watching the back-and-forth battle, his eyes did not completely go out.

He was observing.

Observe Otoko's defensive positioning, observe Makoto's visual guidance, and observe Kuroo's blocking timing.

There was no trophy, no spectators, and not even an official score record was kept for this practice match.

But as Coach Neko said, this is the prologue to a battle called "The Battle of the Junkyard".

The sun gradually sets in the west.

The light in the stadium changed from bright white to a warm orange.

"again!"

"It's not over yet!"

"I'll take this ball!"

The shouts of the boys and the sound of the volleyball hitting the floor mingled together, sounding particularly clear in the twilight.

Lu Ren was eventually substituted by Coach Ukai, who replaced the exhausted Hyuga.

While complaining that "this is exploiting labor," he used an extremely cunning drop shot to deceive Kuroo's block at the net.

By the time the final whistle blew, signaling the end of today's training match, it was already dusk outside the window.

Lu Rencheng lay sprawled on the floor, feeling completely powerless to even move a finger.

"Hey, Lu Ren." Hinata's large face, which was practically blocking the ceiling, loomed closer. "That drop shot was so cool! Teach me!"

"...I won't teach you." Lu Ren rolled his eyes. "That's a skill only dirty-minded people can learn. You, a single-celled biologist, don't know it."

"Huh?! What happened?!"

Not far away, Kuroo Tetsuro was walking over with his arm around Makoto's shoulder, wearing that infuriating smile on his face.

"Thank you for your guidance, everyone from Karasuno."

Lu Ren looked at this group of seemingly tireless guys, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

Although I was exhausted like a dog, and although I lost more than I won.

But this feeling of constantly searching for a way out of a desperate situation, of reloading the save and starting over again and again...

"It seems...not bad at all."

Lu Ren closed his eyes and silently gave the dungeon called "Sound Horse" a five-star rating in his mind.

Next time, I'll definitely beat it.