Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

The whistle was still ringing in his ears when Tobio Kageyama was already standing behind the service line.

He twirled the volleyball in his hand, his eyes fiercer than usual. The tall, eyebrowless man opposite him—Qing Gen Gao Shan—had just made a truly glaring block. For a setter, having an attacker blocked is, in a sense, an insult to their playmaking.

"call……"

Kageyama tossed the ball high into the air. He took a running start, jumped, and swung his arm.

The movements were textbook perfect, and the hitting point was impeccable. The volleyball hurtled towards Date Industrial High School's backcourt like a cannonball.

"I'll do it!"

Date Kou's free agent, Yusuke, reacted extremely quickly. He didn't even need to make any extra steps to adjust; he simply lowered his center of gravity and put his arms up.

"Bang!"

The ball was steadily lifted.

"The pass is perfect!"

Almost the instant the ball left his hand, Date Kogyo's setter, Moba Kaname, was already in position. Without the slightest hesitation, the giant unit named Aone had already charged out from the middle.

Fast attack.

These guys are big and burly, but they're ruthless when it comes to fast breaks.

Nishitani Yu glided along the ground like lightning, deftly raising the ball with one hand: "Got it!"

However, this shot, intended to save a dangerous situation, was poorly positioned and flew directly to the three-meter line in front of the net.

"I'm sorry, Tanaka-senpai!"

"No problem!" Tanaka Ryunosuke roared, rushing to the ball and switching to an overhead pass. His posture was awkward, but his eyes were already fixed on the back row, "Asahi-senpai!"

In the back center row, Dong Fengxu had already taken off with a running start.

"Get out of my way!"

This is the back-row attack he honed during special training. Without the interference of the front-row blocker, the approach distance is longer, and the field of vision is wider. Dong Fengxu's arm is like a fully drawn bow, slamming down heavily.

However, just a moment before he swung his arm.

The wall has reappeared.

Aone Takanobu and Futakuchi Kenji, as if programmed, jumped side by side the instant Tanaka's passing intention was revealed. Their four hands formed an impenetrable shield, completely blocking the ball's path.

"Thump!"

A dull thud that made your teeth ache.

The ball struck the blocker's hand solidly, bounced back onto Karasuno's court, and landed beautifully.

Ida scored.

Lu Ren sat on the stool and screwed the water bottle cap back on after he had just unscrewed it.

"This is what an 'Iron Wall' looks like," he exclaimed in amazement. "It's not just about reaction time; these guys' blocking system is interconnected. As soon as one person moves, the person next to them immediately moves to cover. It's like fighting a boss with a shield that heals; if your damage output isn't high enough, you simply can't break through their defense."

In the following rounds, the situation became a suffocating quagmire.

Karasuno tried to increase their speed, while Hyuga Shoyo frantically ran around the net, attempting to create space using decoy tactics. However, Date Kou's blocking was very disciplined—especially Aone's.

He is a typical "read block".

He doesn't fall for feints or anticipate jumps; instead, he keeps his eyes glued to the ball. He only moves after the ball has been passed. Although he starts late, his freakish height, wingspan, and explosive power allow him to always arrive first despite being a late starter.

Several times, just when Hyuga had clearly found an opening and was about to spike the ball, those big hands would reappear above his head like a persistent ghost.

3: 3.

The score was very close, but the game was extremely ugly. Every point scored by Karasuno seemed to be carved out of thin air, while Date Kou's momentum would surge whenever they successfully blocked a shot.

The air on the field was so heavy it was hard to breathe.

Kageyama picked up the ball, walked over to Hinata, and whispered, "We have to score on the next ball."

Hinata paused for a moment, then her eyes lit up like light bulbs: "Oh!"

That was their secret code.

It was Date Kou's turn to serve. Futakuchi Kenji stood at the baseline, a guy with a frivolous smile on his face, but his attacks were extremely dirty.

A powerful jump serve.

"I'll take it!" Tanaka crouched down, bracing himself against the powerful shot with his chest. The ball bounced high, landing perfectly in Kageyama's position.

"Chance!"

Hinata Shoyo had already started moving the moment Tanaka touched the ball.

This time, he didn't make any complicated runs; he just charged straight towards the net. He was so fast he was like a blur, his shoes screeching as they rubbed against the floor.

In the front row of Date Kobe, Aone remained expressionless, staring intently at Kageyama. He was waiting for the ball to leave his hand.

As long as I can see the ball's trajectory, I can block it. That's what he thought.

Kageyama's fingers touched the ball.

In that instant, while Aogen's brain was still processing the information that "the ball is in the setter's hands," Hinata's figure had already reached its highest point.

There was no pause, no observation.

With a flick of his wrist, Kageyama sent the ball flying like a laser beam, precisely aimed at Hinata's outstretched hand.

That speed completely surpasses the reaction speed of human nerves.

When Qinggen realized something was wrong and tried to jump, he heard a loud "bang" in his ear.

Immediately following was the sound of a volleyball hitting the floor and bouncing out.

The wind brushed past Qinggen's fingertips.

The ball has landed.

The entire room fell silent.

The Date Kobe supporters in the stands didn't even have time to tap their cheering sticks before their voices got stuck in their throats.

Qinggen remained in a slightly crouched, ready-to-jump position, his pupils contracting sharply. What just happened? Where's the ball?

"Yay!!!"

Hinata excitedly waved his fist after landing, breaking the silence in the arena.

"This is... the weirdo fast break." Lu Ren whistled from the sidelines. "A physical cheat code, the most lethal. For blocking that relies on 'casting time' for judgment, this instant-cast skill is simply a dimensional reduction attack."

The impact of that shot was immense. Date Kobe's formidable defensive wall failed to even touch the ball for the first time.

That confidence that "I can stop the ball as long as it's passed out" was shattered by this one shot.

It's Hyuga's turn to serve.

The short man was still savoring the thrill of that last shot, his face flushed and flaring. He tossed the ball up and swung his arm in a wide arc—

"Smack."

The ball hit the net and hung there.

Serve error.

"..."

The atmosphere that had just been ignited instantly collapsed.

Kageyama Tobio's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Under normal circumstances, his flying kick would have already landed on Hinata's butt. But this was a match, and he could only stare intently at the back of Hinata's head with murderous intent.

"Don't worry about it, don't worry about it!" Tanaka laughed and clapped his hands. "That shot was worth it!"

Lu Ren came on as a substitute.

Date serves.

Nishitani Yuu steadily pushed the ball up.

Kageyama stood at the net, his peripheral vision scanning the entire court. Hinata had already started running, and Date Kou's blocking was clearly drawn to him, his body unconsciously leaning towards the center.

Right now.

Kageyama made a back pass, pushing the ball towards the right wing.

There, Lu Ren had already jumped.

"Damn it, this way!"

Date Kou reacted extremely quickly. Although he was momentarily distracted by Hyuga, the guy called Futakuchi and another middle attacker still managed to force their way over, along with the outside attacker who was already on this side.

Three defenders blocked the net again!

Lu Renren stood in the air, looking at the impenetrable wall of people in front of him, and couldn't help but curse under his breath.

The sense of oppression is truly overwhelming.

No wonder Dong Fengxu became withdrawn. When you jump with all your might, but all you see is your opponent's hands and arms, and not a ray of light can get through, that sense of despair is enough to destroy any attacker's confidence.

A direct confrontation?

Lu Ren was well aware of his own limitations. His strength attribute was only C-level, and if he went head-to-head with these muscle monsters, there would only be one outcome—being blocked back to his own floor and then being mocked by the other side.

Since we can't compete on numerical values, we can only compete on skill.

In those brief fractions of a second in the air, Lu Ren's brain raced.

Instead of trying to avoid the block or spiking powerfully like a typical attacker, he focused his gaze on the outermost little finger of Qinggen.

Since you're a wall, I'll borrow your wall for a bit.

Lu Ren waved his arm.

But at the moment his wrist touched the ball, he made an extremely subtle outward twisting motion.

It wasn't a smash, it was a "scrape".

The volleyball, with strong sidespin, grazed the tip of Aogen's right little finger.

"Snapped!"

The ball wasn't blocked; instead, it hit a fingertip, changed direction due to the force, and bounced high out of bounds.

"Out of bounds!"

The referee blew his whistle and gestured towards the half of the field.

The fighter is out of bounds!

"Beautiful!" Sugawara jumped up excitedly from the bench.

Lu Ren landed, shook his slightly numb hands, looked at Qing Gen opposite him with a bewildered expression, and gave a standard "pro gamer" smile.

"Sorry, although my attack power isn't high, I can do foot care," Lu Ren muttered to himself. "This kind of percentage-based damage, even a tank couldn't withstand it."

If your basic attributes aren't enough, make up for it with your brain. That's Lu Ren's way of surviving in this volleyball world full of monsters.

The score began to widen.

Date Kou was clearly still reeling from that absurd, unpredictable fast break. Every time Hyuga moved, their blocking would hesitate for a moment—was it a fast break? Or a decoy?

But in that moment of hesitation, Kageyama was frighteningly calm.

He did not overuse the "weird fast break" strategy.

Instead, he began to use Hyuga's intimidation to supply artillery shells to Tanaka and Rikujin. Even a simple quick attack occasionally threw Date Kou into disarray.

"Kanasno makes a substitution."

Coach Ukai held up a sign. Hotaru Tsukishima stood on the sidelines, replacing Tanaka in the back row.

The height of those in the front row suddenly increased.

"Don't rush, take it slow." Lu Ren patted Ying Shan on the shoulder as he passed by. "That big guy's CPU is already overloaded, don't let him restart."

Kageyama nodded, his eyes sharp.

8: 5.

Karasuno leads by three points.

Although the score difference wasn't large, that once insurmountable "iron wall" no longer seemed so impassable. Lu Ren looked at Qing Gen's furrowed brows opposite him and knew that the strategy for this dungeon had only just found a breakthrough.