Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

As soon as the whistle blew to end the first set, Ukai Shishin tucked the tactics board under his arm and gathered everyone together like a department manager about to announce layoffs.

"Listen up, we're changing our formation for the second game."

Uga took a marker and scribbled hard on the magnets representing the players on the whiteboard, then pointed to Hyuga's name and then to the conspicuous "7" on the opposite side of Date Industrial.

"That big guy, number 7, Aogen. We did get a lot of points in the first set with our weird fast break, but that was based on the fact that the opponent was still adapting. That guy is an absolute blocking machine. If Hyuga keeps facing him, it's like trying to break a rock with an egg. It'll break sooner or later."

Hinata, who was gulping down water from her bottle, choked on her drink upon hearing this, wiping the stains from her mouth: "I...I'm not afraid of him!"

"It's not a matter of being afraid, it's about efficiency." Ukai ignored Hinata's bravado and directly moved the magnet representing Hinata two positions. "We need to stagger your rotation. Let that number 7 go up against Tsukishima or someone else. Your job is to run around and muddy the waters. As long as you're free on the field, this knife can keep stabbing them in the ribs."

After saying that, Wu Yang turned to look at Lu Ren, who was wrapping tape around his wrist.

"Lu Ren, your mission has changed."

Lu Ren looked up and tore off the tape: "What do you mean? You want me to carry the tower?"

"Pretty much." Ukai was already immune to the occasional gaming slang that slipped out of his mouth. "Since the Hyuga wants to avoid the limelight, then you're responsible for drawing the fire here. Use more feints when attacking to mislead their blocking decisions. And, most importantly—"

Wu Yang's expression turned serious.

"Protect them. Against a blocker like Date Kobe's, our attackers could be blocked at any moment. I need you to scoop up all those bouncing balls from behind the attack line. As long as the ball doesn't hit the ground, we still have a chance to score."

"Got it." Lu Ren flattened the end of the tape. "It just means being a medic on call and a secondary tank."

The short break is over.

The whistle blew to start the second game.

Both teams returned to the court. Lu Ren stood at the serve position, twirling the volleyball in his hand, his gaze sweeping across the opposing team. Date Industrial's coach, Kuro, was frowning and talking to his assistant coach beside him. Clearly, the old fox had seen through Karasuno's rotation adjustment at a glance.

"Tch, we've been found out." Lu Ren curled his lip. "But tactics are always played with our cards on the table; it's just a matter of who executes them better."

He took a few steps back, took a deep breath, and exhaled all the stale air from his lungs.

The surrounding noise automatically quieted down in his ears.

"Start".

The whistle blows.

Lu Ren tossed the ball and took a running start. This series of movements had become muscle memory for him. But instead of pursuing the extreme drop like in the first game, he flicked his wrist and hit a ball that was unpredictable.

The ball crossed the net without any spin, drifting like a ghost towards the back row of Date Industries.

"I'll do it!"

Date Industries' libero, Yusuke Sakuna, stepped forward, raising both hands above his head to catch the ball. This was the safest approach, but just before the ball touched his fingers, it strangely shifted half a body length to the left.

"Hmm!"

The ball bounced high into the air and flew towards the frontcourt instead of being sent to the setter's position.

"Sorry! Let me fix it!"

Date Industrial's middle blocker had to rush in from the side, awkwardly jumping at the net and poking the ball over the net with one hand.

"Chance ball!" Daichi Sawamura shouted.

The ball flew high and landed near Karasuno's three-meter line. This gave Karasuno excellent time to adjust.

Sawamura Daichi steadily lifted the ball, sending it in a perfect arc to Kageyama Tobio's hands.

"Come on, first wave of attack." Lu Ren squinted his eyes from the back row.

Dong Fengxu began his run-up on the left wing. Although this ace was sensitive, once he stepped onto the court, his burning desire to score was undeniable. He roared and stomped heavily on the floor.

Give me the ball!

Without hesitation, Kageyama passed the ball behind his back to the left wing.

However, Date Industries' response was shockingly swift.

Just as Dong Fengxu jumped, that despair-inducing "iron wall" rose again. Qing Gengao, along with two other blockers, formed an impenetrable wall in front of the net with six arms.

Dong Fengxu stared at the overwhelming shadow before him, gritting his teeth. He couldn't back down. If he retreated here, the title of ace would be nothing but a joke!

He swung his arm and slammed the ball down.

"Bang!"

The volleyball slammed hard into Aone's broad palm, making a dull thud, and then bounced back onto Karasuno's court at an even faster speed than it had come.

"They've stopped them!" A cheer erupted from the bench at Date Industries.

But the cheers lasted only half a second.

Because behind Dong Fengxu, a figure was already standing there.

Unlike the others, Lu Ren didn't stare at the ball in the air. Instead, he anticipated the landing point after Dong Fengxu jumped.

"The BOSS's damage reflection mechanism is not impossible to withstand if you calculate the angle correctly."

Lu Ren bent his knees slightly and pressed his arms down.

"Smack."

The ball, carrying tremendous kinetic energy, bounced off his forearm with pinpoint accuracy, sending him soaring high into the air.

"Nice catch!" Nishitani Yu excitedly slapped the floor.

The ball is not dead.

Kageyama Tobio quickly moved to the spot where the ball would land.

Dong Fengxu's chest heaved violently as he landed, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes. But he immediately retreated again, shouting once more, "One more ball!!"

This indomitable spirit instantly ignited the entire arena. Date Industries' blockers instinctively shifted their weight back towards Higashimine Asahi. That was Karasuno's ace; the pressure of wanting revenge wasn't feigned.

"Now."

Kageyama's finger touched the ball.

This time, he did not pass it to Dong Fengxu.

The volleyball traced a perfectly flat arc, instantly traversing the entire lateral distance of the court, and flew to the right wing.

There, Hotaru Tsukishima had already jumped.

Facing an opening with only one defender blocking the ball, Tsukishima calmly swung his arm and spiked the ball right next to the opposing defender's hand, the ball landing beautifully.

1: 0.

"Well done!" Tanaka rushed over to ruffle Tsukishima's hair, but the latter dodged away in disgust.

After landing, Tsukishima adjusted his glasses. He didn't look at his celebrating teammates, but turned his head, his gaze sweeping back and forth between Rikuin and Kageyama.

There was no joy in his eyes at scoring; instead, there was an undisguised... disgust.

It's like watching two like-minded insects plotting something dirty.

"Feed." Kageyama Tobio keenly caught that look, a vein throbbing on his forehead. "What's with that expression? You're not happy about scoring?"

"It's nothing," Tsukishima said calmly, a hint of sarcasm in his eyes. "I just find it 'admirable' how well you guys use your teammates as bait. If Asahi-senpai's shot hadn't been blocked, wouldn't my trip have been for nothing?"

"Huh?! That's tactics! Don't you even know what tactics are?!" Kageyama instantly bristled, taking a step forward. "Besides, wasn't Riku Ren rescued?!"

Seeing that Kageyama was about to go into his rage mode again, Lu Ren quickly reached out and grabbed him by the back of his collar, pulling him back.

"Alright, alright, don't argue with Glasses." Lu Ren muttered to Kageyama as he dragged him along, "He's just a tsundere, the more you pay attention to him, the more excited he gets. Besides, wasn't that play pretty well? Look at how green those big guys on the other side are."

Kageyama struggled for a moment, then finally snorted coldly, turned around, and walked back to his seat.

"This kind of personality is absolutely awful," Kageyama muttered.

"Same to you," Lu Ren shrugged and walked back to the service line.

With the score in the lead, Lu Ren still had the right to serve.

He patted the ball again.

"Since they haven't gotten used to that move yet, let's keep using it."

Throw the ball, run up, hit the ball.

It's the same move again, the same jump float ball.

This time, Date Industries' libero was clearly prepared. Instead of using his overhand to catch the ball, he quickly crouched down and used a frontal pass.

"Received!"

Although the ball was received, it was slow and not very accurate due to a lack of power; it could only be considered a semi-accurate ball. Setter Shigetane had to move to adjust, but facing Karasuno's well-organized block, he dared not risk a quick attack and could only push the ball near the baseline.

"Another chance!"

The ball wobbled and flew over the net.

Lu Ren stood in the back row, looking at the soft, squishy ball.

According to conventional tactics, the ball should be set steadily for the setter at this point, allowing Kageyama to organize the attack. However, Lu Ren glanced at Kageyama's position and then at the Date Kou team, who were quickly retreating to set up their defense.

"The standard process is too slow and easily interrupted by the loading bar."

Lu Ren did not squat down to set the ball, but instead raised his hands high, assuming the posture of a setter.

"Huh?" Kageyama was taken aback.

The moment the ball fell into Lu Ren's hands, he flicked his wrist with an extremely gentle motion.

This isn't catching the ball, it's passing it!

And it was a direct pass to Kageyama!

The ball was very fast, heading straight for Kageyama in front of the net.

At the same time, Kageyama Tobio's beast-like instincts instantly took over his body. He didn't even need to turn around to confirm Riku's intentions; the moment he saw Riku's hand gesture, he had already jumped.

The setter jumps at the net.

This is a signal for a second offensive!

Date Industrial's nerves tightened instantly. Aone and another middle blocker jumped almost reflexively, their four large hands blocking all possible drop shots from Kageyama.

"I've been tricked." Lu Ren's lips curled up slightly.

While in the air, Kageyama did indeed assume a spiking posture, but at the highest point, his left hand did not swing down; instead, together with his right hand, he momentarily suspended the ball in mid-air.

Behind him, an orange bolt of lightning had already ripped through the air.

Hinata Shoyo.

"Give me--!"

Kageyama used his waist and abdomen to generate power in mid-air and flicked his wrist backward.

The volleyball seemed to have eyes, accurately finding Hinata's palm.

At this moment, Date Industries' blockers were still falling in the air and had no time to jump again.

This is the absolute time difference.

Hinata Shoyo faced the empty net, his eyes gleaming with excitement, and swung his right arm down like a whip.

"Bang!"

This A-style quick attack was clean and efficient; the volleyball bounced off the floor and soared straight up to the ceiling.

2: 0.

The stadium fell silent for a moment, then erupted in a frenzy of shouts from the Karasuno bench.

After landing, Hinata excitedly waved his fists and shouted something.

Kageyama landed and turned to look at Lu Ren. Although his face still had that sour expression, there was a clear increase in approval in his eyes.

Lu Ren walked over and gave Kageyama a high five.

"That pass was a bit floaty, but you handled it well," Lu Ren said with a smile. "No wonder you're a genius character; you even managed to fix that."

"You passed it too fast." Kageyama shook his hand. "Next time, make the arc higher, or it almost touched the net."

"So many demands." Lu Ren shook his head, looking at the somewhat chaotic formation of Date Industries across the way.

"However, as long as we can burn out these guys' CPUs, we can beat them however we want." He muttered to himself, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes. "Next, it's time to increase the intensity."