The Birth of A Volleyball Legend-Chapter 480: As the Game Goes On...
Of course, it wasn't as easy as Yuki talked about. For Shimo High, this was the first time they faced this kind of a pinch server. When they played against Tsunemori High before, Yuki hadn't developed this trick yet, so they still had to adapt to Kuniyoshi's serve for a while, letting the senior hitter score several points before finally snatching the momentum away from the boy.
"Losing six points in one go? Man, this is embarrassing!" Wakamatsu covered his face in shame. As the team's defensive specialist, he was the one who was responsible for most of the points they lost before. It was more embarrassing whenever he thought that the base of all the serves that Kuniyoshi threw was an ordinary one that any novice player should be able to receive. For Wakamatsu, this was definitely another level of humiliation from the opponent's side.
"Oh, don't fret over it too much, Senpai. This is our first time facing this type of pinch server, so there is no way we could stop him without adapting to it first. We are just lucky that he only starts doing it in this set, right?" Ezaki reassured his senpai.
Indeed, this was one thing that everyone was confused about. If Kuniyoshi had the same level of accuracy and trickery as Yuki had, why wouldn't he pull it out from the beginning of the game? Why would he wait until the last set like this?
Little did they know that this was Shirayuki High's deliberate approach. After all, except for his trickery, Kuniyoshi didn't have the same vast variety of serve as Yuki, and once this trick was revealed too much, it wouldn't work as effectively as right now. So, while this was a good weapon, Kuniyoshi put a limitation on this trick, only doing it when the team really needed him the most.
Fortunately, the nightmare was over. Even though the current score was a bit embarrassing, 7 – 1 for Shirayuki High, there was no hint of depression or desperation that could be seen on Shimo High's players. If anything, they all were excited, couldn't wait for their turn to counterattack.
"Come on, Hideo-senpai! This is our chance to counterattack!"
"Don't waste this chance away, okay?!"
"Captain, you can do this!"
Facing the encouragement from his teammates, Hideo couldn't help but smile, feeling a bit distracted. However, right after the referee blew the whistle, he regained focus back, throwing the ball pretty high in the sky. Even though he wasn't known mostly for his serve, his ability from behind the service line was decent enough to be the opener of the team, and he proved it straight away with another powerful jump serve that he pulled right now.
BAM!
"FUCK!" This time, it was Shun Matsuena, Shirayuki High's defensive specialist, who was humiliated by the opponent's serve. Even though he managed to react in time and used his forearms to cushion the ball, he still underestimated the spin that Hideo put in it, and as the ball climbed through his forearms, Shun had to move his head away to dodge the ball.
Read 𝓁atest chapters at fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm Only.
"OH, YEAH!" Hideo roared wildly, punching the air violently as he watched the ball slip from Shun's hand. "WE ARE NOT DONE YET!" He screamed as if announcing to the supporters who started leaving that his team was still fighting there.
"Damn! Good job, Hideo!"
"Senpai, you are so cool! I will steal the celebration for later!"
"Hey, there is no need to humiliate yourself like this! You are not him!"
"What do you mean by that?!"
While all the Shimo High players were celebrating with each other, Shun Matsuena's face darkened as he kept staring at the ball. Most of his teammates gulped nervously, didn't dare to approach him in this state. After all, while Shun was always a calm person, he hated losing the most, and the head-on defeat in the last play was a humiliation in his eyes.
"Oi, Shun, there is no need to be depressed like this!" Takumi slapped his friend's back, trying to encourage him. "It is just one play, and there are still a lot of chances to take revenge later! Also, we are still on the lead, so don't be too stressed over one play!"
"Yes, Shun, listen to Takumi more." Kuniyoshi added. "You can be angry, but you cannot lose your calmness here. You are our defensive core, and if you crumbled, it would affect the entire team."
Shun didn't respond quickly, staying quiet for a while, making some of the players feel nervous. In the end, he just said shortly, "Everyone, for the rest of the set, if you feel like you cannot stop the opponent's offense, don't hesitate to lead them to me, okay?"
"You mean?!" Takumi widened his eyes in realization.
"Yeah." Shun Matsuena nodded solemnly, determination burning in his eyes. "I have decided already, that I will kill them all before the game is over even if I have to die. That will be my revenge for that bastard!"
-0-
Of course, Hideo didn't know that he had just attracted Shun's animosity here. Hell, even if he knew, he would question the boy, not knowing why his reaction was so violent. After all, Hideo didn't target him deliberately, just choosing his target based on his observation skill. However, he still noticed the sudden change of attitude on Shirayuki High's side and the sudden increase in difficulty for them to score. Not just him, even his teammates also felt the same here.
"Damn, why is their defense becoming so tough suddenly? This is abnormal!" Ueno cursed.
"Well, they are also a team that advances through this phase, so it is normal for them to be so capable of playing a defensive game like this," Hideo said, wiping the sweat on his face. "Still, what prompts them to do this?" He couldn't help but ask, feeling dubious. After all, even though this was the first time the two teams faced each other, all the Shimo High players knew by now that Shirayuki High was just like them, an aggressive team that liked to put pressure on the opponent's defense. So, why would they change their approach now Why would they play defensively in this third set?
Ezaki pondered about it too. However, in the end, he just let out a deep sigh before saying, "Okay, don't worry about it. No matter how they change their strategy, it won't affect us too much. If anything, this is a test for us. If we are struggling to face a defensive team like this, what is our chance to beat Konan High or Matsuyama Kita High?"
In the end, everyone just nodded, knowing that they couldn't do anything about it. However, little did they know, that a hidden threat lurking from the dark, ready to pounce on them when their guard was at its lowest.
