Karasuno Volleyball Club's First Evolution

The serve went to Hinata's side after scoring, with Hinata, Kageyama, and Kinoshita in the front row ready to defend. Asahi served from the back row, and after scoring the first point, everyone's spirits soared.

"Serve a good one~"

With those words, Asahi also perked up and returned a jump float serve. Ever since being benched during the training camp, Asahi had been holding a lot back. Although he lacked the domineering presence of an ace mentally, his skills were certainly worthy of an ace. Since returning, Asahi had been practicing diligently during the free practice time after club activities every day, encouraging himself to win back his starting position.

A jump float serve, not much weaker than Hayato's, flew over. Since it was the opponent's serve, Hayato's side didn't need to rotate. The front-row players from left to right were still Tanaka, Tsukishima, and Ennoshita, while the back row consisted of Daichi, Sugawara, and Hayato.

However, Daichi received the ball and set it high. Hayato received the first pass, and the ball was sent to Sugawara, the setter.

"Hayato!"

"Coming!"

Hayato, jumping again for a back-row attack, powerfully spiked the ball sent by Sugawara. The advantage of a back-row attack is that it's further from the net, allowing for a larger angle on the ball entering the opponent's court. Originally, this play was meant to coordinate with the front-row quick attack, but relying on Hayato's spiking power and finding a gap in the front-row block, the ball shot through the space between Kinoshita and Kageyama's wrists.

Nishinoya managed to receive the ball, but due to its immense power, he couldn't set it up. It bounced directly off his hands and flew out.

The score tied at one to one, Hinata high-fived the two seniors in the back row to celebrate the point.

"Damn, Hayato's serve is still so sharp. Sorry, everyone, that was my mistake."

Rubbing his wrist, Nishinoya took responsibility for the lost point. Kageyama quickly said it was because their front-row block wasn't good enough, and Kinoshita nodded in agreement.

"It's still early!"

Hinata clenched his fist, cheering everyone on. Hayato hadn't aimed for him during the block just now, which made Hinata unhappy. He wanted to battle with Hayato, but Hayato hadn't attacked from his side.

The two teams exchanged points back and forth. Hayato's side scored points through Hayato's powerful offense and decoy tactics. Once Hayato rotated to the front row, even if he wasn't the actual hitter when he jumped, he put immense pressure on the opponents. Before the setter passed the ball to the front-row attacker, no one knew if Hayato would spike it when he jumped.

This offensive style wasn't impossible to counter; by watching the set direction and then jumping, the blocking could stop it. But this brought up a crucial point: if Hayato was truly a decoy, it was fine if he didn't spike.

However, if the ball was actually passed to him, then in the front row, no one except Hinata could jump and reach their highest point to intercept Hayato after seeing the ball. Hayato's excellent hang time gave him more time to fight in the air. The players responsible for blocking often hadn't even jumped to their maximum blocking height before Hayato spiked the ball into their court from high up.

In volleyball, as long as you can touch the opponent's spike and receive it, you can counterattack. Not reaching the highest point meant not being able to touch Hayato's spike. If the back-row defenders couldn't receive the ball, it was Hayato's time to score.

Fortunately, Karasuno's Guardian Deity was in the back row. Nishinoya, with his knee pads digging into the ground, used all his strength to receive the ball. However, the ball's trajectory was not good, and attacking directly was too difficult. Kageyama decisively called for a first pass to set up the formation before attacking.

Asahi received the first pass. At this moment, Hinata moved like lightning, running to the other side of the net the moment the blockers landed, and then leaping high.

"Give me the ball!"

Although not explicitly stated, Kageyama felt Hinata's unspoken message. He wanted to use the new quick attack, the one that surpassed the Monster Quick Attack, today, at this moment.

"My hands feel good right now, but I'm not sure if I can pass you the ball perfectly, you idiot Hinata."

Sensing Hinata's intention, Kageyama muttered to himself. He had originally intended to pass to Asahi in the front row, but Hinata's voice suddenly entered his mind, and his gaze involuntarily shifted to Hinata.

Hinata leaped high, turning his head to look at Kageyama's face, though he didn't say anything.

"Not spiking?"

As if hearing Hinata's question, Kageyama, influenced by him, instinctively passed the ball. The ball spun and stopped at Hinata's hitting point. Unlike before, when the ball was passed past Hinata's hitting point, this time, the ball was perfectly at its highest point, stopping in that exact spot.

And stopping meant Hinata had a moment to think when hitting the ball, giving him more options to fight in the air.

Observing a defensive opening on Hayato's side while in the air, Hinata swung his arm, and a perfect straight line shot smashed into the opponent's court before the front-row players could react, scoring a point.

All of the above happened in just a few seconds. The Super Quick Attack, which surpassed the Monster Quick Attack, was successfully used by the two of them at this moment.

The two exchanged a glance, then simultaneously shouted excitedly.

"Ooh! We did it, Kageyama, we did it!"

"I know, I know! You bastard, at least give me a heads-up if you're going to hit!"

"Because I knew it would work just now, and you felt it too, right!"

Hayato's side, including Coach Ukai, Hitoka, and everyone else, cheered as they saw Hinata open his eyes to complete the quick attack. Kiyoko didn't cheer, but her clenched fist represented her excited emotions at that moment.

"Well done, Shoyo, Tobio! I knew you could do it!"

"That was a great play!"

"Ooh! That last play was amazing!"

Generously praising them, everyone gathered together, lifting the two of them into the air to celebrate. Although Hayato had intervened to resolve their argument during the training camp, the atmosphere had remained somewhat tense. Today, with the successful completion of the new quick attack, this tension was finally broken. Everyone was happy not only about the completion of the new quick attack but also about the two of them returning to normal.

Of course, this "everyone" excluded Tsukishima. Tsukishima, not yet open-hearted, wouldn't participate in such things, partly due to his personality.

"Now that Hinata and Kageyama's issue is resolved, Karasuno's first evolution is complete. Next, it's your turn, Tsukishima."

After the celebration, everyone returned to the court under the coach's urging and continued the practice match. Hayato glanced at Tsukishima, who was also in the front row, and said silently in his heart.

Tsukishima seemed to feel something and shivered involuntarily.

"Strange, why do I suddenly feel cold? Am I catching a cold?"

The match resumed with Hinata serving again. This time, after the ball was served, Hayato delivered a fierce counterattack, a powerful spike that broke through the three-person block and landed directly for a point.

"The match isn't over yet. It's too early to be happy. Let's keep attacking, Tobio, Shoyo."

After scoring, Hayato beckoned to the two of them, telling them to bring it on.

"Yes! Hayato-senpai!"

Although the Super Quick Attack was successfully used, it wouldn't be enough if it only happened once. From now on, Kageyama and Hinata would use it again whenever they had the chance, but the success rate was not high, succeeding only 4 out of 10 times. Either Hinata jumped too late, or Kageyama didn't pass to the accurate position.

However, on one occasion, due to the distance, Hinata pushed the ball over the net with his left hand for a point. It seemed that frequent contact with volleyball had made Hinata more familiar with it, and his training had also shown significant improvement.

Even with less than a 50% success rate, the two felt a bit discouraged, but they quickly rallied and redoubled their efforts, striving to make this Super Quick Attack a viable weapon as soon as possible.

The practice match ultimately ended with Hayato's side victorious, but the score was a close 25-22, proving that even an unrefined Super Quick Attack was already showing its terrifying potential in terms of scoring.

"Damn it, so close."

After the match, Hinata clutched his head with both hands, looking extremely frustrated. Kageyama also appeared dissatisfied with his own performance. Sugawara, the team's peacemaker, nudged the two of them forward towards Coach Ukai.

"Alright, the fact that you managed to pull it off at all is a huge success. You just need more practice from here on out. Let's go, the coach still needs to give his feedback."

As everyone refilled their water bottles, they gathered around Coach Ukai, listening to his critique of the recent practice match. He pointed out who performed well and who needed improvement, one by one.