Gossip Time

Bokuto and his team had planned to continue using yesterday's lineup for their evening practice. However, as soon as they started playing, a small figure appeared at the entrance.

"Kuroba, isn't that your team's little shrimp?"

Kuroo spotted Hinata at the doorway.

"Hinata? Weren't you supposed to be practicing with Kageyama?"

Since they had already perfected the new quick attack, Hinata had resumed his two-person practice with Kageyama. They had practiced the new quick attack until the cafeteria was about to close yesterday, so he shouldn't have been here unless...

"Because I saw Hayato-senpai, and Tsukishima training with Fukurodani's Ace-senpai and Nekoma's senpai, I want to join too!"

As expected, Hinata never wanted to fall behind in this regard. Kuroo, on the other hand, seemed unfazed.

"Isn't that perfect? Lev is doing receive training with our setter, Yaku, today, and we're short one person."

"Really! That's great, please take care of me."

With permission granted, Hinata excitedly joined the 3v3 match. Now that Karasuno had three players, yesterday's groupings wouldn't work. Hayato directly suggested adding Hinata to the Fukurodani team, while he himself would team up with Tsukishima and Kuroo.

The height difference became even more apparent. Akaashi, Fukurodani's setter, looked at the comparison between the two teams.

"With this grouping, isn't it too unbalanced?"

"Our Hinata is also very strong. You saw his training during the day; it's not a loss for anyone."

As if promoting his own product, Hayato spoke highly of Hinata. After his words, Akaashi accepted the arrangement, as he had seen during the day that this small wing spiker was not only capable of quick attacks but also possessed good tipping skills.

Hearing Hayato's praise, Hinata became shy, scratching the back of his head and chuckling.

"Then I'll be looking forward to Karasuno's little wing spiker."

Bokuto looked as if he was eagerly anticipating Hinata's performance, and Hinata quickly stood at attention and acknowledged.

Once the 3v3 match officially began, Akaashi personally experienced Hinata's abnormality. It was even more apparent than when they were opponents. His extraordinary speed and reflexes greatly expanded the setter's options.

As they played, Akaashi couldn't help but want to poach this small wing spiker for his own team. After scoring a point with a hit that went out of bounds off the block, Bokuto placed one hand on his head and the other on his chin, rubbing Hinata's head.

"Well done, Hinata! That was a two-meter wall, and you're a little warrior fighting against a two-meter wall. Amazing."

Originally, this was supposed to be where Bokuto taught Hinata his signature tipping technique. However, Hinata had already learned it, and he had even used it to snatch several points from Fukurodani in the past two days.

So, all he could do now was praise him. The match continued, and Kuroo generously taught the two first-year newcomers, whose blocking and receiving skills were not yet up to par. With such a good teacher, Hayato was happy to have some free time.

"Hey, you two over there, stop grinning! I'm generously teaching your new players, so show me some gratitude."

Seeing Hayato's amused expression, Kuroo couldn't help but tease him.

"We're veeeeery graaaateful, ah, we're really thankful, Kuroo-senpai."

After a drawn-out, perfunctory response, Hayato sincerely thanked him. Kuroo, who was about to say something else, was left speechless and amused by Hayato's "start low, then go high" approach.

Finally, after a game, Tsukishima, who was drinking water and wiping sweat, asked with some confusion.

"We're rivals on the court, so why are you willing to coach us?"

"I've always been compassionate."

Seeing this classic scene, Hinata and Tsukishima both froze. Hayato, however, laughed heartily, holding his stomach. He hadn't expected this scene to be so funny.

"Do you really need to make that face? And Kuroba, why are you gloating over there?"

Seeing the reactions of the three Karasuno players, Kuroo scratched his head and reluctantly spoke the truth. He really wanted to see the trashcan showdown happen again. This had always been Nekoma's coach's wish, but he didn't know how much longer the coach could lead them.

Coincidentally, now that Karasuno had the strength, he intended to add a bit more fuel to their fire.

Hinata, upon hearing this, excitedly said that he also looked forward to the trashcan showdown and thanked his senpai for the guidance.

Faced with such a serious expression of gratitude, Kuroo felt a bit overwhelmed. He waved his hand, telling Hinata and the others not to mind it.

Practice continued. Hinata remained as excited as ever, and Tsukishima's competitive spirit was also ignited. The two of them went back and forth, playing with great enjoyment. Of course, Tsukishima would never admit it. He would only mock Hinata after blocking his spikes, revealing his sly personality.

After several more games, it was Fukurodani's manager, Shirafuku Yukie—the shorter, big-eater girl—who reminded them that the cafeteria would close if they didn't hurry. Only then did Bokuto and the others end their individual training, and they all went to have dinner together.

After dinner, Hayato sent Kiyoko a message, and they chatted for a while. Just as Kiyoko was about to take a bath, she was stopped by the other managers. It was mainly Kiyoko's smiling face just now that, according to the girls' intuition, indicated something was up.

From the previous training camp to the current summer training camp, not only had the boys formed friendships, but the female managers had also become familiar with each other.

"Kiyoko-chan, who are you chatting with?"

"Yeah, you're smiling so happily. Something's going on."

Surrounded by the girls, Kiyoko was caught off guard. Hitoka, seeing this, nervously stepped in front of Kiyoko, looking like a trembling little rabbit.

"Um, I don't think this is right. Kiyoko-senpai and Kuroba-senpai are just childhood friends..."

Overly nervous, Hitoka blurted it out. Realizing she had let slip, Hitoka turned and prostrated herself before Kiyoko to apologize.

Kiyoko, however, waved her hand, not minding it.

"Oh, Kuroba is that tall, black-haired ace who's good-looking, right?"

"Ah, I know. Bokuto said that guy's skill is on par with his own."

Childhood friends, and a handsome couple, this further fueled the girls' gossip. Seeing that the secret was out, Kiyoko revealed their relationship, though she omitted the part about the confession.

Upon hearing that they were just childhood friends, the girls' excitement waned. At this point, Kamomedai's manager posed a question.

"Kiyoko-chan just said they're still childhood friends, which means maybe later on?"

With her reminder, everyone realized the hidden meaning behind Kiyoko's words.

"Huh? Is that so?"

Kiyoko smiled faintly.

"Ah, that's a trade secret."

If Hayato were here, he would have been very surprised by how unexpectedly synchronized their actions were.

After dealing with the girls, Kiyoko took her toiletries to go take a shower. The remaining people discussed which of the players at the training camp would be the best boyfriend. Hitoka, unable to escape the gossip battlefield in time, naturally became the second target of gossip after Kiyoko left. Everyone was eager to know what the Karasuno manager thought of the other Karasuno members.

It was still early for bedtime, and the girls' heart-to-heart talks were far from over.

Unlike the girls, the boys mostly lay down after washing up. The intense training had drained their stamina, leaving them with no energy for anything else.

However, even lying down, they couldn't fall asleep immediately due to exhaustion. The group chatted idly in their beds. The third-years hadn't returned from their showers yet, so only the first and second-years were present.

But whether it was the team's atmosphere or their generally low emotional intelligence, all the first and second-years in Karasuno had no dating experience. However, when it came to confessing their feelings, the second-years collectively held back their smiles, leaving Hinata and the others somewhat bewildered.

Hayato gritted his teeth, watching his troublemaking friends and warning them not to reveal that embarrassing incident from before. Fortunately, everyone was tight-lipped and shifted the topic to the first-years, asking if they had anyone they liked.

The result was that the two volleyball idiots had no such thoughts. Tsukishima wasn't interested in the topic and had already fallen asleep. Only the honest Yamaguchi was left. Yamaguchi's face was slightly flushed, suggesting he had someone he liked.