Facing Sennan High School

"Look, that's Karasuno over there."

"Karasuno?"

"The team that played Aoba Johsai for three full sets in the IH, with a really close score."

In their designated corner, the Karasuno team sat on a ground sheet without their shoes, organizing their gear, like knee pads and elbow pads.

Passersby noticed Karasuno and started discussing them.

"They have the 'King of the Court' from Kitagawa First on their team."

"And Nishinoya from Chidoriyama."

"The Best Libero from middle school?"

"That's right. But there's another guy who's not to be underestimated. He can reliably receive Oikawa's serves from Aoba Johsai. I think he's the captain."

"But I remember Karasuno players not being very tall."

"That was before. Look over there, that tall guy with black hair."

One person pointed to Hayato, holding up a program they'd bought at the entrance.

"He's so tall, must be over 190cm."

"Kuroba Hayato, a second-year. They say he became a regular player as soon as he joined Karasuno."

"Really? That's amazing."

The bystanders' chatter didn't affect the Karasuno players at all. If anything, they had already divided into the nervous group, the calm group, and the passionate group.

Hinata represented the nervous group. As expected, he threw up again. This time, he was a bit more considerate and waited until after they got off the bus. Tanaka's pants were spared. Yamaguchi, upon thinking about Hinata's vomiting, also felt a bit queasy himself.

"Actually, I... I'm also so nervous I feel like throwing up."

Asahi, who had tied his hair back with a headband, cupped his fist over his mouth, his face looking unwell.

"I thought you were concentrating on preparing for the match. I didn't realize you were holding back the urge to vomit?"

Sugawara immediately quipped.

"Ooh ooh ooh! When's our match? I can't wait!"

"Since we have a bye, we'll play in the next round."

Nishinoya was a bit excited, while Kageyama calmly rummaged through his bag, taking out his knee pads.

Soon, the match in front of Karasuno ended, and it was time for them to warm up. Daichi, as the captain, spoke first.

"It's our turn. Let's go!"

Everyone shouted "Yes!" in unison and pushed the ball cart onto the court.

All the players changed into their official jerseys. Hayato also put on his black team uniform with the number 13.

Unexpectedly, their opponents, Sennan High School, looked like a bunch of thugs.

"You guys are so loud, you idiots."

"Sennan is full of thugs."

Tanaka said indignantly, glaring at the people opposite them. Sugawara, standing beside him, sarcastically remarked if it was his place to say that and told him to put away that expression.

As the warm-up began, Kageyama tossed balls for the others. Asahi had just finished a spike when the Sennan players started provoking them. One kept clicking his tongue, while another looked at Tanaka's hairstyle.

"That monk's head is so lame, really lame."

Angered, Tanaka clasped his hands together, forming a monk's face.

"This monk has come to pay his respects. Please guide me." He then delivered a powerful spike that startled the opponents.

"Take this, you jerks!"

After spiking, he specifically put his hands together, facing Kageyama.

"Forgive this monk for his poor hospitality."

Kageyama looked bewildered but obediently bowed.

Seeing this, Hayato, who was watching from the sidelines, was inwardly delighted. Of course, he maintained his usual persona outwardly. It was Tanaka's turn to spike after his.

His spike, even more powerful than Tanaka's, landed on the ground right along the boundary line. This immediately silenced the opposing players, and they stopped provoking and began their warm-up obediently.

Seeing such a powerful Karasuno, Towada Yoshiki, the captain of Sennan with the pompadour hairstyle, whom Hinata had met in the restroom earlier, was shocked. He realized that the short kid he'd met wasn't joking when he said they were aiming for nationals.

After the warm-up, both teams stood on their respective sidelines. With the referee's whistle, everyone bowed and shouted, "Please guide us."

Karasuno's first match had begun.

"Listen up. Although their third-years have retired, their main players were originally second-years. They won their first match cleanly this time, so don't let your guard down. Pay special attention to player number 1 on the left side."

Coach Ukai gave his pre-match speech, and Teacher Takeda added to it.

"Since the end of IH, we've challenged ourselves with unfamiliar things, constantly refining our skills. During that time, we played practice matches against strong teams from the Kanto region and won over forty matches. We've proven our strength. Now, it's time to show it. Fly, Karasuno!"

"Yes!"

"Go Karasuno!"

As everyone inside the court cheered, Hitoka stood behind Karasuno's banner on the spectator stands, quietly joining in the cheers. Since only one manager was allowed in the resting area, she had to watch from here.

At this moment, Coach Ukai also came to watch the match, accompanied by the elementary school students he had been training with Hinata. The younger children quickly started chatting with Hitoka. The elder Ukai also began talking with another acquaintance in the stands.

"Karasuno has a formidable pair of first-years, and they recently added a very skilled second-year. Karasuno has a real chance this year."

"There are no battles that are guaranteed to be lost, nor any that are guaranteed to be won. Even the slightest difference in condition, nervousness, or anxiety. No matter how strong they are, players are still human. A small mistake can lead to a major fall. So, how is Karasuno's condition today?"

Coach Ukai looked towards the court with anticipation.

For their first match today, Karasuno won the coin toss for the first serve. The players on court were:

Front row: Tsukishima, Kageyama, Tanaka. Back row: Hayato, Daichi, Hinata. Libero: Nishinoya, rotating with Hinata.

"Hayato, serve a good one!"

Nishinoya's encouraging shout was heard. Hayato held the ball, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, concentrating. Opening his eyes, he felt his condition was perfect. As the whistle for the serve blew, he tossed the ball high into the air.

Whoosh! Bang! The whistle for a valid point sounded.

A perfect service ace, the opponent had no chance to defend. He raised his left hand, pointed his index finger at the opposing team, and softly said, "Railgun, hit."

He'd pulled off a bit of chuunibyou, and his teammates finally reacted, cheering loudly with joy. Hinata, who had been rotating with Nishinoya off the court, raised both his hands in the substitute area.

"Hooray! It's the Railgun!"

Nishinoya also came over to fist-bump Hayato.

"Hayato, that serve was super cool!"

"Naturally."

Hitoka, watching from outside the court, also cheered happily.

"That's great, amazing!"

"They scored with a serve right at the start of the match." The elder Ukai's acquaintance was also encouraged by Hayato's successful point.

"Hey, that's pretty good," Coach Ukai said, crossing his arms and praising him with satisfaction.

Following that, Hayato scored five consecutive service aces, leaving the court in stunned silence. Everyone was astonished, wondering where such a formidable player had come from.

The opposing Sennan High School was completely overwhelmed. Their captain, Towada Yoshiki, recalled facing Shiratorizawa in the past. They had suffered a crushing defeat then, with a score of 6:24, much like the current situation.

Fortunately, Hayato's sixth serve went out of bounds, giving Sennan the serve.

Seeing his service error, Hayato clicked his tongue in annoyance and apologized to his teammates. They comforted him, telling him there would be more opportunities and not to rush.

Hitoka, on the stands, shivered when she saw Hayato's expression after the service error. This was the first time she had seen Hayato in a formal match. She hadn't expected that the usually friendly Kuroba-senpai could exude such pressure when making a mistake on the court.

"Eek, Kuroba-senpai looked so scary just now."

The new Karasuno was unstoppable. Sennan's players' feints during their spikes were quickly detected. Daichi made a timely save, and the ball was passed to Hayato in the front row. His spike hit a player's arm directly. The player had intended to dig the ball, but its sheer force sent it bouncing off his arm and flying out of bounds, earning Karasuno another point.

The score reached a terrifying 16:3. Reaching 16 points allowed for a one-minute technical timeout.

Everyone walked over to the coach.

"Very good, your performance has been excellent. I believe you've all noticed that after competing against the strong schools in the Kanto region, your serving power, spiking power, attack diversity, and defensive capabilities have all changed dramatically compared to before when facing these high-level players. So, everyone, maintain your current state and win this match!"

"Yes!!"

With Hinata scoring with a new Monster Quick Attack, and Hinata shouting happily, the first match ended with a dominant score of 25:10. Looking at Hinata's small frame, Sennan's captain couldn't help but recall Hinata's determined gaze as he told him that he would defeat Wakatoshi Ushijima and advance to the nationals. He realized that Hinata and his teammates were serious.