Hidden Character Unlocked Only After Clearing

The setting sun scorched the asphalt road outside the gymnasium a fiery red, the air still holding a hint of the coolness unique to spring. Karasuno High School's old minivan was parked by the roadside, its engine emitting a dull roar like an old cow chewing its cud, white smoke puffing out from the exhaust pipe.

Everyone carried their sports bags, their steps a little unsteady. The dopamine rush from winning was quickly fading, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion. Hinata Shoyo was still replaying the feel of that last ball, walking with a slight bounce, occasionally swinging his arms at the air.

Sawamura Daichi walked at the back of the group, not rushing to get on the bus. He watched his teammates, still reveling in their joy, his brow not entirely unfurrowed.

"Even though Teacher Takeda said all the right things, and the atmosphere just now was so passionate..."

Daichi stopped, his tone deepening, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear, "But honestly, if it had been a full-strength Aoba Johsai today, if we had faced Oikawa Tōru's serves from the first set, what would the result have been?"

The words were like a bucket of cold water, dousing Hinata and Tanaka, who were still foolishly celebrating.

Lu Ren adjusted his backpack on his shoulders. He knew the result, of course. If Oikawa Tōru had played the whole match, with Karasuno's current defensive stats, they would likely have had their armor pierced by those unreasonable serves. Today's victory was, in a sense, a small reward from the system to a Novice Village player, or a judgment exemption due to the opponent underestimating them.

"Our team still has a fatal flaw," Daichi clenched his fist. "Receiving. Facing the top teams in the prefecture, our defense is as fragile as paper."

"As expected of the captain, you see things very clearly."

A light, airy voice suddenly drifted from the shadows of the school gate.

Everyone looked up sharply.

Oikawa Tōru leaned against the iron railings of the gate, his white and green tracksuit jacket draped over his shoulders, a volleyball spinning in his hand. He hadn't changed back into his school uniform, looking as if he had deliberately come here to intercept them.

"Great King!" Hinata flinched, shrinking back and hiding directly behind Tanaka Ryūnosuke.

Tanaka Ryūnosuke reacted instinctively. His chin jutted forward sharply, his entire face contorting into an extremely ferocious "Delinquent Face," a growl rumbling in his throat like a wild dog whose territory had been invaded, "Huh? What did you say? Wanna fight? Huh?!"

"Uwaa--"

Hinata poked his head out from behind Tanaka, desperately imitating Tanaka's expression, scrunching up his features and baring his teeth in a completely unthreatening cry, "Wanna fight! Huh?!"

Even Yamaguchi Tadashi, usually gentle, was caught up in the mood. He tried to put on a stern face, standing next to Tsukishima, attempting to look intimidating.

Lu Ren rubbed his temples beside them. The scene was too beautiful, like a max-level BOSS passing through Novice Village only to be surrounded by a pack of level-one mobs baring their teeth.

Oikawa Tōru was amused by the display. He waved his hand, looking relaxed, "Don't be so defensive, Shorty. I'm not here to cause trouble."

His gaze passed over Tanaka and landed on Hinata, a signature, inscrutable smile playing on his lips.

"That last touch just now, and that unreasonable Back Attack, were indeed amazing. That speed and Explosive Power even startled me."

Hinata froze, his fierce expression collapsing instantly, his cheeks flushing. He looked like a puppy being praised, unsure of what to do, "R-really?"

"But--"

Oikawa Tōru changed tack, the warmth in his eyes diminishing, "In the next official match, I'll be going all out from the start. You haven't seen my Set technique yet today. Of course, I'll keep honing my serves too."

Hinata shivered.

Lu Ren sighed inwardly. Was this the pressure of a Tier 0 character in the meta? In that last set, Oikawa Tōru had almost broken Tsukishima's mentality with his serves alone. If this guy had unleashed hell from the first set, coupled with his perfect synergy with Iwaizumi Hajime, Karasuno's rickety ship would have likely sunk long ago.

"Your offense is indeed interesting, that chaotic style has a lot of destructive power," Oikawa Tōru straightened up, dropping his casual demeanor. "But volleyball is a sport where the ball can't touch the ground. Without a solid First Pass, even the strongest offense is just a castle in the air. Once the receiving collapses, your quick attacks will become like firecrackers that fizzle out."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present, as if conducting some kind of combat assessment.

"Moreover, I'm not the only player with powerful serves in the prefecture. The High School League preliminaries are just around the corner. If you don't want to go home in the first round, you'd better fight for your lives."

With that, Oikawa Tōru suddenly raised his hand, pointing his index finger directly at Kageyama Tobio in the crowd.

Kageyama, who had been staring blankly at the ground, looked up sharply as he felt the gaze. Two equally intense desires to win collided in the air.