Haikyuu: Nah, I'd Adapt!

"You..."

Kageyama gritted his teeth, glaring at Hinata.

The uneasy feeling bubbling inside him was infuriating. And the worst part? It came from him.

If it was this guy, he couldn't stand it—not one bit!

"Argh, fuck you!" he suddenly cursed, which caught everyone off guard.

Hinata flinched while instinctively taking a step back, "W-why are you cursing me so suddenly?"

"I envy your athletic reflexes," Kageyama muttered, his voice low but seething with frustration.

"Huh? Are you cursing me or complimenting me? Which one, dammit!"

Hinata shot back, rolling his eyes in disbelief.

But Kageyama wasn't paying attention. His gaze dropped to the ball on the floor. He clenched his fist tightly, then bent down to pick it up.

When he looked up, there was a fire in his eyes.

"And you... you completely waste it," Kageyama growled. "It's so frustrating to me..."

Hinata blinked, caught off guard by these words.

"That's why..." He didn't know what he was going to do, but he'd do it anyway as he declared, "That's why I'm going to use you to your full potential!"

"...?"

Hinata stood there, dumbfounded. He tilted his head, trying to process what Kageyama had just said.

Kageyama continued,

"Use your highest speed. Jump as high as you can. Do it with everything you've got. I'll bring the ball to you!"

"Bring the ball...?"

"Argh, I don't know! Just go to where there's no blocker. Run as fast as you can. Jump with all your strength. And then spike it!" Kageyama's words tumbled out like a challenge.

Hinata's brows furrowed. "What? How am I supposed to hit the ball if I don't even see it!?"

"Like I said, I don't know," Kageyama snapped, pointing at him. "And I don't care!"

"...?"

Kageyama ignored Hinata's gaze as he stared at the ball in his hand.

"But I will do it," he said, pointing his finger at Hinata. "I'll sync with you!"

"...!"

Hinata's eyes widened.

There was something in Kageyama's voice that made him believe as he grinned, "Alright—"

"Hey, hey, are you done talking?"

Tsukishima's annoying voice cut in.

Both Kageyama and Hinata froze mid-motion, their faces twisting into matching scowls. They turned to glare at Tsukishima, their expressions so comically synchronized that it was hard not to laugh.

"You bastard!"

Kageyama barked, his frustration erupting like a volcano.

Hinata chimed in, pointing a finger at Tsukishima, "Why do you always have to ruin the moment!?"

"Moment?"

Tsukishima pushed up his glasses, "You two looked like you were about to kiss. I was just doing everyone a favor."

"Bastard!"

That mocking expression infuriated both of them, and they felt like rushing up and throwing hands.

"Hey, calm the fuck down, alright! You're gonna get us in trouble!"

But just as they were about to charge, Tanaka grabbed them both and, with a speechless expression, told them to calm down. 

"..."

He glanced at Daichi standing beside the scoreboard. Sweating bullets, he couldn't help but think, 'What a close call...'

They're about to get executed just now.

Meanwhile...

"They're at it again..."

"Yeah, can they just be normal for, like... a good few minutes?"

"That is so not going to happen."

The others chuckled as the atmosphere turned playful once again.

Daichi stood by the scoreboard, watching the scene unfold with a twisted smile. It might have looked kind from the outside, but the atmosphere was definitely off.

Suga returned to stand beside the captain, his gaze wandering momentarily to the court before Daichi's voice broke the silence.

"Relieved?"

"...I don't know."

Suga paused at the question, glancing at Kageyama before nodding. "When we watched Kitagawa Daiichi's game last year..."

The memory of that day was still fresh in both their minds. It had been a day they would never forget.

The day they got crushed by Date Tech High!

The middle school tournament had been held at the same time as the high school one, so they had caught a glimpse of the powerhouse middle school team in action before playing their own.

Among the matches they had seen, Kitagawa Daiichi was one of them.

That was their very first time seeing Kageyama, the well-known prodigy among volleyball enthusiasts in the prefecture.

"I was totally intimidated by what I saw. Unlike me, Kageyama's talented. His ball control is scary, and more importantly, his ability to quickly scan the court for his opponent's movements and make decisions instantly... it was truly... frightening."

Daichi blinked in surprise.

He had always admired Kageyama's skills, too, but hearing Suga speak so openly about it was unexpected and quite concerning, too.

Especially so when Suga seemed to be quite emotional when he said that.

"Suga..."

Daichi was about to say something, but Suga cut him off with a weak smile and a shake of his head, "Stop it, Daichi. I know my limits."

He closed his eyes, and for a brief moment, memories of the time he felt like an actual setter came to mind.

"Whoaaa!"

"They're here!"

The roar of the crowd surrounded him, deafening and suffocating.

It felt as though the weight of a thousand eyes bore down on him, rooting him to the spot.

'It was nerve-wracking, and quite honestly, if I were put in a similar setting, I'd still be nervous...'

He remembered standing frozen in the middle of the court, every cheer for their opponents amplifying his sense of inferiority.

On the contrary, their opponents seemed at ease as Suga awkwardly glanced at them before stopping on their setter, the one wearing the jersey with #1 on his back.

Toru Oikawa.

He was completely overwhelmed, so much so that he felt like passing out at that moment. It was before the game even started, and he was already intimidated by Aoba Johsai's setter.

Suga felt ashamed of himself and, somewhere deep in his heart...

He knew it was true.

"In comparison to him, I'm lacking a lot..."

It was a fact that they were on a different level.

His lips trembled as the bitter thought slipped out in a whisper, "It must be nice... to be talented."

"What do you mean by that?"

The unexpected question jolted him from his thoughts. He blinked in surprise, turning to meet a pair of sharp brown eyes looking at him with genuine curiosity.

"Tsuna?"

Suga muttered, realizing too late that he had spoken his thoughts aloud. Flustered, he quickly apologized, "Ah, sorry, I was just talking nonsense."

"What are you sorry for?"

"Huh?"

Suga froze, thoroughly confused.

What was this guy even saying? Were they speaking the same language?

Tsuna suddenly asked, "Can you not toss it high?"

The abrupt question made Suga blink. It seemed too simple—too out of place as he repeated, "A... high toss?"

"Yeah."

"Well," Suga answered hesitantly, "I can at least do that, sure."

"Then, that's more than enough."

Tsuna's words were spoken with such quiet conviction that it left Suga momentarily speechless. At the time, Suga didn't understand.

But as they faced Aoba Johsai over the next two sets, it finally clicked.

That realization stayed with Suga, and now, as he stood beside Daichi, he couldn't help but smile.

"Being talented sure is nice. I can see that and still feel jealous of them. But honestly..."

Suga opened his eyes, a soft chuckle escaping his lips. He turned to face his captain fully, his smile widening. "...I don't mind being normal."

"Really?"

Daichi blinked, startled by the unexpected declaration.

Suga's gaze shifted to the court, landing on Tsuna, who was waiting for the whistle to blow. His voice softened, "All I need to do on the court is toss it high anyway."

"Haha, alright then..."

Daichi didn't know why, but he laughed heartily in response.

Seeing Suga had gone through such a dark place and survived made him feel a sense of joy as he added, "Seems like I was worried for nothing..."

"Still... don't you think he feels familiar..." He then pointed at Hinata, who once again failed at spiking the King's toss.

Suga also laughed in response. "Yeah, I figured so..."

He would never forget that gaze directed at him last year. It had pushed him forward despite his body saying no.

Suga then looked at Hinata, who had just given off a similar vibe a while ago, and added, "Is it trust? Not really. I'd say they just expect us to do our job properly..."

"True," Daichi shrugged his shoulders.

He sighed as he looked at Tsuna before turning to Hinata and mumbling, "We're in for a tough time."

They now had another similar kind of monster on the team.

It might really be tough for them...

...but also for their opponents, as both of them looked at each other and grinned happily.