The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"First of all, let me congratulate you on your success in joining the Tokyo Thunder team," Akira said.

"Aah… Thanks, I guess?" Yuki, who was still taken aback by the sudden presence of his coach—who should be a former coach by now—could only rub the back of his neck awkwardly. It seemed his discomfort was noticed by the older man, who chuckled out loud. "Do you think that just because the club is disbanded I will forget about all of you? Even though I didn't interact with you much, I still kept following your progress. It was easy for me to do so since I was the one who introduced you to Sekine-sensei."

Yuki blushed, not expecting him to be so readable.

Akira sighed sadly as he gazed at his former protégé. It would be a lie to say he didn't regret Yuki's decision to join the Tokyo Thunder team. After all, he was the one who discovered the bespectacled boy's talent, and he wanted to be the one who brought him to the world stage. Unfortunately, his team was disbanded, and Yuki needed a club to help him gain more experience. The only comfort he took was that Yuki joined Sekine's team, which made it easy for him to monitor the boy.

"Jiisan, I am also here, you know?" Riku suddenly clicked his tongue in annoyance, announcing his presence to his uncle.

"Huh? Did you say something, Riku?" Akira blinked in confusion, making the blonde boy growl in annoyance. Fortunately, it only took him a second to realize what his nephew wanted him to acknowledge. "Oh, yeah! I forgot that you joined the same team too! Congratulations, my boy! I am sure you can shine even more under Kawaki's guidance." He praised him genuinely.

Riku's face beamed at that; all of his annoyances vanished instantly.

Yuki rolled his eyes and shook his head in amusement, knowing what his friend was thinking. Then he turned his attention back to his two guests and asked, "So, what brings you both here? No offense, Akira-sensei, but I haven't seen you for a while, so I don't think this is a social visit. Moreover, you brought Narita-sensei with you, which raises the question of how you two know each other like this. So, please, do tell me your purpose for being here."
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"Straight to the point, huh? I like this boy," Shingo Narita chuckled. "Well, your story has already spread from mouth to mouth, and we heard about your heroic deeds from the other victims of the incident. However, I found something interesting in their accounts that I want to cross-check with you. So, if you don't mind, can you tell us what happened at that time?" He finally stated the purpose of their visit.

Yuki couldn't help but sigh, feeling somewhat tired of retelling the story over and over again. Still, when he saw the tense anticipation in the two older men in front of him, he knew it was important, so he decided to indulge their request this time.

If his count was right, this should be Yuki's seventh time retelling the story. He even started to remember it word for word, treating it like he was reciting a holy text. However, the audience in front of him this time was the most intense. They both held their breath in anticipation, not interrupting him even once. After a while, Shingo Narita finally sighed; the tiredness in his dark eye bags was becoming more evident.

"So, your guess was correct?" Akira asked.

"Yeah, based on how the boy—Kobayashi-kun—described its smell, its effects, and the explosion afterwards, I am sure it was TCE," he nodded. Noticing the confusion on the two boys' faces, he elaborated, "The popular name is Trichloroethylene, with the chemical formula C2HCl3. It is quite useful in the extraction and purification processes in drug formulation. However, the government has already banned its use in creating medicines, as long-term exposure can adversely affect the human body, including causing liver and kidney damage."

"Wait, it's banned?" Riku interrupted, his eyes widening.

"For medication purposes, yes." Shingo Narita nodded. "It is still widely used in other industries as a solvent for adhesives, paints, and coatings. However, even for that, its usage is strictly regulated by the government, so a company or factory has to implement strict safety measures that are monitored by professionals to ensure there are no leaks that could create chaos in society."

"And the fact that it is inside the pharmacy factory and leaked basically tells us that the company broke all the rules and regulations regarding this TCE, right?" Yuki concluded.

"Exactly," Shingo Narita confirmed.

Silence descended on the room for a moment as everyone was lost in their thoughts, their expressions grim from the revelation. "So, what do you want to do with that information?" Riku finally asked, curious.

"Why, of course, I will report this matter," he replied with a wan smile. Yuki was surprised to hear that, and Shingo Narita immediately understood why Yuki would react that way. "While I am still employed by the company, it goes against my morals if I do nothing about it. I know if I talk to the Maiko Group, which owns the pharmacy, they would just sweep it under the rug. So, the best way to deal with this is to keep it quiet for a while until I find enough evidence and deal with it all at once. After that, I am sure everything will be alright."

Yuki had to admire his bravery and moral compass. Telling the truth that could impact his workplace would be difficult, yet Shingo Narita had decided to do it without hesitation. Even though Yuki felt the man's belief that everything would be alright after he reported this was a bit naïve, he didn't want to dampen the man's enthusiasm for now.

He then turned his attention to his old coach and asked, "So, Akira-sensei, what is your role in this messy situation? Also, what is your purpose here?" Based on the interaction between Akira and Shingo Narita, Yuki knew this wasn't their first collaboration. Still, Akira was a PE teacher, a position with little to no contact with a pharmacy director like Shingo Narita. The fact that they had decided to work together meant they shared a common goal, and what his old coach said next confirmed Yuki's guess.

"I want to cleanse our school of the Maiko Group's influence," he stated firmly.