The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

In the end, Sumida High's coach decided to put Tachi on the bench, not wanting to reveal more about his ability toward Yuki and Kato. However, they didn't have any problem winning the game, using their solid performance to put pressure on their opponent while also capitalizing on every chance they had during the game. They were so clinical that Yuki thought he was watching a top team here.

"With how they are performing, how could they still stick as the first-round level team?" He couldn't help but ask when he retold what he watched to Akira.

"Oh, that is because of their misfortune." The coach snorted. "In their last three tournaments, they drew Kodokan High, Matsukita High, and Tsukiji High as their second-round opponent straight in a row. You can imagine yourself about the result."

Yuki winced unconsciously when he heard that. Those three teams were the top dogs in Tokyo, with one of them being the second-best team in the country. Even though Sumida High had a solid team, there was no way they could win against them all, and the teams who lost in the second round of the tournament three times in a row would have a huge chance to get demoted into the first-round team.

"So, this is Shimoyawata situation once again, huh?" Ogawa cried bitterly.

Well, no one could blame him for complaining. After all, the opponent from the first round should be an easy pass. Yet after having Shimoyawata as their opponent in the last Inter-high, they now have Sumida High, which was far from a weak team, for their first match in the winter tournament. Getting a false first-round team as their opponent twice in a row was definitely bad luck.

"Well, that is the risk of being mediocre, I guess." Akira sighed. "But the good news is, our first match would be played here, and the headmaster has already given his approval for a full house game like before!"

This piece of news alone was enough to brighten everyone's day. The depression lingering a few seconds ago was gone immediately, replaced by a never-ending excitement.

"Damn, I know the headmaster is good, but I didn't expect he is this good!"

"Good? Man, he is the GOAT! I mean, which headmaster would cancel all the classes so that the students could support the volleyball team?!"

"Yeah, our headmaster is rock!"

All the grievances they had for the headmaster during the purge season were forgotten already, especially when the headmaster proved from time to time that he favored the volleyball team more. Now, the team had to prove that this favor was deserved, or they would be under the same rumor storm just like a few months ago.

"Okay, to not embarrass yourself, let's try to get to know our opponent first. Thanks to Ayaka-san and Yuki, we got a valuable video that recorded the game, so let's watch it first."

Everyone nodded and went to the classroom next to the gym immediately. It took a while for Akira to set up the screen, but once he finished, the screen was finally on, showing the video that Yuki recorded yesterday.

"Okay, as we are watching, Ayaka-san, I want you to give us a brief report like the usual. Yuki, if you have anything to add, just say so. Your feedback would be appreciated here."

The two teens whose name was mentioned nodded at each other before the girl started speaking while also pointing her finger at the screen. "The first one you all should take notice of is their ace, Naomichi Tachi."

"Tachi-san!" Riku gasped in surprise, gaining everyone's attention. His face flushed red in embarrassment when he realized how he interrupted Megumi's speech. "Sorry, Megumi-senpai. I didn't mean it." He apologized quickly.

"Don't worry, Riku. That was the same exact reaction Yuki had yesterday." Megumi smiled kindly.

Everyone – bar Yuki – was confused, not knowing what Megumi was talking about. Fortunately, Megumi took pity on them as she started explaining. "To quote what Yuki said to me yesterday, Naomichi Tachi is one of the participants in the summer camp that he and Riku were joining before. That should tell you all that he was at least give you a perspective of how talented he is."

And indeed, this gave them the idea of how good Tachi was. After all, the camp was supposed to be for talented freshmen all over Tokyo, selected by Daiki Sato himself. So, if Naomichi Tachi managed to get chosen, he should have something special to offer for his team.

"So, what kind of player is he?" Kaede asked.

"Oh, I can answer that," Riku answered quickly. "He is a powerful spiker, so you can expect heavy attacks from him. But other than his raw power, you don't have to worry about anything."

Yuki and Megumi stared at each other with solemn gazes, knowing that Riku was about to make the same mistake as Yuki did yesterday. Akira noticed that and asked, "Is there anything wrong with his assessment?"

"Just wait and you will see it." Was the only answer coming out of Yuki's mouth.

This caught everyone's attention. Riku also leaned forward, wanting to know what caught his friend's eyes. When the video reached the point of Tachi's cross spike, everyone had their mouth gaped wide, not expecting this kind of development. Riku himself also had the same reaction as Yuki yesterday, feeling like he just got slapped out of nowhere.

"I thought he is a brute-force kind of player?" Koji asked hesitantly.

"Yes, and you can imagine how surprised I was when I saw that directly on the court." Yuki nodded. "In hindsight though, we should've expected tour opponents to get better after the summer is over, right?"

"Exactly." Akira nodded with the same solemn reaction as his. "You all have to remember that it is not just you who trained hard during the summertime, so you cannot underestimate your opponent, okay?"

Everyone nodded in agreement, turning their eyes back on the screen. The one who was affected the most by this slap was of course Riku as he saw the drastic improvement from Tachi here. Now, Sumida's ace wasn't just a bodybuilder player, but also someone who had the technique to avoid the blockers in front of him. The glaring improvement from Tachi – and Yuki at some point – was enough to waver his spirit as a hint of doubt sparked inside the blonde boy's heart.

'What am I thinking about? No, I cannot be distracted like this before the first game!' He shook his head, trying to put his happy-go-lucky façade back on his face. However, it seemed he wasn't careful enough as someone noticed this. Fortunately, that someone was kind enough to not make a fuss about it.

"Okay, let's continue the meeting!"