[82] Grade 11: Spring National High School Competition
The rest area of the Crane Cry Pavilion.
The chubby little bird pressed against Imadegawa's knee, asking worriedly, "Are you alright? That last game seemed a bit dangerous..."
Imaizumi counted on his fingers, carefully readjusting the tape wrapped around his hand.
He said slowly and deliberately, "Our headmaster seems quite nervous?"
The chubby little bird flapped its wings: "Of course I'm nervous!!!"
"Our first game actually dragged on to over 25 points! The principal is practically bald from worry!"
Principal Kotori was very satisfied with the fact that Tsurumeikan had won every single match in the Spring High School tournament.
That's why Fukutani was so nervous during this game.
This is their Crane Cry Pavilion, you know!
Their Crane Cry Pavilion was actually scored such a low by the opposing team.
Yes,
Although Tsurumeikan won the first game of the finals, Little Fat Bird was still a little anxious because of the score.
Little Fatty, who had accompanied Imaichi Chuan through the National Sports Games, the Spring High School Qualifying Tournament, most of the Spring High School National Tournament, and some sporadic regional tournaments, was extremely anxious while watching this match.
It's not because they think too highly of themselves, but because for this Spring High School Musical, Tsurumeikan has gone all out to achieve greater fame without any restraint.
Whether it's the qualifiers or the national tournament, they're basically quick and decisive, unlike IH which deliberately slows down the pace of the game or quietly hides some strength to make a comeback later.
At that time, Jin Chuchuan lacked the physical strength, so they could only take that route.
Now, in order to gain recognition and solidify the Heming Pavilion's imperial position, they have long decided to go all out in this national campaign, without suppressing the advantages of any of their teammates.
So seeing that Tsurumeikan and the others still got such a score despite giving it their all...
Principal Bird was so nervous he was practically losing feathers.
Are you really nervous?
The setter with golden eyes looked down at it.
He stroked its fur: "Don't be nervous~ Trust me."
The little chubby bird's tense, round body slowly relaxed.
"Uh-huh!"
Principal Bird rubbed his fingers trustingly.
......
After a brief exchange between Imadegawa and Director Fukui.
Director Fukui methodically gave instructions to the Tsurumeikan team. He then turned to the Tsurumeikan team and began to systematically deploy their tactics.
"Next, we'll focus on Kotaro Bokuto in Furutani."
Coach Fukui called out the names of Aoyagi and Akiyama: "Aoyagi, Akiyama, you two must block his spikes. Even if you can't block them directly, try to get a touch on them to create an opportunity for Saotome's defense."
"Yes!" the two replied in unison.
“Saotome,” Coach Fukui said, looking at the short but ramrod-straight libero, “you need to have the confidence to withstand every powerful spike from Bokuto.”
“Of course—!!!” Saotome’s response was resolute.
"And when spiking, aim the ball more towards Bokuto—Koizumi."
"Yes~" Koizumi replied lazily.
"In the next set, you should dribble a few more balls or spike other high-skill balls, also aiming at Mutu, to force him to receive the first pass and wear down his stamina and concentration."
"Got it~" Koizumi gave an OK sign.
Just as Heming Hall was setting up its tactics, Mutu on the opposite side of the field suddenly felt a strange chill.
The wooden rabbit shook its body and looked around in confusion.
However, the source of this chill could not be found.
"Hey! Hey! Hey! It must be because the audience is too enthusiastic!!!"
Mutu saw the spectators in the stands watching intently as the players interacted in the rest area.
So he quickly put his discomfort aside and continued to chat enthusiastically with his teammates.
——————
The plan against Kotaro Bokuto was immediately effective.
When the double block formed by Aoyagi and Akiyama blocked Mokuto's powerful spike back to Owl Valley's half of the court for the third time with a "bang," the people on the opposite side of Owl Valley's half of the court fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
The sound of the ball hitting the floor was too crisp.
Anyone could tell from that one sound that Crane Cry Pavilion was deliberately targeting them.
"Hey...?" The wooden rabbit stumbled as it landed, and a brief look of confusion crossed its always-shining golden eyes.
He looked down at his right hand, as if to confirm whether his attack had truly been blocked.
Hu Mei, a third-year setter, keenly sensed that something was wrong.
"Wooden Rabbit!" He quickly came over and patted Wooden Rabbit's back. "It's only three points. Let's follow the B tactic that the Dark Road Supervisor mentioned."
But Wood Rabbit didn't respond with the same energy as usual.
He nodded silently.
Next, it was Hemingguan's turn to serve.
Koizumi stood in the service area with a soft smile on her face.
Almost as soon as the whistle blew, Koizumi hit the volleyball out.
Instead of choosing a powerful jump serve, he flicked his wrist and delivered a casual float serve straight at Mutu—catching Mutu just as he finished spiking, before his body and mind had fallen into a defensive rhythm.
This is also the umpteenth serve that Heming Hall has given to Mutou.
"I'll go!!" Just as the volleyball crossed the net, Mutu heard Xiaojian shout this.
...Should we ask Xiao Jian to cover for us?
Wood Rabbit watched this serve.
He awkwardly tried to move aside, but the volleyball waited for no one and arrived while they were hurriedly adjusting their steps.
The receiving position is different from the defensive position and cannot be overstepped at will.
If they let the ball go, it might land.
Wood Rabbit watched the volleyball getting closer and closer.
"I'll do it—"
—It would be too late for Xiao Jian to come.
Just as he adjusted his stance and lowered his center of gravity, the suddenly falling ball hit his arm with a "thud".
Just as the wooden rabbit was about to breathe a sigh of relief.
After all, it was quite a feat to accurately predict the location of the floating ball at the Crane Pavilion—
The compound spin serve and float serve of Heming Hall have become a hot topic in high school volleyball, especially the unpredictable float serve, which has been carefully analyzed by countless volleyball powerhouses across the country.
But no matter how much they analyze and study the countermeasures, Hemingguan always has more ways to launch more unpredictable balls, and the float serve in the Spring High National Tournament has evolved to a terrifying level.
—It was good that you were able to receive the first pass from the Crane Sound Hall, although it wasn't perfect…
...No, it's not even incomplete.
It was actually a first pass error!!
The referee blew his whistle.
Wood Rabbit's pupils contracted slightly as he watched the volleyball bounce off his arm and into the net.
They've been repeatedly blocked and defended, and now even their first pass is failing...
"It's okay! Next point!"
(zACx)
"Don't mind!"
Xiao Gu's teammates quickly offered encouragement.
Meanwhile, the lines of the wooden rabbit's arm tightened silently.
He stopped shouting as enthusiastically as he had at the beginning and fell into an unusual silence.
Fukutani's ace is visibly sliding toward that well-known "negative mode".
In the following rounds, whenever Bokuto was tasked with spiking, Aoyagi and Akiyama would immediately form an impenetrable block in the front row, while Saotome and Koizumi would also hold up the spikes that the block had failed to catch in the back row.
When Tsurumeikan has possession of the ball, Imadegawa will direct the team to launch a fierce attack on Bokuto's weak defensive points. Koizumi, Aoyagi, and others' volleyball spikes seem to have eyes, specifically targeting Bokuto's defensive area, forcing him to constantly move and save the ball.
“Bokuto-kun,” Imadegawa said through the net during a break in play, in a voice only the two of them could hear, “your cross-court shots seem slower than during the training camp.”
The wooden rabbit suddenly looked up, its lips pressed into a straight line.
"You're talking nonsense!"
Jin Chuchuan did not respond to him, turned around and walked back to his own position, leaving Mokuto standing alone, torn between his inner turmoil.
In these few attacks, Wood Rabbit became noticeably more hesitant.
Should I draw a straight line or a diagonal line?
Should we use seven-tenths or ten-tenths of our strength?
These judgments, which could be made on instinct, became agonizing and thought-provoking choices.
Owl Valley's offensive rhythm began to become disordered.
"Give me the ball!" Wood Rabbit was still asking for the ball.
The third-year setter, Shirotani, keenly sensed this anxiety and tried to help Bokuto adjust by changing the rhythm and position of his passes, but to little avail.
He saw that Mu Tu's spikes were still very powerful.
However, it lost the sharpness and brilliance of the opening and became somewhat straightforward.
This made it much easier for Heming Hall to predict his spike route.
The score gap widened without anyone noticing.
————
Crane Cry Pavilion: Owl Valley
16:10
————
Hemingguan led by six points going into the second technical timeout.
The team members of Xiaogu surrounded Coach Anlu, and the atmosphere was heavy.
The wooden rabbit lowered its head and drank water in large gulps.
Sweat dripped down his chin, leaving dark marks on the field.
“Kotaro,” the head coach of the Dark Road said seriously, “you’ve been influenced by your opponent.”
The wooden rabbit did not look up.
"Listen up, you're the ace of the team, your emotions affect the entire team! Hold your head high!"
"yes……"
The wooden rabbit looked up at its supervisor with a dejected expression.
His once spirited, upright hair now drooped softly, making him look like a little owl drenched in a downpour.
The supervisor sighed helplessly as he looked at his child, who looked like a sunflower wilted by the sun.
To prepare for the psychological warfare that might be encountered in the national competition, Fukutani had already played practice matches with schools that were good at psychological warfare, and had also done special training in private.
Those opponents whose techniques cannot truly suppress Wood Rabbit, no matter how much they provoke him, will ultimately be met with an even more intense counterattack.
But the Crane Cry Pavilion is different.
They didn't rely on any tricks, but rather used their superior strength to carry out a well-intentioned strategy—using a higher block to suppress his spikes, using a more stable defense to neutralize his attacks, and using a more tricky serve to disrupt his first pass.
Every step of the process is bluntly stating: you just can't break through it.
This kind of suppression, based on absolute strength, is more lethal than any psychological warfare.
The undercover supervisor rubbed his brow in frustration.
......
"The results are better than expected," Aoyagi said softly.
“Bokuto-kun’s negative patterns are even more obvious than what’s written in the data—” Akiyama said, his eyes sparkling as he shook his water bottle.
“Single-point breakthrough is indeed easier than multi-point interference,” Koizumi said with a smile.
In the last round, we needed to test the habits of the Owl Valley team members in actual combat. In this round, as long as we focus on keeping an eye on Wood Rabbit, the game will be much easier than the last round.
Jin Chuchuan remained silent.
He looked at Mu Tu's clenched fists and saw his bewildered profile, filled with resentment yet unable to break free.
—If we're going to attack Owl Valley, how can we not target Wood Rabbit?
The school's weaknesses are so obvious, and so are the weaknesses of this ace team...
So how could Imadegawa possibly overlook this weakness of Furutani and fail to make good use of it?
After all, the Crane Cry Pavilion is best at first seizing weaknesses and then crushing them.
————————!!————————
(Sucks at my paws—) Goodnight, goodnight—
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
