Chapter 22 End + Radiance Combined
Kujo Ike really didn't know what their team had to lose. Putting aside the fact that he himself was one of the top attackers in this summer camp, Kyōji was the dream setter for every attacker present, not to mention their blocking skills. Although Aoyama was a bit introverted, he and Kojima's hands were like windshield wipers, swishing back and forth so the opponent couldn't spike a single ball.
Even at the very end! Tsuna and Shoyo's skills may be a bit rough, but their awareness is good, and their free agents are reliable.
And most importantly, their thought processes are aligned perfectly. Wow, playing like this is so much fun! Their reliable defense undoubtedly brings a great sense of security to Kujo Ike as well.
"Where's Suzuki?" Kujou Hayate watched the game, and after scoring again, he realized that the person next to him was gone.
Nakajima recorded the data: "I just received a phone call, I guess I went out to pick someone up."
"Someone else is coming at this hour?" Kujou Hayate muttered to himself.
Soon after, Suzuki led Irie Shoichi into the arena.
Coach Suzuki gave a brief introduction, explaining that Irie was a friend of Tsunayoshi and his friends, and that they had come to watch the closing ceremony matches.
Shoichi Irie's gaze was easily drawn to the game on the field. To be honest, he didn't really like sports that made him sweat a lot. He felt that they would make him physically tired and even slow down his thinking.
A while ago, he thought that going for a morning run with Xiao Gang and the others would almost kill him, but watching them run and jump on the court, he had to admit that volleyball is indeed a very attractive sport.
Just watching from the sidelines can easily stir up emotions, making you hold your breath for the back-and-forth attacks on the court, as if you were personally immersed in the game.
Kujou Hayate recognized the boy and said with a smile, "Irie is late. The competition is almost over."
Indeed, the score was 22-17, and before his arrival, this five-point difference seemed like an insurmountable chasm between the two teams.
Irie Masakazu thought to himself that he didn't want to be late either, since it would take quite a while to get here from Namimori, and the match was in the morning, so he could only smile and say...
"It's okay, it's great to see Tsuna and the others win the championship."
Shoichi Irie then took out a camera, and the lens followed his friend on the field.
The scene flashes past Hyuga as he leaps into the air, then Kujo Ikeya prepares to spike, and the middle blocker's half-crouching motion as he jumps. It then sweeps past the focused libero in the back and stops at Akaashi Kyoji, who is preparing to pass the ball.
Unlike the two fourth-graders who were still struggling to stay a little over 1.4 meters tall, the setter seemed to have grown several centimeters taller during the summer vacation, with his arm forming a perfect arc. At least Irie Masaya couldn't tell who the opponent wanted to pass the ball to.
Could it be Hinata? Speaking of which, didn't Hinata jump even higher? Hey, Kujo Ike also seems to have a strong presence.
Yes, he chose a middle blocker he didn't know.
Well, he couldn't possibly guess what the setter was thinking.
As they scored with a spike, Sawada Tsunayoshi finally appeared in the shot. He and his friends were gathered together. Irie Masakazu immediately focused, zoomed in, and took a close-up shot of the boy's smiling face.
Almost instinctively, he smiled after being infected.
Kujou Hayate caught a glimpse of Irie Shoichi's expression out of the corner of his eye, and Yu Rong praised him, "They played very well, didn't they?"
“What were rough stones just a few weeks ago can now be seen to have a bright interior.”
Even though Kujou Hayate knows that those standing here playing volleyball may not actually pursue a professional career, at least here, everyone is genuinely happy because they've won, something that will bring joy no matter how many years later.
Shoichi Irie suspected that the coach might have misunderstood his smile, but he agreed that everyone on the field was indeed dazzling and brought joy to people's hearts.
But he still felt that Tsunayoshi was more like amber, amber that had been neglected for a long time and covered in dust.
However, with the advent of volleyball, or rather, with the appearance of Hinata, this dust was wiped away, and everyone could see the beautiful flower inside the resin. But this flower was still encased in amber; it was indeed beautiful, but still hazy.
The camera dutifully recorded the scenes that Irie Shoichi missed due to his distraction, and the first official match between Sawada Tsunayoshi and Hyuga Shoyo also came to an end on camera.
Hinata excitedly lunged at Sawada Tsunayoshi, but it was obvious that Sawada Tsunayoshi's physical condition couldn't support the lunge of someone who was about the same height as him. The two of them swayed and were pulled back to their feet by Akaashi Kyoji, one in each hand.
But Kujoike behind them didn't give them that chance. He and Matsukawazaki rushed over and fell to the ground with two backups. Even Akaashi Kyoji was not spared.
At this point, they stopped talking about how important the setter position is.
Shoichi Irie thought for a moment, then called out to the seven people who were celebrating, "Shall I take a picture of you?"
He raised the camera in his hand.
"Yay!" Kujo Ike also used his excellent wingspan to hook his arms around the necks of the two opposite hitters. The reliable libero and setter were sandwiched in the middle, while the two short players were placed in the first row because their height did not have any influence on the others.
After the photos were taken, the others gathered around to look. In fact, the little kids didn't understand the composition at all. They just laughed at Kujo Ike's ferocious expression, saying he looked like a monster from mythology that eats children. They also said that Tsuna looked like a drowned kitten with all his fur droopy.
The group argued amongst themselves, but ultimately didn't dare to escalate the conflict to the setter. Although Matsukawa Saki didn't recognize the red-haired boy, he was already captivated by his reflection in the photo. He patted Irie Shoichi on the shoulder.
"Please be sure to take photos of us when the awards are presented!"
Summer camp needs a sense of ritual, with team awards and individual awards; the coaching team always has to give these kids something they like.
The awards were distributed in a scattered manner. The Best Team Award went to Tsuna's team, the Best Setter Award was won by Akaashi Kyoji, and the Best Striker Award went to the girls' team because their powerful outside hitter had recently mastered a stable jump serve, and the girls' team won seven or eight points in the last set by serving alone.
Tsuna remembered that she was the girl who initially said she wanted to play a match together, but the summer camp training was very demanding, and they only met briefly in the afternoon when they played a 3v3 match together.
The best middle blocker and best opposite hitter awards were won by sixth-year students, while the best libero award went to Matsukawa Saki. However, Matsukawa looked incredulous and seemed unable to understand why the coaching staff would give him the award.
Finally, the Most Improved Player Award goes to our two twin stars from Namimori. Hinata's eyes have gone from a humble, "I'll try again next time" attitude when she didn't win the Best Attacker award to a bright, sparkling look now.
Tsuna felt like he was being dragged up the steps again, and he even tripped on the steps and fell to the ground.
Amidst the good-natured laughter of others, he covered his face and ran up.
Following the order, the veteran coach began distributing the trophies from the side with Akaashi.
He handed the trophy to Kyoji Akaashi, offering little encouragement but gently patting him on the shoulder. He then said to Hayate Kujo, who was standing nearby, "I've always had high hopes for Kyoji, but in volleyball, as long as you're having fun, that's all that matters." He then spoke the last sentence to Kyoji.
Kyoji Akaashi bowed to thank the other party, and smiled as he held the certificate, saying, "Playing volleyball is a lot of fun."
Yes, it's very interesting.
The old coach seemed to think that was a good answer. He nodded and said to the girl, "I especially like your serve this year. It looks so cool."
The girl held the trophy high above her head, full of energy, and exclaimed, "I also think the serve is super cool!"
Soon it was Tsunayoshi and Hyuga's turn. Sawada Tsunayoshi could even sense that Hyuga was so excited that he almost jumped up the moment he received the trophy.
"You two are really a handful! You're both so talented and have improved so quickly. Our coach spent ages trying to figure out who has improved the most, so we ended up having to give you two trophies."
He shook his head, complaining, but the old coach's gaze was gentle. Sawada Tsunayoshi had never met his grandfather, but he thought, perhaps this was what his grandfather's gaze was like. Hyuga chuckled and pulled Tsunayoshi along.
"Xiaogang and I are really awesome!"
For the final Best Team award, the main attackers and middle blockers came up. Although Aoyama Kaede is socially awkward, he was still very willing to go on stage and receive praise under these circumstances.
The veteran coach then took the opportunity to summarize, "...So you see, we always emphasize teamwork. Each individual is strong, but you guys who can work together are the strongest."
At this moment, Irie Shoichi seemed to become a personal photographer. After taking pictures of Tsuna and the others, he was pulled away by the girls on the other side to take pictures as they muttered that they wanted to keep the memories.
Hinata was thunderstruck upon hearing this. He was so focused on winning the award at the end of the camp that he forgot he wouldn't be able to play volleyball with Kyōji and the others anymore! Damn it!
Sawada Tsunayoshi could now roughly guess what his friend was thinking without even asking. He himself was also a little reluctant, holding the trophy in his hands with a melancholy expression.
"Who knows when we'll meet again?"
It's worth noting that the last time he received such an award was probably when his kindergarten teacher gave him a little red flower, but now the sadness of parting is even stronger.
"What next time?" Suzuki walked over, followed by several children, many of whom were his opponents from the other side of the net earlier.
"I was just looking for you. Let me see, all seven of you are here. With these other people, we should be complete."
Sawada Tsunayoshi looked bewildered, while Hyuga raised his hand and asked, "What does the coach want with us?"
Coach Nakajima answered, "Come to our office first, and we'll talk there together."
Upon entering, I discovered that Kujoike was also there with a dozen or so girls.
Suzuki cut straight to the point, "Everyone here is a student who performed exceptionally well at this summer camp, and our Tokyo club has a league match coming up..."
After listening, Tsunayoshi roughly understood the situation. It was that a primary school league would be held between Tokyo volleyball clubs in the second half of the year, and the Fukudani Kids Club would also participate. The coaches had approached them to inquire about their willingness to participate.
Last summer camp, there was a sixth-grade setter on the boys' side of the camp, so the starting setter wasn't Kyoji Akaashi. He didn't win the Best Setter award last year, but rather the Outstanding Camper award.
Sawada Tsunayoshi hesitated for a moment, "But we live in Namimori, is it okay if we can't train together?"
Suzuki lightly flicked Tsunayoshi's forehead. "You guys should focus on practicing your basic skills regularly. We'll have a joint training session with you this weekend, so don't worry about that."
Sawada Tsunayoshi covered his head with his hands, shrank back, and nodded to show that he understood. He couldn't help but smile, though it didn't hurt at all.
Kujo Ike was also happy. Sawada Tsunayoshi initially thought that Ike was reluctant to part with them, so he was happy that they could still play ball together. Later, after they left the office, they heard that the reason for his happiness was because of the bonus.
"If we can win the gold medal..." This guy seemed completely absorbed in his wonderful fantasies about the future.
"He had wanted to buy a musical instrument before, but he didn't dare tell his family. He even came to my house to practice his harmonica," said Kyoji Akaashi.
Irie Shoichi waited for them at the door for a while, and after understanding what had happened, he looked at Hyuga and Tsunayoshi with surprise and delight.
"Then you can buy a smartphone!"
Hinata was still thinking that if she could win the prize money, she could buy herself a new volleyball. But after hearing what Irie said, she thought that a smartphone was also a good idea. She could use it to chat with Kyōji and the others.
"Ugh, this is so frustrating!" He clutched his head.
Sawada Tsunayoshi found the scene utterly ridiculous. "We haven't even started the competition yet, and we're already thinking about how to use the prize money?"
He sighed inwardly, realizing he might not even receive the prize money.
Kujo Ike also put his hand on Sawada Tsunayoshi's shoulder, pulled him towards them, and dragged him outside.
"Have confidence in yourselves. We're so strong, we're guaranteed to be invincible in Tokyo!"
Sometimes, Tsuna thought to himself, looking at Hinata, who immediately joined Ike in his enthusiasm, that the people around him were too confident.
“But they’re not all from Tokyo,” said Kujou Hayate, who caught up from behind, patting Kujou Ikeya on the head.
"Tsuna is so skinny and small, don't crush him."
This didn't sound like a nice thing to say. Tsuna was very touched by the coach's kind care, but he looked at his own body with inexplicable sadness.
Seeing that Kujoike had also straightened up, he continued, "Clubs from other regions will also register for the Tokyo League, they'll just have to pay for their own travel and accommodation."
Kujou Satoshi knew her son too well. "What you just won was just a small internal competition within our Fukudani Valley. Don't be so proud that you don't even know where your home is."
Kujo Ike also covered her ears, "I know, I know."
Finally, the coach earnestly instructed, "You must study hard during the rest of the summer vacation. It wouldn't be good if your parents wouldn't allow you to compete because of your grades."
Sawada Tsunayoshi remained silent. Although his grades were poor, he should still be able to compete. He turned his head and saw Aoyama Kaede, who was almost shrinking into the wall. He solved the case. It seemed that this was the lucky guy that the coach was talking about who was not allowed to compete.
As expected, after the coach left, Aoyama Kaede ran over to Tsunayoshi to complain, "My grades are bad, and my club activities were suspended for a while."
Hinata immediately empathized after hearing this and felt very sorry for him, saying, "It's so sad that I can't participate in club activities!"
Aoyama shook his head. "That's not the main point."
In his view, volleyball is a sport he is relatively familiar with, and his teammates and club can be considered his comfort zone. However, he is not good at studying. Being forced to attend tutoring classes and having to spend two hours with strangers, he goes to class every day with the mindset of going to a funeral.
Hinata seemed to understand but not quite, and then he started talking about other things, "At first I thought Tsuna was a good student who loved learning!"
Sawada Tsunayoshi thought to himself, "Do I really have such a perplexing first impression?" He scrutinized Hyuga with a puzzled look, and Hyuga shrugged.
"Well, there's nothing I can do about it. The day we first met, you urged us to go back to class, and after class you sat in your seat and studied diligently. You were clearly a good student!" he said confidently.
Can sitting in your seat and spacing out cause misunderstandings?
"I only rushed back to class because I thought Xiao Xiang was a good student! Otherwise, I always dragged my feet until the last second before going back to the classroom, and I wasn't even reading, I was just spacing out!"
Hinata breathed a sigh of relief. "So later I realized that neither of us was paying attention in class."
Sawada Tsunayoshi nodded. If it weren't for the fact that their seats were almost an entire classroom apart, they would probably have been kicked out of class by the teacher many times for talking.
Irie Shoichi snorted coldly, his expression unfriendly as he put his hand on the shoulders of the two children. "Is this something to be thankful for?"
Under the pressure of the Great Demon King, Tsuna covered his mouth and shook his head, exchanging a pitiful look with Hinata.
Since they would meet again in a while, the group decided to part ways and finish their training. Sawada Tsunayoshi then fell into a deep sleep once more.
Once again, he was pulled into that cold and cruel room. This time, Tsuna was not restrained, or rather, the boy was not restrained.
He sat up easily. Thinking of the scene that could only be described as a nightmare last time, Tsuna swallowed in fear, carefully climbed off the bed, and looked at the sleeping boy on the bed with a scrunched-up face.
Strangely enough, the other person was skinny and malnourished, yet very tall, much taller than Tsunayoshi.
With deep-set features, he must be a foreigner. Sawada Tsunayoshi was troubled because he couldn't quite tell the foreigner's age; he could only subconsciously deduce that the other person was probably not much different from him.
"Is this a dream?" Tsuna touched the equipment here, and the bone-chilling cold made him shiver.
The door was still locked. He must have fallen asleep around 10 p.m. Through the small glass window in the door, he could see a glaring white light shining outside. He couldn't tell what time it was from the white walls.
He wandered around the room, found a chair and sat down, looking at the boy curled up on the bed. Was he sick? There were so many medical devices here, but those red pupils lingered in Tsunayoshi's mind. He couldn't convince the boy that he was here for treatment.
So, a bad feeling crept into his mind, and he clutched his head, realizing that something was really wrong here.
A moment later, the boy with the strange hairstyle groaned in pain, as if he were having a nightmare. His face turned ashen, and Tsuna inexplicably saw black mist swirling around him.
He thought he was seeing things, so he stood up and nudged the boy with his eyes closed, trying to wake him from his dream.
"Wake up, wake up, you're having a nightmare."
It was only then that Sawada Tsunayoshi realized he could speak. Just as he was fretting, the black mist that was faintly visible under the light scattered in all directions as soon as he touched it. Tsunayoshi watched as the other person gradually calmed down and his complexion improved, so he let go of his hand.
Before he could move more than a few centimeters, he was tightly gripped by the boy who had woken up on the bed at some unknown time. The other boy's bloodshot eyes were still strange and eerie, but this time Tsuna felt less afraid. Perhaps it was because the other boy was even thinner than the last time they met. He stared at the other boy's pale skin and felt an indescribable sorrow in his heart. The sudden feeling of indignation seemed not to come from him, but from the boy in front of him.
The boy seemed to sense his emotions as well. His delicate and beautiful features formed a smile, but his fist gripping Sawada Tsunayoshi's wrist tightened even more. There seemed to be a unique world in his eyes, causing Tsunayoshi to keep falling in the vast ocean.
“Sei venuto a salvarmi”*
The other person's smile betrayed their vulnerability, and Tsuna instinctively felt that things weren't quite as they seemed, but he didn't know exactly where the problem lay. He couldn't help but reach up to rub his hair, only to find his hand still resting on the other person's head. Moreover, the other person's strange accent seemed slightly different from the English he had learned, though of course, given Tsuna's rudimentary foreign language skills, he wouldn't understand it even if it were truly English.
If Sawada Tsunayoshi were to look closely, he would see a layer of yellow-orange flame rising from his right hand, gently licking the black aura on the boy in front of him.
"Uh, I, uh, Japan?" Sawada Tsunayoshi himself wasn't sure if he was dreaming or if this was reality, so he could only say the English words he could remember.
The boy's smile deepened. "Are you Japanese?"
Finally hearing a familiar language, Tsuna breathed a sigh of relief and nodded frantically. He didn't know what to do with his empty hands, but the boy in front of him continued talking to himself.
"My name is Rokudo Mukuro. What I wanted to ask you was, did you come to save me?" He was very patient, even though the boy in front of him was like a cat with its fur standing on end.
"Such a cringey name," was Sawada Tsunayoshi's first thought. He belatedly realized it wasn't a good idea, but he couldn't recall the surname, so he could only mumble...
"My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi, but... help? I don't know why I'm here."
So Tsuna listened as Rokudo Mukuro recounted a horrific and inhuman experience that had enraged both heaven and man. Hearing that Rokudo Mukuro had been forced to undergo human experimentation here, Tsuna felt a surge of anger rising within him, this time an emotion that finally came from his own heart.
How could they do this!
Rokudo Mukuro comforted the other person, took their hand and made Sawada Tsunayoshi sit next to him, while still stirring up the child's anger, thinking to himself, "He's so easy to fool."
In just a few words, Tsuna clearly explained that he came from Japan and that he suddenly appeared here while he was sleeping.
Rokudo Mukuro seemed lost in thought, but Sawada Tsunayoshi was restless. He tapped his arm, somewhat embarrassed.
"Um, can you let go of my hand now?"
To his surprise, Rokudo Mukuro refused, leaving him somewhat bewildered. "Holding your arm will make me feel much more comfortable."
Rokudo Mukuro didn't think this person was a lackey of that evil Mafia. Putting aside the other party's foolish and naive attitude, he had just used illusion magic to conceal his preparation to pierce the other party's arm with the trident to sign the contract.
But it was clearly unsuccessful.
The reason is the flame that is now healing him. A person with such a flame would never belong to the Mafia, and Rokudo Mukuro had no reason to be confident.
"Did I scare you when we met last time? You haven't shown up for so long, I thought you wouldn't come looking for me again."
They made no mention of their previous assumption that this person was their second personality.
These words sounded strange, but Sawada Tsunayoshi was clearly overwhelmed by pity and grief, and he spoke with remorse.
"No!" he hurriedly defended himself.
"After waking up, everything that happened in the dream became very blurry, and I couldn't remember exactly what happened no matter how hard I tried."
Sawada Tsunayoshi reached out his hand, hesitated for a moment, but finally placed it on the other person's face. "You don't have to smile if you don't want to. Also, is it more comfortable to touch like this?"
Rokudo Mukuro was taken aback, then his smile faded, and he reverted to his usual expressionless demeanor. Even after his facade was exposed, he still didn't let go of his hand. "Is my smile ugly?"
Sawada Tsunayoshi didn't know how to describe the feeling. He ignored the barbed words in the other person's tone and said, "I just feel like you're very sad and in pain."
In this situation, Sawada Tsunayoshi himself couldn't possibly laugh.
The burning heat of the boy's palm dispelled the lingering malice of the Hell Path. This feeling was indeed very comfortable. Rokudo Mukuro cursed himself for his weak vigilance, yet he shrugged and enjoyed the flames of the person in front of him.
Bright, but not scalding.
Even after Tsuna disappeared quickly, Rokudo Mukuro was in a good mood. The other party promised to find a way to re-enter the dream, and he nodded gratefully at the time. However, he himself should also find a way.
For example, he might think about how to keep this dazzling light around him. He won't stay in this place for long, because if the little fool goes to the wrong place, that won't be what he wants.
A note from the author:
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Akashi isn't particularly interested in playing volleyball yet, but he's already looking forward to Bokuto-senpai's match!
A new competition is starting! Finally, I'll get to meet other little ones!
“Sei venuto a salvarmi”*“Are you here to save me?”
The phrase "original aspiration" is truly meaningful!
Then I need to take a break. Updates will resume on the 18th. [cat emoji]
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