Chapter 8: The Twin Stars Make Their Debut
Suzuki looked up and saw that the person in charge of keeping score was Shoichi Irie. He was biting his lower lip and staring at the ball on the court, looking like he might faint at any moment. Yet, he was still able to react and flip the scoreboard when either side scored.
Why are you so nervous?
Suzuki looked at the court in confusion. Hinata and Sawada's skill level was what it was. Even if they bit their lips until they bled, they couldn't suddenly become volleyball masters. They couldn't possibly play very well.
Kujo was still bragging to others, and the others also thought that these kids played quite well, and they were generous with their praise.
"That orange-haired guy is amazing! He always runs so fast!" The little girl sitting in front, watching, rested her chin on her hand and shared her impressions with another girl who came with her.
"You jumped really high too, and smashing the ball down was so cool!" The girl who replied puffed out her cheeks, wanting to jump even higher as well.
Upon hearing this, Suzuki was horrified. Was this really referring to his Hinata? His mind immediately flashed back to Hinata's terrible skills at the club. Could it be that Hinata was a competitive player?
Fortunately, the boy next to him shook his head, "But his technique is too bad, he missed the ball several times!"
That's right, that's the Hyuga he knows. Although Hyuga's movements are fast and he does jump very high, his technique is really terrible.
"Are you showing off?" Another coach standing behind him, who had listened to Suzuki's rambling the whole time, looked furious.
You mean you have a promising young player who can jump high, run fast, play volleyball well, and works hard?
Every kid is pretty skilled at this age!
This guy, who seems to be belittling but is actually showing off, is even more hateful than that bastard Kujo!
Suzuki was truly at a loss for words. The children here generally had a foundation in volleyball for more than a year. According to Hinata himself, he had only been playing volleyball for a little over two months, and had not even received any systematic training at the beginning.
He's only been practicing catching the ball for the past month since he joined the club. Yesterday afternoon, this guy even punched the ball out of bounds on the left side of the opponent's field. Now, how can you believe that this little ball-handler can actually go back and forth on the field?
Doesn't this further prove his excellence?
A slow, leisurely voice came from behind. Upon hearing this voice, the others straightened up, turned around, and respectfully greeted the old man.
The old coach waved his hand, "I've come here to join in the fun too."
"Suzuki, you're still the same as before, you like to look at horizontal comparisons but not vertical comparisons."
The coach had a face full of wrinkles and spoke gently, but Suzuki still tensed up, as if he were back in the scene when he was being lectured by his coach before he graduated.
But the old coach didn't look at him; instead, he focused his gaze on the volleyball court and smiled kindly.
"You know yourself, he's only been playing volleyball for two months,"
On the court, Akaashi watched as the ball was caught again and shouted, "Hyuga—"
Hinata, who had just jumped and hadn't even landed yet, immediately responded, quickly running to the other side of the net and jumping again.
"Give me!"
The ball once again grazed the opponent's blocking hand and landed.
"Great!" Hinata jumped up excitedly, completely hyped up by the game.
"...Isn't this excellent?" Hinata's small figure fell into the old coach's eyes.
"He is still very young, but compared to yesterday, this youthfulness has turned into maturity."
The veteran coach patted Suzuki on the shoulder and remarked, "You've brought in two excellent students."
Two? Suzuki subconsciously looked at another student. Judging from the opponent's positioning, he was also playing an offensive style, but these few balls were all spiked by Hyuga.
The easily anxious coach started worrying again: Does Sawada not know how to ask for the ball? Why isn't that kid Akaashi passing him the ball?
Upon closer inspection, it became clear that this guy wasn't unaware of the requirements; he was simply covering for his friend who was having a blast playing.
Having spent the past month practicing with Hinata, Sawada Tsunayoshi's understanding of Hinata had already reached a new level. Watching Hinata jump with great enthusiasm without any communication throughout the entire process gave him a heart attack, so he silently moved closer to Hinata's back, just in case he missed the ball and could finish him off.
Having been tormented so many times, Sawada Tsunayoshi could simply close his eyes and witness a tragic attempt during one of their usual training sessions.
"The brown-haired boy and the orange-haired boy have such a good teamwork. Have they been playing ball together for a long time?" It was the same girl again.
"Hyuga and Sawada, I heard the setter shout that. They don't necessarily have to play together for a long time. What if it's a resonance of souls!"
Sawada Tsunayoshi, who was in the back row when he heard this, shuddered violently. "You city folks call the bloody experience gained through persecution 'soul resonance'?"
His mind was still filled with complaints, but his body instinctively lunged to the side, crouching down to catch the ball. The boy standing next to him was even more excited than he was.
"Well done!"
Tsuna thanked them in a daze, then realized something was wrong.
Brother, you're the real free man!
Meanwhile, the opposite hitter, caught up in the excitement of being hooked by Hyuga, was so focused on attacking that he completely forgot about receiving the ball.
The coach who brought the opposite hitter was also full of questions, "Hey, isn't this kid a traditional opposite hitter? When did he start practicing this new thing?"
The six players on the court didn't even have a designated role; they played completely without any strategy, with the main tactic being that if one player didn't spike the ball, the other wouldn't receive it either.
Akaashi wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, slightly out of breath. He had only wanted to rouse Hyuga. What's the best way to revive a main attacker? Of course, it's to let the opponent score with a spike.
So he passed the first ball to Hyuga.
As for Hinata's state at that time, let's not even mention it.
Or perhaps he didn't react in time. He instinctively jumped to his highest point, but because he was a step too slow, his body tensed up and became somewhat deformed. In the end, his hand didn't touch the ball, and it hit his left arm instead.
Hinata's already pale complexion worsened even further.
Before he could even think of how to apologize, the ball was caught by Tsuna from behind, then sent back into the air, falling directly into the opponent's territory.
At least it's over now.
The two who landed in the air and those who lay sprawled on the ground both breathed a sigh of relief, exchanging a knowing smile. They usually practiced like this, stumbling and falling as they played; at least this time the ball hadn't landed on their own side of the court.
That's progress!
In Akaashi Kyoji's eyes, this scene was proof of the tacit understanding between the two partners, meaning that with Sawada Tsunayoshi as a backup, he could continue to pass the ball to Hyuga.
The opposing team was probably also thinking about Hyuga's mistake on that ball, where the first pass wasn't received well and the ball was sent back to them.
Having figured out the strategy, the setter continued to pass the ball to Hyuga. Perhaps the scene just now reminded Hyuga of his usual playing habits, and he spiked the ball cleanly and decisively.
Thus, chaos ensued on the field.
Although it can be said that Akaashi was the one who brought about this, Akaashi said that the current situation is entirely due to others not playing by the rules.
The good news is that Hyuga has indeed regained his energy. The energetic guy sprinted over, jumped, and spiked the ball. Missed? He sprinted back, jumped again, and spiked again. He got more and more excited as he played, his form was so good that Akaashi couldn't help but pass the ball to the opponent even more times.
However, there are times when the team doesn't coordinate well. Occasionally, when Sawada Tsunayoshi is in the front row, the first pass is a bit worse, and in these situations, Akaashi's setting is also not very stable.
But Sawada Tsunayoshi was still able to hit the ball over there.
There's nothing special about it; it's simply a matter of practice makes perfect.
He raised his hand again and swung the slightly low pass over, and Sawada Tsunayoshi could still find a bit of amusement in thinking that this was better than Sho's pass.
"The adjustment was made very quickly."
Kujo Sa commented, "His reaction speed when receiving the ball is also impressive. He knows where to receive it before the ball even falls. If his movements weren't so clumsy, I would really suspect that you picked up two promising young players who had played volleyball for two years to fill in the numbers."
Suzuki watched with envy. He was well aware of Hinata and Sawada's innate advantages, and although their disadvantages might be more obvious, it still couldn't overshadow their brilliance.
He retorted, "I'm not you, how could I do something so stupid?"
"But they really are playing by instinct."
A female coach in the back observed more closely, focusing not on tactics, but solely on her desire for victory.
"Don't let the ball touch the ground, then attack." Even an experienced coach could see that.
"Their teamwork is indeed quite good, Suzuki. Are you training them as partners?"
When the coach asked him a question, Suzuki honestly shook his head, "No, no, they're just good friends and often play ball together."
Forget about training him, he's been putting the kid through catching practice all this time!
A commotion erupted from the area ahead. Suzuki looked up and saw Sawada Tsunayoshi lying on the ground in a bizarre posture. He shook his wet hair and got up from the ground in a disheveled manner.
"You stepped on the sweat?" The coach frowned.
The same female coach said, "No, the little guy was trying to catch the ball, and the libero was also there. To avoid colliding with the libero, he forced a turn, lost his balance, and his legs got tangled together, causing him to fall."
"Your lung capacity is really good. No wonder you're an athlete," the coach thought after hearing this. "As long as you don't slip, it's fine. After all, Sawada has fallen quite a few times during training."
Hearing Suzuki's explanation, Kujou Hayate raised an eyebrow. "Is his brain underdeveloped?"
“You’re talking like you’re insulting someone,” Suzuki glanced at him with displeasure. “They had a medical check-up before, and they’re probably just a little confused and easily startled.”
They fought for a while longer, and probably got thirsty, so they reached a consensus to temporarily cease fire and went to the side to get some water.
"Akaashi-senpai's shot just now was so satisfying! It came right to me and I just hit it!" With her impressive stamina, Hyuga was still able to run around and jump around Akaashi.
The reason he didn't come to cause trouble for his friend was that Tsuna was really tired. He had to worry about Hyuga and watch the game. He felt as exhausted as if he had finished ten math papers.
Irie Shoichi looked at Tsunayoshi, who was drinking water in front of him with amusement, and couldn't help but brush away the sweat-dampened hair on the other's forehead and let him sit down next to him. "Take a rest for a while. You look like you're about to collapse."
The free agent who had been there earlier ran over and asked him if he had fallen anywhere during his trip. Tsuna immediately waved his hand.
"It was just a slight fall, it's okay."
Once the free agent was sure everything was alright, he relaxed his clenched brows. "It's good that you're alright. Please take care of me from now on."
Sawada Tsunayoshi nodded subconsciously, but his mind started to process it after he finished. What was next? Wasn't the fight already over?
A note from the author:
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The two developed a rapid increase in their understanding of each other because of their daily playful teasing.
How can it not be considered a twin star system? (sound)
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