*BAM!*
"One touch!"
"Oh, nice block, Kobayashi!"
"Agostini! Left!"
*BAM!*
"YOSSHAAAAA!"
It was ten minutes since the game resumed again after the commotion was over, and Yuki hit the accelerator immediately. It was as if he wanted to vent out all his grievances for the earlier incident, kept attacking the senior team left and right, not giving them any chance to recover.
He exposed the opponent's weakness flawlessly, kept targeting Noriyuki and Hirano who always acted as a lone wolf on the team. As long as he hit the ball there, a point was always guaranteed for the freshman team.
On the senior team's bench, Megumi bit her lips nervously. She had already noticed Yuki's trick, yet she didn't know what to do in the position. The morale of the team was hit to rock bottom, and now, everyone had already lost their spirit to continue the game.
Honestly, it wasn't the first time she cursed the lack of leadership on the team. The two most vocal players there, Noriyuki and Yoshi were problematic. While Noriyuki had a hard time socializing, Yoshi was too volatile to control his temper for the entire game. And while Yori might be a good candidate, the others did not respect him enough to elevate his status on the team.
This was also the problem that gave Hisashi a headache the most last year. The last year's captain of the team even considered a lottery to choose which one would inherit the status of the leader of the team from him. In the end, he picked Noriyuki since everyone listened to him more than anyone else. The problem was he didn't talk and command the team enough, thinking he could lead his teammates by giving them examples of what should they do. It might work in a good team where everyone had the consciousness of winning the tournament, but not in a mediocre team like Tsunemori.
Just like right now, when the team needed a leader the most, Noriyuki disappeared, turned mute on the corner of the court.
Megumi sighed, finally had enough, and decided to take over the situation by herself.
"Kaede-kun, Ogawa-kun, Ren, prepare to play." She spoke, surprising the players whose names were mentioned. "You will replace Hirano-kun, Yoshi-kun, and Noriyuki-kun."
All the eyes there widened in shock, not expecting Megumi to take this bold decision. Ren who was the most experienced player out of the three asked hesitantly, "Is it okay though, to replace them right now?"
Megumi nodded firmly, there was no hesitation in her eyes. "While you might still believe they could do something, Ren, I don't have the patience to wait for a miracle. I know you notice it too, that whenever things turned bad, those three would suddenly disappear. This happened several times in the past that it became a pattern, so I don't believe this time would be different."
Some players turned their heads away immediately, didn't want to be seen agreeing to her words. While they acknowledged the truth behind it, they didn't want to be caught antagonizing their senpai.
The moment the substitution was announced though, the three players on the court widened their eyes in shock. Never crossed their mind they would be replaced in the middle of the game, especially since they were the most important players on the team. Fortunately, Megumi was probably the second most intimidating person on the team besides the coach, so no matter what she decided, they followed obediently.
"Oh! Substitution for the senior team! Three key players of the team are replaced! What do you think of this situation, Hisashi-senpai? Is it wise to do that?" Keisuke Hori asked.
"Not only it is wise, but I think Megumi should have done this earlier," Hisashi commented. "You can see the mood of those three were worsened after the incident, and it affects the state of the team. If not replaced immediately, they would be the parasites who would destroy the team from inside."
"Interesting analogy." Mattheo nodded approvingly. "But it shouldn't do them much, right? I mean, the game is already in our hands right, Kobayashi-kun?"
The boy who received the question just nodded, full of confidence. "Yeah, let's end this silly game as soon as possible."
"Those three are replaced? Does that mean the game is over?"
"Well, even if it is not over, I doubt they could overturn the situation."
"Man, this is disappointing. No wonder our volleyball team sucks in the real tournament."
Amidst the disappointed whispers from the crowds, one by one started to leave. Only those who wanted to see the fun when the loser apologized in the end were still here, yet their focus wasn't on the court anymore. More than third-quarters were gone already, emptying the gymnasium instantly. However, the game had to be continued again.
Isabella took the serve. She sent it directly toward the back left, which was received perfectly by Koji. Yori took a glance for a second before setting the ball to the left wing, yet the moment Kaede jumped to spike the ball, Yuki was already there to form a wall.
*BAM!*
"One touch!"
"Oh! Another soft block by Kobayashi! This is his fifth in a row since the brawls!" Keisuke Hori shouted excitedly.
"Nice block, Kobayashi!"
Gabriella, Isabella, and Yuki took a step back simultaneously, glancing at each other for a moment before starting their run-up together.
"Ren, you go for Kobayashi! Ogawa, mark the left! Kaede, to the right! Okamura, be ready for the back attack!" Yori took the command quickly.
"Got it!"
The wait was so intense as all the players on the senior team tried to predict where the ball would go, just for Riku to tap it simply to let the ball fall down the other side of the net gently. Everyone had their jaws dropped, never expecting the outcome to be like this. Since the second set began, Riku hadn't done anything outrageous yet, always setting the ball perfectly to provide the best pass to his teammates. To see him suddenly pulling a dump when everyone focused on his teammates was like watching witchcraft from the land afar.
Seeing the gobsmacked reaction from his opponents, Riku smirked infuriatingly before saying, "Please, don't forget about my presence again, okay?"