The game continued again, and like a phone that was just recharged, Tsunemori's players found their opponent came with a new spirit, kept attacking them while not giving them any time to breathe.
*BAM!*
"Nice save, Kobayashi!"
Cover up! Don't let it fall!"
Even though Yuki hadn't seen Hirano's fullest ability as the middle blocker, he was able to catch a glimpse of it, and it would be a lie for the glasses boy to say he was not impressed. While it took a while for him to notice, after receiving three spikes in a row, Yuki was finally convinced that Hirano played a big role in it. He didn't know what his senpai did, but the middle blocker managed to force the opponent to hit the ball in his direction.
"Riku! Left!"
Seeing Koji start running from the left side, Riku sent the ball there, hoping that the outside hitter would break the opponent's blocker. Unfortunately, while Koji had the potential to be an ace, his strength wasn't enough yet. He was not Noriyuki who had enough strength to pierce any blocker in front of him.
*BAM!*
"One chance! Ueno!"
"I got this!"
The rally had been running for at least one minute full, with Shimoyawata pressing while Tsunemori was forced to fight for their life just to keep the ball alive. Don't underestimate one minute, thinking it wasn't a long time. The fact was, that volleyball was a fast-tempo game. Just in that short period, Yuki had already received four spikes in a row from the opponent.
And this time, he was already preparing himself once again to receive another spike coming from the opponent's captain, Hideo. Unfortunately, he was too far to the middle, couldn't reach the ball as Hideo unleashed a powerful spike straight near the sideline.
*BAM!*
"YOSSHAA!" Hideo clenched his fist, celebrating another point he contributed to his team.
"Sorry about that one." Yuki apologized immediately. "I am not quick enough to recover and go back to my position."
"No, that's my fault." Kaede shook his head. "I should've covered your spot the moment I saw you fought like that. My bad."
If only Akira could hear the conversation, he would shed tears immediately. The communication problem that haunted the team for a long time finally started to disappear. It seemed his strategy worked. By forcing all of his players to survive together in several extreme training sessions, they would get close to each other quickly without any awkwardness between them.
Still, it wasn't the right time for Akira to be happy with that. The coach bit his lips, knowing that the wave of attacks would come from the opponent after this. He clapped his hands, instructing, "Everyone, always cover each other! Don't try to play alone! Always communicate with each other when you need help!"
"Yes, Sir!"
The next few minutes turned into a survival mode for Tsunemori. The wave of attacks kept coming from the other side of the net, never stopped until their defense broke. However, Tsunemori put up a stubborn fight by keeping the ball alive. The training they had with Akira for the last few weeks was always about this, and it finally paid off.
"Kaede-senpai! Left! He is going for a straight!"
"Got it!"
*BAM!*
The ball flew once again, back to Shimoyawata's side as Kaede couldn't receive the ball perfectly. This happened a few times, whenever the ball was aimed at anyone but Yuki. Akira gritted his teeth, watching as the opponent was about to initiate an attack once again.
This was the shortcoming that he also noticed about his team. They only had two decent defenders in Yuki and Okamura as the libero. Even though Akira had tortured his players for days and nights about receiving, there was little he could do in less than a month. While their reflex was clearly better than before, there were still only two players who met his requirement to be a defender.
"Free ball! Ueno!"
"Got it!"
Yuki stared at the setter once again, trying to figure out where the ball would go. Fortunately, unlike Amagi from Matsukita, this Ueno couldn't hide his intention more subtly. He would always glance a little toward the teammate he wanted to give the ball before sending it, making everything easier for Yuki to guess. Not an easy thing to do, of course, to notice that single second when the setter glanced. But with Yuki's dynamic vision, it was like staring at an elephant trying to cross the road.
And when he noticed Ueno glanced subtly at someone who started running from the back, Yuki reacted immediately.
"Kaede-senpai! Stay there!"
It wasn't a call for Kaede to receive the ball, but for the second-year player to step aside. Yuki had his eyes locked in, ready to handle the next play by himself. True to his prediction, the setter went for a quick attack from the middle, using two players who also jumped at the same time on the wing side as a distraction. By now, Yuki knew he didn't have to worry about the blocker. Hirano would just handle it perfectly, and all he needed to do was wait for the ball.
*BAM!*
Another spike was unleashed. Hirano managed to touch it first. Unfortunately, the ball deflected far outside of the court. Yuki reacted quickly, rushing outside while his eyes were still locked into the ball. When it was within his reach, he dived, stretching his arms far forward before punching the ball back to the court.
"OH! NICE SAVE, KOBAYASHI!"
However, it wasn't over. While yes, the ball flew back to the court, it was close to the net, threatening to fly over to the Shimoyawata's side once again. Realizing that, Riku sprinted, outstretching his arms in a desperate bid to reach the ball before it could cross the net.
But just as he was about to get his hands on the ball, Hideo, the captain of the team, sprang into the air with an incredible burst of speed, his long legs propelling him higher than Riku's outstretched arms. With a nimble touch, he tapped the ball, sending it fluttering down to the floor, just out of Riku's reach.
As the ball rolled on the floor, a sense of despair and exhaustion suddenly attacked the entire Tsunemori players. Before Hideo killed the play, it was a long rally, with them surviving one attack after another. But when in the end, they still lost the point, they couldn't help but curse inwardly, a thought suddenly crossed their mind.
'Damn! They are finally getting serious! How can we beat them now?'