The next day, the sun had freshly risen, casting a warm golden glow over the beautiful countryside of Miyagi Prefecture.
The crisp morning air was filled with the rowdy chatter of students walking together toward Karasuno High as the small road leading up to the school buzzed with life.
And among the students, Shimizu strolled calmly while clutching a stack of textbooks to her chest.
As she walked, her steps suddenly faltered.
"...!"
Her body tensed, and her gaze locked onto a familiar figure up ahead—Tsuna, jogging steadily along the same path.
'Ah, he's going up to school at this hour?'
Shimizu blinked her eyes in confusion as she was totally caught off guard by this.
She thought she had been the only one changing her schedule lately, but it seemed Tsuna had done the same.
"..."
Her mind raced as the possibility of their paths crossing sank in.
Instinctively, her eyes darted around, searching for an alternate route, just in case he decided to approach her.
The rhythmic thudding of Tsuna's footsteps grew louder as he got closer.
Shimizu's heart quickened slightly, and she tightened her grip on the textbooks as she was feeling nervous.
But then—
"Eh…?"
To her surprise, Tsuna jogged right past her without so much as a glance. His pace didn't falter, his gaze fixed straight ahead as if she wasn't even there.
"He doesn't even greet me..."
Shimizu quietly bit her lips as she stared at his retreating figure.
The unexpected indifference left her frozen for a moment. She quickly turned her head to follow him with her eyes, her thoughts swirling.
'Does he not… see me?'
The question echoed in her mind as she felt a strange, uncomfortable swirling in her chest.
After a moment, she sighed and adjusted her grip on the textbooks. There was no reason to dwell on it, she told herself.
"..."
Shimizu resumed walking, though a faint, slight discomfort lingered in her chest as the sound of Tsuna's footsteps faded into the distance.
For most students, the school passed by as usual.
But for Karasuno's Volleyball Club members, it was anything but ordinary. The upcoming tournament loomed over them like a storm cloud—thrilling and nerve-wracking all at once.
Even the most experienced players felt the weight of performing in front of a massive crowd.
However, not everyone seemed fazed.
Tsuna was one of them as he walked toward the locker room with his bag slung over his shoulder.
"You're early as usual, Tsuna."
A familiar voice called out just as Tsuna was about to climb the stairs to the changing rooms. He stopped and turned to see Sugawara waving at him with a friendly smile.
"Suga, huh?"
As Sugawara approached, he handed Tsuna a neatly folded piece of paper. "Here, I made something for you guys."
"Hmm... what's this?"
Tsuna unfolded the paper, his eyes scanning over Sugawara's handwriting and small sketches.
The page was filled with diagrams of different hand signals, each corresponding to various attack strategies—A Quick, B Quick, D Quick, Moving Attack, and even a Back Attack.
"Well," Sugawara scratched the back of his head as he said, "since I can't do much on the court right now, I thought maybe this could help. It's a way for you guys to communicate your plays better during matches."
Tsuna looked at the third-year setter silently for a moment.
"I see..."
He looked at Suga's wry smile as he nodded. No matter how humble or timid he seemed, Sugawara was someone who loved the game deeply.
Tsuna knew that, as much as Suga wanted to play, he also understood the reality that Kageyama was way more talented.
The first-year's talent created a gap that even someone as hardworking as Sugawara couldn't easily bridge.
But that didn't stop him from contributing to the team in his own way.
"This is certainly useful..."
Tsuna nodded thoughtfully as he studied the paper again before folding the paper carefully.
He then tucked it into his bag before patting Suga on the shoulder, "Thanks, Suga. This will help a lot."
"Oh, Tsuna! Suga-san!"
Nishinoya's cheerful voice echoed down the hallway as he jogged up to them, with Tanaka following close behind.
"Uwaah, I'm so jealous!" Tanaka crossing his arms. "You guys are always here so early. It must be nice having classrooms closer to the gym. Ours are so far away it feels like a marathon just to get here."
"Ah, your class is in the old building, right?"
Suga raised his eyebrows at them as he chuckled.
"Seriously, it's like they purposely wanted us to suffer," Tanaka grumbled, "How is that even fair?"
Karasuno's school layout was, admittedly, a bit odd.
The first-years were on the ground floor of the main building, the second-years on the upper level, and the third-years had an entirely separate building to themselves.
While Tsuna got himself to the new building just right beside the third-year building, Tanaka and Nishinoya, unfortunately, had been stuck in a classroom on the farthest edge of the second floor—practically a different zip code from the gym.
"I don't really mind," Nishinoya's grin stretched wide as he leaned toward the group and said, "There's a girls' gym nearby. Totally worth the walk!"
"Hmm... now that you mention it..." Tanaka rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
His cheeks turned faintly red as he suddenly giggled joyfully, "Yeah, you're right. It is worth it."
"What a sick pervert..."
Tsuna sighed, shaking his head at them.
"Oh, come on, Tsuna..."
Tsuna's comment earned him an annoyed glance from Sugawara as he said, "Take a good look at yourself in the mirror sometimes."
"Yeah, you've got no right to call us perverts when you're worse!" Nishinoya chimed in, pointing an accusatory finger at him.
"Exactly!" Tanaka added while jabbing his finger toward Tsuna as well, "You're a way bigger pervert, and you know it!"
"Oh, give me a break..."
Tsuna twitched slightly at their words, sighing as he shrugged. "I'm a changed man now."
"Ha! As if!"
The group burst into laughter, the sound echoing down the hallway as they walked toward the locker room. Before long, they headed into the gym, ready to start their warm-ups, as the rest of the members arrived one by one.
Karasuno had adopted a new habit of starting their warm-ups early, ensuring that by the time Keishin arrived, they could dive straight into training without delay.
The gym doors slid open with a loud whoosh as Keishin finally stepped inside, his bag slung over one shoulder.
"Oh, seems like they're done warming up?"
He scanned the room and noticed the players scattered around, taking a short break.
Turning his gaze, he spotted Shimizu standing near the sidelines. He walked over, offering a casual greeting. "Shimizu-san, where's Takeda-sensei?"
"..."
No response.
"Huh? Does she not hear me?"
Keishin blinked, puzzled by her silence.
"Shimizu-san?" he called again, this time louder.
"Ah!"
Shimizu jolted, her eyes snapping up to meet his as though she had just been pulled from deep thought.
She quickly bowed slightly, "Takeda-sensei is in a meeting with the school board. He said to start training without him."
"Well, it's not like I was going to wait but alright..."
Keishin nodded but gave her a curious look.
"..."
She seemed distracted, her gaze lingering on the court. He followed her line of sight and spotted Tsuna leaning against the wall with his usual bored expression.
Keishin raised an eyebrow, something clicking in his mind. 'Hmm, could this be the next phase Aniki mentioned?'
He could tell Shimizu was taken aback, likely caught off guard by Tsuna's sudden change in behavior toward her.
"Hmm..."
Keishin scratched his head, wondering if Ichiro's advice was really working or if it was just messing with their relationship.
'Whatever,' he thought with a shake of his head. 'Let's just get things done.'
Clapping his hands loudly, he stepped into the middle of the court and barked, "Alright, you brats! Since you're done warming up, let's start our training!"
"Ohh! Yes, Coach!"
The players responded in unison, their voices ringing through the gym as they quickly scrambled to their positions, ready for the intense practice ahead.
The sun hung low in the sky, its warm light casting long shadows through the gymnasium windows.
Without anyone realizing it, the day had quietly slipped toward the evening as the squeaking sounds of shoes against the polished floor echoed still.
"Hm, that's a wrap, I guess..."
Keishin glanced at his watch before clapping his hands together to get everyone's attention. "Alright, gather around! I need to talk to you guys about the tournament."
The players groaned lightly, their exhaustion evident as they dragged themselves into a loose line in front of him.
'I still want to fix so many other things, too...'
The Interhigh preliminaries were only two weeks away, and there was still so much to improve. He wasn't sure if they could fix all the gaps in time.
But he wasn't about to show them his doubts. He straightened up, "As you all know, the Interhigh preliminaries are coming up fast. The tournament bracket should be—"
Whoosh!
The sound of the gym doors sliding open interrupted him.
"Hmm...?"
"Ah, Takeda-sensei!"
Everyone turned toward the entrance as Takeda-sensei burst in, his face beaming with excitement.
In his hand was a folded piece of paper, and the energy in the room shifted instantly.
"Everyone!"
Takeda's voice rang out while waving up the piece of paper in his hand.
"Oh!!"
The players perked up, their tired faces lighting up in unison as they all shouted, "Is that the bracket announcement, Sensei?!"
"Ahaha, yes!" Takeda adjusted his glasses, his smile widening. "Looks like everyone's eager to see it!"
He walked over and handed the paper to Keishin. "Here's the finalized bracket arrangement, Ukai-kun..."
"Just in time, huh?"
Keishin replied, unfolding the paper carefully as the team crowded around him.
The moment Keishin's eyes scanned the names on the sheet, he blinked in surprise. His pause was enough to ignite the players' impatience.
"Why's he stopping?"
"Hey, Coach, don't keep us hanging!"
"What is it? Tell us already!"
Unable to contain themselves, Hinata and a few others leaned forward, practically hovering over the paper in Keishin's hands.
"Ah... they're really making a mess of things," Yamaguchi was standing a little behind as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.
He could only watch his teammates crowding around Keishin as if trying to grab the paper themselves with a wry smile.
On the other hand, Tsukishima adjusted his glasses with a look of disdain, "Honestly, hanging around you people really makes me question my standards..."
He was a commoner, yet it felt like he was slowly becoming a noble by having them around.
"..."
Meanwhile, Tsuna stood to the side.
He quietly observed everyone before landing on Daichi, who was trying—and failing—to restore order among the impatient group.
'Even Daichi was actually quite impatient, too, huh?'
Yet Tsuna could tell Daichi was pretty eager to see their first-round opponents himself.
Then...
"Ahhh!?"
Hinata gasped, his eyes going wide. "We're in the same bracket as both Date Tech and Aoba Johsai?!"
"...!"
Everyone froze for a moment.
Tsuna's bored expression shifted instantly as a spark of excitement flickered in his eyes. He then let out a soft chuckle, "Heh... Looks like we're truly fated to meet again, Aoba Johsai."
---
Uhh…
Only managed to write one chapter today. Normally, I'd have an excuse because I'm usually busy, but not today!
Tbh with you I don't have any excuse at all 😅
Just spent the day hanging out at the beach, sipping coconut water, and soaking up the breeze.
Might've relaxed too hard—my brain's still in vacation mode, and the words aren't flowing. But I'll try to get another chapter out later today for the milestones bonus.
My apologies, guys, please don't jump me 👉👈