Chereads / Haikyuu - I Am A Different Hinata! / Chapter 54 - Chapter 54 -VS Senseki

Chapter 54 - Chapter 54 -VS Senseki

"WE DID IT, WE WON!" Tanaka shouted as he hugged Nishinoya.

"WE MADE IT TO THE NEXT ROUND, RYU!!" Nishinoya celebrated, hugging Tanaka tightly.

"You guys were amazing, everyone!" Sugawara said, pulling Daichi and Asahi into a group hug. Shimizu stood nearby, her smiling eyes glimmering in a way that could have made Tanaka and Nishinoya faint had they been looking her way.

"Shall we go celebrate?" Yamaguchi asked, standing with Tsukishima.

"You can go ahead... I'm fine right here," Tsukishima replied, though he seemed slightly happy about the victory.

"Dude, we actually pulled off that quick attack!" Kageyama said, staring at his hands.

"Well, I told you I'd smash the ball onto their court when it counted! I just didn't think you'd actually go for it," Hinata said, his arms crossed behind his head, elbows sticking out in a relaxed manner.

"It looked like it would work..." Kageyama muttered thoughtfully.

"Exactly! I felt the same way!" Hinata said with a grin—until he sensed someone behind him on the other side of the net.

"Tobio-chan and Joker..." Oikawa said smugly.

"You called me what?" Hinata asked, confused.

"You called him what?" Kageyama echoed, glaring.

"That's my nickname for you! You're always wearing that dumb grin that annoys the hell out of me, but I have to admit you're a wildcard who could play almost any position... except setter!" Oikawa teased.

"I think I can manage as a setter..." Hinata said, deep in thought.

"Anyway... you may have won this time, but in the next tournament, I'm wiping the floor with you idiots," Oikawa declared.

"Oikawa-san, that was a great match... and next time, let's make it an even better one!" Kageyama said, offering a handshake.

"As if I'd ever shake hands with you, Tobio-chan! You idiot, idiot, idiot!" Oikawa retorted, pulling down his eyelid and sticking out his tongue before storming off to join the Aoba Johsai team, some of whom had tears in their eyes while others looked visibly shaken and downcast.

 

"Hey! Our next opponents just finished their match at almost the same time as ours. We won't get much info on them," Ukai remarked.

"Our next opponents?" Tanaka asked.

"Yeah, we still have another match this afternoon!" Sugawara reminded him.

"OH YEAH!... Who are we up against?!" Tanaka asked excitedly.

"It'll be Senseki High. They just defeated Niikawa High 2-1," Ukai explained.

 

The Karasuno players were now gathered in the gym's corridor near the main entrance.

"Alright, same strategy, but I'd like to announce that we'll start with Hinata and Kageyama on the bench so they can rest. Sugawara and Ennoshita will start," Ukai announced.

Sugawara and Ennoshita's eyes sparkled with excitement at the news.

"I'm doing this because you both earned it during practice, and I want you to have this opportunity. Plus, as I mentioned earlier, the first-years need to rest. But if the match gets tough, you two will sub in. Understood?" Ukai said, looking at Hinata and Kageyama.

"Understood!" the two replied in unison.

"Alright then, go eat, and don't be late!" Ukai instructed.

 

"Do you think we'll have any trouble?" Hinata asked after swallowing a bite of food.

"Well, we shouldn't underestimate them. It's pretty unlikely any team gets this far purely by luck, but we have to trust our seniors!" Kageyama said, standing up to leave.

"Yeah, you're right..." Hinata agreed, following him.

 

"Alright! Let's start warming up with some receives!" Ukai called, serving balls for practice.

"Looks like they don't have much of a cheering section..." Hinata observed.

"Yeah, that guy over there seems to be their captain," Daichi said, pointing to a medium-built guy with slightly messy brown hair falling around his face. He stood just over 180 cm tall and seemed to be leading his team.

"He's about your size, Asahi-san, and the tallest on their team," Tanaka noted, pointing at a bald guy with a friendly face.

"Ryu, he's like you, but taller and without the delinquent vibe!" Nishinoya teased, laughing.

"Hey! Shut up!" Tanaka barked.

"That guy seems like a show-off," Kageyama muttered, eyeing a spiky orange-haired player just under 180 cm tall with bright blue eyes. The player had just executed a spike during warm-ups and was grinning.

 

"Let's have a good match!" Senseki's captain said, shaking Daichi's hand.

"Of course!" Daichi replied warmly.

 

"WHAT?! The first-year duo is starting on the bench?!" someone in the stands exclaimed.

"Oh no... I wanted to see Hinata-kun!" a girl in the audience lamented.

"Hmph! They're using part of their reserve team. They're underestimating us!" the spiky-haired player, Kurogane, grumbled.

"Calm down, Kurogane... let's just play our game," the captain, Natsume, said.

"Fine! But I don't want to see you holding back, Natsume!" Kurogane snapped.

 

The match began with Onizuka, the bald middle blocker, serving toward Daichi.

"I GOT IT!" Daichi shouted, receiving the ball and passing it to Sugawara.

"Nice receive!" Sugawara said, unable to hide his excitement as he set the ball in the middle for Asahi, who broke through a double block and slammed it to the ground.

"I missed spiking your sets in a tournament!" Asahi said cheerfully.

"Thanks!" Sugawara replied, beaming.

 

Next, Sugawara served toward the opposing court, but Kurogane received it easily.

"Natsume-senpai!" Kanemoto, the short-haired setter with cat-like eyes, called, setting the ball to Natsume in position four. Natsume faced a triple block from Tanaka, Asahi, and Ennoshita but managed to hit the ball off the side of Asahi's hand, sending it out of bounds.

"Wow... that guy's pretty good!" Hinata remarked from the bench.

"He's got solid technique," Kageyama agreed.

"Nice captain!"

"Nice captain!"

"Thanks, everyone!" Natsume said, smiling.

 

"He seems like the most skilled player on their team," Takeda observed.

"And it looks like the team places a lot of trust in him," Ukai added.

 

"I'll show them why they shouldn't underestimate us!" Kurogane said, delivering a float serve that dropped sharply near the net on Karasuno's side.

 

The game remained fiercely competitive until Ukai called a timeout as Senseki tied the score at 18-18.

"Alright! These guys are more skilled than we expected, and they're well-balanced. That Natsume guy is definitely a great player," Ukai said, eyeing Senseki's captain.

"Let's put in our starting lineup!" Ukai decided.

"Got it!" the team shouted in unison.

 

Once Karasuno brought in their starters, they quickly gained the upper hand. Senseki's weaker blocks couldn't stop Hinata's spikes, and despite being a strong team, they lost 2-0 (25-19, 25-15).