The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"Are you okay, Senki?" Ezaki asked cautiously.

Normally, Ezaki wouldn't dare to approach his 'former' friend like this. Not because he didn't care, but usually, he would be ignored or even mocked, and Ezaki was fine with that, knowing everything was not unfounded. However, this time, he had to ask the question since Senki looked terrible.

Senki's face was full of sweat while he was panting heavily, holding his jelly knees to support his body. It was clear that he couldn't hold it anymore and needed some rest. Still, the determination shown in his eyes when they met Miura prevented the head coach from replacing him right on the spot.

The coach knew that while Senki was not the player with the best stamina on the team, he still played a big part as probably the third-best attacker on the team besides Ezaki and Hideo. Miura needed his presence now more than ever on the team, especially when he wanted to take control of the game.

That was why, against his moral dilemma, he refused to replace Senki on the court, something the player was grateful for.

"Thank you, Ezaki," Senki said unconsciously. "Don't worry, I am okay here." He said it casually.

However, those words were not casual in Ezaki's ears. While Ezaki noticed the others started to get warm at him, the boy knew it was just because of the heated moment in the game. But to hear those genuine words from Senki, Ezaki's feeling was complicated right now.

Still, this was not the right time to talk about it. There was still a game that needed to be continued before they resolved all the problems in the past, and currently, they had to think of a way to stop Tsunemori's wave of offense.

It took a while, but after losing two more points from Riku's serve and Hirano's perfect block, Shimoyawata finally cut off their loss. However, no one celebrated that, considering right now, they were one point behind their opponent.

'Damn! This is bad! We cannot lose right now!' That was the collective thought of the team.

After that, the game went with a quick pace. Both teams kept exchanging one attack after another, no one wanted to lose right now. Due to the exhaustion that hit them both, points dropped from mistakes also happened a lot. The game that once looked proper now turned into a chaotic street volleyball that even they themselves wouldn't be able to watch without cringing hard.

When the score was tied again at 23 – 23 though, Akira finally made a move. He used his last timeout to give the instruction to his players while also letting them rest for a while. This was the best decision in his mind, especially considering some of his players couldn't even move a single step again.

"Megumi-san, please, bring us some water."

"Um."

It didn't take long before the girl distributed mineral water to all the players there. She bit her lips, worried about their state, especially the two youngest players on the team. Yuki and Riku both had been the most active players in this game, doing everything from defending, setting an attack, and sometimes even executing it themselves.

All of that was taking a toll on them as right now, they looked like they were about to pass out at any time.

"Can you both hold it?" Megumi asked, concerned.

Yuki and Riku stared at each other for a second before they nodded simultaneously, not even hesitating to answer the question. "Don't worry, Megumi-senpai. We are okay." While they both were on the edge of collapsing right now, there was no way they would admit it, not willing to risk getting replaced at such a crucial moment.

They wanted to be on the court until everything was over, whether they won or lost the game.

Megumi could only nod helplessly as she also knew their feeling. "Just be careful, okay?" She asked softly.

The three didn't notice that their interaction drew jealousy from his teammates. Koji, the self-proclaimed biggest fan of Megumi chimed in suddenly and said, "Don't worry, Megumi-senpai! We still have so much stamina we could play for another five sets after this!"

"Yes, Megumi-senpai!" The others also nodded in agreement, putting their arms on Riku and Yuki's shoulders. "Don't worry about them! This is easy for them, right?" Facing such an intimidating question from their senpai, the two freshmen could only nod frantically, not wanting to provoke their ire.

Megumi giggled a little, making all the players there blush. She knew everyone was on the verge of collapsing right now, yet she couldn't help but appreciate how they still wanted to reassure her that they were okay.

"Well, if you all still have so much stamina… Please, spend it all to get the two last points and win the game for me, okay?"

"YES, SENPAI!"

-0-

Even though the score was even and Tsunemori was at a disadvantage due to its short number of players, it was Shimoyawata who felt uneasy right now. Even though the opponent overused their players for two full sets, they still managed to hold their ground against them, and if their opponent could score two more points before them, they could say goodbye to the tournament straight away.

They wouldn't feel this uneasy if only the next one who served the ball was an ordinary player. Unfortunately, the one holding the ball right now was Yuki, and they still couldn't figure out the witchcraft serve that seemed to cause their movement to get slower. That was why they were anxious right now.

"Oda, move to the left a little," Wakamatsu instructed the back line. "You are only responsible for the left wing. If the ball came in between the middle and your area, let me take it over."

"Yes, Senpai." The libero nodded.

"Also, Ezaki, you are the player with the best reaction speed here, so be ready if you see we couldn't react to the serve, okay?"

"Sure." Ezaki nodded.

However, they didn't take an account on Yuki's exhaustion and the probability that the serve would be completely different than before. And when they saw the ball hit the top of the net before bouncing a little toward their front side, they cursed at the same time while running forward frantically to save the ball.

"SHIT!"

Unfortunately, while Hideo on the front left and Wakamatsu on the middle back rushed immediately, they didn't react quickly enough, could only stare at the ball bouncing at the ball gently as if it mocked their useless effort. Yuki who did the serve punched the air immediately when he saw the ball landed.

"GODDAMNIT, YUKI! WHAT KIND OF GOD DID YOU PRAY BEFORE THE GAME?!"

"HOLY SHIT! WE'VE GOT THE GAME POINT! WE ARE GOING TO WIN!"

"COME ON!"

For a moment, the exhaustion on Tsunemori's side faded away as they all were too enthralled by the prospect of winning this game. This reaction was understandable. While Shimoyawata hadn't achieved anything formally, they were considered the third-best team in Tokyo in the last couple of years.

To be one step away from winning against them after such a crazy long game, they couldn't help but feel like they were in a good dream.

"Okay, everyone! Don't panic!" Hideo clapped his hands, trying to encourage his teammates. "It is not over yet! We still have a chance!" Unfortunately, that kind of encouragement didn't work anymore. They were too depressed right now after being hit by the prospect of losing in the first round.

No matter how many players were still fresh and could be their advantage in the final set, it would be useless if they lost right now.

And that was what Yuki tried to ensure at this point, as he changed his approach to his serve. It was a subtle change that no one noticed, but when Ezaki on the back right was about to receive the ball, it wobbled slightly before deviating its route as if wanting to avoid Ezaki's hand and went straight to the floor.

'Shi-!'

*Thud!*

The entire court went silent as they stared at the ball bouncing slowly on the floor before it finally lost its momentum to move. For a while, there was no reaction, only disbelief could be seen on everyone's faces as if they didn't know what to do. Finally, it was the referee who broke the silence by blowing the whistle, announcing the final result of the game.

"GAME SET! TSUNEMORI HIGH WINS THE GAME AND ADVANCES THROUGH THE SECOND ROUND OF THE TOURNAMENT!"