THE ATMOSPHERE INSIDE the arena was intense, but the source of all this excitement—Kobayashi Aotori—remained incredibly calm.

Under his navy-blue short hair is a handsome face that remains expressionless. His hazel eyes, from a higher vantage point, stared down at the volleyball in his hands as the referee's crisp whistle echoed.

On the Inarizaki court, Miya Atsumu, standing at the front, immediately tenses up, his sharp eyes fixed on the volleyball in Kobayashi Aotori's hand.

He inadvertently glanced at Akagi behind him and noticed that his arms, placed by his side, were slightly trembling. Perhaps the abrupt changes in the last two serves have made his hands hurt to the point of numbness, it was challenging for him to gauge the force of the volleyball.

—In short, Kobayashi Aotori's inconsistent attitudes had bewildered him a bit.

He gritted his teeth, casting an unfriendly look at Kobayashi Aotori across the net.

...As expected, the title of libero is well-deserved.

What a nasty guy!

The next serve... I will definitely, definitely receive it!

Amid the crowd's attention, the volleyball was tossed up, once again in Kobayashi's signature jump serve.

"Boom!" The ball left Kobayashi's palm, and everyone's eyes followed the trajectory of the volleyball. Akagi's gaze was focused, his legs instinctively moving toward the direction of the volleyball.

His teammates in the front row took a few steps back, while Miya Osamu stared fixedly at the rapidly spinning volleyball, feeling the faint white steam rising from it—

"Supergravity!" He succinctly shouted. Akagi's eyes narrowed for a moment. Then, with his tongue against his upper teeth, he squatted down with all his might and shouted loudly without hesitation:

"Someone come assist me! Please!!"

"Yoshi!!" Miya Atsumu responds loudly. Right as the words left his mouth, the volleyball hammered fiercely onto Akagi's wrist—

The immense force caused him to squint his right eye involuntarily in pain, his expression slightly pained. "...Atsumu!"

In the instant of the shout, Miya Atsumu quickly assisted, and everyone held their breath. The commentator's exclamation was particularly striking:

(They received it! Inarizaki received that devilish serve... Eh?! Wh-what just happened?!)

Accompanied by the commentator's astonished voice, everyone silently watched the ball that had struck Miya Atsumu's left arm lightly and drifted out of bounds—

Miya Atsumu stood stiffly in place, and Ojiro Aran beside him clearly saw the corner of his mouth twitch. No one expected that the second serve, which should have landed with great force like the first one, turned out to be light and airy.

In simpler terms, Akagi actually managed to receive the ball the first time, but due to misjudgment as "Supergravity," Miya Atsumu received it wrongly, causing it to fly out. Kita Shinsuke had a blank expression, and then the familiar fox-like voice exploded massively—

"You idiot, Atsumu! The serve was completely different from the last one! What 'supergravity'? You moron!"

"Huh? I was just guessing! Besides! The serve looked exactly the same as the first one in terms of sound and rotation!"

Across from them, Kobayashi Aotori watched the two of them bicker with nearly identical expressions, blinking in confusion.

Actually, the first serve was an accident. Normally, I wouldn't serve with such force...

"You idiot! Haven't you read the magazine? Even those idiotic reporters noticed that Kobayashi Aotori's serves are deceiving from its appearance!"

Reporter: Innocently lying down and getting shot.

T.N.: "无辜躺枪" (wúgū tǎng qiāng) is a slang expression that means someone is getting blamed or caught up in trouble for no reason, similar to the English phrase "caught in the crossfire" or "being a scapegoat."

"How would I know, you idiot!"

Just as the two continued their endless argument, a deadly stare suddenly extended from Inarizaki's resting area. Both of them froze, obediently turned around, returning to their positions silently.

Through the gap between the two arguing players, Kobayashi Aotori saw Kita Shinsuke's expressionless face.

...Kind of reminds me of Daichi in certain situations...

Although they lost the point, Inarizaki didn't show a hint of solemnity. On the contrary, everyone's momentum relaxed, and Atsumu's expression once again turned into a smile.

Because, after this experience, they understood.

The next time, they would definitely receive it; there is no doubt about it.

Constant setbacks, constant growth—this is the best reward of the competition.

Standing behind the service line, Kobayashi Aotori watched the volleyball in front of him. Scoring the last point was an unexpected joy. His hazel eyes turned towards the electronic scoreboard in the center of the court, where the score 3:0 is prominently displayed.

If, by some chance, I score again, the blame would probably all fall on me in the end...

Yoshi, Lady Luck, please favor me a bit... Ahhh, I messed up!!

It's over!

For the first time on the court, Kobayashi Aotori, without any hesitation, smiles and makes an underhand serve, freezing in place the next moment, internally screaming.

What the hell am I doing!

Under the stunned expressions of everyone, the volleyball lightly hits the net on Shiratorizawa's side.

Silence—

Even the usually loud commentator seems choked, blankly watching the volleyball slowly bounce back into Shiratorizawa's court.

The high spirits of Inarizaki's team vanished instantly. Miya Osamu's mouth twitched, sensing the fluctuating mood of Miya Atsumu, as if he saw the gray background behind him.

The originally high morale of the Inarizaki instantly vanished into thin air. Miya Osamu's mouth twitched as he noticed Atsumu's fluctuating emotions, as if seeing his gray and white background board.

T.N.: 灰白的背景板 (huī bái de bèijǐng bǎn): Literally "gray and white background board," this phrase can be understood metaphorically. In this context, it suggests a sense of defeat or despondency, akin to a character fading into the background in a dramatic scene.

...Was it because he knew the next serve would be received, so he chose not to give Atsumu an opportunity to showcase himself and instead ended the serving round with this mocking mistake...?

Even the usually composed Kita Shinsuke had a few black lines on his forehead. Apparently, everyone's thoughts align with Miya Osamu's. They never imagined that the real answer was just some idiot pride's getting the better of him.

After a moment of dead silence, the first to break the stillness was Coach Washijo. His angry voice echoed through the venue.

"Aotori, you idiot!! Do you know where you are!!"

"You already have absolute strength! Put away your cunning and bad temper in such official matches!!"

Coach Washijo's outburst seemed to have ignited a powder keg in the arena, causing a commotion—

Commentator A: (Ahem! We can see that after three consecutive service points, Kobayashi Aotori made an unfortunate mistake on the fourth serve!)

Commentator B, seeing his colleague trying hard to cover it up, also added a few words, however, the audience are not fools.

Perhaps to those who understood the sport, Kobayashi Aotori's action could be seen as a tactical move, denying Inarizaki the opportunity to boost morale by receiving the next serve. However, in the eyes of the "laymens watching the fun," the outstanding Kobayashi Aotori's behavior was pure mockery and humility!

In an instant, the atmosphere in the arena is pushed to a new high.

FACING THE UNFRIENDLY GLARES from Inarizaki's players, even Shiratorizawa's members felt a bit helpless about Kobayashi Aotori's "nasty character."

"Uh, um, this is the National Tournament, right? Aotori, you understand that, right?" Ohira Reon frantically signals him with his eyes, while Ushijima Wakatoshi straightforwardly added:

"No need. Even if they receive it, I can spike it back."

Although Tendou had wanted to say something, when he heard Ushijima's words, he just smiled. As expected of Wakatoshi-kun...

B-but the key point is that I really made a mistake!!

Although Kobayashi Aotori's face remained impassive, inside he was a wreck, his inner self on its knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

Learning his lesson, he dared not let his mind wander and decided to put aside the blame for the game. Instead, he focused on giving his best in this match.

Not aiming for an extraordinary performance, just playing at his usual level should keep the responsibility minimal.

After all, even if the team loses, who would blame a regular player instead of the ace who should have scored?

With his thoughts sorted out, Kobayashi Aotori took his position and watched Miya Atsumu's serve.

Inarizaki's anthem echoed once again, but unfortunately, Kobayashi Aotori still couldn't hear it.

The moment the whistle blew, Kobayashi Aotori had shifted all his attention back to volleyball. With a calm mindset, he once again became the "robot" with nothing but the volleyball in his eyes.

Miya Atsumu's hand clenched the air, and the music abruptly stopped.

This time, it's a jump float serve that Kobayashi Aotori can't master no matter what.

The ball swiftly flew out as Miya Atsumu executed the serve without hesitation. When it reached Shiratorizawa's court, its speed suddenly slowed down. Kobayashi Aotori frowned, and behind him, Yamagata Hayato exclaimed loudly:

"Leave it to me!"

As expected of Shiratorizawa's libero, both his mentality and skills are top-notch.

Confidence, too. Kobayashi Aotori couldn't help but envy him for a moment.

Even though the jump float serve seemed unpredictable to Kobayashi Aotori, not knowing when it might suddenly drop, for the battle-hardened Yamagata Hayato, it was different.

With a shout, Yamagata Hayato focused entirely on the ball. Then, under Kobayashi Aotori's veiled envious gaze, he steps forward and bumps it—

The ball soared high after being deftly received by Yamagata Hayato. Atsumu sneered lightly, swiftly returning to the court, ready to face Shiratorizawa's next attack.

The ball was cushioned by Yamagata Hayato towards Shirabu, the angle was so perfect that even the usually stern Shirabu's brows relaxed a bit. On the opposite side, Suna Rintarou saw Kobayashi Aotori's eyes closely following the entire process of the volleyball, his narrowed eyes filled with curiosity.

Hmm... Why is the accuracy of the volleyball so high in his hands?

It's almost as if he and the volleyball understand each other so well that they're inseparable.

Shirabu carefully observed the soaring volleyball, made a vigorous leap, and behind him, a robust figure seemed to appear out of thin air. In the blink of an eye, that figure was already airborne, swinging his arm down high—

"Bang!"

Commentator A: "(Ushijima Wakatoshi makes a successful spike! Indeed, no matter the situation, you can always trust in Shiratorizawa's Ushijima Wakatoshi.)"

THE MATCH GREW MORE INTENSE. Once serving ceased to be a scoring weapon, everyone was running around the court. Kobayashi Aotori, who constantly stood on the sidelines, was closely observed by Suna Rintarou.

The latter saw the sweat of Kobayashi Aotori flowing down his perfect jawline into his collar and furrowed his brows slightly.

During serves, he was arrogant and domineering, eager to seize any moment to shine. But in receiving and passing, he unexpectedly displayed such a low-key demeanor?

He handed over spiking and attacking to his teammates while he roamed the perimeter, ready to respond quickly when needed.

Even when Tendou and others were blocking, he hovered at a distance from the net.

But he certainly wasn't idling or slacking off—

Suna Rintarou frowned, and Miya Atsumu also had veins bulging on his forehead in frustration, glaring at Kobayashi Aotori with a strange smile on his face.

Anyone would be, when leaping high to spike, finding a gap to break through the block, and then, through that gap, you see—

Kobayashi Aotori standing there, looking at you with fierce eyes, expressionless.

The result of abruptly changing direction is—getting blocked and scored.

"Yoshi! Great block, Aotori-chan!" Tendou Satori, who scored through blocking, excitedly rushed up and heavily pat Kobayashi Aotori on the shoulder, leaving him confused by the sudden encouragement.

I was clearly just 'standing in place as punishment,' how did it turn out that I was doing a great job blocking?

T.N.: 罚站 (fá zhàn): Literally "stand as punishment." in a sports context, it metaphorically means someone is passively standing around without actively participating.

Unbeknownst to Kobayashi Aotori, his extensive experience had instinctively led him to stand in the most advantageous position for blocking.

However, he himself was unaware, even blinking blankly at the excited Tendou.

Was he mocking me for just standing there and not blocking?

Did I get scolded again?

THE MATCH BECAME INCREASINGLY TENSE. If at the beginning, Suna Rintarou had the idea of disturbing Kobayashi Aotori, preventing him from obstructing the spiking route of his own team members, but realizing Aotori's disregard for anyone, he quietly joined the blocking team, yielding better results.

Little did he know, Kobayashi Aotori wasn't contemptuous; it's just that at this moment, volleyball was his sole focus.

However, the benefits of Suna turning his attention to blocking were not insignificant.

At least, nobody except Ushijima Wakatoshi could spike successfully.

The audience watched both teams in confusion, gradually realizing that both teams were now scoring through blocking.

Apart from occasional successful spikes from Ushijima Wakatoshi and Ojiro Aran, the scores seemed to be coming from the blocks of Tendou Satori and Suna Rintarou!

Commentator A fell silent for two seconds, then awkwardly laughed: (It's evident that both teams excel at blocking!)

Commentator B, once again sent a look of admiration to Commentator A, who was forcefully explaining the situation.

Goshiki's spike was once again blocked by Suna Rintarou's expressionless face. Frustrated, he stomped the floor, cursing, "Damn it!!"

"Oh~ Suna-kun is really super flexible!" Tendou Satori extended two fingers, speaking in a slightly strange tone. Suna, on the other side, just glanced at him indifferently.

Seeing Suna so naturally immune to Tendou's voice, Kobayashi Aotori couldn't help but give him a thumbs up in his heart.

Truly amazing in every aspect.

As he was thinking, Kobayashi Aotori wiped the sweat from his forehead, he noticed Suna's gaze constantly on him. Thankfully, he had long mastered the habit of staying focused during matches; otherwise, with Suna staring at him like that, his performance would undoubtedly be affected.

He squinted at the electronic board showing 21:17, the numbers glaringly obvious.

Hmm, as expected, the three points Kobayashi Aotori scored at the beginning were quite the hindrance.

Miya Atsumu smirked, staring at Kobayashi Aotori, who had rotated to the front row, meeting those hazel eyes—

The next moment, those eyes, which remained unchanged, shifted their focus, completely ignoring Atsumu. Atsumu's face darkened, and the one beside him, Osamu, couldn't help but burst into an undisguised chuckle.

...This bastard...!

However, due to the limitations of positioning and movement, when Kobayashi Aotori, invincible in the back row and on side-wing, moved to the front row, his effectiveness noticeably weakened.

—Especially when his cross-court shot was blocked by Suna.

"Ah! Aotori-kun... Ughm!" A girl in the audience couldn't help but shout, quickly silenced by an older sister next to her.

The older sister with heavy makeup glared at her, "Don't disturb Aotori-kun!"

The girl nodded quickly, and the older sister cautiously removed her hand covering the girl's mouth. The two girls exchanged glances, surrounded by others holding banners with Kobayashi Aotori name, all looking worried.

"Damn it!" Suddenly, a slightly deep male voice emerged from the group of girls.

"?" The pink-haired girl turned back in surprise, seeing a black-haired boy with large glasses, his body slightly hunched. He was dumbfounded at his outburst, his face going pale as he stammered to explain.

The heavily make-up woman patted the boy's shoulder with a deep look, shaking her head:

"Don't explain, we understand."

"?" The girl looked confused at their interaction. Observing the awkward man who immediately wanted to crawl into the ground after the older sister finished speaking, she couldn't comprehend. Rather than dwelling on it, she looked at Kobayashi Aotori on the court with a worried expression:

"Aotori-kun's spike got blocked... for the first time in this match!"

"His serves and spikes were unbeatable before..."

"Aotori-kun won't lose confidence, will he..."

And at that moment, Kobayashi Aotori, whom everyone was worried about—

Ah, he's totally fine.

Being blocked was within expectations.

After all, Suna is too strong. Blocking someone like me, who is just filling in, is simply as easy as turning his hand, right?

The fact that he didn't block me earlier was probably because he wasn't serious or got distracted by his teammates.

He looked at Suna, who was almost the same height as himself, and accepted this fact naturally.

The score reached 21:18.

"Smack—!" Ushijima Wakatoshi's spike brought the point difference back to 4.

22:18.

"Suna!"

"...Bang——!"

22:19.

WHEN USHIJIMA WAS UNABLE TO CATCH UP, Shirabu had already touched the ball, and with Goshiki under Suna's tight watch, Shirabu once again shouted "Aotori!" without hesitation, he lifted the volleyball towards the familiar highest hitting point—

"Whiz—"

"Bang—!!"

A crisp sound, accompanied by unstoppable speed, Akagi's fingertips barely grazed the ball, unable to prevent it from smashing into Inarizaki's court.

"Beep—"

23:19.

Watching the back-and-forth on the court, Tomoko Ito in the stands gripped the megaphone, clenched her teeth, as if she was physically present, she leaned forward every time Kobayashi Aotori made a move.

Though bumping into her classmates, no one had the leisure to care.

—Because they too held their breath due to the tense game.

Everyone's heart was in their throats until Shiratorizawa reached match point.