Creak!
With the referee's whistle sounding—
Akira slowly walked to the sidelines.
It was his turn to serve.
He lifted his head, slowly scanning the defensive formation on the opposite side of the net.
When the players from Mujinazaka met his gaze, they all looked slightly unsettled.
His eyes seemed to say: This ball is coming for you.
And in the stands outside the stadium, every spectator was fixated on the lone figure on the court.
Just him standing there seemed to suppress the momentum of everyone on Mujinazaka's side.
...
"Wow! That's the student from Karasuno's fifth Section! I've heard of him!"
In front of a large screen on the streets of Miyagi Prefecture, three high school students stood watching the flashing lights and moving images overhead.
Around them, many pedestrians had also stopped to watch.
"I heard he's top of the class this semester! I can't believe he's this good at volleyball!"
"Eh? Why does it feel like the momentum on the court shifts the moment it's his turn to serve?"
"Huh? What nonsense are you guys talking about! How could you feel that through a screen?"
"No, seriously! Don't you notice how quiet the audience and the commentators have gotten?"
...
Tokyo Stadium. Center Court.
Akira studied the positioning of the players across the net.
Then he moved.
Without much windup, he tossed the ball.
The players from Mujinazaka tensed.
A spinning toss. It's a big jump serve!
But they didn't have time to react.
Akira had already launched into his approach!
That signature ultra-long throw jump serve—distinctly Akira.
His running form had a unique elegance to it.
But the opposing side didn't dare let their guard down for a second.
Even if they had seen this serve in person yesterday. Even if they'd studied the footage in detail. Even if they'd rehearsed and visualized countless times—
Now, standing on the court and actually facing it—
They understood.
The pressure was terrifying.
As Akira jumped high across the net, that pressure spiked.
Boom!!
Before anyone could react, a loud smack rang out.
Creak!!
The referee's whistle sounded sharply.
Akira's serve had landed cleanly in Mujinazaka's backcourt.
Karasuno scored!
...
"Hey! Stop spacing out!!"
From the sideline came the exasperated shout of Michiko Kusumi.
"Remember what I told you yesterday!!"
"Yes… ma'am!!"
The Mujinazaka players, snapping out of their daze, looked ashamed.
They had just been frozen by the sheer intensity of that serve—completely unable to move.
What a disgrace.
In fact, they had prepared two methods to counter Akira's intense jump serve yesterday.
Wearing down his stamina over time was just one option.
The other method was specifically for use during his serve.
But when Akira leapt for the serve—
They blanked. Everything they had planned—
Gone.
That was unacceptable.
...
"Oh?"
Hearing Kusumi's shout, players from other teams in the stands perked up, intrigued.
Wait... did Mujinazaka actually have a secret weapon to counter that serve?
If so, could they use it as reference?
After all, Akira's serve was terrifying.
If their teams faced Karasuno in the future, they might also get wrecked by that serve.
And now Mujinazaka might have found a way to deal with it?
Everyone focused up, watching intently.
...
Across the net, Akira remained indifferent as he overheard the coach's shout.
In his view, no serve is truly invincible.
Even a powerful jump serve like his—someone will eventually be able to receive it.
And when that happens, he'll just find a way to evolve his serve again.
Also—
Even if Mujinazaka had found a countermeasure, that didn't mean they could execute it.
That's a whole different story.
He still had confidence in his serve.
Creak!!
Another whistle from the sideline.
Akira walked slowly back to his starting position.
As he turned to look across the net, the players from Mujinazaka instinctively drew a deep breath.
Even if it was a luck-based approach…
What if they actually got lucky?
Akira ignored them.
He tossed the ball again.
Whoosh!
The ball spun into the air in front of him.
Approach. Jump.
This time, the players across the net from Mujinazaka moved in unison.
They jumped, diving into the open spaces around them.
As Akira's serve came rocketing in—
Boom!!
No surprises.
The serve landed.
Creak!
The referee's whistle blew.
Another ace.
...
"This…"
Shinsuke Kita watched the action on court, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.
Even with his composed demeanor, seeing Mujinazaka's "strategy" made him want to swear.
"They call that a coping method??"
"Yeah!!"
The rest of Inarizaki looked baffled.
"I don't get it at all!!"
"Is Kiryū seriously… juggling?"
"What the hell even is that?"
...
They weren't alone.
Spectators all around the stadium were just as confused by Mujinazaka's reaction.
What was happening?
In a final match like this… there's no way Mujinazaka would resort to something so meaningless.
There had to be some deeper strategy behind it.