Bang!
Tsukishima sends a ball to the back row!
Seeing the direction of the serve, Bishin immediately shuffled sideways and received it!
Whoosh!
Usuri moved into position and set the ball directly to the right wing!
Hondo leapt up for the attack!
But Karasuno's blockers had already shifted to the right side, perfectly timing their formation just after Usuri's set!
Bang!!
"One touch!!"
Hondo aimed for a diagonal spike to avoid the Karasuno block!
But Akira seemed to have anticipated it. Midair, he suddenly adjusted his blocking angle mid-jump!!!
Although he didn't completely shut it down at the net, his block absorbed most of the power from the spike, slowing it significantly as the ball spiraled toward Karasuno's backcourt!
Thump!
Hinata picked it up from behind!!
The receive was perfect, flying straight toward the front of the net!!
And Kageyama was already there—stepping in and ready to set!
He jumped and sent the ball flying!!
Every player on Mujinazaka was closely watching his movement!
At that moment, the Karasuno blockers were subtly shifting toward Akira!!
They could sense it—the first set was about to end!!
With the current score, their chances of winning this set were razor-thin!!
So...
They had to make use of the last remaining moments to achieve the objectives they had set beforehand!
Wear down Akira's stamina!
And decode his bizarre Spike!!
There was no way to verify the first goal yet—they'd have to wait until the next set to observe its effects!
As for the second goal... they were still far from reaching it!!
To be honest, so far Mujinazaka had only managed to touch three or four of his Spikes!!
And even then, it was only when they were fully braced, with both the front and back rows working together, and even then, they paid a steep price for it!!
But the ball still got picked up and sent flying!!
However, none of the Mujinazaka players had picked up on anything unusual!!
That's because...
Those few Spikes had all been received by different players!
On the court, there simply wasn't enough time to exchange intel between plays!
So...
Up until now, no one on Mujinazaka had figured out the secret behind his Spike!!
Just as they started shifting toward Akira, Kageyama unexpectedly set the ball to the right!!
That was where Tanaka was!!
In an instant, Hondo leapt to block!!
The other two Mujinazaka players were too far to help—they could only hang back and prepare to receive!!
Smack!
Tanaka Spiked it straight down the line, cleanly bypassing Hondo's block!!
His spike landed deep in Mujinazaka's back row!!
Kiryū dove with everything he had—but he was still a moment too late!!
Creak!!
Karasuno scores!!
They've reached match point!!
At that moment, Michiko Kusumi once again called a timeout from the sidelines!!
...
"What is Mujinazaka even trying to do now?"
"It looks like they've already lost."
Atsumu Miya tilted his head, confused.
"With a score gap like this, you'd think they'd just give up already!"
"Not everything is decided purely by wins and losses,"
Shinsuke Kita spoke calmly from beside him.
"Mujinazaka must have a bigger plan in mind."
"Oh? A plan?"
Atsumu blinked in surprise.
"You mean what you mentioned earlier, boss??"
"Exactly."
Kita nodded.
"Don't forget—the final is a best-of-five Sets."
...
"Judging from the current score, it doesn't look like we'll be winning the first set,"
Under the Mujinazaka bench, Michiko Kusumi addressed the team in a firm tone.
"But there's no need for anyone to panic."
"This is within expectations, right?"
The Mujinazaka players nodded one by one.
They'd already discussed the possibilities before the match started.
Even then, they knew winning the first set wasn't likely.
If they were to win the final, they'd probably have to battle Karasuno across five full sets.
Because in the early stages, with Akira's stamina and that almost unreturnable serve...
Even the most optimistic among them—like Usuri—didn't believe they could take this opening set.
If they wanted to beat Karasuno, they'd have to make their stand in the later sets!
Wear them down—make it a battle of endurance!
Wait until Akira's stamina wasn't at its peak anymore...
Until he couldn't unleash that deadly jump serve so often!
Or even better...
Until he was in the front row and could no longer dominate on offense or at the blocking!!
That would be when Mujinazaka would strike!!
They had full confidence that when Karasuno's stamina started slipping, they would hold strong!!
Because in their daily training, physical endurance was a top priority!!
Compared to other teams in the tournament, Mujinazaka might not be the most dazzling in every aspect.
But the one thing they were certain of...
Was that their physical conditioning surpassed anyone else's!!
And unlike Karasuno, who were playing at Nationals for the first time, Mujinazaka had the edge in experience too!!
They trusted themselves—whether it was managing their stamina or sheer endurance...
They had what it took to outlast their opponent!!
As long as they held on, victory would eventually be within reach!!
"Excellent."
Seeing their steady expressions, Michiko Kusumi nodded in approval.
"I'm glad no one's losing their composure."
"Now then..."
"Don't forget!"
"We still have our mission!!"
"Yes!!"
"So let's use these last few rallies!!"
"Try to analyze as much as we can about his smash!!"
...
Creak!!
As the timeout ended, the Mujinazaka players returned to the court.
There was no heaviness in their steps despite the scoreboard.
They were calm. Steady.
A five-set battle...
Was only just beginning.