Haikyuu: Nah, I'd Adapt!

Throughout the match, despite the unbelievable serves and spikes, there was one thing Oikawa noticed about Tsuna.

'His receive is not as good!'

No, it would be safe to say that his receive was good. But it was levels below his powerful spike, making it seem subpar in comparison. More importantly, as much as Tsuna could handle receiving, he wasn't as good as Karasuno's libero.

God is fair.

That was Oikawa's reasoning for the spike.

Yet, as Oikawa's figure descended after his spike, his eyes followed the ball as it rocketed toward the one crushing them. His face twisted slightly as he thought, '...Have a taste of what I felt, you monstrous bastard!'

Karasuno's players' expressions shifted as they realized where the ball was heading.

'...Shit,' Daichi thought, frozen in place.

Tanaka and Asahi could only grit their teeth as they watched the ball completely avoid their block. Their eyes stayed locked on it, helpless.

'It might be a calculated spike...' Suga stood frozen beneath the net. He felt utterly dumbfounded by Oikawa's mental fortitude.

And he knew almost all of them felt the same way.

This was their first experience playing against the top teams in the prefecture. Since their countless losses last year, when they had barely been able to revive the volleyball club, they thought it was quite unlucky to face such a strong team this early.

Yet, Tsuna's presence changed their perspective and gave them hope.

However, this moment reminded them just how far apart their levels were compared to the top teams.

'Did we seriously just get hopeful because we're being carried? Is this... the volleyball we wanted to play?'

To get this far, it had only been because of the very player the ball was now flying toward. The doubt they thought had faded away came creeping back.

"..."

Tsuna wasn't aware of what the others felt about him. He was just focused on the ball. Adrenaline surged through him as time seemed to slow.

He watched his hands move slowly, putting them together to receive the ball.

Yet...

'It won't be possible to receive this spike,' Tsuna knew.

Across the court, Aoba Johsai's players lit up with excitement.

"That's it!"

"Hell yeah!"

Their eyes lit up in joy. They could see Tsuna's hands were too far away from the ball. He definitely wouldn't be able to receive it.

The spike was heading straight for the floor, and they were thrilled.

Even a monster has its limits!

But then...

"...Huh?"

The joyous expressions of Aoba Johsai's players faltered. Their smiles cracked into confusion.

"Why is he... there...?"

Even the rest of Karasuno looked on in shock as Daichi mumbled in disbelief, "Huh? Nishinoya...?"

'...I can't do it. But he can.'

Tsuna thought as he stared straight into Nishinoya's eyes. The libero had thrown his body toward the ball, arm stretched forward.

Tsuna knew he couldn't make the save himself, so he had decided to leave it entirely to Nishinoya and ignore the ball.

"You... you fucker," Nishinoya grumbled as the ball made contact with his hand, bouncing back into play, leaving everyone in disbelief.

His body had been frozen just moments ago.

But...

Nishinoya's eyes trembled as those calm gaze locked onto him. Tsuna's stare seemed to say he expected him as the libero should be able to handle this without fail.

"You son of a bitch..." Nishinoya cursed under his breath, "So this is what Suga-san felt, huh!?"

"W-what?"

Both Aoba Johsai coaches shot to their feet in shock at the unexpected save. Their disbelief was mirrored by their players, who stood frozen, their expressions dimming.

Their hopes...

"...!"

The crowd held their breath even tighter as the tension peaked. Their wide eyes followed the ball's trajectory as it soared high into the air.

Someone muttered, barely audible, "...Shit."

And then—"Whoaaaa!!! KARASUNO!!"

The gym exploded in cheers, a roar so loud it felt like the roof might give way.

"Their libero is insane!"

"Since when did they have players like this?!"

They were all shocked!

As the ball slowly falling down...

"Suga... senpai."

Tsuna chuckled softly, his eyes falling on Suga, who felt a familiar chill creeping in. His frozen body snapped back into motion as he sprinted toward the ball as he cursed, "Fuck!"

Tsuna followed, heading toward the net. He simply trusted Suga to get the ball to him.

"I knew it! I knew you'd do this to me again, you fucker!"

Suga cursed loudly.

'How is he just blindly trusting me like this?'

The image of Nishinoya's earlier save flashed in his mind.

It wasn't hard to guess what had happened—Tsuna must have done the same thing to the libero. He must have looked at Nishinoya with that same piercing gaze.

Tears pricked the corners of his eyes as he muttered, "Why do I feel so damn touched, goddammit!?"

Nishinoya might be talented, but Suga knew his own limits. His skills were average at best, and he was fully aware of that.

Yet, Tsuna moved without a hint of hesitation, as if trusting him completely.

It was overwhelming.

Overwhelmingly suffocating as the pressure weighed on Suga's shoulders was immense.

"Shit..."

Suga gritted his teeth as he put everything into running toward the ball just as it was about to hit the floor.

It was just a meter away. He knew he wouldn't make it in time. But his body didn't stop.

Suga threw himself forward, diving toward the ball with everything he had. He ignored the fact he might get hurt doing so as he shouted, "Hah! Screw injuries! How can I call myself a setter if I can't set this up!"

"...!"

The floor was rough against his palms, but his fingers met the ball just in time. As he twisted his wrist, sending the ball. Realizing the trajectory was bad, he clenched his teeth as he shouted, "Shit, my ba--"

"Nice receive, Suga!"

A voice interrupted him, and everyone watched as Tsuna's silhouette changed direction, heading straight for the ball.

"Fuck, is he going to spike it from such a distance!?"

Iwaizumi's voice cracked with disbelief as he watched on. He then turned to Oikawa whose figure stood in silence. He knew Oikawa must have been the most affected by this as he shouted, "Oikawa!"

"...!"

Oikawa seemed to snap back to reality, looking over at Iwaizumi, who was staring at Tsuna's figure. Tsuna had jumped up in the air as he also moved closer to the net, closing in on Iwaizumi.

They both jumped in sync without a word.

"Not this time, you bastard!"

Iwaizumi roared, determination blazing in his eyes.

But...

As Tsuna's arm swung down, his palm connected with the ball with a sound that echoed like a whip cracking through the court. The sheer force behind the spike was deafening, the ball exploding forward like a missile.

It smashed into the blockers' hands with an earth-shaking impact.

"...!"

Iwaizumi felt the sting in his palms, his fingers straining to hold their ground. Oikawa gritted his teeth, his muscles trembling under the force.

And yet...

The ball burst through their block as if it were paper, streaking past them with blistering speed.

"No way..."

Iwaizumi whispered, his eyes wide as he twisted mid-air to follow the ball's trajectory. They saw all of their team running toward the ball desperately as it then bounced on the floor.

It hit the court.

Hard.

The sound of it landing echoed in the silence that followed. A mocking tap, tap rang out as the ball bounced lazily and rolled to a stop.

"..."

For a moment, no one moved. No one spoke.

"Fuck! How can we be so helpless... We're Aoba Johsai, goddammit!"

Iwaizumi's frustration seemed to resonate with the rest of the team. It felt like a nightmare to them, but...

Whistle!

"Whoaaa!"

"Crazy! This is fucking crazy!"

The crowd immediately burst into deafening cheers at the referee's whistle, acknowledging more point for Karasuno as they all looked at 'Fallen Crow' in total disbelief!

"Nishinoya-san! Holy freaking crap!"

Tanaka's voice boomed as he and Asahi sprinted toward Nishinoya, their faces lighting up with sheer admiration. Stars practically sparkled in their eyes as they crowded around him.

"You're so freaking cool!"

Tanaka exclaimed, his excitement overflowing.

Asahi added, "That was an unbelievable save, Nishinoya! Truly amazing!" 

Nishinoya puffed out his chest, raising his chin high. "Hmph! Of course! Am I not the best defense Karasuno has?"

He soaked in the praise, reveling in their awe as Tanaka and Asahi continued to heap compliments on him. The more they gushed, the higher Nishinoya's chin seemed to rise, until he looked like a proud king surveying his kingdom.

Nearby, Daichi let out a resigned sigh, shaking his head as he watched the trio.

"They're just like kids..."

Daichi mumbled as he turned to look at Suga who sprawled on the ground. His face was pale, almost ghostly, with exaggerated dark lines scribbled over his expression like a distressed manga character.

Daichi couldn't help but fold his hands in a prayer, "Rest in peace... Suga."

'Still...' He thought, looking at Tsuna who casually wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand as he clenched his fist, '...he trusted us.'

The doubt that had crept back into his heart was now completely gone. Daichi was sure the same went for the rest of the team.

Tsuna's talent might dwarf theirs.

But they could still be better, train even harder, and be able to at least be useful to him, to score!

Daichi smiled before turning back toward the loud mouth around Nishinoya as he walked over while laughing heartily, "Haha! Nishinoya, I knew you had it in you..."

He decided to forget all else and joined the rest to celebrate this point—one that everyone felt was the most important.

One that they'd remember throughout their lives.

From outside the court.

"...Thank God," Shimizu mumbled quietly while sitting on the bench.

She could tell the atmosphere wasn't right with the team. But from that turning point, it seemed like their state of mind went back to where it should be.

At this point, Shimizu was sure they had bagged this match in their pocket. Especially...

"...It must've been crushing for them," she looked over at Aoba Johsai's players who had gone quiet.

They desperately tried to turn it around, only to fail. Their eyes had lost their colors, and their expressions were darkened.

"We've won this again... thanks to him."

She had a small smile on her lips as she looked at Tsuna, who went back to the back line to serve.

It was over.