Haikyuu : The Unstoppable Force

"Not only are they bound to lose, but also..."

"If my expectations are correct, the first match just now should be Araigawa, and the second game is Izumitate's victory!"

"As for the reason... it's very simple!"

Seeing the puzzled expressions of his teammates, Akira said to them unhurriedly:

"Look at Izumitate's playing style on the court!"

"Even when they were behind in score, they didn't panic at all!"

He pointed to several Izumitate players on the court and continued:

"Their style of play is that very solid, fundamental style!"

"While their attack is weaker compared to Araigawa's, and they can only barely withstand their offensive—"

"They are actively adapting to Araigawa's attack patterns!"

"That little libero, and a few of their front-row players, have already adjusted to Araigawa's tempo."

"Plus, with the run-in of their first two matches, I'd say they've now figured out how to counter Araigawa!"

As Akira spoke, Izumitate had already recovered two points!

"Izumitate is the kind of team that takes time to heat up. If they go up against an equally strong team and manage to drag the match into the third set, their chances of winning skyrocket!"

"So, in the afternoon match against Izumitate, we need to finish them off within the first two sets!"

After hearing Akira's words, everyone looked at the court thoughtfully.

Sure enough, as the game went on...

Araigawa's powerful offense started to wear down!

Their star middle blocker's quick attacks were getting shut down more and more.

Meanwhile, Izumitate remained calm and collected.

And with Araigawa unable to land their attacks, they started to unravel.

Gradually, Izumitate overtook them in score!

Realizing this, Araigawa's players grew even more frantic!

The coordination they had barely been holding together completely fell apart!

In Hallway

"You idiot!"

"What the hell was that today?"

Behind the competition venue, Iwaizumi grabbed Oikawa's collar, glaring at him with a mix of frustration and concern.

His eyes were filled with anger and confusion.

It wasn't just because they had lost—

It was because Oikawa had been completely out of it.

During the match, he had been off his game, and Iwaizumi had noticed.

In front of their other teammates, Iwaizumi hadn't said anything.

But now, before they got on the bus back to school, he confronted him.

"Are you afraid??"

"Afraid of losing??"

Iwaizumi roared, his frustration boiling over.

Oikawa opened his mouth, caught off guard, but no words came out.

"You dumbass!"

Iwaizumi slammed his forehead against Oikawa's, and instantly—

A thin stream of blood ran down both of their faces.

It was impossible to tell whose it was.

"Ow, ow, ow! That hurts! Iwa-chan!"

As if he had finally snapped back to reality, Oikawa groaned in pain.

The last time Iwaizumi had done this to him was back in middle school.

After a similar loss.

"Thinking about it now... I really am a coward, huh?"

Oikawa muttered.

"You moron!"

Seeing him like this, Iwaizumi's face darkened again.

"Wait! No more, Iwa-chan! I'm awake now! Don't hit me again!"

Oikawa hurriedly held up his hands in surrender.

Iwaizumi sighed, crossing his arms.

"What the hell was wrong with you today?"

"It's not like we haven't lost before. It's not like we can't handle it."

Oikawa hesitated for a moment before scratching his head.

"Honestly..."

"Before the match even started, I kind of figured we'd lose."

"So it's not the loss itself that got to me."

"As for why I was playing so badly during the game..."

"I just... I couldn't understand why my usual rhythm was completely messed up."

"But now I get it!"

As he spoke, Oikawa gritted his teeth in frustration.

"This is all that sneaky bastard Akira's doing!"

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow.

"What does this have to do with him?"

Oikawa clenched his fist, swinging it through the air in frustration.

"I was wondering why my usual attacks weren't landing after two whole sets!"

"But when you smacked some sense into me just now—it finally clicked!"

"That sneaky bastard must have studied our tactics in advance and came up with a plan specifically to counter me!"

"He's strong enough already, but no—he had to use strategy to mess me up too!"

Oikawa gritted his teeth.

"The next time I go up against Karasuno—"

"I swear, I'm going to throw his stupid tactics right back at him!"

"Hah? What plan? What kind of 'tactic'?"

Iwaizumi asked, confused.

Oikawa simply grinned mischievously, patting Iwaizumi's head.

"Haha! Doesn't matter!"

"With your brain, you wouldn't get it anyway!"

"You bastard! You wanna die?!"

"Haha! I was kidding! I was kidding!"

Back in the competition venue—

Tweet!!

The final whistle blew.

Izumitate reached 25 points first!

They had officially qualified as the top team from Group H!

And that meant—

Karasuno's next opponent was set.

Karasuno vs. Izumitate—happening this afternoon!

After watching the match, the Karasuno team stood up and began heading toward the lounge.

Walking alongside Ukai, Daichi glanced at the coach and asked:

"So, Coach Ukai, what's our strategy for the match this afternoon?"

"It's simple!"

Ukai grinned.

"Just like Akira said before!"

"Against a team that thrives on resilience—"

"We'll apply more pressure than they can handle!"

"We'll tear them apart before they can even recover!"

"That way, no matter how tough they are—they won't have time to fight back!"

Karasuno's Strategy Meeting is complete

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Bonus Chapter - 300 Power Stones