Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty - Chapter 596: What Are You Burning For? (Double-Length)

“Beep!—”

The whistle for the second technical timeout sounded.

The team in the lead was now—San Juan!

“In just the span of two timeouts, the entire situation has turned upside down,” David exclaimed in disbelief. “Thinking about it now, shouldn’t Ryujin have called a timeout earlier?”

“No, that wouldn’t have worked,” Lim replied slowly. “If they can’t find a way to stop Taichi, calling a timeout earlier wouldn’t have changed anything.”

“Who would have thought it would be this hard for Ryujin to even win a single set? What are they supposed to do next?”

—–

The timeout ended. The match resumed.

“Ryujin didn’t make any substitutions. I thought they would try to adjust something.”

“They probably kept the lineup because this configuration has the most offensive power. After all, just receiving Taichi’s serves isn’t enough—they still have to score actual points.”

“Tweet!—”The whistle for serve.

Kaedehara Taichi tossed the ball, sprinted, jumped, and struck it in one smooth motion.

BANG!!!

“It’s a jump float?!”

On Ryujin’s front row, only Nitta Asahiro stood alone!

“It finally came!” Nitta’s eyes were determined. “As long as you keep serving, there had to be a moment like this.”

“I got it—!”

As soon as the ball crossed the net, Nitta had already moved into position.

“On this court, there’s probably no one who would purposely target a Japanese middle blocker.”

“Unlike other positions, for a middle blocker whose primary duty is blocking, height is almost everything.”

“But even so, Ryujin didn’t bring in rookies like Hakuba Gao or Hyakuzawa Yūdai—and the reason is obvious.”

“We are also an important part of Ryujin’s defence!”

Smack!!

Nitta dug the ball with both hands, a half-decent pass!

Atsumu jumped to feint a setter dump, Bruno blocked in front of him.

Conte was held on the right side by Bokuto.

Swoosh!—

The ball flew high toward the left wing.

Thump!

Kiryū Wakatsu launched from the back row!

Ramos went up alone to block.

“I’ve always thought Kiryū was the most underrated,” Iwaizumi said suddenly. “Even though his brilliance is often overshadowed by Ryujin’s other players, he’s definitely still the player who once stood shoulder to shoulder with Ushijima and Sakusa.”

Kuroo looked at Iwaizumi in surprise.

“You know,” Iwaizumi continued, “during regular training, Kiryū’s strength training is double that of Sakusa’s.”

BOOOM!!!—

SMACK!!!

Ramos’s arms were violently deflected, and the ball dropped just in front of him.

Off the block and down!

Kiryū scored with a back-row attack!

[San Juan 16 – 16 Ryujin]

“Ryujin finally breaks the serve and ties the score with a powerful pushback!”

—–

Service rotation. Bokuto went for a powerful jump serve!

Santiago made a half-decent pass. Oikawa set to the left wing.

Taichi attacked from the back row—a sharp line shot that landed just on the sideline for the point!

[San Juan 17 – 16 Ryujin]

—–

Bruno served. Hoshiumi received it steadily.

Atsumu orchestrated a multi-point simultaneous attack.

Kiryū smashed a heavy spike from the left wing to score!

[San Juan 17 – 17 Ryujin]

—–

Atsumu served.

Taichi directly bumped a high ball to the middle.

Conte went for a second-touch attack—a super high contact spike that scored!

[San Juan 18 – 17 Ryujin]

—–

Ramos launched a powerful jump serve.

Bokuto received it, a half-decent pass.

Atsumu stepped in to set. Ryujin’s three front-row attackers moved forward to attack simultaneously.

Hoshiumi leapt on the left side and hit off the block for the point!

[San Juan 18 – 18 Ryujin]

—–

“They’re locked in a deadlock!”

“Ryujin has stabilised!”

“Atsumu and Iizuna are both top-class setters, but their offensive preferences differ. Atsumu clearly favours the left wing.”

“There’s still a chance. Ryujin’s offence is still working!”

“Defence! Defence!” Meian shouted loudly.

“It’s not enough! Just this alone is far from enough! They have to take the lead before Taichi rotates back to the front row!”

Service rotation. Ryujin to serve.

“Beep! Ryujin requests a substitution.”

“Ojiro Aran IN, Nitta Asahiro OUT.”

“What? They’re using Aran as a decisive server!”

“Ryujin is throwing everything they can think of into this!”

“Nitta, that was a great pass,” Coach Suzaku said. “Ending Taichi’s serve turn at that moment is what gave us the chance to fight to the end.”

“Yes!” Nitta shouted loudly.

“Aran! Give us a good serve!” Atsumu called out.

This match wasn’t just a continuation of Inarizaki vs. Taichi—it was the continuation of everything from their past battles.

“Absolutely do not lose!”

“Tweet!—”

Ojiro Aran tossed the ball high, sprinted, jumped, and smashed!

BOOM!!!

The ball curved beautifully and fell perfectly in front of Taichi.

Smack!

The ball shot forward on a diagonal trajectory—a half-decent pass.

Oikawa swiftly stepped in to set near the net. Taichi didn’t stop at all and launched from the back row!

“Triple block!” Meian, Hoshiumi, and Kiryū all jumped together.

“Completely on a different level…”

—BOOM!!!

The ball soared above the block and slammed hard right in front of Aran.

Taichi scored with a back-row attack!

[San Juan 19 – 18 Ryujin]

“I really don’t get it…what exactly are you guys burning for?”

Service rotation. San Juan to serve. Taichi returned to the front row.

Conte launched a powerful jump serve!

Atsumu barely received it; the pass flew forward at an angle.

Hoshiumi quickly moved in as a secondary setter, tossing high to the right wing.

Kiryū jumped to attack!

“Double block!” Loser and Taichi jumped together.

BOOOM!!!

Kiryū’s full-powered swing crashed into Taichi’s arm.

SMACK!!!

“One touch!”

Taichi called out calmly without changing expression.

Bruno steadied himself near the end line and dug the ball up to Oikawa.

Whoosh!—

Oikawa didn’t try anything fancy; he just calmly sent a high ball back to the right wing.

Taichi jumped to spike!

“Double block!” Meian and Kiryū jumped together.

Hoshiumi quickly retreated to help receive.

—BOOOM!!!

Smack!!!

The ball struck Hoshiumi’s arm and bounced high, flying far toward the end line.

Hoshiumi fell to the floor, while Komori quickly chased after the ball.

Smack!

Komori dived and bumped it back into play. Bokuto jumped from the back row to spike!

“Double block!”

San Juan’s block followed tightly.

—BOOM!!!

The ball sailed over the block and dropped steeply!

“What a crazy arc! Such a sharp angle!”

Smack!!

The ball struck Conte’s hand on the baseline and flew out of bounds.

Bokuto scored!

[San Juan 19 – 19 Ryujin]

“That’s it! Keep biting at them!”

Coach Suzaku Banjō shouted from the sidelines. The movements of San Juan’s players had already started to slow down, and their focus was no longer as sharp as it had been at the start.

After all, it was already the endgame of yet another set, and San Juan hadn’t made a single substitution for three whole sets!

As long as they held on, there was hope!

The longer it dragged on, the worse it would be for Ryujin in the final two sets. But Suzaku Banjo wasn’t thinking about a fourth or fifth set anymore.

Right now—they had to win this set!

Service rotation. Ryujin to serve.

Kiryū tossed the ball up, took three perfect steps, jumped, and slammed the ball down hard!

BOOM!!!

The ball crashed into Santiago’s arms and flew out of bounds. Bruno chased it toward the end line.

“Good! They disrupted the first pass!”

“Defence! Defence!”

“San Juan’s first pass was broken—a great chance for Ryujin to counterattack!”

Smack!

Bruno barely bumped the ball back toward the net. Taichi jumped to spike!

“Double block!” Bokuto Kōtarō and Meian Shūgo both leapt up.

The ball was a bit far from the net and already dropping in height.

Taichi’s brows twitched slightly, and his arm swung out in a flash.

BOOM!!!—

Meian’s eyes flashed as he tightened his arm forward and down.

—SMACK!!!

The ball hit Meian’s arm and bounced back toward San Juan’s side!

“They blocked it!”

“No, they didn’t.” Taichi’s eyebrow arched slightly. “What a pity, just a little off.”

THUD!

The ball landed just outside San Juan’s right sideline.

Block out!

Taichi scored!

[San Juan 20 – 19 Ryujin]

“San Juan is the first to reach 20 points!”

“Even a poorly set ball can’t throw Taichi off his attack!”

“Completely unstoppable! Kaedehara Taichi is on fire—every swing is a point!”

“Compared to Kiryū, right now Taichi is more deserving of being called the ‘Bad Ball Killer,'” Oikawa thought silently.

Service rotation. San Juan to serve.

Oikawa stepped onto the line.

“Enough chit-chat with old friends. Let’s wrap this up in one breath!”

“Tweet!—” The serve whistle sounded.

Oikawa tossed the ball and launched into a powerful jump serve!

BOOM!!!

“Kiryū!”

Smack!!!

The ball struck Kiryū’s arms and flew far out of bounds. Komori couldn’t save it.

Oikawa scored directly off the serve!

[San Juan 21 – 19 Ryujin]

“The match’s tempo seems to be speeding up!”

San Juan continued serving.

Oikawa served again!

BOOM!!!

The ball fell between Komori and Hoshiumi.

Smack!!

Komori managed to receive it, though it was only a half-decent pass.

The ball flew toward the net; Atsumu quickly moved in to set.

Whoosh!—

The ball went high to the left wing. Bokuto jumped to attack!

Loser and Taichi leapt together to form a double block.

BOOM!!!

The ball slipped between them and veered to the right.

“A classic small-angle cross shot!”

Smack!

Bruno received it!

The ball flew diagonally toward the left. Taichi leapt diagonally on the spot.

—BOOM!!!

Meian reacted too late, jumping to block only after the ball was already crashing behind him.

Inside the three-meter line!

Taichi scored off a second attack!

[San Juan 22 – 19 Ryujin]

“Incredible!”

“Was that even a set?!”

“It looked like a failed first pass, but Taichi seized the moment to smash it straight down!”

“It’s insane. Ryujin’s blockers didn’t even react!”

“Beep! Ryujin requests a timeout.”

—–

“They’re completely out of options…” Kenma murmured. “With Taichi in this form, they won’t even be able to drag the match past 25 points.”

“That guy…he’s terrifying,” Kuroo said, his voice heavy.

Unlike São Paulo or Trentino, Kuroo understood Ryujin’s strength very clearly. And because of that, he could feel just how massive the gap was.

—–

Timeout over. The match resumed.

“Beep! Ryujin requests a substitution.”

“Kunimi Akira IN, Kiryū Wakatsu OUT.”

“Defence! The only option left is to strengthen defence!”

“Tweet!—”

Oikawa served a third time!

BOOM!!!

This time, the ball flew to Ryujin’s back left corner. The power was less than before, focusing more on control.

Smack!!

Atsumu received it, a half-decent pass.

Kunimi stepped in to assist. Hoshiumi attacked from the right!

“Double block!” Loser and Taichi both jumped.

BOOM!!

Loser quickly pulled his arms back.

“Damn it!”

Hoshiumi tried to snap his wrist down but couldn’t control it in time.

The ball that should’ve glanced off Loser’s fingertips flew far out of bounds.

Spike out!

[San Juan 23 – 19 Ryujin]

“This timeout didn’t help Ryujin adjust at all. They’re sinking deeper into the hole!”

“This is it. It’s really over.”

The Japanese cheering section fell silent. The audience even began questioning whether Ryujin’s early lead in this set had really happened.

Three points? Five points? Seven points?

Despite leading so much at the start, they looked completely powerless in the endgame.

San Juan continued serving.

Oikawa served a fourth time!

BOOM!!!

Kunimi received it, a half-decent pass.

Atsumu set straight to the left wing—Bokuto went for a sudden tempo-change quick attack!

However, not only Loser on the left, even Taichi in the middle followed tightly with the block!

“They read it too fast!”

BOOM!!!

The ball slipped just past Loser’s left side and slammed toward San Juan’s sideline.

Oikawa saved it!

“They still couldn’t score!”

The ball flew to the back line. Conte set it back toward the net. Taichi jumped to spike!

“Triple block!” Bokuto, Meian, and Hoshiumi all jumped up.

“Stop him!!!”

BOOOOM!!!

Taichi’s eyes stayed cold as he hammered the ball down.

The ball struck Meian’s arms, forcing them apart in an instant, then squeezed through the opening and fell.

Off the block and down!

Taichi scored!

[San Juan 24 – 19 Ryujin]

Huff…huff…

The Ryujin players gasped for breath. The exhaustion and oppressive atmosphere were driving them to the edge.

Taichi’s cold, silent gaze stabbed into their hearts.

“Damn it!”

The match continued. San Juan now had five set points.

“Tweet!—”

Oikawa tossed the ball, sprinted, jumped, and spiked!

BOOM!!!

Komori shifted slightly.

THUD!!!

The ball landed outside Ryujin’s end line.

Oikawa’s serve went out!

[San Juan 24 – 20 Ryujin]

“Sorry.” Oikawa scratched his head awkwardly. “Serving nonstop…I got a bit tired.”

Conte: “…”

You couldn’t tell if he was being serious—but knowing Oikawa’s rotten personality…

“You bastard!”

There was no joy in the eyes of Ryujin’s players at picking up a point.

Whether Oikawa did it on purpose or not didn’t matter. They just wanted to stop San Juan’s serve with their own hands.

Service rotation. Ryujin to serve.

Hoshiumi took a deep breath, tossed the ball high, sprinted, jumped, and spiked!

—BOOM!!!

The ball drew a beautiful arc across the sky and slammed toward San Juan’s back line.

Smack!!!

Conte barely received it; the ball flew high above the baseline.

Whoosh!—

Oikawa calmly set it forward. Taichi jumped in the middle for the attack!

—BOOOM!!!

The ball smashed hard into the centre of Ryujin’s court and bounced up.

[San Juan 25 – 20 Ryujin]

Kaedehara Taichi sealed the set—and the match—with a perfect super high contact spike.

_________

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by readnovel.co