Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty - Chapter 609: The SUPERSTAR Showdown (Double-Length)

“Set point goes to San Juan Club!!!”

“Compared to the tense back-and-forth of the first two sets, the third felt somewhat one-sided—San Juan seemed to have finally found a way to suppress Lublin!”

“Lublin’s ‘Kingly Aura’ is fading, while San Juan is showing the force of a young team destined for the title!”

“Even León’s title as the world’s number one outside hitter is being challenged under these conditions!”

“León scored a total of 39 points in the first three sets, but Kaedehara Taichi has already surpassed that—his kill in the previous rally brought him to 40!”

“Yesterday’s kings may fall today, but in the world of volleyball, new legends are always being written!”

—–

“That guy really is something else,” León couldn’t help but remark.

He wasn’t anxious about his team falling behind, nor was he frustrated about being outscored by Taichi.

“Haha…how strange.”

While the rest of the Lublin team and their coaching staff wore grim expressions, León let out a soft chuckle. He couldn’t suppress the strange feeling stirring within him—

That he might actually lose this match.

That someone might finally surpass him.

Yet it was precisely this subtle tension that caused a flood of competitive desire to surge up from deep inside him.

“Coach, let me match up directly with him,” León said to Coach Nikola. “This is going to be fun. I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.”

“Go,” Nikola replied calmly.

Kaedehara Taichi might be a rare volleyball prodigy, but as León’s coach, Nikola could say with confidence—Wifredo León was still the number one ace in the world.

—–

“Tweet—!!”

A long whistle echoed across the arena. The fourth set had begun.

CA San Juan’s lineup:

Front row—Setter Oikawa Tōru, Middle Blocker Agustín Loser, Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi.

Back row—Opposite Hitter Facundo Conte, Middle Blocker Martín Ramos (Libero: Santiago Danani) and Outside Hitter Bruno Lima.

LUK Lublin’s lineup:

Front row—Outside hitter Wilfredo León, Middle Blocker Mateusz Bieniek, Setter Micah Christenson.

Back row—Opposite Hitter Akutsu Ao, Middle Blocker Jakub Kochanowski (Libero: Paweł Zatorski) and Outside Hitter Ushijima Wakatoshi.

“Finally, the ace-on-ace showdown at position 4—Kaedehara Taichi vs Wilfredo León!”

“Akutsu Ao is starting for Lublin—looks like they’re trying to reinforce their receive line?”

“Not only are the aces facing off directly, even the setters are locked in a head-to-head. This set is packed with highlights!”

“Tweet!—” The serve whistle sounded.

Lublin had first serve. Ushijima Wakatoshi stepped up to the service line.

“…His serve’s pretty brutal too…” Santiago muttered as San Juan shifted into a four-man reception pattern.

BOOM!!!

The ball cut sharply through the air, targeting the gap between Conte and Oikawa.

Smack!

Conte received the serve cleanly, sending the first touch flying down the left sideline toward the front.

Oikawa sprinted into position and set—both Loser and Taichi launched into their approach.

“Right side!”

“Triple block!” León, Bieniek, and Christenson jumped together.

BOOM!!

The spike burst past Christenson’s hands. Ushijima rushed in and popped it up—

“Nice dig!”

The ball floated close to the baseline. Paweł moved in under it and bumped it back toward the net.

Akutsu Ao leapt from the back row and spiked hard!

Loser went up solo for the block—but the ball shot past his right side.

Smack!

Taichi slid in just in time to cover the block and popped the ball back up.

“Free ball!”

Bruno calmly received it and passed a perfect first touch.

Oikawa sent a high set to the right side—Taichi soared once again.

“Triple block!”

—BOOM!!!

The ball exploded off the court near Lublin’s corner.

A super spike—diagonal, past the triple block!

Point, Kaedehara Taichi!

[San Juan 1 – 0 Lublin]

Side-out. San Juan to serve.

Oikawa served a float ball—Paweł handled it with an overhead pass, clean and accurate.

Christenson leapt in the front row and spiked it!

Bruno went up for the solo block.

BOOM!!!

“A lightning-fast second touch!”

The ball smacked down along Bruno’s right sideline.

Point, Christenson!

[San Juan 1 – 1 Lublin]

“Christenson’s playing like a full-fledged attacker. That was a clear midair adjustment—he read the block and crushed it with a sharp wrist snap.”

Side-out. Lublin to serve.

Christenson launched a powerful jump serve at full throttle.

BOOM!!!

The ball hit Conte’s arm and bounced high—first touch only half-controlled.

Oikawa chased it down and set to the left. Loser jumped and swung!

BOOM!!!

SMACK!

“Touched!”

The spike grazed León’s hand—Ushijima leapt and bumped it toward the net midair.

Christenson set again. Bieniek jumped in from the right and attacked!

“Double block!” Loser and Taichi rose together.

BOOM!!!

The ball shot toward the back of San Juan’s court and ricocheted off Oikawa’s arm, flying out of bounds!

Point, Bieniek!

[San Juan 1 – 2 Lublin]

“León’s presence in the middle forces so much pressure on San Juan’s block—Bieniek’s timing was spot-on!”

Christenson continued serving.

BOOM!!!

Smack!!!

Oikawa’s first touch wasn’t ideal—the ball sailed high over the net toward Lublin’s side.

“Loser!”

Taichi shouted, charging forward to the net.

Loser jumped and one-handed the ball to the right. Taichi launched—

“Triple block!” Akutsu, León, and Bieniek all went up!

“Lublin’s monstrous triple block rises up—Taichi’s options are sealed—”

BOOM!!!

The spike rebounded off León’s arm and flew back toward San Juan.

THUD!

“Out!”

The ball landed just beyond the baseline.

Block out!

Point, Kaedehara Taichi!

[San Juan 2 – 2 Lublin]

“Taichi forced the point through sheer firepower! And he targeted León, no less…”

“I’ll block you next time,” León said with a grin.

“Go ahead and try,” Taichi replied casually, unbothered.

Side-out. San Juan to serve.

Loser sent a high-powered jump serve!

Pop!

The ball skimmed the tape and dropped into Lublin’s court.

Ushijima lunged and managed to keep it up—first touch was only half-set.

“Nice save.”

Christenson calmly tossed it high. León charged from the middle and spiked!

Taichi and Ramos jumped to meet him.

BOOM!!

The ball blasted off Taichi’s arm and arced high into the air.

“Push it!”

It hovered above the net—Taichi and León jumped at the same time for a joust.

Smack!—

Both players pressed their hands against the ball midair.

“I win this one,” León said with a grin.

The ball dropped behind Taichi.

“Don’t count on it.”

Taichi pivoted, spotted the ball, planted his left foot—and used the heel of his right to flick the ball up!

BOOM!!!

Ramos jumped instantly and, facing an empty net, crushed the ball into the court.

Point, San Juan!

[San Juan 3 – 2 Lublin]

“Huh?!”

“A heel pass?!”

“Kaedehara Taichi’s body control and ball sense are absolutely terrifying!”

“Lublin’s block didn’t react at all to that outrageous play!”

San Juan continued to serve—Loser launched his second jump serve!

BOOM!!!

Smack!!

Ushijima’s first touch flew off target. León stepped in as backup setter.

The ball soared to the right—Bieniek leapt and spiked!

“Double block!” Taichi and Ramos jumped together.

BOOM!!!

Bieniek’s swing was calm and calculated, slicing past Ramos’ right side and slamming down the sideline.

Smack!

Conte picked it up!

“Nice receive!” Oikawa jumped and set.

The ball flew to the left wing—Taichi launched once more!

“Triple block!”

BOOM!!!

The ball grazed Bieniek’s fingertips and flew way out of bounds.

Off-the-block! Taichi scores again!

[San Juan 4 – 2 Lublin]

“San Juan scores again!”

“Kaedehara Taichi is shaping the momentum of this entire set!”

San Juan continued serving—Loser’s third serve rocketed forward.

BOOM!!!—

SMACK!!!

The ball struck Paweł squarely and knocked him off balance.

Loser’s serves were growing fiercer by the minute.

The ball floated high across Lublin’s backcourt—Christenson scrambled into position and set.

Whoosh!—

León launched from the middle and swung—

“Double block!”

TAP!—

León tipped the ball, brushing past Ramos’ arms and bouncing back into Lublin’s side.

A soft rebound.

“Once more.” León signalled.

Ushijima calmly received the first touch, and Christenson sent a perfect set back to the middle.

THUMP!

León jumped again!

“Double block!” Taichi and Ramos were right there with him.

“That’s high—!”

Even the audience sensed something different about this one.

—BOOM!!!

The ball cleared the block and pounded into the centre of San Juan’s court.

Point, León!

[San Juan 4 – 3 Lublin]

“380 cm!!!”

“Incredible! León’s second jump was even higher than his first!”

“At that height and angle, San Juan had no chance to defend!”

Side-out. Lublin to serve.

Bieniek unleashed a thunderous jump serve!

BOOM!!!

Conte’s reception flew off wildly.

“Bieniek’s serve packs serious heat!”

Oikawa chased the ball beyond the court and bumped it back toward the net—Taichi jumped and swung!

“Triple block!” Jakub, Akutsu Ao, and León all went up!

BOOM!!!

The ball hit Jakub’s arm and ricocheted out of bounds.

Off-the-block! Taichi scores!

[San Juan 5 – 3 Lublin]

“Last time it flew past the endline, now it’s out past the left sideline—Taichi’s spikes are driving Lublin’s defence crazy…”

“The two-point gap holds steady, but now it’s Taichi’s turn to serve!”

Side-out. San Juan to serve.

Kaedehara Taichi launched a full-power jump serve!

BOOOM!!!—

The ball slammed into Christenson’s arm and shot far out of bounds!

Paweł dove to chase it and miraculously saved it in play with a full-body dive.

León took one quick step back, planted on the three-meter line, and rotated midair for a spike!

“That form—?!”

“That’s the exact motion Taichi used in his earlier attack!”

BOOM!!!

Ramos and Conte leapt to block, but the ball cut past the net and dropped hard.

THUD!!!

Santiago dove forward—but couldn’t make it in time.

The ball slammed into the centre of San Juan’s court.

Point, León!

[San Juan 5 – 4 Lublin]

“Break point!”

“Looks like Lublin isn’t going to let San Juan widen the gap easily in this set.”

The slow-motion replay zoomed in on Paweł’s sequence—his expression shifted rapidly over the span of a single second:

Nervous tension as he dove—

Joy when he successfully saved the ball—

Shock as he turned to see León launch a counterattack—

And finally, elation after the point was scored.

“Hahaha…”

The crowd, regardless of which side they supported, burst into shared laughter.

Paweł looked up at the big screen, expression blank—what could he do? Who’d have guessed León could still score a kill off a completely off-target pass?

Side-out. Lublin to serve.

“I thought you were the one who trusted me the most,” León teased.

“Just serve properly,” Paweł muttered, brushing it off.

“Tweet!—” The serve whistle blew.

León blasted a jump serve!

BOOOOOM!!!

CRASHH!!!

Before the sound of contact had even faded, the ball landed cleanly.

It was nearly instantaneous.

The ball dropped between Santiago and Oikawa.

No contact whatsoever.

Service ace for León!

[San Juan 5 – 5 Lublin]

“138.8 kmph!!!”

“Looks like I’m in pretty good form too,” León chuckled softly.

The score was tied.

“We’ve got five men receiving serve and still gave up a clean ace…” Santiago clenched his fists in frustration.

“Don’t stress it, relax,” Conte called out loudly. “You can’t pass well if your body’s too tense.”

“Got it!”

Lublin continued serving—León tossed up his second serve.

BOOOM!!!

The ball curved beautifully through the air with sharp sidespin, slamming toward San Juan’s back left corner.

Smack!!!

Taichi mishandled the receive!

The ball veered sharply toward the left wing—Bruno jumped and slapped a one-handed set!

Smack!—

The ball dropped toward the centre of Lublin’s court!

Second-touch attack!

Bruno used the momentum to simply redirect the ball.

Lublin’s blockers were completely caught off guard!

Smack!

Paweł dove and saved the ball.

“He got to that?!” Bruno’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The ball struck the back of Paweł’s hand and didn’t bounce high.

Christenson managed a desperate bump set—Ushijima went for an off-speed shot!

Boom!!!—

—SMACK!

Ushijima’s spike was blocked, but he had anticipated it and held back on power.

Christenson kept the ball alive, and Paweł sent a high set to the middle.

Jakub jumped and attacked!

“Double block!” Ramos and Conte went up together.

BOOM!!!

The ball slipped past the left side of the block and dropped straight down!

Smack!

Taichi steadied himself and made the reception—a shaky first touch, but manageable.

“I got it!”

Oikawa jumped into position and set—Conte sprinted laterally and launched a spike!

“Right side!”

Lublin’s front row rotated quickly into a crossover block.

BOOM!!!—

—SMACK!!!

The ball struck Akutsu’s arm and dropped!

“What?!”

Oikawa dove to save it—Santiago followed and bumped it up.

Ramos jumped and attacked!

“Triple block!” Ushijima, Jakub, and Akutsu jumped again!

SMACK!

The ball bounced off Jakub’s hand.

“One touch!”

León picked it up cleanly—Christenson stepped in and set.

The ball flew to the right—León leapt from the back row and attacked!

“No way he can go for the short diagonal!” Bruno anticipated and quickly shifted to the right.

“Triple block!” Bruno, Ramos, and Conte jumped in sync!

—BOOM!!!

The ball tore through above Bruno’s block.

“That block looked like a launchpad—León smashed a violent cross-court missile!”

Smack!!!

Taichi received it.

The ball popped high—Oikawa sprinted into place!

“Give it to me!”

Whoosh!—

Thud!

Taichi sprinted along the left sideline and launched!

Lublin’s block shifted left in unison.

“Triple block!”

BOOM!!!—

The ball sliced between Ushijima and Jakub, crashing down right in front of Christenson.

A line shot straight through the block—

Point, Kaedehara Taichi!

[San Juan 6 – 5 Lublin]

_________

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by readnovel.co