36 Asuma's Inner Monologue

Round Three of the Inter-High Prefectural Qualifiers and the Stags are about to face a former powerhouse of Nara, Terano-Higashi High School. In their game for later, they are particularly watching out for the concerned team's high walls – both of their middle blockers are more or less two meters tall.

Not only that they are tall, they are also rather bulky, which means that their looming net walls are not just high, but also mighty. This, in particular, worried one of the team's rookies, Asuma Genji.

Inside his mind, his thoughts are going on like this:

[Genji POV]

*

I've been so lame last time. Actually, I've been so lame ever since. When I went home after our last game, the word 'lame' has been stuck inside my mind. How can I just shamelessly declare to Hiro-senpai that I'll beat him to being better when he obviously outshone me during the previous game? He scored plenty of points from his bendy spikes and kill blocks! Damn, I wanna eat my words and swallow them back in.

He's just so good it makes me jealous. Yeah, we won, but I felt like I just lost, as if the scoreboard of 'Hiro – 1, Genji – 0' has been slapped right in front of me. The difference in our skillset hit me like truck-kun, and I wish I'll just reincarnate somewhere as a gifted volleyball player given with cheat options by some godly NPC.

Hell, how do it beat him? Or, can I really beat him?

I guess I'll just have to work harder now, and redeem myself in our game later. Yeah, that will be the next best thing to do. For now, focus, Genji. Your real opponents are the guys inside the opposite end of the court, save your personal competitions with your teammates for later.

As we made our way inside, I've noticed that the support for our team has been growing in influence. Unlike last game, our school actually sent a cheer squad to give us moral support for our match against Terano-Higashi. I felt another wave of excitement as I heard the cheers of our schoolmates. It's just surreal.

"LET'S GO, LET'S GO, SHIROOOO-SHIKATA!"

This feeling – this elation – this must be what it feels like to be part of a powerhouse team. Throughout middle school, I haven't had such feeling, and honestly, it hypes me up, like these people who are shouting encouraging words at us lights up the fire inside of me.

Speaking of fire, I will never forget Hijikata-san's words from last time in the Golden Week Camp.

'Your heart fuels the fire inside of you. Ignite it. Let it burn.'

Yep, those cheers are definitely giving me that burning vibe – like I can do anything with all of these support around. As we stepped inside the court, I'll just have to set aside all the other things inside my mind, and lock-on to the current task at hand - to defeat the opponents before me.

Maki-san approached the umpire for the coin toss, and it was decided that we will serve first. Coach deployed our usual S1 rotation formation, and it was Kouen-senpai who began the game with his disgusting serve.

[S1 Formation – a rotation method wherein the setter is deployed in the back row at the beginning of a set, in order to have three attackers up front, the OH, the MB and the OPP (in Shiroshikata's case, the rotation looks like as follows: (back) Kouen, Gai, Maki, (front) Genji, Hiro, Kouha, and they are the main guns for this offensive set-up).

This formation is only ideal when the setter is also an excellent server, which applies to Kouen in this case.]

The opponent wasn't able to receive that one, thus the set's first blood was scored via service ace.

My teammates, not just Hiro-senpai, they are really exceptional. I never failed to notice how good the Ginoza siblings are, as well as Gai-senpai, who's so extra at playing libero. I don't wanna say it, but that titan Kakuzo has been gaining on me at an incredible speed, and Maki-san is just so reliable I can't find any faults at him.

This is making me feel inferior compared to them. What can I, a short spiker, contribute to this already strong team? When Coach gave me this starting position, I felt pressured from filling in the shoes of Toshiro-senpai. I'm afraid to mess up and disappoint the coach for choosing me over him.

This isn't exactly a happy thought, and I shouldn't really be thinking about it now, but I can't help it. My teammates are just so good that I had to wonder how I got here.

"Asuma!" Our setter called in for the toss, and I jumped from the left to hit it. Just when the ball touched my palm, I drove it to the other side, trying to force in a spike. Two blockers loomed before me, but I did the usual thing I do whenever they are around – I aimed for their fingertips in order to wipe the ball from their blocks.

*thud*

The ball hit the solid floor on our side. "Nani?" I wondered why. But the shadows I saw when I looked down gave me the answers I asked for – I was awfully blocked. I looked up, and realized just how high was the lamp post who stuffed me on that play.

Terano-Higashi���s No. 11 middle blocker, who is 200cm tall. He smirked at my pissed look. Their twin towers in the middle are around that height. And my usually scoring spikes ended up getting caught in their high wall.

"Sorry, shrimpy." No. 11 told me. Of course that ticked me off the same way as Kakuzo's trashtalking.

"Huhhhh?" If only I were as needlessly tall as this moron, Imma really try to beat him to a pulp when we get outside. Sadly, I'm quite off on that department, so I just have to beat the shit out of him in volleyball.

"Don't mind ~ " I heard Hiro-senpai said, but his face and wide-toothed grin conveys the opposite meaning, as if he's happy about that stuff play.

'Seriously, what the hell? I am your teammate, hello?' Hiro-senpai is really moody, and I don't know how to make off his character from these personality swings of his

The set went on and the score now reads 13 – 9, with us in the lead. So far, I still haven't scored a single point, because these walls are too high for me to get through. I've had net battles with guys over 190cm before, but 2 meters? Not so much. That 10-cm differential is really huge. Not just the height of the players itself, but their armspan is really quite a pain in the ass.

Ahhh, damn it, I wanna score. Toss it here, Kouen-senpai.

I served the ball over and the opponent's libero easily received it, sending the ball to their setter, who tossed to the left for an attack.

Maki-san dug it, and the ball went up, but it went to Kouha-senpai, who covered for his brother in setting the ball.

"HERE!" Both Kakuzo and I called in for the toss. Damn this titan. And I kicked the floor for a good lift, readying myself for a spike in case my wish is granted by Kouha-senpai.

But it looks like the set will go the Kakuzo, and the blockers in front of me thought of the same, so they jumped before him, ready to deflect his quick attack…..

But ohhh – the ball went further – and it's coming to me. 'It's open.'

The space before me was cleared thanks to the titan attracting the blockers. And before they'll get through me, I decided that I'll get through them first. I tried to bend a little to the right, to meet the ball faster before it reaches it's peak – I kinda noticed Hiro-senpai doing this thing a lot – and hit the ball straight to the open space before me, scoring my first point.

"YOSHAAAAAAA!!!!" I celebrated for my first kill of the afternoon.