Chapter 19: Injured Dragon Is Still A Dragon (Bonus Chapter!)

We instantly hit the first milestone and reached the second just a few hours ago.

So we have two bonus chapters today!

And since we hit the 250 PS in a day, I guess we'll hit another milestone tomorrow too, which means another bonus chapter soon.

Like...

Damn. I had to pull an all-nighter today to get the chapter done as soon as possible. I lov—hate y'all!

---

'Seriously? Even that wasn't enough?'

Kageyama clicked his tongue in frustration as Tanaka received the ball and passed it to him. His sharp eyes quickly scanned the court and saw Hinata running toward the net and quickly tossed the ball over.

"Hinata!"

"...!"

Hinata's jump was still as high as ever despite being blocked repeatedly. Kageyama couldn't help but admit the short guy had incredible tenacity.

No matter how many times he got blocked, the guy just wouldn't stop. But...

Plop!

The sound cut through the tense atmosphere like a slap, followed by the dull thud of the ball hitting the court.

Tsukishima's block was clean and sharp, shutting Hinata down once again.

"See?"

Tsukishima's voice dripped with mockery as he adjusted his glasses, a smirk curling on his lips as he continued, "Didn't I tell you? Show us the King's toss, Your Majesty."

Kageyama's jaw tightened, his teeth grinding together. He glanced at the scoreboard briefly. They were losing. Badly.

"Fuck..."

The word escaped him in a bitter growl. The memories he tried so hard to bury clawed their way to the surface.

Teammates avoiding him. The isolation. The cold whispers.

'King of the Court.'

Kageyama clenched his fists tightly, his dark expression growing heavier. But seeing this didn't stop Tsukishima.

Instead, he saw it as an opportunity to push further.

"Eh?"

Tsukishima tilted his head mockingly, his smirk widening, "Are you that scared to use it? What's the matter, Kageyama? Don't tell me you're actually traumatized."

"Well... it's not like I don't understand," Tsukishima said.

His eyes held a fake regret, "Must've been a nightmare, huh? Having no one left to receive your toss."

Tsuna watched as Kageyama stood completely helpless, unable to respond to Tsukishima's trash talk. He raised an eyebrow at the blonde freshman. 'It's getting personal... but I can't say it's not effective.'

It would definitely be beneficial if Tsukishima could get into their opponent's heads. Tsuna glanced at the scoreboard and thought, 'Not that it'll make much difference, though.'

"This motherfucker...!"

Tanaka's lips twitched as veins bulged on his forehead. He cracked his knuckles and started toward Tsukishima, ready to knock some sense—or fear—into the freshman.

But Kageyama didn't even seem to notice. His mind was somewhere else, trapped in the haunting memories of his middle school days.

The court from back then flashed in his mind.

His voice snapped at his teammates. The silence that followed. And finally, the realization—no one wanted to receive his toss anymore.

The bench became his home.

It had been a nightmare. 

Just as those memories threatened to crush him, a voice broke through the haze.

"I'd receive it."

Kageyama's head shot up, his eyes searching for the source.

Hinata stood a few steps away, his face calm. Just staring at him as he continued casually, "Besides, that was in middle school, no? Now you have me."

Kageyama felt words get stuck in his throat as he saw Hinata take a step closer, his expression filled with quiet conviction.

"As long as you toss it to me..." Hinata's voice was steady as he repeated, "I'd receive it."

"...!"

Kageyama's breath hitched.

He couldn't help but stare at Hinata in shock. Those clear eyes, so full of conviction, made his clenched fists unconsciously relax.

The court grew quiet at Hinata's declaration.

The others on the sideline, especially Daichi, who had been about to step in and stop the trash talk—mainly because Tanaka looked ready to snap—paused when they realized their intervention wasn't needed.

"How exhausting..."

Tsukishima adjusted his glasses with a click of his tongue.

Tsuna stayed quiet, watching the drama unfold. He had no intention of getting involved and preferred to focus on himself.

Still, he couldn't deny that Hinata's words had a visible effect on Kageyama.

'Hmm these two...'

He glanced at Kageyama, who now seemed calmer but still shot an annoyed look at Hinata as if he didn't want to lose about something.

Tsuna shook his head. 'What a weird duo.'

The game pressed on as Yamaguchi stepped up to serve.

With a quick jump and a flick of his wrist, the ball flew across the court.

"Yosha!"

Tanaka's voice boomed as he received the ball with practiced precision. "Let's tear down that four-eyes' annoying block!"

Tanaka was clearly fired up. Tsukishima's trash talk must have gotten to him too. Kageyama noted that Tanaka had the highest success rate in scoring at the moment.

As the ball floated towards him, Kageyama positioned himself for the toss.

Even though he was calmer now, Tsukishima's words still lingered in his mind. They stung, no matter how hard he tried to shake them off. He hated to admit it, but Hinata's words had pulled him out of that dark spiral.

Grateful? Maybe.

Admitting it? Never.

'Focus.'

Kageyama pushed everything else aside. His sole priority now was to deliver the perfect toss. Time seemed to slow as he made his move.

However—

"Kageyama!"

A sharp cry pulled his attention.

He saw a blur of orange streak across his vision, and his eyes widened in shock.

"Hinata...?"

The short spiker had already launched himself into the air, his body cutting through the space above the net like a bullet.

Kageyama's mind blanked for a split second. His body moved on pure instinct. His hands adjusted, his stance shifted, and the ball arced precisely toward Hinata's unexpected leap.

The toss was impossibly fast, almost instantaneous.

"S-such a fast toss...!"

"Wasn't he about to toss it to Tanaka?"

Gasps erupted from the sidelines. Even those on the court froze in momentary disbelief.

Up in the air, Hinata's eyes locked onto the ball. It soared closer and closer until he finally swung his arm and his palm made contact with a sharp pop.

The sound reverberated through the gym, loud and sharp.

But—

The ball rocketed out of bounds, bouncing against the far wall with an audible thud.

"..."

Even Tsuna couldn't hide his surprise at the short freshman who landed awkwardly on the court. 

Hinata threw his hands over his head dramatically, shouting in frustration, "Ahh! I missed it so badly!"

Tsukishima stood frozen, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple as he stared at Kageyama. The King's toss he had mocked was nothing an ordinary player could handle.

It was just as difficult as he remembered. No one would receive such a toss.

But this time...

Tsukishima's eyes shifted to Hinata, who was still sulking, kicking at the ground like a child denied dessert.

Under his breath, Tsukishima muttered, "Who the hell is this shorty?"

There was someone who was there to receive the toss.

"Hold the fuck on!"

Tanaka's voice exploded across the court, snapping everyone's attention back to him. He stormed over to Hinata, grabbing the smaller player by the shoulders.

His eyes were wide with disbelief, "You—! You know how to do a quick attack!?"

"Huh? Quick attack...?"

Hinata blinked up at Tanaka, his expression blank and genuinely confused. He tilted his head and asked, "What the hell even is that?"

"...?"

Both Tanaka and Kageyama stared at him, their mouths opening and closing like fish gasping for air.

Hinata, however, didn't seem to care. He grumbled to himself for a moment, his frustration melting into sheer determination.

Then, as if a switch flipped, his head snapped up.

"Arghh, next one!" Hinata declared, pointing fiercely at Kageyama. "Give me another one!"

"...!"

Kageyama felt a chill run down his spine as he saw those pure, focused eyes staring straight at him.

He shivered slightly but nodded in response, "You better hit it next..."

After that, both of them kept trying to perfect the quick attack again and again.

Yet, Hinata kept missing the timing, or sometimes Kageyama missed his toss and accidentally hit the short guy on the head.

They seemed to forget that the score was slipping further and further away.

But the others were equally invested in this moment.

Suga, after updating the scoreboard when Tanaka finally scored, mumbled, "Could it really work?"

This time...

Hinata stood nervously, holding the ball for his serve. His heart pounded in his chest, but he pushed the nervousness aside.

With a determined toss, he swung his arm with all the strength he could muster. For a split second, he shut his eyes tightly, afraid to see the result.

When he finally peeked, his eyes lit up.

"I did it this time!" he thought, his face breaking into an ecstatic grin.

The ball had sailed cleanly over the net.

"Alright, they're still gonna try to make it work somehow right?"

"I doubt they're going to give up anyway."

"Haha you're right..."

The rest of the team seemed eager for another chance to see the quick attack come to life.

However...

"...!"

Hinata froze in his tracks.

A strange sensation washed over him, making the hair on his arms stand on end. Goosebumps crawled up his skin as he muttered in disbelief, "W-what is this presence...?'

Kageyama and Tanaka seemed to feel it too—a heavy presence loomed over them.

Yamaguchi received the serve a bit absentmindedly and passed it to Tsukishima.

"Toss it high, four eyes..."

The voice snapped Tsukishima out of his surprise at the sudden pressure. Still, he did as he was told. His hands moved instinctively, setting a high toss near the net.

A shadow blurred across the court, leaping up to devour the ball.

"Shit—! Hinata! Kageyama!"

Tanaka's urgent shout broke the tension. Both Hinata and Kageyama reacted instantly, moving as one.

The trio formed a wall at the net, their bodies taut and ready to block whatever was coming.

'They're seeking answers like I do...'

Tsuna glared calmly at the ball floating in his vision as he soared through the air.

Those two weirdos had been trying relentlessly, again and again, to achieve something they had never done before.

And he, too, was striving for something new.

The only difference was...

'I already know what first step to take!'

Tsuna's eyes gleamed as he swung his left arm.

BAM!

The sound of his palm striking the ball echoed like a gunshot through the gym. Time seemed to freeze for a moment as the ball hurtled toward the net.

It slammed into the blockers.

The impact was deafening. The force sent a ripple through their clumsy wall, shattering it as if it weren't there.

The ball sliced through and crashed into the floor with a heavy, resounding thud.

"...!"

Kageyama and Hinata stood frozen, their eyes wide as they stared at the ball. It bounced outside the court before it slowly came to a stop.

Tanaka, who had been in the middle of the block, gritted his teeth. Pain shot through his hands, his fingers tingling from the sheer force of the spike.

"Damn it," he muttered, flexing his hands and wincing. "I should've just let that one go..."

The overbearing sound of the hit, followed by the heavy thud, echoed in his mind.

It might not have been as intense as what he had seen last year, but Tanaka had a flashback as he looked at Tsuna, who calmly stared at them in silence.

'An injured dragon is still a dragon, huh?'

Tanaka thought, swallowing hard.

"I'm up for you guys to keep trying," Tsuna finally broke the silence.

The words snapped them out of their daze. All three turned to him, still stunned by what had just happened.

Tsuna glanced at them, then shook his head, "But we don't have all day."

With that, he strode back to the service line, leaving his words hanging in the air.