Creak!
The referee blew the whistle and the game resumed!
Whoom!
Tsukishima hit a ball from the back row!
He was aiming for the sideline at the back of Sarukawa Tech's court!
But the ball was picked up by Kenro Fukatani, who immediately rushed over!
Crunch!
Itaru Shiramine looked at the ball in the air and jumped immediately!!
Who is he going to set for?
It seemed that no matter who he passed to, it would be difficult to break through Karasuno's block!
However, Shiramine knew one thing well.
What they were aiming for now wasn't a quick score.
It was about regaining control of the rhythm!
So...
Shiramine glanced at his teammate coming up behind him.
Brush!
He set a high ball behind him!
A middle attack!
A one-man time-difference attack!!
And on the other side of the net, Akira saw the ball.
He bent low and launched himself upward with explosive force!!
Boom!
His leap surged like a dragon breaking out to sea!!
His hands rose directly above the ball!!
At that moment, Sarukawa's middle blocker, Tomoya Shiga, had just jumped!
As he leaped and spiked, Karasuno's other two blockers had already begun to descend!
This was the perfect opportunity for a strike!!
But just as he was about to spike the ball...
Tomoya Shiga realized something shocking!
Why...
Why is number 7 still hovering in the air??
He was defending this ball so relentlessly! How was anyone supposed to get past that?
His own ascent was ending—he was already beginning to descend!
But Karasuno's number 7 was still holding at the same height!
Shiga gritted his teeth.
He had to go for it!
Whoom!
He aimed at the gap between Akira's arms and slammed the ball!
But in the final moment, Akira seemed to have read his intention!
He blocked the shot directly!!
Whoom!
The ball was stuffed back down onto Sarukawa Tech's court!!
Chirp!
Karasuno scored again!!
"Ah!"
"This is the most frustrating counter to a one-man time-difference attack!"
Off the court, Kuroo said with a sigh.
As someone who had faced Akira in practice matches, he'd been stopped like that many times.
Kuroo knew the feeling well.
Because this was Akira's unique blocking technique!
Normally, a one-man time-difference attack uses staggered timing between the spiker and the blocker to catch the defense out of rhythm.
But Akira's extraordinary leaping ability and incredible hang time allowed him to stay suspended in the air longer than normal.
That extended airtime transformed a prime attacking moment into a mirror trap.
Normally, a blocker would descend as the ball did—but Akira would descend with the ball!
No matter what option the attacker chose, there was no getting past him!
Kuroo had been blocked like that many times and couldn't forget it.
As the ball hit the ground, the Sarukawa players visibly faltered.
Even though they were used to setbacks, they hadn't expected to be stopped like that.
It wasn't about ball skill anymore—it was raw physicality!
It left them feeling helpless.
According to footage from the Karasuno vs. Shiratorizawa match, this number 7 had many special techniques!
But so far, he hadn't used any of them!
Just with physical prowess alone, he had dominated this far...
Creak!
The whistle blew again—the game continued!
...
"Ah..."
Kuroo watched the match and sighed.
"Sarukawa Tech really is strong!"
"To come out on top in Ishikawa Prefecture and reach Nationals is no small feat."
"Honestly, if we Nekoma faced them, the outcome would be hard to predict."
"But still..."
"Why are they getting crushed by Karasuno like this?"
At that point, the scoreboard read 5:1!
Sarukawa Tech was still struggling to adapt to Akira's explosive spiking pace.
"Haha!"
Bokuto laughed and slapped Kuroo on the back.
"Kuroo, you oughta be used to being wrecked by now!"
"This is the first time Sarukawa's players have seen a monster like Akira, not to mention that crazy fast attack from Hinata and Kageyama..."
"Think back to your first match against them! Weren't you just as dazed?"
"Hahaha!"
Bokuto scratched his head and added:
"I got my butt kicked by Karasuno too, you know!"
"Hmm..."
Kuroo's face took on a thoughtful look.
"Yeah... I guess you're right."
"Akira was already strong back then, but nowhere near this freakish!"
"From Golden Week till now, his growth has been unbelievable!"
Creak!
Right as they were talking, Karasuno scored another point!
This time, Hinata had rotated to the front row and landed the kill!
Akira had moved to the back row during the last few rotations.
Now, it was time for Hinata and Kageyama's signature quick attack to return!
"Whew... huff..."
Hisahiko Wakura was panting.
"Just a few more..."
"A few more rallies and I can catch up!"
"Just a bit closer!"
On the other side, Hinata looked across the net, still a bit shaken.
That last point—he really thought he'd be blocked!
But at the last moment, he had managed to slip past the block by reading the defender's hand placement!
This was the result of his recent training!
While he still couldn't clearly read every opponent's block...
The number of successful reads was going up!
That meant he was improving!
Hinata was thrilled by that!
Being able to adjust mid-air during a spike, using that to avoid the block...
Even if it was just a small adjustment!
Because Kageyama's tosses were fast! Hinata still couldn't fully control that type of attack.
But Hinata knew exactly what his next step had to be—
To truly master that quick attack!