Nekoma High School Gymnasium - Mid-June.
It was hot. Not the pleasant, "let's go to the beach" kind of hot. It was the "my shoes are melting into the floorboards" kind of hot.
"Again!" Yaku Yarisuke shouted.
SMACK.
The volleyball hit Ryuu's forearms and shot sideways, knocking over a water bottle rack.
"You're stiff!" Yaku yelled, picking up another ball. "You look like a telephone pole trying to play dodgeball! Lower your hips!"
Ryuu groaned, wiping sweat from his eyes. He was drenched. His glorious crimson hair was plastered to his forehead.
"Yaku-san," Ryuu panted. "I am a creature of the sky. I belong in the air. The floor is... beneath me. Literally and metaphorically."
"The floor is where the ball lands when you suck at receiving!" Yaku fired another ball.
Ryuu saw it coming. His Emperor's Eyes tracked the rotation perfectly.
'Topspin. Dipping to the right.'
He knew where it was going. But his legs were heavy from squats. He tried to shuffle his feet.
Thunk.
He tripped over his own size 13 shoe and fell flat on his face. The ball bounced harmlessly off his butt.
"GAHAHAHA!" Lev pointed and laughed from the sidelines. "Ryuu-senpai looks like a baby giraffe!"
"Lev," Kuroo's voice floated over. "You're next."
Lev stopped laughing instantly. "Eep."
Ryuu rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling fan that was doing absolutely nothing to cool the room.
"I hate defense," Ryuu muttered. "It's so... passive. I want to hit things."
"If you can't receive," Coach Nekomata's shadow loomed over him, "Inarizaki will target you until you cry. They will serve at you 25 times in a row. Do you want to be the reason we lose, Ace?"
Ryuu sat up. The word "lose" was a trigger phrase.
"Fine," Ryuu grumbled, getting back into his stance. "Hit me again, Demon Senpai. But if I die, tell my fans I went out fighting gravity."
The Strategy Room - Lunch Break.
The team sat in the classroom, eating bentos while a projector hummed in the background.
"Nationals Bracket," Kenma announced, clicking a remote.
A massive chart appeared on the wall. Nekoma's name was there, glowing in the First Seed slot for Tokyo.
"Our first opponent is undecided," Kenma said in his quiet, monotone voice. "But looking ahead... if we advance deep into the bracket..."
He clicked the remote.
A video started playing.
It showed a team in black jerseys. The crowd in the video was deafening, accompanied by a brass band that sounded like a military orchestra.
Inarizaki High (Hyogo Prefecture).
"The Challengers," Kuroo said seriously. "Runners-up at the last Nationals. They are favored to win it all this year."
The video focused on a player with dyed blonde hair. Number 7. Miya Atsumu.
He was standing at the service line. He raised his fist.
Instantly, the massive brass band and the cheering squad went dead silent. It was eerie.
"He controls the crowd," Ryuu noted, chewing on a sausage. "That's a Villain move. I like him."
"Watch his steps," Kenma said.
In the first clip, Atsumu took four steps. He hit a powerful Jump Serve that looked as heavy as Ryuu's.
In the second clip, Atsumu took six steps. He hit a nasty Jump Floater that danced in the air, causing the receiver to stumble.
"Dual Wield Serves," Yaku grimaced. "He can hit both with high accuracy. You don't know which one is coming until he starts his run-up."
"And his setting," Kenma clicked to the next clip.
The video showed a messy receive. The ball was flying low, almost hitting the net post. Most setters would bump it.
Atsumu didn't bump. He slid under the ball, crouched low, and used his hands.
From an impossible angle, he set a perfect, soft ball right into the hitter's palm.
"He doesn't have a 'bad' toss," Kenma explained. "Even if the pass is garbage, he makes the spiker look good. He's the Best High School Setter for a reason."
Ryuu leaned forward, his golden eyes narrowing.
"So he spoils his spikers," Ryuu whispered. "He makes it easy for them."
"And look at his twin," Kuroo pointed to the gray-haired player, Miya Osamu. "They have a connection that's almost telepathic. They run combos faster than most teams can react."
Ryuu swallowed his food. He looked at Atsumu on the screen, who was smirking after scoring a dump shot.
"A conductor," Ryuu smiled slowly. "He thinks the court is his orchestra."
Ryuu pointed at the screen with his chopstick.
"He controls the crowd. He controls the attackers. He controls the tempo."
Ryuu's grin widened, sharp and dangerous.
"I hate being controlled. I'm going to break his baton."
One Week Later.
The training intensity ramped up.
Ryuu wasn't just doing drills. He was doing "Penalty Drills."
Every time he messed up a receive, he had to do a lap.
Every time he hit a spike out, he had to do 10 pushups.
Every time he teased Bokuto over text (which was often), Yaku kicked him.
But slowly, the movement was clicking.
Ryuu realized that receiving wasn't about reacting; it was about prediction.
'The server's shoulder is open. He's hitting right.'
'The spiker is looking at the line. Shift left.'
His Emperor's Eyes—which he had used solely for offense—were now being calibrated for defense.
He started seeing the "threat lines" before the ball was hit.
Pop.
Ryuu dug a hard spike from Yamamoto. It went straight up to Kenma.
"Nice receive!"
Ryuu stood there, blinking.
"That felt... clean," Ryuu muttered. "It didn't hurt my arms."
"Because you hit the sweet spot, idiot," Yaku grinned, slapping his back. "Welcome to the world of floor defense. It's not as flashy as spiking, but it's annoying for the other team."
"Annoying..." Ryuu mused. "Yes. I like being annoying."
_______________
Two weeks before Nationals.
Nekomata called in a favor. The gym doors opened, and a group of college students walked in. They were bigger, stronger, and more experienced than high schoolers.
Former Nekoma regulars.
"Oho?" One of the alumni, a tall guy with a beard, looked at Ryuu. "So this is the Monster First Year? He looks like a beanstalk."
"I'm a Dragon," Ryuu corrected, adjusting his kneepads. "And dragons eat beans."
"Cute," the alumni laughed. "Let's see if you can handle a college-level serve."
______________
It was brutal. The college students hit harder than high schoolers. Their serves were heavier. Their blocks were smarter.
In the first set, Ryuu got stuffed three times. He got aced twice.
"Too slow!" The alumni shouted. "You're reacting to the ball! Read the player!"
Ryuu gritted his teeth.
'Read. Read. Read.'
He stopped looking at the ball. He looked at the server's hips. He looked at the setter's eyes.
Set 2.
The alumni server tossed the ball. Ryuu saw his toss was slightly to the left.
'He's going to curve it.'
Ryuu took a half-step right before the serve was hit.
The ball came. It curved right.
Ryuu was there.
Pop.
Perfect dig.
"Counter!"
Ryuu ran. He called for the toss.
"Kenma! Give me the trash!"
Kenma tossed a slightly messy ball.
Ryuu jumped. The college blockers were tall.
'They're waiting for power.'
Ryuu cocked his arm. He saw the gap. He snapped his wrist, using the "Whip" technique he had refined.
CRACK.
The ball spun over the block and dipped into the court.
"Whoa," the alumni blocker looked at his hands. "That was nasty. It looked like it was going out."
Nekoma wins Set 2.
By the end of the day, Ryuu was exhausted, bruised, and covered in floor burn.
But he was smiling.
"You're good," the alumni captain shook Ryuu's hand. "You're rough around the edges, but your instincts are terrifying. Just... fix your hair. It's distracting."
"My hair is my power source," Ryuu retorted. "If I cut it, the anime ends."
The Night Before Departure.
Ryuu packed his bag. Jersey #10. Kneepads. Sunglasses (essential).
He looked at his phone.
[Bokuto]:HEY! Are you ready for Nationals?! I learned a new move! It's called the "Boom-Boom-BAM"!
[Ryuu]:Sounds illegal. See you there, Owl.
He put his phone away. He looked out the window at the Tokyo skyline.
Tomorrow, they would leave for the biggest stage in Japan.
The monsters were waiting.
Ushijima the Cannon.
Atsumu the Dual-Wielder.
Kiryuu the Bad Ace.
Sakusa the Avenger.
Ryuu clenched his fist. He didn't feel fear. He felt a deep, vibrating hunger.
"Level 1 complete," Ryuu whispered to the empty room. "Loading Level 2..."
He turned off the lights.
"Game Start."
[Start of Arc 3: The National Stage]