Haikyuu - I Am A Different Hinata!

"YAY! THE KITAGAWA DAIICHI GAME IS FINALLY STARTING!" Oikawa shouted, getting excited as he watched the players enter the gym after the Yukigaoka match ended, making way for Kitagawa Daiichi and a school called Shirogane.

As the players began warming up, Hinata noticed Kageyama, who was standing next to him, intensely staring at a boy from Kitagawa Daiichi. The boy had short, messy black hair and was setting the ball for the rest of the team during the warm-up.

"NIJIMURA-CHAN! FINISH THEM OFF! SHOW THEM THOSE SETS I TOLD YOU ABOUT!" Oikawa yelled toward the boy, who nodded determinedly.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT GUY?! HE WASN'T THERE LAST YEAR!" Kageyama said, surprised and confused about how Oikawa could know that player since he had left Kitagawa Daiichi long before Kageyama.

"Oh, Tobio-chan! I never stopped visiting my kohais. I've been helping everyone since I left, and Nijimura is my pupil!" Oikawa said with a triumphant smile.

"Darn it! Why did he refuse to teach me back then, and now he shows up with a pupil?!" Kageyama thought, his face showing clear irritation.

"OF COURSE IT'S BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO TAKE MY SPOT! NOW THAT I'M NOT AT KITAGAWA DAIICHI ANYMORE, I CAN HELP! YOU IDIOT, IDIOT!" Oikawa said, reading Kageyama's expression and guessing what he was thinking.

"TSK!" Kageyama grunted, ignoring Oikawa.

The match between Kitagawa Daiichi and Shirogane went as expected, with Kitagawa Daiichi dominating the game. Nijimura was the team's standout player, and by the halfway point, the Chidoriyama match had ended, and Nishinoya stood up.

"GOOD JOB, GUYS! KEEP IT UP!" Nishinoya shouted, waving enthusiastically.

"It's bad news... but they'll probably face Kitagawa Daiichi in the next match..." Sugawara observed after checking the bracket.

"Darn it! We're always so unlucky!" Nishinoya complained.

The day continued at a frantic pace. After the first matches ended, the Karasuno players went to a restaurant near the gym for lunch and returned in time to watch the final matches. The day concluded with Yukigaoka securing a second victory, with Daisuke drawing even more attention as the team's star player, and Kitagawa Daiichi defeating Chidoriyama. Nishinoya went to console the Chidoriyama players since he knew most of them, and the first day of the event came to an end.

"You can't say that wasn't nostalgic!" Sugawara said with a smile as the Karasuno members left the gym at dusk.

"Sort of. Unfortunately, I never made it to nationals in middle school, but high school will be different!" Tanaka commented, clenching his fists determinedly.

"Definitely! Now, changing the subject... you two could totally talk to Daisuke and Nijimura about joining Karasuno next year! They're both really talented!" Daichi said with a mischievous smile, as if hatching a plan, looking at Hinata and Kageyama.

"Well, I can try talking to Daisuke about it... Wait, is that even allowed?" Hinata said thoughtfully.

"Isn't that setter Oikawa's pupil? It seems more likely he'd go play for Seijoh and become his successor..." Tsukishima said provocatively, smirking.

"Thinking about it... it doesn't seem impossible. If we can make it to nationals and beat Aoba Johsai again, along with Shiratorizawa, it'll show how strong we are, and that might attract his interest... We'd just have to out-talk Oikawa!" Hinata said.

"Darn it! That guy is always one step ahead... I haven't thought about my old teammates since I left, and he's still helping them. That's a failure on my part!" Kageyama said, annoyed by the situation.

"The battle for recruits isn't over yet!" Tanaka said, patting Kageyama on the shoulder.

"You can still try to change your approach, talk to them, and offer to help with something..." Asahi observed.

"Can I really teach something better than Oikawa-san?" Kageyama said hesitantly.

"It doesn't hurt to try!" Daichi said, and soon after, each member headed home to rest before practice the next day.

"Wow! Looks like Kakugawa, the school with the two-meter-tall guy, won and will face Johzenji, who we played last tournament!" Kinoshita said in the locker room.

"That's the team with no tactical pattern, just randomly attacking like maniacs..." Ennoshita observed, closing a locker.

"That's definitely a funny matchup! Who do you think will win, Hinata?" Tanaka asked.

"Well, Johzenji isn't a team anyone can beat easily. Their style is hard to adapt to at first, and if you can't figure it out, your team might just get lost in the chaos... So I'd say it depends on how good that two-meter-tall guy is and the team around him. But since they said it's not a well-known school, I'd bet on Johzenji," Hinata analyzed.

"Seriously?! How can someone two meters tall lose in Japan..." Tanaka said, laughing.

"I might be wrong, but you're not that tall, and you can get past taller blocks, right? Saying that kind of underestimates yourself," Hinata said, shrugging.

"You're actually right! But if I were two meters tall... I'm sure I'd be the best in Japan!" Tanaka said, lowering his tone at first but ending with a laugh.

"Just keep dreaming because that's never happening. All we can do now is focus on our training with our current heights and skills and try to improve them!" Daichi said, appearing at the door to call the team out for practice.