The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

For a moment, a long silence fell inside the building as everyone stared at the ball rolling gently on Matsuyama Kita's side in disbelief. This was probably the first time they witnessed Matsuyama Kita High lose control in the middle of the game besides when they played against Konan High, and honestly, it was a scary thought to think about. Even though no one wanted to admit it, the thought of Tsunemori High breaking the hegemony of the two most dominating teams in the country and slipped into the list as the third one started to appear inside their mind, and no matter how ridiculous they thought it would be, the seed had already been planted, and as long as Tsunemori High did well in this game, it would only grow stronger in the future.

Of course, no one on the court thought about so many complicated things like that. They focused the most on the play, and when they saw that Gondo failed to score again, all the Tsunemori players jumped excitedly.

"Hell, yeah!"

"Nice block, Yuki! You scare the shit out of them!"

"Haha! As expected from our miracle boy! Even Matsuyama Kita's ace is scared of you!"

"Good job!"

"I cannot believe what I witness here…" The broadcaster shook his head in a mix of awe and disbelief. "Sato-sensei, what do you think about this situation? It is not often that we see Matsuyama Kita High in such a situation, and it is clear that this is a self-made crisis. So, why would Gondo-kun insist on blasting his way through Tsunemori's area with his left-handed attack when it is proven to be ineffective?" All the people who heard this had to give a hat-tip to the broadcaster for his profound question.

"Oh, the boy – no, not him. It should be the entire team. They want to snatch the momentum forcefully from Tsunemori High here." Daiki Sato, the old veteran in the volleyball world, could grasp the situation quickly. "You see, I don't know the reason behind Gondo-kun's sudden change in his offensive method, but seeing that Saburo-kun didn't change it, I am sure that this is his arrangement to prepare for the game against Konan High. This way, they want their secret weapon to get as ready as possible for the fateful encounter."

The broadcaster nodded a little as if he understood before asking a question, "So, how is it related to them wanting to snatch momentum from Tsunemori High?"

"I will get into that part, young man! Be patient!" The old man scolded the broadcaster, which elicited laughter from anyone around them. Daiki Sato was a bit embarrassed at his sudden snap before coughing lightly, deciding to go back to the original conversation. "You see, this attacking method should be new for Matsuyama Kita High, and it is clear that Gondo-kun himself is not comfortable with it. Coupled with how Tsunemori High managed to anticipate the last few attacks from him, it is understandable that Gondo starts to feel uncomfortable, and if they didn't make a change here, he would also start to doubt this new method. So, they need to build Gondo's confidence with the new attacking method, and the only thing that could do that is to win the point with the same method and snatch the momentum away from Tsunemori High, which is not something easy, I told you."

"What a great answer from our analyst today." The broadcaster shook his head in admiration. "So, you mean to tell me that they are still going to stick with this method?" He asked the old man once again.

"Oh, well, there are two ways to approach this situation. First, it is to hit the wall stubbornly, which is not effective, and the second…"

BAM!

Right after that, the sound of the ball getting hit with a powerful strength rang inside everyone's ears, and when they saw it bounce so far, even to the last row of the stand, everyone could only stare in awe. When they turned around, all the eyes could see that the main perpetrator was Gondo, the boy who was under pressure. However, this time, instead of going with his left hand, the boy switched, avoiding Yuki's block before slamming the ball as hard as he could to vent out his emotion.

"HORYAH!" The boy roared, feeling that a huge burden was lifted from his shoulders. "COME ON!"

"Yes, Captain! That is your true level!!"

"Good job, Gondo! You finally wake up and get serious!"

"Come on, kill them all!"

Even though it was a bit embarrassing to celebrate over one simple point against Tsunemori High, a team whose level was far below theirs, no one cared about that. At this point, everyone had already acknowledged that Tsunemori High was a strong team, and every point that they earned was worth celebrating.

"So, is that what you were going to talk about previously, Sensei?" The broadcaster decided to ask.

"Indeed, it was." Daiki Sato nodded solemnly, his eyes shining when he saw Gondo's confidence start to return. "The alternate way to stick with the new method while also gaining the player's confidence is by mixing it with the old method that the boy is comfortable with, and Saburo-kun understands this point too. I think, this point is just a prelude for something incredible. Don't blink your eyes, because after this, I can see that we will witness Gondo's transformation into a monster realm, and I doubt that after this, there will be any player in this tournament that could stop him."

True enough, right after this, Gondo started attacking Tsunemori High with a new burst of vitality. He didn't even flinch when Asahi and Riku jumped to block his attempt, Gondo just shrugged it off, using a raw power to brute force his way through Tsunemori's defense.

BAM!

"Fuck!" Yuki cursed out loud as he was forced to kneel to receive the ball. "Get it, Jimmy!" He shouted.

"Okay, don't worry!" Ogawa shouted back, approaching the ball.

In the end, the boy sent it to Asahi who was able to recover after his failed block attempt, yet the captain couldn't get through Matsuyama Kita's defense so easily. Tono, the team's defensive specialist, managed to save the ball to cover for Gondo's role who recovered too late to block the shoot. Now, it was Matsuyama Kita High's second chance to attack, and the captain was determined to kill it.

"Amagi!"

"I got it!"

As the ball flew toward Gondo, all the Tsunemori players also shifted their attention to that spot. Yuki also prepared himself, ready to receive the man's left-handed spike. However, in an unexpected turn, Matsuyama Kita's captain suddenly shifted in a way that favored his right hand to attack, and seeing this, Yuki couldn't help but curse loudly.

"Oh, fuck!"

BAM!