In a best-of-five volleyball match, the first four sets follow the 25-point format. A team must score at least 25 points and lead by 2 to win a set.
However, the fifth set has special rules. This deciding set uses a 15-point format. Once a team reaches 8 points, the teams switch sides and continue in the sa rotational order. The first team to reach at least 15 points while maintaining a 2-point lead wins the match.
Thinking carefully, this was actually Kaedehara Taichi's first ti playing a fifth set.
For one, high school matches typically follow a best-of-three format. And even when they played best-of-five in the Spring Interhigh finals, Aoba Johsai had never let an opponent win two sets.
"15 points. It should end quickly, right?" Kaedehara Taichi's gaze lowered, his expression unreadable.
"Taichi." A voice ca from behind—Nitta Asahiro. "How are you holding up? Still okay physically?"
"I'm alright. Another five sets and I might start feeling it," Taichi replied lightly. "But what about you? You've been on court much longer than usual—feeling okay?"
"Don't underestimate a pro athlete's stamina. This is nothing," Nitta said confidently.
Taichi's eyes drifted to the side, landing on Kitajima Kippei.
"What?" Kitajima looked over warily. "If I were five years younger, I'd still be going strong."
"Aren't you two years younger than ?" Kubo Wataru remarked from the side while adjusting his kneepads.
Kitajima: "…"
"Try not to drag the kids down in the final set."
"Obviously," Kitajima nodded seriously.
-----
Black Jackals Bench.
Sakusa Kiyoomi tugged off his headband, flinging droplets of sweat in every direction.
"By the way, don't you think it's kind of weird?" Inunaki Shion mumbled as he chewed an energy gel, his words slightly muffled. "Sakusa usually seems super OCD, right? So why isn't he like that when he plays volleyball?"
"Huh?" Shion's question caught the attention of his teammates.
Now that he ntioned it, it was strange. Sakusa Kiyoomi normally wore a mask, rarely got close to people, and sanitized both his locker and dorm entrance daily…
But during volleyball gas, he couldn't possibly wear a mask due to the intensity of movent. He frequently made physical contact with teammates at the net, and volleyballs were dirty—not to ntion he occasionally dove to save them…
Thinking about it like that—it was pretty weird.
Sakusa ignored the glances being tossed his way. He simply cald his breathing in silence while pressing an ice pack to his muscles.
"Omi-chan, are you actually just a super weird guy after all?" Bokuto Kōtarō suddenly crouched in front of Sakusa's face.
—!
Only Bokuto would be so fearless. Inunaki Shion grinned with satisfaction.
The rest of the team pretended to mind their own business, but their eyes kept stealing glances in the duo's direction.
"Idiot. You're only just realizing that guy's weird?" Miya Atsumu said with a tired expression. "And you've got no right to call anyone else weird, y'know."
"Atsumu."
"Hm?"
"You missed the perfect timing for a snarky coback. Also, you're talking way too quietly," said Adriah Thomas, who for so reason had recently taken an interest in studying the art of "quipping."
"I know!" Miya Atsumu shouted in frustration. "But hey, I'm not the tsukkomi here!"
"Good job!" Adriah Thomas gave him a thumbs-up. "That was a beautiful reaction!"
Miya Atsumu: "…"
What a bunch of lunatics.
On the other side, Sakusa Kiyoomi calmly placed one hand on Bokuto Kōtarō's face and shoved him away.
"I told you not to get so close to ," Sakusa said coldly. "Who knows how many viruses are crawling on a careless guy like you."
"For real?!" Bokuto gasped in horror, looking himself over. "Where?!"
Sakusa: "…"
Inunaki Shion muttered, "Seriously, Bokuto, you really should've gone to college."
The truth was, when it ca to Sakusa Kiyoomi's germophobia versus volleyball, most people misunderstood the cause-and-effect relationship entirely. They had gotten so used to labelling "germophobia" as a defining trait of this ace spiker, that they couldn't help but question how soone like him could even tolerate the intense physical contact of a volleyball match.
But in reality, Sakusa Kiyoomi's obsessive self-discipline—his behaviour often mistaken as "germophobia"—existed because of volleyball.
It wasn't strange that he played volleyball despite his habits. Rather, because he played volleyball, he needed to keep himself in peak condition at all tis.
This was Sakusa Kiyoomi's personal standard—a reflection of his unwavering devotion to the ga.
---
ian Shūgo hadn't taken part in the team's usual banter. He sat quietly on the bench, his index finger tapping rhythmically against the wood as Kaedehara Taichi's gleaming eyes kept flashing through his mind.
The Black Jackals had taken the fourth set in a swift 25–18 win—a blow that hit DH like a stinging slap to the face.
But ian Shūgo knew better. This was nothing more than the calm before the storm.
That 17-year-old brat…in the mont that final ball hit the floor, the look in his eyes had burned with an excitent so intense it was almost terrifying.
"Shūgo," Oliver Barnes handed him a water bottle, his voice low, "you're uneasy too, huh?"
Five years. Hundreds of matches. No strategy manual could rival the weight of their shared experience.
Oliver Barnes knew ian Shūgo too well. He recognized the way Shūgo unconsciously tapped his fingers when anxious. He knew that this silent focus only ever surfaced when they were staring down a real threat.
ian took a long swig of sports drink, his Adam's apple bobbing as his eyes swept across the court—right toward DH's Kaedehara Taichi.
"Barnes," he muttered, "how do you think that brat compares to Akutsu?"
"Just going off performance, it's hard to say." Barnes sat down beside him. "But if we factor in age, that kid's a way bigger threat."
"Is that so?" ian whispered. "Because I think even just his performance already puts him ahead of Akutsu…"
What unsettled ian more than anything was the third set—the one they didn't win.
Tachi's spiking height and ball speed kept rising, and as the match wore on, his shot selection grew sharper and sharper.
"Tweet—!"
The referee's whistle cut through ikura's thoughts.
"Let's go!"
The captains' voices rang out, mingled with the screech of sneakers on polished wood as both teams stepped onto the court.
MSBY Black Jackals were back to their original formation:
Front row—Setter Miya Atsumu, Outside Hitter Bokuto Kōtarō, Middle Blocker ian Shūgo.
Back row—Middle Blocker Adriah Thomas (Libero: Inunaki Shion), Outside Hitter Sakusa Kiyoomi, and Opposite Hitter Oliver Barnes.
DESEO Hornets' lineup was:
Front row—Outside Hitter Kitajima Kippei, Setter Iizuna Tsukasa, Middle Blocker Tom Wilde.
Back row—Middle Blocker Nitta Asahiro (Libero: Kubo Wataru), Opposite Hitter Yoshii Hiyu and Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi.
The Black Jackals had returned to their starting formation. Now that they'd seen the offensive prowess of the other DH players, they couldn't afford to focus solely on defending against Kaedehara.
However—
Kitajima Kippei was back in the front row, Nitta Asahiro had rotated to the back, and libero Kubo Wataru had taken the court again as usual.
But none of that was the real headline.
The real change…was that Kaedehara Taichi was serving from Position 1—the match would begin with his power serve.
"Tweet!—"
The whistle blew.
The final set had begun.
_________
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