The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"Oh! That is a great spike!"

"As expected from you, Adachihara!"

"Come on, boys! Don't make it easy for them!"

The crowd went wild after witnessing Kenzo's impressive spike. Tondo shook his head in disbelief, staring at Kenzo with shining eyes filled with admiration. He didn't expect that the ball he set would be executed so beautifully by the older man.

'And to think he is just two years older than me—this is incredible!'

"Sorry, Riku. I was too slow before," Yuki apologized quickly while the others were still excited about the last point. "I didn't expect he would send a cross spike like that."

Even though it wasn't Yuki's fault, he still took the initiative to apologize. Riku also nodded, appreciating the gesture. They both understood from their experience playing on such a challenging team how important it was to provide feedback to their teammates, regardless of whether it was good or bad. At the very least, it showed they still cared about the game.

"Don't worry; it's my fault too," Riku reassured his friend. "I should've noticed it when he jumped in front of me. But he didn't show any hesitation at all, ignoring my block as if it were never there." He shrugged helplessly.

Normally, even if Riku couldn't stop the attack, his presence on the front line would narrow the area from which the opponent could spike. While it might not look impressive, this small action would allow Yuki, who was always behind him, to make a better judgment of where the ball would go. However, Kenzo's last spike completely disregarded Riku's wall and went through the block as if it didn't exist, defying all the routines they had practiced tirelessly.

"Well, he is a pro, so what can you say?" Yuki shrugged as well. "Still, even when we played against Konan, our opponents never ignored your presence as a blocker. This is the first time we're facing such a spiker. As expected from a professional player."

After the commotion subsided, everyone went back to their positions, ready to restart the game. However, the crowd remained lively, chatting incessantly in an attempt to gain the players' attention.

"Oi, Kenzo, hold back a little, will you?!"

"Yeah, Adachihara-kun! We want to see a good game, not a one-sided slaughter!"

"Use a normal serve, not your best one!"

The crowd's comments seemed to finally get under Kenzo's skin, and he snapped. "Shut up! Don't treat me like a fool, you bastards!"

This only made the players laugh harder, while both Sekine and Kawaki shook their heads in exasperation.

'It seems that boy still can't control his shortcomings and gets easily riled up,' Sekine thought to himself. After pondering for a moment, he suddenly rose from his seat, startling Kato next to him. "Oi, Kenzo! We are here to test them both, so while I appreciate your enthusiasm, hold back a little so they can shine more, understand?!"

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Kenzo was startled but immediately responded in a military manner. "YES, SIR!"

Yuki and Riku frowned, feeling somewhat insulted by Sekine's words. However, they couldn't argue with him. This wasn't the best time for their egos to take over and demand that their opponent go all out; what they needed to do was pass the test, and they understood that. Still, it didn't mean they were happy about the situation.

'After joining the team, we have to force him and all the professional players to go all out against us!'

After a while, everyone was in position again to restart the game. Just as Sekine instructed, Kenzo didn't send any complicated serve, giving Yuki an ordinary one straight to his spot. Yuki had no trouble picking up the ball, and right after that, he charged forward to attack the opponent.

"Tondo, keep your eyes on him; don't worry about anything else," Yuki heard Kenzo say from the other side of the net. He didn't have time to think about it, though, as the most important thing at that moment was to spread the two opponents apart.

Riku glanced for a second, acting as if he was about to pass the ball. However, at the last moment, instead of passing the ball to Yuki, he flicked it behind him, sending the ball to a spot he couldn't even see directly. His action not only fooled Tondo and Kenzo, but it left everyone on the sidelines with their jaws dropped.

"Hahaha! The brat is always bold and never shies away from doing something provocative!" Sekine laughed heartily at the scene.

Kawaki just shook his head in disbelief, finally coming back to his senses after being shocked by Riku's move. "It's impossible to save that in a 2v2 game, especially when his opponent has no idea about his style. What an interesting boy." If earlier Yuki's serving ability had captured his attention, now Riku's bold personality was also on his radar.

Of course, not everyone was analyzing the plays seriously. Many were there just to enjoy the fun, and when they saw one of the pros dumbfounded by two high school boys, they didn't hesitate to mock him.

"Come on, Kenzo! Why did you freeze like that?!"

"Are you cosplaying as a statue?"

"Adachihara-kun is getting fooled by a high school boy? Man, if our opponents catch wind of this, they'll have a field day!"

"Shut up!" Kenzo glared sharply at his teammates, a thick vein bulging on his forehead. "You all have no right to judge me! You got fooled too, right?!"

"Hey, what do you mean by that?!"

"Yeah, Kenzo! No need to drag us into this!"

Earlier, Kawaki had been in awe of the two high school boys who had impressed him, but now he was facepalming at the childishness displayed by the players on the main team. "Adachihara-kun, if you want to argue with your teammates, do it outside the court. We still have a test to complete here," he said wryly.

At least Kenzo had the decency to blush in embarrassment. However, Kawaki didn't blame him. After all, even though Kenzo was part of a professional team, he was still just 19 years old and had a strong personality. There was no way he wouldn't get riled up by his teammates' provocations.

"Sorry about that, Sensei," Kenzo said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it. Just go back to the court and continue the test," Kawaki shrugged off the apology.

A moment later, everything was back in order, and it was Riku's turn to serve. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. Although he didn't have Yuki's service arsenal, he still took pride in his jump serve, and while it had been a long time since his serve had produced a good result, he was stubborn enough to stick with it.

'Okay, here we go!'

BAM!

He delivered a powerful spike that made everyone raise their eyebrows in surprise. Even though it wasn't the most powerful serve, the sound of the ball cutting through the air gave everyone a hint of just how heavy it was.

However, Kenzo demonstrated why he was the best player on the court by easily picking up the ball, showing no signs of being affected by its power.

"Tondo! Send me a high ball!"

"I got it, Senpai!"

Within a second, the ball was soaring above him again as Kenzo made his run-up. It wasn't as quick as before, but with this type of ball, it was clear he was aiming for a powerful spike.

However, just as he was about to unleash his arm, two pairs of arms shot up in front of him, taking Kenzo aback. Unfortunately, his arms had already moved, and he couldn't change his trajectory in time. As a result, his spike collided with the wall formed by the two boys in front of him and rebounded straight into his own area.

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