Haikyuu: Zero to Almighty

"Wow, this is so delicious! Did you make it yourself?"

Tōru Oikawa was surrounded by a group of girls from other schools, his face glowing with a radiant, happy smile.

"Yes! I stayed up late last night to make them!"

The girl offering the cookies smiled shyly.

"Wow, I'm so happy. Thank you so much!"

"N-no problem…"

The girl's face turned bright red.

"Oikawa-kun, um…can we take a photo together?"

Another girl asked expectantly.

"A photo? Of course, no problem!"

Oikawa grinned and held up a "V" sign with his fingers.

Thwack!

A volleyball flew in from nowhere, perfectly smacking Oikawa in the head courtesy of Iwaizumi Hajime.

"Ah…"

The girls gasped, stepping back a few paces in shock.

"Ow…"

Oikawa turned around dramatically, rubbing his head.

"Even Coach doesn't hit me like that…"

The volleyball rebounded and was caught effortlessly by Taichi Kaedehara, who stood nearby.

Iwaizumi stood emotionless, staring Oikawa down.

"Sorry… let's save the photos for next time, okay?"

Oikawa turned back to the girls with a forced smile.

"Ehh—"

"Aw, what a shame…"

The girls watched as Oikawa was dragged off by his two Aoba Johsai teammates.

------

"What the hell, Taichi?! You didn't call me for something this flashy?"

On the way back to the gym, Oikawa pouted as Iwaizumi filled him in on what Taichi had said to Karasuno and Date Tech earlier.

"Oh please, Oikawa-senpai. You'd much rather show off in front of girls, wouldn't you?" Taichi shot him a sideways glance.

"Uh…"

Caught red-handed yet again, Oikawa had no comeback.

"Alright, you two." Iwaizumi, standing between them, pressed down on their heads with his hands.

"Focus on the matches. You talked big, so now we have to back it up!"

"Got it."

"Yes, sir!"

The sight was almost comical.

Both Oikawa and Taichi were taller than Iwaizumi, yet they somehow seemed perfectly in place being scolded by him.

Nearby, some spectators began to recognize them as Aoba Johsai's captain and vice-captain—but they were puzzled about the black-haired 'new guy'.

"Coach said that compared to Senkawa North and Oomisaki, Karasuno and Date Tech are the teams we need to watch out for. We'll spend the morning observing their matches."

Iwaizumi led Oikawa and Taichi toward the spectator seats for Karasuno's game.

"Ah!"

Hinata Shōyō spotted the three of them in the stands.

"It's Taichi and….the Great King!"

"Yahho~! Tobio-chan and chibi-chan!"

Oikawa waved enthusiastically, his trademark smirk firmly in place.

"You two freaks still hanging in there?"

Taichi scanned Karasuno's players, his eyes sharp and calculating. He hadn't paid much attention earlier, but now the team looked….complete.

"Shōyō, don't lose before you get to us."

Taichi's words were direct and challenging.

"Mm!"

Hinata nodded firmly, determination blazing in his eyes.

"Oh hey, they've got a libero now! They didn't have one during the practice match…"

Oikawa noted the change in Karasuno's lineup.

"And they've added more tall players," Iwaizumi added.

"Not to mention… a new coach?"

Taichi's eyes narrowed as he focused on Nishinoya Yuu and Asahi Azumane. He activated the analysis system in his mind.

[Asahi Azumane: Wing Spiker. Overall rating: 84. Height: 184.7 cm, Power: 95, Jump: 80, Stamina: 82, Speed: 75. Technique: Serve: 85, Spike: 90.]

Power at 95?

Taichi frowned slightly. Asahi's mild personality completely hid the fact that his strength was on another level.

[Nishinoya Yuu: Libero. Overall rating: 89. Height: 159.3 cm, Power: 70, Jump: 90, Stamina: 98, Speed: 95. Technique: Receive: 93.]

Whoa, here comes another genius.

Taichi's gaze lingered on Nishinoya. Despite being shorter than Hinata, his athletic ability was undeniably top-tier among high school players.

[Ding. Kageyama Tobio's setting ability has increased from 96 to 97. Hinata Shoyo's stats have shown significant changes.]

???

The system's sudden notification took Taichi completely by surprise.

Kageyama improving his setting ability again was shocking enough, but what was this about significant changes to Hinata Shoyo's stats?

Taichi turned his gaze toward the court, where Hinata was bouncing around during warm-ups, his energy as boundless as ever.

[Hinata Shōyō, Middle Blocker. Overall rating: 85. Height: 163 cm, Power: 65, Jump: 95, Stamina: 99, Speed: 95. Technique: Block: 70, Receive: 65, Spike: 78.]

Taichi frowned.

Sure, it was common sense that the lower someone's baseline stats were, the easier it was for them to improve. But this rate of growth was insane—Hinata was catching up to him at this point…

Spending every day with the Aoba Johsai team had almost made him forget the kind of monsters his opponents were. The so-called 'Generation of Monsters' was living up to its name.

"Sit down and get ready for the match," Coach Irihata called out to the trio who had just arrived.

"With new players and a new coach, what kind of team will Karasuno turn into?"

"Tweet!"

The referee's whistle echoed through the gym.

"Both teams, line up!"

"The Miyagi Prefecture High School Volleyball Tournament Preliminaries are officially underway!"

"Let's have a good match—!"

Both teams roared with energy, their voices echoing in unison.

Karasuno High's starting lineup:

Front row—Wing Spiker Ryūnosuke Tanaka, Middle Blocker Hinata Shōyō, Wing Spiker Daichi Sawamura.

Back row—Setter Tobio Kageyama, Middle Blocker Kei Tsukishima (Libero: Nishinoya Yū), Wing Spiker Asahi Azumane.

Tokonami High's starting lineup:

Front row—Wing Spiker Hayato Ikejiri, Setter Yoshiharu Haga, Middle Blocker Kazuma Chaya.

Back row—Middle Blocker Rikuto Shibuya (Libero: Taiga Sakurai), Wing Spiker Hiroki Tamagawa, Wing Spiker Hikaru Komaki.

Taichi scanned the lineup on Nekoma's side. Other than that 'Ikejiri guy' who apparently used to be Daichi Sawamura's middle school teammate, he didn't recognize a single name.

[Hayato Ikejiri, Wing Spiker. Overall rating: 80. Height: 177.2, Power: 83, Jump: 78, Stamina: 82, Speed: 75. Technique: Serve: 80, Spike: 83.]

[Yoshiharu Haga, Setter. Overall rating: 76....]

[Kazuma Chaya, Middle Blocker. Overall rating:78....]

Taichi stopped analyzing. The gap in skill levels between the two teams was pretty clear. It didn't seem like Tokonami could push Karasuno hard enough to reveal anything significant.

The spectators weren't particularly engaged either. Most people didn't bother paying attention to these 'unknown' schools.

Thwack!

Nishinoya Yū received a serve with effortless precision, the volleyball flying cleanly into Kageyama's hands.

"It's coming!"

The Aoba Johsai players in the stands straightened up, eager to see Karasuno's signature freak quick attack.

Whoosh!

Kageyama's set soared high and wide to the left side. Hinata, starting his approach from the backcourt, rocketed forward with terrifying speed.

Boom!

The sound of the ball being spiked echoed sharply.

"He's flying—!!"

Someone in the stands couldn't hold back a gasp as they watched Hinata's gravity-defying leap.

"Bang!"

The ball slammed into the floor. Point for Karasuno.

"Karasuno… didn't use that move, did they?"

Kindaichi Yūtarō muttered, visibly surprised.

"No," Coach Ihata replied thoughtfully. "It was a standard quick attack—still rough around the edges, but nothing too fancy. It seems the little guy has been undergoing some very meaningful training."

His tone grew more serious.

"Understanding the weapons you have, adding to that arsenal, and choosing the most appropriate attack based on the match situation…"

He paused, a small smile forming.

"The team that once relied solely on brute force—have they started playing with wisdom now?"

Coach Irihata chuckled, shaking his head.

"What a troublesome team… hahahaha."

He glanced at Oikawa and Taichi sitting nearby, noticing that their expressions were identical—focused, intense, and brimming with excitement. They looked like children who had just discovered a fascinating new toy.

"Heh. Looks like Aoba Johsai doesn't need to worry too much."

_________

[T/N] -Here's the promised Extra Chapter!

And, let's aim for 160 Powerstones for another Extra Chapter tomorrow. Let's go!

But, if you guys want to read 50 Chapters in advance of the current story, you can support me on my Patreon. Trust me, it's awesome!

Link - (P)atreon.com/Iseeblack [Remove the brackets]