A/N: Hello, readers! Welcome to a new chapter! Enjoy!

edited on august 6th, 2021 @ 6:16pm

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CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN - GREED

"GATHER 'ROUND!" Daichi shouted as Karasuno ran towards their coach. They were about to play a game with Nekoma, so all of them had determined looks.

"Our first game today is with Nekoma. How did we do yesterday?" Ukai asked before he asked Kiyoko for some of her notes from yesterday's games.

Kiyoko gets her notebook before flipping through the pages. "This will be our third set overall with Nekoma. Yesterday, we had two sets against them and lost both, 17-25 and 19-25." She informed, making Rei sigh in disappointment at the low scores.

"Overall, that's not bad. But I know we have more potential than that." He thinks to himself.

"Well, that just means we haven't won a set off of them yet. But if we calm down and give it all we've got; we should be able to give them a good challenge." Ukai smiled as Rei noticed him glancing over at Nekoma who were surrounding their own coach.

"Hinata and Kageyama, this is your first Nekoma set in a while, isn't it? You guys go beat them up a bit!" Ukai encouraged.

"Right!" Kageyama and Hinata shouted in unison.

TWEEEEET!

Karasuno turned around as they headed off onto the court to play. Nishinoya was on the sides while Rei was in. The black haired male felt bad because he felt like he was replacing his senior, but Nishinoya reassured him that it was fine and to give them a good beating for him.

As they wait for the whistle to blow, Rei was stretching out his muscles. He didn't want to tear something accidently. Which had happened to him before. "Nice serve, Fukunaga!" Yaku's voice broke Rei out of his thoughts as he looked towards the opposing team.

However, his eyes were more fixed on Lev who was smirking at Hinata. Rei looked over at his orange haired teammate who wasn't smirking back but instead just narrowed his eyes at the tall male on the other side of the court.

Rei had a strange feeling that Hinata was thinking back to what Lev had told him when they had bumped into him at the bathrooms. The comment never left Rei's mind either.

"Come on! Bring it!" Hinata exclaimed once everyone was ready to begin. Karasuno faced down their destined rivals with them giving them the same determination back.

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The ball was up in the air as Rei dived down to receive it. "Nice receive!" Tanaka called out, as the ball made it's way towards Kageyama who sets to Hinata and the duo do their famous quick attack, making Karasuno score a point.

"All right!"

"Damn it, that's amazing!" Rei heard Lev announce, amazed by the attack.

"Shake it off, Lev! That was close!" Yamamoto yelled to him.

"Yes sir!" Lev replied as Rei narrowed his eyes as the volleyball was served once more.

"Nice receive, Daichi!" Tanaka praised. Rei noticed Hinata run forward and jump up.

Kageyama and Hinata do their attack once more, except this time, Lev was able to read the attack as he used his height to successfully block the ball. Nekoma gains a point when the ball lands on Karasuno's side.

"All right!"

"He actually did it!"

Rei panted as he had his eyes narrowed. He glanced back to Hinata who had his back faced to him, so he couldn't tell what expression he had. Lev was walking by to get his original position, but he stopped to stare at the orange haired male, at first nothing happened between the two, until Rei saw Lev lift his arm up and did a motion for Hinata to come at him.

"Is he seriously challenging Hinata-kun?" Rei thinks to himself, surprised by Lev's action. Kageyama walked over to say something to Hinata, but Rei was too far to hear what he was saying. But he did see Hinata had a calm but eerie look on his face. Rei looked away to see that Kenma was serving.

"Nice serve!"

The ball goes to Karasuno's side. "Shiro!" Tanaka shouted at the first-year libero who nodded.

"I got it!" Rei reassured his team as he saved the ball and sent it towards Kageyama, who sets to Asahi as Hinata was used as a decoy.

At first, Rei figured they lured Lev to think that the ball was going to Hinata, but they were wrong as instead he went over to block Asahi, in which he managed to one touch it.

"Chance ball!" Yaku announced as he received the ball back up into the air. The ball goes towards Kenma who tosses it to Lev as the gray haired male spiked it down.

Rei had ran over to save it but he was too slow as Nekoma got the point. Rei scowled at this and growled. "Damn it..." He thought.

"All right!" Nekoma cheered for their point.

TWEEEET!

Ukai had called for a timeout as Karasuno crowded around their coach. "Now, calm down. They started off guard against the fast attacks. For the time being, when we're up against Nekoma, let's have Azumane and Tanaka focus on attacking from the left." Ukai informed. Rei jumped when Yachi almost tripped holding the water bottles.

Asahi and Tanaka nodded in understanding.

"Got it!"

"All right!"

Rei didn't hear Hinata say anything, which made him worry. He was off today and he knew the reason why. He didn't say anything to him because he figured his teammate needed time to collect his own thoughts. That, and he didn't do anything out of line. Sugawara and Ukai must've detected that he wasn't being himself either.

"Let's calm down and get that point." Yamaguchi spoke, which made Rei blink and sigh in exhaustion.

"Here you go." Yachi handed Rei his water bottle as the crystal-blue eyed male smiled at her.

"Thanks, Hitoka." He thanked her. She just nodded in return and quickly walked away, making Rei raise an eyebrow in question.

TWEEEET!

They all headed back onto the court once they heard the whistle and cooled down. Once everyone was back in position, the ball goes into the air as Rei kept his eyes on it.

"Cover! Cover!"

"Left!"

"Double block!"

"Got it!"

Mizuki jumped up to spike the ball, in which Kageyama reacted and saved it. "It's up! Nice, Kageyama!" Tanaka yelled.

"Nice cover, Tobio-kun!" Rei yelled as well as the ball goes to Daichi.

"All right, let's get the last ball!" Daichi encouraged his team as he sent the ball into the air. "Sorry! It was a bit short!" He apologized as Rei watched the volleyball in the air.

"Asahi!"

"Last ball!"

"Yeah!"

Rei observed as Asahi charged forward and had jumped up to slam the ball down. He thought that Karasuno would get a point, however, he saw Hinata had jumped up as well. Rei was in shock as his eyes were completely fixed on the ball, he also didn't seem to notice Asahi.

"What an idiot." Rei thought as everyone watched as Asahi bumped Hinata in the air, in which their orange haired teammate falls down from the collusion

Hinata landed on his back as the ball came back down and landed on Karasuno's side of the court, no one really paid attention to the point as they all stared in shock at Hinata. Asahi of course, was the first one to panic.

"H-H-Hold—" He stuttered, shaking like a leaf, but paused when Hinata got up. He paled at Asahi, realizing what happened.

"I'm sorry!" Hinata apologized, then started to bow repeatedly for a second. "I was focused on the ball! I'm sorry! Are you all right? I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" Hinata continued to ask for forgiveness which made Asahi sweat drop at him.

"I'm perfectly fine..." He reassured him.

"I'm so sorry!" Hinata exclaimed.

Tanaka stared at Hinata with a concerned look. "Hey, be careful." He said, wanting Hinata to calm down.

"No matter what, Shoyo's the one that goes flying." Nishinoya added with a worry but slightly amused look.

Rei rubbed his temples in frustration as he then picked up the volleyball and threw it harshly at Hinata's back, which made him wince at this. "You dumbass! That toss was obviously meant for Asahi-san! Stop being reckless! It's pissing me off!" The black haired male shrieked.

"Why do you think we call things out, you blockhead?" Ukai exclaimed, pointing at Hinata who shrunk at the scolding.

"Right, I'm sorry." He apologized as Kageyama went over.

"Moron! Hinata, you moron!" He hissed.

"Now, now, calm down, Kageyama."

"Yeah, you and Shiro should ease a little."

"We'll calm down, when Hinata stops being a moron!"

"Yeah!"

Kageyama and Rei were both equally fuming and annoyed at their teammate, but Rei believed Kageyama was more upset with Hinata at the fact that he had interrupted the game by acting reckless. Rei was more unhappy because he knew the reason behind Hinata's actions, because Lev's words to him still lingered in his mind.

"I'm almost certain Hinata-kun was acting on instinct just then, but it looked like he was trying to steal the toss from the ace." Rei noted, staring at Hinata. He then glanced at Asahi who was also sweating at their teammate.

Rei kept his eyes on Hinata who walked over to Kageyama. "Hey Kageyama..." He spoke, making Kageyama look at him with curiosity.

"What?" Kageyama replied bluntly.

"The quick attack goes like whoosh... I'll..." Hinata trailed off as he paused. Everyone else waited for him to finish his sentence.

"...stop closing my eyes."

Everyone gasped lightly as Rei watched Kageyama blink before giving Hinata an annoyed and dark look. "Huh?" He questioned, making Hinata jump back before regaining his posture.

"We can't keep doing this. It's no good to do a fast attack that you let me hit." Hinata spoke up as Kageyama raised his eyebrows.

"You learned the normal fast attack because the other was something you couldn't manage, right?" Kageyama asked, which made Hinata go quiet and not respond right away. "I don't know what's going on with you right now, but if you have something to say, I'll listen to it later." Kageyama spoke as everyone could feel the tension between them.

"But if you're saying you're gonna do that right now, I have no intention of tossing the ball to someone who I know will miss."

Rei watched as Hinata narrowed his gaze as he tightened his fists as he watches Kageyama walk away from him. Everyone else also watched, unsure of what to do.

They decided to continue on with the game.

"Nice serve!"

The volleyball headed towards them as Rei stood behind Asahi. "Asahi-san!" He shouted to him, since the ball was coming towards him. He nodded and sends the ball up into the air.

"Sorry, cover!" Asahi announced as the ball was kept in play, the volleyball heads over to Kageyama who sets to Tanaka, who smacked the ball down as three blockers from Nekoma managed to one touch it.

"One touch! Chance ball!" Lev exclaimed.

He took note on the atmosphere around his team which was tense. After all, everyone was on edge ever since Hinata and Asahi collided and then having to deal with the tension between Kageyama and Hinata.

The ball gets spiked down by Nekoma as Rei dived down to receive it but it was too late as Nekoma won the match.

"All right!" They cheered.

Rei huffed in annoyance as Karasuno had to endure the penalty, which was to do flying laps. They all lined up, as Daichi was the first one to go.

"Let's go!" He shouted.

Rei thought back to what Hinata had said to Kageyama which made him anxious. "At this rate, Hinata-kun's continued greed to improve, will bring down the team." He thinks to himself as he looked at his teammate who tried to do a flying lap, but hit his chin as Nishinoya chuckled in amusement, but Hinata just smiled up at Nishinoya.

Takeda had soon gestured them to come closer to him, in which they rushed over. He gave them all a closed eyed smile. "You guys are the weakest of the teams that are here right now, right?" He asked bluntly, which made everyone, including Rei, to stare in a dark and defeated look.

"If we were to have an official match with any of these teams, they would be difficult opponents. Do you see them as just an enemy, or do you see them as masters to absorb new techniques from? The fact that you are weak means there is potential for growth. Nothing can be more fun than that." Takeda stated, giving them another close eyed smile.

They were all taken aback by their teacher, as Daichi was the first to speak. "Thank you!" He said, bowing.

"Thank you!" The rest of the team repeated.

As they were on break, Rei watched as Sugawara gestured for Hinata and Kageyama to follow him outside. Rei raised an eyebrow, guessing that Sugawara was trying to fix the tension between the two.

"Leave it up to Suga-san to fix the tension. I hope he can fix with whatever's going on with those two." Rei thinks to himself.

"You!" Rei heard a voice exclaim, almost making him drop his water bottle.

"Huh?" Rei commented before turning and spotting Fukurōdani's ace, Bokuto, who gave him a smile.

"Do you need something from me?" Rei asked, unsure of why he was speaking to him.

"You're Fujita's teammate, right? From Jindai?" Bokuto questioned.

"That's me."

"Oh! I'm Bokuto Kōtarō!" Bokuto greeted.

"Oshiro Rei. You can just call me Shiro though. Most people do." Rei greeted back.

"Let me introduce you to my friend!" Bokuto exclaimed, grabbing his wrist and dragging him to his team.

"Um, okay..." Rei mumbled, still not used to Bokuto's energetic self.

"Akaashi!" He yelled, making his teammate stop drinking his water and look over. The dark green haired male next to him did the same thing. The older male seemed a little stunned that Bokuto was dragging the black haired male.

"Bokuto-san, please let go of him." The male, known as Akaashi, stated as Bokuto did so.

"Shiro, meet my setter!" He announced as Rei looked over at him.

Akaashi had short, messy black hair and blue eyes with thin pupils and slightly thick eyebrows. Rei wouldn't lie. He thought the male was really attractive.

"Hello. I'm Akaashi Keiji. I apologize about Bokuto-san, he's a very enthusiastic person." Akaashi greeted me as he did a small bow, Rei chuckled as he waved off his apology.

"It's fine. I have my fair share of chaotic teammates." Rei reassured him as Bokuto smiled and looked at his friend.

"Akaashi! Akaashi! Can we keep him?" Bokuto begged as Rei blinked. Akaashi sighed and stared at his captain with an unamused look.

"Oshiro isn't a pet, Bokuto-san." Akaashi informed, making Bokuto pout.

"I know that! But he should be with our team!" Bokuto whined.

"Not this again..." Rei thought as he sighed.

"Oh, Akaashi-san. Feel free to call me Shiro." Rei informed as Akaashi nodded.

Rei then saw Daichi walk over. "Shiro, go to do some stretches. Our match is about to start." He informed.

The black haired male nodded as he looked back to Bokuto and Akaashi. "It was nice meeting you both." Rei smiled as he walked off.

"You as well!" Bokuto shouted, waving.

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As Rei was warming up, he couldn't help but overhear what Ukai was saying. "Narita." He called out.

"Yes?" Narita asked, looking at their coach.

"Switch out with Hinata next." Ukai spoke which caused Hinata to widen his eyes.

"Uh, y-yes sir!" Narita responded, also confused.

Ukai came over as he saw the surprised look on Hinata's face, everyone else was also confused and shocked at the exchange. "Despite what you think you want to accomplish; you need to chill out today." Ukai informed. Rei silently agreed, after all, his teammate wasn't himself today.

"I can't possibly think that trying anything out in the current conditions will succeed. And I can't risk anyone getting hurt with collisions during play like either."

At Ukai's words, Hinata grew silent as he looked down in sadness, but he didn't oppose the fact that he was switched out.

TWEEEET!

The game began as everyone kept an eye on the volleyball as it went to both sides before Seiya saw Bokuto jump up to spike the ball as Narita and Daichi tried to block him, but Bokuto got by as he grinned brightly.

"All right!" Bokuto cheered.

"Don't sweat it, shake it off!"

"One more!"

Rei could hear his teammates from the side call out to them.

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Since it was the last day, with the Tokyo away games, they ended early so that they could go home. Rei was helping everyone load their belongings onto the bus, as he yawned tiredly. Kuroo was busy talking with Daichi, but the first-year libero knew if he didn't hurry now, he would be clinging to him and he would never get the chance to leave.

"Shiro." A quiet voice had spoke up. The black haired male paused and looked behind him to see Kenma.

"Um, let's have each other's numbers. That way we can get to know each other better." He said, looking awkward. The black haired male blinked but nodded.

"Uh, sure." He said, giving the second-year setter his phone as Rei did the same.

Once they were both done, Rei looked up at him. "Feel free to call or text me." He said.

"Sure. I'll even send you photos of Kuro being an idiot." Kenma replied, making Rei chuckle a little.

"I'm right here, you know." Kuroo informed as he walked over with Bokuto behind him.

"Akaashi and Fujita wish you safe travels back home!" Bokuto informed as Rei smiled.

"Tell them I said thank you." He responded as Bokuto nodded.

"Hey, darling, how come Kenma only gets your number?" Kuroo asked with a smirk.

"Is this your way of telling me you want my number as well?" Rei offered as Kuroo nodded.

"Very much so." Kuroo replied as he gave me his phone. Bokuto also handed him his. "Mine too! You're so cool, Shiro!" Bokuto exclaimed as the black haired male chuckled before putting his number in both of their contacts.

"Oh, Bokuto. Can you give Akaashi my number as well?" Rei questioned as Bokuto just nodded in reply.

"I'll add you into the Nekoma group chat." Kuroo smirked.

Kenma raised an eyebrow. "We don't have a group chat." He informed.

"And? I can just make one." Kuroo said.

"Hah? You're joining Nekoma? Come join my team and be an owl instead! We're way better." Bokuto stated.

"You wish. Shiro is going to be our teammate soon." Kuroo shot back as him and Bokuto started arguing, making Rei and Kenma sweat drop.

"Shiro, come on, we're leaving." Sugawara called out.

"I'm coming, Suga-san." Rei said as Sugawara headed on the bus.

"Well, I'll see you guys later. Feel free to text me." Rei waved at them as he walked inside the bus.

Rei took his seat which was right behind Hinata. He noticed that Kageyama wasn't sitting next to Hinata like he usually did.

He really hoped the tension between them wouldn't last long

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Rei had slept the entire ride back to Miyagi, when they had arrived back to the school to drop off the shuttle bus, Takeda turned to them with a closed eyed smile.

"All right, everyone, good work." Takeda spoke as they all bowed.

"Thank you!"

"So, as I mentioned, tomorrow there will be inspections in the gym, so there will be no club activities. You haven't had any time to rest lately, so take it easy and get some rest." Takeda told them, his smile not leaving his face as everyone nodded.

Everyone headed over to the clubroom to put away some things they had brought along with them for the Tokyo games. Rei was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep.

Rei soon left the clubroom. "Are you heading off, Rei?" Yachi asked, walking over to her friend.

"Yeah. Do you want me to walk you home first?" Rei offered as the blonde haired girl turned red.

"U-Uh, no n-need!" She reassured him.

"You sure? I don't mind." Rei said, not wanting his friend to walk home in the dark alone.

"I'll be fine... huh?" She trailed off before noticing something. Rei followed her gaze as he saw the lights in the gym were on.

Rei narrowed his eyes as him and Yachi walk over. They peeked inside to find Kageyama and Hinata doing some last minute practices.

"You two aren't going home yet?" Yachi questioned.

"Honestly. You two should get some sleep. Daichi-san will get mad." Rei added as the duo looked at them.

"Just a few minutes of practice, please!" He begged, holding his hands up to his face as Rei sighed.

"Fine. But I'll stay and watch. Knowing you two idiots, you'll break something."

"Yachi, if you don't mind, can you dish out some balls for a little bit?" Hinata asked, looking at Yachi who jumped.

"Huh? Can I do that?" She questioned.

"All you have to do is throw an arching ball over Kageyama's head." Hinata explained. Rei felt as though something was off, but he decided to ignore it.

"Y-Yes sir! I'll try!" Yachi agreed as her and Rei stepped inside. He placed his bag down and leaned against the wall to get comfortable. Yachi came over with the trolley and picked up a volleyball.

"Let's do this!" Hinata exclaimed as Rei watched from afar. He made sure to fix his eyes on Hinata the most. He watched as Yachi threw the ball up and Kageyama sets it as Hinata charged forward to spike it, however he missed it completely.

Rei widened his eyes at something he had noticed. "His attention is going to the ball, so this isn't his maximum jump!" He noted with a nervous look.

"One more time!" Hinata begged to Kageyama who also watched with slight surprise.

It continued on, with Hinata missing each set that was being tossed to him. It made Rei nervous as he could feel the tension between the two rising up again. They let out exhausted pants, but Hinata wasn't giving up.

"One more time!"

Hinata was panting, Rei glanced at all the volleyballs they needed to pick up.

"Instead of repeating the attack that we may not be able to do... the attacks we already have, serving, blocking... you have plenty of other things to practice already!" Kageyama exclaimed in slight frustration as Rei had the bad feeling once more.

The brunette wasn't sure if he should step in, but he stepped off the wall anyway, watching closely.

"But... if this fast attack doesn't work out, I have no reason to be standing on the court!" Hinata argued. Kageyama breathed in sharply.

"That's why I'm telling you that your will is not necessary for this attack! I'll put up a toss that won't get caught by all the blockers!" Kageyama shouted as his eyes hardened, showing that he wasn't happy.

"But that means I won't be getting any better!"

Rei looked at Yachi who looked frightened and uncomfortable by the duo. He decided to step in. "All right, I think it's time we head home and—" He began, but he was ignored.

"The first round of the Spring Nationals preliminaries is next month. It's right around the corner. And when the time comes, which is the most useful weapon: a perfected fast attack, or a completely useless fast attack?" Kageyama hissed as Rei tensed up when he saw the setter grabbing Hinata by the shirt, which brought the two closer together.

"Which?" Kageyama asked with venom in his voice.

"Y-You guys shouldn't fight!" Yachi stuttered, not wanting to see a fight break out.

"Tobio-kun, relax all right? Same goes for you, Hinata-kun." Rei stepped in. However, he was ignored once more as he watched Hinata grab Kageyama's fist that held him by his shirt.

"I want a strength that let's me fight on my own!" Hinata exclaimed in annoyance and something about his words had pissed off Kageyama.

"And your selfishness is going to break the team's balance!" Kageyama shook aggressively as he threw down the orange haired male.

Yachi had clung onto Rei's sleeve in fear. "L-Let's all get along... Come on, let's all be friends, o-okay?" She pleaded as her voice was laced with worry.

"This is getting out of hand..." Rei thought.

"To win, I'll toss to anyone I need to. And that hasn't changed, even now." Kageyama said in a calmer voice as he turned his attention away from the fallen male.

"Kageyama!"

The first-year libero widened his eyes in shock as he watched Hinata spring to his feet and charged forward, clinging onto him.

"Damn it! Let go!" Kageyama shouted, trying to shake him off.

"I won't let you go until you put up another toss for me!" Hinata announced, glaring up with determination.

Kageyama was obviously pissed as Rei witnessed him throwing the male back to the ground. "Give me one!" Hinata shouted, getting back up and tackling the setter once more.

"God damn it! Hitoka, go get help from a senpai who's still here!" Rei ordered her, and she nodded as she rushed out of the gymnasium.

"Someone! Senpai!" She called out.

Rei focused his attention back onto the duo. "That's enough, you two!" He growled at them.

"Quit screwing around!" Kageyama shouted as he glared at the shorter male.

"They stopped the fast attack! Today, and back during the Seijoh match!" Hinata said in annoyance as he clawed at Kageyama.

"Are you saying my toss was bad or something?" Kageyama asked.

"No! That's not it! It was perfect! It was spot-on! And yet, it was stopped!" Hinata yelled back as he had a death grip around Kageyama.

"If I stay the way I am, I can't hold my ground against the top teams anymore!"

"Hey!" A familiar voice sounded out. Rei glanced over to see that Yachi had found Tanaka as he came running at the two. "Stop it, you two!"

Tanaka had successfully got Hinata and Kageyama to be separated. Rei could remember flashes of his junior high days. His teammates. His friends. All of them were walking away from him, going their separate ways.

"No... No that won't happen again! I didn't do anything back then, but I'm going to do something now!"

"Honestly..." Rei growled, making everyone turn to him with tense shoulders.

He grabbed both Hinata and Kageyama by their collars. "...the both of you are pissing me off! I thought the two of you could work things out, but it seems I was wrong. We are a team. Teammates don't fight one another, friends don't fight one another!" He shouted.

"I came to Karasuno because I wanted to change. I wanted to prove to my former teammates that winning wasn't everything. You both have no idea how strong the rest of The Inhumane Players are! They're on another level!" Rei continued as everyone stayed quiet, not used to him having an outburst.

"But I'm saying this now, if you let our seniors down because you can't get your act together, I'm totally kicking your asses. The third-years don't deserve that." Rei finished.

He breathed in to calm down as he released them. "Now, I'm heading home. Clean this place up once you're done." Rei hissed before grabbing his bag from the sides and walked out of the gym.

"They better not mess this up for our seniors. They didn't come back to the team just so we can fail again..."

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A/N: Another chapter is done! Hope you enjoyed!

Word Count: 4691 words.