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

edited on november 21st, 2020 @ 12:53am

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CHAPTER ELEVEN - FORMIDABLE OPPONENTS

IT ANNOYED REI THAT HE couldn't be on the court practicing like everyone else. But Daichi and Sugawara, even Ukai told him not to play for a bit until his strength was back. He still felt restless but continued showing up for school. Sugawara told him if he ever needed to go to the nurses office to just let his teacher know. Which he did once since he was lightheaded and kept coughing up blood in a used tissue.

"Back follow! Get in there!"

Rei was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Ukai yell. "Don't just stand there and watch." Ukai scolds Hinata.

"I'm sorry." Hinata apologized.

"'This is my last chance.' Always tell yourself that." Ukai informed as Kiyoko handed Ukai a volleyball. "Give it all you got." Ukai added as he spikes down as Hinata went to save it but failed.

"If you don't, the one you wasted could cost you the match!" Ukai exclaimed down at the orange haired first year. Rei couldn't help but recall last night when they got back from being defeated by Nekoma.

(Flashback)

"Everyone, you all did a good job in today's matches against Nekoma. Inter-High preliminaries begin next month on June 2nd." Takeda spoke up as Rei suddenly coughed quietly, trying to not draw attention away from Takeda.

"There are no district preliminaries in Miyagi, so we go straight to prefectural preliminaries. Out of about 60 teams in the prefecture, only one will go to Nationals. Lose one match and the journey ends. If you want to take revenge on Nekoma, you must take first place in Miyagi. There's no other way. Second place won't cut it." Ukai explained.

"Of course, they'll have to win the battle to represent Tokyo, as well." Ukai smirked.

"Those guys can do it." Tanaka assured as Nishnoya nodded.

"Yeah. They're strong." He added.

"Another match against Nekoma..." Rei thought, as he narrowed his eyes in determination at the thought. "I wasn't my strongest. But once I get stronger, Nekoma won't know what hit them."

(End Flashback)

Rei watched as Ukai spikes down the ball to Hinata who somewhat saves it. Hinata falls down. "Nice, Hinata." Tanaka exclaimed proudly.

"Get up quickly. One more." Ukai ordered.

"Yes, thank you." Hinata shouted back, quickly getting up to save more volleyballs.

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It was the end of practice, as Rei noticed it was dark outside now. He gave Kageyama his water bottle as he thanked him and starts gulping it down.

"You're right. That's amazing." Rei heard Nishinoya exclaim, making everyone turn to him. Nishinoya, Tanaka, and Sugawara were sitting together looking at a magazine.

"The picture's huge."

"Yeah!"

"What, what?"

Hinata, Kageyama, and Rei all walked over as did Asahi who gasps when he looks down at the magazine. "What? What's that?" Hinata asked.

"Look." Tanaka says holding the magazine to Hinata who takes the magazine to read it.

"Shiratorizawa's Ushiwaka is among three most-noticed high schoolers in the whole country." Tanaka informed as Rei glanced at the cover.

"Shiratorizawa! That's where Kageyama couldn't get in." Hinata gasped at this. Rei held back his laugh.

"Shut up!" Kageyama hissed.

"Who's Ushiwaka?" Hinata suddenly asked, making everyone raise an eyebrow at him. It was pretty rare for someone in the volleyball community to not know who Ushiwaka is.

"You don't know?" Tanaka questioned.

"That's because you're only a fan of the Little Giant." Sugawara chuckled softly.

"Let me tell you about Ushiwaka. He's unmistakably the number one ace of our prefecture: Ushijima Wakatoshi." Tanaka announced.

Daichi walked over and looked at the picture. "Hmm. He definitely has "ace" written all over him." He commented as everyone looked at Asahi who jumped at their stares.

"Hey, why are you looking at me?" He asked with a panicked look.

Asahi turns away with a defeated look as Nishinoya just patted him on the back. "Kageyama, you were trying to get into a place with guys like this?" Sugawara asked with interest.

"And you were going to yell at the super high school ace, "Move faster, clumsy oaf!" and stuff, right?" Tanaka teased making Kageyama flustered.

"I wouldn't say that." Kageyama denied.

"If we don't defeat him, we can't play against Nekoma." Hinata commented.

"Hey, hey, Shiratorizawa isn't the only formidable opponent." Ukai spoke as he walked over.

"Would the others be last year's best four?" Sugawara asked.

"Yes, but there are other formidable opponents this year." Ukai noted as he takes out a paper from his pocket to read the names of the volleyball teams.

"There's Wakutani Minami, which has superior defence and coordination."

"Date Tech is also known as the Iron Wall, which says it all. That team has the highest blocking rate in the country." Ukai informed as Rei looked at Asahi who seemed quiet.

"If I recall, we lost to Dateko 2-0 in the prefectural tournament last March." Ukai stated. The third-years stayed silent.

"I hear there's a second-year named Aone who is particularly dangerous. They also recently got a super tall first-year who was apart of the Inhumane Players, Nakano Takumi." Ukai added as everyone turned to look at Rei who only scoffed. "Dateko is as strong as the other best four teams, but they lost their third-round match against the eventual champions, Shiratorizawa, and only made the best sixteen."

"That's why they weren't seeded this year. In other words, depending on the matchups, we might or might not play against them in the first round. And the next one... oh yeah." Ukai spoke as he turned the pages. "I heard we recently had a practice match against them. The team's top attacker is their setter, and of course he's also the supreme setter. Their team's ranks include perhaps one of the best all-round players in the prefecture. Oikawa Tōru at Aoba Johsai as well as one of the Inhumane Players as well, Hayashi Shou."

Kageyama tensed a little at the mention of Oikawa while Rei stayed silent. "The Great King!" Hinata exclaimed.

"They were in last year's best four. Last, but not least... the defending champions, Shiratorizawa, and their super-ace Ushijima Wakatoshi. Rumor has it that they also have Jindai's former captain, Kawamura Riku, among their ranks. That about sums it up." Ukai said as the team kept silent, taking the information in.

"I'll save the details for later." Ukai informed, as Rei looked over at Daichi and Sugawara who were happy about something. "You guys are thinking something disrespectful about me, aren't you?" Ukai asked with annoyance in his voice.

Sugawara and Daichi just shook their heads. "Anyway. Those are the top four contenders this year. However, if you look up instead of straight ahead, we could lose our footing. There's no team that enters a tournament to lose. They all enter to win. While we frantically train, others will be frantically training. Weak or strong, they're all aiming to win. Don't forget that." Ukai states to the team as Rei let out a cough.

"And... Don't let them call us 'Unflying Crows' ever again." Ukai announced as everyone nodded in determination.

"Yeah." Everyone shouted in unison.

Suddenly, the door swings open to reveal Takeda running in. "I'm glad you're all still here. Sorry I'm late. The meeting went long. However... Here it is. The matchups for the Inter-High preliminaries." Takeda informed as he hands them the paper.

Everyone looked at the paper. "If we win the first round, we might play against Dateko, assuming they also win." Rei commented, looking at the sheet.

"But that's not all... Aoba Johsai is one of the seeds in our block." Tsukishima informed.

"For real?" Tanaka commented as he looked over at the sheet. Rei noticed Kageyama and Hinata look determined and slightly fearful of the fact.

"Hey. Don't forget what I just said. If all you do is look up..." Ukai scolded them but Daichi assured him.

"We know." He said as Daichi looked back down at the sheet. "The first round match... I promise we'll win it." Daichi declared as the team all stared at Ukai in the eyes.

Rei headed on home. Kageyama wanted to walk him home, afraid that he would pass out on the sidewalk, but Rei reassured him that he'll be fine. His phone buzzed in his pocket, signaling he got a text.

Ryu-kun:
> Heard the Inter-High preliminaries are coming up. Good luck, Rei-chan.

Rei-chan:
You're not coming to watch? <

Ryu-kun:
> You know I can't.

Rei-chan:
Yeah, I know. Are you doing okay? <

Ryu-kun:
> I'm doing better. Though, I still refuse to touch a volleyball. Johzenji's volleyball captain keeps trying to recruit me but I refuse him.

Rei-chan:
I heard Johzenji's team is fairly good. I believe they've beaten Shiratorizawa in the past. <

Ryu-kun:
> I'll consider it.

Rei smiled as he pocketed his phone and continued on home. "I hope Ryu-kun comes back to volleyball, I want to play him again." He thought.

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Throughout the school day was normal. Rei would occasionally cough, but at least he stopped coughing up blood and his whole body wasn't shaking like it was at Nekoma. "Damn it. I want to recover quickly so I can train for the Inter-High." He thinks to himself as he rested his head on his desk.

"Are you okay, Rei?" Yachi asked, looking at the black haired male.

"I'm fine, Hitoka. My body is recovering from the practice match that I had." Rei replied as he looked at the blonde. "You're more comfortable around me, that's good."

"W-Well, we hang out a lot. So it makes sense." Yachi stated.

"You should become manager for the volleyball team. Kiyoko-senpai is a third-year, and she'll be graduating." Rei suggested.

"I-I can't do that!"

Rei chuckled. "They're not bad, Hitoka. They're a bunch of idiots, but we're like one big family." He said. Then stopped when Nishinoya and Tanaka came in his mind as he sweat dropped. "Actually, the only ones you would have to worry about are Noya-senpai and Tanaka-san..."

"R-Rei!"

"I'm kidding, Hitoka! Just think about it, would you? You did say you needed a club to join."

"I-I'll consider it..."

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"Hinata, you jump in as usual." Ukai announced as everyone trained.

"Yes." Hinata replied back as everyone did what they were told to do by Ukai. It soon got dark, but the team continued their practice for a little longer.

"Good job." Daichi announced as everyone just repeated what he said. Rei paused from doing his receives with Nishinoya as Hinata spikes down the ball Sugawara sets for him. Rei was impressed.

"Nice, Hinata. Awesome, awesome." Sugawara praises the first-year who beams, soon Rei watched as Kageyama tosses to Asahi who spiked it down with power.

"Azumane-san, how was that toss? Was it too high? Too low? How was it?" Kageyama questioned, making the poor third year overwhelmed.

"Oh, um... yeah, it was fine." He assured but Kageyama being Kageyama, wasn't giving up.

"If you have criticism, no matter how minor, tell me everything." Kageyama begged. "I'll fix it!"

"I see... then... maybe a little higher?" Asahi replied nervously as Kageyama nods in determination. "And a little further away from the net."

"Understood. Ten more spikes, please."

"What?"

"Is it not enough? Then twenty spikes."

"No, that's not what I meant..."

Rei chuckled as he looked at Nishinoya. "Kageyama-kun is gonna give Asahi-san a heart attack one day." He commented as Nishinoya just nodded in agreement.

"Hey, stragglers. Let's wrap it up." Daichi called out.

"Right."

Rei saw Kageyama and Hinata run around the gym, mopping the floor like it was a competition.

"Must those two compete against each other in everything?" Rei thinks to himself as he picked up some stray volleyballs to put away.

Once everyone was done, Daichi took the team to Ukai's store to get them pork buns. "One per person." Daichi told everyone, giving them each a pork bun.

"Thanks."

"Let's eat and then go home." Daichi added as Rei bit into his pork bun.

Rei wasn't really that big of a fan of pork buns, but he had to eat something to get his energy back to normal.

"Hey, Tsukishima." Tanaka greeted to the blonde who walks over. "Daichi bought us pork buns." Tanaka added, giving the bag to Tsukishima who takes it.

"Oh, thanks." He responded. Rei looked around, noticing that Yamaguchi wasn't with him.

"Isn't Yamaguchi with you?" Rei asked.

"He said he had stuff to do. He left before I did." Tsukishima answered.

"It's weird seeing Tsukishima without Yamaguchi. That guy follows him around like a lost puppy." Rei thought.

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Throughout the time, everyone was training. Rei was slowly getting back to normal as he practiced his receiving. Sugawara was learning signals that he gave to Hinata and Kageyama. So that when he is on the court, they'll know what to do.

They were then at the All School Sports Club Pep Rally. Rei was standing in between Asahi and Sugawara. Hinata was shaking like a leaf being up on stage with everyone watching as the rest of the team just stood in the back as Daichi gave the school a speech.

Rei noticed Tanaka try to sneakily hold up the peace sign but Sugawara noticed and lightly slapped it down, making Rei hold back a laugh.

Each day went by, getting closer and closer to the Inter-High preliminaries. The team were out the gym, washing their hands and such at the taps. Rei looked over to see Daichi staring up at the sky.

Rei walked over, not saying a word as he also looked up. It was a full moon, with stars sparkling in the sky. It made Rei smile. The rest of the team did the same, staring up at the night sky.

"Good job!" Everyone yelled as they all gathered around in the gym with Ukai, Takeda, and Kiyoko staring at them in the front. Tomorrow was the Inter-High preliminaries.

"Go home and sleep early tonight." Ukai ordered.

"Yeah."

"Okay, that'll do it." Daichi spoke but then Takeda interrupted him.

"Just a second. One more thing. Shimizu?" Takeda said, gesturing to Kiyoko as the team stared in surprise, wondering what she had to say to them.

"I'm good at cheering, but..." She said as she runs off and made her way to the second level of the gym, as the team watched her in confusion. "Sensei, if you will?" Kiyoko spoke.

"Leave it to me." Takeda told her.

Rei watched as Takeda and Kiyoko go to the high level, dragging something. "What's going on?" Nishinoya mumbled in question.

"One, two..." Takeda counted. Suddenly, Kiyoko and Takeda threw down a black banner over the rails.

On the black banner it just had one single but powerful word.

Fly.

The team gasped in amazement. "I didn't know we had that." Sugawara commented.

"I found it while cleaning, so I washed it." Kiyoko informed as Nishinoya and Tanaka get fired up.

"I'm getting fired up!" Tanaka exclaimed.

"That's our Kiyoko! Great job!" Noya exclaims as well.

"All right! Let's get fired up!"

"Wait."

Daichi stops the two from yelling and such. "She's... not done." Daichi said as everyone looked at Kiyoko with curiosity. "Do..." Kiyoko started to say, but paused. She blushed.

"Do your best."

Kiyoko looks down at the team as they all watched in silence as she ran off. The whole gym was silent. Daichi had tears in his eyes, along with Asahi, Sugawara, Nishinoya, and Tanaka, making the first-years jump back in shock.

"Shimizu! No one ever did anything like this for us before!" Daichi cried. Nishinoya and Tanaka cried in silent, as they didn't move.

"Those guys... they're speechless." Tsukishima stated, freaked out.

"They usually never shut up." Yamaguchi added.

The third and second-years cried out louder. "You're all out of control!" Tsukishima exclaimed as they all calmed down.

"We're going to win the first round for sure!" Daichi yelled as everyone nodded. Tanaka also lifts up Nishinoya like that scene in the Lion King.

"Yeah!"

"We have the strength of a hundred men!"

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

Word Count: 2736 words.