"LOOK AT THOSE GUYS!" said Nishinoya, laughing as he watched the Nekoma players doing their dive punishment on the floor.
"THAT'S RIGHT, TAKE A NICE DIVE FOR ME!" Tanaka said with a triumphant smile on his face.
"Tsk! We lost, and now we have to listen to this bald guy's nonsense!" Lev complained.
"If you're so unhappy, maybe we should double your training starting today..." Yaku said in a dark tone, pointing at Lev.
"No... no need!" Lev said, shrinking back and taking a step backward.
"Man... the next match is against Fukurodani... every game against them is tough..." Sugawara sighed.
"This is the last one, and we need to win. Everyone knows that the one who wins last is the true winner!" Hinata said with a grin.
"You're right. We have to give it our all until the end because..." Daichi said hesitantly.
"Because what, Daichi-san?" Tanaka asked.
"Because after the games... the coaches apparently planned a barbecue for us!" Daichi blurted out, revealing the news to the Karasuno players, whose faces lit up with joy as they started singing and dancing.
"MEATY MEAT, MEAT, MEAT!"
"Put them together, you get meat and meat!"
"Hooray for meat! Energy times a hundred!"
"HALLELUJAH! HALLELUJAH!"
"ALRIGHT! It's decided. We're going to beat Fukurodani without using our super-quick attack, just with the skills we've learned and a lot of determination!" Hinata said, even more fired up.
"Well, you've all improved a lot, and you don't even need to do that. I'd say go all out, but since you and Kageyama want to do it this way... go ahead. But the rest of you, remember to use your new skills at least once and do everything you can so we can enjoy a great barbecue later!" Ukai encouraged the players.
"YES!" everyone shouted in unison.
"I feel like I'm almost there... ever since I started practicing the circular swing, I've been improving every day, and my spikes are getting more powerful. Now's the time to show everyone what I'm made of!" Hinata thought as he prepared for the match, which turned into a battle of aces between Hinata and Bokuto at one point.
Kageyama served toward Fukurodani's court, and Komi received it, directing the pass to Akaashi, who went for the set.
"AKAASHI!" Bokuto called for the ball.
"Bokuto-san!" Akaashi said as he set the ball to Bokuto, who faced a triple block from Tsukishima, Hinata, and Daichi. They jumped at the right moment to stop Bokuto, but in an incredibly skillful move, he curved his arm and hit a cross shot that landed on Karasuno's court.
17-16 Fukurodani.
"Damn! How does he do that?" Tanaka asked, impressed by Bokuto's move.
"We need to hit back! Set to me!" Hinata asked Kageyama, who nodded.
On the next play, after a serve from Sarukui that was received by Tanaka, Hinata was already preparing for his attack.
"That's way too obvious!" Bokuto said, reading Karasuno's play and jumping with Akaashi and Washio after seeing Kageyama set a high, far ball to Hinata, who jumped as high as he could despite the triple block.
"WE'RE PRACTICALLY THE SAME HEIGHT, SO HOW DOES HE JUMP SO HIGH?!" Lev asked, surprised.
"TAKE THIS!" Hinata shouted.
"BOOM!" Hinata's spike went over the block and exploded on the floor, sending the ball flying to the ceiling with a thunderous sound.
17-17 Tie.
"What the hell was that?!" Tanaka said, impressed, as he slapped Hinata on the back of the head.
"That was a cannonball!" Nishinoya said excitedly.
"Thanks, guys... but this is far from over!" Hinata said as he focused.
"Yeah!" everyone shouted in unison.
"Interesting..." Nekomata muttered, catching Ukai's attention.
"What do you mean?" Ukai asked.
"It seems like that first-year kid is starting to become a true Ace!" Nekomata observed.
"Seems like it..." Ukai said as he watched Hinata become the core of the team, with all the players trusting him to score in this match until the score reached 27-27.
"HINATA!" Kageyama called as he set the ball to Hinata, who faced another triple block. This time, the ball hit the block and went back to Karasuno's court.
"TSK! AGAIN!" Hinata shouted, frustrated that his attack didn't go through.
"It's fine!" Kageyama said as he sent the ball back to Hinata.
"Wait... strength isn't everything. I've improved my power, but I don't rely on it..." Hinata realized. At the last second, he decided to feint, sending the ball over the block and surprising Fukurodani, who expected another powerful spike. The ball landed on their court.
28-27 Karasuno.
"Akaashi! We're not losing this! Set the next one to me!" Bokuto said confidently.
"Got it!" Akaashi agreed. After a serve from Tanaka was received by Konoha, Akaashi didn't hesitate and set the ball to Bokuto.
"Bokuto-san!" Akaashi said as he set the ball to Bokuto, who jumped and looked like he was going for a cross shot, drawing the block that way. But then he quickly turned his arm and went for a straight shot, bypassing the block.
"TAKE THIS!" Bokuto shouted, confident his spike would score. But he saw Daichi move into position and receive the ball, feeling the impact as he fell backward.
"NICE RECEIVE!" all the Karasuno players, including the bench, shouted as they watched Kageyama go for the ball to set. He looked at Hinata, who started running.
"WE WON'T LET YOU!" Bokuto said, looking tense as he moved to block Hinata. But they soon realized Kageyama's look was a feint, and the ball was actually going to Asahi.
"Come on, come on!" Bokuto said as they desperately tried to recover and jumped as soon as they saw the ball heading toward Asahi. But Asahi cleverly used his new skill, delaying his jump and making the Fukurodani players jump too early. Then, Asahi jumped and spiked the ball, scoring the point.
29-27 Karasuno (WIN)