Burned ⇀ Koshi Sugawara

Part 26: Training Camp

Tony watched cautiously as he saw the gunmetal boy set for his friend who smashed it down words as if the ball was some sort of missile.

"Come on guys! Let's warm up!" The captain shouted, breaking Tony from his trance. He nodded, getting warmed up with his team by stretching and doing light workouts.

Just as soon as they were done, the game that Tony had been watching earlier finished. He took a drink of his water as they approached the arriving team.

"Hey hey heyyyy there, Crows! About time you showed up!" The tall boy shouted, a playful glint in his eyes as he looked to his new opponents.

"The names Bokuto, one of the top five ranked ace in the country!" Bokuto shouted, excitement still audible in his words.

"And this! Is Akaashi, he's the best setter in the whoooooole wide world!" Bokuto bragged on his seemingly shy friend who brought his hand up and mumbled a quiet hi.

Everyone on the teams quickly got introduced as the training camp got underway and the teams began playing.

It was late in the first game against Fukurodani, Tony standing with some of his friends in the warmup box.

"You okay?" He felt a whisper tickle his neck causing Tony to lean back, looking over his shoulder at Suga who was raising his eyebrows at him.

"Yeah, A little nervous... but I'll be fine. I mean, I have you right?" Tony asked causing Suga to slightly blush as he nodded. He noticed that Tsukishima was up to serve as Ukai called him over to the bench.

"You okay to go in for Sunshine?" Ukai asked causing Tony to nod, letting an anxious breath come from his throat as he looked towards the opposite team who were all staring back at him. Curiosity danced through their eyes as they watched Tony grasp onto the substitution sign with Tsukishima's number on it. The blonde walked to the boy, grasping onto the sign as he looked to Tony.

"You better not make me do more penalty laps." He mumbled as he took the sign. Tony nodded, assuring the boy he'd give it his best. Daichi tossed the boy the ball, giving him a small nod as he turned to face the opposite team. All of the players on the court's faces morphed into smiles, giving complete trust in their server.

Tony moved to the other side of the court as he normally did, closing his eyes as he prepared himself mentally for spiking once again. This was his first actual game back, it was the beginning of the road back to the inter high, back to Sejoh. Bokuto could barely contain his excitement as he stared at the abnormal serving position.

The whistle blew as Tony bounced the ball from the ground, opening his eyes. He was calm and comfortable in that position, he trusted himself, but more importantly he trusted friends. He knew that if there were any problems, they would have no problem cleaning it up.

Tony's eyes locked onto the ace that had greeted them as they arrived, Bokuto smiling widely back at him. Tony tossed the ball towards the normal serving position as he jogged towards where he'd be able to intercept the ball mid air. He quickly got under it, squatting down before shooting up into the air, nearly leaving a trail of smoke at the speed and power of his jump.

He torqued his body back, putting all of his power into his arm. He quickly shot it forwards, sending it flying like a bullet towards Bokuto. The boy's eyes widened as his arms prepared to receive the ball, taking a step back to get into better position. The ball smashed off of his toned arms, sounding as if someone lit a firework in the gym. The ball shot out of bounds, going nearly across the entire gym.

The sound caught everyone's attention, the teams looking towards the court containing Karasuno and Fukurodani. Tony landed on his feet, looking at the boy who was staring down at his now red forearms.