𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖

xxxii - return of the ace

After the time out, Kageyama made good use of Hinata, especially with how bright he was shining compared to the rest of the team. Crow, though, was still getting cheered at every time he even moved. That didn't matter, because Date Tech's eyes were only on Karasuno's number ten.

And then, after an inspirational speech from Moniwa, Aone managed to block one of Hinata's attacks. Granted it was a normal quick, but Date Tech was still cheering their heads off because of it. "Nice job Aone!"

"We're going to stop another one!"

"Yeah!" They agreed as they got ready to serve.

"Keep your cool!" Yamaguchi called from the sideline box.

"Stop them here!"

"Don't have to tell me twice," Crow received the ball beautifully. Almost everyone rushed in, but Hinata was faster.

"SEND IT MY WAY!" He yelled, then jumped. Aone got right in front of him, shouting the ginger's jersey number. Hinata swung his arm, but the ball never got to him. Instead, it went to Asahi, who was right behind him.

And that is how the ace scored, and fully broke through his trauma from the last game they had played against Date Tech. "YES!" Karasuno screamed their heads off at the point, absolutely elated.

"Asahi-san!"

"You guys are amazing," The person in questioned smiled as everyone ran over excitedly. "I appreciate it."

"Hey, you're the one who made it count!" Nishinoya reminded him. "Hold your head up high!"

"Nice Asahi-san!"

"Nice kill," Crow held his hand up, so the third year high fived him.

"Thanks. It was all thanks to your incredible receive."

"Glad you know," He mused with a slight smirk, nudging the ace as the team laughed.

"What's wrong?" Kageyama asked the ginger standing to his left.

"I'm not the one who scored that point," Hinata murmured, gazing at his palm. "I'm not the one who spiked that, but.. it really gave me chills." At first, the setter looked surprised at this comment, but then he smirked.

"See?" He practically boasted. "Being the greatest decoy is just as cool as being the ace."

"The greatest..." Hinata reflected on the title with a bit more reverence than before. "Decoy."

"Okay," Keishin said to himself from the sidelines as his gaze remained on the court. "We've showed them every weapon other than Crow in our arsenal. Now," His gaze narrowed. "It's do or die."

Karasuno's other hitters were getting set now that Hinata had managed to draw in the opposing middles, meaning they had an easier time scoring with one or no mark on them. The first set ended with a line shot from Tanaka, who was practically unmarked.

"YEAH BABY!" The cueball yelled, puffing up his chest as the referee whistled for the two teams to exit the court and then to switch sides. The first thing Keishin did when he reunited with his players on the other side was tell them that he was switching up the line up.

"We will start our rotation two places ahead for the second set," The coach showed the team the whiteboard court with magnetic names. The new lineup had Tanaka in position one, Hinata in position two, Crow in three, Asahi in four, Tsukishima/Nishinoya in five and Kageyama in six. "The first set rotation matched number seven AKA no brows head on with Hinata. So, we're starting this set two positions ahead."

"I get it," Takeda observed. "Then Hinata can avoid being marked by number seven as closely as he was in the first set."

"But," Keishin went off what the faculty advisor had just said. "He won't go completely unmarked. The test is to keep them as separated as possible. Besides..." He trailed off for a second. "The less Hinata is marked, and this is obvious, the more the others will be marked."

"We can't keep depending on Hinata either," Asahi spoke up, drawing everyone's attention. "Keeping Hinata in play keeps the rest of us in play. I'll prove to you that," His countenance got more serious with his next words. "I'm up to the task of being the ace."

"And don't worry," Crow hummed as he nudged the ace. "If we get backed into a corner, we can always set me loose and let me do some damage."

"That's a last resort," The coach denied. "We want to keep you hidden as long as possible, so we preferably will not show you off against Date Tech. Unless it is game point for Date Tech in the third set, don't you dare," He made eye contact with Kageyama, who gulped slightly at the intensity. "Set Crow a freak quick."

"..Yes sir!"

"Same here!" Hinata suddenly shouted. "I can't do back attacks like Asahi-san and Crow-san," He admitted, "So I'll score lots of points while I'm up front!" The ginger swore. "And I'll be the greatest decoy!"

"Great," Asahi smiled. "I'm counting on it. And you can count on me!" He promised in return.

"Hai!" Hinata beamed.

"Go go let's go! Let's go Date Tech-o!" The Date Tech fan section chanted as the second set started, and the referees checked the line ups.

"You've got it rough too, Tsukishima," Asahi commented, causing the middle blocker to glance at him. "You'll be opposite their number seven a lot more in this set."

"Not at all," He waved his hand in front of his face. "No one is expecting me to face off against number seven and win--"

"I am," Crow blinked at him. "And you will. I believe you can win one on one against him."

"Uh," The blonde beanpole obviously had not been expecting that, causing him to pause for a moment before huffing with a roll of his eyes. "Wow, I'm so honored by your words, Crow-sama, I'll be sure to do my best."

"Check the attitude, dude."

"Please don't make Crow mad," Asahi pleaded softly. "He's usually a good sport, but he's terrifying when he gets genuinely mad."

"Whatever," Tsukishima shrugged. "It's Hinata's job to rock the house. My job is to hold down the fort as much as possible while he's in the back row," He said. "It's no different from the norm."

"I don't think that's what Crow was trying to say," Asahi mumbled with a thoughtful expression on his face. "I think he was trying to change that mindset you have, and that you can be just as important as Hinata, or more so, if you push yourself to your potential. And, as you know," The ace beamed at him. "Crow doesn't say those things without meaning them!"