ONLY ME || Haikyuu x Male

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

It was weird. Ren thought that he would be more nervous facing off against Seijou again, after how devastating the last match went, but as he warmed up on court, he felt nothing but pure and utter peace. He hadn't felt this zen in, well ever. It was a pleasant feeling, and it was nice, not having his head run a mile a minute with incessant worrying.

This time around, Ren was setting balls to his teammates for them to practice their hits. Both Sugawara and Tobio wanted to ensure that they were able to participate in the Karasuno offense, and thus, the responsibility of supplying good sets to his teammates fell on Ren. He watched as Tobio walked up, tossing him the ball. They made eye contact briefly, and he felt a jolt of discomfort shoot across his spine, heart sinking as he saw the boy's eyes sadden, just slightly. The atmosphere between them was still a tad awkward after the confession, and it was, in fact, affecting their playing. Ren set the ball perfectly fine, and Tobio managed to hit it perfectly fine, but just fine wasn't normal for either of them.

God, was this troublesome.

Ren didn't glance at Tobio as the boy rushed past him to gather his stray ball, but he did look back when he heard a spat of bickering well up from behind him. Oikawa and Tobio had seemingly both reached for the ball at the same time, and had begun arguing like children, playing tug of war with the thing. The entire Karasuno team had stopped their warmups to watch, and Ren couldn't help but be astonished by the situation, especially by the behavior of Oikawa. Tobio was a little petty, he already knew that, but it shocked him to see the third-year squabbling with the first-year like that.

Is this really the guy that I was so frightened of last game? He's got the maturity of a five-year-old.

He sighed, looking away from the fight. But as he did, his eyes were drawn to a boy dressed in the Seijou jersey, hair bright yellow with black stripes piercing through. He had sunken eyes and a ghoulish look about him. Ren felt his skin start to crawl by the mere sight of the stranger. This guy hadn't been on the team the last time they'd played Seijou, and there was just something about him that made Ren feel as though it wasn't by choice.

"Hasegawa! Can you set me, please?"

"Ah-yes! Sorry, Suga-san." Ren refocused his attention on his own team, but his heart still remained tense and anxious from the thought of the frightening Seijou player. It wasn't just his off-putting appearance that was occupying Ren's thoughts, however. He thought he felt a certain relation to the boy, sort of similar to the bond he had with Bachira.

Only, this one felt a thousand times more sinister.

Their warmups wrapped up quickly, and Daichi went to participate in the coin toss. Karasuno ended up winning, and chose to receive first, and thus, the match began. The redemption from their prior loss. The game that would determine who truly was the victor between the two teams. Arguably the most important game of the year.

And Ren was benched.

He stood on the sidelines with everyone else, not particularly bothered by his not playing. After what had happened in the Waku South match, he totally understood Coach's reservations in putting him in right away. He felt perfectly fine, Daichi's reassurances having put him at ease, but he knew that it probably was wise to let him simmer for a bit before participating.

Ren had his arm propped up on Suga-san's shoulder as they watched the game commence. Oikawa was serving first, and everyone in the stands had their breaths held as the Seijou captain wound up, executing his deadly swing that sent the ball soaring over the net at incredible speeds. But Daichi was there, and the ball connected with his forearms.

B A M M

The Karasuno bench burst into cheers, Ren included, at their captain's agility. It was damn hard receiving a serve that intense, and though the ball ended up going long, it was still pretty impressive. One of the Seijou players had leaped up, pushing the ball back over the net and over Hinata's outstretched arms, but Tobio was there, recovering it before it could hit the ground. This, of course, meant that he couldn't set, but that was no problem. A flash of orange sped across the court, and there was Noya, leaping to meet the ball in the air, executing a flawless set to Asahi. The ace spiked it down, winning them the first point of the match. Ren was screaming, jumping up and down and cheering until his voice was hoarse.

"GOOD JOB, YU!" He grinned wildly, exchanging excited waves with his best friend. He was really proud. Noya had come so far, and his set had been absolutely beautiful. With everything that had just happened in the last rally, there seemed to be a shift in the stands, as people began to realize that this would not be a clean sweep for Seijou.

We truly have been reborn.

Kageyama served next and hit it out.

It sent a collective sigh through the Karasuno team, but it was more so out of friendly teasing than true disappointment. They would recover, Ren was sure of it. And sure enough, the game rolled forward, both teams trading points. All of the crows seemed perfectly focused in the game, all but one. Hinata had worn this frantic expression on his face ever since the game started, and it was clear that he was rushing through his plays. After the training camps, Hinata had definitely improved his strategizing and his ball manipulation, but it looked as though all that had been forgotten under the pressure of the game. Ren was about to shout out to the ginger to stop fretting so much, but he was stopped dead in his tracks as Tobio swung a leg and kicked Hinata's ass, quite literally.

"Calm up-down, CALM DOWN!" The fumbled speech made Ren laugh. Clearly the setter was also a bit on edge, but it seemed to be enough to whip Hinata into shape. The very next point they scored, it was from the orange-haired boy, who'd broken past Seijou's impressively tall block. The hit clearly rattled the other team, and Ren smiled, his pride never waning as he watched his team play, proving that they were not the same as they were before.

I'm going to prove I've changed too. They'll fear me, not for my mentality, but for my strength.

The game kept inching forward, with the point gap never too wide. Seijou had begun forcing Hinata to play spikes in the directions they desired with their intimidating third-year blocker, but Karasuno didn't waver, as the score soon became 24-23, with them at match point, about to take the first set. Ren was practically bursting with exhilaration even though he hadn't played. They could win this. They would win this.

And then Seijou called for a substitution.

It was so late in the game that Ren thought he misheard. But what shocked him more was seeing that Seijou was choosing to sub in the scary-looking boy, who had yet to play the entire game thus far. It felt like a foolish move, a complete gamble.

"Suga-san, what are they doing? This seems so risky, what could they possibly be thinking?"

Sugawara had his arms crossed, watching the game intently. "I'm not sure. My best guess is that this guy is god-tier good. He must be, if he's what they're counting on to turn the tides of the game."

After everyone was settled, the ball went up again. The two teams spent a minute rallying, and then Oikawa set the ball to the turnip-haired player, but it never connected. Out of left field, the houndish wildcard of a player burst from the crowd, shoving the turnip-head out of the way and claiming the hit for himself. Not only that, but when he spiked it, the ball hurtled downwards with so much force and speed that it flattened on the ground between Noya and Daichi before either of them could move a finger.

Silence. Absolute silence.

Not a single peep was uttered in the gymnasium, and you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was astonished, by both the aggression of the play and the sheer power that the wildcard held. Ren himself was shell shocked, though for a rather different reason.

This boy was like him. Like him, and yet the complete opposite at the same time. Ren saw the image of his old play style in the boy: reckless and psychotic, tearing across court to execute horrifically successful plays. The difference, however, was that this player had no regard for his teammates. Whilst Ren was absolutely destroyed inside every time he made himself a burden for his team, unintentionally hurting those around him, this guy was doing it on purpose. Claiming the spotlight with no mind to what damage he may cause.

This is who I must defeat.

The realization dawned on Ren as he exchanged a knowing glance with Coach Ukai. On their team, he was one of, if not the only player who could match the scary boy's intensity in game. And beyond strength, it was about their mentality. This was who he must defeat if he wanted to truly take that next step, to truly break through the mold that was holding him back.

To finally be truly free, Ren had to defeat this manifestation of his former self.