Chapter Eleven: Yearning

SAKURA DOES PHOTOGRAPHY ALL THE TIME. THAT'S pretty obvious. However, she wasn't committed to it, she wasn't passionate. As much as people would say she's good at it, her heart might not truly be in it. Seeing this team, each of the guys on the team talked so passionately about their love for volleyball was hitting her in her heart. It was making her realize that she wasn't the same way. That she wasn't as zealous about the one hobby she has. She wouldn't admit it out loud, but...

She is scared. 

Sakura isn't afraid of many things, but this was one of them. The teen feared people hating her work. She feared that people would constantly tell her that the photography she does is terrible. That the hobby she had been trying to make her own for the past couple of years was for nothing. Then what? What would she do if she sucked so badly at photography that she had to give it up? She would have nothing. She would no longer have that small speck of individuality anymore. Sakura would only be Shōyō's twin again. Nothing more.

Seeing that guy, Asahi, finding himself again was so... inspiring to her, in a way. He loves volleyball, even if he lost a tad bit of motivation a while ago. However, he came back and is just as strong as usual, based on what the upperclassmen were saying. 

Their scenarios were different, Sakura would admit, however, they were similar in some ways. Asahi lost confidence in what he is capable of. Sakura has never really had self-confidence. Asahi had a team to back him up, trying to build him up enough to come back. Sakura only really had her brother, and when she tried to make friends of her own they put her down. Asahi had people depending on him while Sakura didn't have that burden. Despite the differences, Sakura felt like she related so much to him. They both had something they liked to do, and were proud of their work. However, both teens suffered self-doubt. Now, only one of them still does. Asahi seemed to have gotten over it at least a bit. Sakura has yet to do the same.

Perhaps, if Asahi could regain his confidence in his volleyball skills. Sakura could gain her own self-confidence. Asahi has restored his passion for volleyball. It was about time for Sakura to strengthen her passion for photography. It was now or never.

Everyone in the gym was astonished by the sheer show of power that Asahi possessed. Even after taking a break for some time, he hadn't lost any of his prowess as an ace. "What a sound!" Takeda gasped loudly, breaking Saura from her thoughts, "It went 'ka-doom!'"

"Nice!" Suga said as he hoped over to Asahi enthusiastically, "Nice, Asahi! You too, Nishinoya!"

Asahi gave him a sheepish smile, "You guys too." He scratched the back of his head as he complimented his friends, "Nice toss, Suga. Nishinoya, nice receive. Joji, nice serves."

While Nishinoya and Suga blushed slightly and smiled widely, Endo jumped up to Asahi and wrapped his arms around the ace's shoulders. His sparking, bright blue eyes were drowning in both mischief and excitement. "Ah, look at the old gang back together again!" He boyishly laughed while swaying him and Asahi back and forth. "Working together as if someone hadn't ditched for a month!"

The group all laughed as Asahi's expression grew even more sheepish. If he were anyone else, it would be impossible. However, it's one of Asahi's skills to look extremely sheepish because of how soft he really is. 

To say that Endo is happy is a small understatement. He's beyond happy! Endo is more than excited to have all of his friends back on the team. Especially his best friend, who had the audacity to try and avoid him for so long. Endo will definitely get back at him for it, at some point.

On the side lines, Sakura nodded her head with a miniscule smile, "so that's an ace?" She could already see the way that her brother was staring at the older teen. While she knew that Shōyō admired Asahi, she also knows that he wishes to be better than him, to be the next ace at some point.

Ukai glanced down at her with a raised eyebrow, "what? Never seen one before?"

Her dull, yet sparkling eyes stared at him for a moment, "not in person. I haven't necessarily gotten to see many volleyball matches in person." She explained with a small sigh. It's not like she didn't want to go to them or anything. However, she certainly doesn't feel like she's missing out on much. "So I don't have a concrete idea about what an ace should be like besides the fundamentals. Though based on what I know already and what Shōyō has said, Asahi is a prime example of an ace. Technique is an important part of the game, and Asahi seems to have it down pretty good. Still there's plenty more improvement that can be made in his skill, which is what you're supposed to help him with." She said with a tiled head towards him. "With your added knowledge of actually being a player should be helpful as well. You may have just been a setter but it's better than nothing."

If the new temporary coach is to be honest, this is the longest that he's ever heard her talk. Honestly, he didn't think that she was capable of speaking more than a few sentences, or anything that wasn't a snarky remark or drawn out observation. Sure, he's only just met this girl, but he figured that she's quite the silent girl. Takeda was also a bit surprised that Sakura was able to speak that long. They shared a look, having the same thought about the usually quiet girl. Not only is she observant, but also intelligent in the view of volleyball. At least a little bit. She understands what is needed in order to play the game, neither of them were exactly expecting that from her. Though she is the sister of one of the most volleyball obsessed boys ever, so what did they expect?

Ukai sputtered slightly, "How did you know I was a setter?"

The orange-haired girl shrugged her shoulders, "Eh, bit of a guess. That and you don't necessarily have the build of a spiker or even a middle blocker."

"You seem to know a lot about volleyball…" Takeda trailed off with a hand on his chin.

"Why don't you play?" Ukai stared down at the young girl with narrowed eyes, "Or at least manage the team?" If she really understands volleyball from a strategic and analytic point of view, then she would be a pretty good asset to the team. Yes, the players on the court need to be fit and smart, though it is always good to have the coach and manager also be strategic. Much like a general and their army. This girl has sharp observation skills, only being around her for a short while Ukai could tell that, and also a decent understanding of what goes into playing volleyball. If only she was manager of the team. Though if she sticks around so much, then she could be an asset to the team, whether or not she is actually a part of the club.

"I'm not a team player," Sakura scoffed at the absurd idea of being in the club. Sure in junior high, she was sort of like the team's manager, but didn't help them out in a normal managerial way. Really she was just a tag-a-log, and every once in a while voicing out some ideas about certain plays. Though it's not like it helped, the team was still extremely inexperienced and unskilled. She waved her hand dismissively, "Besides I'd rather be by myself most of the time. And volleyball isn't my… thing, it's Shōyō. I'd rather stick to photography." She then picked up her camera, checked that it had it's flash on, and then took a photo of the coach. That's one way to end a conversation that she wasn't necessarily comfortable with.

Effectively, she blinded the poor man who jumped away and rubbed his eyes, "Gah!" 

On the court, Nishinoya hopped up at Asahi, "You can't jump worth a damn! Skipping club for a month will do that!"

Asahi rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, I'm sorry."

"Harsh, Nishinoya," Suga chuckled.

Endo shook his head and rubbed the libero's head. That earned him some shouts in protest from the shorter teen who fought against him. He laughed, "Says the one who was suspended for knocking over a vase!" He finally let up on Nishinoya who scowled at him like a rabid chihuahua, "couldn't you have done something cooler!"

Excited with the hopeful outlook on their team being back together, Tanaka spun to look at their captain, "Daichi!"

"Yeah!" He nodded his head, "If Asahi is back and we're facing both him and this veteran team, we're gonna have trouble winning this."

"What're you talking about, Daichi? You've got me on your si--"

Shōyō then cut him off and jumped in front of him, "You've got me on your side!"

"Huh?" Daichi blinked, "What?"

"Hinata, butt out!" Tanaka raged with his sharp teeth, "You've ruined my awesome speech, you idiot!"

While Tanaka started to chew out the first-year for messing up his badass moment, and the others snickered at the sight, Takeda turned to Ukai with excitement lighting up his expression. "That was great! And Nishinoya's receive was awesome! If we can retrieve blocked balls, we have nothing to fear!"

It's a nice thought, but far too optimistic. "As if. He can't retrieve those all the time," Ukai explained, "The ball plummets down at a speed of 60 miles an hour from just 6 to 8 feet away. There's no way he can retrieve every one."

Takeda deflated, "Right."

"Even if he can't get them all, making sure that they don't give up after a ball is blocked can be a good tactic to not only bring up morale but also encourage them to continue to provide effort." Sakura said, drawing the men's attention once again. She seems to be talking a lot more often now. Though she has had a bit of an easier time talking with teachers than her classmates. Most likely because she is a bit more mature than the average first-year. She tapped her chin, "Having confidence in themselves is good, but having it in their teammates is better."

Even more analytical observations from Sakura. Seriously, why was this girl a photographer for the team and not a co-manager? Ukai narrowed his eyes even further at her, a bit skeptical about whether or not she told the truth earlier. "Are you sure you don't play volleyball? You seem to know a lot about it."

"I'm not the athletic type." That much is obvious from her noodle arms and physique of a pencil. She could run pretty fast, but that's only when she was in the mood which rarely happens. Even then it's only for a short while since she doesn't have an excessive amount of stamina, unlike her brother. Other than that, Sakura is both quite weak(even if she doesn't want to believe that) and small. She certainly wouldn't try out for any sort of sports team any time soon. Or ever.

The match continued with the score of 5-7 with the NA team in the lead. The NA team served to the high schoolers. Sakura yawned slightly, it was getting quite late and she would really like to have already eaten dinner by now. Cure her inability to say no to her brother, which forced her to stick around for this practice match. So she barely batted an eye when Kageyama and Shōyō did their quick freak. Though it did surprise those who hadn't seen their teamwork just yet.

Asahi was in awe of the small teen as he thought back to the other day when Shōyō was telling him about how he plays. "So, he wasn't exaggerating."

"That's amazing, Shōyō!" Nishinoya ran up to him from the other side of the net, "What was that? I couldn't help but watch!" Shōyō smiled at the compliment, more than flattered at his senpai saying this about him.

The sight of Shōyō and Kageyama performing their freak quick was pretty baffling to their temporary coach. He hadn't seen something like that before! Just as he was trying to think about which setter to use, Kageyama had to pull that out. His decision just became a lot harder. "Boy!" He shouted at the orange-haired boy, scaring the poor teen, "Why did you jump over there just now, Peewee?"

"P--" Shōyō started in shock at the name, though he brushed it off and answered his question. "B-because the toss will come to me no matter where I am, Sir."

This just proved to Ukai just how skilled Kageyama actually is. To set such a targeted toss right into Shōyō's hands really is both impressive and terrifying. It's a good thing that thee boys were on Karasuno instead of on a different team. Ukai shook his head, "What are you guys, deviants?"

The two of them stared at him, "'Deviants'?"

"Why?" Shōyō muttered to Kageyama.

He shrugged his shoulders, a bit unnerved that he was labeled a deviant by Ukai. "Beats me." They then could hear the snickering of the blonde middle blocker behind them. As usual he quite liked the fact that the two were under a small amount of unease. Kageyama whipped around to face him with a glare, "Tsukishima, wipe that grin off your face!"

"I had no idea what they were discussing before the game." Ukai said, as Kageyama and Shōyō go over to argue with Tsukishima, referring to what Suga had said about not wanting to be in Kageyama's shadow. "That first-year setter has to be what they call a genius. Normal mortals pale in comparison to him. However…"

Suga then set a spike for Asahi, which the ace used to score his team a point. Shimada marveled, "Ooh, a straight spike."

"His timing is bang-on after being out for a month, goddammit!" Tanaka fangirled.

Daichi chuckled, "Tanaka, you're too happy."

Endo patted his friend on the back, "Nicely done, Teddy bear!"

"Don't call me that," Asahi muttered sheepishly, "it's embarrassing." Though Endo just continued to flash his pearly whites, obviously not going to do as he says. Suga laughed at the two and high fived Asahi in celebration of their point.

Ukai pursed his lips, "The one breath between the toss and the spike can only be achieved over time with lots of training. Their bond of trust cannot be built in a day." He commented about Suga and Asahi. "So, if the first-year setter's weapon is "overwhelming talent," that makes our weapon "accumulated trust and stability." An evilly disturbing expression, which freaked out Takeda a bit. "Karasuno ain't such a bad team!" He happily explained and roughly patted the teacher on the back, almost causing him to fall forward. "You should've told me sooner, Teach."

Takeda fixed his glasses, "I did tell you, many times."

Sakura scoffed in amusement, "Your ears must be going with old age if you didn't hear him tell you that."

Ukai glowered at her snarky comment, "Why you-"

Sakura raised her camera up at him, as if it were a weapon. Though it was effective since Ukai cringed at her brandishing the camera and backed off. She smirked happily, knowing that the coach also feared her, just a little bit. 

He cleared his throat, trying to brush off the fact that he was now afraid of a small girl and her camera. "Who'd have thought that peewee could be a middle blocker?" He commented as Shōyō stepped up to the net. "His fast attacks are impressive, but how does he block?"

Takeda then started to buzz in place as he saw this, "That's right! This game is Hinata-kun's showdown against his dream ace." Ukai raised an eyebrow, a bit confused. So Takeda started to explain, "You see, Hinata-kun enrolled at Karasuno because he wants to be just like the ace they called the Tiny Giant."

"Who, him?" Ukai tilted his head.

"So that's why he tries so hard. He says he's gonna be the ace. For Hinata-kun, this is his big face-off against the current ace of Karasuno."

"Really? That sounds fun." Ukai then chuckled, "Although it's more like man versus middle schooler."

They continued the game, and Shōyō was really proving that they shouldn't underestimate his height. Even for a small fry like him, he was still able to try and block Asahi. Sure, it was tipped off and landed out of bounds, but he still jumped high enough to touch the ball and slow down it's trajectory. Sakura saw that as a small advantage. Since her brother couldn't really perform a kill block or anything like that due to his height, trying to slow down the ball would be good enough and something that they could use to their advantage.

On the other side of the net, Asahi stared in surprise at the boy, "I knew how high he could jump, but it's more impressive when he's at eye level. How high is the guy jumping?"

"He's pretty cool right?" Endo sashayed over to his friend and pointed at Shōyō. He gave Asahi a genuine smile, well a smile that was a tad bit genuine and a bit mischievous as he swayed from side to side. "No doubt he'll help get us to nationals this year, just like you guys always wanted!"

Asahi nodded his head slowly. He knew that Endo didn't care about going to nationals. Not completely anyway. Ever since they first joined the volleyball club together, Asahi has known that this sport isn't necessarily Endo's passion. He's good at it, yes, but it barely interested him all that much. Given the choice of playing volleyball or doing anything else, Endo wouldn't choose volleyball. He knew why Endo chose to play volleyball, Asahi isn't completely thick to miss that. Endo chose volleyball because of him. It warmed his heart to think of his best friend doing this for him, so that they could be around each other as much as possible. Of course, he's also glad that Endo wants to help them reach their dream of getting to nationals. However, he had hoped after nearly three years, that Endo would share that same dream, at least a little. Though he knows that his interests lie somewhere else.

"He's amazing," Shōyō commented, referring to Asahi, as he stared at his red palms. "And he hasn't played for a month!" Being the ace is what Shōyō wants, more than anything. Being exactly like the Tiny Giant, having that trust with his team and having that confidence of knowing you can break through any block, is what Shōyō wants.

"You're holding your hands wrong when you block!" Kageyama commented as he raised his arms in the correct way, to show him. "This is how you block! Like this!" Though Shōyō just continued to stare at Asahi, which annoyed Kageyama, "Are you listening? Like this!" He then grabbed Shōyō's head. "Hey!" He still wasn't getting anything from Shōyō. The boy was stuck in a trance, his own thoughts about the ace. "Hey…" 

"The ace is amazing!" Shōyō exclaimed after finally breaking out of his trance. "It doesn't matter if they're blocking or not cause he can blast through 'em anyway!" Kageyama stared at him, which slightly bothered Shoyo a bit, "What is it?"

Kageyama then muttered out a reply as he turned to get back into position, "Nothing."

The game continued and Sakura noticed how distracted her twin was. That certainly isn't a good thing. Being distracted during a game was going to cause some problems, she just wondered what would happen.

"Hinata-kun, go further back!" Daichi called out, though it fell on deaf ears. "Hinata!"

Though even if there were a few calling out to him, Shōyō didn't hear them. His thoughts were completely ignoring the game, a terrible thing to do during the game. At least it isn't during an actual match, that's a somewhat good upside to this.

So without focusing on the game, he didn't even notice how Asahi had jumped up to spike the ball, that was headed right for his face. It was already too late, he couldn't react to it fast enough. So he ended up getting a volleyball to the face and falling on his ass.

Everyone was in shock as they ran around to see if he was alright. The most shaken by this was Asahi, evident from how blue his face was and how nervous he looked. He leaned over the poor boy in concern, "Hinata?"

Sakura snickered into her fist as she held her camera to her chest. She's more than happy to get yet another photo of her brother getting hit in the face. It is always amusing to see her brother fail like this. Though she wouldn't laugh at his pain if it actually hurt his feelings. If anything, both of them usually laughed at his failures together. Well, after Shōyō finished his match and his pain went away. 

Really, she saw this happening. If he wasn't daydreaming so much then he wouldn't have been hit. She feels like she has a pretty good idea as to what he was thinking. Sakura could read her brother like an open book, since he is to just about everyone. Shōyō wants to be the ace so badly, and now that Karasuno has the ace back, there's not much doubt in her mind that Shōyō's jealous. With Asahi not around, it meant that Shōyō could have had a chance at becoming the ace sooner rather than later. However, it's not like that would have happened this year for many different reasons. Though Shōyō's optimism wasn't going to let him think otherwise. Sakura really thinks that he should have at least some pessimism in him in these situations. Much like how he thinks that she should have some optimism in certain situations.

"Hey, he's alive," Tanaka commented as he groaned and held his head.

Nishinoya peered down at Shōyō, "You okay?"

"You okay?" Asahi was shaking as he fussed over the boy he just hit, "I'm so sorry!"

Having not even moved over to check on Shōyō, Tsukishima lazily commented, "Any way you slice it, it's his fault for standing there all spaced out." For once, Sakura agreed with the blond giant and didn't have much issue with admitting that.

Takeda stuttered out in concern, "F-first aid…"

"Calm down, Teach." Ukai commented, obviously not that bothered by it since he's seen stuff like this often as a player. Though as he heard the chuckles from the girl sitting down on the floor beside him, he raised an eyebrow. What was Sakura so amused by this, "Shouldn't you be more worried about him?"

"He's got a thick skull," Sakura waved her hand, unbothered by the fact that her brother was just hit. "He'll be fine." Honestly, she was surprised that her brother hadn't had any concussions or anything because of how many times he gets hit in the head.

"I'm all right," Shōyō said, "I'm sorry."

Diachi didn't look that convinced, "Really? Maybe you should sit out to be on the safe side."

"I-I'm really all right!" Shōyō insisted, not wanting to have to sit out of the match. "I didn't dodge it in time, that's all. It's nothing serious. I'm used to getting hit in the face."

Sakura nodded her head in agreement, "He is, and I have the pictures."

"That's not a good thing," Suga said, a bit more concerned to hear that Shōyō's used to this.

Endo chuckled from his spot. Unlike the others he hadn't rushed over to see if the shorty was alright. "Why am I not surprised?"

A fiery aura then started to heat up the gym. Through the small gathering around him, Shōyō was able to spy an extremely annoyed Kageyama glaring at him. Oh, boy. Everyone was a bit scared by the young setter and his scary expression. "Why were you daydreaming during a game?" Shōyō sprung to his feet to back away, having flashbacks to the time he hit Kageyama with his serve a while ago. "I know what you're thinking. Being an ace is cool. Being a decoy can't be my best weapon. That's stupid and lame. You wish you were as tall and powerful as Azumane so you could be the ace!"

"I-I don't think that way!" Shōyō explained, though he did end up muttering, "Most of the time."

Kageyama pursed his lips, not letting up, "Now that you know there's an ace, you're not only dreaming about being him, you're jealous of him! Clear your head of that kind of garbage during a game!"

Shōyō's expression darkened, "What's wrong with being jealous? You've always been tall, so you could never know what it's like!"

"I need some popcorn for this," Endo commented with his hands on his hips, a bit more interested in the turmoil between the duo. He knew ever since the first day that they met the troublesome duo that they were going to bring a long plenty of juicy drama. He's glad he stuck around to see this.

Daichi was ready to intervene between the team, "Hey!"

Though the door opened up and an older man peeked through, "Hey, you, volleyball club. It's time to wrap it up. You need to put this away."

"I'm sorry!" Takeda ran over to him, "We need to finish this game."

The man tilted his head, "But it's late."

Takeda waved his hands, "I'll take responsibility for locking it up."

The club advisor was able to convince the man to let them finish this game instead of locking up now. The man then started to leave, "All right."

"Thanks for putting up with me," Takeda called after the departing man and closed the door.

Daichi called out to the club advisor, "Sir, I'm sorry! Thank you so much." Being a badass, Takeda flashed them a thumbs up. He's got the teams back!

"Take! That's bitchin'!" Tanaka exclaimed in admiration of their teacher.

All throughout this, now in her own thoughts, Sakura wasn't paying that much attention anymore. Another thing that the siblings share, when they daydream, they usually get sucked into their thoughts. No matter what it is, they usually aren't brought back to reality unless someone forced them to.

While Shōyō had been thinking of his jealousy of Asahi, Sakura was more so focusing on her own plight. Her individuality is starting to become a big part of her plan for high school. Finding herself as a person is probably high on her list of things to do. By doing so, she has to pick something that she is passionate about, and photography is what she chose. That's the first step done. However, seeing these boys be so passionate about this sport caused Sakura to question herself. Since she's never been truly passionate about something, she was comparing how she views her own passions to how they view volleyball. Should she be this fiery about photography? Is she supposed to be this outspoken about the thing she views as her ultimate hobby? She isn't that emotional about things, or even knows how to comprehend some emotions anymore, so she's unsure. 

She wishes that she could be the same way about photography, but knows that it's her own fault she doesn't feel the same way. It must be her fault. There's no one else to blame for her inability to truly commit and say that she's passionate about photography. If there's one thing that she would quietly admit, it's that she finds their passion and commitment to volleyball admirable. Of course, she wanted to be the same way. Sakura could only hope that she could figure this out soon.

The game picked back up, despite Sakura's inner debate, and the NA team was serving to the high school team once again. On the NA team, Takinoue leaned over to Asahi and Endo, "Hey, this is the most powerful attack rotation for the high schooler team. We have to watch out for the short guy's fast attack."

Asahi nodded his head, "Right!"

"Mhm," Endo hummed.

"Excuse me…" Kageyama interrupted their small talk and dramatically pointed to Shōyō. "My next toss will be to him. Please block him to the best of your ability." It certainly surprised everyone that Kageyama had blatantly displayed his plan to his opponent.

Takinoue raised an eyebrow at the high schooler, "What's this, a dare?"

"Yes, it's a dare." Kageyama said before bowing, "Forgive me for being so impudent."

The older man just laughed in amusement, "You're a funny guy! Okay! Let's do this dare!"

"Thank you!"

"What is he thinking?" Ukai shook his head, "Fast attacks are effective because they're unpredictable. There's no way Peewee can take a head-on block with the cards on the table."

Takeda nodded his head, "You're right. I would have to agree, if he takes them head-on."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at Kageyama from her spot on the ground. Having finally zoned back into her surroundings, she was a bit skeptical about what the setter was doing. She didn't see any strategic gain to this or anything. So what is he trying to do?

"Right now, you're…" Kageyama faced away from the court as he spoke to Shōyō, "nothing but a klutzy shit who happens to be nimble and can jump high. You will never be the breadwinner ace."

"Hey!" Tanaka shouted out at the insult towards the younger boy.

Asahi shook his head, "J-just a minute…"

"No need to be a dick," Endo scoffed.

Shōyō certainly wasn't that thrilled with hearing Kageyama state that. Neither is his sister, who was glowering at them from the sideline.

"But…" Kageyama continued and turned to face Shōyō, "as long as I'm around, you're the greatest!"

Shōyō furrowed his brow in confusion, "Huh?"

"Azumane's spikes are so forceful, he can cut through a triple block."

Asahi started to shake now that there was some attention on him, "Uh, but not every time, I, uh…"

"You're getting too flustered," Nishinoya commented.

"Now how about you? When I throw you a toss, have you ever been stopped by blockers?" Kageyama questioned, which seemed to affect Shōyō in some small way.

They started up the next set, and Shōyō was still unsure about what Kageyama was going to do, since he already revealed their plan. Not only that, but the blockers are too tall.

"Evade!" Kageyama shouted, breaking Shōyō from his thoughts. "What else can you do, you moron?" So Shōyō did just that. He baited the blockers onto one side of the court and used his incredible speed to run around Kageyama to the other side of the net. Effectively, when Shōyō jumped up to spike he was completely open and Asahi couldn't block him. So that's why Kageyama did it. "You are not the ace!" He shouted at the shorter boy, "But with your speed and jumping power and my tosses, you can take on any blockers! The ace blasts through for a point. You evade for a point. A point is a point! You don't need the ace's crown. You can hit out more points than anyone! That's why our opponents will be marking you, freeing up our other spikers thanks to your decoy skills! Including the ace!" He then spun to Tanaka for confirmation, "Right?"

The second-year jumped slightly at the shout but quickly nodded his head, "Yeah? Yeah, listen to him! Your decoy work drastically affects our success rate."

"Do you still believe that your job is uncool?"

Shōyō was quiet for a moment as he stared down at his hand, "I don't."

"What?" Kageyama grunted.

"I don't!"

The setter smirked, "Good!"

Shōyō then looked at the ace, who complimented him, "That last hit was incredible." That certainly lifted Shōyō's spirits even more.

The duo then ran up to Dachi, "I'm sorry for interrupting our practice game!" Kageyama called out while bowing.

"Uh, sure," Daichi sweatdropped.

Shōyō joined in, "I'm sorry!"

The two then stood up straight with their eyes hardened in determination, "Please continue the game, sir!"

Sakura found it quite… admirable for Kageyama to do this. He was proving a point to Shōyō. Trying to show him that his job as decoy isn't nothing, it's still an essential part of the team. Just as Shōyō was starting to possibly doubt himself in a way, Kageyama was able to drag him back into reality.

"Okay," Tanaka jumped with a shout. "We're gonna seriously catch up!"

"Right!"

On the sidelines, Sakura watched them with a small smile. She's glad that Shōyō had someone to bring him back down to earth. Sakura has been that person all their lives, so she's more than content to know that there's someone else who can control Shōyō's emotions in a way. Sure, it's not necessarily someone that she likes, but she'll deal with it.

"Say, Girl?" She lazily looked up at Ukai who had called down to her. "Your brother and that guy… Are they from the same middle school? Or the same elementary school?"

"Not at all." She scoffed, thinking back to all the times her brother and Kageyama opposed each other. "They only met once last year. Pretty sure they've still got their little rivalry going on." She rolled her big brown eyes, "Though working together is much better than opposing each other at the moment."

They were quiet for a moment as the men processed that, though Ukai finally said something, "That's cruel."

The next set started up, and everyone was invested in it. Especially now that Shōyō was even more motivated than before. Though as everyone was busy with the game and how skilled both Shoyo and Kageyama truly are, nobody noticed Sakura quietly slipping out of the gym. Well, almost nobody.

---

It isn't that cold out, Sakura noticed. Well, she may just not notice how cold it is because she's still wearing her brother's volleyball jacket. She could still hear the squeaking of shoes against the wood floors and their shouts of encouragement from inside the gym.

Things were getting a bit too… overwhelming for her in there. It wasn't that the game was intense or anything, it was just that it was bringing forth some emotions within her that she had to sort out. The questioning of herself was starting to become a bit much, and she needed a change of scenery to calm her mind.

So she idly leaned against the wall outside the gym while messing around with her camera. She snapped a few photos of the dark pathways of the school campus, just to distract herself a bit. Sakura needed a little bit of relaxation for a moment. She wouldn't get that inside the gym since everyone is going on and on about their volleyball skills and such.

Sure, Sakura likes seeing her brother improve his volleyball game both mentally and physically. Though she would rather do it without her own insecurities creeping up on her. She never really thought that she had fears, not conventional ones like heights or spiders. Though deep down she's known that she feared separation from Shōyō ever since she was little. It wasn't up until last year that she discovered she had other fears as well. The fear of rejection. The fear of people hating her work so much that she realises she might have wasted three years doing photography for nothing. The fear of being reduced to just a clone once again. Individuality is what she is striving for, and if that is taken from her, she doesn't know what to do.

"Are you alright?"

Sakura jumped slightly at the sudden voice behind her, not expecting anyone to be outside with her. She spun around to see that someone had indeed followed her outside, even though she thought that she had stealthily left the gym. Turns out the one that had followed her outside is Yamaguchi. He cautiously approached Sakura as if she were an animal that would attack him at any moment. The startled expression that had adorned her face quickly disappeared as she relaxed her face. Putting on a mask, of sorts.

"Yamaguchi, I'm fine." She said while turning away, hoping that he'd leave her alone. She pretended to busy herself with the settings of her camera. "Shouldn't you be watching the match?"

He just kept on approaching her slowly, despite the fact that Sakura tried to keep herself closed off. "Shouldn't you?" He was met with a pretty heated glare from over her shoulder that caused him to shiver, "I-I mean… it's warmer inside and Hinata-kun will notice that you're gone soon so…"

"I just wanted some fresh air." She semi-lied, "A gym full of sweaty guys isn't exactly that pleasant, you know."

"Right," Yamaguchi allowed himself to chuckle slightly at her small joke. Though he cleared his throat, "You seem troubled." Once again he was on the receiving end of a glare. Gosh, why does this girl have to be so intimidating. "Ah, s-sorry if I'm wrong!"

Sakura scoffed and buried herself into her borrowed jacket, "It's whatever." she certainly didn't want to admit that he was right, but couldn't deny his observation either.

The two were quiet for a moment as Yamaguchi allowed Sakura to sort through her thoughts in silence. He could tell that she was bothered, especially with how she shut him out so quickly. If he were anyone else, he would have left by now. However, he knows how to deal with someone as stone-faced as Sakura. He's had a bit of practice with Tsukishima already, so he might be a bit of help with whatever she's thinking about.

He swallowed thickly and nervously played with the ends of his jacket, "I know that we haven't known each other that long, but I know what Tsukki is like, and you act quite the same-"

"Tch," Sakura rolled her eyes at being compared to the giant.

"-so I can tell that something is bothering you."

Sakura didn't know whether to be a bit freaked out that someone could read her like that, or a bit touched that someone was actually wanting to have her open up to them. She stared at him long and hard for a moment over her shoulder, causing the boy to squirm under her incense stare. Should she be happy to have someone here who could see that she was having issues? Possibly someone she could talk to about her emotions? "Why do you like volleyball?"

"Huh?"

Sakura turned around to face Yamaguchi fully with her dull eyes looking up to him inquisitively. "Why do you play volleyball?"

Yamaguchi thought about it for a moment, really thinking about the questions. He pursed his lips, "Well, Tsukki plays and I wanted to play with him."

"So the reason you play is because of Tsukishima," Sakura concluded. 

"...I guess." 

Of course, that would be the reason. Those two are practically always together. That makes Sakura wonder, if she were a guy, would she have played volleyball with Shōyō. Maybe if that were what reality was, she'd be just as obsessed with volleyball as him. Hm, a strange thought to think of. Though that's not reality, she should focus on how things are now.

She tilted her head at him, "If he wasn't around, you wouldn't play?"

"W-well, it's a bit complicated I guess." He gulped at the intense stare that Sakura had pinned him with. He really isn't sure what to think about "I enjoy volleyball, and I feel like I would have started to play it without Tsukki. Why?"

"Hm, I guess… I'm just conflicted." She should open up a bit. Sakura would probably be more willing to open up to Shimada about this for plenty of reasons. The club president has become Sakura's friend, independent of her brother, and someone that Sakura considers to be pretty close to her. Yamaguchi isn't exactly that close to her yet. They know each other, they've been around each other, but this is the first conversation that they're having one-on-one. Though she shouldn't hide, not any more. She wants to change, and she's going to start that change now.

Yamaguchi peered down at her softly, "About what?" He could see that she is extremely bothered by this, and figured that she needed someone to talk to about it. He's heard plenty of things about Sakura, rumours that were floating around school. She's a loner, only ever hanging around her clone. She doesn't really talk, yet is extremely intelligent. Though when she does talk, she speaks with this drawled tone that unnerves some people. It doesn't help that people are scared of her with her intimidating aura and seemingly unapproachable expressions. As far as he knew, she didn't have friends. At least, none outside of the volleyball club. Even then she seems to keep the guys at arms length and doesn't befriend them.

"Photography," Sakura answered, bringing him out of his thoughts. A questioning expression then crawled onto Yamaguchi's face, so Sakura had to elaborate a bit more. "About why I do it."

Yamaguchi's eyebrows furrowed, "Don't you enjoy it? You always have your camera on you so I thought you like taking pictures and stuff."

"I do…" Sakura shook her head with a heavy sigh, "It's complicated."

The green-haired boy pursed his lips. He isn't really good at this, giving advice. However, considering this seemed to be like the first time that Sakura was opening up to someone, he is going to try his best. "Well, the way I see it, if you like photography so much, then you'll figure out why you enjoy it eventually." He stated, "Sometimes you can't explain why you enjoy something, not after a while."

Sakura considered that statement. She let it mull in her mind for a moment before her soulful eyes turned back up to him. "So I shouldn't consider people's opinions about my work?"

Yamaguchi thought for a second before finally coming up with an answer. "Criticism is good, especially for art, right?" Sakura nodded her head slowly, "You should only listen to the people who are giving you constructive criticisms, not just putting you down for your hobby. I figured that you were saying that because you're questioning if you're good at it."

Sakura stared at him and thought over his words. He's right, and she knows this. She has known that for a bit, but she supposed her self esteem was just far too fragile to really accept some things said about her work. A small smile, one that caused Yamaguchi's eyes to widen since he's never seen her genuinely smile before, graced her face as she sighed. "You're a tad bit more observant that I thought, Yamaguchi."

"Uh, thanks?" Yamaguchi nervously thanked her. The first-year had to admit, Sakura certainly looked adorable when she smiled. A lot less intimidating and scary. He cleared his throat and motioned to the door behind them, "Why don't we head back inside."

Sakura shrugged, "Sure."

The pair then headed back into the gym. Both of them felt a little bit lighter about what they had talked about. Sakura was a bit happy with the fact that she was able to talk with someone about her feelings and maybe get some advice about it. Meanwhile, Yamaguchi was glad to be that person to help Sakura with her feelings. He's not necessarily good at it, but he hopes he helped her out a little bit.

---

The score for the game was now 20-17 with the NA team in the lead. Well, now it was 20-18, since the high schoolers were able to get another point. One of the older players, Shimada Makoto nodded his head in contemplation, "These high schoolers are pretty good." He commented before smirking, "Us middle-aged guys are gonna have to show our stuff." So he set himself for his serve, though it wasn't like any usual serve that has been used throughout this game. Instead it is the jump float serve!

Tanaka called out to the small fry, who the ball was headed for, "Hinata!"

"All right!" He readied himself, "I'm open!" Though when he thought that he had gotten into the right place to get the ball, it swerved slightly and ended up landing just before him. In turn, he ended up face planting onto the ground. Of course, Sakura made sure to get a picture of it. Though it wasn't that good, if she were being honest.

Shimada laughed happily at his success, "See that?"

"That's immature," Takinoue shook his head at his teammates actions.

Takeda gasped at the new development, "What was that? That serve didn't look like it had much momentum."

"Was that a floating serve or something?" Sakura asked the temporary coach, "I've never seen it done in person, only on tv."

Ukai nodded his head as he explained, "It's called a jump float serve. Serving it without any spin gives the ball a shaky trajectory. It can swerve and drop without warning."

"It's like a curveball," Takeda said, "That's so cool!"

So Shimada served again, and again, and again, and again. Each time he was able to earn his team a point due to the high schoolers being terrible receivers. They really need to work on that, Sakura thought bordely.

"This is the fourth point in a row." Ukai said, thinking along the same lines as Sakura. "The first-year combination attack is impressive, but the first and second-year receivers really need work.

Shimada got ready for his final serve, "You're all mine!" Well, it might be his finally serve, especially now that thanks to him, the NA team is at match point.

The ball swerved through the air, but Daichi was able to receive it properly and send it to Kageyama. The blockers all set themselves up to mark Shōyō. Even Endo was focusing on him, when you would think he'd be smarter to think about looking out for any other attacker. 

"You won't get away with it this time, Shorty!" Takinoue shouted as they jumped to block the decoy, "Caught him!"

Though the ball went to the other end of the net. Kageyama had set it to Tanaka instead of the little guy. "Oh, no!"

"Forgot about him!" Endo exclaimed.

"Hello! Remember me?" Tanaka smiled viciously. Though when he spiked the ball, it didn't hit the ground, the ever reliable libero was there to save it. "What?"

 "Nice, Nishinoya!" Suga complimented his friend and then went to set the ball again.

Asahi got ready on the left side, "Suga!"

"Asahi!"

Like the powerful ace he is, Asahi was easily able to break through Kageyama and Shōyō's block. That meant that the NA team had scored the winning point.

"Damn, I'm sorry, Hinata!" Tanaka groaned, "I was totally unmarked too!"

Shōyō shook his head, "Th-that's okay."

"But that was amazing." He clapped the smaller boy on the shoulder roughly, "You had them all dogging after you. It almost made me jealous. I'll be counting on you next time!" 

"Y-yessir!"Sakura then losied over to her brother with his water bottle. Her expression may be neutral, but she was bustling with emotions. However, it's not like she wanted to display them, or even knew how to. "Did you see how well I did, imouto."

Sakura hummed, "yeah, you did great." She was not going to mention the conversation she had with Yamaguchi. Maybe some other time. But for now, she'd keep it to herself. Sakura would rather figure things out on her own before she broadcasted her feelings to her brother. She doesn't want to bother him with it, he already has volleyball to focus on. There's no need to distract him from that. At least, she thought that was best.

While she talked a bit with her brother, and was surrounded by Tanaka who tried to boast about his strengths, Yamaguchi watched her with keen eyes. Even when Tsukishima had said something to him, he barely paid attention to it. Really he was mulling over the conversation that he had with her earlier. In the beginning, he believed that Sakura was put together completely, with little to no conflict within herself. She just seemed to have a handle on herself. Though that may be because he's never really heard her talk that much and never actually tried to talk with her before. However, he now knows that she's just like any normal teenager. Anxious and full of doubt. He's glad that she trusted him enough to open up a bit. He hoped that she would do the same in the future, or at least find someone else to be an ear for her. Everyone needs someone there for them to just vent to, in his opinion. Which is why he has Tsukki, and Tsukki has him. Well, first he needed to have Tsukki open up to him more too. Looks like he has two tsunderes to look out for now. How tiring.

---

After gathering their things, the older players all filed out of the gym. The trio of older men were quite happy with not only themselves for winning, but also the high schoolers. All of them are extremely promising!

So now the high schoolers were all going to thank the NA players for playing with them and bid them a goodbye. Shimada sighed contentedly, "I don't know what just happened but that made me feel young again. 'Please call for a toss, Ace!' It's great to be young!"

"'With me around, you're the greatest!'" Uchizawa quoted another high schooler, "I wish I could say that! High schoolers are wicked cool!" Kageyama and Nishinoya were blushing besides them, since it was them that they were quoting.

Takinoue smirked at the high schoolers, "You made us old timers feel like yesterday's news!"

Suga scratched the back of his neck, "S-sorry, Sir."

"How can I say it?" He tapped his chin. "You guys haven't got it together yet, but once you do pull together, I think you guys are going places."

All of the players were warmed at the words from the man. If he thought that they had potential, then perhaps other people did! So that could mean that they 

After they left, the group all headed back into the gym and crowded around Ukai. After he observed the game, he figured out what they needed to work on. Well, just about everyone knew what they needed to work on, it's pretty obvious. Sakura was certain that a five-year-old could notice it, even Endo knows what it is!

"Anyway, the receives!" Ukai exclaimed, "You can't get anywhere without receiving. We'll be training on those fully tomorrow!"

The boys all agreed before thanking him and heading off to do stretches. As they did that, Sakura yawned. It was getting late and she really was thinking that she couldn't do this all the time. She enjoys riding the bike with her brother, but she has other things she would like to do like her homework. Sakura isn't even a part of the club, so why does she have to stay? Maybe she should stop complaining about it and just tell Shōyō that she wants to ride home by herself. She's a big girl who can do that on her own! Though for now, she just elected for leaning against the wall while watching the boys clean up.

Just as they were starting their clean up, Sakura spied her brother slowly approaching Asahi. She kept an eye on them and listened in on what they were saying. "Asahi?" Her brother started, "I'm no ace, but I can clear a path for the ace! I will become the greatest decoy!" How cocky, Sakura thought, "Oh! Although I can't do that without Kageyama's tossing. So, what I'm trying to say is…" Shōyō cringed trying to come up with something to say. 

Though he didn't have to when Asahi spoke up, "Hinata? Is that your name? Or are you called something else because of your sister?" He shook his head getting back on topic, "The ace is basically the name given to a wing spiker in left position, which makes him me or Tanaka."

"Yes…"

"It's definitely the ace's job to break through triple blocks and to receive delivery of tosses when the timing is crucial." The older boy explained, "I think that having a setter say such a thing to you is an awesome thing. Anyway, what I'm saying is… No matter what name the position is given, I'd say that the player that terrifies the opposing team the most has to be the coolest. Like, 'Looks out for that middle blocker! He's crazy.' Things like that."

Shōyō understood that completely as his eyes brightened, "Yeah, yeah!"

"I'm not gonna lose."

"Yessir!" Shōyō exclaimed.

A thought then occurred to Asahi, "But that's only if I'm allowed back on the main lineup."

"Asahi, you really are timid for such a big guy," Suga commented as he and Daichi stood close to them to listen in on what they were saying.

Endo enthusiastically nodded his head, "He's a teddy bear~!" He sang which caused Asahi to blush lightly at the nickname once again.

Daichi chuckled and "You're back in action, Suga."

"I apologize for worrying and obsessing," the grey-haired setter apologize.

"I didn't say that," they all then turned to their libero, "And the reliable Nishinoya is back too."

He saluted, "Yessir!"

"But you can never shove the Vice Principal ever again." Nishinoya stiffened at the reminder of why he was suspended. Daichi then turned his stare to Asahi, "I suppose our timid wing blocker, the ace in name alone, is also back. As an afterthought."

Ukai clapped his hands, "Okay, get this thing locked down and go home!"

After they all finished their clean up jobs, the boys all huddled up together. Takeda, Ukai, and Kiyoko watched together from the sidelines. Meanwhile, Sakura was still leaning against the wall, watching the interactions from the side of her eyes. Daichi then shouted, "Karasuno, fight!"

"Yeah!"

They really are close, Sakura thought and sighed heavily, I'm more than glad that Shōyō has a real team. Now I've got to do the same.