Chapter 78: Alive

All over the gymnasium, the sound of enthusiastic fans filled the air.

The cheers were loud, almost deafening, as the crowd celebrated Date Tech's impressive block.

"That was a great block from Date Tech..."

Iwaizumi muttered as Aoba Johsai made their way to their coaches to sit down and watch the game.

His voice was barely audible over the boisterous audience, "The timing was perfect, the jump was on point, and the placement was great..." 

"..."

As the game continued, Iwaizumi watched closely. He noticed how Aone and Futakuchi had perfectly timed their block to stop Tsuna's spike earlier.

What made it even more remarkable was that their reactions had been delayed until after they saw the toss. 

The rest of the Aoba Johsai players also kept their eyes on the court.

"Nice receive!"

Daichi managed to retrieve the ball after another strong serve from Date Tech. Given Karasuno's lineup at the back, it was clear that pulling off a serve ace would be difficult.

The ball floated toward Kageyama, and Kindaichi's eyes narrowed sharply as he watched another quick attack aimed at Hinata.

'Doing a quick attack in this situation should be perfect, but...'

Kindaichi thought. Hinata had a knack for rushing to where the blockers weren't present. It should've been a safe move, but...

"I feel nervous just standing here..."

Kunimi's voice broke through Kindaichi's thoughts.

He watched as Aone closed in sharply and leaped up to block Hinata's attack with incredible speed.

It was nerve-wracking to watch, and Kindaichi could tell even Hinata was surprised.

"Oh?"

On the side, Oikawa raised his eyebrows. He noticed Hinata glancing toward the other side of the net, likely trying to aim his spike to avoid Aone's block.

Oikawa chuckled softly, "I didn't know he could aim his spike..."

"Unfortunately for you, little guy, that's not gonna cut it, though..." 

Aone's hand moved sharply, intercepting the spike with precision. The loud plop of the ball hitting his hand echoed through the gym, followed by the sharp thud as it landed on Karasuno's side of the court.

"Whoaa!"

"Let's go! The Iron Wall is online!"

The crowd erupted into cheers once again.

However, as they kept on walking through the boisterous crowd...

"What is this? Didn't I tell you guys to be prepared for your game after this?"

Mizoguchi's angry voice snapped the Aoba Johsai players back to reality.

"Ah...?"

They blinked, turning away from the court to face their coach's stern expression. The team let out wry smiles, feeling a bit guilty.

Hanamaki mumbled under his breath, "Our opponent isn't that strong anyway..."

"Hanamaki, you bastard, what did you say!?"

Mizoguchi roared, his voice loud enough to draw the attention of some nearby spectators.

The team glared at Hanamaki, their faces a mix of annoyance and embarrassment. Hanamaki scratched his head, stuttering, "Ah, umm, my ba—"

Thankfully...

"Haha, let them be, Mizoguchi..."

Irihata interrupted. He crossed his arms as his eyes were still fixed on the game.

Then, he turned to his team and gestured for them to sit down before adding, "This is quite an interesting match. I'm sure they want to watch and understand each team so they have the upper hand when we play against them."

"Y-Yes...!"

"Coach is right..."

"We're definitely not bored waiting. We want to know who's waiting for us at the next round!"

The team's faces lit up with relief, seeing Irihata stop Mizoguchi from giving them an ear as they slowly sat down.

But their expressions quickly stiffened again as Mizoguchi suddenly spoke up.

"I'll let this slide because our head coach allowed it, but..."

Mizoguchi's voice was firm as he eyed the team one by one before adding, "Do understand that underestimating your opponent has no place in this team! Whether we're facing a weak team or the strongest, we'll give it our all. We'll sweat just as hard either way. Keep that in mind... Especially you, Hanamaki!"

"...!"

Though Mizoguchi's words were harsh, the team knew he was right.

They bowed their heads slightly and shouted in unison, "...Yessir!"

"Nice receive!"

Back on the court, amidst the noisy crowd, Tsuna felt everything fade away.

His focus narrowed to the ball floating toward Kageyama as he took a small step forward while his eyes locked on the setter.

'Give it to me...'

Tsuna thought quietly as his body was ready. He waited patiently, slowly bidding his time.

'He wants a toss!'

Kageyama seemed to understand as the ball was tossed high into the air, heading straight for Tsuna.

Thump!

With a sharp burst of speed, Tsuna leaped, his body arching gracefully. His arm swung down, his palm connecting with the ball.

For a moment, it seemed like the ball compressed under the force before shooting forward.

However...

BAM!

A loud impact echoed through the gym. Tsuna's eyes widened as the ball bounced sharply off a towering wall of hands—Date Tech's blockers.

The ball whistled through the air before hitting the ground with a loud thud.

"Whoaaa!"

"Another one!"

"Damn! Karasuno is done for!"

Whistle!

Just as the crowd was getting excited, the referee blew the whistle to give Date Tech a point. However, following the whistle, Futakuchi's sarcastic voice was heard, "Are you starting to hold back, Mr. Shooting Star? I thought you said not to disappoint you earlier..." 

"That fucker..."

Tanaka was instantly pissed off as he growled loudly at the jab while grinding his teeth. Even Suga also frowned at the remark.

"..."

Tsuna didn't respond. His expression was unreadable as he turned and walked back to his position.

Noticing Tsuna's silence, Daichi was worried as he approached Tsuna, raising a hand to pat his shoulder.

"Tsuna, don't mind—"

But the words caught in his throat.

"..."

Daichi froze, his hand hovering in the air as Tsuna walked past him without a word. 

"Captain, are you okay?"

Kageyama's voice snapped Daichi out of his thoughts. He blinked, shaking his head slightly, "Huh? Oh... right, yeah..."

Daichi paused for a second while still staring at Tsuna. A bead of sweat rolled down his temple as he slowly returned to his position.

The game continued, but the tension on Karasuno's side was palpable.

The whole momentum had shifted completely toward Date Tech. Karasuno's attacks were barely landing, and Date Tech's blocks were consistently flawless.

The pressure was mounting, making things even worse for Karasuno.

"Huh? What is this? He can still make that expression?"

Among the audience, Ichiro watched the game with a surprised look. His eyes were locked on his son, Tsuna.

Seeing Tsuna get blocked over and over again reminded Ichiro of something, especially after seeing his expression.

He chuckled softly, a nostalgic smile on his face, "What a throwback..."

Back when they were still in Tokyo, Ichiro often picked Tsuna up from elementary school. Every time, he noticed the same thing—boredom.

Tsuna's eyes were dull, lifeless.

Occasionally, there was a tiny spark, like something fun had happened. But it always faded quickly.

But one day...

Ichiro was running late to pick Tsuna up.

When he finally pulled up to the school, he was ready to apologize, "Sorry I was late, there were some things going on—Huh?"

"Son?"

"..."

Ichiro's voice trailed off as Tsuna climbed into the car, giggling to himself.

It was shocking.

Tsuna rarely smiled, let alone laughed. Hearing his giggle made Ichiro so happy he couldn't help but laugh along, "Seems like something fun happened at school, eh? Go on, tell your dad what's making my son so happy today?"

"Ah... we played football today with another school..."

"Oh??"

Ichiro didn't remember knowing his son ever playing football before, so it caught him off guard as he asked with a smile, "You like football?"

"Huh? No..."

Tsuna's cute confusion made Ichiro blink. He started driving, glancing at his son with a puzzled look.

"No? Then why are you so happy?"

"Well, it doesn't matter, dad! They have some good players, I think," Tsuna said, his giggles filling the car.

Ichiro was even more confused but he listened.

Tsuna's expression lit up as he laughed even louder, "They totally ran me over!"

"...You're having fun like that?"

"Why?"

Tsuna turned to his dad, tilting his head in genuine confusion, "Is it not fun?"

GRACK——!

Ichiro had to stop the car mid-road, earning honks from other drivers. He stared at Tsuna with his eyes widened in shock.

"...!"

Tsuna's expression was so clear, so alive.

It was like someone starving, finally seeing food. His smile was wide, almost twisted as if he had just received the best gift in the world.

That was the first time Ichiro had seen Tsuna make such an expression...

...and the last, since just a few weeks later, the spark was gone, and the boredom continued.

After Ichiro tried to find out what happened, he only heard that Tsuna had run them over this time.

"He won't get bored again this time, right?"

Ichiro muttered to himself, his eyes still on Tsuna.

He was saddened by what happened to Tsuna's right hand, but seeing how he could have such an expression once again somehow made him feel it was a blessing since he knew it wouldn't be possible without the accident.

He smiled softly as he let out a soft sigh, "Go on son... have more fun... be alive..."

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