Chapter 89: Promotional Plan

The gymnasium, which had quieted down after Karasuno's victory, was now buzzing with excitement again.

TWEET

A sharp whistle echoed from the court where Aoba Johsai was playing as Oikawa stood at the service line with the ball held lightly in his hands.

"Phew..."

He took a deep breath and tossed it high into the air.

The noise around him—the cheers, the chatter, the stomping feet—faded away. His vision narrowed, focusing only on the other side of the court.

The world outside seemed to disappear as he was completely immersed in the moment.

He took a slow step forward, then another. His pace quickened, his legs carrying him toward the ball as it began its descent.

"Which one should, ah... it should be you..."

Oikawa's eyes locked onto his target—the player with the weakest receive on the opposing team.

"...!"

The player seemed to have felt Oikawa's gaze on him as he tensed up, he wanted to get someone to cover for him but he didn't exactly had the time for it.

Thud.

The sound of Oikawa's jump was soft, almost inaudible to anyone but him. And as he jumped, everything seemed to slow down.

His body arched gracefully, like a bow drawn tight. His arm swung forward, the motion sharp and...

BANG!

The sound of the serve was like a gunshot as the ball rocketed across the net with terrifying speed.

"...!"

The opposing players flinched, their reactions too slow. Before they could even move, the ball slammed into the floor with a loud thud.

It bounced out of the court, rolling to a stop as if mocking their inability to react.

"..."

Everything happened so quickly that as Oikawa landed lightly on his feet, the reaction to his serve was nothing but silence.

"Hmm, he can't react to it?"

He watched the ball roll away, his breath steady. Then, he smiled—a small, confident smile—and turned to the crowd as he silently thought, 'Maybe I should just aim it right at him?'

Despite his chilling thought...

"Service ace!"

The gym erupted. The crowd roared, their excitement reaching a fever pitch. The girls screamed Oikawa's name, their voices piercing through the noise.

"Tch..."

Tanaka clicked his tongue, his eyes narrowing as he watched Oikawa bask in the applause. "No matter how many times I've seen it, it's still scary to imagine being on the receiving end."

"...Agree."

The rest of Karasuno nodded, their faces tense. Many of them had faced Oikawa's serves during practice matches. They knew firsthand how terrifying it was to stand on the other side of the net when he was serving.

"That is certainly a strong serve," Keishin commented.

He had to admit, it was one of the most impressive serves he had ever seen in the tournament, even though it had only just begun.

"I'm sure there aren't many with such a powerful serve around. But what's really scary is his control."

"..."

Kageyama's ear twitched at the remark. He silently clenched his fist, his competitive spirit flaring up.

"To be able to aim your serve anywhere you want is definitely going to give anyone trouble," Keishin continued, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

He was already thinking about reshuffling their starting lineup.

They would almost certainly face that serve tomorrow.

As they kept watching, it became clear just how deadly Oikawa's serve was. He seemed unstoppable, dominating the court with precision and power.

But then...

"Ah, he screwed it up?"

Oikawa faltered. He put a little too much force into his arm, and the serve went wide, flying out of bounds.

"Ahh..."

"That's unfortunate!"

"Don't mind, Oikawa-senpai!"

The crowd gasped, and Aoba Johsai's captain immediately got a sharp slap on the back of his head from Iwaizumi.

"Kekeke..."

"I'd double that slap."

"Yeah."

Karasuno's players snickered gleefully, enjoying the moment. But their amusement didn't last long.

"...!"

Oikawa noticed them and waved his hand with a smirk, instantly souring their mood as Tanaka mumbled out loud, "Urgh... so annoying..."

The game continued, and the gymnasium grew even louder. The noise reverberated through the corridors, reaching Tsuna as he calmly made his way out.

He had just checked his phone, reading a text that made him pause.

"I didn't know it was today."

The text was from Machida.

She was supposed to help him with his Instanoodle account to promote Ichiro's new song. Tsuna quickly texted his dad, asking him to meet outside.

"Hmm...?"

As he walked down the corridor, he suddenly stopped as he met someone unexpected.

"..."

Shimizu was standing there, her eyes widening slightly as she noticed him.

She had also come to a stop, and for a moment, the two of them just stared at each other. The noise from the gym faded into the background, leaving an awkward silence between them.

"..."

The tension in the air made her uncomfortable.

She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could speak, Tsuna continued walking, his eyes glued to his phone.

He walked past her without a second glance.

"...!"

Shimizu felt her chest tighten, a mix of emotions swirling inside her. She softly called out, "Tsuna..."

"...Yeah?"

He stopped, turning his head slightly to look at her. Shimizu hesitated, her voice quiet as she asked, "Are you... not going to watch the game?"

Aoba Johsai would be their next opponent. It was almost certain, considering how easily they were dominating their current match.

"There's no point in watching it..."

"..."

Shimizu understood his answer. She opened her mouth to say something more but closed it again, unsure of what to say.

Her emotions were a tangled mess, making it hard to think straight.

Tsuna continued, "...I know Oikawa's gonna win. Besides, I have something better to do."

"..."

With that, Tsuna left her standing there, her mind racing with complicated feelings she couldn't quite sort out. Tsuna, however, didn't seem to notice or understand the effect his words had on her.

He kept walking, ignoring the occasional players who pointed at him as he passed.

Finally, he reached the entrance.

"Tsuna-kun!"

Machida's voice rang out, cheerful and bright.

Tsuna turned, raising his eyebrows as he saw his dad already there. Both Machida and Ichiro were waving at him.

He quickly approached them, his lips curling into a small smile.

"Haha, who knew Ichiro-san was so knowledgeable about fashion!"

But that smile faltered the moment he heard Machida's remark.

"That's natural, hahaha!"

"..."

Tsuna's lips twitched. He was once again reminded of his dad's... unique sense of style that he's wearing right now.

He could feel people's eyes on them, and it took all his willpower not to groan out loud. He stared at his dad, who was laughing heartily, with a deadpan expression.

"You should've told me sooner about this, Tsuna-kun," Machida said, nodding at him.

She seemed to have talked quite a bit about fashion with Ichiro. The two of them had already grown closer in such a short time.

Tsuna just rolled his eyes while mumbling, "Maybe I shouldn't at all..."

"Still, I wasn't expecting a visit again so soon. Did my son finally lose it and do something illegal?" Ichiro asked, scratching his head with a teasing grin.

Tsuna grumbled, "I won't do that..."

"Ahaha, seems like he hasn't told you yet," Machida said, raising her eyebrows. She quickly explained the situation to Ichiro, who widened his eyes in surprise.

"Tsuna!"

Then, in true dramatic fashion, Ichiro cried out loudly and pulled Tsuna into a tight hug, "Look how you've grown, taking care of your old man like that! I want to say I'm proud of you, but I'm Asian, so I'll just say that's decent filial piety coming from you!"

"...Yeah, right. Get off me, please," Tsuna muttered, trying to squirm out of his dad's grip.

"Fufu... no need to be embarrassed, Tsuna-kun," Machida said, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

"..."

Tsuna's face was flushed red. Between being in public, the many eyes on them, and his dad's overly conspicuous outfit... he was completely and utterly embarrassed.

He just wanted the ground to swallow him whole.

As Tsuna finally managed to guide them away from the public eye, Machida began explaining their plan to Ichiro.

His dad seemed enthusiastic at first, but then...

"What is Instanoodle?"

...they had forgotten that Ichiro was a boomer.

This led to a lengthy session of explaining the whole Instanoodle trend to him. Machida patiently described how it worked and how it could give his first song the kind of publicity most newcomers could only dream of.

"Alright, now that you understand a bit, we should find a place to talk about the details," Machida said with a smile.

Tsuna raised his hand, interrupting. "Could you send me back to school later?"

"Huh? Don't you have a tournament? Why do you need to go to school?"

Ichiro asked, confused.

Tsuna shook his head. "Keishin-san told us we're having a strategy briefing at the gym later. We're facing a strong team tomorrow..."

"Ah, sure. Don't worry about it," Machida replied quickly.

"...?"

Tsuna blinked, realizing something.

Speaking of Keishin...

'He's missing out on a chance to sta—uh, talk with his crush...'

Tsuna couldn't help but feel a little amused.