Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty
Chapter 559: An Unexpected Turn

"BEEEP! BEEEP—!"

The final whistle blew, signalling the end of the first match in Group A of the Club World Championship.

[CA San Juan 25 – 17 Nizhnev]

[CA San Juan 27 – 25 Nizhnev]

[CA San Juan 25 – 19 Nizhnev]

San Juan Club, ranked lower in the world rankings, swept Nizhnev 3–0 in a commanding upset.

In the third set alone, Kaedehara Taichi scored 16 points, while Nizhnev's so-called "Big Three" combined for just 15: Mikhail with 6, Viktor with 5, and Igor with 4.

"That was incredible!" Alexander exclaimed with a cheerful tone. "Kageyama, is that the guy you could never beat?"

"And Oikawa-senpai as well," Kageyama Tobio added.

But it was clear Alexander had no interest in talking about the other setter.

"When we face San Juan, just toss everything to me!"

"I'll only set to whoever can score," Kageyama replied flatly.

"Haha! That means me, obviously!" Alexander declared without hesitation.

Surprisingly, none of the Trentino players nearby objected.

Seeing Kageyama looking unusually worried, Alexander laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Relax, Kageyama. Since the gods have sent you to my side, it means we're destined to defeat all our opponents."

"This is the will of the gods."

"Ah, I'm not nervous," Kageyama replied calmly. "I'm just…a little too excited to stay still."

Oikawa-senpai. Taichi. And…Hinata.

-----

"In the end, we still couldn't stuff your spikes," Mikhail said as he shook Taichi's hand. "Looks like we'll have to wait for the next opportunity."

"You don't seem to show any sign of frustration," Taichi hinted meaningfully.

Mikhail still had that gentle smile on his face even after the match ended.

"I did my best," Mikhail said serenely. "People have to learn to accept reality. Pointless emotions won't change anything."

"Is that so?"

Mikhail nodded lightly. Just as he was about to turn away, Taichi suddenly spoke up again, "But the reason you don't look frustrated…is because you didn't actually give it your all, right?"

"Unless you already expected to lose from the start, how could you so easily accept this result?"

Mikhail's footsteps faltered for a moment, but he didn't look back. He continued walking away, gradually fading from view.

-----

The Club World Championship group stage used a single round-robin system: each team played every other team in its group once. Rankings and advancement were determined by total wins and points.

If a match ended 3–0 or 3–1, the winner earned 3 points and the loser received 0. If a match went to 3–2, the winner got 2 points and the loser was still awarded 1 point (as a reward for pushing the match to a decisive set).

This scoring system encouraged stronger teams to finish matches quickly, while also recognising the efforts of teams that fought hard to the very end.

After the first Group A match, San Juan stood at the top of the table with 3 points.

-----

Taichi originally thought the first match in Group B would be boring. Al-Rayyan Club had been Ryujin's opponent in the Asian Championship final, and he was quite familiar with them. Logically, there shouldn't have been any major upsets.

However, when Taichi and Oikawa arrived courtside for the Group B match, the scoreboard shocked them: Ryujin NIPPON 0–1 Al-Rayyan.

They arrived just as the second set was underway.

[Ryujin 13 – 10 Al-Rayyan]

"These guys are really something else…" Oikawa stood behind the advertising boards, so speechless he almost wanted to laugh.

Taichi glanced at the players on court and quickly understood what was going on.

On Ryujin's side: Sakusa Kiyoomi, Ojiro Aran, Hirugami Fukurō, Heiwajima Toshirō, Kunimi Akira, and Iizuna Tsukasa—practically an ultimate defence formation.

"Looks like they lost the first set because of those unstable elements," Taichi said with a chuckle.

Trying to out-hit other teams at the Club World Championship was too risky for Ryujin. While Al-Rayyan's domestic players weren't strong, Qatar had money.

They had recruited top-level players from Poland, Brazil, and other major leagues. Once Ryujin abandoned their superior receive-and-defense strategy and got sucked into Al-Rayyan's rhythm, losing a set was almost inevitable.

"After all, Atsumu and Bokuto are both stubborn. The more they get blocked, the more they want to break through right there."

A clear, melodious voice sounded from behind them, tinged with a familiar warmth.

"Ah—Chiba-chan~" Oikawa froze for a moment before recognising her. Compared to her youthful, vibrant high school self, Chiba Kaho now carried an added air of maturity.

"Long time no see, Oikawa-senpai," Chiba said with a soft smile. "And…Taichi."

"Ah…yeah."

For some reason, Taichi felt an odd tinge of awkwardness.

Oikawa, sensing the strange atmosphere in the air, rolled his eyes quickly—and came up with an idea.

"Long time no see, Chiba-chan! I missed you sooo much~"

Oikawa spread his arms wide and moved as if to hug her.

Slap!

Chiba Yoshiha swiftly smacked the player handbook against Oikawa Tōru's face and simultaneously took a step back. Oikawa froze on the spot—Kaedehara Taichi was gripping the collar of his shirt from behind.

"Tch, I knew it," Oikawa complained, clearly dissatisfied. "But you guys are being too cruel! How could you treat your senpai like this?!"

"The one being over the top is you! Acting like some creep!"

Bang!

Before Oikawa could react, a scorching "rock fist" slammed straight into his stomach.

"Iwa-chan, you—!"

Oikawa doubled over in pain, clutching his stomach.

"Chiba, did this idiot scare you?" Iwaizumi Hajime patted his hands as if nothing had happened. "Taichi, long time no see."

"Iwaizumi-senpai, long time no see," Taichi greeted, releasing Oikawa's collar as though none of it had happened.

"Iwa-chan…long time no see…"

Oikawa squatted on the ground, struggling to raise his hand and weakly waving it in front of Iwaizumi's face.

Ignoring him completely, Iwaizumi walked over to Taichi's side, pinched his arm, then squatted down to feel his calves and thighs.

"I-Iwaizumi-senpai…"

Taichi took two steps back, wearing a strange expression. What was with these third-years? One was more bizarre than the other.

"Ahem…occupational habit of a trainer…" Iwaizumi awkwardly scratched his head. "Your muscle condition is excellent—it's hard to believe you just finished a match."

"It wasn't that hard, since we finished it pretty quickly," Taichi answered honestly.

"If Yaku heard that, he'd probably drag you to play another few sets," Iwaizumi laughed.

Taichi simply shrugged, as if he didn't mind at all.

BOOM!!

The volleyball struck the block and flew out of bounds—a touch-out.

Kunimi Akira scored with a spike!

[Ryujin 15 – 12 Al-Rayyan]

Their attention shifted back to the court.

"Wow! Kunimi is that strong now?!"

Oikawa deliberately acted surprised, clearly trying to reclaim some presence. But what he said wasn't entirely wrong. Given Kunimi's height, successfully spiking off the block against world-class blockers was no easy feat. It required precise angles and spin control.

[Kunimi Akira—Opposite Hitter:Height: 185 cm

Serve: 92 | Receive: 96 | Dig: 92 | Set: 96 | Spike: 94| Block: 82

Spike Reach: 348 cm /Block Reach: 322 cm.]

"Though they lost the first set to Qatar, Coach Suzaku wasn't underestimating them," Iwaizumi explained. "The opponents keep improving too—at a world-class level, our (Ryujin's) offence still needs time to adjust."

Taichi thought for a moment and quickly understood Iwaizumi's point.

In this Club World Championship, Ryujin's situation resembled Nekoma's back in high school.

Passive defence alone only delayed the inevitable defeat—they needed to sharpen all their offensive weapons if they wanted to advance further.

Once Coach Suzaku adjusted their strategy in the second set to focus on exhausting the opponent's attacks, Al-Rayyan struggled to execute effective counterattacks.

If they couldn't score in a single swing and got dragged into long rallies, they would eventually be worn down and outlasted by Ryujin.

-----

In the end, the second set's outcome became clear.

[Ryujin 25 – 21 Al-Rayyan]

Ryujin tied the match score at 1–1.

_________

[T/N] - If you guys want to read 50 Chapters in advance of the current story, you can support me on my Patreon. Trust me, it's awesome!

Link - (P)atreon.com/Iseeblack [Remove the brackets]