Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty-Chapter 553: Crushing Defeat (Double-Length)

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The serve rotated—San Juan's turn.

Ramos unleashed a powerful jump serve. Kobzar received it, but the first pass was only partially accurate.

Victor leapt at the net to act as an emergency setter.

For the players of Nizhnev, the one truth they didn't want to admit was this: Kaedehara Taichi's blocking might very well be on par with theirs—or even stronger.

Fwoosh—!

The ball flew toward the left wing.

Victor instinctively avoided setting toward Taichi's side.

Mikhail soared into the air for the spike.

"Double block!" Loser and Bruno jumped up together.

—BOOM!!!

The volleyball blasted just above Bruno's block, hitting Oikawa's arm and bouncing out of bounds—a clean line shot straight down the centre.

Mikhail scored.

[San Juan 6 – 3 Nizhnev]

This kind of play should have been routine for Nizhnev—but for some reason, Kobzar didn't feel any relief until the point was actually confirmed.

I have to find a way to shift the momentum on court...

The serve switched. Nizhnev now serving.

Mikhail tossed the ball high and launched a thunderous jump serve.

BOOM!!!—

If there was anyone on Nizhnev who hadn't been affected by Kaedehara Taichi's presence, it was Mikhail.

BANG!!!

The ball slammed down on San Juan's back line and bounced out of play.

"In!"

Mikhail scored directly with his serve!

[San Juan 6 – 4 Nizhnev]

"123 km/h!"

—"Mikhail steadies the tempo for Nizhnev with consecutive points!"

"Nice serve!" Yaku Morisuke shouted encouragingly.

These two points were crucial—they absolutely couldn't let themselves be swept up in Taichi's rhythm so easily.

Nizhnev continued their serve.

Mikhail sent the second ball flying!

BOOM!!!

San Juan's four-man back row moved to receive. Mikhail's serve was still targeted precisely at the setter's position.

Smack!

Oikawa barely managed to dig it up.

"Nice!" Kobzar shouted.

Bruno moved to receive the set. At the same time, both Loser and Taichi launched into their approach!

"Right side!"

The front row of Nizhnev quickly read the trajectory—Bruno's set was heading toward the right. Taichi jumped for the spike.

"Triple block!" Victor, Volvich, and Kobzar all rose together.

We have to shut him down!

—BOOM!!!—

Taichi slammed the ball down with brute force—his sharp-angle spike ricocheted off Ivan's arms and flew out of bounds.

Kaedehara Taichi scored again.

[San Juan 7 – 4 Nizhnev]

"What's so 'nice' about that?" Taichi gave Kobzar a sideways glance, cold and sharp.

Kobzar took a deep breath and replied earnestly, "We will stop you—on the honour of Nizhnev."

"Heh~" Taichi chuckled indifferently and turned toward the service line.

The serve switched—San Juan to serve.

Nizhnev immediately shifted into full alert.

They had just witnessed Oikawa's serve with their own eyes, and Taichi's serve…needed no elaborate description—

"Best Server of Japan's V1 League."

"Best Server of Argentina's A1 League."

"Best Server of the South American Championship."

Without hesitation, Nizhnev adopted a five-man receive formation.

"Tweet!—"The whistle blew.

Taichi tossed the ball, ran up, jumped, and struck it.

—BANG!!!

The serve wasn't fast—it floated with erratic movement, wobbling toward the only middle blocker stationed up front: Volvich.

A float serve? At this level of international play? That's just insulting!

Volvich tracked the unpredictable flight path, took one step back, and reached up to receive.

"Don't step back!"

"Huh?"

Just as his hands neared the ball, it suddenly dropped like a rock, as if pulled down by an invisible force.

SLAP!

The ball smacked Volvich in the face and popped up.

Smack!

Yaku dove forward from the back row and barely managed to dig it up.

Ivan chased from behind and, faced with San Juan's towering block, could only tip the ball gently into the backcourt.

Santiago easily received it and bumped it forward. Taichi leapt up from the back row and spiked directly!

"Double block!" The humiliated Volvich and Kobzar jumped in sync.

FWOOSH—!

The ball shot toward the left wing—Conte leapt to spike!

Victor went up for a solo block.

BOOM!!!

The ball dodged the block and slammed into the centre of Nizhnev's court.

Conte scored!

[San Juan 8 – 4 Nizhnev]

"You that desperate to block me?" Taichi's lips curled into a faint smirk.

"Beep!—"

Technical timeout.

In men's Club World Championship matches, a technical timeout is automatically triggered in the first four sets when either team reaches 8 or 16 points. Each timeout lasts 60 seconds and provides teams with a chance to hydrate and make tactical adjustments.

In the fifth set (the decider), there are no technical timeouts—only two strategic timeouts per team.

At the start of the match, San Juan's seamless coordination and overwhelming attacks left Nizhnev completely unable to respond—drawing murmurs of astonishment from the crowd.

However, the electrifying Kaedehara Taichi had now rotated to the back row, and Nizhnev's block—no matter the rotation—had an average height of over two meters.

"We have to receive the ball and fight through this guy's serve with pure firepower!" Coach Maksim bellowed. "Our greatest weapon is our block—don't get complacent just because Yaku is back there covering you!"

"Shut them down with blocks! I want you to turn the momentum with your wall!"

"Yes, Coach!" the Nizhnev players responded with focus and resolve.

-----

The timeout ended, and the match resumed.

Facing Taichi's serve again, Nizhnev changed their back-row formation from an "L" to a "W" shape—this was to account for the possibility of the serve targeting the front row.

"Tweet!—" The whistle blew again.

Taichi tossed the ball, approached, jumped, and struck!

BOOM!!!

"Left hand!" Yaku shouted.

SMACK!!!

The ball struck Kobzar's arm and flew out of bounds.

Kaedehara Taichi aced again.

[San Juan 9 – 4 Nizhnev]

Reading the ball correctly and actually receiving it—there was still a vast gap between the two...

San Juan continued serving.

Taichi served his third ball!

SMACK!!

Mikhail received it—partially on target!

Kobzar quickly moved into position and sent a high set.

Victor sprinted along the left sideline, jumped, and swung at the ball!

"Triple block!" Conte, Loser, and Bruno all jumped.

Victor twisted his torso midair and whipped his right arm around with explosive force.

BOOM!!—

The ball pierced through the three-man block and pounded San Juan's right sideline.

"Out!"

Unfortunately, it landed just outside the line.

[San Juan 10 – 4 Nizhnev]

"No!" Coach Maksim slammed his fist against the tactic board.

—"Nizhnev's rhythm seems completely off in this first set. Victor just made another error on his spike."

—"Well, considering the difficulty of pulling off a cross-court shot against a triple block, it's understandable. Still, it seems like Victor might be affected by Taichi's earlier spike…"

-----

"Pffft—hahahaha…"

Inside a hotel room near the PalaLottomatica Sports Arena, the players of Brazil's São Paulo team were gathered, watching the match together.

The burst of laughter came from none other than their opposite hitter, Wallace, who looked like he'd just seen something absurdly amusing.

"They're not just off-rhythm, are they?" Wallace roared with laughter. "I bet that kid's pressure has them suffocating."

"You were the same when we faced San Juan," Luca Reilly mumbled.

"I heard that loud and clear, you know," Wallace shot back, though clearly unbothered.

"Hinata, you spent three years in high school playing against that kind of monster?" Yoandy Leal asked curiously.

"Only two," Hinata Shōyō replied. "Taichi graduated early and joined the pro league back in Japan."

"Well, of course. I wouldn't want to waste time playing with kids either. So boring," Wallace agreed wholeheartedly.

Hinata muttered, "...I'm not a kid anymore."

"Pfft, maybe," Wallace said, placing one large hand over Hinata's head. "You're still a fun little runt though."

-----

BOOM!!!

Volvich spiked and scored!

[San Juan 20 – 15 Nizhnev]

The serve switched—Nizhnev's turn.

They had already used up both of their timeouts. The point gap had only narrowed by one.

With the two technical timeouts also behind them, Nizhnev's players could now only adjust their strategy and mentality on the court itself.

Victor tossed the ball up and delivered a powerful jump serve!

Smack!

Kaedehara Taichi received it—decent, but not perfect.

Oikawa quickly stepped in to cover. At the same time, Conte and Loser launched their approaches from the left and right wings.

"Damn it, I can't read it at all!"

Only now that Taichi had rotated to the back row did Nizhnev's players realise—they couldn't read Oikawa's setting direction at all.

If earlier, even a three-man block couldn't stop Taichi, then now, they couldn't even form a triple block in the first place!

Fwoosh!—

The ball shot toward the left. Conte jumped and spiked.

"Double block!" Volvich and Kobzar leapt up together.

BOOM!!!

The ball struck the edge of Volvich's palm and flew out of bounds.

Off the block—Conte scored.

[San Juan 21 – 15 Nizhnev]

The serve switched—San Juan's turn.

Bruno stepped up for a powerful jump serve!

Yaku Morisuke handled it cleanly—perfect receive.

Kobzar leapt to spike it from the front row, Conte jumped to form a solo block.

The ball was popped up!

Mikhail soared in for a back-row attack!

"Double block!" Conte jumped again—Loser joined from the right.

BOOM!!!—

The ball pierced through the gap between them and slammed into San Juan's back row.

Mikhail scored!

[San Juan 21 – 16 Nizhnev]

The serve switched—Nizhnev's turn.

Volvich sent out a powerful jump serve—but it clipped the top of the net and popped upward.

"I got it!"

Oikawa jumped from the front row to bump the ball. Behind him, Taichi was already in the air.

Whoosh!—

—BOOM!!

"..."

Yaku's pupils shrank—he knew it. It had gotten even faster, even more powerful.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[San Juan 22 – 16 Nizhnev]

"From Volvich's serve to San Juan's point—it took less than three seconds! That quick attack from Oikawa and Taichi was picture perfect!"

"Nizhnev's front-row blockers didn't even have time to react—!"

The commentator suddenly paused mid-sentence.

Wait a minute.

That speed of attack…That precision in setting…

The Italian audience was struck by a wave of déjà vu.

Wasn't this the signature play of Trentino's ace setter—Kageyama Tobio?!

"Are there…actually other setters who can do this?" the commentator murmured.

"First-touch ultra quick attack!"

Kobzar watched the ball sail above his head, and as a fellow setter, he knew instinctively—he could never pull something like that off.

The serve switched—San Juan to serve.

Loser sent a cannonball jump serve. Victor received it.

Kobzar jumped to set—both Ivan and Igor began their approaches.

"Double block!" Ramos and Conte jumped together, forming a wall in front of Igor.

They had read Kobzar's set perfectly.

THUD!

Igor soared, muscles taut, and hammered the ball downward.

—BOOM!!!

The ball blasted past the block and landed cleanly in San Juan's court.

Igor's high-reaching spike scored!

[San Juan 22 – 17 Nizhnev]

"369 cm!"

It wasn't quite as monstrous as Taichi's spike height, but it was still a number that only elite attackers could reach.

The crowd didn't discriminate—they cheered just as passionately.

"Your set was fine," Igor said to Kobzar. "We can score."

The serve switched—Nizhnev to serve.

The two sides continued to trade points. But for Nizhnev, that didn't ease the danger—only brought the end of the first set closer.

Kobzar launched a powerful jump serve, his face serious.

Taichi received it—cleanly.

Targeting Taichi with the serve was expected, but it always carried a risk.

"No surprise there. He is just that good~" Oikawa grinned as he moved into position and sent a high set toward the right.

No one leapt to stop a setter dump—but Yaku and Igor's positioning subtly blocked off his possible angles.

Conte jumped and spiked!

"Double block!" Igor and Mikhail jumped in sync.

BOOM!!!

"Touch!"

The ball ricocheted off Mikhail's hand.

Yaku caught it cleanly—perfect pass. Kobzar repositioned and set the ball again, deliberately slowing the tempo.

Both sides took the opportunity to readjust.

Fwoosh—!

The ball soared toward the right. Mikhail jumped to spike!

"Double block!" Ramos and Conte jumped together.

—BOOM!!!

"Again?!"

An ultra-high diagonal shot!

The ball flew over the blockers and drilled toward San Juan's back corner.

Smack!

Taichi calmly received it!

"What?!"

The reaction from Nizhnev was one of shock—but not from San Juan.

They were already used to this.

Whenever Taichi was in the back row, it was like having another elite libero on the team.

Oikawa chased down the ball and jumped for the set.

"Bruno!"

At the call, Bruno soared for a back-row spike!

"Damn it—!"

Igor and Mikhail scrambled to block the center.

Thud!

But Taichi was already sprinting down the left sideline, leaping from the back row.

No way!!!

Ivan leapt for a solo block.

Oikawa's eyes scanned the back of Nizhnev's court—

Then suddenly—he spotted Yaku in his peripheral vision.

Perfect.

A satisfied smile appeared on Oikawa's face.

Fwoosh!—

The ball flew to the far right—Conte leapt and spiked!

"That setter just shredded Nizhnev's block into pieces—"

Christensen finally understood why Ushijima Wakatoshi had said he'd be interested in San Juan's setter.

Somehow, he could already sense it: Oikawa Tōru might become his strongest rival in this tournament.

THUD!

Mikhail skidded to a stop, stepped across diagonally, and jumped for a solo block!

BOOM!!!

The ball evaded the block and landed right on Nizhnev's sideline before bouncing out.

Conte scored again!

[San Juan 23 – 17 Nizhnev]

"That bastard…" Yaku couldn't help but curse.

That gaze just now—was exactly like Kenma's.

The serve switched—San Juan to serve again. Taichi returned to the front row.

Conte stepped onto the service line, eyes lingering on Oikawa's back.

Their setter had something magical about him—he always brought out the best in every attacker.

"Tweet!—"Whistle blew.

Conte tossed the ball high—

BOOM!!!—

Full-power jump serve!

SMACK!!!

Victor received it—but it was a rough pass.

Kobzar quickly repositioned and sent the ball high over the middle. Igor jumped and swung!

"Double block!" Taichi and Ramos went up together.

BOOM!!!—

The ball squeezed past the block and flew toward San Juan's backcourt.

Smack!

Santiago received it!

The ball flew out at an angle—Oikawa chased it past the right sideline.

"Taichi!"

In tough moments, the setter's first instinct would always be—set to the ace!

Fwooosh!—

Oikawa's pass shifted seamlessly between speed and stability. And Taichi—he always understood Oikawa's intent perfectly.

Thud!

Taichi leapt high from the left.

A cross-court set from beyond the sideline—half a court away—this was second nature to both of them.

"Triple block!" Ivan, Igor, and Mikhail all leapt together.

More than the set victory—what they really wanted was to stop this ball!

BOOOM!!!

SMACK!!!

The ball punched through a gap between Ivan and Igor's arms—and bounced out of bounds.

A tool off the block.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[San Juan 24 – 17 Nizhnev]

"That's just cruel," Wallace muttered. "Not just with height—but with sheer power, too. This guy's here to crush spirits."

San Juan reached set point.

---

Conte served the second ball!

BOOM!!!

The ball struck Ivan's arm and rebounded back into San Juan's court.

"Their receive is garbage," Wallace sneered.

Santiago calmly received it. Oikawa jumped and set again.

This time—everyone knew where it was going.

And yet—

No one could stop him.

Taichi leapt for the final spike!

"Triple block!"

—BOOM!!!

The ball soared past the block and smacked off Yaku's arms, flying out of bounds.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[San Juan 25 – 17 Nizhnev]

"Beeeeep—!" The long whistle blew.

First set: Over.

Set winner: CA San Juan.

_________

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