Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty-Chapter 539: What São Paulo Must Face—(Double-Length)

Oikawa Tōru launched his third serve.

Even after São Paulo had switched back to a standard receiving formation, Oikawa kept targeting Fernand with a powerful jump serve.

Smack!!!

Fernand barely managed to receive it, and the ball flew high into the air.

Reilly stepped in to assist with the set—Leal jumped from the left wing for the spike!

—BOOM!!!

The ball flew past Bruno's block and slammed hard into San Juan's court.

Leal scored!

[San Juan 22 – 18 São Paulo]

When it came to offensive height, São Paulo still had a clear advantage.

Serve switch.

Leal counted silently, then fired off a powerful jump serve!

BOOM!!!

The ball curved violently with heavy side spin—heading straight for Oikawa Tōru.

Smack!

Kaedehara Taichi stepped in and shielded him, receiving the ball solidly.

Oikawa jumped smoothly and tossed the ball high above the middle.

Swoosh!—

Conte leapt high, his arm snapping tight for a powerful hit!

BOOOM!!!

The ball pierced cleanly between Souza and Reilly's double block and rebounded off the ground right in front of Fernand.

Conte scored!

[San Juan 23 – 18 São Paulo]

With both teams so evenly matched, any point gap was extremely hard to close once it opened.

Serve switch. San Juan serve.

"This set—we're claiming it!" Ramos declared, stepping up to serve.

BOOM!!!

Thud!!!

"Out!"

Ramos's serve went long. São Paulo clawed back a point.

[San Juan 23 – 19 São Paulo]

"Don't rush it. Just steady yourself," Conte said calmly.

"Yessir…" Ramos replied sheepishly.

Serve switch. São Paulo serve.

Wallace stood at the service line, slapping the ball firmly.

"Tweet!—" The whistle blew.

BOOOM!!!

The ball roared across the net the instant the whistle sounded—targeting the space between Oikawa and Danani!

SMACK!!!

Danani slid sideways to receive, but the sheer force of the serve bent his arms downward.

THUD!

The ball ricocheted forward and crashed onto the court.

Wallace scored an ace!

[San Juan 23 – 20 São Paulo]

"Looks like a serve aimed between two players—but it's actually targeting the libero."

Conte analysed. "That sharp trajectory and ridiculous power…even Danani struggled to handle it."

Conte rotated into the back row, expanding San Juan's defensive coverage.

São Paulo continued serving.

Wallace tossed the ball, took his approach, jumped, and slammed it!

Second serve—this time aimed between Taichi and Oikawa!

SMACK!

Taichi darted forward and received the ball solidly. The pass was only half-accurate.

Oikawa jumped to set. Conte charged in from the right for an attack.

"Double block!" Souza and Reilly jumped in tandem.

—BOOM!!!

Over-the-block spike!

The ball cleared Reilly's hands—Conte was still in phenomenal form!

Smack!!

Wallace dug the ball just at waist height!

Fernand quickly moved in to set it up—Leal leapt from the back row for the spike!

"Double block!" Loser and Conte were already in position, sealing off Leal's angle!

—BOOM!!

Leal aimed for Conte's fingertips and smashed it!

Perfect placement!

The ball soared wide toward the baseline—

SMACK!

Taichi chased it all the way to the back line, leapt, twisted mid-air, and bumped it back into play!

Oikawa caught it near the three-meter line and leapt to set—

Loser and Conte split wide, launching their attacks from opposite sides!

BOOM!!!

The ball veered around Souza's solo block, pierced between Wallace and Leal, and slammed down just inside São Paulo's baseline.

A sharp, clean line shot!

Loser scored!

[San Juan 24 – 20 São Paulo]

San Juan had reached set point!

"Whoa! As expected from a genius like me—that was razor-sharp!" Loser shouted with glee.

Conte: "..."

Quietly took back any compliments he'd considered giving.

Serve switch. Conte stepped up to the line. Taichi rotated back into the front row.

"Tweet!—"

Conte tossed the ball, approached, jumped, and struck—

BOOOM!!!

Leal and Sanhos moved to receive—

SMACK!!!

The ball hit Leal's arm and flew out of bounds.

Conte scored an ace!

[San Juan 25 – 20 São Paulo]

Taichi clicked his tongue—He'd just rotated to the front row and hadn't even had a chance to contribute before the set ended.

"125.3 km/h!"

Conte sealed the first set with a serve!

-----

There was no doubt that the MVP of the first set was Facundo Conte.

1 point from a block

1 point from a serve

10 attack attempts, 6 successful spikes

Total: 8 points

Kaedehara Taichi: 8 spikes, 5 successful.

Loser: 8 spikes, 5 successful.

Oikawa Tōru: 1 point from a second-touch attack, 2 from serves—3 points total.

San Juan's point distribution was exceptionally well-balanced.

As for São Paulo:

Wallace: 1 ace, 12 spikes, 7 successful—8 points total.

Leal: 10 spikes, 7 successful.

São Paulo only scored 20 points in the first set, and Wallace and Leal alone accounted for over three-quarters of that.

"Looks like São Paulo's offence just isn't firing today…"

Coach José rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "On paper, their ball distribution between Wallace and Leal makes sense—Wallace handles the key attacks, and Leal supports."

"But right now, Wallace's condition clearly isn't as good as Leal's. If it were Oikawa setting, he'd probably shift the offensive balance—unless…"

"…São Paulo's strategy is to force Wallace back into rhythm by overloading him with touches."

"If that's the case—then this match will be ours for the taking."

Coach José tapped his fingers, a hint of confidence in his tone.

Whether it's the South American Championship or the upcoming Club World Championship, gaining early dominance over a strong rival is crucial.

-----

The second set began.

CA San Juan's lineup was:

Front row—Setter Oikawa Tōru, Middle Blocker Agustín Loser, Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi.

Back row—Outside Hitter Facundo Conte, Middle Blocker Martín Ramos (Libero: Santiago Danani) and Opposite Hitter Bruno Lima.

ASAS São Paulo's lineup was:

Front row—Outside Hitter Luca Reilly, Opposite Hitter Wallace Souza, Middle Blocker Darlan Souza.

Back row—Middle Blocker Lucas Saatkamp (Libero: Sanhos), Setter Fernand Collin and Outside Hitter Yoandy Leal.

In this second set, José Blanco moved Kaedehara Taichi to the "ace left-wing position," while Oikawa stood closer to Conte in rotation to enhance Conte's offensive threat.

Just as Oikawa had predicted, Coach José was clearly using this South American Championship to decide once and for all who San Juan's true ace would be.

São Paulo, on the other hand, separated Wallace and Leal to maintain constant offensive pressure in the front row. Their core attacker remained Wallace, with Leal taking the starting rotation due to his strong serves.

São Paulo served first to begin the second set.

Leal tossed the ball—a powerful jump serve right out of the gate!

BOOM!!!

Danani struggled to receive the serve—

"Oikawa!"

"Ahhh, our little monster couldn't hold back any longer."

Oikawa quickly stepped into position, his hands rising to meet the ball. His fingers moved with delicate force, and the moment they contacted the ball, his wrist gave a light flick, neutralising the impact and sending it into a beautiful arc.

Whoosh!—

A high set to the right wing!

The trajectory wasn't fast, but it was incredibly stable.

Thud!

Kaedehara Taichi charged down the sideline and leapt up.

"Triple block!" Reilly, Wallace, and Souza all jumped in sync.

Three towering players over two meters tall formed an iron wall—an overwhelming presence.

—BOOOM!!!

A blur streaked through the air—Leal had only stepped back one stride and hadn't yet fully set up to receive.

THUD!!!

The ball smashed down on São Paulo's end line and ricocheted up.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[San Juan 1 – 0 São Paulo]

"So strong! That guy's reach is insanely high!"

"And the speed of that shot!" Coach Bernardo Rezende added. "That kind of height doesn't even seem like a challenge to him."

"His serving and spiking power…" Hinata Shōyō murmured. This was the core lesson he had to learn next. Even if Hinata could mimic the same height with a fingertip spike, back-row defenders would still be able to dig it.

With just one ball, San Juan snatched away serve control.

-----

Oikawa stepped up to serve.

"Tweet!—" The whistle blew.

He tossed the ball, ran up, leapt, and struck it—

BOOOM!!!

No holding back—a bold power serve!

SMACK!!!

Leal received it. The first pass was only half on target.

Fernand moved up to cover and set the ball high in the middle. Wallace leapt for the spike!

"Triple block!" Loser, Taichi, and Bruno jumped together.

BOOM!!!—

—SMACK!!!

Blocked!

The ball hit Taichi's arm and dropped.

Sanhos dived from the back row and managed to save it!

"Cover!"

Reilly stepped in and sent the ball high to the right side—Souza jumped to spike!

BOOM!!!—

—SMACK!!

With a crisp, clean sound, the ball slammed down on São Paulo's sideline and bounced up—

Kaedehara Taichi, solo block, point!

[San Juan 2 – 0 São Paulo]

"Him again?!"

"Two perfect blocks in a row?!"

Oikawa wore a subtle smile. Even if Taichi pretended to not care much about the "ace" label, once he was given full offensive rights, his playstyle transformed completely.

Now, São Paulo had to face a Kaedehara Taichi fully focused on offence.

-----

San Juan continued serving.

"Taichi, I can read your thoughts like a book."

BOOM!!!—

Oikawa sent out a second serve.

Smack!!!

The ball hit Fernand's arm and flew out of bounds—Leal sprinted to save it!

Smack!

The ball curved out beyond the antenna toward San Juan's side—

Unsaveable.

"Push through and crush them in one go!"

Oikawa scored with another serve!

[San Juan 3 – 0 São Paulo]

"Sorry, that's on me," Leal said calmly.

He had assumed Fernand's pass had mostly neutralised the spin, so he tried to bump it directly to the net to initiate an attack. But he'd underestimated Oikawa's serve—or overestimated Fernand's passing.

Oikawa stepped back to serve again.

With a 3–0 opening, São Paulo could already feel the pressure building.

BOOM!!!

Oikawa's third serve flew like a missile toward São Paulo's back row!

Smack!!

The serve was too direct, but Fernand received it solidly. The pass, once again, was only half on target.

Reilly moved in as backup—Wallace and Souza began their approach!

"Loser, middle!"

"Got it!"

"Double block!"

Taichi and Loser read it perfectly—they anticipated Wallace's middle hit and sealed it off.

There was no room to swing.

BOOM!!!—

SMACK!!!

Wallace's spike slammed directly into Loser's arm.

"One touch!"

Loser's arm wobbled slightly but held his blocking form steady.

Danani easily retrieved the ball near the baseline—Oikawa jumped to set—

"Let's go!"

Thump!

Taichi widened his approach—then soared at the net!

"Triple block!"

Oikawa's high toss was obvious, allowing São Paulo to immediately organise a three-man block.

However—

That figure rising above the block looked almost blinding—like the sun.

—BOOM!!!

Over-the-block spike!

The ball soared over the block and slammed into Leal's barely-raised arms—bounced out of bounds!

Kaedehara Taichi scored again!

[San Juan 4 – 0 São Paulo]

"What the hell?!"

"Triple block, and he still cleared it?!"

"That's Wallace—the guy who once single-handedly blocked León!"

"Zotto, bring me everything we have on this San Juan player," Coach Bernardo demanded.

Coach Darlan, who had anticipated this exact scenario, handed over the compiled data.

Bernardo rapidly flipped through Kaedehara Taichi's professional career—not much of it yet, only two seasons. But the more he read, the deeper his frown became.

"Graduated high school at 16, turned 17 a month later and went pro. First season: champion of Japan's V1 League. Age 18: champion of Argentina's A1 League…"

"Zotto, what's your take?" Bernardo asked gravely. He knew this assistant coach had a knack for spotting unusual talents—surely he had studied Taichi cLosery.

"World-class superstar," said Darlan Zotto seriously.

Seventeen wasn't the youngest debut age—Wallace had gone pro at 16, and León had already stood on the world stage at 17.

But the mere fact that Kaedehara Taichi could be compared to those two said everything.

"Argentina's A1 League is tougher, but San Juan was already a championship team before he joined. What impressed me more was how, in his very first season as a pro, he led a second-tier Japanese team to win the V1 League title…"

"Coach José just wasn't bold enough. If it were me, I'd have declared him the team's ace last season."

Bernardo shook his head. A head coach had to weigh many factors—and naming a new player as ace over an existing MVP on a championship team? That would be madness.

"I agree with your first point," Bernardo said. "But what actually scares me is something else."

Bernardo picked up his phone and searched for Taichi's high school match history.

Just as he suspected.

"His win rate is too damn high."

"Huh?" Darlan looked confused. Winning championships naturally means a high win rate, right?

Bernardo glanced at him knowingly.

"Not just high—ridiculously high. Across every match he's played, against every kind of opponent—weak, strong, equal—his teams almost always win."

"Do you realise what that means?"

Darlan's eyes widened slightly. He leaned in and scanned the data.

In both his second year of high school and in the A1 League, Kaedehara Taichi was undefeated.

Even in his first year and rookie pro season, his team's win rate remained above 90%.

They didn't just dominate weaker teams—even teams of equal skill struggled to take a single set off him.

The word upset didn't exist in his matches.

Stronger opponents often lost after fierce battles—becoming the fuel for his evolution.

"This…" Darlan had only ever seen this kind of trait in a select few legendary players.

"The ability to control the flow of a match—and end it in clutch moments."

Bernardo's gaze turned sharp.

"For players like that, once the game falls into their rhythm—it's nearly impossible to take it back."

_________

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