The Birth of A Volleyball Legend-Chapter 438: Intermission - Arisawa Junya’s Adjustment

A silence full of tension fell on Kikugawa High's bench as all the players there either bowed their heads deep or covered them with a piece of towel. No one dared to stare at their coach as the older man on their bench was just looking at him with a blank face. Hell, even the jolliness that usually was heard coming from Riku was nowhere to be heard right now as the boy himself was also entangled with his own mind.

They all fell into a great depression, knowing full well that the defeat in the second set was purely because of them. In terms of quality, they all knew that except for Yuki – and probably Riku – Tsunemori High was just one or even two levels below them. However, during their last set, not only they were beaten back and blue, but they also exposed themselves to the eyes of all their future competitors that they didn't do well playing under pressure from outside of the court.

They would be eaten alive when facing against those who had a more fanatical fanbase like Matsuyama Kita, Shimoyawata, or even Konan High.

"So, even without me talking about this, you all should know why you lose, right?" Arisawa Junya finally spoke, yet his expression was still blank. "Let's forget about Kobayashi and his serve. He is at a professional level already, and I didn't expect you guys to stop it. But this… I… You guys… Ah!" Arisawa Junya couldn't find the best words to describe how messed up this situation was.

"Okay, a new rule!" The man finally clapped his hands, finding something worth discussing. "I don't care if you think this is a humiliation, but you have already proved yourself that you got distracted easily by the crowd when serving the ball. So, I will forbid you all to go with your normal service. In return, all of you will go for an underhand serve!"

This new order stunned all of the Kikugawa players instantly. An underhand serve was probably the lowest level of service in the sport, only a novice who just learned how to serve and a group of little girls used that in the game. So, for the coach to order that, they all thought that he finally lost his sanity.

Unfortunately, even though they all thought that Arisawa Junya had already crossed the line with this outrageous order, all the players there didn't have any reason to rebuke it. Indeed, they had already proven themselves to be incompetent behind the service line. Their coach even counted that out of the 25 points that Tsunemori High got in the second set, 11 of them – almost half of the total points – were gained from the mistake they themselves made during the service time. This was a humiliation to the new level.

"Sensei, what about me?" Kaito suddenly raised his hand, asking a question. After all, out of everyone else, only he and Akito – the pinch server – managed to deliver a perfect serve under the crazy pressure from the crowd.

"Ah, yes, you." Arisawa Junya nodded his head appreciatively toward the freshman hitter. "You did a good job before, so you are allowed to do the same in the final set. Akito-kun, I will also put you on the court pretty often, so get ready to play at any time, okay?"

The pinch server – and everyone else – was startled when the coach announced that. After all, while the boy managed to do well in this game, he was just a freshman who unlike Kaito and Yusuke didn't have any unique talent that could help the team. Even though he was decent from behind the service line, facing such a genius like Yuki, they didn't even put the boy on their radar as one of the best servers in the tournament. So, for the coach to make a promise to the boy to play him more next was definitely a good thing for the boy.

"The same could also be said for any other bench players here." Arisawa Junya continued. This time, about seven players on the bench who were mentioned by the coach straightened their backs immediately. "I don't care whether you are a veteran or a newbie, have a ton of experience or still a blank paper. What I care about the most is your fucking performance! So, if someone on the court messes everything up, I will put one of you immediately as a substitute. Is that clear?"

This time, Arisawa Junya was satisfied as he managed to create a situation where depression was gone already and replaced by the competitiveness shown by all of his players.

For the bench players, this was the opportunity for them to show that they deserved a spot in a regular squad. There was no way they would let it slide so easily. As for the main players, for the first time since the tournament began, they all felt threatened by their own friends. The coach seemed to lose his patience already, and one more mistake from them would be enough reason for him to demote them all into a bench warmer. Compared to serving under the boos from the supporter, they were more afraid of that.

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"Lastly!" Arisawa Junya raised his voice one more time, snapping everyone from their own thought. "I will not sub him off with another player, but I want you all to stop giving the ball to Kaito for at least the first five minutes!"

This was another bomb that made all the Kikugawa players felt dizzy. After all, Kaito was their best player during the game and he was also the one who was unaffected by the pressure from Tsunemori's supporter. Forbidding them all to pass the ball to Kaito was just like letting a child blindly wondering on the street, which most of the time would end up as a disaster.

Of course, the first one who complained would be Kaito. "Sensei, why would you do that to me?!" He cried indignantly.

"Well, I can give you so many reasons why I forbid the others to pass the ball to you, but I will give you one that makes you feel satisfied. To put it simply, you are starting to get tired. Don't interrupt. Let me speak my mind first." Arisawa Junya raised his hand, stopping Kaito from complaining. "I know you are not feeling that yet, and that is because adrenaline takes over your body. However, your concentration level is starting to decline, and it is proven in the last play that your attack is blocked by the middle blocker. I will not blame you for that since you've done well before, but with your level, there is no way you didn't notice him earlier, right?"

For that, Kaito didn't have an answer to give.

"I tell you this not only to let you breathe but also to give the team a better chance to survive. We cannot always rely on you, you know? They need to learn how to stand up for themselves, and unfortunately, your amazing performance in the second set somehow made them lazy, thinking that all of their problems could be dumped on you. I will not allow that in my team, you know?"

Even though Kaito didn't understand the coach's concern, he knew that the coach did this for him. So, even though he was a bit reluctant, in the end, he just nodded his head shortly. "Okay, I will do it."

"Atta boy!" Arisawa Junya clapped his hand excitedly. "Meanwhile, during that time, you can use it to be the team's bait, to observe the opponent's formation, anything! When the time finally comes, you can go all out and destroy everything in front of you! Does that sound amazing?"

Kaito finally let out a small smirk at the thought of him destroying Tsunemori High and their dirty trick in one go. "Yeah, Sensei. That sounds incredible."