JSWGAS Chapter 71

71.

——Kageyama Tobio encountered a strange person on the day Kitagawa Daiichi lost to Shiratorizawa.

His respected senior always liked to call him ‘Tobio-chan’ in a frivolous manner. The other party had once mentioned him while chatting with others, casually calling him a ‘hateful yet super cute junior.’ In the beginning, Kageyama Tobio always felt uncomfortable with this unique nickname—in his memory, it seemed like someone else had jokingly given him a similar nickname before.

This thought flashed by and didn’t linger long in his brain, which was filled with volleyball. Kageyama Tobio gradually grew accustomed to Oikawa Tōru’s nickname for him, and could even hand him a tissue when the latter was crying while threatening him.

The senior angrily snatched the tissue, while Kageyama Tobio stared at his movements, thinking about Oikawa Tōru’s calm and collected demeanor on the court, leading the team with calculated strategies. The school that Kitagawa Daiichi faced like a blade responded with even greater strength.

…If I had been standing in Oikawa-senpai’s position at that time.

He thought, what would I have done?

After the awards ceremony, the crowd in the Sendai Gymnasium gradually dispersed. The coach gave them a vacation, and they didn’t have to attend club activities for the next few days—after all, it was almost time for the third-year students to fill out their applications, a time for focusing on academics. Kageyama Tobio followed the crowd outside, but his stomach rumbled. He covered his stomach, glanced at the backs of the scattered classmates, and without hesitation, turned to the vending machine in the corner.

While struggling to choose between the product labels on the vending machine, he still devoted more than half of his brain to thinking about that question. His finger wavered indecisively, and finally, he extended two fingers fiercely and pressed down repeatedly. Whichever came out first was the one he would drink. After a soft ‘beep’ sound, the rolling sound of a drink falling followed. He bent down, took out the strawberry milk from the dispensing slot, unwrapped it, and inserted the straw.

Then he turned around.

During the time he had slowly struggled with his choice, the people who had come to watch the match had all left, and the noise was gone. He could even faintly hear the low humming of the wind whistling through the dome. Winter was approaching, and the sun, as if knowing that it wouldn’t be appearing for a long time, mustered its strength and spun vigorously in the sky. As a result, thousands of colorful rays shone, starting from the horizon, the bright orange light of a burning flame rushed forward, and together with countless layers of overlapping clouds, surged down like a vast and mighty ocean wave, finally reaching a twilight abyss that represented the boundary between day and night.

He was, of course, also standing within the curtain of dusk.

The vending machine stood on the side of the gymnasium, and with a turn of his head, he could see a large plaza and extending stairs in front of him. Golden light danced on the corners of the stairs, and the shadows cast by a few white pigeons scattering their wings dispelled them. And the shadows cast by the birds circling in the air also fell on the person sitting on the stairs.

Kageyama Tobio silently finished the last of his strawberry milk, licking his lips with dissatisfaction. Then he threw the trash into the trash can next to the vending machine. His home was a distance from the Sendai Gymnasium, and he needed to take a bus. Going down the stairs and walking a bit further would take him to the bus stop for the return trip.

He raised his foot.

From the time he learned to speak, Kageyama Tobio had held onto a volleyball and refused to let go. In the years since then, this 18×9 rectangular court had become the place where he spent the most time besides his home, and the sphere with a circumference of 65cm and a weight of only 260 grams had become the object onto which he poured all his curiosity and focus.

He was still replaying the scene from the match in his mind. When going down the stairs, he hadn’t paid attention and had knocked over the water bottle next to the person sitting on the stairs. The sound of the plastic bottle colliding was crisp, and before he could stop it, it cheerfully followed the laws of physics and rolled all the way down the stairs, stopping reluctantly under their gazes. “…Sorry,” Kageyama Tobio said subconsciously.

He finally managed to pull himself away from the match and looked at the owner of the water bottle. A black baseball cap was pulled low on his head, his hair sticking out messily. He had a very young face, his eyebrows were slightly lowered, and the ends slanted sharply upwards. Underneath them, a pair of rare gray eyes was also scrutinizing him.

Finally, his gaze settled on Kageyama Tobio’s clothes.

He stood up, and only then did Kageyama Tobio realize that he was tall. He had to tilt his head slightly to look directly into the other person’s eyes.

“You,” a low and hoarse voice floated in the twilight, “are you a student from Kitagawa Daiichi?”

Kageyama Tobio blinked. “Yes,” he replied. The stranger revealed a strange expression upon hearing his answer. “Then do you know Oikawa? — Oikawa Tōru.”

This wasn’t a difficult question to answer. “Yes.” Mentioning the person he respected, Kageyama Tobio’s expression became slightly more animated. “He’s a very skilled senior in the volleyball club.”

“But Kitagawa Daiichi lost the match today, right?” The stranger paused for a moment, and Kageyama Tobio didn’t notice the complexity in his tone. “Do you think he’s very skilled?”

Kageyama nodded and said seriously, “Although we lost the match, Oikawa-senpai is very strong, whether it’s his setting technique, the power and precision of his serves…” He became eloquent when talking about volleyball, and various professional terms popped out of his mouth, not caring whether the other person could understand. He didn’t have the taciturn demeanor he had at school. His eyes were bright, as if the sun in the sky had been inlaid in his eye sockets, and finally, he added a declaration-like conclusion, “But I will definitely defeat Oikawa-senpai!”

Only after saying a long string of words did he belatedly realize what he had done, and he hesitated and fell silent.

From elementary school, Kageyama Tobio had been a weirdo in the eyes of his peers, as if he only lived for volleyball. If someone wanted to chat with him, he knew nothing about the video games or anime cards they were talking about. He only became enthusiastic when talking about volleyball—but others couldn’t understand what he was saying about volleyball. Over time, this further alienated him from the crowd.

But—

“Ah, is that so.” The stranger didn’t show the impatience that had once appeared on the faces of his peers, but rather smiled in a strangely enlightened and friendly way, the sharp contours of his face blended with the warm light of the sunset. “That’s a great thought. Do you like volleyball a lot?”

Kageyama Tobio didn’t realize that the tense muscles in his face relaxed. “Volleyball is very fun.”

His firm answer surprised the stranger a bit, who then chuckled. “After all, it’s what they like…” He vaguely skipped over a few words, and his smile became somewhat similar to Oikawa-senpai’s. “I still don’t know your name?”

The wolf’s tail wagged back and forth, and Kageyama Tobio’s sluggish nerves finally sounded the alarm—the few remaining brain cells in his limited capacity finally unearthed a series of items like ‘Don’t talk to strangers,’ etc., that his family had told him. But the person in front of him gave him a strange sense of familiarity, and his attitude was friendly, keeping his distance from him. Apart from the last sentence, nothing else was like a kidnapper, which left him at a loss.

He quieted down, and the other person’s voice echoed leisurely.

“Kageyama –” The stranger received Kageyama’s surprised gaze, raised his hand and took off the baseball cap, grabbing his messy black hair a few times. “Is Kageyama Iwao your grandfather?”

…

…………

Kokonoe Taka didn’t recognize the black-haired boy in front of him at first.

He had taken leave to come back this time to watch the match between Kitagawa Daiichi and Shiratorizawa, and maybe even give his childhood friends, who were still in the dark, a surprise. But he watched Shiratorizawa take the first set, Kitagawa Daiichi catch up and cling on, but still fail to surpass Shiratorizawa, which stood between Tokyo and Miyagi, and between him and Oikawa and Iwaizumi. The victor and the defeated.

He thought calmly.

The thoughts that had appeared when he had not yet left this land appeared again after several years. If Kokonoe Taka had faced victory laurels entwined with thorns all the way, then Oikawa and Iwaizumi were the ones who had never been able to climb over the mountain that represented failure from beginning to end.

Lose and win.

He watched the two teams bow to each other in thanks, watched Oikawa and Iwaizumi run to the stand where he was to thank the audience, then suddenly lowered his cap and silently shrunk himself in his seat. This posture wasn’t comfortable, but he just maintained it steadily. Only when the Kitagawa Daiichi team left from under the stands did he stretch out his legs that had just been squeezed in.

–They’re going to cry, aren’t they.

He thought.

The expressions of endurance when Oikawa Tōru and Iwaizumi Hajime ran over were exactly the same as when they cried in the past.

This wasn’t a good time for him to show up.

So, Kokonoe Taka just watched them re-form the line, watched the organizers present the awards, watched Oikawa Tōru receive the ‘Best Setter’ award–as expected, not long after, he saw the two people with their heads lowered, tears streaming down their faces.

A few spectators who were a few seats away from him were somewhat disappointed. “Kitagawa Daiichi still couldn’t beat Shiratorizawa this year… They couldn’t stop Ushijima. I thought they had a good chance this year.”

“But it’s also amazing that they were able to take a set from Shiratorizawa.”

“That setter played pretty well.” One person said, “But he seems to be in the same grade as Ushijima? I remember that Kitagawa Daiichi has lost every match against Shiratorizawa in the past three years. After going to high school, Ushijima will definitely be even stronger. Maybe that setter will continue to lose to Ushijima.”

“The Best Setter award should get him an invitation to the Shiratorizawa high school team.” Another person retorted, “It should be much easier for a setter to have a spiker like Ushijima on the team. I think he’ll go to Shiratorizawa. If his teammates are stronger, it’ll be easier for him, right?”

–He won’t go.

Kokonoe Taka refuted this sentence in his mind, and he didn’t listen any further. The awards ceremony in the center of the court ended, and the teams from the various schools left one after another. He stood up and soon left the idle chatter behind him. Outside the stadium, the sun was setting, and the forests were dyed with color, a tapestry of green and gold.

He lurked near the gate, holding his breath and waiting for Oikawa Tōru and Iwaizumi Hajime to come out. But when those two familiar figures appeared, joking around, Kokonoe Taka just stared at them, his feet rooted to the spot.

It seemed that he had only come to see them once.

Oikawa seemed to have said something annoying again, and Iwaizumi Hajime mercilessly punched him. Just looking at their backs, it was as if he could hear their noisy voices. Only when the figures of the two people disappeared from his sight did Kokonoe Taka finally walk out of the shadows.

The plastic water bottle was creased from being squeezed in his hand. He stood there, unsure where to go for a moment, and finally sat down casually on the top step in front of the plaza.

It’s not going to work this year, huh.

He thought, letting his hands hang loose at his sides.

When that promise was made in the beginning, none of them had thought that keeping it would be so difficult.

Compared to his two childhood friends, who had to fight Ushijima Wakatoshi to the bitter end, Kokonoe Taka rarely encountered opponents he couldn’t defeat, which made Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s journey to the nationals seem incredibly difficult – but constant failure couldn’t defeat them.

Kokonoe Taka thought, that’s what’s so amazing about them. Oikawa will never choose a shortcut that would make it easier for him to go to the nationals—he won’t go to Shiratorizawa.

He even thought cruelly: Oikawa Tōru will continue to struggle in failure, he would rather die than let himself fall into the mud, he will definitely climb out of there again and again.

…That kind of resolve, the resolve that he saw in Oikawa Tōru’s tears, couldn’t be easily interfered with.

That’s just the kind of person he is.

He can only love what he wants to get during this painful and hesitant process, not caring if he destroys himself—Oikawa Tōru is only alive in that moment.

Kokonoe Taka thought with exceptional calmness, no.

Even if there was the always reliable Iwaizumi Hajime watching, it wouldn’t work. What’s more, Iwaizumi Hajime’s unwillingness was no less than anyone else’s.

The sound next to him woke him up. The plastic water bottle that Kokonoe Taka had placed next to him was accidentally kicked over by a passerby, and then fell all the way down the stairs along with gravity. Kokonoe Taka looked up and saw an innocent passerby in a familiar blue and white uniform. He had a cute baby face, and his expression was somewhat blank. “Sorry…?”

Kokonoe Taka stood up.

…

…………

Kageyama Tobio strained to find a trace from his pitifully sparse memories. “…Kokonoe-san?” He remembered that his grandfather had been hospitalized for a while, and had to do various tests every day. The then-young Kageyama Tobio had been entrusted to another patient in the same ward—

“Hmm.” Kokonoe Taka responded. “I didn’t expect you to be so big now, Tobio-chan?”

Kageyama Tobio listened to this somewhat familiar name and was silent for a moment. “Excuse me… how did you recognize me?”

After all, about four years had passed, and his appearance would naturally become unfamiliar after his facial features had grown out. Kageyama Tobio was skeptical at first, until Kokonoe Taka told him a few black history stories in a storytelling tone, and the details revealed could vaguely match the scenes in his blurry memory, and he finally believed it.

“Because you haven’t changed much.” Kokonoe Taka stared at his face thoughtfully for a long time, and said meaningfully. But Kageyama Tobio’s response to this was just to tilt his head in confusion, his face full of incomprehension.

What Kokonoe Taka was referring to was of course not his appearance—what impressed him the most at that time was the grandson of the patient next door, who either hugged a volleyball every day or pestered his grandfather to tell him about volleyball, as if his whole person was born for volleyball. Kageyama Iwao was in poor health and was often taken for tests. Kokonoe Taka, who had nothing to do in the ward, acted as Kageyama Tobio’s half-guardian.

At that time, Kageyama Tobio often pestered him to read Kageyama Iwao’s book, “Volleyball Basics,” and as long as he got his way, he would show that satisfying and happy expression—just like when he talked about volleyball just now.

–He’s not the only one like that.

The person in front of him gradually overlapped with Oikawa Tōru. –Oikawa Tōru is also satisfied, high-spirited, and full of energy when playing volleyball. Just like before, not changed at all.

Kokonoe Taka didn’t intend to explain in detail. He smiled and skipped over the topic.

Kageyama’s stomach was rumbling so badly that Kokonoe Taka took on the responsibility of an elder and took him to a ramen shop near the stadium. Steaming ramen was served, and neither of them were the type to chat while eating, so they each buried themselves in the fragrant soup noodles.

After eating and drinking to their fill, Kokonoe Taka tapped the table lightly. “Tobio-chan, do you know Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s high school applications?”

Kageyama hesitated and stopped his movements. He was always oblivious to things outside of the volleyball club, only focused on training. After racking his brains for a long time, he finally remembered hearing someone say a few words in the locker room, “It seems to be Aobajōsai?” He could remember this sentence because Aobajōsai was also a famous volleyball powerhouse in Miyagi Prefecture, only a bit below Shiratorizawa.

Only then did he react: “Do you know the senpais?”

If it were someone else, they would have already gotten the answer from the questions that Kokonoe Taka raised.

“Yeah, I know them.” He replied, “I’m friends with your Oikawa-senpai and Iwaizumi-senpai—well, you could say we’re childhood friends?”

“Eh?” Kageyama Tobio widened his eyes. “But…” I’ve never seen you.

Kokonoe Taka guessed what he was thinking: “Because I left Miyagi a few years ago and went to Tokyo.” He shrugged. “Tōru was very angry at the time.” He didn’t mention that it was because of his unannounced departure. “That guy can be very difficult when he’s angry.”

Kageyama Tobio shivered in agreement. He definitely had a say when it came to Oikawa Tōru’s badness.

“Are you coming back now?”

He was always straightforward, and he asked directly at this time.

Kokonoe Taka candidly affirmed: “Yeah.”

Kageyama Tobio couldn’t understand what kind of emotions were flowing in his eyes, so he subconsciously oh’d.

…

…………

“Tōru.” He sighed softly. “That promise—I’ve been thinking, shouldn’t we just stop?”

Oikawa Tōru didn’t say a word, but silently stared into his eyes.

The person who said these shocking words was smiling with interest. “Why are you making such an ugly face?”

“…Why Shiratorizawa?”

–Only this.

What’s so good about Shiratorizawa?

–Only this is unacceptable.

Oikawa Tōru was always smiling, but now he found that the corners of his mouth seemed to be falling down with a weight of a thousand pounds. The deliberately sticky voice of the past suddenly became sharp, and the warm-colored pupils contracted slightly. He thought, why? Is it because I keep losing? Is it because I haven’t fulfilled the promise?

But wasn’t it you who left first?

You said you would wait forever.

What is this?

Oikawa Tōru remembered. Connected by a section of headphone wire on both sides, he had the same question then. Only the state of mind was completely different from now—can people change so quickly? He couldn’t help but question with acrimony.

Calm down.

Calm down, Oikawa Tōru.

The hateful face of Ushijima Wakatoshi appeared in his mind. The existence of the imaginary enemy could only be useful at this time. Think of his invitation, think of his taken-for-granted tone—damn it! Even angrier!

Although he was even angrier, piling all the negative emotions on the other person, the name that he chanted was like a target that absorbed all his intense emotions, and Oikawa Tōru calmed down instead.

…Wait a minute.

Too strange.

Even if the two hadn’t seen each other for a long time, Oikawa Tōru could be sure. If it was really the worst guess, then the person in front of him shouldn’t be so relaxed. Although his face didn’t have much expression, if you looked closely, you could find that the corners of his mouth were tight. This expression was more like—holding back a laugh?

While he glared at Kokonoe Taka, the latter was also observing him with a hint of observation. After facing off for a long time, Kokonoe Taka sighed in giving up and reached out to hand over the envelope.

Oikawa Tōru didn’t take it.

“Tōru hasn’t changed much.” Kokonoe Taka said with a sigh. “Don’t you want to ask me why I want to break the promise?”

Oikawa Tōru was stubborn: “I don’t care.”

“…But you were clearly angry just now.”

Oikawa Tōru laughed angrily. “You know?”

He generously admitted: “Yes.”

He hated this untimely candor the most, and unwillingly, “…Breaking the promise, what does it mean?”

Kokonoe Taka paused. “I waited too long, so I couldn’t help it, I didn’t want to keep watching like this.” He repeated softly, “I don’t want to watch you anymore.”

He remembered the stars he had seen a long time ago, shocking, trance-like, beautiful, and passionate morning stars. It shouldn’t be buried in the darkness—Oikawa Tōru too, shouldn’t be trapped in the shadows.

“I want to stand shoulder to shoulder with you.”

Oikawa Tōru thought that his expression must be too distorted to make the person in front of him unable to hold back his laughter. His eyebrows raised with a teasing smile.

“Was I scary?” Kokonoe Taka said deliberately, shoving the envelope into Oikawa Tōru’s hand. The latter looked down, staring at the school name written in the corner—not Shiratorizawa, but Aobajōsai.

He looked up at the nasty guy, who was still explaining: “I actually passed the Shiratorizawa exam—but I mainly came here to see that Ushijima-kun.”

“I was really curious about what kind of demon or monster could beat A-Tōru and A-Hajime–” He touched his chin, “There’s nothing special about him. He also has two eyes, one nose, and one mouth.” He sounded quite disappointed.

His mood was complicated, rising and falling, and blood was slowly injected into his limbs, finally being able to break free from the stiff state. Oikawa Tōru gritted his teeth, wishing he could crack open Kokonoe Taka’s head and see what was hidden inside. But of course, the first thing he had to do was refute his last sentence: “I didn’t get beat by him!”