The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"Good job, folks!"

"Nice win!"

"Yeah, you did very well today!"

"Welcome back, Amano-kun!"

A round of applause filled the building as the decisive point from Amano killed the game. In the end, Fukushima Phoenix swept Tokyo Thunder 3 – 0 without giving them any chance to fight back. To the Thunder players' frustration, their opponent didn't even celebrate crazily like they usually did, just walking around close to the stand to receive the cheers.

Well, the Phoenix didn't have any good reason to go overboard with their celebration. After all, aside from the time when Yuki was on the service line, the Thunder didn't even put up a good fight today, making it an easy win for them. Moreover, this game was pretty meaningless for the Phoenix. With one game left for the regular season, their position is stuck in the sixth, not being able to move up or go down anymore no matter the outcome of the last game.

So, yeah, while it frustrated the Thunder to death, the Phoenix would just treat this as a regular game against a weak opponent.

"Come on, we need to move." A tap on his shoulder suddenly snapped Yuki from his thought. When he turned around, he could see Riku with the same downcast expression asking him to get up. "Everyone is still lying on the floor. We need to wake them up and exchange handshake with the opponent first."

Yuki shook his head quickly, remembering that they were still on the court. He rose from the floor and turned around just to find out that his teammates were either lying on the floor with hands covering their faces or just sitting there with their heads bowed deep, feeling disappointed. While physically, this game went at a normal pace, mentally, the frustration they suffered from two straight sets – especially after the break that Tondo caused – took a toll on them. Right now, what they wanted to do the most was to go back to the hotel and take a long sleep.

Well, Yuki knew full well that feeling. Hell, he was probably the one who wanted to cry the most. Not only because this was his debut and the team's performance was very disappointing, but this was also the first time he went back to Fukushima, and he hoped that he could create a good memory to at least patch the wound inside his heart for his hometown. Unfortunately, not even a single thing went as he hoped for. The team was humiliated, and the rifts between each player were getting bigger. Find your next read on empire

Not wanting to get drowned by the negative feeling, Yuki shook his head before he rose from his spot and followed Riku's move to help his other teammates. "Come on, Kojima-senpai. The sooner we make a line, the sooner we can go back to the hotel." He patted his senpai's shoulder.

Riku also did the same for Shou and Tondo, and one by one, everyone rose from the floor – albeit unwillingly. Yuki and Riku didn't realize that this was a different team and just did what they usually had done in Tsunemori when the team was defeated, making sure everyone followed the procedure to end the game as quickly as possible before they could drown in their own sadness sooner. For those two, they still thought this was just a normal operation. However, Kawaki who saw that from afar nodded in approval.

'Those two have a good leadership skill. It is a pity that they are still too young. Nevertheless, they are worth our investment. I need to talk to the management to tie them both to the club.'

All the Thunder players gathered in the middle of the court to make a line and end their misery soon. Seeing that, the Phoenix players also did the same, creating another line in front of them so that each player faced at least one of their opponents. Yuki himself stood in front of Nakamura, the versatile player from the opponent's side.

"Good game, Kobayashi!" Nakamura grinned politely. "Your service game is insane! Did you really want to target me?"

"Hey, I cannot help it! You are your team's best defender, of course, I will target you!" Yuki defended himself.

"Ha! That is exactly what Mirai said! You both will be a good friend in no time, you know?" Nakamura barked a laugh.

"Still, your team is amazing, though." Yuki sighed. "With how you play today, I will never believe that six months ago, you were the bottom rock team in the league. The improvement is insane."

"I know, right? But that is necessary! After all, everyone is still below 19 and was considered a rookie in the league. If we didn't want to embarrass ourselves in the main league next year, we have to be even far better than this." Nakamura looked solemn when he talked about the Phoenix's target next year. Yuki couldn't help but shudder, imagining the arduous training section they had to do just to prepare themselves for the next season.

"Anyway, I heard from the old man that you are from here too, right?" Nakamura changed the topic. Yuki nodded slightly, knowing full well which old man the boy in front of him just mentioned. "Awesome! If you are going back here again, don't forget to visit Nakamura Yakiniku! That is my family's restaurant, and it is just two blocks away from the bus station. Just tell them that Makoto sends you there, and they will give you a good amount of discount!"

"Sure!"

After talking for a while, the referee finally stopped their conversation and asked them to go back to their line. They didn't need to be told twice as those two joined their teammates again immediately. Seeing that, the referee nodded, and all the players bowed immediately.

"THANK YOU FOR THE GAME!"

With another round of applause coming from the stand, the game was finally over. As everyone was tidying their things on the bench, Yuki spent another second in silence standing alone on the court, staring at its ceiling while contemplating about the game.

"So, I lose, huh?" He mused. "Then, how come I somehow feel better?"

The game itself suddenly flashed through his mind once again. Of how he tried his best, of how he helped his teammates, of how strong the opponent was, of how crazy the supporters were, and how… Lively the situation was during the game. They acted as if the disaster six months ago had never happened before, and this somehow made Yuki relieved.

"At least, I know people like us can live a normal life again." He smiled.

A heavy burden seemed to be lifted from his chest, and he couldn't help but feel lighter all of a sudden. Even though his team lost, Yuki felt that he won something better today, and he wouldn't trade this feeling for anything else. With that thought in mind, he turned around, chiming in with the other to fix the mess on the bench.

'Before coming here, I didn't know that there was something burden my shoulder. But I am glad I came to Fukushima. Thank you, Fukushima. See you again in the future.'