Haikyu: Nah, I'd Adapt!

Since Keishin's appointment as coach, a few days had passed, and Takeda had prepared a training camp specifically for their practice games against Nekoma.

Karasuno had been undergoing rigorous receiving training along with the usual drills of spiking and stamina building, which Keishin didn't bother changing, considering it was his grandfather's legacy.

The members had been steadily following the training and were finally on the right path to building a solid foundation.

"With this, we should have a decent receive by the time of the tournament..."

The kind of receive that wouldn't embarrass them. Keishin ran a hand through his hair as he glanced at the data in his hand.

He had been carefully noting everyone's performance so far, especially the first and second years, who were still quite terrible at receiving.

Kageyama had a better foundation than the rest of the first years, but considering he came from a strong team, this was somewhat expected.

Keishin could see that the setter's data was the most stable among the rest.

"Well, he's a setter, so..."

He wouldn't be getting the first touch anyway, and having a solid receiver was just a bonus.

Yamaguchi, despite not having anything that stood out in particular, had a solid foundation, though there was still major room for improvement.

Tsukishima was still terrible at receiving, but his blocks were surprisingly accurate. Keishin noted that down since Tsukishima had the potential to be a top blocker among the rest.

Meanwhile...

Hinata was the worst of them all.

Keishin stared at the glaring data that barely showed any improvement. Scratching his head awkwardly, he muttered, "What should I do with these numbers, huh?"

The short guy wasn't exactly smart, and Keishin noticed he was more of an instinct-based player.

This type of player was the hardest to teach since they would only grow by instinct.

"And our second years..."

He lifted the page to check what he had for the second years.

There was no question about Nishinoya's ability to receive. The libero was by far the best on the team at this particular skill.

Tanaka was better than some of the first years, but Kageyama's data was still better than his. It was a bit concerning at first, but given the circumstances, Keishin sort of understood.

"Gramps just gave me more work, basically..."

Keishin sighed before his eyes fell on Tsuna's data. It was pretty much similar to Tanaka's, and he stopped for a moment.

"This brat..."

Tsuna was the only one with a glaring difference in his growth so far.

The others had shown an improvement of about one point during these few days of receiving drills. But Tsuna had advanced by three points, according to the data, which was quite ridiculous in a way.

It had only been a few days!

"Who is this brat anyway?"

If Keishin hadn't known him for quite some time, he'd wonder if he was even human.

Tsuna's receiving skills had started off terribly, just a bit better than Hinata's. But surprisingly, Tsuna had absorbed his advice like a sponge over the past few days and was now almost catching up with Tanaka.

"Well, they still have a long way to go regardless..."

It would take even longer for them to get it right, especially when it came to receiving spikes stronger than what he had been preparing them for so far.

"Ukai-kun, would you mind a coffee?"

Takeda's voice broke Keishin's focus from the data sheet in his hand. He looked up to see the club advisor offering him a can of coffee from the vending machine.

"Ah, sure. Thank you, sensei..."

Keishin accepted the can as Takeda smiled before continuing, "Well, it seems like everyone's been working hard..."

He was beyond grateful for Keishin's willingness to step away from his comfortable job at his family-owned dagashiya to coach the team.

They had only one more day to prepare before their practice game against Nekoma, and Takeda was looking forward to the game more than ever.

"Haha, they are..."

Keishin chuckled as he glanced over at the players on the court during this short break in their practice.

However...

"Huh?"

Both men blinked in confusion as the commotion on the court caught their attention.

"Kiyoko!"

Tsuna's voice echoed as he stared at Shimizu, who immediately sped up her steps, putting more distance between them every time he got closer.

At first, he felt bad, but the more she avoided him, the more upset he became.

His lips twitched as he muttered under his breath, "Alright, Kiyoko, you want to play this way? Fine..."

Tsuna had been patient so far, trying to earn her forgiveness, but his patience was running thin.

This time, he wasn't holding back. With annoyance, Tsuna picked up his pace as his long strides rapidly closed the gap between them.

He was going aggressively this time!

"...!"

Shimizu's expression subtly changed as she quickened her pace even more.

Without realizing it, they were running around the court like they were playing tag, leaving everyone speechless.

"...What are they doing?" 

Suga twitched his lips slightly as Daichi shook his head with a wry smile, "Is this... some kind of training?"

Even the players on the sidelines paused mid-conversation, their eyes wide as they watched the scene unfold.

"Oi, Tsuna!" Tanaka's outraged voice boomed, "What the hell are you doing chasing Shimizu-san like that?!"

Nishinoya's voice quickly followed, "Yeah, you creep! Get away from her!"

The two stormed toward him as they moved to intercept Tsuna.

"...?"

Seeing them coming at him, Tsuna frowned.

With an effortless sidestep, he dodged Tanaka's outstretched hand, his movements so quick it left the second-year stumbling forward.

"Hey!"

Nishinoya lunged next. But Tsuna twisted his body at the last second, leaving the libero grasping at thin air.

"What the—!"

The duo skidded to a halt, their expressions twisted into anger.

Tanaka roared, "Bastard, stop running!" 

"You think you can outrun us?!"

Nishinoya added, veins practically popping as he charged again.

Tsuna didn't reply. His eyes remained locked on Shimizu, whose pace hadn't faltered at all.

"Is this a new drill?"

Hinata had sparks in his eyes as he looked at these people running around so fast. Even Kageyama couldn't help but agree with the short guy as he asked, "Should we join in?"

The gym was in chaos. Everyone scrambled to get out of the way as the three tore across the court in their chase.

"What the heck are these guys doing?"

Keishin groaned, dragging a hand down his face as he watched the absurd scene before him. Looking at Tsuna, he muttered, "Aniki, what the hell are you teaching your kid? Why is he chasing her like this?!"

The sheer ridiculousness of the situation left him utterly speechless.

"..."

Even Takeda seemed shocked.

The club advisor scratched his head awkwardly and laughed nervously, "Aha... haha... it must be nice to be young..."

Unfortunately for Tsuna, before he could catch Shimizu and commit a cri—and apologize, Tanaka and Nishinoya managed to catch him first.

This gave Shimizu enough time to slip away like a ninja, much to his annoyance.

"..."

Keishin just looked at the situation, he was completely exhausted. He could already tell that these three were now divided into two teams and would have beef throughout the rest of practice.

"She's pretty quick..."

Tsuna twitched his lips as he recalled how slick Shimizu had been. She slowed down just enough to make him relax, only to bait him into slowing down too. Then, she let Tanaka and Nishinoya grab him before quickening her pace and slipping away.

Tanaka smirked, "What's with the face, huh?" 

"Yeah, don't mess with Shimizu-san!"

Nishinoya puffed out his chest.

"...Annoying bastards."

Tsuna twitched his lips as he begrudgingly continued the training together. He could only roll his eyes in annoyance at Tanaka and Nishinoya throughout the rest of practice.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the session came to an end.

"Sensei, I've got it all washed and cleaned..."

The soft, familiar voice cut through the gym's noise, pulling Tsuna's attention sharply toward its source.

"...!"

He saw Shimizu flinched in response before slightly hiding behind Takeda.

Tsuna's lips twitched, he was about to approach her again, but something stopped him in his tracks.

"Everyone! Come here! We've finally got our uniforms ready!"

Takeda excitedly called everyone to the center.

The uniforms had been sitting in the club room for a while, unused. Along with the new members, Takeda had asked Shimizu to clean and prepare them. She handed them out one by one, much to everyone's excitement.

Especially Hinata, who made a big fuss about getting number #10, which was lower than Kageyama's #11—much to the setter's annoyance.

The short guy got even louder after realizing that his idol, the Little Giant, also wore #10. Hinata treated this as his canon event, calling it fate that he would take on the Little Giant's role in the team.

The gym erupted in laughter and groans as the others immediately jumped in to refute him. Kageyama rolled his eyes, Yamaguchi awkwardly tried to mediate, while Tsukishima just clicked his tongue to the side.

On the other hand...

"...Where's mine?"

Tsuna called out to Shimizu.

She had been handing out uniforms one by one to the team members, but she hadn't bothered to give him his.

Shimizu seemed to hear his words.

"..."

She adjusted her glasses and looked at him with an unreadable expression before turning away as if she hadn't heard him.

Tsuna almost groaned in frustration. He ran a hand through his hair and muttered under his breath, "She's just blatantly messing with me now, huh?"

At the bottom, he saw one uniform laid flat.

"..."

He quickly grabbed it, opened it, and looked closely at it.

The dark color with the orange stripe on the side felt strangely nostalgic. It was a complicated feeling. He ran his fingers over the number, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he whispered, "I'm finally back..."

The rest of the practice flew by in a blur.

The team finished their drills, wrapped up their stretches, and began packing up for the day.

As Tsuna was about to try his luck with Shimizu again, she had already disappeared—as if she had been expecting him to come after her.

And just like that, the day came to an end.

Time slipped by unnoticed.

Before anyone realized it...

...it was finally the day of their practice game against Nekoma High!

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I know I'm supposed to post two chaps, but unfortunately, I slept almost the whole day after the hangover hit me like a truck and could only write two chaps after.

My apologies, guys, please don't cancel me 👉👈

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