The Third Miya: Isuma

XXI

The second they were out of the gym, Isuma asked, "What'd they tell you, Kosaku?"

Yuto smiled slightly, pushing the door for her. "I'll tell you later. Come on, let's hurry. Did you not get to Kamino when you and your brothers were looking at schools the other day?"

"No... we looked at a lot of schools, but not Kamino Academy." Isuma answered. "What if their match ended?"

"This fast? At most, they're halfway through the second set." Yuto stopped to look at a sign on a notice board and ran his finger down the list. "They're in the third gym... come on."

They walked down the hallways; Yuto pushed a door on their left and the two of them silently walked in. The gym inside was crowded, almost as much as their own. Neither of them made any motion to sit down; Isuma leaned over the railing, watching the players. "Is it fine we just left our own match to watch another one? I know they don't need us that much right now but, well, it's their first game of this Inter-high, and shouldn't we-"

"You worry too much, Isuma." Yuto stopped her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "It's fine; we'll probably be back before the end of the second set."

"Right." She managed a small smile before turning her gaze to the court below them. The two teams playing each other were already in their second set, and one of them was losing badly. Isuma asked, "Come to think of it, how does Kita Senpai know that if we win, we'll be playing Kamino Academy? The other team could've won."

Yuto leaned against the railing beside her, watching the match. "Kamino Academy's coach is a strategist. He's careful and cautious. His team doesn't do anything risky; they win through synchronized, perfect plans. Every move they make has been planned. They have techniques to encounter any situation they come across. A long time ago... they made it to Nationals." Yuto's tone was flat and grim. Isuma murmured, "Nationals... they must be really good."

"They were really good years ago, but I don't know about now. That's why we're here." Yuto pointed at the team in blue and white jerseys, and Isuma followed his gaze. "I should write this down somewhere..."

Yuto pulled out his phone. "Go on. I'll type out everything you say."

Her eyes darted back and forth across the court, taking everyone in. "Their #1, the wing spiker over there, he's not jumping as high as he could be. I'm pretty sure he's been injured previously and he hasn't fully healed. Our attackers should try to aim for him when he's blocking; his blocks will be lower, and so will his spikes. Michinari Senpai should be a little farther to the net because his attacks will be more long than high. As for his serves..."

Yuto hurriedly typed everything she was saying, occasionally asking Isuma to repeat something. Once she had finished with the players on the court, Yuto looked at the ones on the bench. "What about them?"

"...they're not moving, so it's harder," Isuma admitted. "But I can try." 

She couldn't tell much about them, but Yuto wrote it anyway. As she'd finished, Kamino Academy reached match point, while the other team was still at 14. Yuto muttered, "The other team is really far behind, right?"

"Yeah..." Isuma could tell something was off. "But none of their attackers really stood out, save for their #6, and even he is just barely above average." 

"Hold on- look at their #5, on the bench." Yuto suddenly said. "He's sitting down and has a towel and water bottle. He's sweating. He must've been playing earlier; they had probably just taken him out when we came."

"I can't really tell anything but..." Isuma focused on him, taking in every tiny detail. "He's a middle blocker." 

"How can you tell?" Yuto asked. Isuma paused. "I don't know. Maybe the way his fingers are taped? It looks like it's for blocking."