Chapter 6

Word count: 6.8 K

🏐🏐THIRD PERSON P.O.V.🏐🏐

The Ibato family were all frozen at the dinner table, staring at their youngest member as she brought her chopsticks to her mouth. She was the only one who moved, continuing her meal as if she hadn't dropped the bomb on them.

"C-Chi-chan, c-c-can you repeat that? I think I'm g-getting old and my hearing i-isn't as good as it u-used to be," Minako stuttered, her eyes shaking as she stared at her only daughter with a weak smile.

Chiaki blinked, looking up at her mother who sat across from her in confusion, her head tilted to the side.

"I joined the volleyball team."

Chiaki flinched as a loud clang rang out, her eyes shooting to Taiga who dropped his bowl he had in his hand, the rice spilling all over his front. Kouga, who sat next to their mother, choked on his miso soup, a wet gurgle leaving his mouth as he smacked his chest with his fist.

Minako's lips trembled before she burst into tears.

Chiaki sat in her chair, frozen in place as she watched the chaos that happened in front of her. Taiga was frozen stiff like a statue although steaming rice was covering him, Taiga wheezing as he tried to dislodge the tofu stuck in his pipe, and Minako sobbing while she fumbled with her phone.

Chiaki didn't realize Minako was calling someone until the familiar ring entered her ears, and she heard it get picked up with a "hello," a voice she immediately recognized as her father.

Hiroto's eyes widened, startled as his wife's sobbing face came into the sight as soon as he picked up the FaceTime call.

"H-Honey? What happened, are you okay?" The man questioned quickly in concern, his eyebrows knitting together. He only gets a blubbering response that makes his worry spike for his wife.

Minato, who sat across from him at the dinner table, looked up from his food, eyebrows raised up in interest, sending his father a questioning look.

"H-Hiroto....! Chi-chan....! C-Chi-chan!" Minako cried out Chiaki's nickname, making the two men in Tokyo share eye contact in concern, thinking something had happened to their youngest family member that was in Miyagi, hours away.

"Honey, calm down. Did something happen to Chiaki?" Hiroto asked gently, inwardly panicking, seeing how his wife was a mess on the screen, nose red as tears ran down her face.

"C-CHI-CHAN SAID SHE JOINED THE VOLLEYBALL TEAM!!!"

Hiroto and Minato froze, the later dropping his chopsticks, it rolling on the floor. Hiroto himself almost dropped his phone in his soup, fumbling with it in panic.

"W-What....?" Minato questioned with his tone a few octaves lower than usual. He's immediately up on his feet, rounding around the dinner table so he can peer into the phone in his shaking father's hand.

Chiaki has her eyes closed, the female pinching the bridge of her nose tiredly as the chaos continues at her house. Kouga was recovering from his near-death experience, the male wheezing as he wiped at his mouth that dripped with miso soup. She helped Taiga clean up, trying to place the rice grains that stuck onto him back into the bowl to get thrown out. Minako was still crying, looking like a mess.

Hiroto and Minato, who were in their house in Tokyo, tried to grasp the situation back at their other home in Miyagi, their mouths opening and closing. Their mind tried to process what they heard from Minako.

Both males blinked as the phone was taken away from the crying woman, the face of Chiaki replacing her.

"Hi dad, Minato-nii-san," Chiaki greets, smiling wearily, turning away from her family that was in the same room as her.

"Chi-chan, is what mom said true?" Minato quickly questioned before properly greeting her. Chiaki's eldest brother peered into the phone, stealing it away from his father. Seeing this, Chiaki blinked before nodding. She then flinched as she heard a loud wail from her phone, watching as Minato looked equally as startled as she felt.

"M-My baby girl taking part in something to do with volleyball a-again? I-I'm so t-touched!" Hiroto cried out, his loud wails echoing. Minato grimaced at the noise, his nose scrunching up briefly. His eyes widened as he watched as Hiroto began to stumble around.

"D-Dad?! What are you doing?!" The dark-haired male questioned, standing up to stop his father, who began to stuff a backpack.

With tears and snot running down his face, Hiroto responded, "h-how can I stay here when my princess decides something i-important like that! I need to go home and celebrate! We need to celebrate Minato!"

Minato felt a headache threatening to attack his head. With one hand, he gripped his father, stopping the large man. However, Minato can't help but grit his teeth, straining his muscles to stop Hiroto, who was built like bricks. "Dad, you can't! You have a meeting tomorrow morning and an important practice match with your team in the afternoon. And don't bother lying about it, I talked to Hirugami-kun today, so I know!"

Chiaki watched this with a cold look. Her gaze shifted to her family who was in the same room as her. Not much has changed; the three still trying to recover from their shock. Her eyes then moved back to the phone screen, her brother struggling to hold down their father, trying to stop him from taking the bullet train back to Miyagi.

"Dad, I'll be mad if you come back. You know I don't like it when you're irresponsible," Chiaki spoke. She was able to see that her words made Hiroto freeze, the man visibly shrinking back in sadness. Chiaki was almost sure that if her father had dog ears, they would have been flat against his head, his tail tucked between his legs.

"Chi-chan...." Hiroto pitifully called out his daughter's name, looking heartbroken. But Chiaki paid no mind to him, her attention on her eldest brother, who seemed to look relieved.

Minato sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose for a brief second. However, he recovers quickly, a small gentle smile on his face as he looks into his younger sister's face through the screen of the phone.

"Chi-chan, I don't know what happened back in Miyagi, but I'm very proud of you. When you have time, can you call me and tell me the whole story? I would love to hear it," Minato's brown eyes that are droopy like her own are warm.

Chiaki returns the smile, her own eyes narrowing in fondness, "for sure, Minato-nii-san. I trust that you have everything under control over there?"

Hearing this, Minato's face scrunches up briefly before nodding. Chiaki holds back a laugh, her eyes shifting to the dinner table of her home. It seemed like the twins and mother had calmed down enough to clean up the mess they made.

"Alright, I'll talk to you soon, Chi-chan. I miss you and love you," Minato sweetly says, the corner of his eyes crinkling, just like the way Hiroto's does when he smiles.

Chiaki whispers her own goodbye before placing the phone on the table. With a sigh, she rolls the sleeve of the sweater she wears, moving to help clean up the mess and see what can be saved from their dinner.

🏐🏐TUESDAY AFTER SCHOOL🏐🏐

"I'm glad you were able to get an okay from the school nurse," Daichi comments as he stands next to Chiaki.

Chiaki nods in silent agreement. She was glad too. Yesterday afternoon, she had not gone to the volleyball team's practice after school because she had to speak to the school nurse about joining the volleyball team. Of course, the nurse had put up a fight, seeing as Chiaki was of tremendous help. But eventually, she gave in, although somewhat reluctantly.

Now she stood next to Daichi and Sugawara in front of the bus, making sure everything was set. On her upper arm, she had a red cloth band that signified her as a medic, something she proudly wears.

During the weekend, Takeda had emailed the inter-high representatives. And it was quickly decided that when the tournament comes around, Chiaki will work as one of the many medic volunteers around the stadium. When Karasuno has their own games, she will be on break and be allowed to be on the court with the coaches and manager. And during the other times, she will be working, standing at standby, watching other games just in case there is an injury.

Chiaki didn't mind that. Especially seeing as it gave her volunteer and experience hours she can use for university. Plus, she'll be able to scout other schools.     

Daichi made troubled eye contact with Sugawara, the silver-haired male seeming to be holding in a laugh. The two males looked down at their black club jacket. Attached to it is a hand, Chiaki holding onto the cloth and Daichi holding back the need to comment on it. Sugawara, on the other hand, found the whole thing funny because it seemed like Chiaki was doing it without even realizing it.

Both males recall yesterday afternoon after practice when Kageyama had spoken to them. The first year had warned them about Chiaki's tendency of holding hands and commented that it'll likely be one of them who would be at the receiving end of her affection seeing as they were closest to her. Neither of them minded, but a small part of them felt flustered at the thought.

All the members slowly climbed onto the bus, leaving the three of them being the last ones to be outside. A mischievous gleam flashed in Sugawara's eyes as his hand moved to wrap around Chiaki's, making the girl blink in surprise. She stared at his hand for a moment before her eyes went to her other hand that still gripped onto Daichi's jacket. At that moment, she seemed to realize what she was doing, looking a bit taken aback and a bit bashful.

"Oh... I'm so-"

"It's okay if you want to hold hands, Aki-Chan! Daichi nor I are bothered by it," Sugawara assured with a beam before pulling her along, entering the bus. Daichi followed after them with a small smile, taking a seat near the front, sitting beside Chiaki.

Sugawara had claimed the window seat, seeming to be in a good mood, his hand still holding Chiaki. Little did he know that with his words, he had opened the doors that Chiaki was reluctant to do so herself, and from now on, she wasn't going to hesitate to hold hands with either of them seeing as he had given her the green light.

"Ah, Aki-senpai, here," Kageyama spoke up from the seat beside them, rumbling through his gym bag before pulling out a bottle of ginger ale and a small packet of pills. Sugawara and Daichi eyed the items with an eyebrow raised, while Chiaki looked relieved, taking it with a smile and nod.

"Kageyama, what are those for?" Daichi questioned, watching as Chiaki popped a pill in, swallowing it down with the soda.

Kageyama frowns, making sure to watch Chiaki swallow the pills before speaking. "Aki-senpai gets motion sickness from bus rides. Having those helps a bit, and I remembered last night."

This makes both Sugawara and Daichi look at the female beside them in concern.

"She should be fine now, though. She'll probably feel a bit nauseous, but because she took those, she should be fine. But it really is strange, it's only for buses" the raven-haired setter comments matter of factly, "she's fine on cars and other moving vehicles. But she always feels sick on buses."

"I probably can't stand boats either," Chiaki says before getting comfortable in the seat. She grimaces as the bus begins to move, Chiaki leaning her head against Daichi's shoulder as she closes her eyes. Said male flinches for a brief second before relaxing, Sugawara snickering in response. The silver-haired male had a feeling his friend was going to take a bit to get used to the skin contact with the girl, but he knew Daichi would eventually.

Sugawara sits up a bit as he hears a commotion from the back, Tanaka trying to hype and cheer up Hinata, who was abnormally nervous for today's practice match.

"Oi, Hinata! Have some pocky! That'll lighten you up a bit! Her-what the heck with that face!" Tanaka gasped as he took a good look at the ginger, flinching at the dark circles underneath the first-year's eyes.

Hinata blinks, his eyes almost lifeless. "Ehh? Ah, I kinda didn't sleep last night..." Hinata admits before covering his mouth with his hands, "c-can we open the window...? If we open it, I'll be-" The poor boy isn't able to finish his sentence as he disperses his stomach's content on his victim.

Chiaki kept her eyes closed with her eyebrows furrowed, "Suga-San, please open the window before the smell comes to the front of the bus and makes me even sicker..." She weakly whispered, the silver-haired male immediately doing as she said.

Daichi petted her silver-head in pity, "Aki-chan, take a nap if you can. I'll wake you up when we get there."

In response, the female nods in understanding, burrowing her face into Daichi's upper arm and letting her conscious go.

The silver-haired female adjusted the white face mask on her face, turning to Kageyama, who watched her silently.

"How is it?" She questioned, dusting off the black Karasuno tracksuit she wore that matched with Shimizu and the other club members. Kageyama nodded, his arms crossed over his chest.

"I wouldn't recognize you immediately, Aki-senpai. With your new hair color and half your face covered, it's hard to recognize you as long as you don't speak, and people don't get a good look of your eyes," the setter reassured, giving her a thumbs up.

This makes Chiaki sign in relief. Her gaze shifts to where the others were gathered. Hinata was apologizing multiple times to Tanaka, who had got dressed into a extra pair of clean shorts, typing his dirtied pair into a plastic bag to take home and wash.

Kageyama and Chiaki approach the team, they eyeing the silver-haired female in confusion and curiosity in their gaze.

"Why are you wearing a face mask, Aki-san?" Ennoshita questioned, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion, "are you feeling alright?" He question, growing concerned for his fellow second-year's health.

Chiaki opens her mouth to assure that she's fine when most of them look at her in worry. But before she could, she's beat by Kageyama.

"She's hiding her face to go unnoticed by her ex," Kageyama answered as if it was the most obvious thing have a stoic expression.

"WHAT?!" The boys all yell in shock, their mouth hanging open before looking at Chiaki to confirm the setter's words.

Chiaki blinks once, processing what her kouhai said. And when she does, she lightly smacks his head with a frown on her face. "Don't spread lies, Tobi-kun," she scolds, shaking her head in disbelief in slight annoyance.

"S-So, what he said isn't true?" Tanaka questions while sweating, unusually nervous to hear her response.

The silver-haired female sighed, placing a hand on her hip, "me trying to hide isn't a lie. But the person isn't an ex. I haven't even had a boyfriend before."

This makes a look of surprise to spread across Kageyama's face, the male eyeing the girl beside him with a puzzled look. "He's not?"

At the younger boy's words, Chiaki could feel her cheeks had flushed a light pink. However, the facemask she wore hid it, much to her relief. Chiaki shakes her head and takes her place beside Daichi and Sugawara, having ended the conversation with her silence.

The other boys could tell that the conversation had ended as well, Hinata and Tanaka moving to Kageyama.

"Pssst... Is what she said true, Kageyama...? She never has had a boyfriend?" Tanaka questioned, Hinata nodding in curiosity, his eyes shining.

The raven-haired boy frowned, scratching his cheek. "Uh, we all assumed they were dating back in middle school. But they never said anything officially, so I can't say, Tanaka-san," Kageyama admits, thinking back to his time in middle school. "But, they were super close to the point that we thought they were dating. The whole vibe was almost like a married couple..."

This makes Tanaka sweat drop, not being able to imagine that Chiaki, who was beginning to be known as someone unattainable, the Takane no Hana (1) of his grade to be in a relationship. Hinata, on the other hand, looks shocked by the information.

"If what she said is true... I can't believe someone as pretty as Aki-senpai never has had a boyfriend," the ginger comments in awe, "you would think she'll have suitors lining up in front of her house."

At his words, a dark look appears on Kageyama's face. He grips onto Hinata's head, making the said boy squawk in pain and surprise. "Listen here, bōke. Around Aki-senpai, there are four scary guards that wouldn't hesitate to snap your neck if you even glance at her in the wrong way. No one is worthy in their eyes..."

All the boys who heard this gulped, shaking in fear as they wondered and imagined what their setter said. Daichi, who had also heard, only paled, a faraway look appearing in his eyes, a weak laugh leaving his lips as he silently agrees to what Kageyama said.

Eventually, they all make it to the gym, although Chiaki did note that Daichi had disappeared at one point. A few moment later he had come back, dragging Tanaka, who pouted as his captain scolded him with a vein popping on his forehead. Sugawara, who saw her puzzled look, laughed seeming to be used to the specific scene.

"Tanaka probably picked a fight with the opponent team again, and Daichi must have scolded him," the silver-haired male explained, Chiaki nodding in understanding not verbally responding to her senpai. And she wasn't planning on opening her mouth any time soon. The silver-haired female hadn't spoken a single word since she walked into the gym, deciding if she had to, she'd whisper.

She felt on edge, looking around and recognizing quite a few familiar faces. When she walked past them, she kept her head down, letting her bangs cover her eyes and hide her features her mask couldn't.

And thankfully, none of them seemed to notice anything. However, Chiaki nearly flinched when Kunimi stared with his half-lidded eyes, a look of curiosity in them as they trailed after the Karasuno team. Beads of sweat trailed down the back of her neck as his gaze landed on her. Although there was no denying Kunimi had moments where he was lazy, she knew that he was one of the sharpest underclassmen she had back in middle school.

A small sigh of relief left the female's mouth as Kindaichi approached the slightly shorter boy, pulling his attention away from her.

Seeing this, Chiaki turned towards Tsukishima, the said male blinking as the female grabbed his hand.

"Wha-"

"Don't move, I'm taping your fingers for you," the silver-haired female whispered, using the tall blond's body as a shield as she began to tape his finger although he argued that he could do it himself. Chiaki paid no mind to the scowling blond, neatly taping his hand, much to his astonishment.

Tsukishima bent his fingers, scrutinizing his taped finger with narrowed eyes before looking down at the female with a condescending smile, "huh, you're not that bad."

"Two of my older brothers are middle blockers as well, I've taped their fingers all my life," Chiaki quietly explained as she put away her tape. However, she looks up in surprise as she hears a crash. Tsukishima and she both blinked as they realized a stiff Hinata had crashed into the bench, tumbling to the floor in his nervousness.

Chiaki can't help but furrow her eyebrow, growing concerned for the short boy realizing how nervous he looked. It seemed like it was the same for the third-years, all of them watching the orange-haired boy in varied levels of worry.

"Aki-senpai, don't look, but at two o'clock, Iwaizumi-san is looking over here," Kageyama whispers as he walks past her. The female is thankful for the warning, nodding in understanding before maneuvering around the team before using Daichi and Sugawara as a human shield next.

They both send her a questioning look but don't make a scene as they only share a look of confusion with each other before shrugging it off. From the corner of her eyes, Chiaki could see that, like Kageyama said, Iwaizumi was looking at her. Beside him is Kunimi, seeming to say something to his upperclassmen.

Unknown to Chiaki and a waste of her worries, the two males had no clue it was her. Instead, they were speaking about their jealousy of the Karasuno team, their other teammates joining in.

"Karasuno has two managers? How is that fair?" Hanamaki comments, running a hand through his pink hair with a pout.

Iwaizumi lets out a laugh, seeming to look a bit amused as his friend whines, "I don't think the one with silver hair is a manager though. She's wearing a medic band on her arm, she's probably their medic."

"I feel even more jealous now. A personal medic? That's kinda like a nurse, right?" Matsukawa grins, nudging Hanamaki, who also shared a similar look as him.

"Their manager is really pretty, but their medic also has a very good figure although I can't see her face with her mask," Kunimi comments, making the three years look at him a bit taken aback, not expecting him to join in their thirst conversation.

Hanamaki releases a loud laugh as he roughly grabs Kunimi, wrapping him in a headlock the younger boy immediately tries to escape, "looks like Kunimi is also a man! But you ain't wrong about figure, they're big," the male grinned, earning a smack from Iwaizumi who decided that was enough.

Kunimi looks annoyed at the comment, glaring at his senpais, who snickered at his expression.

A whistle was blown, catching everyone's attention as they gathered on the court. Chiaki wished her team a quiet good luck before taking a seat beside Shimizu, a small medical bag at her feet.

"Ah..." Both females chorused, Chiaki closing her eyes as she fights the urge to punch at the bridge of her nose.

As soon as the game started, Hinata messed up with his nerve, going after the ball even after Daichi called it. Shimizu sighed beside her, sharing a brief eye contact with Chiaki, the two females not being able to help it but let out a weak, wry laugh.

The longer the game continues, Chiaki becomes even warier, her eyes darting around the court of her team in concern. She could tell that irritation was building up in a certain freshmen setter, the dark aura seeming to leak out of his body.

Each time the orange-haired first-year messed up, Chiaki couldn't help but shift on the bench, slowly moving to sit on the edge.

"Okay! Lets steadily take back points one at a time!" Daichi encourages, an easy going smile on his face in hopes to calm his teammates. However, that freezes in place as he realizes who was serving next.

Kageyama has a similar expression, sweating as his mouth part in dread. Of all people...

Chiaki holds back the need to speak encouraging words, her eyes darting to the Seijoh team before looking back at Hinata, who held the volleyball looking like a small, terrified chihuahua as he shook in place.

"Kageyama," Tanaka hissed at the male in position beside him, "is Hinata okay, or did he stop breathing?" The male with a shaved head questioned as Hinata took forever to serve the ball.

In response, Kageyama spoke with an urgency in his tone, "even if you ask me, I've got no idea, Tanaka-san!" The setter hissed back. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, the ball smacked him straight on the back of his head, making him stumble a few steps forward.

Ah... Chiaki and everyone thinks.

It's silent for a second before it gets broken with hysteric laughters.

Tanaka bursted out laughing first, Tsukishima quickly joining in. "Wahaha! Oi, how's the back of your head doing, Kageyama?" The wing spiker asks, holding his stomach as he cackled.

Beside him, Tsukishima was snickering, his eyes gleaming, not even bothering to hide his amusement and glee, "the back of your head is looking good, King!"

Slowly, Kageyama turns, a look of fury burning in his eyes, looking ready to lunge forward any moment.

Chiaki saw this before anyone else, jumping up to her feet, surprising Shimizu.

"Tobi-kun, freeze!"

Her clear voice rang through the now silent gym, both Tanaka and Tsukishima shutting up after seeing Kageyama's angered face.

Kageyama froze just as she said, blinking while a couple of the players from Seijoh also became still as stone at the familiar voice and command.

It was a familiar code to those who went to Kitagawa Daiichi, something Chiaki had made for Kageyama when he was about to or if he did overstep his boundaries. It was suggested by Chiaki because Kageyama had the tendency of irritating Oikawa without realizing and that caused an unwanted rift in the team.

And while there were only a few people who knew it, they all knew only one person used it.

Iwaizumi stared at the female with silver hair, not being able to look away from her in disbelief. Kunimi and Kindaichi had a similar reaction, staring at Chiaki with their mouth hanging open.

"N-No way," Kindaichi hissed, nudging Kunimi, "is that seriously.....?" He didn't end his question, but Kunimi knew precisely what his friend was asking.

The boy with his hair parted in the middle nodded, his eyes narrowing, trying to get a better look at the female who was standing. "Aki-senpai is the only one who could stop Kageyama like that. And I recognize her voice."

At Chiaki's voice, Kageyama snapped out of his anger, looking at the female before nodding, letting her know he wasn't going to kill Hinata with his emotions out of whack. Seeing this, Chiaki takes a seat back down on the bench.

She looked calm. However, inwardly she was freaking out, especially when she felt a heated gaze being shot her way from the opponent court. She doesn't dare to look over, already knowing who was staring at her. I'm going to die today. I'm going to get murdered... Look at him, Hajime-senpai has gotten buff, he's going to be able to crush my head with his thighs like a watermelon.... Thoughts like these ran through Chiaki's head as she inwardly cried at her fate.

Kageyama released a long breath, Chiaki's voice snapping him out of his anger and replacing it with a sane, calm mind. However that didn't stop him from
slowly making his way towards Hinata, who was frozen in fear.

"W-W-Wait! Kageyama! We can talk about this!" Hinata stuttered, taking a staggering step back as the taller male loomed over him.

"Hey, you."

Hinata froze at Kageyama's voice, already being able to see his life flashing before his eyes. "Yes..." He meekly responds, his shoulders sagging.

Kageyama's sharp eyes are shaded by his bangs as he glares down at the shorter boy. "Just what are you scared of that has you so goddamn nervous? Is it because the opponents are big? Because it's your first practice match?"

Hinata can't help but break out into a sweat at the darkness that seeps out of the setter. He flinches as Kageyama's palm smacks into the back of his own head, the loud sound seeming to echo in the silent gym.

"You're saying," Kageyama slowly spoke as he continued to smack his head as Hinata watched, his sharp eyes promising murder, "that they're something even scarier than you driving a serve into the back of my head, huh? So, what is that....?"

Hinata, who's stiff as a board, looking like a baby chick getting glared at by a snake spoke in a dead tone. "Nothing, in particular, comes to mind...."

A haunting laugh leaves Kageyama's mouth, the setter continuing to smack his head to emphasize his point, "then you don't have a reason to be nervous anymore, now do you? Since you've already done the scariest thing, you can think of! So now...."

Hinata flinches, shrinking in as he sees the taller male raise his hand. But his eyes widen as his ears ring at the loud voice that comes out of Kageyama's mouth.

"HURRY UP AND GET BACK TO MOVING THE WAY YOU NORMALLY DO, YOU BŌKEEEE!!!"

Shimizu, who sat next to Chiaki, worriedly placed a hand on the younger female's shoulder, lightly shaking her, "Aki-chan, are you okay?"

A dry laugh left the silver-haired female's mouth, Chiaki looking like her soul had left her. "Shimizu-senpai, don't mind me... I'm just thinking about my death that's going to happen at the end of the game..." She dejectedly spoke, leaning her head against Sugawara's shoulder. The said male patted her head in pity, already noticing how Iwaizumi was still staring at her way.

"My death...." Chiaki trailed off, making both third-years sweatdrop.

Both teams gathered together separately, quickly sipping water as they took a moment to discuss and have a break.

"I-Is that really, Aki-senpai?" Kindaichi questioned, his eyes darting to where Karasuno was gathered, his gaze going over to the silver-haired female with the red medical band on her arm.

Kunimi hummed as he used his shirt to wipe at his face, also looking over at the opponent team. "It has to be her. The nickname she used for Kageyama and the command. Aki-senpai is the only one who used it. And the longer I look at her, the way she stands reminds me of her," the first-year wing spiker says.

"It's definitely her," both first-years turn to Iwaizumi in surprise, not expecting the older male to be listening to their conversation. The third-year vice captain has his eyebrows furrowed as he glanced at the Karasuno team. "Chiaki has a habit of crossing her legs when she's standing. And look, she's holding hands with the silver-haired guy and Kageyama."

At his words, both first-years look over once again, realizing the spiky-haired man was right. This makes Kunimi snicker, not being able to help but find amusement in it. "It seems like Aki-senpai hasn't changed that much with her need to hold hands."

This makes Kindaichi blush, a pout on his lips. Kunimi immediately notices this, lightly smacking his friend's back, "stop pouting, it doesn't make you look cute. And it doesn't change the fact that Aki-senpai didn't hold your hand a lot. She must have picked up the vibe that you had a crush on her."

Kindaichi scowled, sending a stink eye at his friend, looking offended at what Kunimi said. "Don't bring it up, you ass. And stop being so smug cause you got to hold hands with her more than me. You can't deny that Kageyama got to hold Aki-senpai's hand more than you."

This makes an irritated look appear on Kunimi's face, the smirk getting wiped off his face. The banter between the two keeps them occupied while the third-years gather around Iwaizumi in interest.

"So, you guys know her," Matsukawa questions, the tall male eyes lighting up in interest. He briefly makes eye contact with his best friend, Hanamaki. The said pink-haired male looked eager to hear some gossip.

Iwaizumi only hums in response, not being able to look away from Chiaki, seeming to drink in her appearance after a year of her being absent from his life. "She looks different..." He whispers to himself, but his words are heard by both Matsukawa and Hanamaki, the boys' interest getting piped.

But seeing that they weren't getting the response and answer they wanted from Iwaizumi, Hanamaki wrapped a hand around Kindaichi's neck, dragging the first year to him. The boy stumbled and looked confused as he got flanked by two of his senpais.

"So, Kindaichi, tell us who that pretty girl is," Hanamaki questioned with a grin. Matsukawa nodded in agreement, not caring as Kindaichi got a bit uncomfortable under their gaze.

Kindaichi sent a look at Kunimi, hoping his friend would swoop in to help him out. But Kunimi pretends to not see, crouching down to re-tie his shoes although he obviously doesn't need to do so.

"Well?" Matsukawa questions expectantly, both he and Hanamaki getting closer to Kindaichi.

The poor boy gulped, "s-she was our senpai in middle school. Uh, she was Iwaizumi-san and Oikawa-san's kouhai. You might know her too, she's Ibato Chiaki-san, the-"

"The Dove of Miyagi," both Hanamaki and Matsukawa chorused a look of surprise on their face, looking back at where Chiaki stood in interest. Silently, the boys looked at the Karasuno team until their coach called them for their attention.

🏐🏐EXTRA🏐🏐

🏐🏐EARLIER AT TOKYO 🏐🏐

The males all panted as they lay on the floor in various states of exhaustion, sweat soaking into their athletic shirts from their sponsors.

"Who angered Coach Ibato?" Hirugami Fukurou, the twenty-three-year-old middle blocker who recently joined the team, questioned, laying on the cold floor like a starfish, his chest rising and falling. He could hear his own heart beating in his chest, his legs and arms feeling like lead.

The only response he gets are groans from his teammates, most of them looking too dead to even form proper words. Fukurou releases a sigh as he forces himself to turn over on his stomach, his muscles that are lacking oxygen screaming in protest at his movement.

After he moves, he falls back limp to the ground, only lifting his head up to look at his Coach, who has his face twisted with his arms crossed over his chest. Any idiot could tell that Ibato Hiroto was in a tremendously lousy mood.

"Alright, which dumbass made him like that?" The captain for the Schweiden Adlers' grunts, seeming to look as dead as the rest of his team, "I'm older than you all, I can't take back to back hard practice from Coach when he goes into ogre mode. Admit it right now, and your punishment won't be as harsh."

No one speaks up, not a single one of them can think of anything that comes to their mind. Realizing this, the captain's gaze moves to Fukurou, who flinches and looks away, refusing to meet eyes with the older man.

"Alright, Fukurou, as the newbie, you're tasked to find out what's causing Coach to be like that. And find what we have to do to make his mood better. Not even Coach Suzaku can stop Coach Ibato when he's like that," the captain pretends to not see the look of horror and disbelief on Fukurou's face.

It takes another second for the middle blocker to realize how serious his captain is. When he looks around for help from his teammates, he only receives a gaze of pity, or they shift their gaze away in guilt. Just as the male wishes his life goodbye, the door to the stadium opens, a head poking in.

Minato blinks as he sees the team all spread out, a look of exhaustion on their faces. His gaze shifts to where his father is, his eyes lighting up in realization, seeming to piece everything together. The man can't help the wry smile as he sends an apologetic look at the players seeing as they took the brunt of his father's anger.

"Minatooooo," Fukurou cries out his friend's name in relief, Minato immediately finding the male on the floor. Minato approaches him with a smile, helping his friend sit up with a chuckle.

"Looks like my dad's giving you guys a hard time," the eldest Ibato son comments, earning a scoff from the players.

"More like trying to kill us with practice," Fukurou grunts, giving the tall man a nod of thanks.

Minato and Fukurou were acquaintances before the latter joined the Schweiden Adlers, the two having met at camp when they were in middle school. They were the same age and had a similar passion, plus they both came from a family with a background of volleyball. When Fukurou joined the team, seeing as Minato's father was the head coach and Minato himself his assistant, the two had rekindled their friendship, often going out to dinner or drinks when they were done with their jobs.

Fukurou gripped Minato's shoulder, a desperate look appearing in his brown eyes, "please tell me what's got Coach Ibato in such a bad mood! He's going to end up killing all of us by the end of the week if he continues to be like that!"

This makes a weak laugh leave Minato's lips, immediately knowing what had made his father like that. With a sigh, Minato began to explain. "This weekend, we got a call from my mother in Miyagi. Anyways, you know about my sister, right? I'm pretty sure you met her the last time she came to visit us."

Fukurou immediately nods, "the Dove. How can I not, she left quite an impression. And she's the same age as my younger brother. So what about her?"

"Well, after her accident, she didn't want anything to do with volleyball. But this weekend, we found out she joined her high school's volleyball team," Minato explains, a small smile on his lips as he thinks about his baby sister.

Fukurou, on the other hand, has a puzzled look on his face, "shouldn't that be good news?"

"It is, that is until he found out she joined the boy's team as the team medic."

"Oh...."

Both males' expression scrunched up, knowing what that meant. They were both older brothers to sisters, they knew how families worked.

A silence fell over them, neither Fukurou nor Minato having the energy to say anything for a moment, a faraway look appearing in their eyes as they imagined their own sister hanging around a group of hormonal boys.

"You have anything in mind that can bring up Coach's mood?" Fukurou finally asks, remembering the reason why he was having this conversation with Minato in the first place.

A thoughtful look appeared on Minato's face before he nodded, pulling his phone out to send a text.

Chiaki blinked, pulling her phone out, feeling it buzz in her pocket as she waited outside of the bus, being the first one to arrive. She opens the text from Minato, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

________________________________

Minato-nii-san:

S.O.S. please text 'I love you, Daddy. Miss seeing you, and have a good day at work. Don't be a mean coach, okay?' to Dad, ASAP. If not, our family might get sued for mass murder. 

Received: 3:08 PM

_________________________________

While confused, Chiaki does as she is asked before slipping her phone back into her pocket as Shimizu approaches her with a small smile.

Fukurou and Minato silently watched as Hiroto pulled out his phone when it pinged in his pocket. The said man's face that was a stony mask of an ogre seemed to melt in front of their eyes, his cheeks dusting a shade of pink. Fukurou's mouth is hanging to the floor as Hiroto beams, his lousy mood just a moment ago seeming like a joke.

"Alright, men! Good job today! You're dismissed early!" Hiroto hollers with a broad smile on his face, not seeming to notice the look of disbelief that's sent his way by his players. The said man, almost skips out of the gym, leaving all his players in his dust.

Minato flashes his friend a peace sign.

From that moment, between the Schweiden Adlers' players, Ibato Chiaki was known as the team's goddess, the only person who can help them when Hiroto's bad mood went out of hand.

🏐🏐TERMS🏐🏐

Takane no Hana 高嶺の花: - Literally translated as, "Flower on a high peak." It means "something out of one's reach." Some things are beautiful to look at, but realistically, there is no way you can get them. The object might be something that you want very much but can't have.

A/n

Yayyyy, Minato's look is finally revealed!! Many of you may recognize him but he looks like Yamasaki Sousuke from Free!  He inherited his mother, Minako's, dark brown hair and droopy eyes but Hiroto's eye color! He's actually almost a Carbon copy of Hiroto on the face and body structure except for his eyes and height! He's taller than Hiroto, being the tallest in the Ibato household!

Don't forget to vote and comment to let me know how you think of the story so far! Did you like the extra, haha.

Next update: Chapter 7 | Ahiru-chan is coming out on October 16th, 2020.

-Ember

Posted: October 2, 2020