Are We Really Together? (KageHina)

Spring Tournament -- National finals

Author's note:
Uh...ok so. The schools Karasuno played off here is based on predictions by people that I had found on the forum of myanimelist. And the entire scene based on my imagination. Do note this was written before the mangaka sensei has published anything on the spring high finals, so the outcome may be different. :) Hope you'll like this story and thanks for reading!
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This year, the Spring High National Tournament would take place at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. 

Karasuno was doing rather well, defeating Tsubakihara (2,0), Inarizaki (2,1) Kamomedai (2,1) Fukurodani (2,1). They were into the finals after the so much hard work they had put in. As they progressed in the matches, Karasuno adapted and took in what they experienced. Now, they were armed with techniques they had collected from all other schools they played against. However, Karasuno still had doubts.

They were now faced against the current champion school of Tokyo, Itachiyama Academy. The academy had been holding the champion position for a while. One of the country's top three aces, Sakusa, and Komori, the best libero in the country, were in their club. They had also won Interhigh and are the first seeds at the Spring High National tournament.

Daichi had to look back on his team. They didn't even make it into the interhigh nationals, it was a miracle to many that they were even able to climb this far. But because it was a miracle that they had to cherish it and do their ultimate best. It was his, Suga's and Asahi's last shot at bringing Karasuno's name from out of the mud. They would do it, they would!

The match started with the shrill sound of the whistle. Nishinoya, Daichi and Tanaka got ready to receive the ball. "Bring it on!" The ball flew over at astonishing speed. Then it hit Daichi's arm, flying out, and Nishinoya dived to save it but failed. It was one point for Itachiyama. It wasn't a good start. But that fired Karasuno up even more. Hinata and Kageyama scored Karasuno's first point with their freak quick. And the match continued. However, Karasuno soon found themselves trailing behind the powerful Itachiyama Academy. The first set was lost to Itachiyama, 20-25.

Getting beaten in the first set would be demoralising for others, but Karasuno was used to it, they always used the first set as a learning point and warmup, bringing themselves back on track with better results for the rest of the game. The second set started, with Karasuno even more fired up than before. Both teams were neck to neck with each other. Tsukishima could now block about 70% of Sakusa's spikes, which was legendary, considering that even Kuro couldn't block as many. Nishinoya and Daichi worked really hard to receive the rest that Tsukishima couldn't block. And somehow, Nishinoya had modified "rolling thunder" to the point that it could be used in the match. Now Nishinoya skills could rival even Itachimiya Academy's libero. As the last ball touched the other court, Karasuno got themselves a win of 25-23.

Hinata felt himself stressing out. He wanted to be placed on court, but got rolled out in the third game. He anxiously watched as Itachiyama Academy started picking up. Each time Sakusa spiked became the worst moment in Hinata's life. Sakusa now put in even more power in his spikes, making it literally near impossible to receive. Hinata could only watch as the ball land on the ground time and time again, his teammates helplessly trying to save it. He really felt like tearing his hair out. Unfortunately, they lost the set, 23-25.

Hinata finally got rolled back in. And the fourth game began. Karasuno had done alot of physical training before the tournament started, and that gave their stamina a level up. Even though Itachiyama had also done physical training, it wasn't as much as what Karasuno did. Kageyama had been practising his serves and tosses, now being able to perfectly give the spikers the toss they wanted and also could control his serves with pinpoint accuracy. Hinata on the other hand trained for better mid-air control as well as observation skills, and could now see, run and spike with a higher success rate. Hinata also seeked advice from Tsukishima to improve his blocking skills. Karasuno brought their points back up and won, 25-21.

The last match was due to start soon. Itachiyama's and Karasuno's captains gave their teams a pep talk. When the whistle blew for the start of the match, you could see the animosity between the two teams and the fire rising from each player on court.  Sakusa was determined to win. He seriously couldn't stand losing to a team with a chibi as a spiker and some guy with a goatee as ace. He just had to get his spikes through that blond spectacled blocker, if he could, his spikes would be unstoppable. And he would, he was one of the top threes aces and this team had been through a great deal before earning their rightful title as the champions. He wouldn't let some crows just come over and swoop the title from underneath his nose. At the bench area, Yamaguchi was itching for his turn as pinch server, he had practised his float serve countless of times. It still hit the net sometimes, but 90% of the time, it didn't. He had control over the ball, he was sure of it. He had served a few times before in the game, and the results never let his teammates down. He would do it again and again, till they secured victory. His chance came, when it was Hinata's turn to serve. Now the score was tied 13-13. Yamaguchi stepped up and took a deep breath, aiming at an ideal spot. Then he served, the ball floated and rolled over the tip of the net, landing on the opposite court. Yamaguchi heaved a sigh of relief as he picked up the ball to serve again.

Now, all they needed was that one last point. They had already lost a point to Itachiyama. They could not and would not lose another one. They tensed and hurried into position as they awaited for Itachiyama to serve. A guy runs into the gym in that last minute before the whistle blows, wearing the colours of Itachiyama's volleyball club. The coach calls him over and swaps him in as pinch server. Karasuno paid no mind to the change but soon found themselves frozen as the ball just whizzed past them. Kageyama closed his eyes and prayed briefly as the opposition geared up to serve again. Nishinoya saved the ball in the nick of time, miliseconds before it touched the floor. Daichi ran after the ball and received it. Kageyama tossed and Hinata jumped. Hinata could feel as time froze. He scanned his surroundings, finding a suitable area to spike. He spiked furthest away from the blockers. The ball got received by the libero. Soon, Karasuno found the ball heading back. Sakusa spiked, purposely aiming at Daichi's shoe. Daichi found himself unable to react as the ball rebounded off his shoe and out of court. Everyone watched horrified as the ball bouced to a stop outside the court. The refree blew the whistle to end the match.