On the ride back to school.
Though they had just won a match, no one on the Sengoku Junior High team felt tired.
There were two reasons for this.
First, because the main force behind the match had been Akashi Asuka. The others mostly played supporting roles, so their energy expenditure had been minimal.
Second, and more importantly, this was the first time in three years they had advanced to the second round of a tournament. That excitement alone was enough to override any fatigue.
As for Akashi Asuka, he sat quietly in the back of the school bus, eyes closed. On the surface, it looked like he was resting, but in reality, he was examining his status panel.
Strength: 75 (Core Strength: 74, Arm Strength: 76)
Speed: 70 (Explosive Speed: 69, Reaction Speed: 71)
Stamina: 72.5 (Endurance: 71.2, Cardiopulmonary: 73.9)
Vertical Jump: 69.8 (Jumping Power: 74.6, Hang Time: 65)
Basic Techniques: 59.4 → (Serving: 51.7, Bumping: 57.4, Setting: 51, Spiking: 75.1, Blocking: 71, Defense: 50.6)
Advanced Techniques: [None]
Half a month of intense training had gradually improved most of Asuka's stats to some degree.
Which was to be expected.
Although he had focused primarily on strength, vertical jump, and spiking, the human body doesn't work in isolated parts, it functions as a unified system. So when he pushed his legs and core through rigorous training, naturally his speed, stamina, and other attributes saw some spillover improvements.
Then there was "ball sense", something not directly reflected on the panel.
Even though Asuka hadn't deliberately trained it, his sheer amount of contact with the volleyball over the past few weeks had increased dramatically compared to before. This naturally sharpened his instincts.
With improved ball sense came incremental gains in all of his technical skills, even if the jumps were small.
But for someone like the former Akashi Asuka, whose technical stats were previously below passing level, even minor improvements were meaningful progress.
And that was just the bonus from training.
More notably, Asuka's arm strength and spiking had both crossed the 75-point threshold.
In the system's classification, 75 was a major milestone.
For a third-year Junior High Schooler whose body was still developing, 75 represented the upper limit of normal human potential. Anything beyond that marked the realm of those with true talent.
For the old Akashi Asuka, reaching 75 would have required him to recklessly push himself, risking injury just to break past his limits.
But with the system's help, Akashi Asuka had shattered that wall with ease.
It was this breakthrough that allowed him to deliver such overwhelming offensive power, single-handedly blowing apart Haneishi Junior High's triple block.
A sobering truth, really.
Only after tasting the strength of someone truly "gifted" did Akashi Asuka understand just how cruel competitive sports could be. In the end, raw talent really could crush everything else.
Of all the progress he made in the past two weeks, strength and spiking weren't even his biggest leaps.
No, the most shocking gains came in hang time and blocking. Each of those stats had jumped by over ten points, a frightening increase.
But those weren't results of training alone.
In fact, it was more like he had cashed in on the perks of his past life.
Many factors affect hang time; core strength, coordination, body control, and so on.
Physically, the original Akashi Asuka had a decent foundation. But the old Asuka had never known how to use those advantages, nor did he ever consider hang time as a viable weapon on the court.
But former basketball player Mason Lee, Akashi's past self, had plenty of experience in that department.
So once he fully merged with this body, his hang time stat naturally surged.
While technically a skill, blocking was more of a tactical ability, one that relied heavily on brainpower.
Which the old Akashi Asuka, well... let's just say he was academically challenged.
To be blunt: more than half of his subjects were usually below passing grades.
And mind you, the passing score at Sengoku Junior High was only 40.
Well, it was a "joy-based education system," after all. Emphasis on joy.
So, yeah... it all tracks.
Since it was the weekend and everyone had plenty of time, Coach Shimokawa kindly drove the school bus and dropped each team member off at their homes one by one.
Before Asuka got off, the coach repeatedly reminded him to rest and absolutely not train, lest he risk injury.
Naturally, Asuka nodded and agreed wholeheartedly.
"Never argue with someone you can't explain things to. It's better to just go with the flow, don't push back, especially not verbally."
That was one of the key lessons in human relations Asuka had learned after graduating in his previous life.
So, instead of wasting words trying to explain the existence of the "system," he simply played along.
After arriving home, Asuka dropped off his bag, grabbed a volleyball, and ran straight to the nearby park.
With the tournament underway, the volleyball club had entered full try-hard mode. Everyone was training intensely to catch up. This made it much harder for Asuka to stay ahead.
His only option now was to squeeze in extra practice during weekends or when the others were resting, just to maintain his edge.
That afternoon, he focused solely on improving his vertical jump.
By the end of the session, his legs felt completely detached from his body.
And yet... he had only managed to trigger one instance of [Low-Level Inner Grinding], earning just +0.1 Jump · Try-Hard Points.
Upon seeing that result, Asuka immediately realized: someone else on the team must've ignored the coach's advice and gone off to secretly grind too.
"Ugh. Gross. That volleyball slut. I can tell they're definitely not a hero-type."
Asuka silently spat in his mind.
Several kilometers away...
At a local park field, Nishimori Tomohiko, who had spent the entire match as a benchwarmer, was running drills to improve his stamina. He hoped that with better fitness, he'd be able to support his admired Asuka-senpai more effectively during future practices.
Suddenly, he sneezed.
Sniffling, Nishimori rubbed his nose, confused. "Weird. Is someone talking about me?"
After a moment's thought, he shook his head and muttered, "Ah, whatever. No time to worry about that. I need to keep training. With Asuka-senpai leading us, I'm sure our team will go far in this tournament. I have to do my part too."
Thinking back to how inspiring Senpai had looked on the court today, Nishimori's heart filled with hope.
As the sun dipped toward the horizon, Nishimori felt renewed energy coursing through him once again.