In the past month or so, five people have made their way onto my list of “I don’t like them.” Those five? The new first-years who joined the volleyball club.
When I first caught sight of them from a distance, my initial impression was, “Three of them are just as tall as I am, and one of them had the audacity to dye her hair just four days into the school year.”
That was the gist of it.
But once we met face-to-face for introductions, my impression shifted a little.
First off, the girl I thought had dyed her hair—turns out I was wrong. Up close, it became clear she’s mixed race. That hair is probably natural.
Then, among the tall ones, two of them… well, let’s just say they’ve got S-curves. I won’t go into detail, but both their bust and hips are—bam!—fully developed.
Hold on, you’re telling me they’re first-years? As in, 15 years old?
Oh, one of them’s an April baby and already had her birthday? So she’s 16 now?
Well, okay, 16. But still—why are their figures so much better than mine at 17?!
Incidentally, one of those two girls with that enviably outrageous figure is the younger sister of Tobei-senpai, who was the captain of the volleyball team back when we were first-years.
Tohira-senpai, you haven’t been feeding them weird ideas about us, right? I trust you… I think.
The third tall girl isn’t quite on their level, but she’s still more well-endowed than me. Not saying where, though.
And then there was the fifth first-year, who up until now had only really stood out for being short — but the moment I got closer, I realized: This girl is huge!
But the thing I hate most is that all five of them are cute. None of them have freckles like me. Their facial features are well-balanced, even beautiful. The mixed girl looks like she could debut as an idol right now.
Tohira-senpai's little sister and the half-Japanese girl's older sister could easily grace the cover of a gravure magazine without any photo editing.
And even the remaining two? They easily surpass the average by a wide margin in the looks department.
And yet—despite all that—they're crazy serious about volleyball.
According to them, “Reiko’s the only real practice freak,” but they’re wrong. All five of them are insane.
Their arrival changed everything. One major shift was morning practice.
Needless to say, early morning training is tough. Back when I was a first-year, we had morning practice every school day starting at 7:00 AM. But as the team got weaker, attendance dropped. Eventually, it was down to just Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, starting at 7:30.
But Asuka, holding on to the image of the team from Tohira-senpai’s era, naturally pushed things back to the old way.
That part I could understand.
But then things took a turn for the absurd.
Turns out Hina and Yuuri—those sisters—were showing up at 6:00 AM to practice.
Their excuse? “Since I’ve had a gap in training and Yuu-chan’s a beginner, we need to practice more than everyone else.”
No, that’s not how it works! You’re supposed to work hard within the time you’re given!
And of course, Reiko and Yuki started showing up at 6:00 AM too, like it was the most natural thing ever.
Only Asuka was upset: “I can’t get here by 6:00, the trains aren’t even running yet!”
She’s right. From where she lives, the earliest she can arrive at our school’s nearest station is 6:10. So I guess I can’t blame her.
But something about this feels fundamentally wrong.
Eventually, Ellie (a nickname for Eriko) put a stop to the 6:00 AM training.
Obviously.
If practice starts at 6:00, no teachers are at school yet. What happens if someone gets hurt? Who would take responsibility? Freedom isn’t the same as lawlessness.
Ellie laid that all out for the first-years and even got them to consider the burden on the teachers. She convinced them to move the start time back to 7:00 AM.
Honestly, I was worried. Ellie’s usually not great at standing up to pushy types, so I didn’t think she could talk them down. But the first-years took it surprisingly well.
They even apologized for acting on their own. Maybe they’re actually good kids—just really intense.
Training got a lot tougher, too. Apparently, the older Tachibana sister is an insane talent who was selected as a libero for the national team. She personally created the training regimen we’ve been following.
The first thing on the menu? General fitness and core training. Let’s just say—it was killer.
In the beginning—wait, who am I kidding? Even now, my body aches every single day. But I’ve got pride too. I’m a third-year. Ellie, Miho, and I are all hanging in there with that same thought: “No way we’re letting first-years beat us.”
Meanwhile, the first-years seem like they’ve still got energy to spare. Especially those stamina monsters Yuuri and Reiko. They even practice rallies during breaks between drills. They’re so disciplined it’s scary.
And those two have slightly different training programs. Not the kind meant for beginners—
Rather, they focus intensively on two specific areas.
And one of those areas is…
BOM!
The gym resounded with an explosive crack.
That was Reiko’s spike. The sound was unbelievable—hard to believe it came from a high school girl.
But Saeki-sensei didn’t look satisfied.
“Reiko! I’ve told you again and again—don’t drop your elbow! Hit with your elbow above your ear! Got it? With your height, even a 10 cm drop means you’ll get blocked!”
“Yes, ma'am!”
…She’s not joking.
If I ever tried to block that spike, I’m 100% sure my fingers would snap.
I’ve seen her changing in the locker room a few times—Reiko used to do gymnastics, and it shows. Her power doesn’t just come from her jump—her back and core muscles are absurd. On top of that, she’s got long limbs and incredible whip-like flexibility.
Honestly, her spikes probably outclass even top-tier schools.
And yet—even Reiko isn’t the ace attacker on this team.
Because…
BOOOOM!!!
An even louder crack echoed through the gym.
This time it was Yuuri’s spike.
That tiny, delicate-looking girl—how does she have that kind of power and height?
Her biggest weapon isn’t the power—it’s the height of her contact point. She’s clearly spiking from over three meters up.
That’s not something even pro volleyball players can block, let alone high school girls.
And if it can’t be blocked, then the other team is stuck taking her spikes completely unguarded. The ball doesn’t literally get heavier or multiply or anything, but the speed—it’s probably on par with a guy’s spike.
Receiving that? Not easy.
“Yuuri! Don’t just smash it! No matter how powerful a spike is, if it gets received, it’s useless! Think about where you’re hitting it!”
“Yes, ma'am!”
Not even a joke. If I tried to receive one of her spikes, I’d probably end up with a broken arm. At the very least, a nasty bruise.
Our school isn’t exactly known as a powerhouse. So our winning strategy?
Avoid rally battles altogether by spiking from a height that outmatches any block.
That’s the plan.
And the ones who make it possible are those two absurd first-years.
Their spikes render blocking and tactics meaningless.
Just a simple open toss to the left, and boom—a literal killer spike drives into the enemy court.
It’s practically cheating.
When the two monster spikers became regulars, the issue became who would fill the remaining four slots in the match.
…It’s frustrating as a third-year, but the first-years, Hina and Asuka, are basically guaranteed. They’re around 170 cm tall, have good jumping ability, and on top of that, they’ve got talent. When we play 3-on-3 in practice, their overall skill really stands out. Why did girls like them even come to a school like ours?
In volleyball, aside from the standard six players, there’s also the libero position, but that’s a done deal—Yuki’s got that locked down. She’s the only one aiming to be a libero, and she’s the best on the team when it comes to receiving.
That means the remaining two slots will be contested between me, Ellie, and Miho. Our advisor, Saeki-sensei, has clearly stated:
“I won’t favor someone just because they’re a third-year. Nor will I favor first-years to build for the future. I’ll always field the strongest team I can put together at any given moment.”
Ellie can handle receiving, setting, blocking, and spiking all with ease. She has no weaknesses. On top of that, her serves aren’t powerful, but she has precise control and can hit her target. Plus, she’s the team captain. She’s basically guaranteed a spot too.
Which leaves one slot. The one to be dropped from the regular lineup will either be me, with my poor receiving skills, or Miho, who’s short. Getting kicked from the regulars in my third year would honestly crush me.
And it’s all because of the first-years. It would’ve been easier to deal with if they were the kind of people I could complain about.
Among the first-years, the one who stands out the most visually is Yuuri. Her looks made her the subject of schoolwide gossip in no time—across all grades. …And not the kind of gossip you feel good hearing.
They say, “She was born to a local mistress abandoned by her real father, doesn’t have a family registry, and lived on the streets. Her father picked her up when she was on the verge of starving to death during a civil war.”
That’s heavy. Way too heavy. It’s not something you can casually ask about to check if it’s true! She acts all carefree, but it makes me wonder if her sense of reality is just a bit off.
Even the other day, when she looked troubled, I asked her what was wrong, thinking it might be about her background. But no—she was upset about being small.
…I gently told her not to worry, that her height and chest size were both average, but she still didn’t look happy.
I mean, I kinda get it. Yuuri’s infamous as a sis-con among the third-years. She’s always trailing behind her older sister, Hina.
So naturally, the one she’s constantly compared to is her older sister Hina—who, frankly, makes you question if she’s really just a first-year with that kind of figure.
But you can't compare yourself to her! And it’s not like Yuuri is actually small either. Huh? Her cup size is the second letter of the alphabet? Don’t screw with me! I’m only at the first letter! We ended up bonding over our mutual frustration with big boobs stealing all the attention. Even a beautiful girl like her worries about her looks, apparently.
And that older sister, Hina, is another troublesome one. She also seemed a bit down, so I asked, and she said she struggles with being constantly compared to Yuuri.
She said, “With someone that cute around me all the time, I can’t even be the supporting character.”
That’s when I was absolutely sure—there are no mirrors in the Tachibana household. Look at yourself before saying that, for real!
I figured she wouldn’t believe me even if I said it, so instead, I told her a rumor that’s been going around among the third-years:
“Yuuri is able to get by in Japanese society even though she’s a half-foreigner unfamiliar with the culture because she has a caring big sister always by her side.”
When I told her that, she was overjoyed. Apparently, she’s always been the youngest, so being treated like a big sister makes her really happy. When I followed up with, “Since you’re the dependable big sister, you’ve gotta stay by your little sister’s side and protect her,” she said:
“You’re right. I’m the big sister, so I have to protect my little sister. I shouldn’t worry about being a supporting role or anything like that.”
And just like that, she was satisfied. …Her worries are way too easy to resolve.
Also, the fact that Hina is just as much of a sis-con as Yuuri is widely known at school, but I decided not to say anything about that.
Asuka, at first, seemed a little reserved around us. When I asked why, it turned out she thought we might resent her because two years ago, when we third-years were first-years, we were harshly trained by the then-captain, Tohira-senpai.
When I heard that, I got mad at Asuka. Don’t insult us. It’s true Tohira-senpai was strict with us, but she was even stricter with herself.
She was a type of captain that led by example in ways even our current captain, Ellie, couldn’t match. A true volleyball demon—strict with others and even stricter with herself. Her intense training whittled our group from ten down to just four by the time she graduated.
But she was an amazing senpai who tackled volleyball with unmatched passion and seriousness. So I told Asuka to honor that name and give it her all in volleyball.
And… she took that way too seriously. She kicked it into high gear and made our practice routines hellishly intense. Kinda wish I hadn’t said anything.
Reiko didn’t act much like a typical high school girl. She’s a total volleyball nut—apparently, she used to be a gymnastics nut too.
She’s also the team’s biggest eater. During Saturday practices, when we have lunch in between, I was stunned by the sheer amount of food she brought. She even asked me, “Am I eating too much?” I told her she should eat more to build her body and that she should thank her mom for making all that food and eat every last bite.
I don’t really get it, but ever since that day, she’s looked at me with eyes full of respect.
Yuki is short, even compared to other girls her age—not just our team. But she’s the best at underhand receives. I’d love for her to teach me. Apparently, back in junior high, she even won Best Libero at the prefectural tournament.
So why the heck did she come to our school?! What? Because it’s close to home? Are you seriously taking high school that lightly!?
“Yui-senpai, what should I do to grow taller?”
I got this oddly specific question from our genius libero. Based on my own experience, I told her to consult with milk.
“That whole ‘milk makes you taller’ thing is a myth. I drank a liter a day in junior high, and it didn’t help at all.”
…Ah. Yeah. In your case, the milk didn’t go to your height—it all went to your chest, didn’t it? By the way, what brand were you drinking?
“!! The brand! So that’s where I went wrong! The brand you drank was ‘Shizen no Irodori,’ right, Senpai? I’ll start drinking it today!”
Apparently, the milk she drank was a brand called 'Daichi no Shizuku'. Alright. Time to hit the supermarket on the way home. I don’t need to get that big, but I’d at least like to hit the second letter of the alphabet!
Anyway, what’s most annoying about this year’s first-years is that they’re all way too charming. Gorgeous looks, athletic talent, and great personalities. Damn it. Wasn’t there supposed to be some rule that you can’t have it all!?
To top it off, we only get to play volleyball with them until summer. Less than three months left. Why couldn’t I have been born just one year later!?
Yeah. I really can’t stand this year’s first-years.
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