Haikyuu!! 18

"OTL Sorry I'm so slow finishing these chapters. I love Haikyuu!! dearly, but sometimes it's pretty text-heavy.

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[p001]

(Noya): My job is
(Noya): strictly to
(Noya): connect everyone.

(left) Entrusted emotions

(beneath panel) [Haikyuu!!]

(Noya): I can't fight in the "sky",
(Noya): which is the spikers' domain, but

(Noya): Without fail, I will get the ball to them
必ずスパイカー達のいるてっぺんまで
(Noya): at their highest point.
繋いでみせる

(Noya): No matter how many times it is bounced back by a "wall", if I can just get it through,
(Noya): then our ace will definitely score.

(Noya): The ball which has rebounded off the wall...
(Noya): Just watch. This time as well, I'll get it through, so
(Noya): please, just one more time.

(Noya): Call out for a toss,
(Noya): ace.

[p002]

Asahi: What?
(right)
The 1st volume from Jump Comics has been reprinted in large numbers!! Go to the bookstore right now!!
Haikyuu!!
Furudate Haruichi
Chapter 18: The One Called the "Ace"
(left) Karasuno's "Ace" makes his appearance!!!

(Shou): Craaap, it's the real deal. The real deal's appeared!
(Shou): A beard! Long hair!!
Tobio: OI!

(Shou): As far as height goes, isn't Tsukishima taller...?
(Shou): But it's like... he's really huge...

(Shou): This person is... Karasuno's ace...
(left)
Karasuno High School, 3rd year
Volleyball club
Wing Spiker
Azumane Asahi

Koushi: What are you guys doing here?

Shou: Ah.
Shou: Umm.
Koushi: These are 1st years who joined recently, Hinata and Kageyama.
Asahi: Ooh! 1st years, huh.
Shou/Tobio: Hello!
Asahi: Ossu.

Asahi: How many this year?
Koushi: 4.
Koushi: It's not that many, but they're all promising.
Asahi: I see.
(Shou): Ah. He's not as scary as he looks.

[p002]

Asahi: Good luck, and do your best.

Shou: Eh?

Shou: Aren't we gonna do our best together?

Shou: I want to become an ace, so
Shou: I wanna see the real thing in action!

Boy: Azumane~ the teacher's waiting for youuu.
Boy: Career counseling~

Asahi: ......sorry.

Asahi: I'm no ace.

Tobio: Um... I don't really understand what's going on, but...
Tobio: Is he injured or something?

[p004]

Koushi: No, he's fine.
Tobio: Then... he can't return for some reason?
Koushi: No... there aren't any sort of external factors.

Koushi: The problem is
Koushi: probably that he's come to hate
Koushi: volleyball.

Shou: EHHHH?!
Shou: Such a big guy who's called an ace...
Shou: Why...?

Koushi: ...Asahi is strong and was the tallest person we had.
Koushi: He would succeed despite dire situations and difficult-to-hit balls, so
Koushi: everyone thinks of him as our ace.
Koushi: But...

Koushi: I depended on him too much.

Tobio: ...you suffered a crushing defeat?

Koushi: ...in that match... Asahi's spikes were
Koushi: completely and utterly blocked...

[p005]

Shou: !? Ehh...
Shou: Th...

Koushi: You're thinking "that's all?", right?
Shou: Ah! No! Getting blocked is really really really annoying, so I completely understand that.

Shou: ...but... to hate volleyball because of it...

Koushi: ...you could say that Asahi, as our ace,
Koushi: would always be targeted, even in serving and blocking, but
Koushi: even so, in that match, we were utterly unable to do anything...

Koushi: Asahi is the sort who would feel doubly responsible, so...
(Asahi): "Even if I come back, I'll just drag everyone down again."

Koushi: ! Come to think of it, club activities are going to start, so you guys better get going!
(small text) I'll head over right away, too.

Shou: Hrmmmmmm...
Tobio: What is it now?

Shou: ...I wonder if he really ended up hating volleyball after that...

[p006]

Tobio: ...in that match... there were... all sorts of things going on.

Tobio: ...moreover,

Tobio: I'm not sure yet if he's really come to hate it.

Shou: YEAAH!!

???: C'mon, bring it!!
???: One shot!!

???: Hrgg
???: ROLLIIIING

Noya: THUNDERRRR!!!

[p007]

(sfx above boys) Silence
(sfx around Noya) Squeak squeak

Koushi: ...Ah, yeah. Nice receive!
Tanaka: That was just a normal rolling receive, wasn't it! Where the heck was the "thunder"!
Tobio: Why did you shout like that?
Kei: What was... that...
(above Yama) PFFFFT
Daichi: C'mon, now. Don't move around while shouting something strange. It's dangerous!
Noya: Kagayama, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, get over here. I'm gonna give you a lecture, so crouch down! No wait, sit down! Get yourselves lower than my line of sight!!
Shou: Teach me that! Teach me rolling thunderrrrr!

(sfx) Doors opening
Takeda: That's enough for todaaay.

???: Gather up!
Team: Ossu!!

Takeda: You guys are gonna do that again this year, right?!

Takeda: The Golden Week training camp!!

Daichi: Yes.
Daichi: We still need a lot more practice, after all.

(Shou): Training camp...!!

Takeda: In that case...

[p008]

Takeda: I've scheduled a practice match
Takeda: for the final day of Golden Week!!

Tanaka: H-how reliable, Take-chan!! What happened!
Koushi: A-
Koushi: Against who...?!

Takeda: The Tokyo veteran
Takeda: [Nekoma High School].

Shou: ? Tokyo? Nekoma?
Koushi: By Nekoma, you mean... the school that's always been our destined rival...?

Takeda: Yep!
Takeda: If I remember right, they're commonly called

Takeda: "The cats".
(Neko = cat, though the kanji in Nekoma is different)

[p009]

Shou: Cats?
Tanaka: Even we've only heard stories about them.
俺らも話だけはよく聞いててよ
Tanaka: Like how the former coaches of both schools were old rivals, so in the past, they'd often go out of their way to challenge each other.
前の監督同士がずっと昔からのライバルで前はよくお互い遠征に行ってたんだと
Shou: Ooh.
Koushi: I hear that the schools were evenly matched and got along well, so it was worth the trip to have good practice matches.
実力が近くて相性もよかったから遠出する価値があるくらいのイイ練習試合ができたって聞くよ

Koushi: Apparently when we had them, everyone in the neighborhood would come to see.
Koushi: A notorious match-up!
Koushi: "Cat vs. crow!" "The Battle of the Garbage Heap!"
Koushi: Stuff like that.
Kei: Was that really so notorious?

Koushi: Every so often, we'd talk about how we'd also like to try competing against them someday.
Shou: Oooh...!

Daichi: But we haven't been in contact with them for a while, so why now?
Takeda: Yeah... I'll tell you the details later, but...

Takeda: When I heard about the existence of our well-matched rival Nekoma High School,
Takeda: I wanted to have a "destined rematch" no matter what.

Takeda: With Nekoma High School as our opponent...

Takeda: I'm sure that "he" will also be moved to action.

[p010]

Ukai: Achooo!

Boy: S...so there's that Take-chan from Genbun...
Boy: Seriously?
Ukai: Ugh...

(Takeda): "I apologize for being so persistent... but...
(Takeda): I think you would understand the reason why if you watched those children in a match."

(Ukai): ...come to think of it,
(Ukai): training camp season is coming up...
Boy: I'll take this, plus 1 nikuman!
Ukai: Alrighty.

Daichi: Okay!
Daichi: We're finally going to have a practice match against them, so don't let it go to waste
Daichi: and give your all in both the match and training camp!!
Players: OSSU!!

Tanaka: Tokyo, huh...! Those damned city boys,
Tanaka: we'll completely pulverize'em...!
(left of Kei) Pfft
Kei: "City boys", he says.

(above Tanaka) Shut it, Tsukishimaa! Damn you! Oryaa!
Noya: ...Daichi-san,

Noya: Sorry.
Noya: I won't
Noya: be going to the practice match.

[p011]

Daichi: ...because Azumane isn't coming back, huh.

Daichi: ...You're probably angry and think that he "ran away", but you're your own person...

Noya: ...Shouyou's a nice guy,
Noya: and the other 1st years are a bunch of weird guys, but they're interesting.
Noya: I think like this, the team will have a good atmosphere and get along pretty well.
これからこのチームはなんかこういい感じにやって行くんだと思います

Noya: I also... want to practice here.
Noya: ...but
Noya: If I... participate in a match too... and we win...
Noya: It would be like proof that we can win even without Asahi-san.

Noya: Even though we've played together until now,
Noya: Winning even without Asahi-san being there... I don't want
Noya: something like that.

Noya: S-sorry for saying something... so selfish...

Daichi: ...I understand.
Daichi: But come to the training camp.

Shou: Noya-san!! One more time! Do rolling thunder again!!

Daichi: Okay?

[p012]

???: Good work.
???: You too~

Shou: ...If "Asahi-san" comes back,
Shou: Maybe Sugawara-san and Nishinoya-san would feel better about stuff.
Tobio: Don't care.

(Koushi): "I depended on him too much."
Shou: He said it's because Asahi-san is the sort who feels doubly responsible, but I get that sort of feeling from Sugawara-san, too.

Tobio: Each of them feels responsible.
Tobio: However,

Tobio: there's no way someone can win on their own.

Shou: Y...you're saying that?!
Shou: I remember your "declaration" very clearly!

Shou: [I think it'll be fine even if I have to]
Shou: [Do all of the receives, tosses and spikes myself.]

Tobio: !! Shut upp!!
Shou: [I think it'll be fine like that.]

[p013]

(above Tobio) Soryaaaa!
(white sfx) Woosh

Shou: ...everyone on "this side" of the net might be allies, without exception,
Tobio: HAAH?

Shou: but I don't want "this side" to have a
Shou: strained atmosphere.
Shou: What can we do, to get "Asahi-san"
Shou: to come back?

Box: Lunch break, the next day.

Students: Let's go buy snacks.

Students: Sleeepy.
Students: What class've we got in the afternoon?

Girl: Wanna go to Sakanoshita?
Girl: Sure!

[p014]

Asahi: Why the interest in me, when I've never even practiced together with you?
Asahi: You won against Aobajousai with the current lineup, didn't you? And you didn't even have Nishinoya then.

Shou: If
Shou: If Asahi-san doesn't come back, then
Shou: the 2nd and 3rd years won't be happy at all!!
Shou: That's why.

Tobio: Your voice was too loud!

Asahi: Waha!
ASahi: You guys are interesting.

Asahi: But... I'm sorry.
Asahi: The image of hitting a ball that is knocked down by a tall blocker is still fresh in my mind...
俺は高いブロック目の前にしてそれを打ち抜くイメージみたいなのが全然見えなくなっちゃったんだよ...
Asahi: I still remember fearing that we would surely have a shutout and bringing about my own downfall...
必ずシャットアウトされるかそれにビビって自滅する自分が過ぎるんだ...
(A shutout is a game where one team prevents the other from scoring)

Shou: ...You might think it's conceited to be told this by a 1st year sh...shortie, but...
Asahi: I won't think that at all. What is it?

Shou: I
Shou: understand what you mean.

(Shou): No matter how much I jump,
(Shou): In front of me is a human wall.

Shou: Because I'm short and don't have any technique, I would only get stopped by blockers, but
Shou: now I have this guy's toss, so I can evade even the tallest blockers!
Shou: The blockers are right in front of me, so when they disappear...

[p015]

Shou: I can see everything on the "other side" of the net
Shou: stretching out below me.

(Asahi): Ah, that landscape.
(Asahi): I remember it, somewhat.
Shou: And then,

Shou: the ball hits my hand at the highest point,
Shou: and the "weight" of the ball in my hand is like... like... it's this awesome feeling.

Shou: I really love it!

Asahi: You should really get your thoughts together before talking.
Shou: Urk.
(Asahi): I know what you mean there, too.

(Asahi): I know that feeling very well.

[p016]

Shou: I'm jealous of you, Asahi-san.

Shou: As I am now, I don't have the height or power to break through blockers on my own,
Shou: but you have all of that.

Shou: You've probably been blocked a lot of times up to now, but
Shou: you've gotten even more spikes through, right?
Shou: That's why everyone

Shou: calls you an "ace".

(Shou): "I want to become an ace."

(sfx) School bell ringing

Tobio: ...time's up. We're going back, Hinata.

Tobio: Move it already, you moron! We'll be late!

Tobio: ...um.

[p017]

Tobio: It's a given that you can't win on your own.
Tobio: That's why there are 6 people on the court.

Tobio: I came to understand that just recently as well,
Tobio: so I can't make any arrogant comments, though...

Tobio: ...excuse us.

Students: Byebye~
Students: Let's head home together~
Students: Let's eat something on the way home~

(sfx) Squeak squeak
(sfx) Wham!
???: One more, one more!

(Asahi): That was fast. I can already hear the...
???: Shut up, I get it!

[p018/019]

(Asahi): Amazing...

(Asahi): His jump, and

(Asahi): the perfect timing

(Asahi): of his toss.

(Shou): The ball in my hand is like, this awesome feeling.

(Tobio): That's why there are 6 people on the court.

(Noya): I'll take care of everything and get it through to you!!

(Noya): So please
(Noya): hit this spike with everything you've got!!

(Noya): Asahi-san!!

Shou: Alriiiight! We're gonna score with quick attacks against the cats, too!
おっしゃ!対ネコ戦も速攻決めるぞぉぉ

(Asahi): "The cats"?
(Asahi): Nekoma?!

(Asahi): A match with
(Asahi): that Nekoma?!!
(left) Little by little, the crows are connecting with each other!!!