20 Training Camp 1
Waking up I began to do my morning routine of doing some light stretches and washing up. After taking my shower I went to the kitchen to make my breakfast of instant oatmeal and some greek yogurt that I had in my fridge.
While eating I began to think about what to bring in my bag for the training camp as we will be using the school gym but will stay overnight at the school in the training camp facilities that are used for extracurriculars.
Finishing up my breakfast I pack my bags with the daily necessities such as some change of clothes and various hygienic items. Putting on my shoes near my front door I heard my doorbell go off. I wondered who would be at my door this early in the morning and I was surprised to see Mahiru was the one on the opposite side when I opened it.
"Oh it looks like you're leaving already." She saw me in a hoodie and joggers carrying a handbag holding all my items.
"Yeah they wanted us to come a bit earlier than usual so we can have more time to use to prepare us for a practice match we have on the last day. Anyways it's pretty rare for you to ring my door this early in the morning, what's up?"
Mahiru handed me a bag with a glass container that had lemon slices and honey inside of them. The way the sunlight beamed through the glass made the lemon slices look like jewels and I wondered if this was food or a decoration.
"I made some honeyed lemon slices a few days ago when I heard that you will have your training camp during golden week. Since I won't be able to give you dinner this can help you speed up your recovery after working out and help replenish your energy." Mahiru began explaining what was in the jar.
"I made a big amount so you can share it with your team. Just make sure to leave it out of direct sunlight okay." I looked at the jar in my hands and felt a warm feeling spread throughout my chest. This feeling I wasn't able to describe in words.
"Thank you Shiina." I gave a short thank you but it contained many feelings of gratitude and thanks for what she gave me.
"No problem, just do your best at camp and I look forward to our outing after you're finished." She gave a sweet smile and chuckled. I smiled back at what she said and began to walk my way to school while saying goodbye to Mahiru. She watched me go by and after a while went back inside her apartment.
***
Arriving at school I saw that the usual two volleyball addicts were one of the first people to arrive alongside Daichi, Asahi and Sugawara.
"Haruto! You're finally here." I greeted the excited Hinata and did so to the other members. We placed all of our items in the place where we would be sleeping and I got the glass jar that I was holding and gave it to Kyoko since I didn't know where to place it.
"Alright I saw some of the other members left near the front so we can start warming up. We have no time to waste since we have a practice match coming up and we still need to prepare for the interhigh preliminaries coming up in the next few months. So practice practice practice even you have to puke, pick up the ball and continue. Understand." Ukai said in a serious voice
"""YES"""
We began our warm ups and after had half of the team on serve while the others were on the opposite side passing the ball. I was on the passing side while Kageyama was on the serving side. Since the practice match with Aoba Johsai, Kageyama has been trying to increase his control over his serves just like Oikawa and he was able to have small success with it.
He bounced the ball a few times and spinned it on his palm. He threw the ball high with a two handed toss and began his approach.
*BANG
I watched the ball slightly curve to my right and I began to lower my center of gravity and platform my arms to receive the ball. I got under the ball but I was unable to absorb all of the power from his serve so the ball was slightly off from my intended target and still had a decent amount of spin on it.
As I switched out for the next person I looked down at the floor and noted down my movements from before and began to compare them to Nishinoya's form. I was able to incorporate his positioning on the court to receive but was still missing fundamentals that he uses in his receive. I decided to ask him later on what he does.
The time went by with us doing drills and slight scrimmaging. It was reaching dawn and Ukai called us to gather.
"Our first day of camp went well and we were able to slightly get used to positioning. I will now talk to each of you individually on what you could focus on during the next few days that can help you improve yourselves." Ukai said and talked to each of us individually.
"What did the coach say to you?" I asked Kageyama
"Well he said I should try to spread out our offense more so that we can utilize all of our members further and to try and work on learning the different types of sets each person likes." He said to me while Hinata ran up to us after talking to Ukai.
"Are you guys talking about the advice he gave us? He said that I should practice more receives because I suck at them.."
"It's true though, you like to use your face more in passing than your arms." Kageyama said and the two began to bicker as usual. I laughed hearing Kageyama's response and heard my name being called signaling that it was my turn.
"Haruto.. I can say that your offense is very strong, one of the best on the team. I would like you to try and improve your defensive skills a bit more since you can be a more rounded player. I saw your previous games from Junior High and I guess you have noticed that sometimes teams will target you with serves so that you will be out of system for the attack."
I nodded my head since it was sometimes hard to follow up on a play because of a serve that was aimed at me.
"You can work on your footwork to help you transition faster after receiving so you can be available to hit even after passing." Ukai suggested it to me and I thought about how to do so. I guess talking with Nishinoya will help benefit me greatly
After saying his part, all the team members went together to reach the place where we would have dinner and sleep. We all began to relax while waiting for dinner.
"Do you know what we will have for dinner?" I asked Tanaka next to me who was melting into the chair.
"I heard that it will be curry and rice! Kiyoko-san will be cooking it so it will obviously be delicious!" He stood up in an excited tone. I laughed at his actions and remembered the jar I brought. I went up to Kiyoko and asked her where the jar was and she pointed towards the cabinet. This caught the attention of all the members when they saw the big jar.
"What is that Haruto?" Daichi asked me and I told them they were honey lemon slices. All the members took a slice after hearing and were amazed by the sweet and tangy flavor it gave.
"Dinner's ready!!" We heard Takeda yell out and we rushed to the table and were amazed by the amount of food that was on it.
"Eat up! you guys need some nutrients to help you grow after your intense practice." Takeda said while smiling and we thanked him and Kiyoko for cooking the food. We all took a plate and began eating.
I took a bite and enjoyed the food in front of me. I chuckled at Tanaka and Nishinoya who seemed to be very energetic to be eating Kiyoko's homemade food and told Hinata to slow down and chew since he was inhaling his rice. Kageyama saw this as a challenge and also began eating fast to which I tried to stop.
The sound of laughter and plates clinging echoed in the residence and the sun set welcoming the moon signaling the end of the first day of training camp.
***
I tried honey lemon slices once and they actually tasted so good. Do you guys know which anime this food was shown in? Hint: it is also a sports anime. Peacu.
