#the Tokyo training arc is my FAVE so I was hyped to write about it

[hoperenae]

Turning Heads (a Haikyuu fanfic by hoperenae)

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PART 21- Tokyo Training

Summer had finally arrived, and we were headed back to Tokyo for the summer training camp. Unlike a couple of weeks ago, we were at Shinzen this time, but all the same schools would be there. All of my teammates had been working on new moves since our last camp, and while I had been helping them, I hadn’t really come up with anything new for myself. This camp felt like the perfect opportunity to figure out what I could do that no one else could, what made me special.

“What’re you hoping to learn from the training camp, Arya-san?” Yacchi asked as the bus rolled on past cultivated fields. She was the new assistant manager for the team and a first-year like me. We had a couple of classes together, so when I heard she was considering joining the team, I encouraged her to give it a shot. And I was glad she did.

“I don’t really know,” I confessed. I guess I’m mostly just hoping I don’t get left behind while everyone else moves forward.” I smiled nervously.

“Oh, I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that,” Yacchi said. “You’re super talented, so I’m sure you’ll come up with something awesome.” She grinned and I returned it.

Finally, we arrived at Shinzen High. We were the last team to arrive. As we entered the gymnasium, I couldn’t help but be in awe at the amount of talent in one room. This was going to be fun. Or so I thought…

Day one was rough, to put it mildly. Everyone felt really out of sync. It was like we were each a different part of a machine, but none of the parts were put in correctly, so the machine was malfunctioning. We had to do so many hill sprint penalties, I thought my lungs were going to burst. Once all the teams got over the fact that I was the only girl, they didn’t hold back against us. They had a little more trouble with my left-handedness, but after a few matches, I no longer felt like I had an edge. To top it all off, Hinata and Kageyama still weren’t on speaking terms from their big fight, so things were a bit tense. By the end of the first day, I was nearly ready to throw in the towel and call it a week.

Everyone stayed up late practicing their new moves. I helped Nishinoya by hitting some of his tosses, and I attempted to receive Asahi’s new jump serves. It felt like everyone was moving forward except me, and I was beginning to feel anxious and frustrated. I needed to grow, fast.

Day two was more of the same. More losses, more penalties, more frustration. The only saving grace was that, halfway through the day, the Fukurodani managers brought watermelon for everyone. I sat down on the hill next to Kenma from Nekoma who was fiddling with a handheld video game.

“What’s that you’re playing?” I asked Kenma through a mouthful of watermelon.

“Huh?” Kenma muttered, startled to find that I was indeed talking to him. “Oh, uh, it’s this new RPG called Castlemaster.”

“No way!” I exclaimed. “I’ve been wanting to buy that, but I don’t have any money, and my mom made me choose between that or new volleyball shoes.” I frowned and glanced down at my new shoes.

“Oh, yeah. It’s pretty fun.” Kenma said with a shrug. I scooted closer to him to watch over his shoulder, and his eyes grew wide at my sudden proximity.

“Ah, if it isn’t Karasuno’s girl,” a deep voice said. I glanced up to find Nekoma’s captain smiling at us with his hands on his hips.

“I prefer ‘Karasuno’s wing spiker,’ thanks,” I retorted with a sly grin.

He put his hands up in defense. “My apologies, I meant no offense.” He plopped down next to me and held out his hand. “I’m Kuroo.”

“Arya,” I said as I shook his hand. It was calloused and warm, and he had a firm handshake.

“You’ve got a pretty mean spike for a first-year,” Kuroo remarked. His legs were out long in front of him and crossed at the ankles, and his hands were behind him to prop himself up. He had an ease about him that made me feel comfortable.

“Thanks,” I grinned. “Seems like you had a little trouble adjusting to my lefty spikes.” I smirked and met his eyes. They were deep brown with flecks of gold. Kenma snickered beside me.

Kuroo leaned forward to glare at Kenma as a blush crept onto his cheeks. “I wasn’t having trouble. I was just preoccupied with making sure my teammates were ok. That’s the job of a captain, after all.”

“Mhmm ok, whatever you say.” I shrugged. Kenma snorted again.

“Kenma!” Kuroo scolded. I laughed and playfully punched Kuroo’s arm which made him smile coyly.

“Arya!” Daichi called from the entrance to the gymnasium. “We’re meeting real quick before the next matches start.”

“Yes, captain!” I called back with a salute. Kuroo released a big bellied laugh. “See you guys in there!” Kenma nodded without looking up from his game, and Kuroo gave me a smile and a wave. Even though they were technically my rivals, after the tough time I’d been having lately, I was happy to have made two new friends.

TAGLIST: @lemurzsquad @bokuroibi