I, Mochizuki Akira, am a first-year student at Aoba Johsai High, and a perfectly ordinary, handsome guy.
On my first day of school, my utterly unremarkable life story suddenly changed from The Art of Being an Extra to The Chosen One's Volleyball Journey.
While watching my idol, Oikawa Toru, train with the volleyball club, I effortlessly hatched a Guardian Character.
This little guy, who calls himself "the ideal version of him," gave me a cheat ability with a wave of his hand:
With no experience whatsoever, I instantly became a volleyball prodigy, smashing the court with powerful spikes!
I took on the whole team with overwhelming confidence. When the final ball hit the floor, the coach's eyes lit up as he handed me an application to join the club.
Mochizuki Akira scratched his head sheepishly. "Actually... I don't know how to play volleyball..."
Everyone in the volleyball club gaped in shock. My idol narrowed his eyes at me, looking like he was smiling without being happy.
Oikawa Toru gritted his teeth. "Damn it, I hate 'geniuses' the most!"
Mochizuki Akira's soul nearly left his body. "Help! I can't even remember all the rules of volleyball!"
The new recruit in Aoba Johsai High's volleyball club is a little strange.
He dominates in practice matches, predicts his opponents' spikes with radar-like accuracy, and hits quick attacks so hard that even the libero doubts his own abilities.
But during everyday practice, Mochizuki Akira is impossible to figure out.
Either his shots are perfectly placed and lethal, or his eyes go glassy and every ball slips from his hands.
Watching Mochizuki Akira play is like riding a roller coaster. You never know what he'll do with the next ball.
"A genius?" Matsukawa said, watching Mochizuki Akira shank yet another ball.
Isn't he more like a natural disaster?
To become a player worthy of standing alongside Oikawa Toru, Mochizuki Akira always stays behind in the empty gym after club activities, practicing alone over and over until his knees are bruised and his palms are raw.
One afternoon, Mochizuki Akira was so exhausted that he fell asleep in the equipment room. When he woke up, he found a familiar team jacket draped over him.
Number 1.
Oikawa Toru doesn't know that, after losing his final match in his third year of middle school, there was a boy in the stands who cried even harder than he did.
Mochizuki Akira doesn't know that his pink hair is hard to miss, and that his supposedly secret devotion has long been noticed.
"Content warnings"
1. The plot has been significantly altered. Aoba Johsai High will win, and the protagonist will improve and play through his own efforts.
2. Only the Guardian Character concept is borrowed. No characters from the original series will appear.
3. I'm not a professional, so please take the volleyball details with a grain of salt and don't nitpick.
4. Lots of OOC characterization and headcanons. The pacing is slow, the story is long and meandering, and the writing and logic are weak. The plot takes a long time to unfold, so enter with caution.
"First blurb archived on 2024.8.3; second version on 2025.4.21"
This story is written ahead of time and awaiting publication. It will start after the ongoing story on my profile is finished.
Theme: The pursuit itself is what drives us forward.
