"Shaken" (Japanese:
Overview[]
The score is 21-20 with Nohebi in the lead and Nekoma in a pinch. Yaku may have sprained his ankle when he accidentally stepped on a spectator's foot and landed awkwardly. Kuroo tells Yaku not to worry and to watch their victory before they head off to nationals. Shibayama replaces Yaku and he starts to feel overwhelmed by Nohebi who are targeting him as the weak link on the team. Kuroo encourages Shibayama by quoting their team's mantra. Kenma makes his move and tells his teammates to continue doing things the way they always do.
Plot[]
The crowd is silenced by Lev's counterattack that has put Nekoma in the lead. Lev himself savors the feeling of having slammed the ball after Nohebi did everything in their power to keep it going. He's about to credit Yaku for his amazing save when he spots Yamamoto helping Yaku walk back toward the court.
Several fans in the crowd had seen that when Yaku jumped the barrier to save the ball, he had accidentally landed on someone's foot and twisted his ankle in the process. Yaku apologizes to the man he accidentally stepped on and tries to get back onto the court but his injured ankle prevents him from doing that.
Coach Nekomata calls for Shibayama to go into the game as Yaku tries to play off that his injury is not that serious and does not need to move around much. His pleas fall on deaf ears as he is carried off the court by Inuoka and Coach Naoi. Yaku apologizes for what's happened but Kuroo and Kai try to assure Yaku that he has nothing to worry about and should take this chance to rest before they go to Nationals. As he's led away, Yaku reveals that not once throughout the year has he gotten sick and had avoided any major injuries.
Seeing the team is on edge, Kuroo quickly brings them back on track and encourages them to continue trying their best unless they want to face Yaku's wrath afterwards. As he treats Yaku's injured ankle, Coach Naoi tries to assure Yaku that he does not need to worry about Shibayama. Yaku counters that he is not worried about Shibayama and instead is more concerned about Lev.
On the court, Lev tries to assure Shibayama that he has nothing to worry about as long as he is there. Shibayama tries to keep himself calm until he notices that the Nohebi players are targeting him and his nerves start to take over.
Suguru gets a set and Shibayama suddenly feels frozen in place. Suguru takes the chance to score by sending the spike to Shibayama who fails to receive. The first-year libero realizes that Suguru wasn't trying to hide that he was aiming for him in the first place—the complete opposite of when Yaku is on the court and opponents try to avoid him at all costs.
Nekoma calls for a timeout. Kuroo sees Shibayama is letting his nerves get to him and tries to help him calm down. Akane starts to become fearful of what may become of the match now that Yaku is out. Alisa tries to help the younger girl by telling her that sometimes hope and possibility are born from bad luck and misfortune.
Inuoka is also doing what he can to bring up the spirits of his team but does not seem very successful until Kenma steps forward and says that he believes they still have a chance.