#Haikyuu 374

[westill-fly419]

Finding comfort

Your favourite Haikyuu character x gnreader

summary: he's there for you after you have a very bad day. warnings: very short, cliche (I guess? But I still hope you enjoy it), (h/n)=his name word count: 374 a/n: I wrote this, since everything just went wrong the other day and I felt so down... I hope you're well out there!

Hey, calm down..." he says. You can feel his warmth— arms around your waist. "Hey, don't cry..." His voice is soothing to listen to—despite trembling, you feel a sense of comfort wailing through your body, as you continue to shed tears.

You can't bear to look into his eyes. Today just went as wrong, as the day could go. A week ago, you didn't even think that everything could change so fast. At the moment, you only feel distressed and hopeless.

You listen to his words, with your face buried in his neck.

"Look," The boy starts, choosing every word carefully. "Even if others don't understand you, I do. ...I really care for you and don't want to see you like this, you know?"

He continues rubbing your back softly, while you just take one deep breath after another, in order to pull yourself together.

"Please, just look at me." The male gently ruffles your hair. "We will be able work out a solution together..."

All he wants is to see you smile. He just wants you to be happy.

"I promise you."

You hold on for a moment, stopping to cry. Ahead of your head slowly lifting, you first wipe away the tears, which had been running down your cheek and use some tissues, which he had given to you to blow your nose. As your eyes meet his, you can notice the vulnerability and sincerity lying in his gaze. 

For you, he's willing to do everything.

"Thank you for finally looking up to me." he says with a soft smile on his face, before wrapping his arms around you one more time. You lean into his touch, finding safety and comfort. His presence alone makes your heart feel a little bit easier, like a weight has been lifted from your shoulders.

"I have to thank you," you say, as your voice begins to gain more strength, "(h/n)." As the male hears your words, he pulls you into the embrace even stronger, carefully squeezing your body. 

"I will never leave your side, okay?" he whispers, not letting go of you. "You're not alone, then I'm always there for you. Because, for me, you are the most important being in this world."

[becomehaikyuu]

Haikyuu Chapter 374: The Very First Feeling

REFLECTION:

The match goes on for much longer than the brothers intended...which made it real awkward when they lost. 19-21. They're graceful losers so they buy the kids dinner and then head off. Oikawa heads off later, promising to meet Hinata in two years and beat his ass, and then Hinata just trains in a montage by his lonesome. The chapter ends with Hinata beating a bunch of grown men on the beach. The Japanese Ninja has awakened.

[rhetorical-ink]

Haikyuu!! Ship Analysis: OiHina

**SUNSHINE SETTER SPOILERS BELOW**

With all the negative in the world, Furudate really said, “screw you, 2020, I’m giving everyone some good food” with Haikyuu!! coming into this year, and with the manga concluded, I want to go back and examine some popular ships and why we love them/why they work. 

The 2020-2021 Haikyuu!! calendar just dropped and I was pretty excited to see the month of August highlighted with this image: 

So, this calendar image, followed by the cover of the Haikyuu!! Light Novel, volume 12, has really screamed, “Oihina rights!” to many fans, myself included. But...why has this ship grown in popularity? What has Furudate given us fans to fuel the flames for this pairing? Well, let’s find out, with this analysis!

Part I. Setting Up A Rivalry...

So, it’s been established early on that Oikawa views Kageyama as a threat, and has been constantly working to make sure he stays superior to his rival setter. But from Chapter 14, there was the faintest inklings of rivalry established between Oikawa and Hinata -- starting with this famous scene from Chapter 14, “Versus the Great King”: 

Despite Oikawa looking frustrated they lost the game, this is his reaction immediately following the moment in Chapter 15. He seems to get over his initial shock, as it’s replaced with some...other...emotion, it seems: 

And later, we can see the foundation of the dynamic Oikawa establishes with both Hinata and Kageyama. Notice how in this scene he offers Hinata polite praise for his winning move, while immediately challenging Kageyama, who clearly did not sign up for this barrage of taunts. 

It’s interesting, because it kind of sets Oikawa up as a rival for Kageyama...just like Hinata. We’ll talk more about Hinata and Oikawa’s similarities below, but I love how this weird “Rival Triangle” has formed between these three and carries on into both matches of Karasuno vs. Aoba Johsai later on.

PART II. Oikawa’s Not-So Subtle Focus on Hinata:

While there are hints in the practice match that Oikawa recognizes Shoyo could be a threat, we don’t see Oikawa really focusing on Hinata until later, when Aoba Johsai shows up to watch Karasuno’s game before they play them in Chapter 39, “The Return.” I like how Oikawa is not at ALL impressed with Asahi,

But seconds later, is all-hungry-eyes on Hinata’s “god-mode” set: 

And then there’s Chapter 48, “The Conductor.” I love this chapter.  I saw this image on Twitter, and I about fell out of my seat laughing:

Seriously. Think about it. Oikawa sat like that for over an HOUR, listening to Hinata screaming “Bring it” and “Give it.” No, no, we’re fine over here...

Of course, we see how Oikawa views Hinata as a threat during their first match up against them in the Inter High Prelim Qualifier match in Chapters 61-63:

His reference to Shoyo as a “Monster” is consistently brought up in the series, and then, waaaay later on in Chapter 189 at the end of the Shiratorizawa match, acknowledges how Hinata is indeed the type of hitter you WANT to throw the ball to, foreshadowing Inarizaki and Atsumu Miya literally 100 chapters early: 

PART III. “We’re Not So Different, You and I”

So, this leads us to the dreaded Chapter 365 and onward into the now-infamous “Rio Mini Arc.” I’ve noted it in a previous post, but during Takeda’s lecture to Shoyo in Chapter 365, and then later on in chapter 368-369, any time the words “defeat” or “hurdle” are thrown up, there’s an image of Oikawa beside them. In this moment, we are to meant as readers to liken Hinata’s hurdles and obstacles with those that plagued our main antagonist, Oikawa, all those chapters ago. You may be wondering why Furudate would set such a thing up...well, in Chapter 371, we get this reveal:

Ah, yes, of all places and of all people -- Shoyo wasn’t the only one crazy enough to trek across the ocean to South America to improve his game. Oikawa did too, only going to Argentina instead of Brazil. Yes, as Kindaichi and Kunimi kindly observe, Shoyo and Oikawa may have more in common that we the readers gave credit to, originally, as we see in the precursor to the best damn selfie in the whole series and possibly manga history: 

But it’s below that’s kind of the crux of this whole OiHina ship for me -- It’s not just that Oikawa and Shoyo are so alike...it’s that Oikawa and Kageyama are so alike, too:

Oikawa, whether he wants to admit it or not, has a lot in common with our blueberry setter...the difference, as we can see in these panels, is that unlike Kageyama, Oikawa is GREAT with communication. His ability to communicate with his team and connect with them is his hallmark as a player, right? 

Take for example, this situation below. If it’d been Kageyama, he’d probably fluster around, call Hinata “boke” and they’d bicker and carry on -- Oikawa, though, rightfully takes the compliment and runs with it, even adding in that flirty little tag there at the end. You’re not helping matters, Furudate...

Back to similarities with Hinata, though, and showing just how much Hinata has GROWN to Oikawa, we have this conversation below. Oikawa started out this manga literally calling Shoyo and Tsukishima “dumb.” Now, 300+ chapters later, he’s acknowledged that Hinata is “thinking” ahead...doing very much the same kind of crazy tricks to improve himself that Oikawa has chosen as well.

Also, good to know that Hinata initiated wanting to get Oikawa’s contact info; plus, Oikawa having to deal with his own teammates just giving him a hard time 24/7, when Shoyo’s offering open praise? No wonder he latched on...

But seriously, go read Chapters 373 and 374 in their fullest -- there are TOO many amazing moments between Shoyo and Oikawa to count, but they all show this forming friendship that I’m just in love with, like this one from 373: 

And while I LOVE the moment Oikawa calls our ray of sunshine straight-up “Shoyo” and shakes his hand, acknowledging their friendship and respect for each other, I really love this final shot of Oikawa before we see him at the Olympics. That panel of him walking away, reminding Shoyo that he has a looooong way to go, but showing his sudden motivation to get even better: 

Seriously, in the anime, I have a feeling that one episode is going to end with the ending of Chapter 371, and then they’ll probably just have one episode encapsulate Chapters 372 - 374, which I will be sad if it’s one episode in the anime...but MAN, I’m going to be watching that episode on repeat for a while, just to see these chapters re-imagined in animation.

PART IV. To The Olympics...and BEYOND!

The final chapter of Haikyuu!! graced us with the reunion of our ray of sunshine and our sassy trash king setter, and let’s be real -- we all need this animated...and to have Atsumu and Kageyama’s reactions on display in this moment, just for the fun of it.

And ya’ll wonder why there’s so many Rio/Brazil Fling fics out there?!

I think, besides this hug, what cements this ship after this last chapter is the following: 

* Even if it’s just a platonic friendship, it’s still one of the most fun and freshly developed friendships in the series, and makes sense going back from start to finish in the manga.

* Even if it’s just a fling, it’s flirty, fun, and could be the stepping stone for shippers that want to spice up their Iwaoi/Kagehina drama/angsty fics by adding in a little “fling” for Oikawa and/or Hinata to go through before reconnecting with their soulmates, if that’s your ship.

* And even if you want to view it as something more than platonic friendship or stepping stones into other ships, it still works. I mean, after all, Hinata went to play for Brazil after the Olympics. And Brazil’s a stone’s throw away from Argentina...so...who knows what could have ended up happening, right?

Furudate definitely doesn’t confirm many ships (with the exception of Tanaka and Kiyoko), but he definitely lays out some crumbs for us the fandom to nibble on and speculate with endlessly. OiHina may not be my OTP for Hinata, but I will never deny that it’s fun, spicy, and presents a VERY nuanced way to view the relationship between one of my favorite manga protagonist and antagonist pairings. Furudate, you are a genius. Thank you for the food!

[intentionsatheart]

[the-strongest-decoy]

I can’t help but keep thinking about the significance of Oikawa calling Hinata “Shouyo”. Not “Shou-chan” or “Hinata” or “Hina-chan” or some other mocking nickname. Given his personality, Oikawa calling him “Shouyo” is an intimate invocation filled with respect, neither a jest of his last name nor an overly familiar epithet of the first name. It’s a representation of kinship - another volleyball crazy idiot who gave up on all the mediocre chances they had to make it somewhat up the ladder and instead found their calling by taking the rockiest and most difficult long shot to make it all the way up and give themselves a real and undeniable shot at standing on the biggest, craziest and highest stage. And I think that’s just neat. 

[simplyfx]

Ok, this was absolutely precious and adorable but still... here I am imagining what kind of reaction Hinata would have if Kageyama called him by his first name~

[oikawas-tooru]

Oikawa: I’m going to defeat everyone Hinata... including you, you’re my rival

Hinata externally: Yes, sir

Hinata internally: fully aware that the last time he declared war on someone they ended up as teammates for years

[artemisia--hq]

“𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘯-𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘯.” - 𝘓. 𝘋.

【HQ!! 374 - First Goals】

___

★ Please do not repost without permission. Thank you :) ★

[hopipp]

OIKAWA IS LITERALLY SO GODDAMN FUNNY FURUDATE WOULD BE REMISS NOT TO BRING HIM BACK

[clipsandscreenies]

This is probably my favorite panel in Haikyuu 379

You just love giving that shade Tsumu-kun. I know, I know. (Too bad Tobio-kun is as dense as a plank)

[acerola-tree]

I want Oikawa to call Hinata 'Shouyou' in front of Kageyama and he be like 'HOW??'

[tsukkyis]

oikawa calling hinata "shouyo" & hinata literally Sparkling...... i'm emo

[spookysp-ace]

watching Hinata grow has always been fun and just :’)) AHHHHHHHHH

the intensity behind his growth is AMAZING

it’s like..... adding wood to a fire and just.....

the flames grow higher and higher, until—

everything is ablaze.

[nyo0m]

Oikawa didn't really teach Hinata how to set but boy did he encourage him to do so by getting the first touch on the ball

[cannot-decide-on-a-fandom]

Hinata and Oikawa saying goodbye

Oikawa: Jumps straight from 'shrimp' to calling him 'Shouyou', utterly missing out formalities or anything of the sort

Hinata: Still unable to not call him 'Grand Kind'

[givenanicatsomeanimecrack]

Hinata get overwhelmed when Oikawa called his name is so cute!!! It's a shame they wont be in a team for so long. Can't wait for their next encounter.

This might be late but that ninja nickname is kinda lit.