#the greatest decoy

[haikyuu-moments]

i never realized how important a decoy could be until i saw shoyo play 🫠

shoyo’s decoy game is next level. it doesn't matter if you see him as a small player. he's gonna draw you in with his plays and get all your attention that you forget he's not even going for the spike. even kags was so close to set the ball for him 😏

[confidentialartist]

The Greatest Decoy, Hinata Shōyō!

Happy beginning of Pride month, may you be blessed with love and abundance of everything you need!

[belatinysun]

Haikyuu!! - Chapter 398.

It's my favorite chapter and moment because it shows precisely everything Shoyo has been through until he finally could be able to overcome his flaws and reach the top. The parallel between the MSBY x Adlers match with the Kamomedai x Karasuno one is everything. The panels are perfect and amazing; everyone was able to see how much Shoyo learned from the past mistakes to apply on the present, and how much he will keep growing and being loved for all the future.

p.s: the fact that this chapter was released on Shoyo's birthday makes it even better. 🧡

[becomehaikyuu]

Haikyuu Chapter 384: The Greatest Decoy

REFLECTION:

The match is on and a shocking development comes up: Romero knows Hinata. And why wouldn't he? Hinata is fucking Ninja Shouyo! He knows him from the stories about him from his travels overseas. And at the end of the chapter, we find out why: Hinata is now able to act as a decoy for himself.

[theheightofdishonor]

it cracks me up that asanoya, one of furudate's most intentional pairs, complete with inverse birthdays and names specifically chosen to be complimentary are so, idk, unfated? compared to most hq pairs. Like, they're a fated pair but they're not mystical* the way most of furudate's intentionally created pairings are. They weren't incurably lonely before meeting each other, they're not a 45 volume romance saga about discovering your soulmate, they can't read each other's minds on court, they don't have that "you're the only person to really understand me" sentiment so common in hq

even as they have their own share of dramatics, there's something about them that feels normal amidst a sea of grand, epic tales of connection and i think that lack of dogged soulmateism plays into why they're very rarely focused on despite the level of deliberateness that furudate shows in making them irremovable from each other's stories

*and to be clear, i eat that dramatic shit up with a spoon, there's a reason that my tastes in ships are so aligned with huge fanon hq ships and it's because of those dramatic thematic threads

[pixiesnooze]

while i’m on atsuhina hating roll let me say smth this whole argument that hinata had to beg kageyama for tosses and atsumu gives him tosses willingly is stupid had atsumu met hinata when kageyama did he would have cooked him ???? literally insulted him left him for dead and never spared him a second glance

[suckishima]

the dichotomy of hinata being so inspired by the little giant that he'll jump at any opportunity to be like him, while the little giant is simultaneously the catalyst for tsukki to spiral down a path of negativity that leads him to be completely disenchanted with volleyball

hinata being inspired by short players, while tsukki harbors subconscious resentment toward them

hinata (the sun) and tsukishima (the moon) both orbiting udai (the sky/cosmos) from opposing perspectives

[needsmoresleepwrites]

Gift for adorations: "Kei goes to Tadashi’s house almost every day and almost every day he falls asleep on his bed." (Dec'23 GDC)

Kei Dreams

read on AO3

Kei doesn’t really like the holidays. It’s not because Christmas starts months in advance and every single ad he sees is about buying your loved one that super special and perfect gift and we can make sure it’s perfect if you buy with US. It’s not even because Santa decorated everythings were suddenly shoved in his face. Although, he admits he once asked Santa to get him a Santa-themed T-Rex figure but he was 10 so he thinks he gets a pass. He didn’t know better…

(Ok, he’s lying. That is a big part of why he dislikes the holidays, especially Christmas)

“Tsukki,” he feels someone shake him awake, “It’s getting late.”

There’s a warm hand on his cheek and he grumbles something that makes Tadashi laugh. There’s movement around the room and he keeps his eyes closed just a moment longer. When he finally opens his eyes, Tadashi is out of his uniform. He’s grabbing all of his stuff (wallet, game console, notebooks, and pencils) and packing them back in his bag. Kei realizes with a bit of annoyance that he did it again. 

“I’m sorry,” he says, “I didn’t mean to fall asleep again.”

(He goes to Tadashi’s house almost every day and almost every day he falls asleep on his bed)

Tadashi sets his packed bag down and goes back to Kei’s side. He pats his side and grins, “It’s ok. It was too cold to study anyway, and we did technically finish what we had to at school.”

“Is my brother here?” Kei asks, because even when he tells his mother he can just walk home alone, she always worries and sends Akiteru to pick him up. Tadashi nods and Kei reluctantly gets out of bed. 

He thinks that if Tadashi didn’t sleep in it every night, it would smell more like Kei with how often he wakes up on it. 

Tadashi hugs him with a grin and asks, “Do you want to brush your teeth?”

He holds Tadashi back loosely, his eyes still feeling a bit crusty and he wants to yawn but he’s very conscious of how his breath smells. He nods and Tadashi pecks him on the mouth, “Ok.”

Kei goes into the bathroom, which is right across from Tadashi’s room to finish waking up. When he steps out, he’s glad he can hear the TV and Tadashi’s voice downstairs. He grabs his bag and heads down too.

His brother is there, sitting at the Yamaguchi table with Tadashi and his parents. When he sees Kei he grins, “Ready to go?”

Kei knows he’s pouting when Akiteru laughs. He turns back to Tadashi’s parents and nods, “Thanks for the tea. It’s really delicious.” He flashes a tea box at them, “I’m sure Mom will love them. I’ll wait outside.”

The last bit is for him because (as Akiteru likes to tease), he knows he doesn’t like to be watched when he’s being all ‘cuddly’ with his boyfriend. Don’t worry, it’s not weird, it’s a teenager thing

Yamaguchi’s parents also tease and he feels himself go red, but Tadashi just grabs his hand and tugs him toward the genkan. He bows his head and excuses himself.

Kei is taller than Tadashi, but when he steps down to put on his shoes, Tadashi is the taller of the two. But only just. He knows Tadashi likes it when they stand like this (Kei does too) because he’s able to wrap Kei in his arms from above. Kei doesn’t like to hold Tadashi like that. He likes to hold him around his back and waist. (So he does)

Tadashi kisses his forehead and it would feel suffocating with anyone else but it feels warm with Tadashi. He knows not to hold on too tightly

He whispers into Kei’s ear, “I’m so excited for tomorrow.”

Kei isn’t, “I’m not.” (He is. Just not entirely. He’ll have to share Tadashi and it’ll be busy).

Tadashi just laughs because he knows, “Will we have time for a nap?”

Kei shakes his head, “We’ll be too busy. Mother likes to cook.”

---

They don’t have Christmas off, which means Kei still has to go to school in the morning and sit through boring lectures. Volleyball is canceled today though, which means he’s able to take the train to Tadashi’s school (still in the same town but a few stops from Kei’s). They both get ready at the dorms at his school. There’s no time to sit down and relax because his mother is already sending him messages of things she forgot to buy that he should get on his way home

Tadashi grins, “It’ll be like a little date.”

Kei smiles back and grabs his hand. 

---

Christmas in the Tsukishima household is fairly simple. Most years, his mother just buys most of what they’ll eat but when Kei came home one day and announced (shoes still on, bag still in hand, and a frown on his face), Tadashi will be over for Christmas this year, is that ok? she had been over the moon!

She pulled out old recipe books she only used occasionally, watched cooking videos like she was going to be on some professional cooking show, and asked him repeatedly about Tadashi’s likes and dislikes. 

Is he ok with dairy? What about eggs? Does he like cheese?

He likes rice, right? No wait, maybe he’s more of a bread person.

Do you know what kind of cake he likes best? 

He reminds his mother that Tadashi isn’t some stranger he picked up off the street but his elementary school friend, It’s not his first time coming over

His mother laughs but continues her barrage of questions, But it’s his first time here as your boyfriend. I can’t disappoint!

---

In the end, Kei and Tadashi walk into the Tsukishima household with a bag of yokan sweets and frozen vegetables. Tadashi sniffs the air and nearly drools, “It smells so good!”

He speaks loud enough to be heard in the kitchen and he knows his mother heard when a muffled, “Did you hear that Aki?” carries through the hall. There’s some shuffling and then his mother hurries over. She’s drying her hands on her apron and her smile is wide. Tadashi matches her cheer but Kei just wants the day to be over with

“Welcome, welcome,” she calls and pulls at Kei’s other arm, “Come in you two. Oh, Tadashi! Look at how much you’ve grown!”

She pulls him into a hug and Kei rolls his eyes. He lets go of Tadashi’s hand and goes to the kitchen to drop off the bag he’s carrying. 

When he hears Tadashi say, “Oh! I’d love to help!” he knows they’re doomed. Akiteru gives him a shrug, taste-testing the broth his mother has on low heat. He makes a noise and then hovers a spoon near Kei’s mouth, “It’s so good! Try it!”

Kei just stares and Akiteru does too. It’s been a few years since they’ve talked and figured things out, but sometimes Kei wishes Akiteru still backed down like he used to. Now his stubbornness outlasts Kei’s and he sighs, opening his mouth.

Kei’s eyes go a little wide because it really is good

Before he can say anything, their mother walks into the kitchen, “You two better not be sticking your fingers in there.”

Kei raises his hands and he can see the way Tadashi covers his mouth behind his mother, hiding a laugh. Akiteru, however, doesn’t get off too easily. He’s got the spoon in his hand after all. 

He defends, “I’m only making sure it doesn’t burn, just like you said.”

---

They sit down to watch TV after dinner. Dinner had run a little late because they had to let the food cool down. She looks at Tadashi when she says, “You know how Kei is.” 

Tadashi, who ends up sitting between the couch armrest and Kei nods. They share conspiratorial grins and Kei rolls his eyes, “You can’t taste anything if it’s too hot.”

Which is why he hasn’t touched his tea yet. It sits on the table with steam coming off the top. And it could be Tadashi’s warmth as he sits tight against Kei’s side, or the warmth of the house, which still has the smell of dinner in the air. Or it could be the sound of the TV and his family’s voices, but eventually, he dozes. 

(He dreams of more holidays just like today)

He wakes up a few hours later with his head on Tadashi’s chest and his body askew. He’s somehow maneuvered himself so that he’s half laying across Tadashi, who has also moved to hold him (spoon him, his mind corrects) more comfortably. His mother is sitting on the floor with her legs tucked into the kotatsu at the center of the room, a blanket over her shoulders, and the TV still on (volume lowered). His brother isn’t in the room anymore but he can see another blanket on the other side of the kotatsu so he knows he hasn’t been gone long

The lights from the Christmas tree dance along the walls. 

He looks over to see Tadashi dozing as well. His face is peaceful and Kei watches as different parts of his face light up as the lights change. He must be staring too hard or it might be the movement, but Tadashi’s eyes open slowly. When he realizes Kei is awake, he smiles softly and leans their heads close

“Is it time yet?”

“Dunno,” he mumbles. 

His mother looks back at them and smiles, “We still have about two hours, but if you kids want to open gifts now and get some proper rest, we can do that too.”

“Where’s Akiteru?” Kei asks, sitting up and rubbing some feeling back into his limbs. Tadashi rubs his back too. Kei grabs his cup of tea, which has gone cold. It helps him wake up some more. 

“He’s on the phone, but he should be back soon.”

Soon ends up being fifteen minutes and in that time they’ve cleared the kotatsu and set up the gifts to be unwrapped. 

He panics, “Wait! Isn’t it too soon?”

“We’re opening them early because we’re tired,” Kei tells him. 

Akiteru only grins, “You mean you’re tired.”

“You can open your gifts last .” Akiteru whines, his mother laughs, and Tadashi snickers. As they all sit around the kotatsu, Kei doesn’t miss the little box Akiteru slips into the pile. 

---

His mother sets up her phone to record and Tadashi flashes a peace sign before saying, “Tsukki! Let’s open your gifts first!”

He pushes a box toward him and Kei looks at him with a smirk, “You do realize we’re supposed to guess who these are from, right?”

Tadashi looks at Kei’s mother, “I have no idea who that one is from.”

She smiles, “Oh, I can wager a guess.”

Kei rolls his eyes and opens the gift. When he does, he feels his eyes twitch and he turns to Tadashi, who is smiling innocently. It’s a Christmas sweater with a pixelated T-Rex eating Santa Claus. In a horror-esque font it says SANTA CLAWS and tiny rocks are falling from the top. One of the sleeves is wrapped in Christmas lights and some of them even come off as 3-D puffs. 

“It’s…ugly.” 

“That’s the point!” Tadashi laughs.

Kei’s mother claps, “Oh Kei! You have to wear it now. It’s perfect.”

And Kei is weak to Tadashi and his mother so when they both urge him, he relents. He puts on the sweater over his clothes and frowns when Akiteru takes a picture. 

“Can you send me that picture?”

“Already sent!” Tadashi’s phone buzzes. 

Kei didn’t even realize they knew each other’s numbers. 

They open gifts in that style and when his mother grabs a small box to see who it’s for, Kei says, “That one’s from Akiteru.”

---

Tadashi spends the night and when they’re both in bed (Kei sans the ugly Christmas sweater), Tadashi gives him an extra gift. It’s small and flat and Kei is pretty sure it’s an envelope but less sure about the contents. He frowns, “Why didn’t you put it with the others?”

Tadashi is blushing and Kei likes the way it makes his freckles pop. 

He’s a little quiet when he says, “This one is special. I…I didn’t want your family to see it yet. Open it.”

Kei opens it and feels his eyes widen when he sees what’s inside. It’s a listing for a small apartment and at the top of the paper it says, Do you want to live together? in Tadashi’s messy script

It’s quiet in his room and Tadashi begins to ramble, “We, uh. We haven’t talked about it too much, just vaguely, I know, but I was thinking that starting in the next school year we can do this instead of staying in the dorms. It would be cheaper and we wouldn’t have to-”

“Tadashi,” Kei stops him. Tadashi stops talking and Kei isn’t even sure what he wants to say. His heart is pounding and he’s sure his face is red. 

Instead, Kei takes his hand and squeezes. He nods and Tadashi lights up.

“Really?” he asks, “It’s not too much? I know you like your space and-”

Kei squeezes his hand again, “It’s not too much. I want to.” He gestures at the paper, “We can talk more about it tomorrow.”

---

Kei dreams of days that aren’t completely taken up by his long naps. He dreams of waking up to Tadashi’s smiling face and instead of hearing it’s time, Tadashi asks him, “What should we have for dinner?”

---

A/N:

For adorations.

EEEE!! Another gift fic and this one is for the holidays :D i really liked the cute and domestic prompts because that's the kind of HQ i love LOL. Adorations, you mentioned wanting (if possible) some type of chronic rep and idk if this is it but you mentioned fatigue and i suddenly remembered how most of my HS time with my then s/o was spent with me sleeping bc i would always fall asleep at their house xD so tsukki is now sleepy boy. even now i do have a weird sleep schedule sometimes and if i can get away with it, i do everything (yes even washing the dishes) while sitting (hehe) some of the prompts you gave me + established relationship/domestic + canon compliant/college au + meet the family/family dynamics + ugly sweaters

[matsinko]

title: bet on love pairing(s): iwaoi, minor matsuhana rating: t summary:

It starts with four friends, an article, and a bet and ends with far more than Oikawa ever anticipated.

written for the December Greatest Decoy Challenge as a gift for @maroonedpunk

>> read on ao3 <<

[lanirawhoney]

My exchange gift for gin_not_spelled_with_a_g in the February Greatest Decoy Challenge

[haikyuu-moments]

happy birthday, my little ball of sunshine. you shine brighter than any star. never change, and always keep that smile on your face <3

[youwerethedefeated]

Today I'm thinking about Kagehina's matching smiles once they finally accept their respective nicknames (the greatest decoy/the king of the court) that they bestowed upon each other

Kageyama who coined "the greatest decoy", and Hinata who helped Kageyama reclaim what was once a painful insult by recrowning him

It's the culmination of them helping each other accept something intrinsic to themselves. "You'll never be the ace" and "Deep down you're still a king". They're able to blow away each other's insecurities, instead turning them into points of pride.

(And also I like to think they're smiling at each other.)

[hinata-boke]

the greatest decoy

[mariacallous]

I’m not even sure whether I can taste pure Old Bay anymore, because the condiment is infused with so many memories of home. I grew up sprinkling it on everything—blue crabs, sure, but also watermelon, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese—and I can shuffle through decades of pictures from family reunions, county fairs, church picnics, and back porches where the iconic yellow, red, and blue tins keep popping up like someone’s second cousin, not quite front and center yet always in the frame.

If you’re new to Old Bay, get a tin and shake the contents liberally on popcorn or potato chips—a starter dish, from which you can and should expand. You’ll soon find that you can add the condiment to almost anything. One of my favorite dishes that uses Old Bay as an essential ingredient comes via an old family friend. Keith Davis is a Jack-of-all-trades: a fantastic general contractor, but also a church usher, a builder of wheelchair ramps, a Santa Claus when seasonally necessary, and, lately, a food-truck entrepreneur, grilling burgers and deep-frying funnel cakes for every community event and private party in the area. He goes by Mr. Keith; his food truck is known as Fat Boy’s Fixins, named in honor of the man who taught him to grill and whose Santa suit he inherited.

Of all the things Davis serves up, he might be best known for his crab soup, which he makes in ten-gallon batches and lets the local Ruritan Club sell by the pint every fall at the Waterfowl Festival, when somewhere between fourteen thousand and twenty thousand people descend on the Eastern Shore to see the work of hundreds of decoy carvers and local artists, listen to waterfowl-calling contests, and watch demonstrations of dock dogs, raptors, and fly-fishing. Davis is there every year, gossiping with his fellow-volunteers, talking with out-of-towners, and tossing hunks of crab meat into stew pots. Normally you’d have to shell out eight dollars for even just a cup, but here, exclusively for newsletter readers, free of charge, is the best crab soup you’ll ever taste, a shockingly easy, practically pre-made recipe for trying out America’s greatest condiment: Old Bay.

Mr. Keith’s Crab Soup

1 lb. crab meat (claw meat best) 64-Oz. bottle of Spicy V8 14.5 Oz. chicken broth 32 Oz. water 1 lb. mixed vegetables 1 Tbsp. Montreal Steak seasoning 1 Tbsp. Old Bay

Mix the V8, chicken broth, and water in a pot. Start heating the mixture, then add the vegetables, then the crab meat, and finally the spices. Cook on medium heat until the vegetables start to soften, stirring occasionally “so it doesn’t stick and burn on the bottom of the pot.”

[theheightofdishonor]

Also also "the best blockers only need a second, steal it from him", Hinatas stealing attention off far better now than high school blockers, wouldn't you say, kageyama?

I could  write a whole essay about this scene and how beautiful it is (and probably will when i get there during my reread) but for the moment, I just want to focus on how this scene calls back, not only to that first broad but to how Kageyama’s always been drawn to Hinata, and is almost incapable of not getting pulled along by him, whether by almost falling for his decoy skills, or matching his every spiking approach or not being able to say no to his endless competitions. And here, once again, he can’t help but to pay attention to Hinata’s every move and it costs him the point. 

[choppyama]

Hinata is intensely competitive and he thrives when he’s challenged so when a player proclaim that they want to be his rival, it is the biggest form of an acknowledgment.

“finally someone who doesn’t want to be my rival but instead dream to be on the same team as me and be by my side unlike everyone else🥺” is something you would NEVER catch shoyo saying bc it never mattered if it’s on the same or opposite sides of the net… it’s all volleyball.

wanna play together? Cool✨✨ wanna be rivals? Even better ✨✨✨

while it is true that at the start of the series, Hinata’s abilities in volleyball were on a newbie level and he needed a setter like Kageyama to enhance him, It’s also true that most of the time players underestimates him bc of his appearance,

BUT as soon as they see him play they always acknowledge that he bring something to the table, that aside from being part of the freak duo he’s worth recognizing on his own.

‘Everyone thinks hinata only shine bc of Kageyama’ NO THEY DON’T lol. You’ll always hear random players from rival teams says oh that number 10 surprised me the most! he’s a scary monster! wanna take down Kageyama? gotta take down hinata first’

They see him as an actual threat. They see him as a worthy competitor.

This might be about hinata being acknowledged within a rivalry context but ofc others wants to play with him too, set for him.

and Kageyama? He wants both rivalry and partnership. He actively wants to compete with shoyo, not just on the court but through every little thing they do, and he also wants to toss to hinata for the rest of his life.

so to think that “no one ever appreciates hinata outside of the freak duo” or that “everyone just actively wanted to be his rival and not his teammates” until the inarizaki match is such a disservice to his story.

not only it reduces hinata’s hard work and effort, his ability to convince others to choose him but also downplay Kageyama’s impact on him

when this guy was asking hinata to stay with him forever when they were just 15!

Kageyama being the first ever opponent shoyo’s ever encountered, who took him seriously, never once put his guard down the entire match and even after completely obliterating shoyo’s weak team he still viewed his opponent as an equal I could go on but I digress bc if I start yapping about kghn I’ll never stfu this isn’t abt them LMFAOOOOO

Ok back on topic, It’s not like hinata isn’t allowed to be… insecure (?) He was unsettled by Washijo's comment that he's only valuable with a setter during the Karaneko match. Even when praised by a Kamomedai player, Hinata deferred all the credit to Tobio. it’s understandable, that’s his entire dilemma for more than half of the manga.

but still,

Yes shoyo once had to ‘beg’ his friends for tosses in middle school, yes he had no teammates in the beginning or a partner but HE HAS KARASUNO NOW!!!

He has a very dedicated partner who promised to toss to him anytime he wants. Who makes sure hinata knows he’s integral to the team, who tells him he’s the greatest decoy. who made a whole speech about how much shoyo is needed when he was being insecure about his height. Who tells him he can fly even higher

Hinata has people in his life who believes in him, who appreciates him, respect him, acknowledge him as a worthy rival and partner. He’s doing fine!

*wanted to add his reaction when he was being praised after a match. He’s so cute shoyo i love you