Shouyou Hinata

Shouyou Hinata is the protagonist of Haikyuu!!, a middle blocker for Karasuno High's boys' volleyball team and, later, a Division 1 player for the MSBY Black Jackals. His obsession with the sport began in childhood, when he watched a short player nicknamed the Small Giant lead Karasuno to victory over blockers nearly 20 centimeters taller. Inspired, Hinata built a volleyball club almost single-handedly at his junior high, entering his first tournament with only a handful of borrowed teammates — and losing badly to a team led by a gifted, overbearing setter, an appositive rivalry that would define his high-school years once that same setter, Tobio Kageyama, transferred to Karasuno as well.

What Hinata lacks in height he makes up for with explosive jumping power, reflexes, and a relentless drive to improve. He is loud, warm, and disarmingly easy to befriend, winning over even guarded teammates such as the analytical Kenma Kozume or the stern blocker Aone from Date Tech. Underneath the cheerful exterior lies real stubbornness: no opponent's size or reputation makes him consider giving up mid-match, and his fear before big games never stops him from stepping onto the court.

After graduating, Hinata represented Japan's national team at the Olympics before continuing his career abroad with a professional club in Brazil.