#but they refer to each other as senpai and kouhai

[mishy-mashy]

On the note of Banjo, it makes more sense if he were a Vigilante. I believe he actually was this, rather than a Pro Hero.

Daigoro Banjo, AKA Lariat. It's not explicitly stated he was a Pro Hero, and he recognizes Japan during the first appearances of Abilities.

In the anime (ep 133), the subs translated this as:

"This devastation... it's like we've gone back in time... Trying not to catch the eyes of villains, just hiding every day... it's like when superpowers first appeared."

Banjo recognizes Japan's disarray, and from brief flashbacks of the vestiges, including All Might talking about his dream for a symbol, we can see Japan really was as Banjo recognizes.

But Tomura, in the mall, says people just smile without concern. They've forgotten, or never experienced, that past. Banjo can clearly identify it, and when we get his full name, he definitely lived during that turmoil (neverminding his age, I think of him as 36 or somethin, and Shinomori died at 40).

This would actually make Banjo a Vigilante. They mention that back then, Vigilantes and the first Villains used codenames like comic books, so Banjo being Lariat could easily just be that.

(Not so related, but references to recognizable things like Pokémon and superheroes like Spider-Man appealed to the masses as familiar, so when Abilities first showed up, it would've been around our time [2000s].)

Look at when the League of Villains asked Toga why she had no villain name;

When we see Banjo using his Ability and we get his name, we see that Japan isn't in the best state. Look at all the damage and fresh smoke below him.

All Might says that during this time, All For One's power ran unchecked, and he stole many powerful Abilities, if not crushed the users. Other than simply being first/second-generation, this also explains why, individually, all the OFA vestiges had weak Quirks. Even Kudo's was weak. It's just that it evolved with One For All and had enough nuance to become something more. Abilities like Float and Danger Sense didn't change at all, and Smokescreen only increased the amount of smoke Midoriya could make.

Since Banjo lived in the same time as when Quirks had started appearing, he knows the turmoil, but also was around long enough to be a Vigilante. Pro Heroes hadn't come into play immediately; Vigilantes were where they started.

Even Gran Torino was a Vigilante. It's why Midoriya found nothing on him when he looked him up. Gran Torino only became a Pro Hero to get his teaching license so he could teach All Might for a year, but that didn't stop him from being a hero, per se—he just did it through vigilantism. Gran Torino still did hero stuff before the hero license, and we see him flying and talking with Nana in a costume before he ever taught All Might.

Banjo doesn't strike me as a guy willing to jump through all the hoops when he can just go out and do it himself anyway. And with Japan in chaos still, does he – or the officials – have time for that?

Bakugo even describes Banjo as a nobody, because he doesn't recognize him. This would make sense when remembering Gran Torino was also unknown; because they were Vigilantes. I don't think Bakugo is referring to not knowing them just because their Abilities are weak. Heroes back then would be well-known as retro (ex. Crimson Riot, who Midnight recognizes immediately, despite his not-so-strong hair-hardening Ability), even if they weren't powerful.

Blackwhip is a useful Ability, and back in Banjo's time, considering Abilities in the first generations included Smokescreen, Danger Sense, Float, and Air Jet, Blackwhip is actually higher up in power and usefulness. And he's still unrecognizable.

If he were a Pro Hero, he'd be considered pretty amazing. But he's unknown, has a codename, and acted as a hero when Japan was troubled; his being "nobody" makes sense as a Vigilante.

Heroes didn't happen immediately. They began as Vigilantes; so for Banjo, at the start of using Abilities to bring some sort of order, he would've been in the Vigilante age. Or where heroes are just starting.

Nana was a Pro Hero. Kotaro resents heroes because she was one. Her friend, Gran Torino, was not a Pro Hero until he had to teach All Might for a year. People were more likely to be Vigilantes than Pro Heroes at their time, just because Vigilantes are where they started first.

Being a hero meant courses and licenses, and in a time where Pro Heroes were barely existing, with people still using their Abilities as they pleased? Banjo was probably a Vigilante.

Look at how America handled Vigilantes and starting the Pro Hero business;

Out of 189 Vigilantes, only 7 were recognized as heroes.

America wanted to make a divide between how people should use their Abilities for good. That's why so little people got to be heroes; Vigilantes were too destructive, and that wasn't proper behavior for those protecting the peace. We even see that UA teaches to keep damage to a minimum.

And whoop-dee-doo, look at how Banjo uses his Quirk.

HE'S DESTROYING STUFF. JUST TO GET AROUND. NO NO NO.

He was never actually called a Pro Hero. It was assumed because he has a codename; and codenames were just customary back then, to make identification and classification easier between Vigilantes and Villains while hiding their real identities.

He wouldn't have made the cut as a Pro Hero, lived during a time of rising Vigilantes against society's chaos, wasn't known at all (typical of Vigilantes) despite his good Ability, but had a codename (Lariat), and lived at the same time as Nana and Gran Torino.

So yeah, I consider Banjo to be a Vigilante rather than a Pro Hero. There's more things that push him toward being a Vigilante, compared to just having the alias Lariat being why he's called a Pro Hero by the fandom.

[mizldrizl]

I've never read English fanfictions of K-Dramas before, but recently I watched Beyond Evil and it made me go digging AO3 right away. After reading several works, I wanted to write down a few thoughts and some information on names/titles as a native Korean speaker.

It sounds extremely weird when Joo Won calls Dong Sik "Dong Sik" or "Lee Dong Sik" in normal circumstances. In Korea, it is a taboo to call someone older than you by just their name. Whenever this happens in a fic, I can't help to think like, "Joo Won, are you trying to get punched by Dong Sik?! Why are you being so rude all of a sudden??" Of course, we saw that Joo Won calls Dong Sik "Lee Dong Sik" a couple of times in the show, but it was only when he was infuriated or really frustrated by Dong Sik.

Similarly, Yu Yeon would never call Dong Sik "Dong Sik." Maybe "Lee Dong Sik" if she is really mad, but I don't think she is someone who would ever act like that towards her older brother. She'll always call him "oppa (오빠)."

Whenever Dong Sik calls Joo Won "Joo Won" in a fic, my brain automatically translates it to "Joo Won-ah (주원아)" because that's just how you normally call someone younger than you by their name in Korean. In other words, Dong Sik wouldn't literally call Joo Won "Joo Won (주원)"; it'll always be "Joo Won-ah (주원아)." Basically, the rule is that you put "ah (아)" or "ya (야)" at the end of a name depending what it ends with; if a name ends with a consonant, you add "ah (아)," and if a vowel, "ya (야)." Therefore:

Joo Won (주원) -> Joo Won-ah (주원아)

Jae Yi (재이) -> Jae Yi-ya (재이야)

Ji Hoon (지훈) -> Ji Hoon-ah (지훈아)

Ji Hwa (지화) -> Ji Hwa-ya (지화야)

Yu Yeon (유연) -> Yu Yeon-ah (유연아)

You can't use a name + "ah (아)" or "ya (야)" as a subject or object in a sentence, as this convention only happens when you call someone. Because of this, the following sentence sounds awkward:

Dong Sik said, "My Joo Won-ah is such a handsome man."

Strictly speaking, "친구 (friends)" are people who have a bond and are the same age in Korea. That's why we can say Dong Sik, Jung Je and Ji Hwa are friends. Then what about others? At school or work, we can use "선배 (sunbae)" and "후배 (hoobae)." If you're familiar with Japanese terms "senpai" and "kouhai," they are exactly the same meaning. "Sunbae" is someone who is older than you and/or started school/career earlier than you. To your "sunbae," you're their "hoobae." In the show, Sang Yeop, Dong Sik's old partner, calls Dong Sik "sunbae."

However, if you become more intimate (not in a sexual way!) with someone, or if that someone is your family, other terms such as "형 (hyung)," "누나 (noona)," "오빠 (oppa)" and "언니 (unnie)" can be used as follows:

Younger male -> Older male = "형 (hyung)"

e.g. Ji Hoon -> Dong Sik

Younger male -> Older female = "누나 (noona)"

e.g. Ji Hoon -> Ji Hwa

Younger female -> Older male = "오빠 (oppa)"

e.g. Yu Yeon -> Dong Sik

Younger female -> older female = "언니 (unnie)"

e.g. Jae Yi -> Ji Hwa

Plus, you can add the person's name in front of each term. One thing to remember is that you should put "yi (이)" at the end of the name if it ends with a consonant. If it ends with a vowel, no extra syllable is necessary. For example:

Dong Sik (동식) -> Dong Sik-yi hyung (동식이 형)

Jae Yi (재이) -> Jae Yi noona (재이 누나)

Sometimes, you add "nim (님)" to "hyung (형)" and "noona (누나)" to be even more polite/show more respect. Therefore, "hyung (형)" becomes "hyung-nim (형님)," but for "noona (누나)," it becomes "noo-nim (누님)," not "noona-nim (누나님)." Once, Oh Sub refers to Nam Sang Bae "Sang Bae hyung-nim (상배 형님)" while talking to Jung Chul Moon after Nam Sang Bae was arrested. "Nim (님)" can be also added to a job title, so in the show we hear "소장님 (Substation Chief + nim)", "경사님 (Lieutenant + nim)," "경위님 (Inspector + nim)," etc. plenty times. Personally, it is funny to watch Dong Sik sometimes call Joo Won "한주원 경위 (Inspector Han Joo Won)" at the beginning and Joo Won sometimes call Dong Sik "이동식 경사 (Lieutenant Lee Dong Sik)" because technically you have to add "nim (님)" in those cases (you know, Joo Won being Dong Sik's superior officer at the time & Dong Sik being older than Joo Won and his "sunbae" in career), but they just want to show they don't like each other that much so bad!

Oh, and Dong Sik calls Joo Won "도련님 (young master)" from time to time, and it reminds me of Merlin calling Arthur "sire" sarcastically. Those young, elite, arrogant and (surprisingly) naive boys...

Anyway, now what I'm trying to figure out is--what would Dong Sik and Joo Won call each other once they start a romantic relationship? For Dong Sik, obviously it'd be either "주원아 (Joo Won/Joo Won-ah)" or "한주원 (Han Joo Won)." For Joo Won? As I've rambled long above, "동식아 (Dong Sik/Dong Sik-ah)" certainly is out of question. "동식 씨 (Dong Sik-ssi)" is slightly better, but it still sounds a little off to me. My personal picks are "이동식 씨 (Lee Dong Sik-ssi)" and "형 (hyung)." For the latter, I'd like to imagine that Joo Won asks Dong Sik if it's okay to call him that at some point. In bed, Joo Won might call Dong Sik "이동식 (Lee Dong Sik)" when he feels like to be a bit dominant or wants to tease/taunt Dong Sik, but not too often. (In one fic I've read, Joo Won says something like "Focus, Lee Dong Sik" while having sex with him and Dong Sik tries to be angry, saying "Yah--" but apparently he couldn't say much else after that. The fic is one of my favorites so far.)

Okay, that's all I guess. I've never written anything this long in English in my life, and honestly I'm a little nervous. Beyond Evil made me do this. I'm going to look for new fics now. (By the way, thank you for your amazing fics, Beyond Evil fic writers! Keep up the good work!)

[mephinomaly]

[TL] Howling at the Stars/Chapter 1

Season: Winter

Kaoru: Everyone got a glass? Then, well done for all your hard work this year. To another year of working together–

Cheers!

Koga + Adonis: Cheers!

Rei: Hm, I didn’t think I’d be able to have a New Years Party with you all. Thank you to Kaoru-kun for organising this.

Adonis: Yes. If Hakaze-senpai hadn’t done this, I don’t think we would have celebrated New Years together.

Koga: Oioi, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, Adonis.

We live in the same buildin’ and we woulda seen each other around. Then I woulda said somethin’ to ya.

Kaoru: Do you think so? It’s been pretty busy lately, I don’t think I’ve seen any of you for what, at least three days?

Rei: In private, everyone can see each other if and when they desire. But when it comes to these sorts of gatherings, prior arrangements are necessary.

Adonis: So yes, I am thankful to Hakaze-senpai for asking us to hang out.

Kaoru: You guys and your exaggerations. I just wanted to show my appreciation for how hard you’ve all worked.

Rei: Umu. I, too, share that sentiment. This past year has been truly tumultuous…

Ever since ES was established, I feel as if I have constantly been on my feet.

Adonis: I agree. The SS has only just finished. I haven’t had time to relax until New Year’s Eve.

There’s been so much other work, and I feel like I’ve been at it non-stop.

Kaoru: That’s why we need to take a break during the holidays.

Koga: Hmph…But for me, I don’t even get a minute to myself.

Adonis: Oh? What work are you doing, Oogami?

Koga: Actually, before I came here, Anzu was tellin’ me ‘bout my Feature Live.

We was gonna do some candid shots for my pamphlet soon.

Kaoru: Ooo~, sounds exciting~. That means you’re gonna be alone with Anzu-chan, right?

Koga: Haa? Well yeah, duh. Why is that all you think about.

It’s gonna be just us, yeah, but if other people turn up I don’t really care.

Kaoru: (Well if there’s time, I’d like to see these photos too. It’ll be a good reference for later…)

Rei: Wanko is already very busy this early on in the year. In all honesty, so am I. I have work to complete tomorrow.

Adonis: I don’t have any work, but I do have some plans starting from tomorrow.

I’m glad we celebrated today. If you had asked tomorrow, I would have had to refuse.

Kaoru: Everyone’s got a surprisingly busy schedule and the years only just started!

Koga: What, you guys are all busy? Tch…I was gonna ask if any of yous could help me.

Adonis: If you’re really in a spot of trouble, just say so. I can try move around my schedule but…

Koga: Nah, it’s cool. Prioritise your stuff first. Besides, it’s just a few photos.

I ain’t got a Scooby how yer supposed t’take candid photos. Kinda wish I could have someone t’practice with.

Kaoru: …I haven’t got anything on at the moment?

Koga: Yeah? Then come with me, Hakaze-senpai…♪

You’re gonna take some super cool photos of me!

Kaoru: Sure thing. If it’s my cute kouhai asking, then who am I to say no? ♪

Time: Practice shoot day

Location: In a corner of the Hanging Garden

Koga: —How was that? That one was definitely a good one, right~?

Kaoru: Uh, well. Hey, Koga-kun. You do know what candid means, right?

Koga: Haah? Waddya mean? Ain’t it like natural ‘n relaxed?

Kaoru: Yeah, that. Then let me show you the picture I just took. Thoughts?

Koga: Yo! It’s got a cool rock vibe to it ♪

Kaoru: Yeah no we’re not using that.

Koga: Hah? How is that not a good photo?!

Kaoru: Nono, it’s good it’s just- these are supposed to be candid photos. You need to be casual about it.

You’re very aware of the camera so I can’t say it counts as candid.

Koga: You say that but if a camera was pointed at you, yer gonna strike a pose, right?

Kaoru: Yeah that might be true, but you’re far too aware of the camera.

In every photo you’re making direct eye contact with the camera and posing. That kind of thing doesn’t give it a very natural feeling.

Koga: …GyahhH! You’re making this difficult Hakaze-senpai!

I don’t want anyone t’see me pullin’ a stupid face in the first place!

Kaoru: No, candid shots aren’t meant to be silly, you know?

Koga: I get that but when the camera is pointed at me, it’s only natural to pose.

Kaoru: That’s a very wonderful talent to have as an idol~

…Ah, but this photo really captures your cute side.

Koga: Haa? Cute side? I have a cute side?

Kaoru: Mhm. Look, this one. Koga-kun mid sneeze.

Koga: Huh…!?

Kaoru: You’ve got a surprisingly cute sneeze. The people love these sorts of photos. It’s so Wan-chan core ♪

Koga: Bastard, stop messin’ around! I’m not a dog! Delete that shitty photo now!

Kaoru: Alright I will~... and it’s gone.

Well then, let’s carry on. At this rate, we’re gonna have no good photos.

Koga: Take some cooler ones this time. Don’t mess up.

Kaoru: (Sigh…this is gonna be a long day.)

next

[smol-stardust]

JJK 2006 Quintet Playing Paintball (x reader)

Warnings: pure chaos, may not make sense. bad grammar.

Dodging behind a container swiftly, you sat down trying to catch a breath. It was becoming increasingly difficult not to be caught. Shoko slipped behind the container with you, letting out an exasperated sigh. 

“It aches all over,” Shoko griped. “Why does this have to be so rough?”

“You and me both Shoko,” you groan. “I’ve got bruises everywhere.”

A loud thwack resonated in the distance and a scream followed thereafter. You swear you could hear cackling beneath everything. 

“WHAT THE FUCK GOJO! REALLY? ON MY ASS?”

You snorted, stifling the laughter threatening to bubble up at any minute. Shoko snorted and shook her head, a small smile evident on her face.

“Poor Suguru. He will be greatly missed for his valiant effort," you sighed, “You think Gojo did it on purpose?”

“Have you seen how he stares at his ass? He meant to,” Shoko snorts. “More importantly, is there video footage of the greatness we failed to witness?”

“Always skiing the intuitive questions hm?” you grin. “I like how you think.”

“Y/N, flirt later, survive now,” Shoko hummed with a flick to your forehead.

“Yes ma’am,” you chirped with a mock salute. “Sooo, tell me you have a plan?”

“Y/N, this is paintball. The only strategy is to attack mercilessly.”

“That’s cool and all, but Gojo’s being an ass and is using his infinity,” You grumbled. “What then? We’ve already been tortured by him for the last three rounds. I wanna watch him go down!”

 Shoko shrugged. 

“Huh.” Standing up carefully, you peak around the corner and dash a stack of tires, sliding in behind the safe spot as Gojo whirs around. 

“Come out, come out wherever you are!!” Gojo mocked. 

You scowl slightly at the mockery, praying that he hadn’t noticed as you tumbled behind the tires. Noticing a tuft of yellow hair to your right poking out behind a barrage of bricks, you slinked over as stealthily as you can. Glancing around, you somersaulted around a corner and fired point-blank at Nanami’s chest.

“What the hell Y/N?” Nanami hissed in pain. “Did you really need to fire point blank?”

“At least I didn’t shoot you in the ass,” you retorted, sticking your tongue out and holding out a peace sign.

“Whatever,” Nanami sighed in agreement. “Listen, you better fricking get Gojo, I’m gonna be pissed if he’s the last one standing… AGAIN.”

You snickered. “Aren’t you on his team?” This is amusing

“Not in spirit,” he scowled. “He needs to be put in his place.”

“Mmm…” 

“Not point blank next time,” Nanami grunts. 

“Hai, hai,” you salute. 

And suddenly, you heard a shot behind you, causing you to whirl around at the sound. Only to notice Haibara curled up behind you, a red splotch of paint on his abdomen. Shoko stood triumphantly behind him, a satisfied smirk on her face. 

“Nuh, uh,” Shoko tutered. “Not today Haibara, We’re winning this thing.”

“That huuuurts,” Haibara whined. “What did I do?”

“You tried to kill my teammate, this is retaliation,” Shoko defended. “And, you’re on stupid’s team,” she waved, referring to Gojo. “So, you have to go down, cuz we’re tryna beat his team..”

Haibara sighed and flopped on the ground, Nanami staggered over and patted his head. “Y/N shot me point blank in the chest. We’re in this together.”

Shoko arched her brow and gave you a thumbs up. You grin and finger gun back at her. 

“Aren’t senpais supposed to be nice to their kouhai?” Haibara asked

“This is war,” Shoko declared. “There is no ‘nice’ in war, now get lost, you’re out”

The two sighed in defeat and helped each other up and out of the field. 

“WAIT,” You hissed after them. “Where’s your idiot captain?”

The two shrugged.

“I’ll heal you two later if you tell us,” Shoko negotiated.

“We don’t know,” Nanami sighed

“Above you,” Haibara blurted and the duo quickly sauntered off away from the chaos they were sure will ensue.

You and Shoko stare at Haibara, slowly glance at each other and look up. 

“Shit,” you both hissed at the same time. Gojo nonchalantly floated above you two, giving you both a shit-eating grin and a wave. 

“Fancy meeting you here ladies,” he chirped. 

You scowl, “That’s cheating! It’s supposed to be a game of paintball with NO jujutsu.” 

“Aww, look at you, all fired up,” Gojo smirked. 

Shoko fired a shot, only to miss miserably. 

“Oi, Ieri, you didn’t really think you could hit me did you?” Gojo mocked. With that, he fired a shot at your partner, only to miss and hit a barrier behind her. Shoko looked unamused at how badly the shot had missed her.

“You stupid dumbass,” Shoko growled. Grabbing your arm she whispered a plan in your ear quietly. You nodded. And the two of you bolted in opposite directions. 

“OI, get back here,” Gojo yelled. “I’m your opponent!!!” 

“You’ll have to get us first!” You screech as you turn around to fire a shot at Gojo, you swear it would’ve hit his stomach if he hadn’t been using infinity. Then as fast as your sprinting-hating legs could carry you, you bolted again.

“WHAT THE HELL? WHERE ARE YOU GOING??” He questions in disbelief. “THERE’S NO ESCAPE!!”

 You cursed; running sucks. Shoko was already way ahead of you somewhere, and you prayed that she would get the flag. You sprinted after her as fast as you could. You blinked as you noticed Shoko doubling back, a strange-looking curse behind her. Your eyes widened upon noticing that the curse behind Shoko carried a blue flag. You let out a laugh. Thanks, Suguru, you thought in glee. 

THWACK. 

You groaned at the impact at the small of your back. Scowling at the fact that you managed to get killed off as victory was nearing you. Pleeease let the fact I got killed get Shoko and the flag to safety. 

“Aww, nice try Y/N/N,” Gojo cackled from behind you. “You know, maybe if you hadn’t tried to shoot me, I wouldn’t have had to do that.” Then he patted you on the head with a grin. “Nice effort though, that would’ve hit if I wasn’t careful.”

“Cheater,” You grumbled. He just laughed.

“Now, let’s see where Shoko is….” He trailed off as he stared at the direction she was running in. Shoko held the flag as she bolted, the curse covering her as best it could from Gojo. You had to admit, it was kind of funny.

“What the….” Gojo gaped. Snapping out of his daze, he fired a shot at Shoko, but the curse intercepted it. Causing Gojo to curse and fire some rounds. Only to hit the cursed spirit with each shot.

“RUN SHOKO!” You yelled. “WIN THIS FOR ME DAMMIT!”

And then she tumbled into the shack with a skillfully smooth somersault, effectively ending the game.

Gojo blinked. “WHAT THE HELL? HOW DID SHE WIN?”

You cackled as you ran towards Shoko, the two of you high-fiving. 

“Bestie, you did it!!” you grinned. 

“Sure did,” She laughed. “Wouldn’t have been possible without Geto’s help.”

The two of you stumbled out of the field together, heading towards the changing room to get changed and celebrate your victory.

:::: LATER::::

Suguru arched a brow as the two of you plopped down next to him in the seating area. You laughed as you leaned your head onto Suguru’s shoulder.

“Dude, that was impressive,” you snorted. “When did you leave a curse there?” 

“When I sacrificed myself,” Suguru winced, shifting his weight on the seat uncomfortably. “Shoko, bless your soul for winning for us.”

“Aww, it was the least I could do,” Shoko shrugged. “Thanks for your help though. Your ass okay?”

Suguru scowled in annoyance. The three of you laughed as you high-fived each other.

Nanami and Haibara congratulated you on your victory, and demanded to be healed, which Shoko did. She even patched Suguru's bruises. Which earned a lot of thank you’s from Suguru for being able to sit down without his ass feeling like it’s on fire.

“I’m gonna get him back for that,” Suguru vowed in annoyance. “Some best friend he is.” 

At that moment, Gojo stumbled towards you guys, a bewildered expression on his face.

“NO ONE TOLD ME THERE WAS A CAPTURE-THE-FLAG COMPONENT INVOLVED!!!!”

“Not our fault you were too dumb to figure that out,” Nanami retorted. 

“BUT… I'm your teammate!!” Gojo gasped, a look of betrayal on his face.

“A teammate shouldn’t shoot his comrades,” Haibara muttered, referring to the earlier rounds played.

“IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!!”

“Suck it up Gojo,” Suguro snorted. “You lost, that’s all there is to it.”

You all laughed as Gojo sighed and plopped down on the floor in defeat. Relishing in your victory of defeating him for cheating and leaving you all bruised and battered. 

“So, Laser tag next time?” Shoko piped up. 

You gave her a thumbs up Geto followed suit. Nanami groaned in annoyance but begrudgingly agreed after Haibara convinced him to go. 

“Just wait, I’ll win the game by storm.’ Gojo vowed.

You all laughed as you made your way out, bickering and chatting as you guys headed towards the night market, where you’re sure to get competitive over the game stalls set up yet again. 

BONUS:

Nanami plopped down beside you and Shoko as you watched Gojo, Geto and Haibara engage in a ring toss competition while you munched away on some kibi dango.

“I just sent you a video. You didn’t get it from me,” Nanami hummed. “Use it wisely for blackmail or something.”

Curious, getting the best of you, you pulled out your phone. “1 video attachment from Nanami” Shoko peered over your shoulder as you two waited for the video to load. You both cackled loudly when you realized Nanami had filmed the whole ordeal of Geto getting shot by Gojo earlier that day. 

“Thanks, Nanami,” you both snorted, silently agreeing with each other to keep this safe for shits and giggles later and maybe blackmail

[hangjie]

ROLE REVERSAL !

summary. you're fed up with gojo's teasing and you give him a taste of your own medicine

pairing. gojo satoru x gn!reader

content/warning. swearing, frenemies to lovers (?), senpai/kouhai dynamic, explicit content, sub!gojo, handjob, nipple play, teasing, edging, public, praise, humiliation/degradation, mentions of pegging ( MINORS, PLEASE DNI ! )

word count. 2.6k

author's note. omg i haven't wrote in so long and this has been in my drafts for 8 months?? so enjoy this v overdue gojo smut HJDFKSHJKH get your holy water bc it's sinning time

(y/l/n) - your last name

gojo satoru.

your upperclassman. your colleague. your co-teacher at jujutsu high.

the person you despise the most.

you knew him since you were a first-year and him, a second-year and he has always teased you about anything and everything but most especially since you were his underclassman. whenever you both saw each other in the halls, he always flashed one of his annoying smiles and greets you with a “good morning, kouhai-kun.” during missions, if you defeated a curse, he teased you by saying things like “you’ll soon be a second-grade sorcerer like your senpai, my little kouhai.”

what an egotistical asshole.

at first, you weren’t bothered by his teasing because he is your senpai after all and he didn’t know you that well but he still continued after he got to know you, which irritated you to your core. you felt like he was looking down at you and underestimating you just because you were younger than him, and you also had a name, you know?

you told him countless times that you didn’t want to be referred to as his kouhai all the time but being the aggravating little shit he is, he still continued and since then, you’ve disliked him. thank heavens that he wasn’t in your year because if he did, you didn’t know how you’d survive.

it's not like you hate him with all of your guts because he did have a reason to boast himself and you both worked well together but he's like a troublesome man child to you (and to others, most likely).

after graduation, you thought that you’d escape the presence of gojo satoru forever and you were relieved that you wouldn't see or hear his voice calling you that annoying nickname anymore but deep down, you craved for it. a part of you liked him calling you that, as much as you hate to admit it.

'my little kouhai.'

it made you feel like you were his, his special little underclassman.

so here he is, sitting beside you in a cafe as he rambles on about anything and everything that comes into his mind.

you can feel the vein in your temples aching as you tried to block out his voice but he just keeps on talking. you sigh and bring one of your hands to your face, rubbing your eyebrows in exasperation.

you peek from your hand and see the first-years in front of you having mixed reactions. yuuji, who is seated in front of gojo, is listening attentively to whatever bullshit gojo is talking about, nobara, who is in front of me, is distracting herself with her phone meanwhile megumi, who is stuck in the middle, has a stoic, almost bored, face as he listens.

you let out another sigh before staring out the windows of the cafe, the palm of your hand holding your chin up. you were zoning out of the conversation and into your small world. your eyelids start to feel heavy, making you close them as the voices around you became distant noises.

"(y/n)!" your eyes snap open as you turn your head back. "what?" you ask, eyeing the masked man beside you with one of your eyebrows raised in confusion. "nothing. i was just making sure that you weren't zoning out or anything." he laughs and you feel the veins on your temples ache more.

"asshole," you mumble as you roll your eyes.

"hm? what was that?" he asks mockingly, tilting his head towards your direction and you have to stop yourself from punching him square in the face. "nothing, nothing." you wave your hand, motioning for him to continue whatever he was saying before going back to your previous position.

gojo knew that you were exhausted since both of you spent the whole day exorcising curses and got back to jujutsu high just a few hours before but he forced you to go with him to a cafe with the first years because he 'missed' them. you didn't want to and were planning to stay behind but gojo said that the trio missed you terribly and you didn't want to disappoint them, so you went to the cafe with a scowl. he really knows how to get on your nerves.

"senseis?" you hear yuuji ask, catching both your and gojo's attention. "i just wanted to ask, how did the two of you meet? i'm curious since (y/l/n)-sensei seems like they hate you but they're still hanging out with you." this question sparks the attention of megumi and nobara as they agree.

"yeah. (y/l/n)-sensei, you always look annoyed when you're with gojo-sensei but here you are, sitting beside him in a cafe," megumi points out.

"because he's a little prick and i feel like i'm in hell whenever i'm with him." you scowl at the bright-haired man beside you as he chuckles. he puts his arms behind his head as he leans back in his seat. "(y/n) and i went to jujutsu high together, they're one of my underclassmen. we exorcised curses and went on missions together, didn't we, (y/n)?" he prolongs the last syllable as you roll your eyes.

"yeah, and i wish i exorcised you instead of those curses. i'd rather live with those curses than you."

"oi! that's no way to talk to your senpai, (y/n)." he giggles like a toddler and he turns back to the first years. "plus, i know for a fact that they don't want to be away from me even if they do hate me. i mean, that's the reason why you became a teacher at jujutsu high, right, my little kouhai?" you feel your entire body tense up at his last words.

there it is. there's that stupid nickname. the nickname that you hate and love so much, the nickname that makes you want to punch gojo satoru in the face, the nickname that makes me want to grip the collar of his jacket and kiss him until we can't breathe, the nickname that makes you want to strip him and put him in his place.

you slam your palms on the table and stand up, agitated to the core. you grab the collar of gojo's jacket as you drag him outside the cafe, him squirming. "oi, oi, oi! what're you doing, (y/n)?!" he tries to escape your grip but you only tighten it as you drag him across the pavement outside the cafe, your figures being seen from inside, making the first-years look at each other with eyebrows raised.

"i'll bet on all of the yen in my wallet that they'll fuck at the alleyway behind the cafe," nobara says as yuji high-fives her in acceptance of her bet. "deal."

you slam gojo's body against the hard surface of the wall. he looks at you with confusion written all over his face and a slight trace of fear in his eyes. although he's the strongest jujutsu sorcerer, he can't help but feel scared at the sight of you fuming.

"(y/n), calm down—"

"calm down? calm down?! i've been calm for years but i've had enough!" you exclaim, your voice echoing throughout the walls of the small alleyway beside the cafe. you take a step towards the tall man you've known for years and lean as close as you can to his face. "you've known each other for years yet you still don't know a thing about me, satoru. you don't know anything," you spat.

"but isn't that why you became a teacher? because i become one?" gojo looks at you with one of his eyebrows raised in question. you groan and push away him, bringing your hands up to your hair in frustration at the tall man in front of you.

"for fuck's sake, not everything is about you, satoru! you do not have the right to tell my students why i became a teacher because it is my business, not yours!" you point an accusing finger at gojo as the anger inside of you only grows by seconds. you run your hands over your face and curse under your breath as you thought what the first-years now think of you. desperate? probably.

although, maybe he's right. maybe he's the reason why you became a teacher at jujutsu high. maybe that's why you're so mad at him, because he knew of your attraction towards him despite all the eye rolls and middle fingers toward him.

i mean, it's not like he's the only reason why you joined jujutsu high. ever since your days as a student, you've always wanted to be a teacher, to educate and coach the next generation of jujutsu sorcerers the same way you were taught but when you heard that gojo started teaching, you too filed for a position as one of the teachers afterward.

"look, i'm sorry, (y/n). i'm so sorry and i know that it's none of my business and look i'll make it up to you . . ." he trailed on but all you could think about was how he embarrassed you, how you want him to have a taste of his own medicine, how you want to kiss those plump lips of his hard until he's gasping for air, how you want him on his knees begging for your forgiveness as you firmly press the sole of your shoes on his bulging crotch.

listening to him saying his sorries only fueled your sexual frustration. you start to fantasize about him begging you to stop while you pound into him from behind, him promising to not upset you anymore while he covers his face shyly while you ride his cum-covered cock.

you couldn't take it anymore, so you finally snap.

you approach gojo again as he apologized. you lean towards his face like before, only this time, closer. gojo quiets, looking at you with confusion. "(y/n)? w-what're you doing?" he asks as he backs up on the alley wall until his back is pressed up against it.

you only murmur "payback," before you grab his face and press your lips against his hard. gojo lets out a surprised noise but he quickly kisses you back, just as hard.

he tries to put his hands on your waist but you pull away from his lips and lightly slap his hands away from you. "no touching unless i say so. got it?" you order and he visibly gulps, nodding his head which makes you smirk. "good boy," you praise before kissing him again.

as your tongue explores gojo's mouth, your hands that were holding his face slowly lower to his chest, rubbing the areas where his nipples should be with your thumb. he lets out a small moan, which makes you smile on his lips before you pull away to start taking off his top. he lets out a surprised noise and grips your hands, halting your movement. "w-wait! we're in public, (y/n). can w-we do this somewhere else?"

"and we leave our precious little first-years here? i don't think so." you batt your eyelashes at him in fake worry before you resume taking off his top until his chest is exposed to you.

your thumbs resume rubbing and playing with his nipples until they're hard. gojo let out whines and moans, and you stop. "does it feel good?" you ask and he only nods, making you frown. "use your words, baby."

"mhmm . . . it feels really good," he moans, covering his mouth with his palm as you chuckle. "look at you. practically melting as i tease your nipples and i haven't even touched your cock yet." you lean towards his ear and whisper, "such a slut." gojo lets out a loud moan, making you let out a chuckle again. "don't moan too loud or else, people will hear you." you mischievously smile at him. "unless that's what you want." gojo bites his bottom lip and squirms. "oh, so you want to get caught?" he shakes his head. "then don't let out a sound or else i stop."

you then start to unbuckle and unzip his pants until his cock springs free. you giggle when you see his throbbing head already leaking precum and dripping down his length. "aww, were you that excited for me to touch you?" you coo and gojo nods again, his cheeks warming up in humiliation from having his dick out in public.

"then beg for me to touch you."

"please (y/n), please touch me. please stroke my hard cock in this alleyway." you look up and think about it in a fake manner. "hmm, you didn't beg hard enough."

"please (y/n)! my cock is throbbing hard for you. i'll let you do anything to me. just please touch me," he says, his voice dripping with desperation, just the way you like it. "good boy," you giggle and wrap your hand around his hard cock.

you stroke his cock, starting with his tip, but it's enough to make gojo squirm in front of you. "p-please stop teasing, (y/n)." you smirk up at him. "since you asked so nicely," you smugly say before pumping his cock hard and fast with the help of his precum. he lets out a loud moan before one of his hands reach up to cup his mouth, muffling his pants and moans.

"yeah? you like that? you like your little kouhai playing with you?" you chuckle. "you present yourself so smugly in front of people but here you are, the strongest jujutsu sorcerer, submitting to me like an obedient slut." gojo whines in response, his eyebrows furrowing in pleasure as his head tips back.

"i'm your obedient little slut. i'm yours, i'm all yours." hearing him say that makes you let out a groan yourself, feeling yourself get wet before you lick a long stripe on one of his nipples. you feel gojo tremble from your action and he nearly combusts when you blow air on his wet nipple and do the same with the other one.

he didn't know that you could do something like this. he never expected this to come from you since you acted like you hate his entire existence. he knew that you were attracted to him (honestly, who doesn't?) but he didn't know that it was this intense but was he complaining? no, especially since he's so close to cumming all over your pretty hands.

"i-i'm c-c-close," he whispers, afraid that he might let out another moan that would cause passersby to hear and be curious. you look up at him and hum. "hmm? does my slut wanna cum?" gojo frantically nods his head as he feels your hand go faster. "y-yes please. wanna cum f-for you." you smirk and pull away from his nipple.

"then," you drag the last syllable before you completely stop. "too bad for you because you can't." gojo's head snaps towards you and you nearly laugh out loud at the pure shock and confusion on his face. "b-b-but—" he tries to reason but you cut him off. "this is what you get for humiliating me in front of our students." you push away from him and fix your appearance before turning your back towards him.

"now, fix yourself and let's get back to them before they start looking for us." you walk back towards the cafe as gojo looks at you, his hard cock throbbing even more from not cumming. he hurriedly zips his clothes back and fixes his hair before running to catch up after you.

as you walk back to the trio with gojo trailing behind you, hair and clothes disheveled and the obvious tent in his pants, they only looked at the both of you in disgust as yuji hands nobara all the yen he has in his pocket.

© hangjie 2022

[hopkei]

sorry if this is a dumb question, but what was the problem with keito calling him “nacchan”? is it because they’re filming? what does keito usually call him? (from what i know, fanta is more chill about honorifics among the members? sorry i’m new here 😭)

not a dumb question at all!!! japanese formal language can be very confusing!!

(disclaimer: i will say first that my japanese is not very good and i'm also not very familiar with other LDH groups so anyone pls correct me if im wrong!! i wouldn't be surprised if fanta is more casual about it,, so i'm not super confident about it but this is my general impression!!)

under the cut bc this got very long🙇‍♂️

from my understanding fanta (and LDH as a whole) actually tend to be quite strict with honorifics and formal speech. i remember just recently seeing a video of some Johnny Company groups on tv with some LDH members where they discussed the LDH high five rule, which is that kouhai must ALWAYS high five senpais with two hands

the J company members were very shocked (and maybe impressed?) by this because J company groups will apparently be quite casual with senpais

i won't speak to other groups because I'm not familiar with them, but in Fanta the members tend to be very strict with calling each other formally. all younger members will call members older than them with "name-kun" (except sekai, every member calls him sekai-san) and use honorific speech. Keito always calls nacchan as "horinatsu-kun" because he is younger, as does sota (though sota will also occasionally use "hori-san")

and all of this is despite many members knowing each other for 10+ years or being childhood friends (keito still speaks formally with sawa and horinatsu still calls leiya "leiya-kun". though from what i can think of, whenever horinatsu refers to shota, he does not use -kun), so i would say ldh is just very strict about it.🤷‍♀️ there is even a weird case with sawa and taiki, where sawa is older but taiki is the senpai so they both call each other taiki-kun and natsuki-kun (or sometimes sawa-san)

however i will say that while they are strict, because fanta is obviously very close the times i can think of off the top of my head where a younger member will drop honorifics, the older member will call them out, but they never actually seem very bothered (like with horinatsu, he is still laughing while hitting keito, and im pretty sure keito didn't apologize)

others i can think of are leiya calling taiki with no honorifics here (at 1:04): the question is "who do you think is most improved since debut" and leiya just says "taiki" and taiki yells "don't call me without honorifics!" but is still just laughing, and leiya does not apologize

and taiki dropping to informal speech while talking to sekai here (at 2:03). the question is "please tell us a good point of the next member!" which in this case is taiki, and taiki says "please tell me! (informally)" and sekai says "why are you speaking informally?" and taiki and the members just laugh🥰

in terms of using formal vs informal speech in general there are some members that i have definitely seen drop them from time to time (like yusei to leiya and sota to yusei) but even then they will always still call the older one with -kun

though all of this is to say its very possible that they are just like this in front of the camera to follow ldh rules and are very friendly and informal behind camera but i cant speak to that;;🙇‍♂️

[monacrado]

Delulu thoughts about gbf almost-OL ship monika/lecia, but despite drawing top/assertive lecia more, I used to think if there were any arrows to each other, monika's would be bigger than lecia's (like monika>><lecia) until I finally read ferry's summer fate where lecia just wouldn't shut up about monika and looking back it does feel like monika><<lecia now.

I always thought Lecia's language and reactions toward Monika in their fates, battle dialogue etc were always pretty lukewarm minus a few scenes compared to Monika's toward Lecia. Also, Monika's fates usually feature lecia but not necessarily vice versa, and lecia tends to get more of the mc love interest treatment. Monika's arrows are pretty apparent Eg:

-Monika is usually shown taking the lead when they hang out, in her grand SSR and summer SSR fates. 

-During battle dialogue she gets super pissed if lecia gets ko'd and threatens the enemy (something along the lines of 'Don't you dare think you'll get away in one piece'.)

-In her Grand version's fate she comes running and causes a ruckus in panick when she hears lecia collapsed. 

-So she's obviously usually a strong and composed leader, but seems like loses that composure if something happens to lecia

You could argue Monika is just making sure to take care of her junior (close senpai/kouhai relationship). Her grand version flavour text calls lecia her little sister figure too, and they get treated as sisters by mobs a lot of the time when not in uniform. But we know what that kind of subtext is usually for lol. Anyway no matter how you interpret it , it's no doubt Monika cares for lecia a lot.

Getting back to Lecia feeling more lukewarm towards Monika in comparison:

-if Monika gets knocked out in battle, Lecia is still pretty calm and just tells her to stand back and she'll attack.

-Grand Monika and Summer Monika fates; When they get mistaken as close sisters, lecia shows some discomfort and/or does the polite strained laughing (eng says friends but in jpn the mobs refer to lecia as monika's older sister)

-honestly tho looking back lecia only seemed like she had reservations about hanging out with Monika in her grand SSR fate because she was just stressed out in general

On the other hand, as mentioned above, there are a few eyebrow raising scenes showing lecia is pretty affectionate towards Monika and may just be trying to keep it on the down low

-arcarum reward SSR monika fate, lecia shows up kinda drunk on Monika's doorstep w/ another coworker and says 'no sleep for you tonight'. In jpn (and I guess eng too really) it's a stereotypical line that one says for the innuendo.

-Summer SR ferry fate is kinda loaded. 

  -though just asked by Monika for stories when she's back from vacation, she keeps an eye out for desserts that Monika would be interested in

  -vira and ferry noting how important Monika seems to be for lecia. In jpn it's 'respect' instead of 'important, but then vira likens their relationship to herself and katalina which is pretty loaded lol. Ferry adding on that Lecia gets all sparkly eyed and happy when talking about Monika

  -Vira asks Lecia about having Monika come over for vacation together, and lecia genuinely seems disappointed when she explains they can't, and that they've been working separately too. The way that happened and vira being so sympathetic definitely felt like a 'too busy to spend time with your s/o' moment.

 -lecia continuing to bring up monika whenever appropriate for the rest of the fate

-Valentines SSR Monika fate; lecia showing disappointment when she can't catch Monika's show and later on asking us to watch for her instead

-Lecia gushing in her head about how cute Monika is as a magical girl

So we can kinda see the situations where Lecia is more openly affectionate: when she's drunk, when Monika is not present, and inside her head. Seems like never when she's alone with monika. It's probably just in her nature to want to stay professional and not lose monika's respect or something with her personality, and stay in her lane as the younger one. This just feels like kinda typical shoujo style kouhai crushing on senpai now that i look back tho lol. Also it's funny the localization is trying to push them too with the changes i mentioned above

[shih-coulda-had-it]

EPISODE 131 | S6E18 | C304-305 NOTES BELOW THE READ-MORE!

VISUALS--

Bones fixed the color for En’s bandages (from the previous episode’s teaser slide, which showed them as black, to this episode’s standard white).

Second is a ginger!! Third has light blue hair!! Their outfits look... weirdly bright in this lighting! I’m kinda wowed that Third’s bandana is a very dark maroon. Really expected it to be a plain black.

Anyways, so you’re telling me that Shinomori spent all 18 years living in the forests wearing white? White, and that raggedy dark green cropped jacket? Barefoot, too? ... Okay! (Still a bit cheated that they de-paletted him from the light purple to... blond and green eyes.)

There’s nothing to say about Red En that hasn’t been said already. But what HASN’T been noted is that! his eyes! are also green! BRO?!

On the bright side, Bones fixed the issue that Horikoshi had re: consistency in Nana’s jumpsuit. In the manga, she sometimes has sleeves inked in, and then for the larger shots, she has her arms showing (mmuscless). On the downside, Bones remains committed to rendering Nana younger, or without the lines in her face. Yeah, some shots have ‘em, but on the whole...

bonus

no one should blame banjo for trying to blackwhip shinomori. look at this ‘float like a butterfly buzz like a bee’ jackass.

SCRIPT (?)

I’m starting to suspect that my yohoho site’s subtitles are suspect in and of themselves, but nevertheless, we proceed with the compare and contrast and most importantly, NAMES.

En says ‘Banjo-senpai’. 10/10, very cute, unlike VIZ’s “my esteemed colleague Banjo”

Yoichi, already mentioned in a previous post, refers to several holders while using the ‘-kun’ honorific, regardless of age or stature. I assume Second and Third are exempt from this treatment (unless like. he flirtin’), as well as Nana.

Also mentioned in that post, Banjo saying ‘Shinomori-san’ to Shinomori’s ‘Banjo.’ I’d also like to note that only in one set of my subtitles did Banjo refer to Shinomori’s mountain man moment as him being “like a weird and quirky sage.” Banjo also calls En his kouhai! Yeah!!!

Shinomori also calls All Might ‘Yagi-kun,’ so I’m assuming that holders 1-7 just view both All Might and Deku as the most endearing children to live.

I LOVE, LOVE that they’ll refer to themselves and each other using the numbered titles. Yondaime. Nidaime. Nanadaime. Wah.

Nana uses ‘Izuku-kun’ here, but I feel like I’m remembering that everyone transitions to calling him Ninth | Kyuudaime (?) once he’s in Villain Hunt. ALSO. NANA SAYING ‘SORAHIKO’ AGAIN IN HER HEAD, WHILE SHE CALLS HIM GRAN TORINO ALOUD. NANAHIKO FANS WE WINNNNNN

okay, now for a few actual script changes i noticed*

*disclaimer: yohoho site subtitles used in comparison

Shinomori’s terrible joke about Danger Sense goes from,

“I get the sense that it would’ve been better for you to discover Danger Sense in a better setting.” -- VIZ

“I wish I could sense that you have sensed your Danger Sense.” -- v1

“I wanted to sense Danger Sense’s manifestation.” -- v2

It’s kinda sad because the anime didn’t manage to capture the little self-satisfied smirk that manga!Shinomori had (or maybe that was me projecting, idk), because Izuku’s response varies from,

[He thinks he’s funny!]

[He’s really good with words.] << why v1′s subtitles were suspect

[He’s trying to sound clever!]

last thing i’ll note for now because I gotta write something for febwhmp--

Izuku’s speech to the OfA holders has always, always struck me as the best part of C305, because the transformation from 16 y/o Izuku to kid Izuku is so precious when it’s drawn in the manga. Bones... did not put as much frames as I would’ve liked into that...

But also! Supposing my subtitles are right, here’s a change that struck me as wrong!

“I get that [One for All] was first meant to destroy [All for One]! But you’ve all given your lives to link the chain this far... and I think there’s another big purpose behind it all!” << stunning. heartwarming. beautiful insight into Izuku’s optimistic core, and also foreshadowing to that repeated theme of the next generation being helped by the previous.

“It may be the power to end All for One but all of you risked your life to maintain this power. It now has a greater purpose.” << awfully assertive. maintain?! Maintain?! you think they were just guarding OfA?! jail! jail for anime subtitles for 1000 years!

[tsundereition]

I want to hear about your self ships 🥺

omg thank you anon >< this ask made me happy! 💕 then i'm going to talk about my self ship with riddle because it's the only one that has an official name and i'll be able to tag it haha. it's mostly a platonic ship btw! because ✨aroace✨, but honestly, i'm tired of people only using the word ship for romantic ones, and i want to participate in self shipping too even if it's a bit different from the norm.

so the name would be chocoberry 🍫🍓, because riddle likes strawberries and i like chocolate 😋 i like strawberries too but if given the choice, i will always choose whatever has more chocolate haha. and they are a great combination too!

i will talk more about it under the cut because it's a bit long. also i talk about my self insert in 3rd person!

chocoberry dynamic

-study buddies

-senpai (Anne) / kouhai (Riddle) relationship

-"here, i'll lend you my notes from last year. they're color coded and the reference is in the index."

-Riddle invites Anne over to tea parties at heartslabyul, she finds that it's the perfect opportunity to eat sweets without Vil's restraint (she's in Pomefiore)

-besides tea parties, they also enjoy tea together while studying

-ocasionally they stroll through the gardens, getting lost in the maze, observing the roses, playing croquet

-it starts as a sort of amicable competitivity, they know each other because they're each the top student from their respective years, but they fight for the title of top student overall

-after colliding in many places like the library, the principal's office, etc, they begin to know each other and get along

-they're both very closed people and bad with social relationships, so they're quite distant with each other, it takes a lot of time for both of them to open up

-after talking more about their personal lives, they discover that they also relate in that sense

-as for personality, they have moments where they get along really well and understand each other like nobody else, and then they have moments where they get so frustrated with each other because they're both so stubborn

-they just need to unwind, drink some tea, and then reconcile

[asmosnail]

|𝙃𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙖 𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙮𝙤| |𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙚|

(Making up a match here 😐)

It was 24-22, Karasuno in the lead, Nekoma closing the distance slowly. The 'monster duo' had been testing Nekoma with quick attacks, and almost perfectly receiving, Nishinoya and Yaku were having a silent battle of who could return the most balls. Bothing thinking it was one-sided.

The match was for fun but a few people came to watch (is this even allowed) because the game wasn't held in a private gym (really making a way for you ig) and any passerby could slip in.

At Nekoma's match point, Kageyama set a ball across the court as Hinata ran up to the net preparing to spike, but landed to the ground as the ball sailed past him to Tanaka, who scored their winning point.

The game hadn't lasted very long, Hinata's decoy had caught a few people of guard which ended in Karasuno's favor.

The crows cheered for vicotry, while Hinata suddenly turned to wave towards a boy who both teams noticed to look around their age.

Sugawara saw this and nudged Daichi,

"Have you seen him before?"

"Hinata must know him from somewhere- what are you doing...?"

Daichi turned to Kuroo staring at you then throwing his hands up.

"Am I the only person who sees this as a recruitment opportunity? He came to watch us, right?"

Yaku walked by and handed Kuroo a towel, "Yeah, kinda losing faith in Lev..."

"Don't bother strangers, Kuro."

"He's leaving anyway, or I think he is, what door is that?"

-Cut to Lev sulking in the corner growing mushrooms-

Daichi looked towards the door you left through, which leads to the court...? (I have no clue what I'm doing)

And in full glory, resting bitch face and no shits to give, you walked onto the court and yelled,

"Shoyo!! Spike!"

"Shoyo? That's Hinata, right?"

He was all the way on the other side of the gym room but heard you fully, breaking into a run towards you.

"(m/n)! Receive!"

You held your arms out with an indifferent expression as Hinata came crashing into you.

Hinata's busy-ass schedule interfered with the time you two had together, and you hadn't seen each other in awhile.

You two were enjoying the presence of the other, being all wholesome and "I missed you" "I missed you too" until Daichi had to interrupt shi- Asked Hinata who you were.

Everyone else in the gym was like "Bruh"

"Oh, Daichi! This is my boyfriend, (l/n) (m/n)."

"Heya, I'm the boyfriend."

Nekoma had already left the gym, since Karasuno was held up bc of you (Oh, wow, really 🙄)

Noya and Tanaka ran up to y'all so fast, firing questions about how you and Hinata ended up.

Noya grabbed Hinata by the shoulders which had you s h o o k-

"Hinata how long have you been hiding this from us! I feel betrayed!"

'I can't tell what he's referring to...'

You grabbed Hinata's hand and glared at the libero, a signal to let him go, which he got quickly.

Noya then walked over to Tanaka dejectedly. How could their kouhai, who was supposed to look up to them for advice, have gotten into a relationship before them?!

The calmer members of the team introduced themselves to you, as well as two girls you learned were Yachi and Kiyoko, their managers.

After all that you and Hinata stood off to the side in convorsation.

"(m/n)!" Sunshine looked into your eyes and- "Did you see me out there? What'd you think?!"

"You were freakin' awesome, Sho."

"Hell yeah!"

One of the third years you recently met, Sugawara, came up to you both.

"Hinata, Noya made a bet with Daichi and now he's paying for food, do you and (m/n) wanna come?"

"Thanks, senpai! But we have to get going."

Your eyes widened, "We do?..."

"Mhm, I've wanted to take you out! And now that you're here, don't even think about paying."

He kissed your cheek and left you slightly flustered as he quickly gathered his things. You tended to argue about who paid for stuff sometimes, and Hinata liked to get the jump on you.

(In a super civilized way and not you and Hinata agressively complementing each other type of way. Of course not.)

He jogged over to you clearly excited as put his arm around you and led you to the exit of the gym, saying goodbye to Karasuno.

Your voices faded as you left the gym, the conversation going something like this,

"So, where do you wanna go?"

"Wait- you didn't decide already?"

"I just wanna spend time with you, (m/n), so we can go wherever, as long as..."

[toadeyes-miqote]

Gaia No!! Bad Gaia minion Bad!!!

-----

Messing around in Gpose since two my fave dudes are standing next to each other. Gaia happened....

I forgot Gaia was around and she was jumping around and photobombing. So I thought to have her hit the camera.... But then poor Alphi was in her firing range when I zoom out. Sorry Alphi .

Alisaie what is that look upon your face?! I can't get over how adorable she looks. Don't worry Alisaie, Alphi may have Estinien and Arenvald as his big brothers. You have Thancred and G'raha.

"My boys!" All that's left is Estinien and we can go Hullbreaker Isle to hunt that Kraken.

Apparently it took the Boulder Brothers wanting to challenge G'raha, for my WoL to warm up to him a bit more. This is a case where the player already likes him but the WoL was totally in character to be slow to warm up to her fanboy.

Stare~~~ "Is there something on my face?"

"Alphi! Quick take a picture for us before she changes her glamour again!!"

And I'm like, Is this what Emet sees in envy when he looks at them? It was that kind of senpai-kouhai (line of mentorship) energy him, Hythlodaeus, Venet and Azem had. Thancred - WoL - both Alisaie and Ryne. Emet being the senpai assigned to the whacky study group. And WoL is a goodball with potential but spends too much time on Cat memes and pop culture....Wait is this Azumanga Daioh now or Fate Grand Summer Camp? I need go check Lucky Stars and my other school slice of life based animes for references (Komi can't communicate)

Yeah I'm probably watching Emet and Thancred for how much they mirror and parallel each other.

Bring Estinien in and the dynamics gets swap around, especially for Hades, Hythlodaeus and Venat. I need to get to that point of Endwalker to see where Elidius stands. Emet? Is this what you see in them?

[pyropsychiccollector]

What are your top five or ten favorite Makoto pairings?

Well, I suppose my "Top 5" can go without mentioning for the umpteenth time. I refer to them as the "Founders" for a reason. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

So.... Let's keep it fun and go with the "Top Five" under them. Just for funsies. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

1. NaeSonia

If you had the chance to date a foreign Princess, would you? She's got a lot on her shoulders in universes where the world didn't go to Hell, but one of the fun aspects of NaeSonia involves the reverse situation happening in the relationship - instead of taking Makoto to Novoselic to become the King, she settles for becoming an ordinary girl. That is one of the quirks of Sonia, she's royalty but she wants to experience....normalcy. And she got to achieve that dream at Hope's Peak (for the most part.....if you consider Ultimate classmates, senpai, kouhai, and Sensei's "normal*). Plus, Makoto is as normal as it gets, aside from base Hajime~ These two just have a great aesthetic and..... There's a lot to love. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

2. Naegi x

I'm gonna be fair for this next one, rather than leave any of them out in the cold. If Makoto can get along with Sayaka and share a special bond, why stop there? Kasumi, Ayaka, Satomi, and Haruka are Sayaka's friends. Best friends. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) And Sayaka's best friends and soulmate are their best friend and soulmate..... Right? That's how it works? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Heck, just imagine a universe where all of them attended Black Roots Junior High and each encountered Makoto in some fashion like Sayaka, and they developed a following for the selfless, adorable, Must Protect Egg. Talk about wholesome~ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)👍

3. Naegi x Student Council

This’ll be the last time, I swear.  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)*** My knee jerk reaction is NaeTsubasa.... But let’s be fair~ The Student Council got the short end of the stick in canon. We’re lucky to have Vergilsama92 for breathing life into these one-off characters that, quite frankly, didn’t deserve the treatment they got (but then again, that’s par for the course in Danganronpa, isn’t it?). NaeTsubasa is wonderful.  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) But so’s NaeSuzuko. NaeKaren. NaeAiko. NaeKiriko. And of course NaeKotomi. \  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) / Such a colorful Student Council. The Egg and the rest of the academy sure is Lucky and Blessed to be guided by such leadership~

4. Naegi x Kotoko

Kotoko is one of those tragic characters that we’re forced to “forever” be hostage to the pity that we feel for her canon counterpart’s childhood trauma, thanks to the Danganronpa community. This isn’t to say we can’t feel bad for that trauma, but why should we be so limited to who Kotoko is? Why can’t she be older? Why can’t she avoid a childhood of molestation and possible rape? Fanfiction in part exists to imagine New Possibilities, and who wouldn’t want to spare Kotoko that miserable fate?  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Vergilsama92 outdid himself again with the Older Kotoko designs, and she’s been doing marvelous as the Ultimate Actress, and one of the addendums to Class 78 in the Hope Universe~ I hope to get around to musing on Kotoko, Monaca, and Ryoko being added to the roster in place of.... Yasuhiro.... (Apologies to Yasuhiro fans, but I am not among you, so if you like him...you might want to skip his name when he comes up in my blog; I seldom have good things to say about him, but that is MY preference, and should not stop you from enjoying him). Not only did she avoid a traumatic childhood, but like Sonia, Kotoko craves an ordinary life~ She’s a lot more casual about staying in showbusiness or leaving it for other ventures, and Makoto’s just such a nice guy.... y’know?  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

5. Naegi x Maki

I suppose in our final shoutout for now, let’s go with.... Tsun-Tsun Assassin-chan.  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) I tend to enjoy tsunderes, and Maki’s honestly a nice girl that’s rough around the edges because of living in an orphanage. Makoto brings her out of her shell, and gives her hope that she doesn’t have to remain a cold-blooded killer forever; she can use her skills to protect what’s important to her, instead. And honestly, it’s cute how she’ll butt heads with the other girls, and is like a little sister to Mukuro and Peko~ We need more girls full of fire like Maki.  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) If it was peaceful all the time, how could we appreciate the peace? Sometimes the girls need to vent their frustrations with each other~ Such beautiful chemical reactions~ \ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) /

I would honestly go for a full Top 10, but I already wasted space at the beginning, and Tumblr only allows 10 pics per post. Besides~ I’d prefer dedicating that time to skits and pics. We must appreciate the minor ships while we can. Mainstream drowns us out so often, but we shall be H E A R D~  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[demonslayedher]

Buri-senpai~, it’s Anon-kouhai (do I earn that title?) again and I’m here to torture us both today on Mitsuri and her family since my last ask involved her a bit, albeit tangentially. Don’t worry, I have a lighthearted blurb coming up to wash the sadness away. It’s canon that Mitsuri is close to her family, especially her five siblings. Somehow my mind went to how they would’ve reacted after her death in the final battle as out of everybody, 1/4

2/4 Mitsuri didn’t necessarily have a life-changing event that involved demons which turned her to the corps. It’s hard to gauge how they would react as they are basically nonexistent if we don’t count Mitsuri’s flashbacks. However, I’m sure Senjuro would be mourning the fact that he lost his elder sister figure, potentially even his motherly figure as he doesn’t really remember Ruka. At least the poor thing has his father and the Kamado siblings. 3/4 The same could apply to Senjuro’s reaction towards Obanai’s death depending on how close his relationship with the Rengoku family was. Also, why am I making us suffer? And while we're on this sad analysis train, what do you think happen to the Heian doctor that “cured” Muzan in the afterlife? 4/4 Same with Tamayo. We know she was headed to hell according to chapter 204’s cover page (I think), but did we ever get any information on what happened after she died? Was her family waiting for her so that they could head to hell together? A happier note regarding family-ish units, I wonder how close Himejima is to Kanao considering his relationship with the Kochou sisters.

Anon-kouhai, you are the fastest, as well as the most patient. Since you are a follower of my fics (thank you so much!) I’m going to refer you to two of my fics for my take on Mitsuri’s family who was left behind. To clarify, the second fanbook stated she’d the oldest of five, meaning she has four younger siblings. We know the one right under her is a brother, but otherwise we don’t know anything about the siblings. 1. “The Pillar Training Oath,” in which Giyuu and Sanemi, still in the early stages of figuring out their post-canon friendship, honor their fallen comrades by trying to fulfill the Pillar training they never got to do with them. For Flexibility Hell, Giyuu and Sanemi have an awkward, bittersweet stay at the Kanroji residence, and for better or for worse, the siblings help them figure out how to perform the training.

2. “Impatience and Hunger,” my big baby of a canon-divergent AU, in which Nezuko learns Flame Breathing. Senjuro suggests she pay her respects to the elder martial sister whom she’s always been curious about, and when Nezuko arrives at the Kanroji estate (now a Wisteria House out of gratitude for the place they gave Mitsuri to belong), she recovers her demon memories of meeting Mitsuri and how much she loved her. Other than that, they make a few brief cameos later in the fic, acting in a Wisteria House capacity.

On that note, things just don’t get any easier for poor Senjuro, do they? As far as I'm aware, we don’t have any canon indication of whether young Kyojuro and Senjuro ever met little Obanai, though, or if only Shinjuro did. I’m inclined to think they didn’t spend much (if any) time together, but I do really enjoy fanwork that suggests they might had.

While still following how close some characters might or might not had been, I had never thought about what sort of relationship Himejima and Kanao might have had. If it was anything, it was courteous and they might had been mindful of one another, but given their personalities, I don’t think they’d have talked to each other much. Kanao wouldn’t had proactively spent any time with him, and Himejima, who has been hurt so bad before, doesn’t go out of his way to make new relationships. The new ones he attains, especially with children, have been forced on him. He got close to the Kochou sisters because they showed up one day and he couldn’t make them go away, and likewise, he accepted Genya because he couldn’t make Genya go away either. (Great, now I’m sad thinking about how I want more Himejima and Genya.) (Stay tuned below the cut for more comments on deceased doctors, fandom theorists, and hell. Today's programming is brought you by the letter 'u.' See 'u' in the hell that is Japanese romanization.)

As for that doctor, in Chapter 127 he’s described as being a good person. With additional detail from Fanbook #2, we know he came all the way from the Kantou region to the Heian capital, and the blue spider lilies grew where he lived, and he was the only person who knew where they grew. Muzan’s condition initially got worse, which was why he killed the doctor, presumably before the treatment was complete. It was still only a first attempt on the doctor’s part, after all, to try to help a man who was said to die before age 20 to live even just a little longer. Even though his actions resulted in hundreds of tragedies, I think those sins can be pinned on Muzan rather than the doctor, and the doctor was probably not held responsible in the KnY version of the afterlife. As for Tamayo, she knows she deserves to pay for her sins, but we don’t know if she’s got family waiting for her. In the KnY take on the afterlife, it seems there is some limbo souls can stay in before they can either ascend or descend, but souls who are free to ascend can choose to stick around watch over their living loved ones or accompany their deceased loved ones to hell. Like in this fanart, I like to headcanon that Tamayo encountered Shinazugawa Shizu, told her husband to get lost, and then the two of them, who bore the same weight of having killed their own beloved children, could go off and face hell together. Tanjiro, as well as Sumihiko, seem to believe that with enough time, even demons can forgiven and reborn (which has basis in Buddhist thought). We can assume that’s what Yushiro is waiting for, and since Tamayo already spent a few hundred years working to take down the root of all demon evil, I’d like to think she’s already balanced out enough of her karma that she’ll be back on her way sooner than she otherwise would had. Now jumping ahead a bit on something you asked a little bit later on, I sometimes come across fanarts that I love so much that I instantly adopt them as personal trivial headcanons. As for other Japanese fan theories, meta, analysis, and trivial headcanons, I tend to share them as soon as they capture me as interesting enough to want to talk about, or I encounter them when I’m hunting for info on something I’m already in the process of analyzing. And actually, as I was drafting this response I was already planning to mention a YouTube theorist’s recent video on Rengoku family names and symbolism, but then it got relevant sooner than I thought over on this post. ^0^ I don’t go out of my way to watch all his (Sabito's) new videos, but I find a lot of his theories pretty well supported and with sound reasoning. That said, the click-baity thumbnails like “the real reason Kanao, Zenitsu, and Inosuke didn’t attain marks!!” annoy me because it’s like, dude, none of us work for Shueisha, we’re all just nerds doing our best with what Wani-sensei gave us, haha! Since my search history knows I will click on stuff like this and it's such a popular topic right now, I also come across articles from cultural experts pointing out the finer points and how they're linked to real life culture. Most notably, Prof. Owada, retired Shizuoka University professor who seems to enjoy retirement capitalizing on his background and his newest favorite manga. I’m sure he probably snapped his fingers and went “darn!!” when the second fanbook came out with more details that he could had used in “A Japanese History of Demon Slayers,” a whole book he published four months too soon.

So with the Ask answers out of the way...

Now onto the comic relief section for you, haha! (it's marked with letters)

This whole blurb is just to give you a giggle after that torture I put us through. I also struggle with fluctuating between romanization spellings, and I get slightly disappointed when I see official anime merch using the spelling that I don’t really like. I’m not sure if it shows through our previous interactions but I avoid writing Rengoku’s first name to avoid the struggle. Kyojuro? Kyoujurou? Kyojurou, Kyoujuro? A/D B/D What do the ‘rou’ names want from us? Why are there so many of you? Tanjirou, Muichirou, Kyojurou, Yushirou. I like the spellings I used for the first three but I’m iffy on the additional ‘u’ on Yushiro’s name. At this point, let’s add additional ‘u’s to names with an ‘o’ that don’t even include that additional ‘u’ syllable. Nezukou, Inousuke, Oubanai, Shinoubu, Kanrouji, Tamayou, Uroukoudaki, Sabitou, Makoumo, Koukushibou, Youriichi, Kanaou, Aoui. C/D This would be such an aggravating April Fool’s joke on people who struggle with this like us, where we just buddy up ‘o’s with ‘u’s. Looking over there? Lououking ouver there. Why leave it at just the ‘o,’ as double ‘u’ is also common (looking at you Giyuu). Need a vacuum? Need a vacuuuum. Would you help me? Wouuuld youuu help me? D/D Muzan stole your wallet? Nou, Muuzan stoule youuur wallet. Tirade aside, hope that I’m able to contribute some ideas for you to add into your theories, fanfics, and fanart. Which reminds me, are there any Japanese fan theories, meta, analysis, trivial headcanons that the English-speaking fans haven’t really pointed out? Until the next time we continue these prolonged back-and-forths!

Picture any Sanemi face you want, that's the face I'm making.

I’m a Tanjiro(u) type when it comes to trying to explain language, whether my own or a foreign one, so I’m just going to point anyone interested to the Wikipedia page on methods of romanizing Japanese and say different systems have all gotten some things right, but all of them do at least one thing to annoy me so in my fun fandom internet hours I blissfully ignore consistency. Extra ‘u’s I can take, sometimes I even welcome them. But nothing, nothing will ever get under my skin like romanizing つ as ‘tu’ instead of ‘tsu.’

Buuuut, while I’m here, for reference: 炭治郎 Ta-n-ji-ro-u: たんじろう

炭十郎 Ta-n-ju-u-ro-u: たんじゅうろう

杏寿郎 Kyo-u-ju-ro-u: きょうじゅろう

愈史郎 Yu-shi-ro-u: ゆしろう

妓夫太郎 Gyu-u-ta-ro-u: ぎゅうたろう 無一郎Mu-i-chi-ro-u: むいちろう

有一郎Yu-u-i-chi-ro-u: ゆういちろう 甘露寺Ka-n-ro-ji: かんろじ

伊黒 I-gu-ro: いぐろ

小芭内 O-ba-na-i: おばない 黒死牟 Ko-ku-shi-bo-u: こくしぼう 行冥Gyo-u-m-e-i: ぎょうめい 義勇Gi-yu-u: ぎゆう 鱗滝U-ro-ko-da-ki:うろこだき

錆兎Sa-bi-to: さびと

胡蝶 Ko-cho-u:こちょう 童磨Do-u-ma: どうま 竈門Ka-ma-do: かまど 時透To-ki-to-u: ときとう

Aaaaaaand that's enough, Muuzan, whoever that is, is getting away with my wallet.

[malereader-inserts]

Finding You

Fandom: Haikyuu Pairing: Tobio Kageyama x Male!Reader Summary: You’ll always find each other, almost as if you’re destined to play together or against each other. Word Count: 1,015 Request: @crunchyhanie​ “I'd love it if you could write something about Kageyama x boyfriend!reader. If possible from the time when Kags got the King of the Court title until his first year in Karasuno. We all know how devastated Kags was when he tosses but no one is there to spike it – aaaaand this is where the reader came in and they became boyfriends I guess ?? hhhh I don't really have a specific plot for this, I just want some Kageyama fluffs for myself T_T” A/n: Sorry it’s not as fluffy

Kageyama remembers when he first met you, you had watched his match of devastation. You had met him in the hallway, there was a charming smile and you were in the same year as him. You were the ace of your junior school and the captain of it. Whilst Kageyama was scowling, almost unapproachable, you stopped to look at him.

“I’ll find you, Kageyama-kun!” You exclaimed when he looks at you, he knows your school, but he never got the chance to play you, “I’ll always be there to hit your sets!”

“(L/n)-senpai,” one of your kouhai’s tugged your volleyball jacket, “Coach wants us.”

You turned back to Kageyama and gave him the brightest smile he has ever seen. You had a lot of talks, just like Kageyama. Your school was Chidoriyama Junior High, it was already a powerhouse school with players moving on with their volleyball careers. You were the talk of the potentials of young aces, you weren’t really concerned in that title. 

But, when Kageyama saw that look in your face, he felt different. His sister says it was love at first sight, but he doesn’t believe it. He spent the rest of his junior year passing by, excited to cross paths. When he arrived on his first day at high school, he was busy getting annoyed with Hinata.

“Kageyama-kun!” The two of them stop to turn to look at the new person at the door, Kageyama’s heart swore it sore up high, “I found you!”

He was like you remembered, loud and ecstatic, especially when Nishinoya returned to the club.

“Noya-senpai!” The libero looked over and beamed.

“It’s my kouhai ace!” Noya jumped to give you a hug, seeming that everyone understood you went to the same junior school, “You’ve grown since I have last seen you!”

“And you haven’t.”

“Why you little-” Noya giving you a jab to the side whilst Tanaka and Sugawara were laughing, liking their addition to the team. 

As months passed, the team getting stronger, you and Kageyama fell in love. Whilst Kageyama and Hinata had amazing plays, when you were on the court, the way you two had synced up was unbelievable - a dangerous duo. You were efficient in creating, on the line, line shot and supercross shots. You had a high jumping reach and always there for Kageyama’s quick.

“You can always count on me, Kags.”

“I know.”

You were often switched out for Tanaka or Daichi, you were obviously Nishinoya’s pupil, so you were always a reliable receiver. Hinata was jealous at times, that you could always look at Kageyama and he understood what you mean. It was the main reason why you and Kageyama could be terrifying on the court with the fact nothing needs to be said and actions will be louder. 

Hinata saw you as a rival, with the fact that you were clearly high up on the list of the next ace after Tanaka. Yeah, you had a lot to learn, but you were ready. By your third year, you made it clear that you intend to sit on the first rank of aces where Sakusa sits at the moment. You and Kageyama got closed, the boys cheered when you two turned up to practice holding hands, Kageyama blushing and you smiling brightly. 

One day when you arrived at school, Kageyama was waiting with you at the front, you were a little out of breath because you got of bed late.

“Hey, I found you.”

“I’m not hard to spot,” Kageyama replied, as you shrugged your shoulders, taking the food out of his hand, taking a bite, “Hey! That’s mine.”

“It’s mine now, Kag-kun.”

The two of you walk together, knowing that later you have practice, you waved him goodbye to him as you meet your classmates as he meets up Hinata. Kageyama smiles to himself, thinking about you. He doesn’t know how it happens really, you were always by his side, from the Tokyo training camp to each match. 

You were there to defend him from Oikawa, even managed to shut him up when you had to serve whilst subbing in for Tanaka. Your jump serves could rival Kageyama’s. You walked home together, you messaged each other often. Sometimes, on weekends, you two would meet to play receives. 

Miwa teases him all time about you and him, that she was right about it being love at first sight. Miwa also loves you to bits, you were different from Tobio’s personality, but, sometimes Miwa can see her little brother revert back to his childlike self she has dearly missed after their grandfather had passed away.

“What about me?”

“Uh, sorry, Hinata, only Kageyama and (L/n) was invited to All-Japan.”

You two high-fived behind Hinata, always rare to see Kayegama do anything affectionate to team-mates, but you seem to bring it out of him naturally. Whilst you and he walked home together, you talked about the future.

“We’re not even third years, (Y/n)-san,” Kageyama said munching on a pork bun.

You shrugged your shoulders, “So? Look at us, we’re heading to the top, how can I not imagine our future? We’ll go to the Olympics! We’ll be in the professional teams.”

“We’ll be in different teams, most likely.”

You looked at your boyfriend, tilting your head, making you both stop your walking, “And? I’d love to play against you again.  We never did it last year, and I intend on blocking all your sets till your frustrated.”

“You’re annoying...” But, Kageyama laughs, he smiles so vibrantly, “Okay, we’ll play against each other, one day, I’ll find you.”

“Just like I found you?”

Kageyama smiles further, “I’ll crush you.”

“Sure, you will, Kag-Kun! Even if our teams are across the world, we’ll find each other, right?”

“I don’t intend on losing you.”

You chuckled, you grabbed his hand to continue walking, you lead the way home, your next words started something in Kageyama’s mind as if he locked it away for future references. You gave him a promise, straight from your heart.

“You won’t lose me.”

[ukaiknowsbest]

breaking down Ace of Diamond - the "Hero's Journey."

Using the model/guide presented by Overly Sarcastic Productions in their youtube video Trope Talk: The Hero's Journey, I will attempt to discuss how Sawamura Eijun's story in DnA is his Hero's Journey to becoming an ace pitcher in the Japanese HIgh School Baseball environment.

Blue from OSP put forward the 12 basic parts of the Hero's Journey Cycle. The illustration below will be our reference. I simplified a graph made by Signy Wilson in order to match OSP's less rigid guide.

disclaimer: I am by no means any kind of expert. I was just fascinated when I learned about the Hero's Journey as a general trope/framework when it came to writing stories. I want to apply what I learned by breaking down the story created by Terajima Yuuji in Ace of Diamond.

A. ORDINARY WORLD

STAGE 1. THE HERO IN HIS NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

Hero: Sawamura Eijun. Captain and Ace Pitcher of middle school baseball team. He has no formal training in baseball whatsoever but was the one who gathered and convinced his friends to start a baseball club. He's the best player in their small team. Good at sports but bad at academics .

He is generally a baseball idiot and quite a naive/simple guy with a strong heart. He does not have any idea what competitive and pro baseball looks like because not only does he not have experience but also he does not watch the broadcasts on tv/radio at all.

Ordinary World of the Hero: rural town in Nagano Prefecture, where Sawamura formed a small baseball team with his childhood friends. Acording to him, as long as they all stay together they can always play baseball anywhere.

STAGE 2. THE CALL TO ADVENTURE

2.1 Problem/why hero's ordinary world is going to crumble: - He lessened his chances of being scouted/accepted in a good baseball school after he btchslapped an entire opponent team and the umpires in their first and only match as middle school team in Saitama Stadium.

He also has low chance of being accepted into the high school in their area (where his friends are all going to) because he struggles with his academics a lot.

Unless he does something he won't be able to be together with his friends and/or play baseball at all.

2.2 Caller of the adventure - Takashima Rei pursues Sawamura into Nagano Prefecture in order to scout him as a sports scholar for Seido High School, a baseball powerhouse school located in the West Division of Tokyo Prefecture.

2.3 medicine/ solution to hero's crumbling world: being a sports scholar for Seido. This would solve almost all of Sawamura's highschool enrollment problem and also give him the chance to play as much baseball as he wants.

STAGE 3. REFUSAL TO THE CALL

3.1 reluctance to go: Sawamura refuses to leave Nagano despite Rei's "sales pitch" to him and his family. He doesn't want to leave his friends just to play baseball in a stronger school far away because he had promised his friends that they would always stick together.

3.2 hero punished for this - his grandpa literally smacks/slaps him in being stupid and doubting his friends.!!! / technically circumstances are already punishing him for being a hotblooded baseball idiot in the first place.

3.3 do you think you have a choice - this is probably the only chance he'll get to play baseball with all his strength AND finish highschool.

B. EXTRAORDINARY / UNKNOWN WORLD

Venturing out into more competitive/pro baseball is a world beyond him. It's scary and unknown and he'd rather defeat bigger teams than leave his friends.

STAGE 4. CROSSING THE THRESHOLD

4.1 crossing physical threshold - Rei persuades him to at least check the school out with his own eyes. They leave Tokyo together for one visit.

4.2. crossing a metaphorical threshold - in that visit, sawamura, picks a fight with a senior who's bound for baseball drafts, works together with a nationally acclaimed catcher in defeating the senior player, thus changing his worldview because he had so much fun.

4.2. conscious and irreversible decision - Because of the experience he goes home conflicted. His family encourages him in their own way to follow his guts and heart and go to Tokyo.

STAGE 5. REALM OF ADVENTURE

5.1 hero learns to navigate the unknown world - Sawamura learns the harsh realities of being in a baseball school once he actually starts to live there. Our boy also gets educated in Baseball and Pitching 101. He also finds out the true personality of the catcher he played with before.

5.2 meeting allies/rivals/mentors - he learns about the team better when he meets a whole bunch of people: batchmates, coaches and senpais. He builds interesting dynamics with all of them.

5.3 trials and initial failures - Sawamura undergoes difficult initial training and is barely allowed to play in matches.

5.4 meeting enemies - Sawamura being allowed to play as relief pitcher in the games and face talented pitchers and scary batters mostly in tense situations.

5.5 growth, new skills - Sawamura grows with each match, thus bolstering his confidence. Sometimes he falters but he learns from his mistakes.

5.6 first major success - striking out scary batters with each new thing he learns.

5.7 major challenge that leads to downfall - seido vs inashiro finals match where he goes in full of confidence and courage but then he and his team gets defeated in a devastating way.

STAGE 6. BELLY OF THE WHALE

6.1 lowest point of hero where hero physically or metaphorically goes down - one month after their major defeat, a lot of intense practice matches and change in team dynamics, the team find out that Sawamura has the YIPS. This condition took away Sawamura's ability to pitch in his trademark style/ the only thing he was good at.

6.2 hero's darkest hour - without the ability to pitch, Sawamura questions his reality and why he is still on the team.

6.3 Face and overcome inner demons - with a lot of help from allies and mentors, Sawamura finds a way to bring back a bit of his ability.

STAGE 7. ROAD OF TRIALS

7.1 Discarding old self - In the duration of his downfall and eventual healing, Sawamura turns to books, meditation and becomes even more careful in maintaining his form and body.

7.2 Accepting the new role - instead of fixating on the ace position like before, Sawamura is just glad that he is still allowed to pitch as relief.

7.3 Finding path out of the belly of the whale/The road back - After figuring out a solution to fix his pitching, he focuses on it and regains some of his ability. Sawamura is then allowed to play in matches. Just like before, he improves little by little as he recovers from each failure. He gains fresher mindset and new weapons, thus becoming an even stronger pitcher than he ever was before.

7.4 more trials - they face new opponent schools and old but improved opponents which test the best of Sawamura and the team's ability

STAGE 8. PRE SHOWDOWN BREATHER

every major match in ace of diamond has this part of the story but usually the most critical breather episode is the one before the final match.

8.1 show humanity of other characters - Somethng bad happens to the other mc without Sawamura knowing. This could absolutely wreck their chances of winning the final match. This shows that the other guys are not 100% invincible after all.

8.2 last chance to relax. - calm before the storm. It is also the time where they finalize sawamura's weapons.

8.3 quiet moment to reminisce - usually happens before each match. However the night before the finals was the major one because their old senpais went to visit their practice and encourage them.

STAGE 9. CLIMAX / STEPPING UP TO THE CHALLENGE

9.1 Final Showdown - Sawamura helps in the team defense with the best of his ability and weapons and he succeeds. Their team eventually wins Fall Tournament even with a few setbacks.

9.2 Apotheosis - Sawamura's worldview changed once he realises that even with his improvement and skill, his goal of being the ace is still out of reach for him.

9.3 Ultimate Boon - Sawamura gets to be a pivotal member of their baseball team and can play baseball as much as he wants with his team.

STAGE 7. ROAD OF TRIALS start again after the Fall Tournament Act 1 because Sawamura faces new challenges in Ace of Diamond Act 2.

Meiji Jingu Tournament - Play in matches without Miyuki

WInter camp and break - Intense Physical Training and development and improvement of his weapons which he will use and improve on throughout the rest of Act 2.

Spring Koshien where he realises that he has to do more in order to surpass the current ace which was Furuya.

Start of New Term/ Practice Matches - Sawamura and co. meets their new kouhai and team dynamics shift once again.

Spring Tournament / Summer Tournament - Sawamura meets old foes and new enemies. He also becomes the Ace Pitcher of the team, which adds more pressure on his part.

ACT 2 STAGE 8. PRE SHOWDOWN BREATHER

This is the big and long one before Summer Tournament Finals match where injuries and problems were discussed and feelings were explored.

ACT 2 STAGE 9. CLIMAX

Final (Or most hyped and awaited rematch) Seido vs Inashiro in order to qualify for Summer Koshien Nationals.

**everything after this point will be prediction and just my opinion

STAGES 7-9 start again

Koshien Nationals Arc.

STAGE 10. CROSSING THE RETURN THRESHOLD

Miyuki/3rd years retirement/graduation. Sawamura and his batch will have to lead the team.

STAGE 11. THE REWARD

Sawamura gets to play with his team as ace pitcher.

STAGE 12 / STAGE 1. THE HERO IN HIS NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

Sawamura may become both ace and captain, same as his role back in his middle school team, albeit in a stronger school. Even if he won't be the next captain, as ace he will still be in a strong leadership position.

CONCLUSION

That's how Ace of Diamond is written in the style of A HERO'S JOURNEY.

Act 1 writing especially followed the trope quite rigidly.

Notes:

I still don't want Sawamura to be the next captain. I hope that does not happen. However if it does, it means the story will have gone back full circle. That would be quite poetic ngl.

Gotta applaud Terajima's pacing. Can you believe that the story only reached its lowest and most pivotal point at around episode 70 of the anime???? thank godt that after ep 63 I read spoilers about yips arc in tv tropes or else i would have dropped the series completely.

I had difficulty in classifying the events after the climax stage into hero's journey stages because technically sawamura has not gone "home" yet. Moreover the challenges and trials just kept on piling up after Fall Tournament.

In this whole story, Sawamura has experienced only one true "Belly of the Whale stage" during his YIPS arc. I don't think he really came to a low point in Act 2 other than his first official match as Ace Pitcher. I treated that in the same vein as the effects of Raichi's first homerun off Sawamura back in Act 1.

I realized that having stages 7-9 recur starting from Meiji Jingu to the current summer tournament is what made reading Act 2 quite frustrating for me. That's at least 5-6 arcs of endless roller coaster ride loops.

I consider Miyuki's departure to be the "CROSSING THE RETURN THRESHOLD" moment because playing with him was the major reason for Sawamura's decision to study and play in Tokyo. Something will change Sawamura when this eventually happens.

As Blue from OSP said, the Hero's Journey is just a general guide/framework to writing stories. It is flexible, writers don't even have to use it or all of its parts to make a good story. Terajima just seemed to have adopted A LOT of the hero's journey trope in his baseball series.

I wanted to add more pictures tbh but tumblr is a killjoy :(

This was a fun thought exercise. There were probably even some parts which I have used the tropes wrongly. Please feel free to dispute me.

I talked about Sawamura's mentors here (x).

[hansooyung]

thinking abt nekoma first years as third years....

captain INUOKA. he is best captain. the most amazing ever.

vice captain LEV bc shibayama is a libero and they can’t be c/vc.

think abt that. captain inuoka and vice captain lev. who allowed this to happen. i am not mad im estatic actually but also. chaos. chaos everywhere.

setter teshiro. he just wants to play volleyball yall

the first years are not prepared for how chaotic all the third years are. 

they thought they were. but. one day lev is late to practice and then all of a sudden he bursts through the doors at top speed holding a kitten in his arms like in the ova except he hits his head against the doorframe and lands flat on his ass.

shibayama, externally: alright, let’s start practice!

shibayama, internally: lev is so Tall. when will he stop. he’s still growing. alisa is not so Tall. is she still growing? i wonder which one of their parents is the tall one. do both of them have the tall genes? inuoka is Tall as well. will he keep growing. teshiro isn’t as Tall. what if he becomes taller than inuoka.

shibayama’s current concern: their first year libero surpassing him in height

they keep the gym during the winter bc while the basketball captain is politely arguing w inuoka, shibayama comes along and who can say no to him.

speaking of shibayama

imagine him in his third year like?? he’ll be fully out of his shell, bc this is his second year as nekoma’s official libero. 

he’s super confident and nice actually and all his kouhai love him

except all the underclassmen are nervous when lev shibayama and inuoka ask who their favorite senpai is bc how could u pick just one when they look at u like that

(teshiro is the one who breaks them up and tells everyone to go home already bc he too does not want to see the rest of them sad)

nekoma is on very good terms with karasuno!! inuoka was already friends with hinata but now he talks to yamaguchi a lot as well bc captain squad :)

however

lev is still trying to keep up the nekoma-nohebi rivalry and inuoka + teshiro are in on it too. shibayama is just trying to talk to his friend kuguri. (who is now nohebi’s ace and u can fight me on that).

there’s one first year on the team who looks and acts a lot like kai and everytime they talk to one of the third years they say “wow you’re a lot like kai” or “are you kai’s younger brother by any chance” or “you remind me of kai!”

the first year is on the verge of tears trying to figure out who kai is

but then the nekoma alumni come back to visit when nekoma goes to nationals and everyone understands

their second year ace (bc lev and inuoka are both middle blockers) starts talking to yamamoto. inuoka has to stage an intervention.

lev does not know any of the first or second years’ names. they have a bet running on how long he can refer to them by using honorifics or other polite ways before he caves and asks

shibayama tripped one time by accident but then inuoka and lev fell over to protect him from the embarrassment and soon all of nekoma was lying down on the ground. nekomata was amused. naoi was not.

more of a nekoma-centric headcanon but every christmas they hide their gifts for each other around the gym. there’s only so many places they could be but it’s fun seeing everyone running around and lev tripping over himself in his hurry