Easily one of the most beloved characters from Haikyuu.
Nishinoya Yu, was introduced as one of the most talented players of not only the protagonist team but the entire world of Haikyuu.
My personal relation to Nishinoya comes a long way, as his foot save in episode 18 is what really hooked me into this show that is turning out to be my favorite work of fiction ever.
But outside of myself, I think we can all agree that Nishinoya is a character that embodies flashiness and showed what it means to be talented at the game.
He is someone that not only Karasuno relies on but is also a character that we, as the audience, expect to pull off clutch saves as we are rooting for our protagonist team.
He is a superstar in the court and one that is dedicated to the game.
At the time.
In the last arc of the story, to everyone’s surprise, it was revealed that Nishinoya chose to quit volleyball after high school and decided to travel the world.
The “guardian diety” that went toe to toe with Haikyuu’s main “monster” Ushijima Wakatoshi, decided that volleyball is not something that he want to do anymore and dropped it.
Why? Let me answer that question with a question in return.
Are we supposed to do something for a living just because we are good at it?
Of course having an aptitude makes it easier for us to succeed, but should this blessing be something that is limiting us?
For me, one of Haikyuu’s biggest takeaways is summed up in this quote said by Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi; “being good is being free”.
A quote that can be interpreted in a lot of different ways, but let’s just focus on two.
In competitive sports, being “good” is being able to perform in a way that allows you to win, which in turn grants you freedom in your sporting career and the way you play the game.
In life, being “good” means being happy or simply being well-off. A situation or place that comes from having the freedom of being and doing what you want.
In the last arc of Haikyuu, our main protagonist, Hinata, was shown to have achieved athletic freedom in volleyball as he is able to perform any kind of play the game demands and this freedom comes from years of dedication in refining his craft.
Parallel to that, they showed Nishinoya living a life outside of volleyball, the sport that he has crazy aptitude in, living the happiest life fishing marlins in Italy.
What they both have in common is a smile on their faces. Hinata and Nishinoya are both doing good doing two very different things.
Just because you are good at something doesn’t mean you need to do it for life, especially if you don’t like it.
In turn, to do something that you like you will have to commit to it, understand that hardships are just a part of loving what you do.
“Being good is being free” so don’t let your talents and situation define what you should do, but work towards what you want to do.
Subtly-Bearded Guy 