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Haikyuu!! ending explained: How the manga delivered the emotional ending fans have been waiting for

Our boy Hinata is heading out into the world stage.

Image credit: Crunchyroll

There are few sports anime that are as uplifting and wholesome as Haikyu!!, so we’re obviously excited to see how the anime wraps up the story of Hinata and the rest of the Karasuno High School boys’ volleyball team. However, manga readers have been privy to that knowledge for a long time and they know that the final chapters deliver an emotional farewell to the team.

We’ll be discussing some pretty major spoilers for the Haikyu!! manga, particularly parts that haven’t been adapted in the anime yet. Be warned.

What happens at the end of the Haikyu!! manga?

 

Haikyuu featured image
Image credit: Production I.G.

In the Haikyu!! anime, we’ve seen the Karasuno High School team getting ready for Nationals, with hopes of taking home the crown thanks to the unusual teamwork between Hinata and Kageyama on and off the court. However, they fall just short of the title and end up losing, but that isn’t the end of their journey.

What follows is a five-year time skip that shows how the players have grown after high school. Hinata heads to Brazil to train for beach volleyball, developing his physical and mental skills along the way. He makes new friends and gains a better understanding of volleyball, returning to Japan as a far more formidable player.

Hinata then joins the MSBY Black Jackals professional volleyball team, reuniting with several former teammates. In his debut match, Hinata found himself facing his old friend and rival Kageyama, who now plays for the Schweiden Adlers. There are some great moments in this match, which mainly serves to showcase how Hinata’s time in Brazil has further developed his already formidable volleyball skills. In the end, the Black Jackals emerge victorious and Hinata is cemented as a force to be reckoned with at the professional level.

What follows next is yet another time skip, this time with Hinata representing Team Japan at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Several former friends and rivals join Hinata and Kageyama on the Olympic volleyball team, including Ushijima, Miya Atsumu, Yaku, and Bokuto.

What happens to the rest of the cast of Haikyu!! after the time skip?

Haikyuu!! anime screenshot
Image credit: Production I.G

What about the rest of the Karasuno High School team? While most don’t pursue their volleyball careers to the Olympic level, we do get updates from many of Hinata and Kageyama’s former teammates. Most are seen cheering on their old classmates from home as they step out onto the international stage.

What are the other members of the Karasuno High School volleyball team up to at the end of the Haikyu!! manga? Here is a quick breakdown:

  • Daichi Sawamura – Joined the Miyagi Prefecture Police Force for the Community Safety Division
  • Koshi Sugawara – Became an elementary school teacher
  • Asahi Azumane – Became a fashion designer and is traveling the world with Yu Nishinoya
  • Yu Nishinoya – Travelling the world with Asashi Azumane
  • Ryunosuke Tanaka – Working as a personal trainer and married to Kiyoko Shimizu
  • Chikara Ennoshita – Became a physical therapist
  • Hisashi Kinoshita – Working for a train company
  • Kazuhito Narita – Working for a realty firm
  • Kei Tsukishima – Works for the Sendai City Museum but continues to play professional volleyball
  • Tadashi Yamaguchi – Works for an electronics company

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Trent Cannon

Trent Cannon: Trent is a freelance writer who has been covering anime, video games, and pop culture for a decade. (He/Him)

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