𝙉𝙚𝙠𝙤𝙢𝙖, 𝙎𝙚𝙞𝙟𝙤𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙩

Weez and I were talking about Seijoh and Seijoh's motto and in their words "rule the court" inspires a sense of a nation fighting for each other with loyalty, dedication and camaraderie.

Yet their motto can also be used to describe commanding, but in a less harsh, cold manner. Rule the Court (or "command the court", as it can also be translated) can describe the brutal conquering of every enemy that stands in the way of Aoba Johsai's kingdom, but it can also be

softer, sweeter, inspiring a sense of working together to improve and help each other. To uplift each other. For instance, 制す doesn’t just mean rule; it can also mean "to rein in and help reckless, wayward, unruly people control their emotions". Does that remind you of someone?

They really are a single unit, moving together in tandem and operating with complete and utter harmony, destroying their enemies while simultaneously supporting each other. Oikawa is a king, Iwaizumi is a knight and the rest of Seijoh are their soldiers, willing to die for their

team, their nation, their family. They're ruling the court, together, but ruling successfully requires unwavering trust, love, and faith in one another, and this is what they have.

It's also why I think the similarities between Seijoh, Nekoma and their philosophies should not be overlooked. You know the line from the Nekoma match? "Yes we are rivals but we are also...to the other...a teacher”? That is certainly true of the relationship between Nekoma and

Karasuno, but the same can be said for Seijoh and Karasuno. Matsukawa taught Hinata how to foil the twins' quick. Kunimi taught him the valuable lesson of how to "take it easy", which he both implemented himself and also in turn taught to Hyakuzawa. Oikawa taught Hinata that it's

important to not only watch what your opponent is doing but also consider how they are watching and seeing you (a lesson Hinata put to good use during the Jackals match). These two beautiful teams, the two biggest rivals that Karasuno had, were also Karasuno's greatest teachers.

And the word "connect"? You don't just see it used in conjunction with Nekoma; you see it in the Brazil arc too, as you watch Seijoh's king and Karasuno's Greatest Decoy learn to work together, connect with one another and reconnect to volleyball.

Neither the rulers nor the cats rely heavily on flashy, stand out players like Ushijima or Atsumu, but that’s the whole point. They aren't about garishness and ostentation. (No, not even the kingdom of Aoba Johsai, not even Oikawa, is truly about that.) They are about connection.

Their strength as teams lies in their collective nature, not their individualism. They operate as seamless, cohesive units. Takeda said that Seijoh’s gears fit together with astonishing perfection, and so do Nekoma’s.

Both teams have the consistency that Kita admires, the versatility and adaptability that the twins strive for, and a connective power that rivals all else. They think and act as One and that is precisely what makes them both so special.

Both of these teams rely on teamwork as their central philosophy. If Oikawa can't set, Makki steps in without a single moment of hesitation. If Watari can't receive, you best believe Iwaizumi will be there. If Oikawa is backed into a corner, he doesn't have to say a word.

And Lev and Shibayama? Kenma and Kuroo? Yaku, Inuoka, Kai, Yamamoto? If any one of them needs help, another is standing by ready to assist, no hesitation, no question. This is what synergy looks like. This is what harmony looks like. This is what ruling together looks like.

But it’s not just about literally connecting each play on the court. These two teams, these wonderful, incredible, inspiring teams, connect others to them and themselves to each other. They teach, they lead by example, they forge relationships, on and off the court.

Oikawa helps connect Hinata back to his love for vb and vice versa. Kuroo helps find people who otherwise wouldn’t have an opportunity to play vb and he connects them to it. Iwaizumi sees someone struggling, facing hardship for the very first time, and he connects him to things

that will help him overcome those hurdles. Nekoma and Seijoh connect to each other as team units when they’re on the court playing, but they also connect everyone in this series to each other and reconnect everyone to the things that matter to them.

These teams are not just Karasuno's rivals. From them we can learn what it means to work together, to connect, to fight by each other's side with unwavering loyalty, to love unconditionally. They are the ties that bind. They are the glue that holds everything, everyone together.