one of the most fascinating things to me about haikyuu is the fact that tsukishima had already lost his faith in volleyball before hinata even knew what it was.

and, that both instances were (unwittingly) caused by the same person.

allow me to elaborate (w/ spoilers) +

hinata and tsukishima serve as obvious foils for one another, and the way in which their otherwise adverse backstories connect is crucial because of their unique connections with the little giant.

hinata's entire arc consists him realizing that 'the little giant' is merely a symbol. it's a title he cannot and should not claim because ultimately he is destined for carving his own path as the greatest decoy

alternatively, tsukishima's arc follows his growth from that jaded, pessimistic mindset of his youth to believing in himself and wanting to actually continue playing volleyball despite his upsetting past

essentially, their arcs are necessary for one another as they are literal opposites. hinata, to a certain extent, must humble himself to become the greatest decoy while tsukishima must have pride in himself to be on the same level as the monsters

now, when we factor in the little giant, we can see this whole title is a paradoxical oxymoron that cannot truly exist. it is simply an ideal, an unachievable goal even for people like hoshiumi or takeru who want to become little giants. even udai himself isn't one.

no, the little giant is merely an unattainable figure; one that dictates and narrates haikyuu in its ability to encourage and discourage the seekers. that's why we see both hinata and tsukishima have such a visceral reaction when they see udai before the kamomedai match

the fact alone that tsukishima recognized udai is proof of his effect even all of these years later.

to hinata, the little giant is his motivation and goal. to tsukishima, the little giant is the reason behind his greatest disappointment.

of course, udai is unaware of his effect on these players but i think it's a necessary connection between the three of them.

by paralleling their experiences during the kamomedai match, we can clearly see how deeply this moved both tsukishima and hinata.

now, udai is not to blame for tsukishima's lack of interest in volleyball; that is akiteru's fault after all, even if he has made up for it all these years later.

but at the end of the day, tsukishima had the potential to become a monster, but the little giant made him human.

hinata, on the other hand, needed the illusion in order to become a monster. he's always been one, but key factors like the jersey number help to secure his confidence in his status. he's always been a monster, the little giant just draws it out of him.

i dont really have any final thoughts or conclusions, im just fascinated with the extent that hinata and tsukishima continue to revolve around each other, like the sun and moon should.