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These last three years, I've been the team's ace - thanks to all you guys. But in a few days, I'm gonna have to say goodbye to you all. So, it's about dang time I became the team's ace - period.
Kōtarō Bokuto to Fukurōdani[1]

Kōtarō Bokuto (Japanese: 木兎 (ぼくと) 光太郎 (こうたろう) Bokuto Kōtarō) was a third-year student at Fukurōdani Academy. He played on the volleyball team as the ace and captain. He was acknowledged as one of the top five aces in the country, barely missing the top three.

After high school, he became an outside hitter for the MSBY Black Jackals, a Division 1 team in Japan's V-League. He is also a member of the Japan National Volleyball Team.

Appearance[]

Bokuto has round, golden-colored eyes and spiky white-grey hair with black streaks; certain sections of it are done up as if to vaguely conform to that of an animal, strongly amplifying the uncanny resemblance he bears to a horned owl. He has a solid and muscular build. However, his physical appearance in the anime is considerably thinner, less athletic, and muscular compared to the manga version. This is mostly corrected in the later seasons.

Unlike most volleyball players, Bokuto wears knee pads that go up to his thighs, instead of simply ending above his knee.

Post-timeskip, Bokuto is shown to have gained a more muscular build and his hair is noticeably shorter than when in high school.

Personality[]

He has a playful, friendly, bombastic, and child-like personality and is described by his team as having "mood swings". Because of this, he is at times described as being 'simple minded'. His personality is very compatible that he gets along with many people similar to Hinata. Bokuto can at times be oblivious of other people's discomfort, seen with his interactions with Tsukishima. He also shows kind, just traits, leaning towards defensive during the 3-on-3 match during the summer training camp where Bokuto told Kuroo, Tsukishima, and Lev off for ganging up on Hinata when he was attempting to score. Bokuto often makes jokes about everything and acting rather dramatically about his plays, wanting attention or affirmation from his teammates.

Despite his general silly behavior, there are moments when Bokuto exhibits something akin to a wise form of intelligence, his words inspiring Tsukishima in Karasuno's game against Shiratorizawa, and helping to keep Yachi from over-worrying during the match against Nekoma. He has also been shown to have become a mentor figure toward Hinata and has given the younger teen numerous pieces of advice and showed him new tricks.

As the ace of a powerhouse school, Bokuto takes great pride in his position and is both admired and feared by his own team and opponents for his impressive skill and morale-boosting demeanor. However, Bokuto is well known to suffer mood swings that can affect his performance during games and can sometimes take a while or need something grand in order to return to peak form. When he makes a comeback from a slump, he clearly shows his pride as the ace and believes he is the "strongest". Bokuto eventually realizes that his weakness is not a trait that an ace should have and was able to rid himself of this fault which would lead him to start referring to himself as an 'ordinary' ace.

Bokuto also seems to never waver when dealing with "difficult" people like Atsumu post-timeskip who immediately threatened Bokuto to never complain if he misses one of his sets, and instead of feeling afraid or down, just proceeded to confidently assure him that he is now a regular ace. He shows to be quite proud of himself for no longer suffering from his emotional instability and for being a player that others can rely on.

Background[]

Bokuto is shown to have been interested and participating in playing volleyball since his early childhood.[2] He is revealed to have been just as energetic during middle school which caused many of his teammates to at times take shortcuts and leave him alone during runs and not looking forward to being paired with him for drills.

When Bokuto was a first-year at Fukurōdani Academy, he had already gained a reputation for seeming to possess skills and power beyond his age but also having suffered from his mood swings at the same time. During his second-year, he would meet Akaashi when he joined the volleyball team. Having learned that Akaashi is a setter, Bokuto quickly jumped at the chance to ask Akaashi to spiking practice with him where he would praise Akaashi's sets as the best he's ever been given.

He is stated to be one of the top five aces in the country, only barely missing being in the top three. He said he only got hooked onto volleyball recently when he finally learned to use straight shots when his cross shots were starting to become predictable to opponents.

Plot[]

Tokyo Expedition Arc[]

Episode 7- Bokuto, Akaashi, Kuroo and Tsukishima

Bokuto with Kuroo, Tsukishima and Akaashi.

Bokuto has been training with his team when Hinata and Kageyama suddenly arrive. As he watches Karasuno play against Shinzen, he carefully watches the two first-years and is fairly impressed with their abilities and believes the year before them will be very interesting. Sometime later, Bokuto's doing extra practice with Akaashi and Kuroo when the latter suddenly invites Tsukishima to join them.[3] At first, Tsukishima declines the offer and tries to leave, but Bokuto quickly stops him, insisting that he needs the first-year to block for him because no one else will. Kuroo adds on to this by pointing out Tsukishima's position as a middle blocker to goad the first-year into training with them, which Tsukishima quickly falls for.

As soon as practice begins, Bokuto hits one spike after another, each one getting through Tsukishima easily. Bokuto celebrates excitedly, but Akaashi simply points out that Bokuto had won against only one blocker. Kuroo decides to join, adding that a second blocker will be more of a challenge. When Kuroo was able to block Bokuto, the ace confesses to Tsukishima that he felt his blocks are too weak. Annoyed, Tsukishima points out their height differences in response and irks the third-year. When Kuroo playfully warns Tsukishima that he might be outdone by Hinata unless he started to get more serious, Bokuto noticed Tsukishima's hesitance before he manages to leave the practice when the Nekoma team arrive. Bokuto teases Kuroo for his blunder until he hears Kuroo explain that he hadn't meant to upset the middle blocker and his theory of thinking Tsukishima felt inferior to Hinata.

This doesn't seem to deter Bokuto from approaching Tsukishima the next day to ask him to join in practice again but is turned down.[4] However, that same night, Tsukishima suddenly approaches Bokuto and Kuroo in the third gym, where they're practicing. Tsukishima asks them why they're training so much when he states that volleyball is only a club. Annoyed at his statement toward the sport, Bokuto asks him back if he enjoys playing volleyball. When Tsukishima answers that he doesn't find volleyball fun, Bokuto questions if it's because the first-year sucks at the sport, annoying him. Bokuto explains that, even though he's a lot better at volleyball than Tsukishima is and has been to nationals several times, he has only recently begun to find volleyball enjoyable. He explains that he used to get blocked all the time but after changing his spiking technique, he became nearly invincible and felt a sense of elation and his passion for volleyball reignite. Bokuto remarks that if "that moment" ever came to Tsukishima, he will really get hooked on volleyball.

The next night, Bokuto's practicing with Tsukishima and Kuroo again when he spots Hinata by the door of the gym. Hinata asks if he can join at the same time Lev appears and makes the same request. With more people present, Kuroo suggests a 3-on-3. Although, the teams turn out to be extremely unbalanced because the shortest people (Bokuto, Akaashi, and Hinata) end up on one team (Owls) while the other team (Cats) consists of the tallest. While Akaashi's skeptical about this, Bokuto and Hinata don't mind at all. The game soon starts, and the Cats quickly take the lead over the Owls. However, the match is interrupted shortly by Yukie and Suzumeda who announce that if the players don't wrap up their game soon, they will have to forgo dinner. Naturally, Bokuto and the others end their game and hurry to get dinner with the promise of the match being finished later.

The next day, the 3-on-3 is continued.[5] During a rally, Bokuto faces off against a double block and bounces the ball off Lev's hand so he can redo his spike. After he scores, Hinata asks him excitedly what he did and Bokuto explains the move was a rebound. As the game progresses, the Cats gain the upper hand. The three blockers gang up on Hinata and Bokuto calls them out on it. However, Hinata takes advantage of his situation and performs a block-out, though it's accidental. Happily, Bokuto congratulates the first-year and announces that he will teach him a special finishing move.

Cog S2E10

Bokuto becomes dejected.

On the last day of the training camp, Fukurōdani plays their final game against Karasuno. Using Bokuto's technique, Hinata pulls a successful feint and scores a point for his team. When Bokuto reacts in a surprised manner, Akaashi reminds Bokuto that he was the one who taught Hinata how to feint, earning the annoyance of the Fukurōdani players. Bokuto remains optimistic though, stating that he won't let Karasuno get any more points.

Bokuto dominates the match from there on, easily spiking through Karasuno's defense. However, he soon begins to make mistakes and, after giving Karasuno two points, he freezes. His mood swing kicks in, and he sadly tells Akaashi to not toss to him anymore. To his surprise, Akaashi agrees and simply tells the ace to take the time to cool down.

Even with the captain out of the picture, Fukurōdani doesn't fall apart. Karasuno does, however, lower its guard and stops paying so much attention to Bokuto who's beginning to get restless waiting for the ball. In the final move, Akaashi tosses to Bokuto who spikes past Tsukishima and wins the game for his team.[6] Afterward, his teammates cheer him on, showering him with compliments and fully bringing him out of his depression. Having been reassured of his strength as the ace, Bokuto celebrates happily.

Bokuto1

Bokuto talking to Hinata.

The teams celebrate the last day of training camp with a barbeque. Bokuto and Kuroo seem to have a meat-picking contest and Bokuto receives great admiration from Hinata for being one of the nation's top five aces. The admiration ceases when Kuroo points out that one of the top three aces, Ushijima, is in Miyagi, Bokuto not liking Kuroo telling Hinata, Lev, and Tsukishima about the top three aces. Despite this, Bokuto does encourage Tsukishima not to be fearful about possibly facing Ushijima as he now has had lots of experience playing against Bokuto and coming to understand how to handle powerful spikes. Bokuto is present with many others when Karasuno leaves the camp to head home.

Spring High Preliminary Arc[]

When Tsukishima comes to practice with Bokuto, the latter gets excited and shows his eagerness to practice. Despite having invited Tsukishima, Bokuto gets shocked when the blocker accepts to play, which is something Akaashi points out. After Bokuto gets past Lev's block, Kuroo would scold his junior blocker. After the last practice of theirs, Bokuto wants to make sure that Tsukishima will defeat Ushijima and spurs nonsense about him defeating Ushijima if Tsukishima manages to do so, which confuses both Tsukishima and Akaashi.

Fukurōdani vs. Nekoma[]

Bokuto OVA 4-7

Bokuto is right away excited about facing Nekoma. The normal tactic that Akaashi and Yukie use to get Bokuto excited for a match was not used because they noticed how focused the ace seems to be. Because of the good mood Bokuto was in, Akaashi did not hesitate to send him the set and Bokuto was able to hit the spike against Nekoma's block with such force that it was sent into the stands and was caught by Akane. The play witnessed by surprised fans and other teams alike. At his next chance, Bokuto attempts a cross shot but Yaku was in place to receive and allowed Nekoma to counter. Bokuto admits that he became more fired up at seeing Yaku's receives.

For several plays, Bokuto is able to score numerous points. However, Kenma begins to lay out a plan to stop Bokuto. The plan begins when he and Kuroo switched blocking positions in order to stop Bokuto's line shot. After this, the Nekoma players positioned themselves so well to block and receive that Bokuto sent a spike out-of-bounds, and this begins his change in mood.

Bokuto OVA 4-4

"How do I hit a cross shot?"

Eventually, Bokuto's demeanor changes enough that Akaashi tries to help him see that he is focusing too much on Nekoma's ground defense and Bokuto admits that he has suddenly forgotten how to hit a cross shot. This state doesn't last long as Akaashi is able to put in a plan of his own to get Bokuto back into shape by using Nekoma's rotation to his advantage. With Kuroo being out and Lev at the net, Akaashi is able to trick Lev into blocking early and sets to Bokuto. With Akaashi giving Bokuto this chance and being faced with a single blocker, the ace is able to spike the ball with such force that it ricochets off Yaku's arms and goes into the crowd before Fukunaga can save it.

With Bokuto back in shape, he and the Fukurōdani team continue to come at Nekoma with everything they have, although Nekoma does the same with their receives. Bokuto gets Fukurōdani to match point when he does a cross shot so sharp that it lands in front of the ten-foot line. Yamamoto attempts to receive Bokuto's next cross shot but is unable to and Fukurōdani wins the match against Nekoma.

Fukurōdani vs. Itachiyama[]

Fukurōdani loses to Itachiyama during the Tokyo Qualifier Tournament. Bokuto is upset at losing to Itachiyama and seemingly Sakusa in particular. He promises that he will never forget what took place and tries to vow revenge until Akaashi criticizes his missed serves and sends the ace into a fit of embarrassment.[7]

Tokyo Nationals Arc[]

Clearly not distressed, unlike the other teams at the gymnasium where nationals will be held, Bokuto loudly calls Hinata when spotting him in the crowd. Although Hinata is nervous, Bokuto proudly slaps his back to show that he is glad his "number one disciple" made it to nationals. Despite being friendly for that instant, he then warns Hinata that he would get no mercy if they were to go up against each other.

Fukurōdani vs. Eiwa[]

Group s4-e12-4

During the game against Eiwa High School, Bokuto is shown being in a dejected mood early in the match due to not playing in the main arena with a larger crowd watching. Akaashi deduces this is Bokuto's weakness #6, wanting to show off. Due to Bokuto being in a down mood, the rest of the team continue to play like normal until Akaashi starts to bring Bokuto out of his state by saying that all eyes are already on the ace because they are the only game taking place in the sub-arena and even points out Hinata in the crowd having come to watch his mentor. This seems to bring Bokuto out of his depression and he goes on to land powerful spikes that help bring the team to victory and advance to the next round.

Karasuno vs Inarizaki[]

Bokuto and Akaashi watch part of Karasuno's game against Inarizaki. After the arrival of Saeko and her taiko drum team, Bokuto praises Hinata's role on the court, stating that, while Hinata is small, he has a large presence.

Akaashi and Bokuto s4-e16-3

Celebrating Tanaka's cross shot.

During the match, when Tanaka is blocked by Suna, Bokuto admits he is aware of his own weakness of sending balls out-of-bounds or directly into the net when he starts getting frustrated and doesn't notice Akaashi's surprised expression at the ace admitting he is aware he does this.[8] He begins showing empathy and relating to Tanaka's situation near the end of the first set when Tanaka struggles against the blocks and getting his line shot to work but shows great excitement when Tanaka is able to make a cross court shot work and win the set for Karasuno.

Fukurōdani Academy vs Morikawa High[]

Bokuto makes the winning shot for Fukurōdani to advance to the next round. After the game, he notices that Karasuno was able to defeat Inarizaki. Surprised at how he just noticed, Konoha tells him about the noise the crowd made on Court B and Bokuto admits that he couldn't notice anything outside his own match. He is noted by Akaashi to now be playing better than he ever has before despite the casualties the previous day.

Bokuto and Akaashi s4-e25-1

Later that night, Akaashi finds Bokuto standing outside their hotel. Akaashi states that he's surprised Bokuto isn't repeatedly watching the news coverage of their match. Bokuto answers that he had watched it but only twenty times since he was not shown very much. Bokuto then reveals to Akaashi that he plans to continue playing volleyball after he graduates and how this last tournament doesn't feel different from the others he's been in. Bokuto then confesses that he wishes he could have been able to play with his current team for a while longer. When Akaashi reminds him of all of their games sure to come, Bokuto boldly declares that Fukurōdani will win every single one. Akaashi then promptly gets the ace back indoors with the warning that he should not be out in the cold January air while in light clothing or else he'll get sick.

Fukurōdani Academy vs. Matsuyama Nishi Biz High[]

Bokuto is able to win the game for Fukurōdani when he lands a straight shot past the blockers. Afterwards, he embraces the Nekoma third-years and would be highly complimented by Hinata for his straight shots. After spotting Kiryū, Bokuto goes over to greet him but leaves many confused by the interaction when Kiryū admits that he does not know Bokuto personally.

Karasuno vs Nekoma[]

Bokuto is present to watch part of the long-awaited match between Karasuno and Nekoma with Akaashi. Bokuto shows great excitement when Tsukishima was able to block Fukunaga when using the serve and block technique with Yamaguchi. He was so impressed with the play that he shouts "That's our Tsukki!", though Akaashi would remind him that Tsukishima is not theirs.[9] When Karasuno lost the first set because of a communication error, Bokuto is seen laughing hysterically.

After the first play of the second set, Bokuto and Akaashi spot Yachi standing near the scoreboard. They listen to her concern about this being the first time that Karasuno has lost the first set in all of their matches since the start of the Interhigh Prelims with the exception of their game against Shiratorizawa Academy. When Yachi voices her fear of Karasuno possibly losing the game, Bokuto displays rare wisdom by telling her that it won't do her any good to worry about what comes later and should instead watch what is currently happening and see how strong the members of Karasuno have become, although he did have to confirm with Akaashi that he used the word 'exacerbated' correctly.[10]

Near the end of the set when Asahi puts too much power into his spike and it lands out from Yaku having manipulated things to his advantage, Bokuto warns Yachi that Yaku is a player who is capable of stopping a spiker without even touching the ball.[11]

Fukurōdani vs Mujinazaka High[]

As the match against Mujinazaka is about to begin, Bokuto recalls when Kuroo revealed to Tsukishima that Bokuto is one of the top five aces in the nation. At this memory, Bokuto loudly proclaims that he will become the top ace, confusing numerous people with his statement.

Early in the game, Bokuto attempts to receive one of Kiryū's spikes but had gone too far in his approach. Realizing that he would not be able to make a receive over or underhanded, Bokuto makes the receive with his chest and would compliment himself for it. When Akaashi was subbed out of the game, Bokuto assures the team that the setter will be fine and return better than ever. For majority of the rest of the match, Bokuto is able to get in several powerful spikes but occasionally use feint shots and soft serves to throw off the Mujinazaka players. When Fukurōdani eventually wins the match, Bokuto is thanked by Kiryū for being the one he got to play his last match against in high school.

Bokuto would later comfort Akaashi when the setter was still feeling upset about his performance during the earlier part of the game. With the rest of the team listening, Bokuto is able to inspire Akaashi and the others when he is says that the team will be able to play even better during their next game. When Akaashi tries to argue that they may not be able to save and score every time, Bokuto replies: "It's not impossible, it's just hard."

Karasuno vs Kamomedai[]

Bokuto and Akaashi are able to watch the match during the second set when Hinata's spike was deflected off a triple block.[12] Although he is impressed at how Karasuno is managing to keep playing at a steady pace, he clearly sees how exhausted they are since their match against Nekoma was lasted quite a while. He encourages Asahi to score as many points as Karasuno needs but unfortunately the Karasuno ace mistakenly sent his serve into the net that narrowly clips over. When Tsukishima was able to dodge Hoshiumi's block-out attempt, Bokuto happily cheers the accomplishment.

Bokuto later is seen reacting when Hinata was revealed to be running a high fever. Once he is subbed out of the game, Bokuto notices that Karasuno has been finding cracks and barely managing to sneak points past Kamomedai's tall wall throughout the whole match. However, now that they've ripped a hole and "caught a glimpse of the scenery beyond it," that has given them the mental image they needed to see themselves punching through the wall. At Karasuno's eventual defeat, Bokuto accompanies Kuroo in praising Karasuno for playing so well. Immediately after this, Bokuto hears how Itachiyama has been defeated and, with Sakusa no longer playing, none of the top three aces are left in the tournament.

Final Arc[]

Bokuto is currently playing on the Division 1 team the MSBY Black Jackals and is teammates with Atsumu, Sakusa, and Hinata. Upon the bus arriving at the Sendai gym, Bokuto eagerly awakes from his nap and hurries off. Entering the gym, Bokuto and Hinata quickly catch the smell of something delicious and notice the scent coming from Osamu's onigiri stand. Later when several of the Jackals and Adlers members have gathered together, Bokuto mistakes their conversation being of food and mentions wanting to get some of Osamu's onigiri before challenging Ushijima to an arm-wrestling contest.

When the game is about to start and the starting members are being introduced, Bokuto takes the chance to do his own introduction by doing flips and cartwheels onto the court. Although he succeeds in gaining attention and making numerous people laugh, he is quickly scolded by Meian. This does deter Bokuto as he and Hinata are soon spotted excitedly preparing for the game to start. After Hinata was able to receive Kageyama's first serve and hear that he wished he had been able to stay on both feet, Bokuto expresses his surprise that Hinata was able to get the ball at all and compliment him for having been able to do so.

When Bokuto is up to serve, he begins clapping and manages to get most of the crowd to join in. Despite delivering a powerful serve, Hoshiumi was able to get the ball up. He soon comforts Hinata when his jump serve just missed landing in. Bokuto is soon able to get revenge on Hoshiumi when he makes the receive of his serve. However, he and Hinata would both miss trying to receive a spike by Romero. Like Hinata and Atsumu, Bokuto becomes envious of Kageyama when he received praise from Romero for a set he made. When the Jackals are leading 23-19, Romero makes a spike directly where Bokuto is. Because of his position and the speed of the spike, Bokuto is forced to make a chest receive.[13] He soon is able to win the first set for the Jackals by spiking a straight shot from Hinata's set.

In the middle of the second set, Bokuto accidentally hyper focuses and confuses himself on the current rally that causes him to hesitate and be late to try to block Hirugami. In the third set, Bokuto is once more able to get the Jackals in the lead with a sharp cross spike that Romero is unable to dig. After a minor flashback of Bokuto and Atsumu first becoming teammates and Bokuto stating that he is now just a simple ace, Bokuto attempts his famous straight shot when faced against triple block. Although the shot landed on the line, it was called as an out since the ball hit the antenna. He is quickly able to make up for this mistake when he hits a cross shot that lands in the vanguard, his fans proudly calling it the Bokuto Beam.[14]

As Bokuto prepares for another serve, another flashback shows that Fukurōdani had advanced all the way to the final round of the Spring Tournament in 2013. They lost in the final set when Bokuto was blocked by Ichibayashi's blockers. At hearing Konoha taking the blame for the loss by saying that his set wasn't good enough, Bokuto insists the blame is no one's but his own, stating that it was his job as the ace to make each spike count. Konoha soon states that, even though Bokuto gave them plenty of trouble, he would continue to support his friend in the future. Back in the game, Hinata sends Bokuto a final hit, but the ball was slightly short. While remembering the Ways of the Ace shirt that listed the rules of what every ace should follow, Bokuto makes a surprising turn in mid-air and does a backwards spike that gets past the Adlers blockers.

With the Jackals leading by three points, Bokuto is spotted attempting a block-out but is shocked when Hirugami and Romero get the better of him by lowering their arms as he spikes, resulting in his spike landing out. Not even upset at his spike going out, Bokuto compliments Hirugami on his skills. Near the end of the third set, Bokuto attempts to block Ushijima but was only able to get a deflection. He later greatly celebrates Hinata's accomplishment of receiving Ushijima's spike. When the Jackals eventually reach set and match point in the fourth set, Bokuto is able to win the match by getting a spike past Kageyama.

After the match, Bokuto is interviewed by Akaashi and Udai. Even though Akaashi praises Bokuto for how well he played during the game, Bokuto tries to get the former setter to see that he is an ordinary ace now, confusing Udai in the process. Afterwards, he is briefly seen reuniting with Kuroo and Daichi.

In 2021, Bokuto is part of the Japan Men's National Volleyball Team and is seen excitedly awaiting the match against Argentina.[15]

Statistics[]

High School Statistics
Power
 
5/5
Jumping
 
4/5
Stamina
 
5/5
Game Sense
 
3/5
Technique
 
3/5
Speed
 
4/5

Post-Timeskip Statistics
Power
 
5/5
Jumping
 
4/5
Stamina
 
5/5
Game Sense
 
3/5
Technique
 
5/5
Speed
 
4/5

Bokuto is one of the top 5 aces in the nation of Japan, with it being noted that, when he gets serious, he is as strong as a top 3 ace. He is proficient in all areas of volleyball, from offense to defense and setting. Bokuto is often praised for his insane athletic ability, whenever he practiced, he would always go above and beyond, staying hours later than others after practice ended, and working harder during scheduled practices. This annoyed his teammates in both middle school and high school to the point they would actively avoid him and come up with excuses not to workout as no one could keep up with his stamina or skill. Kageyama has even commented that Bokuto has the ability to instantly analyze and assess a situation and has the physical ability to immediate adapt.

Bokuto has incredible height and strength as one would expect, he is seen often blasting past one and two person blocks with strength alone. However, Bokuto's most impressive ability is his technique and accuracy as he is often seen hitting razor sharp line and cut shots hitting through the smallest gap or hitting in between blockers with enough force to make it through. Even if one can get under the spike the strength behind the hit makes it hard to dig, some players being seen to fall over from the sheer power. Bokuto also is very good at wipes and block outs, he is shown scoring many on Nekoma despite their incredible defense. Bokuto also has the skill to do rebounds in order to reposition the ball for a better set up and stealthily use feint shots when opponents least expect it.

Jumping Reach:

  • Pre-Timeskip: 339 cm.
  • Post-Timeskip: 348 cm.

Skills[]

Post-Timeskip Skills Parameter
Serve
 
9/10
Serve Reception
 
9/10
Dig
 
8/10
Setting
 
6/10
Spike
 
10/10
Block
 
8/10
  • Spiking: Bokuto used to specialize in the cross spike, but it kept getting blocked. Out of frustration, he decided to practice his straight spike instead and eventually improved it to a level where it couldn't even be touched by his opponents. The straight shot became so accurate it often hit the edge line itself. He also kept improving his cut shot till it reached the same level as his straight, being able to hit the inside attack line on the court. This meant Bokuto would always have a weapon and way to score be it straight or cut shot, or any of his other offensive abilities. He is also talented at performing wipes and has a good ball sense to pick which hit will lead to a easy score. His spiking power truly shows during the Mujinazaka match, where he helps his team catch up from a 6-point difference.
  • Serving: Bokuto uses a jump serve with lots of power and accuracy behind it. He is often seen scoring service aces and disrupting defense; he is also one of the best servers on Fukurōdani and is often recalled for giving Karasuno a hard time in their games. After making it to the professional league, his serve has only improved with much more accuracy than before, especially due to his mentality improving.
  • Receiving: Bokuto is a talented receiver able to receive serves from powerful players such as Kiryū and Hoshiumi. He is able to make both under and over hand receives with little trouble. If he is in a position where he has moved too far forward and is unable to get his hands up in time to receive, Bokuto has been shown to occasionally make a receive with his chest.
  • Feints:
    Group s2-e8-2
    Another of Bokuto's most well-known attacks is the feint shot. While he does not use this method much, he has demonstrated that he is able to perform it at a moment's notice and has a high success rate when using it. As he is an ace that uses power, he is able to catch his opponents off-guard when he uses the feint. Bokuto would teach Hinata how to use the feint shot during the summer training camp.
  • Rebound: A technique first displayed by the ace during the summer training camp when playing in a 3-on-3 match. During the match, Bokuto performs the rebound when he purposely hits the ball against Lev's hand in order to bring the ball back to his side and have another chance to attack. He is shown to be highly successful with this technique, but Akaashi made the claim that Bokuto actually gets blocked quite a bit.

Relationships[]

Fukurōdani Academy[]

  • Keiji Akaashi:
    Bokuto and Akaashi s4-e13-1
    Despite Akaashi being a year younger, the setter appears to be Bokuto's closest friend and the two can normally be seen around each other during games, practice, and outside of volleyball activities. Because of this, Akaashi is the one who knows Bokuto best and how to handle the ace when he gets into one of his slumps. While in a game, Bokuto and Akaashi make a powerful duo although Bokuto tends to seek praise from Akaashi whenever he carries out a good attack but usually receives minor feedback or something he just wants to hear. Much like when Akaashi looks out for him, Bokuto does the same for the setter if he ever appears to be down or unsure of himself. Even after high school, the two continue to remain in close contact.
  • Fukurōdani Academy:
    TheBabyAndHisParents
    While Bokuto normally tries to present himself as the confident "big brother" of the team, he is actually more known for being the "baby of the family". Before growing out of his mood swings, Bokuto tended to rely on the team for support when he was off his game. However, when the team themselves seem to be down in spirits, Bokuto would do his best to cheer them up. Despite this, the team tends to run off when Bokuto requests help for spiking practice since he is well known for stretching the practices for as long as possible. Bokuto also appears to be close to Yukie, whom he tends to borrow notes from but tends to forget to return them to her.

Karasuno High[]

  • Kei Tsukishima:
    Bokuto and Tsukishima s2-e7-1
    During the training camp, Bokuto became somewhat of an inspiring figure to Tsukishima when he helped the first-year middle blocker realize that he can have a better connection to volleyball when he has his special volleyball moment. During the practices, Bokuto developed a friendly relationship with Tsukishima and would begin addressing him as Tsukki, much to Tsukishima's displeasure. As Tsukishima's development continued, Bokuto continued to support the middle blocker and notices how much he's grown in skill.
  • Shōyō Hinata:
    Bokuto1
    During the summer training camp, Bokuto became acquainted with Hinata after the latter joined their free practice. Bokuto would teach Hinata a variety of different attacks and skills that the middle blocker would eagerly accept and use in many of his matches. Bokuto would happily accept all of the praise and admiration Hinata would give him for being one of the top five aces in the nation, but he also praises and supports Hinata for many things he does as well, such as performing the block-out during their 3-on-3 practices. Akaashi and Bokuto both claim Hinata is a disciple of Bokuto, and Akaashi knew Hinata's presence would help revive the ace during the match against Eiwa High School. In the Final Arc, the two are teammates on the MSBY Black Jackals and are shown to be as close as ever.

Other Schools[]

  • Tetsurō Kuroo:
    BokutoKurooAkaashi
    Kuroo and Bokuto seem to be close friends, as they are often seen pestering other people together and seem to know each other quite well in terms of being both friends and opponents. They have also been observed to have similar reactions to certain events, such as when Tsukishima asked them a question. Bokuto usually does extra practices with Akaashi and Kuroo, despite the latter being from another team. While the two are generally on friendly terms, they tend to have small contests against each other, though most of them are trivial; during the BBQ, they fought to see who could grab the most amounts of meat. When it comes to matches, they become full-on rivals. However, during matches, they also complement each other. For example, when Kuroo said: "As usual, he fires up the entire gymnasium", or Bokuto says: "Damn the demon cats and their godlike receives".
  • Kiyoomi Sakusa: Bokuto feels a sense of rivalry toward Sakusa due to the latter's status as one of the top three aces in the country, but it's unknown what Sakusa thinks of him in return. It's hinted that Itachiyama may have defeated Fukurōdani many times in the past with Sakusa on the team, so Bokuto intends on getting revenge. Sakusa either ignores Bokuto's shouts or doesn't hear him swear vengeance. Sakusa and Bokuto eventually become teammates on MSBY Black Jackals.

MSBY Black Jackals[]

  • MSBY Black Jackals: Bokuto gets along very well with the members of the Black Jackals team. Like he had with his previous team, Bokuto heavily supports and cheers for his teammates. While his energetic nature at times causes him to be scolded by Meian, the ace has great respect for his captain.

Quotes[]

  • (To Tsukishima) "What will happen in the future and whether or not you can win the next match... for once, none of that matters. Crushing the guys in front of you, and the amazing feeling of having shown 120% of your strength, are everything."[16][17]
  • (To Tsukishima) "It's a matter of whether 'that moment' exists for you or not... If you experience that moment, it'll really get you hooked on volleyball."[16][17]
  • (To Hinata) "Spiking isn't just about slamming the ball to the floor. If you keep your cool, you'll be able to see what action to take."[18][19]
  • (To Akaashi) "Listen, you aren't thinking this is some kind of 'we can't afford to lose it game', are you? Ooh, bull's eye! But y'know? When have we ever played a game we could afford to lose?"[20]
  • (To Akaashi) "Think about what's fun, not what's easy."[2]
  • (To Akaashi) "Nothing is impossible, just really improbable!"[21]
  • (Various) "Hey, hey, hey!"

Trivia[]

  • Pre-timeskip Concern: "... How do you spell 'concern'?"
  • Post-timeskip Concern: He's not really sure about taxes and stuff.
  • Star Sign: Virgo.
  • Worst Subject: Mathematics.
  • According to the Haikyuu store in Japan, Bokuto has smaller hands than Akaashi because the latter has long fingers.
  • His birthday is three days before the Autumnal equinox within the Japanese calendar.
  • In the 10th Anniversary Chronicle book, it is revealed that Bokuto attended college and graduated, though Furudate has no idea why.
  • According to Akaashi, Bokuto has at least 37 weaknesses.
    • 6.) He loves to show off.[22]
    • 37.) If he becomes too fixated on one thing, he'll completely forget how to do anything else.[23]
  • In his second-year, at the Spring Tournament, he bought an unpopular t-shirt that reads: "The Wisdom of the Ace: First, the figure of the ace is one that inspires his allies. Second, he should shatter any wall. Third, he should hit any ball to his utmost ability." Unsurprisingly, he and Hinata find it cool.
  • Akaashi states in the manga and English sub that Bokuto just missed being one of the top three aces while in the English dub, he says that Bokuto was once one of the top three but fell out for unknown reasons.
    • In the manga, Suzumeda was overheard by Tsukishima to claim the reason Bokuto is not in the top three is because of his simplemindedness and mood swings, although this could possibly be her own assumptions.
  • In a flashback Tsukishima has of the training camp, Kuroo and Bokuto were shown to have switched hairstyles.[24]
  • Whenever he's in his 'emo mode', his hair deflates.
  • He starred as himself in one of Ennoshita's roadshows called "The Day Armageddon Arrives on Earth".
  • Despite being the captain, Bokuto wears #4 rather than the expected #1. This is most likely because Fukurōdani is the type of school where #4 is traditionally worn by the team's ace. His jersey in the manga and in the anime does have the mark that also signifies him as the team captain.
  • He and Kotarō Hitaki share the same first name but not the same kanji and their pronunciation.
  • Bokuto did not rank in the first popularity poll. In Haikyuu's second popularity poll, he ranked 18th with 3,084 votes.[25]
  • Nomenclature:
    • Kōtarō (光太郎) – 光 is a character meaning light while 太郎 (tarō) is a very common masculine name. The character 太 in common usage means thick or big. The last character 郎 simply means son.
    • Bokuto (木兎) – Horned Owl
      • The kanji literally mean tree and rabbit, but the combination is one of the ways to write horned owl, a species of owl.

References[]

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