Obviously Kuroo. Kenma is prone to staying up late playing video games. Kuroo tries to guilt him out of it by staying up with Kenma, trying to make him feel bad for keeping Kuroo up, but then they both get caught up with the games, and end up sleeping on the train on their way to school.
Q: Who is the one who never forgets a mishap?
Both of them, but since Kuroo is always up to shenanigans with other people, he’s more prone to accidentally making a fool out of himself. Kenma usually isn’t the type to use it against him, but he has no qualms of doing so if Kuroo is pissing him off.
Q: Who has a playlist with both classical and death metal?
Kenma. They’re mostly soundtracks from games he likes. It nearly gave Kuroo a heart attack the one time he was messing with Kenma’s phone and accidently played one of the death metal ones.
Q: Who picks the music during road trips?
Both of them. Though, Kenma is usually ok with whatever Kuroo chooses and only strives to change and choose something he likes when Kuroo starts playing country songs.
Q: Who is the one who is more likely to get into trouble with a teacher?
Surprisingly, Kenma. It’s not entirely his fault, as his teacher is a ball of energy that rivals Hinata Shouyou. He wants Kenma to participate, but Kenma will have none of that, so Energy-sensei ends up giving Kenma a zero in participation. This pisses Kenma off quite a bit, but Kuroo goes to speak with Energy-sensei about Kenma’s ‘poor tragic backstory’, and snags enough points for Kenma to pass the class.
Hey!
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Kuroo
probably had a hand in getting the two of you past the shy, staring-into-the-middle-distance part, but once you get comfortable, I think
you guys would make a great team. Kenma is a very calm person, who is
really good at listening and observing, so he’ll make sure you can
finish whatever story you’re telling him. Even if he’s playing on the Vita at the same time
(which, ok, is kinda rude) he’ll ask you to elaborate the points you
rushed through, making it obvious that he was paying attention.
When it comes to cooperation, you guys have a weird sort of
one-upmanship that would no doubt amuse bystanders (Kuroo smirks but
decides not to comment). You’re both lazy, you see, but you’re
willing to get shit done for the benefit of others. So it’s like
‘What do you want to eat?’ ‘Oh don’t worry, I’ll make you
something.’ ‘No,
allow me.’ More often than not, you’ll be the one doing the work
though, since Kenma’s laziness game is very strong. Kenma is
impressed – and mildly frightened – by your ability to put
yourself in front of a crowd. When he’s on the court, he’s also
watched by dozens of people, sometimes even on tv, but it doesn’t
count because there’s a team, and he doesn’t have to say anything.
Public speaking is a whole different ball park in his eyes. He will come to watch
your debates, from somewhere in the back of the room and afterwards
he’ll congratulate you with that small little smile of his.
Date
idea
Kenma
is not one to go out, unless he really has to. Most of your dates
would consist of you guys hanging out at home, playing games,
reading, studying, watching movies.
The
one exception would be the arcade. There’s something magical about a
big, mostly dark space filled with blinking, blearing toys and nerds
minding their own business. His eyes light up a little when you agree
to go with him. He’ll get you guys a drink and a massive stack of
tokens. You’ll mostly play the two-player games: aiming guns at the screen together to shoot zombies, or playing that one where
you have to throw basketballs through a hoop. He’ll even try to play
some old school Street Fighter against you, but it won’t last long.
He’ll destroy you, don’t even pretend. You will also find,
possibly to your own confusion, that he’s amazing at Dance Dance Revolution. The way he
plays is that he puts both hands on the rails and keeps his upper body almost completely still, while his feet do a weird hop-step sequence at a speed
that can beat even the harder songs on Challenge mode. It’s highly
efficient and uses the least amount of energy necessary to still win.
When you play together, he’ll let you pick the song and
difficulty, but be warned that you’ll have to be really good to win.
When you actually do, he’ll be a strange mixture of impressed and
grumpy. It’s cute.
Do you realize how fucked Nekoma is for captaincy next year? Going by shirt numbers, they have 3 second-years. Kenma (5), Fukunaga (6) and Yamamoto (4). The first will absolutely refuse being captain. The second doesn’t talk. The third is YAMAMOTO.
They are basically going to have to put like Shibayama as vice-captain under Yamamoto because *someone* needs to be the responsible one and I’m willing to bet this is what happened to Fukurodani.
Have you ever considered just how understated Kozume Kenma is? In a show where everyone runs around shouting at things, he barely makes a noise. It makes him a bit harder to read than, say, Bokuto (it’s… it’s really not hard to read Bokuto, guys). But there’s still a few things we can discern about his personality.
Under a cut because of length. No real spoilers for people who are up to date with the anime.
He is, in his own way, super loyal
I’ve mentioned in Kuroo’s profile that he is incredibly loyal to his reclusive friend. They’re together a *lot*, with Kuroo usually forming a rock for Kenma to lean on. But it’s important to note that this loyalty goes both ways. It’s Kuroo that dragged Kenma into volleyball. Kenma doesn’t particularly like the sport, he whines about exerting himself on a daily basis, but he still plays, and he plays well. He stays with the team, in large part because he considers Nekoma his friends. Not just Kuroo, who got him to stay on the team when his senpais were being assholes, but all of the current members.
Nekoma’s focus on clean receives makes the job of setter easier, but Kenma is still very good at it, and he tells Hinata that they would have trouble without him. He’s right: Nekoma doesn’t appear to have a second setter, at least not among the named characters. For a team that makes it to the nationals on a regular basis, they don’t have much of a rotation.
They need him, and they’re his friends, so he stays.
Volleyball, the game
That isn’t to say he finds it unpleasant. Kenma isn’t a fan of exercise, but he does like games. And volleyball lets him use a lot of those gaming skills. The series actually goes to great lengths to point this out. In the Nekoma OVA, Kenma has to learn to sync with Lev like he’s a god damn Monster Hunter battle. But he also reads the opposing teams in this way. Kenma is basically a poker player. People underestimate him, while he observes until he understands them. It’s ingrained in Nekoma’s strategy and allows them to deal with things like Karasuno’s freak quick.
The ultimate boss
Speaking of Karasuno, the occasions where Kenma actually gets excited about matches are rare. And all those occasions seem to involve Hinata. The little ball of sunshine has an interesting effect. While Kuroo is a source of safety and some self esteem for Kenma, Hinata provides wonderment. Part of it is probably because Hinata *shouldn’t* be this good at volleyball. The redhead is small and plays a weird position for someone his stature, in the same way that Kenma gets told he shouldn’t play as a setter because he’s not very athletic. Hinata gives zero fucks about how things *should* be and just goes out there to be an awesome, tiny, ball of fire. His energy and general out-of-placeness serve as inspiration to so many characters, and Kenma is definitely one of them. In gaming terms, this makes Hinata an interesting boss battle. Kenma doesn’t show much outward emotion, but he does have little movements that point to this, like the ‘new game’ look that Kuroo can read, or his adorable toe wiggle in their first training camp. For Kenma, Hinata is exciting to play against.
The party member
He’s even a source of growth. Hinata quickly becomes Kenma’s friend, which is noted in the series as being super rare. Maybe it’s because they are similarly out of place in their little volleyball world, or because it is Hinata’s superpower to make friends with nearly anyone. Mister sunshine is completely unfazed by Kenma’s shy demeanour and won’t let it stop him from conversation.
This is important, because Kenma’s growth in Haikyuu!! lies mostly in him opening up to his surroundings. Lev has part in this (in the ova) when Kenma learns to work with someone so foreign, so opposite, to him, but Hinata’s influence is also huge. Kenma is comfortable with him, enough to talk freely. And that is a momentous occasion. So momentous, it literally brings Yaku to tears.
More magic is real au. I should probably find a better name for it. Note: my portrayal of Kuroo and Kenma is completely self indulgent. I regret nothing.
“Oi, I’m hungry.” A soft, almost bored sounding voice spoke up near Kuroo’s ear. The young man groaned and wedged his head between two pillows, trying to hold on to the last slivers of sleep. Morning light came dribbling into the apartment through lace curtains, dappling the piles of clothes strewn across the floor, the result of one too many late nights stumbling into bed. A light breeze from the open window blew goosebumps onto the exposed skin of his back, raising the ink depicting flames and snake scales across his shoulders. He shivered slightly. Something soft pushed into his side. “Oi, Kuro”, the voice said again. He whined. “What time is it?” “7:30. Don’t you have work today?” Shit. Kuroo turned around with a jerk and sat bolt upright, blinking into the morning light. “Kenma, why didn’t you tell me,” the man said, trying to kick off the tangle of sheets that held his legs in a vice grip.
Next to him sat a small cat, white with patches of orange and black. “I did,” it said in a slow voice, and it looked away with a movement that could only be described a shrug. The little calico jumped off the bed and padded towards the kitchen, making soft jingly noises as it did. Around Kenma’s neck was a red collar with an ID tag that Kuroo made him wear and a small pendant that he had picked out himself. Etched into it was a simple Latin phrase: ‘in aperto abscondere’.
Kuroo finally escaped from his bed and followed, yawning widely and scratching the hair on his lower belly, just above the waistband of his boxers. He rifled through one of the cupboards and lazily opened a can of cat food. The cat sat on the counter, watching him with increasing impatience. “Hey Kenma.” “Whaat,” the cat trilled, turning around in his spot once before sitting back down. “I’ll give it to you if you let me pet your tummy.” Kenma let out a long, low growling sound. “You know I don’t like that.” “Sure you do,” Kuroo said. He put down the bowl and started walking around the apartment, occasionally picking up pieces of clothing and sniffing them. “I don’t,” the cat said, in between bites. Kuroo had found some that smelled satisfactory and draped them over one shoulder. He was now rummaging through his underwear drawer. “You do,” he grinned, closing it. “Don’t,” muttered the cat, but Kuroo had already disappeared into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Not long after, the young man started a bad rendition of an old Ramones song featuring extra gurgling noises and Kenma sighed, licking his paw and wishing his hearing wasn’t quite so acute.
Several minutes later, Kuroo emerged from the bathroom, the chocolatey smell of his body wash wafting into the apartment. Kenma sat on the counter, observing his house mate as he rifled through piles of possessions, picking up his keys, wallet and phone. “Don’t forget this,” the cat nodded toward a silver necklace laying next to him, a small crystal in a simple setting. It was a protection charm Sawamura had made not too long ago. Kuroo blinked, hesitating a moment before putting it on. “Aww, are you worried about me, Kenma?” he said with a wide smile. “Not really,” the cat muttered, looking away towards the window. Kuroo chuckled and scratched him behind the ears, eliciting a soft, embarrassed purr from his friend.
The cat watched his house mate walk out of the apartment with a flourish and he stretched luxuriously before making his way through the open window. Them moving to the Old Quarter after living in a warehouse by the harbour was a godsend. There were no loud men or heavy machines here, the older buildings had a million hiding places and the balconies made for easy climbing. Kenma soon found his way onto one of the higher roofs. There was a spot of weeds here that was remarkably comfortable, with a good view of the surrounding streets and sun for most of the morning. He sniffed it and pawed at the ground, ready to settle down, when he heard a rushing sound that was entirely wrong.
In the east, there was something in the sky. It made a flapping movement like a bat, but it was much, much too big. Before Kenma could have a good look, however, he felt his instincts take over. His pupils dilated and all the hair on his body stood on end. He streaked across the roof and ducked into the pipe of an abandoned chimney. He sat there shivering, tail bushy, ears flat against his head, while the giant shadow passed, blotting out the sun for what seemed like hours.
Unrealistic expectations 