︴┆𝐊𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐲𝐚𝐦𝐚 ︴࿐

Always sullen, arrogant, and undeniably short-tempered, Kageyama initially seemed like the typical authoritarian perfectionist, concerned only with winning and completely disregarding the opinions and well-being of his teammates. His habit of complaining about their performance and shouting orders led the other Kitagawa Daiichi players to nickname him the "King of the Court," a constant reminder of the oppressive and self-centered attitude he displayed throughout his high school volleyball career.

However, to most of his classmates and acquaintances, he is far more sensitive and childish than he appears; he simply doesn't know how to control his frustration and, therefore, expresses his thoughts and emotions inappropriately. After everyone at Kitagawa Daiichi grew tired of him and abandoned him, Kageyama felt deeply remorseful and developed an intense fear of being despised and distrusted, but he refused to speak openly about his problem until Tsukishima confronted him about it.

Despite his inability to socialize properly, he sincerely wants to do his best and is extremely passionate and dedicated to volleyball, to the point of becoming overly excited with almost every successful play he makes with Hinata. As a setter, Kageyama instantly initiates a rivalry with other setters upon learning of their position and tends to focus much of his effort during matches on trying to prove that his skills surpass those of the opposing setter. This was clearly seen on occasions when he played against Oikawa and during the match against Shiratorizawa, when he and Shirabu faced off to the point of staring intently at each other throughout the match. At the same time, he has a certain admiration for some setters, especially Akaashi from Fukurodani Academy, as he became incredibly jealous when Tsukishima admitted to frequently practicing with him during training camps.

Since joining Karasuno, he has learned to respect his older teammates more and to be more accepting of those with different skills or viewpoints. He has rediscovered the importance of teamwork and mutual trust in the sport he loves. Furthermore, this has helped him regain his confidence as a setter. He has also realized that he is not the one who decides the game and has learned to relinquish control to Hinata and the other hitters.

During high school, he still gets extremely angry when he's called by his nickname, "King of the Court," but by the final arc, his perspective on that nickname has changed enormously.

Kageyama's height and piercing gaze are his most striking physical features and what attracts many of his female classmates. He is slender yet muscular. He often exudes an intimidating aura, accentuated by his almost permanent frown. His black hair is short, with bangs that fall just above his dark blue eyes. His usual attire consists of either the Karasuno school uniform or his training gear.

PINPOINT PRECISION: Kageyama's most outstanding and praised skill is his ability to accurately determine the ball's trajectory and deliver it to the exact spot. Combined with his ability to place the ball from any angle at incredible speeds, this makes his passes virtually impossible for most opponents to predict and counter. His pinpoint accuracy is an essential component of Kageyama and Hinata's famous "Freak-Quick" passes. He can calculate Hinata's exact spiking point to send the ball directly to him at the precise moment. Furthermore, Kageyama utilizes his precision and speed in ball handling for other purposes, such as straight spikes and short passes. Like Atsumu, Kageyama's passes are also easy to hit and give attackers the impression of having improved their game.

KING'S THROW:
Hinata and Kageyama, season 2, episode 6
His best pass is known as the "King's Pass," which sends the ball straight and powerfully past the spiker's point of impact. Initially, his teammates thought this type of pass was impossible to spike at high speed. After Karasuno's summer training camp, Kageyama learned to execute a pass that goes close to the spiker's point of impact while adding backspin. This way, the brutal force he used to apply was dissipated, allowing the spiker to manipulate the ball as desired.

Jump serve:
Kageyama possesses a powerful jump serve that his opponents distrust. Initially, he hasn't yet mastered proper aim, but he later demonstrates the ability to manipulate the power he puts into his serve to surprise his opponents. By the time Karasuno reaches the nationals, his jump serve has become a reliable weapon. He's seen scoring numerous aces and even adding side spin to evade receivers.

DUMPING ASSEMBLY:
Kageyama occasionally uses short passes and is rarely blocked. He is adept at timing his short passes perfectly, often surprising both opponents and teammates. He can also fake them to set up a quick, short-range attack. Kageyama can also transform his short pass into a powerful flick, causing the ball to slip out of the blocker's hand and land on the outside edge of the court.

TWO-SET ATTACK:
Following summer training camp, Kageyama and Sugawara implement a tactic where they swap positions on the court, with Sugawara becoming the setter and Kageyama the attacker. This new strategy, which they haven't used frequently, proves highly effective when employed, as most opposing players don't expect Kageyama to attack and are therefore unable to block him in time.

INDIVIDUAL TIME DIFFERENCE ATTACK: Kageyama has demonstrated the ability to coordinate his hitters to execute an Individual Time Difference Attack. He uses this attack with Tsukishima, who delays his jump to confuse the blockers, during Karasuno's match against Shiratorizawa.

FEINT LOOK:
A technique he learned by watching Kenma Kozume, Kageyama will look to one side of the court to deceive opposing blockers into thinking he's going to set the ball in one direction before actually setting it in the opposite direction. Because this is a move he uses very rarely, it's highly effective when he does.

RECEIVING: Due to his position as setter, Kageyama doesn't usually participate in receptions. Despite this, he demonstrates incredible defensive skills and has no major problems receiving when necessary, even using the back of his forearms to catch Ushijima's crosscourt spike.

BLOCKADE:
As one of the tallest and strongest players on the team, Kageyama is crucial to the blocking. Thanks to his advanced technique and having studied Oikawa during middle school, Kageyama knows how to position his arms when blocking to maximize his chances of stopping a spike. Like other players, Kageyama also demonstrates the ability to anticipate his opponents' plays and position himself strategically to block them.

STRAIGHT TIP:
Although Kageyama doesn't often spike due to his role as a setter, he has proven capable of executing direct attacks with great accuracy. Because he's a setter and doesn't spike frequently, many teams are surprised when he participates in an attack and often fail to mark him in time.
Physical and Mental Stamina: Kageyama is quite strong both physically and mentally. His physical stamina is almost comparable to Hinata's, as they are often seen competing to see who can run faster or last longer during training. On one occasion, they accidentally ran the distance between Karasuno and Shiratorizawa, which is about an hour away, and easily kept up with Ushijima throughout his run. Like Hinata, Kageyama can easily outlast many of his teammates during training or matches without tiring, unless he has to play longer matches than usual. Similarly, his mental stamina is strong, but when he plays or is under pressure for longer than usual, his mental state can become clouded, and he begins to struggle to maintain his physical pace. This was clearly seen during the match against Shiratorizawa, when he began to tire both physically and mentally, which affected his performance, and he was eventually forced to be substituted to rest.

Even shortly after birth, Kageyama showed a great love for volleyball, affectionately clinging to his older sister's ball and refusing to let his grandfather take it away. Around the age of four, Kageyama began playing volleyball with his grandfather, Kazuyo, and his older sister, Miwa. He quickly discovered his passion for the sport and became a setter, as it was the position that involved the most contact with the ball. During his time at Akiyama Elementary School, Kageyama was soon recognized as a prodigy.

Once he entered Kitagawa Daiichi High School, it became clear that his potential would be far greater than that of the other players on his team, including the third-year setter, Tōru Oikawa. However, Kageyama's exceptional skills and lack of consideration for others led him to develop a demanding attitude and an inability to cooperate with his teammates, resulting in him being called the "King of the Court." Since the true meaning of this nickname was only known to the players at Kitagawa Daiichi, the others simply assumed it referred to Kageyama's incredible talent. Furthermore, he often practiced more than necessary, something his teammates, Kunimi and Kindaichi, noticed and used to judge him, sometimes trying to prevent him from practicing.

By his third year of junior high, Kageyama's attitude had already damaged his relationships with his teammates, to the point that Kindaichi and Kunimi considered asking the coach to bench him. Despite the setter's lack of teamwork, Kitagawa Daiichi still managed to be one of the favorites to win the Junior High School Athletics Championship. It was at this tournament that he met and began his long rivalry with Shōyō Hinata.

It is said that Kitagawa Daiichi advanced in the tournament but lost in the final; it is hinted that Kageyama may have been one of the main reasons for the defeat, as his picture appeared in an article about the match. Sometime during junior high competitions in his third year, Kageyama threw a pass to his teammates in the middle of a game, but found no one behind it. His teammates refused to continue hitting his passes, showing their clear desire to kick him off the team. Kageyama was then relegated to the bench and finished his last game at Kitagawa Daiichi in disgrace. Shortly afterward, Kageyama failed to gain admission to Shiratorizawa, and his grandfather passed away, which was shown to deeply affect him and his sister, Miwa.

Kageyama has a highly competitive yet friendly relationship with Hinata. Rivals since meeting at the junior high volleyball tournament, Kageyama initially didn't take Hinata seriously, but came to see his natural athletic abilities during the tournament and the beginning of their first year at Karasuno. He constantly points out how his teammate hasn't made the most of his talent and often berates him for making mistakes, referring to him as "(Bokē, not to be confused with bokeh)/Idiot." Due to their competitiveness, the two have been keeping track of who has more wins/losses over the other since they first met. While they tend to argue with each other, they rarely resort to physical violence and mostly just yell at one another; Kageyama mocks Hinata's lack of volleyball skills, and Hinata points out Kageyama's lack of sociability and humor. After joining Karasuno, Kageyama initially refused to work with Hinata because he felt Hinata would be of no use due to his lack of skill. However, he eventually saw that Hinata wouldn't give up and was soon inspired to accept him and start setting the ball for him. Since becoming teammates on the volleyball team, Kageyama admits to being envious of Hinata's speed and reflexes, but he doesn't seem to understand how Hinata can place all his trust in his sets, which allowed them to execute the original version of their super-fast attack. Seeing that Hinata would be a natural and effective decoy, Kageyama was the one who suggested Hinata become a decoy in addition to being a middle blocker, as he thought his speed, reflexes, and jumping ability would be useful to Karasuno. As teammates, Kageyama and Hinata work extremely well together, but they still don't hold back from teasing each other on the court.

However, at one point, Kageyama and Hinata had a disagreement when the middle blocker requested a change to their signature quick attack, realizing it wasn't working as effectively against taller, faster opponents. Initially, Kageyama refused to change anything, believing the attack was perfect as it was, but he soon understood the benefit it could bring to everyone and, in the process, improved his setting skills. From then on, the relationship between Kageyama and Hinata returned to normal, making them an even more formidable duo for opposing teams.

Kageyama is known as the "King of the Court" and a volleyball genius for his incredible technique and court vision. As a top-level setter, Kageyama has the potential to unify the team with his overwhelming talent, but initially struggled to communicate effectively with his teammates. Over time, he has learned to use his skills to bring out the best in his hitters. He now pays attention to his hitters' physical condition and adjusts his set accordingly, rather than forcing them to match it every time.

In addition to his astonishing accuracy and technical skills as a setter, Kageyama is a well-rounded and skillful player with a remarkable command of both the fundamentals and the intricacies of volleyball. He is capable of playing many other positions, including wing spiker,[35] but chooses to be a setter because of his affinity for being the team's command center. Kageyama also has a knack for improvised strategy and is the first to suggest using Hinata's prominent presence on the court as an effective decoy. Due to all these factors, Kageyama is one of the players selected to participate in the Japan Junior Intensive Training Camp.