Akane Yamamoto (Japanese:
Appearance
She is an average size for her age and has curly, light-colored hair that is tied in pigtails and clipped back with a cat clip. Her eyes are dark colored and she wears a sailor girl's uniform from her school. With a striking resemblance to her brother, she has thick, dark eyebrows and long lashes.
Personality
Akane is energetic and extremely enthusiastic like her brother. She goes all out on her cheering squad for Nekoma High and is very knowledgeable in volleyball.
Background
She is Yamamoto's younger sister. Akane often leads Nekoma's cheering squad with a megaphone, much to her brother's embarrassment.
Plot
Spring High Preliminary Arc
Nekoma High makes it to the semifinals against Fukurōdani High[1]. Leading the cheering squad in the bleachers, Akane makes her presence known to her brother through her loud cheers. Alisa stands next to her and calls Lev by his pet name, intriguing Akane. She asks the older girl about the meaning and gushes over how cute it is.
The game soon starts and Akane's slightly unnerved by Sarukui's vicious jump serve. Bokuto then spikes a ball all the way up to the bleachers, where it's caught by a shocked Akane. Nekoma retaliates by having Yaku perfectly receive Bokuto's attack. When Alisa assumes that the ball was sent to Yaku, Akane corrects her and remarks that Yaku most likely shifted his position in anticipation of the ball's trajectory.
Throughout the match, Akane cheers on Nekoma while explaining the many tactics to Alisa. When Fukurōdani gains four points ahead of Nekoma, Alisa worries that they'll lose, but Akane explains that Nekoma would always start their games slow and should be processing their attacks now.
Soon, Lev's switched in. Akane excitedly thinks to herself that Lev's the tallest and probably strongest player Nekoma has ever had. However, Lev completely misses the toss, much to Alisa's embarrassment. Akane reassures her that things like that happen all the time[2]. Lev soon makes up for his mistakes with successful spikes, earning Akane's admiration, though that ends when he messes up his serve.
Fukurōdani and Nekoma are evenly keeping up with each other. Akane notes that though Fukurōdani is easily keeping up with them, they've at least managed to stop Bokuto. However, Bokuto quickly makes a comeback and scores consecutively. Akane and Alisa cheer on Nekoma but in the end, Fukurōdani wins.
Akane and Alisa stay for Nekoma's next match against Nohebi Academy, its last chance for nationals[3]. As the players line up, Akane motivates the squad to cheer as loud as it can. Alisa asks Akane about what kind of team Nohebi is and Akane replies that she doesn't know, but it's similar to Nekoma, except it would try to induce the opposing team's self-destruction.
Nohebi soon seemingly overwhelms Nekoma. As spectators behind Akane and Alisa comment disappointingly on the match, the two look ahead awkwardly. However, after the referee judged in favor of Nohebi and a ball gets spiked into Yamamoto's face, Akane starts noticing that the match feels wrong.
Yaku then gets injured and is switched out[4] for Shibayama, a less experienced libero. Akane worries about Nekoma because she believes Yaku is Nekoma's guardian, a figure as important as the ace. Not to mention, this is Yaku's last year to play with Nekoma. Sensing the younger's distress, Alisa recalls a match where the ace injured himself and had to be switched out and despite that, his team still dominated the rest of nationals. Comforted, Akane wipes her tears and continue cheering on Nekoma.
In the end, Nekoma wins 2-0. Happily, Alisa and Akane hug each other and begin to cry[5].
Statistics
| High School Statistics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 1/5 | ||
| Jumping | 3/5 | ||
| Stamina | 2/5 | ||
| Game Sense | 3/5 | ||
| Technique | 2/5 | ||
| Speed | 4/5 | ||
She is very enthusiastic and knowledgeable about volleyball, but it's unknown if she actually plays the sport. Akane is good at analyzing matches and can discriminate between the different types of attacks or serves. She's also well acquainted with the techniques of local teams like Nekoma, Fukurōdani, and Nohebi and made a research book on their styles.
Relationships
Taketora Yamamoto
Akane has a good relationship with her older brother and she leads Nekoma's cheering squad, though her loud cheers sometimes embarrass him. She thinks of him as Nekoma's ace and believes him to be a strong player. Yamamoto also tells her a lot about his team and each individual players.
Alisa Haiba
It's unknown how long they've known each other, but they seem to be very close despite the age gap. Alisa and Akane stood next to each other during Nekoma's semifinals and match against Nohebi in the spring high preliminaries. Akane would explain volleyball concepts to Alisa while the latter comforted her when she needed it. At one point in the match, Alisa followed Akane in cheering on Yamamoto by calling him "oni-chan".
Nekoma High
Akane is acquainted with most members of the team and admires them for their plays. At the same time, the players are encouraged by Akane's cheers and are grateful to her for leading their cheering squad. Akane seems to know the team's techniques and playing style well, showing that she may attend a lot of its matches or simply heard a lot from her brother.
Trivia
- Favorite Food: Soboro Gohan (Minced meat or fish with soy sauce served over rice)
- Current Concern: "I keep getting carried away when talking about volleyball with my friends."
- Star sign: Pisces
Quotes
- "Because we have the luxury of such good receives, the "brain" can work to its peak potential." (To Alisa, Chapter 192)
- "Nekoma has no glaring holes in their defense. Or, rather, it's more like they're filling up any holes and constantly readjusting their defense as they go along." (To Alisa, Chapter 194)