Lev Haiba (Japanese: 灰羽 リエーフ,Haiba Riēfu) was a first-year student at Nekoma High. He was one of the middle blockers and the self-declared ace of the team.
Lev is very tall with exceptionally long arms and legs. He has neatly parted light grey hair and catlike slanted green eyes framed with thin eyebrows. His half-Russian heritage gives him tall height, exceptional limb length and physical ability. He is noted to be quite attractive by several Nekoma female students.[3]
Post-timeskip, he mostly appears the same but now keeps his bangs swept away from his face.
Personality
He is shown to be quite childish and cheerful, as displayed by unintentionally making fun of and pointing out Hinata and Yaku's height, along with the contrast they hold to him and other players. Lev's appearance, as well as his piercing eyes, causes people to believe he is much more intimidating and serious than he actually is. Though he can be extremely blunt, often offending others without realizing, he never seems to mean any real harm and adopts a playful attitude towards most things.
He is also shown to be enthusiastic about spiking and blocks as he gets excited about it very easily and can be competitive with people he is interested in. He can be quite confident, nearing haughty, as displayed when looking down at Nohebi when he managed to smash down their receive.[4]
Background
Lev is a half-Japanese, half-Russian first-year. He was born and raised in Japan and consequently cannot speak Russian. He is first introduced in chapter 78 of the Haikyū!! manga and the first OVA episode, shown at Jump Festa 2014. He attends Nekoma High and is a middle blocker and self-proclaimed ace on the Nekoma High Boys' Volleyball Team.
Plot
Tokyo Expedition Arc
Karasuno meets Lev during the first training camp held at Nekoma High.[5] It is during a match against Ubugawa High that Lev demonstrates his whip-like spike, astounding the members of Karasuno with it, his long limbs, and his impressive height. He was later stated by Kenma to have not been present at the practice match between Nekoma and Karasuno due to his lack of experience since he only began playing volleyball in high school and was still working on mastering the basics, further stating that Lev was even worse than Hinata when it came to serves and receives.[1]
Lev and Hinata run into each other in the bathroom entrance. Hinata is intimidated by Lev's height and heritage but is surprised to find that Lev cannot speak Russian. Lev unintentionally teases Hinata on his height, and Hinata becomes offended. Lev then compliments on Hinata's jump but says that he can jump higher, prompting Hinata to jump up and hit his head on the top of the door frame. When Hinata complimented Lev's spike that was able to get past Ubugawa's blockers with ease, Lev makes the declaration that he was able to do this because he is Nekoma's ace. When Hinata points out that the ace is normally played by a wing spiker, Lev believes that the players position is not important and that the ace is actually the one who scores the most points. They soon part ways after Lev promises to be the first to block his quick attack.
During the practice match between Nekoma and Karasuno, Lev misses blocking Hinata's quick attack on the first try but is successful in blocking the second one. Lev continues to demonstrate his blocking when he is able to get a one-touch on Asahi's spike after remembering to use read blocking when Hinata nearly lures him into blocking early. He lands a counter spike that puts Nekoma in the lead and further frustrates Karasuno.
Lev is present to say goodbye to Hinata and Karasuno when they depart. During the second training camp at Shinzen High, Lev eagerly greets Hinata and questions if the Karasuno middle blocker had gotten any taller. When Hinata claims that it wasn't possible to grow much in the two weeks since they last saw one another, Lev reveals that he grew two millimeters in that time. Midway through the camp, Lev eventually went to the third gym and asked to take part in their practices. When questioned by Kuroo of why he was not currently practicing his receives with Yaku, Lev states that Yaku allowed him to leave early since he was doing really well on his receives although it was revealed that he ran away when Yaku was preoccupied.
Lev is able to play with the others for a brief 3-on-3 until Fukurōdani's managers informed them that they would need to end their practice in order to make it to the cafeteria before it closed. The next day, the 3-on-3 continues. Lev, Hinata, and Tsukishima receive various tips on blocking from Kuroo. Eventually, Lev joins Kuroo and Tsukishima in trying to triple block Hinata but find the tables turned on them when Hinata was able to hit the ball against Lev's hand and send it out-of-bounds.
When the matches ended, Lev joins in the barbeque. He is seen eagerly eating and hanging around his teammates or with several other players. He listens as Kuroo describes the top three high school aces in the nation and finds himself dumbfounded when Hinata recounts Kenma's claims that Lev was worse than Hinata at serves and receives. When Karasuno eventually left the camp, Lev is among many others in seeing the team off.
Before the qualifiers begin, Nekoma joins the practice with Fukurōdani and Karasuno for one final camp. At one point, Tsukishima notices how Kuroo blocks Lev. Shortly after, Lev gets alarmed when Kuroo scolds him about keeping his arms too far apart which allowed a spike to be pushed through.
After Karasuno had defeated Aoba Johsai, Lev is present when Kenma receives a text message from Hinata and announces to the Nekoma team that Karasuno had made it to the finals. Lev is shown expressing excitement upon hearing this.[6]
During a flashback of the training camp Tsukishima has during the match against Shiratorizawa, Lev had asked Kuroo if he thought he would be able to block Ushijima[7]. When Kuroo answers that he might be able to block only a certain amount of Ushijima's spikes, Lev doesn't seem to believe his captain. He listens as Kuroo explains that it's not always possible to block a spiker but that scoring a point during a critical time can make a huge difference.
Tokyo Prefectural Qualifiers
Nekoma vs Fukurōdani
After coming back from the bathroom, Lev notices Kuroo and Suguru getting into an argument. Attempting to intimidate Nohebi's captain, Lev confronts him, confident because of his height. Despite this, Suguru is not impressed. When in the court, Lev and Inuoka find themselves impressed at Fukurōdani's cheering squad. During the match, Lev becomes startled as he bites for a decoy trick from Fukurōdani. Sometime later, Lev notices that Kuroo was able to block Bokuto more effectively during 3-on-3 matchups. Despite Shibayama explaining that he's making their teammates have more chances to dig, Lev is still worried.
When being rotated in, Lev makes a comment about Nekoma's ace entering the court. Despite this, Yaku had noticed Lev's average performance that day and makes a comment on how Alisa was attracting more attention than him.
When being rotated, he misses several blocks. Shortly after, Lev fails to hit Kenma's set and the ball falls back on his head. After this, Nekoma calls for a timeout wherein Coach Nekomata places Kenma in charge of guiding Lev. Angry at his junior, Kenma scolds Lev for all the mistakes he made but Lev can't keep up with everything Kenma is telling him; however, Lev gets truly offended when Kenma tells him that he's still nowhere as good as Hinata.
When the game continues, Lev is given a set while reminding himself of Kenma's warning not to lower his elbows. He manages to hit the ball at an incredible height but Washio managed to get a one-touch on it that Konoha sends back to Nekoma's side and scores. Konoha takes the chance to mock Lev and Kenma on not being able to truly work together. Lev eventually lands a powerful spike when he remembers how Kenma said Hinata was a better player than him.
Just after being taunted because of his lack of experience and failing to win against Washio in a joust, Lev becomes determined to win the next rally. In fact, he does when he spikes past Onaga, which even makes Washio slightly wary of Lev as he does this. Despite his success that time, Lev's serve would go out-of-bounds after this. When Fukurōdani reaches set point, Lev sends his serve directly into the net and Fukurōdani wins the first set.
After Nekoma's loss, Lev was visibly upset about his performance and Kuroo visits with Lev to see how he was dealing with it. Admitting that he did not do as much as he wanted, Lev vows to roof any hitters coming his way and to score many more points. While Kuroo is happy to hear this from Lev, he tries to help the first-year understand what it means to connect as part of a team and how the feeling of when it happens can feel like the best experience.
Nekoma vs Nohebi
Upset by his performance during the match against Fukurōdani, Lev is determined to redeem himself during the match against Nohebi Academy. His
first attempt at blocking Suguru fails when the Nohebi captain pulled off a feint right away. With Yamamoto, Lev becomes determined to get Nekoma to Nationals. As the game continues, Lev is taunted by the Nohebi players, being referred to as a sieve when it comes to blocking. Later, he manages to block Suguru, but Nohebi gets the point when the referee points out Lev touched the net during the block. When a timeout is called, Lev expresses his frustration about Suguru and his behavior. This frustration continues when he is back on the court and tries to block Suguru again but blocks the wrong way. Yaku was able to tell what would happen and saved the ball. After Yamamoto scores, Yaku quickly yells at Lev for waving his arms in random directions when blocking as it makes it hard for him to receive. Lev quickly snaps back that it wouldn't matter how he blocks because Yaku is so good he would be able to save any ball, flattering Yaku in the process.
Later on, Lev is able to pull off a direct spike that Nohebi had desperately tried to keep going. He relishes in the feeling of having smashed the
ball down after all their attempts, but his celebration ends when he sees that Yaku has been injured after having jumped the barriers to save the ball. Shibayama is placed in the game in Yaku's place, and Lev tries to assure him that there is nothing to worry about as long as he is there, but Kenma ridicules that statement. The game continues and Suguru eventually targets Lev for not being as fierce in the back row as he is at the net but Kuroo is able to stop Suguru with a block. After Kenma does a setter dump, Sakishima attempts the same in the next rally but he is stunned when Lev was able to stop him right away. Along with Yamamoto, Lev begins charging toward the net and appears to be getting the set, but he reveals to have just been covering for Kuroo to approach and be the one to get the set. With Kuroo and Kenma successfully pulling off a back attack, Nekoma has won the first set.
In the second set, Lev is able to get a one-touch on Hiroo's spike. He right away calls for the ball as he appears to attempt a wide broad jump. His broad jump is successful and gets Nekoma ahead while Lev is silently praised by Kuroo and members of the crowd who think Lev is the real ace and not Yamamoto. In the middle of the set, Lev begins trying to read Kuguri's form but misses blocking when he believed Kuguri would attempt a cross-shot and instead did a straight shot. Kenma tells Lev that trying to figure out what Kuguri will do may not be successful as Kuguri has near-perfect form. Lev is not deterred by this information and believes he can stop Kuguri again.
Near the end of the set, Kuroo injures his finger on a receive and has to switch out. Shibayama goes in and assures Lev that he is right behind him. When the game continues, Lev spikes the ball and gets Nekoma to set and match point. However, Nohebi gets the point back when Lev is unable to block Kuguri and Shibayama is unable to pick up the ball. Lev then becomes confused when Shibayama apologizes for not being able to receive the ball because he believes that, other than a serve, a lost point is not the fault of any one player because all of their plays are connected.
At this, Lev finally realizes the real meaning of teamwork. Because he knows that Shibayama is the one behind him and not Yaku, Lev becomes aware of how he must play and block. When Kuguri goes to spike, Lev is able to emit a great presence that scares Kuguri into sending his spike straight to Shibayama. With this, Nekoma is able to win the game and earn their spot for Nationals.
When Lev sees Yamamoto get blocked, he asks Inuoka next to him why an underhand would not work. Inuoka simply answers that it would be hard to hit. When Lev is still confused, Inuoka explains that an underhand would slow things down. Later on in the first set, the announcers praise Lev as one of Nekoma's most notable players; however, because of this, Sarukawa was mostly only aware of Lev rather than Fukunaga coming from the left. After Kenma tells the team to send the ball to him, they all proudly assure him that they would do so. Lev cannot join in, as he is not in the rotation but assures Yaku that he would do his best with his blocks.
Karasuno vs Inarizaki
After their own match is over and Nekoma watches Karasuno's match against Inarizaki, Shibayama attempts to explain how the ball could go different ways after receiving. Lev claims he's understood but Yaku isn't convinced. Next to Inuoka, Nekoma's middle blockers, including Lev, are prepared to see Tsukishima block Suna but are proven wrong when Suna scores past him instead. Though the two are impressed by Suna's perfect block nevertheless. Later on, Yaku yells at Lev, who is watching the game with the other first-years, to pay attention to Suna and Tsukishima's blocking.
Nekoma vs Karasuno
As the game is about to begin, Lev is admired by some of the female Nekoma students who think his ethnicity and serious expression are attractive though they are unaware that Lev's expression when talking to Kuroo was due to thinking that he needed to run to the bathroom before the match started.[3]
Lev is given the first set of the game but Nishinoya was able to receive it. He then right away assists in trying to block Tanaka. Though Tanaka was able to get past him with a cross shot, Lev's block did allow for Yamamoto to be in place to pick up the spike. The ball went directly over the net where Lev would beat Hinata in a joust but Daichi was able to make the save. Immediately after the joust, Lev spots Hinata making an approach for a broad jump and is unable to get into position in time. Because of this, Hinata was able to spike past Lev to score the first point of the match.
Lev would get the point back when he spikes above Hinata's and Tanaka's block. His first serve clips the top of the net, forcing Hinata to make the receive, before Lev receives Tanaka's spike and gets silent criticism from Yaku for making a shoddy receive. When Lev later rotates back in the game when Karasuno is in the lead 13-10, Shibayama tries to encourage Lev to play like himself though Lev would seem confused by the phrasing the libero chose to use.
When he starts blocking, Kinoshita comments how the ball seems to be getting past Lev more than usual but Tsukishima actually sees that Lev is using his blocks to direct where the spikes should go and is making it easier for Nekoma's receivers to dig the ball. This is further demonstrated when Lev is able to prevent Hinata from spiking in one direction and he instead spikes in the direction where Fukunaga was waiting to receive.
Lev continues to be a reliable blocker when he and Yamamoto cut off Tanaka's option for a line shot and force him to hit a cross shot directly to Yaku. Lev later attempts to beat Kageyama in a joust at the net but is shocked when Kageyama hits the ball against his arm but would be given the next set by Kenma to score. When Daichi's receive goes over the net, Lev tries to beat Kageyama to it but is shocked when Kageyama hit the ball against his arm and past him. Yamamoto would save the ball, and Lev would get the set. He spikes past Kageyama and Tsukishima and scores.
On his first serve of the second set, Lev notices that the Karasuno players are positioned more forward and decides to send his serve toward the back end of the court. After his serve is received and stopped, Lev rotates off the court where Coach Nekomata tells him that the worst thing for someone to do is something 'just because'.
After Hinata mistakenly touches the net during a block, Lev would complement his friend for his jump but still point out that he was able to give Yamamoto a scare at the same time. His comments were noted by Tanaka to take a shot at both his enemies and allies. At one point, Lev is excited when he successfully blocks Tanaka's spike but quickly is annoyed when the ball had landed out-of-bounds. Later, Lev chases after Hinata and would taunt the Karasuno middle blocker when he mistakenly sent his spike out-of-bounds, claiming that Hinata got scared of Lev possibly blocking him. Lev would soon be part of a triple block that would block Hinata's spike. He would then remember how Kenma instructed Lev to be part of a triple block when it appeared Hinata would be making a running approach. The memory of it makes Lev comment how Kenma can be scary at times. On his next serve, Lev follows Kenma's instruction of where to aim his serve in the attempt to once more force Hinata to make the receive. Lev would then score with a back attack.
A while later, Sugawara is subbed into the game and he and Kageyama throw Nekoma off when they switch positions. Sugawara is tempted to use Hinata for the attack but hesitates when he feels Lev's presence. After witnessing Hinata use his new jump to stay airborne longer, Inuoka is brought into the game to help Lev try to contain Hinata and Lev takes lead in the timing of the block. Though in place to block, Hinata does a block-out against Lev's hand and scores. When Lev is next to serve, he is upset to see that he is being subbed out so Teshiro can go in as a pinch server.
Before the third set begins, Lev vows to score 20 points. Shibayama realizes that Lev tends to self-destruct when he becomes too enthusiastic but Kuroo is able to calm Lev down a bit though Lev would soon be spotted doing push-ups with Yaku sitting on his back.[8] Not long into the set, Lev is able to use his block to direct Asahi's spike so Kuroo would be able to receive it easily. After acting as a decoy so Kuroo would be able to do a back attack, Lev positions himself at the net when Karasuno has the ball. His presence was enough for Kageyama to silently admit he felt scared of knowing Lev was waiting.
When Karasuno has reached match point, Lev would help Kenma in trying to block Tanaka and accidentally knocks Kenma over. He asks if Kenma is alright only for the setter to angrily shout at him to concentrate on keeping the ball alive. When Yaku receives a ball, but Hinata attempts to do a direct spike, Lev is able to block it right away, earning surprise and praise from Yaku and his team. Nekoma would eventually lose the match and Lev would be seen walking off the court with a tearful expression with Yaku and Shibayama.
Final Arc
Schweiden Adlers vs MSBY Black Jackal
In the Final Arc, Lev has become a model alongside his sister, Alisa, and his only appearance is on a billboard advertising perfume in Shibuya.[9]
Lev makes a brief appearance when attending Kuroo's All Star match. He is seen in the crowd sitting with Kenma and Coach Nekomata.
Statistics
High School Statistics
Power
3/5
Jumping
3/5
Stamina
4/5
Game Sense
2/5
Technique
1/5
Speed
4/5
Lev is a relatively inexperienced volleyball player. As a result, his basic abilities are weaker (much like Hinata's, as Kenma had mentioned), but his strike, height, and physical ability more than make up for it. Upon joining the team, Lev quickly overtook Inuoka as the starting middle blocker and is seen as someone with huge potential[10]. Lev initially has trouble syncing with Kenma's toss but gradually improves to be a capable spiker. Overall, Lev takes a straightforward approach to spiking, looking to win and garner the most hits but shows a willingness to learn technical terms.
Lev often self-proclaims himself as Nekoma's ace, although his teammates don't seem to acknowledge this. He had trouble grasping the concept of teamwork until he and Shibayama worked together to stop a spike during the match against Nohebi. Since then, he has become calmer and more aware of his teammates during matches.
Jumping Reach: 345 cm.
Skills
Whip Spike: Lev's most notable ability yet is his whip-like spike due to his long limbs.[1] Hinata, in particular, is amazed by this spike, telling Lev, "It's incredible, how your spikes made it seem like the blockers being there didn't even matter." Lev's height adds to the success of this spike as it gives him a higher point to hit from and can often go untouched by blockers.
Broad Attack: Lev is proficient at doing a broad attack. Due to his huge strides, he would outpace his opponents and spike before a block could be put up.[11] He is capable of pulling off a broad attack spontaneously with Kenma that is usually highly successful although most of the time Lev fails to properly signal to Kenma that he wants to attempt this attack.
Read Blocking: During the summer training camp, Lev starts improving his read blocking under Kuroo's supervision. He corrects his "banzai block" in which he places his arms too wide apart, thereby leaving a huge gap for a spike to go through. By the time Nekoma reaches the Tokyo qualifiers, Lev has already made much improvement but still has the habit of swinging his arms around when attempting to block.[12] After he finally understood the importance of teamwork, Lev becomes more adept at limiting the path of the spike for the receivers.[13] Combined with his advantageous height, Lev is a blocker that can exert immense pressure on the opposing setter, as seen when his presence is enough to cause both Kageyama and Sugawara to try to keep spikers clear of him during the match between Karasuno and Nekoma.
Serve: Although his serves do not have much power, Lev has been shown to aim his serves to particular areas on the court that will cause the opposing team to break formation. He is most notably shown to do this during the match against Karasuno when he was able to force Hinata to save his serves to keep him from participating in any offensive attacks.
Receives: Being relatively new to volleyball and more interested in flashy plays, Lev is not a strong receiver like his teammates. During many of the training camps, Lev was usually forced to practice his receives under Yaku but would slip away from time to time. Because of this, his receives are not on the same level as the Nekoma team although he has made some improvement.
Morisuke Yaku: Lev and Yaku are opposites in physical traits. While Lev is a towering figure, Yaku is short, even if he doesn't like to admit it. Lev's bluntness leads him to directly point this fact out, much to Yaku's annoyance. He makes sure to reprimand Lev for it, often physically hitting him in his anger whenever he points out his height. Yaku is also seen to have been training Lev with his receives, although Lev ditched him one time and lied to his teammates to play with Kuroo, Bokuto, Akaashi, and Tsukishima, leaving Yaku enraged. Like the rest of Nekoma, Lev sees Yaku as a skilled libero and firmly believes that Yaku is capable of saving any ball.
Kenma Kozume: In the Nekoma OVA, Kenma and Lev are seen to be working together to perfect the timing of Lev's whip spike attack. It is mentioned by Kenma that Lev's technique is almost nonexistent and that his attacks are sloppier than Hinata's, which caused Kenma to try different methods to try to sync up with the middle blocker. At first, it seems as though Kenma dislikes Lev, but this feeling eventually disappears as the two are able to attack properly later in the series. Lev is naturally respectful to his upperclassman and always apologizes to him when he gets carried away. Because Kenma is a timid person, when he is angered, Lev admits he finds Kenma more frightening than Yamamoto and Yaku.
Yūki Shibayama: The two are not seen interacting much prior to the Spring Tournament qualifier tournament. During the tournament, Shibayama would try to comfort Lev when the middle blocker was upset about his performance after the match against Fukurōdani. During the game against Nohebi, Shibayama is the one to help Lev truly understand what teamwork really means. From that point, the two are seen interacting with one another more and Shibayama is seen taking the role of trying to help Lev continue to play as himself and not try to play like others, but Lev was seen to not completely understand what he meant.
Sō Inuoka: As Inuoka and Lev are both first-year middle blockers and have quite similar personalities, they get along well. Additionally, Inuoka is often shown explaining strategic decisions to Lev that he might not understand or answering his questions when he is confused watching Nekoma's matches when he gets rotated out. Despite having been replaced by Lev as Nekoma's starting middle blocker, Inuoka does not hold a grudge against Lev. Additionally, the two show good teamwork when Inuoka is subbed in to sharpen Nekoma's defense in their match against Karasuno.
Shōyō Hinata: Lev first meets Hinata at the Fukurōdani Academy Group away-games, and the relationship between the two is both competitive and playful as the two have similar personalities and goal of being the next ace of their respective teams. Although Lev sometimes unintentionally angers Hinata about his height, Lev enjoys hanging out with him as the two can often be seen in each others company during the training camps. Lev does have a rivalry with Hinata as the Karasuno middle blocker is both faster and more skilled than him in volleyball and aims to surpass him. In general, however, the two seem to be pretty good friends, and the competition between them is rather a friendly rivalry.
Family
Alisa Haiba: Alisa is Lev's older sister. The two appear to have a close and supporting relationship.
Quotes
(To himself) "I am the wind. I am as swift as the wind... I am the forest. I am as quiet as the forest... And... I'm flexible... as a cat!"[14]
(To himself) "Well, I'm not going to become just a regular - but the Ace!"[14]
(To himself after spiking one of Kenma's tosses for the first time) "The Ace has... Awoken!"[14]
(To Hinata within the first few minutes of meeting him) "You're even shorter up close."[1][2]
(To Kenma) "I'm trying to be humble by not letting everyone know that I'm the best."[15]
Current Concern: His upperclassman (Japanese: 先輩,senpai) tries to give him weird nicknames.
Star Sign: Scorpio.
Although Lev is of Russian-Japanese descent, he cannot speak any Russian as he was born and raised in Japan.
Just like Kenma, he doesn't like Kuroo's pre-match speeches and famous quote: "We're like the blood in our veins...", and according to Kenma, that's the only thing he agrees with Lev on.
He shares his birthday with Reon Ōhira. Interestingly, both of their names have something related to lions.
He is the oldest first-year on the team and is two days older than Inuoka.
He had stated that he grew two millimeters in two weeks, which averages out to one millimeter per week.
Pre-timeskip, Lev is the third tallest high school volleyball player in the series.
According to Shibayama, Lev has a tendency to self-destruct if he becomes too fired-up.
Lev shares his English voice actor with Tarō Onagawa (season 2).
Lev did not rank in the first popularity poll. In Haikyuu's second popularity poll, he ranked 20th with 2,753 votes.[19]
Although he was still relatively new to volleyball at the time, Lev was able to fully block Hinata's quick attack on his second attempt, making him the quickest to stop the attack.
