Tanji Washijō, a volleyball coach infamous as the "Demon Coach," enforces strict discipline and prioritizes players’ height and raw physical power. His own stature—160 cm with a frail frame in old age—contrasts sharply with his ideals, a contradiction rooted in his youth. Once a muscular athlete barred from competitive play due to his size, he channeled his frustration into coaching, vowing to forge teams that leveraged natural advantages. Thick, swept-back hair and striking eyebrows frame a face often etched with sternness, though age later softens his expressions. Hailing from Miyagi Prefecture, his speech carries the local dialect’s cadence. After his playing career faltered, he dedicated decades to Shiratorizawa Academy, molding athletes like Ushijima Wakatoshi into embodiments of his philosophy: dominance through sheer physicality. Yet beneath his rigid standards lay a grudging acknowledgment of perseverance. He openly dismissed shorter players like Hinata Shoyo, citing biological limits, yet conceded that relentless effort might earn a place on his court—a paradox reflected in his choice to admit Hinata as a training camp ball boy, covertly granting the tenacious athlete chances to learn. A pivotal loss to Karasuno during the Spring High Preliminaries forced introspection. Watching Hinata’s scrappy adaptability, Washijō glimpsed echoes of his own unrealized ambitions. Though he clung to his belief in physical supremacy, cracks in his resolve emerged. Post-retirement, he facilitated Hinata’s training with a Brazilian beach volleyball coach and attended his professional debut, visibly stirred by the player’s evolution. These acts hinted at a reckoning with past envy of innate talent and a tentative acceptance of diverse paths to excellence. His coaching legacy, upheld by protégés like Ushijima, balanced harsh tactics with subtle pride in his players’ growth. Assistants like Akira Saitō mirrored his preference for disciplined, direct strategies, yet late-career moments—a rare smile mid-match, silent approval after defeats—betrayed a fiercer loyalty to his team than his reputation suggested. In his twilight years, unchanged in appearance but tempered in demeanor, he straddled two worlds: the unyielding traditionalist and a man quietly making peace with volleyball’s evolving landscape.