Peony Private Girls' Academy

**"Insignificant being be gone!"**

The **Peony Private Girls' Academy** (Japanese: **牡丹 (ヤマシャクヤク)  民間 ()  女子 (じょし)  学園 (がくえん)** , *Botan Minkan Joshi Gakuen*) is an international all girls private academy located in the Nagano Prefecture. It is the sister academy to fellow private high schools; the esteemed Camellia Academy and the internally acclaimed Tsubaki Academy. Most notably; Kamomedai High, is said to be their equals in volleyball, as the Academy is noted to be the #1 High School Girls` Volleyball Team in Japan, with many of it`s players going onto to play on the Japanese Women's National Volleyball Team.

## Uniform

Peony, like most Japanese schools, has a uniform and dress code. The standard winter uniform for all students is a navy blue blazer, a solid white buttoned shirt (under the blazer), a colored year-dependent ribbon, a light steel blue skirt, black or white stockings or socks, white with colored year-dependent tipped shoes inside the school and maroon outdoor (non athletic) shoes, inside of the school, white uwabaki are worn in order to preserve the sanitary standards upheld by the school`s Peony Private Academy's Displinary Council and it's parent organization; the Peony Private Academy's Student Council. During summer, they are often seen wearing a beige vest instead of the standard navy blue blazer. During their physical education classes, they are required to wear a tracksuit (basically a sport jacket with long pants) with white striped brims, a white shirt with colored endings for the summer semester, and white sports shoes; volleyball players and anybody who participates in a physical activity are often seen not wearing the required sport's jacket, instead wearing an long sleeved military style collared shirt with golden buttons and white outlining the breast pocket and collar of the shirt. On the back of the shirt is a large peony in white, representing the first half of the school`s name **"Peony" Private Girls' Academy**. Underneath they wear light steel blue hakama pants, though members of the school`s Jazz Clubs have been shown wearing knee-length pleated skirts instead of the standard hakama pants. Members of the School's Displinary Council are shown wearing the knee-length pleated skirts so that they can more easily jump, to avoid a peeping tom incident, they wear shorts underneath their skirts. All students wear a pair of white uwabaki inside of the building, outside most students are often shown in volleyball shoes, though knee-high lace-up are seen as a popular choice; on some occasions, some students are shown wearing black zōri and black tabi with their uniform. Over this, they may choose to wear a white cloak or a haori over their choice. During matches, the volleyball players wear navy blue jerseys with maroon details and light steel blue shorts. The jersey has the number printed on both sides with "Peony Academy" written in Kanji on the backside. The libero has a contrasting jersey in maroon with navy blue details and light steel blue shorts.

## Volleyball Club

The Academy's volleyball team is a long-time powerhouse that has attended Nationals for six years consecutively, and 57 times overall. They are the runners-up of the last Interhigh (on the female side) and the current 1st seed. They defeated a nationally ranked top 4 libero Megumi Kiryū and her team in the semifinals before taking a set from the eventual champions; Kiryū. The year prior to the current Interhigh in the storyline itself, Peony finished in second place in both the Interhigh and Spring High tournaments, retaining their status as a seeded team. They are known for their variety of skilled players, who come from all kinds of countries in order to play on the Academy's team, from places like Russia, Serbia, the Czech Republic, the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and even Iran. Their team motto is "Stand strong and push forward despite the odds" to signify their incredible mental fortitude and strength when playing underneath tense situations and their ability to overcome those odds.

It has been mentioned that the volleyball team is extremely popular, with the team`s captains and vice-captains being part of the reason for the attraction towards them; additionally, the liberos (starting or otherwise) are quite popular with both males and females alike, which makes the team quite confused when they encounter a fan of their volleyball team. Peony matches are usually accompanied by their violin orchestra and cheer squad, who has developed a technique to soothe both the team`s opponents as well as the team itself, so that they are relaxed.