Hop/Raihan

Pairing
Pairing:	Japanese: キバナ×ホップ (Kibana x Hop) English: Raihan/Hop
Alternative name(s):	Japanese: キバホプ (Kibahopu) (KBHP) or ホプキバ (Hopukiba) (HPKB) English: Raihop, VyingShipping
Gender category:	Boys' Love; Yaoi; M/M; Slash
Fandom:	Pokémon
Canonical?:	No
Prevalence:	Rare for both characters Common overall
Archives:	n/a
Other:	n/a
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Hop/Raihan, known mostly as Raihop, キバホプ (Kibahopu), KBHP, ホプキバ (Hopukiba) and/or HPKB, is a common ship in the Pokémon fandom. It pairs Hop (Hop) and Raihan (Kibana), one of the rivals to the playable character and the Dragon-type gym leader from Pokémon Sword and Shield respectively.

Popular Tropes & Fanon

• Height Difference: Raihan is taller, Hop is shorter.

• Age Difference: Raihan is older, Hop is younger.

Subjects of Fannish Interest & Meta

-Shipping Name Origin

Unlike the majority of other Pokémon pairings, there is currently no commonly used -shipping name for Hop/Raihan as of 2025. VyingShipping, coined by Kyuu-Tales for the Neverending Romance ship name list on 02 December 2019, is considered its "official" name, but this name isn't used by shippers.

Example/Notable Fanac

Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples.

Fan Fic

Hop/Kibana | Raihan search query on Archive of Our Own

• understudy. by indeedee (never_minde), ^{Archived version} (2020), rated Explicit. Raihan was used to being second-best. Raihan wasn’t used to the idea that second-best came in more forms than one.
• One Night Stand by huevoplatano, ^{Archived version} (2020-21), rated Explicit. Raihan whisks Hop away to the darkest parts of the Hammerlocke castle where he just wants one night with him.
• 2 AM by ruin (ruinrunes), ^{Archived version} (2019), rated Explicit. Raihan and Leon have been living together for a while now. Sometimes Hop crashes for a night or two, and really, the kid should know better than to fall asleep on the couch and leave himself so defenseless.