1 post tagged “animation”

    19 year old Ippo Makunouchi, fresh off a grueling yet successful JBC Featherweight title defense against number 1 contender Kazuki Sanada, is set to face off against a rather easier opponent in his next title defense, pitting him against the number 7 ranked Hammer Nao, a relative unknown from the Hachinoe Gym bearing a professional record of 8-0 with 8 KO's. Many sportscasters believe this is a one-sided match that favors the champion Ippo, which is expected to showcase his entire arsenal of explosive punches in dominating fashion. But what they didn't know is that this match will be more than that.

      Ippo's Kamogawa Gym teammates Masaru Aoki and Tatsuya Kimura were as much as intrigued as Ippo, not knowing who this "Hammer Nao" is at all. They all thought he is another foreigner like one of Ippo's previous opponents in Jason Ozuma (who is half-Japanese, half-American), but what Gym Head Coach Kamogawa revealed shocked the entire place, especially Ippo. They found out that Ippo's 2nd challenger for the JBC Featherweight title is none other than Naomichi Yamada, Ippo's former kouhai (junior classman). What started as Ippo's coming-out-party type of match now turns into a highly anticipated battle between senpai (upper classman) and kouhai.

      Aoki and Kimura had a moment with Nao, telling him to come by to the gym for old time sake, but Nao, now sporting a bald haircut and a rather rude attitude, brushed them off, even telling them to tell Ippo that he's going all out and will take the Featherweight title off of Ippo. But even knowing what transpired, Ippo is still good-hearted concerning his former kouhai, getting confused if he can actually hit Nao at all.

      Moments before the match, Hammer Nao revealed to his trainer that a match with Ippo Makunouchi was the one thing he always wanted, that's why he endured tremendous weight cutting (Nao is a natural welterweight) and grueling underground matches with little to no rest in between. After the match, he intended to retire.

      The moment of truth has arrived, and former senpai and kouhai are now facing off with the lights shining brightly. Ippo comes off guns a blazing the moment the opening bell rung, catching Hammer Nao off-guard with a furious flurry of punches, knocking him down just 30 seconds into the fight. Nao got up but is seriously hurt, and Ippo proceeds to dish out the punishment, hoping for an early stoppage. Aoki and Kimura, who were watching the action, were impressed at Ippo's aggressiveness and claims that Ippo's on a tear, but JBC Middleweight champion Mamoru Takamura sees it as Ippo not wanting to punish his former kouhai any further by attempting to finish the fight as early as possible.

      This compassion suddenly turned into jeopardy when Hammer Nao finally got his bearings back in the second round, scoring with body punches, and nearly knocking Ippo down with his specialty punch, the Solar Plexus Blow. This moment Coach Kamogawa realizes that there's only one pro in the ring right now, sighting Ippo's unwillingness to do what it takes to get the job done.

      Accepting the fact that his opponent in the ring is not his kouhai anymore, but a challenger hell-bent on taking the title from him, he starts to get the upper hand again. And in the final moments of the match, Ippo taught his former kouhai one last lesson of knowing what it felt to lose (which he was thought of firsthand by a previous loss to Eiji Date). After it was all set and done, it was Ippo who was victorious via 2nd round knockout.

      Nao had his dream fulfilled. He finally faced the boxer he always idolized from the start. He had already contemplated retirement, but during the match, he felt like Ippo was trying to talk to him, telling him that he has developed from a puking kouhai to a very talented boxer. Knowing that tremendous success could be waiting for him on the end of the boxer's road, he ultimately decided to go on and continue boxing.

      Ippo is finally relieved that the match against his kouhai is over and Kamogawa commends him for finally becoming a true pro. It was a great win for Ippo, but in his words, he will continue to move on, face even greater competition, and will never stop boxing until he finally knows what it means to be strong.

Ippo