Rookie King Tournament - Part 2

The day after the Ozuma fight Ippo had school. His face was puffy from where it'd been hit with hooks, and he was wearing large gauze pads. This was bound get the attention of his class, so Ippo smiled to himself as he entered the school yard.

"Hey Ippo!" Umezawa waved to him from the front of the building where he and some scary-looking younger boys were hanging out. "That was an amazing fight man!"

"T-Thank you."

"Even that first round. You could cut the tension with a knife!"

"Y-yeah."

"So... you gonna get me some tickets for your next match?" Ippo nodded. The tickets weren't THAT expensive and he got a discount if he was fighting that night.

His classmates had gathered around him when he entered his homeroom. The news that he was a professional boxer and that he'd won his first 3 matches caused quite the stir. Once again, by lunchtime everyone had gone back to talking about other things. It didn't matter though. The attention he'd gotten was enough.

Ippo wasn't allowed to train after a match. The coach always made him rest. The old man had been adamant after the Oda Yuusuke fight, so there was no way he was going to be let back in the gym for at least a day. With nothing to do, Ippo sat at home thinking about what was to come. The Yamanaka bakery would be open now, he could visit Kumi-san just as soon as the swelling went down. Fortunately Takamura had loaned him some more Mike Tyson videos, so now Ippo had a chance to watch them during his forced break.

It was the same. Both Ozuma and Tyson had a way of moving in the ring. There styles were different, but their lateral movement had the same core: weight shifting. Ippo knew he still had a lot to work on. After seeing Ozuma in action again, improving his ability to shift his weight left and right was a top priority. Both the offensive power it would provide, and the defensive dodging that would come with it were essential. Ippo began to wonder about that. If he could've dodged Ozuma while attacking at the same time, he wouldn't of had to resort to simultaneous exchanges. Weight shifting was a major component in both punching and dodging. The idea of a duck or dodge that incorporated an attack didn't seem impossible. It was something he was going to practice at least.

In the video Tyson had unleashed a flurry of blows that left his opponent on the canvas. Ippo rewound the tape to watch the exchange over and over. If he could be that amazing one day, then beating Date was a possibility.

It had only taken a few days for his face's swelling to go down. Ippo looked at his reflection in the locker-room's mirror - with the bandages removed he looked like his old self again. Would he ever be as impressive as people like Miyata-kun or Takamura-san? The only way that could happen was if he kept on training. Kamogawa-sensei had let him start back up on the basics: road-work and mitt-hitting. Now with the bandages off, he might allow sparring too. Ippo had spent his free time the last few days at the park again. Ducking under the bars had improved his reaction-speed, and were a great way to practice dodging hooks. There was more too it than that though. He'd been weaving around and under the bars while running at full speed. It took some work to not get hit by either the vertical or the horizontal bars. Basically he was shifting his weight right, left, and right again each time.

Ippo had found some old straw mats at home that his mother had let him use. Tied to the vertical bars, they made good targets. He couldn't have punched them too hard even if he was wearing gloves, the steel underneath would win that particular exchange, but the mats would suffice for light blows. Each time he ran through the bars, he'd slap the mats on his way past. It was similar enough to a punch that he could feel his weight behind the motion. This was the kind of simultaneous dodging and attacking that he'd wanted to use against Ozuma. Ippo smiled as he thought to himself: if Tree-sama ever sends me back again then I'm definitely going to prepare for the first round of the Rookie Tournament like this. There'd be time to practice that later though, it was getting dark and it was time he headed home. Ippo finished changing clothes and left the gym.

The Yamanaka bakery - he'd go tonight. With the bandages off, there was no longer any excuse to postpone it. Sure enough, it was open now. Ippo's heart beat faster as he went inside. Kumi-san was there at the counter. He'd have to play it cool. The first impression was vital. Ippo moved to pickup a tray and tongs, but his back-pack caught on one of the baskets of bread by the door. *thump* The basket fell down and spilt it's contents on the ground.

"AHHHH! I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Ippo apologized profusely as he bent over to pick up the bread off the floor. He then realized he'd done so with his hands, so they couldn't sell the bread now. Of course they couldn't sell bread that'd been on the floor either...

"Uhm..." Kumi was looking over at him.

"I-I-I'd like to buy all of these!" Ippo put the rolls back in the basket and held it out to her.

"It's all right, those were old. I was going to throw them out soon. Why don't you pick something from the fresh baskets over here." Kumi smiled. She was genuinely not upset with him. Ippo was barely able to respond while he picked some bread without even looking at it. Soon he was out of the store and walking home. Kumi-san was so nice, but how could he show his face there again? Still, the way she looked and smelled... Ippo breathed in deeply through his nose and a smile came to him. It wasn't perfect, but it was still a nice night.

Takamura was standing outside Kourakuen Hall. One of his former kohais was going to fight, and his current kohai was going to watch the match with him. Ippo had school today, so it'd probably be a bit longer until he got here. Takamura didn't mind waiting though. Most people in the crowd recognized him, and whispered when they walked past. It was hard to be so awesome and famous at time. It must be nice for Ippo to have such an amazing senpai as him! With his height, it was easy to spot Ippo through the crowd while he was still a ways away.

"Oh! Over here! You got here pretty early for someone who just got out of school."

"I could barely contain myself. I get to see Miyata-kun in the pro ring today!" Nothing did get Ippo as fired up as Miyata. Those two would make great rivals for each other.

"Great, then let's go find some open seats."

Once they found their seats and sat down, Ippo was fidgeting. It wasn't the nervous energy that he showed before Takamura got the urge to tease him a little. Did he sense something was going to happen? Ippo might not have been able to predict Majhong tiles, but that didn't mean he wasn't psychic. Was something going to happen in the Miyata match? Ippo turned to face him. His kohai was rubbing the back of his head and his face was bright red.

"Why are you blushing? Is something going on?"

"Um... Can you tell me where row E, seat 11 is?" Some school girl was looking around for her seat.

"S-seat 11? It's right here!" Ippo motioned next to himself. Takamura looked down, he was in 13 - so Ippo was in 12, and 11 was indeed next to them. Had his kohai remembered their seat numbers? They'd been sitting for more than 10 minutes, and Takamura had forgotten what seats they were in as soon as they'd found them. The lights were dimming, so the match was about to start. To his right Ippo was blushing with his eyes closed and his nostrils flared.

"What did you come here for! Miyata's match is starting!" Takamura yelled at Ippo and smacked him on the head. Before he'd said a word, the younger boy and suddenly hunched down and shielded his head from Takamura's punch. How'd he known it was coming? Takamura looked at his kohai suspiciously.

In the ring, Miyata and his opponent Takada Teruhiko were being announced.

"Miyata's gained quite a bit on muscle mass in his shoulders."

"Yeah, he looks strong!" Ippo replied.

"His opponent, Takada, is the same type of fighter as you."

"Y-Yes, but Miyata-kun will win!" Ippo had a lot of faith in his rival. Still, if Takada got in a good shot then anything could happen.

*ding*ding*ding*

"Fight!"

Miyata approached his opponent, but stopped at long range - typical for an out-boxer. Then he stopped his leg movement and stood flat-footed - very strange for an out-boxer. Takada threw some punches, but Miyata easily dodged to the side or swayed back to avoid them. His opponent then rushed in and pushed against him with his shoulder, and Miyata pushed back. It was if he wanted an in-fight. No, like he knew that an in-fight would be inevitable against a certain someone, and he wanted some practice. The two boxers began to trade blows. Miyata took a few hits, but he blocked most of the punches thrown at him. On the other hand, Takada was taking ever hit cleanly. It soon became apparent that Miyata had the upper hand. His opponent must've realized it also since he went to clinch. Miyata twisted quickly in his arms and threw a very compact right upper at Takada's jaw. Another twist was followed by a left upper. His opponent reeled away, but Miyata didn't move to press his advantage.

Takada staggered back briefly, but in less than a second he surged forward throwing a flurry of straights. Miyata crouched down and raised his guard. The attack was vicious, but sloppy.

*CRACK!*

The sound of Miyata's counter rang out through the hall. Takada fell and did't get back up.

*ding*ding*ding*

"Winner: Miyata Ichirou!"

"Looks like Miyata's learned a few things."

"That upper-cut in the clinch! Where'd he pick up something like that!"

"Yeah...Where would he have gotten the idea of counter-attacking a clinch from?" Takamura's sarcasm was wasted on Ippo. How could he be so prophetic about some things, and clueless about others? "If you want to win against Miyata, you'll have to evolve too."

There! That stupid expression with the closed eyes and flared nostrils! Ippo wasn't getting away with it this time!

"B-Bastard! I'm trying to have a serious talk with you...and what the hell's up with that nose?!"

"Uh Uwah! I'm sorry!"

Kumi stood at the counter of the bakery. Between her internship at the hospital during the morning and the amount of studying she had to do at night, evenings at Yamanaka bakery were the most restful time of her day. Afternoons were pretty busy, but Ms. Yamanaka was nice and let her also have the evening shift. The bell on the door rang as it opened. In walked a teenage boy. He had bandages on his nose and right cheek. The way he hesitantly picked out some bread was familiar... Oh! It was the customer from Wednesday! The one who'd accidentally knocked over a nearly empty basket of day-old french baguettes. She was so glad he'd decided to come back. He was very polite, and she had been afraid that he wouldn't have returned because he was ashamed. Even now she could see a slight flushing in his cheeks.

"Uhm... I'd like these please." He'd picked out some multi-grain rolls.

"Sure! That comes to 350 yen." Kumi wanted to put him at ease. Perhaps if she talked to him a little it would make him feel more comfortable. "I'm glad you decided to visit us again!"

"T-Thank you! Uh... Are you a boxing fan?" That was an odd question. Why'd he ask something like that?

"Well, not really. Why do you ask?"

"I-I saw you at Kourakuen Hall yesterday. You sat next to me during Miyata-kun's fight."

"Oh I did? I'm sorry for not recognizing you!"

"NO! Not at all! I'm sorry for bringing it up!" He was blushing furiously now, and had lowered his head.

"I did go and watch that match, but I was preoccupied and wasn't paying attention to my surroundings."

"I-If you don't care for boxing, why did you go to that match? D-Do you know someone that boxes? Wait! Sorry! I'm being too forward!"

"Not at all! I'm happy to talk about it. I'm just a little surprised is all. My older brother just became a professional boxer and I wanted to see what it was like."

"He's in the Rookie King Tournament?"

"Eh? That's right! You must be a fan of boxing."

"Yes! I am. I-I'm also in that tournament. I hope I don't have to fight your brother!" Was it just her imagination or did he shiver a little bit right then?

"Oh, well I'd be happier if he didn't fight anyone honestly. I don't mean to disregard boxing, but it seems so dangerous!"

"I'm sure Ku..your brother will be fine! He's probably an amazing boxer!"

"Your right! My name is Mashiba Kumi, it's nice to meet you." He was a nice boy. Were most boxers like him? It didn't seem likely.

"I'm glad to have met you Kumi-san! My name's Makunochi Ippo." He was blushing and bowing. It was cute.

Ippo had just finished doing his morning run and practice at the park bars. The weight-shifting practice was going surprisingly slowly. He had been weaving through the bars when he'd been practicing ducking, so he must have been shifting his weight for that, but trying to incorporate punches into that routine was proving to be far more difficult than he had imagined. Ippo still wanted to pursue the simultaneous dodge and attack, but it was looking like he needed to improve his basic shifting first. Perhaps he'd get Kimura or Aoki to spar with him today.

"Yo! Ippo-kun!" The door opened before an energetic Fujii Minoru.

"Ah! Fujii-san, it's been a while." Ippo hadn't seen the boxing reporter since he'd come to interview him before the tournament started.

"Did you watch Miyata-kun's match? It was incredible. Mashiba-kun advanced as well. His opponent was covered with blood. His KO scenes are always gruesome."

"So the Quarter-Finals are almost set?"

"Almost. There was also one upset. The third seed, Yoshida, was beaten by a no name fighter, Kobashi."

"I knew Kobashi-san would win!"

"What? Do you know him?"

"Yeah Ippo, why don't you tell us about him?" Takamura had come up behind Ippo.

"W-Well...Kobashi-san is a very talented fighter. He's able to drag opponent's into his own pace. His defense is amazing, and before you know it you've run out of stamina! His stance is hard to get past since he keeps his left hand out so far, and he'll clinch opponents that get in close. Getting a rhythm going while fighting him is impossible! If you come in expecting either an in-fight or an out-boxer then you'll play right into his style!"

"T-That's quite specific Ippo-kun. Have you seen him fight before?"

"Nah! Ippo here just likes to stalk boxers. Gah ha ha ha ha!" Takamura seemed awfully amused by something. "Go on! Ask him about someone else."

"Ok. How about Hayami-kun?"

"Hayami-san is the #1 seed. He won the Inter-High Championship three times in a row. He's an orthodox out-boxer, and he's really fast. He likes to throw an un-believable number of punches, it's nicknamed the 'Shotgun'. He also has a short upper to counter charging in-fighters."

"Wow Ippo-kun, your surprisingly knowledgable."

Ippo scratched his head and blushed. To the side, Takamura glared at his kohai with his brow furrowed.

Kamogawa was late arriving to the gym. Yagi was sick, and it was up to him to finalize the details of Takamura's title match. The middle-weight had taken the gym's ranked boxers with him for a week of training at the beach. If Yagi could take care of the promotion details then he could've gone to the beach to make sure they actually trained. It couldn't be helped though. At least it'd be quiet around here for a while. In front of the gym was a familiar form.

"What are you doing here brat? Didn't Takamura invite you to the beach?"

"Yeah, he did, but I can't leave my mom alone. She'd work herself until she collapsed if I let her!" Ippo sighed. "Running on the beach would've been nice to build up my toes though."

"Eh? You wanted to run on the sand?"

"Yes! My weight-shifting needs work, and the beach trip probably would've been great for improving it."

"You're right there, but you've forgotten who you're talking to brat! If it's weight shifting exercises you want, I'll show you some!"

"Yes!"

"Into the ring. Let's see what you've got!"

The kid was right, his weight-shifting needed work. By alternating the hitting mitts it was easy to set up situations where you had to adjust your center of balance to land a blow correctly. Kamogawa expected the kid to shift over then punch. Ippo was trying to shift at the same time that he was punching. If he could manage it, his punches would be faster, sharper, and far more damaging. The way he was going about it was like trying to run before learning how to walk. Where had he gotten such a foolish idea from?... Of course! It was probably the same way he'd learned to use the peek-a-boo style. Takamura must've loaned him some more Mike Tyson fight tapes.

"That does it! Your movement is terrible. Don't try to copy a boxer by mimicking their moves! If you want to fight like Tyson then you have to train like him!"

"Uhm..."

"C'mere!" In the supply room Kamogawa found an old busted speed bag. All it took was a little gravel to give it weight and some string to hang it from the ceiling. "There! We'll work on weight-shifting after this."

"What is it?"

"It's a slip bag. Tyson practiced with one of these every day. This is the training that gave him his world-class defense. If you want to box like him then do this every day!" Kamogawa positioned Ippo under where the bag was hanging. "Now I'm going to let this bag fall. It'll be like a pendulum. Dodge to the side using only your waist."

*fwoosh*

*thunk*

"Dodge it on the way back too!"

"Yes!"

*fwoosh*

*fwoosh*

"Not so exaggerated! Don't waste movement! Let it almost graze you!"

It was an hour before Ippo was doing the exercise with out any major flaws. He did pick things up quickly. It wasn't a hard exercise, but it's difficulty wasn't essential to it's purpose. The slip bag was a tool that ingrained head movement into a fighter. A constantly moving target was significantly harder to hit than a stationary one, even if the movement was a simple side to side sway.

"OK! Stand against the wall."

"Yes!"

There had been a box of tennis balls in the closet also. For weight-shifting they were ideal. Throwing the balls to the left or the right of Ippo and having him lunge to catch them would improve both his reflexes and his lateral movement. They went through the box three times - with Ippo picking the balls up after each session. It was almost noon, and there were phone calls to make and forms to fill out.

"Ok kid, you'll be on your own for the rest of the day. I'll show you an exercise you can do without any help."

"OK!"

"Take these cone and place them a little more than shoulder width apart. Stand in the middle then hop over them back and forth."

"Yes!"

Ippo proceeded to put the cones in front of him and hop over them, turn around, and hop back.

*dong* What was the brat doing? Smaking him with his cane made Kamogawa feel a little better.

"To the side! Hop to the side! This is like the tennis ball exercise, it's all about lateral movement!"

"S-Sorry!"

Ippo was excited. Today was the day Takamura, Kimura, and Aoki got back from their training trip to the beach. Ippo's week had been pretty good. Kamogawa-sensei had been pretty busy, but he'd still given Ippo lots of one-on-one instruction. The slip-bag training was amazing. Constantly moving was beginning to feel more and more natural again. It was an exercise he could do on his own, but if Coach was around the effectiveness of the training increased. The slip bag had a constant timing by itself, but if someone pushed it at you the angle and speed could vary dramatically. Kamogawa had also started having him incorporate jabs in-between swings. Ippo could already notice an improvement.

The weight-shifting exercises were also having an effect. Ippo had been worried that without Kimura's help at the beach that his training would suffer, but it was a mistake to underestimate the Coach. Not only had Ippo done the same tennis ball training he remembered, the cone hopping was just as good of a toe strengthening exercise as running in the sand would've been. Even the mitt-hitting felt like it had helped his mobility. Catching Hayami-san in the ring would require those kind of skills. Kamogawa-sensei had also taught him a new punch - the combo.

Throwing a string of punches wasn't a new idea to him, but the Coach insisted that he practice a particular combination over and over again. A combo was a double-edged sword. The speed and strength of the punches involved would increase from the constant repetition; they would also flow out more naturally in the ring. Conversely, if an opponent knew what was coming - they could avoid or block it easier. A skilled counter-puncher would be even more dangerous. Ippo had first hand knowledge of both the potential up-side and down-side of using a combo. Volg-san's "White Fang" was a simple combo - only two hits - but blocking or dodging it completely seemed impossible. However, it was Saeki-san's perfectly timed combinations that had let Ippo win in their fight. With one eye swollen shut, and Saeki attacking from his blind spot, it had been anticipating his combo that had let Ippo win. Kamogawa-sensei knew what was best though, and the combo he'd shown him had been amazing.

In keeping with emulating Mike Tyson's training - one of his combo's had been chosen. Tyson was small and quick for a heavy-weight. He was capable of delivering multiple bone shattering blows in a fraction of a second without decreasing their power. So for the past week Ippo had practiced one of his combos: a one-two - leading with the left, a liver blow, then a right overhand smash. Coach had said that his one-two and body blows were good enough to be included, but the right overhand was an entirely new punch. It was similar to a right straight, but incorporated a pivoting of the waist. The liver blow set it up both as a left punch, and it started the pivoting. The overhand reversed the direction in a smooth motion that let the user put his leg and back muscles into the final hit. Kamogawa had continued by saying the opening one-two was ideal. Since it was a series of punches that naturally flowed out in a match, an opponent wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a regular one-two and the start of the Tyson Combo.

From the corner of his eye, Ippo saw movement outside the gym's window. Takamura, Kimura, and Aoki must be back! Ippo rushed through the door to meet them, instead there was a guy wearing a red baseball cap kneeling outside the window.

"..."

The stranger quickly stood up and walked away. A small notebook fell out of his jacket from where he had shoved it when he had risen.

"...Kobashi-san?"

"erk!"

"Oh hey! It is you Kobashi-san! Hey! You dropped your notebook!" Kenta had started to walk away quickly, but at the mention of his notebook he patted his jacket pockets. After he realized he'd dropped it, he abashedly came back and stood in front of Ippo. After some hesitation, he took the small book back.

"Che...I guess you found me out."

"Oh...Uhm...Yeah, I guess you're doing research on me."

"That's right! And I'm not ashamed either!" Kobashi was getting agitated.

"W-Why would you be ashamed? Isn't knowing about your opponent beforehand common sense? I mean, I know about Kobashi's fighting style, so it'd be strange if I got upset with you finding out mine."

"So you've watched my tape?"

"Yeah! The way you wear your opponents out is really skillful!"

"Don't patronize me!"

"Wha..? I'm not..."

"I wish I had a punch like you!" Kobashi sighed and the wind seemed to leave his sails. "But for someone with nothing destructive, hard work and determination will have to suffice. I'm sorry I yelled at you. From the look on your face I can tell you were being honest. I'm...not used to complements on my 'style'."

"N-No I'm sorry if I sounded insincere!"

"..."

"Well, I'll show you my style when we fight."

"Ok! Let's have a good match."

Kobashi weakly smiled and then ran off. Ippo couldn't help but feel guilty. Kobashi-san worked so hard to gain information on his opponents, but it couldn't match the advantage Ippo himself had received. A sudden slap on his back brought Ippo out of his contemplation.

"Hey Ippo! We're back!"

"Takamura-san! Kimura-san! Aoki-san!" His three friends were standing behind him smiling.

"Bet you had a hard time with the old octopus while we were gone right?"

"Uhm..."

"Never mind that. Here!" Aoki pressed something into his hand.

"For me?" Ippo looked into his hand...in it was a 100 yen coin.

"Don't be stupid, why'd we bring you back anything? Now go get me some juice!"

"...ok"

"Yasuda-san, the third match has ended. Get Kobashi to put his gloves on and get ready, please."

"Kobashi..."

Kobashi Kenta raised his hand. The image of Makunochi and his fight was playing out in his head. Reviewing his notes, he was confident that he'd captured the other boxer's shadow. The match would be hard at the start. Ippo would come in fast. His step-in speed was amazing. Makunochi-kun had noticed him spying a few times after their first encounter, but his opponent's reaction was to wave and greet him cheerfully. Ippo was either confident, stupid, or incredibly nice - perhaps all three. From what he'd observed, Ippo was trying to improve his weight-shifting ability, and had been frequently sparring with his outboxing senpai. Undoubtedly he was training to be able to catch someone of Hayami's talent. Ippo wouldn't be facing an out-boxer though, the two of them would get into range from the start. Block, dodge, then clinch - this strategy would work. Avoiding Makunochi's jabs was the first step. He could throw them continuously for four rounds if he wanted. Stopping it was easy though, just let Ippo close the gap between them. At short range, he'd use slower, more powerful punches - probably body blows.

A cross block could absorb even one of Makunochi's stronger punches. After the block, Ippo would throw a stronger, wider attack since his first had been stopped. That punch would be dodged. After the dodge he'd jab, then clinch for one and a half seconds - far shorter than anyone would expect. After separating, he'd throw another couple of jabs to incite his opponent, then the leading game would begin. Ippo would press the attack, but Kenta would slowly retreat around the ring. The block, dodge, and clinch would continue, but Ippo would have to constantly advance. Moving slowly while punching would throw off his rhythm and drain his stamina. Makunochi was the type of fighter that liked to dash in then plant his feet so even slight movement would interrupt his style. As the fight progressed, it would fall more and more into Kobashi's favor.

*bamph*

Kenta closed his notebook. He was ready.

"Hmmm... It seems you have a fight plan." Yasuda-san commented.

"Yes, well it's just an image... Until it begins it's simply an image and nothing more. I won't have my answer until we fight."

"Despite your weak words you're very relaxed. Your legs aren't shaking today."

"Yeah!" Kobashi smiled. "I'm ready, but if it goes like my image then Makunochi-kun will fall easily."

"I see. Well then, let's go and find the answer."

"Yes!"

The roar of the crowd was exhilarating. In the back of his mind Kenta knew it was excitement over the championship fight to come, and probably some for Makunochi-kun too. It didn't matter if the crowd liked him. He'd fight using his own strengths!

"The feather-class 4 round match will begin shortly!"

"In the red corner at 125 and a half pounds: Ootaki Gym's Kobashi Kentaaaaaaa!" Kenta raised his right hand. The applause wouldn't last, but it'd be rude not to acknowledge it.

"In the blue corner at 125 pounds: Kamogawa Gym's Makunochi Ippooooo!" Makunochi-kun was bowing seriously to all the sections of the crowd.

"This is a Quarter-Final Match for the East Japan Rookie Tournament!"

While the referee was explaining the rules, Kenta looked at his opponent. Ippo's muscles looked dangerous this close. It was no wonder his punches were so strong. He had to relax. The plan would work. He just needed to stay cool.

"Ok, return to your corners."

Yasuda-san gave him a re-assuring pat on the back.

"Seconds Out!"

*ding*ding*ding*

Kobashi assumed his upright stance. His left hand was far away from his body, with his palm towards Ippo. His right was held close to his chin - in position to block. By holding his hand between himself and his opponent, Kenta could more easily read their moves. With the center of their body obscured, the movements around the edges were easier to see. It would also allow him to push his opponent's head to the side when they charged in. That move would catch nearly anyone off-guard and destroy their rhythm. Makunochi's left shoulder twitched, and his weight slightly shifted forward - he was about to dash. Fast! Faster than Kenta had anticipated! They were now at close range. What would Ippo throw? A left body blow? That was most likely. No. Ippo was shifting to his left, and his right shoulder was rising - a right hook! Kobashi swiveled to his left and crossed his arms.

*THUMP!*

Even with the cross block Kenta staggered back. Makunochi's punch strength and dash speed were better than they had been in his image! The difference between watching and experiencing was huge. At this speed, he could still adapt. The plan would still work! It was taking longer to recover than he'd expected. Kenta couldn't dodge the next punch at this rate, so he backed away. Ippo dashed in, but Kobashi pushed him to the side with his out-stretched arm. Two quick jabs followed. If Makunochi could be kept off-balance it would slow him down. Another dash-in was met with another push to Ippo's head, but the stronger fighter resisted it. The space between them had closed again. Blocking his punches while Makunochi was fully rested was a bad idea, so Kenta quickly cliched to stop the swing.

One-thousand-one...

One-thos*THUD!*

An indescribable pain tore through Kobashi's gut. All the air was expelled from his lungs. Time seemed to slow down. He could feel Ippo's muscles tightening, then that same pain seared again in his stomach. The world went black...

Kenta's vision swam. Makunochi was in front of him. Had he lost consciousness? If he had, it couldn't have been for long. Ippo's left hand jabbed at his face in slow motion. The thought of dodging never occurred to Kobashi. He couldn't think; he couldn't move; all he could do was watch as Makunochi's fist approached. The jab hit cleanly. A right followed immediately after. Kenta had seen this combination before. Ippo had been practicing it constantly. The left body blow came next... It struck the mass of pain that was Kobashi's abdomen. A right over-hand would follow, but the pain was too intense. Once again the world went black...

His right sent Kenta crashing to the matt. At nearly the same time, the referee was between them, and a towel was flying through the air. Kobashi was on the ground. His opponent lay motionless, but an ugly purple color was spreading across his stomach where the 10-centimeter punches and the liver blow had connected.

"Medics! Someone get the medics in here!" Kenta's trainer had rushed out of their corner and was kneeling at his fighter's side. Tears fell down the old man's cheeks.

*ding*ding*ding*

"Makunochi Ippo is the winner!" The sound of the ring announcer was far away. The sight of Kobashi Kenta lying on the matt was all that Ippo could see.

K.O. Time 1st Round: 24 seconds

Eastern Japan Rookie King Tournament - Quarter-Final

Macunochi Ippo Victory

4-0-0 4 K.O.s