Fighting Spirit (2000) s01e21 Episode Script

1
ORIGINAL WORK BY GEORGE MORIKAWA
HAJIME NO IPPO: THE FIGHTING!
Damn it!
What incredible strength!
This guy is a true prodigy.
He overcame the issue of stamina long ago.
With the way I'm training now,
I'll never be able to defeat him.
This sucks.
Well, at least Aoki will be grateful
to Hayami for the girl-packed audience.
Excuse me! Can I get past you?
Wasn't Hayami-kun way too cool?!
He was electrifying!
Yeah, totally!
Maybe the main event is less
of a draw than the curtain raiser.
Who cares?
I'll be able to focus on the fight better
without an audience to distract me.
Hey, there!
Hey, what's wrong?
Give me some solid backing, okay?
He's such a clown.
As I anticipated, it's a rummel-pummel
mudslinging match.
There isn't an ounce of spectacle.
Take that!
He did it! He got him with a left hook!
The winner is Aoki in the blue corner!
I did it! I won!
Holy cow! Takamura-san, I won!
The more he dances,
the more he looks like a clown.
That's not very nice.
-He won, so let's be happy for him.
-Did you guys see that?!
Yeah! I did it!
THE WAY TO CAPTURE A PRODIGY
KAMOGAWA BOXING GYM
I'm back!
It was a real hoot!
At that point, all the girls left
Come on, can't we
talk about something else?
What? Hey, is that Miyata-kun?!
Why? What are you doing here?
I'm sorry. But why are you here?
I happened to be doing roadwork nearby.
I thought I'd stop in and congratulate
Takamura-san on taking the belt.
Still, what was with that hug just now?
Sure, I always thought
you were a little queer,
but I guess it's true.
Oh, come on, Takamura-san!
You're such a kidder.
Right?
Not you too, Miyata-kun.
This isn't funny anymore.
How come you're all backing away from me?
Watch out for him, guys!
Hey! Stop running away from me!
Hold on a minute!
Anyway, go easy on him.
He's worked hard to get this far,
to fight you in the ring.
Believe it or not,
he's only got one more to go.
You guys are so mean!
One more to go.
But that last one is the problem.
You mean Hayami?
His specialty is a barrage
called the "shotgun," right?
I don't have a chance of stopping it.
If it were me,
I would shoot down every one
of them with my counterpunches.
His self-confidence always amazes me.
I've come this far, but I don't
have nearly as much confidence.
I'd like to hear some bravado from you.
Where's the usual
"I can beat him no matter what"?
But I
Make sure you get past him.
I'll be waiting at the final as promised.
Miyata-kun!
It's him! It's Hayami!
Thanks for the interview!
OTOWA BOXING GYM
Another TV station?
He's a popular guy.
Hi there, Hayami.
Good afternoon.
I'm here to get your comments
on the next match.
Can I have a moment of your time?
No appointment as usual.
So, what did you think of
the tapes I gave you the other day?
You mean Makunouchi's matches?
I gave the most recent
one a quick once-over.
Makunouchi versus Kobashi.
You haven't watched the others?
I was a little disappointed.
Well, I understand you there.
That fight was
the worst of all four matches.
But I think you'd find
the Ozuma match to be informative.
It's all the same.
If he can't handle
an opponent of that level, he's nothing.
The other tapes
aren't worth watching either.
I'll win the semi-final hands-down.
Oh, really? Still
I don't think you should ignore
his destructive power.
It's definitely number one
in this tournament.
If he gets you in an in-fight,
you could be in for a surprise.
He does seem to have a good punch. But
Do you think it'll hit me?
Hayami! It's time to resume training!
Now, if you'll excuse me.
I'm going home now, sir.
Take it easy!
He's training pretty hard.
Conceited boxers normally cut corners
on basic training.
But he's a boxing prodigy
who's never lost.
Maybe that's why he knows
how hard it is to keep on winning.
SHOIN HIGH SCHOOL
Then he'll do this
It's no good. No matter what I do,
I don't see how I can win.
If it were me,
I would shoot down every one of them
with my counterpunches.
Hey, Ippo!
I want your opinion of
my right straight punch.
Uh, sure.
Take this! Right straight!
Hey, don't dodge it!
Forget it! I'm not your sandbag!
Okay, so why don't you punch back?
-Huh?
-Ouch!
You idiot! Don't punch me out of nowhere!
There are no warnings in boxing.
Oh, shut up!
If I knew it was coming,
I wouldn't let this knucklehead punch me!
Just maybe
Huh? Did you say something?
KAMOGAWA BOXING GYM
What?! You want to
learn how to counterpunch?
Please, sir!
You fool. That is a highly advanced skill!
What if I know what punch is coming next?
What did you say?
There is a certain punch
I know he's going to use on me!
His in-fighter killing, short uppercut.
If I get close enough to him,
he'll definitely let me have it!
And you're proposing to
use a counterpunch against it?
Yes, sir!
What do you think?
It's nothing like your previous training
for Miyata and Ozuma.
Are you still up to it?
I'm prepared to go past my limit!
You never change.
All right! Put on your headgear
and get into the ring!
Yes, sir!
Good. It's time for my "Razor Upper"
to make some noise.
I heard everything.
I'll let the uppercuts fly
so you can practice countering them.
Wait a minute, Aoki-san.
You haven't recovered
from your last match.
Don't sweat it!
I'll do anything to help you beat
that bastard Hayami!
So, the clown thing
did bother him after all.
-Huh? Did you say something?
-Uh, no.
I'll be with you all the way,
so beat him no matter what!
Right!
Kid! To counter an uppercut, use a hook.
Time your hook as if to put
a cap on his uppercut!
Right!
Take this!
That's too pushy!
Look carefully before you step in!
Right!
THE NEXT DAY
What's the matter with you?
You haven't made any progress
since yesterday!
What's wrong?
Nothing. It's just difficult
to see your punches.
Besides, it's easier to move around
without headgear.
But it'd be bad to take a direct hit.
I have no time!
Okay, just don't blame me later.
I'm ready!
All right, here it comes!
Right!
I told you so.
HAJIME NO IPPO: THE FIGHTING!
CHINESE NOODLE RESTAURANT IWATA
So, what's this interesting article?
Oh, this.
Hey, the Rookie King Tournament
feature article.
EASTERN JAPAN ROOKIE CHAMPION TOURNAMEN
LINE UP OF FOUR PROSPECTIVE CHAMPS
As expected, Miyata and Hayami
have extensive coverage.
Huh? I don't see Ippo anywhere.
Ippo is right here!
DARK HORSE IPPO MAKUNOUCHI
PROBABLY NO.1 IN FEATHERWEIGH
IN PUNCHING POWER ALONE - MONITORING HIM
Is this tiny column pathetic or what?!
Fujii-chan said he had high hopes for Ippo
but this is downright cold.
You never know.
Maybe this was the best he could do.
At least it's his personal comment.
I guess we can't expect much.
Ippo is a dark horse.
The odds are a million-to-one against him!
He's doing great considering
how far he's come.
He's totally different from
the guy who first walked in.
He had bad luck.
The other three
are way too strong this year.
But still, Ippo's determination
is really something.
I think there's a lot of hope for him
to hit the jackpot.
Want to put your money
where your mouth is?
All right, I'll put 1,000 yen
on the safe bet, Hayami!
I'll put a whopping 5,000 yen on Miyata.
So, Aoki-kun,
you're betting on Ippo, right?
Huh?
Whoa, I can't believe you're putting
all your money on a dark horse.
Sure! I'm a natural gambler.
What are you doing?
I'm taking notes
so you can't back out later.
So, what's your bet?
Well, uh
Come on, spit it out already!
Uh, would it be all right
to switch to Miyata?
Unfortunately, Miyata is sold out!
No way!
Well, let's go bug Ippo with this list!
You're a devil of a man.
Count me in!
FISHING BOAT RENTAL MAKUNOUCHI
Good evening!
Hello!
Oh, hi, everyone.
Hello!
Ippo's Mom, is Ippo in?
Actually, he came down
with a fever after his bath.
Bath?!
Excuse us
Coming through.
Uh, guys!
Are you stupid?!
If you put your swollen body
into a hot bath,
of course you'll come down with a fever!
Yeah, I should've known better.
Silly kid.
Oh, that's right!
I'm glad you're here, Aoki-san!
I was thinking about
the counterpunch timing
and I came up with something.
Can I try it out?
Hey, you want to try it right now?
Don't you have a fever?
I'm not going to be beaten
by a little fever.
Can't we do it tomorrow?
I want to win no matter what!
I don't want to waste even a second!
Uh sure.
This isn't the right time
to mock him, huh?
Yeah.
The million-to-one odds
might just come up.
Now, the semi-final of the Eastern Japan
Championship Tournament is about to begin!
Fighters at the top of
the featherweight class
are on everybody's lips!
Hey, are they airing commentaries
for the semi-finals this year?
Well, Hayami is mighty popular.
-My guess is that's the reason.
-Hmph!
First, Hayami makes
his entrance from the red corner!
As usual, the crowd is deafening!
Ryuichi!
Get him with a KO, okay?
Noisy women!
They'll shut up if Ippo wins.
He'll win all right.
He's trained like a madman
this past month.
He'll win for sure.
You were getting a little mad
by the end of it yourself, remember?
Yeah.
Next, Makunouchi enters
from the blue corner!
What's this?
Allow me to introduce these two boxers.
Hayami achieved an amazing
three consecutive wins
in the Interscholastic
Athletic Competition.
Even after turning pro, he has four wins
of four, with four KO's, no losses.
He's the new star hopeful
in the Japan Boxing world!
In the pre-match interview,
he boasted that he would end
the match by KO.
It's understandable, considering
his past record of 100% KO
wins against in-fighters.
Yeah. Great.
Makunouchi in the blue corner
also has four KOs
in four matches, no losses!
He can deliver strong
punches ambidextrously!
If he lands one,
this match will become fun!
Whoa, this guy sounds pretty strong!
A hard puncher, huh?
His family runs
a fishing boat rental business.
He is an energetic high school student
who continues to box
while helping out his mother
who raised him by herself.
"I used to be bullied,
but my life has changed
since I discovered boxing."
Huh?
I like that! Take good care
of your mother, kid!
That idiot!
Write something with more style!
We'll be cheering for you.
Kill that womanizer!
Aim for his face!
Watch your mouth, jerk!
Hayami, darling! Knock out
that Momma's boy!
Take out that lousy pumpkin head!
The female audience
is completely against you.
It's not like I stirred them up.
I'm curious how many rounds
it'll take Hayami to win this time.
Since he's the hope of Japan,
he needs to win in a convincing way.
They're only interested in
how Hayami will win.
That's expected.
But it's not like
Makunouchi doesn't have a chance.
I'm looking forward to finding out
what all those bruises are about.
Listen, kid. If Hayami
finds out what we're up to,
he won't use his short uppercut on you.
You have only one chance to counter.
Remember that!
Yes, sir!
ROUND 1 REMAINING TIME
Seconds out.
It's no good. Your response time is slow!
Improve, or Mashiba's flicker jabs
will get you!
Okay.
-What's the matter?
-Nothing.
The bell is about to ring.
Win, you hear me?!
I have only one chance to counter.
I need to be careful, very careful!
HAYAMI
The opening blow goes to Hayami!
I have to get close to him!
Whoa! It went from absolute silence
to a rush of middle-range punches!
Neither one is yielding!
Hayami-kun, you can do it!
Go, Makunouchi!
Good! The training is showing results!
Good concentration!
I need to study Hayami's moves
and step in deep!
He He's too fast!
It's Hayami's shotgun!
Has Makunouchi been caught in the fire?!
So, Hayami is superior
in middle-range fighting!
What are you doing?!
Go for it, fishing boat boy!
The speed of his barrage is unbelievable!
I don't have the time
to gauge his movements!
I'll have to charge in expecting
to take a few good hits on the way!
I see.
An ordinary boxer would freak out
if he took punches at this close range.
The number one destructive power
in the tournament, huh?
Cool!
Here he comes!
I'll stand my ground!
If I don't get near him,
I have no chance of winning!
He charged in!
He's prepared for the worst!
We're counting on you, Ippo!
Go! I don't care if you're too aggressive!
Charge in all the way!
Don't stop! Keep going!
Once I get close to him,
he'll throw his in-fighter-killing
left uppercut for sure!
I only have one chance!
I must concentrate on
the movement of his left hand!
When is he going to use it?
When?!
He isn't using his left uppercut!
What?!
Huh?!
As you wish, I'll take your challenge!
Let's in-fight!
In-fight.
An exchange of punches sparked
after closing in.
A fighting style
compiled from past victories.
I thought I never had a chance of winning.
I thought I had a chance.
Then he completely crushed me.
He showed me his superiority.
But I can't let it end yet!
I've been entrusted with something.
I can't let it end
in disgrace, with him looking down on me!
Next time, "Forward! Forward!"