It had been exactly one year since Ippo first walked through the doors of the Kamogawa Boxing Gym as a beaten, broken high school student with nothing but a burning question about what it meant to be strong. Now, twelve months later, he sat at a familiar table in Iwata's Chinese Noodles, celebrating his anniversary with the people who had become his boxing family.
"Can you believe it's been a whole year?" Aoki said, raising his beer. "Feels like just yesterday you were catching leaves with your fists like some kind of kung fu movie reject."
"That was the most ridiculous training method I'd ever seen," Kimura added with a grin. "But somehow it worked."
Takamura leaned back in his chair with his typical swagger. "I told you guys from day one that this kid was special. My eye for talent is unmatched."
"Your eye for talent?" Ippo protested. "You made me hit a picture of Umezawa on a heavy bag!"
"And look how that turned out! The guy's practically your biggest fan now!"
The group laughed, but Ippo couldn't help feeling amazed at how much his life had changed. A year ago, he couldn't have imagined sitting in a restaurant, joking with friends, being treated as an equal rather than a victim.
"So," Ippo said, curiosity getting the better of him, "how did your All Japan Rookie King Tournament go? I never heard the full story."
The table went quiet for a moment. Aoki and Kimura exchanged glances.
"Well..." Aoki started.
"They got completely destroyed," Takamura said bluntly. "First round knockouts, both of them."
"Takamura!" Kimura protested. "You didn't have to put it like that!"
"What? It's true! You guys looked like amateurs out there."
"We're not all natural monsters like you," Aoki said defensively. "Some of us have to actually work for our wins."
"Work? I work harder than all of you combined!"
As they bickered, Ippo reflected on how different his path had been. With Yuto's template guiding his development, he'd progressed at a rate that defied explanation. Two professional wins, both by knockout, both in devastating fashion. The thought should have made him proud, but instead it made him curious about what lay ahead.
----
The next day at the gym, Ippo was in the middle of a sparring session when Yagi and Kamogawa burst through the doors with obvious excitement.
"Ippo!" Yagi called out. "Stop what you're doing! We've got news!"
As Ippo climbed out of the ring, still wearing his headgear and gloves, the entire gym gathered around to hear the announcement.
"The tournament brackets have been finalized," Kamogawa said, holding up an official document. "The Eastern Japan Rookie Championship Tournament is set to begin in three weeks."
The gym erupted in excited chatter. This was the tournament that would determine the best rookie fighters in the region—the stepping stone to national recognition.
"What about Miyata and Mashiba?" Ippo asked immediately.
"They're both in separate blocks," Yagi confirmed. "If you advance far enough, you might face one of them in the later rounds, but not until at least the semifinals."
"And your first opponent," Kamogawa continued, consulting his paperwork, "will be Jason Ozuma."
"Jason?" Kimura raised an eyebrow. "That's a pretty bold ring name."
"Sounds gruesome," Aoki added with his typical dramatic flair. "Like something out of a horror movie."
But Takamura was grinning mischievously. "You know what this means, don't you, Ippo?"
"What?"
"You need a proper ring name! Can't have some foreign guy showing you up in the intimidation department!"
The suggestion caught Ippo completely off guard. "A ring name? But my real name works fine—"
"Are you kidding? 'Ippo Makunouchi' sounds like a convenience store worker! You need something with impact, something that strikes fear into your opponents' hearts!"
Before Ippo could protest further, Takamura was already brainstorming.
"How about 'Big Mutha' Ippo'?" he suggested with obvious pride in his creativity.
The gym fell silent.
"That's terrible," Kimura said flatly.
"What about 'Big Daddy Third Leg'?" Takamura continued, undeterred.
"TAKAMURA!" Ippo's face turned bright red. "Those are horrible!"
"Fine, fine," Takamura waved dismissively. "What do you guys think?"
Aoki scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Something about his knockout power, maybe? 'Iron Fist Ippo'?"
"Too common," Kimura replied. "Every power puncher gets called 'Iron Fist' something."
"What about his fighting style?" Yagi suggested. "The way he helps people, the way he always stands up for others..."
The suggestion sparked something in Kamogawa's eyes. The old coach had watched Ippo's development not just as a fighter, but as a person. The way he'd transformed from victim to protector, the way he approached every challenge with determination and integrity.
"What about 'Ippo the Hero'?" Kamogawa said quietly.
The gym went silent, but this time it was different. The name seemed to resonate with everyone present.
"Hero..." Ippo repeated softly. Through Yuto's memories, he could feel the weight of that word. A hero wasn't just someone who won fights—it was someone who used their strength to protect others, someone who inspired people to be better than they were.
"I like it," Takamura said, surprising everyone with his serious tone. "It fits. You've always fought for the right reasons, kid. Never just for glory or money, but because you wanted to protect people and prove that anyone can become strong."
"Plus," Aoki added with a grin, "imagine the crowd reaction when they announce 'Ippo the Hero Makunouchi!' It gives me chills just thinking about it!"
Before the celebration could continue, reporter Fujii entered the gym, having heard about the tournament brackets.
"Congratulations on making the tournament, Ippo," he said, pulling out his notepad. "I've actually got some information about your first opponent that you might find interesting."
"Please tell me 'Jason' really is just a ring name," Kimura said hopefully.
Fujii shook his head. "Actually, that's his real name. Jason Ozuma. He's originally from the United States—a military serviceman stationed at a base here in Japan. Been training at the Nerima Boxing Club for the past year."
The information added a new dimension to the upcoming fight. An American soldier with real boxing experience could be a completely different challenge from the domestic opponents Ippo had faced so far.
"What's his record?" Kamogawa asked.
"Three wins, no losses. All three by knockout, and all three in the first round."
The gym fell quiet as the implications sank in. This wasn't just another opponent—this was a legitimate threat.
"He's got a particularly dangerous right hook," Fujii continued. "Very fast, very powerful. His last opponent ended up in the hospital."
---
Later that day, at the Nerima Boxing Club across town, Jason Ozuma was putting the finishing touches on his own training session. The American fighter was built like a classic boxer—lean but muscular, with the kind of explosive power that came from years of disciplined training.
As he worked the heavy bag, the sound of his punches echoed through the gym with sharp authority. Each hook was thrown with perfect technique, generating tremendous force through his entire kinetic chain.
"Ozuma!" called his trainer, Hiroyuki Ōta. "Let's get some sparring in. I want to see how that hook is working against live targets."
A local fighter named Hiroyuki volunteered for the session, confident in his own abilities. He was experienced, tough, and had never been knocked out in his amateur career.
The sparring began routinely enough. Both fighters felt each other out, exchanging light punches while getting used to each other's rhythm. But after a few minutes, Ōta made a crucial mistake—he dropped his guard slightly while moving in to attack.
Jason's right hook came like lightning. The punch traveled in a perfect arc, catching Ōta flush on the side of the head with devastating precision.
CRACK!
The sound of the impact was sickening. Ōta's eyes rolled back immediately as he collapsed to the canvas, his body going completely limp.
"ŌTAAA!" someone screamed from ringside.
Medical personnel rushed into the ring as Jason stood over his fallen sparring partner, showing no emotion. This wasn't malicious—it was just what happened when someone with his power connected cleanly.
Twenty minutes later, Ōta was loaded into an ambulance, still unconscious. The doctors said he had a severe concussion and would be hospitalized for observation.
Jason watched the ambulance drive away with the same impassive expression he'd worn in the ring.
"That Makunouchi kid better be ready," he thought. "Because I'm here to win this tournament, and I don't care who gets hurt along the way."
---
Back at the Kamogawa Gym, the news of Ōta's hospitalization reached them the next day through Fujii's network of contacts.
"It was just sparring," Fujii reported grimly. "But Ozuma's hook put the guy in the hospital with a concussion. That's the kind of power you're dealing with."
Kamogawa's expression grew serious. "We need to focus on defensive preparation. If that hook is as fast as they say, you won't see it coming unless you're ready for it."
"How do I prepare for something like that?" Ippo asked.
"By learning to avoid it completely," Kamogawa replied. "Takamura, get in the ring. We're going to drill hook defense until Ippo can slip them in his sleep."
What followed were the most grueling defensive drills Ippo had ever experienced. Takamura threw hooks from every angle, at every speed, forcing Ippo to develop the reflexes needed to survive against a truly dangerous opponent.
Hour after hour, day after day, Ippo practiced slipping, ducking, and weaving around Takamura's hooks. At first, he was hit repeatedly, the impacts sending him staggering around the ring.
But gradually, his defensive instincts sharpened. The training began paying off as he started reading the subtle tells that preceded each hook—the shift in weight, the rotation of the hips, the angle of the shoulder.
"Better," Kamogawa observed after a particularly good defensive sequence. "But not good enough. Ozuma's hook will be faster than Takamura's, and he'll only need to land it once."
The pressure was enormous, but Ippo felt the familiar surge of determination that had carried him through every challenge so far. Through Yuto's memories, he could feel the echo of countless training sessions, endless hours of preparation for dangerous opponents.
"I won't lose," he said quietly, sweat dripping from his face as he prepared for another round of defensive drills. "I've come too far to get knocked out in the first round of the tournament."
As the days passed and the tournament drew closer, word spread throughout the boxing community about the upcoming matchup. Two undefeated knockout artists, both with devastating power, both hungry for victory.
The stage was set for a collision that would shake the foundations of the rookie division.
But for Ippo, now known as "Ippo the Hero," it was just another step on his journey to discover what it truly meant to be strong.
The tournament was about to begin, and with it, the next chapter of his evolution from victim to champion.
[TEMPLATE STATUS UPDATE]Name: Ippo Makunouchi
Age: 16
Height: 164 cm
Weight: 55 kg
Template: Takeda Yuto "THE HERO"
Unlock Percentage: 47%
Recent Growth: Major breakthrough in defensive mastery and heroic identity acceptance