We will now begin the semifinal match
for the Oriental Pacific Boxing Federation featherweight title!
In the red corner, the OPBF featherweight champion,
Miyata Ichirou!
In the blue corner, ranked third in the same division,
Medgoen Dachboy!
Get 'em, Miyata!
Show us a win this time!
You can do it, Ichirou-kun!
End it quick with a counter!
We have zero info on him.
Just feel him out for the first round.
What is it?
I just noticed a familiar face.
Mr. Sakaguchi...
The Unfinished New Counter
Mr. Sakaguchi...
Ex-manager of the former featherweight champion Arnie Gregory...
which makes him the man we beat for the OPBF title.
I get it. He's come here for revenge, huh?
Which makes this guy an assassin he picked just for you.
Stay alert!
Okay, Dad.
I won't let the belt go, no matter who I face!
And there's the opening bell.
This is Miyata Ichirou's fourth title defense.
The champ's counters have been called world-class.
When will he unsheathe
the deadly sword passed down to him by his father?
And how will this challenger stack up?
Is Medgoen Dachboy a threat to the belt,
or will Miyata Ichirou cut him down?
How will they open the fight?
That's close enough to connect!
Is the challenger gonna move?
C'mon, attack so we can see a counter!
No signs that he intends to move first.
He must be wary of my counter punches.
Long time to just watch each other.
Quiet!
Miyata's got a good sense of distance,
but they're keeping each other in check even at this range.
That challenger's no slouch.
The opponent's just waiting him out.
Not the best time to go in swinging,
but Miyata-kun will do it anyway.
That's the way he is!
An anti-counter strategy, huh?
Let's see what kind of plan you've got!
Quick as lightning!
The champion's left shatters the silence!
An arrow of light stabs at the challenger's defenses!
He's stunned. He lost sight of the champ!
There's that world-class speed on display!
Wow!
He could make a living just off that jab.
His hand speed's not the half of it.
Not too many boxers can completely disappear
from your field of vision!
What is this guy? He just...
I thought that speed couldn't be topped, but he keeps getting faster!
The whole arena's fixated...
I can't bring myself to look away, either.
I know Miyata-kun evolves with every fight,
but his boxing's at a way higher level than I ever expected!
Arrows of light rain down mercilessly!
It's only a matter of time before he breaks through his guard!
Ow, ow, ow. That hurts, Tomiko.
All swollen... My poor Macharu.
Sensei!
What now? Is Miyata done already?
Yeah, yeah. Miyata's so cool. I know.
Not as cool as you, Macharu!
You think?
Actually...
He's not getting anywhere.
What?!
Tired?
Not a bit.
We've established a good rhythm, and we're controlling the pace.
It should be possible to keep this up through the last round...
But he hasn't thrown a punch, and stays holed up like a turtle.
He's not letting one clean hit through.
What's the point of such a passive strategy?
I'm paying you damn well.
Work for it like your life depends on it.
Box!
Even body blows aren't making him lower his guard?
You're not gonna expose your face at any cost, are you?
Let him pound your body as much as he wants.
If you take one to the face and
get knocked out, this'll all be pointless.
You're tough...
But even skinny arrows are powerful if you fire enough of them!
I'll show you!
A triple left!
His tight guard is blown away!
He punched open a path with pure precision!
Don't get hit, Medgoen!
The challenger throws his first punch!
And what a powerful blow it was!
A short hook, small and sharp.
Not a bad weapon.
That hook was like an axe, and it's compact, too.
Not gonna be easy to counter that.
I knew he had something up his sleeve.
Who knew he had a punch like that?
They really were just watching each other at first.
It's gonna start for real now!
Oh! Just when we thought the challenger would fight back,
he distances himself and returns to his turtle stance!
Good. That's the way.
How am I supposed to take that?
It's bad enough if he's not in it to win,
but if he doesn't even want to fight,
I'll only be annoyed even if I win!
The champ closes in.
He's deliberately getting in range of the challenger's deadly hook!
It's an infight!
The champ attacks relentlessly from all angles!
Unbelievable!
But the challenger's guard holds!
Assume your life depends on this. Hell, even if you do die,
I want you working 'til the final round.
Daddy...
Daddy!
Maria... Damn it!
Poor thing.
If your girl doesn't get help soon, she'll die.
Mr. Sakaguchi...
You can't afford a doctor, eh?
P-Please, book me a fight!
I don't care who I have to face!
No matter who it is, I swear I'll stand firm
and fight a clean fight!
Stand firm? Fight clean?
Forget that.
Wh-What do you mean?
I want to know much more about him.
All I need is time to observe him.
I'm here to purchase the man renowned for his toughness
even in the Muay Thai world.
All you have to do is stay on your feet
for the entire fight, so I can learn all about him.
You're... telling me to stand in the ring and be a sandbag?
You don't have time to mull it over.
Make a decision right now.
Will your cute little girl die?
Or will you?
Make your choice.
Body blow! A deep one!
I was sure my defense could hold up against anyone,
but I can't take this.
He's too strong!
The champ is in pursuit!
He's willingly putting himself in danger. I can hear it...
His fists are speaking loud and clear.
They're demanding I fight like a man!
A right! The challenger wobbles!
What a spectacular champion!
This man is a true boxer!
And I... I...
Make your choice.
I'm proud to be fighting for my daughter's life.
However, nothing is more shameful to me
than holding back in the ring!
No! What are you getting motivated for?!
I choose to stand and fight this strong champion,
and die with pride as a boxer!
What the hell?! He's bleeding from the mouth!
He's actually having a hard time?!
Did he take that hit? Is he on the ropes?
No, he blocked it...
But the force was enough to penetrate and draw blood.
Through his guard?
So the challenger packs a real wallop, then.
No wonder the atmosphere in the arena felt more tense.
No. The challenger definitely switched to offense there.
Miyata-kun saw that and sharpened his focus even more.
That tension's spread to the whole audience.
Because they know that,
if the challenger attacks, Miyata-kun could end the fight instantly
with a counter-punch!
The challenger breaks the silence, charging in for a direct assault!
You fool! Attacking Miyata head-on is suicide!
Here it comes!
What speed! A barrage of short hooks rains on the champ from all sides!
He's quite...
...a tough one.
Yeah, it's possible Miyata could counter him,
but with that much speed,
it's also likely they'd end up trading shots.
Like sticking your hand into a tornado.
It reminds me of Ippo's Dempsey Roll.
Well, well. Medgoen can punch faster than I gave him credit for.
All right then, see if you can't land
at least one!
He picked one punch out of that huge combo and countered it easily!
A counter-punch leaves the challenger stumbling!
But he stays up!
Not deep enough?
He charges straight in for another one!
Every one of the challenger's attacks is cut off!
Medgoen is by no means slow,
but to Miyata, it's like he's moving in slow motion!
He's strong. I knew that going in, but...
I'll fight hard... and clean... to the end!
He's tougher than the average boxer, physically and mentally,
but my next punch is going to sever whatever strings are holding him up!
He changed to straights!
Miyata-kun will be too used to looking for hooks!
Great! You got him!
At least let me connect once!
Unreal! He dodged that, too?!
Is it impossible to even lay a finger on him now?!
Amazing...
Don't quit 'til the end!
He's down!
His ultimate move, the cross-counter!
Down!
One!
Two!
Three!
Absolutely pathetic.
Four!
I was an idiot to give him half the fight money upfront.
Five!
Six!
What a waste!
He's up!
What incredible toughness!
Something more is keeping him going.
He'll keep fighting as long as he stays conscious.
If he saw that, he's gonna make fun of me again.
Weak! Weak! Weak! Weak! Weak! Weak!
I can't help it. I haven't perfected it yet!
I'm glad you got up.
That gave me a bit more of a sense for you.
See if you can hang with me a bit longer.
Look at that calm expression.
But his fists told me loud and clear that, on the inside, he's burning up.
You never know what will happen in boxing...
I'm sure this is the end, though.
Even knowing that, knowing I could die,
his passion inspires me to keep fighting!
I want to go home to Thailand
and tell my daughter...
that I...
You need to tighten your back
when you gear up to throw a left.
...that I put up a great fight against an incredible champion!
Maria!
Shouldn't you be resting?
Thanks for asking, Channa,
but I'm okay now.
Good.
I wonder if the fight's over.
My dad was so excited to fight his first title match.
He said he'd come home a champion.
Hey, Channa.
Is Ichirou Miyata, the champ, really strong?
You know a lot about him, right?
Ichiro's super-strong.
I still look up to him a lot.
I've never seen someone throw counters like him.
Sorry, Maria! I—
I don't care about belts!
I just want him to come home
and play with me, now that I'm better!
A cross-counter! The referee signals for the bell immediately!
The deadly sword handed down by his father drops the challenger to the mat again!
He never even took one punch.
That was no struggle. It's like he just came for a fight he knew he could win.
That was awesome! Ichirou's counter put him down for the count!
True, it was a typical win for Miyata-kun,
but something felt different.
His timing? His movements?
Am I imagining it, or have his counters changed somehow?
It was a total failure.
Was it?
I had to think about it, which dulled the impact.
Well, don't be in a rush.
You won. Let's call it a success for today.
Oh, no! The challenger still hasn't moved!
He's bleeding heavily.
You're in the way! Move!
He was a fool,
but he was useful for one thing.
He showed me the greatest flaw in Miyata's boxing.
I'd call that a positive result.
He's conscious!
Get him on the stretcher, carefully!
Don't speak, Medgoen. Keep your head still!
No words for the loser, huh?
A true boxer to the core.
Miyata!
Xya phae.
He said something. You speak Thai, right?
A little.
Xya phae... "Don't lose."
I have no intention of losing.
Not to anyone!
Damn, that was badass, Miyata!
Look over here!
There's no one left for you in the Pacific!
Give up the belt and move on to the world!
We wanna see your world title match next!
Yeah! Fight for the world title, Miyata-kun!
Idiot!
If he moves on to the world, you won't have a chance to face him!
Or are you cool with never getting to fight him?
You're right! He can't take on the world yet!
Can't I challenge him for the belt somehow?
He can't take on the world?
Challenge him?
Who the hell do you think you are?!
Whoa! It's Makunouchi!
Yeah, Makunouchi!
I wanna see them fight!
That's the next title fight!
Makunouchi! Makunouchi!
Miyata! Miyata!
I figured he was up there somewhere.
They're all going nuts.
That shows you how much everyone wants to see them face each other.
Miyata! Miyata!
I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I don't make the matches.
I want that fight more than anyone else.
Make it happen, Dad.
An entire arena screaming for them...
They've become boxers that all these people put their hopes in.
Back then, they were just nameless kids sparring in a dingy gym basement.
One day, they're going to box again under the brightest of spotlights,
to determine who's the strongest boxer in the Pacific region.
And the winner will get a one-way ticket...
Whoever it is, he'll go straight to the world level!
There will now be a ten-minute intermission
before our main event, the WBC World Middleweight title match.
Looks like it's finally my turn.
Hawk vs. Eagle