Block that punch carefully!
You're all studied up on the Heart Break shot?!
You study-hall nerd!
He went to finish and it went wide!
If I lash out, I'll hit him!
But... But...
What should I use on him?!
He's so different from his videos, it's almost unfair!
How am I supposed to fight...
someone like this?
What's wrong, Kid?!
What happened to your fight when you're driven into a corner?!
What happened to your courage from the Volg fight?!
What should I do?
What should I do now?
I have no way to fight him.
I never had a chance against him.
So, how will you fight him?
This title match against Date-san was my goal...
so I plan to use everything I've learned so far.
Because I am the challenger.
Come to think of it, I did say something like that.
Makunouchi barely stays in! However, his situation is dire!
Kid!
I wonder if...
I've used everything?
The champion strikes from above!
Hey, look at that.
My arms can still move.
My body can still move, too.
I still haven't used...
everything!
What?!
Makunouchi hits from below! It's a fierce uppercut!
Something amazing connected!
Makunouchi, now's your chance!
Man! My legs aren't listening to me. This is bad!
I haven't used everything I've got yet.
My arms and legs can still move!
He's coming! In my current condition...
I can't even pull off the neck-twisting stunt!
It's not over until I can't move anymore!
This is bad! Move!
It's not over!
Move it!
And there's the bell!
Round Four is over!
Both fighters literally drag themselves back to their respective corners!
But, boy, did the challenger ever display terrific tenacity!
The single miracle punch he threw just as he was about to fall...
was a blow to rekindle the hope of a reversal in Round Five!
He shouldn't have been able to throw that uppercut.
There's a reversal in store.
Yeah, but Date was also incredible to take it and not fall!
Th-This is too hard on the heart.
Are Makunouchi's matches always like this?
Th-That's right.
That's right. It's going just as usual.
I'm sure he'll turn it around.
I have no idea what's gonna happen.
What the hell will become of this match?
Do you know, Takamura-san?!
Pipe down! Shut up and watch!
Good point.
This kind of match is a pretty rare sight even for a boxer.
I can't miss a second of it!
Keep going, Ippo!
Don't ask me, 'cause I can't tell, either!
Stop the blood! Give me the adrenaline!
Right!
The swelling is horrible. Hold an ice pack on it!
Right!
How about it, Kid? Can you see through that eye?!
That was a good uppercut. I'm sure Date was taken by surprise.
Your damages are 50-50. Can you go on?
Can you take it to the next round?
What is it?
M-Move.
I can still... move.
Oh, really? You can move, huh?
I have to use everything.
I won't let it end...
until I've used everything.
Because... I am the challenger.
I won't... let it end.
He's fading in and out.
You can patch me up later! I need a massage!
Stop the convulsions in my legs!
Makunouchi is a real piece of work.
Until a second ago, I was certain you'd win by KO.
I'm begging you. I don't care if it's only for a minute.
Make my legs work! In return, I'll tear him to pieces for you!
That goddamn bastard...
He won't get away with it! I'll hit him until he breaks!
Damn! Damn!
Seconds out!
Kid!
Listen, he's going to use a corkscrew.
Keep up your left guard, no matter what.
You can flip him over with your punches! Do your best!
Can you hear me, Kid?!
This sure is dangerous. He nodded in reply, but...
I doubt he really comprehends.
Well? Can you stand firm?
I'll be back in a minute, boss!
Now, it's Round Five.
The stadium reverberates with calls for Makunouchi!
Will he respond to the mass expectations to deliver a reversal?!
Damn! That last punch got them worked up.
You can't blame them. Date also took a lot of damage.
That's not everything.
I've never seen Date-san that ticked off before.
He couldn't be happier.
Huh?
People like to go around saying he's calm and mature...
but to me that isn't the real Date.
He hasn't called me "Boss" in a long time.
For a second, I thought I was stuck in a time warp.
That sure takes me back. When we first paired up...
you always flew out of your corner, raring for a fight.
You're starting to look like that young guy with too much energy!
You've regained your most powerful condition!
Now the bell for Round Five has rung!
Box!
The champion makes his move!
He pushes him back like crazy with sheer numbers!
Ippo!
Makunouchi gives it back! But he staggers!
A right! It's a corkscrew blow!
Makunouchi shields himself!
He blocks it again! His left guard is firm!
He solidifies his left guard when he's at a distance...
and makes short barrages up close. Just like we practiced!
Chief! Is it possible that Ippo-kun has come to?
No, he's still out.
Even unconscious...
he still fights, sticking to my instructions.
"Dedication to training" fails to describe this.
Do you place that much faith in me?
I must respond to that faith.
I'll let you fight to your limit!
However, if you exceed that limit, even slightly...
I will throw in the towel without hesitation.
The final duty of a trainer...
is to return his boxer home safely.
Do your best, Kid!
He blocks it again! His left guard is firm!
Even unconscious...
he still fights, sticking to my instructions.
Do you place that much faith in me?
I must respond to that faith.
I'll let you fight to your limit!
However, if you exceed that limit, even slightly...
I will throw in the towel without hesitation.
The final duty of a trainer...
is to return his boxer home safely.
Do your best, Kid!
Date-san! Give up on the corkscrew!
Circle around and attack him!
He can't give up on it.
The corkscrew sets everything in motion...
all the way from the tips of the toes.
It is THE punch that makes you throw everything into it.
If such a punch fails to finish off a guy who's already half-gone...
it's nothing but an insult.
And since he's aiming for the World title...
he'll probably stick to it to the very end.
That's the kind of man he is.
Date-san.
Ippo's only swinging his arms around.
It's really something.
For all that, he isn't letting a single corkscrew get past him.
He dodged it! Good! Great going!
- Keep going, Makunouchi! - Makunouchi-kun!
Look at him. He's barely standing.
I bet he's drifting in and out of consciousness.
And his eyes... They're so swollen I bet he can't see properly.
He's responding to our voices.
- That's it! Hit him, hit him! - You can do it!
Go for it, go for it, Makunouchi!
What are you doing, people?! Back up your cheerleader!
Yes, sir!
Go for it, go for it, Makunouchi!
The challenger punches up body blows!
He clashes heads and delivers a barrage of body blows!
He keeps going, pushing back!
Does he still have power in reserve?!
Holy cow! He's pushing back!
He's still got some juice left!
Why, you... Fine!
The champion also clashes heads in and returns fire!
It's a body-blow battle!
Good! Don't back down, Eiji!
The old you would be raring for a fist fight!
Don't get outpunched!
Ippo-kun...
The challenger starts to make forward progress!
Close-range fighting may be his forte...
but his inexhaustible strength is terrifying!
The scum!
It's horribly hard to punch with him leaning into me like this!
Where are you getting all this power from, you thug?!
The body attacks are sharp!
The champion's face is strained from the rigors of hard battle!
The body blows are working!
- Incredible, Makunouchi! - Stand firm, Date!
Get away from me!
Again he charges in headfirst!
Get the hell away from me!
How'd you like that?!
What?!
He's pushing back at me again.
He finally outboxes him!
H-He fell over!
Makunouchi is down!
He fell smack down the moment the champion left his side!
Like a bicycle without a kickstand!
This is completely different from the knockdown in the third round!
He clearly fell from accumulated damage!
It doesn't appear he'll be able to get back on his feet...
within the count of ten!
One! Two!
Forget the countdown!
K-Kid...
Wait! Makunouchi rises from the floor!
He's trying to stand!
- He's gonna stand! - He's still gonna fight!
Keep going, Makunouchi!
So he wasn't trying to push me back.
He was hurt so bad...
he couldn't stand without leaning on me.
Hey... Is it me you're looking for?
Your fighting spirit is terrifying.
It's so utterly fierce, I'm speechless.
Yes, that's it. I'm over here.
Get on up.
I'll put you out of your misery.
So... get on up.
Six!
Seven!
He's up on the count of seven!
The challenger has gotten back on his feet!
Makunouchi, show me your eyes.
Makunouchi is in fighting pose!
Will he fight?! Can he fight?!
This fighter is extremely difficult to judge.
Should I stop him?
What should I do? Should I throw it in?!
W-Wait, Makunouchi!
Oh, my! He goes in without waiting for the referee's call!
B-Box!
Thanks for coming closer.
Truth is...
that last body barrage really got to me.
I'm about to fall apart as well.
Now, the champion confidently gets ready!
Makunouchi gradually shrinks the distance!
Kid...
You're almost there.
Makunouchi!
Ippo...
It's too much. You can't fight any more.
All this time you couldn't stand without leaning on him.
I'm okay without the miracle.
What you're doing right now is a miracle.
He can't.
That's like asking to be beaten.
A body-blow!
The old guy has no leeway. A body-blow will make him fall.
Body-blow? You're saying that last barrage hurt him?
Now that you mention it...
Date-san isn't coming out of his corner!
That means...
Ippo, go for the body! Hit the body!
It'll make Date-san fall!
Makunouchi! Makunouchi!
A left from the champion!
A body-blow from the challenger!
- It connected! - Too shallow?
It's hurting! The champion bows over!
They go in simultaneously!
It- It only scraped?!
Date!
- This'll work! - Give him another!
The liver blow!
He's backed into a corner!
It's the perfect opportunity!
No! He wasn't backed into the corner!
The old guy only backstepped!
The swing is too wide!
Kid!
Don't stop us, Ref!
Now it's over!
Date!
H-He falls the same time the towel appears!
The towel has been thrown into the ring!
The challenger used all of his tenacity...
but the last man standing is the champion, Eiji Date!
The match is over!
I get up again
With my wounded body
Tomorrow's the only way to go
If that's the fate of the human race
I will grab tomorrow with my only hands
Even if I can't deal
With my long, long life
I don't want to mistake the place to live
With the place to die
I can't help myself
Dreaming the same dream
"Damages." Damage incurred to the body from a match.
As a general rule, boxers who have been KO'd...
are restricted from fighting for 90 days.
Body wounds I'm used to...
but the wound of losing for the first time is new.
If I fought with everything I had, that's good enough.
I can always try again. That's what I believed.
That's right. It was a good match!
The next episode is, "Heartbroken."