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Wiki Ippo

Taihei Aoki (青木 泰平, Aoki Taihei) is a student at the Kamogawa gym who is being taught by Ippo Makunouchi, whom he looks up to. He used to be the leader of a group of juvenile delinquents at his school before he decided to join Kamogawa gym.

Background[]

When Taihei was in elementary school, he went to see his older brother off, but all he saw was a laughing stock. This broke his spirit and from then on, he began getting into fights. Years later, Taihei became a leader of a delinquent group. He was the most feared in his group by other students in high school, with no one wanting anything to do with him.

History[]

Part III[]

Second Step Arc[]

Taihei meeting Ippo

Taihei meeting Ippo for the first time.

Taihei and four other delinquents walked up to Teru Okazaki and began beating him up, until Ippo Makunouchi appeared and threw Taihei to the ground by his shoulder. Before the delinquents beat Ippo up when he begged the delinquents to leave, Taihei ordered the group not to fight, as he senses something off with Ippo. Taihei asked Ippo for his name before he and his group leaves.

TaiheiWaitingForIppo

Taihei waiting for Ippo at the riverbank.

Days later, after asking residents where Ippo is, he learned that Ippo runs on the riverbank every morning, waiting for Ippo to show up. When Ippo showed up, Taihei watched Ippo's shadow boxing. Amazed, he showed Ippo his shadow boxing. After Ippo began to leave, Taihei chased Ippo, asking to be taught boxing, until he falls down. Taihei was then asked why he wants to box and why not go to a gym, which Taihei replied he always liked boxing and wants to become pro immediately, and a gym would just tell him to wait before becoming a pro. Taihei then found out that Teru has talked to Ippo about how he bullied him. Taihei asked to be taught boxing, which Ippo refuses, as he doesn't trust Taihei's word or fists. When Taihei stated that he quit being a delinquent, he is asked to apologise to Teru. He later apologised and began waiting at the riverbank for Ippo. When Ippo arrived, Taihei told him that he's serious.

Taihei getting hit by Ippo

Taihei getting smacked by Ippo.

As a final test, Taihei was instructed by Ippo to catch five leaves in three days in order for Ippo to teach him boxing. After Taihei "completed" the test by throwing dirt into the air to make Ippo close his eyes and grab five leaves for him to see, Ippo took Taihei under his wing and began training him. When Taihei requested to mix up on the training as it has been focused on running, Ippo decided to do mitt practise with him. During a mitt practise session, Taihei discussed with Ippo about his big family, mostly his big brother. Afterwards, Taihei felt fired up, but Ippo ordered him to not start a fight, which Taihei reassured him that he won't. After being called out by delinquents at another school for a showdown, Taihei arrived at the designated spot where he faced against five delinquents by himself. After defeating four delinquents, he was approached by Ippo, who pleaded for Taihei to stop and tried to reason with Taihei, but Ippo was rejected and had the mitts he borrowed from Genji Kamogawa knocked out of his hands, dirtying them. As Taihei was about to fight the remaining foe, Kintarō Kaneda, Ippo approached them and threw a slap at Taihei whilst wearing a face that Umezawa would describe as "not the face of a human". The slap resulted in knocking out Taihei.

Later, Taihei met Teru outside of school and told him that he got kicked out and that he let his fellow delinquents know to not bully him anymore. Teru mentioned that just because Taihei is gone doesn't mean anything will change as he may get bullied by someone else before telling Taihei that he isn't his way to kill time. Taihei learned that Ippo wants him to file a police report on him, however, Taihei did not know what happened to him and wishes to know. However, Teru claimed he didn't know.

Bald Taihei and Kaneda greet Ippo - 02

Taihei and Kintarō requesting to become Ippo's student.

Later, with Kintarō, Taihei decided to shave his head and turn over a new leaf. Taihei and Kintarō then contacted the Kamogawa gym to tell the gym what happened and that they wanted to enrol. The two arrived and asked a bald Ippo to teach them boxing, and, after Taihei convinced him to, the two former delinquents were accepted and officially enrolled to the gym under Ippo. It was then revealed to everyone at the gym that Taihei was Masaru Aoki's younger brother. That night, Taihei and Aoki argued about their family's struggle when Aoki left them. Taihei learned from Tatsuya Kimura how Aoki was actually helping Taihei and his siblings by paying their school fees. Aoki mentioned to Taihei how he never thought twice about helping him and his other siblings.

The next day, Taihei and Kintarō went with Ippo to wait until the evening roadwork as Ippo fished with Kumi Mashiba. After seeing Kumi stroking and almost kiss Ippo's bald head, they asked Ippo how it felt, shortly getting frightened by Kumi's pressure as she claimed it was an accident and to forget about it. The next day, while sweeping outside the Kamogawa gym with Kintarō and Ippo, they were attacked by Mamoru Takamura, causing the three to run away and begin their roadwork. The three then take a break under a tree. Taihei confessed that during the leaf catching test, he threw sand up in the air to blind Ippo and show him five leaves that were already in his hand, however, Ippo claimed it is fine and to just pour his heart and soul into boxing. When Taihei expressed his joy of entering a world where he gets praised for hitting people, he remembered Ippo's beliefs about violence, and added that he meant just as a sport. Taihei and Kintarō then received a lesson from Ippo about how they see boxing and that doing what is fun is not the same as doing whatever they want. The trio were then approached by Ichirō Miyata.

Itagaki talking with Taihei and Kaneda - 01

Taihei and Kintarō having a conversation with Itagaki about Ippo and Miyata.

Taihei and Kintarō became angry at Miyata for his words towards his coach and they then began running towards him until Manabu Itagaki stopped them and pulled them away from their conversation. Itagaki informed them that Miyata is the OPBF featherweight champion. The two wondered who is stronger, but Itagaki wasn't able to answer them. When Miyata left, Taihei and Kintarō asked Itagaki why Miyata came. They then laughed, thinking little of the OPBF champion that he had to come to Ippo to figure things out. Itagaki mentioned that he heard the words "punch drunk", however, Itagaki claimed that no one confirmed that Ippo was punch drunk and explained why Ippo chose to quit boxing. Taihei and Kintarō was then called over to Ippo to continue training. Later, Taihei and Kintarō were approached by Kumi, asking about Ippo's training with them, warning them to stop Ippo from doing anything dangerous as he is punch drunk. Taihei then remembered what Itagaki claimed and realised that Kumi was the one who called Ippo punch drunk. After mentioning that Miyata had visited Ippo, Kumi got angry and told the two to let her know every time it happens, leaving Taihei agreeing while terrified of her pressure.

Taihei and Kintaro seeing the hall for the first time

Taihei seeing the Kōrakuen Hall with Ippo.

That night, Taihei and Kintarō went with Ippo to the Kōrakuen Hall, learning that the reason for Kumi's nervousness was that it was because of her brother's match coming up. Ryō Mashiba approached the three, making Taihei and Kintarō angry at Mashiba's attitude until they look at him, causing them to hide behind Ippo. Taihei and Kintarō entered the hall with Ippo while a match commenced. As Taihei mentioned that the venue was where Aoki was seen as a laughing stock, Ippo mentioned that Aoki is a true pro if he got the crowd rowdy. Ippo explained to them how the intensity of matches go up as boxers advance the number of rounds they are able to go. Taihei then watched the main event with Mashiba going against JBC lightweight champion Shinobu Iga. After the first round, Taihei was stunned witnessing Mashiba's skill, and then outraged when Iga's trainer struck Iga's face. Kintarō asked Ippo if he had been slapped during a match before. When he heard that he did, but it was for a different reason than with Iga, believing it to be a slap for a "win at any costs," Taihei still could not accept it. When Mashiba won the match, Taihei, Kintarō, and Ippo met with Aoki and Kimura.

It was soon decided that Taihei and Kintarō would go with Aoki and Kimura to the Kemuri Izakaya to let Ippo think about what he gathered from the match alone. Inside, Taihei and Kintarō were in disbelief when Kimura revealed to them that Ippo defeated Mashiba by knockout. They then continued their conversation about what they guessed what Ippo was about to say before they cut him off.

Later, Taihei went with Kintarō and Ippo to the Roigal Hotel where Takamura went to have a press conference for his middleweight title defence against Michael Goat. When it was over, Taihei carried one of Takamura's champion belts as he expressed his excitement and asked many questions about the upcoming match. Taihei and Kintarō were then instructed by Ippo that they will act as support for his seconds and to watch the match closely, without blinking. The next day, Taihei and Kintarō arrived to the Ryōgoku Kokugikan with Ippo to watch Takamura's match against Goat and to act as support for his seconds. After Takamura won the match, Taihei carried one of his belts to the Kamogawa gym, relieved that he can blink again. Pumped up from seeing the match, Taihei and Kintarō ran with Ippo, however they could not keep up.

Sendō in Mexico Arc[]

With Taihei's hair grown back, he continued his training with Ippo, doing roadwork for 6-rounders even though he was a 4-rounder. Taihei then began throwing left jabs, responding to Ippo's "one" call from the numbering system. At the Kamogawa gym, with the gym members interested in the numbering system, Taihei partook in the training as Ippo called off numbers to everyone. However, as Ippo only called out the number "one," the session to ended early due to the gym member's annoyance. Taihei recalled that they had not did a celebration party for Takamura's win yet, however they discovered that Takamura left to go on a trip, postponing the party. When Sendō Takeshi went to Mexico, he made it to the magazine where he posed with the Scamaras brothers, shocking Taihei.

Importance of the Support Role Arc[]

Taihei defeated in his first spar

Taihei losing his first spar.

A sparring tournament was being hosted at the Date gym for newcomers who had not had a pro debut match. Taihei and Kintarō went with Ippo the the Date gym and, after getting reminded what to do, Taihei quickly lost the spar, later apologising for embarrassing Ippo.

Later, Sendō and Hiroyuki Hoshi entered the Kamogawa gym as Taihei was doing mitt training with Ippo. Taihei then congratulated Sendō and Hoshi on their return as they head back home to Osaka. The next day, as Taihei was with Ippo as he fished with Kumi, Taihei and Kintarō felt scared for their life as Ippo told her what happened with him and Aikawa during his school reunion, wishing Ippo would not give details to her for their sake. Taihei and Kintarō were then relieved when Ippo mentioned that he dropped a note with contact information she gave him, preventing contact.

While doing roadwork with Ippo, Taihei learned about the struggles of Aoki and Itagaki's weight control from Ippo, and that Taihei would have to go through the same process to some extent. Taihei was worried about Aoki, as he never seen him in the spot light before as his match is coming up, but Ippo reassured him that Aoki would be fine. After Taihei noticed that one out of three boxers are missing, Ippo noted that he is worried about Kimura the most. When Kimura, Itagaki, and Aoki's matches arrived, Taihei and Kintarō were tasked by Ippo to stay in the waiting room and watch over the waiting boxers. After the three boxers won, Taihei expressed his amazement about them to Ippo, claiming that he may start holding a better opinion on his older brother. Kintarō scolded Taihei for not respecting his older brother even though he got a knockout victory, noting how hard it is to get a down.

Later, Taihei was training with Ippo until Kamogawa arrived, ending the training session as Ippo went to talk to him.

Ippo in Mexico Arc[]

When Ippo revealed to Taihei, Kintarō, and Kumi that he would go to Mexico alone for research, Taihei and Kintarō were excited for Ippo's motivation of meeting Sendō, resulting in a glare from Kumi. Later at the Kamogawa gym after Sendō and Ricardo Martinez won their matches in Mexico, Taihei was shadowboxing as the gym members discussed the event. As the group talked about Kimura's Kappa styled hair, Takamura declared that if anyone laughs at Kimura, they would have to pay one million yen or get deported. When they mentioned Mexico, Taihei and Kintarō were saddened as they remember Ippo since he is in Mexico. When Ippo was spotted walking to the gym, Taihei and Kintarō excitedly welcomed him back. As Ippo went up to the rooftop to meet everyone, he gave everyone wrestling masks that he got from Mexico as a souvenir. When Kimura took off his Kappa wrestling mask, his wig came off along with it, showing his Kappa hairstyle which matches the mask, causing everyone, including Taihei, to laugh as Kimura shouted for everyone to pay up.

Keith Dragon Arc[]

Kamogawa gym members looking at Dragon's profile

Taihei learning about Dragon from his profile.

At the Kamogawa gym, while Taihei did mitt practise with Ippo while using the numbering system, Ippo mistakenly blocked a six (right hook) like a three (left hook), causing the mitt to hit his face and his nose to bleed. As Taihei apologised, Ippo reassured him that it is fine, and Shinoda mentioned that he has no need to apologise as it was Ippo's fault for catching it wrong. With the gym members talking about Takamura's confirmed WBC super middleweight title match coming up, Haruhiko Yagi revealed to everyone that the match will take place in Japan and he gave Ippo the champion's profile, which was in English. As Ippo and Itagaki translated it to Japanese, Taihei learned that the champion's name is Keith Dragon and he learned about Dragon's boxing information. When Ippo got to Dragon's hobby, he had trouble translating the word. Taihei and Kintarō recognised it as "mahjong". Later, Taihei and Kintarō were doing early morning roadwork with Ippo, who revealed to the duo that they will take their pro test when their birthdays pass. After Ippo spotted Takamura, Taihei and Kintarō fell from exhaustion. The duo overheard Ippo and Takamura's conversation about how Kamogawa and Yagi wished to have a match at the Tokyo Dome and that Takamura was determined for him and Ippo to take Kamogawa there. As Ippo ran with Takamura, Taihei and Kintarō realised that they were forgotten. Taihei was sure that Takamura and Ippo would take them to the Tokyo Dome. Later, when Ippo was worried about Takamura due to Itagaki claiming that his luck might have reached it's limit, Ippo got a variety of good luck items. Taihei and Kintarō went with Ippo to the Kamogawa gym carrying the items so that Ippo could put them around the gym.

Later at the Kamogawa gym, while Aoki, Kimura, and Itagaki were talking about how Ippo's occult obsession is only hurting himself and that it won't matter in the match, Kintarō pointed out how sports players pray to God or have superstitions, believing that they should at least try if it could help any. After hearing the three disagree, Taihei and Kintarō wondered if they suggest that there is no God. Kamogawa overheard the conversation and told the group that it is irrelevant whether there is a God or not, as one only has their own two fists in the ring to believe in and that good luck and miracles will only appear when they believe in their fists and never betray them. After the typhoon only took one day to pass, Taihei and Kintarō, who were excited to go running again since it felt like they were skipping training, did roadwork with Itagaki.

Later, Taihei went to Takamura's press conference for his match against Dragon and the Hirosue afterwards to eat. Walking back to the Kamogawa gym, Taihei was explained by Ippo how Takamura was a lot more calm while he ate compared to his previous weight controls, and that the weight control is different for everyone, but it is harsh for Takamura. Before he ran off, Takamura requested for Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō to meet him at the Chūka Soba after they drop off his champion belts at the gym. That night, Taihei, Ippo, along with the rest of the Kamogawa gym boxers went to the Chūka Soba, however, Takamura was late. When Taihei and Kintarō mentioned how they don't want Takamura to lose against someone who plays around with mahjong, Kimura noted how Dragon has been practising as the match loomed closer, criticising the belief that boxers have to quit their hobbies when a match is nearby, pointing out how frightening it is that someone like Dragon is able to switch his stress on and off easily. As everyone got worried, Taihei found out from Ippo that Takamura even prayed at a shrine. After Taihei and everyone else became worried about Takamura when Ippo found the voodoo doll he was supposed to give to Takamura for good luck, everyone became unimpressed of Takamura as he showed up looking in bad shape, claiming that Tomoko Yamaguchi threw him out again.

The next day, Taihei went to the Ryōgoku Kokugikan for Takamura WBC super middleweight title match against Dragon. Taihei and Kintarō helped Ippo by gathering ice to be put in an ice bin for when Takamura's match starts. The two tried to get a trainer to give them ice before being stopped by Ippo. The trainer, Oguchi did not say Ippo's name properly, causing the two to act hostile towards him before being stopped again by Ippo, who made Taihei and Kintarō apologise. After Ippo talked to Oguchi's boxer, Daisuke Watanabe, and Daisuke left for his match, Taihei and Kintarō watched and cheered with Ippo for Daisuke during the match since he looks up to Ippo just like them, until he wins his match by knockout. Taihei and Kintarō become excited as they can not wait for the day when they celebrate with Ippo after they win. Taihei went to Takamura's dressing room with Kintarō, where they had trouble building Takamura's costume that was designed by Wataru Takamura. However, with the help of Ippo, the costume was made in time for Takamura's match. After Takamura defeated Dragon, becoming the new WBC super middleweight champion, Taihei helped pack up everyone's belongings.

Grim Reaper to the World Arc[]

At the Kamogawa gym, Taihei mentioned to Itagaki how he is in high spirits after watching Takamura's super middleweight world title match and wanted to know when he will come back so that a victory party can be thrown. Itagaki claimed that Takamura usually takes trips to relax, so he won't be back for a bit, upsetting Taihei. While on a break from doing roadwork with Ippo and Kintarō, Taihei asked Ippo about the left body blow, as he knew that boxers do it differently. Ippo demonstrated how he does it by lightly pressing up under Taihei's ribs, causing him and Kintarō to be surprised and ask Ippo if he could win a match still. Later, at the Kamogawa gym, he sparred with Kintarō under Ippo's watch as the gym members discussed the news of Ricardo having a match against Wally instead of Sendō. A week before Mashiba's world title preliminary match, Taihei did roadwork with Ippo and Kintarō. While on break, Ippo commented how Taihei and Kintarō are able to keep up now, which the duo replied that their goal is to surpass him and pointed out how the boxers close to Ippo have been making noise on the world stage.

Later, while doing roadwork with Ippo and Kintarō, Taihei found out from Ippo that he is going back to Mexico to see Wally and Volg's matches and is excited to see the people who he crossed paths with going higher and fighting where monsters reign. Taihei and Kintarō thought that since Ippo beat the boxers that he is talking about, that makes him the real monster.

Alpha and Omega Arc[]

Taihei and Kintarō excited about getting stronger

Taihei excited about getting stronger.

While doing roadwork with Ippo and Kintarō, Takamura approached and scared Taihei and Kintarō even though his goal was to scare Ippo, however, the latter was running too fast. After Ippo and Takamura talked, they ran together, leaving Taihei and Kintarō in shock of how they can't even see them anymore. Later, Taihei was fishing with Ippo, Kumi, and Kintarō, as Ippo and Kumi talked about Mashiba's jaw being broken during his match against Juan and Ippo going to Mexico to see Wally and Ricardo's match. When Ippo mentioned that he has a new goal, Taihei asked what it was. Ippo answered that it was to make sure that Taihei and Kintarō win as professional boxers, making Taihei excited and moved. Taihei was unimpressed with Ippo after he became embarrassed when Kumi thanked him for something. Later, since Ippo went to Mexico, Taihei and Kintarō did mitt practise with Shinoda. The practise ended when Shinoda needed to stop since his wrists were hurting. Aoki was surprised that their punches were hurting the veteran trainer, leading Taihei and Kintarō to get excited about their gained power. Taihei and Kintarō explained that mitt practise with Ippo is like punching concrete, so they have to focus, and only hit the mitts when their fists are hardened and straight. They added how Ippo has also started knocking their punches down.

Ippo being welcomed by Kumi, Wanpo, Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō

Taihei greeting Ippo as he came back from Mexico.

Later, Taihei watched the WBA featherweight title match between Wally and world champion Ricardo on TV at the Kamogawa gym with Itagaki and Kintarō. He was more interested in what Ippo was doing than the actual match. Three days after Ricardo defeated Wally, Taihei was outside with Itagaki and Kintarō. Ippo's pupils asked when Ippo will be coming back. Itagaki claimed that Wally was hospitalised after the match and is still unconscious, so nobody is leaving his side. When Kumi approached the three, as she heard that Ippo would be there, Taihei and Kintarō talked about how great Ippo was being a second for a world title match, and thought that Ippo may say that he wants to have a match again, irritating Kumi. After seeing Wanpo chasing a black cat, Taihei and Kintarō told Kumi that the cat has been coming to the area at some point and Wanpo likes him, but the cat just finds him annoying, wondering why the cat keeps coming back. Taihei and Kintarō noted that Wanpo has more destructive power, so he only needs to get one hit in, but he is too nice just like his owner. After the cat left, Kumi decided to go fishing while waiting for Ippo to get back, while Taihei, Kintarō, Itagaki, and Wanpo followed. When Ippo came back from Mexico, Taihei excitedly greeted him.

Judgement Day Arc[]

Taihei and Kintarō excited about Ippo letting them take on the pro test

Taihei and Kintarō excited about Ippo letting them take on the pro test.

While Ippo talked with Kumi, Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō, he mentioned how his visit in Mexico left him heated up to the point where he couldn't stand it anymore and had to get it handled when he came back to Japan. When Taihei and Kintarō mentioned that he must have thought he wanted to fight too, Kumi glares at them. Itagaki explained to Taihei and Kintarō that Kumi gets irritated when someone talks like that. Ippo gave everyone masks as souvenirs from Mexico. The group then went to the Makunouchi Fishing Boat to eat dinner that Hiroko made. Later, while doing roadwork, Taihei and Kintarō told Ippo how they have been having an easier time training, and their confidence has improved as well. The two students expressed their desire to take the pro test to become pro boxers. Ippo, reluctant at first, decided to go through with their request, making the duo excited. Ippo wondered why they are so excited about it, but remembers he was the same way, thinking that the door to a gym is like a gateway to another dimension. Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō ran to the Kamogawa gym to ask Kamogawa and Yagi about the pro test.

Itagaki, Nanako, Taihei, and Kintarō outside of the Mashiba household where Ippo is at

Itagaki, Nanako, Taihei, and Kintarō outside of the Mashiba household where Ippo is at.

At the Kamogawa gym, when Minoru Fujii and Mari Īmura arrived to the gym to tell the gym members about Mashiba and Sendō's comments about their upcoming world title matches, Kamogawa revealed Takamura, Kimura, and Itagaki's upcoming match. Taihei and Kintarō told the reporters that they got some stuff coming up as well, however, Fujii and Mari don't know who the two are. Later, Taihei and Kintarō rushed over to the Mashiba residence after hearing from Nanako Itagaki that Ippo was in trouble. When they got there and were ready to go in the house, Itagaki, who was also there, told the three to not get involved as it would just make things worse. The group watched from outside until Ippo ran away from the home in high spirits. The next day, Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō did roadwork while the three plan to cheer for Mashiba. When they got to the Kamogawa gym, Taihei partook in mitt practising with Ippo. Later, Taihei was excited after landing a hit on Kimura while sparring. Kimura started retaliating with a barrage of punches. Ippo told him to stop, as he shouldn't go serious on someone who hasn't even debut, but Taihei claimed that Kimura was pulling his punches. Later, Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō watched from afar as Ippo talked to Miyata, who believed Sendō will lose to Ricardo. Taihei and Kintarō guessed that Miyata is nice sometimes even if he seems real cold and Kumi hates him. Later, watching Ippo and Kumi talking about fishing from afar, Taihei and Kintarō noticed how Ippo's face gets red whenever he talks to Kumi and Miyata, wondering who his number one is.

Taihei and Kintarō not getting Kimura's speech about the feeling of a boxer before a match

Taihei and Kintarō not getting Kimura's speech about the feeling of a boxer before a match.

Later, as Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō do roadwork together, Itagaki caught up to them. Itagaki revealed to the three that he is on fire. Ippo was confused as he doesn't have a smartphone, while Taihei and Kintarō quickly caught on, looking at their smartphones and seeing Itagaki's Pekitter pekeet about Mashiba going viral. Later, at the Kamogawa gym, Taihei learned from Yagi as he informed the gym members, that Mashiba's world title match opponent Marcus Rosario is missing, shocking the group. Taihei and Kintarō thought that if Rosario doesn't go to his match, then he loses by forfeit, making Mashiba the new world champion. Itagaki corrected them, explaining that if Rosario were to forfeit the match, he would no longer be champion, but that means that the title will be vacant, and they will find another opponent to decide the new champion. Taihei and Kintarō became excited, because that means Mashiba may fight a weaker opponent to get the belt easier. Kimura told the duo that when they become professional boxers and have matches, they will understand as well. Kimura explained the feelings a boxer has before a match, however, Taihei and Kintarō were unable to understand Kimura's speech.

Appearance[]

Taihei Appearance

Taihei's appearance.

Taihei has the eyebrows like his brother but his hair is blonde and shaped into a pompadour although he has since shaved his head so he is bald currently. He has a slightly muscular build but has grown slightly more due to Ippo's training.

Personality[]

Taihei & Ippo

Taihei's good side.

His personality is very boldly shown, as very ruthless and wild. Eyes of murderous intentions, itching to be involved in a fight. Despite his fierce personality, he also has a rather good side hidden inside him. He has shown signs of blushing or being extremely happy, even acknowledging Ippo as his training master, happily accepting being his disciple. Taihei is very similar to his brother as he loves to fight but while Masaru was content on simply causing some chaos with Kimura, he was in it to destroy everything. This changed after getting hit by Ippo as now he learns to fight for his own reasons other than destruction.

As the result of Masaru Aoki being a laughingstock, he became resentful towards his older brother, becoming a rebel, thinking that he himself is struggling and fighting for his life with the family, while his brother is free, until he learned that his brother is giving the school fees towards the family, which make his opinion grew a bit higher than his usual scorn towards his brother. Just like the rest of the gym members, he has high sense of humour, as he laughed with the others at Kimura's kappa hair. He also fears Mamoru Takamura, Kumi Mashiba, and Genji Kamogawa when they are in a bad mood. However, he admires Takamura for being a champion, as he carried one of his champion belts and watched his matches.

Boxing Abilities[]

Taihei mitt training

Taihei doing some Mitt Training with Ippo.

Taihei has shown a lot of potential in his training with Ippo, as he's one of a few who managed to keep up with him, if not the only one. Since he is a delinquent, he was surely involved in a lot of fights, making him the way he is. He has shown to be very skilful in terms of street fighting. As Ippo trains with him, he notices his swings a lot, leaving his body wide open weak for counters, explaining to him one of his first mistakes.

His first major weakness showed itself quickly during the first run. Taihei has very little stamina and runs out of energy quickly as he grew tired after just going to the river bridge. He has improved somewhat after a few runs but still has trouble around the river area.

He learned to snap his fists faster than Ippo did in the past, learning how to do jabs.

He gets excited when he is about to punch, itching to hit, wild instincts that a fighter would have. By training with Ippo, he is eligible to improve.

Etymology[]

  • The name Taihei means "peace, tranquillity" (泰平).
  • Taihei's surname Aoki means "blue, green" (青) (ao) and "tree, wood" (木) (ki).
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