A Nation's Hopes is Round 1021 of Jōji Morikawa's Hajime no Ippo manga series.
Details[]
- Title Page Character(s): Ippo Makunouchi, Ichirō Miyata, Takeshi Sendō, Manabu Itagaki.
Summary[]
At the Monthly Boxing Fan, after Mari and Fujii's assistant leave, Fujii remembers how he first met Ippo when he went to the Kamogawa gym to interview Miyata before his pro debut and saw Miyata lose in a spar against the newcomer Ippo. He remembered Ippo showing great potential after becoming pro by winning the Rookie King Tournament and Class A Tournament. He saw that Ippo's road to victory was a dangerous one, as his fighting style would lead him to getting knocked down multiple times and receive a lot of beatings, but he would keep rising up to pull off miraculous come-back victories. He believes that Ippo's greatest weapon and what helped him capture the heart of the nation was his ambidextrous destructive power, dashing speed, and courage to press forward without fear, and by the time he became the JBC champion, he was one of the main attractions in the Japanese boxing world. Fujii believes that Ippo's match against Alfredo may lead to the world title challenge, and that Alfredo's chilling words that everyone should not expect too much from Ippo is the opposite from the reality, as people are hoping that Ippo overcomes this hurdle and go on to true glory in the world stage, as Ippo's fists may already carry the hopes of the nation. He also believes that Mashiba, Miyata, and Sendō seem to be outgrowing in the pacific region, and a new generation of stars in Itagaki and Imai are ready to take the spotlight. Fujii believes that regardless of the outcome, the landscape of the featherweight class will radically change. Outside the Kōrakuen Hall, Mari and Fujii's assistant see Mashiba and Sendō waiting outside. Mashiba tells the reporters how he doesn't care about the main event, only wanting to see the JBC featherweight title match. Mari thinks that Mashiba, part of the Makunouchi Generation, wants to see how the main event plays out. Mashiba and Sendō gets irritated at hearing them being called part of the Makunouchi Generation, but Sendō thinks it can' be helped since him and Mashiba both lost to him. When Sendō reveals to the reporters how he defeated Ippo in a spar recently, Mashiba comments how Ippo has gotten weaker. As Mashiba walks away, Sendō asks where his sister is, as he has a crush on her, but Mashiba gets irritated and yells out something about Ippo and Kumi before stopping, making Sendō confused. Mari asks Mashiba and Sendō if they think Ippo has gotten weaker or stronger now, but the duo claims that that is why they came to find out as they walk inside the venue. Nearby, Miyata gets ready to walk inside. Inside, Ippo asks some people what match is currently going on, and, when they claim it is on the fourth one, Ippo thanks then and leaves.
Trivia[]
- There is a panel in the chapter, where it looks like Ichirō Miyata has a giant pencil for hands, or carrying a pencil]. But in actuality, there is giant pencil shaped directs around the area.