12 - VS Aoki?

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"We are ready coach" I said with Ippo at my side after we change into a sports gear, I went ahead and put my bandages, Ippo doesn't know how to yet, so he didn't put them on.

Hmph* he grunted

He held two ropes and told us, "Do you know how to jump the rope?"

"I do" I replied easily. I glanced at Ippo and sighed...

"I think I do" Ippo added

"You're Tsuyoshi right? and you Makunouchi!" the coach looked at us

"Yes" we said at the same time.

"I won't always be for you two, I still have to train Takamura, and the gym has a lot of stuff to do, in arranging matches, there are 3 coaches in here, Shinoda, Miyata and me, you're going to be asigned to shinoda and me" He told us while giving the rope. "Start with a 10 minute rope jumping, focus on speed and endurance" 

Kazeo couldn't hold it. "Just like that?, are you not going to teach them how to?"

"Keep quiet Kid!!" Kamogawa sighed. "If you so want to know! I want to see first what do they think rope jumping is, I want to see how they do with little explanation, and I need to see before I teach them, their faults"

Kazeo gulped and actually shut up. "Sorry Coach"

Hmph* "doesn't matter, you're an enthusiastic huh?, are you a coach yourself?"

"I'm the captain of a team in our school, and I manage the training program" Kazeo replied

The coach smiled "That's nice, ask me anything you want I feel good today"

Meanwhile I started to rope jump, I noticed I was not as fast as I remember, and I had some trouble when I tried to step up a gear. Ippo... well he was rope jumping like a kid with a small rhythm, but still not quite as bad I saw in the anime, his confidence grew a lot, still he didn't survive the 10 minutes, by the 4th one he was a wreck of sweat and panting his lungs.

By the way I didn't survived too... but I got until the 9th minute.

The coach was smiling at me.

"Ok, put your gloves and follow me to the bags, put the ropes in the wall" He said and walked away.

"Tsuyoshi, yesterday you went with a lot of punches, and combinations, well let me tell you, you're not there yet... they looked amazing yes, but all of that twisting on your hip and back, it's going to end bad, start with the basics, whatever you studied about those punches is not for you yet" He looked at me in the eyes.

Then he added "And you kid, you've a devastating punch, but that is never going to connect, you have to train how to move, how to reach, and how to enter into your opponent area!, you both have a lot of talent still you're green, you need to train like there is no tomorrow!"

"Now I want you to punch the bag with your left, twice and then Punch with your right without going for the step, only twist a little your hip, so you can change the pivot and hit, this is a One-One-Two, it's a first combination for newbies" The coach raised his chin and we went for it.

It was a good start, a 1-1-2 it's really good for maintaining the distance, also for giving few damage to the other guy, I went to the bag, and put myself into a orthodox stance, and start beating the bag, it was half a minute, when I heard Ippo, copying my pace, it was then, that we had the same rythm and sound.

The coach yelled "Come on 20 more seconds, give me a speed boost"

I raised my speed, but Ippo went faster, damn I am a little overweight, he has like 15kg less than me, he is really fast with the punches, he has a really good jab.

"TIME"

I stopped my arms, and I felt the weight of the training, damn it...

"Those were 3 minutes only a round, you're going for four of them, You've 30 seconds left to rest" The coach told us.

"Damn it!" I said while holding my body on my knees.

"START" 

We went for the second round, and I could feel my arms without the first speed drive I had.

The third round was hell, I couldn't remember my first attempts to boxing classes on my past life, but damn I really need to train myself, it's not enough.

By the fourth round I decided to change my stance and go for a southpaw stance and hit the jabs with my right, but I heard the coach saying, "When did I say you could do that?, return to the basic stance and crush that left! Come on!" he almost shouted...

I gulped and returned my stance, to continue punching the bag for another 3 minutes.

When we finished, the coach told us not to sit down, and to control our breathing, he showed us how to do side steps and we did 3 rounds of them too, a whole 100 hundred crunches, I so wanted to puke at this one, and he finished with a series of 10 situps, 10 vertical jumps, four times. When we finished the menu, I was holding the side of my body in pain. I saw Ippo with the same amount of pain and I smiled a little.

I looked at Ippo and said "Hey!, at least we're not suffering alone, hahaha"

"This is a lot of work" Ippo said

The coach laughed "Kids, you do remember you're newbies and this is a newbie routine right?"

We looked at him with wide open eyes. 'Damn' I thought.

"Still, you will grow with the excersices don't worry, you still have a year before you can get your license exam, you need to be seventeen for that one" he continued.

"Tsuyos... agh your last name is hard, you're Sora" the coach mumbled. 

And then said "We're going to finish the hour of training with a spar, lets see if Takamura is free"

"Coach!!! I refuse to fight Takamura, come one coach even I know he doesn't know how to control himself, how about the dude that helped us to put our bandages?" I said before he actually called for him, I don't want to fight the last boss on my first day.

"But your weight is the same as Takamura, What are you? like 76?" The coach told me

"I'm 73 right now, and yes Takamura and me are the same weight but I don't want to fight him, shit the dude is scare as hell, also he doesn't hold back, please let me fight another person, there are a lot of people here training" I pleaded while closing one eye.

The coach groaned a little and he made an angry face, but aoki came at that time "Hey coach, I do actually want to fight him, you know, I'll rope him up" he said smiling.

Ok that was a scary thought, what the hell with the coach, do he really want to train us?, or make us go damaged, takamura is a no-no maybe in a month or two I would accept to fight him, but not right now.

The coach accepted that and said "Put on headgear kid, Aoki don't go full strength, focus on breaking his guard and let him see the speed of your jabs".

I got into the ring, and Kazeo came to be my second.

He said with a scowl "Hey bro, are you sure you want to do this?, Are you nervous?"

"I'm sure and yeah a lot haha, but still isn't it exciting?" I said with a smile

He moved his head, side to side "only you brother..., anyway, keep you guard up, i saw the combination you practiced, go for the 1-1-2, but in some times do a 1-2, or try to do the change-up, I saw your stance, give him hell"

I put the headgear and the groin guard, also I refused the mouth piece, but the coach told me that one was new, and I accepted to pay for it.

Aoki came to me and touched gloves, he wasn't Weaving the headgear neither the groin guard, he winked at me, and instantly I move my head to the side, a fierce jab tried to put me out, damn that was fast, Aoki is really fast, the anime always put him as a comedia relief, but he has a great foundation.

I hold my guard up, and keep in dodging his jabs, but then just as I dodge one, he changed the trajectory mid punch, it was the same punch I gave that guy in the morning I can't even BAM*.

"Damn, couldn't dodge" I said

"Hehe give a punch too" Aoki moved his hand provocatively.

I smiled and gave a step in, I started my combination, I threw three fast jabs, he dodged two and parry the third one, when he put his hand up, I made a feint with my right and gave another side punch with my left, giving a fourth punch with the same hand, but he backstepped and dodged that one, I move my left leg in a dash in, and threw a right just in the stomach, he received it and grunted a little, I smiled and went to BAM*

'What?, damn what happened' I moved to the ropes, and put my guard up. I tried to think, I was going for the kill with my left into a hook, and then my head was looking at the ceiling, 'Did he smashed my head with and upper?, I couldn't see it'.

Aoki didn't pursued me, so I relaxed and went again into the fight, I threw the coach 1-1-2, and keep on keeping him at bay, I actually used the advise that brother told me.

I changed my stance, and went into the same combination with my right, and I saw him smile.

"Oh?, are you also ambidex?" Aoki said and changed his stance to a southpaw like me.

I went to fight him again, I threw a jab, hook and upper with my right and he dodged all of them, them I started to see his pattern, about how he dodged and... is he closing his eyes?

I tried again, I went with four jabs with my left after I changed my stance again, I looked at him and when he saw the trajectory he closed his eyes and used his reflexes to dodge or parry.

"How?" I couldn't stop myself to say out loud.

"He's already a pro kid, and... he' s holding back"

"I didn't mean that, damn"

I focused again and went to another punch I held my hands to my stomach and dashed in, I threw a hook and twisted my body DING****

Aoki hold me and smiled, "dude the bell you have to stop"

I looked directly at him and just nodded, 'damn only one punch' I walked to the corner.

Kazeo looked at me and said "Ok I'm not gonna lie, you look amazing, but that other guy is in a different level, with only box I could not see myself win over him.

The coach came over "I want three rounds, are you up to?

"Heh! Of course, I just feel alive right now" I responded without taking my eyes off Aoki.

He smiled and went to the side.

Second Round

Aoki started with jabs, and Sora dodged most of them, while he was dodging after the 3rd or 4th jab, he retaliated with a jab from his own, but Sora couldn't hit him, Aoki went into attacking and Sora started to block instead of dodging, still he was mostly parrying all the hits, that was until Aoki started to feint, the guy was a master at that, Sora followed some of them and got a few hits in the head and the left side, but as Aoki went to hit him, he became more vulnerable and Sora also connected some hits from the side and one at the plexus.

Third Round

This time Sora wanted to mark the pace, and he dashed into the body of aoki, throwing small and concise punches to the body, Aoki was pressured into the ropes, and he blocked almost all of the hits, tanking some of them and throwing his hands too, Sora got hit by him more than the hits that he did, but it was a progress, there were still half a minute until the bell sounds.

'Damn, I want to hit him with something, I'll go with Combo 3' He thought

Sora deflected the right hook of Aoki, and started his attack, he went with 5 jabs with his left, but instead of looking for the head, he threw them to the head and the body in intervals, after he looked that Aoki succesfully blocked them, he threw a right hook, Aoki dodged and that was when he was hit with an upper.

DING** The bell sounded at that moment.

Aoki held his jaw and said "Damn that last one was really hard, you have a great punch, man!"

I tried to answer him, but I was panting heavily and couldn't do it.

Aoki smiled and he touched my shoulder with his glove, jumping down from the ring.

I went to Kazeo and he told me "Well he is really good, still you got one punch, I guess it's a Lucky punch right?"

I looked at him after I calmed myself and said "There is no such thing as Lucky punches, you train for everything and you just connect what your body remembers"

The coach walked to us and he started laughing "Good choice of words Kid, I hope most of the boxers think like that, I really like your spirit, still no more sparring for a while, I saw what I needed and now it's time to work out"

He suddenly turned his head almost like an Owl. "Now, it's your turn kid, hey Miyata can you spare Ichiro for a Spar?"

Miyata senior was near and he had a thinking face so he absentmindedly answered "eh?, yeah sure coach, come on Ichiro, put some gloves on"

Well damn, I was going to see the spar that never happened. But damn... Ippo is going to lose bad, in the original he trained for a month before the sparring...

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Miyata senior POV.

The Kid is good, for someone that trained alone.

The boy finished the bout and went to his brother, I was going to look away and I heard him clearly.

"There is no such thing as Lucky punches, you train for everything and you just connect what your body remembers"

I stopped when I heard that... 'There is no lucky punches, huh?'

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