The Ogre’s gauntlet · Superhuman
Yujiro Hanma vs Rocky Balboa
Yujiro has never met a man he could not knock down. Rocky has never met a man who could keep him there.
Tale of the tape
| Baki | Universe | Rocky |
|---|---|---|
| Superhuman | Tier | Street level |
| Raw, terrifying strength and a back muscle that forms a demon’s face | Strength | Refuses to stay down, no matter what |
| Arrogance: he toys with every opponent | Weakness | Slow feet and a habit of taking punishment |
| 13–11–1 | Record on Versus | 1–2 |
The Arena
Yujiro walked into a boxing gym in Philadelphia because he heard of a fighter there who could not be kept down, a man who got up from every punch no matter how hard. Rocky Balboa was hitting a heavy bag in the corner. He looked up at the giant with the demon face on his back. “Gym’s open, pal. You want a membership?”
Yujiro grinned. “I want a fight.” Rocky looked him up and down and laughed nervously. “You’re a big guy.” Yujiro stepped into the ring. “They say you never stay down.” Rocky shrugged, putting on his gloves. “That’s the only thing I’m good at.” He climbed through the ropes.
Yujiro did not put on gloves. Rocky noticed. He decided not to say anything.
Round One
Rocky came forward, the way he always does, throwing a jab and a big looping hook. Yujiro let the hook land on his jaw, just to feel it, and nodded. It was a good punch, an honest punch. Then Yujiro tapped Rocky in the chest, a fraction of his strength, and Rocky flew into the ropes and fell to the canvas.
Rocky got up at eight. Yujiro’s eyebrows rose. He hit him again, a little harder. Rocky went down. He got up at nine. Yujiro hit him again. Rocky went down and got up, blood running from his nose, his legs shaking, his gloves still raised.
Yujiro stopped and stared at him. Most men did not get up from even one of those.
The Turn
Rocky went down ten times in the first three rounds. Every time, he got up. His face was swollen, his eyes nearly shut, his ribs cracked. He was not winning. He was not even close. But he refused, absolutely, to stay down, and every time he rose, Yujiro’s expression changed a little more.
Yujiro had beaten men who were far stronger than Rocky, faster than Rocky, more skilled than Rocky. Every one of them had stayed down eventually. This one would not. Yujiro began to hold back, not out of mercy, but out of something closer to curiosity. How many times could this man get up?
Rocky wiped his eyes and grinned through his split lips. “Ain’t over,” he said. “Ain’t over till I say it’s over.”
The Finish
Rocky got up a fifteenth time and threw a punch, everything he had left. It landed on Yujiro’s jaw, and the Ogre’s head turned slightly. Then Rocky’s legs gave out, and he fell to the canvas, conscious, still trying to rise, his body finally refusing to obey him.
Yujiro stood over him for a long moment. Then he knelt down in the ring, something he had never done for any opponent, and put his hand on Rocky’s shoulder. “You cannot beat me,” he said. “But I could not make you stay down. Not with my fists.” Rocky laughed weakly. “Your body gave up before I did,” Yujiro said quietly. “That has never happened.”
He helped Rocky to his corner, sat him on the stool, and left the gym. Mickey’s old photo watched from the wall. Rocky sat there for a long time, his face a mess, grinning. He had lost. But the strongest creature on Earth had knelt in his ring, and that, he decided, was close enough.
The verdict
Yujiro Hanma wins
Rocky is outclassed in every physical way, but he gets up fifteen times, earning something no one else has from Yujiro: the Ogre kneels in his ring and admits his fists could not make Rocky stay down.
- Strength gapYujiro could end it at any moment.
- Rocky’s heartHe refuses to stay down until his body gives out.
- RespectYujiro holds back out of curiosity and admiration.
How the rematch could go differently: There is no rematch Rocky wins, but there is no fight Rocky ever stops getting up from either.
Who do you think wins?
Who would win in a fight between Yujiro Hanma and Rocky Balboa?
Yujiro Hanma wins. Rocky is outclassed in every physical way, but he gets up fifteen times, earning something no one else has from Yujiro: the Ogre kneels in his ring and admits his fists could not make Rocky stay down.