Original subtitles

Stay focused!

There's only one week left until the competition.

Yes!

Joe's battle is around the corner.

Sekigahara, here we come, indeed!

Se

ki

ga

ha

ro

Huh?

Is there another Sekigahara that day, too?

"The Gymnastics Samurai"

You're in excellent condition.

Just know that this NHK Cup

won't be an easy fight.

You'll have to compete against the top gymnasts of the next generation.

Minamino, too, of course.

Face it as if you were a beginner again.

Got it?

Don't forget what you've set out to do--

Huh?

I'm sorry.

Did you say, "Don't forget the shachihoko?"

Just pick up!

Will you be home late tonight again?

Yeah.

I'm having a meeting with Amakusa after practice,

so I might not be home until just before eight.

Got it.

I'll be waiting with dinner ready!

Rei's coming to see this competition, right?

Yes.

I can't disappoint her, no matter what.

You know...

I invited my daughter, too.

And this is what happened.

If u gimme lots of money

I...

I...?

Can you believe it?!

She sent that to her father!

So I replied like this.

I'll up UR allowance nxt month

I...

U...

U...?

Am I too easy on her?

What do you think?

Episode 5 Battling Samurai

Go... Go... Go...

Ah! Godzilla!

Last Action Hero.

Ro... Ro...

RoboCop!

Project A!

"A"?!

A...

"Alien."

Too bad!

You can't end with "n"!

No!

I've lost!

I win!

You've picked up a lot, Leo!

You started living with us in November, right?

That means it's been half a year!

Time sure does fly, indeed.

By the way, is something happening on July 5th?

What?

Oh, that day is actually...

...my birthday!

Oh? Your birthday?

Yup!

We follow a very important family rule.

The whole family spends the day together on our birthdays.

So that day, Dad will be home all day, too.

It's what Mom decided.

That sounds like a great birthday.

For this year...

Will you celebrate with us, too?

Huh?

B-Because you're...

...practically family... right?

That's why!

Family...?

I-Is that okay...?

Of course I will!

It's a promise, indeed!

Yes!

It's a promise, indeed!

Break it, and you're subject to seppuku.

Hara-kiri?!

"NHK Cup" "The Samurai Will Also Compete"

"42nd NHK Cup Gymnastics" "May 30, 2003 (Fri) and May 31, 2003 (Sat)"

Under the clear sky, the day has finally come!

It's the 42nd NHK Cup!

This year's competition has gained more attention than usual.

That is because the next generation of young gymnasts are competing

to brush away the long years of recession from the gymnastics world.

Where's Jotaro?

Doing his usual thing.

All right!

Huh?

Ah.

Oh...

Hey.

Oh?

It's been a while, Jotaro.

Nakanomori!

Yes, it's been a while.

I watched your retirement, no, retirement retraction press conference.

You always liked to surprise people.

It's like when you suddenly announced your marriage to an actress.

Let go.

Greetings are important...

...among fellow competitors.

Fellow... you say?

Don't let your shoulders get cold before the actual competition...

Tecchan.

Sorry about that.

I'm not the most competent coach.

Not at all...

He's still young,

but his talents are real.

I believe he'll be a leader in the gymnastics world

from here on out.

Whoa!

So this is Joe's battlefield

of Sekigahara, indeed!

All right, Leo.

"Jotaro Aragaki"

"Jo" Let's put in our all, too, and root for Dad!

But of course!

The competitors will now make their entrances.

Former Olympic athlete, Takashi Kamimura, joins us today as a commentator.

Mr. Kamimura, are there any competitors you're especially curious about?

That would be the young gymnasts who have been standing out in recent years.

First up, we have last year's third-place winner of the nationals,

Jun Dojima of Hokokukai.

We have Shigeru Nishikiori of Rittai University who placed second in the nationals last year.

And here is Hiroshi Okamachi of Shirando University.

He's the champion of both last year's nationals and NHK Cup,

and currently stands at the top of the gymnastics world.

However, as a competitor who threatens his successive championship title,

we cannot forget about Tetsuo Minamino of Play Sports.

He's popularly known as the "Bandana Prince" these days.

He's grown drastically in the past year.

Even as a high schooler, his growth is truly impressive

and people are already calling him the ace of the future.

It is likely that these four will be the ones struggling for victory in this competition.

The gymnast who caused a buzz surrounding his retirement,

Jotaro Aragaki of Yotsuba Sports Club will also compete this year.

Aragaki, huh?

He's been in a slump these past few years.

Based on his performance at last year's nationals, this will be a hard fight for him.

You've got this, Dad!

Show them your gymnastics, Joe!

Go, Takizawa!

Thirty-six gymnasts are competing at this year's tournament.

They will be divided into groups of six and will rotate through events.

In the first floor event, ace Okamachi performs first.

He executes a sharp roundoff

before a double Moonsault!

A powerful, highest-difficulty level-E technique!

His landing was perfect, too!

Okamachi is a gymnast who performs with great finesse.

Each technique is extremely polished

with a high degree of perfection.

Please watch.

See how his toes point straight up at the ceiling during his handstand?

It's truly beautiful.

You don't just compete for the difficulty of techniques in gymnastics.

The beauty of the posture during execution

is crucial to obtain points, too.

A truly magnificent performance from Okamachi.

We can expect a high score.

Floor

There it is! 9.475!

As expected from the reigning champion!

A high score at his first event!

The second event is the pommel horse.

"Do" Go, Dojima!

Dojima executes a flair spindle...

...into a level-E combination!

A truly lively and bold performance!

His pommel horse skills have stood out since his high school years.

He's so talented, he's been called the "Child of the Pommel Horse."

Pommel Horse

9.425!

Another high score!

"1st place: Jun Dojima" "2nd place: Hiroshi Okamachi" "3rd place: Yusuke Kuwahara"

Take a look over here.

Nishikiori is on the still rings.

He goes from an L-cross Honma

and pulls up with straight arms to a Maltese cross.

He safely executes E-level skills!

With still rings, upper-body muscle strength is crucial.

Look at his stability. It's wonderful.

The score should come up soon.

Still rings

9.450!

Nishikiori scores a 9.450!

In the current standings, a narrow margin separates Okamachi, Nishikiori and Dojima!

But even those three haven't been able to reach the top!

Who expected to see this kind of development?

Currently at the top...

"1st place: Tetsuo Minamino" "2nd place: Hiroshi Okamachi" "3rd place: Shigeru Nishikiori" ...is Minamino!

The one who stands at the top, surpassing the reigning champion

is Tetsuo Minamino!

NHK Cup Preliminaries Minamino Takes Off at 1st Place Tetsuo Minamino

How does it feel to surpass Okamachi, the reigning champion

and place first after finishing all six events on the first day?

I don't care.

Gymnast Minamino currently stands in first place.

There are other strong players there,

so let's see if he can get through the second day as well.

Jotaro Aragaki Horizontal Bars

You're in 15th place, Joe!

Your performance was great, too, Dad!

You didn't do bad at all!

That's right, indeed!

Even if you placed really low, there's no need to feel down!

It's okay.

This is the best I've felt in years!

That's what I thought!

So you knew, huh?

Then!

You'll have to beat 14 competitors at once, indeed!

Huh?

Huh?

Speaking of comebacks!

♪ Wild thing! ♪

♪ You make my heart sing! ♪

No good!

"42nd NHK Cup Gymnastics" "May 30, 2003 (Fri) and May 31, 2003 (Sat)"

Three events have finished so far, and we're currently on the vault.

Following the first day's momentum,

"1st place: Tetsuo Minamino" "2nd place: Jun Dojima" "3rd place: Shoichi Nakano"

the second day has been filled with incredible performances.

But nobody can seem to stop Minamino.

How will Okamachi do?

Unfortunately, Okamachi hops on his landing.

His landing wasn't perfect, but we can still expect a high score.

The score's coming in.

Vault

9.400!

He flaunts a soulful performance, as if to say he won't give away his title.

Up next is Minamino.

Yesterday, he showed us his layout Cuervo with a single twist on the vault.

He stuck it!

Minamino finishes with an impressive perfect landing!

Let's watch it in slo-mo.

That was the Driggs.

It's a higher skill level technique than the layout Cuervo.

He continues to impress with his high-level techniques!

Let's see his score.

Vault

9.550!

He has surpassed Okamachi's score!

The higher the difficulty level, the more likely it is for you to fail.

But he raised it anyway.

What is Minamino's motive to take such risk when he's at the top...?

We don't exist to him.

It's not just us.

It's this whole competition.

He's using it to test and see how far he can go.

What a jerk...

We are seeing error after error.

They must be feeling the pressure from Minamino's performance.

It only proves there's something frightening about his performance this year.

I wonder if Dad's okay.

No need to worry about Joe!

Look at him...

He's smiling.

We have to root for him with a smile, too, Rachel!

Yeah!

The NHK Cup has been a two-day competition,

which will come to an end with this final event.

What?

Are you curious?

Not really.

I heard from Amakusa.

Sounds like you made quite the demand.

Well, today's Jotaro...

Whoops, that has nothing to do with you.

That's right. It doesn't matter.

Go as far as you'd like.

Today is undoubtedly your day.

Minamino faces the final event, the horizontal bar.

All eyes are focused on his performance,

as if they are anticipating the moment of the birth of a new ace!

What a giant swing.

That's a Kolman!

His performance shows he's not feeling any pressure!

Truly a man with an iron heart!

To win.

That's all that matters.

Success!

Minamino's performance was wonderful until the end!

The gymnast who conquered the 42nd NHK Cup...

...was Tetsuo Minamino!

Based on the NHK Cup results,

the representative members of the 38th World Championships

to be held in August have been determined.

"38th World Championship Representative Members" This will be Minamino's second World Championships.

His first was last year.

His recent rapid progress may be due to his experience during that tournament.

It's possible for one occasion to trigger impossibly great growth.

I lost this time.

But, to face the world, I can't keep losing either.

This year's competition saw quite the upsurge, which has been rare in recent years.

Yes.

The fact that the top-rankers are young tells me the next era is here.

Speaking of top-rankers, Aragaki placed 6th.

I believe he finished at 15th on the first day.

It's because the other gymnasts lost points

due to the pressure they felt from Minamino's performance.

Would you say he was saved by others' mistakes?

No, actually, his performance was very meticulous.

Back in the day, when he was known as the Samurai,

there was some roughness behind his dynamic performances.

But I saw none of that this time.

His gymnastics has dramatically changed from preceding years.

Oh, Grandma?

Yup, it just ended.

Dad placed 6th!

I'm done, Leo!

Hm?

Leo?

We finally found you.

Dad!

Have you seen Leo?

What?

He disappeared suddenly!

I wonder if he got lost...

Leo's...

...right there.

What?! Leo?!

Where were you?!

It's my Ninja Art: The Art of Disappearing, indeed!

What?

I've set out on a journey for training, indeed Leo

Huh?

Milk...

Dad!

Look at this!

I've set out on a journey for training, indeed Leo "...journey for training..."?

I've checked his room, but he wasn't there!

He must've gone out to play somewhere, like usual.

He did... right?

So? Have you rested enough?

Yes.

I had three full days of rest.

Regarding the NHK Cup...

The small flaws you had previously were pretty much non-existent.

You've cleared the task of increasing the precision of your skills.

Next, we'll tackle the high-level techniques.

The hurdle will be raised,

but if you can't master them, you won't get to go to Athens next year.

Right now, there are talks about holding a Japan-China joint training camp.

Notice for Japan-China Joint Training Camp

You're one of the potential gymnasts to participate in it.

Really? With China?

That's right.

The ultimate Chinese team that placed first at last year's World Championships.

The objective is to heighten each other's techniques, each nation with our top gymnasts.

China's super-ace, Liu Longxiang will be there, too.

The champion of the individual all-around event.

Even what our new champion,

Minamino, scored at the last competition

isn't comparable to Liu's.

Notice for Japan-China Joint Training Camp I'm sure it'll be helpful for you right now.

When does it start?!

The dates are from July 1st to the 6th.

What?

You busy then?

July...

Right on the mark.

My wish came true.