When we last left off, Tsubasa and the rest of Nankatsu were facing Hanawa and its two creepy captains, Masao and Kazuo Tachibana. The Tachibana brothers have perfected a new aerial soccer technique which I can't quite decipher...Sky *something* hurricane...-_-; Lab? Love? I don't know... Anyway, they use this new technique to gain the upper hand against Nankatsu. Unfortunately for the two little guys, this technique is dangerous...Tsubasa tries to counterattack with his own aerial technique, and winds up dislocating his shoulder while protecting Kazuo from a nasty fall. He is *escorted* off the field, and Hanawa nearly beats Nankatsu in his absence.
However, you can't keep Tsubasa down for long! He returns to the game once the doc pops his shoulder back into place (ughh...) and when the twins' technique fails again, Nankatsu wins. Tsubasa rejoices with his teammates in the infirmary, and the rest of the regular cast bugs Hyuga kun for the rest of the day.
You see...a lot of nasty rumors about Hyuga kun's lack of presence in Toho's lineup are spreading around, and nobody really knows the true reason why he can't play. Finally, he decides to return to Tokyo and sit on the bench, which pretty much confirms that he has every intention of playing in the end.
In the meantime, Furano is playing against..some team, and they are not doing too well. Even with the support of his teammates and his soon to be girlfriend Yoshiko, captain Hikaru Matsuyama is really beginning to crash and burn. In the end, Furano does wind up winning...(surprise surprise) and the spotlight switches to Nankatsu once again as they prepare to face Hirado, a team of guys in striped shirts led by (huge) Hiroshi Jito.
Jito kun's team never did very well, since their captain was not very dedicated and often skipped out on practice. However, thanks to an encounter with his little buddy Michiru Sano, he learns of Tsubasa's skill and decides to defeat him. (overly confident guy...)
Jito's superior strength gives Nankatsu some serious problems, as the big guy proceeds to wreck practically everybody on the team, including Tsubasa. The poor captain of Nankatsu is hurt very badly, but regains his confidence when the forms of Misaki, Wakabayashi, and Roberto cheer him on when he passes out on the field. His new shot, while a threat to his own wellbeing, decides the game's victors. Chalk up another one for Nankatsu...and Tsubasa and Jito become friends. (So what else is new...?)
Next comes the semifinals, and a very interesting game...Toho versus Meiwa! Hmm..think I'll save that for Captain Tsubasa 203! (Hmm..is my numbering off...?)