Slam Dunk, Vol. 8

R to L (Japanese Style). He tried to slam her with love, but she dunked his heart. The fists continue to fly as Hanamichi and Ryota refuse to back down from their full-court rumble with a group of angry thugs. Luckily, the fight comes to an abrupt halt when Kogure--one of the more sensible members of the Shohoku squad--begins reminiscing about one of the combatant's pasts. He may be a punk now, but a little while ago, Hisashi Mitsui was a star player with almost limitless potential. Though a nasty injury cut his ambitions short, is Mitsui truly ready to give up on basketball forever?

Takehiko Inoue is the creator of one of the most popular manga of all time, Slam Dunk, which has sold over 100 million copies worldwide. He followed that series up with two titles lauded by critics and fans alike--Vagabond, a fictional account of the life of Miyamoto Musashi, and Real, a manga about wheelchair basketball. Inoue is the recipient of numerous awards, including the prestigious Tezuka Osamu Culture award and the Media Arts Festival Award. In addition to his work on manga, Inoue has worked on television commercials, character designs for video games, and is the founder of a scholarship to foster Japanese basketball talent.