Minato Kiyomizu, once a water polo prodigy, saw his career derailed by a car accident in his third year of middle school. The crash left him in a 203-day coma and stripped three years of memories, erasing his recall of leading his team to victory in the Momotaro Cup and a pivotal bet with Chinu Kawakubo: she promised to date him if he became Japan’s top high school player, with a 220,000-yen penalty for failure. Prolonged hospitalization weakened his athletic build, leaving him leaner and less muscular.

Initially reluctant to return to water polo, Minato enrolled at Yamanami High School, where Eitarō Oka and Jō Jojima coerced him into rejoining the sport. His once-arrogant, self-centered nature gave way to a cheerful outlook—until a second head injury temporarily revived his pre-accident memories. This relapse erased his high school experiences, sparking resentment toward loved ones and medical staff and culminating in a violent room-trashing episode.

His family—parents Hideki and guilt-ridden Taeko, who was driving during the accident, younger sister Asumi, and pet turtle Kamekichi—supported his recovery. Meanwhile, Chinu’s bet, later revealed as partially fabricated to motivate him, deepened their bond. Teammates like timid Yoshiharu Ushimado and half-Japanese Yutaka Inomata mirrored Minato’s evolution from selfishness to valuing teamwork.

A turning point came when Minato uncovered recordings exposing his past arrogance. Though failing to defeat his former team in a prefecture match, he reconciled his past and present selves, vowing to continue water polo while owning his mistakes. His journey underscored bridging lost glory with current realities, finding purpose in forging new memories alongside his team.