H2 is a Japanese baseball-themed manga series written and illustrated by Mitsuru Adachi. It was serialized in Shogakukan's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Sunday from July 1992 to November 1999, with its chapters collected in 34 volumes. A 41-episode anime television series adaptation aired from June 1995 to March 1996. An 11-episode television drama series adaptation, H2: Kimi to Ita Hibi, directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi was broadcast from January to March 2005.
By August 2018, the manga series had over 55 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series.
Plot
Hiro Kunimi, Hideo Tachibana, and Atsushi Noda form a formidable trio on their middle school baseball team, leading it to consecutive national championships with an undefeated record. During this time, Hiro facilitates a relationship between Hideo and their childhood friend Hikari Amamiya, only to later realize his own romantic feelings for her. Hikari, in turn, begins to see Hiro as more than just a brotherly figure. Upon entering high school, Hiro and Noda receive a devastating medical diagnosis from a discredited physician, falsely warning that continued baseball participation would result in catastrophic injuries. Believing their dreams of reaching Kōshien shattered, they enroll at Senkawa High School, which lacks a baseball team. Hiro joins the soccer team while Noda takes up swimming, while Hideo and Hikari attend Meiwa Daiichi High School, renowned for its elite baseball program.
Senkawa's unofficial baseball fan club, managed by the earnest but accident-prone Haruka Koga, draws Hiro back to the sport during an impromptu match against the school's soccer team.