Best Comback in Sasuke

[darthvaderlim]

What do you think are the best combacks in Sasuke, such as clearing Stage One a long streak of fails, etc. ?
1- Akiyama in Sasuke 11 and 12, took him nearly 4 years to clear Stage One after his Kanzen and almost returned to the final in 12. If only he had more runs like this.
2- Shingo in Sasuke 23, one of my favorites imo despite his Third Stage attempt being cut short by injury, but it was the last time he cleared Stage Two.
3-Yuuji in Sasuke 34 and 36, after threatening to retire if he failed Stage again, Yuuji not only broke the streak, but became the oldest person to clear the Cliffhanger and Vertical Limit.
4-Ryo in Sasuke 36, after several Stage One fails, he somehow managed to save himself on the UCCH which was quite unexpected.
5-Nagano in Sasuke 27, this is honestly on of my favorites, since even though I knew he was going to fail the Ultimate Cliffhanger, I was hoping to see how he would handle the Second Stage and he did it in the nick of time. You can tell he looked nervous on the Metal Spin.
6-Asaoka Hiroyuki in Sasuke 10 and 12, after three Jump Hang fails, he not only returned to Stage Three, but made it to the final in 12.
7-Kenji Takahashi in Sasuke 23, he not only used the Kong Cross technique on the Shin-Cliffhanger, but would have cleared if he didn't fail like Yamada from Sasuke 10.

[LusitaniaAngel313]

I always mentioned Shingo in SASUKE 23 was his comeback! But tbf I would also mention him in SASUKE 29 considering he was also the first to clear and at a lower number than usual.

[tns8597]

I think the best comebacks are those that aren't just simple flukes, those that aren't just for example: 1st stage failure streak -> 3rd stage -> more 1st stage decline.

For me, Shingo's comeback in 23 was exciting to watch but didn't really have any tangible impact on his future performances as he continued to not do that well in the coming tournaments, and failed Stage 1 on an identical course in the following competition. Same with Nagano: he made Stage 3 once but then continued to fail Stage 1 afterwards, and even when he did make Stage 3, he barely cleared Stage 2 and went out on the Cliffhanger. He wasn't the same destructive force he was before and it was an exception to the rest of his performances around that time so for me it sort of dampened the impact of the run in the grander scheme of things. Besides, it didn't stop Inui wanting to retire him the following tournament (stupid I know).

As a result I think the best comebacks would have to be Kongu, Yuuji, and Asaoka. I can't decide which one to put first, second, and third. As mentioned before most 'comebacks' are one last stand in the Third Stage but Kongu and Asaoka have this rare distinction where they actually came back STRONGER than before after a long period of decline and kept up this performance consistently, even making the Final Stages which they never did pre-decline. Yuuji's comeback obvs still didn't put him in the same light as his pre-RISING years, but the fact that he's come back at all and made it deep into Stages 2 and 3 multiple times and in his 40s as well is really something we've never seen before. Most competitors by this age had entered a non-recoverable decline like most of the All-Stars. Also bear in mind that Stage 3 now is much harder than when Yuuji was in his prime (Shin-Sasuke), so he may even be stronger than he was in his Kanzen years.

[Ninja Relaxer]

Yuuji's was the one that impressed me the most and gave me the most joy, but that might be because he's one of my favorite competitors.

[GlobalNinjaFan]

A bit cliche, but Yuuji's recent comeback is really something else. Multiple Stage 2 and 3 appearances, and performances that have propelled him right back into the upper echelon of Sasuke contenders. Considering it took him the better part of 10 tournaments to get his groove back, it's definitely one of the greatest comebacks in history.

[hoseasasuke]

Easily Yuuji's recent comeback.

[sasukefinnja]

I would also say Yuuji's recent comeback. Reason for that is how he has been able maintain his level as a top competitor so well. Those other comebacks have been ''one tournament comebacks'' but Yuuji has done really solid performances since he came back to the top.

[tns8597]

I think what makes Yuuji's comeback so special is how 3 years ago I think we all just felt like he was done for; 29-33 was pretty much a constant regression. 29 he would've cleared Stage 2 if it wasn't for the hazardous Backstream, 30 he timed out even with an extra 20 seconds and a toned down Backstream, 31 he failed the wall, then 32 and 33 he failed even earlier in Stage 1. I genuinely felt like his Stage 2 run in Sasuke 34 was all he had left in the bag, then two tournaments later BOOM.

I was confident that was a fluke and that he was just going to fail Stage 1 again in 37, but then he nearly reached the Final Stage AT 41 YEARS OLD, and 8 years after his last Final Stage attempt. I'm confident he could've done it in 38 had it not been for Stage 2, and even there it was a close call.

A lot of people still say his window is closing but I think that's just because most competitors by their early 40s are pretty much done for and usually have already retired by then (like most of the All-Stars, Kongu, etc.), but no one has achieved what he has at that age, so I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he continues making Stage 3 for the next few years. He has an exceptional level of youth for his age, the only issue being the higher risk of injury as he gets older and also a pending renewal which have prompted steep declines in results (like the All-Stars in Shin-Sasuke, Kanno post-Sasuke 31, etc.) due to the harder difficulty. I'm still confident in Yuuji's resilience though.