Aoba Tsukishima

Aoba Tsukishima is the main protagonist of Cross Game series. She is the 3rd sister of Tsukishima Family.

Kou Kitamura
Kou and Aoba are almost alike and people tend to think that so. They also fight a lot as it had grown as a habit since Aoba really liked Wakaba and feels that Kou is taking away their time together. Kou and Aoba have a catchphrase that they "hate each other" in the long run, usually keeping things in denial.

Aoba mentioned to Wakaba that she likes a guy who can throw a 160 km. Kou begins to train and later on develops his love for baseball. He also takes a fascination with it after witnessing Aoba pitch. Kou copied her form and made it his own which is why they have a very similar way of pitching. Since Aoba really liked Wakaba, she took her distance from Kou and rarely shows kindness to him.

The hate they have for each is seen to be actually "like/love". They tend to hide this from others and even from each other but they know in themselves that they truly respect and understand one another. They use their "hate" as their way of caring for each other. No one knows them best but themselves and they are quick to realize the other person's problem easily.

On the last episode, when Aoba asked to choose over Wakaba and Akane, Kou answered that he can't compare someone to a dead person, so Aoba said herself instead. Kou asked if he could lie, meaning, he's actually telling the truth but he's going to lie about it as it is known that he's a good liar. He answered: "We'll go to Koushien, I'll throw 160 km, and I love Tsukishima Aoba the most!"--promising to hit a 160 km to Aoba.

After the game, Kou went to give Aoba a tight hug, resting his chin on her head. Aoba slapped him in return, whispering that all this time, she hated him. Kou replied: "I know, probably more than anyone in the world," with a smile. The people were dazzled by their action, those who knew them well--particularly Azuma, Akaishi, and Nikishima--simply knew what was happening. Akane was tearing of joy on his chest while he looked down in happiness.

In the last episode, Aoba pulled his hands so he wouldn't have to come back to the cafe and ask for a copy of the picture they have together (since she did it herself already), and thought: "why does he always do the same thing?" implying of how similar they are. Kou then asked how much longer is she going to hold his hand and she responded: "If you don't like it, you can let go." And they continued to hold each other's hands.

The very last words in the show are: "I hate him more than anyone in the world."