The machine sent a strike towards the spiky haired young man, but he was able to block the attack with his own sword. But the clash cracked his own weapon even more. The robot realized a flurry of attacks, but each lethal attack was blocked. But each time the spiky haired kid blocked, the more and more damage his sword took.

"It's not trying to hit me," the young man thought. "Not yet anyway. It's trying to break my sword, sneaky bastard."

As the machine and young man were still locked in combat, Jake was still on the sidelines. He couldn't unsheathe his sword. He was trying to pull it out with all his strength, but no matter how hard he tried, the blade would not budge.

"What do I do?" he thought. "Why won't it come out?" He tried to pull the sword out again, but still got the same result. "The fuck is happening?"

Each time he attempted to unsheathe the sword and each time he failed, with each continuous failure the more he began to panic. While Jake was falling into despair, the battle still raged on between the young man and his robotic opponent.

The metal man unleashed a forward slash. The young man ducked under it, then quickly got to his feet. He slashed downwards as if he was trying to cut the robot in half, but his attack didn't connect. The machine used its newly acquired blade to block the attack. This time when their blades clashed, the spiky haired kid's blade split in half. The young man's sword was reaching its limit; the top half of his sword had broken off and shattered as it hit the ground.

The robot saw its opportunity to claim victory. It thrusted its blade forward, aiming to pierce the young man through the chest. But spiky hair was no fool, and he was far from an amateur. He side-stepped the attack, then grabbed the robot's only remaining metal arm.

He knew that he couldn't beat the machine in a battle of physical strength, and he wasn't trying to. With one arm, the young man tried holding the robot's arm down. With his free hand that still held his broken blade, he plunged it into the machine's arm. Even though it was broken, it still had some use. The broken blade managed to cut into the machine's arm. Electrical sparks and oils could be seen exiting the mechanical wound.

The robotic arm started to shake. The broken blade plunged into its arm was making it malfunction. The spiky haired boy pushed the broken weapon deeper into the arm. He was trying to make the robot lose its grip on its weapon. If he could make the machine drop the sword, then he could take it for his own, and with two busted arms, the battle would fall into the young man's favor.

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This scenario ran through the robot's logic as it was losing control functions in its damaged arm. It came to the conclusion that if it lost its last arm, there was at a 10% chance it could come out with a victory. But it didn't like it because this boy, its opponent, was too highly skilled to defeat with only a single arm. And with no functioning appendages, the battle would be lost.

As the blade went in deeper, the machine ran through all its logical options. None of them reached higher than a 45% chance of victory. So, with very few viable options, the robot chose what it thought was the best one. The machine pulled its arm in close to its chest, bringing the young man closer. With all the strength and speed, it could manage, the robot flung its arm back out, catapulting the young man, sending him flying and knocking him into Jake. Both young men tumbled to the floor, gasping for air.

"Damn, not bad, you bucket of bolts," the young man complimented as he sat up. As he did, he noticed something was off. What he was sitting on didn't feel right. As he looked back, he noticed he was sitting on top of Jake.

"Whoa, where'd you come from?" he asked the dazed boy underneath him.

"I've been here the entire time," Jake answered.

"Oh, sorry 'bout that, my man. I was so focused on the battle I didn't even notice you," the young man, still using Jake as human furniture, laughed awkwardly. "Well, you know, since you're here, maybe you can help me out with this pickle we're both in?"

"Yeah, we—that robot over there just broke my blade, and if we don't get past it, then we can't advance to the next part of the exam. So, what do you say?" The young man, still sitting on Jake, reached out a hand, wanting to shake on this agreement. But Jake didn't reach out and shake on it; he just remained the way he was.

"You know something? I'd be more willing to accept your offer if you weren't, you know, sitting on me," a surprised 'oh' came from the young man. He looked around, realizing that he was sitting on Jake. When he did, he burst out laughing.

"My bad, my bad, sorry didn't notice!" As he continued to chuckle, the spiky haired boy got to his feet. Once he was up, he helped Jake get back to his feet. "So now that we're both standing, what do you say about helping me out?"

Jake's eyes narrowed as he looked at the katana that was still firmly within his hands. "Don't know how much help I'd be," the young man looked confused. "What are you talking about? Sure, you can help. You've got a sword, right?" The young man forgot what he was about to say as he looked at Jake's katana. It seemed different. He could tell it was completely different than any of the rental blades. It only took him a moment to realize what he was looking at, only a second to realize what the dude in front of him was holding. The way Jake was acting, the spiky haired young man didn't have to be a machine to figure out what was going on.

With a serious look on his face, he simply said, "Let me guess, you can't pull it from its scabbard?"

Jake looked up at him, surprised. "How did you—"

The young man smirked at him. "I'll tell you all about it once we get out of this." He turned around, facing the machine. The robot still remained where it was, broken blade still in its arm.

"It's cool, don't worry," the young man said to Jake. "If that thing is what I think it is, then we can use it as is. But I just have to know, are you with me?"

Jake had only just met this young man; he didn't know him. But his words, though simple, ignited small embers within him. He had lost himself, but this young man had brought him back. Jake took a step forward, now standing shoulder to shoulder with his new partner. He held the katana tightly as he said, "I'm with you."

The young man smirked. "Let's kick this thing's ass, then."