"I didn't know that you had zero dignity, Akihiko."

"Are you kidding me? Why would you have dignity in that situation? Tatsu was dumb as fuck for thinking that I would actually extend a noble handshake. Of course, I was going to knock the living life out of that bastard. Nobody facepalms me."

That's what he's mad about?!

"No, but seriously, I'm really surprised. I didn't think that you'd pull out something like that. Looks really can be deceiving huh."

"What's that supposed to mean, Kan? There's no way that I lose once I want to win."

"Yeah, yeah, sure. Have a seat though, the next battle is about to go down."

Akihiko for some reason didn't seem to be saying those last words as a joke. Normally you'd boast about your victory and say some confident words as a way to intimidate your possible upcoming opponents but he just said those words as if they were natural.

To summarize, so far, Rayazaki, who was knocked out cold by a Brachial stun and Tatsu, who was knocked out by a surprise shovel attack, are out of the tournament. In other words, only three fights remain for the first round.

"And now! For the upcoming trash fight, we got no other than... trash can 5 versus trash can 6!! Come on you pieces of shit, get in the cell already!!"

...

I had no idea who would win this fight. Actually, I think I do. Sagasuga supposedly killed someone along with that someone's family. It's just that... I think Sagasuga is the type of person who cannot get into a fighting mood without a real reason. He's a good person on principle yet he is, conditionally, a bad person.

Well, that's what I think at least. After what Akihiko showed me, I figured it would be dumb to take someone for granted.

As for Tsudo... I seriously believe that he committed crimes that involve perverted actions. Or maybe that's just his nature.

"Tsudo, let's have a good match."

Sagasuga followed the same move as Akihiko. No, no way Sagasuga would be dumb to the point of actually trying to imitate the same movement...

"Sagasuga, where have those fingers of your right hand been?"

Tsudo had asked a very serious question that everyone present was curious about.

"...What?"

"Oi. Don't fuck with me. You goddamn bloomer. I'll repeat myself only once. Where have those fingers of your right hand been?"

"I-I'm seriously not understanding what you are trying to say!"

With the shovel in his right hand, Tsudo looked down to the ground for some reason.

"I see... A white knight until the very end. I thought that you would show some actual compassion and share your sins, but... it appears... that you must die!!! FORGIVE ME, MASTER, I MUST GO ALL OUT!!!"

I'm fairly sure that Tsudo doesn't have a master and just said that to boost his mental strength. Tsudo then proceeds to dash towards Sagasuga at full force.

Kill him, Tsudo.

"W-What the hell!! Woah!!! You're not making any sense!!"

"Silence!! Stop dodging! I will purge your very existence from this planet! Thou shall know my wrath!!!"

I really want to support Tsudo in this but Tsudo is not hitting a single attack.

His motives are reasonable, in fact, they are essential when it comes down to take down someone like Sagasuga, but this is a little bit too easy for Sagasuga.

"You sinful being!! How dare you escape your punishment!! You think it's alright for you to have all the pussy for you!? BLASPHEMY!!!"

"Again, I have no idea what you are on about!!"

"Don't... play... dumb... with... me...!!! Damn it!!! Why am I not hitting this bastard's crotch!?"

I would like to note that Tsudo might have a chance to land a good hit if he wasn't aiming at Sagasuga's crotch all the time. It's as if Tsudo doesn't actually want to knock Sagasuga's consciousness out but he wants to make sure that Sagasuga never has the power to display his manhood to a girl ever again.

If I was allowed to, I would intervene in this fight. But, this is too decide whoever advances to the next round.

"Stop aiming at my dick!! Explain yourself!! Why are you mad at me!?"

Wait, is Sagasuga this clueless about the true reason as to why Tsudo wants him dead?

Nevertheless, since so far, this has been a one-sided onslaught, a failed onslaught at it, Tsudo decided to stop attacking as if to make sure he said some words first.

"You can't fool me, Sagasuga. You don't understand me! You can't comprehend the fragile feelings that a virgin like me has! How dare you swim to the other side before any of us!!"

Oi.

"Again, what the hell are you talking about!? Be more specific please!!"

"Holy shit, Sagasuga, he's mad because you banged Tateyana instead of patiently waiting for the right time to bloom!"

"Eh? But isn't my age fine to bloom?"

"SO YOU REALLY DID IT!! RAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!"

Once again, Tsudo wildly charged that Sagasuga. This time around, with a bit of more speed to it.

It was a mistake to answer Kan's question in such an honest and disrespectful manner like that, Sagasuga.

You'll pay for that flex.

"You're misunderstanding!! All I said was that my age is fine for blooming!"

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! I don't wanna hear it!! Also, stop fucking dodging you beta cuck!! Let me kill it!! It must die!!!"

Regardless of Tsudo's words, Tsudo's target would always be the same in this fight.

Well, honestly speaking, no matter how much I internally want Tsudo to win this fight, Sagasuga just keeps on dodging. Tsudo's attacks aren't slow, Sagasuga is just really agile. But, Sagasuga is for some reason still trying to understand the situation despite how fucking obvious it is.

"Look! I haven't done anything to Tateyana! Can you chill out?!"

"Hahaha, you take me for a fool you damn traitor!? The evidence is there!! We were supposed to hunt Kuzan down yet you were too busy blooming!! Motherfucker!!!"

"The hell are you on about!? I was trying to convince Tateyana to not charge us!!!"

"Convince? Oh sure. Yeah, oh, here Tateyana, have my fucking dick as a bribe, hahaha. DIE!!!!"

This is sad to watch. I know for a fact who will win this battle, but it's sad nonetheless. It's sad because the one who is gonna win does not deserve to win.

Go to hell, Sagasuga.

"What!? You actually think I had sex with her!?"

"I don't have to think about it!!!!"

"You goddamn dork! Why would I taint a girl's treasure spot like that!? I'm not worthy of it!"

"Shut up, Sagasuga!! Your whole white knight speech is killing my will to live!!! How dare you lie about it!"

"Tsudo!!! Listen to me for a second!! I didn't do anything to her! We just had a special kind of talk, that's all..."

"Oi..."

"Oh! Are you finally calm now?"

"W-Why are you blushing while saying that...?"

I was curious too.

"E-Eh? W-Well... Since you've calmed down I guess I could share... To be honest, I and Tateyana were doing a flirt challenge. Needless to say, I won!"

"Y-You're..."

Tsudo needn't say the words. Red tears were streaming down from his face. Coincidentally, the same was occurring to the majority of the spectators, myself included.

"Ah, but just so you know, she was pretty good at it. Nyahaha, I almost lost sometimes!"

"...Lost? Care to explain?"

"Mhm? Uh, well... The things she said put me in a tight spot for a second, hahaha."

Sagasuga's choice of words was extremely poor. He just had not noticed it. He was too much of a white knight to notice it.

"...Oh... I see... What else, Sagasuga...?"

Tsudo looked to be raging with fury from faraway. This might just be the trigger that he needs to win.

"What else...? Oh, right! When she was feeling pressured, she would squirt sometimes! Man, that was cuteeeeee as hell, hahaha."

Oh god... What have you done, Sagasuga!?

"King George, is the door to the surface locked?"

Tsudo was asking a question that might've been interpreted as a strange question to many yet to the likes of me, I completely understood his intention.

"Yeah. Why would I leave it open?"

"Oh, that's good. No, sorry, sorry about that stupid question. I was just making sure that Sagasuga would have no possible place to escape."

"...Eh? Tsudo, what's wrong? Why are you saying such hostile things towards me?"

"Hostile things? Is that what you think this is about? No, no. This isn't hostility... This is a necessity! Breathe your last breath, since it's going to be your fucking last!!!!"

After that questionable event for a physical fight to happen, Tsudo resumed his onslaught.

"What the hell!? I thought that my words would you understand what truly happened!"

"THEY MOST SURELY FUCKING DID!!!"

"Then, why are you still doing this!?"

Okay, this is bugging the fuck out of me. Why hasn't Sagasuga knocked Tsudo out? I'm sorry, Tsudo. No matter how truthful and accurate your reasons are, there is no way that you are winning this. Sagasuga is clearly going easy on you. YET, this pussy refuses to perform any sort of offensive strike onto Tsudo.

The fuck is this.

This fight could never end, honestly. Sagasuga is just searching for a valid reason to pull Tsudo out of his misery but he is so convinced that it's not worth it to knock Tsudo out cold just because Tsudo doesn't understand his version of the situation.

These two seem like two complete opposites, with all things considered. Tsudo enjoys enforcing reason to put down his opponent meanwhile Sagasuga refuses to enforce reason and will only act when he fully understands the situation. Or, in this case, if the one he is up against understands the situation.

There's just a big problem here. Tsudo refuses to listen to Sagasuga's version of what actually happened. At least according to Sagasuga. Although, Sagasuga really is at fault for thinking that Tsudo can understand his version of the situation. The core reason as to why Tsudo can't comprehend the situation is mainly because Sagasuga's words are very misleading.

"Why am I doing this you ask!? Because I hate bloomers like you! Think about your surroundings for a second!! Do you think it's a fine thing to just bang Tateyana like that!?"

"Wait... I've been curious about something, but could it be that you have a crush on Tateyana?"

Sagasuga, once again, completely did not understand Tsudo's words. It didn't matter if it was Tateyana or not. It's just the fact that he went ahead to the end goal way too fast and Tsudo's furious about that.

"Huh!? Who the hell would have a crush on her!? Are you out of your mind?!"

"Wait... Then why are you speaking idly of her? I don't get this. It's one thing to target me. I can understand that, but why are you targetting Tateyana?"

"What? I'm not targetting her! I'm just speaking of your unforgivable acts with Tateyana!"

"Hey... Stop speaking her name, Tsudo. You don't have the right."

It's funny that we are all criminals yet we are trying to somehow solve this through morally correct methods. Especially Sagasuga, who despite killing a whole family, acts righteous day in, day in. Not a single day out.

"But she's the one who you did it with. She's also at fault, no matter how you look at it. A sinner's partner should be branded as well!"

"Shut up..."

"You don't tell me to shut up! I hate every single thing about righteous people like you! Especially when they manage to swim inside the red lake before me!"

"You really don't know anything, do you..."

Hm? What's happening?

Why is Sagasuga's voice so monochrome now? It was full of energy a while ago yet for some reason it's as if Sagasuga just doesn't want to talk anymore.

"The hell!? Of course, I know! Whatever, I had enough of this talk! It's pointless when you are the one who is going to die! Repent!!"

There was something off about the way this was going. Tsudo held his shovel quite high as if he was going to execute a strike on Sagasuga's head. In the previous minutes, Sagasuga had not bothered to overlook that since he was purposedly dodging.

He was dodging because he wanted to reason with Tsudo.

But, that could not be seen no more.

As Tsudo charged right at Sagasuga, Sagasuga pressed forward in a flash and high-kicked Tsudo's head.

This worked out because Tsudo was aimlessly rushing towards Sagasuga.

Ultimately, Tsudo went flying outside of the cell, which indicated that he had been completely knocked out.

Honestly, even though the rest of the spectators were shocked to the point where their jaws dropped, I wasn't.

Call it high expectations but I didn't expect any less from Sagasuga.

Sure, he might be a white knight and whatnot, but as soon as he abandons reason, he resorts to his cold malicious side.

"And we have a winner! It appears that ultra virgin Tsudo could not avenge his fragile feelings and as a result, got utterly knocked the fuck out by Sagasuga!"

Overall, the fight somewhat sucked. It was more like a misunderstanding than anything. Tsudo was mostly at fault for unknowingly pissing Sagasuga off. Regardless of what he did, he was not going to win. It was just a matter of time before Sagasuga gathered the will to knock him out.

Whatever Tsudo did probably didn't involve that much physical activity. Although, that's somewhat premature to assume. Sagasuga is no joking matter when it comes to physical things. Again, Tsudo's attacks weren't slow or anything like that. Tsudo was just unlucky that he faced an opponent that had the total upper edge onto him.

Also, there is a very bigger worry right now.

"Aniki! What was that just now!? Sagasuga just destroyed Tsudo with that!"

"Oh, Kuzan. Well, that was a high kick. Although a high kick usually requires tremendous flexibility and a considerable amount of practice in order to use it like that, Sagasuga pulled it off. But, given that Tsudo was rushing in his direction and had no guard whatsoever, anything could have ended the fight, honestly."

His spirit is as high as ever. What a grand existence.

"Aniki, can you do the same?"

"Not exactly..."

I never really enjoyed kicks. I always hated the fact that I had to stretch the living shit out of my legs just for them to be effective.

Plus, with a broken calf, there's absolutely no way I can do one.

"Hey, Aniki!"

"What, Kuzan?"

"Do you think that I can win the upcoming fight?"

As his Aniki, it's my duty to make sure he gets the most truthful of all answers.

"Kuzan, once the fight starts, immediately knock yourself out. You don't have to suffer from the wrath of that violent beast."

I'm going to confess something. I wasn't really paying that much attention to the fight that just happened. I was, instead, trying to search for an answer that would allow Kuzan to not die from the upcoming match.

And so, this is the ultimate answer that I have arrived at. If Kuzan knocks himself out before the fight even begins then there won't be any room for suffering. The fight ends once a fighter is knocked out.

"Hahaha, what? Don't say such things. I'll win this and get us all out of here, Aniki!"

Kuzan, you goddamn fucking idiot!

"No, Kuzan! Listen to your Aniki! You must absolutely knock yourself o-"

"Interesting words, boi!"

Christ, when the fuck did he get here?!

"Please, give us a little more time! I need to discuss something of great urgency with Kuzan!"

"Hell no! Kuzan, get your ass up, son!"

Monster!! How can someone be so cold-blooded!!

"Alright! I'm off then! Wish me luck, Aniki!"

Damn it, Kuzan! Don't give me those words! No matter how much luck I wish you it won't change a fucking thing!!

As I struggled to watch King George take away Kuzan from my side, Sagasuga had returned. Of course, King George was only here because he was done putting Tsudo's body in its place.

Rayazaki, Tatsu, and, Tsudo were officially lined up.

Oi.

They're not dead, are they!?

"Hey, Sagasuga, do you think that they are dead?"

I made a serious question to Sagasuga who seemed to be completely out of the scene. His facial expression resembled rage instead of his blissful usual expression.

"Sorry, don't talk to me for a while. Once I'm in a mood to talk, I will talk. Until then, don't bother me."

Figured that much. Although he isn't moody usually, once he gets moody it manages to get the best of him.

Besides, some very questionable words were being exchanged between the two fighters in the cell.

While Kuzan and King George stood in front of each other, their height difference was somewhat horrifying, even though it wasn't that much of a difference honestly.

Plus, for some reason, King George took out a mini notebook and a pen from his uniform's pocket.

"Kuzan Takeshi, that's your full name, right?"

"Ah, yes. Why though?"

"Kuzan Takeshi... I see."

King George was slowly noting down what Kuzan was saying.

"Where do you live, Kuzan?"

"Uh, does it matter?"

"Very much so. Also, be extremely specific about where you live. This is important."

"Tokyo, Chichibu. But seriously, why though?"

Once again, King George took note of what Kuzan said.

"Your address?"

"Sorry, can't remember."

"That's fine. I'll do an extensive search for your parents."

"My parents?"

"Yes, what is the name of your parents?"

"Oh, um, my father's name is Shinsegawa Takeshi. As for my mother, her name is Aoi Takeshi. But seriously, why do you need this information, King George?"

King George, however, did not answer. He simply continued to write down Kuzan's words down.

"Last question. What is your favorite place in Japan?"

"Eh... That's a really good question honestly. I like the imperial palace. I always wanted to live there for some reason. But... If I truly had to say... My favorite place is definitely Mt. Fuji!"

"I see. It will be somewhat challenging to get to the top of it, but I will, nonetheless, achieve your wish as a sign of respect."

"I really don't get this, King George. Can we just begin the fight already? This is boring. I don't like to just stand here and do nothing at all!"

"Good grief... You really are in a rush to die, aren't you? Very well then. I declare the match to begin!"

"That's what I'm talking ab-"

"NAIVE, BOI!"

Shouting such loud words like that, King George slaps Kuzan to the ninth realm.

No words are needed to describe what just happened. I will, of course, attend Kuzan's funeral.

"King George, I will carry him. Please, get away from my boy."

"If only your boy hadn't stolen my food then I might've been willing to show minimal mercy. But no one and I mean this, NO ONE steals my fucking food!!"

I wanted to retort at King George for how childish his complaint was, but he had a point. Stealing food is a massive crime. Regardless, my boy didn't deserve this.

Walking with a broken calf, I slowly made my way to where Kuzan was. Then, I took a look at his face which was marked with a huge slap mark... It can't be...

"Look how they massacred my boy..."

This by no means an intentional Godfather reference. I'm serious about this. Look at him.

Grabbing his left arm, I put it right on top of my left shoulder and carried him into the pile.

By pile, I mean where the rest of the defeated losers are.

Leaving his body there, I was about to take my leave, until...

".........A-Aniki..........."

"K-Kuzan!? Is that you!?"

His eyes could barely open, but I was certain! Kuzan said something!

".......P-Please......"

"You don't have to say it! It's fine! Don't force yourself! Just rest already, Kuzan!! Your Aniki will avenge you!!"

"......N-No......I have to say it.........Y-You must get everyone out of here........Only you can do it......"

I then dropped Kuzan's body on the floor.

To think that such a beta like him called me Aniki. It seems I need to reform his beta ideology about saving everyone here.

Regardless, I will avenge Kuzan. And for that reason, I need to win the upcoming round.

I then slowly walked right into the observation plane.

An interesting fight was about to go down, or so I would assume.

"I'm not going to bother with any more fighting announcements. Begin whenever you feel like. Go wild!"

"Aight, King George. So, how confident are you, Ryoken?"

"Was about to ask you the same thing since you seemed to be quaking on your boots."

And the trash talk had begun.

For the last match of the round, Ryoken and Kan were up against each other.

They both seem fairly strong, honestly. The question is, who will win?

"I have no patience for prolonged fights, so I'm gonna end this pretty quickly. One strike will decide it all. It won't be like the previous fights."

Did Kan forget that Kuzan was knocked out cold due to a single slap from King George?

"Well, I'm glad we finally agree on something. Come at me, bro."

"Nope. You come at me. I'm not gonna move a single inch."

Wait, what?

Normally when someone says 'Come at me, bro.' you'd expect that person to rush in but Kan is keeping a calm pose about this.

"Well, okay then."

Oddly enough, Ryoken began to dig dirt from the ground.

"What, you gonna throw some dirt at me?"

"Yeah, problem?"

I'm not sure what Kan's plan here is but having dirt thrown at his direction will naturally force him to move. Maybe that was Ryoken's true intent.

"No, not really. It just won't do you any good."

"We'll just... have to see about that!"

Taking Kan's taunt head-on, Ryoken throws the dirt that was engulfed into the spade right at Kan.

"This is why it's useless to resort to that sort of trick."

Cleverly enough, Kan simply swayed all the dirt thrown at him by swinging his shovel in a horizontal direction. This way, the back of the spade's head would cast the dirt away.

"If you want to win, then come closer. Let's have a proper fight. Is that not why we are here?"

"Haha, weird, man. Are you proposing something fair or am I tripping?"

Ryoken's definitely tripping, there's no way that that's a truthful proposition. It's one-hundred percent bait.

"I'm serious right now. If you come closer then we will engage in a physical fight. No need to resort to cheap tricks. Why are you prolonging the fight like this? Just come."

"Aren't you the one prolonging this? You were the one who said for me to come at you but you don't even intend on making a move. Your words are contradicting, Kan."

"Oi, you're not gonna scold me, are you? I'll fucking kill you if you have the audacity to speak such boring lines."

"Ah, then kill me. But of course, you need to come closer for that, don't you?"

I see where Ryoken's getting at. Apparently, the first strike will decide this for sure. That much was already obvious. The problem is, none of them are willing to initiate the first move.

"...Hey, what did you do to get in here?"

"Would you tell me what you did?"

"Definitely not. But, seriously, aren't you holding back a little too much? Just come at me."

"No, I don't think I will. I'm fine here."

You can't be serious...

Are these two...

"You fucking pussies, I'm not gonna stand for this shit! If neither of you makes a move in 5 minutes then I will come in there and knock some motherfucking sense into you bitches!"

Predictable as it may be, there would be no way that King George was just going to let that slip by.

As a matter of fact, why should he?

"Hear that, Ryoken?"

"Yeah, I heard that. My question is, did you?"

Wait, do they not realize the consequence of continuing with this stupid act!?

Just make the move pussies!!

"Fine... Well, I have a coin. Let's decide this since we obviously aren't going to move according to our wills. Heads or tails?"

"Tails."

"I'm heads then. I'll toss the coin."

Then, as the coin which was tossed in the air returned to Kan's wrist, the outcome would be initiated.

"The result is tails. Therefore, you go first."

"Oi, that was definitely heads! You fucking liar! Why are you so stubborn about this?!"

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Wait, how am I stubborn? Aren't you the one who is refusing to attack?"

"You're the same, you goddamn idiot!!"

"Am I though?"

"Huh? Yes, you a-"

While Ryoken was too busy complaining about Kan's stubbornness, Kan had taken that chance to make the first move. Well, I wasn't sure whether or not Kan would stick to his stubborn behavior but he must have had something in mind, surely.

Maybe striking when Ryoken would show a visible frustration was his call?

"Woah, what the hell, you can do backflips? No wonder you're such a clown."

Although Kan attempted to strike Ryoken head-on with a horizontal shovel swing, Ryoken performed a backflip which allowed him to gain the distance.

"Fucking funny coming from a liar like you."

"Let's see you do more of those backflips, shall we?"

Kan then continued to swing his shovel horizontally in order to hit Ryoken, but Ryoken would backflip every time, until...

"End of the fucking line, clown."

Kan's whole aim was probably not to hit Ryoken but to force him to backflip onto one direction alone. Previously, since he had only been striking with his shovel, a shovel by itself has a tremendous range which requires the one who is being attacked to back off for a great amount. Yet, despite knowing that, Ryoken continued to back away without striking back.

Ultimately, Ryoken is now with his back against a wall, literally. That was Kan's ultimate aim.

"No choice, huh?"

"What?"

Intercepting Kan's horizontal swing, Ryoken held Kan's shovel with his left hand.

Taking advantage of that momentum, Ryoken stroke Kan's stomach with an uppercut, since it was wide open.

"Kahhhh!"

Additionally, due to this uppercut on his stomach, Kan's shovel was tossed aside by Ryoken's right kick. Furthermore, he grabbed Kan's hair and unleashed a knee strike onto his nose. All of this was possible just because Kan was on his knees.

"Well, so much for that, huh? What was that about me being a clown? Care to say that in front of me again?"

"...Just end me already. I don't wanna hear it."

"Tsk, that was the whole point, you fucking retard."

Hearing Kan's words, Ryoken held his right fist high as if to perform an execution onto Kan's head.

"Heh, retard."

"Wh-"

The moment Ryoken's fist was about to make a connection with Kan's head, Kan lifted his right hand and stabbed Ryoken's right fist with a mini knife.

"Kuhhhhhhh!!!"

Taking a quick note of what just happened, Ryoken backed off immediately.

His right fist tendons were most likely shattered from that. If not his bones, as well.

After all, he had just taken a full swing at an entire knife's blade. Blood was streaming down from his right fist as if it was water from a rising waterfall.

"Son of a bitch... Y-You'd actually resort to lethal weapons?"

"Huh?! What the hell is your point, Ryoken! Of fucking course, I would! Also, you have a shovel, right? Fucking use it then!"

Kan's right. Ryoken had not utilized his shovel thus far. It made me wonder if Ryoken just didn't want to become vulnerable to being countered. Yet, he got countered this time around.

"I don't need it to defeat you. Only cowards utilize weapons to their own benefit!"

"What!? Your whole logic is so flawed! This is a fight to see who knocks out the other first! It makes perfect sense to utilize weapons to your own benefit! Are you seriously retarded to this extent?!"

"I don't care. I will show you just what I mean. After all, I will change the situation!"

For the first time, Ryoken was showing a strong grit by the looks of it.

"What can you even do though? Your right fist is useless. I will keep on mutilating your body until you are left useless!"

"My fist isn't useless!"

Allowing his emotions to come into play, Ryoken this time around, rushed to Kan. But, the outcome would be catastrophic, should Ryoken fail.

"You don't learn your fucking lesson, huh!?"

Kan met Ryoken's encounter and decided to swing his left fist right to Ryoken's face.

As a counter, Ryoken performed a bridge in order to dodge Kan's swing.

However, that was the real bait. Because inside Kan's right hand was the mini-knife that he had used previously.

This time around though, Ryoken, who was already ahead of Kan, had used his left hand to take a hold of Kan's right hand, which then allowed him to raise his torso back up.

With both fists out of his way, Ryoken delivered a low kick onto Kan's left lower leg.

"GAAAH!!"

I must say, Ryoken's playing this out fairly well. I didn't expect so much competence coming from him.

Kan isn't doing too shabby either but right now, as of this moment, Ryoken has the obvious upper edge.

"Take this!"

Says Ryoken as he delivers as sidekick onto Kan's face. Kan, this time around, had no way of dodging it which proved to be fatal.

Ryoken immediately got on top of him and started to fire a barrage of fists from left to right and so on.

Unlike any other fights in which some sort of character could come back from this, Ryoken was not allowing Kan to ever get back up.

His fists were far too rapid for Kan to keep up. In fact, they were too fast for Kan's consciousness to keep up as well.

Thus, the fight was decided. It really didn't end in a single strike but the most successful combination of strikes that belonged to Ryoken, allowed to gain the ultimate edge of this match.

Kan was, without a doubt, knocked out cold.

Something important to not misunderstand here is that Kan was not weak. Ryoken was simply way more clever than him. Plus, Ryoken's resolution seemed to be at its peak. Nonetheless, as Ryoken left the cell, an endless bloodstream could be seen.

"Yo, I did it."

"Good work out there, Ryoken."

After all the talk we had back then, it's alright to assume that we are connected to a bond that is close to friendship. I don't particularly care about it, but since it gives Ryoken the motivation he needs to succeed in this, then that's something good.

"Alright, now that I've put trash can 5 in the pile, let's move on! I am automatically in the finals! Therefore, struggle all you want plebs and rejoice! You don't get to experience what Kuzan experienced. YET!"

Yeah ok, boomer. 

Flex all you want, one strike is all we need.

Also, the fights were already decided. I would go up against Akihiko and Sagasuga would go up against Ryoken.

.........

I can't help but be alerted when I'm up against Akihiko. I don't want to suffer the same tragic fate as Tatsu.

"Hey, Daniel, don't worry, even if you don't win, I just have to win the rest. It's actually fine to win since I will win the rest."

In response to Ryoken's strong words, I was expecting Sagasuga to retort since he is his opponent, but Sagasuga didn't utter a word out of his mouth. His mood is still negative.

If this keeps up, then I wouldn't be too confident about Ryoken's victory.

Regardless, the whole idea was that we all, despite losing to each other or not, had to inflict just a single strike onto King George.

In the end, it didn't even matter who would win. Even so, we had to obey the basic premise of the tournament which is to knock the opponent out cold.

...............

Hypothetically speaking, it wouldn't be such an incorrect thing to assume that I might lose. I have a broken calf. The odds are against me. Sure, I have plenty of emotion inside me. To be more precise, I have this undying spirit that refuses to acknowledge the supposed good part about losing and only allows me to see the positive side of winning.

That's not enough though. Akihiko's physical condition is untouched. It's at its peak so to speak.

"Hey! For how long are you going to make us wait!? Get in the damn cell, you two lazy bitches!"

I was actually going to get up now, but then I realized that Akihiko had not gotten up from the cold stiff ground as well.

"...What was it again? I feel like I had something important to do... Gahhhh... What the hell..."

"Oh, you're back to talking to yourself again, Akihiko!"

"Huh? But I never talk to myself, Daniel. I got no idea what you are on about..."

Is he playing dumb? Is this somehow a strategy to fool me?

"That's not true, Akihiko. In class, you were always talking to yourself. Sana got pretty mad at you often."

"Wait, really? Why though...? I don't really recall ever speaking to myself..."

"Well, whatever. Let's get on with it."

"True that."

I really could not understand whether or not Akihiko was making a fool out of me or if he really couldn't recall back to those times. I have a feeling that he is under some sort of amnesia. Sometimes when a certain individual gets traumatized too severely, that individual loses his memories.

Is that the case?

Either way, Akihiko was already way ahead of me. Of course, given that my calf was broken, matching his pace was something impossible.

"Hey, why are you even going to fight me? You're just going to lose, you know?"

Yeah, this makes sense. If you were watching someone walk as slow as a turtle from far away then it doesn't make any sense as to why you should view them as a threat.

I'll make a random guess. Akihiko is probably underestimating me in his mind right now. If I was in his position then I would too.

Let's face reality and collect the biggest fact. I have a broken calf. What the hell can I do in a fight where I have to utilize my speed in order to create a chance to make myself deliver a strike?

Absolutely nothing.

But let's suppose that----

"Yeah, I'm wondering about that as well."

In case I lose, I'm entrusting Ryoken with the task of striking King George down.

"Ahhh.... This hurts so fucking much..."

I'm not lying. It really does hurt. It hurts so much that I have been listening to my bones crack in such resonance for the last 20 or so minutes...

"I'll help you out, Daniel."

Thus, Akihiko who was already inside the cell came back to my rescue.

"Lean on my left shoulder."

"Seriously. Thank you so much."

I was showing a fragile face even. Who would doubt me in a situation like this?

What could I possibly do? I wasn't even carrying a shovel.

"Don't mention it, really. After all, you'll lose either way--- Huh? Why am I...? I------"

I realize that I'm not an original person, but I don't care regardless. It's natural to be overconfident about victory once the one you are up against shows a plethora of weaknesses.

Yet overconfidence is a weakness itself.

"And the winner is, the Brachial stun abuser, Daniel!!!"

Yes, I used the Brachial stun yet again. Just as Akihiko was about to lend his shoulder, I hastily performed a strike with my arm as if it was a knife slicing through butter. I hit the side of the neck and he started to lose consciousness. 

For the record, I know a lot more techniques than this, but this situation doesn't favor me in the slightest. 

I feel proud of myself though. I have read plenty of stories where the protagonist has several wounds all over his body YET always manages to fucking win through plot armor. I'm so fucking glad that I was different.

Basically, I'm bragging about how supposedly different I am despite my immoral conduct here. I did trick Akihiko. Then again, he tricked Tatsu. I'm not saying that I am using that as a reference to justify my own actions, it's just that, Akihiko should have expected this to some extent.

"King George, you know about it?"

"The Brachial stun? I for sure do. I once managed to rip through a neck that had a thick wall of muscle and killed that fucker! Hahaha!"

...

No.

I should not be surprised that King George has killed someone. 

What sense would it make to put a supervisor that hasn't killed anyone in a dorm full of killers? No sense there.

Of course, he has killed someone. But it's just that...

I get the feeling that he might want to flex his own Brachial stun in the finals or something. 

And, if coincidentally, I happen to be the one who he is up against, then I might be slightly fucked.

"Ahhh, but you know. You only have shown to be able to perform a Brachial stun. Does this mean you don't know the rest?"

"What?"

This time, I had no idea what King George was on about. What did he mean by the rest? There's only a Brachial stun as far as I know.

Then, while carrying Akihiko's unconscious body, he turns around and says:

"If you get in the finals, I'll demonstrate my own words and what they meant."

Unlike any of the other previous times where he treated everyone else with massive disrespect, King George was slightly serious about showing me what he meant.

Needless to say, I got the goosebumps.

Alas, I made my way to the observation plane. 

I reflected a bit on the situation. 

Having successfully advanced to the semi-final by knocking Akihiko out, my next opponent would either be Sagasuga or Ryoken. 

I might have said this more than once already, but I don't really have a way to win the next fight. I'm hopeless. I have used all of my cards. 

Both Sagasuga and Ryoken are aware of my Brachial stun. I doubt that they will just let their guards down for a second. Plus, even though Ryoken is losing a ton of blood, he isn't showing any signs of suffering from it. 

The hell. Is that guy even human?

And then there's Sagasuga. His mood has not gone down a little bit.

In all likelihood, if Sagasuga's mood remains the same, then I seriously don't see myself nor Ryoken win against him.

"You're abusing it you know?"

I figured that Ryoken was aware of my own tactic. I do have a broken calf. Engaging in an actual fight makes little to zero sense.

"What did you expect? I'm not some Shounen protagonist. I can't pull out a fucking miracle just because I don't want to lose."

While some might call what just happened a miracle, I wouldn't. It was Akihiko's naiveness for the most part. If he was not naive, then I would've lost. Point.

If Rayazaki had not lost his composure and focused on knocking me out in our previous fight, I would've lost. In a sense, I haven't won. My opponents just lost to themselves due to their own incorrect tendencies.

But, the ones that were left we for sure not naive nor stupid. Especially Sagasuga. I feel as if he has no way to fuck this up when he's in that silent mood of his.

Knowing such, just how can Ryoken come out on top?

"What are you two waiting for? Get the fuck going."

"Yo, Sagasuga, let's go."

"..."

Even after listening to King George's request and Ryoken's words, his mood still did not change.

Regardless of it, they both advanced to the cell. 

The winner of this match would face me.

"Sagasuga. Talk to me. This is important. Please."

"I won't speak any more than this. In a fight, you only use your fists, not your words."

"I can't accept that logic of yours. A fight is so much more than just a simple exchange of fists. I thought someone who had a good attitude like you would know this the best."

Sagasuga was not lying. Usually, regardless of how the other would speak to him, he would always talk back. But, all that happened was the fixation of his dead eyes onto Ryoken's right fist which was bleeding.

Thus, Sagasuga did not rush, however, he started to walk towards Ryoken.

"Are you seriously only capable of this? I looked up to you. Despite all the trash we have in class, you manage to never abandon your own set of morals. I really thought you were something else, man..."

Ryoken didn't seem to be lying. He looked a bit frustrated when he said those words back to Sagasuga, who just kept on walking up to Ryoken.

"You're hollow, like this. No character, no reason for being, nothing at all. You're just existing right now. Prove me wrong. Hey. I know you're listening, Sagasuga. C'mon, talk back if you have the balls to!"

It was useless. I bet Ryoken wanted to say more but Sagasuga immediately released a straight right fist aimed at Ryoken's face. Although Ryoken managed to dodge it to his right, Sagasuga followed that up with a lighting speed left jab which hit Ryoken right in the face.

"Kuh! Goddamn it, you really are trying hard, huh!"

Being quick-witted, Ryoken gained some distance from Sagasuga. 

"Really? You're making me talk all alone in here. Reason with me for a second, will you?"

Ryoken's endeavor is proving to be futile. Sagasuga isn't even trying. Yes, Ryoken is quite physically capable of putting up a fight, but Sagasuga seemed to have done some intense training in the past. 

I'm starting to think that there's more to Sagasuga than what he originally told me. 

Would Sagasuga lie about the crime he committed? 

I don't want to doubt it but I can't help to. 

There must have been some other event then. Either that or the event that he told me didn't happen at all.

It's just so strange, really. 

In the end, it's just a suspicion.

"Yo, shrimp, how's the leg going?"

For the very first time, King George approaches me. Makes sense, I mean, what's the point of widening our distance any further, right?

"Pretty bad. I might not make it to the finals."

"You won't. You're not beating that monster over there for sure."

Speaking of which, Sagasuga, just a while ago had taken ahold of Ryoken's face with his right palm and began to pulverize it to the cold ground endlessly. He wasn't showing any signs of stopping it either.

But, King George was wrong about something. To make it to the finals, I didn't have to beat Sagasuga.

'I' wasn't the essential piece.

'Sagasuga' was.

"I guess Ryoken's not winning, huh?"

"He can't win. Not against Sagasuga. Let me tell you from experience, goodies that have a fucked up past like him are the worst there is. Think for a second, lad. Why would someone be nice if they have done things that prove that they are not goodies?"

"I think it's all part of an act. Maybe they are so ashamed of what they have committed that they refuse to show that side of them."

"Far. Too far away. Not even close. Someone like Sagasuga is a goodie not by option, but because he has to be one. Can you guess as to why he has to be a goodie?"

King George's talk was awfully intriguing. I was basking my eyes in the scenario that was similar to that of a horror movie. Ryoken's face was being smashed into the ground. His facial features were all being fucked up by Sagasuga again and again.

I think that at this point, both King George and I were aware that he wasn't going to stop that anything time soon.

Yet, we were not going to do anything about it. Ryoken was at fault here. He knew about the consequences.

"Well, let me guess then. He has to be a goodie because he doesn't like to be a bad person?"

"Now, about that. I'm not too sure, actually. From my experience, again, Sagasuga isn't someone that can control his hidden side pretty well."

"Hidden side?"

Honestly, I couldn't care less about the fact that Ryoken is on the verge of death right now. What this man is saying right now is by far one of the most interesting things that have happened in weeks.

Missing out on this is not an option.

"Everyone has a hidden side. It's common among you criminals who have committed actions that require extreme measures to be applied. From my understanding, only certain individuals are able to bring out their hidden side only through certain triggers."

Well, he's certainly right. In order to be a criminal, you have to break some sort of barrier that a lot of normal people would not be able to freely break on their own.

"Sagasuga just so happens to be among those individuals. Can't you tell as to why he has to behave like a good person most of the times though? I thought it was pretty obvious."

"Didn't I already said that he might be acting like that because he doesn't like being a bad person?"

"If you really think about it, when committing actions that are deemed as bad, does the executioner feel anything bad about it? In a criminal's mind, evil is the freedom to act while control is fundamental to all evil."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Basically, what I'm saying is, I really doubt that Sagasuga feels bad about being a 'bad' person. Do you feel bad when you do morally wrong things?"

"Honestly, no. But, I'm not Sagasuga, you know."

"Yes, you're not. But both of you share the same foundation. You act maliciously on necessity. Yet, can Sagasuga truly control himself whenever such a situation which requires the usage of evil arises?"

I see where King George's getting at.

"So you're saying that the reason as to why he is acting like that is because such a situation arose?"

"Good, you get it. The important part when facing someone who is evil on necessity is to know where the root of the trigger lies."

"Wait... what happens once you are able to identify the root of the trigger?"

"You arrive at the solution, of course. Let me tell you something additional to Sagasuga's case. He doesn't act like a goodie because he doesn't like being evil. If someone like him only has the capacity to act evil on the necessity and not on his own accord, then that can only mean one thing."

King George's dark smile widened when he said the upcoming words.

"He cannot tame the beast inside him."

And so, he terminated our conversation. All this because he had to stop Sagasuga from killing Ryoken. 

Well, my opponent was already decided. Truly, Ryoken never stood a chance. Tsudo's partially to blame. 

I'm saying that because when King George mentioned that someone like Sagasuga, who is evil on the necessity of the moment, must have a certain trigger triggered to bring out his hidden side. His hidden side which is visible at the moment is only present because Tsudo managed to trigger something that brought out the hidden side of Sagasuga.

Another thing to mention would be King George's unexpected wisdom in this area. I mean, can I really call it wisdom? Yeah, that's the correct way to go about it, really.

I also learned that, according to King George, Sagasuga is a necessary evil person.

Essentially, someone who is evil on necessity. Furthermore, according to King George, I am someone like that as well.

"Jesus Christ, what a damn mess this is. Your face looks like tortured garbage."

Ryoken's face was full of blood. 

However, he did not care. He just kept on walking in my direction as if what he just did was an everyday thing. 

He didn't bother to cast a glance at me. Sagasuga simply stood in a faraway distance with his fists out there in the open. Regardless of the fact that the tips of his fists were showing open bones, he cared not.

Sagasuga surely opened such wounds when he was on the verge of killing Ryoken earlier.

Once again, while King George carried another defeated participant's body to the pile, I used that time to reflect on something.

I alone, had no chance of defeating Sagasuga. What mattered here was to destroy whatever purpose he had inside his mind. If I recall correctly, Sagasuga got mad when Tsudo started to utter Tateyana's name.

But, was he really mad because Tsudo talked about Tateyana or was it something else? I swear, what Sagasuga is showing is far from wanting to protect the name of your beloved one. It's as if he didn't exactly care about whether or not it was Tateyana.

From what I understand, I think that even if the person in the subject was different from Tateyana, then Sagasuga's reaction would've been the same. Plus, Sagasuga said that he wanted to break up with her. What sense does it make to get this pissed off about a random dude who spouted some bullshit about your very likely sexual endeavor with your future to be ex?

Makes no logic.

It doesn't add up.

Therefore, it can't be about the person. Rather, what Tsudo might have triggered was an emotional crack. But, on what exactly? Emotional cracks are only visible whenever someone's feelings get hurt. If such is the case, then what was the trigger here?

In order to fully emphasize even further, it's necessary to know that there's a certain degree of seriousness into one's feelings if their reaction just so happens to be this large.

........

It's hard to arrive at a certain conclusion. That's actually the way it's supposed to be. 

Yet, if it's not about a person, then Tsudo must have hit a nail somewhere... Hm...

What did Tsudo say back then exactly?

I can't exactly remember. But I do remember that Tsudo said some bad things about Tateyana.

Oh, but I do remember a few Sagasuga's words back then.

He asked Tsudo why he was targetting Tateyana instead of him?

Then maybe, that's where the root of the problem lies in.

Could it be that Sagasuga is not bothered by the fact that Tsudo was targetting Tateyana alone, but by the fact that Tateyana was being targetted because of Sagasuga's assumed actions?

This means that Sagasuga is essentially someone who can't tolerate when others target others at the cost of his own presence. Well, that's assuming that's the case.

"Sagasuga, you said that I couldn't talk to you, but I'll talk anyway. Was the crime that you told us back then the truth? Or just a lie?"

Yep, not talking. He doesn't really go back on his own words, does he?

But, he's not speaking because he doesn't want to. Therefore, I simply have to utilize methods that will make him do so.

"I'll knock myself out in the upcoming match. Against King George, please deliver a strike. Or, do you want all of our lives to be at King George's mercy? You can't fail. It's your responsibility."

Sagasuga's dead eyes then widened. Even if they seem dead, my words didn't ring hollow.

"Also, I won't blame you if you fail. It can't be helped, right? It's King George we are talking about. You need to be one hell of a monster t-"

"I won't fail!!! Shut up already!"

At last.

"Hey, you two! Get going! I ain't got all day! I still want to watch my telenovela!"

WHO THE FUCK WATCHES TELENOVELAS?! YOU BOOMER!

King George's boomer customs aside, as the semi-finalists, we both went to the cell.

Of course, I had to go at a slower pace. Regardless, I did get there.

And when I did, I realized that I could not beat Sagasuga in a million years. Not in this condition. I'm fairly sure that if I was at top condition that I could really win. 

But the situation was as clear as day. Winning a physical contest against Sagasuga, right now, is not an option. 

Ryoken's words, although they didn't resonate that much within me, they started to come back to me now. I remember him saying how a fight doesn't have to ultimately revolve around only fists, but far more than that.

His ideology wasn't correct nor incorrect. But he didn't realize as to why it wasn't incorrect. That's because the only reason as to why his ideology isn't correct is due to the fact that when talking to someone like Sagasuga, you have to resonate with his ideas, not your own ideas.

"Sagasuga, whether you win this fight or not is completely irrelevant. I think we can both agree on this. The end goal is the same, to inflict a strike onto King George so we all get the pass. Therefore, you should knock yourself out."

"...Are you out of your mind?"

Of course, he's talking. I'm saying things that actually make all sorts of sense to talk about. Ryoken was merely boasting about his ideas and how Sagasuga's behavior didn't match them like they used to.

I couldn't care less about ideas. 

What matters is talking Sagasuga out of this.

"Nope. I'm perfectly stable right now."

"...Then why are you suggesting something unreasonable? You know you can't win, therefore you are making your last stand by bluffing."

"Well, you're correct onto something. I can't win. But, haven't I already implied that? You don't matter right now. Sure, the fact that you are standing here isn't a coincidence. You defeated your past two opponents via brute physical force. By all means, you deserve to be here. Strictly speaking, you obviously deserve to be in the finals."

"Then what!? What are you getting at!?"

Sagasuga isn't someone who can ignore unreasonable things for so long. Surely, he is still moody and has visible rage on the surface, but he is now talking.

"What I'm getting at is... it doesn't matter if you win here. Because you won't be able to finish the end goal."

"You're wrong about that, Daniel. Out of all the people here, I have the highest chance of succeeding this."

"No, you don't. I do. Let me tell you why you won't be able to succeed. Sagasuga, you are terrified of failure. You can't come into terms with the possibility of failure. You are way too blind about the possibility of losing so you don't even think about countering that possibility."

"And how are you different? I bet that you are terrified too! You have a broken calf for fuck's sake! How is it any logical for someone who has such a vital part of his body broken to fight King George!? Don't fuck with me! I know what I'm goddamn doing!"

"I'm not terrified about failure though. That's because I honestly couldn't give a shit about the consequences."

"What? There's no way that's true. Don't lie about this."

"I'm serious though. The consequence of losing against King George and not inflicting a single strike is that every single one of us that are present, will become his slaves for the rest of our lives. But, so what?"

"'So what?' Don't give me that shit! You know fucking damn well that that involves you too! Why are you acting like it doesn't?"

It seems that Sagasuga has yet to understand something vital here.

"I won't be his slave. If I lose, then I will bite my tongue off and suicide. I refuse to be someone's slave."

"W-What!? You can't be serious! You made such an unreasonable tournament only to end your own life in case you lost?! Are you fucking retarded?!"

I wasn't actually serious about the suicide part, but, well, I could see myself suiciding if such happened.

"Can't you see, Sagasuga? My resolve is beyond yours. You are doing this because of their existence. While I am doing this for the sake of victory. You can't bear the thought of being at fault for losing just in case you lost so you will blindly rush for the win and lose."

"I'm not a good person..."

Well, this was random.

"What? I didn't say you were a good person. You're morally wrong for using their existences as a motivational trigger to your resolve. But that's beside the point. You don't actually care about them, you are just conflicted about the fact that if you happen to lose that it's your fault. You can't fucking live with that. That's why you should give me this shot."

"But I'm stronger than you! You have no chance at this! How can you be so sure that you will succeed?!"

"I'm not, honestly. Plus, it doesn't matter whether or not you are stronger than me. The fact that you are blind enough to see yourself only winning will make you naive. Sagasuga, you will fail.

"I will not!"

"Yes, you will! Fucking listen to me! We are fighting for the same reason! Whether you win or lose, it won't matter! What matters is that one of us can achieve the end goal! You will never achieve the end goal with that mentality of yours!"

"And why will you be able to achieve it!? Just because you are not afraid of failure?!"

"That's right, damn it! I don't give a shit about every single one of you! Winning and losing is a gamble to me, yet you treat it as a mandatory one-sided duality while it's a dual choice."

"You're not making any sense though. Look at me, I am physically better than you. There's nothing you can say that will convince me otherwise. Should I just resort to physical strength to shut your mouth? After all, I will win."

Ah, shit. He's abandoning reason yet again. I can't let that happen.

Or else this ends here.

"Sagasuga... Can't you see it, man?"

"What!? What can't I see?!"

"We've been arguing for about 10 minutes over something that has the same end goal. And, amidst this argument, there's one major flaw that you haven't noticed."

After all, this whole argument was leading up to this point.

"Do you actually think you can live with yourself if you fail?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Clueless, huh? Well, it's natural, I suppose. So, right now you and I are on constant discord because we each believe that only one of us, which in this case it is 'I' or 'you', should go to the final. We both know that our endgame is the same. But you still failed to realize that you aren't doing this for them. You are just doing this to satisfy your selfish ego."

"You're the same though... You just want victory in this scenario."

"Isn't that fine though? Everybody will profit from my victory. And everybody will, in case I lose, suffer the same fate. Equality is there. But, in your case, it's a little different. I already told you my version. If I lose, then I will kill myself. Honestly, I don't value my life that much, but that's partial. What I want to say is, everybody will profit from your own victory but in case of your loss, not only will everyone else suffer, but you will suffer even more. Your ego can't handle the possibility of you being responsible for all these losses."

This isn't to say that he's a good person. Sagasuga is without a doubt, just like me, a person who is evil only on the necessity to be evil.

"I'm not that different from you in that regard, though. I really don't care about them. What makes you think I do?"

"Haven't you been listening to me? I never said that you actually care for them. I've said this again and I will say it again. You're simply using everyone here as an excuse to boost your ego."

"And what of it?!"

"What of it? Well, nothing really. We are both not good persons. But, as I already have said, you lose far more than I will ever lose. Whether I win or not, it's completely irrelevant to me. Okay, sure, I would really enjoy winning this, but if I lose, then that's fine. You're not equal to me in this scenario. It's not fine if you lose."

"But I won't fucking lose, Daniel!"

Alright, Sagasuga's getting a bit too obnoxious. I need to give his mind a fresh reboot. 

Firstly, he needs to hear the actual truth from the one who would most surely demonstrate to him just how hopeless the situation really is.

"King George, tell me your take on this, but, what are the chances of Sagasuga landing a hit on you?"

Perhaps he digs these spicy arguments a little bit too much. I mean, the fact that King George has not made a single complaint thus far should be evidence of that.

"The chances of him landing a hit on me are so low that even Antarctica doesn't feel like a cold place, muhahaha!!"

This alone would not do though.

"Then, what about me?"

"You? Muhahahah!! Ahahaha!!! Wait, you're serious about this?"

I allowed the seriousness in my eyes to confirm that to King George.

"Oh shit son, you are. Well... I have no idea how many zeros I would have to add, but... It would go beyond trillions. Ah, negative trillions. Essentially, your chances of hitting me are negative trillions!"

I don't think I've ever felt this roasted.

Regardless, I'm glad King George gave me that answer.

"As you can see, neither of us has an actual chance of landing a hit onto him."

"...Then, why are we even fighting in the first place?"

Wow, Sagasuga finally realized! There's no actual point to our fucking fight! He's fucking thinking at last!

"I'm so fucking glad you caught up, Sagasuga! What I've been meaning to say all this time is that you should let me win because I will inflict a strike onto King George!"

"No, sorry! Didn't you just hear what he just said?! We basically have no chances at it!"

"Not true. I won't fail actually. I have a plan that will undoubtedly work."

"And you think I don't have one either?"

"You don't. You never really form a plan, do you?"

"...I could try..."

"Bitch, please. Let me do this already."

"Fuck... But... Even so, I understand that it's basically impossible considering my opponent. I understand that my chances are beyond negative..."

"Look, my chances are negative. But, with my plan, my chances will become positive. Once again, if I win, we win the same thing. But, isn't it more important to consider what we lose instead of what we win? Do you want to lose that part of yours, Sagasuga?"

Sagasuga had a part of him that he refused to let go, no matter what. Plus, he gets extremely argumentative once his mood gets this worse. It was way worse earlier when he absolutely refused to listen to anything. I bet if I had talked earlier than I did that he wouldn't even pay any attention to me.

The only difference was Ryoken, who said uninteresting words which then allowed me to remediate that as I turned my own words into words that Sagasuga wanted to hear. 

"So, it all comes down to whether or not you can inflict a strike huh?"

"Are you finally passing me the torch?"

"Honestly, I don't really care anymore. I think I'll kill myself too if we share the same fate. Let's follow onwards in case that you do fail."

Oi, that's unfair. How dare you pressure me with your life?! Sagasuga, I fucking hate you!

"Well, thanks. Now, knock yourself out."

"Huh? What?"

"What what? The fight can only be decided if one of us is knocked out. Fucking knock yourself out, bro!"

Wait, could this guy be...

"Oi... You're not afraid of hitting yourself, are you!? You literally just pounded Ryoken to freaking death! This is too hypocritical!!"

"I-It can't be helped! Of course I don't enjoy hitting myself! I'm not some masochistic bastard!!"

"I never said you had to enjoy it, damn it! Just knock yourself out!"

"Hell no! I refuse to! It's fucking painful! I'm so fucking strong that I might rip my own head off on accident!!"

Oi.

Just what is he telling me exactly?

What am I supposed to assume or interpret from his words?

Was that a flex? Or is he actually that scared?!

"Fine then! I'll knock you out! I'll do it swiftly!"

"Wait! How are you going to do it though?!"

"I'll apply a Brachial stun. You know how I've defeated Akihiko, right?"

"Uh, well... I mean, does it hurt?"

"You fucking pussy!! Just close your eyes, it doesn't hurt!!"

"Okay..."

Well, the Brachial stun certainly doesn't hurt THAT much.

"Also, good luck with the upcoming fi- KAH!!"

But, I'm not too sure about this. This might hurt.

No.

It has to hurt.

A lot.

It's totally wrong if it doesn't hurt. 

"T-This isn't what we agreed on..."

Says Sagasuga as he passes out.

I don't quite agree with what he just said.

Why did he lie like that?

This was what we agreed on. The deal was that I would apply a Brachial stun.

It's not my fault that you didn't specify where.

"You're going to revolutionize the Brachial stun if you keep on giving it magnificent usages to it like that!"

"You flatter me. After all, he deserved it."

I had no forgotten about Sagasuga all this time. It was always on the back of my mind.

Ever since the special exam, I vowed to make him suffer.

A Brachial stun on to his balls is only the beginning.

Furthermore, I needed to avenge Tsudo's endeavor.

"Wait a few moments. I'm gonna add the penultimate body to the pile."

"Huh? Wasn't that the last body though?"

"Nope. You're fucking next, boi."

Shit, not the 'boi' again. 

"Finally here huh?"

Man, how anticlimactic this was. I had intended on building this tournament to be something like Street Fighter, and don't get me wrong, most of the fights were pretty accurate. However, in terms of actual events and how they went down, they were definitely unexpected at some points.

Also, as I did say previously, I could never beat Sagasuga right now. All I did was to make himself be in a position where he could be defeated. Although, that's the actual essence to make someone taste defeat. To put them in a position where they will lose.

So far, I technically had won all my matches, but if we go by logic itself, I won none. They all lost to themselves. 

Rayazaki lost to himself because he got way too cocky and delayed the fight for far too long.

Akihiko also lost to himself for the simple reason of being far too overconfident in his own ability.

Lastly, Sagasuga lost because he didn't fight me. At all.

Pretty pathetic, if you ask me. 

But, that's all partial. The actual fight starts now.

And thus, it was time to put the plan to work.

King George had just gotten back, which indicated that the final would start.

"So, are you ready to be a slave for the rest of your life? Oh, right. According to you, you'll kill yourself, right?"

"Mhm? Well, yeah."

"Though, since you've come this far, I thought of giving you a reward, and so I came up with one."

"Oh yeah? What is this reward you speak of?"

"I won't kill you in this fight."

How fucking generous.

"I'm very grateful, King George."

"By the way, what are you doing?"

"What am I doing? Getting ready for the match, what else?"

"Well sure. But first, put that tiny sorry excuse of an organ away. You're making Chinese men looking good with that size."

Wow.

"No--- This is my weapon."

"Huh? This is a battle of physical strength! You're not making any damn sense!"

"No, no. Think about it. Isn't this also related to physical strength?!"

"Y-You can't mean...!"

"I mean exactly what I just meant to mean!"

I had no fucking clue whether or not he actually understood where I was going with this.

"Very well then. By the way, was it all in your plan to not have any other witnesses just for this scenario?"

"Yep. This cannot possibly be witnessed by any other people. This is the ultimate privilege of the finalists!"

"I see. I must admit, this didn't cross my mind at all. It makes perfect sense now. There's no fucking way in hell that inflicting any sort of strike upon this body of mine would be possible. Therefore you went with the only option that you thought was possible to achieve victory."

It seems that King George has caught a firm grasp of my ultimate chad strategy. 

That's right. 

The whole Street Fighter tournament was pure bait.

The real show was about to start.

"HOWEVER! How naive you are, son! Did you completely overlook my origins!? Do you actually think that tiny thing of yours has a chance against this!?"

Stripping his whole uniform, I witness the holy light.

"W-What the hell! I thought Tyranoussarus Rex went extinct!"

"Back in high school, the girls called me Elephant George. Can you take a guess as to why that was the case!?"

"I don't fucking have to guess! With that monstrosity attached to yourself it's only normal! Holy shit, can you tell me the difference between that and a railway?! Because I can't find a difference!"

"The only difference is that the railway ends but this... Oh, son... This is the apex of infinity!!"

Shit! I miscalculated! 

"Heh, whatever boomer! Let's fight!"

"Fight!? Hahahaha!!! You want to fight me with that tiny sword of yours!? How ridiculous! If that's a sword, then what the hell is this!? A claymore!? Hahaha!!"

Mock me all you want. On behalf of the white race, I will not back down.

"Then, dodge this!"

Without wasting any more time, I swung my holy Excalibur right at his tainted claymore.

However---

"Fool! The longer it is, the bigger its flexibility! Take this, genetic difference!"

"Kahhh!!!"

This is bad! 

Very bad!

He countered my whole attack by doing a clock swing which then created an angle for his claymore to unleash a severe whiplash.

"Hey, what's the matter!? Is that all your parents' genetics are worth!?"

"S-Shut up!! How dare you talk back when you have science by your side!"

But I wasn't done yet! I just needed to connect with a single strike.

This time, I used my hips to create an impulse. This way, once the rotation was about to turn to the left side, the attack would be massive.

"Close! But no cigar!"

Damn it! The tip of the claymore was almost shattered! It was only for a brief moment, but if King George had not stepped his whole body back, then it would've surely connected!

"My turn now!"

W-Wait.

Why is he jumping up high!? I don't get it! What do you hope to achieve with this?!

I don't get it!

Unless...

N-No...

He couldn't be...

"Taste my wrath, Tyrannical slash!"

"Gaaah!!!"

Fuck, that hurt!

My holy Excalibur is already in this state...

I won't last much longer it seems...

Plus, his tactic was good. By jumping high, his forbidden claymore performed a vertical slash onto my Excalibur.

That was, without a doubt, a good play.

"Had enough, boi? Ready to be my slave?!"

"Never! I was born for this! I never liked claymores either way!"

I seriously don't enjoy them that much.

Regardless, it was now or never. 

"I will fix that foolishness of yours when you become my slave! It all ends here!"

Taking a massive swing to the left, King George's hips were hiding the monstrosity that would come towards my holy Excalibur at any second now.

I had no options left.

If I take it head-on, then I will lose every strength that my Excalibur currently contains. Yet, I needn't any more strength.

That's right, this alone will be enough.

Thus, in order to meet up with his strength, I rotated my hips to the left and unleashed the almighty last stand of my Excalibur.

The result was....!

"..!!"

"!"

N-No way...

"I..."

"H-How is this possible...!?"

Our eyes couldn't believe what was happening right now.

My Excalibur refused to go down!

"You'll still lose though!!"

"Come on!! Come on!! Hold it!!"

Damn it! I was trying to make sure that my holy sword still had the strength to match his claymore but in the end...

"..."

"Well met. Who would've thought that someone from Japanese origins could stand up to my claymore for more than a whole minute."

"Hold it. I'm not Japanese."

"Wait, you're not?"

"Nah. I'm American. Otherwise, I would've lost immediately. Well, I still did."

Nothing personal to my classmates but it's a scientific fact.

"That explains it to some degree. But yes. You still lost in the end. Which means that I win the final."

Hm? 

"No, I won the final the moment you counterattacked me. The rule was that if someone got a single strike in you then you'd lose."

"Oh... Crap, I forgot about that part. Meh, whatever. Still crushed you as fuck though."

I was expecting King George to immediately rebook at me and apply some unreasonable tyranny like usual, but he just accepted it like a man.

He must have taken this whole event seriously as hell.

As we were dressing our clothes back, I had to get to the point.

"Since I won, this means that we have officially passed the exam, right? So, what now? What are we going to do about those that are still knocked out cold?"

"Oh, leave them to me. In the meantime, hurry back to the surface. The door is open."

Wait, the door is open?!

"Y-You mean to tell me... all this time..."

"Ah yeah. You could've just escaped or something like that. Then again, I would've just busted you, so no real point in trying to escape, is there?"

............

Not to mention, I have a broken calf. 

"I see... Then, I will be going on ahead."

"By the way..."

"Hm?"

"I'm treating you nice right now because you managed to last more than a minute, but once we are in the dorm, don't you fucking dare talk to me casually like you are just now."

As if his words weren't enough, King George started to crack his fingers.

I'm sorry for existing.

"U-Understood."

I wasn't curious to the point of finding out how King George was going to take care of the rest, what I was truly aiming towards was the surface.

Slowly but surely, even though in pain, my body moved on instinct. 

The feeling of the surface and how normal oxygen feels like. Those feelings, I needed to experience them as fast as I could.

"Finally..."

Pushing with all my might the heavy door, the doorway to the surface was open.

But, it was fucking raining.