Chapter 8: Battle

Today, I was taking out my anger on Himari on a sandbag.

“Shushu!”

Papapapapapa!

I feel refreshed when I hear this sound.

“You’re looking good today, Yagami. Good night.”

“Good night, Sakoda-san!”

Since President Arakure had also left earlier, the gym was now full of inexperienced members.

The tension in the gym loosened up quickly.

I stop hitting the sandbag and switch to just gulping down a sports drink as I train.

“Hey, who wants to spar?”

Koga-san, a mid-level member, got into the ring and invited the other members to spar with him.

“Koga-san, sparring is forbidden when there is no trainer or senior member present.”

“Oh, really?　Then let’s do mass boxing. Isn’t that okay?”

Mass boxing is a form of sparring in which the punches are stopped just before they hit the target.

Even if you get hit, the damage is minimal, so the danger is low.

“No, but……”

“Oya oya Kaneko, you’re such a chicken!　Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you!”

“You always hit me hard when you say that!”

“That was just a coincidence!　It’s gonna be fine today.　Okay?”

“I understand.……”

Kaneko-san, the novice member, steps into the ring.

Kaan!　The bell rang.

The two of them began to exchange punches, but they seemed to be keeping their punches to a minimum. That was a relief.

–But then…

“Fue!”

“Oops, my bad!　Hehe!”

Perhaps he had drawn his fist at the wrong time, Koga-san’s jab had landed on Kaneko-san’s face.

“Please be careful!”

“Hey, hey.”

The two exchanged blows again, but Koga’s body blow landed again.

“Ugh……come on, you bastard!”

Kaneko-san stopped holding back and threw a normal punch. He must have been really pissed off.

“Hey, Kaneko, don’t do that!”

The other members tried to stop him, but he kept throwing punches.

“Oh, Kaneko, you’re really going for it!　Then I’m going to do the same without holding back!”

Koga-san is an intermediate fighter, and Kaneko-san, a beginner, is no match for him.

Kaneko-san was beaten to a pulp and went down.

“Alright, next!”

Koga-san looked around at us with a cruel smile on his face.

“Okay, Zama-san, let’s do this.”

“Well I’m little…..”

“It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s mass boxing……right?”

Koga-san glared at him, and the old man Zama stepped into the ring without saying a word.

I think Koga was trying to provoke him. He said it to him in the face several times.

But the old man was never taken in by the provocation and did not make a move until the end.

“Koga is a bastard. He bullies his juniors like that when the chairman and seniors are gone. It really sucks.……”

Sekimoto-san, who was standing next to me, murmured.

I see, he’s been doing this for a while now.

“Why doesn’t the chairman pay attention to Koga-san?　I wonder if anyone else quit because of him?”

“Of course there were, but our gym is very Spartan. They don’t want anyone with no guts to quit after that.

Guts. I hate that kind of thinking.

I don’t know if this gym is really that strict.

I don’t know what the other gyms are like, so I couldn’t know. So far, I didn’t think it was that hellish.

“Are you okay, old man Zama?”

I handed him a towel as he exited the ring with a bloody nose.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. Thank you. –Hey, Yagami-kun. Avenge……no nevermind.”

The old man must have been about to ask me to avenge him.

Why did he retract his words?　Is it possible that he wanted to avenge himself?　If so, this old man is kind of cool.

“Ah, that was boring.…… Okay, next!　Let’s see.…… Come on, Yagami.”

After all, I knew I had to fight……then I will get the choices, and I’m forced to fight.

–But surprisingly, no choices came up.

In other words, I could refuse a mass boxing with Koga-san.

If that’s the case, of course I wouldn’t do it. I don’t want to be in pain.

“No thanks. I refuse.”

“You’re still young, but you’re a chicken.…… So, Zama-san. Let’s do it again, shall we?”

“Eh?　Me again?”

He’s …… really the worst kind of guy.

“Damn it……I’ll do it.”

“Alright, alright, that’s what I’m talking about.”

Koga grinned.

If I refuse, the old man will be tormented. As expected, that’s not something I can allow.

I get into the ring and face the son of a bitch Koga.

Kaan!　The bell rang.

I land a quick jab to keep Koga in check.

He dodged it well and jabbed me in the face.

“Fue!

“Oops, I’m sorry!”

Damn it ……!　That hurts so bad ……!

This is the first time in my life that I’ve been punched in the face. I’ve never been hit in the face before.

I put my guard up tightly.

As long as I can protect my head for now, that’s all that matters. Now I just have to endure until the time runs out.

“Your stomach is empty!”

“Ugo…..”

Koga’s bastard didn’t hesitate to put it in my midsection.

I cowered in place, unable to breathe and in extreme pain.

“Don’t worry!　Yagami-kun!”

“There’s still time. You can do it, right?”

Koga looks down at me with a smirk.

There’s no way I can do it.…… I’m giving up.……

But I guess the choices will come up anyway, right?

— but against my odds, there were no choices.

Giving up is possible.

“Yeah…… I can still go on…….”

I don’t really know why I did it. Before I knew it, I was saying that.

I staggered to my feet, holding back the pain.

“Yagami-kun!　Take it easy!”

Impossible, impossible.……indeed, it is.

If I stand up, I’m just going to get beaten up. It’s not a wise decision at all.

But this is the only thing that makes me not want to give in to him.

“Fue!”

Koga’s jab struck me in the face.

Afraid of the previous fight, I kept my guard down, and it backfired.

“Hehe, it went in again. I’m sorry.”

It hurts, it hurts so much.

Most people would lose their will to fight if they were hit by something like this.

If that’s the case, there should be an option at this point.

-There’s something strange. It’s not coming out. Am I allowed to surrender?

Should I keep fighting or not?

“Interesting……!”

My fighting spirit flared up.

“Can I avenge you, old man Zama….?”

The old man’s eyes widened.

“Yes!　Yagami, please finish him off for me!”

“Alright!　I’ll do it!”

I slam my glove down.

“Yeah!　Don’t get carried away just because you KO’d Sakoda-san with a lucky punch!　There’s no way you can beat me as a beginner!”

Koga smirked as he stepped into the distance.

Come on, come on!　I’m going to sink you to the mat!

Just as I was ready to do so, Koga’s movements started to look slower.

A left jab comes in.

I guarded it with my left hand. Yeah, I can see him well.

A straight right was thrown.

No problem. I can avoid it at this speed.

Just before Koga’s straight hit me, I moved my head to the left and hit him with a straight right. Our arms cross each other.

Just as Koga’s punch snatched my right cheek, I slammed my iron fist into his face in anger.

He took two unsteady steps and then fell back.

Ding! Ding! Ding!　The bell rang.

“Yes!　Yagami, you did it!”

“Wow!　That’s a one-shot KO!　Who the hell are you?”

“You’re a beginner, you shouldn’t try to cross-counter!　Honestly, I’m jealous!”

I raise my right hand and rejoice in my victory.

I now understand a little more about the feelings of those who take part in martial arts.

I love peace and quiet, but I never knew I had such savage blood in my veins…….!

After that, all the gym members except for Koga had a victory party at Takaya.

I was going to refuse because I hate this kind of thing, but the choice was between attending the party or beating up all the gym members, so I had no choice but to attend.

Well, I’m glad I did, because I enjoyed it.

The next day.

“Yagami-kun, Yagami-kun, Koga-kun has resigned!”

Zama the old man called out to me happily.

“Hahaha!　Really?　He’s got no guts, doesn’t he?”

“Well, thank you for showing me the way!　If you have any problems, please feel free to ask me anything. Here you go!”

The old man handed me his business card.

What is it?　”Producer, Erich Software, Yoshio Zama”?

I know Erich Software.

It’s the company that makes the games I’m into.

“…… Eh?　　Could it be that the old man Zama is making the [The black iron Samurai]?”

The black iron Samurai

It’s an action game where you control a bipedal robot and fight.

The extremely high level of difficulty and wide range of customization have made it a hit with core gamers like me, and it’s received considerable acclaim and popularity.

In particular, the online 3v3 team deathmatch is so popular that e-sports tournaments are often held.

I don’t like to put in a lot of effort, but I’m passionate about this game.

“Yes, The black iron Samurai is one of my prized possessions. –Have you ever played it, Soma-kun?”

“I’ve played it before, but I’m a serious gamer who’s aiming to be the best in the world!　I’m the leader of [God Eight Breath!]

“Ah!　That’s the team that participated in the finals!　Oh, I didn’t expect you, Yagami!　The world is so small!”

The old man’s face lights up.

My world ranking is currently 16th.

Last year, in the second round of the finals, I was defeated by the world’s number one team, the Cookie Magicians, and now I’m stuck in this position.

This year, I’m determined to win and become the world’s number one team.

“Okay!　So, now that Soma-kun has shown me some good moves, I think I’ll give you a present!

“Really?　Perhaps a limited edition complete box?

“Fufufu, it’ll be fun!”

Two days later.

“S-seriously……”

A two-ton truck pulled up in front of my house.

Carried out of there was a black iron samurai housing (for the arcade).