underground fights.

The crowd was shouting back and forth, as business leaders and fighters gathered side by side to witness Jun Seikabayashi's victory. Watching the match of Mokichi—one of the top contenders with a long-standing fighting tradition—they noted his roots in underground fighting, part of Kengan matches ever since their resurgence following the turmoil of the world war, which aimed to revitalize Japan's economy and tackle the corruption left by the former king, who was then the nation's leading supporter. This struggle had him fighting against countless people and driving out the scavengers who sought to ruin the country.

Hayato Furinji was pivotal in this effort, while Katahara Metsudo and Kureh Erioh allied to support all operations across the country. This not only boosted Japan's economy but helped countless innocent people who were starving. However, following a disagreement, Hayato chose to leave that life and pursue his path.

"I need you to tell me if the boy is like you," asked Katahara Metsudo to Kanno Agito, who was watching the next match not far away.

"You sure know how to pick rivals for the young one," Erioh Kureh commented, observing Kei as he rotated his arms. His fighting style was different, something more powerful. He had grown, and Erioh could sense it—the boy was immensely talented and on the verge of moving from disciple rank to expert rank, or even surpassing the super-disciple level taught by the finest martial arts masters. With his age, it was astounding to have such refinement and training; Kei could be the perfect successor to carry on the legacy, for two simple reasons: it was clear he was heading toward master rank.

"If he's a Gu, that means he has no limits," Katahara commented.

Kannoh observed the boy, noting that he was unlike himself—outgoing, rebellious, and seemingly more talented. Curiosity gleamed in Kannoh's eyes as he looked upon his future rival. Kannoh Agito held 63 victories and zero losses, his age is unknown but likely around 30, based on records.

...

Kei observed the blonde man with graying hair styled in a bun. Kei could see he was powerful, yet the Baritsu style intrigued him—it was something he wanted to adopt, break down, and make his own.

"Yubito Robinson, with 35 fights and two losses," narrated the commentator. "One against the current Fang of Metsudo and another, curiously, against Shio Sakaki, six years ago. It was one of his most interesting fights at the time when Sakaki was brushing the master level, and his rise was meteoric. Disappearing from combat five years ago, he saw the end of the Kengan matches."

"Young fighter," Yubito nodded in acknowledgment.

Kei carefully watched the man's every movement. His stance was solid, like a rock—a wooden pillar stretching into the sky favorably. Any hit from this man would crush Kei's skin, on par with Jun, except Yubito might dodge his punches, likely familiar with Kei's style and various fighting techniques. But Kei wasn't the same as he was a few weeks ago.

Following his principle of never backing down, he began with a defense, moving his arms from side to side, studying every unique aspect of Yubito Robinson—what he might do and how he might do it. The Seikuken circle began to form, his inner eye focused; to advance, he needed to understand the fighter's ideals and fears, which were communicated through the fight. Understanding Yubito's heart was the best way to defeat him.

He failed spectacularly—Yubito's punches were like flashes, traveling at incredible speeds! The first was swift, grazing Kei's cheek, as a torrent of punches somehow missed him, though his arms bore the marks of each narrowly dodged hit.

The hits kept coming as Kei started to recognize patterns in the strikes coming his way. Yubito tried to grab him, but Shiba had taught Kei well for moments like this: the best move was to close in and initiate a tight game, or, as his wrestling coach had shown, fight dirty—use a grip to press pressure points, then go for a swift guillotine hold or a rib grab to compromise soft organs.

When Yubito attempted to grab him, Kei launched a fatal takedown, surprising Yubito with a double mid-air punch. Each hit was precise, startling Yubito, who let go of Kei in mid-air just as Kei's fists landed. Kei took advantage of his fall to spit at his opponent, who moved, giving Kei enough time to blink, yet as he read the man's movement, Kei took a sidestep to his blind spot and performed a Rakasha palm strike, powerfully hitting Yubito's shoulder. Yubito responded with a defensive karate stance, though the scratch left an uncomfortable twist.

-I need to improve that palm, - Kei thought. Too often, he'd overlooked the crushing blows of the Koe style and realized his punches lacked sufficient power.

Yubito became more cautious. Kei began refining his Seikuken. The faint white aura seemed almost visible even to ordinary onlookers. Despite being injured, Yubito was astoundingly fast; he seemed to be a Dou-type fighter, driven by his madness to move quickly, landing a flurry of punches in a boxing style. Kei dispersed each blow, sensing the point of impact.

Engrossed in the fight, he lost ground but attempted to shrink his Seikuken field to a minimum, aiming to create a small cushion of air around his body, but it was better to block space to perform such an action.

A punch sent him flying, and he followed with a consecutive pressure technique, an uncomfortable chokehold, completely cutting off his breath and immobilizing his arms. He performed an indestructible kata, twisting his body to land a knee strike to the groin, and stretching his fingers for a rib strike.

He tried a second punch, but Yubito pinned his neck to the ground. Kei headbutted with all his strength, forehead to forehead—a thud that dazed Yubito. Yet Yubito managed to deliver a liver shot before, though Kei's skull wasn't the strongest, it was strong enough to make anyone dizzy.

Three more crushing strikes followed his weak spots, in a succession reminiscent of Sambo, the Russian system. Yet Mokichi didn't stop, delivering a powerful blow that sent Yubito spinning.

Both were sweating, but the damage was different. With Jun, it felt like the fight could last forever; with Yubito, it was as if each battle lasted mere seconds, with every strike aimed to be the last.

-I'm afraid I can't go easy on you, young man—you're very powerful,- Yubito remarked.

His speed doubled, with each punch heavier, every strike pushing Kei into unfamiliar territory. In his desperation, Kei's Seikuken faltered; he switched to Dou, channeling the force of his madness. With a blazing punch, Kei's fiery kata was a marvel—a blazing series of rapid flashes that Tiger Niko had modified to hit forward, magnificent steps in quick succession, paired with a shapeless, powerful style. His moves came from all angles, his formless boxing a thing of necessity. Yet for every blow Yubito took, he landed one of his own.

Kei dodged each punch, yet a straight jab caught his nose. He responded with an Ironbreaker that hit only air; Yubito countered with an elbow to his chest that struck true. Kei exhaled, only to receive another blow to the face, though he quickly retaliated with an ax kick that struck Yubito's temple. It seemed as if Yubito had thrown Kei, but Kei read Yubito's flow, spun like a top, and sent his energy back at him. Thanks to Ogata's teachings on using force, Kei controlled the force and redirected it, almost like Niko's Perdition technique, blending all four katas—a mastery requiring complete body energy circulation.

Kei could only spin, absorb the hit, and return a portion of the energy, a lethal shock for Yubito, who wasn't expecting it, his brain bouncing within his skull.

Kei wasn't faring much better; the blow nearly stopped his heart. Blood dripping from his mouth, he knew surrender wasn't an option. Victory was his only choice—for Miu, his freedom, and to finally shed his fears. Mokichi regained his strength just as Kei focused on him. Both were battered, and the match was closer than expected. This opponent was a lower-class expert, likely not a mid-tier expert, with numerous flaws—the first, naturally, was the clear gap in his mastery.

-Your style is remarkable, but I can see an injury holding you back,- Kei commented, noting that Yubito was wounded—a clavicle injury affecting his pace, which Kei had sensed during the elbow strike. If Yubito weren't hurt, Kei might have been dealing with a heart attack by now.

-That doesn't matter, - Yubito said, stepping intricately, the two of them circling, watching each other like hunting dogs, awaiting the worst moves.

Kei was the first to charge, this time with a wrestling tackle. The techniques were numerous, but before Yubito could respond, Kei threw four ghost punches, each deadly and aimed at a weak spot. Yubito managed to block one hit, but a ghost fist crushed through his defenses, striking a straight blow to his chest—a straight punch answered with an even stronger one.

-I didn't think I'd have to use this. -

Seidogou, mad and brilliant, similar to elimination, felt his two minds in one and accepted it, his strength tripled his muscles inflated and he used the combination of the fire kata and the water kata, in a second he was doing a traditional grip, then changed to a wrestling stance and changed to a Suplex, sending Mokichi to the ground, but he did not give up and gave another turn, using the Yamakishi, which hit the lower abdomen, followed by a Kao long, and finally a takedown, perfect consecutive kenichi technique, ending with Subito. Without hurting him too much, but in the end, defeating him.

 ...

-What do you think Agito? - commented Katahara

-It's a Gu. - replied the fang without showing any sign of his feelings, things were getting hot in the world of Kengan sands.

...