Chapter 38: Black Yaksha (黑夜叉)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 38: Black Yaksha (黑夜叉)
One of the '12 Elite Guards,' the most glorious position for the followers of the God of Destruction, Ivan, Captain Boris Makarov thought as he looked down at the East Asian man standing before him.
'Unexpected.'
It was surprising that a fighter of this caliber still remained in the small island nation of the Far East.
His age was impossible to guess from his appearance, but even to Boris, who had trained his body for decades, the man's physique was impeccably honed.
If it weren't for this situation, he would have liked to sit down for a long talk over a glass of vodka.
But right now, they were 'enemies.'
It seemed the man had been hired as a one-day bodyguard for the young lady who had fled the hotel, but for Boris, whose men had been taken down, that was of no concern.
'I will face you with everything I have.'
As Boris spread his feet shoulder-width apart, extended his arms forward, and lowered his center of gravity, his trapezius and latissimus dorsi muscles naturally bulged.
He looked like a massive tank aiming its cannon at an enemy.
Boris, a human tank in the distinctive offensive stance of the Russian martial art Sambo, remained wary of the East Asian man who still stood in a natural posture, even though he himself was ready to attack.
A fight between masters is often decided by a momentary lapse in concentration.
This was even more true in a street fight with no rules, where attacks to vital points were fair game.
'Is it a feint? Why isn't he moving?'
A fight only begins when someone makes the first move.
But no matter how long he waited, his opponent showed no sign of movement, so Boris finally decided to strike first.
"Hmph!"
Simultaneously kicking off the ground, he charged forward with a shoulder tackle, leading with his massive, bear-like frame.
Most who had assumed Boris would be slow due to his size failed to even react before being slammed by his tank-like body and taken down.
Just before impact, the East Asian man, who hadn't moved until Boris was nearly upon him, finally pulled his hand from his pocket.
CRACK──!!
In an instant, the man's fist was buried in Boris's face.
His neck, which had been facing forward, snapped to the side.
'Wh-what!'
His eyes couldn't follow it. No, it was faster than that.
An attack speed like a flash of light!
Boris had heard of a similar technique before.
'Iai!'
He'd heard that Japanese samurai trained in a technique to counter surprise attacks by instantly drawing their sheathed swords for a counteroffensive.
The man before him had just replicated it with his pants pocket and a bare fist!
'But it's not over!'
He had unexpectedly lost the first strike, but his durability wasn't so weak that he'd fall from a single blow.
To the former Captain Boris Makarov, who had successfully led various special operations and infiltration missions, including the war in Afghanistan, pain was proof of life.
"Uraaaaaaaaaat!"
Unleashing a roar from the depths of his lungs, he fought against the inertia that threatened to send him flying backward!
Barely planting his feet, Boris managed to wrap his arms around the man's log-like torso and legs.
'If I can just take him down!'
Thud.
'What the—'
It was like trying to move a house-sized boulder.
Despite pushing with all his might, the man before him didn't budge an inch.
'Where is this strength coming from?'
Weight class is a huge factor in a fight.
Moreover, Boris had traveled the world with Commander Ivan, yet he had rarely met anyone in a similar weight class.
But the East Asian man standing before him possessed an impossibly immense strength.
As if the difference in weight class meant nothing at all!
In that moment, his opponent grabbed Boris's suit belt.
A tense standoff between the two men.
As they entered a true test of strength, veins bulged on Boris's temples.
"Uraaaaaaaaaaat!"
If strength won't work, I'll win with technique!
"Kuh!"
BAM!!
He instantly shifted his forward center of gravity backward, breaking his opponent's posture, then hooked a leg around his calf to execute a swift takedown.
The East Asian man's poker face finally broke as his back slammed hard against the asphalt, but there was no time to celebrate.
Immediately after the takedown, Boris seamlessly transitioned into a submission, the pinnacle of Sambo.
He grabbed one of his opponent's arms, locked his body down with both legs, and pulled with all his might!
'Huh?'
But a sudden feeling of weightlessness enveloped him, and Boris's eyes shot wide open.
The black-haired man he thought he had completely subdued had, with pure brute strength alone, lifted the 150kg Boris into the air with one hand!
'Impossible!'
He hastily released the armbar and tried to escape, but his body, already accelerating under the other man's power, wouldn't obey.
His massive body was flipped over.
The cold asphalt floor drew closer and closer.
Predicting his imminent future as he was about to be slammed headfirst into the ground, Boris quietly closed his eyes.
'My apologies, Tsar.'
KWAAAAAAAANG!!
*
After barely managing to defeat the leader of the vicious kidnappers, I let out a dry cough.
'I thought I was fucked.'
I usually try to use polite language, but today was an exception.
Because I literally almost got fucked.
'He was definitely going for an armbar at the end.'
Just imagining the pain I would've felt if he'd locked it in properly sent shivers down my spine.
Ever since I realized I was in the same school as the protagonist, Sakamoto Ryuji, and started training in earnest, I've never been called small, but this bear of a man was even bigger than me.
Since we couldn't communicate, the fight started abruptly without any proper introductions.
The man waited for me to move, but when he couldn't wait any longer, he initiated a tackle.
Fortunately, I didn't fall, since I'd learned how to defend against a single-leg tackle from Director Nakayama. But the man immediately followed up with a leg trip, breaking my posture and throwing me onto the asphalt without hesitation.
Honestly, it was the first time in the last three years I'd been in that much pain.
That's probably why I went berserk.
At the end, terrified of getting caught in the armbar, I used every ounce of strength I had to lift him with one arm and slam him into the ground.
"Hah… hah… hah… hah…"
As I stood on the now-empty street catching my ragged breath, Sasha, who had been holding out in a phone booth, cautiously opened the door and came out.
Then, she muttered in a bewildered voice.
"...You defeated Boris?"
"Boris? Is that this guy's name?"
"Huh? Y-yeah. He's really famous in the Russian underworld."
I dusted off my dirty hoodie and asked her.
"He seemed to be the leader of the kidnappers. Does this mean they won't be after you anymore?"
Sasha replied with a strange expression.
"Probably... I think so?"
"That's a relief, then."
At least all that blood, sweat, and tears paid off.
"More importantly, you're bleeding a lot. Are you okay?"
"Ah, this isn't my blood."
As I said that and glanced around at the other Russians sprawled on the ground, Sasha let out a small "Ah," as if she'd just realized.
We caused this much of a scene in Akihabara, which was already crowded because of Golden Week, and in broad daylight, no less.
Honestly, it wouldn't be strange if a video of this was already circulating online.
I guess... I'll just have to trust in the kindness of this manga world, right?
"Let's get out of here for now. We've drawn too much attention."
As I pulled up the hood of my jumper, Sasha nodded and pulled her baseball cap down low.
The people who had been watching the fight from a distance were already starting to creep closer, so we decided to flee before it was too late.
*
Drrrrrrrrr!
"Mm. It's me."
[Tsar, Captain Boris has been defeated.]
"...Boris? There shouldn't be any martial artist in Japan capable of taking him down."
[He's an East Asian man, about 190cm tall. Black, beastly, unkempt hair.]
"Don't tell me it's him."
[Tsar, do you have someone in mind?]
"There is one Japanese man who fits that description. A guy who vanished without a trace 10 years ago."
[You don't mean... the Black Yaksha?]
"That's right. If it's Fuma Kotaro, it's not surprising he defeated Boris. He's one of the Seven Fist Masters, same as me."
[If the man the young lady hired is truly Fuma Kotaro, we won't be able to retrieve her on our own!]
"I know. That's why I'm going myself."
[What? But Tsar, you said you were taking care of the remnants of Shichieizan hiding in Hokkaido...]
"That business just ended."
BOOOOOM!!
[...Understood. I will send the private jet to your location immediately.]
"Yes, please do. In the meantime, I'll play a little game of hide-and-seek with these cockroaches."
[Good luck.]
CRUNCH!
After the communication with Nikolai, one of the elite guards dispatched to Tokyo, was cut off, the muscular man crushed the transceiver in his hand with sheer grip strength. He smiled cruelly, a burning factory blazing behind him.
"It's been a while since I've had some fun."