That Incident

Of course, Fujigasaki Rinka's mansion had a state-of-the-art training facility complete with a full UMC-regulation ring for sparring.

The rumor of our match spread quickly, and soon Alice, Mimata Chieri, and Hanasaki Sayaka had all gathered at Fujigasaki Rinka's training hall. Even the caretaker who had shown us to the room was sitting beside the ring. When I glanced over, he flashed me a grin.

"I'm a former doctor, so I can provide emergency treatment if anything happens during a spar. That's why Fujigasaki hired me in the first place."

Ah, so he was employed as both caretaker and ringside doctor. I had my regeneration, so I'd be fine, but Kiyohira could get hurt. A doctor made sense.

We decided on four rounds of five minutes each, with one-minute breaks between rounds.

Fujigasaki Rinka's house had plenty of training uniforms. There was one in exactly my size, so I put it on. Kiyohira wore the UMC trunks he'd brought himself. This guy had clearly prepared in advance because he wanted to spar with me from the start.

Since this was technically a spar and I didn't want to kill my friend, I would have to refrain from using the Abyss.

Using Shinkai Yatsude would automatically infuse my attacks with abyssal energy, but my proficiency had risen enough that I could suppress that power now. It should be fine.

"Has it really been about two years since we last sparred?"

Kiyohira stood there ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wearing only his trunks, his muscular body on full display, speaking with a touch of nostalgia.

Kiyohira had started his professional career in the middle of his second year of high school and stopped sparring with me toward the very end of that year, so it had actually been closer to a year and a half.

"More like a year and a half."

"Really?"

I nodded at Kiyohira's words and settled into my stance. Our postures were practically mirror images. Kiyohira had learned the basics from Fujigasaki Rinka, and because he idolized her so much that he'd continued studying her techniques obsessively, our stances couldn't help but look similar.

Without a word, we closed the distance. In an instant, Kiyohira's gloved fist shot forward with a sharp *whoosh*, flying straight at my face. A perfect straight punch. There was almost no wind-up, fast enough that an average fighter would only realize they'd been hit after the fact.

But I simply tilted my head to the side to dodge and countered with a simple middle kick to his ribs. Kiyohira, being a seasoned fighter, pulled back the punch he'd thrown and blocked my shin with his opposite arm.

"Kuh!"

Even though he'd blocked it, Kiyohira let out a grunt and staggered back a step. The guy was muscular and surprisingly strong.

Kiyohira was in the welterweight division—up to about 77 kilograms—but since he wasn't cutting weight right now, he was closer to ninety kilos. His raw power was probably greater than it was during actual matches.

He threw another jab, similar to the first one. But this time the result was different. I'd tried to slip it by tilting my head again, but Kiyohira's right fist was already flying toward the exact spot where my head was moving.

I leaned my whole upper body back to dodge desperately, then continued evading as he pressed forward with combinations. Once I was forced onto the defensive, I had no choice but to keep dodging.

Even if I took a hit, my regeneration and natural defense could shrug it off, but since this was a spar, I figured I should avoid getting touched as much as possible.

I kept slipping his punches and kicks, waiting for an opening. But maybe because it was still the first round, Kiyohira's combinations were precise and tight, completely shutting down any chance of a counter.

*Beep—!*

The sound signaling the end of the first round rang out, and I walked to my corner. Mimata ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Chieri was standing there.

"With your skills, Senior, you should be able to win easily, right?"

The unspoken question was clear: *Then why are you only dodging?* I looked at Mimata Chieri and gave her a small smile.

"I'm only using martial arts. No other abilities."

"Well, with so many eyes watching, there's no need to show off your powers."

As I chatted with Mimata Chieri, the beep signaling the start of the second round sounded.

"Why are you only using basics? Where's Shinkai Yatsude?"

"I'm about to use it now."

I answered Kiyohira's slightly pride-hurt question while still holding the same basic fighting stance as the first round. He seemed satisfied with my reply and nodded, settling back into position.

Kiyohira came at me again with that same clean, efficient straight punch.

**Shinkai Yatsude (Deep Sea Eight Hands) — Shin'en Kyūban (Abyssal Suction Cups)**

I activated Shin'en Kyūban, which created suction force in my palms, grabbed the arm of his incoming punch, and yanked him forward.

"Urgh!"

No matter how hard Kiyohira struggled, he couldn't shake off the arm I'd seized. He groaned in frustration. I immediately followed up with the linking technique.

**Shinkai Yatsude (Deep Sea Eight Hands) — Hachishi Ketsubaku (Eight Limb Binding)**

It was a technique that bound all four of his limbs as if an octopus had wrapped its tentacles around him, slowly tightening.

"Guh!"

Kiyohira twisted and writhed, trying to break free from my bind, but it was useless. With suction force like Shin'en Kyūban working across his entire body, there was no normal way to resist.

"Damn it…!"

In the end, those were the only words Kiyohira managed to spit out before the lack of oxygen to his brain caused him to pass out. Still, I had to admit it was impressive that he'd chosen to faint rather than tap out.

The moment I released the bind and stood up, Kiyohira regained consciousness. He looked quite bitter about losing to a choke.

Still, it couldn't be helped. If I'd attacked him with any other Shinkai Yatsude technique that wasn't ground-based, a single mistake could have easily cut my friend in half. I had to be careful.

"I lost this time. Let's go again!"

Ah, right. This was exactly the kind of guy he was. Even in defeat, he didn't get ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sulky or hold a grudge, but if he thought his opponent was stronger, he would keep challenging them endlessly. Knowing his personality well, I let out a small sigh and gave a slight nod.

"Only once a day."

"You'll spar with me tomorrow too?"

"You drove me around and even rented the car. Think of it as payment for that."

During my stay in America, I calmed Kiyohira down by promising one spar per day. After leaving the training hall, Hanasaki Sayaka approached me with sparkling eyes.

"Amazing! You beat Kiyohira, who's ranked in the welterweight division!"

"It's because our weight classes are different to begin with."

Originally I had been smaller than Kiyohira, but after eating the Heavenly King Pill shortly after my possession in Korea, my body had undergone a near-complete transformation. Physically, the weight difference put Kiyohira at a disadvantage.

"Still, Kiyohira is a pro, and Ryuta, you're… well, a civilian, right?"

"That's true, but I'm Fujigasaki Rinka's disciple."

At my words, Hanasaki Sayaka nodded in understanding, as if to say *Ah, that makes sense*. As expected, simply mentioning that I was Fujigasaki Rinka's disciple was enough to justify any display of strength. I found myself feeling grateful to my master once again.

"Good work, Ryuta."

"You worked hard, Senior."

Alice's face was slightly flushed, as if watching me fight had been entertaining. Was it because of the American culture she grew up in? Did she have a thing for rough, macho types?

"Watching you fight… I got a little excited."

Alice whispered into my ear. Even though the spar had been short, the rush of male hormones from fighting made my cock twitch the moment she whispered to me.

"Want to head to my room?"

"Yes… ♥"

"Ugh…! I hate how lovey-dovey you two are, but… fine!"

When Alice and I started whispering to each other, Mimata Chieri grumbled that she hated it but liked it at the same time, then declared she would keep Hanasaki Sayaka company and dragged her off somewhere else.

"Wow~! This room has a complete ocean view!"

Alice gasped in admiration as she stepped into my room and saw the horizon stretching out before us. I grabbed her ass like I was kneading dough and whispered into her ear.

"How many rounds should we go?"

"Until one of us surrenders…"

I stripped the mischievous Alice, who had just suggested we fight a ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠deathmatch with no round limit.

We ended up having four intense rounds of *colorful combat* until Alice finally surrendered. Four whole rounds. Surprisingly, she lasted longer than Kiyohira. Though it was an entirely different kind of fight, of course.

###

After four rounds of passionate sex, I lay beside Alice, who had fallen asleep with a satisfied expression like a well-fed lioness. I was scrolling through news articles on my phone. Several pieces about tomorrow's match had popped up, so I clicked on them out of curiosity.

**LA Derby! 60,000 Tickets Sold Out!**

After its 2045 expansion, the Dignity Health Sports Park—home of the LA Andromeda and now seating 66,000—has sold out for its derby match against FCLA.

As the biggest derby in America, police will be heavily deployed to prevent clashes between fans of both teams.

It has also been confirmed that Jefferson Bradley, the current coach of the United States national soccer team, will be attending the match. All eyes are on the future of Kazuhiro Smith, the super rookie with dual American-Japanese citizenship.

Whoa…! Sixty thousand people are going to watch the game? And with the US national team coach in attendance, if Kazuhiro performs well tomorrow, he might actually get called up for the American team.

To get into the Japanese national team, they'd have to fire that racist coach first, which probably wouldn't happen for a few years. Joining the much larger American market might be the smarter move.

I sent Kazuhiro the link along with a Line message.

**Taira Ryuta:** Do your best.

**Kazuhiro:** Don't worry, Hyung-nim. I'll get a hat-trick in this match.

I smiled at his ever-confident reply.

---

**Hanasaki Sayaka**