"Come in."
The moment Jaden saw Akemi, he remembered her.
He had only felt her name was vaguely familiar at first, but he wouldn't forget someone he had met and spoken with just a few days ago.
"Sorry to intrude."
Akemi snapped out of her daze, nodded at Jaden, and followed him into the courtyard of Yuki Orphanage.
She had been helping out here for quite some time.
So she was familiar with the orphanage's layout.
Minor changes might escape her notice, but anything too obvious-
"Um..."
Akemi pointed at the ground in the courtyard.
It looked as though it had been randomly dug up with a hoe. Small pits were scattered everywhere, mixed with broken wood chips.
She looked at Jaden.
"Did something happen here earlier?"
Jaden slowly shook his head.
"No. Nothing happened."
"This is just from me practicing some moves earlier. I'll clean it up later."
He had no intention of explaining further.
He answered simply, then followed the Old Man's instructions-leading Akemi inside, pouring her a cup of tea, and preparing some fruit.
When the Old Man woke up, Jaden left the rest to him and returned to the courtyard to clean up.
Jaden's attitude toward Akemi was that of a host to a guest.
Not as casual as he was with Erina.
Not as attentive as he would be with a close friend.
It was polite. Courteous.
Seemingly close, but with a clear distance.
But Akemi kept watching him.
After Jaden finished cleaning the courtyard, Akemi casually handed him a towel.
"Thanks for your hard work."
Jaden glanced at her, then took the towel.
"Thank you."
As he wiped the sweat from his face, Akemi spoke again.
"Um... Jaden-san, are you a Kengan fighter?"
"Uh... barely, I suppose."
"Then, as a fighter, you must be very strong?"
"Uh... barely, I suppose."
Akemi paused, thought for a moment, then continued.
"Then... are you a fighter for Totsuki?"
Jaden finished wiping his sweat. He gave a faint smile.
"Mm... barely, I suppose."
Three answers.
All essentially the same.
Even Akemi could feel the deliberate distance he was keeping.
But there were questions she needed to ask.
"Then..."
"Do you think Toyo Electric's fighters are strong?"
Jaden considered this for a moment.
He kept his distance mainly because they weren't close. Still, since Akemi helped at the orphanage, he bore her no ill will. If anything, he felt a bit grateful.
"Toyo Electric's fighters..."
"I don't know much about Kengan fighters. But Erina talked to me about some of them."
"She said Toyo Electric's representative fighter, Julius Reinhold, is called a 'monster.' Someone who can hold back a moving race car."
"With that kind of strength, he should be very powerful."
Akemi listened closely.
"But I also heard he doesn't practice any martial arts. He relies entirely on physical fitness and combat experience."
Jaden paused, then continued.
"I heard you train at Silverman Gym. Your coach-Machio, right? He gives me a strange feeling. If I had to say, Julius is probably a similar type."
At those words, Akemi unconsciously began drooling slightly.
"If he's like Coach Machio..."
"That means he has absolutely perfect muscles, right~"
Jaden noticed her odd reaction but ignored it.
"No."
"According to Erina, Julius may be the person with the strongest physical fitness in the world."
"That's why he's called 'the strongest monster in history.'"
"He was born with top-tier physical talent, uses the most advanced training methods available, and even goes beyond that."
"It's rumored he even uses drugs."
"Maybe Coach Machio will surpass him someday, but for now, pure bodybuilding can't compare."
After all-
Jaden still remembered Erina's evaluation.
"He's someone who abandoned everything just to reach the limits of the human body."
"So that's how it is..."
Akemi frowned slightly at the mention of drugs, then relaxed when she heard the rest.
She didn't know what to think of Julius's mindset.
And only then did she realize-
I didn't come here to ask about Julius Reinhold!
I got distracted by muscles again!
"Um... Jaden-san."
"Have you heard of another Toyo Electric fighter?"
"Ren Nikaido?"
"Heavenly Wolf Fist..."
Erina had mentioned him as well.
A fighter from a neighboring region who practiced a martial art called Heavenly Wolf Fist.
"I've heard of him."
"They say he has a particularly shocking move."
"Apparently, every opponent he's used it on has been instantly defeated."
"He's a completely different type from Julius."
Jaden remembered him clearly.
With Jack Hanma's knowledge, and Retsu Kaioh's memories, he was familiar with many schools and lineages.
But Heavenly Wolf Fist was something he'd never heard of.
That alone made it interesting.
"So... he's very strong."
Akemi frowned again.
"Then..."
"If you fought him, who would be stronger?"
Jaden blinked, then shook his head.
"I don't know."
"I've never fought him, and I've never seen Heavenly Wolf Fist."
"I'd only know after fighting."
Akemi hesitated.
Then finally-
"Then, Jaden-san..."
"If I asked you to fight him-no..."
"If I commissioned you to fight him, would you accept?"
She had finally revealed her purpose.
Jaden glanced at her.
"Why me?"
"You should have other options."
"That blonde friend of yours-what was her name again?"
"She punched an adult man, right? She should be strong."
"You mean Hibiki..."
"But she's not a Kengan fighter."
"She hasn't learned martial arts, and she only started working out recently."
"Even so, you could ask Coach Machio."
"I don't think he can beat Julius, but he's strange. It's hard to say."
"But he's definitely strong."
"Big Sister already asked him..."
"But Coach Machio only thinks about training."
"He always says he works out for fitness and bodybuilding, not fighting."
"He doesn't want to get involved in anything else."
Jaden fell silent.
To be honest, he wanted to fight Ren Nikaido.
He wanted to see Heavenly Wolf Fist.
He had just tested Soru and Mach Punch, and he needed someone to try them on.
And the opponent was from Toyo Electric.
Still-
Erina came to mind.
So Jaden exhaled slowly.
"I can't give you an answer right now."
"Can you wait a bit?"
...
Koyo Academy.
Underground ring.
"So this is the extent of their skill..."
Ren Nikaido stood in the ring, looking down at the fallen muscular giant.
He slowly closed his eyes.
At ringside, the chairwoman of Koyo Academy-Shion-also closed hers.
-Not even Kozu is enough.
She sighed inwardly.
Ren Nikaido turned his gaze toward her.
"This is already the eighth match."
"Will there be a ninth tomorrow?"
He jumped down from the ring, landing lightly in front of her.
"The Chairman only gave you ten chances."
"If you don't win all ten..."
"You understand what that means when the Kengan Annihilation Tournament arrives."
Shion sighed.
"Toyo Electric is making its move now..."
"Targeting both Totsuki and Koyo."
"It seems Chairman Hayami's preparations are complete."
"That's not something you need to worry about."
Ren Nikaido snorted and turned away.
"If there's a ninth match, inform me."
"If not, contact the Chairman directly."
With that, he disappeared into the darkness.
Shion sighed again.
She never wanted to be involved in the struggle for the Kengan Association's leadership.
But Toyo Electric had moved.
She had simply been caught at the wrong moment.
Now things had become like this.
Still-
She didn't want to give up.
But Kojima was already Koyo's strongest fighter.
They had no one left.
Just as she was about to resign herself to it, her assistant rushed over and handed her two files.
"Chairwoman."
"These are two new applicants."
Shion froze.
"At this time?"
She looked down.
They were indeed newcomers.
Neither had even fought a debut match.
The first was acceptable.
An adult.
Name-Setsuna Kiryu.
The second-
"A junior high student?"
Shion sighed.
She looked at the photo.
Long silver hair.
Delicate, cold features.
A height slightly taller than average for her age.
"Sakura Ogami."
"She wants an unconditional recommendation to Koyo if she wins?"
"Are your screening staff blind?"
"Kiryu is one thing, but this is a junior high student."
The assistant was drenched in sweat.
But his tone turned firm.
"Chairwoman..."
"We thought the same at first."
"But-"
He looked up.
"-She is genuinely strong."
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