Deva... Demon-Subduing...
"The Niko Style is... the strongest..."
The moment Tokita Ohma opened his eyes, the words slipped out unconsciously.
But as his vision slowly cleared and memories rushed back, his voice weakened, fading until it became little more than a murmur.
White ceiling.
The faint smell of disinfectant drifting in with the sunlight.
As understanding settled in, Ohma stared blankly for a moment, then slowly closed his eyes again.
He lifted an arm to cover half his face and let out a long breath.
"...Did I lose?"
"...Did the Niko Style lose?"
The thought made his fingers tighten involuntarily.
Ohma was different from most fighters.
He hadn't entered this tournament for fame.
He hadn't entered for money.
He was here for one reason only-to prove that the Niko Style was the strongest.
That was his truth.
That was everything.
As long as he could confirm that, nothing else mattered.
But precisely because of that...
Failure was unbearable.
If you fought for honor and lost, you could still call it a glorious defeat.
If you fought for profit and lost, you could still calculate losses and move on.
But if you fought solely to prove you were the strongest-
And then lost-
Didn't that mean you lost everything?
For a seeker of truth, the world was pitch-black.
And within that darkness, there was only one pure white road.
One finish line.
The only thing worth pursuing.
And now-
That road was gone.
The finish line was gone.
Everything fell back into darkness.
Unfamiliar.
Confusing.
That was Tokita Ohma's state.
At that moment, the door opened.
"Hm?"
Ohma forced himself to calm down.
He sat up, lowered his arm, and let his expression return to its usual blankness.
"Kazuo Yamashita..."
"I'm sorry."
The apology came naturally.
After all, for Ohma to fight, Kazuo Yamashita had been pushed into tens of billions of debt.
And now Ohma had lost.
This defeat-everything Ohma had lost-was also equivalent to Kazuo Yamashita losing his entire life.
Honestly, even if Kazuo Yamashita suddenly jumped off a building, Ohma wouldn't have found it strange.
That was why he apologized.
"Ah, Mr. Ohma, there's no need to apologize."
Kazuo Yamashita scratched his head awkwardly.
"President Nogi said there's no rush for me to repay that debt. As long as he becomes the Kengan Association chairman and I keep working for him, cancelling it is fine."
He smiled weakly.
"And you, Mr. Ohma... if the young doctor hadn't said your life wasn't in danger, I would've thought you were going to die."
"Oh, the human body really is amazing, just like that doctor said..."
"Haha... hahaha..."
Ohma listened, then shook his head.
He said nothing.
At that moment, Kazuo Yamashita walked closer, took a small video player out of his bag, and handed it to Ohma.
"What's this?"
Ohma frowned slightly.
Kazuo explained.
"This was given to me by Jaden-the man who defeated you."
"He told me to give it to you once you woke up."
"He said you absolutely had to watch what's inside."
"He also said he had something to tell you, but he had other things to deal with, so he chose this method."
"And he warned me not to sneak a peek."
Hearing Jaden's name, Ohma took the device.
His feelings toward that opponent were complicated.
He turned it on.
And then-
-This is my full power!
Bang!
Hiss-
Kazuo Yamashita had leaned in out of curiosity, but the moment he recognized the scene, his face changed. He reached out instinctively, trying to stop Ohma.
Too late.
Ohma raised his hand, stopping him.
The video was short.
Very short.
Ohma watched everything.
He watched himself, covered in blood, shout that line.
He watched himself collapse stiffly to the ground.
His grip tightened unconsciously.
Especially when he saw Jaden remain cautious for a moment-only to later realize that he had already passed out.
Even Ohma felt embarrassed.
Whether it was the emotional shock or his injuries still not fully healed-
The video player couldn't withstand the pressure.
It was crushed instantly in his hand.
Kazuo Yamashita froze.
As Ohma opened his hand, a small folded note slipped out from the broken casing.
Ohma picked it up.
'I knew your mentality would explode.'
'I can't understand your way of thinking at all, but fighting you was pretty interesting.'
'Especially that performance at the end-pfft.'
'Hope to see it again next time~'
'-Jaden'
"...Ah."
Kazuo Yamashita adjusted his glasses nervously and looked at Ohma, who had lowered his head and was trembling.
"Mr. Ohma... are you-"
Before he could finish, Tokita Ohma suddenly raised his head.
And burst out laughing.
Loud.
Unrestrained.
Tears streamed down his face as he laughed, wiping the corners of his eyes.
"Jaden..."
"You really are a guy with a terrible personality~!"
"But next time..."
"Next time-I'll definitely defeat you!"
Kazuo Yamashita stared at him, confused.
But compared to Ohma just moments ago, the man in front of him now looked alive again.
That was enough.
Kazuo let out a relieved chuckle.
He didn't understand what had changed.
But Ohma was back.
And his debt problem was gone.
Everything seemed to be moving in a good direction.
That was enough.
...
The door to Katahara Metsudo's private high-altitude viewing room opened.
Erina entered first.
Jaden followed behind her.
Kaguya Shinomiya, Ai Hayasaka, Kure Fuki, and Kure Karura were left waiting outside for the moment.
Inside, Metsudo Katahara stood before the massive floor-to-ceiling window, eyes fixed on the arena below.
The fourth match of the Round of 16 was underway.
-The Black Devil's Arm, Gensai Kuroki.
-Versus the Fang of Metsudo, Agito Kanoh.
Metsudo didn't turn around.
Only after hearing the door did he catch Erina and Jaden's reflections in the glass and chuckle softly.
"So the new Director of Totsuki even brings her fighter when visiting an old man like me."
"Heh, heh... how cautious."
Erina walked to his side calmly and smiled.
"President Katahara wanted to meet the people steering the Totsuki Group, didn't he?"
"Although Jaden and I handle different fields, the actual leaders of Totsuki are the two of us."
"There's nothing I can't let him know."
"Jaden also holds decision-making authority."
"So if you treat him as just a fighter..."
"That would be quite disrespectful."
"I see..."
Metsudo glanced at Erina, then at Jaden, before turning around fully.
"In that case, this old man apologizes."
"But having both of you here does make things easier."
He gestured toward the arena.
"Now then-who do you think will win the match below?"
Erina didn't hesitate.
"I don't know."
She didn't pretend otherwise.
She knew nothing about martial arts.
And she didn't need to.
Because Jaden would answer.
"If you asked me before the match started, I honestly couldn't say."
"But now..."
"Gensai Kuroki will win."
Metsudo's eyes narrowed slightly.
"The Fang is still fighting back."
"His greatest strength is adaptability."
Jaden shook his head.
"That's exactly why."
"He does get stronger as the fight goes on."
"That's why I couldn't judge it before."
"But now..."
"His evolution is too slow."
"And the gap is too big."
As he spoke, Kuroki's relentless pressure in the arena left Kanoh Agito with no room to respond.
Words like 'void' and 'ideal martial form' began spreading among the audience.
Jaden smiled faintly and looked at Metsudo.
"So..."
"In about five minutes."
"Maybe even less."
"You won't be the Kengan Association chairman anymore, Mr. Katahara."
Almost the instant he finished speaking, Sayaka Katahara's voice echoed faintly through the arena.
'The winner is-The Black Devil's Arm, Gensai Kuroki!'
The prediction was exact.
Metsudo froze for a moment.
Then laughed.
And finally spoke plainly.
"I intended to be subtle."
"But things are moving faster than expected."
"In that case, I'll be direct."
He looked at Erina.
Then at Jaden.
"Does Totsuki..."
"...have the confidence to win until the very end?"
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