Chapter 266: The Temporary Ring
The Summer Festival of Kure Village was fast approaching, and the past few days
had been a whirlwind of frantic preparation.
The atmosphere throughout the town was electric. Vendors were propping up stalls
at every corner, and shops were rolling out summer-limited events. The streets
were a river of people—not just the Kure Clan and the locals, but a massive
influx of tourists drawn by the town's mysterious reputation.
Ren Shiroki [Soul Combat] and Raian Kure [The Devil] walked side-by-side through
the crowd.
Ren (187cm, 101kg) and Raian (188cm, 94kg) hadn't made any effort to dress up;
they wore simple casual clothes and standard trainers. Yet, their
hyper-developed physiques and sheer, overwhelming presence set them apart from
the crowd like wolves among sheep. Passersby couldn't help but steal glances,
feeling a primal sense of danger.
Ren, a natural people-watcher, was scanning his surroundings with genuine
interest. Realizing he might be staring too much, he slid on the limited-edition
sunglasses Fusui had won for him and continued his surveillance.
"Raian-kun, you're quite the celebrity here," Ren noted, observing the reactions
of the locals. "Every Kure member who passes us looks like they want to say
something but is too terrified to step up."
"Tch," Raian snorted, looking utterly bored.
At twenty-one, he was the Clan's undisputed problem child—obsessive, sadistic,
and prone to mocking everyone from his cousins to the Elders. Even the
Patriarch, Erio Kure, struggled to keep him on a leash.
However, Raian wasn't a mindless lunatic. Around his own family, provided they
weren't his targets, he was mostly just loud and abrasive. As an ally, he was
actually quite reliable—though few were brave enough to ask for his help.
"..."
Seeing Raian's lack of interest in small talk, Ren tried a different topic.
"So... that convict, Doyle—"
Before he could finish, the veins on Raian's forehead began to throb. The thin,
jagged scar Doyle had left on his cheek burned with a phantom itch. The fact
that the "Biological Weapon" had managed to escape made Raian's blood boil. If
he hadn't lost the trail in the sewers, he would have spent the last few days
dismantling that cyborg piece by piece.
"I'm going to butcher him sooner or later," Raian growled, his teeth grinding
like stones. He cast a sideways glance at Ren's eyewear. "Those glasses look
like crap. They don't match your clothes at all."
Ren adjusted the frames with a smirk. "Really? I like them. Your sister picked
them out, after all."
Raian's lips curled into a jagged grin. "Kukakaka! You and Fusui are having a
grand old time, aren't you? Between the girls and running that Hub of yours, are
you sure you aren't spreading yourself too thin?"
Ren gave a serene smile. "It gets busy, but I have good friends. Besides, I
can't help it—" He raised a hand toward the sun. "Whether it's daily life,
romance, or combat... I love it all. I don't want to miss a single second."
The two continued their stroll, their conversation a constant trade of Raian's
verbal fire and Ren's calm water. To Raian, listening to Ren was still a hundred
times better than sitting through a boring "Lecture on Martial Arts" from some
bearded master. It also gave him a good excuse if Grandpa Erio asked what he'd
been doing all afternoon.
Occasionally, Raian would act as a tour guide, offering a blunt, one-sentence
description of local landmarks.
As they moved toward the central plaza, they passed dozens of Kure members. They
all offered silent nods of respect or quick waves. Once the duo passed, the Kure
disciples would inevitably whisper among themselves:
"Is that a fighter from the outside? He's actually walking shoulder-to-shoulder
with the Devil..."
Initially, the Clan members thought this was a healthy development. Raian was
the type who would sit alone by a window at a family banquet just to avoid
people; seeing him with a "friend" was a good sign. But as they watched, they
realized these two were a tactical disaster waiting to happen.
Raian walked with a manic, homicidal grin that seemed to warp the very air
around him. He looked like a living flame of malice. Beside him, Ren looked like
a relaxed tourist, stopping to look at everything with wide-eyed wonder.
As they passed through the commercial district, Ren proved unable to resist the
lure of the stalls.
Taiyaki? "I'll take three." Yokan? "Good souvenir for the Hub." Konpeito? "I've
been craving sweets lately."
Before long, Ren was burdened with a dozen shopping bags. He had them hanging
from his arms and even a few looped around his neck. He realized he couldn't
even eat his Taiyaki without dropping something.
He turned to Raian. "Hey, hold these for a sec."
Raian: "...?"
Do I look like a damn bellhop to you?!
But since he was the one who invited Ren out, Raian gritted his teeth and took
the bags, refusing to lose face by being a poor host.
Raian's route was clearly purposeful. Ren followed without complaint, his
curiosity piqued.
They passed a restaurant where a Big Eater Contest was in full swing. Ren
spotted some familiar faces—Hibiki Sakura and her friends from Koyo Girls'
Academy. It seemed they had chosen Kure Village for their summer trip too.
"Go, Hibiki! You're almost at the top!" "Is it really okay to eat that much
meat? Think of the calories!" "Relax! The Kure Village gym is world-famous. We
can work it off after we nap!"
Ren waved at the girls, though Hibiki was too deep in a mountain of fried
chicken to notice.
Finally, the duo reached the Central Plaza. Usually an open park, it was
currently a construction zone. Wooden scaffolds were being erected everywhere,
and massive curtains draped over the structures to hide the interior from prying
eyes.
"Over here!"
Raian led the way, lifting a corner of the curtain. Ren ducked inside.
The first thing he saw was an Octagonal Fighting Ring, roughly ten meters in
diameter. The floor was covered in a fresh, thick layer of fine sand. The ring
was still under construction, surrounded by scaffolding where Kure laborers were
working with silent, military efficiency.
"What is this place?" Ren asked.
Raian jerked a thumb at the ring. "An old Kure tradition. We build a specialized
arena for every Summer Festival. No one remembers which ancestor started it, but
we've done it for centuries. The 'Use Case' changes every year."
"Gramps told me to bring you here. He said for a guy like you, this is the only
'Hospitality' that matters."
Ren set down his remaining bags and stepped onto the sand. He felt the fine
grains shift under his boots with a soft shash-shash.
"Nice. That's perfect!"
He exhaled a long breath. "Forget the shrines and the history. This is the most
beautiful thing in the village."
But then, his tone shifted. He looked around the pristine arena. "But... how do
I put this?"
"Compared to the Tokyo Dome Underground Arena, this place feels a bit... empty.
It's not just because it's unfinished or temporary—"
His words caught the attention of a burly Kure foreman nearby. "Hey, kid. We
didn't cut any corners on the materials. What's missing?"
Ren reached down and scooped up a handful of the fine sand. It felt soft and
pure—much higher quality than the sand in the Tokyo Pit. And that was exactly
the problem.
"A ring like this... no matter how grand the construction, it isn't 'Finished'
until it has the marks of battle. Without broken teeth, shattered nails, and the
blood of warriors soaked into the soil... it's just a piece of scenery."
"..."
The foreman blinked, a slow grin spreading across his face. "I hear you, kid.
Don't worry. That 'Taste' you're looking for? It's coming sooner than you
think."
Ren looked confused.
Raian stepped up behind him, slinging an elbow onto Ren's shoulder. "Kukakaka!
What he means is, this ring is going into service tonight!"
"We've got a Kengan Match scheduled. Two companies are using our turf to settle
a grudge."
"Think of it as a warm-up act for the festival. Sound fun?"
Ren didn't have any objections. He spent the rest of the afternoon helping the
crew finish the arena, working up a good sweat.
Evening.
The temporary ring was officially complete. While the workers rested, Raian did
some digging and found out who the combatants were. He looked delighted as he
shared the news with Ren.
"Tonight's match is NENTEN (N-Company) vs. the Metropolitan Police Department
(MPD). No wonder Gramps lent them the ring."
"One side is a legacy Kengan member; the other side is the cops. This is gonna
be a riot!"
Raian laughed. "Word is the MPD's fighter is already in town. He's resting at
the guest villa on the next block."
Ren sipped his Oolong tea, leaning against a railing. When it came to the MPD
and Kengan, only one name came to mind. [The Executioner], Akoya Seishu.
Raian smirked, clearly reading Ren's mind. "Bingo. The 'Justice' freak is the
most likely candidate. He's been on a murder spree against syndicates ever since
he lost to you. Don't you want to see what he's become?"
Ren nodded. He was genuinely curious. Akoya Seishu was a man sprinting down a
path of self-destruction. He wondered how Akoya's "handler," Shunsuka Hiyama,
was managing his deteriorating mental state.
The duo left the plaza and headed for the guest villa. Raian, despite his
abrasive nature, knew not to disgrace the Clan in front of external guests. He
knocked on the door with a surprising amount of restraint.
Thud, thud, thud!
"Hey! Pardon the intrusion!" Raian shouted. "We're participants in the Street
Brawl too. Just coming by to say hello before you get crushed tonight! Open up!"
Creeeeak—
The front door of the villa slid open.
Raian had expected to see the towering, ominous frame of Akoya Seishu. He had
his first insult ready at the tip of his tongue, but he suddenly found himself
staring at empty air.
Nobody's there? Who opened the door?
Ren was equally surprised. They both looked down.
Standing at the threshold was a tiny, withered old man. He stood about 155cm
tall and couldn't have weighed more than 50kg. He wore a deep indigo Haori over
a traditional Jujutsu gi. His hair was stark white at the temples, with a shock
of black on top that looked suspiciously like a dye-job.
The old man wore amber-rimmed glasses. He studied Ren and Raian for a few
seconds before breaking into a boisterous, high-pitched laugh.
"Hahaha! It's you two! I remember those faces! From the Pit at the Dome!"
The little old man stood with his hands on his hips, grinning at them with a
look of pure mischief.
"So! What brings two energetic brats like you to find me—Gouki Shibukawa?"
(End of Chapter)
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