Chapter 287: The Wrestling Kaioh!
BOOM!
The muffled sound of the impact rippled across the octagon.
"The spinning back-kick finds its mark!"
The young Kure announcer widened her eyes, shouting into the mic. "Faced with
Jaku Kaioh's third consecutive lure, Ren Shiroki shattered his technical trap
and drove a heel directly into his solar plexus!"
"Jaku Kaioh is attempting a backward roll to shed the force, but can he
successfully negate that much torque?!"
"GUUGH—!"
Jaku clutched his abdomen, his body doubled over and trembling. He coughed up a
mixture of crimson foam and saliva, gasping for air as he struggled to force his
torso upright.
That gentle, bearded face was now a mask of agony. His features scrunched
together as his nervous system tried to process the shock. It took several long
seconds before he could finally steady his breathing.
"In... Incredible... was that... Kickboxing?"
Jaku panted heavily, spitting out a blood clot before slowly walking back toward
Ren. His gaze swept the perimeter, settling on the dejected Haruo Kono. He
seemed to find a new spark of resolve in the giant's eyes.
"I won't give up! Let us together... guide those who have lost their way!"
Jaku drove off his lead foot and lunged. But the moment he entered Ren's
striking range, he suddenly vomited a massive spray of blood and collapsed to
his knees.
Ren paused. The glint in his eyes didn't fade; two trails of predatory light
carved the air.
[SATSUI CHOICE]—READ!
The Satsui no Hado didn't signal an end to the fight. Jaku hadn't actually
collapsed; he was using a "Corpse Feint" to lower Ren's guard for a fourth
ambush!
Zip!
Ren snapped his left arm up, positioning his forearm directly in front of his
jaw.
"—?!"
The next micro-second—"SHINK!"
The "collapsed" Jaku suddenly exploded from his crouch. He drove off the sand
with the explosive power of a lunging tiger, slamming his bald forehead straight
toward Ren's face.
BANG!
Ren's right palm intercepted the incoming skull, stopping the headbutt dead.
But Jaku didn't stop there. He unleashed a frantic, alternating barrage of
punches, followed by a relentless series of kicks. Strikes fell like a Siberian
blizzard, a non-stop rain of impacts.
Bang! Thud-thud-thud-thud—!
Ren was momentarily enveloped in the flurry of Jaku's Ku-ken-do.
"An unexpected blitz!" the announcer screamed. "The 'Playing Dead' ambush
failed, but Jaku Kaioh doesn't care! He's transitioned into a high-frequency
barrage of strikes!"
"He's giving Ren Shiroki zero room to breathe! He's looking for total
suppression!"
"DIE! DIE! DIE!"
Jaku fired a series of heavy straights. They all slammed into Ren's crossed
forearms, creating a rapid-fire slap-slap-bang of impact.
Gradually, the experts in the crowd began to notice something was off.
The audience consisted almost entirely of professional combatants. To their
eyes, the truth was obvious. The flurry looked savage, yes—but it was the kind
of savage that only worked on ordinary people.
To Ren Shiroki—to that body forged in the fires of the Hub, a physique decorated
with the scars of monsters—Jaku's strikes were failing to deal "Effective
Damage."
POW! POW!
Jaku landed two heavy punches.
Ren didn't even bother to block them. He let the fists slam into his face, his
head snapping back only slightly as blood leaked from his nose. To Ren, a minor
injury like this was standard training noise. He didn't even blink.
"Hah... Phew... Hah..."
Jaku was gasping now. A layer of sweat coated his bald head. He didn't stop his
motion, firing off a rapid 1-2-3 of kicks and punches.
Bang-bang-zip!
The strikes hit Ren's chest and thighs, but they were like pebbles hitting a
stone wall.
For the finale, Jaku snapped a violent kick toward Ren's groin. Ren simply
pressed his palm downward, parrying the shin before it could reach the target.
The "Deity" had zero leverage.
"Oho!"
Ren offered a dangerous, amused grin. "Let's skip that one. Tanking a low blow
hurts like hell, no matter how much muscle you have."
"I KNEW YOU'D BLOCK IT!"
Jaku roared. He drove his heel into the sand and lunged forward, firing a
high-speed back-fist.
Ren stepped forward, slamming his foot into the ground. He took the back-fist
flush on his right deltoid, using the impact as a wind-up. His right fist fired
forward with the weight of a falling star.
[DRIVE IMPACT: SHOCKWAVE]!
BOOM!
Jaku was hit square in the solar plexus. He was launched off his feet, hurtling
backward through the air. He performed several frantic rolls across the octagon
before finally coming to a stop.
He had pre-emptively prepared for the "Break-Fall," using his palms to shield
the back of his head from hitting the hard-packed sand, minimizing the internal
trauma.
THUD!
"Gah—!"
Jaku hit the floor hard, retching blood. His vision was quivering, and his brain
was rattling. Yet, thanks to his professional "selling" of the impact, he
managed to snap back to awareness. He slapped the ground and twisted his body to
reset his position.
The next second—BOOM!
Ren's massive boot slammed into the sand exactly where Jaku's head had been a
millisecond ago.
[ZANGIEF'S POWER STOMP]!
If Jaku had been half a heartbeat slower, his skull would have been pulverized.
He would have been a 100% confirmed KO.
Zip-zip!
Jaku curled into a ball and rolled laterally, springing up into a half-crouch
with his arms raised in a defensive shell. He faced the towering Ren Shiroki.
"Hah... hah... phew..."
Jaku panted, his spirit momentarily shaken by the proximity of death.
The Master looked pathetic. He was covered in blood, sweat, and sand. Combined
with his previous tricks, the crowd began to jeer and boo.
The announcer tried to keep the hype alive, but Jaku beat her to the punch.
The bearded Master tightened his fists. He bolted upright, baring his teeth in a
wide, bloody grin. "YES! I SURVIVED!!"
"—?!"
The entire plaza, Ren included, stood in a state of total confusion.
Jaku, however, was ecstatic. He spat a mouthful of blood and turned toward the
stands, spreading his arms wide to address Haruo Kono. "Did you see that,
Haruo-kun?! Did you see my performance?!"
Haruo: "..."
Is my ice cream going to make me invisible? This is too awkward...
Jaku didn't care about the social cost. He hoisted a fist. "A man with a weak
soul would have surrendered the moment that monster lunged! But look at me!
Because I have my Martial Art, I can stand here and 'Satisfy' him—I can satisfy
this 'Unsatisfied' predator!"
Jaku pointed a dramatic finger at Ren Shiroki.
Ren: "..." Ren: "...Me?"
Watching the display, Gouki Shibukawa let out a weary, helpless laugh. "Sigh...
I really can't deal with this guy."
Jaku continued his lecture to Haruo. "I hit him with everything I had, and he
blocked it all. I'm so exhausted I can barely stand. AND YET! AND YET I AM STILL
HERE!"
"If an old bag of bones like me can do it, why can't you?!"
Jaku opened his arms wide to the giant.
"Don't give up, lost youth! You can do this! Just like me!"
"Even if it looks ugly! Even if you're clumsy and people laugh and mock you—that
doesn't matter!"
"The only thing that matters is the Desire to do it!"
"If you want to change—if you want it more than anything else—then you are
already winning!"
"Defeat is nothing! As long as you change with passion, you will never have a
single regret!"
"DON'T BE AFRAID TO REINVENT YOURSELF, HARUO-KUN!!"
Jaku's roar echoed through the plaza, vibrating with a level of sincere,
unyielding obsession that was genuinely infectious.
In his daze, Haruo didn't notice his ice cream melting over his hands.
"Jaku-san..."
"..."
Having finished his sermon, Jaku fell into a violent coughing fit, choking on
the blood in his throat. He finally turned back to Ren.
Jaku offered a serene smile. "Thank you for letting me finish my lecture,
Ren-kun."
Ren scratched his head, looking a bit bashful. "I mean... it's fine. It was
just... a lot of words, Sensei."
Jaku shrugged and let out a boisterous laugh.
To 90% of the people in the crowd, it looked like Jaku had only held on this
long to encourage the giant. They expected him to formally forfeit now and end
this "Educational" match.
But the "Masters" in the front row saw the shift in his eyes. Erio Kure,
Shibukawa, Kurachi, and Sekibayashi all leaned forward.
Jaku's lecture was 100% sincere. He truly was a teacher. But that wasn't the
entirety of Jaku Kaioh. Beneath the educator was a man who held the title of
Kaioh.
"Thank you, Ren-kun. Thank you for playing along with my nonsense today—"
Jaku bowed with gratitude. He walked forward, extending his hand for a
respectful handshake. His body language signaled the match was over.
But in reality—ZIP!
The moment he was within range, Jaku lunged. He drove his forehead forward in a
desperate, full-power headbutt aimed directly at Ren's nose.
A SNEAK ATTACK!
BANG!
Jaku let out a pained, bitter laugh as his head connected. "But at the end of
the day... I really just don't like losing!!"
The entire audience performed a synchronized face-palm. Slap! A roar of laughter
erupted from the stands.
Jaku Kaioh—he truly was a Pro-Wrestler at heart!
(End of Chapter)
☆☆☆
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