The next day.
Outside of Kaito's house was a large pit used for fighting.
It was rectangular, and the floor was made of hard concrete, stained with blood from countless battles.
Surrounding the pit was a metal wall also stained with blood. And graffiti of a red eye was painted in many spots around the wall.
Ren and Kaito stood across from each other in this pit.
Ren was calm. he felt the same feeling he did when he was across from his bully, but this time without hatred and annoyance.
Kaito noticed this and gave a proud smile.
"It seems all those beatings weren't for nothing."
Ren was confused by this, but he remained focused on his opponent, who was Kaito.
Kaito wore black pants that looked similar to Shinya's Red Eye Jacket. They also had deep red symbols that read something that Ren could not quite make out.
Kaito did not, however, wear a top. Revealing his giant ripped body with tattoos all over him.
"It seems, Ren, you have unlocked one of the latent abilities of the Suzuki bloodline. Your lack of fear in the face of battle with a stronger opponent proves that."
A giant Grin appeared on Kaito's face.
"Today, we will just gauge where you're at when it comes to fighting. Let's see how long you last as of now."
Shinya, who was also there in the pit to time the battle and to referee, raised his hand above his head and a second later lowered it.
"Start!"
1
Ren heard Shinya begin the countdown and immediately ran towards Kaito with all the speed he could generate.
2
Kaito smiled and took a step towards Ren, who was running towards him.
"Sloppy!"
Kaito yelled.
3
Ren blinked instinctively after seeing Kaito step forward.
Then he opened them, and he ran straight into a fist that was waiting to strike his face with great force, knocking him back onto the ground unconscious.
"3.5 seconds, boss."
Shinya wrote it down on a small notepad he carried in his Red Eye gang Jacket. And swiftly put it back when he was done.
"It could have ended way earlier. Why play around, boss?"
Shinya asked, confused.
Kaito didn't answer. He simply looked down at the unconscious Ren, whom he had just nearly decapitated with his fist.
Ren's face was covered in blood, and his nose was broken yet again in three days.
"Shinya, I expect you to train him well. he's the only shot we have."
The voice Kaito was using now was the same he used when he saved Ren in the alley from the bully.
A voice that belonged to the leader of one of the top gangs in Gangster Paradise.
The Red Eyes.
"He's a weakling, though. Boss, I'm sure we can handle the black talons with you alone."
Kaito turned away from Ren's unconscious body and looked at Shinya.
"You know that our bloodline can't fight forever. That is our weakness. Ren is the only one who can come close to my strength, or maybe even surpass it."
Shinya did not argue further, but in his mind, he still had doubts.
"With our numbers dwindling, we won't be able to win the gang war against the Black Talons without someone who can fight them alone."
Kaito felt himself getting annoyed with Shinya, but he maintained his composure.
Kaito turned away from Shinya and picked up Ren in his arms and walked him to the back entrance of his house, which led to the fighting pit.
Shinya followed and opened the door for Kaito.
Kaito laid Ren on his expensive bed in his new bedroom.
This commotion led to Ren slowly waking up.
Rens ' eyes opened to see Kaito with his arms crossed on the other end of the room. Shinya was there next to him as well.
"Starting tomorrow, Shinya is going to train you so that you can complete the requirement to join Red Eyes. Also, I instructed him to help you learn more about gangster paradise.
Ren sat up to get a better look at Kaito and Shinya.
"I knew I was weak, but I didn't know you were that fast or that strong, Kaito."
Ren said his voice filled with a hint of amazement.
"You'll be that strong with some training. I'll leave that up to Shinya. I'm too busy as the leader of the Red Eyes, and there are lots of things I have to deal with."
Kaito Voice changed to a hint of anger at the end of the sentence.
Shinya stood next to Kaito with his hands in his pockets, not saying a word.
Rens' thoughts raced with newfound hunger to get stronger, to become something more than what he once was.
He didn't know much about gangs, but he had never really been part of a group or had anyone who would have his back, and he wanted that, and he was going to do anything to get it.
"Kaito, the next time we get into that fighting pit, have my Red Eye jacket ready for me."
Ren said with a hint of defiance in his voice.
Kaito gave a wide smile and looked straight into his cousin's eyes.
"I'm looking forward to it cuz. Just know, the next time I won't be holding back."
Ren smiled back defiantly.
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Kaito gave a great booming laugh as he exited the room.
But Shinya remained.
"I'm only training you and protecting you at school because I'm loyal to the boss. If you want to know what I think, this is a giant waste of time. The Red Eyes don't need you."
Shinya left the room with those words, leaving Ren to ponder them.
Ren sat on his very expensive memory foam bed. Blood dripped from his face onto the soft white sheets, that were no surprise to Ren, very expensive.
As he sat there, the words of Shinya echoed in his brain over and over.
And over time, his thoughts turned to defiance. He was going to do whatever possible to prove Shinya wrong and become strong enough to prove to him he is not a weakling.
With his mind set on his new goals of getting stronger, to pass the requirement to join Red Eyes, and to prove Shinya wrong, he got up from his bed and walked towards the open bathroom door in his large room.
Once inside the restroom, he grabbed a face cloth and made it damp under the sink.
Looking into the large mirror that reflected his bloody mess of a face, he gently wiped the blood off of himself, revealing his badly broken nose.
Ren threw the white face cloth into the trash can, knowing there was no point keeping a blood-stained face cloth.
Afterwards, he took a deep breath and, with both hands, snapped his nose back into place as sharp pain followed, but just as soon as the sharp pain came, it went away.
"No matter what, I will get stronger, and I will join Red Eyes."
Ren said as he stared intensely into the mirror, which now showed a straight but heavily bruised nose.
And his deep red eyes glowed in determination.
And so, Ren's training to meet the requirement of the Red Eyes began.