Masimo wiped the blood off his face with the back of his hand, eyes burning with cold fury.
Masimo (low voice): "You'll pay for this, kid."
Sofia (shouting): "Please go away!!"
Masimo lashes out a straight right across Hoshin's nose.
The hit lands clean — but Hoshin doesn't even flinch. He keeps his gaze locked, eyes sharp and calm.
Masimo (gritting his teeth): "What's up with this kid?"
Hoshin: "Say it! Do you want to be saved? If not, I'll walk away."
Silence falls. The hallway seems to freeze.
In a low trembling voice, Sofia finally says:
Sofia: "Hoshin… help me..."
Hoshin's expression hardens — in a blink, he lunges forward and slams a cross right onto Masimo's face.
Masimo (growling): "Darn you!"
Hoshin: "I'm a boxer too."
Masimo swings back with a savage right hook that cracks against Hoshin's jaw.
Hoshin (thinking): He's got power… but no defense. No speed.
Hoshin absorbs the blow, staggering back a step, wiping the blood from his lip.
Masimo: "This ends now!"
He charges in to finish it—
but Hoshin slips to the side and counters: a crushing hook to the jaw, followed by a rising left uppercut that snaps Masimo's chin back.
Masimo stumbles.
Masimo (thinking): He's fast…
Hoshin: "I call this the Dragon's Double."
Masimo snarls, planting his foot hard into the ground, and launches a brutal uppercut straight into Hoshin's core.
The hit lands like a cannon. Hoshin's breath bursts out of his lungs, his body folding slightly from the impact—
but his eyes don't break contact.
The tension freezes mid-air.
Both stand firm, fists raised, breaths heavy, the hallway dead silent except for the echo of their collision.
Chapter 116 End