Five months later, all the injured had recovered. I had recovered too, but I still had some aftereffects. When I touched my ribs it hurt terribly, and if I ran for more than ten minutes my heart ached.
All the regular guards were gathered in the prison yard. Director Ishiro stood in front of us and said: « I am glad you are all recovered. Now that you are back on your feet, we will begin the training program I created. You will follow this program for two weeks to become stronger. Your mentor will be Ren Arashi, a former soldier. » After those words he cast a subtle look at me. His gaze was a strange mix of kindness and contempt.
Ishiro left the yard, and we, the regular guards, waited for our instructor. Suddenly a military helicopter approached the yard. As the helicopter hovered about five meters above the ground, a man jumped out and landed. The man laughed and announced in a loud voice: « MY NAME IS REN ARASHI — NICE TO MEET YOU, YOU BUNCH OF WEAKLINGS! » The guards muttered: « He didn't have to shout. » Ren said: « I'll explain how this will work. If a guard misses or fails an exercise, I'll beat him up, and if he fails three exercises in a row I'll kill him, because I hate the weak. » What — this was worse than Isachi's hide-and-seek.
Our first exercise was 150 push-ups with a large stone on our backs. Everyone — myself included — cried out in pain. I managed only twenty-one push-ups, and Arashi slapped my cheek extremely hard. Only two guards passed that first exercise. I thought we'd get a break after that, but Arashi said: « Now you will chain punches into the air. » At first that sounded simple, but after I threw fourteen punches into the air my arms hurt terribly. Still, I resisted. Sixteen guards failed and were slapped by Arashi.
We went through an unrelenting, brutal sequence of drills. When Arashi was about to move on to another exercise, one guard begged: « We've been training for hours — can we have a break? » Arashi laughed and said: « If you want a break, succeed in killing me in a duel here and now. » Guard: « What? No — I don't want to kill anyone, I just… » He didn't even finish his sentence before Arashi plunged a knife through his throat. The other guards panicked and were shocked. Arashi licked the blood off the blade and said: « This is the jungle. It's meritocracy: only the strong earn a break. » I was stunned and petrified; my body trembled. But after thinking it through, my body stopped shaking. Why tremble, when I had almost died so many times? I had already seen people die before my eyes.
After that shocking scene we continued the training. Some guards grew paranoid and refused to anger or contradict Arashi. After eight hours of training without pause, Arashi said: « Good — that's the end of today's session. » As we began to leave, Arashi stopped us and said: « It's time to kill those who failed three training sessions. » With a twisted smile he drew a knife and surged at the guards who had failed three times. He killed twenty-three guards in five minutes. I was lucky — I had failed only twice.
It was 11 p.m. Instead of sleeping, I decided to train. I murmured: « If I want to survive this program, I must train in my dorm too. » I did a few exercises and stretches, but after just two sets my heart hurt. I stopped and decided to call it a day.
The next morning the program continued, and this time mistakes no longer earned a slap — they earned a whipping. Our first drill that morning was an obstacle course. We had fifty minutes to finish it, or we would be whipped. Since my endurance was limited, I decide to run neither too fast nor too slow. Unfortunately, I arrived late and received the whip. The next exercise was swimming with a large stone tied to the foot. We had to swim like that for twenty minutes, and if we stopped we would be whipped. I completed that exercise easily, but I was exhausted and there was no break.
After completing all the trials, Arashi said: « You know, it's time to kill the weak. » He retrieved his knife and rushed at a guard, but at the moment he was about to kill him a gunshot rang out. Arashi stopped and looked toward the shooter. It was Maku Nishi. With a disgusted tone he said: « You're supposed to be training them, but all you do is reduce our numbers. Besides, our bodies need a break after exhausting exercises. » Arashi smiled and replied: « I train however I want. If you disagree, fight me to the death. » Nishi only nodded. The two men removed their jackets and grabbed knives.