When you focus on doing something you're interested in during a rest period, time passes quickly.
So the day between the first and second rounds of the main tournament passed just like that.
Jaden spent it familiarizing himself with Tuoli.
Then came the second round.
The sixteen-to-eight matches.
And his opponent-
Ohma Tokita.
The Ashura.
The man who had defeated Setsuna Kiryu before the tournament even began.
Jaden arrived at the venue early with Erina and the others.
As for today's sign-in reward, he couldn't exactly say he was dissatisfied.
But he couldn't say he was satisfied either.
What he received was a special ointment for treating internal injuries, especially joint damage. According to the description, it had miraculous effects.
The problem was-
Jaden didn't have any internal injuries.
So whether it was useful or not depended entirely on future circumstances.
While thinking about this, Jaden warmed up.
As he did, the audience gradually entered the venue.
At the same time, the announcer for this match also arrived.
Sayaka Katahara.
Twenty-two years old.
Daughter of the ninety-six-year-old Metsudo Katahara.
She began a sound check.
When she noticed that Jaden was already warming up, she looked a little surprised.
Then she walked over and greeted him with a smile.
Jaden noticed that Sayaka Katahara seemed to be wearing slightly less clothing than she had during the first round.
But he didn't pay it any attention.
Not even a second glance.
When she greeted him, he simply nodded and continued warming up.
Seeing his reaction, Sayaka Katahara-whose social skills were basically maxed out-seemed to understand something.
She recalled the rumors about Jaden and Erina, smiled lightly, and returned to her sound check.
After that, Jaden kept warming up.
Only when his opponent walked out of the fighter tunnel on the opposite side and stood before him did he stop.
He raised his head and looked at Ohma Tokita.
"Jaden."
Ohma Tokita's voice was calm.
"Why are you participating in this tournament?"
Jaden shrugged.
"If you really want a reason, there are plenty. For Erina. For some matters involving Totsuki. And partly for myself."
Ohma Tokita shook his head.
"I'm not asking about those."
He paused.
"...Fine. I'll put it another way."
"Jaden, what are you punching for in this ring?"
"And why do you want to win?"
What for.
Jaden was starting to feel annoyed.
But when he met Ohma Tokita's gaze-
That calm, fierce, serious, and unwavering look-
He sighed.
"If I really had to say it..."
"There's nothing."
"Nothing?"
Ohma Tokita frowned slightly, unable to understand.
Jaden nodded.
"I don't know what exaggerated reason brought you here."
"Or what obsession with victory keeps you moving forward."
"But for me, there's nothing like that."
Jaden looked straight at him.
His tone wasn't forceful.
It was calm.
As if he were stating something as obvious as needing to breathe or eat.
"Winning isn't something I chase."
"It's just... a given."
He continued.
"Compared to asking why I win, I'm more curious about something else."
"Why would anyone think I'd lose?"
Ohma Tokita checked his expression carefully.
Once.
Twice.
After confirming that Jaden wasn't posturing, but genuinely believed what he was saying, Ohma Tokita smiled.
"I see."
"Then I'm different from what you imagined."
"I don't have an exaggerated reason either."
"And I don't have an absolute obsession with victory."
He turned around.
He needed to warm up as well.
"Jaden."
"I only have one reason for standing here."
"And only one reason for fighting here."
He stopped briefly.
"-To prove that the Niko Style is the strongest."
"That's all."
Leaving those words behind, Ohma Tokita walked away to warm up.
Jaden watched his back and lightly scratched his cheek.
"I see."
"A seeker of the path who doesn't care about wealth or fame."
"Then meeting me might be your misfortune."
His gaze settled on Ohma Tokita.
The opponent's status window was now completely visible.
"...No."
"Maybe meeting me is your good luck, in another sense."
The moment Jaden first saw Ohma Tokita, he had already applied a curse.
It was only now, after checking the status window, that he realized-
Ohma Tokita already carried several abnormal conditions.
[Heart Compression: Heart under abnormal pressure due to a specific cause (Fatal)]
[Mental Compression: Brain under abnormal pressure due to a specific cause (Hallucinations)]
Among all vital points of the human body, the heart and the brain were unquestionably the most critical.
After Jaden applied the curse, Ohma Tokita's Heart Compression status changed.
[Unknown Heart Disease (Non-Fatal) (Latent) (Activated when stimulated)]
This non-fatal unknown heart disease would disappear after one hour.
At the same time, Ohma Tokita's original fatal Heart Compression status would also vanish.
By definition, the non-fatal curse was non-fatal.
And while it was active, the target would actually become less likely to die.
That was why-
When Jaden truly intended to kill someone, he would not use a curse.
Neither non-fatal nor fatal.
Fatal curses carried risks like delayed onset and contagion.
And a curse could only exist on one target for an hour at a time.
Unless absolutely necessary, killing someone directly was always faster.
As for Ohma Tokita-
Jaden returned to his punching stance and resumed warming up.
He had already reached a conclusion.
-As a seeker of the path, meeting him was undeniably bad luck.
-But as a person, meeting him could be considered fortunate.
At the very least-
After losing to him, Ohma Tokita would still be alive.
And after accepting defeat, he could continue walking his path as a seeker.
...
Time passed.
The audience filled the venue.
Sayaka Katahara took a drink to moisten her throat, raised the microphone, and projected her voice across the entire stadium.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for waiting!"
"Both fighters have completed their warm-ups!"
"Now-let us welcome them back into the arena!"
As her voice rang out, the lights dimmed.
Her tone instantly grew excited.
"First-let us welcome the man who has stirred the Kengan ring into a frenzy!"
"He is the mastermind behind this tournament!"
"The man who defeated the War God!"
"The one finally making his grand entrance!"
At her cue, Ohma Tokita's image appeared repeatedly on the massive screens.
"No one knows his background!"
"This mysterious newcomer will shock the entire tournament!"
"Height-182 centimeters! Weight-85 kilograms!"
"Record in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament-three wins, zero losses!"
"Total assets acquired-154.23 billion yen!"
"Representing Yamashita Trading Co.-the Ashura!"
"Ohma Tokita-!"
Music surged.
Four bursts of flame erupted from the ring.
Ohma Tokita stepped out of the fighter tunnel, onto the illuminated path, surrounded by heat, music, and Sayaka Katahara's voice.
He entered the ring.
Sayaka Katahara raised her arm again.
As the music faded, she spoke once more.
"Next-"
"The dark horse once known as the Wild Tiger!"
"The man who defeated the Wild Tiger himself!"
"The fighter everyone has been waiting for!"
"He is the super rookie who saved Totsuki less than one month after his debut!"
"He has repeatedly defeated Toyo Electric, acquiring massive, incalculable assets!"
"He now enters the tournament under a brand-new title!"
"And even the Thunder God has fallen to him!"
"Height-180 centimeters! Weight-110 kilograms!"
"Record in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament-five wins, zero losses!"
"Total assets-including a two percent share of Toyo Electric-incalculable!"
"Representing the Totsuki Group!"
"The man known as the Demon Spear-"
"Jaden Yuki-!"
This time, the flames that erupted were blue.
The music shifted to match the color.
Jaden stepped onto the blue-lit path and walked steadily toward Ohma Tokita.
They faced each other.
Both lowered their center of gravity.
As the music cut out and the lights returned to normal, Sayaka Katahara returned to her position.
The referee's raised arm finally came down.
The match-
Begins.
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