CHAPTER 154: THE RULES
Tokyo Dome. Underground Level 6.
The common crowd was gone. The echoes of the cheering masses had faded into an oppressive, heavy silence.
Those who remained in the Underground Arena stood alone or in small, lethal clusters. No one spoke loudly. Yet, the atmosphere didn't feel empty; it felt like high-vintage wine—rich, dark, and intoxicating.
"Why did you come to this city?"
Mitsunari Tokugawa spoke into the megaphone, his voice small but amplified to a roar.
Standing in the center of the sand, the massive Westerner—Dorian—scanned the gallery of monsters. He offered a lazy, melancholy smile.
"Personally? Most of the faces here are new to me. By what authority do you ask us anything, Old Man?"
"I own the pit," Tokugawa stated flatly.
The directness of the answer pleased Dorian. He let out a booming laugh. "Aha! Then we are illegal intruders. I suppose we owe you a 'thought' in exchange for your hospitality."
Tokugawa exhaled a cloud of anticipation. "Think carefully. The answer is your life."
The five convicts on the sand already knew their truths.
"I was brought here by Katahara, and invited by you," Sikorsky said with a thin smirk.
"I seek a place of healing," Dorian sighed, looking at his scarred hands. "I have wandered the earth, and the current brought me here."
The largest of them, the bald brute with the twitching eyes—Speck—licked his lips. "The Scent. I followed the scent of a perfect meal. This building smells delicious."
The sharp-eyed middle-aged man, Yanagi Ryuko, spoke in a low hiss. "This is the Rear Garden of the warrior. Every seeker of the Way eventually finds the gates of the Dome."
Finally, the tall youth with the shaggy red hair—Doyle—offered a casual shrug. "I came to meet 'Might' that isn't bound by a sports commission. I followed my heart to the slaughter."
In the stands, the responses were just as varied, whispered like prayers to the dark.
"Old Man Tokugawa called, so I showed up," Baki Hanma yawned.
"To verify my research on the human threshold," Kureha Shinogi smiled.
"To scrap. No more, no less," Kaoru Hanayama grunted, taking a massive pull of bourbon.
"I accepted the invitation of an old friend... and a worthy rival," Retsu Kaioh noted, glancing at Doppo.
"Yanagi... I'm here for you, Yanagi..." Goki Shibukawa muttered, his good eye fixed on the convict with a terrifying glee.
Hideki Nogi wiped the sweat from his brow. "To realize my 'Wish.' To take the throne."
Erioh Kure, the Patriarch, leaned on his cane. "I'm under contract. Business as usual."
Beside him, Raian Kure laughed until his shoulders shook. "To kill. To tear. To hear the music of snapping bones. KU-KA-KA-KA!"
Heihachi Furumi gripped the railing. "To ensure my firm isn't left behind in the coming storm."
Seishu Akoya memorized every face. "For Justice."
Madarame Baku popped a pickled plum. "For world peace... probably."
Shigeru Akagi, the Man of the Divine Realm, lit one cigarette with the cherry of the last. "I just wanted to see Ren-kun throw another punch. That's all."
A dozen truths echoed in the hollow dome.
Tokugawa felt his blood singing. "Magnificent! You truly are 'Might-Users' of the highest caliber!"
The old man began to tremble with a holy fervor. "Since you have answered... I shall grant you the 'Reward' you seek!"
"Reward?" Speck laughed, the sound high-pitched and manic. He scanned the gallery, his eyes narrowing as they passed over the non-combatants like Baku, Nogi, and Akagi.
"You promise us 'Defeat'? You have some impressive monsters here, Old Man. But look at the rest! Rich trash and gambling ghosts. Do they really belong in a pit like this?"
Tokugawa paused, then gave a slow, knowing nod. "They were drawn here by the same 'Scent' you followed. In the world of the spirit, they are also 'Strong.' They hold a different kind of 'Might.'"
"And thus... I have become curious."
"What is Strength?"
Ren Shiroki sat next to Fusui Kure. He looked up at the white ceiling. "I came here for the same answer, Tokugawa-sama."
Tokugawa cleared his throat.
"The Strongest Creature on Earth, Yujiro Hanma... once said: 'Strength is the power to make your wishes a reality.'"
"The smallest unit of 'Might' is the power to be selfish. The power to enforce your Will upon the world!"
"From that perspective... everyone in this room is a Strong One!"
The old man's voice reached a crescendo.
"But I know some of you disagree. I know you look at each other and see only targets. So... if you wish to argue... then walk. Fight. And give me your answer with everything you have!"
Doppo Orochi stood up.
"Heh. So that's why the Old Man wanted us to gather 'Them' here."
As he spoke, four men rose from their seats and walked toward the ring.
Doppo Orochi.Retsu Kaioh.Kaoru Hanayama.Goki Shibukawa.
Baki Hanma felt a nudge from Doppo and followed. He was the fifth.
The five "White" legends of the Dome stood opposite the five "Black" convicts. They stood at the center of the world, staring into each other's souls.
"風景 (The view) is quite nice from here," Doppo mused, giving a playful wink to Ren Shiroki in the stands.
Tokugawa raised the megaphone again.
"A few months ago, I hosted the Maximum Tournament. Thirty-eight fighters. The greatest event in modern history."
"The boy standing there, Baki Hanma, was the Champion. The King of the Pit."
Tokugawa turned his gaze toward Sikorsky.
"You said earlier that a 'Match' is just a drill. A rehearsal for 'Real Combat.'"
"I agree."
"Therefore... tonight, I am not starting a tournament. I am starting a War!"
"A war that will be integrated into your daily lives. No one can predict when it will explode. No one can predict the form it will take."
"A sudden ambush while you sleep. A clash in a crowded restaurant. A struggle in the middle of a subway. Only in the 'Unexpected' can your true nature be revealed!"
The crowd of monsters processed the rules. It was the logic of a battlefield.
"Old Man," Baki said, raising a hand. "You're talking a lot of poetry. But bottom line? You're telling us to just go out and brawl?"
"Exactly," Tokugawa grinned.
"The rules follow the philosophy of the Great Mitsunari Maeda. If a duel is declared, both parties must arrive in the chosen district. You wear your street clothes. You eat, you drink, you walk the pavement like a normal citizen."
"And then... you meet."
"The duel begins when the first drop of blood hits the concrete. If you miss each other, you return the next day. You repeat the process until the 'Destiny' of the encounter is realized."
"Any place. Any time. Any style. Even if you are in the arms of a woman... you must be ready to enter the 'White Heat.'"
"THAT IS REAL COMBAT!"
As Tokugawa finished his proclamation, Metsudo Katahara stood up and began to clap.
The Kengan Chairman picked up a second megaphone. his voice was a thunderous decree that shook the foundations of the corporate world.
"NOGI!"
"S-sir!" Nogi stood up, the pressure of the room crushing him.
"You have plotted. You have gathered your fifty signatures. You have earned the right to challenge the throne."
"Therefore... I accept."
"But a 'Wish' is a hollow thing if you only ask for it. True desire is found only at the gates of Annihilation!"
"This 'Chairmanship Challenge' will not take place in a sanitized corporate arena."
"It will follow Tokugawa-kun's 'Real Combat' rules!"
"To any Member-Firm that desires the throne: Send your strongest monsters into the streets! Join this struggle! Kakerou Referees and Association Officials will be scattered throughout the city. When a fight ends, you find them. You register the result."
"Every Member-Firm gets one 'Official' fight per pairing. One win. One loss."
"The struggle continues until only one Fighter remains undefeated in the city. The CEO who owns that Fighter becomes the 59th Chairman of the Kengan Association!"
Metsudo leaned on his cane, a wolfish, holy grin on his face.
"I call this... THE KENGAN ANNIHILATION STREET BRAWL!"
"I pray that you all... no, that we all... find the answer to 'What is Strength' in the fire to come!"
Silence fell over the Tokyo Dome.
But it wasn't a peaceful silence. It was the silence of a fuse burning toward a nuclear core. The "Undercurrent" had finally broken the surface.
The Titans were moving. The War was here.
☆☆☆
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