CHAPTER 112: A MUCH-NEEDED FIGHT

Haruki walked into the ring of an underground fighting club with his face covered with a black mask making him unrecognisable. This was the first time he was doing something like this and he had taken great care to escape the eyes of his guards and assistant before he left.

He flexed his arms, as he met the gaze of his opponent. He looked down on the roughly mopped floor as the smell of damp concrete and blood filled his nose despite being covered by the fabric of the mask he wore.

He was not half the size of the man before him but he was very certain that there was no hurt the man could bring to him without his permission. He sighed as boredom washed over him. This was his first time in this club or in any underground fighting club at all but this was not his first fight of the night.

The floor was still wet from the moisture of the mop that had run over it to clean the blood of his last two opponents. He came here to vent because he knew he could not afford to use any of the men around him including Kiyoshi.

Most of his men especially his guards, Ren and Kiyoshi were very well-trained men but with the amount of bloodthirst he felt, he knew he would most likely kill them.

They won’t fight him to survive knowing they would not want to hurt him but he would not hold back when fighting them and they would hurt them. So he arranged to go to an underground fighting club while ensuring they thought he was at home.

He knew enough about the underworld making it easy for him to meet with the right people and step into this world as a newcomer. After the first fight, he was still as clean as he came except for the blood of his opponent.

Dressed in casual black shorts and a black sweatshirt and refusing to remove the shirt like all his other opponents, many might have made the mistake of underestimating him but after defeating others, this opponent should know that he couldn’t simply judge him based on his slim fit size.

He was too dressed for them to know how well-toned his body was underneath the fabric of the baggy sweatshirt he chose to wear. But looking like an athlete does not guarantee the strength his every punch he holds.

He sincerely hoped the man before him was being underestimated by him. He came to fight not kill them and he held back from further beating the person when the person got knocked out.

They would most likely end up with a concussion but they won’t die. There was no fun in beating someone to death when you could find a worthy opponent.

The man before flexed his muscles as rage became evident in his eyes. Haruki yawned and stretched as though he was beginning to feel sleepy hoping to get the maximum rage he could get from the man and when he noticed it was working, he smiled under the mask and looked down appearing really bored until the bell rang.

They always saved the best for the end of the show. It was a weekday meaning there weren’t many people present. Most fighters stayed away until the weekends when they mostly earned more.

He looked at the overly bulky man and remembered what the manager of the club had said. The man was an athlete and had once won a few medals until he was charged with drug use and he had been fighting in this scene for a few years already.

For him to survive that long was a show of his strength. Haruki began having high hopes for the fight. Perhaps with this fight, he would conclude this season’s blood lust just in time for the doctor to arrive.

The doctor chose to prolong his stay because he wanted his brother to be fit enough for the journey and for Aki to settle his affairs there. He refused to answer the man’s call since he heard his request to stay a couple of weeks more.

He seriously considered ending their contracted relationship and finding someone else but he hesitated for reasons he could not pinpoint and he never succeeded in forcing himself to do it.

The bell finally rang and Haruki waited to see the first move the man would make. He hoped to estimate the man’s strength by his first attack. The man swung his heavy-looking fist towards him in a fast motion.

So fast but Haruki was quicker as he took a step back just in time for the man’s fist to pass right before his eyes. The man was quick to throw his fist again barely giving a break after the first. One attack after the other but Haruki’s feet were quicker moving his body away from each coming fist.

When Haruki was impressed, the man’s strength was worthy of the reputation he had. With very few failures all of which had left him alive, the man really lived up to his record but Haruki was not there to dodge attacks, he came to deliver a few, as much as the man could take before being unable to rise.

Haruki docked after letting the man throw his fist so many times without landing a single hit and raised his fist which came in clear contact with the man’s nose with a couple of seconds’ interval, Haruki threw another and his fist came in hard contact with the man’s neck.

The big frame of the man staggered back as blood pooled down his nose. Nosebleed was a very common occurrence for fighters on this ring so the man carelessly wiped his nose with the back of his hand and clenched his fist tightly as his eyes filled with rage met Haruki’s.

Haruki not feeling the need to play anymore with the man went in with the first jab then the feint landing squarely on the same spot on the man’s neck he had hit earlier.

Another stagger and he could see that the man was surprised by the amount of force that came from Haruki’s smaller fists. Even with drugs, there was no way one would survive a series of hits from something powerful and although the man came back, Haruki’s punches never missed and the man never landed any.

Haruki looked down at the man as he prayed for the man to last longer. The man was stronger than all his other opponents combined, meaning he was very good at receiving punches and kicks. Even with his eye busted and blood he had spat out staining the floor, the man didn’t fall to the ground.

He only staggered and the metal net surrounding the cage was enough to keep him from falling when the man leaned on it. He looked at the clock in the room and prayed the man would last through the next series of hits for more than sixty seconds before he gestured to the man to come forward.

The shouts from the audience the yelling, the noise none of them mattered, he simply saw his opponent and he even encouraged the man more than those watching.

The man stepped forward with his feet steady enough for Haruki to consider the fight continued. Three seconds left and the man had endured well enough giving Haruki so much satisfaction that his eyes brightened.

He considered the fight over but the man had to pull out a knife and charge towards Haruki. It was a walk in the park for him to grip the man’s wrist holding the knife and the man tried to hit his head with his free hand.

Haruki not expecting that couldn’t dodge just in time and he got the first hit of the night. It was his turn to stagger back as he felt a throbbing head. He got the man to drop the knife but the man could always reach for it.

He met the man’s gaze and he could easily guess what he was planning. With a quick spinning back fist, he knocked the man down to the cold gross concrete floor.

He picked the knife. He knew they claimed there were no rules in underground rings but bringing a knife to a fair sparring session was just wrong. Haruki bent and picked up the knife. This time, it was not a blood lust unrelated to the man but a thirst for vengeance.

Straddling the man who struggled hard on the floor, Haruki’s gaze went to the man’s neck and fear filled the man’s eyes as he could sense Haruki’s intention. Haruki at that moment thought the best way to punish the man was to do exactly what the man had planned to do to him.

With a sigh, he shook his head and only after throwing the knife aside did he deliver a couple of punches and rise up. He stretched and walked out of the cage. Without going to look for the manager for his payment, Haruki walked out of the establishment.

It was easier to leave when the least expected not giving anyone the chance to vent their anger on him after all, the manager had hinted that he should let the last man win.

He got into his car parked among those of the guests and drove out of the underground parking lot. He removed his mask and gulped down a bottle of water when he stopped at a red light.