Chereads / Path to Strength / Chapter 74 - Chapter 71

Chapter 74 - Chapter 71

For those who can't read due to the new updates, I have posted all the chapters on another platform. The link is in the comments of this chapter. I am not changing sites, I will just be posting on both platforms so that pc readers and those who are not fluent in English can continue to follow

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_____Yamashita Kazuo Pov_____

"The rise of the octagon's new star is making a splash! Having started his professional career three months ago, he is undefeated in all 13 fights, and with knockouts! Shocking! Critics said that fighting so many fights in such a short time was impudent, but this prodigy has shut every one of them up! At only 17 years of age, Yuji Shinakawa is already considered by much of the public as the future of martial arts! Many are clamoring for this young fighter to face off against big names such as Imai Cosmo, who is a young and talented MMA fighter, and Mohammad Alai Jr, son of the legendary boxer Mohammad Alai!

My name is Kazuo Yamashita, I am a man in the prime of my life at the age of 56, and I have been working at Nogi Publishing for 34 years. I have two sons, and while my eldest son Kenzo became a recluse a few years ago, my second son Yasuo is a rebel who only comes home to steal some change from my wallet. My wife left ten years ago, and with all this it is clear that my family situation is not the best. I would like to say that I live in happy days, but this is not really true. The only time in my day that I find myself smiling is when I hear people on television praising my nephew, Yuji Shinakawa, in his fighting career.

My younger sister unfortunately passed away 5 years ago along with her husband, leaving her son and my nephew to be cared for by my other sister, Shisumi. My relationship with my sisters was not the best, and the only time we had ever seen each other outside of the funeral was at Yuji's birth. As much as we didn't speak, I still loved both of them, which made it devastating to find out about their deaths.

As many times in my life, I felt helpless when I could not even be there for my nephew. The situation with Kenzo and work eventually prevented me from even thinking about taking a trip, extending to the present moment. It was by chance that two months ago I found out that Yuji had started a fighting career, and since then I have followed all his fights without missing a single one. Even if I couldn't support him before, I wanted to at least support him now, even if he didn't know it. It was not my job to question how dangerous the path he chose was, not after so much time without contact, so I could only hope for his victory.

Finishing breakfast, I walked up to the second floor of my house and placed the plate of food in front of Kenzo's door, walked downstairs and watched a hand grab the plate from outside and pull it into the room.

'How long has it been since I've seen your face? Two, or maybe three years?' I thought as I let out a tired sigh.

Pulling out my phone, my eyes landed on today's date, my brow furrowing as I understood what would happen later.

'XX-XX-2007...'

Ding!

Suddenly, a notification sounded on my phone, my eyes turning to see what it was about.

[Secretary Akiyama: Don't be late.]

'Today is the day Ohma will fight Sekibayashi.'

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"Kenzo, I'll be gone for a while!" I shouted, not expecting an answer. After so long, I had grown accustomed to the idea that my son would not even answer me.

Knock Knock

Walking to the door, I was startled when two sudden knocks came from it, confusion taking over my mind.

"Uh? Is that a delivery? I don't remember ordering anything." I muttered, approaching the door and putting my hand on the doorknob. "Maybe it's someone wanting to sell some product."

Opening the door, I immediately found myself staring at a person's chest, my vision slowly turning upward to see the face of the one who knocked on my door.

"..."

I blinked a few times as I laid my eyes on his face, my mind processing who was in front of me as slowly as an old computer.

"Uncle Kazuo! It's been quite a while, hasn't it?"

When I heard the figure speak, my eyes almost popped out of my sockets when the realization hit me like a punch.

The one standing in front of me was none other than my nephew, Yuji!

"Y-Y-Yuji?!" I shouted in shock and confusion. "What are you doing here?!"

I saw him let out a laugh at my reaction, but it didn't bother me. I was busy with the shock of suddenly having my famous nephew in front of my door. Why was he in the area? Would he have a fight in the city?

"Well, I will have a fight around the outskirts soon, so I decided to visit you." He spoke, a smile on his face. "May I come in?"

"A-Ah, sure." I nodded in agreement, giving way for him to enter.

Seeing him up close, I immediately noticed his features. Unlike the short, skinny boy he was when I saw him at his mother's funeral, Yuji now appeared to be about 184cm tall, with perfectly dense and defined muscles, noticeable even if he was wearing a shirt. Comparing him to Ohma, he seemed to have slightly more volume in his muscles. His face was also quite different, clearly more mature, which matched his brown hair that extended down to his neck.

'He really pulled your mother...' I thought sadly, memories threatening to surface, before I shook my head to stop them.

Turning my attention to Yuji, I noticed his scar that extended from his neck to a small part of his chin. Considering the state of the mark, it was clear that it had been a while since the wound had healed, but that didn't stop me from worrying. What had happened to cause him to suffer a wound like this?

When I saw him walk into the room, the memory of Ohma's fight hit me like a blow, my eyes widening as sweat built up all over my face.

"Y-Yuji, I'm sorry! I have a very important appointment! When I arrive, we can talk!" I quickly excused myself, rushing to the door in time only to hear a confused murmur from him.

"Uh?"

'Sorry, Yuji!' I shouted in my mind, running desperately toward the station.

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