Inertia.
49-0 was the strike count. Every time they fought, they ended up meditating on the fight. Kei realized that Shogo's punches were more refined, allowing him to strike multiple times from any position. His boxing focused on good hip movement, punch energy, and increased power. However, Kei fought against challenging people, which allowed him to stay ahead. Kei's growth was continuous.
-Have you practiced against the metal post? - Kei asked.
-I have, without rest. It's one of the toughest activities I've had the displeasure of doing. Even now, I can't win. That kata for breaking iron is complex. Now I understand why the master wanted to teach you that. Those katas are extremely useful, - Shogo replied.
-I'll teach them to you when I master them. Niko's style is noble; he's not stingy with his techniques. We can expand the Niko style + boxing together, reaching a point where our skills are far above average. A fight for the title of the strongest... Speaking of which, how's your relationship with Odin? - Kei asked.
-Nothing interesting. Just fighting weaklings. Potentially fighting common people doesn't interest me now. Even the club members aren't the right people to propose a challenge. It's disappointing. Even now, I think a fight with Odin would be easy, - Shogo commented.
-You should combine your style with Muay Thai. It's an aggressive style like yours, along with boxing, but I'll teach you the katas. -
Kei cleared his mind as he carried a bag of food. He felt true calmness. His heart was happy—Runna was perfect, his mother was as always, and somehow, he was stronger. Though some unexpected fights and events taught him some lessons like the will to survive.
He opened the door to his house. His mother laughed joyfully while talking to a man with yellow hair, cat-like eyes, and a demonic aura that began to shatter Kei's tranquility piece by piece. It was none other than the other Niko, one of the most bloodthirsty characters from the Kengan series. Disagreeing, Kei saw the man's sadistic smile, so intense that neither his mother nor Runna could sense the emerging power of the other Niko.
-Kei, this gentleman came to see you. I invited him in since you always come home at this hour after school. I decided to invite him for a meal, - Chia Kazama said, standing over a dragon's throat. It was her way of causing Kei to sigh. Chia was perhaps so gentle that even the bloodthirsty form of Niko didn't reflect something Chia wasn't already familiar with.
-Nice to meet you, - Kei said, shaking his hand, trying to calm all his instincts that were screaming one word: "Run."
The celebration dinner was dry, and Niko's presence was an act that could be seen as unsatisfactory. No matter how or where he always wore a bloody smile. It was known that this man could kill someone with just a finger movement, as it was his special skill. His abilities in possession made him a perfect man for killing.
-I think Runna is sleepy, - Kei said. - Mother, take her to her room; she might need a rest. -
Runna was nodding off in her seat. Both were left alone at the kitchen table.
-Oh, excuse me. I'll leave you two alone to talk more calmly, - Chia said, smiling.
-It's obvious you're not a friend of my brothers. I can sense you're a master martial artist. No one with such power and bloodlust can be considered a friend. That means you're not here by chance, - Kei said, continuing to eat while the other Niko sipped some wine.
-You're very perceptive, even though we've never met. You have good instincts. You saw right through me in a second, - the other Niko murmured, about to attack.
-Let's be civilized. I have no intention of fighting someone like you. Even now, I don't think I could be a challenge. It would be ridiculous to try to fight you. If we look at the benefits, there are none. If you came here, it's for a proposal, - Kei said.
This earned a malevolent laugh from Niko, who stretched with deep malice, facing the boy's calm demeanor. The power of control was perhaps the most addictive for the other Niko.
-I want you to betray the other Niko, - the other Niko replied with a wild smile. - He will understand. Worms wriggle in the sand; we are treacherous. We live in a world of evil, and now you are part of 'Worn,' - Niko answered.
-Let's go. I will betray Niko, but we won't gain anything from it, - Kei said. The dark spiral began to envelop him. In such aggression and form, his future as a member of Ryozanpaku was just a child's illusion, now punished for his audacity. Perhaps for fear of being rejected by the great masters, in his eagerness to become powerful, to seek masters, and demand more power, he fell into a deep pit. This time, his journey had no farewells. When Chia Kazama came down from the second floor, she saw the door open, with no sign of an entry or exit, just a deep feeling that something was truly wrong—a bad way to be mistaken, thinking it was another of Kei's whims, maybe an event with his brothers, who always lied and got into trouble.
-Kids… -
Kei left a note, a small note, with all the gifts on the table. "Niko Tokita" was the only thing written on the paper.
***
He boarded a helicopter, which took him a few miles into the place known as the interior. Just the air was a reminder, very greedy, Kei thought. The other Niko had wanted to kill Niko for a long time, and even trained Setsuna and manipulated Ohma to kill Niko. Kei hadn't seen the plot; it was clear that the other Niko harbored resentment, believing only he could use the Niko style—a ruthless person.
-What about it? That technique is called Advance, - commented the other Niko, who, in less than four hours, taught him two forbidden techniques: Advance or Possession and Fallen Demon. While one accelerates the heart to enhance speed and power and ultimately damages production, it strains the heart, which can be consumed. The Fallen Demon uses blood flow in the brain to enter a state of tachypsychia, altering perception to an amazing level.
-When you mix both techniques, you'll use a new experiment of mine called Divine Devil, the combination of both techniques, - the other Niko said, not mentioning that no one had survived using the technique.
They walked easily through Rikuko, one of the most dangerous places in the interior. He could see from afar it was known as the worst place in the interior, with destroyed places, markets, people more dead than alive, or true lunatics lurking in the shadows. Kei sighed from the bottom of his heart, with a determinative premonition, standing before a blonde-haired man known in the future as a king of purgatory, a master who dominated the elimination technique of the Kure clan, a powerful experiment, a man who could change plans like no other.
-When I saw you, boy, I thought you were just a disciple of some master, but your skills with the Niko style are outstanding for your age. I knew your growth wasn't much, so I sent Muteba to kill you, one of the most ruthless assassins I know. My surprise was when Muteba returned injured and without a clear victory. You managed to defeat someone a thousand times stronger than you because of your intelligence, and that's when I first deduced that your abilities are top-notch to create a new era, taking the Niko style beyond. It was clear; your instincts are divine, among the best found on the battlefield. My attention was piqued; no one survives death so many times. I concluded I must test your luck as much as possible, which is why we are here, - the other Niko commented.
Walking like a king through the most dangerous center of the interior, was a way to see fear advancing in the heart. Painful fear crossed his mind upon seeing Lu Tian, with his cynical posture—a true form of terror and cynicism.
-I brought you a prospect to be trained; we will add him to the next ritual, - the other Niko said. The word was a slap; the Gu ritual was always the way, an indifferent form of viewing, but seeing his future sealed in the Gu chamber for three months would be the worst three months of his life—a life possibly unmagistrated.
-A bit rushed, he looks very young, - commented Lu Tian.
-He is skilled; I'm teaching him the Formless Style, - the other Niko replied. The Formless Style takes the water kata to its highest point, almost like it appropriates the subject without technique, only talent.
What is the Gu ritual? It's the way to create a warrior. The ritual can be considered from two adjustments, a contrary adjustment; the ritual stems from the idea of revenge, development, and adjustment. In ancient China, they sought to create the most lethal poison. This poison was carried in different forms; various poisonous species were added to a vessel, and depending on the quality, a new breed emerged. From scorpions, toads, worms, snakes, spiders, and centipedes—they were added and sealed. After some time, an animal that absorbed all kinds of poisons was born, a special poison giving life to a new creature, a new kind of animal, deadly and dangerous, an unavoidable peril.
The other Niko elevated that meaning with Worn's knowledge, creating concentrated chambers of at least 100 people, sealed in a room, to find perfect warriors who would lead to evolution. In that evolution, he could find answers about the advancement of martial arts. The other Niko liked the idea and started refining the method over the last 15 years. One of his first experiments was Kannoh Agito, just an experiment; the second was Lu Tian. Among the 15 experiments conducted over the years, adding Formless Style, elimination practice, and advancement, now they were conducting new training for the technique—the Divine Devil. It's a technique combining Advance (Possession) and Fallen Demon. Both techniques were created to be dangerous; the first uses blood pumping, while Fallen Demon uses blood pressure to think faster, slowing time.
-He looks painfully weak, - commented Lu Tian.
-He's a pup, perfect for the Formless Style, a style that can add something else. Along with the Niko style, he seeks to break initial molds and create a new style. To give him an advantage, teach him elimination, and I will teach him the rest of Possession. If something is born, let it be a true demon, - said the other Niko, scaring Kei.
Of course, if he survives the blow, which in 95% of cases would not happen, as only two out of the last 15 attempts of the Gu ritual have survived.
-We will train him, although it's very rushed for this young man to participate. Whatever! We'll do our best. In the next five months, I will teach him to surrender in the Formless Style and the Niko style, although elimination is not easy, - commented Lu Tian, following all his learning methods.
Without more time, they took him to a training room with other young people, first giving him a simple black gi. All wore the same attire, while others began to observe Kei. 101 students, no introductions, no emotions, each worried about their own life.
If Shiba, Takemoto, or Niko's training was madness, the other Niko and Lu Tian's was true madness. That same night, he was placed in a dark room with chains. He had to move without making noise, pursued by Lu Tian from all angles, followed by extreme exhaustion. The Formless Style is only learned when the body has no energy, meaning the first hours of combat honed his Niko style, boxing, and Kempo. The following were torture to take his katas to another level.
Kei devised a plan, using his Dou Ki to surrender to the beast within while keeping his consciousness. The question was if he could wake up. The beast used all of Kei's primary senses and martial arts work to practice, while Kei's consciousness began to find calm from a back corner, using a bit of Fallen Demon to adjust his state.
...
ahahaha this is the real twist in the plot, a very heavy burden that he will continue to carry, even when it seems that everything is going well, Kei, is neither good nor bad.