Chapter 101: The Demon's Concern
"Urgh?! Did the 'Monster' wake up from his nap..."
Strydum's face turned grim. He pulled out a walkie-talkie to appease him. "Wait a moment. Just some boring personal business. It'll be done soon."
...
There was no more sound from the helicopter cabin, but the pressure everyone felt only increased.
Looking closely, a small crack opened in the cabin door. A certain "gaze" shot out from within, rapidly scanning the faces of everyone on the deck.
Kei, Katsumi, Yako Hikoichi, Kyara, Maruko, Yako Jouichi... these strong fighters suddenly felt as if a beast's claws had slashed their cheeks, giving them the illusion of bleeding.
"...?!"
Whose gaze is that?
The only ones who could answer were the two who couldn't speak—Kei and Katsumi—and Suedo Atsushi.
"Hey, is it him? No way..."
Suedo's eyes widened to the limit. He couldn't even make a sound, his throat trembling uncontrollably as he recalled the great evil that had once "beaten Orochi Doppo to death"!
Strydum was about to continue his appeasement when the helicopter door was suddenly thrown open.
Clang!
A backlit male figure appeared in everyone's vision. His intense presence stole everything from the surroundings, making it impossible to look away.
"Ha! Strydum, you found a nice place to enjoy the sea breeze!"
The man seemed to want to get on the deck, but unlike Strydum, he didn't rappel. Instead, he took a casual step forward, as if walking down his own stairs.
WHOOSH!
The man stepped into empty air, free-falling from nearly a hundred meters up.
Just as he was about to hit the ground, he suddenly reached out, grabbing the dangling rope to forcefully cancel his downward momentum, his toes touching the deck lightly.
"..."
The man put one hand in his pocket and released the rope with the other. Dust from the friction was faintly visible.
This exaggerated landing seemed somewhat ordinary compared to the man's appearance.
It was a body with demonic, terrifying muscles, radiating explosive power. His skin was metallic bronze, and he had long, dark red hair.
Height over 190cm, weight clearly exceeding 100kg!
Black short-sleeved shirt, black kung fu pants, and cloth shoes.
His facial muscles were clearly defined, features rugged, gaze sharp, presenting a unique "rage" and "ferocity" found nowhere else in the world.
In one word—Strength!
The moment the man appeared, everyone on the deck froze.
It felt like an antelope encountering a cheetah at extremely close range, paralyzed by fear. It was said that antelopes fall into desperate panic because escape is absolutely impossible.
Now, everyone on the deck was in that state!
"H-how..."
Suedo gasped in shock. "It's Hanma Yujiro!"
A single shout awakened a small portion of the crowd, allowing their minds to function.
Hanma Yujiro—this man's name circulated in many fields, remembered directly or indirectly.
Kakerou Club records, Kure Clan intel, urban legends, rumors from war zones, gossip among mercenaries...
No matter where it was heard, the "title" concerning that man never changed.
[Ogre], [The Giant Evil], and—
[The Strongest Creature on Earth]!
The man named "Hanma Yujiro" was undoubtedly powerful, universally recognized as the pinnacle of strength!
And that foreign soldier was one of Yujiro's very few old friends—Colonel Strydum.
"Yu... Yujiro..."
Strydum braced himself and stepped forward to explain. "It'll be resolved soon. Just confiscating a batch of smuggled arms to prevent a terrorist attack."
...
Yujiro remained silent, clearly indifferent to what Strydum said.
His sharp gaze looked at the two lying not far away—Kei and Katsumi—quickly assessing their injuries.
"Ribs: Left 2, Left 4, Right 4, Right 5 fractured. Chest has multiple abrasions and tears. Upper and lower jaw teeth loose, some missing."
"Forehead laceration, right humerus fractured, multiple wrist tears and bleeding, minor facial fractures, oral and nasal cavity damage, two pairs of ribs broken."
"Both have a dozen bruises and incomplete fractures..."
"Truly a bland scent of conflict, like an appetizer!"
Yujiro took a deep breath, raising an eyebrow. "Alright, get up. Don't mind me. You can continue."
Wh... What?!
This abrupt statement made everyone's eyes widen, unable to comprehend what they heard.
What do you mean 'continue'?!
To that 'Hanma Yujiro,' was the tragic battle Kei and Katsumi fought with all their might... merely an 'opening act'??
...
Seeing neither of the fallen men move, Yujiro sighed boredly. "Still too green after all. Looking closely, it's boring..."
His gaze swept around, passing over each strong fighter. "Although it's uninteresting, I'll ask anyway. Does anyone here want to fight?"
...
The two "Yakos" had duties and shook their heads to decline.
Kyara wanted to speak, but Baku covered his mouth desperately, refusing to let go even when glared at.
As for Maruko, he raised his hand frankly. "Maruko—doesn't want to fight!"
Yujiro: "..."
A genuine smile suddenly appeared on that demon-like face, as if recalling something pleasant. "Hearing a child's honest words occasionally isn't bad."
Interrupted by Maruko, Yujiro lost interest and casually called to Strydum, "Let's go!"
"...Oh!"
Strydum followed, signaling the Kakerou Leader not to forget what he said about handing the smuggling ship over to the US Forces Japan.
Just as Yujiro was about to leave, Sadakuni suddenly spoke up, bursting into wild laughter.
"Hahahaha!"
He was different from everyone else—he was a dead man walking, so nothing mattered anymore. He poured out everything in his heart.
Sadakuni pointed at Yujiro, mocking, "Saying you're the Strongest Creature on Earth... what a joke!"
"I've heard your name long ago, but looking at you now, you're just a 'human' too..."
His gaze swept the deck, looking at everyone. "Ultimately, you people are all trash dragging society down!"
"Martial artists, gamblers... in the end, none compare to bullets and missiles!"
"Compared to you laughable lot, I am the warrior! Death means nothing to me. I do not fear death!"
"Even the most ferocious 'Ogre' will have his head pierced by a bullet, will be burned to a crisp by the heat of a missile..."
"My battle is not over yet. Sooner or later, a missile will fall on your heads!"
...
This sudden cursing and provocation froze many people's expressions.
However, when Yujiro stopped and turned around, his expression wasn't anger, but an inexplicable smile.
"Did you all hear that? That blind man with glasses said—his battle isn't over yet."
"Well said!"
Yujiro raised a hand, smiling. "Fighting... even if beaten black and blue, or even confirmed dead, as long as the person doesn't admit defeat, it's not a loss."
"Hey, Strydum! I once told you to challenge me once a year. Regardless of whether the means are fair, just use all your strength to make me afraid. You should learn from that blind man!"
"Swords, guns, explosives, nukes... use every trick in the book to fight!"
SWOOSH!
Abruptly, Yujiro slid forward and delivered a front kick (Mae Geri), accurately hitting Sadakuni in the crowd.
BOOM!
With a crisp crack, Sadakuni's neck was shattered by the kick. Blood sprayed from his mouth and nose as he flew backward, smashing heavily against the cabin wall like a swatting mosquito.
...
Yujiro retracted his leg and turned to leave again under everyone's stunned gaze.
"Since you are still fighting, I'll take that as a challenge to me—"
"The result: I won."
He walked back toward Strydum, passing the fallen Kei and Katsumi without pausing, seemingly drawn by something more interesting, indifferent to everything else.
To be honest, Strydum had never seen Yujiro like this. He couldn't help but ask curiously, "By the way, coming to Tokyo so suddenly... what happened?"
Yujiro glared at his old friend, thought for a moment, and sighed inexplicably.
"My son—Baki. He... seems to have reached the age for romance."