Chapter 351: The Enforcer's Judgment
At that moment, the defeated form of Kono Haruo had already been carried off the stage. His opponent, Akoya Seishu, now stood alone in the arena, his eyes closed in quiet repose, utterly still. At the entrance to his designated waiting area, a cute young girl watched him with anxious eyes.
"Akoya!" she called out. "In a moment..."
Before she could finish her plea, a charming, melodic voice cut through the air from the shadows behind her. "Although I do encourage a bit of cheating, I must say I don't appreciate such foolish methods~"
The girl spun around, startled, to see a beautiful young woman emerge from the darkness. It was Momobami Kirari. The girl swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry. "Who are you...?"
"Oh? Miss Hiyama Shunka, a President in your own right~ Is it really acceptable not to know who I am? Allow me to introduce myself~ I am Momobami Kirari~"
"Momobami..." Hiyama's eyes widened in recognition and fear. "You're that... How could you be here...?"
"Shh~" Kirari purred, placing a finger to her lips. "My Combatant is about to make his entrance~ As for those men you had stationed to help your little trick? As special existences themselves~ the guardians simply had to lend a hand~"
As her words hung in the air, the lights above the opposite entrance to the arena flared to life. Akoya Seishu's eyes snapped open. In the stands, Ichihara Yuko and the others leaned forward, their gazes fixed on the stage. A match featuring Ren was a truly rare spectacle. Courage immediately started a video call, patching in Decora and the others to witness it.
Down in the announcer's booth, Katahara Sayaka addressed the fighter in the ring. "Akoya, this man has requested you be given time to rest. Do you require it?"
"No need," Akoya's voice was flat and cold.
Katahara Sayaka nodded, then took a deep, theatrical breath. A rare, excited blush colored her cheeks as her voice boomed across the stadium. "Then! Ladies and gentlemen!"
She paused for effect, her excitement infectious. "Next to enter the ring is the public enemy of every male Combatant in Kengan history! The heart-stealer of all female spectators and corporate owners, myself included!"
"He is the man who perfectly and elegantly interprets the aesthetics of violence to their absolute fullest! A top contender in the Kengan Matches!"
"He boasts an undefeated record across countless bouts, all while maintaining his signature composure and gentleness! His opponents have never been able to withstand his elegant judgment!"
"He possesses a miraculously slender physique that belies his true power! Standing at one hundred and eighty-six centimeters! His weight remains a closely guarded secret to this day!"
"Representing the esteemed Private Hyakkaou Academy! The one serving as this exhibition's 'dojo challenger'! Known by many titles—the White Butler, the King of Judgment, the Arbiter—he is Ren! Yu!"
The moment Katahara Sayaka finished, the entire venue erupted. Scores of female corporate owners shot to their feet, their eyes wide with disbelief as they stared at the entrance. Several had already begun frantically reapplying their makeup, a sight that left Jinx and the other younger girls utterly bewildered. The Kengan Matches were already a terrifying world, but this frenzied, almost fanatical reaction was on another level entirely.
Sonoko chuckled, shaking her head. "As expected of Brother Ren. It's a good thing he's so tightly protected, or he would have been coaxed away by one of those hungry owners long ago~"
Kobayashi Rindou, Kure Karura, and the others simply smiled, a knowing look on their faces. They had clearly witnessed this scene many times before. Seeing their calm reactions, Erina and the rest of the group gradually settled their nerves.
Hearing that name, Hiyama Shunka's entire demeanor shifted from anxiety to dread. In the ring, Akoya Seishu was visibly stunned. High above in the observation deck, Kaolan and the other fighters who knew Ren all focused their attention on the stage. The two old patriarchs, Katahara Metsudo and Kure Erioh, watched with playful, knowing grins.
"The monster that Kenjiro spoke of is actually the special fighter for this event?!" Yamashita Kazuo cried out in horror.
Tokita Ohma, however, just grinned, a predatory light in his eyes. "An undefeated monster, huh? Heh~ Interesting! A guy like that is worth defeating!"
"Ohma-san!"
Ren had since changed out of his impeccable suit. Now dressed in simple boxing shorts and a pure white, hooded boxing cape, he walked out unhurriedly, his gait as relaxed as if he were taking a leisurely stroll through a garden.
Akoya's expression was grim. "So you are that White Butler..."
With a flick of his wrist, Ren cast his cape aside. The garment fluttered to the ground, revealing an exquisitely sculpted physique that drew another wave of impassioned cheers from the crowd. Ichihara Yuko had never seen anything like it; the boys she knew with so-called artistic bodies were, to put it bluntly, just a bunch of skinny kids with no real muscle to speak of.
"That... Ren, that guy, has such a good physique?" Yuko murmured, a faint blush on her cheeks.
While she spoke, Ren performed the standard pre-fight salute. Akoya remained rigid, his expression locked in a solemn mask.
Ren offered a placid smile. "You seem to hold some... misunderstanding about the word 'justice'."
Akoya's voice was a low growl. "Justice... is justice. There can be no evil in the face of justice!"
With that declaration, he lunged, surging toward Ren like a bolt of lightning.
From the stands, Kaolan watched Akoya raise his fist and sighed softly. "That arm... So naive..."
Ichihara Yuko and the others barely had time to process his words. In the next instant, they saw Ren casually catch Akoya's charging fist in his open palm.
"The... grappling technique of justice," Ren said, his smile never wavering, "seems to be like this..."
In a blur of motion, he vanished, reappearing instantly behind Akoya. With one hand, he twisted Akoya's entire arm at an unnatural angle. Simultaneously, his leg shot out, striking the back of Akoya's knee, buckling it. A smooth, sweeping kick followed, taking Akoya's other leg out from under him and sending him crashing to the ground. The entire sequence was executed in less than five seconds.
Ren looked down at the fallen enforcer. "Dealing with evil feels truly wonderful, Mr. Akoya~"
Kure Erioh covered his face with his hand. "That brat's twisted sense of humor is acting up again!"
Beside him, Katahara Metsudo roared with laughter. "Hahaha~ In that case, that little cheating gadget of his must have been disposed of, right? Very nice~"
"Akoya! Akoya!" Hiyama shrieked from the tunnel.
Kirari wrapped an arm around Hiyama Shunka's neck, her voice a sweet poison in her ear. "Miss Hiyama~ That little thing of yours was thrown out, you know~ By forcing Ren to deal with it, you've successfully limited his madness. He's wasted one of his five chances~"
"Eh? How could that be...?"
"Eh? A very sharp attack~" Ren mused from the ring. "But Mr. Akoya, you no longer possess the qualification to attack like that~ Because from now on, you won't be able to reach my striking range anymore~"
Just as Kirari was terrorizing Hiyama, the now completely unhinged Akoya broke free from the ground with a contorted posture. He scrambled to his feet and unleashed a torrential assault on Ren, his fists flying like raindrops. But each time, Ren casually parried the blows, deflecting them aside while taking measured steps backward.
"Don't talk big!" Akoya snarled. "My justice will never be wrong!"
"Combatant Akoya's attacks have suddenly accelerated!" the announcer yelled. "Every strike is aimed directly at Mr. Ren's throat! If any of those connect, it would be fatal!"
"Oh! My God! Akoya's arm! This time, there's also a hidden punch aimed at the temple! This is a killing blow!"
Ichihara Yuko and the others frowned, a sense of unease washing over them. This man's definition of justice was far too extreme, far too bloody.
Somewhere in the stadium, Kure Raian let out a wild laugh. "Hey, hey, hey~ If you actually try to kill that guy, you're gonna be in a world of trouble!"
Kaolan's expression turned grim. "It's over..."
That final, lethal punch was caught. Ren's hand closed around Akoya's fist, and in the next moment, everyone watched in horror as Akoya's entire arm seemed to swell and deform grotesquely.
In that single instant, Ren had twisted Akoya's arm and shattered his metacarpal bones.
A raw scream of agony tore from Akoya's throat.
Ren smiled, his voice dangerously soft. "Sir, one shouldn't try to kill so casually. Otherwise, you must be careful of justice being served upon you..."
With that, he yanked Akoya's ruined arm, pulling him in forcefully. He met the incoming body with a brutal knee strike to the chest. A thick spray of blood erupted from Akoya's mouth.
Ren released his grip, only to use his other hand to seize the chin of the nearly unconscious Akoya. He took a single, deliberate step forward and slammed Akoya's head into the hard floor of the ring with sickening force.
CRACK.
Ren slowly rolled his neck, letting out a soft sigh. "Let me give you a piece of advice~ Justice doesn't necessarily mean killing. But if you have killed, you must be prepared to pay with your own life~ It's better to use proper arrest techniques for arrests~ People can be crazy, but they can't be depraved~ This warm-up was pretty good~ I'm really looking forward to the next four Kengan Matches~"
He straightened up, performed a formal martial arts bow to the stunned audience, and then turned to the referee. "Mr. Yamamoto~ He can be sent to Dr. Hanafusa for treatment now~"
"Ma... Match over! The winner has been decided! Winner! Ren!"
"Quickly, bring a stretcher! Hurry, hurry, hurry!"
As the medical team rushed onto the stage, before anyone could fully react, they saw spiderweb-like cracks slowly spreading across the ground beneath Akoya's head. His eyes had rolled back into his skull.
His upper body was completely limp. Two crimson streams of blood flowed from his nostrils, while more trickled from the corners of his eyes and ears. His chest was visibly caved in, and he continued to spit up mouthfuls of blood with every ragged breath.
Kirari licked her lips, running a single, delicate finger across the cheek of the stunned and trembling Hiyama Shunka. "Thank you for warming up my Combatant~ Miss Hiyama~ Don't you worry~ Ren isn't as disgusting as that man. Your fighter is still alive~ But... heh~ look at you, you're frozen stiff~"
Ichihara Yuko swallowed, her voice barely a whisper. "Hey... Lucifer... didn't he resolve that a bit too easily... But... isn't Ren a bit too fierce...?"
Kaolan sighed, his gaze still fixed on Ren, who was calmly accepting a towel. "Ren, that guy... he's just playing... The next four fighters... are going to have some very bad luck..."
"Eh?" came the unified gasp from the girls.
Lucifer tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
"It means..." Kaolan's voice was low and grave. "The later the Combatant, the more serious the Ren they will face... The fifth person will be the one to most directly experience the true, monstrous strength of that man, Ren..."
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