Chapter 127: Come!
A minute later, Nanao Ki stopped, panting heavily. He removed his mask and rubbed his aching hand with a helpless sigh. “Aoki, your strength now must be on par with Senior Dokusho, right? I can’t even last a minute anymore.”
Tsukasa Aoki replied calmly, “I’m still far behind Senior Dokusho. Alright, Ki, you go rest.”
“Next! Who’s next?” Aoki furrowed his brow and looked sternly at the club members who were staring blankly at him. “Anyone who hasn’t fought me today, or who I suspect is slacking off, isn’t allowed to go home. Now, who wants to be the first to face me?”
“That’s too harsh...” murmurs spread among the group.
“Yeah, he’s not even the captain or anything...”
“How am I supposed to beat him? Seriously.”
“Ah, I’ve got plans tonight, what am I supposed to do...”
Aoki took a deep breath and shouted, “Shut up!”
The chatter instantly died down.
“Senior Dokusho has been unwell these past few days, and I promised to help improve your skills. That means she entrusted me with the authority to manage this club.” Removing his mask, Aoki’s fierce expression swept coldly over the members. Seeing their timid and weak demeanors, he felt a deep sense of pity for Dokusho Saeko.
“I have a question,” Aoki said, placing his mask at his waist and turning slightly, his voice calm. “Why did you all join the kendo club?”
“Ki, you go first,” Aoki said, looking at him. He only knew Ki’s name, after all.
Ki’s heart tightened, but he quickly stood straight with his hands at his sides. “I joined the kendo club because I wanted to become stronger.”
“And you?” Aoki turned to a senior third-year member, still silent.
The senior hesitated, then murmured, “Because... I’ve practiced kendo since I was a child.”
“And you?” Aoki pointed randomly at another unfamiliar member.
That member lowered his eyes nervously. “Because... I like kendo.”
Aoki nodded slowly at them, then suddenly slammed his shinai onto the ground. “You like kendo, yet you don’t even have the courage to fight?”
“You’ve practiced since childhood, yet you can’t even grip your shinai properly?”
“Did you join this popular club just to have something to brag about to your friends?”
“Is your daily training just a way to kill time?”
“If that’s the case, I suggest you quit. Kendo is not a game or a boastful hobby!”
Aoki pointed at the senior member’s face, showing no mercy, even wearing a scornful expression. “Your lifelong practice doesn’t even amount to a tenth of Ki’s skill in my eyes!”
“Is it because Senior Dokusho has been too lenient with you, making you think ‘kendo isn’t that hard’?”
Seeing the senior clench his fist in silence, Aoki’s voice grew cold as he looked around. “If your skills are only this pathetic, your spirit so fragile that you can’t even raise your sword against me, then I think we can end today’s training here. I’ll call Senior Dokusho and report your behavior.”
“And suggest she be more selective about who she accepts in the future.”
He looked at the bowed heads of the members, their faces marked with anger and dissatisfaction, and continued to provoke them. “Maybe you should take up flower arranging or cooking instead. Kendo isn’t for you. I’ve only practiced for a few weeks but already you don’t even have the courage to swing your swords. At this rate, it seems this club only needs Senior Dokusho and me.”
“I really pity Senior Dokusho, wasting so much time only to produce worthless members who can’t even hold a sword properly... Sorry, I’m not targeting anyone in particular, but all of you here are useless.”
Smiling lightly at Ki, Aoki’s expression softened just a bit. “Ki might be a little better than the others, but only slightly.”
Ki showed no disappointment or anger, just thoughtful silence as he observed this side of Aoki so different from before. Deep down, he understood Aoki’s intentions.
No wonder he’s Aoki.
Ki lowered his head, hiding the admiration in his eyes.
After a pause, seeing no one spoke up, Aoki sneered and was about to remove his gear. “Looks like I was right. You can all go home.”
He tossed his mask onto the floor and began unstrapping his chest protector.
“Wait!”
A voice filled with anger stopped him.
The senior member lifted his head, removed his mask, revealing an ordinary face, but his expression was full of fury. “I’ll fight you!”
“You?” Aoki smirked, eyes narrowing slightly. “I won’t go easy on you.”
“No need!” The senior gritted his teeth, sweat rolling down his temples but his gaze unwavering. “I’m Renta Nomoto, and I’m not useless!”
“Oh?” Aoki chuckled, picking up his shinai, not even bothering to put on his mask. Like Ryota Ishihara had done to him before, he taunted, “Come on. To deal with you, I don’t even need a mask.”
Renta’s breathing grew heavier; his eyes burned red with rage. Hearing Aoki dismiss his lifelong kendo practice as worthless and speaking arrogantly about Senior Dokusho pushed Renta to his limits.
So what if you’re the school’s top dog!
Clenching his wooden sword tightly, Renta donned his mask, spread his legs, held his shinai in front of him, and assumed a fighting stance.
Aoki held his sword casually with one hand, turning slightly to face him, mockingly watching Renta’s movements with peripheral vision.
“Haah!” Renta felt a surge of adrenaline. With a loud shout, he charged at Aoki.
Though the other members didn’t make a sound, their eyes were filled with anger and hope. They silently watched Renta’s every move, wishing he could strike down the arrogant Aoki in one blow.
Not bad!
Aoki’s lips curled into a barely noticeable smile, his gaze sharp. Though still feigning arrogance, he was on high alert.
He could see it—the trajectory of Renta’s sword!
With his exceptional intellect came reflexes beyond normal humans. What looked like a lightning-fast strike to others was easily tracked by Aoki.
Sidestep, parry.
Aoki’s fluid movements resembled a dancer’s grace. His footwork blended kendo with mixed martial arts evasion, as if a butterfly caught in a breeze drifting lightly aside. Renta’s powerful strike missed, grazing Aoki’s clothing.
Aoki’s shinai, like a hidden serpent, launched a swift and miraculous strike from a blind spot, aiming for Renta’s throat.
The throat guard blocked the blow but couldn’t absorb all the force. Renta felt a sharp pain and immediately coughed, eyes reddening.
Aoki remained calm, holding his shinai in one hand. “Again.”
“Ahhh!” Renta snapped back to reality, eyes burning as he stared at Aoki’s terrifying, almost demonic face. Though trembling inside, his resolve surged like never before: even if he fell, he would land a hit.
“Come on!”
Someone shouted.
Then the whole kendo club erupted in unison: “Go, Senior Nomoto! You can do it!”
“Keep it up!!”
But unfortunately, explosive talent belongs to protagonists; Renta was just a supporting character. He was defeated.
Exhausted, he collapsed on the floor, gasping for breath.
A bead of sweat trickled down Aoki’s forehead as he struggled to steady his own breathing, hiding his condition. Yet his expression remained calm. “Anyone else?”
“I, Yuta Yata, am here!”
“Natsuki Kanamori wants to challenge!”
Seeing the members’ excited faces, no longer fearful, a faint smile crept onto Aoki’s lips. “Alright, come on!”
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