The battlefield and the fight to the death

[Red Cyclone] Zangief!

Chapter 31: The battlefield and the fight to the death

Fifth floor of the building, Q Dalang's office.

"His stance—it changed?"

Yagyou looked at the display on the wall and studied Shiraki Uke's posture, realizing he seemed to be switching to a different fighting style.

How interesting!

To keep watching, Yagyou said, "Excuse me," then bent down, picked up the pen-shaped listening device from the floor, and slipped it into a pocket on the side of his suit.

Q Dalang looked puzzled. "Hm? What are you doing, Mr. Yagyou?"

Yagyou answered politely, "I accidentally dropped my pen. Please pay it no mind and continue."

"..."

It was just a minor interruption, and Q Dalang paid it no heed.

But it gave Yagyou more to think about.

A pen-shaped listening device—something like that wasn't an everyday item. It had to be prepared in advance.

From that, he surmised that Usogui—Baku Madarame—hadn't come to the building and joined the gamble because Q Dalang had invited him. He had planned it from the start.

In the local yakuza world, "Q Dalang of the Abandoned Building" was something of a celebrity, so it was no surprise that Usogui had looked into him.

But Usogui most likely hadn't expected Q Dalang to be a Kakerou member.

In other words, Usogui's original objective hadn't been a Kakerou membership, but something else entirely!

Could it be that Usogui was still plotting to "overthrow his superior"? Was he planning something to that end?

Yagyou narrowed his eyes slightly.

In any case, this was a moment of life and death for Usogui—and everyone else involved in the gamble.

Facing Lodem, a modified soldier with inhuman fighting prowess, whether they could handle him, and how exactly they would do it, had become the key to winning or losing the gamble!

"..."

"Haha, you're watching awfully closely, Mr. Yagyou!"

Q Dalang's voice interrupted Yagyou's thoughts.

Yagyou's earlier praise of Shiraki Uke and the others had bothered Q Dalang ever since, so he couldn't resist taking a jab when the chance arose.

"I know a thing or two about fighting myself. Judging by that guy's moves, it's some school of karate, isn't it?"

"Are you a karate fan too, Mr. Yagyou? Hahaha..."

"Come to think of it, both the Shinshinkai and the Rokushin Kaikan are famous karate organizations. Perhaps Kakerou has had dealings with them."

Q Dalang smiled sinisterly. "But no matter how good a karate master is, his strength is still only that of an ordinary person. He's no match for Lodem!"

"Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Yagyou?"

"..."

Yagyou neither agreed nor disagreed, his gaze drawn to the screen.

Finding that strange, Q Dalang looked back at the display and soon noticed the change in Shiraki Uke's movements as well.

Until now, Shiraki Uke had usually stood sideways, his left shoulder raised and arm held up in defense, his right elbow bent and arm raised—a solid, methodical karate stance.

But after readjusting, Shiraki Uke was now noticeably more "rugged."

His hands were slightly open, his arms spread, and his legs set apart.

Calling it a "stance" might have been generous, given how rudimentary it was; but underestimating it for that reason would mean overlooking the explosive power it held in reserve.

"...?" Q Dalang was puzzled. "He knows pro wrestling too?"

Yagyou shook his head and corrected him. "No, it should be wrestling."

Pro wrestling combined drama and violence for entertainment and commercial purposes; wrestling was a contest of strength and skill, centered on rules and victory or defeat.

But immediately afterward, Yagyou frowned again and silently corrected himself.

That wasn't quite right either. Did it seem to contain both styles?

Pro wrestling, a part of popular culture, and wrestling, which embodied the spirit of sport, shared the same roots, both originating in ancient combat.

Shiraki Uke's stance seemed to combine the two, creating an entirely new fighting style.

"..."

Here he comes!

Yagyou's gaze sharpened.

Following Q Dalang's order, Lodem suddenly charged forward.

Even with only the camera's first-person view, it was easy to see that Lodem's charge was as swift and fierce as a beast's. He reached Shiraki Uke in the blink of an eye.

Shiraki Uke had only just settled into his stance, yet a vast number of thoughts flashed through his mind.

Now!

Whoosh!

Shiraki Uke exhaled a breath of hot air, pushed off the ground to step forward a short distance, and pressed the four fingers of each hand together before chopping forward with all his strength.

[Fighting Spirit Burst · Russian Double Palm Chop]!

Bang!

The two knife-hand strikes chopped into Lodem's upper arms. Though they did no effective damage, they did make his movements stiffen for an instant.

In a flash, Shiraki Uke advanced another half step, spread his arms and wrapped them around Lodem's waist. At the same time, he leaned backward with all his strength, throwing Lodem over his back.

[Zangief · Capture German Suplex]!

Boom!

Shiraki Uke had already been standing with his back to a concrete wall, so the throw smashed Lodem's entire head deep into it!

"Gah—gaaah!"

Lodem struggled with all his might, his roars growing ever more frenzied.

With a crash, Lodem tore himself free of the wall. The camera's view swung around as he looked behind him.

By then, Shiraki Uke had retreated several steps. Beads of blood were inexplicably flowing from his nose, and his eyes gleamed.

Without the slightest hesitation, Shiraki Uke turned and ran, heading straight for the stairs.

"Go after him, Lodem!"

Q Dalang commanded, "Drive him into a dead end, like a hound hunting a rabbit. Don't let him escape!"

Hearing this, Yagyou, who stood beside him, looked thoughtful. "Is he really running away?"

"Huh?"

Q Dalang was instantly irritated. "If he isn't running away, what else could he be doing?"

Half joking, Yagyou said, "Perhaps he's warming up?"

"What kind of nonsense is that?!"

Q Dalang gritted his teeth at Yagyou's attitude. "That guy Shiraki Uke may have changed his fighting style, but that's all."

"Pro wrestling or competitive wrestling—they're both just stupid monkey tricks in the end!"

"What's happening in this building isn't some fighting competition. It's fundamentally different, and no amount of struggling will help!"

"..."

For once, Yagyou nodded in agreement with Q Dalang. "Quite right."

Yagyou fixed his gaze on the screen and thought in silence.

If Shiraki Uke failed to take "that" into account, he would never be able to defeat Lodem.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Shiraki Uke and Lodem raced up the stairs at tremendous speed, one chasing the other, and returned to the sixth floor in the blink of an eye.

After running deep into the sixth floor, Shiraki Uke finally stopped, a good, comfortable sweat covering his body.

But he still felt something was lacking. His condition wasn't good enough yet.

After all, like Ryu, Zangief was only "teaching" him. It wasn't as if he had invoked a god to possess him.

On the way up, Shiraki Uke's consciousness had raced out of control as he studied the movements of Zangief's phantom. He had gained a little understanding and urgently needed to test it in a real fight.

He planted his feet and waited for Lodem to attack.

But after several seconds, Lodem was still nowhere to be seen, leaving Shiraki Uke puzzled.

What on earth...

Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!

A burst of rapid gunfire forced Shiraki Uke's consciousness out of control once more.

He saw Lodem at the other end of the corridor, holding a submachine gun and pulling the trigger to spray him with bullets.

In that instant, Shiraki Uke suddenly realized that he wasn't in a fighting ring now. He was facing a fight to the death in a gamble!

This was a battlefield. Anything could happen!

Whoosh!

Shiraki Uke darted into a corner to the side, narrowly dodging the incoming bullets.