Daigo: I'm Here to Get Beat Up!

The news that Hibiki Gousuke of the Recruit Squad was intercepting monsters with his new recruits and coordinating operations with GUTS spread like wildfire throughout TPC Far East Headquarters.

This was a massive boost to the reputation of Director Yoshioka; after all, Hibiki Gousuke was a talent who had come out of the Security Bureau. Without a second thought, Director Yoshioka increased his level of support.

"So, you are my new recruits, right?" Hibiki Gousuke stood with a stern face, his left hand on his hip while his right hand continued to pump iron relentlessly. "My name is Hibiki Gousuke."

In the training room, which had previously been sparsely populated, there were now two men and one woman; these were the recruits transferred over by Director Yoshioka.

Although Hibiki Gousuke's weightlifting form was a bit unsightly, it actually complemented the scene well if one didn't ignore the burly man behind him who was swinging a barbell as if it were a dancing spear.

"Yes, Training Class 1—Koda Toshiyuki, Kariya Kohei, and Yumimura Ryo. Please look after us."

The three lowered their heads, though even while looking down, they stole glances at the man who seemed hardly human.

Hibiki Gousuke likely understood exactly what they were thinking.

With a voice like a cannon blast, he shouted, "Zhou Hong, come over here."

The sound echoed continuously within the enclosed space, leaving the three recruits' heads buzzing.

Slowly setting down the barbell in his hands, Zhou Hong let out a long sigh. This captain was great in every way, but his volume was truly unbearable.

He stretched his slightly sore muscles and gradually approached.

The closer they got, the more the three could feel the pressure radiating from Zhou Hong—that 1.85-meter frame, and a physique that, while bulging with muscle, possessed a certain aesthetic grace.

Zhou Hong stood beside Hibiki Gousuke, and due to the exercise, a wave of masculine vigor washed over them.

Yumimura Ryo's cheeks flushed slightly; still just a young girl, she couldn't quite handle this kind of stimulation.

"My name is Zhou Hong. You could say I'm your vice-captain, more or less." Zhou Hong gave a thumbs-up and pointed at himself. "Before I die, I will do everything in my power to protect you."

Looking at that sturdy build, comparable to a professional bodybuilder, he gave off a silent sense of security.

Hibiki Gousuke coughed twice and continued, "Under normal circumstances, the Recruit Squad has no missions. It is all training."

"Things like intercepting monsters are generally impossible. I assume someone already told you that before you joined."

The three nodded. After all, being still green, they lacked the ability to participate in combat; even if they went, they would only be a burden.

They were well aware of this point.

Hibiki Gousuke nodded. "Good. Since that's the case, let's begin our training now!"

He handed over the sweat-stained dumbbell he had been holding.

Koda Toshiyuki took the dumbbell from Hibiki Gousuke with a slightly dazed expression, then performed a casual vertical lifting motion.

It was this motion that made Hibiki Gousuke nod in satisfaction.

Just as the group was getting into the heat of their training, the door opened again.

In their red and white uniforms, with familiar faces, it was the crash-prone duo of Shinjoh and Daigo.

"Sorry to disturb," Daigo greeted sheepishly.

Hibiki Gousuke immediately walked over. "Is there something you need help with?"

This reaction made Shinjoh and Daigo feel somewhat awkward. The two exchanged glances, and finally, Daigo spoke up.

"It's like this: Shinjoh mentioned last time that your physical fitness is excellent, so we wanted to come here to learn a thing or two."

Hibiki Gousuke nodded in understanding. "I see. No problem."

He turned his head to see the trio had stopped training, and his voice suddenly spiked again. "What are you dawdling for!"

Immediately, the trio scrambled to resume their exercises as if their backsides were on fire.

The volume startled Daigo, while Shinjoh shrugged, indicating he had been through the same thing before.

"Captain, leave these two to me." Zhou Hong jogged over to Hibiki Gousuke's side and flashed a "bright" smile at Daigo.

Since Zhou Hong was someone who could crush him in both physical fitness and combat, Hibiki Gousuke naturally agreed without hesitation.

Looking at the burly guy in front of him, Daigo felt a slight chill and shrank his neck.

He had a bad premonition.

Hibiki Gousuke took the three recruits to the other side to train, while Zhou Hong picked up a pair of boxing gloves. "Basic physical training doesn't have much effect. Combat is the only way to truly train stamina and willpower."

As he spoke, he threw a right jab. In that instant, his fist seemed to vanish, and only three ribbon-like light trails were visible in the field of vision.

The crimson trajectory made both Daigo and Shinjoh swallow hard.

Hey! That kind of impact force could kill someone!

Shinjoh patted his own cheeks, feeling that he couldn't let himself, a member of GUTS, be looked down upon by a rookie. He charged forward very seriously.

With a clean jab that closed the distance between them, his sharp eyes slowly closed, and his body tilted forward as Zhou Hong gently lowered him to the ground.

"Shinjoh!" Daigo watched in horror as Shinjoh went limp.

Come to think of it, he had learned his own combat skills from Shinjoh. If this guy went down so fast, how was he supposed to hold up?

Where did this monster come from?

"Don't worry, I have a good handle on my strength. He'll wake up in half an hour."

Zhou Hong gestured for Daigo to come over. "His combat skills aren't strong, and yours are just the same."

"If I were the same size as a monster, I could crush the vast majority of them with hand-to-hand combat alone."

Using Shinjoh as a benchmark, Daigo roughly understood the strength of the man before him; if he could learn a few moves, dealing with monsters in the future would surely become much easier.

He earnestly assumed a fighting stance, and despite knowing he was no match in terms of physical ability, he still charged forward.

His plain, straightforward punch was caught by the wrist by Zhou Hong, who then struck Daigo's abdomen with a backhand blow from his left.

Zhou Hong shook his head helplessly; thanks to the gift from Tiga, Daigo had learned a little bit of technique, but his base strength was simply too weak.

"Ah? It doesn't hurt?"

The seemingly heavy punch landed on his stomach without causing any pain, leaving Daigo to look at Zhou Hong in confusion.

Due to their fighting stance, Zhou Hong and Daigo were incredibly close, and he leaned in to whisper by Daigo's ear.

"If Ultraman is truly as Tsuburaya Productions depicts, then I believe that if the human body's physical quality changes, the Ultra Warrior must also grow stronger."

Daigo pondered this.

Daigo grew careless, and a heavy punch slammed into his cheek, knocking him straight to the ground.

"Too green. To actually lose focus while fighting me."

The group of four in the distance watched, shivering, as Zhou Hong stood beside the two "corpses."