High School Hack and Slash

「Come on, Seiichi, don’t get too fired up like that.
It’s fine, isn’t it? You can just embrace Shizuka as you wish, too.
Yeah, let’s just forget about everything and casually go at it.」

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「–Shut it already.」

「Say, Seiichi…」

「That’s enough, already.
Touma.
The flipping out of my mind has made it turn around and end up clearing it up….」

　Someone who got emotional tended to lose control over themselves and expose their inner selves.

　He’d also come to realize the reason why Touma had been fanning and provoking him.

　How laughable, isn’t this completely the other way around?

「I don’t know what you were trying to find out from me.
Ah, did I say something during the first dungeon dive? Well, I guess, it doesn’t really matter.」

　Seiichi, whose tension had gotten clear like it used to be, no, clearer than it used to be, wasn’t self-aware of the fact that he was like a balloon on the verge of exploding.

「Say, Touma.
What is it that you want to hear from me?」

　Touma spat, tasting of iron rust, out and gave it a thought.

　The reason why Seiichi broke, how was it for this flippant man to regain the hope he had given up on.

「–What did you leave behind, Seiichi?」

「… huh?」

「Is that really something you can just throw away?」

　Fear could be seen in the eyes Seiichi used to observe Touma.

　Those vague words, even without him making out their true meaning, he was able to perceive it from the bottom of his heart.

「Do you honestly hold no regret over giving it up?」

「I don’t get it….
I don’t get why you’re asking me such a thing.
It’s got nothing to do with you, doesn’t it?」

「When a friend is about to get crushed, offering him a hand is what a man do, isn’t it?」

「Ha, haha, I really don’t get it.
I don’t even think of you as a friend damn it….
rather, it’s already too late.」

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　Receiving his not friend statement, Touma thought: what a shy guy he is.

「Be it me, Mai, or Shizuka, everyone but you is done for!」

「If you’re really trapped in a reality that can’t be undone to the bitter end, then give up.」

「Wha.」

「But if, there’s still even the slightest possibility that something can be done… —Say, Seiichi.
Just start doing something about it already.」

「Like I told you, it’s impossible….」

　If it really was impossible, then there was no way his heart would be broken by such a thing.

　The moment he realized that he was done for, his mind died before it could even break.

　Having his hope broken was the moment when he gave up, thinking that the trial standing in front of him, the goal he ought to overcome, and the destination he ought to aim for were beyond him.

「Even if it’s impossible, do it.
Keep struggling until it turns into was impossible.
Seiichi.」

「Blabbering those things without knowing even a thing about it, just who do you think you are? ….
Are you trying to say that as long as you don’t give up, any kind of wish will come true?」

「Yeah, that’s right.」

　Seiichi stared at Touma, who asserted as such, with a dumbfounded expression.

　Even if, it was an absolutely impossible wish.

　For as long as he was challenging to overturn this impossibility, it certainly was not over.

「It’s only when you give up that it becomes impossible.
You didn’t give up because it was impossible.
You simply threw it away because it became too painful for you.
Seiichi.」

「Enough, I get it now.
You’re an idiot with a screw loose who can’t see reality.」

　Spitting out a flat voice, Seiichi took up his stance in a boxing crouching style.

　Amidst his face that was devoid of emotion, his bloodshot eyes were glaring to no end.

「I’ll turn you into the same as us.
If you can still say the same line even then….
I won’t mind listening to it for a bit.」

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　*Pow, pow* having his face shaken left and right, Touma bent backward and stumbled.

　The exemplar, textbook-like one-two punch wasn’t due to Seiichi’s sense returning, but was simply because his cold-hearted killing intent toward Touma was surging out.

　Touma looked upward and heaved out a long sigh.

　I’ve managed to get to this point somehow, he thought.

　He was unable to make any kind of excuse, so he faced Seiichi’s bare smile.

　Touma was well aware that he was a clumsy person.

　His knack was bad, and his head was also not specced for exercising quick wittedness.

　Even so, he readied his fists against Seiichi, who was straightforwardly glaring at him with eyes filled with cold killing intent.

　Just like how I got a path shown to me in the past, I should be able to guide at least a single friend, right? he thought.

「Bring it on.
Seiichi.」

「I’m sick of that condescending attitude of yours!」

　He unleashed a combination blow of one-two punch followed by a hook, and an uppercut mixed in.

　Seiichi’s fists were one-sidedly raining on Touma, who easily fell for feints.

　The pain he felt on his fists no longer made him relax his strength.

「Kuh, Muay Thai, huh….
Not bad, Seiichi.」

「No, it’s normal boxing! I didn’t launch even a kick even once, did I?!」

　Even as he understood it in his mind that it was a provocation, the broken free tension was heating up.

　Touma plainly getting the wrong idea was beyond saving.

「Foreign martial arts are indeed wonderful for sure.
But from here on, I’m going to show you a secret technique of the ancient Japanese martial arts.」

「Ancient Japanese martial arts, are you a denizen of the manga world or something?! Tch, that’s enough, I’m going to shut that mouth of yours.」

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　This was a harsh development for Seiichi, who basically bore a straight man constitution.

　Touma, lowering his center of gravity with flat feet, formed a stance that was usually called the Sanchin-dachi in Karate.

　With his legs strained inside into the shape of hachi (八), he raised both of his arms, which had formed fists, in front of his body.

　Sanchin-dachi, which was called a defensive kata, was also a rigid body art that strained every muscle in the body to withstand blows.

　If you tightened your muscles, you would gain power, but lose speed instead.

　This stance was the exact opposite of modern hand-to-hand combat technique that emphasized speed, such as boxing, where the muscles were twisted like a whip.

　Unleashing Seiken-zuki from the Sanchin-dachi stance, that was the only technique Touma was capable of using.

　In order to attain his goal that was to beat up a certain teacher, it was the special move that Touma, who was of the indoor faction in his middle school days, had looked up and learned from the internet.

「Hell no! The heck is looking it up in the internet, taking a proper Karate training would’ve been way better than that, isn’t it?!」

「Seiichi….
Know that global truth is widespread on the internet.
This is no-tempo.」

「Beat’-em-up game… huh?」

　Seiichi was getting tired of Touma, who showed no sign of falling down no matter how many times his punches had landed on him, but then he raised his hand toward his face that had gotten hit for the first time since he got serious.

　Touma, who was in the stance of unleashing his right fist, reformed his Sanchin-dachi stance.

「Just now… what did, you do?」

「No-tempo.」

　Breaking through Seiichi’s guard by raising his hands in front of him, Touma’s left Seiken-zuki landed on his face.

「Gah… for real? I, I can’t see it.
Is, is this some sort of skill? Gu, ha.」

「S, Seiichi!」

　Mai had been watching the fist fight in silence, but seeing Seiichi suddenly begin getting beaten up, she clenched her fists tightly.

　In the eyes of Mai and Shizuka, who were spectating the fight in close proximity, they couldn’t tell the difference between those exaggeratedly swung punches with their previous counterparts.

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　The only thing they could tell was that Seiichi was on his knees as he began to get one-sidedly beaten.

「Stand up.
Seiichi.」

「Damn it, impossible….
Just what kind of cheat ability do you have?」

「Haven’t you had enough excuses for yourself, Seiichi? No matter who or what you are facing, it is not a reason to throw away your hope.」

「Shut, the hell, up….
As if people who are 『born with it』 such as yourself would ever be able to understand the feeling of us thrashes….」

「Seiichi.
That’s enough, isn’t it? So please stop it already….」

　Mai rushed over to Seiichi, who was crouching while still falling to his knees.

「This is as far as you go, huh.
Well, that’s also inevitable, I guess that means in the end you’re only a man of this level.」

「Say what, you want….」

「Why are you doing such a cruel thing? Please stop it already, Touma-kun.」

　In front of Mai, who was standing as if to protect Seiichi in her back, Touma picked up the hand axe lying on the ground.

　Staring at the dully glaring, shining edge, Mai gulped down and began to tremble.

「Th, this is a joke, isn’t it? Touma-kun.」

「Move aside, Mai.
You’re in the way….
Nah, you don’t particularly mind accompanying him there as you are, right?」

　The loser shivered and raised his head.

「S, stop, Mai’s got nothing to do with it, doesn’t she?」

「It’s okay, Seiichi.
Both you and Mai will forget about all of it.
Am I right?」

「Damn it! Mai!」

　Reaching out and grabbing Mai, who was stiffening and seemingly about to crumble down right in front of him, Seiichi embraced and sheltered her in his chest.

　*Zrash* Along the sound of flesh getting torn with a heavy and dull edged tool, warm drops soaked his back with a *splatter*.