by Unknown
[101]
He had that viper-like look in his eyes again. He spat onto the ring. The glob of red landed on the blue tarp right in front of Bunshichi's feet. There was white inside the red as well. They were fragments of Kajiwara's teeth. Kajiwara slowly pulled himself into the ring by the ropes. Rings for pro wrestling have three ropes. They don't have four ropes like pro boxing rings. The ropes are surprisingly rigid. They are just wire ropes wrapped in rubber. Kajiwara stood with his back leaning on the ropes. Kajiwara sniggered. One of his front teeth was missing. And then, Bunshichi's nightmare began again.
Bunshichi was more or less fighting with only his right arm. The next time Kajiwara got Bunshichi to the ground was when he took one of Bunshichi's kicks to the abdomen. He wrapped his arm around Bunshichi's left leg, which had hit him. He grabbed Bunshichi by the ankle and brought him down on to the mat. When he fell to the mat, Bunshichi's left leg was being held not by Kajiwara's left arm, but by his right one. Keeping that pose, Kajiwara crammed Bunshichi's left leg between both of his arms.
He began to twist his arm. A sound came from his left ankle. At the same time as the sound, psychological pain came over Bunshichi. No, no, this isn't happening. It felt like someone had struck him over his ankles with a steel pole.
[102]
Bunshichi could hear a sound coming out of his throat. It wasn't the sound of him exhaling, rather the sound of him inhaling. He had no air left in his lungs. He was being strangled, and along with the blocked up noise, the air had been pushed out of his lungs. He had locked his Achilles tendon. Bunshichi gritted his teeth. With his right leg, which was free, he tried to kick Kajiwara in the head. Kajiwara easily deflected the attack. His body got rolled over onto the same side which was twisted.
Once he was rolled over he lay face down. Bunshichi was unable to move in that position, being face down. Kajiwara now had Bunshichi in a different hold than before. He had folded his knees and locked his ankles together. Bunshichi's left ankle was wedged in the fold of his right knee. Bunshichi could feel Kajiwara had his right foot between his thighs. Underneath Kajiwara's right foot was Bunshichi's right ankle.
“Snap it!” came a voice. Bunshichi didn't know whose voice it was. Bunshichi lifted his body up with his elbows. Liquid started to drip down and make a sound on the mat below him. He was sweating. There was also a lot of dirty red stains. They were dried-up blood stains. The canvas had not absorbed the blood which had fallen on it up until now, it had left it there. He raised his head. The world bathing in the blinding light of the sun lay before his eyes. Right in front of his nose. The two junior high school students from before were standing with their cameras.
“The Indian Death Lock!”
[103]
One of the junior high students blurted out. Bunshichi could hear them talking, but couldn't make out exactly what they were saying.
“No, He 's got him in an upper reverse,” said the other student, “It's a move made up by some Indian.”
“Bullshit......”
“........you know?”
It seemed like the pair were talking about the hold that Bunshichi was in.
Bunshichi made a gritty sound with his teeth. He glared forward. Something wrapped itself around his chin. Whatever it was jerked his head upwards. He thought he was about to make a noise, but nothing came out. It felt like his collarbone and his spine were creaking. The sound got further and further away. He realized that the thing which was wrapped under his chin was Kajiwara's hand. But he couldn't figure out why his hand was placed there.
He left his shoulder on the mat and with his right hand tried to remove Kajiwara's grip from under his chin. In that instant he felt a separate pressure on his neck. The force was twisting his neck. Thick veins began to form on Bunshichi's head. He tried in vain to twist his head in the other direction. And then he saw it. Kajiwara's face was looking straight at him from his right hand side. His head, or rather his cheek, was on the mat. He was moved back to the side the tips of both his feet as well as his forehead were supporting his weight, he lifted his body off the mat and formed and arch in his back.
[104]
His ankle was still held in place. Kajiwara's neck was unguarded. The sound of Kajiwara's labored breathing echoed in Bunshichi's ear. Bunshichi turned his right hand up. He brought the edge of his hand down on the back of Kajiwara's neck. It was a weak attack as Bunshichi could only use the power from his elbow. But it seemed to have some effect. He had broken Kajiwara's bridge. The power wrapped around his jaw dissipated. Bunshichi jerked his ankle away and crawled away on his elbows. He shook free his other ankle. His left hand had broken the hold from before with just the power of his upper arm. He had put a number of scratches on the mat with his elbows. He had gotten out of the hold.
He opened his palms and tried to stand. He had no power in his ankles. Right in front of his eyes, he saw Kajiwara grab at his throat. He moved up to his knees and advanced on Bunshichi. At any rate, he knew that he needed to stop this man from moving. He lunged at Kajiwara from his kneeling position and mounted his right elbow into Kajiwara's body. Bunshichi put the entire force of his body behind his elbow and brought it down on Kajiwara's nose. Kajiwara's head turned away from the attack pitifully. Bunshichi's elbow had grazed Kajiwara's cheek and hit the mat. There was red left on the canvas after Bunshichi pulled his elbow away.
He used the same elbow to pull himself across the mat as he had used to pull himself up beforehand.
[105]
The skin on his elbow had split from the last attack. The canvas floor of the ring was like sandpaper. It looked as though it had been created for fights, but beneath it lay steel bones. Above those steel bones lay wooden boards and on top of those lay the thick mat of the ring with the tarpaulin draped over it. At a glance, it looked just as soft, but the damage a fighter took when falling on the areas above the steel poles, and the area not above them, was very different. It seemed that Bunshichi's elbow had hit the area above a steel bar. Even if he hadn't hit a spot above a steel pole, his skin was torn. If it were someone who wasn't trained, getting body slammed on the back would have been enough to peel the skin.
Kajiwara tried to get back up. He got up to his knees and Bunshichi smacked him back down with his elbow. It hit him in the forehead. It was like being hit with a cliff face. Kajiwara went back down to his knees. His face was covered in blood. But there still was a smile on that face.
Bunshichi, like a madman, struck at Kajiwara with his right and left elbows. It was like hitting a cliff face that was bound in raw rubber. Kajiwara was tougher that Bunshichi imagined. His elbows cut through the air. Bunshichi sunk his elbows into Kajiwara's head from a kneeling position.
Suddenly something smothered his head. The amazing attack hit Bunshichi in the face. There came a sound, pa-chi. He didn't know where the sound came from. It was the sound of the cartilage in his nose cracking.
[106]
It was a head-butt. A pain, like being stabbed with needles, shot up from his nose to his eyes. Bunshichi only just managed to block the next head-butt with both of his elbows. A warm liquid flowed from his nose down to his throat. Even if he closed his mouth, there was still plenty of liquid inside. He spat it out. A large amount of blood stained the backs of his arms he was blocking with.
He tried to get up. His left wrist was grabbed as he tried to prop himself up on his left knee. It pulled with great force. It hurt like hell. He didn't try to counter the force that was pulling him and he let it pull him to his feet. He kicked with his right leg. A hit anywhere would be good. At any rate he had to get Kajiwara to let go of his wrist. It felt like his wrist was about to snap.
His knee hit Kajiwara's stomach. But Kajiwara didn't let go if his wrist. Kajiwara pulled Bunshichi's wrist and fell backwards. Bunshichi fell on top of him. Kajiwara flipped his body over so he was face-down and held Bunshichi's wrist to his stomach. Bunshichi again stuck his knees into the mat trying to get away. Kajiwara slipped his leg in between B
unshichi's legs. He tried to roll Bunshichi over to the side. Bunshichi struck Kajiwara in the back of his head with his elbow. He struck him over and over again.
Kajiwara let go of Bunshichi's wrist. Bunshichi scrambled to his feet. There was extreme pain coming from his left ankle. He kicked with his right foot and fell backwards.
[107]
He saw Kajiwara. Thin lines of blood formed in Bunshichi's vision. Kajiwara slowly rose to his feet. His face was a mess. Bunshichi's face wasn't much better. Kajiwara still had that wicked grin spread across his lips. Bunshichi was wondering if they would continue. Continue this fight. He had no idea how many minutes had passed since the fight began. It felt like that had been fighting for over an hour. It had started to get to him mentally.
He was surprised a junior pro wrestler was able to last this long. He wondered what Kajiwara was made out of. He started to re-focus himself. Was this guy special? Or maybe every wrestler is this tough. Maybe I'm just weak. He wanted to sit down. But there was no way he could sit down. He tried the best he could to stay focused. He forced a smile on to his face. He wanted to look in a mirror to see if he really was smiling, but that thought soon flew out of his head.
“Thirteen minutes...” came Kawabe's voice form the side. He spoke as if he was quite surprised the fight had lasted this long. “Well, I guess now the real fight begins.” Bunshichi wanted to say something to Kawabe, but nothing came out. Because Kajiwara had faced him and come at him with an attack.
CHAPTER IV
[108]
Why? Thought Bunshichi. Why didn't Kajiwara break my arm? Not just his arm. His shoulder, wrist, ankle. He had four chances to break those joints. Now having a breather. If he had put any more strength into his attack, that fight would have been decided in an instant. They had an agreement. Regardless of weather it was legally binding, they both agreed not to complain if they got am arm broken. Although even if they didn't sign it, Bunshichi had no intention of laying a complaint.
But every time Kajiwara had Bunshichi in a hold, he let him go. Bunshichi had decided that he would only tap out if he got his arm broken. That's why he didn't tap out when he was in a hold and gasping for air. Kajiwara released his hold on Bunshichi just before his bone would have broken. Bunshichi couldn't understand why. It seemed like Kajiwara just couldn't bring himself to break someone's arm. Bunshichi thought that Kajiwara was hoping that he would tap out early. Bunshichi almost wanted to tell Kajiwara to just hurry up and break his arm. It would only be a moment of pain.
He wondered how much more pain he would have to endure. Kajiwara was persistent.
[109]
Kajiwara only aimed for his joints. He hadn't seen any of the drop kicks or bouncing off the ropes of the ring like he had seen on TV. He kept going for the joints, as if that other stuff was no fun at all. He had snake-eyes whenever he went to grab Bunshichi by the joints. That smirk was still on his face. It was like a nightmare. He wanted to match to finish. If he just said the words "I'm out!" the fight would probably be over in an instant. But he wasn't sure if he would be able to make it all the way home after that. He had bragged. Kawabe might jump in the ring and break his arm in place of Kajiwara.
Even if that didn't happen, his body was a mess. But he couldn't let words of defeat leave his mouth. That was the only thing keeping Bunshichi in the fight. Why won't Kajiwara break my arm? Bunshichi wondered. Regardless of the reason, the fight wouldn't be over until his arm was broken. And even if it did get broken, he would have to tap out to end the fight. But then even if he didn't admit defeat, he would probably be thrown out.
Bunshichi was fighting with willpower alone. His left and right arms weren't working. They hurt like hell every time he tried to move them. He fighting that pain. He wondered if the kicks he hard learned in Karate could be used in a situation like this. His opponent was probably too tough.
Bunshichi was thinking about how many decent kicks he could get in. Though maybe he didn't have any decent kicks left in him. Kicking with his right or left leg would do about the same amount of damage, and it would put strain on his already hurting left leg.
[110]
Physical strength was the only thing left to support him after all. He was losing the source of his strength. He could hear Kajiwara's labored breathing. All he could do now was rely on counters, attacks that use the opponents strength against themselves.
It was not as if Kajiwara was uninjured. He looked a lot like Bunshichi. Bunshichi moved to the right and readied his fists. You couldn't call it foot work. It was like his fists belonged to someone else. They were as heavy as lead. He didn't have enough strength in his arms to support his fists. Kajiwara moved in the same direction. He crossed his legs and lowered his guarding stance. Kajiwara moved. This was his chance. Bunshichi had invited him by crossing his legs. His left leg hurt like hell as he kicked as closely as he could with his right foot. He put the last of his strength into his foot. His foot sunk into Kajiwara's stomach. He felt as if he had put a hole in that cliff face bound in rubber. It felt as if he had sunk his foot into Kajiwara right down to the ankle. He won. Or so he thought.
Something shot up his back. It seemed like it could be a cry of joy. However he couldn't let his guard down. He followed up the kick by planting his knee in Kajiwara's face. His hands answered straight away. Kajiwara wrapped his arms around Bunshichi's leg. He felt something lukewarm on his knee. It was the slippery, sweaty calf muscle of Kajiwara. Kajiwara twisted Bunshichi's knee.
[111]
Kajiwara had thrown up. His sick was filled with blood. A sour smell filled his nose. Bunshichi brought his hands and elbows down on the back of Kajiwara's head, not caring where the blows would land. He put the last pieces of his remaining strength into those attacks. Hit. Hit. Hit. Hit. And hit. Kajiwara's forehead slipped down from Bunshichi's left knee. The smile had disappeared from his face. Had he win? He was about to give a sigh of relief. Just when a feeling of relief washed over Bunshichi's body it happened.
Kajiwara's body slithered around. He then disappeared from sight. He was suddenly behind Bunshichi's back. He couldn't believe it. How could he have that much energy left? Bunshichi felt his body get lifted off the ground. Fear shot through his body as he felt it himself being lifted up into the air.
Kajiwara used both arms to grab Bunshichi around the torso from behind. Bunshichi felt weightless for a moment. Then he fell backwards, head first onto the mat. Bunshichi could feel the speed at which he fell. Bunshichi's body made a clean arc and the back of his head struck the mat of the ring. The sky and the ground were flipped. The move was complete.
[112]
Gravity returned. Bunshichi's body couldn't turn over against gravity. A German suplex. That was the name of the wrestling move Kajiwara had just used on Bunshichi. He didn't even have enough time to ask who won. It wasn't a three count victory. He had sat up at some point having been in a daze. Kajiwara had his left hand on Bunshichi's left shoulder from behind. Kajiwara had his right hand wrapped around Bunshichi's face from behind. It looked like he was going to pull Bunshichi's head clean off.
Bunshichi's left hand was held behind his back. Bunshichi no longer had enough strength to fight back. His neck and shoulder hurt like nothing he had ever felt before. The pain had brought him back to life. Sound escaped his mouth. Because there was so much pressure on his neck, the sound which escaped sounded like the cries of a animal about to be killed.
"Don't you let him go!" yelled Kawabe.
"Kajiwara"
"Kajiwara" the name pierced his head like a needle as it throbbed with pain.
Am I going to die? Thought Bunshichi. He no strength left. A cracking sound came from his shoulder. That's when it happened. A shiver scattered through Kajiwara's body. The force holding Bunshichi disappeared.
[013]
Bunshichi fell flat on the mat. He knew that he couldn't move any more. He knew that he had lost. He closed his eyes.
When he realized that he had lost, tears fell f
rom his eyes. There had been significant damage done to the joints in and around his shoulder. A number of people climbed into the ring and Bunshichi felt hands on his back. The pulled him up. He looked around in a daze for Kajiwara.
“You idiot!” came a voice from behind him. It was Kawabe. His voice was sharp and piercing. The sound of flesh hitting flesh rang out. Bunshichi twisted his head around and looked behind himself. Kawabe was hitting Kajiwara. He was really smacking him about. Kajiwara stood there and took the blows.
“I'm sorry,” said Kajiwara as Kawabe's had went flying towards his face. It was unbelievable.
“WHY!?” Kawabe said, the anger in his voice rising. He was really mad. “Why didn't you do in his shoulder or his arms?” Kawabe hit Kajiwara again. He was fierce. Kawabe was asking Kajiwara, who won, why he didn't break Bunshichi's arm. Kawabe hit Kajiwara again. It seemed as though the fact that Bunshichi was still there had left the minds of both Kawabe and Kajiwara. The tears in Bunshichi's eyes quickly dried up as soon as he laid his eyes on the pair. Bunshichi felt humiliated. There was a black, dark fire. He felt hate build up for Kajiwara, who wouldn't look back in his direction. It was a bitter hate that filled Bunshichi's stomach.
