Macho Man Doesn't want a Slice-of-Life

The skull-masked man was a hitman hired by Toyo Electric for a hefty price. Their mission was to take out several fighters on the Kengan Ship to replace them.

As everyone knew, Kengan matches were unarmed fights, so most fighters on the ship didn't carry weapons. The assassins exploited this, sneaking in with hidden weapons to gain an advantage.

If lucky, they could beat weaker fighters and force companies to hire them instead. If unlucky, they'd be flattened by a stronger fighter.

If truly unfortunate, like this guy, they'd run into Takamine Rinji.

To be fair, the masked man had undergone professional assassin training. He could endure most forms of physical torture.

"Aaaaaaagh! Please stop singing!"

But mental torture? That was another matter.

"You giving in?"

"N-No..."

"No? Still holding out? Then let's loop it again."

"NOOOOOO!!!"

The three others nearby stared in confusion as the man writhed and screamed. They were all curious about what on earth Rinji was playing on his phone.

About ten minutes later—

"Blue skies over Shuuchiin hiiiiiiiigh~..."

"Not bad, not bad. You've even learned our beloved Shuuchiin's school anthem."

Rinji looked down at the now blank-eyed, foaming masked man and nodded in satisfaction.

"If you don't want to hear it again, spill everything."

"This time... Toyo Electric hired a lot of people. Many are already hidden on the ship..." the man gasped, "Our targets are five companies... Byakuya News, Furumi Pharmaceuticals, Nishihonji Security, Umiichi Securities, and... Gold Pleasure Group."

"I see..."

"Toyo Electric also recruited a bunch of others... planning to launch a coup at the critical moment..."

"..."

Kurayoshi Rino covered her mouth in shock.

She had already assumed Hayami Katsumasa, the head of Toyo Electric, would stop at nothing to achieve his goals—but she didn't expect he'd go this far.

"Interesting."

A slight smile formed on Rinji's face.

It looked like this Kengan Death Elimination Tournament was going to be a lot more fun than expected.

If it were just a bunch of fighters brawling, Rinji wouldn't have cared. But Kengan matches weren't just about the fighters—it was also corporate warfare in disguise.

Hayami Katsumasa had clearly come prepared. All of this was part of a larger plan to take the Kengan Chairman seat.

"I can't wait to see that old bastard's face when he loses everything," Rinji said with a twisted grin.

"Should we report this to Chairman Katahara?" Kurayoshi Rino asked. "This involves a rebellion—it's important he knows."

"No need at all."

Rinji chuckled.

"That old man probably already knows. Otherwise, he wouldn't have created rules that clearly favor Hayami Katsumasa. He's waiting for the show too."

"Hmm... good point~" Kurayoshi Rino smiled elegantly, accepting his reasoning.

"Of course... I'll make his little performance even more dramatic," Rinji added with a mischievous glint in his eye.

He took off the headphones from the masked man's ears, then pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

It was Katahara Metsudo.

"Hello~ What is it, young Rinji?"

"Old man, about the final battleground... do you guys deliver food there?"

"Oh?"

"I want to order some 'takeout'... for an old friend."

"Oh~ but of course."

Katahara Metsudo immediately understood Rinji's message and laughed.

"Go ahead and do as you please. Even if I refused, you'd find a way to send it anyway."

"I just wanted to show I respect your opinion," Rinji grinned. "Now then, enjoy the game."

---

After leaving the masked man behind, Kurayoshi Rino departed. Only Rinji and Karura remained, strolling aimlessly through the ship.

Karura didn't understand any of the corporate warfare stuff. All she knew was one thing: her future husband was strong—stronger than every other fighter on the ship.

Before they knew it, it was nearly morning.

After the preliminary match celebrations, most fighters and businesspeople had been partying all night in the hall like nocturnal animals. Only those with strict daily routines had returned to rest.

That's why a few people had become isolated targets.

Rinji checked the time on his phone and began to plan.

"Morning already... That means sunrise. Watching the sunrise with Karura would be romantic. While staring at the sun together, I could sneakily hold her hand... Perfect. Guess all that stuff Ishigami taught me wasn't useless after all."

With that flirtatious thought in mind, Rinji decided to act immediately.

He turned to Karura and smiled. "I'm heading to the deck."

"Hmm? Not going back to your room?"

Her unspoken meaning: not going to make babies?

Of course, Rinji deliberately ignored that interpretation.

"No, from the deck we can see the rising sun."

"Then let's go~"

To Karura, the destination didn't matter—as long as she was with Rinji.

Seeing her agree, Rinji turned around and started walking.

But after a few steps, he suddenly stopped, sensing something.

Not just Rinji—Karura felt it too.

She dashed ahead, delivering a powerful kick to a nearby iron gate.

BOOM—

The kick was so strong the center of the gate caved in, and the lock snapped instantly.

As the gate burst open, a shadow darted out, and both of them saw it clearly.

Garuda punched toward the figure, but her strike was caught by a massive hand.

"Whoa there, little lady. Don't be so aggressive. I'm not your enemy."

Out from behind the gate stepped a burly, shirtless Black man covered in tattoos.

He lowered the hand that caught Karura's punch and walked up to Rinji.

Upon seeing him, Rinji smiled.

"Long time no see."

"That's right."

The Black man stood before Rinji and saluted him.

"Second Lieutenant Takamine Rinji, Muteba Gizenga from the Somali war zone reporting to you."

"Forget it. I left the Somali war zone two years ago," Rinji said with a smile. "I'm not a second lieutenant anymore. I'm just an ordinary high school student now."