Where there is light, there will always be darkness...
Seven-color neon lights blinded people, and under the guise of luxury and wealth, desires grew and multiplied continuously.
Kano stood silently at the entrance to the alley. His indifferent gaze slid over the illuminated crowd, while someone's tall figure hid all the darkness behind him. If you listened carefully, you could discern groans of pain and the dull thud of fists hitting flesh coming from the depths of the alley.
Half an hour ago, on orders from the leader, he had intercepted several slightly drunk men and dragged them deep into the alley. The goal, naturally, was to shake some money out of these well-dressed men.
This prosperous city could satisfy any human desire, and the darkness it generated could destroy any senseless illusions. And those who were attracted by it, of course, could be both happy and unhappy...
"Kano, the boss is calling you. I'll keep watch here." After a while, a red-haired young man with a daring look approached Kano and patted him on the shoulder.
Kano looked at him, nodded, and without saying a word, headed deeper into the alley.
The red-haired youth watched him go, and contempt flashed in his eyes, whispering under his breath: "The guy from that very place also wanted to fight?"
Taking his eyes off Kano's back, he looked at the street flooded with lights and said indifferently: "It's a pity that now we will have one less cannon fodder."
It seemed he had already foreseen Kano's fate. Not injury... but death.
After walking a little, Kano heard laughter coming from the depths and the pain-filled groans of men. He frowned slightly and quickened his pace.
Dim lamps hung on the walls of the alley. Their weak yellowish light was enough to illuminate the dirty floor, so Kano did not stumble in the darkness.
Around the corner, cries for mercy could be clearly heard.
A muscular man with a scar on his face sat on a pile of junk and smoked. In front of him, three men, who were dressed in long shirts and branded trousers, were cornered. These poor guys were surrounded by a group of people who periodically hit them with fists and kicks.
Kano looked indifferently through the dim light and saw one of his comrades holding three bulging purses, as well as several watches and gold chains. However, having got what they wanted, they did not let go of their victims, apparently simply wanting to satisfy their senseless thirst for violence.
Even as he approached, he had already foreseen this outcome. He was used to his comrades continuing to cause trouble after they had achieved their goal. Of course, he did not approve of this behavior, but he never expressed his opinion. After all, what did he care about these three men?
Looking at what was happening, Kano turned away and, approaching the man sitting on a pile of junk, asked: "Boss, did you call me?"
"Do you want to fight in the ring?" the man spat out his cigarette and looked at him indifferently.
"Yes," Kano, meeting the man's impassive gaze, immediately nodded.
The man curled his lips slightly, subconsciously touched the terrible scar on his chest and said: "Even if I step into the ring, I might not be able to defeat anyone there."
"I have to go there," Kano said firmly.
The young man's decisive tone took the man aback, and a second later he replied: "Tomorrow I will recommend you. The day after tomorrow you will enter the ring."
He paused, and his gaze suddenly turned icy: "If you dare to chicken out after my recommendation, then I will make your life worse than death."
Kano's heart sank. He nodded heavily, showing that he understood. Seeing this, the man softened his icy gaze and added, "Once you step into the ring, one of you will have to die. I hope that person is not you."
Kano involuntarily clenched his fists, making them make a characteristic crunching sound. He knew the rules of this place. These were not underground fights, but death matches for the amusement of the public. Once you step into the ring, lack of strength means death. No luck.
If he had the opportunity, he would never go to this horrible place. But he had to go, because he needed a lot of money, which would go towards... treatment.
In order to raise a large sum of money in a short time, this was his only option.
"Wait for me... Koshibe," Kano whispered to himself.
.....
Two days later, in the basement of the city's largest entertainment center, the long-awaited death match took place as planned. The arena was a ring surrounded by a steel cage. Bright lights illuminated every inch of the ring, making it look like a giant icy birdcage.
While the ring was brightly lit, the spectator seats remained in semi-darkness, and one could only vaguely discern the outlines of the people sitting there.
Suddenly, energetic music began to blare, instantly igniting the passion of the audience. The waves of sound, mixing with the music, grew stronger, because… a deadly duel was about to begin.
The announcer, as usual, introduced popular fighters with passionate and lengthy descriptions. Each time he got to a key moment, the crowd roared with delight.
Everyone sitting here was rich and powerful. And at that moment, hiding in dark corners, they gave free rein to their basest instincts.
When the announcer introduced Kano, he let out a special chuckle: "Tsut ...
"Ha-ha..." the audience burst into laughter.
"Okay, enough chatter, meet our fighters!" - with a grinding sound, the metal gates on both sides of the ring slowly rose, opening a passage.
Kano emerged from the tunnel and strode into the steel cage with heavy steps. When he looked ahead, he saw his opponent, a six-foot-tall giant, bending over to walk through the entrance to the ring. Judging by his build, the outcome of the fight seemed obvious, as did the fact that for the spectators, this fight was just an appetizer.
Suppressed anger smoldered in Kano's eyes. Just before he stepped into the ring, he realized he had been tricked. He was a rookie, and his opponent was not expected to be an experienced fighter. But even knowing he had been set up, he had no choice.
If he enters the ring, it will be death.
Turn and run - that's also death.
There was complete lawlessness here, just like in the place he had escaped with such difficulty. Only here was a city mired in luxury and debauchery, and there were slums associated with every conceivable filth.
The man known as the Ghost Bear looked at Kano coldly. Once the gong rang, he would tear him to pieces as fast as he could. Even he knew that this was just a warm-up and an appetizer for the crowd.
Kano also looked seriously at the opponent whose huge muscular body was putting a lot of pressure on him. Against such an opponent, he could only use speed to dodge attacks and then look for an opportunity to attack vulnerable spots. Perhaps that way he had a chance to win.
Ding!
Before the commentator had time to announce the start of the fight, the gong suddenly sounded.
The Ghost Bear, already accustomed to this, rushed at Kano like a tiger.
Kano was slightly taken aback, but reacted quickly. After all, by this moment the enemy was already nearby and hit him on the head with a huge palm.
The sharp sound of air being cut left no doubt that the Ghost Bear could have crushed the boy's head with one blow. And at that very moment, the first wave of enthusiastic cries swept across the arena.
Feeling a gust of wind, Kano ducked sharply, narrowly avoiding the blow. Then, taking advantage of the difference in height, he lunged forward and struck his opponent in the groin.
Ghost Bear didn't expect such a clever maneuver from Kano and was unable to defend himself.
Bam! - Kano's fist hit the target with a dull thud. After which the shouts of the men in the stands instantly died down.
A tearing pain pierced the Ghost Bear, and his eyes became bloodshot. An ordinary person would have been writhing in pain after such a blow, but those who had fought in the ring for a long time had incredible resilience. Thanks to this, this blow did not put him out of action.
"You little bastard!" Ghost Bear roared in rage at the vile blow. He wrapped his powerful arms around Kano and squeezed him tightly.
"This is bad..." Kano turned pale. He didn't expect that after receiving such a crushing blow, the enemy would be able to counterattack so quickly. He tried to do something, but a powerful blow to the back beat him to it.
Bam!!!
The blow was so powerful that Kano's insides almost turned inside out. He spat out a mouthful of blood, which splashed onto the Ghost Bear's stomach, and then his own face was smashed into the huge belly of his opponent.
"Oh! The adorable little guy, after such a spectacular low blow, falls limply into the loving arms of the Ghost Bear! Looks like our little guy won't last a minute!"
Kano's ears were ringing, everything was swimming before his eyes. He couldn't see anything, and he couldn't have, with his face pressed tightly against the stone muscles of his opponent.
A sudden fear and cold gripped his body… this feeling was worse than any pain.
"I'm dying..." The merciless words floated into his mind: "If I die here... what will happen to Koshibe?"
His body trembled, as if ignoring the iron grip of his opponent.
"Hm?" Ghost Bear felt Kano's death throes. He chuckled coldly and squeezed his victim even tighter. And soon, all resistance in his hands ceased.
The endless darkness slowly engulfed Kano…
The last thing he saw was the image of a girl sitting on a hospital bed with a wide smile on her face.
"Brother, when I get better, I want to eat a whole mountain of sweets!"
"Fine."
...
The sound of rain…
Icy drops flowed down his face and body. Kano opened his heavy eyelids with difficulty and saw a cloudy sky and a thick curtain of rain above him.
"Am I… alive?" His quiet whisper was drowned out by the sound of the rain. The pain of the drops hitting his eyes made him close them again.
Realizing that he was alive, he felt a nagging pain throughout his body. However, despite this, he was immensely happy. He did not understand how he survived the defeat, but the main thing was that he was alive...
Overcoming the pain, he raised his hand with difficulty to protect himself from the freezing rain and opened his eyes again. At that moment, he saw his thin, reed-like hand and froze.
"What is this..." He looked at his hand in shock, unable to understand what was happening.
It was clearly not his hand...!
Forgetting the pain, he stood up in the pouring rain and began to examine himself. And in just a moment, the icy raindrops penetrated to his bones until the last warmth left his heart.
He became a child, emaciated and thin as a skeleton from constant malnutrition. Moreover, he could not even tell how old he was.
It could have shocked him, made him doubt the reality of what was happening, think that it was just a dream. But all his thoughts were occupied by one name - Koshibe.
"Where am I? Where am I...?" Kano muttered as he stood in the rain. His head was a complete mess. The pain in his entire body and the cold drops of rain constantly reminded him that this was not a dream, but reality.
The sky was covered with heavy clouds, the rain poured down incessantly, and the air was saturated with moisture. It was clear that the rain would not end soon, and that in this state he could die of hypothermia within 24 hours.
Fortunately, Kano was strong-willed. Realizing the danger of his situation, he put survival above all else and looked around. He was in a small village with houses scattered haphazardly, some distance from each other.
He didn't know where he was, but the sight of human habitations calmed him a little. He looked up at the sky and, overcoming the pain in his legs, walked to the nearest house and took shelter from the freezing rain under the overhang of the roof.
Leaning against the cold wall, Kano looked out at the world beyond the roof. He noticed that all the houses here had wide overhangs, and the gutters were quite large. Apparently, it rained here often, and each time it rained hard.
Watching the quiet village, where the only sound was the sound of rain, Kano suddenly felt very thirsty and hungry. But even more tormented by the piercing cold. He stretched out his small palm, caught some rainwater and put it in his mouth, quenching his thirst.
"This won't do, I need to eat," Kano thought, overcoming the pain. His gaze wandered around the street in search of at least some food.
Growing up in the slums, he was not used to relying on others, even though his current body was weak. While he was thinking about how to find food, he did not notice anything strange about this village until night fell. That was when he realized that something was wrong.
Not a single light!
As darkness fell, the small village became eerily quiet. Not a single light was on in the window. Thick clouds obscured the moon, plunging the world into impenetrable darkness, and the only sound was the incessant noise of wind and rain.
Looking into the surrounding darkness, Kano rubbed his hands together with difficulty, finally feeling fear.