The gym's hum was different that night. It wasn't the usual low chatter of members or the steady rhythm of mitt work in the corner. It felt tense, as if the air was holding its breath.
Shahaan had been coming here for weeks now, long enough to recognize the regulars by face and even catch the occasional nod. Tonight, a few of them lingered near the heavy bags, watching the far side of the room where Kaito stood with a man Shahaan didn't know. The stranger was tall, broader in the shoulders than anyone here, with an expression carved from stone.
Kaito spotted Shahaan and waved him over. "You're here. Good." His voice carried the kind of weight that meant this wasn't going to be just another night of drills.
"This is Takeda," Kaito said as Shahaan approached. "Formerly of the Aokigahara Gym. He's going to help with your conditioning from now on."
Takeda didn't offer a handshake. He just looked Shahaan up and down, his eyes stopping briefly on Shahaan's wrists, then his stance. "Too stiff," Takeda said. "Too careful. You move like you're afraid of making a mistake."
Shahaan wanted to say something back, but the words stayed stuck behind his teeth.
Takeda didn't wait for a reply. "Put the gloves on."
The next twenty minutes were a blur of exhausting movement. Takeda had him shadowboxing in tight circles, throwing quick combinations, and moving his feet constantly. Every time Shahaan's shoulders began to rise with fatigue, Takeda barked, "Relax! Power comes from breath, not tension."
By the end, Shahaan's shirt clung to him like wet paper. He leaned on the ropes, breathing hard, but something in him felt sharper. Takeda wasn't warm, but he was precise, every correction landing like a nail in wood.
As Shahaan pulled his gloves off, Kaito stepped close. "I didn't bring him in for fun. You've been doing well, but if you're going to survive what's ahead, you need more than good. You need to be remembered."
Shahaan blinked. "Remembered by who?"
Kaito's expression didn't change. "By the people who will try to break you."
There was no dramatic silence after that, just the usual sounds of the gym rushing back in. But as Shahaan left that night, his legs aching, the word "remembered" kept turning in his head. He didn't know exactly who Kaito meant, but he understood something had shifted.