— — — — — —
The moment their fists collided, Tojo was blown backward like a shooting star, disappearing into the distance before anyone could blink.
"So this is the strongest guy at Ishiyama? Huh. Kinda disappointing. Once we beat him, we can officially claim Ishiyama High as ours. Honestly feels a bit too easy."
Hilda watched Tojo go flying with a single punch and couldn't help thinking humans were humans—no matter how strong, they were still just humans.
Well… except Kazuma. Whether that guy even counts as human was up for debate.
"So strong!"
Kanna stared wide-eyed at the force of Kazuma's punch. To see someone unleash that kind of power in the human world… just wow.
No wonder he ate more rice than she did at dinner. Guess he actually is stronger than her.
"Paapapa!"
Little Beel kicked and punched excitedly in the air, hyped up by the battle.
"Hmm… something's off. That guy's coming back."
From afar, Tohru watched Tojo spinning through the air to dissipate the force, then landing on his feet. The moment he touched the ground, he kicked off and sprinted back at full speed.
"Now try my punch!" Tojo barreled toward Kazuma with a booming laugh, all his momentum focusing into his fist.
"Kid, your movements are way too big. Slow too. You're full of openings!" Kazuma grinned. Now they were talking. Less chatting, more punching.
He stepped in and threw a much faster punch.
Boom!
Tojo took it head-on. The ground beneath him cracked into a huge crater. He spat blood but stayed standing.
"Yesss! This is the kind of fight I want!"
Laughing wildly, Tojo threw another punch at Kazuma. The guy never even considered dodging.
"Not bad."
Kazuma ramped up his power again and punched faster than Tojo could connect, sending him flying.
"He actually took two… no, three of Kazuma's punches without going down. That's amazing."
Hilda's eyebrows lifted slightly. Sure, Kazuma wasn't using full power—but taking even a fraction of his strikes was no joke.
This "Tojo Hidetora" guy really lived up to Ishiyama's reputation.
"He's getting up again? This guy's ridiculously tough." Tohru watched Tojo stagger to his feet and charge again. She honestly didn't know what to say.
Was he a brainless idiot? Or a fearless warrior?
Probably both.
"Are you seriously trying to fight me for real? You could die, you know." Kazuma looked at Tojo's eyes burning with pure fighting spirit. His smile faded.
There was no killing intent in Tojo's gaze, no obsession with victory. Just pure, unfiltered will to fight.
"Come on! Stop yapping like a brat!" Tojo swung with more speed and more power than before, eyes steady and fearless.
"Not using magic, no techniques, no outside power… you've made it this far purely on your body and instinct. Really amazing."
"As a reply, I'll get serious too. No energy, only muscle. I'll throw one punch. If you can stand after it, you win."
Kazuma liked this guy. After beating him, he would definitely invite him to join Fairy Tail, becoming the second member after Tohru.
"..."
Kazuma loosened his body and stood still, waiting for Tojo to approach.
"His magic stopped fluctuating?" Hilda frowned as Kazuma's mana settled completely.
"Don't tell me he's planning to fight entirely with his flesh. He has magic but chooses not to use it? What nonsense." She truly didn't understand him. Why handicap yourself when victory could be instant?
"Wadada!"
Baby Beel wriggled out of Hilda's arms, staring at Kazuma. Caught up in the clash of wills, his own magic began to surge. He waved his tiny fists as if cheering.
"You demons wouldn't get it," Tohru said softly. "Sometimes you have to stick to a certain kind of fight. He has to do this."
Some battles weren't about winning. Kazuma putting aside magic to clash with Tojo physically was his acknowledgment of Tojo's spirit—and his confidence.
He was saying, "Even without magic, I'm stronger than you."
"Tohru…" Kanna took Tohru's hand, sensing something but saying nothing.
...
Tojo finally closed the distance. But Kazuma was calm to the extreme.
He watched Tojo's fist draw closer… and then his body moved on instinct.
For a heartbeat, time froze. Silence swallowed everything.
Then came the explosion of air, the crack of the ground splitting, and the sound of Tojo skipping across the earth like a thrown stone.
Kazuma had compressed every muscle to the limit, releasing a punch faster than sound. Only after it landed did the sonic boom catch up.
"My body still isn't strong enough. Compared to magic, the damage from pure muscle is way lower."
"Looks like I need more physical training."
He did train regularly, but clearly not enough. When body and energy reached perfect balance, that's when true power appeared.
"Come on. Let's check if that kid's dead." Kazuma walked toward where Tojo had landed.
Tojo was lying in a crater.
Kazuma checked his injuries—multiple broken bones, heavily damaged organs, covered in bruises.
But alive.
Smack!
Tojo suddenly swung and punched Kazuma on the shoulder, dead on target.
"He can still fight?!"
Hilda stared. After taking that punch? Was he even human? Was Ishiyama some kind of monster nest?
"This guy's unconscious now. His body's just reacting on instinct."
Kazuma sighed.
He called an ambulance, sat nearby, and waited. The ambulance still didn't show up, but Tojo woke up instead.
"Holy hell… everything hurts. That punch was insane! Sensei, you're strong like a damn monster!"
"And you didn't even use full power, right? Next time we fight, show me what you look like when you go all out."
Tojo somehow pushed himself off the ground. He was clearly seriously injured, yet he acted like nothing was wrong, wearing that bold, carefree grin of his.
"Alright then, Sensei, I'm heading out. Gotta get to my part-time job."
Tojo turned to leave.
"One… two… three. Down."
Kazuma raised three fingers. Before Tojo could take another step, he collapsed face-first with a thud.
"Pff-Hahahaha. Tojo, your injuries don't magically disappear just because you're stubborn."
Kazuma couldn't help laughing at how dense the guy was. Did this idiot really think he was perfectly fine?
"Oh… so I'm actually really messed up? Can't even stand… at this level… maybe one night's sleep won't fix it. Two nights maybe?"
Tojo genuinely hadn't processed his injuries. He thought it was just pain. It wasn't until he tried to move that he realized he couldn't.
"Two nights? Please. Ever heard 'a hundred days for bones to heal'? What are you, some kind of gastrea creature that recovers after a nap?" Kazuma clicked his tongue.
"I usually do get better after a nap. Guess this time I'll need a few naps."
"Anyway, I can't afford a hospital… the paycheck from my job hasn't come in yet. Damn it, I shouldn't have fought right now."
Tojo wasn't regretting fighting Kazuma—he was regretting not getting paid first.
"I'll cover the highest-class ward and the best treatment. I'll pay for everything. But after you recover, you work for me to pay it back."
"Or you could join my guild and I'll wipe the debt. How about it?"
"A guild? What's that? If it's some kind of 'organization' thing, I'm not interested. I only fight and work."
Tojo had no interest in ruling anything or building a crew. He just happened to have a few strong friends, and rumors turned them into the "Tojo gang."
"We just take on jobs. People hire us, we solve their problems, we get paid. We are Fairy Tail."
"So basically… part-time work, Tojo. And it pays better than your current job."
Kazuma sat beside him.
"Well, in that case I will join. But Sensei, you gotta fight me again when you have time."
Even half-dead, Tojo was thinking about brawling. Win or lose didn't matter—he just wanted a good fight.
"Right, my name's Tojo. Just call me Tojo. Sensei, what's your name?"
"I'm Kazuma. You can call me Kazuma-san, or just Kazuma is fine." Kazuma smiled. "Or, if you prefer… Guildmaster."
Tojo stared at that smile. For a moment, he remembered someone from his past—someone terrifyingly strong, confident, wild, yet reassuring.
"Kazuma-san… makes me wanna fight you right now."
"Tojo, you're too weak. Heal up first. After that, I'll teach you how to get stronger."
While they talked, Baby Beel crawled over.
"Da...Ka!"
Beel punched and kicked at the air, mimicking the earlier fight, little stars sparkling in his eyes as he stared at Kazuma in worship.
"Beel wants to get stronger too? Sure. We'll work hard together."
Kazuma ruffled his hair.
"Your kid is cute. Fierce eyes though."
Tojo might've been a battle maniac, but he liked kids and animals. Heart of a tiger, soul of a kitten.
"Men are idiots. Totally incomprehensible creatures," Hilda muttered. "You were just trying to kill each other, and now you're chatting like buddies. I don't get it."
"It's normal," Tohru shrugged. "Fight first, become friends later. That's how I met most of my friends. We fought and boom—friends forever."
"…Which is why dragons are arrogant and barbaric muscleheads," Hilda huffed.
Dragons looked down on demons. Demons looked down on dragons. A mutual disdain situation.
Not far away, a group of delinquents gathered. They came looking for trouble with Tojo. At first, seeing all the bodies on the street made them hesitate.
But then they saw Kazuma beat Tojo into the ground, and suddenly they felt bold.
They strutted forward smugly. "Tojo, you think you're hot stuff? Look at you now, knocked flat."
"Next time you see us, you better run. Otherwise, we'll beat you again."
"Next time won't be the hospital. It'll be the grave."
"Hey bro, you from which gang? You're pretty strong."
The leader swaggered up, looking down at Tojo with cocky confidence, then asked Kazuma about his gang.
"Me?" Kazuma looked around, realizing the guy was talking to him. "I'm a teacher at Ishiyama High."
"A teacher at Ishiyama High? Bro, you—wait. A teacher?"
"And Tojo is also from Ishiyama High. So that means you guys are—"
The man finally connected the dots.
He'd seen it with his own eyes: Kazuma was even scarier than Tojo. One punch sent people flying like in a manga panel.
"This kid is my student. You got business with him?"
Kazuma sat cross-legged with Beel on his lap. Beel tried to glare fiercely at the delinquents… but being tiny, the "fierce" just turned into "adorably angry."
"No! No trouble! My bad! Sumimasen! We're leaving now!"
The leader bolted. He'd assumed this was a turf fight and a new powerhouse appeared. Turns out he'd wandered into Ishiyama's internal hell.
They were lucky to still be alive.
"You came to cause trouble. If you walk away unharmed, what will people think of Ishiyama High? Tsk, tsk! They'll think we're easy to mess with. So for our reputation, I can't let you go."
"Beel, what do you think we should do?" Kazuma picked him up.
"Tatata!"
Beel swung his fists. The meaning was obvious: beat them up. Leave none standing!
"Exactly. All of you should lie down for a bit."
Kazuma got ready to stand and stretch, but Hilda and Tohru stepped forward.
"We've watched you mess around long enough. We're annoyed too. Kazuma-sama, you stay here and watch over the master."
Hilda twirled her umbrella. She'd been bored watching and wanted some action.
"We'll handle it. Won't take long."
Tohru surged into the crowd. A dragon charging your face—yeah, there's no fighting that. Only falling over and praying.
"Your wives are terrifying…" Tojo gulped.
"Meh. They're pretty normal. I've seen fiercer girls," Kazuma said casually.
.
.
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