Chapter 7: Next, Watch My Performance
After the dismissal bell rang and others left the Classroom one after another, Xia Shang deliberately stayed behind.
"Teacher, I dropped something, I'll look for it myself first." He casually made an excuse, letting the female Teacher leave first.
The female Teacher didn't seem suspicious and walked straight out of the Classroom.
Afterward, Xia Shang found two bottles of concentrated sulfuric acid stored in glass bottles in the glass cabinet. He checked them and found that the glass bottles were of good quality and the seal was fine. Unless the bottles were deliberately smashed, the sulfuric acid inside couldn't leak out.
With this stuff, Xia Shang had greater confidence in killing the Parasyte in one go.
It was now five in the afternoon, the time for Tokyo West High to finish school. Xia Shang put on his jacket and walked towards the Kendo Club.
The Kendo Club's Training Ground was very large. At this time, many students were already practicing with wooden swords. They were all wearing simple protective gear to ensure no one would get injured, but they could still feel a certain amount of pain when struck by a wooden sword.
"Mr. Xia." Yuuji, who was in the crowd, saw Xia Shang at a glance.
"This is Xia Shang, my classmate. He just joined the Kendo Club today." Yuuji introduced him to the others.
"Welcome, welcome."
The others didn't reject the newly joined Xia Shang; instead, they all showed a welcoming attitude.
After Xia Shang greeted them individually, he voluntarily walked to the side to watch them practice.
"Does our Kendo Club only have wooden swords?" Seeing that everyone held wooden long swords, Xia Shang couldn't help but ask.
"We also have iron swords, but we don't usually train with those iron swords. They are too heavy and are only used in formal matches."
Just as the two were talking, several tall students walked towards them.
The leading student had dyed yellow hair and looked at Yuuji and the others with disdain. Their arrival instantly froze the atmosphere. Xia Shang was a bit confused and quietly asked Yuuji beside him.
Yuuji clearly had a grudge against these guys. He gritted his teeth and said, "They are the third-year students. The leader is called Masou Koukichi. It's said he knows Hooligans from outside the school. They usually like to pick training targets from among us, and they hit very hard every time they train with us."
"What's wrong? Don't you greet your Seniors when you see them?"
Under Asou Yoshihiro's oppressive might, Yuuji and the others could only humiliatingly greet them.
Seeing this, Asou Yoshihiro laughed heartily. The few people beside him also started laughing. However, they soon noticed Xia Shang, who hadn't spoken. As a new face, he actually ignored their words.
Asou Yoshihiro immediately narrowed his eyes and smiled hypocritically, "It seems some people still don't recognize our Seniors' identity."
"Just teach him a small lesson. Bullying newcomers has always been a tradition of the Kendo Club."
The few people standing beside him looked at Xia Shang with ill intent.
"Forget it, he just joined the Kendo Club. Don't scare him away." Asou Yoshihiro patted the shoulder of the person who just spoke.
Then, he selected a few people from the crowd as today's training targets.
Yuuji was among them.
The students of the Kendo Club all knew that Yuuji and his group didn't have a good relationship with Asou Yoshihiro from the third year. Someone would get injured every time they trained. However, the inherent baseness of human nature has always been regardless of race. Seeing a spectacle to watch, they immediately swarmed together.
In the center of the Training Ground enclosed by horizontal bars, two people were putting on protective gear. Compared to the tall and strong third-year student, Yuuji's companion appeared much smaller and thinner, and it was clear from his posture holding the sword that he was very nervous.
As expected, at the beginning of the training. Yuuji's side fell into passive defense. Within just a few minutes, he was struck several times in succession.
Seeing this scene, Xia Shang, who was watching from the side, silently shook his head. It wasn't that the third-year guy's sword arts were strong, but that Yuuji's companion had no desire to win at all, only knowing how to passively defend. If this continued, it would be impossible to win.
The result was as he expected.
Yuuji's companion was struck on the back of his hand by a sword, painfully let go, causing the wooden sword in his hand to drop, ending the match.
The next few matches were the same, all one-sided situations.
"It's my turn." Yuuji gripped the long sword in his hand, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the Training Ground.
His opponent was Asou Yoshihiro. At this time, Asou Yoshihiro seemed very relaxed. He casually swung his wooden sword and mocked, "You juniors haven't improved at all. You're truly disappointing. Thinking about how you'll take over for us in the future, it feels unbelievable."
"Stop talking so much nonsense."
Yuuji initiated the attack first. His speed was quite good, and he reached Asou Yoshihiro's front with a single stride.
Unfortunately, this sword strike was blocked by Asou Yoshihiro.
It must be said that being able to become the leader of the Kendo Club's third-year students did require some skill, of course, this was relative to Yuuji and the others.
After all, in Xia Shang's eyes, Asou Yoshihiro's sword arts could be said to be full of flaws, difficult to look at directly.
"Too slow, did you not eat?"
Asou Yoshihiro turned and came beside Yuuji, striking Yuuji's left arm with a sword. It hurt so much he gritted his teeth.
"Still as reckless as before. Kendo is not something reckless people can master."
Asou Yoshihiro was saying trash talk while circling Yuuji. At this moment, Yuuji was clearly enraged. Veins popped on his forehead, and he swung forward forcefully, making his originally somewhat structured sword arts instantly become chaotic.
Seeing Yuuji lose his usual composure, Asou Yoshihiro's mouth showed a hint of cunning. Then, just as Yuuji's strength was depleted and new strength hadn't emerged, he swung his wooden sword and struck the back of his hand. The area where Yuuji was hit immediately became red and swollen.
"Give up. The gap between you and me isn't something you can bridge by silently chanting about bond, friendship, or revenge in your heart."
Under Asou Yoshihiro's continuous attacks, Yuuji's figure was already swaying precariously.
Even the Referee on the side couldn't watch anymore.
He walked directly to the center of the Arena and announced Asou Yoshihiro's victory.
Asou Yoshihiro, who achieved victory, said smilingly to Yuuji, "Sorry, too bad, I won again this time."
Yuuji endured the pain and walked off the Arena. He lowered his head and whispered to Xia Shang, "Sorry for making you watch a joke, but one day, I will defeat him."
"You rest first."
Xia Shang took the wooden sword from his hand, saw the injuries on his body, and shrugged.
"Next, watch my performance." Saying this, Xia Shang raised the sword and walked towards the Arena.
(End of Chapter)