An hour later~
…
Nearly an hour later, Ryu finally managed to recognize the street he lived on.
He slowed down as the familiar house came into view, letting out a long sigh of relief: “Finally…!”
He had spent far longer wandering around than he’d care to admit, but at least he hadn’t somehow gotten lost in another part of the city.
More importantly, during that entire walk, he could feel the exhaustion in his body gradually disappearing until there was practically nothing left: ‘Well…
My stamina’s almost completely recovered already…’
Ryu then flexed his fingers as he walked toward the entrance, noticing that the soreness was still there, but the heavy exhaustion he’d felt earlier was almost entirely gone: ‘That Minor Regeneration skill must be ridiculously effective.
I went from barely being able to move to recovering most of my stamina in less than an hour.’
Still, he couldn’t help but wonder how much stronger it would become if it continued evolving the same way his other abilities had: ‘At this rate, I might be able to recover from these fights pretty quickly…
Though I should probably stop relying on that.’
He entered the house, placing his shoes beside the entrance before heading further inside: ‘I still need money, though.’ That thought immediately dampened his excitement.
Ryu had been ignoring the problem for a while, but his expenses weren’t going to magically disappear, and his current situation meant he couldn’t exactly rely on someone else to support him forever;
‘Whatever the case may be, I’ll have to spend the weekend looking around for somewhere that offers part-time work.
Even if it’s only a little money, it’ll be better than nothing.’ He thought with a sigh.
After spending the next few minutes gathering what he needed, Ryu eventually took a long shower, allowing the warm water to run over his aching body.
The soreness was still present, particularly around his chest and shoulders, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been when he first woke up: ‘I’ve really gotten used to this whole recovery thing…’
He sighed before drying himself off, changing into something comfortable, and heading straight for bed.
The moment his head touched the pillow, he was out.
…
The next morning, Ryu woke up with one thought immediately dominating his mind: ‘Urgh…
I’m starving.’
His stomach growled loudly enough to make him pause before he even got out of bed: “Seriously…?”
Ryu placed a hand against his stomach, remembering how violently hungry he’d become after previous fights: ‘My body’s probably demanding more food for recovery.’ Considering how badly he’d been injured the previous day, it actually made sense.
His body had probably burned through an absurd amount of energy repairing itself…
Despite that, he already felt considerably better.
There were still aches and sore muscles throughout his body, but compared to yesterday, he felt almost refreshed: ‘This Minor Regeneration thing is something else.’
Ryu quickly checked his status before getting ready…
…
____
[Health: 68%
Stamina: 100%
Condition: Injured]
____
…
‘Not bad…’ Ryu couldn’t help but smile slightly: ‘I’ve made some damn good progress so far.’
Then his stomach growled again…
“…Yeah, okay.
Stats later.
Food first.”
The thought of Gonzo’s strength still bothered him.
The guy had been ridiculously powerful, even compared to Hiroki and Kisame.
He hadn’t gone far when he spotted a familiar red-haired figure walking ahead: “Hiroki.”
Hiroki turned around, his eyes widening slightly when he noticed Ryu: “Yo, Ryu.”
The two walked together for a while before Ryu eventually brought up the previous day: “I got into another fight yesterday.”
Hiroki immediately looked at him: “Again?”
“Yeah.” Ryu sighed: “Some massive guy named Gonzo challenged me.
Apparently, he heard about me from Kisame.”
Hiroki’s expression changed slightly…
“He’s ridiculously strong.” Ryu continued: “I’d put him around the same level as Kisame, honestly.
Maybe even stronger physically.
And the guy was huge.
I’m talking well over two meters tall.”
Hiroki stared at him for a moment before scoffing: “I see…
And…
You’ve gotten even stronger since I last fought you, haven’t you?”
Ryu blinked.
Hiroki looked at him carefully…
There was something different about Ryu now.
It wasn’t simply his height or the fact that his body had filled out considerably.
His entire presence felt different, almost like there was a weight behind him that hadn’t existed before…
‘I’ve been training too…’ Hiroki thought, his expression becoming slightly serious: ‘But somehow, the gap I was trying to close after losing to him only got bigger.’
“That’s weird…” Hiroki muttered.
Ryu looked at him: “What’s weird?”
Before Hiroki could answer, a familiar voice called from behind them.
“Hiroki!”
Hiroki turned around.
Ryu froze for a moment: ‘That voice…’
His eyes widened slightly as the girl he’d met in the cafeteria several weeks ago approached them.
Her dark blue hair and hazel-brown eyes immediately reminded him of their first meeting, back when she’d helped him choose his lunch…
She looked toward Ryu curiously before glancing at Hiroki: “Hm?
Who’s this?”
Hiroki looked between the two.
Ryu scratched his cheek: “Uh…
We actually met before.
You helped me pick something at the cafeteria a few weeks ago.”
You’re that Ryu?”
Ryu nodded: “Yup.”
She looked him over from head to toe, clearly surprised by the difference: “You look completely different!”
Ryu laughed awkwardly: “Guess I had a bit of a growth spurt.”
“A bit?” Hiroki muttered.
Ryu ignored him.
The girl smiled slightly, seemingly amused by the situation, before exchanging a few more words with the two of them.
Eventually, she said goodbye, and continued toward the school.
Once she was gone, Hiroki glanced toward Ryu: “You know, I’ve actually heard about that guy you fought yesterday…”
Ryu looked at him curiously: “Huh?
Really?”
“Yeah.
Gonzo Kichi.” Hiroki nodded: “He’s pretty well known in the judo world.
He’s considered an upcoming talent, and has apparently been climbing through the ranks pretty quickly.”
Ryu’s eyes lit up slightly: “Really?”
“Yeah.”
Ryu smiled.
“Then I’ll keep challenging him until I surpass him…”
“Eh?”bHiroki raised a brow: “You’re…
serious?”
“Absolutely.” Ryu nodded: “I’m getting a little tired of being beaten up by random strangers.”
He glanced toward Hiroki with a faint grin: “Besides, I can challenge you whenever I want too, right?”
Hiroki chuckled: “I suppose you’re pretty fortunate.” His eyes briefly moved over Ryu’s still-slightly-battered appearance.
“Though that explains why you still look a little beat up…”
“Yeah, yeah.” Ryu waved him off: “I’ll be seeing you later…
I’m heading ahead.”
Ryu walked away, leaving Hiroki standing there…
“..”
Hiroki watched his back disappear into the crowd, thinking to himself: Ryu’s growth…
isn’t it getting a little too ridiculous now…?’
Ryu had progressed astronomically quickly, to the point where Hiroki could noonger consider is humane.
Ryu’s talent was, for the lack of a better term, otherworldly at this point.
However, Hiroki smiled to himself: ‘Like hell that’ll deter me…
I’ll just have to train a thousand times harder!’ He thought with conviction.
Before going his own way…
.
.
.
End