The next day~
…
The following day passed without anything particularly interesting happening.
Ryu attended his classes, kept to himself, and thankfully managed to make it through the entire day without someone appearing out of nowhere to challenge him.
After school, he simply returned home, ate until he was satisfied, and spent the rest of the evening resting.
Compared to the absurdity that had become his normal routine lately, the day was almost boring.
But the next morning was different.
Ryu slowly opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling for a few seconds before sitting upright.
Almost immediately, he noticed something strange: ‘…Huh?’
His body felt different.
Not just better than yesterday’s condition, but considerably stronger.
There was a strange sense of power coursing through every part of him, almost as though his body had finally settled after everything he’d put it through.
Ryu clenched his fists, feeling the muscles in his arms respond with almost frightening ease: ‘This definitely isn’t a coincidence.’
He could feel it.
The difference was unmistakable.
It was as if the version of himself from yesterday had been replaced by something far more capable.
If he had to compare the two, he was certain his current self could effortlessly overpower the Ryu he’d been just a day ago: ‘So this is what it feels like after fully recovering…’
Ryu slowly got out of bed, stretching his arms and rolling his shoulders.
There wasn’t even a trace of the exhaustion he’d felt before.
His body felt light, responsive, and powerful, with every movement happening exactly as he intended.
‘If my stats actually jumped again after recovering…’
He walked toward the door, reaching for the handle.
Crunch~
“…”
“The heck was that…?” Ryu had froze…
Until, he stared at his hand…
Then at the door.
Then back at his hand…
The doorknob was no longer a doorknob.In fact, it had been crushed completely beneath his fingers: “…Woah.”
Ryu slowly released what remained of it, his eyes widening as he stared at the mangled piece of metal: ‘I…
I barely even squeezed it…’
He swallowed: ‘Haha…
Okay…
Yeah.
Something definitely changed.’
Ryu stepped back from the door before closing his eyes and focusing inward;
‘Alright…
Status.’
The panel appeared before him…
…
_____
[Name: Ryu Takane
Age: 17
Height: 177.6
Weight: 68.8 kg » 69.9 kg
Health: 100%
Stamina: 100%
Condition: Healthy
Physicality: 152.99 » 1234.5
Abilities:
-Overcome – Lvl (MAX): ??????
-Iron Will – Lvl 5
-Enhanced Stamina – Lvl 66
-Bone Toughness – Lvl 65
-Balanced Muscle Quality – Lvl 12
-Blunt Force Resistance – Lvl 62
-Minor Regeneration – Lvl 1
-Innate Awareness – Lvl 10
-Partial MMA – Lvl 6]
…
Ryu’s expression slowly changed as he stared at the question marks;
‘…What the hell?’
The very same thing had happened before.
His physicality had skyrocketed.
In fact, this jump might have been the largest so far!
His weight had also increased a bit as well.
Ryu clenched his fist again, this time being considerably more careful…
‘So I was right…’ Whatever happened during his recovery wasn’t simply his imagination.
His strength had changed yet again.
And judging from the destroyed doorknob…
‘I guess the recovery thing wasn’t my imagination.
It’s like I get some kind of Zenkai after getting beaten near death…?’
Dragon Ball was the only reference to what he was experiencing now.
He was practically guaranteed to get many times stronger after a near death experience, so to speak.
‘Actually…
It might even be due to balanced muscle quality’s doin’.
I pretty much exert equal force with all my muscles…
That might explain my grip being so explosively high…’ Ryu thought.
However as he glanced at himself in the mirror, he realized that his body had changed again, but not much.
He was ever so slightly thicker than before, but still maintaining that new muscularity he’d slowly developed since he’s begin fighting…
‘Welp, that’s enough staring.
I need to get to school, and after that…’ Ryu couldn’t help but grin.
He felt giddy at the mere thought of fighting Gonzo again.
How much would he push the giant now?
.
.
.
Ryu had arrived with the day going by relatively the same as yesterday, he was now getting used to his school life again, and he’d like to think he’s doing well.
He’s now consistent with his studies, and he has fought up, soon in another two weeks, the exams would start…
After going through the motions of the day, he tried to look for Hiroki during the lunch hours only to realize he hadn’t come at all…
‘First time not seeing him at school…’ Ryu thought, before eventually going his separate ways.
Eventually, school had ended.
Hiroki had been the only interesting thing other than learning Ryu had at school, so he quickly left, heading towards Gonzo’s personal gym…
.
.
.
Eventually, Ryu had arrived, looking up at how huge the place really was…
‘Talk about someone being loaded…’ Ryu couldn’t help but think such a thing.
It was true though, Gonzo was loaded.
And his gym looked spectacular by his previous world’s standards….
However he quickly stopped admiring, and refocused on why he was even here: ‘Right, fighting Gonzo…’
…
Ryu pushed open the doors to the gym, stepping inside as the sounds of bodies colliding against padded floors and heavy bags filled the air.
Everywhere he looked, people were training.
Some were grappling, others were practicing throws, while several others were sparring under the watchful eyes of what seemed to be instructors…
‘This place is seriously packed…’ Ryu thought, taking another step forward.
He hadn’t gotten very far when a large man stepped in front of him.
He wasn’t nearly as imposing as Gonzo, but he was still considerably larger than Ryu, his muscular frame making it obvious that he trained here regularly: “Can I help you?”
Ryu looked up at him before asking: “Is Gonzo here?”
The man’s expression immediately changed: “Hmm…
What do you want with the young master?”
‘Young master…?’ Ryu raised a brow at the title, though he quickly dismissed it: “Gonzo told me I could come here whenever I wanted to spar with him.”
The man stared at him for several seconds before letting out a quiet sigh: “You should be careful about telling lies like that, kid.
Normally, I’d kick you out for wasting our time.”
Ryu’s expression remained calm: “So…
Is Gonzo here or not?”
“Even if he is, you’re not even worthy of looking at the young master, much less challenging him.” The man shook his head, motioning toward the entrance: “You should leave before you end up getting hurt…”
Thanks for the concern, I guess?” Not knowing that’s exactly what Ryu wanted.
He’d only come back stronger.
He then simply walked past him…
The man’s eyes widened slightly before his expression hardened, muttering to himself: “I warned you, kid.”
He suddenly lunged forward, aiming to wrap both arms around Ryu’s legs and drive him into the ground.
In his mind, this was going to be easy.
He’d simply knock the kid over and give him a minor scare, and a light bruise before sending him on his way…
But then…
Nothing happened.
The man’s arms locked around Ryu’s legs, yet Ryu didn’t move even a centimeter: ‘…What?’
He pushed even harder.
Still, nothing.
It felt as though he’d just tried tackling a massive tree rooted firmly into the very earth itself.
Ryu didn’t even seem to notice the effort being put into moving him…
The man gritted his teeth, putting everything he had into the tackle: ‘H-He isn’t even moving!’
Ryu finally looked down at him, more confused than anything: “Uh…
What exactly are you trying to do…?” Ryu asked in genuine confusion: ‘Is this some kind of greeting they have here?’ Ryu pondered.
However, the man could only stare…
Ryu then reached down, grabbing him by the back of his shirt before effortlessly lifting him from the ground.
The man’s feet dangled several inches above the floor as Ryu sighed: “Look, I don’t want to cause any trouble.
I just came here to see Gonzo-san.”
He glanced around before asking again: “So, where is he?”
The man’s face had gone pale.
He slowly raised one hand, pointing toward a large door at the far end of the gym: “T-Through…
that door.”
Ryu nodded: “Alright.
Thanks.” He then set the man back down, and walked away without saying another word.
The entire gym had gone unusually quiet…
Several of the people training nearby had stopped what they were doing, their eyes following Ryu as he walked toward the door.
Nobody stepped forward to stop him this time.
After seeing what had just happened, they seemed to have collectively decided that interfering wasn’t worth the trouble.
Ryu pushed the door open.
The atmosphere immediately changed…
The noise from the main training area became distant, replaced by the heavy sound of something being dragged through dirt.
Ryu stepped inside, his eyes widening as he saw Gonzo standing in the center of what appeared to be a massive private training area;
‘…What the hell is that!?’
Gonzo was gripping what looked like an enormous block of steel, easily several meters in height.
His muscles were tense as he hauled the gigantic mass through the dirt, leaving a deep trench behind it with every step…
Ryu simply stood there, staring.
‘Is this guy seriously training with that thing…?’
Gonzo eventually noticed the presence behind him.
He stopped, slowly turning his head toward the doorway.
His expression changed when he saw Ryu.
“…Ryu Takane?”
Ryu raised a hand casually, a grin slowly forming across his face: “Yo!
I’m back again.”
Gonzo stared at him for several seconds, his eyes moving over Ryu’s noticeably larger, and even healthier frame.
“You have…
grown.” He could see the aura now radiating off Ryu is no longer the same.
His solidity had improved considerably over those short days they haven’t seen each other.
Ryu chuckled: “Yeah.
That’s actually one of the reasons I came.” His grin widened as he stepped further into the training area: “I wanted to see how much stronger I’ve really gotten.”
Gonzo’s expression slowly became more serious…
Then, almost imperceptibly, a smile appeared on his face: “I see…”
He carefully released the massive block of solid steel, allowing it to sink heavily into the dirt.
With an even bigger smile, Gonzo spoke: “Then let us find out…”
.
.
.
End