METSUDO KATAHARA KENGAN ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN
MINORU TAKAYAMA BODYGUARD
[foreboding music playing]
Are you serious?
Of course.
It's a dangerous situation.
You have such tremendous strength,
but it makes you weak when you're cornered.
You proved that to me the other day
in your match against Kaolan.
So we'll have a deciding match right now
to determine which of us will represent our master.
Any objections?
I'm sure all of you think of me as a giant fool.
[Takayama thinking] So it begins.
The new Fang of Metsudo facing off against the old one.
["Feel My Pain" by Hey-Smith playing]
♪ Now it's been a while ♪
♪ And your kisses, they got even better ♪
♪ You think I don't know You're flaunting smiles ♪
♪ My love is what counts ♪
♪ But your face just clouds my honest feelings ♪
♪ I can only look at you with doubt ♪
♪ Don't forget, no connect ♪
♪ Maybe no because you're in my head ♪
♪ The love in me went away ♪
♪ I see the beauty ♪
♪ Beauty ♪
♪ Nothing can be in vain ♪
♪ You are the only ♪
♪ Only ♪
♪ You feel my pain ♪
♪ I can't wait ♪
♪ Don't be too late ♪
♪ Feel my pain out loud! ♪
GATHERING CLOUDS
[mysterious music playing]
[crowd cheering]
HIDEKI NOGI NOGI GROUP DIRECTOR
[Metsudo] What a fantastic view.
Hmm?
This is a wonderful place to watch the fights from.
We have arrived at the precipice of our imminent battle.
Please be sure to go easy on our poor boy.
[chuckles]
You must be joking.
You know, it may be too late to say this,
but some might view the moves you made to get here
as a bit much.
I never would've imagined you'd fritter away your entire fortune
just so you could be on equal footing with me.
I don't consider it to be a waste of money.
All that matters to me in the end is winning.
But that's not the only reason I'm behaving this way.
We're only equals until I surpass you.
[chuckles]
Well, I suppose there's no arguing with you there.
You're doing this to achieve what your ancestors could not.
I understand why you've wasted your life on it.
[gasps]
[grunts] Bastard!
[Metsudo] Never underestimate an old man's intuition.
I always knew something didn't feel right.
I've been suspicious since the idea of a tournament
was proposed in the first place.
I knew from your history as a businessman
that you were far more prudent.
I could tell just from watching the way you handled your affairs.
Under normal circumstances,
you are not the type of man who is eager to take an obvious risk.
It always felt like a change of heart,
and I was curious as to what caused it.
So I decided to do some research,
and what I discovered was, apparently,
you had spent considerable resources
gathering information on a particular individual,
interestingly, shortly before you demanded
we hold the Kengan Life-or-Death Tournament.
So I did some research on him as well.
That's enough! [clicks tongue]
A newcomer like you would never understand.
My ancestors ask one thing of me,
to win this tournament.
And I'll do so no matter the cost.
And of course, I'm sure our dear friend is none the wiser.
Who could guess that an entire tournament would be thrown
just to face off with him?
…out there!
Yeah. I hear you, old man.
SEN HATSUMI NOGI GROUP REP. FIGHTER
Whoa! What do we have here?
Um… it looks like the two of them are kind of friendly.
[man] Hmm. That's pretty weird, right?
[man 2] Yeah, I don't think I've seen this before.
[man] Watching one fighter warming up another fighter is kind of surreal.
[man 3] It doesn't matter how close they are.
They should think about the companies behind them.
Okay. How about one more time?
[panting]
Are those… warm-up exercises?
Is this supposed to be a Fang battle simulation?
Well, judging from the looks of their stances,
I doubt their running a simulation.
They're far too relaxed to be doing that.
Cool. So he is just helping him warm up then.
No.
Not him.
That man has a reason for everything.
He's convincing.
We've all been charmed by Hatsumi already.
Look at that.
I never thought that I would see the day.
Those two boys used to despise each other.
And now look at them go.
Who knows what'll happen next?!
[narrator] Ohma's movements started gaining speed.
And then…
[man] Whoa! Hang on.
…the audience began noticing that something was wrong.
[man 2] Huh? That attack should've landed!
[Ohma grunting]
Incredible! He's dodging at the last second.
[thinking] The distance he moves to dodge the attacks
is getting even smaller
as Tokita's attacks are getting faster.
Sen's ability to dodge those attacks gets faster.
[Ohma grunting]
[Wakatsuki thinking] To the naked eye,
he appears as though he remains standing still.
[thinking] I can't hit him.
This is almost as fast as I can go.
How's that?
Wanna keep going?
Mmm. No.
I think that's enough for now.
Thanks for the help, Tokita.
I think my gear's in top shape now.
[Ohma sighs]
All right.
Glad to hear it.
Good luck out there.
Try not to die today.
Oh yeah.
Although, knowing exactly when to throw in the towel
is its own skill, I will say.
Ohma, wait!
How are you? Feeling okay?
I told you, I'm fine. That was nothing.
But still,
I was not expecting that.
I never thought you would be willing to help out Sen Hatsumi.
Yeah.
I… know what you mean.
Especially after what happened the last time.
[screams]
[thinking] Ohma is capable of reflecting on his past actions?!
Hey.
I can see you got something rude in your head.
[stammers] No, I have nothing in my head at all.
[Ohma sighs]
-I came to a realization. -Huh?
I finally figured out why I was so pissed off at him.
He reminds me of someone.
He's just like him.
[crowd clamoring]
So Hatsumi may have already joined us here in the ring,
but I'm gonna say it anyway.
It's the final match of round three.
Fighters, time to come on down!
Both his motivation to fight and his potential
are a complete mystery.
How close this match ends up comes down to how he feels.
Who in the world do you think you are?!
Don't let him fool you.
He's so strong that he's only ever lost by default.
With the entire future of his sponsor on the line here,
he'll show off his Hatsumi-style aikido!
At 178 centimeters and 84 kilograms,
and with 41 wins and 15 losses so far in the Kengan matches,
his winnings total up to
1,440,182,800,000 yen.
Affiliated with Nogi Group,
it's The Floating Cloud,
Sen Hatsumi!
[rock music playing]
And now, the moment we've been waiting for.
It's time for me to introduce
his match opponent!
[rock music playing]
[Sayaka] His fighting style is always in constant flux.
It's impossible to predict!
When he's against a strong fighter,
he devours them and gets even stronger!
Amazing!
He's unrivaled!
Extraordinary!
Let the king of the Kengan matches descend upon us peasants today!
At 201 centimeters and 128 kilograms,
with 159 wins and zero losses so far in the Kengan matches…
With 770,683,000 yen…
Quite the haul for his company, I'd say,
which is Dainippon Bank, or course.
It's the Fang of Metsudo,
Agito Kanoh!
[rock music continues]
[crowd chanting] Fang! Fang!
Fang! Fang!
Fang!
-Fang! Fang! -[groans]
I would've preferred you not come out at all.
[chuckles]
How very interesting.
So he did it then.
The current Fang was able to defend his position.
What?!
You had no idea which fighter was going in?
You waited until now to find that out?
To put it bluntly, yes.
It doesn't particularly matter to me which fighter goes into the ring.
Whoever is left standing, I come out the winner.
[laughing]
[grunts]
[thinking] "The current Fang defended his position"?
Did I hear what he said correctly?
But then who was the person that tried to unseat the current Fang?
[Ohmori grunts]
I can't believe what a pain in the ass Kiba is.
But hey, at least I was able to address some real concerns today.
Just like our master wanted,
Agito has now become even stronger.
He may have gotten stronger in some ways,
but he's since gotten far weaker in many others.
But as for the outcome,
it's hard to say if this will be good or bad.
There's no way to know for sure until the fight begins.
As for me,
I still think you were the one that should've been picked to be the fighter.
[Ohmori] I'm not so sure about that.
I'm not best when it comes to dealing with guys like him.
Yo.
The fighters have met. It's time to start.
There's about a 20-centimeter difference in height,
and in weight, there's a 40-kilogram difference there.
Our other fighting friend Kaolan might be at a higher weight category than Hatsumi,
but even Kaolan looks miniscule when he's standing next to Agito.
[thinking] Stay strong, Sen.
He's more ready now than he's ever been.
But…
[thinking] What's the plan you have for this, Sen?
The differences in your abilities are pretty substantial.
Hatsumi can do it. Just watch.
What is Hatsumi's specialty?
He's not an expert in strike attacks.
All those strike attacks are a poor choice against the Fang.
There's only one way that Hatsumi can win.
With aikido.
If I were the Fang, I'd make sure to keep far away from Hatsumi.
I've fought before.
A little one-off match against Hatsumi in the past.
You really went toe-to-toe against him?
I remember it was over a fight.
I don't remember why.
It was probably about something stupid, I guess.
It was a long time ago now.
You know, looking back on it,
it was the first time I ever got thrown around that much
by someone who was significantly smaller than me.
It wasn't about his arm strength or the difference in our weights.
Aikido is just the start.
There's so much more to how Hatsumi fights.
When he gets to the top of his game,
no one alive can predict what he's going to do.
[exhales]
[mysterious music playing]
[Sen thinking] I don't see much damage.
You've recovered pretty quickly from the hits you took in round two.
So much for the powerful world boxing champion.
You could've roughed him up a bit more for me.
The two of them are masters of different attack styles!
Looks like this fight is shaping up to be the most anticipated one,
at least for this guy!
Let's check it out.
Mm. Looks like you've raised the bar quite a bit higher, huh?
Referee, let's do this.
[Sayaka] Is the Kengan Association Emperor,
the Fang of Metsudo,
going to be the one to get through to the semifinals?
Or will The Floating Cloud be our dark horse
to change tide of history today?
So, let's get started.
Who will be the final fighter to make it to round three?
[referee] Fighters, ready!
[crowd clamoring]
[grunts softly]
Begin!
[crowd cheering]
Begin!
[crowd cheering]
[suspenseful music playing]
No stance.
He's in top condition.
What's that?
The Fang's stance…
-Well, this is interesting. -[Jerry] Hmm.
Kanoh is starting off by getting into an upright stance.
When he first took the title of the fifth Fang
and began his Kengan career by fighting in the tournament,
Kanoh used to use the upright stance all the time.
What does this fearsome fighter have up his sleeve
if he's going back to basics now?
[thinking] What's going through his head?
[Sayaka] On the left,
it looks like Hatsumi is taking a leisurely stroll towards his opponent.
On the right,
all sense of normalcy has been thrown out the window
with Kanoh's usual stance.
Who will be the first one to strike?
[thinking] Nice and slow.
I'll keep things like this.
That's how I prefer to start a match anyway.
I'd rather not use swift attacks like in round two.
Nah. I'm going with a different style.
Everybody likes showing off right at the top,
fast and flashy like it's the only trick they have in the book.
I don't get it.
Why is everyone in such a hurry?
Uh-oh. I got so wrapped up in my thoughts that I lost track of the time.
Ah!
The Fang is… He wouldn't.
[Sen] Hmm.
[all gasp]
[Sen] Ooh, scary. I feel like I'm fighting against a sentient halberd.
-[Sayaka] Wha… What was that?! -[crowd cheering]
The ground has been slashed like it was cut with a scythe!
[shudders]
It's a right low.
[Sen] Hmm.
[thinking] All right.
It's time for me to get to work.
[Sen grunts]
[narrator] A flash kick to the left middle.
[Agito grunts]
[Sen grunts]
[groans]
[thinking] That hurt.
[action music playing]
-[Agito grunts] -[Sen grunts]
-[gasps] -[gasps]
[narrator] The two fighters who had faced off against the Fang
in round one and two
had already noticed a change.
The style the Fang was using to fight was different.
[Sen grunts]
[narrator] Persistent attacks to the middle and bottom.
He had been drawn in and let his guard down.
-[grunts softly] -[Wakatsuki thinking] No!
Ooh.
[all gasp]
The kick didn't connect?!
How the heck did he dodge it?!
-[grunts] -[grunts]
It doesn't look like he's gonna let me hit him back.
That's no good.
[thinking] Ah, whatever.
I can get a hit in on the next go-around.
[Sayaka] He slipped through him again!
I mean, what the hell is going on?!
Oh! Amazing!
It's his knee.
He's moving his knee in and out to dodge the attack
with the least amount of movement possible.
His body axis is the same.
That's why it looks like he doesn't move at all.
Now I see it.
So that's why it looks like the attack just moved right on through him.
But why?
Is Hatsumi trying to keep him at close range?
Was that warm-up with Tokita all to provoke the Fang?
[narrator] Wakatsuki's supposition was right on the money.
However, things had not gone according to Hatsumi's plan
because the Fang's style had changed greatly since his last match.
[thinking] Hmm?
He's not taking the bait.
A strike to the upper area to make me drop my head.
One to the left middle to make me drop my guard.
They both didn't land,
but they're both preparation to set up success
for an upper roundhouse to hit.
It's not like him to play with me like this.
Up until now, the Fang would be much more direct.
Even when he knew he was at a disadvantage,
he would usually go along with the opponent's style.
I thought he would read into my intentions a bit
and try to close up the gap between the two of us.
But it's not working.
Time for a strat change.
I'll pull him in by force.
Oh!
Hatsumi's pushing in way too close!
What's he trying to do?!
-[action music playing] -[Sen grunts]
[grunts]
[Sen thinking] I'm sure that's what you hoped for.
Sorry to tell you, that's not what happened.
Whoa! What did he just do?!
He's not injured?!
We all saw him punch his head off!
[Kuroki thinking] He's pushing even closer to the limit.
Waiting until the last second to dodge is standard procedure.
And it's done with the least amount of movement.
But this particular technique only works when one can predict
the precise reach of a move,
right down to the millimeter.
[Agito grunts]
[Sayaka] Direct hit!
It's the first time in today's match that Hatsumi has landed an attack.
-Hatsumi is starting to close in. -[Agito grunts]
[thinking] I'm too close for you to kick me.
So what will you do instead?
There we go.
This is what I wanted you to do.
-[all gasp] -[both] Huh?
-[gasps] -[gasps]
-[both gasp] -[both gasp]
Heh.
[Agito] Huh?
[Sayaka] He's got him in an elbow lock!
[narrator] This attack is easiest to transition into an elbow lock.
It's called a diagonal straight!
[thinking] Whoa! That was scary.
Wasn't too sure I could pull that one off.
Oh wow.
I think the match is almost over.
All right!
[Metsudo] Hmm.
[thinking] When The Floating Cloud has it set in his mind to win,
he shows that he is capable of great strength.
So this is Sen Hatsumi,
the man who was once in line to become the Fang.
[Sayaka] All right! All right! All right!
The fickle tides of war have begun to turn!
Kanoh has found himself locked in one hell of a pinch!
[crowd clamoring]
♪ Like this, biatch… ♪
[rap music in Japanese playing]
♪ Say what? ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
♪ You say you running the city… ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
♪ Say what? ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
♪ Hey, when I snap ♪
♪ Put damage on your cap… ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
♪ Say what? ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
♪ You say you running the city… ♪
[lyrics in Japanese]
[narrator] The fight between the Fang and Floating Cloud
sharply soars to new heights!
Behold the man who was supposed to become the Fang,
Sen Hatsumi! Time to see what he's like when he's serious.
Next Episode, "The Floating Cloud."