The air was dry and full of dust. Big mountains stood tall, blocking the hot sun. In the middle of this rocky land stood two fighters—both badly hurt and almost out of energy.
Ozaki stood with his red cloak torn and burnt from battle. His brown hair was messy, and his body was covered in cuts and bruises. He was tired and weak, breathing heavily.
Kaku stood across from him. He wore a dark brown uniform that was ripped and dirty from their long fight. His left arm was badly injured and useless, and he looked like he could fall at any moment. Still, he kept walking slowly toward Ozaki.
Earlier in the fight, Kaku had taken Ozaki's strongest attack without dodging. It hurt him badly, but he didn't stop.
Ozaki, surprised Kaku was still standing, tried to talk to him—to buy some time to recover.
In a quiet, tired voice, Ozaki said, "Power… it's not something you're just born with. You get it by working hard and having strong will."
Kaku, still moving forward, bleeding from his mouth, replied, "I wasn't born with anything. I trained and trained… but nothing worked. Until I met someone—a savior. He made me strong. I owe him my life."
Ozaki, now healing himself slowly, answered, "But that doesn't mean you have to die for him."
"I do!" Kaku shouted.
"He taught me something important."
Suddenly, Kaku rushed forward at full speed. Even though his body was breaking down, he forced himself to move faster. A glowing blade formed on his right arm. As he ran, dust and wind swirled behind him.
"Power is something you earn!!" he yelled.
Ozaki didn't move. He crouched a little, pressed his palms together, and focused.
Kaku's blade stabbed Ozaki just below the chest. Kaku smiled through the pain and said, "He told me… you were worthy."
Ozaki stayed calm. "Kowichi's Sealing Art: Weapon Seal," he said quietly.
Kaku looked confused. "What? My arm is still inside you…"
Suddenly, a glowing shape appeared behind Ozaki—a big octagon. From it, a storm of weapons shot out—swords, spears, axes—all flying straight at Kaku. He had no time to block or defend.
The attack hit him hard, crushing everything around them—rocks, ground, air. Only Ozaki stood unharmed.
"These weapons are made from my last bit of power," Ozaki said. "They carry my will."
Kaku dropped to the ground, bleeding and defeated. But even as he fell, he looked at Ozaki and said with his last bit of strength, "I'll… break out of your seal… someday."
---
Ozaki collapsed to the ground, completely out of energy. He had used up all his strength to seal Kaku, and even his healing powers had stopped working. Lying in the ruins of the battle, he spotted one of his old summoned swords nearby. Even though it was broken and dull from earlier use, it still held a bit of his divine power and could still seal. He picked it up and pressed it against the serious wound on his chest. It sealed the injury just enough to stop the bleeding. Right after that, he passed out on the floor from exhaustion.
Not far away, in a nearby town, a boy named Yamato was training hard on the outskirts. He had pale yellowish skin, dark brown hair, and wore tattered clothes. While punching a rocky mountain, he muttered to himself, "I don't see any improvement," and then blasted the rock apart with a hit—hurting his hand in the process. "It's pointless… I can't get any stronger," he said. He picked up his gear, ready to go home, thinking, "How do I get stronger?"
As he walked home, he got lost in thought. "Why was I born poor?" he wondered. "Every day is a struggle just to survive and help my mom… but nothing seems to change." He took a deep breath. "I go on secret missions just to make ends meet… I try to keep up with school, even though I skip a lot. Why couldn't I be born rich… like Lumei?" His expression softened a little. "Maybe we're not actually poor. Maybe mom's trying to teach me something." But then his doubt returned. "No, it's been 17 years—there's no way she could hide a secret for that long." He frowned. "Unless... maybe there really is something she never told me."
His pace slowed as his thoughts grew heavier. "I've asked for help, but I always get rejected, and I don't even know why. The only person who's never treated me badly… is mom."
He bumped his foot on a stone near the turn to his house and snapped out of his thoughts. By now, it was dark. The crescent moon lit his way home. Still feeling down, he thought about visiting Lumei, who lived nearby, but changed his mind. "Not today… it's been a rough one," he said to himself.
Yamato lived in a dorm. When he entered, a delicious smell filled the room and lifted his mood. He smiled a bit, sat down, and said, "That's better." He took off his dirty clothes with a mixed look of disgust and sadness. "I really liked those," he sighed as he tossed them into the garbage. Then he headed into the bathroom for a shower. The cold water hit his bruised hand, reminding him of the injury. He looked at it gloomily. "Still not healed… guess I'll have to deal with it tonight." He continued his cool bath.
---
Back at the ruins, Master Ozaki suddenly woke up. His clothes were still torn, but his energy had returned. He stood up, brushed himself off, and shouted cheerfully, "Ooh, I'm back!" But then he remembered what Kaku had said. His mood turned serious. "I need to contact Cloak High to gather the best students for a rematch. Kaku will be even stronger next time."
Ozaki moved his hands in the air like a magician and created a thin sheet of metal that worked like paper. On it, he wrote: "Select the best of the best based on the entrance exams of the Grade 5 students."
Then, in a lighter tone, he added: "If possible, hold a match between them and choose the top one again."
He rolled up the metal paper and, with a quick flick, sent it flying toward the school at a speed no normal human could see. Yamato got out of the shower and went straight to bed, too tired to stay awake. As he lay down, he sighed and said, "Tomorrow it continues." Just as he was about to fall into deep sleep, a strange energy suddenly filled the air. Yamato felt it and opened his eyes, but he didn't move.
At the same time, in his dark and cluttered office, the school head in a dark blue cloak picked up a letter that had just arrived. He read it, looking tired. "He's asking for too much," the school head thought. "It'll take me a long time to look through records from six years ago."
---
The warm morning sunlight shined through a mirror in Yamato's dorm room. It made him turn to the other side, trying to sleep more. Suddenly, there was a loud knock on his door. Yamato, still lying down, gave the door a tired glare. His head rested on his pillow. "It's too early," he mumbled, pulling the pillow over his head. But he was already awake.
He got up, shirtless, back hunched, arms weak, and dark circles under his eyes. He opened the door and saw Lumei, his best friend, still in his pajamas, with messy dark hair. "This early?" Yamato asked.
"Didn't you feel it last night?" Lumei asked. "Feel what?" Yamato replied, still sleepy. "The energy wave," Lumei said. Yamato blinked and yawned. "Oh, that energy thing? It was small."
Lumei gave a small grin, one eye half-closed. "It was strong. I know my master's energy very well."
Yamato looked confused and was about to say something, but Lumei spoke again. "I think he sent some kind of weapon or message to the school."
Yamato gave him a doubtful look, then placed a hand on Lumei's shoulder. "You're overthinking. It felt small, but different."
Lumei raised an eyebrow. "Then how did you notice it when no one else did?"
Yamato smiled, stretched both arms forward and said proudly, "It's one of my skills."
Lumei frowned and lightly hit Yamato on the head. "Go get ready."
Yamato crouched in pain, eyes shut. "I didn't even do anything…"
Lumei walked back to his dorm, and Yamato went in to prepare.
---
In the school office, the school head stood up from his chair. His clothes were wrinkled, and his face looked tired. But he gave a small smile. "I've finally finished the selection. The top four scored the highest." He sighed again. "Knowing Ozaki... he'll definitely want to watch the tournament."
Back in the dorm, Lumei was already dressed for class. With a smirk on his face, he mumbled, "Yamato still isn't ready." As he walked to Yamato's door and raised his hand to knock, Yamato called out, "I'm at the door." When he opened it, he quickly dodged a playful punch from Lumei.
Lumei stared at him, ready for another swing, and said, "You're always trying to look cool." Yamato smiled and replied, "I can't help it."
They both hurried down the hallway and jumped off the second-floor balcony where their dorm was. Yamato landed smoothly with his hands in his pockets, while Lumei bent his knees slightly and spread his arms for balance. They started running toward their school and passed by Sora's house. Looking at each other, they both said at the same time, "Sora!" and laughed. Then one of them said, "She's not like us," and they both laughed again and kept running.
When they reached the school gates, they stopped and looked around, noticing the new training grounds.
They walked through the gate with a lazy attitude, both in their school training uniforms. Yamato leaned back a little as he walked with his hands in his pockets, while Lumei walked hunched forward, his arms hanging loosely like they were lifeless.
They had no idea that there would be no class today—just a battle. On the way to their classroom, they noticed that all the grade 5 classrooms were empty, but they didn't think much of it. When they got to their own class and found it completely empty, Lumei's face filled with panic. He turned to Yamato and said, "Why are we always late because of you? I missed something important!"
Yamato, still calm with his hands in his pockets, replied, "Relax. It's still early. I'm sure they didn't go far. Even if they did, they'll be back soon."
Lumei, annoyed and ready to punch Yamato, said, "I swear I'll kill you before they get back."
Just then, a voice echoed from a magic speaker: "Master Ozaki is here to examine the grade 5 battles. All teachers, report to the training ground."
Yamato let out a sigh of relief. "See? I told you they weren't far." Lumei, also a bit relieved, said, "How were you so sure?" Yamato scratched his head and replied, "I had a feeling." Lumei shook his head and muttered, "How did I end up knowing someone like you?"
They both started running faster, taking shortcuts to the training grounds.
---
When they arrived, their mouths dropped open in surprise. The stands were already full with grade 5 students and others watching. Yamato looked up at the clear blue sky and smiled. "Wow! We could spar here without holding back." Lumei smiled and replied, "Is that all you think about? Still, you're right—it's huge."
While they were still talking, the names of the fighters were announced. Yamato heard his name and felt a mix of excitement and nervousness. He was about to fight a strong classmate, but he wasn't ready. Lumei's face darkened when he didn't hear his own name, but he stood up and encouraged Yamato to do his best.
The judges and Master Ozaki were seated in the best spot to view the fight.
"Yamato vs Ichiha!" was called out.
Yamato entered the arena, but the cheers were quiet. He frowned slightly, disappointed by the lack of support. Ichiha his classmate, walked in with an angry expression, his eyes dark and strange, like he was being controlled. The crowd cheered loudly for him.
"I hope you're ready to fight," Ichiha shouted. "I'm all in," Yamato replied with a confident smile.
From the crowd, Lumei gave him a thumbs up. "Start easy," he said.
Just as Yamato was about to reply, Sora called out, "Do well, Yamato!" He looked at her with a happy smile and nodded.
But Yamato didn't realize the match had already started. Still looking at Lumei and pointing at Sora, he said, "Sora—" when Ichiha suddenly rushed at him with a punch. Yamato noticed him coming but paid no attention and then dodged by tilting his head and jumping back. He quickly countered with a punch to Ichiha's side and said, "You should think before you attack."
Ichiha stepped back, holding his side in pain. The crowd went silent, then began cheering for Yamato. Ichiha smirked and growled, "Don't get cocky over one hit." Yamato smiled. "It may be one hit, but you can't heal it with just level one magic."
Ichiha, now furious, took a stance no one had seen before. He crouched with his legs apart and spun his hands in a circle, stirring the air around him. Yamato sensed danger and thought, I'll try to set up a defense barrier and counterattack. Then he noticed that the bruise on his arm had already healed.
"Let's try it," he said.
As he raised a barrier, Lumei shouted from the stands, "Run! That's not normal human power!"
Yamato looked back with a grin. "You don't trust me?"
Ichiha charged at Yamato with even more speed, aiming at his left side. Yamato dropped his defense barrier and ran toward him. Ichiha noticed the barrier was gone and sped up.
Just when it looked like Yamato had been hit, he ducked low and knocked Ichiha's elbow up, then punched him hard in the stomach. Ichiha coughed up blood but still managed to break Yamato's arm with a counterpunch.
They both jumped back to put space between them. The crowd gasped, then cheered. Lumei, who had looked away, smiled. "Woooh!" he said. Sora tried to make sense of what she had just seen.
Yamato panted and looked at his broken arm, then watched it heal.
"What are you?" Ichiha asked. "You dropped your barrier like you knew how to counter my attack. And you're still standing!"
Yamato looked at him with intensity. "Let's go 50%," he said and rushed forward, attacking with incredible speed. He landed hits all over Ichiha's body—his face, side, jaw, stomach. Ichiha couldn't even react.
The crowd froze in fear. Lumei's eyes were wide—he had never seen this side of Yamato. Sora was so amazed, she shouted, "Yamato, you've won!"
Hearing that, Ichiha went into a rage. Magic exploded from him and grabbed Yamato's hands, forcing him to his knees. Ichiha stood, crying, and the air grew heavy and wild. The arena filled with dust. The crowd shielded their eyes.
Lumei, recalling his master's god form, dropped to his knees. "Yamato! That power is like Master Ozaki's—it's too much! This is calamity!"
Yamato, unable to feel his hands, said through gritted teeth, "Let go... and I'll show you pain."
Ichiha released him, letting Yamato heal. Yamato rushed in again, but Ichiha shouted, "God of Calamity: Form 1 – Earth Rumble!"
The ground cracked open, and massive rocks flew toward Yamato. He used 80% of his power to smash through them, but they were too strong—enchanted with magic beyond normal limits. The rocks hit him hard, but he got up again.
"You can't win," Ichiha said. "You're nothing. You're not like me!"
He rushed at Yamato and unleashed a series of punches. Yamato's injuries didn't heal—he had never felt pain like this before. The dust began to clear, revealing the arena. The crowd was stunned to see Yamato struggling.
Ichiha picked up pieces of the enchanted rocks and used them like extra arms. He raised one to strike Yamato again, but before he could, Master Ozaki appeared.
Ozaki planted his foot and blocked the blow with all his power. The clash of their energies blew the dust away.
"Ichiha is the winner," Ozaki announced.
The crowd erupted with mixed emotions—cheering, shock, and confusion. Lumei and Sora stared in disbelief, their faces filled with worry and amazement.