chapter1 · 011-ep11

Episode 11: The Rooftop Battle ②

This is way less scary than Greyfish was on first meeting.

The instant that thought crossed my mind, my shoulders let go of a tiny bit of their tension.

Not that I was feeling roomy about it, of course.

He's not alone — Sakagami's hangers-on are on this roof too.

Think about it normally and it's one versus four, and I've got basically zero experience fighting people.

Getting hurt sucks, and so does hassle.

And still.

The Sakagami in front of me was, at the very least, not a monster charging in knife-first with murder fully switched on from the word go.

And the fact that I could think that at all meant my fear had already gotten mostly sorted inside.

"What's wrong?"

Sakagami laughed.

"You're frozen."

I'm not frozen.

It's just, that last exchange told me something.

Posture Control+.

This thing is way stronger than I thought.

That last punch was genuinely heavy.

The moment it hit my shoulder, I even felt my body get dragged along with it.

But right after—

my balance, halfway to collapsing, pulled itself back to center on its own.

My feet braced.

My hips didn't slide out.

It didn't feel like white-knuckling my way through it.

It felt more like my body was choosing, ahead of me, how to take the hit.

Ohh, I realized properly for the first time right then.

Posture Control isn't just a Skill that makes your stance look pretty.

You don't crumple when you get hit.

And because you don't crumple, it's easy to flow into your next move.

This is just plain strong against people, too.

While I was thinking all that, Sakagami stepped in again.

A little faster than before this time.

Probably annoyed that I didn't drop the way he'd planned.

His right shoulder leads.

The step-in is hard.

His weight's riding forward.

He's aiming for my face.

The moment I had it that far worked out, I shifted my body just slightly.

The fist scraped past right beside my cheek.

Its wind brushed my skin.

Whoa, that's legitimately fast.

But not invisible-fast.

"Ohh?"

One of the hangers-on spoke up behind him.

"He dodged it."

"What, so he's got a little fight in him?"

Sakagami snorted like a click of the tongue and came right back with the next one, no gap at all.

Left, right, and one more.

This time, instead of dodging everything, I chose to receive.

Deflect with the arm.

Kill the momentum with the shoulder.

Whatever I can't make, I leave to Posture Control+.

I eat some of them.

It plainly hurts.

But I'm staying on my feet way better than I expected.

Huh. This is basically what I was doing with Greyfish.

In the end, it's all just watching the other party's habits.

How they step in.

How the shoulder loads.

Where the eyes go before a strike.

Where they put their weight.

Pick up enough of that, and attacks mostly become readable.

Not all of them, of course.

Ever since becoming an Awakener, I get the sense my movement, reflexes, and reaction speed have all gotten quicker.

That's why I'm keeping up at all.

"C'mon, c'mon."

Sakagami laughed.

"You got no room to hit back either?"

No, no, you've got it wrong.

I'm just not doing it.

Yet.

While taking the next hit, my head was somewhere else entirely.

Where one hit would drop him.

That's all.

Straight-on to the face is out.

He moves too much, and it's easy to see coming.

The jaw's a candidate, but with the way Sakagami's swinging right now, there aren't many moments it'd land clean.

The solar plexus isn't bad either.

Though if you ask whether it'd drop him in one for sure, I've got some lingering doubts.

Then it's the head.

The temple.

Land it right, and it's a one-hit concussion.

But even that isn't a matter of just swinging.

It has to go in at the exact instant the opening's there, or it means nothing.

And 【Off-Hand Strike】 leans heavily toward being a one-shot deal.

Miss, and it's not a matter of "trouble" anymore.

After that, I'd probably just get bulldozed.

So I don't swing yet.

I wait for the shape where I can.

"That all you've got, dodging?"

There was a bit more irritation mixed into Sakagami's voice now.

And with that, a front kick came flying.

Aimed at my gut.

No dodging that one.

All I could do was take it.

A dull shock sank deep into my stomach.

"Ngh..."

That one stung.

No — it really hurt.

But even so, my feet didn't slide.

And there it was again.

This thing really is strong.

Posture Control+, with its boring little face, is putting in serious work.

"What's the deal, Himura?"

Sakagami said it, still smirking.

"All that big talk from before — already over?"

"I wasn't talking big."

"Then what is it?"

"Just thinking."

"Huh?"

In that instant, Sakagami's movement stopped for a fraction.

The tiniest moment.

But that moment alone was enough.

I took the chance to reset my breathing.

Thinking.

Really, that's all it is.

Where he'd drop.

What timing it'd land.

That's what I'm watching.

And the more I watch, the more something becomes clear.

Sakagami is more one-note than I expected.

The fight-hardened part is probably real.

No hesitation in his swings, no holding back.

But flip it around, and that's all he is.

Confident.

Thinks he's above me.

So he's got room to spare, and his movement is stable.

But stable means readable.

On top of that, he's starting to believe I won't hit back.

And that's huge.

"Thinking about what?"

"About where I'd have to hit you to drop you."

For an instant, the rooftop air stopped.

Even the hangers-on went silent.

Having said it, I did think, ah, maybe that was a bit much.

But, well. It's the truth.

A few seconds late, Sakagami laughed.

A dry one.

"What?"

The face was smiling, but the eyes weren't smiling at all.

"You, though."

Just like that, he closed the distance again.

"You've gotten mouthy."

I don't think I've gotten anything, but Sakagami is seriously pissed.

Faster this time.

A step-in that had plainly lost its cool.

Sakagami swung the right again.

And this time there was clearly more weight on it.

No doubt it's a heavy one.

But in exchange, it's all the more readable.

The bigger the step-in and the bigger the swing, the easier it is to see where it's coming from.

I took that right on shoulder and arm, keeping it from landing flush.

A dull impact ran through me.

It just plain hurts.

But thanks to Posture Control+, my stance doesn't break.

Right into the left, Sakagami returned.

That one's lighter than the right.

So I can still redirect it.

I slipped my arm in a little to knock the trajectory off, and the fist streamed off to the side.

And one more.

This one came from closer to the elbow, sort of hook-ish.

That one was a little dicey.

But from having watched the flow this long, my body made it by a hair.

Taking, dodging, I fed Sakagami's habits into my head.

When he swings the right hard, he drifts forward with his whole body.

The left comes out like an afterthought, so it's weaker.

And the hook-ish one he mixes in after that is the only sloppy one.

He probably thinks he's changing his rhythm, but from over here it just makes his habits easier to see.

Taking a few more like that, one shape finally came into focus.

Right after a hard right, and only then, Sakagami's recovery gets a little sloppy.

Because his whole body drifts forward, his shoulder opens.

His chin lifts a touch, too.

And for that one instant, his left temple goes soft.

There.

That's the spot. Probably the only one.

And the timing's clear, too.

Next time the right comes, I match its return.

With the left.

By the shortest path.

And drive it in.

Sakagami stepped in again.

A right loaded with irritation.

Bigger than the last ones.

Sloppier than the last ones.

And I can already see how his body will open up after I take it.

Yeah.

Now that I've gotten a decent read on how this guy moves, I figure it's about time we moved on to the counterattack portion of things.