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ArabicAnime Crossover: Tokyo Reincarnation Game — Chapter 60
Chapter 60: A Class’s Judo Class
“To be able to sit perfectly still and not be the least bit flustered when a girl as cute as me throws herself into your arms… you truly live up to your reputation.”
Hearing Kotoko say such a shamelessly boastful remark, Asuna suppressed the immediate urge to retort. She let out a long, quiet breath to steady her nerves before shifting the topic back to the grim reality of their situation.
“Then, we will wait until Sunday, the day we need to register for the dungeon, to track down Kato Megumi. According to Asagiri’s conclusion, when we enter the dungeon next time, the game will still be locked in its first stage without any artificial difficulty spikes. I just do not know if, after a full month passes and the game officially enters the second stage, there will be any other fundamental changes besides the overall difficulty increase.”
“There will definitely be changes.”
Kotoko placed her wooden cane horizontally across her knees, smoothing out her skirt as she resumed the perfectly proper sitting posture of a well-bred young lady. Her expression turned entirely serious.
“I asked the local spirits to take a look inside the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. After gathering and filtering their scattered information, I managed to confirm two very specific things.”
“First, the physical bodies of Players who die inside the dungeon do not return to the real world. They simply vanish.”
“Second, it is currently unclear exactly how many people across the city have been selected to be Players, but the number is definitely quite high. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has recently received dozens of bizarre missing persons reports in a very short timeframe. Naturally, not all of these missing persons are Players, but a significant portion of them absolutely are.”
Kotoko tapped her finger lightly against her knee, her sharp mind piecing the grim puzzle together.
“It is entirely foreseeable that as the death game gradually unfolds and more and more Players die in the dungeons, it means that more and more people will evaporate from the real world. also, the rules of that application do not restrict Players from using their acquired powers in reality, nor do they prevent us from telling ordinary people about the app. In other words, even if we wanted to completely hide the existence of the game from the public, it is impossible to do so for long. After all, without any gag orders or restrictions, the moment someone from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department or the Prosecutor’s Office is selected to be a Player, the absolute truth will surface.”
When Kotoko finished laying out the bleak reality of their situation, Asagiri finally spoke. His tone was entirely calm, completely devoid of the anxiety that should accompany such a revelation.
“The most interesting point is the hidden rule of Player identity transfer. Only after a Player dies can ordinary people observe the eye icon application on the deceased person’s phone, and they can only become a new Player by continuously clicking on that specific app icon.”
Asuna and Kotoko both looked at him, puzzled by the specific emphasis he placed on that detail.
“Why do you say this is the most interesting point?” Asuna asked.
“Of course it is interesting.”
Asagiri spoke slowly, a dark, deadpan smile bleeding into his voice.
“Although there has never been any player-versus-player type dungeon yet, and the seemingly main purpose of this game is for Players to cooperate and survive against the environment, there are zero constraints on the Players’ behavior in the real world. Combine that with the hidden rule that ordinary people can only become Players on the strict premise of the original Player’s death… Perhaps the real world is the actual PVP dungeon set up by this game.”
That afternoon, the sharp squeak of bare feet against polished wooden floors echoed through the massive gymnasium of Shuchiin Academy. A burly, heavily muscled male physical education teacher wearing a crisp white judo uniform scanned the assembled students of Class A. He clapped his hands once, his deep voice carrying over the chatter.
“I have already explained the basic safety precautions and the rules of the mat. Next, we will proceed with group practice one by one. By the way, has anyone here had formal contact with judo before? I want to try to maintain the strength balance between the practice groups so no one gets hurt.”
Hearing the teacher’s question, Kaguya raised her hand. Her posture was immaculate, and she spoke softly with a gentle, entirely approachable expression.
“Teacher, I am Judo Second Dan.”
“Second Dan… I see. Are there any other girls who have had contact with judo?”
Seeing that not a single other student raised their hand except for Kaguya, the physical education teacher could not help but look deeply troubled. He scratched the back of his neck, wondering how to handle the pairing.
Judo Second Dan was a legitimate black belt. While it was not the level of a national competitor, it was far beyond the beginner stage. It meant Kaguya had been properly and rigorously trained in throws, falls, and grappling.
But there were no other girls in the class who had practiced the sport who could safely compete with her. In a heavy physical contact sport like judo, it was entirely against protocol to assign a teenage boy to wrestle with Kaguya Shinomiya.
“Hi hi~ Teacher, I will be in a group with Shinomiya~”
Hearing the sudden, cheerful voice, the physical education teacher searched among the crowd for a moment before finally spotting Kotoko. Compared to the other students in Class A, she was particularly slender and petite, looking fragile enough to be a porcelain doll. The teacher was instantly stunned, hesitating as he looked between the two girls.
“You are Iwanaga, right? Iwanaga, do you really want to be in a group with Shinomiya? But this…”
“Do not worry, Teacher.”
Kaguya elegantly tucked a strand of long black hair behind her ear and spoke with an indifferent, reassuring grace.
“I will be extremely careful and will not hurt Iwanaga.”
“Well… alright, if you are sure.”
Kaguya was not the type of person who was fiercely competitive in absolutely everything. In fact, she would frequently and deliberately hold back her physical capabilities. In her calculated opinion, deliberately losing a match to avoid being too outstanding and subsequently alienated by her peers was simply a necessary method of dealing with high school society.
Of course, academic studying was the sole exception to that rule.
“Utsunomiya-san.”
Just as the groups were forming, a male student who stood nearly six feet tall slowly walked up to Asagiri. The boy was incredibly strong, with broad shoulders and a thick neck that spoke of years of heavy athletic training.
“Can I ask you to practice with me?”
“You want to practice with me?”
Facing the earnest request of the hulking male student, Asagiri merely smiled, his hands resting casually at his sides.
“I haven’t practiced judo. I know absolutely nothing about it.”
The strong male student waved his large hand dismissively, his voice dropping into a deep, reassuring register.
“Do not worry, I will go easy on you. I will try my best not to hurt you…”
“Hmm? What are you saying?”
Before the male student could even finish his sentence, Asagiri shook his head. He looked directly into the taller boy’s face, interrupting him with a chillingly calm tone.
“What I mean is, because I haven’t practiced judo, I cannot control my strength very well. If you get injured, do not blame me. And you are going to go easy on me?”
“As the rumors say, you are very arrogant, but…”
The strong male student paused, suddenly changing the subject as his expression turned incredibly solemn.
“If I win, please consider joining our judo club, Utsunomiya-san!”
Upon hearing this sudden declaration, Asagiri could not help but ask back, his tone dripping with dry amusement.
“Are you trying to play the old ‘dagger hidden in the map’ routine right now? The key problem is that your map was pitifully short, wasn’t it? I already told you that I have zero interest in joining any club.”
“Hmm, I heard that you… no, I know you have no intention of joining any sports club, but…”
The strong male student took a deep, dramatic breath, his face a mask of pure, burning seriousness.
“I hope to use my actions today to make you feel the true charm of judo! The burning passion it contains, the youthful excitement of the mat, the endless pursuit of the supreme technique…”
“I do not understand a single word you are talking about. I play with a katana.”
Asagiri really did not want to stand there and continue listening to a high school meathead ramble about youth, burning passion, and the spirit of sportsmanship. He cut the boy off softly, his tone flat and utterly bored.
“Then let’s start quickly so we can get this over with.”
The strong male student took a few steps back, putting a proper distance between himself and Asagiri. He took a few deep breaths to center himself, bowed respectfully according to the rules of the sport, and spoke with a fierce expression.
“Utsunomiya-san, I will give it my all.”
Asagiri nodded casually, not even bothering to adopt a proper stance. He just stood there, completely relaxed.
“Alright.”
To prevent the students from getting injured, thick, shock-absorbing protective mats had already been laid out in a massive square over the wooden floor of the gymnasium.
After getting Asagiri’s nonchalant response, the strong male student slightly bent his knees, lowering his center of gravity. His sturdy body, which was massive for a high school student, looked like a charging brown bear as he extended his hands and closed the distance with rapid, practiced steps.
At this moment, the other students in Class A, including Kaguya and Kotoko, all stopped their own practice routines. The entire gym went quiet as everyone turned to watch the contest that was about to begin.
“Hah!!!”
The strong male student roared, his moving pace quickening into a sudden, explosive burst of speed. He reached Asagiri in a fraction of a second. Dropping his waist even lower, his hands extended like iron pincers, firmly gripping the fabric of Asagiri’s right arm and shoulder.
‘It is over…’
Seeing this exact sequence of movements, Kaguya, who possessed a deep proficiency in judo techniques, murmured the thought in her mind.
This specific move was the flawless starting stance for a Seoi Nage, a classic over-the-shoulder throw. By grabbing the opponent’s arm, stepping in deep, and using one’s own waist and hips as a fulcrum for explosive force, a practitioner could easily launch someone into the air. If the most suitable angle was found, even a thin person who was not very strong could use this exact technique to throw an opponent much larger and heavier than themselves directly into the ground.
also, although this move was simple and unadorned, its kinetic lethality should never be underestimated. If a person who truly knew how to exert force used this move on a hard concrete surface instead of a gym mat, it was quite normal to seriously injure or even instantly kill the opponent on the spot.
Kaguya sighed slightly, thinking that, as expected, Asagiri had not lied at all.
The boy truly knew absolutely nothing about judo. Otherwise, how could he have possibly allowed his opponent to so easily grab his arm, step into his guard, and complete the entire setup for an over-the-shoulder throw without offering a single ounce of resistance?
The match should end right here.
Just as Kaguya was thinking this, she watched the muscular boy twist his body violently. Using a textbook, flawlessly standard over-the-shoulder throw posture, he attempted to swing Asagiri’s weight over his back and slam him into the mat.
But even though thick veins popped out visibly on the boy’s neck, and his cheeks flushed a dark, strained red from exerting absolutely all of his physical strength, Asagiri’s body remained completely, terrifyingly still. He did not budge a single inch, rooted to the floor like an unshakeable concrete tower.
“Alright, this passionate, youthful battle ends here.”
Asagiri stated this with a dry smile. Then, without breaking a sweat, he directly twisted his own waist and hips. Applying a slight, almost casual burst of force, he completely reversed the use and effortlessly threw the massive muscular boy through the air, slamming him hard onto the judo mat.
“How could this be…”
Even after being thrown flat onto his back, the muscular boy lay there, staring up at the ceiling lights, completely unresponsive as his brain failed to process what had just happened. The students watching the match around them felt an even deeper sense of total disbelief, the gym falling into a stunned silence.
Only Kotoko looked entirely unsurprised. In fact, because the object of the surrounding people’s absolute astonishment was Asagiri, the corners of her lips could not help but curl upwards into a very smug, satisfied smile.
The muscular boy was indeed a genuine judo expert who had trained seriously for years. The over-the-shoulder throw technique he had just executed was flawlessly standard, practically out of a textbook.
It was just that…
The gap in raw physical strength that human technique could compensate for was ultimately limited by the laws of physics. Asagiri’s monstrous lead in sheer physical power over the muscular boy had reached a terrifying point where it simply could not be overcome by technique alone.
[Inorin’s Note: “Dagger revealed at the end of the map” is a famous Chinese idiom originating from Jing Ke’s assassination attempt on Qin Shi Huang. Jing Ke hid a poisoned dagger rolled up inside a map, slowly unrolling the map to present it to the Emperor until the dagger was finally revealed at the very end. It means revealing one’s true, hidden intentions after a long preamble.]