Ganryu Island

In the spectating crowd, Akira was smirking as he watched Cosmo back away from Adam following the first successful blow

Akira:*Perfect, Cos. He's finished up nicely. In Nishihonji Security Services we have Seven fighters employed. Judo Wrestlers, Kick Boxers, Sambists. All heavy hitters that I personally selected. The average height of six of my fighters, not including Cosmo is 189cm. They're all indisputable heavy weights. Cosmo spars with those giants every day, in total he's had 187 sparring matches and in the two months leading to this tournament we upped his daily schedule to three fights a day. In other words, he knows how to deal with heavy weight fighters.*

Adam kept his guard up as he started walking into range as Cosmo also got ready, Adam after all had the longer reach

Cosmo:*I'm used to fighting bigger guys, you avoid a direct exchange of blows...*

Adam threw a full force right haymaker as Cosmo stepped into the strike and at the last moment ducked under Adam's fist and threw a right hook kick to the inside of Adam's left knee

Cosmo:*And throw them off balance!*

Adam lost his footing momentarily but Cosmo didn't push the opening as Adam recovered and grit his teeth in frustration

Adam:*Quick little bastard!*

He threw a right hook as Cosmo hopped back out of his range and kept his guard up

Adam:*son of a bitch, he's not rushing me.*

Cosmo was staying calm and collected as he kept his distance which only further provoked Adam

Adam:*fuck it...*

He started leaning forward as his leg muscles began bulging with veins started to poke out around his feet, shins and calves

Adam:*I'll just have to force this faggot to rush me!!!!*

He lunged in while throwing a left uppercut as Cosmo swayed to Adam's right, while Cosmo was dodging he noticed Adam started grinning

Adam:*Thanks bitch, CAUSE NOW YOUR IN PERFECT GOUGING POSITION!!!*

He extended his right index and middle finger and thrusted his right arm towards Cosmo's eyes while Cosmo was off balance

Adam:*THOSE EYES ARE MINE!!!!*

Cosmo grappled Adam in a scissor throw and slammed Adam to the ground in an instant with his right leg over Adam's hamstrings

Kazuo:Incredible! He took him down in one move!

Sekibayashi and Wakatsuki were standing together by the railing just on the edge of the ring

Sekibayashi:Hell yeah! The squirt did it!

Wakatsuki:calm down Seki, it's not over yet. But Cosmo may have some momentum now, he can't drop his guard.

Adam started to roll onto his back as Cosmo started to climb onto the American's waist but Adam locked his legs around Cosmo's

Adam:piss off!

Cosmo threw a right jab as Adam caught Cosmo's fist between his right forearm and bicep

Sayaka:incredible! Cosmo's turned the tables and it's his field now!

Jiang started shaking her head in disapproval

Jiang:Adam Dudley's gotta get off the ground or it's not gonna end well for him.

Sayaka:hear that folks?! Adam's in trouble!! Can you please explain to us, Miss Yu?

Cosmo grabbed Adam's right wrist with his left hand and pried his right arm free as he started using Adam's arm to pull himself out of the American's legs

Jiang:ground grappling is clearly Cosmo Imai's forte, I guess you could say his technique is nothing short of cosmic. And from what I can tell, Adam Dudley is a street fighter.

Wakatsuki started looking at the commentators booth out of the corner of his eye

Wakatsuki:the match has only just started and she's already figured him out.

Jiang:In street fights it's common knowledge that it's an illegal sport where fighters can duke it out without a promoter, in those fights there are various local rules. Adam Dudley uses the Texas Style which allows for strikes mostly anywhere...however they banned ground play so the matches are decided with blows alone.

Sayaka:Then Adam needs to slip out of this now or else!!!

The two fighters continued wrestling with each other at the center of the ring and sweating up a storm

The sweat on their body's allowed Cosmo to slip out of Adam's legs and finally mount his opponent

Sayaka:Cosmo's gotten loose! It's not looking good for Adam!!!

Cosmo:*yes! Mount complete!*

He couldn't help but smirk at completing his goal

Cosmo:I hate to say it but, we're on my field of play here.

Jiang:any fighter knows a mount like this is bad, since your backs to the ground you can't properly wind up a good punch to counter and they're slower too, the hips are also held down by the opponent which further decreases your power.

Adam:Hehe, who said this match is over yet? Save your victory lap till after you've taken me down, Mr.Penis-Head.

He flashed his pearly white teeth with a cocky grin as Cosmo threw a right hammer fist to Adam's face which broke his nose

Cosmo:that was my plan anyway. I guess we'll say it's my turn for the rest of the match.

He raised his fist again as Adam put both arms up to block while Cosmo grabbed Adam's right wrist with his left hand and pried it away to slam his fist to Adam's face again

Adam kept his left arm raised to defend as best he could as Cosmo threw a right hook to Adam's ear followed by a right hammer fist to the face again

Sayaka:this fight is starting to seem pretty one sided!

Cosmo hammer fisted Adam's face again and then threw a right straight which Adam blocked with his left forearm as Cosmo threw another right cross to adam's cheek

Sayaka:Cosmo Imai's on the offensive finally! Is there anything Adam can do to break this brutal hold?!?! It looks like Imai's finally getting to open up a can of whoop ass!!!

Cosmo continued showering Adam with heavy strikes as his left forearm started to bruise and his face became bloody from the onslaught of attacks

Jiang:with Adam Dudley's higher weight and fighting style, he's used to blows from bigger guys who way much more power than Cosmo Imai. It's not to Cosmo Imai's advantage to go for a long drawn out battle.

Cosmo threw a right straight followed by a second right straight to Adam's face as he finally stopped his assault trying to catch his breath, Cosmo had winded himself during that onslaught of punches

Sayaka:incredible! You were right! Cosmo's looking tired!!!

Cosmo:huff...huff...son of a...

He saw Adam was still grinning with his left arm still up

Cosmo:*No matter how many times or how hard I hit him, he doesn't open up. I can't move to a strangle hold from here either.*

Adam started chuckling seeing Cosmo try to catch his breath

Adam:what's the matter boy? You think this is a cat fight? Your pussy punches wouldn't even kill an itty-bitty mouse.

Cosmo released Adam's right wrist and threw a left straight to his nose as Adam's right arm dropped to the ground parallel to his shoulder

Adam:let me show you...

He clenched his right fist

Adam:WHAT A REAL PUNCH LOOKS LIKE!!!!

He threw right jab towards Cosmo's ribs

On the sidelines Naoya and Kaneda were shocked by Adam's move

Kaneda:*A punch?!*

Naoya:*That Americans an idiot. It's impossible to knock out your opponent if you don't put your shoulder, back, hips and legs into the strike. Especially against a grappler like Imai, if you make the wrong move he'll turn it around on you.*

Cosmo:*Perfect! He's given me an opening so I'll move right into an Arm Bar at the moment of contact!*

Adam's knuckles began going into Cosmo's ribs as the grappler's eyes widened in pain

Cosmo leapt off Adam to the right to avoid the strike, Adam still landed a grazing blow

Naoya:the hell?

Akira who was stood in the tunnel for the fight was shocked seeing Cosmo relinquish the mount

Shion:he dodged a little punch like that?

Setsuna:...

Akiyama:why would he dodge something like that? Did he misplay?

She looked to (y/n) who was watching the fight

(Y/n):Bu.

In the guest rooms, Rei was watching the fight with Rino on the Tv, Rino had Rei's head in her lap

Rei:that was the right answer.

Rino:oh really? If he hadn't dodged the blow, the fight would've been over.

Back in the arena, Cosmo was still keeping his distance, he hasn't moved since he'd jumped off moments ago

Sayaka:Cosmo scarified the mount?! He's letting Adam get back up?!

Cosmo started clutching his side, his shirt had been ripped where Adam's knuckles had grazed him

Cosmo:*you're kidding me!! He cut me?! How come a plain old jab hurts this much! And it only grazed me!*

He started calming down as he centered himself

Cosmo:*This isn't any different from my other fights when I was a kid.*

Over 10 years ago Japan

Cosmo was standing in an alleyway with four Yakuza members blocking the exit, he was in a school uniform but regardless put his hands up to fight

Cosmo:BRING IT ON, YOU BASTARDS!!!

Cosmo:Back then I was a bit of a rascal. I'd get into fights from dust till dawn. That day, the odds weren't exactly in my favor.

Cosmo started getting jumped and pummeled by the four gang members

Cosmo:I mean, four Yakuza, what was I thinking? But I guess it's impressive they got so worked up over a kid like me.

Once Cosmo was nearly incapacitated, one Yakuza pulled out a knife

Cosmo:just when I thought it was over, a hero showed up...

Someone walked up behind the yakuza and threw a sucker punch to the back of his head knocking him out cold as the three gang members tried jumping him as well

Cosmo:a completely normal guy walked in and knocked out those Yakuza in no time flat.

The unknown fighter turned towards Cosmo and gave him a smile with a thumbs up

Fighter:I saw that whole thing, you've got moxie kid. What do you say, wanna learn martial arts?

Cosmo:He was a martial artist who was famous around Japan at the time. He was known as "The Hope of Japan" at the time. Those words changed my life greatly.

Present day Ganryu Island

Cosmo kept clutching his side as his breathing started coming down to normal

Sayaka:So Cosmo sacrificed the mount to a weak punch?! What could he be thinking!!

Jiang:Cosmo Imai has good instincts. I heard rumors about a former professional NHL player turned fighter. Out of every American sport I've seen, I think hockey's my favorite.

Sayaka:h-huh? Where'd Hockey come from?

Adam started tucking his lower legs up to his upper thighs as he grinned

Jiang:Well it's one of the big sports from the states, I enjoy a full contact sport like that. What people in the stands might not know is that Adam Dudley gained the title of "Emperor" from his days skating on the ice.

Adam's toes gripped onto the cracks in the ground as he suddenly started leaning up off the floor without using his arms

Sayaka:WH-WHAT IS GOING ON?! ADAM IS RISING OFF THR FLOOR IN AN INCREDIBLY UNNATURAL WAY!! WHAT IS HIS BODY MADE OF?!?!

Adam started head began shakily looking towards Cosmo as he grinned with bloody teeth

Adam:sorry boy, we're back on my field again.

His manager Ronald began grinning

Ronald:seems his fire has finally been lit, now Adam...it's time to show everyone your power.

Jiang:in hockey when a fist fight breaks out, it's proven to be one of the few sports where doing so with the other team is tacitly approved but they rarely ever end in a knock out. It's because they're fighting on ice in skates, so it's like fighting on a tightrope and since you can't balance, you can only throw jabs.

Adam stood upright as Cosmo took a step back out of pure intimidation

Jiang:that's the former star enforcer of the Texas all star hockey team who knocked out over a dozen other players by himself in a single blow.

The secret to Adam Dudley's knockouts was in fact, his well built trunk! Since the coefficient friction rating of a skating ring is 0.005% meaning that players cannot put their hips or lower back into strikes. Due to his abnormally bulging erector spinae muscles, his abnormally well developed trunk greatly increases his ability to transmit force making even his jabs powerful enough to be a knockout blow. So that means, if he were to throw a full-body punch on solid footing...

Cosmo stole his nerve

Cosmo:*Don't stop moving! Throw him off with your speed and move in for the kill!!*

Cosmo lunged in as Adam raised his guard again while Cosmo threw a right straight to Adam's raised arm as he circles to Adam's right throwing a left cross as Adam turned and continued blocking

Cosmo:*Go all in at once!*

He threw a right hook to Adam's forearm followed by a left jab into a right uppercut which couldn't penetrate Adam's defenses as Cosmo began circling to Adam's left

Cosmo threw a left hook kick to Adam's right thigh as he moved and then threw a right hook to Adam's forearm as he fully transitioned to Adam's left side

Cosmo threw a left jab to Adam's forearms which he then repeated followed by a half hook to Adam's elbow as he threw a right hook kick to Adam's left leg

Cosmo:*that's it, widdle away at him and throw him off!*

Cosmo threw a left straight as Adam used his forearm to shove the blow away as he grabbed Cosmo's shirt over the left shoulder

Adam:enough with the foreplay...I'LL NAIL YOU!!!!!

He pulled back his left fist as his knuckles popped as he stepped into throwing a full force left haymaker directly to Cosmo's cheek

Cosmo's shirt tore as he was launched towards the ground and his back slammed to the hard floor as he bounced off the ground with a sickening thud as the ground visibly cracked as Cosmo flew another meter and landed on his back

Sayaka:Oh wow!!! Cosmo Imai bounced after being hit with a full body shot from Adam Dudley!!!

Jiang:His bell got more than a little rung from that, I'd be surprised if he didn't get a concussion.

Adam started advancing on Cosmo as he rolled onto his side clutching his cheek

Cosmo:ar-argh!

His cheek was already swelling and bruised with small parts of his skin being torn from the blow

Cosmo:*that was one blow?! I couldn't guard against it!

The referee ran up to Cosmo

Referee:Imai! Imai, can you continue?!

Cosmo got onto his knees as he looked at the referee, he was seeing triple

Cosmo:*I gotta recover already...gotta get back on my-*

Adam walked up behind Cosmo and lifted him upright by the head with his left hand but Cosmo remained on his knees

Cosmo threw his right arm to the right side of his head as Adam threw another right haymaker to Cosmo's guarding right arm

As Adam's fist made contact, Cosmo's flesh on his forearm rippled from the impact

Cosmo was launched back again as his head was ripped free of Adam's grip as Cosmo landed on his back

Sayaka:He just got blown away again! Is there anything Cosmo Imai can do?!?!

Cosmo backflipped onto his knees as he started gasping for air

Jiang:he's got good battle sense, at the last second Cosmo leapt back to move with the blow. By going with the strike he was able to lessen the damage inflicted.

Sayaka:I never noticed that!

Cosmo:*I'm not done yet asshole!*

He lunged back at Adam

Cosmo:*I'll lose if I back off!! I GOTTA KEEP ATTACKING, ATTACKING AND ATTACKING NON-STOP!!!*

Cosmo threw a right cross to Adam's forearm followed by a left half hook to Adam's obliques into a right straight to Adam's arm to keep him guarding high as Cosmo threw a left high kick to Adam's ribs

Cosmo circled to Adam's left as he threw a left hook which Adam blocked as Cosmo threw a right jab followed by a right high kick to Adam's ribs again which did little to visibly affect Adam

Cosmo:*HE CAN'T BLOCK FOREVER!!!*

He threw a right jab as Adam's guard remained true as Cosmo threw a second right jab followed by a left hook to Adam's arms

As Cosmo was pulled back his left fist Adam threw a left straight in the small window between attacks and his fist founds its mark in Cosmo's stomach

The smaller fighter was sent flying back again as he slammed onto his back and his momentum forced Cosmo's body to roll onto its frontside

Jiang:*Cosmo's getting desperate, he's trying to match Adam in blows when he should be sticking to grappling. I wonder, can you see that much, (Y/n)?*

Adam's manager, Ronald, began smirking

Ronald:ohohohohoho, sucks to be you, Imai. Adam's a man who's taken down plenty of heavy weights back home, you're not the only one who knows how to punch over your weight class. In top of that, there's a whole world of difference between your own and Adam's stats. No matter how much better your technique is, Adam can turn the tables with just one punch. In other words, this is just another example of brute strength crushing the strong.*

Cosmo started getting onto his hands and knees again as Adam lunged back into the fight

Adam pulled back his left fist and threw a right straight as Cosmo lunged in throwing a right jab

Both fighters tilted their heads to dodge at the last second but Cosmo's fist grazed Adam's left cheek slicing it open

In the brief opening of surprise provided by Adam, Cosmo threw a right high kick straight to the left side of Adam's head knocking him off balance

Just as Adam was about to collapse he planted his feet and Cosmo jumped back putting nearly two meters between the two fighters

Sayaka:Cosmo Imai has backed away, he doesn't seem to wanna follow up after that brutal kick to the head!

Jiang:it might've been a good hit but after taking a punch that Adam just threw the way he did, it's tactically sound to back away and catch your breath.

Cosmo:*Sh-Shit! He's tougher than I imagined! I'm already exhausted and I can't close in...!*

He slowly exhaled and suddenly became surprisingly calm

Cosmo:*fine...I'll show you what I can really do.*

He placed both hands on his forehead and used the immense amount of sweat on his face to push his hair back out of his eyes

Jiang:*those eyes, not bad.*

Cosmo adopted a low grappling stance as he remained totally focused as Adam started grinning seeing the smaller fighters new stance

Adam:*Ooohhh~ looks like the kids ready for what's coming to him. This'll be fun so why don't I play along!*

Adam put his left shoulder forward and pulled back his right fist like he was about to throw a punch

Sayaka:they've both changed their stances out of the blue! But they're so far apart from each other!

Jiang crossed her arms

Jiang:they're gambling the match on this next strike.

Sayaka:r-really?! Then everyone hold onto your seats!!

Both fighters kept staring each other down waiting for the right moment

Their beaten bodies dripping sweat onto the ground as the immensely bright lights overhead continued to heat them up further

In the stands (y/n) poked Akiyama's shoulder to get her attention

(Y/n):Kaede Akiyama.

Akiyama:h-hmm? What is it?

(Y/n):when someone refers to gambling, it means there's a slim chance of it working, right?

Akiyama:I suppose so, why?

(Y/n) exhaled and started resting his head in his hand as he looked at Jiang in the commentators booth

(Y/n):*Why say it's a gamble when it's obvious who's gonna win?*

At the base of both fighters chins began to form a bead of sweat as the made minute adjustments to their stances

The beads of sweat dropped as the both lunged in

Adam:*High-Stick Shot!!!!!*

Cosmo:*Zone, Activate!!!!!*

Adam threw a searing right haymaker as Cosmo opened his hands for a grapple

Adam's fist slammed into the back of Cosmo's head and floored him instantly as the ground beneath his small body shattered

After the move had been completed the carotid artery began getting cut off of blood

Adam:it's over!

He picked Cosmo up by the collar as he pulled his left fist back

Sayaka:it-its's over!!! there we have it folks!! And here we have the harsh reality, that divine technique is helpless in the face of overwhelming power!!!

Adam let go of Cosmo's collar and threw a left straight to Cosmo's face as he floored the small fighter again

Adam:NOW THIS IS WHAT I CALL A PERFECT SANDBAG!!!!

He started laying into the small fighter who could no longer defend himself, throwing punch after punch to his beaten body

The carotid artery was squeezed further

Adam:hey what's wrong kid? BRING IT ON!!!! I'm only just started having fun!

Referee:That's enough!!

Adam scoffed as he stood upright

Adam:Shit...Ref, you're really gonna stop me already? Huh...?

He looked at the Referee but he looked like he'd been cut down the middle severely times, Adam kept hearing him say "That's enough" on repeat

Adam:*wh-what the fuck...? What's happening?!

Adam Dudley never realized...

He looked over his shoulder as his reality of how the match ended shattered

Until he saw this....

He saw himself in a Triangle Hold on the verge of blacking out, Cosmo was squeezing Adam's neck between his right leg and Adam's right arm cutting off blood to the brain

Adam:yo-you're kidding me...that's...me?

Outside of Adam's dream, Cosmo released the hold following Adam blacking out as he started gasping for air with a smile on his face

Sayaka:Adam Dudley is down!!!!! We have a winner for the first round!!! Cosmo Imai has shouldered the pride of the Jiu Jitsu world and gone the distance to win the first round of the Kengan matches!!!

The crowd erupted into various cheers and boo's as the match was decided

Jiang:impressive use of the triangle hold, when it comes to grappling in this tournament, I'd be tempted to say Cosmo's the best on the island, at least for right now.

Sekibayashi:Holy shit, that was ballsy.

Wakatsuki:yeah, I doubt Adam's realized he's lost yet. The Zone is a tricky technique, and very dangerous.

What is this "Zone"? It's a technique that involves discerning the 0.1 second interval when the opponents focus is exclusively on their own attack and burrowing into that blind spot. As a result, Cosmo Imai can seemingly vanish from his opponents view. Adam never realized because when he initiated the grapple, Cosmo capitalized on Adam's brief moment of surprise and instantly transitioned into a triangle hold in less than a second.

Sekibayashi:Wakatsuki, do you think you'd be able to pull off what he just did?

Wakatsuki:No, in fact I'd say Cosmo is the only one who can fight that way now.

Wakatsuki:*Like the way she used to.*

Sayaka:Cosmo Imai is a prodigy among prodigy's!!!

Down in the ring, Adam was pulled off of Cosmo as he weakly stood up and raised his left fist in victory

Cosmo:oh boy, that was tiring.

Sayaka:Cosmo Imai is the winner!!!!

Ring staff began carrying out Adam on a stretcher as Cosmo walked off towards the tunnel he'd entered from

Adam's manager was hysteric about losing

Ronald:I lost...I lost...I lost...I lost...I lost...

On the other side, Cosmo was greeted by his manager Akira

Akira:nice work, that was a narrow win. Go get some rest then we'll go get you something to ea-

Cosmo tripped over his own feet and fell onto Akira's shoulder

Akira:C-Cos!

Akira got a clear look at just how messed up Cosmo's face had become from the fight, his arms and weren't in great shape either as the small fighter coughed up blood onto Akira's shoulder

Akira:*He's already suffered so much damage...this tournament is on an even higher level than I imagined...*

Out in the arena Sayaka had made her way back down to the center of the ring

Sayaka:Now before your excitement dies down, let's move right into the second match of the first round!!!

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To be continued

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