VISION GRID SYSTEM: THE COMEBACK OF RYOMA TAKEDA - Chapter 420: Reading the Angle

Chapter 420: Reading the Angle

The bell cuts through the gym, sharp and clean. But Nakahara doesn’t say anything right away. He just watches Ryoma step back toward the corner.

Across the ring, Sera looks up at him. Their eyes meet for a brief moment, no words exchange, just a shared understanding settling between them.

Something about that spar didn’t sit right. Ryoma looked too cautious, too restrained, the kind of rhythm that makes you wonder whether fatigue is quietly shaping the choices.

Then Nakahara looks back at Ryoma, and his doubt only deepens. Because Ryoma doesn’t look tired at all.

His breathing is steady, shoulders loose. He rolls his neck once and shakes out his arms, movements light and natural.

Either he’s been restraining himself far more than anyone realizes, or he’s learned how to carry fatigue without letting it show, it’s hard to tell.

“You know,” Aramaki calls out, peeling off his headgear, and then grins, “for someone who keeps talking about infighting, you sure enjoy making things difficult.”

Ryoma laughs, leaning his forearms on the ropes. “That’s coming from the guy who turned a jab into psychological warfare?”

“Hey,” Aramaki shrugs. “You’re the one who told me to polish it.”

“Yeah,” Ryoma says. “Didn’t expect you to polish it to that extent.”

They share a short laugh, easy and unforced. There’s no irritation in it, no edge, just two fighters who enjoyed the work.

That’s what bothers Nakahara. But for now, he just keeps the thought to himself.

“Take a break,” he says instead.

Ryoma blinks. “We can start the next spar now if Oyama-san’s ready.”

Nakahara gives him a flat look. “Rest.”

Ryoma holds it for a second, then smiles. “Okay, okay.”

He starts a light shadowboxing anyway, movements still sharp and precise. His feet glide, hands snap back to guard with ease.

Nakahara watches him a moment longer, then lets out a quiet tired breath.

There isn’t much for him to manage these days. The event logistics are handled by the champion’s promoter this time, not him. Yet he still looks exhausted.

What wears him down isn’t work. It’s the worry.

This is his first title fight as a coach. A replacement bout, no less, with barely a month to prepare. No matter how he frames it, the weight of it settles on him all the same.

***

By the benches, Oyama and Kozue stand shoulder to shoulder, heads inclined just enough to keep their voices contained.

“Don’t chase him,” Kozue says quietly. “He wants you to step in. Let him think the door’s open.”

Oyama nods once. “So I keep him outside.”

“Outside, but close,” Kozue replies. “Touch him with the right jab. Not to score. To make him react.”

He then traces a short line in the air with his fingers. “He slips well, but he slips by habit in fighting ortodox. So draw that habit out. And when he steps in…”

“When he steps in?” Oyama repeats, nodding once.

“If he reaches there…” Kozue’s hand snaps inward. “Take the angle. Left straight first. If his weight is there, follow through.”

Oyama glances toward the ring again, eyes narrowing slightly. “You think I can drop him?”

Kozue doesn’t smile. “You don’t need to prove anything. One clean shot is enough, a stumble much better. And a knockdown… well, if there’s a chance, why not?”

Oyama rolls his shoulders, confidence beginning to settle in. “Alright.”

Across the gym, Nakahara lowers his bottle of Surge Blue, and watches them from the corner of his eye.

A coach talking tactics before sparring is nothing unusual. He tells himself that. Still, the calm certainty in Kozue’s face, and the way Oyama straightens afterward, keeps Nakahara from relaxing.

And Ryoma? He doesn’t bother trying to read their lips. Either he isn’t taking the briefing seriously, or his attention is already on Aki near the ropes.

“So,” she says, tilting her head, “is this the part where you let Aramaki look good? Or are you just saving the scary stuff for later?”

“Hey, give him some credit,” Ryoma says, grin easy. “If I beat him too cleanly, he’ll stop helping me.”

Aki laughs first, a short surprised sound. Ryoma chuckles with her, shoulders lifting as if the whole thing is nothing more than a joke between friends.

But Oyama’s eyes narrow, clearly not taking it well. “Tch! Cocky brat…”

Ryoma is four years younger than him, young enough that laughing in the ring feels disrespectful, like he’s treating their next spar as something trivial.

***

When they finally call for the spar, the gym gradually turns quiets.

Oyama steps through the ropes and rolls his shoulders once as he settles into his southpaw stance.

Ryoma straightens from his corner and walks toward center ring. Then he bows, not deep, not theatrical, but honest enough.

“Thank you for your time, Oyama-san,” he says.

Oyama blinks, caught off guard for half a second, then taps gloves with him.

“Sure.”

They steps back a few paces, waiting for the bell.

And then…

Ding!

The first round is polite. Ryoma keeps his distance, lead hand busy; mostly jabs, testing and measuring.

He circles to his own left as Nakahara drilled into him, away from Oyama’s rear power hand, careful not to drift too long in a straight line.

Every step is measured and careful.

Each southpaw has their own nature, Ryoma knows that. The stance alone doesn’t tell him everything. So he still needs to study first; how Oyama sets his weight, how he exits exchanges, where his balance breaks.

“That’s it. Don’t rush,” Nakahara calls out, voice calm and firm. “Feel him first. Get used to the stance before you take anything.”

“Watch behind you.” This time Sera warns him. “Don’t let him cornered you.”

When Ryoma’s back drifts close to the ropes, he lingers a heartbeat longer than needed, sends out a short, uncommitted combination, then pivots right to take the center back.

“Good,” Nakahara calls. “The space changes too. Don’t just read him. Get used to the space.”

Oyama keeps the chase with steady pace. And Ryoma stays in the perimeter, controlling the space using his left.

The rhythm holds, restrained and respectful.

It only tightens when Ryoma skirts the corner and finally lets a few combinations go to pin Oyama’s guard…

Dug. Dug. Dug.

…before slipping out toward the opposite side.

And every time he does that, Oyama sees it as his chance; Ryoma’s closer to his dominant arm.

He steps in and shoots a straight left.

But still, Ryoma blocks it cleanly…

Dug.

…and then clips Oyama’s face with a short jab in response…

Dsh!

…then slides out again, center reclaimed.

Nakahara’s tension eases a fraction. For a first experience against a southpaw, Ryoma’s footwork is unexpectedly disciplined, calm, and correct all the time.

“Kid really learns fast,” he mutters to himself.

At the bell, both fighters lower their gloves and turn away at the same time. Ryoma drifts back toward his corner, breathing even.

Oyama walks to his, rolling his neck once before Kozue leans in close.

“What do you think?” Kozue asks.

Oyama exhales. “Not as fast as I expected. I thought he’d be harder to catch.”

“Same,”Kozue nods. “Think you can trap him next round?”

Oyama’s eyes stay on Ryoma. “I think I can do it. Let’s see if he can actually take punches.”

***

For the first twenty seconds in the second round, nothing changes.

If anything, Ryoma throws even less. His hands are active defensively, but his offense thins out, as if he’s listening more than speaking.

Nakahara’s brow creases deeper as he watches the ring. Beside him, Sera shifts his weight, concern returning.

Along the ropes, the three journalists fall quiet, eyes fixed on Ryoma, still silently question his condition.

But Kozue smells blood, and calls out immediately.

“Press him, Oyama. Don’t let him escape.”

Oyama reacts, pouring in the pressure.

Ryoma finds himself in the middle of Oyama’s stance more often now. He still can block, slip, and duck under the dangerous shots. But when Oyama closes the distance, two body blows sneak in behind his guard.

Thud! Thud!

Not clean, but enough to touch the back ribs.

But before the ropes can claim him, Ryoma clips Oyama’s headgear once, and then escapes.

They reset back in the center. And this time, something shifts.

Ryoma’s pendulum finally appears, not wide, not obvious. Rear foot anchored. Lead foot sliding in a narrow pocket of space. A rhythm so small it almost invisble.

Around the gym, something shifts. It isn’t loud or sudden, just a tightening in the air.

Sato raises an eyebrow. “Is he getting serious now?”

Tanaka doesn’t say a word, just swallowing hard.

Fighters along the ropes straighten without realizing it, eyes narrowing, instincts catching up before thought does.

The studying is over. Ryoma has settled into the shape of it.

But Oyama doesn’t feel the change. He steps in and throws a right jab.

Ryoma’s eyes sharpen, reading the rhythm, timing, and angle.

He slips outside, sharp and smooth, perfect timing.

And before Oyama can retract his right hand, a left uppercut shoots up from beneath his arm, invisible until it hits his chin.

Dhuack!

Oyama’s head snaps, vision turns white for a heartbeat.

A low gasp ripples through the gym.

And Ryoma follows with a right cross…

BAM!

…cracking the side of Oyama’s headgear hard enough to break his balance.