BUGHH!! BAGHH!! POWWW!!!

((Bugghhh))

((Pakkkk))

((Buaghh))

"Hyaaaahh!"

The battle cry of the rookies that are currently fighting in the arena fills the air along with the sound of thuds and slaps. The training has already reached day seven. It's a sparring time.

I'm both excited and frightened. Back when I still joined the MMA class in the old world, I used to enjoy sparring with my friends at the gym. Yet, today's sparring seems more serious. There's no time limit, no rules, no referee. The only thing that can be used as a time counter is the floating screen showing the HP of each fighter. Prior to entering the arena, Jaka sticks some kinda plaster to their back before the screen pops out above their heads.

No matter how tired they are, Jaka will never stop the fighting until one of their HP has been depleted below 10%. Crazy.

"Ohhh shit, that must be hurt!" Juna shouts as if he can feel directly what the rookie felt as his overhand got dodged, took the right hook, left hook, right uppercut, and what seems to be the final strike, where his opponent steps his right leg backward, lowering his stance while pulling his right hand to his waist and putting his left hand to target the poor guy stomach, then unleashed the punch.

"Gahhhh"

Sound of pain come out from one of them as they hit their back, HP depleted below 30%, the gauge turned red. Jaka finally stops the fighting. Both the rookies that were just finished their spar looks battered and full of bruises. Right after Jaka pulled the plaster on their back, they return to where we were waiting for our turn in this hellish cage. It was a frightening moment of silence since the moment they got back, Jaka was turning his head to us, looking for another pair to fight each other till they're almost dead.

"You, and you!"

"What? Me?" I saw Jaka pointing at me and Juna.

"Come here you two! Get to the arena!" Jaka shouts and shouts again. Fuck this guy.

"Ohh man.. Here we go." Juna frowned as we approach the arena gate.

Jaka sticks the plaster on our back before pushing us in. I feel a little bit sorry for him, not for being so strong he's gonna be hurt real bad, but for what we're gonna engage next. Sparring or not, fighting this intense is not fun, at least for me, not if your opponent was your very friend.

"I'm sorry Juna, nothing's personal," I said to Juna as I put up my stance. Hands up covering the head, clenching fists, hands are spaced to allow some vision, left leg in front of the other, both slightly bent, was all to describe the basic unarmed stance.

"Hhhh... Fine then." Juna putting up the stance after me.

We circled around, both looking for a chance to deliver a strike. We circled and strafed, closer, and closer. Then, Juna starts to launch a set of strikes. Jab, straight, hook, basic punch combo. I enclosed my arms, guarding my face, before shifting my right arm to cover the side of my head. He backsteps from me. Both of us still hesitates to launch the strikes, so it's a slow start. We just trade-off blows after blows, strikes after strikes. Each trying to get a hang in the heat of battle.

I don't know for how long we've been trading off blows before we started to move fluidly. Our movements are getting faster, we hesitate no more. The real fight has just begun. I approach Juna, and so does he.

He began by launching a jab. I ducked it to the left while launching a straight. He noticed this and backstep in the last second. I managed to hit him, but the strike didn't get too deep. He then launched an uppercut. I dodged by jolting my body backward and using my momentum, I pulled out a straight kick. It hits him quite hard, pushing him to some distance from me. We circled again, trying to replenish our SP while planning for the next attack.

This time, I dive in straight to his range while pulling my guard up. He begins to move backward to keep me in his range while throwing jabs at me. I block it all, I plan to get to him to body check and stagger him, but then...

"Hyaahhh!!"

An uppercut launched to stop my charge. I step and jolt backward to dodge it, but then he launches a straight. Having nowhere to run, I block it straightforwardly.

((Bughhh))

"Gahhh"

I keep my defensive stance. He keeps launching a barrage of punches. Hook, straight, body punch, straight. He didn't realize that he keeps getting forward and forward, and when he gets in my range...

((Bughhh))

"Uhhh"

I body checked him. He lost balance, and this time, it's time for me to strike. Straight, hook, straight, uppercut, front kick. I knocked him down, then I ground him. I launch a barrage of strikes on him. He puts up a guard. After some moments, I got tired, so I back up to replenish my stamina.

Juna has gotten up, and he begins to approach me again.

As I got my stamina replenished, I circled him again. He then rushing at me, launching a left-arm sweep, followed with a straight, then a kick. I managed to dodge and block the first two, but the kick got me knocked back. He realizes my helpless state, so he rushes me again while launching an overhand. I put some extra effort to get out of the staggered state, duck to his right and punching his stomach, then sweep-step to his right followed by a straight to his face, and a left sweeping kick to his chest.

"Ghaaakkk"

He got angered. He rushes me, blindly throwing punches to my head. I easily block all of them and body checked him again. This time, I kick him. He got knocked back, and before he realizes, I deliver a superman punch to him, then sweep his leg. He falls down, I ground him, then rain a barrage of punches on him. He blocks my attacks, but I do not stop. I keep punching him, again and again, until he finally out of breath and cannot put up guard anymore, and my punches hit him straight to his face. I keep punching, until finally..

"STOP IT YOU IDIOT!!! YOU REALLY WANNA KILL HIM??!" Jaka screams at me.

"Uhh…" a painful moan comes out of Juna's mouth.

Shit. I lost control. I didn't hear Jaka's voice. I don't know what took me, but I'm too focused on throwing punches on Juna. When I see at his health bar, I noticed that his health is almost reduced to zero.

I immediately back away from him. Jaka then pulled him off the ground. I see Juna looking at me with a terrified look. I hurt my friend.

"LOOK AT THE FUCKING HEALTH BAR, OR LISTEN TO ME!!!" He screams at me once again.

Jaka then orders us to get out of the arena. Juna walks in front of me. He occasionally turns his head back to look at me. His expression shows a disappointing look.

We got out of the arena as Jaka calls for the other pair of rookies to fight He strictly tell them once again to carefully listen to him or watch the floating health bar. I approach Juna, but this time, he seems to avoid me.

That's it. The only friends I have is leaving me. I'm lonely again. Jani, his sister, seems to take Juna's side and avoid me.

Fuck Jaka.

From that moment onwards, I despise him. The day is over, and tomorrow is the beginning of weapon training. Before Jaka dismissed us, he told us the overall score of unarmed combat training. I got the sixth position out of fifteen. Jaka and Jani are in the ninth and eleventh positions respectively. I have a quite good score. However, I don't feel good about the overall training results.

It broke my relationship with my friends.