underground fights.

Kei Kazama woke up in the hospital bed, seeing the bully who had attacked him in the tunnel—a man in a Chinese suit with two knives in his hands, confidently walking into his room. His smile was eerie, his tongue hanging out, and he laughed like a madman. His blood-stained clothes dripped blood with every step, chillingly whispering Kei's name.

The next thing he knew, he was falling from a very high mountain. Everything turned black. His mother was seated in the large chair at the entrance, murmuring words amid laments, like a long prayer of exhaustion. He tried to speak to her, but his words didn't reach them. Suddenly, many people began arriving at the house, laughing and celebrating, while his mother slumped in the old, ruined chair.

Everything changed again. He found himself in a dark, rocky hall with a flickering lamp overhead—the room where assignments were handed out for Hiyo Kuro. He walked a bit and was greeted by a neighbor, then arrived at a park he used to visit in the afternoons, where his older brothers—One, Two, and Three—stood with their tough demeanor, ignoring Kei. That was his last dream.

Morning sunlight streamed through the high windows, painting the room in colors. Kei felt intense pain all over his body.

-Finally awake, kid, - said Dr. Rukawa from the corner desk.

-Uh, thanks, Rukawa. What happened? I'm in horrible pain. I don't remember much, just some unclear things, and, well, the ice baths, - said Kei.

-You collapsed from exhaustion, which was quite foolish if you ask me. Next time, it's better to be more careful and decide to stop. Such intense work isn't good for anyone without proper medical care—it can lead to internal injuries, poor recovery, and sometimes even serious illnesses. You need to rest for at least four days from any muscle exercise. I'd recommend staying in bed all day and limiting physical activity to the minimum, - advised Rukawa.

-Got it, I'll rest as much as I can, - replied Kei, acknowledging his body's exhaustion.

-Roshi will be here shortly; he'll take you for the necessary training. I think you'll be studying some philosophy and literature, - Rukawa informed him.

-Sounds boring. I don't have the energy for this, - sighed Kei.

Rukawa's thin appearance showed through his gown. - Come, I'll give you some vitamins, - he said, handing Kei a herbal tea. It tasted sour, with a detestable concentrated herbal mass. Kei almost vomited but managed to gulp it down in one go, holding his breath.

Roshi entered the office, this time with long black bags under his eyes, hanging like two trash bags, accompanied by half-moon glasses. He wore a formal white jacket and blue linen pants—a colorful and elegant attire, a departure from the sports hoodies and traditional suits Kei had seen him wear before. He looked like a university professor, a very strict traditional one.

-You're awake. Come with me, we have some things to sort out. It's best to start early. This practice is painful and lengthy, but we might finish by the evening. If you're willing to endure it, I'm sure Master Takemoto will be impressed if you manage to surpass the toughening practice, - said Roshi.

Mr. Akihabara was in the courtyard with polished wooden sticks that rotated, and a wooden cane with sharp rotating pieces like wooden rollers of various sizes and positions.

-Master Akihabara, I'm glad you could come early, - said Roshi.

-You called about someone undergoing my treatment who was willing to withstand it all. It's not my first time with these practices, but it's the first time I'm doing it with a child. I've been studying the human body for thirty years and have never done this practice on a young person, though he's a year older than the ideal age. He's still the first to attempt it. This practice is painful, and only the determined would condition themselves to this technique, - said Akihabara.

-Well, he's not insane, but he's a highly motivated kid. He seems to relish pushing limits, even aspiring to be Master Takemoto's direct disciple, - said Roshi.

Kei listened to the words and could only feel fear. Inhumane practice! Extremely painful. He couldn't say if this could be something important in his life.

-Well, Kei, the practice you're about to undergo is called human body conditioning. I hope you can endure it to the end. Tell me one last time, young Kazama, are you willing to undergo this training? - said Akihabara.

-I don't understand the training. Is it just about throwing some punches, running a few laps, and that's it? - said Kei.

Roshi's brow furrowed for the first time, in a troubled manner. He understood the boy's fear, so a push would help calm his sparse ways of behaving. The training lasted years, but it could only be applied every three months at varying intensities, with the last sections being the toughest. By the age of 15, the final training in striking ...

-Do you think Takemoto's style is a game? You must surpass ordinary limits to exceed Master Takemoto's expectations. The principles of the style are pain, power, and will. Only someone who can forget ordinary pain can become a practitioner. Boy, only a strong mind can forge itself in the currents of eternal struggle, a necessary battle. The great masters say, 'Pain is an inevitable part of life, but our resistance to it causes suffering. Instead of fighting pain, we must learn to flow with it, accept it, and let it teach us lessons. Only when we stop resisting and find peace amid pain do we experience true liberation from suffering?' This practice is just a challenge, young one, - said Roshi.

-Master, may I ask what exactly the painful training involves? - said Kei.

-They'll break your bones, all 206 bones of the human body. The practice is designed to exceed human limits. Those limits can only be surpassed with pain, discipline, and acceptance, - said Roshi.

-Old man sure talks a lot, - thought Kei, pondering the plan.

-Excuse me, sir, what benefits will I gain from practicing bone hardening? - asked Kei.

Roshi paused his pep talk and glanced at Akihabara. Rational thought certainly suited some people better, especially those who preferred difficult practices.

-Oh, well, you'll be more resistant to blows. Generally, this practice fosters adaptability. According to my research, in five years your bones will be as hard as metal. Furthermore, your bone recovery will double that of ordinary humans. With enough effort, joint improvement and subsequently muscle strengthening will make you more resilient," said Akihabara, scratching his head. "However, I only know two people who have wanted to continue with the training. Though there are African tribes, small villages in northern Burma, and some Chinese masters who continue this ancient practice lost to time, - said Rukawa.

-I see. Let's proceed with the practice, but could you lighten the pain a bit? I'm not a masochist, - said Kei.

-Relax, kid. Didn't you hear Master Roshi? Learning to endure pain is an important part of your martial education. If you manage to overcome the martial pains of this practice and let me document your experiences, I promise to do my best work most professionally. You'll be the next great fighter of the Takemoto style, - said Akihabara.

-Alright then, let's do it. What's the worst that could happen? - said Kei.

-Sit here. We'll start with this special toy. We'll roll this small roller over the bones of your arms for half an hour. We'll rub until it hurts. The pain you'll feel is normal, but with each pass, the pain will double. I'll apply this special cream first. Take this bone powder in cow milk. We'll increase your calcium intake enough for recovery, along with some small injections into your bones. However, those injections will come later. Administration of calcium or magnesium by intravenous or intramuscular route is feasible. Other routes of administration, such as intravenous fluids or intramuscular injections in the initial practices, - said Akihabara.

Kei swallowed hard. It sounded awful, very awful.

-Let's start first with your arms and hands, - said the doctor.

Passing the sticks over his arms was stronger than Kei had initially considered. But the pain was bearable. First, the adjustments started with the fingers, obviously the knuckles, but continued with the parts of the palms, metacarpals, and carpals. He followed with the radius and ulna, elbow, and humerus, and ended at the shoulder.

-Come on, let's adjust the joints of the wrist, elbows, and shoulders. This process will hurt a bit, but it's lengthy and necessary. We'll bend a bit here and there, good enough to avoid errors, - said Akihabara. The exercises were painful but manageable. However, after half an hour, the pain started to double. Each form, each step was more painful. But nothing as bad as the beatings Hiyo gave him.

-Alright, now I'll hit you with this small hammer, - he followed through with his arms until his shoulder, like his clavicle, chest, ribs, hips, tailbone, and so on until it started to hurt, taking special care of the skull, spine, and some parts of the knees. The end of the femur, patella, and fibula.

-Stretch your joints, all these exercises are to improve your joints. Try to do some special weightlifting exercises; in some cases, it's the best thing you can do. Now let's move on to the second part. This roller is special and will hurt more. Here, drink this. It will numb your senses, - said Akihabara.

-This is alcohol. Give me more. With another two sips, I can endure! - said Kei.

-You can't endure the pain this way. When we perform intraosseous injections, these are special, but consuming alcohol is prohibited. In these special procedures, it's best to take healthy precautions against the contraindications that science claims, - said Akihabara.

He continued grinding Kei's bones from top to bottom with considerable distress from the painful procedure. Among them, the most painful is the multiple steps of the operation: the first stick acts like a roller, the second is a small wooden hammer, followed by stretching exercises, and the next is a spiked roller that crunches the bones under pressure. This pressure ended up sending powerful waves through the nerves.

-These hurt twice as much as the first ones, - said Kei. The last round of bone treatment was the most painful of all.

-I hate this exercise, - said Kei. Beaten by the sensation of pressure in his arms, it's agonizing, very agonizing. What causes the most discomfort is the persistence of pain, a pain that lingers for quite some time. Compared to other existing techniques, this one is the smoothest and best prepared from cultures. Akihabara tried to practice this in China, but no people are willing to face these pains, and isolationist communities are not willing to have a foreigner steal their customs.

...