Chapter 370 Living In The Present

To be fair, Link didn't choose to be imprisoned in the transparent encasement but now he had kind of assimilated with it. It didn't bother him at all that he couldn't get out of the case, and he actually felt comfortable at the moment. There were a couple of times when he dozed off as well while watching the final match of the third round.

"I can't believe they won. That Luke Skyrunner is no joke." Link commented as he turned his head towards Satoshi.

On the other hand, Satoshi also got used to Link being in the room. He was tasked with monitoring the berserker so there's nothing he could do about it actually. After all, he's the only one who could easily handle the time bomb that is Link. He was more than elated to know that the final match was over, now he could finally free Link without worrying about his mental state.

A few minutes later, Yun Zhe arrived in the waiting room with bandages on his head. As to why he was wearing bandages, Satoshi could only wonder, and he didn't bother asking why.

"That was a close match. I can't believe you won." Link muttered in greeting as Yun Zhe collapsed on the couch. He was severely bruised, but fortunately, he was only left with superficial injuries.

The Nurse, who was actually called to oversee the event, prioritized healing Yun Zhe's ears since that was the one that suffered the most. It was a severely different case for Joe, Luke Skyrunner, and White Mist, however, since they suffered worse injuries compared to Yun Zhe.

"Yeah, it was a close call... I have White Mist to thank for this win. We never stood a chance against that Luke Skyrunner guy." Yun Zhe responded, stealing a glance towards Satoshi who was comfortably watching the live stream. "I bet he's on par with you, if not stronger than you, Satoshi." Yun Zhe commented.

"Now we're down to the top eight, huh," Link heaved a sigh. "And when do I get to come out of this thing?" He interjected, knocking on the encasing that contained him.

"We'll let you out once the all the spectators got home. Seriously, you should rein in your superpower a little bit more. You're plenty strong, but you can only go so far with such an uncontrollable characteristic." Yun Zhe said.

At the same time, Satoshi finally ordered Orb Oboros to release Link, and Link fell rear-side first on the floor as the capsule disappeared in a snap of a finger. Rubbing his butt, he got up and approached Satoshi. "I'm confident I'll be able to control my superpower one of these days. Just you wait, Satoshi. We're going to have an even match." Link said before exiting the waiting room. He was tired for the day, and he headed straight to a nearby hotel so he could get some shut-eye in preparation for tomorrow.

"I'm heading out as well, Satoshi, I need to recover for tomorrow. That last fight took a toll on me." Yun Zhe waved his hand. He just got back to the waiting room and now he was heading out. "See you in the finals, Satoshi." He continued before closing the door behind him.

"I guess I should head out as well." Satoshi said to himself while watching the live stream come to a close. One by one, the audience started heading out of the American Dome, excited for the next and final day of the Official Beast Tournament.

The next round is bound to happen a few months from now so there was really no need for the commentators and the personnel to go home. Instead of shutting off the live stream, however, they planned a couple of minutes intermission while they rest for an hour or so. And then, what would follow is a broadcast regarding the top eight contenders who will be present in the upcoming fourth round.

There was nothing left for Satoshi to do except meet up with his family and friends as they head home. At first, Satoshi wondered if his family would throw a barbecue party and he hoped that it wouldn't happen. He was drained out, to say the least, and he wouldn't enjoy such a celebration even if it were directed at him.

​ Creak.

"Ou~ son!"  Midoriyama Tatsuki beckoned for Satoshi. As soon as he got out, he was met with everyone who actually walked all the way to his waiting room to pick him up. "Great job out there." He complimented him, ruffling his hair as he put a hand on his shoulder.

"Did you see my surprise gift? I hope you liked it." Midoriyama Grado, Satoshi's grandfather, patted his pockets as he smiled at Satoshi.

Quite frankly, Satoshi had a lot of questions regarding his grandfather's conquest but he decided to save it up for later. He went through hell and back just to tame such a powerful tamed beast, and although Satoshi was excited to hear everything from him, he decided to suppress his excitement since they'd have plenty of time talking about it after the Official Beast Tournament.

"Satoshi-sensei!!!" Shoyo pushed his way towards Satoshi as he gave him a hug. Snots and tears were all over him as he spoke. "Shank you sho mush~ sniff~" He cried. Even until now, he still couldn't believe that he reached the quarterfinals.

"That's dirty, you know," Satoshi let out, pushing Satoshi out of the way while he tried to continue hugging him. During this time, Satoshi noticed some familiar faces in the crowd aside from his classmates.

"I was dragged by White Mist so I can't really decline." Yun Zhe reasoned out.

Link, Luke and the others had a somewhat identical reason to Yun Zhe, and together, the group traveled back to the Midoriyama's Residence aka, Satoshi's grandparents' house.

.....

The night sky right above the field was sprinkled with stars and not a cloud could be seen. A cold breeze blew right over the field, almost snuffing out the barbecue fire which Plunder was growing. The nearby trees swayed back and forth with the breeze, producing a steady rustling sound of its leaves while the night grew deeper.

Satoshi, who was sitting right by the front porch, swung his legs while he contentedly looked up at the sky. It's not every day he gets to have a quiet night so he decided to enjoy it to the fullest. At the back of his mind, he was half-expecting another gate or dimensional portal to open nearby since that had always been the case whenever he tries to relax. There was also a good chance that another breaking news would be heard in the television, but there were no news of a disaster so far. Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief.

"Great job out there," Kuroe (Satoshi's classmate, she has psychic and telepathic superpowers) called out, sitting beside Satoshi as she gave him a cup of warm chocolate. She could still remember the time when Satoshi approached her as if it was just yesterday. Even though she could read his mind, he still wasn't afraid of her, and that gave birth to a friendship that Kuroe cherished.

"You too... wait what?" Satoshi responded a little too automatically since most of the people who greeted him like that were part of the Official Beast Tournament.

Kuroe chuckled. A quick read of Satoshi's mind told her that he wasn't thinking about anything at all. He was in the present, enjoying the sceneries of the night while taking in the cold night air. "Ehrmm! How are you feeling sir? Getting to the quarterfinals of one of the most iconic tournaments and all?" Kuroe randomly started acting like an interviewer, pressing an imaginary mic towards Satoshi.

In response, Satoshi cleared his throat and grabbed the mic. "Honestly, it feels surreal. A couple of months ago, I never could've dreamed of getting this far. This all feels like a dream. I'm going to do my best tomorrow. I won't blatantly say that I'd win the finals since that might trigger a flag or something, but I'll certainly do my best."

"Ehrmm, so in your opinion, who's the most troublesome opponent you could fight in the quarterfinals?" Kuroe asked.

"Either... Luke Skyrunner or Yun Zhe. But in my opinion, I wouldn't want to fight against that guy Shoyo. He might be a tad older than me, but I've watched him exponentially grow while I was training him. I want to see how far he'd be able to go during this Official Beast Tournament... that's why I personally wouldn't want to be pitted against him." Satoshi commented.

"So you consider him a disciple, huh," Kuroe wore a pleasant smile on her face since everything that Satoshi said was what he thought in his mind.

"Well then... if I ever get my first tamed beast... will you take me in as your disciple, Satoshi?" Kuroe asked out of nowhere.

"Of course, I'll gladly show you the ropes." Satoshi said without hesitation.

"Hah! Kuroe no fair!" A familiar voice called out as a figure flew towards Satoshi, embracing him out of nowhere. "Hogging him all to yourself, no fair!" It was none other than Sassu who took over Cherry's body once again.