Osamu Dazai's Entrance Exam (Bungo Stray Dogs 1)

“…That hurt, y’know.”

Dazai stands, and his lips curl upward—a fierce grin—as fresh blood drips down his cheek.

The massive man slowly and emotionlessly approaches Dazai. On each hand are hammer-like steel knuckles. The man raises his arm in the air and swings once more, but Dazai kicks off the desk and dodges. In just one punch, the steel fist smashes the wooden desk into splinters.

“That’s quite an arm you’ve got there! You really oughta consider working in freight delivery!”

Dazai slides across the floor to create some distance before facing the behemoth.

“Well, this is just no good. I’m quite weak, you see. A big guy like yourself would snap me right in two… But I promised Chiyo I would save her.”

“I won’t let you use…the communicator.”

The man blocks the path to the device.

“Really? Guess I’ll just give up and run away, then.” Dazai swiftly turns around and bolts for the door.

“Get back here!”

As the giant man chases after him, Dazai races through the wooden door and closes it on his way out. Once the enemy reaches out to open the door, Dazai drop-kicks it from the other side, hitting his opponent in the process. Hampered by the door and unable to support the weight of Dazai’s jump, the man is sent flying back. Fragments from the wooden door scatter as he rolls on the ground.

“Striiike!”

Upon landing, Dazai approaches the giant to follow up with another hit. The enemy swiftly goes for a sweep, seemingly unfazed by the kick, but Dazai leaps back as if he saw it coming.

“You’re really tough! You know that?”

The man uses his back muscles to kick up off the ground, then throws a hook. Dazai manages to bob and weave out of the way, but part of his clothing catches on the steel knuckles just enough to pull him off-balance.

“Ack—”

A fist starts to bury into Dazai’s stomach. He instantly jumps back to soften the blow, but the man’s massive arm follows through until Dazai’s body is thrown back by a punch strong enough to destroy a table. Doubled over, he soars straight into the wall on the other side of the room.

Blood and spittle drip from his mouth. The enemy raises his stout arm into the air and swings it like a club. Dazai rolls to his side to evade, but the man follows up with a backhand, knocking the detective’s head so hard that his neck almost snaps as he is driven into the ground. Trembling, he staggers to his feet.

“Strong and fast, eh? …What, were you raised by gorillas or something?”

While he may be joking, the sense of crisis in Dazai’s eyes tells a different story:

—I can’t beat this guy.

Dazai glan

ces out the window at the storage room below, where he finds Kunikida fighting against a skill user.

Facing the young man, I charge. Now that I’ve lost my pistol, close-quarters combat is my only chance to subdue him. The skill user steps backward, but I pursue and reach out to grab his arm. Most of the martial arts I know involves using the opponent’s momentum against them, which is why I have to grab them first if they refuse to engage. I drag his arm to pull him off-balance before moving out of the way. Then I step in to grab him, but that’s when I see him raise his arm into the air, and I come to a sudden stop.

—Here comes another shock wave!

Rolling to the side, I evade the ray coming from his arm. I dodge his attack, and yet, I don’t. The wave knocks me back, and every bone in my body lets out a crack. My brain shakes, unable to keep up with the sudden acceleration of my body, and I start blacking out. I know I dodged his attack, so why—?

“Here’s the thing about my attacks… You can’t dodge them. I’m not hitting you with a shock wave. I’m able to accelerate those marked with the ‘number’ in any direction I want. Any direction I want. Any direction. Which is why—”

“Gwah?!”

My spine creaks. Following the swing of his arm, I am slammed into the ground. It feels as if gravity has suddenly been increased a hundredfold.

“Oh look, a fly!”