Infinity, The Arcade Age-Chapter 358: The Unsolvable Metsushin Mutou!

One, forcibly execute her finishing move and gamble on who was faster.

Two, cancel her current move and use another technique to counter—but in doing so, she would allow her opponent to close the distance.

Her pupils shrank. In less than a second, she made her decision. Without hesitation, she canceled her ultimate move and instead lowered her arms into an Aikido defensive stance.

Trying to defeat her with close combat? Then he had picked the wrong opponent!

The Tōdō family's martial arts were never strongest in ranged attacks. Their true power lay in counterattacks at close range!

Secret Technique: Metsushin Mutou!

Both arms moved to block—seizing Qin Ming's incoming hands in an instant!

The next second, under Qin Ming's shocked gaze, Tōdō Kasumi forcefully intercepted his Heaven Glide and even broke through the skill's super armor effect, viciously throwing him into the air!

Counter Break!

Boom!

The world spun as Qin Ming's body crashed heavily into the ground once more. Before he could recover from his daze, a shadow loomed over him.

In a seamless transition, Tōdō Kasumi had already mounted him, tightening her fists as she unleashed a lightning-fast flurry of punches to his face!

Aikido: Tornado Spear Strike!

[Name: Tōdō Kasumi]

[Strength: 35]

[Constitution: 45]

[Agility: 30]

[Spirit: 30]

[Skills: Tōdō-ryu Ancient Martial Arts (B-Rank), Super Drop Strike (B-Rank), Metsushin Mutou (A-Rank)]

[Description: A prodigy of the Tōdō family, she mastered Super Drop Strike at a young age and even learned the legendary technique: Metsushin Mutou. Never attempt to outmatch her in a close-quarters fight. The harder you fight, the faster you'll die!]

The legendary Extreme Style master Takuma Sakazaki was famous for his technique Mouko no Rai Gan, renowned as an indomitable move capable of taking any hit head-on.

But what most people didn't know was that this move was actually inspired by the Tōdō family's secret technique: Metsushin Mutou.

The difference? One was a grappling counter, while the other was a burst counterattack.

Tōdō Kasumi's father, Tōdō Ryuhaku, had once faced Takuma Sakazaki and been completely overpowered—not because of weak mentality, but because he lost precisely to Takuma's Mouko no Rai Gan and had no way to break through it.

Having his family's signature technique used against him, countering him so completely that he had no chance to resist—who wouldn't crack under the pressure?

It was like challenging someone, only for them to defeat you using your own family's move—and executing it better than you ever could.

What did that mean?

It meant that the difference wasn't in martial arts—it was in you.

The martial art itself was great—so great that even outsiders wanted to learn it. The problem was you, the so-called martial artist.

Even self-taught fighters had secretly learned the technique, modified it, and created an improved version.

Meanwhile, the so-called "rightful heir" could never master it and ended up being publicly humiliated, beaten by his own move!

Tōdō Ryuhaku didn't commit seppuku on the spot but instead went into seclusion, attempting to fully comprehend his family's ultimate technique. That was proof that he had at least some mental resilience.

As his daughter, Tōdō Kasumi knew exactly how her father had lost that fight. Determined to bring him back, she spent six whole months mastering the final secret of their lineage.

But the naive Kasumi failed to realize something—if her father had refused to return before mastering the technique, then there was no way he'd return now that she had mastered it in just six months.

Why would he?

She had learned the move in half a year. He had spent half a lifetime and still failed.

Return? To humiliate himself?

Until he fully grasped the technique, even if it killed him, Tōdō Ryuhaku would never come back.

Meanwhile, Qin Ming, who had charged in head-on, attempting to brute-force his way through a close-range battle, instantly understood what true defensive counterattacks looked like.

His Heaven Glide was forcefully broken!

His entire body was instantly pinned down!

In just a blink, he had fallen into an absolute disadvantage.

Qin Ming ultimately wasn't familiar with the Tōdō family's ancient martial arts, so both of his exchanges ended up playing right into his opponent's hands.

Even Takuma Sakazaki back then didn't dare to engage in a long-range duel or an explosive close-combat clash with Tōdō Ryūhaku, even though those were his best techniques.

Takuma Sakazaki had relied purely on solid fundamental fist and foot techniques to defeat Tōdō Ryūhaku head-on. From start to finish, he didn't even dare to use his ultimate move, Heaven and Earth Tyrant Fist, fearing that Tōdō Ryūhaku would counter it with the devastating Messen Mutō, breaking through in an instant and reversing the fight.

Even Takuma Sakazaki wouldn't risk an explosive clash, yet Qin Ming charged in headfirst. It would be a miracle if he didn't suffer for it!

With Qin Ming pinned beneath her, Tōdō Kasumi gritted her teeth and unleashed a flurry of violent strikes straight at his face, each aimed at a vital point.

Her barrage of punches, combined with her sudden defensive counterattack earlier, had clearly left Qin Ming dazed.

After all, Qin Ming had only ever seen one person take Heaven Glide head-on before.

That person was a martial arts grandmaster, and at the time, it was a clash of ultimate moves. Qin Ming had lost fair and square.

But this woman in front of him—why the hell did she get to win?

He didn't even have time to put on his sunglasses before noticing Tōdō Kasumi's attributes, where he spotted an A-rank skill. For a moment, he was completely disoriented by her strikes.

But it was just disorientation—nothing more.

Even after being forcefully flipped onto the ground and subjected to a relentless assault from Tōdō Kasumi, who rained over twenty punches down on him, she suddenly realized something awkward—her punches weren't doing any damage...

She stared at Qin Ming, who had taken her full-on beating for ages yet wasn't even bruised—hell, not even a nosebleed.

Panting slightly, Tōdō Kasumi's face was filled with disbelief. She even opened her mouth in shock, purely on instinct.

And at that moment, Qin Ming finally snapped out of his daze.

Looking at the fool sitting on top of him, trying to knock him out with mere punches and kicks, a dangerous glint flashed in Qin Ming's eyes.

The next second, he suddenly retracted his arms and legs, locking Tōdō Kasumi in place. Then, with a powerful bear hug, he crushed her against his chest!

Ultimate move! "Embrace the Maiden to Death!"

Creak!

With force surging through his limbs, the veins on Qin Ming's arms bulged.

Tōdō Kasumi, trapped in his vice grip, let out a shrill scream and struggled desperately to break free, but she couldn't shake off the monster who had wrapped himself around her.

After losing in both ranged exchanges and explosive combat, Qin Ming decisively switched tactics—grappling!

Specializing in counterattacks? Then I won't give you a chance to counter! I'll force you into a pure test of strength!

This rogue-like approach caught Tōdō Kasumi completely off guard. She flailed her fists, hammering Qin Ming's head, but her attacks did nothing. Feeling the tightening grip around her waist, she couldn't help but scream.

The disciples watching from the sidelines were horrified. Just moments ago, their leader had been in complete control—yet in the blink of an eye, she had been wrapped up like a dumpling.

They rushed forward in a panic—one yanked at Qin Ming's arm, another swung a wooden sword wildly at his head.

But despite their desperate efforts, they couldn't pry Qin Ming's limbs apart.

In fact, their interference only made Qin Ming squeeze even harder.

Tōdō Kasumi could barely breathe, her tongue lolling out.

Finally, after watching the spectacle for a while, a woman standing off to the side—Kasumi's companion, Kasamoto Eri—couldn't take it anymore. She shoved through the crowd and shouted:

"Alright, alright, alright! Let go already! Her waist is about to snap! Boss! We came here to recruit people, not to kill them! Calm down! If someone sees you like this, they're gonna call you a pervert!"

Hearing Kasamoto Eri's words, Qin Ming's pupils contracted. He hesitated for a moment before finally releasing his grip.

The moment he let go, Tōdō Kasumi gasped sharply, greedily sucking in air. Now free, she struggled to roll onto her back, feeling as if every bone in her body was screaming in pain.

Meanwhile, Qin Ming propped himself up with one hand and slowly stood, sweeping his gaze across the surrounding disciples. Terrified, they all instinctively backed away.

Tōdō Kasumi's strength had far exceeded Qin Ming's expectations.

Initially, he had assumed she was just a third-rate martial artist—at most on par with Mai Shiranui or Blue Mary, maybe even weaker.

Yet in reality, she was a second-tier fighter on King's level!

And not just that—she was a specialist, a martial artist who focused on a single ability.

Such fighters were the hardest to deal with, especially during a first encounter when their style was still a mystery. They often relied on "first-time kills" to overwhelm opponents.

Tōdō Kasumi had no mobility skills—her entire style revolved around countering with defense.

Anyone foolish enough to challenge her in an explosive contest would suffer miserably. And if they didn't? Her Chōjō Ha move completely shut down long-range attacks. It was a combination of absolute offense and defense.

But that was all she had.

Outside of those two perfected aspects, everything else was her weakness.

As for Qin Ming? He had no specialties—which meant he had no weaknesses.

And if he had no weaknesses, then once he figured out your fighting style, any gap in your technique became a fatal flaw!

That was how King lost.

And now, that was how Tōdō Kasumi lost.

Qin Ming's absurdly high defense and recovery allowed him to withstand attacks and force any opponent into his preferred fighting domain.

Unless you could kill him in one hit or overwhelm him with sheer damage, he would dictate the fight—whether it was a grounded brawl, wrestling, or a full-on slugfest.

And if you lost in even one of those aspects—

You were finished.

The nearly unstoppable close-range technique, Messen Mutō, had built the legend of the Tōdō style.

Yet today, that very technique's excessive focus on counters had nearly cost Tōdō Kasumi her life—because she had never trained in escape techniques!

(End of Chapter)