The chapter opens with a discussion of the "recession" and its effects on people's lives. The narrator says that he was raised in a time when people were afraid of the future. He wonders if the Japanese people will ever be able to break the "chains of fear" and be free from fear. The chapter ends with a description of a sparring session. The sparring session begins with a warm-up, followed by a ground sparring session with a one-minute break in between rounds. After the ground sparring, the sparring session ends.