The chapter opens with a flashback to the early days of Kendo, when he and his grandfather were both students. Kendo's grandfather was very fond of his grandson, and Kendo remembers that Kendo was always smiling at him, even when he was not around. The two of them became friends, and when Kendo met his opponent, he was impressed by his opponent's strength and skill. He tells Kendo that the other day, Kendo lost to his opponent in an open sparring match. He says that the fight was very close, and that he was unable to score any points for his opponent. He also says that his grandfather taught no one style of fighting, but that he felt that many of his students did not train with that style because they did not want to compete with other schools. He adds that he feels that this is because many of the students were not willing to compete in other schools because they were afraid of losing their belt exams.