The shark was still holding him.
The animal's movements determined where his body went, leaving him with limited control over his position.
The struggle placed enormous demands on his strength.
He needed to protect himself from further injury, avoid exhausting his remaining energy, and find some way to separate his leg from the shark.
There was no opportunity to stop and recover.
The danger continued for as long as the animal maintained its grip.
Morita had already tried the most immediate defensive response available to him.
He had punched the shark.
But the animal had not released him.
Continuing the same action offered no certainty of success.
He needed to change his approach.
The exact duration of the underwater struggle is not established in the reported account.
What is clear is that Morita was pulled underwater twice and remained conscious and capable of resisting.
His survival depended on making the shark let go before the injury and lack of air overwhelmed him.
Then he attempted something extraordinary.
Instead of continuing to fight the animal only with his fists, he began using his entire body.
He reached around the shark and tried to gain leverage against it.
The struggle was about to change.
Chapter 5: Wrapping His Body Around the Predator
Morita's next move became the defining moment of the attack.
According to his account, he wrapped his arms and legs around the shark's body.
He was attempting to use leverage to free himself from the animal's jaws.
The maneuver was dangerous.
It required direct physical contact with a large predator that was already biting him.
He had no protective equipment.
He could not predict how the shark would respond.
And his injured right leg remained vulnerable.
But Morita had already discovered that punching alone was not working.
By wrapping himself around the animal, he changed the way he was resisting its movements.
Rather than striking from a position where the shark controlled his leg, he tried to use his body to counter the animal's force.
It was an improvised survival response, not a standard or reliably safe technique for escaping sharks.
The shark was still considerably stronger than Morita in the water.
His actions did not mean he had overpowered the animal.
Instead, he was trying to create enough leverage or disturbance to break its grip.
For a person facing an immediate threat, even a small opportunity to escape can become critical.