Description: Rocket makes a special visit to Gorin, bringing happiness and good cheer in the form of aerosol cans. Brett and Natsu take exception because they hate fun, clearly. #GedoRules
It's easy to make assumptions about why a girl like Rocket might be here, gazing up at the statue of the Olympic torch with her satchel slung over her shoulder. With all that roller-blading equipment on, perhaps she's considering the possibility of a future as some kind of Olympic inline skater - if inline skating were an Olympic sport.
But no, The Man insists on keeping bladers like her down. And with that thought in mind - well, actually, mostly just 'cause it sounded like fun - she's come here to Gorin High on a mission.
The school's been closed for classes for the day for a while now, so the courtyard isn't too busy at the moment. Once it seems like the coast is mostly clear, she pulls two aerosol paint cans out of her satchel, one in each hand. She skates swiftly over to the Olympic circles engraved in the ground, shaking her cans a bit until they primed, then starts quickly spraypainting. Since she's not really much of an artiste, her project plan is fairly simple: tag a quick smiley face with a different expression in each of the rings. If she can manage that and still have time to continue, she'll add the words 'Gedo rules' underneath the display. Then all she has to do is make a quick escape on her roller blades.
The perfect crime, right?
Whenever she's not hanging out with her friends, it's a safe bet that Natsu Ayuhara can be found on the Gorin High campus. She's practically a permanent fixture at the gymnasium at this hour, though she had forgotten to get something out of her locker in the campus building...
Humming softly to herself as the sounds of j-pop thump in her earbuds, the tall volleyballer is almost oblivious to what's going on. ... Almost. The sign of fast movement catches her eye -- not someone walking, but someone -skating-. It'd be easy to hear the agitators within the spray cans if not for her headphones, sure, especially with the echo effect of the tall buildings surrounding the courtyard -- but from how Rocket is moving, it's clear to tell she's up to no good. It's just a matter of seeing -what- kind of no-good.
Accordingly, she hastens her pace, bringing her up the hill. And she spots the spray can -- right in the act.
She could shout, and scare her mobile quarry off. Or she could reaching her gym bag, and withdraw one of the volleyballs she keeps there.
Yeah. Definitely the second option. Narrowing her eyes, Natsu takes aim...
Classes are done with for the day, that much is clear looking at the reddening sky.
But just becuase classes are finished doesn't mean that students aren't still in the Main Hall. Especially with a school like Gorin, where even normal classes have athletic implications. And Brett Neuer was staying after hours not for tutoring, but for strategy sessions regarding an upcoming game. And even if his (or even his whole line's) contribution wasn't the most complex cog in the machine of Gorin's Ice Hockey team, being aware of what they should be prepared for was alawys important, and Brett was nothing if not dedicated. He was near obsessive far as learning his assignments, without complaint.
Only just coming out of the Hall finally after that long strategy session, the young winger waved to the others through the doors before hopping off the deck onto the pathway leading out.
It was only when he came around the corner that he spotted Natsu. "Ah, Ayuhara!" he calls out...before his expression narrows before turning toward the direction she had been staring. "Huh? What's going..."
COMBATSYS: Natsu has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Rocket has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Natsu 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Rocket
COMBATSYS: Brett has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Brett 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Rocket
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/-------|
And... bombs away! Natsu doesn't notice Brett until well -after- she lobs the volleyball straight at the Rocket's inlines. No spikes, no sound to signal the attack -- just a good hard lob!
COMBATSYS: Natsu successfully hits Rocket with Jikkon Serve.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-------|====---\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
If Rocket has one Achilles heel, it's probably her love of music. Even on a mission like this one - one requiring awareness and discretion - she's got those headphones on her head, blaring something loud and fast by Slick Shoes. If she were asked why, she'd probably say that it helps her focus and get the job done faster. However, whether or not that's true, it certainly doesn't help her ability to detect sneak attacks.
On the other hand, her Achilles heel might just be the back wheel of her right rollerblade, as when Natsu's volleyball sails out of nowhere to crash into it, Rocket does a near cartwheel, spraypaint going everywhere just as she's doing the finishing touches on her tag. The cans go clattering off in different directions as Rocket lands hard on her shoulder.
"Ow! Son of a mother fucker!" she yells in English, still not in the habit of making abrupt exclamations in Japanese yet. She quickly shoves herself back to her feet unsteadily, turning her head toward the direction the ball came from.
"Which one of you threw that? Totally rude!" she calls out, before skating up and giving the ball a punt back in the direction of the two Gorin students.
Of course, kicking a ball in rollerblades is a little awkward, so her aim may be a bit less than karmic...
Natsu hasn't even pulled her -own- headphones off -- at least, not until after Rocket shouts and she realizes she can't hear a dang thing. ... Which is probably good, because she'd start cursing in English too. It's rad.
Remedying the problem, she stuffs the earbuds back in her duffel bag and starts closing the distance to Rocket. "I did! And you darn well deserved it... you!" She emphasizes the point by pointing a finger dramatically at the skater!
And... it's at this point that she realizes the horrid result of her flinging a volleyball at Rocket in the midst of her painting -- spray paint even -more- places, diffuse though it may be. She grimaces at the display, but... notices Brett all of a sudden. When did he -- oh right. Couldn't hear. "Heads up, Neuer!"
But now that Natsu's got the initial rage of vengeance out of her system, she pulls another volleyball out of her bag. "Now then! Would you mind terribly if we asked you to -clean up your mess- before going home tonight, hmmmmm?!"
She's not thinking the answer's going to be a good one.
COMBATSYS: Natsu focuses on her next action.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-------|=====--\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Rocket successfully hits Brett with Thrown Object.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/------=|=====--\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
Turning to see someone doing...something to the school's crest, Brett furrowed his brow. But it's only until one of Natsu's volleyball's crash into the interloper, sending her heads over heels and tossing her psryapaint everywhere, that he realizes what's going on. "H-hey....what are you doing to our wall?" he asks, rather harried. He notices the unknown girl speaking English rather than Japanese, which is....well, something that'd lead into another thought before he whipped his head back to Natsu, her shout to him having the complete OPPOSITE effect of what she had to have intended.
"Huh?" As he turned his head back to his classmate, the volleyball sailed toward him, beaning him hard in the back of the head and nearly sending him reeling in the same way that the other skater did.
To his credit, Brett doesn't pitch over at the hit...but as he pulled himself back upright after the hit, his expression is...well, different. "What was that for...." he almost growled, before breaking into a dash after the intruder, trying to knock her down with the butt of his stick.
COMBATSYS: Rocket just-defends Brett's Weapon Jab!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/------=|======-\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
Rocket's arms and legs have some faint patches of paint from where the mist settled after her tumble. She pulls her own headset down around her neck to be able to hear the response from Natsu. She responds by raising a fist toward the girl before slapping her other hand into the crook of her elbow - a rude, if somewhat archaic gesture, which may or not be recognized. Her words, this time in Japanese, leave little question as to her intent, though.
"Sure, I'll clean this up just as soon as you kiss my - whoa!"
The cyan-haired girl actually seems a bit surprised at how cleanly the ball strikes Brett in the head, and she covers her mouth with her hands. Whether she's suddenly remorseful or stifling a laugh isn't clear, but when Brett comes after her, she's quick to bring her hands down to catch the butt of the stick, shoving herself out of the away.
"That was for not ducking fast enough, buddy!" she yells at him before attempting to sweep one of Brett's feet out from under him with a leg while rolling past him.
Natsu isn't -that- well-versed in her coarse language, other than what she might've seen in movies ... but she can read body language and tonal variation just fine. And while Rocket may seem mad... Natsu's temper can flare just as hot.
The hotheaded volleyball player is tempered just a bit by seeing Brett get nailed by her own weapon of choice, mouth agape. "Th... that's low!" ... And then she has to stop and wonder if Rocket is even -mad- after seeing her cover her mouth. But then she sees him take another swing at her friend, and... well, there went her doubts.
"You're not getting out of here now, whoever you are!" shouts Natsu, stuffing the volleyball back in her duffel. No sense in giving the girl more ammo... Rushing up, she tries to wrap her arms about Rocket, hoping to snag her in a headlock so she can talk some sense into the girl!
COMBATSYS: Brett blocks Rocket's Fast Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
Well, that's troubling. Brett was sure he had put in enough force to at least knock the girl down, but she caught it like nothing. And her taunting isn't exactly helping very much either. It's a good thing he's not so dull at this point as to be caught off his feet so easily, the attempted sweep mostly tweaking the leg, but able to otherwise stay upon his skates as the girl on roller blades tries to glide on by him.
It takes only a quick hockey stop to arrest his attempt to pursue her afterwards, however. He was ready to go after her and really show her how much force he could put behind something, but with Natsu trying to headlock her, he's not so bullheaded as to bowl right into both of them. He may get intense when he puts his 'game face' on, but he's not THAT frenzied....
COMBATSYS: Brett takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Rocket blocks Natsu's Medium Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-----==|=======\==-----\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/------=|
As Natsu gets closer to her, Rocket's eyes shift slowly upward. The volleyball player's got the better part of a foot on her. She's a little distracted by the fact - enough to result in Rocket getting an arm locked around her head.
"Hey, shove off! I'm just the messenger here!"
She manages to slip out the back of Natsu's headlock, thanks in part to her more diminuitive stature, dropping down to her hands and skates between the two student athletes. Then, planting her palms and half-flipping forward abruptly, she spins her legs in a circle, kicking out in a breakdance-style attack aimed to send the two flanking her off-balance.
"And I'm getting out of here!"
Her skates flash with chi energy, taking on a heated edge as she spins, before aiming to finish the forward motion and take off on her wheels with the momentum boost from the flip.
COMBATSYS: Natsu endures Rocket's Orbit Breaker.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-----==|=======\==-----\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/----===|
"Messenger?!!" shouts Natsu in response. The notion that this isn't even just -random- desecration of the five ringed monument, but -intentional- placement, just got her even more mad! "Who -sent- you then!?" Sure, maybe if Natsu hadn't interrupted her in the -first- place, she wouldn't have had to ask.
But even still, why shout when she's RIGHT THERE? Because this is Natsu, and anger control is something reserved for fifteen seconds from now!
But Natsu doesn't have long to dwell on this though, as the smaller girl is able to slip out of her grip. Maybe Natsu didn't learn how to SLAM from SLAMFEST after all... or maybe she didn't -really- want to hurt Rocket after all. Whatever the case, with Rocket declaring her intention to escape, Natsu hops back and reaches for the ball in her duffel...
... Juuuuust managing to get her fingers wrapped around it before Rocket sweeps her legs out from under her. "NNgh..." She hits the ground hard on her left shoulder, but with her right hand still having a firm grip on the ball, she lob the ball at Rocket's shoulder, hoping to at least vent -some- of her anger. Starting to push herself back to her feet, she looks over: "Neuer... are you okay?" Noting his skates, and the fact that there's almost no way the volleyballer can match Rocket's, she urges him: "Go catch her, she's getting away!"
COMBATSYS: Rocket successfully hits Brett with Orbit Breaker.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/--=====|=======\===----\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/----===|
Unfortunately for Brett, his hanging back proves to be a mistake, as when the interloper flips over and starts to spin out with her legs extended, the hockey kid ends up taking the brunt of it, kicked repeatedly, then flipped off of as the skater tries to get away.
Looking a little haggard now after getting knocked around, the hockey kid only manages to get a vague sense that Natsu's concern and following order is directed toward him. Gritting his teeth, he manages to get his skates back in underneath him before dashing after her. While she has the speed advantage and the head start, he tries to make up the distance with the reach of his stick, trying to smack his stick across the skater's leg, then hook her down with the blade of it.
COMBATSYS: Natsu successfully hits Rocket with Thrown Object.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/--=====|=======\=====--\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Rocket parries Brett's King's End!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/--=====|=======\======-\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 0/-------/---====|
Well, it's not like there's supposed to be any secret about who sent Rocket here. Or at least, there's not supposed to be any secret which school she's here representing. On the other hand, Daigo might not want his name dropped, and why should she tell Natsu anything anyway??
"I'm a messenger for Gedo!" she yells over her shoulder, "And the message is that Gedo owns Gorin!"
She turns around to skate backward, about to stick out her tongue to taunt petulantly when another ball sails out of the air and clips her shoulder, causing her to bite her tongue.
"Thuck!"
It's at this point that Rocket realises Brett is gaining on her with his own skates. When the stick comes out to try and hook her legs, she springs into the air, jumping over the swipe and aiming to land on Brett's shoulders. "Nothing personal but I don't wanna stick around!" If she manages it, she'll try and stun him by lashing with an elbow pad before throwing her body backward to try and take him down.
Gedo owns Gorin? ... Well, that's not very nice. Gritting her teeth, Natsu hefts the duffel bag back onto her shoulder. "I..."
Times like this, it's rough being Natsu. Because she -has- started to calm down... and there's a big part of her that just wants to let Rocket go on about her business. She's on the run, she can't spray paint anything damaging -now-, and there's not much Natsu plans to do other than simply restrain her until the cops come.
But the girl's dissing GORIN. The school she LOVES.
It's a tough line to cross... but Natsu is going to take the high road now. Her cheeks are more than a little red from the fading rage, but she does manage to keep a handle on it... until she sees Rocket continuing her assault on her friend.
"I'm going to say this once, then, Miss Gedo... You've got five seconds to stop -telling- us you're leaving and just GO!" Reaching into her duffel for one more ball... the barely-restrained volleyballer's aura is raging hot, and it's pretty clear she can make good on that threat.
COMBATSYS: Natsu takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/--=====|=======\======-\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Brett interrupts Rocket Rana EX from Rocket with Hurricane Check EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 1/-------/=======|
There's a clear sense of frustration with Brett, as he finds himself taunted and smacked about by the skater, and his attempts to grab the skater on her escape keeps getting knocked aside. It makes him look extremely foolish, and while he only is vaguely familiar with Gedo, the fact that this is a strike against his school, and he's not able to do much about it just makes him even madder.
And then the skater hops up on his shoulders as his attempt to hook at her ends up with even more mockery, if not necessarily of the verbal kind. While Natsu seems to be calming down, Brett only heats up all the more, and when Rocket ends up on his shoulders, it gets to the boiling point. The elbow smacks his head, but when she tries to pull him over, he turns around, freeing his head as he spirals around. Before she lands, his stick slams outward, ramming the full weight of his body into her as he spins around, catching her in mid air. "Finally.....caught....you...." he growls a little, huffing.
The stick check from Brett catches Rocket almost completely off-guard, driving the wind right out of her as she's struck across the midsection. She seems to crumple a little, rolling away to the side on back. Turning her head to look at Brett, she holds her middle, breathing in deeply, a bit of a dazed expression on her face.
"H-hey... you're not... from around here either, are you?"
There is perhaps an odd lack of anger in her expression at the violent exchange, at least for a moment. Then, when Natsu's voice calls out to warn her off, she blinks abruptly and starts scrambling to get up onto her skates. At this point, things are looking bad for her if she sticks around - she's a little wobbly on her wheels and still holding her ribs as she starts trying to skate away, casting a glance over her shoulder.
"Fine! My work here's... done anyway!"
COMBATSYS: Rocket gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>-\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 1/-------/=======|
Natsu walks towards Brett and Rocket. Okay, walks is a bit too soft. Marches. Treads. Stalks. One of those. She's angry, kay?
But she can see that Rocket's not half as mad as she is. Perhaps that's fear. Perhaps it's a lack of disbelief over what's going on.
"Look. There are two people here, fully willing to beat the stuffing out of you. You... have seen better days. And me? I don't know if I can -stop- myself if you don't get your sorry butt back to Gedo." Her fingers are putting some serious stress on the volleyball, to prove her point.
"And that's not even counting my friend here, so. Your time's up!"
And in case there's any doubt that Natsu is serious, the amazonesque volleyball player raises the ball high. "Gedo needs to stay on their own turf!"
COMBATSYS: Natsu takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Brett 0/-------/-======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>-\1 Rocket
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 1/-------/=======|
Glowering down at Rocket, Brett seems to take some time just heaving in and out, watching her roll after his Hurricane Check. It's only when she starts to ask about him not being around that he starst to calm down. He's not really a violent boy at heart, after all. Just...once he gets in that zone, it's hard for him to come out, and especially if his friends are put down or in trouble. THat's just the kind of boy he is, and being unable to pick up his part of the slack compared to Natsu similarly just drove him further into that zone.
So once he actually got in a hit, and sees the skater vulnerable and conceding, he calms down enough to sigh, and clutch his head in one hand. Looking over to Natsu, he lets her take the slack far as confronting the skater. After all, she seems to be the one on the know on anything between Gorin and Gedo. Instead, he looks at the graffiti that the girl already managed to leave and sighs. That's going to take some time to clean up, isn't it?
It isn't exactly fear that's in Rina's eyes as she looks over her shoulder at Natsu. After all, she's the type to skate into rush hour traffic under the right circumstances. It's more of a thoughtful one, as if she's deeply considering the situation. Which, really, may be even more unusual for Rocket. She doesn't taunt them or run her mouth.
Once she's fairly certain that neither Natsu nor Brett are going to pursue her further, she just turns and starts skating away at full tilt. She's not having second thoughts about her actions. Technically, if anything, she's having first thoughts. But for now, it's time to report back to Daigo and inform him of her success.
COMBATSYS: Rocket has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Brett 0/-------/-======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Natsu 1/-------/=======|
Log created on 20:15:36 11/18/2014 by Natsu, and last modified on 08:16:45 11/19/2014.