Match of the Millennium

Description: Beneath the hot lights of the SLAMFEST Main Arena, the skillful capoeirist Aranha faces the swift ninja, Kasumi in round one of SLAMFEST 2020. Kicks, SLAMs, and elbow strikes a plenty punctuate the fast battle between two veteran fighters.

COMBATSYS: [Juelz Santana - The Second Coming] It starts out with an orchestra playing a sample of Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique as an intro with hip hop beats in the background. As Aranha walks out to the ring, this particular version of the song skips directly to the second verse. "We tired of being runners up, we coming up | We ready for whatever you put in front of us | Blood, sweat and tears, yeah | We dripped all three just to get here" So glorious! -- ARANHA is Ready to SLAM!

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Aranha           0/-------/-======|

[ARANHA]
It begins with an orchestral introduction. Then the bell tolls. The orchestra continues playing with the bell occasionally ringing and hip hop styled beats playing under it to give the classical song a bit of an urban touch. And that's when an athletically built, African American steps out from the entrance and strolls barefoot to the ring.

As he makes his way to the arena, he nods his head to the beat as rap lyrics continue to play on the sounds system.

By the time he gets to the ring, the rap song is at the hook. He hops up on the apron and then the top turnbuckle. From there, he delivers a high side kick and holds it out there for a few moments to show off his flexibility and balance. He then hops down and brings himself into a one handed handstand before moving to his corner.

So glorious, victorious
We take what we want, we born warriors (Ay!)
So glorious, victorious
We take what we want, we born warriors (Ay!)
If you fall, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you drop, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you fall, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you drop, get up and try it again...

With that, the music fades out from the sound system as Aranha himself gets himself ready to fight.

COMBATSYS: [Yin Yang Twins - Dangerous] "WOO HOO HERE SHE COME / Watch out boys, she'll chew you up... / She's dangerous... / DANGEROUS!" It's a stone groove that echoes over the overheads when the kunoichi steps up. KASUMI is ready to SLAM!

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Aranha           0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
Once more to the Epicenter of Wrestling, the Mugen Tenshin exile travels. No stranger to the awe and spectacle of SLAMFEST herself, the young ninja's prior experience in the Ultimate Wrestling Event was a back hallway brawl with one Rock Howard, a match that spawned a tsunami of shipping delusions and dreams of overly imaginative fight fans.

This time around, she's to make an appearance in the Ring of Destruction itself, the spectacularly ostentatious venue of blindingly bright lights, eardrum thrumming sounds, and a scale of wrestling mania that is unsurpassed throughout the world.

Every time she takes to the public fighting stage, the Azure Kunoichi triggers waves of speculation amid fanatics of the fighting scene. In spite appearing in several high profile events, including the finales of the King of Fighters mega team tournament, she had never once given a post-match interview, maintains no social media presence, makes no attempts to promote her name or brand, and usually vanishes after her bouts without so much as sticking around to receive the accolades she is often due. Attempts by investigative fight journalists to uncover more abou the mysterious Fighting Angel always dead end at the Mugen Tenshin clan of ninjas, a group not likely to divulge the slightest bit of helpful information if the copper-haired young woman truly is from their ranks.

Kasumi strides out onto the walkway approaching the Ring of Destruction, intense spotlights following the quiet nukenin as she moves with confidence toward the grandiose ring itself. Contemporary music thunders from the arrays of speakers, heralding the caramel-brown eyed girl as 'Dangerous', provoking a flicker of bemusement at the edges of her closed mouth. Given her upbringing, exposure to this kind of music hadn't really happened much until she was no longer welcome among her own and to this date, but she had come to appreciate it more since then.

Her gait causes the front and back portions of her ninja dress to sway against her white stocking-clad legs as she passes between the thickly pressed throng of fight fans held back by the double layer of steel fencing. Now and then she partially turns her head to one side or the other, eyes taking in the sight, a calm smile at her lips, but she never truly takes her focus from the ring itself and her thoughts of the match to come. Any opponent has the potential to test her limits. She will not be distracted by the hype of the event.

As she stops at the base of the arena, the spotlights highlight the golden crest on the back of her short-sleeved outfit. It reads simply 'Kasumi' in ornate glyphs. For once, the white band belt around her slender waist does not feature the crimson tasseled wakizashi she wore in prior appearances as she considered the weapon out of place at an event dedicated to the power of unarmed combat.

She looks up, takes in a breath, then lifts her foot as if to step forward - only to vanish, leaving a double helix of swirling cherry blossoms in her absence. She reappears an instant later in the ring itself across from Aranha in a low crouch, a second swirl of those ephemeral pink motes, her ponytail, held in place by a blue ribbon, bouncing against her shoulder as she comes to rest facing the flexible fighter. Her eyes take him in quickly, using her own training to form instant assessments... the visible scars hint at a saga of combat experience and difficult trials. Trials he has survived, proving she faces one not easily intimidated or shaken in his own confidence. Her gaze settles on the scar on Aranha's face before meeting his eyes for a long moment. Truly an opponent who will test her mettle then.

Standing up straight, hands raised to a ready position, palms open, blue shinguard covered feet slipping apart to give her options for movement, her smile warms briefly for Aranha. A slight nod, an indicator of readiness, her heart races as the voice of the announcer fades from her thoughts and the rush of the fight to come washes over her.

[ARANHA]
When his opponent's music comes on, a bit of a nod of appreciation of the song selection comes from him before he sees the opponent before him. Kasumi. Their teams had fought in a King of Fighters but they themselves never matched up due to the prowess of her team mate Ryu Hayabusa who had proceed to take him and then his team mate Walter one after the next.

He has no experience based information on her but because of her fight history, he knew to regard her with caution. Much like her ring music would indicate, she was dangerous and she needed to be treated as such. He takes a deep breath and performs his own pre-fight analysis. Limb length and overall build information is quickly noted to give preliminary expectations before the fight begins. These would be updated as necessary.

The capoeirista sways side to side in ginga as he waits for the official to start the fight and when the signal is given, Aranha goes straight out the gates, launching himself at the kunoichi with a roundhouse engulfed in blue energy, quickly following up with a glowing jumping roundhouse, before taking the momentum of the kick to turn him around as well as generate the power to perform a flip kick that would ideally slam down upon his opponent's head with a bit of enhancement from his chi as well.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi blocks Aranha's Aggressive Dance.

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Aranha           1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
The Azure Shinobi watches as Aranha sways back and forth, his body in a continuous state of complex motions made to look easy by the skill with which he maintains the ginga. She knows better than to discount the expertise demonstrated by the dance-like stance, however, her earlier smile giving way to a tight-lipped, focused study of every move her opponent makes. Versed in the fighting arts of the globe, she knows to anticipate leg-based strikes from a capoeirist. But even that assumption can't be trusted to the absolute.

He close in an instant, no instant of time wasted, no chance to gain advantage in the bout spared. She responds in turn, stepping in, bringing her left arm up and forcing her forearm forward, taking the first roundhouse on the rich blue armguard protecting her there, a soft grunt escaping her mouth at the force of the impact, even abated as it is by her block. She twists, catching the next kick early with her right arm before it can achieve its full potential momentum, before stepping into a spinning step, slipping around the slamming flip kick to position herself better in fluid blend of defense and offense.

That he so early moved in close to the ninja shows initiative and confidence, but it's also the range at which she has trained to be the most effective, the range at which her own intense speeds can be plied to her advantage. Another step to the side is taken as Kasumi maintains her momentum, kicking off with her rear foot to launch into a forward flip.

Perhaps inspired by the latter part of Aranha's opening combination, the girl in blue and white snaps her right leg forward as she spins out of the flip, aiming to drop right onto Aranha's shoulder with her own crushing flip kick.

Whether it connects or he manages to defend against it, however, she vanishes before fully committing to her splits landing, a swirling vortex of blossoms left with the lingering scent of cherry. The rush of wind might be his only warning as Kasumi surges in from Aranha's right out of no where, pouring her momentum into her arms as she draws close, drawing her hands together, then slamming them outward, wrists pressed against each other as she aims to deliver a stunning double hand palm strike to the capoeirist's ribcage a few inches below his right arm!

COMBATSYS: Aranha interrupts Tenrai Kyaku Chifu from Kasumi with Bad Beat.

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Aranha           1/-----==/=======|===----\-------\0           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
By slipping around the back flip kick, Kasumi may have put Aranha in slightly better position than he was expecting to be. Instead of having to perform a full 180 degree turn to face the ninja, he just had to just a little bit less which in turn gave him just a little bit more time to react. As Kasumi flips forward to perform a flip kick of her own. Aranha steps forward to meet her at the point of landing with an elbow to her face while her thigh lands on his shoulder, sapping the kick of it's force. He would kick her leg from under her while she was in this compromised position but she disappears in ninja fashion. He becomes a sitting duck until he does feel that gust of wind as he turns to meet a surging Kasumi with a second elbow just as the double palm strike glances off of his torso. Before she can fully draw the double palm strike back, he drops down to one leg and grabs the back of her knees while driving his shoulder into her thigh to take her feet from under her as he performs what the MMA community would call a double leg takedown.

As soon as the kunoichi is on the ground, the capoeirista lets go of the legs and backs off. Capoeira isn't known for its ground game.

[KASUMI]
Aranha proves quite well the trheat he poses in close quarters combat as he matches Kasumi's rapid attacks every step of the way. The exchange would play out so quickly that the audience would only be privy to the slight pauses - the moment the back of Kasumi's athletic leg hits Aranha's shoulder with far less force than her heel would have delivered. The elbow to her face may have left her staggered long enough to take her leg out from under her if not for her commitment to seeing the attack through, vanishing and dashing back in for a second strike, clearly intending to use it to make up for the only partially executed initial attack.

Another crack of bone on flesh echoes out as her strike glances off in exchange for the stunning elbow that lands cleanly. The Azure Shinobi attempts to correct, arms snapping back, legs tensing - retreat is in order, a chance to reevaluate, to try another approach after her vision clears from the dazing hits...

But Aranha has none of that as the young woman's feet are slammed out from beneath her and she's left with nothing but empty air and the eventual impact against the mat, arms at her sides, fingers splayed to partially catch the fall as she bounces once then comes to only a split second of rest.

The pain in her cheek is something she can ignore for now, no stranger to the injuries one can rack up in hand to hand combat, but the combined defense and offense of Aranha has established him every bit an opponent requiring her best efforts and she leaves no time to recover from his smoothly executed if painfully delivered takedown.

Sitting up quickly, pressing off with her arms into a stand, she's rushing forward back on Aranha in an instant. From a couple yards away, she ducks lower, lunging in, closing the last bit of distance significantly faster than the first half, hands snapping out, seeking a tight grip on Aranha's shoulders, seeking to vault up and over him, getting a secure enough hold that she can whip herself down around his left side, feet leading the way before twisting herself up onto his shoulders with her knees, facing the same direction as him.

If a tight enough squeeze can be applied with her knees, the Mugen Tenshin exile can simply continue right on through with her momentum, whipping herself backward, arms raised to catch herself while attempting to hurl Aranha off toward the ropes of the Ring of Destruction (Ropes of Destruction?) while she quickly pushes back up to her feet as well. It's overly sensational for the overall potential impact and the high risk nature of the technique, but what's SLAMFEST without a little showing off?

COMBATSYS: Kasumi successfully hits Aranha with Audacious Slam.

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Aranha           1/---====/=======|===----\-------\0           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
Of all the things Aranha was expecting, a flashy throw like that was not one of them. The ninja clasps her leg around him and with combination of technique and momentum, he ends up getting launched towards the rope his legs getting tangled within them. It hurt but he could feel his body slowly working to recover. It probably would work faster if he wasn't still fighting.

It takes a couple seconds to extract his feet from the ropes before he performs a kip up to bring himself back to his feet. He goes back into ginga as a way to sort of mentally reset himself and then he dances his way back into close range. Once there, he attempts to grab her by the torso and rush her towards the rope before utilizing the bounce back to provide additional momentum to slam her on the ground.

Strategically, it wasn't exactly a great idea and he acknowledged that. He still at least had to put on a decent show and give a nod to the organization allowing him to compete here.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi full-parries Aranha's Rebound Throw!!

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|======-\-------\0           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
Rolling up out of her landing, Kasumi is on her feet and ready as Aranha dashes forward to return the wrestle-inspired favor. Arms up, hands open, the reddening on her cheek betrays the point of impact of the man's precision elbow strikes delivered in the instants in time she provided him. But her eyes are sharp, her focus no less intense, and her breathing steady.

When he drops back into his stance, that swaying, ever moving rhythm that leaves him able to defend or attack from so many angles, she stands her ground for a fleeting moment of respectful caution. While she is familiar with his art, it isn't as prevalent in the East as elsewhere in the world, and her chances to face it in direct combat have been limited. Now that she's observing it for herself in person, she can only better appreciate the intricacies of his art.

Whether she was still debating on how to close distance or had already made up her mind on how to approach, she isn't given the chance when Aranha utilizes his dance to move in closer before finally going on the offense.

Perhaps as swept up in the grappling sensation of SLAMFEST every bit as his shinobi opponent, he goes for a hold with hopes that it will turn into a successful slam. But he'll find the young woman harder to get a hold of than that in spite his earlier successes, as his reach nearly connects with her torso, she spins fast to the left... and right out of sight once again, once more leaving him with a swirl of lightly scented blossoms in her wake.

"Behind you," he'll her voice for the first time - soft yet strong, conveying a hint that her vigor for combat has nothing to do with sadistic joys of inflicting pain but rather the thrill of the challenge, the test of speed, skill, strength, to be tested by those equal or better than her in the arts.

She wouldn't come from behind him even though for an instant he might have sworn she was there. A deception? Or truth only for an instant?

It's his left side this time that she targets, closing in on him in a flash, a vacuum of wind closing in behind her as she seeks to grab hold of him with her outstretched hands, slender yet strong fingers gripping tightly, allowing her to carry her momentum into a rapid series of kicking stomps right up Aranha's side before vaulting herself into the air.

She's gone again, another teleport, blossoms swirling down around Aranha from above as Kasumi reappears on his left side again, this time diving down with the speed of lightning, attempting to smash into and past him with a thunderous elbow strike, all of her momentum poured into the blow!

COMBATSYS: Kasumi successfully hits Aranha with Oboro Zukiyo EX.

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|=======\-------\1           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
Aranha hears her say she's behind him. Being a skeptic, he doesn't trust that her initial words. She's obviously not going to come in from the front so he's narrowed it two locations that she'll come from. He chooses to turn right which ironically enough, puts her right behind him making those words inadvertently prophetic. Instead of his left, he ends up receiving those stomps to the back. The teleport seems almost unnecessary as he's sent stumbling before the elbow ends up connecting with his back. The force ends up sending him face down to the ground.

He pops off the ground by elevating himself into a handstand, facing Kasumi as he marches on his hands towards her. From there, he rains down a flurry of snap kicks upon her in an attempt to keep her off balance and maybe apply some pressure on her before he tilts out of it and into a crouch.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi guards against Aranha's Inverted Flurry.

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Aranha           1/=======/=======|=======\=------\1           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
Kasumi's slide to a stop is accompanied by the sway of her dress, the whip of her ponytail, the fall of her ribbons, the young woman in a forward lunging posture, body twisted at the waist, her feet far apart, maintaining perfect balance, as everything finally comes back to rest in the aftermath of her breakneck fast combination assault.

As aggressive and dangerous as the attack was, she poured so much into it that at the end, she's left defenseless for a precious second, her back toward her opponent, every muscle in her body only just beginning to relax after the stress placed on them.

When she finally recovers out of her leaning posture to whirl around, Aranha has already closed in. Kasumi's eyes widen slightly. Handstand attacks are no strange concept to those who strive to master the shadow arts, but being able to close distance so quickly on one's hands is a skill she'd yet to see in person before.

She's almost left uncertain as to the direction his next strike might come from once he's in range and the speed at which he's able to kick out of it tries her trained reflexes. But Kasumi of the Mugen Tenshin isn't merely a highly trained prodigy, she's also a proven champion, and a tested survivor. Remembering that she had decided to expect his attacks to come from his legs, she draws her arms up at the last second, his blows slamming against her wrist guards with enough force to rattle her all the same and push her into retreating a step, then a second as she shifts her block slightly to account for the strange angle.

When she finally slips away far enough to be safe from further attack, she releases a soft gasp, her arms aching as she lowers them, shaking her hands in a brief moment of reprieve as if to work out some of the numbness pounded into them just now.

There is a fleeting smile, there then gone again in a moment, as she also takes a moment to take in precious breaths. But then she's back on the offense, leaning forward, attempting to close distance without being kicked for her trouble. Her next attack is more of a probing strike, her left foot planting, her right leg snapping forward, attempting to plant a strong blow in Aranha's stomach whether or not he's managed to upright himself yet!

COMBATSYS: Aranha fails to interrupt Short Kick from Kasumi with Sky's the Limit ES.

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|=======\=------\1           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
Aranha had intended to keep up the pressure. Between the fact that he was snapping down kicks with speed and utilizing positioning to make dealing with the kicks harder in practice than it should be to those looking at the fight as an observer. And from what the experienced capoeirista could see, he had her. For just an instant, he had her reacting just the way he wanted with exact timing he wanted and it was something inside of her that just barely moved her arms just where they needed to be and the opportunity was lost.

The moment she's back on offense, he tries to press the offense. Letting her sit back and defend hasn't been working for him and the only thing he's done that had any bit of success was attacking her at the point of attack and not giving her a chance to defend against him. It was an act of desperation but he leaps towards the rope just as she begins the motion for the kick. His timing this time is a bit off and gets caught with a foot to the gut. It was only his positioning from when he came out of delivering the handstand kicks that put him in a location where Kasumi couldn't get full extension on the kick.

That being said, Kasumi didn't need full extension to get him good with that kick.

[KASUMI]
Her foot connecting, moves with the momentum of her forward snap kick, leg bending at the knee as she retracts the strike, left foot planted firmly on the mat of the ring as she returns to standing. There is no mistake in her mind that she narrowly avoided getting caught by a strong, retaliatory attack, but fights at this level are made of instants like those - the slightest advantage of an accurate anticipation, the painful drawback of a misread, the ebb and flow of battle is a continuous wave of those moments that will ultimately determine the outcome.

A held breath is released, a short sound as she takes in another breath, then repeats the cycle, careful to maintain her pacing as a bead of sweat rolls down her cheek from her temple. For a moment, she is painfully cognizant of the heat of the lamps overhead, of the tension in the room, of the eyes around the world on her every moment, but with a blink and quick shake of her head, she dismisses all such distractions.

Only two people exist in this world - the capoeirist and herself. No one else matters, no one else exits. Surging back into the offense, she closes in with that same aggressive speed she's demonstrate whenever the Azure Shinobi is on the move.

She's seeking his left arm this time, fingers attempting to secure a grip so that she can pull him backward off balance... only to vanish once again, surging back in from further than he might expect, all forward momentum devoted to an elbow seeking her opponent's sternum in that brief instant where she hopes to have unbalanced his guard.

COMBATSYS: Aranha dodges Kasumi's Senpu.

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|=======\==-----\1           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
The shinobi's hands find nothing but air as the capoeirista snatches his hand away from her grip. Then she disappears. He's not exactly at the point where he's exactly used to the teleporting, but he's seen enough that he knows vanishing is the vanguard of an attack that he wants no part of. He decides against guessing whether to turn forward, behind, left, or right. He decides to go down. His evasion is flashy and showcases that flexibility that he put on display before the fight began. He drops into a split. The telltale gust of wind gives her position away. He presses himself up into flip with a twist to reorient himself to face Kasumi.

He then stomps the ground before throwing his entire bodyweight into a powerful side kick.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi counters Big Boot from Aranha with Sakura Madoi Hoshin EX.

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|==-----\-------\0           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
Fingers clasp tight through empty air, but her mind is made up, the young woman stepping into another teleport, a scattered array of cherry blossoms swirling in the air in front of Aranha as he ducks low, anticipating her follow up strike. She launches past him, her elbow strike smashing through the air over his head. Even leaning forward, aiming for a mid-level strike as she is, his ability to slip beneath her is enough to escape the attack.

She slides to a stop, feet finding their grip on the mat after another yard of distance, air rushing in behind her to fill the void created by her aggressively fast passing. This time her recovery from aggression is faster, the young woman whirling, cloth and hair whipping through the air with the sudden movement as she returns to face Aranha.

It's close - for those watching, Kasumi seems to almost turn her face right into his kick, promising a devastating impact considering the power he put into it. But there is that age old trade off in martial arts - the trade of speed given away for power - and in this case, she is able to capitalize on that trade.

Hands come up, fingers closing over his leg as it smashes out toward her. But rather than finding impact, the Azure Ninja uses the limb to vault herself up as if hurling herself over a ledge, legs kicking out, right leg leading with the initial impact toward the side of the fighter's head. Her left leg snaps out secondly to deliver a follow-up blow right after as she attempts to slam Aranha back down onto his back, landing with him, one foot hitting the mat, the other pressed against his chest hard.

She'd push off then into a backflip, aiming to land a couple yards away on her feet and giving him time to rise. It's less an act of leniency and more one of caution - every fighter worth their mettle knows how to punish those who stay too close while they recover.

[ARANHA]
The capoeirista isn't able to do anything defend against her doing parkour on his own extended leg. The first kick staggers him, the second kick floors him, and by the time the foot ends up pressed into his chest, it's just insult to injury at that point.

He slowly rises to his feet as he gets an unpleasant sense of deja vu from this fight. Her former team mate Ryu Hayabusa stymied his offense in a similar fashion. The only difference was that he did so /faster/. He takes a moment to shake off the heavy blows before letting himself reset in that dance.

Strategy has failed him. So he does something so desperate, so uncharacteristic, that he can only hope that element of surprise might allow him to make an impact.

He drops into a three point stance for just a moment and then he launches himself at the kunoichi shoulder first into her abdomen in order to spear her, lift her up and drive her into the ground *HARD*.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi full-parries Aranha's Flying Bulldog!!

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Aranha           1/--=====/=======|====---\-------\0           Kasumi

[KASUMI]
After the punishing counter attack, momentum certainly seems to be going the shinobi's way. Landing on her feet, having shaken off the numbness in her arms, and biting back the sting of pain in her cheek, her senses are firing at peak capacity, her body moving with the speed of thought in response to each attack. After a grueling dance of advance and retreat, of attack and defense, of risk and reward, it just might take a big surprise to catch the young woman flat footed.

But she'd already pushed back thoughts of the crowd, of the cameras, of the heat and lights, the roar of cheers, and the thunder of the commentary pounding through the speakers. Centered in her techniques, she fights with a zen-like calm now, though tested as she has been with the back and forth battle. In this state, it would take more than a reckless gambit to topple her or shatter her control.

A breath is taken in as Aranha charges, abstaining from his traditional art for a moment, perhaps swept up in the spirit of SLAMFEST in its entirety, going for a bold, audaciously strong charge and slam. And then she moves, spinning out of the way with the same grace she seemed to bring to nearly every movement.

She winds up, legs bending, allowing Aranha's momentum to carry him past... before she lunges, like a spring released, uncoiling as she launches herself after him, a leaping shoulder slam executed swift and efficiently, leaving herself airborne for just a moment in pursuit of the moment of decisive impact.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi successfully hits Aranha with Suisei Chu EX.

[                           \\\  < >  //////////////////////        ]
Aranha           1/-======/=======|====---\-------\0           Kasumi

[ARANHA]
And not even a wild, reckless charge can find its mark. Kasumi's nigh flawless defense and ability to land attacks almost at will has the traceur/capoeirista on tilt. With no one there to grab, he stumbles off balance before Kasumi is swiftly upon him and from such a vulnerable position, there's nothing the Dancing Spider can do to prevent her from slamming him down. Decisive impact indeed.

The capoeirista lays down on the ground, staring at the lights. He tried to will his body to get up. It refused. Even with his unwanted enhancements, he just couldn't get himself to move. Only thing that would allow him to rectify that situation would be to let it rest. And so he closes his eyes and lets his body do its thing. Recovery was always quicker when he wasn't fighting anyway.

COMBATSYS: Aranha decides that discretion is the better part of valor.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Kasumi           0/-------/---====|

COMBATSYS: Aranha can no longer fight.

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Kasumi           0/-------/---====|

[KASUMI]
She lands lightly, transitioning from a hard shoulder slamming attack to quick, nimble steps as she runs out the momentum of her charge over to the ropes. There she stops, turning around, right hand resting on the top rope as caramel brown eyes take in her opponent thoughtfully. She knew the moment the fight was over, combat veterans have that shared instinct among them.

A soft exhale, a release of tension visible in the way her shoulders fall slightly. Kasumi pushes away from the rope, turning to face Aranha directly, hands clasped in front of her as she bows toward him.

The post-match celebration, the interviews, none of that interests her. She came to be tested by other fighters from around the world and already she found herself feeling further educated on just how creative and varied the styles of fighting can be from regions she had traveled to less in her life.

The bow completed, she turns, vaulting over rope to land on the concrete below with ease, before leaving the arena amidst the fanfare, thoughts consumed by reflecting on what she learned and with anticipation of what yet still is to come.

COMBATSYS: Kasumi has ended the fight here.

Log created on 14:35:33 01/17/2020 by Kasumi, and last modified on 23:55:53 01/17/2020.