Match of the Millennium

Description: After their loss to Wild Things, the members of Shock and Roll get together for an overdue light training session. Blows are exchanged as questions are asked and answered. And what the hell does Coco's themed drink have to do with improving fighting abilities?

[KENZO]
When Ishida wakes up in Shock and Roll Cottage, the designated location Kenzo and Ishida will be residing in for their stay on Zack Island, he will find a note next to his bed saying, 'Meet at the cottage fighting ring. Recommend swim trunks.'

When Ishida gets to said fighting ring, he'll find Kenzo waiting there, wearing swim trunks and the combat specs on his face. He is seated on the drone using it as an improvised chair as he waits for his country man to join him. His feet are bare and his shoes are likely in the drone's storage case.

"Good morning!"

Kenzo stands up and pilots the drone out of the ring he then tosses the remote on a patch of grass close to where the drone landed.

"I figured we should get in a light spar. I prefer that we go a bit lighter than usual during this session. Considering that we don't have a steady food supply, we'll have to tighten our belts a bit and we can't afford to waste a lot of energy on recovery. As we spar, I will ask questions. My goal with that will be force you to multitask and encourage to think on the fly. In addition, it should help you with dealing with distractions."

He then takes his stance with kusari-gama in hand, the weight spinning by his side. His feet are just a bit wider than shoulder width apart and his hips are mostly squared towards Ishida.

"Question one. What does my stance tell you about how I fight?"

COMBATSYS: Kenzo has started a fight here.

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Kenzo            0/-------/-======|

[ISHIDA]
Swim trunks recommended. That's a joke, right? Ishida hadn't been adventurous or anarchistic enough to start a campaign of petty larceny, and crafting his own clothes out of leaves was not -exactly- within his wheelhouse. Accordingly, he's... mostly just been wearing the same thing he has all trip, having only changed into one of the convenient robes long enough to take part in -some- cleaning efforts. His robe has been mended, more or less, from its encounter with Max's claws -- though the damage is somewhat 'kintsugi' in that the black thread used for the repair doesn't quite match the silver grey of the cloth.

"Ohayo gozaimasu," answers Ishida, as he bows formally to his instructor. He kicks out of his shoes before stepping into the fighting ring, a vague look of amusement on this face. Okay, maybe the swim trunks -weren't- a joke after all, he rationalizes, as the chance of getting lobbed into the water is, well, non-zero.

It's growing increasingly difficult to talk about food without getting hungry. Ishida is used to eating a lot, and dwindling food supplies have left him even more laconic than usual. He's... looking a little more gaunt than usual, accordingly.

"Ah... Perfect." He seems to approve of the methodology, at any rate.

He takes a quick glance over Kenzo's form, noting the squared stance.

"I would say that your stance communicates bravado -- while your wide attack profile exposes your front, the twirl of the weight counteracts that simple assumption in showing your readiness to defend against attacks. A static posture that suggests the potential for defense and counterattack."

Ishida isn't one to leave a hint untaken, though. He shifts his feet into one he's shown before -- his left forearm raised, his right forearm parallel to his belt line, both palms open. His feet are -not- squared, but rather at right angles to one another, showing a capacity to move swiftly in a number of directions on demand.

"I look forward to this session, Kuroiwa-senpai," he notes with a grin.

COMBATSYS: Ishida has joined the fight here.

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Kenzo            0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0           Ishida

[KENZO]
"Partially correct."

Though Kenzo doesn't move, yet. He wants to make sure that he points out the parts Ishida got right and the parts he got wrong.

"You're right that it does take a certain amount of bravado. Squared stances do indeed present a bigger target. Depending on where they are keeping their hands for their guard, it can also give you an idea of if they have faith in their head movement or their durability. Also tends to be good at lateral movement."

He turns himself so his side faces Ishida.

"A bladed stance presents a smaller target, is better at moving closer or farther in relation to their opponents but their lateral movements tends to suffer in exchange. I can go into more detail about that when we're not trying to hit each other."

He thinks to himself about how he hasn't even touched on foot placement and what that can say about a fighter. That will be a job for future Kenzo. The ninja shifts himself back into his original stance and lashes out with the weighted chain, aiming to wrap it around his kouhai's leg and mess with his balance by pulling his leg from under him.

"Name a mammal that can't jump!"

COMBATSYS: Ishida blocks Kenzo's Quick Throw.

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Kenzo            1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0           Ishida

[ISHIDA]
Ishida nods quietly as Kenzo clarifies the advantages and disadvantages of the squared stance. He'd remembered some of the points -- though he had not given much thought to movement vectors. That would be good, practical knowledge to keep in mind during a fight.

"I see -- thank you!"

Foot placement -would- be good to know too. But, in Ishida's case, some things just seem to come naturally: as the chain is thrown at him, he steps closer and extends his foot to welcome the weight. The chain chafes against his bare skin - but with the slack he introduces with forward movement, he's able to disentangle himself without too much of a fuss.

"White men.." he states with quiet certainty, showing that he might just be a fan of the early nineties for some reason. "And elephants." He isn't as sure about that one -- but it's clear he's starting to get a feel for the give-and-take of his senpai's teaching style.

That is to say, he's starting to close the distance. He starts in rough, with a dashing one-two punch aimed at battering down Kenzo's guard. He then follows it up by lurching forward in bladed stance. His right forearm crashes out, seeking to line itself up with Kenzo's centerline, while one hand behind as he stomps both feet in a horse stance, for stability. "Hraaaa!"

COMBATSYS: Ishida successfully hits Kenzo with Clean Slate.

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Kenzo            1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0           Ishida

[KENZO]
This exchange ends up demonstrating the points he talked about. He still presenting a bigger target. He attempts to utilize lateral movement to escape the combination. One problem. The movie reference. He lets out a laugh and then just as he is about to side step away but he gets caught and shows the pitfall of the squared stance.

"Elephant is one of them."

Kenzo then decides to see if he can demonstrate a downside of a bladed stance. A susceptibility to leg kicks due to it being harder to check said kicks. He swings a roundhouse to back of the legs.

"What was Coco's signature drink in the first season of the NFG?"

COMBATSYS: Ishida fails to interrupt Strong Kick from Kenzo with The Hard Place.

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Kenzo            1/----===/=======|====---\-------\0           Ishida

[ISHIDA]
When Ishida first started watching fights, banter wasn't really something he'd paid a lot of mind to. The videos never really covered it too much, unless the fighters happened to be wired with lavalier mics. Conversations were just window dressing -- a way for fighters to climb their way to audience appeal more quickly.

What -is- the value of audience appeal though? He'd never really gotten the point. Kasumoto Ichika did just fine with sticking to her core values.

But now -- with Kenzo, someone he knows better and trusts more -- he can start to feel it. To feel the -openness- to experiment, to make an imperfect statement, even if he feels it's the wrong answer. Emboldened by his daring answer, he senses another opportunity and makes his move!

"Pina Collider!" he blurts out, leaning forward to get himself out of harm's way.

The problem is, though -- Kenzo's faster. And that kick slams into his knees before Ishida can unroot himself. Instead of pitching forward, he finds his knees buckling.

Sensing the fall, he leans hard to his left, pivoting off to the side rather than leaving himself -fully- at Kenzo's mercy. But his knees impact the ground before he can manage that, earning a gruff howl from the qigong disciple for the moment before he's able to twist to the side.

"... I think," he stammers. Surely it's -an- attack from Coco -- but her signature? He has some doubts about that, as he plants one foot and twists himself back to standing.

Grimacing from the pain, he holds his hands up. He's ready for another go -- though his bare knees are showing some red scrapes here and there from the contact.

[KENZO]
In a way, the question was a bit unfair. One would have to either be a super fan, lucked into hearing the question on a trivia night, be in the know from being involved with the first season of the NFG, or paying attention to the competitor themed drinks list at Rodrigo's party.

"Zombie Hunter. From when Coco encountered Hawksley after his fight with JD. His face apparently looked zombie-like when they saw each other."

Kenzo shrugs and lets the weight on the chain spin once more before asks the next question.

"Two-part question. A weapon travels along on the ground, glowing with energy and should it make it to the opponent with its path not altered, return to the attacker. Who uses this attack and what is the weapon being used?"

Kenzo doesn't give him a chance to respond, suddenly moving from kick range to up close. Normally he would slash with the sickle when performing this attack but he isn't in the mood to waste a first aid kit resources on a spar. Instead, Kenzo uses the hammer side, specific to his particular kusari-gama to give Ishida a quick strike to the chest.

COMBATSYS: Ishida endures Kenzo's Flicker Edge.

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Kenzo            1/---====/=======|=====--\-------\0           Ishida

[ISHIDA]
Ishida furrows his brow as Kenzo responds to his answer. "... Curious," he says, not really following the train of logic that would allow him to have -obtained- the answer.

He spreads his feet apart just a little, staying light on his feet in case he needs to move. His eyes track Kenzo's motions as he asks his next question.

Ishida is similarly frustrated as Kenzo plumbs the depths of his own encyclopedic knowledge to pull out another piece of fighting trivia. There's a ground attack -- and suddenly, Kenzo's in his face with an attack from his sickle.

The qigong artist does not actually shift his feet, in this case, despite his preparations: he actually leans -into- the sickle strike. It's a subtle change -- one that is unfortunately necessary with the brainpower he's putting into figuring out an answer... And the fact that the sickle is riddling his mind with all those pesky pain impulses. He staggers backwards from the blow, but decides to power through it, delivering an overhand hammer blow from the heel of his palm, aimed at cracking down onto Kenzo's shoulder and staggering him backwards.

"Nagase. Wired charge...?"

He frowns. He isn't sure if that's right -- but that's the best he could do in the allotted time.

COMBATSYS: Kenzo interrupts Kids Wanna Rock from Ishida with Whirling Chain Blitz.

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Kenzo            1/-======/=======|=======\-------\1           Ishida

[KENZO]
Kenzo turns his shoulder as Ishida delivers the hammer blow, using the downward force to rotate himself instead. It still had a bit of oomph so Kenzo will be feeling that later. Almost simultaneously Kenzo uses that rotation to whip the weighted end around at Ishida's shoulder.

"That was not the answer I was looking for."

Kenzo then continues the assault, rapidly whipping the weight from side to side, with the weight traveling in a figure 8 pattern, with all impacts directed to the legs and torso.

"Henry, his targe thrown with back spin so it would roll back."

The assault ends and he takes a step back.

"Make one more attack and answer one more question. The more you take, the more you leave behind. What are they?"

[ISHIDA]
Ishida can feel it when his palm strikes Kenzo -- though, admittedly, it isn't -quite- what he was planning. That leaves him a bit blindsided when the chain's weight suddenly swings up to crack against his shoulder. Despite his physical conditioning, the impact of a leaden weight is -not- something a fighter can easily ignore; the qigong disciple staggers backwards from each of the many successive blows!

Battered backwards, he's delivered an even greater blow when the latest source of Kenzo's trivia happens to have been the first of Ishida's professional matches -- his battle against Henry! Grimacing, he rubs a hand over his shoulder -- the first and most painful of his new collection of bruises. Still suffering the effects of the injuries, as well as the 'swoosh, swoosh' sound so close to his ears, he forces himself to resume the proper -- to his estimation, anyway -- Shaolin stance that he's been striving to master. He was given a moment for a breather, and he intends to make the most of it.

The answers come to him at once. He delivers them in succession.

To the question: "Footsteps." There is a brief smile on his face; his memory helped him with that riddle.

To the opening granted him: Ishida suddenly thunders forward, plowing his elbow towards Kenzo's abdomen! If he lands he'd suddenly unfold that elbow into a forearm smash, before letting his momentum carry him forward into a crushing headbutt. He'd seek to follow that up by raising his heel high, and then dropping it down into a guillotine-like kick!

COMBATSYS: Kenzo blocks Ishida's Fissure King.

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Kenzo            1/-======/=======|-------\-------\0           Ishida

[KENZO]
It happens so quickly. Kenzo stance suddenly becomes more bladed. How did he swap his kusari-gama for his war fan so quickly? His feet go wider for stability by the time initial elbow is delivered. The metal fan opens and intercepts it before it connect with his body. The subsequent forearm smash drives the fan into his chest causing him to take a step back. When the headbutt comes, Kenzo closes the fan and holds it with both hands and uses it as a frame to redirect it away from him by pressing it across Ishida's jaw. The final attack, Ishida's kick, has a lot of power. Kenzo's closed fan catches the foot before it connect and strains against it but then the fan hits his forehead as a testament to the strength of the kick.

Kenzo steps back and wipes the sweat off his brow. He then puts away the fan.

"In terms of fighting, you did a good job. We're still both works in progress, though. What are your thoughts on this training session? Do you have any suggestions or things you want to work on?"

COMBATSYS: Kenzo takes a moment to do absolutely nothing.

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Kenzo            1/-======/=======|-------\-------\0           Ishida

[ISHIDA]
Kenzo's defenses demonstrate his flexibility. Each hit landed by Ishida sends a shudder through his frame, sending up a light spray of perspiration. The power is there -- but the fact that Kenzo is able to stand up to each blow shows the rookie that he still has a lot to learn.

Ishida steps backwards, raising his hands in preparation to continue. He steps into the bladed stance, pacing sideways in an extension of his general approach of staying in motion.

But there is no attack forthcoming to respond to. And the questions asked of him are... Not ones that can be answered quickly.

Ishida seems, in a word: flustered.

He was ready to continue giving rapid-fire answers, engaging in the game of high-speed chess. He was willing to meet the challenges offered him. But ... Kenzo's step backwards suggests a willingness to throw in the towel for this session.

There is a very brief flash of frustration in his expression.
But then Ishida drops his guard.
His nostrils flare, as he accepts the moment to catch his breath before responding.

"I have enjoyed the training session so far. I am... surprised by the number of options available in a battle -- a number of different ways one can respond to each attack."

But, he thinks, there is more. And he'd be foolish to think Kenzo wouldn't be able to recognize that.

"In my fights I have struggled with controlling my pace, versus that of my opponent. I do not know if the way I have handled those shifts has been 'good' or 'bad'. Any advice you could offer would be appreciated."

He holds his ground. For now. Not wanting to strike his mentor without a clear resumption of battle.

COMBATSYS: Ishida takes no action.

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Kenzo            1/-======/=======|-------\-------\0           Ishida

[KENZO]
Kenzo notices the brief flash of frustration in his kouhai's features. Because of that, he wants to address it right away so they're on the same page.

"Normally I would want to go a bit longer too but I don't want to dedicate more resources on recovery than necessary whether it's first aid items or time. Bandages used today could be the bandages we need tomorrow because of an accident or an attack. So I'm going to call our sparring session here."

Kenzo closes his fan and then puts it away with his breathing only slightly altered in comparison to Ishida. In his mind he indeed agrees about the different ways of responding to attacks. A lot of how one would is often narrowed down by physical capability, experiences, and the personal mindset of the people you're facing. But the part he wishes to respond to is the comment on pacing.

"Before I address your concern about controlling your pace, I would like some clarification of what you mean by controlling your pace. Do you mean asserting control over the tempo of the fight so that you force the opponent to fight at your pace or do you mean fighting in a way that you're not as tired? Both things require different approaches."

COMBATSYS: Kenzo has left the fight here.

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Ishida           0/-------/-------|

[ISHIDA]
"Ah..."
Ishida is quick with his initial answer. But it isn't until Kenzo explains his reasoning that the qigong practitioner really understands -why-. And then, finally, he releases that last bit of tension that was keeping him from -truly- relaxing.

The doubt over whether this was another -test-.

Ishida glances down at the ground for a moment, once the question is posed. It is a good distinction to make, he supposes.

His eyes lift to meet Kenzo's; in the same motion, he relaxes his stance into something a bit more casual.

"I feel that I have learned a great deal in the last few battles -- my fatigue is much less of an issue now than it was. My pace, generally, more sustainable."

Here, he laces his fingers together, folding them across his stomach. His thumbs peak, slightly.

"I feel that forcing the opponent to fight at my own pace is, perhaps, more of my current challenge. Max, in particular, attempted to dictate the terms of battle - and in many ways, -succeeded- in that, despite my best efforts."

He frowns, ever so slightly. "I am not quite sure what went wrong there. I felt as if I -should- have been in control of that fight."

[KENZO]
Kenzo nods when Ishida notes that he finds that his current pacing where it relates to fatigue more or less sustainable. He imagines there are fighters that specialize in taking their opponents into deep waters that could be problematic for him. That being said, he doesn't think he's encountered anyone who does. But there are lots of new fighters and the veterans have possibly learned new tricks.

"The bits of advice I can give are not perfect but I hope it can help. Some of what I'm about to say, I've seen you already doing or at the very least looked like you were already doing."

"Sometimes controlling the pace comes down to how good you are at influencing your opponent into reacting to what you're doing the way that you want them to. Conditioning them. Sometimes, it's how good you are on jumping on opportunities when you see them. In some cases, it's identifying their game plan and making it as difficult for them to execute as possible. That being said, there's going to be moments where everything the opponent does keeps you from laying down the necessary groundwork required to control the pace. See my first fight against Buck."

There's a moment before he lets out a laugh. It's clear he doesn't hold the loss against him. He has gone on record saying that Buck has been one of his favorite opponents and continues to be so even with the most recent loss.

[ISHIDA]
Ishida shakes his head. "It is okay. I am only interested in bettering myself."

He knows Kenzo takes his role as mentor seriously -- and even with his fellow countryman's taciturn nature, he could tell that the nin-gineer seemed to have been taking things a little hard after their battle against Buck and Max. Perhaps with a little more time to train -- and a -lot- more resources to encourage the pair to go all-out in training as they had in fighting -- the results may have been different.

Ishida makes a point of listening, though. His compassion can wait until after the lesson, at the very least. He nods, quietly, at the acknowledgement for what he's been able to accomplish.

The qigong student looks fascinated with the idea of not just making things difficult -- but -identifying- the plan. There had been a number of times in his fight with Max in which he was more interested in pinning her down than in -properly- identifying what she planned to do -- specific warnings from Kenzo which he thought he could preempt with speed. It's with humility, then, that his brow furrows slightly.

But he can also smile with Kenzo's candid admission about that first fight with Buck.

"You would consider him... your 'rival,' yes?" He seems a little amused at that. But not *quite* to the point of teasing.

Still -- the thought does bring up a point that he'd been meaning to ask about. "... It is... impressive, that even when he deployed his new tail strike, somehow you seemed prepared for the unexpected."

[KENZO]
Part of the reason Kenzo takes the role seriously is that he's so used to the role of being the student rather than the teacher. There was his original teachers when he was younger, there was also Mint, Zel, and a certain large language model from Ultratech. Now that he's in that role, he doesn't want to mess it up. That being said, he's pretty sure that he already has and is now trying to fix his previously made mistakes.

Of course, due to having brought Buck up, the question whether or not he's a rival comes up. He takes a moment to think about it.

"If there was going to be a rival, I can't think of one I'd prefer. Though I suspect the NFG executives would prefer for the fake to be my rival."

He still refuses to use his name or that ridiculous and false title of his. And honestly he doesn't want to talk about that certain individual any more so Ishida mentioning the new attack that Buck showed off gives Kenzo a welcome out for him.

"It was a new and very painful variant on something I've already seen before. Tails being used in that fashion have things in common with weapons like whips, rope darts, meteor hammers, flails, and even the weighted end of my kusari-gama. There was enough in common that I didn't have to make too much of a leap to deal with it. That said, I'd rather not be on the receiving end of that attack again even if I was able to respond properly to it."

[ISHIDA]
Ishida is fully aware of the man who believes himself to be Kenzo's rival -- which shows in the way he offers a delicate half-smile in regards to the word 'fake.' And no more than that, as the mentor seems willing to move on!

"Ah, yes. You have familiarity with many more weapons than I do, of course." He can't really say 'rope darts' and 'meteor hammers' would have occurred to him as a parallel to a dinosaur's club tail, but... it makes sense once he's in that mindset.

Ishida grimaces slightly, as he takes a look over his wounds. The blood has mostly stopped dripping from his shins; the bruises are starting to turn purple. But, all considered, nothing he can't walk off for now...

"... I suppose a question might be, then -- what helps you determine whether or not to press in on an opponent whose skills are not fully quantified? Maintaining your distance provides the opponent an opportunity to set the pace. What set of conditions should generally be met before one opts to claim initiative by closing the distance?"

[KENZO]
Kenzo glances at the wounds and bruises both given and received. At this point, his stamina has recovered mostly due to using efficiency of technique to prevent fatigue.

When Ishida speaks once again, Kenzo becomes quiet to listen. Even after, Kenzo remains quiet as he thinks about how to answer it. It's not exactly a simple question.

"You gather information. You use probing attacks to see how they'll respond. The way they respond will tell you what range they prefer to operate in and how they intend to keep you there whether it's through footwork, keeping you at a distance with energy or weaponry, taking a hit to give one in return, or attempting to punish you whenever you attempt to move the fight into a range that isn't their preferred range. As far as when to seize initiative, I'd say either when you are confident that you identified what their game plan is and can use it against them or upon identifying an opportunity where the execution of their game plan has gone wrong even if you may not be certain what it is. Never interrupt an enemy when they're making a mistake but do make it worse if they do."

[ISHIDA]
Ishida nods quietly. His relative lack of practical combat experience places him at a considerable disadvantage in some situations. Things he's seen in videos, and movies, have been starting to make more sense for him recently -- but sometimes he just needs a more robust explanation from someone in the know like Kenzo.

"I see... I may have erred in pressing forward against Max too quickly. Having seen her misdirection at work on the Mermaid and in her previous fight against Albert may not have been enough for me to truly understand her."

He scratches his chin. It seems he's mostly 'over' whatever was troubling him, at least.

"Based on your comment during the fight, do you believe that I should have stayed more on the defensive against Max at the start of the fight?"

[KENZO]
Kenzo shrugs. Would he be that aggressive with an opponent? Maybe not one that he doesn't have a lot of info. He can't find it in him to condemn it though.

"Would I go on the offense like that with not much info? Probably not. Can I say that it was the wrong decision? Not really. At the beginning, it was working. And besides, another way to probe for information is to see how they handle aggression."

He looks off to the fighting ring once more before turning back to Ishida.

"I'm not going to ask you to handle things exactly like me. It's unfair to you. The way you attack to obtain information isn't going to be the same way I would."

[ISHIDA]
Ishida nods solemnly. "It does not seem like it would be your style." Very briefly, a grin flashes across his features at the way Kenzo acknowledged of the two fighters' different sensibilities -- that what works for Kenzo wouldn't necessarily have the same results for Ishida. Especially since he doesn't have combat specs -- nor would he necessarily want to abide by their limitations.

"I appreciate that. I do not think I would be able to process things mid-combat as quickly as you. Not for... quite some time, anyway."

Ishida glances over at the pool. And laughs, somewhat hesitantly.

"Perhaps we should get cleaned up? If we are... conserving energy, a dip in the water might be good. Or we could see how the others are doing..."

Log created on 20:07:40 07/09/2024 by Kenzo, and last modified on 10:29:52 07/16/2024.