Description: Swords are bad, mm'kay? Or, when wielded by the talented Hyo Imawano, a challenge Ken Masters has to rise to meet. (Winner: Hyo)
North Outskirts
Southtown, one of the largest cities in Japan, sits on a peninsula
extending from the southwesternmost corner of Honshu occupying a temperate
climate. Roughly the size of Manhattan Island, the peninsula is filled from
tip to tip with the urban sprawl of the city. Linked to land only from the
north and the west, highways cut through a large forested area situated
between the rest of Japan and the Southtown Peninsula. Through these
highways, a horde of traffic flows forth at all hours of the day, along with
train lines and other forms of transit.
Hyo
Standing in an image of resplendence that would perhaps impress some
forms of the upper class, the imposing six foot stature of Hyo Imawano is
one that is displayed with a equal mix of indifference and calm
composition.
He wears the red winter uniform of the Justice High students, though his
particular variant of the vestments has taken some particular and notable
design license, but only when taken in the context of the school's policy
and restrictive dress code: First, the red doublet with black cuffs and
trim is something of a tight fit, though it's easily secured with
polished gold buttons. In various spots throughout the jacket soft gold
cords are also worn, allowed to dangle freely. His pants are of normal
quality, though they bunch up at the knee, for Hyo wears tight black
leather knee-high boots, in something similar to a military uniform. All
of this is mantled on the shoulders of the impeccably clean outfit by a
pair of gold epaulets, of some strong alloy. As a last accent to this,
he also wears pristine thick white gloves.
His hair is done up in the style of a prideful warrior--white, though
raised in a topknot-style tail, swaying down to his midback. And, while
his face is usually an unreadable visage set in cold stone, the full
length katana he carries with him and the Justice High logo he bears on
his collar both make clear his allegiance and class.
Ken
Ken Masters: the American Dream. Well, actually, he might not be exactly
that, but, by taking a good look at him, one sure could be fooled. Standing
at about 1.75 meters and weighing what seems to be 72 kilograms, the famed
American martial artist seems to have a muscled build that would say those
with any sense to be careful around this man. Upon closer inspection though,
there is much to suggest that Ken is far from a thug or a brute. Bright
blonde hair is the first thing that many people see, almost glimmering from
the tender care that his long locks deserve. The hair is cut at about
eyebrow level in the front and neck level the rest of the way around. His
eyebrows are somehow a sharp contast with a darker brown, and a little on
the bushy side. Below those rest his eyes, which seem to just to be warm and
rather friendly in all but the most tense situations.Dressed for a fight,
Ken Masters is out and about, wearing his rather traditional red gi. It is
sleeveless for mobility, the hem of the pant legs slightly worn from use.
He wears a black belt to finish it off. He seems to have a certain attitude
when wearing this. If clothes do make the man, this outfit makes Ken a
force to be reckoned with.
Away from everything else... it is different from being in the city. Despite
the murmuring clamor of the onlookers gathered to se the battle, it was...
quieter here, than in Southtown proper. To tell the truth, it reminded him
just a little of the school.
He stands here, dressed in the full regale of his school and leaning upon
the chosen sheathed-fang of his ancestry with impeccably clean white gloves,
Hyo Imawano is absolutely still. This is partially why the crowd (and
announcer) are so quiet. He isn't moving a centimetre, the only shift
visible in his person is at the edges of his shirt and in his white ponytail
as the wind gently sways it.
He does no more or less than think on his matchup, a quiet reflection on the
study that is to come.
"I'm fighting a kid with a sword. Isn't that just special."
Slamming the car door behind him, Ken Masters steps out of his rental jeep
to look toward the fighting area. He is dressed for a fight, only taking
off his shoes and socks, tossing them into the car before making his way
toward the fights. The murmuring grows in volume a bit as Ken makes his way
toward the fighting arena, a confident smirk on his face as the crowds part
to let him through.
That grip does not waver in the slightest as the crowds part to admit forth
the man in the red gi. In fact, Hyo will not move in the slightest until Ken
is actually sharing the arena with him. When he does, first he looks towards
him, a glance shortly followed by his full gaze.
His voice at a controlled level, the 'kid' takes the moment to give the
first greeting, as would be polite and customary.
"Welcome, Ken Masters. I've been anticipating our match together. It is a
pleasure to meet such ..." pause. "... an influential representative of the
US martial arts."
A dire and critical unchanging expression fixes on Ken, just as the
announcer will likely begin to move towards the center of the small open
area between the two.
Ken just arches the brow at the kid. He is taking this thing rather
seriously, but hey, most kids this good do. Which is why he's gunna feel
bad pasting him into the ground. Doesn't mean he won't let up for a second
though. "Good to meet you as well, kiddo. Looking forward to a good fight
from you," he replies with a polite nod, getting to his 'starting position'.
His facade only get a bit more serious, but nothing too somber. After all,
he's here for a little fun too.
"... Heh." Now it's Hyo's turn to bring some levity to the situation, in the
form of a very faint smile, visible only for an instant. As if something Ken
said amused him in some small way.
Settling down into a widened martial artist's stance, Hyo lifts the
longsword by it's tsuka, letting the sheathe hook into an unseen catch at
his hip, cutting side up. The only sound emitting from his rather extensive
getup being the faint click of his armored epaulets.
"I intend.. to do nothing less." One open palm forward, one clenched fist
back.
At this moment, it's time for the announcer to pipe in. "Looks like neither
of these two fighters are backing down! So now it's time for the moment
you've all been waiting for; CHAOS, is about to break loose! Ken Masters and
Hyo Imawano! It's time to prove yourselves! Let's GO!" And then he rolls
out, microphone and all.
Imawano looks distinctly unimpressed.
COMBATSYS: Hyo has started a fight here.
COMBATSYS: Ken has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Ken 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Hyo
Ken waits for it... And as the verbal command, Ken leaps into action,
figuring that he should take the role of the aggressor this day. Time to
see if this is gunna be a swift match or a good one. Dashing forward a few
feet, Ken lashes out with a single fist, bringing it in a downward smash to
try and plant upon Hyo's face.
COMBATSYS: Hyo blocks Ken's Fierce Punch.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 Hyo
Keeping his eyes closely on Ken, Hyo's breath remains controlled, steady as
his opponent rushes onwards into him. A straight, head on attack.
Occaisionally there is something respectable about the direct approach,
but... he can see it coming. The fist impacts roughly against Hyo's epaulet
as he shifts his body to redirect Ken's solid blow into a more armored area.
The faint grunt is the only sign of Hyo feeling any pain. From this stance,
Hyo's right fist tightens and, as Ken will likely land in close quarters,
tries to find its place in a quicker stunning blow to Ken's side as soon as
he does.
COMBATSYS: Hyo successfully hits Ken with Medium Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0 Hyo
Ken tries to back up as soon as Hyo gets in closer than he would like, but
he trips up a little in his haste, stumbling back a couple of steps after he
gets hit in the side. He doesn't fall though, able to retain his foot
rather swiftly. He rolls forward toward Hyo, trying to pull a similar
tatics to the man. Engaging a powerful sweep as soon as he is up in a
crouching position, Ken hopes to roll under Hyo's defenses if they are too
high.
COMBATSYS: Hyo dodges Ken's Strong Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0 Hyo
When the blow lands and Ken stumbles back, Hyo does not seem eager to press
the advantage. He is well aware of the situation and the entire reason why
he is here. Because of this, simple logic dictates that he evaluates Ken's
real abilities before he proceeds. Someone of Ken's established calibre, if
the US martial arts scene is anything like Japan's, will not go down easily.
This ought to be worthwhile.
Therefore, when Ken rolls towards him, Hyo's boots take a step back quickly,
but when Ken breaks into the sweep, it's Hyo's instinct to evade the blow by
making a short jump over it. However, Hyo doesn't appear intent on landing
properly. ... As a matter of fact, when his boots are at about head level
with Ken, a sudden burst of weight redirection allows Hyo to fling himself
into an aerial backflip. The aim? To catch Ken in the head with a flip kick
before he can stand and evade.
COMBATSYS: Ken blocks Hyo's Gen'ei-shuu.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0 Hyo
Ken raises his arm to block, but the foot tears through his defenses just
enough to send Ken onto his back. He flips back to his feet, smirking as he
does. He actually backs up as he speaks, figuring that if Hyo isn't
pressing, he doesn't need to either. "Right... You got some potential.
Good," Ken remarks, putting his palms together as he draws them to his side.
"Now, time to turn it up a notch.... Hadouken!" With the battle cry made,
Ken lashes out with a ball of chi energy, which will hopefully throw Hyo for
a loop.
COMBATSYS: Hyo blocks Ken's Hadouken.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Hyo
.Excellent.
Hyo was beginning to come under the impression Ken was just playing around.
Now tactically aware of Ken's intent, Hyo scoffs quietly in amusement. When
Ken draws back, Hyo can almost sense the chi gathering in the air. And when
the chi blast flows towards him, the brief raised eyebrow on his face is
significant of the interest Imawano has in the attack.
"Not bad!" he intones, before his blade finally leaves its sheathe with a
rasping hiss, slicing in half and dissipating the Hadouken in the air--but
it's still strong enough to flood past and crash into him. Unforunately at
this point, Imawano is moving. The attack he used to dissipate the assault
was the first section of the Juumonji Kiri - an upward draw slash.
As an assault worthy of his full attention, now Hyo responds in full,
closing the distance to Ken with the second portion of the Juumonji Kiri - a
quicker pursuit slash-crush, aimed to flash across or into the nape of Ken's
neck.
COMBATSYS: Ken dodges Hyo's Juumonji Kiri One Blade.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Hyo
"Bringing a toy to help you, eh?" Ken replies with a grunt as the weapon is
taken out, barely able to duck under the sword slash one his attacker comes
his way. While the Hadouken didn't hit at full power, it did let Ken see
that Hyo was using his blade and able to get a feel of where the blade was
gunna go next. Hopefully he can keep away from it all match.
Now Ken is ducked underneth Hyo, but instead of trying something rather
trivial, he has decided to go for one of his more famous moves while he has
this rare opening. With a flaming fist, Masters makes his way toward the
heavens, crying out "Shoryuken!" as he does. He might be rather wide open
if he misses, but Ken is counting on that not to be the case.
COMBATSYS: Hyo parries Ken's Shoryuken!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Hyo
When Ken ducks his second stage attack, Hyo is made immediately and
painfully aware of the opening Ken is now trying to exploit. The response is
not given yet--there is no time for words, as Ken shows his great technical
aptitude. But when Ken's frame tenses for his signature move, One of Hyo's
brown eyes is focused entirely on the US Master. His stance shifts back and
away from Ken, drawing his sword in a diagonal block before his body, his
arms stretched to the sky, the weapon braced against his left forearm. That
blade is exactly where the Shoryuken finds home, and a sudden shove with its
flat is made at the point of contact to attempt to totally negate the
attack's aim. It's at about then, in the uncontrolled failure, that Hyo will
then respond.
"The edge of a blade is not a toy." Simple. Direct.
... And punctuated with a rotating motion in the instant Ken's attack leaves
him open, Hyo's ponytail swirling about him as a faint (but non-effectual)
aura of red chi builds about him, his sword now pointing away from Ken. From
this aura Hyo kicks off into his own analogue to the Shoryuken, a rising
blade slash with a firm kiai of effort. The Ouryuuzan.
Regardless of outcome, if Hyo is allowed to land, his blade will already be
back in its sheath.
COMBATSYS: Hyo successfully hits Ken with Ouryuuzan.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Hyo
Ken gets totally smacked into by the blade as is expected with his attack is
blocked. This fight is really not going his way. Landing on his feet, he
is tempted to drop to his knees but doesn't. He look to his chest, seeing
the blood that flows from the wound. "You better #*$&@ pray that doesn't
leave a scar, punk," Ken offers in clear annoyence.
Taking a moment, he tries to focus his attention on his foe, taking a short
breather as he tries to figure out what is the best way to deal with that
sword.
COMBATSYS: Ken takes a breather.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Hyo
Rubbing his chin quietly in thought, Hyo Imawano appears to be considering
Ken, by the time he hits the ground. "Hn..." A faintly disappointed tone. He
doesn't move. Instead, he takes the critical moment to face Ken, allowing
him to regain his bearings for the moment or two it takes for Hyo to
responde. If Ken was allowed to land without attack, it's likely Hyo isn't
going to feel a pressing need to attack him by surprise.
"There's more for you to worry about than a scar from my blade... You're
very talented. But..if you continue to fail against my abilities, you're
going to lose this match." This is all stated matter of factly, before Hyo
resumes his combat stance. Watching Ken, very closely. This isn't quite
over, yet.
COMBATSYS: Hyo focuses on his next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Hyo
Ken grunts at Hyo. "We will see about that!" Ken offers with a mostly
controlled shout. The nerve of this kid. The fight is far from over. At
least it is to Ken. Racing for Hyo, he leaps into the air, twirling about
like a top as he tries to hit Hyo with foot repeated. "Tatsumaki Senpuu
Kyaku!" gives the special techinque a name as Ken preforms it.
COMBATSYS: Hyo interrupts Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku from Ken with Tenraizan.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Ken 1/----===/=======|=======\-------\1 Hyo
Watching Ken advance on him critically, the nature of the attack elude him
for an instant before Ken begins to whirl into the air with great power. The
Justice High student leans back briefly, seemingly attempting to leap of the
way of the attack, but it still slams into him solidly, striking Hyo's guard
a number of times.. but oddly enough, Hyo's momentum, despite the way he
appeared to try and jump is carrying him harder and harder into the storm,
as if to weather it, even if the volley of Ken's strikes are enough to
suspend Hyo and begin to drive him back. Leaping into and--the critical
point, slightly over--an attack.
"Just as I suspected," he remarks, his comment wracked with effort and pain,
regardless of their implication.
Imawano's feint dodge allowed him to appear one way and act in another. This
is to lull Ken into a false sense of security. Before Hyo attempts to stop
the remainder of the attack with a drawn blade and, now above Ken,
attempting to put his weight behind a fierce downward thrust. The intent?
Pin him to the ground like a bug. The attack is aimed at Ken's center of
mass (thankfully, someone of Ken's calibre could easily survive such a
strike) but depending on how he moves or blocks, could inflict anywhere from
a deep stab wound to just a particularly damaging slash.
Hyo -will- withdraw the blade if it becomes snarled in anything almost
immediately after hitting the ground. He's not here for sadistic reasons.
Ken falls to the ground at that. The blocking is noted somewhat, but while
preforming the move, there is little he could do to prevent the blade from
sinking into his right side. He just hopes his son isn't watching the TV
about now. Nothing like seeing your daddy getting stabbed through to make a
kid's night. Still Ken, is still on his feet, even with the blood that
escapes from the wound in a small river. Ken digs his feet into the ground,
just trying to lash out with another one of the fist just like he began the
fight with. It's a tired move, but it is the most reflexive thing he does.
Beware when he gets his focus back though.
COMBATSYS: Ken successfully hits Hyo with Fierce Punch. - Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Ken 1/---====/=======|=======\===----\1 Hyo
When Ken gets stabbed, it takes a moment to free his blade from Ken's side,
and a moment more to regain his balance. In a way, while Tenraizan was an
effective technique, it left Hyo open in a lot of ways, if the opponent
wasn't paralyzed from pain. The fact that Ken is not on the ground is
surprising enough to Hyo. The fact that he can still manage an attack is
only slightly moreso. Despite this, Hyo's guard comes up an instant too
late--he is unable to knock Ken's arm aside, and as such takes the attack
clear in the face. A stifled grunt is Ken's reward, as is a flash of
crimson. Hyo stumbles back, clearly feeling that blow more than any of the
others he's dealt with today and when he removes his glove from his face,
it's comes away stained.
Disdainfully, Hyo shakes off his hand, his blade still loose in his grip.
It's only when he shakes Ken's blood off of the weapon as well does he
return it to its sheathe. "...An effective blow..." is all he'll say on
that, before he switches stances, sheathed blade horizontal and away from
Ken, held by the sheathe and right hand hovering over the hilt. His eyes
are, as before dead focused on Ken, waiting for him to get his bearings.
They are almost on even ground now..
COMBATSYS: Hyo focuses on his next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Ken 1/---====/=======|=======\===----\1 Hyo
Ken takes a moment to grunt, trying to figure out what he should do.
Pulling back his slightly hurt fist from the power of the blow, Ken gets
back into a fighitng stance. Ken just sighs as he makes up his mind.
"Nothing ventured..." he comments softly as he races for Hyo, taking a brief
moment to hop into the air. He stays there suprisingly enough, spinning
about like he did for his last special move. Unlike the last move though,
he is in one place... And the spinning is much more viloent and powerful.
"Shippuujinrai Kyaku!"
COMBATSYS: Hyo interrupts Shippuujinrai Kyaku from Ken with Ankoku Shippuuzan.
[ \\\ < > /////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Hyo
Sitting in that dash stance, Imawano waits. When Ken charges in at him and
begins the full force of his attack, the sheer wind coming off of it is
enough to scatter Hyo's ponytail, extending his epaulet and free arm to
block some of the wicked strikes from the minature hurricane that is Ken
Masters right now, kicks deflecting off of his guard solidly, crunches
apparent already in the previously perfect metal, only Hyo's taut arm
seeming to weather it with any degree of decency. But that's when Hyo spots
what he needs. In the middle of Ken's rotation, just after a strike. This
attack moves so quickly, the window is only an instant large.
When that instant passes, Hyo is clear across the fighting arena, sheathing
his sword.
The high slash he used to strike at Ken's back will become apparent an
instant later, as will the subsequent chain of chi explosions at Ken's body,
to knock him clear out of the fearsome attack.
Ken lands on the ground with a thud, the Street Fighter slowly getting up.
Most men would have stayed down a long time ago, but Ken isn't like that.
His gi sticks to his back, blood shown once again. Shaking his head a
couple of times as he fights off double vision, Ken puts his palms together
again. He doesn't want to try and deal with that sword longer than he has
to, so he decides to try and fight from a distance once more. Putting his
palms together, he unleashes another fireball of blue energy. "Hadouken!"
He's not gunna lose to some punk with a sword.... He just plain refuses to.
COMBATSYS: Hyo just-defends Ken's Hadouken!
[ \\\ < > //////////// ]
Ken 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Hyo
His blade lifting carefully, Hyo watches Ken carefully. His right arm is
tattered a touch now, his crisp uniform stained with the blood and batering
of Ken's attack--it's clear that despite how he acts, he felt that, and the
blows are beginnnig to mount on him. But when Ken decides to take the
projectile road? Imawano's eyes narrow coldly as Ken flings another Hadouken
at him. Approaching him with speed... the projectile is eyed.
... And then is quashed entirely, on a blade that, for a second, seems to
eerily glow red.
And then Hyo is in motion, bearing down on Ken with a frightening speed.
"That won't work!" he barks, before attempting to show him both draw-slash
and crush pursuit of the Juumonji Kiri. If both land, Ken might find himself
knocked away pretty easily. It is executed as late as possible, allowing for
a minimum of escape time, but the intent is clear--put Ken down now.
COMBATSYS: Hyo successfully hits Ken with Juumonji Kiri Two Blades.
[ < > //////////// ]
Ken 1/-----==/=======|======-\-------\0 Hyo
Ken gets hit by the powerful attack.... And falls to the ground for what
seems like a final time. But despite the blood lost from the new attack as
well as the older ones, Ken refuses to give in. Not until he has spend his
last ounce of strength. Walking toward Hyo, stumbling as he does, he looks
like he is about to fall any second. "Not... Letting a.... cheat... Get
the best of me!" Summoning the last of his incredible strength, Ken races
for Hyo, giving one /heck/ of a powerful uppercut, hopefully enough to take
down his foe. So he hopes... So he prays. "Shinryuu Ken!"
COMBATSYS: Ken can no longer fight.
COMBATSYS: Ken has left the fight here.
COMBATSYS: Hyo blocks Ken's Shinryuu Ken.
[ \\\\\\\\ <
Hyo 1/-------/=======|
As Ken explodes back towards Hyo whilst sheathing his sword, Imawano's eyes
widen just a touch as Ken--honestly--surprises him with his speed and
resilence. Regardless, it takes more than a slight surprise to overcome a
disparity like this. When Ken catches him with the Shinryuu Ken, Hyo catches
it with both arms, the power of the chi and force enough to knock him clear
into the air with a grunt of sustained damage and bled effort... Sailing
into the sky, Hyo twists, slowly..
... But lands on his feet, one glove extending into the ground, to brace
against.
His breathing is too hard to respond to anything Ken said.. just yet.
Ken pauses, trying to take a few breaths as if mimicing Hyo. But his body
is too bruised. His wounds too great. So his eyes just roll a little,
before he forces them back down... But well, they go back up and he falls
once more, landing face first into the dirt. Swords=Bad.
"Hrmph.." Imawano's still panting quietly, as he slowly eases to his feet.
His legs don't hurt at all, of course. But his upper body... that's a
different story. Rolling his right arm in its socket, Hyo takes care to give
Ken a full ten seconds to rise. Thus satisfied, Hyo will remove his sword
from its catch at his belt.
It's another ice-cold moment before Imawano begins to speak, over a crowd
that's.. not entirely enthused.
"You're respectable.. but misplacing blame only makes you weak.."
He looks at Ken once last, before remarking to the announcer, "I've learned
all I can here. This match is over." And when he makes his way out of the
arena, it's to mixed cheers.
Ken just gets carried away, where he will get cared for my his hot wife and
get lots of rubs and hot loving. So in the end, who is the true winner, and
who is the true loser? Okay, so maybe Hyo is still the winner, but at least
he has a hot wife.
[OOC] Hyo...
Log created by Kobun, and last modified on 18:30:20 04/21/2005.