Description: Saishu tries to talk Yagami out of the blood feud. You can probably guess how effective that will be. (Winner: Iori)
Pacing. Iori had been pacing for quite some time, trying to decide how he
should /feel/ about this match. And yet -- he feels so frail, having to admit
that he's trying to place an /emotion/ to such a thing. It's a fight. A
simple fight. It just happens to be against a Kusanagi, and the elder one at
that. There are so many, after all, thanks to NESTS, but Saishu's still the
oldest.
Entering the stadium at long last, Yagami unclenches his fists. Being uptight
about it isn't going to win the match -- just his cool, collected wit.
Glancing idly around the stadium lobby, he scoffs lightly at his own flawed
emotions, shaking them off with a flick of his wrist. He'll win, and then
he'll fight Kyo. And /then/ he'll be able to complete his destiny.
He walks to the door of the arena, glancing up at the huge video display. "So
that white-haired bastard won. ... Should congratulate him." he mumbles to
himself.
"Eesh... how troublesome... I guess I'm here on time, though." Pushing his way
through the bank of doors at the front of Masters Stadium is... Saishu
Kusanagi. Arriving just in the nick of time for his own fight, really -- He
literally just got off the plane and apparently took a cab to the stadium,
judging by the yellow vehicle that pulls off just as Saishu exits. Green gi
pulled around his person, the elder of the Kusanagi Clan peers up first to the
nearest video display... and cringing, even as he walks right up to Iori with
an almost casual gait; as though there /wasn't/ any sort of blood feud between
the two clans.
"... Eesh. Looks like he did a real number on the girl, didn't he?" Disgust?
Revulsion? Sadness? It's hard to place the tone of Saishu's voice as he
comments on Sakura's position. "That white-haired guy... you should talk to
him, sometime, kid. I think you could learn something from each other."
Iori glances over to the Kusanagi elder with a cynical eye. "... The boy's
beyond hope. He's even deeper in denial than your own spawn, Kusanagi." He
shrugs lightly, curiously assessing Saishu's detached expression. With only
the faintest hint of a smirk, he adds, "... curiously though, I /daresay/ he
even wields the flames better than either of you. Rotten shame." He glances
up to the monitor, once more, rolling his eyes. "Haven't they run into
overtime yet?" He passes another glance at the guard to the door, but it
looks like the guard himself is watching the remnants of the fight. Growling
faintly, Iori strides up to the guard, eyeing the closed gates. "... Open
it. We're next." A bit impatient, is he?
Saishu rubs his chin a little bit, before shrugging his shoulders. "He's good.
Maybe he does wield 'em better. I wouldn't want to fight him." Then again, who
DOES he want to fight? It's a fairly short list, odds are. His arms pulled
into his sleeves and wrapped around his belly, Saishu casually approaches the
gate leading up to the ring, a few paces behind Iori. "Hey, Iori. This
fight... Do me a favor. I could care less about your blood obligation or feud
or whatever. If you want to make this personal... go for it. Me? I'm just
going to enjoy this one."
White Arena
Though the inner arena is the smaller of the two, the White Arena is no
less impressive than its brother the Red Arena, meant more for smaller, more
traditional fights. Spectator seating ranges around the oval fighting arena,
stretching up to top box seats which are built into the ceiling, giving those
that want to pay extra a rare bird's-eye view of the fighting. The lower
seating doesn't suffer though, the architecture carefully designed so that no
seat is too far away. (If you've ever been in an IMAX theater, this is much
the same.)
The fighting arena itself is completely bare of any obstacles or marking,
the floor sanded wood to resemble a dojo and to give fighters proper
traction. As Ken Masters is quite familiar with the power many fighters can
exhibit, the arena is separated from the seating with glass coated to reduce
glare, affording the spectators an excellent yet safe view. At the far ends
of the arena, doors which look like part of the wall when closed allow the
fighters to enter.
Iori marches right on into the arena, the guards blocking the gate posing
little obstacle to him. He /is/ next after all, so he has little difficulty
convincing them to get out of his way. Eyeing the schoolgirl as she's herded
out the staff entrance, he marches across the stage, frowning to note that K'
hadn't even been present. He had wanted to encounter the boy, which was
mostly the reason he'd even entered the stage in such a fashion. Ah
well.
The red-haired man glances back to Saishu with a faintly bemused look, purple
flames bursting into existence from his palm. "... You're just an obstacle in
my path, old man. Don't flatter yourself." That purple blossom in his hand
continuing to flicker as he marches across the ring into his starting
position. The staff is probably just a wee bit confused. Once in position,
he stops and turns to face Saishu squarely, tucking his non-flaming thumb into
one pocket, flames continuing to dance in his open palm as he turns an eye to
him. "... Enjoy it or don't. It's your own funeral."
Saishu saunters up into the arena, listening to Iori's response... and
outright laughing. It's a sort of belly cackle, prompting him to tilt his head
straight up into the air to satisfy himself. "Me? An obstacle in your path?
Kid... I'm just an old fart. I don't really care as much about your path as
you might think. I'd just like to have a good fight." No flames come from the
old man. He seems to be... remarkably laid back, seeing as how he's about to
fight a Yagami.
"So, I guess you're dead set on fighting Kyo? You'll have to go through me, I
guess -- which probably won't be much of a problem, you against this retired
geezer. But tell me this, Iori... why do want to fight Kyo?"
COMBATSYS: Iori has started a fight here.
COMBATSYS: Saishu has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Saishu 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Iori
You say, "Do I need a reason? Must I explain myself to you, Kusanagi?"
Pausing a moment to tilt his head back, laughing tumultously. "And yet
you're the older one who should have more sense than that!" Still laughing,
he flicks his wrist downward, sending that purple flame racing across the
floor towards Saishu. "Fight me, then! And let's see what comes of it!"
Not even waiting for the round to be announced? He'd probably be disqualified
for that, if that even concerned him."
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Yami Barai.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Saishu 0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0 Iori
Saishu isn't quite fast enough to protect himself from the Yami Barai that
flies towards him -- but he doesn't really make much of an effort, and it
doesn't look like it hurts /that/ much. All the same, Saishu is pushed back a
few feet by the force of the Yami Barai. "That's not why I asked." Saishu
remains in place, standing his ground... as the floppy sleeves of his gi begin
to flutter a little bit, as though pushed by some sort of wind. At the same
time, the old man in green creates a small flame between his hands, coddling
it in mid-air between his palms for a few moments. "You don't /know/, do you?
You don't even know why you want to kill Kyo so bad."
COMBATSYS: Saishu gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Saishu 0/-------/-======|=------\-------\0 Iori
With a shake of his head, Yagami dismisses the attempt to bait him into a
conversational battle, approaching Saishu as he speaks. "... You say you want
to fight, and yet here you are running your mouth. Don't sully one with the
other. ... But since you asked, no. I know exactly why I fight, and what I
want out of it." Forehead wrinkling as he arcs around, he then rushes forward
with a burst of energy, the strap between his legs flapping around in the
breeze as he lunges the entirety of his body into one singularly powerful
dropkick at Saishu's head.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Strong Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Saishu 1/------=/=======|==-----\-------\0 Iori
That one stung. Saishu.. doesn't seem to be putting much into it at all. He
hasn't even attacked yet -- and he just got nailed, hard, by Yagami. Kicked in
the head, the old man goes right to the ground with a little grunt of pain;
almost like a little ragdoll, really. And he stays there, for a few moments,
before climbing slowly to his feet. "Ha! It's not a fight with someone like
you... Why should I even put in effort?" Standing tall, Saishu grins a little
bit... even though he's probably a huge freaking bruise on the back of his
head. "Maybe I want you to fight my son. But I'd like to know why, first."
Rushing forward, Saishu makes his first attack. Sweeping his fingers upwards
through the air, the old man sends a gout of flame towards Iori at point blank
range... and then steps in to deliver another. "Lemme guess. Your blood boils!
There's something about him that you can't /stand/... But you can't put a name
on it. Or can you?"
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Homura Gasane.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Saishu 1/-----==/=======|====---\-------\0 Iori
Iori isn't about to give Saishu that luxury. Even though he slows his fall to
the ground with his hand, he still lands fully on his side, leisurely climbing
back to his feet afterward. "Because you seem to be deluded into thinking
that being ripped limb from limb is 'fun,' perhaps?" He shrugs a bit, arms
hanging limply at his sides as he watches Saishu. He mildly raises one of
those arms to block the first attack, smirking lightly as the flames singe his
jacket, stepping back to catch the followup with his other attack. He leaps
back afterwards, throwing up his hands in defense, with a cocky grin upon his
face. "... Something like that." Again, he gives the elder man no quarry in
this fight -- this time matching the crimson Kusanagi flames with his own
purple ones, as he ignites his right hand into flame once more. Roaring, he
launches into the air, arcing his hand over his head, flames trailing behind
his hand as he delivers a crushing downward palm strike towards the
elder.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Tsumagushi.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Saishu 1/--=====/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
Kaboom. Saishu is absolutely being slaughtered by Iori -- he's almost
literally mopping the floor with the old man. Once again, Saishu gets a
mouthful of arena floor, before slowly (very slowly) climbing to his feet.
"Tch... you're just like your old man, y'know? I wonder sometime how one
person can have so much hatred in 'em." It's not exactly clear how Saishu can
manage to sound taunting when he's absolutely having his ass beaten to a pulp.
"Your father could have had a life if he wasn't so concerned with killing me,
y'know. You're young. You could have one, too. So, why concern yourself with
Kyo Kusanagi? Sure, he's an arrogant little prick, but there are plenty of 'em
in the world. Why him? Why not enjoy what little life you Yagamis get?" All
the while, Saishu seems to be focusing on Iori, STILL not attacking. It's
almost like he's only vaguely putting up a fight.
COMBATSYS: Saishu focuses on his next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Saishu 1/--=====/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
Kyo watches the carnage from near the floor seats of the arena, though he
can't sit down as he watches this. Instead he leans up against the railing
situated in front of the glass barrier that protects the spectators from the
fighters. His father is getting laid into, "Come on, old man..." he growls to
himself, could Iori have gotten this strong, or is that his father just isn't
trying? Either way, it's troubling to think about it. "It doesn't look so
good..." he says, looking over at Yuki.
Iori's growing visibly upset by all this questioning. "If you want to /talk/,
old man, BEAT ME. And in case your parental need to nag and bitch has clouded
your senile mind, that involves FIGHTING BACK." Sneering, Iori folds his arms
over his chest, turning the crescent emblazoned upon his back to the elder
fighter. "I'll even give you a free shot. ... Stare upon the moon and weep
in your inadequacy, for I'll be putting an end to this match before you can
next blink. And if, for some reason you manage to win... maybe I'll speak.
Maybe." He rubs his temples with a hand, shaking his head otherwise. "At
least make the /fight/ interesting, if not your small talk."
COMBATSYS: Iori takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Saishu 1/--=====/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
"Yeah, yeah... Nobody likes being told the truth, I guess." Saishu strokes his
chain a little bit... and the audience, who, unfortunately, has not studied
the history of the Kusanagi and Yagami bloodlines, is probably a little
displeased. "Kids always think of everything as winning and losing. Tch. One
of the reasons why kids are dumb. If you're smart, there's no losing. Even if
you get defeated, you win. You'll figure out what I mean someday." Pulling his
hands down to his waist, Saishu begins to coddle another flame between his
palms... and his entire body begins to glow orange, a thin aura of flame
engulfing his entire person. "My ego's more than sated by a lifetime of
fighting. Y'know what my only regret is, Yagami Junior?! I never got your old
man to stop chasing me around. He died young and probably unhappy, like you
will, too. Unless you change your mind." The flames begins to lick the air,
drifting off of him as though he were about to explode. And he is. In one
sudden lunge of movement, Saishu's entire body rushes across the arena, his
palm the epicenter of a tremendous inferno of raw flame and chi. "Your brain
does the thinking, Junior, not your blood! Don't be another slave to it!" He
roars, the blaze rushing towards Iori's face at lightning speed. "Don't
disappoint another generation of Kusanagis!"
COMBATSYS: Saishu successfully hits Iori with Orochinage.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////// ]
Saishu 0/-------/-----==|=======\===----\1 Iori
"There won't /be/ another generation of Kusanagis!" he retorts, but right then
-- well, maybe it wasn't so hot an idea to turn his back to someone who -
despite his age -- still has as much fighting capability as Saishu Kusanagi.
Even still -- he's a man of his word, despite his warped sense of honor and
justice. He doesn't even attempt to block or dodge the burning fury coming
straight for his back, even /laughing/ as the gust of hot air blasts into him,
just before the flames rush in and blast the tall man forward a few feet.
Falling into a three-point landing, Iori can /still/ be found laughing, even
with the crimson flames still blotting out his crescent. "And what is it that
your brain tells you now?" he says, curling his head back to look at the man,
just before turning and launching himself at Saishu, thrusting the five
fingers of his right hand forward at his opponents stomach.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Sakahagi.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Saishu 0/-------/----===|=======\======-\1 Iori
Once gaining purchase, the tall Yagami grins, the tips of his fingers
glistening with the Kusanagi blood freed by his rakish nails, and uppercuts
the man in the jaw with said blood, once more whipping his back around to
him. "Your blood isn't boiling anywhere /near/ as hotly as your boy's, that's
for sure..."
Saishu lands flat on his back on the arena, struck by the /impossibly fast/
movements of Iori. Someday, people will look at footage of the fight and
wonder how a human being could possibly move that quickly. But /once again/,
the old man climbs his way back to his feat... though, this time he's more
than a little bit worn out, especially compared to previous go-rounds.
Huffing, puffing, and bleeding, the old man composes himself after a moment.
He's a little wobbly on his feet at first, but he recovers.
"There's gonna be. And there'll be more Yagamis. Don't you get it, Junior?
Nothing's stopped it for centuries. What, you think you can? Sure, you're
stronger than your dad. He was stronger than his, though. So was I. The only
thing that's gonna change is you. Of course my blood's not 'boiling' like my
kid. My blood's just water and plasma. My brain does my thinking, not my
blood." Once again, Saishu's gi begins to flutter around his person, his body
still charging up energy. Energy for /what/, though? That remains to be
seen.
COMBATSYS: Saishu gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Saishu 0/-------/=======|=======\======-\1 Iori
Yuki seems rather concerned herself, her eyes every now and then shifting and
wondering how Sakura is doing. As for the bout between Iori and Kyo's father,
she seems rather suprised that the younger guy seems to be overtaking the
older. She glances to Kyo, and instead of giving him the cold shoulder again,
replies, "Well he's as tough as you, right? Then he can't lose."
"...yeah... sure, he can't lose." Kyo murmurs in reply, as if saying that to
reassure himself. Yuki may notice that Kyo's grip on the railing has grown
very, very tight, in fact, is that sound of the metal creeking?
Iori smirks, shaking his head. Once more, he extends his palm to Saishu.
"You amuse me, old man." Lighting another bloom of flame, he slowly walks
towards the old codger as he speaks. "And you honestly believe that I'm
spending every waking moment thinking about your family, and the fool rivalry
our parents have walked into? You truly believe I haven't engaged in anything
else? Music? Dance?" He snorts at that. "Or even - gasp - intellectual
pursuits? You are a hollow, senile old man indeed, to think that my very
existence hinges upon yours." All the while, that flower of flame has been
growing in size, dancing higher and higher, while his left hand cradles the
other, as if the flame itself were as heavy as the bowling ball it might equal
in size. "... No. My life will go on. But yours and your boy's won't. Call
it... karmic justice." By this point, he's only a few yards away from
Saishu -- and he leaps forth to cover the rest, before flinging that burning
plume down at Saishu's feet, where it bursts into a minor explosion.
COMBATSYS: Saishu blocks Iori's Yami Sugi.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Saishu 1/-----==/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
"Hey, no doubts about that." Saishu remains in place when Iori rushes him, his
arms flying up to absorb as much of the flame from Iori's attack as he can,
his speech momentarily interfered. "But you still come after him, don't you?
You're dead set on beating me so you can fight him. Isn't that true? Why don't
you just take your guitar and leave him alone? Why does he matter to you at
all, Junior? That's what I can't figure out. Why does he matter to you at all?
What did I matter to your old man? We're just a family or rude, arrogant
bastards. There are plenty." As long as Iori's up close, Saishu drives one
foot towards his gut with remarkable vitality... though his intention is
probably more to push Iori away than it is to actually hurt him. The old man
is on his last legs, and it's obvious.
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Strong Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Saishu 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\0 Iori
Yuki gives a soft huff of air, puffing her cheeks a moment as she continues to
spectate.. However she does pause at the unusual sound, her eyes glancing to
Kyos hands, and then gives him a light elbow in the ribs, "Kyo, take it easy,
will you? Why are you so uptight?" she murmurs, rather puzzled.
Iori wants to respond to that, but first he must respond to the kick flung his
way. He does so: an irritable flick of his arm deflects the energy to
someplace not on his person. "Wah wah wah... quit beating up my son. Wah
wah. When did I become the playground bully, huh? You want to know? You
want me to scream out, 'Yes, I was abused as a child! Save me, Kusanagi!' Is
that what would make you happy?" He laughs, and quite loudly at that, as he
takes a path around Saishu, arms sashaying back and forth in case the elder
were to try something suddenly. "No... Kyo's every bit as responsible for
furthering this conflict as you or I, old man. Save your speeches for your
boy's Parent-Teacher conference next week." And lest Saishu think Iori forgot
about the fight, the Orochi halfbreed rams his forehead at Saishu's just when
the elder may have thought he was out of range, in one of the only times his
red hair uncoiffs itself. "The highschoolers will eat that shit UP" he adds
afterward, grinning even still.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Jab Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Saishu 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\0 Iori
Pow. Saishu takes this one right in the mouth -- but he's /still standing/. He
doesn't fall and get back up... he soaks it entirely, and he's still on his
feet. "Of course he is. My son's an idiot. But you're just the same. I can't
make your damn decisions for you, Junior, and I can't make 'em for him. This
whole feud... it's stupid! I couldn't end it, and your old man couldn't,
either! So now, it's up to you brats!" Winding up with one of his fists,
Saishu takes a rather ungraceful move and just aims to punch Iori right in the
face.
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Medium Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Saishu 1/----===/=======|=======\=====--\1 Iori
Kyo watches the fight intently, and with a steely look in his eye that Yuki
doesn't often see from the usually ambivelant young fighter. His grip on the
metal bar does not lesson as the fight drags on. He's conflicted. On one hand
he wants his father to pull out of his bad situation and defeat Iori, but on
the other hand, something in his blood calls out for the chance to face Iori
himself.
That's the aim, but it's not the result. Iori leans backwards, neatly
catching Saishu's punch in his hand. It still jars him back a bit... but not
anywhere near as much as he'd hoped. Grinning madly, he shrugs. "Stupid is
as stupid does, Gump." Crushing Saishu's hand in his grip, he wrenches the
old man's arm out to the side, stepping forward to close the gap. "... Tsk,
tsk. What a time to be old and frail." He's done talking, apparently, a
demonic smile crossing his lips. Chuckling, he shakes his head as he tugs the
elder closer, and launches a left cross at his head.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Ya Otome.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
Saishu 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=------\-------\0 Iori
That left cross? Iori tosses the hand aside and follows up with a right
cross, slamming into Saishu's shoulder. "Cry." And then an uppercut with his
left. "Scream." And then a low slash. "Shout." Then an overhand raking slash,
chaining into a backfist, followed by a brutal palm punch. "And then DIE."
He all-out tackles the elder, clamping both hands onto his temples and
crushing him menacingly. "Oh, no... but I'll even be /nice/ about it. You're
not going to die /here/... in front of thousands of your boy's adoring
fans... You'll die in some hospital bed from internal bleeding, whimpering
like some sick little LAP DOG." And with that, he squeezes tightly again,
triggering a massive burst of purple flame to go off right between his two
palms -- which just happens to be where Saishu's head still is. Laughing
maliciously, Iori steps back from his masterpiece, kicking Saishu away from
him with his boot.
*CLANK* Okay, the bar is getting positively crumpled under Kyo's grip now. He
knows what's coming as soon as Iori punches his father in the face, in fact,
he knows better than anyone else, having been on the recieving end of this
technique more than a few times. "No..." He mouths, by now his death-hold on
the railing is just to keep him from trying to shatter through the safety
glass to go help his father. The unfortunate aftermath of the Ya Otome
technique leaves Kyo's father on the ground, smoldering. "Get up...." Kyo
whispers, "Get up.... get up...." he continues, almost becoming a sort of
chant. FInally he snaps, leaning over the rail to yell, "GODDAMMIT OLD MAN!!
IF YOU DON'T GET UP I'M GONNA BE REALLY PISSED OFF!!!"
"...!" That's not what was supposed to happen. The shock registers on the old
man's face the moment Iori grabs his fist, followed by a cry of pain as his
fist gets crushed. Falling onto his knees, Saishu -- who is completely done
talking -- finds himself swept up in blow after blow of sheer brutality.
Howling with pain and spraying blood every which way, Saishu is flung
backwards on the gout of flame that Iori sends his way... and simply falls
limp, to the ground.... before being pushed away, like trash to the side of
the road. And he doesn't move. And he doesn't breathe. And he may very well
and just die right there... indeed, smoke billows up from his body as his
clothing (and perhaps his flesh) smolders still. The only movement is from his
eyes -- eyes which stare at Iori, even as his body lies limp on the ground,
even as the Yagami surveys his masterpiece... his masterpiece stares right
back.
And then his masterpiece... very slowly, but surely, begins to stand up.
Drenched in blood, Saishu Kusanagi rises to his feet, his body half-limp from
the brutality that'd been visited upon him. "One problem with that plan,
kid.... I'm not going to a hospital." With a movement of his shoulders, Saishu
slips off his gi's shirt, revealing an aged, but muscular body -- covered in
scars and burn marks. As though with all of the strength he had, Saishu holds
two hands before him, a flame generated in mid-air and growing, slowly.
Growing bigger, and bigger, and hotter with every passing second. "Laugh."
Holding his hands upward, the inferno that all but engulfs all of Saishu's
body. "Smile." Lunging forward with one hand held before him, Saishu drives
one humongous pillar of flame right towards Iori's back. "Dream." The second
Orochinage drives towards the Yagami heir like a blazing freight train, as the
battered Saishu intones, finally: "And then live."
COMBATSYS: Saishu has reached second wind!
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Orochinage.
[ \\\\\\\ < > ///// ]
Saishu 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Iori
Iori's laugh dies in mid-breath as he hears Saishu's word. It might be funny,
but not to Yagami, as he looks over his shoulder at the elder. "..." Each
word cocks his eyebrow higher, as if he can't believe he's hearing those
words. And then as Saishu rams that freight train into his back yet again,
Iori once more stumbles forward -- though this time, he doesn't land, but
rather breaks into a tumble, rolling back to his feet. Deadpan: "If I were
any happier, rainbows might fly out of my ass." Visibly wincing at the pain,
he dusts the flames off him, shaking his head as he walks towards Saishu.
"Far be it from me to kick an old man when he's down, but..." That happens to
be /exactly/ what he does, rushing forward with a burst of speed and
delivering a nice swift kick to the back of Saishu's knees.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Medium Kick.
[ \\\ < > ///// ]
Saishu 0/-------/-======|=====--\-------\0 Iori
Yuki gives a shriek and covers her face when Iori just goes completely nuts on
Saishu, turning away unfortunatly much too late. She quickly tries to tune it
out, but naturally it just replays in her mind. She groans, her hand lowering
to cover her mouth, and tugs lightly on Kyos sleeve, "... Kyo.. I'm going to
the restroom.." she murmurs, she feeling guilty to leave the man in such a
tense moment, but she's seriously going to be sick. And thus she makes haste
to the nearest exit.
Saishu is knocked to the ground by Iori's kick -- which basically collapses
his knees out from under him. Falling into a crouch, Saishu... who /still/
isn't down... merely looks up at Iori, grimacing. "Heh... good. I thought
you'd have been burnt to a crisp by that last one. I like being proven wrong
by the next generation. More than anybody else, anyways. Kickin' an old man
when he's down... well, okay. Far be it for me to sucker punch somebody..." On
cue, Saishu drives his fist into Iori's gut as he is on his knees before the
younger fighter, looking to knock the wind out of him and possibly set up the
end of this slugfest.
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Medium Punch.
[ \\\ < > //// ]
Saishu 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
"... and that was a /far/ cry from a sucker punch." replies Iori, his hand
snapping forth to snatch Saishu's fist just before impact and twist his arm,
yet again. "Don't you worry about osteoporosis or arthritis, or any of those
old folks' ailments?" Yagami tries to torque the elder's arm backwards and
out of its socket, smirking defiantly at the man.
COMBATSYS: Saishu dodges Iori's Quick Throw.
[ \\\ < > //// ]
Saishu 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
The old man /just/ /won't/ /fall/ /down/. Iori makes a grab for Saishu, but
he's just not there. Where did he go? Right behind Iori, to be precise.
"Nope. A life of drinking and smoking has made me a healthy old bastard." From
here, Saishu repeats a move Iori himself made earlier on -- driving his
forehead into the back of Iori's head. Hell, it's the only part of his body
that isn't bleeding, just about.
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Jab Punch.
[ \\\ < > //// ]
Saishu 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
Stumbling forward from the blow to the head, Iori grits his teeth. "You
wanted /fun/. Is this fun? I'm beginning to suspect you were a zombie all
along..." Irritably, Yagami just wants this damn match to be over -- it was
nothing more than an obstacle to him in the first place, and now this
noncombative old man gets a few lucky strikes to his back and all of a sudden
his Yagami blood is pumping overtime. Whirling on the elder, he slashes his
hand overhead, nails raking across his face. If not caught, he'd follow it up
with a backhand, but Iori's confidence is starting to waver.
COMBATSYS: Saishu fails to interrupt Yumebiki from Iori with Jab Punch.
COMBATSYS: Saishu has reached third wind!
[ \\\\ < > /// ]
Saishu 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Iori
As Iori swings at Saishu, Saishu swings at Iori... and doesn't quite get it.
He's hit, again, and he hits the floor. And stays there. For about twenty
seconds.
And then, slowly, he climbs back to his feet, his knees shaky beneath him as
he recovers from another certain defeat. "Hey... look at that. I'm still
standing. See? This shit doesn't end. It doesn't ever end. Beat me, and I'll
get back. Beat Kyo, he'll come back. He'll have kids. He beats you? You get
back up. You have kids. Don't you get it?!"
Iori wasn't stupid enough to turn around and laugh. Yet. Hooking his thumbs
in his pants pocket, he's patient enough to sit and wait for Saishu to
recover. "Mmm? Didn't expect it to be so sudden though." Shrugging, he
cracks his neck, first to one side, then the other. "Mildly annoying,
actually." He snaps his fingers, a ticklishly small flicker of purple flame
appearing between his fingers. "Let's try this one more time." He flicks the
deceptively small cinder of flame at the ground before Saishu's feet, where it
bursts into an incredibly /large/ blaze.
COMBATSYS: Iori successfully hits Saishu with Yami Sugi.
[ \ < > // ]
Saishu 1/---====/=======|-------\-------\0 Iori
The blast knocks Saishu into the air -- but then Iori slashes the ground with
his left hand, causing yet another explosion to catapult the elder even
higher. Sneering, Iori whips his arms back, and then SLAMS them back down
with a burst of rage, splitting a crack in the nice, new Arena floor and
rending a giant torrential column of violet flames from the fissure. "WON'T
YOU JUST STAY DEAD, OLD MAN?!!" he shouts over the howling wind kicked up from
the blast.
Once /again/, Saishu goes straight to the ground. But not before swinging a
fist at Iori as he comes, driving right towards the nose of the younger man --
One last desperate attempt to lash out at his oppoent. This time, Saishu is
knocked to the ground... and he stays there. One wonders how long.
COMBATSYS: Saishu can no longer fight.
COMBATSYS: Saishu has left the fight here.
COMBATSYS: Iori blocks Saishu's Jab Punch.
Iori does, indeed, hover over Saishu. He's been getting immense crowd
cheering, every time he stands back up again, but Iori isn't taking any
chances. Fist ready to deck him again should he creep back to his feet, he
sneers... "Come on. Show me the power of LOVE and HOPE and all those terribly
delicious things you've been touting all night. C'mon! Everyone's so happy
you've been standing right back up like a sadistic Weeble. Come on! Laugh!
Smile! DREAM YOURSELF BACK TO YOUR FEET!" To his credit, he doesn't touch
the body for a whole thirty seconds. And then, only then, does he relax. And
right then, Yagami swipes the old man's tattered gi out from under him, and
holds it up to the balcony. "KYO!" It ought to be easy to spot the ruined
railing. "You see this?! You see your old man? Broken. Beaten.
HUMILIATED. Remember it, and remember it well!" He squeezes the garment,
grinning cruelly as he lights it on fire... tossing it over his shoulder as he
walks for the exit.
COMBATSYS: Iori takes a breather.
[ \\\\\\ <
Iori 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Iori has ended the fight here.
Saishu is quickly carried off by the medical technicians. Fortunately, he
doesn't /seem/ to be dead -- In fact, he even seems conscious, as he's hauled
off in a stretcher. He even laughs, a little bit, before going limp in the
gurney.
Kyo just stares at Yagami exiting the arena. Uncontrollably, the crimson
flames roar up around one of his hands, "Iori..." he hisses, "These flames of
mine are calling out for you!" He clenches the hand into a fist, extinguishing
the flame with a tiny explosion, then he turns on his heel, stomping out of
the arena with revenge on his mind.
Log created by Kobun, and last modified on 17:31:40 04/26/2005.