Description: This tournament battle's a lot closer than the last one between Rock and Dan... (Winner: Rock)
Athletic Field
Justice High's athletic field is nothing so large as Taiyo Dome or so
spacious as Pacific High's beachfront property, but just like everything else
at Justice, it's of the highest quality. There are no football, baseball, or
soccer fields here. Instead, there are tennis courts, strips of concrete for
fencing, racquetball courts, archery ranges, and so on. If it's a sport
enjoyed by the elite, it can be found here.
This crowd for this fight is a little different from the others. Though still primarily students, it's probably more fair to say a sizable majority are Dan fans. The waves of pink would be a clue. After all, Dan won his first tournament fight in a long time against Akira, and many are here to see Dan succeed again. Quite a few are Taiyo, here to cheer their representative on, even if he is a weirdo.
That's not to say Rock doesn't have people in the stands, of course, A few girls from Seijyun sit demurely in the stands, accompanied by a stern-faced teacher. Taiyo girls wave and cheer.
For his part, Dan appears at the height of confidence as he strolls onto the arena floor. He also looks...different. Really different. The same hard face and the pink gi tunic are there, but his pants have been replaced by a bright pink hakama. As he walks, pink socks peek out from under the hem.
Dan has also let his hair down from the ponytail he wears so often. Shoulderblade-length hair falls down his back, and the sheen of it suggests that gel - lots of gel - was used. He also appears to be chewing on what looks like a bubblegum cigar.
Dan strides to the middle of the arena, holding his arms out for the crowd for a moment before folding them and waiting for Rock to show. He exudes an impassivity that, coupled with his fighting outfit, causes a few in the stands to break out in laughter.
Pants. Shoes. Belt. Shirt. ... Jacket. And worst of all, the tie. Once again, Rock Howard has had no choice but to deck himself out in Seijyun High gear. Or, at least, faux Seijyun gear, since there's no skirt involved. His hands in his pockets, Rock emerges from beneath the arena, walking quietly up to the fighting arena, his eyes locking on Dan's as he approaches.
And then he realizes something is not quite right. Stopping at the edge of the arena, Rock stares at Dan for a few seconds, one eyebrow flinching slightly. "... uh. Hey, Dan. Long time no... okay, what the hell are you dressed up like that for?"
Dan turns to Rock, looking as stern as the teacher in the stands, before he plucks the 'cigar' from his mouth. "Think this is a nice touch? I'd be smoking a wad of hundred dollar bills, but, uh...I hate the taste of ink." He nods decisively and sticks the end back in his mouth, biting off a large piece and sticking the rest into a pocket within his gi.
Dan settles into a fighting stance. Despite the look, it's not any different from his usual heel-bouncing pose. The hakama ruffles with each bounce. "I want to see you try your best, Rock! With master and father combined, I aim to see that you hold nothing back!" Regardless of what Dan knows about Rock's relationship with his old man, Dan knows Geese is a tough old bastard and obviously his son will want to measure up to that. Right? "Now let's make this a fight to remember! We will see who has truly tapped the power of Saikyo-ryuu!"
Rock crunches one fist up, grimacing. "... Sensei... You /really/ don't want to remind me of my old man..." Stay cool, Rock. Stay cool. Gritting his teeth and lookin ga little perturbed at all of this for several seconds, Rock finally seems to reach some sort of internal resolution. As a show of this, he goes as far as to raise one forearm in Dan's direction, grinning as he calmly states: "Oosha!" Looks like the battle is joined.
Slipping into his typical stance, Rock bobs up and down just slightly in preparation for whatever is about to come his way. "Whenever you're ready, sensei, so am I!"
Though looking dead ready to fight, Dan pauses a moment to thrust an arm out at Rock, shooting him a thumbs-up. "OUSHA!" Without furhter ado, Dan breaks into a run straight at Rock, leaping forward several yards away. His flight path is almost perfectly straight, through, and as he nears his student his feet lash out three times in a row. "DAN DAN BOOT TO THE HEAD!"
COMBATSYS: Dan has started a fight here.
COMBATSYS: Rock has joined the fight here.
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Rock 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Dan
COMBATSYS: Rock blocks Dan's Dankuu Kyaku.
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Rock 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Dan
Rock's prepared for this one -- and he's not going to risk getting nailed by it. As the Pink Wonder takes flight, Rock's arms are already up in the air protecting him from the blow. One... two... three kicks are all soaked by Rock's arms, his entire person being steadily pushed back by each blow. But he remains standing, and, more importantly, he remains mostly unharmed. "I've gotten alot better, sensei -- Watch this!" Before Dan can descend back to earth after his flying kick, Rock is ducking down low to the ground, twisting his body around and around as he actually rockets /upwards/, propelled by some unseen force, his foot driving up into Dan's person before can recover from his own attack.
COMBATSYS: Dan interrupts Rising Tackle from Rock with Otoko Nage.
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Rock 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Dan
On the last kick, Dan pushes off from Rock, spinning around in the air once. Once is all he has; as he comes around, his arms come up just in time to let Rock's foot slam into them. He barely winces at the strike, and before the force of the strike carries him high into the sky, his hands snake out and grab Rock's ankle. "Definitely better, Rock, but you'll need to do better than that!"
Using the momentum gained from the kick, Dan twists his body around in more more spin, carrying Rock over himself like an aerial hammer swing. At the right moment, Dan lets go, throwing Rock toward the ground. Dan lands on his feet with a -thump-, dropping into a squat to keep from spilling on his ass.
But even as he's being flung around towards the ground, Rock is reaching for his opponent. One throw after another, Rock grabs at Dan's ankle as he is thrown towards the ground, seizing hold and trying to snag him while he still has some degree of momentum from his own fall. "Yeah? Like this?!" The instant he has some some of anchor -- his feet making solid contact with the ground -- he flings his arms out hard, spinning both limbs and using Dan's own weight to toss him about in some sort of catapault gesture. The result? If all goes well: Rock, standing upright, and Dan, flying like a brick through the air.
COMBATSYS: Dan dodges Rock's Shinkuu Nage.
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Rock 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Dan
Unfortunately, Rock never gets that hold on Dan's leg. The hakama flaps wildly in the wind as Dan slips out of the way; it -is- good for hiding footwork. Dan leaps backward, putting himself at a safe distance from Rock.
"Yatta ze!" Dan gives the V-sign to the crowd before rolling back and forth. He does a couple handsprings, showing off his acrobatic skills to the crowd while Rock decides what next to throw at him. "Come, pupil! Prove to me that you've embraced the Saikyo spirit! YOUSHA!"
COMBATSYS: Dan gathers his will.
Rock's seen people try something like this before. "Oh, yeah? I've got plenty of Saikyo spirit, sensei -- but that's not all I have! Try this on for size!" Lunging forward towards Dan's newfound position, Rock sweeps both arms across the ground, firing two projectiles of chi along the ground, each driving towards Dan. It's slow, and it's a little telegraphed (Rock's yell of "DOUBLE REPPUKEN!" doesn't help), but with Dan being spirited as he is? Maybe he'll catch his foe unprepared.
COMBATSYS: Rock successfully hits Dan with Double Reppuken.
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Rock 0/-------/-======|=======\====---\1 Dan
Dan continues doing his 'warmup routine', seeming all but oblivious to the blue fire racing toward him. He leaps into a forward flip, happily shouting "YAHOOIE!" And with the greatest of timing, he lands directly on the first Reppuken, the second one slamming into him shortly thereafter.
Dan goes rolling backward, his hakama smoking from the aftereffects. He pushes himself to his feet, looking a little woozy, but it doesn't take long to snap out of it. He looks across the field at Rock, rolling his shoulders, before very deliberately settling into a firm horse stance. "HAAAAAAAAAA!" The Saikyo warmup or the Ansatsuken warmup, it's all the same to Dan. "Come and fight me, Rock!"
COMBATSYS: Dan gathers his will.
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Rock 0/-------/-======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2 Dan
The last time Rock and Dan fought, the results weren't quite like this. As Dan once more prepares for something big, Rock isn't intent on letting his former sensei just do as he pleases. As Dan's body folds into the horse stance, Rock is already sprinting towards Dan. "Alright -- but you asked for it, man!" See, most people think Dan is a joke. Rock has the opposite feeling. When he fights Dan, he gets the distint impression that Dan is making a joke out of him.
Leaping straight into the air, Rock falls towards Dan like a missile, one foot lancing outwards towards the pink hero's face.
COMBATSYS: Dan endures Rock's Strong Kick.
Whether Dan is the joke or the world is the joke, the world may never know. Rock probably will find out very soon, though. He looks up calmly as Rock Rock-ets (geddit?) toward him, then turns his left shoulder and actually -leans- into the kick. Rock's foot connects -very- solidly, and the pain is plain on the planes of Dan's face. It soon fades, though, into a sly grin.
The reason for Dan sacrificing his left shoulder becomes clear - both hands are gathered at his waist, already drawing in an abundant amount of blue chi. "Shinkuuu..." With a will only the greatest fighters can possess, he shoves his arms forward, thrusting his hands directly toward Rock. Though the range on his chi leaves much to be desired...at this distance, it matters little. "GADOUKEN!"
And a massive blue fireball explodes from his hands.
Sakura holds up her GO TAIYO! sign from last week, pumping fists in encouragement for her sensei. Granted, that's mostly because he's fighting Rock, who showed the Taiyo schoolgirl up but -good- in her last fight.
COMBATSYS: Rock just-defends Dan's Shinkuu Gadouken!
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Rock 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Dan
"...!" He's too close to evade. Dan's got him right where Dan wants him, and Rock is, more or less, stuck. The question is: How much of Dan's big fireball does Rock want to take head on? The answer is 'A whole lot' or just 'A lot'. But there's also an option C, which Rock is fortunate enough to discover. Tossing his hands up just in time and channeling chi through his forearms to form a fleeting flash of blue on blue, Rock somehow manages to entirely dissolve the blast. Spraying the leftover chi from Dan's Gadouken to the left and right, Rock simply charges straight down the middle, one elbow leading the charge. "You're too predictable, sensei! Spending that much time getting ready... you'd have to be blind not to see what's coming!"
COMBATSYS: Dan endures Rock's Hard Edge.
As he makes contact, Rock's arm snaps out to full extension, driving one blast of chi straight into his opponent. There's more than just that, though -- excess chi flows from his shoulder, a testament to just how much exists within the young man's body, momentarily taking the shape of a wing as he strikes with full intensity.
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Rock 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 Dan
Yeah, yeah, pretty wing, bishounen, the son of his father and Terry. It doesn't hold a candle to Dan's sheer bloody-mindedness. He takes the hit straight on, his face a look of stunned pain once again...and once again it solidifies into resolve. The Saikyo master takes a deep breath, steeling himself against the pain, and shoots a fist forward, seeking to open up the gap between him and Rock a little. He follows that up with a high roundhouse kick, another punch to the solar plexus, then drops to his knees to deliver a sweep to the shins, all the while shouting at the top of his lungs "HISSHOU! BURAI! KEN!" The final action is a leaping spinning kick, ending the flurry of attacks. He'll be damned if he's just going to let it end like this.
COMBATSYS: Dan has reached second wind!
COMBATSYS: Rock counters Hisshou Burai Ken from Dan with Joudan Crack Counter.
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Rock 1/------=/=======|====---\-------\0 Dan
Dan's chain of kicks doesn't really get the chance to turn into a chain. Rock weaves underneath Dan's fist and his initial roundhouse kick, and even the punch that follows. Ultimately hitting the ground in a crouch, Rock snags Dan's sweep in of the air, catching it between both forearms with a grunt of effort and force. "I told you -- Dressing like that was a mistake! You think you've got spirit?! When it comes to taking my old man out... nobody's got more spirit than I do!" Flipping low over the ground, Rock leaps forward, bringing a foot down on Dan like a hammer.
Dan grunts satisfactorily as Rock nails him, his back thudding hard into the ground. He looks dizzy for a moment, his brain needing to catch up to events. When it does, he grins weakly. "And what if that was the point, Rock?" Rather than elaborate, Dan pushes his foot aside and tucks his feet up under himself. Clenching a hand into a fist, Dan forces himself upward, shooting into a leaping uppercut and hopefully with Rock caught on his fist. "KOURYUKEN!"
COMBATSYS: Rock fails to interrupt Kouryuken from Dan with Shine Knuckle.
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Rock 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Dan
By the time Dan fends off his dizziness, Rock is preparing... something. One hand is held aloft, crackling and glowing with some sort of golden chi. "... The hell? Look, pal... I respect you, but I don't like being played mind games with! Not even from a guy like you!" Without warning, Rock shoots forward like a missile, one glowing, crackling fist straight ahead as he darts at his foe, the crackling chi sounding not unlike a thousand birds, sqwuaking in unison. Only, it doesn't quite work out. Dan slides /under/ the punch, bringing his own up under Rock's chin, and literally knocking him right out of mid-air.
Dan lands heavily on his feet, rolling his neck and wincing. Rock does play hardball. He doesn't reply to Rock's ire, merely taking a few deep breaths while Rock recovers. He squares his shoulders, already looking a little less tired, and reaches behind his head. A moment later, and his hair is tied back into the familiar ponytail. May as well finish this like himself. "You're a good student, Rock, but you still haven't learned an important lesson." With a shout, Dan sprints forth, approaching Rock in a wide circle to approach his flank. At close range, Dan wheels around, bringing his foot down in a heavy spinning roundhouse.
COMBATSYS: Rock fails to counter Heavy Kick from Dan with Gedan Crack Counter.
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Rock 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Dan
Rock is nailed, hard, once again. He's losing his focus, losing his cool. He's ticked off, that's for sure... and something's changed. Dan nails him hard in the shoulder, lowering his entire person hard to the ground with one swift hit. So crouched, Rock is momentarily given pause, glaring back up at his sensei. "Yeah? And what lesson is that?!"
Dan lands on one foot, pulling the other back to stand over Rock for a brief moment. He grins down at the kid, loose strands of hair fluttering in front of his eyes. "Have fun." With that, he reaches for Rock's shoulders, aiming to pull him back as Dan falls to the ground. If he manages to take Rock with him, he'll roll along the ground with his student several times before launching him clear across the arena.
COMBATSYS: Rock dodges Dan's Strong Throw.
Rock is stopped dead in his tracks by what Dan says, his eyes going wide as he is grabbed by the throw and tossed across the arena. In mid-air, he's nowhere near the fight. He's miles away, somewhere deep within his own head, even as he sails through the air. Muttering to himself, Rock's red eyes have gone momentarily dim. "... Fun? Have... fun? I don't... Have fun?" Somewhere along the line, he'd gotten a little derailed. He'd struck a balance, but that balance was between two opposing forces, not three. Vengeance and a love of fighting for the sake of fighting -- but fun? Soaring through the air, Rock is mere feet from impacting with the ground before his eyes snap open. "... Fun, huh?!" Flipping around in the air, Rock manages to land feet-first on the arena floor, skidding backwards a few feet but finding himself completely unharmed by the landing. "You know what?! I think you've got a point, there... Thanks for the reminder. This is why I still call you 'sensei', y'know, sensei!" Breaking into a sprint and heading back to his origin point, Rock leaps straight up into the air and descends like a lawn dart, his fist guiding itself towards Dan's face. "Alright, let's start this fight fresh... I'll show you I can still have fun!"
COMBATSYS: Rock successfully hits Dan with Rage Run Dunk.
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Rock 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Dan
You know, that's the problem with telling angsters to lighten up. They get -weird-.
Dan scrambles to his feet, Rock already racing back toward him. There's no time for more conversation, and Dan can only throw his arms up to shield his face. The strength of Rock's attack, however, drives him back down onto the ground.
And Dan is well and truly caught between a Rock and a hard place.
Dan's back slams into the ground hard enough to knock the breath out of him, and for a plit second he lies there with Rock pressing him into the ground. Hibiki just isn't one to lie there and say "Yep, ya got me," of course. With his rapidly fading strength, he pushes Rock away to give him some room, pushing himself to his feet and twisting as he gets up. With a familiar cry of "HISSHOU BURAI KEN!" Dan aims a roundhouse kick at Rock's head, launching the same combination attack he attempted before.
COMBATSYS: Dan has reached third wind!
COMBATSYS: Dan successfully hits Rock with Hisshou Burai Ken.
- Power hit! -
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Rock 1/----===/=======|-------\-------\0 Dan
This time, Dan's connection of hits? It's right on. Rock tries to slide backwards and weave under it, but it's no good. Dan nails him once, twice, and then who knows how many times, finally knocking him halfway across the arena. Sliding a bit along the ground, Rock seems to be on his last legs -- just as Dan is. Finally, though, Rock begins to slowly, carefully, stagger back to his feet. "You know what, sensei? This really is fun. ... tell you what. I'll show you how far I've come. This is the pinnacle of what I've been able to achieve so far. You ready for it? Here it comes!" With that, Rock brings off in a sprint towards Dan, one foot driving forward in what looks like a fairly standard light kick. That's the pinnacle of his skills?
[ \\\\\ < > //// ]
Rock 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Dan
COMBATSYS: Dan endures Rock's Deadly Rave Neo.
Sakura, totally on the edge of her seat for this fight. She didn't expect Dan to last this long against Rock, but now that he is... whoa. Pumping her fist, she really does hope he can manage to eke out a win -- or at least a draw!
Only it's not /just/ a kick. There's another hit. And another. And another. A punch, followed by a kick, another kick, a punch... one blow streams into another with perfect fluidity and grace, leaving absolutely no opening for escape once the first has landed. Rock lays out a sequence of what must be at least twelve hits, each more brutal than the last. "Ready, sensei?! This is how I fight!" Finally, Rock clasps both palms together, the space between glowing brilliantly with so much raw chi that it looks as though he's holding a star in his grip. That star begins to grow, and grow... until it's the size of a basketball. All the while, Rock is driving it into Dan's face. But it's still growing, until it's nearly half as wide as Rock is tall. And all of it is being shoved right into Dan's gut, dealing out unheard of levels of brutality.
Dan would say it's a very good style of fighting. That is, if he had a chance to say anything. The kick connects swiftly, and Dan is drawn into a world of pain. The combo juggles him hard, causing pain in places he never knew he had. The massive ball of chi blasts his gi into tatters, to say nothing of what it's doing to Rock's teacher.
And yet...when the light fades...
Dan stands there, looking woozy, but no sooner has the intense assault faded than Dan reaches out to grab Rock's collar. The Saikyo master smiles briefly, his gaze a bit unfocused but otherwise looking right at Rock, then drives his forehead straight into his student's. Plain, simple, easy. At this point in the fight, that's pretty much what Dan's capable of.
COMBATSYS: Dan can no longer fight.
COMBATSYS: Dan has left the fight here.
COMBATSYS: Rock blocks Dan's Strong Punch.
[ \\\ <
Rock 0/-------/------=|
Rock doesn't do much to avoid the headbutt -- He tries to survive it, though, both palms rising to catch Dan as he strikes him. And then... it doesn't take a genius to see that this fight is over. But he's not going to let Dan hit the ground. Reaching out to snag him before he falls, Rock manages to catch his sensei, saving him to added insult of hitting the dirt. "Rest easy, sensei. Even now, you're still teaching me, huh? Well... thanks for the fight. I owe you a rematch, sometime."
From the stands, Sakura can't really find herself disappointed with the outcome of this match. It was exciting! Dan made a killer comeback, and landed some seriously punishing attacks against his student. He did a lot better than she herself did, and it gives her plenty of food for thought. But even still, seeing Dan come so close to success, only to have it snagged away at the last second by those raised palms, still draws a pained gasp from the Taiyo schoolgirl. After a brief sigh, her cheerful smile returns. He owes her a rematch too, but ... maybe later. It just wouldn't be as fun now if he's exhausted!
COMBATSYS: Rock has ended the fight here.
Log created by Kobun, and last modified on 18:03:18 12/06/2005.