Description: "Heh... man... that was awesome times =twenty jillion=." Kensou and Sakura team up in a "Party Up Tactics" battle against the unlikely team of Adelheid and Alma! (Winners: Sakura and Kensou)
No one could have asked for a better November day. The sky is bright and blue, the clouds distant on the horizon, the air crisp and fresh. Fresh, and clean; thanks to the constant efforts of the many plants here in Coimbre's botanical gardens. A light breeze ruffles the fronds that hang over the wide paved path that marks the main thoroughfare through this pleasant retreat, but does nothing to diminish the warmth of the unobscured sunlight. The shaded portions along the side of the roads give the SNF cameramen a place to control the brightness of the area and made sure the glare of the sun is reduced, but also restrict the movement of passerby -- or would, if there were any passerby. Which there aren't, as the area has been temporarily cordoned off; not that this prevents people from gathering around at the far end to see what all the fuss is about. It's an unusual place for a battle to take place, but far from an unpleasant one.
Still, they made sure there weren't any especially rare plants nearby.
...not that this prevents the first arrival from taking his time looking at all of them. Slightly early as usual -- and taking his time along the way as usual -- the tall young man takes long and slow strides, hands tucked slightly into the pockets of his dark jeans, white zip-up contrasting with the dusky tones of his skin, a tone more in evidence here than elsewhere. That mild-mannered expression and good-natured smile seem well suited to a place like this, a place both for intuitive experience of ambience and the perusal of knowledge. He, of course, is after both; every little sign is read, every type of flower is lightly sniffed. Every plant gets a moment.
After all, this is his mother's home country. He can learn a lot here.
Such as, for example, that his Portuguese is /way/ worse than he thought.
~ And they keep telling me my name is a girl's name... ~
'Sauntering' doesn't do justice to the modesty of his carriage, but it at least well describes the effortlessness of his grace as Alma Towazu steps into view of the cameras, quietly resting a hand on the metal railing and leaning upon it momentarily. This is going to be an intense battle, he's sure, and he has to be ready to commit himself fully to it, primed to engage in and savor each moment. These minutes of peace he has: they are worthy in their own right to be sure, but they will also prepare him for that. He's got to be ready.
~ Not like I can count on my teammate. ~
A flicker of pursed lips, a wry deadpan expression, before the young fighting model just shakes his head slightly and smiles that mellow smile again, waiting patiently.
Alma. The matchup would be almost frustrating if it weren't so terribly amusing to Adelheid. Towazu... -and- Kensou, -again-. Someone really likes that rivalry, but the match is certainly of interest to the young Bernstein... and whatever the grumblings of his froofy and fretsome teammate, he hasn't failed to back up one of his allies yet! Add in Sakura, and the entire premise promises some fearsome fisticuffs. The second young, lithe blonde arrives a measure later than his partner, right on time. The announcements do whatever they do, while Adel traipses almost casually in from the garden entrance he was pointed to, his typical basic black eschewed in favour of more traditional camouflage fatigues, in the proper shades of green for the dense shrubbery and towering trees surrounding the battlefield. He didn't go so far as to paint his face - Adel isn't into the whole 'cosplay fight scene'... nor is he prone to howling at the moon.
What he is, however, is much more amicable towards the idea of fighting alongside Alma than vice-versa, his heavy boots falling lightly on the walkway as he paces evenly up to the less muscular youth, and tosses out a lazy salute, "Well, we already know we both have what it takes to put up a hell of a fight. And at least one of our opponents is just as good for it..." gotta keep up at least a /little/ trash talk. His thumbs hook loosely in the pockets of his pants as he turns to survey their surroundings, "Guess we're going to need to pull out some tricky moves and time things out for this one." He murmurs, more quietly, as if the statement were more for his own benefit.
Sakura fought each participant of this battle one-on-one at least twice before... so she knows the score to say the least. Teaming up with Kensou is also nothing new -- she may not be exactly like the slackest of the Psycho Soldier, but they both share a love of food and uncanny tendencies to turn a match around on the drop of a hat. Bliiiind luck, if nothing else!
So really... she felt no need at all to practice here. Just a bit of mental preparation in the form of a rousing bout of Mario Kart with her kid brother, hanging out in the thick of the forest. It's been a bit frustrating -- she =hates= playing her brother, but she's played all her other games to death. But when she shows up sulking, it's not the fault of either Alma or Adelheid.
Grumbling to herself, she flashes a quick wave to each of her two gooooorgeous opponents, idly pulling her bright red handguards on. After a much-too-long absence from SNF, she's back in one of her usual schoolgirl uniforms -- this one green and white, to match the botanical gardens!
There's a rivalry? Nobody told Kensou that! The air might be relatively cool, but that doesn't seem to bother the Chinese fighter any - after all, he does a lot of his training in the mountains of China, because his teacher is just that old fashioned. No, he has no complaints about the weather, so he's here in his usual fighting gear as if it were the middle of summer or something. As it happens, he's the last one to arrive on the scene, for whatever reason (he's lazy), ambling up after Sakura does by almost a full minute.
"Yo, Sakura," the Psycho Soldier says as he walks up to his partner, glancing only briefly towards their opponents for this match. Yeah... Alma and Adelheid, that's not going to be easy. But you'd never know Kensou thought so, from how he's standing there all casual, and of course, eating a meatbun. But he's not trying to eat the whole thing at once this time. Because he's casual, see? It's all psychology. "Ready to totally kick their butts?" Kensou adds towards the fighting schoolgirl. Project confidence. Believe you're going to do it, and then it comes just that easily!
COMBATSYS: Sakura has started a fight here on the right meter side.
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|-------\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Adelheid has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Alma has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Kensou has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
Yes, the power of belief can be a potent one, and for the fighter oh so casually eating his meatbun, it may be a force for strength and unity. But such a potent force can also be used to divide, and perhaps this explains why Alma's reaction to his fellow blond is so unusually... restrained. Given the nature of their previous encounter, it's only natural that our resident champion of virtue would have Adelheid pinned as a villain; especially since Alma was able to perform so magnificently, his passion the proof of his just cause. After all, if the fighting model could get /that/ passionate about fighting someone -- especially someone who under normal circumstances he'd rather invite out for tea -- his opponent must be just that villanous, am I right?
But not opponent, not opponent now. Teammate. Alma still doesn't say anything until Adelheid is entirely done speaking, only then removing his hand from the railing and inclining his head toward Adel; and despite the flicker of mild consternation beforehand that no one was around to see, there's nothing but measured courtesy to see now. "I'll be counting on you," he murmurs politely, not seeming as stiff as one of his opinions toward Adel might normally feel as he steps away, both their opponents beginning to arrive. "Let's stay in communication. We shouldn't underestimate either of them." No added emphasis there, but... perhaps he heard about Adel's mistreatment of Kensou earlier. Alma actually has quite a bit of respect for Kensou -- but then again, he has a lot of respect for Jiro, so make of that what you will.
It's more the contrast between his reaction to his teammate and his opponents that forebodes potential difficulties, for it's Sakura and Kensou that get the honest smiles. "Sakura," he says in greeting to the first arrival, raising his hand as he steps away from his teammate. "I'm fortunate. Every match against you is a pleasure." Grinning slightly, he reaches up to run his hand through his hair, rubbing the back of his head idly. "I've been looking forward to seeing your style in action again." And then, finally: "Kensou." Why, Alma, your grin is almost mischevious; at least amused, if you look into his eyes and see the mirthful sparkles there. "You'd better win this one," he says, low tones faintly teasing. "Or I'm taking you shirt shopping."
Perhaps fortunately for Kensou, he is saved from necessarily making a response-- by the announcer, who having finished the introductions to the surrounding Portuguese populace, shouts 'FIGHT!' And Alma, still smiling slightly, only spares enough time to tilt his gaze toward Adel and nod once in encouragement before lunging in; though not at the schoolgirl he was so excited to fight, but at the meatbun eating boy who so needs a new wardrobe. "You'd thank me later, though," he adds, in a tone that would be flippant if he didn't sound so serious, as he weaves in with a staggered grace that belies his tall broad frame. Alma's smile never fades even as, keen-eyed, he draws his arms around in a momentum-gat
Perhaps fortunately for Kensou, he is saved from necessarily making a response-- by the announcer, who having finished the introductions to the surrounding Portuguese populace, shouts 'FIGHT!' And Alma, still smiling slightly, only spares enough time to tilt his gaze toward Adel and nod once in encouragement before lunging in; though not at the schoolgirl he was so excited to fight, but at the meatbun eating boy who so needs a new wardrobe. "You'd thank me later, though," he adds, in a tone that would be flippant if he didn't sound so serious, as he weaves in with a staggered grace that belies his tall broad frame. Alma's smile never fades even as, keen-eyed, he draws his arms around in a momentum-gathering feint before twisting his body around and lashing out with a quick arcing side kick toward Kensou's abdomen. As he attacks, he feels his blood sing out, the passion of the fight stirring him, and he calls out, loud enough for all fighters to hear--
"Everyone, do your best!"
A lightly grinning Adelheid turns to regard his opponents briefly, after greeting his teammate, as the announcer gears up the battle proper. Kensou receives just a cursory glance... whether conscious snub or just lack of words. Sakura, however, receives a nod, and just a trace more of a smile, "This should be interesting." Adelheid murmurs, echoing his inner monologue as Alma's launches off on a predictably wild and forward tangent. Perfect.
A querically arched brow is the only warning that Kasugano gets that Adel is ready to move as well, in the best way he can see to compliment his ally's momentum. Instead of engaging Sakura head-on as might be predictable... the young Bernstein leaps upwards in a flash, disappearing into the boughs of one of the tall trees bordering the path. With a refocusing of his inner chi, the youth kicks off the trunk, and with a rustle of limbs, launches to a bordering canopy in a flash. It's a bit hard to see the quick-moving youth holding close to the trunk up in all those limbs... but it's easy to see the hunk of wood that comes hurtling end over end out of the shadowy recesses. Someone's been taking lessons in terrain already, perhaps.
But yes... the hefty limb whirls right in at Kensou's head, from an angle towards the Psycho Soldier's rear flank. Alma gives good advice, and he'll leave it to Kasugano to track him down... or try to get the passionate do-gooder off her own partner.
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Adelheid's Thrown Object.
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Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
Kasugano expects Alma to be flowery and polite. She knows he has the capability to be sneaky, but also kinda figures him to build up a proper rhythm with which to make the sneakiness even trickier to spot ahead of time. Not that she =consciously= recognizes that as a strategy; like anything she does, Sakura tends to rely more on intuition than analysis and decision.
Intuition would also guide her hand as the word 'FIGHT' is announced. She's paying partial attention to Alma, even snickering as he dogs on the boy about his choice of attire. Were she not distracted by Adelheid, she might have even joined in on the Kensou-bashery. But no -- Adelheid disappearing into the air is enough of a sign. As is the not-quite-subtle hate-on for the Psycho Slacker. Two plus two equals Adelheid versus Kensou; Sakura immediately moves to intercept. She doesn't know =what= will come, but she's mindful of Alma approaching from the fore, and closes in on Kensou's side with a warning cry of "Get down!"
The limb is a bare second from crashing into Kensou, at nearly the same moment Alma's kick is closing in -- but Sakura's crazy sprint placed her at his back just in time. A blur of motion, sure to be captured by the cameras, ends with Sakura bracing catching the limb with her hands, stopping it a mere two inches from her face, her headband still fluttering forward as an indication of her frenetic dash!
"Gotta keep an eye on your six, Kensou!" notes the tomboy with a prideful smirk. She doesn't actually know what that phrase means, but it =sounded= cool.
Didn't it?
Kasugano glances over to Adelheid, hefting the branch a bit, testing it for its weight. "Heh... I think you dropped this!" She hurls the wooden projectile at Adelheid -- but the =true= attack is what follows it: a rushing jumpkick to the jaw! "Hyaaaa!"
COMBATSYS: Kensou blocks Alma's Light Kick.
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Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
Keep an eye on his /six/? What is this, some sort of fighter pilot movie? Kensou does, however, recognise the call of 'get down!', even though most of his attention is on the fact that Alma is rushing at him. "Tch, you don't need to tell /me/ that," the Chinese fighter mutters in response to the admonishment that he'd better win this time; there's something more important than shirts on the line here. There is a young man's PRIDE. Or something. Anyway... When Sakura is coming in behind him, Kensou is indeed ducking, his forearm intercepting Alma's kick. He's kind of surprised by Sakura being behind him and having knocked away the tree limb. He didn't even notice that. "Uh," he says, because Kensou is brilliant.
Not having time to say much else, since Alma's still in close and isn't likely to let up on him any time soon, the Psycho Soldier remains in his crouch, suddenly whirling around with one leg extended, apparently trying to take Alma off of his feet; however, if the first kick hits, then Kensou lunges off the ground, trying to catch the other fighter with a pair of further kicks, counting on Sakura to keep Adelheid busy. "Uryaa-!!"
COMBATSYS: Alma blocks Kensou's Ryuu Renga.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
In the end, it's not his psychic intuitions, his flowing grace, his powerful build, or his palpable presence that saves Alma. It's training. The kind of training that can only come from experience, from constant error and the iron resolve to try again and again until success, until his passion can be expressed in totality. Yes, Alma has encountered this situation many times before, and though it's not easy, though he still feels faintly the typical onset of disorientation that can lead to his ruin in battle, this time, he succeeds.
This time, he's able to avert his eyes.
What, did you think I was talking about Kensou's attack?
OF course his gaze strays for a moment at Sakura's impressive rush to intercept the thrown branch, hapless Kensou blocking his kick and Alma pushing away to give himself time to pay attention to both fighters in case Sakura engages him as well. But no, Sakura leaps, soaring up into a -- no, it's none of his business anymore! Blanching slightly, Alma jerks his gaze back down to Kensou, deciding just in time to no longer concern himself with the schoolgirl's movements. ...At least not while she's airborne, am I right?
Feeling a little relieved and a little satisfied at his continued striving toward Champion of Virtue-ness, Alma thus manages to remain focused enough to deflect Kensou's first kick with his shin, immediately sallying forth again. His temporary withdrawl only becoming a coil into a new lunge, he prevents the second two kicks from ever occuring as he launches into a sudden new kick of his own -- Kensou's might've had a chance at attempting the second kick in his combination, but it would've missed anyway, for Alma leaps suddenly and bursts into a rapid descent. Eyes flash and loafer-clad foot is wreathed in white and purple soulfire as the fighting model lashes out in a fierce hooking kick at Kensou's head, emitting a battle cry of an intensity that belies his calm visage.
"Uuuurryyaaahh!"
True passion cannot be denied.
Except sometimes by skirts.
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Adelheid with Medium Kick.
Glancing Blow
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Sakura
Did someone say skirt? Of course, Adelheid can't take Alma's course and avert his eyes, on account of the fact that the fleet-footed schoolgirl not only interposed herself on his ambush of Kensou, but then sprinted him down and is now FLYING THROUGH THE AIR at him and trying to kick him the fugg out of the tree!
... what the hell is it with women these days? His reddish eyes widen slightly, but not at the fanservice... and then Adel drops straight down from whence he came, the jumpkicking Kasugano catching him squarely in the shoulder, which rebounds sharply off the tree trunk on his way down.
When plan 'A' fails.... you move on to plan 'B'. Which involves turning Sakura's eager assault against her. Despite the jarring glance (no pun intended), the young Bernstein lands lightly, twisting about and backstepping one pace to catch Sakura on her way down.... and position just so...
A glance mid-drop confirms that Alma is holding his own against the Psycho Soldier, for the moment, and the camouflaged fighter lashes out with his boot, axeing his left foot high towards the landing Sakura's chin. The kick seeks to drive her back into the tree trunk as she drops, and a successful impact would be followed by a heel-led roundhouse to the top of her skull, and a quick, flanking step that leads into a snapping axe back the other way. Each of the flurry of strikes meant to turn the tree against her. Like his poor shoulder.
COMBATSYS: Adelheid successfully hits Sakura with B's Destruction.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura didn't tag Adelheid as soundly as she would have liked, but after she flips about to recover and land -- well, she got a B for effort. A B's Destruction, that is -- as she's unable to redirect her path to get out of the way in time! Ricocheting repeatedly the tree like a pinball off the bumpers, Kasugano finds herself in a most unenviable position. Battered about, she drops to one knee, hand snapping to the top of her head from such a powerful kick. "Tch..." she mumbles -- already in something of a sour mood from her video-game defeat by Tsukushi, she just got an ugly reminder that there's more to Adelheid than just the Dark Barrier!
However, the word 'retreat' got taken out of her dictionary about a year ago! Sakura finds herself in a low spot -- which means that she sees a perfect opportunity to use Adelheid's height against him! She moves as if she's rising to her feet, but cancels halfway, instead leaping for the boy's waist, elbow-first! If she manages that she'd flail her legs out and suplex him into the ground behind her! "DOSSEIIIII!"
COMBATSYS: Alma successfully hits Kensou with Shooting Star.
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Alma 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Haste makes waste - this is probably the most important lesson Kensou should take away from a lot of the fights he's been in. If he lets frustration get ahold of him, he's bound to end up making mistakes. Case in point: When he gets kicked in the head by Alma. The energy-charged kick strikes home, staggering the Psycho Soldier as he recovers from his own blocked combination, and that's really... Well, ow, honestly. "Guh!" says Kensou when he gets hit, but he forces himself to stay upright.
"That ain't enough yet!" he declares, and then he lunges forward in... A really simple punch. Yes, it's a remarkably simple punch in fact, a sublimely mundane punch. But it's got a fair amount of speed behind it as he snaps his fist out at Alma's jaw, leaning all the way into the strike, and trying to knock the other fighter away. "Hua-!!"
COMBATSYS: Adelheid dodges Sakura's Medium Throw.
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Alma 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Wham, bam. Sure showing that tree what-for. Oh, and Sakura as well. But Adelheid's fought the schoolgirl a few times now... and he knows her skills well enough to respect them. The point of this bout is the teams, and the tactics, and to that end, rather than going toe to toe with Kasugano... Adel simply isn't there to be grabbed. Pushing off his successful flurry, the young Bernstein darted away from Sakura with a sudden burst of acceleration, stopping a leaping stride away and swinging his right foot around, along with the rest of his weight, "Alma! Get clear, then blast him!" the 'R' heir shouts, in the same instant that a blast of wind chi shears the ground at his feet, sending underbrush bursting every which way as the silver-grey edge of power cleaves across the ground at Kensou.
The waist-high blade of shearing energy blasts a wake in the ground behind it, and is likely still carrying a few twigs here and there as it reaches Kensou. Adelheid isn't exactly giving Alma long to react in terms of capitalizing on the sandwiching technique, but apparently... he trusts Towazu's reflexes more than Kensou's.
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Alma with Quick Punch.
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Alma 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Not enough yet, eh? Eyes glittering as he grins slightly, Alma weaves his hands around as Kensou recovers, preparing for the counterattack-- until he blinks at his teammate's sudden shout, the fight that must have been taking place in the trees above having slipped his notice. Incoming? It's a bit too much for Alma right now, at least with Kensou trying something so simple. Had his opponent taken a bit longer or tried something more elaborate, the fighting model might've sensed something, but as it is, the punch takes him square on the side of the face, and he staggers back a pace. Still, that's just what he needs; rather than try to recover he just makes use of the momentum, and lets the stagger fuel him into a backwards leap that takes him a couple meters away.
~ Blast him... ~
Alma's eyes glitter.
Maybe it's the opponents he has this time. Maybe, deep down, he wants to compete with his own teammate, one-up him not out of personal pride, but for the purposes he fights for. Maybe it's just the nice day. Maybe it's all of that and more. But the surge of power is sudden and unexpected, unprecedented for this early in the fight, and the shattering roar that Alma unleashes in response dwarfs his earlier battle cry. Aura exploding into visibility around him in a retaliation far more aggressive than Kensou's own attack, soulfire blazing around his right fist, Alma strikes low as Adel strikes from on high, energy-sheathed punch plowing into the pavement. Yet the pavement itself is undamaged--
--for the entirety of that force is transferred into the geyser that emerges.
"Ssshhyyaaaahh!"
Already, he burns.
COMBATSYS: Alma successfully hits Kensou with Full Confession.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\1 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Adelheid successfully hits Kensou with Reppukyaku.
Glancing Blow
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=======\=------\1 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
So, this isn't good, huh? Kensou hears Adelheid's shouted instruction, and that's enough warning for him to at least /try/ to get out of the way of the pincer attack. In practice though, apparently not so much; maybe it's entirely psychological, but Kensou always seems to have terrible luck against Alma. He tries to dodge to the side, but he gets hit full on by Alma's Psycho Power blast, which luckily knocks him away enough that he only gets clipped by Adel's. Geez.
Kensou hits the ground, rolling over his shoulder to end up on his feet in a low crouch. "Y'know, if you guys keep that up, you're gonna hurt Sakura's feelings!" he calls out, because he's trying to not let on that he's pretty hurt after all of that. Rather than making any sort of assault of his own, he reaches behind his back, pulling out a piping hot meatbun from seemingly nowhere. And then... Kensou starts to eat it. Screw you guys, he's hungry!
Sakura falls flat on her face, her attempt at snaring Adelheid failing tremendously! "Mmf!" But just as she's picking herself up, she hears an order being barked out to the fashion model fighter! "... Crap!" she spits, vaulting right back to her feet.
But there'll be no last-second defense this time -- with her on the ground, there's no way she can take a bullet for Kensou. "NO!" she shouts, unable to really put her thoughts into any more concrete form than that!
But through the double-teaming, she can tell Kensou's still =conscious= at least, when she gets to within about ten feet of him anyway. "Nngh... yeah! You guys really got some nerve!" she shouts out, levelling her lecturing index finger upon Alma -- then Adelheid! "Sheesh, letting Kensou have all the fun!"
But while she's =here= she may as well attack! "Tch! Well, here I come!" Kasugano starts in a mad dash for Alma this time, though she hops into a rapid somersault just before impact. When she snaps out, her legs are splayed to either side for balance, her red gym shorts taking =some= attention away from her two hands chopping down onto Alma's shoulders. And should she land, she'd leapfrog right over his head to safety! "Yut-taaaaah!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Alma with Sakura Otoshi.
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Alma 0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Well, what did you expect?
Heaving a sigh of fatigue and a hint of satisfaction at his successfully expressed passion, Alma relaxes, a trickle of sweat tracing its way down his smooth brow as he looks up from under low-hanging bangs -- and, unwarned by his currently faded aura sense, sees a new opponent coming at him. His feet sweep around in preparation as he prepares for the quick schoolgirl's assault, hoping for some clues as to the nature of her attack, unable to divine more than her general violent intent -- until she leaps.
It's not fair. He's /tired/.
But all questions of fairness aside, the fact is, O_O is a poor choice of defensive action, and Alma is forced to bear the brunt of that. The double-handed chop sends him to his knees with a wince and a grunt, but at least the pain helps to get him somewhat back in gear, enough at least to roll away and in the general direction of where his ally has landed. "My apologies, Sakura," he manages; he's apologizing for his inattentiveness, though maybe it also helps him feel less guilty about paying attention to the wrong things. Look, he just isn't that comfortable fighting girls, okay? He's prefer to think of them just as fellow fighters, but it's tough sometimes, and it's easy to forget Sakura's a girl except when she-- er, I'll just stop there. "I assure you, you have my full attention now..." Yeah, I bet.
"Adelheid," he murmurs, "let's regroup." Straightening his posture and resuming his usual poise, the psychic bishounen attempts to clear his mind, letting the ambient energies surge within and fuel his passion for the fight. Letting out a quiet sigh as he breathes deep of the clean air, eyes glittering again with flecks of purple and gold, his red-tinged blonde hair ripples with a breeze felt by none other.
He's got to keep his priorities straight.
COMBATSYS: Alma gathers his will.
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Alma 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Sakura
"We're not near finished." Adelheid 'reassures' Sakura in a crisp, calm tenor, as a quick leap takes him over to Alma, landing near the fiery psychic in a relaxed, but notoriously ready stance, a focused glint in his own deep red eyes. It's a contrast in parallels, really. Fire, and Ice. The spirit, the intensity, runs at similar levels... that ways of expressing it? Well, those couldn't be more different, in most cases. But then, one can blame upbringing for that. Taking a queue from his teammate, the Bernstein heir pauses to focus his own considerable inner power, the force of the elemental storm.
In another contrasting parallel, the winds that set Adelheid's platinum blonde mane to fluttering are visible, if scarcely, a swirling vortex of windshear that wells in a momentarily rising gale, the energy currents running the length of Adel's form. Rushing outwards, and through, the boy's own power refocused and refined. Kensou especially may welcome the momentary regrouping, but unlike the brunette team...
The blondes are reinforcing that dangerous spirit.
COMBATSYS: Adelheid gathers his will.
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Alma 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura doesn't know why Alma's so (comparatively) inattentive, but for the most part, she's not terribly concerned at the moment. A distracted Alma means less chance of her breaking into involuntary convulsions and cold sweats, after all!
Landing nimbly after catapulting herself from Alma's shoulders, she twirls about, sifting the headband out of her eyes so she can keep her attention on her opponents. Not finished? "Tch! I hope not!" Sakura might =sound= angry, but the smile on her face is only growing, now. Kensou might've gotten banged up pretty fierce, but now that he has meatbun refreshment, he might start feeling better.
But then Alma seems to be calling a general falling-back. And Sakura, being the fangirl of pop culture she is, has a response at the read. "Retreat? In your moment of triumph?" But with Alma choosing this particular means of regrouping, Kasugano has a punishment in mind. A punishment with a bright blue tinge to it, centered upon her palms. "Whaddaya think, Kensou, should we warm up the main cannons?" Passing a wink back to the Meatbun Soldier, Kasugano lets her chi energies swirl into a dense core, before thrusting the cerulean mass of super-sized chi at Alma. "HADOOOOOOOOOUKEN!"
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Kensou with Meat Bun.
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Alma 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Ahh, that's the stuff: Meatbuns are extremely nutritious, you know, though for most people they probably don't work as well as they do for Sie Kensou. His visible injuries fade as he eats the bun, restoring his vigor. With a look of renewed confidence on his face, the Chinese teenager straightens up, and then he gives Sakura a weird look, not actually getting her reference. It's not that he's never seen Star Wars, he just doesn't process it right away. He does, however, see what she's getting at.
Besides, turnabout is fair play, right? Kensou brings his hands up in front of his face, crossing his arms at the wrists, facing Alma, energy crackling around his hands. He focuses on a point in front of his hands, forcing energy to coalesce, and then he sweeps his hands out with a cry of: "Choukyuudan!!" A beachball-sized sphere of crackling, blue-tinged white Psycho Power forms in the air, hurtling towards Alma in time with Sakura's Hadouken!
COMBATSYS: Alma blocks Sakura's Large Hadouken.
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Alma 1/----===/=======|-------\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Alma with Choukyuu Dan.
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Alma 1/-======/=======|==-----\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
The tables have turned, it seems.
Now completely on the defensive, Alma can only trust his enduring spirit to take him safely through this onslaught. Gritting his teeth and gazing forward with fearless stoicism, he sets his feet and positions himself to defend against both powerful blasts. Sakura's oversized rendition of the Hadouken is the first to strike him, and the tall model's aura immediately burns into visibility once again, seeming almost like a golden shield of light as the white and purple flame against the pale blue; arms crossed, the youth's feet scrape against the pavement of the narrow walkway, but his defensive stance holds. At least until Kensou's attack hits... at which point, it's only a matter of time.
His efforts are as heroic as ever, but when his manifested aura appears to actually /crack/ under the combined assault -- there's a headache, right there -- he can no longer maintain his defense, and the only partially diminished attacks bore through and blast him off his feet. Alma lands heavily. Yet though he doesn't spring to his feet, he rises without lost poise, moving patiently as he gets to his feet and begins to bring himself to his full height. He says nothing, his head tilted slightly downward; not so much that he appears downcast or distraught, but just enough so that his eyes are shaded by those impertinent red-tinged bangs...
He waits, but for what?
COMBATSYS: Alma gains composure.
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Alma 1/--=====/=======|==-----\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
Ouch. That... that looked like it hurt. Adelheid can almost -feel- that chitastrophy as it consume Alma... he had hoped it would be him that drew the proverbial maelstrom, but hey... beggars can't be choosers, and there's still a match to fight. Plenty of a match to fight, if he knows Towazu. .... beat the crap out of the guy, he only gets more determined. It's quite aggravating really, but it's a sentiment Adel understands all too well.
... of course there's something to be said for riding a successful wave, as well. Which is what the Bernstein heir tries to do when both of his adversaries turn their attention to Alma. The winds surrounding him rippled visibly as he bursts from the hurricane, and into motion, his own energies focused within... though to no less dramatic effect than the maelstrom of moments before.
Lunging across the ground, the young Bernstein seeks to quite literally haul Kensou up out of his blasting of Adel's teammate, and with a blasting shockwave beneath his feet, should his grip be found...
Adel lurches forward, feet leaving the ground, tearing through the air with the Psycho Soldier in tow, his aim to not only soundly /slam/ Kensou into one of the fairly hefty stonework benches lining the path, with an abrupt halting of their forward momentum. It looks sturdy. ... it might not break. Of course, the secondary goal of trying to rocket off with Kensou in tow... is providing Alma with breathing room.
Kasugano seems somewhat pleased about the results of their team-up attack, and for good measure -- it kept Alma from attacking yet again! She seems pretty happy about that, anyway. Though she also knows that it's possible to nail Alma once, but he =always= comes back stronger the second time...
... Which is why she veers off to intercept Adelheid instead. "Adel, you sure got a hate-on for Kensou today!" she exclaims, rocketing along after him with an intent to knock the bajeezus out of him from behind with a leaping, all-or-nothing punch! "Rocket Fist!"
She's angling toward Adelheid, leaving Alma with a view from behind -- will the unintentional fanservice ever stop?
COMBATSYS: Adelheid successfully hits Kensou with God Press.
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Alma 1/--=====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
Surely such an attack, which Kensou can see coming from a mile away, would be easy to get out of the way of, right? Apparently not; Kensou gets caught by Adelheid's attack, getting slammed into that stone bench. Well, that kinda hurt! But Kensou isn't about to give up with just that. That sort of thing just isn't his style, you know?
Instead, he reaches up to grab Adel by the wrist, while Sakura closes in from behind... Hoping to trap their opponent there long enough for her attack to hit... And also long enough for Kensou himself to use that wrist as a pivot, swinging his body to try kicking Rugal Jr. in the face, as hard as he can. "Hyaa-!!"
COMBATSYS: Adelheid dodges Kensou's Heavy Kick.
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Alma 1/--=====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Adelheid dodges Sakura's Fierce Punch.
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Alma 1/--=====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
A hate-on for Kensou? Damn woman, Adel just gave you swift boot to the face five minutes ago! But dragging the Psycho Soldier off of Towazu seemed like a prudent gambit, and it's one that paid off in the end. Rugal has taught his son well, if nothing else. The Bernstein heir uses the impact of Kensou and Bench to push off into a reverse leap, clear of the meatbun-loving fighter's grab and punish in a flash, and landing to twist towards Sakura...
Ah snap, she's hurtling in on him too. With surprising alacrity, Adelheid pushes off to his side, redirecting himself in the same instant that Sakura's fist is about to impact. He slides out of the weave and into a standing posture, almost immediately lunging back in at Kasugano. She's in close, now is as good a time as any....
"Alma! Give me your best explosive WALL." In the same breath, both of Adelheid's hands are shooting out for Kasugano, looking to heft her up by the school uniform much like Kensou before her, and snap her about to be in-line with Alma's position.
---
... it's not hard to guess what might come next.....
The hair in his eyes has done two good things for Alma. First of all, it blinded him to that last bit of 'unintentional' fanservice, preventing any more mishaps on the model's part; but secondly, and possibly even more crucial, it has obscured the secret kept within. For while he stands quietly now, once Adel calls his name, his head snaps up-- and the pupils of his eyes are fields of gleaming purples, glimmering violet and indigo almost seeming to emit a light of their own from those once hazel orbs.
In place of any nod or noise of recognization, Alma shows his commitment to their common cause by an explosion of flame, shrouding his right hand in surging soulfire as he draws it out to his side. He leans forward, and lunges-- and slowly, inexorably, builds up speed, careening forward in a mad dash and leaving a blur of light in his wake, his calm expression entirely unchanged even as the very air burns around him. Despite Adelheid's efforts, though, Alma doesn't seem to be bearing in at quite the right angle, but hopefully it'll all work out. And Alma isn't the one to watch now, for Adel's simple grab is far from the limit of what must be coming...
The outpouring of chi would be evident even in the first moments, if Adelheid found his grappled, dragging Sakura up into the air and blasting forward at a pace several times faster than what the Psycho Soldier experienced. And of course, the trajectory would be angled to put her impact well and thoroughly in whatever Alma is cooking up. For Adelheid's part? At the point of impact, the hand that sought to clamp over Kasugano's face mid-flight would unleash all that gale-force fury stored up within the 'R' heir, point-blank into the Ansatsuken prodigy's skull.
The tangible result of this would be a tremendous hurricane of shearing silvery edges, billowing outwards and exploding around Adelheid and Sakura, threatening to envelope her totally from his end, at least.
... and Towazu's sure to be providing the proverbial anvil.
Darn right he is.
Rushing forward as he senses Adelheid's chi gathering, no further communication is necessary. He knows what he must do, knew what he was going to do all along. As his momentum continues to gather, putting all his passion and resolve into this relentless forward rush. And again he roars, as though in defiance of everything that would prevent him from putting his very soul into this conflict, everything forgotten but the purest of flames that burn within him. "UurrryyyaAAAAAA--"
The sound is gone, as though it never were.
And so is he.
"--AAAAHHH!"
As though it were a blip in the tape, a slight skip in the track, the roar only ceases for a split second, but noticably -- and most noticably because of the visual change. For Alma, image flickering almost instantly back into existence, no longer trailing flame, is behind Sakura now, airborne-- and as Adelheid unleashes his mighty hurricane, so too does Alma wield his burning white fire. Two blazing hammers of energy to catch Sakura between, and crush her entirely.
In the throes of battle fury, unthinking, two words tear from Alma's throat as he strikes.
"ABSOLUTE PRESSURE!!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Alma's Absolution.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=====--\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Adelheid's Gigantic Pressure.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|=====--\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Sakura
Kasugano was worried about Alma. The guy's been seething, staying still, for =much= too long -- there's absolutely no chance of him being a catatonic damage sponge for the rest of the fight without retaliation. She was right to stay away from him!
But she was very nonplussed when Adelheid manages to not only slip out of =her= attack, but Kensou's as well! Gritting her teeth in irritation, she pulls back in retreat. Oh wait, she forgot that word on purpose -- she's =withdrawing=.
Whenever Adelheid announces his intention, though, Kasugano gets that twinge of fear in her - the same one that led her to dive behind Kensou.
Only Kensou isn't the target this time.
She is.
Adelheid's reaching out for her. That's a problem. Kasugano hears that Alma's behind her -- another problem. But she can't flee in =Alma's= direction, so paranoid is she about what's cooking in that oven. So she just drops to her knees in fear, squinting her eyes subconsciously as she braces her hands over her head. Adelheid, expectedly, grabs her arms and hefts her up. "LET! ME! GOOOO!" She's fighting every inch for control, kicking about and generally being as much of a problem child as she can! But when Alma's soulfire warms up, and streaks out towards her, she gets a moment of inspiration.
And in one moment, she puts all her energy into kicking, very sharply, at the hands binding her in place. It's ridiculous, and desperate, but it's enough for the scrawny schoolgirl to kick herself free from Adelheid's grasp, taking advantage of the intense concentration necessary to unleash his ginormous hurricane. So fast... that the cameras only get two frames captured before the hurricane, and the soulfire, collide, utterly causing a signal blackout in a shower of sparks.
Sakura's two opponents should have little problem figuring out what happened though -- the maelstrom begins, but Sakura is =not= in the middle of it! When the intensity dies down, Kasugano's revealed -- AT THE TOP of the hurricane, curled in a ball, having been buffeted about by the conflicting wavefronts, but by and large left in =much= better shape than she would have been otherwise!
"Heh, not bad! But I got one better!" Kicking out of her ball, Kasugano snaps sharply to the side in mid-air, winking at Kensou as she balances with outstretched arms, snapping out with her feet. Her path should be clear -- clear enough that words aren't needed! Flying fist-first at the ground, aided by gravity and her own redirection of the colliding energy fronts, Kasugano soars out towards Alma! "PHOENIX CRUSHING PUNCH!"
You know, honestly? Kensou's pretty glad he's not the target of that particular tandem assault. It doesn't look like fun at all, though Sakura has clearly done a good job of dealing with it; she is, however, crazy. CRAZY AWESOME. The Psycho Soldier even looks impressed as his teammate rises out of the hurricane of energy, but there's no time to be impressed: They've got a battle to win!
As Sakura dives towards Alma, the Psycho Soldier is quite abruptly behind him, going for another double team! Twisting at the waist, he swings his right leg out in a fast kick, aiming it right at Alma's side, below the ribs. He doesn't have anything cool to shout though, so he just says: "Hyaaa-!!"
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Alma with Light Kick.
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Alma 0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Alma endures Sakura's Medium Punch.
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Alma 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\=------\1 Sakura
It's unfortunate that their combination attack wasn't as devastating as it was meant to be, for Alma's brain is seriously hurting. You can almost see the sparks flying out of his ears. That last powerful surge of his was pure passion, with little interference of conscious thought, but it took a lot out of what focus remained to him -- and now passion is all he has, sheer resolve and not a lot else.
So he slumps again, head lowering as it did before, and Kensou's kick connects, spinning the tall youth around-- yet with a sweep of his arms for torque, Alma instinctively makes use of the momentum, and seeing a flicker of movement from above he leaps. Directly into the attack, of course, as Sakura's descending punch collides firmly with the fighting model's left shoulder, numbing his entire arm with the impact, but his ascent cannot be stopped so easily. Fuelled more by spiritual energy than physical, his legs ignite and buoy him upward yet further as he lashes out, twisting himself with each flame-sheathed roundhouse kick until he's literally upside-down in midair, aiming to catch Sakura before she can touch ground.
Passionate, yes, but no breath for words. These are dire straits for Alma...
That... was certainly an impressive move. Adelheid expected Sakura to have -some- trick up her sleeve where the all-out offensive was concerned, but that... that was a show. It does, however, put the blonde team in a rather unenviable situation... even if Alma has taken the majority of the pummeling to this point. Adel's just not getting the love... but then, he is doing his damndest to avoid it when offered, isn't he? As their adversaries commence the beatdown mk II, the Bernstein heir seeks to turn it around on them, and as Alma launches himself up in at Kasugano...
Adelheid sprints into a rushing leap, hurtling through the air at Sakura in an attempt to catch her at approximately the same moment, driving his elbow forward in a sudden and powerful redirection of his momentum, and attempt to quite literally slam her from the air with a brutal hit to the ribs or chest.
Sure, they unleashed their proverbial main batteries and met with a reinforced wall... but that's when you hit again, preferably for a weak point. Tough as Sakura is? Adelheid has a hard time believing that didn't take a lot out of her. His determination is silent, still fervent... hang in there, Towazu.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Alma's Rising Fury.
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Alma 0/-------/--=====|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\=------\1 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura interrupts Strong Punch from Adelheid with Shou'ou Ken.
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Alma 0/-------/--=====|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/---====|=======\====---\1 Sakura
"Yeah!" shouts Sakura as both her attack and Kensou's land true. She's in the midst of spinning about for a recovery when Alma lashes back at her, though -- and there's a moment where Kasugano just =SPAZZES= out, hands and legs shooting every which way as Sakura does her best imitation of a pretzel! The resultant panic sets her axis of rotation all to whack as she continues to fall -- but more importantly, has the nice bonus of allowing Alma to rocket right past her without event.
Thudding into the ground on her shoulder, Kasugano scrambles about to ready herself. Teamwork is the game of the day, after all, and if Alma's striking, Adelheid can't be far behind!
Sure enough -- here comes Dr. Adelheid! She may still be having difficulty moving about effortlessly, but when it comes down to popping someone in the jaw with her fist, or curling up and taking a beating -- well, the choice is obvious! Kasugano uncoils like a spring, leaping up with a rising uppercut right into the falling Adelheid! "SHOOOOOU'OOOOOU KEN!" Sure, she takes an elbow to the shoulder, but them's the breaks!
That's more like it! There's another nailbiter of a moment as Sakura gets doubleteamed by Adelheid and Alma again, but she sure pulls through it, huh? Kensou, well, he's going to have to add in his own proverbial two cents, and rather than go after Adel... He keeps on Alma. Like a bad habit, as it were. He tries to catch Alma before he can hit the ground - literally, as he lunges at the other fighter to grab him around the waist, twisting into some kind of crazy flying suplex.
Off the cement stairs. Sorry, Alma! "Huoo--Oh crap!!" he shouts; he didn't actually realise the stairs were there either, Ooops. Probably not going to be the world's most gentle landing, whatever happens!
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Alma with Quick Throw.
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Alma 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/---====|=======\====---\1 Sakura
Ouch.
Having lost all direction and orientation after whiffing completely, Alma spirals wildly through the air, and Kensou catches him neatly despite the bizarreness of his attack. It's a sweet follow-up, too: they soar in a crazy tangle, easily clearing the stairs, before the taller psychic's head slams powerfully against the concrete with a wince-inducing crack. Alma jerks once, but it may be no more than a twitch, and he leaves a faint bloody stain on the pavement from his scalp wound; is this the end of our gorgeous hero?
Maybe. It's hard to see his face, and for all anyone knows, he's entirely unconscious now and his body is just doing all the work. For there's little apparent art to the sudden flail of his legs and arms, lurching to his feet in a strange little tangle of his own; still, after a moment of this hapless assault, a bluish purple tinge begins to leave blurred afterimages behind him, now lending some real confusion to his attack. It may not be enough to penetrate Kensou's defenses, as Alma doesn't exactly seem to be looking where he's attacking -- even if he can still see, it must be with seriously hazy vision -- but if he does break through, some of those hits may be hefty.
Alma may not be holding up against Kensou in the wake of their disrupted finishing move, but Adelheid can't be in two places at once... and Kasugano is more than capable of keeing the Bernstein heir occupied. He's uppercutted cleanly out of the air, landing hard on the path with a pronounced outward rush of air from his lungs, announced by a pained 'Whuunfff...' as the platinum blonde rolls back to his feet, coming up in a crouch.
Sure, this fight's beginning to drain him, as well... but he has plenty left to give, physically and spiritually, and he begins by rolling on on Sakura as she drops out of her own potent uppercut, one gloved palm slamming to the ground as both of Adel's heavily booted feet kick upwards, driving his heels up like a rocket seeking double impact against the Ansatsuken prodigy's jaw, to send her back from whence she came by her FACE!!
On his last legs or no, it's definitely the time where the blonde team needs to alter this dangerous momentum, and Adelheid can go for broke with the best of them.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Adelheid's Futtobashi.
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Alma 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Kensou
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Adelheid 0/-------/----===|=======\====---\1 Sakura
So... Kensou's tangoing with Alma still, and Adelheid wants to tear Saku's freakin' face off?
Can we get a 'heyl naw?' Kasugano's still pretty messed up from being squished between a hurricane and a soulfire tempest -- even though she's been doing the best Acacia Gillespie impression she can muster -- but she knows how close to the line she really is! And, once again, standing in place while Adelheid writes her ticket to Kingdom Come is not her idea of a good time! Instead -- this time, she just dives to the side, rolling once more into a monkeylike ball as Adelheid makes his own landing.
"Stick with Alma, Kensou!" she shouts out while springing back to her feet. She's already feeling the burn, but she's still got a few trump cards left to play. "Hyyyyyaaaaah!" she shouts, leaning back to throw the bulk of her momentum behind a thrust kick aimed at Adelheid's recovering form!
COMBATSYS: Kensou interrupts Autumn Rain from Alma with Senkyuutai.
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Alma 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\1 Kensou
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/----===|=======\====---\1 Sakura
"Oh /man/. I thought I was gonna die!" says Kensou, getting up after that much crazier than initially intended suplex. He's even shaking a little. That was scary as crap! Good thing Alma is taller than he is and broke the fall! But, oh... Looks like Alma's getting back up, too. That might not be a good thing at all. And he's flailing funny. Maybe he needs a doctor? Oh, no... That's an attack. Okay.
Kensou stands his ground as Alma comes on some crazy offense that kind of reminds him of his sifu's drunken style, and though he gets clipped by a few of the hits, it's only as he's falling back... Before catching himself with one hand. Supporting himself with that hand, pushing his lower body up to quickly snap off a pair of kicks at the model's jaw, powering through his assault, legs pistoning. "Yo-!! Yaa-!!" But is it enough?!
In the fog of fatigue, Alma has time for one faint regret.
~ ...it would have been a nice shirt, too... ~
But his attacks lack the precision required, and his reflexes are entirely insufficient to divert Kensou's sudden kicks, the final strike sending Alma again off his feet and sailing back into the air. Body limp, the tall youth traces a lazy arc through the air, like that of a child on a swing or a baby in its cradle. Lips parted, the fatigue that must have plagued him unapparent on his refined features, the fighting model appears asleep, a handsome knight at rest.
Yet a knight not yet vanquished. For as he nears the end of that arc, his legs tuck in suddenly, though he fails to appear to exert any real effort in doing so. This deceptively natural-seeming movement brings him full on into a crouch as he lands, sinking loosely onto his haunches-- until with a burst of flame at his feet he lunges, in one last ditch effort to strike true. He draws both hands back in his bull rush, and while he's not as quick as he might be otherwise, it's unclear where the attack is going to come from. His final flames trail from his entire body, the last of his soon to be quenched passioned, but from whence will come his assault? His fists? His feet?
Careening towards Kensou, Alma tucks in his arms, lunges forward, draws his knee back-- and leaning forward suddenly, thrusts out a ferocious explosive headbutt at his opponent's abdomen, aiming to flying tackle Kensou right into the stairs.
Whatever happens, though, he's already unconscious by the time it's over. Which will be especially good if he misses, as given where he's aiming, that will probably suck. Yet still, if he had any more words in him, he'd be thanking them, even Adelheid, for despite that he is the first one down, they've done exactly what he asked of them.
Their best.
COMBATSYS: Alma can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Kensou
> /////////////// ]
|=======\====---\1 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Adelheid with Medium Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Kensou
> /////////////// ]
|=======\====---\1 Sakura
Note: It's difficult to right one's course in midair when an all-out attack goes awry, but the platinum blonde certainly tries, twisting as he rises through empty air, and trying to throw his weight aside as he descends... it's too little, too late, however, Sakura's snapping foot cracking into the landing Adel's ribs with impressive force, and sending the Bernstein heir staggering back away from her for a moment, teeth gritted. This isn't a situation he wanted to be in... both his opponents have some fight left to give, whereas Alma's seems to be fading fast.
Which means there's just one thing to do: Push onward. His booted footfalls correcting themselves, Adelheid anchors his left foot and lunges forward at Kasugano, snapping his right boot high, and looking to drop the heal down squarely on the Ansatsuken prodigy's face, the axe-kick accompanied by a gutteral kiai of intensive focus... one way or another, he's not giving up! Let's hear it for cold ferocity!
COMBATSYS: Kensou dodges Alma's Destined Duel.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Kensou
> /////////////// ]
|=======\====---\1 Sakura
Oh no, not a headbutt! Kensou... Has finally got the hang of Alma's attacks, and all he had to do was knock him out, first! Anyway, when Alma comes charging at him like that, the Psycho Soldier rushes right back at him, perhaps preparing for some sort of awesome head on collision? But no, what he's actually doing is lunging forward at the last moment, and rolling /over/ Alma's back, landing in a crouch a bit behind the other fighter. Whew, that was a close one.
But now what? Sakura's tied up with Adelheid, and Kensou /could/ go over there and try to help her out, but there's also the question of the match's other stipulation... Which he's just not prepared for yet, he thinks. Instead, standing not far away from where Alma falls, Kensou braces himself, focusing and drawing out his reserves of Psycho Power, surrounded by whirling bluish-white lights, his hair and clothes stirring in the force they generate. "Haaaa--!!"
COMBATSYS: Kensou gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/--=====|=======\====---\1 Kensou
> /////////////// ]
|=======\====---\1 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Adelheid successfully hits Sakura with Heavy Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/-======|=======\====---\1 Kensou
> ////////// ]
|=======\=======\1 Sakura
Oh, good! Sakura turned to see what was going on with Kensou and Alma, and everything seems to have worked out okay! Kasugano throws up her fist! "Good job, Ken-ken!" Yes, Ken-Ken. As if it weren't bad enough, the boy gets another embarassing nickname right on the spot!
But her moment of inattentiveness costs her, as she turns back to find herself answering the door.
~ Hello? ~
~ ADEL CALLING!~ *AXE KICK!*
Kasugano's arms flail out to either side as she's utterly =driven= to the ground by the massive kick, practically flattened in one fell swoop. She howls with pain, curling up like a pillbug as she rolls off to one side, hands clutching at her face. Adel might've broke somethin! But for once she =doesn't= look like she's going to be attacking, her accumulated wounds finally starting to catch up with her.
The microphones, by now back online after that hurricane, are sensitive enough to pick up her muffled voice... "G... g... is that a =tooth?!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/-======|=======\====---\1 Kensou
> ///////////// ]
|=======\======-\1 Sakura
Ahh, there's nothing quite like the smack of bootheel on face. Lesson #19 in the Bernstein household. But it does the job of flooring Sakura for the moment, and forestalling the duo's plans... but that's quickly becoming an entry under 'not an option', and as Kasugano tumbles away... Adelheid shifts his focus.
A hop, skip, and several charging strides cross the distance between his position and the Psycho Soldier's in an instant. It's not so much a case of which of them seems more vulnerable... Kasugano is floored, after all... but they're both cooking up nasty surprises for Adel, as per the fight's theme in the first place, and thus.... it behooves him to do the unexpected. The first obligation of a prisoner is to escape, and between the last-ditch efforts of Sakura and Kensou is not somewhere the Bernstein heir wants to wander blindly.
The last steps are crossed in a sliding lunge, dirt kicked up by the path of Adelheid's boots as both hands snap out for Kensou, looking to drag him right back in towards Adelheid, as one gloved hand seeks to close about his face.
Should that prove effective... Adel's palm surges with a shearing wave of wind chi, blasting point-blank into Kensou's face to reverse his course once again, blasting him away from the 'R' lieutenant.
COMBATSYS: Kensou blocks Adelheid's Scorpion Deathlock EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/-------|=======\======-\1 Kensou
> ///////////// ]
|=======\======-\1 Sakura
No, Mr. Bernstein, Kensou does not like you trying to grab him and swing him around like that. There's really no way he can avoid the attack without breaking his concentration and losing all that effort, so... He does get caught, but rather than getting grabbed by the face, Adelheid gets him by one forearm, and the blast of energy doesn't send him flying back nearly as far as it should. Still hurt something fierce, though. "Sakura!! Let's show him how we roll!" he calls back to his partner, and then... He lunges at Adel, throwing forward his left elbow - braced by his right hand against his left fist - and knee. He then twists at the waist, bringing his other knee to bear, then whirls around for a roundhouse with his left leg, following it by ducking down and kicking straight up at Adel's jaw...
----
... but more on that in a moment!
Meanwhile, Sakura is still hopping mad about that blow to the face. Yes, she's a professional martial artist! But she's also a high school girl, and thus prone to occasional temper tantrums when things don't go her way. It's just as well that Adelheid chose to attack Kensou this time, as it looks like she really needs some time to recover!
When Kensou blocks the strike, it seems the girl is able to snap out of her momentary reverie, and starts dashing back into the fray. Clearly she's on the same wavelength as the boy, and she gives her reply: "Alright, let's do this!" ... Clearly, she's never heard the song, though.
But she can =still= read Kensou's intentions. Positioning Adelheid between herself and Kensou, Sakura pauses for a moment, pointing to the Bernstein scion for maximum drama, and =totally= mugging for the camera! Waiting just a fraction of a second for Kensou to initiate the combo, Kasugano leaps into action, throwing herself into the start of her dashing uppercut. Normally say Shou'ou Ken, but instead, with a cry of "Here we gooooo!" ...
----
...There's a song?
As Sakura lashes out with that dashing uppercut from behind Adelheid, Kensou takes advantage of his new position with that straight-up kick to drop towards the ground, catching himself with both hands, crossed at the wrists. What could this possibly mean? Well, what it means is that Kensou throws himself /upwards/, aiming a whirling uppercut kick at young Bernstein, trying to batter him with a succession of kicks... And then he drops towards the ground again, before springing up once /again/, this time rising even higher, a flurry of kicks that never seems to stop, to leave Sakura open for a big uppercut at the same moment. "DRAGON GOD--!!" he starts the DRAMATIC NAME CALLING...
----
... "--BLOSSOM--!!" continues Sakura from below, picking up Kensou's cues without missing a beat! Having completed her first uppercut, and landed with only the slightest tap of sneakers on the stonework, she'd immediately dropped to a low crouch, only to spring back up into a high, vertical uppercut with the opposite hand. A Shoryuken, if you will -- as she needs to go quite a bit higher than the last to sync up with Kensou's strikes! And as she rises to deliver the final uppercut of the deadly team-up attack, the words nonetheless continue seamlessly: "--STOOOOORM!!!"
Somewhere, there's bound to be a bolt of lightning and a crash of thunder, no doubt!
COMBATSYS: Kensou successfully hits Adelheid with Shinryuu Seiou Rekkyaku.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Adelheid 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Kensou
> ///////////// ]
|===----\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Adelheid with Midare Zakura.
[ \\\\ < > /////////// ]
Adelheid 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 Kensou
> ///////////// ]
|===----\-------\0 Sakura
That, as they say in the business... is that.
... these two were whining about mean attacks? Yea. Well... basically speaking, Adelheid sees the both of them coming, tries to time his movements as best he can... but it's a bit late for that. Hit from in front by Kensou and behind by Sakura, Adelheid is staggered, launched into the air, and subsequently pummelled like that last kernel of popcorn in an air popper. 'cept this isn't hot air he's bumping around on, it's repeated strikes of fist and feet, knocking him up, up, and away... at least, away in the metaphorical sense. Blackness whirring about his vision, there's nothing left for Adel to do except to take the Alma way out.
As he tumbles free from the tumultuous storm, both his hands jut forward, a rampant, whirling barrier of darkly crackling silver chi roaring to the fore, lashing out at anyone who happens to be in front of him. It's not much of an answer, and the force of unleashing it doesn't make the Bernstein heir's landing any more pleasant, as he crashes to the garden ground in a heap, panting for breath and bleeding... well...
He -feels- like he's bleeding ALL FUGGIN' OVER.
COMBATSYS: Adelheid can no longer fight.
> /////////// ]
|===----\-------\0 Kensou
> ///////////// ]
|===----\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Adelheid successfully hits Sakura with Dark Steel.
> /////////// ]
|===----\-------\0 Kensou
> /////// ]
|=======\-------\0 Sakura
Technically she was 'trash talking' more than whining when she called Adelheid out, really. But even if she wasn't, a hyperactive teenager who loves action movies and yet idolizes a fighter universally regarded as the most =boring champion in existence= cannot rationally be expected to make sense!
She =can= be expected to get hit by a wave of energy waaay way larger than herself, though, especially after giving her all for one final team-up attack! ... Even though she =does= try to toss her arms up soon after landing, it ends up not being enough for the silvery wave, which ends up flattening her into the stonework again. Par for the course here in la Brasilia!
But... another 'par for the course' is Sakura kipping back to her feet, glancing over to Kensou -- and then Adelheid, as he finally falls to the ground.
"Heh... man... that was awesome times =twenty jillion=." she notes, scrubbing her handguard along the bridge of her nose, panting lightly as she leans upon one knee.
COMBATSYS: Kensou parries Adelheid's Dark Steel!
> /////////// ]
|====---\-------\0 Kensou
> /////// ]
|=======\-------\0 Sakura
Landing in a low three-point stance after that ULTIMATE COMBINATION, Kensou breathes a little heavily; hey, that was a lot of work. Especially coordinating it with Sakura's own attack like that! Plus, facing off with Alma and Adelheid isn't exactly a walk in the park, either. The sudden raging aura of chi is also a problem, but Kensou slips out of the way by just a hairsbreadth, feeling the energy crackle, his skin prickling from the feeling. "Wh-whoa, that was close," he breathes as he stumbles back, though it looks like he was luckier than Sakura... Who gets back up, awesomely.
"Heheheh, we did it!" the Psycho Soldier says, scratching his right leg with the heel of his opposite sneaker. But of course they did it: They had teamwork. And confidence. And HADOUKENS. "Good work, Sakura!" he says over to his partner, with a grin and a thumbs up! Best of all, he doesn't have to let Alma pick out any shirts for him! His masculine pride is safe. FOR NOW.
COMBATSYS: Kensou has left the fight here.
> /////// ]
|=======\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura has ended the fight here.
Log created by Sakura, and last modified on 17:49:53 11/12/2006.