Description: Homeless after his long absence, Frei starts looking for a place to live and runs into Sakura. The two have a friendly chat, and then a friendly spar, but it looks like Frei has a surprise in store for his old master...
"...well, damn."
A natural consequence of taking time off of your busy schedule and moving to China for a few months is that you are not making regular payments on important things like your mortgage or rent or your electric bill or whatever. Thus Frei comes back to what would be his home in the tiny shrine outside town to find nothing there but a large, white billboard proclaiming "NEW SITE OF STARBUCKS COFFEE, COMING JUNE 2007".
A quick trip to the developers finds them not without some heart: he's handed the key to a storage garage in a local rental place, where his belongings were packed away, and told firmly but pleasantly that he either needs to find somewhere else to live or start considering a career as a barista. Since the latter is unlikely, the former became Frei's new goal. Luckily a trust fund plus his earnings as a fighter have left him with plenty of money to stay at a Hotel 6 (he's wealthy enough but he's not an idiot) while this blows over. PROTIP: They actually do leave the light on for you.
In the late afternoon sun of early spring, the monk, in his new and improved attire, sits at a table of an outdoor cafe, sipping a SHADE-GROWN, ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY, MONEY FOR ITS PURCHASE GOES TO SUPPORT LESBIAN PANDAS WITH CANCER mocha latte while skimming the classifieds and occasionally circling listings of apartments and condos he's looking into. "...A half a bath? JUST a half a bath? What the hell am I supposed to do, crawl in the dishwasher in the morning?" Sip.
Sakura has been in a very weird mood lately. Her more-or-less boyfriend is back in Brazil on family matters, her master is busy fighting in World Warrior, she didn't even make it past the prelims while =Dan= and =Yuri= both did... and she's trying to finish her last year in high school. It's a busy time for the schoolgirl.
But she seems to be carrying her losses well. The girl is smiling, upbeat and cheerful as she walks through the streets, determined to act like there's not a care in the world! And it's with that mindset that she encounters a blast from the somewhat recent past, a man she knew and yet hasn't seen for quite some time. And he looks... a bit different, though his hair's similar -- which is how she recognizes him at all.
And, being suitably bored on this Saturday afternoon, she walks over to approach him. Which is about when she hears him muttering about half baths. "... Well, maybe they meant it literally, like... it's just half a bathtub, I mean... those little shower stalls, you know?"
Sakura does not have a promising future in real estate, because she's bloody =serious= when she says this. But... she's smiling anyway. That's just how she says hi to old friends.
Gone are the days of pratfalls! Yes, that's right, the Marx Brothers slapstick Frei you knew and maybe loved (even though your parents told you that love was forbidden) is gone. This is a new, more mature Frei. He does not take pies to the face. He is uncompromising when it comes to seltzer anywhere near his pants. And he most certainly does not wear bunny costumes so you bastard SNF people can put that thought out of your heads right n--
Screw it. He's surprised and not paying attention so he spits a mouthful of latte all over the classifieds at the unexpected sound of Sakura's voice. Happy now? The spittake is a long and fruitful tradition! "Kids in the Hall" did spittakes!
Recovering from his shock (and his reading material now dripping with chocolate-flavored coffee with milk), the monk turns in his super uncomfortable wire mesh chair thing to face Saku, and his expression immediately brightens. He smiles back, and responds to her question honestly. "Maybe it's just a garden hose. This IS Japan."
Sakura winces when she sees the half-Brit vent his coffee all over his real estate listings. "... Uh, hey, guess I should stop being so leet ninja or something, sorry 'bout that..." She rubs the back of her head, grinning apologetically. But she does lean in, waiting for the chocolatey liquid to drip past that listing. "... Uh... yeah, I dunno, garden hoses are kinda upscale here! .... Oh, =that= place? Dunno if I'd bother, that place is kinda run down..."
But... she is clearly not the best to talk about real estate. "Uh... so hey, Frei, how the heck are ya? Haven't seen you around for a while." She pauses for a moment, glancing over his new duds. "Been training, have ya?"
For a moment -- just a moment -- there's an unfamiliar expression that flickers across Frei's face, at least for people who knew him well: unhappiness. It's the mention of the new clothes and training, just as with Jiro; unpleasant reminders of his trip to China, and everything he experienced there. But neither the 7 stages of grief nor the 2 stages of homelessness (Stage 1: "ZOH!" Stage 2: "MY GOD!") can keep our hero down. His voice is a little quiet when he responds, though, gently folding the soggy newspaper up for disposal. "Sort of. I had... I went back to China for a while. Some of it was training. Some of it was personal business."
But afterwards he gets up and stretches out his arms, letting the drapery of the new qipao-type coat sink in fully. His milkshake would bring all the boys to the yard had he not just spit it all over 2br,.5ba. "You like? I figured, I came back a new man... spiritually, emotionally, uh... martially... so I figured new duds were in order."
Frei =does= seem a lot more sedate, even if Sakura can't suss out the unspoken reasons just yet. And even though he spits his drink everywhere. Scratching her cheek, she feels as if she just stepped into unwelcome territory, so she decides, after a few moments of deliberation, to just give a passive smile in response, and let him do the talking.
"Huh?" she replies, having smiled passively for a few moments longer than needed. Is her hair turning blonde? "... Oh. Yeah, I like! I love Chinese clothes, they were bringing me good luck for a few weeks!" Like when she first met Ryu! Or when she beat the crap out of Kim Kaphwan, so long ago. "... Maybe I should try 'em again, I could prolly use 'em." She grins vapidly, nodding!
... But she can only avoid talking about fighting for so long. "Learn anything new in training? I've been kinda... stuck, myself." The tomboy's learned a few new tricks, but has been so far unable to =leverage= her learning...
Hmmm. A fair question! And since he's already standing, there's no reason Frei can't give a demonstrative answer. He grins at Sakura, shaking out his arms. "I agree. I think it's the comfyness of the fabric. If you're uncomfortable in what you're fighting in..." And here he pauses to clear his throat. "Like a giant animal costume, for example... you suffer a bit. This is my long-winded way of saying I might tone down the cosplay, by the way. I want you as a witness. As for learning anything new? Well..."
Letting a slow breath out, the monk centers himself in the traditional tai chi way... and then throws out a few kicks and punches. Standard fare, nothing fancy at all. Rather atypically, at least in comparison to his old style, are the small, controlled bursts of chi with each attack. It's surprisingly fluid for being brief and appearing uncontrolled; an aura of flame around a punch, a gust of wind around a kick. Frei turns around and grins at Sakura. "A couple things, yeah. I have you to thank, too... well, among others. You taught me something really important."
Sakura smiles at the mention of cosplay. "Aww! ... But that was the funnest part of watching the fights!" she teases, covering her mouth with a hand. "But yeah, the costumes get hot and sweaty. It's totally more awesome in silk. Maybe I should do more of that... It'd be a good change of pace!" ... It'd figure she likes the shorter cheongsams, wouldn't it...
But... when Frei centers himself, and unleashes the blows, and adds =different elements to each=... well.
The tomboy's pretty jealous, that's what. The expression is quite clear, as her jaw drops, her eyes alight with the reflection of each manifestation of chi. "Th..." Gawking, she takes a moment to recover, forcibly resetting her jaw with the palm of her hand. "Geez." Puffing up her lower lip in overly melodramatic envy, she looks askance at the half-Briton. "Apparently I need to start charging for my teachings! It's worked too well! Stupid..."
But she can't remain serious for long, clearly. Cracking a smile, she shakes her head. "That's pretty sweet. I'm gonna have to copy that back from you in exchange." Snicker. "Glad I could help, though?"
Ehehe-ing in embarrassment, the monk puts a fist into an open palm and bows once. "Too well? Maybe not. In the end it's just a shiny lightshow, but... the important thing was to relax. I was working too hard, if that makes any sense. I had to get in touch with my inner, uh... Sakura. Anyhow, I'll treat you to lunch sometime. Just as soon as I have, you know. A kitchen." He seems to be taking this homelessness thing pretty easily. But he's not totally without empathy, and he glances at the schoolgirl for a second before seeming to come to a decision.
How do you know? Because he looks at her, nods once, and says "Okay, decision made." It's so HANDY being transparent that way. Hopping the little fence separating the cafe from the wide pedestrian streets of the village, he makes a motion for Saku to follow. "I'll pay you back with a match. How's that? Maybe you'll get inspired for something of your own. Plus, well..." He pauses, then grins goofily. "Come on, humor me. It's been a long time."
It's still a bit on the cool side -- Sakura's totally slumming it with her hoodie-and-jeans couture. So the tomboy, predictably, is not as =stylish= as Frei... but based on this conversation, that could be changing shortly!
Flashing Frei a goofy grin, the girl nods back. "Lunch is good! But, uh... well, don't get =too= much in touch with your inner 'me.' Don't wanna get =too= awesome, there!"
When the monk walks off though, the girl's quick to follow. She's clearly ready for a fight anywhere and any time, as she pulls her handguards out of her hoodie pockets, strapping them on. "Don't gotta ask me twice! I wanna see if it's any more than a light show!" Grin. And she might even try turning that right back around on him, too...
COMBATSYS: Sakura has started a fight here.
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Sakura 0/-------/-------|
That earns a grin from Frei, who reaches up and tightens his headband just in case... and completely accidentally copying Sakura's master, though he appears to be eschewing handguards in this fight. Perhaps he has stopped seeing that manicurist. "Haha... man. You are one macho, gusty chick, Sakura. I am going to be looking forward to seeing what kind of guy you marry." Whoa there, Matchmaker. She's not a Russian Jew and there will be no musical numbers.
Dropping into a relaxed stance, one leg back, the monk nods at his opponent. "Well... here goes nothing." Rushing forward, he takes the initiative, swinging his arms across his chest and then pushing forward with both palms, looking to give Sakura a gentle shove with his palms extended, much like a certain lady's Sou Hakkei... only he adds a burst of wind chi on impact to give a little more force to his push. "And don't hold back on my account!"
COMBATSYS: Frei has joined the fight here.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Frei's Medium Throw.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
Macho? Gutsy? ... Well, Kasugano can appreciate the latter of the two 'compliments', at least. ... The thought about marrying just brings a light blush to her cheeks. "W...well I don't wanna =rush= it..." she stammers, making a time-out 'T' with her hands!
And when Frei rushes forward, thrusting his palms at her, the girl responds in an equally fluid gesture, absorbing the brunt of the impact with her leading handguard. Taking a half-step backward, she grins back. "It's not any fun if I hold back!" she replies, shaking her head with a grin. And just to put another exclamation point on her, uh, exclamation, she delivers a fierce -- chi-less and much more direct -- punch at Frei, aiming to blast right through and nail him in the sternum. "HAAA!"
COMBATSYS: Frei just-defends Sakura's Fierce Punch!
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
Perhaps it's just being energized by fighting a strong opponent again -- and one who made a big impression on him the year he spent in Southtown -- but Frei is at the top of his game for the time being. Sakura's fist is met with Frei's outstretched hand, the index and middle fingers raised to 'catch' the attack... though there is a tingling at the point of impact, like static electricity, that says there is considerably more than wire-fu at work on that defense. "Well good! I won't feel bad about having bored you afterwards then!"
Ducking back a step, Frei gazes at Sakura carefully. The quick defense giving him time to breathe, he doesn't let up, instead crouching low and then leaping into the air, scything a downward kung fu-type axe kick down at Sakura, a crescent of scarlet fire blossoming in the path of the kick. "WATAH!"
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Sakura with Kouen no Tsurugi.
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Frei 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Man... with the dry air and the cold temperatures, Kasugano had enough problems with static without having her =punches= blocked by it. What gives?! The girl seems a bit alarmed at this new aspect of Frei's style, but instead of discouraging her -- as might happen with someone else -- the girl actually seems fairly impressed! "Hey, nifty..." she compliments, backing away defensively!
Not defensively enough though... Kasugano can see the leaping strike, but seeing the flame =before= she detects the usual surge in chi is enough to give her pause. ~ Just how is he =doing= this, anyway? ~ she wonders for the moment, guard raised and eyes transfixed upon him for a moment ... before that kick crashes into her sternum, flames charring her dark-blue hoodie a bit before the girl actually falls to her rear.
"Hey..." Shaking her head dizzily, the Ansatsuken disciple still seems a bit impressed as she pushes back to her feet. "Yeah, you're definitely not boring me!" Taking a cue from Frei's attack, she leaps into the air -- though one somersault is enough to differentiate her strike, as are the twin chops aimed to crash upon his shoulders! "Yut-tah!"
COMBATSYS: Frei endures Sakura's Sakura Otoshi.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Sakura
Landing in a crouch, Frei is satisfied to know he connected... while at the same time acknowledging that Sakura takes hits -- especially chi ones -- like a champ. Of course, without the energy component Frei hits like a roll of paper towels, but that's another story entirely. "I am totally out of witty banter right..." And then he looks up to find two fists coming right at his face.
There's two options: pray you can get your arms raised in time, or just sit there and suck it up like a Tran. Er... Man. Because he is distracted, Frei 'chooses' the latter... for given values of 'choose'. Still, while that stings an AWFUL LOT it does put him in a nice position to retaliate. And retaliate he plans to. "Oh dear sweet jesus," he says woefully, suddenly snapping up a leg and looking to kick Sakura away from him at extreeeemely close range with... well, a Rockette kick, basically, only with a smaller but still potent sheath rather than burst of fire. "That hurt."
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Sakura with Light Kick.
- Power hit! -
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Frei 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Sakura
The Rockettes only =wish= they could kick with as much flair. One =bad= thing about Sakura's strike is that, in order to strike, it's necessary that both legs flip out to either side. If her opponent blocks her strike, or takes it full-on as Frei has... well, she doesn't immediately have the benefit of her knees to block a counterattack. She normally prefers to block with her legs when possible.
And since she's not blocking with her legs, and Frei's kicking =right between them=...
Well, Sakura's not a terribly happy camper for a moment, let's just say that. She's not a guy, no, but that still HURTS LIKE HELL, KTHX. Especially since it's accented by a burst of flame.
She bites back a few choice words, doubling up in pain as she bounces backwards, landing in a low crouch. Gritting her teeth, she looks back up to Frei. This could turn ugly!
But it doesn't. "*cough* Yeah, I'm trying to ease up on the banter, myself..." Kasugano realizes it's just a fight between friends, after all -- and instead of retaliating openly, she opts to reach for the monk's snazzy qi pao-ish shirt, and with any luck, twist to the side and sling him to the ground! "Hyyyah!"
COMBATSYS: Frei interrupts Strong Throw from Sakura with Quick Punch.
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Frei 0/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Sakura
Frei's not a total fool. He can sense that his panic-driven kick just went... well, 'awry' is probably a good word to describe it but it definitely doesn't capture the ESSENCE. He cringes back and manages to get out a squeaky-sounding "Sorry!" right before Sakura snags him by the shirt. It's silk, Sakura. Don't hurt it. It has done nothing to you. Blame the sandals.
There's no way to avoid getting chucked off-balance so Frei doesn't bother to try. Instead he lets himself drop and, in the process, shoves out a hand palm-outward to clip Sakura in the shoulder, a flash of blue-white ice crystals halo-ing around his impromptu midair shotei right before Frei hits the ground with a loud "oof!". Getting to his feet, the monk rubs his thigh and glances at Sakura with a cough. "I, uh... yeah. Uh, sorry."
The ice crystals were a bit of a surprise, there. She =ought= to be expecting it, with how much the martial monk has been showing off his elemental control, but that still doesn't mean she =does=. It just... unnerves her that the monk has =better= control than she does, when before... well, he didn't.
Staggering backwards from the sudden chill of her shoulder, the tomboy rubs her skin to warm it back up, snickering. "It's a fight, it happens! Payback's heck, though, just you remember that." Winking back for a moment, it looks as if she might be rearing back for a place kick of her own!
... Oh, no, wait. That's a fireball. No ice, no fire -- just a plain' ol shockwave of pure chi rushing forth from the Taiyo schoolgirl's hands. "HADOOOOOOUKEN!"
COMBATSYS: Frei slows Medium Hadouken from Sakura with Hadou Souran.
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Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\-------\0 Sakura
Well... she went and busted it out. Right? So no better time than the present to show Sakura the prize Frei's really been holding in reserve for just this occasion. "Hey! There are men and women all over the world who'd be in dire straits if you went for direct payback, missy! At least one or two! Maybe three!" Of course, as he's trash-talking, he's also... mimicking Sakura's stance? A little bit, yeah, even gathering a similar-looking ball of chi between his outstretched palms.
With a flicker of fire behind his green eyes, Frei stares the oncoming Hadouken down and... well. "HADOOOOOUKEEEEEN!" Thrusting his hands forward in the traditional pose (tm Gouken), the monk fires off his own burst of chi, but other than some similarities of shape -- the staggered waves effect, for example -- the two projectiles don't LOOK similar. Frei's is a mass of multi-colored chi, a chaotic rainbow of shifting colors. The two attacks meet and clash for a moment... but in the end, a knockoff is no match for the original, which smacks into Frei's smug little face in a piffle of blue chi *PAF*. Much reduced, but still hefty. "...I had envisioned that going differently," he admits.
Haha, Sakura's got the 'original' now? Laaaaawl. She's certainly been throwing more Hadoukens than Ryu has, at least so far as cameras have recorded. ... But she hasn't thrown any technicolor ones like Frei's.
She =has= seen him manage similar effects before, though rarely on such short notice. She'd expected more of a build-up, you know? So to see her Hadouken get buffeted back, even for a moment, is a bit of a surprise.
Frei's full of those, today, which keeps Sakura's smile in full force.
But it's not long before she's charging in with a kick again. A dash and a hop later, she's right in Frei's face -- more appropriately, she's snapping a kick up towards his chin, hoping to take advantage of the motes of light still scattering about from the prior conflict of chi forces. "Mujin Kyaku!"
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Sakura's Medium Kick.
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Frei 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura's got Frei on the defensive now, which isn't great, but he's not beaten yet, as is shown by his deftly interposing a palm into the path of that kick, though he winces in pain as he does so. "I dunno what hurts more. That it wasn't enough to plow through your version or that you don't have a quippy comeback about it!" But the smile on Frei's face shows that he's kidding, or hopefully does, regardless. He is genuinely having fun, though his body is protesting the harsh treatment... he wasn't exactly training with bears in the mountains or anything. He did a lot of reading.
Deciding to stay on the defensive a bit and let himself take a breath, the monk drops back a step and takes a deep breath, doing an incongruently calm tai chi handpush or two in what has otherwise been a particularly vibrant and high-energy bout. "So, sensei? How'd I do?"
COMBATSYS: Frei gathers his will.
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Frei 1/-======/=======|=======\-------\0 Sakura
Well... Sakura =is= cutting back on fight banter. She hasn't pulled down an official win since... September or so. She's =very= overconfident, and having her nose buried in books hasn't helped her fight strategies any. Maybe it has Frei. Maybe she just needs to read his books.
It's only when she's called on it that she's even noticed, really. "... Huh? Oh... yeah. Sorry, just doing the whole 'Ryu' thing again. Learning from the master, y'know?"
She says this before she's been called 'sensei,' mind. And on =that= prompt, she blinks a bit. "... Oh. Yeah, it looked cool! I'm actually in awe, you've done a whole lot for yourself!" She smiles cheerily, nonetheless curling her hands back in anticipation!
She's jealous, really, that Frei's slinging that chi around like candy now. So... it's only fair that she responds in kind. Curling her hands back, she flashes the monk a grin. "In fact, I'm gonna try this ice thing out. Hope y'don't mind!" The chi swirling in her hands =was= cerulean in color... but now it's more of an icy white. Her skin actually turns a bit pale from it, disgust growing on her face to match. Maybe this wasn't one of her better ideas in this cold snap, she realizes, but at least she'll go through with it. Shoving her hands forward, she shouts, "KOOOOORI... HADOOOOOUKEN!" And an ice-cold ball of energy goes flying towards Frei, quite possibly enveloping him whole!
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Frei with Large Hadouken EX.
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Frei 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\1 Sakura
Sometimes experiments pay off in a big way. Hoping to pull the rhythm back his way by changing the tempo, Frei doesn't bother trying to get out of the way of the ice ball; instead, he braces himself and tries his damndest to take it on the chin and weather it out. After all, to Sakura's credit, she just pulled a Frei on Frei, and Frei might be able to learn to Frei harder than he's Frei-ed before if he lives through Sakura's Frei-ing of him. Oh god, that's so meta. My brain hurts.
Regardless, the monk crosses his arms and... is totally overcome by the chilly projectile, which despite his consummate defenses against such things, really, really, REALLY HURTS. A lot. Teeth chattering, the monk wobbles a little on his feet, running his hands through his red hair which is now rimmed with hoarfrost. GOOD JOB SAKURA. "N... yeah. There's only one original, though!" Swinging his hands forward, Frei flings two ice spheres of his own at Sakura, his trademark move, the pair coming together to create a much larger burst of ice crystals. "I think you're getting the hang of it though!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura overcomes Hyoushou Rengeki from Frei with Large Hadouken EX.
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Frei 1/=======/=======|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura smirks faintly at the idea of her ice outdoing Frei's. Really, she =is= jealous, but that just goes to show: Anything you can do, she can do better. She can do anything better than you. It's not just a pithy reference to Annie Get Your Gun, it's... well, demonstrative of the fact that Sakura's mimickry abilities are legendary!
... But it seems Frei wants to make the girl colder than she already is. Which isn't, er, cool in her book. Teeth already chattering from her =own= attack, she sure wouldn't like to face another from Frei. So... she shakes her head. "Eh... on second thought, ice doesn't really suit me!" Her own Hadoukens are typically a bit warmer than Ryu's, after all -- she's clearly more of a 'fire' type.
Which would be why, when her hands pull back in reaction to Frei's ice strike, her hands are glowing a bright orange instead of a chilly blue. "Ahh, that's the stuff..." she grins, whipping her hands forward at the last instant. Fiery plumes of chi blast through the icy crystals, sending up a cloud of steam as the blaze continues onwards towards Frei! "Shakunetsu... HADOOOOUKEN!"
COMBATSYS: Frei overcomes Large Hadouken EX from Sakura with Hizashi Ronde.
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Frei 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
One two three four, I challenge you to a fireball war! And ice balls and non-elemental balls (they are non-denominational, the atheists of the projectile world... don't judge them, they're nice guys). Frei knows that Sakura's got plenty of chi-throwing tricks up her sleeves so he doesn't really expect his ice attack to reach her, but he kind of hoped he wasn't going to get another fireball right in the JAW. So... he decides not to. "In the name of the 'Undefeated of the East'!" What the hell did he just say?
Cocking his hand back, Frei watches Sakura's incoming projectile with what can only be called hot-blooded anticipation, but honestly, who says 'hot-blooded' anymore except that one ep of Nadesico? Still, he starts gathering a ball of chi of his own, glittering gold-orange in color, and continues babbling nonsense. "This hand of mine is burning red! Its loud roar tells me to grasp victory!" Suddenly throwing his hands forward, Frei just... obliterates the incoming Hadouken in a bitchin' huge beam of light that cuts right through it, heading on toward Sakura with a vengeance. "Seki Ha... TEN KYO KEN!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura fails to interrupt Hizashi Ronde from Frei with Jab Punch.
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Frei 0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura's more baffled by Frei's spouting of jibberish than she is by the miraculous interrupting of her fireball attack. ... And really, the fireball =did= serve its purpose -- her hands are nice and toasty now! Win!
The fact that Frei's counterattack seems to have shone right through Sakura's Hadouken with a totally bright beam of light seems to have been lost on the schoolgirl. Not one to prolong the volleying of variously-colored fireballs, she had already moved forward to score a punch on the martial arts monk's forehead!
... It didn't work though, as the beam cuts right through her, blasting her hoodie right off -- oh wait, no such luck. The beam just kicked her shoulder to the side, neatly cutting her preemptive strike off at the knees. "Nngh! What the heck?" Apparently not =all= the silliness had been bled away in Frei's training.
Dropping his hands, Frei pauses and then takes a deep breath... and then busts out laughing. "HA ha ha oh man. Okay. I got that out of my system." Falling back into stance, he shakes out his hands and doesn't attack. That entire exchange has left him plumb tuckered out and he could use a second to get his bearings. "Sorry. I guess no amount of time in the mountains is gonna bleed the stupid out of me entirely." He gives Sakura a goofy grin.
And then... turns a little serious, glancing at the schoolgirl carefully. He'd been wanting to say this, and didn't have a chance... and hopefully the laughter they just shared (or hopefully shared, you can never tell with kids these days) will take some of the sting out of it. "Sakura... you had someone teaching you too, right? Have you..." He pauses. "Have you paid him your respects lately?"
COMBATSYS: Frei gains composure.
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Frei 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Sakura
Well, it's good to know Sakura's hunch was right, on the silliness bit. "SNF just won't be the same without a killer martial-arts bunny!" Smirking broadly, the schoolgirl recovers, closing in warily while the monk pauses to gather his wits.
... Though his question is a bit out of the ordinary, and leading in the same way. Pay her respects? ... Any =rational= person would pick up on the implied meaning here. But Ryu's not dead, so her response is a confused half-smile, and a nod. "Y...yeah, we fought a couple weeks ago... why?"
She doesn't think it kosher to just stop fighting though, unless asked. So she steps forward, twisting her upper torso back to deliver a forceful thrust kick to the clavicle: "HYAAAAH!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Frei with Medium Kick.
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Frei 0/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Frei let himself get distracted, that's for sure. He's engrossed in responding to Sakura, looking like he feels as stupid for even asking as she probably does for responding. "Right... right. Okay, good, sorry, I..." And then he gets kicked in the jaw. At the last second he seems to notice, trying to trick a hand in there and shove the kick off to the side to shear some of the damage off and all it really does is drive Sakura's sneaker into his nose with a nice cruching sound.
Stepping back and holding his face, the monk makes some noises best described as "ub ub ub" before dropping his hands. He's not bleeding or anything, the nose set as nicely as it always was, but that sounded like it hurt. "Forget I asked. I'm 26, remember, so I guess to you it's the ramblings of an old man, hehe." But he's not out yet. Swinging his arm forward as if underhanding a softball, he tries to sweep Sakura upward in a sudden and violent burst of air; if he can get her airborne, the monk leaps up after her and then toss her right back to the ground with no small degree of force. "Watch your step!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Frei's Ame no Murakumo.
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Frei 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura =has= become a bit stronger these past few months -- she may not have been fighting as much due to her studies, but weight training and aerobic exercises are easy solo activities! But that also means her kicks probably hurt just a smidge more.
"Huh... well... sure..." There's probably more here that Frei's not telling, but asking would conflict with her policy of not being nosy to her friends.
But when she gets attacked from below with a sudden blast of air, Kasugano grits her teeth. It's a good thing she's wearing jeans for this battle! Gritting her teeth at the stinging wind, she nonetheless leans into the blow, bracing up for the inevitable impact of Frei tossing her to the ground. She snaps out of that as well, twisting about to land in a low crouch.
But what comes next is a bit, well, =less= expected.
She comes rushing right back upwards at him with a rising uppercut. "SHOOOOU'OU KEN!"
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Sakura's Shou'ou Ken.
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Frei 1/------=/=======|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Aha! But he's not left-handed! Alright, that joke's gotta be retired. Let us all take a moment for one of the classic lines of combat dialogue in the history of stage fencing. Mandy Patinkin, we hardly knew ye. Even though you're not dead. Whatever.
As Frei descends and finds Sakura coming AT him, he suddenly spins and rights... er, 'wrongs'... himself in midair, heading down toward her face first and reaching out with both hands to grab that outstretched fist. The force of what is basically falling on Sakura's punch hurts, but not as bad as falling on that punch with his FACE would have. "Sorry! I'll explain later!" he reassures, dropping off the girl's fist and hitting the ground just before her.
...at which point he sets his foot and, turning, suddenly rockets UPWARD at her, playing her own game against her as the monk flings himself at Sakura in a Talbain-style shoulder charge, a blazing yet cold aura of silvery chi surrounding him. "One good turn deserves another!"
COMBATSYS: Sakura interrupts Gekkou Nocturne from Frei with Quick Throw.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Aerial acrobatics are something Kasugano =wishes= she had more practice with! ... Usually she's limited to bouncing off people's shoulders, kicking about, and generally getting punished for her efforts of doing anything totally leet and awesome.
Having her fist caught outright is new, though. She hadn't planned on fighting Olympic gymnastics hopefuls. Brow furrowing somewhat, she finds herself nodding in reply to Frei as her arm hinges closed, her body continuing onward as Frei hits the ground.
Her eyes track the monk as he continues down to the ground. Maybe she'll get aerial practice after all! And indeed, when she's on her way back =down=, Frei's coming back up -- though that's when Sakura tries her hax on for size. Throwing her weight forward in a shoulder-rush of her own, she aims to take that shoulder charge in her lower abdomen. "Nngh!" Sure, the silvery chi and the impact itself knocked some wind out of her, but she's already anticipating that. Instead, her momentum shift means that the impact isn't quite as clean as he may have hoped. Moreover -- with her =grabbing= him, she's able to impart her own momentum -- that being a rotational momentum, resulting in the bizarre Sakura-Frei mass revolving once, before Kasugano forcefully ejects him with a firm shhove to the ground. Sure, that chi hurt... but in a way, it was worth it! "HYAAA!"
Spinning once more to regain control, she wipes the back of her hand across her mouth. This =is= taking its toll on her. "Heh... no real rush, there... I'm curious, but it can wait!"
Frei, in fact, does not regain control. What actually happens is he smacks the ground unceremoniously and kinda stays there for a bit. Sakura's hax just haxed Frei right in the hax. But he doesn't look sad about it; if anything, his face looks fairly satisfied underneath the bruises and stuff.
After a second, he pulls himself up and... wobbles, before giving Sakura a thumbs up. "That was fun. It'd be more fun if I wasn't going back to a Hotel 6 bathroom to shower, but it can't be helped." He pauses, then glances at Sakura hopefully. "Did you know they'll leave the light on for you? I thought it was just a jingle but they totally do." He's babbling. Maybe you hit him too hard, Saku.
COMBATSYS: Frei takes no action.
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Sakura 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Frei can no longer fight.
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Sakura 0/-------/-----==|
"... Do they? I... never gave it much thought, honestly!" Sakura laughs, scratching the side of her cheek. She hasn't stayed in many Motel 6's before.
And, well... if you tell someone to forget it, that just cements it within their memory even more. And, being that Frei still seems to be conscious, she blurts out before she thinks better of it, "So why were you asking about my master, anyway? Something happen?"
He'd only just been able to stand back up... and Sakura's question just makes Frei want to sit back down again. So he does, walking tiredly over to a nearby tree planter and plunking himself down next to it, leaning back against it and sprawling out his legs exhaustedly. Hopefully nobody will need to walk over him or anything. "It's, uh... well...." He pauses, then rubs the back of his head, his voice quiet. "I went back to China to see my old master. That's why I've been gone all this time."
The monk turns his gaze to Sakura and he's not... unhappy. In fact he's smiling, but there's something fake about it. Not all of it; some part of him is obviously and genuinely happy, either about his fight with Sakura or something else. But even a total airhead could tell something's partially awry. "He passed away while I was here, in Southtown. I guess some of the locals came up to give him something some... afternoon and he was lying in bed, peaceful. That was all."
Oof. Kasugano sure isn't going easy on Frei tonight -- not that she's trying to be mean or anything! It just, y'know, happens! And when she sees that face from someone she considers a friend, well... she's naturally a bit sad that she'd evoked such a reaction. She walks to him... but the gaze she gets once he's stopped makes her stop as well. She's no stranger to fake smiles, handing them out quite often herself. So... she waits. And listens.
"... I'm... I'm so sorry..." she states after she receives the news, only then walking up to Frei. And if he doesn't pull away he'd get a hug from the schoolgirl. "At least he was peaceful..."
Frei actually laughs with embarrassment when he gets hugged by the schoolgirl that just beat his face in, but he doesn't pull away. "Oh, he was a believer in reincarnation," he adds in an almost wistful tone. "I'm sure right now he's enjoying being a baby all over again even if he has no idea it's... him, or something. I don't know, I don't understand reincarnation at all." He's babbling again!
But once Sakura pulls away from her hug, she might notice that even if there is a bass note of grief under the swirling horns of Frei's typical demeanor, it really hasn't done him too much harm. "So I stayed in his house for a while, reading his journals. I guess I regret not going back sooner to see how he was... which is stupid, because nobody can ever be everywhere at once. But I know you said you hadn't seem him for a while last time we talked, and... well, I guess after a certain age parenting instincts kick in no matter how much you want to pretend you'll be 19 forever." He grins.
Reincarnation? "... oh." She takes him seriously, even if he =is= just falling back to good-natured humor to lessen the gravity of the situation. Kasugano doesn't want to probe too deeply into the man's psyche, after all -- she's done enough damage, there!
"... Oh. Yeah. You could've been gone for a day, and it might've still happened." She laughs faintly, only then recovering a similarly-related memory of Ryu's fateful return from the World Warrior tournament. "... Well, there's no 'dojo' for me to return to, no place where I 'should' be finding him." She laughs faintly. "If my master passed away, no one would know for years, I'm sure..." Except maybe that Vega guy, but she ain't goin there.
... Nineteen, huh? That's only one year away... "... But I mean, thanks for asking! I appreciate it, really! Ha-ha!" She plants her hand on the back of her head, feeling miiiighty awkward at the moment!
That brings a grin to Frei's face and he waves a hand dismissively. "You're right, you're right... I didn't mean to get all angsty on you." He leans back and winces a little as his skull clonks onto the ceramic holding the tree in place, but that passes in a second and then he tilts his head, looking at Sakura again. "So, ice, huh? Hehe... maybe I taught you a thing or two without knowing it too? Although I have to say now my ego's a little bruised from being shown up."
Tilting her head to the side, she shifts her weight onto one side, laughing faintly. "Well, it's important to you! I'd rather you share than keep it all bottled up!"
But... ice. She's pleased for a happy topic change, at least. "Ah... yeah! I'm not even sure how I did it, really. I just know I figured out electricity and fire." Pause. "Not sure I want to start slinging metal or earth fireballs around though..."
A metal fireball. Boy, it's a good thing neither of these two has met Urien. "Well... I dunno. Earth chi feels more like concussive force than, like... dirt. Though I suppose you could always chuck a rock at someone's face and call it Daichi Hadouken."
Leaning back a little more and lacing his arms behind his head, Frei puts on a serious face for a moment and glances at the young Ansatsuken prodigy. "You know when I said a lot of this was thanks to you? Do you know what I meant?" He pauses, then runs a finger across his upper lip for a moment, trying to find the right words. "Well, it wasn't necessarily JUST you. It was other people too, but... when I came here I felt like I knew chi pretty well, it was just the fighting with it I needed help with. Well... that's not true. I had this... this LOGIC. You know? I felt like I had the system worked out." He pauses, then puts out his hand palm up. "But then I met so many people who didn't fit the system! Jiro, you, that Kain guy, a bunch of others. And the lesson that I got out of that was that I was so wrapped up in the *system* that I forget about just... letting go and being intuitive."
Blink. "People throw earth chi?" Kasugano really hadn't put =that= much thought into it after all -- fire's cool, electricity's cool, water's cool... but the others don't really have many popular proponents in the fighting culture. And every time Sakura sees Urien on TV she changes the channel. Stupid Gill wannabe.
She... didn't =exactly= know what he meant when he said that, but she's polite enough to listen to his own interpretation. "... Oh. Well, yeah! I'm a big fan of putting stuff into practice. Sure, some folks can do eighteen million situps, but it won't always help in a fight, right?" She laughs, there. "It's best to put the thinking to work in a real fight, a real situation. S'why I fight all the time, really!"
Raising an eyebrow, the monk feels now is as good a time as any to give Sakura a little good-natured ribbing. "Oh? It's not because you're an adrenaline junkie who craves the natural high?" Dusting off his hands, the monk leans forward and pushes himself standing again, glancing around and then back at Sakura, crossing arms low across his stomach, right hand on left elbow. "I don't know that they throw earth chi. I use it a little bit, but I use a little bit of everything. I'm always meeting people with new 'elements' I'd have never enough thought of, though. Like... what was that one? Had a guitar and a really terrible attitude. I think she was using... sound. I mean, it's not a Confucian element, but it's all around us, isn't it?"
"... I..." Sakura doesn't know what to say to that for a moment! "Well, there's that too! But yeah, it's totally important to fight as many different people as possible. If you have a solid style based on experience with many different styles, you'll be that much stronger! S'what my master tells me anyway."
Sound? "... Well, in science they teach us there's no sound in space, right? Since there's no air to carry the sound. So wouldn't she really be 'air' element? ... Yeah, Sakura doesn't know which set of five elements she's going to pick; all of them sound equally entertaining to her!
"Ah, but... there's no fire in space either, because fire consumes oxygen to burn. So by that logic, fire is air too." Frei grins at Sakura, because he is getting to show off what he remembers of high school science. "Everything's interdependent. That's why my master taught me 'pure' yang and 'pure' yin first, I think. Because those are forces present in everything, so once you know how to manipulate that, it's all just so much mixing and stirring." There's a beat, and then the monk rubs the back of his head in embarrassment. "Sorry, I didn't mean to get pedantic."
Glancing at his watch, Frei taps a finger against his chin, then extends his hand to Sakura for shaking. "I should probably get back to apartment hunting. But it was good to see you again! And..." He pauses, and tries his damndest not to make the last thing he says sound lame, but apparently some degree of it is always there, for Frei. "Let's do this again. If your master's right, then we'll both benefit. I think."
"Oh." Pause. Well, sure, that makes perfect sense, really. There's people with all kinds of chi, Sakura realizes! She nods attentively, but for all intents and purposes, it's like teaching structural physics to a construction worker. She knows how to =apply= the physics, just doesn't concern herself much with the how or why. "Hmm... nah, I don't mind! It's kinda interesting to see how things play together!"
But with Frei itching to go, Sakura acquiesces, shaking the man's hand. "A pleasure, as always, my good man!" Formality is =so= not her. "I learn a bit from every battle! ... It's not like I'm =only= fighting for the adrenaline high..." she teases back, hopping back to her feet. "If you find a place, lemme know!"
Log created on 22:20:54 04/07/2007 by Frei, and last modified on 00:09:10 04/17/2007.