Description: Trying to give Hotaru what she wants - a serious, hardcore, brutal fight - Blanka challenges the Kenpo artist to a big time Neo League match at Howard Arena. Giving it his all, he does everything he can to make it a very serious match for the girl. Actively trying to resist the call of that horrible technique of hers, Hotaru attempts to go through the match without falling back on it again, to no avail. But Blanka's concern manages to be understood all the same. ( Winner: Hotaru )
Serious Business!
Ever since the last SNF that Blanka participated in, he'd been awash in confusion. One of his 'bestest friends', Hotaru Futaba, had suddenly become all engrossed with winning and proving something that she wouldn't really talk about in matches. She wasn't having fun anymore that Blanka could see, and he'd taken a tack to try and work with it the last time they fought together, and was rebuffed. His walking off the fight probably saved him anything more than minor lacerations from her new techniques, but seemed to only infuriate her all the more. 'Don't you dare!' when he stepped away probably cut him worse than any strike of her hands - the thought that he couldn't give her what she wanted.
So he decided to.
Formal challenge, written with all the effort of a fourth-grade reading and writing level, the words impeccably hand-printed. If it weren't green crayon, one might never know it was Blanka's handwriting - but the frowny face at the end would probably settle it. 'Hotaru Futaba. Meet at Howard Arena. Bring your League points. You want realy fight, you get. >:|', just a 'B' at the bottom. So that leads him to the arena, having managed to sell the League on such a fight. He knew Hotaru'd show - the new one, at least, seemed to thrive on challenges. So he'll wait here, with the cameras silently watching as he paces in his corner, fists clenched and clutched with tension and worry. Was this the right choice? Was he actually giving her what she wanted, or needed? Or was he just being the stupid beast again, and thinking with his fists and not his head?
She showed up all right. There's a soberness to the girl as she steps up onto the fighting platform of one of the largest arenas in the world. Neo League matches don't typically draw the most massive of crowds, but when it's between top contenders, it changes things significantly.
Dressed in her usual fighting outfit with the typical blue and white colors, first glance may reveal nothing different other than the missing pig-tails as she's been leaving her hair down as of late. Blue eyes fix Blanka as he paces in his corner. She appears calm, focused. At the moment the anger he saw in their last match seems to be lacking. But perhaps she just hasn't worked herself into an exhausting frenzy just yet?
She gives the beastman fighter a nod of recognition, but doesn't seem inclined to go beyond that, keeping her distance on the platform, clearly waiting for the bout to begin. She bows her head, exhaling softly, before shifting into a rooted ready stance, one leg forward, arms raised and ready. Everything about her indciates that she came to fight, perhaps eager for the opportunity to see if she can beat the fighter she's never defeated in a match before. Surely her newfound strength will make that possible?
COMBATSYS: Blanka has started a fight here.
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Blanka 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has joined the fight here.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Blanka
"'otaroo."
Blanka's gold eyes study the girl carefully. The determination is still there, but the anger isn't yet - it's a good sign that she's not gone completely psychotic at least. Blanka relaxes just a bit, a sign of visible relief. However, it's quickly dismissed as he focuses on the fight. He promised the girl a battle, and he was surely intent on giving her one. His jaw sets, firms up, teeth glinting in the spotlights...
And then he moves.
Down to all fours, hands and feet digging into the weathered grainte for purchase, small sparks exploding from the contact. Forwards, he attacks without another word, his shoulder coming down to bear on where Hotaru stands. No finesse, no subtlety - just an attempt to body-check the smaller girl into the ground. She wanted a fight, she'll get it - everything that Blanka can throw at her, well - he'll offer it up. "AWH-ROOOO!"
COMBATSYS: Blanka successfully hits Hotaru with Light Kick.
- Power hit! -
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Blanka
When he first begins to charge, she remains still, blue eyes narrowing slightly as she tries to figure out what he has in mind. Perhaps she can simply turn his incoming attack against him. But when it becomes clear just how much force he's putting into the charge, the Futaba girl changes her mind - clearly too late to do so - and tries to scramble out of the way of the incoming green colored pain train.
There's no having it though as she gets bowled over, checked hard by the impact, the lighter weight fighter sent tumbling over and over repeatedly before coming to rest atop the platform. Still for a moment, she pushes herself up quickly afterward, jaw clenched a little as she tries to ignore the ache in her side.
Wordlessly, the girl bolts back toward Blanka, charging him directly, hopping up into a rising knee strike from a little ways out, attempting to drive her leg into his chest before slipping in behind him upon landing and delivering a swift kick toward his upper back to try and knock him over!
COMBATSYS: Blanka blocks Hotaru's Light Kick.
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0 Blanka
Knocking her back, he isn't smiling at all. This is serious, after all - and he's giving her exactly what she wanted. Blanka's rough and tumble is very much that - rough and tumble. He tries to regain his balance as she recovers, and isn't nearly as quick as she is in the effort. It's all he can do to get his hands up in front of her knee, but not enough to stop the second kick into his back! Stumbling forwards, he hits the granite floor of the arena with a crunch and a howl, looking shaken - but not out, not by a longshot.
From being on his stomach, he pushes up with his arms, spinning his legs forwards and throwing himself into a back-flip. Normally, he'd use this attack to clear room for him - to keep himself away from his opponent. Today though, he tries to catch her in midair with his giant feet instead, to knock her down towards the ground. Around him, lightning crackles in warning, his eyes and open mouth showing tingles of that blue-white electricity he calls his own.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru blocks Blanka's Backstep Rolling.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-======|=------\-------\0 Blanka
Hotaru is quickly finding that as she tries to contend with Blanka, he has her beat on strength by a significant amount and his stamina comes as no surprise. Her kick combination partially successful, she begins to real back, intending to avoid his next strike and try to slip something into an opening, but there's no getting out of the way of his large feet as they come slamming toward her.
Resorting to the safest option possible, she braces, raising her arms and defending herself as best she can, even though she still gets practically crushed to the ground in the process, stumbling a little as a result, one hand touching the ground just before she would have otherwise fallen over.
"Tch," she grunts, not having managed to pull off any convincing attack against Blanka. But for now she seems to remain cool, if a bit intense, pushing out of her crouch with a rapid charge in Blanaka's direction, seeking to catch up in time to get a grip on his large arms, hands tightening around his wrists and leaving him unable to defend himself against a series of rapid, stomping kicks Hotaru delivers right up the front of the much taller fighter, ending with a backflip through the air to try and get some distance afterward!
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Blanka with Shin-Jou Tai.
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Blanka
Sometimes, it's all timing that matters - the only thing that needs to happen is to plan for the best time and place where to expend your energy. Hotaru seems to have a handle on that - and Blanka surely doesn't. He's been throwing everything he has into his attacks, but it's left him open - landing a bit unsteadily, he's wide open for the attack that Hotaru throws his way. Hands on his body, her feet come back up and start with the stomping, a trail from shin to shoulders, imprints left in his green body. Staggering backwards, he clutches at his chest, eyes narrowed.
Distance she can have - but only for a second or two. He's moving again, body eeling forwards as he slides low, bringing his feet down at where her feet will be when they land. He's intent on catching her shins and knocking her down with the impact - though the giant crunch of his feet smacking hers would probably be much more painful than anything the floor can provide. Still, he doesn't say words - he doesn't trust what he'd say, knowing that it might throw her into a rage - and so far, well - it's going well enough...
COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges Blanka's Medium Kick.
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Blanka
This time, as Blanka comes charging toward her, Hotaru makes the decision to not toy with trying to stand in his way. Planning early pays off as she takes to the air in a forward flip, his incoming kick missing her feet by just a little. Landing on the other side of Blanka, Hotaru whirls around to face him, blue eyes studying him intently. The scribbled words on his invitation echo in her mind. This isn't just a friendly match between friends. It would have been back in the day, but now... now all she wants to do is keep on proving her point, it seems.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" she asks, holding back, slowing the pace of the fight down deliberately. Concentrating for a change rather than just rentlessly throwing herself at her opponents until either they fall to her power or she drops exhausted and battered.
She's quiet for a moment longer, before adding, "What I said," she pauses a little, "At the trampoline," she continues haltingly. "It was wrong. I'm sorry." The words come forced, as if reluctant but necessary in her mind. A change of heart since their last fight? She settles back into her fighting stance. There is no smile, but the anger he saw before seems absent even still. Control, she whispers to herself, her mouth barely moving. That's what she's lacked. There's nothing wrong with the power, she just has to control it. She can do that. Bend the fiendish technique to her will. That's what Oswald was saying... or, well, maybe something like that.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru focuses on her next action.
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Blanka
Slowing down? This isn't the 'new' Hotaru, and Blanka's not really sure what to say when she reacts the way she does. He's uncertain, but still determined to give her everything she wants. He'll even take the time to listen to the words she offers up, the question she asks. With a grunt, he finally speaks, his gravelly voice serious. ".. Is fun when you having fun too. Now.. not fun... but important to you - so Blanka giving all he can." With that, he goes sullen again, his mouth set in a firm line, returning to his feet.
She's psyching herself up, and Blanka is intent on doing something about that. He starts towards her, then stops - certain that there's something else he needs to use, some way that's better than rushing in blindly. He needs something to use, something to distract her. Without another thought, he slams his hands down against his ankles, and breaks one of the copper baubles that circle his thick green joint. He holds it in his hand for a moment, staring at the remnant of his mother's gift. Were they not in a flat arena with so little to use as an object, he'd never have done this - but drastic times call for drastic measures. Decisicevly, without hesitation, he throws the copper circlet at Hotaru's chest, trying to knock her out of that stance.
COMBATSYS: Blanka successfully hits Hotaru with Thrown Object.
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Hotaru 1/----===/=======|======-\-------\0 Blanka
"Hn," Hotaru replies at Blanka's answer. It's hard to tell if she's satisfied or indifferent, as her tone is as neutral as her expression. Blanka decides to hold back rather than charge her, however, resorting to utilizing one of his mother's trinkets. Hotaru blinks with some surprise, forced out of her stance to try and get out of the way, only to get struck hard enough to send her reeling backward with a stumble before catching herself.
Shaking her head, the girl doesn't stop, chosing instead to charge forward and get an attack in anyway. Her right hand is devoid of the red-orange, piercing chi she had used on Blanka in the past as she reaches out with her left, trying to get a quick hold on his wrist. If she gets the grip, she'll take a step back, trying to spin him around her side so that she could trip him up in the process. Far from her most powerful attack, it's more of a stall tactic than anything. A test for herself...
What can she does if she isn't going to use that forbidden technique? How far can she go? "Maybe someday you will understand," she murmurs mid-attack, her fingers trying to curl around his hand.
COMBATSYS: Blanka interrupts Quick Throw from Hotaru with Vertical Rolling.
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Hotaru 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Blanka
He'd expected that giant strike, the chiflame that burned him so badly the last time. Blanka's body is aching still from that strike, legs and arms tensed and prepared for it. He overreacts when her hand comes in, and as she gets that grip, he allows himself to move forwards. As he does, his knees go limp, and strike the granite. At the last second, he tucks into a ball, and /rockets/ straight upwards, running straight up Hotaru's body and over her chin on his way into the air.
He lands a few feet away, eyes still spinning, dizzy as he clutches his head and tries to focus. He watches his opponent, his hands moving as if to help her up - then draw back with an effort. The fight's not over until she says it's over. Blanka isn't going to give anything less than his best here - no matter how much it hurts /either/ fighter. He swallows great lungfuls of breath, winded from the amount of special technique's he's pulled on this granite arena floor. Today, he really wished he were in the jungle - acrobatics were so much easier there. "Want to understand.. If it makes Hotaru happy."
Struck hard, Hotaru almost falls then, caught too undefended to actually defend herself as Blanka barrels into her in his characteristic style. But as he starts to reach forward, thinking for an instant, perhaps, to steady her, she slaps his hand away, the child fighter looking irritated as she stops for a moment to nurse a busted lip. Why shouldn't she use it, she asks herself. Why not use the power that's hers to command? He said this was a serious fight. And holding back at all has only been getting her hammered.
That was the point, wasn't it. That's why she unleashed that technique in the first place. To finally excell beyond her toughest opponents. The price was everything she's given up since, the reward... unfathomable power. The girl stares at Blanka as he speaks but her jaw is clenched tightly shut, her eyes almost seeming to see something way beyond the jungle raised fighter as if he wasn't even there.
Her attacks have barely phased him. They're not strong enough. Not like what she CAN do... Her mouth trembles, the girl glancing from Blanka toward the audience in attendance before looking back toward him. She held back and look where it's gotten her. But if she were to use her full power...
Use it. The voice nearly audible in her mind. Don't hold back. Only cowards do that. He knew what he was getting into when he issued the challenge. USE IT. Hotaru charges forward, leaning low, coming in fast, her left hand reaching out for Blanka again, but this time there is that distinctive glow of red-orange chi coursing over her right arm.
USE IT NOW. Her left hand slams out, a feinting strike against his chest, before the real attack comes from her right, a single, devastating punch, discharging all of that pent up energy into him should her punch connect.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Blanka with Satsujinken EX.
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Hotaru 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\====---\1 Blanka
He knew. Above all, he knew. He knew what she'd done to him before, remember? He'd felt that impact slamming into his body, the hard power coursing into him and knocking him off his feet. He sees her feint - knows it for what it is. After all, at this point, there's only one thing that she'd use, one attack she knows was so effective on Blanka before. The impact is braced against, Blanka prepared to take every bit of that pain and use it against Hotaru in a second after the attack.
It fails.
As she strikes him, he howls in pain, gold eyes opening wide as he's knocked back, skidding along the ground. He's out of range all of the sudden, unable to react and catch his breath, his hands scrabbling for purchase on the ground. He gets to his feet slowly, rubbing the black mark on his chest hair, orange hair burnt and crisped from her strike.
"Focus good. Not enough.. to keep Blanka down. You always tough fight, Hotaru.. Never forget it." With that, he sinks down on all fours, and digs his hands into the arena floor, flexing muscles and starting to crackle with lightning. It looks almost as if he's ready to rip the arena floor up off the base and smash her with it.
COMBATSYS: Blanka focuses on his next action.
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Hotaru 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\====---\1 Blanka
The blast from her attack sends Hotaru staggering backward, having given into again. The need to use that technique she swore she wouldn't fall back on in this match. That's not what this was supposed to be about, she tells herself, as she stares at her right arm, the flaming chi collapsing and fading away. How is it that she can't even stick to that if she wants to? What is it about this technique that compells her to use it? She's never felt a craving to dish out any of her other attacks. Never felt a burning desire to unleash her signiture little chi ball in favor of anything else. Before it was all about control, pacing, using what made the most sense. But this? This doesn't seem like that at all.
Blanka indicates she's a tough fight, but Hotaru frowns, her anger not at him but at herself. Of course she's a tough fight, if she uses /that/. But... why does she feel so weak without it? She was at least a capable fighter before... why has this changed? It makes no sense.
The girl breaths in deeply then exhales. Control. That's what Oswald said. Power through control. "I'm sorry, Blanka, I didn't want to use it, I-..." She swallows, shaking her head. No, serious fight, serious match. Breathing in again, the girl charges the larger, green fighter, her hands lighting up with chi - blue this time instead of the red savage attack, as she hops into the air a yard or so out from Blanka and lands, whirling her arms out with a series of windmilling palm strikes in hopes of getting a clean hit in.
If she finds a hole in his guard, the girl will press the attack, but all the while avoid using the red-orange chi... finishing with a rising shoulder tackle and a forward flip into one last, blue chi covered teenage missile as she dives back into Blanka to take him down to the ground.
COMBATSYS: Blanka fails to interrupt Sou-shou Tenrenge EX from Hotaru with Direct Lightning.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Blanka can no longer fight.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|
"DO IT!" Blanka's howeled challenge is defiant, his body bristling with power as he hunkers down. His fingers pull free from the granite, small pieces of the rubble coming free as well. His body sparks with electricity, rolling up from his feet and up his chest, a shield with which to protect him from the sudden, speedy attack. He's ready for whatever she has, whatever she can give, he'll take and show her his own strength. He promised. He /promised./
And she's faster than lightning. Windmill strikes slap against him knocking him left and right, seemingly hitting /between/ the arcs of power that he lets out. His eyes are wide open with surprise and shock - pain and... amusement? He's falling backwards as she leaps over him, then tackles him and takes him to the ground. He's weak as a kitten, his body suddenly aching all the more. One giant hand reaches out to the side, and he taps the ground twice, signaling to the camera crew and referee that he's given up - the shaking of his giant paw very indicative of how little strength he has. Gold eyes look wearily up to his opponent, but he's not angry at losing - in fact, he's smiling toothily through the pain. He cranes his head up just a little, a secret whisper for her, not for the cameras.
"That hit... harder than other one. Strong without it, 'otaroo." With that said, his head falls back, cracking against the granite - but Blanka doesn't really feel it. Instead, he's just chuckling under his breath.
Landing next to Blanka as Hotaru rolls into a crouch, the blue chi that had covered her body fading fast as she exhales, exhausted from the match. But once she doesn't feel the emptiness she's felt as of late. This victory... doesn't matter to her, not like she thought it would. But this feeling in her is different than she had expected. Hands against the ground, the kneeling girl glances to the side as Blanka stays on his back, blue eyes coming to focus in the pained but very real smile on his face.
Strong without the other one. She knows what he's talking about. That she can hit harder with her own practiced technique than with the ghastly move she's been using all this time. It's an important point and the girl is quiet as she contemplates what it means. "Blanka..." she opens her mouth, her voice soft. She scoots sideways, hand coming out to rest against his large arm.
Swallowing, she blinks her eyes, mouth curled into a very faint smile, "Thank you. This match. I know you did it for me. You gave it your best because you... because that's what I wanted - wanted to be taken seriously." She looks away, slowly pushing herself to her feet. "I shouldn't need to use that technique... I... I didn't mean to." The girl shakes her head slowly, "I have to get control over it. Keep it from controlling me."
Exhaling softly, Hotaru looks back down toward her resting friend. "Thank you, Blanka. For everything." And then she turns, stumbling off to the side, caught by the medics already coming up onto the platform to gather the battle worn fighters.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has ended the fight here.
Log created on 22:55:17 03/16/2008 by Hotaru, and last modified on 02:43:37 03/17/2008.