Description: Another friend, another attempt to get the rampaging Futaba to see reason. Catching the girl not long after her encounter with Mizuki, Sakura demands some answers and she's not leaving until Hotaru shows her that technique everyone's been talking about. Just another block along the road to recovery, one more friend in the right place a the right time.
The quiet property, for years, been a place of refuge in the hardest of times for Hotaru. A tranquil yard, hidden behind a wall, the center of the lot is occupied by the Philanthropy Chapel, a taste of traditional European architecture in the heart of Southtown village, noteworthy for its sizeable belfry. The yard itself is verdant but showing signs of neglect. The grass has grown long, the flower garden has not had winter's dead leaves cleaned out and a number of weeds have taken root alongside the few blossoming flowers. The hedges look overdue for a pruning as their branches stretch forth in the early Spring light.
Hotaru hasn't had time for this place. In fact, she had come back only once since her fateful battle with Frei's brother in the snow, and that was when she had encountered Frei himself. But she feels drawn to visit it again right now, pausing in the gate that leads in from the sidewalk. Her right forearm is craddled against her stomach, her left hand gripping it tightly, as if attempting to assuage a deep ache. A sweeping glance is made over the yard before she finally steps onto the property and begins to make her way toward the building.
The chapel house had been a place for meditation for a lot of the last year for her - a sanctuary within which she was able to find balance; a balance she has clearly lost. Even she knows there is a problem. Mizuki made that painfully clear, provoking her into a fight with merely heated words. That shouldn't have happened. This very moment her friend is probably back at the YFCC being treated for injuries rendered by the once more careful fighter, and aside from a red mark on her cheek from where she received a well deserved hard slap, Hotaru doesn't look at all touched by the fight that had broken out.
Clutching her right arm still, the girl makes her way along the walkway toward the large chapel doors. She hasn't meditated in months. Perhaps that's all she needs - something to calm herself, to control the raging spirit within.
Sakura had been concerned for Hotaru ever since she'd heard from her disciple, some weeks ago, that there was a problem. The Ansatsuken fighter sees a lot of similarities in Hotaru, though -normally- she's less aggressive instead of moreso. She'd heard of a rather sudden change in personality, and naturally feared the worst... but some things, you just shouldn't rely on rumors for. Personal experience is the surest way to learn the truth.
Up till now, Sakura has had little luck in finding that truth though. If Hotaru was spotted, she'd be on the opposite side of the city, and she'd hear about it hours, sometimes days afterwards. It's kind of hard to investigate that way! Today seems to be her lucky day however; Sakura had been frequenting the Kyokugen dojo and this chapel in hopes that Hotaru might have some reason to return; as luck would have it, Kasugano had just rounded a corner the moment before Hotaru stepped into the chapel grounds.
Hotaru =does= seem to be acting a bit suspicious, though, so rather than risk confronting her and losing the opportunity to find out what's going on properly, she jogs close, sticking close to the brick wall as she peers around the corner, keeping her feet just outside the wall for now.
Ascending the three stone steps to the chapel door, Hotaru finally releases her right hand, her left hand reaching out to take hold of one of the heavy metal handles used to pull the door open, gripping it tightly. Yeah, maybe she just needs to take a break inside, where it's quiet (and a bit dusty by now). Meditate, focus, figure out what she's doing wrong...
But rather than open the door, Hotaru leans forward, resting her forehead against the oak surface, closing her eyes, releasing the handle and resting her hands flat against the door. What is that going to do for her, she asks herself. What's the point of sitting around, meditating, doing nothing but letting precious time slip past unutilized? If she's going to control this she just needs to find someone to teach her how...
Exhaling, she takes a step back from the door, her right arm coming up to wipe across her eyes, brushing away unbidden tears of frustration, confusion, pain. No, the girl decides, this place isn't for her anymore. Another step back is taken before the girl finally turns to step back down the stairs, seemingly having changed her mind with regards to whatever she had come here for.
Kasugano watches for a good few moments, safe at her vantage point for the time being. She trusts what Kentou told her, of course -- he'd seen her a lot more at the time, so his opinion would obviously carry more weight than Sakura's own. But even still... just seeing what Hotaru's going through, with her own eyes, means much more to her.
And while she may not be able to read minds, she can still see desperation and sadness. Something's missing, and it's plain to Sakura that while salvation =could= have been sought in the chapel... it wasn't.
It's as good a time as any for Sakura to step out from behind the masonry, one hand lifting up to brush the wind-tousled hair out of her eyes. "What's the matter? Was the door locked?" Kasugano sees no harm in tipping her hand, here, having seen what she just did. She's smiling, but it's not cruel, or even mildly sarcastic: it's a sincere show of healthy concern.
Resting her hand on a hip, Kasugano stands squarely in Hotaru's path. "Lookin' for someone to talk to, Hotaru?"
If not so lost in her thoughts she would have likely noticed Sakura sooner. It's not like there's anyone else on the property after all, the presence of another should have been easily percieved by the girl who inherited it. But clearly she hadn't, for it isn't until the moment Sakura speaks up that Hotaru really seems to notice her, eyes widening with some surprise, mouth open for a moment before she closes it.
Her left hand was rubbing her right wrist again but as she stops walking, she quickly replaces her surprised expression with a somewhat forced smile, clasping her hands behind her back. Cheeks redden quickly - of all the people to find her in this state, it had to be Sakura, the girl Hotaru had looked up to for years. "N-no," comes the stammered reply, one of her hands slipping out from behind her back to rest against her neck instead, resting beneath her long hair she's left down for a while now, having concluded the pigtails she once stuck to regularly were not helping with getting taken seriously.
"I just remembered I have somewhere I need to be, that's all," she continues, taking a step forward and to the side, as if intending to simply step around Sakura and be on her way. At the question about needing to talk to someone, Hotaru shakes her head briefly, avoiding eye contact with the other girl all together now, her excuse a mumbled, "Ah, no thanks, no time, really should get going. But we really should catch up sometime, ne?"
Embarassment, maybe even shyness -- at least -that's- a reaction Kasugano had expected to see from Hotaru -- and that kicks Sakura's smile up a notch.
It placates Sakura only until Hotaru moves to step around her -- a gesture which is met by Sakura extending a hand, reaching for Hotaru's far shoulder. And if Hotaru were to keep pushing, Sakura would walk backwards to keep herself between Hotaru and the open street. "Nah, hold on a sec, wouldja?" She wouldn't normally want to stop Hotaru... but a matter of greater concern is the point that -- at least in Sakura's estimation -- Hotaru wouldn't have tried just leaving like that without an explanation. One that wasn't mumbled and discarded.
"You got folks worried about you. I ain't letting you go until I've got a better idea of why you wanna bust heads all the time, all of a sudden." Kasugano's smile dims a bit: in a choice between 'the easy way' and 'the hard way', she's in unequivocal support of former.
As Sakura reaches for her shoulder, Hotaru's first effort is to keep right on walking anyway. She's in a hurry, right? No time for interference!! But as Sakura moves backward with her it becomes clear real quickly that she isn't going to get around the other girl so easily. Another step is taken against the resistence before Hotaru stops pushing.
Her eyes stay fixed on the gate beyond for a moment, her jaw tightening a little. With the physical contact, Sakura will have no problem picking up on how tense the other fighter is. It takes a moment before Hotaru finally finds it within her to turn toward the Taiyo grad. Her smile is faint then, strained, blue eyes studying Sakura's face for a long moment before she finally sighs softly, looking away, reluctant to maintain eye contact for long.
"Who put you up to this? Was it Frei? I would have thought by now he'd learn to mind his own-" She glances back at Sakura, more serious now, if not a very little irritated, "Was it Mizuki? She sure had a lot to say today. But I didn't think she'd go calling in the calvary over what happened." Hotaru frowns, her suspicions rampant as she tries to think of who might have gotten Sakura to come find her. "It wasn't Acacia, was it...?" She sounds less certain about that one. The Gedo girl had given her some really strange looks in their last matches together, but it didn't seem like her to find someone else to do her talking for her... Of course, she seems to have dismissed the idea that Sakura came of her own volition right off hand.
Kasugano can definitely read Hotaru's tension -- though that much is evident not only in the muscles she inadvertently holds taut, but in the roiling eddies of chi about her form. That's where experience matters to Sakura -- she can sense things in person that would never be recorded by a camera.
And in many ways... she hopes to be able to shape the churning currents into a calmer, more peaceful flow, with her own talents. There's only so much the young prodigy can accomplish with her spirit: her words and her actions will carry the rest. And that's why her expression, while firm, remains calm and placid even while the accusations fly.
"Nope.: Kasugano answers each panicked question in turn with a gentle shake of her head. "... No, she didn't either." She studies the expressions, and holds her ground. "And... no. I came on my own." It's a half-truth, sure: Kentou mentioned the problem, but it was Sakura who made the decision to get involved.
"You're hurting a lot of people, who really... all they want to do is help you get through whatever it is you're going through." Kasugano scratches at the side of her cheek. "And I just want to know what it is. You helped me when I was running around nutzoid, and... well, this is me returning the favor!" Her smile takes an uptick before resuming its prior reservation.
Hotaru's right hand comes up, fingers curled as she rests a knuckle against her lip, listening to Sakura. She looks defensive, but she also seems to be listening. A lot of people have been trying to get through to her, and one by one each of them have chipped away at the problem, their determination and concern for a wayward friend each helping in their own way.
Which brings Hotaru to the point that she's willing to listen to, for a little bit, to what Sakura has to say. She dismisses the girl's theories and accusations smoothly enough and she seems to relax as a reuslt. Apparently the thought that Sakura is checking on her out of personal interest rather than at someone else's behest is agreeable to her.
The hand resting against the back of her neck lowers slowly and Hotaru focuses on Sakura again, mouth closed at first, as if trying to decide if she's going to tell her anything at all, make something up, or open up to the other fighter. Something gives though - perhaps it's because of how she always looked up to Sakura as an example, maybe it's Sakura's sincerity getting through, or maybe just the proximity of a fighter with the kind of spirit Sakura has makes the difference as Hotaru finally nods her head slightly.
"All right. It's only fair, I guess." Her smile comes reluctantly but it's there briefly. "It's complicated though, I don't know if you really want to be bothered with it all..." She takes a step back, putting a little space between the two, making it a less confrontational situation now. "I, well, I know everyone is worried. But they don't have to be. I just... well, I learned something new. I guess I learned it a long time ago, I just..." Her mouth twitches, an uncomfortable silence settling in.
"Well, really, what I mean is I stopped holding back what I could do. I-... I'm not trying to hurt anyone, really. I just haven't learned to control it completely yet. I will, and then everything will be okay, it will be like it was before." That forced smile comes back, her tone suggesting that she isn't completely sold on her own spiel, but it's the only spiel she has.
Well, that's a start! Kasugano wasn't sure if she'd have to actually, y'know, =defend= herself from Hotaru, but it seems the chances of that may be dwindling. The fact that Hotaru actually takes a fstep -backwards-, and starts acting like herself, puts Sakura's mind at ease. There =is= still a human here, unlike when Shadaloo had her under its grasp.
Nodding her head slowly, she encourages, "No, go on. I'm here because I -do- want to listen."
Concern returns to Sakura's face when Hotaru mentions she's learned 'something new'. Her smile fades, her jaw sets, and yet she's still listening, still willing to give Hotaru her full attention.
So it's only when Hotaru finishes that she offers her advice. "That's... good. You should push your barriers, try new things, and learn how to control once you've, y'know, gotten better." She smiles faintly, folding her hands behind her back. "It's a good thing. I know, I do it myself."
But then she takes a breath, looking down for a moment. "Can you describe what you've learned though? I'm still... at a bit of a loss, I don't wanna stuff my foot in my mouth or nothin'..."
Yeah, Hotaru tells herself. It's not so bad. It's just a technique, just like any other. Not so bad. Sakura understands that, right? But then the girl wants to know what Hotaru learned and she buttons up, looking awkward now. Next she'll want to know from /whom/ she learned it and what is she supposed to say to that? 'Oh, no one special, just some devil spawn from the past, that's all.' How she can possibly spin Marise into a good light definitely doesn't come to mind.
"Well," Hotaru starts slowly. "It's no big deal, really. It's just, well, it's..." She ponders. On the surface it's no different from any number of other techniques fighters use all the time. Point blank chi blasts are hardly original or cause for people to think much of them. But if she simply explains it like that, Sakura won't understand. But if she explains what makes it different from her other attacks, then that is merely emphasizing what has got everyone up in arms.
"It's just a focused blast of chi, in close. Highly concentrated." She moves her right hand forward, hand closed at first then opening her fingers as if representing the moment of discharge. "That's all, nothing special." She tries to dismissing it at first, but looking away, breaking eye contact again, she weighs telling the other girl more.
"I guess, well, what has everyone reacting so strongly is that it's a lot more fierce than anything I've used before. It's... well... it isn't a gentle technique, I guess. Everyone is just kind of surprised, is all." She frowns faintly, "Or in some cases, probably just jealous." She sounds more suspicious now. "Jealous that figured out something that strong, that I can do something like that. Everyone expected me to be weaker in fights than this," she continues, looking back toward Sakura, "And now that I've defied their expectations it has them all reacting oddly."
She exhales, folding her arms in front of her, sounding slightly irritated now - a girl of many mood swings lately, it would seem.
For something that sounds so innocent, Hotaru seems to be having trouble just -saying- it. On the Suiryuu, the two young women had had conversations many degrees more difficult to explain than a simple 'chi technique'. And the explanation doesn't jibe with what she knows of the people involved. Frei, jealous? Mizuki? Heck she doesn't know her, but the other name given, Acacia, seems to be one =without= jealousy. If nothing else, they'd be wanting to learn it themselves. So Sakura gives her friend a quite skeptical look indeed!
But the skepticism is replaced by a good-natured smile as soon as another thought pops into Sakura's head. "Well, it =sounded= like you were in a hurry, so how 'bout this... instead of tripping over words to describe it, why don't you just show me? Heck, hit me with your best shot! If it's 'no big deal', 'nothing special', then hey, =I= should be able to take it." Kasugano spreads her arms wide, grinning. "Or is it something you've got to be in an actual =fight= for? I can do that too."
As Sakura brings up the idea of Hotaru just showing her the technique, the other girl's eyes widen a little, her hands coming up, her left hand clutching at her right wrist. Her complexion pales slightly as young Futaba looks appalled at the offer. "N-no," she stammers, "It's not something to be used lightly. I- I didn't even mean to ever use it in fights with friends, it just..." Just felt right at the time.
Shaking her head, Hotaru continues to rub her wrist, "It's too serious to use just to show it off." She had told Mizuki she was going to never use it except when she needed to, but the priestess provoked her into it anyway to prove a point. "It's just for, you know, emergencies. You can understand that, with the way things are..." People like Kurow deserve nothing less than the worst she can dish out, after all.
"I'm sorry, I don't think it would be right for me to hit you with it." She's cutting back, really! Just one Satsujinken per day now, she's getting better!
Sakura's smile tightens the more Hotaru tells her. "... Not buying it, Hotaru," she says, emphasizing the statement with a shake of her head. "You can leave when you attack me with it. No sooner."
She holds out a hand, explaining, "If you only use it in emergencies, that means it =is= out of control. And you've obviously shown =other= people. Those folks you mentioned, Frei, Acacia, and... whatsername, Mizuki... did you hit them with it? Do you think I'm =weaker= than them?" Sakura's intentionally riding the line between assertion and provocation... not knowing how -other- people incited her to violence, it's really her default approach.
"What I'm getting at here, Hotaru, is the fact that if you don't =use= it in a controlled situation, you won't =get= that control. And I -have- to know what you're talking about to even -begin- helping you."
Into her open palm slams a fist. "And if you think I'm full of crap, just think about what 'Ansatsuken' means!"
Sakura proves not so easily disuaded and immediately a somewhat guarded look crosses Hotaru's features as she regards the other girl warily. "No," she answers back, when Sakura asks if she thinks she's weaker than the other people she's attacked with her not so secret technique. No, Sakura is definitely stronger than all of them, that much she is certain of.
She tightens up a little as Sakura brings up the question of control. That really is the crux of the matter, and what Hotaru has been trying to figure out all along. She /has/ to control it... and Sakura is putting the question on the spot in no uncertain terms. She bristles at the thought of the other girl thinkint she can dictate when she can or cannot leave, however, hands tightening, lowering to her sides. "I can leave when I feel like it," she snaps back, her tone shifting, the tension shifting into irritation, annoyance.
If Sakura wants her fight then maybe she should just get that, Hotaru begins to tell herself, the reluctance to strike the girl with that technique of hers rapidly diminishing. Lifting her hands in front of her, Hotaru frowns, her expression shifting from guarded to visibly annoyed. "Very well." she finally relents. "If that's what you really want. To see it in a fight..."
The girl breaths in, shaking her head, closing her eyes. She feels her newfound temper rising. Why should she be annoyed, Sakura is just trying to help, she reminds herself repeatedly. Besides, she's asking for this. Just like when she attacked Frei, however, she gives Sakura precious little time to prepare herself as the Kenpo artist goes on the offense out of the blue with no warning.
The distance between the two was already limited, which leaves her only having to take a single step forward, draw her right arm back, fist closed, and slam it forward with all the strength she can muster, potentially catching the other girl on the jaw by surprise if Sakura isn't reading the surge of aggression right!
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Sakura has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sakura
COMBATSYS: Sakura endures Hotaru's Strong Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Sakura
Of course Hotaru can =try= to leave whenever she wants. Sakura was already prepared to block her path, if for nothing else than giving her a =reason= to show the technique she was reluctant to show her otherwise. So the Ansatsuken fighter is already nodding in reply when Hotaru follows through with the request. Yes, it =is= what she wants.
It's not much of a surprise though -- Sakura's line of questioning was intended to garner one of two responses: a casual demonstration, or a violent one, and she'd =expected= the violent one based on earlier conversations. And charging forward with a headstrong punch is her favorite opening move, so of course she expects that from Hotaru!
She just doesn't move to get out of the way. She knows adrenaline is an empowering sensation, and the quickest ways to get it are hitting -- and being hit. So... she lets Hotaru hit her, point-blank. "Nngh!" She reels backwards from the blow, her arms flailing about like helicoptor rotors for balance.
... Only it's not =just= balance -- she's already being sneaky in this fight. One of her arms lashes out to grab Hotaru's punching hand, while her other aims to latch around her shoulder. Should she manage this, she'll try to use Hotaru's overcommitted momentum against her, pulling her into a painful chokehold -- all the better to get her even =more= incensed! "Hyaa!"
COMBATSYS: Hotaru blocks Sakura's Sakura Strangle.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Sakura
The aggressive attack leaves Hotaru in poor position to react with her usual evasive speed. Nor does she even really have the stance for it, moving more solidly, aiming more for power than staying light on her feet. And it seems like the aggression is worth it as Sakura takes the bare knuckled strike, Hotaru's momentum carrying her forward into a half spin that will take a moment to correct for.
It leaves her arm easily snatched hold of as Sakura uses the momentum of the impact to match Hotaru's movements with her own spin in around the girl. The entire point of the conversation completely eludes Hotaru now as she finds herself over taken with the focus on the fight itself. Just months ago she would have considered such an opportunity to battle someone like Sakura an honor. Now it feels more like just another chore to get out of the way - and get it out of the way is what she intends to do quickly.
As Sakura goes to cinch up the chokehold, Hotaru manages to defend herself, slipping her arm up in the way and using her flexibility to slide out just before it gets locked in tightly. The escape leaves Hotaru low and she decides to simply attack from that position rather than back off to find a better angle to attack from.
Up comes both of her hands, trying to reverse the hold Sakura had on her, all so that she can twist the other girl over her shoulder and slam her down to the girl on the other side. Try to lock her down, will you?! Tight lipped and silent, for the immediate moment, all Hotaru seems to care about is the fight, no sign of humor or thrill of combat to be found in her eyes.
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Hotaru's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Sakura
Sakura's still pretty focused on finding out what Hotaru's making such a big deal about! Maybe it is 'jealousy', as Hotaru had suggested earlier. In a perfect world, Sakura would have mastered -everyone's- best attacks, and be able to deal any of them out with a split-second's notice; the thought of there being an attack she's never bore personal witness to is... frustrating at best. As it is... she's got evasive verbal description from Hotaru, and near-useless video footage. Insufficient!
But for her to get that sweet payoff, she'll need to get Hotaru to use it first. And for that, she'll have to not fall unconscious. Accordingly, she doesn't want to get thrown over her. Rather than let Hotaru have full control of the pacing again, she'll allow Hotaru to grab her before leaping -into- the toss, landing in a low crouch and bounding backwards. Her arms are still a bit sore from sparring with Drake... but she'll manage!
"So this is the 'new you', then?" asks Kasugano with a faint smirk as she rises, hands curled into fists at her sides. "Are you really that sick of being underestimated, Hotaru?"
Shaking her head, she smiles back at Hotaru, her aura manifesting as an aura of cerulean blue flames. "I can already tell you where this is going: you're acting just like Jiro used to." Shrugging, she gestures for Hotaru to approach -- the gestural equivalent of her earlier request.
COMBATSYS: Sakura gathers her will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\1 Sakura
As Sakura flips her way out of the intended slam, Hotaru holds her ground, sliding to a stop rather than pursuing to keep the pressure on, feet finding traction in the grass of the large yard. Sakura asks if this the new her and Hotaru nods once, sharply. It is. As far as she's concerned, her old self died here in the snow over two months ago at the feet of Kataki... In her mind, Frei's brother awoke her potential and she's never looked back sense.
But asked about being underestimated, the girl visibly seethes a little. That was what Kataki told her, over and over again, feeding easily off her own doubts, convincing her that everyone saw her as weak no matter how hard she tried. "What other people think doesn't matter," she insists, breaking her silence at last, "It's not important. That's not why I'm doing this." That sounds really petty, after all. That can't possibly be it. Though a flicker of hesitation leaves it hard to tell if she's even convinced of that.
"Like Jiro?" she asks back, brow furrowed slightly. "How?" She doesn't see the connection, clearly, her mind trying to decipher if Sakura is just distracting her or making a valid observation. Shaking her a head a little, the girl exhales, and holds her ground, hands held up in front of her, fists closed. "I don't understand what you're getting at." But idle chatter and paying rapt attention to every move Sakura makes are not mututally exclusive. The build up of chi around the other girl doesn't go missed, though for the moment Hotaru seems content to hang back.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\1 Sakura
Well... it isn't an =ideal= analogy, since Jiro had his own reasons for wanting to be stronger. Really... 'power at any cost' was more something one of her boyfriends had done -- and was the primary reason, in fact, they had broken up.
Sakura has a bit more time to think about her response, now that Hotaru seems to be thinking, rather than actually launching right into another attack. "Well... lots of people want to get stronger, Hotaru... but what you've got to ask yourself is, can you =live= with yourself afterwards?"
Kasugano changes her stance, drawing one palm out in front of her. If Hotaru's not going to come when she's called, then she'll just have to prepare to make the next move. But, like Hotaru, Kasugano's not going to jump into it, either. Calmly, she states, "Jiro was tempted with power. Rage. All he had to do was control it, or so he told himself. It didn't really suit him." Narrowing her eyes, she adds, "Somehow, killing just ain't in his nature! Go figure, right? But that's what it would've taken to make him stronger." Somberly, she shakes her head. "And you see him now, right? He's turned away from that path, once he saw what it'd made him turn into."
Breathing calmly, Sakura doesn't seem to have budged an inch -- she's just carefully waiting, measuring. She knows darn well she can't force this fight to go any faster than Hotaru wants it to -- it's precisely -about- her. "It's warping your mind the same way it warped his. You're becoming a wild animal now, Hotaru. Is =that= who you want to be? Forget what anyone thinks, is that what =you= want?"
COMBATSYS: Sakura focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\1 Sakura
That's what Hotaru had told Kurow not so many months ago. That she would never pay the price he did. He called her weak for it, and condemned her to a future of inadequacy. So too did her own brother, declaring her a shame to the family style. So too did the Martyr of Might pronounce her path the weaker one. Time and time again her opponents questioned her resolve, her willingness to do what it took to really get strong in the sense that their skewed perspectives measured it. And now she's finally done it and she's being asked if she can /live/ with herself for making that leap?
Mizuki had asked Hotaru why she was using a killing technique if she had no intention of killing anyone at all. Sakura's comparison to Jiro seems to have taken the girl completely off guard though and Hotaru pauses, holding back still even as Sakura holds her ground. To think that he went through something like this? He never was clear as to what he went through during her year away from Southtown. And now the truth comes out just how similar their paths have been. Didn't Hotaru councel Jiro to turn away from the path promiesd by Kain? Wasn't that path similar to the one she pursues now? The girl winces, a sharp pain in her head making it hard to think clearly, her memories bluring, her thoughts difficult to sort out as Kataki's influence continues to blur the lines between her perceptions and reality.
But then Sakura turns it back on Hotaru, declaring it having warped the girl's mind. That pursuit of power, that drive to grasp hold of something to make her feel stronger no matter what the cost, and Hotaru scowls again. The shift in the ebb and flow of chi around the girl changes significantly as Hotaru's hands tighten, arms trembling slightly. "It's not what I want. I haven't perfected it yet. But I will. It won't control me, I will control it!" she snaps back.
"Fine, you want to feel it for yourself. Then so be it!" Her voice becoming increasingly incensed by the moment. And then comes the surge, a red-orange garishly colored aura spiraling out over her right forearm, twisting and churning, forming a point a little ways out past her fist as Hotaru finally charges forward, drawing her hand back as she dashes forward with all the speed she can muster.
Unlike the sapphire build chi she had used for years, there's something about this that feels decidedly off. The girl had struck with pure force in the form of blue energy before, but everything about the power she's drawing now seems completely different. The distance closes rapidly, Hotaru drawing her arm back, more of that red-orange, broiling energy trailing out behind her hand as she slams her fist forward, sliding to a stop, pouring all of her foreward momentum into the single strike with no regard to personal safety, caution thrown to the wind.
And should it strike, Sakura will be introduced to the technique that has gotten Hotaru's friends riled up - piercing, scalding chi, almost as if it were acidic but for the way it seeks to spear through someone like a physical object. Indifferent to cloth and flesh alike, the discharge at the end of Hotaru's strike is designed to carve a hole in someone if they lack the aura to contend with the impact.
COMBATSYS: Sakura parries Hotaru's Satsujinken EX!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\1 Sakura
"I'm sure all terrible people start out that way, Hotaru. That they're different, they'll be =stronger= than the last." Southtown's Fighting Fangirl sure does sound jaded, doesn't she? Really, though... she's been through enough situations fighting people with noble and proud ambitions, and execution that's been totally warped to heck and back to know the difference. "I know you. I =trust= you to do the right thing..." She adds with a faint, encouraging smile: "But I won't sleep at night if I don't do =something= to help."
And then Hotaru makes her claim. Sakura nods in approval -- she wants to witness this, feel it up close and personal. And when Hotaru comes rocketing in... she can tell that it's far from anything Hotaru's ever used before, not only in appearance, but in =intent=. Everything Ryu taught her about evil is exemplified perfectly in Hotaru's strike -- lovable, innocent Futaba now channeling nothing but raw, demonic malice.
This is not a good place to stand, to say the least. Kasugano narrows her eyes at Hotaru as she approaches -- for one instant looking as if she herself is infected by the hatred. But no... that's just focus, better spent to forge her defenses into those of her master, an iron-willed fighter who knows better than to stand directly in front of hell's fury.
In other words, she steps out of the way at the very last instant. As much as she'd told Hotaru she wanted to experience it up close... she gets out of the way, letting the malevolent energy thunder past. She can feel the fury in ways no one else can, she's sampled enough of the horror to know what it is -- that's enough.
To get to this point, she'd told Hotaru what she wanted to hear. Now... she tells Hotaru what she =needs= to hear. "You've been blinded!" she cries, launching into a terrifying punch of her own, one powered not by hatred... but by the need to set things straight. "SHOOOU'OOOU KEN!" she shouts, plunging a fierce uppercut right into Hotaru's ribcage -- either delivering a wake-up call, or tucking her goodnight.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru endures Sakura's Shou'ou Ken EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1 Sakura
And that should be the end of it there. Sakura had said she wanted to see it, and there it was, as promised. Hotaru misses, committed to the attack, her fist flies past Sakura, charged with that malevolent power. And now Sakura has felt the purpose behind it. Acacia tried to tell the girl that it isn't what she's doing, it's the intent that is the concern. And the intent behind that technique is unmistakeable.
That should be the end of it there, the demonstration demanded provided, no need to pursue any further attacks. And as Sakura uses her prime position to strike back at the girl's side, Hotaru is still in the midst of trying to pull back her arm and regain control over her stance, her right arm still burning with the power demanding to be used against someone, craving that brutal impact, that moment of validation just now denied her.
Sakura's fist crunches into the more fragile fighter's ribs and Hotaru gasps with pain. Her conscious mind tells her that that's enough, there's no reason to continue fighting now. But there is another power at play - one that drives her to satisfy that addiction, one that has the girl folding into the uppercut, her left hand reaching out to snare a hold of Sakura's striking arm in order to twist open her guard and leave her an easy target for the incoming palm press from her right hand - the hand still churning with the same garish chi. "Not so fast-"
Rather than a strike, she seeks merely contact this time, a point of connecting bodies in order to transfer all of that pent up power into the other girl, only then would she release Sakura should she even get the grip in the first place.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Sakura with Maou Satsujinken.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1 Sakura
After her punch connects, Kasugano starts to pull back... only to have underestimated the lengths to which Hotaru's determination is driving her. Snared, she gets a dosage of what -didn't- hit her last time -- so that she gets what she was asking for anyway. Arm twisted thusly, she howls with pain from the pain shooting through her body, knees starting to give way. It hurts... it hurts like =hell=.
With the slightest weakening of Hotaru's grip, Sakura's able to regain control and leap back, panting heavily. "... yeah. Yeah, that'd be... that'd be the 'wrong' path," she affirms, shaking her head disapprovingly.
Backing away, she raises her guard again. She forces calm over herself, trying to work the irritation out of her voice. It doesn't come as easily for Sakura as Ryu, obviously. "I-if you focus so hard on one goal, give it 110%... you're blind to everything else. Are you sure you can risk that? Are you sure... that =killing= people is what you really want?"
Staggering sharply to one side, she shakes her head. "You aren't in control of that. I don't care what you tell me, that's not control, and it won't =be= controllable. That, what you just hit me with? The look in your eyes, the beat of your heart -- everything is =absolutely identical= to every bad guy I've ever faced, every mean-spirited person who's ever been able to beat me. Kurow, Grant, Vega, Freeman... maybe you know the names, maybe you don't, but it's =wrong=."
Exhaling sharply, she drops her hands to her sides, straightening up her stance. She's no longer 'in' the fight. "You can go. I got what I was after. Someone's messing with your head, someone wants you as a pawn. I don't suppose you're going to tell me who, are you?"
She doesn't move at all, just ... waiting for Hotaru to choose her own adventure.
COMBATSYS: Sakura takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1 Sakura
The strike delivered, Hotaru stumbles backward, arms blasted out to her sides by the same force that shoves Sakura back way from her. Having discharged the power in her arm, only risidual whisps of the misamic, unwholesome chi remain before slowly seeping back beneath the girl's skin. Her breaths come in gasps, beding forward slightly after her balance has been regained. Her left hand rests against her side where Sakura's punch struck her, her right arm hanging limply at her side as if the limb died in the act of delivering that strike against the fighting schoolgirl Hotaru has admired for years. She had never sustained the build up for so long before and the cost to her for doing so is plainly obvious.
Unleashing the attack satisfied the craving, the need to strike again, and the desire to aggress further seems to drain from the girl as she simply stays put, breaths coming in pants. Blue eyes wide, she stares back at Sakura, a somewhat confused look on her face. She had no need to lash out with that second attempt, no cause to do that to the other girl just trying to help her. Some might excuse it as being caught up in the moment, but Hotaru knows better. She had always prided herself on being able to keep a cooler head even in the heat of battle...
"I-..." she protests, finding her breath between gasps, "I would never kill anyone." she assures desperately. Mizuki made the same accusation. Why does everyone think she's become a killer? she wonders for a quiet moment. There has to be something to it for it to keep coming up like this. Mean spirited people, the sort Hotaru had never tried to compare herself against before. Grant... Kurow... How she had secretly envied the boy easily a year younger than her yet so far beyond her in ability. If only, she had thought back then, she was as powerful as him, there would be no way her brother and father would be shamed of her company. How could a youth as young as he become so poewrful? What price had to be paid?
The girl winces, lifting her right arm with her left hand, cradling it against her stomach again. Trembling as the agony for using the technique begins to weigh heavily on her, Hotaru drops to her knees. "There has to be a way of getting strong without having to be like them," she blurts out, a tremor in her voice. To be as strong as them, but not /like/ them... She had thought she had found her path to just that goal, but if Sakura says she's just like /them/, well... Either Sakura is lying or there's something to consider there.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1 Sakura
Sakura winces almost as much as Hotaru does when the aftereffects of the deadly chi make themselves known. A refrigerator doesn't imbue an object with cold, but instead removes all its heat energy; so it is with Hotaru's attack just now. Hence, her staggering around. If she were weaker, she'd be a =lot= worse off.
"You won't kill anyone -now-, no. The more you focus on that one thing, the less you'll care about the other people in your life." She raises a finger didactically -- maybe her college psychology class is getting to her head, but whatever! "You still think they're just =jealous= of you, don't you? You think they... y'know, don't care about you as a =friend=, they just want your power? You did say that, you know!" Frowning heavily, she crosses her arms. "And if you really =think= that, you're already in trouble -- none of the folks you mentioned care about power. Sure, they wanna get stronger, an' so do I. But only so they can =protect= people, and it's only a means to an end. Not the end itself."
Taking a deep breath, she returns a smile to her face. "Hotaru, you get strong with discipline. Practice. There is no fast-and-easy mail-order way. ... Well, except for Dan Hibiki, and you see where it gets his students." Smirking, she shakes her head: "Most people have to work for their power. Some people are born with a lot -- you an' me -- an' we gotta work for the rest. Some people get more than they need and never have to work a day in their lives." Inwardly, Sakura sulks for a moment. Stupid Kyo.
"Anyway, just sayin. You work so hard for this... but you're turning into everything you tried so hard not to be. Look at how messed up your body is right now... you think that's =good= for you? When have you ever injured =yourself= fighting someone?" Cracking a smile, she shakes a fist in mock petulance. "=I= was your opponent, that's =my= job, dangit!"
Slowly Hotaru begins moving her right hand's fingers, feeling slowly working its way into the painfully numbed limb. On her knees, she simply listens to Sakura, blue eyes finding their focus on the Taiyo grad as she repeats some of Hotaru's own paranoid theories right back at her. That everyone was just jealous. That they wished they could have her power or that they might want to hold her back to keep her from getting too far ahead of them... Spat back at her, the words seem cruel, unfounded, heartless. She looks almost incredulous, as if the suggesting that she could have said those things seems ridiculous.
Sakura speaks of the core principles Hotaru had preached time and time again, to her students at the YFCC and to her young protege, Kentou, and Hotaru lowers her head. "I- I- know that, but-" she begins to protest again. "Discipline, practice... but how do you keep up with those who ARE taking short cuts? How can you protect anyone when those who would harm them are willing to pay a cost you are not in order to exceed you? Don't you worry that there will be a moment when what you are isn't enough to save someone - that you will be left knowing that if you had been willing to push the envelope, the boundaries, just a little, you could have made the difference?"
The girl rises back to her feet slowly, looking back toward Sakura, still craddling her arm, "Don't you worry that the slow, traditional ways of growing stronger won't be enough when it /really/ counts?" She lowers her attention to her craddled arm, contemplating Sakura's words for a moment before glancing back up, a sense of having surrendered visible in her eyes even though a faint trace of a smile cracks at the edge of her lips as Sakura declares it was her job to hurt her, not herself. "I guess the phrase 'no pain, no gain' doesn't quiet cover this situation, does it..." she states ruefully.
"Heck no, it doesn't cover it at all! You're supposed to be sore in the =morning,= not right after you did it!" Sakura really has to laugh at that... and besides, it gives her time to digest what Hotaru's been saying the past few moments.
Cupping her chin for a moment in thought, she then nods, "Okay." She's still smiling... tightly. "First off, don't confuse 'pushing the envelope' with 'breaking the laws of nature.' You want to protect life, not take it. You were cradling your arm like that when I got here, and you're hurting even more now." She holds a finger aloft, crossing her eyes to emphasize the point: "Protip: that's bad news!"
"Secondly, uh... what's your hurry, Hotaru? Is it some race, like you gotta be the =strongest= person in the world to get into heaven or something? Geez, here I thought you used to be =modest=." Smirking, she raises her fist. "You can't honestly tell me you're the only one that's gonna protect the people you care about! But you see, if you rush into this... I dunno. Not saying you =will definitely= turn 'evil' or anythin', but I've seen it happen."
And then Kasugano points to Hotaru's arm. "And it =is= happening. Next you'll be usin' your new technique to warm up your breakfast." She blinks a moment, then adds, "... okay, you'll have to ask Jiro about that one."
"Seriously. If you go off and injure yourself trying to save the people you care about, someone =else= will come along and hurt 'em. Keep your head on straight."
Kasugano glances over to the gate, standing wide open. "... look. Do me another favor. Tell me who taught you that. This needs to stop."
Hotaru is quiet the whole time as Sakura speaks, no longer trying to interject corrections, protests, or counter arguments. It seems that having her arm feel like it's on fire coupled with Sakura's pretty sound reason is a lot to fight against, even for Hotaru's shifted state of viewing the world. Sakura is pretty accurate in her assessment of the damage the attack is doing to the girl. It wasn't this bad at first, but it has been getting progressively worse, just as the drive to use it has only worsened over time. On the surface, her arm looks fine. No obvious blemishes, no marks or scars. But beneath the surface, her chi lines are a wreck, and the girl can tell it's getting severe now.
She smiles faintly at the remark about cooking food with her pained arm even if the agony coursing through it at the moment is nothing to laugh about, but she is otherwise quiet, Sakura having given her plenty to think about so far only to ask about whom is responsible for the girl knowing such a killing technique in the first place. The girl's mouth curls a little as she considers the request. "I learned it from a woman. Her name is... well, rather... I know her as Marise. Whether or not that is her real name I don't know. She... knows a lot of secrets, but she is evil. That much I know. I... half a year ago she told me that learning that technique would help me grow stronger, that it would help me overcome other problems I was having at the time... I never used it back then though. I was too scared."
She sighs softly, shaking her head slowly, "I never would have used it at all, but Frei's brother, Kataki, he... he made me so angry... his belittling, his constant questioning... I tried it then, for the first time, and... well... it was so effective I just kept using it ever since." She bows her head, arms lowering to rest against her side as she releases a slow exhale. "I-..." She frowns, falling quiet, turning to the side, her shoulder facing toward Sakura. "I don't know. I was certain he opened my eyes to my real potential, but I knew that the technique wasn't under control... I thought I could learn to handle it, but every time I get into a fight, I can't help it."
"Recently Marise came to me. She told me she could help me get this under control. I haven't seen her since." The girl glances back toward Sakura, offering her a faint shrug and saddened smile. "Thanks, you've given me something to think about. I... I don't know where it will lead yet, but... You made your point," the girl finishes with a slight nod.
Sakura... hasn't put quite as much thought into just how far Hotaru's destroyed herself. She's never come across it -- she =doesn't know= that anyone can do such a thing. All she knows is that evil chi is evil.
Of course, if she were to ever meet Marise, she might learn a thing or two.
Luckily, she has a name to go on now. "Marise..." Sakura scratches her chin. "Honestly, I've never heard of her before. That's... amazing that she could teach you something like that. It's... wow." Sakura rubs her sides. The burning sensation is still there... she can definitely feel =something= at work. "It still stings, really! But... yeah. This... it's dangerous stuff. There are things my master knows that... probably hurt him too. He won't teach me, and I don't blame him."
She chuckles softly, glancing at the open gate. "Well, good! I'd hate to end a fight early without a =darn= good reason!" She turns back to Hotaru with a smile... and then does something she's =rarely= compelled to do.
She runs over and gives the kenpoist a hug.
Hotaru is quiet as Sakura remarks on the dangerous effects of the Satsujinken. She knew all along how bad it was hurting others, vaguely at least. And discovered just how savage it was when Oswald introduced her to its twisted chi by reflecting it right back into her during their fight, opening her eyes even further to what legacy Marise was trying to leave with her.
Sakura comments about ending a fight early and Hotaru smiles faintly, "W-well, perhaps I owe you a real one so-" Her eyes widen as Sakura launches toward her. Okay, maybe the girl doesn't want to wait until another time! Hotaru raises her arms, her right hand coming up a tad slower, as if hoping to fend off whatever surprise attack the Taiyo has in mind for her.
But instead she finds herself wrapped up by Sakura's arms in an ambush hug! Blinking over Sakura's shoulder with abject surprise, Hotaru is just stiff for a long moment, as if thoroughly uncertain as to what to make of the close contact, a sincere hug from a friend after a long spell of keeping everyone who knew her at a distance.
But the tension melts quickly, the girl seeming to shrug a burden off her shoulders at Sakura's comforting gesture. A brief laugh escapes her lips once the surprise passes, "Thanks, Sakura, for coming to find me..." Slipping away from the embrace, Hotaru shakes her head, grinning faintly at the other girl. "Well, I should, ah, get to that thing I was late for." She winks, knowing full well Sakura never bought the excuse to begin with, before taking a step backward and spinning around on her heels to head for the gate.
CSYS: Sakura has attacked you with Shinkuu Hadouken. (#1)
Log created on 13:51:46 03/29/2008 by Hotaru, and last modified on 00:48:57 03/30/2008.