Description: In Chinatown, monk Nataya engages in epic battle versus the miko Mizuki. MONK VS. MIKO! WHO WILL WIN?!? (Winner: Mizuki)
Neo League. Truth be told, Mizuki is not even in the bottom of the rankings. She's below them. Her name and number haven't been called in ages. And she hasn't been seeking out Neo League fights, either. But... well, she's distracted. Thinking. Thinking -too- much, about things that are beyond her control and things that are. Figuring out what is and what isn't, that's the hard part. What she can do and what she can't.
She was walking around, aimlessly, when she saw a Neo League poster and she figured that a fight might help. Might give her focus. Let her know what to do. Or show her the path. It's a silly thought, really--she's been taught, forever, that fighting doesn't -solve- anything, it's just a necessary evil sometimes. But she is amture enough to admit--sometimes losing oneself in a fight is just as mind-clearing as hours of meditation.
It was set up quick--and Mizuki was near to Chinatown anyways. So she waits in the roped-off 'ring', in a Chinatown park. A small one, barely more than a green field kids can kick a ball around on, but large enough for the purpose. But she's still distracted, still thinking more than she should be. Thinking about things that she wasn't around for.
Nataya on the other hand was taught that fighting is part of life. The natural state of mankind is suffering, after all. A person fights both internally and externally ot maintain balance and Nataya has found a place in mind that suits her perfectly. Be it under a spotlight in the ring or surrounded by thugs in a dark alleyway or just sitting in a park feeding ducks, she's at peace.
Neao League is just a way to hone her skills and perfect her body by clashing against the mightiest warriors the League has to offer. So far, she's been fairly lucky, clashing with people that clearly outrank her in both skill and power. Only through sheer tenacity has she managed to claw her way past the divide.
She makes no concessions to herself. Each opponent is a singular challenge in and of themselves. None are taken for granted and all are taken seriously. When she's given the call to inform her that her card's been drawn for a battle, she arrives quickly and promptly, her robes freshly cleaned and her prayer beads freshly washed to a gleaming shine.
This is in contrast to the way she's bandaged up. SHe's wrapped in gause along her arms under the prayer beads, and there are bandages on her face. Brusing is visible on her legs, and she looks like she's been through a war. Nevertheless, none of this seems to bother her particularly. She's not moving with any hinderance and doesn't seem at all adverse to the battle today.
"I'm glad," she says as shereadies herself in her corner, "that you've decided to test your skills against mine. My name's Nataya."
COMBATSYS: Mizuki has started a fight here.
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Mizuki 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Nataya has joined the fight here.
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Mizuki 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nataya
Truth be told, Nataya's teachers are probably truer to the human condition. Mizuki has slowly come to recognize this--actually, she's still in the process. To be sure, this was all like a 'game'--serious injury not -really- happening, much, just a few bruises, easy to heal, exertion, effort, and fun. Lately, though... with Kula assaulting the YFCC, with only Frei and Mizuki to defend it, and the more recent attack... so many friends and students injured, so much destruction. It has only stared Mizuki in the face so blindly a few times before, and she had always clung to this thought that the world could reach for this nebulous 'ideal'...
Mizuki is kneeling, on the concrete, in her fighting outfit, her modified 'miko' robes. They're stain-resistant, and tough. Truth, again: Mizuki has skills, but she's still at the bottom of the totem pole. The Glory Hounds--were they a team actually dedicated to winning, they would cut her like so much deadweight. Fortunately, the GH is more like... a family. Family. Mizuki misses her family, both here and at home. But that's something else... she pulls her brain back to the present, blinking her eyes, as Nataya arrives. The miko pushes up, rising to her feet.
"And I'm glad that I can test my skills against you, Nataya-san. Your bandages--do you need any healing, before we begin? I... have some small skill with it. I would be glad to make sure you're at your best... before we start. I have... well, for a long time I've found my skills lacking, and I admit that I'm at a loss as to... how to improve myself. That's why I took this fight." She pauses.
"... my name is Mizuki.
The offer is made as she advances forward, to her starting mark, and the miko bows deeply to her opponent, before raising her hands into the air--not in an offensive manner. Rather, they're almost clasped, palm to palm, in front of her, as she immediately begins calling energy to her, a blue-white-silver, undulating, coruscating circle rising around her feet.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki gathers her will.
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Mizuki 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
And so it begins. Nataya only smiles when the miko mentions her injured tate. "I'm fine," she replies. "I'm used to it." And she is. Her body's used to the kind of devestating punishment that a lot of neophty fighters might cringe at. As Mizuki begins to charge up her power, Nataya takes not. She's aware of the amount of power a person can bring to bear. The past person she fought with this ability was Dr. Tran, and his attacks nearly took her down in two blows.
She braces her feet, preparing herself for her attack, and then is suddenly off like a shot. Her foot speed is considerable and she almost seems to glide across the ground as she closes in on her stationary target.
She flings her arms wide, the beads on her hands shooting into the air, swirling around on silver clouds as they form a series of concentric rings in front of her. They spin as if seeking a peroper configuration until they suddenly snap into place. Four beads in front of her focus a shimmering feild of energy as she suddenly goes into a full speed shoulder charge.
Nataya focuses herself to slam right into the motionless miko, slamming the power sheild into her opponent in an attempt to smash her against the ropes of the ring.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki blocks Nataya's Four Noble Truths.
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Mizuki 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
Stand firm. Be proud. Yes, Mizuki tends to bank more on speed and agility than being able to simply withstand things. But there are times it's just wiser to hold one's ground. She simply nods to Nataya, as the girl comes crashing in with that shield of energy preceding her; the impact blunted by Mizuki's connection to the earth, the fact that she's drawing on the chi allowing her to defend. The impact still moves her, though--she's flung off her feet, and into the ropes.
When she rebounds, though, she lands on her feet, and then it's her turn to surge forward--attempting to return the shoulder-charge to Nataya. But that's almost a feint--a charge meant to open Nataya's guard. If she manages that, she'll snap her arms out for Nataya's torso, right high, left low--and she'll turn towards her right while pulling with her right, towards her left, and pushing with her left, the other way.
Her left will release, but her right will remain on the shoulder, to guide Nataya's then-windmilling body into the ground--and the miko'll be following Nataya down, chopping downwards with her free left hand to add just a little bit more to the impact.
"Good luck to us both," she says, a little breathlessly, as she chops down.
COMBATSYS: Nataya blocks Mizuki's Hyouryuu no Koki.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
No such luck on that front, unfortunately. Nataya's not a slouch in the defense department and the incoming attack, while swift, is dealt with with resolute strength. Instead the woman's arm shoots out like a piston, smashing out not to damage but to disrupt the entire attack. Thrusting hands catch her and do cause damage, but it's far less than what would have happened otherwise.
She slides back, almost gliding along the ground on the swirling mists about her feet, the silvery clouds moving in unison with the source as she takes up position again. Nataya's hands move swiftly, as if weaving something in the air, and then snap so that her fingers point to the ground. Like a series of hailstones, the beads in the air around her crash to the ground, and then start rolling forward with incredible speed, weaving across the ring like silvery ants, swarming towards Mizuki.
This, however, is a ruse.
Nataya suddenly bursts forward, charging as she sends the swarm to the far left and leaping sudenly, kicking up a spray of the silvery beads. The small dots of light seem to form a lasso around her ankle and whip outward to catch Mizuki by one of her arms. Should Nataya connect, she'll whip her leg about in a triple roundhouse kick, sending Mizuki trailing after each one, slamming her into the ground repeatedly as the beads send bolts of force down the silver loop.
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Mizuki with Three Marks.
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Mizuki 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Nataya
The impacts are tremendous. Each one slams Mizuki into the ground again, drawing a gasp of pain from the redheaded girl. One, two, three, and then she's rolling, arms pulled in tight, until she's able to push back up to her feet. The muscles in her arms and legs twitch, ghosts of pain making them spasm; with a visible shiver she gets them under control, her eyes hooded. It might not be obvious to Nataya, but Mizuki is not wholly into the fight. It isn't Nataya--Mizuki's eyes speak of her distraction.
"That... that was painful," she observes, as conversationally as she can; her voice still holds that tremor of pain. Flexing her arms once, then her legs, she nods, setting herself. "Very strong," she notes, a compliment towards her opponent. Then she springs, balling herself as she leaps--and, at the peak of her leap, extending a leg out to try and catch Nataya across the face with an extended right leg.
Notably, perhaps, she doesn't 'kiai', although that sort of concentration is obvious in her eyes--just not to the extent that it should be. But she's trying. Unfortunately, as a popular movie once stated, only losers 'try their best'. The winners go home and... well... you know.
COMBATSYS: Nataya blocks Mizuki's Light Kick.
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Mizuki 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Nataya
"Thanks," Nataya says with a smie and a tilt of her head. The incoming kick is batted aside with little fanfare, her fist shooting out as she hops back simultaneously, avoiding the brunt of the rapid kick. Nataya's about as tough as they come in her weight class, and she doesn't seem to be holding anything back. However, she also seems rather absent of the usual high powered intensity most fighters have. She's quiet, calm, composed.
She's at peace, really, and it definitely helps her concentrate on doing many things at once as she's wont to do in a fight.
"I do what I can. I'm hardly strong as I'd like to be, but that's how it goes."
For example, there's the matter of the bead swarm swirling about out there from her ruse. The ruse has now become a deadly trap, as the beads have formed five small patches, all shooting towards Mizuki like tiny land mines. The weave about on the ground, all of them jockeying for position so that they'll be ther when Mizuki lands.
Should the girl land on any of them, they'll explode in a pillar of silvery smoke, blasting Mizuki left, right and center until the finally run out of charge and let her fall to the ground.
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Mizuki with Five Precepts EX.
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Mizuki 1/---====/=======|======-\-------\0 Nataya
The impact is, simply, crushing. Nataya is... well, she's certainly doing better than Mizuki is, this day--the 'trade' on attacks hasn't gone in Mizuki's favor, to say the least. She almost cries out again, as she's juggled from blast to blast--but she clamps down on it. She will not be a slave to her instinct, not like this. When she finally lands, it's with a terrible thump, and as she tries to rise... well, it isn't really very pretty. With a little hiss, she does her best to straighten up--but she's bowed by her pain.
"Think I'm outclassed here," she murmurs, to herself. Well, it's certainly true looking at the 'footage', but another day and things would be different, wouldn't they?
"But I'm not done yet..." she hisses, and she suddenly lunges forward. Her hands glow with blue-white energy, an icy chi that has been her trademark, and as she attempts to close with Nataya, she fires a series of palm strikes--left, right, then a double palmstrike. All three strikes are energized by her icy energies, the expression on her face tight with pain and concentration.
She's better than this. This is what she believes... this is what she has been taught. This is what she needs to cling to.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki successfully hits Nataya with Kouryuu no Renda EX.
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Mizuki 1/--=====/=======|=======\==-----\1 Nataya
And Nataya's finally struck clean by a series of blows to the chest. The icy energy seems to have an unfortunate effect on her, seeming to explode with each heavy blow. The air is knocked out of her lungs, and Nataya's forced backward, staggering as she goes, the clouds swirling up around her and the beads forming a protective grid momentarily as she recovers from the series of terrible hits.
But Nataya's still nowhere near down yet. She falls into a combat stance again, the mists and beads falling away from her as she gets down to basics. Cricling about, she scans Mizuki for weak points in her stance. All she needs is a good clean solid blow to set up the next series of attacks.
"Class doesn't have anything to do with it," she says as she shoots forward, using the beads on the ground as 'skates', allowing her to move faster than normal. She doesn't explain it any further as she uses the momentum to switch over to a cross kick, smashing her short heel at Mizuki's chest.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki blocks Nataya's Light Kick.
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Mizuki 1/-======/=======|=======\==-----\1 Nataya
*WHUMP* The kick is caught on Mizuki's crossed arms; just as quickly, she's reversing her arms, seeking to grab that leg before Nataya can retract it. "My apologies; you're right. I've been training... been training -myself-... for a long time... at least it feels like that..." And then she's pushing that leg up, if she's got it, and seeking to kick Nataya's other leg out from underneath her, to dump her on her butt.
"But I still trap myself with bad thinking. I don't know how to fix that, yet." She does kind of know what she needs--she needs outside help. But from where, or who, she doesn't know yet. With the simple attack, however, Mizuki is planting her legs, preparing for Nataya's return assault. It will come, surely--the opponent's done nothing -but- assault her--and she doesn't have any expectations that it will stop.
And she doesn't -want- her to. The back and forth is helping, even if the results are not exactly what she'd like, yet... and every time it reminds her of her guilt, however minor, that she actually -does- love this... this interplay.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki successfully hits Nataya with Quick Throw.
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Mizuki 1/-======/=======|=======\====---\1 Nataya
Nataya's caught off guard, and the push of her leg sends her spinning aside. Twirling about, she lands squarely on her rear with a slam. Mizuki's definitely not going to go down with her basic attacks. Still, Nataya's got enough drive and focus left in her to continue her more destructive capabilities.
"Fight," she replies, a single word that means everything at the moment. Then, she elucidates. "If it's something you can do, do it without reservation, but not to excess. Everything's got a reason for being. You just gotta pay attention."
And with that, Nataya's calling her beads up for another horrifying assault. The beads shoot up into the air, forming a series of concentric rings in front of her. The mists begin to rise up, filtering through the rigs and charging into a bolt of pure, unaldultered force. A bolt like liquid silver bursts forward at Mizuki, and Nataya charges forward.
Then she disappears in a whisper of smoke.
In that split second, she's next to Mizuki, chanting mantras quietly to herself as she goes into a vicious combo, all legs, knees, elbows and fists as she assaults the miko mercilessly and knocks her into the approaching energy bolt.
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Mizuki with Six Seals.
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Mizuki 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\======-\1 Nataya
Not enough. Not enough. Not enough to take Nataya down. Not enough to bring Mizuki down. She spills Nataya onto her butt--but then... oh, then. Then she's assaulted. Mercilessly. Pounded left and right and up and down. She isn't sure what she's feeling, other than pain--painful impacts, lingering pain. It's blinding. She's staggered, then slammed into the energy and she twists, crying out, as she lands. Again, she rolls, away from Nataya, rising up... her body bent, injured. But she can do something about that. She mentioned it, in fact.
"You're... you're right. I'll fight.. how I fight... how I was taught... how I learned." With each word, she straightens, as painful as it is. And chi starts rising around her, building. Forming a cloud over her, that breaks. It pours out, the energy, like water, blue-green and luminescent, covering Mizuki from view, evaporating just an inch from the ground.
Presumably, Mizuki isn't KOing herself... so obviously, the energy must be doing something -else-...
Normally, Nataya doesn't cease her attacks until her opponent is down or she is. Hoever, Mizuki is doing something decidedly strange, and Nataya hesitates for a moment, which is probably the worst decision she could make, considering the strangeness she's seen many fighters engage in during combat.
Whatever the case may be, Nataya seems more interested in hanging back and seeing what comes of this development, cycling the mists around her and using them to restore some vitality, infusing herself with the very strange energy she exudes as she concentrates, planning her next move quietly.
COMBATSYS: Nataya gains composure.
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Mizuki 0/-------/-----==|=======\====---\1 Nataya
COMBATSYS: Mizuki successfully hits Mizuki with Iki no Nagare.
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Mizuki 0/-------/-----==|=======\====---\1 Nataya
Nataya allows the technique to go uninterrupted--and when Mizuki is revealed by the fading waterfall, she looks... better. Somehow. It's indescribable--little things, big things. If she were more visible--that is, were she wearing less--the changes might be more obvious. Still, she's certainly moving with less pain, contusions faded... she nods. It'll have to do. And then she smiles at Nataya.
"Thank you. Whatever happens here, you've certainly given me help... I appreciate it. At least in this fight... I won't hesitate anymore." So saying, she takes a half-step forward, sweeping her right arm--her hand glowing, held in a knifelike flat. The sweep of her hand releases a silvery arc of chi--and it then extends, forming a jagged shard of icy chi spearing out at Nataya.
It looks like glass, or ice--and indeed, just seconds after it forms, it shatters, twinkling away like lead crystal that fades into the air.
COMBATSYS: Nataya blocks Mizuki's Hyouryuu no Kiba.
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Mizuki 0/-------/----===|=======\======-\1 Nataya
The attack crashes against Nataya's fist. It's all she can do to keep herself from being hurt further by the attack. The knuckles bang against the crustal, and the shards explode everywhere, blinding the woman momentarily as she recovers from the impact. They appears to be on even footing now, but Nataya's still got more than enough fight in her.
First thing's first, however.
She's not going to lecture the miko. Lecturing is for long winded people that have lots to say but very little meaning. It appears that she's gotten the message: act when action is needed to fill an emptiness and you'll never be in want. It's a good lesson, as far as Nataya's concerned.
Then the beads start moving again. The cursed things form long spears which rotate behind her slowly, dancing and thrumming with the arcane powers that wrap around them, the slivery mists solidifying so that they appear to be long, silver bars. With a single motion of her hand, Nataya projects them forward. The spears hurtle towards Mizuki without hesitation.
"Just don't be indecisive," Nataya comments conversationally as the metallic spears suddenly turn horizontal, gleaming for a split second before the come crashing down on Mizuki, trying to give her the absolute worst beating they can muster.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki parries Nataya's Four Stages of Enlightenment!
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Mizuki 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Nataya
There are always things to learn. Doesn't matter how old you are, or how trained, or how learned. Always. Things that are complex--like high-level mathematics. Things that are simple, like how to operate a Rubik's Cube. And things that are essential, like, 'don't hesitate'.
Mizuki takes the thought to mind. She's tense again, when Nataya demonstrates her control over the beads, and the energy... her hands glowing, as she faces her destiny. One might think that, given how well Nataya's been hitting her throughout the fight, that her destiny is to be beaten to a pulp. But this time...
Just as the spears reach and start swinging... Mizuki is on the move. Twisting, parrying, her hands and forearms glowing with her aura, as she slips and ducks attacks left and right. Scary? You -bet-.
But suddenly, out of the sudden violence, Mizuki bursts like a car throuh a cloud of black smoke.
And she's charging in, but--not coming in to attack physically. Her headlong charge stops about five yards from Nataya, and then she sweeps both arms upwards.
Now she -is- kiai'ing, a waist-high wavecrest of blue-white chi energy flaring outwards, seeking to wash over Nataya.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki successfully hits Nataya with Hyouryuu no Fuki EX.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|=======\=------\1 Nataya
This time, Nataya's just not that lucky. She's cut down like chaff, the arc of blue energy catching her off guard as she didn't quite expect Mizuki to escape her assault. The energy practiacally detonates on her, causing her to tumble back over and over. Clearly, the fight's turned rapidly against her in an eyeblink, and there's not a whole lot she can do about it.
Going from standing firm to a crumpled heap in seconds, it's become clear that she doesn't have the capacity to really bring much of a fight anymore.
She staggers up as all her ingjuries that she's been staving off come back to haunt her. Clearly, Mizuki's got a head up on her.
But Nataya's not known for getting put down that easily.
Without a moment's thought, she raises her hand up again, and the beads assemble themselves into a web of power. The energy pulses once across the strands as they reconfigure from their grouping as a net. Turning about, the energy net swings towards Mizuki, attempting to ensnare her and wrap her tightly. The effect, should it connect, is unpleasant: the miko will be constructed and subjected to bursts of pure force energy, eight bursts in all in rapid succession before the beads fall away from her.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki dodges Nataya's Noble Eightfold Path.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0 Nataya
Nataya's persistence is admirable. Truly admirable. Mizuki already wants to make her a friend--not for her skills, or her personality. Not because she hit like a small truck, at least as far as Mizuki is concerned. But because of the whole package. The girl is amazing, and Mizuki appreciates that. She still has Nataya's words ringing in her ears:
"Don't hesitate."
Yeah, she said more, but those words are ringing in her head, like bells. Evading the net of energy, the beads... it isn't easy. The slightest misake would cost Mizuki the match, and a great deal of pain besides. But she's... it's like she's lit by lightning, suddenly.
She ducks, she dives, she dodges. She ducks again. And a smile is blossoming on her lips, a subconscious one, as she lunges again, springing off her feet and almost literally flying off the ground.
As she lands, she attacks, reaching out to grab Nataya--a familiar sort of attack, ss she seeks to grab the girl in the same high-low grip, to hurl her overhand, practically, to follow her down... but instead of a chopping attack, she'll utilize a burst of her chi to try and put Nataya down permanently.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki successfully hits Nataya with Hyouryuu no Gari.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Nataya
And eventually, a combination of bad luck and Mizuki's skill takes it's toll, and Nataya's forced to fold from the match. The hand grabs her quickly, snatching her by the front of the robe, and then blasts her backward. The attack itself doesn't do too much damage, but after all the point hat's been built up, Nataya can barely move, much less retaliate. The woman goes flying end over end. It's almost embarrassing, but that's the nature of the game.
Nataya will just have to try much harder next time!
She crashes to the ground without a sound, her body bouncing once as the mists follow after her, as if they were desperate to keep her safe from harm. Nevertheless, they fail, and upon Nataya's conciousness waning, they boil madly, swirling around as the beads seem to peer at Mizuki. Sightless eyes, the silver pinpricks as they waver, lurchingat Mizuki. Without someone to guide them, the impulses are slow and awkward at best, but it looks like something left in Nataya still wants to fight.
The beads begin to spin madly, flying everywhere while some fire off random bolts of energy. The majority of them are focused at Mizuki... however it's generally a random, final gasp as the energy eventually just dies, and the beads clatter to the floor, helpless.
COMBATSYS: Nataya can no longer fight.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Mizuki dodges Nataya's Ten Perfections.
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Mizuki 0/-------/--=====|
It gets easier. She's rusty, and there's always the random whim of fate, but the old instincts are starting to wake up--the old training. It helps, of course, that Nataya's going down--to control thse beads must take an immense amount of concentration, and certainly it isn't something that can be done while unconscious. (Not yet, anyways.) However, as she dodges the incoming beads and charges, she's walking forward--
--walking for Nataya. She won't let her hit the ground--instead, the miko catches Nataya, and lowers her down gently. Fight's over; the cameramen shoot a little while longer, but they're packing up pretty quick. Mizuki? Not even paying them attention. Instead, she's already working on Nataya, sending a gentle pulse of healing chi into the girl. At least she wants to wake her up.
COMBATSYS: Mizuki has ended the fight here.
Nataya had heard of monks that were capable of raising back up from the dead, but she had never seen it in action before. That is, until Mizuki showed her that it wasn't just a viable maneuver, but one that could be used in combat. The pulse of energy goes through her, and she rolls over with a groan. She didn't expect Mizuki to open up a bag of miracles near the end!
Oh well, chalk it up to learning. Her eyes flutter open, and she squints at the younger woman.
"Well then, I guess I talked too much and put my foot in my mouth, yes?" She grins, albeit sheepishly. Looks like she's going to have to go back and train more with hand to hand combat.
Mizuki sits back. Giogerly. She's still in quite a lot of pain. "Glad you're okay. And no--you didn't. You weren't boastful or arrogant. You... you really helped me. Chalk it up to luck. If I weren't able to heal myself, I would have been out long before I would have had the chance to defeat you. It's..." She smiles.
"It's something I can do but it doesn't always help. Sometimes it just prolongs the beatings. So I'm careful about when and where I used it. Understandably, I guess. But... thank you. The fight was..." She pauses.
"It was fun. I haven't had a fight that was just fun, win or lose, in a long time. They always seem loaded down with this or that and they're... stressful. I forgot that this -could- be fun."
Nataya laughs. "Fights aren't fun for me. They're terrible. They hurt, and what's more, the only thing I get better at is hurting other people. The whole idea of tuning your heart and soul with combat? It's a load of hooey," she says with a smile, sitting up and waving her hands dismissively.
"The only thing fighting does for me is give me a tool. A means to achieve a goal. It's a way I set my mind at peace. When I learned to ignore pain and conflict, and just go, just /act/ so that I could handle the things in my life that needed handling without regrets or hesitation," she staggers up, leaning against the ropes and reaching for an available water bottle sitting on a table with a flail of her arm.
"If you haven't noticed, my style's not arty or graceful. It's built to do one thing: destroy. It's a lot of responsibility to handle. When I first learned it, I was terrified with what I could do. My master repeated to me daily that even the weakest of my abilities to break a normal man in half, and thatw as before I learned all the light show stuff," she continues, unscrewing the cap of the water bottle and pouring half of it on her head before drinking the rest. "Gah!"
"Anyways, I don't know your story and won't pretend to. It looks like you got a lot on your mind for someone that's probably about as old as my little sister," she says with a friendly smile bespite the fact that she's still bleeding a little from a forehead bump. "I don't know if anything I say will be of any help... but I do know that everyone could do with a little understanding as to why they do things. So many people do stuff without knowing why they do it. Follow the voice inside you, and you'll never lead yourself astray, I always say. Well, not really, but I think it a lot." She winks.
"I... a lot of my fights haven't been fun. I don't find solace in them, exactly. Sometimes it's just distraction I need... god, I must sound like a typically-angsty teenager..." Mizuki leans back a little, on her hands, enjoying not having use her legs for a moment. "... and in a lot of ways I am. But... I've chosen to make my life this way, against those who care for me saying I shouldn't. People telling me I shouldn't, or I can't. That I'm not good enoguh, not strong enough. Maybe it's true."
Then she does stand up. "But I don't think it is. And I want to prove that I am. Not for 'them'. But for me. I have... things I want to do. People I want to protect. To be stronger for."
Mizuki blushes. "I'm ranting again. These're things you don't need to hear. But it was very nice to meet you, Nataya-san. I'd love to fight you again, sometime. Maybe at the YFCC..." She pauses, remembering something; her smile fades a little.
"Once it's repaired, at least..."
The monk-trained woman sniffs. "Well, I'm not going to say that the way other people think doesn't matter," she says, taking a step forward. It's not that she can regenerate damage. It's just that she's learned to just ignore pain in all it's capacities. Nataya just grins and bears it. After all, you can't dish it out if you don't learn how to take it, right?
"But if you're looking for any advice from me, I'll give you this. There's no salvation. There's just waht you do, or don't do, and all the things done in the end just work themselves out. Don't stress over things that you've done, or can't control. What's happened has happened, and what people have said, people have said. Just improve. Not for them, not for you. Just improve for the sake of improvement."
She takes another step, testing the ankle that Choi knocked out of alignment not but a day or so ago and the ugly gashes in her back that Katana saw fit to give her in her SNF the previous night. She wobbles a little, but manages to start moving freely towards the first aid kit in her feild of vision on the bench outside the ring.
"Good things will come after," she intones. "I promise."
At the mention of the YFCC, she nods. "I'll stop by. I also work at Pacific high as a language tutor and a few other places in town. If you need me, just think really hard... I'll probably be there eventually." She laughs as she pops a few pain killers and inspects her midsection, horribly red from the chi impact that nearly finished her off.
Monk and miko--not too different, in the end, as a job. Mizuki nods. "I suppose not. Then... I -have- been someone's salvation, before, in a very real sense. It's... it's something that -has- defined my life, at least somewhat. I know that my ability to heal people is rare. It's not something I can just teach to anyone. And to be honest, most people want to learn how to fight, not how to heal. At least those who aren't becoming doctors."
"Wait. Nataya-san, please. At least let me heal your wounds. It's not like I can't see that you're hurting. It isn't salvation, I know. But..." Well, she suspects Nataya won't take the offer. Something about most 'tough' people. She won't take it personally.
"You'd be more than welcome at the YFCC, I'm sure. We're always looking for good teachers." Not good fighters--plenty of those around--but teaching is an entirely different beast.
"You should take to Rose... or Frei Tsukitomi-Renard, he helps run the center too..."
It's not about toughness. It's about faith. And Nataya quotes it immediately without thought:
"A living being does not know the reality of the world.
Because of not knowing the reality of the world, the living being reacts collecting Karma.
Because of collecting Karma, the subconscious mind comes into existence.
Because of the existence of subconscious mind, the living being's physical body comes into existence.
Because of the existence of physical body, the senses come into existence.
Because of the existence of senses, the living being moves in a way that makes senses experience pleasure or pain.
Because of moving in this way, the living being experiences pleasure and pain.
Because of experiencing pleasure and pain, the living being becomes attached to them.
Because of attaching to them, the living being clings strongly to them.
Because of clinging strongly to them, the living being generates a cause for the next birth.
Because of the cause for the next birth, the rebirth eventually happens.
Because of rebirth, the living being experiences various suffering such as sadness, dissatisfaction, diseases and death."
She turns around and smiles. "I appreciate your offer. You've got a good heart, and I hope it brings you the peace you're looking for. But I'm already failing by taking these," she says, shaking an anti-inflammatory. "It's hard to travel the middle path when people keep punching you as you walk," she says, her smil twisting into a slightly more wry smirk. "Listen. Just be. Life is hard enough when you need to /be something/ to all people."
She nods at the names, and takes them to memorization. She'll see them soon enough, she supposes, and Nataya picks up the bag she brought with her. "Take care of yourself, Mizuki."
"A good heart. So I've been told. But I'll always strive for better. Thank you again, Nataya-san. We'll have to do this again. It was... enlightening." Fun? That too, but she already said that. And they're both in the business of enlightenment. The miko bows, as is in her nature, and she turns to go as well. "Oh, and if you ever want to find a place of peace and quiet, there's a shrine in Southtown. It's kind of in disrepair but it's... very peaceful. I go there often."
That said, she starts walking, with a slow, deliberate pace. A thinking pace. And she -is- thinking, a lot. There are things she can do alone and things she can't. Things that her friends can teach her and things they can't. It's time to look at what she can do, and what she wants to do, and where she wants to go...
Log created on 17:19:05 08/31/2008 by Mizuki, and last modified on 12:52:49 09/06/2008.