Description: The former prodigy Ryuuzaki the 'Echoing Swordsman' faces off against the rising prodigy, Feng the 'God Fist'. Both men are pushed to the limits in a battle of technical power and technical mastery... although who truly wins in the end? (Winner: Ryuuzaki)
The stadium for the G-KING league is rather regal; although the actual area of land is small, purchased from a failed attempt at promoting certain varieties of fighting, it has been glamored up to a massive degree. One wouldn't think it far from the likes of the Red Arena, or any other prominent place of martial talent. The difference, of course, being that seating is far less. Still, a respectable number of tickets were gained for a first promotion. Although the number of people who remember this Ryuuzaki are few, they were extremely excited to see him once again, his disappearance having seemed to be permanent. Feng would have been provided a room to warm up; a bench, mirror, excessive towels, and a dainty female to try to get him to wear some makeup to better be filmed in the bright spotlights. She is probably going to fail.
The fight is announced that it will begin, and Feng would be instructed to go down a narrow tunnel. At the end is bright light, then a sea of sand. High walls, with armored glass reaching the domed ceiling, protects those who came to view. There are numerous televisions settled as well, so those in the back rows can opt for that to see it live. It is excessively media-styled. Dangling from the middle of the ceiling is a huge NFL-style display screen, complete with spelled out words and highlight big screens. Nobody's really cheering, so the excitement doesn't yet match the decorum.
Feng's opponent is already present, however. He is settled at one end of a white ring, resting on his knees in the traditional style. Lean and middle-aged, he does not seem to possess a very impressive physique, especially compared to one like the God Fist. A white hakama is worn, with light blue undershirt. A sash is tightly around his waist, within which are two swords. One is obviously a katana; the handle very worn and old. The other is a wakazashi, seeming in contrast almost brand new. Geta are upon his feet, the oversized type generally difficult to walk around.
By all accounts, Ryuuzaki doesn't look very happy to be here, despite the booming voices about how he was a bloodthirsty and brutal fighter at Feng's age and how 'Feng is looking at a possible future!!' There's no interest in those features, nor any sign of a sharp edge. Although movies are shown above then; of a young man in a flowing hakama, brutally cutting down people with flashes of crimson chi. Obviously revelling in it, and lording his strength over the opponents. "CAN NOBODY BEST ME?!" is shouted out in the ancient reel, before it clicks off.
"...Feng Wei, is it?" With smooth grace, Ryuuzaki gets to his feet and spreads his stance slightly. Shoulder facing the menacing opponent, a hand slowly shifts towards his sheathed swords. "I have not fought in over twenty years... make this quick, so my obligation can be over with..."
Ostentatious. Loud. Gilded. Someone wanted attention, that's for sure. This is definitely a far cry from the staid, pratical dojos that Feng Wei was used to busting up, and even the rather impressive training grounds of the God Fist school paled in comparison to this Arena.
And yet, Feng Wei, his triad suit hung in a singular locker in favor of his usual fighting regalia, was more concerned with simple things....if you can call punching at a cauldron of hot coals 'simple'. "Leave me, woman!" he barks, both in his native Mandarin and in English just to make his point clear to the poor girl who is trying to dab on foundation so he comes off better on TV. And if she only speaks Japanese? Tough luck, his body language probably speaks enough to get the gist across anyway.
Soon enough, though, it was time. As Feng was guided down the tunnel, he thought of just how...peculiar this world of fighting is outside of his original domain. His master forbid him to fight outside of the school and temper himself against the best the outside world had to offer. So far, it has been an...uneven road, stained with sweat, blood, and...now, today, apparently gold, sand, and glass.
Peering around the ornate aarena allowed to him and his opponent, the kenpo artist slowly walked toward the proffered place he was to stand. He glanced up at the video, seeing the highlights of his opponent at a different age...and now the older man in seiza across from him.
"The Echoing Swordsman," Feng says in that clipped Chinese accent of his. "I have not heard of you. I don't care to have heard of you. Just make this worth my while, so I may temper myself to perfection." Slipping into his aggressive stance, one fist in front of the other, he glowered toward the man in the hakama. Even if this fight was obviously coerced on his part...it's not of Feng's concern. Against his will, or done freely....
All Feng cared about was to challenge, and be challenged. The mechanations of other men would be nothing before the God Fist in the end, after all.
"Yes. Even my fame is but an echo." Ryuuzaki seems to be appraising Feng now, with something related to interest. Feet slide further, displacing sand before he firmly assumes his own stance. He seems almost unnaturally relaxed, like his limber frame should not be capable of even supporting him. "Hmm. I do see myself in you, however... you want power, is that right? I see, I see... then our difference was simply... you were willing to pay any price."
The loud blare of a horn signals the start of the battle. A sort of snakeish movement ripples out, not dissimilar to Yamazaki's signature maneuver in action; the rasp of his wakizashi being drawn and then resheathed has no break from the time it was in the air. A ripple of air distorts a perfectly straight line in the wake...
The intended result would be Feng's cheek suddenly gaining a deep cut from the tip of his blade. "Although I have done nothing but meditate on my techniques all these years, I will try to give you the fight you desire...!"
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki has started a fight here.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Feng has joined the fight here.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Feng
COMBATSYS: Feng blocks Ryuuzaki's Quick Strike.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Feng
A snort of derision comes from Feng as his fists tighten, eyes narrowing and brow furrowing as he stood before the man whose legend this organization...whatever it was...tried to promote and inflate. It was definitely a stark contrast, the kenpo artist with what seemed like an unmovable stance, while the swordsman was unnaturally relaxed, like the difference between a mountain and a swaying palm, strong in different ways, but still strong in their own right.
"Perfection always has a price. Only those who are willing to pay it reach it, and I will pay it tenfold!" Feng snaps resolutely, before the signal comes . The rippling slash is ridiculously fast...but rather that cut and mark at Feng's cheek like hoped, its his hand that intercepts the strike, moving fast and deflecting the strike before it marks his cheek, instead drawing a thinner line across the fighter's knuckles.
Feng's own retalation is swift, and yet different as night and day. A hard dash forward is swiftly followed by Feng drawing his arms inward, almost like a flexing pose as he turned aside toward the swordsman, trying to slam his shoulder straight into his chest with brutal rigidity. "HWOAH!"
COMBATSYS: Feng successfully hits Ryuuzaki with Iron Mountain.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Feng
"Perfection... it is not perfection you seek, Feng Wei." Ryuuzaki states calmly, not seeming to particularly mind the interruption to the flow of battle. It seems somewhat certain his reasons for coming here were not to engage in a fight in the first place. There is at best a token effort to slip backwards; just prior to impact, all the breath is exhaled from the swordsman's chest, and he almost imperceptibly leaps off the sand. The blow would sound incredible, and visually it seems the less-built figure was brutalized... but Feng would feel it. The normally concentrated kinetic power of his fist was instead dispersed throughout Ryuuzaki's entire body, making the actual damage far less.
Skidding away a couple meters, again the wakizashi is sheathed with a gentle click. A sharp slash was once more leveled at Feng while he was still following through with the blow; with that same swift current of focused cutting edge.
What follows might be rather more annoying. Ryuuzaki plays a bit of keepaway; lightly kicking backwards, remaining out of reach for followup lunges and strikes, seeming more intent on conversation. "I banished myself until I felt my father would be proud of my mastery of the fundamentals. I said I would not fight again until I managed. It has been twenty five years... and only now have I gotten close. Your power might rival me... yet know I did not try to get stronger. Instead I tried to perfect my every breath and motion. If this is a battle of technique and perfection..."
Suddenly Ryuuzaki stands firm, eyes showing a spark of battle spirit. "You have already lost!"
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki successfully hits Feng with Medium Strike.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Feng
The slash that Ryuuzaki snaps out as he reels back from the blow of Feng's strike, lightened by his insight and reeling back just before impact, strikes Feng much more flushly and obviously than the previous, a red line crossing up his cheek as the God Fist user pulls back into his ready position. "Nhnn..." The grunt of pain is understated, more annoyed than anything, but make no mistake, Feng knew he was not dealing with an amateur, if he thought so before.
The constant evasion however, as he tries to peg the swordsman down as he kicks back and evades the kenpo fighter's attempt at pursuit, however, makes him much more annoying than an amateur in the kenpo artist's eyes. "You think you, who have shunned battle for decades, are above one who has constantly tempered himself against the best challenges and challengers he can find?" Feng sneers, trying to keep up his pursuit.
Finally giving up trying to simply dash after him though, Feng decides to use his hopefully superior technique, lifting up one leg as if trying to go for yet another lunging kick. And lunge he does...but rather than try to fly after the swordsman, he drops into a split on the ground, the front leg thrusting out as if trying to disrupt Ryuuzaki's very root.
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki blocks Feng's Light Kick.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Feng
Suddenly Ryuuzaki's hand shoots out, the same one that was prepared over his sword. It impacts the very tip of Feng's foot; only two fingers make contact, but the assault was almost stopped dead, as if the Kenpo master had truly tried to kick a mountain. Behind, a burst of force shows the stength behind the assault; far from harmless, but masterfully diluted away. How long must one train to gain a grip so powerful? It is not something that can be gained with mere prodigal skills... after all, he is clearly an inferior in brute strength. As such, the only thing that brings up to Feng's level is those twenty five long years of isolation. And one that apparently was not done with the intent of personal power.
"I do not." Ryuuzaki then states, rather simply. "You are the only one who wishes to win this battle. However..." Again he kicks backwards, the same little game of cat and mouse. Feng likely has absolutely no desire for conversation, but at the moment there's little choice in the matter. "I admit... you stir something in me I thought long dead. It is as if I stepped back in time... and see myself, driving forward into all obstacles, wishing only to be acknowledged as the strongest against others." His hand then shifts, momentarily brushing upon the worn, frayed hilt of the katana. "In my shame, Ryuuousai has slept restless these long decades. The last time he tasted air, he drank the blood of his former owner. Might you force me to...?"
But then Ryuuzaki's hand shifts down, and grasps the hilt of the wakizashi once more. "No... I have broken my pledge to never fight again. But I will never again have the right to draw that blade!" Suddenly he kicks forward on the offensive, and then unsheathes the shorter sword in a brutal crescent arc. It slashes through the sand, and kicks up a sudden veil that momentarily obscures the elder foe.
And then the point of his wakizashi brutally strikes through it, aiming to sink into Feng's midsection. He is not holding back, at the very least... despite his words, Ryuuzaki's thrust just now was not of one who had resigned to losing. Feng can easily see through that part of him. The distant smell of a kindred soul...
COMBATSYS: Feng endures Ryuuzaki's Sundering Edge.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\0 Feng
The kick, unorthodox as it is, was not without power, the thrusting low kick meant to break ankles or at the very least shatter stances. So when Ryuuzaki's fingers stop it in such a seemingly effortless manner, it's definitely a shock to Feng as he pulls himself back up to his feet. Especially considering the man's seeming advantage was his looseness and relaxed state, actually stalling the kick rather than redirecting it has an effect on the ambitious fighter.
Perhaps not all negative. "You..." A technique that certainly impresses and frustrates Feng. Perhaps even covets. And at the very least, that coveting is honestly expressed in Feng's face as he tries to pursue the swordsman once more. The contniued chase is frustrating....but it finally seems to come to an end.
Even if it's not the older fighter's cherished sword, the move on the offensive is one Feng was looking forward to. Rather than try to block or sidestep the thrust, the God Fist user stepped straight into its path. The blade sinks into his midsection, a wound that would be sure to bleed out for a while. Even with his muscles developed to iron-like levels, a sword was no joke. But this close? It meant that he was in arm's reach. Eyes widen, pushing forward despite the blade embedded in his abdomen. His right fist drives out, trying to slam directly into Ryuuzaki's midsection in retaliation. Again, an interesting parallel, razor precision compared to blunt, brute force. But it's not over. Another step forward comes, further extending his right leg and arm, fist opening up and a sudden, rapid pistoning of his palm outward, trying to blow the swordsman back with strike even more concussive than the first.
The strike bearing the name of the style itself: The God Fist.
COMBATSYS: Feng successfully hits Ryuuzaki with God Fist.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Feng
Not many people will run fearlessly headlong into a sword. A shift backwards follows, as Ryuuzaki attempts to kick away and gain some distance once more. This is not the quality of blow he can try to absorb with simply his perfected balance and state of relaxation. Yet what is hidden within that loose stance... is the ability to explosively contract. In a split second, he can be as strong as any opponent against him, in exchange for all the weakness between.
His wakizashi swings out, and the edge of it impacts Feng's fist, trying to use raw force to dillute the attack. It works, in some respect. However... the forged metal blade shatters in half beneath the raw prowess of Feng's God Fist. Eyes are wide before it strikes him in the midsection, dampened but no less adept at staggering. In an instant, a dozen palmprints are visible on his form as he flies backwards, slipping down and crashing to a kneel. He looks then at his wakizashi, only three inches of it now remaining. "...Hahaha... I saw it in you then. I apologize... for implying you neglected mastery. That strike... I could see no fault!!"
Ryuuzaki rises to his feet, inhaling deeply and flexing his muscles to abate the brutish impact. And then he sheathes the remainder of his wakizashi in a slow movement. "That blade was never meant to be used in a real battle... I will accept this as fate. Maybe your ferocity can quench the tears of Ryuuousai in the battle it craves."
And then he shoots forward, in an instant settling before Feng. He's different now. Eyes have that of one in battle, an intensity that has been asleep for what felt like eternity. With confidence, the worn grip of his sword is taken, and then he draws it out. There is a light rasp, but it is heard when the blade has already finished moving. The air distorts, completely soundless, before an incredible impact would slam into Feng. The pain would be palpable before the sudden ROAR of explosive sound and shattering sand, striking out against the other man with the ferocity of a raging storm!! The mere diverted chi of drawing his true blade was formed into an attack.
Ryuuousai's blade belies the ancient hilt. It is pure black steel, with the intricate edge a dark crimson. Crackles of red lightning seem to sizzle along it's edge, and a sound almost akin to a hissing dragon...
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki successfully hits Feng with Sonic Crash.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-======|=======\=====--\1 Feng
Withdrawing his arm back after that eponymous strike, Feng takes in the sight of the shattered wakizaki, and the stark change in the swordsman's demeanor after suffering that attack. His eyes narrow, allowing himself a faint smirk. "Hold nothing back!" he shouts. Only in the hottest flames can Feng temper himself after all. It's only once the true threat is unleashed that Feng can say he's defeated a man, conquered him.
And the flames Ryuuzaki unleashes when he finally unseals Ryuuousai? Definitely the kind of threat Feng was expecting from a man of such supposed infamy. The step forward was faster than he could react to, and the roar of crimson exploding as the sword is released blows Feng over, the chi searing over his form. If he had a shirt to wear, one might have expected it to be exploded straight off his chest into shreds across the sands.
But a black sword is not enough to defeat the God Fist, Feng seems to say as he stands up in defiance. "<So this is the true power you held back....>" he says in Mandarin, not bothering with English at this point. His only desire? To react in kind. And for that? He drops his leg down, feet spread wide in a horse stance, hands drawn in with fingers hooked in a focused gesture. His hands thrust out shortly, elbows bent, then fully extend outward, arms outstretched. And then once more. While there's no roar of chi or explosion of sand to accompany him, the tension his body draws in should be obvious to one of Ryuuzaki's skill level.
COMBATSYS: Feng focuses his rage for a single strike!
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-======|=======\======-\1 Feng
Slowly, Ryuuousai is sheathed back in it's hilt, and the peculiar feel of it's energy immediately shuts off. There is some kind of solemn sadness for a few moments, as the elder swordsman exhales. "I have broken both pledges that I upheld for twenty five years in the span of five minutes... may my ancestors forgive me." But then he notices that Feng is preparing his own assault, and narrows his eyes in acceptance. Slowly, he flows back into his loose stance, shoulder turned and fingers just shy of touching his family's legendary blade. "It is unsightly to drag this out further. I shall show you the move that gave me the moniker of the 'Echoing Swordsman'...!!" The tension in the air is incredibly thick now. The stands are beginning to fill with fully engaged observers, many at the edge of their seat at the last pause in this battle. "In return... I would like you to answer one question for me..."
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki assumes an aggressive stance, hand hovering over the hilt of his sheathed sword.
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Ryuuzaki 1/-------/=======|=======\======-\1 Feng
Hands thrust forward one last time as Feng's short ritual is finished, drawing himself back into stance and standing before Ryuuzaki, the black sword sheathed and shut off. Eyes narrow at the Echoing Swordsman, as if condeming him for sealing himself again. But as the challenge is accepted, Feng's eyes cast back toward the man itself rather than the sword. There is no response to the request of a question....but perhaps the swordsman doesn't need that answered.
Finally, moving forward, Feng takes another hard, fierce step, left hand sweeping outward while his right hand, palm splayed with hand bent at the wrist, is drawn in. The resulting strike that comes is....underwhelming, from outside eyes. After all, it looks like the barest of palm thrusts, pushed out toward Ryuuzaki's abdomen. Certainly not the kind of strike that would be grounds for such build up, right?
But if it strikes true, the damage felt within would far outpace whatever marks or bruises resulting from a more vicious looking strike, even compared to the God Fist. Like a total distruption of one's inner core. Perhaps that's the reason for his attack bearing such an infamous, familiar name.
Some call it Dim Mak...the God Fist school? Calls it the Death Palm.
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki Toughs Out Feng's Empowered Death Palm!
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Ryuuzaki 1/--=====/=======|==-----\-------\0 Feng
This maneuver might be feared and revered across multiple schools, and also one that Feng Wei holds in the highest regard. However... he is using it against the worst peer imaginable. For one of them has mastered themselves to the utmost level, while the other increased their power further and further. One geta-clad foot slides forward, eyes shut while Feng approaches with his blow prepared. Once more, there is the sharp exhale and tension flowing within. And the blow hits true. Despite the seemingly light nature of it, his hakama fiercely billows as if in a storm, and the sand around Ryuuzaki's feet surges outwards in a wave.
But trying to disrupt the internal flow of a man who has mastered it years ago is a difficult prospect. Feng would see it then, feel it clearly within his hands, in the split second following contact. The move was not nearly refined enough to defeat someone like Ryuuzaki. It was indeed a battle of raw technique versus raw technique... and like the swordsman alluded, he won. Was some portion of the philosophical difference right? Perhaps. But that hardly makes the strike less potent. Blood erupts from his mouth through grit teeth, but the shattering blow does not send him flying backwards.
With an almost gentle whisper, Ryuuousai leaves it's sheath once more, point blank before Feng can so much as begin drawing back. This time... it truly might seem invisible. Feng was clearly at a level to notice and respond to the blade, but now his focus is still on the Death Palm, and not actively on his defense. A momentary flicker, that could be missed in a blink. That one might wonder if they truly saw.
And then an incredible impact of pure, raw force would strike into Feng's body, a raw crimson red aura of torrential energy attempting to take him clean off his feet and send him flying backwards. A moment later, an explosive sound of rushing air, and a second hit would follow when it reached the God Fist, accelerating him like a meteor towards the supposedly impervious walls of G-KING's arena...!!
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki successfully hits Feng with Empowered Echoing Thunder.
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Ryuuzaki 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\0 Feng
....he messed up.
That's all that Feng can think, the moment that the Death Palm is unleashed, and Ryuuzaki's form stands still. Coughing blood, yes, but the very fact that he could stand afterwards was proof that something was not right. Or on the contrary, something WAS right, but on the swordsman's side. Regardless, before Feng can even retract, Ryuuousai is drawn, and that lightning quick nanosecond is all it takes, the crimson aura blasting him back by the time the thunderous sound even begins. That second eruption of sound would immediately blast him back even faster, all of Feng's iron will and musculature barely dulling the blow as he's flung into the glass. Sliding down, Feng falls to a knee, heaving as he tries to get his strength back into his limbs. The sand is possibly the only thing keeping him awake, the landing as he fell off the wall probably enough had the fighting surface been anything harder.
Coughing, Feng flung his head back, blood trailing down his own chin as he summoned up his last reserves. Eyes on fire, he charged at the swordsman, trying to retake the distance. And while one might expect him to try to barrel through again, the same unrelenting, rigid, brute force style, the kenpo artist instead tries to do something less direct, though perhaps no less brutal. Trying to grab at the swordsman's right arm, he tries to turn, pull it behind is back and still it with the grasp of his right arm. The left? Trying to hook underneath the arm at the elbow, and at best hyperextend it. At worst....well....
COMBATSYS: Feng successfully hits Ryuuzaki with Serpent Slayer.
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Ryuuzaki 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\=------\1 Feng
Ryuuzaki is panting heavily, body now genuinely slumped as opposed to anything being a result of his long training regiments. He believes he won; and it is a completely intoxicating feeling, after his forced exile from the world to atone for his sin. Both arms simply hang there, topknot in a mess, blood spattering down his chin and upon the front of his open and disordered hakama. But then he notices Feng is still coming; he completely underestimated him in more ways then one. A forearm lifts, intending to block, but that only makes it all the easier to grasp. He is lifted clear off his feet, and then lets out a sharp cry of pain as his shoulder dislocates. Like a bag of potatoes, the swordmaster falls into the sand beside, quickly rolling away in an almost comical manner you usually only see in fake wrestling after the ultimate in over the top moves.
But he gets up to his feet anyway, grasping his dangling arm at the bicep. In an explosive and sharp moment, it is snapped back into place. The agony of that is every bit what one would think, but his face does not flicker. "I see now... how arrogant I truly was." But this is not the time for reflection. He can see the raw desire of Feng to finish things, and he will not disappoint in that regard. Has he ever felt this tired? His right arm is trembling and spasming heavily, hardly at full capacity after the brutal maneuver. But for the second needed... he can still move.
And then he charges forward, shoulders presented and giving a suddenly incredibly narrow field to attack. His hakama billows all around, forcing his weakened fingers to grasp Ryuuousai...
COMBATSYS: Feng fails to interrupt Resonating Blow EX from Ryuuzaki with Scorpion Sting EX.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-----<<|
COMBATSYS: Feng can no longer fight.
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Ryuuzaki 0/-------/-----<<|
Feng moves to attack, but in a suddenly inhuman display of raw speed, Ryuuzaki is no longer there. Feng's technique would otherwise operate normally within the empty air, but the swordsman is now walking behind, his crimson edged sword already drawn. A sharp, throbbing pain would be felt all throughout the God Fist's torso and stomach, beginning to build up every moment like a bomb ready to blow. "A hair's breadth... by only that..." He then lifts up the sheath, and slowly sheathes Ryuuousai. At the same moment, numerous explosive crimson-colored slashes would erupt all over Feng's body, lacerating with the ruthless chi of the dragon finally awakened by the passion of this fight!!
Wrenching the swordsman arm in that unusually complex way, enough to dislocate his shoulder, Feng throws him to the ground, looming over Ryuuzaki as if waiting for him to concede before the older fighter rises up again. As steady as Feng's body seems to be as he drops back, it's obvious to a seasoned observer that he's only on his last legs left up by adrenaline and will alone. So it shouldn't be too surprising that when the swordsman readies himself, and Feng moves to intercept....
That the kenpo artist is just too slow. Leaning forward and arching his foot above his back to smash Ryuuzaki in the face, he instead finds empty air, the Echoing Swordsman long past him...and the pain of the lightning fast assault accumulating across his body all at once, exploding in crimson chi once the sword is sheathed and leaving the God FIst disciple collapsed on the floor, face down. Conscious, but perhaps that was a bane rather than a mercy.
"...As I said... I was arrogant. I left the world of fighters at my prime, and never again strove to get stronger. Instead, I weakened... in exchange for this mastery... but the world is large, and continued to turn..." Limping heavily, barely standing through his own raw will and determination, Ryuuzaki looks down at Feng with raw admiration. "When I return to this world I abandoned, I see myself again. A man of limitless potential... do not be dissuaded, Feng Wei. I shall never know what I may have been capable of. The path to true power is not the fastest... but neither is it the slowest... heh!" A spurt of blood leaves his mouth once more. Slowly he wobbles in place, vision cutting in and out. The crowd can be heard cheering at the amazing finale to the fight, and the loudspeakers declaring the Echoing Swordsman as the winner. Yet it is only the buzzing of bees in the back of his mind.
"My... question..." he states, simply. "You too... killed your Master. But it is much different... to kill a father instead. So I only wonder... did he die because you were superior? Or did he die... because he truly expected that you would not attempt to kill him?" A bit of a laugh once more, but the swordsman's eyes appear to be glazing. "...For me it was both... and it still hurt the worst."
For a few moments, he stays standing there. It doesn't seem he can come closer. "As I am the winner... even your honor obliges you to do a favor... is that right?"
Feng is pained...and while he will not accept this loss lightly...he will accept it. Still face down, the kenpo artist without the strength that second to push himself back up, he can only remain there, listening to Ryuuzaki's soliloquy and musing over his abscence from the world of fighting. And regardless, the result is clear, the swordsman was the better man today.
The question left to him as he lays there is mused over. Not answered in haste, and for a moment, it doesn't seem like he would answer at all. "He died because he did not expect it. Because he held back. The school was held back. Isolation breeds stagnation. His willingness to stay static lead to his fall."
"I see... then it is a pity. As long as you train and are instructed... you cannot grow weaker. But if you kill your Master... then you can never complete. That is my regret in this life... that in twenty five years, I could not complete what my father could have taught me, were I only to listen." Slowly, the sheathed Ryuuousai is pulled free, and then is thrust out in Feng's direction. "In truth... I only won the battle for G-KING. But your technique... the Death Palm... it did not fail. If you consider being the survivor as true victory... then you can stand tall!!" Another gout of blood is coughed up, Ryuuzaki reeling forward now. "M,my sword... I never atoned... but I sacrificed myself to give Ryuuousai one last, worthy battle. Bury it at my father's grave... that is my demand, warrior!!"
And then, like a great tree that has been felled, he falls backwards, impacting the sand with a dull thump. There's some obvious confusion as a result, but medics were already on the way into the sandy arena. Although Feng would be carefully loaded into a stretcher, the EMTs simply stand around Ryuuzaki, seemingly at a loss. The Death Palm strained his heart too badly, and pushing himself to the brink to win by a razor's edge cost him his life. A price he paid with no hesitation.
Almost as if sullen, the sheathed Ryuuousai lays on the sand between the two fighters, the last relic of yet another martial art lost to the winds of time.
COMBATSYS: Ryuuzaki has ended the fight here.
Feng doesn't even get the chance to stand on his own terms, felled as he is. Even in his prone state though, his brow furrows, hearing the final words of the warrior, and his final request. With the EMTs about to load him away, he scowls..and tries to push them away. Even with his body weak, he can still snap free from stretcher restrains, pushing himself back to his feet.
Tottering and limping, he glances over to the fallen body, surrounded by EMTs. His hands are lifted up...but rather than descecrate, his fist is placed to palm, a faint bow offered to the fallen form of the swordsman. The final rite done, he hobbles his way over to the fallen sword, glancing down to it....and picking it up. Holding it firmly in hand, he totters back over to the stretcher, placing his hand upon it. "Go," he mutters in sharp english as he rolls himself back atop it again.
Log created on 17:54:32 07/24/2012 by Ryuuzaki, and last modified on 03:04:03 07/25/2012.