Bloody Knuckles
A/N: Hello! Here's the first chapter for Bloody Knuckles. I'd like to thank Luafua & for reviewing my story. Also, I don't care if it's praising or a flame reviews I get, I want at least one more review before I continue. I don't care if it's just smiley-face, just review so I know you read it.
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Chapter 1- Life in the Underworld
(Leiko's POV)
The Sunakagure Underworld. It's a place not well known of, even to the people who live here. This place never sleeps, 24/7 fighting matches dominate the days & nights. Many people only come here for the main events, usually lasting around 20 minutes each. Even many of the low ranked fighters, they can't stand the Underworld. I'm used to it though, that happens when your born here. The whole place is at least 500m underneath the village, hard walls made of solidified sand & a harsh grainy floor still surround me like I remembered in my childhood. When I was young, I thought it strange that people find it entertaining to watch men, with the exception of myself, beat each other up in a cage, hands coated in each other's blood as each landed a blow on the other. Over the years I'd grown used to the stench here, the place reeks of sweat & blood, & the constant roars of the crowd keep me awake the nights I can't sleep, laying awake. When I can't sleep, I dream of what my parents would've been like. Kuromaru was my father's best mate, like brothers, & also his 'Fallback'. In the Underworld, every fighter would have a Fallback, a person to stop them beating the crap out of their opponent when they're unable to fight back. Kuromaru was my Fallback. Before my father was killed, Kuromaru promised my father he would take care of my mother & me... Mother...
( ?'s POV)
The chanting of the crowd outside became muffled through the thick material of the tent, the pitiful light of the candle next to me casting shadows over my best mate across from me. I watched as he wrapped my hands with bandages, carefully tying them off." Kuro," I said, my voice quiet amongst the silence," promise me you'll look after Kiyomi... & my child."
Kuro froze, looking me in the eye," You don't think you'll make it?" his voice was questioning, unsure of my request.
I shook my head," You know what the Underworld's like, they'll twist the words to suit themselves. You have to protect them from HIM." My words were spoken with bitterness & Kuro immediately knew who I was talking about.
We locked eyes, neither of us moving until he whispered," I promise you, Raiden, I will take care of Kiyomi & Leiko if anything happens to you.", we clasped hands, shaking them firmly like we were brothers."... Are you ready?" he asked, his dark hair casting shadows over his eyes. I nodded, standing from the flimsy wooden seat & exiting the tent. As I pulled back the bloodied cloth acting as a door to my tent, the roar of the crowd intensified at the sight of me. My face was expressionless, my eyes colder that a machine as they fell upon my opponent already in the ring. He was taunting me, seeming to try & intimidate me. Once I entered the iron bars of the cage, there was no going back, I was now stuck in I fight with a man twice as tall & twice as strong as myself. He was a giant, his arms unnaturally rippling with muscles, a twisted grin on his face as he looked down at me.
' The bigger they are, the harder they fall...' I thought, flexing my wrists, yet one thing worried me about this guy, he was well known for killing any opponent of his that tried to forfeit. Worse still, anyone who beat him was found dead the next day.
The announcer's voice boomed over the rising noise of the crowd, sending them into a frenzy," Here he is, folks! The Underworlds own, Thunder God!"
Cheering, more cheering.
" And his opponent," the crowds quietened, even they feared-" The Executioner!"
I woke with a start, sweat trickling down my temple." Kuro... promise me Kuro..." these words repeated in my mind, over & over like a broken record. They began to fade as I focused on my surroundings, recalling Leiko's fight the night before & how she'd lost it again. I sighed, this was the third time in just under a week she'd lost it in the ring & her 'Instinct ' was becoming more & more frequent.
Every night she would beat a block of wood in her tent with her bare knuckles until she exhausted herself & passed out. The poor girl. Before all of this, she was almost like a normal girl, but the constant fighting in the ring had made her a monster, & she remembered every moment of it. I couldn't do anything to help her with that, I could only wonder how long it would be before she went insane.
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A/N: Chapter 1 done. Next chapter will hopefully come soon, but I still need some reviews so I know I'm loved. Read & Review, please! Black Panda will send you a virtual cookie! X)
