Here's the second chapter for today. I'm too lazy to write the disclaimer again, so just enjoy this chapter too!
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen! Are you ready for some more epic battles?"
The crowd cheered.
"Are you sure about this, Arashi?" Isamu looked at his brother, who was leaning against the wall behind him for support.
"If I find that I can't do it, I'll forfeit." Arashi replied calmly, the bandages on his chest barely peeking out from underneath the loose-fitting, kimono-style shirt he always wore, which Madoka had washed for him the night before.
"No you won't, I know you too well." Isamu replied with a sigh.
"I'll know by the battle." Arashi said, taking a few deep breaths in an attempt to keep his voice from sounding strained.
"Where's Arashi?" Tsubasa asked as Madoka and Maru entered the observation room.
"He insisted on battling, and had enough strength to stand, so we had to let him go. He promised to forfeit if it became too much." Madoka replied with a sigh. "Somehow, I doubt that he will."
"If I think it's too much for him, I'll stop the battle." Tsubasa sighed. "It's not preferable, but we can't have his injuries reopening."
"Agreed. Do we know who their first opponents will be?" Madoka asked.
"You mean in the tournament? Why do you ask?" Tsubasa raised an eyebrow.
"Well, if it is a place that is far away, then he will have more time to rest. We could even keep him from battling until he's fully recovered. Just keeping him from moving overnight and this morning helped a ton; he looked a lot better than he ever did before."
"He took some painkillers before going out there, and we did have a doctor stitch up the worse cuts late last night, although he wasn't too happy about that being forced on him." Benkei chuckled.
"Either way, there they are." Maru pointed down to the stadium, where the four bladers were entering.
"Arashi looks like he's having trouble." Madoka commented, watching as the bluenette hesitated for a moment before taking his hand off the wall and cautiously stepping forwards into the arena. His mouth was open slightly, and he seemed to be having a little bit of trouble breathing.
"Yeah, which makes me wonder if we should have even let him get up." Tsubasa said.
Isamu glanced back and paused for a second, but Arashi motioned him to keep moving.
Madoka sighed with relief once the group reached the waiting area and Arashi was safely seated on the bench, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed and arms crossed over his chest.
"And, our first competitors for today, please welcome Isamu Hikou and Ren Kurenai!" Guider announced, eyeing Arashi with a raised eyebrow.
The crowd cheered as the two bladers named made their way to the stadium and took their positions.
"Alright Isamu, I plan on winning this, so don't be too disappointed when you lose!" Ren shouted as she raised her launcher.
Isamu smirked. "We'll see about that!" he replied, raising his own launcher. "Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
Arashi opened his eyes and looked up.
"Let it Rip!"
Kerbecs and Phoenix flew from their launchers, clashing in midair for a few moments before landing in the stadium and circling each other warily as their bladers stared each other down. The tension in the air grew, as everyone watched the stadium and bladers standing at its edges, barely daring to blink or glance away lest they should miss something.
Arashi slowly and painfully got to his feet, taking a couple of steps forwards to stand next to Shinobu at the low wall that separated them from the main stadium.
The entire crowd, even Guider, fell silent as golden-brown clashed with emerald green across the stadium, Isamu's red and silver bey creating small circles in the near center of the stadium while Ren's silver and gold bey circled rapidly, the stadium rocking slowly back and forth with the motion of the beys.
Isamu smirked and slowly slid his feet apart into a wider battle stance. Ren clenched her fist, her muscles tense, ready for the attack. The entire crowd held their breaths, tense, waiting, until:
"Phoenix, Molten Wing!" Ren became the first to make a move, as her fiery bird burst out with a loud screech, spreading its large wings over the stadium and slashing at Kerbecs with them.
"Meet her attack, Kerbecs!" Isamu called, and the three headed dog roared and bit down on Phoenix's wing, causing the fiery bird to screech before wrenching itself free and again circling warily.
Ren growled under her breath in frustration, her eyes narrowing in concentration as she watched her bey spin.
Isamu grinned, his eyes sparkling with the challenge Ren was giving him.
"For once, his behavior corresponds with his defensive type abilities!" Maru commented.
"Go, Kerbecs!" Isamu called, as his silver and red bey picked up speed and raced around the stadium.
"You totally just jinxed it." Madoka chuckled.
"Ughh, Isamu! Why can't you act like a normal defense type for once?" Maru wailed, closing her laptop.
"Dodge it, Phoenix!" Ren called. The silver and gold bey leapt ahead of Kerbecs, barely outrunning it. However, Kerbecs merely picked up speed and began gaining on his fiery opponent.
"Isamu!" Arashi gathered his strength and shouted across the stadium to his brother.
"Huh?" the younger bluenette turned in surprise.
"Don't bother using speed that she can match, go for technique!" Arashi said, then collapsed into a sitting position on the bench and placing a hand to his side, wincing in pain.
"Got it!" Isamu said, turning back to the battle with a worried look on his face.
"Are you alright?" Shinobu asked, putting a hand on Arashi's shoulder.
"I'm fine." Arashi grunted quickly, trying to catch his breath.
"Alright Kerbecs, let's go!"
Shinobu quickly turned to a small screen in front of him and rapidly typed a few words on it, calling the medical staff and Madoka.
"Come on, Phoenix!" Ren called.
"Hang on Arashi, the medical team will be here soon." Shinobu said, turning to face the bluenette.
Arashi looked up and glared. "I told you, I'm fine!" he protested.
"Sorry, but I've already called them. They'll be here in a few minutes, and Madoka-chan is already on her way." Shinobu replied.
Arashi grunted and struggled to his feet. "I don't need them." he said, turning and attempting to leave.
Shinobu grabbed the bluenette's arm. "You're staying right here. I don't care if you want them here or not, you're going to be treated, whether you like it or not."
Arashi wrenched his arm from Shinobu's grasp and stood, drilling his emerald eye into Shinobu's olive ones.
A glimmer of light caught Shinobu's eye suddenly and he dove, shoving Arashi down just in time as a silver and gold bey slammed into the wall behind where they had been standing.
"Stupid blind spot." Arashi muttered as Shinobu helped him up a few seconds later. The bluenette turned and looked at the wall.
"Looks like Ren is the sub member after all. Let's go." Arashi said, turning and starting for the stadium.
Shinobu growled under his breath, knowing that he couldn't change Arashi's mind.
"You're going to battle no matter what I do, aren't you?" Shinobu challenged.
"Are you coming?" Arashi paused for a second and glanced back at the cream-haired blader.
Shinobu sighed and strode towards the stadium.
"Fine, but don't expect me to go easy on you. I'll end this quickly, and then we're getting you to a hospital for treatment." he said as he passed the bluenette.
Arashi smirked and continued walking towards the stadium, pulling his bey out and looking at it.
"You can try." he muttered as he mounted the platform.
By the time Madoka and the medical staff got there, both bladers were in position and had their launchers raised.
"What? I thought Shinobu called us here!" the brunette exclaimed.
"He did, I saw him doing it. I think he and Arashi were having some sort of argument, but our battle ended and Arashi went straight over to the stadium the moment it did." Isamu replied as he pulled Phoenix out of the wall and handed it to a pouting Ren.
Madoka sighed. "Be ready, this may not end well for him." she said to the nurses and doctor behind her.
"Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
"Let it Rip!"
"Chimera!" Arashi immediately sent his bey spiraling to the center, leaving Shinobu to circle warily.
"So, what'll it be, Arashi? Are you planning on using your five-minute strategy to defeat me, or are you going to just attack like you did with Isamu yesterday?" Shinobu challenged.
"Neither." Arashi replied. "I'm not sure I have the stamina physically for the five-minute strategy, and the quick-attack-and-end-it strategy might take up too much energy."
"What are you planning then?" Shinobu asked.
Arashi grinned. "I really don't know, I think I'll just wing it."
Isamu sweatdropped. "He's going to wing it? I don't get the feeling that's going to go very well."
"Well, in his current state, I have to agree with you. However, Gingka usually just winged most of his battles, I can't really think of a time where he ever went into a battle with an actual strategy in mind. He always came up with it as he went along." Madoka sighed at the memory of her redheaded friend, and hoped that he would show up soon. In the meantime, however, her job was to stay and wait for things to play out with the DNA, help as much as she could, and support the new generation of bladers.
"Salamander!" Shinobu attacked, but Arashi dodged easily.
"Come on Shinobu! Throw your sure-fire barrage attack at him!" Ren called.
"Right! Salamander!" Shinobu said, his silver and orange bey disappearing.
"What?" Arashi looked around, scanning the stadium.
"Go now!" Shinobu called, as Salamander appeared out of nowhere and slammed into Chimera before disappearing again.
"Gahh! Where did that come from?" Arashi asked, placing his hands on the rail around his platform and peering into the stadium with his one good eye.
"Salamander!" Shinobu called, as his bey again appeared and attacked the silver and black one spinning steadily in the center before disappearing. After a few more minutes of rapid-fire attacks, Shinobu glanced up at the blader standing opposite him, and found him down on one knee, eyes closed in concentration and breathing heavily.
Madoka motioned to the medical staff behind her to be ready, then took a step forwards.
Isamu glanced at the brunette, worried.
"It's over, Arashi. I've won and you're still weakened. There is no dishonor in a forfeit, and we can always settle this later." Shinobu said.
Arashi smirked as he took a deep breath and stood, sliding his feet apart into a wide battle stance as he opened his eyes and drilled the emerald-green and silvery-white combination into Shinobu's olive-green eyes.
"What point is there in forfeiting when I know your attack pattern?" he asked, breaking into a broad grin.
"My attack pattern? There's no way you have it memorized already!" Shinobu said. "Your eyes were closed!"
"You can't rely only on your eyes in battle, I was listening to your attack pattern, and now I have it memorized." Arashi replied.
"No way!" Isamu exclaimed as Chimera began dodging Salamander's attacks, one after another.
"Hmm, interesting." Tsubasa commented.
"What?" Benkei asked.
"He knows to use not only his eyes, but all of his senses, or at least his hearing." Tsubasa said. "It is rare that a blader thinks of that, but that happened to be one of my specialties. Arashi is definitely a blader with skill, one we should keep on the team. I guess it's a good thing that Madoka convinced me to keep him on the team."
"Well, then it looks like we are going to see more skill then he has already displayed." Benkei said, pointing to the stadium, where the bluenette had started glowing black, with black flames appearing around him.
"Chimera, Snake Bite Attack!" Arashi called.
"Salamander!" Shinobu was stunned as Arashi's Chimera latched onto his bey and unleashed a heavy barrage attack.
"Soul Ring Assault!"
"Triple Storming Fire!"
The two bladers yelled as their beys collided, causing a huge explosion and kicking up tons of dust.
"And both moves explode in an epic clash! Did that decide it?" Guider asked.
As the dust cleared, Shinobu was the first to become visible. The medical team standing behind Madoka tensed, ready for action of they were needed. A few seconds later, as the dust continued to settle, Arashi's blue topknot became visible, followed soon after by the rest of his body as he slowly stood and slid back into his battle stance.
"Arashi just won't give up, despite being injured! Just how far can he go?" Guider asked, obviously shocked.
"Chimera, attack!" Arashi roared, his voice beginning to sound weaker as he continued on.
"This battle is nearing its end." Madoka said.
"Yeah, I hope." Isamu said, sounding worried. "Arashi always pushes himself to his limits; he doesn't know when to stop."
"Well, Shinobu has already reached his limit." Ren commented, pointing to the cream-haired blader, who was looking frustrated and surprised.
"Salamander!"
"Go now, Chimera!" Arashi called.
Madoka jumped to the side and screamed in surprise as Salamander flew past her and embedded itself in the wall. Arashi silently reached up and caught his bey, then collapsed to his knees as the platform he was standing on began descending.
Isamu raced over to his brother, with Madoka and the medical team right behind him.
"Arashi! Are you okay?" Isamu asked, kneeling down next to his brother.
Arashi nodded and slowly got to his feet.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the leader of your world championship representative team is Arashi Hikou!" Guider announced as Arashi lifted Chimera high in victory.
The crowd burst out cheering, but Isamu and Madoka could easily see that Arashi was ready to drop right where he was standing. His emerald green right eye was half-closed, his face expressionless.
"Come on; let's get you somewhere where you can rest." Madoka said, holding out a hand towards the bluenette, who nodded and followed without protest.
Half an hour later, Tsubasa, Madoka, and the newly-formed Japanese world championship representative team were all seated together in Tsubasa's office. Arashi was seated on the couch with his arms crossed behind his head, his eyes closed. Isamu was seated next to his brother, grinning from ear to ear, his emerald eyes sparkling as he looked around the room.
"So, what do we do now?" Shinobu asked from his position leaning against the wall nearby.
"You've taken on Japan, and now, you take on the world." Tsubasa replied.
"The world? Sounds like a challenge." Isamu grinned. "Right, Arashi?"
Arashi opened his eyes, sat up, and broke into a huge grin. "Of course. Two DNA bladers down, four to go."
"When do we leave?" Ren asked.
"Tomorrow morning, you have to be at the airport by seven to catch your plane." Madoka replied.
"That's early!" Isamu exclaimed.
"Yes, but you have to be in China on time to be able to relax for a bit before your match the next day." Tsubasa said.
"China first, huh?" Arashi muttered, leaning back against the couch and closing his eyes.
"Yes, now go pack up." Tsubasa said.
"Yes sir!" Isamu saluted the silver-haired WBBA director and turned to leave.
"And guys," Tsubasa said as the group reached the door.
"Yes?" they paused and turned.
"You don't know your team name yet." Madoka smiled.
"Ooh, what is it?" Ren asked eagerly.
"Well, it took us a while to come up with, but, in the end, we decided to honor the Japanese team that I fought on, team Gan Gan Galaxy, by making their team name a part of yours." Tsubasa said. "However, we didn't want the names to be exactly the same, so, after watching all of your heated, fiery battles, we settled on a name."
The group stood tall, silent, waiting for Tsubasa to continue.
"So, as you carry the hopes of every one of Japan's bladers on your shoulders, I wish you good luck, Team Galaxy Flame." Tsubasa said.
"Galaxy Flame, huh? Awesome!" Isamu exclaimed.
Arashi merely smiled.
"Good luck guys, win it for everyone!" Madoka said.
"Yeah! Let's go take on the world and create our own legend, just like the Legendary Bladers did!" Isamu cheered.
The whole group gathered in a circle outside the WBBA headquarters, placing their hands on top of each others in a large pile.
"Ready? One, two, three!"
"Galaxy Flame!"
Me: Yeah! Now you guys know the team name, if I didn't tell you before. Thanks again for reading and submitting your OCs, and, for anyone who submitted an OC on the Chinese team, your OCs are up first! So, next week, be ready for 'Hikou Rising' and the Chinese team, Team Sheng Zai Shili!