Part 7

Galleria Mall: 10:30 AM

With preliminaries over the previous day and the 8 finalists selected, today was that day that one of them would be crowned the champion of the first annual Galleria Mall Martial Arts Tournament. What a strange coincidence that the tournament would be held on the same year that Ryuki had come to work in the Galleria Mall. To him, it was a surprise. Inside him, Yaminekoryu was grinning with anticipation. The demon in the boy just loved to fight. Even if he was stuck inside a prison within his host, Ryuki would allow him to experience what he himself was experiencing and the demon repaid him when he could. Yesterday, some of Yaminekoryu's eagerness had leaked out into Ryuki when they met Raiden. There was something about him and both host and demon wanted to fight him to see if it would be a fight to remember.

The other 7 finalists were also something to behold. Though a few of them had only gotten this far because they had been able to beat their exhausted opponent off the platforms because of the rules of the preliminaries, which was basically an endurance test, a few others had held on from the start to finish, much like himself. One of them was Raiden. Another person was the guy Jude had mentioned. He was a large, muscular and imposing figure with tanned skin that towered over most of the finalists. He left his body bare, wearing only a pair of red and black shorts and bandages around his forearms and calves, leaving his fingers and toes bare. His muscles appeared solid and intimidating plus the scars on his back looked like they had been caused by a whip. His face was frozen in a permanent scowl and he had shaved his head. His eyes were narrowed and concentrated as his arms which were the size of tree trunks were crossed over his chest. He had an 8-pack. Jude had said the guy sent all his other opponents to the hospital. Ryuki barely even saw it as he had been focusing on his own preliminaries, but he had to be wary of the guy. It might turn into a violent fight and this guy didn't look like he would be going down easily.

When he'd arrived with Tazuka, he was surprised to see many of the mall's frequenters lining up with banners and signs with his name on it. Girls that made up his own personal fan club was also cheering and wearing T-Shirts with his face on them. He was known as Leo to them and a number of the signs and shirts had lions on them to represent him. He preferred dragons, personally but a lion was a good comparison as Tazuka told him. Lions were symbols of courage and nobility and Tazuka couldn't name any other person more deserving of those traits. Ryuki walked over to meet up with his friends, who saw that the bruises he had accumulated the day previously completely faded. His only excuse was, "I heal fast."

A single platform had been erected for the finals. The rules were the same as before with one exception being the winner of a match would advance and the loser eliminated. Once again, they signed a contract that freed the sponsors and organizers of any liability like death for example. A full medical team was provided for emergencies like before.

His friends cheered him on, encouraging him to win and he smiled. His clothes from yesterday were covered in sweat so today he wore a new one. It was the same designs, except that the Chinese shirt was black with red trimmings and he wore a red sash around his waist. He also wore the goggles on his head. Caitlin have him a kiss for good luck.

The announcer and host of the competition stood up on stage. He spoke into it, "Alright, it was a long day yesterday when we saw some of the best fighters prove themselves to become our 8 finalists. Now, the arrangement won't be based on what platform they stood on, but more on luck." There were sounds of muttering. "The screen above me will display the roster for the tournament. It's automatic and random! When your name flashes, please go onto the platform and then wait for further instructions. Now, let's see who gets to fight first!"

RYUKI LEONARD HASUMA

VS

OWEN WAYNE

The first name that flashed on the JumboTron was none too surprising, except to Ryuki. "Alright, RYUKI LEONARD HASUMA! Come on to the platform!" Ryuki was pushed ahead by his friends and got onto the platform. "And, your opponent is OWEN WAYNE! Come on up!" Ryuki wondered who Owen was. He had caught a glimpse of the other finalists but didn't recognize the name. When Owen arrived, a lot of people muttered slightly in disbelief. Why?

Owen, was big….and fat. He towered over Ryuki by a head and wore a black shirt with blue pants. He didn't seem too imposing. He had a kind looking face with blonde hair. People wondered how he could one of the finalists by his appearance but young Ryuki knew that looks could be quite deceiving.

His friends watched. Jonesy snorted, "Leo's gonna win easy. The guy's large. He must be too slow."

"I don't know," Wyatt retorted. "He did make the final 8. He must have some skills."

"Or he got lucky," Jonesy remarked.

"Don't judge a book by its cover," Tazuka advised. "Because you may find yourself surprised."

Caitlin's fists were clenched, "C'mon, Leo."

Ryuki bowed in front of Owen who bowed back. The referee stood between them and said, "Alright, I want a nice clean fight. If you are thrown out, knocked out, or can't stand at the count of 10, you're out!" Ryuki and his opponent, Owen, nodded in agreement. "Alright…FIGHT!" The referee climbed off the platform to allow both the competitors to start fighting. Ryuki got into a fighting stance as he eyed Owen. The big guy just stood there. Ryuki's eyes narrowed slightly as he assessed his opponent with some help from his 'permanent tenant'.

'He doesn't look so tough, aibou, but you better be careful,' Yaminekoryu advised. 'Don't exhaust yourself too. That big guy and Raiden may become your opponents so you're going to need all the strength when you face them. It's a good thing you had a lot of food at the buffet breakfast.' Ryuki nodded. Yaminekoryu was ancient and had been around for a long time so his wisdom was something Ryuki appreciated. It had kept him alive in the Zodiac War up until now.

Ryuki decided to go on the attack first and with a loud cry he charged towards his opponent. He swung his clenched fist straight into Owen's gut. The crowd watched as he dealt the winning blow…or it would have if the fist hadn't been stopped by Owen's own body fat. Owen's belly jiggled as Ryuki's fist made impact.

"Nani!?" Ryuki gasped and Owen chuckled.

"Surprised?" Owen said, "I've been training all my life. Guess what? I've studied sumo and my body fat actually absorbs the blows I get. Nice, huh?" Ryuki had to admit that was impressive. "My turn." Owen's open palm then slammed into Ryuki's chest with the force of a truck going at full speeds. The air was knocked out of him as he was sent flying. He was lucky that he hadn't been knocked off the platform thanks to his telekinesis, but THAT HURT!

"Oh, man!" Jude gulped.

"See, Jonesy?" Wyatt said and Jonesy nodded in agreement.

"That Owen guy maybe fat, but he's strong," Jen said as he saw Ryuki sent flying with a blow.

"Boy, he must be equal muscle and fat," Nikki commented.

"Leo, baby, come on," Caitlin said, worried for him. Tazuka remained stoic.

The referee counted when Ryuki wasn't getting up but the boy pushed himself back to his feet at the 8th count. It was lucky too. 2 more counts and he would've been out. He messaged his chest. A bruise would be forming there soon. He then charged forward and attacked Owen again but none of his blows were doing any damage. Owen just smiled and countered by striking at Ryuki, pushing him away with a double palm strike.

'So, attacking head on isn't a good idea,' Ryuki thought as he massaged his shoulders. 'Yaminekoryu, have you ever fought anyone like this?'

'I have,' Yaminekoryu gave a mental nod, 'Or, to be precise, at least one of my former hosts, one of your ancestors, have.'

'How did he win?' Ryuki asked.

'I could tell you, but that technique would be considered very illegal in this day and age.' Ryuki rolled his eyes. 'But I got an idea. Let me tell you what to do…'

"Hey!" Owen called, "You gonna be just standing there?" Ryuki wasn't listening.

'I'm not going to make fun of his size!' Ryuki yelled back at Yaminekoryu. 'It's rude plus it wouldn't be nice!'

'You want to win, don't you?' Yaminekoryu shot back. 'Then insult him to make him loose focus.'

'No! And don't bother trying to take me over! You need my permission to do that!' Yaminekoryu grumbled. 'I'll win without having to insult him!'

'You're too nice for your own good, aibou,' Yaminekoryu muttered. 'Anyway, I recall this Owen's style. He's using the Brick Wall technique.'

'Brick Wall?' Ryuki wondered.

'He just stands and waits for the attacks, absorbing them and then striking back. It would appear that he absorbed the energy you used to hit him and then hit you back.'

'So, the harder I hit him, the more power he gets,' Ryuki realized.

'Like a brick wall. It hurts if you hit it too hard,' Yaminekoryu said. 'But, even a brick wall will crumble under pressure.'

Ryuki got the idea and then went into a stance. And circled the platform to find out what Owen's weak spot was. Based on Yaminekoryu's observation, Owen's technique required him to stay stationary in one place. His great mass enabled him to stay in one place and not be easily moved. "Yosh!" Ryuki said before he charged forward and Owen chuckled.

"Not gonna work!" Owen prepared to absorb the blow but then Ryuki swung up his fist and it made contact with Owen's chin. Owen was sent staggering back by the uppercut and nearly fell off the platform but then steadied himself. People cheered at the blow while others groaned. Ryuki flicked his wrist a bit.

"His chin is hard," Ryuki muttered, massaging his sore wrist.

'Good thinking, aibou,' Yaminekoryu congratulated. 'Hit his face. The technique can only be used when the user's body is attacked but not his head.' Ryuki now knew what he had to do. Owen stomped forward and went into a stance.

"Lucky shot," Owen scoffed.

"Was it?" Ryuki grinned before he dashed ahead towards his opponent. He leapt up to land a kick but then Owen surprised him by grabbing his leg and then slamming him on the floor. Ryuki's back was in pain from the impact but Owen wasn't finish. He brought Ryuki up and slammed him onto the floor again, face first. He then let go of Ryuki. The referee saw Ryuki was down and went to make the count but the young martial artist pushed himself back up to his feet before the count of one.

"You still standing?" Owen said, smiling. "Not many have lasted this long against me."

"There's always a first time," Ryuki said as he backed away from Owen. 'Now what?' Ryuki asked his spiritual guide.

'Knocking him out would take too long and waste your energy,' Yaminekoryu said. He was right. Ryuki wiped the sweat off his brow. He had numerous bruises on his body and Owen didn't have one. The uppercut he'd received didn't even leave a mark. Ryuki had to admit that despite his size Owen was a capable fighter. 'You gotta either make sure he doesn't stand up or knock him off the platform!'

'Must I use that technique?' Ryuki asked. 'I don't want to give it away too early.'

'That Ki kick you've been working on? Do it! You'll never advance until you knock this guy down!'

Ryuki reluctantly agreed. A few months ago since the Black Knights were defeated Ryuki had gone into Ki energy manipulation training with his grandfather. Despite his inability to fire it…yet, Ryuki could already focus on Ki energy with extra help from his inborn psychic abilities. Plus, having someone like Yaminekoryu provide the spiritual energy he would require for it also helped.

Everyone watched as Ryuki went into a stance in front of Owen. His arms were spread out beside him as one leg was held out in front of the other. He bent both his knees. Tazuka's eyes widened in recognition, "No way! He's going to do it!"

"Do what?" Jen asked. "He's just standing there."

"Look at the stance," Tazuka said.

"So?" Jonesy shrugged. "It's just a kung-fu pose."

"It's not just any 'kung-fu pose' as you put it," Tazuka said. "I've watched him practice it but never have I seen him use it."

"Use what? Is it bad?" Caitlin asked, worried.

"I hope not because Ryuki-kun has never tested this technique on anyone," Tazuka bit his bottom lip. 'I hope you know what you're doing.'

Ryuki took in a deep breath of air before he held up both his arms out and fists clenched. He then dragged his leg back inside so it was aligned with his other one before he released his breath and leapt into the air.

Owen watched as Ryuki came down on him, posed for a flying kick. Owen grinned and crossed his arms in front of himself to take the blow. There was no way Ryuki could beat him with a move like that. What he didn't know was that Ryuki had supplied the kick with his own Ki energy and when it hit the 'walls were coming down'.

Ryuki came down and the attack connected. Ryuki's foot smashed through Owen's defense and the larger boy felt it through his body. He shuddered before he was knocked back by the shock of the attack and landed on his back. He struggled to get back up but his arms and legs were flailing about. He couldn't get up due to his weight! People began to laugh at him and Ryuki frowned. The referee climbed onto the platform and made the count.

"1…2…3…4…5…6…7…8…9…" Owen gasped in shock. No way… he was going to lose! He flailed around harder to try and get up but to no avail. "…10!" the referee finished counting before raising up Ryuki's arm, "The winner is…Ryuki!" Despite the referee using Ryuki's first name, that was far from his thoughts. Taking his hand away, he walked over to Owen who appeared to be crying as he was still down, lying on his back.

"What do you want?" Owen asked, too ashamed to even face Ryuki. Ryuki gave him a hand.

"Need help getting up?" Ryuki asked. Owen looked at him and glared.

"I don't need your pity!" Owen snapped.

"You need to get up sooner or later. Come on," Ryuki encouraged. Owen grumbled and reluctantly took Ryuki's hand. Ryuki tugged hard so that he could pull Owen back up to his feet. The larger boy pushed himself up to help and soon was back up standing.

"Thanks," Owen muttered. Ryuki smiled.

"You're welcome." Ryuki smiled. "Good fight. I haven't fought an opponent like you before. You almost had me a few times."

"Well, close isn't quite a win," Owen shrugged. "Still, you taught me a thing or two about my defense. I guess some training is up for me."

With that, Owen nodded a goodbye and walked away. Ryuki smiled to himself before hopped off the platform. He felt someone hug him from behind.

"Oh, Leo!" Caitlin cheered. "You were so awesome!"

Behind Caitlin, the others were coming up to congratulate Ryuki for his victory.

"Dude!" Jude grinned. "That was so righteous!"

"How did you do that?" asked Nikki. "That kick just bowled him over!"

"It like something out of a movie!" Jonesy agreed.

"Definitely," Wyatt nodded.

Tazuka walked through the crowds until he managed to get to Ryuki.

"I'm impressed," he smiled. "It seems that your special technique seems to have worked after all."

"Hai," Ryuki smiled. "I was a little worried it wouldn't work but it did."

"But what about that blow to the chest you took?" asked Jen. "That must have hurt!"

"It did," Ryuki sighed, now remembering the pain in his chest. He took a moment to open his shirt to see if there was any visible damage. The girls didn't have time to drool over him since there was a large red handprint which caught their attention."

"Ow!" Wyatt winced. "That has to hurt!"

"Leo," Caitlin said, "You should get yourself checked at the medical tent."

"It's nothing to worry about," Ryuki said before closing his shirt again. "It's just a bruise, nothing too bad."

"If you say so, bro," Jude said.

"Alright!" the announcer said, "That was a great fight, wasn't it?" There were cheers everywhere. "Next we have another fight! Let's see who's next!" The names flashed on the JumboTron.

SAMSON

VS

KEITH JONES

"Alright, come on up!" the announcer declared and then people began to back away as the first fighter stepped up. Ryuki and Jude recognized him. It was the big and scary guy Ryuki had seen. So, his name was Samson, huh? Keith Jones wore a white karate gi and had short brown hair and a bit of a goatee. He wore a black undershirt under his gi and had on a black belt. That meant he was skilled enough.

The referee stood between the two. Samson was glaring down on Keith as Keith looked back confidently. "Alright, I want a nice clean fight! You two know the rules. Now, FIGHT!" The referee backed away and stepped off the platform as both fighters faced one another.

Keith was the first attack. With a battle cry he swung his fist at Samson. The giant of a man's only response was too quick for anyone to catch, save for Ryuki. Keith's punch was caught in Samson's hand. Samson then began to squeeze causing Keith to cry out in pain as he was forced to his knees. Samson sneered and then gave Keith a violent kick right in the face. Keith was sent to the ground, his nose broken and bloodied. He spat out some blood and got back to his feet.

"That had to be brutal," Jonesy winced.

Keith attacked Samson again but all his attacks were blocked. Samson then attacked again, this time with a knee strike into Keith's stomach. The karate-gi wearing guy doubled over before Samson slammed his elbow into his back, knocking him down. He didn't seem to be getting up so the referee prepared to make a count.

"Looks like it's over," Nikki said.

"That guy's scary," Jen gulped.

Ryuki's eyes then went wide, "No!" Samson had grabbed Keith's prone body and lifting him up.

Samson raised up Keith's body over his head like a trophy before bringing the guy down over his knee.

"YAMETTE!" Ryuki yelled out.

CRACK!

With a sickening crack, Keith's back was smashed over Samson's knee before he rolled off it. He was still alive but there would be no chance of him walking ever again. The referee reluctantly declared Samson the winner but refused to go near him, "Winner…SAMSON!" Samson raised both fists into the air and was booed. He didn't care as he walked off the platform. People backed away in fear but one person was defiant.

"STOP!" Ryuki shouted at him and Samson turned to look at him. "Why did you have to do that? He was already beaten! Why!?"

Samson smirked and walked away. The gang had to restrain Ryuki from running after Samson and attacking him. He couldn't afford to be disqualified. He calmed down a bit and then pointed at Samson, "When we meet, you're going down!" Samson flipped Ryuki the 'finger' before walking off until he was called again. Ryuki's temperament was clearly showing now as he watched Keith getting carried away and towards an awaiting ambulance. From what he'd seen, Keith was now suffering from damage to his spine. He would survive this but he could've died and now was probably paralyzed. Ryuki clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

"Dude," Jude gulped. "That guy is freaky."

"Leo," Caitlin spoke soothingly as she pushed against his chest. "Calm down. You'll get him soon enough."

"That dishonorable…!" Ryuki growled. "I hope I do fight him next. I'm not going to let him hurt anyone else!"

"Good idea," Wyatt grunted as he pulled Ryuki's arm to hold him back. "But you gotta calm down!"

"What he said!" Jonesy agreed.

Ryuki breathed in calmly. When the others felt he had properly calmed down, they let him go.

"I need to go get a drink," Ryuki said. "Wait here, I'll be back." He walked away from the gang.

"I'll go after him so he doesn't hurt himself," Tazuka volunteered before following after Ryuki.

Ryuki leaned over the drinking fountain as he took a cool drink of water from it. After that he wiped his mouth he gritted his teeth. Remembering Samson again he clenched his hand tightly into a fist before punching the wall. He was so angered by Samson's actions and he had to get away from the gang for awhile.

"Did the wall make you mad too?" Ryuki heard. He recognized the voice. It was Tazuka.

"Not now, niisan," Ryuki said to him. He leaned against the wall and rested a hand on his head.

"Are you okay?" Tazuka asked. "What's wrong?"

"I'm alright," Ryuki said, in denial, "It's nothing."

Tazuka rolled his eyes, "You really are a bad liar, you know that?" Tazuka then said, "It's because you got reminded of Asakura, isn't it?" Hearing that name made Ryuki growl. Asakura was an enemy Zodiac Knight, the Knight of Scorpio. He was a vicious fighter who was also homicidal. The first time they had encountered him he had murdered several people out of sheer enjoyment. Asakura was cruel, evil, murderous and dishonorable and Ryuki hated him for all the suffering he was causing. Ryuki clenched his fists again. "We'll stop him, don't worry. But now you need to focus on the tournament. If you let rage cloud your judgment, Samson will have already beaten you." Ryuki didn't answer but his nod meant that he'd accepted the advice. They then heard Jude calling them.

"Bros, come on!" Jude called as he skated towards them. Ryuki stood up straight.

"What is it?" Ryuki asked.

"It's that Raiden guy! You gotta see this!"

Tazuka and Ryuki looked at each other and nodded before following Jude back to the tournament.


Raiden sent his opponent flying off the platform with a powerful kick. It had been a short fight with Raiden clearly having an advantage. His opponent was an expert in Wushu but that didn't help him win against his opponent. The referee then walked over to Raiden and raised his arm into the air.

"The winner….RAIDEN!" the referee declared before Raiden pulled his arm back. He then walked over to his cloak which had been lying at the edge of the platform before putting it back on. His eyes scanned the area and he saw Ryuki running with Tazuka and Jude with him.

"Leo, you're back!" Caitlin said.

"Dude, you just missed it!" Jonesy said.

"What happened?" Ryuki asked.

"Sparks flew, literally," Wyatt said. "I mean, I actually saw sparks flying out of that guy's fingers."

"Must've been the trick of the light," Nikki commented. "But that guy took down his opponent in less than 5 minutes."

"Really?" Ryuki blinked in surprise. He hadn't been expecting that. Oh sure, he had met lots of fighters who could do that, but he hadn't been expecting anyone like that to compete in a minor tournament like this.

Raiden stepped off the platform and calmly made his way towards the gang. He faced Ryuki and both stared into each other's eyes intensely. Raiden then spoke up, "You better win against Samson so I can face you in the finals."

Ryuki nodded, promising, "Count on it." Raiden then walked past them. The announcer then called on the next two contestants. The crowd was already riled for the next fight. Samson's brutal display earlier was already forgotten to them.

Ryuki now had two people to face. One was Samson who was a vicious and brutal fighter while the other was Raiden who seemed pretty interested in fighting Ryuki. The Knight of the Dragon began to wonder what will happen next. Ryuki then noticed that Raiden was walking toward his own group, which consisted of a short man, a large muscular man with black spiky hair, and a very attractive young woman, who was also clasped to Raiden's arm.


End Part 7