+----+ Chapter 10: The Rebirth of the Dark Tournament +----+
As he looked out over the side of the boat, Shinrai let out a heavy sigh. This mission would be tough, no question. But he had to win.... for the sake of Reikai. His thoughts drifted back to his training.... with his former sensei....
=== Four Years Ago - Reikou Hadou Ken Dojo ===
"Shinrai-kun.... I'm asking you, don't leave the dojo. We need you here.... You might very well be the only one who can master the Reikou Hadou Ken succession technique."
A younger Shinrai Seijitsu, walking away from a shadowy figure, turned around violently, hatred burning in his eyes. "You think I care?! This style, these techniques.... it's too weak!" The shadowed man's eyes burned with rage, and he stepped forward, his red-orange hair seeming to be on fire with his fury. "Weak?! This is the style that saved this world - no, all three worlds - countless times! Don't you dare defile its name!" Shinrai turned away again, with a spiteful scoff.
"These techniques are far too weak. I'll find my own style. Farewell.... Kuwabara-sensei."
=== The Present - On the Boat to Hanging-Neck Island ===
A hand firmly grasped Shinrai's shoulder, startling him. With one fluid motion, he swiftly turned and swung with a fierce punch.... which was easily held fast by his 'attacker's' hand. Black eyes stared back at Shinrai benevolently, red-orange hair gently swaying in the wind.
"Not bad. But if you fight like that," said Kuwabara, "you'll never triumph against these guys." Shinrai was silent for a moment, before muttering, "Yes, Kuwabara-sensei.... I know. But I'll win against them, no matter the cost." Kuwabara's eyes widened.
"Y-You wouldn't use the.... !!!! You must never use that technique! The fabric of time and space itself may tear from its power!" Before Shinrai could say anything, Kuwabara raised a hand to silence him. "Our situation is dire, but not so dire that it would require the use of that skill. Just fight with all you have, but don't overdo it. Got it?" Shinrai nodded, and Kuwabara sighed heavily. "We're in for a hell of a fight...."
=== Below Decks ===
While Kuwabara and Shinrai were talking on the topside of the boat, most everyone was putting in some last minute training for the tournament. One notable exception, though, was Keyaku, who sat in quiet contemplation in a corner of the room. An elderly demon approached him, speaking in soft tones.
"Hey, boy.... Why aren't you training? Last chance before the tournament...." Keyaku stayed silent, and suddenly lashed out with a flurry of punches and kicks, all aimed at the demon's vital points. Effortlessly, the demon blocked the strikes, and, in one swift move, was behind Keyaku. Keyaku froze, and in that instant, the demon struck.... nothing but air. Just before the attack had hit, Keyaku had flipped into the air and delivered a powerful kick to the demon's head. The blow didn't phase him, the demon merely letting out a slight chuckle.
"Your skills haven't rusted at all, sir.... Heh-heh...."
Emerald green hair flowed down to the demon's waist. A white and golden robe covered his body, giving him the appearance of royalty. But this demon was clearly showing his age.... wrinkles covered his face and hands, and his dark red eyes showed that he'd been through several lifetimes of combat. Keyaku grinned, saying, "Of course my skills haven't rusted, Rikutsu-san. I was trained to keep up my technique at all times.... by you, remember?"
The sudden rush of Reiki power that the quick scuffle had released stopped everyone else in the room dead, some even in mid-step. A wave of silence swept over the room, all of the fighters there in awe at the power of the two martial arts masters.
=== Later.... ===
Finally, after several hours of travel, the boat docked at its target location - Hanging-Neck Island. Kuwabara stepped off of the boat's walkway, and spat at the ground. His fist clenched tightly, remembering the Dark Tournament that he'd fought in those many years ago.... The group slowly left the boat, heading further into the island until they reached their destination - the ruins of a tournament arena. And there, hovering above the stadium waiting for them, was the demon general Sei Ma.
"It's about time.... to start off the new Dark Tournament, don't you think? Round One - Survival! Get them!"
From over the horizon, hordes of Wingscales flew swiftly towards the group of warriors, their fangs bared menacingly. The fighters readied themselves for the onslaught, except for Kuwabara, who stepped forward and clutched his fist to his side. A golden glow surrounded his hand, as he cried out....
"Shotgun!!!"
The wave of Reiki hit the approaching demons head-on, obliterating them in an instant. What few survived darted down towards Kuwabara, who simply smirked, and yelled to the others, "Get going! You have a tournament to win! I can take these small-fry!" The rest of the group ran towards the stadium, and were greeted by even more demons. This time, Rikutsu leapt forward, firing off rapid blasts of black energy at the demons, incinerating them one by one. "I should've guessed this was a trap.... No matter. Keep going!" As Rikutsu and Kuwabara held off the demons, the last escort for the group, a large, mysterious demon, stepped in front of the fighters, blocking their path. Shinrai readied himself for a charge, but Taisho held him back.
"Fyushigi.... Get out of our way or I'll remove you." spoke Taisho sternly. The demon scoffed, but was quickly knocked to his knees with one punch from Taisho. Standing over him, Taisho called out to the rest of the fighters, "Leave this piece of shit behind. We've got more important things to do...." Above them, Sei Ma cackled wickedly....
"Correct, human. This was meant to be a test of YOUR skills, not your escorts'. But, seeing as how that plan failed.... Onwards, to the real fight. Round Two begins now.... Prepare yourselves for death, humans."
As he looked out over the side of the boat, Shinrai let out a heavy sigh. This mission would be tough, no question. But he had to win.... for the sake of Reikai. His thoughts drifted back to his training.... with his former sensei....
=== Four Years Ago - Reikou Hadou Ken Dojo ===
"Shinrai-kun.... I'm asking you, don't leave the dojo. We need you here.... You might very well be the only one who can master the Reikou Hadou Ken succession technique."
A younger Shinrai Seijitsu, walking away from a shadowy figure, turned around violently, hatred burning in his eyes. "You think I care?! This style, these techniques.... it's too weak!" The shadowed man's eyes burned with rage, and he stepped forward, his red-orange hair seeming to be on fire with his fury. "Weak?! This is the style that saved this world - no, all three worlds - countless times! Don't you dare defile its name!" Shinrai turned away again, with a spiteful scoff.
"These techniques are far too weak. I'll find my own style. Farewell.... Kuwabara-sensei."
=== The Present - On the Boat to Hanging-Neck Island ===
A hand firmly grasped Shinrai's shoulder, startling him. With one fluid motion, he swiftly turned and swung with a fierce punch.... which was easily held fast by his 'attacker's' hand. Black eyes stared back at Shinrai benevolently, red-orange hair gently swaying in the wind.
"Not bad. But if you fight like that," said Kuwabara, "you'll never triumph against these guys." Shinrai was silent for a moment, before muttering, "Yes, Kuwabara-sensei.... I know. But I'll win against them, no matter the cost." Kuwabara's eyes widened.
"Y-You wouldn't use the.... !!!! You must never use that technique! The fabric of time and space itself may tear from its power!" Before Shinrai could say anything, Kuwabara raised a hand to silence him. "Our situation is dire, but not so dire that it would require the use of that skill. Just fight with all you have, but don't overdo it. Got it?" Shinrai nodded, and Kuwabara sighed heavily. "We're in for a hell of a fight...."
=== Below Decks ===
While Kuwabara and Shinrai were talking on the topside of the boat, most everyone was putting in some last minute training for the tournament. One notable exception, though, was Keyaku, who sat in quiet contemplation in a corner of the room. An elderly demon approached him, speaking in soft tones.
"Hey, boy.... Why aren't you training? Last chance before the tournament...." Keyaku stayed silent, and suddenly lashed out with a flurry of punches and kicks, all aimed at the demon's vital points. Effortlessly, the demon blocked the strikes, and, in one swift move, was behind Keyaku. Keyaku froze, and in that instant, the demon struck.... nothing but air. Just before the attack had hit, Keyaku had flipped into the air and delivered a powerful kick to the demon's head. The blow didn't phase him, the demon merely letting out a slight chuckle.
"Your skills haven't rusted at all, sir.... Heh-heh...."
Emerald green hair flowed down to the demon's waist. A white and golden robe covered his body, giving him the appearance of royalty. But this demon was clearly showing his age.... wrinkles covered his face and hands, and his dark red eyes showed that he'd been through several lifetimes of combat. Keyaku grinned, saying, "Of course my skills haven't rusted, Rikutsu-san. I was trained to keep up my technique at all times.... by you, remember?"
The sudden rush of Reiki power that the quick scuffle had released stopped everyone else in the room dead, some even in mid-step. A wave of silence swept over the room, all of the fighters there in awe at the power of the two martial arts masters.
=== Later.... ===
Finally, after several hours of travel, the boat docked at its target location - Hanging-Neck Island. Kuwabara stepped off of the boat's walkway, and spat at the ground. His fist clenched tightly, remembering the Dark Tournament that he'd fought in those many years ago.... The group slowly left the boat, heading further into the island until they reached their destination - the ruins of a tournament arena. And there, hovering above the stadium waiting for them, was the demon general Sei Ma.
"It's about time.... to start off the new Dark Tournament, don't you think? Round One - Survival! Get them!"
From over the horizon, hordes of Wingscales flew swiftly towards the group of warriors, their fangs bared menacingly. The fighters readied themselves for the onslaught, except for Kuwabara, who stepped forward and clutched his fist to his side. A golden glow surrounded his hand, as he cried out....
"Shotgun!!!"
The wave of Reiki hit the approaching demons head-on, obliterating them in an instant. What few survived darted down towards Kuwabara, who simply smirked, and yelled to the others, "Get going! You have a tournament to win! I can take these small-fry!" The rest of the group ran towards the stadium, and were greeted by even more demons. This time, Rikutsu leapt forward, firing off rapid blasts of black energy at the demons, incinerating them one by one. "I should've guessed this was a trap.... No matter. Keep going!" As Rikutsu and Kuwabara held off the demons, the last escort for the group, a large, mysterious demon, stepped in front of the fighters, blocking their path. Shinrai readied himself for a charge, but Taisho held him back.
"Fyushigi.... Get out of our way or I'll remove you." spoke Taisho sternly. The demon scoffed, but was quickly knocked to his knees with one punch from Taisho. Standing over him, Taisho called out to the rest of the fighters, "Leave this piece of shit behind. We've got more important things to do...." Above them, Sei Ma cackled wickedly....
"Correct, human. This was meant to be a test of YOUR skills, not your escorts'. But, seeing as how that plan failed.... Onwards, to the real fight. Round Two begins now.... Prepare yourselves for death, humans."
