Loud House: Bad Luck Brawler

by Mr ChubbySnorlax619

NSL AU! Inspried by fighting media fiction and non-fiction! Years have past as Lincoln was taken away from his no good family, time has changed Lincoln. No longer a weaking, Lincoln is a trained brawler fighting for fun and cash. All that changes when an old friend tracks him down. Now Lincoln's life becomes a bit more complicated with fighters and worst of all family showing up!

9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Clash of Geniuses!

Disclaimer: I don't own Loud House; all rights are owned by their respective owners and companies.

Los Angeles, California

STAPLES Center

---

The fight that started this tournament still raged on. All the eyes in the stadium were focused on the cage that contained the two fighters. Two fighters that were complete opposites, from diverse backgrounds and had different beliefs when it came to fighting. Yet here they stood, Leni and Carlos using the same footwork and martial arts. What an odd twist of fate. Both fighters were performing Ginga, rocking back and forth with their eyes focused on each other. A brash smile on Carlos's face while Leni kept a serious and focused expression. They were both waiting to see what the other one would do. Searching for the slightest movement or shift in weight. This lasted until Leni decided to try her luck against the former boxing champion. She rushed at Carlos and went for a quick sidekick aimed at his left side of his abdominal area! Carlos saw the kick coming and performed an Aú. Which happened to be the capoeira term for what is more generally known as a cartwheel. It differs a little from a traditional cartwheel because of their different intentions. An aú, in its base form, is performed very slowly, with arms and legs bent in order to keep a low target profile. That way they are harder to be hit by an opponent. A capoeirista might pause midway during an aú holding it for a handstand position, from which they can execute a wide variety of moves.

There is always the risk of being punched, kicked, or attacked while inverted. To combat this an emphasis is placed on closely watching the movements and intentions of your opponent instead of the ground. While the main purpose of using the aú is more geared towards mobility and evasion there are still more ingenious variations of employing it. Capoeira practitioners can incorporate unpredictable strikes as well as feints from the aú. These include inverted kicks as well as jumping movements that do not involve the hands.

In this case, Carlos did the aú batido. This aú variation is where a practitioner does a handstand, followed by a twist with the hips and a split, performing a downward hammer kick with instep of the foot. During the kick, one arm is protecting the face while the other one is supporting the body. Aú batido means "hitted cartwheel". This movement happens to be a defensive move, used when attempting to perform a cartwheel and the opponent attacks, often a headbutt or kick, the aú batido takes place, attacking the opponent by surprise before the attack is executed. The aú batido is sometimes also used in doubt or simply as a trick move. This move is also performed in tricking, and for quality. It is also used often in breakdancing where it is known as the L-kick.

Thankfully, Leni saw what Carlos was going for.

Seeing a hammer kick coming for her, Leni quickly did an aú of her own. The aú de frente, which starts much like a regular aú, but once the legs are off the floor, the hips are turned, and the move ends in a front walkover. Leni quickly executed this and dodged Carlos's kick! Carlos spun around fast while on a handstand, hoping to catch Leni with a kick! Fortunately, Leni saw this coming and quickly pulled herself back to barely dodged a spinning kick to the face! However, Carlo's attack didn't stop there! While spinning around on a handstand, Carlos suddenly grabbed Leni's left ankle to stop her from moving or dodging! Leni looked understandably shocked, but Leni didn't have time to gawk because Carlos went for a hard kick aimed at her face! She barely had time to put her guard up to block the kick! The kick struck Leni's forearm and it did damage! Wincing in pain, Leni should be grateful nothing broke, but she could feel a large bruise from that kick, and it hurt.

What came next shocked Leni and everyone watching, Carlos quickly let go of Leni's ankle and backflipped away before landing on his feet. With a smirk on his face, Carlos bent down to perform a quick low cartwheel. Leni carefully watched Carlos as she slowly backed away from him. She frowned when she saw Carlos make another aú and headed towards her. Carlos didn't want to stop his attack. Putting her guard up and carefully watching Carlos's legs, Leni expected a kick to come her way. When all of a sudden the most unexpected thing happened! Carlos stopped cartwheeling towards Leni to fall down on the mat flat on his left side! He then quickly struck Leni's left ankle with a quick punch! A shocked and pained look was all Leni could give before falling down to one knee from the pain! Carlos didn't waste any time capitalizing on this as he quickly got up and sent a powerful roundhouse kick towards Leni's face! The second eldest Loud sister barely managed to lift her arm in time to block the kick! The sheer power from the kick caused Leni to wince in pain and reel back! Carlos kept his leg up to give a pose with a slight smirk, while Leni glared at him.

Those watching were shocked or amazed by what they were seeing. Only a select few weren't shocked by what they saw. Two of those happened to be Ronnie Anne and Carlino, both were smiling slightly with a shocked Carlitos and impressed Sekibayashi.

"Damn, Carlos is really something else." Carlitos stated still reeling from what he was seeing. "That guy is on a whole other level."

Ronnie Anne chuckled slightly causing those around her to look at her.

"Carlos is a cut above the rest, people train and strive to try and reach the level he's on. He grew tired of fighting in the public eye where he was constantly denied a chance to fight and give it his all. Pretty soon he left that all bullshit behind to fight in the underground martial arts world. Where he quickly found out his boxing and large physical frame at the time wouldn't cut it. That's when he decided to sacrifice his weight and offensive power in favor of what you're all seeing now. He even took up different martial arts to gain an edge against those in the underground. Boxing, capoeira, and eastern martial arts. All of it perfectly blended into what you see now. Carlos became something only a select few can be called. He's a genius, not at boxing but at striking as a whole. Doesn't matter what Leni has up her sleeve. She won't beat Carlos…"

Both Carlitos and Sekibayashi were shocked by Ronnie Anne's words. The most troubling thing is that neither of them could dispute her claims. Not after seeing what's happening in front of them. Carlino had a smirk on his face while he shook his head slightly.

"Any moment now, Carlos will end this. Just you guys wait and see."

Neither Carlitos nor Sekibayashi said a word, they remained silent and resumed watching the match. All the while waiting to see if Carlino was correct.

Across the stadium, where Lincoln and some of his sisters were watching from. Each of them either had troubled or shocked looks on their faces. The exception being Lynn looked absolutely livid.

"What kind of bullshit is that!" Lynn yelled with annoyance and apparent scowl. "Ain't no way that's normal capoeira, he's doing something else."

"If I had to guess I say he's using Ditangquan." Lucy commented getting everyone's attention. She kept her eyes focused on Carlos and his movements. "The way he tumbled there and perfectly attacked Leni while lying there. It had to be Ditangquan, more commonly known as ground tumbling boxing."

"Now that you mention it, yes. It does look like Ditangquan." Lincoln admitted while rubbing his chin and watching Carlos more closely. "If I remember correctly it's a Chinese martial art that originated from the Song Dynasty. It's a martial art that relies on tumbles, falls, turns, leg skills, somersaults and aerial acrobatics for both offense and defense use. From what I've heard many only use it to blend with their own martial arts. It seems like Carlos perfectly blended his boxing, capoeira and Ditangquan together in his own style."

Hearing this didn't cause anyone's troubled looks to vanish, in fact they looked even more troubled. Lily looked very worried while she watched the fight. Her focus was on Leni and her current condition. From the looks of Leni's injuries, it looked pretty dire. Lily could feel her feelings for what was happening were split. On one hand, Lily felt like Leni was finally paying for what she had done to Lincoln and for keeping what happened a secret from her. But on the other hand, Lily felt her heart wrench seeing her older sister in such a state. She couldn't help but feel concerned for her safety. Suddenly, Lily found herself speaking up in a soft and worried tone.

"Guys… is Leni going to be okay?"

Lincoln and the others looked understandably shocked by this sudden question and that it came from Lily of all people. It was pretty clear Lily still held animosity towards her older sisters. So why would she be so concerned all of a sudden? Some of the sisters gave each other looks of uncertainty since they didn't know what to tell their younger sisters. The only ones with no such looks were Lincoln, Lucy, and Lynn. All three of them were watching the match closely with serious looks. Until Lucy decided to finally break the uneasy silence.

"So far Leni hasn't gotten any serious injuries. Carlos has only received a few cuts so far in this fight. Leni managed to gain the upper hand after taking her weighted shoes off and going on the attack. Predicting and evading Carlos's jab in that split second was astonishing, and quickly taking him by surprise with her capoeira gave her the advantage in this fight. That is until Carlos decided to switch things up as well. Although they both know capoeira, both Leni and Carlos clearly differ from how they use it. It looks like Leni is switching back and forth from her Savate and capoeira while Carlos has blended his flawlessly into his own style. From a mere observation standpoint, Leni is at a clear disadvantage and the fight will end badly for her."

Lily along with Luna and Lana were horrified by this.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Everyone were surprised to hear Lincoln speak up and looked over at him. Unlike his sisters, Lincoln had a slight grin on his face.

"I've been watching Leni very closely in this fight and I can safely say she's still got a good chance in this fight." Lincoln state while still grinning. Earning him some confused looks from his sisters except Lynn and Lucy. "Just wait and see. I'm sure you guys will see it soon."

The confused looks Lily, Lana and Luna had remained. They hoped Lincoln could elaborate further but he kept quiet and resumed watching the fight. Lynn and Lucy joined him, it didn't take long for Lily, Lana, and Luna to resume watching the fight. Lily still felt this immense uneasiness when looking at Leni. The only thing Lily could do was watch and hope for the best for her older sister.

'Leni… please be safe.'

Up in the stands, Leni's mentor and friend Remy watched the fight with a firm look with his arms crossed. Having been Leni's mentor these past few years and watching her train, Remy knew Leni still had more to show.

'Leni, when you first approached me to ask me to become your mentor. I thought you were some fool seeking strength for selfish reasons. That changed when you told me your reason to seek strength through fighting. You sought and yearned for strength for the sake of your brother. Many would call you foolish or strange for wanting such a thing… but not me. Because long ago I took up fighting for a similar reason, for my dead sister. That's why I agreed to take you as my student. Over these past few years, I trained you and taught you everything I knew. Still, you pushed yourself further than anyone I know.'

If anyone knew what Leni was fully capable of. It would be her own mentor, Remy.

'The training you put yourself through alongside mine would have crippled a lesser person. Not you though, you have proven you're stronger than most. The sheer willpower you have is awe-inspiring. But what's more impressive is the sheer love you hold for your brother and your family. It's for those reasons why you are such a talented and strong martial artist. It's what drives you, it's what gives you the strength and will to push on. Not only that, but if what your sister Lisa says is true about your "condition." Then this fight is far from over.'

The fight remained at a halt with both fighters waiting for a moment to strike. Leni kept her gaze steady on Carlos as he kept smirking. Suddenly, Carlos decided to be the one to strike first! He bolted towards Leni as she barely got her guard up to block a kick aiming for her face! Carlos quickly spun around to try a reverse roundhouse kick, but Leni managed to block that too! For those watching the fight in the audience it looked like Carlos's plan was to end with a devasting kick to the head. At least, that's what he wanted them and Leni to think. For his plan was to get Leni to focus all her attention on guarding and watching for attacks aiming for her upper body and face. That way her guard and focus down below would be laxed.

Another quick kick came from Carlos, Leni instantly pulled her head back enough for the kick to miss. Leni had focused most of her attention on guarding her face and the rest of her upper body. Just like Carlos planned for.

'That's it, keep your focus solely up here. You know it'll take only a single good kick to knock you out and ruin those good looks of yours, señorita. Too bad you won't be expecting an attack aimed below. I'll end this fight by taking out one of your legs.'

Carlos dodged a straight kick from Leni, he smiled as Leni decided to go on the offensive. The former world champion gracefully dodged or blocked all of Leni's punches and kicks. The frustrated look on Leni's face was apparent as she pressed on with her attack. Still smiling, Carlos kept on dodging as he slowly started to put his plan into action.

'It's time to end this fight, as much as it pains me to do so. I must admit, your brother was right, Leni Loud. The skill and resolve you have shown in our fight is astonishing. I expected this fight to be nothing more than a joke, but you proved me wrong. You even managed to cut me when my guard was lowered. Few could accomplish such a feat. If that weren't enough you've somehow given me that for which I've been desperately searching. If only we had met under different circumstances, like in the underground fighting circles or Purgatory. I'm afraid this is where your fighting days will end. One day, I hope I can forgive myself for what I'm going to do.'

The smile Carlos had slowly turned into a serious look, something Leni quickly noticed. Yet that deter her from keeping up her attack. In response, Carlos only dodged and blocked each of Leni's attacks. This went on until Carlos saw the opening he was looking for. Ducking under a straight jab from Leni, Carlos got on his hands and spun around to deliver a devastating kick aimed for Leni's left leg! Where Lincoln and the others were watching, those keen enough saw what was happening. On the other side of the arena, Ronnie Anne and her group knew what Carlos was doing. Up in the VIP section, those keen enough like Lori, Lisa, Bobby, Clyde, and Shikano saw what was coming.

In those mere moments before Carlos attacked, he only had a single thought.

'It pains me to end such a great fighter…'

Following that final thought, Carlos, and many of those watching expected to hear a cringeworthy snap followed by a scream. But that didn't happen because what happened was even more shocking. In those last couple of seconds just as Carlos threw his kick, Leni somehow pulled her leg away just in time! However, that wasn't the most shocking thing. The most shocking is that after pulling her leg away in time to dodge Carlos's kick, Leni somehow managed to grab and stop Carlos's kick from going any further with both of her hands and held it in place! The arena became dead silence as the audience watched on in pure shock. The same could be said for those watching up in the VIP section, and where both Ronnie Anne and Lincoln's respective groups were watching. The only ones not shocked were Leni's mentor Remy, Lincoln, and Lisa. Remy smirked while closing his eyes, Lincoln smiled proudly while looking on at Leni with pure admiration in his eyes. While Lisa simply grinned before slightly pushing her glasses up a little.

In the octagon cage, nobody was more shocked than Carlos as he stood there in place standing on one leg. As for Leni, she shockingly gave Carlos a sickly-sweet smile.

"Got you."

Just as Carlos realized the unfavorable position he was currently in. He quickly followed his instincts and went for a quick jab for Leni's face! But yet shockingly again Leni somehow saw this attack coming and pulled her head back far enough to barely dodge Carlos's jab. The shocked expression Carlos had turned into horror when Leni performed a leg sweep on Carlos's leg! But instead of falling down once he had lost support from his leg, Carlos felt Leni release her grip from his other leg. Before Carlos knew it, Leni had quickly pulled his head with an arm from behind and bent over, lifting him up and rotating her body to throw him to the ground!

SLAM!

Carlos's eyes widened as he gasped from the pain he felt being slammed onto the mat on his back! The sheer unexpected throw caused Carlos to lay flat on his back with a dazed look. Only one thing went through his mind while he lay on the floor staring up at the ceiling of the arena.

'Just… how?'

Unfortunately, it looks like Carlos would have to ponder this question later on because Leni wasn't done yet! The young Savate practitioner stood above Carlos where she lifted her leg up as high as she could and then brought in down towards Carlos's head at great speed! Seeing the axe kick coming for him, Carlos quickly acted and rolled over to the side!

THUD!

The powerful axe kick Leni performed completely missed its target! But the sheer power and speed from the kick caused a deep dent in the mat and floor beneath it which was shocking considering it was mostly metal underneath the mat. Carlos had rolled away far enough and swiftly got up but still seemed to be reeling from Leni's unexpected throw. The former boxing champion panted slightly as he stared at Leni with an uneasy look. A brief shock overcame Carlos when he noticed the damage Leni left on the mat floor from her axe kick. If that kick had connected with Carlos's head, it would be safe to say that this fight would be over. A slight scowl could be seen on Carlos's face as he looked over at Leni.

'What the hell was that? I planned everything flawlessly, there was no way she could have saw my kick coming, yet she did. Just like how she saw my jabs coming, jabs so fast that it should be impossible to see them coming! There is no way I slipped up. But somehow this mere woman saw my pivotal final attack coming and countered me perfectly. Just who are you, Leni Loud?'

Leni just stood there where only a few moments ago she had Carlos at her mercy. Leni's demeanor had completely changed too. Instead of looking frustrated and serious like before, Leni had an eerily calm smile. She even dropped her stance and guard to stare back at Carlos with a relaxed posture. For those watching, it was completely mind boggling to see such a turnaround in both fighters. Leni looking calm and composed, even with her injuries. And for Carlos's sly demeanor to be replaced with such an uneasy and vulnerable state. Many of those watching couldn't believe what happened, none more so than those watching where Ronnie Anne and her group were watching from. It was safe to say none were more than Ronnie Anne and her group. Ronnie Anne, Carlino, Carlitos, and Sekibayashi looked on in pure shock. It took a few moments before Carlino managed to shake off his shock to say what they were all thinking.

"What the hell just happened!" Carlino exclaimed in pure shock and disbelief. "Tell me I'm seeing things because it looks like that chica completely countered Carlos! There's no way that just happened, right? Am I right guys?"

Carlino looked around at the others hoping for answers, but only got the same shocked looks and silence. The first to break the silence was Sekibayashi as he let out a loud laugh earning him odd looks from both Carlino and Carlitos.

"Well, I'll be damned! It seems there's more to that girlie than just her looks!" Sekibayashi laughed once again. "This match just got a little more interesting!"

Both Carlino and Carlitos looked confused since they had no clue what the veteran pro wrestler was talking about. Carlitos looked over at Ronnie Anne, hoping for his cousin to give any sort of insight on what just happened. But all he got was silence and the same shocked look. The youngest Casagrande could only look at his cousin with slight concern.

Ronnie Anne looked on with the same expression, and the same question going on over and over inside her head.

What just happened?

It should have been an easy enough question to answer, but for Ronnie Anne it seemed impossible. The most obvious conclusion she could come up with is that Leni simply countered Carlos and caught him off guard. But that's where Ronnie Anne found herself at a complete loss. How did Leni do it? How could Leni of all people manage not only to see Carlos's attacks coming but perfectly counter them as well? None of it made sense from what Ronnie Anne has seen so far in this fight. During the fight, Ronnie Anne had thought she figured Leni out. That this fight was already over, but it turns out she was wrong. How could she have not seen it coming, and how the hell did Carlos not see it coming? There are a few people that Ronnie Anne would think twice about fighting, and her mentor Carlos was at the top of that list. And now here she was looking at the same man brought low by Leni Loud of all people. Ronnie Anne slowly focused her attention on Leni and could only think of one thing.

'What happened to you, Leni?'

On the other side of the arena, Lincoln and some of his sisters were still watching the match. Each of the sisters were very much shocked by what they just witnessed, even Lucy had a slack jaw expression. The only one not shocked was Lincoln, he in fact smiled while watching on. The first to come out of their shock was Lynn, she quickly rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

"Okay… pretty sure I didn't drink that much in the locker room. Did you guys see what I just saw or is all my drinking finally catching up to me?"

The next sister to snap out of their shock happened to be Lucy.

"Honestly, after seeing you chug a whole six pack on our way here. I would say yes." Lucy remarked rather dryly. "But knowing you and that superhuman liver of yours, I think it's safe to say no. At least not yet."

That little remark earned Lucy a slight glare from Lynn. Lucy simply gave a dry look back before her expression became serious once she looked back at the fight.

"Nevertheless, what we all just saw really did happen." Lucy sighed while crossing her arms. "The only question is how did it happen in the first place?"

Slowly the rest of the sisters snapped out of it, Lana was the next one to speak up.

"Yeah, one second Leni is just barely holding on in there and now she has Carlos on the ropes!" Lana exclaimed still reeling from what she had just seen. "I'll admit I don't know much about fighting and martial arts, and all that stuff. But I know when animals are going for the kill, and it looked like that guy Carlos was going straight for it."

The sisters that were well-informed in martial arts and fighting in general agreed with Lana. Throughout the entire fight, Carlos seemed to be controlling the whole thing. Only time Carlos slipped up was when Leni switched to Capoeira and when she took off her weighted shoes. Up until now this fight wasn't going in Leni's favor. Yet just when it looked grim for Leni, somehow she pulled a fast one on Carlos.

But how exactly?

Lily had the same lost expression as the rest of her sisters. Not really being very knowledgeable about these kinds of things, Lily didn't have a clue how Leni managed to turn this fight around so quickly. None of this made sense for her. But thankfully she knew someone that knew a thing or two about this stuff. Looking over at her brother, she was surprised to see Lincoln smiling with such an impressed look in his eyes. Unlike everyone else around him, it looked like Lincoln wasn't surprised in the least.

"Lincoln, do you know what's going on?"

The rest of the sisters heard Lily's question and they all looked over at their brother. Like Lily, they were surprised by his smiling and odd look. Lincoln didn't bother to look over at Lily or the others. All his attention seemed focused on the fight, more importantly on Leni.

"To be completely honest, I don't know how Leni did it, but I have a faint idea of what she did. But I got to say I never thought I'd see Leni of all people pull something off like this. In all my years of traveling, I know only a few people who can do what Leni just did. People who are some of the most experienced and gifted martial artists and fighters around. One of my mentors happens to be one of them. I noticed something odd during the fight happening with Leni, I just didn't think this would be it. I don't know how, but Leni has something similar to an ability called Foresight."

The only ones to looked visibly shocked by what Lincoln just said was Lynn and Lucy. While the rest of the sisters seemed more confused than before. Lynn was the first to say something.

"Whoa, hold up! Are you totally sure that what Leni is doing is Foresight? I've dabbled in the martial arts world and even in the underground fighting scene. Which means I've seen a lot of crazy shit, and I've seen Foresight in action. The only guys I've seen or heard of using that weird technique are geezers or straight up geniuses like Lisa. Now, I know for damn sure Leni isn't that experienced in these kind of fights since this probably her first ever fight. And I definitely know that Leni ain't a freaking genius. I'm not saying that to be a bitch, but we all know Leni, right?"

Much as the rest of the Loud sisters hated to admit it, Lynn was sort of right. They all cared about Leni and would never knowingly criticize her so harshly. They all grew up with Leni, they were family after all. That meant they knew her better than most. Leni is an amazing and caring person, and she always does her best to brighten anyone's day. Even if they are complete strangers. It's because of that kind and caring nature that made her so well-known. But what most people wouldn't know is that Leni can be very forgetful, absent-minded, perky, and not that bright. None of it was meant to sound hurtful, but that's just how Leni is. Most of the Loud sisters never really thought much about it because they still loved Leni despite her apparent absentmindedness.

While the others couldn't help but agree with Lynn, Lincoln seemed to disagree.

"Maybe a long time ago I would have agreed with you guys, but after seeing all the crazy stuff I've been through. I think you guys haven't opened up to the possibilities Leni can reach. The more I think about her movements during this whole fight, I can't help but think of Foresight."

Finally, it looked like Luna had enough of being confused.

"That's it, can one of you guys please explain what the bloody hell Foresight is?"

"I can do that."

Everyone looked over to see it was Lucy who spoke up. She turned to look at her brother and sisters with a serious expression and her arms still crossed.

"I will admit what I know about Foresight might not line up with what Lincoln or Lynn know. Yet I'm confident in what I've learned from my masters and numerous studies. Foresight is a rare ability that only certain individuals have developed to study opponent's movements and techniques in real-time. They can then counter or dodge their opponent's attacks or techniques with quick accuracy. I've never seen someone use it before until now, I'm quite shocked that Leni would be doing it. It seems our sister is hiding things from us. Let's hope it's enough to handle the likes of Carlos Medel."

Now that Foresight had been properly explained, the rest of the Loud siblings resumed watching the fight and hoped for the best since this fight was far from over.

Meanwhile, in the VIP stands there was a mix of disbelief and confusion like down below. Bobby and those with him were speechless as they stared down at the ring in complete shock. Even the usual stoic Shikano watched on in shock, Clyde and Penelope were just as shocked too. On the Loud sisters side, Luan, Carol, and Haiku looked on in shock and disbelief. The only ones not showing any signs of shock were Lori and Lisa. Lori watched on in her usual serious expression, while Lisa smiled proudly.

'Sorry to disappoint you, Carlos Medel. You're not facing some clueless novice like you probably originally thought. No, you are facing the second genius of the Loud family.'

Geniuses, they are those who are truly gifted and blessed upon birth. There is no scientifically precise definition of a genius. The most well-known are those who display exceptional intellectual ability, creative productivity, universality in genres, or originality, typically to a degree that is associated with the achievement of new advances in a domain of knowledge. People like Lisa Loud were considered geniuses, and yet a person like Carlos Medel was considered a genius in terms of fighting and skill. How shocking is it to consider Leni Loud the same type of genius if not greater? It wasn't too long ago that Lisa discovered that for herself when she decided to visit Leni shortly after she started her training.

Lisa often made visits to her siblings over the years, usually under Lori's command. The only one Lisa rarely visited happened to be Lynn because of her wayward ways and obsession with her search for their brother. When it came time to visit Leni and Lola, Lisa was shocked to discover something about Leni that she had failed to notice all these years. It happened when Lisa decided to watch Leni and her mentor Remy spar. It was shocking to see how different Leni became during her spar and how she flawlessly predicted Remy's moves with such precision. That's when Lisa decided to investigate further into her sister's odd behavior and ability to predict an opponent's moves with such ease. Imagine how shocked Lisa was to discover her sister had Savant Syndrome of all things.

Savant syndrome is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory which may include rapid calculation, artistic ability, map making, or musical ability. Those with the condition generally have a neurodevelopmental disorder such as autism spectrum disorder or have a brain injury. The condition can be congenital or can be acquired later in childhood, or even in adults. Leni has always been different a little more oblivious to most things, but never did her parents and siblings think it was because she was in the autism spectrum disorder or ASD. Lisa was shocked to discover this after examining Leni and performing various tests. It came to a great shock to Lisa and to Leni, Lola, and Remy when she told them. Lisa was more shocked how she failed to not notice such a thing after all these years. All this time Lisa thought Leni was just an airhead and held her as such during their childhood together. Now knowing the truth caused Lisa to look back at how she acted and regarded her sisters with regret and self-loathing. She wasn't the best sister to any of them, and Lisa wanted to change that.

Surprisingly, Leni didn't seem all that bothered by this news. Leni always knew she was different than everyone else and struggled with certain things, but she didn't mind it. The only thing that mattered to Leni was being with her family and trying to make everyone happy. It's not like being officially diagnosed with ASD and savant syndrome would stop her from living her life and doing what she loved. Whether it was doing her fashion designs, or modeling, or helping those in need, or spending time with her family. Leni wasn't going to stop living or doing what she loved. Besides what Lisa had told her, it might actually be helping her in more ways than one. Leni always created fashion designs in a certain way that many experienced and famous fashion designers and critics could never hope to mimic or understand. After all talented savants are those whose musical, artistic, mathematical, or other exceptional skills are more prominent and highly honed, usually within an area of single expertise, and are very conspicuous when viewed against their overall handicap. Not that Leni and Lisa, or Remy saw it as a handicap. In fact, they viewed it as a gift more than anything. Because of her savant syndrome, Leni is able to analyze and predict someone's fighting style, movements, and techniques only after carefully watching them fight. Yet that's only if the opponent in question was using their full potential and not holding anything back.

A serious flaw when you consider Leni's size and body type meaning she wouldn't last long against heavy hitter fighters. To compensate, Leni relies on her speed, flexibility, and strong kicks to overcome her opponents or at least keep them off guard until she's finished analyzing. Leni's mentor found that out the hard way during their spars together. In terms of how Leni able to analyze and predict, Lisa considers her a genius in her own right. That's why Lisa knew Leni wasn't going to make this match easy for Carlos anymore.

'Now that she has fully analyzed his moves, fighting styles, and techniques. This match isn't going to be a walk in the park for Carlos, but I'd be amiss to disregard Carlos Medel. He isn't a legendary skilled boxer for nothing. Keep your wits about you, Leni'

Down in the seats where the spectators were watching the fight unfold before them. Two strong and veteran fighters were watching the fight with newfound interest. That would be Jurota Arashiyama and Rolon Donaire, the top fighters from Purgatory. The fighting organization that Carlos Medel is a part of. Both fighters looked with interest in their eyes.

"I'm surprised how this fight is going, I would have thought this match would be over by now." Jurota stated with a stoic expression. "It certainly looked that way before that girl turned the tables on Carlos."

Rolon remained silent as he watched Leni very closely. Upon first seeing her, Rolon didn't think she was anything special but now he was pleasantly surprised to see he was wrong. He could see now that there is more to Leni than meets the eye. Seeing how she predicted Carlos's attacks perfectly and got the drop on him proved that. Not only that, but Rolon noticed that Leni was still holding back. Yet he really wasn't that concerned for Carlos. Carlos is an experienced A-list gladiator of Purgatory, which means he wasn't some slouch. But Rolon had feeling it'd be foolish to disregard Leni now seeing what she is capable of doing.

"She is very strong, if Purgatory were to have a woman's division. I have no doubt she would be a low A-list gladiator or a high B-list gladiator." Rolon commented sternly getting Jurota's attention. "Still, the fight is far from over and this woman is facing Carlos Medel. I wouldn't count Carlos out just yet."

Not saying a word and giving a nod in agreement, Jurota knew Rolon knew what he was talking about. Rolon was not only the top A-list gladiator in Purgatory and strongest fighter he knows, but Jurota knows that Rolon has the best analytic mind when it comes to fighting and judging someone's strength. That combined with his excessive strength and skill made him one of the best fighters in the world. Rolon wasn't called The King for nothing. If he believed that this woman Leni was strong and that Carlos wasn't finished yet, Jurota believed him. The Judoka focused all his attention back to the fight along with Rolon, both of them eagerly wanting to see the fight resume.

Returning to the fight, both Leni and Carlos were focused on each other. Leni had a composed smile as she stood in a relaxed posture with her guard down, while Carlos frowned with his guard up and looking at Leni with a scrutinizing gaze. Carlos was still trying figure out how Leni was able to seamlessly predict and counter his moves. None of it made any sense because of how this fight was originally going. During the entire fight Carlos had Leni on the ropes, but all that changed. Not only has Leni's speed increased but to be able to predict and counter his moves with such ease was shocking. Carlos only knew a few that could be able to do such a thing, and they were all experienced and strong fighters.

'Looks like I misjudged you, Leni Loud.'

Both fighters stood there until Leni finally made the first move, but instead rushed to Carlos like before or even bringing up her guard. Leni did something that shocked and confused everyone, including Carlos. She simply walked over to Carlos while still smiling and without any sign of worry. Carlos watched Leni walk towards him so carefree that it caused him to raise an eyebrow with his guard still raised. His first thought that Leni was being overconfident which slightly annoyed Carlos, he thought of attacking until he suddenly felt a shiver run down his spine. Suddenly in Carlos's eyes, Leni's form changed into something more monstrous than how she appeared. Like a demon slowly approaching it's victim to collect their soul. In that moment, something deep down in Carlos nagged at him to run away yet he ignored it and stayed firm in his stance. As Leni approached closer and closer, Carlos started to sweat a little when he saw the eerily smile on her face. Finally, Leni got close enough for Carlos to strike, and the legendary boxer took his chance!

Launching a fury of lightning-fast jabs at Leni, Carlos expected each jab to connect but they didn't as Leni seamlessly dodged each jab by moving her head side to side. Carlos looked even more shocked, but quickly shook it off to go for a straightforward frontal push kick, usually called a Bênção in Capoeira. The kick was aimed for Leni's abdominal area, but apparently saw it coming and dodged by shuffling her feet left. Having a feeling Leni would do that, Carlos dropped low on the ground to perform a spinning kick while in a handstand! To Carlo's complete shock, Leni simply pulled her head back to avoid the kick aimed at her head. And in the blink of an eye, Carlos saw Leni's fist coming straight for his face. Acting on pure instinct and sheer experience, Carlos barely managed to dodge the straight jab Leni sent. Carlos didn't want to give Leni another chance to attack so he performed a quick backflip to get a good distance away from Leni.

Once it felt like he was far enough away, Carlos quickly got up to see the unthinkable coming for him. A reverse roundhouse kick aimed straight for his abdominal area, and Carlos knew he wouldn't be able to dodge it. The first thing Carlos did was try to pull his arms up in some vain attempt to block the hit, but the kick proved to be too fast as it hit Carlos! The legendary boxer gasped in pain with eyes wide open as the sheer force from the kick hit him around the abdominal area and sent him skidding across the ring! Carlos smacked hard against the fence that surrounded the ring. By the time Carlos stopped, he winced and clenched his teeth as he pulled in arms in a vain attempt to nurse where he had been kicked. It almost looked like he curled it a ball. Seeing the legendary boxer in such a state shocked everyone, even the referee Adelaide Chang could only look on in pure shock. Even though being in the same ring with both fighters, the young referee could not keep up with what both fighters were pulling out.

Adelaide quickly snapped out of her shock to run over to check on Carlos. She looked down to see Carlos still on the mat clenching around the area where he got hit in visible pain. What happened next shocked everyone once more as Carlos coughed up a little bit of blood! Carlos slowly rolled over onto his knees as he glared at Leni with blood on the edges of his mouth.

Leni stood in the same place where she kicked Carlos, she dropped her stance to look at Carlos with a confident smile. Although still bruised and a little bloody, Leni's beauty shined brightly for all to see, and why shouldn't she be? How many could say they brought a legend Carlos Medel down low in such a way. Only a very few were capable of such a feat. Even now as he tasted his own blood as he laid on the mat in severe pain, Carlos couldn't believe that this young woman managed to do such a thing. Still, the former champion boxer could only think of one thing that happened.

The power and speed of Leni's kick.

'That… was no ordinary kick.'

The vast knowledge Carlos had obtained from fighting all his life wasn't something to scoff at. Having climbed the highest any pro boxer could, winning numerous championship belts, and joining one of the most prestigious fighting organizations. He knew that Leni was holding back with her kicks and had those weighted shoes on, but he didn't think Leni's kick would be this strong. Carlos had a knack for scoping a person's fighting ability, and this was the first time he'd been caught completely off guard like this. Yet again, Carlos asked himself a troublesome and frustrating question he couldn't seem to figure out.

'Just who the hell are you, Leni Loud!'

Standing not too far away, Leni kept smiling as she started to realize what she had just done. She brought Carlos Medel down to his knees, THE Carlos Medel! A boxing legend with unparalleled strength and skill that many only dreamt of achieving. Going into this fight, Leni knew a lot of people doubted she would even put a decent fight against Carlos. Some of sisters had such thoughts. Leni would be lying if she didn't have them herself because of never having actually fighting someone. All she's done so far is sparring and some serious training, training that nearly broke her. Even right now, she could still remember what she went through very clearly.

---

Flashback

SMACK!

SMACK!

SMACK!

The loud sound of smacking could be heard echoing throughout the dance studio. It was late, around close to midnight in Paris, France. Many were off sleeping to prepare for the day tomorrow, but not Leni Loud. She had yet to return to her apartment that she shared with her sister Lola. She decided to keep training, even after her mentor had already left. Still dressed in her training gear, Leni had a focused expression and sweat pouring down her face. It looked like the only training Leni was doing just seemed to be kicking a wooden training post. But this wasn't any ordinary wood, this was Australian Buloke. An ironwood tree that is native to Australia, this wood comes from a species of tree occurring across most of Eastern and Southern Australia. Known as the hardest wood in the world, this particular type has a Janka hardness of 5,060 lbf. Wood, as a material, can have its hardness quantified using the Janka rating, the industry standard rating. With this rating, the resistance of wood samples to denting and wear is measured. Varying on account of wood grain direction, different woods are tested based on the cut surface of a stump cut from the material. The measure of hardness and strength is pounds-force (lbf).

Some would consider this wood hard as steel, maybe even harder. Making it something that no one should be kicking repeatedly. Least of all, with no protective gear given how much blood was smeared on the wood. Leni's shins had scrapes, cuts, and bruises with blood seeping through the open wounds. It looked painful, but Leni didn't seem all that bothered as she kept on kicking. Yet that didn't stop Leni from falling on her butt after giving one more kick to the ironwood post. Leni panted deeply as sweat kept pouring down her face. She's been kicking that wooden post for about 3 hours give or take, it's not surprising her body was exhausted. Nevertheless, by looks of the determined expression on Leni's face, she wouldn't stop anytime soon.

It didn't matter how much her legs were hurting or how tired she was feeling. Leni would keep going until she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was getting stronger.

'I can't stop… not yet.'

After catching her breath, Leni slowly got back up on her feet and was a little wobbly when standing up. She may have looked tired, but that fiery determination lingered in her eyes as she looked at the blood smeared wooden post in front of her. Just as she was about resume her training, she heard footsteps coming from behind her and a familiar voice shorty followed.

"Had a feeling you'd be here." Remy sighed with arms crossed and a rather stern expression. "Your sister Lola called, she's worried why you haven't come home yet."

Leni turned her head to give Remy a weak smile.

"Oh, I knew I forgot about something. Let me go grab my phone and I'll—"

Just before Leni could finish what she was trying to say, she suddenly dropped to her knees as she tried to step go grab her purse that was nearby to get her phone. An awkward silence followed as Remy looked down at his student with minor look of annoyance before letting out a loud sigh.

"Alright, let's get you fixed up."

A little later after Remy bandaged up Leni's legs and other injuries, both decided to sit down on one the benches inside the studio. Leni remained silent with a look lost in thought as Remy frowned at her.

"Leni, you can't keep doing this. Putting in some extra training is one thing, but what you're doing is something else entirely. It will do your body more harm than good with what you've been doing. Not to mention taking up Ballet training as well, you are already putting too much strain on yourself. It won't do your training any good if you keeping overexerting yourself. You'll end up injuring yourself or worse."

It seemed like nothing Remy had said was getting through to Leni. She simply had that same absent-minded expression. This further annoyed Remy and just as he was about to reprimand his student, Leni finally spoke.

"It's not enough."

Whatever anger Remy had quickly turned into surprise and slight confusion.

"What."

"Where I am at right now isn't enough. I'm not the same person I was before training with you. But it still doesn't feel like it's enough. I can't explain it, but I have this feeling in the back of my mind telling me I need to become stronger, and my heart feels the same way. That's why I need to keep pushing myself. I don't care how long it takes, how much it hurts, or if I cripple myself. All of it is not for my sake, but for my family… and for my little brother. The one I wasn't strong enough to protect."

Remy could only look at Leni in shock before it turned into frown laced with pity. It wasn't hard to sympathize with Leni and her reasons for fighting. Long ago he did the same until his little sister died because of how their father abandoned them. Back then Remy became a cruel and nihilistic warrior full of wrath and hostility that hated fighting but couldn't bring himself to stop. It took him a long time to finally let go and move forward with his life.

Suddenly Leni slowly got up, she looked at Remy with a bright smile.

"Thanks again Remy, for everything." Leni thanked still smiling before letting out a yawn. "I'll try to be more careful, but I'm not stopping my extra training. Not until I know for certain. Is that okay with you?"

The look of surprise on Remy's face was apparent until it turned into small smile.

"Honestly, I'm not sure I can stop you even if I wanted to. You Louds are too stubborn for your own good." Remy sighed while shaking his head slightly. "Just take it easy and pace yourself. Wouldn't want you to cripple yourself before I teach you everything I know."

The smile Leni had never waned as she nodded. While standing up, Leni noticed how much her legs ached and cringed a little. Kicking that wooden training post for a few hours straight had done a number on her. Still, Leni didn't regret it. Like her sister Lynn used to always say "no pain, no gain." Slowly Leni's attention returned back to the ironwood training post across the room. She could still see the dry blood smeared against the wood. Leni was very tired from all her training and her legs were still hurting something awful. It should have been easy to call it a night and resume her training tomorrow. Yet something nagged at Leni in the back of her mind. She couldn't explain it, but Leni felt like kicking the wooden post one last time. Knowing that if she asked Remy if it were okay to do it he would only try to dissuade her. Leni decided what she wanted to do. With a very determined look and familiar fire in her eyes, Leni dashed towards the ironwood training post. She heard Remy call out to her, but she ignored him like the pain she was feeling while running. When she finally got close enough, Leni spun around rather swiftly and performed a reverse roundhouse kick! She expected more of the same once she landed the kick, but that wasn't the case.

Instead, the wooden training post was sent flying off from the stand supporting it! The spot on the wooden post where Leni had kicked looked caved in a little with a few splinters breaking apart! The ironwood post kept flying until it smashed against a nearby wall, the impact it caused when hitting the wall caused a decent sized hole before crashing to the floor with a loud thud!

A faint panting could be heard coming from Leni, she looked at the fallen wooden post in pure shock as did Remy who's mouth dropped a little with eyes wide open. Suddenly, a triumphant smile appeared on Leni's face.

It wasn't a bad start.

End of Flashback

---

None of it was easy, the additional training did a serious number on her body especially her legs and feet. Leni did as she promised and paced herself, but still did her own training in her own free time. It was hard living such a chaotic lifestyle. Being a world-renowned model, fashion designer, and philanthropist to the public and training hard at martial arts behind closed doors. Leni's extra training would interfere with her career and public image, but Leni somehow brought balance between the two. It seems that Leni's devotion to her extra training had paid off seeing the state Carlos was currently in. Sadly, Carlos was correct about Leni's kicks.

For they weren't ordinary kicks, it's like they belonged to a demon.

Again, the whole arena became very silent given what they all just witnessed. A lot of those in the audience knew this fight had completely turned around, but they didn't think it would go this far. With Carlos Medel seriously hurt on the mat in agony. Such a sight wasn't just unheard of, but for many it seemed impossible. Yet there it was.

Suddenly, the silence that swept the arena quickly broke into gasps and murmurs. Leni looked surprised to see Carlos slowly rising back up on his feet, he almost faltered but grabbed the cage fence to pull himself up. Once Carlos finally stood up, he spat out a glob of blood on the mat before getting into an orthodox boxing stance with a grin on his face.

"Heh… looks like I misjudged you, señorita." Carlos chuckled as he wiped away any blood off his mouth. "Here I thought your hermano was the one to watch out for, but it turns out you might be more dangerous than him. I'm not done yet… I still have plenty left to give!"

Leni kept looking at Carlos with surprise face until it turned into a rather focused one. No longer willing to hold back and having analyzed enough of Carlos's fighting styles and movements, Leni decided it was time to bring this fight to an end. Both Leni and Carlos knew this fight was ending. Getting into her usual stance, Leni slowly made her way towards Carlos. Just as Leni got close within striking distance, Carlos threw fury of flicker jabs in such quick succession that an experienced fighter wouldn't be able to see. Too bad Leni didn't need to see the flicker jabs to know where they were going to hit. Leni effortlessly dodged each jab as she perfectly predicted them by bobbing and weaving each of Carlos's jabs. By the time Carlos had thrown his eighth jab, Leni quickly went for a quick front kick at Carlos's injured ribs that Leni had kicked earlier. Carlos saw this coming and got his guard up only for Leni to turn her jab into a feint and perform a right hook that struck Carlos in the face!

Carlos staggered a little from the unexpected punch, but it would take more than that to take him down. Leni knew this too which is why she went dropped into a Queda de Quatro, literally fall of four as she fell backwards into a crab-walk position, where she went for a straight kick called a Chapa de Frente! Carlos saw this coming and quickly stepped back far enough the kick barely missed him! Upon noticing Leni still in the Queda de Quatro position, Carlos decided to take advantage of Leni's seemingly helpless position by going for a low sweeping kick! Yet again Leni predicted this and kicked her legs to get into a handstand, she then quickly did a backflip to dodge the sweeping kick. Soon as Leni finished her backflip she pulled her head back to dodge a straight punch from Carlos who rushed at Leni when she did her backflip.

Given his smaller frame and weight, Carlos was fast enough to reach Leni as she finished backflipping away. Not that it matter because Leni predicted Carlos wouldn't let up. Leni knew how fast Carlos was after analyzing him and knew his smaller frame and weight aided him in this. With flicker jabs faster than the eye could follow it wasn't surprising. Nonetheless, Leni had analyzed Carlos's speed and knew she could handle him.

Cursing underneath his breath when seeing his punch fail to connect, Carlos did not let up on his as he unleashed a barrage of punches from jabs to uppercuts. Each attack was thrown, but all failed to connect. At this point Leni stopped trying to counterattack as she simply dodged every punch Carlos sent her way by swaying or pulling back her head. Frustration could be seen on the legendary boxer's face after each failed attempt he tried to hit Leni. Finally, it got to the point where Carlos switched back to capoeira in attempt to catch Leni off guard. After throwing his last jab, Carlos went for an armada pulada! An armada that is released after a jump. The armada pulada begins the same way as the regular armada with the capoeirista turning to the left or right. Once the head, neck and shoulders rotate towards the front, the capoeirista jumps during the release of the armada making it a spinning aerial kick. Leni knew the aerial kick was coming and ducked under it, but Carlos wasn't done yet. After landing and failing to strike Leni, Carlos decided it was time to be crafty. Carlos ran over to seemingly got for a left hook, only for it to be a feint as he dropped into a quick handstand and go for an escorpião.

The escorpião is basically a scorpion kick and very similar to other scorpion kicks of different martial arts. It is characterized by kicking backwards, over the head, at an opponent in front of the kicker impacting with the sole or heel of the foot. The escorpião is very hard to see and is extremely dangerous in the hands of a master. Carlos has ended many fights with this move if an opponent became rather troublesome. Only truly experienced fighters have been able to block it or dodge it. Fighters to the likes of Purgatory's two kings, Jurota Arashiyama and Rolon Donaire. Two men that Carlos would dare say are beyond him. Imagine how shocked was when he suddenly felt a hand stop his kick and grip it hard!

"Too bad whatever you have left to give isn't enough."

When Carlos heard Leni finished he quicky spun around while still in a handstand to try and kick Leni with his other leg. Leni knew this would happen and released her grip of Carlo's leg to pull away in time to dodge Carlos's other kick. Once free of Leni's grip, Carlos jumped back to his feet and stood there on guard looking at Leni. The young beauty simply stood there with a blank expression with her guard down. It looked like she didn't have care in the world, least of the look of being in a no holds barred fight. Carlos had feeling that something wasn't right about Leni soon as she took off her shoes. Those shoes were weighed for a reason and the flow of this match had drastically changed. Now Leni was completely predicting his moves and attacks perfectly, too perfectly. At first he thought she was just getting lucky but after seeing Leni predicted the escorpião. Carlos came to realize that Leni was in fact predicting his attacks and moves with precise precision. He still could hardly believe it. How could such a young and inexperienced girl do such a thing? It's not that he hasn't seen such a thing before because he knew some fighters that could something similar, even he could such a thing. They called it the "inception of intent", and it isn't a skill any run of the mill fighter could obtain. It proved to be so difficult that it took Carlos until he reached his 40s to master it.

Now here stood a girl barely into her 30s that was doing the same thing.

'No… it's much more than that. What Leni is doing is very similar but it's something different.' Carlos thought bitterly before grinning. 'I gotta say this very exciting, it's been a long since I encountered something that's gotten me a lost.'

Those around the arena were focused on the fight unfolding before them. The expectations for many of them disappeared as the fight progressed further. A total victory for Carlos Medel seemed more unlikely with every passing minute. It should be impossible that a world-class fashion designer and model who's never had at least one public fight in their life to be overwhelming a legendary boxer who still inspires both fear and awe in the world today. Witnessing such a thing once thought impossible began to stir something in those watching in the audience. A feeling shared by many of those watching.

Which was pure unbridled excitement.

Yells and cheers erupted throughout the entire arena, many in the audience were cheering for either Carlos or Leni, and in some cases both. They had expected this fight to have ended and be entirely one sided, but they were getting something totally different, and they loved it. For those that knew or close with either Leni or Carlos, each of them had different reactions to what was happening.

On the side of the arena where Leni had made her entrance, Lincoln and most of his sisters were watching the fight from the entrance way that led to the locker rooms. A dumbstruck expression could be seen on Lynn's face, and she wasn't the only one for Luna, Lana, and Lily each had similar expressions. Only ones that didn't look stunned were Lincoln and Lucy. Both Lincoln and Lucy watched the fight with eyes focused and brimming with interest. At first Lily was shocked as Lynn and others but as the fight progressed further that shock slowly turned in sheer awe. The youngest Loud sibling stared at Leni in the ring with eyes wide open and shining in admiration, a feeling that she hasn't shown towards any of her sisters for quite some time. Not since she heard what they did to her brother. Despite that, Lily held some love for older sisters. Even though she was still mad at them and had doubts if she would ever forgive them for lying to her and for what they did to Lincoln, they were still family. Lily had always known her sisters were special, but she never would have thought Leni was capable of doing this.

As Lily grew up she came to idolize each of her sisters and wanted to be just like them. That is until she learned the truth of Lincoln's disappearance. Before learning of that unfortunate truth, Lily often wished she could like her sisters. From Lori's shrewd business knowledge and ambition to Lisa's overwhelming intelligence. Each of her sisters were gifted by their many talents and skills, not to mention their sheer beauty. Something of which that Lily would often envy but admire greatly. But in terms of beauty and grace, Lily knew only one that outshine all of her sisters.

That sister was Leni.

Leni always stood out amongst the Loud sisters, both for her utter beauty and childish bubbly personality. Those ignorant enough would still call her a dumb airhead blonde, but that would never stop Leni from being herself. Lily came to admire that about her older sister and often wondered if she could be like Leni. Even now while fighting in a brutal fight locked in a cage against a strong and legendary boxer, Leni somehow managed to stand out and shine brightly. The bruises and cuts Leni accumulated during the fight didn't seem to hinder her beauty, even the blood seeping from her cuts and nose didn't seem to matter. Lily has never liked fighting or understood it. Fighting never really made sense to Lily who saw it as an ugly and stupid excuse to cause violence. Why fight when you can simply talk it out like normal people? That was Lily's view on fighting and after watching her brother's fight with the sumo Cassidy on video only solidified that view further. She couldn't stand the sight of someone getting hurt, especially if that someone was family.

However, as the fight between Leni and Carlos progressed further. Lily surprisingly kept on watching the fight despite her view on fighting. She could not explain it but for some reason there was something beautiful behind it. The way both Leni and Carlos moved and fought. The speed and somewhat grace behind it all almost made it similar to dancing. But what really caught Lily's attention was the sheer emotion both Leni and Carlos displayed in their fight. Even from this far away and catching only close ups on the jumbotron above the arena, Lily could tell that both Leni and Carlos were feeling various emotions during the fight so. Whether it was anger, shock, bravado, or even arrogance. Lily saw it on the faces of both fighters and in their eyes.

Slowly the disgust Lily always had towards fighting began to wane as the fight went on. Sadly, the worry for her older sister didn't do the same. Lily could tell Leni was controlling the flow of the fight at the moment, but from what Lily has seen so far that could change unexpectedly. All Lily could do was watch and hope that Leni won't be too hurt after this fight.

Whether Leni wins or loses.

Across the stadium from where Carlo's had entered, Ronnie Anne and her group observed the fight from the entrance way. Just like Lincoln and his sisters across the way, Ronnie Anne and the others were speechless, even the usual boisterous Jun Sekibayashi had yet to utter a single world. The legendary pro wrestler had a very serious expression and his eyes focused on both fighters in the cage. For Ronnie Anne and Carlino, both were deathly silent as they could only watch the match in complete shock. Neither one of them were able to make sense of what they were watching. Both of them had trained under Carlos, and even they doubted they could beat him in a straight up fight. Having been trained by him from a young age and revering his skill and strength, it was very difficult to imagine Carlos being outclassed by someone like Leni Loud. Yet even faced with what they once thought impossible, neither Ronnie Anne nor Carlino knew what to say so they just stood there in shocked silence.

The last of the group was Carlitos Casagrande, the kid brother of Carlino and kid cousin to Ronnie Anne. In spite of not being an expert fighter like some in his fighting, Carlitos had some experience with it. He was part of the high school wrestling team and their top wrestler, he also picked up a few things from Carlino in terms of wrestling and got a few lessons from Ronnie Anne whenever she stopped to visit the family. But fighting professionally like his brother and cousin never really interested Carlitos. It wasn't that Carlitos didn't have any potential for it. Both Ronnie Anne and Carlino told him that he could a long way fighting professionally and Carlito's wrestling coach once said he could earn a scholarship to any collage with his wrestling talent alone. Even with all that going in Carlitos's favor, he still didn't seem interested in fighting or wresting professionally. At least, that's how it seemed to look for most.

Carlitos had a deep respect for fighting as a whole, and greatly admired fighters like his big brother, cousin, and guys like Carlos. Compared to normal everyday people they were almost like superhumans. How could Carlitos not admire them and what they do for a living? With that much respect for fighting and his talent, Carlitos should have been more interested in pursuing a fighting career. Unfortunately, there was one thing holding Carlitos back.

His own insecurity.

Doubts of being able to reach the level his brother and cousin were on. To go toe to toe with talented and respected fighters like Carlos. Carlitos wanted that more than anything, but how could he be able to do that? He's seen how they fight and how much they trained, they were in a whole other league. Carlos was in a complete league of his own. Even Carlino and Ronnie Anne had admitted that. After all, Carlos was the man that help train them. And now that very man was being pushed back by a woman like Leni Loud.

Just like the others, Carlitos only stood there in compete shock. He could scarcely believe what was happening in front of him. How could someone like Carlos Medel be getting overpowered by a woman that couldn't get a single hit on him in at the start of the match? It shocked Carlitos to his core as he couldn't take eyes away from the fight. It wasn't just because this was interesting, but for some reason Carlitos could tell that this match felt different. During the match Carlitos found himself rooting for Leni Loud. Despite clearly being the underdog in this match, Leni proved everyone wrong by going far and beyond anyone had thought. Who could say they've fought Carlos Medel and gave him a run for his money? Only a very few if what Carlino and Ronnie Anne had told him was true. Carlitos didn't know why, but during this whole fight a fire was beginning to stir within him. Watching as both Carlos and Leni traded blows and pushed each other in an effort to win. Carlitos did not know what this feeling was called, but he knew that he will not forget it as long as he lived.

In the octagon ring, Carlos had his guard up whilst carefully watching Leni. Now knowing that Leni can predict his moves, Carlos will need to play this smart. Being able to predict your opponent's attacks and next move was a dangerous skill to have. But that didn't mean it was unbeatable. Carlos had faced opponents in the past that could do something very similar to what Leni is doing. Such abilities were very troublesome to deal with, but Carlos had experienced overcoming them. All he needed to do was be careful and watch for a perfect opening.

'I just need to be careful around those kicks of hers. Even the slightest mistake with be my downfall if I'm not careful. I'd be lying if I told myself I didn't like this uneasy feeling, it's been too long since I had this feeling. Time to see if you can back your words, Leni Loud.'

In the blink of an eye, Carlos rushed towards Leni at great speed and threw a flicker jab that Leni dodged by slipping under it. But Carlos quickly went for a quick uppercut, Leni knew it was coming and dodged it by pulling back. Carlos didn't relent as he pushed forward and tried to hit Leni with a series of flicker jabs! The speed of the jabs alone were enough to look like nothing. Normal onlookers weren't able to see them, even a few of those not normal had trouble seeing them like a few of the fighters in the arena. Still, Leni was able to see them coming. Thanks to her irregular ability. Leni used her footwork to pull away from the jabs coming her way, and knew exactly where the jabs were going to hit. Yet as this went on, Leni started to notice that Carlos was picking up speed.

SPURT!

Suddenly, a little bit of blood spurted from a cut on Leni's cheek! Apparently one of Carlos's jabs was able to graze her! Leni looked a little surprise even though she knew that jab was coming and avoided it. Yet that jab still grazed her. Leni did not foresee that happening which means one thing. Carlos was getting faster than Leni had originally seen. As of right now Leni has only seen Carlos at a certain speed. She thought that was fast as he could go. Looks like she was mistaken. That seriously changed everything. Leni's foresight ability relied on seeing her opponents full power and not holding anything back, that included speed. Other fighters with similar foresight abilities could probably handle their opponents speed changing, sadly that wasn't the case for Leni. She hasn't had enough time to train and hone her foresight ability to overcome this flaw. While Leni can still be able to predict Carlos and his moves, it wasn't flawless. That meant Leni needed to end this quickly before Carlos gets a lucky hit in with those lightning jabs of his. Leni quietly scolded herself with a deep frown as she did some footwork and slipping to get some distance between herself and Carlos.

She did exactly what Carlos did, she got cocky and didn't end it right away.

'How brainless can I be! I should have ended this fight way earlier, but I got too angry by what he said he'd do to Linky. I need to end this now!' Leni thought bitterly to herself. Thankfully, Carlos isn't the only one who still has trick up their sleeve. I didn't want to do this, I only saved this because I didn't want to really hurt someone. But I got no choice, this is for my family, for Linky!'

Their resolves steadfast, both Carlos and Leni knew this next exchange would decide it all. Neither one of them could afford to lose. Those keen enough knew the same thing.

This fight was coming to an end.

Carlos didn't stop his assault on Leni, he kept throwing jab after jab while increasing the speed. Leni barely managed to dodge or slip under each jab. Suddenly, Leni frowned with eyes wide open as she pulled her arms up to block Carlos's jabs! Each jab that struck Leni's arms felt like getting shot by beanbags being shot from a shotgun! It didn't take long for Carlos to push Leni back with his onslaught of jabs, all Leni could do was keep her guard up and take each hit while desperately trying to get away. Finally, Leni had backed up far enough as she felt her back press against the fence surrounding the ring.

The match had turned in Carlos's favor.

Even with Leni's back literally against a wall, Carlos refused to let up because he didn't want to risk giving Leni an opening. He knew full well that he couldn't survive another one of those kicks, the last kick still had him reeling. Each jab he threw impacted against Leni's arms as she held her guard up. Bruises and cuts could be seen forming along her arms, each hit Carlos threw left its mark. That's not all because Carlos could see that Leni's guard was slowly giving in! A grin showed up on Carlos's face, everything was working out for him. All he needed to do was not let up and wait for the perfect moment to strike.

Eventually that moment arrived with Leni dropping her guard seemingly out of the pain she was feeling coming from her arms that took the entirety of Carlos's jabs. Quickly acting on the moment he's been waiting for, Carlos threw a fast straight jab that hoped to end this fight once and for all. A shadow had cast over Leni's face and no one could see her expression. Not that it mattered to Carlos since all he needed was to see her knocked out. A perfect jab to chin will rattle anyone's brain and a follow up punch will deal the knockout. Having done this countless times already, Carlos knew what to expect.

Unfortunately, Carlos did something that has not happened to him for a very long time. He got careless, and it was going to cost him.

SPURT!

Instead of feeling Leni's face impact his fist, Carlos could only feel his fist hitting the fence and a hot piercing pain coming from his left thigh. Suddenly a feeling of wetness and the faint sound of something dripping onto the mat. It took a moment before Carlos realized that Leni had avoided his jab by slipping under at the right moment. That wasn't all Carlos noticed as he saw Leni deliver a kick to his left thigh as she dropped down. Instead of feeling a powerful kick that could fracture or even break his femur, the only thing Carlos felt was the piercing pain and slight wetness. It almost felt like a cut but only deeper. When Carlos glanced down to see his left thigh, he was shocked and understood why this feeling felt like a cut.

Instead of being cut, Carlos had been stabbed and could see that what stabbed him wasn't a knife or other sharp object that Leni had snuck in. No, it was something Carlos could hardly believe.

What stabbed him was Leni's left foot!

Leni's foot had pierced the left thigh of Carlos, the toes of Leni's foot were deep in Carlos but stopped where the proximal phalanges of the foot end. Blood had erupted from the wound and dripped down Carlos's leg with some dripping onto the mat. Before Carlos could fully process what just happened, Leni pulled her foot out from Carlos's thigh causing more blood to erupt from open wound. She quickly got up to give Carlos a good headbutt hitting him right in the nose! A slight crunch could be heard before blood gushed from Carlos's nose! The headbutt instinctively caused Carlos to stumble back and discombobulated him for a few seconds. Which is all Leni needed to deliver her next attack, a chassé frontal kick! Otherwise known as a front piston-action kick, the kick hit Carlos square in the abdominal area and backed with enough force to send him skidding across the ring at high speed on his butt before slamming against the fence!

A familiar sight indeed.

Though this time around Carlos wasn't on his side agonizing in pain, instead he looked to be sitting down while hunched over. An uneasy silence filled the arena as the cheering stopped. Those in the audience were once shocked because they couldn't believe what they just saw. Slowly confused murmuring emerged coming from all around the arena. Some were very confused by what just happened and how Carlos got stabbed in the first place! A few spectators started to shout out that Leni cheated and used a weapon, but those close to the ring and watching closely at the jumbotron above knew that wasn't the case. Somehow Leni used her feet to stab Carlos which sounded ridiculous for many watching.

The attending referee looked just as shocked and lost like everyone else. Until Adelaide snapped out of it then looked over at Leni's foot to see if she really stabbed Carlos using only her foot. She got her answer once she saw the blood smeared on the toes of Leni's left foot. For a second Adelaide thought she would have to end the match and disqualify Leni for breaking the rules by bringing a weapon. Still, looks like this match was about to end once Adelaide got a good look at Carlos. She quickly ran over to check on him to see if he was able to continue.

"Carlos! Do you still want to continue the match? Do you need medical assistance?"

Adelaide seemed very serious and focused as she looked ready to call the match and call the paramedics. Carlos just sat there hunched over for a few seconds until he started to coughed ragged with a little bit of blood. To everyone's disbelief and shock, Carlos slowly pulled himself up as far as he could using the fence against his back as support. The legendary boxer looked terrible with his nose broken and blood trickling down, the blood around his mouth from coughing didn't help. He had his left hand pressing down hard against his open puncture wound on his thigh in hopes to stem the bleeding. A small puddle of blood was forming underneath Carlos who could only support himself up with one leg and with his free hand desperately holding onto the fence to keep him from falling. His breathing didn't sound too good either an obvious sign of internal damage. Probably from that powerful front kick Leni gave him.

"I'm… not… out… yet!"

Somehow the heavily injured Carlos Medel wasn't out yet. At least, that's what he proclaimed but his current appearance would say otherwise.

Deep down, Adelaide wanted to call the match then and there because Carlos sure didn't look ready to continue the fight. But she had to follow the rules both she and Rusty promised to uphold. Despite how Adelaide felt she decided to let the fight continue.

A frustrated expression could been seen on Carlos's bloody face, that frustration seemed to be masking the massive surge of pain he was feeling. Honestly, he was more frustrated than anything and at himself for what happened. It took him a few moments to realize how he ended up this way. Honestly, he got carless and got played by Leni. Carlos knew there was a chance that Leni had one more trick up her sleeve but didn't care. He also got too worked up and went for the first opening he spotted. It didn't occur to him that it was a trap until it was too late. Leni let herself get pushed against the fence and dropped her guard at the right moment, and Carlos played right into hands.

'You pendejo! I can't believe I let myself get played! Guess I didn't want to think Leni could get the jump on me twice!'

While Carlos cursed himself for his carelessness, the arena quickly became abuzz with many clearly shocked and some still confused by what happened. This was especially the case where Lincoln and some of his sisters watching the fight from. Each of the Loud sisters watching were very shocked by what they just saw, surprisingly so was Lincoln given the look of surprise on his face. Finally, one of them finally spoke up, which happened to be Lana.

"Uh… what just happened?" Lana asked still bewildered by what she had just seen. "Am I crazy, or did Leni stab that guy with her foot!"

"If you're off your rocker then so am I because I just saw what you've seen." Luna acknowledged rather nervously. "Though I can't say I know how to explain it."

That's when a sudden look of realization dawned upon Lynn. Because she finally understood how Leni managed to stab Carlos using only her foot.

"I can't believe you of everyone went through with that kind of training, Leni."

What Lynn said caught everyone's attention except Lincoln who looked to be still in shock. Noticing that her sisters were all looking her way, Lynn sighed and knew that she needed to be the one to explain this one. Honestly, Lynn would rather not but decided to give it a shot anyways.

"Great, I just had to open my big mouth. To sum it up, partial training is basically putting a part of your body through hell to make it stronger and harder. Most use it on their muscles and tendons, but some focus on their fists or in Leni's case feet. I actually underwent partial training when I trained with an old karate master while on the road. I spent so much time focusing on hand conditioning by striking things like wood, concrete, ice, or even pots filled with sand or gravel. Even when I passed out from exhaustion and pain from the injuries I took, I didn't stop. Honestly it really sucked because I pretty much just mutilated my hands until I could hardly feel them. But I gotta admit it worked out in the end, my punches are stronger than they ever were before my training. The old karate master I met is on a whole other level though. He's able to pierce skin with strikes, even with his toes."

All of this sounded crazy and very hard to believe for some the Louds listening. But not those experienced with martial arts like Lucy, Luna, and Lincoln. Each of them knew that with martial arts anything was possible. Lucy and Luna were still surprised that Lynn underwent such training, not that theirs wasn't easy either. The once shocked look Lincoln had was replaced with a rather serious one as he kept focused on the fight. Earlier he had a feeling that Leni was wearing weighed shoes to slow her kicks and hold back some of their power, but he didn't think to realize she wore them for another reason.

'Partial training isn't just something anyone can go through especially if you focus on your feet. Though it is very possible but in doing so only furthers the risks of crippling yourself. Leni, what did you do to yourself?'

The serious expression on Lincoln's face slowly turned into a small frown. It was hard to picture Leni going through such dangerous training, and Lincoln didn't want to imagine the pain his older sister went through to get feet that could stab a person. The training he went through was probably way worse and gave Lincoln a new definition of pain. To think that one of sisters did something somewhat similar turned his stomach ever so slightly. Still, Lincoln remember that none of his sisters were the same people he grew up with. They had changed just like him, and he could see that change within Leni during her fight.

'Leni, I hope that what you went through wasn't just for my sakes.' Lincoln thought sadly. 'Guess we'll find that out once we have that long overdue conversation when this is over. Whether you wins this or not.'

Across the stadium, the same looks of shock and confusion could be seen plastered on Ronnie Anne and her groups faces. Both Carlitos and Carlino were at a loss for words as they couldn't believe the mere sight of Carlos all bloody and beat up whilst barely holding himself up. Sekibayashi was the same because he didn't foresee an experienced fighter like Carlos Medel ending up like this. His time in pro wrestling and fighting in the Kengan matches gave Sekibayashi enough experience to judge a fighter's potential and skill. Guys like Carlos were above the rest and rightfully earned their status, even Sekibayashi had some doubts he could win against him in a straight up fight. For Leni Loud, Sekibayashi thought he had her pegged from the start, but it looks like he was wrong.

'I knew that there were strong fighters in America, I just didn't think a person like Leni Loud could be one of them. From what I've seen her do so far, I can say for certain that she could give some heavy hitters in the Kengan Organization a run for their money. Once I get back to Japan, I should ask why we don't have a women's division in the Kengan matches? Because if there are more women out there like Leni Loud then I might be out of the job.'

The legendary pro wrestler stopped his thinking to look over at Ronnie Anne. Sekibayashi could see the fight was getting to her given the look of utter disbelief on her face. It wasn't hard for Sekibayashi to sympathize with Ronnie Anne, it wasn't easy to see your teacher get the tar beaten of them. A long time ago Sekibayashi was in the same situation when he watched his mentor Kurachi Karugo get beaten in a Vale Tudo tournament. There was no doubt of Carlos Medel's skill and strength, but Leni just seemed to be stronger in this case. Though the fight was far from over, Sekibayashi knew that Carlos was on his last leg.

The mere sight of seeing her mentor Carlos covered in blood and barely hanging out gave Ronnie Anne much pause. How could her mentor, a man she respected and loved almost like a father who's skill and strength rivaled even her own be brought to such a state? By Leni Loud of all people! Ronnie Anne hoped this was all a bad dream that she would wake up from soon. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Despite hating to admit it, Ronnie Anne knew that Leni Loud was a very strong fight. That's when Ronnie Anne glared past the ring to look where Lincoln and some of his sisters were standing. If Leni was this strong then how strong are Lincoln and the Loud sisters in the tournament? Deciding not to linger on that thought any longer, Ronnie Anne kept her eyes on the fight and held out hope that Carlos could turn this fight around.

'C'mon Carlos! Knowing you there's no way you're out completely, you've always got something planned.'

In the VIP stands, the more of the same could be seen. Shocked looks could be seen all around, even the stoic Shikano watched the fight with eyes wide open. None were more shocked than Bobby who got up and gripped the railing in front of him. Bobby knows Carlos and once knew Leni, and with that knowledge he expected this fight to be over long ago with Carlos being victorious. But that didn't happen and now it looked like Carlos was going to lose against Leni. None of it made sense to Bobby, how could this have happened. All of a sudden, Bobby looked over to where Lori and her group were sitting and was shocked to see the expressionless face Lori had. One would think Lori would be concerned for her sister or at least shocked at how well her sister was doing. Not Lori it looks like. Which means Lori already knew that this would happen or didn't care, Bobby hoped that it wasn't the latter. But Bobby couldn't know for sure because the Lori he once knew and the one he was looking at now weren't the same person. The same could be said of him.

Time had changed them both, and Bobby knew Lori carried the scars to prove it. No matter how much she tried to hide them.

'I shouldn't be surprised how much Lori has changed. What happened to us would change anyone, but what happened to Lori would destroy anyone else. Lori, you might have changed but you are still the same strong girl I fell in love with long ago. Hmm, which feels like a lifetime ago'

The eldest of the Loud siblings sat in her seat with the same straight-faced expression. Those sitting with her were another story like Luan, Carol, and Haiku for they looked just as shocked as everyone else. Lisa on the other hand was a different story because she kept a serious expression while watching the fight. Lisa knew of the harsh and risky training Leni had put herself through. It should have been scientifically impossible for the human body to bear such strain, but Leni pulled through it and her insane training gifted her with legs and feet that were nigh unbreakable. The brutal partial training Leni went through was difficult but combing that with ballet training was close to insanity. Ballet dancers are susceptible to injury because they are constantly putting strain and stress on their bodies and their feet. A ballet dancer's goal is to make physically demanding choreography appear effortless. Overuse injuries like stress fractures and tendonitis are common among ballet dancers, who perfect their skills by practicing them over and over. Dancers are also at risk for acute injuries like sprains and torn cartilage. Common ballet injuries can affect any part of the body, commonly the back and lower extremities.

That sort of training combined with what Leni was putting herself through should have crippled her, but she succeeded anyways. Leni's kicking power alone is the equivalent of 99 horsepower, stronger than the strongest punch ever recorded which was around 96 horsepower. With that much force hitting the human body would very painful and cause massive damage. It seems Carlos was finding that out for himself. After carefully analyzing Carlos's current injuries, Lisa came to the logical conclusion that Carlos was suffering from broken ribs, a broken nose, severe internal trauma to lungs and other abdominal organs, slight bruising, and now considerable blood loss. Leni looked to be only suffering minor cuts and bleeding, and severe bruising around her arms and minor bruising on the face. While both were exhausted, their injuries played a major factor right now. It didn't take a genius to see who had the upper hand in this fight.

Still, Lisa would be amiss to not take into account Carlos's craftiness and experience. He may still have something planned to turn this fight around.

'Although you have the upper hand at the moment, you'd do well not to let your guard down, Leni. Especially around a man like Carlos Medel.'

Back to the fight at hand, Leni stood by to stare at her injured opponent barely staying on his feet. She took a big risk in dropping her guard at the last minute to catch Carlos off guard. It would only have been a matter of time before Carlos would have overwhelmed her defense and take his shot. Leni had to risk it and it paid off it seems. She pulled out her final trick which happened to be a little technique she made after training under her mentor. Her mentor Remy gave it the name "Demon's Scythe". A bit too grim and scary for her tastes, but Leni had to admit that pretty much summed it up. A kick able to stab with such ease thanks to the strength and near indestructible feet and toes she had earned from training. Leni hoped to never use it because of how dangerous it would be to any potential opponents. But Leni needed to win this fight and Carlos wouldn't go down easily. By using that move Leni had effectively injured Carlos's leg and sealed away his quick footwork.

The headbutt was to keep Carlos off balance and breaking his nose was just a bonus. To finish it up, Leni delivered a devastating chassé kick that most likely broke some of Carlos's ribs and injured some of his internal organs, probably his lungs after seeing him cough up blood. Carlos was literally on his last leg, it wouldn't be long until he'd pass out from blood loss. However, Leni could see the look on Carlos's face that said otherwise. In spite of his severe injuries, the sheer defiant expression and fire in Carlos's eyes did not waver for a second. He looked to be dead set on continuing this fight despite of his wounds and exhaustion setting in.

"Mr. Medel, there's no shame in giving up. You are really hurt, and you can barely stand, even I know you're losing a lot of blood." Leni spoke up with a hint of concern in her tone. "No one will blame you for giving up."

Carlos looked caught off guard by Leni's words before he started to chuckle rather weakly thanks to his injuries.

"Hehe… that's where you're wrong… Leni Loud. I'd only have myself to blame if I gave up now. You wouldn't possibly understand my reasons because of where you grew up. Born in the United States of America, raised by loving parents alongside siblings that care for you. Growing up with a roof over your head and having a full belly every night. Being able to get an education with your siblings and friends. Such a blessed life. Myself on the other hand wasn't so blessed. I grew up with nothing, no loving parents, no siblings, no home to call my own. Desperately trying to find a meal for myself and find a good place to sleep in the slums I was forced to live in. No time for an education if you're trying to survive on the streets. My whole life I had to fight, whether it was against the other street kids or against the street gangs that wanted me. I should have died in those streets, but I got out thanks to one man's generosity. That generosity led me to the boxing ring where I put my fighting to use. Despite growing up from nothing, I carved a life for myself with my fighting and now live a life worth living. Perhaps I should give up, but what kind man would I be if did starting now. I never gave up back then and I'm sure as hell ain't giving up now."

To say Leni was shocked would be an understatement. She knew that what Carlos had told her was an unfortunate truth about the world. Being a philanthropist and donor to countless charities, Leni had learned that many in other countries weren't lucky than her. Which is why she donated so much to organizations that could hopefully change that. But what shocked Leni even more was the sheer conviction Carlos had even faced with grave defeat. Perhaps it was just a stubborn man's pride, but from what Carlos had told her maybe that's all he had growing up?

His own pride and will to fight.

Despite of having just fought this man and even injured by him, Leni couldn't bring herself to hate him. In fact, she respected Carlos Medel and empathized with unfortunate childhood. Although Carlos Medel looked to be injured and barely holding on in front of her, for Leni he seemed larger than life. This man wasn't going to give for anyone, least of all to her who only got lucky. Leni had to admit Carlos underestimated her, but keeping her fighting abilities and techniques secret were what brought her this far. She also made her own share of mistakes when fighting him thanks to his highly regarded experience and skill. This fight could have gone either way.

"I think it's time to wrap this fight up, eh?"

Carlos spat out a glob of blood and once he finished talking he wiped some blood off his face to look at Leni.

"I ain't giving up so you better end this. For us fighters there isn't room for sympathy, not in our way of life. Prove that you what it takes to be a fighter… prove that you beat me, Leni Loud."

Much as Leni didn't want to admit it, Carlos was right. There was no place for sympathy when it came to fighting. Doing so could lead to making a mistake that could end in your downfall. Remy had taught her that during her training. Which was hard given Leni's caring and kind nature. Something not suited for a fighter, but that didn't stop Leni. Now knowing what she needed to do. Leni took low stance getting ready to end this fight once and for with one move. Doing so otherwise would dishonorable to a man like Carlos Medel. Like he said, there was no room for sympathy in a fight like this. Besides, Leni needed to prove to herself that she could do this not just for her own sake but for those she cared for. All of this was for her family, for her little brother and the rest of her family. She needed to be stronger than who she used to be. In Leni's mind doing this will prove that once and for all.

In a burst of an incredible speed, Leni rushed at Carlos with the intention of finally ending this. Adelaide could barely keep up with Leni, but she knew what Leni planned to do. All the while Carlos kept holding onto the fence to keep himself from falling causing him to look helpless. As Leni got close she went for one last chassé frontal kick aiming to take Carlos out once and for all. It looked like this match was over.

All that changed when Carlos managed to let out a weak smirk.

Just as Leni got close enough, Carlos quickly released his left hand from keeping pressure on his open wound to flick a decent amount of blood at Leni's face! Upon seeing the droplets of blood being thrown towards her face, Leni looked shocked and acted on instinct alone by shutting her eyes tight, but that didn't stop her attack! As blood sprayed against Leni's face she could feel her kick make impact. Sadly, Leni could feel that it wasn't Carlos and when she managed to open one of her eyes she saw that her kick broke through some of the fence but couldn't see Carlos. Until Leni glanced to the left to see that Carlos had dodged her kick and preparing to throw a powerful right jab! Almost immediately Leni tried to pull her leg out only for it to get caught up in the fencing, she looked over to see Carlos throwing no doubt the last jab he could muster. In that moment, time seemed to slow down for both fighters. Since the start of the match to trading blows against each other, Leni and Carlos fought hard to reach this point.

The end of the match.

Once Leni saw the jab coming straight at her, she tried to raise her arms up in attempt to block the incoming jab. Only to realize that she wouldn't be able to block it in time. All Leni could do was watch the jab heading for her face. Suddenly, Leni realized how quiet it gotten despite of hearing the roar of the audience only moments ago. If that wasn't strange enough, Leni noticed how slow everything gotten. Almost like time had stopped. That wasn't all because Leni could see Carlos's movements clearly and could do nothing about it. None of it made sense to Leni. How did she ended up in this sort of situation? Everyone, including a little bit of herself thought this fight was going to be a blowout. But she proved everyone and herself wrong by pushing Carlos to brink and had him at her mercy. To push a legendary fighter like Carlos Medel to the brink, a fighter beyond even her own teacher, was astonishing. Leni used everything in her arsenal from her foresight ability to her last resort the Demon's Scythe, and yet she watched her defeat happening before her eyes.

A familiar feeling of hopelessness and sorrow filled Leni's heart.

A feeling Leni once felt long ago when she realized what she did to her little brother and watching her family drift apart over the years. From Lincoln being taken away and running away thereafter, Lynn blaming and isolating herself from everyone, Luna's addictions destroying her, and seeing the hate and anger Lily showed her once she knew what she and the rest of the family had done to Lincoln. Leni knew this feeling very well, and hoped to never have felt it again. Sadly, it looks like fate had other plans. In some twisted way, Leni expected this would happen. Despite all the training she's endured and sacrifices she's made along the way. All of it in an attempt to become stronger. Never once did Leni do it for herself, everything she did was for her family, for the brother she lost. Deep down Leni knew this would happen.

To give it her all but for it still not be enough.

All Leni could blame was herself, she should have ended the fight after gaining the upper hand, but she hesitated and gave Carlos enough time to pull off one last trick. Leni fought harder than anything she's ever done. Only for her to still lose in the end. Once again she failed her family, she failed her little brother. Leni promised Lincoln and her sisters that she would, but now that seemed like a distant dream.

'Well… looks like I couldn't change in the end. Even after everything I've done and accomplished, I'm still the same disappointment. Stupid, naïve, clueless, and hopeless Leni Loud. I really thought I could change and become a better person, to be the sister and daughter my family deserves. My life has really been full of nothing but failure. I failed my mentor, the man who put his faith in me and taught me everything I know. I failed my family, I should have been a better daughter and sister instead of the clueless airhead who was nothing but trouble. I failed Lincoln, when he needed me the most I treated him like trash and pushed him away. All because of something stupid like luck. Guess I really am an idiot to think I could change.'

At that moment, Leni didn't know why but she felt compelled to see them one more time. Just before Carlos's jab would make contact with Leni's chin, she managed to glance pass the fence surrounding the ring in the direction of where Lincoln and others were watching from. Although it was from a considerable distance, somehow Leni could still see them clearly. She could see that some of them were yelling but couldn't hear what they were saying. That's not all because she could see the looks of concern on their faces, even Lucy and Lynn were yelling and looked concerned. But what shocked Leni the most was Lincoln and Lily. Knowing how Lily felt about her and the rest of the family, Leni expected to see Lily with a look of indifference or even a little happy about her impeding loss. Instead, Leni could see Lily crying out with tears in her eyes and seemingly concerned. Something that Leni didn't think to see on her youngest sister, the sister who she lied to for so long and failed.

After everything she had done and didn't do, why would Lily shed tears for her?

Suddenly, Leni noticed the look her brother had. Leni almost didn't want to look at Lincoln because expected to see him looking very disappointed or with pity, and though would have made this loss hurt even more. Rather than seeing looks of disappointment or pity, Lincoln had a small smile that seemed unusually familiar, and eyes filled with understanding and something Leni didn't expect to see.

Pride.

For some odd reason, Lincoln was proud of her? Why would he be? How could Lincoln be proud of her while seeing her lose? After making him a promise that she would win, how can he be proud of her in spite of all that? All of a sudden, Leni realized why that smile Lincoln had seemed so familiar. She started to remember something that happened a long time. It was when they were still kids, Leni entered a really important fashion designer contest hosted by some famous fashion designers. That contest was something Leni had worked hard to enter and created one the best dresses she's ever made just for that contest. Sadly, in the end she didn't win and came in 4th place. Not even a runner up. Leni could remember vividly how disappointed and sad she was when that happened. She remembered the looks of sympathy she got from her parents and sisters. But what she remembered the most was Lincoln and the smile he had. Instead of pitying her and doing his best to console her, Lincoln hugged her and told her how proud he was. For Lincoln, it didn't matter if Leni had won or lost because in the end what mattered to Lincoln was that he got to see Leni up on that stage.

Truly that's just who Lincoln is.

Even after everything that's happened and how much time has passed. That bit of Lincoln that Leni and the others had come to know, and love was still there. As the powerful jab from Carlos got closer, a small smile appeared on Leni's face with her eyes filled with a little bit of mirth.

'Lincoln… I never deserved you, not for a single second.'

WHAM!

By the time the jab had struck against Leni's chin she didn't even register it for she lost consciousness immediately. A punch to the jaw causes the head to suddenly spin around. This quick motion causes trauma to the brain that knocks the recipient rendering them unconscious. Points on the jaw that are especially vulnerable to knockouts are the sides of the chin, and where the jaw is attached to the skull. Which just so happened to be where Carlos had struck. Leni slowly started to fall backwards, and Carlos fell right beside her. Both fighters landed against the mat around the same time, Leni on her back and Carlos face down. A deafening silence filled the arena, everyone watching on with anticipation after seeing both fighters fall. Adelaide quickly ran over to check on both fighters, once she reached the pair of down fighters she looked to see if both were unconscious. If that's the case, Adelaide would give a 10 count and if neither one gets up in time this fight will be a draw. Those were the rules Clyde had set out and told both referees. But before Adelaide could even start the count, Carlos began to stir. Slowly he got up but looked extremely exhausted and hurt while covered in blood. Out of breath, Carlos looked up at the shining lights of the stadium and raised his hand up air rather sluggishly.

Seeing that Carlos had stood up and still conscious, Adelaide called the match right then and there.

"Match over! Winner, Carlos Medel!"

What followed what a loud and thunderous cheer which filled the whole arena. Those in the audience were completely elated from the incredible fight they just witnessed. Many of them expected this would be a quick match for the legend known as Carlos Medel, but they could plainly see that this match proved otherwise. Despite coming from a curious background with no history of fighting or martial arts, Leni Loud proved everyone wrong and went above and beyond. Though Leni did not win the fight she gave it her all and pushed Carlos close to defeat. Not many could do that. Least of all someone like Leni Loud. They were cheering for Leni just as much as Carlos.

Sitting by ringside was Lola Loud, she looked close to crying but kept her composure because she need to keep looking professional. As an announcer this was expected of her. Despite wanting to do nothing but run in there to check on her sister, Lola had a job to do, and she would do her best to do it. Still, Lola's heart went out for her older sister and hoped she will be okay.

Amid all the cheering and screaming stood Lincoln and some of his sisters. It was clear to see that they were all feeling various emotions. For Lynn she looked conflicted between unbridled anger or great concern for Leni's loss and injuries, so she simply stood there while clenching her hands and teeth. Both Luna and Lana had gloomy faces as they watched Leni's defeat despite coming so close to winning. Lucy closed her eyes with a sad frown with arms crossed. Lily looked to still be crying after seeing her older sister's loss and how injured she got. The youngest Loud briefly stopped crying to look over at her brother to see his reaction only to see his retreating form as he walked towards the ring much to his sisters collective shock.

"Lincoln! Where are you going!"

Lily tried to follow Lincoln only to be stopped by a hand on her shoulder which belonged to Lucy. The gloomiest sister of the group simply shook her head at Lily, who looked conflicted but stood in place as she turned to watch Lincoln walking towards the ring.

Across the other side of the arena, where Ronnie Anne and her group were watching. Carlino sighed in relief after seeing his mentor and friend win, while Carlitos looked just as relieved he looked somewhat conflicted. During this fight Carlitos had come to respect Leni and held hope that she would win. Sadly, the legend of Carlos Medel proved too great for the fledging fighter that was Leni Loud. Sekibayashi looked to be bursting with excitement and why wouldn't he be after seeing a fight like that.

"Now that was what you call a real fight! That girl really showed some spirit out there, and Carlos is every bit the legend I've heard." Sekibayashi exclaimed with his signature grin. "That's some mentor you got there, Ronnie Anne."

Sekibayashi turned to see what Ronnie Anne would say, instead he watched as she walked pass him and headed to the ring. The veteran wrestler could hear both of her cousins call out to her only for Ronnie Anne to ignore them and keep walking. This caused Sekibayashi to chuckle with a grin.

"Heh, guess the same could be said for you kid."

Up in the VIP stands, various reactions could be seen amongst those watching. Looks of relief and even celebrating could been seen coming from Bobby's group, but Bobby himself had troubled expression with eyes focused down below inside the ring. Despite knowing Carlos for years and considered him a friend/honorary uncle, Bobby had known Leni ever since he met and fell in love with Lori. For a time, he considered the Louds like family. Deep down Bobby still felt that way and hoped Leni will be okay. Sitting beside him were Sid and Nikki both of whom were rejoicing in Carlos's hard fought victory. The ever-stoic Gen Shikano sat alone whilst lighting himself a cigar, he expected such an outcome to happen considering the skill and experience a man like Medel possessed. Be that as it may, Shikano had to give credit to Leni. To be able to go head to head with a fighter like Carlos is nothing to scoff at.

'If what I heard is true about this being this woman's first real fight, I can only imagine what she'll be able to do after enough experience. I must admit, your grandchildren are just as every like you, Albert. Only time will tell if they'll be able to go beyond what you achieved in your prime old friend.'

Shikano finished that thought while taking a drag of his cigar and exhaling the smoke through his nostrils with a small smile. He couldn't wait to see what the rest of the Louds fighting tonight had in store.

For Clyde and his secretary Penelope they did not share the same looks of relief or joy. A heavy sigh came from Clyde who frowned sadly, Penelope turned to look at him with a disappointed frown.

"I really thought Leni would win there for a moment." Penelope admitted sadly. "Do you think she will be okay?"

"Well, compared to what Leni did to Carlos I'm sure she'll be just fine." Clyde replied honestly. "Although I don't think this loss will sit well with her. Thankfully she has family who will be there for her, and by the looks of it Lincoln will be too."

Penelope looked confused before she looked where Clyde was looking, and was shocked to see Lincoln making his way to the ring still in his fighter attire and his mask pulled up. Still, Penelope didn't understand what he was doing.

"What's he doing?"

A thoughtful smile came from Clyde before he answered.

"Being Lincoln Loud…"

The last group looked to be the most dejected and concerned, which happened to the Louds and their friends. Tears could be seen coming from Luan who clenched her hands tight together while looking down in attempt to hide her despaired face. Both Carol and Haiku had concerned expressions as they did their best to comfort Luan. They were all shocked by Leni's performance and hoped she would win in the end but sadly that did not happen. The last two Loud sisters had contrasting expressions, while Lisa looked troubled and sad, Lori only sighed with eyes closed and a disappointed frown. Lisa glanced over to see Lori's expression and scowled slightly. Somehow Lisa knew that would be her older sister's reaction, but Lori could at least look concerned for Leni or sadden by her loss. Now that Lisa thought about it, how did Leni lose? She had Carlos at her mercy and was about to deliver the final blow before Carlos managed to turn the tables at the last second. As Lisa thought over the final moments of the fight and analyzed every last detail inside her head, she came to the unfortunate conclusion that Leni's foresight ability had a hand in it.

Over the course of the fight Leni had analyzed Carlos's movements and fighting style perfectly. By the time Carlos realized how Leni was able to predict his moves and actions he tried to overcome that with his speed, and he came close. But Leni managed to bait Carlos into putting everything into one attack by dropping her guard and caught him off guard with her Demon Scythe kick. A headbutt and front piston kick followed pushing Carlos with an extreme amount of force smashing against the fence around the ring. The injuries Carlos had received from Leni were serious, Lisa knew that once she noticed them for herself. That combined with exhaustion meant it was only a matter of time before it would too much for Carlos. It did not matter how strong you are or how skillful, you can only push the human body so far until you can't. It looked like the one victorious would be Leni, but that didn't happen and Lisa finally figured out why.

'It all came down to experience and bad timing on Leni's part. Her analytic ability is on par with mine or perhaps even greater in combat. Leni was able to predict Carlos's moves and fighting techniques flawlessly, even when he switched styles. Though it cost her some injuries and a few close calls, Leni finally managed to fully analyze Carlos's fighting style. Sadly, in the end it wasn't some mysterious technique that got Leni. No, it was a dirty trick that anyone would use in a street fight. Blinding an opponent is an underhanded tactic but clever if you want to win. I forgot that Carlos isn't just a former professional boxer, he's also an underground fighter. Where there are little to no rules. To be able to fight there you need to do anything to win even if it means using tricks. During this entire fight Leni only focused on Carlos the professional fighter… and not the brawler willing to do anything it takes to win. Not just that but Leni hesitated at a critical moment that cost her. She should have finished Carlos after kicking him across the ring, but she didn't.'

No doubt Leni did so because she wanted to give Carlos a chance to forfeit. Despite being a strong and fierce fighter, Leni was still the same kind hearted girl that deplored violence deep down. A true bleeding heart. If Leni was a bit more experienced and willing to do whatever it took to win. Maybe this fight would have ended differently.

"Lisa."

Breaking away from her thoughts, Lisa turned to Lori who had the same blank expression as before.

"You and the others should go check on Leni." Lori suggested surprising Lisa, Luan, and the others. "She might not be as hurt compared to Carlos, but I'd feel better if she get checked out by you just in case."

Pretty much everyone sitting next to Lori were shocked. A few moments ago, it seemed that Leni's wellbeing was the last thing on the older Loud sibling's mind. Guess that goes to show how good Lori was at hiding her true feelings. Not even her sisters or close friends were able to tell how she truly felt sometimes. Once the shock subsided, Lisa nodded with usual blank expression as she stood up to look at Lori one more time.

"Will you be joining us?"

A small smirk graced Lori's elegant face with her eyes shut.

"I'm sure Leni will be just fine without me there. Still, I'll drop by to check on her later when I can. You just make sure she's fine, I'll stay here in the meantime."

With that all said, Lori focused her attention down to the ring. Lisa stood there for a moment until she turned to Luan and the others and gestured to them to follow her. Luan, Carol, and Haiku looked a little unsure of Lisa and Lori's little exchange, but got up and began to follow Lisa out the door. But before walking through the door, Luan gave one last worrisome glance to Lori.

'Even when it doesn't look like it, you're always looking out for us. But who's looking out for you, Lori.'

Eventually Lori found herself sitting alone. A part of her wanted to go with Lisa and the others to go check on Leni, but Lori decided to do it later. The last thing Lori wanted was to make things even more difficult between her siblings. She may be a cold heartless businesswoman, but family was everything to her. Besides her company, family is all she had. The number of friends Lori had was so small that she could count them on one hand, and her list of enemies and rivals were too long to count. Such is the life of a CEO of a multimillion dollar company with a large sphere of influence in the political world and even the criminal world. Besides, Leni needed love and support after experiencing such a big loss and sadly Lori knew that she wouldn't be able to provide that by herself. That's the reason she sent the others to check on Leni.

"You mind having some company?"

Lori's eyes grew wide in surprise when she heard a very familiar voice, she turned to see Bobby standing there looking down at her with a small smile. The surprise on Lori's face quickly turned in a frown as she resumed looking down towards the ring in an attempt to ignore Bobby's presence.

"And If I say yes?"

"Then I walk away with my wounded pride." Bobby replied with a slight smirk. "But it would be worth it for having gotten the chance to speak with a very lovely woman."

"Heh, you sound like that cocky cousin of yours." Lori scoffed with a small smirk. "Not a lot of people have the courage to call me lovely anymore. Usually, they're too scared to say anything or just gawk like idiots."

"Maybe your beauty proved too much for them?" Bobby suggested still smirking. "I know I was when we first met."

Blushing slightly, Lori sighed and patted the seat next to her giving Bobby permission to sit. Which he gladly did with a genuine smile. A rather uncomfortable silence loomed between the both of them until Bobby decided to break it.

"How long has it been since we last spoke like this?"

With a small frown, Lori finally answered.

"14 years ago… that day in the hospital. That's the last time we both spoke face to face until now."

"Oh, so that's how long it's been? For some reason it feels longer than that. To be honest, all of it feels like a lifetime ago." Bobby smiled sadly. "We were still just kids in some ways. But look at us now, it's crazy to see how much we've changed."

"Change always comes, for better or for worse." Lori confessed with a small frown. "Whether we wanted it or not. We all change in the end."

After Lori finished saying that, another silence loomed between the two former lovers. However, it didn't feel as awkward like before. For some reason it felt calming for both Lori and Bobby. So, they just sat there seemingly enjoying each other's company though neither of them said it. Bobby turned his head slightly to look at Lori who seemed focused looking down towards the ring. Even now he couldn't help but marvel at Lori's beauty despite her somewhat frosty personality. Not that it bothered Bobby since he was used to Lori's somewhat rigid and bossy attitude from the past. If anything, that's one of the reasons he loved about her. As Bobby kept looking at Lori, he slowly realized something he'd always suspected.

'In spite of everything you've done, and what caused us to finally end things between us. I still love you, Lori. Man, how hopeless can I be?'

Suddenly, Bobby glanced back down below to finally notice two certain people approaching the ring from opposite sides. A small sigh came from Bobby who smiled sadly.

"I guess some things don't change, huh Lori?"

When Lori noticed what Bobby was referring to, she couldn't help but smile just like Bobby. A rare sight to see when it came to Lori.

"Not when it comes to those two. It doesn't matter how many years go by, those two will always be the same twerps we watched growing up together."

A chuckle from Bobby was Lori needed to hear to know he agreed with. Both older siblings decided to watch and see what their respective younger siblings would do.

Down below in the ring, Carlos could barely stand as he finally dropped his raised fist from the air. The cheers and yells coming from the crowd were very familiar to Carlos, but he canceled out all that noise to look down at his defeated opponent. Despite being knocked out, a faint smile could be seen on Leni. The same couldn't said for Carlos who looked very exhausted and deep in thought. None of which was surprising considering the fight he just had. It's been a long time since Carlos could recall having such a difficult fight that left him like this. The best he could compare to was when he first started fighting in the underground scene and upon entering into Purgatory. Where fighters like Rolon Donaire and Jurota Arashiyama roamed, fighters on a whole other level. After this fight, Carlos can safely say that Leni Loud was one such fighter now. Carlos knew full well that he won by the skin of his teeth. Leni caught Carlos by surprise with her unexpected techniques and would have won if she wasn't so inexperienced and careless. In the end, Carlos had to pull off a rather dirty trick to win and normally he'd be fine with that.

However, for some odd reason it really bothered Carlos that he won this way.

It's not like he hadn't done something similar before. In the underground you did everything to win. That's just how it worked, and yet something still nagged at Carlos even though he won. As Carlos stood there looking down at the unconscious Leni, he slowly realized why he felt this way.

It was because of Leni.

An amateur fighter with little to no fighting experience did this to him, Carlos Medel a living legend. A woman who happened to a freaking fashion designer and model on top of that. None of it made sense to Carlos. Slowly an unfortunate conclusion dawned upon Carlos.

He needed to become stronger.

It took years for Carlos to reach the level of strength he was already at. Sacrificing his heavyweight power for unfathomable speed, taking up two martial arts to extend his reach and cover his weaknesses. All this time Carlos thought he finally obtained a level of power to overcome anyone, but this fight proved otherwise. Carlos gave this fight everything he had, and it almost wasn't enough and didn't sit well with him one bit. Still, Carlos had to admit that it was an incredible fight. One of the best he's had in quite some time. What a surprise that Leni was the fighter to give him such an amazing fight. Carlos came here to test Lincoln Loud, but instead got his sister Leni Loud. A rather disappointing choice of opponent in Carlos's eyes. Yet she proved him and everyone wrong, and Carlos had the injuries to prove it.

'Funny, this is the first win that feels like I lost. I don't think I've ever been this hurt before… not even when I fought Liu Dongcheng. My legs feel like they can give in any moment. I'm just so tired… you really are something Leni Loud.'

Giving Leni one last look out of respect, Carlos slowly limped towards the door he entered from, or at least he tried until he fell to one knee causing the cheers that filled the arena to slowly turn into murmurs. In the heat of the moment, it seems many of them forgot how hurt Carlos was. For many it was shocking to see the state the former champion was in. Carlos may have won the match, but his injuries would argue otherwise when compared to Leni's. Extremely exhausted and hurt from his unforgiving match, Carlos knew for certain he wasn't walking out of here on his own. He didn't know what hurt more, his injuries or his pride. The last thing he wanted was to be brought out of here on a stretcher.

"You look terrible, tío."

Upon hearing the cage door open followed by a very recognizable voice, Carlos slowly looked up to see Ronnie Anne walking over to him with a small frown. Once she finally reached him, Ronnie Anne looked down at her mentor before her frown slipped into a smile as she reached down to offer Carlos a hand.

"Come on, lets get you checked up on and then we'll grab a drink."

Carlos seemed very surprised because he didn't expect Ronnie Anne to walk all the way down here to help him. It wasn't just that, this is the first time Carlos's ever had anyone close to him do something like this for him. Amongst all the wins he's experienced, Carlos has only experienced a few losses like this and never once had someone close to be there for him. Not that he cared for such a thing. Being an orphan and once being homeless Carlos was used to being alone. A consequence of being strong. Those with strength often find themselves alone, and that never bothered Carlos. Now, Carlos did not know what to do in this situation. Until he sighed and accepted the hand Ronnie Anne offered him, she pulled him up and placed his arm over her shoulder to act like his crutch. Those watching this unexpected act of kindness and sportsmanship between mentor and student. Excitement began to stir amongst with the crowd as many recognized Ronnie Anne for her name was just as famous and renowned as Carlo's.

"Heh, you better be buying those drinks niña." Carlos grunted with a smirk. "Gracias, Ronnie… I mean it."

Only smiling and giving an understanding nod, Ronnie Anne knew how prideful her mentor can be, and rightfully so. A legend in the underground and public held in such esteem that could rival royalty itself and with the skill and strength to back it up. She still couldn't believe he almost lost to Leni Loud of all people. To think she was able to deal this much damage to an experienced and skillful fighter like Carlos was insane. Suddenly the door across the ring-opened catching everyone's attention. Lincoln walked into the ring with his mask pulled up hiding his identity, he made his way to the unconscious Leni and picked her up in his arms holding her bridal style. Though no one could see his expression, his eyes softened and had a bittersweet look as he gazed at Leni in his arms. In a way, he almost looked proud. A small sigh escaped Lincoln's lips before he looked up from Leni to Ronnie Anne and Carlos. Both expected him to glare or curse at them, but Lincoln only focused his gaze on Ronnie Anne who quickly glared at him.

A very intense tension could be felt filling the ring. Adelaide watched the encounter like a storm was brewing and looked a little nervous. Carlos's eyes were wide in shock because he could feel the powerful aura exploding from both Ronnie Anne and Lincoln. Both were vastly different from each other, for Lincoln's aura was like that of a calm but powerful blizzard while Ronnie Anne's was akin to a raging wildfire ready to destroy everything in its path. It looked like two contrasting forces of nature ready to clash until Lincoln unexpectedly turned around causing most of the tension to abruptly vanish.

Without saying a word, Lincoln walked away with his sister in his arms. One of the gatekeepers quickly opened the gate for them with a very nervous look. Leaving only Ronnie Anne and Carlos in the ring with Adelaide who sighed in relief. Ronnie Anne kept glaring at Lincoln's retreating figure until she had enough and started to walk away dragging Carlos with her. She could hear the murmurs coming from the audience concerning her encounter with Lincoln. Many in the crowd only knew Lincoln by his other identity, Ace, and knew he was a very strong and talented street brawler. Who's defeated plenty of strong opponents, the rogue sumo Cassidy being the most recent. A lot of questions were being raised. Why did Ace come out and carry Leni out of the ring? What was their relationship? Did Ace and Ronnie Anne know each other? If so why did it look like they were going to come to blows? One thing they knew for certain is that this tournament was getting more interesting and if the rest of the bouts are like the one they just saw then this will be a night to certainly remember.

Amongst the audience, a few certain individuals had their own thoughts about the fight they just witnessed. One was Leni's mentor, Remy who had a solemn expression. He knew the chances of his student winning this fight were very slim, but Leni was amazing out there. Remy felt nothing but pride for his student and what Leni had accomplished. To push Carlos Medel to near defeat is something many did not think was possible. The skill and strength Leni has reached are nothing but astounding when compared to where she began. All the credit couldn't go to Remy because he knew that it was Leni's conviction that drove her to reach where she is now. Still, Remy spotted a few flaws in Leni's fighting and noticed plenty of mistakes she made during the match. One was towards the end where Leni didn't finish it and gave Carlos enough time to snatch the win away from her. Lack of experience and a bleeding heart caused Leni to lose. Remy knew that Leni wouldn't change who she was, but she could do something about the experience and flaws.

'There's always room for growth, and something tells me Leni has only begun to scratch the surface of her potential.' Remy thought honestly. 'Given time she'll be a powerful fighter that could even rival the likes of Carlos Medel.'

When Remy looked over to see his student being carried away by her brother, a ghost of a smile could be seen on his face. Everything that Leni trained and strived for was for her brother and her family, to get the chance to reunite with her brother and hopefully atone for what she had done. By the looks of it, Leni was already on her way to reaching that. But if what Leni had told him was true then that family has a long way to go to fully reconciling with each other. All Remy could do is hope that everything works out for his student and her family. Suddenly, Remy found himself focusing his attention on Lincoln. The veteran Savate practitioner could tell that Lincoln was very strong given the aura he saw him releasing in that encounter with that woman and Carlos. Speaking of whom, that woman looked just as formidable if not stronger. From what Remy had seen he could tell that those two have history, troubled and deep history if that glare was anything go by.

Somehow Remy had a feeling that will play a major factor by the end of the night. Remy would be lying if he didn't want to see those two fight later in the tournament.

'If Leni's siblings are anything like her then this tournament will certainly be a memorable one.'

In another part, if the arena sat both Rolon Donaire and Jurota Arashiyama, the Kings of Purgatory, both of whom had just watched a rather interesting fight between their friend Carlos Medel and Leni Loud.

"A good match, that woman didn't make it easy for Carlos. I can scarcely remember seeing him in this sort of state." Jurota admitted with a pensive expression. "Carlos will need to take some time away from Purgatory to heal those injuries of his. Toyoda will not be pleased about that. Carlos is a big draw and has earned Purgatory a lot of profit. Still, I think Toyoda will let it slide in this case. I have a feeling Carlos will have a lot to report once this tournament ends."

Not a word came from Rolon who kept a piercing gaze on Lincoln. Jurota soon noticed where his companion's attention was, and he joined him in his observation of Lincoln.

"You saw it too I take it?"

"Yes, that man is strong." Rolon commented with a serious look. "A powerful presence indeed, but something tells me there's more to him than meets the eye. Toyoda was right to send someone to observe him."

Suddenly, Lincoln turned his head a little and stared in the direction of Rolon and Jurota surprising both men. Lincoln locked eyes with both men which lasted a few moments before he stopped and kept walking. Jurota now looked even deeper in thought because of what just happened. He turned to ask Rolon what he thought when paused in surprise by what he saw. A very rare smile and a glint in his eyes could be seen on Rolon who kept his gaze focused on Lincoln.

"Well, he's got my attention."

Jurota brought his attention back to Lincoln who kept on walking with his sister in his arms out of the arena. To notice his and Rolon's presence out of such a large crowd was impressive. But what really impressed Jurota is that Lincoln got Rolon's attention and got him to smile, which is a feat of its very own.

'Curious, very curious.' Jurota thought stroking his chin in deep thought. 'The fighters participating in this tournament, are they just as interesting as that man and Leni Loud? If so I think this tournament is going to be very interesting to watch.'

Meanwhile, Lincoln kept on walking ignoring the crowd noise and looks he received. His thoughts were that of the two men he noticed in the audience. Thanks to his training, Lincoln was able to pinpoint those two out of the audience and knew that they were watching him really intently. Not only that, but Lincoln knew who they were and why they were there.

'The Kings of Purgatory, I didn't think I would see them here. I knew Purgatory would probably send someone along with Carlos, but those two? Guess I really must have stirred the pot. So, that was Rolon Donaire and Jurota Arashiyama. The old man told me he fought Rolon to a standstill in the day. From the looks of him, I'm not surprised, those two guys are true monsters.'

A faint moan brought Lincoln away from his thoughts. He looked down to see Leni slowly try to stir awake but stopped to lean further into her brother's embrace. Lincoln found himself smiling underneath his mask, he looked down at Leni's face with a soft gaze. Even with all the bruises, cuts, and blood, somehow Leni still kept that beauty of hers. Lincoln doubted he could walk away from a fight like that still looking pretty, especially against a guy like Carlos Medel. The smile Lincoln had slowly turned into a small frown. Leni threw everything she had at Carlos and risked great injury or worse. All because he asked for her help. Lincoln knew Leni and the others agreed to help in an effort to make amends for what they did to him. Regret is a strong incentive, but it wasn't just that. Leni and the others still viewed him and loved him as a brother. Despite everything that's happened. Lincoln still cared deeply for his family, and he didn't want to see Leni and the others get hurt for his sake. Not when he had the strength and skill to fight for himself. However, it was too late to ask those fighting to stop now, Lincoln knew how stubborn his sisters could be. All he can do now is watch and cheer his sisters on, and be ready to fight his own match.

As Lincoln got closer to where Lily and the others were waiting. He took one last glance at Leni still unconscious in his arms. Suddenly, a burning resolve began to fill Lincoln. He was going to give it his all in this tournament like his life depended on it. In the past, he could afford to lose a fight. But not this time, this tournament was different. This time Lincoln was fighting for something other than himself. He was fighting for his family, his sisters, and his friends. Losing was not an option with those sorts of stakes. And Lincoln had a feeling he wasn't the only one who felt this way. From the looks of it, he could see Lynn, Lucy, Luna, and Lana had the same expression. Lincoln knew they were going to give it their all to win their fights. Leni may have lost, but this tournament is far from over.

'Whatever happens, whoever I fight… I vow to win!'

With that declaration to himself made, Lincoln kept on walking unaware of how this tournament and those participating in it will turn the martial arts world upside down. By the end of this tournament, a new age of fighting will begin in The Americas that will forever change the martial arts world itself.

A new age was coming.

To Be Continued

AN: Well… it sure has been a while. About a full year and a few months give or take, yeah that's on me. If you're wondering why such a long wait, all I can say is that life happened. My medical studies needed all my focus, and they still do because I'm trying to get my certifications and need to have a job lined up as soon as I'm finished. Sadly, I also had a bad case of writer's block which didn't help. So yeah, real life pretty much happened. I'm hoping that from here on updates won't take too long, but who really knows? I still love writing and plan to finish my stories eventually. It's just that this is a fun little hobby that I love to do. I'm just grateful that you guys are still interested in reading my stories, even with the grueling waits between chapters and my crappy writing. You guys make it possible for me to keep writing, and I want to thank you all for sticking with me so far. Anyways, I hope you liked the chapter. I did my best to put as much action as I could and balance it with the dialogue and drama. The fight between Leni and Carlos was really hard to write, and it was difficult to split between the fighting and the characters talking or explaining something. I just hope I did well enough. If I didn't please let me know how you think I can improve it. As for the overall fight, I hope you all enjoyed it. Carlos may have won, but Leni didn't make it easy for him. I wanted to give Leni an edge with her Savant Syndrome, foresight ability, and partial training. In a sense, Leni may seem pretty overpowered, but she lacks experience. Carlos is a veteran fighter and former champion who has plenty of experience and more. Although Leni really tore into Carlos during the fight, he took advantage of Leni's lack of experience and compassion in the end to get the win.

The next chapter will probably be a little intermission for our characters to talk and set up the next fight. If you've been checking out the fan art I've been commissioning then you already have an idea of who's fighting next. Be sure to check out my Amino or Tumblr, ChubbySnorlax on Amino, and chubbysnorlax619 on Tumblr. I haven't commissioned something in a while because money is pretty tight at the moment, but I think that will change soon. So, be on the lookout for more fan art.

Just want to thank all those who submitted their OCs. I might touch up on a few of them to make them more believable but won't change much. If things go right, a few of them might make an appearance during the tournament. And who knows, I might even commission fan art of them in the future.

Oh, and if you have any suggestions for entrance music still or want to suggest something different let me know in a review or PM me.

I don't want to say an exact date for the next chapter because I don't want to make any promises I can't keep. But I will say that I will be writing it as soon as I'm done updating my other stories. Since the next chapter is just an intermission and prelude to the next fight, it probably won't take too long to write. Here's hoping at least.

Thanks again for reading, please leave a review with your thoughts, suggestions, or ideas. You can also PM me if you want I'll try to respond as soon as I can. See ya, and take care!