"The weakest one in the game always goes down first!"
Kidomaru
Souji had one task to complete. One task in mind. One task he would complete. It was a giant task. A task physically impossible to topple, at least alone. Nonetheless, the task was still more than challenging.
Atsushi wouldn't use his expansion, super expansion, or any variations of his clan's trademark jutsus, so long as he was pushed to his limit. Pushing the man to his limit would come with a dangerous price, and was a severe risk.
Souji already resolved he'd take any risk.
He charged Atsushi and struck him in the side, taking advantage of his focus being centered on Isamu and Hiro. His other eye hovering on foes honing in on him. Both men were bashing and shoving him back, using all the momentum they could.
Kosuke and Saki were more conservative-they struck him in his elbows and knees when they could, evading his brutal strikes, and went back in to chip away at the lump. Isami and Rio took the biggest risks along with himself-they battered Atsushi and pushed the larger man with each breath.
Rio managed to swing around-her left foot sliding across the torn up ground as she just evaded being planted into the ground. With a quick pivot, she launched herself for the larger man, but he grabbed her, swung him into Kosuke, Souji, and Isamu, before he launched her a few meters away, watching with a smirk as a tree collapsed from her body hitting it.
The moment of celebration was spoiled. It hadn't begun, in any case. Souji dashed in, eyes hard, and with a jump, he slammed the point of his knee into the Akimichi's chin. Atsushi braced and tensed against the force, but could feel blood welling up.
Kosuke and Saki charged from the sides as Hiro came from behind. Still stunned, Atsushi was dazed by the hard elbow Hiro launched, but he was quick to recover, and with a swing of his waist he slammed his elbow against the man's chin, snapping his head back violently, instantly flooring him.
He turned, less than a fraction of a second, and rammed his fist into Isamu, just adverting being struck by his fist.
His foe strained, feeling his collarbone vibrating from the tremendous force he was exerting. Atsusuhi had to admire Isamu's power and ferocity. Most men would have been broken and pulverized by that punch-their collarbone shattered and part of their torso in the next country. However, Isamu took his blow, and the damage, but remained firm.
Atsushi swung his forearm, batting Isamu away brutally-the man had been luring him in.
And, he succeeded.
All of his foes swarmed him at once. So overwhelmed, he staggered back for a second, blocking and flailing his arms around. Kosuke slid across the ground, jamming his fist into the larger man's knee at the back, watching it twist at an odd angle.
He couldn't hide his smirk-finally they got this giant of a man down, now they had to deal enough damage in that short time.
Atsushi dropped-the weight of Rio and Hiro came crashing down atop him. They weren't heavy enough to wind him, but this was a battle, chakra was involved, and they were using momentum he generated by brutalizing them, to turn the tables. They crashed on his chest and face, one knocking all the air from his lungs, and the other making him see hot white and blurs of color.
He could vaguely feel his body being struck. His lungs ached, and his body remained rigid as it fought for air. The strikes pelting him served as an annoyance and a source of pain, one too many times were his ribs kicked. The air he managed to gather was ripped away, and he was forced into another painful convulsion. A shadow loomed over him, and with a start, he realized Isami was primed to stomp him-in the face.
With a roar Atsushi surged. His burly arms clobbered Kosuke, and for good measure he swung around his other arm, colliding with the man's neck, and brought him to the ground with a cruel thud. There was a flash of gold and Saki was beside him. She chambered her leg, before launching it forward, growling as Atsushi tried to use brute force to overcome her technique.
There was another flash-more abrupt. Souji moved with purpose. He was already flying, knee extended, and Atsushi could only fly across the ground as the smaller man struck him, before hitting the ground twice as hard. He flipped, just avoiding smacking his head off the frozen ground. Hiro pressed on, panting, wheezing, but he slammed his fist across Atsushi's face, pressed his hand against the man's head, and struck him over and over.
"You little runt!"
Atsushi snatched Hiro's fist, crushing in on it as the impact drove him down inside the collapsing earthh. He strained, teeth gritting harder and harder until he growled from being so tense. He pressed, and sent a punch forward with free hand, Hiro, in a show of guts, or power, met the hit head on with his other fist, entire body starting to shake.
Hiro took another step, and another. Atsushi met his eyes head on, feeling his breath catch. It was clear Hiro wasn't going to back down, and for that, he admired him even more. Hiro's slow march halted, Atsushi's foot dug into the ground, and slowly, he pressed forward with his own steps. He shifted back, heaving Hiro up, and jumped up, body going back as his foot collided with Hiro's jaw and sent him flying right into a tree-sending part of it crashing into the earth.
Atsushi sprung back up to his feet, eyes searching for a target. He honed in on Souji. The smaller man didn't back down, and rather than try and get distance, Souji sprinted for Atsushi, screaming. His first blow struck, but Atsushi was quick to block the next series of blows. Souji ramped it up, unleashing five blows for every one of Atsushi's, but the bigger man's sheer size almost made it a moot point.
It wasn't often he had to truly strain, but Atsushi strained, pushing against Souji's fist. He let himself slip away, sending his foe forward, and jammed his fist hard into his gut-a thunderclap of force dispersed, and Souji was sent flying away, smashing into twisted earthen spires, the impact jarring his bones to a breaking point. Kosuke and Isami jumped up, using the element of surprise. Kosuke punched him on the bridge of his nose, pushing until he heard the familiar sound of cartilage breaking.
As it was expected now, it had no effect. Even with a broken, or close to broken nose, Atsushi fed off his pain and fury, both going hand and hand. He slammed Saki and Isamu through a rock wall, pushing their bodies until they were gaping in pain and clawing at him. Kosuke appeared above him and grabbed his one arm with both of his, and twisted.
Hard.
Souji heard the enraged roar-Atsushi sounded like a rabid, wounded animal. Kosuke hadn't quite been able to break Atsushi's arm. H was far too massive to do that so easily. It was a sprain, or just a hairline fracture, but nonetheless, it would slow Atsushi down. They had something to target other than his leg-if they could take out both limbs, or just one, they'd swing things in their favor.
His strategy was cut short, and he just narrowly evaded Kosuke's flying form. Isamu and Hiro both tried to halt Atsushi but he leveled them with nothing short of brute force, the collision of their bodies sounding off. Souji held his ground, crouching down, letting his chakra explode. Atsushi slammed Saki into a tree as if she were an ant, and his charge brought him just a hair away from Souji.
Both men screamed. Souji powered forward against the mountain of his flesh-his own body, robust and strong, speared into Atsushi's girth. He wasn't going to try and out power the burly man, instead, he jammed his shoulder into Atsushi's gut, using his entire body as one powerful spring. He vaguely heard to wheezing, pained gasp of Atsushi, barely felt the armor heave against him, before cutting into his shoulder.
It was a blunt blow, his armor just barely absorbed the full impact. Atsushi hadn't been expecting such a blow. "Grraaagghh!"
Atsushi snarled, blood was starting to flow into his mouth. He strained, spitting, glowering. He braced one arm against Souji's body, feet immediately digging into the ground, finding purchase. Atsusuhi raised his burly arm, and with no hesitation, clubbed Souji's spine. He smashed his arm over and over, feeling his foe's body remaining strong. His other foes would be on their feet in their seconds.
Souji snarled, thrusting his shoulder into Atsushi's gut again. Atsushi braced against him, feet digging and digging, head tilting as he began to strain more. It appeared one of them would need to give ground. Atsushi pivoted, relaxing. Souji shifted to the side, sliding. Atsushi smashed his palm into his nec, squeezing until the man's face was red and his blows felt like they were going to break his bones.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
THUD!
Atsushi swung Souji down. It wasn't with brute force. It wasn't with contempt. It was sheer brutality. Souji exhaled, loud enough for everyone to hear. He smacked the ground with a loud thud-almost popping sound. There was no give. Yet, the ground cracked and gave from the sheer force of Atsushi's slam. The back of his head had been the first thing to hit the ground.
Atsushi dashed back, panting harshly as his leg burned from his next jump. He got to level ground. However, the hasty movement made him an easy target, and left him of balance. Saki appeared beside him, slamming her heel straight into his knee, pinpointing the same spot Kosuke had targeted earlier. She was much smaller than Atsushi, and by the time he reacted, she struck his arm over twenty times. Atsushi snarled, another massive fist screaming from his shoulder, smashing into Saki.
He heaved and he coughed, blood splattered on the ground.
Saki's collision leveled a tree, and sent her tumbling away. Unable to control her fall, she finally stopped-her ribs slammed against the trunk of a tree, drawing wind out of her. Driven by rage, Atsushi grabbed Isamu by the waist, and drilled him into the ground-he roared, exerting more than he ever had before-the ground exploded, crumbling and falling without reprieve. dust finally cleared, Isamu was buried in the dirt, struggling to gather his bearings and get to his feet at the bottom of the vast crater.
Atsushi stood on the edge, grinning as he looked down.
"You'd better wipe that brash smirk off of your face, Atsushi. This is far from done." Rio snarled, angry.
Rio slammed into the burly man, not caring how massive or large he was. Her body speared into his, and he was forced to give ground to the ferocious woman. She swung an flailed, arms and legs moving so fast he couldn't even count how many combinations she was executing. It seemed like fifty in a heartbeat, seventy in the blink of an eye.
He was larger and more massive, but Rio's tiny form was nothing short of a gnat. Atsushi spotted the flash of movement, near the woman's shoulder, and he was able to deflect her incoming punch. Rio held back his fist with one hand, teeth gritting as she could feel his strength starting to crush down on her.
Got your big ass right where I want you!
Rio slid to the side, driving her knee into Atsushi's leg and gouging her elbow into his arm that had been twisted by Kosuke, hitting both of his wounds. She followed through on her strikes, and then gouged her bones into his flesh. Atsushi slammed his forehead against her face and part of her jaw, sending blood flying from Rio's nose and making her cry out in pain.
Isami and Hiro rammed Atsushi, no longer worrying about punching and kicking. The scream of Rio sent them into a rage, and they sent Atsushi through trees, boulders, and earthen formations. They simply tried to beat the larger man down the best they could. Kosuke shot towards the ground rearing one fist back, but Atsushi was quick to react. He hefted one hand up catching Kosuke's fist and hoisting him up along with Hiro in what was truly a show of brute strength.
"Don't underestimate the Akimichi!"
Atsushi slammed his knee into Hiro's face snapping his head back, following through with the movement he slammed his forearm across his jaw in mid-throw swinging him around so it was as if Atsushi was about to break his own arm.
Saki couldn't believe what she was seeing. Atsushi had just swung Hiro and Kosuke both like ragdolls, and then slammed them into Isami. The size difference was noticeable, but it had never been more prevalent. It had never been more horrifying. He struck himself with their bodies so hard he sent himself tumbling away as their bodies rolled in opposite directions.
Atsushi was a monster!
Toshi flew in from the side, slamming a knee into Atsushi's ribs, a part where the armor didn't protect. Atsushi reeled for a second, clutching at the point of contact before whirling on the Uchiha with burning eyes. Toshi attacked swiftly, he didn't allow Atsushi to get near him as he struck him over and over. Finally, Atsushi blocked a three knuckled punch.
Toshi slid back, arms shaking.
"Sharingan..."
Atsushi smashed Toshi into a tree-using the man's body like an axe. Toshi avoiding all of his strikes sent him over the edge. With shaky steps, Kosuke and Isami stood beside him. Rio stood to her feet, panting as she closed the distance. Atsushi couldn't even block the first five combinations-Rio had been hunched over one second, and the second, she was in his face-her bones striking him like iron.
Masa and Chiasa landed next to Toshi-Chiasa immediately went to her husband, while Masa spotted Isamu in near tatters. She made a beeline for Atsushi, driving her shoulder into his torso. He tried to flip her by the waist, but Masa slammed her feet through the ground, marching, ramming him straight through a tree. Rio shot towards Atsushi's face-drove her knee into it, and managed to snap his chin up.
The velocity of the collision was enough to send Atsushi staggering back before he began to tumble, sending their battle sprawling. Masa ended up flipping away from him, sliding on her side across the ground. Rio was left to free fall, hitting the ground from twelve feet above. Noboru and Sanosuke busted through the devastated battleground, making their presence known with loud yells and battering hits.
"Tch. More of you. I guess I'll have to start crushing you ants."
Kosuke winced through the pain, able to speak. "I twisted his arm and injured his leg. We have to target those."
Atsushi had no intention of letting them hone in like wolves. Rio had demonstrated what that wound entail. He wouldn't just his arm broken, he'd get it shattered at the elbow joint. He immediately went on the offensive, clearing the distance, and slammed both Kosuke and Noboru into the ground. He dragged Noboru up, clutching at his haori with an iron-grip. He sent him towards a rock, and Noboru could only smash into it, head bouncing off, before he hobbled over, nearly falling on his side.
He was quick to react.
Noboru twisted, jamming his knee right into Atsushi's forehead, and felt the skin give. He shifted, falling, Atsushi's hand just inches from him. Noboru hit the ground, lunged, and landed an elbow to Atsushi's chin. Atsushi returned fire, smashing his forearm into Noboru's neck. He didn't need to test the man's weight at all, and with a swing, Noboru was sent crashing into Saki and Chiasa.
Hiro and Isamu tried to press the tempo, but Atsushi was rabid. He jammed his knee into Hiro's gut. Isamu rammed his head against Atsushi's jaw, and the whole area shook from the strike. Kosuke and Isami both were diving low, and they jammed their elbows into Atsushi's legs. With a start. Atsushi floundered like a fish out of water, and hit the ground. Masa was upon him within a heartbeat. Her first punch dented his armor, and the next welted it so bad, that part of it split in half near the straps.
Atsushi threw them off, jumped to his feet, and was met with a knee to the forehead.
Atsushi brutalized his opposition, but like before, they kept on coming.
They were ferocious.
"Yo! Meathead!"
Sanouke's foot hit the ground, exploding with power, and his eyes shined as he burst with more power. He was a whirlwind of force, and even the ground couldn't withstand his prowess. His fist rocketed forward forward-wind and power cracked around him and gusted everything within sight. Atsushi knew he had to block the blow-something about this man's punch made him wary. Atsushi blocked the powerful punch grunting as he pushed his forearm forward-the burn was starting to get worse, and sweat was pooling with each exertion
He snarled, reacting quickly as Sanosuke unleashed a series of punches.
Sanosuke was immediately halted. Atsushi was like a mountain, and like a battering ram, his forearm clocked right against Sanosuke's head and sent him staggering away into a tumble. Atsushi panted, but growled as he snapped his arm forward narrowly blocking another thunderous punch and returned one for good measure, the same spot they had been standing moments before exploded in a cloud of smoke and debris.
Atsushi could feel fatigue. The beginnings of exhaustion. His arms and legs were getting heavy, his breaths heavier, and there was the feeling that he was lighter than normal. He allowed this to drag for far too long, though that couldn't be helped. He wasn't holding back, and yet, some of his foes remained defiant despite knowing how outmatched they were.. Even those that laid near motionless or struggled to move remained defiant, because they'd be back for more.
He wasn't sure if he should be annoyed, or feel admiration for their valor.
Atsushi pressed the pain in his side, elbow, and knee far away. He put it under wraps. With a slow breath, he focused on his foes, all of the pain and fatigue he had been feeling gone.
There was no movement from anyone, for a few minutes. Kosuke and Noboru gathered their breath, brushing away any stray blood. Saki and Chiasa pushed themselves up from their knees. Masa and Hiro staggered over to the rest of them. Isami helped Isamu along, the larger man still dazed from being used as a nail to deflate the earth. Sanosuke remained brazen, standing at the head of the group, while Souji slowly came forward. Toshi and Rio supported themselves the best they could, leaning on each other.
Atsushi remained in his place, watching his foes with a keen eye. He could feel this battle drawing to its end. He got the feeling none of them would be walking away from this, or just a few. Souji had already resolved to throw his life away, Atsushi had realized this when the man tried to charge through him, just to be leveled into the ground. But something inside of him, was feeding off them, the Domou in particular. They had no fear or hesitation when they smashed into him, trying to batter him with blows and throws, they met his charge with a ferocity he'd never experienced before.
He pivoted. The sharp movement sent his massive body flying at incredible speeds-chakra burst off of him like a typhoon, and with a scream he sent the first strike that'd start the second round. Sanosuke met his charge head on, as he'd been expecting from the spiky haired man, and he prepped to strike him as he rebounded with his kick. Atsushi smashed his fist, straight into Sanosuke's face, blood bubbled, and with no reprieve Atsushi barreled himself, and Sanosuke into his oncoming foes.
Trees chipped and splintered, trunks snapped in two sending what they had supported in the sky, crashing to the ground. Atsushi strained flipping up to his feet, his landing was awkward, and his felt his foot slip for the briefest of seconds. Thankfully, his foes were too weary and wounded to capitalize on the small mistake.
Atsushi put on a sudden burst of speed. Not going to take his chances. His body shot towards Souji almost on instinct alone, and the smaller man had enough time to send a combination forward. Atsushi was amazed by the man's speed and reflexes, but he still deflected his hits-letting them smash into his body, and he used that pain, to drive Souji face first through the ground.
"STAY DOWN!"
Atsushi was screaming at the top of his lungs, arm so engorged with blood it looked as if he would make Souji's body explode, going a step above just simply crushing him to his death. His hands gouged into his foe's skull and he swung hard, to the side. The side of Souji's face was scrapped through the ground, leaving a trench behind more than a foot in length. Atsushi hefted him up one last time, ramming him into Saki, Kosuke, and Hiro-their bodies meeting a tree.
Only on instinct did Atsushi turn, swinging his forearm, gritting his teeth as he blocked Isamu's and Chiasa's strikes. They pushed against each other silently before he broke the stalemate, jumping back. Masa, Toshi, Isami, Rio, and Sanosuke charged him, speeding ahead of their two comrades. From their angles and speed, Atsushi would only be able to catch two of them-the two he missed would strike him. He'd need to stand up to that, and finish off the next two.
Toshi swiftly passed through his punch, Sharingan glowing, and Atsushi barely held back his snarl. Fucking Sharingan. He snapped his hand out for the man, Toshi dodged. Atsushi let out a wild cry of triumph as he snatched Chiasa by the sleeve, and swung her back-her body horizontal, crashed into Toshi back first. He swung back around, hands clutching like meat hooks.
Saki looked around at the destruction left by their battle. The ensuing destruction. The destruction caused by Atsushi throwing their bodies like bags of rice.
Saki felt some of her confidence slip as Atsushi roar shook her to the core.
"Want to go for a ride!?"
Atsushi clutched Isami's body with one massive hand, and tanked Rio's and Noboru's attacks to his jaw that made his vision swim for a second. He grabbed her with his other hand, laughing hysterically as he flared his chakra. He crushed Hiro and Toshi under his arms as well, and he pressed Isamu and Masa together right under his sides. He managed to contort Souji in the middle of all of them.
"This is your last ride!"
Atsushi screamed rage drove him to the edge, bordering was above the clouds. He rocketed down towards the earth propelled by his rage and chakra, paying no heed to the enraged screams. "
Atsushi roared smashing into the ground with a thunderous slam, almost like a meteorite striking the earth. The sheer velocity, momentum, and anger fueling him made his speed increase ten times over. Saki screamed, unable to hear her own voice over the shockwave that ruptured through the area and burst her ear drums. The impact leveled the ground, sending spider web cracks through it before it finally gave way, and they fell into the ground.
Saki squinted, slowly bringing herself to a standing position. Dust was everywhere like a storm, and she could taste frozen earthen crust on her tongue. When the dust cleared, the foes Atsushi had been squeezing were half buried in dirt, crust, and snow. She did a quick look around, and noted that Sanosuke, Isami, Isamu, and Souji were really the ones able to continue at this fight, the others remained ready out of defiance.
"Heh, looks like that took care of them." Atsushi said with a grin, turning his eyes onto Saki. "Now, I'm going to break you in half."
Sanosuke chucked part of a branch at Atsushi. growling when the man just swatted it aside. "It'll take more than that to put me down, you may be massive and burly, but your attacks ain't shit to me!"
Atsushi felt his blood boil. Sanosuke was hunched over and panting, he was bleeding from his forehead-a nice sized laceration just near the middle. His uniform was in tatters, and his lean, but muscular body was remaining rigid against the cold. Truthfully, the Sanosuke looked like he couldn't continue to fight. He looked like he'd struggle to take a simple step. Atsushi slowly began to feel anger and disgust, in place of admiration.
Sanosuke should have stayed down.
"You little cockroach." Atsushi seethed, heat in his voice and eyes.
He went on the attack, charging right for his foes. They would either retreat or meet him head on. He was prepared for both situations. Just he anticipated-Isami and Souji were the first to close the distance, and with his arms spread wide, Atsushi rammed his trunk-like torso into them, sending them flying back and into everyone else. For a moment, everyone was down and struggling to get up.
"Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
Atsushi marched towards Isami with purpose. The man was nearly on his feet. Atsushi snatched him by the collar of his hoari and back of his hakama,. He turned to the side, entire body shaking as he threw Isami. He struck a nearby earthen foundation, thrown so hard and fast that his body straightened out, just as a rock split free from its enclosure, and smashed right against the back of Isami's head as his body went crashing right through a tree branch.
Toshi tried to get the jump on Atsushi. He evaded the man's savage blows, not at all missing the wild look in his eyes. It appeared as if Atsushi was on the verge of insanity, or something akin to be being consumed with rage. He shifted past Atsushi's punch, clasped a kunai from his holster, and stabbed the larger man in the wounded arm.
Atsushi smashed his torso into the smaller man, barreling straight into Kosuke-meeting the man's charge, and sent the three of them exploding through a few trees that had been unfortunate enough to be in the middle of their collision. His Sharingan allowed him to see Atsushi's charge well in advance, but Toshi felt like he was moving in slow motion.
Atsushi's fist met his chin, and Toshi saw pure white. He felt weight pile atop him, and for a moment, he saw a tree getting closer before everything went black...And, the world burst back into color. He stumbled wildly as velocity overtook him-he could see his body crashing through the tree before it happened. And, he did. Atsushi rammed him again and again, Isamu and Isami joined him, Rio and the others swarmed, but ultimately, they were battered and bashed in the same manner.
Atsushi stomped past Toshi's unmoving form and snatched Isami up by the neck before sending him back to the ground, chucking him with all the force he could generate.
He snatched Isamu, and did the same thing, before moving onto Rio and making sure to slam her twice as hard. Masa and Souji were next, followed by Chiasa and Hiro.
Sanosuke kicked Atsushi in the ribs. He shifted back, punching him as he charged forward. Atsushi wasn't in the mood, and he snatched Sanosuke by the hair before sending him flying into an earthen structure-his head bounced off, body moving in the opposite direction as the structure tumbled from the sheer force the Akimichi chucked Sanosuke with.
"Yuuuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaggghhhhhh!"
Atsushi could feel his entire body shaking from strain, but he pressed, and he pressed, and he snarled. His hands gouged into the heavy rock, his arms and shoulders supporting its weight.
Atsushi charged ahead-striking the massive rock off of Hiro's and Toshi's skulls. Both men hobbled away before collapsing from the sheer force of the strike. He turned, smashing it right across Souji's face-he could only fall away, overwhelmed with pain.
Noboru flew across the ground, the rock busting a gash through part of his skull. Chiasa and Masa were leveled, chins snapping skyward, and they fell on their backs.
Atsushi growled, swallowing bits of smaller rock that he was breaking off from the bigger one. He was beyond such things. He was in a different zone. A zone he never knew he could enter.
Isamu and Isami charged him, Saki and Kosuke coming from the side. The first two men were leveled in one go, a smattering of debris misting through the air. Atsushi clenched harder, swinging back around.
Kosuke hit the ground with a thud, blood running down his mouth.
Sanosuke and Rio tried to jam their strikes into Atsushi while Kosuke targeted his joints, but the rock met their skulls just the same, and they too, were sent scrambling away. Nobody escaped unscathed, and even a few trees were uprooted-the entire earth groaning, furious.
Isamu and Isami both came in from the side, arms tensing with anticipation.
Atsushi nailed them across the temple, making them see stars, and with a shout, Atsushi hefted the massive rock up, teeth grinding, slamming it atop his foes as they pushed down the remains of a tree.
Atsushi's hands clutched Toshi's throat, he could feel his skin burning, he threw him to the ground twice with contempt, and with a scream he sent the Uchiha flying through several trees meters ahead. He watched his body slide to a stop several meters away with a satisfied grin.
"Damn jutsu stealer."
Saki blitzed Atsushi the second he slammed the rock down on Isamu and Kosuke. He hadn't been ready for her speed, and her first punch took his breath away. Her follow up kick and elbow constricted his lungs, making them burn. She spun about, gathering as much momentum as she could before launching herself, legs cracking like a whip as they extended to their full length.
Atsushi staggered back, snarling. His hand clutched the blonde's ankle, and with a start, he raised her up, smashing a fist into her stomach. Saki's eyes went wide with pain and shock, saliva and blood flying from her mouth. Atsushi spurred by rage and pain, delivered another punch before ramming her down into the ground with his massive arm, nearly twisting his knee out of its socket. His breath left him as he struck the ground, but Saki's cry of pain made it all worth it.
She wouldn't be getting back up.
He had no time to savor his victory-something hard struck him on the side of the head. He turned just enough to see Souji with stormy eyes, driving his knee into the place where he felt the pain. Atsushi went to grab him, but fumbled. Souji was attacking with no reservations if he injured himself or not, half of his face was filthy and bloody, the other side just as bad-he was trembling.
Atsushi got up to his feet, sliding back until he was a good three feet away from the younger man. He turned to his foes that had yet to get up. They'd be up in due time, but a few wouldn't be moving until they got some medical treatment. Hopefully. Still, they pushed him this far. They lasted much longer against him than most of his foes did, as persistently, disgustingly, annoying they were-they didn't back down.
Sanosuke came beside Souji, with Saki flanking him the other side.
"Do the slaves mean that much to you?"
Souji stared down Atsushi. "Freedom is what matters to me."
Atsushi took a deep breath, took one of his clan's pills, and smashed his clenched fist into his hand. Now it was clear what this battle was. Souji, and everyone else with hi weren't going to be leaving or back down. The Tea country would be swathed in melee. More importantly, Souji was going to continue to batter him with his own body, over and over, and Sanosuke would certainly join him in the reckless attack.
He glanced at his hands, spotting blood starting to dry, and some starting to smear. There was still a few fresh openings, probably from when he clutched the massive rock or one of the tree trunks before hitting one of his foes with it. They did little to impede him, but if this battle continued to drag out, these minor wounds were going to become a problem. They'd effect how hard, and if he'd even be able to clench his hands.
Souji and Sanosuke didn't turn their focus from Atsushi. They constantly shifted, but never strayed from their position. There was respect for Atsushi and his size, wariness for his power, and distance from his surprising speed.
Souji looked to the side, meeting Saki's eyes, and it was with a stiff nod that she confirmed his growing suspicion.
They were the ones able to fight at this point in time.
This battle couldn't go on for much longer.
This would decide it.
Victory.
Defeat.
Life.
Death.
"Saki, can you execute an earth jutsu?" Souji asked, turning his gaze onto her.
Sanosuke cracked his neck. "Guess we've got to take it that far."
Saki nodded, having a bad feeling. However, at this point, she'd take any option to put Atsushi down for the count. It was clear this man couldn't be felled through normal means, and she was thankful he hadn't executed his expansion jutsu. It could have proven to be a hindrance, or perhaps, the man was enthralled with this battle, and was feeding off of it-for the first time in his life, Atsushi didn't have to restrain himself.
He found worthy foes.
"I can."
Souji hummed, gripping what remained of his haori and kimono, and tore them away-leaving his torso bare. "Make a pillar, three thousand feet."
"Souji."
"Just do what you can." Sanosuke said.
Souji's gaze made it clear that Sanosuke said what he was about to say.
Saki executed the earth jutsu, sighing harshly as she felt her chakra ebb the slightest as her jutsu finished out. Narrow and dangerous at it was, it was nowhere near three thousand feet, not even close to the halfway mark. If anything, it appeared to be around six hundred feet, maybe just shy of one thousand feet at the most. It was still impressive nonetheless.
The best way to describe it would be as if a part of some mountain, floating in the sky, had been broken off and sharpened until it had a semi blunt and sharp point, and the gouged into the earth.
Atsushi observed the new structure. His heart raced faster.
He moved forward with great speed, sweat drying from the frigid air kissing his fuming form. He threw the first punch, but Souji jumped back, avoiding it, and fired back with his left hand.
Atsushi let it hit him, and pushed ahead. Sanosuke dropped himself to the ground sweeping at Atsushi's legs tripping him up. He dived in for the punch, but Atsushi reacted quickly enough, kicking Sanosuke in the face with his boot.
Sanosuke staggered back, taking seven steps before his right leg nearly gave out. Pain rushed to his face, and it nearly overwhelmed the rest of his body and senses, but he ignored it. He took a hold of the pain, and pressed it down into oblivion. He righted himself, smearing some blood that was leaking from his nose across his upper lip.
He rushed back into the fight, feinting low, Atsushi took the bait. He was occupied with Souji and Saki swarming around him, and he had been expecting him to go after his legs.
Sanosuke was powerful, but even he wasn't going to try and lift Atsushi up by the legs. He took a hold of Atsushi's head, looking into his rage filled eyes, and pulled his head back. He rammed his face into Atsushi's own multiple times.
The large man screamed, his chakra starting to shred the ground as he thrashed around blindly. Sanosuke hit the ground, unable to stop his fall, or have enough wit to catch himself and quickly rebound. He hit the ground with a smack, that echoed across the landscape.
Blood coated his hand and it helped Atsushi return to his senses. His whole face throbbed. It pulsated. There was nothing but pain and agony rippling through his body-his nose felt like it was going to collapse into his skull.
He rammed into the trio, punching, kicking, and thrashing. Atsushi had an edge in raw power, bolstered by his rage and fury, and his pain, he was a literal immovable object that couldn't be brought down by any means. Finally, he overbalanced mistiming a block and Saki's knee slammed with crushing force, pushing into his stomach. Atsushi gasped as blood flew out of his mouth, but he was quick to counter, knocking Saki to the ground.
Saki winced as she flipped away from Atsushi's follow up attack. Souji and Sanosuke collided with Atsushi, rather than evade like she did, and they became a tangle of limbs. Sanosuke sprung to the side, as Atsushi overreached trying to hit him.
Souji jumped up, entire body contracting as he slammed his knee against Atsushi's chin, pushing until he seen the man's head snap skyward. Sanosuke landed behind Atsushi, springing forward, and slammed his fist right on the small of the larger man's back, he pressed his attack bringing down both of his fists in an axe handle knocking Atsushi silly.
He tried to attack again, but Atsushi rammed him aside.
Souji lifted himself off of the ground, shaking his head. Saki settled herself into a stance, not quite as strong as it would have been, and full of openings. Atsushi glared in disbelief. Saki should have been unconscious the last time he smashed her into the ground-she shouldn't be moving right now. Souji was half dead, and Sanosuke was in the same boat.
Saki shot forward. Abrupt. She was a tendril of movement. She shot a knee up, but at the last second Atsushi raised his forearm blocking her attack. She tensed, straining, familiar with what it was like to clash blow for blow with Atsushi at this point.
She wouldn't have attacked him head on, but she had a plan, and given her current location, her plan would work.
She let Atsushi clobber her upside the head-the momentum drove her down. She latched onto his arm, arms constricting his own. She swung herself up, much like someone would if they were swinging from branches, and she twisted again, bending her back at an odd angle as she touched the ground. Atsushi roared in pain, his elbow bent at an odd angle, the wound left by Toshi, splitting open further.
His fist cut through the air, but Saki still had enough wit to evade.
"You got too cocky." Sanosuke said through bloody teeth, winding up his arm.
Atsushi thrashed with fury and he attacked with nothing short of vicious tenacity. His injury drove him berserk. He smashed into the well timed attacks of the trio. Before it was challenging, enthralling, and very close to gratifying. He thrived against them, feeding off of them, but now it was becoming more of a nuisance. He blitzed Sanosuke, shoving him into the ground when the man dodged. Souji and Saki swooped in from opposite sides, launching their legs forward.
It proved to be effective, Atsushi was winded, gasping in pain, and found himself hard pressed to dodge and block-preferring to evade the attacks entirely and jump back in to strike, but the two were waiting for him, once he managed to batter them; Sanosuke was swinging in his face, throwing lefts and rights, all over again, until his shoulders burned and felt like they'd explode.
They were moving too fast to be traced.
Atsushi brought his elbow down vertically, as if he was about to impale the earth. Sanosuke snarled, using his forearm to block the blow, and swore part of his bone cracked. He slid across the ground, until he was thrown forward, head bouncing off of a branch. Saki slammed her foot forward, cracking the cement, and propelled herself towards Atsushi.
He swiped from the side, a tight arc, his arm screaming through the space between them.
Saki twisted, teeth clenched as her spine flexed, and brought her legs, and the rest of her body under Atsushi's. There was about two feet of space separating them, and Saki made it nothing-striking him under the armpit. To her horror, Atsushi managed to grasp her-nerveless fingers wobbling as she felt the cold, unforgiving ground. He whipped her around again, Saki's body bent and arched with the force, and she hit the ground again. Atsushi swung her around again, eyes honed in on Sanosuke, and he let her go right into his ribs.
Sanouke's eyes went wide, before the glossed over. Saki nearly broke him in two, and she was sent thudding to the ground. He was sent into a wild roll back, slamming into a heap of debris.
Souji kicked Atsushi across the jaw. There was nothing technical or graceful about it. It was sheer brute force. Souji whipped back around, flying off of his feet and hitting the back of his head on the ground-the rest of his body somehow balancing near upright. Atsushi, for his credit only groaned as a swath of blood left his mouth, and the sheer force of the kick sent him flying to the side.
At this point Souji was struggling to breathe, his body felt numb. His breaths were raspy, pained, and almost high pitched. He could feel the burn in his lungs, that stead ache, the ache of engorged muscles, and the agony of wounds. This battle would end in the next exchange. Saki was down, like everyone else. But, she would be the one who helped put this big behemoth down. Kosuke and Toshi were systematical in their attack, and he wouldn't let it go to waste.
He would not.
Sanosuke slowly recovered, and came to Souji's side, eyes hard, despite the blood leaking between his brows.
"This time..." Atsushi felt his grasp on reality starting to slip, whatever kept him grounded, was starting to fade. "This exchange will end this. I will put you two down, for good."
Souji righted himself, taking a deep breath. He could continue, just a little longer. He'd put everything he had into the next attack.
His eyes turned to the structure Saki made with her chakra.
They hovered at the top.
"I agree with you; on the first part."
The air screeched. It let out a howling bellow. Souji and Sanosuke were reckless in their attacks, they held nothing back, and if they injured themselves, they were fine with it. Atsushi marched ahead, despite only using three limbs, he still held a small edge. He forced his foes back, until Souji were cornered behind a tree, and he made a beeline for him.
Sanosuke took advantage of the small opening. He sprinted for Atsushi. increasing his strides until he hissed in pain, and only then did he chamber his fist bac. With lightning speed, Sanosuke struck Atsushi across the jaw, fist acing up diagonally in a cross.
Atsushi grabbed a hold of him, and he swung him into Souji, clutching the second man's ripped hakama, and powering them both over his head. He swung them down, releasing them about midway through the throw.
Shit!
Souji forced chakra through his body, surging in into his legs and core. He sprung up, narrowly avoiding being impaled by Atsushi's fist.
Atsushi was too quick, however, and he clutched Souji's head within his massive palm like a child would hold a rock. Something took over-primal and vicious, Atsushi could feel it, and it made him tingle.
He snarled, slamming his feet into the ground, increasing his speed, and swung his arm forward. Souji could only groan as his head bounced off an earthen formation-smacking off another part a second later.
Atsushi yanked him up, clutching his head once more, and slammed his feet into the ground with more vigor than the first time. He swung his arm forward-Souji left his feet, flipping upside down, and struck flat against a tree trunk. He slid down, smacking his head off of the ground. Knowing he wouldn't stay down, Atsushi went in for the kill, hand primed to crush what would be meaty pulp into little shreds.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
Sanosuke bashed a tree branch off of the larger man's spine-it was by no means small. It was one of the larger branches that came from the trunk, and supported the smaller ones. Atsushi was massive though, and instead of the branch snapping him in half, the branch snapped instead. Still, the damage was done, and a large gash was now torn into his back.
Sanosuke reared back, and smashed the rest of the branch off of Atsushi's head, and this time, the larger man fell to the ground. He swore he felt like he was being swallowed whole by something. He couldn't see color, but there wasn't black or white either. Atsushi blinked, and tried to sit up. His body didn't respond, it wouldn't obey his command.
He thrashed harder, and it did the trick.
The battle continued in a frenzied, discorded rhythm. The mashing of hate and anger, of vengeance and satisfaction. Of pride and ego. Atsushi made sure his attacks were brutal, yet precise and calaculated, each blow trying to convince his foes that he was their superior. They were inferior. Each time the other warded off the other's charges they brandished and transitioned into defensive maneuvers.
With each exchange Atsushi savagely prodded, testing and searching for a weakness he could exploit. It took only a few seconds until he recognized it. Despite their training, this battle was long and grueling. Souji and Sanosuke had great endurance and resiliency. It wasn't often that a battle of this physicality and brutality happened, and for so long as well.
At most-such a battle would last twenty minutes before those battling retreated.
Until now.
Their strikes became less swift, less brutal, the counters less graceful, and the transitions not even half as explosive as they had been before as they slowly, gradually, but surely began to run on fumes. The fog of exhaustion was slowly clouding their minds, the haze of anger was blinding Atsushi, and Souji knew it was just a matter of time before he miscalculated and made the wrong move.
Even though he was battling Souji and Sanosuke, Atsushi's real battle was with himself. Time after time he had to press himself back to refrain from propelling through an opening presented by his enemies' increasingly ferocious, and desparate assault.
He understood that the crushing victory he sought would only come through patience.
He also understood that if he allowed himself to sway to his emotions, he'd certainly make a mistake.
He already got his arm broke for such a careless mistake.
In the end his patience was rewarded.
Sanosuke was becoming more and more frustrated as he continually tried and failed to bash Atsushi into the ground, for good. As the prolonged physical exertion began to take its toll, his swings became wild and reckless, until he abandoned all pretense of defense, and in an effort to end the duel, he merely used only offense.
Atsushi seen stars for a second.
The instant Sanosuke's fury formed a sliver of desperation, and turned to rage, everything in Atsushi screamed with the same black smoke of his hate to take the glaring opening and end the fight. He took the opening, good arm shooting through the air like an asteroid. Sanosuke raised his guard, but Atsushi's attack was too brutish, and his crossed arms were merely grabbed and plunged into his chest as his spine rattled off a tree trunk.
"Don't insult my pride as an Akimichi and as a shinobi-!"
"Shinobi don't have pride, that is a samurai trait. Pride only serves as entertainment or a vice."
Atsushi's body didn't respond at first. He tried again, teeth gritting, but it was the same result.
"But, the Akimichi don't exactly adhere to the shinobi sect..."
He couldn't see...
"You're true warriors, when it comes down to it...You refuse to yield or retreat."
Atsushi turned, vaguely, he could see an outline of a body, so close...
Speaking...
Souji's body was compressed against Atsushi's massive skull-his own skull flush against the larger man's in such a way, that it would only cause them both pain, now, and when they fall to the ground.
For a second, it felt like he was floating somewhere that wasn't quite right. He noticed a larger branch, just beside him, split and bashed-there was some brown wisps mixed in with it, and red covered a majority of it.
Why can't I-?!
Atsushi finally spotted Sanosuke before him. His vision sharpening, though it took three minutes. The man had his arm pinned, and had his legs jammed on his knees in such a way, that if he were to make the slightest hasty movement, he'd be tearing the kneecaps through the skin. He snarled, managing to head butt Sanosuke, but it did little to faze the man.
He was a battered and bloody mess, but he retained a small smirk. Atsushi momentarily contemplated if Sanosuke even felt that blow.
It took a second, but Atsushi realized Sanosuke wasn't alone.
Hiro, Isamu, and Isami were both clutching on him as well.
Masa and Chiasa, stubborn and defiant to the end, kept a hold of his ankles.
Souji had been the one that nearly knocked him out cold as well-the man was nursing his skull, hands coated in red.
He was so close he could spit on him, but Souji's comrades were like centipedes and constrictors. His body wasn't moving, and he couldn't move. Fatigue and pain were overwhelming him.
He snarled, thrashing the best he could.
Souji grunted, entire body shaking-the back of his neck surged against him, and he dropped to the ground before he could even try to get onto his knees. His comrades didn't have much time. Atsushi would eventually break free and retreat.
Souji pressed again, growling, straining, tears burned his eyes and spilled down his cheeks. His eyes were set on the Saki's earth jutsu...His devotion and all of his thoughts were centered on it. Truly, nothing else existed. He shifted his weight off of his front foot, sliding to the side, watching the ground get closer again. Black consumed him, but he didn't allow himself to even entertain the numbing bliss it invited.
"Souji...Hurry up...I'm not sure how much longer we can hold this big bastard down!" Sanosuke seethed, eyes glinting ferociously.
"My ribs are broken..." Hiro said, urgency in his normally calm voice.
Souji hauled himself towards the earth jutsu with his arms. Driven by will, grit, determination, and his comrades. He pulled himself through the torn earth. His finger nails dirtied, before wilting, before starting to bleed and threatening to come off.
His sides burned, along with his back-his muscles, long engorged and spent, were starting to reach their limit. They would start ripping and tearing if he went any further. He could feel his body giving way-it would shut down in order to survive.
His climb was dangerous, and more than once, did he almost slip or lose his grip. He could feel his strength waning, and knew he had to move faster. If he wasn't so wounded, or weary, he would have been able to jump up to the very top of this structure, but as it stood, he wasn't in prime condition. He was shit, and felt like shit.
Still, he'd make due with what he had, and what he could do. More than halfway, his right hand slipped, and he nearly went scudding down the side as his left hand flailed, grasping a small crevice two feet above him.
With a pained breath, he pulled himself up. He swung his leg around, pressing the inside of his hip against the platform, and flexed his leg enough so he was stable. Carefully, he pulled himself up, at this point using the entirety of his body just to get said body up.
He stood to his feet, stepping, one foot at a time, harsh step after step, until he stood on the edge, looking down. For a moment he turned his focus around him, able to see the others battling in the distance, and by the docks-he could even see past the tree line, just a good bit.
Souji looked down, measuring Atsushi.
He couldn't be off by a millimeter-he had to line this up perfectly. Nothing short of perfect would ensure this was a success.
This may not kill Atsushi-and if he were being truthful, Souji would say it wouldn't kill Atsushi. But, this battle was long and brutal, and they were at their limit-one hard strike could end any of their lives, now.
It could kill Atsushi.
But, the man was strong, very strong.
He was right to be so proud and brazen, he backed up his bravado and braggadocio.
Souji shifted a centimeter-eyes hovering on a part of Atsushi's chest.
But, Hiro was there, as was Isami and Isamu.
Souji's toes curled.
Souji adjusted again.
This time a centimeter.
Another...
Another...
Another...
A millimeter.
Another.
And another.
And...
another...
And...
Souji...
Looked to the sky...
Then straight ahead...
Then...
Down...
Then...
He...
...Jumped...
The world faded from his eyes...
...And there was nothing...