Lesson 13: Advanced Inner Strength

Everything I've done. Everything I've trained for. It's all led up to this.

"So, you've finally made it to the final round." Akuma stated. "I suggest you try to hold out for as long as possible, otherwise this would be all for nothing."

"You expect her to fight you now? After she's lost her power? After she's been weakened?" Juri protested.

"What are you so defensive about?" Akuma asked.

"If you wanted to fight her like this, why didn't you just fight her weeks ago?"

"If I didn't think she could handle it, I would've postponed this fight." Akuma responded in defense. Juri became irritated by the decision.

"In that case, I'm fighting too." Juri responded.

"Are you sure? Is that really what you've been aiming for all this time?" Akuma asked.

"Juri, please…" Makoto pleaded.

"You know you can't face him. Just hang back. Three of us are the last contestants, so feel free to hop in when you feel better." Juri suggested. Makoto didn't agree with her idea. She went forward to challenge Akuma. As she came closer to the house, Juri step up to her.

"Don't make me do this." Makoto warned. She clenched her fist as she looked down towards the ground. "You know I've wanted this for months." Juri contemplated on what she wanted to do. She began to cover her left eye as it started to glow. Before Juri could make her move, Akuma intervened.

"Since you two want to fight each other so much, why don't we just engage in a triple threat fight?" Akuma suggested. Both Makoto and Juri looked at each other in silence. They then returned their focus on Akuma as they began to separate from each other.

"That sounds fine with me." Juri agreed. Makoto wasted no time as she ran up to Akuma. She used calculated attacks in an attempt to damage Akuma. He is able to dodge her attacks due to her low stamina level. Akuma shows no mercy as he uses a straight punch to Makoto's face. The attack knocks her out. Juri plays it smart as she watches Akuma's every move before attacking.

"I'm gonna defeat you using the same exact burden you've placed on me." Juri stated. "Not only that…" Juri pulled out a pair of handcuffs made especially by SIN and placed them on her wrists. "I won't use my hands either." Juri stated.

"I'm not into easy battles. Leave those Handcuffs at home." Akuma requested.

"You underestimate me dear." Juri placed her cuffed hands on the ground and stood on them. She forced herself into the air and attempted to use a drop kick on Akuma.

"Again with the drop kick? You couldn't even pull it off with your full power." Akuma mocked silently. As Juri's leg came near Akuma's face, he used his arm to guard against the attack. However, once he is struck by her leg, the impact forces his body into the ground. The attack causes a crater form into the ground surrounding them. "What did you…?" Juri back flipped away from Akuma and dashed to her again.

"Triple Leg Combo!" Akuma prepared for her as Juri attempts a quick sweep. He hoped over her leg, but got hit by the sweep that came in the air. As she attempted her final roundhouse kick, Akuma grabbed her leg and tossed her into a nearby tree. He then powered himself up and hopped to Juri's position. As she opens her eyes and look up, she sees Akuma falling towards her fist first. It was powered by his dark chi. After contact, a large shockwave causes a majority of the nearby trees to fall over. When the smoke clears, it is revealed that he narrowly missed Juri, who was lying sideways to avoid his attack. The impact of the shockwave caused her cuffs to separate and free her hands, though they were still attached to her wrist.

"Ah, I see what you did." Akuma states. Juri looked at her cuffs then looked back at him. She quickly activated her new Feng Shui engine and performed a strong leg sweep against Akuma, knocking him on his bottom. She then wrapped her small hands around her neck and proceeded to strangle him.

"THAT POWER IS MINE! I DESERVE IT, NOT YOU!" She squeezed hard enough for her nails to dig into his neck. She began to slowly absorb his chi using the cuffs as the storage device. However, he uses his Dark energy to create a quick pulse that knocks her back a little. He then stood up and kicked her in the chest, which sent her back four feet. He then proceeded to continue kicking her while she was on the ground.

"You knew you couldn't win. A cheap trick like that is child's play." Akuma stated. "Like I said before, you are Weak, Worthless, and Cowardly." Akuma mocked.

"Is that what you tell yourself to make you feel better?" Juri shouted as Akuma stopped kicking her.

"Ha! You're giving yourself way too much credit. Defeating you is nothing but…" Juri is then reminded about a time years before.

*In the past*

"…an added bonus." Juri stated. She smiled deviously in the face of Seth as he was lying on the ground barely alive. "I just wanted to pit you idiots against each other while I took over. You're nothing but a spare body—a change of clothes in Bison's wardrobe."

*Present*

"Makoto…please…" Juri whispered.

"Goodnight, princess. Rust in Peace." Akuma raised his leg and prepared to stump on Juri.
She closed her eyes in fear as she prepared for the worst.

"Dark Rising Knee!" Makoto jumps into the fray and performs a dark version of a rising knee strike. The attack knocks Akuma on his back. It seems she picked up inspiration from Sagat's moves. Too bad for her, that was the final bit of her dark energy that she was able to hide away from Sagat.

"Nice one, Makoto." Juri praised. "I never saw you as someone who'd use such smart and mindful tactics."

"You can't always be brash in a fight. Apparently, Akuma doesn't care." Makoto stated. Both her and Juri kept their focus on Akuma as they knew he was about to go all out.

"I see that was the only time you could use the dark energy during this fight. It's all gone now right?" Akuma asked rhetorically. "I say we should end this now." He states as he goes into his Shin form. The heaven symbol on the back of his shirt begins to activate. He gets into his signature stance as he prepares to use his most powerful technique.

"Don't worry, I can take it from here Makoto. Just make sure to…" Juri is unable to finish her sentence as she violently grabs at her left eye. It seems the powerful chi from Akuma's Shin form is causing her Feng Shui engine to malfunction. She falls to her knees and realizes that she might not be able to jump to Makoto's rescue. Makoto becomes a bit worried of Juri's condition. She starts to understand why Juri was overreacting about fighting against Akuma.

"This is not good." Makoto states as she returns her attention to Akuma. He just smiles. He raises his knee in the air and appears to float. He quickly dashed towards Makoto at a nearly undodgeable speed.

That form, that power, and that technique. I know them all too well. However, I'm confident that the outcome just might be in my favor this time.

"Satsui No Hado!"

End of Chapter 13

(Upcoming—Lesson 14: Advanced Competency)