The battle between Beloved and Enraged starts...
The Evening Before - Part Two
Hanayama Jirou frowned. The range of Agatsuma's battle system was larger than he had anticipated – it showed that his reputation as one of the top Fighters in the Academy was not to be taken lightly. Still, Hanayama Jirou had confidence in his own abilities. He was sure that he could defeat that pretty face of a blondie and his raven-haired Sacrifice. There was no way he was going to lose to a Fighter who followed orders with a slave-like devotion. Just like a robot. Or a dog.
Etou Yumi noted that Jirou had calmed down when the battle started, yet she knew that there was little he could do to curb his impatient nature. Thus she cautioned him, "Jiro-kun, please follow the plan closely." Hanayama nodded and flashed an impish smile at Etou. "Don't worry, Yumi. Piece of cake." Then, eyes narrowing, with a sweep of his left arm, he began his attack. "The sea. Deepest of all water bodies, with the raging force of nature behind it, drown thy enemies!"
A rushing gush of water materialized out of nothingness, heading towards Soubi and Seimei at light speed. Soubi nodded once, displaying grudging admiration for the powerful attack. "Bubble - strong and flexible. Part of the sea, yet allowing no water within. Envelope us in thy protection." A transparent bubble formed around Soubi and Seimei, shielding them from the onslaught of water. Cushioned by the protective air bubble, Seimei did not suffer any damage at all.
Hanayama Jirou sneered. "Did you really think that such a puny defense would work against us? We are Enraged." His eyes narrowed as he spoke, "Tsunami. Raging sea, pierce through the defense!" The waves striking against the bubble immediately spun itself into a towering whirlwind, dark, powerful and forbidding. The bubble, unable to withstand the continuous rotational buffeting of the combined wind and water, shattered into a thousand pieces. The impact of the shattering could be felt by both Soubi and Seimei, even as the glass-like pieces and water flew forcefully through the air towards the two.
Soubi immediately stepped backwards, closer to Seimei, trying to shelter him from the brunt of the attack, shielding him with his own body. Bloody slashes appeared on his clothes as the glass cut through his flesh, slicing through them with razor sharpness. Slivers of pain shimmered through his body as his flesh was rent apart. However, thanks to his harsh conditioning and training at Ritsu-sensei's hands, Soubi was able to endure them without faltering. He paid them no mind as he stated, "Force dissipated into nothingness, it has no absolutely no physical effect." The remaining incoming objects all melted into nothingness, however, not before one stream of water hit Seimei on his cheek with all the speed and force of a bullet train. Although Seimei did not show any sign of flinching, his eyes flashed with annoyance.
At that hit, manacles sprang out of nowhere and cuffed Seimei's hands, as an outward sign of a point to their opponents. Used to pain as he was, Soubi ignored his own wounds, but turned and eyed his Master worriedly. He took a step towards Seimei involuntarily, then thought better of it, knowing that Seimei would not appreciate a display of concern, and would in fact, find it disgusting coming from Soubi. Peering at the hand-cuff, Seimei frowned and touched his cheek gingerly. This could not continue, Seimei mused. Up till now, he had allowed Soubi to fight on his own, expecting him to make quick work of the other Fighter. He had not expected Soubi to concede the initiative. At this rate, they might actually lose. It looked like he would have to step in after all. "You cannot win this way, Soubi. Stop defending. Turn their attacks back on them. And defeat them at all costs." A bruise was blossoming into existence on Seimei's cheek, marring his beautiful face. Soubi felt a wrench in his heart at his failure to protect his Sacrifice.
"Yes, my Master." Chastened, Soubi turned back to the fight with cool determination. Eyes narrowed, he tilted his head slightly in contemplation as his brain whirled rapidly to find an effective counter-attack. Turn their attacks back on them huh…What was one common thing about Hanayama's attacks? In a flash, he understood what he had to do.
Swiftly, Soubi spoke, "Implacable calmness. Envelope the tempest, still the waters, blanket the enemies with a deep, bottomless, never-ending span of water. Water absorbs all impact, defeats any attempts to break through – the enemies struggles are futile. Restrain! " Cold water instantly surrounded Hanayama Jirou and Etou Yumi, restraining their movements and attacks, drowning them in its icy chill. Still, calm water, to mute and drown out the rage of Hanayama's attacks, in essence, to take the sting out of the scorpion.
Etou's face seemed to twist with agony as she clasped tightly at the collar that had appeared around her neck as a result of the attack. Spectacles knocked askew, she seemed to have trouble breathing, as evidenced by the rapid heaving of her chest. His face creased with concern, Hanayama turned to look at Etou worriedly. "You all right, Yumi?" Soubi felt a slight twinge of envy at that question – that Hanayama was able to voice his concern out loud. The relationship between the two were so unlike that between him and Seimei…yet a Fighter's task was to obey his Sacrifice – in that Soubi absolutely believed.
Still panting slightly, Etou nodded once. "Dai...jyoubu...shinpai...shinai...de…defeat them." I'm okay, don't worry...Etou wished she could believe what she told her Fighter. Fists clenched tightly about the collar, nevertheless, she stared at Soubi and Seimei fixedly, her demeanor brave, a hint of rage at her own helplessness touching her eyes. Anxious and furious, yet helpless to help her, Hanayama gritted his teeth tightly and turned back to battle. He too was having difficulty breathing due to the surrounding water, however, Etou, in her role as Sacrifice, had taken most of the damage for him.
I must not let her have taken damage in vain! Hanayama clenched his fists tightly and glared daggers at Agatsuma Soubi. With his next attack, he released all his pent-up rage and frustration in a shout muted by the surrounding water. "Fire! Flames from hell, evaporate all the water and burn a path straight to the enemy!" The surrounding water begun to boil and evaporate as flames, black, hot and enormous, sprang into existence, formed a line and raced straight towards Soubi.
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