CHAPTER 167

As Sam took to the mat once more, the crowd was electric, eagerly roaring her on as she walked into the middle to face Tory and the referee once more. It was evident that her ankle was still not at 100%. She still had a limp and was clearly favoring her other leg to rest on, but she forced herself to ignore the pain. If she was going out of the Taikai, she was going out on her terms.

Even Tory looked somewhat relieved that Sam was okay, although the blonde now had a whole new problem on her hands. How should she approach this fight now? It was clear Sam was not fighting at full fitness, her ankle not even close to back to normal, so Tory had a large decision to make. Should she avoid that ankle at all costs, avoid doing anything that could risk hurting it, including any kind of takedown. But at the same time, she knew that doing that would seriously hinder her performance, and that could potentially risk getting her eliminated from the tournament altogether. So there was a big decision to make? Should she keep going at full strength and using her full arsenal, knowing that risk that could have to Sam? Or should she take it at a slower speed and risk losing the fight.

Tory was still undecided about this when the fight finally recommenced between them. Even though Tory was a little unsure, Sam had no questions about how she was personally planning on taking the fight, as she didn't hesitate to start moving towards Tory. As the fight continued though, it was clear that Sam was physically unable to fight in the same way that she had been doing beforehand. She was a lot less mobile, that was for sure, and although she was able to stand on that foot now, she wasn't quite ready to actually kick with it yet, which was why most of her attacks came with her hands.

Tory was able with relative ease, but was somewhat reluctant to get too eager with her own attacks, given Sam's physical condition. And as Sam decided to take a risk and kick out with her bad foot, Tory's initial thought was to not block the kick, knocking the damage that an elbow or forearm to the already injured ankle. This led to Sam connecting with the kick, scoring a point to Tory's abdomen.

Sam 2 - 1 Tory

"Point! Larusso! Score's 2-1 Larusso!" The referee barked.

Despite scoring the point, Sam did not celebrate in the slightest. It was abundantly clear to her what had just happened, what was going on. Tory didn't want to touch that leg, as she didn't want to hurt her. The blonde was taking it easier, and that stung more to Sam than any knock to her ankle could've.

This led to Sam charging forward with more fury than ever as the fight resumed. She was trying to egg Tory on, trying to urge her to fight at 100%. Sam did not agree to keep fighting, only to have her opponent take it easy on her. Sam wanted to win, but she wanted to win by being the better fighter, not out of pity or sympathy.

"Come on!" Sam snapped, as Tory did nothing more than block all of the strikes that Sam threw her way. "Attack me! What the hell are you doing?!"

"You… want me to attack you?" Tory asked, taken by surprise for a moment. In that time, Sam managed to do an expertly judged sweep with her non-injured leg, taking Tory to the ground. However, by nature of the fact that Sam was only using one foot, it took her longer than she would normally take to get down and score the point on Tory. This allowed her opponent to roll out of the way just in time and jump to her feet, but not before Sam managed to grab her in a clinch, similar to what you'd see in boxing. Their faces were mere inches apart, but their limbs too close to be able to score with.

"Yes! I am!" Sam told Tory as she kept the blonde locked in that position, not trying to strike or score a point, but instead using the opportunity to talk to her. "I didn't agree to fight for you to take it easy! I chose to fight… now you need to give it your hardest too."

"But…"

"But nothing!" Sam demanded. "Stop taking it easy!"

With that, Sam pushed Tory backwards and out of the clinch position. As Tory looked Sam in the eye, she could tell that the girl was serious. She HATED the fact that Tory was patronizing her and taking it easy. And because that was the case, Tory owed it to her to give it everything…

For this reason, it was Tory who pounced next. She was no longer holding anything back, but all that meant was that now, Sam's lack of full fitness was made even more blatantly obvious. On offense, Sam was able to adapt her moves, but on defense, that proved to be much tougher. She couldn't exactly move at the speed and precision that was required in Miyagi-Do, which was why it wasn't long before she was caught with a front kick right to the chest, a kick so powerful that it sent her stumbling backwards and crashing onto the ground.

Sam 2 - 2 Tory

"Point! Nichols! Score's 2-2!" The referee stated, but Tory completely ignored him. After Sam had gone down again, Tory ran over to her this time, trying to help her up.

"Shit! Larusso, you okay?" Tory asked, trying to help her to her feet but failing.

It turned out that all of the medical tape wrapping in the world, all of the determination and drive that was coursing through Sam's veins, all of the vast number of Miyagi-Do techniques she knew, couldn't change the fact that Sam was genuinely injured. She should've been in a room icing her foot and resting, definitely not fighting. Even a front kick that was nowhere near Sam's bad ankle caused the brunette to fall backwards and force her to put more weight on the ankle than it would allow. A small yelp of pain left Sam's lips as she fell down again, and it wasn't long before the medics and Daniel were called back onto the mat once more.

"Dad… I can't do this." Sam whispered, tears threatening to spill over her eyes. "I'm so sorry. I tried. I really tried. But I can't…"

Immediately, Daniel pulled his daughter into a warm, tight hug, murmuring assurances into her ear.

"Don't apologise, Sam. You have nothing to apologize for. You've done incredibly well. You should be proud." Daniel told her firmly, before making a clear gesture to the referee that he was throwing in the towel on behalf of his student. Despite the score ending level on points, the fight was over, and Tory advanced to the final of the Sekai Taikai, joining her boyfriend and two of her senseis.

However, Tory did not celebrate. Not even for a moment. Even though the fight had been stopped, Tory wasn't forced to kneel at her corner again. She was allowed to approach Sam and as she did, guilt couldn't help but rush through her as she saw the girl laying on the ground, fighting back tears of pain from the ankle injury and despair that her time at the Taikai was over.

"Larusso, I'm so sorry." Tory stammered quietly, unable to come to terms with what was going on. She was moving onto the final. That was supposed to be a good thing, right? Then why did it feel so shitty? Even though everything that had happened was simply an accident, that didn't minimize the guilt that she felt whatsoever.

As Sam looked up at her for the first time, still laying on the mat where she had gone down, she asked her dad to help her up and Daniel obliged, supporting her weight as her arm draped over his shoulders. He pulled her up so that Sam and Tory were now face to face and, as Sam stood with all of her weight on one foot, she grabbed Tory by the sleeve of her white Miyagi-Do gi and pulled Tory in a little bit closer. After she did, she whispered in Tory's ear…

"Win this thing for all of us."

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Another day gone. A titanic day in Sekai Taikai history that was sure to have gone down in the record books. The stage was set for quite possibly the biggest Taikai final of all time.

Daniel Larusso vs. Johnny Lawrence

Tory Nichols vs. Sarah Gledhill

Robby Keene vs. Marcos Oliveira

Those were the three clashes that were going to be fought in MMA style matchups in less than 48 hours time. Each matchup contained uncertainty. Each matchup would undoubtedly have bloodshed. They were all mouthwatering fixtures that the audience simply couldn't wait to get their hands on. But they'd have to wait, as there was a break day the next day to give the fighters time to recover and prepare for the grand final the day after.

Little did the Miyagi-Dos and Cobra Kais know at the time, but they had officially created Sekai Taikai history. It was the first time ever that two dojos had fully monopolized the Taikai final in the way that Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do had. They had also shattered all kinds of records to do with best performances from a first-time competing dojo. But that was the nature of Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do. They were the best around. Even if they didn't have the skill and experience of other competitors, their unmatched drive and mental balance was enough to grant them superiority.

So much was at stake. Contrary to what both dojos hoped for going into the tournament, things truly would be settled on the final day. Neither side had been eliminated from contention just yet, and if their past encounters were anything to go by, it wouldn't be too surprising for the bet to end up coming down to the last second of the final fight of the night. That was how close things were.

Although the dojos had been dreaming of this day for almost an entire year now, the fact that they had almost made it was absolutely astounding. It wasn't there yet though. They still had 48 hours to wait.