Most of the girls wear expressions that mingle concern and relief, but it's Cordelia who speaks up first, and the words that come out of her mouth are, "What were you thinking, turning your back on a creep like that?"
"I was thinking that it was pretty obvious he was going to pull something," you say evenly, "so putting some distance between us and staying on guard, without making it obvious that I was on guard, might be a better idea than staying within springing distance." You hold up your hands. "Relax, Cordy. It's not impossible for a musclehead like that to hurt me, but he'll need a lot more muscle or a lot less stupid before he can pull it off."
She makes a sound of grudging agreement.
"So," you continue, changing the subject. "Aside from the obvious, what did you ladies think about the fight?"
That's all it takes to get Tatsuki and the kunoichi trio talking, and Cordelia - never one to be left behind - soon pitches in as well. The general consensus is that none of them would like to meet Marsh in a dark alley, but that they could probably handle him in a fight - at least until you mention his trollish lineage, and what inherent advantages that gives him in any real-life fight. After that, Cordelia, Tatsuki, and Kasumi are all for running from Marsh, while Taki and Ayane both seem to still think they could still take him, mentioning the use of poisons.
Ayane adds that if it came down to it, she'd just set him on fire. Scary girl.
That initial discussion leads into a running dialogue about the ongoing fights. Connor Hanrahan proves to be a slightly-older version of the brother or cousin that Cordelia fought, with the important difference that he goes straight to his Brachen form as soon as he steps in the ring. The transformation doesn't have any visible effect on Amae, who closes in and takes the half-demon boy apart with a fast, fluid style that the ninja-girls identify as similar to Northern Praying Mantis, although the way she holds her hands and the spots she targets are evidently different; rather than going straight for the vitals, Amae delivers a number of pressure-point strikes, slowly crippling Connor's ability to fight back. Even the boy's supernatural endurance can't keep the fight going much past the seventy-second mark, especially not after Amae does something that forces him back into human form. You think it must have been a ki technique, but it resolves too quickly for you to get more than a glimpse of the aftereffects. You do get a look at Amae, though; her aura isn't human in the slightest, revealing itself as layer upon layer of silky shadows rather than the familiar glow, but you don't pick up that sense of alien menace common to the few demons you've managed to scan. Whatever Amae is, she's as mortal as you are.
She also has very good senses, since the moment you start scanning her, she turns and glares in your direction, then gives her aura a twist that obscures it from your sight. You take the hint and stop poking at the girl, who makes a point of staying away from you when she returns to the waiting area.
The next fight has Taki facing the red-haired girl Morgiana. This one goes badly for your new acquaintance. It's not a slight against her abilities, for Taki is as quick and skilled as Ayane or Kasumi, but Morgiana is just as good and is shockingly strong, actually cracking one of the floor tiles in the arena when Taki sidesteps a heel drop. The scene causes the ninja-girl to visibly falter, and after a few more exchanges, she concedes the match. Although Morgiana is polite and makes no menacing moves towards her outside of the bout itself, Taki's hands are visibly shaking when she rejoins your little group. She's never fought anybody that strong before, and it was quite a nasty shock.
Following that are Krillin and Liu Kang. This fight is unlike any of the others in that the two competitors are visibly having fun the entire time, complimenting each other's better moves - which are quite good - criticizing poor choices, and occasionally issuing teasing catcalls. Cries of "Cueball," "Mop-Head," "Flat-Nose," and "Lulu," go back and forth, all given and received in good humor. Some of the officials look a bit disgruntled at the childish display, but the audience seems to enjoy it, laughing along with the boys' antics. For a while, it seems like Liu Kang's ability to generate short-range ki bursts gives him the upper hand, but Krillin eventually manages to muster a blast of his own.
"KamehameHA!"
And a moment later, Liu Kang is knocked out of the ring.
From the moment Krillin began to pull out his ki, you had your aura sight up, trying to put together what he was doing. You could only see the latter part of the technique, though - mostly how Krillin held the energy together as a cohesive, continuous wave, rather than a short-lived ball or blast. You're certain that there's more to the technique than that - the way the ninja-girls are going on about the Legendary Turtle Destruction Wave is a big clue that it's not just about ki projected in the shape of a cylinder - but you really have no idea what. Still, it's instructive.
Gained Spiritual Specialization Ki Control F
Despite being knocked head over heels and out of the tournament, Liu Kang comes up grinning. Hell, he's cheering louder for his friend than most of the people in the audience. Krillin looks abashed, but bows respectfully, before accompanying Liu out of the ring.
After that, it's Tatsuki's turn. She enters the ring to a round of cheerful encouragements from your little group, and a raucous cry of, "Show 'em all what you're made of, third daught- ow!" from a certain Goat-Faced embarrassment. Glancing at the Kurosakis, you find Isshin bent over in his seat for some reason, his children looking at him in surprise while his wife smiles all-too innocently.
Tatsuki's fighting style proves to be a little alarming. Oh, she starts out normally enough, if on the aggressive side, but as the bout goes on and the Lockhart girl proves able to keep up, Tatsuki starts to grin and fight more and more in a manner that reminds you of Ayane's little "outburst" against the unfortunate tengu Tenma. As with Krillin and Liu Kang before her, Tatsuki begins laughing and shouting encouragement to her opponent as she fights, but there is a dark edge to her glee that reminds you of William's enthusiasm for a "good an' proppa fight." Not to mention how she goes for the weak spots with full force, holding nothing back. Tifa is able to keep up even then, staying cool and looking more and more determined as the fight goes on, but then Tatsuki steals a note from Cordelia and tackles her opponent. This time, instead of resulting in a ring-out, the girls end up in a savage little grapple which - since Tifa's style seems to focus mainly on strikes, kicks, and some impressively acrobatic maneuvers - Tatsuki ends up winning, placing her opponent in a decisive pin.
As soon as the match is called, Tatsuki lets go of Tifa, springs to her feet, and extends a hand. Though obviously wary of the other girl, Tifa accepts, and they're talking as they leave the ring. From the sound of it, Tatsuki is offering Tifa tips on improving her grappling skills; you leave them to it for now, as the last match of the round is up.
The golden-eyed Oriental boy known only as Lee puts on an impressive display, using a style that you're told is based on Northern Shaolin kung-fu, only with the startling ability to release gouts of flame from every strike. You pay very close attention to that, and discover that the boy isn't using magic at all, but somehow generating heat and flame with pure ki. You can't tell how he's doing it, and you don't get a lot of time to observe; Gorn simply walks directly into the flames, ignoring the welts they raise on his skin in favor of seizing the opening left by Lee's obvious shock at his demonic opponent's seemingly self-destructive actions. Lee recovers quickly, but doesn't use his fire again now that Gorn is right in his face - suggesting that for all his ability to produce flame, the boy is as vulnerable to it as anyone else. Without that advantage, it's down to skill and strength, and Lee is soon shown to be inferior in both respects. Gorn leaves him unconscious on the tiles and walks out of the ring without a backwards glance as soon as he is proclaimed the victor. You note with serious concern that Gorn's burns have already healed, and when you probe him to find the cause, you pick up a strong demonic aura - something cold, keen, and unyielding, like a drawn sword.
"W-well, folks," the Announcer says, clearly unsettled by the last match. "That's it for round one. There will be a fifteen-minute intermission before we begin the second round, so if you're feeling thirsty or in the mood for a snack, be sure to stop by our concession stands."
As the Announcer leaves the ring, you glance at the board showing the progress of the tournament. Medaka will be fighting the Mitsurugi boy, and Altria Drake will take on Vargas. Ayane gets a bye, due to Cordelia and Kasumi's double ring-out, and you will fight Amae. Krillin gets to go up against Morgiana, and finally, Tatsuki has to face Gorn.