Mysterious Adversary! Just a Touch Spells Defeat!

"If not for your sake... then for mine!" soundly declared Kaza, a young yet-brimming resolve burning within her.

"For our sake, can you KEEP IT DOWN OVER THERE?"

Steam erupted from Kaza's many bodily cavities in embarrassment (bizarrely enough, only now did Neoru and Zinco take notice of them, and and they most certainly took notice after the fact.)

"ᴵ'ᵐ ˢᵒʳʳʸ ᵖˡᵉᵃˢᵉ ᶠᵒʳᵍᶦᵛᵉ ᵐʸ ʳᵘᵈᵉⁿᵉˢˢ " she shamefully mumbled.

"So I'm... both?" Dina asked, still taking in the news.

"According to the scans, yes."

"... wow." Dina slumped back into her chair.

"What's wrong?" asked the counselor, a fat cat-ish figure with elongated ears.

"It's just that... wow." Dina repeated in a trance-like state. "Not every day that you're informed you're half-space man. Sounds like something plucked straight out of a comic book."

"Comic... book?"

"You're kidding."

"... it's regardless. The fact of the matter is, you need to start behaving yourself, young lady."

"Uh-huh."

"Causing such disruptions is detrimental to your knowledge as a Time Patroller!"

"Yeah."

"I'm serious! If a disturbance of that magnitude happens again, then there'll be serious repercu-"

Dina suddenly rose to her feet and began to walk out in the middle of the counselor's reprimanding.

"Look, as much as I'd just love to spend all day sitting through your 5-hour dialogue going through my various crimes against humanity... I wouldn't. Cheers."

The counselor just watched as she slammed the door.

"... have an excellent day!"

"Hard to believe the loser just let me talk like that," Dina thought to herself as she walked off. "Like come on, at least try to establish yourself!" She gave her hand a curious stare, as if it were alien... because, she'd recently found out, it kind of was.

"(So I'm part-saiyan, huh? Weird. Feels like this should change something, but... just doesn't. I'm still me, albeit with yet another cool title under my belt. Dina, The Super Saiyan. Heh, I've been a saiyan for all of 30 minutes, and I'm already Top of the Food Chain. Lovin' it.)"

She continued her plan to ditch for the rest of the day, only with a more confident strut than before.

"Diiiinaaaa, thee Suppa Saiyaaa..."

The slide flipped.

"While the exact number within each and every organism is unknown, on average, there are approximately 8 points of pressure around a living being's body."

The slide flipped.

"Simply put: certain areas in your head, neck, arms, sides, upper and lower legs, even your chest, core, and in many cases, the gro-"

Stroga was interrupted by a stifled chuckle, followed by several hushes and an "Are you 5?"

"-the groin, all contain these points of vulnerability. While it's best to stay on your guard and simply avoid taking hits to these areas, enough skill and timing can win battles against stronger opponents if you wish you utilize them; when said areas are hit with enough precision and force, effects can vary from temporary debilitation, to seizures, to permanent paralysis... to death."

"If you're some squishy sissy, sure!" laughed a spandex-clad young man from the front rows.

"Is that a taunt or a volunteering?"

The boy hushed up for a moment before grinning.

"You know what? Sure, I'll play!"

Like an absolute show off, he leaped from his row and onto Stroga's platform. Confidence practically oozed from his smirk as his tail unwrapped from his waist.

"My name's Archi! And anyone of you lugheads can come down and try to poke me to death anytime!" Archi was a solid 2 meters tall, with a bouquet of spikes atop his head coming down as bangs. Most notably, the 17-or-so boy was built like a truck. His frame was visible through his scarlet training suit, as if it were a blaring second skin.

Stroga shrugged. "Participation credit is in order for the first to present themselves and showcase a basic understanding of pressure points through a brief spar with our eager volunteer. If no one's willing, however, I'll give a live demonstration of their efficiency."

About a dozen hands flew up.

(BGM: Hajime No Ippo - Irradiation)

"All I need do is aim at one of the 8 areas, right?" announced a musai coming up to Archi's waist. "This'll be easy!"

The musai charged at Archi, before blindly laying into his vital areas with hundreds of mach-speed punches. Once the assault had finished, to his shock and horror, Archi continued to stand tall.

"No dice, rack-head!" he boasted before sending him wailing back into the stands with a kick.

"Don't let history fool you; throwing all caution to the wind and blindly hoping for the best is a wonderful way to die on the battlefield. No points received."

"A saiyan's most sensitive area is their tail," a tall, dark namekian donning a large red robe spoke to himself. "If I can strike, or even just grab it, I can end this and use these points to recover from all that skipping I did!"

"You think really loud," Arch stated with a poker face. "Also, quit eyeing my tail like it's a piece 'a meat. It's embarrassing."

"I-UH-AW, SCREW IT!" The namekian took note of his error before charging forth, hand outstretched. "I HAVE TO TRY!"

He was only a meter away from his target before it smacked him upside his head.

"You're not a very subtle person, are you?" Archi mocked.

"Knowledge of a vulnerable area, but you failed to effectively put that knowledge to use. The attack loses all viability once the enemy knows your intent. Even a specific stance can give your strategy away in a battle. No points received. (But an A for effort!)"

"'Pressure point,' huh?" Kora chuckled to herself.

"That's the idea, sweetstuff," Archi purred, seductively winking at the built saiyan female. "I'm a bit delicate, though, so try not to hurt me too bad, m'kay?"

Kora deviously smirked. "Oh don't worry..." Soon enough, a high-speed foot shot right into Archi's groin, nearly popping his eyes out and sending him to the floor in a fit of hellish agony.

"Oh come on, you big baby! I didn't even hit you that hard!"

Stroga rubbed his eyes. "Highly inefficient in an actual combat scenario... but I suppose It's my fault for not specifying. That is, in fact, knowledge of a point of pressure, so..." he ground his teeth. "Credit is due."

"Alright!" Kora shouted in an over-girlish tone, pumping her wrists up in victory.

The 9 others who tried her strategy received concussions.

"I, Lepeient, have trained in the mystic arts of the Fly-Plucking Hellfist for all of my 15 years! I'm destined to pass this trial!" declared a tall, soft-colored being with 2 flowing tendrils protruding from his head. "Prepare yourself, warrior!"

The foe proceeded to emit an ear-piercingly high-pitched battle cry as he deliberately hit specific areas within Archi's abdominal region with elegant and precise motions. Even Archi was briefly taken aback by the grace on display. Lepeient finished his barrage after a few seconds and pointed dramatically.

"5 seconds. You've 5 seconds until your body crumples to the ground, like a fly bombarded... with BUGSPRAY!"

Archi stood in motion. Suddenly, his eyes opened wide, and he felt an uneasy sensation within himself. Hardly moments later, he began to violently convulse and fall to the floor... in laughter.

"OH GOD, THAT TICKLES! MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP!"

Lepeient stood in confusion. "Impossible... I'm certain I'd struck at least 30 of his.. How could this-"

Lepeient emitted yet another high-pitched scream once he caught a glance at his now-broken fingers. At the same time, his opponent slowly rose from his laughing fit.

"You sneaky bastard, you actually tried to tickle me to death!" Archi chuckled. "Kudos for the weird technique, but this is supposed to be serious, right?"

A swift kick sent Lepeient hurdling back into the rows.

"So get off my platform, clown."

"Don't let that skirmish's results deceive you, class," Stroga clarified. "Lepeient there displayed surprisingly exceptional technique, precision, and accuracy."

Stroga proceeded to present Archi, smug as ever.

"The problem lied within his opponent, and the immense gap in power between the two. While indeed effective, pressure points will lose their viability as you face stronger opposition. Enemies' weaker points will become more and more resilient to such attacks, and some could possess no such points of vulnerability at all, or any vital organs for that matter-"

"Teach, nice lecture and all, but my legs are kiiiiilling me right about now."

Stroga sighed. "Point taken. With that, class is hereby-"

"Wait."

"AW COME THE FUCK ON!" Neoru screeched at the top of his lungs from the back of the class. Both Stroga and Archi's heads snapped in surprise toward the soft, unfamiliar voice.

(BGM: Baki 2018 OST - Thugress)

Behind the instructor stood a small (coming up to Archi's elbows) young woman. She possessed dead, cat-like amber eyes, incredibly-long and dark-scarlet hair which came down in a loop ponytail on one end and bangs in the front - and yet still managed to wrap around her neck like a scarf - and a black, extremely old-fashioned oriental garb outlined in indigo.

"When did you-"

"Fight," she stated.

"... I'm sorry, but the extra-credit opportunity has expired. However, if you're still willing to score some extra points, I am holding a seminar tomorrow on the benefits of acupun-"

While Stroga went on about concepts she didn't quite understand or care for, the girl slowly rose her finger toward the saiyan.

"Fight."

"Me? Fight you? No way!"

Archi's voice deepened, and rose petals began falling from nowhere.

"How could I bring myself to hurt something so small and fragile?"

Without warning, he gently clasped one of her hands.

"Someone with such delicate beauty... should never feel the need to fight."

("Earth chicks eat this kinda stuff up, from what I've seen! So glad humans love their romance holoflicks!")

"sōngshÔU...!"

"Huh-" was all Archi got out before the girl struck 2 areas around his shoulders with pinpoint accuracy. In the blink of an eye, his arms shot up in intense pain, clutching his crippled arm and falling to his knees in a stammering mess.

Neoru began to pay much closer attention.

"Damn..." he thought to himself, slowly rising from his seat to get a closer look. "Big guy should be able to shrug those off like nothing, but... that's definitely not the case!"

"Those points..." Zinco muttered to himself. "How did she reach those areas with hits so soft?"

"Huh?"

"Hm?"

Neoru grinned. "You're just as curious as me, ain't ya? In that case..."

"Wait, what are YOU-"

"WHAT DID... HOW DID YOU..." Archi screeched between tortured howls. The young woman simply looked down in disgust.

"Never touch me," she hissed, venom dripping from her words as she looked down upon the boy, a concoction of wrath and disgust visible within her eyes.

"Hóu Guǐ."

"YO!"

The girl's eyes darted towards the voice which boomed from the top of the rows. Unintelligible pleads coupled it.

"How the hell'd someone as puny as you pull one on that overgrown doofus?"

Knowing only bare-minimum outside her language, the girl stared wide-eyed at the speaker.

"What? Am I comin' through? Not loud enough or something?"

She tilted her head to the side, wondering what the boy said, or if he was even talking to her.

"Aw for- HOW YOU FIGHT TAIL BOY GOOD?" he callously yelled, throwing hand signs in-sync with his words.

With that, the girl returned to her stoic expression, turned her head and walked off.

"No Hóu Guǐ. No care-"

The boy jumped from his row in an overdramatic fashion, landing in front of the girl.

"Oh," Zinco muttered in defeat.

"Show me. Fight," Neoru coyly demanded, pointing to himself.

The sudden landing startled the girl, sending her back a few meters in retaliation. A defensive stance was taken as soon as feet hit the floor.

After tending to Archi, Stroga attempted to protest the ensuing battle.

"Damn it... WHAT PART OF 'EXPIRED' DO YOU TWO NOT UNDERSTAND? THERE WON'T BE ANYTHING COMING OUT OF THIS BUT DETENTION!"

"You think I give a damn about attention?" Neoru responded in a completely serious tone. "This'll be about the only thing I walk outta here remembering!"

With that, Neoru jumped forth.

"Fine then..." the girl whispered, before dashing towards Neoru, using her left heel to propel herself forward.

She attempted a leaping jab with her left hand, which Neoru dodged.

"I ain't an expert on 'pressure points' by any means, but I sure as hell know where to hit where it hurts!" he thought to himself triumphantly as he aimed a fist under her elbow, middle finger's mid-phalanx outstretched.

Before the scarlet-haired girl's eyes, her arm snapped.

And then, Neoru's fist made contact.

"WHAT THE..!" Neoru's eyes widened as the girl's arm seemingly dislocated on its own, leaving his fist with a target comprised of nothing but flesh. Her arm resembled a wet noodle as it harmlessly bent around the blow.

In that vital moment of distraction, the girl's free hand struck Neo's shoulder, laming it before giving him a quick, gentle back kick to the dead-center of his face.

Neoru staggered back, his nose suddenly pouring blood. His thoughts became hazy, his breaths grew shallow, and his vision blurred.

"W-wait... How-I don't get..."

He struggled just to move forward, just to reach out and attempt to grab his opponent and continue to fight. The girl looked back for a moment, a brief face of pity, before walking off.

"Hey... don't... you walk away from..."

Neoru woke up in the resident ER.

He remembered why he was in his current state, and used what little strength he had left to bash the back of his head into the pillow he'd been napping on.

"Fffffuck."

We'll wrap that up there.

Yo! OP here.

As previously stated in the other fic I posted earlier today, it was a long line at the gas station. Seriously though, I wanted to make sure EVERYTHING was spot-on here: Characters acting in ways that fit them, establishing the new character (Mandarin's gonna be a rarity from here-on to avoid butchering the language, I promise), and most importantly, the implementation of a balance system to combat power creep: pressure points! Or ki blocking... or bio-electrical martial arts... look, it's gonna make sure fights don't always end in screaming and Kienzan's concept will be integral to it.

Whilst I awaited my confrontation with the cashier, I happened upon this manga series called Vinland Saga. Y'all should read it, it's amazing and the lessons it teaches are valuable as hell. Zinco's gonna take a bit from Adult Thorfinn, and this upcoming character's gonna take some from Teen Thorfinn. So yeah, read that. I finished The Serpent's Shadow, too, good, but not Vinland Saga good. Thorfinn smacks Carter any day, don't me pls.

As for the series... I'll try to get the next chapter out by this time next Sunday. My promises aren't worth ass, so I'll just try my hardest to make it happen, and that'll be all. In future updates, expect to see stuff like character bios (Like Kengan Asura's End-of-Chapter slides do) that'll let you see more about the character being discussed so I don't have to worry about in-story descriptions so much. Also lets me envision the character better.

These talks are nice. Regardless, everyone stay safe. Love you all, and peace.

((up next maybe: neo's mad, kora verbally bitchsmacks dina)))