Adventures of the Orange Flash
Chapter 43: Moving on Up
It is the second day of the tournament and already people are waking up and making preparations before heading towards the stadium. However, someone was already awake before any of them and it was none other than Naruto who was currently situated atop the rooftop of the hotel which he and the others had taken temporary residence until the end of the tournament, the blonde kitsune was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed deep in concentration.
"Tetsuo-jiji, can you hear me?" asked Naruto mentally.
"Ah Naruto, nice to hear from you. Congrats on advancing to the next stage of the tournament as I've been watching through the scrying pool. What may be the reason that you're contacting me?" asked Tetsuo fondly.
"It's about the transformation which I triggered during my match against Natsu, do you know anything about it?"
Tetsuo hummed softly in thought before responding "I felt that would have been why you're contacting me this morning, the transformation which you ask of is known as the Azure Drive,"
"Azure Drive, what is it about?" asked Naruto curiously.
"I can describe it as a legendary transformation which only a well trained Yakan member or mostly ninetailed kitsune can unlock. It is a state whereby one fuses with the foxfire to the point of actually becoming the flames itself, the known methods of entering into the state is high levels of emotions or when one attempts a sense of resonance with the flames, afterwards they can access the transformation freely. There were many of our clan members that attempted to reach this state with only a handful being successful, it was a form both feared and hated by the Raiju clan whenever we cross paths and clash," said Tetsuo.
"Wow, so what are the benefits of the Azure Drive?" asked Naruto.
"It grants you absolute control over your flames as well as enhancing your physical abilities, foxfire techniques and let's not forget granting you the ability to becoming the actual flames themselves for either attacking or defense. You could as well view it as a variation to your Sage Mode,"
"Like Sage mode huh…this gives me ideas for the Azure Drive, I'll experiment on them once I get back from the tournament," thought Naruto.
"Very well, I bid you and your companions good fortune in your upcoming battles," said Tetsuo.
"Thanks jiji, I'll talk to you later," Naruto felt the mental connection cut off as he opened his eyes and stood up from the ground "Time to prep up and head for the stadium,"
Naruto made his way back to the room and put on his gear before meeting up with Nicole and the others down at the lobby then they left the hotel to arrive at the stadium after breakfast. They saw that the stadium is almost full and were lucky to get some seats at a good spot.
"I better head on over to the waiting to meet up with Sonic and the others since my match will be coming up later on," said Naruto.
"Okay Naruto, I can't wait to see you fight again," said Milla excitedly.
"Me too," Wendy was in agreement.
"Here's hoping that you would at least impress me further than yesterday," said Carla with indifference.
Naruto rolled his eyes at her response "Whatever you say," he left the stands and soon arrived at the waiting room where Sonic, Lilac and Espio were already there before him like always.
"Yo Naruto, was wondering where you were," Sonic waved a hand in greeting.
"Doing some prebattle meditation before coming here to calm my nerves a bit among other things," Naruto replied.
"A wise action, it improves one's preparedness for battle," Espio spoke from where he was as he was currently leaning against the wall with his eyes closed until Naruto showed up.
"So have they made any announcements concerning the tournament?"
Lilac then spoke up "They haven't yet but I'm sure that it will be soon, just wondering whom I'll be going up against next,"
"Same here, I'm already raring to go on my mystery opponent," said Sonic with his foot tapping on the floor rapidly.
"You got a point there, but I get the feeling that the matches are going to get even more intense than the previous ones," said Naruto thoughtfully.
"Pretty obvious now that everyone knows what the other is capable of, so you best be ready to use one of your stronger techniques and skills," said Kurama with the Naruto nodding in affirmation.
Naruto took note of something on the screen and called out to the others "Hey guys, looks like it's about to start," Sonic and co turned to watch as Scratch remade his appearance on the arena with the crowd chattering in excitement.
[Welcome back ladies and gentlemen to the second day of the World Fighting Tournament, we had 16 contenders duke it out with only 8 making it to the next. And now these competitors are going to combat once more in order to advance to the semifinals, let's not keep you waiting any longer and move onto the first match of the day which is…] Scratch gestured towards the Holo-screen displaying the portraits of the first two combatants [Carol Tea vs Killua Zoldyck! Will the contestants please present themselves on the arena]
"Looks like Carol-chan will be going up against Killua," said Naruto with a small frown, he had seen how the lynx was able to defeat Rouge and couldn't help but worry for the wildcat.
"Have some confidence in Carol, Naruto. I'm sure she can prove to be a tough customer for someone like Killua," said Lilac with full faith in her best friend.
"We will have to observe the battle once it begins to see who has the potential to be the victor," said Espio, receiving nods from the others as they watched the aforementioned contenders appear on the arena through the screen.
[And now the theme for the arena will be…] Scratch pressed a button on the remote which caused the holograms to activate and now the arena has taken on the appearance of outdoor area within an industrial city as smoke billowed from chimneys and pink liquid could be seen flowing through large transparent pipelines […Chemical Plant!]
Carol took a combat stance with her claws bared "I'm coming at you with full force!"
"…," Killua simply took on the loose stance like before and stared at her intently.
[No need to ask if they're ready as they clearly are, so let the match begin!] said Scratch to signal the start of the battle with the crowd cheering loudly.
Music Start: BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle OST; Rushing Heart (Gordeau's Theme)
Carol was the first to take the initiative as she charged towards Killua and lashed out with a claws swipe which he evaded with a sidestep and continued doing so when she followed up with more swipes. Carol broke from the assault for a low sweep kick, causing him to leap into the air then she jumped after the lynx in pursuit "Wild Claw!" she struck with a powerful claw attack, this made Killua suddenly narrow his eyes and grab her by the wrist then used the momentum to spin around and knock her away with a kick to the torso. Carol managed to perform an aerial recovery and land on the ground while looking at her opponent with a frown.
"I'm not done yet!" Carol dashed towards him once more in a zigzag pattern in a burst of speed "Take this!" she attack with yet another claw attack which missed once more but then she suddenly took a quick step with spin to attack with a elbow strike which took Killua by surprise to put up a guard to block it before backing away but the wildcat wasn't intending to let him get away as she pursued him with a barrage of Wild Kicks. Killua had had enough and took to the offensive as he began throwing punches with Carol now taking to the defense by parrying the incoming attacks with her hands then countered by somersaulting overhead to attack with a kick but Killua responded with a kick of his own to clash in the middle before moving away from each other.
Killua stared at Carol intently then began pacing around her, causing the wildcat to realize what he's doing and soon was surrounded by his afterimages like he had done before in his previous match, making Carol feel tense.
[And Killua uses his Rhythm Echo, this is the same move which earned him the win over Rouge the Bat. How will Carol be able to counter this technique?] said Scratch as he watched the ongoing battle.
Carol looked around to find the real Killua but to no avail as she can't even hear him and sight is out of the question "I can't afford to play the guessing game or I'll end getting knocked out, if I can't pick one then I'll just have to flush him out!" She took a stance which caught her opponent's attention "Claw Cyclone!" she began spinning around rapidly like a top with claws bared as she moved through the afterimages and slashed right through to forcefully dissipate them till all were taken out and Killua was quick to move out of the way when she got close to him.
"…," Killua was frowning at her and looked a bit more guarded than usual, Carol finally stopped spinning and retook her combat stance then maintained focus upon seeing Killua take the initiative this time to charge at her and responded in kind. The two were about to collide with Killua aiming a chop towards Carol's neck, the wildcat moved at the last minute to spin around before attacking with another Wild Claw which managed to graze the opponent when he moved to dodge "Sliding Claw!" Carol skidded along the ground with her claws first but missed upon Killua jumping into the air then performed a handspring to launch into the air with a double kick. Killua maneuvered in midair to evade before landing on the ground apart from each other "Claw Frenzy!" Carol rushed forward while swinging her claws at blurring speeds, Killua's eyes were suddenly overshadowed as they narrowed and he proceeded to swing his arms around at blurring speeds like those of whips, they rapidly attacked and defended against each other with either side yet to dominance but it ended in a tie as they jumped away from each other.
"Time to wrap this up, Cross Slash!" Carol crouched slightly then took off with her highest burst of speed with claws glinting in the sunlight with intend to defeat her opponent, Killua looked to be contemplating over something before coming to a decision as he rushed forward at high-speed. The duo were about to collide when Killua ducked below the wildcat's attack then pointed his palms towards her torso "…Thunder Palm," the palms suddenly discharged blue electricity which coursed through Carol's body, causing her to let out a cry of pain and immediately felt numb. That momentary lapse was all the lynx needed to step forward to slam a powerful punch into her gut and lift a visibly unconscious Carol into the air with his fist still lodged in before letting her drop to the ground.
Music End
[And the winner of the match is Killua Zoldyck!] Scratch made the announcement with the arena reverting to its default appearance as the crowd cheered. Killua bowed to his fallen opponent before walking away for the medics to carry Carol away to the infirmary.
"Carol lost…she tried her best to beat him though," said Lilac, looking a bit sad at seeing her best friend lose.
"Yeah, we'll just have beat him in her place to make up for it," said Naruto, making plans to go to the infirmary and heal her injuries.
Espio then spoke up "In the least, she gave us an opportunity to learn a bit more of our opponent,"
"Yeah, watch out or you get zapped," said Sonic with a shrug of his shoulders.
"That too, but he's still holding back his true strength and that's pretty much bugging me. Then again, that would make me a hypocrite since I'm not using all of my moves yet either," said Naruto.
There was the sounding of knocking on the door which then opened for someone to come inside the waiting room. It is a short stocky robot with a teal paintjob, he possesses tank tracks for feet, an antennae on the back of the top of his head, eyes that resemble screw tops, a compass bellybutton as well as drills for hands and nose in resemblance of a mole, and he wears a black and white tuxedo with a giant red bow tie.
The robot then cleared his throat "Excuse me, my name is Grounder and I'm looking for Naruto Uzumaki,"
Said kitsune raised his hand in mild confusion "I'm him, what is it you want from me?"
"My boss wishes to have a word with you, and I'm here to serve as your escort," said Grounder.
"Your boss, what does he or she wants with me?" asked Naruto.
"I don't know, I'm just here to take you to where she is,"
"Okay then, but we better make it quick since I want to see the rest of the matches before mine," Naruto began approaching the door with Grounder moving back.
"I'm sure it will be brief, this way if you please,"
"I'll be back soon guys," Naruto called out to the others.
"Sure thing," Sonic responded as they watched the kitsune leave to meet with the mysterious boss.
Naruto followed Grounder through the hallways and up and couple of stairs which he noticed that he was somewhere which is high above the stands, they finally stopped before a grandiose double door and Grounder knocked on it a couple of times.
"Excuse me mistress, I've brought Naruto Uzumaki just like you requested," said Grounder.
A feminine voice responded from behind the doors "Well done, let him in,"
"As you wish,"
Grounder opened the doors and beckoned Naruto to go inside which he did and was taken by surprise upon seeing several familiar faces albeit two of which is the first time for him.
"Hey Naruto, long time no see," Elias called out with a wave from his seat.
"Hey Elias, I wasn't expecting you and Sally-chan to be here watching the tournament," said Naruto.
Sally spoke up with a smile "Well, Bunnie and Barby signed up to take part and we had hunch that you would too, there was no way that we were going to pass that up. Mom and dad wanted to come and watch too but they needed to ensure that Knothole's security was sturdy so that what happened last time won't repeat," then she heard a clearing of the throat from the regally dressed coyote sitting nearby "And this is our close friend Antoine D'Coolette, he was also invited to watch the tournament,"
"A pleasure to finally meet you, I've heard quite a lot from Sally and Elias about you not to mention your show of prowess yesterday," said Antoine.
"Uh thanks," said Naruto a bit awkwardly.
"And don't forget about me!" Honey spoke up from where she was sitting with a pout.
"I was kinda wondering where you were," said Naruto.
"Since I wasn't able to advance, I received an invite from Breezie to come up here and watch with everyone here," the fashionista explained.
"Okay then," he turned towards the female hedgehog who was currently sipping on her glass of wine "I'm guessing you're Breezie and the one who wanted to speak with me?"
Breezie looked at him with an eye open and a smile on her face "Quite so, like Antoine I've also heard a lot about you from Sally and Elias as well as Honey. Their stories made me feel very curious about you and yesterday's match made me feel that way even more so I just had to meet you,"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly "Thanks for the compliment, I'm grateful,"
"We were rather curious about that transformation which you underwent during your match with Natsu?" asked Breezie.
"Actually that was my Azure Drive, I triggered it when my emotions were at its peak, that powerup really helped me earn my win although I'll need to train on it if I need to completely master the transformation," Naruto explained, hoping he wasn't giving too much information.
"Well I gotta say that your transformation is quite amazing, finding it hard to compare it with that of using the Chaos Emeralds," said Elias.
"Maybe so, but it won't change the fact that enemies would think twice before facing him. Imagine when he becomes very proficient in it," said Sally.
"I must agree with Sally, zhat form certainly has a certain flair to it. Though I wish to see what else you can do in zhis tournament," said Antoine.
"Looks like we'll be having that opportunity, your match is coming up next," said Breezie, having already seen the schedule for the day.
"Then I better get going, we could talk more at another time," Naruto turned towards the door to leave.
"Good luck out there, we're rooting for you," said Elias.
"Do your best," said Sally.
"You better win Naruto!" said Honey cheerfully.
Naruto responded with a thumbs up and a foxy grin before going through the door and broke into a run upon hearing Scratch speak through the speakers until he made it to the arena right as he announced the matchups.
[And the second match will be between Sash Lilac and Naruto Uzumaki!] said Scratch with the crowd cheering loudly upon hearing the latter's name. Naruto went to stand at the arena with Lilac appearing on it moments later.
Lilac was staring intently at Naruto, she had been training this whole time to be prepared to face any opponent but mostly because she wanted to go up against the kitsune himself. She may have been sparring with him from time to time but she really wanted to face him in something as official as this. Excitement and nervousness stirred within her, Lilac was aware that he is powerful but at the same time wishes to see how far she has come since the day they've met.
[Now for the theme of the arena which is…] Scratch pushed a button for the holograms to activate and the arena shifted to take on the appearance of a large highway with wheeler trucks serving as borders for the arena [Route 101]
Naruto took a combat stance "Are you ready for this Lilac-chan?"
"Yes I am, time to show you what I got!" Lilac took her combat stance as well with eyes full of determination.
[And without further ado, let the match begin!] Scratch called out loud.
Music Start: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Ultimate All-Stars Music OST; Orbital Ring Systems Cargo Bay
Naruto and Lilac charged at each other with the latter striking out first with a roundhouse kick towards the former's head which he used a forearm to block then he retaliated with a straight punch but Lilac deflected it with an arm then jumped into the air for a reverse roundhouse kick, Naruto ducked below and stuck a foot out in front of himself to launch a stream of foxfire from it to propel himself backwards then he used Shadow Step to appear behind Lilac to attack with a chop to the head. The dragoness was quick to sense him and stepped to the side to avoid the attack and countered with a pivoted back kick with Naruto crossing his arms to block and was pushed back a bit from the impact.
"Aqua Vortex Kick!" Lilac lunged at Naruto with a jumping roundhouse kick coated with water, the kitsune saw the attack and swung into action "Foxfire Burst!" he unleashed a radial burst of foxfire from his body with the shockwave being strong enough to push Lilac away then rapidly closed the distance between them and attacked with a flying straight punch to drive her further back. Lilac rolled along the ground before flipping back her feet and retook the stance, she forms a sphere of water in between her hands "Water Cannon!" then she launched it towards Naruto who spun like a top to deflect the incoming projectile with his tails and was taken by surprise when she swiftly followed it up with a Dragon Swoop to slam into him strongly for a knockback
"Dragon Boost!" Lilac charged all her energy and launches herself like a comet to run at high-speed towards Naruto "Kitsune Spiral Dash!" he also curled up into his spinball form and charged in response, both collided in the middle and engaged in a power struggle as they pushed each other back and forth several times but it ended in a tie as they broke away with a skid. Naruto accessed his celestial aspect with the white halo hovers above his head as starlight sparkles around him, then he dashed towards Lilac with white afterimages trailing behind from his movements and struck out with a fist shrouded in celestial energy, the dragoness also coated her hands in water energy to deflect the punch and lashed out with her twin ponytails to which Naruto formed a whip of celestial energy and swung it to parry the attack before dashing backwards to build some distance
"White Hailing Arrows!" Naruto manipulated his celestial energy to construct a bow before pulling a bowstring to form an arrow and let loose to fire the projectile as it split into many more with Lilac as the target "Dragon Cyclone!" Lilac spun herself horizontally like a top to deflect the incoming projectiles with her twin ponytails as she moved about before launching herself into the air higher than Naruto "Oceanic Torpedo!" she shrouds herself into water before towards the target like a missile, Naruto used the bow as a makeshift shield to block but the impact drove him down to the ground and was being forcefully pushed back till he applied enough chakra to the soles of his feet to grip the ground better.
A strong gust of wind suddenly swirls around him and blew Lilac back, signaling the activation of his Air aspect "Wild Tempest Kick!" he gathered the winds to swirl around his legs as he lunged at Lilac to assault her with a barrage of air enhanced kicks "Water Spinjitzu!" Lilac proceeded to spin once more and this time summoning water to swirl around her like a tornado as it served as a shield to guard the dragoness against the wind whilst rapidly switching to the offensive to force Naruto back a couple of times "Let's see you handle this, Aero Beast Swipe!" Wind swirled around one of the user's arms to form a large beast paw and swinging at the tornado with great force to knock Lilac out of it to send her flying away from him.
[Look at those two go, they certainly aren't pulling any punches towards each other!] said Scratch excitedly.
"Water Cannon!" Lilac launched a barrage of compressed spheres of water at Naruto who used the Shadow Dance to evade the incoming projectiles and leaving afterimages to make himself much harder to be targeted before taking to the offensive "Wind Darts!" multiple conically shaped wind constructs shot out from the wind swirling around Naruto at Lilac who took to evading them with her speed, but she soon came to discover that it was a ploy as Naruto used Shadow Step to appear right in front of her with his back on the ground and legs curled up to his chest "Meteor Blow!" he lashed out with a double kick to launch her into the air then used the winds to propel himself after her and performed a heel drop kick to send her crashing to the ground.
Lilac got back to her feet and shook her head to clear it of the pain and turned her focus back to Naruto "I'll need to find a way to strike back…perhaps I could use that technique," the dragoness looked to see Naruto charging towards her to engage in close combat which she complied as they exchanged punches and kicks constantly until Naruto faked a move and punched her in the torso but he was taken by surprise when she suddenly burst into water "Rising Slash!" he was struck from behind to be launched into the air by Lilac "Dragon Cyclone!" she spun rapidly to strike at him consecutively "Aqua Vortex Kick!" she shrouded her left leg with water and struck Naruto with a spinning roundhouse kick to send him crashing down to the ground then landing afterwards.
[What an assault of powerful moves back to back! Could this be the end of the road for Naruto and a step for Lilac?] said Scratch as he watched in suspense.
"Did that do it?" Lilac muttered as she looked at Naruto laying on the ground, but she was taken by surprise when he went up in a puff of smoke and revealed a wooden log in his place "What?!"
A voice spoke up from behind her "It's over Lilac-chan, Meteor Crash!" Naruto performed a rising uppercut to propel the both of them into the air and proceeded to unleash a barrage of punches and kicks whilst using Shadow Dance to appear in different positions until appearing overhead "Foxfire Kick!" Naruto's foot lights up with an azure flame before striking out with a roundhouse kick to slam the dragoness down to the ground as she laid there unconscious
Music End
[And just like that, Naruto turns the tides of the battle to win the match!] Scratch announced with the crowd cheering loudly at the intensity of the battle.
Naruto waved at the audience amiably before turning to Lilac with a smile "She's definitely gotten a lot stronger these past few weeks,"
"Couldn't agree more, that last move reminds me of that same strategy you would use on your enemies in the past," said Kurama.
"I know, really took me by surprise with that water clone of hers, I didn't even know when she made one take her place,"
"A question for another time, for now you need to get some rest after a fight like that,"
"True, plus I'll need to check on Milla and the others anyways," Naruto got off the arena and began making his way to the waiting room for a bit of rest before waiting the next match.
This is Hussbek online with the latest chapter, it's the second day of the tournament and everyone awaits in anticipation for exciting matches. Naruto had a conversation with Tetsuo concerning the transformation from his previous match and learnt a lot about before resolving to train in it afterwards. The first of the day was between Carol and Killua, the wildcat proved to hold her own against the silent lynx but was unable to defeat him as he had proven himself to still be the stronger of the two and moved on to the semifinals.
Naruto was invited to meet with Breezie and the others in the VIP room to make their acquaintance before having to leave to have his match which was against Lilac. The duo had an intense battle in an exchange of technique, speed and power. There were a few close calls but in the end, Naruto was the next to emerge as the victor and moving on to the next stage of the tourney. The question now is which of the remaining fighters will also be moving on to the semifinals as well, stay tuned to find out.
Be sure to read and review as always.
This is Hussbek from Ghana.
Signing out.