Round One: Kihaku VS Musashi

[A Dragonian]

Legends of Dragonia: Tournament 2006--
Esperanza Edition:
Round One: Viva la Dragonia!

Match: Kihaku VS Musashi
Final Score: 2 - 3
Location: Bedoe
Judge: Kilix/Dalian

Reminder - Be sure to be well informed of the Rules and Format of each match. Be sure to include your surrounding area; remember, YOU ARE NOT FIGHTING ON THE TOURNAMENT GROUNDS! The first person to post can set any additional conditions, such as the weather or the exact location of where the two are fighting, to further the enviornment. Also, be creative with what you do, and be sure to have fun!

[kihaku]

It was night when a black shadow slithered across the rocky valley floor. Rocks were kicked out of the way as boots crunched smaller gravel underfoot, scratchy weeds poking up out of the stone floor. The seven foot tall figure surfeyed his surroundings and grunted in neither approval, or disapproval.

There were boulders all around, much taller than his head, and a few even more than he could even reach without jumping. He gave a slight hop, landing on top of one of the shorter ones, and gave a smile to what he saw. The boulders had fallen from the rocky, jagged mountainsides all about, that it formed a natural labarynthian valley, complete with dead ends and forks in the five foot wide pathways that could narrow to less than two. Scraggly plants clawed their ways out of the cracks in the rocks only to die for lack of moisture. It was as if they were the long since dehydrated hands of corpses that had tried to break free of their stony graves, but failed and simply gave up.

The entire valley and surrounding area was bathed in moonlight, not a single cloud scudding acroos the starlit sky to obscure it's pale, sickly light. This was supposed to be the light of the sun, but it gave no warmth to the cold, dark figure standing alone, isolated in the harsh environment.

Desolate to be sure, but entirely to Kihaku's liking. The stark, bleak scene provided an area that he could use to toy with his opponent's mind, something he loved to do from time to time. His mind wondered to Chameleon and his training. It'd been a week since he'd started whipping him into shape, and though he never said it out loud, he was sure that Cham at least now had a fighting chance, short of any special powers other than Channeled Force. He heaved a sigh and sat down, leaning his back against the large boulder behind him. He lowered his energy signature to the barest of blips, just enough to be found.

His crimson eyes turned to the left, and he began to pick away at the lichen that had formed over the many decades that the rock has been sitting still. He thought about how sad it was that mother nature had taken so many millenia to put that exact boulder in that precise spot to make that lichen grow, and he was making it die in the blink of an eye, the bat of an eyelash. Life is sad that way, he lamented.

But then again, life wasn't cutting him any breaks either. If HE didn't pick it away, the battle soon to ensue would. Speaking of battles, he turned his mind to what the viewers back in Esperanza were thinking as this lone, dark figure sat isolated in amongst the gargantuan boulders of the labarynth valley in Bedoe. He came to the conclusion that he didn't really care. This was about him winning, not impressing the folks back home. If their lives were that boring, they deserved it.

[musashi]

The evening wind blew cool, tugging at the lapels of Musashi's gi. He surveyed the battleground, it was foreboding, rocky full of the struggle of survival. “This place is the perfect reflection of our purpose,” he thought to himself, “This place smacks of death,”

His eyes were never still, although he did not seemed hurried, drinking in the difficult terrain. He made it his, like an artist with a canvas and paints, evaluating every feature for advantage in combat. This would be a battle fought by sense and feel, for he knew that the lack of moisture and the rocky terrain would mean that dust was an inevitability. He noted that the moon, while not warming light, was bright and provided sufficient visibility.

“Enough waiting,” he thought, “You can't put it off forever,” This would be his first combat since he had fallen, and he wondered how it would feel. The question still lingered like a ghost in the wind, “How did I end up here?”

He picked up his opponent first in his mind, far beyond the range of his eyes, and he closed in at a fair pace. He was not racing into battle, nor did he march with the slow steps of fear. No, Musashi had fought so long, so many times that he simply lived in battle, as if it were merely a part of him, to enter conflict like this.

He studied his opponent, tall powerful. The man gave a read of vitality and life. “Sadistic,” the Saiyan thought to himself, as he watched his current opponent peeling moss from a boulder. The action ground against the Bushido code he carried within himself. “I fight,” he thought, “Because I am forced to fight and I kill because I am forced to kill but I would not idly take any life merely to watch something die,”

Musashi entered range now, a short, effortless leap placing him on a boulder near his opponent. He specifically chose one close enough to threaten, but separated, so the two could meet as equals before battle, and his enemy would not think him to be sneaking up for a quick knockout. Even the hardened cases of his katanas made no rattle with the leap, the only sound being the rustle of cloth and the displacement of the night air.

[glow=gold,2,500]”Good evening,”[/glow] he spoke calmly, [glow=gold,2,500]”I am Musashi, Saiyan, student of the martial arts and adherent to bushido. I challenge you this night to battle.”[/glow]

He awaited his opponents response with no outward sign of anticipation. The saiyan stood rooted as the boulders that surrounded him in an easy casual stance. He was not in an attack position, but he was mobile in case his opponent would decide to attack first and save the discussion for later. He gave off no burst of outward power but a golden glow surrounded him like a shadow, a skintight aura that barely shined against the moonlit background. The battle was ready to begin.

(OOC- Best of luck)

[kihaku]

Kihaku eyed the newcomer with his blood-red sight, asessing his opponent with a practiced eye. He'd almost been afraid he wouldn't show, considering that time was short, and he'd just barely made it within the alotted time before disqualification. However, despite the show of rudeness, Kihaku stood up and brushed off his clothing, black gloves pushing dirt and gravel from his black pants. When he'd finished he finally looked up and nodded. "Kihaku, Spirit, Warrior Sorcerer of the arts of Black Chaos. I accept your challenge to battle and allow you the first offensive move."

Kihaku gave a small hop, but flew down the stone corridor an impossible distance, nearly a hundred feet. The black staff and sheath hung in their usual places. A slight breeze ran through the cracks in the laberynth, whistling from Musashi to Kihaku, carrying with it his scent and Ki signature. Finally in place, he took an aggresive step forward, presenting Musashi with his right side foremost. From beneath his hood, his face was set in a stoic mask of neutrality, his crimson eyes glowering like twin points of fire.

Kihaku relaxed his body, all muscles loose and ready for battle. He knew that rolling with a blow was better than standing still and taking it, so if doing so was necessary, he could take his hits. Black forces pumped through his veins, the passageways of power that normally pulsed with ki were flooded with the powers of chaos, glorious, dark, powerful chaos. As his power mounted, he continued to suppress it, hiding it from the warrior's senses. As far as Musashi knew, he was just another warrior with a dark facade who would rely on his weapons.

Not that he wouldn't.

"Don't hold back, Musashi, noble bushido warrior. I myself will do you no such disrespect."

[musashi]

Musashi's opponent introduced himself in turn. The saiyan bowed deeply in response, for he had nothing but respect for his competition. Kihaku jumped and flew, retrieving his weapons. The saiyan could feel the energy within him, the power. It wasn't ki, but the man radiated life and vitality, metering his power of will. “Fast,” Musashi thought, “I'll have to counteract that advantage,”


Kihaku spoke again, chiding Musashi not to hold back in their battle and he almost laughed. [glow=gold,2,500]”Rest assured, I will hold nothing back. Formality is reserved for those times before and after battle.”[/glow] Musashi threw out, his voice echoing through the network of passages that was the rocky battleground.

His opponent had offered Musashi the first offensive move, and the saiyan intended to take full advantage of the offer. “Honorable, but dangerous when fighting an unknown opponent,” he thought. Musashi's golden glow packed tight around him, as he too sank down into a fighting stance. His muscles were loose and flexible, storing stress tension. He left his own blades in their sheaths, hung tight on his back. He could draw the blades with almost unparalleled speed, and he was not sure he wanted to give his opponent the initial range advantage of the staff. “I need to get close,” Musashi thought, “Close enough to jam that staff and reduce his ability to fight back.”

Knowing that his opponent had no knowledge of his abilities or style, Musashi decided to make all appearance of being weak and inexperienced. He yelled out a loud scream and thrust both hands forward, as blue ki swired down and formed into two orbs in front of them, the orbs grew to the size of a softballs and the Saiyan forced his face into an arrogant smirk. It was an unusual sentiment for him, but he needed to keep his opponent off guard.

He pulled his arms back in an exaggerated gesture and whipped the balls straight towards his opponent.. The orbs zinged through the night air, almost singing against the cold air and their brightness was almost blinding in the darkness of night. A few feet before the orbs would reach his opponents location, the orbs inexplicably turned straight down and slammed into two large boulders. They detonated like bombs, sending clouds of dust and dirt up into the already strong night wind. The immediate area was blanketed with dust, a cloud of black that blotted out the bright moonlight.

Musashi moved to press his advantage, keeping his energy tight around him so as not to reveal his position. He drew his blades in a flash and was moving diagonally to his own attacks the moment they exploded. Musashi attacked Kihaku's left side with a backhanded sword stab from his own right blade . Musashi kept his own left blade free to fend off a possible counter assault. He wasn't sure enough about his opponent's skill to commit to a total offensive maneuver. First, he would have to test his opopnent's skill and gage how to fight the reminder of the battle.

The pieces were on the board, and the opening move was made. The game was now in Kihaku's hands.

[kihaku]

An arrogant smile, a burst of light and a large cloud of dust. Kihaku's options were limited with this new opponent, and as he shut his eyes to regain his night vision, he couldn't help but give an ivory smirk. This Musashi was a sly one, trying to give the impression that he isn't what he says he is, even creating an amateur distraction to try and lower his guard. Kihaku gave a small sniff, getting nothing but rock dust. He opened his eyes and found two spots of blinking purple and white dancing in his vision.

Kihaku shook his head and closed his eyes, reaching into his belt to grab the Yang talisman, and was suddenly jumping to the right and slamming his shoulder up against the boulder wall. He had to act quickly or lose the close quarters advantage. He gave the black glass a squeeze and five black tentacles shot out of his outstreached right hand. His fingers splayed, they shook violently as some of his own energies were fed into the curving, undulating bodies, fearsome snake heads with gaping jaws with rows of sharp fangs.

They curled about in front of him momentarily before shooting forward and snapping at his limbs, attempting to sink their teeth into his flesh, latching on and wrap around to give him the chance to cut off circulation. Succeed or not, he let them go to charge at this, dishonest, honorable warrior. He knew that he might have to pull out all the stops for this one, and his spine tingled in anticipation. Kihaku slipped his hands down onto the ground and gave a shudder as more of his chaos powers flowed into the rocky surroundings. Black shadows shot from him in all directions into the clearing dust. When he finally had an unobstructed view of Musashi, he opened up his powerlevel to the public, soaring much higher than any normal dragonian warrior, even one who could use Ki to fight. His aura sprang up around him, deep purple drifting off of him like a malignant steam, twisting around in the air like wraiths before tearing apart and dying out.

His voice slipped into the now disturbed night, slithering across the corridor to curl around Musashi's poised body like a shade of fear. "Art of the Doppleganger, Shadow Forms." The shadows that'd shot away from him like the plague, now returned as six warriors of similar build to Kihaku, carrying no weapons, but crouching in a menacing predatory stance. Kihaku smiled and dashed forward, throwing a jab to Musashi's jaw.

The other six were instantly upon him. One was on the edge above the enbattled Musashi and Kihaku, dropping down from above to throw a twin-heeled drive at Musashi's shoulder. One shot in from below Kihaku attempting to trip him up, sliding on it's hip and giving a scissor kick at the warrior's shins. Two came in from Musashi's right, one attacking high chest, the other lower back, both with spinning heel kicks. One dove in from the left with a mean jab at his kidney, while the last one hung behind to mop up if the warrior got away, his arms morphing into cruelly sharp blades. He jumped forward, slicing at whatever flesh he could get that wasn't swathed in black.

[musashi]

Musahsi's physical attack may have been met with limited success, but he was pleased with the mind game. His opponent had reacted beautifully to the setup, clearly countering Musashi's subtle layer of attacks. Musashi was getting a feel for this man's skill and style, and once he had the number down, he'd be able to attack the man at his weak points. After all, just because he was a saiyan didn't mean that Musashi had to fight like one.

Kihaku counterattacked with a handful of what appeared to be snapping vipers of darkness. Musashi hadn't completely committed to his previous blade attack, and so he easily bounced back out of range of the initial spurt of the coils of dark energy. Soon after Musashi's opponent fired the things at him. Reflexively Musashi extended his left blade and with the gesture he created a bubble of telekinetic energy around himself,. Like water around a rock, the dark things broke around his position.

Unfortunately, the respite was short lived. Kihaku cleared the dust cloud and then his aura exploded in power lighting up the night in a devious purple. “Impressive,” thought Musashi, “But wasteful. I'll keep holding back, because there's no way I'm going to overpower this guy for a quick knockout.”

Musashi's opponent's shadow clones returned and formed up into a formation, like a snarling gang. The crafty saiyan knew his opponent was most likely counting on the psychological effect of being outnumbered. Unfortunately for his opponent, Musashi knew all too well how to fight many at once, turning attacker against attacker. Kihaku himself dashed forward with a dash and a jab to the jaw. “You fool!” Musashi thought. His blade was still extended from his previous attack, and so to counter the initial assault. With an almost imperceptible twist of his wrist, Musashi twitched his left blade upward. If Kihaku didn't abort his punch, he'd lose his hand at the wrist on the edge of the razor blade, which glistened blue with ki hardening.

Of course, Kihaku's initial forced Musashi to stand, and allowed the shadow clones a chance to launch a multi dimensional attack. Fortunately, Musashi was not so foolish as to concentrate all his attention on just one opponent. He'd been keeping tabs on all his surroundings, and he wasn't startled by the the sudden fierceness of the assault.

Even so, he wasn't quite fast enough to avoid the first twin legged kick. It hit him in the shoulder, driving his body back, but Musashi didn't have to absorb all the energy. When he saw the blow coming he threw his legs out and fell with the motion, limiting the damage from the kick. Then, instead of resisting his opponent, he used his arms to attempt a hip through, aiming to send the airborne enemy spinning into the two opponents approaching from Musashi's right.

Meanwhile by taking to the air, Musashi had avoided the low sliding scissor kick of the second shadow clone. The thing's momentum would have carried it directly beneath his position, and so as Musahsi dropped he threw down an elbow strike with crushing force, aimed at the thing's chest. Regardless of the strikes success, Musashi rolled forward to meet the final energy clone's blade attacks. Musahsi was much lower to the ground than the thing would have been anticipating so he aimed for a gut level stab with his right blade, knowing the ki enhanced weapon would cleave right through the thing if it impacted.

All told, he thought he'd come away fairly well in the exchange. With any luck he'd reduced the odds to 3 on one. Musashi, however, was not one to continue playing the defensive, for that was a good way to loose a battle. As he completed his stab he extended his unused lef hand at the true Kihaku and projected his will. A powerfully concentrated beam, the diameter his hand shot out, bright blue lancing at his opponent. He knew that the cover and distraction provided by the shadow clones would make it difficult for his opponent to see the beam until it was too late, so he aimed it at the center of his enemy's chest. Musashi knew from hard experience that the only way to take out someone who employed clones of split forms was to concentrate on the originator, so he'd focus his efforts there.

Musashi himself followed the beam as it surged forward. He knew the brightness of the attack would mask any follow up physical assault, so he aimed for a powerful roundhouse kick at his opponent's hip. If his blow landed, the injury would limit Kihaku's ability to move quickly. That was Musashi's primary goal, to trap his opponent in a situation where he could be overwhelmed and defeated.

[kihaku]

Kihaku saw the blade coming for his arm and immediately aborted the punch, swaying to the side and instead hit the stone with his back. With a shot of dark energies, he jumped up and impaled the rock with tines of blackness, effectively allowing him to sit on his heels, six feet up. His frown increased as each clone failed minus the first one. Now, it was time to begin his own assault.

The clone sliding against the ground gave no sound as it's chest compressed like a gel, stopping in mid-slide and rolling over to jump high into the air, arms transforming into blades of dark intent. The first clone from above was hit, landing between the two clones. The three attackers held steady one another before turning and giving a quick hop in Musashi's direction, quickly surrounding him again. The clone that'd been stabbed shuddered momentarily before spinning around, running up and standing next to the first three. The final two clones skidded to a halt, taking up positions around the honorable warrior.

Kihaku lowered his aura to nothing, the quick burst necessary for summoning the clones, not maintaining and controlling them. They formed a thick line of offensive power, but when the blast surged forward, the clones leaned back, bending at the knees in such an extreme angle their heads touched the rocky floor. Musashi shot past them, and they stood again, twisting around and dashing after him, twelve blades forming a line of deadly knives.

Kihaku watched the blast smash into the boulder below him, shattering the front of the huge granite slab into thousands of shards. The sound of exploding rock echoed across the valley, ringing loudly against each mountaintop. He steadied himself against the boulder, pushing sharply and digging his spikes in deeper. Finding opportunity, Kihaku gave a muttered command, his deep baritone speaking the ancient language of Dragonia in a tongue that only two people knew recently, and one of them was dead.

[glow=black,2,300]"Tnyv, dnanbbu is udny catemp is dcordh. Tuump cyh mmybc!"[/glow] The air grew thick in the two feet in front of the broken stone, freezing the peices of falling rock in place. Musashi was in a pincer, but something was wrong. Even with the size of the wave of stone, there would still be enough room atop for him to slip out with only a few cuts on his calves. Kihaku knew he had to do something, and made a split-second decision that might just allow him to win this match. He gave a sharp throw, the Yang talisman soaring quickly above the floating bits of rock. "Hail of Dark Arrows." The talisman quite suddenly stopped in midair and spun crazily.

Like turning the water on in a shower, a rain of slivers of black energies, Chaos energies, cascaded down upon Musashi's head for a breif three seconds. Kihaku pulled it back, and commenced phase two. The stone fragments instantly turned their sharpest edges towards Musashi, and with a gust of wind, flew towards him in a ten foot wide by ten foot tall wave of razor-like stone, no audible sound coming from the whizzing slips of rock. The clones rushed onward, the furthermost stones slicing into and through them, and they did not stop. Kihaku knew the bright attack wouldn't just kill his own vision, but Musashi's as well, unless he closed his eyes, in which case he wouldn't see the attack anyway. He'd aimed a kick for Kihaku's side, not realizing that he was already three feet higher than he'd been aiming for.

Kihaku didn't plan, he just made a web of attacks that he knew wouldn't be easy to get out of.

[musashi]

(OOC – for the record, my round house kick was not addressed)

“Tricky,” Musashi thought, as the clones contorted away from his blast, and Kihaku dodged both the beam and the kick. The clones closed in again with blades drawn. Musashi's feet crunched in the rocky dirt, and he whipped the blades back into their sheaths as his opponent completed his “trap”. Rock bits covered his other side, and his opponent then proceeded to throw another device into the air resulting in a hail of energy attacks.. Even though he couldn't see the stones flying, Musashi was by no means a fool, or inexperienced. That move could have only lead to one result.

Musashi was surrounded, and by all accounts, it would seem that he was trapped. His face, however, was a mask of concentration. “Timing is critical,” he thought, and he waited for the clones and rocks reach critical rang while he prepared his attack. From his core he sent out two interlocking umbrellas of telekinetic energy, forming a shell skintight around himself, and an outer shell big enough to incorporate all his opponent's attacks.

Musashi stood with feet braced in a wide stance, hands at his sides as the seemingly impossible number of attacks closed in and trapped him in a web of death. Then, the instant before he would be overwhelmed by the rain of dark and silver arrows, he exerted himself for the first time in the match. His aura danced white around him and he thrust his hands forward, so that only his palms passed through his telekinetic barrier. He gave a yell, [glow=gold,2,500]”HAAAAAAAAAA”[/glow]

At the word, the entire outer dome was suddenly basked in blue light, which saturated the entire area of Kihaku's attacks with light too bright to see. In one maneuver, the saiyan had been able to put three of his opponent's attacks into a range where they could be countered with one output of energy. After firing the attack, the saiyan blasted forward, with his inner dome. Pummeled rock fragments skipped off his shield and body as the rest of his attack roared within the dome

His appearance would undoubtedly be a surprise to his opponent, as he emerged from an opaque bubble of light. Musashi knew that he would be out of range of any clones or arrows for the moment, though he doubted any would have been able to escape the trap of the bubble combined with his attack. Behind him the dome began to collapse, leaking off the blue radiation of ki like a temporary sun.

For the moment, it was just Musashi and Kihaku. He knew he needed to maximize his advantage, since his opponent had just output the energy for three major attacks, while Musashi had only used one. He maximized the blinding effect of the light, attacking his opponent with a flying side kick that given the circumstances would be nearly impossible to block.

Regardless of his success, Musashi flew up at a perpendicular angle to his kick attack, now above his opponent. He formed another telekinetic tube aimed as his opponent and rapidly he fired four ultra dense ki balls which zinged through the air to the top of his opponent, each blast on a divergent angle so they couldn't be caught in one blast without a huge output of energy.

As soon as his rapid fire was complete, Musashi began to move down with his guard up, aiming at where his opponent had his back. As soon as his attacks detonated, Musashi moved in for another quick physical attack, aiming for a powerful straight punch at his opponent's kidney. The saiyn was fighting for keeps, aiming for disabling pain. To Musashi, honor came for fighting the right people, for the right reasons, but combat was still pure, raw, mean.

[kihaku]

(OOC: For the record, your attack was not addressed because the series of events that took place stand thus: Your beam attack, the dash, my rock barrage, your kick. Had you been in mid kick, there would have been less time for you to deal with the attacks. Effectively, your attack was negated. I've delt with the same thing against others, and have found it to be acceptable. I will edit the post in a manner to address the attack nontheless.)

Kihaku needed his night vision back, and so covered his face with his hood and shut his eyes, sensing positions and attacks with a practiced ease. He had been certain that his attack would succeed, but when the outburst of Ki threw off all of the attacks, he knew that things weren't going too well. When the blast radiated the such massive amounts of light, Kihaku was forced to put a hand over the black cloth, further keeping his eyes protected. The Ki blast obliterated his clones in a single swoop, but since Kihaku hadn't been maintaining them at the time, he knew he had only himself to blame. This opponent had been underestimated, and he knew it.

Kihaku didn't move when he felt his opponent crashing through the spears of sharp rock, undaunted by when he finally shot forth from the deadly storm. The clone's energy desintigrated into smoke, slowly drifting up before shooting back at Kihaku, passing by Musashi in the blink of an eye. He needed all of his energy for this, especially since he now had to do it with closed eyes to prevent retinal scarring. He stood up and backflipped to the crown of the boulder, surveying the immediate area with his set of senses, smell, hearing, and most especially keeping tabs on Musashi's huge, sun-like ball of life energies. When the warrior shot at him, out of the blinding sphere of Ki, Kihaku immediately activated his second favorite technique, body tingling as he felt the chaos energies recharging his reserves.

The side-swipe of a foot was too fast for him to avoid, so he didn't; the kick touched his arm, and slid right through his torso. The path the warrior's foot crashed through his body, the entire form disapated like smoke being parted by a wave of a hand. A person's attack was all about follow-through, and Musashi certainly had that talent. He continued unfazed by the uselessness of the attack, and proceeded to jump up and above Kihaku's head.

Perhaps since physical attacks didn't work, Ki certainly would, right? Wrong. Kihaku immediately deactivated Wraith Mode as soon as Musashi was out of physical range. He tugged on Nirvana, the blade making no sound as it was quickly drawn from it's scratched, scarred black sheath. As the Ki attacks neared, Kihaku entered a spin, swinging the blade around in a circle. When his back was to Musashi, and the warrior began to move downwards, he suddenly disappeared, reappearing instantly in a burst of black mist, materializing close behind the honorable warrior in midswing, and since now he was behind Musashi instead of in front of him, his swing was nearing the warrior's arm.

When they both landed with a soft thud, the Oblivion was already in his hand, the deadly long blade fully extended. Musashi was now facing him, and rushing in for a hard blow to Kihaku's know totally tangible side. He swung the sharp scythe downwards, slicing through the air in it's path of bloodlust. The swing was from mid-length down the long shaft, moving around to catch Musashi on his trapezius muscle as he moved in for his own physical attack. "Now who's the fool, bushido warrior?" Kihaku thought cynically.

[musashi]

(OOC- Thanks, it was the timing I was concerned with. I didn't feel there was enough time between the blast and the kick to move around several thousand pounds of rock. Also, I'm not going through with the last punch, since it was an intended move and would make no logical sense once you were behind me)

Musashi's attacks were again frustrated by failure, but he payed no mind. His opponent simply turned to vapor when his kick would have landed. “Neat trick,” the saiyan thought as he proceeded with the second part of his attack. Unfortunately this part was also to little effect. His opponent drew a blade and disappeared.

“Does he think me a fool?” Musashi thought. With his blade skill, his left hand already had unsheathed his left blade, and his opponent's back attack struck the blade, resulting in a shower of blue sparks. Musashi flatted the attack, and so the side of his own blade smacked his back, stinging but he was prevented from being cut. The attack his opponent had used was so almost cliché, “After all, where else was he going to go?” Musashi wondered, he'd seen that attack used so many times before it was almost an instinctual counter. “If he's down to teleportation and making himself impermeable then he's losing ground in this match, I'm getting through to him” he thought.

As the two landed, his opponent took a swing at Musashi with his scythe. The saiyan blocked again with his left blade, instead of stopping the other weapon, he pulled his right hand down and used his own blade to guide the other weapon past his body, essentially meaning that Kihaku would have to untwist himself to be able to bring any of his weapons to bear, since Musashi was also sliding towards the arm in which his opponent held the weapon.. That meant, for the moment, Musashi had unobstructed access to Kihaku's ribcage. Musashi threw a quick punch at this soft target, then moved back a step and drew his right blade.

He sized up his opponent, who would undoubtedly be brining his weapons around for another furious counter, so Musashi set his weapons, his left blade pointed up and towards his opponent, while his right he held high over his head, pointing straight at his enemy's face. It was a standard guard position that psychologically made attacking Musashi as threating as running into a wall of spikes.

Musashi took the offensive again now, he feigned a straight stab with his left hand, and instead he pulled that up at the last moment, leaving his left blade free to sweep away any counter attack his opponent might make. Instead, at the last moment, he sliced down with his right blade, a cutting strike aimed at severing the hand his opponent used to carry the scythe (assuming right hand). Meanwhile, his left blade rode up into a defensive position in front of him, to defend against any quick counter attack.

If Musashi's strike landed, he would sweep his blade back up and around, aiming for a horizontal and finishing slash to the neck to capitalize on the shock of losing a limb. Of course, he would not behead his opponent in this situation, but it would force the man to yield. If his slice missed, he would instead reverse his grip on his right blade and prepare to defend against the counter attack that was sure to follow a missed blow.

[kihaku]

Kihaku gave a small grunt as he felt his arm jar after being stopped so suddenly. He didn't resist being pushed aside, and he realized how big a mistake he'd made. Kihaku slid his hand further down the handle of the Oblivion, blade tip whistling past his hand. Kihaku gave a quick intake of breath in resignation, for Musashi had a perfect shot at his chest, and the warrior took it. Kihaku felt immense pressure on his chest as it was compressed from the force of the hit, and he had no choice BUT to roll with it. Kihaku flipped backwards, and while his hands were perpendicular to the rock, he let loose his weapons, the Oblivion and Nirvana flying off into the night air, landing in areas only Kihaku could find them. He landed on his hands and skidded to a stop in a crouch, his crimson eyes burning with hate for the opponent he'd so easily underestimated.

Musashi renewed his attack, and Kihaku felt as if he were being backed into a corner. For everything Musashi had, Kihaku had an improvised and strong counter, which was countered again by Musashi before he attacked with a whole new set of problems for the spirit to solve. Now, without his weapons, Kihaku felt oddly naked. He'd always had those blades at his side, but now they would've only gotten in the way. As one normally does when lacking weight, he felt free, more able to move with the speed and reflexes necessary for this opponent. He smiled a grim smirk, for though it was tough, he was most certainly having fun with it. If THIS was something that Dragonia had to offer, and he'd lasted this long, he was sure that he stacked up alright.

Confidence boosted, morale a few notches higher, he didn't rise from his crouch when Musashi moved in for a neck attack. Kihaku, for the first time the entire battle, formed a plan. It was a desperate one, but it just might work. He took advantage of his feelings of being on the brink, and gave a small scoot backwards, tumbling twelve feet into another rocky corridor. Landing on his feet, he teleported a few hundred meters away, in another corrdor entirely. He needed time for this plan, and hiding his power wasn't an option with this.

His aura began to seep from his body, a purple mist that curled and twisted in horrid shapes of anarchistic power, raw, unfettered. He bent forwards and a ball of dark energies began to grow rapidly just above his clothing. It expanded rapidly, until it was nearly twelve feet in radius. Kihaku reached into it with his mind and gave it a single command. "Obey me." The pool of blackness quickly formed into the shape of a huge creature. The torso was thicker than three treetrunks, arms wider than a human body, and legs that seemed almost stubby in comparison. From its hunched back, small wings, no longer than a dragonian arm, sprouted from it's dark skin. It's head formed as an oddly shaped lump on it's shoulders, the final touch coming when two perfectly round yellow eyes appeared on it's featureless face. A loud groan rumbled deep in it's chest, the first sounds it made as a semi-sentient life form.

Kihaku jumped up onto it's shoulder and whispered into it's ear. "Move the boulders about to make things difficult. I want a platform where the two of us will be on an even surface." The Dark Golem nodded and darted into the air with surprising speed for it's gargantuan size. It flew forward off to the side, slightly away from Musashi and landed, pushing the boulders into place.

Kihaku used his Shadow Transmission again to keep out of his enemy's grasp and sight, waiting for the Golem to finish. He darted up to check where he was and to get his bearings. He was now directly behind Musashi, and Kihaku simply waited for Musashi to find him. The Golem would continue it's job with a single minded determination, ignoring attacks entirely. Kihaku knew he would do his job well, and waited for Musashi to come at him once more.

[musashi]

Musashi landed a powerful punch, driving the air from his opponent's lungs and mamking him skip backwards form the impact. “Finally,” he thought, “now to press the advantage.” His efforts were in vain, however, his slippery opponent darted away again. “Teleportation,” the saiyan grimaced to himself, “Bad form,”

Musashi never really lost track of his opponent. The man still shined brightly in his life sense, but he did not move to attack. He could feel his opponent drawing power again, undoubtedly for another bit of trickery. Musashi knew there was a time for subtly, but in this terrain, his opponent was playing tag, only moving forward to attack, then hiding again in the rocks to avoid reprisal. Musashi needed an edge, something to make the terrain insignificant.

Musashi could have pursued his opponent, but instead he jumped upon a large boulder, large enough for what to come. The saiyan knew more than most that subtly was important in battle, and he'd been subtle thus far. Time, however, was no longer on his side. His opponent was running, and Musashi couldn't keep playing this game any longer. He sheathed his swords and gave them a gentle toss. They'd only get in the way of this, and he had no intention of damaging them in what was to come.

Musashi had been conserving this entire battle, holding back and mostly working to discover his opponent's weaknesses, and counter his opponent's assaults. Now he stood with legs spread in a firm s stance of a martial artist. His opponent had given him valuable time, and Musashi was going to use it. Rock began buckling beneath his feet. For a moment, even his golden glow died away, as if he had reverted purely back to his base form. The air around him was still for the moment, as if drawing a long breath.

Sparks jumped as a bolt of lighting arced from the ground and swirled around Musashi's body. Silence. Then another, and another, and another. Then, for fifty feet around him the rock depressed as if smashed by some giant foot, it crushed down and sent a plume of dust into the air. His aura, so conspicuously absent erupted around him in a torrent of golden flare and flashing lighting. It danced around him as he ascended. Musashi could feel that with his current charge, SSJ3 was in his reach, but he knew he hadn't charged enough to maintain it. “No, “ he thought, “Better to have a couple chances at this,”

Musashi stood taller, power dancing around him, as his strength increased geometrically. His saiyan genes tore themselves apart and rebuilt themselves faster and faster, jump starting his power to new heights. “This ends now,” he thought. The end of the fight would was nearing, and Musashi wasn't going to take it lying down. He'd come here to fight for some answers, and he didn't intend on leaving empty handed.

He could feel his opponent nearby, but this time Musashi didn't press the attack. Instead he floated upwards on the breeze, movements graceful and delicate in stark contrast to the jagged waves of power his system was putting out. He spoke loudly, [glow=gold,2,500]”I've played enough hide and go seek. Come up and meet me in open battle. No more games.”[/glow]

With that he waited, roughly 200 feet above the ground. Kihaku would reveal himself, or Musashi would simply blast him out. After all, he could feel the man's general location and big ki beams would send enough shrapnel flying that hiding down among the rocks would be paramount to suicide.

[kihaku]

Kihaku looked over to Musashi and gave a small inward groan. He REALLY didn't need to fight Musashi at a higher level of power, but now, he had no choice. Kihaku looked over to the Golem and gave a start of surprise. The Golem had the Oblivion and Nirvana in his hands and was scratching the surface of the platform! His eyes were curved upwards as if in a smile, and he seemed to be enjoying himself. Kihaku was furious! He'd wanted those safe and the Golem to just do as he was told, but no, he had to disobey orders and start playing around like a child! "DAMMIT ALL TO HELL!!"

Kihaku teleported over to the completed platform and stopped the gigantic fist with a single wave, at the same time dismissing the Golem back into raw power, absorbed almost instantly, and leaving his weapons in the chasm that'd been created around the huge, circular set of boulders. He growled at the deep gouges that had been ripped into the rock. He shook his head as he tipped one with his boot, leaving it alone and paying it no more mind. He looked about and peeked at his weapons to make sure they were alright. He nodded and looked back to Musashi. He took a deep breath and stood straight up, fists at his sides, loosely clenched.

"Honorable warrior Musashi... This battle has gone on long enough! I have created this platform of rock for our final confrontation. You are certainly a worthy opponent, and I beg the honor of facing you down one final time, man to spirit. We will end this, and we will end it now." Kihaku keps his stance ramrod straight, fists at his sides and the moonlight casting his clothing in a pale light, though his hood masked his face in darkness. The only part of his face that was visible were his twin, burning points of fire that were his eyes.

Kihaku sincerely wanted this over, the end of the match an inevitable ticking in his mind. He respected Musashi as a warrior, and was tired of hiding in the shadows like a cowardly wraith. He set his will in stone, and stood firm on his platform. "I asked you to not hold back, and thus far you have both violated and maintained this request. Will you do me the honor of respecting my final request of you? Meet me here now, and face me as two warriors, who respect the power of the other. I give you my word to give you a salutory bow before we orchestrate the end of this match."

[musashi]

Musashi heard Kihaku's request and he gave a curt nod. His aura died away a bit and he sank like a feather, floating down from the air with a casual pace. It went against his every instinct to fight on a ground his opponent had decided, but his sense of honor held him to it. “After all, this is a tournament,” he thought, “This man just wants to beat me, not to kill me.”

So landed adroitly on the stone surface, directly opposing his opponent. His own eyes blazed a bright blue, but his aura was subdued. He responded, [glow=gold,2,500]”So be it,”[/glow] he said calmly. Inside he could feel his own power, and his opponents, and he gaged that the confrontation would be a close one. The breeze blew again, cooling his skin, which was soaked in sweat and dirty from the rocks and attacks he fought off so far.

Musashi let his energy fly again, his aura sprang back to its full intensity, creating a mini-whirlwind of it's own. The night was lit in golden brilliance, and flashes of blue lightning danced along his limbs, around his torso and spun round him. He sank down into a combat stance, hands up and eyes focused on his opponent.

[glow=gold,2,500]”You gave me the first attack of this match, and now I give you the first attack of the final showdown,”[/glow] he said.

Of course, deep within, Musashi wasn't wasting the time he offered his opponent. He was charging up energy for a finishing blow of his own.