Chapter 89

The next two matches were informative, not just for me, but for anyone paying attention. Kusanagi Kyo clearly had some form of Divine Empowerment, as the flames his Chi sparked forth registered as slightly holy in nature with a faint tinge of the Sun. I was guessing if you traced his ancestry back far enough you would find that his family descended from Amaterasu. He managed to defeat the Giant Bruiser he was up against, a Mercenary Colonel by the name of Ralf Jones whose punches had so much power that they caused fist-sized explosions on contact.

Ralf was a lot easier to read than Kyo was, at least in terms of fighting style. While it was clear that he had some level of training in wrestling and boxing, Ralf was more or less a straight brawler with a few wrestling moves thrown in. His primary abilities tended to be enhancements of his already impressive physical characteristics, along with a few variations of those. I was willing to bet that Ralf could go one-on-one with a Tank Crew and manage to come out on top, though he might have a problem with an armored platoon. When you were that kind of physical powerhouse, technique could be secondary. At least most of the time.

This was one of the occasions when that wasn't the case. Kyo was highly trained in some form of Kenpo that I didn't recognize, but which matched Black Dragon Records as belonging to a Clan of Mystic Warriors known as the Kusanagi Clan. The Black Dragon didn't have a whole lot of information on the Kusanagi Clan, as they tended not to frequent the same, seedy, parts of society. When they did cross paths, it was usually due to members of the Kusanagi Clan taking part in Tournaments like this one.

Whatever the case, Kyo used the Kenpo to great effect, slipping aside from Ralf's Explosive Punches and landing hits of his own. Individually, his blows were less powerful, but they added up over time. As Kyo tired Ralf out, exhausting him with counterpunches and dodges, I managed to figure out how Ralf was causing those explosions with his punches. It was a technique that my Downloaded Black Dragon information claimed had been called the Futae no Kiwami, or Mastery of Two Layers, a special Martial Arts technique that effectively caused two blows to fall at the same time in the same spot, splitting the air in a miniature sonic boom that appeared as an explosion.

Interestingly, my downloaded information told me that the Futae no Kiwami had been effectively lost. Apparently, the Yukuyuzan Monastery in Hokkaido that had been founded near Hakodate in Eighteen-Ninety-Eight by the Kenpo Master and Buddhist Monk Yukuyuzan Anji had held the training scrolls and procedures for it. That temple had been destroyed by the Kempeitai under the orders of General Fujita Gō of the IJA under suspicion of the Monks there hiding subversive elements. The Temple had been bombed by the IJAAF before being attacked. The Monks had all been killed or scattered and the training scroll had been taken by the Kempeitei back to Tokyo, where it had promptly been thought destroyed during the Fire-Bombing in the War.

The last survivor of the attack had died in nineteen sixty-one, after having never passed down the secrets even after the war, which meant that Ralf Jones had to have figured the technique out independently. I could sense what he was doing with his Chi and my powers of Analysis fed me information on how to attempt a version of the Futae no Kiwami myself. That would be for later, however as the fight looked like it was heating up. Ralf tried to strike back with a flurry of blows at Mach speed, tossing out a dozen explosive punches in a few seconds, only for Kyo to dance away, parry at the wrist, or otherwise slip the blows. As Kyo hit back with a spinning, leaping, lariat that trailed fire, smashing Ralf away and catching the open flak vest he was wearing aflame.

Ralf hit the tiles with a thud, smashing the heavy stone as he did so and rolling around to put the flames out. By the time he managed, his vest was completely destroyed, much to Ralf's seeming annoyance, the bullet-proof cloth not rated to withstand the heat of Kyo's holy, mystical, flames.

"Damn it, do you know how hard it is to find OCP Products these days? Ever since the Government broke them up after the Nuke Fiasco?" Grumbled Ralf.

"You shouldn't need that anyway! A real Martial Artist fights with courage!" Challenged Kyo.

"I needed that for my job, damnit!" Growled Ralf.

Ralf charged forward at blinding speed, plowing forth with his feet smashing cracks into the heavy tile of the arena floor as he did so. He tried to grapple Kyo, hoisting him up to try and toss him into the air so he could spike him back down into the tiles head first. Kyo, however, managed to turn what could have been an incredibly damaging move to take into an opportunity by spinning around mid-air and bringing his leg around in an overhead kick that smashed into Ralf's shoulder, slamming the big man back down.

Things went back to a game of cat-and-mouse from there, Ralf managing to get a couple of hits in, but only probing strikes, whereas Kyo dodged all the devastating blows enhanced with the explosive power of the Futae no Kiwami, punishing openings brutally. After one, flaming, right hook from Kyo smashed Ralf to the tile again, Ralf let out a roar of frustration. Kyo came in at him with a series of flaming kicks, but Ralf dodged and parried. Kyo tagged him with a jab as Ralf tried to punch back, staggering Ralf back with a grunt of pain and a shout of frustration.

It seemed that Ralf had gotten fed up with the cat-and-mouse game and was betting everything on one last giant explosive knockout blow. He leaned away from a roundhouse kick Kyo sent at him, leg trailing sacred flame as it just barely missed him, and pulsed his Chi. Then he rocketed forth in a massive haymaker with enough Chi inside it to Punch through tank armor, the crew inside, and out the other side of the tank. Kyo, seeing he didn't want to get hit by this, backed away as Ralf's fist came streaking for him in a massive overhand blow. As he did so, he gathered Chi in the palm of his hand, roiling flames of holy power compressing down into a baseball-sized ball.

As Ralf's massive punch smashed into the tiles where Kyo had been standing, it exploded the stone of the tiles, creating a crater that you could drive a truck through if you flipped it on its side. Kyo, meanwhile, fired off an explosive wave of holy flame that caught Ralf in the side, burning him badly enough to end the match and causing him to be stretchered away to the infirmary.

As I watched on, I analyzed the fight. Ralf's blows were powerful and speedy, but they were telegraphed something awful. It was a sign of his relative lack of formal training compared to his opponent and a weakness that was exploited fairly successfully by Kyo. Kyo may have been full of bravado, talking about fighting with courage, but that didn't mean he hadn't fought smartly. I'd have to practice the Futae no Kiwami in the future, though, since the kind of power I'd seen Ralf dish out just now was nothing to sneeze at.

In the meantime, Nikaido Benimaru took on the man in the Tactical T-shirt, Fatigue Pants, and BDU Cap, Clark Still of Team Ikari Warriors. Unlike Ralf, with his sharp bursts of Chi to enhance attacks with explosive potential using the Futae no Kiwami, I sensed Clark's Chi was entirely internal strengthening his body to an almost ridiculous degree. As the two fighters took stances, my powers of analysis came into play and I found out that Clark was clearly a technically proficient wrestler while Benimaru was a kickboxer.

The fight began with Clark rushing in to grapple Benimaru who let him do so with a smirk before I sensed his Chi surge, pouring out in bolts of blue electricity that would have shocked Clark badly had he not let go and skipped backward. Maybe not enough in one go to knock Clark unconscious, even though any five other men would have been shocked into unconsciousness by the amount of voltage pouring out of Benimaru. I doubted he could take many more full-on shocks like that, though. Maybe three in total before he was done. That was a bad draw for Clark, if his Chi techniques were entirely internal, and his fighting style relied on wrestling.

"Too bad, looks like you've drawn the short straw here." Chuckled Benimaru.

"I'll admit, you're a bad match-up for me. That doesn't mean I shouldn't give this fight my best, though." Admitted Clark.

"Oh? Why not save yourself a trip to the infirmary and forfeit? It'll be less painful for you. I'm not gonna take it easy on you if we keep going, you know." Warned Benimaru.

"Can't do that. It's more than just my health on the line here. We're here 'cause our teammate needs it more than we do." Grunted Clark.

"Oh yeah? I can respect that kinda determination, I guess. Fair warning, I'm gonna come at you fast with everything from the jump." Grinned Benimaru.

"Do what you've got to do." Acknowledged Clark.

The Fight didn't last much longer after that. He hit a knee strike that Clark took with a grunt, grabbing onto Benimaru's leg with both hands and hoisting him up as if he weighed nothing smashing Benimaru into the tiles in a German Suplex that completely broke the arena tile, however, Benimaru wasn't out yet, instead grabbing onto Clark before he could back away from the site of the suplex and sending fifty-thousand volts of Chi-based electricity into Clark. Clark seized up, allowing Benimaru to literally backflip up off the ground in a backflip kick that was not only powered by Chi but also sent a thunderbolt coursing through Clark as it connected. Sending Clark flying away to land on the ground.

The referee counted to ten before Clark could get back to his feet, making this a knockout win for Benimaru. The fight was short, but brutal, with Benimaru having taken a cut across the back of his head from Clark's Suplex that was still bleeding. Meanwhile, Clark was having trouble walking. Both combatants were taken to the infirmary, but only Benimaru would be coming back.

Now, it was Daimon Goro versus the Spiky, Blue-Haired Woman with the taint of the Yamata-No-Orochi wafting off her clear as day for my mystic senses to register. Leona Heidarn, a potential fourth vector for the return of the Yamata-No-Orochi. As I watched on, a small part of me couldn't help but think that maybe, if Leona was beaten badly enough to require an infirmary stay here, then it might be better for everyone. The Yamata-No-Orochi would refuse to take a broken vessel if it was about to return, after all.

That part of me was the pragmatic part of me. The one that was focused on survival to the exclusion of all else, whose tactics could be ruthless, and which was clearly a part of my Goa'uld Heritage shining through. Those guys were all about doing whatever it took to survive, so much so that they would apparently cooperate with people like Kano and Shang Tsung if Ba'al was any indication. Of course, that part of me was then ruthlessly squashed by the rest of me, as I realized that it might not come to that just yet and that there was no need to go jumping to extremes at the moment.

As it happened, however, I was distracted from the fight as Kensou and Athena began an argument nearby. Kensou had, apparently, stolen one of the Momiji Manju Bean Cakes that Athena had bought, and that had prompted an argument as my teammates argued over bean cakes in a way that only teenagers could.

"Kensou! Those were from Miyajima! Do you have any idea how expensive something like that is in Tokyo!" Hissed Athena.

"What? Are you saying that a popular idol can't afford that?" Questioned Kensou.

"That isn't the point, Kensou!" Groused Athena.

"Then what is?" Queried Kensou.

"The point is that you're a dirty thief! I can't believe you!" Grumbled Athena.

"Well, I can let you have one of my Bao to make up for it if you want?" Offered Kensou.

"Damn it, you know I don't like those." Frowned Athena.

"Guys, I can't watch the match with you two arguing like that." I pointed out.

"He stole my Manju!" Accused Athena.

"She can buy more!" Protested Kensou.

"Enough! Kensou, apologize. Athena, I'll buy you more later." I snapped.

"Right, sorry Athena." Apologized Kensou.

"You should be." Sniffed Athena.

As I turned back to the fight, however, I realized that my teammates' argument had caused me to miss the entire first part of the fight. Leona was looking battered, and there was a fissure running through the entire right side of the ring, but Goro looked beat up as well, sporting a few shallow cuts alongside the more expected burns and bruises. Sighing, I gave the entire match up as a bad job and headed out to have a smoke, going back through the entry into the arena and into the locker room area. I pulled my battered packet of Red Apple Cigarettes out of my expanded coat pocket and snapped my fingers, a spark of mana igniting into a candle flame on my fingertip that I used to light up. It worked and I took a deep drag of my cigarette, breathing out a cloud of smoke as I grinned at what I'd just done.

"I always wanted to try that. The Cantrip Spell always seemed like such a waste of magic, though. Maybe seeing all these high-level Chi Adepts throwing around power like that has gotten to me. Who knows?" I mused to myself.

As I sat down on one of the benches and enjoyed my cigarette, I reflected on what I'd seen. I could probably handle Kyo. His Holy flames were powerful and he was skilled with Martial Arts, but I was pretty powerful and skilled myself. The bigger problem was going to be Benimaru. If the guy could send so much voltage into you on contact like I'd seen him do to Clark, then Martial Arts were going to be tricky. I could probably cheese it with magic, though. I knew the Protection from Electricity Spell, after all. If nothing else, I could hold him down with Megakinesis and fire Chi Blasts at him from range.

Doing so might tip my hand to the Guy With the Notebook in the Denim, though. I'd seen him taking notes throughout Team Japan's Match. If I could recreate the Futae no Kiwami with a bit of practice after using Analysis on Ralf and Kyo's Match, it was safe to say that Kid would likely be able to bust it out in the middle of his next match. Hell, he probably got one or two of Kyo's moves too while he was watching.

On the other hand, given how he'd probably already been doing his thing during my match with Kim Kaphwan, it was pretty much in for a penny in for a pound at this point. Besides, it wasn't like the Guy could recreate magic or psychic powers, right? Those needed you to have specific capabilities to use that not everyone could learn, after all. Stubbing my cigarette out, I headed for the built-in Dawson Convenience Store and shelled out Arena Prices for another Bepsi before heading back to the Arena Floor.

When I returned, the match was over. Leona had lost and Team Japan had advanced to the next round. The Ring was wrecked, however, and once more we took an intermission while the staff replaced the wrecked up tiles of the ring. I sipped my Bepsi as I watched on. When things returned back to Normal, Team Women Fighters would be facing Nightwolf's Team. Shockingly, it was announced that Team Women Fighters would be forfeiting. I made my way over toward Nightwolf's Team as they walked out of the ring to ask what the deal was there, only for Nightwolf to shake his head at me.

"We'll talk about it when we meet up later, but let's just say this was the best outcome for everyone. Chizuru will be attending our meeting too, by the way." Intoned Nightwolf.

"I see." I responded.

"Not yet you don't, but you will." Was Nightwolf's Reply.

Next up, Team New Faces would be facing off against Team Kyokugenryu. As I watched the Karateka make their way over to the ring, I couldn't help but be interested. Their three opponents were the most likely vector for the return of the Yamata-no-Orochi. True, they didn't look like much. One was a Woman with Crimson Hair who looked like she paid more attention to her looks than her training. Another was just a Kid who couldn't have been much older than fourteen. The last was the only one who looked serious to the untrained eye, looking like a barroom brawling punk with his leather jacket and dyed white hair. Looks could be deceiving, however, and all of them were practically saturated with the power of the Yamata-No-Orochi.

As the announcer called for the first two combatants to take their places, I watched as Sakizaki Ryo, the Tiger of Kyokugenryu stepped forward to face the Punk of the New Faces team, Nanakase Yashiro. As the announcer signaled for the match to begin, I engaged my mystic and Chi senses and activated my powers of Analysis. I would be paying very close attention to these bouts. After all, Team New Faces could very well be a Vector for the Return of the Yamata-No-Orochi and would need to be defeated before that could happen.

And doing so would require a thorough grounding in their techniques and capabilities. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here we see the next few bouts from Ulysses' Perspective, along with hints that Nightwolf is trying to forge a broader partnership to advance through the Tournament with the aim of stopping the Yamata no Orochi. It wasn't explicitly mentioned, but Chizuru is one of the three combatants who need to be present to reseal the Yamata-No-Orochi if he returns. However, she also owns the Arena via her company which gives her an excuse to stay behind in the Arena even if her team forfeits. Nightwolf exploited that, plus Chizuru's knowledge of the Yamata-No-Orochi to get his team a bye to the next round while also not compromising the defense in the event the Yamata-No-Orochi returns.

Other nineties stuff this chapter includes mentions of the Futae no Kiwami and Yukuyuzan Anji from Rurouni Kenshin, General Fujita Gō from Jet Li's Fist of Legend, Ba'al and the Goa'uld from Stargate, Kano, Shang Tsung, Nightwolf, and the Black Dragon from Mortal Kombat, Resist Electricity, Megakinesis, and the Cantrip Spell from Second Edition Dungeons and Dragons, Red Apple Cigarettes from the Works of Quentin Tarantino, Bepsi from Lupin the Third, Shaman King, and others, and Dawson Convenience Stores from Kaiji. Everything else is from King of Fighters.

At any rate, the next chapter will be the New Faces Team versus the Art of Fighting Team, followed by Ulysses' Team's second bout of the day against Team Hungry Wolf.

Stay tuned. . .