Everyone still cheered for Ryuji as he limped back to his seat with Alexandra helping him on the way. Medics brought him a cold towel and medicine for his head. They also brought him some water and food as well along with his regular supplements he would take. Ryuji accepted the offer, and he scarfed down the food after all the energy he used in his match. His body was feeling better now that he had something to replenish his strength. As a theory, he grabbed pieces of the broken chains before the ring switched over. The chains deteriorated and were absorbed into his body like before during the match. Afterward, his hand turned metal once more.
[Material acquired. The iron deposit is filled. Iron Chassis is available for use. Elemental Chassis skill can be used with either the ingestion of material from a variable source or an external source to enhance the body. Must restore internal source if exhausted. Materials of magical source should be avoided unless magic training has been conducted.]
'I see. So if I ingest anything that has the basic element in it my body will break it down for me to use to make that armor. It's the same with me using stone to form the armor I originally made. Only now it's evolved to an advanced state. I'll have to test it more to see what else I can use or ingest safely.'
Ryuji changed his hand back to normal,
He tried to relax his body after that brutal beating. Even with the loss he still felt like he gained something out of it, that being closure and building his self-worth up more.
"You did well in your match. You evolved from a meathead to an anvil." Hiro complimented with a sarcastic tone. He gained some respect for Ryuji but still felt like giving him a hard time a little. A few moments Hiro would do something mischievous from his usual calm self.
"Huh, stuff it rich boy. You go next then if you're so tough, sitting here letting others do all the work for ya." Ryuji responded by flipping the bird at Hiro.
Hiro smirked, he did want to go next, he was getting anxious to see how the other ones would fight. Hiro stood up to make his way to the arena, but Ren stopped him by blocking his path with his sword sheathed in front of him.
"Wait, I'll go. I want to fight Kurosawa-Sensei, it's a rare opportunity to learn from a Master like him."
Hiro wouldn't budge, he wanted to fight too, his desire for knowledge was unquenchable.
"You've been quiet this whole time and now you wish to say your peace when it's my turn to fight. You're either selfish or sneaky for a Yojimbo."
Ren's eyes looked sharp at Hiro behind his glasses. Both of them were usually the calm ones, never showing animosity toward each other. This time they were doing that. Hiro's drive for collecting information on strong fighters was essential to his path of evolution, he wanted to become stronger for the sake of his mother who raised him with tenderness, and the patients in his family's hospitals who relied on him. Ren wanted to fight just as badly, as a swordsman he wanted to improve his skills by fighting a real Master. He promised his own Master he would get stronger for the sake of him and give him his treasured sword, and the family who raised him.
Both boys emanated an intimidating aura toward each other. Neither was backing down on who wanted to go next.
"Well then, how bout you both fight us niños?"
Ren and Hiro turned to look in the direction of the ring. Both Barnaby and Gentaro were standing there staring them down while they were having their little pow-wow.
Natsume, who was sitting next to Anna was confused about the situation.
"Takemura-Kocho, is that allowed? I thought it was supposed to be scheduled as a one-on-one fight?"
"They make the rules. I agreed to let them call the matches as they see fit. If they want two on two I can't stop it. Besides with how stubborn those two are I doubt we would speed up these processes anytime soon."
Natsume looked worried, Rina, and Itsuki were in the same row as her and they agreed as well it could be bad for Ren and Hiro.
They probably wouldn't get along in the fight to work well with each other and may end up attacking in friendly fire in the process. It's how strong their egos were when it came to wanting something as bad as this.
Ren and Hiro looked back into each other's eyes, they didn't need to say anything but they agreed the same that this was a better arrangement for them.
Ren and Hiro walked up to their respective opponents. Ren bowed to Gentaro for his admiration of his reputation and skill.
"It's an honor to spar with you Kurosawa-Sensei. I look forward to your wisdom."
Gentaro bowed back in respect. "Let this match test our mettle as warriors Shonen."
Hiro looked up and down at Barnaby, he didn't seem impressed with him he had a question that was gnawing at the back of his mind, which would also be used as a means of getting under his skin in a way.
"Excuse my rudeness, but how did you get the name Barnaby Morales? It seems rather odd."
"Ha, not the first to ask me that niño. My Mamá was from Jalisco, Mexico and my Papá was originally from San Antonio in Texas. They met during a festival and well here I am. So I'm kinda of a mix as you say though I love speaking Mamá's language very much."
Hiro smirked. He knew that from first looking at him during the introductions and his profile, it was just funny that it was that simple. He thought it would be more complex than that.
"Hi everyone! In a new twist, we will have a one-two match. This should prove to be exciting as all four men are strong combatants. From the guest team, one is a Veteran Soldier from America who was hailed for his perfect marksmanship and mastery of Projection Magic, leading to the popular use of Gun Fu only seen in movies. The other is a hero in our beautiful country who many have sought for his wisdom and martial arts skills. A man hailed by many as the peak of the martial arts world and undefeated in his career. Here they are, Barnaby Morales and Kurosawa Gentaro!"
The two men gave their respects to the crowd. Next up was Hiro and Ren.
"And from the home team. Our school's top student hails from the Five Families. With brains, handsomeness, and a talented Kyoduka whose arrow never misses its target. Standing by him is our lone wolf of the Kendo Club, a wielder of a sacred blade, his sword skills are as beautiful as his face. Here they are, Yagami Hiro and Mitsurugi Ren!"
Ren grumbled at the compliments to his looks. He was serious in his match not there to be eye candy for the females. Hiro was unmoved, his brain going over countless ideas to fight against Barnaby and Gentaro.
The ring shifted once more, for this match whether it was a joke or do to it being last minute with the order switch up half the ring had a grass field with a cherry tree, and the other a dusty old west style look. The intention must have been to match the feel the men had in their respective fields of fighting.
All four combatants took their places, Ren got into his stance ready to draw his sword from a Iaido-style position. Hiro generated a silver short bow keeping his fingers tightly held on the bowstring, Gentaro cracked his neck and knuckles psyching himself up, while Barnaby's hands were itching to create his guns.
"Ready, BEGIN!"
Barnaby projected revolvers in the design of the Colt Single Action Army with perfect speed. He fired multiple shots at Hiro, who fired back with his arrows made of magic. Both opponents were spot on with their firing, every bullet and arrow hitting each other with perfect precision.
Ren dashed to Gentaro, his sword aiming to strike at Gentaro's legs.
"Mitsurugi Ryu, Ichi no Kata(First Blade Form), Suishin(Water Needle).
Ren's sword created water on its blade, as the dragon engraving on the blade and kanji on the handle glowed, he swung a fast motion at Gentaro, firing water in the shape of a large needle that shot out toward Gentaro. Gentaro was already ahead in predicting a mid-range attack to distract him.
He didn't need to use any magic to fight back or defend, he was going to use his skills as a martial arts master alone.
Gentaro used his trained reflexes to dodge each needle, he then used an Aikido wrist lock technique to attack Ren, followed by switching to judo to quickly flip Ren over into an over-the-shoulder throw slamming his body down. Ren spun himself back up using the momentum to make three fast kicks to the calves of Gentaro, but Gentaro used low kicks to hit Ren in the ankles to stop the flow of attacks. Ren got back up to attack again, Gentaro's years of experience made it easy to predict what swings Ren would make against him. He struck Ren in his vital points with finger jabs, paralyzing him for a second, then a palm strike that hit him in the chest with incredible force knocking him back.
Ren stopped himself from falling by sticking his sword into the ground. He wiped the small blood from his mouth that slipped out from the palm strike.
"Impressive, you're just as strong as Sensei said you were," Ren spoke with admiration in his voice.
Gentaro chuckled, he appreciated the compliment.
"However, I have to get stronger. There's someone who needs me and I can't let her down."
Ren got back into his stance, sheathing the sword for another quick draw strike. Ren dashed once more using the speed of the quick draw to Gentaro. The marks on the sword sheath and blade glowed again, he rotated his body in a rotational spin, using another of the Mitsurugi moves.
"Mitsurugi Ryu, Shi no Kata(Fourth Blade Form), Noboru Mizu no Ryu(Rising Water Dragon)."
The sword created a spiraling water strike in the shape of a dragon that aimed at Gentaro, swallowing his body in the watery vortex. He removed himself from the water before any more damage could be done with his raw willpower forcing him out. Ren went to strike again trying to keep the rhythm going before he could regain his posture.
Gentaro went back to dodging the attacks once he regained his breath after spitting out the water in his lungs, he once more struck the vital points on Ren's body halting his access to his natural Ki flow. Even though he didn't possess magic having internal Ki was vital since it was a martial artist's force within giving them the strength to use their techniques.
Ren fell to the ground after feeling his Ki being caught off. He didn't understand what had just happened, he recovered quickly from before. This time it was slower than usual.
"I see. The SuiRyu. That is indeed a rare sacred blade. You must have inherited it from Mitsurugi Sousuke. I must pay respects to my old friend sometime, he's the only one to beat me at chess. It's a shame though you don't have his skill. He once beat a very powerful spearman who threw honor away for fame and fortune. It's a shame to see his blade being used so poorly right now."
Ren growled in anger at the insult, he tried fighting back again with slowly recovering his speed. Gentaro dodged effortlessly, his eyes closed at the disappointment in Ren's strikes. During an attack, he grabbed the edge of the sword with just his fingertips effortlessly. Ren was taken aback that he was able to do that without cutting his fingers off with how powerful the SuiRyu is.
"Don't be ashamed child. It takes years of practice to master a sacred blade. You're just not there yet."
Ren's eyes gaped open. Gentaro went for another palm strike, only now it was aimed at Ren's face.
On the other side, Hiro and Barnaby continued their fight. Hiro meticulously analyzed Barnaby. Every step, wave of an arm, and how he handled his guns were stored in his memory. He changed the size and trajectory of the arrows to match Barnaby's patterns making it harder for him to stay on his toes at first.
Barnaby was smiling, he was enjoying his fight with Hiro, watching how the young boy was keeping up at such an age. He was hitting all the arrows, every one of them was perfectly aimed at his hands to stop him from being able to use his guns properly.
"You're good, there's no doubt about it. Working up a sweat fighting you. Haven't had the pleasure of fighting someone who can shoot as good as I before." Barnaby praised Hiro for his accuracy and skill level.
"Why thank you, I'm honored by your words."
"But, a bit of word of advice, trying to analyze and memorize patterns of someone may not always work, and studying people's behavior doesn't guarantee a victory if they suddenly change it up. Let me show you why that is muchacho."
Barnaby's guns shot the ground below him, he used them to launch himself upwards past the printed buildings in the ring, then his guns morphed into one, turning into an AK-47 assault rifle.
Hiro didn't anticipate that quickly enough, Barnaby's Projection speed was faster than he realized. The shots from the rifle were fired at high speed, faster than his arrows could keep up. He had to take evasive steps to avoid the shots he couldn't hit. At least a few bullets scraped Hiro's legs during the dodges, nothing serious but enough to make Hiro nervous a bit.
Since Anna asked for non-lethal attacks, the bullets were blunt-ended, making the hits hurt more like being hit by large ball bearings at 40mph.
The rifle changed again, now it was an M79 grenade launcher, Barnaby fired rounds with burning gas in them at Hiro, the blast radius was strong, and his eyes and nose were stinging from the gas. They disoriented him and he couldn't keep his feet stable on the ground to evade anymore.
Hiro tried to use minor purifying magic to rid his immediate field of the gas to halt his symptoms from worsening. His face was returning to normal once the gas was away from him, now he was going to try to look at the firearm that launched the round to figure out its design for weaknesses. But Barnaby was gone, Hiro looked at the buildings to see if he hid in the rooms or behind the buildings. He then saw from his side view that Barnaby jumped from behind the one to Hiro's right side holding a speargun. The gun fired a charged blunted bolt at Hiro, and Hiro barely dodged in time with only his glasses taking a hit.
"Get it now Hijo. You can spend you're entire time reading your enemy but if your enemy is a relentless storm no amount of studying can stop it from blowing you away."
Hiro stared down at Barnaby, he tried to fire another barrage of arrows, but Barnaby morphed the speargun into a Jericho 941 pistol, rapidly firing at the bow itself destroying it.
Hiro was out of his league. For the first time in his life, he met an opponent he could not keep up with in his analysis. Barnaby blasted Hiro with another round from the launcher he made earlier, and he went flying into the smaller building behind him destroying part of its wall. Barnaby stood before Hiro, holding another revolver gun, he cocked the hammer slowly for dramatic effect just to intimidate Hiro.
"Buenas Noches, Niño."