"IT'S OVE—" Jiza hisses.
He grits his teeth.
"—THE WARM-UP!"
He instantly bends his right arm, drawing it slightly back before thrusting it straight forward at blinding speed—
CPTKHSWHAAAHMNH!
A violent explosion of air erupts between them.
Their thrusts are launched at the exact same moment, colliding and detonating the atmosphere around them.
CTKSPSWCHAAAHMN!
A shockwave follows immediately, blasting both of them apart.
WLASH—SWAAAHSHH!
Dust surges outward.
SWUUUUUHMNHH!
Jiza is hurled out of the dust cloud.
SWAAHMNH!
Leon is thrown back as well, but—
"HMPN?!" Jiza freezes in shock.
Directly before him, still airborne, Leon has already drawn his right arm back and is swinging it forward—
There is no time to dodge.
No time to defend.
TSKCWHAAAAAAAAKK!
"AAAAAKHH!"
The thrust lands squarely against his neck before instantly retracting.
BRUK—BRAK—CKHAAAHMNHH!
Leon lands first.
CTHAAAAHMMHHNN!
He immediately leaps backward in a long jump, widening the distance between them. His breathing is already growing ragged from the relentless pressure he continues to maintain.
SKWHAHMN—SCAHMN!
His feet touch the ground again.
Jiza can no longer be seen or heard through the thick dust obscuring the battlefield.
Leon lowers his body further, head bowed halfway.
Both arms hang loosely between his legs.
He repeatedly exhales and inhales, steadily calming his labored breathing.
Then—
SCWHAAAAAHMNHH!
—the dust bursts apart.
"I've always noticed it."
Jiza emerges from within.
"That tiny opening of yours."
His breathing is still far from steady.
Yet he has been given space.
Enough space to fight back.
Enough space to pressure Leon.
"Now..."
SCKLWHAAAAHMNHH!
SPCLWHAAAAAASHHH!
TSKCWHAAAAAAHMN!
KSTPLAAAAAAASHHH!
A relentless barrage of attacks pours from Jiza.
"...I can finally use it."
Leon evades every single strike.
"But..."
Not one lands.
"No matter how."
A wide opening forms across Jiza's body.
Jiza frowns.
His rough breathing becomes audible again.
Leon counterattacks.
He draws his arm back and immediately swings forward—
KCKSWHAAAAAHMNH!
Blocked.
Jiza catches it with his elbow.
Leon freezes briefly.
His expression tightens.
"Even so," Jiza says.
His arm remains raised before his face, fully absorbing the blow.
A faint smile appears beneath the bandages covering his entire face.
"I've adapted now!"
Jiza presses forward.
Several rapid steps carry him closer.
One arm chambers back before shooting forward—
"...DO YOU KNOW THAT?!"
TKCSWHAAAAAASHHH!
Leon completely evades it.
The strike cuts through empty air.
Leon counters again.
And again.
And again.
His arm swings back and snaps forward—
KSCWHAAAAAAHMNN!
Jiza's eyes now follow the speed.
His elbow instantly rises.
The attack is blocked again.
Jiza advances.
Several more steps.
His other arm chambers before thrusting forward—
STCKWHAAAAAHSHH!
Once more, it slices through nothing.
Leon dodges completely.
CKHAAAHMNH!
One foot steps forward.
"EHEH?!" Jiza stiffens.
Leon counterattacks again and again—
His arm swings back.
Then forward.
TSKCWHAAAAAAAKKK!
A direct hit to the solar plexus.
"ARGHTKH—!"
Jiza cries out.
He tries to push back.
Leon attacks again before giving him room to breathe.
"I'll match you—" Jiza forces out.
He is still briefly airborne.
Leon closes the gap and attacks again.
"DAMN IT!"
CKTSWHAAAAHMMNH!
Blocked.
Jiza barely raises his elbow in time.
His eyes react.
His body responds through pure reflex.
Instincts now fully accustomed.
"Because that's—"
Jiza presses forward again.
Again.
And again.
He chambers his left arm repeatedly.
"—my dream,"
Pulls it sharply back—
"FROM THE VERY BEGINNING!"
—and thrusts it forward.
SCTKWHAAAAAHMMN!
Leon avoids it completely.
Just as before.
Again and again.
Leon counters.
Again.
Again.
Again.
And again.
WKCSLHAAAAAAAKKK!
Blocked by Jiza's elbow once more.
He prepares to surge forward—
"EHMP—"
DAAAGGG—DUGGGGG!
His heart pounds violently inside his chest.
"BLUARK!"
Blood erupts from his mouth.
His body, pushed beyond its limits for too long, finally reaches its breaking point.
The adrenaline sustaining him abruptly collapses.
Jiza can no longer maintain the pressure.
"GRKK!"
He grits his teeth.
Fury twists across his face.
Leon attacks again.
His arm draws back.
Then prepares to strike forward.
But—
"I WON'T LET—"
Jiza forces himself onward.
His right arm chambers once more.
"—MY OWN BODY STOP ME—"
It is pulled sharply backward.
Leon freezes briefly.
Disbelief flashes across his face.
Even now, Jiza still moves fast enough to pressure him.
"EVEN IF MY LIFE—"
His arm shoots forward.
"—IS THE PRICE!"
TSKCWHAAAAAAAKKK!
The strike lands squarely in Leon's lower abdomen.
Jiza's grin widens.
"SEE THAT?!"
Refusing to create distance, he presses forward again.
His right arm chambers once more.
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT I JUST GAINED,"
Drawn slightly backward.
"BUT MY BODY—"
He thrusts forward again.
"—FEELS REJUVENATED!"
TSKCWRRAAAAAAKKK!
A devastating blow crushes Leon's ribs.
"This fight—"
Neither of them has room to breathe.
But Jiza no longer cares.
He continues the pressure.
His left arm chambers.
"—HAS ONLY JUST..."
Drawn halfway back.
"...BEGUN!"
He thrusts forward once more.
"NOW!"
TSKCWHAAAAAAAAK!
The strike slams directly into Leon's heart, blasting him briefly into the air.
SCTKHWAAAAHMNH—
Jiza instantly leaps after him.
His arm bends and draws back slightly—
Then shoots straight forward—
"WHOA—"
Jiza is caught off guard.
STCKWHAAAAAHMMN!
The air explodes.
Even in his critical condition, Leon manages to thrust his fingers forward at the last instant.
A massive shockwave erupts.
WKCSLHAAAAHNGMM!
Both of them are hurled away.
"AND YOU STILL HAD TIME FOR THAT?!" Jiza shouts.
"DAMN IT!!"