The music blasting through the large auditorium seemed to merge with the very fabric of the building. Yugai crouched low, and put his left hand forward and his right hand back, and make the tiger palms with his fists by curling his digits about halfway. Hakuro instructed his mind directly about how to take his stance and use his weight to add power behind his strikes. Tiger style Kungfu focuses on outward power that assaults an enemy and relies on brute force. The purpose of the claw rather than a closed fist is for brutal follow-ups, digging nails into the skin, or to gouge eyes, constantly leading to additional damage to vitals as long as you can corner and trap the enemy. It primarily utilises strikes with the upper body to build pressure.

Yugai swung at Kentarou with a wide and sweeping swing with his right arm, it cut through the air like the scythe of the reaper. Kentarou shifted, and put his left leg forward and pulled his right leg back, while swaying his body to the left, and took a single step back. In terms of distance, he had moved less than an inch. Almost as if he simply had hopped on the spot in rhythm with the clapping of the song instead of a conscious effort to dodge an attack. An exchange of eyes. Yugai practically hissed in the way you’d expect a feral cat would when someone stepped on its tail without noticing. “Pay attention to me!” He swung again. He simply stepped to the side while shaking his upper body and head to the shaking sound that resembled the swirling of sand.

A growl of growing frustration seeped out of Yugai’s body. It was as if Kentarou wasn’t even trying to fight at all. To him, it seemed like the man was just dancing to the beat without a care in the world and was coincidentally able to avoid his attacks. Yugai focused his irritation, Hakuro blasted his mind with further instruction.

“Remember your Ki! Breath and let it flow through your body! Grab your mana as well, when you fought Raimon you bounced it around your body and transmuted it into heavy metal before a strike! This time start it in your left leg, toss it into your right and then throw it and your weight forward and extend your arm into a strike! Just before you make an impact send the ball of mana into your shoulder, then your elbow, and lastly your fist! Hit him with it! Aim at the body, it’ll be a larger target!”

Yugai nodded as he did his best to follow the command to the letter. A hot surge of a desire to live, he grasped it easily, this was what he figured was Ki. A cold and mysterious foreign force, much like the prickling sensation from when your hairs stand on end. This was the Mana that Hakuro was feeding into his body as a result of their contract. The former, he ignited and let go wild across his nervous system, this was easy. All he had to do was draw out his desire to see all the world had to offer and channel it. It was like a second skin he wore the moment he needed to do combat.

The unfamiliar source of energy was harder to mould but it was exciting for him to handle. The mere act of trying to draw upon its strength sent a shiver of excitement down his spine as if he was about to be a witness to something truly out of this world. He pushed against it with his will until it took the shape of a ball just as Hakuro had said. He then bid it to travel to the left foot. The moment it made contact, a sense of heaviness filled that part of his body, as if his foot was now cast in iron. He lowered his entire body as if he was crouching and then kicked off with his left leg to pounce at his opponent. “Shift it to the right… to the right! Just as Hakuro said!” Yugai felt the ball of mana travel up his left leg and strike into his right like a meteor crashing down to earth. When his right foot smacked the ground with a powerful stomp the ground rumbled from pain. “Now to my shoulder, elbow, and fist!”

To anyone watching the fist that he fired was swift, heavy, and full of force. It was an attack that had the momentum of a wrecking ball and would obliterate anything it touched. Even the far superior, stronger, and tougher fighters like Kentarou would not come out of such a hit completely unscathed. Yet, it missed and its trajectory flew just a hair’s breadth away from Kentarou’s right cheek. If an ordinary person had seen this, they would have assumed that Yugai had narrowly missed, perhaps because of his damaged depth perception. The truth? He had dodged it with a tap to the ground with his right foot and then a tiny hop on his left while swaying his head back with just a tiny motion. The expression in his eyes was still clear with a spark of jovial merriment. Even avoiding that powerful punch was merely a continuation of his carefree dancing. He did not say a word. For Yugai it was an excellent attack that he had crafted and performed almost perfectly. For Kentarou it was the pawing motion of a blind newborn kitten. The boy’s rage grew twice in size.

“Damn you!” Yugai continued his assault, this time he did the exact same thing replicating what he had just attempted but in the opposite direction. He shifted his internal forces and gravity from the right of his body to the left and swung a wide arc aimed at the torso of his senior! Kentarou stepped to the right, two paces worth of distance while keeping his eyes on the boy gunning for him. “...What!?” Raimon gritted his teeth upon witnessing the second attack. It was something that Yugai probably couldn’t see or realise, a tiny shred of fabric from Kentarou’s clothes had been ripped out. So small that almost no one could see it unless they held it directly in their hands and lifted it to their eyes. A suspicion crept onto his neck and unsettled him, a flash of anger wanted to lash out when his mind began to play with a certain possibility. Yugai continued to attack, left to right, and then right to left, he continued his tiger swipes with the hope to land a single glancing blow!

The right armed strikes were dodged with a minimal backstep. The attacks from the left arm are razor-sharp and swift are responded with a light upper body swerve from side to side. With each assault, Yugai’s speed and power were rising along with his body’s momentum, he became a pendulum of power turning from side to side that steadily advanced forward without rest. Raimon’s suspicion grew louder with each punch. It began to gnaw at him like a parasite. He couldn’t confirm it but there mere thought that lingered there was stinging him with pain. An itch he cannot scratch or do anything about, at least not yet. Not anytime soon. It was pissing him off. He was chomping at the bit for more evidence for his theory. He kept his eyes peel and trained on Yugai’s body, taking note of every minute movement. “No doubt about it. He’s gotten stronger in the short time since we’ve fought but… goddammit… I have to talk to him after this! Ah, I guess I’ll clear up my schedule.”

This time Yugai launched a left upper cutting motion. Kentarou used his whole head to swerve to the right and avoid the attack. A singular strand of hair fell down the right side of Kentarou’s face. This time the effect was noticeable. Yugai was instantly emboldened by his minor success, if he could cut a single strand of hair, then if he could hit faster, stronger, and more accurately, then he might be able to make a wound of some meaning. His mind shifted gears, his aim would be to land that one minor blow. That’s all his brain can say to himself now. “Hit him. Hit him. Hit him. It doesn’t matter how much, or how hard, but hit him. Land a hit and make him take you seriously. Make him sweat. One bullet of real sweat. Drag it out of his body and take it as a trophy!”

Kentarou still bobbed and weaved to the music but his eyes full of fun now had a minor glance of amusement. Before he was dancing all on his own in the middle of a light storm of rain. Now? He had a partner and it would be a bit more enjoyable, even if the performance would not last long. The song was beginning to speed up and reach its climax. He was going to crush Yugai’s fleeting hopes now and do so with instinct and natural reactions to the rhythm. His movements started to become just a step faster, the sways of his body became bigger, it was arguably wasted movement but when he was focused on the music it was hard to fight the beat. He was taught to move to it by his teachers and the methodology was ingrained in both his muscles and mind. He began to resemble a candle in the wind but one that refused to go out no matter how harsh the gales were.

“Stop swinging so wide! Keep it short, simple, and fast! Fire your arms and fists like bullets down a chamber, go in a mostly straight line and whack his body! If you’re going to twist for more force do it at the last second before you would make contact!” The cat hissed at his student, much like Raimon he too was becoming frustrated with what was happening but for different reasons. Raimon was focused on Yugai but Hakuro was homing in on his opponent who looked like he had not a single care in the world. This was just dancing to him.

Yugai threw more straight and direct blows now just as he was told. Like a machine input with code and then flawlessly executing the programming of his master to the letter. However, the specs of the vehicle known as Izumi Yudai were…! Kentarou disappeared from his field of view. A tap bounced off the younger man’s left shoulder and he turned in response so he could see the source, the blue and black shadow smiled with a playful snicker in his eyes. He had moved so fast that Yugai couldn’t keep up, and now was inviting him to try harder.

“Damn you!” He wouldn’t take it lying down. He roared as he began swinging his arms wide once more, reverting to the swiping motions that resembled a wild beast, but now he was twisting his arms and hands as his arms travelled through the air like missiles. Kentarou pulled his head back and took two steps, one back, then to the left. Another missile fired and was met with the same method of dodging. Another, another, and another. All avoided with the same double steps by a man with a look of joy written all over his body. That only brought forth more rage from the tiger cub. The steel in his eye returned with an even brighter gleam to it, a heavy but sharp blade that wanted to sever its foes in two. The missiles screamed as they ripped the air into shreds on the way to their target! “Faster! Stronger! Better!”

Kentarou frowned with his eyebrows for an instant that only Raimon was able to catch with his incredible eyesight. The dark dressed man relaxed back to his carefree expression almost immediately but it was an unconscious acknowledgement from the superior fighter and everyone but Yugai probably could realise it. The boxer smiled. His suspicions no longer haunted him, they were now inviting him with an apple that was filled full of potential temptations. “He’s getting faster and he’s not stopping for anything! It doesn’t end! The combination continues relentlessly without a single break! Even though his attacks got wider and more frantic, the amount of space they cover and devour is forcing reactions from Kentarou! This is the textbook toughness of the Metal Form! What a lucky kid.”

An explosion! A blow narrowly glanced just over Kentarou’s head. Three strands of hair fell to the ground. This time he could see the damage, no matter how faint. The steel glittered like a diamond brought to the rays of the morning sun. His subsequent shot created another explosion through the air. Kentarou was forced to duck and bob his head from side to side to avoid it. Just like before, Yugai didn’t know the meaning of when or how to quit and continued piling on the hits! His eyebrows bent once more and this time Kentarou realised his own concern for his safety. His animalistic instincts took over. His right leg jumped from his mental chains and slammed into the left temple of the tiger cub.

Yugai rolled over and fell on the mat of the dojo. A dull thud echoed through the room. The music stopped. Kentarou wiped the sweat from his brow. “Shit. I overdid it. I guess we’ll call it quits for today. There’s a place where you can rest up next door.” Kentarou took a step forward to help up his new junior, but before he could even get close…!

A tornado emerged from the ground and threatened to slice the man in black! Kentarou performed a swift backstep to avoid the scythe-like motion. Yugai was once again standing and ready to fight. He gasped for air, panted from the exhaustion that had reared its ugly head, and was covered in the sweat of all his missed attempts to wound his opponent…

His eyes were still held a brilliant shining and crazy diamond. It wasn’t over until he said it was over. That was the fighting spirit that the cub who has seen the face of death held in his heart!

Raimon snickered. Kentarou’s eyes had betrayed him. A faint look of apprehension and irritation had found its way into his vision. “Hey, boy! Kentarou’s fighting style is called Cerberus Combat! He made it himself from three different things. So far he’s only used the dancing head to lick you. He has two more heads! He’s been using less than a third of his skillset! Are you going to let him humiliate you!? Make that dog fight serious already!”

The speech from the champion roused something further in the novice. His teeth showed white fangs covered in blood. The metal of his soul would not cease until it tasted the red of its intended victim. Kentarou clicked his tongue and decided he might as well. The man in black snapped his fingers. The music was different now. The beating of war drums and the yells of a crowd out for fresh sacrifices to the realm of war. It was on now.