Chereads / Return of the Failed Hero / Chapter 16 - Sparring Session

Chapter 16 - Sparring Session

"Hiyyah!" A slightly older George screamed loudly as he charged forward, swinging his fist with everything he got.

Whoosh!

Flames began to erupt from his hand as his arm cleaved through the air with incredible speed, and within a fraction of a second, an enormous wave of flames appeared behind his arm, moving according to the motion of his hands.

"Not bad," An older Ray who seemed to be in his twenties, who was standing a few feet away and opposite of him, spoke with a smirk on his face before pulling his hand back and getting ready to throw a punch. "But if you think that's enough to defeat me, then you just aren't thinking straight!'

BZZZZZ!

The buzzing noise of electric currents passing through his body could be heard as his entire arm began to glow brightly, his hand now enveloped in yellow energy that sent sparks flying all over the area.

"Take this!" The older George roared loudly as he swung his arms, and the enormous wave of flames detached from his hand and swept forward, devouring everything that was in its path, melting it into nothing more than ash.

BAM!

Before the wave of flames could reach him however, the older Ray slammed his giant golden hand onto the ground, and countless lightning bolts burst through the dirt and the mud, causing chunks of the ground and rocks to be shot up into the sky and straight towards the giant wave of flames.

SHUAAAA!

Countless chunks of dirt, grass and rocks slammed against the gigantic wave of flames, and the impact resulted in the waves becoming weaker and smaller than before.

But nevertheless, it still wasn't enough to stop the attack, and the wave of flames devoured everything that came at it and continued moving in the direction of Ray.

WHAM!

Ray stomped his foot on the ground and leapt up into the air, causing a small crater to form underneath his feet as he jumped. He stretched out his lightning enveloped hand, aiming for the wave of flames, and then began rotating at an incredible speed as he shot forward, which resulted in the golden light to spread out all over his body.

Zoom!

Ray pierced through the wave of flames within a fraction of a second and appeared on the other side unscathed. His gaze shifted towards George on the ground, who stomped his foot and shot upwards as both his hands erupted with flames.

Swoosh!

The two superhumans moved through the air and collided with each other, which resulted in a bright light enveloping the entire area.

-------------------------

Back in the present day.

"You seem a bit distracted.." George stated as he looked at Ray, who shook his head with a soft chuckle. "I'm just thinking about a fight I had a long time ago."

"Did that fight end with you losing? Because then I can understand why you'd be thinking about it right now." George said with a teasing tone, and George grinned in response. "Quite the opposite, actually. It ended with my win."

"Well, isn't that nice? It's always nice to encourage yourself when you're in a tough situation," George spoke with a smile and motioned Ray with his finger, taunting him to make the first move, and Ray nodded his head in response.

Whoosh!

All of a sudden,Ray charged forward, appearing in front of George within a split second.

'Wha-' The crazy speed also got George off guard, who immediately leapt back on instinct.

Swoosh!

Ray instantly swung his fist, the direction implying he was aiming for George's left ear, and George immediately shifted his left hand to the side in an attempt to block the attack.

WHAM!

But before the punch could connect, Ray switched the spot where he was aiming and went for the abdomen, which George saw coming a bit too late.

BAM!

The punch connected with his stomach, and George was pushed back a few steps, groaning as he tried to regain his focus. Ray however, wasn't about to let George have the time to adjust and charged forward without wasting a single moment, swinging at his face once again.

George responded with him raising his arm again to block the attack, and this time, Ray changed his punch to a feint and instead went for a kick, aiming for George's thigh.

WHAM!

This time around, George was cautious, and he caught Ray's feet using his hand before it could make contact with his thigh, gripping it tightly.

Swoosh!

But before George could make a counterattack, Ray decided to use his hand as a fixed point for his leg, and leapt up for a roundhouse kick using his other leg.

WHAM!

Ray's attack was once again caught by George, who instantly grabbed his other leg as well and while gripping both of Ray's legs tightly, he slammed him onto the ground with intense force.

BAM!

Ray's back crashed onto the ground, which resulted in the formation of small cracks on the floor.

"Guh!" Ray let out a groan, but he instantly responded with a counterattack by pushing his upper body up and punching George's face.

BAM!

The punch connected this time, and George was flung back a few steps. Ray did a kick up and got up onto his feet, while George found his footing.

The two youths looked at each other with cautious gazes, each one analyzing the other.

"Are you sure you're a D-rank? Because goddamn, you're good!" George spoke first as he rubbed his nose, which was bleeding a bit of blood.

"You saw through most of my attacks, though." Ray shrugged in response, and George shook his head. "Most is not all. And besides, I'm a C-rank. I can think and move faster than you."

"A difference is still a difference." Ray replied with a grin before raising both his hands up. "But don't worry. I'm still planning on beating you."

"Oh thank god. I was worried that you'd give up after realising that there was no way you'd win against me." George spoke with a sarcastic tone as he too assumed a combat stance.

Zoom!

The two youths shortened the distance between them within a split second, with George punching forward with speed, aiming for Ray's left shoulder. Ray instantly ducked and evaded the attack before attempting to punch from below, underneath his chin, but George immediately used his other hand to block his opponent's fist.

THUD!

Ray tried to kick George's abdomen, but he expertly dodged the attack by taking a step back. Ray didn't let him go so easily and instead went for a cheaper shot, by stepping on George's feet, forcing his opponent to stay in the same spot as he performed another roundhouse kick.

George didn't expect Ray to step on his feet, and as a result of the one second confusion, he was unable to block the roundhouse kick, and Ray's left foot collided with his right cheek, sending him flying sideways.

Ray knew that it wouldn't be enough to knock him out, and followed George's trajectory without wasting a single second.

Whoosh!

George used his hand to push against the ground as he was in the air, doing a flip before landing on his feet, and as soon as he found his footing, he was immediately met with Ray's fists, which cleaved through the air, aiming for his face once again.

George swatted away his opponent's fist using just his palm and replied with a headbutt.

WHAM!

"Geh!" Ray's head tilted back a little from the impact, and George seized the opportunity and kicked him right in the abdomen, causing him to take a step sideways.

Swoosh!

George disappeared from Ray's view and appeared right next to him. Ray took a step back in order to create a bit of a distance between the two, but George predicted his move and took a step forward along with him, cancelling out the difference as he swung his fist, aiming right for Ray's face.

WHAM!

Right as he made that move, Ray kicked sideways, his feet aiming for George's knees, and the two attacks connected at the exact same time.

WHAM! BAM!

George's fist collided with Ray's face, sending him flying backwards and flipping around on the ground for a few seconds, while George flipped sideways as the result of Ray's kick before crashing down onto the ground, right where he stood.

"Ow!" "Guh!"

The two youths groaned before getting up from the ground, staring at each other once again with cautious gazes.

Ray touched his nose, which had now turned red, while George attended to his knee.

"I honestly wasn't expecting this spar to last so long.." George replied with a sigh and a bitter smile. "I'm pretty sure I'm only winning because of the difference in ranks."

"We already knew each other's ranks before the spar began. The difference was already there from the start." Ray explained. "I agreed to the spar despite knowing the difference in ranks, so it really doesn't matter."

"Does that mean that you're fine with continuing the spar?" George asked, and Ray motioned at him with his finger, taunting him as he did him when the fight started. "You're damn right we are!"