The shockwaves heard from the impact of their initial punches blew through the arena. Megumi and Koutetsu stared each other down as their fists still locked into one another.
They started throwing more punches, the speed of the punches was blinding, they were hitting left and right not letting up from each other. Kicks were thrown in too from roundhouses, Brazilian kicks, and even flying knees. Everyone in attendance was mesmerized, they were horrified but drawn into the fight at the same time. Megumi cackled throughout the fight. She was intoxicated with fighting Koutetsu. Koutetsu was doing his best to keep up. He knew this wasn't her full strength she was just toying with him.
Koutetsu went for a spinning back kick, Megumi dodged it, and she followed with a spinning heel kick.
Koutetsu barely dodged with the Unseen Leap technique, Megumi took in a deep air as she looked at Koutetsu.
"Kaitei no Kata(Fire Emperor Form), Kurohyō no Shakunetsu(Black Panther Scorch)." Megumi blasted a stream of black flames at Koutetsu that had a panther's face in them. Koutetsu had to release his own flames to shield himself before being burned.
The flames singed the tips of his hair, and Megumi launched a flamed thrust kick to Koutetsu. Koutetsu retaliated with his own attack.
"Hiyou Ryu, Bukai no Kata, Tetsu no Ichigeki(Iron Slam)!" Koutetsu tensed the muscles in his hand, his flames heating the palm of it as he delivered a palm strike to Megumi, she dodged before it connected, Koutetsu's hand destroyed a small spot in the ground were she was standing before.
Megumi followed with a knee strike to the stomach, and Koutetsu a head butt. Both of them couldn't stop attacking each other.
Every move was either a counter or offensive strike, both not slowing down in their momentum to strike each other.
The audience couldn't stop watching. The violence aside, they were into it so much that their feet began to stomp rapidly in their excitement. The arena roared into its own lalapalooza. Gentaro's heart raced watching the two fight, his warrior spirit was burning with excitement. Ren and the others felt their hearts race too, even if they knew they would die in the process, they wanted to fight again, fight against those two.
Megumi slid under Koutetsu, her leg charged in black flames, Koutetsu attempted to counter with a flame punch barrage, but Megumi was unfazed, she followed with a two-kick combo and then another signature move.
"Kaitei no Kata, Yami na Mikeri( Darkness Wave Kick)"
The black flames burned Koutetsu's arms, he jumped back to extinguish them. Megumi cackled in satisfaction, Itsuki couldn't help but cover her mouth in fear. Rina could see her worry, she was scared for him badly too.
"Hehehe impressive. When you were a kid I burned your head and you were bald for weeks after that."
"I'm not a kid anymore, and we're on a time crunch. Let's end this stupid kid's game, shall we? Let me see your beast, Master. I want it all."
Megumi's smile widened to the point it would rival the Cheshire Cat's. She felt immense excitement that he wanted her 'real' self.
"Mmmm, hahahaha, muahahaha, oh joy, such blissful joy. You really have gotten cocky, haven't you? Ok then you want it so bad, here it comes." Her voice sounded a mix of demonic with her own.
Megumi bent down, he arms to her sides, she was concentrating her energy on another technique, one that was pressuring everyone again.
"Hiyou Ryu, Chouyuē Geijutsu(Transcendence Art), Jushin Kakusei!(Beast God Awaken)"
Megumi roared, and her aura of power became visible for everyone to see. The fear in their eyes, and many others gasping for air from her immense power. Gentaro himself was dropping a sweat from his head. He could feel the intense bloodlust from Megumi.
Megumi's muscles bulged, her roar shifting between human and animal. Her skin had created black claw mark tattoos on her legs and arms converging around her upper body. The nails on her fingers and toes formed into sharp claws, her canis teeth shaped into fangs, her ears shaped into points, and her eyes changed, they resembled the eyes of an animal, real beast eyes.
Anna gasped in suspense. Itsuki couldn't stop quivering in fear at what she saw. This was the Master who trained Koutetsu, the Deity of Killers who killed a 1,000 Ghasts in a single night.
Megumi's transformation ended, but her bloodlust still lingered in the air. The drool from her mouth flowed as she continued laughing menacingly. Everyone was fazed, except Koutetsu.
"Hehehe well little cub, you wanted the Queen. Here she is! Are you satisfied!"
Koutetsu was silent at first. He looked to Itsuki with sorrowful eyes, then back to Megumi with an intense glare.
"Oh yes, I am. Because I got a surprise for you!"
Koutetsu took his stance like Megumi did with the excretion of his fist connecting to each other knuckle to knuckle, Gentaro knew what was coming. He was in shock that Koutetsu mastered it as was.
"Chouyuē Geijutsu, Jushin Kakusei!"
Koutetsu now did what Megumi did. His blue aura burst out too as he transformed just like her with the exception of tattoo of tiger stripes on arms, legs, and back. The intense growl in the painful transition could be heard, it was his first attempt at using this move. Itsuki was in utter disbelief. Her friend, her cherished friend smiled and was kind to her. That wasn't him in that ring, that was an animal standing there.
Rina could see Itsuki's face, she grabbed her hand removing it from her mouth, she gave Itsuki kind and concerned eyes.
"Itsuki don't be scared. Even if he looks different. That's still Koutetsu down there."
"But."
"Itsuki, we need to trust him. No matter what happens He's still the one you helped at the store that day. Don't be afraid of him. Trust him."
Itsuki wiped her eyes, she tried to be strong, Koutetsu had to endure so much when he was gone. She couldn't look away when he was looking forward.
Megumi's grin brimmed with excitement, she was happy to the point she felt she would burst into ecstasy.
"Hahahahahahahahha, amazing! Amazing! You mastered it. You're a beast like me now, I couldn't be happier than now."
"Yea, are you ready Master? I'll rip out your guts!" Koutetsu shouted in anguish and rebellion to his master.
Megumi licked her fangs, she was hungry for battle. Megumi ran to Koutetsu howling. She swung fast claw strikes at him, Koutetsu would block, strike, and burn her with his attacks in the process. She didn't even try to block, she was overjoyed in the battle where blocking and evasion would ruin her mood. This wasn't a fight anymore, it was two alphas mauling each other for the title of the real king.
The audience couldn't help it again, like instinct or some primeval trait inside them, the auras of Megumi and Koutetsu were drawing out their savage excitement. They couldn't stop cheering and stomping.
Natsume herself felt an intense heat in her body, one hand holding her chest where her heart was, the other clinching on the end of her skirt.
'What is this? Why am I so excited? What's happening to me?' Natsume looked back at the fight, the sight of Koutetsu fighting, it was exciting her more were she was heavily panting.
Gentaro and the instructors were not affected neither were Ren and the others.
"Dear Buddha, what's happening to the people in here? They're losing themselves in this fight."
"It's those two. Like real animals, their fighting aura is acting like a pheromone that's attracting everyone to them. Some animals exhibit a special pheromone during times of intercourse or even when killing prey that attracts others to them. Unless you have a strong will it's an irresistible sensation." Alexandra explained.
Ren and the others couldn't move from their seats. The fighting became an unflinching sight they didn't want to miss a second of it.
"I can't move. My body feels like it's made of cement."
"I feel it too pretty boy. Even my man's spirit is quaking like a child cause of them."
"Those two, they've reached a height of fighting I can't analyze. I don't even want to try to remember this fight. This is too barbaric even for me."
Ren remained silent. He was watching with hands quivering on his sword.
'Koutetsu. Be careful. That woman, I remember her now. Why I recognized your style on opening day. That woman. She ripped off my Master's leg. She's a monster.'
Megumi's cackling continued as she clawed away at Koutetsu. Koutetsu did his best to block and attack. He used every move in his arsenal, the only problem was the moves he knew were the same as Megumi's, even with his preparation in the locker room to unlock the secret technique Megumi was pure carnage. She was a beast before she unlocked it.
Megumi vanished, and Koutetsu tried to find her, he was anticipating her peek-a-boo trick or the Unseen Leap to sneak up on him. Megumi stood in front of Koutetsu, she tricked him by hiding her aura to disguise her presence into thinking she moved when she was standing still the whole time.
Megumi grabbed Koutetsu's face, her smile flashing her pearly white teeth.
"Kiss me little cub." Megumi's fangs sunk into Koutetsu's mouth, she was trying to rip his lips off with her teeth. Koutetsu tried to fight her off, she was going rip his mouth skin off he she wouldn't let go. He couldn't think straight, he was believing he would die so he stabbed her in the sides to get her off him in his panic.
Something happened though. When he stabbed her, the images of Akane popped into his head. He stabbed her again and the images kept recurring. Koutetsu began to scream, everyone thought it was because he was in pain. No, it was because he was having a PTSD moment remembering Akane dying like she did. The stabbing reminded him of it because of the pale lady doing the same to Akane. His anxiety attack from his Thanatophobia went into high gear. Megumi sensed it, she let go of his mouth to back off, she saw Koutetsu howl in agony as the images kept coming nonstop. His flames became out of control, he was hurting himself again and everything around him was at risk.
Itsuki couldn't stop being horrified she tried to run to him but Rina held her back.
"Let go! Let go! He needs help, I need to help him."
Rina didn't stop holding her back, she had to keep her safe from the flames going wild in the ring. Everyone near Koutetsu and Megumi was being shielded by the security detail, Koutetsu attacked Megumi in a blind rage that he wasn't using the Hiyou Ryu, just straight wild attacks like a rabid animal. He couldn't regain his sense of self, the mental breakdown he was having was too far gone.
Megumi stared down Koutetsu. She didn't feel excited anymore, she felt pity instead. It wasn't the first time she saw him do that. He did a lot when he was a kid when he thought he would die or had night terrors about that day. At one point she had to hold him tight till he calmed down regardless if she was getting burned in the process. She tried hard to help him conquer his fear of death because she cared about him at the time and his well-being.
Now he was endangering everyone and he wouldn't stop even if was knocked out. As violent as she was, she would never hurt an innocent in this much pain for a fight.
Megumi clenched her fists, she knew what she needed to do to stop him. And she didn't want to either because of how much she cherished her student.
"Koutetsu, I'm so sorry, I couldn't help you get over it, could I? You carried all this pain this whole time and could never be free from it? Hold on, I'll end your suffering."
Megumi dashed to him, as Koutetsu continued to flail wild claw strikes more and more. Megumi took all the hits, all the burnings. She cut the tendons in Koutetsu's arms and legs with her nails. He stopped moving now save for his head which was still trying to bite Megumi, the flames still burning out of control, Megumi countered with her own to suppress them. She held Koutetsu's throat holding him in place, he still howled manically from his trigger.
Megumi raised her free hand up, her fingers straightened into the shape for stabbing.
"Kuramori-San don't do it!" Anna commanded.
Itsuki tried breaking free from Rina to stop Megumi. Ren, Gentaro, and the others couldn't get the close cause of the flames.
Megumi's eyes stopped looking fierce. Instead, they were filled with sorrow, for the first time in her life she was crying before a kill.
"Sayonara my little tiger cub, may you find paradise in your sleep."
Everyone couldn't believe what happened next. The sound, the sight, the pain. Megumi ran her hand Koutetsu's chest, through his heart, her hand pierced all the way through with her bloodied hand being exposed from the other side of Koutetsu's body. The flames stopped and Koutetsu was silent, Itsuki's eyes went blank from the sight.
A few tear drops fell down Megumi's face. She did it, she killed her student. Her little tiger cub, lifeless by her hands. Megumi pulled her arm out, she than dropped Koutetsu's lifeless body as it fell on the ground.
Itsuki couldn't hold it in, she let out a scream filled with pain loud enough for the God's to hear.
"KOUTETSU!!!!!"