(15 Minutes Ago)
"ACK!" Hyun groaned as he leapt from the ice. He released his fist, causing the ice to liquefy, and the spikes easily pierced through the water. With a swift motion, he resolidified the water into ice.
"Hyun Lee," Kazami muttered. Mid-air, Hyun turned to look at him. Though the mutter was soft, it still provoked Hyun.
"You're sub-par."
"SUB-PAR? ME?" Hyun's eyes blazed with fury. "TERRITORY: INCESSANT RAIN!"
Clapping his hands together, a powerful burst of mana erupted from him. Water droplets in the air coalesced and surged skyward.
Kazami smirked. "As I said..." He launched himself off the ground with sudden force, rocketing toward Hyun in mid-air. The earth below seemed to propel him with immense power.
Hyun's eyes widened. Below him, the deadly spikes awaited, just a meter away. He hesitated for a split second. Activating his territory would ensure victory, but will he last long enough?
"ARHHH!!!" Hyun swung his arms back, causing a massive water ball to float swiftly toward Kazami, deciding against the territory. At that speed, the water would make direct contact and force Kazami into the spikes he had created.
But Kazami remained unfazed, his stoic expression unchanged as he flew towards Hyun. With a subtle motion of his finger, Kazami lifted a slab of earth from the ground, blocking the path of the water barely enough to cause a split-second setback.
"Wha—" Hyun gasped as Kazami collided with him, hooking his elbow around Hyun's neck and slamming him into the ground nearby, away from the spikes.
"ARGHH!!!!" Hyun roared, swinging his arms upward, sending the water hurtling faster. Kazami, with a slight curl of his finger, raised another slab of earth, causing the water to crash into it again.
"Ack," Hyun gasped, not from the blocked attack but from the five spikes Kazami had driven up from the ground. His uniform absorbed the impact, sparing him from serious injury but leaving painful bruises. The uniform's colour shifted from blue to purple.
"Hah... hah..." Hyun panted in silence as Kazami stood and walked away, his steps echoing with finality.
"FUCK!" Hyun yelled, his voice breaking as he slammed his fist into the ground, still lying there, overwhelmed by the sting of defeat.
. . .
"Do you think your Captain can win?" he asked.
"Of course. Yatagarasu is rank 5, and Jin is Rank 2."
"Haha... how about now." I watched as he turned his palm upwards and curled his finger, causing a massive slab of earth to emerge just outside. "But he can't do anything… The vortex is a heavy Air mana zone. He can't get any earth mana in there. I'll focus on him fo—"
But at that moment, he leapt and delivered a back kick at the slab, causing logs of earth to poke out from its sides and pushing it, effectively blocking the wind path. The wind chipped at the earth slab, sending shards flying in random directions until the wind eventually ceased. The slab proved too thick and robust for the wind to destroy it.
"Thanks," Yatagarasu said as he backed up to Kazami's side, inches from the flag. At the same time, Jin retreated to my side. However, Jin's face bore bruises, and his arm showed signs of injury, whereas Yatagarasu appeared relatively unscathed.
'Captain, what's the plan right now?' I muttered.
"I doubt I can grab the flag with Yatagarasu here; his speed probably surpasses even mine... I know you can't destroy the rocks without damaging the flag," Jin explained, his voice steady despite his injuries. "So, I'll take out the wall. Once it's down, I'll distract Yatagarasu. You must get the flag...
"I'm here, Yonu. I'll back you up when I can…" he said, his voice steady.
'Hah… I guess I don't have a choice…' Yonu thought, clenching his fists.
"Alright… I guess I have to absorb the mana orb now. I love you for this orb," Jin declared, his voice hinting at sarcasm.
"…You… Jin," Yatagarasu responded, curiosity piqued.
"Eh? Curious, are you?" Jin asked with a smirk as he began to absorb the thick orb of mana.
"What in the hell… How is your mana replenishing so rapidly?" Yatagarasu's eyes widened in disbelief.
"HAHAHAHA… See this?" Jin held up a fading grey orb floating above his palm.
"You concentrated an orb of mana and brought it into the match… You... quite smart…" Yatagarasu nodded in admiration.
Jin's mana solidified a slight gust of wind emanating from his body, signalling his renewed strength. "Go," he commanded, swinging his arm with a sudden force. Instantly, a side of the wall surrounding the flag was sliced off, revealing their target. But the wall immediately reformed with a subtle movement of Kazami's finger.
"This guy…" Jin muttered, eyes narrowing as he turned back to Yatagarasu.
"He's good, isn't he?" Yatagarasu replied, snapping his fingers. Dozens of invisible wind blades materialised, flying towards Jin and scattering across the battlefield, even reaching Yonu.
. . .
As Yunosuke swung down his daggers, flames bellowed from Kana's mouth. Just before the flames touched the ice, Yunosuke transformed it into water. As the water met the fire, it evaporated instantly, creating a thick cloud of steam that enveloped the battlefield. Yunosuke spread his arms wide, using the steam as a smokescreen.
"COME OUT, COME OUT, WHEREVER YOU ARE!" Kana's voice rang out, sharp and taunting through the mist.
Yunosuke extended his mana, searching for the water pool. "Alright…" he muttered, focusing. As the steam began to lift, he swung his arms fiercely. A massive wave surged forward, roaring towards Kana with unstoppable force.
"We tried this before, didn't we!" Kana shouted, stomping and throwing her arms up into the air. A pillar of flames erupted around her, instantly vaporising the wave. But when she turned back to face Yunosuke, he was nowhere to be seen. The next thing she knew, a dull pain shot through her feet, quickly turning into a sharp, searing agony. She looked down in horror to see Yunosuke had taken the opportunity to stab her.
"Ack…" Kana stumbled back, her vision blurring momentarily from the pain. Yunosuke stood up, his eyes cold and focused. In his hands were two daggers he had created out of ice, glinting menacingly in the light. Her uniform had mitigated some of the damage, but the pain was still excruciating. Kana looked up at her opponent, who stood with deadly calm, holding his knives in a backhand grip, ready to strike again.
Yunosuke suddenly ducked and rushed back in. Unaccustomed to close-range attacks, Kana hesitated, especially by a water manacian. She tried to back off, but it was too late. Yunosuke grabbed her and slammed her onto the wet ground. He then activated his mana cloud, which mingled with the water, coating her fists and shoes in thick blobs of liquid.
"Ugh..." Kana groaned as she struggled to get up. Desperately, she tried to ignite some fire, but nothing happened. Her fists were wholly coated in water.
Yunosuke chuckled darkly, but his eyes widened as he realised his fatal mistake. He swung his ice daggers towards Kana's chest, but she was ready.
"ARHH!!" Kana screamed, bursting mana from her feet and hands. The surge overwhelmed the water, creating a fiery explosion that evaporated the blobs into puddles. In an instant, she propelled herself away from Yunosuke with a burst of fire from her feet, narrowly avoiding his dagger.
Yunosuke struggled to get up, using his hands for support.
"ARC OF FIRE!" Kana yelled, bursting flames from her palms to lift herself off the ground. Using the momentum, she swung her right leg in a powerful roundhouse kick, sending an arc of flame hurtling towards Yunosuke.
Yunosuke quickly brought his arms together, gathering all the water in the area into a large, thick ice shield. He dropped it just in time to block the fiery arc, which passed without harming him. With a swift motion, he swung his arms back to his sides, transforming the ice into a sword and shield.
"Tenacious. I respect that," Kana said, igniting flames beneath her feet and charging towards him at blazing speed.
"HAHHH!!!" Kana roared, her voice echoing through the battlefield as she brought her fist back, igniting it in an inferno. She swung with all her might, her fire-coated fist hurtling toward Yunosuke. This was his first time wielding close combat weapons in a real fight, and doubt gnawed at him. Could they withstand such an onslaught? Instead of risking it, he dodged the fiery punch whizzing past him. But then, the flames detached from her fist, hurtling towards him like a meteor.
Yunosuke raised his shield, bracing for impact. The fire crashed against it, sending a shower of sparks into the air. He felt the heat sear his arm, the ice on his shield melting rapidly. He cursed under his breath but kept his focus. Kana wasn't finished.
With a fierce stomp, she drove her foot into the ground, thrusting her arms upward. A flash of déjà vu struck Yunosuke, and he knew he had only a split second to react. He launched sideways, narrowly evading a towering pillar of flame that erupted where he had just stood.
"It's over," Kana declared, her voice cold and confident. She spread her fingers wide, and five streams of fire spiralled out, zigzagging through the air before locking onto Yunosuke.
His eyes darted to the nearby water source. Too far. He bit back a curse and broke into a sprint, every muscle in his body straining for speed. The flames pursued him relentlessly, their heat nipping at his heels.
Kana smirked, her eyes tracking his every move. She knew exactly where he was headed. With a swift motion, she aimed her palm right at the water source, readying a jet of flames.
. . .
The wind blew through the trees as Fuji and Ran exchanged rapid blows. Fuji deflected Ran's punches, putting everything he had into each move while channelling the wind around their fists to enhance their strength.
"HAH…" Fuji exhaled, stepping back and pushing with a powerful gust of wind.
"As if," Ran replied, taking a step forward. The wind carried him back toward Fuji, his fist aimed directly at Fuji's chest.
"AHH!" Fuji turned to the side, his back facing the punch, and swung his elbow at Ran.
Ran brought his hand up to catch the elbow, but Fuji halted his elbow just before Ran could react to it. In a swift move, he grabbed Ran's extended arm with his other hand and yanked him off balance. Fuji swung Ran downward using the momentum, slamming him into the ground.
Without hesitation, Fuji followed up with a powerful kick. The force of the blow sent Ran crashing through dozens of trees, the splintering wood echoing through the forest.
"I should've learned Jin's running method... this would've been over by now," Fuji admitted. Ran was still airborne, and Fuji sprinted alongside him. With a fierce shout, he swung a powerful punch aimed at Ran's kidney.
Just as his fist was about to connect, a somewhat invisible force deflected the punch with remarkable precision. Fuji's arm was thrown off course, the shock of the deflection reverberating through his body. As he landed, the swirling air around him transformed into razor-sharp Wind Blades, slicing their way toward Fuji with deadly precision.
"AISH!" Fuji punched his fists together, conjuring a swirling windshield blocking the incoming slashes. The wind barrier was nearly impenetrable.
Ran's hand had a ring formed that started to spin at high speeds, his winds swirling in the opposite direction of Fuji's shield. Calm and relentless, he walked toward Fuji, the opposing winds creating a visible tension in the air. Fuji, taken aback, held his stance, but the sight of Ran's advance was unsettling.
Without warning, Ran's fist shot forward, driving into Fuji's gut with brutal force. Fuji was launched backwards, propelled by the impact. As he hurtled through the air, his shield dissipated, the force of his flight tearing apart everything in his path.
BOOM!
He crashed into a wall with a deafeningly loud impact, creating a crater as he slumped.
"Ahh... Pain…" he groaned, clutching his abdomen and wincing before seeing two familiar faces ahead of him.
"YUNOSUKE!" he shouted as he saw the jet of flame approaching.
Reacting quickly, Fuji swung his arms out towards the flames, then back towards himself, creating a gust of wind that curved the fire towards him. Yunosuke leapt into the water, narrowly escaping the redirected flames.
"ARGHHHH!!!" Fuji yelled, channelling his anger into a powerful punch, redirecting the wind towards Ran. Still swirling with intensity, Ran's shield caught the fire, causing it to spiral around him. Ran sent the winds and fire hurtling back at Fuji with a fierce punch.
Undeterred, Fuji dashed towards Ran, narrowly dodging the flame by a hair's breadth. He closed the distance and aimed a punch at Ran. Seeing the danger, Kana dashed towards Fuji, using a speed boost from the flames. But against an air manacian, it wasn't enough. Fuji made contact, sending Ran flying back into the forest.
"I'm coming for you, Kana!" Fuji shouted, his eyes burning with determination.