"Yes!" Azer pumped his fist in the air.
"Hmph." Bernard shook his head. "Leon is sadly a one-trick pony. Without his superspeed slaps, he is a pretty average fighter."
"Quite harsh words coming from you; he is still your student, isn't he?" Azer stated, but he was not surprised by his rival's words.
"It is called constructive criticism," Bernard retorted. "How can they grow stronger if they can't handle even that?"
Azer scoffed. "Well, it looks like my school has the upper hand. Nath is also in very good condition."
"Hah, if you think that, you're truly foolish." Bernard simply shrugged.
On stage, Leon had woken up from his unconscious state and waltzed off the platform with a bloodied face. His nose was facing the wrong way, and he was clearly in a lot of pain.
"Do you need to see a doctor?" Madigan asked.
"No, I am good…" Leon sat down on the bench and put a towel over his head to hide his face. 'Damn it, I am pathetic…'
"Irio High, bring forth your next fighter!" Rio's shout echoed from the platform.
"Shura," Madigan said. "You're up."
"Mm~" Shura hummed to herself and excitedly hopped on her feet. She then skipped up the steps and arrived at the top of the platform.
Without further ado, Irio High's supporters erupted in cheers. Young men and women waved their banners and flags, creating a sea of school colors.
"Shura, Shura, Shura, Shura!"
The echo of her name resounded throughout the stadium. She was an extremely popular person in her school, a fame that even superseded Kang's.
She was an internet persona with a massive following. With her quirky and adorable personality, she had captured the hearts of people all around New Rakuya.
That's why her nickname was Queen of Irio, Shura Young!
"Let's have a good match!" Shura hopped in one spot like an energetic bunny.
'Shura Young…' Nath moved to his fighting stance. 'A formidable opponent.'
"The next match is between Shura Young and Nathaniel Waters…" Rio raised his arm high and swung it down. "FIGHT!"
As usual, Nath made the first move. He dashed to close the distance and threw a quick jab towards Shura's face. It wasn't that strong of an attack, but he threw it to gauge how Shura would react.
Several young men from Irio High booed loudly. They didn't like that Nath went straight for the face. It was as if it were blasphemy to try to hit her beautiful face.
Shura's knees bent slightly. It looked like she was crouching. However, then she sprang up like a coil and jumped over Nath with a graceful flip.
Nath stopped his attack and immediately did a horse-kick backwards. It was one of the most powerful kicks in his arsenal, but Shura turned sideways and let the kick just slide past her with a smile on her face.
Nath stomped his feet down to the ground. He moved into a horse stance. It was a stance where his balance was low and his legs were spread wide apart.
Then he pulled back his right arm and punched forward with all his strength. At the same moment, from his elbow to his hand, his arm started stretching like rubber.
It increased his range and made his punch even more powerful.
Shura put her hand forward and placed her slender finger against the incoming fist. The punch stopped instantly, unable to move any further.
'What?!' Nath's eyes widened in shock.
At that moment, his entire arm turned numb, and he lost control of the arm. It was as if Shura had somehow paralyzed him with just a touch.
"Oh, your skin feels weird." Shura giggled. "It almost has a rubbery feel to it. It feels so strange~"
The crowd erupted in shocked cheers. They were utterly stunned. The slender-bodied Shura somehow managed to stop the physically stronger Nath with just a single finger.
"That was not strength," Ryan said with a serious look. "There's one pressure point she can use on the hand. Her nail dug into his skin and pressed against the nerve, causing him to lose all feeling in his arm.
"That's the power of Tri-Mor-Art, but the way Shura is using it is very masterful. I don't think even I can do it, even if I train for twenty years."
"This is bad." Jin said with a serious look. "For the rest of the match, Nath can't use his right arm!"
Klaus and Timothy nervously watched as Nath backed away from Shura with his arm dangling beside him. It was like his arm was made of jelly. It was just dangling uselessly at his side.
'She reminds me of a certain someone.' Kiernan thought, remembering a certain man back on Earth. 'He also used pressure points. He was an annoying opponent because I didn't know how to counter it back then, but now it's a piece of cake.'
Shura rushed in and attacked Nath with her fingers. She wasn't using her fists, but only her fingers. It was still a formidable threat, and Nath had to do everything in his power to dodge them.
Nath looked grim-faced as he again backed down to the edge. There was a possibility of him doing the same thing to Shura as he did with Leon—grab her arm and force her into close-quarters combat.
However, he quickly dropped that idea.
It was because it was very unlikely that the same trick would work twice. Also, he was scared of Shura's close-quarters capabilities. She didn't need to use any strength to use her Tri-Mor-Art, so it would be even easier for her to use it from a close range.
The only advantage Nath had was his superior attacking range with his unique physique.
'Don't think, just move!' Nath's form became more steady. 'Some times, against opponents like this, instincts are the only way to win.'
Shura's two fingers stabbed through the air, heading towards several of Nath's pressure points.
In that moment, Nath ducked underneath Shura's attack and threw a punch with his left hand towards her face. It was thrown from a low stance, which made his posture quite shaky, but there was still great power behind it.
Shura suddenly spun her body around, which caused the punch to just slide from her cheek and miss her completely.
She then looked like she slipped as her feet left contact with the ground, but shockingly, she threw a bicycle kick and landed a direct hit on Nath's head.
Nath crashed on the ground head-first with a loud thud. It was a scary sound that left everyone frozen in shock.
Shura landed back on her feet and moved her hair out of her face, revealing a cute smile. Her agility was insane; it was like she made a joke out of gravity.
"1!" Rio started the countdown. Nath had to stand up in ten seconds, or he would lose. "2."
The crowd awaited with bated breaths. Karuza High's supporters shouted loudly for Nath to stand up.
Jin, Klaus, and Timothy screamed in unison.
"3…"
Nath was still not moving.
"4…"
He was like a frozen statue on the ground.
"5…"
The blood started flowing from underneath him. It was clear that he was injured, at least.
"6…"
The screams from supporters of Karuza High turned desperate.
"7…"
Irio High's supporters looked thrilled. They were certain that the victory was theirs.
"8…"
Shura smiled and started waving towards the crowd, thanking them for their support."
"9…" Rio said out loud, and he was about to finish the countdown.
At that moment, Nath, who had been quiet since the start of the countdown, slowly stood up. It was so sudden that everyone turned to look at him in surprise.
"Ptui…" Nath spat out blood from his mouth and turned to Shura, then wiped the blood from his nose. "I was just catching my breath."
"Oh~" Shura grinned with a sharp look. "You should've stayed down~!"
"Nath!" Klaus and Timothy cheered him on from the sidelines.
'That kick sure hurt; what the hell was that?' Nath laughed to himself. 'What a monstrous agility. She reminds me of a certain someone.'
He looked towards the sidelines, where his close friend, Ryan, sat with a stoic look on his face.
'If I hadn't fought Ryan daily during our training, I would probably be more shaken.' Nath looked straight at Shura. 'I have fought bigger monsters than you.'