{Date: 10/12 - Wednesday}
{Time: 1:30 PM}
I stepped out into the Mock Battle Arena with Saito and looked around, noticing everyone in the arena conversing with one another. We began making our way toward Yumeji and Kikyo, seeing they were talking with Yusa and Sayoko. Yusa noticed us, a warm smile playing on her face.
"Ahh Hisumi, I'm glad you could make it!~ Now I can watch you fight up close and see if you learned any of our Familia Techniques~" Yusa smiled, watching as I sat next to her.
"I don't think I have, I can't really tell. But, I do know that I will do my best out here. I've gotta get stronger so I can one day make my dream into a reality," I said, staring at the ground intensely. I grunted as I felt Yusa's arm wrap around me.
"Don't focus too much on one thing, sweetheart. The time will come for that...for now just make friends and enjoy your time," Yusa spoke warmly to me, her tone soft and soothing.
Cherry watched me and scoffed lightly, leaning back against the bleachers. "I'll show her...you don't accomplish anything with just handouts. You've gotta work for your place on the chopping block..."
Berry glanced at Cherry, letting out a soft exhale. "Sis, it's not that serious. Sure, she's an honorary B Rank, but you gotta remember that's The Hisumi Nomura from Judgement. The Top Agent, Hazuki's Right Hand."
"Tch...Sure, she might've be the Infamous Right Hand of Hazuki before, but she's in our territory now. She probably thinks she's truly earned her spot, but I'm here to rain on that parade. Or maybe even burn it down," Cherry seethed, her eyes glowing with a burning determination.
We waited for the Mock Battles to begin, and soon, Liao Ru walked out onto the middle of the battlefield. We all grew silent, turning our attention toward her so she could go over the official rules.
"Alright, thank you all for coming to our Mock Battle Session! Today, Free for All Rules! You choose your opponent and you go one round with them. The victorious will get one point. The first to five points wins! During these battles, all forms of combat are permitted and you must wear your battlesuit to prevent physical wounds from weapons," Liao Ru announced, crossing her arms and glanced at me.
"Stigmas are allowed to use, but Death Property, Time Erasure, and Sloth Mode are banned," Liao Ru said, looking at me, Ambrosia, and Sumi.
We all nodded at Liao Ru, understanding the rules and conditions. I looked around the stadium, seeing everyone's determined expression. As I glanced around, I noticed Cherry shooting me a glare. I rose an eyebrow toward her then returned her glare with my own.
Cherry's body instinctively shivered from my gaze, but she kept her gaze firm and unwavering. 'I can't believe I trembled at her glare...it's that stupid title, The Top Agent.'
'She was at the top of the chain at Judgement...suffered the worst for sure. But, here...her ways of climbing the ranks don't work here. I don't know much of her fighting style but I do know that I will not let her get a single point!' Cherry thought, nodding to herself.
"Alright, let the first round commence! This generator will automatically generate a name from all of our participants. Whoever comes up must pick their opponents for the first round!" Liao Ru said, pressing a button on the remote then looked at the screen.
The screen began cycling through the named quickly until stopping on a name. We read the name, the first person that was picked was Cherry.
Cherry smirked and stood up, pointing at me. "Hisumi! You're first on my list, it's time for you to learn your place!"
I stared at Cherry then stood up slowly, placing a hand on my shoulder. I glanced at Genesis and nodded at her then she nodded back. I made my way onto the battlefield with confidence. "Showtime.."
Liao Ru watched us take our places on the battlefield, raising her hand and blew her whistle, the sound echoing into the air. "The first match will be between Cherry and Hisumi! Ladies, test your wills. Begin!"
Once Liao Ru blew the whistle, the arena around us began to shift into an vast forest battlefield. I looked around, surprised by how real the battlefield looked, the sounds of nature filling the air.
{Battlefield: Verdant Forest}
{Opponent: Cherry Gemina}
Cherry stared at me, summoning her greatsword and allowed the grippers of her tail to hold her blade. She got into her stance, her eyes glowing with determination. 'It's time for you to learn your place!'
Without hesitation, Cherry dashed toward me, using the trees to gain more momentum then spun around, using her tail to swing her greatsword at a wide arc. I looked back, noticing the greatsword flying toward me. I ducked under the blade, hearing it slicing through multiple trees at once.
I immediately dashed toward her, launching a straight punch, but Cherry blocked it with ease, pushing me back and threw a cross. I evaded her strike, landing a shovel hook to her jaw to disorientate her. Noticing she was staggered, I capitalized off it, charging up my leg with Spirit Energy then struck her with a thunderous kick.
Cherry groaned as my kick knocked her back, sending her rolling along the ground. She recovered upon one knee, sliding backwards. She stood up slowly, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "Hmph...I suppose you wouldn't be called Top Agent for nothing with those skills. However, that's the only compliment you'll get from me.."
I stared at Cherry, getting into my neutral stance and scoffed lightly. "What's all this truly about? That I'm rising to the top so quickly? There's a reason I am. You may have Judgement Knowledge...but you haven't seen the things I've seen or know anything that I know."
"That's not the point! The point is I worked my ass off to get here, to get as strong as I did! Then you show up and become B Rank within a month..." Cherry said, her voice dripping with venom.
I stared at her for a moment, readying myself for battle then awakened my Spirit Energy, lightning crackling around my body. "If your goal is to put me in my place...then do that. Show me where I stand..."
Cherry grit her teeth, her body heating up with passion from my challenge. Without a second thought, Cherry rushed toward me with a battle cry, grabbing her sword with an intensity that could make one shudder. I summoned my katana, dashing forward, meeting her halfway at near invisible speeds.
The two of us bellowed, swinging our swords and clashing, our energies colliding and releasing a burst of energy around us. I grunted as I was the one to be knocked back first, dodging the next series of slashes from her sword before being able to counter her with a parry.
'She's going to capitalize with a slash, a good leg sweep will knock her off balance,' Cherry began to analyze, turning her body to place her hands on the ground then went for a sweep kick.
I turned my leg to guard against her kick, surprising her then I kicked her stomach, knocking her upwards then slashed through her within a blink of an eye.
"Yukota Technique: Seven Decrees," I said as I sheathed my katana, activating the technique.
Suddenly, two delayed slashes struck Cherry, staggering her and breaking her Defenses slightly. She grunted softly, falling onto one knee and coughed. I scoffed at myself for only achieving two slashes instead of the full seven.
"Well, well...who knew your Bloodline would be masters of Iaijutsu and Iaido?" Orishi teased, smiling as she watched the match so far.
Yusa giggled, enjoying Orishi's soft teasing, her gaze mainly focused on me. She couldn't help but to feel her pride swelling inside her as I used her techniques. 'She's actually using my Seven Decrees. Landing two slashes is impressive, but to get that Spirit Boost, she needs to hit all seven...'
Cherry stood up slowly, grunting softly and turned around to face me, grunting softly as she noticed my predatory stare. My eyes began to glow, faint aura in gradiants of blue and yellow flowing from my eyes.
"Tch...don't get too comfortable that you were able to land such an attack on me... You just caught me off guard..!" Cherry scoffed, dusting herself off and huffed softly.
"Excuses. There is a difference between you and me, Cherry... Subject Delta," I said, my tone dropping low and becoming authoritative.
Cherry gasped softly as I mentioned her subject name, her body shuddering at the faint memories. She clenched her fist slightly, her body tensing greatly from my gaze. I now had her full attention.
"I've been able to read your moves from the start...I know you. Your fighting style, your mannerisms. After all, we were a part of the same organization. However, you may be strong but Perception always beats Strength," I said, Spirit Energy flowing around my eyes.
There were a few impressed looks across the stadium that spectated the battle. My act impressed Liao Ru and Misao, the two of them giving a nod of praise at the sight of raw Spirit Control.
"By focusing one's Spirit Energy into their eyes, they can boost their Perception for as long as they have Spirit Energy and stamina. I may not know the importance of a Valkyria like you do...but I was raised off Fundamentals. Bread and Butter as my father would say," I said, my tone dripping with confidence.
Cherry noticed me making my katana disappear, feeling a different shift in energy around us. She stood still for a moment, noticing the sounds of nature had stopped, silence filling the air save for my feet hopping up and down on the grass.
I took a deep breath, red energy surrounding my body. With a simple step, I appeared in front of Cherry, delivering a thunderous blow to her face, lightning flashing upon impact. Cherry groaned as she began crashing through multiple trees.
{Type CHANGE: Speedster -> Attack}
{DMG UP! 20%}
{Burst DMG UP! 20%}
{Survivability DOWN! 20%}
{Agility DOWN! 15%}
"A Type Change? Wait, we can do that?!" Yumeji perplexed, in udder awe of what I accomplished.
Ambrosia licked her lips and hummed an impressed tune. "Ohh..~ This one knows her stuff. Type Change very few actually do. Shifting your attributes to gain situational advantage."
"Type Change doesn't see very much play taken each Valkyria has a preferred type. The only ones who do Type Change, have no preferred types like me," Sayoko said, humming with approval of my Type Change.
"Heh! Type Change is actually very fun. You can even become Hybrid Types like Ambrosia. Since you don't have much experience with other types, your boosts aren't that great compared to you being downgraded in other areas," Genesis explained, hovering beside me.
I nodded, looking at my hand then balled it into a fist, noticing red energy flowing around my body. "When I changed my Type, I did expend Spirit Energy to change. Interesting, I can't just use Type Change consistently."
Cherry groaned as she stood up from some rubble, holding her cheek and stared at me. 'What was that..? Why did nature grow quiet before she struck me?'
I looked ahead at Cherry, hopping up and down then dashed forward, using the trees to gain more momentum for my swift tornado kick. Cherry noticed my kick, immediately alerted and evaded my kick. We began blocking and parrying each other's strikes until Cherry tossed me over her shoulder.
We set back to neutral, sizing each other up for a second. Cherry stood on guard, stepping back then swung her tail with her grippers flying toward my face. I swayed from from the gripper, rushing toward her at high speeds and struck her chest, sending a pulse throughout her body.
'Pressure Strike...ruptures the targets pressure points and energy points, potential cancelling their aura flow for a few moments. She's well trained in Martial Arts...' Liao Ru thought, watching my battle against Cherry more closely, analysing each move.
"C'mon Cherry! You got this! Don't let her just hit you with a Pressure!" Erika motivated, cheering on for Cherry.
"Go Hisumi! Get 'er girl!" Yumeji cheered, clapping her hands.
'Tch...maybe she can read all of my moves. I guess I should go back to my old Bread and Butter,' She thought, getting into her stance and moved around me.
I watched her closely then rushed forward with a strike, but she blocked it, swiping her arm to push me away then launched a strike to force me into block. She noticed my position then used her other arm to launch a strike as well, baiting me to dodge then used her tail to strike me without me noticing.
I staggered, stumbling back then shook my head, evading her other strikes then groaned as her tail struck my gut, catching me off guard. She smirked and dashed forward, leaping into the air then struck me with an axe kick. She wrapped her tail around my body, flinging me to the sky and onto the ground.
"Yeah! Just like that!" Erika cheered, clapping her hands.
"Oof, that's gonna leave a nasty mark there," Kikyo said, covering her mouth and winced at the instant replay of Cherry's counter.
Cherry watched me for a moment, wiping the sweat from under her chin and smirked. "Hmph...I guess you couldn't handle my Evasion Strike! You can't stop what you can't see! Speed always beats Perception."
I stood up slowly, yellow energy surrounding my body and lightning began crackling around me. My eyes began to shine yellow, my Spirit Energy pulsing a volatile force around my body. Cherry grunted softly at my increased power level.
{Type CHANGE: Attack -> Speedster}
{DMG DOWN! 15%}
{Burst DMG DOWN! 15%}
{Survivability UP! 10%}
{Agility UP! 25%}
"That was a good hit, and I believe I should return the favor. Prepare yourself, Cherry. Let's see how good your perception is," I said, walking forward, lightning surging through my body.
Cherry noticed lightning flashing, a flash from one of the bolts temporarily blinding her. Before she could react, I knocked her away with a thunderous strike, sending her flying backwards. I rushed after her at lightning speeds, surrounding my arm in lightning energy.
Cherry recovered quickly, evading my strikes then feinted her attack, using her Evasion Strike with her tail. I noticed a slight distortion in the air from the corner of my eyes, but wasn't fast enough to evade it, taking a strike to my jaw.
Cherry smirked and rushed forward with another Evasion Strike, aiming her strike to my face. "And take another!"
I opened my eyes, using Spirit Energy to enhance my sight, allowing me to see the distortion in the air. I knew I couldn't dodge in time, so I took on a guarding stance, blocking the strike. Cherry looked a bit surprised, taking a step back.
"How...?" She began, only mustering up one word.
"I noticed your Evasion Strike has illusive properties. When using that strike, you lower your own Perception so much that you can't even sense it anymore thus the invisible effect," I began, crossing my arms as I stared at her.
"However, your attack is so fast it distorts the air, sparks of Spirit Energy. With high enough Perception, you're able to see the unseen," I finished, getting into my stance again.
"That's the Top Agent for you. There's a reason Hisumi was the Right Hand. She doesn't grow her strength as the battle drags, her IQ does. She analyzes her opponents," Berry said, catching the attention of Ambrosia.
Ambrosia glanced back at me with a wider smirk, humming softly to herself. She watched more carefully, noticing my calm and focused gaze. "A fighter who's IQ raises the longer the fight goes on. Now that's different from the typical strength boost over time."
Cherry growled lowly at me, dashing toward me at blazing speeds. "I won't be made a mockery by a D Rank!"
I dashed forward, my eyes scanning her body to predict how she would move. Cherry launched her first strike, but I slipped out of range, landing a clean counter to her jaw. Cherry staggered, but regained her balance, throwing her next strike, but I leaned back to evade it.
I began dodging each of her attacks, knowing her Evasion Strike would eventually come out. Cherry grunted with frustration from each missed strike, finally launching her tail to strike me. I noticed the distortion in the air, the sparks of Spirit Energy aimed at my cheek.
I caught her grippers, smirking at Cherry as I began to push her tail back. "Getting desperate aren't we?"
I pushed her back then began rushing her with lightning speed attacks, each blow sending pulses around her body. Cherry groaned as my last attack knocked her away, sending her rolling backwards. She recovered and stood up, hearing the sounds of nature stop, the bushes rustling as I moved within them at top speed.
'I can't keep up...she's so fast, but something about her. All of her attacks were aimed at energy points...' Cherry thought, waiting for the moment I struck, her eyes darting around her surroundings.
I rushed toward, my body a blur as I rushed toward Cherry. Cherry sensed me using her Spirit Sense then stepped back enough for me to miss then launched her Evasion Strike immediately, knocking me into a tree.
I held the back of my head, grunting lightly and looked up at Cherry, realizing she evaded my Quick Attack. I smirked at her, slowly standing up and dusted myself off. Cherry smirked at me as well, her tail swaying behind her.
The gentle wind blew, the silence hanging high around the arena. I got into my stance again, dashing toward Cherry and launched a strike, but Cherry evaded it swiftly. The two of us began entering a fiery hand to hand combat, dodging and countering one another.
I parried Cherry's next attack, flipping her over Mt shoulders, but she stuck the landing and knocked me back with a fiery side kick. She rushed toward me with a bellow, throwing her attack at me. I recovered quickly and clashed with her.
"I won't let you beat me! You don't deserve a single point!" Cherry bellowed, pushing me away with her aura, entering her Burst Mode then began to used her tail to generate an orb of energy at its center.
I gripped my wrist, channelling my energy into my hand, lightning crackling around it then began surging around it. "I'll beat you and show you I deserve to be here!"
I launched myself forward, bellowing as I neared her with my attack. Cherry waited for me to get closer, charging her attack fully then released a powerful beam of fire energy at me. Thrusting my hand forward, I began slicing through the beam, charging toward Cherry. The pressure of the beam slowed me down, damaging my body the further I went.
Soon, a massive explosion happened, filling the area we were in with smoke. Everyone watched with anticipation, waiting for the smoke to clear. The smoke began to part and clear, revealing the aftermath of the clash.
Liao Ru watched closely, noticing Cherry still standing and me defeated on the ground. She held her hand out toward Cherry. "Battle Over! Cherry wins one point!"
Cherry panted heavily, staring at me and wiped away her sweat. "Welcome...to B Rank, Rookie..."
I panted as I laid on the grass, catching my breath and slowly sat up, looking around and noticed the smiles of the others around me, impressed by my first Mock Battle. With my pride still intact, even though I lost I knew I had at least made my name known as the Honorary B Rank.