[center][h2][color=BFBFBF]Zenkichi Hasegawa[/color][/h2]
Esaka, The Tiered City- Pools
Lvl 9 [color=BFBFBF]Zenkichi[/color] (89/90)  -> Lvl 10 (2/100) 
Word count: 1,709 words[/center]



As their second round began, Iron Monk charged forward and leaned into a double fist strike. Zenkichi blocked, sending out a low probing kick which Iron Monk jumped, kicking Zenkichi in the chest with his own foot. Grunting, Zenkichi forced Iron Monk back with a wild swing of his Greatsword. He planted the weapon in the ground and taunted, gesturing for Iron Monk to ‘come and get it.’ The monk hopped back, paused, brought his hands to his chin, and swept them down his body as he exhaled, expelling his negative emotions with a sigh. 

And caught a punch to that same chin, which earned a hiss from Zenkichi at the dull throb in his hand. [color=BFBFBF]”Not my best idea, but if you really want to see me win with ‘honor’, I’ll humor you. But I’m not going to lose to give you a sense of fair play.”[/color] Iron Monk, wisely, did not take the bait this time, instead launching himself forward in a corkscrew. Zenkichi ducked the blow, catching the steely gray warrior by the leg and violently slamming him onto the ground before grabbing him, pulling his leg into his grasp and stomping Iron Monk’s other knee, pulling his legs apart. 

It didn’t take Iron Monk long to break the grip, but when he did, Zenkichi hopped back rather than get caught in a reversal, keeping his gaze locked on his opponent. Iron Monk returned to neutral, but stood in place and met Zenkichi’s gaze. He would lose if the time ended, having taken more hits this round. The men sized each other up for at least a good five seconds, which was sure to make for riveting viewing for the audience. 

Eventually, Iron Monk must have found his target, because he advanced rapidly, sliding into a low kick before following up with a four-hit combo. Zenkichi met the kick with his own, but was caught off guard at the combo, only putting up a guard by the third hit. He immediately retaliated once the combo ended, which Iron Monk dodged, slamming an elbow into Zenkichi’s back before launching himself into the air in a whirling tornado, his body rotating with his arms outstretched. 

The number of individual hits was nearly uncountable, and Zenkichi was launched a good ten feet back, near the edge of the platform. The combo into Chi Helicopter had him on his last legs, but if he could force a ring out, Zenkichi could still take the round. Rising, he took a defensive stance, not blocking but intentionally showing his weakness.

Iron Monk could see that Zenkichi was close to down for the round, but rather than wait out the timer, continued forward. There would be no honor in winning by a technicality, by merely the rules that their overlords had placed upon them. He had chosen Tekken for its simplicity, its purity. He would [i]fight[/i] and win, not simply win. As he approached, however, he made probing strikes and simple hits, wary of being caught mid-combo and knocked out of the ring. 

Zenkichi avoided and blocked the light, probing strikes that Iron Monk sent his way, only offering a couple of spacing jabs himself to keep Iron Monk from committing to any attacks that could prove difficult to manage. He wouldn’t go for a corkscrew this close to the edge, but if he could get Iron Monk to go for a grab, Zenkichi was sure he could turn the situation to his advantage. 

Iron Monk went for a low kick to try and trip Zenkichi, but the Phantom Thief sidestepped the blow and retaliated with a one-two punch combo, terribly executed and easily avoided. It was much sloppier than his other attacks, though the monk could not tell if this was intentional or out of desperation, the timer rapidly approaching zero. He retaliated with a double-fist punch into a high kick then spin-kick combo, all of which Zenkichi blocked resolutely. He kept his guard up, which Iron Monk sought to capitalize on, sending out a three-hit strike combo which was also blocked. 

And finally, the moment Zenkichi was waiting for: the grab. Iron Monk reached forward with both arms, seeking to grab Zenkichi’s torso. He dropped his guard as soon as he recognized the grab, punching Iron Monk in the nose, comboing it with a quick kick, and crouching to grab Iron Monk by the waist. He stood to full height, carrying the monk up, and threw him behind and over his shoulder, dropping his opponent into the water just behind them. 

Making his way back to his Greatsword, Zenkichi dismissed the weapon with a sigh, looking over at Iron Monk as he climbed back onto the platform. “Hmmph. It is not what I would have hoped for, but you fought wisely, taking advantage of your surroundings. I believe I would have won if this battle did not use such rules as allowing a displacement, but these rules are what I agreed to. It is no matter. I will overcome, and show you the depths of my resolve!” 

Zenkichi nodded, taking a deep breath. [color=BFBFBF]”No argument there. Now, let me show you the depths of [i]my[/i]resolve.”[/color] Summoning the Hero’s Sword, he closed his eyes and offered yet another silent apology to Konoe. Iron Monk’s eyes narrowed at Zenkichi pulling [i]another[/i] new weapon, this one seeming to radiate heat off it, but he steeled his mind. He would fight, and fight honorably, no matter what his opponent pulled out. 

As the third round started, Iron Monk started with his flying double kick, carrying him high towards Zenkichi. He dropped out of it just outside Zenkichi’s range, feinting with a jab before launching a high kick which caught Zenkichi on the chin. He didn’t just take the hit, though, cementing his footing and slashing at Iron Monk’s torso with his red-hot sword, earning a hiss of pain that forced the monk backwards. His mouth twitched as he nearly spoke out again, but his brow furrowed and he sighed, instead launching into his favored combo. 

Zenkichi blocked, weathering the combo like a champ, but got caught off guard by the low kick Iron Monk added at the end, his lead leg sliding back. Iron Monk kicked again to capitalize on the weak stance, but Zenkichi thrust his weapon forward into the monk’s chest, forcing both back a step and giving them a chance to fix their own stances. They both took advantage of the momentary pause in aggression, but Zenkichi broke it first, stepping forward with a thrust that he combo’d into a slow swing. Iron Monk easily evaded, but when Zenkichi thrust the weapon again, it suddenly lengthened and smacked into his chest, prompting a grunt of surprise. 

Iron Monk threw caution to the wind. He couldn’t let Zenkichi keep the tempo, so he launched forward in a corkscrew which caught Zenkichi, forcing him back. He combo’d into a hook, followed by a lunging thrust punch, which Zenkichi parried with his sword and countered with brutal a slash which erupted in flames, catching both fighters by surprise. 

[center][hider=New Ability for Zenkichi!][b]Counter[/b] (Vanguard)- A fairly slow-starting counter move, Zenkichi hoists his melee weapon (Or blocks with his fists if unarmed) to block and negate a blow with a roughly half-second window, retaliating with a heavy punishing counter that adds blue flames to its blow, adding fire damage to the strike[/hider][/center]

Iron Monk was launched a few feet by the blow, rolling to his feet, only to register the surprise in Zenkichi’s face, even as he returned to neutral. “To think I was only a stepping stone on your journey to growth. Hmmph. Prove to me that your way is the path of justice, then! There is still time in our fight, and I am not done yet!” 

Zenkichi let out a huff of a laugh, taking a fencer’s pose with the Hero’s Sword. [color=BFBFBF]”Fine by me.”[/color] He moved in with a pair of testing slashes which Iron Monk easily avoided, then swung low with a step forward, catching Iron Monk’s legs and tripping him up. He rolled to evade the follow-up overhead slash, then hummed when he saw that Zenkichi had taken the moment of escape to swap weapons, having returned to Ragnell, the blade he recalled could send blasts of energy with each swing. 

Rather than block, he evaded each wave of energy that Ragnell sent forth, looking for the moment to strike. When Zenkichi went for another swing, he moved. A side-step was followed by a leaping jump kick, sending Zenkichi tumbling back, head over heels. As he tried to rise, Iron Monk charged, only to ‘tsk’ and dive to the side as he saw the glint of steel that heralded Zenkichi’s revolver. Only a single shot rang out, but Zenkichi had the time he needed to rise again, quickly replacing the single fired bullet as he turned to the monk, spinning his revolver as he drew the other. 

Iron Monk was forced to run and dodge, evading a carefully-fired storm of bullets, catching at least three hits to his chest and gut. He groaned as the barrage ended, dropping to a knee and breathing heavily. 

Zenkichi approached warily, but Iron Monk rose before he could get close, jumping into his floating double-kick attack. Zenkichi blocked, lashing out with a horizontal slash as Iron Monk landed, knocking him back. He rolled onto his hands and pushed up, taking a mobile stance before rushing forward, sending out his four-hit combo which Zenkichi blocked. 

Zenkichi grabbed out with a single hand, catching Iron Monk on the shoulder, and smacked Ragnell's pommel into his nose, following it up with a descending cross slash. Iron Monk stumbled back as Zenkichi stepped forward and hefted Ragnell, blade aimed downward. He punched Zenkichi twice, once in the chest and once the face, but the swordsman tanked the blows with nary a flinch, causing Iron Monk’s face to fall in realization: superarmor. He backstepped a moment too late, an explosion emanating from the blade as it plunged into the raft below them, and he was launched across the arena yet again. 

Even without a full charge, the Eruption was enough to finish off Iron Monk, and a gentle wind pushed against Zenkichi, edging him away from the fallen opponent, who lay on the ground, groaning in defeat. A flaming “K.O.” appeared, signaling the end of the match, and Zenkichi stood straight after dismissing his weapon, offering Iron Monk a bow of respect before leaving the arena.