Taiku vs. Martin

[Dain Gavyns]

This time we're using a perennial favorite, you're all fighting in a refurbished gym owned by Dain himself for the sole purpose of this league, in a twist on the ol' Cage-Match idea.

Two domed steel cages, connected together by a path just seven feet high and three and a half feet wide, just big enough to allow the largest contest to pass comfortably. The crowd's all around the cage watching and cheering you on. The acoustics of the place are ridiculous, however, and it's going to get loud. Hope you can concentrate.

Have fun.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

ooc: Ya know, just once, it'd be nice to see a new Fighters League thread up for me, and to not be stuck having to post first...Still, round three, off we go.

ic:

Two rounds through, one no-show, and Taiku had yet to find a testing opponent in this league. There was no doubt he'd been both disappointed and annoyed at his last round being a forfeited victory, but on a slight compensation, he'd taken the extra time and lack of exertion to make some more preparations for his current bout. Hearing about the location had filled him with an elated sense of comfort, considering that when he'd spent time hiding in South America after fleeing Varron a few years ago he'd controlled a large portion of his upkeep and free time by competing in such enclosed fighting areas. Mostly it was basketball courts, cordoned off so the public couldn't get in, and whilst the cages were a fair bit smaller, they'd prove the same in the long run. Space was key for the Asian in combat, it provided the necessary manouvering room required for his agility to reap full benefit, and whilst the cages might remove some of that, they provided a secondary use to him.

His opponent would have nowhere to run. Taiku would have the opportunity to corner him present itself far more simply than any other fight, and he was fully prepared to exploit that very thing.

'This one had better show up...I'm in no mood to be kept waiting after last time....'

True to his word, Taiku was bearing a severe amount of physical excitement at the notion of this fight. It took a lot for him to relax his body completely, though for no other reason than his anticipation and keen desire to actually fight in this tournament for a change. His eyes fixed firmly on the cage door, he waited for his opponent to arrive...

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Tiao Lei Shen leaned back on his bench, relaxing his arms atop the stadium seat behind him as he gazed underneath the cap pulled low upon his face. Rolling his jaw, Tiao moved the toothpick from one side of his mouth to the other, continuing to chew the stick with increased agitation that was easily visible from his "silent rage" posture.

The chinese pillar had played around in his head the idea of joining the league himself. However, Tiao rarely sported the idea of sparring, let alone fighting for mere competition. He was a traditionalist, and when he fought he preferred to not pull his punches. In the end, Tiao decided there was no reason for him to join, though that didn't mean he didn't enjoy to watch these sort of fights.

In the last round, Tiao had taken extreme pride in watching Alkaiser, the newly appointed pillar, win his battle. Though his opponent had also fought well, Alkaiser showed some real promise, and Tiao was content with Darren and his own choice for the third pillar. The victory of Alkaiser's, which Tiao had also partaken in, only made the dissapointment for the current match increase. It wasn't even a match, as there had been a no show. Tiao waited several minutes, each moment growing with more distaste than the last.

"Tch. To hell with this."

Tiao spoke under his breath, low in volume though very clearly audible by those around him, despite the accoustics. Snapping to his feet, Tiao spit the toothpick out of his mouth. He moved to the aisle, briskly walking down the stairs down to the arena. He hopped over the small wall, moving around whatever possible limited security might be around.

Fixing his gaze upon the opposite side, Taiku probably would not have noticed Tiao entering the cage on his own side behind him, especially with the sound drowned out by the accoustics. Slowly, Tiao began to clap, the noise gaining its own echoing accoustics that began to silence a good portion of the crowd, as they were also interested in what was going on.

"Congratulations." Tiao said, gazing hard on Taiku when he would turn around to face him, slowing his clap to a halt. "Looks like you win by default. I heard your last opponent didn't show either. I dont know about them..." Tiao paused again, gesturing to the crowd before turning back to Taiku.

"But I'm not to keen on the idea with you walking away without a mark two times in a row."

Tiao slid his left foot out, bending his knees into a horse stance as he raised both hands into his renowned Northern Shaolin Tiger hand formation. It took a moment for the accoustics to work his voice around the arena, but coupled with his current body language, his message quickly spread through. A moment later, the crowd erupted into an outrageously loud cheer.

Pillar vs. Substitute Teacher, Round 2, was about to commence.

[Dain Gavyns]

WINNER: Taiku by disqualification.


I'm letting this new fight happen anyway, though. At least for a while.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

ooc: Oh, goodie, I'll actually GET to fight this round. ^^

ic:

A fist slammed against the mesh of the cage, a flash of real, genuine anger flaring through the older male in the cage as he paced...Once again, he'd been cursed with a no-show, and the grim expression on his face made it very clear that he was not, by any manner of means, pleased. Words would need to be had, that was for certain, and whilst he was willing to accept that a perfectly good reason existed for his opponents non-arrival, it made no concession for the fact that there'd been a suitable leeway of time given prior to the fight actually commencing.

"Y'know what? Fuck it."

Fully intent to storm from the cage with his mood suitably soured thanks to his tardy opponent, Taiku only had his attention regained by the sound of a pair of hands clapping behind him from, ironically, the cage door. Though a moment drew him to consider his actual opponent having just arrived rather unfashionably late, the face and clothing immediately betrayed otherwise, not even starting on the voice as it spoke, echoing his own sentiment, albeit in a more oblique manner.

"Don't take me so lightly, kid. I don't choose these bum opponents, and I sure as hell don't choose to be standing all dressed up with no place to go. However, if you're so keen to provide them...", his arm mimicking a similar gesture to that of Tiaos a moment or two before, "...with a show, then let's have a little fun. I'm sure you're just dying for another crack at me, after all."

As always, and with Tiao likely to recognise, Taiku took no notable stance. The only defined 'favoring' he showed was a slight lead with his right foot against the younger male, akin to that of the 'Haisui no jin'* stance, and though no points rested on this fight for the league anymore, Taiku set his mind into a fierce focus. The background noise, loud as it was, began to dim down to the proverbial 'dull roar' in the back of his head. He had his eyes set on the youth who'd gone out of his way to challenge him, and not the crowd nor the cage that separated them would have any part in interference. He paid no more attention to words, choosing instead to let his eyes work for him and to lip-read if it were necessary. Hardly a skill worthy of admiration on Taikus part, but when you spend more than half of your nights in a building that barely stayed below noise ordinance regulations you begin to make concessions for your hearing being rendered almost useless.

And so, as he watched the challenging Tiao before him, Taiku allowed the faintest hints of a grin creep onto the side of his mouth.


*For purists who'll curse my piss-poor effort of translation, it's simply a 'defenceless' stance. No hands raised, no clear sign of a guard present. The fact Taiku has a foot forward is why I simply consider it 'akin' to it.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Unlike their last encounter, the facial expression of Tiao Lei Shen didn't change in the slightest as Taiku spoke to him. Tiao had seen a lot of growth between today, and their last fight. He briefly thought of sharing his true thoughts to what Taiku had said, but only briefly. Instead, Tiao narrowed his gaze on Taiku who had formed his stance or rather, lack of.

"Hai."

Tiao would say, devoid of any real emotion in his voice or his expression. If words were to be exchanged, it could come later. Perhaps then Tiao would have a real conversation with his foreign language teacher. For now, the only thing the pillar cared to express was the need to earn what you're given. It was the strongest lesson Tiao had ever learned and he had no qualms about sharing it with others. Based on assumptions and rumors of Taiku Akimoto the japanese man was familiar with such a lesson. In the case that was true, Tiao was sure Taiku would appreciate the review all the more.

Quickly covering the short distance with a hop or two, Tiao would land in a short L shaped stance with his left foot in the lead. Tiao would snap his left hand in a palm strike towards his elder's nose. However, unlike most opening strikes Tiao's wrist would flick mere inches away from the face instantly twisting into a strike to the right side of Taiku's neck with the edge of the hand. If the old man had gotten rusty and the attack slipped through, it would strike the jugular vein, holding the capability of dropping him then and there.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

The exclamation from the younger of the two was enough for Taiku to register the youths actions as he began to move towards him. Whilst there was of course no doubt that Taiku would begin with his stance unguarded, it would be a childs error to believe that he would not make concessions for the efforts of his opponent. Tiao was fast, something to which Taiku gave high commendation, and between the pair it was what the fight would have always come down to. The elder of the pair, however, took great care in utilising the one thing which made his speed that much more effective; his natural insight.

The effort Tiao made to fire forward the palm strike would find the older of the pair shifting his body back a half pace into the movement, putting a valuable margin between them as the Chinese youths arm outstretched into his attack. His weight shifting to his left foot, his right forearm shooting out and across his body, striking the outside of Tiaos elbow with the palm. Though it would have worked equally effectively had it been a simple shot to the face, the extra twist the younger boy had made with the chop would likely cause the arm to already be in partial motion across his own body, considering it would not find its target as intended.

With the palm against Tiaos elbow intended to push the limb aside sharply, Taiku shot forward with his own left fist towards the lower section of the Chinese youths ribs in a clean, short punch, his body twisting slightly as his right foot remained leading with the shifting step inward. Baited breath kept fast, he made no effort to strike again immediately, fully expecting that his opponent would not take such a counterattack with no such effort on his own part. As such, his right arm remained ready to intercept a possible rogue swing that might come his way.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Taiku would parry Tiao's attack, coming as no surprise to the pillar. The elder man was a skilled fighter, that much Tiao would easily agree to. He had bested Tiao last time, given his usual temper it hadn't been hard to walk into the trap of someone Taiku's level. However, that was last time, and as the saying goes: Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. Tiao Lei shen had no desire to inflict shame upon himself.

As Tiao turned his hand, changing his angle of attack, Taiku reacted with an inside block. If Tiao had kept with the forward palm strike, his attack would merely have been deflected to the side of the japanese man's face. By blocking as he did, Taiku would inadvertantly increase the momentum to the arm. As a result, with a slight change of angle, Tiao's hand would move downwards in a chop Taiku's left forearm, deflecting the punch down and to the outside. Just as Taiku had keen natural insight, Tiao had always prided himself with his keen natural reactions.

Though the punch would be deflected away, it wouldn't have much power to it. Given Tiao's arm had already almost been fully extended it would have lost any effectiveness on attacking Taiku's limb. Instead, it would be more of a push of the shoulder muscles to clear the attack once it impacted. However, that didn't mean an offensive strike was out of the picture. As Tiao's arm moved downward and across with Taiku's punch, He would slide his left foot a bit closer to Taiku's front right foot.

Bending his knees slightly, Tiao would lower his center of gravity, dropping down to just below Taiku's height. Torquing to the right, Tiao's intentions were to move underneath Taiku's right blocking arm, moving upwards and in with his elbow to strike the right side of the man's ribs. Given Tiao had kept the same momentum throughout, continuing to move forward into Taiku, he would never have to slow down. Given Taiku's motions and body placement, Tiao had a fair chance of slipping under Taiku's guard and landing a solid blow.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

ooc: --Insert excuses for delays.-- Also, the opening section, though appearing moddish, is the result of a conversation between Tiao and meself.

ic:

Though the methods and intentions were both true and clear, the reach just wouldn't be enough for Tiao to strike the elder of the pairs arm as it breezed past before Taiku intended on making any movement. Had he been throwing the punch as he deflected Tiaos chop, it would not only have left him horribly off-balance, but he would have been brought closer to Tiao than he particularly desired to be.

With the punch having little in the way of defence to stop it striking, Taiku would move through with a half-step as the blow connected, his right arm held poised to intercept whatever wayward elbow might come his way. More the fool, it would seem, that he didn't bear in mind that despite the pair sharing almost identical heights and builds, Tiao would still make an effort to get closer into him. The shot to his ribs would invariably land on Taikus ribs, causing a short grunt to escape the elder Asian as he scowled a moment, his right arm dropping down and draping around Tiaos neck, sharply tightening his grip. True, the elbow shot would come from low enough that Taiku wouldn't be able to do much to prevent it, but Tiaos head would be higher than his elbow, and at this close range, it was a tantalising target for the elder of the pair.

Without so much as a blink of reaction, his left fist, still balled from the punch to the ribs, would snap up and towards Tiaos head. Not so much aiming on the sheer power of a wound back blow, the short, sharp crack would more than likely be enough to afford Taiku a seconds respite to do just that a moment later. As such, if the first punch went off without failure, he would cock back the fist a little more and fire it back at the youths head, a considerable deal harder than the previous one had been.

Topping it off, the pair held footwork that would make it difficult for either to be brought to the ground without a real struggle, and Taiku made full well he took advantage of that as his left foot edged back a little further.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Just moments before Tiao's elbow would collide with the elder man's ribs, the fist would crash into Tiao's own. They hit corresponding sides, roughly counteracting any extra torque the other would have an effectively lowering the power of each attack, albeit just by a hair.

Immediately following, Tiao was already turning his hips to the left, his stance positioning him for yet another strike. With his right arm free, Tiao would turn his arm counter clockwise, pointing his knuckles to the inside as his arm came around in a wide arc. Just after Tiao put this into motion, his head snapped up from Taiku's uppercut. The attack caught the Pillar off guard, and while it wasn't very damaging it foreshadowed what was to come.

The shock to his nerves caused from the uppercut would cause Tiao to turn to his left even harder, his left palm pushing against Taiku's right arm to move Taiku along with him if he held tight enough of a grip. With the upwards arc of the arm coming to its peak, Tiao's forearm would smash into the left side of Taiku's unprotected neck, the most dense muscle of Tiao's body striking with as much force the young boy's momentum could create. By torquing over and striking Taiku, the second punch Tiao never focused in on would strike Tiao's right cheek and glance off, losing even more power if Tiao was able to move Taiku along with him.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

ooc: --Insert excuses for delays--

ic:

The weight shifted into Taikus balance against Tiao at the push, returned by a simple movement of his foot to add more forward force against the younger boy, would invariably cause the effort to return the pair to a standstill for a moment, perhaps even pushing Tiao backwards if he relented a moment after his attempt. Though the younger had a very slight weight advantage, it was so small that in essence, the pair fought on nearly equal terms. Size, strength and speed, all of those had no merit in this fight. It was simply going to be a question of skill and experience that would decide the victor.

His neck, without anything to shield the incoming blow, would constrict tightly as a short grunt escaped the older mans lips. Rather than hesitate in response to it, however, Taiku would instead retract his fist slightly, as if bearing in for another blow to Tiaos head. However, having being given a faint respite in dodging the punch, it would have shot past him a fair amount further than he'd initially expected. As such, as he drew the arm back, it would find itself stopping level with the back of Tiaos right shoulder. Grasping the shirt there, Taiku pivoted suddenly and smoothly in a display of his background. Rarely did he find places in his fights for the traditional close quarters Aikido manipulations he had, most especially his throws, but at the moment, such an opportunity had presented itself well.

Between a short half-step forward with his right foot, moving through and to the back of Tiaos leg, Taiku would suddenly jolt his upper body as he held onto the younger fighter and twist to his left, dragging Tiaos head with him awkwardly before setting about tossing the youth to the ground. If Tiao made the attempt to remain in close quarters with Taiku, however, it would be immediately followed by a slamming blow to the back of his head as the elder male brought his fist down to the top of his opponents skull.