Harboring a Burning Passion

Law hadn't been extremely concerned about the state of the building they were occupying after the battle, but apparently the owner of said building had something to say about that. In the end, it was of little significance. He followed Ulv to where she lead him, and once more assumed the stance he would be using for this fight. Without his Zanpakuto he was exceptionally less powerful than he would normally be, but he could also feel that Ulv had lowered her own output drastically. At this point they were more or less on even ground. He appreciated that, although he wasn't one to comment on it.

He stood with his right foot behind his body, and at an acceptable angle, ready to launch the most powerful kick he could muster at a moment's notice. His left foot he planted firmly in front of himself. In this way he gave himself the most leverage that he could possibly generate. He imagined that it would be enough. Her technique was pristine, not something he'd be able to combat if she were at full power. She wasn't, however. With her newfound drawbacks Ulv was basically operating at the same speed that Law was. Even still, he wouldn't have been able to react to the speed she relied on had he not been paying the utmost attention to what was happening around him. Fortunately for him, he had been paying the utmost attention. It was something you learned when you relied on your intelligence for every facet of combat prowess at your disposal.

As Ulv came closer Law tensed his right leg, preparing himself to throw the kick that would start it all. By analyzing her movements to a ludicrous degree, Law was able to determine exactly when Ulv would feint. This was only half of the battle though. He still needed to understand exactly how her body would move, and on top of that he had to deliver a kick that was as devestating as it was accurate. In the end, confident in his own ability, he threw the kick where he was sure Ulv's head would be.

Law was certainly not a newcomer to fighting. He made good analysis of Ulv and then struck a strong kick that didn't overbalance him with it's reaching. A headshot wasn't something Ulv would have gone for as the first attack, fresh people could get out of it's limited hitbox even with an instinctive jerk, let alone active dodging. Ulv would have saved a head-kick for when she had battered the man about a bit more, and was more assured of it's hit. For a solid kick to the head could throw the balance in your favour, if it didn't end it right there.

Using the enhanced mobility of Circling Nine Cranes, Ulv followed the attack trail of his kick, keeping ahead of it until it had reached the end of it's route, and then slashed out with claws, raking the outstretched thigh. It wasn't an excellent show of Tai Chi's power, but it was a good one to give him a view of how even low-rank powers could be used well if one had experience and forethought behind their applications.

"Kick to the head is a gamble, Law. Not something to be used as an opening move against an unknown powerset" She told him, making this as much a lesson as it was an exhibition. Giving him some moments to get back in form and, and for Ulv to take her place in front of him again - it was a showcase of techniques, not a fight to turn him into a bloody pulp - she retook her stance, and decided the next would be Three Thunder Fists. So he could see the more brash and powerful technique rather than the intricate ones that required work to really do well with.

Although he'd been tagged, Law did not react very much at all to the pain that coursed through his leg. He'd had worse. Far worse. He also didn't respond to what Ulv had said to him. He kept his head completely in the fight, watching her every movement. He was pissed that he'd not been able to land his opening attack, and he wasn't planning on something like that happening again. From this point onward he'd fight more cautiously.

After a moment she came once more, this time with a punch. Based on the trajectory he decided that the best course of action would be to deflect the punch with a kick. He didn't know exactly what was happening with her fist, and so he wouldn't meet the punch head on. Instead he would use a sideways turn, removing himself from the direct line of attack, then he would use something akin to an axe kick to redirect the force downwards, and away from his body. The point of contact he would aim for, however, was her forearm, not the fist. If this didn't work out as expected he would still no longer be in the path of damage, and he would rebound his kick as soon as the push through was complete so as to not risk his leg being caught as much. Even if it was caught, he had something prepared. He wasn't much worried about losing his balance either way, as kicking was his main form of combat when not using his Zanpakuto. He had a good deal of practice staying up with only one leg planted on the ground.

Regardless of whether or not this turned out to be effective, he was ready to throw a punch towards either her ribs or her face. He wasn't against punching women in the face, but he usually only did that to the ugly ones. Sure, he probably wouldn't do any real damage, but it was the principal of the matter. The ribs it would be then, if the opportunity presented itself.

Throwing out the enhanced fist, she was surprised when he crashed his heel into the forearm and forced her arm down. Her kinetic sense made moving to retain her balance something she didn't even think of, but she was stood a little dumbstruck at the attack. This, was an exhibition, not a fight, so the counter - and such a hostile one at that - was a surprising thing for Ulv to see. And the surprise was enough that the blow to her ribs came unchallenged. Smashing against her side, Law would find Ulv's bones to be surprisingly more solid than the relative durability of the skin.

Staring up at him after the blow had landed, Ulv cocked an eyebrow in askance.
"So, may not have been terribly clear on this point, but we are having an exhibition, right? Where I show you how something works and what it does? Rather than a true fight in which I use the style you want to see? I thought since you wanted to see it, a true fight would be to detracting from the nature of the style to properly see how it works. Since I would use it in the most efficient way to put you down, rather in a way that would be best for you to see it in action"

Law hadn't expected that to work out so smoothly. He was actually fairly proud of that, until the reason why it had been so simple became apparent, and rather quickly at that. As Ulv spoke and raised her eyebrow at him he raised his own in turn, giving her the same quizzical look.

"Yes, I'd like to see the style, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stand here and be a punching bag. It's called an exhibition fight for a reason. If I only wanted to see your moves I'd ask you to demonstrate them on a dummy, but I also want to see how they actually work in combat. I want to see how I can react to them, and I want to test myself. Perhaps we haven't communicated as effectively as we could have. And excuse me if I'm wrong, but you really don't seem to be the worse for wear."

Law honestly hadn't intended to be disrespectful or rude (for once), it was a simple case of miscommunication, which was easily resolved. His hand actually hurt like a motherfucker though, maybe that hadn't been the best target to aim for. The urge to shake it out found itself nudging its way into his mind, but he ignored that. In the future he would aim for softer targets.

"If you'd like, we can tone down the level of aggression, but that's not generally something that I do, so my own capabilities may suffer for it. My attacks are meant to cause the most damage they can in the shortest amount of time, and generally involve combos such as the one you've just seen. I'm not very well versed in holding back, but I'll leave it up to you."

As he spoke he'd repositioned himself slightly, so that they were at a more comfortable speaking distance. Whatever Ulv decided she'd like to do was fine by him, although he was hoping that they could have a more interesting encounter than just a display of technique.

"Ehh, when someone hits a dummy you can't really get a feel for the style the same way as when someone hits you. But I can also see why you thought it would be a proper fight, only problem being there are some really dangerous techniques in Tai Chi for using it in a proper fight and expecting your opponent to be able to get up and announce their enjoyment later. Still, if you are fine with a week-long hospital stay as the price of knowing how this works to the highest of levels, then I shall not disrespect you" She gave him a respectful bow, and then returned to her own corner.

"We can keep it at the present level, now that I know we are operating at that level" She told him, before taking her stance again and deciding on a battle-plan. He had thrown kicks twice, and both times he had a solid stance and clear precision, so they were definitely a favour. If she could disable one of them, then the fight would go well. So she moved in to his personal space with a plan in her head.

The first strike was a multi-layered feint, an attack that, while designed to elicit a response, would still strike the person if the response was not elicited. Were she to make contact with him, she would release her Heaven Thunder Hammer technique and show him the epitome of brute force in Wulin. Where he to move against it, she would abort to defensive and strike the incoming appendage with Soul-Crushing Strike. There was always room for failure in the greatest of plans, but having no plan at all guaranteed failure.