Seaside Fight Night: Moe vs. Ira

Damn, this girl was tough, but Ira knew for sure that he wouldn't be able to just punch his way right through this one now. He wasn't quite fast enough to stop Moe from stepping bast him, but at least he could be ready for whatever she threw at him. Hardening himself as best he could, spiritual energy coursing through his body, Ira did his best to guard against the chop to his side. That said, he had to be thankful that he'd toughened up, because he quickly realized that she would have cracked his ribs otherwise.

Skidding to the side from such a powerful strike, Ira knew that alone had completely changed the flow of this fight. He hadn't had the strength to match her blow, or even to keep himself from being all but batted aside, and now Moe knew that as well. Shaking his hand out, Ira's stance changed to a more defensive one, watching moe carefully now.

He definitely wouldn't be able to win this if he tried to match her blow for blow, so what he needed to do now was just watch, wait for an opening. He was good at this, after all, he wasn't some amateur. Fighting reactively might not have been ideal, but it was his best bet right about now.

Moe's hand connected with Ira and she felt the man's entire body strain against her, but there was strength behind those little bones that would not be denied, so she pushed through to see the blow home. It wasn't a wild haymaker but she was still surprised by how much oomph she was packing lately, no doubt all that training was paying off. She smirked, seeing Ira skid away from the blow and reset for another engagement.

That one had taken more than a little guile, it was unlikely this fancy crossdresser would fall for it again, so she needed a new plan of attack. Bounding forwards again, as she was all too happy to play the aggressor, she bundled herself up for a moment to perhaps suggest that she might strike low and then sprung into the air. Agile as she was, it was the perfect time to land the Soaring Butterfly Mega Kick as her opponent tried to scope her out. Leaping high, the all-too-obvious line of attack came as a vicious axe kick that aimed to impact right on top of Ira whilst her arms remained up and ready to react should an attack come at Moe's upper section after she had landed.

She was fast, certainly, but with only infrequent flash steps, there was only so much she could do. Keeping the illusion up that it was something to always be worried about was the best thing to do, and maybe Ira would crumble before her almighty power.

An attack from above? That was probably the only opening that Ira was going to get here, but it was a good one. Was this bait, or was it a genuine opening to take advantage of? Either way, Ira wasn't going to just lose the opportunity. Not to mention, this was a show, and it wouldn't be nearly as exciting for everyone watching if he just kept dodging forever. As his opponent barreled down on him, Ira steeled his leg once more, breathing sharply as he unleashed a wheel kick directly toward his opponent.

"Tei!!

He'd heard letting out a good shout was a way to further reinforce your spirit as you struck your opponent, but whether or not that was true, Ira was pretty much putting it all on the line with this kick. It was an impressive strike, and he wouldn't have dared to risk it even a few months prior. Either way, he was putting a lot on the line for this one. If this wasn't enough, she'd probably crush him like a bug.

Tch, what a manly cry to utter. Perhaps there truly was a beast inside that girlish body of his. But, floating in the air as she was, there was little Moe had available to her in the way of defence against a committed strike. He had the reach to strike first, well before her own kick landed, and so she would have to perform another technique of the Butterfly Style, Cocoon!

Pulling her legs in now, and giving up all hope that her attack would land, Moe tried to bundle herself up into a ball and braced for impact. She had barely even begun to compact herself when the kick struck home, though, and the pink-haired Shinigami was sent spiralling through the air as her limbs still tried to tuck themselves in. Lightweight as she was, the force of the blow was amplified by her decision to tuck up small and become a little more aerodynamic. So she flew backwards as she was repelled, bouncing and sliding across the floor as she went.

Yet, as her limbs sprawled out and gave her all the chance to admire the myriad of new cuts and scrapes that now decorated the length of her figure, Moe was not yet out. She stood, in spite of the complaints of her body, and returned to a neutral stance. They were matched in speed, but, where she had strength, he had her solidly beat reach and technique. So, if there was any hope of victory, she had to nullify those two advantages. If she couldn't, then at least she'd go down swinging as she advanced again towards Ira. There was no grand strategy, she'd just meet the problem head-on and try to go through it.

Frankly, Moe's decision to charge directly toward Ira made this matter a bit more difficult than it realistically should have been. Ira was used to fighting with other people, but this approach was far closer to that of an animal. He'd stayed relatively on the advantage thus far, but with her speed and her shinigami abilities, Ira couldn't expect to defend forever.

Well, he could only meet her head-on, then. Dodging would likely put him at a disadvantage when it came to steps, if all that stuff Yugiri showed him was something most Shinigami could do, but this girl didn't seem to be near as good about it. Still, he needed to keep on his toes, not just dodge. As Moe came forward yet again, Ira looked for an opening in her approach. He'd already kicked quite a few times, so he'd have to mix things up.

Well, maybe it was about time to try one of those techniques Yugiri'd been telling him to figure out. Clenching one fist tight, Ira focused on the spiritual energy in his right arm, the flesh tensing as a scale-like pattern slowly formed. This was pretty bad, frankly, but it was a work in progress. He'd only have one shot, so he had to do it right. Stepping forward to add to the impact this was about to have, his fist swung upward with all Ira's might, aiming for Moe's midsection.

"Silver King Leap!"

He'd been told saying the name of a technique made it stronger, and while he didn't entirely get that, it seemed true. So Ira yelled it with all his might as he swung. Even if he lost now, at least he'd go out swinging, eh?

Moe charged forwards, all too ready to meet Ira's attack with one of her own, and see who would come out on top in this final exchange. It was not going to be an easy task, he would be striking first and she would have to endure him and then respond. Yet somehow, over the din of the battle, she heard an unexpectedly distinct cry of support. There was no way to know who it was, nor could she spare even a moment of lost focus, but it filled her heart with confidence anew. This was her fight to win.

Ira called out his mighty attack, perhaps a fancy technique of some kind, and stepped into her path. Moe did not have time to change course, nor did she want to, for, as his fist came barrelling forwards, her own flew out to meet him. An open palm looking to catch or perhaps even deflect what he was throwing, mainly a shock absorber, for she then swung around with a wheel kick of her own targeting his side again. What momentum could still be taken from her charge was forced into her legs as she came whizzing around at a rapid pace.

"Flying Butterfly Barrage!"

What did that mean? Didn't all butterflies fly? Was she really going to use 'butterfly' twice in as many technique names? These were all questions that Moe would ask herself after this bout, for she was entirely too fixated on the action to care. As her wheel kick struck out, whether hit or miss, she then proceeded to spin in the air and throw her other leg into the attack too. Raining down a brief volley of consecutive kicks at whatever they could reach before culminating in a final heavy blow. This last strike aimed high as, for just a few moments, she seemed to float in the air. A solid blow to the underside of his jaw if it landed squarely, fully intending to put the man down with everything she could muster.

That was about all she could offer. though. If he too endured then she was entirely defenceless and set to simply flop to the ground at his feet. It had been a reckless attack, a reckless fight too, so either way the pink-haired Shinigami was hitting the dirt with a smile spread wide on her face.

Ow.

Maybe it had been his own exhaustion, his lack of technique, or a simple difference in strength, but Ira was perfectly capable of realizing when he was about to be beaten down. Every kick this pink demon delivered was withering, and it took his full effort not to be completely crushed under such an onslaught. But that didn't stop the final kick from slamming into him, and while he certainly did what he could to weather the strike, it still sent him flying, and he was pretty sure he could feel his brain rattling around in his skull.

Could he get up? Maybe. If he really, really tried, he probably had it in him to stand up, but anything beyond that and he'd just hit the floor again. He was definitely out of this one, but it'd been a good bout.

His attacks hit home, but so did hers, and, in a sudden flurry of activity, both combatants were down. But Moe had known that she was heading this way, and had at least braced herself against that impact. Expecting another blow to rain in from a still-standing Ira, she lay on the ground for a moment and simply gazed up into the sky awaiting her fate. It never came, though; the death blow would knock the last of the fight out of her.

It would have been easy just to lay here on her back and wait. To know that she had given it her all and it had nearly been enough. But that was not the Moe Machihara way.

Her hands pressed flat against the floor, her joints complaining vocally as she willed them to move once more. Then she pushed herself up into a sitting position, looking around for her opponent and finding that they too were struggling to stand. Again she pushed, her legs slipping into place underneath her as she slowly came to stand again.

Then it was a matter of putting one foot in front of another, shambling over to where Ira lay. She did not quite lower her guard yet, wondering if this was some last trick, but perhaps he was really out for the count. Still, if she made it to the point of looming over him - a strange place for Moe to ever be - before an arm would shoot out but fall far short of striking home. Her balled first shifting into an open hand as she offered to pull him back to his feet.

Damn. This little lady really was tough, eh? As she stepped up again, reaching out her hand, Ira took a deep breath and reached up to take it. He'd definitely need some medical attention after all this, but hey, things could definitely be worse. The old man stood up with her help, and after a moment or two to catch his breath, he looked down at the small shinigami.

"You're a menace, little lady. Here's hopin' we can do it again some time, eh?"

Could he have used the opportunity to catch her by surprise and win this match? Yeah, definitely. If this'd been a real fight, he probably would have, too, but he didn't think she'd have helped him up in the first place if this were a real fight.