What's up (Shou/Kenichi)

Potential? Awesome? Really?

Shou had previously heard that from Rita as well but she couldn't just figure out what sort of "potential" that people see in it that would make it, well, good. She came up with creative ways to use it but there were just limitations that she couldn't figure out and accepted that it was just bad, so those words only kinda confused her in a way.

Pondering how to answer him with fingers against her chin, she eventually gave up on thinking too much and laughed it off.

"You're not misunderstanding anything!"

Giving Kenichi a pat in the back to assure him, she continued on.

"If you think of it that way, maybe it is good then! I just think that you're overestimating it."

Giggling as she made that statement, she does believe so. After all, she will always need a "medium" to sell something before she can even do anything which meant that if she is isolated to an empty room, then her abilities would be no different than a cripple.

Though instead of leaving him in a dust, Shou thought it would be a lot proper to explain it to him. Nodding to herself, she started to speak up again.

"I am just not sure what do you and Rita see in this ability of mine. I can only do these things by 'buying' them compared to other people who can just do the same by using their spiritual energy directly anyway. Don't you think it is just.. useless?"

"Honestly? It sounds complicated, but I believe any ability has it's use in battle, and this one is no exception. Think of it like..."

Kenichi paced back and forth, reflecting on any comparison that would seem fitting to attach to her ability. If he was similar to a character in a fighting game, what did Shou strike him as? After a series of paces, he pointed toward her in dramatic fashion. An ability of her nature reminded him of something he'd see in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure!

Some abilities were less complicated than others, but the point still stood. Each of them required using their single ability in multiple ways. Giorno's Gold Experience or Josuke's Crazy Diamond were prime examples of that. He didn't know how much sense the comparison would make, but perhaps it would make her laugh even if it held up poorly.

"No, I don't think it's useless at all. Honestly, it reminds me of something you'd see in a very technical chuunibyou novel, or even JoJo. Like, those really complicated abilities that serve multiple functions, but ya' sort of have to learn how it works over time and continue to explore it."

Kenichi would pat her shoulder after his silly comparison.

"If you buy things of greater worth, then who knows? The limits of your ability could be quite boundless. Just think of if you came across pieces of gold, and used that ability... You bought and sold a tree, so think of how cool those abilities can get when you buy things of great value? I dunno about you, but even I'd be frightened to see what that looks like."

Oh? Ahahahahaha!

Kenichi is seriously an amusing person. Being a bit of a pessimist about how useless her ability is, the man before her seems to think otherwise. What's more surprising that he goes as far as comparing it to something like Jojo which was so an odd and funny comparison that her lips broke into a big grin which she promptly places her hand over to cover it and lets out a giggle.

Shou was doing her best to pay attention to his explanation, trying to not to interrupt him while refraining herself from bursting out laughing and lets out a small yelp when he gave her a pat on the shoulder. Well, she does have.. a pretty odd sense of humor afterall to find it funny.

Wiping her tears away, when he was done talking, Shou immediately answered back with a smile.

"You might be right! Still, that example though. pft"

Quickly regaining her composure, she continued on.

"I get where you are coming from and I love your optimistic views about abilities in general. However, my powers rely on too many factors to be useful."

Giving his nose a small poke, she twirled around and walked a distance away from him, pondering how to explain her abilities to him. She did do some trials when she was out and about around Japan with a few cans of drinks but didn't have any resources to try out her theories about the "rules" of her ability.

"I mean, what is considered valuable to 'it'? Is it really gold? A diamond? What happens if I sold a human corpse instead since they are not alive anymore? I am not in control to decide if something is worth anything at all. What happens if it backfires in a moment when I really need it?"

Taking a deep inhale, she continued.

"You see? And I don't even know if its useful in a fight either. I am not even sure where to start with it. And.. its not even something I want to begin with either."

Kenichi supposed he understood Shou enough to acknowledge her point of view. Even so, he was an optimistic man with an optimistic heart. Surely there was some secret to unraveling this ability of buying and selling that constituted her abilities. There had to be something more, right? If he was going at everything from the manga angle, Fu Shou was akin to that main character who was gifted with an ability she couldn't understand. Those protagonist types usually ended up figuring it out in the end, no? Kenichi followed her along in the forest, stroking his chin in quiet contemplation.

"I understand. Conceptual abilities are a pain, but I certainly think you should look into it, Shou. Why not see where it can go? It might be a hassle at first, but you never know how it might manifest in the end. It could very well take the form you want it to in the end. Besides, you have Kenichi on the scene now. I'll gladly spar with you and see how far I can help you. If you never reach that point, well, you do have a cool bodyguard whose a martial arts pro," he humored, flexing his muscles in dramatic fashion.

Never thought he would bring up the idea of sparring, though she has no qualms with it even if she isn't a fighter to begin with. Just like muscles, an ability would only grow if you put work into it and there is no better way than actually use it now.

"I guess you're right. No point thinking about it too much either. I'll just figure it out with gut feeling."

Clapping her hands together, tilting her head and winking, she shouldn't forget to request something from Kenichi.

"Please go easy on a delicate lady, will you? ☆"

Shou certainly isn't the smartest of the bunch but she can tell, even by physical appearance alone, that their fighting experiences and prowess are just night and day but she isn't fazed at all by that. Taking a few coins right out of her pocket, she would flip one of them for fun and catch it right back into her hand before she would continue to speak up.

"Now then.. are you approaching me?"

Humoring Kenichi back, she would stand upright with her arms open and a grin on her face, referencing back to their earlier conversation about JoJo.

"Don't worry. I never aim to strike with much force during a spar unless my partner is aiming for it," Kenichi replied, a playful air to his tone in response to Shou's upbeat request. Past experiences had certainly taught him that pacing oneself - be it in battle or even something as casual as a spar - was an incredibly important skill to have.

The difference between life and death, the difference between emerging victorious in a battle or finding oneself rendered incapable of fighting ever again. Exhaling softly, he easily caught the JoJo reference. Without missing a beat, he humored a stern expression akin to Jotaro Kujo, marching toward her in a manner all too reminiscent of the character.

"I can't beat the shit out of you without getting closer."

"Then come as close as you like!"

With a grin on her face, one of the coins she was holding onto earlier suddenly disappeared from sight, reaching out her other hand and behold, a ball of fire would erupt out of it and towards Kenichi's direction at a speed of a bullet. With something as small as a few hundred yen, she doesn't expect much damage out of it than probably a few burns.

Still, she wasn't planning to end it there.

Second coin sold. Observing how Kenichi would react to her first attack, if he took that head on and tries to close the distance between the two of them? Her hand would crackle in the power of electricity, take her chance to also sprint towards his direction and attempt to trade blows with him, though with an extra "flavor" of shocking his body enough to paralyze a typical hollow.

If he attempts to avoid it instead? Shou would "buy" the ability to manipulate earth instead, raise a standard stone pillar in the direction that he's avoiding towards in hopes that he runs into it and if that works, she would raise another just right below him to strike him right in the stomach with strength of a baseball bat slamming right into his body.

Either way, even in the midst of attacking him, she would only wink with a smile on her face and muttered a sentence.

"Its useless, baby. ☆"

Shou would be the first to attack. Following her last line of JoJo-flavored dialogue, a ball of fire erupted towards him. Kenichi was certainly confident in his ability to take a hit, and a few burns wouldn't bother him in the slightest.

As such, without offering even an ounce of hesitation, he shot forward in dash, crossing his arms forward to guard against any burns to his face. Fist collided with fist as he engaged Fu Shou in trading blows, impressed by the shock damage he felt each time the woman's body made contact with his own. For a woman who complained about her abilities, Kenichi was relatively impressed so far. It may have been less than ideal to her, but he could certainly see the potential in her technique.

"What you call useless, I call untapped potential!"

Hahaha. Well, its expected that her abilities won't do much against him but man, not even being able to paralyze him even for a bit even when they traded blows? She really needs to work on being able to gauge her opponents a little better.

"Hahaha! You don't have to flatter me!"

Laughing at what Kenichi said to her, now she is really interested on what sort of untapped potential that he's saying. Maybe he's got eyes that can see what she can't? She'll just find it out with this spar!

Third and final coin sold off.

What is she planning to do? Continue to trade blows with Kenichi but one thing he will notice is that the shock from earlier was completely gone, replaced with the sudden dip in temperature on the air around them and ice just forming around his feet up until his knees, freezing him in one place. Though with his strength, she expects that it isn't going to hold for long.

Not that she is going to give him any chance to.

She's pretty much "spent" her purchases. After all, her limit is 3 per item but! That doesn't matter. She has already done what she needed to do with her limited chances. Instead of continuing to go for a punch-out with Kenichi, she would just duck and touch the ground beneath him and make use of her power here.

"Witness my stand power! Za groundo!"

A small patch of soil was sold, now only left a hole that fits him perfectly to fall into with ice around his legs. It wasn't to hurt him or anything since she knows hella well that she doesn't have the firepower to hurt him, so what she'll do? Trap him in.

A sudden shift happened within the blink of an eye. In the midst of trading blows with Shou, Kenichi discerned that the electricity whipping across his frame was no longer present. Had the effect wore off or was she trading in one effect for another? Attempting to step forward, Kenichi would feel the temperature take a drastic dip, ice forming around his legs as a means to lock him in place. A wide grin creased his firm features, marveling at her impressive ability to think on the fly. That was, to some degree at least, the potential he was aiming to unravel before the woman's eyes. Even if her abilities were lacking in firepower, it would never lessen one's natural ability to strategize. Truly impressive.

Of course, there was little time to compliment her as she came in with another effective counter - Za Groundo! Her stand technique was remarkable, her plan working effectively as Kenichi fell into that hole, his grin not fading in the slightest. That entire sequence was superb. The fiery martial artist was already imagining scenarios where the two of them could fight together on a mission. Fu Shou had potential. Try as she might to deny it, Kenichi was going to remind her of that every step of the way.

"Amazing! Now, I activate my Stand! Fist Platinum!"

Kenichi swung his arm upward with immense force, causing several pieces of debris to fly into the air as he freed himself from her trap through physical prowess alone, leaping from the hole in dramatic fashion. Somersaulting through the air, the rising dragon would land down directly in front of her, swinging his hands forward at her chest, gathering reiryoku around his palms in preparation for his own flashy technique.

"ORA!"