3900/Seriously, The Absolute Blade VS. The Northern Deva!

Seriously, The Absolute Blade VS. The Northern Deva!
Date of Scene:	12 March 2016
Location:	Njorun Station - Ring of Philosophy
Synopsis:	Challenged by The Absolute Blade, 'Zekken', Momoyo finally falls from her position as the strongest... but only by a hair's breadth. The vicious natural disaster of a woman was finally taken down and handed her first official defeat.
Cast of Characters:	627, Yuuki Konno, 928

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Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo had been quiet for the most part the past couple of weeks, most likely busy with school. By the time the day of the challenge rolled around, she looked quite excited, and was terribly bored prior.

    However, her opponent had appeared more or less out of the blue. Most of her challengers she had heard of before, but someone strong enough to walk right up and challenge her for her spot right off the bat was giving her a thrill. Could this challenger give her a closer fight than the last ones...?

    Her fingers tapped on the console as her audience filters in, evidently some of her fan club from Kawakami City having finally ventured through the Gate through to Njorun in awe. Setting the arena terrain to the defaults, she stretches and rolls her shoulders. Today she was wearing the white pleated skirt of Kawakami Academy, but also a long buttoned down blouse.

    "Hmhmhm~. The Absolute Blade, huh...? I imagine this'll be my last challenge before I have to seriously get some work done on the front lines somewhere." she murmurs, mostly to herself and her little sister quietly as she steps into the center of the ring. While she looked calm at a glance, a closer look showed she was practically shuddering, her red eyes and crossed bangs making her look as violent as ever.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Zekken. The Absolute Sword. It's a pretty grandiose title. Granted Yuuki never called herself that. It's a title given to her by those she's fought, one earned the only way a title truly can be. And yet, there's no sign of it in the girl that arrives.

    She's... bouncy and carefree, in the way that shows the exuberance of youth more than her mere appearance does. She's dressed well in her usual gear, including sword, armor and kimono-like accessories. Again though, nothing that suggests her title. She looks like what she is, a kid playing games. She's got no aura to speak of, no killing intent, no apparent seriousness about what's about to happen. And of course, no one here's ever seen her fight or heard of her before the challenge was made.

    Njorun doesn't exactly awe Yuuki. She's seen impressive areas in VR. This is, however, in reality. It's impressive, and magnificent, and so very very serious. She can't sightsee too much though, so she mostly goes from the gate to the Ring of Philosophy, her challenge and invitation enough to see her through any security checkpoints her cheerful demeanour doesn't let her pass.

    The Ring is interesting though. It's a VR world of its own, more or less, where battle is simulated rather than real. It's home, in a way. Yuuki smiles as she enters, feeling immediately better about this sort of challenge. She had no real business making random challenges, not having any real intentions of making herself famous or of beating people up for fun. She has better things to do, but she's kind of been bored to death lately. Searching through VRMMOs is fun but it's been futile so far. School has been great and fun but ... well, likewise it's been essentially useless. She's got nothing to live for right now except to be herself, as much as she can be. Yuuki. Zekken. The unbeaten Absolute Blade.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Tilting her head a little, her eyebrows knitted a moment, just a tad uncertain. She couldn't see any sort of aura off of Yuuki. That could mean several things, but she hadn't paid very close attention to VRMMO technology even though Nero had bugged her to before disappearing for some time.

    "Yo." she waved, before her arms folded again. "I guess it's fair to say I'm undefeated. That probably only makes it even more exciting for you, though." At least, not defeated in any official capacity, but the opponent who beat her last was a beast of the night like herself... he had no interest in spreading that information before Momoyo ran him down again.

    "You're kinda cute, too. But here, we won't have to hold back." she spreads her arms widely. "So... we'll probably still have people filtering in for a bit, but unless you're waiting for anyone specific... I'm ready to begin." she claps her hands together, giving a traditional Japanese bow to indicate that the fight had begun as soon as her opponent returns it.

    "I'm curious about you, of course, but I'll learn more by fighting you than talking." she finishes her open hand rising in the air near her cheek with her characteristic slight smirk.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Yuuki's outfit is undeniably martial though really really inefficient, sharing the MMO principle of form over function. Large areas of the Imp girl are easy targets outside the protection of her small breastplate, especially her arms, legs and head. At least it doesn't expose her belly. It's probably pretty good protection against fists, but against a duellist sword like the one she wears at her hip? It's pretty fanciful armor to be sure.

    Yuuki tilts her head at Momoyo's introduction. Cute? Well, she doesn't take the comment the wrong way, only smiling in a simple manner. "Huh. I'm undefeated too!" she comments with a smile of delight, no hint of scorn or mockery. "67 wins, one draw, against any challenger. That was a different world than this of course." she adds

    "Are there any special terms for the fight? Magic? Flight?" Yuuki asks. "You can use whatever you want. I'll just use this." she says, resting her hand on the pommel of her duelling blade, that simple smile still present. Still, she doesn't appear to be stressed or aggressive. That smile of hers shows not the slightest trace of a smirk, just simple joy in being here... and presumably in being about to fight. She doesn't return the Japanese-style martial bow despite being Japanese however. She's never taken formal martial arts, and that particular courtesy isn't one she follows. She simply touches her sword's hilt, curtsying over the blade before drawing it and holding it ready before her in a fencer's vertical guard. "I suppose one of us won't be undefeated after this. Unless we draw?" she suggests, settling herself and becoming ready. The smile fades, replaced with an intent focus. Still no killing intent to be felt, but Yuuki seems to finally be acting the warrior rather than the trivial girl.

    "Let's find out about each other then." Yuuki says as Momoyo assumes her battle pose. It's an odd remark for a potentially deadly battle, but she doesn't explain as she advances with the sword high and slightly to one side of her body. There's barely a moment's pause before Yuuki darts forward, her needle-thin blade swinging with power and precision to slash with only the final inch of the blade in a sweeping, shallow cut.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji Murasame is present.

This much is obvious. Momoyo's presence necessitates it. The corporate heir has taken a keen interest in observing the goings-on of the fighting woman ever since he had acquired the title of Southern Deva from Nero.

His gaze turns to the swordswoman, measuring, observing stance, speed, and technique... And just as importantly, Momoyo's response. He says nothing. There is nothing to be said. Actions, as ever, speak louder than words.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo brings her arm up to block the thrust, a long shallow cut down the length of her arm. Already she could tell Yuuki was /fast/. Much faster than Christiane Fredreich even, just from that one attack. Already she begun to move... but if this girl wasn't going to reveal her strength soon there was no choice but to completely brutalize her.

    "Title Matches are no holds-barred and any spectators are usually responsible for their own welfare." she explains, her arm dripping blood to the ground a bit already from the shallow slash. Because of the speed, she was forced to block it directly. "But now it's my turn!"

    "Kawakami Style: Musou Seikenzuki!!"

    Her straight punch came out like a boxer's straight, but with a speed matching the duelist's sword... and a ton of force compacted. It was easy enough to feel the wind from Momoyo's punches as she threw her signature move right for her opponent's midsection. She needed to learn what the duelist was capable of in a hurry, with no aura that made the assessment take much longer than she'd hoped. Still, the fact that she had announced her attack in advance mattered little... the martial artist was likely not outside of Yuuki's range of experience but she clearly lacked the carefree attitude her opponent was taking.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    There's a certain comfort in being fast. Yuuki wasn't always faster than anyone she'd ever fought, but she's grown rather accustomed to having that as a reliable advantage in recent years. She's accustomed to others being surprised, even shocked by her speed. When Momoyo defends the blow, barely injured by the obsidian blade's attack, this isn't new. Others can do similar; it just means Momoyo's high-level. But that counter-attack! Yuuki's eyes widen as the punch comes in, slamming into her gut. She spins, escaping the full power of the punch, but still the attack's startling. As powerful as any weapon, she judges... and at least as fast as most of her serious opponents.
        That seriousness ought to make Momoyo happy at least, as it makes Yuuki happy as well. Her eyes narrow again, and her smile draws down to a more tight-lipped one. Strain, but joy behind it. "Sword against fist." she says, nodding her head. Yes, it seems a perfectly reasonable matchup now. "Get ready, oneesan!" she cries out.

    The term isn't one of endearment. It's acknowledging Momoyo as an older girl, akin to calling her Senpai except it's more the term a young child would use rather than a martial artist. Still it's an acknowledgement. And then Yuuki simply BLURS, her speed ramping up well beyond the simple lunging slash. She spins right around Momoyo, her sword coming about in a series of blind slicing blows with no weight behind them but with considerable speed and accuracy.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Amazingly, many of the slashes Momoyo is able to parry between her fingertips. It cuts up her hands a bit, but two of the strike slip through her defense. "Hmhmhm~!" she chuckles a little. "Good... you're strong enough to have to make me go all-out. I like it best that way!" "Kawakami Style: Restoration..." she takes a moment to seal some of the wounds with her ki, a violet aura seeping out of her skin as the long gash from earlier most noticeably goes away. Momoyo was already difficult to harm, but that technique of hers was almost cheating if not necessarily rare in the Multiverse.

    "Hahahaha! Let's see how fast you really are, Yuuki~." she takes in a breath, her feet still not having budged from her spot much as her opponent dances around her.

    "Kawakami Style: Musou Seikenzuki Midareuchi!!!"

    Luckily for Yuuki it's the same technique again, which allows for speed and memorization. Unfortunately for her... Momoyo was using both hands, pummelling at her position viciously in an instant with two dozen of those loud artillery-fire punches!

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Perhaps amazingly, Yuuki makes no particular effort to parry those shotgun punches. An opponent is most vulnerable, she's learned, when they're attacking. She's willing to take damage as long as she dishes out more than she receives.

    That might be tricky against Momoyo, of course. And of course Yuuki doesn't simply stand there and take the hits. She spins, dodges and vaults, never retreating and never wasting momentum to block. Instead her sword probes out in feints and jabs, making it perilous for Momoyo to fully commit to a deadly blow. She plants one open palm on that last strike, jumping. The punch strikes her in the shin, doing little harm as she extends and vaults, flipping over it and using the momentum of Momoyo's own punch to drive her leg around in an axe kick aimed for the martial artist's head in a cry of exertion.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
The corporate heir seems to flick his gaze between the pair, considering the progress of the battle. It's still early. The application of the self-healing trait doesn't seem to surprise Souji as much as it might for others. Monks are known for their Chakra powers, after all.... And their flurry attacks. But while that strike blew away the last person she saw someone use it on, the woman who is called the 'Absolute Blade' makes a sacrifice play in ordr to try to punch through defenses.

There is an edge of scorn on his expression, not at the elegant counterassault, but at the pretention of such a title.

He will soon see if this woman is worthy of such an appellation. Momoyo has a habit of exposing truth with her fists.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Bringing her arm up in such a hurry to protect her head did her no favors. The heel still landed heavily on her skull, but nowhere near as hard as it could have.

    "You're not heavy enough for that attack." she snarls. In truth, with how well placed the strike was, even Momoyo would be open even longer were she not blocking the heavy drop. Suddenly, her hands twist out of the block rapidly to grasp the other girl's shin! "You're pretty good at protecting your vitals, so let's see how well your bones do! Hahahaha!"

    Her arms show off her monstrous strength as she yanks Yuuki by her single leg and swings her with both hands in an arc over her head like a ragdoll...

    Her wide red eyes are seething from the head blow while she brings her attacker down furiously toward the dirt. Brace for impact!

    Her fist arced over her opponent, ready to come down on her if she moved from the ground with excited menace. "Get. Up!" her chest heaved, her chipmunk top already torn with holes in places from Yuuki's thrusts, and no doubt some of her own bracelets were cut as well from all the upper and mid body attacks as the dust clears.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Yuuki might not have the mass to attack like that. She's even lighter than she looks it would seem, as if her body weight had no share of adult muscle. Impossible, of course. Her speed has to come from somewhere, and her sword hits have weight and power behind them... but her power has more to it than body mass would suggest.

    Yuuki cries out as her body's slammed into the ground. The grab wasn't something she could avoid, and grabs aren't normally something possible in Alfheim Online. Bosses, sure. But bosses generally lack the speed of Momoyo. She wails a cry of fright as she's whirled up then down. The impact pounds the ground as Yuuki's treated like the business end of a piledriver. For that moment, driven hard into the ground, the purple-haired Imp remains down, apparently crushed.

    It's only for a moment though. Yuuki's mana gauge is full, and she has MUCH more in her than she's shown. Her sword, drawn back behind her, begins to glow with a violet light. "You're really strong, Oneesan!" Yuuki says, her voice weak from the impact. It strengthens however. "Vertical Square!" she cries out, lashing upwards with her blade as she rises, apparently not even stunned from that crushing impact.
    Zekken's blade carves four glowing purple lines through the air, the afterimage forming a diamond between Yuuki and her opponent. The attack has more than physical power as well, the glowing blade hitting with added elemental force that sends a blast of purple impact cloud up all around the fighters.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     A rare event, Momoyo is actually blown off her feet and on her back, her body covered in vicious cuts. "GAAAAAHHH!"

    Quickly, she springs back to her feet, breathing as heavily as her opponent. "Restoration!" Her ki flares, sealing the worst of the wounds again as she burns more spirit energy. "Hmhmhm... heheheh." she chuckles softly, staring down Yuuki a moment. The fight was remarkably even, which was Momoyo's favorite sort of fight. If it continued like this, win or lose, she'd be very satisfied indeed. "Alright... enough trading blows... let's try something else!"

    "Momoyo Microwave."

    Her hands clap together as the arena suddenly turns from it's default state to rapidly rise in temperature... like the aftermatch of a nuclear blast. Waves of radiation flowed out from her body, quickly heating things up to beyond human limits. Her intent was to tire Yuuki out faster... but likely the consequences would be something she wouldn't expect instead.

    "Let's see how long you can keep holding on to that blade." she murmurs, still quite excited as she batters the arena oppressively. Her hand comes up to ready for the next attack, eager for her opponent to get in close again. The spectator seats warmed up noticeably, but nothing like the 120 degree Celcius the arena was heating up to as the waves continued to flow against the barriered walls.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Some might call the Vertical Square cheating, the way Yuuki used her downed state to trigger the Sword Art state and begin the attack. The strike itself was precise, perfectly aimed, nothing that could be complained about. And of course in a duel like this, deception isn't cheating; it's just the wise thing to do.

    As the smoke of Yuuki's attack clears, she stands fully erect and glaring at her opponent. There's no hatred in the glare though... it's just a mark of concentration and focus. That smile that's been everpresent on her though, it's finally gone. She frowns as Momoyo charges up her attack. The heat is intense, but it's not really any problem. She doesn't HAVE human limits when it comes to temperature. Her exposed-skin armor can handle any environment and she'll still be comfortable. It won't protect her from flesh-rending environments or the like, but she'll feel no discomfort until her health starts dropping. She readies her blade, taking a balanced stance, ready.

    "You're right, oneesan." Yuuki says. Remarkably, that smile makes an appearance once again. She narrows her eyes. "You're really strong! Maybe even stronger than ojiisan! But if you're not going to trade blows, I'm not planning to hold back." she warns. The warning is brief, only a moment, before she blurs forward and dances, her body never remaining still long enough to be solidly hit, her sword lashing out in cut after razor-edged cut.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo had been wanting to fight Yukie Mayuzumi for ages but she'd never commit... this girl was probably the closest she'd ever get to Yukie being serious enough to fight her.

    The strikes were fast, and Momoyo is covered with countless slashes and cuts. She could see through the strikes, but Yuuki was fast enough to where it mattered less. Her fingers continued to be a blur, a major hassle in mitigating most of Yuuki's attacks. Once again a thrust gets through her defenses, but glances off of her collarbone instead of nicking a major artery. That the heat wasn't wearing her opponent down was surprising Momoyo (other than registering as environmental damage for her opponent). But Momoyo hadn't caught on she was fighting a game avatar.

    "Kawakami Style: Diversion!"

    The name of the attack was difficult to hear, and at close range almost necessitated a block. Throwing a punch through the blinding light that wasn't really an attack, she quickly turns on her heel and flees from Yuuki... running up the side of a nearby wall while it abruptly appears her opponent has the advantage! It was, of course, a bait, but without an Elite's sharp eyes it was a bait that would be forced to be decided in a split-second.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Make no mistake, Yuuki's concerned with Momoyo's healing ability. Healers are always a pain. The only answer is to out-damage their healing, of course. She's done it before, many times. It's not as worrying as Momoyo's strength however. When she fights, Yuuki's confident about being able to out-damage her opponent. In this fight, she's concerned that might not be the case. Her health bar's solidly yellow now, a state that's rare enough in her duels. Most of her sixty-some duels were decided with her health barely dipping into yellow. Only the best opponents got her to red. Four opponents so far. Momoyo might well become the fifth, if she doesn't end Yuuki's undefeated streak that is.

    Yuuki also feels the heat of Momoyo's earlier attack now. Damage over time, something any MMO player's familiar with. If only she could heal, or if her armor would protect her from that! Oh well, she figures, she can do nothing about it. The only thing she can do is fight. She's struck by the diversion, not quite getting her blade in position to bat the attack away. She shakes it off, bringing her blade up to her shoulder pointing outwards, seeking Momoyo.

    Yuuki sees her. Finding an opponent, reacting to a split-second event, that sort of thing is easy for her. Yuuki charges and leaps, her blade glowing again as she raises it to strike. "YaaaaAAAAAAH!" she cries out, not naming her attacks in the Kawakami style. Her movement is fast, faster even than her normal blurring attacks, and she brings the blade down hard in a cleaving strike meant to do the kind of damage that stops fights rather than being healable.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo suddenly let herself fall rather than continue to run up the wall. That made hitting her rather simple, really. "Gnnnh!!"

    It remained to be seen what taking that special attack would mean for her later. Still, she simply let gravity do it's work for her. If anything, getting attacked made that even easier, given Yuuki's speed and flexibility if she saw this coming.

    Which was why the move usually was so devastating. "Kawakami Style: Izuna Drop!"

    Wrestling with Yuuki at breakneck speed, she hurriedly pinned her sword-arm behind her back with her monstrous strength. Wrapping her leg around Yuuki's as well, her figure mashes against the other girl, grinning widely inches from her cheek. "I've got you now...!" she declares, letting gravity and her body weight do it's work on her lighter opponent. Both opponents spiralled toward the ground head-first, but Momoyo was going to ensure Yuuki broke her fall from the altitude two or three stories high!

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Yuuki's usual mode of combat is to dodge as much as possible, not to avoid hits entirely but to minimize their severity. It's not a tactic particularly effective when someone's not trying to hit her but simply to grab her and pull her into reach. She'd have been better off treating Momoyo as a boss than as a duel opponent. Her defensive style changes quite a lot in that mode, when she commits to striking and falling back before the boss can retaliate effectively.

    Grabbed by Momoyo's monstrous strength, Yuuki flails helplessly. This strike would finish her, she knows. Devastating if she takes the impact on her head, with all Momoyo's weight driving her down. Something... changes. Some small force pushes against all the force and momentum driving Yuuki towards the ground. Yuuki's wings, normally able to carry her and to assist another into the air, don't have the strength to stop this headlong plummet. They do, however, have the strength to slow the piledriver move to something survivable, and to orient Yuuki so she lands on her shoulders rather than her head.

    As the explosion of impact goes off, Yuuki tears free more from the force of the hit than from any force she herself can muster. Her wings gleam black, batlike, with white stars floating throughout. The wings don't beat, but nonetheless she hovers, panting, her body glowing a faint red. Not the glow of power, but the aura of damage given by impact rather than by a cutting or piercing weapon, spread out across most of her small body. Her brow furrows, her frown one of concentration rather than agony. Pain... well, she's lived with pain most of her life. She's not shielded from the pain of wounds while not in Alfheim Online itself so she feels everything... it just doesn't matter to her right now.

    That glare, the held-cocked blade, it's clearly a setup to an attack. The blade begins gleaming with a violet light, intense and radiating. If this isn't the time for her best attack then she might as well give up now. She's not giving up though, not by a long shot. She charges, bat wings beating down and propelling her forward in a way not entirely explainable by science. The blade lashes out, a fast sweep down from right to left, only it's not a sweep. Her arms piston rapidly side to side, the attack not one slash but several stabs. It reverses, sweeping down from left to right. And then, the sword BLAZES.

    Ducking, pivoting, Yuuki brings her obsidian blade back. She pulls back as well, gaining distance, or perhaps the force of her series of blows sends Momoyo hurtling away from her. It amounts to the same thing: room to extend the final blow. "RRRRRRAAAAH!" she cries, thrusting the blade for the point her earlier strikes crossed, straight for the heart and aiming to come out the other side. The purple explosion would end up covering most of the Ring's fighting surface, concealing the immediate outcome of the devastating special attack.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     The tension in the air is palpable after she's run through by the blade amid the explosion. Even for Elites it may not have been entirely clear what happened, not just because of the speed, but because of Yuuki's mana. That strike should, by all rights, have been a come from behind victory.

    "Ah... ah-ah.... nnh..." she staggers a moment with Yuuki in front of her. Still standing, but the glowing red X crossed over her bustline, showing she was hit very close to her heart. Blood poured out of her body, her earlier wounds being inflicted by such an attack as to prevent her Restoration technique from being as readily useful or rapid.

    "...re..." she whispers softly. "Yuuki..."

    Suddenly, her aura blazes out in brilliant violet sphere before focusing on her fist. In a split-second, her punch fires toward Yuuki's head. There was no sound to this attack until after it was done... most of her remaining ki was packed into this assault. How!? How was she /still/ standing???

    "Kawakami Style Forbidden Move: Fuji Smasher!!!"

    Her fist glowed as she slugged forward. If she couldn't restore, then there was no problem being reckless with her ki at this point. The opponent that shouldn't be standing, who had so handily kept a solid advantage was now on equal footing with Yuuki... and that only motivated her to become even more reckless and berserk.

    "I'M NOT DONE YET! I'M NOT EVEN NEAR DONE YET!!!"

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Yuuki pants, desperately trying to pull in air. Her avatar may not need air, but it still does a remarkable job mimicking the functions of a living being. VR wouldn't be VR if the characters didn't react realistically, and Yuuki's certainly taken a beating. It shows in more than merely her health bar, now in the red, and in the digital damage markers showing everywhere on her.

    She'd done it though. She'd landed Mother's Rosario cleanly. Unless Yuuki holds back, such an attack is lethal to pretty much anything except bosses. She didn't hold back. This isn't a duel to the death, but she knows they're in a simulation where no one's truly getting hurt. Running Momoyo through isn't a bad thing, just an opportunity to end the fight.

    Yuuki's eyes widen as the purple explosion clears and Momoyo's still standing. Yuuki's clearly amazed, flat-footed in wide-eyed shock. "How..." she begins, staring. She never finishes the question. Momoyo charges what seems to be her entire soul into her fist, then throws the entire thing at the wide-eyed Imp. Checkmate.

    The fist is already inside her guard, giving Yuuki no chance to stop it. She smiles at the last moment, a grin of pleasure hinting at triumph. Time stands still, seemingly, both for her and her opponent. They're looking into each other's eyes, measuring, committing everything they've got. Yuuki's no longer wide-eyed. She's intent, and she ducks with a twisting motion, pulling her blade tight against her.

    One moment Yuuki's there, the next moment Momoyo's blazing fist is past the Imp girl. She's struck only by the shockwave, and even that all but knocks her to the ground, her health bar screaming well into the red. She doesn't fall however. She's down, bent nearly to the ground, and still spinning. With a roar, Zekken STRIKES with that spinning cut, rising up with a stomp to put more power into the move. Nothing special is behind it, no glowing aura of elemental darkness, no mass of superhuman muscle. The only thing making the attack strong is the speed of Momoyo's missed smash.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Nearly disembowelling Momoyo, her body jerks to pull itself out of range of the attack. There wasn't even any aura of hostility coming from this girl though her emotions were obvious on her face.

    However, if she stopped now, she was done. The attack put Yuuki in close enough again, and an idea pops into her mind as the blade is pulled out of her midsection mid-spin.

    With very little ki left, she would have to get creative. Yuuki had no armor warranting this technique, but it would put a stop to her movements if she could pull it off. Abruptly, her fists move in a combination of strikes and pressure points, designed to disable the opponent in a special way.

    "Ruby Overdrive!!!"

    The move was intended to penetrate and destroy armor rather than do maximal damage, but against such a speedy opponent it was the best way to slow them down and try to fracture bones in multiple places. Like a wild beast she forged onward, absolutely having the time of her life. At this point, her rationality was completely gone, so very little of her speech was coherent as the samurai girl moved like a truly vicious and cornered beastly predator. The absolute thrill and emotional rollercoaster of coming across someone this strong clearly showed all over her face.

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Again, Momoyo refuses to fall down! Yuuki's beginning to fear Momoyo's tougher than Karian. Certainly tougher then Tecchi and Jun. If she'd met Momoyo when seeking an adventurer to join the Knights to take down a floor boss, she'd have stopped the fight already and offered her the job. Good thing the floor boss battle was in the past... because Yuuki wouldn't have met Asuna if she'd fought Momoyo first! And as strong as Momoyo is, she could never be the equal of neechan~

    Yuuki's no longer shell-shocked by Momoyo continuing to fight, however. She brings up her blade, her grin a mirror for the samurai girl's. Not snarling irrational fury, but delight in a fight well beyond anything she'd expected. The mastery of well-reasoned rational skill mirroring the strength and passion of a beastly predator. Her blade snaps out, down, across, up. For the first time she parries Momoyo's lightning-quick attacks... almost. She mistimes the last, hurrying the parry too much. Instead of stopping or deflecting that last strike, she cuts before it and Momoyo's strike lands clean.

    Yuuki's eyes bulge, this time in pain rather than surprise, as an armor-break blow lands cleanly on her obsidian plate. Jagged red fractures fly across it, radiating out from the fist's strike. Then the entire breastplate shatters into red pixels. The girl flies backwards, dropping to one knee, her armor gone. That would probably upset her if she weren't having so much fun, and if this weren't a duel in a place where no permanent effects can occur. Gathering her remaining energy, drawing the sword back and seating it as if it were sheathed at her left hip, she channels her power. The sword begins to gleam once again, nowhere near as intense as before. All or nothing, she figures. Literally. Her health bar's not red any more, it's blank. There's no color remaining to it whatsoever. The slightest graze will finish her, nothing left but a Remain light.

    Yelling harshly, Yuuki lunges forward, bringing her sword around her body and upwards in a diagonal cut, like an iaido strike done without the sheath. A simple cut, one with minimal elemental power behind it given her low energy reserves, one going from left to right slanting upwards across Momoyo's body.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     With no reserves left, Momoyo is brought to her knees. Her fists clench, but the Ring anti-climactically calls Yuuki's victory before Momoyo even hits the ground. As a matter of fact, it took all her strength just to remain kneeling, with her opponent also a hair's breadth from defeat.

    Soon the ring clears everything, though even when both girls are restored to their best condition, Momoyo's shoulders shake a little. "Heheheh... hmhmhm~."

    She tilts her head back and breathes out a huge sigh of relief... but can't seem to stop herself from laughing. "Ahahahah! Hahahahahaha! YES!!!!" her fists rise up in the air before she falls backward on a handy patch of grass in the Arena defaults.

    "You'd better believe I'm coming back for my title, Yuuki. But for now, you're the best. I don't understand why you don't seem human, but I don't care. That was fantastic! I came through the Gate to find fights like that! Hahahahahaha!" she starts to clutch her own slightly sore midsection as if she'd done too many crunches, laughing hysterically as if a whole bunch of pent up stress was released. It was a truly magnificent fight.

    "I'm okay with losing my title if it was a fight like that! The Grand Duelist surrendered, and the Mage of Space acted like a fool... but you, you're incredible!"

    Her hands flop backward on the floor. It was a measure of the actual kindness in her heart beneath the brutality, that she was so utterly elated that she couldn't stand up to give Yuuki a formal bow.

    "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

Yuuki Konno has posed:
    Yuuki's quite exhausted as the ring announces the end of the duel. That fatigue's only partially wiped away as it restores everything to her. The armor is most welcome. Her fatigue, however, is as much mental and emotional as something the Ring can restore.

    Despite being exhausted though, she smiles as she sees Momoyo laugh. She comes forward, reaching out with her hand extended. The smile's the same one she wore at the beginning of the fight. One of pleasure, not a smirk or a grin of triumph. "Hnnnn! That was a great fight!" she sighs happily. "I've never met anyone as tough as you, Oneesan!" she smiles. Then she looks puzzled. "Human?" she asks, startled. She reaches up to her ears, elongated and pointy. "I'm not exactly human!" she laughs. "Mostly human though. I'm an Imp!" she explains, without going into details of her true condition. That's no one's business, not here, and her friends have made that fact abundantly clear.

    After a moment, Yuuki reaches down to help Momoyo up. She doesn't care about the bow. The respect one shows another opponent has nothing to do with such formalities. "I look forward to fighting you again!" Yuuki grins, offering surprising strength to help Momoyo stand.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji has been watching the entire time.

He doesn't look pleased. His frown is evident as he sees Momoyo fall, the expression like someone who has had a fine meal taken from him before he could eat it.

"... Very well." He sighs. "You can expect to receive a challenge from me shortly. I look forward to claiming /both/ of your titles, Absolute Blade."

Yuuki Konno has posed:
Yuuki's smile falters as Souji challenges her. Surprised, she nods. "You're welcome to challenge for this title." she says carefully, not sure if she understands his words. She's just a kid really, not a wise sage. "But I only have the one. If you mean Zekken, that's not mine to lose." she explains. "It was given to me by proud fighters, and only they have the right to take it away." she says, not quite smiling.