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Owner Pose
Momoyo Kawakami      Tapping the keys on the console for the arena, Momoyo had evidently done some cursory homework about Fiora. Nothing too in-depth, but she actually did set the arena scenery to a nice hilly forest, as opposed to the default. There seemed to be a setting in the Ring already similar to Summoner's Rift. Scratching her head, she keyed in the codes to create an arena that looked like an out-of-the-way section of Njorun to many.

    Tossing her hair behind her shoulders, she kept her Kawakami Academy uniform, that is to say her pleated white skirt and black vest with her uniform clipped about her neck and leaving her arms free. Rolling her neck and shoulders, she moved to the center of the arena properly to wait for her opponent and the rest of the audience.
Fiora Laurent     Fiora, for her part, is cursory in her own research of her opponent. Enough that she'll know what to expect. She's not picky about the location that Momoyo decides on, figuring that the location would be the perogative of the one being challenged. She arrives, dressed in her standard faire, that being the armor worn over a leather bodysuit.

    After arriving, she makes her way to the center of the arena, as well. No doubt there will be others, who'll want to watch. So, she's content to wait a bit and allow them to gather before starting.
Kazuko Kawakami      Kazuko's standing not too far outside the Ring proper, an excited look on her face as she waits for the start of her sister's and Fiora's match. Should Momoyo turn her way, she'll wave excitedly at her sister with her free hand, the other hand holding a bag of jerky. She's content to remain a quiet observer for this match as usual, dressed up in a pink sweater for once instead of her usual combat-worthy clothing.

     It's not the first time Kazuko's seen the Ring, but it's definitely the first time she's seen a setting used other than the standard combat arena. In retrospect, she probably should have brought binoculars or something just in case, but... It's too late to do that now. Besides, she's already started eating!
Sagat Wherever the spectators are gathering to observe this match, Sagat is there among them. No binoculars, no snacks, no waving - he's staked out his seat (or his standing space), his arms are folded loosely across his chest, and his monocular gaze is fixed on the battlefield.

To the extent that his attention is discernibly on one of the fighters over the other, he seems to be concentrating more on Momoyo. He didn't challenge her just for fun, after all; besides the workout and the honest test of skill and strength, he wants to see if she's started taking to heart the point he was trying to make, particularly towards the end of their own match.
Momoyo Kawakami      As Momoyo stood with her arms crossed and waited for Fiora to get in the default position, there wasn't nearly as much banter as there would be normally between her and her other opponents. Instead, the initial match was a cool battle of wills.

    More specifically, it was the first time truly gauging one another and sizing the other up. Given the stakes, it was natural that the tension was all but painful between the two. While both had been hardened by years of training and drills, she could tell Fiora was nearly as experienced as her last opponent. The idea thrilled her, but she kept it behind her mask. Normally, she was always smirking.

    Today, she wasn't. It was a measure of her opponent that, at a glance, she didn't need to test Fiora. The Grand Duelist surely belonged in the ring across from her.

    "Anything you'd like to say, before we begin? We both know fights in this place get reviewed periodically by the higher-ups for any number of reasons."
Fiora Laurent "No." Fiora responds, noting the other young lady's posture. A martial artist of some considerable skill, certainly. A test of her skill, if nothing else. She merely raises her sword to her face, in a salute. "Nothing that won't be spoken, once we begin, at any rate." Tension, relaxed only by the fact that soon they'd be trading blows. But if there's something that Fiora is used to, and indeed, comfortable with, it's that sort of environment.

    No test required, either, in Fiora's case. If Momoyo had done her research, she'd find a third-place title in her bracket of the WMAT, to back up any boasting she might've heard from the duelist. Fiora has, for her part, been somewhat muted as of late. Maybe a win here might change that? Still, it's not like a title will change much. Honestly, it's not really about the title, in the end.
"Good luck to you."
Momoyo Kawakami      "Hmhmhmhm~." she chuckles softly. "I'd heard there was a time you were undefeated for a very long while... the same was true for me till recently." she narrows her eyes with an eager smile. "Let's see if you can get my title then, Fiora! Since I bet that's what you want, I hope you won't mind if I go first!" she leaps into the air with a stylish somersault to quickly cover ground toward the duelist.

    Her long hair flying behind her, she comes out of the flip with her fist coming downward to make her first move!

    "Kawakami-ryu Sasori-uchi!!"
Fiora Laurent     Fiora's not a stranger to melee fighters. Still, that's some powerful stuff that Momoyo throws around. She's also pretty agile, and while the somersault is a bit on the flashy side, she still braces for the attack. Perhaps not the best choice, as she goes to block it with the flat of her blade, the blast of ki backing it up definitely making sure that Fiora feels it.

"Ngh!" Fiora's pushed back, but recovers quickly, enough to lunge at her opponent, and swipe at her with the tip of her blade.
Momoyo Kawakami      Wincing from the strike of the blood, droplets already fell on the ground from her shoulder as Fiora targets an artery. If she waited too long between restoration attempts, all that bleeding was going to become a problem... and Fiora was far deadlier than Christiane. "Tch!"

    Still, she kept up her brutal assault. There wouldn't be any simple parrying of someone as strong and fast as Momoyo, but duelling these types of fighters was well within Fiora's range of experience. Momoyo could keep up in speed, but Fiora was vastly more experienced by far.

    "Kawakami-ryu ougi Ten no Tsui!"

    Her heel comes down viciously from above in a full circle, rather than just lifting and heel-dropping. She was going to go for Fiora's shoulder if the rapier was going to bleed her dry! "I don't have to tell you this twice, but if you expect to beat me, you'd better come at me like you're trying to kill me!" she snarls, the fire in her red eyes evident even as her movements remained smooth to keep the duelist on the defense.
Fiora Laurent     "Mm.. It would be a disservice not to." Fiora replies, after taking that heel to her shoulder. That definitely hurt, but Fiora wears that armor on her sword-arm for a reason. It's not disabled her, not yet. But she also can't afford to allow her opponent to continue to do that.

The one eye of hers that's visible, not covered by the ink-black curtain of her hair narrows, steel-grey looking for an opportunity. And, the moment she sees what she feels is an opening, it's another lunge. Fiora's speed may, as a lot of her fights have been, the deciding factor. Standing still one moment, and lashing out the next. It's not just pure strength, how hard she wants to hit. But, precision. Where she hits. Her arm coils like a snake, and lashes out at an angle that might almost /seem/ impossible to the naked eye.
Momoyo Kawakami      Watching Fiora move fluidly, it was as much Fiora targetting her vitals as her opponent seeing where her eyes were looking... and her opponent perceived that blade perfectly.

    Abruptly, her hand glides up and catches the rapier between her fingers, cutting along Momoyo's palm deeply... but letting her pinch it in place. There was a tense eighth of a second where the brute of a woman eyes down the blade... and then at Fiora's smooth locks toward her one eye. "I don't think so."

    "Musou Seikenzuki!!" Her fist balls up and throws squarely at the agile combatant's gut, a huff of her breath gliding over Fiora's chin before her returned attack forces them apart again!
Fiora Laurent "Oho.."
Fiora is decent in close, even against an opponent fighting with their hands and feet. Agility as well, as she manages to twist her midsection as Momoyo throws that punch. At this range, no avoiding it completely. It catches her side, and tears the leather from it, as well. She yanks her sword free and backs off, but it's momentary.

Another lunge? Well, yes. But, Momoyo might feel a brush of wind against her as the attack comes from behind her.. wait, no. The side?
Momoyo Kawakami     

     "Gnnh~!?" Having left herself open to counter like that, Fiora managed to slip out of her field of view and attack again in the same instance she was countered. Quickly, she hopped back on the defensive herself, which Fiora was used to... but her retreat was much shorter in duration. "Restoration..." she murmurs, glowing the violet color of her ki. While it was hard to tell with all the blood all over her waist, hand and shoulder, it was clear to Fiora that she had just healed most of her wounds, keeping her slightly ahead. So on top of her inhuman toughness, she could regenerate... but so far, she hadn't done anything her more experienced opponent wasn't already good at overcoming. Instead, Momoyo continued to back up step by step, circling the area while remaining eye to eye with Miss Laurent.

    "Hmhmhm~! You really are fun. I have a friend who could learn a ton from you instead of being a total princess." she mutters under her breath, but the light of an angry dragon hadn't left her eyes. In many ways, Momoyo's behavior was similar to half-dragons. Such as the next assault, a flurry of blows reminisicent of one of Fiora's other regular opponents, but with power instead of accuracy behind it!

    "Musou Seikenzuki Midareuchi!"

    Once she was satisfied with how closely she'd drawn in her opponent, she reacted viciously with two-dozen fists in a single instance! Such a technique blew leaves and sticks everywhere amid the grassy path they fought on amid the wind following her attack!
Fiora Laurent     Fiora buckles a bit under that flurry of strikes, though she manages to weave out of the way of a few, and parry a couple with her weapon. Some is not all. She's definitely gotten hammered by that one. She backs up afterwards as well, rolling her shoulders a little bit. "Sounds so. If they are in such need of work, by all means. I seem to have a knack for teaching." She's been in a somewhat standing position, this whole time, but her posture is altered just slightly. It's no lunge, this time.

If that regeneration is going to be an issue, better to nip that particular problem in the bud. Let's see how it can keep up. Fiora lashes out again, turns on her heel and lunges once more. The direction, the angle changes each time. Sometimes a thrust or a lunge, but it's all done quite quickly. It might even be hard to discern as more than one attack.
Momoyo Kawakami      "!!!" Even if she can see the attacks, she was too close to evade, re-opening wounds she'd closed and bringing forth more. Finally, on the last hit, she found an unexpected opening.

    On a hit intended to open a vein at her neck, she turns just enough to where it glanes off her collarbone... and leans in to grab her opponent's sword-arm. She had to slow the fencer down, or her own minimal defenses would be overwhelmed... "Let's see how you handle this."

    "Kawakami Style Left Arm: Snowman!!"

    Ice erupts from her left hand's fingers all over Fiora's dominant wrist, coating it in a blistering sheen to try and inhibit her attacks. Given Fiora's reflexes, Momoyo would only have a moment to do this, trying to grab anything more would overextend...
Fiora Laurent     Fiora's brows twitch, as Momoyo grabs at her wrist, of her sword arm. Frost forms on her arm, and creeps along her armor. Even the leather gets stiff from the cold. But, Fiora doesn't look entirely concerned as she tries to wrench her wrist free. "Nnf.. Not entirely wise." She remarks, drawing her parrying dagger from her back.

She counters with this, lunging with that into her opponent's side. Hit or no, she follows up with trying to kick Momoyo straight in the stomach, to free her from her grasp.
Momoyo Kawakami      Lunging in close, she leans into the kick as she grins wildly, letting her foot plant solidly against her belly while clenching her abdominal muscles. Unlike Fiora, now she was finally starting to lose her cool... she was having fun now. "Heheheh~" she murmurs, but it was unclear how she was going to attack... oh.

    "Ningen Bakudan"!!

    There's an abrupt explosion at her waist where Fiora's foot touches Momoyo's body where her ki was coating to resist the kick. Such an explosion was liable to do more damage to Momoyo than Fiora of course, but Momoyo could heal it along with her wounds during the creation of space afterward...
Fiora Laurent     That's new, definitely. Fiora is tossed back by the detonation, leaving that space between the two. But, Fiora has no real intention of leaving it that way. She closes the distance quite rapidly, lunging forward. And then back. She passed Momoyo, at some point, but again. She's done so with such haste, it's a wonder if anyone can keep track of that.

Her actual attack holds nothing back. Her aim is definitely to run Momoyo through. Her regeneration and durability are an issue, one Fiora doesn't want to continue to deal with.
Momoyo Kawakami      Her eyes widened, as the sting of each wound being cut open began to reach her brain. That rapier was no longer just nicking arteries, she was trying to hit vital organs now.

     Momoyo had held back too long... or maybe it was because Fiora's defense was too perfect. Nothing hit without a counter, and Fiora's only openings were if someone ignored her attack to hit back. That was working until now when the entire purpose of her attacks changed.

    The attack is a style it's difficult for her to recognize, so her waist is perforated multiple times along with her arms. "Restoration...!" her voice sang out, a bit more desperate as her breath heaved. This was a wild gambit, but she was going to have to take the risk... all the ki she was using until now was child's play and defensive.

    "Diversion!"

    She turned toward Fiora and blasted a large shining wad of energy... that dissipated rapidly. While her opponent's attention was on her attack, she feinted, abruptly coming up to her side to pack a ton of ki into her sonic-speed punch, coating not only her fist but blazing around her figure brightly in a curve. Healing all those wounds and this assault... was going to cost her if she didn't regain the advantage!

    "Forbidden Move: Fuji Smasher!!"
Fiora Laurent     Fiora doesn't fall for the feint, but it doesn't really matter. Momoyo's attack finds its mark, all the same. She staggers from the blow, even taking a knee afterwards. She stands, though, and takes a shuddering breath. "No, I think that's enough.." Fiora is slow to her feet, and runs a hand through her hair. "I'm afraid continuing won't prove anything more. I yield."
Momoyo Kawakami      As soon as Fiora declares her loss, the Ring heals both combatants to their pre-fight state.

    Momoyo, however... her hands quivered. Right when she was at the peak of her adrenaline high... her opponent surrendered. Most opponents either were too weak to even get the chance to do that... or had a time limit to prevent it.

    "D-DAMMIT!!!" she punches the now reformed ground, no longer holographic forest. It leaves quite a crater, but she had to vent her frustration somehow!

    "Ugh... I was hoping you'd go another fourty minutes." she mutters, getting back to her feet as she shakes her head. Breathing heavily, she glares angrily down at Fiora. This was her actual true self... not really able to contain her emotions and living her own way.

    "You did good. I expect you to challenge me again and take it next time, Miss Laurent." she replies, rubbing the back of her neck as she tries to calm down herself. Her frame still quivered, but she shot out her hands to clap them together and give her a deep, customary bow to thank her for the fight. "Urgh...!"
Fiora Laurent     Fiora lets out a sigh, "Believe me, I'm not exactly pleased, either." She returns the more formal salute, again. "There is a reason I didn't line up behind others to fight Nero, though. If I had beaten her, she wouldn't have learned anything from it."

She tilts her head, "You? You would have learned something from losing."
Sagat Sagat shakes his head slowly as the fight concludes. He still can't fault Momoyo's technique or the strength she's trained into, but he spoke of 'discipline' at the end of their match the other night, and he isn't seeing a whole lot of it now, either.

What he *is* seeing a lot of is dependence on a particular trick - a worthy ace to have up one's sleeve, to be sure, but Momoyo depends on her Restoration technique too much for it to *stay* up her sleeve. Self-destructive techniques are, in his opinion, worse than a waste of effort - and if Momoyo ever runs into somebody who can actually counteract or nullify her Restoration, she's going to be in a *lot* of trouble.

However, he doesn't share this insight with Kazuko or any of the other spectators, instead merely turning to walk away. Possibly the monks back at the Kawakami Dojo/Temple will want to know Momoyo will need extra servings at supper ... he can probably help with some of the kitchen tasks towards that end, too.
Kazuko Kawakami      Hopping up from her seat, Kazuko hurries towards Fiora and Momoyo, somehow having not eaten all of her jerky by the end of the match. "Good match, you two! Alright, I think it's time to get some food after that. You two must be hungry after that, right? Right." It doesn't take a genius to realize that there's still some tension there, so it's up to the younger Kawakami to try and dispel some of it! Without waiting for a response, she'll start trying to tug them out of the Ring to lead them towards the Cafeteria. She raises an eyebrow when she spots Sagat leaving, then clears her throat. "Mister Sagat! You should come, too! I found this one really good place with this stuff called 'quesadillas'..."