It Awakens

After the successful uppercut, Samuel looked up at his opponent who had been knocked up a good amount, before suddenly–Touma used the momentum to flip backward, catching himself on his feet.

"--Hn?!" Samuel looked at him with that mean mug he naturally possessed.

Touma was smiling as he landed down, with his silver hair swaying in his landing as he wiped the bit of blood from his bottom lip, "Nice one. That woke me up."

In front of the hardened MMA heavyweight, the rookie combatant stretched his arms across his chest, doing a few quick squats as if his vigor was renewed by the uppercut.

[...By all means, a blow like that from a heavyweight legend like Samuel should've been the end of a lightweight like Touma Daigo! But, it seems our rookie is made out of steel!!!]

"You're tougher than I thought, kid," Samuel Robinson said, finally speaking to him.

"Oh? Thanks–means a lot from a champ like yourself," Touma smiled, "You're not so bad yourself."

"Don't get it twisted. I'm the one walking out of this ring the victor," Samuel assured him, raising his arms.

"Talk is cheap," he looked forward with his golden eyes, "People like us…we talk with our fists."

"Hm," Samuel honed in on him with that icy glare, "On that, we agree."

[Looks like it's firing up, folks!!! It seems like both our combatants are kicking into high gear!]

That explosive dash came in as it sounded like a hammer had slammed against the mat from Samuel kicking forward; he held his thick arms up in front of him as a guard.

He launched a set of lightning-like jabs towards the man's forearms, though as expected, it did little to harm up, only keeping his aggression in check ever-so-slightly.

It was like a wall of steel; those arms belonging to the MMA heavyweight allowed him to get in close without any damage sustained until–

He saw it. Out of the corner of his eye, sitting in the stands, his precise eyes saw him–"Gento Ryoto"--the white-haired man that was a sore sight was spectating from the highest part of the audience.

It was that bored, almost disappointed look in those scarlet eyes as if saying "You're having trouble with somebody like this?"--this shifted something inside of Touma.

I'll break it, Touma decided.

[Heavenly Daigo Style: Titan Shot!]

"--!" Even Samuel's eyes widened in surprise.

Coming from the young man half the size of the heavyweight, a powerful straight-punch came with an impact like a sledgehammer directly against the man's raised forearms.

He's serious now, Chimon realized from the audience.

The clash of his knuckles against Samuel's tightly-held forearms sounded out as the wind hissed sharply.

"Grgh…!" Samuel winced.

Just the single blow left the man's arms instantly bruising to a light shade of blue, not allowing him any chance to recover before another came–

[Heavenly Daigo Style: Titan Shot.]

–It was a barrage of powerful blows, which all utilized the muscles in his arms to their full potential for condensed, pinpoint precision.

[A brutal onslaught! Will Samuel's "Ironwall" be able to withstand the "King of Brawling" and his surprisingly devastating power?!]

After the combination of stone-breaking punches, Samuel's forearms were left swollen and purple, they trembled, hardly held up as if a breeze could now break the man's guard.

"Yowch…looks like it hurts," Ishikawa winced from the stands.

"Touma usually doesn't fight this aggressively," Tadashi noted, "...He usually tries to go for quick finishers. He seems…angry, almost."

Chimon scratched his chin, "Whatever it is, it's working."

–

It wasn't just his friends that were interested in the state of the bout; the Overseers also watched with intrigue as Touma battered Samue's raised guard, pinning him against the ropes with a constant barrage of blows.

"Yeesh," Yusei whistled, "Gettem, Touma!"

Myung-Hwan kept his bored expression with his arms folded over his chest, "Aren't you supposed to be unbiased?"

"But that's no fun!" Yusei laughed, lounging, "Right, Adamas?"

Adamas seemed most intrigued by the battle, carefully spectating Touma with his rainbow eyes, "...Hmm, he's an interesting one."

"Right?" Yusei agreed.

–

Just as his next hit came, the iron wall was finally breached; Samuel winced out, sweating bullets as his swollen arms fell from their stalwart defense. An exchange of blows began, though it was clear in terms of striking, the blonde-haired goliath was outmatched as his blows were weaved through and countered.

"...Ain't this seeming a bit one-sided?"

"The 'King of Brawling' isn't just some fake title!"

"The small guy has him on the ropes!"

"Go! Touma! Go! Touma!"

"Fight, Samuel!"

"Gettem, Crucifier!"

–The crowd was engrossed now as the brawl turned bloody, though the loss of crimson fluid came from Samuel, who was battered by the repeated blows, leaving bruises on his body as his nose and lip swelled up, being cut by the swift strikes.

As Samuel's guard was completely shut down for a moment, that split-second opening was taken advantage of as Touma jumped up with a flying knee, looking to finish the sight.

[Heavenly Daigo Style: Ivory Fang!]

It was a blow meant to be a finisher, but it didn't lay the man out as intended; Samuel stumbled for a moment before balancing himself, standing as still as a statue.

"...?" Touma watched.

He should be seeing stars by now. What's this guy made of? He reminds me of that gang leader, he thought.

Yet, despite the beating he had just suffered, Samuel was still looking at him with those focused eyes; breathing out through his flared nostrils as he seemed larger than ever. Slick with sweat and blood, that crimson cross tattoo looked as though it was shining.

[Eyes on the arena!!! If you're a fan of MMA, you'll recognize this well! Only few have ever brought this out of the legendary heavyweight! The Cruficier awakens!]

"He's coming!"

"The 'Cruficier' is here!"

He wasn't familiar with it, but by the sounds of it, something different was arriving within Samuel Robinson; the crowd seemed to go wild for whatever was coming.

Suddenly–he felt it.

Last Chapter Next Chapter