Shortcuts, Long Punches [Kaoru/Vanyel]

Sun Oct 29, 2023 2:43 pm

KAORU NAGUMO|LAUGHING WOLF

Rosa Rubicundior

Kaoru took shortcuts only in very specific circumstances. Bad weather was one. If it were the actual scenic route was another. Today, it was a crowd of people in front of a club blocking the whole street. Sure, she could just jump over them—but looking down the sidewalk past them showed it wouldn't be much better. Grumbling to herself, she turned down an alley no sane woman would go into. She kept muttering things about people being rude and there needing to be a proper queue to get into places when two men stepped out from shadows cast by a light over a door. She knew they were there beforehand, of course. She could smell the cheap cigarettes and even cheaper deodorant on both.

They blocked her path pretty easily. Both were rather stereotypical looking thugs. It was almost impressive how stereotypical they looked with shaved heads, piercings, tattoos, and sleeveless shirts. They were also likely brothers, but that was neither here nor there for Kaoru. "There's a toll to pass through here, little lady." The left punk Mr. Clean said. "Yeah, and we don't accept credit cards." The right one spoke up afterwards. Definitely brothers.

"This is an awfully strange place for a toll road." Kaoru spoke with an innocence only she could muster. "I mean, I doubt the government makes much going through here. Maybe if you guys cleaned up some, sure, but..." She shook her head. "Well, if there's a charge, I'll just go around and take the long way." Kaoru began to turn around, but a length of wood appeared in one of the brothers' hands and was extended towards her. He made a "nuh'uh" sound. "Threatening me isn't going to get me to pay a toll. If you keep this up, I'm going to need to speak with your supervisor."

The two brothers looked at each other, then laughed. "Bitch actually thinks this a proper toll road." Kaoru blinked. "It's not?" The two stopped laughing, then laughed harder. "No, you fucking idiot. We're—" Kaoru fully turned to face them, a smile growing. "So you're saying you're impersonating a government official, huh? Where I'm from, that's a very serious offense." She cracked her knuckles by flexing her fingers. The two men took a unified step back.

"I don't know about the law here too well, but I think they'd appreciate if I got rid of two fakers." The one with the board swung it—and Kaoru dodged without much effort. There were two audible cracks as the board slammed into the ground and Kaoru snapped the man's wrist with a quick uppercut. He didn't seem to notice at first until he tried to make a fist and only got a floppy fish-hand instead. Before he could scream, Kaoru jabbed out and struck his throat. He crumpled like coiled rope.

The second man let out a whimpering yell as he drew a long knife—a dagger of some sort. Kaoru jumped—well above the man's outstretched arm—and kicked his face repeatedly before falling. He staggered back before trying to attack again. Kaoru sighed and moved in close—easily avoiding the wildly-swinging knife. She built up Reiryoku into her palm as she pushed hard in a single blow. He sputtered and coughed up blood before staggering backwards and collapsing.

As he was falling, the door to Kaoru's right opened—the one whose light cast the shadow these two hid in. A flash of white was all Kaoru saw. In reality, it was likely someone who heard a commotion and was trying to check out what was going on. Kaoru, however, didn't see it that way. Kaoru saw it as backup—reinforcements from inside. Was this Q-tip the boss? Doesn't matter. She ducked down and swung with a wide, sweeping kick meant to catch his knees and shatter them.

Lilio Candidior

""

Wed Dec 13, 2023 7:27 pm

Shortcuts, Long Punches [Kaoru/Vanyel] Z2q6v3M

VANYEL XIAOYANG | DRAGON OF KYUSHU

Sometimes, the seediest parts of town had the best things of them, one of those being a small, out of the way bar. Vanyel was the furthest thing from a mixologist or bartender, so it was nice to get out of the house a little and have a drink every once in a while. But, these areas were also ripe for equally shady figures to come out of the woodwork, especially at night.

So, in hearing some commotion going on outside, he was quick to turn his head. Part of him said not to get involved, but, if there was a fight going on...he wanted to at least see what was happening. Finishing his drink and setting down some money on the bar, Vanyel made his way to the door, only getting a slight amount of resistance as it reached its widest berth.

He didn't get a lot of time to look at the situation before a feisty blonde suddenly swung at his legs with her own. Steadying himself, Vanyel responded with a swift and powerful kick of his own to meet hers and lower the overall momentum, all the while unflinching to what little damage it had done to him.

Shutting the door behind him and moving away from it, Vanyel quickly moved into a stance similar to Shaolin Kung Fu, with emphasis and weight on a bent front leg. His hands, however, remained in a simple, but unassuming position, ready to attack at a moment's notice with the speed and fluidity of a master.

"The fuck was that for, blondie?"

While in his stance, Vanyel tried to tap into something from before the events of the last few years. While speaking and remaining in form, he tried to focus his Reikaku into his eyes, pooling the energy and sensory ability into his vision to isolate and augment it. In doing so, his eyes shimmered an almost crystalline blue, and sparks of a green aura flickered to life as he looked at the girl.

'Green. Prosperity and harmony. So, either a Shinigami or Quincy.'

It was a far cry of what it used to be. It strained his eyes and he couldn't see it clearly or for very long. But, with time, he'd refine it back to what it used to be: an ability inspired by and named after the Monkey King's "Eyes of Truth" from A Journey to the West. It was an infuriatingly snail-like process, but he was determined to get through it, slowly, but surely.

Tue Jan 16, 2024 5:40 pm

KAORU NAGUMO|LAUGHING WOLF

Rosa Rubicundior

The moment Kaoru felt the counter, she backed off. With a small bit of Hohō, but not quite Shunpō, she slid backwards to the other side of the alleyway. Still crouched, she raised an eyebrow as she saw him crouch. Her grin widened. "Oh cool! I haven't fought someone who used kung-fu before!" She made what would likely be seen as an exaggerated kung-fu-esque pose that would have looked straight out of a 1970s martial arts film before returning to her crouched stance.

Unlike Vanyel's stance, this was a stance that had the body positioned forward—the weight up and away from the feet. Her crouch was deeper as well. This was a coiled spring, someone ready to rush forward. She saw the inside of the bar briefly. Bar fights weren't fun. She wouldn't push him there. Thus... Ignoring his question, she sprung. As her form neared Vanyel, she disappeared. Unlike before, this was a true Shunpō as she redirected the momentum of her strike to his right side. She was aiming at side-swiping him and knocking him down the alley. If that did him in, that'd be best. She could just walk away. But something told her this wasn't going to be that easy...

Lilio Candidior

Fri Jan 19, 2024 6:32 pm

VANYEL XIAOYANG | DRAGON OF KYUSHU

She might have been quick to the trigger, but she wasn't completely reckless. Her retreating to the other side of the alley gave him enough breathing room and time to think about what to do next. But, seeing her take a wildly overexaggerated and outdated pose that looked more in-line with a Bruce Lee movie broke his focus, making him roll his eyes.

Nevertheless, it didn't seem like she cared much to listen, so, rather, he paid attention to her stance as she took it, and kept an eye on her movements. He could sense the exertion of energy, and despite the sudden movement, it wasn't something he hadn't seen before. It was similar to the high speed movement ability that someone else he fought had.

So, gathering a bit of energy to cushion where her leg was attacking, Vanyel took the hit, lowering an arm to block. The moment he did, however, he shot forward in a flash -- not quite like her Shunpo, but still quick -- and immediately used his free arm to make a counter attack, a simple, but powerful and aggressive open palm strike to the midsection.

Regardless, he knew that it wouldn't incapacitate her, so he kept the pressure on. Shifting his footwork, he stepped forward, quickly releasing a flurry of high and low punches and kicks, intending on keeping breathing room to a minimum. Even if they didn't land, he could at least use the relentless aggression of his style to try and wear her out so that she'd listen.

Shortcuts, Long Punches [Kaoru/Vanyel]

Shortcuts, Long Punches [Kaoru/Vanyel]

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