Bear and Tokuda clashed with their weapons, sending sparks flying between the impact of the axe and katana. The two of them were deadlocked in a power struggle for a couple of seconds, staring down one another aggressively, before disengaging the deadlock by both of them suddenly jumping back a bit. Tokuda took advantage of his smaller and lighter build to immediately dash at Bear, who was still attempting to get his bigger body balanced after jumping backwards. Tokuda slashed furiously, but Bear was quick to deflect the attack. Bear swung his axe, but Tokuda easily dodged and attempted a quick thrust at Bear's side, but Bear, despite being large, was quick to parry Tokuda's jab using the head of his axe. The two of them then began launching a volley of swift attacks, faster than the eye could see, with both of them switching from offense to defense constantly.
Ezekiel and the others could only watch as the battle raged between the two of them. Some of them were amazed at the level their combat skills were, and some were nervous about what would ultimately happen. Ezekiel was one of the nervous ones, wondering if there was something that would pop into his head that would end the fighting peacefully, but nothing came to mind. Ezekiel didn't even bother checking his Book of Knowledge, as he knew nothing in there would help him. Ezekiel shifted nervously, but Suko, watching the battle between them rage on, said, "There's something off with the offer that Tokuda made." Ezekiel looked at Suko and asked, "What do you mean?" Suko said, "I'm not sure. Just the way that Tokuda made it sound can only mean one of two things: either Tokuda is one cocky bastard, or that Tokuda knows that he'll win this battle." General Alexander, who Ezekiel honestly forgot was still with them, said, "You might be right with that, dragon-man. If there's one thing that I know about Tokuda, it's that he usually doesn't make bets on stuff he knows he can't win." Ezekiel pondered this statement, wondering if Tokuda knew he needed to win so that no one would die in this battle between his friends.
The battle between them continued to rage on, with seemingly no progress made by the both of them. Bear and Tokuda were slowly circling one another, thinking of the best way to attack the other. That's when Bear made a sudden move, quickly rushing Tokuda. Tokuda was ready, getting in a stance to make a counterattack. Bear made a quick swipe at Tokuda, and Tokuda easily parried the attack. However, Bear had other ideas in mind, as he quickly let go of the axe that Tokuada deflected. The momentum of Tokuda's body made him unable to regain his balance in time to dodge Bear. Due to this, Bear quickly overpowered Tokuda and tackled him, quickly pinning him to the ground. Bear was about to let loose a barrage of punches when Tokuda's quick mind sprang into action, saving him. Tokuda let go of his katana that was in his mouth and used his levitation magic to take a swipe at Bear. Bear had to get off of Tokuda in order to dodge the now-floating katana, and this split second gave Tokuda the opportunity he needed to get back into the fight. Tokuda quickly got up off the ground, and he used his levitation magic to put his katana back into his mouth.
Both fighters were a bit tired at this point, and both of them had little to no cuts. The two of them simply stared down one another, thinking about the next move. Bear, however, was a sly one, as he pulled out a few slips of magic paper, each with different symbols on them. Tokuda immediately noticed what they were and charged Bear in an attempt to stop him from using them. Tokuda wasn't quick enough, as Bear was able to use a slip of magic paper that gave a boost to his stamina temporarily. Bear smiled coldly as he blocked Tokuda's katana and used his power to shove away Tokuda, who was now slowly getting tired. Shit, I'm gonna lose if this battle gets prolonged. I need to end this quick somehow, thought Tokuda. Not wanting to lose the upper hand, Bear quickly charged Tokuda and began overpowering him with a barrage of heavy attacks that Tokuda had a hard time defending against. Tokuda furiously began looking for an opening, as these attacks seemed to come at him in a particular rhythm. Tokuda kept blocking, and after a few more blocks, he figured out the pattern.
Bear seemed to attack in a 1-1-2 pattern, meaning that Bear would do two quick heavy attacks then one extremely heavy attack. The time to do the extremely heavy attack took exactly half a second longer than the first two based on what Tokuda could feel. However, he wasn't fully confident in that, as Tokuda couldn't do proper calculations while he was furiously blocking attacks that almost knocked him to the ground each time. Tokuda decided that trusting that could end up costing him the battle, so he quickly jumped back when there was enough time for him to do so. Tokuda needed to analyze the situation more before he could do anything.
Bear, realizing that some distance had now been made between him and Tokuda, pulled out two slips of paper. Bear placed one on himself, and that instantly healed all his minor wounds. The other slip of paper was placed on the head of his axe, and the axe suddenly burst to life with red flames engulfing the blade. Bear grinned and snarled in an animal-like manner, happy that his axe was now deadlier. However, Bear knew that the flame effect was on a timer, and he needed to end the battle before it dragged on. Ending the battle quick was something that they both thought they needed to do, but neither of them said anything to the other about that.
Tokuda could feel that his energy was getting somewhat low. The fire on Bear's axe would only make it more of a concern to him now. Tokuda realized that Bear was able to get rather close to Tokuda with the previous attacks, as Bear has only been able to nick Tokuda here and there. However, more concerning to Tokuda was the fact that Tokuda was wearing flammable clothing, and worse yet, flammable clothing that Bear had been able to reach and cut through. Not having arms in a time like this is a pain in the ass, thought Tokuda, who grumbled to himself and now realized that this fight's difficulty had gone up a lot more.
Bear thought the same thing as Tokuda. I could just use the fire to burn Tokuda. He doesn't have arms, and if he tries to put out the fire by rolling on the ground, I can easily kill him, thought Bear. Bear smiled wickedly, realizing that he had even more of an upper hand. Tokuda then said, "I see your ploy, Bear." Bear laughed and said, "Do you now? Surely you're bluffing." Tokuda then asked, "Where did you even get the slips of paper?" Bear replied, "When I was being healed by Aqua, I asked her to make some for me. I had a feeling you'd wanna fight at some point on the road, so I decided to make the first move by stocking up on some." Tokuda smirked and said, "Cunning, just like your father was." Bear was angered by this, pointing his fiery axe at Tokuda and saying, "Don't you dare speak like you know him!" Tokuda then said, "I won't call you a cheater, as it's my fault for underestimating you like I did. However, like father, like son, I suppose. Both good-natured and cunning warriors who fought for what they believed was right." Bear then shouted, "SHUT UP! I TOLD YOU NOT TO SPEAK AS IF YOU KNOW HIM!" With that, Bear became more animal-like and angrily charged at Tokuda.
Tokuda got a small bit of stamina back from that mini conversation, and now he was fighting an opponent who no longer had a clear state of mind. This should be simple as long as I can keep my head clear. The minute you let your feelings get the best of you, it's over, thought Tokuda. Bear furiously attacked Tokuda, and Tokuda was surprised at this, as he noticed that the speed and power of Bear's attacks had increased. Tokuda was also wary of the flames on Bear's axe, knowing that it would be a death sentence if his clothing caught on fire. Tokuda parried all of Bear's attacks, desperate to not let the fire touch him. However, after blocking a few heavy attacks using the same 1-1-2 pattern as before, Tokuda quickly noticed that Bear's form was getting sloppy due to him becoming more aggressive, meaning that Tokuda had more options to work with for a counterattack. Although they might not be obvious to a standard soldier, Tokuda had plenty of experience fighting in many life-or-death situations and could notice the smallest of details when fighting someone.
Tokuda noticed a couple of things: the time interval that he gave himself earlier, where he predicted that he had about half a second between the second and third attack, was actually shorter than what he previously predicted due to Bear's anger, so he couldn't do anything there. The next thing he noticed was the direction in which Bear would swing for all three attacks. It seemed to be a left-right-down combination, and this info helped him plan his counterattack. The last piece of vital information was that he had enough time and agility to dodge at least one of the powerful attacks that Bear was giving him. Tokuda decided to not limit himself to just the second and third attack, but the point after the third attack was finished and Bear was going back into his first attack would be the best option for a counterattack. With this information, Tokuda then launched his plan.
Bear quickly did his first attack, which Tokuda blocked. Bear then launched his second attack extremely quickly, and Tokuda blocked that as well. Bear then put more power into his third attack, and Tokuda quickly dodged right before the fiery blade could touch him. However, Tokuda didn't take into account just how narrowly Bear would miss him, and Tokuda's robe caught fire at the very bottom. However, not worrying about that at the moment, Tokuda used the opportunity that Bear missed his target to jab at Bear's side. However, Tokuda also didn't take into account how quick Bear really was. Bear was quick to recover, and he dodged what would've been a decisive blow and instead received a small nick in his side. Bear winced in pain, and Tokuda continued stumbling forward, with the momentum of his body carrying him forward. Bear used this time to quickly flip through his slips of magic paper but realized he had no more healing papers. Bear grunted, threw the magic papers on the ground, and charged at Tokuda, who had just regained his balance.
Tokuda, while stumbling, took a quick glance at his burning robes. The fire hadn't spread too much, but it was quicker than Tokuda thought. Tokuda quickly regained his balance and was about to try to stamp out the flames where he could when Bear charged at Tokuda, not giving him the time to do so. The two of them were deadlocked again, with their axe and katana colliding once again in a power struggle. Bear noticed Tokuda's burning robes and said, "It's over 'Armless Ghost.' I'm taking my revenge here and now." Tokuda, who was visibly tired at this point, quietly said, "I'm fulfilling a promise. Until it's fulfilled, I can't die just yet. That would be pretty disrespectful to your father, especially when he made me promise him." Bear was shocked to hear this, and Bear lost concentration on the battle momentarily. A promise made with my father? With him? Impossible, thought Bear. With that, Tokuda began to slowly overpower Bear, and this surprised Bear greatly. Bear could see that Tokuda's strength was being pulled from deep within him, something that wasn't as simple as stamina.
Bear quickly jumped back, putting room in between him and Tokuda. It's just a waiting game now, thought Bear, as Bear looked down at Tokuda's burning robes, which had now engulfed half of his robes. The flames had spread to the back of Tokuda's shoulders, and Bear kept a close eye on Tokuda from a somewhat safe distance. Tokuda could feel the heat on his back now, as the hot flames slowly burned into his skin. Tokuda winced in pain, but his position didn't falter. This needs to end now before the fire spreads any further. I didn't wanna use it, but I've got no choice, thought Tokuda.
Tokuda took up a stance that was similar to a runner's position. He bent his body forward, his legs were bent, and the center of his body was low. Tokuda took a couple deep breaths, clearing his mind and trying his best to ignore the pain of the flames covering his whole back now. Tokuda concentrated all of his mana particles to the bottom of his feet and let them build up. Bear wasn't sure what to expect, but a gut feeling told him to be ready to block. Bear quickly took a defensive position, ready to block whatever came his way. Tokuda continued to let mana particles build up at the base of his feet, and once he felt it was ready, Tokuda stared right at Bear. A chill went down Bear's spine, as he saw the determination in Tokuda's eyes, despite being on fire. Then, Tokuda attacked.
Tokuda used the mana particles that he had built in his feet as a boost, letting off a good-sized explosion of force that propelled Tokuda insanely fast towards Bear. However, it wasn't quick enough for Bear, as Bear could see where he was coming from. Bear grinned, saying, "Neat trick, but that won't stop me!" Bear then swung his axe as hard as he could at the incoming Tokuda, but what Bear cut through was only air. Tokuda shimmered, then disappeared. Bear, shocked, exclaimed, "HUH?!" Tokuda was now behind him, and Bear realized this too late, as he could feel the heat of the flames from Tokuda's robes behind him. Tokuda said, "Ghost Walk" and quickly turned his sword around to the dull side, used the momentum of his body to wind up his attack, and smacked Bear upside the head with it as Bear was turning around. Bear went down due to how powerful of an attack it was, and Bear laid there, stunned at what had happened.
Tokuda then quickly put out the fire with the good old stop, drop, and roll method, using the ground and rolling about to put out the fire. Bear was still dazed, and he tried to get back on his feet until Tokuda stopped him by pressing the katana against his throat and said, "It's over Bear. This fight is done." Bear grumbled to himself in response. Bear didn't wanna admit defeat, but he sadly knew it was true. After a few moments, Bear sighed and laid down flat, saying, "I admit defeat."
Tokuda sighed and used his levitation magic to put his katana back in his sheath. Ezekiel and the others were relieved that the outcome had no lives lost. Aqua immediately went out to Bear and Tokuda to heal them up. Tokuda had serious burns when the robes were finally taken off of him, but that was patched up quickly due to Aqua's healing procedures. Tokuda's scratches and nicks were also taken care of.
During this, Tokuda looked at Bear and said, "You fought hard. You got better since the last time we fought. You made me even use a move I don't usually use until I truly need it." Bear didn't seem all that happy to hear the compliment, but he simply said, "Thanks." A few moments of silence passed, then Tokuda asked, "Now, are you willing to hear me out?" Bear grumbled, "I don't really have a choice, now, do I? A deal is a deal, and I'm not one to break my word." Tokuda smiled slightly, saying, "When we get back on the road, I'll tell you everything." Bear nodded, and let Aqua heal his injuries.
Once both of them were in good health again, both Tokuda and Bear were greeted with smiles, happy that the fight had ended with none of them being killed. Ezekiel said, "Listen, I don't want that to happen among us anymore, okay? If you got a problem with someone, you talk it out. I'm not gonna watch two friends fight and die over something." Everyone nodded in understanding. With that, they all climbed back in the carriage and began heading back on the road.
General Alexander chuckled, saying to Tokuda, "That was quite a fight! Never thought I'd see your Ghost Step again!" Tokuda said, "Shut up, no one was talking to you." General Alexander then mocked him a bit, saying, "'The step that makes you disappear just like a ghost!' It's pretty brilliant if you ask me." Tokuda was about to kick General Alexander in the face when Ezekiel asked, "How does your 'Ghost Step' work?" Tokuda put his foot down and explained, saying, "It's simple, really. It's just building up mana particles in my feet and pushing them outwards, creating a mini-explosion that shoots me forward." Ezekiel thought about this and said, "Just like a rocket, huh? Newton's third law of motion applies to this: every action has an opposite and equal reaction." Bear then asked, "What's this 'rocket?'" Ezekiel chuckled, saying, "It's pretty advanced, so I'm not sure you'd understand even if I explained it, drew up diagrams, and even had you watch a kid's show based around a rocket." Bear then said, "Do you think you could make one?" Ezekiel pondered that, saying, "The huge NASA ones that take a whole team? Probably not in my lifetime. A model rocket, maybe." Bear looked rather disappointed, as he wondered what a rocket would be really like.
The rocket chat was interrupted by Tokuda suddenly saying, "As agreed, I will now tell everyone about what happened in the past. What happened during the Humanity War 10 years ago, and my role in all of it." Everyone was rather interested in Tokuda, as they didn't really know much about him. Tokuda started, saying, "It began 10 years ago, close to the end of the Humanity War."122Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRaWIJ4QOd
