"Boo! What kind of bastard picks on little girls?!" Ju and Dandan were paying far more attention to DwayneI had a strong suspicion that if he somehow managed to flatten the kid, those warrior girls would quietly murder him in a dark alley afterward. Quite possibly literally — who the hell could understand women like that… brrr.
"Easy now. Let's just watch," I calmed the girls down and focused all my attention on the sta— ring.
The Rock bowed to the girl, as etiquette demanded at the start of a duel… Hm. Points in his favor already — he remembered his manners while still taking her seriously. Toph, meanwhile, merely let out a disdainful snort and gave him a lazy little nod. Looked a lot like the early stages of celebrity syndrome… though maybe it wasn't that simple.
For example, The Rock immediately took offense, stomped his foot, and the platform beneath the Bandit shot upward into the air — except the earthbender herself was no longer standing on it. With a completely indifferent expression on her face, she was calmly standing off to the side, enjoying the dramatic spectacle unfolding in the arena. Though not for long.
A casual flick of her foot, several sharp hand motions (according to the memories Shi Tong had given me, the technique was called "Earth Wave"), and her opponent was practically swept away by a torrent of stone, albeit nowhere near as massive or fast as the technique should've been at full power.
That was precisely what allowed Dwayne, at the very last moment, to use an Earth Pillar to leap clear of the artificial landslide. Unfortunately for him, that was exactly how he lost. The girl never let him land, simply blasting him out of the ring midair with the same kind of pillar her older opponent had used to launch himself in the first place.
Total fight time: about twenty seconds.
And once again, boredom and disappointment settled back onto the girl's face.
"And once again, the Blind Bandit proves that the Champion's Belt belongs to her and her alone! Or perhaps someone in the audience wishes to challenge that claim? Is there anyone brave enough to face the tournament's strongest earthbender? Come now, don't be shy! Should you win, an unprecedented reward awaits you!" The organizer shook a pleasantly jingling pouch.
"Hm…" An idea was beginning to take shape in my head. Besides, I genuinely wanted to test myself against a truly powerful earthbender — and without relying on dirty tricks for once.
"No, you're not seriously planning to attack a cute little blind girl, are you? That would be unbelievably cruel of you!" The problem was that the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors sounded nowhere near as horrified as her words implied.
"Yeah, yeah!" the rest of the support squad nodded enthusiastically, taking everything at face value.
"Well… actually, this 'cute little blind girl' just flattened a massive guy in under thirty seconds — a guy who's not only twice her size but twice my width and at least a foot taller than me. So yes… yes, I do."
Displeased grumbling immediately rose from the warrior girls, but Suki…
"All right then, go ahead… By the way, you wouldn't happen to know where I could place a few bets on the fighters?"
Yep. I could already smell trouble.
"Suki, how can you encourage him in something so terribly improper?!"
"And who said I'd be betting on him?" the commander-mom grinned viciously. Realizing what she meant, her little support squad immediately broke into giggles.
"I love you too, dear…" Rising from the spectators' seats, I headed toward the organizer.
"And so, it seems we have found a brave challenger!" The crowd rumbled approvingly while Xin Fu jumped down from his platform and launched into a quick briefing. "Here's how it works: prize money only goes to the winner. No lethal or crippling techniques. If the audience likes you and you manage to last a while, there might even be a bonus. Sound good, or are you chickening out?"
"There's one small issue. I'm just passing through town and… I'm a firebender. But I agree to the no killing and no maiming rules."
"Hmm…" the organizer paused thoughtfully. "You know, that might actually add a fresh twist. I've been thinking about introducing some kind of 'Fire Nation patriot' character to spice things up even more… Though… Yeahhh…" He waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, alright. Fine, get out there already."
Shrugging, I stepped out into the arena.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen!" the organizer's voice boomed across the arena once more. "Tonight we have not merely another fortune seeker! No! A trained and disciplined warrior and firebender of the Fire Nation, a man who found himself at odds with his commanders! Welcoooome… the Deserter!"
...WTF? O_O
That was roughly (very roughly) my reaction to the introduction. Though… whatever. The audience didn't seem especially thrilled either. Some even whistled and booed. The Kyoshi Warriors sat together in a row, all simultaneously facepalming.
"Oh, I've never pounded a Fire Nation soldier into the dirt before!" Toph grinned bloodthirstily.
"So tiny and already so vicious. Or are those two things somehow connected?" Her taunts really were pretty childish. Mine, on the other hand, were far more refined.
"Hmph." The girl theatrically cracked her knuckles and rolled her neck. "I'm gonna turn you into a meat patty. A tiny one."
"Begin!" Xin Fu shouted, and the fight immediately exploded into motion.
(End of Chapter)
P@treon: /SadRaven
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