65 Kiyoshi Lionheart vs Edward Quill; The Power of Two Monsters

Large pieces of the ring flew out of place and slammed against the invisible magic dome. The sound of the thuds could fill a water tower if it were a liquid, and half of the chunks shattered to pieces when they hit the ground. The dust in the air settled just as Edward fell back to the ring. Naturally, he landed on his feet like a cat.

Edward placed his hands on his hips. "I don't suppose you'd like to praise me for that last attack, would you?"

Kiyoshi's face didn't make any significant changes in response to Edward. He cracked his neck with the assistance of one hand and returned his gaze to his enemy. "There is no need in complimenting an opponent in the midst of a mere warmup."

Edward slouched over a bit and sighed. "You're truly trying to suck all the fun out of our fight, aren't you? No matter, I suppose."

Edward stomped on the ground. Cracks spread through the ring like scattering cockroaches and he prepared to launch himself forward. He smirked. "Let us kick it up a notch…!"

Zoom! Edward shot toward Kiyoshi even quicker than any other time before. Kiyoshi brought up his fists in reaction. A speed such as this should have prompted even him to keep his guard up. Edward shouted as he launched his fist at Kiyoshi's face, but Kiyoshi had already taken the liberty of attacking him first. He drove his knuckles straight into Edward's face. At the speed he was going, the force should've shattered his skull, perhaps even Kiyoshi's knuckles, too.

Well, that was what should have happened. In fact, no one made any contact at all.

"...Tch. It's this pesky technique…" Kiyoshi muttered to himself in frustration and he held his fist out in the air. The sound of a gasping audience stimulated his ears.

Edward's body had disappeared into thin air. It was the Quill family's technique, the one he'd used against Ruth. To be more specific, the body that launched itself toward Kiyoshi in that instance was nothing more than an identical copy of Edward Quill. The fake copy, hence the name "Nisemono", would disappear after a few seconds as it did. That meant that the real Edward was lingering somewhere, waiting to attack; invisible.

"Flame Art: Palm Grenade."

"!?"

Kiyoshi felt someone push their palm against his back and all of a sudden a rising heat spoke to his spine.

"My condolences, Lionheart."

Kiyoshi looked back. "Bastard…"

It was Edward in all his glory. He had his hand pushed against Kiyoshi's back in an attempt to release an attack.

Boom! A mixture of fire and dust erupted from contact between hand and back as Edward's palm unleashed an explosion unto Kiyoshi.

The heat from the explosion, somehow, trumped everything the crowd had seen up to this point. The attack very well could have been deadly if this weren't an academic tournament. A stream of brownish smoke launched itself outward from the explosion, it made up a silhouette that appeared to have been in pain.

The ring was being dealt a serious shithand. There were so many chunks of stone ripped out it looked like it was turning into a barren wasteland. Nakayama wouldn't have been surprised if the invisible dome collapsed in on itself from the two teenagers' ridiculous power. That strength of theirs was, in his eyes, worthy of worship. That was exactly what he needed to achieve his goals.

And he felt he knew exactly how to get it.

The arena rumbled. Edward returned to his posh posture, his body completely relaxed. He cracked his typical smirk and stared ahead at the mess he'd made.

"My deepest apologies, my friend," he said. "I didn't think I would be able to catch you by surprise like that, even with that technique. I suppose the gap between us isn't all that large after all."

"Who did you catch by surprise?"

"Gah!?" Edward gasped.

The smoke cleared and the fire snuffed itself out like a candle. In front of Edward, there was no one. Not even a silhouette of someone there. All that he saw was part of the audience as perplexed as he was.

Slowly…Edward began to turn his head toward the voice that came from behi---

With a heavy sound like someone dropping a sandbag on concrete, a fist met Edward's face which launched him back dozens of meters. "D'ooaaaghh!!!"

He rolled across the arena, kicking up grey dust as he did so, his body turning into nothing more than a bruised doll. The stone drew blood when no one else had to. Eventually, his body ceased its haste and he came to an ungraceful stop. He slammed his palm on the ground with a grunt and struggled to lift his bleeding face from the floor.

"N-no…way…" he muttered to himself, his cheek gone numb. As he looked up, he caught a glimpse of someone's feet and then their entire body.

Kiyoshi stood there without so much as moving an inch.

"Ah--!?" Edward caught his breath. "H-how did you…?"

"The difference between us is much larger than you think," Kiyoshi stated firmly. He folded his arms and turned his back to his enemy, revealing his torn shirt. More accurately, his shirt had been burned from the back.

"Tch…h-how large can the gap be? He was sure I'd blown you away! I had already made contact with you! I felt it…" Edward finally rose to his feet, his knees trembling. "Just…how far have you come, Kiyoshi…?"

"Just what the hell is he…?" Nakayama muttered to himself in absolute disbelief. As he stood to watch the fight, he couldn't fathom the fact that his legs wavered beneath him at their every movement. Not out of fear, but because of their sheer strength.

That Edward Quill was incredibly strong. Nakayama was sure the bastard could challenge just about anybody. But, Kiyoshi…?

He was…in a league of his own. Far and away from the rest.

Edward stood up straight and stared at Kiyoshi's back, insulted. Few things would rub Edward the wrong way, but Kiyoshi turning his back to his enemy was the same as dissing his honor as a warrior.

"Lionheart…why must you insult me so?"

"It is your decision to be offended."

"We are warriors. If you turn your back to your enemy, 'tis the same as saying he is not worth the effort."

"If I am too fast for you to keep up even after you've already taken me from behind, then perhaps there is no need for me to fight you from the front."

Edward could hardly believe what he was hearing. He was roaring towards a level 1000 and yet this opponent of his was treating him as though his skills were nothing. There were many people more powerful than himself in the academy, but this was too much.

"I see…so you hadn't overtaken me with a technique…it was brute speed," Edward concluded and smirked to himself. "Very well. If it appears as though raw force won't allow me to overcome you, then I shall test my luck with magic."

Kiyoshi lifted an eyebrow. "Hm…?"

Then, Edward held two fingers up to his forehead.

"Water Art: Tidal Wave Domain."