Feral Paw Tournament (Part 9)

 Gongs rang out as many people gathered to attend the conclusion to one of the biggest events of the year. Drums and cymbals bellowed throughout the vicinity as fireworks soared into the sky, decorating it with an explosive display of sparkles. Once all the guests have taken their seats, the Announcer sprang out of nowhere onto the arena's center.

 Her face brimming with exuberant enthusiasm as she greets the audience with a raised microphone. "It is with great honor that I once again welcome you all to the climactic end of the Feral Paw Tournament~!!! A shame that we've already made it this far but what a road it has been!

 Every competitor gave it their all once they stepped into this very ring and provided us with phenomenal entertainment. Despite it all, only two stand before us on this day. Now presenting a blast from the past, Ume Otogi and Gale Hhitoryu~!!"

 The audience roared into a flurry of applause as the contestants approached the stage. Such an intense atmosphere would make almost anyone nervous, but these two were obviously seasoned to handle this pressure.

 "As for today's match, we wanted to make things a little more interesting for our competitors. Since we all know just how much they like to cause some breathtaking destruction~! Just for that, we would like to up the ante a little."

 Five pillars would rise out of the arena, making an 'x' formation. Upon each one was a statue resembling one of the five Pillars that run this Hemisphere.

 "The goal is to find the imposter among these five statues. However, each time you strike the wrong one, you will be dealt double the damage inflicted to it via a random element. Now you might be wondering what happens if you use other means of striking the statues?"

 With a playful wink, the Announcer waggled her finger to the audience. "I suppose you will all find out during the match. I'd hate to be a spoiled sport; so without further ado, the final bout for the Feral Paw Tournament is about to begin~!!! Oh, and for all of you that don't know by now, tournament rules still apply~."

 The Announcer left the stage, greeting the spectator of today's event. While the fighters took their positions awaiting the signal, the Announcer decided to reassure something with the guest. "It's a pleasure to have your company for today. I must say it's a bit of a disappointment that your cohort couldn't make it." 

 A tall, refinely-dressed, one-winged ocelot waved her hands, heaving a sigh at the presented commentary. "Believe me that it's more of a blessing that he wasn't making an appearance today. Not a day goes by that I'm reminded of his vexacious existence."

 She groaned in annoyance as the Announcer could only awkwardly smile at the sentiment. "Well his estate has been home to many tall tales as of late; but it's still great that you made it. Your schedule must've been difficult to make room for-"

 They were interrupted by the ocelot pulling out a large gourd; drinking a large quantity of liquid from it. The smell of the contents raised some alarm with the Announcer but the woman waved her hand in a shooing motion. "Don't worry about it too much. It helps me take the edge off. It's been... Stressful to put it lightly..."

 Her demeanor shifted, causing some discomfort, but the Announcer knew better than to pry into the matters of such a pinnacle figurehead. "You're probably right. Either way, I'm sure you'd like to have your seat. The fight's just about to start!"

 "Heh... Fair enough." The ocelot took another swig before being led to the spectator stand. Once the coast was clear, the Announcer signaled for the match to start. Both fighters launched into a clash with a determined smirk on their faces.

 Gale was first to make an attempt to break the standstill, but Ume was swift enough counter with a palm thrust to the gut. Only a brief wince came from Gale before she retaliated with a powerful tail swipe. Thankfully, Ume was able to block, only skiddng back a small distance as Gale closed in with a heel drop from the sky.

 Barely evading, Ume turned on her heel to roundhouse her foot into her opponent. It sent them a fair distance away but nowhere close to getting a ringout. With the window of opportunity presented, she jumped between two pillars, using them as a means to ascend to the top of the one possessing a statue resembling the Harvest Queen.

 She didn't have much time since Gale has already recovered from the attack, giving chase with the use of her claws and stalwart grip strength to scale the pillar. It was now or never and with not much option, Ume kicked the statue at her opponent. However, the croc could care less, smashing through the statue to get to her opponent.

 What the two didn't know was that they've just triggered their first obstacle. The crumbled remains of the statue transformed into a swarm of rock bullets, immediately laucnhing into the two. Thinking back on the brief explanation of the rules, Ume used this to her advantage by charging in to add onto the punishment.

 However, things weren't going quite to plan. Both participants were pelted by a barrage of earthen projectiles. Instinctively, they blocked wincing as each bullet crashed into their skin, pulverizing into dust with each impact. Every blow felt hard to bear, as if the projectiles were doing their hardest to pelt the arms off of their bodies.

 Gale wasn't letting this stop her however. As the last of the shards made their way towards her, she mustered as much of he strength to repel them. While successful, the shards careened into another statue. Nothing happened at first, but a faint crackling can be heard before visible sparks emanate throughout the area.

 It didn't take long until a surge of electricity struck both particpants to the ground. Both fighters got up to their feet, only to be elecrocuted by a burst of lightning that seemed to come out from underneath them. In the spectator stand, the ocelot had her eyes glued to the fight with great zeal.

 "So I take it that you're actually having fun now?" The Announcer snickered as they stood aside the stand. The amused ocelot could only snort briefly before kicking up her feet, swigging down a morsel of her drink.

 "I'll have to admit. I was more than prepared for this to be pretty boring, but this little twist you pulled out here has caught my attention. Did that 'snake' put you up to this?"

 It was clear that the Pillar was under the influence of what smelt like a specialty sake. The Announcer could only smile as they observed the match. "I suppose you'd call her that since you all share a long history together but no...

 Contrary to belief, each year the tournament has a special edition added onto it. Only the very first one was pretty standard, but since then, we had to garner a means of maintaining an audience. I don't mean to bring up any uncomfortable memories by the way."

 Of course, she was referring to the incident that took place on the very first Feral Paw Tournament. A fair amount of individuals were angry, including her. Understandably, the ocelot crossed her legs, stretching out her arms wide before having another drink from the gourd.

 "Yeah... We never got to apologize to 'that man'. Now that he hasn't been around for quite some time, things sure have taken their course." She burped loudly, turning her attention back to the match.

 Pained screams plagued the arena as both fighters struggle to resist the surge of electricity rushing through them. Thankfully, Ume had more resistance due to her natural affinity, inching each of her movements bit by bit until she was able to approach Gale and swung her fist into their face.

 The advantage sent Gale crashing into a pillar, granting her enough of an opportunity to shake off the shocks. With that, she lunged forward with a greater speed smacking Ume's head to the side before sending a powerful kick to their gut. The sounds of crumbling rubble indicated the demise of yet another pillar.

 A statue in the spitting image of the Serpent Maiden shattered against the ground. To their dismay, a gust of air swirled out of the statue's remains before taking shape. Dozens of moon-shaped projectiles assaulted both fighters.

 Each direct hit was evidently clear with the intention of slicing away at their flesh. Torn fabric flew throughout the air and not long after, came droplets of blood. The audience were left at the edge of their seats, not expecting such a turn of events.

 Many murmurs voiced their concerns for the participants' safety. Even the Pillar observing the match couldn't keep her eyes off the scene. The Announcer caught what seems to be a glint in the spectator's eyes as she nudged the ocelot's shoulder.

 "Seems like they're not paying much attention to the dangers of their actions. If things keep going like this, it's only a matter of time before they really get hurt..."