Chapter 30: The Winner Is Here:

On the stage. A form of art was witnessed by the massive crowd. The act of a stalemate. Naoya dashed around the destroyed stage effortlessly dodging Panda's punches. He ducked, weaved, and jumped over the punches. Countering with his lightning-fast attacks. 

Naoya's punches and kicks flickered like a whip slamming into Panda's body. Panda gritted his teeth annoyed. The attacks weren't damaging him only leaving a stinging situation. Panda sees Naoya's left leg flicker before his shin slams into Panda's chin. Panda's face doesn't budge from the kick before he violently slams both of his fists on the ground. 

Pieces of rubble fly up into the air from the force of his fists. Naoya's eyes track the rubble before locking in on Panda lunging towards him. A grin appears on Naoya's face as he dashes toward the charging Panda. Naoya takes four steps before he spins twirling around a large piece of rubble.

Panda comes to a sliding stop before throwing a powerful punch that slams through the rubble. Panda knocks the rubble to the floor before he notices that Naoya has disappeared. In the corner of Panda's eyes he sees something fly up into the air. He snaps his head up but only sees a piece of rubble. Before Panda could look back down, a kick slammed into his neck rocking his head back. He stumbles back trying to regain his balance as he hears cocky laughter. 

" HAHA, you really fell for that? You really do have a panda's intelligence. "

Naoya has his hands behind his back. Panda grits his teeth angrily as he starts to powerfully walk towards Naoya before shouting out, beating his chest. 

" I am not a simple animal! "

Naoya scoffs while watching Panda's footsteps speed up until he enters a full sprint before he leaps into the air. Naoya looks up into the sky as Panda casts a massive shadow over him. Panda slams his fist into the stone floor causing a massive dust cloud. Panda starts to look through the dust cloud. He didn't feel his fists connect. He knew he hadn't hit Naoya.

While looking through the cloud. Panda hears a voice mocking him. 

" You are not a simple animal? Yet you beat your chest like a gorilla. Come on, you're just proving my point. "

Said Naoya laughing. Panda looked through the dust cloud annoyed before he saw a dark silhouette standing motionless with its hands behind his back. A grin appeared on Panda's face as he swung his right arm wildly. He glared at his massive fist slicing through the dust cloud until it suddenly cut the dark silhouette in half. Panda's eyes widened as hundreds of thoughts ran through his head...

I didn't hit him? I'm sure that silhouette was his. I start panicking looking through the dust cloud before I feel something touch my fuzzy back. I glance behind me and look down before seeing Naoya. Naoya has his arms crossed as he lies on my back, back first. I grit my teeth annoyed as I spin throwing a mighty punch towards him. I watch as he unravels his arms as my punch approaches his back. He grins as his body vanishes. My punch slams into the floor making a shockwave ripple out. The shockwave blows away the dust cloud. 

I quickly lift my arm off the floor before looking around the stage trying to find Naoya but he has vanished. I continue to look until suddenly I feel something on my left shoulder. I look up and see Naoya sitting on my shoulder while yawning. A vein pops out of my forehead as I reach out with my right hand trying to grab him but before I can reach him he disappears I let out a deep breath before thinking to myself. 

I-Is he getting faster? He didn't move this quickly at the start of our battle. I glance around the stage trying to find him before I hear quiet footsteps walking behind me. I turn around and see Naoya walking with his arms behind his back. He's circling around me while shaking his head. 

" Do you think I'm talking just to talk? Don't get me wrong. I love trash-talking but surely you would have noticed by now. " 

I look at him confused. He just smacks his lips at me before he takes a single step forward. His body flickers before reappearing directly in front of me. He looks up at me with a disappointed look until a grin appears on his face and he talks. 

" Fine. Let me spell it out for you, dumbass. You transformed into a body with far more muscle mass and this battle has been one of attrition... " 

The confused look on my face becomes more apparent. Naoya grows more annoyed until he suddenly taps my left bicep using two of his knuckles. Before talking. 

" The problem with having too much muscle in a fight is that you tire more quickly. It's not that I have been getting faster. You're just slowing down. I have been trash talking you to keep your mind off this fact. I was originally joking about you being a zoo animal but I have changed my mind. You're a nitwit, dunce, or whatever other words for stupidity there is. "

Naoya's right arm flickers and reappears grabbing onto my right canine. A sharp pain engulfs the right side of my face as he violently snaps it off. I swing my left arm at him but his body vanishes as he reappears on my left arm running up it. He stabs my canine into my forehead before leaping off my shoulder. 

He's right, he's been playing me since the start of this battle. I yank the canine out of my forehead dropping it onto the cracked stone floor. I transform back into my regular form as I hear Naoya scoff standing twenty feet away from me. 

" What's transforming back to normal going to do for you? Face the fact, you've lost."

I grin at him before I talk. 

" You talk about my weaknesses and how I am so foolish. But the same can be said for you. You could have eliminated me without telling me anything. Yet you told me your plan and didn't eliminate me. My weakness might be my smarts, but yours is your pride. "

Naoya starts to slowly walk towards me with a serious look on his face. I listen to his footsteps rhythmically echo out as he talks to me in a serious voice. 

" You say I'm too prideful and you're damn right I am. My strength is incomparable to yours. I'm from the greatest clan in the world. Why wouldn't I be cocky? That's what it means to be a Zenin. "...