Rise of Rivals: Ayane Tokegawa vs Kimiko Danzaki

Now that Ayane FINALLY hat Kimiko's full attention, this "fight" would no longer be completely one-sided! All the better too! It only took this long for her opponent to show her TRUE power at long, long last! Her first strikes were met with CONSIDERABLY more defense than before, Kimiko holding her ground as  her punch slipped just past it's target, nearly grazing the nose of the taller girl as she leaned back and away!

Hmm... Faster than expected... Ayane mused as she SLIPPED to the side, attempting a flank... only for Kimiko to shift appropriately to compensate! Now facing her, it seemed trivial for her opponent to form an effective guard, bringing her palms down to semi-catch, semi-block the strike aimed for her stomach, the force of which pushing HARD against her palms but ultimately was unable to make them budge! Stronger too-

"GAH!.... OOF!" Ayane grunted as a quick one-two of a movie-favorite bicycle kick SLAMMED right under her jaw, snapping her head back TWICE in rapid and harsh succession! Her eyes shot wide as she stumbled back, nearly thrown on her butt again had she not caught herself at the last minute! Stepping off her front foot, barely able to center herself on her back, Ayane threw herself forward into a more stable standing position, teeth gritted, eyes flaring... only for her to fall RIGHT into a double-palm strike slamming HARD in the center of her chest! It was as if time froze for a moment, Ayane's expression one of shock... before it all resumed as she was THROWN backwards, FLYING!

"WAAAH!" She cried, landing HARD on her spine a good couple feet away, the force of her flight carrying her END over end for a full one-and-a-half rotation before managing to catch herself and use the momentum to roll back up to her feet!

"How in the..." She muttered, wiping the edge of her lips with the back of her hand, quickly shifting back to her combat stance! "She's... better than I thought..."

Kimiko let out a hard exhale with the force of her final strike on Ayane, watching the other girl comedically tumble away. There was no time to pay herself on the back though for landing a few good hits, she could do that after the match. Lurching forward she kicked off the canvas, giving chase to her opponent as she rolled.

Her ever present smile grew even wider when Ayane turned her wild tumble around and was able to use that momentum to carry herself back up to her feet. That was pretty impressive! Kimiko made a note to try doing that herself later to see if she could manage something similar. For not though, back to the fight!

As Ayane rose up, Kimiko was their to meet her giving the other girl no room to compose herself. The brunette practically launched herself like a missile towards the other girl, cocking back her arm to lock in blow. When she was just close enough she let it fly sending the Superman punch soaring to attempt to cold-cock Ayane right upside the head.

Hit or miss, Kimiko would land onto the balls of her feet, sinking down immediately to a crouch. Like a compacted spring she went down, letting her momentum hit the canvas before launching herself back upwards, fist flying high with a wild rising uppercut.

The was a severe disconnect between the carefree, almost bubbly smile of Kimiko... and the utter HELL she was now returning to Ayane! It was like this girl gift-wrapped a nuclear warhead all nice and pretty-like and delivered it to her JUST as it was exploding! Exaggerated metaphors aside, Kimiko was giving Ayane little time to get back to her feet and adjust to this new aggression! Just as Ayane rolled back to her feet and lifted her head, her eyes INSTANTLY homed in on the punch FLYING right at her face, a punch that would've very well PLANTED her back into the floor had she not been quick enough to dodge it! Craning her neck HARD to the side, the blow skidding just past her cheek! Super-man punch was right... If that had hit....

Ayane didn't have time to contemplate the possible ramifications of that punch as another was coming in! Ayane's eyes followed Kimiko as she crouched low in preparation for a punch, her lower stance and the wind-up of her fist indicating one thing... a gut busting uppercut! THROWING her whole body back wards, Ayane watched as Kimiko's fist ROCKETED up, ZIPPING RIGHT up into her stomach, busting through whatever defenses her firm stomach might've offered to her insides, the strength of that blow scrambling them instantly!

"GGGGHHHHUHHHHRGH!" Ayane gasped, a spattering of saliva spraying form her lips as she hunched over the punch that struck her, her eyes dulling with pain! Her body fell limp... slack... for a moment! Suddenly, Ayane's jaw clenched, her expression hardened as she threw a HARD uppercut of her own RIGHT into Kimiko's gut, hopefully catching her off guard! If she connected with Kimiko, she would bring her fist back... and DRIVE it in again... and again, and again, each punch hitting a little bit harder than the last!

Kimiko seemed to be having the time of her life as she ran down the other girl, even giving off a small laugh when Ayane got to her feet in such a way. This was far more interested than school yard fights, perhaps given that the ring was far more forgiving than hard pavement. She came down hard with her initial punch, striking nothing but air in a whiff that blew back a few black strands of the other girls hair and made her bandana knot wiggle from the passing air current.

"Haha! Nice dodge!" Down she went into her crouch, ripping upwards with her punch only to have it stop short, buried in Ayane's guts. Her fist sunk in deep as the other woman hunched forward, catching Kimiko by surprise.

"Whoops… sorry, that was meant to hit your face. Give it a second you'll be fi-" The brunette straightened up, reaching out to clap her free hand on Ayane's shoulder with a few small supportive pats. She didn't really for another round of attacks, instead giving her opponent a moment to recover… which she would regret when Ayane threw a punch right back rather than taking the offered moment.

"Guh!" Kimiko let out a forced exhale when the fist impacted her stomach, causing her to lean forward slightly. Then another came crashing in, and another. Each one found her bent further forward, the third one actually lifting her feet off the ground. It was at this point her legs buckled and she dropped to her knees on the ground, hugging her. Arms around her midsection as she hissed in agony, forehead pressed to the mat as she kicked her feet.

"G-good one." She croaked out in obvious pain before any further words she managed to get out were overtaken by coughing and dry heaving.

Ayane's punches hit STRONG and true, SLAMMING into Kimiko's stomach each and every time, bringing her foe to her KNEES... but the only reason that the dark-haired firecracker wasn't doing that BEFORE... was that she had the support of her opponent's fist in her guts! All that adrenaline that had fueled her last attack faded, as did Kimiko's support, the woman falling to her hands and knees alongside her rival, one of her arms wrapped around her gut, the other clutching desperately at the canvas below! Saliva still dribbled out over her lower lip as Ayane gasped for air, each breath being FORCED into her lungs against the will of her now twisted and knotted stomach!

God, it ached... like she had been vomiting for the last hour... She couldn't remember a time a SINGLE hit brought her down like this, barely able stay kneeling! Kimiko was strong, there was no doubting that... Hell, she looked even WORSE than Ayane felt!... Though not much by the looks of her... The taller woman wasn't smiling now, her forehead pressed to the floor, the woman clutching her belly as if there was a hole in it... and the sight of it all made Ayane smile... Not because she was in PAIN persay... but because Ayane had done MORE.... She had the high-ground... She....

"G-good one..."

"Of... Of course... it was..." Ayane managed to gasp out, raising her head... if only a bit. She looked up... an almost prideful gleam in her eye... though between that and the pain etched over her face... t'was hard to tell what exactly she was trying to express.. Was that a compliment...? A genuine, non-begrudging compliment...? After being punched in the stomach, she was complimented... Damn weird girl...

"Heh... NGH!" Ayane laughed... before CLUTCHING at her gut again, her stomach NOT appreciating her chuckle! "Not... bad... yourself..."

Kimiko turned her head, letting her cheek presw to the mat to look over at her foe in a similar state to her, though in truth a bit more dignified. The brunette's backside was hoisted up in the air with her hunched over face down, not exactly the most flattering poses if she had any real sense of pride where her image was concerned. She let out a low groan, rolling onto her side to sprawl out a bit, in no rush to rise with her opponent also grounded. "Thanks."

She breathed in and out, getting what she felt like was a good handle on her nausea before kicking her legs up onto the air, rocking forward to sit herself up. Kimiko winced at the motion, holding her lips pressed shut as she let out a muffled burp inside her mouth that make her cheeks puff up. She shuddered before slowly climbing back to her feet. "Ugh…"

Was it a good thing or a bad thing she hadn't eaten before the match? The normally clear answer was a highly obscured given the circumstances. Glancing back to Ayane, seeing the woman's likewise terrible state, she decided for now to lay off of the stomach strikes… not that she had meant to punch the other woman's guts in to begin with.

The brunette lightly pressed her fingers to her sensitive tummy, grimacing at how sore it was. Her immediate worry wasn't the damage she had sustained and how it might hinder her chances of winning, no, she was concerned this might upset her dinner. The price she paid for this choice of career was indeed steep.

Rather than going right back in, she raised her dukes again and took a step back. She didn't want to start throwing punches when Ayane was on the floor or anything, especially after their had been a definitive pause in the action. She brushed the underside of her nose with a thumb, taking some time to get a few quick rolls of her shoulder and twist of her body in to help limber up again. "Still got some gas in the tank I hope."

...Secretly, Ayane hated the position she was in, laying on her knees in a subservient position, clutching at her wounds as if they were fatally damaging. It was pathetic really, that one blow from Kimiko could drop her like this and it took THREE of her own punches to do the same! And now look at her... slower to get up than her opponent, Kimiko already half-way up while Ayane was still struggling to get her bearings....

Damn it all... She wouldn't be underestimated! She would not be shown up! She...

"...Wha-what?" Ayane gasped, looking up to see Kimiko standing tall in front of her, encouraging her up! She wasn't done yet. She wanted more... "Tch... Of course I do!" She fired back, PULLING herself up as FAST as she dared, sparing only the SMALLEST amount of time for her poor, sore stomach to readjust to it's new position in relation to gravity! A defiant, "I told you" smile spread across Ayane's face as she stood before her larger opponent once again, her dark eyes alight with drive... Drive to knock Kimiko down again! What, among other things, continued to confuse her about this girl was why she didn't take the opportunity to pound Ayane's head into the floor. She was up first... she could've kept the fight going at her own speed and maybe... MAYBE did some significant damage but... She just let her get up... What was her deal? Why did she fight like that? It was in the rules after all! She could've... but she didn't...

...

Ayane's spotting Kimiko doing a few mid-match stretches (as you do), decided to follow her example in part, crossing her arms across her chest one, then the other, before clapping her cheeks lightly with her gloved hands to get her focused, READY!

"Ready for round 3?" She asked, shifting back into her combat stance, waiting until Kimiko was ready to pay the favor... she didn't want to, like, owe her anything after this. That just wouldn't be good for anyone! "You're good, Kimiko... but I'm just getting started!"

"Huh. Wrestling has rounds too?" She really needed to read up on this stuff. With a small shrug she inched in on Ayane, eyeing her to gauge if the other girl was ready. She tossed out two quick jabs, testing the other girls reaction time while not offering much to counter with the quick in and out.

"So do you have any secret techniques?" She stepped in with a feint jab before backing out again, nimbly dipping off to the side, watching to see how well Ayane followed her movements after responding. Unlike earlier she seemed to be making an effort to actually feel the other woman out rather than going all in.

"If you do, you should tell me." When she came it again, it wasn't with a punch or a kick at all. She stepped into the other woman's space, arm extended its full length to exploit her slight height advantage she attempted to shove her palm into Ayane's face and just charge forward to drag the other woman backwards. The goal was to blind and force the other girl off balance with the unorthodox approach before hooking a sweeping kick around to knock the girl's foundation away and send her to the mat

She was trying to knock her down, perhaps in the gentlest way either girl had done so far this whole match, also the oddest way. Unlike before though, if she had gotten Ayane on the ground she would be quick to follow up, trying to drop down on top of the girl to straddle her waist to set up a ground and pound situation that Ayane would definitely not want to be in.

"Wha-... N-no, it's a figure of speech... geez..." Ayane muttered as Kimiko's apparent air-headedness made itself known once again! Didn't she go through wrestling-school or something before coming here...? Ya know... to learn the rules...? She could understand if she didn't know any actual wrestling techniques, as one might want to keep their style the way it was but... the RULES were kinda important so you didn't get disqualified!

Kimiko poked at Ayane's defenses with a few quick jabs, both coming right at her face! One she ducked away from, the fist slipping past her cheek! The second, Ayane raised her gloved-hand to catch, the punch coming in like a viper, slapping into her palm and retreating before the smaller girl could catch it in her grip! Not one to be outdone, Ayane would throw a pair of strikes herself, one a quick straight RIGHT at Kimiko's nose, the other a SWIFT reverse roundhouse-kick, aimed SQUARELY below the breast-line of her foe, aiming to slam right into her upper-side!

More probing, a caution Ayane hadn't exactly come to expect from Kimiko based on her behavior thus far! So bold and brash was the taller woman, Ayane had been expecting... and maybe even craving... a full-on SLUG-OUT!  It seemed in almost every aspect of her being, this girl was defying expectations, surpassing them in some and completely bypassing them in others! It was frustrating... but also intriguing...

Ayane's body would react naturally to what it perceived to be an attack, the woman ducking away from the false-jab before reasserting herself and trying something similar! Ayane too would lash out with a punch, a quick jab of her own right back at Kimiko, aimed squarely at her jaw... before stopping just short and retreating. Testing the target's defenses was always a smart idea, especially when neither girl had shown their true power yet... Kimiko was starting to get curious, however... and so was Ayane.

"Oh yeah...? And what about you?" She fired back, stepping in close, fist cocked back in preparation... "Why don't you show me- GAH!"

Suddenly, before she could even react, Kimiko had HOLD of her face! Instantly, her hands SHOT up to grab the wrist that DARED to grab her like that, her eyes wide with surprise! What was she doing!? WHAT WAS GOING ON!? Ayane was practically being PUSHED backwards by her head, that's what!

"MMMPH! GETH OGFHHF MEH!" She DEMANDED through Kimiko's palm, her vision stunted by the fingers the caged them, her balance being warped by the woman's larger size and considerable strength! Frustrated, ANGRY, Ayane tried to push in on Kimiko's grip, her own hand reaching out to grab her face... and touching nothing! Her range was just too short. SHE was just too short to try and resist the grip of her opponent!

Suddenly, her legs would be kicked out from beneath her, Ayane letting out a muffled yell as she was KNOCKED onto the floor, allowing for Kimiko to quickly climb atop her and straddle her down!

"...Oh geez..." Ayane would mutter, realizing how BAD a position she was in now... Badbadbad! Quickly, she would raise her arms up to protect her face as best she could... but then, Defense wasn't truly her strong suit to begin with!

"Hey." Kimiko threw one leg over Ayane, dropping her knees to the mat to straddle the other woman's legs. With a few quick hopping rolls of her hips she had scooter herself up to the woman's waist, spreading her own legs to either side to rest her weight on the other girls abdomen. Her smile turned into a grin she. The dark haired girl put up her defenses, getting a small chuckle from her. "Peek-a-boo. I'm coming for you."

Leaning forward she drew back one arm back, throwing the other forward, finding a heavy piston rhythm to hammer away at Ayane's raised arms. She didn't seem concerned with trying to get around the guard at all despite how easy it might have been to hook a punch around it at the woman's body or head. She was determined to pound her way through to get to the juicy center!

Each of her blows was getting progressively more impactful, with leverage and gravity on her side it was only a matter of time before she did some serious damage to the other girls arms or finally pierced through to start slugging her on the ground with wild haymakers.