Hathiya vs Kaihua: The strings behind the curtains.

Kaihua wasn’t begging, so much as explaining his situation. The young tiger really felt like he was in a tough place going against one of Eros’s commands, and as much as Cirkot seemed to disregard him the plant man did ultimately step up to Eros on Kaihua’s behalf. He sort of owed Cirkot a favor for that, and to be played around with by Eros’s champion wouldn’t serve Kaihua and ultimately make the plant man’s sacrifice worth nothing. So, as much as he hated it, he took a page out of the plant man's book and explained things civilly. It was tough, considering Kaihua’s limited vocabulary and broken speech pattern, but he sincerely hoped he was getting his plight across. It was tough to tell when Hathiya sighed, Kaihua usually taking that as a bad sign.

Almost all of his previous owners hit him after they sighed like that…

But, Kaihua would experience a bit of an emotional roller coaster as Hathiya agreed to his request…only to grab him and throw him towards the ropes with a cute wink. After that, his emotional roller coaster became an actual one as he felt his body be flung through the air! Luckily, he rolled his body mid air so his feet were pointed towards the ground. But that didn’t really matter as he felt his back hit the arena ropes! There was so much momentum that he actually felt the ropes strain a bit before flinging him back at the Earthshaker.

Kaihua was returning back to Hathiya at incredible speed, and with so little time to think, Kaihua did what he could! Remembering an attack he’d seen in a picture book, Kaihua would tuck himself into a ball quickly, hoping that his own bodyweight and momentum would serve to be a decent return for Hathiya’s throw!

Scrunching up into a makeshift cannonball wasn’t the best idea, even Kaihua could admit that. But when he was flying around at disorientating speeds, it was the only one he could think of! Flying at someone who was tall enough to tower over most people and was actually the person who threw him made it difficult for the tiger to think up a way to take advantage of the absurd situation. With clear ease, Hathiya would snatch him out of the air with a single arm, holding Kaihua like he weighed next to nothing. The world stopped spinning, which was not the only thing he was thankful for. Honestly, had his cannonball idea worked, he might have been a little disappointed in both himself and Hathiya.

The prideful fighter didn’t get much time to think of his predicament, as the Earthshaker would suddenly toss him up high into the air! She didn’t spare any strength either, as Kaihua would sail up towards the ceiling! In a display of cat-like reflexes, Kaihua would twist in midair and actually dig his claws into the fibrous material that made up the ceiling panels. Up there, his claws kept him safe and secure as he blinked his bright blue eyes, peering down at the people and Earthshaker below. In a way, he probably looked like an albino bat, hanging upside down as he thought about how he could take advantage of the situation to topple his powerhouse foe.

As strange as it looked, Kaihua wasn’t uncomfortable where he was. Being high up was an advantage for a hunter species like Kaihua, his blue eyes peering over everyone in the crowd with a startling amount of detail. With his eyes, he could even see things like what condiments the crows had on their snacks, details on their clothes, even Cirkot barely holding in his laughter! Kaihua huffed in annoyance, deciding to get Cirkot back by digging his claws further in the ceiling, leaving some noticeable claw marks. With his claws being curved, it was difficult to move anywhere but where he was. But it also meant he wasn’t spending much energy hanging on to the ceiling. In a way, he had a nice break to sit and think things over.

Peering down, Hathiya was patiently waiting for him with a worried look on her face. Even against an opponent, she was being nice. It made Kaihua grumble a bit, but he quickly devised a plan. Without any doubt, Kaihua unhooked himself from the ceiling and started his descent! He righted himself in midair, his four paws rapidly approaching Hathiya. But rather than fall straight down, Haihua shifted. His arms and legs moved outwards, much like a housecat did when they fell. It was said that a cat had better chances of surviving a fall from a higher story building than another. And since Kaihua was already rather high, he had plenty of time to properly land onto the floor!

It was a scary tumble for those who did not know, but Kaihua fell down at a different side of the ring, his four paws hitting the floor without much sound as his body seemed to absorb the impact. He remained on the floor for just a second, before darting towards Hathiya like nothing had happened! He had effectively nullified the impact of the ground, and quickly looked to slip between Hathiya’s feet to get behind her! Taking advantage of his scary looking fall!

If he succeeded, Kaihua would rebound off the ropes and look to send a dropkick into Hathiya’s back, hoping to get a nice clean hit off his opponent!

Kaihua’s strength is what helped him build such incredible speed in such a short time. His nails dug in the ground to help him pull himself faster! His muscles tensing up and releasing like pistons as he slipped between Hathiya’s legs and left a couple claw marks in the ring canvas. Every step he took was faster than the last, which only made his momentum when he hit the ropes that much more effective. The metal springs inside the padded ropes strained as the tiger pressed against it with all of his strength and speed pressed against it. Only for them to spring him forward like a pebble in a slingshot!

In the blink of an eye, Kaihua was practically on Hathiya, his attack just about to connect. But almost as fast as him, Hathiya would prepare her own counter attack by…sticking out her rump? Few might have understood what she was doing until Kaihua’s attack. Kaihua’s heels smacked into Hathiya’s rump, causing one HECK of a swat to echo out into the audience as the tiger accidentally gave the Earthshaker a spanking. At the end of his momentum, the tiger would spring off his large opponents soft rump, landing on all fours behind her as he blinked in absolute confusion as to how Hathiya was still up!

Kaihua stood staring in awe as the Earthshaker seemed to shrug off his attack with a good natured chuckle and a gentle rub. Kaihua may not have been in Tsubar for a very long time, but he knew he was stronger than the average species. He had broken apart a pair of metal guards that had tried to keep him from entering into the city when he first arrived to search for his rival, and that was part of the reason he had been imprisoned in the first place. Kaihua had dispatched those fake guards with a few swipes of his claws, and yet it felt like he couldn’t even make Hathiya even budge! He blinked, his sapphire eyes almost sparkling as he began to imagine just how many guards Hathiya could take down!

“Very heavy hit, but big butt save you?! How tough are? Champ ever be beaten?”

Kaihua actually seemed a little...excited? While it was true he had his pride, even the strongest warrior could be impressed by overwhelming strength. Despite being in the middle of a match, Kaihua inspected the impact site on Hathiya’s rump. There was a slight tear in the fabric, but otherwise little clue he was there. The force of Kaihua’s pounce was the equivalent to being hit by a motor vehicle, but Hathiya stood tall and proud. Even as immature as Kaihua was, he had to admit it was a pretty cool thing to witness. For the moment, he seemed to forget he was still fighting Hathiya, as he pointed at her muscular arms.

“How strong? In big way? Stronger than Kaihua’s rival?”