The night sky looms ominously above as Vincent and Lucas exchange a chilling conversation. "Are the preparations ready, Vincent?" asks Lucas with a sinister smirk. "Yes," replies Vincent, his voice dripping with malice. "Let the weak fall," declares Lucas, his eyes gleaming with madness. As they rub their hands together in anticipation, they hear noises coming from the nearby forest. "Ah, it seems our fighters and spectators have arrived," says Lucas with a spine-tingling laugh. Nearby, Lionel and Felix hurry through the thick forest towards their destination. "Hurry up, Felix; we cannot be late for this," urges Lionel, his voice tinged with a hint of fear. "Excuse me, please do not rush me," snaps Felix, his expression twisted into one of anger.
Meanwhile, Kiyoshi awakens in a cold sweat, feeling a pounding headache. He looks to his left and sees Jax sprawled unconscious on the ground. Desperately trying to wake him up, Kiyoshi shakes him violently. "Come on, man; we are going to be late for this tournament," he pleads. Jax finally comes to, but coughs and groans in pain. "All right, you need to stop whining; it is embarrassing," scolds Jax as he holds his throbbing head. But suddenly, Jax's eye begins to hurt intensely. "Awwwww!!" he cries out, clutching his eye in agony. He rushes back to their dorm room and hastily bandages it up. "That should do it," he mutters, trying to brush off any concern from Kiyoshi.
As they make their way through the dense forest toward the tournament grounds, Jax recalls what happened before he lost consciousness - how that small kid had unleashed a powerful spirit guardian fueled by rage. "We better watch out for that kid because he is too powerful, and he doesn't even realize it," warns Tethyus.
Meanwhile, the crowd at the tournament grounds roars with excitement as Lionel and Felix arrive. "Holy crap! Look at all of these people," exclaims Felix in amazement. But Lionel remains silent, his eyes scanning the sea of faces with a sense of foreboding. They approach the sign-up booth where the person asks for their team name. Fumbling for an answer, Lionel hesitates before Felix cuts in confidently: "Howling Flash!" Surprised by Felix's sudden interjection, Lionel can only let out a disapproving grunt.
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As they hand over their watches to receive points, Felix's mind races with thoughts of victory and glory while Lionel's is clouded with apprehension and doubt about the dangerous events unfolding before them.
Lionel shrugged and muttered "Whatever" as the person checked their watch and replied with a quick nod. Lionel couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off. "Please head to the back and wait for your turn to compete in the drawings," announced the event coordinator. The tournament was about to begin in five minutes. Suddenly, two boys burst out of the woods, screaming, followed by a huge bear who seemed to be laughing. It was one of the fighters participating in the tournament. The audience erupted into laughter at the sight of the two frightened boys. "Look at those scaredy-cat first-year fighters," mocked the fighter. Embarrassed, Jax and Kiyoshi were revealed to be the two boys. Only one minute left till registration closes. They rushed towards the registration desk and were asked for their team name by the announcer. "The Tiger Wings," replied Kiyoshi confidently. "I'll need to see your watches before you can join," instructed the announcer. As expected, sixteen teams were competing for the duo championship title, including Jax and Kiyoshi's team, Tiger Wings. The audience cheered as they made their way backstage, getting ready for an exciting showdown. "There are so many strong fighters in this tournament," remarked Kiyoshi enthusiastically. "I can't wait to take them on," added Jax with excitement in his voice. "We have sixteen teams battling it out for the crown of champions," announced the event coordinator. However, Lionel didn't share their enthusiasm and had a bad feeling about it all. "Up first is Crux Force versus Howling Flash," revealed the announcer. "Followed by Revolution Pythons against The Skyhawks," he continued as he listed all eight matches of the first round, including Tiger Wings' fight against Firestorm Angels."Just a reminder that this is a duo fighter-style match, meaning two fighters will be competing against each other. The first round is single elimination, so one team will lose if either of the two fighters gets knocked out of the ring or KO'd," explained the event coordinator. "Teamwork is crucial in this round," he added. "After that, the rules change and both opponents must be eliminated by being knocked out of the ring or KO'd. You can only use weapons if they are linked to your special move, or if your special move involves a weapon, such as a sword. There is no time limit," concluded the announcer dramatically. Who would come out on top in this intense unauthorized academy tournament?