Reiki tried to block most of Arashi’s punches as she hammered him with a flurry of jabs.

[System: User has received 21 Damage.]

[System: User has received 34 Damage.]

[System: User has received 48 Damage.]

…

Reiki kept his guard up as Arashi landed a punch on the back of his glove as he felt the impact of the punch on his chin. Asami was holding onto a glass of wine as she floated in mid-air, she thought. He’s going to feel that in the morning. Arashi took a couple of steps back as she cautiously stared at him. Reiki’s vision turned blurry as everything he saw turned double and kept spinning.

His entire upper body visibly wobbled while constantly adjusting his footing just to stand on his own feet. Arashi stopped doing her peek-a-boo stance as she lowered her hands, she thought. Took longer than I expected but I won. Reiki’s feet were unstable as he raised his right foot and slammed it into the ground. Asami raised a brow and thought. Well, aren’t you a tenacious one. Arashi’s eyes narrowed, she hesitated whether to put her hands up as Reiki appeared right in front of her. She reflexively raised her hands as she was back into a peek-a-boo stance.

Reiki threw a simple left hook which hit Arashi’s forearm.

[System: User has dealt 5 Damage.]

She barely slid on the ring as she was pushed back by half a step. Arashi had a look of surprise as she felt the sting of his punch. She thought. What was that? Reiki said. “I’ll be nice and give you a handicap, left hand only.” He threw another jab as he forced his hand in between the slight gap in Arashi’s stance while his fist almost landed a blow on her

[System: User has dealt 3 Damage.]

Arashi leaned back as Reiki’s fist hit nothing but scraped the sides of her forearm. He pulled his arm back to his side while Asami was watching with interest, she thought. Oh, that’s a big blow to her pride. Arashi saw a tiny scratch on the side of her forearm, she moved her gaze onto him and saw that Reiki’s eyes were still blurry. She thought. Is he… Pretending? But I’m sure I hit-. Before she could finish her train of thought he threw another jab at her as Arashi blocked it with her forearm.

[System: User has dealt 1 Damage.]

The moment he felt his hand hit something, Reiki instantly pulled his fist back to him. He thought. Relax and breathe. Arashi clenched her fist in tighter, she thought. Ok, last few punches, and then he's out of steam-. In one smooth motion, he landed a left hook on her forearm as she felt something heavy hit her hand.

[System: User has dealt 18 Damage.]

Reiki thought. One more time. He quickly followed up with a series of punches with only his left hand.

[System: User has dealt 20 Damage.]

[System: User has dealt 26 Damage.]

[System: User has dealt 31 Damage.]

…

A few small bruises appeared on Arashi’s forearm as she was slowly getting pushed back, Reiki smiled at her and said. “Keep this up and you’ll be the one who’s lying on the floor.” He threw a left hook at her as Arashi weaved to the side she saw his fist stop mid-punch and thought. It’s a feint! He pulled his fist back as he maneuvered his way to her right and aimed at her liver, Arashi gritted her teeth as she felt the pain in her right side.

[System: User has dealt 18 Damage.]

Asami was holding onto a glass of wine, she thought. Reiki’s on the verge of falling to the ground while Arashi just got a wake-up call. Arashi’s left iris turned yellow as she gritted her teeth so hard her gums started bleeding as blood came out from the corner of her lips and dripped down to her chin onto the floor, she glared at him and said. “C-Cheap shot.” Every time she breathed she felt a sharp pain on her right side, Arashi spat the blood in her mouth to the side of the ring as she wiped her lips clean with her glove.

Reiki let out a chuckle, despite everything he saw constantly spinning he could clearly tell one of Arashi’s irises was yellow. He said. “Cheap shot? I was the one whose brain got rattled.” She took a few deep breaths as her iris slowly returned to ocean blue, Arashi thought. I’ll show you a liver blow. She took a step forward while feeling her legs slightly heavier after his punch, before Arashi could properly adjust her footwork Reiki appeared right in front of her as he threw a couple of light jabs.

[System: User has dealt 14 Damage.]

[System: User has dealt 10 Damage.]

He thought. I’m already feeling the fatigue from excessive use of internal force. Arashi threw a quick left hook which Reiki just barely ducked under the punch as he threw another punch at her liver. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to step forward as she felt his punch at nearly the same spot as the last blow.

[System: User has dealt 15 Damage.]

Both of Arashi’s feet faintly trembled as she took a few steps back, she placed a hand on her liver and thought. Mother! Fucker! Both of her irises turned yellow as her pupils slowly changed into vertical slits. Asami emptied what was left in her glass of wine in one go, she threw the glass over her shoulder as it disappeared before it could touch the ground. She thought. Smart, reduced the impact of his punch… Now I wish I had recorded this match now. Reiki thought. I have a few seconds to catch my-. Before he could finish his train of thought Arashi appeared in front of him, he instinctively jumped back as far as he could.

Arashi appeared on his left as Reiki threw a punch at her using his left hand as she vanished just before his fist could connect. She reappeared right in front of him and slowly made him walk backward against the ropes, Reiki thought. Maybe I should have started throwing punches at her liver earlier. With each step he took his back was getting closer to the ropes, he felt the ropes graze his back as he glanced at it from the corner of his eye. Arashi’s right hand blurred as Reiki felt something heavy hit his forearms.

[System: User has received 52 Damage.]

He dropped onto the ring floor on his knees as he felt the impact through his skull, parts of his vision turned dark along a few dots of white of different sizes started appearing in his sight. Asami appeared above the ring, she said. “One… Two…” Reiki almost vomited, as he saw the entire world spinning around him, he thought. I’m guessing this is her way of getting even from my two liver blows. He tried to push himself off but couldn’t move his legs, Asami continued. “Three… Four…” Reiki thought. Yep, I can't feel my legs… Not my finest hour…

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Arashi’s iris was still yellow as she stared at Reiki who was struggling to stand up, she thought. Thanks to his two blows, it feels like someone is stabbing me with needles every time I breathe. She did a half turn as she froze when Reiki grabbed the ring ropes, he thought. But, when did I ever care about my appearance? The smile on Asami’s lips turned cruel for a split second, she thought. This is fun. She said. “Six… Seven…” Reiki pulled himself up using the ropes as he could barely control both his legs, Asami continued. “Eight…” He managed to stand up and slowly moved his hands away from the ropes.

Asami glanced at Arashi from the corner of her eye, she intentionally blocked Arashi’s view of her hand and extended two fingers near his face. Asami said. “Reiki, how many fingers am I holding up?” He moved his gaze onto her hand as a white spot was blocking one of Asami’s fingers, Reiki said. “... Three…” Asami stared at him in silence for a couple of seconds as she turned her upper body to the side and showed Arashi three extended fingers. Asami said. “The spar continues.” She had a smirk on her face while Arashi coldly glared at her, she thought. She’s on her ruthless streak again…

Arashi said. “The spar is over. He’s in no condition to fight.” The smile on Asami’s lips grew bigger, she spoke in a provoking tone and said. “Are you that scared to lose?” Arashi didn’t reply as she just stared at her, Asami continued. “As far as I’m concerned, the next punch that connects wins.” Reiki closed his eyes as he placed his hands on his knees, he thought. … A couple more steps and one punch… After that, I’m out cold. He let out a long exhale as the mana around him expanded. A moment of silence passed by, Arashi said. “I’m not going to play your games-.”

Reiki said. “I’ll give you another six hundred grams of dragon meat.” The two girls moved their gaze onto him as he slowly stood straight up, Reiki’s standing position was visibly slanted to the side. Arashi's eyes narrowed, she said. “... If I say no?...” The corner of Asami’s lips curled into a smile, she thought. Reiki’s your only way of obtaining dragon meat. You don’t even have the guts to ask me to loan you a handful of silver.

Reiki let out a chuckle and said. “Then you’re going to have to make six hundred grams last until the next time we make a deal.” Arashi pondered for a moment, she said. “... How much can I eat in a day?” Reiki coughed a few times, he used the boxing glove to point at Asami and said. “Same as her.” Arashi’s lips slightly pursed, she thought. ... Six hundred grams in one day… If I portion it to two hundred grams, It’ll last me three days… Asami glanced at her from the corner of her eye, she walked to the corner of the ring and thought. She’s going to accept, Arashi can’t predict when he’ll barter with her again.

She reached the corner of the ring as she vanished and reappeared floating in mid-air. Arashi took a deep breath as she felt a sharp pain on her right side, she placed her boxing glove on it and said. “... Next punch wins the spar…” Reiki nodded as he felt a surge of pain in his head from the sudden motion, he placed a hand on his head and said. “Deal.” Arashi took a couple of steps back while Reiki stayed in place, the two of them put their guards up in a peek-a-boo stance.

Reiki curled both his fists in the boxing gloves as hard as he could, he thought. Fuck me… That punch made the worst migraine I have had go through a cakewalk with this headache… His gaze wandered onto her feet as he continued his train of thought. … Her movements are a lot slower than before… But I can’t put my feet in a position to throw a decent punch… Arashi took quick short breaths, she thought. I just need to end this quickly… And maybe down a potion and get some ice for my liver… I swear it feels like there’s iron in his gloves…

Asami was watching them with a big smile on her face, she thought. How long has it been since I watched a fight that I didn’t know the outcome of?... Arashi glanced at the ground, she thought. Three… No, two and a half steps and I’ll knock him out… This time he’ll stay down. Arashi's yellow irises were faintly glowing, making her vertical slit pupils more pronounced. Reiki felt another surge of pain in his head, he thought. Just take the two steps forward so we can end this already.

Arashi let out one final exhale as she took a couple of steps forward at him as she struggled to move her legs properly, she winded up her left hand as she threw a sharp hook at him. Reiki saw eight boxing gloves going at him as he ducked under her punch. Arashi quickly followed up with a right jab as Reiki managed to dodge it, from the bottom of her eye she saw both his legs visibly shaking as she continued her barrage of punches.

Arashi stayed focused as she tried her best to limit his movements, she thought. Just stay still for a couple of seconds. Reiki tried to sidestep as he felt his legs give up on him for a split second as Arashi almost hit a left jab. He felt her glove whistle through his messy hair and quickly managed to stand back up, Reiki leaned on the ropes and thought. … Just a little more… Arashi instantly winded up her right hand as the pain from her liver caused her to lose her concentration for a split second.

She gritted her teeth and forced herself to move, near the tip of her shoe a small web of cracks started spreading. Reiki suddenly leaned in as he used Arashi’s glove to block her view of him and threw another left jab near her liver.

[System: User has dealt 29 Damage.]

Arashi gritted her teeth so hard her gums started bleeding she placed her left hand on her liver and rested her right hand on the ropes. Her entire upper body violently trembled as she lost her footing and kneeled on the ring on one knee, Arashi thought. My organs feel like they’re on fire. She took quick short rapid breaths as every single one of them was accompanied by searing pain. Arashi felt the blood on her mouth starting to coagulate as she spat on the ring, she forced herself to breathe and wiped the blood on her mouth.

She glanced at Reiki who was leaning on the ropes with his eyes closed as he placed a hand on his forehead. With her yellow eyes, Arashi stared at him in silence as she forced herself to stand as her legs barely moved, she did a half-turn and forced herself to walk toward the side with one of the ropes missing. Asami rubbed her right side and thought. Yep… I still remember the time I was caught off guard and got hit in the liver… I tortured that bitch of a woman for months… That hurt like hell…

Asami appeared beside Reiki as he slowly opened his eyes, Asami watched Arashi limp her way toward the door. Reiki glanced to his right and saw five spinning images of Asami, she said. “Nothing like a close fight.” Asami saw Arashi closing the door as she left the two of them alone. Asami continued. “You could’ve easily won the spar without getting hit.” Reiki moved the hand on his forehead and covered his ears using the boxing gloves he had on, he said. “Don’t speak too loud, it feels like someone's trying to scrape samples of my brain.”

Asami patiently waited for his answer while he slowly moved the gloves away from his ears. Reiki said. “If I won all of the spars without a challenge it will only end up with her resenting me.” Asami raised a brow at him and said. “And you think powering through two concussions and using only your left hand won’t have the same results?” Reiki let out a laugh which quickly ended as he felt his brain throbbing, he said. “Only because you’re helping me with her. So, how was her reaction? Good or bad?”

Asami let out a chuckle and said. “You didn’t see?” Reiki slowly and barely shook his head sideways, he said. “Nope, everywhere I look all I see is five to ten of the same things spinning in circles.” Asami placed her hand in her pocket and said. “Here’s something to help with your concussion.” She took out a vial that had some light green liquid in it, Asami twisted off the metal cap and handed it to him. Reiki took a small whiff of it and started coughing which made his headache even worse, he said. “What is this? It smells like a garden… And not the good kind either.”

Asami lazily tossed the metal cap as it bounced on the ring a couple of times before vanishing, she said. “It’s a type of health potion. I would recommend drinking all of it in one go.” Reiki let out a sigh as he chugged down the entire vial in a few big gulps, he said. “Now the smell is in my mouth, thanks.” Asami took the glass vial from him as she pocketed it and said. “Your headache should be gone in half an hour or so.” Reiki tried to unstrap one of the boxing gloves he was wearing, he said. “So what’s the result of the spar? Do we have to do damage control and spoil the princess or just let her be?”

After a few tries he managed to unbind the edge of the velcro while Asami glanced at the door leading out of the gym, she said. “You’ll be fine, she probably won’t join for whatever reason it is for your training.” Reiki removed one of the gloves as he stretched his fingers a couple of times, he said. “That’s fine, tomorrow is good. I’m still recovering from the two concussions she gave me.” He sat down on the ring and quickly took the other boxing glove off, Reiki continued. “Just let me close my eyes for a couple of hours.”

He stacked the boxing gloves on top of each other, laid down on the ring flat on his back, and closed his eyes. Reiki thought. It’s only the start of the day and I’m already exhausted… And I have to meet with Kiru after this… What should I make for dinner later…

________________________________________________________________________________

Inside A Bathroom

Arashi was standing by the sink that had an empty tube with some red liquid in it. She took off a cork from a similar-sized potion and threw the cork in the trash can beside the sink. She drank the potion in one go as it was followed by a pained groan, she thought. … Finally… I can breathe again… She placed the empty tube in the sink along with the other one, Arashi stared at her reflection in the mirror embedded on the wall above the sink as her gaze wandered onto the area of her stomach.

She took off her shirt revealing a light gray sports bra underneath, Arashi placed her shirt over her shoulder as her gaze zoned in on the right side of her abdomen. She saw three large purple bruises, parts of them were blue with the outer edges being yellow, she gently poked it with the tip of her finger as she felt a sharp pain. Arashi thought. Yeah, it still hurts… She slowly exhaled and continued her train of thought. … I need some ice… She picked up the two empty potion tubes in the sink and casually threw them in the trash can.

The two tubes shattered upon hitting the bottom of the bin as she turned the sink on and splashed some cold water on her face a couple of times. Arashi turned the sink off as her gaze kept on darting to the bruises on her liver, she shook her head sideways and used her shirt to wipe the water on her face. She made her way to the door she left slightly open and thought. … He can throw a mean punch, that’s for sure…

Arashi closed the bathroom door behind her as she made her way to the large fridge, she opened the bottom door of the fridge. She used her shirt to cover her hand and grabbed a big handful of cube-shaped ice, Arashi used her shirt as a makeshift ice compress as she closed the fridge and tried to apply the compress on her bruise. Arashi slowly inhaled, she said. “Just make it quick, I can do this…” In one swift motion, she placed the makeshift ice compress on her bruise as she let out an uncomfortable grunt.

Arashi leaned back on the fridge as she let out one long sigh, she stared at the ceiling and slowly slid onto the ground to sit on the floor. She thought. …… How did…… When was the last time I lost in a fight…… She stopped staring at the ceiling, she moved her gaze to the floor, and covered her eyes with the back of her hand. Arashi’s hand that was holding onto the makeshift compress tightened as the ice inside was crushed by her grip as some water spilled onto the floor.