>>5577452>>5577477>>5577537>>5577583With a simple shake of your head, you silently inform Barbar that you're going into this one alone. He nods back at you in understanding, stepping back to give you room, while Mutaito's smile seems to grow a bit more. "You two must share a special bond to communicate so easily without words. I can respect the decision to keep this spar personal." He says, though his stance doesn't relax one bit.
You adopt the river stance you had before once again, waiting for a few moments just to let your opponent know that the battle is about to begin for real this time. Then, right with the beat of your heart, you push forward with all your strength to dash in towards the older fighter. Your arms tucked in, you prepare to slip around any strikes he may send your way, but find that he does no such thing; very well, you'd pit the full might of your offense against his defenses, then. You swing out with your new and improved claws, slashing through the air at speeds that no normal person could ever hope to avoid, but each swipe meets nothing; the old man doesn't even parry the blows aside, his body just twisting out of the way or ducking under blows with a fluidity of movement that betrays his appearance.
Knowing better than to keep using attacks that are failing to land, you switch it up to kick your leg out towards his with the intent to take them out from under him, but he twists back to plant his hands on the floor outside of your reach and lifts his legs into the air swiftly to avoid the sweep. Unorthodox, but a position that would surely put him at an immediate disadvantage...you rush forward once more with your claws to punish it, but his feet kick out at you, kicking each strike aside with surprising agility and precision. Now getting frustrated, you tuck your arm in and rush forward, slamming your shoulder into his legs and toppling him from his handstand position and onto his back.
He moves with the motion, pushing himself upright almost immediately, and unfortunately for you positioned right behind you now. Strangely enough, he doesn't actually capitalize on it, backing up straight away to create distance from you once more and tucking his arms behind his back. His moustache twitches as he considers you once more. "Your energy has carried you far in fights so far, I'm sure. Not many would be able to weather that kind of intensity. And I commend your adaptability - you clearly know when to change it up if something isn't working. Perhaps it would have been foolish of me to take both of you on at the same time, considering your skills..." He says, seeming to be earnest in his assessment. You get the feeling that he's about to go on the attack, though...
