NOVEL NEXT Episode LXXIV: Ghosts and Freaks
Several months prior, Tokido darted through the dense Zokor woods. His nimble feet sprang from tree trunk to tree trunk, his body spinning elegantly in midair. The Mitsukodorian within him activated with a radiant glow. "Ultimate Move: Perfect Ghost Lightning Cannon!" he bellowed, summoning a massive white electric orb, significantly larger than his conventional True Ghost Lightning Cannon.
With a swift release, the electrified sphere hurtled towards a wooden cutout target. Upon impact, everything in its path evaporated into thin air - the target and stand alike. As the explosion subsided, only white smoke and charred remnants remained.
"My accuracy has improved substantially," Tokido remarked to Strix confidently. "I can see us already claiming victory at the tournament."
Strix chuckled heartily at this comment. "And I can finally show my sister who is truly superior amongst us lightning hippogriffs."
Tokido grinned at Strix's enthusiasm. However, their conversation was interrupted by a distant boom echoing through the woods. He turned to see Jared Aldo refining his combat skills as well.
"Jared Aldo," greeted Tokido coolly.
"Tokido Mitsuko," Jared retorted curtly, "What brings you here?"
"I'm assembling a team for this year's tournament," explained Tokido casually tossing a patch towards Jared. "If you're interested, meet me at the east café at six o'clock." With that said, he vanished from sight leaving Jared alone with Erik examining the patch skeptically.
Tokido then made his way to the local gym where most fighters congregated for training sessions. Alecto was engaged in an intense duel with Wiley, a fighter known for his signature cowboy hat. After an exhilarating exchange of blows and dodges between them, Alecto found himself bested by Wiley's swift moves.
Suddenly, a gust of wind swept through the gym, accompanied by blinding white lightning. Two patches dropped onto the floor, and a voice echoed, "If you're in, meet me at the east café." The mysterious spectacle ended as abruptly as it had begun, leaving Wiley and Alecto puzzled.
Evening came around, and Jared, Alecto, and Wiley waited for Tokido at the designated location. As soon as Jared began to question his punctuality, Tokido appeared before them.
"So you were behind this," Alecto accused pointing at the patches. He then questioned how Tokido managed to manipulate the lights in the gym.
Recognizing Tokido's features similar to his brother Jax Mitsuko's triggered a flashback in Wiley to their first encounter.
"So what exactly is this about?" Jared asked finally breaking the silence.
"A meet-and-greet with your new teammates," replied Tokido nonchalantly spreading his arms wide. "I've already registered us as Ghost Freaks."
Jared rolled his eyes sarcastically at this revelation while expressing his discontent regarding their team name and patches design. Ignoring his complaints, Tokido expressed his anticipation for fighting in the upcoming beach classic tournament and instructed them to gather there for practice next morning.
As he sauntered into the café leaving them behind, Alecto cheered optimistically while Wiley expressed excitement about showcasing his skills. However, Jared remained skeptical about Tokido's intentions for recruiting them into his team - a suspicion Erik dismissed with reassurance.
Present-day…
Tokido, Jared, Alecto, and Wiley all began walking towards platform G1, where their match was scheduled to take place. Upon arrival, they noticed that their opponents from team Demi Star were already there. "Welcome, Ghost Freaks and Demi Star," the Ref announced as he spun a wheel to determine the conditions of their match. The wheel landed on Team Fight. "This means all four of you will face each other atop the platform at once," explained the Ref.
"This should be fun," Tokido remarked with a smirk, his eyes closed in anticipation. All eight fighters jumped onto the regular sand of the platform. "Aw man, this is going to suck," Alecto grumbled.
"Why is that?" Wiley asked curiously.
"Because this is just regular sand, not any other kind," Alecto replied glumly.
"I'm pretty sure we'll do fine," Jared reassured him with a chuckle.
Each fighter on the platform bowed respectfully towards both the Ref and each other before preparing for combat. Wiley found himself up against Toge Toshinari while Alecto faced off against Miya Seiichi. Jared was pitted against Kaichi Hatasutani and Tokido against Hanoichi Fumitoshi.
"To make things more interesting, we should all transform into our spirit guardian forms," suggested Hanoichi.
"Fine by us," agreed Tokido after giving his team a nod of approval. All eight fighters' auras burst out as they transformed into their respective spirit guardian forms.
"Ahh... much better." Hanoichi sighed contentedly before charging at his opponents alongside his teammates. As Kaichi lunged at Jared with a thunderous attack, Jared skillfully evaded it with a backflip while Alecto delivered a metal punch to Miya.
Kaichi halted in surprise but collided with Miya who had been thrown off balance by Alecto's punch. Both fighters tumbled in the sand, momentarily disoriented. "Nice execution, Alecto," Jared praised.
"Thanks," Alecto replied with a thumbs-up gesture.
Meanwhile, Wiley and Toge rammed into each other headfirst, neither of them willing to back down. After a momentary stalemate, they backed away from each other to regroup.
"You're one tough son of a gun," Wiley acknowledged.
"You're not bad yourself," Toge responded before cracking his knuckles in readiness for the next round of combat.
Hanoichi attempted to land his dragon kicks on Tokido but was blocked at every turn. Changing tactics, Hanoichi aimed a straight punch at Tokido only for him to disappear suddenly.
"What... how?" Hanoichi stammered in confusion as he looked around wildly.
"Special Move: Metal Monkey Fist!" Alecto shouted as he landed a punch on Hanoichi's face that sent him flying back towards Tokido's range.
"I'm not wasting my energy on this fool; thanks for the assist but it wasn't needed, Alecto," said Tokido dismissively. "Special Move: Ghost Lightning Cannon!" he yelled as he launched an attack at Hanoichi who managed to dodge it gracefully.
"Hmmm... interesting," mused Tokido while Hanoichi retorted defiantly, "Yeah, I'm not going to lose that easily."
As the fight continued with Kaichi charging at Wiley again only for Jared to step in and block him, the Ref announced the defeat of Kaichi and Miya after being knocked out by Jared and Alecto respectively. The match progressed with intensity as each fighter gave their all to secure victory.
"Why are my team members dropping like flies?" Hanoichi exclaimed, his voice echoing across the arena. Tokido responded with a smirk, his eyes gleaming with confidence. "My team is simply superior and more powerful than yours," he said nonchalantly.
A surge of anger washed over Hanoichi as he retorted, "What did you just say to me?" His aura pulsed wildly around him, radiating an intense blue hue that reflected his fury. Unable to contain himself any longer, he lunged at Tokido with all his might. But Tokido was agile and nimble, effortlessly dodging every punch and kick thrown his way.
Hanoichi's frustration grew as he yelled out his ultimate move: "Violent Omi Claw Slash!" His arm transformed into a swirling mass of water as he attempted to slash at Tokido. Yet, despite the power behind each strike, Tokido skillfully evaded them all.
"Ghost chop," uttered Tokido calmly as if announcing a simple fact. He maneuvered swiftly around Hanoichi before landing a solid chop on his neck. Then came another Ghost Lightning Cannon attack from Tokido; this time it connected directly with Hanoichi's stomach. The impact sent him flying out of the ring unconscious.
As he flew off the platform, Hanoichi managed to croak out in disbelief, "How... how is he so fast?"
Tokido replied coolly, "Instead of focusing on your combat skills, you let your anger control you - that was your downfall."
The referee announced solemnly over the loudspeaker: “Hanoichi Fumitoshi has fainted.”
Meanwhile, Wiley and Toge were still locked in combat, throwing punches and butting heads fiercely. Jared, Alecto, and Tokido slowly walked over to stand beside Wiley.
Tokido addressed Toge in an eerily calm voice: “You have two options - either jump down and spare yourself the pain, or face obliteration by our team's special move.” Toge hesitated, then jumped off the platform and sprinted towards his injured team.
Kaichi confronted him in disbelief: "Why did you jump down?"
Toge replied defensively, “My life was at stake, and besides, all of you got eliminated as if it were nothing.”
Kaichi's response was swift and harsh: “You are a coward; I can’t wait for Hanoichi to wake up and hear about this.”
Alecto chimed in with a hint of arrogance: "That was easy enough; I hope we get a real challenge in the next round."
Jared responded with an enigmatic smile: "Oh, trust me, this tournament will become far more challenging and intriguing as we progress."
Finally came the referee’s announcement that echoed throughout the arena: “Ghost Freaks advances to the top sixteen.”