Chapter 19 – Dragon vs. Pegasus
Jayr POV - Japan, Kido Mansion - 1986
'Right now, I almost feel like Leonardo Di Caprio in that old movie Titanic... And she isn't even naked!', I'm now admiring the beautiful figure of Saori as she is staying still in a pose as I'm painting her figure, as why I'm doing this, well, from time to time I practice various kinds of things, like music, different kind of sports, arts and etc, all to get ready for the various kind of Challenges the other Champions could choose 'After all, Void said that anything goes, only the imagination is the limit, so one could very well choose even something as absurd as who can fap the most...'.
Anyway, it all started yesterday after Hyoga's match, I didn't want to return to the lab so soon so I returned to the mansion and choose to pass the time practicing my drawing, and as I was practicing drawing the scenery of the garden of the Kido Mansion, Saori came, saw me and said surprised "Oh! I didn't know you knew how to draw... And you are really good at it!", and still focusing on the painting I replied "I still have a lot to learn... But I'm improving", 'Especially if I remember the fact that in my past life the most I could do was the lousy draw of a crooked stick figure...'.
And without thinking much I asked "Hey Saori, do you want to be my model for my next piece? I think that trying to put on the canvas a goddess-level beauty like you without making it uglier than the real thing could be a nice challenge..." then I realize what I said and how it could be misinterpreted, but before I could say anything, with a light blush on her face, Saori replies "Sure...".
And so here I am, almost mesmerized by her shy gaze, as I'm carefully painting her lean, curvy body, with her delicate face and full lips 'Damn! She sure is beautiful the anime for sure didn't give it justice back then...', but just as I'm finding it more and more difficult to focus only on the painting, I'm saved by Tatsumi, who came in and said "I'm sorry to interrupt Ojou-sama, but it's time to go to the colosseum..." and hearing that Saori thanks Tatsumi then she say "Jayr, we will finish this later, now we have to make sure that everything is ready for today's match, see you at the colosseum" and left together with Tatsumi.
And after putting the painting and the tools in my Soulbound Territory, I too leave the mansion making sure to be unseen by anyone 'Why the hell did I choose to hide from the others...? Ah, right! If those guys know that I'm here, they would rely on me for the coming trouble that Ikki will cause... and they won't improve this way... What a pain... Why I am not strong enough to compensate for the absence of a plot armor yet!? I have to babysit them and make sure that they are strong enough to overcome the coming challenges... well at least until the attack at the Sanctuary'.
Seiya POV - Tokyo, Graad Coliseum - 1986
Today I'll fight against Shiryu, I have to be on guard, as Nee-san warned me about his training and the characteristics of his Cloth, as she heard Jayr-sensei talk about them when she went with him to China, and I have to admit that he is a formidable opponent, not only his Cosmo is strong enough to reverse the flow of a waterfall, but his Cloth is said to have the strongest shield out of all the Bronze Cloths, so strong in fact that no normal Bronze Saint can actually destroy it.
And now, that shield is what I have to overcome if I want to defeat my opponent Shiryu, who is now standing in the ring with me wearing his green Dragon Cloth, the headpiece is a helmet in the form of a dragon face, the shoulder pads only cover the shoulders and a part of the arms, they have three decorative "claws", and the breastplate covers a large part of the chest and consists of three square sections, has an open collar and protection for the base of the neck, on the left arm protection is the famous Dragon Shield with a four-pointed star, the right arm protection is simple, with nothing to highlight, and the waist and legs protection are simple in shape.
(Image Here - Dragon Shiryu)
As I'm checking my opponent, I hear the commentator's voice starting with the usual introduction "Welcome Everyone! Starting today we will begin the second stage of the tournament, the first match is Pegasus Seiya versus Dragon Shiryu!" and under the loud cheering of the audience our fight start, and as soon as the bell rings, I choose to start my assault.
Jayr POV - Tokyo, Graad Colisseum - 1986
The fight once again starts with Seiya attacking with a flying kick, 'God! Why does he uses always the same opening!?', but Shiryu easily dodges flipping his body forward, Seiya doesn't stop his assault and as he lands, he turns around, and throws two punches that Shiryu once again dodges by swaying his body left and right, then Shiryu counterattack with his own punch, but Seiya jumps and once again uses his favorite move, the flying kick that is easily blocked by Shiryu's shield.
Then Shiryu takes advantage of the opening and throws a powerful punch hitting Seiya in the stomach making him spit out blood and fall to the ground, and soon the countdown starts, and the commentator says "The Graad Coliseum is filled to capacity today too with over 100.000 in attendance, and although the match just started, the excitement is palpable! The galaxian Wars are down to only 10 Saints fighting for the honor of that Gold Cloth! Just now, Dragon Shiryu landed a fierce blow that knocked the wind right out of Pegasus Seiya!".
And soon after the yell of a young woman calling Shiryu's name is heard, and he turns in the direction of the voice and sees Shunrei, who then runs toward him and it seems that she revealed something that shocked Shiryu, and seeing this scene Saori ask "What is going on, now?" and shaking my head I say "Nothing it is just that Master Dohko, the Libra Gold Saint is pulling a fast one on Shiryu to further train him... He probably faked a grave illness...".
Saori looking at me asks "I see... He is a Gold Saint, it is impossible that he could fall ill..." and nodding I add "Not only that... but the previous Athena used the Misopethamenos technique on him, so in reality, his body is just a little older than 18 years old, how can someone in such condition fall ill and almost die?".
As we were talking, Seiya stood up and takes a fighting position, but Shiryu who is now worried about his master and in a hurry to rush back to him choose to use his strongest technique the Rozan Shoryuha (Supremacy of the Rozan Ascending Dragon) a fist strike so powerful that generate a shockwave in the shape of a dragon so powerful that it is capable of reversing the watercourse of the great Lushan(Rozan) waterfall, it is usually used in conjunction with an uppercut, but it isn't limited to that
Shiryu's Rozan Shoryuha hits Seiya and sends him flying high in the sky almost touching the ceiling of the dome, under the shock of the audience, then as Seiya slams into the ground, Shiryu turns around to get out of the ring sure of his victory, but Shunrei warns him about the fact that it isn't over and that Seiya is once again slowly getting up.
Seiya finally stands up and starts drawing the constellation of Pegasus with the positions of his hands, and with each movement, his Cosmo burns stronger and stronger, so much that the phantom image of the Pegasus appears behind him, then starts his attack the Pegasus Ryusei Ken, throwing 100 of punches per second, and creating hundreds of light energy punches at the same time which makes it look like a volley of small meteors.
But Shiryu is able to easily block all Seiya's blows with his Dragon Shield and seeing this I think 'Yup... That shield's durability is at the Silver Cloth level, against a bronze Saint it is almost a cheat...', and at the same time, I notice something and say loud enough for Saori and Tatsumi to hear "Hmm... Only one fight and Seiya already improved... Before his Ryusei Ken was only able to throw 85 punches per second, now he can throw 100 of them... But still, only a few of them really reach Mach 1, the others are a lot slower", and Saori nods and says "Good, it means that our plan is already working! It's only a matter of time before we are ready for the next phase".
Meanwhile, Seiya once again tries to attack Shiryu with his Pegasus Ryusei Ken but it is once again blocked by the Dragon Shield, then Shiryu tries to make Seiya give up saying that he won't be able to even scratch his shield, but as this doesn't work, he throws a powerful punch at Seiya, who uses his Cloth's arm piece to block it, but Shiryu's punch is so powerful that not only shatters the Cloth, breaking Seiya's left arm, but it continues moving to hit Seiya in the face, sending him flying and crashing into the ground, as blood comes out of his damaged forearm.
Seeing this Tatsumi says "Well Ojou-sama, this looks like the end for that cheeky brat", but Saori replies "Tatsumi, you know the best that Seiya would never just give up so easily", at the same time, Shiryu then starts boasting about having the strongest shield and the strongest spear, but that gives an idea to Seiya, who stands up once again, and after taunting Shiryu, he rushes toward him, while Shiryu raises his shield to defend himself, and the next series of events happens so fast, that I'm sure that only I and Saori truly understand what happened, as right now Seiya is once again laying on the ground with his head protector damaged and his face covered in a mask of blood, while Shiryu' shield is now broken and the same kind of heavy damage can be seen on his fist.
Then as the audience is baffled by the quick turn of events, the commentator yells "Quite please! We have an announcement! A replay will be screened on the crystal board above the stadium!", and next, on the screen we see the slow motion of Seiya rushing toward Shiryu aiming at his left hand, then crashing head first into the Shield creating many small cracks, then Shiryu didn't hesitate and went in with his right to deliver the final blow, but Seiya kneeled over in pain, and Shiryu unluckily hits his own shield destroying both the shield and the fist at the same time.
Seeing this scene once again I can't help but think 'Ok, that is a little my fault... In the anime, I saw him many times fall and crash head first from stairs, cliffs, the sky, the space, and I kinda got worried and stealthily used the same technique I used on my whole body to reinforce his skull, maybe I went a little overboard as now it is almost as hard as a Black Cloth... as his headbutt almost destroyed the Dragon Shield... but at least I'm sure he will survive his many falls'.
Then Seiya stands up once again, and Tatsumi worried about their state asks "Ojou-sama, don't you think we should stop them...?" but Saori stays silent, but I add "There is no need to worry with me here no one will die... but tell the medic team to prepare to quickly transport both to my infirmary under the arena and to call the ambulances to transport them to the hospital later..." and at that Tatsumi lightly bows and say "Yes, Jayr-sama!".
Next Shiryu can't hold back anymore as his paraphilias kick in once again, the exhibitionism and masochism as he removes his Cloth and finds himself half-naked shocking the audience, 'Shit! Again!? Why the hell do you throw away your Cloth when fighting someone as strong or stronger than you!!? This can't go on!! From now on I'll bonk him to half death every time he tries to pull this shit!!', and soon after Seiya do the same, while I'm thinking of the best training method for a Shibainu as I'm sure I'll need some help to fix this bad habit 'Maybe I'll also ask Dr. Asamori to make a Steel Cloth for him and train him to become the Bonk Steel Saint... Maybe better not... I don't want to create my nemesis...'.
While I was distracted with my plan of a dog bonking horny Saints, the match restarts with Shiryu attacking Seiya with a right straight punch, but Seiya sways his head and counterattack with his own punch, which is also dodged by Shiryu, who turns his body and counterattack with a back kick that Seiya dodges by leaning his body, making the kick miss his face by only a few centimeters, at the same time the audience gets louder appreciating the exchange between the two.
Soon after, the two locks hands and start their test of strength, training to gain an advantage, and slowly, it is clear that Shiryu is slowly winning the test, and Seiya quickly tries to kick him, but Shiryu dodges by jumping back and the two now stare at each other looking for another chance to attack, while nodding I think 'Right, since you two geniuses choose to remove your Cloths, now they have to be more careful as it only needs a good hit and you are done... So why remove it!?'.
After a few seconds of standing still, Seiya moves once again and uses his Pegasus Ryusei Ken, creating hundreds of light energy punches at the same time which makes it look like small meteors, but Shiryu easily dodges them all, or at least so it seems, until Shiryu kneels over spitting some blood, 'Seiya is once again improving, he is getting faster and the number of Mach 1 speed blows is slowly increasing, as another old master would say, the plot armor is strong in this one'.
Seiya POV - Japan, Graad Coliseum - 1986
'I did it! One of my punches actually did land!', seeing that I'm finally gaining an advantage, I choose to trust the technique taught by my master Marin and once again yell "Once more! Pegasus Ryusei Ken!" I throw hundreds of punches at the same time, creating the same numbers of light energy punches that look like small meteors.
And this time Shiryu jumps over landing behind me and says "I didn't make any mistakes this time!" but the next seconds he once again kneels over in pain, 'It's working! little by little, I'm able to increase the speed of my punches... Moreover, I noticed the weakness of his Rozan Shoryuha...'.
Soon Shiryu stood up once more, and from his body language, I can understand that he intend to use his technique once more to quickly finish this so I warn him "Are you sure it's safe to use you Rozan Shoryuha again? The right hand of the dragon will leave you defenseless, and this time I'll put you down for good!" and his shocked face tells me that my guess is right.
But, Shiryu steel himself and decide to use his dreadful technique, and all I can do now is get ready and wait for the right time to attack, and soon the moment comes just as he is about to shoot his Rozan Shoryuha, Shiryu lowers his left hand exposing his heart for an instant, and at that moment I think 'That's it!' and throw my own punch.
And at this moment I can only feel two things, one is my fist hitting Shiryu's chest, the other is Shiryu's fist hitting my face, then the next thing I know is that I'm leaning on the chains of the ring and I hear the sound of the bell signifying the end of the match, and knowing that I'm the winner, I raise my arm, as the audience cheers my name.
Then I hear the commentator "The computer has declared Pegasus as the winner!" and knowing that I have finally won, I fall to the ground with a loud thump as all I see is darkness and my mind stops to think about anything, I do not know when I regain my senses, but I'm unable to open my eyes and move my body as I feel too weak, but I still hear some older man voice near me say "He's going to need a blood transfusion and head surgery! Hurry and get him into the underground infirmary for first aid, then we will move him to the hospital ASAP".
Then I feel a set of hands taking my body, and they lie me on a stretcher, but as they were moving me I hear the voice of Shiryu's girlfriend voice "Please wait! Please save Shiryu!" then I feel her holding my hand and say "Seiya, you're the only one here who can save Shiryu now, Jayr-san once told me that any heart stopped due to a Saint's attack can be restarted if an equal shock is delivered from the opposite side, the only one who can deliver that kind of blow is you, we have no time unless his heart starts beating again within the next 4 minutes, he will die for good".
'What Shiryu's hearth stopped!? He is dying... Move! Move!! Please my body move!! I have to save him!!' at the same time I feel her tears falling on my hands "Please, save him!" and hearing her cry, I burn my Cosmo once more 'MOVE!!' and as I feel them moving me away as the older doctor tries to console the girl, I find my strength once again and say "Put me down... Take me to Shiryu...".
And the old doctor says "Don't be ridiculous! This could cost you your life!", and still with my eyes closed I say "Shut up... It's what I want, so just let me do it..." then I open my eyes and look at the girl, who's name is, if I remember well, Shunrei, a friend of my sister, and slowly get up and walk toward Shiryu, while Shun rushes over and holds Shiryu's body in front of me and says "Lives are on the line, I can't do much, but as the Andromeda Saint I shall offer you my assistance... Okay Seiya, using the right hand of the dragon tattooed on his back as your target, please throw a punch... You only get one shot at this, so don't miss this".
And as I'm struggling to aim, I notice that the dragon tattooed on his back is slowly fading, taking this as a bad sign I hurry to aim at the right spot but find it very difficult as my vision is blurring, and I begin to panic, but soon a hand holds my fist and I hear Hyoga's voice "Don't panic, you're too close, from this range you'll only end up putting a hole in his chest, back yourself up at least 2 or 3 steps!".
And following his advice I retreat, but my vision worsens as I'm starting to see double, and I feel all my strength leave me, and once again all I see is darkness as I black out and fall, but I feel Hyoga catching me and gently making me sit on the ground as he holds my upper body, while my body refuses to listen to my orders.
But then all of the sudden, I hear all the colosseum calling my name, and I also hear Hyoga's voice "Seiya, can't you hear them? You have to ignite your Cosmo, Seiya!" then as I try to burn my Cosmo I hear the voices of my most important persons "Seiya!/Seiya-chan!" and as I once again burn my Cosmo to rouse my weakening body, I open my eyes and look at the point of origin of the voices and see them, Mio-chan and Nee-chan, encouraging me.
And at that moment, my Cosmo explodes stronger than ever and shaking my head, I get up once more, I still feel my knees trembling, a sign that I don't have much time left before I fall unconscious this time for good, so I take aim and says "D-Don't... Don't you dare die on me Dragon" and with my remaining forces punch Shiryu right on back in the place nearest to the heart and send both him and Shun flying a few meters crashing into the opposite wall.
Then after a few seconds, Shun recovers and says "Well done, Seiya, I can hear Shiryu's heartbeat, as clear as day" and as soon as his words fell, a deafening cheering came from the audience and soon I find myself surrounded by the other Saints and by Nee-chan and Miyo-chan with the little guys of the Star Children Academy, all celebrating Shiryu's survival.
Jayr POV - Japan, Graad Stadium - 1986
As the whole colosseum is happy for Shiryu's recovery, Saori is visibly relieved, but Tatsumi turns to me, and in a slightly angry tone he asks "Why didn't you do anything? You said that with you here no one would die! But Shiryu almost died and you didn't move a finger!! Don't you know how his death could have hurt the Graad Foundation or even Ojou-sama!!?".
But before I could reply, I Saori that answer in my place " Tatsumi, Jayr didn't do anything wrong... It was the right thing to let the things develop this way" then pointing at the celebrating Saints below she adds "See, they are already bonding once again, and their Cosmo is developing... But the most important thing is that Jayr could have acted at any moment... As you have seen the Bronze Saints are already beyond a normal human and can move at Mach 1, the speed of the sound, while the Silver Saints are much faster and stronger, But Jayr here is a rare exception, he is a Silver Saint as strong as a Gold Saint, that means that he can move and attack at the speed of light, he could have saved Shiryu at any moment and you couldn't have even noticed that he moved at all".
Hearing that Tatsumi stumbles "Spe... Speed of light is something like that really possible... then how is he any different from a god!?", and at that moment I add another thing, and pointing at Seiya I say "Didn't you notice that right now Seiya is strangely well even if weakened? In fact, he isn't even bleeding anymore... To tell you the truth I acted when he fell the second time and stopped his bleeding and also healed the worst wounds so he could rescue Shiryu, while also delaying Shiryu's death... After all, while Cosmo can create miracles, you need a strong Cosmo to do so, a level that Seiya and the others still didn't reach...".
Hearing that Tatsumi checks on what I said and after a few seconds he meekly apologized, but I say while giving a glance at Saori "Don't worry, even if I didn't act, a certain Goddess' Cosmo is strong enough to make such miracles happens even unconsciously..." and after that, we returned to the mansion while the doctors, transported both Shiryu and Seiya to the Graad Hospital.
Shun POV - Japan, Graad Coliseum - 1986
As I'm watching Seiya and Shiryu being carried away by the others with a smile, relieved of the fact that both will survive this ordeal, my attention is grabbed by my Cloth's Chain, famous to react to a danger on its own, to the point that sometimes they warn their owner before it happens.
And right now, my chains are moving on their own pointing at the Sagittarius Pandora Box, before relaxing and turning back to their normal state 'The Chains are warning me about some danger... Is the Cloth a danger or is it in danger? Or this whole tournament is dangerous?'
Then looking at the screen showing the table of the tournament I think 'Well, it doesn't matter I'll be ready for everything... Tomorrow is my turn, I hope that Jabu will give up, he has no chance to win and I don't want to hurt him... Moreover, I'm only taking part in this absurd tournament to have a chance to see my brother once again, I hope he is fine...' and walk out of the colosseum and move back to the Kido Mansion to rest and get ready for tomorrow match.