Hashing it out - One Drink and Bout at a time... [Jagaimo]

There was a shout and a crash from the back rooms as Kotsuzui came back pedalling out of the door to the living quarters with a grin on her face and a thumbs up across the bar to Yakito before she scurried off as best as her giant frame would allow her through the barroom to suddenly make herself busy. Kinoko chuckled somewhere off behind the bar despite being engaged with a number of customers, apparently discussing the latest changes to the health care systems...one even claiming he was treated at the palace!

Jagaimo's voice cut through all the noise, causing a few patrons to smirk and snigger to themselves while a few just ducked there heads and made themselves look busy and unassuming.

"I swear if this is someone's idea of a joke...I was just getting comfortable on that damn sofa!"

There was a lot of swearing and cursing as things banged around in the backrooms before the young Saiyan finally appeared, heavy mane falling about over her shoulders, the off world Namekian style of loose clothing something she seemed to wear more and more these days over the slim fit of the Saiyan body glove and armour. One hand rested on the swell of her small belly as she scanned her eyes round the room and stepped out into the dim lights of the bar room, bare feet making practically no sound where they touched the cold stone. The hand lifted and pointed at the small creature swinging its legs on the bar stool.

"So your the one..."

She stomped his way, Kinoko moving along the bar quickly mirroring her, hand sliding two steaming drink's onto the counter top  beside the Zoan and raising an eyebrow at her boss for a moment before she gave her a wink and moved off again...somehow cutting the wind from Jagaimo's sails with a simple gesture...

Jagaimo's voice calmed a little and she regained some of her composure, shaking her head before she folded her arms across her chest uncomfortably...giving up and scooting up onto one of the bar chairs and leaning against the counter,

"Damn that's better...so your the one huh? Looks like you got no reasons left to apologise to me kid...did she do that?"

The Saiyan woman was motioning to her own face and the apparatus that the fox Zoan was wearing on their face now, figuring some kind of injury that was being healed. She'd obviously heard about the fight between Zuqetta and the fox boy, and the damage and subsequent rapid repair of her property but she didn't realise just how much damage had been done in the match up. Cato had once worn something similar when she was recovering from Destron poisoning quite a while ago now. The injuries looked fresh though. Jagaimo was already reaching out with her senses even as she spoke, running the tendrils over this newcomer and taking in all she could learn about them, the Zoan was a strong one that was sure, stronger than almost anyone in the district...but clearly he'd pushed Zuqetta a step too far if she'd hit him that hard.

"So what can I do for you?"

Her eyes resting on him as she lifted the steaming chocolate drink to her lips and breathed in the scent of it before taking a long gulp and sighing contently...

The chocolate drink had a divine taste on her lips and as the liquid warmed her throat she felt herself calming again, eyes closing with the sigh that escaped her and just enjoying the flavour of the drink for a peaceful moment. Kinoko seemed to be on point all the time lately and never seemed to miss a beat with whatever was going on in the bar and the surrounding area...always there with a beverage or meal when it was needed, almost like she knew exactly what Jagaimo needed before she asked for it. It was uncanny...and a great reason to trust her to run the bar in the young Saiyan's absence. If she was honest it had only done so well because of the old hand steering it's helm...Jagaimo herself pretty much kept to the pit out back and the sandy training area that was slowly building a reputation in the District as a place to make some money if you didn't mind working for it. And so far it seemed the word around town was that the bouts were fair and compensated win or lose, something Jagaimo herself had worked hard to enforce. No one walked away empty handed whether it be a meal or a prize pot.

The lingering taste of the chocolatey drink faded and her eyes opened slowly again to look into the face of her guest, taking in the breathing mask that now lay on the counter top, something she'd seen in the past, not that uncommon with soldiers on polluted worlds, but rare to see on Plant itself outside of the Destron regions. The insignia on the beret was interesting to her though. Some kind of Imperial design, but the regiment was outside of her knowledge for now...her network was only just taking its first steps...but once again Kinoko seemed to know just the people to talk to...that woman really needed a raise.

"Jagaimo, no miss or ma'am or sir. Don't need any titles here, everyone that walks through those doors is treated the same as every other guest."

She finished her drink and then groaning, shifted herself onto the stool beside the Zoan at the bar, hand resting on her belly for moment as she adjusted the cloth tie around her waist, the other one sliding the empty mug back towards one of the younger Saiyan's that ran around helping to serve in the Brawl Hole from time to time. She tapped the side of her jaw where her guest's scar was easily visible.

"I mean, it's a good way to remember whatever lesson our Highness was trying to impart on you. We've all got them if you look close enough. So your not gonna be alone round here."

She chuckled, one hand rubbing her lower back for a moment before she leant forward, resting an elbow on the counter top and trying to twist sideways to look at the Foxling...

"Nope, that's not gonna work..."

Without explanation she slide off the bar stool and stood on her bare feet, turning her back to the bar and leaning on it for support,

"Better...hmmm Oh good terms? No harm done...from what my Manager there tells me, you got what you deserved and the Queen dealt with the repairs, so no blood between us if that's what you're worried about. Ain't gonna find me chasing you down for some kind of vendetta any time soon if thats what has you worried."

She smirked at the Zoan, shaking her head slowly with a chuckle,

"A thrashing huh? Sounds like you're trying to promise me a good time but..."

She closed her eyes for a moment, a smile spreading on her lips as her senses spread out through the room and then snapped around the young man before her, feeling out the power they held before she opened them once more, focusing on the Foxboy with her eyes as well as her gifts. She’d heard about the fight of course, it was hard not to hear people talking about it around the bar and of course her staff had kept her abreast of what had happened. The boy could clearly handle himself, and Zuqetta saw something in him at least, that much was clear...otherwise she would have left him with more than just a scar...and he had manners...she liked manners...

"Don't worry about the gravity belt, I'll make it fair for you if that's what you really want…”

She patted his lap with one hand, never letting the warm smile slide from her lips and then pulled him off the bar stool, waving towards the door to the rear of the bar, well used it seemed and a trail of red dust on the floor where a mash of boot prints could be seen.

“Com’on Yakito, at least walk with a lady before you try to thrash her…”

She left her power as it was, seeing no need to alter it in anyway for now, hooking her arm through his and walking him out into the cooler air of the ‘yard’ out back…the pit currently vacant, no fights scheduled that she knew of and no beefs to settle it seemed…there were a few people practicing in the small training circles scattered around, some she recognised from the palace and some new faces that gave her a wave and a nod as they passed by on their way to the railing overlooking the pit.

The foxling seemed to relax a little more after they had shared the drinks together in the relative quiet setting of the bar, despite the bustle that went on around them. The Saiyan woman chuckled to herself as he commented on her inability to sit still in the raised bar stool. He wasn't wrong, it was uncomfortable and she wasn't sure how'd she'd never realised it before...no back support, nowhere to rest your feet...they just had to swing free and you had to hold yourself up, it was just horrible, especially now she was recovering. Jagaimo smirked at the Zoan,

"Yeah something like that...hard to get comfortable lately is all...not back to my fighting fitness just yet is all..."

It was the truth, Jagaimo was still recovering from her brush with an exploding star in her face that helped her exit the palace quite swiftly and a few other concerns that had arisen during her stay in the new medical wing of the palace that Zuqetta had been putting together. It seemed as Yakito had been a recent guest there as well given their recent encounter with the Princess.

“You know it's quite a remarkable thing she’s built there and in such a short time…you know a few months ago you and I likely would have still been unconscious in a tank of goop if we were lucky enough for someone to think we were worth healing. Now everyone is treated for their injuries no matter their station. Its progress, a small thing but progress non the less.”

She couldn’t help but notice how her new friend's expression changed to one of joy and excitement when it became clear that Jagaimo wasn’t about to back away from a small time scrap, despite the glaringly obvious differences in their power. And it was impossible to not notice how the colour seemed to vanish from his face when she patted his knee, making him blush so cutely…what was going on in that head of his right now? She chuckled and smiled at him the whole time, even when he stuttered while she held his arm and guided him outside towards the pit. The colour in his face started to make more sense now! Her closeness and straightforwardness was awkward for him. What she’d meant simply as a friendly gesture apparently was being taken the wrong way. She could have some fun with this…afterall…a warrior used everything in their arsenal didn’t they?

“What's the matter? You suddenly don’t seem so confident about rumbling…something putting you off little man?”

She couldn’t help teasing the smaller fox boy with a longer smile, her tail twisting round behind them and sliding over his shoulder, curling round his tail before it slipped away out of reach again. She knew he was reacting to her comments and touch so when he slipped away from her arm she knew he might have reached his limits for the moment. The Saiyan woman leaned heavily on the railing with both hands as she watched the Earthling leap out over the void of the pit and drop to the sand. His landing was soft and controlled which spoke to a measure of training. She let out a soft whistle as he moved easily from one pose to the next stretching before pulling his leg right up beside his head and such.

“Careful you don’t over do it, this isn’t a death match you know. There's no prizes here today!”

She laughed as she called out to him, moving to where the railing gave way to one of the roughly constructed ladders that led down into the hole before she stepped off the side and hung in the air for a moment before descending slowly, slightly carefully on the sand with her bare feet. The fox was waiting for her in a tight guarded stance, seemingly patiently waiting for her to do something.

“Well let's get this over then…”

She moved, pushing her arms over her head, stretching out as she looked up, hair falling over her back, belly protruding from under the Namekian robes before she stretched one arm across her chest and then the other…rolling her ankles one after the other even as she gave the Zoan boy a wink. She hoped he had a sense of humour, the mocking imitation wasn’t personal she just felt like having fun. And he was making it easy for her. Jagaimo’s eyes closed as her hands moved down to her sides, the sand around her and underfoot beginning to vibrate and rise slowly, dancing like some starship was landing right beside them and shaking the whole foundation the sand pit rested on, her power rising slowly, no explosion, no raging shout…just a simple steady climb that took a heart beat for the two fighters before it settled to mirror that of the fox.

She opened her eyes, letting out the breath and rolled her shoulders, hearing a few clicks that hadn’t been there some months ago. With the tables a little more balanced she smirked at him, blowing a kiss across the small field of battle before she skipped across the sand, hands moving rapidly, fast light punches flicking out from her relaxed stance, no real force behind them but fast and accurate, testing blows…an exchange of information occurring in that brief moment…

The blows she inflicted on her opponent would do little more than sting the skin where they landed, the point being to test and learn how they moved, to learn how they reacted when made to shift their weight this way and that in the soft moving sand. It was something Rainer had told her long ago, to watch your opponent, to study them and learn what you could before committing to a course of action that might get you killed at worst or injured at best. Going into a conflict blind wasn't something that should be taken lightly...her many trips to the medical wards were proof of this. Being prepared and not letting your ego drive you in a fight was much more helpful than diving in head first, fists swinging hoping you come out on top. Hope was not a tactic to rely on.

In honesty she hadn't expected to land as many strikes as she did, feeling her knuckles glancing off skin here and there, bashing against muscle, hard enough so he knew she was there but not so hard she’d break a knuckle on a skull shot. He was moving well, swiping at her attacks and pushing them away with his forearms, the circles fast and controlled as whatever had thrown the Zoan off his game moments earlier seemed to evaporate as the punches were flying. Her tail whipped out behind her, helping to keep her balanced in the shifting sand when she moved, slamming a fist through his guard and catching him in the gut, feeling the muscles there tense to absorb the impact and causing him to stumble right into the wall of the pit. She had considered for a moment that it might be mean to spar in the pit since she knew every inch of it, the walls…how many steps between them, how the sand settled…it was hers…but when he pulled his guard in close, blocking with tight movements of his forearms she knew it didn’t matter all that much. He’d do just fine.

Jagaimo caught the movement at the last moment, slipping her foot back just enough for the Earthlings stamp to scatter fine red sand into the air around their ankles rather than pin her bare foot in place. The open palm strike however she found herself taking the full brunt of, the timing between both moves so perfect they could have been one motion. The driving force from ground to chin lifted Jagaimo off her feet and laid her flat out on her back, sailing through the air for several feet before she hit the dirt with a grunt, air whistling out of her lips as she found herself looking up into the cloudy sky.

When she realised there had been no follow up to his sudden and well placed attack there was a bark of laughter from the woman laying in the sand, chuckling to herself when she sat up to look across at Yakito, one hand rubbing her jaw where a bruise was already starting to form from the impact. She pulled one knee up so her foot was flat and had one hand behind her to keep her propped in a seated position while she rubbed her jaw and smirked, pushing the hair from her face and slowly moving back to her feet.

“So it's going to be like that is it? Guess I might have deserved that.”

She rolled her shoulders, shaking her arms out as she moved to the balls of her feet, hopping back and forth even in the loose sand, thousands of hours of practice in the grain keeping her balance steady, eyes leveled with Yakito, the smirk was still there but now there was an edge to it that wasn’t before, something more serious despite the look on her face.

"Well since the warm up is over...wanna dance?"

When Jagaimo was sure he was ready and away from the wall of the pit once more she gave a slight nod in his direction, an indicator of intent as she danced across the distance between them and ducked low, tail streaming like a banner behind her, almost on her hands and feet as she rushed across the small battleground, crouched over like so many great apes, causing her to be barely a hair taller than the Zoan all of sudden…arms lashing out like clubs in swinging motions, single arms…double strikes…using her reach to her advantage while twisting and moving…to be still was to already be dead was something an old teacher had once tried to instill in her…it had taken years but she was starting to understand what they had meant…

Jagaimo moved in whichever direction her momentum seemed to take her at the time, twisting this way and that with the swing of her arms, constantly pulling at anything she could snag with her hands after the clubbing strikes, tugging at limbs and even at clothing, using every attack she made with her arms into a potential off putting grapple. Her tail snapped back and forth with her movements, helping to keep her balanced in the soft moving sand that slid around with every movement of her feet. She didn’t bother to watch her opponent's face, it wouldn’t tell her anything important, instead she watched the set of his shoulders, how his hips twisted, where his feet moved and pointed…using it all to help guide her seemingly random actions.

When she went for the clubbing strike using both her arms, her fists closed, feet driving through the sand to find purchase, her own hips twisting hard to accelerate the strikes together, adding force that had nothing to do with the weight behind them. However the Zoan seemed to have other ideas as a well placed push off from the red tinged dirt sent him leaping backwards, leg whipping out through the air with the noise of a gunshot. The move seemed off to Jagaimo as she slipped through the sand, staying low, resting on her knuckles and toes. The boom that followed suddenly explained why there was now flash of power or why she hadn’t sensed any rush of Ki from the young man’s body, his words ringing out to her in explanation of his actions.

Moments before the wave slammed into her, the Saiyan woman shifted, guard adjusted as her bare feet dug into the sand to brace her against the force of it. One arm pulled in front of her face running down her body while the other moved across her midriff, a step away from the usual double armed front guard she used for this technique. But thankfully it still worked. The initial impact of the kick attack bore into her guard like a wave crashing against a cliff, driving Jagaimo back through the sand for several feet, leaving grooves in the soft earth where she’d been pushed back through it. The stones pattered against her guard like raindrops on a tin rough and she felt the bare skin on her forearms split under the stinging impacts, wincing a little when a few glanced off her neck and cheek, leaving thin traces of blood where they cut the skin. She smirked behind her guard as the hail of small pebbles stopped and her body shifted from its guarded position to a more vertical one again, rolling back and forth on the balls of her feet, hands rubbing along her arms where the Earthlings attack had landed.

Not lethal…just damn annoying.

Jagaimo shook her head, both hands running through that mane of hair and tossing it back, letting the stones that had collected there fall to the ground, dusting herself off.

“That’s quite a kick you got there…but you’ll find it takes a bit more than a strong breeze to knock me over. Is that a smile I see?”

The young Saiyan woman chuckled as she bounced from one foot to the other, shaking out her arms one after the other before rolling her neck, hands coming up in a loose defensive posture, palms towards her opponent, lower enough to keep her vision clear but easy enough to move should she need them to. Despite her relaxed pose in this stance, she wasn’t taking the Zoan lightly. They seemed to know what they were doing despite their relatively young appearance…but then the Empire wasn’t usually in the market of hiring fools.

“So who taught you?”

She stepped up, shuffling through the sand and throwing out a few whipping jabs, elbows and knees starting to follow through with her attacks, each one precise and controlled…steadily increasing in force until every strike, every blow was crashing against Yakito’s guard with the full might of her suppressed form…

"So a mixed bag of everything huh?"

She chuckled at the explanation, as so often was the case, many of the more unique fighters she'd encountered had simply picked up their techniques on the road, hybridising what they learnt along the way and taking what they wanted and discarding the rest. Jagaimo was no different. She had taken a piece from every opponent she had ever faced, or at least the ones that had impacted her life and training in some way, taking what she liked and making it her own. On top of what they're been taught at the academy, her own style was slowly evolving but she still didn't quite know what it was going to be in the end. 

"Me? I'm a product of the glorious rule of might makes right. The kingdom academy doesn't suffer weak children or weak soldiers and so I listened and learned and survived the war. Everything after that...well I don't think the universe has finished teaching me how to fight yet...I think I'm just getting started...but not bad for an amateur right?"

Amateur was a bit of an understatement. Jagaimo had squared off against a hole host of fighters in the past that could level entire cities with one blast, even wreck planets but she was still standing. Often stronger than before thanks to her Saiyan physiology, but not always the wiser. It took time to understand how and why she'd been beaten sometimes but eventually she usually figured it out and what lesson had been applied. When he moved to meet her she smirked when the Zoan slipped the first few rapid jabs, movements smooth and controlled, letting each glide easily over his shoulder or past his face with a twist. And then he pulled his guard in close, weathering the storm of blows that rained down into his defences, shielded from the worst of it by a wall of muscle and bone. She was a little impressed. He fought like quite a few Saiyan's she knew...hunkering down to take all their opponents could dish out and just waiting for a the right moment. The bruises would show where the blows had landed, but dark bumps and bruises on arms and legs didn't win fights. Hells, removing arms and legs didn't win fights depending on who you were facing. Dismemberment didn't even equal victory for some combatants.

Despite the cascade of attacks Yakito's body was untouched, clothes ruffled from his own movements but otherwise unscathed. It reminded her so much of some of her own techniques...patience and biding one's time to...ah there it was...strike! She felt her elbow break though the impressive guard, connecting with something metal that exploded on contact. It took a moment before the young woman realised she'd shattered the Earthling's scouter...he'd kept it on for the fight! Even as the shards rained down around them, mingling in the red sand, Jagaimo gave a quick nod in apology,

"Send me the bill!"

Up close now, foreheads almost touching like cliff faces, they both moved to gain an advantage, height meaning nothing, reach meaning nothing. Every movement small and economical in such tight quarters. Jagaimo felt a shift in the sand at her feet, the shorter Zoan suddenly dropping to his haunches, coiled like a spring. The young Saiyan's guard split, arms coming apart, palm slapping against the rising forearm hard to push it, fingers curling into the muscle of his lower arm with an iron grip, as she twisted her head to take the uppercut on the edge of her jaw rather than square on the chin...edging it just enough to stop her teeth being rattled from her skull. The impact still pulled a grunt from deep in her throat, cocking her head to one side as it rushed through on its upward trajectory. The force behind it carried her up into the air with him, helped by the hand clamped to his arm...her own hips shifting, wrapping them round his torso in a scissor like move while she tried to yank his arm towards her with both hands now...all while falling through the air with him...

There was a grin on her lips...and a glint in her eye...tail snaking up between them, reaching for his throat in their plunge back to the rough sandy pit floor...

She didn't respond the Zoan spoke once but she did understand. Doing everything you could to get stronger, to increase your personal power...it was a common theme amongst those like them who lived a life of violence. Where often just surviving meant to evolve or be left in the dirt and forgotten. Yakito had found something that worked for him, something that made him stronger than he had been before and she couldn't fault him for that. Everyone did what they felt they needed to and there was never any shame in that. Surviving was often all that mattered.

Her jaw ached. The blow had been glancing but had still had enough force to rock her head to side and send them both into the sky. A full impact on the chin would have likely sent stars exploding through her vision and that would have lost her the fight in one blow. Her opponent didn't seem like the kind to let an opening like that slip them by, they were to tuned into the fight. Jagaimo could see the same look in the Earthlings eyes that she no doubt often gave her opponents. Curiosity. She was always studying, always learning...every blow landed, every block failed was another piece of the puzzle that would eventually let her beat an adversary. And Yakito had that same look in his eyes whenever she tried something new, no doubt storing what he discovered for a later time. But she was doing the same...little by little trying to pick apart her sparring partner's techniques, his strengths and weaknesses. Impressively there seemed to be few flaws she could pick out in his styling...but this close it was hard to get a whole picture.

The Earthlings quick reaction, the movement of his hand against her tail stopped her from tightening the noose she had tried to apply. While strong, it didn't have the same force application that her other limbs could muster. Short of Zuqetta she doubted there were many Saiyan's that could boast of a bone crushing strength in their fifth limb. As it was she pulled it tight, keeping his attention split between breathing and falling, her legs wrapped around his torso like some giant snake, crushing down on his ribs and waist, squeezing every time he took a breath and constricting just a little bit tighter. On such a strong fighter it was likely to be little more than an annoyance but distractions and annoyances could win or lose fights and the Kai's knew that Jagaimo was not above a few tricks here and there to try and win when it mattered.

Her fingers dug into the mighty Zoan's arm, grip like iron, keeping it straight and locked in her armpit, threatening to break it if he relented for even a moment. His physique was impressive and the strength he brought to bear to hold her in place with just one arm to fight back with was a surprise to her. Eventually two arms would beat one arm and the shoulder or elbow would pop but he wasn't making it easy. Just a little more force and she could feel the limb straighten just a little more, levering it against her own body. Usually a submission hold, she doubted her opponent would quit before a trip to the medical ward was required.

The boom echoed around the small arena, blasting sand in every direction even from this height above the floor, the odd technique the Zoan applied to manipulate air causing a sudden rush of air to whip both their hair all over the place as they accelerated towards the outer edge of the pit and the sturdy rock face that surrounded the battleground. Their bout had attracted a small crowd of onlookers, many who cheered this way and that as blows were exchanged, the betting boards quickly filling with odds against submission, KO's and such...zeni and other things changing hands as the match unfolded.

Jagaimo's eyes locked with Yakito's, a defiant fire blazing there as the wall rushed to meet them. Her tail slipped from his throat, releasing the tension he was fighting and freeing just a little space while her grip on his arm shifted, one tucked round his trying to keep it wedged under her armpit while the other grabbed a hand full of hair and tried to yank his head forward against its will. Her own forehead hammered towards him as they fell, trying for the bridge of his nose before an almighty boom shook the entire arena, shaking every glass and bottle inside the bar and for a few miles around.

Rock exploded around them as the force of Yakito's dive bomb style bid for freedom drove the young Saiyan warrior several feet into the stone face, body used like a battering ram, muscle and bone tensing up at the moment of impact, unyielding against the barrier that the tenacious Zoan had tried to bash her through. After a few feet of earthworks shattered around them her grip on his arm loosened and her body sagged in his grip, legs dropping their hold...eyes rolling back into her head as her skull bounced off the rocks...

A blood soaked cough that sprayed out from her lips brought the young woman back to consciousness a moment later, the crimson flecks painting everything they touched in a fine mist of blood. Her eyes flickered back to life, glazed over before they sharpened into violent focus once more, bloody teeth bared in a snarl, both hands snapping to Yakito's throat even as the rocks tumbled around them. The red stone around them erupted, the force of her released power clearing a space around her as it rose and rose, her face close to his, screaming wordlessly at him...trying to squeeze the life from his body with her bare hands...the shallow cave glowing brightly as purple light engulfed them both...