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Another ordinary day of school. Kurenai was walking home, deciding to go on her own. Having friends for a change was nice, but she wanted time to think. I need to find the right person to help me with... She was cut off after accidentally bumping into someone, ending up knocked over in the process. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" She apologized, pulling herself up. The man glared at her, and continued on his way. Ugh, people these days... I'll never find who I'm looking for. I hope he's had at least some luck by now...

Hayate slightly blushed. "It's nothing, Haseo," he said, stuttering. "We just decided to have a private training session. Nothing more, nothing less."

"A private training session, eh...?" Haseo grew more suspicious. "After that kiss, too? Huh... I'm sure you were training, newbie." He spoke sarcastically. "You know... I bet they're talking about you right now." He said, trying to egg his teammate on. "I wonder what they're saying...?"

"I'm sure whatever they're talking about has nothing to do with me," Hayate said, standing his ground.

"Heh... You so sure?" Haseo asked Hayate. "Why not go prove it, then? Go over there and listen in on them. Hold your ear up to the door. Kick the door down. Just find some way to prove it, if you're so positive they're not talking about you."

"I don't need to do that," Hayate said. "If you're so curious, then do it yourself."

Haseo sighed. "You're no fun..." He sat back down, waiting for something interesting to happen.

 

 

After spending weeks training, it was finally time for the tournament. A large stadium was packed with Burst Linkers, all of which were excited to watch the battle. Some were making bets about who would win, while others seemed to be cheering on their friends or allies. Atop a raised platform above the stadium, ten figures could be spotted, all prepared to watch the battles. The most prominent of these figures were five of the kings: the Blue King, Green King, Pink King, Yellow King, and Black King all sat in what looked like thrones, with their guards next to them. Cyan Swan was also in this group, standing next to Blue Ape.

 

Inside the coliseum, the Burst Linkers who were entered in the tournament all gathered to wait for their matches to begin. These Burst Linkers all argued about who would win, with many barely keeping themselves from picking a fight in the waiting room. In fact, one Burst Linker approached Cadmium Limit in order to try to cause an argument. He was relatively short, with yellow and black striped armor. He had a large rifle slung across his shoulder, and was confident despite his size. "Hey, are you a newbie? I don't think I've seen you at a tourney before." He said, staring at Cadmium Limit's helmet. "You might as well just drop out now. A noob like you wouldn't stand a chance against us veterans!" He taunted his opponent, hoping to get him angered.

I know what he's trying to do... Hayate thought.

 

"I assure you that I'm strong enough. You'll see soon in the tournament," he said courteously without a hint of malice.

Edited April 14, 201510 yr by Firaga Sensei

"You so sure, newbie?" The Burst Linker continued to push Cadmium Limit. "You look like you could barely handle a level five Burst Linker, let alone a tournament veteran like myself. Why don't you go back to picking off rogue players and leave the real battles to us more experienced players?" He asked, taunting Cadmium Limit even more.

"Appearances can be deceiving," Hayate simply said in response.

The Burst Linker was growing irritated by Cadmium Limit's uncaring tone. "What, trying to act cool? You're not winning any points from anyone here, noob. I hope I'll get to knock you out in the first round and put you in your place, loser." He said angrily, and walked off.

That was close. For a second, I thought he would get so angry that he would start attacking me... Hayate thought, fearing the though of him having to defend himself and knock the Burst Linker on his butt. It would probably give off the wrong impression to the rest of the Burst Linkers.

After Hayate's encounter with the mysterious Burst Linker, a voice from behind the boy suddenly spoke. "Some people here sure are really competitive... Don't let it get to you too much, Cadmium Limit." The familiar voice of Rikka, or Azure Serpent, spoke out. "So, are you ready?" She asked, mostly referring to the tournament, but also the potential attack of the other Kings that could occur.

"Of course I am. You know how long I've been preparing for this tournament," Hayate answered.

"Of course I am. You know how long I've been preparing for this tournament," Hayate answered.

"Good." Rikka responded, seemingly pleased with Hayate's answer. "That means that if we end up going up against each other, we should be able to have an even fight. You're not the only one from our team who decided to join in on the fun." Her cheerful tone was an odd contrast from her shy nature in the real world. "I was able to take a peek outside. Both Blue Ape and Cyan swan are outside with the other Kings and their guards. It looks like the Red King didn't show again..."

"I see..." Hayate said.

 

He was curious as to just who the Kings were considering he had not met them personally himself. He had reminded himself that even though he, Kurenai and Haseo were woking together, there were still some things about their plan he was not that well informed of...

Given the way that Hayate spoke his response, Rikka could tell that he seemed to have some doubts still... "If you're still confused, I'm sure that both Blue and Cyan will trust you enough to inform you about all of the details of our plans once this tournament is over. Until then, don't let it get to you too much. We've got to do our best in the upcoming fights, right?" She asked him.

"You're right. Thank you, Ri-er, I mean, thank you Azure Serpent," Hayate replied.

"No problem, kid." Azure flashed Cadmium Limit a thumbs-up after her compliment that would have been a bit odd knowing that they were around the same age. Of course, in terms of rank, Rikka was his superior by far. "Just try not to get knocked out too early. I'm sure that your teacher's looking forward to seeing you do your best out there." She teased her friend before leaving.

 

Shortly afterwards, a loud, feminine voice sounded from intercoms across the stadium: "Welcome, Burst Linkers! The Seventh Annual Brain Burst Tournament is about to begin! Before we get fighting, we'd like to remind everyone that, even though we're currently in Pink territory, this is a neutral zone. Battles here between legions are forbidden as the Kings have decreed! We've all come to see who the toughest Burst Linker in the arena is, not to gain territory! Now, with that warning out of the way, let's give a warm welcome to the Kings of the the Six Legions!" The crowd erupted into applause. "Yellow Volt! Blue Ape! Black Mantis! Green Fortress! Crimson..." the announcer paused, noticing that the Red King was not present. "um... And, our host for the event, Pink Rose!" Each name was met with cheers, mainly from members of that King's legion. "Now, let's cut to the chase! We have 16 competitors that managed to get past our preliminary matches, and they're all ready to go!" The tournament began, and powerful Burst Linkers went up to battle one at a time.

 

 

After a few matches, the announcer's voice piped up once again. "Battle 5: Cadmium Limit versus Pitch Hornet! Both contestants, come down to the main arena!" After she spoke, the short, striped avatar with a rifle arrived in the center field, receiving a rather large applause from the Black Legion. Blue Ape and Cyan Swan both peered into the center, waiting for their new assistant to arrive...

"Thank you. I won't let you or my master down," Hayate responded wholeheartedly.

 

Soon, the time for Hayate to engage in combat came around, and the young Burst Linker entered the battlefield.

 

It's the person from earlier... no doubt that Pitch Hornet has some pent-up aggression from earlier. I'll have to take note of that... Hayate thought as he stared down towards his opponent for the match.

Pitch Hornet let out a loud round of laughter. "My first match is against this chump? Hah, this should be easy!" He shouted out to the crowd in general, then pointed a finger at Cadmium Limit. "You're about to get owned, noob! It takes an extraordinary player to survive a match against this!" He slid the rifle off of his shoulder and pointed it in the air. "I hope you're ready to eat lead, wimp!" The rifle was positioned so that it now pointed at the boy across from him.

 

"Battle 5... Begin!" The announcer's voice cut through the air.

 

Pitch Hornet quickly fired off a few rounds of his rifle. Despite looking fairly plain, it shot off a few decently-sized laser bursts. They sped through the air, aiming straight for Cadmium Limit's chest...

Hayate focused his peripheral forward, anticipating the bullets coming his way as if they were traveling in slow motion. All the additional training he spent using Physical Burst in the real world, even with limited use, was paying enough exponentially. With that, Hayate dodged each of the bullets in quick succession.

 

Looking to capitalize, Hayate stayed low to the ground as he swooped in towards Pitch Hornet and delivered a strong uppercut to his stomach, attempting to daze him so that he could eliminate the threat of his rifle as quickly as he could.

Pitch Hornet was caught off guard by Hayate's speed. He cried out in pain once hit by the uppercut, and while it dazed him for a moment, he was still able to react. "You... Take this!" He swung his rifle around and tried to hit Hayate with it. His swing wasn't very powerful, but he hoped that Hayate's guard would be down.

(Holy crap, I just realized that I need to post)

 

Hayate anticipated Pitch Hornet's swing. He raised up his opposing arm to block, covering his head with the hard part of his forearm clenched for impact. He stood locked in place with his fist lodged into Hornet's stomach and while his arm defended the rifle.

 

I'm in close range. Now's my chance!

 

Hayate grabbed onto Hornet's rifle with his left hand, the same side he was using to block, and opened his right fist into a palm. Using his martial arts prowess, Hayate then hit Hornet with his palm, seeking to propel him forward while holding onto rifle in hopes of releasing it from his grip.

Pitch Hornet cried out in pain as Hayate punched him. In the end, his fatal mistake was trying to fight at such a close range against a melee fighter. The punch propelled Hornet back, and the rifle slid out of his grasp, now leaving him defenseless. He landed a few feet away and struggled to get back to his feet. His health hadn't run out yet, but without his weapon, he couldn't do much. "Ugh... You... You stupid noob!" He shouted as he continued trying to stand up. "I'm not finished with you yet!"

He's angry now... but at least I've disabled him. Now to make sure that he doesn't use this weapon for the rest of the match.

 

Hayate held the rifle longways, each hand gripped at either hand. Raising the rifle up, he then brought it back down as he sharply lifted his right leg, breaking the rifle in half over the top of his knee.