The fighters stood against each other, and Gon initialised the match. He swung his leg to hit the side of Keon that blocked with the knee, but then kicked very fast on Gon’s leg. The kick was hard and hurt when it hit its mark, and Gon could see Keon was standing still. He had his leg a little forward and followed Gon as he moved around slowly. When Gon tried to move forward and give a punch, Keon delivered another kick on the leg. Gon realised Keon would continue attacking his legs until the pain was too much. He then did the same and kicked Keon’s leg hard and tried to avoid a return, but he was very fast. More so than himself, he realised that he must be careful.
Keon suddenly gave a punch and it landed luckily in the hands of Gon who blocked just in time. He gave a kick that hit Gon again on the inside of the leg and Gon had to move back once more. This time, Keon moved forward and kept Gon on the defence. He made an effort to hit Gon with a punch, but when Gon countered the attack with a kick after he blocked the punch, he began to walk around. Keon kicked him hard on the knee after a mistake Gon did and could feel the lightning go through his body with pain that was great. He had to move back fast and avoided another kick. He looked at Keon that had a hold on the match then and stood unfazed by the strikes from Gon. He found himself for the first time in a bad position and realised he would most likely lose unless something changed. He moved to the side as the next kick came and defended to be able to recover a little before the next strike. He tried to move forward, and Keon was immediately lifting his leg towards him. Gon made a desperate attempt to grab his leg, but instead of grabbing it, he got a kick on the hip that luckily didn’t hit full force but made Gon back off again. He knew he had to change the fight to his favour, and when Keon kicked high, the opportunity came. He grabbed his leg and turned towards Keon who was getting really close to him.
Keon had trouble then since he relied on kicks, but then they were useless. With the strength of Gon, he pulled him onto the floor with him on top of Keon. Gon tried to strike several times, but Keon blocked them all. Keon turned quick to avoid one of the punches but saw Gon’s knee coming and did not manage to dodge it. He got hit in the head and then received a further two punches. The man got out from under Gon and moved quickly against the wall, but Gon was very fast after. He had got more energy then and swung against Keon who moved to the side. Keon tried to kick at the same time, but Gon jumped against the wall as he came close. He got more power by kicking away from the wall, and with one leg, slammed it on Keon’s upper arm that he heard a tear in. He had just enough time to get the arm up in defence, but it hurt then badly. Gon was on fire, and he grabbed him to force him on the ground. Keon tried to get away again, but Gon hocked the leg together and started to punch the leg really hard.
Even when Keon gave a punch that land in the side of Gon he didn’t stop. Keon finally got Gon off and could get up but the punches to the leg got their intended purpose. He was not as steady on the leg anymore as he was before to the relief of Gon who never went slow. He was able to advance again with power in every blow. They exchanged hits, but Keon was now getting more hits on him than he gave. Gon got a hit over the chin but it was no problem for him. He started to push Keon to move back as he let off a combo that hit him first in the chest then a kick in the side followed by a punch to the face. Another punch in the chest, and he grabbed Keon on the arm. When he pulled him towards himself, he kneed Keon in the chest hard. He managed to push Gon away again and was then looking fairly taken by the combination of strikes.
Keon made an effort to kick, but as he did, Gon grabbed it again and swiped Keon’s leg followed with a fast move with his own leg. He swung around and hit Keon on the chest again which this time made him stay on the ground. He held his chest as the pain was too much then for him to bear. Gon was declared winner, and Keon was carried out. In the box, where the children and the friends were almost breaking apart as the people inside were cheering loud. The other match finished, and Gon looked upon the man he would fight in the final. It was the last two year’s champion, Gervaso, who was much taller as well as bigger than Gon and had a powerful presence when he stood there.
When they came out from the arena, Sophia was worried about her father, and she could tell he was hurting despite his effort to disguise it. She whispered in his ear when they had sat down for food if he tried to hide it for Gervaso to not give the opponent confidence. Gon said it was true and showed his leg that had a massive swelling over it. It looked like an injury was made that would jeopardise the remaining fight. Sophia helped her father to cover up and said they would need to find some medicine for him. Sophia asked if there was another person he knew with the knowledge about the mixology skills as her mother. Gon said he never met any of the other people in the great city of Shetana that knew mixology.
Jay had heard what they had been saying and said he remembered the three fighting girls that Senji was creating potions for. He thought that perhaps they might have some knowledge about who to seek. They agreed, and with some convincing, they were able to walk to the place where the girls were supposed to live or at least where they were living before. Jay and Gon, together with Sophia, arrived to the street where the fighting girls lived before and looked around for the house. They found it, and Sophia knocked at the door. A woman opened the door, and she saw only the girl that was standing before her. She asked what she wanted and Sophia asked about the three warrior girls.
The woman in the doorway was holding a bowl with dew inside and she was staring at her. The woman asked how she would know anything about that. From behind, Gon was coming close to the house saying she used to know Senji and wondered if she would help a friend. The woman looked at them, and as soon as she realised who they were, she dropped the bowl. She held her hands over her mouth and then ran towards him giving him a hug. Gon said it was a long time since they had last met and Luan started to cry when she held him. She said she was so sorry Senji died and thought about her every day. She hugged Sophia when she found out she was the daughter and told them to come inside.
Inside the house, they heard other people and children that made noise. When Gon stepped in the living room, Alivia and Thura who were also in the room rose up to greet them. They also had tears in their eyes, and then they all sat down to talk, the conversation was first about the memories from the first time they met Senji and how she helped the women in the tournament. Gon found out that the women all came to the kingdom to visit the grave once to plant some flowers there. He recalled seeing some new flowers but never knew who put them there. Thura then said to Alivia she was right that Gon would once again fight in the arena.
Jay said Gon was in the final, and the women all congratulated him but saw that he was in pain. Gon then asked them about if they had anything to help him to recover and showed his swollen leg. They all talked about what would help and then Luan stopped talking for a while, thinking. She sat silent at first then walked up from her seat to head up the stairs. When she came back, she held a small chest that looked old and dusty. The other women had not seen the chest for long time but knew immediately what was in it. Luan took Gon’s hand and said they had something that perhaps would help him. She handed the chest to him and asked him to open it.
In the chest were several bottles and notes that were attached to each of the bottles. Thura put her hand on Sophia’s knee and said that what was in the chest was the leftover of the potions made by her mother before the tournament they fought. Gon could see his wife’s handwriting and sat quietly reading every note. They had descriptions on what each bottle’s content was and what they were used for. When he finished reading, Sophia could see a tear running down the cheek. She walked over to her father and sat on her knees in front of him holding his hand. The women had trouble holding the tears away and even Jay had trouble keeping his eyes dry. Gon said he was happy and gave a big smile then told them he thanked them all for the love they showed Senji. Sophia gave him a hug, and he dried his eyes with his sleeve.
He said there was
a bottle in the chest that could help him and asked Sophia to open it up. The bottle had a red/black colour, and when she opened the bottle, it smelled of strong berry as well as coal. She gave it to him, and he looked at the contents that moved around in the bottle. Jay asked if it still would work after so many years but Gon told him Senji had said they never stopped working. He swept the whole drink in one go and sat for a while still in the chair. Alivia called for a servant to come and bring them some food which Sophia could feel her tummy call for. After they all had eaten a little waiting for the content of the bottle to take effect, something happened.
The content started to have an effect, and they could all see it. The leg started to pulsate, and almost immediately, the swelling went down. The whole leg looked like it was regenerating and going back to normal over the skin. After an hour, Gon tried to stand on the leg and felt the pain almost completely gone as he was able to stand without feeling the leg shaking. When Alivia heard that Gon would face Gervaso, she told him to be careful because he would not be an easy fight for him. She said she saw him fight the previous year and he almost killed two fighters that tournament.
Gon promised to not underestimate him and said he wished to not think about the fight for a while. After some more of memories had been spoken of, they left in the night to come back to their house thirty minutes later. Walking the streets of Shetana at night was not easy with so many drunken people, but at least everyone left them alone. Gon kissed Isabel on the forehead since she had already fallen asleep waiting for them to come back. Sophia put the chest that Luan gave to her and put it next to her things at her bed. Gon tucked her to bed and then sat in his bed to look at the notes written by his wife. He felt he had been given a sign of a chance of victory. The morning came, and when Sophia woke up, she could see her father standing at the window looking out. He said there were many people outside, and they could be heard as they cheered.
Sophia looked outside and saw the hundreds of people waiting outside for a glimpse of the finalist. They had breakfast and then Gon waved to the crowd from inside of the fence. They would stay at the house all day and make sure no one tried to influence the fight. There were a lot of extra people at the house from Bianca’s business to make sure no one entered the premise unnoticed. Gon had spent all day resting and got a massage as well as good food. Both the girls helped their father with getting ready for the night and also had made a banner to put up when the fight start later that night.
Nami and Jay had spent the day shopping and had walked around a lot that day. They would arrive to the arena early before the massive crowds made it hard to enter. Well up in the box, they could see how the people were inspecting the arena for hidden weapons or finish cleaning it. Jay happened to meet a man he fought many years ago at the tournament in one of the other boxes and they talked about the current fight. Nami was setting up some treats they had bought from the market and thought to herself how she ended up being married after she had lived so independently before. She liked being married to Jay and they had met so many different times before under different circumstances, it must have been meant to be, she thought.
Gon and the girls left the house in the evening and there were still a lot of people outside that wanted to follow the carriage to the arena. When they arrived, they came through the gate and were moved in to the fighter’s open area where only people directly involved with the fight were allowed to be. Gon hugged his girls and got great inspiration from his students that wished him luck. They entered the box upstairs while Gon entered the room designated to him in the arena; he sat and had to wait for another hour until the fight’s start. Being in the arena to fight in yet another final was an incredible feeling that he felt. He was finally called to get ready and looked outside the barred window to look at a part of the arena that was very crowded. He could see the people there all seemed to be having a great time. When they opened the doors and he came out, he could see how incredibly full the arena was. He thought it was even more exciting than the last time he stood in the final.
Gon came out, and the crowd went wild when he waved to all of them. He looked up at the box where his family with friends were and got happily surprised as he saw the banner that Isabel had made. It said “Gon, the undefeatable champion” and he waved to them. The other door opened up and the crowd again went wild and cheered for Gervaso. The fight that had brought more people to the arena than ever before was making it boil of excitement. Both the fighters were standing facing the judges and they were presented to the crowd by name and also who they fought before coming to the finale. They were inspected before the match and told to go to each corner of the arena.
Gon looked at the man standing before him. The size difference was visible to everyone, and Gervaso had been hit very rarely during the fights leading up to the final. Gon knew Gervaso was not too fast and would focus on close grip with punch attacks rather than leg. The fight began and they walked towards each other. The defending champion increased the speed and brought his arms up to be ready to defend and attacked first. He punched hard but not fast enough for Gon who could move away and gave a kick on the side that hit the arm of Gervaso.
Gon tried again to find an opening to punch but when he did, Gervaso counter-attacked very quickly. Even if Gon could get up his hand and block, he still felt the enormous strength from Gervaso. The defending champion suddenly brought his arms out and exposed his face and body. When Gon tried to get a punch in, he nearly avoided the double hand smack that came back for him. Gon moved back and used only kicks for a while but had to back off when Gervaso was moving forward. The crowd loved the fight and cheered loud when Gervaso got a half hit in on the body of Gon. The crowd cheered on the fight loudly, and up in the box, the people were making such a noise that it was possible to hear it all the way to the other side of the arena past the crowd noise.
Gon finally got in a heavy hit in the form of an uppercut and hit Gervaso under the chin, but as he tried to continue, Gervaso suddenly grabbed his head to head-butt him. He had to try to get out of the grip as Gervaso, who was very strong, was bear hugging him. The kicks to the legs did not seem to work to get loose and he felt the hug getting stronger. He did his best to get out and got an arm loose finally to be able to release a hard punch over the eye. He made Gervaso loosen the grip a little, but that was all he needed. Gon was able to get loose when he elbowed the shoulder joint very hard and could push Gervaso away. He tried immediately to deliver a kick, but Gervaso was fast and grabbed the leg to pull it against himself. Gon ended up on the ground and had to grab Gervaso’s foot that tried to step on his chest. He was heavy and put his entire weight on the leg, but as he pushed down, Gon made a roll to avoid Gervaso crushing his ribs. The foot hit the ground, and Gon could, at the same time, kick him on the outside of the knee and brought him down on one knee.
Gon was so quick behind Gervaso he could jump on his back in an effort to push him on the floor. It did not work because Gervaso was able to stand up a little to make them both fall backwards. Gon was now underneath him, and even if Gervaso’s size made him heavier, Gon was able to get out fast. He held the last year’s champion around the throat with his arm, and Gervaso had to try to get loose by elbowing Gon’s side, but he missed. The crowd could see Gon had turned the match to his advantage making many of them scream louder. It didn’t take long for everyone to see it was not over yet when Gervaso managed to roll over and somehow rise up with Gon still at his back.
They were next to the wall, and Gervaso took aim to slam Gon in to the wall so hard he lost the grip. He held his throat and looked at Gon who had moved away. They both breathed hard, and Gervaso knew he had to continue on to advance with new strength. This time, he got a lucky strike when Gon blocked a punch but had to move back to not hit the wall. When he did, Gervaso managed to hit Gon first in the stomach and then over the chin. Gon moved off and held his chin that was hit really hard by the punch. He could feel the pain in his teeth as they hit each other in the mo
uth. Gon brought up the hands and met Gervaso with punches then for a while. They both were able to get two punches each in that hit hard. Gon got a chance to kick the leg of Gervaso and made the most of the situation.
When Gervaso tried to punch back, he went on the other side and placed a kick in the side of the body. Just after he had placed it, Gervaso punched him in the shoulder blade that suddenly felt like something worse than just pain. He could hear from the inside how something was teared off inside and stumbled forward a little. He needed to keep the appearance that everything was still working so he took a breath to continue. The match went on for a while, and both fighters started to feel tired but the arena had not stopped boiling for a second. It was a joy for the people inside to see the greatest fight they had ever seen.
Gervaso tried to grab Gon again but had to back off when Gon was able to hit him over the eyebrow with a lucky punch. When Gervaso took up the arms and continued forward, blood could be seen coming out from the eyebrow. Gon kicked towards the arm to aim for the ribs, but he caught the leg and pushed Gon on the chest so he fell on his back. He was quick to be on top of Gon and tried to punch at his face, but got only a few strikes before Gon could grab Gervaso and pull him against himself on the ground. They rolled on the ground, and Gervaso got a hold of the leg and tried to twist it while Gon was punching the ribs on him. Gon managed to get loose and could get up but Gervaso did so as well. They were tired, and both were sweating a lot from the power generating between them.
World of Taroo Page 43