"(Alright, stick to what I just showed you and you'll be good.)" The monkey king said.
"(I know, I'll win for sure.)" Gil responded as he removed his sleep mask revealing his eyes already in mangekyo. He saw Noraa ready for him to come down. "How about we forget about the little hat game and do this the old way?"
"Nah you gotta play like everyone else." Noraa declined a straight-up brawl "Come on-" suddenly black flames burned the hat off his head and dispersed.
"So do I pass?" Gil asked with a sadistic smile on his face.
"So you want to go for real huh?" Noraa had an equally sadistic smile "let me remind you who you're dealing with!" Before anyone could react Noraa was in the bleachers about to punch Gil when he suddenly stopped because Gil wasn't there anymore.
"You're going to have to take me seriously Noraa, It's not that easy anymore" Gil called out from the middle of the field.
"(That time ability Kelly used? No, I never stopped…only he didn't take any time to move. What kind of ability is this?) So you really think that time has come? HAHAHAHA you got another lifetime before you're passed me!"
"Come prove it then," Gil said calmly. Noraa jumped down from the bleachers and put up a seal around the others for their safety.
"The mood just got really heavy all of a sudden." Kelly got tense. "Do we really need a barrier?"
"Oh don't worry this is just some tiger ego thing they always do. I'm pretty sure they won't kill each other." Lizzie said casually.
"They take these spars a little too seriously. Last time Gil almost ended up in a wheelchair. Permanently." Josie reminded. "Noraa went around calling himself Bane afterward."
"I remember that. Still, Gil is different from last time…" Lizzie leaned in. "Plus we have Landon now any injury is fine."
Centerfield Gil and Noraa faced off silently. Without so much as a word both of them charged with a sword in each hand. They started fighting until one of their weapons broke and it replaced itself by the next swing with something else. Sabers, broadswords, spears, daggers, flails, hammers, axes, scythes, and so on. Broken weapons littered the ground as they continued to fight and as if they agreed at the same time neither summoned another weapon but kicked at each other. What started as a weapons match turned into a high-speed battle of renewal taekwondo as they steadily pickied their pace up. The shock from their attacks started to create a storm kicking up dust and blowing away the broken weapons around them. Shrapnel clattered against the barrier.
"Since when did fistfights start whirlwinds!?" Lizzie exclaimed they were already more intense than usual.
"If it's these two we're talking about this is going to get much worse." Hope speculated.
She was right. Noraa dropped an ax kick that split the ground on impact, but Gil shifted sideways. It wasn't instantaneous like Kelly's time pause, but it was more than fast enough for someone to believe he teleported. Noraa increased his attacking speed to test it farther but Gil merely increased his own speed easily keeping up, in fact, he was getting faster. Noraa kicked Gil back and started weaving hand signs but Gil practically appeared back in his face with a high kick. Noraa countered with one of his own and used his leg to bring Gil's back down opening him up to a black lightning punch. With distance between them again Gil breathed in deep. "Fire style; giant fireball jutsu." Over a dozen massive fireballs flew towards Noraa who summoned the Bashosen fan again. With one swing a torrent of water rushed out and the second it was all sucked into a whirling tornado. The fireballs met a hurricane and fizzled out sending steam everywhere. Noraa cleared the steam with a wave of his fan to see Gil flying at him with a sword. Dodging with the narrowest margin of error possible Noraa kicked Gil in his chin sending him straight up.
"Baek Rok" Noraa immediately jumped up following with several more kicks to send Gil higher before floating gently under him.
"The dancing leaf shadow?" As chains summoned by Noraa started to wrap him up a force stopped them just long enough for Gil's ability to return him to the ground.
"Wow, Gil you are pretty good at running away!" Noraa laughed as he landed and drew a bow that appeared in his hands.
"Who's running!" Gil lunged at him with a sword in each hand. An entire volley of arrows was deflected as Gil advanced, to Noraa's surprise. With no time for another shot, Noraa switched to a sword himself and met Gil head on. Noraa kicked Gil's hand knocking one sword loose and followed up with a triple kick sending him tumbling backwards. Gil sprang up and used multi shadow clone jutsu. The army of Gil jumped up and prepared for the same kick. "Parade of the blue dragon!" With each kick a shockwave that looked like blue dragon was thrown at Noraa.
"Hahaha! Talk about applying pressure!" Noraa crossed his arms and summoned a Mjolnir in both hands. "Black thunderclap!" Swinging both hammers simultaneously a wall of black lighting destroyed all of the dragons with a great roar of thunder. The loud thunderclap startled the others awake.
"What happened!? Where are we!?" Ilpyo sprang up.
"Is this heaven?" Landon looked around groggily.
"Calm down, you're fine" Hope had to remind them where they were and she just ignored the fact an immortal asked that. "Gil and Noraa are fighting right now."
"How has he fared so far?" Hercules asked while holding his head.
"He's the only one who has made it look like a fight," Hope answered.
"He's the only one who actually challenged Noraa to a fight," Lizzie corrected her.
"(He's using that divine hammer again. Check your ear boy)" The monkey king said to Gil. Doing as instructed he pulled a little rod out of his ear no bigger than a piece of chalk.
"I hope you don't plan to beat me with earwax!" Noraa attacked head-on.
"Don't say such stupid things! Extend, Yeoui!" The rod extended and shot out at Noraa with extreme speed and force but Noraa ducked under it and continued his attack. Just as quickly as it grew the rod shrank to a regular-sized staff for Gil to defend with. Hammers vs staff the divine weapons held strong under the pressure of their battle. Noraa was subtly surprised again when he noticed hits were missing oddly. Sometimes Gil would suddenly shift, others it would seem like his attack was pulled or repelled by nothing which threw his aim off. He even hit himself once, that was extra embarrassing. Still, Noraa kept his cool and watched for any and all openings, when his hammer got repelled once more he used the momentum for a reversed spinning strike knocking Gil away. Gil composed himself in time to dodge a javelin thrown at him, he deflected the second and third with his staff, but he barely reacted to the fourth which veered off to the side missing him completely untouched by anyone.
Noraa stopped throwing after the fourth javelin changed path mid-flight. "I see what you're doing now. You're using the old man's mangekyo technique; Polarity, to control the flow of direction. The second ability must be your own letting you control your target's speed and course of action...something in that in that ballpark, I'll call it 'Savitar' the god of motion."
"Hey! Don't just name my abilities!"
"So I'm right?" Gil's reaction confirmed that his guess was correct.
"So what does it matter if you know how my Mangekyo works? I still have much more in store." Gil stood up and readied his staff.
"Now that I think about it, I know the story of that staff too. You really always do surprise me Gilgamesh. I can't believe I gotta take it to this level already." A sweltering aura started to dominate the battlefield as Noraa stepped into the air, fiery wheels appeared beneath his feet, a red cloth that moved like a living serpent wrapped around him, and a blazing spear appeared in his hand. Hovering in the air above he looked down at Gil like an angry god as fire danced around him.
"(Those weapons belonged to that rebellious bastard Nezha…this man is truly a force to be reckoned with to possess them. Hold nothing back, use everything I've taught you.)" The monkey king advised.
"(You don't have to tell me twice)" Gil quickly summoned the divine storm cloud Geundoowun and donned the dragon armor suits. A golden storm cloud amassed under Gil's feet raising up to eye level with Noraa, as he ascended a black robe and tiger pelt wrapped around his body.
"(From here on out this is a battle against a god.)"
"I know." Gil and Noraa faced off silently for a moment and both flew forward striking with extreme speed. Their weapons met in an explosive burst of fire and lightning, flashing again and again as they dueled through the air. Using his Mangekyo in tandem with the gifts from the monkey king Gil created countless maneuvers mixing up his speed, reach, timing and aim seamlessly. Noraa kept up an equally unpredictable combo as he cycled through divine and legendary weapons, some of which Gil had never even heard of. Using Mjolnir again Noraa struck Gil straight through the cloud and to the ground. Black storm, clouds darkened the sky as Noraa prepared his next attack, Gil raised a hand as Geundoowun spread out blotting the storm Noraa conjured with one of gold.
"Hmm that's new" Noraa had never thought he'd see something make a bigger thundercloud than Mjolnir could.
"Kirin!" From the ground below Gil clenched his fist a giant beast of divine lightning came from the storm and tried to bite down on Noraa.
"You should know I don't like being looked down on. Noraa Black original;" Noraa took his renewal stance facing the beast. "Usurper" A single high kick split the beast in half and parted the entire storm, revealing clear skies once again. Turning back to Gil he threw Mjolnir down at him.
In turn Gil launched his own weapon with a kick "Renewal railgun!" The two weapons were on course to meet in the middle when the staff curved around the hammer and sped up to reach Noraa before expanding in length and width. Noraa summoned Rho Aias again to stop it but the staff went through it, and the next one and so on. It took up to a fifth shield to barely stop the telephone pole sized Yeoui.
"Safe…" Noraa exhaled as the staff fell back to the ground. Down below Gil was still standing having avoided the hammer, but he was covering his eyes with his hand. Seeing this Noraa knew Gil's performance was coming to a close. "Don't tell me you overused your eyes already! I thought you'd have more go than that!"
"I still have plenty of go! AMATERASU!" Gil's cried tears of blood as black fire destroyed one of Noraa's wheels but he himself dodged unharmed.
As he fell Noraa used the shadow clone jutsu to create an army of his own. "Which one is the real me Gillyflower!?" All of the Noraas shouted in unison. Unable to discern the real Noraa, Gil swung the enlarged Yeoui through the crowd finding that all of them disappeared in the great puff of smoke.
"None of them were real?" Hercules was confused at what just happened.
"So when did he make his move?" Raphael scanned the entire field and saw no trace of Noraa. The others were looking around too with no success.
"Just watch." Ilpyo was the only one who followed everything just then.
"(How could I be so careless!?)" On the ground next to him Gil finally noticed the hammer that never dematerialized like the rest of Noraa's weapons do. "Ama-"
He tried to burn it but with a puff of smoke a combat boot smashed into his side and sent him flying across the field again. "Round kick!" Noraa dusted himself off as Gil picked himself up. He knew he had already won, Gil's arm was broken and likely several ribs too but that didn't matter. Gil could still fight, and one look into his eyes told he wouldn't back down. He took the best renewal stance his body would allow and waited for Noraa's move. "So you're really going to make me do this?" Noraa shook his head and took his own stance. "You're growing fast Gil, and one day you might catch me…but it ain't today."
"I beg to differ."
Almost in unison they went for the same kick. Though their movements were the same the results differed extremely. "Hooooo boy! I really can't believe you. I've spent years trying to get it right, but you went and figured out the recoilless concept on accident!" Noraa praised Gil who lied unconscious in front of him. Noraa's kick destroyed everything behind the point of impact, save the barrier. One the other hand Gil's kick created a strange distortion. Space itself seemed to warp before the barrier shattered and the impact continued on tearing up the parking lot startling random passerby's almost caught in the storm. Noraa himself took some extreme damage, he was shredded up, battered and bloody but still standing. So it was naturally Noraa's victory.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?!" Ilpyo's jaw seemed to come unhinged for a minute.
"Look look what MY brother did! He's so cool!" Lizzie was shaking Hope with excitement.
"I saw…" Surprised was an understatement, Hope was speechless at what Gil had accomplished. He was much farther along than she thought.
"It's just a kick…h-how can a kick distort space? There was no magic or ninjutsu!?" Josie couldn't fathom how taekwondo seemed like the most invincible weapon in their arsenal. It was just another form of martial arts right?
"Someone has got to teach me that! Renewal taekwondo is the coolest!" Landon was ecstatic after that showdown.
"Shit they made the movies look realistic…that was insane!" Raphael got the greatest show he'd ever had in his life, but his neck was going to hurt every time he thought about that kick.
Hercules had nothing to say. Whatever Gil did was beyond raw strength but it was pure force, that in itself was an enigma to him. Not to mention he had never seen that level of combat before, the weapons and techniques displayed were just beyond him. The peak he thought he rested on so easily was steadily getting higher and farther from him. He started to wonder if he was actually strong at all.
"HAHAHAHAHA! Good fight Gil! You pass, but I'M STILL THE BEST! HAHAHAHA!"
"NORAA! I lend you the field and you do this in one session!?" Alaric came storming to the field surveying the destruction. Even with the barrier the weather changing several times and that last impact were incredibly hard to miss. "What the hell are you doing out here!? Is everyone still alive? Why-"
"Landon's on healing, Herc knows wood style to fix the field. See ya'll next class!" Noraa ran off before Alaric's lecture/interrogation could get into full swing.
"NORAAAAAAAA!" Alaric couldn't do much more than sigh at how reckless he was. There was no point in lecturing the students they did nothing wrong here. He really regretted his decision to make him a teacher but they did need the training. "Alright, you heard the man. Clean this mess up." Alaric left it at that and went back to the main building muttering something about children being the death of him.
"Well Herc, looks like you got a job to do." Lizzie patted Hercules back snapping him out of his daze.
"Huh? What? Just me?" And just like that, extreme athletics came to a close.