[Iron sharpens Iron]

[Rensou Hiruen]

Above the lush greenery of the rainforest, three figures were held aloft in complete defiance of nagging gravity. Brown tails whipped the winds behind them, and onyx hair danced in each and every gust, swaying with the intensity in the atmosphere. Coal eyes surveyed each other whilst jaws filled with porcelain incisor and canine held tight, betraying not a word. It was the strongest among the trio who finally broke the taut thread of silence.

“You've both come to prepare for the championship bout, neh?” inquired Rensou Hiruen to both Saiyan before him, proud warriors both with different styles that would create an entertaining bout in the arena. He could only hope they would recall the final lesson he had imparted to Hunni's assembly of warriors; to never kill their brothers and sisters.

Both Laiz and Dozah glared awkwardly at each other, but it was Dozah – ever brash and cocky, who spat his displeasure at the situation.

“I requested a session with you alone, Rensou!” the tall fighter said with much annoyance, and the same was true of Laiz, who had also sought to gain a solo sparring match with his trainer and friend. It seemed both warriors were seeking to gain the edge over the other. Rensou would not allow such tactics from either man, but would have sought the same guidance in their situation.

Alas, Rensou was not in their situation, and thus had reached a compromise. He would give the both of them individual sparring sessions. . .but only the watchful eye would gain the advantage as the future foes took their turns showcasing their skills against their Sensei. However, both were given equal opportunity to discover holes in the other man's game. The battle would be entirely fair, to the last inkling of it.

“And you'll get it, Dozah,” began that Saiyan with the scarred face, smiling at the former “prince” turned pauper before switching his gaze to the short, powerful form of Laiz Hurogi. Though small, Laiz was fast, terrifyingly quick, even. And with speed came velocity, amplifying the damage of his physical attacks into blood spraying and bone breaking weapons of warfare. Still, Rensou knew not if that speed would be enough to overcome the tenacity and will of Doza Kunaga.

“Laiz. You and me, right here, right now,” finished the last Hiruen, his beckoning answered by a nod from Laiz, a fighting stance, and a few words.

“. . .your funeral, Hiruen!” Laiz remarked, happy to be the first to spar with Rensou. . .it gave him the advantage of a fresh opponent, and his sensei had proved to be his superior in every way, shape, and form in their previous encounters. Laiz was going to do his best to make the most of his unblemished opponent and hopefully put a clear gap between he and Dozah's power, for there had been none so far. Rensou smirked his response. He had never taken well to idle threats, but Laiz's brand of humor was slowly losing that edge it formerly brushed against the throat of his ego, causing the hairs 'pon his neck to stand up.

Dozah Kunaga took that moment to fly up and above the two, centered between them as he awaited the session to begin. His eyes, shimmering nightfall as the suns set, were focused intently on the man whom one soon seek to defeat him in front of thousands upon thousands. To say the very least, Dozah was staring intently as Laiz, eager to not miss a movement.

Laiz, however, was intent to not betray his intricacies as he set his entire body into an upheaval of motion. Where the stocky fighter had once been, only a blur remained as he attempted to Zanzoken directly in front of Rensou. That was where he would be least expected, right!?

To be continued. . .

[/i]

[Rensou Hiruen]

Gentle rainfall glistened as the light of the Vegetan suns cascaded through each and every drop, weighing the leaves of the canopy of the rainforest below. It glittered beautifully against the armor of Rensou before a streak of Saiyan appeared before him and brilliantly manifested exactly, as stated, where he had never expected it. Above the spectacle, Dozah allowed a smile to cross his features whilst Laiz made connection with a swift fist into the stomach of his trainer.

A grunt left the scarred Saiyan, who, with mouth agape stared his apprentice down with wide, shocked eyes. Laiz had definitely improved, and the fact was driven in as a crushing right cross slammed into a cheekbone which sent Rensou spiraling through the air and into the treetops, where his body became a dull axe against every limb he crashed through. Finally Rensou recuperated from the cunning assault, turning his lean body into a somersault before posturing straight to allow his feet to bring him into a standing position upon a bough.

“Well done, Laiz!” exclaimed the man perched upon the thick limb like a bird of prey, his eyes intently focused now that he fully understood the speed of his opponent. Satisfied with his chances of perceiving the next approach, Rensou clapped slowly in mock celebration. “You nearly scratched my armor. . . he taunted, his hands still coming together with the obvious insult.

Rensou was still clapping as Laiz clenched his fist in the open skies, his teeth gritting in response to the verbal blows. “. . .you son of a bitch!” cried the compact fighter as he propelled himself down at Rensou with his stronger arm cocked back to teach that cocky Saiyan a lesson he would never forget. Rensou grinned at the fury he'd ignited, kicking off his platform with both legs as he rushed to meet him.

Simultaneously two fists met in midair with the full force of two moving masses behind them. A sphere of transferred energy exploded between the two, and for a moment they were blown away from each other. Nothing, however, would halt the unstoppable aggression borne of Saiyan blood as they met again. Hand and foot and ki met, Laiz seeking to step inside the reach advantage of Rensou where his length would be at a disadvantage. The larger Saiyan whipped a high kick, catching his opponent square across the face. The head lashed to the side, blood spraying beautifully to intermingle with the rain that had begun to crash down in torrents.

Undeterred, Laiz executed a Zanzoken once more. . .this time reappearing behind Rensou, allowing him to slam two clenched hands into the base of his neck much akin to the strike of a hammer. Unrelenting, he chased his falling mentor before overtaking him and executing a full flip that propelled his thick leg into the chest of the last Hiruen.

Rensou felt every particle of oxygen escape his lungs, the pain spreading from his chest and out to his arms. Baser instincts took over as the beast within formulated the counter attack. He was just a speck to the eyes of the gloating Laiz, whom boasted his success to Dozah far below the recovering warrior.

“See that, Dozah!?” exclaimed Laiz as his attentions were momentarily focused on the man he had questioned. The stocky fighter folded his arms and grinned his broadest before remembering that Rensou was still capable of returning fire. Laiz lifted the dark eyes embedded in his resilient skull, and they reflected a cascading ocean.

[Fifteen seconds prior. . .]

Rensou glared down at the slave whom had bested him fairly in melee combat, his eyes alight with the challenge and his chest still heaving as he began to laugh at the realization that Laiz had disregarded him entirely. The musculature of the last Hiruen began to tense and coil as the chains binding his inner strength snapped and he released everything with a gorgeous expolosion. The Kousho amplified his size somewhat as every muscle began to understand true strength, and with it, the sincerest pain. There was no profit to be held in realizing the discomfort, but Rensou began to exert the benefits of newfound might.

Defined arms drew cupped palms to the side and behind, clenched teeth snarling out the first of his tribute to his ancestors who honored their forebears before them. Already the energy swirled towards the receptacle as the Tsurunoha manifested above the shoulders before it too spiraled downward to revolve around the accumulating weapon.

“Tsssuuuuuu. . .” the body of Rensou shuddered under the influx of unrelinquishing fury, his eyes never leaving the form of Laiz a great distance away. This would teach him to gloat to Dozah, Rensou thought. The throat began to growl and snarl in exertion as primal Saiyan clawed up to take hold of the rationale mind.

“. . .rrrruuuuuu.” the prayer continued, lighting flashing as the drenching rains soaked the dusk atop the scarred face, the locks dancing in the winds as thunder rolled in beautiful conjunction with the amen. There was enough strength within this wave to wipe Laiz off the face of Vegeta, but Rensou cared not. All the echoed within his head was the laughter and bragging.

“Hrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaghh! ! !” bellowed the burning lungs as both arms pushed the sphere forward, the dancing Tsurunoha speeding beside the racing wave before intergrating into the destructive pillar. It was only then that Rensou realized that his emotions had gotten the better of him, and he yelled out the name of his target as a warning.

“LAIZ! ! !” cried Rensou, but it was to no avail. An explosion of sound occurred as his attack tore through the sound barrier. Rensou's word would not reach unexpecting ear in time.

[Present time. . .]

As Laiz boasted and postured his accomplishments, Dozah had been paying keen attention to Rensou the entire time. He knew what was in store for Laiz, and the thought occurred to him to allow his future opponent to take the brunt of the Tsuruha to soften him for their match. He shook his head at that notion as Rensou unleashed his wave, and then, Dozah realized the utter serious nature of the incoming Tsuruha. At the same instant Rensou had, he screamed out the name of the soon to be deceased Saiyan, lest some intervention occur.

“LAIZ! ! !” yelled Dozah, his being blurring through the air at the utmost speed he mustered toward his bewildered brother, a man mesmerized by the beam as Dozah bulled into him and pushed them both out of the way of Rensou's wrath.

The Tsuruha passed without incident before it hurtled into the canopy of the rainforest below, leaving nothing behind as it dematerialized everything beneath crushing force as wildlife, tree, and flower were wiped off the face of Vegeta with one fell swoop. What was not obliterated exploded outward as shrapnel and dust, hiding the carnage Rensou had sewed.

“Bakka! You could have been killed!” shouted Dozah into the face of Laiz, whom stared at the descending warrior, Rensou, who now leveled with the other two and offered his best explanation. “I told you, always respect your opponent. . .” echoed the man whom had nearly broken the third rule, never kill a comrade. Rensou thanked the heavens for the quick reaction of Dozah, for the man never wished to bury another brother.

[Rensou Hiruen]

“You said never kill a comrade!” Doza exclaimed, rage evident in his dark eyes as he separated from Laiz and turned to face Rensou. The fists of the tall Saiyan were clenched and his feet spread apart in midair, his normally translucent power signature wholly visible as it danced and swayed, sparkling like snow fresh upon the ground. Concern had given way to anger as Dozah issued his challenge to Rensou without a word from his lips to lead toward such a conclusion.

“Your turn already? I won't hold back,” Rensou warned, blood trickling from his lip where one of Laiz's short, powerful blows had struck home. The body of the last Hiruen tensed during a short flash of movement, and then loosened with his fist embedded in the stomach of Dozah, who slouched over the arm of the stronger fighter.

Dozah spat blood, his eyes widened with shock and pain as he stared towards the greenery below whilst Rensou continued to talk. “You must be prepared for Laiz to attack without warning,” and he withdrew that arm from the collapsed stomach of Dozah, bringing that same arm over his friend and dropping an elbow with surgical precision into his lower back. . .directly into his kidney.

“Without mercy!” Rensou cried as Dozah tumbled down like a broken doll, crashing through the treetops before impacting the dirt and bouncing like a tossed plaything. Laiz clenched his fists and stared down Rensou with rage boiling within his throat.

“This is a sparring session, Rensou!” he raved as his orange fire crept upward from his feet before peaking far above him, bolts of red jolting through it with his increasing fury. Rensou turned to him and folded his arms across his chest, a smirk wiped across his scars. The former champion of Saru lifted a palm skyward and unfurled his tightened fingers, willing energy to life as he glanced back down towards Dozah, whom was just beginning to stir.

“Then stop me, Laiz!” cackled the last Hiruen, whom had seemingly become overzealous and too intertwined in battle to care for any life, not even his own. Saiyans are such perfect beings, art they not!? Masters of the art of killing, warriors to the very end. The truest comrades and the most enigmatic enemies are borne of Saiyan blood!

Laiz stopped Rensou Hiruen as Dozah had earlier, saving the life of his comrade with a combination of Zanzoken and a point blank burst of the Energy Dan. Recoiling with every blow of ki, Rensou urged his body to resist the forces impacting it but failed as his executioner's axe dissipated within his hand. However, Laiz faltered not at that point. Angered that Rensou had chosen to exert such force on his friend, he persisted until Rensou, like Dozah, tumbled to the forest floor below.

Dozah joined Laiz in the skies and glanced at him, blood running down his forehead and dirt caking his lean, tall body as he glanced down to where Rensou had fallen. “Has he lost his mind!?” and to that, Laiz nodded as he stared down towards a warrior so unpredictable he might approach at any moment. His body had not relaxed a bit, and Dozah noted his apprehension and settled into his own posture.

From behind them both, Rensou Hiruen appeared with all the speed of a flash of lightning and all the stealth of a predator. A mere meter from the two, he smiled before they noticed his presents and heads swiveled first before bodies followed to meet him in the obvious eruption of combat that would certainly ensue.

Rensou extended both arms to strike them both at once, and Laiz and Dozah braced for impact that would send them reeling. Both had felt the full extent of Rensou's power only moments prior. But violence was not what the two Saiyan received. What they did endure, however, was a clap on the back and compliments from their sensei whom they had believed to be utterly insane, but were now absolutely sure.

“Well done, Laiz. Excellent work, Dozah,” Rensou concluded, leaving the two in awe as he quickly sped away through the skies in the direction of Saru, leaving a greenish blue streak of energy behind his speeding mass. Rensou had taught the two his final lesson, and he hoped that they would carry his teachings with them until they died of age or were struck down by superior foe.

To fight against your comrade, you must first fight for your comrade.

[Rensou Hiruen]

Thread is completed! PL, please.

[Gray Callahan]

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