Benki Plus One vs. Dokugunryū

Sporting Event / Competition

With another relatively short battle finished, representatives of the Ryūzōji and Aotsuki Clans cleared the field in order to allow the next competitors to descend. On the eastern side, this meant two members of the Date Clan. Namely, the Daimyō himself, Date⚔Masamune, and his girlfriend, Katakura Kojūrō. Opposing them were Musashibō Benkei and Shōta, representing the Hashinara Clan. The disappearance of Shōta’s body and the subtle change in his behavior upon reappearing were known to several in the crowd at this point. Mōri Motonari and Maxim, in particular, paid close attention to the lanky boy standing alongside Benkei.

Before the battle could begin in full, Aotsuki Tsukamoto was met by a shock in his corner of the stands. His champions, Sugihara Hidemitsu and Mokka were reporting in and receiving healing, when the former of the two happened to catch a glance in Kagami’s mirror. What he saw within was not the lean, boyish form of Shōta, but rather a hunched, grey-skinned oni in fine traditional garb. The stranger’s skull was pierced by a pair of blood-red horns, and his sunken eyes flickered a deeper shade of the same. Beneath his feet, the ground was split, cracks running through the sandy earth that were invisible to the unmirrored eye. From these, yellow fumes coughed and sputtered, while manifold decaying hands reached and clawed at the pale oni’s feet.   This vision naturally caused some concern to Aotsuki, and he shared it with the other generals of his standing. Ryūzaki Sanosuke was prompted to investigate the ki auras of those below and, while Benkei shone as brightly as usual, Shōta presented no aura at all. This could either mean he was suppressing it, Sansouke was advised, or that the boy was in truth an undead creature with no life ki.   Strange as these discoveries were, they did not prompt an immediate response from the Hashinara, and so the match began. Before Date Masamune or his significant other could make a move, Benkei was across the canal bridge and engaging them in melee. Perhaps to avoid another Shōta death on her watch, she seemed determined to end the fight as quickly as possible. Kusanagi no Tsurugi met with Masamune’s enormous blades once, twice, and on the third strike cut clean through their wielder. With an expression of mild shock, Date Masamune simply... ceased to be. He vanished, with only a short pop as the air rushed in to fill the space he had occupied.   Katakura Kojūrō, cursing alongside Masuda Kita in the stands, was preparing to load her rifle when Shōta joined the battle. He swung a haphazard punch, one even an amateur might be ashamed of. His opponent dodged easily, but her weapon was not yet ready, so Kojūrō answered with a wild punch of her own. This caught Shōta just beneath the jaw, and rocked him to the side, but was obviously too weak to cause any actual damage. Only Hashinara Yoshitakatomo, who possessed a near-divine knowledge of such things, saw a tendril of death magic lash back at the flamboyant gunner. Kojūrō resisted whatever effect it intended, if barely, and then threw her hands up in utter exasperation. With her boyfriend obliterated and Benkei dangerously close, she wisely forfeited and returned to the stands.   This bizarre exchange marked a second victory for the Hashinara Clan.