No way out ((Flash Back/Private Training))

The evening was sunny with only a few hints of cloud coverage high above. Tatsuo strolled around the outskirts of the village with his head low and his hands swiftly placed in his coat pockets, a very casual posture indeed. "I can't seem to shake this uneasy feeling. I feel as though someone is following me but I have yet to see or hear anything out of the ordinary for quite sometime." This same thought had been racing through his mind since the beginning of his little stroll and no end to it could be seen. This shaky feeling stuck in Tatsuo's mind like cement, and something just didn't seem right. However, Tatsuo would no longer have to wait for the disturbance to reveal himself as in the next moment a kunai came flying at him from the right side. He barely noticed it in time to dodge and as he weaved to avoid it, it managed to cut a few strands of hair off of his head before embedding in a nearby tree.

"I know your there now, show yourself." Tatsuo spoke just loud enough so that those nearby would here him. He was uncertain at first if the attacker would actually show themselves or if they would simply keep attacking from the shadows. The latter appeared to be the case, as he noticed a shadow beneath him and quickly looked up in time to spot someone coming down at him with a short sword drawn. Back flipping out of the way as the attackers sword stuck in the ground.
The man attempted to pull the sword from the ground immediately but was unsuccessful in his attempt. This person was roughly the same size as Tatsuo himself with only slightly more muscle mass. Regaining his composure Tatsuo assumed a fighting stance before speaking to the newcomer. "You there, what reason do you have for attacking me without warning." The man then ceased his attempts to remove his weapon from the ground and assumed his own fighting stance before answering. "Its simple really, I plan to kill you and take what you have for my own."

So this was a thief, no, this was something a bit more complicated. This person must be stronger than your average street thug if he intends to simply attack people head on rather than attempt to steal what he came for in a more stealthy manner. "If that's your goal, then I assume your not just going to turn away quietly." The man laughed as he charged Tatsuo, "Of course not! I never back down or give up! One of us is going to walk away from this and the other is not!" Tatsuo clenched his teeth slightly, this person must be insane if he's that determined to kill someone he has never met before in such a way. Tatsuo was not normally one for senseless slaughter but, it would appear that his mind had been made for him in this case. 

The man quickly closed the gap between them and launched a strong thrust aimed for Tatsuo's jaw. However, Tatsuo easily parried that attack by blocking it to the side and countered with a swift side kicked aimed for the mans ribs. It connected and sent the man into the air, however, as he back flipped and landed on his feet he quickly recovered. The kick, although not quite delivered with Tatsuo's full power should have done more damage to his opponent that it had but this simply meant that Tatsuo's opponent was more than your average run of the mill street thug. "You think a kick that weak could do any damage to me?!" The man roared as he once again charged Tatsuo. Cockiness would not work in his favor if he kept his ego that way throughout the whole course of this fight. As the man neared him Tatsuo quickly performed the seals needed to produce two intangible copies of himself, Ram → Snake → Tiger, in quick succession. He then charged at the man as did his clones. The man attacked the middle enemy however this was just a clone and he passed right through it. "Hiding behind illusions huh?" The man said as Tatsuo charged with his three clones. This time the man attacked the clone on the far left but once again fazed through it, however this time as he did so, Tatsuo drew a kunai from his pouch and thrust it towards the man. While he did dodge out of the way and avoid major damage from the maneuver, he still suffered a significant cut on his right bicep which bled down the rest of his arm. "That wasn't half bad, if that cut had gone too much deeper I might have lost my left arm to numbness."

"I don't want to kill you if I don't have to. This is your last chance to just walk away, if you do I will not pursue you." The man simply laughed again at Tatsuo's mercy and willingness to allow him escape. "Fine, then it's time I ended this." As the man continued laughing a dark aura began radiating from Tatsuo. "What is this huh? Another one of your cheap little illusions?" As the man finished speaking Tatsuo looked up at the man, his eyes now glowing a deep red before changing to green and his voice becoming much more ominous as he spoke. "Not exactly..." His skin turned white and his clothed changed while wings and a tail sprouted from his body. The last things to form were his green markings and the bone like helmet he dawned while in his demon form. The man, for the first time, showed a slight hint of fear. "I gave you a chance to leave without issue, but now that chance is gone and its time this ended. As you said, only one of us walks away now."

Tatsuo dashed forward with speed higher than he had before, appearing just beneath the man in nearly a blink. He struck the man a single time, a hard uppercut to the mans stomach which sent him stumbling backwards gasping for air. Before he could fully recover however, Tatsuo battered him with a strong smack of his right wing which planed the man firmly on the ground. Following this, Tatsuo lifted him up by his throat with a single hand. "Sorry it has to end this way, but this is what you wanted." He said before he threw the man with incredible strength and dashed after him. As they passed the sword that had earlier been lodged in the ground, Tatsuo removed it from the ground with only slight effort and embedded it into the mans chest. This caused the man to cough up a decent amount of blood before landing on the ground, once more on his back. Tatsuo prepared to deliver the final blow but stopped himself as he saw the man shivering with fear. He reverted his demon form a took a deep breath before speaking. "I could kill you, but the bet was that only one of us walks away. I will walk and you, you get to live but you also get to crawl." Tatsuo said as he stomped hard on the mans knee, shattering the bone. After a moment the man simply passed out from pain and Tatsuo simply left. The man would not die from the sword attack, as Tatsuo made sure he stabbed the man in an area less likely to hit something vital.

As he began his journey back to the village, he was not so sad that his stroll had been cut short, in fact he was relieved. The normal routine of daily life was something Tatsuo did not enjoy and was nearly bored to death by it. Anything to break the boredom, such as the events of today were welcomed by Tatsuo. While on his way back he couldn't help but wonder why he didn't finish the man off and why he held back. It's not like he was some savior bent on doing the right thing all the time but even so something had stopped him. This wasn't weakness that stopped him but, maybe the fact his opponent was too easily defeated and killing him would have granted Tatsuo nothing. This was the cause of his mercy in the end. As he neared the village a little while later he had a thought run through his mind. "That was actually pretty fun."


[Exit]

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