Garland jumped back, putting some distance between him and Wataru! He was panting now, his shoulders rising and falling with every breath! “Hragh... Hmph. It’s too early to feel victorious, Wataru!”
“...What!?”
Somehow, Garland wore a dauntless grin, even at the very brink of defeat! What thought was flickering in his mind at this moment!? “Ha ha ha! Can’t you tell, Wataru!? Haven’t you figured out why I demanded that we fight at five o’clock in the morning, at the crack of dawn!?!?!?”
“Wh-What do you mean!?” Wataru was confused! He had no idea what Garland was talking about!!!
“Then allow me to explain! I was waiting for... this! This very moment! Right now!!!”
At that very moment...! The sun rose on the Sky Kingdom!!!
“The sun... I-I get it, now!” Wataru got it, but a moment too late!
Garland pointed his head toward Wataru, and shouted into the plaza!!!!!
“Take this! God’s-Divine-Light Shimmering-Upon-My-Head Like-The-Morning-Sun-Rising-Above-A-Mountaintop!!!!!”
Flllllllllashshshshshsh!!!!!
The reflection of the morning sunlight off of Garland’s bald head burst forth in an explosive flash of light!
“Grawaghghrgh!!!” Wataru was agonized by the light! His eyes were blinded at once, his world turned to white! The sudden flash made him lose his sense of balance! He couldn’t even tell the ground he was standing on from the sky above his head! “Wh-What the...!?”
“How does it feel, Wataru!? I was waiting for this very moment, when the morning sun would crest above the horizon!”
“Damn! I can’t see!” Wataru was temporarily blinded!! Garland’s GDLSUMHLTMSRAAM attack had robbed Wataru of his sight!!! For real, this was not good for him!!!!!
Smrashghshgragh!!!!!
Unable to see, Wataru immediately smashed his invulnerable fist straight into the ground! This was a move devised in ancient China called Earthsplitter!
(*Earthsplitter — The history of kung fu runs far longer than we could imagine. Through the long and intimate history of the martial arts, a move was devised where the user strikes the ground with their fist, thus creating small crevices, thus splitting the Earth, hence the move being called Earthsplitter, or chū liède in the original Chinese. It is said that, if one has mastered this move, they can split the sea like Moses himself. However, because of its catastrophic impact to the user’s surroundings, one must first acquire a government license before learning the move. [5])
With this move, Wataru created small crevices throughout the plaza! A powerful earthquake shook the ground!
“Wh-What’s happening...!?” Garland couldn’t help but falter at the surprising attack! How could one punch tear open the very ground they stood upon!? It was unheard of! ...But Wataru’s true intention was not to attack, but to produce a different effect entirely! “...What the!?” The plaza filled with dust before Garland’s very eyes! “I see... Not bad!” Garland said, impressed!
Of course, Wataru’s intention in using Earthsplitter had not been as an attack, but to produce an impenetrable cloud of dust from the crevices in the earth!
Now, Garland could no longer find Wataru! “Damn! I can’t see through this dust...! If he buys much more time, I’m in trouble...!” It would take but thirty seconds for Wataru to regain his vision after taking a direct hit from the GDLSUMHLTMSRAAM attack! Could Wataru evade Garland long enough!?
“Herm... Ah! Where am I!?” Aria snapped awake as Wataru and Garland continued their duel! As she hurried to her feet, she discovered a bona fide hellscape before her.
The plaza that had always been a source of relaxation for the people of the town was now somehow filled with a thick cloud of dust, and cracks snaked over every surface. Through the dust, she could see a large man without a shirt standing with his arms crossed, the sun glinting off his bald head as he turned it to and fro. Aria had absolutely no clue what was going on.
“Wh-Where’s Wataru!?” Aria racked her brain in confusion as she searched for him, but the dust made it impossible to see much of anything in the plaza. “Wataru! Wataru!” Her heart began to pound as she called for him.
Meanwhile, Garland was searching for Wataru, just as Aria was.
“Grr... The dust is getting in my eyes...!” If Garland failed to find Wataru before the boy regained his sight, the challenger would find himself in peril all over again. He would have missed his one shot to turn this fight around. “Impressive, Wataru. It seems it wasn’t just dumb luck that let you defeat those two Masters, at least. You have some tricks up your sleeve, too...!” This fight would not be as easy as he had hoped. Garland flexed his muscles again and braced himself. “I have... no other option!” He charged into the dust cloud, determined. It may almost seem reckless, but he truly had no choice. Enveloped in the dust cloud, Garland blindly flailed his arms around him. “Wataru! Show yourself! Where are you!?” Garland’s arms struck nothing but dust, much to his dismay; Wataru was nowhere to be found. “Dammit! Where are you!?” Garland shouted into the cloud, a cold sweat beading on his head.
In response, Wataru’s voice thundered down from above. “Up here!!!!!”
“What!?” Garland hurriedly looked up to find Wataru falling towards him, cutting through the dust cloud at incredible speed.
“Take this!!!!!”
Zdraghrgharbdshargh!!!!!
Wataru’s fist collided with Garland’s cranium.
“Graghfragh!” Garland fell to his knees. “H-How...? You should still be blind...”
“You’re right! I still can’t see a thing!”
Garland couldn’t conceal his shock. “What!? Then how did you hit me!?”
“Don’t you get it!? You were bellowing like a wounded bull in that dust cloud! It was so loud, it was easy to tell where you were, sight or no sight!!”
Wataru was right yet again! Garland, having lost sight of Wataru, had called out for him from the middle of the dust cloud. When both fighters were blinded, that single burst of decibels had decided the match!
“How could this be...!? Dammit!” His bald head shimmering in the light, Garland sulked in defeat. Tears formed at the corners of his eyes!
A few minutes later, the dust had settled, and Wataru had regained his sight!
“Wataru... I felt your power, your strength, that defeated two of the Four Masters. Thank you for fighting me!”
“Don’t sweat it, Garland! Your muscles were awesome, too!”
The two fighters clasped hands in a powerful and masculine handshake, moist with their manly sweat! A burning friendship had bloomed between the gentlemen, now that their duel was concluded!
“Now, Wataru. There is something I must tell you,” Garland said, with a suddenly serious tone!
“Shoot!”
“I have a wife and daughter. They were both kidnapped by the Demon Lord a few days ago...”
“Wh-What!?!?!?” What a shocking revelation! Just like Aria’s parents, Garland’s family had been captured by the Demon Lord, too! “Then you really fought me to—!?”
“Yes. To test if you really had what it takes to defeat the Demon Lord.”
“I get it, now!”
Apparently, Garland wasn’t just a shining meathead, but an honest family man!
“Wataru, I know you can defeat the Demon Lord! I know I’m putting it all on your shoulders, but... Please, destroy the Demon Lord and save my family!” Garland begged, presenting Wataru with a prime view of his sparkling head!
Squinting at the morning light refracting off Garland’s head, Wataru was determined to carry the hot-blooded plea of his newfound friend with him. “You can leave it to me!!!”
Wataru was now more determined than ever to defeat the vile Demon Lord! All’s well that ends well! They lived happily ever after!!