Chapter 351: Fight II
The sandy training ground shimmered in the afternoon sun, the faint scent of saltwater lingering from Dave’s Ocean Heart Azure Dragon manifestation. The azure glow still rippled faintly in the air, its dragonic shape dispersing into waves of ethereal mist.
From the edge of the arena, the cluster of wide-eyed children watched in rapt silence, their faces lit with the kind of unfiltered excitement only pure curiosity could summon.
Dave stood tall, Kamisato Ayato’s refined power humming through him. A faint, crystalline blue ripple encased his blade—fluid and graceful, yet edged with lethal precision.
Across from him, Captain Steve Rogers strode in, the faintest smirk tugging at his lips. But this was not the Steve the kids knew from bedtime stories—this was Steve wielding the calm, calculated power of Alhaitham. Emerald light shimmered around him, forming geometric patterns in the air as if the very laws of reality were aligning with his movements. His Martial Spirit—the Silver Rune Lion—manifested with a low, rumbling growl. Its spectral mane flowed like liquid silver, and with a flex of will, Steve condensed it into a gleaming double-edged sword, its silver blade etched with runes that pulsed like a heartbeat.
A murmur swept through the kids.
"Whoa... Cap’s sword looks like it can cut through anything!" one whispered.
"But Dave’s is glowing all... ocean-y," another countered. "That means he’s faster, right?"
Dave tilted his head, the ghost of a grin forming. "Alright, Cap... try to keep up."
Steve only chuckled. "I was about to say the same thing."
And then—they moved.
Dave blurred forward, water-like ripples following each step, his blade slicing in an elegant upward arc. Steve intercepted with a swift parry, the silver sword ringing against the azure edge in a clash that sent a sharp crack of energy through the arena.
Kids gasped as shimmering water and silver motes scattered in the air like fireworks.
Dave flowed around Steve’s guard, his movements like a current—smooth, continuous, unpredictable. But Steve’s footwork was an anchor, each step perfectly measured, each counter precise. With every deflection, emerald constructs flickered in the air—triangular barriers, pulsing hexes, and lines of light that predicted Dave’s trajectory.
"Cap’s reading him!" one kid yelled.
"Nuh-uh! Dave’s baiting him!"
The Mid-Battle Crescendo
Dave pivoted, releasing a burst of azure energy—Shunsuiken Flow Step—vanishing from Steve’s sight for a heartbeat. The next moment, he reappeared above him, blade poised for a downward strike.
But Steve’s eyes glimmered with that calm, tactical sharpness. In a single motion, he rotated his sword, runes flashing, and summoned the Silver Rune Lion in partial form—a head and shoulders that lunged forward, forcing Dave to abort the strike mid-air.
The kids screamed in delight as Dave twisted mid-fall, landing in a crouch and grinning. "Okay... that was new."
"You didn’t think I’d come unprepared, did you?" Steve replied, stepping forward, his silver blade spinning in a flourish before settling into a defensive stance.
Their speed intensified. Dave’s strikes became a flowing storm—each cut weaving into the next like ocean waves in a relentless tide. Steve’s defense became sharper, his counters laced with precise bursts of rune energy, each one forcing Dave to adapt in the moment.
Finally, with a surge of water, Dave feinted left—then unleashed Azure Mirage Bloom, a flurry of afterimages that surrounded Steve. The kids’ eyes went wide.
Steve, unshaken, slammed his sword into the ground, the runes flaring as a burst of emerald-silver light radiated outward. The mirages shattered like glass, revealing Dave mid-strike.
In the heartbeat before contact, both pulled their blades back—grinning like they’d just shared an unspoken joke.
The kids erupted into cheers.
"That was AWESOME!"
"Do it again! Do it again!"
The courtyard rang with the sound of steel meeting steel—silver on water, rune-light on mist.
Dave surged forward first, his Kamisato Ayato power flaring to life, a ribbon of pale blue Hydro light trailing behind him as his blade became a blur. Each strike was fluid, like a river that refused to break, slipping past Captain America’s guard before rebounding in another graceful arc.
Steve—powered now by Alhaitham’s mastery of Light Constructs—met him with precision. With a single flick of his wrist, a shimmering glyph appeared midair, turning into a silver rune lion that roared and condensed into a double-edged sword in his hand. The weapon’s edges shimmered as if dipped in starlight.
The kids’ eyes widened as the clash began in earnest.
"Woooaaah! He turned a lion into a sword!" one gasped, bouncing on his heels.
"No, no, look at Dave—he’s everywhere at once!" another pointed, trying to track the flickering afterimages as Dave wove in and out.
Steve’s style was grounded, like a fortress moving forward—steady, heavy blows that shook the ground when they connected. Dave’s was the exact opposite, a flowing storm of slashes and sudden bursts of movement that seemed to carry him across the courtyard without effort.
Steel sparked under the late afternoon sun. The sound was almost musical—Hydro hisses meeting the crackle of light as each strike collided.
At one point, Steve planted his sword in the ground, a runic circle flaring beneath his feet. Three spectral lions formed around him, dashing toward Dave.
Dave grinned, muttering under his breath, "That all you got, Cap?" He twisted his body, blade dissolving into pure water as he vanished in a blink—Ayato’s Shunsuiken form activating. The water became a cyclone, shredding through the lion constructs and re-forming into Dave just behind Steve.
The crowd of kids went wild—
"He disappeared!"
"No, he turned into water! Did you see?!"
Steve spun instantly, blocking the incoming strike, their blades locking. The air between them pulsed from the impact.
"Not bad, soldier," Steve said, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
Dave chuckled. "Not bad for an old man with homework due tomorrow."
Then, Dave moved. Faster than before. Hydro blossoms bloomed with every strike, forcing Steve to block from all directions. The silver rune blade caught each blow, but slowly—inch by inch—Steve was pushed back. His foot dug into the dirt, but Dave’s relentless tempo refused to let up.
Finally, a spinning upward slash sent Steve’s sword flying just high enough for Dave to step in, the tip of his blade hovering at Steve’s chest—its edge dripping with cool, shimmering water.
The kids erupted in cheers.
"Dave wins!"
"That was soooo cool!"
"Do it again! Do it again!"
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