The Ranch

Kane's discipl(in)e (4)

The entire colosseum is like a jar with a bunch of flies zooming from place to place, the amount of onlookers and cameras have increased, and most importantly, the flys' desire to flee has increased significantly with the new information. Discovering they have no way of escaping this "lecture".

From then on, those that were gut-punched took their sweet time completing the fifty push-ups, trying to waste as much time as they could before the punishment doubled. They were trying to quickly formulate new plans to defend against the two monsters.

Many of the slower regular students were immediately on the ground in the first few minutes, but that was to be expected. The onlookers were more interested in Kane's disciples, who were well-known in their generation.

So, how were the disciples, the soldiers that the regular students looked up to and respected for their talent and power, handing the newbie?

The disciples were getting thrashed.

And by both Tih and Instructor Kane. The instructor did not let them off easy even though they only got dragged into the regular students problems and weren't at fault. Instructor Kane has always been a strong believer in equality.

Although they were getting absolutely trashed, it still took a little more time and effort to tag each one.

Instructor Kane is facing a small group of three that had the bright idea to try to take the man down. Honestly, it's more of a last-ditch attempt at escaping alive. After all, they don't know how long Instructor Kane plans to cage and "discipline" them for.

Three other disciples copied their fellow soldiers and gang up on the child. The groups start fighting a fair distance away from each other, but the path is clear and Instructor Kane and Tih can tell what sort of situation the other is in if they desire.

Instructor Kane is slightly worried about Tih. He personally trained these dunces and he wouldn't put effort into teaching weaklings. But it would be rude to focus on another's fight while his three students are trying their best to oppose him. The instructor plans to beat them quickly, in a way they can see their own flaws, before helping Tih.

Tih looks at the three people that are each almost three heads taller than him with no expression. The soldiers have been watching the boy pummel student after student without them being able to land one hit. To counter that, they have him fight two people at once, while the third looks for any weaknesses or openings.

Tih manages to match the two using only Instructor Kane's speed and techniques. The three immediately recognize these move and are given a shock, they start to increase their speed to try to force Tih into submission.

Tih, who's eyes are focused on Instructor Kane's body, copying his movements to counter the four arms and legs, feels a tingling sensation. His instincts are telling him to move from the spot he's standing.

He instinctively moves to his right. His left foot glides past something, but it almost feels like pressured air.

Tih stops looking at Instructor Kane, using his moves from memory to counter the two soldiers. The weird sensation comes again, telling him to bend back at a forty-five degree angle.

This time, he finds where the source of the sensation is coming from. He meets eyes with  the third soldier standing in the back. These

certain pair of eyes hold a unique intent towards Tih, but it cannot be explained because it's not something he's felt before.

He bends back while focusing on the soldier's expression. He watches the teen frown in displeasure and...a hint of insecurity.

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Damn! DAMN! He's just a newbie. There's no way he can be stronger than me, so why is teacher supporting him. He even got mad for his sake! That should be me! If only he knew...

Should I finally tell teacher? No... I can't completely trust him yet. If he can respect a newbie like this, he doesn't deserve to be my teacher.

I need someone that will support me and me alone. I don't need competition. Damn, and I thought I'd finally found a good one. Looks like i need to move onto option two. What class did he teach again?

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As the disciple's mind started to wander, he became unfocused for but a moment, but that single moment was enough.

By the time he realized it, his two buddies were pushing the dirt beneath them. A fist is aimed at his stomach. He flusteredly takes a step back as the fist just misses its mark, pushes into a different direction.

Tih thrusts his other hand after the first one fails. This time, the soldier is much more prepared. He pushes his palm on Tih's arm with a large amount of pressure, changing its direction. Attack countered, he thrusts a palm at Tih chest.

The force of the attack seems to spread to Tih's entire torso, pushing him back a couple feet. He would have flown further if not for his feet that scraped the ground as it resisted the force.

After negation all the force through the ground, Tih springs forward. The fact that Tih is only using Instructor Kane's moves and strength leave him at a disadvantage. It's also obvious where he will attack. Tih doesn't plan to aim for anything other than his target's stomach.

On the other hand, when Tih jump towards him, the soldier grabs ahold of him head and pushes Tih down. Usually, his head would dive down, but the momentum would allow his body to keep going. But instead, Tih's body seemed to follow and his entire body slams to the grounds.

Tih face lands on some shrapnel, embedding itself into his face. Tih himself doesn't mind much and still plans to stick to the rules, but his body is aware of the injury and seems it as an offensive attack aimed to arm.

Tih returns to his regular speed and unusual but flexible moves. He dodges the soldier's incoming palm and slithers around to the back. Tih aims at the back of his knees. He grabs them and swoops between the soldier's open legs.

The soldier's legs lift off the ground, pulled by Tih. Having lost his support, his back hits the ground, pushing all the air out of his lungs in one breath.

The soldier attempts to attack Tih once more. Tih instinctively feels that tingling sensation and reacts. Just like during the newcomers tournament, he starts swinging the soldier's body in a circle, finally letting go once he has enough speed. The body flies through the air, slows down a little in the middle, but still manages to crash into some training gear, knocking the disciple out cold.

The scene creates a loud crashing sound, attracting everyone's attention. Cameras lock onto the child. Instructor Kane quickly finishes up his three students and runs over.

"Everything okay?" He came over worried, but now realizes it was unecessary. He looks at the two teens on the floor, still doing push-ups, but eyeing the boy in fear. Then he looks the other one that's unconscious.

Tih stares at Instructor Kane without expression, but for some reason gives off the feeling of apprehension. This is because he thinks Instructor Kane came over because he broke the rules.