♤ Leon's Challenge ♤

Chapter 19 - Final Confrontation

"Very good, Leon.. I knew you'd accept with the life of my dear Maki hanging in the moment.. I will say that if I beat you you will never see her again. But then again, what would an old hag like me know about a teenage boy..." Shimada said to Leon, as the two walked in a circle. "Now before I became a headmaster, I served in the Phillipines for a few years. Was trained how to fight if I ever needed to. So I want to see how an adorned combatant like you can handle some simple boxing." She finished, standing tall and waiting for Leon.

On the other side the teen angrily glared at her, his eyes burning with nothing but hatred. The woman still showed no mercy, and now she planned to make his life even more worse than it already was. Tearing off his shirt, he arched back into his fighting stance and waited for her to make the first move. "Alright headmaster, if you think your strength is too much for me, then use it."

Nodding, Shimada raised her fists and moved forward. Throwing the first punch, it went for Leon's face, but he came in with a block that sent it off line. He then responded by kicking her in the side, separating the two from eachother. She coughed in reply, resuming her stance. "Good kick!"

An uppercut quickly came flying into Leon's jaw, causing him to grunt and fly back into the dirt. Rolling away, Leon used his legs to scissor around Shimada and trip her, the weight going down allowing Leon to help himself up. Maki and Gima watched nervously, as the older woman got up and brushed the dirt away from her jumpsuit. "Oh, you devil! I recently had this washed!" She said with annoyance in her voice, before continuing the fight and punching Leon in the gut. He tumbled back towards the parked truck, and fought back with another kick that struck her in the face. He then elbowed her in the head, and shoved her right into the mirror of the vehicle, breaking it.

But Shimada wasn't backing down, and kicked Leon in the groin, causing him a boatload of pain. She then grabbed onto his hair with her hands, and thrusted him right into the window of the truck, causing shattered glass to get all over him, some shards nicking the skin of his face. Reaching in and unlocking the door Leon opened it, ramming Shimada back onto the ground. Shutting the door Leon angrily jumped on her, throwing any punches he could to her face, starting to cause bruises and cuts from the friction of his wrists. But almost like Ramune would, Shimada grabbed Leon and threw him away, making him scream and hit the ground hard. Smiling more, the headmaster emerged from the truck and wiped off her hands.

"This is a very steady workout, Leon! I really wish I could have sparred with you more. I could have learned a thing or two, from a youth with so much potential! But let's spice things up a little. Chang, hand me my signature weapon!"

The man holding Maki would nod and smirk, reaching down and tossing Shimada what seemed to be a katana. Grabbing the sheath, she pulled it away, revealing the shining blade of the legendary Japanese sword. "Even without Jindai, I'll always stay loyal to my blueprints of a true duel.. so let's see if you can handle this!" She said, aiming the blade towards him.

Leon rolled back, and took a knife away from one of the dead gunmen, and held it at an angle so he could pinpoint her attack. Shimada slashed down, and Leon blocked the blow with the knife. Crouching down he sliced into her hip a little, making her cry out in pain. Turning around, her happy demeanor fading to an angry one. Now she could fully see what power Leon had, and she couldn't let him overwhelm her. Taking the katana, she swung right down, and cut right into his hand. Leon screamed, and in the chaos he swiped up and sliced into Shimada's face, cutting deep. She let out a deep growl and crouched down, holding her now bleeding face.

"Nice hit, Leon.. I guess size knows no bounds when it comes to fighting with blades."

Shimada swung back with her katana, making Leon drop to the floor and kick her back. Getting up he sliced his knife at her, allowing the woman to find an open spot and ram her knee into his rib, knocking the air right out of him. She then twisted around and used the handle of her sword to slam it into his nose. The teen took the hit and fell down, dropping his knife and holding his face in pain. The kid was merely on thin ice at this point. He had been beaten, shot at, and cut up.. yet he still pushed to keep going. Gima watched from cover, nervously gritting his teeth. "Come on Leo.. give that bitch the what-for!"