[Hyousuke/Ryu] The Weight of Our Pride

WORD COUNT
497

Tag
Ryu Sato

NOW PLAYING
THE BEAST

This was it. Somehow, Hyousuke had managed to reach the finals. To him, however, it was a hollow victory. He'd scraped by, only managing to get in by the skin of his teeth. Every point he'd taken, every inch of ground he'd gained, he'd had to fight for like a rabid beast, clawing at it and pushing his body to its absolute limits. Deep down, he didn't feel as though he deserved to be there - he was a small fish in a big pond, and much as he tried to deny it, he felt it was only a matter of time until someone came along to put him in his place.

Still, he did what he could to keep his cool as he paced about the changing room. Whatever the circumstances were, he was there, and he had to make the most of it. It was his chance to get out there, and show the world that he wasn't just some meathead punk with a weak Quirk - he was strong in his own right, and he wanted to make sure they understood. His hands were shaking, his teeth were clenched hard enough to bite through his jaw, and he couldn't even think straight - but he wasn't going to give in.

Hyousuke attempted to maintain some semblance of a confident appearance as he was told to wait by the arena. This was it. Do or die. Slowly, he rose from his chair, and passed the threshold past the changing room, stepping out to face his first opponent. Ryu... as far as Hyousuke was concerned, there were few worse matches he could've had. Everyone else, he could at least hurt, but there was nothing he could do to get past those scales. His only hope, as far as he could tell, was to try and outlast his foe - but with those claws, and that strength, who knew how long his body would hold out?

A dull thud rang out into the tunnel as his knuckles slammed into the concrete wall. Much as he'd have preferred to do it with gloves on, at least the pain served to help him focus. He'd need all the focus he could get too - it was going to take everything he had if he was going to beat the lizard and prove his worth. Then, that fateful moment. The announcer's voice ringing out, booming across the arena above the crowd's thunderous cheers, and echoing through the tunnel. "In the red corner... Suzuki... Hyousuke!"

The blonde stepped out into the light, forcing himself not to flinch at the sun glaring down at him, nor at the the sheer wall of noise slamming into him from the crowd. Expression twisted into something vaguely aggressive, he dragged himself forward, shutting out everything but the tunnel at the other end of the arena. His heart pounded in his chest. His fingers curled into his hands, knuckles red from the impact and white from his grip. This was it.