❛ I don't have a healthy relationship
with anger, unfortunately. ❜

     When practice rolled around the next day, Ayane seemed less talkative than usual.

She did her warmups alone, choosing not to converse with the others like she normally would. Miguel was the first to notice, wanting to ask her if she was okay but hesitant to do so.

"Ayane," a voice called as she threw a double strike at the punching bag in front of her, turning to see Miguel standing there.

Bringing her fists down, Ayane eyed him. "Hey, Miguel. What's up?"

Miguel smiled a little, clearly timid. "Uh, nothing. I– I just wanted to come check on you. Make sure you're doing okay."

She knit her eyebrows, shrugging curtly. "I'm fine. Why?"

Her tone was a bit harsh, Miguel stumbling over his words as he replied, "Um– n-no reason, I just– I wanted to check on you. You... you seem kind of quiet today, is all."

Ayane quickly dismissed him, almost annoyed.

"I said I'm fine."

She turned back to the punching bag, throwing hard punches that caused Miguel's eyebrows to raise.

Ayane licked her lips, huffing a little. "I just– I feel like I need to be more aggressive. I... I've never really felt like I was fighting good unless I was angry about something. But, you know, I've been trying to work on my anger issues and I don't want that side of me to return."

Miguel was surprised that Ayane had actually chosen to open up to him for once, crossing his arms thoughtfully.

"I think we all fight with a little bit of anger," he replied. "I know I do. It's not really personal, you know, it's just... aggression is an important part of being a good fighter."

Ayane chewed the inside of her lip, kicking the punching bag.

"I don't have a healthy relationship with anger, unfortunately," she said as she punched again.

Before Miguel could reply, Johnny was calling Ayane's name.

"Ayannie! Time to spar," he called over to her, the girl looking over to see Sam standing on the sparring deck.

Johnny gestured with his head for Ayane to get up there, the girl exchanging a brief look with Miguel before approaching the deck.

"No holding back today, alright?" Johnny said to her, Ayane giving him a look.

She nodded slowly, hopping onto the deck whilst eyeing Sam. Out of everyone there, Ayane had the least experience with fighting Sam. But she had been watching her enough to know that Sam was a damn good fighter.

Ayane stood opposite to the LaRusso girl, bringing her fists up in her fighting position.

No holding back, the words echoed through Ayane's mind, waiting for Johnny to give them the starting command.

"Ready?" he called out at once. "Fight!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Ayane ran up on Sam, throwing out a kick. Sam parried, throwing quick strikes at Ayane who deflected and ducked under her arm, grabbing at Sam's midsection to throw her down.

Sam flipped over Ayane as she grabbed her, landing on her feet and bringing her knee up to Ayane's abdomen. Grabbing Sam by the arm, Ayane swung underneath her so that she was behind the girl, kicking her hard in the back. Sam stumbled forward, the students all making the same face of surprise at the aggressive kick.

Turning on Ayane, Sam barely had time to block as Ayane threw multiple punches. Sam was quick to defend, kicking Ayane back at once.

Ayane appreciated the fact that Sam was actually giving her some competition, encouraging her to bring out some of her anger. She flashed a smile before she spun on her foot and kicked Sam in the hip, swapping feet as she came around again and kicked her across the face.

There were audible gasps from the students watching, Sam holding the side of her face with some shock.

"Hey!" Tory yelled, Ayane looking down at her. "What the hell's your problem?"

Ayane frowned as she caught her breath, looking back over at Sam to see the girl still holding a hand over her cheek.

She saw frowns from all of her friends, Ayane suddenly feeling like a huge dick.

At once, Ayane stepped off of the platform, not saying anything to anyone as she walked toward the house.

Entering the room, Ayane saw Daniel standing in there, looking at a photo of Mr. Miyagi on the wall.

He turned as Ayane slid the door closed, the girl showing visible frustration.

"Ayane," Daniel gave her a smile. "Are you alright?"

With a deep sigh, Ayane pushed her hair back and placed a hand on her hip.

"How do you deal with your anger, Sensei? I-I know you told me that you used to be a– a hothead, if you will. How do you keep yourself in check?"

Daniel chuckled a little, folding his hands in front of him.

"Having a hard time balancing your fighting and your anger, huh?" he asked, Ayane nodding at once.

"To be honest with you, Ayane... I still haven't quite found that balance myself. Which may surprise you, I know, but I still struggle with it too."

Ayane's shoulders dropped dejectedly, sighing. "I just– I get caught up in the moment, you know? I get ahead of myself and it's kind of like I can't control it. I let my emotions get in the way."

"Fighting with emotion is good," Daniel replied with reassurance. "Having passion for what you're fighting for. You do remember what I told you at your first All-Valley tournament, right? About fighting for yourself?"

In truth, Ayane had kind of forgotten. But now that Daniel brought it up again, Ayane remembered the advice he had given her.

About fighting for herself.

Ayane looked up at Daniel, beginning to nod. "I remember."

She paused, thinking for a moment. "I-I got really tired of fighting, and I think it was because I wasn't doing it for myself, even though I tried to say I was. It's always been for someone else. Honestly, I don't know what fighting for myself really looks like."

Daniel understood where Ayane was coming from. He gave her a small smile.

"I think you'll find that you'll fight better than ever if it's by your own choice. Trust me."

Ayane heeded these words, some realization dawning on her. Before she could reply, she and Daniel both heard some chatter arising from outside.

The two of them went out there, Eli holding up a tablet while the others gathered around him.

"The Sekai Taikai announcement just came out!" he informed them, waving the tablet around.

"Who's ready to find out where we're going for the Sekai Taikai?" he continued, pressing play on the screen.

Gunther Braun was on the screen, Ayane peering over the others to see as he spoke.

"Congratulations on your admission to the Sekai Taikai. We're excited to finally announce the host city for this year's competition. Martial arts has always had a rich history in the East. And the Sekai Taikai had held many tournaments throughout Asia."

Ayane wondered for a moment if this meant an East Asian country, secretly hoping that it may have been South Korea. Kwon cross her mind at that thought, the girl having to push the thought away.

Gunther continued, "But in recent years, European teams have shaken up the competitive landscape, bringing a whole new style to the event. Within that region, there's one nation that has continued to stand tall amongst the pack for its growth and dominance in both junior and senior competitions. It gives me great pleasure to announce this year's Sekai Taikai will be held in Barcelona, Spain."

The students all began to cheer with excitement, Ayane smiling a little. Robby, who she had not noticed had been standing beside her, clasped a hand on her shoulder.

She looked over at him, the boy giving her a smile.

Gunther's voice continued to speak. "As you prepare for your journey, we'll also present the rules of registration. We intend to test your dojo's quality, not quantity, and each dojo must select six fighters to compete."

That caused some adverse reactions from the kids, all of them beginning to look around at each other.

"These six fighters will participate in team events, with one boy and one girl serving as captains to enter into the individual competitions, which will be televised around the world. We wish a hearty bona sort to all competitors, and we look forward to seeing you in Barcelona."

The video ended at that. Six fighters and two captains, Ayane thought, beginning to size up each student there. She could already pick out a list of the potential six, then wondering about the captain spot.

In Ayane's mind, it should have obviously been Miguel. He was the best, in her opinion.

Miguel seemed to think the same about Ayane, amongst the others who felt that Ayane was the obvious choice for the female captain.

"So, what exactly does this mean?" Robby asked, frowning.

Miguel shook his head, looking around at the large group of kids.

"It means we don't all get to go."

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Daniel and Johnny were not taking this decision to choose six fighters lightly.

A few days had passed since the announcement, and the two senseis had figured out a way to determine their top six.

Up on the sparring deck, along with Daniel and Johnny, was a man Ayane had never seen before.

"Please welcome our guest for the weekend, Sensei Mike Barnes," Daniel introduced the man, some of the students murmuring amongst themselves.

"Silence!" Barnes shouted, snapping them back in line.

This guy's a Johnny knockoff, Ayane thought, remaining still and silent as she stood at the front.

Daniel continued, "In order to keep things unbiased, we brought in Sensei Barnes to observe, then select our top six."

"During my years as the Tournament Terror," Barnes spoke, "all I wanted was to be in the Sekai Taikai. But I blew my chance. I am here to ensure that you maximize yours."

He stepped off of the platform, walking through the students as he continued speaking. "Everyone I know who has participated in this has horror stories. This thing is intense. Unpredictable. People have died. Move!" he shouted at a student in the back, causing the kid to jump.

Ayane raised an eyebrow, not budging from where she stood.

"Who's ready for that?" Barnes questioned.

"Wait, ready for the tournament or to die?" Demetri quietly asked from behind Ayane, who reached back and smacked him on the shoulder.

"I will do to you what the Sekai Taikai will do," Sensei Barnes continued, making his way back to the front. "I will surprise you with events. I will push you to your limits. And if any of you delicate flowers feel like going to your senseis and crying, don't. I've been given full authority for these eliminations."

"Selections," Daniel corrected. "Let's keep this positive."

Barnes glanced back at him. "You came to me. My deal was my way or the highway."

Daniel did not say anything back, Ayane eyeing Sensei Barnes with curiosity. This guy was intense, even more intense than Johnny.

He reminded her of her dad, in a way.

"Get on the sparring deck," Barnes instructed, no one moving for a moment. "Now!"

At his shouting, Ayane moved forward on instinct and walked up onto the deck.

Miguel fell in beside her, looking over at the girl. Ayane returned his look, Miguel smiling down at her.

"You shouldn't even have to be tested," he said, looking out at the other students. "Everyone knows you're going to Barcelona no matter what."

Ayane laughed a little, shaking her head. "Sensei Barnes doesn't know me. I kind of appreciate the fact that I'll have to prove myself, instead of having it handed to me."

Miguel raised his hands. "I'm just saying... we all know you'll be at the Sekai Taikai. And you'll definitely be the female captain."

She rolled her eyes. "Are you trying to inflate my ego or something?"

The boy laughed softly, shaking his head.

"I'm just calling it like I see it, Miss Cain."

As it turned out, Sensei Barnes' test were wildly different than what Ayane had been expecting.

Meaning, she had in no way anticipated that she was going to be chasing chickens.

She had never even seen a chicken in real life before, much less tried to wrangle them up like she was a damn farmhand. Aside from the task of chicken-catching, Ayane proved successful with the other tasks given. Wall sits with a thirty pound rock, board-breaking, dual fighting alongside Devon.

Finally, dripping sweat and out of breath, the students were called to attention by Barnes.

"Congratulations, you didn't die. Still, half of you wouldn't last one match at the Sekai Taikai. To the twelve who might, join me up here when I call your name."

Ayane wiped the sweat from her brow, adjusting her gi.

"Hawk. Robby. Miguel. Ayane. Sam. Tory. Muscles."

Ayane turned as she stepped onto the deck beside Miguel, wondering who the hell 'Muscles' was.

"Yeah, you," Barnes pointed at Mitch, who was surprised to hear this.

"I have a new nickname?"

"Get up here."

Mitch raced up to the deck as Barnes continued calling names.

"Kenny. Good job. No one ever catches the chicken."

Kenny grinned as he fell into the line.

"Chris. Demetri. Devon. And the last name, Anthony."

Ayane watched as they all joined on the sparring deck, smiling rather proudly. She was proud that Kenny and Devon had made it, as she had spent a lot of time teaching the two of them.

"Congratulations top twelve. Meet me back here tomorrow for round two."

Miguel leaned over to Ayane, quietly saying, "You ready for that captain spot?"

Ayane watched him walk away, scoffing to herself.

In all honesty, Ayane wanted it more than anything.

Notes.
ayane's about to reenter her menace era fr, right alongside miguel

so i'm trying to figure who to leave off for the sekai taikai group, i know tory's going back to cobra kai so... i think i may leave devon off

either the next chapter or the next two chapters will mark the beginning of the sekai taikai 😋 i'm so excited to write it you guys ain't ready

do you think ayane could take on axel?