AN__: Tell me how you feel about the fight scene. If you'd like to give suggestions on how to make it more enjoyable to read, I hope you would write them in the comments. Thank you!
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8th November 1505
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Inside Alshaw Island's only Dojo, Laurent could be seen exchanging blows with his instructor at the center of said Dojo. Another figure, Fred, could be seen recording the fight on the side using a recording snail. The recorded footage would be used later on for improvement purposes at the end of the combat.
This was Laurent's idea, as he wanted to review his sparring sessions to improve his fighting IQ. The idea was well received by Baibald, who decided to implement a fight review session in the other recruits' training.
After finishing their physical training and yoga sessions, Laurent and Fred walked toward the Dojo with Baibald, ready to start their daily sparring session.
Although we say spar, only Baibald is holding back since it wouldn't make sense for recruits to go easy on a Marine Captain. So, Laurent and Fred must give their best while Baibald helps them increase their fighting experience through actual combat.
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*Vfrooomm*
Tilting his head to dodge a punch, Laurent backed up to gain more space to operate. Although he gained more proficiency in boxing, he couldn't compare techniques with someone like Baibald. So, Laurent opted to retreat and open space between him and Baibald. However, Baibald didn't let him do that as he pursued, sending flurries of punches toward his protegé.
Managing to efficiently dodge most of them while retreating, Laurent suddenly braked, raised his right knee to his waist, pulled his toes back, and quickly extended his right foot toward Baibald, hitting him in the chest and pushing him back.
Seizing the opening he created, Laurent advanced toward Baibald, planted his right foot on the ground, and pivoted on it while turning his hips and lifting his left foot, whipping it toward Baibald's Head with force. Smiling, Baibald stabilized himself and tilted his head backward to avoid the incoming strike.
*Swoosh*
Seeing Laurent's foot whizz past his face, Baibald went to the ground, sweeping the former's pivot foot, causing him to fall. Baibald charged at the fallen enemy, not wasting any time, ready to stomp him out of the fight. However, Laurent got up before Baibald's foot could touch him. His reaction speed was fast enough.
"You improved a lot, huh!" Said Baibald, giving Laurent time to restore his breath. "I'm going to increase your pressure a little bit. I hope you keep up for the remaining five minutes." He continued, surprised at the speed his two students were improving.
"You know you sound like a second-rate villain, right?" Mocked Laurent, finally catching his breath. "'I hope you keep up!' Looking-ahh!" He added fuel to the fire as Baibald attacked without even responding to the mockery.
Noticing the approaching enemy, Laurent braced himself, ready to engage.
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A couple of minutes later.
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"That was pretty good!" Complimented Fred, seeing the tired Laurent resting on the floor of the Dojo. Approaching the exhausted man, he handed him a bottle of water, a smile on his face.
"You kept up with me for more than ten minutes. Although I wasn't using my full force, that's quite the feat." Added Baibald on the side as he drank water from his bottle. Taking a huge gulp, he waited until Laurent sat up before he continued.
"Your technique is excellent. You can fluidly use them without wasting any movement." He trailed off, making sure Laurent was listening to him; he continued. "However, your timing is not correct. Sometimes, you use the wrong moves at the wrong time." He continued, getting the recorded fight and replaying the parts he was talking about.
"For example, if you had used body shots after doing your front kick, it would've worked better than the round-house you performed." He started, pointing at the holographic screen coming from the snail's eyes. Looking at Laurent, he asked. "Can you see why you used the roundhouse at the wrong time?"
Watching the film, Laurent nodded in realization. "The front kick made you unstable, but not enough to be hit by a round-house kick. It takes too much time to perform that kick. I wouldn't have been thrown to the ground if I had taken my time and focused on throwing faster attacks like punches while you were unstable." Analyzed Laurent, noticing that he was not calm enough while fighting.
'I need to learn how to determine the best course of action to make while being in a fight. The day I learn to do that will be the day I become a true fighter.' Thought Laurent, making that a goal to achieve.
"That's right!" Exclaimed Baibald, happy to hear a somewhat correct analysis. "You don't have to always look for a finisher. Doing that would open you up to counterattacks far more threatening than your finishing move." He spoke, looking at both Laurent and Fred. "In a fight, the most important thing is timing. The person who masters that concept the most will always be the best fighter." He stopped, organizing his words before continuing.
"In my opinion, there are two crucial skills a fighter must possess. Those two skills are rhythm or pace control and sense of timing." Said Baibald with a solemn expression. Fred and Laurent sat on the ground next to him, listening intently as he continued his lesson.
"If you can control the rhythm or pace of a fight, your chances of winning that fight might increase by more than thirty percent. However, there are two types of fighters; aggressive fighters, who like to go head to head and exchange blows with you, and counter fighters, who focus more on defense and try to end the fight with fast but powerful counterattacks." Saying that Baibald smiled, looking at his two students.
"What's funny is that Fred is the aggressive fighter while Laurent is the counter fighter. Based on both of your personalities, it should've been the opposite." Laughing at his words, Baibald continued his speech.
"For Laurent, you need to move more around your opponent and not let them approach you. You can use jabs, front kicks, and low kicks to keep them at bay while looking for an opportunity to end them when they try to get into your space. You need to improve your footwork and use body feints to achieve that.
"I need to emphasize one thing, diversify your attacking methods. Don't have a single pattern. Otherwise, great fighters will effortlessly figure you out. You must make them wonder about your next move and keep them at the tip of their toes at all times.
"As for timing, it will come with experience. The more you fight, the more you'll understand that concept. So, you don't have to worry about that now." Finishing, Baibald looked at the pensive Laurent and nodded.
Although he said a lot, he didn't expect the kids to become outstanding fighters immediately. It takes time and experience to become a veritable great fighter, no matter how talented you are. It took him 20 years to reach his current level. However, he knows he can still improve.
Baibald remembered his past self and smiled before looking at Fred and resuming his speech.
"Most aggressive fighters I know are either swordsmen or very high-level hand-to-hand fighters due to the risk involved with the style. People tend to overcommit their aggressiveness and end up dying young at the hands of more experienced fighters. I'm not saying this discourages you, but to make you understand this is not a game.
First, if you want to stay with the hand-to-hand fighting style, I advise you to learn after Vice-admiral Garp or Fleet-admiral Kong. They are both very aggressive and like to stay close to you to exchange blows. They cut your retreating paths while assuring they are always in their most comfortable range to throw quick and powerful punches. Most of their fights are documented, and I'll try to get some for you to review later.
However, if you want to pick the sword, Commodore Stone is the perfect learning model for you. He's known as the sword genius of his generation, and his aggressive style earned him a resounding reputation in the grand line. However, he's very skilled at pressurizing people, like the two examples I cited above. He forces you to make a mistake he can exploit by putting pressure on you in simple words.
I'm not a sword user, so I'm unsure how he accomplishes that. However, if you follow the sword's path, he will be willing to teach you his craft." Finished Baibald with a smile.
Looking at the kids' pensive expressions, he smiled and headed out of the Dojo without making any noise. He wanted to give them time to digest the information he gave them today. Afterward, they can put it into practice.
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AN__: This is a very informative chapter, and sorry for that. However, I think it is necessary for the novel. Understanding the fighting styles and developing them accordingly is a step every fighter must take, and that also applies to our main character. Thank you!
