In front of the arena, three figures stood outside. Dogura stared up at the colossal building. The day had come- and while the night before had been everything but relaxing, the samurai felt refreshed. Rejuvenated.

"Good luck Dogura," Shiro faced Dogura, and put both hands on the samurai's shoulder plates. "Don't hold anything back." Dogura nodded confidently. "I'm a warrior prince from the kingdom of Shadowclaw. I won't lose so easily."

Katsuro's eyes widened as he looked up at Dogura. He's a prince?! And from Shadowclaw?? I didn't think there were any left! This man... Maybe I don't know him after all... "From Shadowclaw eh?" Remarked Suro. "They were strong. Feared across the South- that's what my mom used to say." Dogura ignored the boy's comments. His head was elsewhere at the moment. Shiro let go of him, and turned to head into the stands, Katsuro not far behind him. "Give em' hell, Dogura. I'll be cheering," remarked the vagabond's student as he hurried after Shiro.

Dogura watched the boy leave, and closed his eyes. Wiping the boy's short term memory wasn't his choice- it was necessary. He opened his eyes in time to see the two disappear into the crowd. But Katsuro was in good spirits- it appeared that his mind was perfectly intact. He smiled confidently- everyone was counting on him.

He turned and entered the series of tunnels that lead to the arena. I can't lose today- no matter how strong Tensei might be... I simply can't lose. He entered the familiar room, where all of the warriors once stood. He scanned the room, remembering all the men who'd lost their lives in this death-pit. The samurai said a small prayer for the men, and began his journey to the large gate where they would introduce him. His mind would normally be in several different places at the moment. What exactly did Katsuro remember from the night before? What would Shiro do if he found Alpha in the crowd? Did the Goddesses even hear his prayers anymore? However at this exact moment, his mind was only focused on the mission. As he rounded the corner towards the gate, he could begin to hear the crowd's roar.

These new gates were made of stone, and at least fifteen feet tall. They were meant only for the finalists- those that had earned the right to fight in the final battle. The strong, the wise, and the courageous. These three traits were all equally important, especially to a champion. The samurai stood there in front of the doors, as a Rito approached him. "Dogura Shadowblade. Are you ready to face Tensei in one on one combat?" Dogura simply nodded. The Rito smiled- "Alright. Good luck out there." With that, the aven man left the large stone room. When he closed the door behind him, the sound echoed throughout the massive stone room. Darkness surrounded the samurai, which was where he was most comfortable.

Aside from the muffled roar from outside the stone doors, there was absolute silence. Dogura expected Ganon to start speaking at any moment, but the beast's voice never came. Instead, the sound of tumblers activating brought the combatant to attention. The doors were opening- the samurai stood unmoving as a thin line of light struck him between the eyes, and widened as the doors opened outwards. The crowd was cheering louder than ever before, and every seat in the house was full. The man thought back to the Grand Tournament, where he had fought several years before. He couldn't recall who'd won that tournament- but he knew who would win this one. There was only one option, and it wasn't defeat.

The gates were now fully open, and he could see Tensei, who was already in the arena. The man pounded his staff into the ground, and the foundation trembled. A cloud of dust washed outward from him like a wave from a pebble thrown into a pond. The cloud washed over Dogura, who stared back at the man.

"Well, now." Spoke the geomancer. "Don't keep me waiting."

Dogura's brow wrinkled at the comment, and he strode into the arena. The samurai felt the heat of the sun rain down on him- the day was hot, with very few clouds in the sky. Not ideal fighting conditions for Dogura, but the man was used to the conditions leaning against him. He stopped ten feet from the old geomancer, as rules in the arena dictated. The crowd's cheering seemed to fade away as the two locked eyes.

"You've been hiding your strength, samurai. Don't think I haven't noticed." Tensei spoke again. Dogura responded with silence. The man spoke again, "Well that won't do you any good here. You'd better bring your all, Demon."

The samurai drew his blade slowly, and held it at his side. Tensei smiled, "Nothing to say?"

Welcome again folks, to the New Peaktop Arena, and do we ever have a show for you! The two finalists, one a swordsman, the other versed in magic. Who will win? ARE YOU READY?

The announcer's question was met with a clear answer. A roar that shook the foundation much like Tensei's earlier display had. The samurai's Hylian ears were somehow blocking it out however, as his face never changed. Shiro watched from where he sat, rather concerned for the man. It's probably taking a lot just to keep the demon from surfacing... He's itching for battle. The reaper glanced down at Katsuro, who watched in complete anticipation. My spell seems to have worked... He doesn't appear to remember anything from the night before... Shiro looked back down at Dogura. But if he lets that thing out, it will have been for nothing. I won't keep erasing this kid's memory.



"You must not know who you face, Dogura Shadowblade." Tensei said sternly.
"I am Tensei Stormgald, of The Sunderblood Mountains. You will learn to fear my name, swordsman."

The crowd seemed to quiet down, even the announcer hesitating as if waiting for a response from Dogura. The vagabond glared back at the man.

"I will not lose to a young fool who dares to hold a blade to my years of experience. You Sheikah are all the same. Overconfident cowards who fight from the darkness. If you're planning on falling back on your shadowmeld ability, I'll tell you right now that it won't save you."

Dogura found it harder and harder to keep quiet. I didn't take him for a racist... Overconfident... Look who's calling the kettle black... The man still wasn't finished talking.

"I'll say it once." Tensei stated. "Forfeit now. I do not wish to kill someone so young and stupid. You have more to live for than this- swallow your pride and walk away."

The crowd was relatively silent now- it appeared that a good portion of the crowd was trying to hear what was being said. Dogura decided to take this opportunity to respond. He held his sword towards Tensei, and spoke.

"Tensei Stormgald, of the Sunderblood Mountains..." He began.
"It is true that I do not know what I face. I don't like fighting blind- it doesn't mean I don't know how. Come, now. This isn't a time for words- this is a time for steel."

The sorcerer seemed to accept this answer, as he took a fighting stance. "Very well. You will know death soon..." Dogura smirked at this. "Actually..." He said just loud enough for Tensei to hear.

"Death and I are well acquainted."

Tensei's eyebrow arched, "What?"

"BEGIN!!"

The announcer shouted, Dogura immediately rocketing from his position. Tensei, astonished, still reacted quickly. He rose his staff to block Dogura's blade, and in a retaliatory strike, commanded the earth upward to launch the samurai into the air. Dogura spun around in the air, and looked down at Tensei, who was already conjuring another spell.

Two massive chunks of the arena shot into the air, both of them set to collide into each other with Dogura in the middle. The samurai placed his sword in his teeth, and brought his hands together. Inside his hands, a glow could be seen shining through his fingers. He quickly threw his arms outwards towards both chunks of earth, each of them collided into what looked like a transparent circular wall around the samurai.

"OH, A SHIELD SPELL! DOGURA KNOWS MAGIC! WHAT A TWIST!"

Tensei showed clear surprise at this- he knew that this new bit of information changed the game completely. He would have to start thinking about magic too; the samurai was not as straight forward a simple man with a sword. Immediately, Dogura began conjuring his next spell. He flung both hands outwards at the geomancer, and flames sprung from his hands down towards Tensei. Like a flamethrower, they never ended- behind the flames only existed more flames, Dogura suspended in the air from the force. Tensei quickly responded by pounding his staff on the earth. The ground in front of his trembled a shook before it split open. From the new crack in the arena, mud shot from the ground quelling the flames before they reached him.

"WOW! I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT I'M SEEING!! WHAT A BATTLE!"

Dogura's blood-red eyes locked with Tensei's in that moment. While their forces collided with each other, the two watched for any sudden movement in the other. Tensei's eyes narrowed at the samurai, who seemed to be plotting something. Suddenly, something happened that once again changed the name of the game. The mud stopped flowing. Tensei's eyes widened as he looked down at the earth, which had shut tight. The geomancer stared skyward in shock as the flames claimed him. By the time he'd realized that Dogura had used an earth spell to seal the earth, it was too late. The flames had surrounded the man, and Dogura landed finally. Victorious.

He let out a heavy sigh as he watched for Tensei's retaliation. He was sure the man hadn't been defeated so easily; not after all that talk. The crowd watched in anticipation as the flames finally ended their molten dance around the seemingly doomed geomancer. Suddenly it became clear that the battle wasn't over. The man had concealed himself in a shell of earth just before the attack. It looked as of the earth had risen up over both sides of him, and sealed up at the top. Dogura watched as the shell slowly started to unfold, both sides sinking back into the ground from whence they came. As the shell came apart, it revealed Tensei, who had apparently decided to take Dogura seriously at this point. Both of his arms were covered in a large stone casing with functional stone hands at the ends. The man stared at Dogura angrily.

"So you're experienced in both Earth and Fire magic... An unlikely combination, and it almost got the better of me." The man sounded winded, and was likely still recovering from such a quick flurry of spells; He was still old, after all.

"TENSEI IS ALIVE! THIS BATTLE ISN'T OVER FOLKS! WHAT AN AMAZING CLASH OF TALENTS!!"

"You're quite gifted, samurai... For being so young, you've been blessed with many talen-"

"Shut up." The samurai interrupted.

Tensei stopped talking.

"You talk as if my skill was handed to me," Dogura spoke behind gritted teeth. "As if I didn't work for this shit."

The geomancer stroked his beard carefully with his new oversized stone hands. "Sheikah are naturally gifted. Born prodigies, all of them. I can't stand their arrogance."

Dogura's face wrinkled up in anger, "Your arrogance is what I can't stand. The Sheikah weren't naturally gifted- they were trained since birth to defend the Royal Family. You obviously don't know anything about the Sheikah, so how about you think before you speak."

The elderly man took a fighting stance, Dogura preparing to fight again as well. "Very well, samurai. You're one of the few Sheikah left- There's a reason for that I'm sure."

The samurai had one final thought before attacking the man. If there are any Sheikah in the audience up there... Even if you're only half- this is for you. And if Alpha is watching like I think he is... I hope he's got enough faith in me to keep himself from killing Tensei before I do.

Tensei threw his arm out at Dogura, and suddenly his new stone arm extended towards Dogura, and fast. The samurai quickly jumped over the incoming attack, and ran along the stone arm towards the attacker. Tensei suddenly retracted his arm, causing Dogura to approach the man much faster than he intended. Tensei reached out and grabbed the samurai with his other stone arm. The samurai struggled under the weight of the stone as Tensei held him securely.

He was trapped.

With both of his arms bound to him, he couldn't cast any spells, nor could he lift his sword. Tensei smiled, as he knew the battle was his now. The crowd watched in horror as it came to their realization that the samurai was helpless. Dogura felt the stone around him tightening. It would crush his bones soon if he didn't do anything.

"Gotcha. You thought you were so strong too..." Tensei began. Suddenly, Dogura was happy that Tensei liked to talk- it gave him time to concentrate on his plan. He closed his eyes and prepared for a technique that he hadn't used in quite some time.

"You shouldn't feel too bad though. This is how many have fallen- some stronger than you." Tensei continued.

The samurai felt the burning in his belly, and concentrated on feeding it. C'mon... Keep talking... Keep talking...

"Any last words, Sheikah?"

Dogura opened his eyes as the burning suddenly traveled up his throat. Suddenly his mouth opened wide as flames shot into Tensei's face. The man instinctively let go, and screamed in pain as he fell backwards. He went to grab his face, but only rock hard stone scraped the burns he wished to sooth.

Dogura fell to the ground, and breathed in deeply. He looked over at Tensei, who was still recovering from the molten blast of fire to his face. Dogura closed his eyes for just a moment, Thank you Darkin... If it hadn't been for your training, I might be dead right now... The samurai moved his arms, and neck, making sure nothing was broken- it was quite a grip that Tensei had him in. The samurai looked up to see Tensei standing up. Part of his face was blistered from the blast, and he looked absolutely livid.

Dogura snickered at the man's embarrassment. "You talk too much." Dogura finally stated at the man's expense.

"FIRE BREATH?! DOGURA BREATHES FIRE!! I'VE SEEN IT ALL NOW, FOLKS!!"

"Such a technique..." Tensei wheezed. "I won't make that mistake again."
The samurai nodded, "I could say the same."

Katsuro watched eyes wide with wonder, terror, and amazement. "Shiro... Did you know Sensei was so strong?" Shiro folded his arms, "I've only known him for a couple of months, kid. It somehow doesn't surprise me though." There's a reason Ganon chose him, after all.

The crowd roared as the two stared each other down. The battle appeared to be far from over.

The fight was going well thus far, Alpha decided. Dogura was holding his own, and his opponent was not making victory a simple task . . . but of course, that carried its own risks. 'Tensei saw the samurai's demon yesterday. Things will only get more dangerous the longer the fight goes on . . . Shadowclaw won't show any mercy if it manages to get free . . .

And there was still the quandary of why Dogura would be ordered to kill the man . . . Ganon's plans were always a mystery, even to the Sheikah . . .

there is a reason for that.

Alpha scowled as his scar lit up, and swiftly tugged his hood around so as to cover up the light.

of course there is. you never do anything without reason. quite true. i wonder, though, if you will be able to divine the purpose. hmmmm?

The light vanished as quickly as it had come, leaving Alpha all the more worried. If Ganon wanted to torment him with the mystery, the beast would not have given him even a moment's rest. The fact that he was leaving so swiftly meant that there were other matters that he was more interested in at present, and the Mage had a strong feeling that it concerned the ongoing battle.

Sitting around and wondering about it would not help things, though; observation was about all that Alpha could do right now. So he would observe as closely as possible, and be ready to jump in should things take a turn for the worst . . .

He leaned out from the shadows of the very chamber where Dogura, Katsuro, and other fighters had waited between their bouts. With no more warriors occupying these chambers there was little reason for anyone to come here . . . and even should they, the Sheikah's Shadowmeld was wrapping him in darkness so none could spot him.

This battle was only just beginning . . .

"Your movements are swift... Far swifter than I had expected anyhow." Tensei commented. "But how long can you keep that up?"

The samurai cracked his neck, "As long as I have to."

"We'll see." Tensei responded as the earth behind him suddenly catapulted the geomancer towards Dogura. The samurai hadn't expected this, but seemed prepared nonetheless. He quickly sidestepped out of his opponent's linear path, which Tensei responded with extending the length of his stone arm. Dogura quickly ducked under the arm, and watched as Tensei landed, and skidded a couple of yards before stopping.

Underneath! The samurai realized as the ground under him shifted ever so slightly. He jumped high into the air just before the land beneath him rose up to swallow him. The earth clamped shut where the samurai had once been. Dogura looked up to see Tensei barreling through the air at him once more. He suddenly realized he wouldn't be able to dodge this assault. Tensei smiled confidently, knowing he had the samurai caught. With his new stone arms like meat-tenderizers, he prepared to swing with all of his might.

Dogura, thinking quickly, tossed both of his hands in front of him, "Sunburst!!" Tensei recognized the name of the spell, but couldn't react fast enough. An intensely bright light flashed and blinded the geomancer, and probably the portion of the crowd that was facing Dogura. Just as the vagabond had thought, Tensei attempted to cover his eyes- it was at this moment that the man had missed his opportunity to end the fight, and opened up Dogura's. Tensei covered his eyes as he continued on his unstoppable path towards Dogura.

Shiro stood up, "This is it!!" He called out, Katsuro watching closely as Dogura continued to react. The samurai arched his back, and caught onto Tensei as he passed. He quickly swiveled around the man, and buried his sword deep into the man's back, and directly through his heart from the looks of it. The stunned old man screamed out in pain as he began his descent. Dogura ostentatiously remained on Tensei's back as the man made contact with the ground, and skidded to a halt.

"AND IT LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE A CHAMPION, FOLKS!!"

The announcer cried out as the samurai stepped off of the man's carcass. "YEAH!!" Katsuro and Shiro cried out in unison. "SENSEI IS SO AMAZING! I HAD NO IDEA!!" Suro screamed above the crowd's roar. Shiro shook his head in similar amazement, "I knew he had to be strong- but such a display of skill is unbelievable. Did you see how quickly he reacted?"

Dogura looked up at the crowd, and now wondered how he was going to claim the man's soul with so many people watching. Suddenly however, the crowd fell silent. A deadly silent that bothered him.

"What in the name of the Goddesses..."

The announcer spoke, clearly taken aback by something. Dogura had a feeling deep within his gut that he already knew what it was. He turned around to see Tensei getting to his feet- the man was wounded and winded, but still standing. Dogura stared in amazement, "How... I pierced your heart!!" Tensei took a couple of steps back as he watched Dogura carefully. "I don't have a heart... I replaced it a very long time ago..." Dogura's eyes widened in shock as he looked at the wound.

"R- Replaced?!" He asked as he also put some distance between the two. "What on earth for? And with what?!"

Tensei's eyes carried an incandescent glow as he glared at the samurai. "Why? The human body is riddled with weak points... I've replaced them all. With what? It's none of your damn business..." Dogura now realized that he was dealing with a monster. He gritted his teeth and held his sword tightly.

Damn him... Did he wait until I relaxed? Thought the samurai as carefully planned his next attack.

"Tensei... Tensei the Stone fist isn't done yet folks. What an astonishing turn of events! This isn't over!"

"You're damn right it's not..." Tensei uttered as suddenly took a knee. He shoved both of his arms into the earth, and glared at the samurai. "I will end you now, samurai."

"I see you're not holding anything back," Dogura commented, "Perhaps I should also get serious."

Tensei bared his teeth angrily at the samurai, "There's that damn Sheikan arrogance again!!" Suddenly, two giant earthen hands erupted out of the ground. Dogura stared up at them in shock as they worked their fingers. Tensei smiled confidently, "SO WHAT NOW, SAMURAI? HUH?? WHERE'D THAT ARROGANCE GO?"

Each hand was built of several rocks, and each was about 25 feet tall. The samurai stared upward at them awestruck. Dogura looked back down at Tensei, "What did you do to attain this power?!" The geomancer's face twisted up with rage as he set his new weapons into motion.

[Music= Stone Fists]

One of the hands balled into a fist, and charged. It raced towards the samurai at top speed. The samurai barely ducked out of the way as the other hand immediately swooped towards him. The samurai again barely dodged the attack. Shit! They're fast! Dogura thought quickly as the hands circled back around for another go at him. Dogura could only think for a precious few seconds as they careened towards him. If I get hit just once with those, it'll kill me... I have to play my hand here... Dammit, I can't use Shadowclaw now! Not with everyone watching! What can I do?

Dogura dodged backwards just out of range as the first hand swooped by. The other hand came so close to him that he felt the stone brush his armor. How am I going to handle this!? Think Dogura, think!! Shiro and Katsuro were still standing as they watched in horror. "What in the hell?!" Suro cried out. "How can he get through that?! Those hands can both attack and defend at the same time!" Shiro shook his head, "Dogura's smart... I hope he can figure out a way to handle this before one of those hands gets a hold of him... One mistake and it's all over, here." Shiro watched very carefully as Dogura again and again dodged the hands. C'mon samurai... Pull through.

"What an ability! How can Dogura surmount such an onslaught?"

Every time the hands attacked him, they seemed to get closer and closer to knocking clear out of the arena. What the hell can I do?! THINK THINK!! Suddenly, the samurai felt something wrap around both of his ankles. His eyes widened as he looked down to see two miniature earthen hands wrapped around his feet. SHIT!! I CAN'T MOVE!! Dogura watched as the two massive hands interlocked, and rose high into the sky. The helpless samurai's eyes dilated the rock-hard hands came crashing down.

Wait... THAT'S IT!

SLAM!!!

The ground shook so tremendously that citizens of Ruto town were sure to feel it down below. Katsuro covered his mouth as he watched in horror. Shiro closed his eyes, his attitude suddenly defeatist. The crowd was silent as they waited for the dust to clear.

"I don't think anyone could have survived that, folks!"

When the dust settled, there was a completely different scene.

A pile of rocks where the hands had come crashing down.

Dogura standing behind Tensei.

Tensei with a look of shock on his face.

"You forgot a weak point." Dogura stated, as the man's head suddenly rolled off of his shoulders, and onto the ground.

"WHAT IN BLUE BLAZES?! I'M NOT EVEN SURE WHAT HAPPENED FOLKS!!"

Dogura looked down at Tensei. "Your biggest mistake was blocking out the only thing that keeps the darkness at bay- the sun."

Suddenly, it all made sense. Perfect sense in fact. When the hands had risen into the air to smash the samurai, they had cast a perfect shadow down on Dogura. Falling through the shadow, and rising out of Tensei's own shadow wouldn't have been very hard at all. With the geomancer completely immobilized in order to use his technique, he was powerless to stop Dogura's blade.

The samurai was smiling deviously- a little too deviously. Shadowclaw had been satisfied, and it felt good. The crowd roared louder than they had yet. It also felt good- it felt like they were rooting for him the whole time. Suro was jumped around screaming in delight at the result of the battle, while Shiro simply stood there clapping, a satisfied smile on his face. By the Goddesses, he did it... Without using Shadowclaw too. Surely his training with the Phantom Shadow Beast helped more here than he ever thought it would.

The samurai looked up at the crowd, and waved at his new fans. He had certainly made a name for himself here today.

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Above the arena, perched on a gargoyle, a lone woman looked down on the battle. She stared upon the samurai with complete satisfaction.

"Lord Ganon. Your new recruit is impressive."

Indeed.

"Are we ready to move forward with the plan? I'm all set."

You must have missed it.

"My cue? I never miss my cue."

Before the dust cloud settled. He removed Tensei's soul while he was still alive.

The woman suddenly looked surprised. She had indeed missed it.

He put the success of the mission before his own desire to kill Tensei. It was delicious... What do you think?

She was silent.

Hera?

"It is as you said..." She stated seductively as she licked her lips. "Delicious..."

The Sheikah stood still for a few seconds, the cape of Shadowmeld still wrapped firmly around his form. His eyes glared out at the celebrating masses, the aura of ignorance reeking from their pores. None of them understood what had just occurred, and even so he felt a bit of loathing towards them -- how dare they celebrate death so fervently.

His eyes returned to Dogura, flashing red for a single moment. If he had looked in the direction of his former waiting area, he might have seen it.

Then he turned and walked away into the shadows.

He had known Tensei was not weak. But perhaps he had not been so innocent, either.

After absorbing the glory of victory, Dogura turned and headed for the exit. When he entered the hypogeum, a couple of Rito men in suits awaited him. When the samurai appeared, one of them stepped forward from the rest.

"Well if it isn't our new champion! That was one fierce battle, kid. Where'd you learn to fight like that?" He asked as he extended his hand.

Dogura shook the man's hand, "Practice." And years of experience... He thought, bitter that people would naturally think that he hadn't worked for his skills. The man smiled, "I'm Cloud Wallace. You may already know me as the owner of this arena." Dogura remained silent. His silence sounded better than the fact that he'd never heard of the man. "In any case," Cloud continued. "You're the new champion! You're going to be huge! I'd like to personally see that your career gets off the ground properly with ad campaigns, and marketing. You'll be the face of- eh, where are you going?"

The man asked as Dogura simply walked past him. "I'm not interested."

The man stood there dumbfounded by the answer. He looked around at his business associates. He followed after the new champion quickly as he tried to find the right words to say. "Money! Women! Fame! You don't want any of that?" He asked frantically.

"All I wanted was a challenge. A challenge is what I received." He continued into the long winding hallway he'd become familiar with. Cloud Wallace refused to give up. "You've still earned a trophy, and prize money! At least let us put your name on the Wall of Fame!" The samurai was growing irritated.

"I said I don't wan-"

"SENSEI!" The cry came from the end of the hallway. Dogura rounded the corner to see Katsuro smiling widely, Shiro standing next to him. Behind them stood a massive crowd of people eager to meet with their new champion. Dogura looked at Katsuro, and then turned to Cloud. "Give the money to the boy." With that, he turned to the crowd, who had started chanting his name. He waved at them before falling into a shadow. He heard them cheer as he sank deep into the abyss. He was a bit sore from the battle, but he could feel his wounds healing as time went on. Ganon's power truly was fantastic.

Shiro. Meet me where we set up camp.
Roger that, champion.

With that, Dogura propelled himself calmly through the warmth of the shadows. I wonder how Tensei is doing down there with Lord Ganon... He wondered how the geomancer would fare he hurried towards camp.