Chapter 64:

A rodeo of rooks

En Passant Grandmaster

As soon as the match began, Rodeo let out a battle cry and unleashed a mighty punch, sending Gustavs flying through the air. However, Gustavs shockingly bounced off the invisible wall and landed perfectly before Rodeo.

"So your proxies can't be knocked out either, only killed in the ring," Okisato glared as Rodeo and Gustavs traded blows.

"Whoops, guess I forgot to mention that. Oh, and that lug won't be notching a kill off my boy now that I know that’s possible. Especially not against an iron blob like Gustavs. Damn, I might've been in trouble if that punch hit me directly. Sucks you didn't save him for me. Then again, I doubt he'd even be able to land a solid hit on me," Haruki sneered.

As the bell rang, Okisato began to scowl as the chessboard appeared. "This is honestly risky territory. Hope-chess is the worst kind of chess to play. Our only hope is that the piece of shit plays like he normally does, and most importantly, Gorou-san manages to play properly and win. I honestly fear the piece of shit will change up his playstyle, which could easily throw off a rookie like Gorou-san, and give him the victory," he thought.

Rodeo took a deep breath as he sat down and opened by moving his pawn to e4. Haruki gazed over at the board and smirked as he had Gustavs move his pawn to c5.

"Just like we practiced,” Rodeo thought as he moved his knight to c3 and thought back to the night prior.

...

"Haruki Kamoshida, whom I'll be referring to as "the piece of shit" is likely going to force us into a team chess boxing match," Okisato stated.

"Chessboxing?" Mimoko gasped.

"Yeah, it's his specialty. All those big guys that travel around with him are likely his mindless brutes that obey his beck and call."

"Then we simply just outlast them in the ring and best them at chess," Numakawa huffed.

"I doubt it would be that easy. The piece of shit has likely drilled in all the basics so they'll mimic his playstyle. In other words, they'll likely be his proxies, so we'll go in assuming everyone's playing him directly. Luckily, this means we can examine all his match data to form a counter strategy against him.”

...

Rodeo held his breath as Gustavs moved his knight to c6. "This was a possible move," he thought as he moved his bishop to b5.

Gustavs slid his pawn to g6 as Rodeo began racking his brain before moving his knight to f3. Gustavs then moved his bishop to g7, prompting Rodeo to frantically castle on the king's side.

"Castlelin’ done," Rodeo trembled as Gustavs moved his pawn to a6.

"Wow, betcha feel real safe with that castle," Haruki sneered as Rodeo captured the knight at c6 with his bishop and said nothing as Gustavs captured said bishop with his d-pawn.

Rodeo then nervously advanced his pawn to d3 as Gustavs moved his bishop to g4.

"Remember, don't let a pin frighten you. Panicking is exactly what your opponent wants you to do," Mimoko's voice echoed in Rodeo's head.

"...Yeah, d- Don't panic," Rodeo mumbled as he moved his bishop to e3.

"Beh!" Haruki taunted as Gustavs moved his bishop to d4.

"Don't panic," Rodeo nervously mumbled as he moved his pawn to h3.

"You blundered!" Haruki sneered as Gustavs captured the knight at f3 with his bishop.

"Check all around... Everything's good," Rodeo thought as he captured the bishop at f3 with his queen.

"Big lug got lucky. Bet he practiced, well that'll make him failing even better," Haruki shrugged as Gustavs moved his pawn to b5.

Unsure of what to do, Rodeo opted to move his pawn to e5 as Gustavs moved his queen to c7.

"Sometimes leaving a pawn unguarded is the better choice. Try to see if there's a move you can take advantage of," Mimoko's voice echoed in Rodeo's head.

"...Inoue," Rodeo tearfully mumbled as he briefly glanced over at Mimoko before moving his f-rook to e1.

"Not gonna protect with the bishop!? BA-KA!" Haruki taunted as Gustavs moved his pawn to e6.

Rodeo immediately focused and intently moved his knight to e4, only for Haruki to burst into mocking laughter as Gustavs captured the pawn at b2 with his bishop.

"Ah, what's da big dumb lug gonna do now," Haruki mockingly sneered as Rodeo took a deep breath and captured the pawn at c5 with his bishop. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA! Bye bye rook!" Haruki sneered as Gustavs captured the rook at a1 with his bishop.

Rodeo went quiet as a conversation he had the night before played in his mind.

...

"Why are you frownin? I'm protectin’ my rook," Rodeo scowled as he practiced with Mimoko.

"Gorou-kun, sometimes it's best to let them have the rook. Sacrificing the rook in scenarios like this will lead to your victory. See, mate in 5. You're from a farm right? Think of rooks as big juicy apples. They can be tempting to pick, but if you climb to high..."

"Ya get stuck in the tree or fall off the ladder."

"Exactly."

...

"Check," Rodeo mumbled as he moved his knight to d6.

"PFT! Look at the big lug! He thinks he checkmated me! Newsflash, my king can go anywhere and bang anyone, just like me," Haruki sneered as Gustavs moved his king to d7.

"...No, I'm on the right path. Can't fail now," Rodeo mumbled as he captured the pawn at f7 with his queen.

Haruki saw no threat and nonchalantly swiped the air with his hand as Gustavs moved his knight to e7.

"Where to move... Where to move... Inoue... I hope this is right," Rodeo mumbled as he moved his knight to e4.

"Time sure is takin’ its time, well not like it needs to speed up," Haruki thought as Gustavs moved his king to c8.

Rodeo continued his attack by capturing the pawn at e6 with his queen, forcing Gustavs' king to b8. He then moved his bishop to d6, but Haruki immediately laid a trap and captured the pawn at e5 with his bishop

"Bet he'll take the queen like a dumbass," Haruki thought.

"Don't mess up, don't mess up. Remember the scenarios, remember the scenarios!" Rodeo trembled as his hand shook frantically while he captured the bishop at e5 with his queen.

"Tch! Bastard saw through it. Now my queen's f*****," Haruki snarled as Gustavs moved his rook to d8.

Rodeo took a deep breath and gazed at the board. "My queen's safe, no mate threat, take the queen," he mumbled as he captured the queen at c7 with his bishop.

Haruki's smug expression quickly contorted in anger as he realized what that move meant. "NO! I WON'T LOSE TO THIS IDIOT!" he shouted as Gustavs moved his king to c8.

Rodeo nervously captured the rook at d8 with his bishop as Gustavs moved his rook to a7. He then nervously moved his bishop to b6, while Gustaf moved his rook to b7.

"A minute left!? Well the dumb lug will mess up. Heh, maybe he'll even nosedive into the board like Mimoko-tan," Haruki sneered as Rodeo stared at the board.

"Queen goes... Bishop... Knight... KNIGHT!" he shouted as he moved his knight to d6.

Haruki nearly burst a vein as he had Gustaf move his king to b8, before descending into salty rage after Rodeo moved his queen to h8.

"JUST KIDDING! YOU LOSE!" Haruki bluffed as Gustaf moved his knight to c8.

"The knight... The knight's got my back... Checkmate," Rodeo trembled as he captured the knight at c8 with his queen, winning the game.

Tears poured out of Rodeos eyes as his victory was affirmed. He had proved to himself and the others that he wasn’t an idiot.

"So we get to the main event. Hold your tears in, lug. You'll be cryin’ plenty when I beat your hated nemesis to a pulp," Haruki scowled as Gustavs was imprisoned in a bubble.

"So it's down to you and me," Okisato glared as he took off his shirt and entered the ring.

"Oi... You're more ripped than I thought, but still nothing compared to me. You may have a higher rating in chess, but I can worsen your playing style with each consecutive punch to the head."

The bell for the final match rang and Haruki gleefully charged at Okisato.

SMASH!

Everyone stared in shock as Haruki's jaw shattered to bits as he went hurdling into a corner. Before he could slump down, however, Okisato appeared before him and slugged him in the gut, breaking his ribs and keeping him upright.

"You think I'll let you escape? As you said at the start, as long as no kicks or headbutts are used, any punch above the waist is valid, and it's perfectly fine to hit your opponent in a way that prevents them from going down. Now let's continue," Okisato glared.

The full game:

White: Rodeo Gorou (250) Black: Gustavs Kalniņš (n/a) (controlled by Haruki Kamoshida (2100))

1. e4 c5

2. Nc3 Nc6

3. Bb5 g6

4. Nf3 Bg7

5. O-O a6

6. Bxc6 dxc6

7. d3 Bg4

8. Be3 Bd4

9. h3 Bxf3

10. Qxf3 b5