Chapter 155:

The Tumbleweed gambit

En Passant Grandmaster

In China, Xiao Lin meditated atop a stone in the middle of a lake. She opened her eyes though upon noticing Okisato standing before her.

"Well this is a surprise. I thought you were holed up in London."

"I took a Sopwith."

"So you bested the reaper then."

"Right now he's stuck at the bottom of the sea."

Xiao Lin quickly burst into laughter. "And you think that will stop him? Oh your poor naive fool. He just needs to contact someone else and once they bring a sacrifice, he'll be back in London. Quite heartless to leave your weak clubmates behind just to come to me."

"I can fight you if I pay in money, yes?"

"Yes, but you will need to at least beat all my SPCMs before fighting me."

"Good, because I just finished doing that."

Xiao Lin began to scowl as Okisato flashed his WWCF card. "Damn those idiots. Very well. But if you fight me, first we do a bout of kung-fu-"

"Alright, now start."

"Hasty, aren't you!?" Xiao Lin shouted as she leaped into air and charged at Okisato.

Crunch!

Xiao Lin coughed up blood as Okisato delivered a powerful punch to her right rib cage, shattering it and sending her flying. This also caused her to land awkwardly and twist her ankle in the process.

"Looks like you were overhyped. So why don't you pull out that DESPER," Okisato glared as he hovered above Xiao Lin.

Xiao Lin shot Okisato a glare of pure malice as she pulled her DESPER out of her breasts and activated it. "When I win, I'll be fully healed from the injuries you gave me, and you'll be subjected to a long and painful death."

"And if I win, I'll be warped to London England after being given the spoils for beating you. And as for you, the ankle injury you received from me will be permanent and you'll also get a tattoo of my choosing inked on the back of your head. Not to mention, you'll be forbidden from activating your DESPER ever again as well, though you will be kept alive and not have to destroy your DESPER. Oh, and you'll also never be allowed to issue kung-fu style chess boxing challenges for your maestro exam."

"What!?"

"Naturally, your punishment will be irreversible."

Xiao Lin glared as the board appeared. "In that case, we'll do blitz time. I don't want to see you anymore," she snarled as she regained her composure.

Okisato nodded and opened the game by moving his pawn to e4 while Xiao Lin moved her pawn to e5. Okisato followed up by moving his pawn to f4, which Xiao Lin graciously took with her e-pawn.

"So you accepted the King's gambit. In that case, you're going on a trip to the wild west," Okisato maniacally grinned as he slammed his king down on f2.

The move elicited a laugh from Xiao Lin. "The King's Gambit Accepted: Tumbleweed variation!? What a joke. You had a solid opening, but now it's all gone."

"I beat Michiko with King David's opening."

"But I'm not Michiko, I'm a bona fide maestro. Check," Xiao Lin sneered as she moved her queen to h4.

"And I humiliate trash like you for breakfast," Okisato glared as he moved his king to e2.

"ME trash!? Bullshit," Xiao Lin scoffed as she moved her queen to e7.

"But you did decide to sell out Maestro Himitsu for your own selfish whims," Okisato countered as he moved his knight to f3.

"Uh, Michiko brainwashed me. I mean, you think I'd choose to sport this hideous hairless look for the rest of my days?" Xiao Lin fake-cried as she captured the pawn at e4 with her queen.

"You seem to be enjoying it considering you oil it daily," Okisato scoffed as he moved his king to f2.

"How'd you- ...!? ...I see how you work. Your the observant type. No wonder the league wants you gone so badly," Xiao Lin sneered as she moved her knight to f6.

Okisato went on the attack by moving his knight to c3, forcing Xiao Lin to move her queen to e6. He then moved his pawn to d4, prompting Xiao Lin to move her bishop to d6. But Okisato hadn't yet given up on capturing the queen and moved his knight to g5. Xiao Lin sighed and simply moved her queen to f5, forcing Okisato to protect his knight by moving his pawn to h4.

"I get boys like chasing girls, but you should know that if you try to chase after a dangerous woman like me, you get stung," Xiao Lin sneered as she moved her knight to g4.

"Uh, why would I want to flirt with a hag like you?" Okisato scoffed as he moved his king to g1.

"Boy, I am but 34 years young. My baldness also makes me look younger too, as the oil I've been applying to my head and face glows it up and makes it look more youthful than usual. Or perhaps were you too stupid to realize I was alluding to the lovely lady on the board rather than the one playing you?" Xiao Lin sneered as she moved her knight to e3.

"Well, I guess I was hoping you'd snap and mess up," Okisato shrugged as he captured the knight at e3 with his bishop.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I won't be losing my composure today. You did rattle me with that rib shattering punch, but now I've calmed down due to you being overly arrogant and forcing a DESPER match. Now I can heal up, and eliminate you at once. Why wouldn't I compose my mind for such a task?" Xiao Lin sneered as she captured the bishop at e3 with her f-pawn.

"We'll see about that," Okisato thought as he moved his rook to h3.

Xiao Lin immediately castled on the king's side, prompting Okisato to renew his attack on the queen and move his bishop to d3. However, Xiao Lin simply moved her queen to f2, forcing Okisato to move his king to h1. But then, Xiao Lin made a massive blunder and moved her rook to e8. Okisato's face was a lit with a malicious grin as he slid his queen to h5, forcing Xiao Lin to move her pawn to h6. But then, he moved his rook to f3, completely trapping Xiao Lin's queen. It was at that moment that Xiao Lin lost her composure and her face began to contort in rage.

"You... YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" Xiao Lin shouted as she captured the rook at f3 with her queen.

"Huh? Why ya shouting so loud? Thought you said you wouldn't lose your composure," Okisato taunted as he captured the queen at f3 with his g-pawn.

Now as long as Okisato didn't mess up, mate was inevitable. The only question was how many moves it would take.

"No, no, NO! I can't lose to a Tumbleweed gambit of all things! That would be humiliation! He needs to mess up!" Xiao Lin frantically thought as she moved her rook to f8.

"For someone that wants me to mess up so badly, you're sure doing a good job of messing up yourself," Okisato taunted as he moved his knight to d5.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP!?" Xiao Lin shouted as she slammed her knight down on a6.

"Oops, you messed up again. Want a check?" Okisato taunted as he moved his knight to f6.

"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP YOU PIECE OF SHIT! HOW DARE YOU PLAY A TUMBLEWEED GAMBIT!" Xiao Lin shouted as she captured the knight at f6 with her g-pawn.

"Hey, you're the one that ultimately blundered away the game in under 25 moves. Talk about low quality. No wonder you're the weakest maestro of them all," Okisato taunted as he captured the pawn at h6 with his queen.

That line sent newfound rage coursing through Xiao Lin's body. "Me... Weak!? I'M THE STRONGEST WOMAN IN MIND AND BODY! NONE CAN MATCH MY PHYSICAL NOR INTELLECTUAL MIGHT!"

"You, the strongest woman in mind and body? Bullshit. First off, Maestro Himitsu is far-"

"DON'T YOU DARE MENTION THAT BITCH! SHE CHEATED ME! I'M THE STRONGEST!" Xiao Lin shouted as she slammed her rook down on d8.

"Alright, let's say you ARE the strongest. What will that make you once you lose to my Tumbleweed gambit?" Okisato snickered as he moved his bishop to h7.

Xiao Lin trembled as she stared at the board. There was only one move she could make, and it would allow for a humiliating 23-move checkmate. Not only that, the DESPER would then ensure she'd never be able to do kung-fu properly ever again, and be subjected to an additional humiliating makeover. She didn't want to move the piece, but because there was only one legal move she could make, she had no choice but to move her king to h8.

"I'll make sure the game log for this game is inked on the back of your head. Checkmate, ba-ka," Okisato taunted as he captured the pawn at f7 with his knight, winning the game.

The full game:

White: Okisato Tanabe (2630) Black: Maestro Xiao Lin (3020)

1. e4 e5

2. f4 exf4

3. Kf2 Qh4+

4. Ke2 Qe7

5. Nf3 Qxe4+

6. Kf2 Nf6

7. Nc3 Qe6

8. d4 Bd6

9. Ng5 Qf5

10. h4 Ng4+