Alderamin on the Sky

[shinta|hikari]

Changing direction like that requires a slanted contact point (i.e. parrying). If the contact is perpendicular (like in this case), the force pushes the sword the opposite direction, causing it to bounce back, not miraculously slide upward. Moreover, she wasn't just swinging the sword horizontally. Her entire body was swinging horizontally. Wrist power is irrelevant when considering the momentum involved.

Why does this matter compared to all the unscientific (but cool) shit the chick did in the fight? Because Yatori actually tried to beat the style by trying to stop the girl's momentum by stabbing her sword in the ground. That means it was a key point in the fight. Yet Yatori's very scientific countermeasure was beaten by hocus pocus.

Shounen fight moments can be divided into two categories. One is the flash, and the other is the turning point. Flash is just mainly cool stuff we mindlessly watch without considering the consequences because there's usually none related to the outcome. The turning points, however, need to make sense to make a fight result convincing. This was one of them.

How do they fix it? Have the girl kick off the ground the moment (or right before) she makes contact with Yatori's sword. That changes her direction at the time of impact, allowing her to suddenly divert her force upward with the help of Yatori's sword. Almost impossible because of timing? Yes. Unscientific (I'm using this word intentionally btw), no.

As for the bullet dodge, sure, Yatori moved before the bullet was shot. But that in itself requires her to predict that there was a gun about to shoot from the girl's back. Predicting that with the info she had is very hard to believe, no matter how careful she is. Even the enemy was shocked as to how she made that guess.

How to fix this? Add one more clue, like Yatori getting a glimpse of the straps on the chick's body during the fight. This is still amazing for Yatori because taking note of such a small thing in the middle of a duel requires superb observational skills. Yet, it tips her off that there's something attached to the chick's body. Add that to the other clues, and the final dodge makes more sense.

Here's the funny bit. Since you can't dodge bullets, there was no point in baiting Yatori. The chick could've just shot her from the start of the fight. Just slash, turn around, and shoot. The end. So... why didn't she? It's not like Yatori was jumping all over the place. The chick had dozens of moments she could've shot Yatori dead. Her back was turned to Yatori so many times in that fight. That hidden gun was that cheap.

The only reason I could think of is that the code word for shooting the gun is "You fell for it." I'm guessing the spirit can't see anything and needs the chick to tell her when to shoot. This sort of requires Yatori to be in a predictable and constant position before firing.

In that case, why the hell would you use that sentence as the code word..? That's like telling the enemy, "I'm about to use my super secret Noble Phantasm! Prepare yourself!"