Dead or Alive: Bloodlines Side Story A Dead or Alive Fanfiction By The Headcrook
Legal BS Disclaimer: All characters belong to Tecmo. I got this idea and I decided to type it. Turns out to be the first half of a side story within the Bloodlines storyline. This takes place several weeks after Kasumi defeated Ayane.
Part One: Reflections
[Hayabusa Curio and Antiques/Ryu and Kasumi's Home, three weeks after Kasumi's duel with Ayane...
Ryu Hayabusa was glad that he didn't have to open the shop on Sundays. It was also the perfect excuse to look after his battered and bruised girlfriend.
Three weeks had passed since the battle at the Sacred Wilderness Training Grounds. Kasumi had forced Hayate into a showdown for her freedom. And Hayate had played right into her trap.
Resurfacing in Japan after a seven-month absence, Kasumi had declared war on her brother, her half-sister and the Hajinmon sect. Ayane had volunteered to fight in Hayate's place, as Kasumi had predicted, since the last time Kasumi encountered her brother, she had beaten him to a bloody pulp.
Ayane, however, had no compunctions in taking the opportunity to finally take down her most hated rival. However, it was Kasumi who came out the winner of the match, Ayane falling to the same technique that Raidou used on Hayate √ the Sky Torn Blast.
With Ayane's defeat, Hayate had kept his end of the bargain. The scroll that was currently in Ryu's hands had made it official. Ryu had came across it while on his morning jog. Upon inspecting it, he saw that it had the insignia of the Mugen Tenshin clan, meaning it was for Kasumi.
It was still early and Kasumi would still be asleep at this hour. Rather than opening the door and awakening his sleeping companion, Ryu opted to use his teleportation ninpo to enter the second floor in a swirl of green leaves.
Upon entering the bedroom, he found Kasumi where he left her, in the bed, fast asleep. She was on her side, dressed in one of his old dress shirts she used as a nightgown. The bruises on her face were gone, but the bandages on her hands were present. Her short ginger hair, which was slightly longer than Ayane's, framed her face. Her face was that of peace.
Ryu placed the scroll on the dresser and stripped down to his underwear. Slipping on a pair of pajama pants, he got in the bed beside Kasumi. She stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. Ever since moving in with him, Kasumi had been the hard sleeper. Unless it was her former clan hunting her down or a typhoon, she wouldn't have been disturbed.
Pulling the blanket over Kasumi and himself, the superninja wrapped one arm around Kasumi's torso, pulling her into a protective embrace, her back resting up against his chest. He leaned in close and inhaled, breathing in her scent. Her hair faintly smelled of strawberries, given that she used scented shampoo from the night before.
It was shortly before the duel with Ayane that they had taken their relationship to the next level.
[Flashback
It was raining. Lightning flashed, followed by the sound of thunder. Ryu was already in the bed, watching the rain fall from the window, which was partially concealed by the curtains. Kasumi entered the room. Dressed in only a bathrobe, she looked at Ryu, who continued to watch the rain. She remembered when she was younger that whenever a thunderstorm came, she ended up sleeping in the spare futon in her brother's room.
"Still scared of lightning?" Ryu asked.
"I grew out of it," Kasumi replied. "Ayane would taunt me for being scared of lightning."
"You know that there are different types of lightning," Ryu explained.
That's when he noticed Kasumi's robe at a heap around her ankles. She was wearing only a pair of white panties.
"Show me," Kasumi replied softly.
They both ended up making love in to the sounds of the thunderstorm, the lightning all but forgotten. Ryu had some experience in being intimate, but Kasumi didn't. She was a virgin and Ryu was her first. Even with the impending duel with Ayane, Kasumi managed to forget about, if only for a little while.
It was their moment.
[End Flashback
Ryu smiled at the memory. He had underestimated Kasumi yet again. The last thing he was expecting her to do was to initiate their sex life. Neither person had no regrets about that decision, seeing as how their love life had gotten much better.
Placing a small kiss to the back of Kasumi's head, Ryu settled down in the bed and was soon asleep.
Kasumi stirred, then woke up. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was a little over 10 in the morning. The former nukenin gently untangled herself from Ryu's grip and sat up in the bed. Stretching and yawning, she hopped out of the bed and did some stretches and practice kicks, ending with one in a vertical split.
Then she looked at the dresser and noticed the scroll. Recognizing it as one from her former clan, she picked it up, broke the wax seal and opened it. It was a declaration, hand written by her brother.
'By order of Hayate, the 18th leader of the Mugen Tenshin Clan, the nukenin known as Kasumi will no longer be marked for death and is free of the death sentence, as per to the conditions of your victory. However, she is exiled from the village and declared ronin, effective immediately.'
"Are you okay, 'Sumi?" Ryu asked from the bed, now fully awake. He had seen her reading the scroll.
Kasumi turned from the scroll and looked at Ryu. "They can kill me, so they decide to disown me and declare me a ronin," she said with a rue smile on her face.
Despite Kasumi's new confidence in herself and her martial arts skills, Ryu was worried about her relationship with Hayate and Ayane. The events these past couple of weeks have clearly shown her resentment towards her brother and half-sister.
But Ryu couldn't blame her. After all, she had forsaken her clan to avenge Hayate and Genra issued the death sentence in retaliation. Kasumi had spent the following year being hounded and pursued all over Japan until she disappeared following the Tritower Incident.
But Kasumi knew the rules and regulations of her clan far better than Hayate. The ronin status has a span of one year, following that, Kasumi will be allowed back into the clan. But given the past year on the run and the fact that Hayate chose the clan over blood, Kasumi wasn't sure that she wanted to return. If anything, she was preparing to renounce her name and heritage and start over with a new name.
Instead, she decided to take the fight to her former clan and won her freedom. She had some regrets over what she had did to Hayate, but those thoughts were squashed immediately.
Following the battle between her and Ayane, Kasumi had spent most of her time in traction, her body sore from the grueling and dramatic battle. It was only a week ago that she began walking around. Or course, Ryu wanted her to make a complete recovery before she could leave the apartment. Kasumi didn't mind, since she liked being pampered by her superninja of a boyfriend.
Without another word, Kasumi tore the paper into pieces and tossed it into the wastebasket. Looking at the crest and reading the scroll of her former clan brought back memories, both good and bad. However, the bad memories had far outweighed the good. Ryu could have swore that the temperature had dropped several degrees.
The same thing happened earlier when he was out jogging earlier, he ran into Ayane. However, it was like as if she knew his jogging course and was waiting for him.
[Flashback
Ryu's jogging route had taken him through one of the city's parks. As he rounded the trail, he saw Ayane, dressed in casual clothes: a red-and-white haltertop and blue-and-red jogging pants, lounging on a bench. A bandage was on her left arm and several fading bruises were on her face.
Ayane disliked the fact that Ryu was dating her half-sister, but she still respected him a great deal. He helped train her and she helped in in kind during the Vigoor Fiasco.
Ryu sat down on the bench beside her. "Morning, Ayane," he greeted.
Ayane responded with a nod. "Ryu." She was right to the point. "Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why did you protect Kasumi?" the Hajinmon boss asked. "You of all people know she is a runaway."
Ryu looked Ayane in the eye. "Your half-brother asked me to." Off Ayane's shocked expression, Ryu continued, "Hayate asked me to protect her. This was before Raidou returned to the village and stole the Sky Torn Blast. Then again, Kasumi was able to elude the Hajinmon for so long without my help. Then she came to me after she had disappeared."
"Hayate asked you to protect her?" Ayane repeated. "Why didn't he tell me?"
"He knew you'd be upset. Why you despise Kasumi so much?"
Ayane leaned back in her seat. "I'm always in her shadow. Even in dishonor she is better than me. She always had everything. I had to work my way to where I am now. It's just not fair. My father is my uncle, I am nothing more than a poisoned child."
"You shouldn't be concerned over what people say about you," Ryu replied with genuine concern. "You are one of the finest ninjas the Hajinmon has to offer."
Ayane smiled at the compliment, but sneered. She knew that Ryu was right. "But it wasn't enough to defeat Kasumi," Ayane replied. "Then again, I wasn't expecting her to use the Sky Torn Blast on me either. How did she learn it?"
"Apparently, she used the Skill Copy technique that Raidou used and learned it from her brother," Ryu replied. He then took on a serious tone. "I know you admire and respect Hayate, Ayane. But put yourself in Kasumi's place. Would you have done anything when Raidou crippled him? Kasumi knew the risks, but she wasn't thinking about the clan. She abandoned the clan out of love for her brother, to avenge him."
Ayane knew that what Ryu had said was true. She suspected that Genra had an ulterior motive when placing the death sentence on Kasumi. She reached into her pocket and handed a small scroll over to the elder ninja. "Give this to Kasumi. It's from her brother."
She stood up and before walking away, she turned back to Ryu. "I would have done the same thing." After a moment, Ayane continued, "I would have went after Raidou myself. But I was too clouded with hate and my blind loyalty to Genra." A sardonic smile spread across her lips. "But I am impressed with Kasumi finally growing a spine and taking the fight to all of us. Tell her that."
Ryu nodded. "I understand." He got up and resumed his morning jog as Ayane walked away. What Ryu didn't know was that during the weeks that Ayane was in traction herself, she deduced that Kasumi would force them into a fight for her freedom. Since Hayate wouldn't be able to fight his sister, Ayane knew that she would face Kasumi.
What she didn't expect was to be laid out with the clan's most powerful technique.
[End Flashback
"So who gave you the scroll?" Kasumi asked as she brushed out her hair. She was fresh from her shower and had changed into a blue haltertop and a pair of panties.
Wearing a towel around his waist, Ryu responded, "Your half-sister." At that sentence, Kasumi turned around, just as Ryu was now wearing a pair of underwear and was currently slipping on a pair of pants. "She was a bit upset over why I was protecting you, but she kind of understands."
"'Kind of?'" Kasumi repeated.
"She told me that she would have done the same thing you did concerning Hayate," Ryu replied. "She's also impressed that you stood up for yourself."
Kasumi said nothing else, deciding to resume brushing her hair. As she did so, a small smile crept onto her face.
Later on that night, Ryu and Kasumi had went out to dinner. One of the local restaurants near her university had made an excellent Strawberry Millefeuile, her favorite dessert. Given what Kasumi had on, which was her black leather vest, denim pants and boots, she was the object of desire and envy for those present.
After dinner, they went out to the movies, where they took in several classic Sonny Chiba films. Ryu never took Kasumi to be a classic film fan. Once the film was over, they visited a teahouse, where Kokoro made her debut, becoming a full geisha. Then they decided to head home. It was nighttime, past midnight as they strolled through the deserted park, their personal shortcut. Of course, the last time a group of men tried to mug them, they ended up in the hospital with numerous broken bones.
The summer night was clear, with a full moon in the sky.
It was at that moment that the perfect night soon went downhill.
Their senses kicked into overdrive as both the former nukenin and the superninja ducked behind a tree, just as a volley of shuriken and kunai rained down upon them.
"I thought Hayate lifted the death sentence!" Kasumi shouted.
"He did!" Ryu responded. He then caught a glimpse at their attackers. "Those aren't Hajinmon ninja! They're from the Black Spider clan!"
The Black Spider Ninja Clan were the natural enemies of the Mugen Tenshin and Hayabusa Clans. They were also partially responsible for destroying the Hayabusa village. And apparently, Ryu thought that they were destroyed by his hand.
Now, they were out for blood.
Two ninja circled the tree. One was armed with a ninjaken while the other had claws on his hands. The claw man attacked Kasum, who backflipped out of harms' way while Ryu hopped back to avoid the overhead swing. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough, since the ninja had slashed his ponytail.
The two ninjas forced Ryu and Kasumi out into the open, where they were surrounded by a dozen ninjas, the Black Spider elite assassin squad.
Their leader, who was holding a spear, leered at Kasumi. "Look what we have here, boys. It's the little princess runaway bitch herself," he sneered. "We're gonna have some fun with her before sending her body back to her brother."
"You touch Kasumi," Ryu threatened, "And I'll kill you myself."
"Get them!" the leader shouted.
Even though the Black Spider clan had the numbers advantage, they lacked experience. Working together as a team, Ryu and Kasumi fended off their attackers as the Black Spider boss watched. Even without their weapons, Ryu Hayabusa and Kasumi were still a formidable pair.
Ryu punted one ninja into the air, then teleported after him, grabbed him and spun him to the ground head-first in the form of his infamous Izuna Drop. Kasumi has dodged a ninja who was holding another spear. When the ninja thrusted forward, Kasumi hopped onto the spear, ran across its length and slammed her foot into the ninja's face. Once, twice, three times, the third time she somersaulted off and landed beside Ryu.
They had taken down six of the men, but the other six were closing in on them. One of them, armed with a naginata, took a swing at Kasumi. Ryu, not thinking of his own safety, stepped in to take the blow.
However, before the ninja could complete the swing, he was consumed by flames, his charred skeleton falling to the ground.
Ryu looked at their savior. It was a woman. She was dressed in a school uniform, complete with blazer and skirt (ala Gogo from Kill Bill). In one hand, she was holding a hunting bow. A satchel full of specially designed arrows was slung across her back. A mask covered her face.
With rapid fire quickness, she pulled out two more and leapt into the air as two ninjas attacked her, flipping in mid air and shot two more ninjas, the flame arrows doing their job of eliminating the attackers. Landing on her feet, she pulled out two swords and tossed them to Ryu and Kasumi.
Now armed, Ryu and Kasumi gained a second wind and faced their attackers. From the corner of his eye, Ryu watched the newcomer fight with a tanto, similar to what Kasumi once carried, since her bow was knocked from her hand. 'What the...that's my family's style! How does she know Hayabusa Ninjitsu?'
He received his answer once an attacking ninja sliced the woman's mask in two. As the two halves of the mask fell to the ground, the woman jammed the bladed end of the tanto into the ninja's throat, killing him.
Then Ryu got a good look at the woman's face when she turned around.
Someone he thought was dead. The hair was longer, but there was no mistaking her identity.
Ryu nearly facefaulted. "Ku...Kureha?!"
At that moment, the leader charged, attempting to spear Ryu from behind. Quickly getting over his shock, Ryu flipped over the leader and brought his sword down onto his neck, decapitating the leader. Kureha, in the meantime, had retrieved her bow and was assisting Kasumi in finishing off the remaining ninja.
Once the danger had passed, Kureha turned to Ryu. "Been a long time, cousin."
"You know her?" Kasumi asked.
"We'll catch up on the reunion later," Kureha said. "We got to get out of here before the police show up."