This is the first fanfic I posted here, featuring one of my favorite videogame Dead Or Alive, and my favorite pairing of the game, Ryu Hayabusa and Kasumi.

As for the title, "Anamnesis", it's named after a song by Annabel, an ending song for an anime series called Another. I suggest you try listen to that song~

Disclaimer: I own nothing, all credits to Tecmo/Koei and Team Ninja.

Well, please enjoy~ ^^

anamnesis

Chapter 1: It's Time

Cool green eyes, calm and stoic face, tall and strong body. He was one perfect ninja, he made no sound as he watched her unaccompanied figure from few meters behind. He was a ninja, yet he resembled a dragon, which was why he was known as the Dragon Ninja. Not just a dragon, but also a peregrine falcon. Ryu Hayabusa, his name.

He wasn't recognizable, but she did recognize him. She, too, was a very professional ninja indeed.

Or perhaps, hiding his own existence wasn't his intention in the first place.

"Hayabusa-san? Why are you here?" She asked.

Like how he usually was, he didn't answer. Still staring at her with no special expression in his face.

Just then, anxiety hit her. Maybe... he was going to kill her? Like, why not? Why won't he be helping his best friend- her brother? She broke the shinobi code, she really did and she noticed that. She 'abandoned' her clan... for a reason, but all that mattered was that she has broken the shinobi code and she had to die. The super ninja Ryu Hayabusa has got no reason to refuse helping the Mugen Tenshin clan to assassinate Kasumi after what she did.

And, who wouldn't fear the possibilities of getting killed by the well-known super ninja? You may say he was close to the definition of sadistic, merciless, and inhuman.

"I know what I must do," he finally said, as if he could read her mind. "I've promised Hayate and I will keep it unconditionally."

Bingo. He was going to kill her, wasn't he?

"Hayabusa-san... Please," her voice was very soft, almost a whisper. "You can kill me... But please let me avenge my brother before you do."

"That's not what I meant." He said with stern voice. "I never said that I came here to kill you."

She turned to face him. He still kept the same expressionless face, she really couldn't read him.

"Instead, I'm taking the opposite duty."

"Umm... What do you mean?"

"I'm here to protect you."

"What?" She couldn't believe what she just heard. But now that she thought of it, Ryu Hayabusa never lied, or at least never to her. And he showed no sign of lies on those sentences.

"I'm protecting you." He repeated.

"B-But why..."

"I promised to Hayate. I cannot let you die." He said with a-matter-of-fact tone.

My brother... "I... broke the shinobi code..."

"I know." Right then, his voice somehow showed... sympathy? Or maybe it was just her. "But from what I remember, I promised to him that I will protect you no matter what. "

"But, what if... What if Mugen Tenshin ninjas come after your head too? You will become an enemy to them, to my brother..."

"Then so be it." He walked past her, "enough with the talking, let's go."

"Hayabusa-san!" She called out. "You really don't have to..."

He slightly tilted his face. "Raidou hurt my best friend. How could I pretend as if that's none of my business? We both know what it feels like seeing him in such state."

He was right. He was just better than her at keeping his head cold, but inside, he was burning out. He hated how Raidou harmed Hayate and other ninjas for such selfish reason.

"I will clear your way to Raidou," he said calmly. "Then, you finish him for Hayate. Remembering how beaten up Hayate was, Raidou must be one troublesome enemy, but I'm with you."

"Hayabusa-san..." The way he said those few last words might lead to romantic way, but it wasn't the right time to think about such lovey-dovey thingy.

As soon when they arrived at the tournament, they were greeted by a kick. Ryu stood in front of Kasumi and blocked the kick as if it was an easy thing to do. "Well, I guess we're a little late." Ryu said with calm voice.

Kasumi peeked from behind Ryu's tall figure. It was a Chinese guy who aimed a kick to her face. Not far behind that aggressive Chinese guy was another Chinese, but a girl.

"Hey, Jann Lee! You almost hit the wrong target! The girl is my opponent! You fight your own opponent." The Chinese girl yelled from behind.

"Keep protesting, Lei Fang," he replied. Seemed like it was going to be a tag fight, looking at the condition.

After hours of battles, and opponents falling behind, Raidou was just ahead. Until then, Kasumi was unharmed at all. Ryu took almost all of numerous attacks given to her, but he managed to either block or counter them.

"Kasumi... Are you hurt?" Ryu asked, he was still trying to catch his breath.

Kasumi was not as exhausted as he was- or how he seemed was. She shook her head, "no, not at all."

"That's good."

"You fought all of them, are you okay?" She asked worriedly. "Did you get hit? Please don't push yourself..." Thanks to him, she didn't drain much stamina. But she was worried about him.

"Not as much as I hit," he answered. "I'm okay, I've fought more than this before."

Yeah right, we all know he has fought from rookies to demons.

"It's time."

Heavy steps could be heard. Ryu and Kasumi looked to see their next opponent. Raidou. With his ugly, evil, and hateful smirk. "Oh, it's you. Kasumi isn't it? And the dragon ninja Ryu Hayabusa?"

Kasumi noticed how Ryu glared at him and how he looked like a blood-thirst. He would've drawn his dragon sword and stab Raidou in the head. Unfortunately for him, using weapons were not allowed in the tournament. "You pay for what you did to Hayate and the Mugen Tenshin clan, now."

"You're staining your name, dragon ninja." Raidou's devilish smirk has not fade away. "Why waste your time and skill on helping the clan with such weak leader?"

"My brother is not weak." Kasumi denied it immediately.

"He is weak." Raidou said. "Oh, that reminds me... You are a nukenin, aren't you, little girl?"

Anger filled Kasumi, she teleported and tried to kick Raidou, but he was fast enough to catch her foot and threw her. Ryu quickly saved Kasumi from hitting wall roughly.

"Control yourself, Kasumi! You're only being careless!"

Raidou smirked. That time, Ayane and Hayate were like that too, they were all the same, controlled by their anger. 'They are all careless rookies.' He laughed, but then he noticed, Ryu Hayabusa was a threat to him. That ninja knew being mad would ruin technique and unfold more weakness spots, and that was why he stayed as calm as he could be. 'Ryu Hayabusa needs to be disposed.'

"I challenge you for a duel," Raidou said.

Ryu glared back at Raidou. "I'll accept that challenge."

Raidou frowned. 'No, fighting Ryu Hayabusa would take too much time and energy.'

"No!" Kasumi almost yelled. Ryu stopped and turned his face slightly to look at her. "I left the clan to fight him. If you fight him instead, my decision will be futile... That's why I have to fight him."

Ryu thought of it for a while. Should he trust her to fight Raidou? This old man in front of them was not weak, if anything happened to Kasumi it would be his responsibility for he has promised his best friend. Then again, she got a point.

"Hayabusa-san?"

Ryu finally nodded, hoping it wasn't a mistake. 'She's trained enough, trust her...'

Relieved, Kasumi slightly smiled with gratitude and walked past him to face Raidou. But while she was passing him, he whispered to her ear, "be careful. He might has planned something."

Kasumi nodded slightly. Ryu was still watching her, he was worried enough to run around with the dragon sword in his hand and cut Raidou into pieces until the corpse was unrecognizable, but he shouldn't interfere Kasumi.

Raidou smirked. "Well then? Let's move to other place."

Both Raidou and Kasumi were teleported to a place spacious enough. "H-Huh?" Kasumi looked around to find her guardian nowhere. "Hayabusa-san?"

"This is a duel, but I'm sure he will surely go crazy for every damage you take."

While back in Ryu's place. "Kasumi!" He could neither feel her presence nor Raidou's. "Damn, where did he take her to..." He looked around and found a CCTV. Maybe he could locate them via CCTV.

He quickly ran to the lab, he remember seeing the lab somewhere. 'Endure long enough, Kasumi!'

Back to the battle. Ryu was right, now that Kasumi controlled herself and try her best to read Raidou's movements, Raidou was pretty much disadvantaged. He may be strong and fast, but she could counter his attacks and found weak spots.

'This girl is reading my movements...' He took the defensive position and try to read her movements. 'And she's deceiving when I read her mind. What she does is not as what she planned.'

Kasumi remembered what her father once taught her. When fighting someone focused enough to read one's mind, then don't think. Just fight by your instinct and trust your nature.

"This is boring," Raidou said, hiding his worries of losing to her. He was starting to cast the Torn Sky Blast and laugh hysterically.

Kasumi used her own Torn Sky Blast too. Not knowing that she might end up just like Hayate.

But her instinct told her to do so.

They were equal at first, but then Kasumi started to struggle. 'I can't fail!'

Raidou was still laughing hysterically while abruptly a kunai was thrown just passing his face, causing him to lose concentration and thrown back by Kasumi's ninpo. His heavy body hit the electricity mains causing him to get shocked and a blackout. But can be said, Raidou died after receiving such a heavy damage.

"Kasumi!" Ryu called out in the dark.

Kasumi was just about to answer him and suddenly someone hit her head and her vision blurred out. There was another person there, and that person has been targeting her all the way.

Ryu's eyes adapted fast, but not fast enough to find Kasumi anywhere... or more precisely she was gone too fast. The girl was nowhere to be found but a yellow ribbon was left.

She was kidnapped.

Okay that was short. But there's still x chapters to go~ xD

And for those who said that this pairing could never happen...

Actually that Ryu and Irene Lew thingy really happened, but just in the NES game. The good-graphic(?) Ninja Gaiden and Dead Or Alive series up until now are a reboot of the NES game, the story was a remake. So basically Ryu and Irene were not married since the story was renewed. In Ninja Gaiden 2, it was more likely Irene is in one-sided love with Ryu just like how Rachel is (and these two are burdens in those game... -_-). Ryu shows more care towards Kasumi, I take that he's the canon pairing for Kasumi (as much as I remember, main heroine always gets canon couple in fighting games.)

That's what I think...

Ohh and especially Ryu's worry-not-Kasumi voice~