Chapter 3: An Unwanted Meeting
6 Months Later...
A couple was getting ready for bed and as soon as the two lovers tugged themselves under the blanket, both kissed goodnight, before falling asleep in each other's arms...
Only two hours after noon, a repeating, yet penetrating noise was heard outside of their bedroom... it was thump, and as the couple awoke, the women felt alerted...
Wife: "Honey, did you hear that...?"
Husband: "Yes... it came from the Foyer..."
Wife: "A burglar...?"
Husband: "I dunno... I gotta go check, you stay here and don't come out until I tell you to..."
The woman was feeling insecure, however... having faith in her lover, she nodded, before giving him one more kiss for good luck, knowing through a feeling that she has, that it won't be pleasant...
Wife: "Watch your step."
And with that, the man carefully opens the door, at the pace of a snail, just to peek outside into the corridor... there was nobody... but just to be safe, he sneaks outside of the room, closes the door behind him and goes over to the light switch... the corridor he was in, began lighting up, giving him a safe enough feeling to proceed... however... what he hadn't noticed until now... is that thumping noise has disappeared... there was nothing but eerie silence, hanging over the corridor... and as he cuts the corner at the other end of the room, he did the same thing like before, turning on the lights, just in hope of maybe catching a glimpse of whatever or whoever caused that disturbance...
Husband: "..."
A shiver went down his spine, as he checked the other corridor around the corner with the lights being turned on... but he found nothing. Checked the bathroom, nothing. The kitchen, nothing... he began to ease up, as he then slowly made his way back to his wife, letting her know, that it was just their imagination... however... just as he reached the other end of the hallway... his ears weren't lying to him, something was behind... it was faint at first, but as he turned around... any kind of common sense died out, and a paralyzing fear came over his subconscious, as he heard buzzing and a dark figure coming forth, appearing out of the shadows around the corner, as it seemed...
Husband: "W-What is that...?!"
And as the creature came forth in the shape of a human... the thing reached out his hand, before... running straight towards the man, attempting to get to him... this sudden change of movement scared the crap out of the man and he began running for his life... quick decisions were decisive in that very moment... but before he could think of running back to the bedroom to warn his lover, he found himself being caught by the creature, who has caught him right around the ankle, making him trip and fall flat on his face...
Husband: "Hey! Let me go! Help!"
And he especially began screaming in total agony, as he realized... this thing was eating away the flesh around his ankle and burned like hell, and he was only able to break free, because of his wife coming to kick the unknown creature away from her lover, but even with her having saved her husband... both found themselves cornered, as this thing has changed its shape... instead of one being, it has become now three of the same thing and as the two ran to the living room, both were then surrounded by six of them... the beings got closer and closer... and all that could be heard, were screams of terror and pain...
Two Hours Later...
The local police of Hong Kong has been summoned to close the apartment for investigation... the securing of remaining evidence of the murder went straight ahead, as Jun and Lei checked upon the corpses... the couple had now deformed faces, obviously caused by the creatures having apparently nibbled away their flesh, alongside the muscle tissue underneath and all that remained, were faces, that were halfway gone with nothing but the bones being revealed on the fresh wounds... the sight alone was enough for Lei to feel sick on the inside... and he gagged a little...
"Sorry, but... this is one of these kinds of moments, where being vegetarian will actually prove to have more than ONE good use..."
"Hehe, told you to not grant yourself one more beer, before us setting off..."
"Nah, this is the least of my issues... my biggest one being too sensitive for this kind of procedure and that is checking the dead, rotting corpses of the case... and whoever did that, hoho, he or she has absolutely no taste... literally."
Even in the most unsuitable moments, Jun finds her partner's jokes to always get her a good kicker and she couldn't help chuckling.
"My, my, aren't you on a lucky streak today with your weird puns. It's not very often, that you succeed, even with me..."
"Hey-hey, don't get too ahead of yourself, that was only-"
However... in this very moment... Jun sensed something, behind Lei... it was a faint buzzing...
"...look out!"
...before a shadow formed behind Lei and Jun was forced to throw him onto the other side to save him from the sudden ambush, before the drunkster then bounced off the couch with a very acrobatic corkscrew spin, landing elegantly back on his feet. All the police men in the room took out their guns and began pointing them at the raven black, eyeless creature, before many more of this thing began appearing in the room, with one of them getting caught by one of them, before Jun came in to kick this monster away, who had just tried to feast on one of her colleagues.
Police Officer #1: "W-What are these...?!
And then, Lei had to rescue Jun, as one of these creatures has decided to jump on her from behind, while she was not paying attention...
"Jun, behind you!"
...with Lei jumping forward in mid-air to kick the monster with both legs, obviously landing on his elbow in style, with Jun nodding in gratefulness, before then realizing, that all these creatures have set their eyes mainly on her. That was the signal for the Kazama to give out the warning.
"Lei, take all the others here in the room with you, I will handle this."
"You sure? Because it looks like you will need more than just two hands to deal away with this bunch."
"I won't repeat myself, go! Everyone leave, now!"
And with that, the police men began to retreat with these evil beings following them...
"...alright, but don't come crying to me later!"
"Hey!"
Just then, the whole gang of monsters, who weren't able to properly chase the policemen, because of all the furniture and the narrow corridor, were just about to jump on Jun's partner... when the Kazama put them in their place with a special trick of hers, that held them back, not being able to move further... and all she did, was simply holding her open palm up in the air, right in front of their faces... with Lei looking pretty stumped.
"How... how do you do that...?!"
"This is not important, just go! I will have to do a little research on these abnormalities, please allow me. Wait outside!"
He looked doubtful, but since he believed in her, he nodded, before running out, leaving Jun to handle these monsters all on her own... and once she raised her second palm, the monsters simply didn't come any closer to her, because of her invisible shield holding them back... while she moved to the center of the living room, she kept thinking to herself, wondering where these hideous beings come from...
"18 murder cases... all victims have a past, dominated of either mild, or strong criminality, in one form or another... and whenever we checked the areas, in which the murders took place... I could have sworn... I sensed a dark force, similar to the one, emanating from these seemingly blood-thirsty animals... but... where do they come from...? Surely, these things would never come here into this world on their own... unless..."
The last part... made Jun's become narrow in seriousness, as she suspected the absolute worst.
"...unless someone actually summoned them over and commanded them to do this despicable kind of act."
And since these creatures had an aura, that the Kazama felt... awfully familiar with... she grew to have somewhat of an idea, on who she has to take to custody for it... but suddenly, she had to snap back to reality, because the monsters somehow broke her barrier and were ready to attack, when she jumped back in a backflip, barely dodging a scratching attack from one of them, before landing safely on her feet, doing her fighting stance... soon enough, she found herself surrounded by them, right on the same spot, where the victims suffered their incoming fate...
And it began with all the creatures, each one at a time, jumping in her direction, bombarding her with scratching and ramming attacks, but due to her fast reflexes and excellent flexibility, none of it was a problem for her and despite the monsters obviously wanting her blood on their claws, hand, whatever it looked like... she remained at balance and didn't show any signs of fatigue or feebleness, even after a while of having let them attack her... but soon, she grew tired of this and decided to go for a finishing blow...
"You... let me be your guide... back to hell...!"
Then, it all stopped, when Jun began glowing in a sky-blue light, getting engulfed in almost blinding spark of white, making the monsters shriek in agony... then it zoomed outside, where the light "eruption" could be seen from miles away... even Lei saw it from below, covering his eyes with one hand, before the light disappeared, making him wonder, what exactly just occurred before his very eyes...
Later...
He and Jun reunited at the bottom of the building, right on the streets... with her not showing any physical ruins in any way... confirming, she came out of this, alive and well... but just as the two reunited, Jun had to ask.
"The keys?"
"Huh? Let me guess... you... could have the culprit right before your inner eyes...?"
"Precisely... and this might get a little personal, so... you better stay here and let me do the job alone. Not to worry, I won't be gone for long... I hope..."
"Tsk, OK, then go right ahead."
He then throws the keys to their cab over to her and she catches it with no problem. As she made her way to the car, she began looking serious...
"Just you wait... I haven't forgotten... nor do I plan on forgiving... I am coming."
And with that, the middle old Kazama jumps right in and speeds off, using her more or less "divine" instincts to find the responsible one for this case...
Meanwhile somewhere else...
In a deserted area, somewhere outside of Hong Kong, there was a pub. In there, you'd always find the shadiest of the shady and rightfully so, because... on one of the stools, was sitting a figure, wearing white-red sneakers, old and frayed jeans, a leather jacket with a white, somewhat dirt-covered tank top underneath and blood red gloves with silver pearls on the back of his palms... with a golden necklace, hanging from around the neck of the familiar, yet sinister individual... his face though wasn't very visible, because of the poor lighting around the bar itself, however... as this mysterious man took a good sip of his ice cool Jack Daniels, he then asked the bartender to give him more.
"Refill please..."
"Are you sure? That was your eighth shot, man."
"Look, I don't care..."
And the man leaned closer into the light... Kazuya Mishima came forth from the dark.
"...just refill."
His scar-covered face, sort of terrified the bartender, but he hid it, because he wouldn't want to throw out a customer like that out of the blue... and anyhow, Kazuya did not make a very combative impression, like how we are used to from him, instead, he looked pretty... worn out and emotionally "crippled" in a way, as if he has completely forgotten the threatening nature of himself... so of course, the man saw no reason anymore to be scared of the Mishima, looking at him twice and he simply nodded and did as he was told, just refilling Kazuya's cup with more Jack Daniels.
"Here you go."
"Hmph."
As Kazuya was enjoying his now ninth shot of booze, he began to reflect on everything, that has happened in the course of his life... his father, his former rule over the Mishima Zaibatsu, what he did to him, his son, his first meeting with Akuma and his short-lived reunion with his mother... he just couldn't stop thinking of the demon's words, before the two almost died in that explosion, caused by the satellite...
"Tsk... "I have a debt to fulfill for Kazumi"... more like, a debt, that was anything, but productive..."
He then remembered Kazumi's words, before she prepared to battle him and Heihachi, close before Jin had to fight her...
FLASHBACK
Devil Kazumi is seen, facing her son and her husband with a serious look, with Jin, Jun, Lars, Alisa and Lee accompanying them...
Devil Kazumi: "You think I ever loved you two...? Tsk, what nonsense. As if Mishima trash like you would ever be able to feel compassion... tell me, many people, that you mercilessly trampled on with all your power, had loved ones... have you spared their lives? Of course not, SURELY, you did it, because you wanted to protect my "honour", my "loyalty" to your family and my "legacy"... how hollow... HOLLOW I say!"
She then spreads her wings, looking disdainfully at her own family, specifically Kazuya now, who looked like he had lost all belief... he was not prepared for all this and it came so quickly back to him, he felt... betrayed. But with Heihachi, it wasn't any better... and Kazumi did not show any kind of remorse for her words, indicating... she seemed very honest and convincing about it and that serious look of hers soon turned into a look so full of hatred and bloodlust, she prepared herself...
Devil Kazumi: "You... Kazuya... the one, who bears the blood of the Devil, the blood of the Hachijos... and my blood... a disgraceful abortion like you does not deserve the right to possess that kind of power!"
What happened from there, was way too quick for Kazuya to comprehend... since he was too exhausted from the fight with his father... he was almost completely defenceless... so he waited for Kazumi to offer him the best possible punishment... however, it was stopped by Jin, who had jumped forward to block her flying punch with his crossed arms... watching that happen, gave Kazumi even more reason to mock her own bloodline further... as she could tell, Jin had the same power like Kazuya... probably even mightier than his...
Devil Kazumi: "Heh, Jin Kazama... defending your own bloodline now, oh, the irony is stunning... you were better off, watching and learning on how to deal with Heihachi's caliber... but it seems, you haven't learned a thing... good, then I will take the pleasure, of destroying you first!"
Jin: "You will not obtain anybody's power here!"
Devil Kazumi: "I will! Starting with you!"
And from that point on, as the fight between Jin and Devil Kazumi raged on... Kazuya had a mind conflict... he was not able to describe, how he felt... but what he did feel, was sincere loneliness... anything he has done so far, just to avenge his beloved mother, only to then realize, she has never really loved him and now wants him dead... Akuma's words made sense now... Kazumi indeed wanted to eliminate him and Heihachi, her own flesh and blood... his sorrow totally overshadowed his rage, he felt... he has lost face, his identity... totally abandoned by the same person, who gave him life, who showed him love from the bottom of her heart, aside from his grandfather... that is all no more. He felt his heart, alongside his burning will for vengeance... shattering to smithereens...
Kazuya: "..."
Without a single word, he turned around and slowly went away from the battle... looking back... with a single tear running down his cheek, before transforming into his Devil form, only to then slowly fly away, not daring to look back...
FLASHBACK ENDS
And now he is here, not knowing what to do with his life anymore... he has lost the will to live, now knowing, his entire family has abandoned him... he is a nobody... but something inside him told him, to not go and kill himself... he could not tell, what it exactly was though, as he found it too vulgar and fake... and pathetic... he had to mutter to himself, staying true to his life philosophy...
"Tsk, life has no real purpose... all you do, is just fighting to survive and if you can't do that... Game Over, for you... you could perish at cancer, you could commit suicide, you could fall off a cliff... nobody will care, because you are a loner, a tiny organism in the big, wide ocean, that is the world... this is how it goes... yup."
He took another sip of his drink, before hearing something shouting outside, before the unknown individual entered the bar, walking groggily to the stools, sitting down only two seats away from Kazuya...
The man looked quite stressed as he ordered to get a drink. He had strange brown hair and wore a headband with the Japan design in the middle. Kazuya glanced at him as the unknown person took off the headband and finally got his requested booze. However, he noticed that he was being watched by the middle-aged Mishima and comically returned the glance and shouted at him.
?: "Hey! What are you looking at?!"
That loud and obnoxious tone in his voice way more than enough to make Kazuya already lose his patience with this young man... but he decides to ignore him and care about his own business... without noticing the unknown approaching him from the left, yelling at him again.
?: "Yeah, I was talking about you! You dare to look at the great Joe Higashi so disrespectfully, huh?! Do you have anything to tell me?"
Since this was so unexpected, the Mishima at first did not know how to react to that sudden change of demeanor on Joe's behalf, however... he certainly found this man to be a major nuisance already and he didn't even have to try... but to not cause an unnecessary scene, he decides to keep it as cool and reserved as possible...
"Why won't you mind your own business? Leave me alone and shut your trap, you are not the only one here, you know..."
Joe looked around him and noticed that only a few were watching. But this didn't make him feel uncomfortable at all. If anything, it only gave him fuel, especially if a fight was about to come out of this situation. And since he hated it, if someone told him to shut up... Joe pouted.
"You don't tell the strongest fighter to shut up."
As he said that, he drank his beer before looking back at him.
"And now speak! Why were you looking at me like that? Were you looking for trouble?"
Kazuya sighed, shaking his head in disbelief, before looking back at the guy... but this time, you could hear a slight threat...
"No, I was NOT. All I want you to do, is to simply leave me alone and do whatever you want, just not with me being pulled into it and if you can't shut the hell up... then get out and bother someone else with your BS. All you do is just disturbing my moment... am I clear?"
"Am I smelling something that sounds like a "threat"? Ha! Don't think you can scare the strongest legend, that is I!"
As Joe said that, he resumed drinking his beer, and seemed really like he was about to get drunk. And the way he was boasting himself, was amusing the Mishima.
"The strongest legend? You? Heh, bollocks."
Upon hearing that, Joe's eyes shot wide open in a comically angry manner before slamming the beer down and looking at Kazuya angrily.
"How dare you?! I'm Joe Higashi! And I'm the strongest fighter, Japan has ever seen...!"
All that Kazuya could do was simply to scoff and look at the japanese boy with anything, BUT an amused look.
"Hear my advice: Better stop exaggerating with the beer, or else it might make you lose control and you will end up in a non-pleasant way, no longer being aware of what you are saying or doing. Got it?"
Joe, now having drunk up another glass of beer, now groggily jumped off of his stool and stumbled over to Kazuya, brutally grabbing him by the collar of his leather jacket, before shaking him back and forth, making the Mishima slightly grow angrier every passing second...
"You are not to give me orders, you bigmouth...! Nobody insults the great Muay Thai wonderchild, Joe Higashi..."
He then raised his fist, ready to punch the Mishima in the face, with all the men around them standing up, starting to grow excited over what is going to happen... and they began to cheer for Joe to punch him...
"...and gets away unharmed!"
His fist was just about to touch Kazuya's skin... when his wrist then suddenly got grabbed by a firm grip, coming from the Mishima's left hand... who then throws a look at Joe, that was filled deep and honest glee over his misfortune.
"My apologies, but cheap shots like that are too easy for me..."
At this point, Joe grew angrier and attempted to throw knee attacks over Kazuya's stomach. He didn't feel anything and so he just headbutted Joe hard in order to make him crash to the floor. Joe jumped back on his feet and made his fighting stance, although he was staggering a little due to him being drunk. Kazuya raised one eyebrow and folded his arms while waiting for Joe to attack.
"...is that supposed to be a challenge?"
"You... bet your wrinkly ass, it is... you cocky dipshit...! I will gladly take you... just to remind you... that I don't like being disrespected like that...! Prepare yourself...!"
Kazuya was not really impressed or intimidated by this guy's threats, as they felt them to be empty and just as an excuse to hide his hurt feelings... not giving a damn, he did his trademark, Karate stance and taunted him to come closer.
"You really must be in a hurry... then come at me, it will be my personal pleasure to knock you back to the sad reality you are living in."
"Over my dead body, pal...!"
"You're gonna taste the floor hard...! And I will raise my fist up in triumph...!"
Clearly, Joe's arrogance was annoying Kazuya all the more. Joe then charged at him and began to throw his regular Muay Thai attacks at the Mishima... that seemed very familiar to Kazuya. It reminded him of an old acquaintance of his, Bruce Irvin, meaning he didn't have that much trouble avoiding or blocking them. With the only difference being, that these attacks seemed quicker than usual. At first it seemed as if Joe was getting the upper hand.
"Prepare to lose...!"
"...Not a chance!"
Just as the young Muay Thai fighter threw a supposedly devastating kick to Kazuya's face, he ducked forward, barely avoiding the kick, with his right fist starting to spark blue...
"Huh?!"
"Eat this!"
...only to then brutally Dragon Uppercut the Muay Thai fighter, right under the chin, making him fall a few meters away from him, only for him to land and crash against a table's edge.
Once that happened... someone from another table stood up from his seat. It was a korean young man with short brown hair. He didn't like how this is going. And he was always able to tell if someone was "evil" or not, just by glancing at the individual. And after seeing Kazuya hitting Joe that hard with that sparking fist, he had enough. Especially since Joe was a friend of his. However, his master and the latter's lover attempted to reason with him.
"Kim, forget it."
"Master, how can I?! Joe is a friend! And that man truly looks like bad news!"
However, his master shook his head. But just as the three resumed looking, they saw Joe suffering a royal beatdown from Kazuya. Since Joe was too drunk, he couldn't fight properly. This was too much for Kim and so he attempted to intervene, only to be stopped by his master's voice.
"Kim, don't."
"Master... evil is unforgivable! I can't stand here, watch and do nothing."
"That man surely is dangerous. I can sense his strength. He's no ordinary fighter. There are times you can't win, even when you try your hardest! Forget about this and keep calm."
Kim didn't want to believe it and surely he couldn't stand there and watch an old acquaintance of his getting beat up hard by someone like Kazuya, who looked like an evil man to him.
"But... I need to stop this man somehow!"
Just then... the woman of the trio, who was the lover of Kim's master's... approached him and gave Kim a smug much to the latter's confused face.
"Don't worry... let me handle this."
Kim's master, Gang-Li, attempted to call his lover's name to stop her, but it was too late. Kazuya was just finished beating Joe up. The latter was covered in bloody bruises all over his face... and Kazuya grabbed him by his shoulder and smirked evilly.
"Playtime's over, fool..."
The middle-aged Mishima then prepared to punch Joe one last time, before hearing a feminine and a bit seductive voice.
"Excuse me, sir."
Kazuya narrowed his eyes, before turning his head to the right to see a beautiful, korean woman with long black hair.
"What do you want?"
"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Luong. As much as I love the thrill of a fight, this is going a tad too far. So, if possible, could you please settle down and let the poor boy, go?"
Since Joe seemed to have had quite enough of this beating, the Mishima has already lost interest. All that he really wanted to do, was to teach the Muay Thai champ an important lesson and that is to not mess around and let out all his problems on strangers... because you may never be aware of the consequences, so... he simply let him go, making Joe drop on one knee, before falling face first on the floor, panting... with Kazuya simply chuckling.
"Tsk, better ask HIM that, he was the one, who challenged me, not me him. And the old saying goes: The taller ones fall deep, very deep. So it serves him right. Figures, when you can't control your own hormones and sorrows... THIS is the result of all that goes wrong, when you leave your own boundaries, not knowing what do with yourself..."
However, Luong did not really like that response and as she kneeled down to help Joe up, by lifting him back up with one arm under his armpit, she looks at the Mishima with serious eyes.
"You are not a very cheery fellow, are you? That was no excuse to beat him up like that. He could have died and from the way you did it, it certainly looked like you were about to kill him... have you no shame?"
Having heard that to the fullest... it was clear, that didn't sit well with the Mishima, because he gets all the blame for it, when really, Joe started it all and even started escalating it... to the point, where he started molesting him... so he had every reason to sound a little angry.
"Look who is talking. Go on, white-knight him, it's not like he threatened me first... if you don't know your bounds, you shouldn't mess with others and expect to come out as the victor."
Since Kim, who was watching the confrontation, always could sense when someone has a sort of evil energy, he truly didn't like where this was going and so he intervened and attempted to defend Luong while glancing at Kazuya. The latter rolled his eyes.
"And you? What do you want?"
"...You should better listen to what she said. Joe may have blindly overreacted, but there was no need to injure him like the way you just did. You have no honour!"
Just then, Joe slowly lifted his head to reveal his weak angry face as he glanced at Kazuya and panted.
"Must... crush... you...!"
But then he seemed to have passed out and Kim quickly went to help Luong in holding Joe. And with that, the two Koreans returned to Gang-Li and went away, just wanting to get their good friend some medical attention... but as they left the bar, they saw a woman pass right by them... that mysterious woman was no other than Jun Kazama... Kim has seen her face and already, he felt that something was odd about her... and he did not mean it in a positive way...
Just then, Kazuya was about to pay for the drinks... he then hears a voice, that rang an immediate bell in his head... and he began to feel alarmed...
?: "Found you..."
...he turns his attention over towards the door and in the way stood the one woman, he has had a relationship before, exactly two decades ago... Jun Kazama. Her cold appearance alone made him shiver on the inside and he felt like his stomach began to churn.
"Kazuya Mishima... I am placing you under arrest."
These words, that were supposed to be a serious threat to him... made him smile, then chuckle and soon... it turned into a serious laughter, making the Kazama feel somewhat insulted... but he didn't care and it showed through his response to her "greeting".
"Really? Is this how you greet an old friend of yours? If so, then I wouldn't need any enemies from now on."
All that Jun did to show her distaste for Kazuya's disrespectfulness, was folding her arms and looking at him with narrowed eye brows.
"...and as always, you don't take anyone seriously, nothing has changed with you. I thought you were better than that."
And Kazuya did the same pose in return, just to sort of mock her.
"This is new and I thought, saying a simple 'Hello' is a well-enough greeting. No, instead, put me behind bars right away, excuse me..."
But he knew for a fact, that she would never meet up with him for no reason, so he had to find out her motives... and take it slowly.
"Let me ask... what do you want from me? I thought, I wasn't interesting enough for you anymore... but apparently, judging from the look in your eyes, you want something..."
"And rightfully so... I am here to arrest you for 18 cases of cold-blooded murder. And when it comes to cases like these, me being nice in this, is something you can just dream of. But I can't do that right away, unless you actually admit it yourself... was it you, who killed them?"
"...the details?"
"Whenever I investigated on the locations, in which the murders went down, I always managed to sense dark and completely unnatural energy... I cannot confirm, from where this phenomenon originates, but I can tell for a fact... these incidents were no coincidence, because all of the killed victims had a past, that was connected to criminal activities on their behalf... it may sound like a prejudice to you, but... since you are the only one, that I know of, that is most likely capable of using dark energy as he pleases... knowing that you have the Devil gene within you... AND that you actually killed criminals yourself in the past, with your own hands... well, are you the culprit? Just be honest and I might play nicer with you."
But all she got as a response, was a chuckle, coming from Kazuya and him looking at her with mocking eyes...
"You really want the truth, right?"
"Well, did you kill them or not? I don't feel like wasting too much time with you."
...however, what came next, was something Jun would have never predicted to happen. Kazuya did a few Karate kicks, before getting into his typical Mishima Karate stance, throwing a challenging look at the middle-aged Kazama.
"...then you will just have to beat the answer out of me. I am interested in seeing, how much you have improved over the years."
Jun grew increasingly angry, as she really hated Kazuya's "childish" behaviour... however, he might really be the only one, who knows something... so she decides to play and accept his offer.
"...we may risk lives, should we fight here. Let's go outside, somewhere deserted."
This made the Mishima grin.
"Ladies first."
Later...
Both found themselves in the woods close by... the fight was to take place in this clearing, right here, right now... and with that, Kazuya starts warming up, by cracking his neck and then starting to jump up and down, lifting his legs separately to warm up, if he was to do one of his trademark moves. Jun actually did a warm up, that consisted of her stretching her arms and legs and even doing a little yoga to keep her body at balance, to make it remain flexible... and while she did, she looks at Kazuya.
"That you ask me out to a challenge like that... in a moment of urgency... you really must be deadset on making your situation even worse..."
"Story of my life, dear... fighting is about who is left standing, nothing else."
While the Mishima focused his eyes on Jun, it was then, when he realized, that something was odd about her... that aura that she had in her... it felt completely different from what he has seen of her in the past. She certainly wasn't the same. But what was it, that made her have this unknown feel to her... he began thinking to himself.
"Something is definitely not right with her. She thinks she is so smart, but she can't fool my eyes... Ever since, she has shown herself... this cannot be the same Jun, that I met in the past, or... is she? That power brewing inside her was not the same as before, certainly not... she is a Kazama, sure, but... this might need some extra observation."
Then, both did their fighting stance... keeping it silent, with the cold air around them suddenly starting to heat up a little, as each of them start to reveal sparks emanating from them... Kazuya in red and Jun in blue... and while she was keeping her eyes focused on the very man before her, she began to feel something coming up inside her... and it was anything, but respect...
"Just you wait... I am going to make you pay...! This is for my son and all the people, who fell under your wrath...!"
"Hmph, just try it... but I guarantee, that it won't be easy..."
Both then stopped the sparking and caused little shockwaves, indicating they are at MAX. strength and ready to go... both then charged at one another, jumping up to strike with fully charged rights...
Their punches clashed with one another, causing a strong shockwave to make the trees around them shiver under the pressure. After that, both jumped back to gain a little distance, before Kazuya becomes the first to try and strike Jun with a punch... which she dodged, by stepping aside and then block with her raised, left wrist... with the two throwing serious looks at one another, before Jun then went ahead to kick the Mishima in the gut, which he blocked with his other hand, by catching her ankle... causing the two to retreat again, by performing two backflips. And they dashed at one another once more, starting a relentless struggle, by repeatedly throwing incredibly fast kicks and punches at one another, with seemingly no end in sight... until Jun parries one of Kazuya's punches with a typical Aikido parry, by grabbing his entire wrist, only to then throw him over onto the other side, making him roll across the grass and just when she thought, she succeeded, Kazuya's red eye lit up and he smirked...
"As if I'd let you...!"
The middle-aged Kazama was just about to land on Kazuya's back with a stomp from above, but he foresaw her plan and swiftly stood up in a twist... only to catch her by her throat, holding her in a way, as if she would get choked by him, only to then let go off her... and then nail her with two well-timed punches in mid-air, right in the gut, before sending her flying with a roundhouse kick. She was just about to crash into a nearby tree, only to then open her eyes and stop the fallback, by bouncing off of the bark of the tree with her legs, landing back down on the ground in grace, totally unscathed.
"You arrogant little... you won't get away with this."
"Oh, were my punches too strong for you? Feel like crying?"
"Nonsense."
This time, it was Jun's turn to charge at her personal enemy. And she attempts to first hit Kazuya with a jumping kick from above with both legs... but sadly, it got blocked by the Mishima, just by crossing his arms together and to further insult to injury, he makes her fly back a little after impact with a weak shockwave, caused by his Elkeid. But again, she landed perfectly back on the grass, with no injuries inflicted on herself and it only gave her more fuel to continue fighting... and much like she wanted, Kazuya went for a frontal assault too and he decides to thrust forward with a Glorious Demon God Fist, however... just before it could land a good hit on his former "lover", she did her Genjitsu stance, that totally caught him off guard, which Jun used to her advantage, as she then deflected his attack, making him stumble backwards and then ended his plan of frontal assault for good, by nailing him to the ground with an axe kick from her left leg.
"Ugh!"
That kick has directly targeted his stomach... making him spit up some blood, with him being stunned afterwards, because of him clutching his gut, not having been prepared for that low blow. And to further insult him, Jun stood up, looking down at Kazuya in disdain.
"Just so you know... THAT was for Jin."
However... what came next, was the least expected... while she sort of showered herself in success a little... Kazuya then snapped, opened his eyes abruptly...
"...and here is a present from me!"
...before stunning the Kazama, who did not see this coming at all, with a rising, sparking Demon God Fist, right in her solar plexus. That forced Jun to double forward, with her eyes rolling back into her head with her drooling saliva, mixed with blood.
"Hehehe, come on, is that all you've got?"
And before she could get any chance to defend herself, Kazuya has already grabbed her by her shoulder, pulling her closer to kick her once from the left and then to the right, all with the same leg. That was a truly devastating combo on the Mishima's behalf, but even with Jun having gotten caught like that... giving up was not in her book. And Kazuya saw this as the perfect opportunity to mock her a little, with him pressing his foot against her back, while smirking.
"Don't tell me, you still feel like ending this case. Who is to say, somebody else did it and NOT me? Oh, I forgot, you can't find it out, because I won't tell you..."
This constant mocking really began to wear upon the Kazama's patience with this man... she has already begun hating him before for what he did to her and her son, but this was unacceptable... she growled, as she tried to stand up, but couldn't because of the weight of Kazuya, that he puts into his one foot, pressed against her backside... just further increasing her personal resentment and frustration towards him...
"You bastard...! Get off...! You'll be sorry, you hear me...?! You've caused more than enough trouble, as you've already done...! How long shall this go on, until your hunger for domination has been finally quenched...?! Getting intimate with me and then leaving me in the dust like that was not enough for you... and now you have the nerve to mock ME...?!"
The Mishima sighed in desperation, as he was genuinely looking forward in fighting with an old friend of his... he shrugged, before taking his foot off of her back, looking a little bemused.
"Really now...? I expected more from you, but it seems, you are not even worth a warm up... unless you want to get serious now and you were only warming up yourself..."
"...and I will!"
"Wha-?! What's going on...?! I can't move!"
Without a warning, Kazuya then suddenly found himself frozen in place, not being able to move an inch, as if time stopped for him... and it wasn't until now, when he realized... Jun was doing that... everything around him became dark and all he saw before him, was Jun herself with closed eyes... who was the only light, illuminating the "room" they were in... but something inside him told him... this may be Jun... on the outside. As he has previously sensed something different with her... it was a pure spirit and this is something that Jun has always been, sure, but... this is a totally different league... and it felt awfully familiar to him, as if he has seen and felt that already... and the odd tone in Jun's voice was one of many indicators...
"It's been a long time, Kazuya... I am actually glad to see you again..."
"Wait a minute... could it be...?!"
...and her now open eyes, that have started to glow a deep shade of sky blue, further confirmed Kazuya's suspicions. No doubt about it, he knows this power all too well.
"...Angel?! Is that you? What are you doing in Jun's body?!"
"I was actually sent to protect you... but with all the crimes you have committed in the present... I cannot let you get on with it. My sincerest apologies, but the sinners need to be punished... and the same shall happen to you."
TO BE CONTINUED...