Chapter 11: Ryu to the Rescue

At the ropeless boxing ring, Vega and Balrog were preparing themselves for Ryu to arrive. Balrog was cracking his knuckles as Vega cleaned his knuckle claws.

"So when's Ryu gonna come? He should be here by now," Balrog asked, glancing around the area. It had been a few hours since Ryu ran out of the Mansion to rescue Little Mac.

Vega shrugged. "Not sure. Boss said that it could take a while for him to get here," he replied.

Balrog sighed, frowning.

As the two were distracted, a voice yelled out, "HADOUKEN!"

"Wha—" Before Balrog could turn, a large fireball slammed into him, burning his skin and singeing the hairs of his body. "GAAAAAAAAAAH!" hHe screamed, before falling to the ground.

"What the hell?!" Vega cried out, but before he could run towards the hurt Balrog, Ryu lunged at him with a Shoryuken under the chin. "YAAAAAAAAAAH!" Vega screamed as he hit the ground.

Ryu looked down at Vega and Balrog, his jaw clenched and his fists in the air, his complexion growing redder by the minute. He approached Vega and grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up.

"Now…" Ryu growled. "Tell me! Tell me RIGHT now! WHERE IS MAC?!"

That was when he heard chuckling from behind him. Turning, he saw M. Bison. In front of him was...Little Mac, wearing his pink jacket, his hoodie concealing his face. "Is this who you're looking for?" Bison mocked.

"BISON! What have you done to him?!" Ryu screamed, his anger up to its peak.

Bison chuckled. "I simply used him as bait to lure you here...and now that you are, I'll let your little friend say hello…"

Little Mac took off his jacket and glared at Ryu. His pupils were shrunken, and his normally green irises were replaced with red.

"Mac...what..." Ryu gasped.

Bison sneered. "As you may have noticed, I have brainwashed him. He'll be a good slave for my evil organization."

This angered Ryu more. "HOW DARE YOU?!" he roared, rushing towards Bison to punch him.

Before he could reach Bison, Little Mac struck him in the head with his fist and Ryu was sent flying.

Bison smirked. "Feisty, aren't you?"

Groaning, Ryu quickly got up. "Mac! Snap out of it!" he cried.

Little Mac didn't appear to comprehend Ryu's desperate cry however, because he continued to stalk towards his former friend, his fists up.

"MAC! It's me! Ryu! Your friend!" Ryu called, trying to snap Little Mac out of his state.

Little Mac sent an uppercut at him but Ryu dodged.

"Fight now, my puppet!" Bison commanded, smirking in delight.

"Mac! Please!" Ryu begged as he ducked from Little Mac's flying fist. "You have to resist this! I don't want to hurt you!"

Little Mac said nothing, glaring up at Ryu as he punched him in the face. Ryu cried out in pain as he was sent flying near the edge of the ring.

"Mac…stop!" Ryu screamed, tears forming in his eyes. Although his instincts were telling him to fight back, he refused. Little Mac was his friend; he couldn't hurt him!

Little Mac ignored Ryu as he grabbed his friend by the throat and lifted him up.

"M-Mac…" Ryu choked out, tears streaming down his face as he tried to breathe.

Before Little Mac could throw him, he saw the omamori around Ryu's neck. His eyes widened as a memory flooded through his mind.

Ryu placed the omamori around his neck and smiled at his friend. "Mac…thanks," Ryu said in a quiet voice, holding the boxer close.

After the flashback disappeared only a moment later, Little Mac roared and threw Ryu to the side.

"GAH!" Ryu cried out, hitting the ground. Before he got the chance to get up, Little Mac grabbed a fistful of his hair and held him up.

"M-Mac!" Ryu screamed, trying not to wince from the pain. "Remember our promise?! Please! You have to remember!"

Little Mac's eyes widened once more as another flashback appeared in his head.

Ryu placed his hand on Little Mac's, squeezing it gently in a comforting manner. "Don't worry...I won't let anything like this happen."

"Same, Ryu…"

"I…" Little Mac tried to say.

"Slave!" Bison called out, "Finish him!"

Little Mac hesitated, looking up at Ryu. Now that they had been prompted, more flashbacks appeared in his mind in quick succession…the day they first met, the time they become friends…and the day where Little Mac had protected and cared for Ryu after Vega and Balrog attempted to capture him.

Little Mac dropped Ryu on the ground, holding his head. "N-no…" he muttered as more flashbacks kept flooding in.

"Mac?" Ryu questioned, looking up at Little Mac as he got up. Realizing that he was resisting the brainwashing, he grabbed Little Mac by the shoulders. "Mac! It's me! Ryu! Remember me?! Your friend!" he cried.

Little Mac blinked rapidly, his pupils returning to normal and his irises turning back into their green tint.

"R-Ryu…?" Little Mac questioned, staring up at his friend. The memories of them being together flooded his mind and tears began to form in his eyes.

Little Mac had snapped out of it.

Ryu was also in tears as well, overjoyed that his friend had returned to normal. "Mac! You're all right…" Ryu cried as he held him tightly. After a few seconds, he let him go.

Little Mac however, was looking behind Ryu. Unbeknownst to his friend, Bison had jumped into the air to strike Ryu in the head with a kick.

"MOVE!" Little Mac screamed as he shoved Ryu to the side.

"Huh?!" Ryu cried, falling to the ground.

Bison's attack that had been meant for Ryu, struck Little Mac in the head instead, and the boxer flew to the bottomless pit of the ropeless ring.

"MAC!" Ryu shouted, scrambling onto his feet and running to Mac's rescue. As Little Mac fell through the air, Ryu jumped over the edge and grabbed his friend's arm.

"Gotcha!" Ryu exclaimed. He reached up and grabbed the ledge with his other hand, holding up both his and Little Mac's weight by sheer strength alone.

Little Mac tightened his grip on Ryu's arm, hanging on for dear life as he looked up at his rescuer. "Ryu!" he cried out.

Ryu tried not to let his friend go, but his arm began to slip from Little Mac's grasp. Sweat dripped down Ryu's face as his heart pounded in his chest. "Hang on!" Ryu yelled as he attempted to pull them up.

Unfortunately, Bison was looking down at them, his smirk growing wider. "What an unfortunate situation you two are in…" he mocked as he placed his foot on Ryu's hand.

Ryu gasped, his eyes widening when he realized what Bison was going to do.

Bison's foot slowly started to crush Ryu's hand. Ryu, grunting and clenching his jaw in pain, tried to hang on, but his hand began to slip from the edge.

"Say goodbye, Ryu—" Before Bison could stomp his foot down on Ryu's hand, a saw-like item hit his back, leaving a large, bloody gash. "GAH! What the?!"

Bison turned to see Mega Man, his hand poised straight down in the air from throwing the saw. The other Smashers stood beside the blue robot in their fighting stances.

"We'll take care of Bison. Donkey Kong, Ike! Get Ryu and Little Mac!" Mario commanded.

"RIGHT!" Ike and Donkey Kong agreed as they ran towards the edge.

"Smashers?!" Bison cried, his eyes wide. He was then hit by Dark Pit's Electroshock Arm and the force sent him flying through the air.

Diddy Kong jumped after Bison and kicked him in the face, sending him close to the other ledge. Meanwhile, Ike and Donkey Kong grabbed Ryu's hand and managed to pull him up from over the edge. Once Ryu was safe on the ground, he pulled Little Mac up as well.

Bison was on the very end of the ledge and before he had the chance to defend himself, Mewtwo flew over to him and with his psychic powers, threw Bison off the edge.

"I'll...get...you...NEXT TIME!" Bison screamed as he fell down the bottomless pit, unable to save himself.

While Ryu and Little Mac attempted to catch their breath, Ryu turned to Little Mac, who had blood trickling down his face.

"Mac!" Ryu gasped upon seeing the blood. Grabbing the boxer's shoulders, Ryu forced him to look up at him. "Are you okay?! Did Bison do anything to you?" he asked, one question right after the other.

Little Mac smiled at him, chuckling. "I-I'm fine..." he assured him.

Ryu smiled, and held his friend close. "I'm glad…I was worried when I got that ransom note…"

Mario smiled at the two and he finally piped up, "Well, you two need some medical attention. All of that must've taken a toll on both of you."

"Yeah," Ryu nodded as he let Little Mac go.

"Let's go back," Mario said.

Donkey Kong placed Ryu on his back as Ike did the same with Little Mac, carrying them back to the Mansion as the others followed.

At the Smash Hospital…

Ryu and Little Mac were on separate hospital beds, but they were close to each other so that they could at least know that the other was okay. Ryu laid back on his bed, his eyes fixated on the ceiling.

"Ryu?" Little Mac questioned.

Ryu turned his head to Little Mac. "Hm? What's wrong, Mac?" He asked.

"I owe you my life for rescuing me," Little Mac spoke, turning his head to Ryu. "Bison could've used us as slaves for his organization." He smiled at Ryu, though he winced due to the pain. "Thanks."

Ryu nodded. "It's fine. When I got the note and the photo, I panicked."

"But…" Little Mac asked, "Why did you come rescue me even though you knew it was a trap? You could've been captured as well, or worse!"

Ryu shook his head. "I didn't care. You were in danger. I didn't want to leave you behind like that. Mac, you're my friend. You had saved me from getting captured, and I saved you from captivity. I feel that's a good favor to return."

Little Mac stared at him, realizing that Ryu was right. Nodding, he smiled and said as much. "You're right. Thanks, Ryu…"

"Mac…" Ryu trailed off before he spoke again. "I'll protect you. Always. All right?"

Little Mac nodded. "All right…"

Constructive criticism is welcomed!

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