A/N: I'm sorry for not updating, I've just got other work to deal with. Anyways… here's the next chapter.
Benimaru charged up his electricity again as he looked at Clark, both fighters charging and ready for battle. Seeing Clark charge at him, Benimaru threw himself on the ground, spinning on one hand as he feet battered the mercenary's head and then threw him away. Beni then went on the offensive, punching and kicking as fast as he could.
Clark, still a bit below full power from fighting Robert, had to stay on the defensive when a Raikoken shocked him back to his senses, and the Ikari returned the favor with a Vulcan punch flurry that Benimaru just barely dodged.
He's gotten better, Benimaru thought as he backed off and regained his composure. To be fair, however… so have I!
The Muay Thai fighter waited for Clark to charge again and then ducked to the left, kicking Clark in the back and knocking him to the wall of the bridge they were fighting on. As Clark was knocked away, Benimaru jumped up in the air and shot down like a drill, pounding into Clark's legs and then landing one more Raikoken to win the match…
…before Clark slumped forward and Benimaru lost his balance and fell off the bridge.
"Beni!" Kyo shouted as he ran to try to grab his friend… but it was too late… and one of his best friends had fallen a solid twenty feet onto the hard road below.
Heidern also acted quickly, barking orders to the helicopter pilot as he sprang down to check on the fighter. After feeling around for any broken bones, he looked up at the shocked Kyo, Goro, Ralf, and Leona. "He's pretty banged up, but if we get him to a hospital, he should be okay…"
The noise of an ambulance came into hearing after a few minutes, with Heidern joining Kyo in riding with his friend before looking back at Goro.
"Daimon-san," Kyo said slowly, "Make us proud out there…"
The tall Judo fighter nodded silently as he watched his teammates drive away. He then turned to Ralf, who seemed to be acting different than his rash and outspoken self. Goro just raised his hand and shook his head.
"It was an accident… and your commander is doing everything he can…" Goro said as Ralf slowly nodded his head.
Wow… this is one
levelheaded guy… Ralf thought, If that was one of the Ikaris
that took that fall… I'd be freaking out and pissed off! Ralf
took a deep breath and cracked his knuckles. "Okay… whoever wins
this moves to the finals!"
----------------------------------------
All in all, King was
very impressed with Joe's fighting form as she attacked the younger
man, the Japanese fighter keeping up his defenses well even after
being worn out from beating Mai. When King tried her Double Strike,
he countered with a short-range Screw Upper that could withstand the attacks without dissolving. When King tried the Surprise
Rose, she got hit by a Tiger Knee. Tornado Kicks were negated by
Tiger Kicks. Trap Shots by TNT Punches.
The one advantage King did have, however, was outright base strength and experience… and that was something Joe would need time to learn how to deal with… time he didn't have here.
And eventually, King kicked him in the side of the head and hit with the force to send him down sideways… except she had dropped down before him and kicked him back up before doing the same thing on the other side, like the world's most twisted metronome.
Finally stopping somewhere after doing this five times, Joe collapsed from his injuries. Worried that his girlfriend that had the nickname in some fighting circles as "Geese's Heir", Lilly Kane, would strike out against her, King looked around. Seeing Lilly, King breathed a sigh of relief when Lilly was clapping.
Silly me… she's a fighter too… sorry Joe. It's nothing personal.
As Lilly's older brother helped carry Joe away, the last member of Team Fatal Fury stepped up to face King in a fight that got a number of the males in the audience to begin rooting madly…
"ALRIGHT! TWO HOT BLONDES GOING AT IT!" somebody shouted… right before Billy's staff whacked the pervert on the head and the group suddenly went quiet when they saw Lilly's Kane's garnet-red aura flaring up again, only to die down after the comments died down.
Taking a nice deep breath to clear her thoughts, King turned to Mary and grinned. "Alright… now where were we?"
The two charged, King
leaping up into the air for another Surprise Rose as Mary shot up and
countered with a kick aimed straight at her opponent.
----------------------------------------
Conscious though he
was, Benimaru Nikaido was still in a lot of pain as he rested in a
hospital bed, Kyo holding his hand when the door opened. He looked
up to see Athena and Sie there.
"Kyo… what happened?" Athena asked as she had her younger partner looked in shock. "I heard on the news that-"
"Just an accident…" Kyo answered. "I just hope he'll make it-"
"You know… I've broken bones, not broken eardrums," Benimaru groaned as he looked at them. "Kyo… I'm sorry. I screwed up and now you've lost your only hope of winning this tournament. I don't know how you'll go on… but you must…. Somehow!"
Vain as ever… Kyo thought as he walked out, seeing Athena look at him with a worried look before Kyo's flames automatically flared up again. He looked at Athena again before walking out and heading towards the elevator. As soon as he neared it, it opened to reveal Yuki inside.
"Kyo!" his girlfriend said in a worried tone. "I heard there was an accident! Are you alright?"
Kyo nodded as he focused on his flames and had them die down before Yuki noticed. "Oh, yeah. Beni just had a bad fall… but he should be okay in a bit. I'm heading back now to meet up with Goro…"
Yuki breathed a sigh of relief as she wrapped her arms around his and rested her head on his shoulder. "Well… I hope he gets better soon."
"Yeah…" Kyo said as he opened his mouth to say something and then stopped. "Yuki… what if you thought somebody you knew was hiding something from you…"
Yuki suddenly stood up straight and looked at Kyo while being very worried. "What do you mean?"
"I… don't know… it's just that sometimes when I'm around Athena… my flames act up without me wanting them too. They're only supposed to do that around the Orochi, however… and I don't understand that. I mean… she doesn't act like an Orochi…"
"She's Athena," Yuki said as she looked at Kyo and tried to comfort him. "She's weird sometimes with that fashion sense of hers, but she's perfectly normal. She might have psychic powers, but that's it."
"Thanks…" Kyo
said as he looked at her and kissed her warmly, ignoring the
split-second flickering of the lights in the elevator as it went
down.
----------------------------------------
Spurred on by his
success against Takuma Sakazaki (well… snatching victory from the
jaws of defeat really…), Ralf had taken to the offensive nearly
instantly, punching and kicking at the larger man without any break
in this pattern. But when he tried another Vulcan Punch combo, Goro
ducked down and grabbed out Ralf's legs and threw him into the
ground before tossing him up into the air to land hard on the ground.
Take it at your own pace… Goro thought as Ralf came back for another round of attacks. The big man blocked the first two punches and then grabbed Ralf's arms before kicking out his legs, again giving the Ikari a face full of pavement before scooping up Ralf and throwing him away again.
Rolling to a stop, Ralf grit his teeth as he pulled back, "GET READY… GALACTICA PHANTOM!"
The punch rocketed forward… but unlike against Takuma, Ralf hadn't done anything to give himself an opening… and although it hurt a lot, Goro managed to block the strike.
Ralf grinned as Goro slumped forward, just to then shoot up and head-butt Ralf in the chin. Being knocked skyward, Ralf could offer no resistance as Goro jumped in the air and threw the mercenary to the ground one last time and knocked him unconscious.
As the matched was declared for him, Goro punched up into the sky while letting out a grunt of victory… and (oddly enough) the sound of an explosion had burst out somewhere in the distance.
Perhaps Godzilla was
angry his union membership had expired.
----------------------------------------
Although tired though
she was from fighting Joe, King still managed to put up an excellent
offensive against Blue Mary, even managing to escape the detective's
Atami Nage-like technique once or twice.
WHAM! Another painful punch to the head knocked Mary back further before King jumped back. Hard to believe that after losing to Team Kyokugen last year, we're going to make it to the finals! King thought as she pulled off another Tornado Kick.
Of course… Mary still had one ace up her sleeve as she charged at King, ducking and sliding underneath the attack before shooting up and hitting King in the chin with a flying kick. The two fighters flew in mid-air before they fell… and Mary made sure when they landed that her elbows smashed into King's gut.
The older woman kicked Mary off, however, and got to her feet. Okay… that's the last time I just assume I'm going to win… King thought as she cracked her neck and took a deep breath before charging again with another Tornado Kick… this time Mary standing her ground.
Mary thought as she raised up an arm and leg for defense, Let's hope this works…
King's flying roundhouse kick smashed into her arm, and Mary screamed in the pain, but she still used the momentum for what she needed: to spin around and kick King right in the face. The force was incredible; enough to knock King out of the ring and into the crowd as Billy, Joe, and Mary cheered.
They'd done it… all
three of them. Team Fatal Fury had proved itself worthy of entering
the finals!
----------------------------------------
Goro and Kyo were
loitering around Osaka for the third time during the tournament for
Team Fatal Fury to arrive when a cheerful voice called out to them.
"WHAT? Am I the life of the team or something?"
Kyo turned to see Benimaru hobbling towards them on a pair of crutches. "What? You back on your feet already?"
Benimaru grinned coyly. "Sure… some sort of modern miracle or something. I'm still in no condition to fight but…" He handed Kyo an envelope.
Grabbing it quickly, Kyo ripped it open and read the contents.
Kyo, I'm sorry
about your friend and understand that although my team has plenty of
blood on its hands, we refrain from lethal tactics in these
tournaments. Nevertheless, I know that won't make up for the fact
that your friend here is injured… despite the fact he's as much
of a narcissistic bastard as ever. Whatever the case, my connection
with two women working for Rugal has allowed a slight… alteration
to your team roster.
Don't lose.
Your teammate,
Heidern.
Kyo dropped his jaw after reading before suddenly feeling reinvigorated. Maybe I should just have Benimaru get into an accident every year if I get that mercenary on my team…but I still gotta win first…
"Hey, you guys ready?" shouted an English voice as Kyo turned to see Team Fatal Fury along with Lillith Kane standing there, ready to fight.
Kyo nodded as he handed the letter to Goro and walked forward as Billy did the same.
"Yeah, and don't take this personally, but I've gotta win this," Kyo said as cracked his neck and Billy gave his fingers a warm-up with his staff.
Billy just laughed a bit before stretching his calf muscles. "What do I care? The runner-up winnings are pretty good, I beat Kaphwan at his own game, and my best friend got to settle his demons from '93 this year too! So let's see which flames come out on top… those of my staff or those of your hands…"
Kyo nodded as they both charged, crimson flames erupting from both of the objects as Billy swung horizontally. Kyo bent back, but Billy repeated the technique until Kyo countered with the Yami Barai ground wave… which Billy pole-vaulted over and then pounded Kyo in the face.
"My little sister and my boss both have a move close enough to that…" Billy pointed out as he continued his offensive, his burning staff only being held back by Kyo's own flaming hands. Eventually, however, Kyo grabbed the weapon and then performed his anti-air Oni Yaki spin, using enough force to throw Billy's staff away.
Before, Billy would've panicked if something like this happened, but not this time! Instead of backing off, Billy let himself move with the spin and knee Kyo in the face. It dazed Kyo for a few precious seconds, but the Kusanagi fighter quickly grabbed Billy and engulfed him in crimson flames.
In pain but not incapacitated, Billy chopped at Kyo's temples before kicking out his legs. Kyo rolled away with another round of Yami Barai flares, this time hitting Billy and causing him to stumble.
Kyo wasted no time, instead sending a brutal flurry of punches from the San Shin Ki no Ichi that hit Billy full force. Kyo immediately chained it with two Orochinagi waves, blasting Billy halfway across the arena and onto the ground.
"Give up?" Kyo asked as Billy managed to get to his feet and reach out for something…
…His staff. Billy sure had a good sense of placement.
"What? After that?" Billy asked as he spun his staff a little bit. "Who do you think I am, Joe?"
"YOU BASTARD!" Joe screamed at his friend as Mary and Lilly had to keep him from running out into the fight.
Kyo looked at Joe for a moment before grinning. "Man. Robert on Kyokugen… King of Girlfriend… Joe on Fatal Fury and Beni on my team… Muay Thai sure is popular to fight with…"
"MY VERSION IS CALLED SHOOTING, YOU BASTARD!" Beni yelled out the correction while enraged, Goro holding him back as well.
"Wow… never thought of that before," Billy answered. "Well… shall we?"
"Gladly!'
The two charged again, Socket Flame super matching the Orochinagi before each move ran out of steam at about the same time. Billy quickly jumped into the air and then came smashing down with his staff, pitting its strength against another Oni Yaki. He still was knocked away, but not without inflicting some damage of his own.
Rolling back to his feet, Billy barely had any time to react before another Orochinagi was coming straight at him.
But he had all the time he needed to spin his staff VERY fast. The vacuum effect was noticed instantly, the vortex sucking in the flames as Billy added his own and charged at the shocked Kyo, whacking him again and again before using the Ultra Flame Whirlwind and cooking Kyo with the combined power of both their fires.
Kyo dropped to the ground, weakened and trying to catch his breath when he heard two voices call out to him.
"KYO!"
He looked up to see Athena and Yuki there… and his fire suddenly burst out of control again. Billy suddenly shot his staff forward, but Kyo reacted instantly, dodging to the side and sending a wave of fire down it that covered Billy with a heat that Kyo had never imagined he could produce.
While still holding onto the staff so he could keep Billy in one place, Kyo gathered up every bit of his strength as his entire body let off a yellow aura… the Orochinagi flame in his hand almost coiling around like an actual snake.
Billy took the blast full-force which send him careening into a building as his friends ran to help him up. Kyo quickly came to his senses and ran over too.
"You okay?" he asked anxiously, but there was no need to worry.
"I'll be fine…" Billy said as Joe helped him up. "But great job out there… I'm really going to have to keep training to beat you."
"Or at least one of the Kanes will have to," Lilly pointed out.
Kyo shrugged and walked back. "If that's the case…"
Team Japan left
quietly, Kyo still looking at his hands and worrying. Athena…
just who are you really?
----------------------------------------
Vice and Mature were
busy sitting back in their offices on the Blacknoah when the door
opened forcefully… Rugal glaring at both of them while Ana and
Hermione were behind him with victorious looks on their faces.
The weapons dealer was handed a single picture, which he threw on Mature's desk… and Vice and Mature knew they were dead.
It was one of their pictures with Chizuru and Leona…
"I don't have time to deal with you," Rugal growled as he walked away, "But Ana and Hermione wouldn't mind beating a pair of bitches to death."
The two secretaries leapt into the air and struck down, Vice and Mature barely ducking for cover in time.
A/N: Backed into a corner with no way out, Vice and Mature are forced to fight… only to discover that even though the Orochi's influence has been eradicated in them… its power hasn't! In the meantime, Kyo, Goro, and Heidern face off one more time against Rugal and the brainwashed Saisyu, with everything riding on Heidern's incredible power in End of Rugal.
P.S. I've decided to have a little poll just for fun… when you review, tell me which of the fights you liked the most! Why ask? Well why not?
