So, in this installment of "Side Crap"... well, let me be blunt. I'm writing Kim and Jhun out of the story. They really serve no purpose at this point, and it's just serving to muck up the roster of characters I have to keep up with. That in mind, I HAVE had their arc planned since the beginning of the story, I just haven't found ample time to execute it. Thus, here we are.
Without further ado, enjoy the conclusion to Kim and Jhun's Bogus, Not Excellent Adventure.
MORNING: BEFORE ROUND 2
While everyone else was gearing up for some epic tournament action, two Korean masters had removed themselves from the entirety of the week's events... for them, a far more personal battle was underway, divided from all the ceremony and exhibition and bright lights of the fighting contest.
Here, in the streets of Munich, in the early hours of the day, before Allianz Arena was yet to bustle... the people were treated to some premature entertainment, as Kim Kaphwan and Jhun Hoon had taken command of the block, and captured everyone's attention. Work trips, morning errands, grocery runs... all were ceased, as the spectacle of two martial arts masters about to clash took the utmost precedence. It was almost like a free King of Fighters event.
"Kim Kaphwan!" Jhun called his name, no shortage of brazenness in his tone. He was completely serious: not a book or reading spectacles to be found. Only Athena herself might have swayed his focus from his heated rival...
Kim shared the same disposition, taking a mighty stance on the adjacent side of the street, his eyes locked onto the white-haired man's. "Jhun."
Jhun spoke. "It's occurred to me that my disciples have left me."
"Mine too." Kim responded.
"Joined up with that vile Mr. Big."
"Mine too."
Jhun scowled as he thrust an accusatory finger. "YOU are the cause of this, Kim Kaphwan! This is all your fault!"
Kim took a threatening step forward; he did NOT like being convicted like that. "You've got some nerve accusing me! What's your justification?"
Jhun took an equal step forward. "They used to be YOUR men, Kim. Just as Raiden and Hwa Jai became your men. Now where are they all? In Big's clutches! Your teachings were such a failure, you REGRESSED them back to seeking out a life of crime! You... you... you make Korea sick!"
The metaphorical vein in Kim's head at last burst. "That... is... IT! Jhun Hoon, I have had it with your bullcrap! I've listened to it for the few days we've spent here, and I'll hear no more! NO MORE!"
"Then perhaps..." Jhun's fists clenched, as his offensive leg raised high. "...We should settle this with our feet."
"That's fine with me!" Kim shared the desire for battle. "I've already beaten you before. And when I leave you bloody on the pavement here, that'll be the last time I ever see or talk to you. You hear me? This friendship is OVER!"
Jhun grimaced... but fury filled his eyes a moment later. "So be it! LET'S RUMBLE!"
The people appreciated that just fine: a cacophony of cheers and applause rocked the street, as they were all pretty much lost on the context of this confrontation: they were just happy to see some fighting among well-established names.
Neither of them showed hesitation in their charge, as both had two days' worth of pent-up fury to unleash towards each other. Friends, rivals, sworn enemies... whatever they were labeled: this would be the ultimate outlet for them.
"ACHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kim kia'd as he went airborne into a massive flying back kick; Jhun rolled under it, and Kim soared over his head, also landing into a barrel roll.
The two spun and faced each other again; Kim threw a hard body kick, which Jhun absorbed by dipping his shoulder, and Kim spun around with a whipping hook kick.
...Jhun intercepted the kick with his OWN kick, and it it became a rock-paper-scissors match to see whose strike would prevail. Being the one to counter, Jhun's kick proved the winner, as he parried Kim's leg and threw his brown-haired rival off balance.
Jhun took a lunging step, pushing off, going slightly airborne: a leaping thrust kick to the chest sent Kim backwards and on his butt, skidding until he was forced to roll backwards for recovery.
Jhun kept coming forward. He leaped high, going into a somersault: his heel was his lance, as he aimed his momentum at Kim's dome and tried to crash down on him. Kim rolled to the side, and Jhun's foot connected with the asphalt; good thing they'd trained extensively in breaking things, so Jhun was unharmed.
Kim unleashed a picture-perfect backflip: his feet cutting a precise arc, as they smashed into Jhun's chin simultaneously, and the man's head went backwards. Kim stuck the landing and, back on his feet, followed up.
"ACHOOO!" a massive spinning back kick crashed into Jhun's stomach, and his body went back the other way, folding inwards.
Jhun collapsed to his knees, eyes wincing in pain... but they opened, and a fierce spirit shone. He took advantage of his downed state and transitioned into a sweep kick, swinging his left foot in a wide radius, and taking Kim's feet out. The Korean landed, butt-first, right next to him, and they shared a symmetrical moment on the ground... as well as the backwards roll that brought them back up.
"Hyah!" Jhun kicked his lower knee; Kim checked the kick, and countered with a left kick to the ribs. Jhun tensed up, but he rolled with the strike and countered with a spinning kick to the head. Kim swayed left to dodge it, and he too spun, downwards, into a reverse sweep kick. Jhun backflipped well to dodge it, and he returned to stance... his personal, deadly stance: one leg elevated, the foot dangling like a hook, inviting prey to come forth...
Kim circled to the left and tried to close in: Jhun was ready for him.
SWOOOSH! Kim grunted as he felt his gi split, horizontally... Jhun's foot had cut a wide berth, with slashing chi. and Kim was lucky to still have his innards.
So distracted by his torn shirt, Jhun's lips crept into a grin as he lifted his leg high... so high, his foot was facing completely north... and he brought his heel down on Kim's head.
KAPOW! Kim felt the world around him scramble, as cymbals burst in his brain... the next thing he felt was a solid foundation underneath him, and his hands sting under the scrape of the concrete.
He blinked. Once. Twice. Three time... he shook his head side to side, and the world around him returned to normal. He looked up: Jhun's foot was raised once again, preparing to rain down...
"ACHOO!" Kim spun around on the ground, thrusting his leg with a hard kick, aimed directly at Jhun's stationary ankle; the white-haired man couldn't possibly block it, and his one planted foot was taken out. He went a complete 360 before landing, chin-first, on the ground... right next to Kim, once again.
The two shared a second moment of parallel, as they both struggled back to their feet... much more difficult than the first time...
The two returned to range, mouths heaving, bodies slightly labored... but their eyes never lost their fury, their disdain for each other...
"This has been a long time coming, Jhun..." Kim spat. "You've always been jealous of me. You've always felt inadequate to my accolades, and those emotions brewed into a nasty, bubbling envy... all this time, PRETENDING to be my friend, just so you could strike me down. Right?"
"Maybe you ARE right." Jhun yelled back. "Maybe, at some point, I felt an attachment to you... but maybe deep down, I felt a desire to expose you, Korea's golden boy, for the fraud you are. To bring people to light, and show the truth, that you're not the pious hero everyone thinks you are! Chang, Choi, Hwa Jai, Raiden... you failed all of them! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO BE CALLED A HERO!"
They both ran at each other, screaming, without shape, form, substance... just pure, chaotic rage, enough to blind them... their aggressive instincs compelled them towards each other, to delivery every ounce of the hatred they bore into their knockout blows...
"MASTERS! PLEASE STOP!"
The strange voice momentarily distracted them, but their attacks had already been unleashed... caught between a strange limbo of attacking and stopping, they lost some of their power. This allowed the intruder to jump between them, and put them both down.
"Hyah!" a female voice kiai'd, as Kim's roundhouse kick suddenly found itself parried by a foot, attached to a white and blue gi. He peered his eyes just enough to see a short black hairstyle, with white streaks... before the stranger dipped low and spun around with an ankle-slicing sweep kick that dropped Kim on his butt.
Jhun was the next to go, as the stranger had caught his foot with her bare hand. Before he could make out anything further about her, she planted a short kick into his stomach, bestowing the same fate to him that Kim had recieved.
Now both on their backsides, winded, sanity restored, they both looked up... Kim's face lit up with surprise when he saw who it was.
"Y-you're... Chae Lim!"
The young lady ran a hand through her black-and-white hair, before giving him a powerful and traditional, torso-bending bow. "Master Kim! It's an honor to see you again. You as well, Master Jhun."
The pretty young woman in question was, in fact, a black belt in her own right: earned under none other than Kim Kaphwan. So to see her here, now, breaking them up, Jhun made a conclusion.
"You must be here to knock some sense into that bonehead sensei of yours. Did you know he's led four, and I mean FOUR, of his old disciples to a life of cr-"
"I am here on behalf of the World Taekwondo Federation." Chae Lim brashly interrupted him. "Master Gang-il summons you. He demands your presence in Seoul immediately!"
"M-me?" Kim questioned.
"BOTH of you." Chae Lim made explicitly clear with her tone. "He's summoned you for a sentencing."
That sent them both into a tizzt. "A...A..A... A SENTENCING?!"
The next response they got: a pair of tickets, slapping them in the face.
"I suggest you don't drag your feet, masters. Master Gang-il is very impatient."
With one last bow, Chae Lim tightened her black belt and took her leave, following the rest of the dispersing crowd, away from the action which had thoroughly been shut down.
"W-wait!" Kim called out. "What are you gonna do?"
Chae Lim stopped, turned around... a smile on her face. "I'm gonna go watch the tournament."
Left sitting there, confused, tickets in hand, their unattended minds were left to go back to the only thing they had left: aggression.
The two looked at each other, no affection in their eyes.
"Don't think this is over, Kim. And just so you know, I'll testify against you to the deepest mud!"
Kim sneered. "I've just about had it with your clean hands act, Jhun. Chang and Choi were YOUR responsibility. Whether they were mine first or not, you took them upon yourself. I'll be sure to include that in MY testimony."
Jhun's fists clenched. "Then may the better master... uhhh... get the lighter sentence."
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, 11 HOURS LATER...
"ALRIGHT! This meeting is now in session!"
Master Gang-il could be a fun-loving guy when he wanted to be (especially with the ladies), but in the meeting boardroom and council chambers of the World Taekwondo Federation, he was all business. Dressed in a sharp black suit, spectacles donning his face, he looked prepared to be judge, jury... and executioner.
.. the only thing out of place was the attractive black haired woman standing suffocatingly to his right. She certainly didn't dress like a secretary...and she seemed to be getting closer and closer to him with each second.
"Kim Kaphwan! Jhun Hoon!" his barking authority echoed in the confines. "Stand up!"
They knew better than to rekindle their hatred and violate the sanctity of this place, and especially dishonor their master...so, without one looking at the other, both stood and bowed.
He tilted his glasses, eyeing them both. The woman was now against him, rubbing her chest up and down his arm, but he extended it to keep her at bay.
"You stand accused of disgracing the HONOR, the TRADITIONS, and the VALUES- L-Luong sweetie, Daddy G's on official business here... I'll give you a massage later...THE VALUES we strive to pass with the culture of Taekwondo. How do you plead?"
They immediately burst into a barely coherent blather.
"Jhun stole my old disciples and tried to use them-"
"Kim abandoned them in their time of need and threw in his lot with Geese's old-"
"I did the best I could with them, but Jhun wouldn't-"
"They all left and joined up with Big because Kim is a terrible-"
"Jhun is a terrible-"
"ORDER! RIGHT NOW!"
The booming authority of Gang-il's voice snapped them back into submission, as they stood firm and stiff, eyes only forward.
Gang-il removed his glasses, placing them on the desk. "You two... are pious idiots."
"M-master?!" their head did a double take so fast, their necks nearly snapped.
"I SAID ORDER! I'M TALKING!"
Gang-il leaned back, in his chair, bringing a hand to the bridge between his eyes. A tired sigh rang out... the black-haired woman sensed his discomfort, and moved behind him to start massaging his shoulders.
"...May Lee has told me everything."
They wanted to open their mouths again; May Lee?! She'd been... spying on them?! But they knew better than to defy Gang-il's demand for order.
"You may defend yourselves by saying it's her word over yours... but I've known May Lee to be an honest girl, not a mineral of treachery in her body. Just as I've known you two, for a very long time... and I believe every word she says."
Kim and Jhun felt their bodies start to loosen up... almost like a... melting... sinking sensation. Like their knees were slowly turning to a gelatinous form, dragging their bodies down towards the floor... remorsefully.
Gang-il leaned back over, focusing intently on the two. "You two have had this problem as long as I've known you. Friends. Rivals. Opponents. But I never thought I'd see the day your competitive nature turned brother against brother."
Sinking more...
"As prominent figures in the World Taekwondo Federation, your job is to guide those below you, not as experienced, and show them the path to total discipline, mental and physical health, a sound and honorable spirit. Instead, I see masters at war with each other, over arrogant, vain, self-gratifying merits. Since when is this about who's the "best"? You should be standing hand in hand, guiding each other and your youngers, towards the path to true martial arts discipline!"
Lower...
"And as for those criminals- STAND UP I'M TALKING!"
Jhun and Kim hadn't even realized, they'd sank to the floor, until Gang-il's bark shot them back up.
"You two were so addled by your quest for personal glory, to overcome each other, that you didn't ONCE think of teamwork! TEAMWORK! K!"
Kim and Jhun, for the first time in this court proceeding... looked at each other. And perhaps, for the first time since this week started... there was no hatred in their eyes. The bravado and aggression was now replaced with fatigue, self-awareness... guilt.
"Had you put aside your differences and combined your philosophies... maybe Chang, Choi, Hwa Jai and Raiden would have been led on the right path. Instead, you were too overbearing. The vanity in your souls led you to push them too far... until they regressed backwards."
...It was funny how one looked back themselves in a cooldown period, and all the "shoulds" and "coulds" came flooding in tenfold. They were so... so CONVINCED of themselves... yet here they were, standing before Master Gang-il, humbled. His words made more sense than anything in the world, which led to the question... why couldn't they just do that? Hindsight was a bitch, as always.
"APPROACH THE PODIUM!"
Their minds were forced into suspension. Instinct... follow master's orders. Their feet were urged forward, until the two of them stood, in tandem, directly in front of the towering podium of Gang-il.
He leaned forward, gavel in hand. "I have made my decision! You two are found guilty of disgracing Taekwondo, leading lost souls astray, and generally being glory-hogging idiots. BY THE POWER VESTED IN ME- h..h-heeheeheeheeheehee L-L-Luong, that tickles... BY THE POWER VESTED IN ME, YOU TWO ARE SUSPENDED FOR SIX MONTHS! RELINQUISH YOUR BELTS!"
Gang-il was able to push the aforementioned lady, who was chewing on his earlobe, away long enough to maintain an intimidating gaze, as Kim and Jhun reached down, undid the proud black belts that adorned their waists... Luong sauntered over to them to collect them, leaning over quite unnecessarily in front of them... until her face seemed just inches apart from theirs. Red immediately flushed to their cheeks, and their well-trained eyes had to fight not to stare at the moderate underboob revealed by the transparent triangle window in her ridiculously exotic fighting uniform.
She gave them a parting gift: a sexy little wink, as she spun around and strutted back to Gang-il's side... wiggling her brown-spandex-clad ass the entire way.
Gang-il smashed the gavel on the wooden surface, snapping the two of them out of their trance. "THIS MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED! I hope you two take this time to reflect on yourselves, and strive to put your mindset in a healthier place. Now... d-did you bring the lo- I forgot to bring the lotion...!"
Since Gang-il was no longer focused on them, the entirety of his attention turned to the bodacious babe next to him, Kim and Jhun took that as authorization to dismiss... and they did so.
As the day turned to evening in Seoul, Jhun and Kim walked out of the main building, two entirely changed men. Once the standing pillars of pride and determination... they now hobbled as humbled men, stripped and debased.
The roaring, competitive flames that burned within them were effectively bedded. Before now, the two could only look at each other as enemies: a goal to traverse, to rise above... but now, here they stood, as equals... equals in failure.
The two eventually found a bench, where, without a word shared... they slumped. Bodies leaning forward, heads hanging... not an ounce of effort for the proud posture they once carried.
After nearly two minutes of silence, Kim was the first to speak. "...How do you think they're doing right now?"
Jhun seemed to know what Kim was talking about. "They're probably running around with Big, falling for his gross charisma."
"May Lee?"
"...Just leave her be. She doesn't deserve any contempt for doing what she felt was right. In fact... we probably have her to thank."
"Thank?" Kim finally poked his head up.
Jhun followed suit, and the two looked into each other's eyes. "If it weren't for her, you and I might have truly been destroyed."
Kim finally leaned back up, his body against the back of the bench, as he folded his arms... a huge sigh exhaled. "Ah, Jhun... you're my friend, always. Things may get intense between us at times... but at the end of the day, we should never forget what really matters."
Jhun followed suit once more, bringing his back to rest against the bench, folding his own arms. "I think we should get out of the disciple business. It's not healthy for us."
"Agreed." Kim nodded. "If ever we enter King of Fighters again... it should be with well-known, well-respected allies."
"...I wouldn't mind being on a team with Luong."
"Well, Luong would probably only team up with Gang-il, which leaves but one open slot..."
...Kim's eyes cut sharply to Jhun.
...Jhun's eyes cut sharply to Kim.
"...Luong was looking at ME when she took our belts."
"Are you blind?! She winked at me!"
"Did you notice that way she wiggled her backside walking away? Her hip was popping more to the left, in MY direction!"
"OH THAT'S IT! BRING IT ON!"
And thus, the rivalry was once more rekindled, not over the teaching methods of straying criminals... but over the piece of booty they seemed to be gradually forgetting was already seeing their master.
Well, this was stupid.
NEXT CHAPTER: More side adventures! Stay tuned, because this is building up to a HUGE announcement of tournament-changing proportions. I mean... it's big. Holy crap, it's big. Stay tuned!
