Chapter 1: Return of the Wolf / Unexpected Allies
10 Months have passes since the last King of Fighters Tournament
The busy streets of South Town rumble with the sound of daily activity muffled with those of crime and violence. The town was barely livable after Geese was defeated. Who could have thought the bad guy was actually keeping the place together? But that was beside the point. Geese was a monster and most of the citizens lived in poverty. The town would just have to get by with what little law enforcement they had left.
"Master Jubei!" Mai called running up the steps of the dojo.
"Well hello Mai. You're looking as top heavy as ever," smiled the old timer.
"Knock it off you pervert. Where's Andy? I heard he was coming back today."
"Yes he's up in the forest practicing," and before Jubei got another glance at the well figured Shiranui ninja took off, sprinting towards her love.
"Kachou Sen!"
"Huh?" Andy reels as a flurry of fans fly towards his direction. He has the inexplicable feeling of de ja vu but recurring events were not on his priority list.
"Why you…" Mai shouts as she launches a few punches in his direction. Each of them were easily deflected by her opponent and soon enough her hands were caught and the attack stopped.
"What's wrong Mai?"
"What's wrong? WHAT'S WRONG!" She shouted at him, tears began filling her eyes. "You leave for almost a year without saying a word and then you ask me what's wrong."
"I'm sorry… Mai. It's just –"
"I don't want to hear it Andy. It's obvious that you hate my guts enough to leave without saying anything – "
"That's not true."
"Then why are you here?"
Andy wanted to say that he was here to see her but that was a lie. She'd probably catch it the second he finished his sentence. He didn't really know what else he could do to calm her down.
"Today is the day…" He calmly replied.
Mai pulled back. The seriousness in her fiancé's eyes told no lies. He dropped her hands from his grip and turned away from the ninja girl. Neither of them had any words to follow up the silence. The just stood their calmly thinking the thoughts that plagued their minds for the past months.
Andy stood in the cemetery. Alone. Something that hasn't happened since the day first occurred.
"I'm sorry father. Terry isn't going to be here today," Andy said while placing the flowers he brought right in front of his father's memorial. Just before he set them down, he caught something in the corner of his eye.
"What's this?" He pondered while looking at another set of flowers placed off to the side of his father's grave.
Someone else was here before me… Could it be?!
With that, Andy took off running into the heart of South Town.
Dear Officer Mary,
Enclosed are the detailed particulars of your assignment. It seems that King of Fighters 2000 will be taking place despite the events of last year. Your mission is to continue to observe N.E.S.T.S. and prevent any actions taken place like that of the previous year. Good luck Mary.
Mary sighed at the sight of the email. The lengthy attachment was enough reading to keep her busy for the rest of the day but that's what she feared most. She hasn't taken any big assignments like these in a long time and this one would definitely demand all of her time instead of her own personal mission.
She pulled out Terry's glove from her pocket. It had been like a piece of jewelry to her. She's never lost sight of it since that day and would continue to protect it until its owner comes back for it.
With that, she revved up her engine and took off into South Town.
"Bogard."
"Who's there?"
A man approached from the shadows, dressed in black and not a sign of joking written anywhere on his body.
"It would be smart for you not to get involved this year," the man stated.
"And why is that…?" Bogard replied.
Silence.
The crowd on the street drowned out any movement in the slums. Something wasn't right.
Just then, the man lunged forward, looking for a fight. Bogard's single gloved fist came crashing into the ground releasing a wave of ki energy and smashing his adversary through a building and out the other side.
"Look's like it's going to be another exciting year," he cheerfully stated clutching the invitation he just received in his hand and went for his defeated opponent.
"Are you sure it's Terry?" Joe asked his long haired friend. The great kickboxing legend Joe Higashi was taking time out of his busy schedule (which mostly includes drinking and partying) to look for their lost comrade.
"I can sense it Joe. He's here somewhere."
In the distance, another blonde haired individual stops her motorcycle in front of the two fighters. She quickly identifies them as her companions hops off to confront the two.
"Andy! Joe! What are you guys doing around here?"
"I found out due to my intellectual prowess that T – " and before Joe could finish his boasting, a man clad in black comes crashing through a nearby wall.
"What the?" All three ask. The crowd began to swarm the scene making matters worse to identify what in the world was going on.
"Excuse me, I'll just get that," called a man from the center of the scene. With the fallen opponent easily in hand, he begins to move through the crowd and onto some familiar faces.
"TERRY!" Shouted Andy. The older Bogard brother was looking as fit as ever. His clothes hadn't changed a bit minus the fact that he was missing a certain left glove.
The group begins to swarm Terry; each wanting to ask a million questions but it was Terry who first broke the silence.
"Do you know who this is Mary?" Terry ponders while dumping the unconscious body onto the ground. Mary looks at him with a puzzled expression hoping to identify the type of clothes he wore or even a tattoo affiliation.
"No… I have no clue."
"What if I tossed this into the mix?" Added Terry showing his blonde companion the letter he received.
"This is for King of Fighters. Did he give this to you?"
"No. But he was there when I picked it up."
"I smell trouble," Joe pointed out. Stating the obvious was his only high mark of intelligence.
"Then I guess it's of to King of Fighters for us then," Terry cheerfully proclaimed.
"What? What a second!" Pleaded Mary, "I don't want you guys getting involved in this sort of thing. It's too dangerous."
"Danger. Forget about it, we eat, breathe, and drink danger!" Joe added hoping to rally his troops.
"Don't worry about us. We'll do whatever we can to help you out," Terry reassured. Andy also gave an agreeing nod and it looks like they were going to go at it yet again.
"Is it going to be the 4 person rotation this year again?" Joe asked with a smirk forming on his face.
"Yea… Why – ?" And before Terry could finish his though he also grew a smirk while looking at his brother who now formed a huge shocking expression across his face.
"Oh no! MAI!" And shouted thinking about the torment he would now be going through after this decision. Joe begins to snicker even more and before Andy could even think of a rational way to handle the situation, Joe was taking off.
"I'll break the news to Mai for you Andy. You better stay and hang out with your brother!"
"JOE DON'T!" Andy shouted. His growing concern for his current female situation began showing even more across his brow as he gave chase to his fleeing friend.
Finally, away from prying eyes, it was just Terry and Mary. She was so glad to see him after all these months. There was no more need to feel teary-eyed and sad during those long South Town nights. She wanted to show him how much she'd missed him but she didn't know how to express it.
*SMACK*
"Ow! What did you do that for?" Terry asked while rubbing his shoulder. Apparently Mary wasn't ready to open herself up just yet. It might be better to vent off some anger first.
"You decide to play hero in the sewer and then I don't hear from you for months!" She stated with a growing vein sprouting from her forehead. "What kind of guy are you anyways?!"
Terry looked at her puzzled for a second but then decided to be sincere with her. He knew it must have been hard to put that kind of weight on everyone, making them think he vanished or worse off, dead. But his sincerity only lasted a few seconds. It was time to break in the friendship they had and push it to new found limits.
"Geese. I didn't think you'd be pining over me for that long. Aren't there any decent guys left in South Town?"
That statement cause Blue Mary to start looking more like Red Mary. Every vessel in her face must have sprouted to their full capacity. She never expected Terry to be that forward with her especially so soon. Before she even has a chance to counter that statement, her favorite Bogard brother was already down the road walking towards the path of destruction his pals previously made.
"Hey wait up!" Mary shouted while hoping on her motorcycle. Terry stopped in his tracks, turned his head, and tipped his cap giving his famous Terry Bogard smile that almost melted her heart like it did the first time they met.
"AGAIN!" Takuma shouted. The dojo where the famous Kyokugen Karate was practiced was closed today. Inside where the private lessons for Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia. They've been sparring for nearly four hours non stop and both were plastered on the mat.
"Geese… Dad… Give us… A break…" Ryo pleaded. The most exercise he was getting now was his lungs inhaling and exhaling air.
"Yea master…" Robert agreed.
"You want a break. How about one in your neck?!" Takuma responded. The brought both students back on their feet but not as fast as Takuma would have liked. They may have respected him but as far as a sensei went, he was a real hard ass.
Ryo stood up shaking off any excess sweat he could without sparing much needed energy that would keep him on his feet. Robert didn't even want to think about the stench he'd probably accumulated and what kind of toxic fumes his gi was in possession of.
"Ready?" Takuma proclaimed.
Ryo broke into his Kyokugen stance only now it looked like a beat up break dancer looking for a hug. On the opposite end, Robert wasn't fairing as well either. He lunged back and forth like a zombie and his legs seemed to twitch instead of glide across the mat.
"FI –"
"FORGET IT!" Shouts Yuri. Takuma turns around a bit shocked as do his two students but they look a little more relieved than surprised.
"What's the matter Yuri?" Takuma calmly asks making a big switch from serious to serene.
Yuri dumps the huge tree log she had strapped around her shoulders right onto the mat not caring for what kind of damage it could cause. She spent the good part of her morning walking up a mountain with that thing on her back as part of her training but the only muscle it really exercised was her mouth.
"I'm sick of this! Every time King of Fighters rolls around, you become Sensei Mc-Tightwad!"
"Yur –"
"I'm not finished! You are a great father but an annoying master! I can't compete with balancing you out as a father and an instructor. I quit!"
"But Yuri –"
"No discussion. You, Ryo, and Robert are enough to represent Kyokugen Karate. I'm going off on my own!"
That one caught the men off guard. Takuma couldn't think of anything to convince his daughter of his teaching ways so Ryo stepped in while his dad was formulating another strategy.
"Yuri… King of Fighters is another 4 person rotation this year. We need you on our team," Ryo asked with what little breath he had.
"Ryo, I'm not a child anymore. It's time I went off on my own and developed a fighting style my way. I don't need you guys watching after me anymore."
"But what about King of Fighters? We can't fight with only three guys…" Robert added.
Yuri looked kind of puzzled and was real tempted to blow up and say Well that's not my problem now is it? but she felt more compassion for her brother and his team since he was always so good at taking care of her.
"Don't worry Ryo. I'll find someone strong enough to take my place. You just wait here and I'll send your new partner up as soon as possible," Yuri nicely stated. She was just about to exit the dojo when she could hear the faint conversation of her brother and Robert tickling her ear.
"I can't believe this. I don't know how we can replace Yuri," Ryo pondered.
"That's easy, just get a parrot. Same buck, different dime…" Robert sourly commented still feeling bad over the break up. Before he could finish the snickering, Yuri's tiny shoe came colliding with Robert's nose leaving a nice read mark.
"OW!" Robert shouted. He looked at Yuri with his one open eye and can see her taunting him by pulling her eyelid and waving her tongue. They all watched as Yuri left the dojo and leaving them with their thoughts about what else could make this day even more exciting.
South Town was just about to fall victim to yet another night and the random hoodlums would begin emerging in no time. All was quite in the bar called 'Illusion' owned by the famous female fighter King. She was taking care of some minor cleaning that was usually done before the bar opened. She only had a hand full of minutes before it did and soon enough her night would get busy.
Suddenly, the door slammed open. King was sure she locked it but that could wait until later, she had to deal with her rude intruder that decided to make a perfectly good night start out sour.
"Hey you. I don't know what business you have here but I don't like rude patrons!" King was having a weird feeling of de ja vu but kicked it aside once she recognized her door's assailant.
"Yuri Sakazaki… Why you –"
"I'm sorry king but I really need a huge favor!"
King lets her adrenalin fizzle out and offers Yuri a seat. King pours her some water because she knows how Ryo would feel if his little sister started consuming alcohol regardless of the age.
"I'll make this quick because I have a train to catch but I need you to join my brother's team!"
King couldn't sit down after hearing that. "Wha – Wait a second!"
"I've already talked to them about it and I've already decided on making my own team. It's just that Ryo needs a fourth person on his team and you're the only person he would trust with this sort of thing."
That almost made King want to blush. Did he really think of me like that? Her inner voice pondered but she had to put her side thoughts away and concentrate and the conversation at hand.
"I… I…" King found herself stuttering like a school girl with a crush. Yuri took notice of this and decided to push her buttons a little bit.
"It sounds like your heart is saying yes…"
"That's besides the point!" King replied trying to regain some of her manner.
"Com'on King… How many opportunities will you have like this?" Yuri's constant persistence looks to only make her blonde haired companion more frustrated but hopefully it was working the charm that would make her decision.
"Ughf! Alright! I'll join up with your brother!"
"Don't you mean the Kyokugen team?" Yuri smirked. This time, King actually let out a little blush but thought it best to finish the conversation instead of playing cat and mouse with Yuri.
"Well, thanks for helping me out King! I'll see you at the tournament!" And with that, the young Sakazaki took off.
"Wait! Don't you want to hang…? Oy, this girl moves like the breeze," and King shuffled the thoughts of the past few minutes and concentrated on tonight's business.
Another day breaks in the Sakazaki house. Yuri is no where in sight and the two Sakazaki men are left to prepare breakfast for themselves.
On the front porch there is a newspaper sitting on the deck. Ryo walks over and finds it kind of strange since they didn't have a subscription. The front headline is the kicker to begin his day.
"Former King of Fighter Champion Terry Bogard returns to South Town to defend title…" Ryo steps back. He had heard that Terry was lost in the sewer explosion after the final match but this was making things interesting.
"What's the good word Ryo…" Takuma asked while stretching his muscles.
"Well –"
"WE'RE SCREWED!" Robert shouted. He barges into the Sakazaki house full of steam and worry.
"What's the matter with you Robert?" Ryo asks his friend while pushing him aside. He strolls all the way to the back of the house near the backyard and right by the dojo to further prove his statement.
"Didn't you here me, W – E A – R – E SCREWED!" Robert stated. "I'm talking phillip's head!"
"Yea, the thing about Terry Bogard. I heard all about it."
"Nooooooooooo… Think about OUR situation!"
"You mean Yuri. Don't worry about it, she's a tough kid. And we'll be fine without her."
"Did you read today's paper or did you just skip to the comics?!"
Now Ryo was getting a little peeved. "Alright Robert! Out with it!"
"Look!" Robert shouted while shoving today's paper into Ryo's face not giving any consideration to how easy it would have been just to tell him the page number since he was also holding a copy.
Instead of seeing some flashy headline like the return of Rugal or Orochi Iori running a rampage, his eyes are locked on a small insignificant article in the bottom article of the Sports section.
Local Bar Owner King Has Joined the Kyokugen Karate Team in This Year's King of Fighter's Tournament.
"What…?" Ryo says with a defiant sigh.
"I know, isn't it horrible?!" Robert replied.
"No, it's not that. It's just that I would have thought she would have teamed up with Yuri,"
"Look pal. Just because your girlfriend gets to be on our team doesn't give you the right to play it all cool tough guy!"
"I'm not playing around. I'm serious. I'm worried about Yuri. You should try it sometime and maybe she'll think of taking you back."
Robert tried thinking of a sly comeback but his mind was still skipping a thought or two after yesterday's intense training.
"This is all your fault. You set this up so you could be closer to King and you could split me and Yuri apart."
"I had nothing to do with that. In fact, I hear it was a certain someone's fault for asking a waitress for a telephone number so he could give her a special internship."
"Why you?!" Robert exclaimed as he was ready to throw a punch.
"Besides, I just heard about this through you. How could I have set you up?"
Robert calmed down a bit. Maybe there was something he could say to salvage his honor while humiliating his friend at the same time. Nothing came to mind.
"That's it. We're going to rumble!"
"Hold it Robert! Not in the – " but before Ryo could plead with his friend not to destroy his house, the fight had begun.
"Sorya!" Robert yelled jump starting the bout quickly executing his favorite back flip kick. It was rendered in effective since the rules of the street didn't apply to the rules of the house. Ryo quickly dived through the open back sliding door and wound up in their backyard with Robert still reeling from his missed attack.
"You can't hide from me Sakazaki. I'm going to plant my foot so far up your ass that you'll be forced to wear my shoes for the tournament!"
"Robert wait!"
"Ryu Geki Ken!"
The fireball had awesome trajectory and with the added adrenaline of Robert, it traveled a lot faster that expected. Luckily enough, Ryo had practiced dodging his friends projectile attack and easily sway to the side hoping to catch Robert off guard and land some offense of his own.
"THAT'S ENOUGH!"
Ryo stopped his almost started Kohou uppercut and Robert left his foot hanging inches from Ryo's face.
"Sir!" They both replied while getting into the tradition respectful position.
"You guys are still children at heart. You never grow up. Put your squabble aside, Ryo, you have a guest."
"Hey Ryo!" King waved.
"King?!" Ryo coughed after breaking into a more relaxed position. "When did you get here?"
"Just about the time you were mentioning Robert's special internship."
"Oh no, not you too!" Robert collapsed clutching his hand on his head. "Why does this only happen to me?"
"I just heard the news a few minutes ago… How did it happen?" Ryo asked.
Robert got up, dusting himself and his $800 suit hoping the grass stains weren't permanent.
"Yuri came by last night and practically begged me to do it," King replied.
"Oh geese. I didn't expect her to go that far. I wouldn't want you to go through with this if you were kind of forced to."
"Oh no! That's ok!" King defended herself rather quickly. Robert caught a quick glimpse of her actions and decided if she was going to be a part of the Kyokugen team, she'd have to suffer with his wit.
"It's about time you and Ryo finally hooked up. I'm mean you've been flirting around it for years. I remember a time when King would dance just hearing the name Ryo Sakazaki. Could you imagine that Ryo? King? Dancing? It's too – OOF!" Robert spits as he catches an elbow from King right in the bread basket.
"I joined because I really like the idea of fighting with another team. It'll give me a chance to hone my skills fighting at a different level with a different set of teammates."
"Yea I'm sure that's what Ryo looks for in a woman – OOF!" Another remark and another elbow to the mid section.
"I think this will be an exceptionally fun tournament," King happily replied.
"Yea, it'll just be enchanting…" Robert snarled and just as King's repetitive elbow attack was about to commence, Robert easily caught it and tossed her hand away.
"If you want to be on our team you're going to have to prove your strength. Kyokugen is the strongest martial arts in the world and if you think your strong enough you'll have to beat me right here and now!"
"Wait Robert. She did that last year– "
"NEVERMIND! This time is different," Robert jumped back and assumed his fighting stance.
"This should be fun," King proclaimed as she raised her hands up in the traditional kick boxer's stance.
"Alright. A fight is the perfect start for a morning of training," Takuma added.
"But father…" And before Ryo could say another word, the fight had begun.
King stared down at Robert. He was exhausted and his breathing was as loud as car horns. She couldn't really talk though, she was as beat up as jailbirds after a soccer riot.
"Father… They've gone on for over twenty minutes, I think that's enough."
"Wait Ryo. The longer they battle, the more they can improve. One can only hone his fighting skills at the peak of the battle when it matters most."
Ryo was getting sick of all of his dad's cheesy Kung Fu movie type answers. But it was that kind of training that made him the man he was today and looking back on it, it didn't seem all that awful.
Robert could see King preparing for one final attack. A kick boxer was easy to figure out since they mostly rely on their feet to do the dirty work. Since they also had a balance issue, there isn't much that he can't prepare for when fighting one.
"Surprise Rose!" King leaped as her body almost came crashing to the top portion of the dojo. Robert could see this was his chance.
"Sorya!"
Robert's favorite air defense attack was sure to end the match. That's what his brain thought anyways before his mouth was stuffed with King's work shoe. He planned is attack way to high and misjudged King's speed. He luckily caught King's back with the meat of his foot, not delivering the intended power of the attack but effective nonetheless.
Both came crashing to the mat with a sick thud. King tried to get up but her arms weren't listening. Robert was also singing the same song as his body just wanted to lay on the mat and heal.
"I think that's enough for today," Takuma said declaring the match over. A draw definitely sounded good in both fighter's minds than victory.
Ryo ran to King, seeing she was struggling to get him. He carried her over to the bench and let her rest there for a moment.
"You must… Have been… A hell of a bouncer…" Robert added. He was also aided by Ryo and sat down in the bench next to the exhausted King.
"I think our team just got a little stronger Ryo," Takuma nodded to his son. "Isn't that right Robert."
"Yea… I'd say stronger. But I bet Ryo's thinking it got a whole lot sexier," Robert implied with a snicker.
"What?!" Ryo pulled back. He didn't have anything to say to that but thankfully King was too concerned with regaining stability she would have missed his blush.
King finally stood up and collected herself. She'd definitely need a day's rest after that bought.
"So King. Now that you are part of the Kyokugen Team I trust you know what is expected of you," Takuma stated with pride.
"Yes sir. I won't to anything to dishonor the name Kyokugen."
"Good. Com'on Ryo. Prepare the guest bed. From now until the tournament, King will be staying with us!"
"WHAT?!" Ryo said with a flabbergasted look on his face. There was no use hiding the blush now but he couldn't help but notice King had one of her own.
Before anyone could control the situation, a fairly odd looking girl steps into the dojo with a shiny new camera in hand.
"Hello! I'm Ran Hibiki. I'm here as a part of the King of Fighter's Newsletter to take a picture of this years Kyokugen Team."
"Excellent," Takuma replied. "We're all here! And we're going to show the real power of Kyokugen Karate!"
Robert and King tidied themselves up for the photo. Boy was this a perfect time they both thought. Takuma stood in the center with Robert to his immediate left and Ryo to his immediate right. King stood beside Ryo feeling the internal joy that her body could not show. Ryo could feel his father awaiting to wrap his arms around his son and kind of felt good that his dad was going to show a bit of affection for the photo.
No such luck however.
"Cheese!" Ran stated just as she took the photo. Unfortunately for Ryo, his father didn't wrap his arm around him but pushed him aside. Ryo was a bit dumbfounded at the action but then he noticed where he landed.
Right next to King with his arm around her shoulders. The photo would probably be plastered on the weekly King of Fighters Newsletter and there isn't much he could do about it now. This was going to be an interesting tournament.
(Author Notes: Okay, this got the story started. Most of the story actually happened in the KOF series with some slight alterations by me. I used this just in case some people didn't know what happened between KOF '99 and KOF '00. From here on out, this will be my story with a interludes of the actual story. Please enjoy this chapter and hopefully Chapter 2 will be up before Friday.)
Thanks to KOF Online for the information between KOF '99 and KOF '00.
