Nothing to Lose
By RichieD.
(A/N: Hmm, three reviews? Eh I guess it better then nothing; at least I know some people are reading my stories to which I thank them for it. Mind you I don't write just for recognition, just to vent out my creative juices for awhile. More so if I can't draw it out (though am talking classes for that: ) ). Oh well, disclaimer time! You all know Street Fighter, they belong to Capcom and over here is it's longtime rival King of Fighters. They're part of the revival down here that is SNK. Now that everyone knows each other let's get on with the story.)
It was weird, almost like a wave of the ocean crashing onto the shore. But of course you had to be there to as a crowd of high schoolers in a certain park of Japan let out one collective grasp as dusts threaten to invade their eyes. Luckily they turned their heads just before it reached them though some of the crowd's vision blurred from a few little specks. Nothing that couldn't be fixed with a slight rub to the eyes. The crowd anxiously did the following and return their eyes back to the fight at hand. A few expecting the mysterious fighter to be on the ground, laying in unconcisnece-ness from the after effects of Sakura's spike attack. It was usually her finisher in a lot of her fights. And today was no different as the attack claimed most of the challengers that came for the high school fighter. And the aforementioned girl had also seen the attack in the previous fight, so of course she should've known of what was coming. That made the crowd all the eager to see what was expected of the girl's loss.
Except what they saw was something that didn't seem possible.
As once the dust cleared, there stood the girl. Her arms still in that criss-crossed guard, her face full of strain as they tried to hold up against the spike that Sakura threaten to come down on her with. Speaking of whom was also showing signs of strain trying to keep up the energy for the attack. Almost all of which she drained trying to blast Shorty with her fireball. It was a wonder both she and the girl were still standing at all. A question that floated through the minds of the on watching crowd, how could it be possible for Sakura's opponent to be still standing after all that?
That would be something burning in Sakura's head for days to come later on every time she remember it, but right now it was the farest thing from her mind since she was busy trying to break through Shorty's guard. She was tired, pretty much spent, and had nothing else to go on other then the attack she was using right now. Anything afterwards and she would be venerable, unable to go on the defensive or do anything else for that matter. In other words, she would be screwed.
A fact that was unfortunate for her but very fortunate for Shorty, who still had more then enough strength to keep going. However it was quickly draining fast against the force that pushed against her guard. Sakura combined fists inching closer and closer to her face. Of course Shorty was pushing back, hoping to throw Sakura back for a full out assault against the weaken girl. But so far all Shorty was managing to do was keep her at bay.
So it was a deadlock, a virtual test of strength. The out come unclear of was going to win. Which made viewing to the crowd even more exciting. Suddenly someone in the group of high schoolers yelled out "C'mon Sakura, you're not going to let this amateur beat you!" This was followed by a string of agreements and cheers for her. Which eventually lead to the occasional chanting of her name.
Shorty was starting to feel intimidated from the chants that were forming around her, though she didn't let up on her guard. "Well it not like am a celebrity around here. This girl probably been kicking butt for them then I like to remember." Shorty thought to herself "But whoever said I was an amateur better pray I don't run into them in school!" "Ugh!" the girl grunted as she suddenly felt more force against her. Soon realizing that Sakura seem to be gaining more strength in her strike. "The Heck…!" Shorty's mind grasped as the spike was getting dangerously close to her face. "She was barely hanging on a minute ago. How is she pushing me back all of a…Wait the crowd! She must be drawing strength from them!"
Shorty then begin to tapped into every muscle in her body to push back. More strain on her face showing that she was putting more effort into her block; she managed to get Sakura's fists away from her face. But it was sapping a lot of strength in doing so "Not good! Not good!" her mind screamed out. "Gotta put more weight into it." She shifted her right leg backward and lean forward slightly to give her better leverage. The tactic seem to be working until Shorty's foot hit some loose rocks causing her to slip forward. "NO!" she cried out but was able to catch herself with her other leg, causing her to squat. Unfortunely, Sakura's attack was still coming and her new position didn't give her much room to force her back. All she could do was guard now! Through her block she could see Sakura's face, grinning for all it was worth of her triumph to an imamate win.
"Urrgh…not… not bad kid. You got spunk and… Grrr! Defiantly the spirit…of a…street fighter." Sakura huffed as she descended her attack "Get some more training….and come find me again for…a rematch." Shorty could only grit her teeth as she tried desperately to hold her guard up. And so far she was holding it.
Holding it
Holding it
Holding it.
Broken through. (A/N: Burnout, if you're reading this. You probably hate me right now. -_-;;)
Sakura felt satisfaction and relief as her attack finally found its target. Defiantly was one of her closer victories but at least her record was safe. Yet she realized that there was a strange sensation on her stomach. A very heavy force that seem to be sinking it inward at a fast rate, then the pain came in at a very blistering rush as the air was knock out of her. Sakura mind's fizzled for a minute from overload of pain that was washing over her. Her mouth open in silent surprised from whatever hit her and her eyes wide enough to make any anime character jealous. She could feel herself thrown backwards, her feet escaping the ground for the second as if she was in slow motion. But Sakura's mind snapped to attention once she touched down, instantly doubling over and clutching her stomach. She managed to raise her head and look toward Shorty, who was on the ground trying to pull herself up with her arms. Her face in grimace of pain with each try, showing that Sakura attack had connected. "Then…what?" Sakura's mind wondered through the pain. Her mouth trying to find the words to form the question, but nothing came out but wheezing gasps.
Shorty lifted her head, her body stinging with every movement, as she looked toward her opponent. Seeing Sakura expression of surprise as she kept wheezing trying to get her air back. But not only that, she seem to be trying to say something which Shorty noticed and met Sakura with a mischievous grin. "Nice one…that last attack." She managed to say "I felt a lot of those spikes from where am from but…never with a force…like that." She wasn't lying, the pain from it was making it hard to keep talking and whatever fight she had left was completely gone. "What do you…think of my….Head Shot?" Shorty grin got wider as Sakura's eyes got bigger "Almost got a…concession from trying to…perfect it. A good depression attack, no?" Her opponent held her surprised gaze for a second before her eyes closed and…was that a chuckle? Indeed Sakura found something humorous in what was just said. The crowd was in an uproar of mummers of what just transpired while the two were talking, the noise becoming a buzz around the playground as Sakura continued to laugh. She eventually stopped and opened her eyes, a very tired look of expression as her voice came back to her and say the two little words to end everything. "Good fight."
Then the two met face to face with the ground, their brains shutting off as the pain overcame them.
………………….
"Hey, your the girl from that fight yesterday! Great moves!" A high school girl commented while she was at her locker. "Great approach with Dr. Slump bit, I love that show!" Another, obviously an otaku obsessed, fan praised the girl as she came down the hallway. "Think you can spar with me sometimes? I'll show you some real moves baby." Came a less then flattering but well intended comment from a boy as she was getting a drink from a vending machine.
It was pretty much like this all day, any kid who was witness to the last fight from yesterday was letting the newcomer know how good she did. And needless to say Shorty was enjoying every bit of it while she could. "From zero to hero" Shorty thought out loud as she half walked, half skip her way out toward the school exit feeling very refreshed in weeks. Who knew a fight was just the thing to get her out of slump since the program started? She was a little fuzzy on exactly how she got back to her "house". One minute she had blacked out from her fight, the next she was had woken up in her bed during the night. At first remembering the fight as nothing more then a dream. It wasn't until morning when the Yu's asked how her bruises were doing from her "fall" from standing on the playground equipment did it all come back to her. Later finding out that two friends of Sakura had taken her home out of respect and through the info on her backpack. They were also the one who came up with the story. "Am alright just a bit of nostalgia that came over me. Guess my age is starting to catch up." Shorty fibbed to her exchange parents adding a little laugh. The Yu thankfully didn't press upon the subject. "Fighter, wherever you are I own you big time."
Unknowest to the exchange student, her opponent was wishing she had the same luck with her parents. "Ugh, come home imminently after school and straight to cleaning detail after homework. No arcades, no phones and ESPECAILLY no training for the next six weeks. Man, I knew I should've quit while I was ahead after I beat Kurzo." Sakura explained to her best friend (A/N: Forgot her name, can anyone tell me? She the girl who dances with Sakura in one of her victory poses.) Sakura too had been brought home after losing conciseness. Unlike Shorty, her parents didn't buy her story. "Ouch, tough luck. Well at least you don't have to go on one of your dad's business trips like last time." Her friend said sympathizing. Sakura shuddered from remembering that last punishment, a boredom hell that she wasn't allowed to sleep through. Her parents, needless to say, didn't really approve of the daily bouts she constantly got into. Even more so when her grades started slipping, so they had begun to go to extreme measures on anything that would break her from fighting. So far Sakura had weathered through most of their attempts from common to a little beyond harsh, it was becoming second nature.
"How could I forget that? Am still trying to shake that dream where I keep drowning in business work." She chuckled along with her friend "Still this is just a small price to pay for doing what I do best." "Yeah, I guess so huh? Still can't believe that last match ended in a tie. I thought for sure you had that girl." Upon mentioning that, Sakura's stomach started to ache, a little aftereffect of her opponent's last attack. Sakura groaned and rubbed it some to dull the pain "Yeah I thought so too, guess that'll teach me to check my handi-work once I give my last strike. But I gotta admit the girl give me a good last stand though, never seen anybody that determined for a long while. I wonder how she would've fare if I was at full strength." Her friend just smirked at her "Are you kidding Sakura, you probably would've wipe the floor with her. I mean no student in this school even compares to you. She just got lucky since you were so wore out. But if they was ever a rematch, she'd never think of even making a fist after fighting you again." After hearing this, Sakura face color was that of a tomato. Her signature goofy smile once again etched across her face while she rubbed her head "Yeah, I guess you have a point there. Heh heh, well I gotta go. Thanks for your encouragement and talk to ya later." "Six week later" She heard her friend call as she set off down the hall and out the near exit. "She does have a point. Not even the heaviest bodybuilder can last in a bout with me now…but still."
………………….
Shorty made her way down a familiar street heading toward the direction to the neighborhood that held her temporary house. Still feeling very good. She had held her own against a very formidable opponent and now few very confident that she could actually enjoy herself in this nation that was still new to her. But while the fight was enjoyable experience it was also pretty fleeting, only a one-time deal and this thought kinda put a damp on her cheerful mood. "Shame this place doesn't have as many jerks as it does back home. Would make being here all the more exciting. Eh, but I guess you can't get enough of a good thing." She rounded a corner and came face to face with leather jacket of rough looking figure.
Fairly big and obviously a person who loved to work out. He expressed surprise after the sudden run in but it quickly turned into annoyance after seeing that soda had hit some of his prized clothing. "Oh, sorry sir didn't see you there. Was too caught up in my thoughts to see where I was going. If there was a laundry mat around here I would pay for the cleaning…um but seeing how they're very few around this area." Which Shorty confirm with a quick look around "Here take my drink as coverage." She grabbed his hand and promptly put the soda can in it. Then smiled saying "Once again very sorry sir." And continue past him back on her destination. She only got a few meters when she heard the clattering of a can being thrown to the ground, she look down. And sure enough there was her drink, the remaining contents spilling out on the concrete. Shorty stopped for a second and watch as it rolled by then heard the guy's voice, "I don't like the bitter kinds. Doesn't give me glucose for the brain. What say you buy me a new one and we'll call it even?"* Shorty didn't turn to look at the man but answered back "Sorry dude, don't have any more money for it. You just wasted my only offering. They only thing I can give you is my apology, which I've already done."
She started to move again but found her arm grabbed, a tight grip firmed around it. Shorty turned her head and saw the man grinning like there was no tomorrow "No, am sorry but that not good enough. Let's see if we can find something else to make up for it. Maybe a little ahem…action might change my mind." He said in a very sleazy tone. Remember Shorty's urge to hurt something from the first chapter. Think of it in full overdrive now! "Am only gonna tell you this once. I HAVE no more money, but I did say am sorry for the jacket. So let me go right now or you WILL get action but not the kind your thinking of." Shorty said very sweetly. The guy still kept up that sickening grin the message obviously not getting through "Hey action is action baby. I'll take whatever I can get, am a lonely guy you see." He said his face moving in close to hers.. Before contorting in an expression of pain as Shorty's elbow made contact with his ribs. Before he could even stumble back, he found himself being lifted then roughly landing on his back which added to the newfound pain.
Dazed the guy could barely make out the structures of the buildings and the sky though his hearing was still good. "Here I believe this belongs to you." He felt a light metal roughly hit his forehead follow by a sticky wet substance that tasted very bitter in his mouth "And just in case you don't get lonely again." A hard force penetrated his lower region which would best be describe as the family jewels and a pain like no other screamed out in his body. The man closed his eyes tight and curled up in a fetal position in a futile attempt to dull the pain. Muttering something in his native tongue as he heard the sound of footsteps moving away from him. The girl's last comment faint in the distance, "Pervert" or something to that nature.
Despite his private space that was blazing alarms in his head. The man was able to pull out his cell phone, press the call listing and dial a certain number. After two rings a voice answered on the other end "Yes hello?" The man tried to speak but found his voice was caught in his…well you should know by now. Instead he switched to messages and starting spelling what he was trying to say.
On the other end, the receiver of the call watch as her the message was spell out for her. A slight smirk on the person face after reading it
"Target confirmed, now on move."
………………….
A/N: Ugh, I know I was going to make to one whole chapter. But around the time am writing this, it very late and I have to go to my next classes very early in the morning. That and this chapter was starting to get a bit too long. So instead I decided to make this a twofer. One you just read now, the other I'll have up as soon as I can. It won't be long before we got to the main plot so bear with me. As usual, please review; I would really appreciate some feedback
Disclaimer Asterisk *(this line is a reference from a very popular anime. Can you guess which one? Hint: The shortest anime series ever and has a fetish for rock music.)
Next Chapter:
The Offering Part 2:
Shorty suddenly finds herself being followed, which goes ditto for Sakura. What suppose to be a simple trip back to their homes becomes a bizarre chase through most of the city. Who are these people and who was that the unlucky Shorty-encounted guy just called too?
As I say in my reviews, till next chapter.
