A Ranma ½ King of Fighters crossover fanfiction
Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma ½ and King of Fighters characters. Especially some macho chick! That's built like a stick! Dumb as a brick! Thighs are too thick! Can't even kick! [WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!] Ugh… shutting up now… oi…
Flames of Destiny
By Insane Blight
Chapter 20: The Riot of Blood
The King of Fighters Tournament has finally returned to Japan and the crowd was ready for the finals match between the Hakkeshu Team and the Yagami team but there was just one problem: Neither team has shown up yet.
"Reiko, how many fighters do we have at the moment?"
The dark-haired teen opened the folder she was carrying and quickly read them aloud. "Um, not much my lady, first we have Benimaru and Daimon, who are currently staying inside the hospital room Master Kusanagi is in. Next are the Ikari warriors, Commander Heidern already informed me that they're ready when the Hakketsu Shuu makes their move, then comes the Bogard brothers, Blue Mary and Mai Shiranui. The last one is you my lady."
Chizuru frowned. "Hmm, I see… and what of the missing fighters?"
Reiko sighed and shook her head. "Geese most likely stayed in Southtown due to his injuries along with a badly burned Billy Kane, oh and your other partner King and the Art of Fighting Team must've stayed there as well. As I recall, Yamazaki probably stayed behind to talk to Geese, I talked to Blue Mary about it and she confirmed that he was working for Mr. Howard. CYS was also reported missing but I think that they left the tournament upon arriving here, they have no more business in this tournament since they lost anyway."
"I wasn't talking about them Reiko."
"Oh… there are still no signs of Mr. Ranma and his partner Mature as well as their opponents, Master Yasakani and his partner Vice. Plus there have been reports of an unidentified man and woman walking around the tournament ship a little earlier but it could've been just a couple of fans. Speaking of which, what shall we do my lady? The crowd is getting restless, I don't know if security or my powers can hold them off for long…"
'Are they starting the ritual already? Am I too late to stop it?' "It can't be helped, announce that the tournament is over since no team showed up for the finals match."
Reiko looked at the priestess in surprise. "My lady! If we do that then the crowd will surely go into a frenzy!"
Chizuru sighed and rubbed her temples. "I don't care about that anymore! We have other things to worry about like the resurrection of a bloodthirsty god. I fear that we might already too late if those four really are gone, that's why we should be out there looking for them this very minute!"
"I… I understand my lady. I will make the announcement this instant."
"Yes, please… and gather the remaining fighters for me, Reiko."
"Sir! Please, let us go look for her!"
"I agree, for all we know, something terrible might've happened to her!"
Ralf and Clark both slammed their hands on Heidern's table. They've just recently noticed the disappearance of their female member and both men were starting to get worried. It was just like she vanished into thin air, like the Hakkeshu and the Yagami Team. Those Kagura clan members said that they'll look into it, but they really haven't done a good job in searching for them and besides, it's not like the Ikari mercenaries to just stand around and do nothing.
That's the reason why they're at Heidern's office right now, hoping that their Commander would issue a search for their missing comrade. At least, that's what they hope…
"No."
"But sir…!"
Ralf was held back by Clark, who was shaking his head, indicating to just forget it. Their Commander doesn't want to move out so they have no choice but to comply, though it took Ralf several minutes to calm down and realize what Clark was getting at. If the two of them were this worried about her, imagine what Commander Heidern must've felt when he first heard that his daughter was missing.
Terry was leaning on a wall with a frown as the crowd waits for the start of the finals match. 'He really has that much potential but sadly, it might all go to waste. He's already too deep into depression; he just hides it very well. I hope he doesn't commit suicide, I know how adamant he is about not killing people. Damn, where are you, squirt?'
"Bro, any luck?" Andy asked, walking alongside Mai and Blue Mary.
"Nope. What about you?"
Blue Mary shook her head. "No signs of him anywhere. I don't know about this, they could be long gone for all we know. Let's just call the tournament off and go home, there's nothing more to do here."
Mai nodded with her. "I agree with Mary. So they chose not to show up and fight, what's the big deal? At least this long tourney is over. And the best part is that nothing happened this year except for Yagami's little skirmish with Kusanagi and that incident with Krauser. Let's go home already because…" she grabbed Andy's arm tightly and looked at the younger Bogard with hearts in her eyes. "…someone still has to live up to their promise…"
Terry closed his eyes and smiled slightly while Mary was having a really hard time controlling her laughter at Andy's twitching face. Their fun was interrupted however when all four fighters sensed a familiar presence that seemed to suddenly appear out of nowhere.
"Bro, do you feel that?"
"God, I hope not… but damn, it feels as if it's Goenitz all over again…"
"Well, we can't just stand here and do nothing! Let's go!"
"Hey what's keeping you guys? Let's go on with the tournament!"
"Yeah! We paid a lot of money to see them fight!"
Reiko sweated as she stepped into the middle of an arena full of frantic people armed with only a mic. "If I can have your undivided attention…" She paused for a bit. "…thank you. As you all know, the match that is going to be held today is the finals match between the Hakkeshu Team and the Yagami Team. Oh dear, um, unfortunately, none of the fighters from either team has shown up so we are now forced with this very tough decision…"
Surprisingly, the crowd was still silent, even when some of them already have guessed what the decision regarding the match was going to be.
"Ahem, since both teams seem to refuse to participate in the match, they leave us with no other choice but to disqualify both parties and promptly end the King of Fighters tournament starting this moment."
Again, the crowd remained silent. Reiko was slowly making her way out of the arena but before she could do so, the crowd snapped out of their shock and finally exploded. But the dark-haired teen noticed that this commotion was different from what she expected, mostly because the crowd was frantically shouting and screaming as they ran towards the exits, not towards her.
"Reiko, stay back."
Reiko spun and faced a serious looking Kagura priestess, along with Heidern, Ralf and Clark. She also noticed Terry and the rest of the fighters were running towards them. "My lady, what is going…?"
Blood-curling screams echoed throughout the arena, moments before blood started spraying all over the terrified crowd, causing them to panic even more. "Kami-sama… what is that?"
"Yagami…" Terry, Andy, Mai and Blue Mary muttered, eyeing the Orochi warrior to their right.
"Leona…" The Ikari mercenaries whispered when they got a good look at the other berserker to their left.
Both Orochi berserkers made their own way down the arena, and that was through countless number of people. They kept tearing through them, like machines designed to cut through just about anything that stands in their way. By the time they arrived on the center platform, their bodies were covered by huge amounts of blood.
"Riot of Blood, so the Orochi Hakketsu Shuu released these two berserkers here but for what? To buy time? Or is it to get rid of the rest of the fighters?"
Heidern scowled as he took a step forward, towards the female berserker. "Kagura, you've already explained the details regarding this one so I have only one thing left to ask. Can my daughter still return to her normal self?"
Chizuru shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I don't know the answer to that."
"I see…"
Heidern didn't waste time as well as Ralf and Clark. The three warriors immediately tackled Leona, sending the four of them skidding back before Leona managed to overpower them. The rest of the fighters were about to jump in and help the three but Iori dashed in and blocked their path.
"We have no choice. We have to stop them as soon as possible."
That's all Terry and Andy needed to hear. They quickly lunged for Riot of Blood Iori followed closely by the now airborne Mai and Blue Mary while Chizuru decided to stay back with Reiko, there was just something wrong with this scenario, and she has absolutely no idea what it is.
Back to the Ikari mercenaries, Clark screamed when Leona yanked at one of his arms, crouched down and then drove an elbow to his outstretched arm, instantly breaking it. She then kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying back to one of the walls. Ralf managed to punch her in the face but he could've sworn that Leona just chuckled at his attack, seconds before the berserker buried her claws to his face, lifted him up, and slammed him back down.
"Grrrowwwrrr!!!"
Leona looked up to the sky and was about to spew some blood out when a hand clamped onto her face. Heidern lifted her up but he hesitated, giving Leona enough time to break free and slash her father on the upper part of his left arm. Heidern hopped back as he clutched his bleeding arm but Ralf continued the attack by grabbing Leona by the waist, and tackling her to a concrete wall.
"Dammit, snap out of it soldier!"
Ralf jumped back and punched Leona's stomach repeatedly, causing an inhuman roar from the woman. Ralf finished it with a powerful punch to the jaw but to his surprise, Leona simply spat out some blood, stared at him with those soulless eyes and that inhuman smile. "Leona… you…"
"Jones, step back, now!"
Heidern watched as Ralf promptly rolled to the side. That was all Heidern needed as he raised his hands, crossed them, and brought them back down, sending a powerful, cross-shaped vacuum blade towards Leona, who was still embedded to the wall. Suffice to say, blood started gushing out of her daughter's body but despite that vicious attack, Leona still managed to get herself out of the wall and was now limply walking towards her father.
Clark got up as well and was about to take the berserker down but a glare from Heidern quickly stopped him from doing so. The same glare caused Ralf to back down, even though it was very much against his will. Heidern stepped forward and Leona did the same, causing the two remaining Ikari warriors to wonder why Leona hasn't attacked yet.
"Grr…"
-----
"Leona, what are you doing with that gun?! Let go of it this instant!"
A twelve year old Leona quickly placed the gun on the table. "B-But, I saw you stopping bad guys with it so I thought… I thought I can stop them with it too…"
Heidern sighed and sat beside her. "I should've expected this. Yes, I do take down bad guys, but I only use this gun as a last resort because it's not good to take a life, even when they probably deserve it."
"Take a life…?" Leona whispered, wobbling a bit. "My head hurts…"
"Sigh, you should get some sleep. We'll talk about this later, okay?"
Leona nodded slightly. "Uhn… but when I grow up, I want to beat up bad guys with you."
-----
"Leona, please wake up…"
The Orochi half-breed growled, reached in and tried to slash Heidern again. It would've worked too if not for her injuries, which have made all her attacks useless at this point. It wasn't long until Leona fell to her knees as she continued to claw at Heidern.
"Sir… is she…?"
"Let her be, from her wounds, I'd say that she has lost a large amount of blood. She's probably starting to lose consciousness as we speak… let's just hope that she returns to us after this ordeal."
Iori was a different story though…
"God, what the hell is he?!" A wounded Blue Mary yelled in frustration.
"Our attacks aren't even affecting him!" Mai exclaimed.
Riot of Blood Iori howled, grabbed Andy's leg and threw him towards his brother, which promptly sent the two of them crashing down, with Terry pinned underneath his little brother. The redhead leapt after them and managed to slash Andy on his side, making him scream out loud. Iori's attack continued, slashing the younger Bogard over and over again until Terry finally got up and punched the berserker on the face.
Terry punched him once more, this time, on the stomach, followed by a left hook and then a jab uppercut. He was about to perform his power wave but Iori quickly clung onto him, burying his fingers onto the blonde's shoulders and swiftly sending small, consecutive, flame bursts towards him.
Fortunately, Andy jumped in and kicked Iori in the chest, forcing the berserker to remove the hold but not before tearing out a good portion of Terry's skin. The Bogard brothers quickly lunged at Iori, Terry performed his Crack Shoot while Andy continued the attack with his Kuu Ha Dan, burying Yagami even deeper into the ground. Despite those devastating attacks, Iori just growled and yanked at Terry and Andy's legs, tripping them up.
The berserker flipped back up, roared and then leapt for the downed duo but his path was surprisingly blocked by a very large, circular energy blast which, in turn, electrified the redhead's body.
"Rai Kou Ken!"
Iori howled as he jumped back, only to find himself being lifted into the air when a set of arms wrapped themselves tightly around his body, forcing another howl out of him. Daimon yelled as he tightened his grip even more, and with his arms pretty much useless, Iori could do nothing but frantically kick his legs, roar out loud and cough up blood.
It only lasted several minutes because the Orochi berserker inadvertently snapped his head up, causing it to bump into Daimon's face, thus making the powerhouse to reflexively release the hold as he clutched his now bloody face. That proved to be the least of his troubles when Iori turned around and promptly drove a hand to his stomach. Blood gushed out of his body as he took a few steps back before finally falling to the ground.
Iori didn't waste any time as he quickly homed in on the nearest target, which was none other than Benimaru. The blonde didn't even see him move, he only blinked for a second or two before finding himself being slammed repeatedly into a concrete wall. He would've breathed a sigh of relief if he could, when Iori growled and instinctively rolled to the ground as he was suddenly engulfed in crimson flames.
"Hey ugly!"
"Kyo…!" Benimaru muttered with wide eyes before scowling. "Idiot! What the hell are you doing out of the hospital?! You can barely move! What can you do against this monster?!"
The Kusanagi heir ignored the blonde as he slowly dragged himself towards the Orochi berserker. "Hey, it's… it's me you want, right? Well here I am!" he yelled as he gestured to the redhead to come closer. "That's it, come on… our fight isn't over yet."
"K… Ky… Kyooo…"
"Oh good, you can still talk. Let's finish it right now, Yagami…"
Kyo crossed his arms in front of his face to block Yagami's oncoming charge, but the force behind it was so great that it sent him flying back. Iori, of course, ran after him and surprisingly caught up with him in that short time. The redhead grabbed Kyo's leg, ran even faster than before, and proceeded to throw him straight to a wall.
The Kusanagi heir unexpectedly flipped in midair, planted his feet on the wall for a brief moment, and jumped back at Iori with flame-covered hands. His fists connected to the berserker's face but he was far from over. He used his momentum to his advantage, repeatedly punching Iori as he pushed him back. He flipped once again and performed a series of well-placed punches and kicks and he finally topped it off with a flame-covered uppercut.
Iori's descent created a small crater on the ground but like before, he slowly got up, growled and charged at the heavily panting Kusanagi heir yet again. This time however, Terry decided to interfere as he blasted Iori with his Buster Wolf, making the berserker eat dirt once more.
"What the hell do you think you're doing? This is my fight!" An irate Kusanagi bellowed.
Terry glared back at him. "You're not helping at all Kusanagi. Right now, you're only making him stronger as you continue to fight him! You can settle old scores later! We have to take him down now!"
"Terry's right, we have to knock him out right away!" Blue Mary yelled as she sprinted forward, grabbed Iori's arm, pulled at it and tossed him back down. Mai followed by jumping high in the air and hurling a number of flaming fans to Iori's prone form, forcing another inhuman roar from him.
"It's our turn bro!"
"Right behind you!"
Terry and Andy both jumped as well. Terry had an arm covered with energy as he descended towards Yagami while Andy had both feet stretched out and was aimed at Iori's chest. The berserker called out his purple flames and immediately encased himself in it; perhaps it was his survival instinct. The clash of energies resulted in a massive explosion, hurling the fighters back and pretty much leveling the entire area.
When the dust finally settled, the fighters slowly got up one at a time. Chizuru was the first one of course, followed by Reiko. Heidern, who was carrying an unconscious Leona, was next to recover as well as Ralf and Clark. Terry and Andy were next, followed closely by Benimaru, who was currently supporting Kyo as they made their way towards the still out cold Daimon. Unfortunately, Blue Mary and Mai Shiranui could not get away in time to avoid the large debris that has pinned their legs.
"Ouch… how careless of me, Mary no baka…"
"Andy…! Help me!"
Terry, Andy, Ralf and Clark quickly went to their side and removed that heavy debris off of them. Both women suffered broken legs and it will surely take some time for them to make a full recovery. Terry and Andy gently carried the two and was about to head to the nearest hospital when they noticed some movement to their side.
"He really is a monster…" Ralf whispered.
Benimaru and Kyo took up their fighting stances. "I guess he leaves us with no other choice but to kill him. It's obvious that he's not gonna stop until he kills all of us."
Chizuru surprisingly stepped up and stopped them. "That's not necessary you two. Look at him, he can barely walk, much less fight in that state. He's already at his limit."
True, Iori has blood flowing out of his body at an alarming rate. His wounds were so abundant that it was really surprising to see him alive especially when he was right in the middle of the explosion. He snarled and limply walked towards them but the strain proved to be too much as he fell face-first onto the floor.
"Reiko, please tend to the wounded."
"Right away, my lady."
The dark-haired teen quickly went to work, making a support for Clark's broken arm, along with Mai and Blue Mary's legs. Then she patched up the rest of the fighters starting with the heavily bleeding and still out cold Daimon. To the surprise of the fighters, Reiko went to Iori's side and began to tend to his wounds as well.
"Kagura, I think we deserve an explanation on what's going on." Andy demanded.
Chizuru sighed as she tended to Leona's injuries. "I know, and I'm sorry for getting all of you involved in this. I have already informed Heidern and the rest of the Ikari mercenaries about this so I think you should know this too. Do you remember Goenitz and Rugal the past two years?"
"Yeah… Rugal died using some kind of power, right? And Goenitz was the maniac claiming to be some kind of messenger of death or something."
Chizuru nodded. "Yes, they have one thing in common… they both have Orochi blood in their veins. But Goenitz was a pure blood while Rugal was just a normal human who was given a small amount of Orochi's power by none other than Goenitz."
Kyo stepped in. "That's why he destroyed himself, right? When Rugal chose to use all of his power against me, it proved to be too much for him to handle and he ended up killing himself."
"Yes. I won't go into details about Orochi because we don't have much time. I will say that both Leona and Yagami also have the same blood in their veins but they also have human blood as well. That's why they turned into these mindless killing machines, a state which is called the Orochi Riot of Blood."
"Riot of Blood?"
Chizuru stroked Leona's hair as she spoke, "It's a phase that those who are tainted with human blood go through. I don't know the details behind it but my guess is the mixture of these two kinds of blood causes that reaction. Anyway, Terry, what did you mean that Yagami was getting stronger the more Kusanagi continues to fight him? Did you notice something perhaps?"
"Yeah, I'd like to know that too." Kyo said with a scowl.
Terry ignored Kyo as he focused on Yagami's downed form. "Yes, I felt the same thing when Andy and I were fighting Yamazaki a few weeks back. The more the fight continues, the more he gathers energy. I don't know how or why that is but I'm telling you, Iori was doing the same thing a little while ago."
'Gathering energy…? Oh no, it can't be… is that…? No, we've been played…' Chizuru thought with wide eyes.
"So is that why he was so damn strong even after the beating he received?" Andy asked.
"Correct!" a loud voice echoed around the arena.
The able fighters instinctively went in front of the injured ones as they frantically looked around the heavily damaged arena. That only took a few seconds before lightning started pouring down the place, but surprisingly, no one was struck by that brief barrage. Chizuru stood up, looked at the top of the place, and glared at it. This caused a chilling laughter out of whoever was doing this.
"The Orochi Blood Riot…"
The ground began to tremble, causing a few fighters to lose their balance. Chizuru chanted a few words before sending a small ward towards the place she was glaring at.
"An interesting performance… for a sideshow!"
Chizuru's eyes widened when six figures, more specifically the three people whom she thought were human, decided to show themselves. Mature, Yamazaki, Shermie, Yashiro, Chris, and Vice looked down at the group with amused expressions. "You…? You three are of Orochi blood?"
Orochi Yashiro, Orochi Shermie and Orochi Chris could only grin at that.
AN: Gomen! No Ranma in this chapter. The next chapter is the serious one; let's just say that history will not repeat itself this time around. Oh, I'm going to update my other fics after I'm finished with this. Ja!
Next The Heavenly Kings of Orochi: The Hakkeshu of the Sacred Flame
"Destiny is a fearful thing…"