The teams were all at the pool and getting ready for the days events. Takuma had spoken with Heidern about putting Kasumi on his team which he allowed as the teams could have up to 5 members but no more.

"Right I settled it all with Heidern, so you are in now" Takuma said

"Thank you Mr. Sakazaki" Kasumi bowed politely

"Hmm… I still do not understand why you wish to join us… when you always seemed so determined on defeating Ryo, after he beat your father all those years ago" Takuma said

"Well, I have to learn from my mistakes… Even my father says I am too stubborn and Ryo is exploiting that as a weakness. So I thought teaming up with you guys might be a good way to learn a bit more about you" Kasumi explained

"Very well, but please don't go trying to defeat Ryo and causing problems for us, otherwise I'll kick you out… got it?" Takuma said firmly

"Yes… I understand" Kasumi nodded

"You a good swimmer? Unfortunately good swimming skills don't tend to carry in the Sakazaki genes" Takuma said

"I'm okay at it… I'll compete if you want me to" Kasumi said

"Good… Robert will be in this too so it's not all up to you" Takuma said

The crowds had really poured into the swimming arena now. A lot of the fans held or wore various forms of KOF merchandise, including flags, caps, t-shirts and plenty of other stuff to show their support for their team. All of this was provided by the Ikari Warriors who bought all of the stuff in bulk to capitalise on the opportunity.

"The status report you requested sir" Ryan saluted Heidern

"Ah yes, so how is the attendance, it seems as if we are doing well" Heidern said

"Things are going very well sir, Athens would have begged to have crowds like this" Ryan smiled

"Good… have you sorted out the popcorn and drinks and all that yet?" Heidern asked

"Yup, well when we get to the shooting we should be all set up on that angle" Ryan said

"Hmmm okay. The merchandise is going as I can see in the crowd… good, good" Heidern nodded in approval "And the clay pigeons? Are they ready too?" Heidern looked into the crowds it was as if something was distracting him

"Yes sir, we did up all the clay pigeons as you requested and the sound effects are ready" Ryan wondered what was bothering Heidern but didn't dare turn around

"And the…" Heidern started

"Weight lifting and Tennis are good to go" Ryan said

"Excellent Sergeant, I cannot wait to see the work the men have done, you've taken a lot of my shoulders so I can focus on competing. Anyway could you and Yashiro go sort out that out" Heidern pointed into the crowd as there was a fight in the middle of the stands.

"Yes sir" Ryan saluted again and Heidern returned it and went off with his team while Ryan and Yashiro went into the crowd and within 3 seconds, Yashiro's presence enough was enough to cause the crowd in that section to stay silent.

The event would work with a heats format again, each team sends up two members who would be put into 3 heats, the 8 fastest times move onto the final, the slowest time in the heats gets the wooden spoon. The heats would also be 50 metres, while the finals would for 100 metres.

Fatal fury team: Andy, Rock

Art of Fighting team: Robert, Kasumi

Ikari Warriors team: Leona, Clark

Korea team: Jhun, May lee

Woman's team: Mai, Angel

K' team: Whip, Diana

Psycho soldiers team: Athena, Kensou

Japan team: Benimaru, Shingo

Outlaw team: Billy, Gato

Ash team: Krauser, Shen Woo

In heat one it was Leona, Rock, May lee, Kensou, Whip, Gato, Angel and Krauser

"Got any plans to help us in this event?" Billy asked

"No, we can't allow our rivals to catch on, if we try too often we may find ourselves being watched more often which makes it much harder to allow unfortunate accidents" Geese said. Although like always Geese came up with another crappy supposedly strategic reply that really meant Geese hadn't thought of anything.

The competitors lined up on the starting blocks.

"On your mark!" Mature called out with a starters gun

The competitors got ready

BANG! They all dived in, all got away reasonably well however when they came above the water Gato had half a body length on May lee, Kensou was not far behind her, and Leona was in fourth. Gato had a clear ability advantage as by the 30 metre mark he was clearly ahead of May lee… she too however had extended against Leona and Kensou who were now being caught by Rock and Angel, this was clearly not a good event for Krauser, he was last by half a body length against Whip who held seventh.

The line was closing in and it was clear Gato would win, and he touched the wall, May lee came about 2 seconds later, and about a further second off was Leona, and Kensou came after her. Krauser had finished in last.

The second heat lined up as soon as the first dove off the blocks. Benimaru, Shen woo, Athena, Mai, Diana, Robert, Billy and Jhun all lined up ready. A few whistles went through the crowd when the competitors got a look at Athena and Mai in their swimming costumes, Athena's was typically different to the one she wore yesterday, Jhun stared at Athena on the starting blocks too. Athena gave one of her perfect smiles to Jhun and winked.

"Get ready!" Mature raised the gun again

The gun was fired and almost everybody made a dive off the blocks, except Jhun who watched Athena beautifully dive into the water… he then realised after about 5 seconds he had to the same.

"Honestly, we have got to do something Athena causing a distraction…" Kim rolled his eyes as Jhun slowly jumped into the water

"Yeah… Master Jhun seems to lose his focus too easily" Chang said

They got to 25 metres and Shen Woo was leading, followed by Robert, Diana then Athena. Jhun was still trying to recover from his start and was sitting in last trying to catch Billy who was in seventh, but Billy was more then 3 body lengths ahead. As they closed in Robert started to gain on Shen Woo and speed up a little bit, Shen Woo tried to fight back however Robert was closing the gap, Athena, Diana and Mai were in a three way fight for third, fourth and fifth. They closed in on the finish line and Robert had snatched first from Shen woo, while Diana was third and Mai was fourth. Benimaru, Billy and Jhun were coming in but both were quite comfortable and able to keep Jhun in last place.

The final heat now… currently Jhun had the slowest time, and Gato was leading with Robert in second, Shen Woo in third, May lee in fourth, Leona in fifth, Diana in sixth, Mai in seventh and Kensou was in eighth. Kasumi, Andy, Shingo and Clark were all that remained for the final heat.

Mature was ready with the gun.

"On your mark" Mature announced as she held the gun.

She fired it again and they all dived in, Shingo had got off to a very strong start, he was at least 3 quarters of a body length ahead of Andy who led Kasumi and Clark. By the time they reached half way Shingo was still a long way out from the other three, he would win easily. The other three however seemed to be closely matched as Clark now led them with Andy in third and Kasumi running fourth. Coming in to finish Shingo won with ease, as he looked behind him as he watched Kasumi come strong towards the end, however it wouldn't be enough as Andy retook second from Clark who finished third. However it would turn out that only Shingo's and Andy would qualify.

The times all sorted out and Jhun was awarding the wooden spoon. Shingo was fastest, then Gato, Robert, Shen Woo, May lee, Leona, Diana and Andy would qualify. The rest were all out.

"This will serve you right for allowing Athena to distract you" Kim said hitting Jhun on the shoulder with the wooden spoon

"She didn't distract me… I just didn't want a false start" Jhun replied

"You watched her arse from the time she dived into the water until almost the time she came up again" Dong Hwan laughed as it was Jhun for once who was getting told off for being slightly on the lazy side

"We even have it on tape, you can see it again, and look at how stupid you look" Jae Hoon said

"I can watch Athena dive into the water, again and again and again?" Jhun asked drooling and his eyes in a dream state

Jae Hoon rolled his eyes and looked towards Kim, he only shrugged as if to say what can we do.

"Malin… I still don't like this plan of deliberately trying to distract Jhun, it's not very sporting is it" Athena said after watching Jhun get hit repeatedly with the wooden spoon.

"No, but that wouldn't stop me doing it" Malin laughed

"Yes, but that's your style, cheating, unfair play, it's just not me" Athena said

Geese had overheard them and a plan formulated in his mind.

The competitors lined up in their lanes according to how they finished, fastest in the centre. Diana in lane 1, May lee in lane 2, Robert in lane 3, Shingo in lane 4, Gato in lane 5, Shen Woo in lane 6, Leona in lane 7 and Andy was in lane 8.

Mature got ready for the final time with the gun.

"On your mark!" Mature raised it

Gato looked at Shingo and stared at him in an attempt to intimidate him, Shingo didn't look and concentrated on the water.

BANG! They all dived into the water and when they all came up after the dive predictably enough it was Shingo and Gato who led off the start, followed by May lee, Andy, Leona, Diana, Robert and Shen Woo although everybody was closely bunched. Gato had a better dive then Shingo so was slightly ahead of him. They were coming towards 25 metres and May lee was still holding third closely followed by Diana and Andy.

Gato begun to extend his lead over Shingo as they came to the 50 meter mark, and Gato hit the wall around half a body length ahead of Shingo, when both went into the tumble turn. May lee came after them, and then came Leona and Robert. After the tumble turn though Shingo had gained a good amount of ground, his technique at least on that turn was better then Gato's and he came out very close to him. By this point they were both well ahead of Robert and Shen woo, who had taken third and fourth from May lee and Leona. Diana and Andy were still in the race for a medal and were not far behind May lee. The two leaders though were going stroke for stroke, Shingo was holding his own very well against Gato however neither was going to let up in the final stages.

They were approaching the finish line very quickly, and the crowd were on their feet cheering as the two came towards the wall and went for the wall very close together. Nobody knew who had won, as they turned around and looked at the timing boards. After about 5 seconds it came up with.

1. Shingo

2. Gato

Geese banged his hand down in frustration, there was less then 1 tenth of a second in it. Winning that event would have put them in the lead… although they are still in second place one place better then old rivals… the Fatal fury team.

Shen Woo came in third, and May lee came in closely against Robert, Leona was next, followed by Andy and Diana.

"Well done Shingo, you got us our first gold…" Benimaru said

"Yeah I did it! I WON!!" Shingo cried out to everybody in the crowd

The obvious Japan team and Shingo fans cheered out. Benimaru sighed deeply as Shingo did various poses and the crowd kept cheering.

"Let him have his fun" Kyo came up from behind Benimaru

"I suppose, but I'm worried he's going to start… Oh no, he's going to do it any second now" Benimaru looked away

Kyo groaned too as Shingo was about to sing until Kyo walked up quietly to him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Don't do it if you want them to keep loving you" Kyo said in a quiet manner. Shingo looked puzzled, then worked it out.

"Alright… I understand, I shouldn't get too excited… but… winning feels good" Shingo smiled

"Yes it does… but those guys don't look to happy" Kyo gestured with his eyes towards the outlaw team

Shingo looked over towards the general direction that Kyo was suggesting and nodded. Although Kyo was far from concerned about his own safety, Shingo was another matter.

The Japan team was awarded a much needed gold to boost them to sixth position, while the outlaw team was given the silver to be put into second, the Ash/Krauser team was given a bronze but they still remained last, and the Korea team was given the aluminium foil which also didn't effect their position.

"Well we will now be moving just out of Southtown to the shooting arena… it is all marked on your schedules" Heidern told the other teams

The Ikari's left first and all of them including the volunteers got into the bus and it took off. The officers and higher ranking soldiers were at the front everybody else at the back.

"So the shooting allows for only one member right?" Ralf asked

"Yes… I will be entering, if that's what you are asking" Heidern said

"But sir no offence, I am a better shot" Clark replied

"Perhaps… but I have done little to contribute to the team so far" Heidern said

"Neither have I, it's been Leona and Ralf doing almost everything so far, I haven't had much if any shots at a medal" Clark countered

"And besides, you've been busy with the administrative stuff, since Ryan and the others are on that now for the most part, you only need to explain the events so now you'll be able to have a greater scope over what you can compete in" Ralf added

Heidern grunted and nodded in half agreement.

Ralf and Clark knew that Heidern was merely blocking them getting too many medals so they couldn't get the leave they wanted so easily, although they knew Heidern would probably back down in the end anyway, especially when the more important thing was winning this competition.

They had arrived, and the Ikari's prepared the event while the team just found a good spot to sit from in the seats that were closest to the action and set aside for the competitors. The teams slowly formed into the arena and having strategised on the way each team had decided who their one shooter would be.

Ikari team: Clark

Outlaw team: Geese

Fatal fury team: Terry

Woman's team: Mary

K' team: Maxima

Japan team: Benimaru

Psycho solider team: Malin

Korea team: Chang

Art of fighting team: Kasumi

Ash/Krauser team: Ash

"Alright, now this is how it works…" Heidern announced "Each team has a registered shooter, and in the first round they are send up 5 at a time. The top 2 in each round move onto the finals, the people with the equal lowest score fight against the wooden spoon, if there is only one person with the lowest score they get the spoon automatically. Each round has 3 clay pigeons put into the air, each one you shoot down scores one point" Heidern explained

Meanwhile…

Gato, Yamazaki and Billy were scouting the tent where the pigeons would come from.

"Hey guys, you aren't allowed back here, go back to your seats" One of the Ikari volunteers had come from behind

The three outlaws stared at this lone Ikari.

"And what are you going to do about it?" Yamazaki stepped closer

"Plenty…" More Ikari's joined from the back there were about 9 of them. The outlaws didn't seem impressed.

"You are all weak, we could blow you away with our eyes closed" Gato smiled

"Yes" Yamazaki laughed insanely in a more of an attempt to intimidate the Ikaris.

Yamazaki went for a quick blow at one of them but they defended… Gato went in and kicked one of them in the stomach downing them, but this allowed another to charge down Gato. Gato of course didn't land on the ground as he landed on his hands and expertly retreated back into a fighting stance. Furious that he was forced into defensive actions against such a weak opponent Gato went for another strike until Billy put his staff in front of Gato.

"Stop it…" Billy warned. Gato grumbled at him, still looking furious.

"Don't tell me you are afraid of the army people" Yamazaki laughed

"No, but this isn't the time for this, the event is about to start. Listen this was just supposed to be a quick look" Billy said

"Right… that's so believable, just leave at that or we'll tell Heidern and give your team a penalty, I'm sure your boss wouldn't be too pleased to hear that" Another one of the Ikari's stood in front of the others

"… Fine… but you haven't heard the last of us" Billy grumbled as the guy in front nodded and the Ikari's made way to allow them out

Billy, Gato and Yamazaki left and walked a good distance from the tent.

"How could you humiliate me like that! We could have won that battle easily" Gato said to Billy grabbing him

"Pipe down. If we were to fight of course we'd win but the problem is that they would be eventually found as well as there being a slight problem of no pigeons coming out" Billy said

"Hmmph… we could have done that part ourselves. Damn it I'll get that fool back for sure... nobody who is so below my standards lands a blow on me" Gato grumbled

"There will be another time for that Gato" Geese came to the outlaws

"Aren't you supposed to be shooting now?" Billy asked

"No… I'm not in this round, but it seems you were caught out before you could make a swap for the pigeons, but you didn't want to start a fight because you were concerned you would create unwanted trouble" Geese said

"That's pretty spot on, sorry sir" Billy said shyly, even he was a bit ashamed of how badly it turned out.

"Don't be silly I am pretty sure that this was the best move, I expected this outcome, and as such I always have a second plan" Geese said

Geese and the others then discussed the back up plan.

In the first round it was Ash, Terry, Chang, Malin and Benimaru.

"I still do not like the idea of allowing Chang to compete in this event" Kim said

"Yes, but we do want to perform and frankly Kim you couldn't hit Chang even if he were standing still" Jhun said

"Neither could you" Kim replied

"That's why everybody else is standing here, Choi can't handle it and May lee has never tried so Chang is our only option we simply can't afford another wooden spoon at the moment" Jhun said

Kim nodded in reluctant agreement.

The 5 shooters stood in position. 5 clay pigeons would be released in a quick time period, the first one would be shot by Ash, the next by Terry and so on. The first one was released, Ash took aim and fired.

"EEEEEK!!!!" A loud sound occurred when Ash hit the target and feathers fell from where Ash had shot and the clay pigeon fell straight to the ground.

"Oh no! They aren't using real pigeons are they?" Kim stared in horror

"Don't be stupid, they are merely clay shaped like pigeons with bunches of feathers attached to them, with somebody making bird like sound effects in the sound box" Heidern said

Kim was puzzled "Then how come it fell to the ground like an actual pigeon does?"

"Just made that way, instead of exploding it just goes straight to the ground" Heidern told him "Makes it seem more realistic that way" Heidern said

Terry took his shot and missed, Chang missed, Malin hit her shot and Benimaru made his.

They loaded up again, and Ash hit, Terry hit, Chang made his, Malin missed and Benimaru had hit again as well. Now Ash and Benimaru were the only two shooters to have hit both of their shots and there was only one remaining. They got ready and fired Ash missed, Terry missed, Chang hit, Malin got a hit and Benimaru had hit.

This meant Benimaru was surely in the finals but the other spot was still up for grabs, a tiebreaker would be played out, Terry was out of it but Ash, Malin and Chang had to fire off for a spot.

"Right, two pigeons…" Heidern started

"Ah ha! You just said pigeons, I'm not convinced they are clay… shooting actual animals is evil" Kim interrupted him

"You can check them for yourself if you like" Heidern said

"I might just do that… anyway carry on" Kim said walking off

"That's good of you, Private Kensington, show Kim to the pigeons" Heidern was getting annoyed with Kim's protests insisting that innocent animals were being killed and an Ikari stood up and took Kim over to the pigeons.

"Anyway, two CLAY pigeons are put into the air, the person who gets either them moves on, if both are hit, then one clay pigeon is released and the person who shoots that one moves on" Heidern explained

"But how are you certain of who shot which pigeon?" Ash asked with his typical accent

"Each gun is loaded with a certain type of ammo that lets us know which gun it came from" Heidern replied

Ash nodded as he Malin, and Chang prepared. Two pigeons were released, all three fired.

"SQWAWK!" The sound box went off when somebody hit the pigeon but only one was shot down.

The Ikari's looked at the pigeon, and a red flag was raised.

"It's Ash Crimson" Heidern announced

Ash and Benimaru were moving onto the next round. Now Maxima, Clark, Mary and Kasumi got ready.

"Did you do it?" Geese asked

"Yes… Maxima will be impossible to beat otherwise, but now everybody's aim will be all screwed up due to the stronger wind, we've set it near the tent so the pigeons fly faster then they are supposed to" Billy told him "We simply shut off the device when you are shooting" Billy finished

"Excellent" Geese smiled as he took his position

Maxima took aim, and fired, but missed.

"Hmm… what happened there, I was certain I had that one" Maxima scratched his head in wonder

Clark was next… he concentrated, shot fired and hit.

Cheers and claps were heard.

"How the hell did that happen!?" Billy shouted

Geese was next, and he fired and hit. Mary was after him and she missed. Kasumi was last and fired, she too had hit her target.

"Hmm! I didn't think I'd get that one" Kasumi smiled

"Lucky shot…" Billy muttered

The next round, Maxima tried again but he still missed.

"Hey, are you alright? It's not like you to miss" Whip came to Maxima

"I just don't get it… I should be able to do this easily" Maxima said

"Something fishy is going on…" Diana said

"Yeah for Maxima to miss twice there has to be something up" K' nodded in slight agreement

"Agreed… let's find out" Whip went away from Maxima

"Bah! I couldn't be bothered… it's a silly competition" K' grumbled

Whip ignored this and she and Kula had a look around, her links with the Ikari's could give her a better advantage when looking around the area. Geese quickly turned to Billy and gave him a cut it signal, he had slightly heard murmurs of Whip's conversation, Billy never questioned Geese so pressed the button to conceal the device. Clark took his shot and hit perfectly, Geese missed, Mary hit hers and Kasumi hit again.

In the final round the next target was released, Maxima tried to focus as best as he could but his frustration for missing the other two caused him to miss ever so slightly the third time. Clark hit his target, Geese missed again, Mary didn't get hers either and Kasumi missed. This left Clark with 3, Kasumi with 2, Mary and Geese with 1, and Maxima didn't get any, Terry got 1 and was the lowest score in the other round so Maxima got the wooden spoon. This meant Kasumi, Ash, Clark and Benimaru were in the finals.

"No way! I couldn't miss three times" Maxima said

"Don't let it get to you, as I've been telling the others it's a stupid competition that I'm only here for because I've got nothing better to do" K' said

"And because Kula made you" Maxima smiled

"I am my own person, I'll do as I please" K' said

"Yes, of course, which is why she's already arranged for you to be her doubles partner" Maxima laughed

"WHAT!" K' shouted out

"You agreed to it at dinner last night, Kula said if she could pre register you and her together. You groaned a bit and then agreed" Maxima reminded him

K' groaned and looked down "… I remember now… since it had to be mixed doubles and the thought of you with a tennis racket is simply embarrassing which is the only reason I agreed" K' said

"Yeah… thanks for that" Maxima saw Whip and Kula returning.

"Of course, now there is a problem. I don't mind THAT much teaming up with Kula however Whip gave me inside info on the tournament from her Ikari friends" K' said

"Oh and…" Maxima said probing K' to elaborate

"The teams for tennis are not going to be kept together, they are going to be shuffled around… so who knows who or what they could force me to work with" K' said

"Hmm… well cross that bridge when you come to it, who knows you may like your new team mate" Maxima smiled

"PRRFT! BAH! Pigs fly too" K' said loudly

The finalist stood up and took their positions…

"Hey Crimson, don't break a nail!" Benimaru laughed

"Yes… I'm glad you like my nail work, I spent a lot of time on it… but I hope you don't bite yours off due to the tension because while they are not as beautiful as mine it would still be a shame" Ash smiled either missing the insult or ignoring it.

The first pigeon was ready be released, it would be Ash who fired first. He fired and hit with perfect accuracy as the SQWAWK and claps and cheers filled the area. Kasumi was next she fired and missed, Benimaru took his shot and hit and Clark made his fine.

The next round was ready. Clark would shoot first this time, he fired and he missed. A wave of shock went over everybody…

"What's gotten into him? Clark simply does not miss" Ralf said

"Maybe too much pressure" Leona suggested

"Clark doesn't crack under pressure… not that easily. He is only human, he probably just made an error" Heidern thought out

"Not a good time for it eh?" Ralf said

Kasumi took her shoot and made it, Benimaru hit his target, and Ash hit his. Benimaru and Ash were now on 2 and Kasumi and Clark were on 1 with one shot left. It would then be Benimaru who fired first, he knew getting this shot would assure silver at worst, the pigeon came out and… bang!

Another gasp… Benimaru had missed too…Ash's face glowed when he saw Benimaru miss. He took aim, getting this would assure the gold. The pigeon was shot out… Ash focused… and BANG! The feathers flew everywhere, the sound box went off, Ash had hit his target…

Loud cheers from team mates Duo Lon, Shen Woo and from the crowd… they were assured of the gold now. Kasumi focused and was getting ready to take her shot… she fired and missed. Clark was the last shot, hitting would cause a play off with Benimaru for silver, missing would mean he fights with Kasumi for the bronze. The pigeon was fired out of the trap, Clark focused and pressed the trigger and the pigeon fell out of the sky.

"Right… now Ash gets the gold as he the only one on 3 points, and Kasumi is awarded the aluminium foil as she is on 1, but Clark and Benimaru, you must play off for the silver and bronze, one pigeon, first one to shoot it down wins" Heidern told them

Benimaru and Clark took their positions.

"Chris, check the pigeon for us to assure we don't cheat by using our own people, a blue flag for Clark, a red one for Benimaru" Heidern said

Chris nodded.

The pigeon was fired, the crowd watched closely as it seemed to move in slow motion, both guns went off, the pigeon had went down again, neither was sure of who had hit it first. Chris checked the pigeon and raised a blue flag. Clark had won the silver.

"Well hey, at least that's something" Clark smiled

"You had us worried you lost your touch" Ralf punched Clark on the shoulder

"Me? Nah" Clark said

So the Ash/Krauser team won their first gold putting them in fifth right behind the woman's team, the Ikari team got the silver extending their lead, the Japan team had the bronze and the art of fighting team got aluminium foil, but still dropped to last place due to being the only team yet to win a gold medal.

"We have decided to do the draw for the tennis now… so those teams with a male and female member must have both of them compete. However the following teams will need to work out arrangements with other teams to form male and female teams. These teams are the Outlaw team…" Heidern was about to read out

"We have a female member" Geese cut Heidern off

"We do?" Billy asked

"Yes… she agreed to join us to find her brother, which I thought was very touching" Geese's words were full of sarcasm

Gato knew what this meant "You must be out your mind, she doesn't know anything about sports" Gato said

"You haven't even met her before… or have you?" Geese laughed

"That girl is not my sister, why won't anybody believe me, why does everybody always side with the small, weak, defenceless girl" Gato said

"I frankly don't give a shit whether she is your sister or not, we could do with a good female member on this team… but I won't force you to play tennis with her" Geese said

"That's ever so good of you… but I still do not want her on this team" Gato said

"It is my choice not yours" Geese said firmly
"This is the outlaw team isn't it, she wouldn't even be able to staple butterfly wings together" Gato rolled his eyes

"I've made my decision, and you have no say in this." Geese said

"This stupid competition just gets worse all the time" Gato growled

"Listen if the girl is completely useless as you claim she is then we ditch her, but I will be her partner in this task" Geese told him as if he was convinced Hotaru would be a great asset to the team. "Come in now dear" Geese called out

Hotaru had come out from within the crowd to join the outlaw team.

"Hello…" Hotaru came out shyly

"What do you think of this, don't you object to anything Geese does?" Gato asked

"He makes weird decisions at times, but usually he makes the right choices… and I think your sister is sort of cute" Billy said

"SHE IS NOT MY SISTER" Gato shouted

"MOVING ON!" Heidern shouted out even louder cutting off the outlaws argument and introduction of Hotaru. "The teams that must work out arrangements with the others are the Fatal fury team, the Ash/Krauser team and the Japan team. You can choose Vice, Mature and Shermie in this event or any of the women who are not already with somebody else, teams are allowed to break the 2 person a team rule but only in this way" Heidern explained.

Once everybody had roughly got it the teams made a few quick discussions with the others and after Mai running after Andy begging him to join her but convinced Rock to team up with King so he couldn't enter. They ended up like this.

Ikari team: Ralf/Leona

Outlaw team: Geese/Hotaru

Fatal fury/womans team 1: Rock/King

Fatal fury/womans team 2: Terry/Mary

Ash/psycho team: Shen woo/Malin

Ash/Orochi team: Ash/Vice

Japan/Orochi team: Benimaru/Shermie

K' team: K'/Kula

Psycho soldiers team: Kensou/Athena

Korea team: Jhun/May lee

Art of Fighting team: Robert/Yuri

Heidern got the entries and called on Mature who put all the names into two barrels, one for the men another for the women.

"Now there is a twist… the teams will not be kept this way… they will be randomly scrambled" Heidern said

A lot of the teams gasped and looked at the other entrants wondering who possibly their new team mate could be. Their feelings went from excitement especially in the case of Jhun with the possibility of teaming up with Athena to disappointment with Terry and Robert not being able to be with Mary and Yuri, to horror with K' wondering which girl would be his team mate.

Mature pulled names out of a male barrel then a female one, those two would be team mates whether they liked it or not.

It ended up shuffling out like this…

Kensou/Shermie

K'/May lee

Jhun/Vice

Ash/King

Geese/Athena

Ralf/Hotaru

Shen woo/Yuri

Robert/Kula

Rock/Leona

Benimaru/Mary

Terry/Malin

The reactions on their new team mates were highly varied to say the least.

So after this long chapter yet again, there is still half of the day to go with the weight lifting and first round of the really mixed doubles tennis. Can the fighters survive with their new team mates for at least one event or maybe even get along? How far will Gato go in order to sabotage Hotaru's efforts to get her off the outlaw team? Will I get the next update done quickly? I should.