Chapter Five: Shooting Star

The late morning sun cast strong shadows over the seemingly barren rooftop. Xiaoyu knew better than to assume she was alone, however. Every tournament bout was always filmed and broadcast to eager spectators all over the world, naturally only after careful editing. Besides being the ultimate challenge to vie for control of the powerful company, the Mishima Corporation had managed to turn the more recent Iron Fist tournaments into one of the most famous sport spectacles in the world. Whenever a particularly spectacular tournament bout occurred, the eyes of the world were sure to be watching.

"I'm glad I wore my pink dress today," Xiaoyu said nervously, unnecessarily straightening the folds of her skirt. Lower ranking matches were not very popular with the public, and Xiaoyu had never actually made it to the higher ranks in the previous two tournaments. It had spared her the painful glare of publicity that other figures such as Kazuya, Heihachi and Jin had endured. Still, it never hurt to be careful, and Xiaoyu had painstakingly prepared for the battle, wanting to look her best for what she was sure would be her first big triumph.

Unfortunately, her competition, the battle-hardened kick-boxer Bruce Irvine, was also fully confident about his victory and judging from the casual state of his dress, also quite sure that the battle would be anything but spectacular. Xiaoyu sucked in a hiss of annoyance as she regarded her tall opponent.

"You could've at least dressed up, you know!" she scolded him, hands on her hips. The tall black man eyed her bright pink silk dress disgustedly and gave her an uninterested shrug.

"There's no one here to impress," he replied, looking pointedly at Xiaoyu. As if on cue, the wind blew, and Xiaoyu half-expected tumbleweed to pop out of nowhere and go rolling across the empty rooftop. Drawing her brows together, she stamped her foot on the tiling.

"Just look at you! You're wearing your training sweats to your first match! Don't you know that's unlucky?" she said primly. "Where's your pride? Your self-esteem? Your fashion sense?"

Bruce rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath. "Where the hell is the fight bell?"

After glaring at him for a few more moments to no avail, Xiaoyu gave up and decided to ignore him. She strolled around the perimeter of the roof, searching for the hidden cameras she was sure were mounted somewhere. Self-consciously, she checked her hair and straightened her skirt once more. A niggling doubt wedged its way into her mind that perhaps she should be taking her first battle much more seriously, but she shrugged it off. "Hey, if I fought off a devil, I can take care of a kick boxer, no problem," she reasoned to herself. A low chime brought her wandering attention back to the battle at hand, and a loudspeaker crackled over the rooftop.

"Battle number zero-six: Xiaoyu Ling versus Bruce Irvine," came the announcement. Xiaoyu let out a loud wail of indignation as she heard their names.

"You're supposed to say Ling Xiaoyu!" she yelled, pointing at the speaker angrily.

"Doesn't really matter," Bruce told her, leaning his head to one side with an audible pop. Sighing with relief, he swung his shoulders around and bounced on his feet, preparing for the fight. "Only name you're gonna need is paste after this match," he told her mirthlessly.

Xiaoyu widened her eyes and shook her head vigorously, redirecting her accusing finger towards the kick boxer across from her. "Oooooooooh, looks like I'm in for a tough battle!" she said sarcastically, dancing around him in mock fear.

The speaker crackled to life once more, the announcer's voice sounding decidedly less amused than before. "Enough theatrics. Fighters, take your positions."

"Now this I know," Bruce said, smiling as he raised both of his arms and one knee, circling around Xiaoyu cautiously.

She decided not to answer him, instead opting to shift her weight to her back foot and drop into her own fighting stance. Butterflies collected in her stomach as they both waited for the bell to sound, signalling the start of the battle. It was these seconds Xiaoyu hated the most, the anticipation of the fight often being much worse than the actual battle itself. Though the wait was in reality only a few short seconds, it always felt like a lifetime to her.

The bell sounded, ringing clear and true over the empty rooftop, and suddenly, things were in motion. Xiaoyu drew the first blood, smiling with satisfaction as she tested the waters with her phoenix twin kick, snapping Bruce's head back and forth. She spun away quickly and took a defensive position as she heard the boxer curse, well aware of the damage his powerfully muscled legs might be able to inflict.

Recovering, Bruce returned her smile without any humour. "Not bad, little girl. Now lemmie show you how you really kick," he added, charging forward. Xiaoyu gave a squeak of surprise as he sent one booted foot flying towards her head, ducking under the attack. He followed with a few quick punches that she easily dodged, spinning to her right, and then deflecting another blow with her left arm as she sidestepped.

Well, he's definitely not faster than me, she thought critically as they backed away from each other. For his part, the kick boxer looked surprised that he hadn't managed to land a hit.

"You're not too bad," he said appreciatively, bouncing in place as he lowered his head and raised his arms once more.

"Neither are you," Xiaoyu said with a smile, raising her arms into guard position. "You don't fight with any flair, though," she complained. "How are we going to get noticed if you keep on doing boring stuff?"

Bruce looked at her with a mixture of indignation and annoyance. "I don't care about looks, I care about winning," he told her. "Now are you gonna take this fight seriously or not?"

"Well," Xiaoyu told him, faking a yawn, "If you insist. Don't say I didn't try to give you your fifteen seconds of fame, though!" she warned him. Immediately, she dropped into her phoenix crouch and aimed a low hit at the boxer's shins with her palm. It was more of an annoying gnat bite than a strike, but all Xiaoyu wanted was to buy enough time to throw him off balance for her next hit. Already, she was rising into a flashy spin kick, catching Bruce across the jaw as she extended her arms gracefully. Landing neatly, she smiled at her opponent before somersaulting backwards and out of the way of his kick as he rose to his feet. "See what I mean? Make a little noise when you fight, wave your arms around more. The audience loves that stuff!" Xiaoyu scolded him.

Grimacing, Bruce stood and rubbed his sore jaw. "Just… shut… up!" he growled, losing his temper and rushing at Xiaoyu. It was the moment she had been waiting for, and with a grin, she raced to meet him. The impromptu game of chicken caused confusion to flash in the boxer's eyes, and she used his momentary hesitation to scale his long legs as though he was a climbing wall and leap onto his shoulders. Before he could even turn his head and yell at her, she was already jumping off, landing two light, teasing kicks to the back of his head. It was more of an insult than a real manoeuvre, but it was very showy, and it sent the boxer to his knees for the second time. A groan escaped him as the chime sounded.

"Ling Xiaoyu wins!" boomed the announcer's voice.

Xiaoyu jumped up and down and flashed a victory sign at the speaker, yelling a hearty "You got it right! Thank you!" to the announcer. Turning around, she beamed at the boxer, who was rubbing his neck, trying to regain his equilibrium. "Hey, that was almost too easy. Are you sure you're ready for this competition?"

Bruce rolled his shoulders and squared off against Xiaoyu once more, raising his arms. "I wasn't expecting that," he said sourly. "But I'm ready now."

The bell struck, and Xiaoyu launched herself into another attack. This time she swung low, sweeping the floor with her extended leg twice in rapid succession. As she had hoped, it knocked the boxer off balance once more, and she charged forward eagerly, hoping to catch him in her wave crest strike. To her shock, however, Bruce recovered from the stumble and leaned backwards. She gave a small cry of dismay, unable to stop her upwards momentum as her hands passed cleanly over the tall man's face. It left her abdomen wide open for his strike, as well as giving her an excellent view of his triumphant smile.

And what a strike it was! Xiaoyu gasped for air as his fist landed squarely into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. "No style?" Bruce yelled as his right fist continued where the left had left off. Her feet were actually lifted off of the ground from the force of his blow, dangling helplessly over the tiled concrete of the rooftop. Stars crossed her vision, and just when she thought it couldn't get any worse, the boxer's knee decided to join the party on her stomach, slamming her into the ground. It hurt so much she couldn't even summon the energy to yell in pain.

Backing off, Bruce bounced up and down, smiling with satisfaction. "You don't need style to win, kid."

Xiaoyu blinked, surprise and frustration surfacing as the pain began to fade. But, she realized as she rolled to her feet, the chime had not sounded. Hope blossomed as she fell into her fighting stance. The round isn't over yet! There's still a chance! She took a quick swipe at her mouth, swallowing loudly before answering him. "I underestimated you too," she admitted reluctantly, "but my Grandpa always told me, strength isn't power."

"I can take your Grandpa to school too," he answered as he rushed her with another high kick. This time Xiaoyu ducked quickly, not wanting to take any chances.

One more hit and this round is his, she thought rapidly. I can't let him land anything or I'm finished! So she waited, cautiously dodging his attacks, searching for an opening. It finally appeared as Bruce's flurry of kicks and punches came to a halt. As he slowed down, Xiaoyu bent her knees and sidled around the tall man, pointing her fingers directly between his eyes. "You're under my spell," she sang, swaying slightly and carefully planting her feet one after the other.

"What the hell are you doing?" Bruce said, his head unknowingly turning as she circled around him.

Now! She dropped and twisted over her knees, forming her best impression of a human pretzel, a memory of a lesson long ago washing over her.

"You can focus your chi in your tummy," Jinrei's voice echoed in her head.

"That's silly! If you hit people with your hands and your feet, shouldn't you focus all your energy into them instead?" Xiaoyu had asked. "How can you hit someone with your tummy if you don't have a pot belly?"

Jinrei had only laughed at the young girl's question. "Watch, my child," he said, winking at her secretively. And then, with a deep breath, he had dropped with a speed she wouldn't have believed possible for a man of his age. It looked like he was curling in on himself, folding his body up like a piece of origami. Jinrei opened his mouth and let his breath rush out in a rising 'haaah!' The movement was slow and controlled, but as his hands curled out from his stomach, they pitched forward into the wooden training dummy, carried by a momentum that couldn't have come from the muscles in his arms alone.

The young Xiaoyu winced, forced to turn her head away as a sharp crack echoed through the courtyard. She almost swore that she saw a burst of light where the old man struck. When she finally managed to blink and look back, her grandfather had already straightened up, his arms crossed and laughter in his eyes. The training dummy lay at his feet, its thick wooden torso cleanly cloven in half from the blow.

Xiaoyu opened her mouth, letting her breath slowly rush out with a soft hiss as she uncurled her body from its twisted posture. Understanding dawned across the boxer's face too late; she was already rising as he tried to back out of reach. Her arms shot out, right and left extending outward like an open fan, striking her opponent across the head in rapid succession. The hit fell true and with all of the power she could muster in her tiny body. It was a surprising amount of force, and it sent the boxer reeling before he collapsed on the floor. Not giving him the chance to recover, Xiaoyu settled for pummelling him with a couple of fast, low kicks in rapid succession. It was inelegant, perhaps slightly unfair and definitely not a technique that would land their battle a position on prime television. But, she thought sourly, he said it himself, you didn't need style to win. Soon the chime sounded, and the second bout was called.

"Ling Xiaoyu wins!" With a crackle and an ear-splitting whine, the speakers cut out, and the fight was over. Somewhere, the results were being tallied, and Xiaoyu's name was being added to the next tier of fighters. She smiled slightly, wiping the sweat from her forehead, and regarded her felled opponent.

"Whew! That wasn't easy, you know," she told him as he stumbled slowly to his feet. "I thought you had me there for a second!"

"Damn. Damn, damn, damn!" the boxer said, shaking his head from side to side. For a moment, Xiaoyu feared he was a sore loser, but when he finally did glance up, relief washed through his features, as well as realization. He's one of them too! she thought excitedly, looking into his dark eyes. He's a normal person! As if to confirm her suspicion, he gave her an awkward smile. "I gotta find out where you learned to hit like that," he admitted finally. "Never gonna live it down at the gym when they hear I was beaten by a girl."

"Next time wear pink and fight flashy," Xiaoyu giggled. "That's my secret!"

Bruce only shook his head with a rueful snort. "Better watch out next time. I'll be back, and I'll get you then," he told her. And then, after a short pause, he offered her his hand, smiling as she uncertainly accepted his congratulatory handshake. "Good luck in the tournament, kid. I hope you do better than me," he told her.

- x – x – x -

Xiaoyu skipped into the lobby of the Mishima Corporation Headquarters, tired but still buoyed by excitement of her win. She stopped by the contestants' board and smiled as she saw her name had moved up on the list. The next battle location and opponent were still blanks, but it filled her with pride to see that her position in the next tier was already secure.

There's still the chance I'll have to fight Jin next. Xiaoyu frowned and shook her head furiously. "No time for bad thoughts, I made it to the next round." She gave a little cheer and victory jump, and then immediately winced, her hand dropping to her stomach. "Uhh, that's gonna be black and blue tomorrow," she moaned, limping her way towards the private elevators. All she wanted to do at that particular moment was crawl into a hot bath and lay there for a few hours, letting the muscles in her stomach unknot. She let out a small groan as she met the first obstacle to her much-deserved relaxation time. A familiar tall figure was arguing with the guards standing by the elevator doors.

"Hey, it's not like anyone's even using this stupid thing," Hwoarang said with boredom, gesturing at the closed doors before him. "So what if I wanna hang around here? What're you gonna do about it?" The last statement was definitely a threat, as Hwoarang leaned in and towered over the guard, unphased by the submachine gun the smaller man was holding.

"Give it up, Hwoarang, they don't know how to talk, just shoot," Xiaoyu said, glaring up at the redhead as he swung around.

"Oh good, you're here. Maybe you can call your dogs off," he said, thumbing over his shoulder at the guard.

"They're Kazuya's dogs," Xiaoyu answered. "Now get out of the way, I want to go home," she groaned, her hand curling over her stomach once more. To her surprise, Hwoarang shook his head and crossed his arms, planting himself firmly in front of the elevator doors. Xiaoyu spared a moment to glare angrily at the guards, who were dutifully responding to her veiled insult by letting the obnoxious Korean have his own way. "I swear," she muttered under her breath, "I don't know why the Mishimas even pay you guys."

"Hey," Hwoarang said, his face drawing into a scowl. "Don't you want to know why I'm here?"

"No," Xiaoyu said flatly. "I bet you're going to tell me anyway, so get on with it," she added.

"What's the matter, Sailor Sunshine got a bellyache?" he asked her smugly.

Xiaoyu muttered a few low curses to herself and then, gathering her patience, grinned at Hwoarang with all the sugar she could muster. "Oh, nothing a little happiness and friendship couldn't cure!" she chirped. "I was actually thinking of some karaoke with my friend Miharu! Wanna join us?" I swear, I'm going to kick him to the moon if he takes me up on that offer, she thought as smiled brightly. She gave herself a congratulatory mental pat on the back as she won her gamble. Seeing Hwoarang recoil in horror at the offer made it worth the pain and effort.

"Not exactly," he said, stepping carefully away from the smiling girl. "You're acting all weird. You're not planning to hit me or anything, are you?" he said suspiciously.

"Maybe," Xiaoyu answered. "Move or talk, now, and you can delay the inevitable."

Chuckling, Hwoarang nodded his assent. "Now that's the Xiaoyu I recognize," he said with a smirk. "I thought of a way you can repay me," he added.

Xiaoyu felt her temper rise a notch. Must… not… hit. "Repay you? I didn't know I owed you!" she said, her voice growing shrill.

"Oh, so you forgot about yesterday already," Hwoarang said. "Funny, my back hasn't yet. In my book, that means you owe me."

Xiaoyu flushed, wishing for the thousandth time that she hadn't fallen off of the van in the club. "Alright, just tell me what you want already!" she said miserably. She felt a sinking sensation in her stomach as Hwoarang's smug grin widened exponentially.

"The board says you won," he replied, leaning back against the elevator doors. "That means another battle tomorrow. And more exposure," he added, leaning towards Xiaoyu with an evil grin. "You're not going in wearing that," he said, waving lazily at Xiaoyu's outfit.

Xiaoyu looked down at herself, and then looked up at Hwoarang. "Hey, what's wrong with my dress?" she asked indignantly.

"Well, for one, it's pink," he began. "The point is, you're gonna wear what I tell you to wear to your next fight." He laughed as Xiaoyu's face promptly turned red and her mouth opened. "You're not getting out of this one," he grinned. "I almost had Jin yesterday. You owe me."

Xiaoyu opened and closed her mouth soundlessly for a few moments, before finally settling on a resigned glare. "Fine. Just this once, because you did catch me. But it has to be something I can fight in!" Seeing Hwoarang open his mouth, she quickly amended her statement. "And it has to be decent!" she yelled.

"Relax, I already had something in mind," he told her. "You're gonna wear your uniform to the next fight."

Xiaoyu blinked owlishly, surprised. "Uniform?" she replied in a confused echo. "What uniform? I don't have a uniform!"

Hwoarang shook his head. "Yeah, you do," he said, grinning lazily.

"No," she said sharply, "I don't! You can wear whatever you want in college! I haven't had a uniform since high school…" Realization dawned as Hwoarang's smirk widened. "WHAT? NO WAY!" she screeched.

"You're always trying to convince people you're a cute little girl. Hey, I'm just helpin' you out," he grinned.

"I've had a growth spurt since then!" Xiaoyu sputtered. It wasn't a very convincing statement to make, as Hwoarang still stood head and shoulders over her petite form. She had to try, though. "Do you know how short the skirt is going to be?" she added, trying to keep her head from exploding. Hwoarang's eager nod dropped her face into a scowl. The casual snickers from the guards, still standing at attention to their sides, weren't helping her at all either. Her stomach reminded her once more of the tender affection it had received in the match earlier, and crossly, she gave Hwoarang an exasperated nod. "Fine, fine, I'll do it, just get out of my way!"

Shrugging, Hwoarang finally stood away from the elevator doors, pressing the button for her. "See you tomorrow, then," he smiled, and sauntered away.

"See me? Wait a second, you didn't say you were going to show up at the match!" she yelled, red crossing her cheeks once more. He didn't bother to reply, and Xiaoyu groaned in frustration as the elevator tinkled, the doors sliding open smoothly behind her. "What have I gotten myself into?" she mumbled, making a hasty retreat.