A/N: Eyyyy peoples! Yet another addition to Face the Music by ur superior, Thee Slushee, hahahha! Anyways, I was stuck for sooo long, wondering what the hell I shud do for this chapter! Even now, I still have absolutely no idea what to do!! Hoping it will come to me as I write this…this is just awesome! I'm fighting the insane laziness that has held me back for so long! I'm back ya'll! Hahhaha! Well, hope u like this chapter of Face the Music :D
Chapter 3: Taste of the tournament
Xiaoyu lay on her bed, upside down, watching the flat screen TV that was imbedded in the wall. She had gotten home about two hours ago, so she was still in her school uniform. She was currently watching the music channel, Juice TV, where the song Automatic by Utada Hikaru was playing (A/N: it's a J-pop song I was obsessed with…pretty cool!).
"Man, I'm so bored," Xiaoyu said to herself as she mindlessly watched the music video. Since this was her first day of school, she didn't really get any homework, so she was stuck with nothing to do. Xiaoyu lifted her hands to rest them on the ground and she shifted all her weight onto her hands, performing a handstand and resting her feet on the ground. She snapped her fingers as an idea came to her.
"I know! The reason I'm here is to participate in the third Iron Fist tournament! I'll train," With this, she pulled open one of her suitcases which resided beside her bed, and snatched her training uniform: A royal blue Chinese styled top with yellow cuffs and a yellow design at the top and the two flaps, black shorts with yellow lining on them, and blue and yellow shoes. Xiaoyu rushed over to her vanity table and pulled out two yellow hairties and rushed to the bathroom.
After a few minutes, she emerged from her bathroom. She exited her room and looked down both hallways.
"Okay…now where would the training place be?" Xiaoyu thought to herself as she looked down both hallways, which roughly looked the same.
"I know! I'll ask Jin," She learnt that Jin's room was only a couple of doors down from hers so all she needed to do was ask him. Hopefully he'll actually tell me instead of just staring at me as if I've said the craziest thing he's ever heard. She went down the left corridor two doors and knocked on the third door. Silence. Xiaoyu knocked again, a little bit louder. Still silence.
"Jin?" Xiaoyu called, but there was no reply. She turned the door handle and pushed the door open to find an empty room. His room was quite messy: bed sheets strewn on the ground, clothes piled up on his chair to his desk, desk swarmed with assignments and even a few holes in the wall, resulting from punches. Xiaoyu seemed a little intimidated by the look of his room. A flash of gold caught her eye just before she turned to leave. She approached it to find a small golden locket lying on his bed, nestled in the pillow. Xiao, this is his stuff…don't touch it, Xiaoyu commanded herself but curiosity got the better of her…She opened the elliptical locket to find two photos: The one on the left held a picture of Jin when he was much younger, sitting with a Japanese woman on the front porch of a wooden cottage in a forest. The woman was very beautiful, wearing a smile of innocence and happiness while Jin wore a huge grin on his face. She must be Jin's mother…Xiaoyu thought to herself. On the other photo was a baby (Xiaoyu assumed it was Jin) being held by a woman with brown hair and a content smile on her face. She might be his mother too…Xiaoyu was puzzled by which of the two women was his mother. Instantly realizing what she has done, Xiaoyu closed the locket and placed it back on his bed and hurried out of his room. What if he walked in on you there? You would've been in such deep trouble! Xiaoyu thought as she walked faster and faster away from his room.
"Man! Now how am I going to find the training arena place thing?" Xiaoyu realized after she walked downstairs.
"It's out the back of the compound, Miss Ling," A voice chirped up from behind her. Xiaoyu spun around to see Ms Hamasaki, one of the many workers here in the mansion. Of course, I could've asked one of the millions that walked passed me when I was busy trying to get away from Jin's room! Xiaoyu mentally slapped herself. She wore a grateful smile and bowed.
"Thank you,"
"Anytime Miss Ling," She waved as Xiaoyu turned towards the front door and jogged towards it.
"Oh, Miss Ling!" Ms Hamasaki called out to her but Xiaoyu had already disappeared out the door.
Xiaoyu walked around the mansion to find that it was as wide as it was long. Xiaoyu groaned in annoyance and trudged alongside the outer wall of the mansion, finally arriving at the back five minutes later. She looked over at the back of the mansion to find an entire back porch to the mansion. Xiaoyu sighed, that's just perfect! I'm half tired out by going round the mansion and there's a back door. Xiaoyu looked ahead of her to see a small building that was distanced from the mansion. The style of the building had a traditional sense: The body was made entirely out of wood and shingles covered the pointy rooftop (A/N: It pretty much looks like Hon Maru, k?).
As Xiaoyu neared the building, sharp sounds of combat cut through the tranquil silence. Jin's probably in there…Xiaoyu thought as she ventured closer towards the building. She considered turning back since the combat area was occupied, but a part of her wanted to see how good Jin was. She stealthily snuck up towards the main paper doors and quietly slid them open. Jin and Heihachi were engaged in intense combat so they didn't notice Xiaoyu sneak in. She closed the door behind her and snuck behind a wooden pillar that supported the ceiling. The area inside the building was about as traditional as it looked from the outside. There were small windows that lined the inner walls at the top, filtering only small beams of light onto the wooden floors. A wooden rail lined the walls, as if it was made for by standers to watch the fight happening in the centre. A large statue of Buddha was at the far end, showing the religious importance in battle.
Xiaoyu peeped around the wooden pillar to have a sneak peak…and it was definitely more intense than any training she received from her grandfather.
Jin threw a fierce head high punch at Heihachi but he ducked the punch and executed a quick rising kick, causing Jin to stagger slightly. Heihachi took advantage of this and performed a quick palm thrust, yelling as he did so. Jin yelled out in pain, skidding along the wooden floor as a result, legs in the air. Jin quickly rolled back and took a couple of quick steps towards Heihachi. Heihachi stood his ground to block the attack that he had predicted Jin will do: A lunging punch. Jin changed his plan of attack from the predicted punch to a roundhouse kick, which smacked Heihachi over the head, making him spin through the air. While Heihachi was on the ground, Jin flipped himself through the air to land on Heihachi's fallen body but all didn't go according to plan as Heihachi executed a quick roll to dodge the attack, allowing Jin to meet the dojo floor. Jin was stunned for a second as he made contact with the ground, which was all the time Heihachi needed to perform a stomp on Jin's body, yellow lightning circling around his foot. A slight yelp escaped Jin's lips as he tried to suppress the pain as he was stomped on. Jin immediately rolled to his feet only to be hit by a powerful uppercut by Heihachi, lightning surging around his arm. Jin collapsed to the ground, managing to support himself on his elbow.
"Get up boy!" Heihachi spat, kicking him in the stomach, causing Jin to be knocked onto his back.
"You'll never be able to defeat Ogre if u can't beat a mere mortal like me!" Heihachi continued. As Jin began to sit up, Heihachi advanced on him, clearly going to deal another attack. But before he could, something interrupted him.
"Don't hurt him!" Xiaoyu couldn't help but shout out to Heihachi. Heihachi spun around to see Xiaoyu timidly leaving her cover behind the pillar to look Heihachi in the eye. A smirk came to Heihachi's features.
"Xiaoyu? What are you doing here?" Heihachi questioned. Behind him, Jin slowly regained his composure, clutching his stomach in pain.
"Well, I-I just…just wanted to train for a bit," Xiaoyu started. "But I can see that you're busy so I'll just come back another time-"
"This is an excellent opportunity for you to get a taste of what the tournament offers, Xiaoyu," Heihachi interrupted Xiaoyu in mid-sentence as she was turning to leave.
"She's entering the tournament?!" Jin asked Heihachi incredulously. "You can't let her enter this tournament, she's far too young," Jin protested. However, instead of doing much good in protesting against Xiaoyu's entry, it slightly annoyed her.
"Jin! How could you instantly think that I can't defend myself in this tournament?" Xiaoyu snapped, placing her hands on her hips.
"Xiaoyu, you don't know what you're getting yourself into," Jin reasoned, wincing as he spoke.
"I am as able as you are to participate in this tournament! So whether you like it or not, I'm entering!" Xiaoyu argued. Heihachi let out a hearty laugh and looked at Xiaoyu.
"Such a fiery spirit you have, Xiaoyu. Care to test out your skills against my grandson?" This suggestion surprised both Jin and Xiaoyu.
"I can't fight her!" Jin immediately protested, which angered Xiaoyu.
"You think you're too good for me? You think that I'm just a defenseless little girl? Alright, that's it! Bring it on." Xiaoyu stepped onto the fighting area and settled into her battle stance with a determined look on her features. Jin exchanged a glance with Heihachi with a "please don't make me do this" look on his face. Heihachi had a stern expression on his face that basically said "you have no choice in the matter". With a sigh, Jin straightened his composure and set himself in his fighting stance. Heihachi got out of the way of the two teenagers and stood behind the barrier.
"FIGHT!" He suddenly called out, which cued Xiaoyu for her first attack. She dashed towards Jin and executed two quick slaps. Jin was prepared to block the first strike but he didn't think the second would come so quickly so it connected with his head. His head veered back due to the impact but only slightly. Xiaoyu brought her hands up and hammered them down on Jin, which he blocked with ease. She extended her hands to follow up the combo, which Jin sidestepped. He took hold of her open arm and kicked her in the face, using the same foot to kick the back of her head. Xiaoyu landed face first on the floor due to Jin's sudden throw. Xiaoyu rolled forward to gain some distance from Jin and eyed him. Jin wasn't sure what to expect, as he had never seen a fighting style quite like hers. As the two stood idle for about ten seconds, Jin made the first move. He rushed forward to deliver a right hook, but Xiaoyu suddenly cart wheeled to the left, leaving his side exposed. Xiaoyu executed a right hook kick from her back stance, sending Jin high into the air. As Jin was coming back down, she executed her signature palm thrust she called 'Storming Flower'. Suddenly Xiaoyu flipped about 3 meters in the air to land on Jin's fallen body but he quickly rolled out of the way. Jin jumped in the air, spun around and delivered a powerful kick, which sent Xiaoyu a couple of meters back. He wasn't finished though as he kept spinning and kicking as he came down to the ground, hitting Xiaoyu with a couple more kicks as she rose up.
Jin dashed towards her and performed a three punch combo. Xiaoyu avoided all three punches by settling in her Art of Phoenix stance. Jin was confused at this kind of stance, but that confusion resulted in an opening. Xiaoyu instantly sprung up from her position low on the ground to a jumping high kick, which connected with the bottom of Jin's chin. As soon as Xiaoyu landed, Jin dealt a right hook, left hook and a lunging punch, causing Xiaoyu to be thrown back by the punch. Xiaoyu started to tire out as the fight progressed but she didn't want to give up. I'm not going to prove to him that I'm not fit for this tournament! I have to win this fight! This was all that was fueling Xiaoyu as she willed herself to stand up and rest back in her fighting stance. She rushed at Jin and prepared to throw at right kick at Jin's face but just as she did, he took hold of her foot.
"Sorry," He whispered to Xiaoyu just before he deflected her blow away and struck a stiff chop to Xiaoyu's neck.
"What the –" Xiaoyu whispered as her vision began to cloud and she lost all feeling in her limbs. She collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
Jin let out a sigh of relief…it was finally over. He really didn't want to fight her. She seemed like such a delicate, vulnerable girl and he didn't want to hurt her. But it turned out that she did have a lot of skill herself in a fighting style he'd never seen before. Still, that doesn't mean that he didn't hold back. Even if he was forced to fight her, fighting her with all his strength would've just been cruel…but he knew that it wouldn't go unpunished by his grandfather.
"Jin, have you learnt nothing?" Heihachi barked at his grandson, who had turned to leave the dojo but was stopped by the sound of his voice. Jin closed his eyes and gritted his teeth before opening them and turning towards Heihachi.
"Don't think I didn't see what you were doing, boy," Heihachi made his way towards Jin, completely ignoring Xiaoyu's unconscious body. Jin's silence seemed to aggravate Heihachi even more.
"If that is how you'll fight her if you just so happen to verse her in the tournament – "
"How could you let her enter the tournament in the first place?!" Jin burst out in the middle of Heihachi's lecture. "She's way too young. She's gonna get herself killed!"
"Xiaoyu is a talented martial artist. She took out my entire force of bodyguards on my cruiser, and they had special martial arts training. Her style is quite unique so it confuses her opponent, much like it did with you. However, if you do not fight every battle that faces you with your full strength, then there's no WAY that you'll make it passed the first round," Heihachi explained. Jin opened his mouth to retaliate but he couldn't think of anything to say. He looked down at Xiaoyu's body on the floor, thinking through what Heihachi said.
"If you cannot unleash your full potential on a mere girl, then there's no way you would be able to stand a chance when you eventually verse Ogre," Just saying Ogre was enough to make Jin's blood boil, thirsty for vengeance. Jin closed his eyes and breathed a sigh before turning around and leaving the dojo. Heihachi cast a look down at Xiaoyu, who was now stirring, groaning slightly. After a few seconds, she sat up, rubbing her neck.
"Jin wasn't using his full force on you, Xiaoyu." Heihachi said, squatting beside Xiaoyu. After processing what he had just said, a slight look of surprise washed across her features.
"He wasn't? Well, I kinda ran blindly into that battle 'cause I was mad at him," Xiaoyu stated with a tinge of embarrassment, looking down. "I don't normally do that, Mr. Mishima," Xiaoyu quickly assured, looking up at Heihachi.
"Well that was your first taste of what the tournament holds...but if you let anger fuel you, it might cost you the match at the tournament. Now go get cleaned up. Dinner is at 7." With that, Heihachi stood up and walked out of the dojo. Xiaoyu watched as he left before standing up herself and stretching. Man, did I just make myself look a bit crap…oh well, I'll make up for it next time, and prove to Jin that I'm no pushover…and to prove to Mr. Mishima that bringing me here wasn't a mistake.
A/N: Yo Yo ya'll! Man, has this chapter taken ages to stick up! I had the majority of this chapter up except I was debating whether to stick the music bit here before this chapter…then I figured out that this would be one of the only fight chapters, if not the only fight chapter. As ya'll know, this story is gonna revolve around and entirely different form of art :P But I will throw in a couple of fight chapters, to remind ya'll that this takes place before the third tournament…well, I hope u liked this chapter! Oh and Happy New yearrrr!!! Well, its 2007 here (YEAH!!! In the future, how awesome is that?). Ahem, anyway, review! I'll work on I believe now and see if I can get that chapter up today…if not, then maybe tomorrow, haha.