The following afternoon, a grinning young man was enjoying himself at a downtown Night club.
This happy fellow had long, neck-length black hair, dark brown skin and shifty black eyes. Of all things, he wore a very conspicuous pink gi and a red headband. Also to note his the sleazy grin he head on his face as he shamelessly eyed and flirted with all the ladies in sight.
And who couldn't blame the guy? In most of his life, his chances of getting with the girl was either hit or miss. And he always savored the moments when his charms would hit…
"Hey babe." The grinning letch uttered suavely to a nearby red-head. "How's a bout you and me do a little Kung Fu Fighting? You know, the sexy kind?"
The free flirt was immediately met with unpleasant hand contact across the face, leaving a mark on his cheek.
"Oww… you could've just said "No", y'know?!" the shameless flirt whined.
Soon enough, the two wandering warriors barged their way through the main entrance. While Mitchel remained in his usual get-up, Karen changed into a red karate gi with a black belt.
"Hey! We're looking for a guy named Dan, and the locals pointed us here, so if he isn't around, it would be a big help if you could tell us where he is." Mitchel asked aloud.
"Yeah, we've got a few questions for him." Karen followed up.
Apparently, Karen's voice caught the flirt's immediate attention.
"Who wants to know?" he cried back with a grin.
"Master Woody's two great Disciples, that's who." Karen answered.
"Woody, huh? That jerk…" the flirt grumbled.
He then strut his way over to the feisty blonde.
"But if you're looking for the Dan, you're looking at him." He finished in a sly tone
"So… you're Dan?" Karen asked dubiously.
"He… doesn't seem all that tough to me. Especially with the ridiculous pink gi." Mitchel said awkwardly.
"Hey, don't diss the outfit! It's my signature threads! My own Fashion Statement! Besides, chicks dig the pink!" Dan shouted.
"Yeah, on themselves…" Karen quipped in an annoyed tone.
At the same time, Mitchel gave out a snicker while restraining himself from full out laughter.
"So, what is it a lovely young lady like you want with Mr. Magnificent, anyway?" Dan asked.
"We're here to ask you about a guy named Gotz… and where he might be." Karen asked while shooting a coy look at the flirt.
Dan's easygoing nature took a step back as he heard the name.
"Gotz, you say? Funny, I thought no body would even bother talking about the guy after he went all monster-like… I thought pursuing Murderous Intent would eventually eat him alive…" Dan said curiously.
Out of furry, Karen grabbed the guy by his collar.
"So you DO know something! SPILL IT RIGHT NOW!!!" Karen demanded.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Why are you getting worked up about this psycho, anyway? All the guy did since he was beaten badly by Master was train day and night on some island off the coast to become some Fighting Monster! The worst he could do is disturb somebody in their sleep with howling or something!" Dan complained.
"THAT PSYCHO KILLED OUR MASTER!!!" Karen growled.
Dan shot back a confused look at Karen before he turned it to the side.
"Ohhhhh…" Dan uttered.
The man in pink then let out a huff and a spit as he glared off in disgust.
"Well, nuts to him, then. That weenie of a Master kicked me out of the dojo before he got to the good stuff! Senile jerk…" Dan grumbled.
"…Shishou is NOT a weenie…" Karen muttered.
"Of course he is! Do you know WHY he kicked me out? Bah… it was because of my reasons for learning Anstasuken in the first place: Revenge, and babes… lots and lots of babes. That Muai Thai comedic bastard "Bob Sagat" or whatever murdered my Dad some years ago in a challenge for his title of "World's Strongest Warrior". Sure, good old Dad gave him a good one in the eye, but I don't remember any saying that goes "a life for an eye"! Damn it, to this day, my Mom still cries over Dad's death! Boy, am I going to give it to that guy one day! And you know what? What's wrong with trying to impress the ladies with a little Martial Arts Magic, anyway? I'm pretty sure that's like 80 of the reasons people are practicing the stuff! Those crackpots that say Martial Arts is for stuff like "discipline" are full of it! Being able to show off for the chicks is what makes a "true" man, that's for sure!" Dan explained.
Mitchel glanced suspiciously at the talking pair upon the mention of "vengeance" while Karen glanced at this side whistling nervously.
"But you know what? Since the old man pointed you in my direction, maybe he finally wizened up in his dying moments! I'll be MORE than happy to teach you far more than what the old bag could teach you…" Dan grinned while he slowly steered his hand towards her chest.
If it were another one of his rejections, he would've been dealt another slap, but seing as how he was staring at one angry Karen Masters, this was not to be…
Instead, Dan was grabbed and flung practically halfway across the Club like a pillow. Instinctively, Dan recovered in mid-air… only to land hard on his knees. However, he didn't seem affected at first.
"Ha, don't think I threw away what I managed to learn from that old man. I took what I learned, made it ten times better, and incorporated it into my own personal style that also happens to be the best fighting style in the world: The Sexy Style!!!" Dan proclaimed as he flashed his teeth.
"YEEEOOOOOOWWWWW!!!!!!!"
"Okay, then… do you feel like backing up your words with your fists, little man? Or are you going to let your girly screams do the talking instead?" Karen smirked.
After a few pathetic tries, Dan managed to pick himself up despite his numbed knees.
"Oh, it's on, milady. As hot as you are, I'm not going easy on you for being that jerk's disciple. But you know what, once you see my Sexy Style in action, you're going to fall hard for me, and you'll soon see the error of your ways." Dan smirked.
He then pulled his right hand behind him for a wind-up and charged it full of flashy white ki.
"You know you're precious "Hadouken" attack? Well, I never got around to learning it in full, but luckily your handsome hero was tutored in the principles of the Hadou, so I know a way to make my little fireball look ten times cooler than your's! Now fear my own stylish move!"
Dan then threw out his sole hand with his fully charged ki.
"GADOUKEN!"
As impressive as it initially appeared, the ball of flame only went a few inches past the user.
"You see that?" Dan grinned. "I can throw my own fireball with one hand, while you schmoes are stuck using both."
Everyone in the Club stared at the pink-dressed man in disbelief.
"That was just… that sucked." Mitchel uttered to himself.
After Karen got over being stupefied by Dan's new technique, a devilish grin came across her face.
"Alright, is it my turn then?" Karen asked.
"Sure, knock yourself out, babe. But don't blame me when you look like a fool in front of everyone after they were just exposed to my invincible skills." Dan bragged.
"Sure, whatever…" Karen muttered.
Immediately, the female martial artist went through the correct motions of the mythical technique, and once the hands behind her were charged sufficiently with blue ki, she shot it out towards her confident foe.
"HADOUKEN!!!"
Dan merely stood there in utter confidence, with the peculiar delusion of victory in his grasp.
"Ha, see! My attacked looked way coo---"
The blue surge of ki was sent right into Dan's gut, causing him to skid a few feet backwards.
"Al…right…. So you got a little lucky with that last shot." Dan groaned. "But this time I'll come at you for real!"
Suddenly, Dan got into a brief running start, then he launched his body foot first right Karen to unleash a deadly flying kick. Unfortunately for him, Karen saw it coming a mile away, and she blocked as soon as he made his approach. However, Dan was still stubborn in breaking her defense and managed to knee and kick Karen's blocking arms once more before he landed on the ground without success.
"WHAT?! You weren't supposed to blo---"
"SHORYUKEN!" Karen interrupted.
The U.S. Martial Arts Champion sent the same rising fist right into Dan's pretty face, only in her case, the punch erupted into a scorching flame that enveloped her opponent's entire body.
Everyone in the Club stared at this technique in awe, especially the dumbstruck Mitchel who was usually all too familiar with the attack.
After Karen's smooth landing and Dan's collapse, the beaten playboy managed to survive the flaming fist with only a bruised face.
"FLAMES?! Your Shoryuken has flames now?" Mitchel exclaimed.
"Yup, it's MY own twist to an old technique, except I managed to make the flame solely ki-based so I won't go around killing people recklessly with it." Karen bragged.
"And yet, I have the distinct feeling you wish that last flaming punch broiled that guy's ass for good…" Mitchel retorted.
"He certainly would've deserved it…." Karen muttered.
Moments later, the pair left the bar to continue their pursuit of the elusive Gotz.
"So, about Master Woody rejecting Dan for motives of revenge…" Mitchel reminded his friend.
"Ah! W-well, you see? Sure, DAN would be kicked out for those reasons. He's a moron who's obsessed with pretty women! But WE'RE different. We're fighting the good, righteous fight, you know? We're trying to get rid of a guy who would murder his own Mom if it meant proving he was the Strongest Fighter in existence! Putting the kibosh on the "Murderous Intent", you know?" Karen explained in a nervous tone.
"Sure whatever." Mitchel answered dubiously. "Anyway, since we're going on with this quest, we should be glad we got that tip. The one "Island just off the coast" was believed by locals to be a cursed place haunted by vicious spirits. Yes… it's the perfect place for Gotz to reject his humanity and become consumed by the "Murderous Intent."
"So… all we have to do is find a good Harbor Town to take us there?" Karen asked eagerly.
Mitchel nodded. "But from this point on, I'm not doing it all for the vengeance. Master Woody's death and defeat in the hands of this Demon makes me curious now…" he confessed in a solemn tone.
Karen shot her friend a worried look. "Wait, now… don't tell me you're interested in having the "Murderous Intent" for yourself all of a sudden…"
"No, of course not. That would be blasphemous to our teachings." Mitchel answered. "It's just… even with raw power, our Master couldn't have been overwhelmed so easily. I have an odd feeling about our teachings, that's all…"
"Well, whatever doubt you're feeling, I sure as hell know that Shishou didn't steer us wrong. We wouldn't be the awesome fighters we are today without his guidance." Karen assured Mitchel.
Again, the warrior in white replied with a simple nod.
For awhile, the two wandered silently onward towards their ominous destination until a curious thought overcame the martial artist in white.
"So… um… what exactly were we supposed to learn from that douche bag, anyway? I didn't learn a thing watching him in action except how to suck." Mitchel groaned.
Karen shrugged. "Meh, if anything, maybe Shishou wanted us to learn how and why NOT to fight…"
After a few more moments of silence, the pair stared at each other curiously.
"Well, that DOES sound like Master Woody." Mitchel admitted.
"Yeah… him and his goofy life lessons." Karen chuckled.