CHAPTER 6: EARLY MORNING SHOWDOWN
Tokyo, Japan: 6:30 A.M.
"Look alive you three. Direct orders from the big girl herself."
Vexx, Kai, & Saya looked up from their little spot in the corner of a vacant hallway to find someone in a long black trench coat looming over them. It was a night of short sleep for the siblings, having to wake up at the crack of dawn to meet this stranger, but there was no time to complain about it. As Vexx put it...
"It's time to get down to business," the oldest one said, standing up and facing the cloaked person. "You got something for us?"
"Correction. You've got something for me first, don't you, big guy...?"
Vexx merely gave a low scowl as the guy went on.
"Sakura's fighting data... You guys had quite a while to get it... so... do you?"
This time, however, Vexx smirked.
"Saya..." he called, gesturing his younger sister with his hand without looking back at her. Saya looked up, a tired look in her eyes then dug into her shirt pocket, retrieving a black CD from it. It was a quick transaction between her to her brother and them from him to the man in front of them.
"Nice... That concludes this little assignment you three had. Now that we've got all the data on all three members of that posse, it'll be only a matter of time before—'
"Yeah, yeah," Vexx interrupted in an annoyed voice. "You can do all that monologue crap on your own time. The next assignment..."
"Yeah... sure. Right downstairs there's a package waiting to be delivered. I know a certain couple that are going to freak when the see it."
"Oh, really?" the oldest replied. "Let's walk then... Saya. Kai. Let's move."
Kai, who was previously busy doing some work on his laptop behind the others, merely fixed his glasses and closed it up, standing up while running a hand through his long hair. As he passed, Saya just looked on. The girl didn't move automatically. Her eyes remained on the stranger as he and her brothers started to disappear into the darkness of the hallway. She heaved a quiet sigh and reluctantly followed.
It didn't take long for the four of them to reach the end of the hallway where an old-fashioned elevator awaited them. They stepped inside and the mysterious man pressed the ground floor button. The elevator fence doors closed automatically and the transportation device jerked before slowly moving downward. As the quiet remained, Saya looked to her side, where she could see the buildings of downtown Tokyo through the moldings of the building they were currently in. Saya took this time to close here eyes... and to reflect...
Flashback
"Everyone, this is NOT a drill. Repeat, this is NOT a drill. The ship has struck something and has taken heavy damage. Please make your way to the nearest escape pod and board on it in a calm manner. Repeat, this is NOT a drill."
Whoever thought that people would get to a lifeboat in the mist of a vicious storm and board on it calmly was a nutcase. Passengers left and right all rushed like mice trying to get whatever items they held dear and quickly make their way to the nearest lifeboat before they met the cold waters of the Pacific Ocean. My family wasn't any different in the matter. We were normal, after all. I was still very young when this all happened. I was only about 7 or so. I remember myself sitting on the bed to our room, looking around nervously as everyone else made haste getting the most important valuables they could get in their hands. It was supposed to be just a normal 5 day cruise... but on the 3rd day, the ship was caught in a heavy storm and was having difficulty maintaining itself. The winds were harsh outside our door and window; I could feel them furiously scraping at the glass. The boat felt like a water bed, not at all steady as it tried to move forward. I could remember myself crying as this was all happening... It was all too much for a young girl my age...
"Mommy, I'm scared!" I kept wailing. I wanted to believe that this wasn't happening. What was going to happen to us? Were we going to be alright?
"Don't worry, sweetie," came her soft voice as she spun around from the dresser drawer and gave me my purple raincoat and hat. "Everything's going to be alright."
I still remember her face. She was American-born and a blond herself, with a light face that always made me feel better when I was down. This time, however, I was truly petrified. Not even my mother could calm me down at first. While trying to stop crying I took my raincoat and put it on. As I did this, I could remember Meji's voice from the front door.
"Mom! Dad! Come on! Everyone's already manning the last of the lifeboats! If we don't leave now—"
"Don't worry, Meji," came my father's voice. "We're going to make it. Kai! Let's get out of here, now!"
As I look back at it, my oldest brother didn't look as massive as he was now. Not at all. He was like my brother, Kai; much less toned up but taller than everyone else in the family. His hair was much shorter and worn rather messily, but he was a nice person to be around. He was always there for us, looking out for Kai and me ever since we could remember. Across the room from him was my other brother, Kai. He was by no means a technological wizard like today. No. This Kai was a bit of a dolt. This Kai was more laid back and always had a knack at goofing off. Although I must admit that this was not the time for him to be looking for his favorite colored Game Boy, it was that trait that made him who he was. My brother.
"Ok, I'm ready!" he shouted, putting the yellow special edition Game Boy Color into his coat pocket and joining my father and older brother at the door. I was too scared to move, however, so my mother came over to pick me up from the bed and carry me to the door. In a hurry my father threw the door open and quickly we joined the other tenants on the ship in our frantic search for an escape. It was then that I noticed how severe the ship's condition was. There was smoke coming from behind us and the roughness of the waves was making things worse. There was screaming and yelling and commotion all around us and with no way in stopping soon. As the others ran, I held on tightly to my mother's body. I never saw so much chaos before...
"Come on," an operative's voice shot through the air. "Not much farther!"
Everything was moving in a blur to my little eyes. I could barely realize what was happening at all. Unfortunately, that meant I couldn't realize that some nutcase from behind us obviously thought he was of more importance than anyone else on the ship. I didn't see what... and half of me wanted to and the other half didn't, but I could only hear it...
"Out of my way! I'm not going to die here because of people like you!"
"HEY! Watch where you're going! You want me to throw you over—"
"Mom! I can see it! I can see the boats!"
"Just keep going, Kai! Don't stop!"
We were going to make it...
BOOM
Suddenly the ship rocked to its side as a deafening explosion rang through the air. I thought the boat was going to flip over right there and there, but it did shake violently. My mother lost her footing and dropped me, my small body tumbling forward towards the edge of the dock. On instinct I forced myself to stop, but I fell pretty hard. My left leg was hurting pretty badly and I started to cry, my tears being fueled by the rain from the dark sky above.
"SISTER! Don't worry! I gotcha!"
Kai's voice... He was close. I could feel it. I started to lift my head to look for him, but I only saw his pants before someone else scrambled in-between us. At the same time the ship rocked again and that was where my life, as well as my brothers', changed forever. It started with Kai, who was rammed straight into the wall headfirst with so much force it could've cracked an egg. He cried out in an odd voice as his body slumped to the ground, his eyes closed. I could hear my mother scream at the same time. I instantly sat up while turning around, staring in horror as my mother was pitched over the side railing due to that bastard's rush.
"MARIENE!" my father shot out as I watched her body plummet. It all moved in slow motion. She just seemed to just get smaller and smaller in my sight... until the waves jumped and swallowed her body... and lightning struck just as she smacked the ocean's surface.
"MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!" my own shocked voice filled my eardrums. Without much time to react to it, I found my father jumping over the rail on his own will, desperate to get to our mother and his wife. He fell in rather recklessly, but he quickly resurfaced, coughing from the water he swallowed. My mother didn't...
I just sat there, unable to move. I couldn't even think. All I could do was watch on as my father began to search the area for any sign of my mother.
"Come on, Saya! We've gotta go, NOW!"
"Meji! Mom! Dad! What about--!"
"There's no time! Come on! We've gotta get onto a boat!"
Against my will and cries, I felt Meji wrap his arms around my frail body and hoist me under his arm. I barely noticed Kai in his other arm, still unconscious from the crash he suffered. My eyes still wouldn't come off the spot where my parents went overboard at, so I didn't see Meji jump into a surprisingly vacant and luxurious lifeboat and sit us down on the red cushion bench near the middle. He then stood up and undid the chains to the boat, and within a second our boat splashed onto the surface. Water splashed all over me, but I didn't care. I couldn't see where my mother or father were in the sea. I ignored the shouts from above, which came from several very angry people from the deck. Apparently Meji just hijacked the most expensive and reserved lifeboat which was for the more wealthy riders on the ship. It didn't matter. Those selfish bastards couldn't realize what was going through our minds at the moment.
"Meji... We... We have to go find them. We just have to..."
"Saya, we can't. We have to go and meet up with the rest of the people on the lifeboats."
"We can't abandon our parents!"
"...alright. Don't worry, dad! We're coming! We'll find you!"
Ten minutes passed... Meji used the lifeboat's motor to move it to where our parents were last at... but there were no trace of them... Once it all hit me, I was at a loss of words. I just kept looking at the angry sea, ran falling over my young face to hide my tears. Meji reluctantly put the lifeboat in gear and without saying a word to me raced to catch up to the other lifeboats. We did... and after a few hours another cruise ship came to pick us up. By this time the ship we were previously on had long since exploded and sunk. It turns out that there was an engine malfunction that was aided by someone crashing some heavy duty material into it by accident. We had lost everything on that ship. Our clothes, our passports, our money savings... and even worse... Once Kai woke up from his coma a few weeks later, he was diagnosed with level 5 amnesia, unable to remember anything at all... Meji tried his best to explain things to him in the hospital but I don't think Kai ever understood it. He was a totally different person by then... So quiet... So... cold... It was a shame...
He forgot that we were on that ship...
He forgot that there was an accident in the first place...
He forgot that we lost everything we held dear... Including the most important things to us...
Our parents...
End Flashback
I wonder why... was all Saya's mind could think of before the view she was watching was blocked by solid bricks. The elevator slowed to a stop. Ground floor.
Saya's attention turned to her front, where an underground parking lot awaited her. She heard the man muter, "Follow me," as her older brothers walked with him. She put her hands in her pockets and followed suit. Like a majority of the building before, the lot was dark despite it being early morning. No cars were in the lot, however... Just a pick-up truck... which held some type of capsule big enough to hold something rather large in it.
"Thar she blows..." the guy joked semi-heartedly. "Big R wants this lug dropped off here..." He then handed Vexx a paper, obviously containing directions. "Careful with the goods, man. The... 'gift' is likely to get jumpy if shaken and not stirred."
Vexx nodded. "Yeah... I gotcha."
"Well, my work here's done. See ya. I'll go give this to the big girl so she can do what she got to do with it."
As he left, Saya took a look at the capsule in the truck.
What's so special about that...? she thought.
"Hey, Saya, it's 7:00," Kai mentioned. "You best get out of here and get ready for school, ok?"
Saya looked up to Kai and nodded. "Yeah. Sure."
He looked up to find the open driveway out of the lot and started to make her way to it. Just before she ran out of earshot, she heard the engine start and the truck sped past her and turned onto its destination. Saya just sighed and went the opposite direction to her house... Not home.
Tokyo, Japan 7:15 A.M.
"Look, do you want the final paperwork or not? Mister, I assure you and you might not realize it, but I'm one of the best you got... At least I'm trying to give you—"
Sakura just gave her husband a mute look. "I thought you said that this would be a piece of cake..."
Yeah, I thought so, too, Darrell thought. This business deal is making these people act like complete idiots...
"Uh-huh... Uh-huh... Yeah. Yeah, he does have the papers... Look, this is pretty important in its own right... Hey, do I look like the type of person to bail out of something like this?"
A moment of silence...
"Yeah... I don't know when this'll end, but I got to do this..."
Another pause...
"Great! That helps a lot. Thanks. Good luck, but if I was you, I wouldn't worry so much. You don't have anything to worry about with the stuff I got for you... I'll be sure to keep in touch... See you guys later."
Breathing a deep sigh, Darrell cut off his cell phone and pushed his car forward through the familiar Tokyo streets. It was still really early in the morning, but it was necessary for him to get Sakura to Tamagawa Minami High as soon as possible. There were a lot of preparations they needed to go through before their adventure could begin and they needed to be quick about everything to be on time.
"We've got to meet Chun-Li and this Ace guy at the school," Sakura reminded. "Knowing the head now, she's my ticket out of here.
"Don't worry. I haven't forgotten, and this will go by just fine... Ah. There she is."
The Galant pulled into a parking space right across from the front gates of the huge high school. From their position they could clearly see the detectives waiting for them on a bench in the courtyard. There were only a few other people around the area, save for a stray group of students hanging outside the school grounds. Sakura's focus wasn't on them, however. She didn't have just bigger fish to fry. She had a whale.
"Good morning," Chun-Li greeted as the couple crossed the street and made their way towards her and her partner. This morning she was wearing something a lot more formal than her jumpsuit from the other night; a dress accompanied with normal shoes. Next to her was Ace, wearing formal clothes as well. After saying hello, Sakura decided to lead the way inside, opening the doors for the rest of her party to come on in. After a short jump up a flight of stairs, the group found their way to the main lobby of the school. Although Sakura still came here as a teacher, she couldn't help but feel nostalgic about coming here every day after graduation years ago. Not much has changed ever since she, Darrell, and Kei graduated. The halls were still the same brownish/beige color, however now some walls houses more up-to-date pictures from up and coming artists from random grade levels. Hung on the walls was the Hall of Valedictorians; pictures of the leading student of the graduating class from the current year back to when the school was first founded. After that were sets of lockers and classrooms, all leading up to the front office.
"You know, I really appreciate what you're doing for me right now," Sakura said to Chun-Li as they stepped into the office, rich with the smell of school supplies and computer hardware. "I could use all the help I could get to get this message through this guy's head."
"Is he really that bad?"
"You just don't know..." was all Sakura muttered as she went to the front desk to greet the secretary. "Hey, Yaroshiro. How's it going?"
The guy behind the desk was busy working with the computer when Sakura spoke to him, but that didn't stop him from saying, "Hey, Sakura. Why are you here so early?"
"I've got to see the 'head master', if you know what I mean..."
"Ah... you and your friends there, too, correct? Oh, hi, Darrell. Surprise seeing you here."
Darrell just shrugged and then raised a hand to say hi. "You know... it's not everyday I get out the office... but when I've got business, I must attend to it, you know?"
"Yeah, I hear you on that. Well, he's pretty much free right now, why don't you go right on it, eh?"
Sakura nodded then turned around to gesture the rest along with her. "Let's get this over with."
Tokyo, Japan: 7:17 A.M.
Meanwhile, separate from the main party city of Tokyo stood a mansion. To call it a house on a hill wouldn't be exaggerating at all. The white marble complex sat on top of a large, grassy hill, a few miles away from downtown. At first no activity was present at the front entrance, but suddenly the wind started to pick up. The grass swayed around along with the leaves on the trees... and within an instant the road leading up to the gate had two sets of sneakers sitting on it.
"Phew!" Kaoru breather, dropping her travel bag on the pavement below her, "what a trip..."
Her companion, Yui, just flicked at his hair that fell over his face. "Kaoru... tell me... How often do you do this Continent Jump of yours?"
"Quite often... It serves for good training, plus it saves me a lot of travel money. Oh, and it's called, 'Awaikage'."
"I see... Well, then... do you always have passengers, because the trip was a little rough."
Kaoru smiled as she made her way to the gate. "Oh, stop exaggerating... I'm the one who has to do all the work, you know."
Yui quickly smirked and then followed her. "So where are we, anyway?"
Kaoru didn't answer tight away, taking the time to press the button on the intercom speaker to the left of the gate. Once she did, she then responded.
"The Kanzuki Complex."
Yui raised an eyebrow. "Oh... This is where you said you'll be able to find Rose, correct?"
"Yep," Kaoru nodded. "It shouldn't take too—"
"Hello and welcome to the Kanzuki Estate. Please state your name and business."
Kaoru faced the intercom that cut her off. "Kaoru Miadama... and I'm here to see Ms. Karin Kanzuki."
"One moment's please."
"Sure."
The intercom shut off temporarily afterwards. Yui grabbed hold to the straps on his book bag as he waited, his eyes on Kaoru. After a while of silence aside from the swaying of the breeze, the intercom light flashed back on.
"Mrs. Miadama-Su'ang?"
"Yes?"
"Come on in."
On cue, the gates opened up wide, permitting the couple to move forward. Kaoru grabbed her bag from the ground and the, without having to signal Yui to come, started to walk. This wasn't the first time Kaoru had been here, but for Yui it was. The road they were walking on made its way straight to the front door under an underpass. To the left and in the distance the Korean man could see a heliport complete with a helicopter sitting dormant on it, and hidden to the eyes lay a large recreational court for numerous sports behind it all.
"Impressed?" Kaoru asked as they made their way to the first door.
"Well, compared to our little house, yes," Yui answered. The moment they approached the door it opened automatically, exposing Karin's personal aid, Shibizaki. He was a bit tall, wearing a black tuxedo along with the works and glasses as always. Age did seem to be catching up to him a bit as a few small but noticeable wrinkles appeared on his face, but other than that he still had the same appearance he did years ago.
"Ms. Karin is looking forward into meeting you. Please. Right this way."
Kaoru nodded and followed Shibizaki, Yui not too far behind her. The foyer of the mansion was impressive enough with tiled windows on the walls and rare paintings in-between, as well as sparkling floors and a water fountain right in front of the door. The butler led the couple to the right, ignoring the huge spiral staircase behind the fountain and down a long corridor, the morning sunlight bearing through the large windows. As they walked, Yui fought the temptation to take photos of everything he saw. The Complex was truly beautiful.
"So, Shibizaki," Kaoru opened up, "How are things with you? It's been a while since I've seen you."
"Ah, yes, Ms. Miadama. A good three and a half years since Ms. Kanzuki hosted your wedding. Things are rather splendid. Thank you for asking."
"You're welcome. I mean, it's not every day that I visit people. I'm always busy training myself and exploring the world, so, you know, I need to know how friends are going every time I'm in the area."
"Ah. I understand. So you are still in the circuit then?"
"Yes."
"That is great news. That is why Ms. Kanzuki was so anxious in seeing you once I mentioned your name to her."
Kaoru gave Karin's butler a look as they made their way deeper into the mansion; a look which he didn't receive. "Oh? Is that so?"
"Yes. She's been waiting for someone to try out her new techniques. She was considering challenging Mrs. Kasugano on Saturday, but since you've decided to drop by..."
"I get it..." Kaoru interrupted. "She wants a training dummy."
"If you want to put it that way, then yes," the butler replied, finally stopping in front of an open door. From inside, yells and grunts filled the air as well as the sound of a ball being swatted back and forth.
"Ms. Kanzuki is in there," Shibizaki said.
"Alright," Kaoru accepted, "and thanks for the tour."
Shibizaki nodded and went farther down the hall, obviously to attend to his own duties. Kaoru then gave Yui a smug look.
"Shall we say 'hi'?" she asked.
"Be my guest," he replied. The two stepped into the pure white room, which at first glance clearly looked like a recreational room. Kaoru and Yui could see arcades, ping pong tables, a jukebox (which was currently active), a refreshment stand, and about two dozen other activities and devices that's make any 12 year old kid go crazy for a few days. To the left were a few large empty rooms, closed off by transparent glass doors. As the two walked down and then forward the sounds of action grew in volume. Finally, after stopping at the second to last room, Kaoru stopped and laid eyes on a woman. She had her back facing her and Yui, only showing her golden yellow hair which swayed in its fashionable design and her baby blue workout attire and sneakers. The woman sprinted side to side, using her hands to slap back a rather small rubber ball against the opposing wall. With each shot of the ball it seemed to travel and bounce back faster than before, but the woman kept perfect track of its trajectory, keeping it in play. Kaoru and Yui watched on in silence as she kept the pace up, until finally she slapped it one final time with a mighty yell. The ball rocketed towards the wall and ricocheted back to the yellow haired woman at lightning speed, but even then she calmly put out a hand and caught it just before it hit her face. Kaoru whistled.
"Nice, Karin," she congratulated. "Had that been anyone else I swear that would've hit home easily."
It was with that the woman in the glass room turned around and faced the duo. A lock of her golden hair fell in front of her right eye, leaving the left to expose her blue eyes. Her shirt was tied in the front, clearly exposing his midsection and as she exited the glass room. Yui could see that she wore a ribbon on the side of her head.
"Well, well," Karin opened up, "I see that Shibizaki was right. It is you, Kaoru, and I also see you brought your husband with you. Not bad."
Kaoru twisted her mouth. "Well hello to you, too."
"Shibizaki said that you need to see me for something," the owner of the Kanzuki complex said while grabbing a towel from the rack outside the door and wiping the sweat off her face. "I found that as a pretty big surprise, coming from an independent woman such as yourself..."
"Yeah, well, this is something that I can't do on my own. I could use some assistance. So... do you think you can help me or not."
Karin folded the towel she had in her hands and put it on the part of the rack called 'discarded' and made full eye-contact with Kaoru. "It depends. What's the problem exactly?"
"I need help finding a friend of mine... or rather, my mentor. Her name is Rose, and lately I've lost contact with her. Not just physically, but spiritually. I was wondering if your sources could track her down for me."
"Well, sure they can," Karin boasted. "They aren't called "State of the Art" for nothing... However... there is a fee for the service..."
Kaoru half-frowned, half-smirked. "I sort of recognized that. Your butler said that you've got some new tricks up your sleeve."
Karin's confident smile only grew. "Not just any new tricks. I've dug into the best of the Kanzuki style martial arts and chose the best techniques. I was planning on testing them out on Sakura, your sister, but since you're here, I won't have to wait."
"I see... You need a playmate. Well, if that's the case, let's play, then."
"Oh, but you can't fight in those rags..." Karin pointed out, pointing at Kaoru's jacket and jeans. "Come. I'll give you something more... suitable for a match of this caliber..."
20 minutes later...
"Well, Kaoru, I got to hand it to Karin. She sure can pick out some really snazzy clothing for just a spar."
"Tell me about it, Yui..." Kaoru muttered, looking down at the new 'fighting attire' that Karin had given her. Aside from her sneakers, her clothes closely resembled that of what Karin's current attire, except it was in a black and red color in contrast to Karin's blue. Luckily she brought her own fighting gloves to differ herself from not being a full clone of her rival. Karin just looked at the darker-skinned fighter, amused.
"Not bad... Not bad at all... It looks good on you, Kaoru. All that's missing is the little red ribbon planted on that short, black hair of yours and you could pass off as a nice little sister of mine."
Kaoru slowly looked back at Karin with a dulled evil eye, however, it was counteracted by her cheeks, which reddened from pure embarrassment. "Let's just get this over with..."
Karin shrugged in response. "Fine by me. Come on."
The rich girl lead Kaoru to another room next to the one she was in previous. It looked much like the one next to it; only a bit bigger to permit mobility for a fight. Kaoru closed the door right behind her and turned to face her new opponent, who didn't even bother to warm up.
"Whenever you're ready," Karin called. "Go on and loosen up. You're going to need it for what I'm going to show and do to you."
"Don't worry about me... This shouldn't take long at all. Remember, I don't go easy on you like Sakura and the rest of our friends do."
Karin immediately gave her trademark laugh, which, over the years, oddly sounded more pleasant to the ears. "You're so funny! Kidding around like that... Anyway, let's get started."
Kaoru responded by getting into her fighting stance. "Surely."
The younger fighter put her hands up in a similar way that her sister did, only it didn't look the same. Nevertheless, it didn't last long. Kaoru shot foreword to begin the match with a hard roundhouse to the body. Karin evaded. Just as she tried to deliver a follow up punch, she used that arm to block Karin's palm strike. The rich girl came back with a bunch of random strikes but Kaoru successfully blocked them all. Seeking an opening, Kaoru found it as she ducked another high attack and returned with a sweep kick. It didn't knock Karin down but Karin did stagger from it. Kaoru then went offensive, throwing out an overhead punch, but later regretted it as suddenly she found herself being pulled forward, a close shoulder landing into her chin, and then finally flipped over her opponent's body and to the floor. As soon as she landed, a bit disorientated though, the tanned fighter rolled away from Karin and to her feet, facing her with a bewildered look in her eyes.
"What in the world...?" Kaoru gasped. Karin just smiled.
"I told you I've learned new techniques. My Yasha Reverse is just one of them."
Kaoru patted her shoulder as Karin finished her sentence. "Oh... I see then..."
Before Karin could pick it up, Kaoru's black hair seemed to instantly grow in length, whipping around her body and hiding her body out of sight. By the time the shade died down a half-second later, Kaoru was gone...
"Nani?" Karin yelped, her eyes growing wide, completely thrown off guard. Next thing she knew, a firm kick found its way on her backside, making her reel forwards and into the wall. Karin let out a low growl as she turned to face Kaoru, but quickly found herself dodging to the side to avoid a fist from above. As the traveler landed, Karin moved in to attempt a grab, but Kaoru quickly pushed her off with her shoulder to break it up. Karin quickly recovered and took another chance, dashed in quickly to plant a firm palm strike before Kaoru could attack. She then threw a second of her Gurenkens that was semi-intentionally blocked with Kaoru's left arm, but she wasn't prepared for Karin's Daisoku Barai, finding herself swept off her feet by Karin's sliding sweep.
Kaoru put a hand down on the ground to keep from falling then put that same hand out upon getting up fully to parry an overhead spin kick to buy time and retaliate with a fist to the side. As Karin backed away from the impact, Kaoru quickly brought her hands to chest level...
"Ha!" she shouted, blasting off a silver bullet of energy at lightning speed. If Karin was aware of what Kaoru was doing, she could have parried it just like she did the ball she worked out with earlier. However, this wasn't the case. The energy ball known to Kaoru as the Doushaburi hit home, pushing her opponent back and into another wall. Karin held a hand to her own chest and took a deep breath, recapturing her senses from almost being winded by the sudden blast. She needed it, too, since Kaoru was all over her like a housefly on sugar. Karin had to deal with blocking with little room to maneuver as Kaoru kept the pressure on with rapid shots of her fists. Under the assault the rich girl could feel her arms beginning to give way to Kaoru's power and decided to make an opening for herself.
Karin managed to catch a fist to her face before it hit and threw her elbow into Kaoru's face. As Kaoru staggered back, holding her jaw from the sharp counterattack, Karin stepped forward attacked with a second, more powerful elbow to Kaoru's stomach. Kaoru gasped in pain before meeting the third elbow of Karin's Ressenchou, this one to the face. Unlike most opponents who'd be on their backs by now, Kaoru kept reeling backward, her sneakers leaving small black streaks and squeaking against the floor as she slid. Watching Kaoru hold her head and her stomach with her hands, the heir of the Kanzuki Complex decided to keep up her pace.
"No use nursing yourself, Kaoru! Hooo!"
Karin jumped forwards while spinning towards her foe, her arms arching above her head to signal her Ressnha attack. Kaoru, however, saw her coming clearly and recovered from her stun, her right hand forming a fist to her side. She then ducked down a bit to brace herself...
Come on... she silently said to herself, waiting for the moment just before Karin could strike while at the same time feeling her fist start to glow a gray color. Before it could fully take shape, Kaoru jumped, hitting Karin out of her special move with a wicked 4 hit uppercut while spinning 180 degrees, then, as she reached her peak, performed a stylish back flip while turning the other 180 degrees, just in time to recover from her Yotakaken and see Karin's body fall flat on her back.
"K... Kuso...!" Karin swore in Japanese, pulling herself to get into at least a sitting position, breathing deeply. Soon afterwards, a shadow loomed over her and Karin looked up to see Kaoru's image.
"So... have you gotten enough of a beating?" she asked while brushing off the clothes Karin gave her, "or do you want me to really lay it on you?"
"Trust me, Kaoru... I've only begun to fight."
Kaoru backed up a few steps to let Karin rise to her feet on her own will, her eyes closed as if to steady herself. However, that wasn't exactly the case here... Karin's ki strength seemed to grow stronger and her clothes seemed to ripple in a sudden gust of wind, which was odd seeing that the room was closed off with no open windows...
"Huh...?" Kaoru murmured, obviously taken aback by this turn of events. "Karin...? What is this? Some type of trick?"
"No... Not even close. Prepare to see the ultimate technique of Kanzuki style martial arts!"
With a mighty shout, Karin's hair shot up for a brief second, for the first time Karin showing both her eyes before the lock fell back down.
"Ikuzo!" Karin shouted confidently, her fighting stance changing to a more intimidating look. Yui looked on with awe outside the room. He could see that Karin's body tone tensed up from whatever just happened... Even from there he could sense it; Karin was done playing around the bush.
Kaoru wasn't planning on saying anything in response to Karin, but in reality even if she did she wouldn't have gotten two words out. Karin quickly found herself close to her and dished out an even more powerful Gurenken chain, the attacks much faster than before. Before Kaoru knew it, her body was launched into the air four hits later by Karin's twin kicks, the Mujinkyaku. Once she reached the 'peak' of her flight, Kaoru managed to flip to recover to prevent herself from getting hit by Karin's follow up uppercut. Kaoru landed and then ducked, retaliating with a few light attacks that were easily blocked. The tanned fighter then took a pause, hoping to throw off her rival by the break of action, then opted to come inside to throw the first spinning low kick for her Shutsuga Ki special move. However, Karin was ready. She grabbed Kaoru's sneaker with one hand...
"AMAI!" she shouted, throwing her arm upwards so fast it made her opponent violently flip several times in the air before landing on the floor... on her neck... Hard. From the sidelines, Yui winced as he heard the impact along with Kaoru's yell of pain as her body flopped down along with her head.
Ouch... he commented in his head as he looked at his wife, downed, yet still slowly getting to her hands and knees. The sudden and powerful counter totally threw her off her momentum... and the bad thing was that she KNEW Karin's Yasha Counters weren't that strong before. It simply left her bewildered. Karin, on the other hand, took Kaoru's delay as the perfect opportunity to strike...
"Prepare yourself!" she shouted, once again channeling her strength for her next, and hopefully final attack. Once she had enough...
"SHINPI... KAIBYAKI!"
As if her life depended on it, Kaoru willed her body to stand and get ready to guard Karin's barrage of Gurenkens, Hoshos, and Ressenchous. She saw Karin do her signature Super Art on Sakura during one of their friendly bouts. She had 9 hits to block before Karin stopped her attack... At least that was what she remembered. However, Karin wasn't showing any signs of stopping. Once she thought she was in the clear, Karin kept on attacking, now going past the "9 hits" Kaoru thought made up her super attack and starting to wear her down with varying blows to different points of her body...
Come on... Kaoru moaned inside her head. Just when is she going to stop...?
"Give it up!" Karin taunted. "This will... END IT!"
A slight pause as Karin winded up to deliver the final Gurenken... Kaoru's body headed the call and reacted out of sheer desperation.
ONLY NOW, KAORU!
Kaoru forced her now weary body to break its defensive stature and then throw her arm forward... It was a gamble... all that happened within less than a second, but long and behold, Kaoru managed to parry the last attack form Karin's palm.
"Aaaah!" Karin cried out, shocked that Kaoru managed to do that. She scrambled to pull away to block...
"Oh, no you don't!" Kaoru shouted, ducking down to gather the remainder of her ki energy that wasn't drained from her risky maneuver and ducked down to the floor, her right fist starting to glow perfect gray...
"HERE! TAKE THIS!"
First, Kaoru struck point blank with the powered fist into Karin's stomach and rose into the air like her Yotakaken, only the rising execution was slower. As the traveler rose up she turned around to face away from her opponent, once again like her Yotakaken, only this time her hands found their way to her bosom, gathering as much energy as she could muster to form a silver sphere of energy...
"Aporusubashirochou..."
The word came out as low as a whisper... but as Kaoru turned back around, the attack was far from quiet.
"YAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Kaoru's sphere unloaded from her energy into a solid blast, engulfing Kaoru almost fully. As quickly as it formed, it then spread out in the shape of a butterfly's wings and then disappeared, and just as quickly as if formed, that's nearly as fast as Karin's body as it crashed into the floor, almost cracking the tile. The attack caused a huge rip in Karin's expensive workout shirt; proof that Kaoru was not holding back anything from her Super Art at all. As his wife landed, Yui just sat there, amazed.
I knew she had the potential... but I didn't think that she could harness it so well in only a few years... She sure is stronger from the Kaoru I knew the first time we met...
Inside the dorm, Kaoru slid down to her knees, sitting on her legs. Her breathing was hard and sweat trickled down her head and her body. It didn't take a genius to know that she was tired...
Man... I... I never had to use so much effort in a long while... the young tanned woman thought. Just what... was Karin doing the past few years to get so strong...?
After heaving a sigh and wiping an arm over her forehead, Kaoru then slowly got up to her feet, walking over to her friend's exhausted body. As she looked down at her, she noticed that Karin's body tone went back to normal and that rise in ki obviously dropped. Just then Karin's eyes, which were closed, fluttered open. At first she didn't say anything, instead blinking slowly at first, then rapidly to try to clear her eyes. She then moaned as the pain from the Aporu Subashirochou settled into her brain. After a while, however, she stopped, her pupils straight on the girl who just beat her.
"Shoot..." she spoke. "I could have sworn that would have done you in."
Kaoru didn't respond to that, but she did ask her own question. "That move... Earlier... When your ki jumped and all... Since when did you...?"
Karin interrupted by blowing at the lock of hair which rested on her face, then responded with...
"The Kanzuki style of self-defense secret technique... Kentoushou... Increases power... speed... defense... precision... All in all provides more... efficiency by focusing the body... into a more... precise state. I... I'll admit, I'm still... trying to... master it... but I'm getting there..."
Kaoru nodded in respect and understanding. "Well... I'll admit... I didn't have such a workout in quite a while. I guess I'm not the only one improving out there."
In a somewhat rare show from Kaoru, she bent down and held her hand out for Karin to grab onto, sharing a small smile. Both sighed simultaneously, obviously by coincidence, and Karin then grabbed hold to Kaoru's hand and pulled herself up, looking down at her tattered shirt.
"Whoops..." Kaoru said. "I... I guess I owe you a shirt..."
Karin shook it off. "No, it's quite alright. I have a million of these. Now... that you've paid your fee, I guess now you'd like to find your mentor, correct?"
"Yes."
"Ok. After you and I freshen up some, we'll go on and handle your business. Follow me. I'll lead you to my guest bathroom..."
20 minutes later...
"State of the art indeed," Kaoru marveled. After 'freshening up' like Karin instructed and replacing the workout outfit for her old duds, it wasn't long until she found herself in another building separate from the main mansion, surrounded by computers of massive proportions with people running them, others working diligently in their labs. Although she knew Karin ran the entire Kanzuki Complex, she never thought about actually seeing what made it tick. For once in her life, Kaoru was impressed.
"You should know better than to expect any less from a Kanzuki," Karin boasted. As they went on she was busy slipping on another shirt to replace the one Kaoru tore. "It's here that houses the world's largest database. Back in the days this is how I tracked down Sakura no matter where she traveled and reach her for a battle... or any other fighter for that matter. The Kanzuki Database holds information on any person worth mentioning out there. Any Street Fighter, any King of Fighter, any battlefield, any business leader, and definitely any inch of this earth. It's all here."
Karin stopped as they reached a noticeable bigger computer than the rest placed all the way in the back of the room. It was so large it had three operative to monitor it. As Yui and Kaoru watched on, Karin walked behind the operator in the middle and tapped on his shoulder to get his attention.
"Yes, Ms. Kanzuki?" he replied.
"Geret, I need you to start a worldwide search on the famous fortune teller and trainer of special powers, Rose."
"Yes. Right away."
"Geret's my favorite main man," Karin informed the couple behind her. "Whenever he's on duty he's always on top of things There's not a task he cannot handle."
Kaoru just nodded in response, looking at the huge screen planted on the wall. On screen, the mouse pointer moved up to the icon "Global Search" then clicked on it, bringing up another window. Geret clicked on the entry bar and typed in "ROSE" and entered it in. A "Now Processing Request" message popped up and the four of them lay in wait. After a few seconds, a bell rand... and Geret made a surprised gasp.
"No status...?" he replied. "Impossible."
"Try it again..." Karin responded. Geret did so. Once again, the screen gave a message of no status on Rose. Karin put a hand on her chin to think about it...
"Try someone else to see if the database is down. Put in... Kyo Kusanagi."
"Certainly."
Geret replaced Rose's entry with the words "KYO KUSANAGI". After 2 seconds, a world map enlarged on screen, then focused on Japan. Japan then zoomed in and a red blinking dot flashed on where Shinjuku would be located.
"Search request complete," the computer responded in a female's voice. "Name: Kyo Kusanagi. Age: 29. Current Location: Shinjuku, Japan. Current Occupation: None. Fighting Style: the legendary art of Kusanagi ember martial arts along with own derivative of Chinese boxing. Likes: Ice hokey and writing poetry to his girlfriend, Yuki. Dislikes: Effort."
"Well, it is definitely on-line and working..." Geret mentioned, "but why is it that Rose is not coming up...?"
I've got a bad feeling about this... Kaoru thought gloomily.
"Karin... does your computer have info on people who are deceased?"
Yui instantly double-taked, giving his wide a look of astonishment. "You can't be serious! Just what are you implying, Kaoru?"
Kaoru frowned. "We have to expect the worst. Think about it, Yui. I've lost contact with her in more ways than one. No matter how far apart we were, we could still talk mentally. If I can't reach her..."
Yui bit his lower lip a bit but later nodded. "You're right..."
The two of them then turned to Karin and the rich woman responded.
"Yes. Yes it does..."
"Ok, then. Let me see for myself. Search for... Gen..."
As the words came out, Kaoru felt her blood run hot. Those three letters brought up an individual she wish she never encountered before... One rainy night in Shinjuku, when she was still very young and wondering around after leaving a homeless shelter, she ran into the legendary assassin herself. At the time, she didn't realize it, but Gen was the one who talked to her... It was like the man could read into her very soul... As Gen's words began to get closer to Kaoru's deepest secrets, her young evil vigor started to consume her... and even though she tried to fight it, it took over and she attacked in a rage against him... only to be bested and almost done away with herself. It was his rare show of compassion for her that she was still alive... Back then, she despised him... but growing up, his old image still reappeared in her mind...
"Fine, then," Karin responded. "Geret, you heard her."
The operative nodded then started a new search for Gen. Kyo's status disappeared and then focused on China, then Hong Kong.
"Search request complete. Name: Gen. Age: Deceased at 87. Cause of death: incurable disease of the heart. Fighting style: the art of pure Ansatsuken, assassination style."
"Ok..." Karin said. "Put Rose back in."
Geret did what his employer asked... but once again no results showed.
"This never happened before..." Karin sighed. "The only way this could even possible occur is if she—"
Unfortunately, Karin could finish her statement. An unexpected screen shot on as the background flashed from white to orange. At the same time, Kaoru's senses flew off the scale...
What the..? A huge jump of evil ki... It so much like mine, too... but a whole lot stronger... Just what in the world...?
"Geret, tell me what's going on," Karin demanded.
Without a word, Geret typed in a few things... and the screen refocused on Japan, but this time it was Tokyo it was highlighting... right here they were all at...
"There has been a major accident on a main highway road in downtown Tokyo," the Kanzuki girl responded. "A bridge about 5 miles from the city of the city just got leveled... but I can't make out who in the world could be responsible for such a – WHOA! Ki levels are going through the roof! Just what IS that?"
Karin pulled out a cell phone faster than the eye could catch up with and hit a number. After a few rings, she got an answer on the other end.
"Miss?"
"Shibizaki, prepare my limo. We're going into the city, proto! All scenic routes!"
"Very well, then. I shall meet you at the way in 5."
Karin quickly hung up and turned to face Kaoru and Yui. "Sorry to cut this short, but I simply must investigate this disturbance. Do you want to come?"
Kaoru nodded. "Yes. Something this big I just can't ignore..."
"I'll give you a ride. Come on."
As Karin rushed past the two of them, Kaoru started to go along as well... only she stopped once she noticed Yui wasn't moving. On closer inspection, he seemed to be in pain...
"Yui!" she exclaimed, coming to his side. "What's wrong...?"
Yui only responded with low groans, holding one hand over his head...
This feeling... This feeling of dread... It seems... so... ugh...! What's going on...? Why is this happening to me...?
"Yui!"
Once he heard Kaoru's worried voice, Yui stood up fully, putting his hand to his side. Before Kaoru could speak, Yui cut her off.
"Let's go. Time is of the essence..."
Tokyo, Japan: 7:50 A.M.
"Did you feel that?" Sakura whispered to her husband. Darrell only nodded.
"Definitely. It's a little faint... but it's unmistakable. Something big is going on..."
"You think you know what it could be?"
"Iie... but whatever it is—"
"Mrs. Kasugano! Mr. Markis! Sorry for interrupting your little conversation, but I do believe I still have a request to deny here, so if you don't mind..."
Both spouses' hearts dropped from the sudden sternness from the head of Tamagawa Minami. As Sakura straightened out her posture, Darrell gave Chun-Li and Ace a look, as if to say, "I can see why she hates him."
The office they were all located in was overall a burgundy color, contrast to the school color of blue, white and yellow. It was rather spacious with shelves of literature to the right and shelves of papers to the left. Sunlight poured out of the huge windows in front of and to the right of the group and the headmaster's desk right in front. The man who sat there, an elder of about 60 or so and a little shorter than Chun-Li, sat intellectually in his chair, peering right at his teacher through his glasses. With a clearing of his throat he continued.
"You must think I'm some type of idiot, don't you, Mrs. Sakura Kasugano?" he injected. "It's bad enough that as you attended this school yourself that your grades slipped because of nonsense like this. Martial arts... Bah! Aren't you satisfied enough that you teach your students this junk in physical education? That you even go as far as to personally lay your hands on them? I'm surprised that Ms. Saya Hashimoto's parents haven't sued due to the beating you give her every week."
Sakura's face slightly grew distorted upon hearing the part about her student, Saya. "Mr. Kato, incase you haven't noticed, the students love to study the way of Street Fighting. It was these skills that saved these schools from Justice High—"
"A decade ago, Mrs. Kasugano," the headmaster cut off, his eyes narrowing. "A lot has changed since then. Raizo Imawano had things under wraps since then. You know why? Because he's strict about his rules & principles. He doesn't allow things like this to carry on. He puts his foot down, and that is what I'm doing right here. I'm stamping this request right now. You have to realize that you have a far more important purpose in life rather than going off into these tournaments, risking your good health on what? Just a title and recognition? It sure can't be money because your job covers for that! That's what it's all about, isn't it?"
Sakura sat back in her chair and swallowed hard. Just as she began to reply, Mr. Kato cut her off.
"Get this... These kids need more than this. They need their education more than anything in this world. Why do you think Japan is so strong in the world today? Why, I bet your husband came here to get ahead and not spend his life in the gutter like most people of his ethnicity—"
On instinct Darrell snapped.
"I resent that! I came here purely on meeting Sakura and to get to know her! Also, not all African are as you say. Do you know how successful people like me have gotten in life? I'm not the first, you know..."
Mr. Kato's focus darted over to him, his eyes still sharp as nails. "As opposed to those who don't go anywhere? No, I don't. If that's the case, then why are most foreigners that migrate to the States have better economical records than people 'like you'?"
Arrogant bastard... Darrell thought, feeling his body tense up.
"Also, didn't you come here to learn this country's history? It's this country's great accomplishments that drew you here, correct?"
"Look, I do admit I was obsessed with the Japanese, but don't you—"
"Thank you for serving my point. See where your husband is at? I doubt he would have even got half as decent of a job in the United States. He came here, knowing he was a smaller minority here than over there, and succeeded, all because of the skills and opportunities that he got from here. Its our curriculum that fuels our students for the future, but to get the message past, we need 'positive' role models to teach that. This is why I'm not permitting you to leave. These kids already look up to you for the wrong reasons, but to desert them for it? What type of future are you planning for them? Are you even thinking about your consequences for your actions?"
Sakura's eyes softened. How this man could throw all this out just over a simple request to take a leave of absence from her duties was beyond her, but what he was saying has hitting too many sensitive nerves. It was time to try her hand.
"Well, Mr. Kant," she began, her voice as calm as she could possibly put it, "let me tell you that if it weren't for my fists I wouldn't be the type of person I am now... and these kids wouldn't have anything to look forward to in life besides going to college, getting a job, and paying their bills until they can't work anymore due to old age. I don't just teach them how to fight, mister. I teach them the right reasons why they should fight. You don't see any of my students going off and using their talents to pick on anyone else, do you?"
For the first time in the conversation, the headmaster took a pause before answering.
"No, I can't recall..."
"Street Fighting should be an enjoyable experience. It severs as a nice exercise and better thinking on your feet. Plus, its fun! You won't believe how many friends my students made with the other schools around the tri cit area. It's not because we force them to, but that they share a common interest and a pure fighting spirit. This is how Taiyo High got so popular. Their focus wasn't only on studies, but they made sure their students got out in the field and exercised their bodies in an interesting variety of ways. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not neglecting any principles you enforce here at Tamagawa. You know me better than that. All I'm saying is that I'm teaching these kids that life isn't in a book, but in the here and now, and you might as well enjoy it while you got the strength to press on."
Mr. Kato leaned forward a bit, his elbows on his desk and his eyes planted on the teacher in front of him. His hands grew folded under his chin as he thought over Sakura's words. For a while there was quiet all around the room until he broke it.
"I see..." he said, "but that doesn't explain why you are requesting this in the first place."
At this moment, the Chinese Interpol officer raised her right hand to call on his attention then answered, "I believe this is where I come in." She reached into her brown pants and pulled out her Interpol badge. "Officer Chun-Li Xiang; Interpol Criminal Investigations Ward."
Mr. Kato's grayed eyebrows arched. "Is that so...?" His eyes then shot right back to Sakura, but she just gave him a calm look in response. He then looked back at the Chinese woman as she continued.
"I didn't mean to cause any serious complications when I came here," she said while putting her badge away, "but I require Sakura's help. Worldwide there is an epidemic taking place with the rebirth of a dangerous crime syndicate and with her strength it would serve a great deal of help is she became a temporary detective for Interpol."
"Oh, I think I get it now. SO this isn't a personal vacation at all..."
Sakura shook her head. "No way. It had to be something huge to get me away from my students. I'd much rather stay with them, but I also need to protect them, so I must do this. I hope you understand the situation now..."
Sakura started to smile as Me. Kato nodded in confirmation.
"There's no point in teaching them for their future if they don't have one," she continued. "Chun-Li here should know that just as well as I do. She started an orphanage while still serving at Interpol, right?"
Chun-Li and Ace both nodded in unison.
"We think about our youth and the children that we take care of. If that's not a reason to fight, then I don't know what is."
"Ok, I'll abide," the head responded. "You got your absence. I'll make sure to deliver the message to the rest of your students as well. As long as you return..."
"Now come on... Do I look like I'm going to run away and not come back? I love this school too much."
With that Sakura got up from her seat and winked at her superior. The rest of the group followed suit and exited the office. Within no time they were in the hallway which was clear of students for the time being... since everyone was still outside, waiting for the school door to open in about 10 minutes or so. Sakura looked out the windows as she viewed the green grass of the courtyard and the many students in their uniforms talking and joking with one another.
"Just like the good old days," she said loudly. Darrell, who was right beside her, looked over to look for himself and smiled.
"Yep. Makes me wish I was still back in the old blue uniform..."
"..and me in my sailor fuku once again..."
"You two sound like you're in your 70's," Chun-Li joked, smiling at the two of them. Ace was busy looking at the pictures of past year valedictorians on the wall closest to him.
"It's just that 8 years being a graduate is quite a long time," Sakura replied. "It makes you miss how good things were when you were sitting in class and just listening and taking tests and stuff."
"That's for sure," Darrell added as the four of them turned to the right down to the steps and to the front doors. "You try doing that in Metrosphere. That's your head... for someone other than me, of course."
Ace was first out into the courtyard, followed by Chun-Li, then Sakura, and finally Darrell. The moment his foot came down into the pavement, all four of them froze. Their eyes didn't even have time to focus on the students right in front of them...
"There it goes again!" Darrell called. "It's even stronger than before... and its close!"
Chun-Li felt it, too; probably more so than anyone else in the group. She scanned the rooftops... and spotted a lone figure standing on one just to the right of the front gate. He was way too far to make out his appearance, but that all changed quickly. The figure jumped down from the 4 story building and landed right at the Tamagawa gates, and behind the crowd of students.
"What the heck...?" Sakura gasped. She felt this... She felt this way too many times in her life to mistake it for anything. It was definitely Satsu no Hadou... but this time it was much stronger... Stronger than anything she could remember. "Who... was...--?"
She quickly found the answer to the question she never finished asking. In a blink of an eye, the individual reappeared, warping right through the crowd before stopping a few feet away from the front doors where the group stood. Students left and right gasped in horror at the man. Darrell and Sakura in particular felt their hearts jump into their throats. The appearance was unmistakable...
"No..." Darrell muttered... then shouted it out. "NO!"
Black sandals...
"I... It... It's impossible!" Sakura's voice yelled in utter shock. "It's just impossible!"
Dark black karate gi...
"We killed you!" Darrell shot out. "We friggin killed you! We watched you die!"
Dark skin complexion... Solid red eyes...
"I've heard about him..." Chun-Li whispered, "but I'd never thought... that I'd see him... This... energy... is overwhelming..."
Red hair that was tied down by a rubber band and standing on end, flaming in the air like a barn fire... It all equaled up to one thing...
"It has been 10 years... 10 long, wretched years... but finally... it is time..."
Suddenly, he seemed to split into two... and disappeared completely. Before anyone could react, a slice of the air... and a huge gust of wind made Sakura, Darrell and Chun-Li take cover while jumping away from it. Screams of panic ran through their eardrums, but an even louder scream of pain jerked Chun-Li's. As the wind died down, the three of them looked to where it came from... and gasped in horror to find Ace on his back, a huge jagged scar running across his chest and his eyes wide in shock. In front of him was the man in black, his hand down in a chop, a blood red aura surrounding his body.
"And this time..."
Finally, Akuma's head snapped at Darrell, Sakura, and Chun-Li, his expression as cold as death.
"...the Misougi WILL HURT..."