CHAPTER 11: NIGHT SHIFT
Location Unknown: 7:55 P.M.
COMPRESSION DATA ANALYZED. MERGING...
MATERIAL ACTIVATION PROCESS COMMENCING...
"Kai!" a thunderous voice filled the lab, breaking the silence generated by the computers strung about. "How's the new device coming along?"
The middle Hashimoto sibling brought his eyes from the screen in front of him to the entrance of the black-coated lab. At the doorway stood his brother, Vexx, and sister, Saya, all three of them in a black Shadowloo militia uniform, and as the two approached Kai, he merely returned to the computer screen, which showcased a bar moving slowly across, indicating his project's progress.
"I'm finishing it up now," he replied, his voice showing neither any excitement nor dismay at the manner.
"What is it this time?" the eldest of the three asked, taking a seat next to his brother and observing for himself. Saya merely stood behind her brothers, her eyes soft as she listened.
"It's another weapon I've been concocting. It utilizes my latest discovery; leech technology. It has a wide variation of uses. Once it latches onto something, it'll drain it of whatever I see fit. It can be used on supercomputers to hack for data and such or on living targets for ki and vitality. The beautiful thing about my newest invention is that once it latches, it doesn't come off, unless I put in the deactivation code."
Vexx gave a strong nod, patting Kai on the back. "Excellent. Do me a favor, though. Once that finished, I want you to give Saya her regular data check-up—"
At the mention of his sister's name, Kai snapped his fingers, cutting his brother off.
"That reminds me..."
He looked to his side, then the other to the left, before locating something beside the Shadowloo computer.
"Saya, take this."
The blond girl blinked, looking at Kai's hand as it brought to her a device no bigger than a standard collapsible calculator.
"What is this...?" she asked lightly. Kai smirked at her and replied.
"You know that after every battle you participate in your skills improve. Well, this device will inform you how much experience you'll gain, what skill level you're on compared to other fighters, and it also serves as a scouter for possible threats. I've even taken the liberty to analyze our ki and body specifics, and I've come up with a way to 'upload' new techniques into your brain once your body is able to perform it."
Saya only stared at the small contraption in Kai's hand for a while before taking it for herself.
"That's... interesting..." was all she "thanked" her brother with.
"Just attach it anywhere you see fit. The electromagnetic waves in it were adjusted so that it can do its job without having to physically latch onto you. I calibrated it already so you are ready to go."
The youngest Hashimoto nodded, now looking at the screen that made up the top part of the device...
CURRENT ABILITY LEVEL: 2
EXPERIENCE LEVEL: 1540
EXP. LEVEL UNTIL UPGRADE: 2000
CURRENT SKILLS (SPECIAL): RAY OF LIGHT, RAINBOW CRUISER, LIGHT BREAKER, RAINBOW ROAD
CURRENT SKILLS (SUPER): SHOWER OF LIGHT, LIGHT RAIN
CURRENT SKILLS (HYPER): N/A
CLOSEST COMPARISON MATCH: SEAN MATSUDA
"This thing says I'm on level 2..." she commented quizzily.
"Yeah. The VitaBase, as I call it, goes up to 10 levels, 10 being the highest you can reach. So far, your body and ki are able to only perform those moves listed. As you get stronger, the VitaBase will inform you of others you're ready to try out."
"And how much experience will I gain...?"
"That depends on who you're fighting. The more effort you put into your battle and whoever you're facing varies the result at the end. Someone over your current level will grant you a faster level up rather than those below you."
"I see..."
The two brothers looked at Saya as she placed the device back-first onto the back of her right glove, then Kai spoke again.
"You alright?"
"Who? Me? Yeah... I'm fine."
"It seems as if you're being troubled."
Saya slowly shook her head, her gaze towards the floor. "It's nothing."
"Yeah, well, sharpen up," Vexx commanded. "We need to be on stand-by for any more orders, and if we get one, you better be focused on the objective."
"Ok."
No sooner did Saya reply did Kai notice a small noise from behind him. He spun around and read the screen.
"It's finished."
A sudden swishing noise took over the room, a portal emerging from the computer's mainframe, showcasing a set of similar small silver capsules. Each one had a sleek design and had a stripe towards its left with a different color on it.
"With the new set of Packages I created, jobs should be a lot simpler..."
As Kai went on about his business with Vexx, Saya toned him out slightly, her mind focused on an empty void that was in front of her eyes where only her thoughts existed...
I wonder how much longer I can stand this...
"Hashimotos. Attention."
All three soldiers stood up and faced the entrance, seeing a young Shadowloo official donning long black hair and a well-toned body, staring at them. The three saluted instantly and the man nodded in acceptance.
"Pleasure to meet you, Leo," Kai welcomed. "What brings you?"
Leo's eyes turned from Kai to Saya, and then, without moment's hesitation, pointed at her.
"Saya Hashimoto. Direct orders. Raven wants to see you personally."
Those words were enough to make Saya stiffen and her heart drop. Not only that, but even her brothers were taken aback at this call.
"The big girl herself...?" the eldest muttered to no one in particular. "It's been a long time since we've seen her... and of all of Shadowloo, she wants Saya...? Must be something big..."
"M... Miss Raven...?" Saya gulped. "W... what did I—"
"Don't fret. You have done nothing wrong. Miss Raven has a special assignment for you, and she wishes that you are there to hear it yourself. She is waiting for you in the landing dock. Prepare to leave ASAP."
Breathing a heavy sigh, Saya nodded and saluted once again.
"Yes, sir."
Leo returned the gesture and took his leave. The instant the door closed she exchanged glances with her brothers, Kai not saying anything this time around, instead rising to get his accessories.
"You shouldn't be keeping the boss waiting..." Vexx said under his breath yet loud enough for his sister to get the message.
"Ok, I'm off, then. See you guys when I'm done."
2 minutes later
It didn't take long for Saya to reach the docking airport. Located outside the area was full of other members of Shadowloo performing their marks in random spots, a large runway heading out towards the black abyss called the night sky.
"It's breezy tonight..." the young girl whispered to herself, feeling the winds kick her short blond bob around. For a while Saya just stood in her place, paying little mind to all the activity around her. For some odd reason, a thing she could only dismiss as a gut feeling, she knew why the workers were operating faster than normal...
The presence of something... mighty and abnormal was close by and Saya knew who it was. The power made her blood run hot, and she knew only one person, on that was very familiar to her, could be behind it.
(beep, beep, beep)
"Uh...?" she gasped, noticing that all of a sudden a swift sound emerged from her night hand. Quickly she looked at it, and read the signal from her VitaBase.
STRONG KI SIGNAL DETECTED. DISTANCE: TWENTY METERS AND CLOSING. (an arrow was pointing in the direction for emphasis) PREPARING KI SCAN...
"Twenty meters...?" Saya immediately spun around to look for herself, but nothing in the remote area seemed out of the ordinary...
TEN METERS. SIGNAL IDENTIFIED. NAME—
"Miss Saya Hashimoto..."
"AH!"
At the sudden call of her name, Saya couldn't help but jump back in shock as a being began to materialize right in front of her eyes. The woman, sporting a blood red and upgraded model of her own attire, and long, almost wild, brown hair, was quite a bit taller than Saya by about half a foot. However, size didn't matter; Saya knew who it was long before the VitaBase verified it.
--RAVEN. STATUS: ALLY.
"Oh...! M-Miss Raven," Saya saluted hesitantly. "What brings you here in Japan?"
Raven gave Saya a somewhat friendly look, raising a hand from her black cape. "Please, Saya. You can skip the formalities just this once."
This caused the blond to blink. "Uh..."
"You and I have a pretty tight relationship, don't we? Remember that I was the one who personally picked you up while you were in the gutter, so that makes you special, doesn't it?"
"I... I guess so..." Saya then breathed out a sigh and relaxed. "You... needed me for something?"
Raven's brown eyes lit up a bit. "As a matter of fact, yes, I do. If you'd be so kind as to follow me... wait..."
Once again Raven's right hand emerged from the housing of the cape, only this time it pointed to the small compact device on Saya's glove.
"And that would be...?"
"Oh, this? It's a new invention my brother just finished," as Saya explained it, Raven stroked her chin. "Its supposed to monitor my fighting progress and help scout out targets and such."
"Hmm..." the Shadowloo leader brought herself forward, looking at the display which was currently focusing on her. "Nifty..."
Saya remained quiet as Raven grasped her hand and brought it closer to her eyes then suddenly, Raven's eyes flashed red and a strong, color-matching aura surrounded her body for about a second. During that one second, all activity at the port once again stopped, all staring at the two individuals. However, no one was more frozen stiff than Saya, who WAS right in front of her boss as she powered up, and she felt her heart drop down into her intestines...
Then, as if it were nothing, Raven's ki dropped once again to normal, looking carefully at the screen...
SUBJECT: RAVEN
THREAT RATING: S+
STATUS: SHADOWLOO LEADER
SUGGESTIVE ACTION: N/A
And, out of the blue, making Saya gasp in utter disbelief, Raven let out a laugh.
"This... device is pretty cute..." the long-haired women commented. "What does Kai call it?"
"Um... the... the VitaBank..." Saya hesitantly answered.
"Mmm... you don't mind if I borrow this, do you, Saya?"
The young soldier blinked at the request, confused. "E... excuse me?"
The boss of Shadowloo nodded. "Scientists in Shadowloo labs had just finished an update to a secret project but this'll further advance it. As a matter of fact..."
(INCOMING CALL. INCOMING CA--)
"Leo, here..."
"Leo? Raven. Listen to me. I want you to head back to the Hashimoto bunker and retrieve Kai Hashimoto. Tell him to board onto my plane. I have a special job for him as well, and it will require all his material, so tell him to come equipped and prepared. Also, have Vexx go on base security. Interior. Is that understood?"
"Yes. Loud and clear. Over and out."
"Miss Raven?" Saya called, noticing that Raven closed her eyes after trailing off her sentence, as if entering a trance. "Are you—"
"Yes, I'm fine," Raven interjected, quickly snapping out of it. She let go of Saya's hand, which had grown warmer than before, and not due to her body heat. "Come. I must share a word with you, and I don't want anyone overhearing it."
Saya nodded obediently and followed her boss into the rather large jet parked in the runway. The instant they were on board, it sealed shut, giving her a bit of a jolt.
"You sure seem more nervous than usual..." Raven commented, now turning towards her left and down the small corridor. Saya merely stood for a second, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, and followed suit. In comparison to the outside, the inside of the jet seemed to feel like a personalized extension of the base itself; the floors decorated with red and gold carpet and the walls a similar coating. Each window had shading on it, matching with everything else, and even the ceilings were crafted with the custom fans, all operational. As the two walked, Saya grew once again familiar with the branching pathways leading to other areas of Raven's private piece of aerial transportation, and it never ceased to amaze her how someone like her would actually go through all this to travel in style.
Following Raven, Saya passed two intersections towards the tail of the ship before going up a third path, a short one that found itself ending at a large pair of doors with the Shadowloo flying skull logo in the middle...
"Do you remember this, Saya?" Raven asked. The young Hashimoto sibling responded with a single nod. Once she did, the boss smiled before turning around and facing a small keypad to the right of the door. Saya counted 7 beeps before the conformation sound signaled and the twin doors opened, revealing a flight of stairs.
Without speaking, Raven entered with Saya right behind her, the girl observing the various works of art sculpted on the walls as she ascended... Before she knew it, the stairs ended and Saya stopped... and instantly her jaw dropped.
"Welcome to... heh... 'my room', as you people would say," Raven smirked, still waling forwards into the huge, foyer-like room. Sure, Saya remember the room itself, but things were a lot different than the last time she was led here. The room was filled with leisure delights both exotic and common wealth. In the corner to Saya's left side sat a huge entertainment setup system, complete with a flat screen TV a good 72" long and with any possible hookup known to man, wither it be the best DVD players to video game systems to things she didn't even come across before. In the center was a large statue of some type of mythical horse in a full action pose, as if to charge at something with its horns, surrounded by its own water fountain. To her right were a conjunction of circular tables, varying in size and design to couple with the collection of books on the wall. Behind the horse was the only thing Saya could recognize; Raven's desk, a large screen handing from the ceiling overhead with a display on both sides. Yet in still, with all that she saw and other little surprises strung about the room, the young girl just couldn't believe it. In fact, the shock left her just frozen in place, unable to speak.
Rest assured Raven was very aware of Saya's reaction, even though she never faced her.
"Well, what are you waiting for? I told you that you were special. You and your brothers are the only ones I had as my guests on this plane, so feel privileged. Relax. Take off your boots and make yourself at home."
Even still, Saya was too stunned to take up an action. Of all the things she was expecting, mainly that pertaining to the observation of the operations of Shadowloo, this was the least on her list. Wide eyes and all, she gazed over at the leader of Shadowloo, who merely found her way over towards a mirror near the back of the room, complete with racks and other changing of clothes, and shook her head a bit, letting her long hair flow all around her. Right afterwards she brought her hands to her neck and removed the black cape, showing fully her red version of the uniform Saya was now wearing. As Raven unzipped a portion of the upper part of the attire, Saya slowly brought herself to her senses and began to ease up. She breathed out a sigh of relief and started to slip out of her top as well.
"You know, being the head of a corporation such as this one can make you pretty tired... so I can just imaging how you must feel, behind taken under my wing at such a tender age... and doing all of the jobs assigned to you..."
Saya's attention turned back to Raven, the blond now holding her black uniform top in her hand, a mere sleeveless t-shirt replacing it.
I don't think you have to imaging at all... she thought to herself.
"Remember our agreement, Saya?" Raven asked while turning around. "When we first met?"
"Yes, Miss Raven," Saya replied. "In exchange of our services, you'd... take care of us..."
"Exactly."
Raven now started towards Saya. "Do you know what that makes me?"
Saya didn't respond to that, instead keeping a close eye on her grand superior. Once they were in close, Raven continued.
"That somewhat makes me liable as your guardian. A second mother, and that would make you a daughter of mine to some extent. Do you know why I do certain things with you that I don't with the other operatives across the world?"
This question Saya didn't get a chance to answer to, for she heard her answer right then and there.
"Because a mother does special things for her children. Of course you know that I can not replace what you lost that day... but at least now I'm able to make your life easier than before."
Raven paused a bit, giving Saya a good look in the eyes and then dug into her pant pocket...
"Look... I got a present for you."
"A... present...?"
"Yes," the older female replied, her right hand bringing out a black and gray ring, somewhat large and seemingly made of marble. As the Hashimoto girl observed it, she could see a strap that held it together.
"It's a rare necklace," Raven said, "dating back to the ages of the Aztecs of South America and the mighty pharaohs of Egypt. The value of it is astronomical nowadays, but, of course, nothing is out of range for me..."
As she ended, Raven smirked as Saya took the item and immediately put it on around her neck. Once she strapped it on she blinked.
"It's not as heavy as it looks..."
Her boss merely nodded at the fact. "Now... what do we say when someone gives us a gift...?"
For a second, the question didn't register into Saya's brain, but once it did, she gasped in embarrassment.
"Oh! Sorry. Thank you Miss Raven."
Once again Raven nodded in accepting, just as she and her subordinate felt a slight vibration and the sound of jet engines picking up.
"We're about to take off. Saya, I have a specific job for you to do, but don't worry yourself about that right now. For now, you'll be on board with me, so make yourself comfortable. I shall have the chefs cook whatever you wish when you're hungry and feel free to walk around. I have a spare bedroom to the side there in case you want to retire. Just do me a favor..."
"Yes...?"
Suddenly, Raven's soft eyes regained a bit of its initial harden intent. "I trust you will not enter my retiring quarters under any circumstances. That's the only area that is off limits to you. That gives you a full 98 percent of the ship for you to enjoy. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ma'am..."
Raven raised her head and blinked, returning to her previous mood. "Ok, then. Enjoy your stay, little Saya."
"I will," Saya replied, brightening up a bit. "Thanks."
Then the two turned away from each other, Saya sitting near the TV and kicking off her boots, actually smiling as she welcomed her black socks back to the light, and started to enjoy the impressive amount of channels on the high definition TV. Raven, in turn, smiled, her eyes giving off a single blood red flash as she turned to the door behind her desk and teleported through it...
Saya Hashimoto... She holds quite a bit of promise in her frail body. Yes... She'll be just the person I need...
Location Unknown: 7:59 P.M.
"'Bout time you got here, Kusanagi. I was beginning to think that I'd have to carry out my threat..."
"Enough with the small chat, K'. I want to know why the heck we're out here."
"...follow me. You'll find out soon enough... Hey... Ok, I can understand Benimaru... but why'd you bring him?"
"Who? Shingo? Meh... I don't even know myself."
"...whatever. As long as he keeps out of the way, then I guess I don't have much of an issue with it... Just make sure he doesn't screw up."
On an overpass over an industrial area in the deep south end of the city, Kyo stood melancholy against a dim light post, his hair whisking in the breeze of every car that carelessly passed by him and his motorcycle. His eyes were undoubtedly focused on one thing; why he was here. Not too far from him, was two other members of Team Esaka, Benimaru, who was looking around him for any other source of life other than those around him, and Shingo, who was leaning over the guardrail and staring at the buildings below, his eyes wide with excitement.
In front of Kyo and Benimaru, however, stood the silver-haired N.E.S.T.S. rebel, K', and from the looks of things (and how he always looked), he was ready to just get down to business. Sprouting the same emotionless expression, K' simply turned around and faced the buildings below him, reaching into his jacket and putting his infamous black shades over his eyes.
"I'm ready... Let's do this."
"Just wait a second," the Kusanagi heir immediately interjected. "You still didn't say what the hell we're—"
"Kyo..." K' interrupted, not bothering to take his eyes off the field of buildings below him. "You know how to use your fists... so don't wimp out on this. Just shut up, follow me, and whoever else besides those you know you see... knock their lights out."
Kyo didn't respond... leaving K' to suddenly jump over the railing and down the side. The heir began to follow until Benimaru interrupted.
"He still is as stubborn as ever..."
"...come on..."
Shingo gasped as he found out that everyone was jumping down below to the industrial field, and yelled out a "Wait for me!" before following... and tripping over the rail... and screaming all the way down to land on his head.
"Tch...! Watch your tone!" K' hushed harshly, shooting Kyo's student a hot glare. "You want us to get ambushed?"
"S... sorry..." came Shingo's weak apology, rubbing his head while standing up. The others just simply turned back around and followed the rebel. Down here, the lights were spread out and weak, almost as if there was barely any energy being supplied from the power plant. It did seem like a good idea; all these buildings were abandoned and broken. The ground was littered heavily, and the atmosphere couldn't have felt any darker to suit it.
For a while, the four KOF members kept following their lead, at first coming across nothing more than abandoned buildings. After about 5 minutes of nonstop walking, Kyo began to grow impatient. Just before he could speak up, K' stopped on a dime, triggering the others to follow suit.
"Hey," Shingo started, stumped, "why did we...?"
"Shut it," K' immediately responded, his hand coming up to slowly remove the glasses from his face and house them inside his coat. "We're here..."
Before any one of the Esaka members could reply, the sound of turbo engines shot through the air and all eyes went up to see a jet black airplane, almost camouflaged by the night sky, shoot off and away from them with tremendous speed, kicking up a wind that whipped at the four fighters.
"What the hell...?" Kyo began. "There shouldn't be an airport here... K', what the hell is going on here?"
K' only responded by putting his hands in his pockets, his focus still on a target in front of him, and then he spoke calmly.
"Start moving..."
Now starting to get fed up by not getting answers, the Kusanagi heir's eyes fell hardened. "Not until you tell me why we're—"
He never finished. K' instantly took off into a run, catching everyone else off-guard totally. Just as he took 5 steps, the dirt kicked up as something small yet fast started to strike the ground...
"Let's go!" Benimaru shouted, not wasting any more time chatting and shooting off after K'. "We're being shot at!"
Kyo and Shingo didn't need to be told twice. The small group high-tailed it down the dark pathway, which was steadily being pelted with rapid gunfire as they traveled farther. However, despite all this, both Benimaru and Kyo noticed that the abandoned buildings started to give way... and instantly, so did the ground. All four stopped briefly as all but K' stared quizzily at the massive base below them, complete with a runway for air travel... and a majority of people around the area, maintaining the area... and also standing guard. Before any one of them could speak, loud sirens went began to sound, and those in the black uniforms standing guard instantly began buckling down...
"INTRUDER ALERT," a female's voice ran through the over-speakers, "INTRUDER ALERT. FOUR INDIVIDUALS ARE ATTEMPTING TO BREAK INTO THE BASE. SEAL OFF ALL EXITS AND ALL MEMBERS OF BASE SECURITY BE ON GUARD. CODE BLUE. CODE BLUE. STOP THEM AT ALL COSTS."
"Looks like we're going to have to make our way through..." K' muttered.
"I swear when this is all done, you've got some major explaining to do, pal," Kyo shot back. The N.E.S.T.S. rebel didn't respond to that, instead only jumping down the small cliff and maintaining his speed, the others following suit to meet the resistance below...
"Vexx! Can you hear me!"
"I hear you loud and clear... like all the other blasted alarms ringing through this joint. Looks like someone was stupid enough to try to break into a Shadowloo base... especially this one."
"We need you on interior defense, stat! Get your ass over there, ASAP."
"Yeah, whatever. I only have one question... Just who are those idiots?"
"Those 'idiots' have already been identified. They're trying to break their way through our defenses. They all seem to be fighters from the King of Fighters circuit. Three of them are highly skilled, and one of them is only a minor threat. K'... Benimaru Nikaido... Shingo Yabuki... and... Kyo Kusanagi..."
"...hmm... This should be interesting... If they're lucky enough to even make it inside the base, I'll see to it personally that they don't get what they want. It seems as if K' couldn't do this himself... so he got reinforcements... Pity... I thought he was a lot more... of a loner... Rest assured, they won't free the girl."
"You'd better just see to your assignment. Over and out."
"Roger... Heheh..."
Outside, a fierce melee battle was unfolding. All the guards on that side of the base were busy trying to hold down the four KOF fighters... but despite the number advantage, the group was slowly making their way through the runway...
"These guys just keep coming...!" Benimaru shot out, just finishing off a soldier with a hard kick to the head, just as he got ambushed from behind by two others; both female. K' was too busy dealing with the numerous defenses around him to answer that, and Shingo was really overwhelmed; Kyo having to save him more than once by fighting off those trying to grab him...
"Oriya!" the Kusanagi heir shouted, giving a few of his foes a taste of this 100 Shiki: Oniyaki. The moment he landed he ducked down and knocked back another one trying to ambush him. He then spun around again, finding out a bit too late that someone was going to nail a sneak attack on him until he suddenly collapsed... due to K' outstretched arm... the One Inch.
"Follow me!" he shouted out loud. "We're wasting out time trying to take all these guys on. We need to get in the damn place!"
"Well... I don't think these guys are feeling UP to letting us do that!" Kyo returned the favor.
"Just blow through it, then!"
Then, suddenly K' took off like a rocket towards the base, Kyo barely able to see the flame he managed to form in his hand... and just watched on as a good 15 Shadowloo soldiers were sent sky-high, courtesy of the Heat Drive... Not wanting to pass up the pathway to the entrance the other Esaka members quickly dodged their assailants and followed the pathway, not wasting time getting inside right after K'. To Kyo, Shingo, and Benimaru, this place definitely had the feel of a N.E.S.T.S. lab, except with a military feel to it. The insides were a silver color, the soldier-filled corridors forming a maze that could possible leave them lost... Despite this, Kyo was a little surprised to find out that K' was leading a very elaborate path through the base, taking a sharp left... blowing through some more Shadowloo guards... keeping straight... making a hard right...
"For all that we're doing here, this better be good," Benimaru said to K' as the group reached the end of a relatively large corridor.
"Oh, shut up... We're here, anyways," K' smugly replied, slowing down a bit to find himself in a rectangle like area, the walls a more solid white color, and a much darker room towards the left...
"Hey... why aren't there any soldiers here?" Shingo asked, puzzled.
"Who knows..." was Benimaru's only response.
"Tch... something's not right here..." K' muttered to himself. "It wasn't like this last time... It's almost too easy... They really aren't serious about leaving this area unguarded, are they...?"
"You really must be joking..."
K's eyes instantly shot towards the dark room, just in time to see someone emerge from it. Compared to everyone else, he was larger and more built... He was set in a dark blue Shadowloo uniform and his black hair was set in a large ponytail...
"Vexx..." K' muttered harshly, feeling his blood boil badly by seeing this person again. This took the others a bit off guard, because they knew K' only reacted this way against people that really pissed him off. However, his reaction only made Vexx smirk a little.
"So I see you couldn't free her by yourself, so you got backup. I expected better from you, K'..." Vexx then crossed his arms. "I guess you really aren't as tough as you're cracked up to be..."
"Where is your bastard brother and sister?" K' shouted, ignoring Vexx's comments.
"That's not of your concern. Besides... I do believe that I was the one who did most of the damage to you last time. I'm a bit surprised that you gathered the guts to come back. Its only going to take me to stop you again, so don't worry your little head over my support crew."
"Whoa, whoa..." Kyo interrupted. He then gave K' a good look and asked, "YOU lost to HIM?"
K' didn't respond to this at all, instead stepping forward and getting into his fighting stance in the center of the room. "Where's Kula? I'm not going to ask you again... I know you bastards have her here, and I'll beat the info out of you if you don't start talking now!"
"KULA?" Shingo shouted out loud, his jaw dropping, and even Benimaru and Kyo were even more confused about what was happening. All this only made Kyo shake his head.
"This is just insane... K' rescuing Kula? I've seen it all now..."
"Oh... you mean that little brat?" Vexx asked stupidly. "I don't know... Maybe you should look up..."
"What?"
Instantly, the four KOF fighters gazed at the walls above them... and grew shocked at the fact that there was a capsule just above the door where Vexx stood, and inside the clear liquid was a young teenage girl, wearing clothes very similar to that of K' only in a purple tint, in a sleeping state. Her long hair was set in an ice blue tint, but something that struck itself odd was that the tips of her hair was growing blond...
"You see... while you were trying to get help in retrieving your precious Kula, we took the liberty of extracting her ice powers from her DNA," Vexx said in a proud tone. "You guys just don't realize how useful her ice could benefit our leader. Why you think we stole her from you from the first place? Still, it puzzles me how you could've known that we were more than just common kidnappers... and how you found this place to begin with. It doesn't matter to me, though. It's about time I stomped you out like a match. Oh... and since you were kind enough to bring me Kyo and Benimaru, I think I'll take the liberty of capturing them as well... Raven's going to love having you two..."
"I've been captured once too many," Kyo muttered flatly. "I don't need more clones of me running around."
"You still don't understand, don't you?" Vexx said roughly. "Once I pound your lights out, we're going to just TAKE what we need from you; namely your flames. Same with Benimaru's little sparks he calls lightning."
"You're really starting to piss me off, pal," Benimaru shot back. "You so high on your horse that you can't see that you're outnumbered. From the looks of things, I'm definitely thinking that you should've had your little 'support crew' with you this time. I might not know what the hell is going on, but I'm be damned if I'll be part of the problem."
"That's enough chat, then... Its time I got to business exterminating of you three..."
Vexx then unfolded his arms...
"I've been waiting for a decent workout for ages... This better be good..."
...and then reered back... and K', who was right in his sights, stood tight...
"It's time I sent you all to hell!"
...and dodged to the side as Vexx came at him fast with a massive uppercut that could've taken his head off. The moment K' recovered from ducking the Fever Wave, he instantly threw his arm out to create a ring of flame in front of him and then kicked it out at Vexx... who merely swatted it away with his hand.
"SHAAA!"
K' then immediately followed up with a flying cross kick, his Minute Spike, which caught the big Shadowloo soldier off guard. Still he held his ground and slid backwards, absorbing the blow from K's leg.
'Bastard...!" Vexx shot out, fire in his eyes, now launching up from his current position and throwing rather powerful blows at K', who, in turn, just slid backwards to avoid.
"Come here!" the soldier shouted, reaching out a hand unceremoniously to grab K' by his head and initiate his Vortex Flush, but still K' was too wise for it, and instead grabbed Vexx's arm for himself and brought the big guy close to him, only to drive his elbow into the back of his skull and drop him on his face. Vexx immediately cursed at his carelessness and rolled to the side, attempting to get away from K' and recuperate a bit. In the meantime, K' gave his three back-up members a hot glance.
"You think you three could stop looking pretty and make use of yourselves...?" he muttered coolly. Kyo and Shingo were both about to respond, but still Benimaru interrupted.
"I got her. You two watch my back."
Vexx caught on to all that was being said and turned his full attention to the blond in the group. "I'll be DAMNED if I let you get her!"
"Hey, bonehead! Your fight's with ME!"
Vexx then let out a hard groan as K' brought him about again with a hard fist to his face, making him reel just one step backwards. In an instant Vexx whirled back around to face his opponent, a clear expression of anger on his face. Without saying a word he swung at K', who, for once, was a bit off guard, and took the full force of the blow. The attack actually took him off his feet and plowed him into the far wall, yet the rebel wasn't going to be outdone... However, Vexx failed to realize that; instead racing after Benimaru, who was now very close to Kula's capsule...
...Still, Vexx found himself interrupted as Kyo slid in his way and shoved his shoulder forwards, knocking him off momentum. The moment Vexx regained himself he let out a growl.
"Sorry, but I guess I have to get some decent action out of all this mess," the heir said, a smirk on his face.
"Small fry... MOVE YOUR ASS!"
"Gurae!"
Kyo then lunged forward with his 115 Shiki: Douki Gami, pushing a guarding Vexx back a little. Once he finished his punch, Kyo followed with a few more random attacks which were guarded rather easily...
"Is this all you've got?" Vexx shot out, beginning to counter attack, but Kyo's words just stopped him in his tracks.
"You sure aren't all that brilliant, now aren't you?"
"Tch..."
The sudden sound made Vexx stop and turn around... just as a small item hit his face... Before he could realize that it was a pair of black sunglasses, K's elbow rammed into his face, and a hailstorm of attacks rained down on him. After about 14 hits from the Chain Drive, K' ended with a powered-up One Inch, and it sent the huge soldier across the room and slamming into the wall just next to where Benimaru was currently standing; under Kula's capsle. Shingo, who was watching the entire thing from the side, saw that Vexx was dazed, and then looked up at Benimaru...
"Hurry up...! While he's down!"
Benimaru didn't respond; instead looking at a way to get Kula down without hurting her. However, the longer he (unsuccessfully) looked for a way, the more time he was letting Vexx recover. Then, the unexpected happened...
"What the...?"
Benimaru looked on as Kula started to slowly open her eyes... At first she seemed bewildered, but instantly she found her eyes gaze down, unaffected by the water surrounding her, and looked the Esaka member in the eye...
"B... Beni... maru...?" she manage to mutter, the glass muffling her weakening voice. It was then Benimaru found his key...
"You might want to brace yourself... Nnnnnnn...!"
Vexx shook his head hard, instantly feeling the build of ki energy right beside him, and turned in shock at the fact that Benimaru's body began to radiate electricity... focusing around his right fist... and his gaze was going upwards...
"NOOOO!"
"RAIKOUKEN!"
In an instant Benimaru let loose his signature super art on the containment capsule, and the moment the huge blue orb of electricity attacked the prison Kula was located in, it malfunctioned and the glass shattered, water spewing all over the place, mostly on Benimaru. Before he could even complain about his wardrobe being dampened, the sound of Kula's slight yelp brought his attention back to where it needed. The young girl fell freely and willingly out of the capsule... and took a short drop before finding her way into Benimaru's waiting grasp. The moment she landed, she looked Benimaru squarely in the eye and sighed out a, "Thanks..."
"You can thank me later..." was all Benimaru replied with, not looking back towards the others. Before either of the others could talk, Vexx's booming voice interrupted everything.
"This ISN'T over! You will not get out of here, I guarantee it!"
"We're sure as hell going to try," Kyo shot back, instantly forgetting about Vexx and turning towards the way they came. "Things are just too weird now, and right now taking care of you isn't really something I look forward to. I don't know about you, K', but I'm out of here!"
"Tch, like I'd spend more time in this dump than I have to..." the N.E.S.T.S. rebel mumbled while recovering his shades. He then turned towards the downed Vexx, flipped him off, and, along with the others, began to high-tail it out of the base. However, none of them realized that Vexx wasn't giving chase. Instead, he just stood up, tapped on his communicator, and said, "All internal units. Intruders are retreating. Bring them down if you can..."
He then shut off, smiled to himself, and thought to himself...
If they really think this is the last that they've seen of me, then they're mistaken. Our business isn't over yet, K'... It won't take me long to track you down again... Then I'll stomp you out once and for all. Next time we meet, I won't let you excape... and I WON'T be so easy on you.
Tong-An, China: 9:36 P.M.
"Phew! I can't remember a time when I ate so much! Please... tuck me in. I can't walk."
"Oh, stop joking around, Mitsumi..." Kaoru muttered. "You're just fine."
After a large village wide feast, Kaoru and Yui found themselves within the confines of Mitusmi's two story home located towards the edge of Tong-An for the remainder of the day. From then until night, the group discussed the matters at hand considering Rose's disappearance, Shadowloo, and the other events worldwide. Followed by that a dinner fixed by a girl who lived down the street, who practically insisted that she'd do so in thanks for the three running out the Shadowloo troops. By 9:30, it was official. Mitsumi was officially spent for the night.
Currently, the two young women were just arriving on the upper flat of the house where the bedrooms lay and the mountain girl was already in her nightgown, Kaoru still in her attire from earlier, travel bag over her shoulder.
"Lucky for you guys I have three bedrooms," she chaised. "I mean, I know that maybe you'd prefer sleeping with Yui, but I'm just saying that because most homes like this aren't as roomy."
Kaoru only nodded while stopping along with her partner at a door.
"Yaaaah... I think I'll leave you be now," the host yarned while stretching her arms over her head. "I'm exhausted. I just know that I'll be sleeping well tonight."
"Well, you do that. Don't forget, tomorrow morning we call my sister and meet up with her. Yui and I left her once we caught your call and she want on her search without us."
"Yeah, sure. Should be a blast mixing it up with the 'Strongest Woman in the World'. I haven't had much action until recently, so it should pick me up a bit. Well, see ya."
"Good night."
And with that the mountain girl disappeared behind the bedroom door. Almost immediately after the door closed, Kaoru turned around to the creaking of steps and caught the sight of her husband reaching the upper level.
"Ah, Kaoru. About to head to bed, darling?"
"Yes," she answered. "I'm going to meditate first, though, so if you don't mind I'm going to use the third bedroom just for tonight."
Yui took a short pause before responding. "That's alright with me. He then leaned forward and kissed his wife on the lips. "Sleep tight."
Giving a nod to confirm, Kaoru turned away and let Yui go into the room parallel to Mitsumi's, and once it closed she walked up the hall to the end to the last bedroom and entered it.
The surroundings of the room were quite exquisite, and from Kaoru's perspective, it seemed as if she was back at Rose Manor. Everything had an exotic, satanic red vibe to it from the window curtains to the shades in the lights and lamps. A moderate sized TV sat on a dresser in front of a queen sized bed outfitted in an almost dreamy, romantic way, yet tonight it soothed Kaoru's mind, getting the vibe right for some peace of mind. Dropping her bag onto the carpet, the traveler calmly sat on the bed, enjoying her comfort of the mattress below her bum. She then slipped out of her black sneakers and brought her legs up onto the bed, sitting in a butterfly position. After her eyes glanced around the room once more, appreciating the fact that no one was in the area besides herself, she calmed her breathing, rested in her "Indian" position, clasped her hands together in her lap and closed her eyes...
Find your center... Focus your energy... Push everything else out of your mind and concentrate...
For a while Kaoru sat perfectly still, only breathing as she surrounded herself in the darkness of her mind. As time slowly went on, the young woman could start to envision a purple and silver haze, as if she was surrounded by a eerie ring of fire; in reality her body began to glow in a purple and silver aura...
My power... My gift... My curse...
The embers surrounding Kaoru were in a raging hellfire, growing the risk of burning everything in its path, yet still, she kept her position, her mind purely on its target...
Embrace it...
Then, the rage of flames around the young woman began to soothe and Kaoru felt her entire body grow extremely calm...
Control it...
The flames now centered themselves in front of Kaoru, and began to lift off the floor, burning at the air as it shape shifted into a ball of sorts... before it duplicated and once again surrounded Kaoru in a ring of concentrated energy.
That's it... What...?
And instantly, Kaoru opened her eyes, her ki dropping, noticing a sudden disturbance in the atmosphere. She wasn't alone in the room...
...and instinctively she fell backwards onto the bed, just narrowly avoiding someone flying at her and landing on the carpet beside her bed...
...right in her eyesight... Through the dim lights of the room, Kaoru could make out a rather tall individual, slim, wearing blue and yellow with a snake running along the side... and his right hand was outfitted with three deadly claws...
"Who the hell are you?" Kaoru demanded, her blood quickly running hot as she stared at the individual. "How did you get in here?"
The stranger, who's back was to Kaoru, instantly gave off a "tsk, tsk". "Such a beautiful woman shouldn't leave her window open at night... Who knows what certain people could do to you if you expose yourself like that..."
Instantly Kaoru sat up, and jumped off the bed to the floor, readying herself to defend against this strange individual. However, the man only continued.
"Miss Kaoru Miadama... Yes... Without a doubt it is you... Just like the pictures we've collected of you four years ago visualized of you..."
"Four years ago...? You're a Shadowloo assassin, aren't you?"
The question was once again left unanswered...
"Just as pretty... Dare I say it...? Beautiful... Those dark black eyes... that shining black hair... that smooth, tanned skin... Quite a sight... There's just one problem with you..."
And with that, the tall man turned around, Kaoru gasping at the fact that she could clearly see the insane look in his eyes as he stared at her through his white mask... She knew this person, or rather, heard about him during her travels in Spain two years ago. The Spanish ninja...
Vega...
"You're... too beautiful... and I cannot let something more beautiful than me exist... so... for your sake, stand still. I'll be quick at... rearranging your figure..."
"Psychopath!" was all Kaoru shot back with, clenching her fists. "There's no way I'm letting you get what you want!"
"A shame... Then this job is going to be... 'messy'..."
Right afterwards, a shriek rang in the air, Vega now leaping through the air with incredible speed and preparing to attack. Kaoru was just barely able to dodge the slash, finding herself with her back against the wall... but not for long, for she ducked again, avoiding the claw as it rushed against the same place her head was...
However, Kaoru wasn't going to let Vega get away clean with his actions. The moment she dodged she retaliated with an uppercut right to his chest...
A move that was caught with Vega's free hand, and he forcibly held his target down, the two of them trading glances, Kaoru's half struggling and half pissed off, and Vega's just purely crazy.
"Oh, now I'd love to slice open that neck of yours... and paint this entire room a new coat of red..." the man snickered, his mask hiding his twisted smile. Kaoru responded with a loud shout and kicked him off, making Vega fall onto the bed himself and instantly she jumped up and planned to follow up with a fist to break his mask in two. However he was too quick, and rolled out of the way and back onto the floor. Kaoru immediately reacted by spinning on her arm and kicking out, and this caught the Spanish ninja off guard, her leg connecting hard at the side of his head. He turned around in recoil, but then turned right back around with a strike with his claw that was jumped over...
"Yoinokucki!"
Kaoru then shot down with a fast downward kick that connected once again to Vega's head, followed with a few more follow up kicks, the last one hitting hard in the stomach, making him double over. Once she landed, Kaoru delivered a hard fist to the chest, its force actually making Vega's body come off the floor a little... and then she swung with a haymaker-like blow with the right...
The next thing the Shadowloo assassin knew, he was crumpled against the wall in which contained the window he entered in, nursing his body with his free hand.
"This ought to teach you not to interrupt my meditation sessions... I bet your resources didn't tell you that I'm my strongest right after controlling my ki... I bet you expected this to be some minor task, huh? Think again."
A young woman like her...? This powerful...? Ugh... I won't allow this to continue...!
The traveler never let her eyes off Vega as he stood up, cautiously at first, then a little more boldly as Vega attempted to attack again...
"If you think that this is the best I got..." the matador began, "then you're mistaken horribly... You must not keep up with current affairs, Ms. Miadama..."
"What are you babbling about now...?"
"Hehe... THIS!"
No sooner did he finish did Vega's free hand rise up to his mask... and Kaoru gasped that he whisked it off...
"What in the...?"
...and the moment Vega revealed his face, a bright gleam emerged from his eyes... and Kaoru couldn't resist blinking... Once...
...and when her eyes opened again, Vega was gone...
The young woman immediately let out a growl and instantly went on the defensive.
"What type of trick is this, Vega?" she demanded, putting her senses on red alert for any type of ambush...
"Hehehehe...! Honestly... do you really think this is a trick? Let me show you how serious this attack IS!"
At first Kaoru began to turn around to see if she could pinpoint Vega's location due to his voice, but one thing made itself painfully obvious... She couldn't quite tell where he was...
"AAH!"
...until a swift slash connected with her backside, making her eyes grow wide from surprise and the sharp pain. Kaoru dropped to her knees, a hand instantly running across the area that was attacked... and found part of her shirt torn... and...
Blood...! MY blood...!
"That's right... Scream..." Vega's voice taunted from its unknown location. "I love your precious screams. They're music to my ears... And you blood only paints another lovely coating on this masterpiece..."
"Bastard..." Kaoru hushed, standing up fully and clenching her fists once again. "Making yourself invisible...?"
"You still don't understand..."
And once again, Kaoru gasped hard, as another slash struck her stomach, making her instantly fall to hand and knees, an arm covering up another opening...
"Hence, why you'll never be able to escape this attack..."
Another slash crossed both the front and back of her neck, and a sick gagging noise escaped the woman's throat, which could've been a scream if she wasn't hurting so badly...
"Too bad... Those wounds will never get a chance to heal once I'm done with you..."
At the moment, Kaoru was trying her best to drown Vega out, instead trying desperately to get a plan together... before she passed out from the loss of blood...
Gotta... concentrate... Can't... let him... attack... again...
Although her body was obviously protesting her trying to stand up, she did so anyway... forgetting about her wounds... It took her a few moments to get her balance, and then she knew that she'd be lucky enough to pull this off...
"You just don't learn... but at least it's nice that you're willing to lend yourself up, now... Now I'll finish this painting..."
Still ignoring Vega, Kaoru tucked her head down a little and closed her eyes... letting herself be surrounded by the darkness of her subconscious... As she did this, her mind felt dizzy, and she stumbled forward one step, but still managed to keep herself up...
Can't... pass out... Focus, Kaoru...
And then... silence...
Throughout all the pain she was enduring in such a short amount of time, the traveler kept her senses clear... just for this one moment...
...and then her eyes snapped open...
THERE!
In a blink of an eye, Kaoru spun around, just as the air sliced behind her, and reached out... and grabbed a good lock of Vega's golden hair, also dodging a deadly attack from his claw. It was all done in such speed that Vega's whole body was still going forward until it whip-lashed back, making him turn around to face a wounded yet extremely pissed Kaoru... his eyes wide in shock...
From here, Kaoru's free hand reached out and yanked Vega's mask clean off his head and threw it to the carpet, revealing his self-proclaimed "perfect" face... which was now heavily sweating from nervousness. From his standpoint, looking at Kaoru now was like looking at the old Bison head on...
For a while, no one made a move... until Vega began to lash an attack that was instantly stopped by Kaoru bringing her right hand right up to his face, instantly glowing a silver color from her building ki...
"Don't... move... or I'll blow... your head off..." was Kaoru's only warning, spoken in such a dark way that it actually made Vega stop breathing for a few precious moments. "Now... talk... Where's Bison located...?"
Before Vega could stammer out his response, Kaoru's door busted open, and instantly Mitsumi and Yui broke into the room, stopping once inside at the sight of their bloodied companion holding up a man that was roughly a foot taller than her by his hair... and at first, neither one of them could really reply to this. Then, Mitsumi broke the silence...
"What the HELL happened to you, Kaoru? Who is this guy...? And what happened to my guest room?"
"Do you really have to ask that...?" the younger woman replied matter-of-factly. The Chinese woman didn't reply (which was actually a first), and Yui just couldn't find the words to say at the moment. Kaoru then turned her full attention onto Vega, and repeated the question. "What happened to Rose? Where's Bison...? If you don't speak in the next 5 seconds... you're going to regret it... I'll thrash that face of yours so badly you'll want to kill yourself off."
"Bison is... dead..."
"...what...?"
For about 5 seconds, all three of Rose's disciples were speechless, unable to believe the news. Then Kaoru's face turned ugly and charged up her ki attack, Vega wincing in response.
"I don't believe you for a second!" she shouted. "I want the damn truth, or so help me—"
"Why would I lie to someone as beautiful as me...?" Vega's next comment came, abet shaky. "Shadowloo is no longer run by Bison..."
"Then who is...?" Yui asked, crossing his arms. However, before an answer could be established, Vega smirked lightly and then flipped out of Kaoru's grasp... and narrowly dodged Mitsumi's hand to grab him. He then skillfully back flipped all the way across the room and to the window...
"If you think I'm going to tell you that, then you're crazy," he replied. "If you want to know who it is, why don't you visit her personally...?"
"Ko...NO! (Why... YOU!)" Kaoru shouted, recovering from her unbalanced state and, along with Mitsumi, ran up to get Vega once again, but just as they reached him, he jumped out the window and up the tree housed right outside the house... Kaoru abruptly stopped at the wall, punching it in frustration that she couldn't continue pursuit, but Mitsumi jumped out as well, matching Vega's movements up the branches, the darkness of the night not hampering her a bit. Once they reached the top, Mitsumi reached again, but the matador just narrowly excaped it by jumping down... all the way down... to the grass below...
"Oh, no you DON'T!" Mitsumi screamed, positioning herself on the highest branch of the tree and holding up her hands into the air... and quickly, energy stared to form in her hands, forming a ball that was rapidly increasing in size...
"You will NOT GET AWAY FROM ME, VEGA!" her voice boomed in the night sky, her hyper attack now at completion... the golden orb of ki energy now so big it could've been mistaken for a model of the sun, pulsating lightning and flame streaks from its surface... and in a mighty yell, she threw her arms down towards Vega's retreating form... Vega, in turn, never looked back, for the now lightened area was enough of a warning to get out of dodge of the approaching Dragon Bomb. Mitsumi only looked on, panting, as the Suukou Ryuujin Bakudan rained down... and once it touched the ground, the orb exploded in a nuke-like manner, her ki spraying in all directions in a wild light show...
A few moments later, back into the house, where Yui was tending to Kaoru's wounds on the bed, Mitsumi hopped back into the room, her face aggravated...
"That bastard! How dare he show his face back here again after what happened last time...!"
"Last time...?" Yui asked.
"Yes..." Mitsumi sighed, resting her back on the wall while crossing her arms and looking down at the red carpet. "Not too long ago after I noticed that Rose was missing, he attacked me... I managed to hold him off for a long while but he grew to be too much... but he ran away once I attempted to tap into—"
"Don't... finish that..." Kaoru hissed. "Why didn't you tell me that this happened...?"
"I didn't know he worked for Shadowloo... In fact, I never knew about it... but that's besides the point. The fact of the matter is that he got away... but what do you make of what he said that he said that this Bison guy was dead?"
Both Kaoru and Yui kept silent, more so Kaoru, who couldn't quite get Bison's smiling image out of her head...
"He said, 'Meet her yourself...'" she whispered.
"And Rose did tell me that she was... somehow linked to this... Bison..." Yui announced. The three remained quiet for a while afterwards, and then Kaoru spoke.
"We have to meet back with Sakura... I have a bad feeling about all of this..."
"You can't possibly think that Rose could be—" Mitsumi shot back, but Yui cut both girls off.
"We're not going anywhere until morning. Kaoru, you're hurt, and you know that you need to rest in order to jump from continent to continent. We'll wait until you're healed up before we meet up with your 'sister'."
"...fine..." Yui's wife pouted before lying back down onto the bed, letting Yui finish bandaging up her wounds, "but I swear, we're going to get to the bottom of things, here... I'm not going to rest until I do."
Mitsumi nodded, and then turned her attention to the night sky that she had just lit up in a blaze not too long ago...
Rose... Be ok... Please...
Saebe, Japan: 10:05 P.M.
"Hmmmm... this is a perfect time for us to come to Saebe... Right when they're holding an all-day festival throughout the city... Didn't find a single thing pertaining to finding Shadowloo..."
"Hey, cheer up, guys. At least I got some solid coverage on the festival myself."
"Geez, Ran, would you focus?" Karin shot back, crossing her arms as she and the rest of the "Shadow Breakers" (the nickname the reporter gave their group), stood by on the night streets of Saebe, which were basked in a red and orange glow from the decorations and lights that wrapped as far as the eye could see. Floats and people littered the area, the air filled with the sound of traditional Japanese music along with the cheers and other random sounds from the crowd. However, amongst the joyous festivities, the Breakers weren't really enjoying the mood. Well, all except Ran, who spent most of the day photographing as much as she could. Besides that, the others, Chun-Li and Ace being in front, looked for traces of any activity that could lead them to their target, and ultimately they were left empty handed...
"Karin," Chun-Li opened up, "are you sure the Zaibatsu recorded activity here?"
"Positive. The Zaibatsu has never driven me wrong. Perhaps they're really playing it low and we have to search harder and deeper."
"Well, we shouldn't stress the need to find success," Hinata advised, "It's only the first day, and if I'm right, Bison's not going to let us find him so easily, that's for sure. It'll be the other way around at least. That was always how it worked with us."
"Yes, well, that may be true in your case, but the fact remains that we have some sort of confirmation that Shadowloo is here somehow," Ace said. "Although we haven't gotten any records from Interpol about Saebe, we shouldn't take that chance on passing it up."
The others in the group complied...
"Ah, but I'm tired..." Sakura mumbled quietly. "We've been at this getup all day since we arrived, and right now I really hate myself for not grabbing something to eat for dinner. It's past 10, so I think we should pack it up at least until tomorrow morning."
"Fine. That sounds like a good idea." Chun-Li agreed, turning her attention from the festival and beginning to head back. "We should get something to get and get some rest."
"Alright! That's more like it!" Ran smiled, packing her camera into her carrying bag hanging from her shoulder. "I'm famished! All this walking does take it out of you."
Batsu fought to retaliate at Ran's comment as their troupe began to depart from the busy streets. As they turned a corner, which was less congested with civilians, Sakura (who was leading the pack) began to speak.
"So what do you guys have in mind? I really don't care what I eat, as long as it's good!"
"In that case, you can wait until we get to the plane," her blond-haired rival suggested. "You know my personal chef makes some great dishes."
"But I don't think he's prepared to serve up a good 10 people at once," came Akira's input. "I think I remember this area, though when I was with Daigo years ago on one of his travels. There should be a nice spot somewhere around here that we could try out."
"Oh, yeah?" Darrell asked. "You remember what they serve?"
Before Akira could answer that, Sakura suddenly let out a gasp and stumbled backwards, Kyosuke and Ace thinking fast to break her fall. The Breakers found themselves at another intersection, and they found out that a certain young girl was also sitting on her rear, obviously rushing and not watching where she was going. The girl was a black-hair, worn short and rather shabby like, and she wore blue, shaded jeans along with a pink designer shirt, a small white traveling back on her shoulder. Her eyes were a bit wide at first, as if in shock, and simply stared at the large group of fighters that she stumbled on...
And Sakura noticed that her focus was mostly on herself...
"...I... must be dreaming..." the girl said out loud. "are you really...?"
The others just stared at the young girl as her eyes began to sparkle with enjoyment, then, before anyone could make heads or tails of the matter, she sprung up, just as Sakura pushed off Kyosuke and Ace, and dove into her, her arms circling tightly around her waist...
"H... hey!" the cherry blossom fighter yelped. "What's this all about...?"
"It must be you! No question about it! I have all your posters and everything! I knew I'd find you one day, but I didn't expect it to be now... Wow...! I can't believe I'm hugging my idol!"
"Whoa, whoa...! Slow down! Are you telling me that you're—"
"Uh-huh!" the girl cut her off, nodding her head as she looked Sakura in the eye. "I'm your biggest fan! I always was even before you won that tournament! I always looked up to how you stood up to any challenge, and I always thought that one day I'd grow up to be just like you!"
"Admirer, eh...?" Darrell mumbled into his wife's ear. Sakura made a slight face and then turned her attention to the girl.
"And your name would be...?"
"Jan Kaito," she said brightly.
"Well, Jan..." Chun-Li started, "you mind telling us why you were in such a rush? It should be time for someone like you to be in bed and ready for school tomorrow, right?"
"Well... you see..." she began, her voice growing a little timid upon being asked that question, however, she was cut off...
"THERE SHE IS! THAT'S THAT SKANK THAT ROBBED ME!"
"ROBBED?" everyone for the exception of Ace shot back, their attention growing over to a small mob of guys that found they way to the Breakers, the man in front the bigger of the group. He wore casual clothing and looked to be quite a strong body builder and the like, and the others weren't any less off... Instantly the Breaker's glances shot to Jan, and she immediately defended herself.
"Don't listen to him! He's the one who pulled me into a fight that I didn't want any part of, and he said that if I could knock him down for ten counts, then I'd get a prize. He started to cheat, so I kicked him where he deserved it! Ten counts, like he said, and then his buddies tried to gang up on me, so I took his money from his pocket and ran!"
"Is this true?" Chun-Li demanded the head of the mob, who instantly twitched and backed up a step, as if to notice who she was...
"I take your hesitation as a 'yes', then..."
"Geez, you'd think we'd have enough problems on our hands without little nuisances like this around," Batsu murmured, and all the Breakers faced the mob, who was now stepping backwards from the force of World Warriors.
"Although you're not my main objective and aren't worth Interpol's time..." the Chinese agent started, "I think the local authorities should have something interesting right here... Consider yourself under arrest."
"Tch! Not in this lifetime! Everyone bail out!"
And on the call, the small mob pulled a 180 and scampered out the other way as fast as they could, making every member of the Breakers except Chun-Li sweatdrop.
"Just... odd..." Ran muttered. Chun-Li then began to move forwards, thinking about handling the entire mob herself, but Darrell cut her off.
"Shall I take the honors? These guys aren't worth you sweating over."
Chun-Li blinked a little and then smirked. "Sure. Why not?"
Letting out a laugh, Darrell, along with a volunteering Batsu, Sakura, Hinata, and Kyosuke, all took formation side-by-side, each one charging up a super ki attack...
"Saishuu..."
"Nekketsu..."
"Zenkai..."
"Haaai..."
"Ahhhh..."
"WAIT! I got it!"
All 5 ex-Rival Schoolers gasped as Jan shot out from between Sakura and Darrell, her right leg glowing a blueish tint as she hopped forward...
"HURRICANNA!"
...and she kicked out hard... and in an event that made everyone in the Breakers grow wide-eyed, the attack stirred a huge wavelike attack from Jan's leg and the ground at the same time, and it moved so fast the mob wasn't able to step ahead two steps before it struck, sending everyone all about the area and in a mess on the ground... Jan herself only rubbed her nose with her thumb and pumped up an arm, making a miniature muscle.
"Oh, yeah! Now that's the perfect way to treat bad guys! That was awesome, if I do say so myself! What do you think, Ms. Kasugano...? Um...? Ms. Kasugano...?"
The black-haired girl spun around quizzly and stared blankly at the large stares from the Breakers, all aimed at her... and all she did to respond with was shrug.
"What?"
For about 5 seconds no one responded... until Hinata broke it.
"That was... pretty good..."
Jan only blinked herself. "You act like you guys haven't done better than that..."
"That's besides the point," Sakura cleared up. "For someone like you... that was... just great. Since when did you learn something like that?"
The young girl simply rubbed the back of her head and looked at the ground sheepishly. "I... sorta picked it up..."
Sakura then smiled, making Jan's heart grow jittery. "Well, for someone so young that was sure some attack. You keep that up, and I'm sure you'll be a contender in the circuit in no time."
"Thanks, Ms. Kasugano."
"Oh, please. You're not one of my students. You can just call me Sakura, Jan."
Jan immediately nodded. "Sure. No problem."
Before Sakura could keep the conversation going, Karin came from behind and tapped her on her shoulder...
"Come on, Sakura. We still do have to find something to eat. We gotta go."
The cherry blossom girl nodded. "Ok."
"Wait!" another sudden yell came from the young girl. "Sakura, I... I left home so I could learn from you..."
That quote alone was so... familiar to the cherry blossom girl that she instantly remembered it... because a good decade ago she said the same thing to that man... Ryu... and although she didn't say anything in response, she did make a face. Rubbing her arm shyly, she looked at Jan and replied, her voice low.
"Jan... I don't know how to say this, but... this is a bad time. I mean, I wouldn't mind teaching you, but at the moment I have some important matters to handle and I can't risk you getting hurt. Perhaps at a later time, but right now, you're going to have to wait on me."
Halfway through that statement, Sakura's little admirer frowned and once she finished, she immediately retaliated with, "Ohhh... I traveled all the way from Otaru to see you... I don't want to go back emptyhanded..."
"I'm sorry, Jan..."
"Hmm... and your parents know you're gone...?" Chun-Li interrupted, putting her hands on her hips. This question made Jan bite her lower lip and solemnly reply...
"Well... not really..."
This made Chun-Li sigh. How come I knew that she'd be like a young Sakura all the way up to sneaking out of the house to travel the world without her parents knowing...?
Without anyone else noticing it, the Interpol agent walked forward and grabbed Jan's hand, making her gasp a little, and she continued to walk forward...
"Chun-Li...?" Karin asked. "What are you doing with her...?"
"I guess we don't have much of a choice than to let her come along. Taking her back is going to be a waste of all our time and hers, especially since she reminds me so much of Sakura when she was her age, and that if we do take her back, she's just going to find another way to get out..."
After letting that sink in, Sakura nodded in acceptance. "Yeah, and I know first-hand how it felt when the person you want to teach you doesn't have the time. Don't worry about a thing, Jan. I guess we'll fit things in after a while. For now, why don't you just accompany us to dinner?"
"Sure! That sounds awesome!" the young girl chimed, grasping hold tight to her bag as she walked with the group, overhearing Ran say to Akira and Hinata, "I guess we have another member to the Shadow Breakers, huh?" She smiled lightly to herself before looking up into the night sky and letting out a sigh of relief.
Now that I'm with these guys, hopefully those two guys will stop following me...
"You say something, Jan?" Chun-Li asked, and Jan gasped, not realizing that she mumbled out her thought under her breath. Instantly she shook her head in denial, and sprouted an, "Oh, nothing..."