AN: You might have read a chapter of the same name already. If you have, then you probably don't have to read this, but I took out some contradictory elements in this one so it's a little shortened.

Chapter 20: The Final Decision on the Matter (Three Years Later)

Kazuya thought of what Jun could be doing at this moment. More than likely, she had her nose in a book while scrupulously taking notes. That took a lot of willpower Kazuya knew, but it wasn't as if he didn't understand her passion. She wanted to be a veterinarian. Her love for animals had only grown and her dream career would be one where she was able to take care of animals for a living. Kazuya became only slightly uncomfortable when she expressed how much she wanted to pursue this. She was telling this to the same guy who had nonchalantly slaughtered the cat which she had been trying to care for. Did she remember all of that? Had she really completely forgiven him for that incident? He never brought it up and Jun seemed to be all smiles. He could understand passion. There was something that he was passionate about as well. It was that passion that had continuously spurned him on for all these years.

Kazuya yawned widely as he stretched his arms out. There was still that homework Mr. Fushi assigned to him almost every night. He had finished his first stage of homework which was to define all the key terms in his own words in the chapter they were on in History. For now, he had to begin on his research paper which was due in a couple of days. He became so involved with searching for some credible articles online that he hardly noticed when his cellphone began to vibrate and then ring—it happened to be the theme song to a show that Jun had been partially obsessed with a few years ago: Pokémon. He had only watched it because she had enjoyed it so much that she would drag him downstairs every Saturday morning so that she could see it on the unused large high-quality TV.

"Hello?" Kazuya answered the phone momentarily.

"Ah, Kazuya, so you do answer your phone from time to time."

"Whenever it's charged that is." Kazuya knew the voice on the other end to be that of Jinpachi.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking. You're nearly a senior in high school from what your tutor has told me on your progress and you still haven't figured out what kind of career you want to pursue when you become an adult or even if you want to go to college. How about I show you around the Tekken Zaibatsu Corporation and you see how you like it? Does that sound appealing to you?"

"I suppose."

"It's okay be to unsure about it—if you find you don't like it in the least, then I won't be offended."

"Alright, what time are you planning to do this?" Kazuya questioned. It was in his nature to get to the point as soon as possible.

"Whatever works for you."

"Then, in that case, anytime. I have absolutely nothing to do."

"Today then, afterhours. You won't have to meet a lot of people and it'll just be me and you…and a few janitors."

"Okay, that sounds fine."

"See you in a few hours."

When Kazuya heard the other end of the phone click, he did the same. With a sigh he continued on with his homework. Who exactly was Jinpachi trying to fool? Kazuya knew what he wanted of him and he had been hinting at it for years. Even when he knew full-well what Jinpachi wanted of him, he had no desire to acknowledge it. Despite this, Kazuya still recognized Jinpachi as a great fighter and over the years their bond had strengthened only through this very fact. Kazuya respected him to the point that he believed that the other could do no wrong. He was simply a nice guy starkly different from his father. Could this really be the same guy who had raised that monster known as Heihachi?

But Jinpachi was a parent first and foremost and he had gotten on Kazuya's nerves more times than he could count especially at the dinner table when they suddenly began talking about what he planned to do with his life. Kazuya knew better than to tell him of his true intentions and he had nothing to say that would satisfy Jinpachi. Kazuya had heard the speech of what a man was expected to do in society so many times, that he believed he knew it by heart. There was wisdom in his words, but Kazuya would sooner ignore them. He was no man—he was merely a servant to the whims of his evil counterpart. Kazuya knew what he was definitely going to do in the future if things continued as they were, but what he really wanted to do was find some way to be rid of Devil forever—that was his true desire. How could he disclose all of that to Jinpachi?

/

Jun never came over that day. By the time Jinpachi came to pick up Kazuya, he was mostly done with his research paper; it only needed to be looked over again and the in-text citation to be formatted correctly. Jinpachi seemed just a smidgeon more content than usual as he carried on a one-sided conversation with Kazuya all the way to the massive building that Jinpachi proclaimed to be the headquarters of his corporation. Jinpachi gave Kazuya the low-down on Tekken Zaibatsu's history, about how Jinpachi had built it from the ground up and how its success had slowly grown financially under his keen eyes. Though Kazuya didn't look it, he was a bit impressed with the whole concept of creating something that could affect the entire world. It was phenomenal. Was this really something that Jinpachi wanted to trust in his hands? It almost saddened him the more he thought about it. How was it that Jinpachi was so willing to hand over something that he loved like his own child to someone like him?

"See this room," Jinpachi said as he gestured towards a large set of mahogany doors with brass handles.

Kazuya only looked on in mild interest.

"This is the room where I reside. Now this Corporation is designed to be self-functioning. I've hired people who have specialties in specific areas and I've spread the power out evenly among these experts to the point that they are like the CEO to whatever part of the Corporation they are in charge of. However, there are still debates and problems that cannot resolve themselves even under these circumstances—these are the problems that I deal with on a regular basis. I try to make myself available to all who work for me, but sometimes I feel as if my employees on the lower levels are a bit intimidated by me."

As Jinpachi said all of this, he used his key to open the doors and walked in to show Kazuya a room that seemed quite welcoming. After Jinpachi flicked on the lights, Kazuya could see that the room was alive with a nice amount of plants and earthy decorations. It gave off an air of serenity. Jun would love this room, Kazuya thought to himself as his eyes passed over everything. There was a large, gleaming mahogany table near the back with a leather chair. Behind that was an expansive window that took up 80% of the wall and was centered. Because they were so high, Kazuya could see the stars and crescent moon quite clearly.

"So, what do you think? It's my home away from home."

"It's really nice," Kazuya said honestly.

"Why thanks. I spent a long time figuring out just what would work here without going too overboard with the 'I'm harmless, seriously I am' vibe."

Kazuya grinned at this, "I'm sure you got your message across."

"Well, that's enough of that. I have one more place to show you and then we can go home."

Kazuya followed Jinpachi out of the room. After Jinpachi flicked off the lights, closed the door, and locked it, the duo took the elevator down to the basement. When they got there, Jinpachi told him to wait there as he said that he had to go get the key (hidden on another floor as a safety precaution) that would open the last room that Jinpachi wanted to show him. Kazuya stood with half curiosity in front of a gigantic set of pristine metal doors. It wasn't until Jinpachi left that he began to feel a remarkably slicing headache. Perhaps that could account for the slight movement he caught from the side of his eye. If only it did. While Kazuya gingerly pressed the balls of hand to his forehead, he turned to the source of movement only to have something flash past his vision once again. He turned again and the same thing occurred. Determined to not be made a fool, he stood still for a moment and listened to any extra sounds. He heard a foot scrape on the tiles. Pulling his hand away from its previous position, Kazuya quickly turned to that point of movement. This time he saw a person, but the intruder smoothly moved out of his line of vision.

"Enough of this. I already know that there's someone else here—you can stop with your games. Show yourself."

"The Mishimas sure are slow," a rather strange metallic-sounding voice said from behind Kazuya.

Kazuya turned to where he heard what he determined to be a "him" only to see a flash of colors whip past him once again.

"Fine, I don't care what you look like, but you better get lost before you have to deal with me."

"You couldn't even land a punch even if you did decide that you would fight me. Besides, that isn't what I came here for."

"I wouldn't think so. But one has to question the intentions of some ninja thing—

"Oho, ninja, is that what you've come up with?"

"I hope I haven't offended you, but under the circumstances, that's all I could think of. I'm still willing to let you go without any fuss, without my grandfather finding out about you."

"That old man? I slipped past him easily enough, he didn't so much as blink an eye towards me, but you're different I suppose."

"I'm giving you one more chance."

"Don't you even want to know why I came here?"

"Whatever the reason, it couldn't be a redeeming one. If you plan on stealing from my grandfather, then you've come at the precisely wrong time."

"Like I said, you couldn't land one punch on me." Kazuya heard the scrape of his feet once more when he tried to pinpoint his location, but missed him again. "Point proven. I didn't come here to steal from that old man, but from the hands of its future owner."

"That doesn't make your case any better."

"How so?"

"Because…" Kazuya stopped himself before he blurted out something that he didn't even believe himself, but then thought better of it. The goal here was to either convince this intruder that this wasn't worth his time or somehow rough handle him into leaving…the latter seeming a bit impossible. "Because I'll be its owner once my grandfather hands the title over to me."

"Is that what you really believe?"

Kazuya looked down, "Yes."

"But you seem so unsure. Perhaps there is someone else working in the shadows, someone who you haven't even considered as a contender to that title."

"You can't mean…?"

"Oh, yes, Heihachi Mishima."

"How do you know about him?"

"Anyone who pays attention to the business world in Japan knows about him, kid. You wouldn't happen to be his son, would you?"

"If I said 'no', would you believe me," Kazuya said with a grin.

"The Mishimas all have certain physical traits that are hard to miss. You can't fool me." The ninja paused before he continued. "It all makes sense now. Jinpachi wishes to give his title to his grandson who he has come to trust more than his own son. Perhaps my visit was a little too soon. If you really intend to take over this Corporation from Jinpachi, then maybe the world isn't in as much peril as I first assumed. How about I make you a deal that will make us both happy? You promise me that when the title is handed over to you that you will continue in your grandfather's footsteps and you will resist all of Heihachi's attempts at overtaking you. Promise me this and I'll leave peacefully."

"Is that all? Then fine, I promise you. Although, it's hard to make a promise to someone who I can't even put a face to or at least a name."

"I have many faces. It wouldn't do you much good to describe me from looks alone. Call me Yoshimitsu."

"No last name?"

"Planning on doing some research on me? Just Yoshimitsu. I'll take my leave now."

Before Kazuya even knew what was happening, the door leading to the stairs closed. Kazuya sprinted over to the door and peered up the stairs only to be met with a harsh gust of wind and another door closing two floors above him.

With an irritated sigh, Kazuya closed the door and reassumed his position in front of the vault. What was taking Jinpachi so long to get that key of his? Then it dawned on Kazuya that Jinpachi might already be compromised.

"Damn it," Kazuya spat under his breath as he took a total of four flights of stairs to get to the floor Jinpachi said he would be on.

It didn't take Kazuya long to discover the large man sprawled out on the floor. The entire scene was mindboggling. Jinpachi, a large, powerful man, could be brought down so easily and left in such a weak position?

"Grandfather, grandfather," Kazuya said as he tried to bring him out of his unconscious state by shaking him.

After a moment, Kazuya could hear a groan escape the other's mouth.

"Kazuya, someone—

"Don't worry about that. I took care of the intruder."

"You did?" Jinpachi asked looking back at the other with a confused look. It was a little much to process after just gaining consciousness again.

Kazuya nodded. "He was fast. That's why you didn't see him coming."

"Well, at least I know all your training isn't going to waste. I feel even better about what I was going to say to you before I was interrupted."

Kazuya watched as the other sat up on his own—he could tell that the other didn't want any help in that regards. The two of them were soon sitting on the floor in the middle of the large hallway.

"I wanted to ask you, what did you think about the tour?"

"I thought it was…" Kazuya thought of the promise that he had made to a certain Yoshimitsu, but more than that he thought of the warning that the ninja had given him—his father was still there scheming in the shadows planning to take away something that his grandfather held dear to him. Did he really have a choice in the matter? If things even had a hope of ending nicely, he'd have to… "I enjoyed it. After getting a firsthand look at just what it is you do, I believed that it was certainly a lifestyle I could get used to if only someone showed me the ropes."

"Kazuya, you don't know how much this means to me. I knew, I just knew you'd come around once you got a better understanding of things."

Kazuya could only manage to smile briefly if only for Jinpachi's sake.

"Now c'mon. Let's go before we start growing roots."

/

Jinpachi had given Kazuya some pills when he finally complained about his headache—a rather good excuse (that just so happened to be true) to find refuge in his bed away from Jinpachi's good mood. Jinpachi's good mood equated to a lot of talking about things that Kazuya could care less about. If one was to ask Kazuya to give them a detailed report about what Jinpachi had discussed with him, he wouldn't be able to do it. It had all become gibberish.

Not that Kazuya had better things to do or think about—at the moment, he just wanted some peace and quiet. Maybe just maybe the throbbing pain would subside. Seeing as there was no apparent cause for his discomfort besides "stress" as Jinpachi had claimed, Kazuya didn't see any hope of that happening anytime soon. When the Pokémon theme song came on, he knew that he still had a little while before he'd get his "peace and quiet". There was no way he would turn Jun down not even for this reason, she didn't call all that often anyways.

"Kazuya! I was afraid you already went to bed. I know how you like to go to bed early if I don't have any say over it."

"You caught me just in time. How was your day?" Kazuya asked learning early on that not only did this initiate dialogue, but it made her day if he asked about her on his own.

"Actually, it's been a great day even better now that I've found some time to call you up. I got a lot of my homework done today and I've studied so hard that my History test tomorrow should be a breeze. I just hope it doesn't go too in-depth about the dates. Also, my mom just got a new TV that's can actually play DVD's on it. How about you? How was your day?

"It was interesting. At least the part when Jinpachi showed me around his workplace."

"Oh, wow, that sounds really cool. I think I'm getting jealous. The Tekken Zaibatsu has left quite a mark on Japan, you know, and it's no stranger to charity work and helping animals."

"Yeah…" Kazuya said slowly, "I decided that I would follow in his footsteps."

"Really? That's a big move on your part. Kazuya as a businessman; that has a nice ring to it."

"You think?" Kazuya said with slight surprise.

"Of course. You really can do anything you put your mind to especially with the kind of financial backing that your grandfather has."

"But it's the same for you…the first part of that. I bet scholarships are just lining up to be accepted by you anyways."

Jun laughed at this, "Right. I'd like to see the day when scholarships actually started doing that. I have applied to a lot of them and I've gotten a few of them. Nothing major, though, so I have to keep on applying."

"Don't worry, Jun. If all else fails—

"No, I said I didn't want you or your grandfather's help in this."

"I know, but all the same. If you find yourself in a tight spot, well, you have my number."

"I don't want to keep you up like I did last night," Jun said with a brief chuckle, "And I have an early start tomorrow. Good night, Kazuya. I'm really glad to hear that you're doing well."

"Good night, Jun. Don't wear yourself out."

When Kazuya pressed the "End Call" button, he stretched out on the bed once again. It took him a moment, but with the pills he had already taken, he soon fell asleep.

/

AN: This chapter is a little shorter than when I first put it up mostly because the previous two chapters do a good job of explaining things and I didn't want to repeat myself.