The Origins of Kazuki

Kasumi,

The Runaway Shinobi,

The Kunoichi of Destiny,

The Mother of Kazuki.

After being told by Ryu Hayabusa that this was the woman who sees him every once a year, Kazuki knows that there is more to it than that. After spending several minutes in the forest by himself, Kazuki decides to approaches Hayate and Ayane and informs them of what he knows.

"The woman who visits this village every year…the runaway shinobi…why wouldn't tell me that she was my mother?" said Kazuki.

"Ryu told you that, did he not?" said Hayate.

There is long pause as Kazuki refuses to answer. He is well aware of the friendship between the two and doesn't want to risk destroying it.

"If he did tell you…I am not surprised," Hayate continued as he folds his arms. "Hayabusa cares about you too."

"Why, Hayate?" said Kazuki. "Why have you kept this a secret from me all these years? And when did you expect me to know? After we kill her?"

"How dare you ask that, Kazuki?" said Ayane.

"Anybody who leaves the village becomes a runaway shinobi…which means that they will have to be killed by the clan as punishment. Here I am…part of a clan that has to kill my mother…without even knowing it. How cold can you be?"

"Kazuki, that's enough!" Ayane angrily says.

"Would you stop for a moment?" said Hayate. "You have it all wrong. I may have my duties as leader of this clan but I've never wanted my sister killed. The reason we did not tell you about her is because she didn't want you to know, Kazuki."

"She…didn't want me to know?" said Kazuki. "But why?"

"It was a promise that we kept to her that night."


19 years ago

Right outside of the entrance to the Mugen Tenshin village, Kasumi gets stopped by a group of ninjas while she holds her baby. It appears that they are about to attack but until Hayate and Ayane appears and orders them to back down.

"Hayate!" said Kasumi. "Thank goodness you are here."

"What are you doing here, Kasumi?" said Hayate. "You know how dangerous it is to be here…and why are you bringing an infant child here as well?"

"Please, Hayate, I want him to stay in this village. It's too dangerous for him to be out there."

"Out of all the places in the world, why do you bring him here?" said Ayane.

"Because he's my son," said Kasumi.

This shocks both Hayate and Ayane, rendering them speechless for a few moments.

"Your…son?" said Ayane.

"Yes, this is my son Kazuki," said Kasumi. "I love him so much and I want nothing more than for him to have a happy, normal life."

"You abandon your clan, then you have a child with someone outside of the clan…and now you expect your clan to help you with this? Why do you think we should help you now?"

"Because this isn't about me, Ayane. This is about him." Kasumi looks at her baby's eyes as her own eyes begins to tear up. "As his mother, I must make sure that his life is in good hands…and as a family, we should all do this together for the sake of his future." She holds her baby out to her sister. "Please?"

Ayane has no words. She looks at Hayate, who nods as if to allow it before she slowly takes her nephew out of Kasumi's arms. She looks at the baby herself and slowly begins to smile.

"Promise me," said Kasumi. "Promise that you'll keep him safe from anything outside of the village…and to never tell him who I am. I don't want him to know about my status as a runaway shinobi. It would worry him, I'm sure of it."

"Understood," said Hayate. "We will make sure he's safe. I'm sure our mother would be happy to be with her grandson. She's one person I can count on to raise him the right way."

"Thank you," said Kasumi. "I must leave now. Please, remember your promise to me."

"Kasumi? Wait!" said Hayate just as Kasumi is about to leave. "I don't want you to be completely separated from your son. I'm sure even you wouldn't want that. Therefore, I'll allow you to visit him every once a year to be part of his life and watch him as he grows up."

"You mean it?" says a smiling and teary-eyed Kasumi. "Oh, Hayate! Thank you so very much!"

"Now hurry, Kasumi. You can't be seen here by the others."

"Alright! I'm off," Kasumi quickly leaves the area as Hayate and Ayane watches her.

"Come on, Ayane," said Hayate. "Let's take him to our mother. It's very dark out here."

"Right!" said Ayane.


Present Day

"And that's why we didn't tell you," said Hayate. "For years we kept our promise to her and never told you who she was."

"I see," said Kazuki as folds his arms. "So she's my mother. Heh! And all these years, I never would have guessed that you two were also my uncle and aunt. You two treated me just like any other member of this clan."

"If we had treated you any differently, it would have most certainly raised questions and you probably would have found out even sooner. We couldn't risk that."

Kazuki nods to show his understanding while Ayane looks at him as if she's disturbed by something. She begins to think back on her past when she didn't know who her own mother was until she was 16. This new revelation sparked a rivalry between her and Kasumi, her childhood friend who turned out to be her half-sister, due to having the same mother Ayame. While Ayane was treated like an outcast and cursed child, Kasumi was treated like a princess. Despite this, the two have fought together to take down their common enemies, such as Victor Donovan. Kazuki's past brings back memories of her own, memories that she has tried to forget.

"Well, I must say that I'm not comfortable with knowing that my mother is targeted by our clan," said Kazuki. "But I am glad that you gave me the opportunity to know her, to know that she is a person who I love. Maybe it was that mother-son connection that I didn't know about."

Kazuki then unfolds his arms.

"However, now that I know who my mother is, what about my father?"

After those words, Hayate and Ayane briefly look at each other, as they didn't expect to hear that.

"I have been thinking about this before I came here. While I didn't know that it was my mother who came to this village this whole time, I don't think that I could have met my father at all. If he was here in this village, I don't think he would have kept that a secret from me and there are no other runaway shinobis besides my mother. So, I don't think he's part of this clan. I guess only she knows, right?"

"Kazuki," said Hayate. "Here is something that I'm going to tell you; you now know who your mother is after all these years but as far as who your father is, you won't get your answers from here…or from Ryu."

"Why not?"

"As you just said, your father has nothing to do with this clan. Therefore, if you really want to know who he is, you must find out outside of this village."

"How can I possibly do that?"

"By entering The King of Iron Fist tournament."

"What? You mean that new tournament announced by the Mishima Zaibatsu? What does that have to do with anything?"

"That's something you're going to have to find out on your own, Kazuki. Or you could just not enter the tournament and forget about the whole thing. It's up to you."

Kazuki looks at the ground and thinks for a moment. Like many people around the world, he too is familiar with the infamous Mishima Zaibatsu and its ongoing war against G Corporation.

"I don't think he's ready for that tournament, Hayate," said Ayane. "A competition like that is too stiff for someone like him. He'll just lose."

"What?" said Kazuki.

"You're right, Ayane," said Hayate. "Kazuki may not be strong enough to win the tournament. Maybe it's best that he does forget about it."

"Wait a second!" said Kazuki. "I thought you said that I was your best pupil so what makes you think that I'm not ready for this?"

"Because you have yet to prove it," said Hayate. "In order for you to do that, you must take on the both of us...at the same time."

"What?" said Kazuki. "Why?"

"If you can't do that, then you don't deserve to enter the tournament." said Ayane. "This is your chance to earn your place in that tournament. So, what do you say?"

Kazuki looks down for a moment to think briefly on this situation before assuming his fighting style and saying "Alright, I'll do it! After all these years, I'm more willing to prove myself to my superiors. Let's go!"

Kazuki stands ready to face off against Hayate and Ayane in a nearby forest area. He starts with a quick combination of punches and kicks but Hayate avoids it and eventually counters by catching Kazuki's leg and lands a few spinning kicks to his face, knocking him down. Ayane attempts to follow up with a high-flying stomp but Kazuki quickly avoids it and stands up. He blocks a combination of punches and kicks while on the backfoot. Hayate kicks but Kazuki catches his leg, jumps up in the air and hits Hayate with a knee before coming down with an elbow that knocks him down. Before Kazuki can attack a down Hayate, Ayane kicks him in the back and off of Hayate. They both charge forward at Kazuki again with a combination of punches and kicks. He blocks Hayate's kick but gets hit in the stomach by Ayane's, in which Hayate follows up with another hard kick to the face. Ayane trips a stunned Kazuki but he stands back up immediately. Hayate charges forward at Kazuki and their fists collide, causing a shockwave. Hayate attempts another hit but Kazuki catches his hand and knocks him away with a hard palm shot. Ayane attempts her own attack on Kazuki but he teleports behind her and strikes her in the back with an elbow shot, knocking her down. Kazuki evades a dashing kick from Hayate, who lands next to Ayane as she stands up. However, both realize that Kazuki has vanished and before they can do anything, they're both hit in the back by Kazuki's open handed shots. After they turn around, there is short cool off until Kazuki charges forward. He blocks Ayane's kick but gets hit in the stomach by Hayate. Ayane then jumps to Kazuki's back, lays down on the ground, and flips Kazuki over her head and into Hayate's fist.

Clearly hurt by the attack, Kazuki slowly stands up. He's hurt, tired, and his sight fading as if to lose consciousness but determined to the very end, he remains standing. As Hayate and Ayane attempt to finish him off, Kazuki, using as much as strength as he can, charges them with a two close-line. However, although they are hit this attack, they catch both of his arms and toss him away. However, Kazuki successfully lands on his feet and turns around, appearing ready to continue.

"That's enough, Kazuki!" says Hayate as he stands up straight. "This is where we stop!"

"What?" said Kazuki.

"This was a test to see how well you would do in a real fight. You've proven to not only be strong but also determined. If you keep all of that with you, then perhaps you do have a chance of winning that tournament."

Kazuki then looks at his hands, as if even he couldn't believe how strong he's become. "Am I…really that strong?"

"Don't get cocky," said Ayane. "There are other strong fighters like you in the world and they're going to be entering that tournament as well. You could still lose if you're not focused."

"Understood," said Kazuki. "I'll make sure that I'm 100% ready when I enter that tournament and nothing less. I promise I will!"

"Good!" said Hayate. "Until then, prepare yourself. Don't let anything get in the way of your goals."

Kazuki bows to his uncle and aunt and says "I will. Thank you."


DOATEC Tritowers

Earlier that same day at the DOATEC Tritowers, Helena Douglas sees the announcement of the new King of Iron Fist Tournament by Heihachi Mishima. For years, Helena's late father Fame Douglas wanted DOATEC to become a bigger company than the Mishima Zaibatsu. Heihachi saw the company as a threat but rather than trying to take it down, he instead wanted the image of a more successful company business wise. Twenty-two years ago, when Heihachi announced the the third King of Iron Fist Tournament, Fame decided to announce a tournament of his own in response, the Dead or Alive Combat Championship. Like Heihachi's tournament, Fame's tournament also had powerful martial artists from around the world. However, tensions between him and DOATEC scientist Victor Donovan led to Fame's death after the tournament, in which ownership was passed on to his daughter, Helena.

While the competition between Heihachi and her father was strictly business, it has been a little bit more personal and chaotic since she has been in charge. After Jin Kazama took over the Mishima Zaibatsu, DOATEC was one of the many companies that he had ordered an attack on. Helena survived and was eventually rescued by a group that was rebelling against Jin. After Heihachi got the Mishima Zaibatsu back and start his ongoing war with Kazuya, Helena's DOATEC remained out of the conflict between father and son and is now trying to win her own personal war against Victor Donovan and his company MIST.

The announcement of the new King of Iron Fist tournament catches Helena's attention.

"Heihachi Mishima, just what are you planning this time?" says Helena as she looks at the video. "You, Kazuya, Jin…all of you will stop at nothing to gain more power. How many more innocent lives will suffer this time?"


Violet Systems Headquarters

Meanwhile at Violet Systems, Jin, Lee, Lars, and Alisa watch the video of Heihachi making the announcement that doesn't come as a surprise for any of them.

"So, he announces a new tournament right after the whole world know that you're alive," said Lee as he turns to look Jin. "You know what that means, right?"

"Yes." said Jin. "He's doing this to bring me and Kazuya together…and kill us both at the same time. But this gives me another opportunity to kill them instead. This time, I will end it all…and no one else will have to suffer by our hands anymore."

"Do you believe that that would be the only way to get rid of the Devil Gene as well?" said Lars.

Jin pauses for a moment as if to think about something.

"We'll see about that," said Jin. "Right now, the only thing we should focus on is stopping them. That's what's important to me right now."

"We'll help you, Jin." said Alisa. "You're the only who is able to do this. Soon, the whole world will see you as a hero."

"Me? A hero? Now that's funny. I've done so much to this whole world, people will always hate me for it…just as much as I hate myself."

"Well, don't let that get in the way. We still have to keep a clear head here. This is our opportunity to bring peace back to this world and we may never get another one."

"Yes," Jin raises fist and says "It's either now or never!"

To Be Continued.