The Second Chance
After the previous tournament, The Mugen Tenshin Village was invaded by G Corporation, with Kazuya intending to take Kazuki's Devil Gene powers for himself. But even though the ninja clan, with the help of Kasumi, was able to force Kazuya to retreat, the blame for the attack falls solely on Kazuki. To them, the only reason the attack happened was because of his blood relation to the Mishima family. Therefore, Kazuki distanced himself from the village in silence, not talking to anyone other Hayate and Ayane. As the days go by, his despise toward the Mishimas begins to grow into full-blown hatred as he trains with furious intentions. He begins to blame Kazuya and Heihachi for the village turning on him and now wants them both destroyed. He also holds Jin responsible for the same thing due to his reputation but remembers his mother Kasumi telling him not to hate his father for reasons no one has told him yet. But his hatred for his grandfather and great-grandfather remains, so when the next King of Iron Fist Tournament was announced, Kazuki decided to enter the tournament without hesitation.
Ryu Hayabusa, master of the Hayabusa clan and longtime friend of the Mugen Tenshin Clan, sees a lot of potential in Kazuki but is concerned that his hatred is preventing him from reaching that. This concern has brought him to a discussion with Kazuki himself in the woods.
"Tell me something Kazuki; what is your real reason for entering the tournament?" said Hayabusa. "Trying to get accepted by the village? Or trying to destroy Kazuya and Heihachi?"
"At this point, I'm not so sure myself." said Kazuki. "I know the village hates me but now it seems like I hate them as well. I grew up in that village and now this is how they treat me? I feel I've been betrayed by them. How come they don't understand that I'm not anything like those Mishimas?"
"That's just your hatred going out of control. The village didn't betray you. They just don't know who Jin Kazama really is. Things would have been very different if they did."
"I do remember my mother telling me not to hate Jin but…" Kazuki shakes his head for a moment. "…how can I not hate him? What he did years ago is the reason why I'm suffering today. I just don't understand."
"Did you forget that Jin was also the one who saved your life?" said Hayabusa. "When your mother told him that you were missing, he sat out to find you along with her and the others. How can you not see that he's different from Kazuya and Heihachi? The way you and the entire world look at your father is the same way the village looks at you."
Kazuki looks down upon this realization, wondering if his situation truly isn't any different from Jin's.
"What's worse; you're entering the tournament driven by your hatred for Mishimas and yet, by doing so, you're becoming very much like the Mishimas yourself. What do you think the village thinks about that?"
Kazuki remains silent. The one thing he really doesn't want is to be seen the same way as the Mishimas. This also reminds him of what Kazuya told him in their first encounter about what their hatred can truly bring.
"Remember this, Kazuki; you can stare into the abyss as long as you want but what will you do when it stares back at you?" Hayabusa then vanishes.
Kazuki closes his eyes and thinks hard about his decision to enter the tournament. He knows that his intentions could make the village either proud or ashamed of him.
Finally, he opens his eyes and smiles, saying "When I enter that tournament, I'm going in as a ninja of the Mugen Tenshin Clan, not as a Mishima."
Day of the Tournament
Now is the day of the tournament. Some fighters from the previous tournament returns, along with newer fighters. By now, all of the fighters know that he's the son of Jin Kazama (who also enters the tournament) One particular fighter is a Chinese girl who is trained in kung-fu. An energetic girl wearing a blue Chinese dress and pigtails, she notices Kazuki as he enters the arena and approaches him.
"Hey, aren't you Kazuki?" she said. "Jin Kazama's son?"
Kazuki stand confused and a bit uncomfortable with question but still responds with "Yes, that's true."
"Alright! My name is Zhang." she then bows to Kazuki. "It's nice to meet you. This is my first time entering this tournament."
Kazuki bows in return, saying "Aren't you a little too young for a tournament like this?"
"Hey, I'm only 16!" said Zhang. "That's how old my mom was when she first entered these tournaments."
"Your mom competed in these tournaments too?"
"Yes, and she told me she was best friends with your dad. She said that even though he started that war a long time ago, she always believed that he was still a good person and never thought he was anything like Kazuya or Heihachi."
This once again contrasts to how Kazuki has viewed Jin over the years. He doesn't know how to respond to this.
"So you know, I was thinking, maybe we can be best friends too?" said Zhang. She holds out her hand and the two shake hands.
"Yeah…I guess so. Well…see you in the tournament, Zhang." says Kazuki as he quickly walks off.
"Be careful. We might have to fight each other so I hope you're ready." said Zhang.
Kazuki once again thinks about what he was just told. What has been consistently shown so far is that everybody who is close to Jin seems to imply that he's not like Kazuya or Heihachi. There has to be reasons for that and after the tournament is over, Kazuki plans to learn about what they are.
Hidden Japanese Village
In a hidden Japanese village, Kasumi sits on the branch of a tree and looks at the stars at the sky. With a smile on her face, she says "I trust what Ryu told me. If Kazuki really is a strong warrior, then I believe that he can win. But I hope he understands what Jin did. Remember my words, Kazuki. Please don't hate your father."
She begins to think back on what Jin told her about why he declared war on the world. During that time, Kasumi was forced to put her pursuit for Victor Donovan on hold until it was all over but like everyone else, she also wanted to see Jin stopped and punished for his actions. It's not until after his alleged "death" that she learned more about his real intentions behind it. Jin doesn't think that Kazuki would ever understand but Kasumi is very sure that he would and believes that this would bring the two closer.
Mishima Dojo
At the Mishima Dojo, Heihachi Mishima once again sits and meditates, thinking deeply about his decades long battle against those who possess the Devil Gene, starting with his wife Kazumi. Although he managed to kill her, he hasn't been as fortunate with Kazuya and Jin. He remembers each time when he first witnessed all of their Devil Forms and hopes that he doesn't experience the same thing with Kazuki.
"Merely killing Kazuki is not going to be enough." he says. "Perhaps launching him into space would be much better. Either way, I'll have to kill all three of them as soon as possible and then I can finally put an end to the Devil Gene."
To Be Continued.
