Disclaimer: See previous chapters
(AN: Sorry for the wait. I've been pretty busy and my thinking cap ran out of batteries.)
Chap. 44
Darkness...
That was all that seemed to surround him. The void...emptiness...shadow...no trace of light... It swirled and spiraled around him, into him almost. And within it, there were voices, sounds, lessons from long ago.
Beware...of the 'evil intent'... Satsui No Hado...
The voices continued to speak to him, warping around him in shadow.
The true warrior...enters the arena...with all his powers...at the ready...
The sounds continued to flood his ears, paralyzing him as the darkness spiraled faster...
Fight with your soul...Ryu... Ryu...Ryu-sensei..."
His eyes opened with a start, seeing the semi-worried face of Sakura as she shook him awake. 'Never knew I could sleep so hard' he mused as he blinked; taking in the surroundings of the train car they were in. Relieved that he was finally awake, Sakura motioned toward the window.
"We're here."
Turning around, the elder immortal took in the view of the city of Moscow.
As the city came closer, Ryu's mind began to backtrack.
'Has it been so long?'
Russia, 1662
The footsteps of the lone immortal trailed through the snowy forest deep within the Russian territory. He had traveled through the immense country for almost three weeks now and was continually amazed at how big a country Russia is. As usual, he had no set direction or destination and simply wandered through the chilly terrain, training all the while.
Grrooooaaaaahhhhh!
Ryu halted in his tracks, hearing a loud roar echo throughout the woodland. 'A bear...' Ryu knew that sound well enough. Even though he was immortal, he didn't want to take any chances. He turned to head in a direction away from the roar when he heard another one echo out from the same direction.
"Rhaaahhhh!"
That was not a bear...
Stopping again, Ryu turned toward the direction of the sound, which was human, coming from the same direction as the bear's roar. 'Someone might be in danger' he thought as he heard more loud roars and snarls. Moving quickly, Ryu dashed toward the sounds of both human and animal. He soon reached a spot where the trees began to clear and ahead of him, two figures could be seen. He recognized the animal, a large brown bear. But it didn't seem like the other figure was moving away. As Ryu closed in, he soon felt why.
Immortal...
The man facing the bear turned in his direction and it was then that the animal lunged at him. Ryu watched as the bear brought down the figure and slammed him onto the ground. On impulse, Ryu rushed forward to help the stranger, only to be stopped when the bear was suddenly catapulted into the air and hurled by the stranger. Ryu blinked as the immortal rose up from the ground; a large man with an equally massive physique. Scars lined about his body, but only a few of them healed, meaning that the rest were from before this person became an immortal.
Grrrroooohhhhhh!
Looking forward, the bear was back on its feet and bellowing at the two. Reaching to his side, Ryu grabbed hold of the sheath, only to have the larger man place a hand in front of him and ward him back. Though Ryu's Russian was in need of refinement, he understood what the man said.
("I'll handle him.")
The bear bellowed again and surprisingly, the large man roared back with equal ferocity. Man and beast approached one another in a fury of savagery and grappled. Ryu could only watch in amazement. He had never seen such sheer physical strength in a person before. Immortal or not, this guy was taking on one of nature's most powerful beasts, with only his bare hands.
And winning...
Sliding back against the dirt and snow, the bear bellowed again, but could not stop the massive immortal from pushing it back. A large grin etched over the man's face and he suddenly lunged downward, sliding around the side and back of the beast and wrapping his arms around its body. With a loud roar, the immortal then heaved backward, taking the bear into the air and releasing it in mid-air, tossing the animal once again in a German Suplex.
Whhuuuummmmpppp!
The animal landed hard on the ground and the Russian immortal rose up as well, facing it. The bear gave a low growl, but instead of attacking, it turned and walked away. The immortal, seeing that the bear was done fighting, waved at it.
("I guess that's enough for today. We'll train again tomorrow.")
Ryu was still in shock at the display, but his mind registered the movements and display of the immortal. 'Wrestling style... Formidable size and strength, with a technique and form that utilizes it to the highest degree.
("Are you okay, stranger?")
Realizing that the massive immortal was speaking to him, Ryu replied in the man's language. ("I have never seen anything like that. And to face such a creature.)
"Oh, that was nothing." he grinned. "Just playing with one of the little ones."
Ryu blinked. 'Little ones?'
"So, what brings you out here?"
"I have never been here, so I decided to come." Ryu answered as best as he could.
The big man folded his arms. "A traveler, eh? Well then, allow me to offer you a place to stay. It isn't often that I have an audience in my training."
"I do not wish to impose." Ryu replied automatically.
"Nonsense. I have plenty of room." The man then smiled. "And it is always good to meet new friends."
Not for the first time was Ryu surprised by this man. In most cases, immortals were wary around one another, especially when meeting for the first time. Without any clue as to their intentions, an immortal could very easily wind up losing their head in a trap. But this man was open and friendly, without any show that he was worried about Ryu (obviously due to the fact that he was huge). Ryu too, sensed no ill intent upon this man, and the Japanese immortal trusted his instincts. His caution remained, but he decided to take the stranger's offer at face value.
"I accept your offer then." Ryu bowed. "I am Ryu of the Hoshi clan."
"Zangief, known to all as The Red Cyclone of Mother Russia."
The Red Cyclone... Called such due to his whirling attacks, his spiraling throws, and in particular, his famous Spinning Piledriver. He had seen it only once, but once was enough. To imagine a man of his size could spiral in the air with his opponent upside-down in his grasp and then slamming down to the ground with the force of an earthquake. Ryu even took in a few lessons from him in terms of strength development. But he had not seen Zangief in quite some time, nor had he come into Moscow due to political changes. As he gazed out into the city, he soon remembered why he was returning.
'Perhaps too long...'
San Francisco, USA
"I win again!"
"That's it. I'm done."
Dropping the controller, Ken sighed as Mel grinned at his perhaps twentieth video-game victory. 'Game must be rigged' he mused as his head slumped back against the couch. He thought himself an okay game player, but this was just too much. Perhaps he should take a break and go through some training. Rising up, he only turned part-way before a thought entered into his mind. He turned back to the youth, who was about to continue playing his game.
"Hey, Mel. Come with me for a moment."
Setting the game on pause, Mel followed his adoptive father out into the backyard and toward the small dojo training area. Ken soon stopped in the middle of the room and turn around just as Mel came up behind him.
"How would like to learn how to fight like I do?"
"Really?" Mel's eyes became wide with excitement. "Can I? Can I really?"
"Hold on there." As much as he liked the boy's enthusiasm, he had to let him know that this wasn't all fun and games. "I want you to listen for a moment. This is a serious thing, okay?"
Mel settled down a mite. "Oh. Okay."
"Okay." He bent down in front of Mel and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Now, what I'm going to teach you will be good for you to learn in case you or your mom is ever in trouble. But I want you to promise that until I say so, you will never use it outside of this dojo."
"O...Okay."
Rising up, Ken continued to keep eye contact with him and asked. "Now, do you still want to learn martial arts?"
Mel was silent for a moment and Ken smiled inwardly. He was thinking about it. That was a good sign, showing that Mel was indeed taking it seriously. And this was further shown when the boy looked up at him with a serious expression and replied.
"Yes."
"If you want to learn, say 'hai, sensei.' It means, 'yes, teacher'."
"Ah..." the boy smiled before straightening his posture in a soldier-like fashion."Hai, sensei."
Ken couldn't help but smile back...
Ryu and Sakura soon reached the home that was Zangief. Not so much as home as in mansion, as it loomed before them almost like a palace. 'And I thought Ken's house was big.' Ringing the bell, they spoke to the butler, who in turn, allowed them inside. They walked through the halls of the mansion, all the while passing by numerous rewards and trophies from various events, a large part of them being from the wrestling circuit. Considering the strength that the Russian immortal possessed, it was no surprise.
The group finally reached the training hall, where there was a group of large men working out and training. Ryu smiled inwardly, appreciating the efforts that were put into the training of one's body and skill. Sakura moved on ahead, heading toward a medium wrestling ring. Just as she did, a large body flew through the air and landed heavily on the mat, causing the entire ring to rattle. Sakura shook her head upon looking at the floored man before a loud cry came from the person who threw him.
"Sakura!"
Literally leaping out of the ring was a tall blond-haired young woman with a fairly muscular psyche and sky-blue uniform. Upon touching the floor, she quickly wrapped her arms around the immortal and practically crushing her in an embrace. Not for the first time was Sakura glad that she was an immortal.
"Nice to...see...you...Mika..."
"It's been so long!"
Moscow, 1999
The crowd was so loud that Sakura could barely hear herself think. It was the opening night for Moscow's Slam Fighters tournament and the crowds were jam-packed. When Sakura arrived in Moscow a few days ago, she had stumbled across the notice of the said battle tournament that was taking place in the nearby stadium. Curious about the matches, Sakura decided to check it out. She hadn't expected for there to be such a great crowd to attend as well. At the very least, she was able to get a good seat near ringside. And she couldn't deny the electricity in the air as the combatants went head-to-head.
"Come on. What kind of a pin was that?"
Through the noise, Sakura's attention was caught by the loud shouts of young girl seated just in front of her. The girl, roughly 14 to 15 years of age, had commented on every match that had taken place throughout the night. Some were compliments on some moves while others were criticisms. At first, Sakura dismissed it as the ranting of a child, but the girl seemed to be correct the details of the matches, making it clear that she knew what she was talking about.
"That did look a little awkward." Sakura muttered.
The girl turned for a moment to look at her. "Tell me about it." Looking back to the ring, she pointed. "You have to hook the leg tighter than that, otherwise your opponent could kick out."
"You seem to know your stuff..." Sakura smiled.
"R. Mika." The girl turned back again, this time with a grin. "And yeah. Poppa is going to teach me everything he knows."
"R. Mika?"
"R for Rainbow. It's going to be my in-ring name when I get old enough."
Is your dad competing in the matches too?
"Nope." Her grin then grew wider. "He's the reigning champion! Everyone is competing to have a shot at the title with him." She then turned around, hearing a new theme music play. "Here he comes now!"
Sakura looked up at the ring, all the while loud cheers thundered throughout the arena. From behind a curtain in the far end of the arena came a large, muscular man, his body draped in a red cloak. Upon entering the ring and facing his opponent, he threw the cloak off, revealing his heavily scarred body. He then pointed at the crowd, causing them to cheer more.
"Poppa! Poppa! Poppa!"
However, Sakura found herself in stunned silence, her eyes staying on the towering man. She felt it the moment he entered the ring. 'He's an immortal? Then how...?' Her eyes drifted down to the cheering girl in front of her and understood that she must have been adopted. It was the only answer to it anyway. Looking back up, she saw the big man's eyes had stopped on her briefly and Sakura was at a bit of a loss as to what to do at the moment. But upon looking at R. Mika, she simply gave the man a thumbs-up and a smile.
'Can't go worrying about every immortal around, can I?' She then looked down at the girl before her, literally jumping all over the place.
'Not with one that has a kid like her.'
Ryu finally made it over to Sakura after she had been released from Mika's death-grip. Mika looked up at the man while Sakura introduced him, albeit while still gaining her breath.
"This is...Ryu, my...sensei and friend."
At the sound of the name, Mika blinked. "The same Ryu that taught Poppa?"
Ryu smiled a bit, lending his hand out to shake. "Actually, we taught each..."
But in an instant, Ryu was caught up in the same crushing hug Sakura was in. And despite being larger that Sakura, the young woman was still crushing the life out of him.
"I'm so glad to meet you!"
"Sure..." Ryu breathed once she let him go.
"You taught the Red Cyclone?" Sakura asked.
"I only gave him a lesson in the use of ki." Ryu answered. "In return, he showed me how to maintain a peak physical condition."
"Did you ever face the bears with him?"
Ryu quickly waved his hands. "No, no! I...wasn't ready for that yet. That was unique to Zangief alone."
"Yes...It was..." The low tone in her voice was obvious. "So you've come to pay your respects then?"
The two immortals nodded solemnly. "Yes."
Mika nodded in return and her body seemed to slump; quite different from the energetic woman from before. "I knew that one day, something like this would happen. I mean, he always told me that something like this could happen. I just...never thought...never believed...it would happen to him..."
Sakura looked on as she watched her friend try to hold herself from breaking down. Moved with pity, she quietly walked up to Mika and wrapped her arms around her. The young woman returned the hug, allowing for fresh tears to come down her face. Sakura just held her gently, knowing full well of the pain she was going through.
The loss of a parent...
The two women soon parted from each other and after wiping her eyes, Mika smiled, returning to her previous cheery attitude.
"So Sakura let me show you one of my new moves."
Sakura was unable to answer as she was dragged toward the wrestling ring, leaving Ryu behind to watch them. Like Sakura and Mika, he knew the pain of loss. It would take time to deal with it, but the pain would heal. However, Ryu was in wonder about something. Zangief was a powerful man and an able swordsman (although he didn't show it often). To defeat an immortal like him would require great power and skill. Not that it was impossible to beat him, but it would take a strong immortal to beat him.
Satsui No Hado...
And suddenly, Ryu felt his nightmare return...
Island, Unknown
The cave was dark, aside from a few sparse candles that were lit up around him. No matter. Light wasn't necessary anyway. 'Mind and body as one...' were his thoughts as he sat cross-legged in the cave, motionless aside for his slow breathing. So far, he had done fairly well. The last couple of kills he had were satisfactory to say the least. Two of them especially had endowed him with their gifts of speed and strength. But it wasn't their powers that pleased him as much as the fights themselves. They had given him a worthy challenge in their final moments and he was pleased that he had a chance to see his techniques improve further.
After all, what good is a kill if it's easy?
He continued to remain still, his aura blanketing around him in a crimson mist. His equally red hair swayed with the energy, giving them the appearance of fire. His katana lay beside him, sheathed in it place and awaiting its next victims from its master. And soon enough, Akuma thought, he would go out into the world again, to grow stronger and more powerful. It was the time of the Gathering and he wanted to be ready. Those that had survived up to this time had to be the most powerful of immortals. It was up to him to challenge these warriors and acclaim to victory. He would be the last... He would be the one...
His eyes opened...