Disclaimer: See previous chapters

Chap. 56

"Sakura?"

That was the only thing Chun-Li managed to get out before said woman lunged at her with her weapon. Hopping back, Chun-Li found her back against a wall and Sakura pressed on, stabbing her sword forward. Quickly, the Chinese immortal spun away and the sword stabbed the wall instead. Reaching back once again, Chun Li now pulled out her sword and leveled it in a defensive pose, just as Sakura slowly turned to her, clad in a dark jumpsuit with armored gauntlets on her arms. Her white headband was absent, letting her hair drift low about her eyes, upon which Chun-Li took particular notice of.

'Her eyes… They're just like his…'

Indeed, the eyes that gazed back at her were tinted in purple-red and void of emotion and feeling, save for bloodlust. Even though she had seen this before in Fei Long, it was still difficult to believe that the person staring back at her was the same as the person she had known before.

Known and befriended…

Southeast Asia, 1893

"I must say, it's not often that I meet other women immortals."

"Me neither. At least, none that didn't want to take my head."

"I know what you mean."

The two immortals happened upon each other on a boat travelling toward Thailand. Sensing each other almost immediately after departure, Chun-Li thought to simply keep her distance; no reason to antagonize a situation, especially in such enclosed spaces. So it was a bit of a surprise when the Japanese woman boldly approached her with a smile and friendly demeanor, and before she knew it, they were engaged in friendly conversation.

"So where are you heading?"

The younger woman shrugged, "Nowhere, really. Right now, I'm just wandering about and taking in the world."

"Sounds like an old friend of mine." Chun-Li found herself smiling briefly in remembrance.

"How about you?" Sakura returned. "On holiday?"

"Business, I'm afraid. I haven't been on…holiday since…." Her eyes narrowed into a light frown in thought and she finally finished. "Longer than I can remember, it seems."

Sakura shook her head. "That's way too long then. Honestly, for…people in our position, taking it easy should be well….easy. Except for the whole…" Her hand waved about, "…well, you know."

Yeah, she knew. "I think that alone makes it a challenge."

"Hey, that's what we live for; a challenge right?" Sakura beamed. Her expression fell a bit. "At least, so I've been taught."

"By Ryu, right?"

The younger immortal blinked in surprise. "How-?"

With a low chuckle, the Chinese immortal pointed at Sakura's forehead, or rather, the white headband tied around it. As Sakura blushed in realization, Chun-Li continued. "And your choice of words; 'Living for a challenge'; that sounds too much like him."

"Hehe, I guess so."

"How is he nowadays?" Chun-Li asked. "Still wandering about?"

Sakura gave another shrug. "Probably. I haven't seen him in some time."

Chun-Li simply gave a silent nod. With the deduction skills she had been constantly learning, she could tell by Sakura's tone that something must have happened between her and Ryu that didn't go too well that caused them to part ways. During her time with Ryu, he never made mention of a student, so either Ryu simply never mentioned her or this must have been a later development.

None of her business in either case

The two continued talking for quite some time, mostly about their travels and some of the things they had done. It felt a little odd for Chun-Li to speak freely to another person like this, immortal or not. It wasn't to say she wasn't social or such. On the contrary, she was quite friendly to many. But she was usually a bit more guarded than this, and with Sakura being an immortal, it should have been more so. But she saw no hint of any ulterior motives. As far as she saw, the Japanese immortal was just was just as she seemed; a cheerful young woman travelling the world. An immortal, yes, but that was just a side-note as far as this meeting went.

Afterward…

"I guess this is where we part ways." With a smile, the young immortal gave Chun-Li a short bow. "It was nice meeting you, Chun-Li-san."

Returning both smile and gesture, Chun-Li replied. "Same here. Perhaps we'll meet again."

"That would be nice; especially if we can go away on holiday." Sakura grinned.

"Perhaps."

'This definitely isn't holiday' the Chinese immortal mused darkly as the fight continued…

Japan

With a solemn quiet, Ken strode up the weathered, stone-hewn steps that lead to the ancient dojo dwelling. 'How long has it been…since I was here last?' Of course, if he had to ask himself that question, then he knew it must have been that long a while. Long before, he would have stopped by to visit, mostly to see Ryu, as this was the closest place he had to a home, even after all this time. But more often than not, Ryu wasn't here and Ken generally wouldn't stay long.

The only real time he made it a point to return was when he had mastered and perfected a new technique, which was the reason for his visit now. It was a way to pay homage to the man who had taken him in and helped him find his path in life. It wouldn't have mattered if Ken was immortal or not; he knew he owed the old master thanks and this was his memorial to him.

As he turned off the path and into the woodland area, he felt an immortal presence close by. He would have simply believed it to be Ryu, except the ki he was sensing was definitely not of his age-old friend's. Although strong, Ryu's ki wasn't nearly as powerful as this; not to mention this particular power was of the darkest form, one he was quite familiar with.

Satsui No Hado…

His hand on the hilt of his sword, Ken continued on steadily toward the grave. His steps were now cautious while his eyes searched about and his senses were on high alert in anticipation of attack. But it wasn't until he reached the grave that he stopped, partially out of confusion by what he saw.

"What are you doing here, demon?"

Kneeling before the stone marker was Akuma. His back was to Ken and the beads that were normally around his neck were now settled on the ground at his left, with his sheathed blade at his right. His head didn't even turn to regard Ken as he gruffly responded.

"I see my brother as I please, whelp."

"Even though you were the one who murdered him?" Ken sneered.

"We were immortals, and rivals. This was the only conclusion. In the end, there can be only one!" The head of the demonic immortal finally turned to regard him as he sneered back. "To call it murder shows how weak you are. "

Despite the truth in his initial words, Ken didn't back down. "And you think that justifies what you did?"

Akuma snorted. "Justice? What a fool concept. Such have no bearing on greater beings."

"Greater?" At this, Ken allowed a grin, albeit grim. "And here I thought my ego was huge."

"You still think you're one on them, even after all this time." Rising up from the ground, Akuma began to replace the beads back around his neck, all the while keeping his back to Ken. "At least Ryu is on the path of transcendence. You will never understand what it is to have real power, to have the blood that flows through your veins calling out to you. Satsui No Hado is beyond you!"

For a moment, Ken was silent. He had oftentimes wondered why, despite his skills, he never had to deal with the Satsui No Hado the same as with Ryu. A time ago, he thought there was something wrong with himself, that perhaps he wasn't as strong as long time rival. But as time passed and his strength grew, the reason, if there was any, no longer mattered.

"I don't need such power; and since you brought it up, neither does Ryu."

"Is that what you think? Then prove it now!"

A burst of his crimson ki flared around Akuma as he slowly began to turn toward Ken. His gaze burned as his eyes scanned over the blond immortal. Ken began to bend low, the grip on his sword tightening as he waited for Akuma to reach for his own. Even though they were on holy ground, Ken didn't want to take any chances with this guy. But the demon immortal left the blade right where it was on the ground.

"I won't waste my blade on you, but you are one of his cubs. Maybe you have something to offer."

Ken's eyes widened, but only for a fraction of a moment. With a mental nod of understanding, Ken lowered his grip and unattached his sword and sheath from his side. Gently placing it on the floor, Ken then lifted his fists up in fighting stance.

"Let's go, demon."

Vega seethed…

It was something that diminished his beautiful face, but it could not be helped. It had been this way ever since his fight with Chun-Li and the loss of his hand. He had underestimated his opponent, more than once, and it had cost him dearly. But that was only the beginning of his frustrations. After he had healed and recovered, he immediately wanted revenge. But the master had ordered that Chun-Li be left alone, as he now had a use for her.

Angering him further…

Despite that, however, Vega would comply. There were many things that he was and stupid was not one of them. He knew that disregarding an order from the master would result in a cruel and promisingly painful death, even for an immortal. So he would wait, wait until that either that order is no longer in effect or if Miss Li ever crossed his path again. Because the first chance he get, he would have retribution, with her blood. Lifting up his arm, he gazed at the place where his hand was no longer and grinned sickeningly.

His new 'friend' would see to that

Narrowly, Chun-Li evaded another one of Sakura's slashes. Her opponent was fast, in some moments, inhumanly so. Not as fast as Chun-Li, but dangerously enough to where she had to be really careful. Of course, she recognized the techniques Sakura employed, as she had trained with Ryu as well. But that, along with her experience, were her only advantages, and the first wasn't much of one for two reasons.

For one, Chun-Li trained with Ryu only enough to learn how to project her chi, whereas Sakura was trained in the Anasatsuken style entirely. Of course, that wasn't too much of a problem, as she has had some experience seeing the techniques from her spars with Ryu, except for the second reason. While Sakura had the same techniques, her form of employing them was quite different; a variant style likely to make up for her lack of physique. That made her somewhat unpredictable and very much dangerous.

And this wasn't a sparring match…

Again, Sakura lunged in attack, her blade swiping overhead. With the alley wall behind her, Chun-Li had no choice but to block this time. Blades met with a clash, but they didn't lock because Chun-Li suddenly stepped forward and swiftly spun around Sakura, their backs meeting for a moment. Their positions reversed, Chun-Li was able to take a moment of thought. She had to find a way to apprehend Sakura, which meant not killing her. Now that it was clear that there was a Shadowloo connection, she had to subdue her and find out what she knew about, if she knew anything at all.

And that was the hard part; subduing her…

The moment passed and Sakura came in to attack once again, whirling about in attack. Chun-Li deflected the attack and stepped back, and Sakura pressed on, attacking with rapid, yet forceful slashes. 'This has to stop' Chun-Li thought, realizing that this couldn't keep up any longer. Already, Sakura was beginning to slip around her moves. At that rate, she would be vulnerable and very much dead.

Skipping back once again, Chun-Li suddenly somersaulted forward with a kick diving down sharply from the air with her arms spread out. It was a risk as she was momentarily open, but seeing that Sakura was more of a grounded fighter, it would be advantageous to attack from the air. And true enough, the speed and angle of her Hienshu (Flying Swallow Kick) caught Sakura off-guard, catching her in the midsection and knocking her back, stunning her briefly.

'Now! Hyakuretsu Kyaku! (Hundred Rending Legs!)'

The first technique she had ever developed and honed, Chun-Li stepped forward, her left leg lashing out rapidly in lightning-fast blurs, riddling Sakura's body with a barrage of kicks that soon sent her to the floor. Ceasing her attack, Chun-Li calmly settled back into stance, grateful that she was able to subdue Sakura without having to resort to beheading her. So it was to her surprise that Sakura rose back up to her feet simply, as though the kicks had done nothing to her, even though the damage of the Japanese immortal was clear.

"That was quite a brilliant show, Ms. Xiang."

Her eyes widened as she immediately sensed the presence of a second immortal. Her shock came, not only the fact that the newcomer managed to sneak up on her undetected, but also from the dread chi she was sensing now that seemed to suddenly engulf the whole area. Turning about, she saw a man hovering in the air with his arms folded. His attire was that of a red military suit with metal shoulder pads, with much of it covered by a dark purple cape, and boots with the front of them being encased in the same metal. A cap topped his head, with a face that held a grin Chu-Li recognized as malevolent.

"You're… You're Bison, aren't you?!"

"Master Bison." he replied, slowly circling around her in the air. "You've been searching for me for a long time Miss Xiang, whereas I have been watching you the whole time."

Her eyes narrowing, Chun-Li slowly began to lower her body, ready to spring into attack. But the grin on hovering figure's face deepened upon notice. "Don't bother. Even you should realize that your feeble strength is paltry compared to my Psycho Power."

'Psycho Power…?' That was enough to cause Chun-Li to halt in her attack. And even though she didn't want to admit to it, the power this malevolent immortal was emitting was greater than anything she had ever felt before.

"You only have the honor to grace my presence because I want you to deliver a message." He finally lowered to the ground beside Sakura, who had turned to M. Bison with her hand up in salute. "Tell Ryu that if he wants this…lovely lady back, he will have to find me. I'll let you know where to look once you've found him."

'Ryu?' Valiantly, the Chinese immortal managed to keep the look of surprise off her face as well as put on hold the various questions that were running through her head. But she wasn't completely silent and managed one question.

"Why me?"

"Because I know you will do everything in your power to find him, just so that you could have a shot at coming after me. And…I want him to suffer a little more." Unimaginably, the grin on Bison's face widened further, becoming more sinister. "Yes. That's what I really want."

The wind whipped up suddenly and Chun-Li covered her face as a helicopter came up over the alley. Wrapping an arm around Sakura's waist, M. Bison slowly floated up toward the copter, looking down at Chun-Li all the while she glared up.

"I'll be counting on you, Detective."