Hi there! My name's Sakura Kasugano! I'm a freshman at Tamagawa Minami High School. So, you're curious about my story, huh? A few months ago, I'd have told you that there wasn't much to share. I am only 15 years old, after all… The only things going on in my life were pretty mundane. Studying, baseball, making friends, hanging out at the mall… y'know… normal stuff, right? Lately though, my life has been anything but normal. I'm doing things I never thought I could. Taking steps I never thought I had the courage to take! And soon, I won't just be taking a step. I'll be making a leap! A leap toward a goal that I'm really passionate about! Yeah… Thinking about it makes me nervous… It's a big decision… one that had everyone screaming "Sakura, are you crazy?" All that doubt had me reconsidering at first, but… my mind is made up! You have to chase after your dreams, don't you? Otherwise, you'll never make them come true!
Oh, sorry… You probably have no clue what I'm rambling about… Well, how about I start at the beginning, okay? I'll tell you all about where this passion of mine came from! That day started out like any other. It was a pleasant, April afternoon. Kei (my best friend) and I were walking home from school, talking about something unimportant, I'm sure. That's when we noticed a huge crowd forming in the street, and that's when I first saw… him…
"Hey, Sakura… What's going on over there?"
I was lost in thought, staring up at the fluffy clouds when Kei got my attention. Geez, I shouldn't space out like that… I could accidently walk out into traffic if I keep that up… Anyway, what's she talking about? Something's "going on?" My friend had stopped walking and was staring down a side street on our left.
"That's a pretty big crowd. Is there some kind of event happening around here today? I didn't hear about anything."
Yeah, it is quite a crowd. For all these people to gather in the middle of the street like this… I wonder what the big deal is.
"Kei, you wanna check it out?"
"I… Maybe?... My father probably wouldn't want me to, though. He doesn't like it when I take detours, you know. Let's keep going, Sakura."
"Oh, it's fine, Kei! It'll only take a second, promise. We'll just see what all the commotion is for, and then we'll leave, 'kay? Here, take my hand. I'll push through the crowd for us!"
"S-Sakura! Wait! Stop pulling!"
Dragging Kei behind me, we make our way to the front of the pack. Everyone around us is cheering and clapping, but I can't see over the heads of all these adults. Aren't I supposed to be taller by now? Ugh, the woes of being a high school student… Fortunately, it takes only a few seconds of maneuvering for us to finally get a good look. And when I do? I'm captivated by what I see.
"Uh… This… looks like a street fight. We really shouldn't be here."
It definitely seems to be. In the middle of this swarm of people stand two men, fiercely staring the other down. Closest to us with his back turned is the first man. He's bald and is wearing white and black. He's also not looking too great… Rips in his clothes and short, heavy breaths… If this is a fight, I doubt he'll last much longer. I can't see his face from here, but he looks… angry? I guess I can't tell for sure, but he certainly isn't calm. Maybe it's because he's losing? It's probably difficult not to be mad when you're getting tossed around in front of all these spectators. I… feel a little bad for him, but I suppose someone has to lose in a fight. That's just how fights are. There's a winner and a loser.
"Sakura, let's get out of here… Sakura! Are you listening?"
His opponent is a younger man wearing almost all white. White gi, white headband, red gloves, and a black belt. Unlike the bald fighter, this guy is super calm. In fact, he doesn't even look like he's breaking a sweat! He's just… so composed. How does he manage to be so calm when he's in such a stressful situation? I… really wanna see how this ends… but I hear someone's voice halt my runaway train of thoughts.
"What's wrong with you? Are you stuck in a trance or something?"
"Ah! S-Sorry, Kei! What were you saying?"
*Sigh* "Unbelievable… I'm saying that we need to leave. We're only supposed to be here for a second, remember? That's what you said."
"But… I can't leave now. Not before I see who wins…"
"Sakura, why do care so much? We're already running late as it is. If I don't get home soon, I'll have to sit through a long lecture, do extra chores, probably get grounded… You wanna stay here and watch a couple of bums beat each other up? You're gonna risk us getting in trouble for this?
"Alright, Kei. You should go home, then. You're right, I don't want to make any problems for you."
"Thank you, I'm glad that… Wait, you're not coming with me?"
"No, Kei! I want to see what happens! Just walk the rest of the way without me, okay? I'll see you in class tomorrow."
"I… Alright… Just please be careful, got it? Don't stay around this crowd any longer than you need to."
"I'll be fine. See you later."
My friend looks back at me as she walks away. I know she's worried about me, but it's not a big deal. I mean, c'mon, we're in high school now! We're practically grown-ups. We can walk home by ourselves if we need to. And besides… I can't miss this.
"Oi! Enough pissin' around already! Stop takin' it easy on this kid and put him in the ground!"
The man next to me starts shouting and brings my attention back to the excitement. It was a good thing I looked over in time, too, because the bald fighter finally makes his move. With a crazed battle cry, he leaps into the air and, with his leg outstretched, he descends toward the fighter in white. For as tired as Baldy must be, his kick must be pretty strong. I don't know a lot about martial arts, but his form looks perfect. I bet he's practiced this same attack a million times, that's how confident he looks.
And then everyone in the crowd goes silent. A few of them gasp. It's easy to see why… Baldy's powerful, diving kick was stopped by the fighter in white. He simply held his forearm high, thrust it forward, and parried the attack. He made it look effortless, like he could do it in his sleep. If Baldy practiced that kick one million times, then this man must have defended against it two million times. Next, the fighter in white shoves Baldy backwards. Now, with plenty of space between them, the fighter in white readies himself. He holds his hands behind him, clasped together, and then… something weird starts happening, and the people start talking.
"What the hell? Baby, look! Are his hands glowing?"
"This can't be possible… I thought only martial arts masters could do that!"
"Is this guy for real? My god, I saw the video, but this something else!"
Wow… That lady isn't lying. His hands are glowing! Is this some part of fighting that I don't know about? I've never seen anything like this. But… what does it mean? I don't understand what-
"HADOKEN!"
The man in white cuts my thoughts short as he shoots a ball of blue flame (Uh… What?!) straight at his opponent. It travels so fast that Baldy barely has time to react, and it makes a direct hit. He's on the ground now, belly up, limp, utterly defeated. Somehow, his clothes didn't catch fire, though. That's good at least… The crowd stares on in awe, and I'm no exception.
"Damn… Never dreamed I'd see that in person."
"He actually won! Finally, someone teaches that hotheaded bastard a lesson! 'Bout time, too!"
"Get up, man! You've taken far worse than that before! Don't let this upstart get the best of you!"
Baldy doesn't get up, though. He's breathing, but the fight is clearly over. It takes my brain a few moments to process what I just saw… Suddenly, I feel the need for answers. I turn to an older man behind me.
"Uh, excuse me, sir. Do you know who that fighter is?"
"Hmm? The newcomer?... I know of him. Heard his name is Ryu. He uses the Ansatsuken martial arts, and I don't know much else. Wish I could tell you more, but he's not the talkative type, I'm afraid."
Ryu… That's a nice name… Simple, and powerful, just like the man himself… I want to learn more about him.
"If you don't mind me asking, sir, had you ever seen him fight before this? You seem like… you're familiar with this stuff."
"Not a problem, lass. Yeah, I'm something of a fan. Watching a good fight brings some excitement back into this dull life of mine… As for Ryu, nah… I'd seen him in videos, but never up close. Like I said, he's a newcomer, but he's been makin' waves all throughout the country lately. For him to take down Retsu… one of the strongest fighters in Japan… Kid's better than I thought he'd be."
Huh… He must be truly powerful, then… Well, duh! I mean, yeah, obviously he's strong! He chucked a blue fireball with his bare hands! (I can't get over how insane that is!) Of course he's crazy strong, but… One of the strongest fighters in Japan? That's… really something… I wonder if I could talk to him… Huh?! Where'd he go?! Did the old guy notice?
"Sir? Did you happen to see where Ryu went? I was hoping to ask him some questions!"
"Ah, shoulda said so. He walked away as soon as he knocked Retsu's pompous ass to the pavement… Probably fifteen minutes ago or so."
"W-What?! I've been standing here zoning out for that long? Grahhh! I'm such an airhead! There's no way I'll find him now…"
"Sorry, little lady. Nothin' I can help you with right now, but if you're so determined… I know one way to find him… eventually."
"You do?! Please, tell me! Do you have his address or phone number? Either one would do!"
"Heh heh. I bet there's no such thing."
"… What does that mean?"
"Word on the street is that he's a wanderer. Travels the country looking for his next challenger, living off the land wherever he goes. I'd be surprised if anyone managed to find his home, and more so if he even owns a cell phone."
"That's… kinda cool, if not a little odd… but how am I supposed to find him, then?"
"The World Warrior Tournament will be held at the start of August. It's a huge event for fighters like him. If you're willing to travel, I'm certain you'd cross paths there."
"Oh, that's perfect! I'll be out of school for the summer around then! Where is it being held at, sir? I could take a nice vacation and meet Ryu all on the same trip!"
"Well, that's where it gets tricky… It's a global event, y'see. Fighters meet up for their matches at dozens of different locations around the world. Least that's how it usually goes… You'll either need to find out where he's fighting and book a quick flight there, or…"
"…Or?"
"Well, I guess you could catch up to Ryu by entering the tournament yourself, heh. Match up against him, and you two meeting is all but guaranteed. Wouldn't advise you actually do that, though, lass. A dainty, little thing like you? I can also guarantee that you'd catch a beating should you challenge him. You saw what happened today with you own eyes… He's the real deal."
"…Me?... Fighting him? Heh heh… Y-Yeah… I'd have to be stupid to try that… right?"
And that was the single event that changed my life for good. Doesn't seem all that important, eh? Oh, but you have no idea! After seeing Ryu for the first time, I was transformed into a brand-new girl with lofty goals and a fiery ambition that took me by surprise! Others probably think I'm being weird. In fact, that's what most people actually said to me… I didn't let them bring me down, though! Inspiration can be born from the most unexpected of places, after all. And c'mon… Can you honestly watch Ryu fight and not be inspired? He's amazing! It makes total sense that he'd spur me on to reach for greater heights. I bet everyone else is just jealous of my unstoppable drive and focus. That's the only thing that makes sense!
Ah, I'm rambling again! Sorry, sorry! I'll stop my story here for now, but I'd love it if you kept reading! Next time, I'll talk all about my newfound purpose and the first steps I took on, what I hope will be, a lifelong journey of self-improvement! Anyway, take care! No matter what your goals in life are, I hope you remember to keep doing your best, okay?
Author's Notes:
I won't be following the Street Fighter timeline very strictly in this. Some events may take place out of order, some big events may not happen at all. I plan on taking lots of liberties in this regard. I take many elements from the "Sakura Ganbare!" manga, but again, not everything.
I'm not used to writing fight scenes, so don't expect too much from me there. I do plan on including some, but most might be retellings from Sakura's POV and just skimmed over. I hardly know anything about real martial arts, so I try to make references to the games instead. For things like "ki", I just made up a bunch of BS that sounded cool. I'm writing for fun, so don't expect real world logic or even for Street Fighter's "rules" to always apply here.
That's about it. I don't have a planned upload schedule or a finished outline, just a page of notes for ideas that I want to touch on. I'm not sure how long this fic will end up being, but as long as I'm having fun writing it, it'll keep on going. Thanks for checking this out, and I hope you stick around!