Martial Melodies

I woke up the next morning lying face up in my futon, confused as I felt a bit sore on my face.

'I swear I didn't move that much, did I accidentally slap myself in my sleep?' I continued to ponder as I turned my head to my side, not expecting to see an empty bed in my sight.

'Really, all that effort and complaining and she didn't even use it for the whole night. Now where even is she?' I asked myself, getting up and walking nearer to the bed to investigate further.

I found a note lying on the bedside table, which stated that Xiao Li had gone out early to deal with her master's business associates.

'At least she's responsible in that regard,' I thought to myself while performing my morning stretches, by the end of which I was fully awake and ready to go.

"Let's get started, shall we?" I spoke to myself in the bathroom mirror after having a wash and changing into my clothes.

I walked out to the front lobby of the hotel, finding the limousine as I had expected patiently waiting out front.

"Hello Master Bun, I'll guide you from here..." spoke the old white-haired driver that Mr. Tokugawa had sent over to pick me up.

I smiled in response and thanked the old man for his help. It seemed that he was surprised by my attitude and lack of arrogance for my strength, finding me easy to talk to.

'What do I have to be arrogant about anyway? I'm still far from reaching that height,' I continued to reflect, when the man finally broke the silence as we were drawing closer to the arena.

"Are you excited, sir, for your match?" the man asked in a very friendly tone of voice, obviously appreciating my presence.

"Haha, you could say that. It's gonna be one to remember."

"I wish you good luck then, sir."

I got out of the car, and found myself staring directly into a tiger's eyes as I turned.

"Master Orochi, I'm so glad that you made it!" I exclaimed while greeting the old man.

"You better not let me down, boy. We even brought in another Kaiou to make sure you're not all talk..." Master Orochi said, trying to spark my interest.

'Yeah, but I'm sure it isn't the Kaiou I want to face,' I thought to myself while thanking him for his effort.

"Don't thank me, boy. Thank Mr. Tokugawa for allowing you to conduct your match in his arena." I followed the old man into the underground arena, meeting Mr. Tokugawa in the process.

"Thank you, sir." I obliged out of respect for Master Orochi's words. However, I was only met with silence by the old man, who seemed surprisingly displeased with me for some reason.

"I've seen a lot of fighters enter the ring, boy..." the old man started his words, "but all of them had one thing in common. They understood the importance of what they were about to enter. Your face, however..." his voice continued to rise,

"...you treat it like a game!"

"Where's your respect for martial arts!"

It seemed even Master Orochi wasn't prepared for the short elder's outburst as he too was surprised by his words.

"You're pretty smart, Mr. Tokugawa," I responded to the continued interest of my future Karate master, who was finding the situation especially amusing.

"I didn't think anyone would be able to tell, but you did. I'm truly impressed..." I continued while placing my hands on his shoulders, now crouching down to meet his gaze.

"I'm truly sorry, Mr. Tokugawa, but it's something I have to do for my future." I asked for forgiveness from the old man, receiving no words in response.

"Don't worry, old man. I'll put on a show."

I continued to walk until I made my way to the fighting quarters that were used by contestants to warm up before the start of their match.

"Sir, your match is set to start in 10 minutes. Is there anything I can provide to help you prepare?" asked the same man who drove me here after entering my training room.

"Yes, actually, I'm glad that you asked..." I answered the man's question, my next words completely taking him by surprise...

"...would you happen to have a spare microphone lying around?"

[10 minutes later]

"Ahem, ahem," I coughed out, once again practicing my moves before my match, "Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti-Do!" receiving claps in return from the old assistant, who had remained in my room after delivering the microphone, too amazed by my training to leave.

"'Clap', 'Clap'..."

"Truly, sir, I believe that this is gonna be a fight to remember. Now let's go, it's time..."

I followed the man to the entrance of the arena, relishing every step there, too excited about what I had planned in store for today.

'It's gonna be so much fun!'

I entered the arena, feeling a rush of pure euphoria as I walked closer to the middle of the stage.

'I'm finally here. After so long, I'm finally here.'

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't even recognize the announcer's introductions, only catching its tail end...

"...Kaiou Jo!!! Fighters to the ready."

However, before I could begin what I had planned, the announcer stopped the match before it could even start.

"I'm sorry, sir, but you aren't allowed any 'weapons' in the arena," said the announcer while pointing to the microphone I had been hiding behind my back till then.

"Don't worry, I've received special permission from Mr. Tokugawa, and I'm sure my opponent won't mind..." I defended my actions, turning the question to my opponent.

"It's fine. None of his tricks are gonna work here," replied the gigantic man, words that I'm sure he would soon regret saying.

"Alright, fighters at the ready!"

"BEGIN!" the beat of a drum started our match.

Much to the displeasure of the audience, neither of us moved, finding the situation to be quite amusing for very different reasons.

"So kid," said my opponent in a taunt, "I'm curious, show me how you're gonna use it."

"Surprise me," spoke the man, with a crazed look in his eyes.

"Sure," I replied, even going so far as to turn my back to him while drawing distance between us.

I turned back around to face him, who appeared no different, except for raising his eyebrows in question of my weird behavior.

I stared into his eyes, then turned my gaze to the now silent and confused crowd, and lastly peered directly into the gaze of Kaiou Retsu.

'Even he's surprised,' I thought to myself, with a sly smile, bringing the microphone ever closer to my face.

"♫ Everybody is Kung-Fu fighting (hoo! Huh!) ♫"

"♫ Your mind becomes fast as lightning ♫"

Silence, complete silence.

From the crowd, from the many martial masters analyzing my every move, even from my opponent, who chose to charge forward in my direction, ready to end my show.

'Not today, buster,' I thought to myself while dodging his blows and again drawing distance between us.

I continued to sing, while wearining a traditional Chinese robe and performing some superficial 'Kung-Fu' moves with no substance.

"♫ Although the future is a little bit frightening (little bit frightening) ♫"

"♫ It's the book of your life that you're writing (life that you're writing) ♫"

It seemed as if the audience finally broke out of their shock, as they started singing along.

My opponent continued to grow increasingly frustrated with me, doing his best to catch me. Unfortunately for him, I was far too fast, and more importantly,...

I hadn't finished my song yet.

"♫ You are a natural (ooh) ♫"

"♫ Why is it so hard to see? (Yeah) ♫"

I continued messing with my opponent, starting to poke at him when he couldn't even so much as land a finger on me.

"♫ Maybe it's just because (ooh) ♫"

"♫ You keep on looking at me (huh!) ♫"

I sung my last sentence, disappearing directly in front of his eyes, failing in his attempt to catch me into a bear hug.

"♫ The journey's a lonely one (ooh) ♫"

"♫ So much more than we know (yeah) ♫"

I could tell he was growing tired of his attempts to catch me.

"♫ But sometimes you've got to go (ooh) ♫"

"♫ Go on and be your own hero ♫"

The man had finally made the correct decision, and stopped trying to chase me, instead waiting for me to finish my chorus.

"This is a fight, boy, not a circus act. You can't win by just running away!" It seemed I had accomplished half of my goal at least, completely enraging my opponent.

I didn't let his comments get to me; however, I did instantly begin singing in a much deeper tone of voice, catching the audience clearly in shock once again.

"♫ Cause everybody is kung fu fighting ♫"

"♫ Your mind becomes fast as lightning ♫"

I sang alone, no longer having my background singers for support, as I made my way closer to my opponent, the first time since the start of our match.

"♫ Although the future is a little bit frightening (little bit frightening) ♫"

'It seems I still have some support at least,' I thought to myself while hearing a single girl's voice repeat after me as I entered my fellow Kaiou's range.

"♫ It's the book of your life that you're writing ♫"

I ended both my song and my opponent's will to live as I knocked him unconscious with a single punch to the head, much like how Alai Jr. would have done in the future.

Applause, resounding applause rang out throughout the underground arena, perhaps more so than any fight before.

After taking a bow in the middle of the arena, I looked directly into the stands, into the eyes of one person in particular.

A fellow 'Kung-Fu fighter'.

'If looks could kill.'