(Untitled)
It was a peaceful day on Gokuentou. The monsoon season had come and gone, and now it was just pleasantly brisk out; a refreshing breeze rippled the blades of grass over the hillside. The shattered remains of a robot death squad littered the canyon floor, as Mai handled taking the larger pieces to the scrap pile, and little Amy- "NO
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The real difficulty wasn't in finding the place, she realized. It was in actually finding someone who'd take her there. Most of the men with any way of getting there absolutely refused to get too close to that island. It was as if they thought the place was haunted, or a demon lived there or something. Not even pleading and puppy eyes helped her case.
Finally, after hours of begging around bars, she found someone who was heading near the place. He refused to actually take her to the island, but if she wanted to swim from his boat to the hell-place, she was free to try. And so, hours later, the island of Goukentou found a schoolgirl walking onto the shore. She shakes her head to scatter the water out, and tugs her (dry) jeans and shirt out of the trash bag she'd brought along. It wouldn't do to meet Akuma in her underwear, after all. And, once she was dressed, there's only one thing to do.
...Explore until she finds signs of life.
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Of course, if she did go with the seaward shore (a more likely choice), she could cut through the rice paddy instead of the little woodland. Great idea, huh? Because who wouldn't want to be chest-deep in soggy mud when they're trying to hunt down a legend.
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She frowns, eying the slope, and sighs. There wasn't much choice there. Master Ryu wouldn't just hang around, whining about having a slope to climb. So, with a determined look in her eyes, the schoolgirl fighter steps up to the challenge and starts to scale the cliff. It's trickier than she'd thought, the cliff is nothing like the small climbing walls back home. But, after what seems like forever, Sakura manages to match the challenge and flops over the edge, panting slightly.
"...Well. That's one challenge down."
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From the mountain dominating the entire north of the island, the land made a gradual, sweeping curve down the rocky slope she found herself upon, and down to a desolate canyon. There was something... wrong about that place, even aside from all the little rounded thingees (And some shiny bits) littering the place... but then, one could say so about the entire island; this was just more so than the rest.
At the head of the valley, a classically Japanese dwelling stood, albeit a bit the worse for wear, if the holes blown in roof and wall were any indication. Apparently some tarpaulins were tacked up over the insides of the holes to keep the breezes out, but that only does so much. A large and richly diverse garden occupied a prominent spot to the side, and past them both, a wooded stretch obscured most of the beach behind from view.
Further south, a grassy hillside aesthetically rose between wood and ridge, sliding down again to a sparkling stream that flowed down towards a reasonably well-tended rice paddy nestled right between the south edge of the woods and the beginnings of the crag which served as Gokuentou's southern hook.
There was a kind of calm to the island, almost seeming as a counter to the dark echo one couldn't quite see in every stone and speck of the place... except, of course, for the eye-searing bonfire that was blazing merrily away on that crag to the south.
That kinda spoiled the mood, just a tad.
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Deciding she'd rested enough, the schoolgirl sighs and stands. The island was bigger than she'd thought, but probably only a few miles long. It wouldn't take that long to cross it, the terrain would be the main issue there. "All right!" She claps her hands to her cheeks, grinning broadly, and starts to run towards the bonfire. It should take her less than an hour to get over there, and the sooner she finds Akuma, the sooner her training begins. The mere thought of it is enough to reenergize her from that swim and the climb from earlier.
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Mai had felt the weird little girl's ki awhile ago, of course, but figured she was another punk fighter come to take a poke at anyone she could find. Eyeroll. (Her opinions on wannabe fighters had taken a sharp nosedive in the time she'd spent here, especially considering how many tried to take her or Amy as hostage when they began to realize how outclassed they were. In fact, she'd begun taking on guys even before Akuma did, just so they'd quit underestimating her like that!)
Having sped things up a teensy bit to finish before the newbie reached her, Mai had a firm grip on her child's hand as they walked down the slope to face down the intruder. "Well? Anything to say for yourself, before we start?"
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She tilts her head curiously at Mai, giving the kid a half-second examination. Students of Akuma? Guests? Sakura doesn't figure the demon to be a family man, not at all. "I'm, uh. Looking for Akuma. Did he come back from his trip yet?"
She figures that, on an island this small, it wouldn't be hard to keep track of everyone.
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She gives off an annoyed huff now, though. "Of course you are. You're trying to build up a reputation, or to get revenge, or get him to join somebody's private army, or to demand that he train you because nobody else can, or whatever today's reason is. Honestly, what makes you special?"
A hand was on her hip, as she looked annoyed at the girl.
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She crosses her arms and scowls right back. "I dunno. Maybe the fact that he said he'd give me a few pointers." She drops her arms to her sides and huffs angrily. "If he ain't here, though, there's really no point in me sticking around. I'll just try somewhere else." 'Cause, really. Why the hell would he live with some annoying old lady like that?
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She blinked, and frowned a little. "Wait, what?" She actually got invited? You know, if Akuma weren't so completely ignorant about females, she'd start to get jealous about all these girls he offers to train. All TWO of them, but still.
Still, she does start to soften a little- not too much, because it might be a trap, but a little. "Sorry, I thought you were like the rest. Want some tea?"
Amy, meanwhile, has been staring at the strange person solemnly, with her thumb in her mouth. Finally she takes it out, only to point at the new girl and stridently declare, "Issa Ryu!"
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"Yeah, why else would I end up swimming here? And then climbing a cliff? That's not exactly my idea of a leisurely stroll, ya know." She turns back around, though, and she doesn't look particularly irritated anymore. "But, some tea sounds..."
She trails off, staring at Amy after she speaks. After a moment, she grins and adjusts her headband. "Gee, y'really think so?" Well, Amy's just made her day. Maybe the old lady ain't so bad if she can raise a kid like that.
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"Foooooor the same reasons as everybody else who comes here? The last time someone had an invitation that I can think of... well, it was me." She's managed to forget the disappearing Muay Thai girl completely, it looks like.
"Let's go to the house, okay? You can tell me what happened and I can fill you in on the situation here." Mai smiles a little. Of course, that's where the tea is, too.
Amy nods firmly as she toddles along with her mama, one hand still clasped to keep her upright. "Ryu, ryu, ryu, reeeoooo..." She singsonged, swinging her free arm enthusiastically. Once she gets a thought in her head, it' almost impossible to make her let go of it.
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"You'd think that they'd quit coming here. Seems like Akuma's always on the move." She shrugs, heading over to walk alongside Mai, letting the action show that heading to a house is fine. She grins at Amy as the little girl chatters on. The kid was adorable. "Has she met Master Ryu, or does Akuma rant that much about him?"
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Spinning the little girl around once (and catching her when she started to fall), Mai looked up from her crouch with surprise. "Hm? Oh, right. He's talked about Ryu a few times, but I got her the picture; we thought it was important that she grow up knowing about her family."
And by 'we', she definitely means 'me.' Akuma wasn't really bothered either way about it, but was willing to play along.
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She shakes herself mentally and thinks on what's been revealed. And ponders the idea of Akuma going to pick up Chinese take-out. She claps a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing at the mental image of the great demon grumbling as he counts the yen. Still, despite the effort, she snorts helplessly.
The weak little snort did it. Without a further chance to prepare herself, she starts laughing helplessly, clutching at her ribs. Akuma standing in line, tapping his feet. Being turned away at the door because of a 'no shirt, no shoes' policy. Dealing with that one guy who never manages to figure out what he wants to order beforehand...
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For her part, Mai sighed and picked up Amy, continuing to walk- although slower, giving the headband-kid a chance to catch up. They were pretty close to the house, anyway.
And when she flipped Amy upside down as she went, the toddler only liked it more!
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