Gen watched quietly as his two grandsons meditated. Yun shifted slightly. Gen narrowed his eyes. Yun had always been the impatient one between the two. Yang was much calmer. Still a young and arrogant, but he was not troublesome like his brother.

Yun opened his eyes. “Why do we have to do this? I can fight. We should be fighting against others, testing our strength, not sitting here doing nothing!”

“In order for you to become a true fighter, you must be at peace. Mind and spirit…” Gen explained.

“I told you, old man, I can take down anyone who challenges me.”

Gen had heard this a thousand times. He never understood why Yun insisted that he was such a skilled fighter. He had to admit, Yun had adapted to Gen’s fighting style very quickly. Both Yun and Yang were powerful at such a young age. Gen believed that they may even surpass his own skills. This did not bother him.

“Yun, you will never be as skilled as you believe to be with your behavior,” Gen chided.

Yang glanced at his brother. Yun scowled.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Yun demanded.

“Your arrogance prevents you from reaching your potential. Lose the arrogance, and you take the path to becoming a true warrior,” Gen declared.

“I AM a warrior,” Yun argued.

Gen leaned towards him. “You believe so? A warrior has focus…patience…determination…and most of all…humility. A true warrior is willing to admit that he was defeated in battle. A true warrior considers it a learning experience. A true warrior does not gloat in the face of his opponent after winning.”

Yun scowled. “Like Ryu, you mean.”

Gen frowned in thought. “It is true that Ryu possesses great skill. He is constantly on his journey to becoming a true warrior. But he is certainly closer than you are.” He smiled faintly. “Challenge Ryu. After your battle, tell me if you have learned anything.”

“Grandfather…” Yang trailed off, wide-eyed.

“Fine! I can beat him!” Yun said firmly.

“Very well, then,” Gen said. “But first…you must work at the cash register today.”

Yun’s head dropped. “D*mmit…”

Ryu had been training during the weeks that he stayed with Chun Li. He had built up his strength, and he was still perfecting his fighting skills. However, at the moment, he was hungry. His stomach growled fiercely.

Chun Li looked at him. “Hungry, are you?”

Ryu nodded.

“Don’t worry,” she laughed. “Let’s buy what we need and get out quickly. By the way…thanks for being there with me at the playground.”

“I’m glad I could help,” he responded.

They stepped into Gen’s market. He looked up at them and smiled.

“Welcome. Can I be of any assistance?” he asked.

Chun Li went over and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you for the jade necklace. It was beautiful.”

He smiled at her. “I am certain that it looks wonderful on you.”

Ryu bowed at him. “Gen-sama…”

The three suddenly heard clucking. It was coming from the back of the market. Suddenly…CRASH! Chun Li winced slightly. Suddenly, Yang’s head appeared behind a doorway.

“Grandfather…one of the chickens escaped…”

Gen sighed.

Across the room, Yun frowned, watching Ryu. He still thought that he could defeat Ryu. So what if he was a little older…more experienced… Yun suddenly stood up straight as Ryu headed towards him.

“Good afternoon,” Ryu greeted politely.

“Uh…hi.” Yun didn’t know how to react to Ryu’s good manners.

“I trust that you are training hard?” Ryu asked.

Yun glared at him. “Every day.”

“It’s good that you train every day. This will lead you on the path to-“

“Where do you get off telling me how I should train?” Yun demanded.

Chun Li walked up to them. “Ignore Ryu, Yun. He’s been out of commission for a while…so now that he’s strong again, the fight is all he thinks about.”

Yun turned to her and smiled. If Ryu didn’t know any better, he’d think that Yun regarded her as an older sister, not just a regular customer.

“Sometimes I wonder how you can be friends with this guy,” Yun admitted. He then glared at Ryu. “I challenge you.”

Ryu’s brows lifted in mild surprise.

“You can’t be serious,” Chun Li said softly.

Yun kept his gaze steady. “I am. You’ll pay for embarrassing me in our last fight.”

Ryu nodded. “When and where do you wish to fight?”

Chun Li gasped. “Ryu!”

He held up a hand to silence her. “Perhaps Yun and I will both learn something from this fight.”

Yun smiled wryly. “Outside. Right now. So everyone on this street can see me humiliate you.”

“Lesson one. Never assume victory,” Ryu calmly stated.

Yun narrowed his eyes. “Just shut up and get outside!”

Minutes later, Yun and Ryu were outside, facing each other, poised for battle. A large crowd had gathered to watch, forming a ring around the two. Chun Li stood at the side, Yang and Gen next to her.

She turned to Gen. “You aren’t going to stop them?”

Gen shook his head slowly. “Yun must be taught a lesson.”

“What?”

He smiled at her. “Do not worry.”

Their attention was diverted when Yun jumped towards Ryu, his foot extended in a kick. Ryu moved out of the way. However, Yun quickly landed and executed a kick, tripping Ryu. Ryu felt his weight fall backward, and he quickly reacted, landed on his hands and flipped a safe distance away. With a loud cry, Yun lunged towards him, fist extended. Ryu blocked the attack, but Yun suddenly delivered an elbow to Ryu’s ribs. Ryu jumped away, but Yun followed up with a punch. Ryu swatted the attack away and punched Yun in the jaw before landing. Yun fell to the ground, but he tumbled to break his fall.

Ryu stood with his knees slightly bent, fists clenched and ready. Yun rose to his feet, plucked his cap from his head and used it to dust himself off. He perched it back on his head. The two fighters were barely four feet apart. Yun turned slightly and suddenly charged at Ryu, hitting him with his shoulder. Ryu slid and fell to the ground at the impact.

Yun smiled. “That was too easy…”

Gen narrowed his eyes.

“Now to finish this…” Yun declared.

He jumped towards Ryu, who was on his hands and knees. Yun stuck his leg out in a kick, preparing to kick Ryu in the head and end this fight quick. He could taste the victory already. Just when Ryu’s head was in hitting range, Ryu quickly turned around.

“SHIN-SHORYUKEN!” Ryu cried.

Yun felt a searing pain in his leg the instant Ryu’s fist connected with it. He felt himself fall back, towards the ground.

“HA-DO-KEN!”

Yun was blasted by Ryu’s chi. He fell on the ground. The last thing he saw was Chun Li and Yang kneeling beside him.

An hour later, Yun was still unconscious, and lying down in bed. Ryu and Chun Li stood side by side, watching him. Chun Li had two grocery bags in her arms. Gen had given her several items for free. Gen and Yang faced them, standing on the opposite side of the bed.

“You fought well,” Gen declared.

Ryu bowed. “Thank you.” He turned to Yang. “Keep training, okay? One day, you and your brother may be stronger than me…”

His eyes were wide with shock and concern at his brother’s defeat. But Yang bowed to Ryu.

Chun Li put a hand on Ryu’s shoulder. “Let’s go home.”

At her house, Chun Li was tending to Ryu’s cuts and bruises.

“That was a great fight,” Chun Li said.

Ryu shook his head. “I’m surprised it ended quickly.”

“Yun has skill. And an attitude. He’s too cocky. He needs to lose that.” Chun Li took a clean cloth and applied an herbal lotion on it.

Gently, with the cloth, she patted the ribs where Yun had elbowed him.

“From what I’ve been told, Yun was always like that. Gen says he used to cause a lot of trouble.”

“I can imagine.”

Chun Li pulled out a roll of medical tape. “I’m guessing that when you two were younger, Ken was the troublemaker.”

“Naturally.”

She carefully placed several pieces of tape over the bruise. “There you go. All done.” She looked up at him and smiled.

He smiled back. “Thanks. You’ve done so much for me already. I…I don’t know how I can repay you.”

“We’re friends. We don’t owe each other anything,” Chun Li pointed out. “I would do anything to help you out, and I know that you’d do the same for me.”

“Of course.”

“Although…” she paused in thought, “I really liked that kimono. And I would like to put it to good use. Promise me that you will take me to a festival in Japan. A festival of my choice.”

He studied her face, noticing her bright eyes and beautiful smile. “All right. I’ll take you to a festival.”

“That’s a promise, Ryu. Say it. I don’t want a festival to occur and you’re off training in Thailand.”

He grinned. “I promise to escort you to a festival of your choosing.”

She stood up and took his hands in hers. She tugged, encouraging him to stand.

“I thought you were hungry. I’ll fix something fast.”

He stood up and followed her to the kitchen.