The Path of the True Warrior Ch. 21
By Ryu-san

"Have you seen a Japanese man with a red headband a white gi?" Chun-li asks the farmer through the translator.

"Sorry," the farmer responds. "Oh wait, there IS that rumor that's going around…"

As soon as Chun-li hears those words, she runs over and grabs the translator's shirt.

"What does he know!? Ask him now! NOW!" Chun-li yelled while shaking the translator back and forth. Cammy bows her head in resignation as other Indians began staring. The translator, obviously frightened to death by Chun-li, asked the farmer to explain the rumor.

"Well, around a week ago, there was a disturbance in a far off nobody town up north. I don't know what really happened but they say that the man was stupid enough to assault the castle with 'him' in it," the farmer told them.

"Where is this castle?" Chun-li asked through the translator.

"Ha ha ha! You can't be thinking of going too!?" The farmer's face turns deadly serious as he realizes that Chun-li is not kidding. "I don't know what you feel for this young man to chase after him like this but take my advice and stay away from there. That place is a living h*ll and is guarded as such. All who went there never returned."

"Where…is…it!" Chun-li asks more forcefully.

"Sigh…don't say I didn't warn you…it's pretty close to here compared to the rest of India…Just walk straight towards those woods there. It leads out of India and into China, where you'll see mountains that hide the rising sun. It's located on the summit of those mountains," the farmer resignedly tells her.

"Thank you!" Chun-li says as she immediately walks in the other direction. The farmer scratches his head and wonders what just happened.

She then walks back for a few miles to the next town where she walks into a restaurant.

"I told you I'd find him!" Chun-li says triumphantly. She describes the events of her trip as Cammy sits down across from her.

"Well, let's get going, eh Chun?" Cammy asks.

"Well, actually, you're staying behind…" Chun-li forcefully says.

"WHY?!" Cammy yells, causing heads to turn in the restaurant. The two women leave the restaurant and the town into a more secluded area.

"I'll ask again, why?" Cammy angrily demands.

"It's because I don't want you to risk your life. Where I'm going, it's going to be very dangerous…I'm a good fighter and a policewoman; I know what I'm doing. But you, I don't want to involve civilians…" Chun-li tells her.

"I'm more than just a civilian! I can do it! Just let me prove it to you!" Cammy yells with determination. Chun-li looks over her options and realizes that if Cammy is left behind, Bison could easily find her. In addition, Cammy could just follow her and jeopardize the mission anyway.

"Fine, let's go," Chun-li says. "BUT, the point is to get Ryu and then go out."

"You make this sound like a covert op or something, luv, loosen up. I'm sure he's fine. Let's just go to these mountains and wait for him there," Cammy suggests.

In an office building…

"What's the matter with you!?" Ken yells.

"We're very sorry Mr. Masters, but finding people takes time," the representative explained.

"You have nothing?!" Ken asks him.

"Nothing solid…only have a few leads in fact," the man said.

"What are they?" Ken asks.

"Well, there's one lead in Japan, one in Australia, and one in India."

"Hm…Ryu hates planes so he couldn't have gone to Australia…He was last with Chun-li…why don't you ask her?" Ken suggested.

"We already did, and Ms. Li took a break from work. From some reason, she went to India, so I believe that's our strongest lead," the man said.

Ken already runs off and he pulls out his cell phone as he sits in his Limousine, arranging a trip to India in his private jet.

In the mountains of Tibet…

Ryu looks up and spots a gigantic castle on the summit of the mountain. He begins walking towards the base of the mountain for a few hours.

"Whew, how much further?" Ryu says as he reaches the base of the mountains. "Hm…no mountain trail path, looks like I'd better start climbing."

With that, Ryu ties his bag around his waist and he searches for a foot and handhold as he begins to climb the mountain.

A few hours later…

"How much further do I have to go now?" Ryu says as he once again looks up. The mountains stretch through the clouds and beyond the sight of any human. "I'd better hurry, I have to make it to the top before nightfall…"

Ryu begins his steady climb up the mountains again, never ceasing and seemingly never progressing. All of a sudden, a jet pulls up, right next to Ryu.

"Ryu! Hop in!" a voice yells from inside the plane.

"What the…? Ken?" Ryu wonders.

"Yea, it's me! Jump in!" Ken yells. However, due to the sudden noise, an avalanche of rocks falls down. Ryu's hands slip and he falls off the face of the cliff. Ken quickly throws rope over the side and Ryu grabs the edge of the rope. Ken orders the pilot to move away from the avalanche of rocks and the jet flies upward, eventually landing at the mesa on top of the mountains.

"Ken, what are you doing here? How did you find me?" Ryu asks as they prepare to exit the plane.

"Well…" Ken begins.

"RYUUUU!"

*GULP!* Ryu turns around to see an enraged Chun-li.

"How dare you go off by yourself! I'm the strongest woman in the world, you know, and don't make me prove it to you! I…" Chun-li begins her barrage of questions, demands and complaints. Beads of sweat drop from Ryu's brow as he recoils from her wrath.

"…not only that, you didn't tell anyone where you were going, or what you were doing…" Chun-li still talks. Ryu smiles and then stands up as he grabs his bag.

"…had no right to…where are you going? Why are you smiling?" Chun-li demands.

"I'm here to go into that castle," Ryu says grimly as the smile disappears from his face. Ryu walks out of the Jet and walks toward the castle.

"Ryu! Wait for us!" Ken yells.

"This is too dangerous, even for you, Ken. And regardless, it'll be easier for one person to sneak in then three," Ryu tells him.

"Well, us four are going in there together anyway, luv!" Cammy yells as she jumps off the jet.

"You too? Listen, this is way too dangerous for all of you to…" Ryu stares in amazement as they walk towards the castle without him. "Wait! I'm warning you, it's too dangerous! Let me handle…*grumble*" Ryu runs over to join his comrades.

"Ryu. You can't stop us from helping you. If you need help, we'll help you. Looking at the size of that thing," Ken says as he points to the castle, "looks like you'll need some help. Now, tell us what the problem is."

Ryu resignedly informs the group of his problem. He points out especially that since he does not know where the object is, he could search for it more easily by himself and he could also sneak away undetected more easily by himself.

"That's ridiculous. As a police officer, I have been to many raids and no enemy has been stupid enough to hide his most precious possession where anybody could find it. Ryu! Look at the size of the castle! It's way too complex for you to sneak in there, undetected, search until you find the machine, destroy it, which will alert everyone to your presence, and then sneak out and escape from here. You need our help!" Chun-li tells him.

"I can't do this if I have to protect you!" Ryu shouts.

"Protect…us? We can take care of ourselves! Now, let's hurry up and get in there before they know we're here. We took way too much time as it is. Let's move!" Ken tells them.

The walk in the dark of night to the boundaries of the castle. The night fills with white as a blanket of snow falls from the skies. The castle itself is dark and gloomy, its exterior covered with filth. Torches are the only source of light from the medieval structure. However, it is primeval meets contemporary as various cameras are scattered across the castle, hidden within the various nooks and crannies. Several guards armed with assault rifles patrol the roof of the castle while several guard dogs observe alertly for intruders.

"Great…now how are we going to get in there? That thing's packed tighter than a can of sardines," Ken comments.

"I don't know…this is harder than I thought it would be. Let me think about this for a few minutes…" Ryu says.

"TURN AROUND AND PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" a man shouts.

The group turns around to see that sentries spotted and surrounded them with a dozen guards, all aiming weapons at them.

"Walk toward the castle. MOVE!" the same man yells.

The four move with guns pointed at their backs, steadily trudging toward the castle with an ominous feeling of dread. They enter the castle as the gate slowly drops, forming a bridge over the moat, and they are led through the courtyard, into the keep of the castle. The guards stop and instantly kneel down, dropping their weapons to the ground as they genuflect very obsequiously.

"Who are you to trespass on my domain!" a voice booms.

"……" Ryu says nothing but he walks toward the voice.

"Insolent whelp! You dare to approach me!?" the voice accuses.

*Whisper, whisper…*

"I see…so, you are the one who attacked my men a few days ago…haha! What were you thinking? Protecting the little girl, right? Well, your efforts have been for naught!" the voice cackles as a holographic projection shows the little girl with her mother and several guards monitoring them.

"Chikusho! Nani de gozaru yo!?" Ryu shouts, pale with rage.

"Ha ha ha! Hmph! You bore me now. Guards! Take them to the dungeon. Enjoy life while you can, you won't have much longer to enjoy it!" the voice steadily fades away with laughter. The group reluctantly walks, encouraged by the guns' occasional shove. They are tossed into the dank dungeon and as the door closes, so does their hope also fade away.