Yay! Was waiting for this (nothing like keeping an idiot in suspence, is
there?)

"Quit sucking up and spit it out, man! What have you heard about
Shampoo?"

$Now there's a turn of phrase for you.

You know, I never even realized it until you mentioned it. I've just got to
fit that in a lemon somewhere.

"Beware the one foe we can never best: cholesterol," Beef gasped out.

$As I still eat good Southern cooking on a regular basis, yeah.

It is a difficult opponent, to be sure.

"We can beat it if we watch what we eat," Jaddo said. "And time is the
one
foe we cannot best, not cholesterol."

"You have your sayings, I have mine," Beef said.

$I like Beef's better.

Same here, to be honest.

"Is this head important?" Shampoo asked her mentor.

$Insomuch that if you cut it off it causes problems, yeah.

Heh.

"To you, no. To people that control the flow of billions of yen and
whose
individual decisions routinely affect thousands of people every day,
it's
about as interesting as the toilet paper they use to wipe their butts.

$And when it's bad, they don't notice it near as quickly.

Good point.

I can't imagine why he'd want to see you fight. He's never attended the
matches before, from what I understand. Never heard him having any
interest
in them. Is it the same head as before? Otani's bastard kid?"

$Ah, interesting note.  I'll pay attention to that.

True. It does stand out, doesn't it?

"Absolutely correct. You've trained her well," Beef told Jaddo.

"Her head's not filled completely with rocks, no," Jaddo reluctantly
agreed.

$Jaddo: The rest is air.

Heh. That would be the sort of thing he would say.

Once in the center, Shampoo blocked out most of what the ring announcer
was
saying, which was in essence the same thing he always said. From the
dingiest dog pits to the classiest of arena, the words might have been
different but the meanings remained the same: here are two people that
are
going to beat the living hell out of one another for your viewing
pleasure.

$Some things are hardwired into the brain, ever since the first monkeys
sat around to watch a young male take on the alpha for breeding rights.
Oddly enough, I don't think much has changed.

Ohh. Slipping in philosphical commentary on the human condition in C+C and
it's appropriate to the scene. I am impressed. :)

Her kick hit him squarely in the side and under his arm, lifting him up
in
the air. Shampoo managed to change his trajectory by unleashing another
lightning fast kick under his back and forced him into a mid-air spin,
and
sustaining his act of defying gravity for another moment. The additional
time was sufficient for Shampoo to reset herself, so that the instant No
landed, her fist met his mid-section. His body went limp.

$No problem, eh?

Two out of three of them, no. But there's always a catch.

he
made a face and felt the area that had been struck and looked down at it
in
confusion. There was surprise in his voice. "You've overcome my Stone
Style
technique."

$He later added 'Ouch' for good measure.

Heh.

"It is a peacock which I can remove. You, however, will look ugly no
matter
what. Have you ever considered wearing a mask?"

$Yeah, but he's no more likely to remove the peacock than Jaddo is to
wear a mask.

Too true.

<snip>


It was at that moment that Watambe's mysterious trainer clinked his
bracelets together, producing a single high-shrilled jingle that could
be

$Hmm, if it's single, a jingle really wouldn't be appropriate.  Perhaps
'a single high-pitched ring'.

Changed.

before. He looked at the man next to him over. Many years had passed,
and
the skin color was much darker than before, but he always had been a
tricky
devil. Perhaps the trickiest of them all. "You're Dhalsim?"

$Figures.  He ran into Sagat, he had to know the rest.

Not really. There's a generation in-between some of them. Ryu, Ken, Chun Li
and Cammy have never even been in the Arena circuit and are much younger.
C+C will be dealt with by me at a later time. And no, they aren't just being
thrown in. It was plan to get them involved in one of the storylines from
the beginning. Just have to wait until JK gets far enough along for me to
use them in the side story.

"You should have paid closer attention to that Zen babble Dhalsim used
to
spout off, as you're about to learn. " Jaddo looked back out at his
prot�g�.

$What, don't count your chickens before they've achieved enlightenment?

hehehe. You're in good form tonight.

Just as she charged forward, his foot seemed to extend, meeting her
chest
long before she could land her own punch.

$Shampoo:  I know his type, this won't be any problem.  Just another
Stretch Armstrong wannabe.

Heh. Should have seen that one coming.

from the folds of his sleeve and connected solidly with her jaw. The
slight
tang of blood danced on her tongue from her lip being split open. Angry
that
he was making her look foolish before everyone, and that he was somehow
winning with a painfully ridiculous technique,

$Emphasis on the pain, eh?

Yep.

For only the second time in her fighting career, Shampoo was on her way
to
losing her fight and her single status.

$Does she consider him handsome?

Not. She's currently regarding him as dead meat about now.

Recognizing her mentor's voice, even above the roar of the crowd that
was
urging Watambe on, Shampoo processed the information. How could anyone
do
what Jaddo implied?

$No comment.

That is probably for the best.

"That was not a technique! It was a way for you to take cheap shots at
me
because you thought I wasn't paying attention to you when I really was!"

$Genma: Ah, Jaddo is wise in the way of the martial arts trainer.

Heh. The comparison between the two has been made in the manner in which
they train their proteges.

Again Jaddo felt an uneasiness creep up his spine. He would be ready for
anything.

$That last bit needs reworking.  It sounds wrong to me.

Done.

head
face first into the ground, she saw a mist of spray shoot outward from
Watambe's bulging cheeks towards her. Just as the cloud was released, he
brought his arms forward and struck his bracelets hard, causing a spark.

The instant the spark hit the spray there was a tremendous roar as the
droplets caught on fire, creating a huge ball of flame that struck where
Shampoo had been less than half a second before.

$Not to mention all over his wrist and hands, immersed in the spray as
they would have to be to make the spark.

Actually his hands were fast enough to make it out without being burned.
However, the same could not be said for his lips.

The heat was gone in a moment and the roar of flames expired, Shampoo
looked
up to see Watambe holding his mouth, as though he were in tremendous
pain.

$Heh, poor guy.  He should have trained by eating lots of habanero
peppers.

That would reenforce another part of his body to heat when they work their
way through him as well. :)

had
long ago decided that massive burns was one of the rare cases where
dying
was preferable to having to live with the unrelenting pain.

$Right up there with eating Akane's cooking, listening to Minmei's
singing, and reading Oscar's fanfics.

Sadly, I can think of nothing to add to this list at the moment.

The burning sensation from Shampoo's back continued to grow, even though
at
the time it had felt like the flames had barely touched her.

$Her outfit, I presume that it's silk?

It's flammable, in any case.

feeling. If anything, the sensation of heat was creeping up her spine
now.
And then there was the smell of something burning, even though
nothing...
was... burning?

$Shampoo:  *sniff* *sniff*  Mmm...  Roast pork.  *drool*

Hehehehe.

only
now truly starting to grow, didn't touch her as the outfit was tossed
far
away to the side.

$Much to the audience's delight, of course.  Fanservice.

Oh yes. This photo is going to end up on most of the websites in the Empire
that are devoted to her. She's not a Buffy level, but isn't a piker either.

Shampoo let out a sigh of relief. That had been close. Had the dress
remained on her a moment longer, she would have suffered some degree of
burns. But now she was safe, her fiery clothing tossed off to the side.
And
of course, since her clothing was tossed off, that left her standing in
front of tens of thousands of people clad in nothing but her athletic
bra
and a pair of panties.

$Instantly insuring that that fight would live forever in the hearts of
her fans.

Yep. :)

good
eyeful of her. She was a professional now, and had to play the game by
the
rules winners played. Besides, it could have been considerably worse;
she
could have had a body the crowd did not want to see.

$Naked Northman.  AHHHH!

Ouch. That hurt me too.

"Oh." Shampoo was at a loss. Jaddo had never been this conciliatory
before.
She was uncertain of how to react.

$Chicken Little ran screaming by.

Heh.

Jaddo looked at her in near open mouthed wonder. "A woman that isn't
perpetually worried about her hair. Will wonders never cease?"

$It's fiction, relax.  Never happen in real life.

Sad, but true.

Seeing that the teacher-student conversation was over, Beef walked over
and
said, "Wonderful fight. People are going to remember that one for a
while.

$Especially the men, especially at night.

Heh.

"We should go out and celebrate," Beef declared. "Let's go back to the
restaurant. Open bar and food. I'll even hire a couple of escorts for
you,
Jaddo. And you too, if you want, Shampoo. There's this upscale brothel
called 'Celestial Bodies' that's run by this former nun I once knew from
way
back when.

$Beef: In fact, I'm the reason she's a 'former' nun.  I guess the taste
of heaven I gave her was more fun than her idea.

That is the implication there, actually.

"No thanks," Shampoo said, though the idea of simply engaging in a one
night
stand was not quite as unappealing as it had been when she had still
lived
at home. No doubt it was because so many of the fighters she spent time
with
lived life in the fast lane and promiscuity tended to be a bit high as
blood
and passions ran fast and free.

$And Pink limps by.
      Pink: Oww.  Oww.  Oww.

Just plain evil, you are. Which reminds me. When are you going to continue
your Tenchi fic?

from amid the jungle of skyscrapers themselves. From this high up she

The building they were currently in, the headquarters of Otani Media,
resided in the corporate sector, and like all of the other buildings in
the
area it reeked of opulence and excess. It was third tallest in the
corporate
sector,

$Coincedently, it was also the third newest.

 Not far from the truth either.

"Wouldn't want them executives to get thirsty if the elevator broke
down,"
Jaddo said as he caught her looking at it again.

"It's too much," Shampoo said disdainfully.

$I guess opinions differ on the matter.  Personally, I think every
elevator should have a minibar.

Ditto, actually.

"Because it'll probably cost me several thousand yen if they find out
you
sound like a five year old that needs a 'Hooked on Phonics' game."

"What 'Hooked on Phonics'?" Shampoo asked in Japanese.

$Heheh.  I should have saw that one coming.

Yeah. I kind of telegraphed that one. Still thought it might be good for a
snicker or two.

enough
to accommodate eight people comfortably, but still had a very personal,
rather than sterile, businesslike, feel to it. There were pictures of
family, friends, vacations spots, and even a pet or two set out in the
open
for everyone to see.

$All of them rented for the weekends, of course.  The modern executive
is simply too busy for a full time family.

Well, in his case his family helps run the business, so he can spend time
with them.

being able to remain apart from them. He appeared to be full-blooded
Japanese, slightly younger than Kiber, and somewhat on the small side,
with
a style of haircut that was much shorter than his companion. His looks
were
average, and he was unremarkable save for the style of suit he wore,
which
probably cost as much as a small house back home.

$Really?  I had no idea amazonian real estate was going so high.

Heh.

is the sort of fighter we need to have. With her history, fighting

ability,
looks, and that whole 'Marry the man that defeats me' thing going for
her, I
am convinced that with the proper marketing that only Otani Media
Conglomerate can provide, we can make her a household name and perhaps
the
most famous arena fighter since Niles Vorherer."

$Who?

Complete made up name, in this case. Just something I came up with.

"Before he started making the movies, yah, I think you could.
Marketing's a
lot better now, and with you guys giving her the right push, you could
really roll in the dough with all the merchandising you could do with
her."

$Heh, with Shampoo they wouldn't even have to change the old Barbie
doll molds to get the measurments correct.

Hehehehe. Cute.

in Hong Kong, ratings here are up. She's hot and marketable. There's
never
been an easier fighter to add to your prestige. The big annual
tournament's
about to get underway in Japan, meaning she won't be in it for almost a
year. You'll have all that time to milk every cent you can out of her."

$And with udders like that...

Very, very, evil. I like it. Now I really want you to work on the Tenchi fic
some more.

Shampoo shouted "Then why stupid old man turn so pale over being offered
so
much money? Is stupid reaction!"

$Quick as a wink, Jaddo used every martial arts skill he could and
scribbled his name on the contract in record time.  "Deal," he said,
clutching it protectivly.

Hehehehehe. Nice again.

Shampoo frowned but kept her opinions to herself this time lest she did
cause damage to her bargaining position. Still, to be offered nothing
more
than half a percent was insulting.

$Sure looks like that, no?

Wait until she finds out how much that really is. :)

Once Kiber placed the documents in an official-looking folder, he gave
Jaddo
a satisfied smile. "Well, that's settles it. I must say, it's been a
pleasure doing business with you. You are a tough negotiator."

$And Jaddo keels over in faint.

A snicker rose from the corner where Masahiro sat.

$Close enough.  Heh.

Yep. It was sort of obvious.

The compliment unnerved Jaddo again, as did the look of intent interest
he
continued receiving from Kiber. He felt like every one of his molecules
was
being dissected and analyzed. That it was coming from a man of such
importance made it even more uncomfortable to an old, unimportant (at
least
to someone like Kiber) trainer like himself. And then there was the
perpetually smiling Masahiro.

$Shampoo: What are you grinning at?

Masahiro: Ah, that is a secret.

No. No apperances by Xellos here. Just about everyone else, but not him.

Realizing there was no easy way to back out of the situation, Jaddo
prepared
for the worst. He hated surprises.

$They do tend to bite.

So I've noticed as well.

The doors to the office parted once again for the woman who had escorted
Jaddo and Shampoo to the room. Jaddo's first reaction was to say he knew
damn well who the woman was, then he saw the other person that the woman
had
opened the doors for.

"Kyoko," he whispered softly enough for everyone in the room to hear.

$And all is explained.

Pretty much.

the finest tended gardens in the Empire."

"And about the only place a gardener can get a job in Hong Kong."

$*rimshot*

Heh

and her soft, pleasant smile returned. "There were many things that each
of
us liked about the other. I'm sure that as much as we have changed over
the
years, those things remain the same."

Jaddo chuckled. "Actually, I've probably become sarcastic and cynical
since

$become more sarcastic  Would probably be better.

Nope. He's trying to act like he never was sarcastic. She calls him on it,
of course.

Jaddo shrugged. "It's not bad, really, unless I do a lot of running.
Then
I'll get a dull ache in it that takes a while to go away, and I can't
run
worth a crap. More like a quick scamper. To be honest, I've gotten so
used
to it I forget I have it. Not like I have to use a cane or something."

$I would.  Canes are great for hitting people.

Beef already has one. It would be passe for both to use them. :)

her.
"I confess, I never cared much for this island. I want to see the land
and
hear water running through streams and rivers. I want to smell something
related to nature, not just gas fumes, crafted metal, and people crammed
so
close together that they perpetually smell of sweat."

$*snort*  Everyone I've ever been with while getting 'back to nature'
ended up sweating and stinking like crazy.  It's the lack of AC and
showers.

Well, the implication here is it always smells like sweat no matter how much
you shower.

Another length of silence stretched between them. Finally Jaddo blurted
out,
"Are you happy?"

$Kyoko: Of course!  I've got a subscription for valium, and prozac, and
zanax...

Kyoko: I have them every morning. Breakfast of champions.

There was a warning tone in the older woman's voice. "Jaddo, I know you.
You
always tended to complain excessively that you didn't care about people
that
you really care a great deal about, but did not care to admit to it."

It took Jaddo a minute to sort that out.

$Yah, me too.

Was intentional.

 "I always loved the way you'd
string together sentences using a lot of the same words to confuse me."

$Yeah, it's more fun.

Definitely.

through that. Sometimes I thank god Li was able to put me down in the
semis
so that it didn't come to that. No, so long as I know you're happy now,
I
don't have any regrets about not winning the tournament. Dreams might be
good, but if they aren't realistic, you can't feel bad about losing
them."

$Damn, what a paragraph.

Sliced into two, but one of them is still long. Still, it helps.

not
just an arranged marriage for him. It would have been one based on
love."

"You're an easy woman to love."

$Figures that Jaddo would love an easy woman.  ^_-

hehehehe.

"He is," Kyoko admitted. "But you are better than him in other ways.
Each
person is unique, and you two are no exceptions."

"Even though I'm an exceptional guy," Jaddo said.

$Shampoo: He sure ain't talking about his personality.

Got that right. :)

the
incident was, and that was certainly by design, he respected her privacy
and
did not pry. Besides, whatever it had been was nearly three decades old,
and
did not matter now.

$Yeah, coincidently just old enough to help run the company.

Heh. True.

Kyoko nodded in heartfelt agreement. "The human spirit is a resilient
thing.
Given time, any wound inflicted on it will heal. It's just a question of
how
long. At least that's what I believe."

$Does depend on the person.

Yep. People come in various fortitude as well as various sizes.

your brother. He smiles a lot, though, and it's one of those sly ones
instead of a big bright one. Kind of acts like he thinks the joke's on
everyone else. That can turn people off, but I don't really mind it, as
long
as the joke isn't on me."

$Ah, but the joke is on him.  That's what makes it funny.

You got that right. Which also makes it ironic. :)

"Wouldn't know about that. Never had any myself, so I'll have to take
your
word for it."

$Heh.

He does walk right into it. :)

Kyoko kept her face turned away from him as she said, "It is important
to me
that you get along with him. He is very close to the family. He and Masa
were raised as all but brothers to one another, and Masa looks up to him
terribly so."

$All but...  Heh.

And he agrees with your assessment as well, but for all the wrong reasons.
:)

assumed
from your earlier statement that you were ignorant of the matter. I
didn't
think you would guess, to be honest. I didn't believe there was anywhere
near enough evidence for you to realize the connection."

"I'm a perceptive guy," Jaddo said with just a hint of cockiness.

$Oh, wow.  I actually snorted in real life, rather than the mental one
I usually do.

Thanks. Nice to know I can still elicit that sort of reaction.

"Yes?"

"I take back everything I said about you being perceptive."

$Yes indeed, this is another classical example of your style.  Very
nice.

Again, glad to know it works.

and
how it ended up turning out, he was left to admit that even by his
standards, it had proven to be a most interesting day.

And he found himself wishing it would never end.

$Arg, Groundhog day all over again.

Heh. Even I am not that evil.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Yes, 'Donna Cheng' is exactly who you're supposed to think it is. I
promised
Donny I'd insert him as a lesbian in one of my fics.

$More like a mention, but still.

It was the idea of it anyway. :)

Well now, I'm glad I finally finished this part.  Was it just me, or
was this one longer than normal?

Like most of my work, the chapters grow in size with the more subplots I
come up with. This work was no exception, I'm afraid. I'm surprised I kept
it as small as I did.

Not that I mind, mind you, this was

far too enjoyable for that.  Nice chapter, and good to see Jaddo's past
finally explained.

Yep. He's the only other guy this series really focuses on. Thought it was
time for him to get the spotlight solely on him for changed.

I'll get to the next chapter as soon as I can.

And as always, I'll look forward to it.

Thanks again.

D.B.Sommer




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