Super Gal!

1.3

A man clad in a red suit lounged in his chair, sipping a large glass of red wine as he watched the screen in front of him with intrigue.

"Team Japan. They use interesting fighting techniques." He mused mostly to himself. Yes, these three in particular would be perfect for his big plan. He turned to the blonde woman that was watching next to him, who dropped into a bow at the waist when he finally addressed her.

"I'd like for them to win. Go ahead and assign them their next opponents." He said. The woman nodded, turning to make her exit.

"It shall be done."

~•~

What an exhilarating fight! Team Italy gave Japan a run for their money, but Japan came out on top in the end. You got nervous with the second fight, which consisted of Benimaru meeting his match in an equally as quick opponent; Andy. With a few well placed lightning bolts and kicks though, Benimaru eventually beat him. The best thing about it was the end though! Team Italy took their defeat with grace, and promised to get stronger for the next time they got to fight, whenever that was. Terry and Kyo in particular hit it off really well, and so did Goro and Andy. Benimaru and Joe.. not so much.

You watched in amusement as the two of them made fun of each other for their similar haircuts and how the other 'stole' it, at least until their respective teammates pulled them away from each other so everyone could get going.

"Hey, my hair's better than that guy's right?" Benimaru asked you desperately. Laughing into your hand, you nodded once.

"It looks the same to me, but if it makes you feel better, then yeah." Then you addressed Goro and Kyo, "So, what do you think is gonna happen now that you've won? Obviously you're off to the next round, but how do they decide?"

"I assume they'll send us another letter. The other fighters have probably completed their matches by now." Goro said, holding the hotel lobby door open for you all.

"I hope we get somewhere like.. the United States? I like Italy more, but dad once showed me pictures of this place called South Town! Apparently we lived there when I was a baby, but I don't remember that like, at all."

"It's for the best. I've been there a few times for some photoshoots." Benimaru said, shaking his head in disappointment, "It's a fun place to go during the summer, sure, but you have to watch your back."

"Pfft, just sounds like another day back home." Kyo snorted, nudging your shoulder, "I don't think the criminals there could ever match up to the gangs at school."

"Oh, no way! It'd totally end in bloodshed. I can see them canceling each other out or something." You said, thinking about the matchup. You only had an inkling of an idea about American gangsters from some of the movies about them that got imported to Japan. From what you could tell, they favored striped suits and guns and funny accents.

"Uh-huh. All I'm saying is that you gotta be careful if you ever decide to visit the place. There's a ton of crime, and I don't just mean the petty kind." Benimaru shrugged.

Well, that'd explain why you didn't stay in South Town for a long time growing up. What would your life look like if your family did stay? Ooh, that was too difficult to think about. A life without Kyo and Yuki and the others was a life you never wanted to have, hypothetically or not.

"There's something on our door. Looks like a letter." Kyo said, a little bit ahead of you guys. He held up the envelope to show you all, and you could see a familiar red 'R' seal holding it closed. The sponsor worked fast.

"Well? Hurry up and tell us what it says then." Benimaru demanded. Kyo rolled his eyes before breaking the seal and skimming over the paper inside.

"It's basically just a congratulations for winning the first round. We're going to China next. Hebei. Our arena is going to be up on a mountain at some old guy's temple."