Chapter 353: The Rebirth of the Shiranui
After locking the door, King and Qin Ming, who had just finished feeding, exited the bar and prepared to drive away.
As for the bodies and the severely damaged bar?
These were minor issues for King, solvable with a single phone call.
While deaths are significant events, their impact varies by location.
This is South Town—a melting pot of gangs, assassins, martial artists, and delinquents, where fights and fatalities are daily occurrences.
King had previously worked for South Town's overlord, Geese Howard, albeit unwillingly and now retired.
Nevertheless, her local status remains that of a formidable figure.
For someone of her standing, handling two bodies is a trivial matter.
Unidentified troublemakers causing disturbances in her Phantom Bar and being dealt with accordingly is entirely expected.
It's common knowledge among local fighters that brawls are forbidden in the Phantom Bar—unless one wishes to challenge the legendary South Town Queen.
Driving a Hummer out of the garage, King wore a stern expression.
Qin Ming sat in the back, gulping down a bottle of red wine.
The sound of his drinking made King's eye twitch involuntarily.
She regretted letting him sit in the back; had she known he'd squander her precious wine, she wouldn't have minded his large frame in the passenger seat.
"Hey! Drink less!"
"Hmm? It's fine; they don't test me for drunk driving, and I can't get drunk anyway."
"I'm not concerned about you! I'm worried about my wine! These were Geese Howard's treasures!"
"Geese? The guy who's been kicked off buildings multiple times but never dies? He was born in the wrong era; in martial arts tales, he'd become the top master by surviving falls."
"Be glad Geese is dead; otherwise, those words alone would get you killed ten times over!"
Listening to Qin Ming's jests, King shook her head with a dark expression.
Seeing his indifferent demeanor, she smirked slightly.
"By the way, one of the brothers who defeated Geese is named Andy. About a year ago, he was publicly dumped by Mai. I've heard he's been searching for someone named Qin Ming, vowing to break his legs."
Upon hearing this, Qin Ming remained nonchalant.
"Andy? Hmph, a mere defeated opponent, not worth mentioning. If he dares come after me, I'll break three of his legs!"
"Oh? Really?"
King's eyes gleamed with amusement as she glanced at Qin Ming through the rearview mirror, her smile widening.
"Do you have any siblings? Andy has an older brother named Terry. Given his combat prowess, I doubt you could break his legs."
At the mention of Terry, Qin Ming's expression turned serious. He sat up straight, furrowing his brows and stroking his chin.
"Terry Bogard? Now that's a formidable opponent!"
Terry, known as the Legendary Hungry Wolf, or the Invincible Wolf.
In the King of Fighters universe, many claim the "invincible" title—Invincible Dragon, Invincible Tiger, Invincible Wolf, Invincible Muay Thai Master, Invincible Judo King.
However, Terry truly lives up to his moniker. In terms of strength, he surpasses King, ranking among the top-tier fighters.
Moreover, he's the protagonist of the Fatal Fury series, the predecessor to the King of Fighters.
In other words, he was the original protagonist before Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami.
His strength is at the pinnacle of the first tier, comparable to the Hakkesshu members—a bona fide monster-level fighter.
In KOF '96 and '97, only a handful could truly challenge him.
Honestly, even with Qin Ming's current prowess, he's uncertain about facing such monsters.
His experience with Gouken from the Street Fighter world left a deep impression.
Though Gouken is an elite martial artist, on par with a fully awakened Ryu or a berserk Akuma, far surpassing first-tier fighters.
In the KOF universe, he'd be akin to Goenitz, the final boss of KOF '96.
But Qin Ming has only faced opponents of that caliber; he hasn't battled first-tier fighters.
Their exact strength and limits remain unknown to him.
The worst-case scenario is that they're only slightly weaker than Gouken. If so, Qin Ming doubts he could defeat them, even in his dinosaur form.
The Hummer sped down the highway towards the distant airport.
Having found the long-lost junior disciple Qin Ming, King's priority was to deliver him to the Shiranui Dojo and hand him over to Mai.
Thus, she could avoid the endless chatter about this matter the moment they met—it was almost as if her ears had grown calluses from hearing it so often.
Besides, King also needed to find those two individuals and have a private conversation with them.
For example, she had to inform them that a certain junior disciple wasn't little at all—in fact, he was quite big and extremely strong.
As soon as the two boarded the plane, the first thing Qin Ming did was take out his sunglasses and carefully examine the passengers.
After all, his experiences with planes weren't exactly pleasant. The last time he flew in the King of Fighters world, he was forced into an impromptu high-altitude diving performance.
After thoroughly checking inside and out, ensuring no adventurers were lurking onboard, Qin Ming finally sighed in relief.
Then, sitting next to King, they began their journey to Japan.
However, it took only a brief moment on the plane for Qin Ming to fully grasp just how powerful King's charm truly was.
Logically speaking, he had muscles where they counted! He had the looks of a warrior! Even his character was muscular! He wasn't that bad, was he?
Yet, sitting next to King, he was completely overshadowed by this woman!
Despite being female, King, dressed in her bartender's uniform, had an inexplicable magnetism toward women.
Even after she openly revealed her identity, the female passengers who now knew she was a woman remained just as fanatical.
Clearly, this dashing crossdresser had invested her skill points in all the wrong places!
As a woman, she had somehow maxed out her attraction toward other women, gaining a +100 Charm stat in the process!
Elegant speech, handsome looks, and a graceful demeanor—sitting beside her, Qin Ming suddenly felt immense pressure.
A full hour later, after finally dismissing the enthusiastic female passengers, King withdrew her gaze.
Turning her head to the side, she smirked as she looked at Qin Ming, who was now stiffly holding up a newspaper.
"What's wrong? Weren't you quite talkative on the road? Why so quiet now?"
Hearing this, Qin Ming remained expressionless, merely giving her a sidelong glance.
"Don't talk nonsense. I've always been quiet."
"There's no need to doubt your masculine charm. Our situations are different. Besides, don't you have a senior sister and a certain private detective who think about you all the time?"
Also picking up a newspaper, crossing her legs, and smiling slyly as she read, King spoke as if reassuring Qin Ming.
However, the triumphant smirk on her face betrayed her true feelings.
Seeing that smug grin, Qin Ming's mood worsened instantly.
If not for the current location, he would have locked the door and called in some professionals to teach this self-satisfied woman a lesson in what it truly meant to be a delinquent.
Elegant lady-knight? This was exactly the type Kasumi Todoh loved to put in their place!
Fortunately, this flight was uneventful, allowing Qin Ming—who had so far developed a knack for destroying vehicles—to reach Japan safely alongside King.
On the taxi ride to the Shiranui Dojo, Qin Ming finally figured out his current identity.
Perhaps due to the chaotic nature of the protagonist faction in this world, even with his Golden Seal enhancement, Qin Ming had failed to establish any ties with the Three Sacred Treasures families.
This time, his identity was rather unique—he was simply a martial artist.
A wandering fighter who traveled the land, spending money to enter dojos and learn various martial arts.
He even carried discipleship certificates from more than a dozen different dojos, having joined nearly every major martial arts school.
Kyokugenryu! Judo! Todoh-ryu Koryu!
Although Qin Ming didn't possess any prestigious background this time, he had instead gained numerous new identities!
He had truly reached the point where he could seamlessly blend into any martial arts school.
Not only that, but it also perfectly explained what he had been doing for the past year—
He had been training!
With a screech, the taxi came to an abrupt halt.
Qin Ming and King swiftly stepped out, arriving at the newly established Shiranui Dojo.
Looking up at the towering mountain and the long flight of steps ahead, Qin Ming rolled his eyes dramatically.
"Another mountain climb! Why is it that every prestigious dojo insists on this nonsense? Do they never worry about being too hungry at night to order takeout?"
King chuckled, a faint smile on her face. As she spoke, she suddenly dashed forward.
"You just don't get it! This is all about prestige!"
With a whoosh, King unleashed her speed, darting ahead like a flash of lightning. Within mere moments, she had already sprinted dozens of meters.
Seeing this, Qin Ming quickly followed, positioning his hands into knife strikes as he ran at full speed.
One was faster, the other had more endurance.
Soon enough, they reached the mountain's summit.
And the moment they arrived, the synchronized shouts of martial arts training echoed in their ears.
The Shiranui Dojo, which had nearly been wiped out in a past battle, had now returned to its former glory!
Although its top-tier fighters had perished, the dojo's greatest promotional asset, Mai Shiranui, was still around.
And as long as she remained, there would never be a shortage of disciples!
However, unlike before, the Shiranui Dojo—once filled with male disciples drawn by Mai's reputation—had transformed into an all-female dojo!
The sight was stunning—a sea of beautiful women practicing martial arts, creating an unparalleled view.
Back in the day, the dojo mainly recruited male disciples due to the influence of the old-fashioned master, Hanzo Shiranui.
Although he knew little about managing a martial arts school, he stubbornly believed that martial arts should be passed down to men.
Even though the Shiranui clan specialized in assassination techniques, he insisted that proper ninjutsu must be taught to male disciples.
Since it was traditional martial arts, it should only be passed down to male successors.
With that old relic in charge, Mai Shiranui had no choice but to follow his orders.
But now that Hanzo Shiranui was dead, Mai had fully taken over the dojo.
No longer constrained by outdated beliefs, she relocated the dojo and, in just over a year, developed it to a scale several times grander than its peak!
She even established a total of fourteen branch dojos!
Why had it grown so rapidly?
Why were so many disciples enrolling?
How did this single dojo have over three thousand members?
It wasn't because Mai was an exceptional instructor—it was because the curriculum had changed entirely…
Standing dumbfounded at the entrance, Qin Ming gazed at the courtyard filled with training beauties.
Then, shifting his eyes to the enormous signboard and the wooden plaque beside it, he was utterly stunned.
For a moment, he even wondered if he had arrived at the wrong place.
On the wooden sign, two bold lines were prominently displayed—
"Shiranui-ryu Ninjutsu! One month for body sculpting! Two months for beauty enhancement! Three months for a complete transformation! Also featuring secret bust-enhancing medicine and exclusive whitening creams! Personally endorsed by the Ninja Master, Mai Shiranui!"
(End of Chapter)