After Rose left the dojo, Tsukihime couldn't wait to open the envelope. When she saw the invitation card inside with the letter R printed on it, she immediately said smugly to Aiden, "I've got an invitation too, Aiden. Just you wait, this isn't over yet. When the time comes, we'll fight fair and square in the ring and see how you're going to use those shameless, despicable tricks again."
After all, when she had fought Aiden earlier, she didn't think she had lost. They hadn't actually decided a winner, she just felt that Aiden had interrupted things using underhanded methods.
Aiden looked at the red-haired girl and nodded helplessly. "I'll be waiting."
At the same time, he was thinking to himself, Why does someone always challenge me before every tournament? First it was Andy, now it's Tsukihime. It just never ends.
That said, Aiden's attitude toward Tsukihime was much better than his attitude toward Andy. In his eyes, Tsukihime was just a spoiled little girl, and… well, she was good-looking and nicely built.
Andy was different. The conflict between them involved Mai Shiranui. As a man, Aiden had no intention of going easy on him.
Yes, he really was that double-standard.
Thinking this, Aiden said to Tsukihime again, "Miss Tsukihime, I should remind you, once the invitations go out, the tournament will probably start in about a month. Before that, you'll need to find two teammates and form a team."
"That's easy," Tsukihime said dismissively. "One of my teammates will obviously be my brother."
"But you're still missing one."
"Hmph, that's simple. I'll just grab anyone when the time comes. With my strength and my brother's, that'll be more than enough to deal with all of you," Tsukihime said confidently.
"Oh? Very good, then. I'll be watching," Aiden said, nodding with an expression of complete understanding. In fact, if it weren't for Aiden's existence, Yagami Iori plus Tsukihime really would have had the qualifications to aim for the top three.
"Then just wait and see," Tsukihime said as she put away the invitation and turned to walk out of the dojo. She couldn't wait to tell her brother, Yagami Iori, about this.
However, just as she reached the doorway, Aiden's voice came from behind her.
"Miss Tsukihime, you've forgotten something."
"What thing, hey! Take your filthy hands off it! Don't touch my clothes!"
Hearing Aiden's words, Tsukihime turned back in confusion and saw him holding up her school uniform jacket, giving it a little shake. She immediately rushed over, snatched it back from him, and clutched it to her chest.
Holding the clothes, Tsukihime shot Aiden another fierce glare, then turned and ran out of the dojo.
With Tsukihime gone, the dojo finally became quiet again.
After that, Aiden returned to the small tea table under the tree and resumed drinking tea, while Mai Shiranui and the other two women continued their training.
This time, they trained even harder. After all, Tsukihime would also be competing, and they wanted to defeat her in the tournament and wash away their previous humiliation.
———
[That Night, at the Yata Shrine]
During dinner, Aiden told the Kagura sisters that Rugal had started sending out invitations again.
The sisters didn't look surprised at all, because they had already received the news.
"Kusanagi Kyo's side received their invitation this morning," Kagura Chizuru said as she poured Aiden some wine.
"But his father accepted it. After his girlfriend's condition improved, Kyo went to train at Mount Fuji. He's been up there for almost a month without coming down."
"He must be feeling pressured, which is why he's training so hard," Kagura Maki said, picking up where her sister left off.
"Aiden puts a lot of pressure on him. And remembering the Yagami family's successor as well, those two fought before and didn't decide a winner. I'd guess he's training the Kusanagi clan's ultimate technique, Mu-Shiki."
Kagura Chizuru showed a very interested expression. "Mu-Shiki, huh? I've heard that the Kusanagi ancestors once injured Orochi with Mu-Shiki. It's an incredibly powerful move."
"Unfortunately, ever since then, each generation of the Kusanagi clan has been worse than the last. Very few people can use it anymore, not even the current clan head, Kusanagi Saisyu. I wonder if that guy Kyo can actually learn it."
"With his talent, he definitely can," Aiden said, putting down his wine cup.
Kagura Chizuru continued pouring him another drink and said, "Then the next time we run into him, it'll be troublesome."
"He's not the real trouble," Aiden shook his head.
"The real problem is Rugal. Last time, after he saw my strength, he was so scared he ran away on the spot. Yet just over two months later, he's holding another King of Fighters tournament. I'm guessing he's fully mastered Orochi's power, otherwise, he wouldn't be this confident."
"But I remember that mortals can't withstand Orochi's power at all, let alone control it," Kagura Maki said with a frown.
"Even the Hakkesshu only control part of Orochi's special abilities."
"Who knows?" Aiden shrugged casually, though his face was full of interest.
"Maybe NESTS used some special method to help him. Or maybe he modified himself and isn't even human anymore."
"Honestly, I really want to see how strong Rugal is after mastering Orochi's power, how many moves he can last against me."
According to the original storyline, after Rugal gained Orochi's power and obtained the special ability to control gravity, he still lost to Kusanagi Kyo.
In the end, because he overused Orochi's power, his body couldn't take it and he exploded to death. But now the plot was completely chaotic, and combined with what Rugal had said before, Aiden guessed that Rugal had already become something non-human.
After all, every time Aiden entered a story world, all kinds of unpredictable changes happened for various reasons.
That was why he was especially looking forward to meeting Rugal, to see just how strong he really was.
Although the Kagura sisters no longer doubted Aiden's strength, after hearing his words, both women still shook their heads slightly.
Kagura Maki continued, "If Rugal really has control over Orochi's power, then leave him to us. I've heard that Yagami Iori has also obtained an invitation, apparently he snatched it from someone else."
"So with Kusanagi Kyo and us, the Three Sacred Treasures families are all present this time. Dealing with Orochi and those who wield Orochi's power is what we're best at."
"That works. I won't steal your spotlight," Aiden said after thinking it over, nodding as he did so, though there was a hint of regret in his heart.
Still, he didn't say anything more.
He just had a vague feeling that things wouldn't be that simple. After all, every King of Fighters tournament always came with unexpected incidents.
But if something unexpected really did happen, that was actually what he most wanted to see.
After all, what's the point of a plain, boring tournament?