Description: Out for an evening jog, Mini-Kyo comes upon a despondent Karin and wages war (in his own bizarre, almost slapstick fashion) with the Kanzuki family philosophy in a really touching scene reminiscent of "Rudy" or, perhaps, the original "The Longest Yard", which was actually sort of an emotional movie. I swear, this scene wasn't meant to be so freakin' meta, either.
Sound Beach, at night. During the day this is one of the liveliest summer spots in all of Southtown, but as actual night falls people clear out to go uptown for the club scenes. Thus many parts of the beach and boardwalk are, in fact, deserted, with only the crashing of waves to keep individuals company.
Individuals like Karin Kanzuki, dressed in a black sleeveless one-piece dress and sandals, who are sitting on the edge of the boardwalk and looking out to sea. No frappucino, no Tao of Pooh. No crowded mall. Not even meditation with Sakura at the Kim dojo... just Karin, the sand, the moon, and the waves. In fact, a number of passersby are, well out of earshot or visual range, pointing at the girl who, staring at the moon by herself, has the appearance of a sad sculpture.
Sound Beach at night is also perfect for certain other individuals that go by the name of Shingo Yabuki to go jogging by on their usual trek around Southtown as part of their training as a fighter. The boy prefering to do his running at night for the obvious reason of avoiding the scorching scorchyness of the scorchy sun. Because, you know, it is hot. Seriously. This way he can cover a lot more ground without getting thirsty or drained from the heat than during the day. Not to mention any prying eyes that would wonder just what the heck he was doing.
As Shingo jogs onto the boardwalk on his way down to the actual beach, his footsteps can be heard clearly in the night air falling on the wooden planks that consist of the walkway. Serving as a sort of accompany to the crashing waves and also probably alerting anyone within earshot of his arrival and presence. Anyone casting a glance at him would see that this boy is not wearing his normal outfit. He has instead opted for a blue track pants and a matching blue sleeveless t-shirt. The pants having some sort of reflective material as a precaution for any cars driving around. Just in case he needs to be on the road. As it stands, he hasn't really noticed the lone figure sitting on the edge. But he is getting closer. So who knows?
Well, perhaps it's to Shingo's benefit that Karin isn't really paying attention to him... or, indeed, to anything else in the universe, apparently. She hasn't moved an inch for what seems like a really insane length of time, simply sitting and staring at the moon. She doesn't mind the sun so much -- perhaps it's the blonde in her -- but the moon is certainly more conducive to introspection, which is what she appears to be doing.
And in truth, if Shingo keeps on the boardwalk she's almost impossible to miss, since the boardwalk's not all that wide and she's sitting right on it in a cruel parody of "Beaches". Of course, for someone who knows her, there might be a lot of questions here... mainly, why is she in a little black dress at the beach when she's supposed to be doing rigorous training with Ryu and Sakura up at the dojo?
Less sensitive people might suggest that she has a 'part-time job' as it were at night. If you knew what they meant. How she was probably waiting for a 'date' to show up. Fortunately, there aren't any 'less sensitive' people here. Just a doofus. As he's so affectionately called by his girlfriend. This same doofus does in fact continue along the boardwalk. He has a preference to keep jogging in a straight line and avoid any unnecessary turns if possible. This means that he'll keep on with the jogging on the boardwalk till it deadends onto the actual sand of the beach. Which would be very possible if a certain blonde young woman wasn't in his way. And he's not talking about a pirate queen. Although that would've been his prefered pick for familiar females to run into.
Coming upon her, Shingo doesn't notice Karin at first. By that, he doesn't recognize her as someone he knows. It is dark save for the moonlight reflecting off the waves and the lights of the city in the distance. Not noticing her would mean he was blind and able to phase through objects. Last time he checked, he wasn't either of those. So he merely excuses himself politely and all friendly-like while offering a nod and a, "Good evening~!"
While random environmental noise doesn't catch her attention -- lord knows that was filtered out long ago, even for a novice mediteer and maker-up of new words like Karin. That said, direct address has the ability to pierce that filtering wall of internal sound, and at the mention of a greeting the figure on the boardwalk turns around...
With an expression of curiosity that immediately becomes an expression of intense regret, and then a completely impassive look, Karin gives Shingo the eye. "Oh. It's you," she says tonelessly, then looking back at the moon just like she was before, effectively motionless. "Out for an evening jog? Or looking for a chance to gloat?"
Oh snaps! It's Karin! What are the chances? In this city? You'd be surprised. If Shingo were a paranoid conspiracy theorist (as if there are any other type of conspiracy theorists) he would use this as another point in his favour that somehow all their lives were being controlled by beings in another dimension that were somehow using words and text to play out the events that happen to them for entertainment. Of course that's all very crazy and this is all due to coincidence more than likely.
As for Karin? What a wonderful way for her to return a greeting. Yes, it's him. Maybe she was expecting a knight in shining armour to whisk here away atop his white stallion? If so, she'd be waiting for a while. Unless he put in a call to Benimaru or Dong Hwan. In which case, well...we all know how that'd turn out. So back to the circumstances at hand. She actually thinks he's here to gloat? Hah. Shingo would never lower himself to do that. It's not very...friendly.
"Yeah. Jogging. I didn't even know you'd be here." If no one has guessed by now he put a pause on his jogging in order to conversate with her. See! She's not the only one that can make up words. "And even if I did...what is there to gloat about?" Shingo scratches his head quite unsure what she's talking about. He has no recollection of the events in question.
The blonde doesn't actually turn her head away from the skyward angle it's currently occupying, but she does close her eyes and let out a little sigh. "How did I know you'd say something like that," she breathes out, almost like a sigh of resignation. "That ridiculous earnest attitude makes me wonder about you," she says bluntly, again turning her head to regard Shingo neutrally. "Perhaps it's simply too much time spent in the world of business, but people who smile all the time and say nothing but friendly, honest things..." Her eyes narrow. "They're the types who always have something to hide."
Bracing herself by putting her arms out to the side and leaning her torso back a bit, Karin sighs. "I didn't know I'd be here either. After I l..." There's a pause, and though it's a silent effort, there is a discernable expenditure of energy on Karin's part to control her words. "After we met this afternoon I broke my rule and went into the Kanzuki offices. And now I can't seem to get myself to go back to Kim's dojo."
It seems that she's finally onto him. He can't risk allowing her to inform anyone else what she has discovered. But she is the self-proclaimed rival of his girlfriend. If something were to happen to her then Sakura would be suspicious. Regardless. Shingo also can't have her ruining all his careful planning and scheming. Loose ends. You understand. Though, he should find out just how much she knows. 'Huh?' Shingo blinks. 'Something to hide? What is she talking about?'. These are his thoughts and not yours. There will be time to think about that later. She said something about breaking a rule? Interesting. From the context he guesses that she made a promise to herself to avoid business in favour of training at the Kim dojo with Sakura and Ryu.
"Why not? Something came up at the office or...?" Has it ever been mentioned that sometimes Shingo can be a bit naive? If not...well. He can be. As if it weren't obvious enough from his question. Or. It could be all part of his clever plan to understand the girl that much better with subtlety without her even noticing. That is, after all, the whole point of being subtle. It looks like this is going to take some time out of his schedule and gets comfortable on the other railing by leaning back against it facing Karin.
A derisive snort... or something approximating what a derisive snort would sound like made by someone who would never, ever do something so crass and proletarian as 'snort'. It sort of sounds like a cross between a 'feh' and a 'hmph'. "No. Actually, all I did was walk in and hear a status report from Shibazaki. I didn't really do anything." A pause; she's back to looking at the moon. Considering the word for 'moon' is part of her last name perhaps she simply feels better observing it? Who knows. "But when I tried to go back, I just... couldn't." A lame explanation.
"It's not a good explanation," she admits, reaching down to run her fingers through the sand at her feet distractedly, before turning to look at Shingo with an expression. "I felt a deep, deep envy of you and Sakura both and that devil-may-care attitude toward fighting you have." And then, back at the sea in a bizarre replay of her conversation with Dong Hwan a few days past. "Just like last week. On this very beach a boxer beat the daylights out of you... and yet you sat there, grinning like a fool. I... can't do that." A beat. "So perhaps... I have come to realize, I might not be meant for fighting."
Sounds like she's been thinking on this for some time. How long has she been here staring at the moon before he showed up? Must've been a while. Either that or it's just been quiet coupled with the ambience that has allowed her to reach this level of insight. Shingo takes this all in carefully; listening to every word she says. Normally he would be smiling but this just doesn't seem like one of those times. Not with her current mood. Until she brings up his ownage by HeavyD last Saturday.
"Yep! He sure did!" Shingo chuckles and rubs his head in rememberance. "Oh, sorry." That's right. Got to remember that this is serious time. "Well, I can't speak for Sakura, but I'm like that because I don't see any point in being upset over a loss or if I don't do too well in a match. It's all a learning experience and no matter what the outcome I can always come out with something new. That and life is too good to be worried over something as simple as a loss." Shingo shrugs. "Yeah, we're fighters and all. And no one likes to lose. But...you can't win them all. And to me as long as everyone learns something or has fun then we're all winners." He looks at Karin and flashes her a grin. "So...let me ask you this. If you don't mind? Why did you become a fighter in the first place?" That seems to the be the awfully popular question being tossed around by everyone nowadays. Why do you fight?
A pause. Believe it or not, only one other person has ever asked Karin that question, and that person was her father... who wasn't exactly pleased with her decision to do so, either. There was that whole business with the eagle, and the grizzly bear, and the lion... nasty stuff. Pausing a moment to reflect on it, Karin glances back at the sky and closes her eyes.
"Because I was bored," she admits in a quiet tone. "The Kanzuki style isn't exactly hereditary because not everyone in the family has been interested in the martial arts. It's actually from the Sengoku period," she explains, Little Miss History Book. "My father, for example. But... in academics, business, sports. Anything I wanted to try, the family's motto was right there behind me: 'be the victor in everything'." Karin's eyes were, before, merely closed in reflection; now they are shut tight in frustration. "And no matter what I fulfilled that motto to the letter. There was nobody who could stand up to my prowess in any arena. So I looked for a new place to test myself and found street fighting."
"So what? You got into fighting because you were bored and wanted a challenge? Nothing wrong with that. Let me ask you something else though. Does that family motto go on to say that 'be a victor in everything and if not then quit'?" Shingo asks rather flat-out. He doesn't mean anything 'bad' by it, per se. It's his way of making a point by asking a question and hopefully having Karin see the purpose behind him asking it herself without him having to tell her. This is because if you tell someone something they think you're trying to convince them or are lying. But if they realise it for themselves then it must be true. That's the theory anyways.
So he -can- be prone towards bouts of serious conversation that can actually make sense without getting too wordy. "Because in all honesty it seems that now that you've got the challenge you've been looking for you're ready to give it up." There's another shrug from the boy and he gives her a half-smile after exhaling a little.
Karin's not as weak-minded as all that, however; for all Shingo knows she's the winner at psychology, such as it is. Or was. "It's not as if I've fought two or three times, lost, and simply decided to give up," she says. Which... curiously enough, is exactly what it sounds like she's doing. "No, the Kanzuki motto doesn't say 'and then give up'. But there is such a thing as recognizing a failing venture and excising it while you have the chance."
She turns around and glances at Shingo. "You know yourself the amount of money those Saturday Night Fights draw. I wasn't on them simply for the thrill of combat. It was as much a publicity venture for the zaibatsu as anything else." The blonde looks back out to sea. "There's no shame in admitting your limitations if pursuing them is damaging you and those around you."
"You have a point there. But Karin, it's not like you've lost every fight you've ever been in, have you?" He highly doubts this. If that were the case then she would've given up long ago. Or so he wages. "Alright. So if I understand this correctly, all that training you've done to become a better fighter and to one day defeat Sakura is just going down the drain because you don't seem be doing well right now?" Shingo scratches the side of his cheek trying to work all this out in his head. It's hard for him to gasp anyone just wanting to give up something as fun as street-fighting just because they're not the best in it.
"There's also no shame in sticking it out when it seems tough. Don't they say that pressure makes diamonds? Like, take me for example. I want more than anything to be just like Kusanagi-san and be able to shoot flame from my fingertips like he does. I haven't yet and there are plent of people who say I never will because of how it is a bloodline thing." Those are all the haters he's got. "So what? That doesn't mean I'm going to give up. If anything, that makes me want to work harder in order to become better. But then again, they also say that I'm kinda weird. So that's just me."
Poor Shingo. At maybe any other time that declaration of earnest honesty would probably have earned Karin's respect... at least in part because it takes guts to admit to such sheer, willful lunacy. However, she's either too depressed or too callous to give a damn one way or the other. "It does sound a little foolish," she admits, unable to keep herself from saying it, "but it was Sakura's same foolishness that led her to be able to emulate 'that man's fighting style." And yet Karin's voice is still toneless and cold, even when discussing her rival.
The blonde looks out to sea again. "'All of them'? No. I beat Dong Hwan, though he'll profess to the end of his life that he took it easy on me because I'm a girl," she says, as if this were a crime slightly above murder on the Sins Most Likely To Warrant Execution list. "But... despite Ryu and Sakura's attempts to train me I haven't improved a whit. Because of me one of Metro City's military installations fell to some psychotic kung-fu fighter in a gas mask." That is a little exaggeration, not that Shingo could tell. "I've brought shame to the Kanzuki name with loss after loss and all the time that damned motto is hounding me." Ah, now we get to it.
Poor Shingo, nothing. He's the one that is always looking on the bright side of things. To him it's not lunacy. It's an inevitablity. One day for sure he too will be able to shoot flame like the rest of the Kusanagi line. He knows this as long as he continues believing in himself and training as hard as he can. Speaking of which...Shingo titls his head to the side and asks, "And you've been training with them what? A whole year now? Six months?" He -knows- she hasn't actually been training with Ryu and Sakura for more than a several days. If not a week already. But just wondering. Seeing that as with anything, it takes time to improve. Moreso if one is not exactly a 'genius' as it were.
Alright, she's through with word games. "You know exactly how long it's been," Karin snaps, giving Shingo an angry look. "But while I might not be a 'fighting genius' like Sakura -- your words, by the way -- I'm not exactly a slow learner, either." She looks out toward the sea, almost as if realizing she'd lost her temper rather stupidly, and then follows, quietly enough, "They're humoring me. Or at least, Ryu is. 'You have potential, you could be something someday' is the worst phrase in the world." The blonde turns back to Shingo with a vehemently annoyed expression. "Because the unspoken rider is, 'just not as good as me'."
Her snapping at him like that wasn't unexpeceted. He knew it was coming the minute he asked her the question as to how long she's been with the two Ansatsuken fighters. "Right, right. I do. But I guess what I was getting at is that you can't train for a few days and instantly see results. You should really give it more time. At least a month or two. It's like with a business. I'm not sure...so correct me if I'm wrong. Doesn't it take generally a year to be able to tell if a new business is going to flop or not? It's not exactly the best comparison. But why not do the same? Why no give yourself a year at the most and see how it goes from there?" Shingo smiles, "And it doesn't even have to be with them. What works for Sakura may not work for you. Finding your own way is the best way." Pause. "And oh yeah. If your family's motto is such a bother to you, why just not think about it? Maybe that'll help clear your mind without all the pressure of your family on your shoulders?" You can tell he's doing his best to be helpful and encouraging. How effective he's being is up for debate though.
"Not think about it..." The way Karin says that suggests perhaps a moment or two seriously considering that, and the despondent way in which she responds after that moment is not encouraging. "I've tried. Once or twice. It never lasts... it's easy to blame it on the Kanzuki family motto, but part of that is built into my personality too. Being the victor feels better than being the loser." And, she adds without actually saying so, being the victor makes you better than the loser.
After a moment, Karin stands up and brushes the sand from her calves, smoothing out her dress. "But it's never that simple. Why does it have to be a 'choice'? It's not even really about that training." She glances off over Shingo's shoulder, in the direction of the (far off) Kim dojo. "It took me years of hard work to master the Kanzuki style. It's more that... I'm not having fun anymore." A pause, and then Karin shakes her head, looking back at Shingo. "No, that's not it. It's that my definition of 'fun' means victory. And I don't know how congruent that is with fighting. I've never had a match where I simply... fought. It was always victory, victory, victory. That was my 'fun'."
Shingo actually falls silent as his mind processes all of what he's being told by the blonde. So that's how she feels...hrm. Karin's been moving about from standing to crouching dusting off sand and smoothing out the wrinkles of her dress whereas Shingo has reamined in the same position he has always been; leaning against the railing. "Oh." Yeah. That's all he has to say. All that from Karin and all he has to say is 'Oh'. He does stretch his arms out in front of himself as he thinks about this.
"Well. Have you ever given just fighting a shot? You know. With nothing on the line. No honour. No pride. No bragging rights. Just a straight out match. To see how it is?" Maybe he's going somewhere with this. Or maybe he's just wondering on working his way towards a better suggestion for her.
Perhaps it's simply out of weariness, or perhaps Shingo's effervescent personality is having an affect on Karin simply by osmosis, but she turns to him with what might even be considered her typical wry smile. "When are honor and pride ever *not* on the line, Shingo?" she asks, although there is something in her tone that suggests it is an actual, honest-to-God question. After a pause, she does say: "But in a literal answer to your question: No. Only those ridiculous Saturday Night bouts, or when my life was on the line in Metro City... or against Sakura." She doesn't explain that last one; she shouldn't have to, either. Another weighty pause rolls around, and then she adds: "Of course, there have been one or two impromptu fights." A beat. "Like... this afternoon." Seethe. SEETHE.
He sure walked right into that one. Cough. Time to change topics! "Heheh. Well, true. But you know what I mean." Or does she? He really hopes so. Lest he ends up coming across as though he were some goofy optimistic doofus. Staying as much as he can from mentioning certain impromptu fights she's had recently. "Okay. So...uh...darn. I forgot where I was going with this." Oh yes he did just say what you thought he said. Shingo forgot the point he was trying to make to the girl. "Ok, I remember now. How about fighting just for fun? Without worrying about just winning or losing. Like, don't focus on the outcome but on the rush of adrenaline. The excitement from testing out your skills against someone else. Think of it like a workout almost. If that makes sense," he offers with a grin. Not sure if he explained it in a way she could understand.
With a shake of the finger, the blonde gives Shingo a reproving look. "You didn't answer my question." A beat. "But you're saying," Karin condenses with a faintly amused expression, "to think of it like training." There's a pause while she looks at the moon again, as if it had some answer to the questions she's been posing this entire last week, both to herself and to others. "I don't really know that I can," she admits, and it doesn't look like she's happy to admit it either. However, after a long pause, she turns back to Shingo and nods. "Perhaps, simply as a service to you for having listened to all this babbling, I shall give it a try."
What question is that? Oh yeah. The whole honour and pride being on the line bit. It must've slipped his mind. Yeah, that's it. Slipped his mind. He's been working on encouraging Karin to continue being a fighter and cheering her up that he totally and utterly forgot that one question she asked him. Maybe if keeps up with the forgetting it'll slip her mind too.
Shingo nodnods with a grin, "You should. After all, what have you got to lose, right?" Nothing to lose, everything to gain. Sure. Why not give it a shot, Karin? Dang. He's just a fountain of advice tonight, isn't he? Ok so, not really. But he feels that he should be taking notes. He could this stuff when 'training' his 'student', Shinobu. Ah well. Next time for sure. "And it was no problem at all. I'm glad to help out however I can. If that means hanging around and listening to other people talk about what's bothering them, then I will. So anytime you need someone to listen..." A thumbs-up is given in lieu of actually finishing his statement. He also gets the feeling that they're about done here. Or are they?
"Shingo..." There's a pause. It's the type of pause you get in mismatch romance movies right before the admission that she thinks you're right for her even though she's a rich debutante and you're a street thug from the wrong side of the tracks. Then she turns around and flips those golden curls over her shoulder. "I will honor your effort here at least by giving what you've said serious thought." And she sounds like she means that. "Though I'll make you eat the words that I'm not a 'fighting genius' like Sakura." She grins and puts a hand to her hip. "As the old song goes, 'anything she can do I can do better'. So when the time comes for that match, I hope you're prepared to kiss the floor."
Hee. Now that's the Karin he knows. Shingo's mouth spreads into a smile as she has seemingly turned around from when they first started talking this night and he nods at her. "I always am!" Another thumbs-up is given and he nods to her once more. Glad to have her back. She's much cooler when she's like this. "Now. If you'll excuse me. I think I'd better finish up my jog and head home. Good night, Karin." Shingo waves to her and takes off jogging back to the city. He's delighted he could help her out. That's one down. Only so more other residents of this fine city to go!
Log created by Karin, and last modified on 00:09:04 08/19/2005.