Tokyo Knights: The Odd Jobs X Files

More than a decade ago, Akuma had already stood before the gates of the supernatural realm, but because he had taken the wrong path, he had been lingering at the gates, unable to enter.

Once he entered it, Gouki felt as if the world had opened up before him, and all the accumulation of the past ten years was released, so his strength naturally increased by leaps and bounds.

Six months have passed, and Akuma has fully digested the accumulation of the past ten years, resulting in a leap in his strength.

"I came to Paris to take care of some business, and I sensed this girl's presence, so I decided to come and see her."

"Gouki said calmly."

Yuri Sakazaki's "Battle Spirit Wave" is derived from "Killing Spirit Wave," so her aura is very special, and Akuma can sense it even from a great distance.

As he spoke, Akuma shook his head slightly: "So much time has passed, and your strength has only improved this little bit. You've been too complacent!"

Li Xin couldn't help but smile wryly upon hearing Hao Gui's words.

To be fair, Yuri Sakazaki is quite diligent in her martial arts training, but she is far inferior to a martial arts fanatic like Akuma.

Akuma can dedicate all his time outside of eating and sleeping to martial arts training, but Yuri Sakazaki obviously can't.

Moreover, in terms of improving her skills, Yuri Sakazaki has actually made rapid progress.

It's important to know that Yuri Sakazaki didn't start practicing martial arts from a young age; she only began learning after she turned seventeen. She could learn the moves quickly, but her internal energy cultivation couldn't be achieved overnight. Therefore, Yuri Sakazaki's internal strength remained mediocre, which became her most fatal weakness.

After practicing "Killing Intent Wave", Yuri Sakazaki's internal energy cultivation greatly increased, and she made up for her last weakness, truly entering the ranks of first-class extraordinary people.

From having nothing to becoming a first-class prodigy, Yuri Sakazaki only took five years at most, truly deserving the title of "martial arts prodigy".

However, in Akuma's eyes, such achievements were still somewhat insufficient, which can only be attributed to the fact that his master, Akuma, was far too strict.

"Fine, considering she completely transformed 'Battle Intent Fluctuation' into a martial art suitable for her own physique, I'll let her go this time."

Gouki snorted.

With his cultivation level, he could naturally sense that Sakazaki Yuri's aura was much purer than when she first created "Battle Intent Wave" half a year ago. It was clear that she had improved "Battle Intent Wave". Considering this improvement, Akuma decided to give Sakazaki Yuri another chance.

Suddenly, Gouki added, "But if her strength still doesn't meet my expectations next time we meet, I'll arrest her and lock her up. If her strength still doesn't improve to my satisfaction, I'll keep her locked up!"

Li Xin couldn't help but feel sorry for Sakazaki Yuri. Being entangled with such a martial arts fanatic, she was probably in for a rough time.

Akuma withdrew his gaze from Yuri Sakazaki and turned to Li Xin: "It's been half a year, and your martial arts have improved a lot. After I finish my business, let's spar."

Li Xin instinctively wanted to refuse this request, but when he remembered that he and Wu Ji had fought to the death and that Hao Gui had saved him, his heart softened and he said, "Alright, let's agree on a suitable place and have a fair fight."

"readily!"

Hao Gui nodded, then said to Li Xin, "I'll come find you after I've finished my business."

With that, Gouki leaped forward, his figure already a hundred meters away, and in a few moments he completely disappeared from Li Xin's sight.

Li Xin knew that a master like Akuma would naturally find him unless he intentionally hid, so he didn't ask for his contact information. Instead, he jumped off the building and went back to find Mai Shiranui and the others—after all, he had promised to be her porter, and Li Xin couldn't go back on his word.

After parting ways with Li Xin, Gouki landed outside a secluded factory, where several men in black were watching something. Upon seeing Gouki arrive, they immediately stepped forward and said, "'Demon Fist' Master, where did you just go?"

Do I need to explain to you where I'm going?

Gouki said coldly, his attitude quite impolite.

The men in black dared not ask any more questions and could only lower their heads and say, "'Demon Fist' can go wherever he wants, but we are currently on a mission..."

Akuma said impatiently, "Just destroy the research institute under this factory, right? Hurry up and finish it, I have other things to do."

The men in black nodded repeatedly: "Yes, 'Demon Fist', just destroy the research institute hidden under this factory. That's Donovan's secret research institute, our 'Dark' enemy. Destroy it and teach Donovan a lesson, let him know that we 'Dark' are not to be trifled with!"

If we divide the world of extraordinary people into black and white, then "darkness" undoubtedly belongs to the underworld.

For underworld organizations to establish themselves, they must be ruthless. Anyone who dares to provoke them will be either killed or severely punished.

The conflict between "Darkness" and Donovan may seem minor, but when it arises, it can only end when one side compromises.

"Darkness" will definitely not compromise, and Donovan... he doesn't even know how he provoked "Darkness," so why would he compromise?

In short, after "Darkness" destroyed "DOATEC's" branch in Japan, and failed to receive Donovan's offer of peace, "Darkness" had no choice but to attack "DOATEC's" home base.

This time, representing the "Darkness" is Akuma, a newcomer to the karate group who recently joined the "Darkness" just like "Nine Heavens Thunder God"!

"Enough with the rambling, just wipe them all out, right?"

Hao Gui did not share the same hatred with those men in black. He regarded this as an insignificant task and planned to fight Li Xin to avenge the humiliation of being defeated by Li Xin.

Chapter 698 The Cleaning Girl

"What? My secret base has been destroyed by the people of 'Darkness'?"

Donovan was furious when he heard his subordinate's report.

"Yes, and not just one. Apart from a few of the most secretive research institutes, all the secret bases in Paris have been destroyed, and the 'darkness' shows no signs of stopping. The destruction has begun to spread to other areas."

The subordinate continued his report, and after finishing, he swallowed hard and said, "Boss, what should we do next? We can't let them continue like this..."

The experts from "Darkness" are incredibly destructive. Once they find any secret base, one punch will shatter the entire base, leaving almost no survivors. They also destroy a large number of experimental subjects and research data.

Donovan frowned and told his subordinates, "Have all the researchers evacuate with their research data and experimental samples first. Move as much equipment as possible. We'll deal with the 'Dark' people after I've finished my business here."

Judging from his subordinates' descriptions, the person from the "Dark" side is likely also an extraordinary powerhouse. Right now, it's a crucial time for him and Fim to compete for "DOATEC," and Donovan doesn't have the extra energy to deal with that guy for the time being. Everything will have to wait until the "DOA" competition ends tomorrow before he can free up his hands to deal with the trouble from the "Dark" side.

It's alright. We've made thorough preparations for "X," and as for that "dark" superhuman, we're two against one, so we're sure to defeat him. As long as we get through this, the world will be mine!

Donovan told himself that.

He still couldn't understand what had gotten into "Darkness" and why it was launching such an attack on him. Could it be that his secret experimentation on members of "Darkness" had been exposed?

Yes, that's right. Just as Miyako didn't tell Donovan the truth, Donovan didn't tell Miyako everything either.

In order to capture fighters for his research, Donovan has been impersonating someone else to make murder requests to "Dark" for years, and then devising a plan to capture the assassins sent by "Dark".

"Darkness" is an organization that is extremely indifferent to the lives of its subordinates. Even if an organization member dies in a mission, it will only assume that the subordinate is not strong enough. Apart from sending the subordinate to carry out the mission again, it will not deliberately investigate how the subordinate died, let alone retrieve the body. For Donovan, "Darkness" is simply the most suitable organization to "harvest experimental materials".

Over the years, Donovan has used this method to secretly capture many members of "Dark" as experimental subjects. "DOATEC's" modification technology has advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years, and "Dark" can be said to have contributed a great deal to this.

So when "Darkness" suddenly turned on him, Donovan's first reaction was that something had happened, and he even felt that Miyako had been implicated by him and had gotten into this trouble out of nowhere.

It can only be said that birds of a feather flock together; neither Donovan nor Miyako are good people.

....................................

"Donovan's secret research facility has been destroyed?"

Li Xin also received the news along with Donovan. After returning to the castle with Mai Shiranui and the others, he immediately learned from Hayate that Donovan's secret research facility had been destroyed.

What surprised Li Xin even more was that, according to Hayate's description, the person who destroyed Donovan's secret research institute was actually Akuma!

Could it be that what Akuma meant by "coming to Paris to take care of some business" is this?

Li Xin asked suspiciously.

While Li Xin was speculating about Akuma's motives, Hayate asked Li Xin, "Now that all of Donovan's research institutes in Paris have been destroyed, what should we do next?"

Originally, the elites of their Ninja Village had already laid in ambush outside those secret research institutes, waiting for the "DOA" competition to begin tomorrow and for Donovan's attention to be drawn to the competition so that they could immediately launch an attack. However, someone beat them to it, causing Hayate and the elites of the Ninja Village to have prepared for so long in vain.

"Let's withdraw first."

Li Xin said to Jifeng.

Although it's unclear how Akuma and Donovan got into a fight, the fact that another force is diverting Donovan's attention is a good thing for Li Xin and his team.

Jifeng nodded. There was no other way now. Now, all that was left was to wait for the "DOA" competition tomorrow.

....................................

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the fighting tournament hosted by the 'DOATEC' Group, 'Dead or Alive'!"

"After a brutal preliminary round, we have finally selected thirty-two outstanding fighters. On the 'Freedom Survivor,' the world's largest luxury cruise ship built with honor by the 'DOATEC' Group, these thirty-two fighters will engage in fierce battles with the warriors trained by 'DOATEC'. Death or survival, let us witness it in this competition!"

"...Next, please welcome Mr. Fim Douglas, President of 'DOATEC,' to give a speech!"

On a massive white cruise ship, a presenter spoke loudly in an excited tone.

Inside the cruise ship's banquet hall, all the fighters had changed into formal attire and sat upright. Along with them in the banquet hall were many other guests dressed in fine clothes, who were clearly members of high society.

The "DOA" tournament has been brewing for a long time, and the fact that it involves a series of internal struggles within "DOATEC" is already widely known. Such a fighting tournament, which is destined to be incredibly exciting both on and off stage, has naturally attracted the attention of countless people, making many high-society elites eager to witness the outcome of the tournament in person.

In the banquet hall, an old man frowned upon hearing the host's words: "Modified warriors, huh? Forget it. Whatever they are, as long as they stand in my way of winning the prize money, I will defeat them all!"

"Old man, stop thinking about the bonus, or you'll get beaten to death."

A Black man said in a flippant tone, "Before boarding the ship, you should have known the rules of this competition, right? This competition allows killing, which is why it's called 'DOA, Dead or Alive'!"

Before all the contestants who passed the qualifiers boarded the ship, "DOATEC" informed them of the dangers of the competition, including that their opponents might be modified warriors, that killing opponents was allowed during the competition, and required them to sign a waiver of liability—that "DOATEC" would not be held responsible for any deaths during the competition.

Upon hearing the Black man say "murder," the old man's eyelids twitched, but he still resolutely said, "I've come this far, already risking my life. I won't give up until I achieve my goal!"

The Black man couldn't help but give the old man a thumbs up for his words: "What an ambitious old man! You can't underestimate him! By the way, could you lend me your prize money after the competition? I'm planning to go to Las Vegas for a big gamble after the competition, and I'm really short of start-up capital. If you're willing to lend me your prize money, I can pay you back double afterwards!"

"Get lost! I don't talk to gamblers!"

The old man said angrily.

Having failed to raise funds, the Black man scratched his head and then began looking for his next target.

"...Nowadays, the practice of using money as a financial commodity for speculation is rampant..."

"...Nature is being destroyed, and the human living environment is becoming increasingly harsh..."

On the podium, Fim was giving a long speech. Li Xin listened for a while but couldn't hear anything related to the conference. He couldn't help but whisper, "What does all this have to do with the competition?"

This is almost as common as when he was in school, when the principal would say "Let me say a few words" at various ceremonies.

"There's no way around it. Over the years, no matter what kind of event it is, if the opening remarks don't mention 'environmental protection' a few times, it just doesn't have any class."

Helena whispered.

Li Xin: "..."

Aren't Westerners supposed to prefer getting things done? Why are they doing this kind of superficial stuff...?

After a long and pointless speech, Fim abruptly changed the subject and finally got to the point: "...Now I declare that the 'DOA' competition has officially begun!"

Upon hearing this, Li Xin immediately perked up. Finally, it had begun; he had almost fallen asleep!

The match took place on the deck of the cruise ship, the "Freedom Survivor," which truly lives up to its name as the world's largest luxury cruise ship. The deck space is so large that it could easily accommodate a football field and a basketball court.

The competition included 32 fighters, including Li Xin, and 32 modified warriors shrouded in cloaks.

The battle for survival between thirty-two fighters and thirty-two modified warriors has begun.

"When the match starts, prioritize survival and don't overexert yourself."

Li Xin spoke to the familiar fighters around him.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything reckless."

Mai Shiranui nodded; she had already heard Li Xin say that this match was not simple.

In fact, even without Li Xin's explanation, she could see the modified warriors standing opposite her. Although their faces were obscured by cloaks, the aura emanating from these guys was ominous, and they were definitely dangerous individuals.

Yuri Sakazaki scratched her head: "Speaking of which, I suddenly felt a little panicked. Could it be because of these things?"

Although she lost to Li Xin in the preliminary round, Yuri Sakazaki still passed the selection round through the revival round. The same goes for Tina, the American girl who agreed to "419" with Li Xin.

No, the reason you're panicking is far more terrifying than that.

Li Xin silently complained in his heart.

Apart from the contestants and a few "DOATEC" staff members maintaining order on the deck, there was no one else there; even the sailors were ordered not to approach the deck.

Meanwhile, the guests who had been in the banquet hall were leisurely watching the game on deck from inside the cabin through binoculars and surveillance cameras.

The previous "KOF" tournament has already shown these wealthy people that fighting games are exciting, but watching them requires caution. They are not "bloodthirsty spectators" who have nothing but one life to lose; they value their own safety. So even if they want to watch the games, they still need to pay attention to their own safety.

"The first match begins! Please welcome Xia and Warrior Number One to the stage!"

With a command from the staff of "DOATEC", the "DOA" competition officially began.

"Am I the first one?"

Xia took a deep breath and then walked towards the competition field with firm steps.

As Donovan's modified warrior stepped onto the arena, he pulled off his cloak, immediately drawing gasps from the fighters, for this modified warrior actually had four arms!

"Wow, Donovan has really come up with some interesting stuff!"

The modified warrior revealed his true form, eliciting gasps of surprise from the guests watching the match. They clearly hadn't expected Donovan's modified warrior to look like this; it was as if a monster had stepped out of a comic book.

However, after their initial surprise, the guests became excited.

They were well aware that this "DOA" competition was both a power struggle within "DOATEC" and a battle for its network lines.