KOF: Rise of the King of Fighters

As the sun set, the sky was painted with a magnificent, colorful sunset. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the trees lining the street. At that moment, Engetsu, Ryo Sakazaki, and Terry were resting in the Kyokugenryu Dojo.

Yan Yue took a sip of tea, then suddenly turned to the two people beside her and asked, "Tomorrow is King's birthday, have you prepared a gift?"

Upon hearing this question, Ryo Sakazaki couldn't help but show a hint of embarrassment, scratching his head as he said, "I've been training deep in the mountains all this time and had no idea. I just got back and heard it from you. Terry, what about you?" With that, he turned his gaze to Terry beside him.

Terry glanced at Ryo Sakazaki with a smile, then replied with a hint of smugness, "Haha, Ryo, you're too slow. As for my gift, Angelina already prepared it for me."

Yan Yue shook her head helplessly, then turned to look at Sakazaki Ryo and said slowly, "Sigh, it seems like you're the only one who hasn't prepared a gift yet, Ryo."

Upon hearing this, Ryo Sakazaki's eyes widened in disbelief. He exclaimed, "What? You all kept this from me! You didn't even tell me!" He was utterly shocked to find himself completely in the dark.

"Who's hiding it from you? You're clearly in the mountains all day long. If I hadn't found you, you might not have come back!"

Yan Yue's lips curled up slightly, revealing a meaningful smile, and she continued, "Don't be in such a hurry. Your birthday is tomorrow, you still have time to prepare."

However, Ryo Sakazaki frowned, looking troubled, and muttered, "The problem is, I have no idea what to send..."

At this moment, Yan Yue asked curiously, "Don't you and Robert often pick out gifts for Lily?"

Ryo Sakazaki scratched his head and replied, "Of course I know what Yuri likes, and she's always especially happy when I give her things."

Standing to the side, Terry smiled at Ryo Sakazaki and patted him on the shoulder: "That settles it. Logically speaking, choosing a girl's birthday present should be an easy thing for you."

Yan Yue couldn't help but slap her forehead, complaining helplessly, "Senior brother, can Sister King be compared to Baihe?"

Terry looked completely bewildered, utterly baffled by Yan Yue's reaction. He blinked, staring intently at her with a mixture of seriousness and confusion, and asked, "How is it different? Aren't they both girls? Shouldn't birthday gifts be about the same for everyone?"

Hearing Terry's resolute answer, Yan Yue couldn't help but marvel, "A true role model!"

Upon hearing this, Ryo Sakazaki suddenly fell silent. To him, King was more than just an ordinary girl.

Due to his childhood experiences, Ryo Sakazaki is rather introverted and rarely speaks to others, let alone talk to girls.

But King was one of the few female friends with whom he could chat freely and without reservation. Because of this, King held a unique place in Ryo Sakazaki's heart.

After a long while, Yoshitaka Sakazaki slowly spoke, "Hmm... I really don't know what kind of gift to give King right now..." After saying that, he sighed softly, his brows furrowed slightly, as if he was racking his brains to think of a suitable gift.

At this moment, Terry suggested, "Why don't we think about it together and see if we can come up with something special and suitable?" His gaze swept over Yan Yue and Sakazaki Ryo in turn, a hint of expectation flashing in his eyes.

“Let’s not make things worse.” Yan Yue frowned, her face showing obvious disgust. She first glanced at Terry, then turned her gaze to Ryo Sakazaki, and said in a tone that was both affirmative and encouraging, “I think Ryo can figure it out himself.”

Upon hearing what Yan Yue said, Sakazaki Ryo nodded thoughtfully in agreement and fell into deep thought.

Just then, as if suddenly remembering something, Terry slapped his forehead, a glint of excitement in his eyes, and blurted out, "Junior brother, could it be that Liang likes King?"

These sudden words startled Ryo Sakazaki, who was deep in thought. He trembled and almost lost his footing.

After regaining his senses, Ryo Sakazaki stared at Terry in astonishment, stammering, "Ah...wh...what?! Why would you suddenly say that?"

Clearly, Ryo Sakazaki was quite surprised and shocked by Terry's guess.

"Haha, don't be nervous..."

However, Yan Yue accurately sensed Sakazaki Ryo's somewhat shy expression, but said nothing more.

This pairing is a must-have!

……

Three days ago, the sky was overcast and a gentle breeze was blowing. Sakazaki Yuri complained to Engetsu with a dissatisfied look on her face: "Engetsu, it's all your fault!"

"Huh?" Yan Yue was completely bewildered.

"Ever since they found out that you often went down to the cliff to cultivate, my silly brother has been obsessed with it, spending all his time in the deep mountains and focusing all his attention on cultivation!"

Hearing this, Yan Yue smiled slightly and comforted her, "Baihe, isn't this a good thing? Think about it, this way, your brother's Limit Flow will become stronger and stronger."

However, Lily pouted and muttered, "Hmph, I don't think there's anything good about this!"

Yan Yue couldn't help but feel a little surprised: "Huh?"

Lily stood with her hands on her hips, indignantly explaining, "Isn't it because of this that our King sister has no one to chat with! She's all alone every day, how boring!"

Yan Yue was about to say something in rebuttal, but seeing Robert's crazy wink, she swallowed her words.

Yan Yue thought for a moment, then nodded as if suddenly realizing something, and said, "Oh... I see, I understand."

"So, Yan Yue, please, I really beg you to help me call my brother back. Because King's birthday is just a few days away." The person speaking put their hands together in front of their chest and looked at Yan Yue with a pleading expression.

"No problem! I love shipping couples the most!" Yan Yue patted her chest and assured him, her face beaming with excitement and anticipation.

What does "shipping" mean?

Yan Yue replied, "Athena taught me that. You can have a good chat about it sometime. Girls seem to like it quite a bit."

Standing to the side, Yuri Sakazaki blinked her big eyes. Although she didn't quite understand what Yan Yue meant by "shipping," she knew in her heart that Yan Yue was always very reliable and would do his best to complete anything he promised.

Just then, a dazzling flash of lightning streaked across the previously clear sky, followed by rolling, dark clouds that quickly filled the entire horizon. In an instant, a fierce wind began to howl, and soon after, large raindrops began to pelt down, and a torrential downpour descended upon the earth.

Seeing this sudden change in the weather, Yan Yue showed no fear whatsoever; on the contrary, she became even more excited.

Yan Yue suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "Haha, that's great! I'm going out now."

"Wait a minute! Don't you even check the weather forecast? There's a storm coming today!" Robert complained.

However, Yan Yue waved her hand dismissively and replied with a smile, "Hehe, it's precisely because it's a stormy day that there's a chance of even bigger waves at the beach, maybe even a tsunami."

Before she could finish speaking, Yan Yue had already activated the [Spirit Flow Circulation] skill within her body, and she rushed towards the door, disappearing into the vast rain and mist in the blink of an eye.

Sakazaki Yuri watched Engetsu's retreating figure until it disappeared from sight, a hint of worry on her beautiful face. She gently rested her rosy cheek on her hand and said anxiously to Robert beside her, "Robert, I don't know why, but I feel so uneasy, so worried..."

Upon hearing this, Robert reached out and patted Yuri Sakazaki on the shoulder, reassuring her, "Don't worry, dear Yuri. With Engetsu's immense strength and unwavering perseverance, he's training so diligently, he'll definitely be safe."

However, Yuri Sakazaki didn't seem completely reassured by Robert's words, and continued, "What I'm worried about is whether Engetsu will really call my brother back? Like my brother, he's become a bit obsessed with his cultivation..."

Upon hearing this, Robert was taken aback at first, then a helpless wry smile appeared on his face: "Ah? I see. I thought you were just worried about Yan Yue's safety..."

(Because there aren't many readers, and I'm just writing this for entertainment, and everyone has different tastes—some like a single female lead, and some like multiple female leads—I've decided to compromise. Each of the three main chapters will have three female leads!)