Just as Cloud successfully assembled his "Cross-Dimensional Avengers" and completed his own ultimate evolution, that "Cosmic Gourmet" far away on The Other Shore—Otoma=Raga—had apparently grown impatient.
She decided to serve some "classic nostalgic appetizers" before the main course, warming up this feast.
On this day, every television, internet feed, and phone screen worldwide was forcibly hijacked by the same signal.
The screen showed a deep starscape that seemed capable of swallowing everything. A soft female voice with a hint of languid amusement slowly spoke:
"Dear guests, there's still some time before the feast begins. To keep you from getting bored, I've specially prepared a delightful intermission show."
"I've retrieved some old friends you're familiar with from the dust of time. I hope their encore performances will let you feel the party's passion early."
"So... enjoy."
As her words fell, countless savage, arrogant, or sinister faces flashed across the screen.
Rugal Bernstein, Chris, Yashiro Nanakase, Krizalid, True Zero, Magaki...
Immediately, KOF venues worldwide triggered their highest-level alarms simultaneously!
...
America, South Town.
Under the moonlit night at the harbor, the sea breeze carried a hint of salt and... an ominous scent of blood.
Rugal stood brazenly atop a shipping container.
He was no longer an energy form but possessed a physical body. Though this body was temporarily assembled from Verse's residual energy and his soul fragments, that supreme arrogance and domineering presence hadn't diminished at all.
"Wahahahaha! I, Rugal, have returned!" He spread his arms, savoring the long-missed sensation of physical form. "This world will become my most perfect collection exhibition hall!"
Before him stood the assembled Fatal Fury Team and Art of Fighting Team.
"Rugal! You persistent ghost!" Terry pulled his cap lower, expression grave.
"Hmph, this time we'll send you back to hell for good!" Ryo assumed his Kyokugenryu stance.
"A bunch of former losers dare bark before me?" Rugal sneered disdainfully. Dark red energy erupted around him. "Then let me show you the new power I've been granted by that person!"
Battle was imminent.
...
NESTS Floating Fortress Ruins.
A massive, long-abandoned floating fortress hovered precariously in the stratosphere.
In the main control room, a man in a black coat and sunglasses, radiating cold menace, watched global chaos unfold on screens.
This was NESTS executive and former KOF '99 boss—Krizalid.
He too had been resurrected by Otoma=Raga and granted temporary control of this fortress.
"Hmph, what a boring farce." Krizalid spoke coldly. Unlike Rugal's fervor, he regarded his own "resurrection" with caution and skepticism.
"However, having received this chance at rebirth, I'd like to see how much that man who surpassed K' has grown."
As his words fell, the alloy door to the control room was directly melted through by a blast of violent flames.
K', Maxima, and Kula walked through the breach.
"Well, if it isn't the executive who couldn't handle losing and self-destructed." K''s lips curved mockingly. "What's wrong—grave grass three feet tall and you still want to come back for overtime?"
Krizalid adjusted his sunglasses, his gaze turning dangerous: "Still as sharp-tongued as ever, K'. Good timing—let me test whether my original body is qualified to survive until the feast begins!"
Their battle instantly ignited this long-dormant steel fortress.
...
Similar scenes played out simultaneously worldwide.
On a Tibetan snow peak, the resurrected "Tempest" Goenitz was summoning world-destroying storms while chanting apocalyptic hymns. His opponents: the Kagura sisters, sent by Cloud to "clean house," along with... Iori Yagami, forcibly dragged along as labor.
Atop the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the resurrected "Spell" Magaki was warping space, trying to turn all of Paris into his interdimensional toy.
Stopping him: the swordsman duo from Samurai Shodown—Haohmaru and Ukyo Tachibana.
"Hahahaha! This guy's techniques are really bizarre! Must be satisfying to cut down!" Haohmaru laughed heartily, his Fugudoku already thirsting for action.
"cough cough... Your swordsmanship, sir... cough... has no aesthetic whatsoever." Ukyo, between coughs, used his lightning-fast iaijutsu to slice through warped spatial rifts.
At Tokyo's Shibuya Crossing, resurrected members of Those From the Past—Shion, Mukai, and others—were creating chaos.
The "cleanup crew": the Street Fighter world's "urban management squad"—Ryu, Ken, and Chun-Li.
"Hadouken!" Ryu's steady energy blast shattered a massive rock golem.
"Shoryuken!" Ken's flashy rising uppercut sent a Chinese kung-fu-using zombie (Shion) skyward.
"Hyakuretsukyaku!" Chun-Li's signature kicks cleared out the small fry thoroughly.
A global "Boss Reunion Carnival" starring former final bosses had officially begun.
...
KOF Mansion, Command Center.
Cloud sat leisurely in the command chair, legs crossed. Before him, dozens of holographic screens displayed real-time "battle broadcasts" from around the world.
He held a bucket of popcorn, occasionally tossing kernels into his mouth, watching with keen interest.
"Mm... not bad, Terry's Power Geyser is stronger than before. He's clearly been training hard."
"Tsk tsk, K' is still so hot-tempered, goes off at the slightest thing."
Behind him stood a row of equally idle "top-tier combat forces."
Akuma stood with arms crossed, eyes closed, apparently finding these "small fry" beneath his interest.
Mai Shiranui and Athena were debating which handsome guy on screen had cooler fighting poses.
Leona, like a true soldier, analyzed the battlefield with an expressionless face, occasionally offering professional tactical suggestions—though no one was listening.
...
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