Years before....

The ground rumbled and groaned as rocks ground against each other, splitting inn several places as the earthquake began. Kairi struggled to maintain concentration as the vibrations shook him to the point of dizziness. However, he resisted the urge to run from the certain death that awaited him here, and clenched his fists tightly. Earthquake or no earthquake, he was tired of running from this strange adversary who had plagued his life for so long. However, the rising dust obscured his vision and he was unable to see his opponent clearly.

"show yourself, dammit!!" he cried. The laughter that rang out in response made him bite his lip in frustration. He wanted to go after his foe but the tremors made him unsteady, unable to keep focused without keeping still. However his opponent seemed at ease, calmly pacing back and forth before him. Kairi cursed his own weakness and tried to stay focused. The laughter stopped abruptly. Kairi choked as dust filled his nostrils.

"Weakling. You are a fool to face me. Stop obstructing me and let me receive your sister's soul. She deserves better than a weakling such as yourself."

The image of his sister flashed through his mind. Never! He thought. "Leave Hokuto alone!" he cried, charging the vague shape. A violent tremor caused him to topple off balance. As he stumbled, he was viciously kicked aside by a deadly roundhouse kick. As Kairi hit the ground, a massive suture appeared beneath him. He rolled away as it opened, seperatingg his opponent from him with a large chasm. "No!!" he shouted, as the chasm yawned even wider. "You won't get away!" He strained himself to the limit and jumped across the chasm. To his surprise, he made the jump, and kept his balance. However that moment of surprise was enough. A fist slammed into his face and he stumbled into the chasm. Using his last reserves of strength, he grabbed the edge of the chasm.

His evil assailant did not even bother to send him plummeting to his doom.Rather, he let Kairi scramble out, laughing like a demon. Kairi realised that he was being toyed with. In anger, he dashed into the cloud of dust, unmindful of the shaking earth. "MAAAAAA....RYURENBU!!!" he cried, letting loose his most powerful combination of attacks. His opponent took all the shattering blows and just as Kairi was about to deal the final, killing blow that would pierce his opponent's spine, he hesistated.

The sound uttered by his opponent was one of copmplete and utter disgust. "WEEEAK." he growled, viciously slamming his forearm into Kairi's head. "AND at that moment I had begun to think..."he grabbed Kairi's hair..."...that you just ...." he slammed Kairi's head into his knee..."....might..." he slammed Kairi's head again..."...have..." Kairi's head was rammed once more into the stone hard knee...""....potential!!" he slapped Kairi viviously across the face with his free arm. Kairi felt a searing pain split his face. He wailed in agony as the punishment tore through his consciousness. But the evil demon was not finished with him."

"Young fool. With your psychic training you prevent me from invading your sister's mind. But you are so stupid. Now you make it imperative that I kill you!!" As soon as these words were spoken, there was an explosion of rending stone and the ground they stood upon was suddenly launched into the air .As they rose with speed, the pain, anger, and deafening noise filled Kairi with a rage he had never felt before. Propelled by a force he had never experienced, he launched his clenched fist forward and upward, striking his opponent... and then he felt himself rising higher... and higher... and he cried out loud,"SHOOOORYUUKEN!!!" as he slammed his opponent away... seemingly into nothingness. And he himself was flung off thee raised platform... and as he plummeted into the deep his senses left him and coldness took over....smothering the growls of the angry earth.

When Kairi regained his senses, he remembered absolutely nothing. His head pounded, and he felt terribly uncomfortable. "WHO the hell am I?" he said aloud. "At leat I remember my name... I'm Kairi. Aah, my head hurts!!" His hand came to rest upon his own face. He winced as he felt the scar. "Ugh." he said aloud. "What have I been through? My mind is so blank... I'm sure I've lost my memory somehow."

He looked around him. Everywhere was in ruins, and the earth had some huge cracks in it. Pillars of stone rose meters into the air. "Whoa!" he gasped. "There must have been an earthquake here. I was probably caught up in it, and barely survived. I guess I'm lucky to be alive!!" He got to his feet. "I wonder if anyone else survived..." he said aloud. "Maybe they'll know who I am. Aaagh, my HEAD!!!"

Kairi began to walk through the ruins. There seemed to be no sign of life about him. The he heard something. He spun on his heels, and saw a small boy. "Why, hello there, little friend!" he said aloud. The boy began to inch away, uncertain of whether to run away or cry for help. "Hey, I'm not that scary, buddy. Come here, maybe we can be buddies. You evr seen me before?" The boy bolted. Kairi clenched his teeth. " I said COME HERE!" he shouted, dashing after the terrified boy. He grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and lifted him into the air. The boy screamed and struggled in Kairi's grasp. The noise caused Kairi's head to ache. "SHUT UP!" he shouted. The boy kept shouting. On impulse, Kairi smashed him with a deadly uppercut that launched him and the boy into the air. He heard a voice speak.

"Maryurekko"

Without knowing why, he launched himself into the air the moment his feet touched the ground. The boy had not yet landed, and the series of flying kicks that Kairi delivered ensured that his fragile little body stayed airborne. The voice spoke again.

"Mouryokassen"

The boy rose into the air, obviously dead already. But Kairi was filled with a perverse, twisted ecstasy. He felt his spirits rise. Suddenly he thrust his arms forward... and to his surprise a blast of purple energy leapt forth from his arms. As it connected with the boy's lifeless body, rocketing it into the distance, The voice spoke once more.

"Jinkihatsudo. It is complete."

"Whooooo! Boy I feel GREAT!!!" he cried. "Man, I dunno why, but killing that little runt made me feel REAL good! Man, where's his body? I just gotta smack him around some more! "

As Kairi ran, laughing out loud, towards the little victim of his insanity, the voice continued to speak in his head. "Now you are on the path of the Shura. Seek thou the ultimate, by thyself. I will be waiting."

"Man, if this ultimate guys bones break, count me in, man! Whooooey!!" Cried Kairi as he slammed the little boy's corpse into the ground repeatedly. He laughed like a mad hyaena and did not stop punishing the corpse until he heard the snap of multiple bones. "Heh, heh. Nice music." he snickered.