At the same time, he also felt this was an opportunity. He could tell that Aiden's "real" strength wasn't as good as Andy's, so maybe he could use this chance to make Aiden take him as his master…
"This matter will be put aside for now. Let's eat first." Chin Gentsai said again.
Chin Gentsai was a highly respected elder. Since he had spoken, this matter came to an end for the time being.
But during dinner afterward, the atmosphere wasn't as harmonious as it had been at noon. Fortunately, Terry was a good person, and since he had once apprenticed under Tung Fu Rue, he had learned some smooth ways of handling things. He kept talking at the table, and from time to time toasted Chin Gentsai and Aiden, so he didn't let the atmosphere cool down.
Since they had already eaten with Chin Gentsai at noon, and knew he was a rather easygoing person, Mai Shiranui and the other two girls also drank a bit of alcohol. This made Chin Gentsai very happy; people who love drinking also love the lively atmosphere of everyone drinking together.
And everyone tacitly avoided saying anything that would make people unhappy.
Just like that, dinner ended quickly.
When it was time to leave, Terry first stayed behind to chat with Chin Gentsai for a while, then went to find Aiden and the others alone to apologize.
Speaking of which, despite carrying a deep blood feud, Terry's personality was very sunny and cheerful. Other than matters involving revenge, he was quite open-minded and generous. He definitely wouldn't stand completely on Andy's side just because Andy was his younger brother.
So faced with this sunny big boy's apology, Aiden and the others happily accepted it. After all, this whole thing had nothing to do with him.
After that, Terry left first with Andy and Higashi Joe.
However, before leaving, Andy still glared viciously at Aiden, as if he wanted to say something harsh, but he was directly lifted by the collar and dragged into the car by his big brother Terry.
Seeing the three members of the Hungry Wolves team drive away, Mai Shiranui let out a long breath of relief. Then she turned and hugged Aiden. Even though the matter wasn't fully resolved yet, she had already completely let it go.
Aiden gently patted Mai Shiranui on the back, and just as he was about to say something, Chin Gentsai came over with his two disciples.
Seeing them approach, Mai Shiranui immediately let go of Aiden and obediently stood aside. In front of an elder, she was still a little shy.
Chin Gentsai looked at her with a smiling expression, then turned to Aiden and said, "Aiden, I heard earlier that you're going to participate in this KOF tournament?"
Aiden nodded. "Yes, and I've already formed a team."
"Oh! I see!" Chin Gentsai also nodded. After giving Aiden a deep look, he called out to Athena beside him.
Athena understood. She took out a small notebook from her little bag and handed it to Aiden.
"These are some insights and experiences I've recorded during my cultivation. Take them back and read them. They should be helpful to you." Chin Gentsai said with narrowed eyes and a smile.
"This…" Aiden froze.
Chin Gentsai's cultivation insights, this basically counted as martial arts secret manuals, right?
If he accepted this, wouldn't it be the same as agreeing to be his disciple?
He didn't really want to accept it.
But Mai Shiranui happily accepted it for him, and even said, "Thank you, Master."
She had long wanted to persuade Aiden to become Chin Gentsai's disciple. And after the provocation from Andy earlier, seeing Chin Gentsai offer an olive branch himself, she definitely wasn't going to refuse.
But Aiden looked at her with a face full of helplessness.
'Hey, I haven't agreed yet. Don't call him that on your own…'
"Hahaha… very good, very good." Chin Gentsai burst into laughter after hearing her call him Master, and then didn't give Aiden any chance to speak before turning around and leaving.
Kensou glanced at Aiden, smiled, and then followed Chin Gentsai away. Only Athena remained.
The idol girl in a sailor uniform stood with her hands behind her back in front of Aiden, smiling as she said, "Mhm, little junior brother, come call me senior sister, let me hear it."
"In your dreams. I haven't agreed to anything. She was acting on her own." Aiden glanced at the idol girl, then glared at Mai Shiranui.
Neither girl paid any attention to his expression. Mai Shiranui happily stored away the notebook filled with Chin Gentsai's cultivation insights, while the idol girl continued smiling as she said, "Aiya, it's going to happen sooner or later anyway. Just call me senior sister, little junior brother."
As she spoke, she even used a spoiled, coaxing tone. She was already cute and pretty, and paired with such a tone, not to mention Aiden, even the other three girls felt their bones go soft when they heard it.
However…
Aiden bit the tip of his tongue hard, snapping himself out of the temptation of beauty. Then he said to Athena, "Anyway, I haven't agreed. It's not happening. Don't even dream about it."
Then he said to the three girls, "We should go back."
With that, he turned and walked toward his car.
Athena wanted to chase after him immediately, but at that moment, Kensou was already loudly calling her to leave from the other side. She could only stomp her foot in annoyance, purse her lips, and walk away.
As she walked, she muttered, "I'll make you willingly call me senior sister sooner or later. Just wait. I've set my sights on you, little junior brother."
———
After sending Mai Shiranui and the other two girls back to the dojo, Aiden quickly drove back to the shrine.
Although Mai Shiranui wanted him to stay the night, Aiden was thinking about how so many fighters had already arrived in Japan. Rugal had probably come too, and since Rugal had always been watched by the stormy Goenitz, Goenitz might also have arrived.
Worried about Maki's safety, he could only refuse Mai Shiranui's request for him to stay, choosing instead to return directly to the shrine.
When he got back, it was already late at night, but the Kagura sisters were still waiting for him in their room. Even though they had talked on the phone earlier, and Aiden told them not to wait for him to eat, once they heard he had been drinking with Chin Gentsai, they insisted on waiting to eat with him, afraid that he hadn't eaten much after drinking too much.
At this, what else could Aiden say?
Other than being touched, he had no other thoughts.
With a sigh, Aiden said to the sisters, "Then serve the food. I am a little hungry."
Soon, the maid brought over the reheated dishes.
After that, he ate with the two sisters, drank some tea with them for a while, and only when they were satisfied did they return to their rooms to rest.
Aiden also returned to his own room. After eating and drinking, sleepiness washed over him.
Mainly because spending the whole day accompanying several women, no matter how strong a man was, he couldn't endure that.
Even so, he still forced himself to get up and take a bath.
After soaking, his body and mind relaxed. Aiden returned to his room, fell onto the bed, and fell asleep. And just like that, the day passed.
The official start of the tournament was getting closer and closer, and just as the rumors said, this tournament would be held in Tokyo, Japan.
Because the staff under Rugal in charge of this tournament had already arrived in Japan, they even held a press conference, announcing that on the day before the tournament started, a presentation ceremony for the fighters would be held at the hotel they had reserved.
They also announced the rules for the tournament, the order of appearance would be decided by drawing lots, and the matches would be divided into Group A and Group B, determining the winners' bracket and losers' bracket. The two groups would continue competing until the top three were chosen.
They also announced that the champion team would board the host's private aircraft carrier, where the host himself would award them an additional prize of no less than one hundred million US dollars, along with the King of Fighters title.
Once this news was broadcast live on TV, it shocked the audience once again.
A private aircraft carrier, an extra prize of no less than a hundred million US dollars, this kind of extravagance was far beyond the small-scale tournaments of the past.
At the same time, people were curious who the boss behind the hosting organization really was.
Of course, they were equally curious about which teams would participate this time…
While the organizers were setting up the venue, the fighters didn't remain idle. They used various methods to improve their strength, or looked for things to relax and calm their minds, keeping their physical condition at its best.
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