The nuclear flames which razed the Earth gave birth to an age of power. Ryuga of the Taishan celestial wolf fist joined Raoh, who was attempting to seize these troubled times. Raoh named Ryuga as his right hand man, but his attacks were brutal and he slaughtered enemies who were surrendering and begging for their lives. Soga found fault with his actions, and Soga and Ryuga would now clash.

Wailing Resounds Through the Darkness!

Soga kicks at Ryuga, then jumps back. He says he was once known as Soga the Fleet foot, and his whirlwind kick hasn't lost its punch. Ryuga recognizes his fighting style, and says he'll take him on.

The two resume fighting, and dodge each other's attacks. Soga starts rapidly kicking at Ryuga, but Ryuga then charges towards him. Soga leaps over him and then jumps towards him...

...but Ryuga hits his prosthetic leg, breaking it off. Soga crashes to the ground, but Ryuga offers him a hand. He says his star is Sirius, a lone star which joins with no others by nature. But he doesn't have the power to rule.

He says he wants to become a pawn to aid in bringing peace to this world. The ruler chosen by the heavens will be Raoh of the North Star. He's decided to stake everything on Raoh, who has become a demon. Elsewhere, Raoh fights Raizu.

The two punch each other's fists, but Raizu's arm is shattered, and Raoh kills him.

Soga accepts Ryuga's hand, and gets back up. He says they'll go, as the battle isn't over yet. They get back to the rest of the army, and then confront Igor.

Igor says he was expecting Raoh to show up, not some brats. He wonders how they were able to win Raoh's favor -sexual favors of some sort? As his gang laugh, Ryuga dismounts and asks him if he'd like a taste of his fist. Igor things he's full of himself, and charges forward:

KAZAN SHISHIKU KEN

(Mount Hua Lion Roar Fist)

Ryuga uses his celestial wolf freezing fang fist technique, which cuts Igor's head off. As his head falls down, Soga leaps up and kicks it.

Ryuga tells Soga that wasn't bad, but Soga tells him he must have been holding back when they fought earlier. Ryuga says he had to keep on the defense because of Soga's constant attacks. Soga picks up Igor's head, and tells his men that they'll head into the castle next, and leave no survivors. Later on, Igor's forces have been wiped out.

A solider reports to Soga that a unit of Igor's defeated men have barricaded themselves in a nearby village, and asks what they should do. Soga says it doesn't matter, and says to use flaming arrows to burn the entire village. The soldiers says there are innocent villagers there, but Soga repeats that it doesn't matter. Meanwhile, Raoh continues to wipe out Raizu's remaining forces.

Two of them beg to be spared, but he calls them fools and says his army does not need soldiers who beg for their lives. He has the Black King kill them both.

He then says that he will hold the heavens, and says that any survivors can tell of the terror of the Fist King's army. Meanwhile, Soga and Ryuga look at the village, which has been destroyed. They start to head back to the castle.

Some of the soldiers say that even Lord Soga has become a demon now. At the castle, Raoh praises Ryuga and Soga for what they've done. He asks about Igor's soldiers, but Soga says none of them remain alive. Soga then says they have a gift for the Fist King, and has it brought in: chalices made from the skulls of the Thunder Emperor and the Lion King.

Raoh, Ryuga and Soga drink from these, whilst most of the others cheer. But Reina looks upset, something that Sakuya notices.

Later on, Reina calls out to her brother, but he ignores her. She tells him to wait and asks what happened, as it's not like him to just massacre enemy soldiers. He tells her she wouldn't understand, and then walks off, saying she's not supposed to understand.

The next day, someone reports that a man who calls himself "King" has begun massing forces using Southern Cross Town as a base. King's forces have begun pillaging neighboring villages at an incredible rate, and are frequently entering their territory. Raoh wants to know who King is, but the soldier says they don't know yet. They do believe he's a young and talented martial artist. Ryuga says to let him handle this, so Raoh leaves it to him.

Reina then runs in and asks that she gets to go as well, and Raoh allows her. Nearby, Sakuya asks if Reina is prepared to cross rivers of blood.

Reina turns around, but Sakuya is gone. Later on, some villagers see the Fist King's army approaching, and flee. Reina thinks it didn't use to be this bad, as the masses are becoming more and more frightened every day. She thinks the Fist King's army has become an object of terror, and Raoh changed after he met Ryurou.

And then Soga changed after he and Ryuga defeated the Lion King. She asks Ryuga what happened. He calls her a sister who cares for her brother. He reveals that he also has a sister, but Reina says that doesn't answer her question. She wants to know who he is.

He says he's a demon, and that there's no time. The time has come for someone to become a demon, and Reina thinks about what her brother said to her earlier, about her not understanding. She wonders if Soga intends to cross rivers of blood, all for Raoh's sake. Nearby, some guys are drinking at a bar. They've heard the Fist King's army is in the move, and intend to take over Southern Cross Town. They aren't scared though, as they've got King, someone who they think the Fist King stands no chance against.

The wall then gets blasted down, as Ryuga and Reina step in. Reina says they're with the Fist King's army, so the men attack them.

They all get ripped apart in seconds. As the body parts rain down, a guy who refers to himself as Lord Club tells him to take this:

TOUROU KEN

(Praying Mantis Fist)

Ryuga grabs his claw and bends it out of shape. He says any who oppose the Fist King must die, and goes to kill him. But then someone throws a glass at him.

The guy who threw it tells him to keep the noise down, as he's making the booze taste bad. As Club runs off, Ryuga recognizes the guy who threw the glass: Juza!

Juza tells Ryuga it has been a while. He's surprised Ryuga has joined Raoh -so much for the lone star! Ryuga asks him what he's doing here. Juza says they should know that he's Juza of the Clouds, so he takes woman whenever he wants, and he drinks booze whenever he wants. He follows nobody, and lives as free as the clouds. Ryuga says that in these times, even the lone star has been forced to take a side. He can't forgive Juza for his way of life! Peace will be brought to the world by the North Star, not the splintered South Star. He thinks Juza should Join the Fist King's army.

Juza tells him to stop joking around, he's already said he follows nobody. Ryuga tells him he can't be allowed to do as he pleases, even if he is his brother. Juza asks him if he's really going to play the big brother, so Ryuga suggests they settle this now. Juza gets up and asks the ladies to move back for a bit, but this won't take too long. As they leave, Juza says he's interested in seeing which of their styles is stronger. Reina steps in between them and tells them to wait.

She says they're supposed to be brothers, so they shouldn't fight. Juza asks if that's like Raoh and his brothers, but then says to forget it. He's lost interest in this, and starts drinking again. He asks them why they've come here to Southern Cross Town, and Ryuga says they're going to defeat the man named King.

Juza asks if they know who King is, and Ryuga believes him to be a South Star practitioner. Juza says that King is actually Shin, of the South Star lone eagle fist. They must know that Shin took Yuria from Kenshiro, and then after that, Shin began calling himself King, and made Southern Cross Town his base. Ryuga thinks that's perfect, as he'll defeat Shin and as her older brother, take Yuria back.

Reina realizes that Yuria is Ryuga and Juza's sister. Juza says Yuria is their younger sister, and Reina thinks that Yuria is the woman Raoh once loved. But Juza then says it's too late.

He sits back down and says that Yuria is dead, which shocks Ryuga. Huza explains...

...that Shin was attacking villages and pillaging them out of love for Yuria. He tried to buy her admiration, but once she saw the people were suffering because of her, she jumped from Shin's castle, and died.

Ryuga tells him he's lying, Yuria can't possibly be dead! He asks how Juza could know this, and Juza says he goes wherever he wants to, and hears all kinds of things -including things he doesn't want to believe. Ryuga then walks off, and says he will avenge their sister by tearing Shin apart with his own hands.

Juza tells him to stop, as Kenshiro is drawing near to Southern Cross Town. He's already defeated Spade, one of Shin's men. Shin has now ordered the execution of innocent villagers.

Juza pulls out a note, which is a warning to the man with seven scars: the executions will continue for as long as he runs. Juza says that Kenshiro will face off with Shin soon, so this isn't their fight. He resumes drinking, and Ryuga is about to object, but Juza reminds him that they'd both agreed to entrust Yuria to Kenshiro. Yuria was the one who allowed herself to be taken in exchange for Kenshiro's life. He thinks it would only be right for Kenshiro to avenge her.

Reina asks Juza if he told Kenshiro that Yuria is dead. Juza says he has no obligation to tell him, and he couldn't tell him something so cruel. He's just going to stop here and wait for the result of Kenshiro and Shin's fight. Ryuga and Reina then leave. Reina asks if this is alright, and Ryuga says that if King really is Shin, then he wouldn't get away unscathed if he fought him. He believes he could win, but decides to leave this to Kenshiro.

They return back to their castle, and report to Raoh. Raoh tells them to forget about Kenshiro and Shin, as they can sort things out themselves. He says it won't interfere with his rule, and then declares that this council is concluded. He gets up and leaves, but Reina hears something on his throne...

...and sees part of it crumble away. Raoh leaves the castle, and tells the Black King that an irreplaceable woman has died. He wonders of this is the will of the heavens. Nearby, Reina is watching.

Sakuya appears, and asks her if she has the courage to cross those rivers. Reina says she can cross rivers of blood -she'll show her that she can. But Sakuya says she's talking about a different river, one with the one you love waiting at the other side, fully aware that he is overcome with grief after losing the one he loved. Reina says she can cross that river. Raoh looks up towards the heavens.

Raoh was filled with the grief of losing the woman he once loved. His soul released wordless, bloodcurdling screams, but he had to move on. For the sake of his rule, and for the sake of his chosen path.


NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW

A Woman's Battle