Ryu
(Tom's profile) (Part #2)
Context
This is the second half of the article, so everyone can read it comfortably.
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History (part 4)
Starting right where the previous half stopped….
Street Fighter 4, part 1
Ryu once again entered the World Warrior tournament to test his skills. He had a rematch with his long term rival and emerged victorious. Ryu went on to face the champion Seth in the final round.
The fight was so ferocious that it caused structural damage to the building. The place started to crumble. Up against the ropes, Ryu willingly released the power of the Satsui no Hado. This was a desperate gambit to destroy the BLECE machine granting Seth his powers.
That worked, and Ryu overcame Seth.
Sakura, who had again been following Ryu, was knocked out from a stray blast from the damaged BLECE machine. But Ryu threw a final hadouken at the device. That destroyed it once and for all, and allowed for escaping the rapidly collapsing building.
Street Fighter 4, part 2
Ryu was then confronted by his former master Gouken – still alive. Gouken had used the power of zen nothingness to survive Akuma’s attack. He had since been in hiding.
Gouken used his power on Ryu, to seal the dark energy within him.
Akuma then showed up. He challenged Gouken to another bout, stating that the winner would get Ryu as a prize.
The outcome of the battle is unknown. But there are theories based on what happened later in the storyline.
- It seems most likely that Akuma did not win. Ryu is later seen free of the taint of the Satsui no Hado.
- It is possible that their match was either a draw, or was interrupted, or that Gouken won.
- Another possibility is that Gouken lost, but by this time Ryu had grown strong enough to repel Akuma himself.
Street Fighter 4, part 3
Ryu and Ken were later seen chasing their former master along a cliff. Ken begged him to stay and train them some more while Ryu merely bid him farewell.
Ryu then said good bye to Dan, Blanka, and Sakura who had all been travelling together.
Sakura, now a full grown adult (but still somehow wearing her school girl uniform) once again asked him to be her teacher. Ryu once again refused saying that he was not yet ready. She once again vowed that she would one day force him to acknowledge her, this time as an equal.
(Ryu sports a few new moves in the SF3 storyline. So it is possible that he was further trained by Gouken at some later point. But is merely a No-Prize HypothesisA made-up explanation to plug a plot hole and not confirmed by anything official.)
Sountrack
Putting the SF5 version of Ryu’s theme here would be logical, Captain.
History (part 5)
Onward to SF5.
Street Fighter V
Ryu got nightmares about fighting his evil self. While training with Gouken, he was once again consumed by the Satsui no Hado. He threw a mighty hadouken infused with dark energy, with every intent to kill his master.
There was a flash of light. Once Ryu came to Gouken explained that the dark energy had nearly taken control of him. The master had thus been forced to subdue his student.
Newcomer Rashid then challenged Ryu. The Japanese fighter was hesitant to accept, fearing that he may once again lose control. They eventually sparred, with a clear Ryu victory.
Ryu then went on another training journey, meeting up with Ken in Brazil. Though Ryu was still troubled by the Satsui no Hado reemerging, the two fighters had a friendly sparring match with an unclear winner.
Ryu was next seen in China, getting ambushed by a Shadaloo soldier. Charlie Nash once again appeared, taking the soldier out in time. Charlie and Ryu agreed to a friendly sparring match resulting in a draw. They both walked away with mutual respect.
Street Fighter V: A Shadow Falls (part 1)
Ryu later met with Dhalsim. The Indian master was training a new fighter, Mahesh.
Learning about Ryu’s struggle with the Satsui no Hado, Dhalsim advised to confront it head on. To keep trying to suppress it could only lead to Ryu being consumed by it.
They were then attacked by Necalli, an ancient Nahua warrior and consumer of souls. Dhalsim defended his pupil while Ryu attempted to fight off the demonic warrior. Things didn’t go so well for the heroic Shotokan fighter, and he started succumbing to the dark force.
Fortunately, Dhalsim halted the process, then stepped in to fight off Necalli. Just as the demon disappeared the sun was blotted out by a dark moon, which gave Ryu visions of Bison.
Street Fighter V: A Shadow Falls (part 2)
Ryu teamed up with Ken, Chun Li, and Karen to mount a final assault against Bison. The Shadaloo boss and the heroic Shotokan fighter finally got their rematch.
Ryu seemed to have the upper hand for most of the fight. But Bison refused to give up. Ryu then threw a mighty Hadouken infused with the Power of Nothingness at Bison, seemingly killing him again.
(While the narration isn’t clear it’s stated that the Power of Nothingness is the polar opposite of Satsui no Hado. This suggests that Ryu may have finally tamed the dark energy for good.)
While the base was blowing up Chun Li was almost consumed in the inferno. But Ryu shot a Hadouken into the flames to suppress them.
Sometime later Ken and Ryu once again squared off in a friendly sparring match. Ryu won. His final blow knocked Ken’s headband off, and Ken decided to let his buddy keep it as a memento. He was beaming with pride on how much his friend has grown.
Street Fighter III: Second Impact (part 1)
Ryu was still training hard (duh!). He was now 33.
Since Ken had had a child the two brothers had grown apart. Ken therefore decided to rekindle their friendship. He invited Ryu to a traditional Japanese hot spring inn to meet his new student Sean.
They later wound up watching a wrestling match between Zangief and Hogan. Right off the bat Zangief dominated the bout. He tossed his opponent out of the ring, causing Hogan to go berserk. He threw a chair at a female spectator, which Ryu blocked. Sean knocked Hogan out to protect the crowd.
Ryu was later challenged by a hot headed wrestler named Alex. Although Alex wasn’t quite up to the seasoned champion level of Ryu, he put up a good fight. Thus, Ryu encouraged Alex to continue training and eventually overcome the tournament’s host Gil.
Ryu later lost to Oro. Oro was an old man — well over 100 years old — who knew that his time was near. He had been looking for a worthy successor to carry on his legacy. Ryu had come to his attention, but Oro needed more time before deciding that Ryu was to be his successor.
Street Fighter 3 Third Strike
Ryu fought his way through several challengers in the next tournament.
His most notable match was against Hugo. The lumbering giant was able to stand up to Ryu’s most powerful attacks. Ryu was thoroughly impressed. He later agreed to be Hugo’s tag team partner in a few wrestling matches.
Oro reportedly chose Ryu to be his successor. He began secretly aiding him in his training using his mental powers.
Description
Ryu is a Japanese man in superb shape. He always wears a sleeveless karate gi. The fabric has gotten more worn as time goes by, suggesting that it is the same gi.
He always goes barefoot and wears a red head band (a keepsake from Ken to remind him to stay focused), and sparring arm pads. His belt is emblazoned with the kanji for “wind”, “woods”, “fire”, and “mountain”.
(This is a reference to Sun Tzu’s The Art of War which states that in battle one should be, “as fast as the wind, as quiet as the forest, as daring as fire, and immovable as the mountain.”)
Personality
Ryu is essentially the Japanese ideal of a true martial artist. He is humble and constantly training. He strives to both test and increase his skills, and is utterly dedicated to self improvement.
The temptation of the Satsui no Hado is not unlike the temptation of a darker power that many archetypal heroes must first overcome. In particular it seems to draw a lot of parallels with Luke Skywalker being tempted by the dark side of the Force.
Ryu’s particular struggle is at heart Buddhist. Certain sects of Buddhism believe that in order for one to attain true enlightenment one must first destroy the false face or mask that one wears. Ryu’s own personal struggle is to overcome his battle rage and lust for winning at all costs.
He struggles with this in his youth and most of his appearances, but in the end he does finally seem to overcome it.
Quotes
“You did quite well, but you need more training to defeat me !”
“You must defeat my dragon punch to stand a chance !”
“I look forward to our next battle.”
“You fought well. I was honored.”
“True victory is to give all of yourself, without regret.”
“Whatever you find worthwhile in life, is worth fighting for !”
“Your strength is equal to that of your will to win !”
“One fight. One more step on the path to becoming a true warrior !”
“The only way a true fighter can suffer, is by not fighting !”
“I see a strong will to fight in your eyes ! Don’t give up yet !”
Rose: Ryu… you are not strong enough to win the battle with that man. Or should I say, you COULD win, but at the cost of your soul…”
Ryu: Who are you ? And who is “that man” ? Fight me now… and defeat me, if you can !”
Adνеrtisеmеnt
DC Heroes RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Ryu
| Dex: 08 | Str: 04 | Bod: 05 |
| Int: 06 | Wil: 05 | Min: 08 |
| Inf: 05 | Aur: 07 | Spi: 08 |
| Init: 021 | HP: 090 |
Powers:
Adrenaline Surge: 05, Energy Blast: 06, Gliding: 01, Jumping: 04
Bonuses and Limitations:
- Adrenaline Surge only works with Energy Blast, Jumping, and Martial Artist.
- Energy Blast is nonlethal.
Skills:
Acrobatics: 06, Martial Artist: 12
Advantages:
Expertise (Survival), Iron Nerves, Language (Japanese), Schtick (Stance Assessment).
Connections:
Ken Masters (High), Sakura Kusanagi (High), Sagat (High), Guy (Low), Edmond Honda (High), Oro While (High), Alex (Low), Chun Li (Low), Karen (Low), Street Fighting circuit (Low). Ryu has all these connections he is highly unlikely to use any of them unless it’s for a sparring match every couple of years.
Drawbacks:
SIA (Improving his martial arts skills and seeking out worthy opponents).
Motivation:
Upholding the Good.
Occupation:
Martial Arts Instructor.
Wealth:
001
Equipment:
Duffle Bag [BODY 01 STR 02].
Previous Statistics
SF1: Martial Artist: 10, Mind: 04, Spirit: 05.
SFA: Martial Artist: 11, Mind: 05, Spirit: 06.
During this period Ryu was being tempted by Satsui no Hado or the Way of the Killing Art. This basically functions like a Star Wars Jedi getting tempted by the Dark Side of the Force.
By the end of SF2 he’s basically over it and much like Luke Skywalker, through hard work, training, and discipline he manages to get to that level without giving into the dark side.
Dark Ryu
Dark Ryu does exist as a playable character in SFA. But only as a “what if Ryu had given into the Satsui no Hado”.
His stats would be the same as above, but he would gain Teleport: 03 and the Raging Demon attack. The Raging Demon is a devastating blindside attack performed by teleporting in blindsiding the opponent. Then hitting them with a devastating attack of Magic Blast: 12, lethal and range of touch only enhanced with Adrenaline Surge: 08 and maximum HP expenditure as well.
Ryu’s Mind and Spirit enhancements aren’t without their drawbacks. At 05 and 06 respectively and he gains Catastrophic Rage, MPI, losses all his Connections, his motivation also becomes Nihilist and his SIA rises to a CIA.
In Marvel versus Capcom he could also switch between Ken and Akuma’s styles. His mystical and mental attributes would stay the same, but his powers, physical attributes and advantages would change to suit his new style. This ability is considered Seriously Marginal. It costs 15 HP and takes a full round every time he switches styles like that.
Versus series
The versus series enhanced most of the SF cast that it crossed over. Enough to make them capable of going toe to toe with Marvel’s heavy hitters:
| Dex: 09 | Str: 05 | Bod: 06 |
| Int: 07 | Wil: 06 | Min: 09 |
| Inf: 06 | Aur: 08 | Spi: 09 |
| Init: 024 | HP: 100 |
Powers:
Adrenaline Surge: 13, Energy Blast: 10, Gliding: 04, Jumping: 09
Bonuses and Limitations:
Adrenaline Surge can only work with Energy Blast, Jumping, and Martial Artist.
Skills:
Acrobatics: 07, Martial Artist: 13
Advantages:
Expertise (Survival), Iron Nerves, Language (Japanese), Schtick (Stance Assessment).
Connections:
Ryu also gains a high connection to Iron Fist (Daniel Rand-K’ai).
Motivation:
Upholding the Good.
Occupation:
Martial Arts Instructor.
Wealth:
002
Source of Character: Street Fighter video games.
Helper(s): Sean MacDonald (for the previous version), Kal el Vigilante, Alan Wilkinson, Sébastien Andrivet, Peter Piispanen.
Writeup updated on the 9th of November, 2020.