The screen is black with only the date, time and location displayed: Japan, Yokosuka, 1986, November Below that is “Now loading”. All we hear are footsteps, then a slow fade to snowfall out a grey sky, pan down and to introduce us Ryo Hazuki, a Japanese teenager with short, spiky hair and the body of an action hero in a white t-shirt, faded jeans and a well-worn brown leather jacket, running home. Outside his house is a limo and a part of his wooden gate has been rammed, split in two. His head tilts downwards, toward it. The front door is open. Something is wrong.
Ryo’s footsteps scrunch on gravel and thud on grass on top the swelling of strings and horns. The build together till Ryo see’s Ine San lying on the grass. He holds her in his arms, she’s almost lifeless in his body. He asks her what’s happening.
“Ryo San- I’m alright but Hazuki Sensei….”
”My father?”
She faints. Ryo leaves Ine San on the ground.
The camera watches Ryo from outside the garden, behind the trees. Strings squeal as he walks to the back of the garden (thud thud thud) towards the dojo. As he gets to the doors, he stops. The music stops. The camera zooms in on the doors, cut back to Ryo’s face, cut back to the door, bang: the dojo doors swing open and a man is thrown out. It’s Fuku san, Ryo’s sparring partner, beaten to a pulp. Ryo, runs to him, holds him in his arms, like he did Ine San. Again, he tells Ryo that Hazuki Sensei is in inside.
The dojo is candle lit, dark wooden beams. Ryo enters the dojo and is instantly grabbed by two men in black suits. He sees a man in a black and green silk robe, long black hair platted in a long ponytail down to his back. He has a long face with a scar under his eye and asks, Ryo’s father “For the last time, where is the mirror” His father circles him and replies “I have no intention of telling you” and lunges to attack, but each swing brings a swoosh of air, the green silk robe dances between punches, angling and dodging each one with the grace of a ballet dancer, pivoting on the ball of his right foot, swinging his heel into Hazuki sensei’s jaw, with a thud, replay, thud, replay thud, Ryo’s father’s feet leave the ground and is thrown into the air. The same sound of Ryo’s feet walking to the dojo is the kick to his fathers jaw is the same as his father falling to the ground. Thud.
Ryo screams (father!), frees himself from the men guarding the door and runs towards the man, but just like his dad, can’t land a single blow. This man shifts to the side, lands one blow and Ryo falls to the ground. This man then lifts Ryo by his throat with one arm, with the other, he opens his palm and hovers it by Ryo’s ribs “The mirror or… Your son” The father relents. The mirror is buried beneath the cherry tree. The two men leave the room to search. Ryo is dropped onto the ground and starts coughing for air.
“Do you remember Chow Sun Ming?”
”Chow?”
Thats the man you killed in Mun-Swoon”
”It can’t be”
”get up, I’ll allow you to die like a warrior”
Ryo’s father stands up, holding his side and limps towards the stranger, throws a punch, but is hit again in the ribs and flies across the room. You hear the air leave his lungs. The men in suits reappear “Land Di-san, we have the mirror” They hand over a circular green Chinese mirror, made of bronze. On it is a dragon, as Lan Di looks at it, holding it up, his robe falls and we see a tattoo of the exact same image. Lan Di leaves and you hear the door clunk behind them.
Ryo crawls to his father. He holds him in his arms, like he did Ine San, like he did Fuku San. His father coughs, apologises that he wasn’t there for him when he was younger. Ryo doesn’t understand, he asks him what’s happening. Hazuki Sensei then tells him to love his friends, to keep those he loves close to him. He dies in his arms. Ryo screams “father, no!” as we cut to the dojo, now under a storm, lightning flashes. Fades to black.