Street Fighter is a series that is over 3 decades old. With its great memorable characters, amazing gameplay, and catchy music, one might not know that the franchise is also home of a long running story, of bravery, tragedy and love. Let us go back in time and follow the path of the warriors from the very beginning.
While many expect our story to begin with the first street fighter game, the truth is that the lore of street fighter begins long before that. To be precise, our story begins in feudal Japan.
A time of turmoil, and conflict, as Samurai warriors fought for their lives and their land. This turbulent era is the birthplace of many deadly martial arts techniques. One discipline would go down as one of the deadliest forms of combat, and one that would play an important role in our story and series: the 暗殺拳をルーツとした格闘術 Ansatsuken o rūtsu toshita kakutō jutsu? called Ansatsuken for short, which roughly translates to martial art rooted as an art of assassination.
The basis of Ansatsuken were, at first glance, similar to Karate but Ansatsuken was a deadlier art that focused on three major, almost supernatural techniques.
The HAdoken: The Surge fist. A technique that allows the sheer willpower of its users to be manifested through the palms as a ki wave. The Hadoken wave energy is as devastating as the intent of the practitioner.
The shoryuken: 昇龍拳, Shouryuken, “Rising Dragon Fist”. A powerful technique in which the user rockets upwards with a surging fist, as if they defy heavens itself. This powerful attack knocks any adversary brave enough to jump on an ansatsuken practitioner
And the Tatsu Maki Senpuukyaku. 竜巻旋風脚 a strong technique in which the practitioner will use his ki to spin in the air delivering a hurricane of kick attacks.
But the Ansatsuken has a hidden side, a darker side, that can only be tapped into by the select few who fully embrace the murderous intent of the Ansastuken martial art. This dark force, is known as the Satsui no hadou. For those who embrace the darkside of ansatsuken, they unlock their true hidden potential and sheer power, but at the expense of their humanity. Those who follow the path of satsui no hadou, slowly turn into demons themselves, losing all of aspect of compassion, and empathy. Their physical traits also affected, making them as if they are demons roaming the earth.
Tapping into the satsui no hadou grants the users new powers and abilities, and none is more deadly that the ultimate dark technique the Shun Goku Satsu. Allowing the practitioner to move at incredible speeds towards the opponents, and like a raging demon, the sound of a thousand strikes can be heard, but not seen. Legend has it that the shungokusatsu sends the opponent’s soul to hell and back. But what is certain is that only few ansatsuken warriors were able to master this deadly technique.
Since that era, the secret teachings of ansatsuken were passed from generation to another, by the few brave enough to put their very souls on the line. Which brings us to the 20th century, where the last practitioner and master of Ansatsuken lives. The legendary master known as Goutetsu. Goutetsu’s life was spent perfecting ansatsuken and bojutsu. In his old age he decided to pass on the teachings to his two students, two brothers, Gouken and Gouki. The siblings, while both living and learning under the same roof since their young age, could not be more different in their way of seeing life. Gouken, the older brother, is more compassionate, patient and respects the life energy of all beings. Gouki on the other hand, was brash, quick to lose his temper, and wanted to learn everything there as fast as possible.
It is during their training that they learned about the Satsui no hado and the murderous intent of the ansatsuken art. Goutetsu was never opposed to using Satsui no HAdo, but was unique for the fact the Satsui no hado had no effect on him, this must have been a result of him only using the dark arts sparingly. But since Gouki learned about the existence of Satsui no hadou his mind could never rest, he quickly realized that this will be his destiny and that he was ready to leave his humanity behind if needed to master the full might of ansatsuken. Gouken on the other hand could not disagree more, he saw Ansatsuken as way of self defense and not an art of death. The two brothers, while emotionally close started drifting apart. As the days, months and years went by, Gouki started learning to tap into the sastui no hadou. Gouken on the other started developing his own style of ansatsuken, both of them still under the tutelage of Master Goutetsu.
But on one faithful night, as gouken is making his way back to the dojo, he passed by a burning village. He does not know what caused the destruction of this once peaceful place, whether it of natural cause, or due to bandits attacks. The houses burned down, the villagers dead. And right there laying on the ground barely moving, a young child, a survivor. Gouken takes the youngling, carrying him on his back and taking him to the dojo. Gouken, always the compassionate decides to adopt the orphaned child whose name is Ryu.
Ryu, started learning at a young age from Gouken and also seeing the brothers train under Goutetsu. He also saw how different and apart Gouken and Gouki grew. One day the unthinkable happens as Gouki, after years of fully embracing the satsui no hadou, decides to challenge his master Goutetsu. Unlike the latter, the satsui no hadou had quite the effect on Gouki, both emotionally and physically. A fight unlike anything gouken saw before took place, as master and disciple fight with all their might. To the surprise of Gouken, his brother Gouki’s power has grown beyond his expectations surpassing even their master Goutetsu. It was clear Gouki had the upper hand and to the surprise of everyone, uses Satsui no hadou’s ultimate technique the Shun Goku satsu. Killing Goutetsu. But right before his death, Goutetsu smiled, as if he was proud of his student surpassing him and embracing the full might of the ansatsuken.
Gouki is no longer the brother that gouken once knew and loved. His intent is murderous, his body fueled with dark energy, he no longer feels compassion nor empathy, he no longer is , in every sense of the word, human. He is now a demon in the body of a man, he is an Akuma. Ignoring his older brother gouken, Gouki, Akuma, left the scene and disappeared into the darkness.
Gouken, who never agreed with the murderous side of ansatsuken is now certain that this practice needs to disappear and a new form of ansatsuken shall take its place. He decides shortly to start his own dojo, with Ryu being his first student. Teaching him the to embrace the joyous side of ansatsuken, to use the powers within to defend himself and defend the weak. For years young ryu would learn all there is about life and martial arts under the sole tutelage of Gouken.
But one day fate would have it that another student will join the dojo, one that will have a positive effect on Ryu’s future. Ken Masters.
Young Ken is the son of Gouken’s old friend. Unlike Ryu, who lived on the Dojo, Ken would only come during school vacations. But his quick to learn skills made him quickly almost getting to Ryu’s level. The two friends would practice the arts of ansatsuken, mastering the three main techniques of the art: The hadoken, shoryuken and tatsu maki senpuukyaku.
For a short period another student joined the gouken Dojo. Dan Hibiki, but Gouken quickly sensed that Dan’s reasons for joining the dojo and learning Ansatsuken were selfish as he wanted to learn the deadly arts to be able to kill the man who murdered his father. Unhappy about Dan hiding his true motives, Gouken quickly kicked the new student out of the dojo before he could master any of the martial art techniques.
One day, while training with Master Gouken, ryu and Ken would see a mysterious figure coming to challenge their matser, it was Akuma, Gouken’s brother. Who has been training and living in the mountains ever since he killed his matser goutetsu. It was then when both ryu and Ken witnessed the two sides of ansatsuken, and vast difference between the two brothers. Akuma attacks Gouken, but soon realized he is not strong enough, and that he underestimated Gouken’s version of ansatsuken. Akuma defeated, he asked Gouken for the final blow, but gouken, the ever so compassionate, let his brother live explaining to him that ansatsuken does not have to be about death. Calling his brother weak for not delivering the final blow, Akuma left, promising gouken a rematch, but also sensing the seeds of satsui no hadou within the young ryu who was watching their battle with anger and anguish.
Years would go by, both Ryu and Ken are now 23 years old. Gouken believing that his pupils are ready to face the world, orders them to each go on a journey, as he once did, the mushu… Excited about all the possibilities both students take their own path, Ken decides to go America, while Ryu deicides to go to Thailand where he heard of a powerful muy thai warrior by the name of Sagat.
