Akuma is a demonic entity in the body of Gouki who, like Ryu, wanders the earth in search of suitable competition.
He seeks to eliminate all those who know the secret of the origin of his powers. He also seeks a final, fatal confrontation
with Ryu, the only person alive that can possibly be his equal. Drawing out Ryu's hidden potential and fighting Ryu to the
death is the only thing that can satisfy Akuma's bloodthirsty inclinations.
Akuma's past is shrouded in mystery. He is the embodiment of an evil entity which held the key to a fearsome power
called the Raging Demon, which was sealed by the Shotokan master Goutetsu. The Shotokan fighting style allowed it's
practitioners to kill with a mere strike. The secret of this deadly technique was the focusing of the powerful forces of
destruction, called forth by beckoning the power of the Raging Demon. Goutetsu wisely decided to banish the use of the
Messatsu, and taught his two young sons, Gouken and Gouki, a gentler version of the Shotokan arts. While Gouken agreed with
his father's decision, it was apparent that Gouki did not. Gouki, unlike his calm brother, was ruled by his emotions and
often fought with rage. This rashness caused Gouki to train in the woods alone, that he might discover the secret technique
on his own. One day while in the forest, he stumbled upon a mysterious cave, where a voice called out and asked him if he
wanted to learn the secret techniques. Gouki, not thinking of the consequences, agreed to the voices' demands, and his body
was taken over by the demonic force known as Akuma. Returning home, he murdered his father with his newfound killing
technique, and quickly looked through his belongings to see if any others knew of the killing techniques. He discovered that
there was another, Goutetsu's friend Gen, whom Goutetsu often trained. Akuma vowed to kill Gen, but not before he would
murder his brother. Gouken, however, became aware of his brother's treachery, and quickly fled.
Akuma spent years attempting to find Gouken. He and Gen were the only two people alive who knew Akuma's secrets, and
they had to be eliminated. Akuma finally located his brother, who had become a Shotokan master and was training two young
warriors, Ryu and Ken. Akuma confronted Gouken high in the mountains, and finally overcame him with the Messatsu technique.
Ryu and Ken witnessed their master's death and challenged Akuma, but the demon merely swatted them aside. He then told them
to seek him out when they were strong enough to fight him. Having tied up that loose end, he then began his search for Gen,
in order to protect his secret from being discovered. After a time, he found Gen, and the two engaged in combat. For a
while, it seemed that neither had the ability to defeat the other, but finally Gen admitted he could not defeat the demonic
fighter. His resolve weakened, Gen was easily defeated by Akuma. Surprisingly, Akuma permitted Gen to live as long as he
told no one of Akuma's secret. Realizing that there were worthy competitors in this world, he later challenged Ryu.
Weakened by his battle with Gen, Akuma was only able to fight Ryu to a standstill. Akuma retreated, but not before telling
Ryu that he had the potential to awaken the Raging Demon as well. To protect his secret yet again, Akuma destroyed his
secret cave and went into hiding. Akuma realized that there were powerful humans on earth, such as Ryu, Gen, and
even M.Bison, who were perhaps capable of defeating him.
Akuma kept close tabs on the second World Warriors tournament, but remained in the shadows as he watched the World
Warriors fight. It had been Bison's hope to draw Akuma out of hiding and persuade him to join Shadowloo. When Akuma did
make his presence known, it was right after Bison had been defeated by Ryu. Bison awoke to find Akuma standing over him, and
the beaten warrior was unable to put up any resistance. Akuma allegedly used the Raging Demon on Bison, and left him for
dead.
After traveling the globe in search of more competition, Akuma entered the third World Warrior tournament to test his
skills, and also to see if Ryu had reached his full potential yet. The demon within his body had taken full control, and he
had unleashed his most deadly fighting technique yet, the Kon Goku RetsuZan. As he watched Ryu from the shadows, he knew
that it would only be a matter of time before Ryu was ready for their final confrontation.
|
