The game takes place after The King of Fighters XI. The fighter Ash Crimson has absorbed the powers from two of the descendants of the clans who sealed the Orochi away 1,800 years ago, Chizuru Kagura and Iori Yagami, while Kyo Kusanagi is to be his last victim. As Elisabeth Blanctorche prepares to stop Ash, fighters receive an invitation to another King of Fighters tournament hosted by a person labelled as "R".