Doesnt seem like anyone has been able to grasp the possibilty of "Kahn" being a title given to the ruler of outworld. Well with the exception of a few. He's a fucking Aztec, and he looks nothing like shao IMO.
Exactly...
I have a little theory. Onaga was the ruler of out world but he didn't have Kahn in his title. I can't remember the exact circumstances in which Onaga became ruler, possibly through birthright. Maybe the title Kahn implies that the throne was taken by force by someone who, besides being capable of stealing it, was undeserving of ruling. The position of power is taken by KAHNquest (sorry, had to).
If my theory is correct, that would mean Kotal Kahn would have had to overthrow a ruler. Obviously, Shao Kahn was dead before Kotal came into the picture, so who would he have killed to attain the title Kahn? Maybe the Dragon King returns, or maybe Shinnok appoints someone to oversee the out world army since he's such a busy guy. Kotal could have become ruler anytime in the 25 year period of MKX.
I'm probably wrong and Kotal Kahn was probably just given out world by Shinnok because he likes his tattoos.