Ch. 13 - The Great Pretender's road to Kung Fu

The next morning, there were eye bags under Leo's eyes. Due to his excitement, he didn't manage to get enough sleep. Thankfully, after he explained his current situation to Mr. Ping, the geese didn't take that long to accept his temporary leave.

As for Po? He was biting his pillows out of jealousy and regret, though he still congratulated Leo for being accepted by Master Shifu as a student and wished him luck.

No matter how jealous Po is, he still values his friendship with Leo and won't salvage it just because Leo got the opportunity he wanted the most.

"Here, take this Leo. And also this!" As of now, Leo was ready to leave when Mr. Ping stopped him in his tracks and started stacking several clothes and packed lunches on Leo's arms.

"Uhm, Mr. Ping I don't think I could carry any more." Leo said, though the truth is, he wasn't struggling at all but who would want to carry so many things at once, especially since he's going to the famous Jade Palace that is on top of a fucking mountain!

"Are you sure, Leo? What if you starved there? Is their food even as good as our noodles?" Mr. Ping expresses his concern.

"How about I just take the noodles. These clothes won't fit me anyway, you just borrowed them from our neighbors." Leo revealed while handing the clothes back to Mr. Ping, who was turning red from embarrassment.

"Haha~ H-How did you know, Leo?" Mr. Ping awkwardly whispered in questioning.

"Mr. Ping. Please don't forget that I'm quite observant in my surroundings." Leo answered with a small smile, making Mr. Ping deflates slightly.

"But still. I appreciate it, Mr. Ping. I truly do." Leo crouched down and patted both of Mr. Ping's shoulders. To be honest, he wasn't expecting to get attached like this. However, when he was stranded in this unknown world without anyone to rely on, Mr. Ping came to his rescue and not only accepted him in his home but also gave him the necessary knowledge about the world so he wouldn't feel out of place.

With these, Leo expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the small geese in front of him.

"Po, take care of your dad while I'm gone. I'll be back soon." Standing up, Leo seriously looked at Po and said, making the panda straighten his back and nod his head in the same manner.

Leo smiled in satisfaction before grabbing the packed noodles.

"Be safe okay!" Holding a small handkerchief, Mr. Ping waved him goodbye, while Po almost shed a tear as he said his farewells.

"I'll be going now!" Leo also said his farewells before exiting the noodle shop.

Staring at the Jade Palace on top of the mountain in the distance, Leo took a breather.

'Today marks the start of my journey, I guess?' Leo whispered silently inside his head.

'I guess it is.'

***

Waking up from her bed, Tigress yawned and quickly fixed herself before waiting for Master Shifu's call.

The same goes for her fellow Furious Five members, they just woke up and are now waiting for Master Shifu's call-out.

However, their expressions weren't that good as usual. They remembered yesterday that their training today would increase in terms of difficulty.

Although they were prepared last night, they know who Master Shifu is. They know how strict and stern he is when it comes to punishment.

They could guess that today's punishment won't be normal.

"Wake up!" While deep in their thoughts, they suddenly heard Master Shifu's call out and without hesitation, they all flashed outside of their rooms in unison.

"Master!" At the same time, they also shouted.

"Today is a big day." Master Shifu started and they all gulped their saliva. Assuming that Master Shifu was talking about their punishments today, though they were also slightly confused as to why Master Shifu would call it a big day.

Seeing no response from his students, Master Shifu continued.

"Today, we'll be having a new student. My student to be exact." As soon as Master Shifu dropped the bomb, the Furious Five were all as if struck by lightning, shocked.

"M-Master, what was that?" Even Tigress who was all-time serious stuttered.

"I said, I would be having a new student and he's someone you know." Master Shifu answered with a satisfied smirk, seemingly liking that his announcement stunned his dear students.

"Someone we know?" The Furious Five all looked at one another in confusion.

Someone they know?

The only ones they know are either their parents, some Kung Fu Masters around china and each other.

So, who is this someone they know?

Seeing the confused faces of his students, Master Shifu continued.

"If you're curious, meet me at the training grounds. He should be there by now." Without further ado, Master Shifu swiftly left the dormitory of the Furious Five.

As soon as Master Shifu was gone, they all quickly chatted among themselves.

"Someone we know? So, Master Shifu is saying that this new student is someone the five of us know." Viper quickly chimed in.

"Maybe Master Shifu is just joking." Mantis said and everyone including his best friend, Monkey all stared at him with odd expressions.

"What?"

"Mantis, have you ever seen Master Shifu joke around?" Viper said and the Furious Five all nodded their heads in agreement.

"I don't think Master Shifu even knows what Joke means." Monkey added in, furthering Mantis's deflation.

"Alright, fine! You guys really have to team up against me?" Mantis groaned.

"Just for me, but I don't think this is a serious matter. Sure, it is a shocking announcement but haven't we all been through this kind of thing? I mean, Tigress you were the first to be taken in by Master Shifu, followed by Mantis then Me, Monkey and Viper. This is just a normal cycle isn't it?" Crane said and his words made sense to everyone.

"But how will we call ourselves the Furious Five if there's a new student? For decades, the previous Furious Five were led by Master Shifu himself and finally, the second generation of Furious Five which is us." For the first time since Tigress became a Kung Fu Master, she managed to speak so many words all at once.

"I don't think Master Shifu would break it and turn it into the Furious Six." She continued.

"How about we just meet Master Shifu in the training grounds and get the answers for our questions." Viper quickly interrupted before the conversation could escalate.

***

In the training ground, Master Shifu can be seen standing alone while staring at the entrance through the long staircase.

The staircase has always been an icon of their Jade Palace, it presents many things such as Patience, Vitality and Persistence.

Only through the stairs can you be worthy to enter the Jade Palace and worship.

However, the stairs might be very long however, through the years, the citizens of the Valley of Peace are long accustomed to the stairs, hence almost everyone in the Valley of Peace can walk the stairs without any complaints.

Well, 'Almost'.

There are still people who are not in favour of the long stairs such as a certain panda who is destined to become the Dragon Warrior.

"Master, we have arrived." Hearing his student's voice, Master Shifu turned around to face them.

"The new student will arrive at any moment now." He said.

"....Master, if I may ask. Where did you find this new student? I can hardly believe that someone in the Valley has caught your attention." Tigress said in a serious manner. What she said is right, the Furious Five that consists of Tigress herself, Monkey, Crane, Mantis and Viper were all outsiders. They didn't originate from the Valley of Peace.

Which is also the reason why it is called Valley of Peace due to it being consisted of weak animals such as pigs, geese, and rabbits.

These three animals are one of the weakest animals in the entire world.

This is also the reason why Master Oogway built his Jade Palace in the premises of the Valley of Peace.

Long ago, the Valley of Peace wasn't called that, instead it was just a simple village that is unfortunate to be a target of several bandits.

And since the citizens of the village were all weak and unable to fight, they have suffered under the hands of the cruel bandits for heard before Master Oogway eventually arrived and became its protector.

It is also the place where Master Oogway founded Kung Fu and spread it throughout the entire china.

Becoming the one and only father of Kung Fu.

"This might shock you, Tigress but the new student is indeed from the valley and I didn't pick him as a student because he has potential, but because....Master Oogway told me." Master Shifu then stopped in the middle of his sentence and started to think about what to say. He can't just say he's doing it out of favor, not only his pride would not allow him to but it would also destroy his image in front of his student.

It would be unpleasant if they found out that the new student was only selected as a result of a favor.

So, he decided to throw his own master in. It doesn't matter anyway as everyone knows that Master Oogway is very odd when it comes to decisions, sometimes it would seem as if his decisions were not good and worthy but in the end, the result of the 'odd' decisions were always contrary to everyone's expectations.

'Here he comes.' Master Shifu suddenly picked up a slight sound of footsteps in front of him.

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[Slime sad that he can't reach the top rankings anymore. Slime not happy. Slime happy if reach top 10 power stone rankings. Slime gives an extra chapter next Monday if the quota is reached.]

[Slime wants love]

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[Next Chapter: Ch. 14 - The Great Pretender's entrance]

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