Kung Fu Panda Fanfic - The Rise of a Hero

(V) Rot in the streets of Gongmen

Leaving the port, Po and the Furious Five climbed to the roof of one of the buildings that overlooked the market square. From there, it was possible to see the vastness of the city, with the wonderful view of the palace in the distance.

Mantis: - Well. What's the plan? -

Tigress: - We have to get to the palace without being detected. -

Monkey: - That will be complicated with all those wolves patrolling the city. -

Viper: - We must hurry. -

Po: - You go. Use the rooftops. -

Monkey: - And what will you do? -

Po: - My presence will not go unnoticed. Go. I'll catch up with you as soon as I can. -

The five masters went around the city using the roofs while Po had an idea. With some fabrics that he found hanging in one of the houses and a tunic, he covered his face and his enormous body and pushed an apple cart posing as a simple seller who walked the streets. He managed to get past several wolves without being noticed, but his luck wouldn't last long.

Wolf: - Hey, you, fat man. Stop right there. -

One of the guards called from behind him. Po stopped, nervous. They had discovered it. He clenched his fist tight as the guard slowly approached him, ready to knock him out and run.

Wolf: - What do you sell? - He said as he approached while Po relaxed knowing that they hadn't discovered him.

Po: - Apples, sir. -

Wolf: - Oh yeah? Well, I'll take some. Let's say... It's a special tax. - Po wanted to hit him hard, but instead he just lowered his head. - That's how I like it. - Said the wolf as he withdrew with the seized apples.

Po continued walking trying to reach the palace, but a scene caught his attention. Another wolf was threatening a sheep, which was cooking rice at a stall in the streets of the city.

Wolf: - This rice is crap. -

Sheep: - You took all the oil from us. That's the best I can do. - The wolf didn't care about her justifications, and drew his sword while threatening to cut off the sheep's right eye.

Wolf: - You are going to cook my rice properly. Or it will be the last thing you will see. -

Po couldn't miss this. He looked around and realized that there was no other wolf nearby. He approached the wolf from behind and grabbed it with his left arm around wolf's neck while controlling the sword arm with his right. Po dragged the wolf into the alley, away from the main street. The wolf was resisting, but with Po's forearm pressing on his throat he couldn't call for help. Finally, Po had no choice but to snap its neck, and the wolf fell dead to the ground.

The sheep watched the spectacle with terror. Po showed his face and looked at her seriously.

Po: - We came to help from the Jade Palace. Do you know anything about masters Crocodile and Ox? -

Sheep: - The last time they were heard from, they were taken to the city prison. That is all that I know. I swear. - The sheep looked at Po clearly terrified.

Po: - Very well. Go home. And don't go out. -

The sheep turned and walked away without a word, leaving its food stall abandoned. Po did the same, and entered the alleys of the city.

Monkey: - Po. - Said Mono who descended from the roofs accompanied by master Víper.

Po: - What are you doing here? -

Viper: - The rest are trying to find an entrance to the palace without attracting attention. We came looking for you when we saw that you were taking so long. -

Po: - I found some information. Master Crocodile and Master Ox were last seen entering the prison. No corpse has been seen coming out of there. So it is possible that they are still alive. -

Monkey: - We must go check. If they are alive they will be able to help us. -

Po: - We'll do that. Lets go. -

The three masters sneaked around the city through the alleys and little-traveled streets of the city. The area around the prison was mostly empty, with not much commercial activity, so they were able to get closer and see the prison entrance from the roof across the street.

Viper: - There are two guards. We must find another way. -

Monkey: - The prison is sealed. That is the only entrance or exit. -

Po: - I have an idea. -

Po came down from the roof and took two small boxes and wrapped them in cloth. He walked down the street and approached the prison guards, hiding his identity under the clothes he was wearing.

Wolf 1: - Stop. This is a restricted area. - He pointed the spear at him.

P: - I know. I brought your lunch. - The wolves looked at each other strangely as Po got closer and closer to them.

Wolf 2: - Lunch time? But if it barely dawned... -

Before the wolf could finish the sentence, Po charged head-on, dropping the small cloth-wrapped boxes that looked like bentos(*), grabbed the wolves' heads, and pushed them against the wall with force. The wolves fell unconscious to the ground, and Po turned and motioned for Viper and Monkey to come closer.

They hid the bodies of the guards under empty barrels and entered the prison, beating and knocking out as many guards as they could get in their way. Finally, with all the guards unconscious, they entered the lower level of the prison and found them. Master Crocodile and Master Ox lay in one of the cells. Alive, although they still had bandages on the wounds that Shen had caused them.

(*) Bento: Asian-style box used to transport ready-made food. (something similar to a lunch box)