A/N: (Hums the theme to 2001: A Space Odyssey) It arises from the grave as it shoves it self through the hard soil, and it reaches for the warm light that shines on it brightly. Slowly but surely, it pushes out from the endless abyss of darkness and it embraces the warmth of the light that gazes upon it. Okay, what I am basically saying here is that Chain of Memories: The Nintendo Version has finally arose from it's long solitude of silence. Due to real life issues, every one of my stories were put on hold. To make a long story short, I was suffering from depression and it prevented me from doing the many things I love; fanfiction included. Thankfully, I sought out help and I finally have enough motivation again to continue. To everyone on fanfiction, I truly am sorry. I kept you guys in suspense for too long, and that was not right of me. If you given up on my story then I completely understand. For those of you that haven't given up on it, then I thank you for all the support. So here is the conclusion of the Kongo Bongo chapter.

Chapter VIII: Banana Brawl

After leaving Cranky's laboratory, Krusha and Klump made their way back to King K. Rool's lair with the crystal coconut and the two kongs in their possession. The journey back was not hard for the two kremlings because they had a way to get back to the lair relatively fast. When the inhabitants of Kongo Bongo first began to build their homes after they gained intelligence, they decided to build a mine cart which would be the official transit system for the island. They did hours and hours of arduous labor to dig many holes that went in many different directions; the holes would lead to many different areas of the jungle. It took a long time, but in the end it payed off as they finally created a mine cart system that went all over the island. King K. Rool took this chance as an opportunity to build his own tracks that would go directly to his lair, so that he and his minions could make a quick escape from their enemies; and it was efficient most of the time.

The inside of the cave was a large area with metal pipes that were above the ceiling. Scattered throughout the room were green boxes that piled up one another. When you entered the cave, you would see three train tracks that went straight down to the middle of the room. One track would come from the outside of the cave. As one would follow the tracks in the cave they would notice two more tracks coming into view. These tracks would have bumpers at the end of them, allowing the mind cart to stop right at them upon impact. The three tracks went down towards the center of the room, where there was a small round turntable that would connect the three tracks. A few inches away from the turntable was a gray platform that had a giant tall stone face in the background. On each side of the platform there were a pair of giant yellow spikes that curved inward towards each other.

A light rumbling sound could be heard throughout the empty lair of King K.Rool. It sounded like wheels clinking and clanging on a mine cart track. Soon enough, from the entrance of the lair, a lone mine cart came in and road down the rails; it road all the way towards the turntable. This mine cart was not vacant, as two familiar slimy reptiles were riding it with dignified looks on their faces. It was none other than Krusha and General Klump returning from their mission. Klump pulled the break on the mine cart, causing it to come to a screeching halt about a few feet away from the turn table. The two kremlings leaped out of the cart and approached the turn table. Klump currently had the Crystal Coconut hidden within his helmet for safe keeping. Both he and Krusha approached platform, marching proudly.

Back inside the cart were the two Kong kids; their wrists tied together by a rope and their mouths covered by white napkins. They wiggled around inside the cart like worms as they desperately tried to get the ropes loose, but to their dismay, it was too tight on them.

Both Kong kids whimpered in fear as they wondered what was going to become of them. At this point, they were not enthusiastic to find out. They were trembling in fear as they remained alone in the mine cart. At one point Dixie started to cry, but Diddy slid over to her and nudged her face with his face to keep her company, and tell her everything would be okay.

Unbeknownst to anyone, the kremlings and the kong kids were not the only ones in the cave. Back at the entrance, five familiar characters have snuck their way into the lair, and they have secluded themselves behind the stacked boxes that were some ways down from the entrance of the room. It was none other than Sora's group. The five peaked their heads out from each side of the boxes. Luigi and Yoshi peaked out on the left side while Toadsworth peaked out on the right. Sora and DK peaked their heads in from above the boxes. They all watched the events unfold. DK could not bare hearing Diddy and Dixie's frightened whimpers. His hands gripped the medal surface as his eyes were forced to look upon this horrible site. He then turned to Sora, hoping that they could make their move soon.

"Sora, when are we gonna strike?" DK whispered to him.

Sora turned to DK, whispering back, "When they least expect it. We gotta make sure they are distracted long enough so that we can rescue Diddy and Dixie. That way we won't endanger their lives, and then we can take care of those Kremling creeps without a problem."

"Doth my ears deceive me?" Luigi gasped in a sarcastic tone. "Did you actually THINK up an idea for once instead of running aimlessly into battle? It's a miracle! Praise the lord! You should get a cookie for that."

Sora narrowed his eyes at Luigi in anger for letting that insult slap him right in the face. It was true; there were moments where he did not think before he acted, but he did not need Luigi mentioning his personal flaw out loud and in front of the others.

"Luigi, don't make me come over there," Sora hissed at his ally in anger. "'Cause I'll see to it that you'll never touch a plate of spaghetti again."

"Hey, I just tell it like I see it." Luigi replied in defense.

Toadsworth quickly intervened in order to put an end to their bickering.

"Masters," Toadsworth spoke up with a stern tone in his voice. "Please desist this nonsensical dispute immediately. We have to rescue the children and get the Crystal Coconut back in our grasp."

After Sora and Luigi quickly made amends with one another, everyone returned their attention to K. Rool's lackeys. The five remained perfectly silent as they watched the two Kremlings walk towards the center of the room with lifted spirits. In fact, General Klump was humming a happy tune to himself, as he was proud for completing the mission.

"Oh, boy!" said an ecstatic Klump. "King K. Rool is sure to handsomely reward me...erm...I mean us for executing our strategy perfectly."

Krusha frowned at his comrade. While he was not the brightest bulb of the group, he was able to acknowledge that Klump was trying to hog all of the credit. The big reptile crossed his arms and lightly tapped his foot on the ground as he glowered at the general.

"Uh...now wait a minute, Klump," Krusha said sternly. "I helped catch those two little twerps, so it's only fair that King. K Rool rewards us both."

Klump flinched; he walked right into that one. He had to reassure Krusha that he too would get a reward for his effort in abducting the Crystal Coconut.

"Why...of course you will, my physically fit friend," Klump replied as he gave his comrade a pat on the back. "It goes without saying that for every great general, there needs to be a great private. You put a lot of valiant effort into capturing Donkey Kong's companions, and I am more than confident that K. Rool will reward you handsomely."

Krusha, taking Klump's lie to heart, smiled. He was happy to receive such flattery from his ally.

"Aw, okay, Klump," Krusha said, now reassured. "I could always use a new bench press anyways. I need to work my abs; my pecs, arms, and my gluts."

Klump cringed in disgust upon hearing what Krusha wanted to work on. He did not need to hear that! Just thinking about it made his stomach churn faster than a washing machine.

"Hey, watch your tongue, maggot! That's a T.M.I right there!" Klump scowled at Krusha in rage. "You're out of line!"

Krusha scratched his head in confusion, "T.M.I?"

"Too much information." Klump relied with an informative tone in his voice.

Krusha sighed to himself, "I hate acronyms. That's why I stopped reading fanfiction."

"Shut it, you insubordinate..." Klump said as he started to scorn him again.

Suddenly, he was cut off by the sound of another male voice coming directly from above. This voice sounded sinister compared to the goofy tones of Krusha and Klump. Donkey Kong could already feel the adrenalin coursing through his entire body, causing his heart rate to increase so much that he thought it was going to jump into his throat. He instantly knew who that voice belonged too. It belonged to a voice that haunted the darkest parts of Donkey Kong's mind; a voice that bounded him to the very soils of the earth. A voice that slithered into his ear like a snake and never left his brain. It was the voice of his arch-nemesis...King K. Rool.

"Klump?" the voice called out from the ceiling above. "Is that you I hear blathering away like an imbecile?"

Klump gasped upon hearing his fearless leader address him. The general turned his attention towards the ceiling with his hands placed at his sides like a wooden soldier, and his feet firmly placed together. Sora could hear the general's voice tremble as he spoke up. However, Klump tried not to let his boss hear the fear in his voice, so he did what he could to articulate.

"Y-yes, your repulsiveness," Klump spoke up as he cleared his throat. "General Klump reporting from the assigned mission, sir!"

"And please tell me Krusha is with you this time," K. Rool added with a groan. "I do not want to hear that his head is stuck in anything again."

"Duh, nope," Krusha confirmed to the Kremling King as he patted his head. "My head is intact."

"Good, good," K. Rool replied with a devious tone in his voice. "Now, did you complete the mission?"

"Affirmative, sir," Klump said with a dignified look in his eyes. "We infiltrated Cranky Kong's laboratory; commenced our sneak attack, blew up the laboratory, snatched the coconut, and made it back by fifteen-hundred hours."

A shocked expression appeared on Krusha's face. It took them fifteen-hundred hours to get back to the lair?

"Wait, how could it could it have taken us fifteen hundred hours to get back?" Krusha exclaimed with widen eyes. "If it was fifteen hundred, then that was the quickest fifteen-hundred hours I've ever been though."

Klump smacked his forehead, "No, you thick-headed oaf! Fifteen-hundred hours is military talk for..."

"SILENCE!!" K.rool boomed out from above.

The two kremlings jumped back in trepidation upon hearing their master's abrupt interruption. The group could suddenly hear the sound of a mechanical noise whirring. The sound was coming from right above them. Everyone focused their gaze on the ceiling, only to be startled by seeing a part of the ceiling separate. The piece was a round metal circle and it slowly hovered down from above. As it got closer to the ground, Sora could notice someone standing on it.

As the platform was about to reach the ground, the gang noticed who or what was it. It was a large anthropomorphic crocodile that was very round and plump. His skin was as green as an emerald that was found in the mines. The beams that were above reflected off of his golden underbelly, which had an outward belly-button. On each wrist he wore golden cufflinks that were as gold as his chest. Resting on the top of his head was a golden crown. Sora figured that this crocodile must have a plethora of gold coins based upon all that gold he was wearing. Sora could also notice that the crocodile donned a red cape that blew in the wind.

Sora turned to Donkey Kong, only to notice a look of rage in his eyes. This guy was clearly the leader of the Kremling Crew.

"So that must be King K. Rool." Sora said.

DK turned to Sora, "That's him alright. The nastiest reptile to ever set foot on the island. Captain Scurvy and his bumbling crew got nothing on this guy. He is a master manipulator; he constantly tries to trick us into coaxing over the coconut. He also likes to dress up for some reason. I remember when he kidnaped me one time; he dressed up as a pirate. Then, there was that other time he decided to become a mad scientist, though that didn't suit him well either after Dixie beat him."

Luigi, who was looking over K.rool, noticed that his left eye was inflamed. Luigi cringed back in disgust upon seeing the red veins sticking out of it. The green clad plumber then turned to Donkey Kong with an inquisitive expression.

"Hey, what's with the bloodshot eye?" Luigi asked.

"Oh, that," DK said as his lips formed into a wise guy grin. "That'd be my doing. See, I accidently hit him in the eye with juice from a banana one time. Keep in mind that the bananas are magical, so it caused his eye to pop up like a balloon." He turned back to K.Rool while chucking. "He never did get over it; he said it ruined his chances with the ladies."

Luigi lightly snorted, "Yeah. If they saw him, he would be a sight for sore eyes."

Everyone groaned at yet another corny Luigi joke. DK turned to Sora with an annoyed look.

"How do you put up with those jokes?" DK asked Sora with a moan.

Sora just shrugged, "Good question. I'm still trying to figure that one out. If you have any suggestions, feel free to let me know."

Meanwhile, the platform King. K Rool was standing on landed on the ground, and the so called king disembarked from the platform. Both of his henchmen approached their master in both nervousness and excitement.

"Enough of this idle talk," K. Rool said as he approached the edge of the platform. He excitingly tapped his fingers together. "Did you bring me the Crystal Coconut?"

General Klump took off his helmet and removed the crystal coconut that resided within it. He then held it before his glorious leader. King K. Rool's eyes sparkled with glee upon seeing the coconut. It was such a beautiful sight as it glowed a beautiful silver light. K. Rool could already feel his scaley hands touching its hard surface..He was already picturing himself ruling over the entire island with an iron fist. He could hear the sounds of the inhabitants calling out his name in high esteem. The sounds of anguish delighted his ears, as he could imagine the kongs becoming his slaves, waiting on him hand and foot. Power was the only thing his mind could compute at that moment.

After many abortive attempts to get the coconut, he was thrilled to see that it was finally within his grasp. He squealed in delight as he snatched it out of Klump's hands and held it up in the air in triumph. He then let out a maniacal laugh.

"YES!!" K. Rool cried in excitement. "At long last, the crystal coconut is mine!! Oh, how I longed for this day!" He then brought it back down to his eye level. "With the coconut in my possession, I shall finally take over this chimp infested wasteland, and rebuild it into a world where I will rule it all!"

"And it gets better, sir." General Klump said eagerly.

K. Rool was taken back by what he heard. It gets better? He was surprised; normally, Krusha and Klump could only do one thing right.

"Better?" K. Rool inquired as he glared at his comrade with an intrigued look. "You mean...you actually managed to do something right...twice in a row? Oh, someone pinch me; I must be dreaming." He quickly darted his eyes towards Krusha, who was actually about to pinch him. "And I mean that figuratively. Don't even think about laying your claws on me."

Krusha shook his head, "N-no, sir."

"But I digress," K. Rool said. He then turned back to Klump. "So, Klump, you managed to do something else right?"

"Why yes we did, your viciousness," Klump said proudly. "Our strategy not only gained us access to the coconut, but it also allowed us to eliminate Donkey Kong once and for all."

K. Rool's eyes lit up upon hearing that. Donkey Kong eliminated? He never thought he would see the day where his arch-nemesis was finally taken out of the picture. K. Rool felt his heart rate rise in excitement; Donkey Kong was no more! He then started to laugh in excitement.

"Superb!" K. Rool cried out in joy. "Finally...after so many failed attempts, Donkey Kong is finally dead! Oh, this is turning out to be the best day of my life! For far too long he has stood between me and glory, but he shall not be a problem anymore. I am finally free to take over Kongo Bongo, and no one can stop me!"

Both of K.Rool's henchmen looked at each other in excitement. They were delighted to see that there fearless leader was pleased, because they hardly delighted him. K. Rool began spinning around the room in glee as he held the coconut up in the air.

Donkey Kong wanted to badly inflict pain upon K. Rool just for seeing him act so selfish and greedy. It was something he could not stand.

K. Rool then turned his attention back towards his henchmen, who were looking at him with anticipated expressions. He could tell they wanted something for all of their hard work on the mission.

"I suppose I should reward you two for a job well done, huh?" K. Rool said with a calm expression towards his minions.

Klump brought his feet together again and nodded towards his leader.

"Yes, sir," Klump said with a strong tone in his voice. "A reward would be sufficient to satisfy our mission."

"Uh..can I have a new bench press now?" Krusha asked in excitement.

Klump elbowed Krusha in the stomach for saying that. He did not want Krusha to ruin their chances of not getting a reward. Meanwhile, K. Rool scratched his chin in deep thought for a moment to think of a proper reward. An idea then hit his head like a hammer hitting a nail.

"Ah!" K. Rool said as he lifted one finger into the air. "I know the perfect reward for you two." Krusha and Klump rubbed their hands with glee. "After all, you are my most loyal servants; you should only get the best reward fit for a king."

Krusha and Klump felt their tongues drool just from hearing that. A reward fit for a king was something not to be taken lightly. It was probably going to be gold, jewels, and diamonds. Or maybe they would get to own their own part of the island. Either way, they could already taste the reward slide down their slimy throats.

"And I'll give you two different choices for your reward," K. Rool proclaimed. "The first reward is you'll get the pleasure, and I must say it is a true honor, to sing my praises for me finally eliminating Donkey Kong."

Krusha and Klump slumped their shoulders in disappointment. That was not the reward they had in my mind. At that moment they could only imagine what the other reward would be.

"Um, sire," Krusha said as his voice cracked up in nervousness. "If I may humbly ask you, what is the other option?"

K. Rool smirked, "I'm glad you asked. The other reward I'm offering you is the chance to kiss my royal feet for a whole minute. What'll it be? Oh, and you can't back out of choosing..." His voice then turned from a happy tone into a menacing tone. "Or else."

The two Kremlings both gulped nervously upon hearing their fearless leader's change in voice. It looked like they had to accept one of his rewards without hesitation. Out of both of the options, they knew that there was only one choice they could make. Besides, they were not planning on kissing feet that have not been washed in over two decades.

They then started singing to the tune of 'London Bridge is Falling Down.'

"King K. Rool is the best, is the best, is the best," they sang together harmoniously. "King K. Rool is the best because he finally beat Donkey!"

"Again!" K. Rool said demandingly as he pointed at them.

While the two continued singing, K. Rool started to dance around the area while holding the coconut up high. This was the perfect chance for Sora's group to make their move. DK quickly got up from behind the box and turned to the others.

"Now's our chance, guys," Donkey Kong announced while he whispered. "And I got an idea on how we can give Krusha and Klump the boot from this place."

Luigi became concerned about the great ape formulating a plan. DK was much like Sora at times; he ran into battle without even thinking things through. From the looks of things, this was DK's first time constructing an actual plan. The plumber was not too sure if DK could pull it off.

"A plan?" Luigi asked him. "Are you sure about this?"

DK nodded to Luigi with a sincere look in his eyes.

"I'm more than positive," DK said with a look of determination. "If I am to be the future ruler of Kong Bongo, then I gotta start thinking like a ruler."

Luigi nodded, "I'll take your word for it then."

"We got your back, DK," Sora said as gave a wink at his friend. "Just tell us what to do and we'll do it."

"Alright then," DK cried out with confidence. He then veered his head towards Toadsworth and Luigi. "You two stay here to watch our backs." He then waved his hand towards Sora and Yoshi. "You two come with me."

Sora and Yoshi nodded in compliance as DK headed towards the mine cart that contained the captive kong kids. Both of them were still scared stiff. They could only expect the worst to happen to them. Their bodies trembled violently as they waited for their fates to be decided. Diddy tried to break himself free from the ropes, but they were too tight around his furry wrists and calves. It was inevitable; there was no way to escape the Kremlings' clutches. Suddenly, he felt something touch his shoulder gently. He felt chills go down his spine; they were about to grab him! He shut his eyes, not wanting to see what they would do to him. He then felt the napkin become untied from the back of his head. Soon enough, it slowly fell off. He was too afraid to say something insulting to the kremlings right now. He then heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"Little buddy," DK said gently. "Take it easy. It's only me."

Diddy felt his heart skip a beat in surprise. Was it really DK? Diddy turned around to see a familiar ape with the strength of ten men but a heart full of gold looking at him with a relieved smile. It was him! Donkey Kong was alive, and he was here to save the day!

"Donkey..." Diddy began to shout out.

DK quickly covered Diddy's mouth to avoid drawing attention towards them.

"Shh," DK shushed him. "Keep it down little buddy, or else they'll spot us."

DK removed his giant hand from Diddy, who chuckled in embarrassment.

"Oops, sorry, big guy," Diddy grinned uneasily. "But I am so happy to see you're alive. I knew those bozos could never take you down."

DK smirked, "Heh. Did you honestly think one measly little orange could slow ol' DK down?"

Sora and Yoshi approached the other side of the mine cart and helped Dixie out of her side. They then untied the Kong kids from their ropes, finally freeing them. Diddy then ran up to his partner and gave him a high five.

"You're the man, DK," Diddy said happily. "Thanks for getting us outta there. I think I would have lost my lunch if I had to endure the smell of those greasy crocodiles for another minute."

"No prob, kid," DK replied with his famous grin. "Now you gotta split, little buddy. Things are about to get ugly."

Diddy was shocked by what he just heard. DK did not want his help to stop the kremlings? Ever since the beginning of time the two of them have prevailed over the Kremlings together. He always felt proud to be DK's sidekick, and he had always helped his big buddy get out of the most dire situations. He could not believe what DK was saying to him. It made him feel like DK lost faith in the young chimp. It was like his heart was smashed into a million pieces, and the fragments of joy from each of them disintegrated into a pile of dust.

"W-what?" Diddy gasped in shock. He then lowed his head. "But...we're a team, DK."

DK felt bad that he upset his friend. He knew that Diddy had always been a tremendous help to him whenever he engaged in battle with K. Rool and his men. However, for just this one time, he had to make sure that Diddy was out of harm's way. Moreover, he knew that both Candy and Cranky would have problems contending with the heartless if they invaded the lab. Someone needed to go back to help out, and Diddy was the perfect candidate. DK placed his big hands on Diddy's little shoulders with an affable smile.

"Listen, little buddy," DK said kindly. "I know we're a team and all, but this is going to be dangerous."

"I know that, but we've been in worse situations before," Diddy protested. "How is this any different?"

Sora spoke up for DK, "'Cause we're dealing with creatures that have a lot power. They're not to be taken lightly."

"Also, I'm worried about the safety of Cranky and Candy," DK added with a sincere look in his eyes. "Those things may invade the lab, and I'm sure they can't take them by themselves. They need help, Diddy. You're only one I know that can put up a good fight."

Diddy smiled upon hearing that. Perhaps DK did not lose faith in him at all. It then dawned on him that maybe his assistance was required elsewhere. Diddy then nodded to his friend in compliance.

"You're right, big guy," Diddy nodded understandingly. "Okay, I'll do it!"

DK then rubbed his friend's head with a chuckle, "That's my little buddy."

"Be careful, DK." Diddy advised him.

DK gave his friend a confident wink, "Don't worry. I'm always careful."

Yoshi noticed that the Kremlings were beginning to grow tired of singing K. Rool's praises. They were on the verge of losing their minds from singing the same thing over and over again. It was making their brains go numb with pain just from hearing it.

"Sir," Klump moaned in annoyance. "May we desist this singing?"

K. Rool placed hand on his chin to rub it. He gave it some thought for about a second before he replied to the General's plea.

"After one more time of singing it." K. Rool declared.

Krusha groaned, "Couldn't we wait for the album to come out?"

"NO!" K. Rool shouted at Krusha. "Either you sing once more or I'll force you to accept the other reward I offered you."

Both Kremlings shot worried looks at one another. They were not thrilled with the idea of having their lips touch the slimly and sticky surface of K. Rool's skin. Deciding to get it over with, they resumed singing their song.

"King. K Rool is the best..." they sang out loud.

Meanwhile, Yoshi hurried over to the two Kongs, hopping up and down in fear.

"Yoshi no mean to interrupt conversation, but bad guys almost done singing!" Yoshi said anxiously.

DK nodded to Yoshi, "We gotta hurry then." He then turned back to Diddy. "Get goin', kid!"

Diddy nodded to his teammate with a serious look on his face. Turning away from the group, he made a dash for the exit of the cave. Dixie said her good-byes to the others for their all her help, and she too took off for Cranky's lab. Sora, Yoshi, and DK could hear the Kremling's wrap up the song right now. It's time to put my plan into motion, DK thought to himself with a confident smile. DK called Sora and Yoshi over to form a group huddle. DK discussed the next phase of his plan to the duo while Luigi and Toadsworth kept their eyes peeled for any trouble.

DK did his best to explain his plan as quickly as possible to them. Time was of the essence, because the Kremlings would soon be done with the song. Thankfully, DK was able to get his message across within a reasonable amount of time. The gang then broke out of their huddle and got into their positions.

Finally, both Krusha and Klump, who were now exhausted, ended their song. K. Rool clapped his hands jubilantly; how he enjoyed hearing people laud him. The song had a nice ring to it. Both Kremlings were relived that they did not have to sing that song anymore. They were loyal to their master, but they did not want to praise him every five seconds. They would rather tear their skin off and feed it to the alligators then continuously sing to him.

"Good job, men," K Rool congratulated them. "A fine well done on the mission."

"Th-thank you, sir," Klump stuttered on his words. As his mind snapped back into reality, he remembered the hostages they brought along. "Oh! Sir! We have more good news!"

K. Rool made a look indicating a raised eyebrow.

"Really?" K. Rool said curiously. "You mean to tell me you did three things right? Don't make me laugh!"

"But it's true, sire," Klump told him wholeheartedly. "While we infiltrated the base, Krusha over here captured two of Donkey Kong's troops."

"Is that so?" K. Rool asked with an intrigued look. He then licked his lips with delight, and whispered to himself, "I could always use some prisoners." He then turned his attention back to Klump. "Show me where they are!"

Klump turned to Krusha with a nod.

"Krusha, bring the prisoners before his greatness." K. Rool commanded the big kremling.

Krusha grinned sinisterly, "With pleasure."

Krusha hurried over to the mine cart, only to be greeted by nothing but thin air. Krusha became flabbergasted; the prisoners were not in the mine cart. He could have sworn they were in there the moment they arrived. He scanned the entire cart to see if this was some trick. Klump noticed Krusha doing look over the mine cart. What was he up to this time? Klump ran over to see what was wrong.

"Krusha, I said bring me the prisoners," Klump said angrily at his companion. "Not stand there and admire them!"

Krusha brought his head out from the cart and turned to Krusha.

"But...uh...how can I admire something that's not there?" Krusha asked rhetorically.

The general jumped back in surprise. Not there? What did Krusha mean by not there? At that moment, Klump was almost afraid to ask Krusha what he was inquiring.

"Wh-what are you saying?" Klump gasped in surprise. "Are you saying the prisoners aren't present within the confinements of the cart?"

Krusha shrugged, "Pretty much."

"Shoot!" Klump exclaimed in anguish as he placed his hands on his head. "How did this happen? We secured them tightly, did we not? Maybe we should give it another look."

K. Rool tapped his foot in annoyance; he was growing rather petulant from just standing there.

"What are you idiots doing?" K. Rool snarled at them.

"We better hurry and take that second look," Klump declared with a anxious expression. "His vileness grows impatient."

The two Kremlings placed their heads back in the cart and scanned it thoroughly. To their dismay, they could not could see a single thing. They decided to bring their heads up...when they suddenly felt a hand firmly grab the back of their heads. The hand then forced their heads inward, which resulted in both kremlings banging the side of their skulls into each other. They felt their skulls vibrate faster than a violin cord bring struck. The next thing they knew, they could feel the same hand push them roughly into the cart.

As both Krusha and Klump looked in the cart, DK appeared from behind them and knocked their heads together. He then placed his hands on their backs, and used all of his weight to push them into the cart. K. Rool gasped in terror upon seeing the brown fur of his arch-enemy.

"Donkey Kong!" K.Rool exclaimed with a confused tone in his voice. "You're alive!?"

DK smirked, "Why, of course I am, King. K. Drool! I didn't realized you cared about my well-being so much."

K. Rool clinched his teeth in anger upon getting insulted by Donkey Kong. How he hated hearing that cool and sly voice of his! Donkey Kong then placed his hands on the cart and pushed it down the track. The cart moved a few feet until it stopped on the turntable in the center of the room. DK quickly turned his head to the left after doing that. It was time to move onto part two.

"Quick!" DK called out. "Pull the lever!"

K. Rool turned to see who DK was addressing. It was none other than Sora and Yoshi, who were pulling on a big lever with all their might. Upon moving the lever to the left, the turntable started to spin around like a top. Both Krusha and Klump started screaming as the turntable got faster and faster. The two could feel the fluids in the vestibular system of their ears move violently because they were spinning so much. Furthermore, it appeared that Krusha was not feeling too hot.

"I hate spinning!" Krusha cried out. "I get motion sickness!"

"Oh, that's good to know!" Klump cried out in sarcasm.

After about thirty seconds of suffering, DK told Sora and Yoshi to shut off the turntable. Compiling, Sora and Yoshi both moved the switch back to the starting position, and the turn table instantly stopped. Both Krusha and Klump were relieved that it was over...but it was only the beginning. Sora and Yoshi hurried over to the cart to place their hands on it. As they did so, they could hear the villains moaning. DK looked into the cart to see both Krusha and Klump laying their in agony.

"Aw, poor babies," DK sneered at them delight. "Don't worry. You two are getting an all expense paid trip to loserville. TTFN!"

Sora and Yoshi used every ounce of strength in their muscles to push the cart down the track until they gotten to a certain speed to let go. The two released their hands from the cart and watched it drive out of the cave. They could hear the wheels pound the rails from moving so fast. As the gang watched the kremlings leave, they heard Krusha one last time.

"Uh...Klump..." Krusha moaned with a weary tone his voice. "I feel something pushing it's way up my throat."

Klump shouted out, "Don't you even dare!"

The group could only wince as the next thing they heard from Krusha, which was the sweet sounds of him disgorging his lunch. Klump could only groan, as everyone knew he got hit pretty hard from the wave.

"He dared." Klump groaned in disgust.

The group started laughing as the cart exited the lair. K. Rool could only stand their in disbelief; he thought everything was going his way. However, he soon came to realize that it was only wishful thinking on his part. Soon he was surrounded by Sora, keyblade drawn and ready; Luigi, (who came over from behind the box) Yoshi, and Donkey Kong. It seemed that this would be a one sided fight. In spite of this though, K. Rool seemed to remain detached about the whole predicament he was in.

"And you're next, K. Rool!" Sora announced heroically. "There's no escape for you!"

"He's right!" DK concurred. "Four against one isn't good odds. Just hand over the coconut or else we'll have to take it from you by force."

K. Rool just smirked with confidence. Apparently he was not intimidated by Donkey Kong's threat.

"Oh Donkey Kong, my friend," K. Rool chuckled. "You never ceased to be the thorn in my side, do you? And from the looks of it, you brought some new friends along to help you. I'm afraid not even new friends will help you stop me this time. You see, I think you've failed to realize that I actually got you cornered like sewer rats."

Luigi raised an eyebrow for hearing such a ludicrous statement. How were they cornered? K. Rool then folded his hands and placed them behind his back.

"I knew that those two meatheads would mess up my plans," K. Rool continued. "So I came perfectly prepared, just in case you tried to ambush me." He then put his head down. "For all too long I have been relying on myself and others to get the job done. All this time though, I didn't realize that the only thing you can count on is the darkness; a mysterious element that shrouds the light from ever seeing existence again. I soon discovered this darkness and it ended up making me stronger."

DK scratched his head in confusion at what K. Rool was saying to him. He has known the Kremling King for a long time and not once has he ever heard him say something so absurd. Sora, Luigi, and Yoshi, on the other hand, knew exactly what he meant. The heartless must have gotten to him.

"Soon I let the darkness engulf my being, my very entity," K. Rool explained, his voice emotionless and cold like a rock. "And with it, I finally gained the power I needed to take you down."

He then looked back up at the trio with eyes that were as black as a crow who wished to peck upon the flesh of an innocent bystander and savor ever last moment of it.

"But in order to do so," he said. "I needed to throw away the thing that I did not value...my heart!"

"Say what!?" DK hooted in disbelief. "How could you throw away your heart? I mean, you wouldn't even be standing here right now if that were the case." DK suddenly stopped to realize something. He then narrowed his eyes at him "You...you're..not...K. Rool at all. You're different."

Sora knew that this individual was sick beyond his wildest imagination. The heart was something everyone cherished, and just throwing it away like yesterday's newspaper was the lowest thing you could possibly dp. Within the heart, there is the love that you share for all living things, and K. Rool could care less about love. Sora knew that with the power of darkness in his hands, K. Rool would soon become a threat to them. The key bearer tightly gripped the handles of the keyblade, expecting the worse from the lime skinned crocodile.

"It does not matter to me if I am K. Rool or not," K. Rool snickered as he licked his lips in pleasure. "The only thing I care about is the darkness, and that darkness has rewarded me for fulfilling its payment plan! Witness the beginning of oblivion!"

K. Rool then rose his arms up into the air, which caused the gang to get into their battle positions. Suddenly, the wall behind K. Rool exploded, resulting in a huge hole to appear because of it. Everyone shielded their eyes as small rocks and particles came flying at them. How on earth did he do that? As everyone turned back to K. Rool, they could notice him staring at them menacingly. A sinister chuckle managed to escape his mouth. DK, unable to continue staring at that ugly mug of his, cracked his knuckles and charged right for K. Rool.

"I've had enough of this!" DK blared as he ran towards K. Rool with full force. "You're going down!"

Sora felt his stomach harden like a rock as he watched the events unfold. Something was not right. Sora felt that K. Rool was not alone at that very moment. Both Luigi and Yoshi felt the exact same way, too. DK leaped into the air, preparing for his attack. Sora knew at this moment that DK was in trouble.

"DK, no!" Sora cried out to him.

DK brought his left fist out, going for the kill. All of a sudden, DK could feel something smack him right across the face. The result of this send him flying back towards the others. DK collided with the hard ground and rolled back about a few feet from the group. Frightened looks appeared on Sora, Luigi, and Yoshi's faces. They all hurried over to see if the future ruler was okay. Sora bent down to him upon arrival and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"DK, are you okay?" Yoshi asked in fear.

DK rubbed his back from the pain he felt when he collided with the ground.

"Yeah, I'm fine," DK replied. "But what the heck hit me?"

Luigi turned back to see K. Rool jumping up into the air. As he started to fall back down, he suddenly stopped in midair. Was he levitating? Soon, Luigi could hear something make a high pitched screech.

"I..I dunno, but I don't think I wanna stick around to find out!" Luigi gulped nervously.

K. Rool then flew high into the air and fixed himself right over the four heroes. They soon figured out that K. Rool was riding an invisible creature, but what kind of creature was it? They did not have time to think, as it was coming right for them. Everyone quickly rolled out of the way, just narrowly dodging the attack.

"Whoa, man!" Sora exclaimed in shock. "What the heck is he riding?"

K. Rool just laughed manically, "I am not going to tell you what I am riding. However, I will tell you one thing about it. It is like the Grim Reaper; it is something that brings death upon you...and you can't even see it."

A panicked expression appeared on Luigi's face.

"Okay, this guy is freaking me out!" Luigi screamed in terror. "Could we go back to Hyrule? I wouldn't mind listening to Ganondorf's laughing again."

Before anyone said another word, Luigi, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong transformed into white beings of light. They soon disappeared from the key bearer's sight. This could only mean one thing, Sora thought to himself. They have become mercy of the cards yet again. Sora knew he was on his own, but how could he beat K. Rool and whatever it is he is riding on? Moreover, how can he fight something he could not see? Guess he would need to rely on his other senses to help him through that one. K. Rool turned his attention to Sora.

"Sic him!" K. Rool commanded his creature.

The creature charged right for Sora, who quickly put his keyblade up diagonally to block the attack. Soon Sora could feel whatever it was collide with the keyblade, producing a loud 'clang' because of it. Sora used every ounce of his strength to try and push back, but the creature was far too strong. Sora's feet slid across the floor as the creature pushed him into a wall at the end of the room. Sora could feel his back collide with the rough exterior of the wall. He still held his position with the creature, still trying to push him back.

Sora could then feel a strong gush of wind coming right at him. It instantly occurred to him that the creature was about to strike. Sora jerked his head left, just narrowly avoiding the attack that came at him. A giant hole appeared right next to him as a result. Sora's felt his heart stop for a moment; that could have been his head! Sora then noticed that the part he was blocking had stopped pushing on him, almost like it was moving away. He then felt the gush of wind again. This time he brought his keyblade up vertically to block the attack. The keyblade was pushed right up towards his face because of how hard it struck. Sora struggled with the "claws" of the creature he was fighting. Finally, he could feel the creature grab a hold of the tip of the keyblade and pull him along for the ride. The creature lifted Sora into the air and threw him across the room.

Sora went spinning across the room towards the other side of it. He quickly regained control over his body and did a cannonball all the way into the other wall. As he flew back towards it, the creature let out a soft growl. Two small little green mists appeared adjacent to one another below K. Rool. The two mists then came together to form a sonic wind attack that moved in horizontal position. It flew at an incredible fast rate towards Sora. The key bearer flew into the wall, and landed on it by spreading his right leg out and letting his left hand touch the wall. The boy looked up to see the sonic wind come right for him. Thinking quickly, Sora turned his body right and leaped off the wall. He then flew over to a large metal pole that was to the right of the wall, and he pressed his right hand against it. No sooner did he land on it, another sonic wind came at him.

Sora quickly pushed off the wall just as the attack came at him and he leaped towards the ground. As he was about to collide with it, he quickly did a roll to catch himself. He then stood back up, only to see another sonic wind approach him. Sora darted his head left to avoid the attack as it came towards him his head. Another one soon approached him, and he jerked his body right to dodge the incoming one. No sooner did his head turn back towards K. Rool, he saw another one approach his head. Sora quickly dropped down and got into a position on the floor that looked like he was about do a one-handed push up. Another one that came at him while he was in the position. Sora quickly used his feet and his hand to push himself up to narrowly avoid the next one. Yet another one made its way towards him while he was in midair, with the front of his body facing the ground. To avoid this one, Sora quickly jerked his body left, and spun out of the way. He then landed in a kneeled position and stood back up. The creature continued to fire more sonic wind attacks, in which Sora continuously dodged. As one came at him, he quickly darted left to avoid it. As another one came, he jumped over it.

Sora then gripped the handles of his keyblade tightly with both hands. He was going to land a direct attack on the Kremling King. The keyblade master leaped into the air, keyblade held high. He jumped so high up that he was practically over K. Rool's head. He was ready to strike when a long red strip appeared from below K. Rool and grabbed on to Sora's calf. The boy was not only startled but disgusted, mainly because drool was on it. The red stip, supposedly a tongue, pulled Sora down and slammed him onto the floor. He screamed in pain from the hard impact his back felt when it hit the ground. Sora quickly shook the tongue off of him by using his foot, and he quickly stood up. Sora then noticed the tongue coming at his face faster than a bullet. Sora tilted his head left to dodge the tongue's attack, but it was not over.

Out of the corner of his eye, Sora saw it starting to move in, so he quickly ducked under it. The creature then quickly brought its tongue down to the floor and tripped Sora faster than a whip. Sora started to fall onto his left side, but he quickly caught himself with his left hand. As the tongue charged for him again, Sora pushed off with his left hand, performing a cartwheel in the process. Seizing this moment, Sora quickly ran towards the invisible creature, keyblade held with both hands, while the tongue started to retract towards its owner. Sora's hands were positioned right next to his head, and the keyblade was pointing right at the creature.

Sora then fiercely thrust the keyblade at the creature, stabbing it as a result. Yes! A direct hit! The creature let out an ear shattering wail. Sora could noticed K. Rool going higher into the air while holding on for dear life. Sora knew that the creature must be standing on its hind legs. This was the perfect opportunity to strike again. Sora tapped three fire cards and pointed it right at the creature.

"Fire!" Sora shouted.

A giant fireball emerged from the tip of the keyblade, and it flew right into the creature. The attack was so powerful that the creature and K. Rool went flying into a wall, which caused debris and ruble to emerge because of the impact. Sora shielded his eyes as the particles came right towards his face. As things started to settle down, Sora opened his eyes and looked to see what damage he did from the attack. He looked ahead to see the dust clearing from the impact of the hit. As the dust finally cleared, Sora could see K. Rool's wincing in pain. His body was squished between the creature and the back of the wall like a sandwich. Suddenly, something started to become transparent underneath the Kremling King. Whatever it was continued to get visible until he could finally see what K. Rool was riding. Sora felt his jaw drop in shock upon seeing it. It was a twenty foot, chameleon like heartless with patches of different colored green skin. On the top of its forehead it had a giant white horn that sparked out bio electricity that hissed like a snake.

Embedded on its chest was the heartless symbol, indicating that it was indeed a heartless. The creature slowly got itself back up after it taking damage of the attack. It shook its head to get off some of the debris that was on top of it. Sora quickly jumped three feet backwards and readied the keyblade for round two. Now that he could see the monster, his chances of defeating it increased. Sora tightly wrapped his hands around the handle as the monster slowly approached him. He had to be on his guard, because that heartless would trounce him at any given moment.

Sora started to pant lightly; he becoming a bit tired from all the damage he was taking. His muscles slightly trembled from the pain he could feel. In spite of this pain, he had to keep fighting for his friend's sake.

"Heh," Sora chuckled weakly. "So this is your secret weapon, eh?"

K. Rool glowered at the boy; he clearly did not expect Sora to reveal the identity of his heartless. However, K. Rool decided that it did not matter in the end run; his heartless was still going to crush Sora like a bug.

"Impressive," K. Rool said calmly. "I see you've managed to bring my monster out of hiding. Allow me to introduce you to my Stealth Sneak. Take one good look at him, my boy, for he is the last monster you will ever feast your eyes on."

The monster leaped forward and swatted at Sora with his left paw. Sora darted right to avoid the attack, but he soon found himself using the keyblade to block the right hand that came at him. Sora then titled the keyblade counterclockwise until it reached the six o' clock position. Sora then pushed the keyblade upward, knocking the hand into the air. Sora then quickly ran in to stab it in the face again. Unfortunately, the Stealth Sneak was ready to counter the attack. It stuck out its tongue to strike Sora, but the key bearer held the keyblade up and let the tongue wrap around the blade itself. It soon became an all out tug-of-war as Sora did his best to hold onto the keyblade, while the heartless pulled on it with all its might.

Sora then tapped one of the cards on his keychain, and used a blizzard spell on the chameleon's tongue. The heartless could soon feel its tongue freeze up from the icy cold spell being emitted from the blade. The cold sensation soon went from its tongue, all the way into its body, causing it to shiver up. Not only that, but it could not even make a move because it was so cold. It could no longer hold onto the keyblade as a result. As the tongue released its grip, Sora leaped into the air and prepared to bring the keyblade down.

Unbeknownst to Sora, the heartless miraculously recovered from the attack as it turned its body around and smacked him in the face with its spiral shaped tail. Sora once again went flying across the room from the hard blow. The creature then put its two claws out and charged up another sonic wind attack. Sora could notice it preparing another attack as he flew across the room. The creature then released the attack on the boy. Sora tried a new magic spell he obtained while fighting the heartless. He brought the keyblade back like a baseball bat and then swung it forward while he called out the attack.

"Wind!" Sora cried.

A power tornado soon emerged from the keyblade and collided with the heartless' attack. It caused a powerful explosion of gust and wind because of it. The sheer force of the wind sent Sora flying into the air. He screamed at the top of his lungs, as he was unsure what was going to happen to him. The question was soon answered as he felt himself collided with a bunch of wooden objects, and went right through them. High above the cave was a platform that appeared to have a myriad of wooden barrels neatly stacked up. There were about seventy of them in total. Most of them were normal barrels, while some had the words TNT printed on it. It was anyone's guess as to why they were up there, but Sora's interference caused the stack to fall off the platform. Sora was amongst the barrels that fell with it. The boy had to make a good landing, or else he would be flattened like a pancake. Sora quickly pushed himself down and landed on one of the barrels. He looked above to see another one coming straight at him; and it was full of dynamite!

Sora quickly leaped to his left, just narrowly avoiding the barrel. However, upon hitting the barrel Sora was just on, the TNT barrel exploded and sent Sora flying across the group of barrels. Sora noticed he was flying right towards other barrels. Sora slashed at the one in front of him and landed on the one a few seconds later that was right under him. He then hopped from barrel to barrel, avoiding other barrels from above and slashing ones there were in front of him. As Sora landed on one more barrel, it suddenly hit landed on the ground and started rolling.. Sora did his best to maintain his balance as it rolled down the cave. Looking behind him, he saw other barrels rolling with him. As he turned his head to look forward, he gasped in fear to see K. Rool and his heartless running right towards him.

The creature threw a punch at Sora from above, but the boy leaped to the right and avoid the attack. Sora then landed on another barrel, and continued to maintain his balance. As the creature slammed the ground from missing Sora, the powerful impact sent some of the barrels flying into the air. Sora notice one of them was a TNT barrel, and it was heading in his direction. That gave Sora an idea. The heartless tried to grab Sora, but the boy quickly jumped over the giant hand. As he was airborne, he moved his body slightly above the TNT barrel that was about a few feet away from the position of his foot. Sora then shot another fire spell at the heartless again, and only seconds later, he kicked the TNT barrel as it came in range of his foot.

K. Rool's eyes widened as he noticed the TNT barrel heading right for them.

"What!?" K. Rool clamored in surprise. "Oh, no! Quick! Turn away!"

The TNT barrel flew ahead of the fireball by a few inches, and it touched the heartless' face. Only a millisecond later the fireball collided with the TNT barrel and exploded right in front of them. Sora quickly landed on the ground and leaped out of the way as a massive explosion ensued from the impact. The keyblade master shielded his eyes from the brightness of the explosion as it towered over him. He could hear K. Rool scream in agony as he witnessed the explosion. The attack must have dealt some serious damage to both of them, or maybe even worse. As the explosion died down, Sora opened his left eye to see a giant stream of smoke covering the area in front of him. Was the battle over? He hoped so, because he was starting to become tired from all the fighting. His legs started to tremble from using them so much in battle. He took slow deep breaths to recover from the fight.

Sora waited for about a minute to see if K. Rool and the heartless would ambush him. To his surprise, nothing happened. Maybe he won the fight, he thought. Sora wiped his forehead in relief; he was glad it was over. Sora then turned away from the smoke, and started to make his way towards the exit. However, before he could even get another inch, he stopped upon realizing something. Weren't the others supposed to come back? No sooner did the thought cross his mind, he could feel something push against his back and slam him right into the ground.

Sora grunted as he hit the hard floor. Sora used all the strength he had to turn his torso around, only to be greeted by K. Rool and Stealth Sneak. He could notice both of them had bruises and marks all over their bodies from the damage they received. Sora could not believe his eyes. How did they survive?

"No...way..." Sora grunted as he struggled to break free. "You survived?"

"I have to admit, that was a clever little ruse you pulled off, boy," K. Rool said in admiration. He then smirked sinisterly. "But I am afraid it was not enough. Prepare for defeat!"

Sora had to think of something, or else he would become part of the heartless' balanced breakfast. The boy looked around the lair; there was nothing around he could use, and his arms were pinned down tightly. Suddenly, Sora focused his blue eyes on a certain green card that had appeared about five inches away from his head. It was a friend card! That was his ticket to freedom, but his arms were pinned down, so he could not reach for it that way. The only option he had was to use his teeth to grab it. Sora jerked his head forward and opened his mouth wider than a snapping turtle preparing to bite down on its meal.

K. Rool commanded his heartless to deliver the final blow on the boy by bitting down on the key bearer's head. This was the only chance he had left. It was all or never! Sora pushed his body out as far as he could, and he bit down on the card just at the heartless brought its mouth down on him. Thankfully, the magic of the card was able to activate just from touching it with his teeth. The card he touched was none other than the Donkey Kong card; and boy did Sora need some muscle right about now.

The overbearingly bright light from the card was able to blind the heartless and K. Rool for the moment. This caused the creature to loosen his grip on the keyblade master's body. Sora quickly slid himself out from underneath the creature's hand. As the light dimmed down, Sora turned to his right to see Donkey Kong with his fists at his side, ready to do battle.

"DK!" Sora cheered. "Thank goodness! I could use some help!"

DK smirked, "Hey, the pleasure's all mine." He then slammed his left first into his right palm. "K. Rool is about to find out what happens when he messes with my friends!"

DK ran right towards the creature as he let out a fierce battle cry. K. Rool could not help but grin deviously. He was going to enjoy taking out his enemy once and for all.

"Donkey Kong, my old friend," K. Rool laughed at Donkey Kong's pitiful attempt to stop him.. "You are taking a huge risk. There is no way you can beat me this time, especially with my new friend."

"For starters, I'm not your friend," DK shouted as he ran right towards the creature. "Second of all, your ugly little pet doesn't scare me, and last but certainly not least, you're about to get your butt kicked."

The creature stuck its tongue out to Donkey Kong but the great ape side-stepped to the left, avoiding the attack. He then took his right hand and slammed it down on the creature's head, knocking it onto the hard concrete floor. He then leaped onto the heartless and leaped right at K. Rool with hands straight out in front of him. He then tackled the Kremling King, and they both fell off the heartless. DK pushed K. Rool right into the ground with all of his weight, and they slid across the ground. K. Rool screamed in agonizing pain as he felt his skin slide across the hard surface. DK then stood up and grabbed K. Rool by the neck; it was time to end this fight. DK dashed forward while holding K. Rool's neck firmly within his giant hand. He then brought his mighty arm back and threw K. Rool across the room. As K. Rool went flying, DK drew his Coconut gun and fired a coconut out of it.

"Hasta la vista, baby!" Donkey Kong said in a deep voice.

K. Rool took wind of this and took the crown off the top of his head. He then threw it like a boomerang right at the coconut, destroying it upon contact. Donkey Kong's jaw dropped in shock; he was not counting on K. Rool to counterattack. Before DK could reply, he saw the crown come right at him. DK quickly jerked his body left to avoid the attack. DK had faced against K. Rool before, so he knew what was going to happen next with the crown; it was going to come right back towards him. Knowing this, DK devised a plan to have it so the crown hit K. Rool instead. DK fired another coconut, which K. Rool dodged by jerking his body left a few inches. DK then shot another one at him. This time, K Rool moved his torso right to dodge it. DK continued to pursue K. Rool by firing coconuts, in which K. Rool avoided.

"Ha!" K. Rool laughed with confidence. "I might be a bit plump, but I still move like lightning."

"A bit plump?" DK scoffed in disbelief. "That's a bit of an understatement!"

Insulted by DK's statement, he glared at him evilly.

"Shut up!" K. Rool hissed at DK.

DK continued to chase K. Rool until the Kremling King stopped upon a dead end. At this point, he knew he was corned, but right below him was a TNT barrel. Yes! There was still a chance to beat him. K. Rool picked up the barrel and turned to DK with it. DK tried to fire another coconut, but the only thing that emitted from it was the sound of a click. This could only mean one thing...DK was out of ammo. He patted the back of his gun, in hopes that there was at least one stuck in there. To his dismay, not a single one came out. He turned back to K. Rool who held the barrel over his head; the tides of battle have changed, and they were now in K. Rool's favor. K. Rool was about to blow DK up into a million pieces.

"Aha!" K. Rool said in triumph. "It looks like the tables have turned, Donkey Kong. There's no escape for you now."

While that was going on, Sora charged for the Stealth Sneak with both hands on the keyblade. The heartless fired yet another sonic wind attack. This was becoming redundant, Sora thought. As it came right at him, Sora deflected the attack with his keyblade and sent it right back at the heartless. The creature quickly leaped into the air to avoid the attack. It then flew right for Sora, who gasped in surprise. The boy leaped a few back feet as the creature was about land. As it landed, Sora quickly ran at it and purposely fell on his back so that he could slide under it. As he slid under it, Sora slashed the keyblade right across the creature's chest. It let out an ear shattering scream as it felt the blade impale its skin. Sora then came out the other side of the creature, and kicked his feet into the air to push himself back up.

The heartless moaned from the excruciating pain it received as a result. A large cut be noticed on its chest as a result of the attack. The heartless then turned to Sora with a passionate look of rage in its eyes. It would now show no mercy. The creature stuck its long tongue out at Sora again, but this time he grabbed the tongue with his left hand. The creature then pulled Sora towards him. As Sora approached the face, he rose the keyblade and slashed down on its face with all his might. The creature screamed again as it took the hit from the keyblade. The force from the attack was so powerful that it pushed Sora back. As it did, he held onto the tongue to bring it along for the ride. After he flew back a few feet, he flew back towards the creature and did the same thing again; this time he gave a diagonal slash downward. Sora repeated this process five more times. Each time he came in he would attack with the keyblade from a different angle. On the sixth time he went in, Sora brought his two feet together and delivered a hard kick to the jaw of the creature.

The attack was so powerful that it caused the heartless to stand on its hind legs because of it. With its sensitive spot now exposed, now was the time to unleash a powerful sleight attack. Sora tapped three cards on his keyblade, and it began glowing a bright yellow color. Sora then flew right towards the creature to deliver the sleight move known as "Blitz." Sora gave a left horizontal slash right across the chest. He then followed it up with a powerful diagonal slash downward. Lastly, he brought the keyblade over his head to perform the final strike.

"It's time you disappeared for good!" Sora cried heroically.

Sora then brought the blade down, and slashed it right across the creature's entire body. It howled in pain from the final blow Sora delivered His entire body stung like a million scissors that were cutting every part of its body off. It became too damaged to continue fighting at this point. It just staggered back weakly; it could hardly move a muscle. Sora pretty much won the battle.

Meanwhile, K. Rool had Donkey Kong right where he wanted him. DK knew that if he tried to attack K. Rool, the barrel would indubitably explode on both of them. DK could run to avoid it, but he chose not to for reasons unknown. K. Rool was excited, he was about to eradicate his arch-enemy once and for all. Little did he realize a confident smirk appearing on DK's face, while he was excited about winning.

"Any last words before I annihilate you once and for all?" K. Rool said.

"Sure," DK grinned cheekily. "What comes around go around!"

DK quickly ducked, which confused the kremling king for a second. Suddenly, his eyes widened in surprise as he saw his crown come right at him.

Only one thought crossed his mind as he watched the crown come towards him: why did offer DK a last word?

The crown flew right into the king's nose, which caused him to feel pain. His initial reaction to it was to throw the barrel up into the air, so that his hands could grab his nose to lessen the pain. DK quickly got onto his stomach and braced himself. The barrel only went a few feet up in the air before the force of gravity kicked in and pushed it back down. The barrel then collided with K. Rool's head, which resulted in a big explosion. The kremling king screamed as he flew into the sky like a rocket taking off. Donkey Kong watched as K. Rool started to fall down towards the middle of the room. Before DK could do anything else, he returned to his card form and disappeared in a stream of light.

Sora heard K. Rool's screaming coming from right behind him. The boy turned around to see K. Rool land on the control table that was in the center of his room. K. Rool felt electricity shock his entire body as it collided with the various circuitry that was in there. K. Rool then rolled off of the table since he was placed at the end of it. As he fell over, his hand accidently hit a red round button that was on there. DK must have taken care of K. Rool, Sora thought to himself. The boy then noticed a shiny round object rolling right towards him.

Sora's eyes widened in excitement, "Is that what I think it is?"

Sora hurried over to the object that was rolling on the ground. As Sora got closer to it, a feeling of joy overtook him upon recognizing the object. It was the Crystal Coconut. It must have fallen out of K. Rool's clutches from the explosion. Sora bent down and picked up the glowing coconut with both hands cupped underneath it.

He made sure to take care of it tenderly; he did not want to drop it. As he stood up with it, he sighed with relief. The battle was finally over. Sora then heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"Sora!" Yoshi called to him excitedly.

Sora turned around to see Luigi, Yoshi, and DK running over to him.

"Hey, are you okay, kid?" Luigi asked in concern.

Sora grinned, "Yep. I'm okay. Not only that, but I got the coconut too."

Sora handed the coconut over to Donkey Kong, who scanned over it to see if it was not damaged. He scanned the glass surface to see if there were any cracks on it. Fortunately, none could be noticed. Donkey Kong was ultimately relieved that the coconut was finally back in his possession.

Throughout this entire ordeal, Donkey Kong had become a little wiser; he has learned that brute strength alone does not win a fight. It also takes cunningness and a strategic mind to win the day. The body and mind; they go together like a husband and wife; one cannot be complete without the other. DK, of course, had to learn that the hard way. He also learned to take more responsibility and care into watching over items that could never be replaced.

DK let out a huge sigh, "Alright! We got the coconut back!"

He then looked up at Sora's group with a gratified look in his eyes. If it had not been for them, he probably would have never got it back. They too played a role in helping Donkey Kong become wiser. He would have probably jumped carelessly into battle if they did not show him that true heroes need to use their minds, not their muscles.

"Thanks for all your help, guys," DK said gratefully. I couldn't have done it without you. I would have probably got my butt kicked if you didn't help out."

Luigi pounded his chest with his left fist proudly.

"No problemo," Luigi said modestly. "A plumber's job is to always lend a hand."

Sora could not help but chuckle at Luigi's comment.

"No problemo?" Sora snickered. "I thought you were Italian, not Spanish."

Luigi turned to Sora with an annoyed look.

"Can't I ever say something unusual without getting a comment from the peanut gallery afterwards?" Luigi groaned at Sora.

Yoshi giggled, "Sorry, Luigi. It Sora and Yoshi's job to comment on silly things you say."

Sora and Yoshi both started laughing to each other as Luigi sniffed indignantly at them. Before another word was spoken, the group heard a siren go off within the cave. This caused Yoshi to jump on top of Luigi's shoulders in fear.

"Hey, what's the matter for you!?" Luigi shouted with his Italian accent. "Stop that, Yoshi! Get offa me! I'm supposed to be the one riding you! It doesn't work like that!"

Sora and DK looked anxiously around the room. What was happening? Did K. Rool trigger something when he crash landed into the table. As they mulled it over, they were unaware that K. Rool had slowly managed to get himself up from the critical hit. His entire body was crippled; he could hardly poise himself into a straight up position. K. Rool wondered what was going on. He never seen his lair do this before. He then remembered that his right hand touched something just before he hit the floor. Looking to his right, he noticed a giant red button that was pressed down. Under it, he noticed red words carved within it. His entire body tensed up in apprehension upon reading what it said.

Self-Destruct Mode...

K. Rool was in a state of bewilderment. Never in a lifetime did he ever consider the thought of installing a self-destruct button in his lair.

"Okay, who's the dimwit who thought it would be a good idea to install a self-destruct button?" K. Rool uttered out in rage. "I only have one lair, you know! Does it look like I would invest my time in building another one?"

Everyone could then hear a robotic voice speak up from above.

"Self destruction in thirty seconds." the voice announced.

Sora's group gasped in surprise. In thirty seconds the entire place would explode, and if they did not escape, they would be reduced to ashes.

"So he's gonna self destruct the place huh?" Sora groaned as he slumped his shoulders. "Wow. How cliched can one get?"

"Hey, it maybe cliched," Luigi pointed out as he started to panic. "But if we don't get outta here, then we're going have an ending that is not so cliched. I'm ditching this popsicle stand! Ciao!"

With that said, Luigi dashed for the exit while Yoshi still on his back. The young dinosaur was so terrified that he absentmindedly put his hands on Luigi's eyes, blocking them from seeing anything.

"Hurry, Luigi!" Yoshi cried in fear.

"I'm trying, Yoshi, but for some reason I'm blind!" Luigi shouted out. "I can't see where I am going!"

Luigi continued running in the same direction, until both of them ran into a wooden box full force. Luigi stumbled backwards and rubbed his nose from the pain. He quickly placed his hands on the box to feel around for an opening. He slid his body left until all he could no longer feel the box. The plumber ran forward again...only to trip and fall into a pile of barrels. Toadsworth, who came out of hiding from the box, ran over to help the duo up. Meanwhile, Sora and Donkey Kong were about to join then when they heard a voice, causing them to stop dead in their tracks.

"Not so fast, gentlemen!" the voice said.

Sora and DK turned to see K. Rool standing before them. He slowly limped towards them, as he was still fatigued from the fight. He was not going to let them leave alive.

"You're...not...going to escape my wrath." K. Rool said with a weary tone in his voice.

DK could not help but show sympathy for K. Rool. He was too weak to even raise a finger. It would not be fair for him to hit someone while they were still down. Moreover, K. Rool did not have enough strength to make it out alive, based on how slow he was moving.

"K. Rool, we can't fight you anymore," DK said to him sincerely. "You've already lost."

K. Rool, too arrogant to realize that he stood no chance, continued to walk towards the two.

"Nonsense," K. Rool said, his voice slightly trembling. "I am King. K Rool! I cannot be defeated! I just come back even stronger than ever! I am the darkness that you can never escape from."

The two suddenly took notice of a huge silhouette, shaped like a chamaeleon, looming over K. Rool. Sora and DK instantly knew who it was. It was the Stealth Sneak! Sora forgot all about it after he delivered the final blow upon it. He could hear the creature softly growl in pain. It was probably just as weak as K. Rool was. However, they started to notice it swaying back and forth like a palm tree during a hurricane. Both Sora and DK had a feeling that it was going to fall, and K. Rool was going to act as the cushion. The creature tilted its head back; it was about to make a decent. DK had to warn K. Rool before it was too late.

"K. Rool! Look out behind you!" DK alerted the kremling king.

K. Rool turned around too little too late, as a giant heartless that weighed triple his size fell right on top of him, and crushed him into the ground like a bug. The Kremling King screamed in agony, as his spine was squashed like fresh berries. Sora and Dk's spines shivered, just thinking about how much that had to hurt.

DK was concerned; he hoped that K. Rool was alright. He had to help him! Wasting no time, DK hurried over to the heartless, calling out his enemy's name.

"K. Rool!" DK said with a tone of distraught in his voice. "Are you alive? Say something!"

Sora could hear the robotic voice count down.

"18...17..." the voice said.

There was no time to help K. Rool; time was running out. Sora hurried over to DK and put his hand on his shoulder.

"DK, we don't have time!" Sora pointed out to him.

"...16...15..."

"But...he doesn't deserve to..." DK argued.

Sora shook his head sadly, "Listen, I want to save him just as much as you do, but...if something happens to us...we'll never see our friends and family again. They'll be forever heartbroken by it, and I can't picture Kairi and Riku mourning over me. I don't want them to be sad. Besides, you're the future ruler of Kong Bongo; everyone needs someone to guide them in the right direction, and you're the only one capable of doing it."

"12...11..."

DK nodded understandingly. He could not picture his friends going about a somber lifestyle without him. He did not want that to happen. His loved one's meant so much. Taking a deep breath, he made a decision on what to do. He hoped that he did not have to regret what he was about to do.

"Okay, Sora," DK said in compliance. "Let's get out of here."

"10...9..."

DK scooped Sora up into his left arm and quickly sprinted towards the entrance of the lair.

"...8...7..."

DK ran over to Toadsworth to help him get Luigi and Yoshi out of the barrels.

"...6...5..."

He then placed Luigi, Toadsworth, and Yoshi in his other arm and ran at full speed towards the door. He made sure he did not drop either his friends or the coconut.

"...4...3..."

DK's heartbeat rose in nervous; the entrance was close, but time was almost up.

"...2...1..."

As they got to the entrance, DK shot a slight glance back towards the spot where K. Rool was crushed into a pulp. Only two words entered his mind as he looked back one last time.

"I'm sorry..."

DK leaped out of the cave just in time; the detonation went off, causing a huge explosion. As he landed, DK hurried down the track, so they could get far away from the explosion as fast as possible. DK could feel the earth shake below his feet as he continued to follow the tracks. After about a few seconds of running, he placed everyone on the ground. They all turned around to see smoke and ashes coming out from the entrance of the hole. The group sighed in relief; they managed to escape death's clutches.

Yoshi wiped his forehead, because sweat of nervousness poured down his face, "Phew! Talk about cutting it close."

"Oh, my poor heart," Toadsworth moaned melodramatically. "I do not know if I can take this much madness anymore."

"Madness?" Luigi asked with a raised eyebrow. "That wasn't maddens; that was insanity!"

DK shrugged, "Look at the bright side; we're all safe and sound." He then shifted his gaze towards the cave. "Well...almost everyone."

"Why?" Luigi inquired. "Did someone not make it."

DK nodded sadly, "K. Rool was toppled by that monster we faced. He didn't make it. I tried to help him, but there wasn't enough time."

Sora and his friends looked at each other with sadden looks. While he was their enemy, he still was a living being, and no human being deserved to die in the prime of their meaningful lives. DK turned back to the group with a serious look.

"Oh, well," DK sighed with a shrug. "At least he can rest in peace...or pieces I guess. All his life K. Rool was alone. That's what drove him to become evil. Nobody ever cared for the guy. He was pretty much alone; and Krusha and Klump were only henchmen meant to serve him. So he still was all alone."

Toadsworth nodded in agreement, "I could definitely notice a look of emptiness in his eyes. He probably would have been a different crocodile if he had friends that cared for him."

"Without any friends, he could not have a heart," DK said solemnly. He lowed his head to pay his final respects. "I pity him, even after everything we've been through." He looked up and chuckled a little bit. "Funny thing is it probably won't be exciting around here now that he's gone. After all, he is what kept me coming back to rescue the coconut."

Sora could feel a warm sensation right at his feet. Looking down he could see the same black card he first got back in Hyrule. Next to the card was a card that had a picture of K. Rool on it. This must have been his reward for defeating the leader of this world. Sora picked the cards up and placed them in his pocket. DK then walked ahead of the group.

"C'mon, guys," DK told the others. "Let's get back to Cranky's lab. He's probably about to blow a fuse from waiting so long."

The four nodded to Donkey Kong, and they all followed him back to the lab.

The sun slowly started to descend over the trees of the jungle. The wild animals that resided in the jungle decided to head home after exploring the world for the entire day. They could not wait to get to their nesting grounds and drift off into a peaceful. Already, one could hear the sounds of an owl's hoot echo throughout the vicinity of the jungle of the island. The air was crip and cool; it definitely started to feel like nighttime.

After about twenty minutes of traveling through the jungle (and another ten minutes convincing Luigi to get in the barrel that launches them back) the five arrived back on the bridge that lead to Cranky's lab. Now that the threat has passed, they could finally relax. As they headed towards the door, DK stopped for a moment.

"Hey, fellas," DK said to Sora's group. They turned to him. "What's next for you guys?"

"Well, we may have found Yoshi, but my friends Riku and Kairi are still out there somewhere." Sora replied to the great ape. He then gestured towards Luigi. "And Luigi needs to find his brother."

DK smiled, "Guess you guys gotta a long way to go. Well, wherever you go, just know that DK's got your back."

"Thanks," Yoshi said with a grateful smile. He then lowered his head sadly, still feeling bad for eating the coconut earlier "I sorry I ate the coconut."

DK bent down to Yoshi, placing his giant hands on the dinosaur's shoulders.

"No problem, Yoshi," said an understanding DK. "Accidents happen, right? I should know; I get into 'em a lot."

Yoshi giggled in response. He was glad to know that everyone was forgiving of him eating the coconut. Before Yoshi could respond to DK, he stopped to see the crystal coconut in DK's left hand. Oh how shiny it looked, Yoshi thought. It would be so good feeling its rough surface touch his tongue again. Sora could notice Yoshi staring longingly at the coconut. He knew what was going to happen. Yoshi stuck his tongue out to try and eat the coconut again, but Sora quickly grabbed his tongue with both hands.

Everyone glowered at the dinosaur for trying to eat the coconut again.

"Yoshi!" everyone shouted at him.

Sora then released his grip from the tongue, and it retracted back into the dinosaur's mouth. Sora shook the salvia off of his hands.

"Ew!" Sora groaned in disgust. "I think I had enough of touching tongues for one day."

"Piece of advise, DK," Luigi advised Donkey Kong. "When it comes to Yoshi and eating, accidents never happen."

DK nodded with a nervous expression on his face, "I'll take your word for it."

"Donkey Kong!" called a male voice.

Everyone turned to see Diddy Kong run right out of the laboratory. He was happy to see that everyone was safe. The little chimp jumped into his big buddy's arms and gave him a big hug.

"You did it, DK!" Diddy hooted excitedly. "You got the coconut back!"

"But of course, little buddy," DK said with his famous grin. He then pulled Diddy away from his arms and placed him on the ground. "They don't call me the future ruler of Kong Bongo for nothing."

Seconds later, the other Kongs came out to congratulate DK and the others on a job well done. Candy gave Donkey Kong a hug, knowing that he was safe and sound.

"DK, I am so happy to see you alive," Candy said happily. "I don't know what I would have done if something happened."

"Aw, nothing bad was gonna happen, ma'am," Luigi reassured Candy. "With us helping him out, we had no problem taking care of the kremlings."

No sooner did he say that, a cane came in and wacked him right across the head. Luigi placed his hands on his head from the throbbing pain he was feeling.

"Ow!" Luigi yelped in pain. "What the-!?"

He turned to see an infuriated Cranky Kong standing before him.

"Don't forget that it's because of you four that we were in this mess in the fist place, you knucklehead!" Cranky pointed out sternly.

"I'm not the one who ate it!" Luigi protested.

Cranky then wacked him over the head again; this time with more force. Luigi clinched his teeth from the extraordinary pain he felt.

"Ow!" Luigi shouted in pain.

Cranky then wacked him yet again with the cane. Luigi glared at Cranky in confusion as he rubbed his head a third time.

"But all I said was 'ow' that time!" Luigi pointed out with a trembling tone in his voice. "What was that for?"

"For not buttoning yer lip!" Cranky explained.

"Cranky," DK said. The old kong then turned to him. "It's cool. We got the coconut back and everything's fine. Besides, I think Luigi's been through enough."

"Yes," Luigi whimpered in pain. "Please! Have a heart! I am only a plumber!"

"I don't know what a plumber is, but I think that's enough punishment," Cranky said.

Luigi sighed with relief from hearing that. Cranky turned away from the plumber and slowly walked over to DK with a frown on his face.

"Well, DK, you always manage to stir up trouble." Cranky said in disappointment. He sounded like he was about to preach him with the same redundant speech about being a good ruler

DK lowered his head; he was not in the mood to hear Cranky lecture him again in a negative way. However, as he stood next to him, DK was surprised to see that Cranky was smiling at him.

"But you always manage to set things right," Cranky added with a smile. "I am proud of you, my boy."

DK was touched by Cranky's words. It was so rare to hear something nice from him, and it made him feel proud of himself. He bowed his head before his grandfather in appreciation.

"Thanks, Cranky," DK said as he expressed his gratitude. "From now on I'll do what I can to be a good leader."

Cranky patted his grandson's head gently, "I know you will. You always mean well."

DK felt elated; he never felt so much kindness from Cranky before. Perhaps Cranky had turned over a new leaf...

WACK!!

DK felt Cranky's cane smack him right across the head. He then stood up with tears of pain in his eyes, as he clutched his head with his hands. Guess he spoke too soon.

"OW!"

"JUST DON'T MESS AROUND AGAIN!" Cranky roared at his grandson in rage. "Are we clear!?"

DK made an 'ok' symbol with his right hand while he still held his hand with his left.

"Crystal." DK replied with a grunt of pain.

Everyone else then started laughing from that moment. After the laughter died down, Sora went to say his good-byes, but before he got a chance to a bright light flashed right behind them, startling everyone in the process. What was going on? Everyone turned to see a giant white vortex manifesting itself in front of them. The Kong's backed away in fear upon seeing it.

"Wh-what is that thing?" Dixie stuttered in fear.

Sora's group looked into it to see the familiar pale hallway of Castle Oblivion. It was time to move on.

"Our ticket out of here," Sora replied as he turned to the Kongs. "I guess this is where we say...good-bye."

DK approached Sora and gave him a high five.

"Sora, it was cool hangin' with you and your friends," DK said. "You're always welcome back here, and wherever you go, we'll always be pals no matter what."

Sora gave him a thumbs up, "Thanks, DK. Till we meet again!" He then turned to his friends. "Guys...let's go!"

The group said their final good-byes to the kongs, and they headed into the portal. As they entered it, Sora had this strange feeling that they were not originally meant to come here. He did not know why, but he felt that somewhere, in another time, another reality, this was a world they did not journey to. Regardless of what he thought, he was happy he got to go on a jungle adventure. Sora knew that it would be a long journey to find his friends, but with the many exciting adventures along the way, he knew that the fun was only begining.

The group arrived on the other side the portal, and as they walked forward, they could hear Donkey Kong's voice once last time.

"Bananaaa Slamma!"

The voice then fainted into the back of his mind, along with the entire memory of the world.

A/N: Aw, man. I finished the chapter. Whew! Spent a good amount of time with it. I want to again thank everyone for being patient with me throughout this entire thing. I was going through life issues and it prevented me from doing this chapter. Also, considering the fact that I had to make up the entire chapter from scratch also made it a workout, but I was able to prevail. I hope you enjoyed reading, and I'll see you next time. I'm back, and I don't intend to give up...ever!