Author's notes: yeah, still taking breaks to write instead of killing myself on the books the whole day like I'm supposed to do. I'll end up doing as usual: slacking shamelessly until a week or two before the exam (depending how difficult it is) just to panic completely and start studying like hell the last days. It's tiring, but it works XD

A couple of things – first off, Spicyweasel had the idea of having Monty using scientific names referring to a couple of animals, mostly because of when he calls Rufus3000 "rodentia" in AsiT. Thanks for the suggestion, Hanna ; )

Another thing – the Japanese name "Michio" is pronounced 'mee-she-o'. Just to let you know.

Enjoy.

Madagascar, Southern rainforest.

"I hate lemurs," Monkey Fist muttered to no one in particular as he made his way through the forest, followed by his monkey ninjas. A couple of hours before they had realized a few minutes too late they had just stepped in the territory of a group of lemur cattas, common ring-tailed lemurs, and they had found out at their expense just how vicious those big eyed, cute-looking little could be when they felt threatened.

They were no match for him and his monkey ninjas, of course, but those claws hurt. For once he was glad that Chippy had insisted bringing the first aid kit, though he felt kind of stupid walking around with a band-aid across his nose like a five-years-old that had fallen from his bike. At least nobody was around to see him.

He paused, sweeping off the sweat from his face with his forearm – there wasn't much left of his sleeve – as his eyes carefully scanned his surroundings. "Yes!" he grinned as he saw the big, reddish stone a few feet from him, almost completely hidden by the vegetation. He quickly tore away the vines upon it to reveal an inscription, which he read with an almost predatory gaze.

"We're getting close," he announced to his exhausted minion, checking his compass "just one-hundred steps that way – it must be just near that peak. Let's go, I want to…what's the matter?" he asked as he noticed how tense his monkey ninjas seemed, nervously glancing around. Monkey Fist frowned as he heard something, like twig snapping somewhere to his left.

He turned to see a relatively small, cat-like creature staring at him with large eyes – a fossa. Four other similar animals stepped out from the vegetation, baring their small but sharp teeth, circling them as threatening hisses filled the air.

Monkey Fist frowned. First those blasted lemurs, now this – that just wasn't his lucky day. It surprised him though: fossas didn't live in groups. Besides, it was very rare for a cryptoprocta ferox to attack a man: as far as Monkey Fist knew, it could only happen when there were very young pups to protect – maybe they had sensed his presence and had decided to team-up to protect their pups?

Or maybe, he thought as he glanced at his monkey ninjas hiding behind him as the fossas came closer, they had just decided to variate their usual diet with some monkey meat. He probably wasn't their target – his monkey ninjas were, and though highly trained it would be too dangerous for them to face carnivore felines by themselves. They couldn't even escape on the threes, for fossas could climb as well.

Too bad, it looked like those overgrown cats were going to skip their lunch – he could not afford to lose any of his minions right now. He quickly picked up a branch from the ground and held it in front of him, ready to fight them off, for the first time in his life regretting he hadn't brought a gun or something similar.

"Don't face them directly if you don't want to have your heads bitten off – try to distract them while I attack," he ordered, then he sighed as the fossas approached "I hope you still have that blasted first aid kit ready. I get the distinct feeling we're going to need it."

"I loathe fossas," Monkey Fist clenched his teeth and let out a hiss of pain as a monkey ninja applied the disinfectant on a wound on his right forearm "are you trying to kill me?" he snapped as the poor monkey, who whimpered apologetically before turning his attention back to the bite. Luckily it was nothing serious: aside for that bite, a couple of scratches and his ripped shirt, the fossas hadn't managed to cause too much damage or to kill any of his monkeys.

Monkey Fist just hoped there wouldn't be other troubles in the way to the temple – that quest was seriously threatening to kill him. He let out a sigh of relief as the monkey ninja finished disinfecting his wound and went to fetch some bandages.

"Forget about that, we can't lose other time," he said as he ripped away what was left the sleeve of his explorer suit and wrapped it around the wound, yanking it tight. He got up and gestured his monkey ninjas to follow him "let's go, the temple shouldn't be…" he paused and frowned "Chippy, what in the world are you doing with that needle?" he asked, taking a few steps back.

The monkey looked at him innocently, a deadly looking needle in his hand as he squealed something about preventing infections after being bitten by wild animals. Monkey Fist couldn't help but wonder where could he have learned about that.

"I…don't need it. Put that thing away," Monkey Fist ordered nervously, folding his arms and trying to not look at the needle, ignoring his monkey ninjas' amused glances. He hated to show any kind of weakness in front of his minions, but that needle was horse-sized to say the least!

"Let's get going," he said sharply as he turned and began to walk "I want to get inside the temple before sunset and –" he trailed off and growled as rain suddenly began to fall violently, soaking him in no time – just the last thing he needed now. "I despise rain season," he muttered darkly as he kept walking "now I know why I never went on this blasted island before. Are you coming or not? I want to get away from this cursed place as soon as possible."

As the other monkey ninjas immediately followed their master Chippy paused for a few moments, the needle still in his hand. Yes, it was quite impressive and he couldn't blame his master for being scared – he knew a lot of humans held an irrational fear of that stuff – but he couldn't let him take his health so lightly and get some disease, could he?

Maybe he would get angry, but it was for his good.

Chippy scurried next to his master, the needle hidden behind his back, and squealed something, causing Monkey Fist to frown and look down at him. "What do you mean? 'Sorry' for what?"

Before he could react Chippy gave an apologetic whimper, quickly raised the needle and stuck it in his thigh.

All over the forest, birds fled at the resulting shriek.

Despite the situation, Yuki had to admit that Yori's expression was quite a sight: the usually collected girl was staring at her with widened eyes, mouth agape, as if she had just told her she was planning to have a gender change or something.

Maybe telling her the truth hadn't been such a brilliant idea, but she would find out sooner or later, and now that Sensei had officially allowed her to stay was no point in keeping the whole thing hidden and let Yori worry for her health – though she couldn't help but think the girl would have been less shock to be told she was deathly ill.

"Uhu…Yori?" Yuki waved a hand in front of the girl's eyes "are you still here?"

Yori blinked. "You…he…" her blank expression was suddenly replaced by an enraged one "how…how could he!"

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "Pretty much the usual way, I think."

"That…that monster! I knew he was evil, but I would have never thought…we have to tell Sensei, he must pay for what he did!"

"Uh?" Yuki blinked, a taken aback by the unexpected reaction – she knew Yori wasn't fond at all on Monty and she honestly couldn't blame her, but such a reaction wasn't like her at all. She was acting as if she had just said Monty had…

Yuki frowned. She wasn't thinking he could get so low to do a such thing, could she? "And what do you think he did, Yori?" she asked narrowing her eyes, a sharp edge in her voice.

"Well, he…he did…" the girl paused and looked at her, surprised by her outraged expression "you mean…he didn't…force you?"

"Force me?" Yuki hissed, causing Yori to take a step back "of course he didn't, he would never dare to do a such thing! Everything that happened was absolutely consensual – what kind of monster do you think he is?"

"Oh," for a moment Yori just stared at her, her mind struggling to accept the idea of Yuki willingly sleeping with Monkey Fist "you mean…you…he…" she repeated, her brain refusing to process the information. To her, Monkey Fist was just a villain: insane, cruel, power-obsessed and incapable of love. Quite honestly, she couldn't figure out what Yuki could have ever seen in him – but how could she say that without being offensive to her elder?

"I'm sorry, Yuki-sempai," she finally said with a short bow, biting her tongue to not say anything that could upset her "I jumped to the wrong conclusions too fast. Does Sensei know?" she asked with a worried look on her face. As far as she knew, Yuki could have been banished for what she had done, and the thought was dreadful – she knew Yuki had nothing outside Yamanouchi.

Yuki nodded, trying to calm down – Monty had kidnapped her and almost succeeded to have her killed, after all: she couldn't completely blame her for thinking of him as heartless. "Yes, I told him everything a few days ago. He allowed me to stay – he allowed us both to stay."

"Oh," Yori was most relieved "I'm so glad about it, Yuki-sempai. Did he choose the name already?"

"The name?"

"Well…according to our rules, if Sensei decides to make an exception and allow a child to stay he must be the one to choose the name. He did the same thing with you, didn't he?"

Yuki frowned in thought – that was true, she had completely forgot about that rule. Accepting the child of an enemy was not the like accepting any other child in the school: Yuki was pretty sure it had never happened in the school's history, so she hadn't thought about the fact Sensei had the right to choose the baby's name.

The thought struck her somehow – she had never though of any name for the baby: the thought it was going to need a name made it feel more like a true human being rather than just a bunch of cells developing in her womb causing her to feel sick. She cringed inwardly, slightly frightened by the idea. She still hadn't accepted the pregnancy: it felt more like some illness she was suffering from. Yet, the sudden realization that the life she was carrying inside her was going to become a true person, with a personality of its own filled her with awe. She rested her hand on her belly, her head spinning a little, not sure of what she could say.

"So…you're both staying, aren't you?" Yori's voice brought her back to reality.

"For now."

"Does it mean you're going to have to leave?"

Yuki shook her head. "No, I don't have to. Sensei told me we can both can stay here permanently, unless I decide I decide otherwise."

"You mean…unless you get back to him?" the mere idea of Yuki leaving the school to stay with someone like Monkey Fist was far beyond Yori's comprehension.

Yuki shrugged. "Yes," she said, her gaze a little distant "unless I get back to him."

The thought worried her. Monty had the right to know about the child, but she honestly doubted he would be thrilled to hear the news, and he wasn't exactly an ideal father – he most likely didn't even want to be one to begin with. She sighed. To be completely honest, she didn't think she could ever be much of a parent either, and she kind of lacked of maternal instinct. Yet…

Yuki shook her head – she had put herself in a real mess, but it wasn't so bad after all: she still had time to decide, especially now that she didn't have to worry about being banished. "Time will tell, I guess," she said, still not knowing how little time she had left to make up her mind.

"Yes!" a broad grin formed on Monkey Fist's face as he finally lifted the heavy obsidian item from its shrine, immediately forgetting that he was soaked, aching and covered with sand because he had been careless enough to walk into a pool of quicksand right in front of the entrance of the room – an ancient yet deadly trap. Had he been alone, without his monkey ninjas to throw him a rope and pull him out, his bones would rest under the sand for all eternity.

The thought made his grin waver, but only for one moment. Euphoric as he was, there wasn't much room in his mind for those morbid thoughts: he had made it to the item – the Obsidian Monkey's crossed legs – and that was all that mattered. Now he only had to retrieve the head to make the Obsidian Monkey, and thus his power, complete, reaching its full potential – this time, nothing could stand in his way to become the Ultimate Monkey Master. Nothing.

This is the end, Stoppable. You should have never tried to stand between me and my destiny – I'll make sure the last thing you'll ever do in your pathetic, meaningless life will be cursing the day of your birth.

He raised his torch to read the inscription on left leg and find out the name of the location where the head was hidden, but the light suddenly began to waver, causing him to frown – the batteries were dying down. Reading the inscription could wait, now they had to get out of that temple: he couldn't take the risk to be left in the dark in a temple full of traps.

"That way," he said, gesturing to the passage they had came from and handing the torch to the closest monkey ninja in order to keep both hands free to hold the item "stay near me and watch your steps, I'm not going to lose time to get any of you out of trouble again," he said, apparently forgetting that he had been the only one to get in trouble since they had entered the temple. The other monkey ninjas exchanged amused glances for the second time that day as they followed their master outside.

It was still raining as they stepped out of the temple, but Monkey Fist didn't seem to mind, to busy admiring the item he had retrieved, gleaming with pride. Grinning, he turned the idol to take a closer look to the inscription, anxious to find out where the Obsidian Monkey's head was hidden.

But his grin disappeared, his whole body stiffening in shock as he read the inscription. He swallowed, feeling none of the triumph he thought he would feel by finding out the last piece's location. For a moment the words seemed to waver in front of his eyes, making him hope he had been wrong. He blinked and looked again, but there was no mistaking. The inscription was still there, perfectly clear, leaving no possibility of mistake.

Mount Yamanouchi.

"Did you want to speak with me, Yuki?"

Yuki bowed briefly. "Yes, Sensei. I'm sorry to bother you."

"You're not bothering me at all," the old man said with a small nod "is there something that bothers you?"

"Well…" Yuki hesitated "a few months back, before…everything happened, Yori told me about a rule I forgot about – when you accept to let a child live inside the school, you have the right to choose its name."

Sensei chuckled, waving his hand. "Oh, it's just another rule we can break. You can name your child the way you prefer," he turned to gave her an amused glance "unless you really want me to choose his name."

Yuki nodded, feeling a little awkward. "Yes, I…I wouldn't know which name I could choose. Besides…" she swallowed "I would have most likely gotten rid of him if it wasn't for you. This child owes you his life just as much as I do, so I think you have more right than anyone else to decide his name."

Sensei smiled warmly. "Thank you, Yuki – it is a great honour you're granting me," he said, his smile broadening as he glanced at her stomach "you know, someone once told me a man's destiny rests in the name – I better choose a name that will bring him good luck in his life, I guess."

Yuki grinned. "You really are the right person to choose it then."

"Let me think…" Sensei ran a hand through his beard, deep in thought "how about Michio?" he asked after a few minutes.

"Michio," Yuki repeated with a small smile, resting her hand on her slightly swollen belly "it means 'man on the right path'."

Sensei nodded. "I cannot think of a better thing to wish someone than walking on the right path – with you guiding him, I'm sure he will become a better man than his father is."

Yuki nodded, an odd melancholy in her eyes. "I hope so. Michio it is, then."

There was a brief silence.

"Tell me, Yuki – have you decided what you're going to tell him when he will ask you about his father?" the old man finally asked, watching her intently.

"I'll tell him the truth when he's old enough, I guess."

"He might want to meet his father after knowing the truth."

"I wouldn't try to stop him. He has the right to meet his father if he wants to."

"Yet, you don't think Monkey Fist has the right to see his child before that moment."

"He lost every right over him the day he betrayed us both," she said, her voice as cold as ice.

"He didn't know about the baby."

Yuki bit her lower lip, looking troubled. "You haven't seen his eyes as we fought that day – he was insane, Sensei. He was ready to destroy everything and everyone standing in his way. Do you really think he would have given up on his insane quest for power if he had known about the baby?" she asked, her voice shaking a little.

Sensei shook his head. "No, back then he wouldn't – but he would now. People can change."

A bitter expression crossed Yuki's features. "That's what I thought when I decided to trust him, and it was a mistake. I won't let him hurt me or the child again."