while things looked bad when Draak, Tuma, and their new leader and notorious criminal in the Pride Lands; Hefir, Fuli was resting at a nearby tree, and kept herself cool in the shade on this usual warm day in this savanna. That dik-dik antelope was quite s keeper for her stomach and she would he fed for at least a day or two, and she wished she could eat that small ungulate a second time.

Letting out a yawn, Fuli looked over at her horizon. It looks as beautiful as always in these lands of grass and scattered trees with the many animals dwelling upon it. Yes sir these lands could support a gigantic biome of organisms. "Well, well, well." said a cunning voice. Something jumped from the tree branch above young Fuli.

Something big leaped in front of the young cheetah, and it looked like a leopard. It was Makucha, the volatile and sneaky leopard that lived in the Back Lands, the land that also border the Pride lands. "Makucha!" Fuli recognized, bearing her teeth at him. She looked more than ready for a fight with this vile leopard and she was ready to claw him into little pieces of meat. "What do you want?"

Makucha gave her a smug look with his feline face. "What? Not happy to see me, Fuli? Because you saved me the trouble from finding you." He smiled with an evil grin on his face.

"What do you want?"

"Just looking for something to eat. And, I see that your little friends aren't with you this time, cheetah." He was looking ready to kill her. "That means I found myself an easy snack fo me to eat." The leopard licked his lips an charged at the cheetah kitten.

Makucha was fast. But Fuli was much faster and jumped to the left side out of the way before he could hit her. "Nice try, Leopard!" The cheetah taunted him with a sneer. "But you'll have to be much faster than that. She herself charged at Jim and pinned him down with her paws.

It was a rather interesting fight between these two felines, and they were trying to hurt one another with everything they got: clawing, biting, trampling and other methods of attacking. Makucha suddenly threw her off with his hind-legs and she hit the tree.

"Ha! You maybe faster, girly." Said the leopard. "But I am stronger than you!"

Despite how painful the blow was to her body, Fuli slowly got back up with her legs shaking, and she was grunting. They clashed again, and the cheetah clawed the leopard on the left side of his face, and a few drops of blood were coming out of the marks.

"Gah! You'll pay for that!"

"I hope that hurts!" Fuli suddenly felt him claw her face in return. Leopards have way more sharp claws than cheetahs and have a stronger bite force as well, so it was much worse on her.

Now Fuli was madder than ever. "Ooh, did I make you angry?" Asked Makucha in a mocking tone of voice and a smug look.

"Now we get serious." Fuli said. She kicked him in the chin and clawed at him while he was off-guard, and then she was punched by his big paw, knocked to the ground. Makucha was about to finish her off, but the cheetah latched onto his right arm with her teeth.

Screaming in pain, Makucha was kicking her off his arm over and over again, but she wouldn't let go of him. "Graahhh! You're kitty aren't you?!" He felt his skin being bitten harder by Fuli, and a few drops of blood were leaking out of the marks even.

At last, Makucha but her on the nose until she eventually let go of him, and panted as she looked relentless in taking him down.

"This isn't over yet, Fuli!" Said Makucha. "Well fought, but you and i both know that i can do better I'm combat than you."

Panting, Fuli said: "maybe you're stronger, but you will never be faster than me."

"We'll meet again soon."

"Wait! I'm not done with you yet!" She was about to attack again, but but the leopard gane her an uppercut, knocking her out cold. Makucha was limping away back tennis home in the Back Lands, and he knew rlthat this wasn't over yet. Fuli was left unconscious and was eventually found by a certain friend.

"Fuli!" Zaid a female voice. It was Zahrah, a female secretary bird thsy was a friend of hers and the rest of the Lion Guard too. She used her wings to try and wake her up. "C'mon Fuli, wait up!" Zahrah said.

It took a little more than a few minutes, but the cheetah kitten slowly awoken. "Ah. Zahrah." She recognized with a smile.

"Fuli, are you alright?" Asked the secretary bird.

Making a small grunt from the wounds she endured, Fuli replied: "never better." And she licked the blood from her left paw. "Just... a little fight with Makucha."

"Oh. That leopard is such a ruffian." Zahrah remarked begrudgingly. "I swear, that big cat always brings bad news over in the Pride Lands. What did he want from you, sweetie?"

"I don't know." Said Fuli. "I guess he's just kinda into me."

"Well, if he comes back here, I will pack his eyes out!"

"Whoa Whoa Whoa, hold on there, Zahrah. I thank you for sticking up for me, but I'm okay. I suffered worse pain anyway."

The secretary bird still looked concerned about the kitten. "Do you need those wounds taken care of, Fuli?" She Asked.

The cheetah kitten made another small grunt. "No. It's okay. Nothing a little water can handle."

"Well alright, I'm only looking out for you."

"Thanks. Next time Makucha tries to pick on me again, he won't be so lucky against me." And she was walking over to the nearest water hole. While still concerned for her safety, Zahrah was watching onward as the cheetah walked away. After a while the long-legged raptor flew off in the sky.

A nice, soothing touch from the clear water in the lake was a nice, relaxing sensation for her to tend to her small wounds.

"Let's see that Makucha try and kill me now." She said to herself. "No one tries to make a fool out of me." After tending to her wounds, Fuli began drinking from the small lake, feeling a little thirsty and parched.

It was a good think her parents weren't with her right now, otherwise they would have freaked out. Her parents, Zaidi and Monak, can be a little too... worrisome when it comes to their daughter, and even being a little overprotective of her, but, Fuli is smart enough to evade them both and go her own way.

This was a reason why Fuli likes to go her own way most of the time. Still, they are still her own parents. "Fuli?" Said a masculine voice. The kitten looked and saw his parents right now, looking more than happy to see her. She groaned as her parents found her.

"How was your run?" Asked Zaidi.

"Just fine. Makucha was giving me a little trouble and-"

"Makucha?" Saidnher parents in unison. "That leopard was here?"

"Yeah, but I drove him away."

"Oh, that's my girl!" Said Monak, who hugged her tightly.

"Ow ow ow ow! Dad!" Fuli gagged. "I'm a little hurt!" Just like that, her father or her go.

The mother looked at her and she said: "Oh Fuli, you're bleeding out."

"Mom. It's okay." Fuli complained. "I'm the fastest of the Lion Guard after all."

The father sighed and he daid to her: "we're sorry. It's just that... you're our only daughter and we love you very much. I can't even imagine on how we will both live without you in our lives."

"I know." The kitten sighed in irritation.

"We would go absolutely crazy if something bad ever happened to you." Zaidi added. "But, did you at least find some food to hunt?"

"Uh-huh. A dik-dik." Her parents decided to take a little sip of water themselves next to their daughter.

"Well good. You're mother and I found a lesser kudu calf and there is still some leftover from a few hours ago." Monak said. "You might as well get them before the vultures, jackals, or hyenas come to eat it."

A smile grew on Fuli's face. "Really?" She said. "Wow. That's a rare find in the Pride Lands."

The three cheetahs went back to their home for some dinner. Meanwhile, Makucha was watching in begrudgingly at Fuli while having his injured arm up. "Oh no. I will get you yet, Fuli. Just wait and see you little twerp." Then he limped away back to his home.