Chapter Twelve: Two Senseis

Tory and the Cobra Kai girls were in their favorite booth on Smitty's diner sharing fries and a conversation.

"So the guys pussied out from a fight?" Tory scoffed.

Devon nodded. "I've only known them for about two weeks now but they didn't give me the impression they ran from a fight."

"It's not the guys." Tory rolled her eyes. "It's Luke."

"Isn't he a guy?" Sarah sipped her milkshake through a straw.

Piper didn't look up from her phone. "Yeah. One guy, not multiple."

Tory shrugged. "He's making Cobra Kai look bad. You know that bitch Sam LaRusso is still giving me shit?"

"Excuse me?" now Piper looked up from her phone.

"I was signing up for a job at the country club. Her and her bitch brigade walk up to me and start mouthing off." Tory said.

Devon raised an eyebrow. "And you just took that?"

"And ruin my shot at said job? No." Tory muttered.

Piper smiled at Tory. "Cobra Kai is one to put bullies in their place."

The girls smiled at each other.

Down the street from Smitty's diner, Hawk walked into the Cobra Kai dojo on Lankershim boulevard alone, carrying his gym bag, which contained all his sparring gear and Cobra Kai GI.

"Hello?"

Kreese walked out from the backroom wearing a black sweatshirt and jeans. "You're on time. Great."

"Where is everyone? Where's Sensei Luke?"

"Lucas will no longer be participating in your training for a little bit. I will train you personally from now on," said Kreese.

Hawk was confused. "But isn't he my Sensei?"

"He is. But I will make sure you are ready for Nationals in a few months. Let's begin."

Hawk watched Kreese walk out of his own dojo. "Follow me."

Kreese tore Hawk's blindfold off.

"Where is this?"

Hawk was instantly reminded of Coyote Creek, but the woods weren't familiar enough.

"The forests of Big Bear."

Hawk nodded. "I've been nearby sure. Just not here."

"This is where Cobra Kais boys were trained in summer just like these before a big championship. Now, you will." Kreese nodded around the small campground, bow and arrow on the ground, and other hunting equipment.

Hawk was confused. "What? Then where is everyone else?"

"Do you know how I said the whole dojo has the capacity to prove they're champions?"

"Yeah."

Kreese muttered quietly. "Well. I lied."

"Huh?" asked Hawk.

"The truth is only you and Kenny Payne are material to reach the finals in a real tournament. Rickenberger is much more skilled than the average fighter." Kreese explained. "But if he's ever down on points, which does happen, he doesn't know how to bounce back no matter what."

Hawk nodded with a slight shrug, knowing he was right.

"Despite his natural speed and strength, Shawn Payne isn't nearly as technically gifted as his brother. In the ring, he just lacks enough precision to truly excel. Mikey, is well, Mikey. And the rest of the dojo."

Hawk nodded again. "Has never made it as far as the quarters at the All Valley."

"Precisely," Kreese muttered.

"Then why are we here?"

Chozen answered quietly. "To learn karate."

Robby was confused. "But why did we leave Miyagi-Do to do so?"

"Miyagi-Do is here." Chozen said, looking around the same lakeside forest Daniel had taken Lucas to.

"In. In trees?" asked Robby.

"Did Daniel-san teach you nothing?"

"He taught me katas and basics sure. But not about Miyagi-Do being in a forest."

"Miyagi-Do was born in war. All karate was."

Kreese explained to his student as well, Hawk listened, the same way Robby listened to Chozen.

"Karate was born to learn how to kill people with your bare hands. How to be resourceful, smart, quick, agile." said Kreese. "Unfortunately I can't just have you drill and spar non stop at the dojo until you're ready. Because you never will be. The only way you'll learn-"

"Is to be trained the same way I was." Chozen said. "The same disciplines. The same techniques, taught-"

"The same way." muttered Kreese. "My Sensei was a man who trained me in the mountains of Korea. Who's sole purpose, was to break me."

Chozen spoke. "My uncle was merciless. He wanted to push me from a very young age to make me strong. Now it's your turn."

A fifteen year old Bobby Brown was slinking around quietly through the woods of Big Bear Lake with a bow and arrow slung over his shoulder.

He knelt quietly, rolling bits of dirt through his fingers as he looked around the forest floor for deer tracks.

"Strike first strike hard no mercy is a lesson learnt first in war." said Kreese, decades later as his student kept tracking a deer.

"But the lesson even persists in tournaments."

Bobby ran for a bit, and then sighed in disappointment at what he saw in a clearing.

His best friend, Johnny Lawrence, had a dead buck lying at his feet, and was using a jack knife to wipe its blood on his jacket covered arm.

Johnny grinned widely at Bobby and spoke.

"Gotcha!"

Kreese continued explaining to Hawk. "It's survival of the fastest. The fittest."

"I can't just teach you the moves necessary," Chozen said to Robby. "I have to teach you what I was."

"Now are you ready?" asked Kreese.

"Are you ready?" asked Chozen.

Both Robby and Hawk gave the same response at the same time.

"Yes Sensei." the boys said.

The level of competition in the highest division of Nationals to even qualify for the National team was so high that I'm afraid it was just true:

Even Shawn Payne and Doug Rickenberger, weren't fit for sparring.

They were great at it sure, but from what I saw everyday, Kenny and Hawk were our only shot to get first place in December.

I knew this to be a fact when Kenny started to really come into his own during sparring this week.

The kid was on fire.

By the time you reached orange belt or Gup Seven, which was where Kenny was at, you had to know the basics already.

The jab punch, reverse punch, round kick, hook kick, back kick, sure.

But Kenny started to learn how to read his angles better, his footwork improved, his timing, speed, all of it.

His techniques were explosive and snappy, and everyone knew he was started to catch up to everyone despite his lack of experience when he had Rickenberger down two to one.

"Aka, chudan zuki. Yuko." Kenny bowed in my direction wearing red foot, shin, and hand protectors while Rickenberger wore blue instead, on my left.

"Hachime!"

Rickenberger tried putting pressure on Kenny right from the start, the kid barely blinked at a few fakes and jabs.

Eventually, Kenny managed to out maneuver Rickenberger and position him at the corner of the combat square just with how smoothly he moved around the ring.

Kenny pinned Rickenberger tighter and tighter despite his smaller size to try and force Doug out of bounds.

Eventually, Kenny got what he was looking for.

He knew Rick would desperately try to counter something with a side kick or a punch of some kind, but Kenny didn't care.

Kenny stepped forward slightly as Rick began to attack, and by the time he committed Kenny had spun into the flashiest but most effective of wheel kicks.

He was already standing deeply in southpaw, flat footed as he wasn't far enough to bounce anyway.

Rick's fist began to sail harmlessly over Kenny's back as Kenny turned around and lifted his foot clean off the mat, and smacked Rick right in the jaw with the bottom of his foot.

Everyone in the dojo, including myself for a moment, were stunned.

The fact that a fourteen year old kid could pull off a move so advanced in a spar was mesmerizing. Granted, Rickenberger was not at his best today, not saying much as he was a B tier compared to A tier fighters in my opinion like Robby and Hawk, and Kenny was on a roll, but still.

"Yame." I said quietly, clearing my voice.

"Aka, jodan geri." I explained the kick to the head technique Kenny scored in Japanese. "Ippon!" I gave Kenny three points.

The score was five points to one.

"I'm gonna wrap sparring up here guys. Junbi."

We bowed out, and I left to go home and then go to Moon's.

I was not surprised by what I saw in Moon's backyard.

From what I suspected, Moon tanned herself completely naked, head to toe.

I walked into her backyard holding my bicycle to see her on her lawn chair on the lawn of her backyard, utterly nude.

"Hey Luke." she waved with a smile as I walked in.

My eyes widened.

This wasn't remotely the first time I saw Moon naked.

Not even close.

But it was the first time I saw her doing something like this.

I looked over and saw Yasmine wearing just an oversized sweatshirt sitting in a chair by Moon's back patio near her grill.

Then I spoke to Moon. "So your parents are like. Never home then I gather?"

"Pretty much," Moon said.

Despite the circumstances, all of us were completely comfortable having full conversations despite nudity.

At this point, it enhanced it if anything.

I chuckled, asking another question, but to Yasmine instead. "So this has no effect on you?"

"I fool around with Moon more for her than anything." Yasmine flipped a page in the fashion magazine she was reading.

Judging from her expression, Yasmine was right. Moon might as well have been having a snack fully clothed, not sun bathing without a shred of clothing.

"You missed out on the best part," Moon said. "I already did my back."

"I wouldn't say that's your best part."

Moon laughed. "Really?"

"Can't see your smile." I muttered.

Moon as always, grinned at this, while Yasmine sighed. "Luke we can all see it."

"See what?"

The girls both laughed.

"I was kidding." Yasmine said.

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Awesome."

I tucked Yasmine's magazine down, holding her hand slightly. "You know. Would you have been surprised?"

"Not at all. Moon's hot even if chicks aren't my thing." Yasmine smiled.

Yasmine pushed the chair out, now sitting on the table on Moon's back patio. "Am I your thing?"

"Definitely." Yasmine breathed out.

I fixed Yasmine's golden blonde hair as we made out. She was only wearing a sweatshirt, that I slowly drew up her body as we kissed.

"Mm." I heard Moon hum. "I don't want to get out of this chair. But you two are not making it easy."

Yasmine giggled as I picked her up by her bare thighs and spun her around. "You sure you don't wanna join in?" she asked her best friend with a peck on my lips.

Moon nodded. "I need to always stay tan."

"Where's that written?" I asked.

"A healthy glow is crucial for me," Moon said. "You guys don't believe in chakras, but it'd make more sense if you did."

"There's no medical evidence of mystical energy in someone's body." Yasmine said.

"There's some energy in my body for sure." I chuckled, Yasmine yelped when I nearly tossed her into the air like a pizza.

We laughed together and Yasmine latched onto me. "Stop that! Moon seriously, are you in or what?"

"In like." Moon checked her phone. "Fifteen minutes, tops."

Yasmine bit her lip, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. "What do you say we get started without her?"

"Read my mind." I carried her inside Moon's house.

"I'll be right there!" she called out.

"We know." Yasmine said in a sing song voice before kissing my neck.

Samantha LaRusso walked into Moon's backyard slowly through her side door.

"Moon you here?" Sam looked away instantly. "H-okay!" she yelled. "Moon, clothes on. Please."

Moon smiled. "Oh, I didn't know you were coming over."

"Clothes! Now!" Sam kept her eyes closed, covering her face and looking away.

"He heh." Moon winced. "Sorry."

She wrapped a nearby bathrobe around herself and the girls began to speak.

"Is everything okay?"

"Um. No. I think I want to quit karate or something."

Moon was surprised. "Oh really?"

Moon smiled. "Well talk to me." she patted a spot on the same lawn chair Moon was sunbathing in. "Come on."

Sam smiled painfully. "Think I'll stand thank you."

Lucas and Yasmine watched the girls speak from Moon's bedroom.

Yasmine slipped her sweatshirt back on as Lucas neared the window. "Oh damn. Sam looks upset."

"Think she's alright?"

"I don't care."

Yasmine smacked Lucas' arm slightly with the back of her hand.

"Seriously."

"Um. I don't know but-" Lucas' eyes widened. "Fuck."

"What?"

"My bike."

"Huh?"

"I left my bike on the patio."

Yasmine's eyes widened too.

"Go get it."

"What?"

"Go get your bike dude." Yasmine started to push Lucas out of the bedroom.

"And let Sam see me?"

Yasmine hissed. "She either sees you or your bike. Go get it."

"Fine."

Lucas began to reluctantly exit Moon's bedroom before Yasmine spoke.

"Luke!"

"What?"

Yasmine threw a hand in a downward direction.

Lucas looked down to realize he was just wearing boxers.

Now wearing shorts and a t-shirt, Lucas tip toed into Moon's backyard as she and Sam spoke.

Moon saw Lucas enter her peripheral vision, he was just a few meters from Sam's back which was turned towards him.

Moon almost went pale despite her perfectly tanned complexion.

"You okay?"

Moon's attention snapped to Sam. "Yeah, just fine! You were saying?"

"Yeah. Apparently the guy my dad brought from Okinawa took Robby camping, he's named Chozen. Miguel got jealous and-"

Lucas froze, picking up his bicycle slowly as Moon spoke. "Wait. Miguel's jealous of Robby? Isn't he your dad's karate student?"

"Yeah but still."

Lucas was clearly interested in listening in on the conversation.

Moon was trying to shoo Lucas away as Sam wasn't looking and was successful.

The girls talked for a bit, and soon Sam noticed something in Moon's bedroom.

"Was that window open a second ago?"

Moon shrugged. "Yeah." she smiled. "Keep talking, I'm all ears."

Sam frowned. "What the hell am I still fighting with Tory for? Aisha's past all that. So am I. Cobra Kai's won. What's even the point?"

"Just because you don't want to fight doesn't mean you have to stop doing karate. Especially if you enjoy it. Do you enjoy it?"

"I've been asking myself that lately." Sam sighed.

Lucas and Yasmine whispered to each other just out of eyesight of Moon's bedroom window pane.

"We should not be listening to this." Yasmine hissed.

Lucas whispered back. "Aren't you one of her best friends?"

"Yeah but we're still eavesdropping. You're not one of her friends get out of here Luke!"

"I was invited here."

"Get out!" Yasmine crossed her arms and pushed Lucas away.

Lucas sighed and walked out with a mutter after being well out of Yasmine's earshot. "Had a fun afternoon planned thanks LaRusso."

A/N:

Yet another split chapter, I suppose you can consider part 3 coming soon!