Once, there was a thriving village. Now, it is been burnt to a crisp. A hawk soared over the wreckage and landed onto the man responsible. He stood in the middle of the place, staring at his work. He was large and muscular, his hair and mustache were black. His hood was black with grey fur lining, and what looked like two raccoon tails dangling in the front. He wore a black and yellow coat on him, with tattered brown lining and a brown belt. His pants were dark grey. His boots and and left glove were black. He looked at the destroyed village and grinned maliciously.
Off in the distance, Mulan was watching the man in the wrecked village through the bamboo forest. A shadow of a dragon-like figure with red eyes was being displayed on a large rock from a campfire. "See that, Mulan?" it said to her, "It's Shan-Yu, leader of the Hun army! C'mon girl. This is your big chance! I can see it now: 'Fa Mulan whups public enemy #1!' You gonna be famous! I'm talkin' A-list!"
"Mushu, I'm not sure." Mulan said, turning to him, "I haven't even joined the army yet. I have to take my father's place to preserve the Fa family honor. I just hope I don't get discovered."
"Whatever." Mushu brushed off, "You just scared, admit it."
"Aren't you?" Mulan asked back. Mushu placed a hand over his eyes, shaking his head at Mulan's lack of self-esteem.
In space, a bright keyhole came out of nowhere, and the Gummi ship came flying out it. It slowed to a halt as it was nearing the next world. Inside, Kirito and Asuna were trying their best to hold onto their seats, panic-stricken at what they had just gone through.
First, they entered a gate, which they needed to unlock in order to proceed onto the next world. However, the moment they entered it, they found themselves flying though a hurricane of Heartless and Nobodies! They were flying and diving every which-way, avoiding getting hit by objects, attacks and monsters, while shooting back at all of the enemies. Not only did they expect a battle in space like this, but they didn't know that the Gummi ship was capable of fighting. It was a good thing they were strapped into their seats, cause with all the maneuvering and spinning Sora, Donald and Goofy were doing, they could have been flying all around the interior of the ship.
"Do we have to do that every time we go to a different world?!" Asuna asked exasperatedly as she and Kirito straighten herself onto the chair.
"Only once per world." Sora told her, "After that, we don't have to do it again."
"Gee, Asuna. I thought you were use to flyin'." Goofy remembered, "Didn't ya say you able to fly in that ALO game?"
"Yeah, with a pair of wings on our back!" Kirito told him, who looked a bit dazed from the ride.
"The games were not science fiction, but more medieval fantasy." Yui came leaning out of Kirito's pocket, absolutely dazed.
"Well, what ever the case, we're here anyway." Sora confirmed to them. Pointing out the window. Outside, the next planet was visible.
"Any idea what this world is?" Kirito asked. Sora, Donald and Goofy shook their heads. Yui dizzyingly flew over to the control panel and looked up the world description.
"Seems to be called 'the Land of the Dragon'." She explained, "It's set in ancient China, and it seems to be in some war right now."
"Finally, something a little more closer to home." Asuna sighed deeply, getting from the chair and walking to the transporter. Everyone else joined her as Yui got things ready. She then pressed a button and flew over to them just as the light started to form around them. All of them teleported out of the ship and down to the new world.
When they landed, they found themselves on a path in the middle of a tall bamboo forest. They looked all around their surroundings. No one was around.
"It feels like we went back in time." Asuna stated, looking at the sky.
"I wonder what kind of people live here?" Sora asked.
"Well, we'll not find out if we stand around here." Kirito answered, starting to walk along the road, "Let's get moving."
He led the group down the path for a short while then Kirito stopped and held a hand out for the others to stop too. All five of them looked around the corner, and saw a person in heavy, black and green-lined armor staring at the shadow of a dragon-like creature with red eyes. The reared their heads from the scene and huddled together.
"A Heartless?" Donald whispered to them. Sora and Kirito nodded.
"Let's get the jump on 'im!" Sora suggested.
"Sounds like an idea." Kirito answered, and the trio jumped into action.
"Hold on, you guys!" Asuna whispered as they started to charge.
"Gawrsh, maybe we better look before we leap." Goofy said desperately, but they didn't respond.
Sora, Kirito and Donald rounded the corner and charged, yelling battle cries at the shadow and the person before them. Goofy and Asuna were bringing up the rear. The person saw them and looked terrified. The shadow disappeared and a small, red lizard like creature leapt into the person's hand, and they huddled together in fright. Both Donald and Sora stopped in their tracks, but Kirito kept going. Asuna dashed ahead and had to tackle him down to the ground. Goofy came to a halt next to Sora and Donald.
"Is that Mushu?" Goofy asked. Kirito and Asuna looked up at the now curled-up person.
The red lizard came popping out from the person's arms, and peered over his/her back. He was small, long and spindly. He was red with a yellow belly, yellow whiskers, and blue horns, and large eyes. His hands were long and had four fingers. "That's right, I know you heard of me!" Mushu replied looking every way other than the five people, "I'm little, lethal, and legendary! Now y'all scram before I get my dragon dander up!"
Kirito and Asuna contemplated on the fact it was a talking dragon, as Sora greeted, "Hey, Mushu! We missed you!"
"Yeah, well you better HOPE I miss you, or else you're...you're..." He then noticed who was talking to him. "...Sora! Donald! Goofy!" he called back.
"Do you know them?" asked the person. Asuna could clearly tell based on her voice that the soldier was a girl, unlike most of the boys.
"Know them?" echoed Mushu leaping down and walking past Kirito and Asuna as they stood up, "Man, we used to kick all kinds of bad guy butt together! Yeah, you know, I helped these guys out of a lot of tight spots. 'Cause I'm a mighty dragon! Right?" He leaned back onto Sora's shoe and took a cool pose as he looked up at them.
Sora moved his foot, causing Mushu to topple over. "Something like that!" Sora responded, looking to, what he assumed was a man, "And...you are?"
"I'm Mulan...uh, no I-I mean...," she stammered, trying to talk in a deep voice, but Mushu cut in, answering for her, "Ping!"
"Mulan Ping?" Donald asked questionably.
"Just Ping." she responded, taking a manly pose, "I am Ping, son of Fa Zhou." Asuna looked at Ping oddly. She knew that she was a girl, so why act like a man?
"You know Mushu?" Sora asked as Mushu stood up brushed the dirt off of him.
"Mushu's one of my family's guardians." Ping answered.
"We didn't know we were borrowin' somebody as important as a family guardian." said Goofy.
"Yeah, that's right!" Mushu popped in, climbing onto Ping's shoulder, "At that puts you three up to your eyeballs in debt to Ping here. Well, guess what, kiddies? It's payback time!"
"Mushu..." Ping muttered, worried he was asking too much.
"Ah, they don't mind. Ain't that right?" he questioned the heroes.
"Hmm, sounds fair." Sora answered.
It was only then that he noticed Kirito and Asuna walking back to the other three. He got terrified at the sight of newcomers, and hid behind Ping again. "It's kind of a bit too late for that." Kirito told the dragon.
"Don't worry, Mushu. Their friends." Sora told him, "These guys are Kirito and Asuna."
"Hello there." Asuna greeted the two. Both Mushu and Ping waved back.
"So anyway," Sora continued, "We'll help you out. So what do you want us to do?"
"See, Ping here was just on his way to join the Imperial army." the red dragon explained, "We gotta go find the other recruits over at the training camp."
"Would you join us?" Ping asked, "It'll be easier to fit in if I'm with guys, like you."
"What do you mean, 'fit in'?" Sora asked.
"Well, um, uh, don't-don't worry about that." Mushu stammered, trying to find an excuse.
"She means she's a girl, idiots." Asuna answered, glaring at the boys. Goofy nodded in acknowledgement that she was right. He was able to figure her out, too.
There was a pause of silence, followed by Sora, Donald and Kirito crying in surprise.
"You're a...girl?!" Sora asked.
Ping looked at the group nervously, her girly expressions starting to come out. "You didn't notice?" she asked them.
"Not me." Sora responded as he and Donald shook their heads.
"Honestly, I had a feeling, but I wasn't gonna make any accusations." Kirito answered. He didn't want to make any preemptive assumptions, considering his appearance in GGO made people think he was a girl.
Ping turned to Mushu, who sat on her shoulder. "I think it's working." she told him, believing fooling at least three out of the group was an achievement.
"I don't know," Mushu replied, "those two would fall for anything, same goes for the new guy."
"I'm right here!" Sora declared. "Hey!" the other two barked.
"Honestly, you guys!" Sighed a ticked-off Asuna, "The evidence was quite clear. Course, it could be because I'm a girl, but you should know better!" The three looked ashamed as Asuna turned to Ping. "I suppose that the name before, Mulan, is your real name, correct?"
"Yes," said an embarrassed Mulan, "I'm Fa Mulan. Was I really that noticeable?"
"First of all, yes, but only because I have brains." She answered, glaring at her boyfriend and the two dimwits who didn't know. "Second of all, why in the world would you dress up as a man in the first place?!"
"I had to do it." She answered, "The Imperial Army only recruits the first born sons of each family. They wouldn't recruit me because I'm a girl, so it was either my father who would fight, or I'd do this."
"That does sound like something people in ancient times would do." Kirito thought quietly, pondering on what he learned in history class, "In the past, they would only consider women in those times as caretakers or trophy wives. They would never consider them as fighters."
He noticed Mulan couldn't help but catch a bit of what he said, though not the first half. He cleared his throat to sidestep what he said, and told her, "What you are doing is very brave and noble, and I like it. So I'll help you get the part down right. And I'm sure we'll find a way for you to fit in, right, Asu..." He stopped, because he was suddenly startled as he saw her expression. The intense anger she developed from all she heard, both from Kirito and Mulan, really got her anger switch turned on. Kirito was the only one that wasn't backing farther away from her, for it looked like she was about to explode.
"Mama?" Yui asked nervously, popping her head out of Kirito's pocket, only for the young man to prod her head back in, know now was not the time for counseling.
"So, they don't think women can actually fight, huh?" she asked, her tone soft and deadly, "Well, maybe I'll just have to speak with the leader of this Imperial Army, and me sure that I make my point clear." She turned to Kirito, giving him a smile that sent a shiver down his spine, and walked off as she continued, "If China thinks that it can walk over a women's pride and get away with it, it has another thing coming!"
"H-hey, Asuna." Kirito said, walking towards her, "We can't just go waltzing in like that!" He figured on stopping her, but the smile he gave him before already showed she was not happy with Kirito's spitballing facts about women's rolls in the past. Mulan stared at Asuna's back, thinking on how crazy she was, and yet how strong-willed she was. She followed her, with the boys right behind, not wanting to get close to Asuna at the moment.
All of them entered the campsite where the Imperial Army was at. It was apparently mealtime, cause there was a line of people, waiting to be served food. Asuna marched first to the line, Sora, Donald and Goofy followed behind. Kirito and Mulan started forward, but Mushu popped out.
"Remember girl, manly!" he reminded her, and she responded by puffing her chest out, knees together, legs out, and arms flexed. She marched so awkwardly, that Kirito had to stop her before she made a fool out of herself, and asked that she walk more normally.
Asuna and Sora got into line first, waiting for food. Suddenly, a short, gristly man with a black eye, wearing black and red armor came out of nowhere and, without even looking at Sora and Asuna, shoved them out of the way. "'Bout time we got some grub." He said.
"Hey! No cutting!" Sora stated angrily.
"Get out!" Donald told him. Asuna waved a hand to them as she stepped forward.
"Didn't anybody ever tell you 'lady's first'?" she asked as she looked down at the man. The man turned around, about to slug whoever was behind him, but saw Asuna and stopped.
"Ooh, well what do we have here?" he asked, staring at Asuna's figure, "Sorry, dame, but this place is for the Imperial Army. No women allowed."
Asuna put on a fake, innocent chuckle. "Oh really?" she asked him. Then, without warning, she aimed a low sweep on the guy's legs with her Keyblade, flipping him off his feet, and pointed her weapon at his head. "In that case, why are you here?" she asked him. The other five members of her group watched this, totally amazed at how easily she dealt with him. Mulan, in particular, was in admiration of her skills.
She let him go and turned his back to him. Big mistake, for the guy jumped up and was about to punch her, but Sora blocked the shot with his hands. Asuna expected Kirito to do that, not Sora. "Hey, that's not nice!" he told him off. He slugged Sora away from him, but Donald came pouncing on top of him.
"Get off!" the man growled, struggling with the animated duck. "No!" he shouted.
The two started to struggle, Asuna, Goofy and Mulan all watched them go at it. Kirito helped Sora to his feet. Then two more guys appeared. One had yellow and black armor, and he was about Sora's height, but much thinner. On the opposite point of view, the second man was big, fat, and was wearing blue and black armor.
"Hey a space in line!" the yellow armored guy said, showing the two combatants aside.
"I wonder what they're serving for lunch today." asked the blue armored man, not realizing he bowled everyone over to get in the line.
"Knuckle sandwiches!" the short guy replied the short man, jumping at the skinny guy, with Donald following behind. The three started to fight, and Sora even joined the quarrel, finishing what he started. The four were attacking one another, and it seemed like it wasn't gonna stop. Goofy was holding Kirito back from attacking him them as well, who wanted back on him attacking Asuna.
While everyone was watching the fight, Mulan was wanting to stop them, but didn't know how. Finally, she yelled, without thinking of being manly, "Please!" the four stopped, hearing her shout like a girl.
"Please?!" mimicked the skinny man.
"What a girl!" the short man said.
Mulan remembered that she was suppose to be a man. "Uh, knock it off!" she cried in a deep tone.
"Knock what off?" the short man asked sarcastically.
"You punched me!" Sora stated.
"Cutting in line!" Donald added.
"Almost hurting Asuna!" Kirito finished.
"What a shrimp!" the skinny guy teased.
"Who you callin' a shrimp, panda lips?" asked an angry Mushu, popping out of Mulan's armor, "I'm a bona fide guardian dragon!" Mulan put him away before he was discovered.
"Technically, I let him attack me." Asuna corrected Kirito, "I wanted to see if he was a man, and now I see he isn't one."
"What was that?" growled the short man, stomping towards Asuna.
"You heard me." she replied, purposely leaning down to see him, "Or are your ears as bad as your looks?"
"That's it!" he barked, raising his fists, "I don't care if your a girl or not, I'm gonna beat you to a pulp!"
"Bring it!" Asuna replied, readying herself for combat.
"Go for it, Asuna!" Sora cheered.
"Take her down, Yao!" yelled the skinny guy. Mulan and Goofy looked worried as another quarrel was about to start. Kirito stared amazed at Asuna. This was a side of her he didn't see often. Then again, her pride is on the line.
Just then, a man's voice cried "Soldiers! Get back in line!" Everyone turned to see a man of muscular build walking towards him, with white, black and grey armor, and a red cape. He had his sword around his waist.
"The captain!" the skinny guy gasped. Finally. Asuna thought. Everyone got in line at attention. The captain walked by them, but stopped when he noticed Asuna as part of the group.
"Excuse me." he told her, "but women aren't allowed here. You must go back home."
"I know that." she replied, turning to meet his gaze, "So why don't you tell that guy in the red armor that he should go?" Yao growled as his eyes looked behind him.
"This isn't a game, young lady." the captain warned her, "I'm ordering you to go back to your family, unless you wish to dishonor your family name."
"See, that would work, if I were from China." Asuna said smugly, with Sora and Kirito waving their hands to silence her, "But the fact is I'm from Japan, and I'm interested in ending this war."
The captain looked sternly at Asuna, who didn't waver off his gaze. "State your name, young lady." he told her.
"Asuna Yuuki." she replied, "And yours? Surely you have courtesy."
"It's Captain Li Shang." He responded, not enjoying being smart-mouthed my a female, "And you are leaving, now."
"Not happening." Asuna retorted, stepping out of the line to face him, "However, I might consider it if you can beat me." Shang was taken aback, as was all of the other soldiers and Asuna's friends.
"Asuna, hold on!" Kirito said, stepping out to meet her, "You can't just go demanding a fight with the captain of an army like that."
"Please, just get back in line." Mulan said in her manly tone, walking next to her.
"Sorry, but I'm not gonna let someone push me around just because I'm a women." Asuna retorted, spinning her head to them, "I have my pride on the line, and I'm not gonna let someone walk over it. Surely, you know that, Kirito?"
She looked at Kirito sternly, who saw how serious she was, and nodded in response. She was the second-in-command of the Knights of the Blood Oath. She was notorious in many ways, and her skills were definitely one of those. Asuna looked at Mulan, and her eyes narrowed. Mulan stepped back a bit from her, realizing that she, unlike her, didn't need to dress up as a man in order to keep her honor.
Asuna whipped her back to Shang. "So, we have a deal or not?" she asked the perplexed captain, "If I win, I stay. If I lose, I leave. Sounds simple, no?"
Shang looked at her, amazed that a women was actually demanding a match with the captain. Finally, he said, "Very well then, I accept."
He and Asuna walked further away from the crowd, who gathered to watch the fight. Shang drew his sword just as Asuna whipped out her Oathkeeper. "The rules are simple," she told him, "No killing allowed. First one to disarm their opponent wins." Shang nodded in agreement. The crowd started to cheer and jeer at the both of them. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Kirito, Mulan, and Yui, who popped out of Kirito's pocket, were the only ones cheering for Asuna. The two stared at one another for only a few seconds, then they charged.
That battle only took a minute. Shang was definitely well trained, and stood up to Asuna's spells and frontal assaults, but he was no match for her speed. She kept darting around him as he tried striking her, and poking his back with her Keyblade. Finally, just as Shang did a downward slash onto Asuna, she retaliated by parrying his blade, and sending it flying. She knocked the captain to the ground, and pointed her Keyblade at his head, signaling the end of the fight.
There was a pause, followed by gasps from the soldiers rooting for Shang. "Way to go, Asuna!" Sora cheered over the excited cries of Donald and Goofy.
"I knew that would happen." said a smirking Kirito.
"Way to go, mama!" Yui shouted, flipping in the air in excitement. Mulan merely stared open mouthed at the sight. Asuna was so strong, and so ambitious. Was it really her battle experience that helped her in the battle, or was it something more? Perhaps it was her honor and pride that drove her. Mulan truly admired her.
"That's it." Asuna said calmly, lowering her Keyblade in response to the end of the match, "So, I'll stay, or are you also a coward for not agreeing to our terms?"
Shang looked up at her, feeling somewhat humiliated, then he stood up. "Very well then." he agreed, "However, you are not allowed to be part of the Imperial Army."
"Fair enough." Asuna responded, looking back at her friends, specifically at Mulan. All she wanted to do was to prove a point to China.
Shang made one look at the rest of the people watching them, and they immediately got in line for food again. Asuna walked to the end of the line, standing behind Mulan. Shang looked at the line, and walked towards the front end.
Sora turned back to Asuna. "Nice going, Asuna!" he whispered. Asuna smiled back at his praise. Kirito looked back at her, and couldn't help but feel proud of her.
Just as Sora turned his head forward again, he, along with all of his friends, suddenly noticed something appear near them: Heartless.
"What are they?" Mulan asked.
"Heartless." Sora answered.
"They just keep popping up." Kirito said calmly.
The three soldiers they were dealing with before noticed them too. "Oh, yeah?" the yellow-armored one asked, then they took off.
The six heroes prepared their weapons. "Ping, I hope you're ready." Asuna stated, emphasizing her alibi name. Mulan nodded, and they all charged in pairs. Sora and Donald paired up and started casting magic attacks on the Heartless. Kirito and Goofy were basically the frontal assault, swinging and bashing their weapons on the incoming horde. Asuna and Mulan were doing the same as them. It was obvious that Mulan lacked combatant training, cause she kept slipping up throughout the battle. Asuna had to help her out anyway she could.
"You need to get your head and body straight!" she scolded Mulan as she saved her from a couple Heartless.
"Sorry," she replied, looking ashamed. Asuna shook her head and started to fight new kinds of Heartless, for which Yui described as Nightwalkers.
After defeating all of them, they were all called over by Shang. The six walked over to him.
"You four," he asked, addressing Sora, Donald, Goofy and Kirito, "What are your names?" Each told them their name. "You four are welcome in my troop. Your battle skills are encouraging." he told them, all of them looking a bit proud of themselves.
"I am the son of Fa Zhou..." Mulan started to say, but Shang cut her off, saying "You should return home."
Mulan was taken aback at this. "B-but..." she stammered, "That would dishonor my family!"
"You'd rather dishonor my troops?" Shang asked her scornfully.
That ticked off Mulan. "Don't make me...!" she scowled, ready to attack the captain.
Asuna waved a hand out in front of her to calm her down. Sora stepped forward. "If Ping trains hard and does his best, he'll get stronger in no time." he summarized to the captain.
"We'll help her through her training." Kirito told him, "We guarantee that he'll be good enough in no time." Shang looked at the two boys, then at Ping, thinking about what they said.
"Just give us an assignment!" Sora suggested, "We'll show you how well we can work together."
"And I'll even give him a few pointers." Asuna added, "Trust me, after we finish training Ping, she'll be more than your average warrior."
"So...you want to be tested?" Shang asked Ping. She nodded in response. "Our orders are to ambush Shan-Yu's army on their way here." Shang explained, "They should be coming through the mountain pass."
"We'll smash them!" Donald exclaimed.
"I doubt that." Shang responded, "You four will be the advance party. Scout out the mountain for my troops."
"That's it?" Sora asked, leaning back on his hands as he looked to Mulan, "No problem. Right?"
"R-right." she responded. Asuna sighed. She couldn't stand Mulan's lack of self-confidence.
"I'll brief you on the details later." Shang told them, "Return when you're ready to depart. Remember, the smallest mission may have the greatest purpose. Stay alert!"
"Sir!" all six responded.
The moment they had some privacy, Asuna turned to Mulan. "Okay, now it's time to get serious." she scolded her, "If you want to prove your strength, and prove your honor, you're gonna have to listen to my instructions, and do what I tell you to do. Got it?" Mulan quickly nodded, and she led her to an open part of the camp in order to teach her some combat lessons.
"Gawrsh, ya think Asuna's goin' a bit too far?" Goofy asked as Mushu walked away from the girls.
"She does seem tough on Mulan." Sora stated.
"Nah, she's just giving our girl some tough love, that's what she's doin'!" Mushu answered, "She's got the right stuff, especially since she kicked that captain's butt over there!"
"What do you think?" Sora asked Kirito.
"I think that Asuna actually cares for Mulan's honor." he responded, staring as the two started to fight with their swords, "You wouldn't believe this, but Asuna was quite different to who she is now. She didn't care about dying in SAO, even though it meant she die in real life, so long as she didn't let the world change who she was. But I guess after meeting me, she changed. She learned that she was still her, both in and out of the game. I guess our situation isn't any different."
He saw Mulan fall down, and Asuna criticize her. "She hates to see people die, and she hates it even more to see people's pride get damaged. That's why she wants to push Mulan forward to getting stronger. That's probably why she came to this camp, and why she challenged the captain. She has her own pride in who she is to consider."
"Sounds cool!" Sora stated, grinning at Kirito, "No wonder you like her so much. I heard from Jiminy that you two are a couple in the game."
"He knows that?" Kirito voiced his surprised.
"I told Jiminy that." Yui nervously explained as she popped her head out of Kirito's pocket.
Kirito looked down at Yui, then at Asuna, then smiled. "Yeah. She is one of a kind, and one I truly love." He simply replied.
"Well, we can't fall far behind." Sora declared, "Let's get into some training, too!"
"Sounds good," Kirito replied, summoning his Oblivion, "You and I can teach each other a few things."
"Right back at ya!" Sora replied.
"I'll get into this, too!" Donald declared, drawing out his staff.
"I'll just make sure you guys don't get hurt." Goofy stated, taking the sidelines. The three then started to spar with one another.
Over the next two days, it was simply like this. They spared with one another, learning new fighting moves from each other, Mulan especially learned. Kirito also started to realize just how strong Sora really was, cause apparently, he wasn't fighting at full strength before. Now, he was even keeping up with Asuna's speed and Kirito's strength. In turn, he wasn't as good in the Valor form as Kirito, but he definitely learned about dual-wielding from him.
Kirito started to realize just how useful the spells he was given were. Over time, he learned to use them in battles like Sora, Donald and Asuna. He also learned that while in Valor Form, he couldn't use magic, but that was fine with him.
Asuna, Kirito and Sora kept taking turns teaching Mulan the art of combat. They even went on a few of the missions Shang assigned them. She surprisingly improved quickly in her fighting skills, and was able to keep up with them. It was also obvious that she and Asuna shared a bond with one another, since they were the women of the group.
On the second evening, Asuna was keeping watch while Mulan took a bath in the nearby river. "You're definitely improving in your fighting." she commented, looking above the tall grass.
"Thanks," Mulan replied as she scrubbed herself.
"I know what you're doing is for your family's honor." Asuna said, "But remember one thing; you must also do this for your own honor as well. Don't ever forget that."
Mulan nodded in response. She paused for a second before asking, "Hey Asuna, why did you fight the captain back then? Was it for your honor?"
Asuna had to think about that for a second before replying, "Let's just say I know a boy who showed me the right way to live, while still being who you are."
"You mean Kirito?" she asked, getting out of the water and wrapping a towel around her body.
"Yeah." she answered, reminiscing on the two years she spent trapped in SAO with Kirito, "Kirito always lived as who he was, no matter what kind of environment he was in. When I was a bit more stubborn, we ended up far away from home, and I was determined to get back home to live my life again. However, he was the one who told me that I was living my life, being myself, no matter where I was. He inspired me to be who I am, which is why I love him so much."
Mulan looked at her, wanting to ask questions, some of them involving her relationship with Kirito, but Asuna realized she was going into subjects she was a bit embarrassed to talk about, and cleared her throat as she blushed. "Well, let's go back to the camp" she told, and the two walked back.
It was early in the afternoon on the next day when they finished the last assignment Shang gave them. The six grouped around the captain, waiting for their results. "You did well." he commended them.
"I knew it!" Sora exclaimed. Asuna and Kirito looked at each other and grinned.
"Captain..." Mulan muttered. Shang turned to her.
"I suppose you've made a little progress," he said to her.
"Not a little, a lot!" Donald squawked.
Asuna gave Shang a glare, but Mulan wavered off their words. "No. You're right, captain." she said, "Please give me one more assignment. This time I'll show you what I'm truly made of!" While everyone looked surprised at her words, Asuna smiled. She was improving her confidence, and understood that she needed self-discipline.
"I'll give you one more chance." Shang told her. He turned to all of them, "If you are ready, we shall depart. But remember, although this is a test, it is still an important mission, so be alert."
"We're ready!" Sora said, full of confidence. Kirito, Donald and Goofy all nodded.
"You feeling up to this?" Asuna asked Mulan.
"I'm ready to prove myself." she responded. Asuna and her both grinned at one another.
"Then lets get started." Shang told them, "Your mission is to secure the path over the summit so our company can pass. I've authorized you to be let through to the summit. Don't let me down!"
"Sir!" the group responded. They took off from the camp and headed for the summit.
The six heroes entered the pass and started climbing up it. Kirito heard something in the sky above them, and he looked up to see a hawk pass them by and fly towards the summit.
"Hey, what's this?!" Donald asked. Kirito turned to see the a pile of rocks impeding their way.
"How will we move all of these in time?" Mulan asked.
"The old-fashioned way." Sora responded, pulling his Keyblade out.
He was about to attack when Heartless suddenly came out of nowhere, surrounding Sora. The other five responded by taking their weapons out and knocking them away.
"You destroy the wall, we'll handle these!" Kirito told Sora. He nodded and turned to the wall. As the others struck the Heartless down, Sora did a combo of moves onto the wall, and all the boulders shattered into little pieces.
"Keep moving!" he called to them, and they proceeded on.
They raced up the pass, dealing with another blockage in the road just as well as the first. As they continued going up, more Heartless kept impeding their path, which were composed of Soldiers, Nightwalkers, and centaur-like Heartless called Assault Riders. Thanks to the couple days of training, Mulan started to fight these guys off like off much better than before. Sora was able to use his Valor Form better than ever. Kirito was not only displaying his sword skills, but his magic skills, too. Asuna swift movements were definitely getting better, as she was unable to be touched by the enemy.
The gang kept going up, taking down a couple of Assault Riders and clearing the last roadblock for the Imperial Army. They waited a while, then suddenly the three guys they fought with before, who they learned were Yao, Ling, and Chien Po, were the first to get to them.
"Hey, you ain't half bad." Yao commended Ping and the others.
"A man among men!" Ling added.
"Thanks." thanked Mulan, slightly surprised at their words of kindness. The three continued on the pass.
Mulan still looked a bit worried though. "But the captain..." she muttered, and suddenly Sora noticed Shang coming with the rest of the men. He walked up to their group.
"Ping sure did great!" Goofy implied.
"More than great," Asuna corrected him, "Ping sure was a big help to getting us up here!"
"You bet he was!" Donald squawked.
"Hmm..." hummed the captain, eying Ping, "Fine. I'll let you join my troops, but I'm still not convinced you have what it takes to be a worthy soldier."
"Why not?!" Sora asked angrily.
"It's all right, Sora." Mulan said, showing her self-discipline side again, "I'll find a way to show the captain what I'm made of. Just give me a chance."
"That's the spirit, Ping." Shang stated.
"Sir!" Ping cried, and Shang went on his way.
As soon as the captain left, Yao, Ling and Chien Po came out of hiding and walked up to them. Apparently, they were spying on their conversation.
"Good going, Ping!" Ling said.
"Thanks." Mulan replied. The group all went up the pass together.
They reached a settlement, for which they took refuge in as a rest stop. They spent a couple hours resting their feet, then Mushu told all of them to meet him at one part of the village. They all got together outside next to one of the buildings.
"Okay, girl! Here's your chance!" Mushu told Mulan, "I just saw this real shady guy, and I know it's Shan-Yu."
All of the group were shocked. "Shan-Yu?!" repeated Mulan.
"That's the Hun leader!" Sora recalled.
"The one guy we're really after." Kirito added, "We've got to tell the Captain!" All but Mushu nodded in agreement.
They were about take off when Mushu said, "Waaaait wait-wait-wait WAIT! Everybody use their heads a sec." All looked at him and thought. "Now why are we here?" He asked them, "To make the captain see Mulan's- I mean, Ping's talents and bring honor to her family." Everyone suddenly remembered, and nodded in response. "So, let's go find out where Shan-Yu is, by ourselves." Mushu suggested, "Then, if we're lucky, we can fry him up good! Though just tracking the guy down should earn us our stars, Captain Musclehead will have to notice my girl!"
"I don't know." Kirito argued, "Do you really think this is the best idea?"
Everyone turned to Mulan. "Well, the choice is yours, Mulan." Asuna told her, "What do you want to do?"
She pondered on the thought for a bit, then she put on a serious face as she answered, "Okay, let's go."
"We'll help out." Sora stated.
"Still don't think this is a good idea, but let's hunt him down." Kirito followed.
"With the six of us, we should be fine." Asuna explained, "It isn't like most other enemies we faced in the past."
"Now we're cookin'!" cheered Mushu, "Now, Shan-Yu is in a cave outside the village!"
"How convenient." Asuna stated, "Now let's get moving."
Mushu hopped back with Mulan as the six heroes went outside the village and entered the nearby cave. Inside, they went through a short path, and found themselves in a large, spacious room filled with candles and small things on the walls. This must have been a place for the people in the village said their blessings to the gods. All of the group looked around, but saw nothing. No Shan-Yu, no soldiers, no nothing. It was a dead end.
"There's nobody here..." Donald pointed out.
"Your crazy. Check again!" Mushu told them.
"Believe me, if some else was here, Mushu, we would've seen him." Kirito told the dragon.
"Oh well." Donald sighed as he and Kirito head back the way they came.
"Wait for me, ya guys!" Goofy called, following the duo.
Sora turned to see them leave. "Hey, hold on!" he cried to them.
"That was a disappointment…" Kirito sighed, looking to Asuna, "But it is rather concerning."
"True. Why would someone who is practically public enemy #1 would let himself be shown so easily?" Asuna asked, "Unless…"
Suddenly, Kirito and Asuna developed a thought, and gasped, "He wanted us here!"
Their assumption was answered as the cave started to shake, surprising everyone. "What? What is it?" Mushu asked.
"I knew it." Asuna concluded, "It's a trap!" The moment she shouted it, the shaking stopped, and suddenly a barrier appeared out of nowhere, separating Donald, Goofy and Kirito from the others.
As Goofy and Donald cried out to them, Kirito heard footsteps and turned around to see a muscular man with a fur hood on walk away. "Who're you?!" he shouted, racing towards him with his Keyblade at hand. The man waved his hand behind him, and another barrier separated him and Kirito. Kirito tried bashing the barrier, but it was useless. Kirito looked at the man who turned to look at him. He laughed at him and walked off outside. "Was that Shan-Yu?" Kirito asked, then he gasped and ran back to the first barrier.
He arrived just in time to see Heartless appear out of nowhere in front of Sora, Asuna and Ping. At the same time, Heartless appeared behind Donald, Goofy and Kirito. Both sides turned to their respected enemies, prepared for a fight.
Each side charged at the enemies they were dealing with. Kirito's side was nothing but Soldiers and Nightwalkers, while Sora's side had Shadows and Assault Riders. They drew their weapons and started slicing them down. Goofy and Kirito were basically knocking them away left and right, while Donald kept delivering magic attacks from a distance.
Sora, Asuna and Ping were slicing and dicing at the Heartless as fast as they could. Asuna was doing a series of jabs onto the enemies, but she didn't react in time from the incoming bash of the Assault Rider. The attack sent Asuna crashing to the ground. The Heartless was about to lance her when Mulan showed up and sliced the beast down the middle, eliminating it.
"You ok, Asuna?" she asked, reaching her hand down to her.
"Yeah, thanks." Asuna replied, grabbing her hand so she could be pulled up, "Nice move there." Mulan smiled at the compliment.
The two girls turned to see Sora take down a series of Shadows with Fire. He then turned and went straight into an uppercut slice on one of the Riders, sending it flying. Sora then placed a well aimed Blizzard at it, then sliced it, making it disappeared. Just as he landed, he saw the last Assault Rider raise itself, ready to strike. But Asuna and Mulan came flying in and did a piercing slash together, causing the Heartless to disappear.
The trio got together again, Mushu came popping out once more. "Nice fighting, Ping!" Sora commended her, "You were amazing." "I have to agree." Asuna seconded, "Mulan, if the captain saw you fight like that, he's bound to give you more respect." Mulan blushed from the two's compliments.
Just then the two barriers disappeared, and Donald, Goofy and Kirito joined up with the group. "You okay?" Goofy asked.
"Yep, thanks to Ping." Sora answered.
"She saved my life there." Asuna stated to Kirito.
"In that case, you have my deepest thanks," Kirito thanked her.
"C'mon! Time to report to the captain!" Mushu declared.
"But Shan-Yu wasn't here." Mulan reminded him.
"Please! That Hun is old news!" Mushu brushed off, "We're gonna tell the captain how thousands of Heartless stormed the cave, and Ping took out almost every one of em'!"
"Actually, I think I did see him." Kirito said, shutting down Mushu's speech. All of them turned to him. "He was the one who set this whole thing up. I tried to stop him, but I couldn't get to him." He looked down, frustrated he couldn't stop him.
"Don't worry," Asuna comforted him, "We'll get him next time. The question we need to ask is why he trapped us like that?" They all thought about it, then they all came to the same, scary answer. "The village!" the shouted in unison, and they took off out of the cave.
By the time they got there, it was too late. The village had been attacked. All the buildings were destroyed, rubble was everywhere, and smoke was still coming out here and there. All of them gasped at this horrific sight. They entered the village and looked at the wall next to them. Shang was leaning on one of the walls, badly injured, clutching a wound on his side. He was trying to get to his feet again.
"Captain!" Mulan cried leading the gang over to him. He was breathing heavily as he saw all of them near him.
"Don't overdo it, captain!" Sora told him.
"Here, use this." Kirito said, pulling a potion out of his pocket and giving it to Shang.
"It's just a scratch." he moaned, but he landed on one knee as he fell.
"Captain, the enemy! Where did they go?" Ping asked, bending down to look at him.
"They went towards the summit..." Shang replied.
Ping stood up straight again and looked at the others. "We'll stop them!" she declared.
"We'll make up for this." Kirito stated.
"It kinda is our fault." Goofy stated. Mushu got to the ground and walked away from the group, looking mournful. "You mean my fault." He corrected Goofy.
"Uh-uh!" Donald replied.
"We're all the victims here, Mushu." Asuna told him, "You cannot blame yourself for this."
"Shan-Yu and the Heartless did this, not us!" Sora stated.
Kirito bent down to look Shang at eye level, telling him, "Captain, if you track down the villagers, we'll handle this." He then raised himself up and he and Sora looked at the remains of the village before turning their sights to the summit.
"Let's go." Sora stated, and the group walked off to the summit. They dealt with a few Heartless, along with some small flying enemies called Rapid Thrusters. Their determination to get revenge for what happened to them, the village, and Shang was what flowed in thier minds as they fought. Finally, they reached the summit.
Once they got there, they looked all around, searching for Shan-Yu. Kirito looked up and saw the same hawk before. Was it following them? The bird took off higher up the mountain, where a lone figure stood. He stood up and looked down at them as the hawk landed on his shoulder. "That's him!" Kirito pointed out, "That's the guy who I saw. It must be Shan-Yu!" Everyone drew their weapons, preparing for a fight.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Heartless suddenly appeared, lots of them. They were all Rapid Thrusters, and they all covered the edge of the summit. Shan-Yu drew his sword, and waved it in front of him. "Attack!" he ordered, and the Heartless charged, one wave after another, charging down the hill. The six heroes charged up the hill at the Heartless, ready to fight the horde.
As soon as they dove into the wave, they all lost sight of one another. They each individually started to strike down the Heartless, one after another. Kirito switched on his Valor form, and started to wale them furiously and rapidly. They could barely see one another through the swarm of Heartless. Then there were the new Heartless in the battle; floating tower-like Heartless, for whom Yui called Bolt Towers, which were a good name because not only they slammed themselves on the ground like mallets and produce shockwaves, but if you were in the air, then they catch you with a laser, and try to zap you. Sora almost got caught in one, but he reversed it's energy, sending it back at the Heartless, and produced a blast that destroyed other Heartless.
After a few minutes of this, the six managed to beat all of the Heartless and gather together again. They looked up and saw that there were still more Heartless. Shan-Yu raised his sword and delivered a war cry as he charged down the mountain, the Heartless following right behind him and the hawk was in the sky above them. The crew were already exhausted from the first assault. They didn't know how to handle the second wave, let alone Shan-Yu.
Suddenly, Yao, Ling and Chien Po came from the ridge to meet them, carrying a rocket.
"Stand back!" Yao told them.
"We'll handle this!" Ling declared. They placed the mortar down, and was ready to aim the rocket directly at Shan-Yu. Mulan noticed this, then looked at the high peak above the summit, and had an idea.
"Sorry," she said as she elbowed Yao and took the rocket away from him. She charged up the mountain and placed it into the ground once more, this time aiming at the peak. She then remembered she didn't have anything to light the rocket with. Then she saw Mushu, who panicked as he knew what she was thinking. Mulan grabbed Mushu, and forcefully made him produce fire, igniting the rocket. Unfortunately, Mushu landed on top of the rocket a second before it fired.
"You're going the wrong way!" he cried as he was sent flying to the summit with the rocket. However, that was exactly where Mulan aimed at. The moment the rocket made impact the loose snow on the peak started to fall, creating an avalanche.
"Yes!" Ping cheered.
"Your crazy!" exclaimed Kirito.
"Captain?" Sora said, seeing Shang come up from the ridge.
Mulan turned and saw him, and realized they were all in danger. "Look out!" she cried, running away from the incoming avalanche.
The wave of snow came billowing down the mountain, enveloping all of the Heartless as it went. Shan-Yu tried to outrun it, but he too was swallowed up by the snow. Mulan grabbed Shang and took off away from the incoming snow. Everyone else followed, panicking. They all barely dived out of the way just in time, for the avalanche came flying down, over the cliff they were near to, bringing Shan-Yu and all the Heartless with it.
Once it was over, Shang and Mulan sat up again, breathing heavily. They turned to each other. "Thanks, Ping." the captain said to her.
"It...was nothing." She replied, putting on her deep voice as she stood up. Shang stood up with her.
"I should never have doubted you." he told her, "From now on, you have my trust."
"Thank you, captain." Ping replied, happy to be gratified, but the moment was short-lived.
Mushu suddenly came popping out of the snow near them, and knocked all the snow out of his ears. "First she uses me as a lighter, then she turns me into a cannon ball. The head ancestor's gonna hear about this." Mushu complained, not realizing he was near Shang, "You know, that's it! I give up! I can't take this no more. C'mon, Mulan, let's quit this charade and go home girl."
"Mushu!" Mulan whispered to him, but it was too late. Mushu turned and saw Shang standing there, and covered his mouth.
"Mulan?" he repeated, contemplating this, "A woman? It can't be!" Mulan didn't want to look at him, for he finally knew the truth.
"Ping! Captain!" Sora cried as he and the others came to meet them. Shang turned to them, looking angry.
"Oh boy, you're okay!" Goofy said optimistically.
"Is something the matter, captain?" Kirito asked, looking at both him and Mulan behind him.
"You all knew, didn't you?" he accused them, "You knew Ping was really a woman in disguise."
They all looked to find a way to answer him, but it was Asuna who came forward and answered, "Yes. It was to protect her family's honor." They all looked at her, then up at Shang, who turned to Mulan.
"I can't believe you lied to me." he scolded her as he walked away and turned his back to her, "The punishment for high treason and dishonoring the Army is death." Mulan turned to him, who only turned his head to them. "Get out of my sight, now!" he ordered, "You're all dismissed."
"But captain..." Sora muttered. He turned his head away from them.
"My debt is repaid." he finished, then he walked away.
Mulan looked down in shame as Sora and the others rushed to her side. Shang turned to the rest of the army. "The Emperor is waiting!" he said to them, "Move out!" he led the Army down the mountain, and out of the heroes' sight.
The moment they left, Mushu climbed onto Mulan's shoulders as she sighed. "Mulan, I blew it." he said in remorse. Mulan shook her head in response.
"Sorry about that." Asuna told her, looking ashamed for confessing before.
"Don't be." Mulan responded, "I'm glad you were with me there in the end." Asuna vaguely smiled at her for her kindness.
"I think I should get out of this armor." she added, looking at her uniform. Asuna turned to the boys, and gave them a look to say that they should turn around while she's dressing. They did so, and Mulan shed the armor, revealing she had clothes on underneath, which were greyish-tan and with green lining, brown pants, and was made for martial arts. Asuna told them it was ok to look, and they turned to see her loosen the band off her hair, letting it down.
"Thank you everyone." she told them, "Sorry I got you into trouble."
"It's no big deal." Sora responded.
"It was bound to happen." Kirito said bluntly.
"Still," Asuna said as she looked sternly as her boyfriend, "I'm sure you are gonna be alright. Besides, you just saved China from a tyrant. You should be proud of that!" Mulan nodded, but didn't smile, then turned to walk away.
"So Ping, I mean, Mulan," Sora corrected himself, "what're you gonna do now?"
"Go back home." She responded as she walked away with Mushu.
"Your daddy's gonna be steamed as a chicken dumpling." Mulan realized that, and looked a bit worried, but Asuna and Kirito came to her.
"Hey, it's ok." she said consolingly, "We'll come with you and explain it all."
"And relax," Sora added, pulling Donald and Goofy into his arms, "we'll take our share of the blame."
Mulan turned and smiled at them all. "Thanks," she replied, "You're all wonderful friends." All of them grouped together, preparing to move out once more down the mountain. Asuna grabbed ahold of Mulan's hand as a sign of friendship as they walked.
As they were crossing the ridge, Shan-Yu's hawk came flying over them, going towards the sight where the avalanche landed. It was just circling it when suddenly a hand came popping out of it. Then Shan-Yu came out of the snow, breathing heavily as he was almost suffocated. He knelt down for a short while, then let out a angry roar. The group heard the cry, and turned to where it came from. Heartless were popping out of the air next to him, but their numbers have been greatly reduced thanks to the avalanche. Shan-Yu stood up just as his hawk landed on his shoulders. He looked at the Heartless remaining, then turned to the large city he saw from a distance. Meanwhile, Sora, Asuna and Mulan knelt down and saw him down below.
"Shan-Yu!" Mulan gasped.
"He's alive!" Sora exclaimed.
"That guy doesn't know when to quit!" Asuna said, amazed at his perseverance.
"He's heading for the Imperial City!" Mulan stated, "We've got to warn Shang!" Sora nodded in response, and they stood up.
Asuna turned to Mulan, telling her "I think it's time you show them what your true honor and pride is, Mulan. Let's stop Shan-Yu once and for all, and save China!" She and Sora nodded in agreement, and the troop ran off down the mountain.
It only took them a couple of hours, but they got down the mountain hastily. They ran out the pass, through the checkpoint, and along the path that led to the Imperial City. They got there just as Shang and the remainder of the Army passed through the palace gates. They rushed as fast as they could to the front of the line, where Shang led.
"Shang!" Mulan called out, making him stop. Mulan and the others got right to one side of him. "Shan-Yu is alive!" she told him, "He's headed this way!"
"And why should I believe you this time?" Shang asked unconvincingly.
"But, she's telling you the truth!" Sora stated.
"Why don't you actually open your eyes and ears for a second, and actually trust her?!" Asuna said sternly at the captain.
Suddenly, Kirito heard a familiar cry and looked up. "There!" he shouted, pointing at the hawk in the sky. Shang saw it and started to look around, trying to find its' master. It circled around them, then flew over onto one of the palace rooftops, where Shan-Yu stood there, grinning maliciously at them before dropping down.
Shang waved his hand to his troops in a forward signal. "Guard the palace!" he declared as Yao, Ling and Chien Po ran past him, "Do not let the enemy get anywhere near the Emperor! That's an order!" He turned to the remainder of his troops, as they were surrounded by a black aura. Suddenly, they vanished, and in their place, Heartless appeared. Kirito was frightened as he saw this, realizing that it was exactly like in his dreams. Shang gasped in horror of what happened to his men. Sora, Asuna and Mulan all raised their weapons as they stepped in front of the captain.
"Captain! We'll secure the courtyard, and you can save the Emperor!" Sora ordered him. He was hesitant about leaving them.
"That's an order!" squawked Donald. Shang looked at them, then nodded in acknowledgement and took off, leaving the six heroes surrounded by a variety of Heartless, their weapons raised. They all charged at them, taking them down one by one.
Mulan, now out of the armor, was now much swifter and stronger than before. She was less clumsy, and her ariel assaults were much better. She was even able to work with Mushu to produce fiery attacks from breathing fire to charging at opponents, enveloped in Mushu's flames. Asuna definitely preferred her like this, and they started to do stronger combos together.
They finished the battle in the courtyard and gathered together again. "The Emperor's in danger!" Mulan stated.
"No time to lose!" Sora replied.
"Quick! To the palace!" Kirito declared, and the group charged up the stairs to the entrance.
When they got up the stairs, they saw the Emperor standing there, and Shan-Yu right beside him, his sword place over his neck. "Now you'll bow to me." he growled into the Emperor's ear, then he turned at the sound of footsteps, and saw the six heroes staring at him. He was distracted by them long enough for Shang to leap in, slam his hand into his chin, and shove him down, allowing the Emperor to escape. Shang led the Emperor into the palace, where Yao, Ling and Chien Po closed the door behind them.
Shan-Yu got up and was about to go after them, but the others impeded his path to the door. He stopped in his tracks then stared at them.
"It ends now." Mulan declared.
"Right now!" Asuna added. The hawk landed on Shan-Yu's shoulder. He then chuckled menacingly as a black aura surrounded him.
"His heart's been blackened by the Heartless!" Sora stated as Heartless started to pop up around him, "He's gonna be tough to beat."
He was about to attack when Asuna and Mulan stepped forward in front of the group. "We'll handle Shan-Yu!" Asuna told them, "You guys take care of all the Heartless."
"Don't let them break the palace door open!" Mulan declared.
"R-right!" Sora replied, not use to seeing someone take away a fight like this. He turned to his other companions, who all nodded in agreement, then they dispersed, attacking the incoming Heartless. Asuna and Mulan readied their weapons as they glared at Shan-Yu, who readied his sword for combat, the black aura still surrounding him. Then all at once they charged. The battle had begun.
As Sora and Goofy went to one side and Donald and Kirito went another, Asuna and Mulan went straight towards Shan-Yu. Asuna went in first, way-laying him with a barrage of jabs, but Shan-Yu was parrying them and sent Asuna backwards with brute force. Mulan came in and slashed him when he was open. She ducked his sideslash and left him open Asuna's Blizzard attack, blasting him backwards. Asuna and Mulan grouped up and charged at him again.
Meanwhile, Sora, Kirito, Goofy and Donald were easily defeating the Heartless on either side. Both Sora and Kirito entered their Valor forms, and completely destroy them in without effort. However, they did keep coming up every once in a while, so there was no board moment. Kirito had enough time to glance over at Asuna's battle, and see her and Mulan back each other up as they fought.
Shan-Yu, now furious, grabbed Mulan by the neck and sent her flying backwards. "Mulan!" Asuna cried, but she instantly turned and blocked Shan's sword with her own, coincidently entering a grapple. Shan was overpowering Asuna in strength, and was pushing her back.
"You think you can overpower me, female?" he growled at her.
"Watch me!" She spat, and she braced her feet as she started to push back on him, causing him to skid back. Finally, she parried his sword to one side and spun into a sideways slash, sending him toppling backwards.
She was about to strike once more when she felt herself being lifted off the ground. She looked up and saw the hawk lift her helplessly into the sky. She struggled hard to free herself, but he hawk was unusually strong because it shared the same aura as Shan-Yu, who was getting to his feet and grinning at Asuna. "Farewell, woman." he sneered, and he charged with sword, ready to stab Asuna.
Mulan came out of nowhere, and had Mushu blow flames onto the hawk, who dropped Asuna just in time for her to block his attack. She landed to one knee on the ground, with the hawk falling to the ground in flames, and Mulan landed right on her other side. "You ok?" she asked.
"That's the second time you saved me from getting stabbed." she counted, grinning at Mulan. She got to her feet, and the two looked at Shan-Yu, who parted his arms out, producing several Heartless surrounding them. They stood back to back, their swords at the ready.
"You need a fiery dragon's hand?" Mushu asked smugly.
"We'd be happy to." Asuna responded, and the trio combined their strength together.
Mushu started by firing a barrage of fireballs at the start, then the other two went in. While Asuna leapt toward the enemies enveloped in flames, Mulan kept delivering fireballs from her hand. They went on like this, going one after another. Finally, Mushu finished it by sent a volley of large fireballs into the air, and the trio got together again as the fireballs came exploding down to the ground like meteors all around them. The attack took out all the Heartless around them, and even hit Shan-Yu.
"Woah! Awesome move there!" Sora praised as he saw the whole thing.
"How in the world did they do that?" Kirito asked, amazed at what he just saw.
"When the two worked together like that, they produced a powerful Limit move." Yui explained, "It's one of the many gifts of the Keyblade."
"That is pretty impressive." Kirito said quietly, staring at his Oblivion before continuing the fight.
The two girls stared at the spot Shan-Yu stood, waiting to see if he was alive. He was apparently, cause a burst of dark aura spurted out of him, making him stronger, and did a full on charge at the two girls, sending them flying in pain. Then he jumped up and did a spiral slash on the both of them, causing the two to fall to the ground, injured from his attack.
As Asuna tried to stand up, she saw Shan-Yu stare at the two of them. "You women are pathetic." he sneered, "You think you're strength alone is enough to stop me, Shan-Yu? I can defeat you two without the Heartless easily. Face it, women don't have the right to call themselves 'soldiers'. They are weak, and helpless. And I'll start by proving my point...with you." he pointed his sword at Mulan, who was attempting to get up. He raised his sword, about to cut her head off. Mulan looked up in horror, Mushu just as frightened.
Suddenly, a Blizzard attack came from behind him, and hit Shan-Yu square in the back. He turned to see Sora stand there, his Keyblade pointing at him. "You leave Mulan alone!" he yelled at him. Shan-Yu glared at his attacker, and was distracted enough for Asuna to slide a potion over to Mulan, who took it and drank it. Asuna did the same.
Shan-Yu hadn't walked five steps before Mulan and Asuna called out, "Hey!" He turned to see them standing up, back to back, glaring at him. "You think women are weak, huh?" Asuna asked him. "Sorry, but the fact that you think that is what makes you weak."
"It doesn't matter whether you are a man or a woman." Mulan stated, "What matters is how much honor and pride you have, and what you use it for!"
The two charged simultaneously at Shan-Yu, and they clashed with his raised sword. Asuna came in and did a low sweep on him, causing him to fall back. Mulan followed this by sending a fiery slash on him, sending him flying into the palace door and fall to the ground.
He got back up, furious, and started to charge with that dark aura around him, his sword raised outward. The two girls charged at him, screaming in unison. "For China!" Mulan shouted.
"For our honor!" Asuna cried, and the two made a slash on either side of him.
For a minute, the three stopped neither one making a move. Then as the two whipped their swords down, dropped his sword and fell to the ground, dead. The two girls looked around and realized that they won. They smiled brightly at one another as they gave a high-five.
"You did it!" Sora cheered, raising his Keyblade into the air. Both Donald and Goofy were jumping for joy at their victory. Kirito smiled broadly, proud of Asuna and Mulan. They grouped together, happily celebrating their victory.
Something also appeared in front of Asuna. It was a black keychain with a gold medallion with a dragon symbol at the end of it. "What's this?" she asked, staring at the chain.
"Oh, that's what you use if you want to switch your Keyblade around." Sora answered, "Just switch the keychains on the end to have it change form. Each Keyblade is strong in their own way."
"It looks like that the Keyblade this one belongs to is called the 'Hidden Dragon'." Yui explained, staring at the keychain. "I sure have a long way to go in figuring out the powers of the Keyblade." Asuna remarked, deciding to put it in her pocket for safe keeping.
Mushu jumped down and started skipping around them. "Now that's what I call burning some hunny-bun!" he quoted gleefully, "Aw, yeah! Mulan's the best! Mulan's the best! No, wait a minute-I'm the best! Mushu's the best! Mushu's the best!" Mulan and Asuna heard his chant and giggled. This was truly a victory for them.
After the battle was over, the six of them found themselves standing at the top of the staircase, standing at attention in front of Shang and the Emperor. A huge crowd of people were down below, watching the scene unfold. The Emperor walked toward them, specifically towards Mulan.
"I've heard a great deal about you, Fa Mulan." he said. Mulan stepped forward and bowed her head low to the Emperor. "You stole your father's armor," He accused her, "ran away from home, impersonated an Imperial soldier. You deceived your commanding officer, shamed the entire Chinese army, and dishonored your family name."
"We get the picture..." Sora moaned.
"It's not like you need to remind her." Asuna sighed.
"You're a young woman." The Emperor continued, "And in the end..." Donald moaned as Kirito and Goofy waited baited breath to see what happens. "...You have saved us all." The Emperor finished, and now he bowed to Mulan, who looked up and was taken aback from what the Emperor was doing.
Suddenly, the large crowd behind them started to cheer for Mulan and the others. The gang turned to one another and started to smile as they realized what this meant. They all whooped for joy in victory, even Asuna and Kirito hugged one another as Yui started to fly above their heads.
"I told you it would work out!" Asuna stated, looking at Mulan as she turned to the Emperor.
"Your Excellency!" she addressed.
"Captain Li?" The Emperor asked, and Shang to him, then pulled out Shan-Yu's sword and delivered it to Mulan. "Take this," the Emperor told her, "so the world will know what it is you have done for China."
"Thank you." Mulan replied, bowing to him once more.
"Mulan." Shang addressed.
"Yes?" Mulan replied.
"Sora. Kirito. Donald. Goofy. Asuna." He said to each person, "Thank you." Shang bowed to them,
The Emperor leaned towards him as he echoed, "'Thank you'? Is that all there is to say, Captain? If you wish to win the heart of Fa Mulan, China's bravest woman, you'll have to be a bit more eloquent than that!" Shang seemed flustered as the Emperor laughed.
Mulan started to laugh silently at the joke as Sora, Kirito and Asuna stepped next to her. "Can I get an autograph?" Sora asked amusingly.
"Make that three." Asuna added as she giggled with Kirito.
"Thanks for everything, Sora, Kirito, Asuna." She looked at Asuna specifically as she continued, "If you hadn't done what you did, I don't know what I would've done."
"Hey, you would've done ok on your own." Asuna assured her, "We just made the process faster, that's all." The two looked at each other, smiling at one another. They two really got close in this journey.
Mushu hopped down off of Mulan and started pacing. "Now they gotta let me go back to bein' a guardian! They GOTTA!" he said out loud.
"But Mushu, I thought you already were a family guardian!" Goofy reminded him.
"What? oh, no, no, don't even worry about that, that's just real technical. Just for us guardians." Mushu's excuse clearly didn't hide the truth, and the others figured it out.
"You tricked us!" Sora accused him angrily.
"That's it, your gonna get it!" Kirito declared, and the two started to chase after Mushu as he ran away from them.
Suddenly, Shan-Yu's sword started to glow a bright light in Mulan's hands. She let go of it in panic, and it started to float in the air. "Is that...?" Asuna started to say, but it was blatantly obvious what it was, "Hey Kirito! Sora! Look!" The two boys stopped and turned to see the sword fly upward, realize what it meant. Asuna walked to them, and the trio nodded together.
They pointed their Keyblades downward together as they and the floating sword glowed brighter. Suddenly a crown mark appeared around them, and a strange energy surged around them as the surrounding changed into what looked like a bright sky with black clouds. The light from the sword suddenly bursted into the sky, and a large keyhole appeared. The trio jumped back, flipping their Keyblades around and pointing them at the keyhole. Three beams came from their Keyblades and shot themselves at the keyhole, and a sound of a lock unlocking was produced, along with a blinding light. Suddenly everything was back to normal.
"Okay!" Donald cheered.
"Guess it's about time to be movin' on." Goofy assumed.
"You shall be missed." the Emperor told them. The trio of Keyblade wielders looked back as the Emperor, Shang and Mulan.
"Is it okay if we come back to visit?" Sora asked.
"Of course." Mulan responded as Shang stepped forward.
"We will look forward to your return." Shang stated.
"You two play nice." Sora told them.
"Whoa...watch it, soldier!" Shang stammered as he and Mulan blushed in embarrassment.
As Sora went back to Donald and Goofy, Asuna walked up to Mulan. "I hope I see you again really soon." Asuna told her.
"I hope so too, Asuna." she responded, and the two girls hugged each other. Asuna let go and went back to Kirito who waited for her.
"Better?" he asked her.
"Much better." Asuna answered, "I proved my point in this world."
"Hey, you don't need to prove your point to me." Kirito pointed out, "I know your the strongest girl I know."
"Thank, Kirito." she responded, kissing Kirito on the cheek as they joined the others, "Although I'm not afraid to admit that Yuuki was definitely stronger."
"Right. You have a fair point." he agreed.
Mushu got back onto Mulan's shoulders as the two giggled at one another. "Goodbye, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Kirito, Asuna!" she said to them as they walked away. It was about time for the five heroes to head out to their next adventure.