Disclaimer: All Kim Possible characters are the copyright of Walt Disney Corporation. I'm just borrowing them to write up a story with no intention of making any money. This is for fun. All other characters in my stories, that Disney doesn't own, are mine. :)
A grand paid-trip vacation to Hawaii goes to campy for once more for providing wonderful proofreading/betaing work! Just send the bill to Mr. Doctor Possible, campy! (big grin)
Big thanks go to all who read and left reviews for Chapter 17: zafnak, Zaratan, ScareGlow, continental-line, GargoyleSama, Joe Stoppinghem, AtomicFire, Quis Custodiet, snakeskin mike, ZK Chromedragozoid, bmwrider, Bubbahotek, warlord-xana, Mr. Average, romantic-cancer, The Mad shoe1, milordo-z 2.0, Goinghome, and kingprawnsct.
And thanks go to all who read Chapter 17. :)
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A Bond of Honor
Chapter 18 – Fighting Angels
By JuPMod (aka JPMod)
Panting and sweating hard, she gritted her teeth and bore it. She had been going at it with the other girl for 20 minutes straight, and her keen brain knew that neither she nor her opponent was going to give up. It was either victory or defeat with no room for a middle ground.
Landing on her feet, green eyes immediately saw her foe had leaped after her with a right kick aiming for the chest, yet the nimble teen girl blocked it easily with her left arm and countered with a right upper hook toward the face. However, the other girl dodged the punch, landed on her feet, and did a roundhouse kick to try to trip her redheaded rival.
Jumping over the leg, Kim Possible, eyes narrowing, spun in mid air and aimed a kick toward the raven-haired girl just below her, but Yori Takana didn't allow the foot to connect, for she pushed with one hand off the ground and leaped far to the side to land on her feet at the same time as Kim. Both girls, breathing hard, eyed each other narrowly.
"Give… up… Yori," Kim panted between words.
The ninja girl felt her lips curl up to the side slightly. "Not… going to… Possible-san. …You?"
Emerald eyes burning with determination, the Middleton High cheerleader shook her head. "No way," she answered hoarsely, coming out almost a growl.
With those words spoken, Kim ran toward Yori, who did the same, and together, both bounded into the air at each other, throwing punches, kicks, and other maneuvers possible in the limited time they were airborne. They landed, only to immediately leap backwards far from each other to skid across the dirt, causing tiny dust clouds to form behind them.
Both girls were about to launch into another offensive, each not giving up no matter what. After all, their pride just would not want to admit defeat.
"HALT!" a mature masculine voice cried out, and both combatants dropped their fighting stances. Kim bent over a bit and placed hands on her knees, while Yori remained standing. Both girls breathed hard and felt sticky from the sweat clinging to some areas of their white student shinobi shokuzus (ninja uniforms).
Approaching the two girls, Master Hiroshi Mochizuki, in his red ninja master's garments, smiled approvingly at them. "An excellent match. It has been a long time since I've seen a spar of this magnitude. Both of you are to be commended for your endurance and skills."
"I'll say," a grinning blond boy, in a white shinobi shockuzu, said as he stepped out of one side of the dueling area to come up to the two girls. "You were both badical!"
"Booyah!" Rufus agreed from his perch on his owner's right shoulder, while Ron strolled up to the Japanese girl first and handed her a white, fluffy towel and a water bottle.
"Arigatou, Ron-kun," Yori thanked her boyfriend with a warm grin as she took the items. She drank from the bottle, while Ron headed over to Kim.
"Thanks, Ron," Kim grinned in gratitude as she accepted a towel and water bottle from her best male friend. She drank some of the cool liquid before patting the towel over her sweaty brow.
Kim had to admit that after this long fight with Yori, she did feel better for some reason or another compared to last night after watching Yori with Ron at Glorious Saturday. Then again, she always found sparring was a great stress reliever, and the Japanese ninja girl certainly had given her the means to work out her stress.
Looking at the sun, which was now close to the western horizon, the redhead worldwide heroine knew it had been a long day. Both she and Ron had come to the Mochizuki Estate early in the morning for Ron's training lesson, which she and Yori participated in as well at times. The three of them (and Rufus at times) would meditate, follow simple fighting techniques, and even mock duel each other to follow-up on those techniques.
However, in the late afternoon, Master Mochizuki had wanted to test Kim's skills, and so he pitted her and Yori against each other in sparring matches. The first two matches had been just minor bouts that ended if one scored a hit on the other. The third was a full-blown fight, where the girls used all their skills and strengths, and it would not end until one admitted defeat or the other could fight no more. It was a good thing the ninja master had called a halt to the fight, or else both girls would have likely continued until exhaustion took them.
As the two girls' breathing slowly calmed down, Master Mochizuki looked at Kim with a kind, appreciative grin. "As you know, Possible-san, I wanted to test your skills, and this bout has proven what we knew of your fighting skills some time before Stoppable-san came to Yamanouchi for his one-week stay last year."
Seeing the curious expression not only on Kim but Ron, Yori, and even Rufus, the elderly Japanese explained. "When Stoppable-san received the Mystical Monkey Powers through the four Jade Monkey Statues, Sensei immediately knew someone had inherited the powers, for only he would have sensed the powers. Upon finding out that Stoppable-san and Monkey Fist were the ones who received the powers; Sensei had our intelligence network seek all information on the people in question. He was pleasantly surprised to find out about Team Possible and Stoppable-san's role in it, and in order to better understand about Team Possible, he sought all information on every team member, which included you, Possible-san."
Kim and Ron were astonished at this. "Sensei wanted to know more about me?" the redhead asked.
Master Mochizuki nodded with a grin. "Indeed. After all, to better understand why Stoppable-san was a part of your team, he needed to know more about you. Highly intelligent. Adaptable. Determined. An extremely skilled fighter with 16 distinctive fighting styles of kung fu. Quite remarkable for someone to have achieved before her 16th birthday.
"Sensei theorized that you would be well matched against any ninja warrior or advanced Yamanouchi student. Hirotaka had spoken about his brief mock bout with you, and after seeing you fight against DNAmy's gorillas, Sensei was convinced you are indeed a fighter to be reckoned with."
Feeling pride warming her insides, Kim grinned and modestly waved a dismissing hand. "No big. I'd wanted to know about kung fu ever since I was in pre-k. I just happened to learn 16 styles easily. That's all." Ron and Yori chuckled at her reply.
With twinkling eyes, Yori's guardian raised a stern finger. "Yet do not be overconfident, Possible-san. You may have skills to possibly beat the average ninja warrior, but you are no match against a ninja master in a fight."
Sheepishly grinning and chuckling, while seeing Ron and Yori snickered, Kim dabbed her neck with her towel. "Yeah, I think I figured out that much, Master Mochizuki."
During her fight with Yori, Kim knew she was close to par with the ninja girl. Team Possible's leader knew 16 styles of kung fu and various combinations of the 16, but given she did not know about ninjitsu or Tai Shing Pek Kwar, she had a slight disadvantage against a trained Yamanouchi ninja as Yori had proven. So out of simple reasoning, if she was evenly matched against Yori, an advanced student and warrior, Kim knew she would stand no chance against Sensei or Master Mochizuki in a fight, given they were ninja masters.
An amused expression on his face, Master Mochizuki turned and walked out of the dueling area. "Come," he called out over his shoulders to the three teenagers. "Your physical training is over for the day. Let us depart for the gazebo for refreshments and food."
"Booyah!" Ron cheered, raising a fist over his head. "It's snackage time!" he said as he quickly followed the ninja master.
"Snackage!" Rufus repeated before licking his lips in thought of the tasty treats waiting for them.
While Yori giggled and Kim smirked and shook her head, the two girls began to trail behind the eager boy. "Do you think of food all the time, Ron?" Kim teasingly asked.
Ron was not perturbed one bit. "As a chef, I certainly do, KP," he grinned.
"Yeah, 24 hours a day," Kim fired back. "God help us all." Yori laughed, while Master Mochizuki softly chuckled.
In retaliation, Kim's freckled best friend playfully stuck out his tongue at her, and in return, she tweaked her nose at him. Being friends for a long time, Kim and Ron knew each other well enough to know when they were saying things in jest all in good fun.
It had become the standard after-training event for them to relax at the gazebo, to eat, chat, and review with Master Mochizuki the lessons learned. Kim knew all this was mostly for Ron, given he was the ninja-in-training, but she couldn't deny that she was learning things as well. Team Possible's leader knew what she was learning could give her the edge even over Shego and other foes.
Reaching the Japanese-style, wooden gazebo at the center-rear of the vast gardens behind the estate's living quarters, the group led by an eager blond boy walked up the few steps to the round glass-top patio table. Ron was expecting the typical view of assorted snacks and drinks, but his face fell upon seeing nothing but a small uncheckered board with wooden pieces lying on top of the table.
"Where's the snackage?" Ron cried out in disappointment as he waved at the table while the other three walked around him to stand beside the table. Kim stood at his right, Yori on his left, and Master Mochizuki to Kim's right.
"Yeah!" Rufus echoed, wanting his usual tray of cheese.
The ninja master merely grinned, his hand gesturing to the board on the table. "You'll be continuing your training, Stoppable-san. This will help you with that training."
Surprised chocolate eyes turned to face the shinobi teacher. "Whoa! I thought you said we're finished with our training for today!"
Kim couldn't help but produce a mirthful smirk. "Actually, Ron, Master Mochizuki said that we were finished with our physical training for today. He didn't say we were finished with any other training."
"Precisely, Possible-san," Master Mochizuki confirmed with a nod and grin at the teenage girl before facing his blond pupil, "Do not be concerned, Stoppable-san. Kay-san will be here with the desired snackage as you called them. In the meantime, we will start with the training of your mind."
"My mind?" Ron asked in bewilderment as he raised his eyebrows at the elderly Japanese before eying what was on the table. "I thought all that meditating stuff was for training our minds."
It was Yori who answered this time. "Meditation helps one relax and find their centers, Ron-kun. What Mochizuki-shishou is saying is that this," she hand-gestured to the board, "will help you think and gain you insightful knowledge in tactics and planning."
"Indeed," Master Mochizuki replied. "In the middle of battle, ninjas are not only trained to know how to fight, but to also think and plan to defeat their opponents swiftly and precisely. Power alone will not able to win a battle. Even the smallest of warriors can take down enemies many times their size by simple outthinking the opposition."
"Okaaaaay," Ron said, still not entirely getting it. "So what is this?" His eyes made out a 9x9 uncheckered board with 20 irregular pentagonal wooden pieces on each side of the board. Japanese wording was seen on the pieces. "It looks like Japanese checkers."
Yori giggled with a hand over her mouth, while Master Mochizuki merely grinned in amusement. A smirking Kim shook her head slightly, feeling amusement as well as disbelief in Ron's lack of knowledge of the game on the table. "It's called Shogi, Ron," Kim explained. "It's Japanese chess."
"Chess!" Ron nearly screamed out wide-eyed. "I'm no good in chess, KP!" he whined. "Remember the last time?"
Kim rolled her green eyes. "That was years ago, Ron, against Danny Cage. You haven't played since. You'll never know what you're capable of until you least try."
The ninja master nodded in agreement. "Possible-san is correct. Until you try, Stoppable-san, you will not ever know what you are capable of doing."
With that said, Master Mochizuki began to explain the game. Shogi has some similarities to Western Chess; given both were descendants of Chaturanga, a 7th-Century game from India. Each player has 20 pieces – a King, two Gold Generals, two Silver Generals, two Knights, two Lances, a Bishop, a Rook, and nine Pawns. All pieces were the same color, thus loyalties were determined by the directional headings of the pointed tips of the pieces. Pieces were moved according to the limits of their movements, and unlike Western Chess, most pieces could be promoted upon moving into the promotion zones, the last three rows on the opponent's side. Another difference was that captured pieces could be brought into play as one's own, for this 'drop rule' was credited to the practice of mercenaries who switched loyalties when captured.
Overall, Shogi seemed more challenging and enduring to play than Western Chess.
After explaining the rules along with a brief history, Master Mochizuki, with a grin, gestured to the chair facing one side of the Shogi board. "Stoppable-san, you'll be black," he said before facing Kim. "Possible-san, would you care to play against Stoppable-san?"
"Sure," Kim replied with a smile as she moved to sit across from her best friend. "I have not played Shogi before, so this will be good practice for me."
Inside her mind, Kim was nearly skipping in glee. "Yeah! Master Mochizuki asked me and not Yori! I'm going to be Ron's first Shogi gaming partner!" She really knew that the ninja master wanted her to play first against Ron, given no doubt Yori had played many times before and would have humiliated her friend big time. Yet the redheaded girl couldn't help that she felt happy she had something to hold over the Japanese girl regarding Ron, even if it was a trivial thing.
So with Ron starting, the two friends played a game. Yori sat to Ron's left with her back to the nearby rear wall of the estate's inner compound, while Master Mochizuki sat to Ron's right. It took awhile for Ron and Kim to get the hang of things, due to memorizing what movements each piece could do, but once both teens figured things out, the game went smoothly.
Yet as the sun set and the lights of the gardens and the gazebo came on, Ron clearly was getting somewhat frustrated. Despite this was also Kim's first time playing Shogi, he knew his best friend's keen brain was able to play far better than him, for she was capturing his pieces more and using those captured pieces against him. It was clear this was going to be quite a slaughter.
After Kim managed, maybe for the fourth or fifth time, to get one of her pieces promoted, the group heard a small food push cart coming down the path, and sure enough, they watched Kay Yamagato appear pushing the cart. "Hello, everyone! I bet you youngsters are hungry." Her long, wavy black tresses were loose and free.
"Yeah, I am," Kim admitted after moving a Silver General.
"Same here," a grinning Ron followed suit. "Rufus and I are ready for some good chow!"
"Yeah, chow!" said Rufus, who had moved from Ron's shoulder to stand beside the Shogi board. The little fellow licked his lips in anticipation of eating a platter of cheese.
Getting up from her seat, Yori giggled at the antics of her boyfriend and his pet mole rat. "Let me help you, Kay-sama."
Yori, after descending the two steps, reached over to one side of the steps to pick up a small wooden ramp lying against the gazebo and proceeded to place the ramp over the steps. Only then was Kay able to push the cart up onto the deck, making it easier to deliver the food and refreshments.
Kay chuckled upon seeing the game board on the table. "I think I'll leave the cart here, so you can take whatever you want. There may be room on the sides of the table, but it'll be too crowded if we put all the food & drinks on the cart to the table."
"Agreed, Kay-san," nodded Master Mochizuki. "Arigatou for spending time to prepare the food & refreshments."
"It's part of my job, Master Mochizuki," Kay replied with a small knowing smirk as she picked up a small plate of cheese.
"Nevertheless," the elderly man grinned somewhat apologetically, "you're spending extra time to prepare food & drinks for us when you would no doubt rather be home with your family."
Kim and Ron latched on to this bit of information. Despite that they had been to the Mochizuki Estate a few times, they very rarely met Kay, not since first meeting the chef on Ron's first day of training. Therefore, both teenagers knew nearly nothing about the 30-something, Japanese woman.
"You're married, Kay?" Kim asked as the elder woman placed the cheese plate on the table, where an enthusiastic Rufus began to devour the contents.
"Yes, I am," Kay answered with a warm grin, holding up her left hand to show her wedding ring. "I've been married for ten years now, and my husband and I have two wonderful children – a girl who is seven and a boy who is four."
Rising up from his seat, Master Mochizuki walked over to the cart to retrieve a cup of tea. "Then you should depart for home, Kay-san. We'll take care of returning the dishes and the cart after we are done."
"Thank you, Master Mochizuki," Kay smiled at the generosity.
Getting up, Ron stretched his arms before taking a few steps to the food cart. "Let's take a break, KP," he grinned while looking over the selections on the cart. His grin soon turned into a frown. "Then again, I say 'game over'."
With a victorious, teasing grin, Kim rose to join him at the cart. "Admitting defeat, Ron?"
Turning an incredulous face to his best friend, the blond boy pointed to the Shogi board. "Hello, KP! You're grinding me to a pulp!"
Kay and Yori chuckled. "He's right," Kay grinned. "Even I could see that you're going to win the game, Kim."
Picking up a can of soda and a tuna sandwich, Ron sighed in defeat. "I knew we should play checkers instead." All three women softly laughed, while Master Mochizuki merely amusedly grinned. The young man took everything in stride and grinned back.
After taking a sip of his tea, the ninja master gestured to Ron with his head. "Despite that you lost this game, Stoppable-san, you'll be playing Shogi after each training session. The game will be able to slowly help you develop your intellect. It will not do your ninja fighting skills any good, if you do not have good tactical abilities to use them properly."
"Mochizuki-shishou speaks the truth," Yori said while pouring a glass of ice tea for herself. "In time, you'll be able to grasp the game, Ron-kun."
"Yeah, yeah," Ron spoke off-handedly. "Why don't you and KP play each other?" He took a bite of his sandwich, not noticing the reactions of the two girls.
Blinking first at the blond, Kim and Yori eyed each other for a few moments, before the redhead's lips slowly formed into a challenging smirk. "Play me, Yori?"
The ninja girl's expression slowly etched to match her opponent's. "It will be my honor to play you, Possible-san."
Hearing his two favorite girls, it was now Ron's turn to blink his eyes. "You two are going to play each other?"
"Well, duh, Ron," Kim eyed him like he was crazy. "You did suggest it."
"Eh, eh," he sheepishly chuckled. "Well, I was joking, KP."
Both girls once again locked their gazes together, and it was clear they would not back down. "We'll play," they said together.
Kay chuckled at the display. "As much as I would like to stay and watch the upcoming game, I better head home now. Good night." They all bid her good-night in return, before she left to make her way to the estate's garage where her car awaited her.
Afterward, Yori and Kim took their positions opposite each other at the table. The Japanese girl took her boyfriend's former seat, while the redhead sat back in her original chair. Ron simply took his girlfriend's former seat. After putting the Shogi pieces back in their start-up positions, the two young women began to play, while they all ate and drank in good time.
They always said that if one looked closely at a chess game, one could tell much about a player's skills, intelligence, and personality by the way the game was played.
For Ron, as time moved on, he could see that neither Kim nor Yori was making any progress. No one was winning, and he soon grew bored with watching. With his stomach full, the teenage boy dozed off with his head pillowed on his crossed arms on the table. Rufus soon followed, curled up in the empty cheese plate. Both Kim and Yori softly smiled at the sight for a moment before focusing again on the game.
Unlike Ron, Master Mochizuki was not bored with what he was seeing. To the average observer, the game appeared to be bland, but to someone with a keen eye, the game was everything but bland — organized plans & movements, strikes, counterstrikes, good use of 'drop-in' pieces, etc. Few pieces from either side were getting promoted, and rarely did either player get into range to make a check.
It was quite clear to the 50-something Japanese man what the game was telling him.
"Both Possible-san and Yori-chan are evenly matched," he mentally mused as his almond eyes scanned over the playing board as he took a sip of tea "Each is intelligent and good in strategic planning. Neither would allow the other any chances of getting an edge, and that is the only way one will able to win
"It is much like their fighting match. Both are able to find a way to slip through the other's defenses and score a hit, but nothing truly decisive to win. Unless one side makes a crucial mistake, it will end in a stalemate."
Raising his eyes, the ninja master looked at the faces of each girl. "Yet despite their similarities, they are different."
Eyes settled on Yori first. "Yori-chan has patience and nothing to gain or lose from this game. It is only a game to her, nothing more, anymore than the fighting match was just a friendly duel to test her strength and skills."
Master Mochizuki's eyes came to rest on Kim next. "Possible-san has something to lose or gain. It is clear she is growing restless from not being able to gain an advantage over Yori-chan, much like in their fighting match. She wants to prove to herself that she can be better than Yori-chan, thus it frustrates her for her not to be able to win.
"Possible-san's determination to win is partly fueled due to her family's motto," Mochizuki mentally sighed with some sadness. "It is a slogan that provides hope and strength to achieve the impossible. However, it is a double-edge sword, especially for Possible-san when she finds herself unable to achieve her goals she wants to achieve badly.
"However, I know the real reason why Possible-san is pushing to win." The elderly ninja's gaze fell on the sleeping boy across the table from him. "Her friendship with Stoppable-san is deep. So deep that it has developed into something more. Yet she is not aware of her true feelings for Stoppable-san. Now that Yori-chan is Stoppable-san's girlfriend, Possible-san's unaware feelings have made her see Yori-chan as a rival. If she can't beat Yori-chan, it will aggravate Possible-san that another girl is better than her, especially when it comes to Stoppable-san."
Eyes returning to the game, Master Mochizuki watched as Yori made a move, causing a slight eyebrow twitch to be seen on Kim's face. He mentally sighed once more.
"Maybe it was wrong for Yori-chan to join Possible-san's team. If Possible-san sees her new team member as nothing more than a rival, how could she work together with her new team member?" Master Mochizuki took a sip of tea. "It was Yori's decision, and I know the experience will help her greatly. However, I wonder what the cost would be."
So, the shinobi master watched over the Shogi game, until around near 10 PM, when he cut in and declared the game a draw. It was time for Possible-san and Stoppable-san to return to their homes. Waking a drowsy Ron and Rufus, they all cleaned up the table and helped return the cart and dishes to the living quarters' kitchen before Kim and Ron left for home.
Later, as he was preparing for bed, Master Mochizuki prayed to Kami to watch over the three teenagers and help to guide them wisely through the turbulent waters he knew lay ahead.
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TBC (End of Chapter 18)
A/Ns:
1) The following is my response to snakeskin mike's review of Chapter 17:
- Well, I don't know about getting Brick a new GF. We'll just have to see about this.
2) The honorary suffix '-shishou' means 'teacher/master'. I found it used in a Naruto manga (Chapter 251), and I think it suits for Yori to use the suffix for Master Mochizuki. After all, he is a master as well as a teacher.
3) I have not ever played a game of Shogi, so I might be wrong that it maybe more challenging than Western Chess. Yet after reading online information about Shogi, especially about the promotion ability and the 'drop-in' rule, I can't help but that think that it does sound more challenging to play than Western Chess. One has to think even harder to determine whether an opponent would use a capture piece and/or move a piece to get a promotion, etc.
If anyone wants to know more about the game, it's easy to do a Google search. Type in 'shogi,' and you'll have plenty of sites, which will able to tell about the game – rules, pieces, etc. :)
4) Okay now… I can hear some of you don't agree that Kim couldn't beat Yori in a fight. I'd read many bulletin board threads regarding which of the girls would win, and most of the time, most people always believe Kim would win due to knowing 16 styles of kung fu, etc.
I just don't agree. I see more like they are equals, due that Kim would not know Yori's fighting styles and vice-versa. Thus they would end up almost cancelling each other out. I do think that Kim might not stand a chance against a ninja master. So unless she's a master herself, don't tell me she can beat Sensei or Master Mochizuki.
So that's my opinion on what I think about Kim and Yori fighting abilities toward each other.
5) Last, I want to wish everyone, who are celebrating the holiday, a Happy Thanksgiving! This chapter is my Thanksgiving gift to you all, and I will not be back online until I return to work on Monday. (My folks' place does not have Net access.) Take care! (big grin)