I kept ya waiting long enough! And it all comes down to this! Who wins this competition?
Chapter 19: An Unexpected Win
As the next day comes, everyone in Shanghai Secluded Valley kept talking about Musaki's solo round after the last round of the day yesterday and predicted that he'll take first place, even though it's unclear whether or not it's possible. Somehow, Musaki heard some of the rumors himself that he's the possible winner of this competition because he outshined the most, but he never seemed to notice it because he knew it already. But whatever happens after will happen and even if he doesn't win, at least he's content with how he's made it this far and that he still has his families support; his relatives and his Jade Palace family.
Liu Shang caught up with him and he said, "Hey, Saki. How goes?"
Musaki looks over and sees Liu coming in front of him and he said, "Not much. Just taking a walk."
"So...how do you think the results will be later tonight?" asked Liu Shang.
Musaki lets out a little sigh and then looks at the young lion for a minute and he said, "You know, I don't really think too much about what's gonna happen whether who wins or not. All I can say is that it's still an honor to just be there and that's good enough for me."
Liu Shang was a little skeptical about how it'll be and who will come out on top because he's done remarkably well within a short period of time in that competition and Musaki can tell that the whole experience was on his mind and he puts his hand on his shoulder and said, "You're nervous, I see."
Liu tried to hide it, but nothing could escape what Musaki was already thinking and with that, he lets out a big sigh and said, "If one of us don't win, does that mean we fail?"
"Nah. It doesn't matter if we won or not. In anyway, we should accept whatever happens and congratulate the winner who really deserves it. What's important is that it's not so much what we got or what we do, it's the journey that got us there." Musaki replied.
One simple grasp into Musaki's words and Liu already knew...that in his eyes, he sees Musaki as a person he can rely on and that lifts up everyone's heavy spirit. He wished that he'd met someone like him a long time ago. He then said, "You're a good friend."
"So are you."
Later that night...
The entire crowd went into ultra-drive drones as they flooded the Rai Song Stadium to see who's winning the entire competition and as they reached closer and closer into this game, all of them were anxiously waiting with bated breath to see who's it gonna be. Most of them are predicting that Musaki would win since he's next in line by Bushido-Akio blood to either win or participate in this round and garner ultimate victory.
Just as the six finalists were getting ready, Oak Sung comes out in front of them and he said, "Remember...whomever wins this entire competition must be proud of themselves who came this far and know that you're still winners in your hearts no matter what the results."
Musaki completely understood everything he said and as he watched his grandfather walked his way towards the stadium, he's couldn't be more proud of his grandfather than ever before. He lets out a smile knowing that everything will going smoothly. Just then, Kang-Dae noticed Musaki being happy and that still frustrates him to the extent and said, "Dude, what's with the smile? Is this a freakin' joke to you?"
Musaki totally ignored the jackal's outburst, but Taji came to his defense and said, "Dude, what's your problem?"
"I've been beaten by that damn panda too many times! I deserve to win this competition!" Kang-Dae shouted, angrily.
"Like hell you will! I will win this thing!" Jaa shouted.
Liu Shang lets out a roar to stop the fight before it turns ugly and he said, "Will you two shut up for five minutes? Is winning all you ever think about?"
"Uh...YEAH!" they both answered, in unison.
"And since when do you tell us what to do? You're they youngest one here!" Jaa growled.
Liu snorts at that comment and said, "Age is nothing but a number."
Suddenly, they can hear Oak Sung call out the finalists to come to the stage and Musaki went in first along with the rest of them and they all faced the sound of cheering fans coming in as they walked past them and they knew that this is it. The moment of truth.
As they headed towards Oak Sung, the elderly panda went forward and said, "Good evening, folks! I am glad that you're all here to see who wins this competition. We've had a successful run these past 2 weeks seeing every single one of them battle with great force that stands out from the rest of them. And now...we announce the winners of this year's competition for our six finalists."
Everyone was waiting with bated breath to see who's gonna win this whole thing and most of them took a look at Musaki for a second thinking that he'll win this round and as Oak Sung received the ribbons, all six of them were counted for which place they were in.
"Our sixth place winner goes to..."
*drumroll*
"Kang-Dae."
Everyone was clapping and hearing the word 'sixth place' didn't seem to take Kang-Dae very well, knowing that he finished in sixth place and as he received his ribbon, on the outside, he was a little upset that he didn't win, but inside...he wanted to rip Oak Sung's throat out for no reason.
"Our fifth place winner goes to..."
*drumroll*
"Jaa Mick."
That shocked Jaa to the core, after hearing that he took fifth place and when he received his ribbon, Jaa was a little furious that he finished fifth, but at least he didn't finish last.
"Our fourth place winner goes to..."
*drumroll*
"Mojag."
Liu Shang and Musaki were shocked to hear that Mojag finished in fourth place above Jaa and Kang-Dae and even though Mojag felt like he didn't deserve it, he felt like it was better than being in sixth place and he snorted as the ribbon was put on.
'This is screwed up.' Mojag thought.
"Our third place winner goes to..."
*drumroll*
"Taji."
Liu Shang and Musaki cheered for Taji as he took third place and when he received a third place ribbon, all he could do is just smile and accept this honor and he looked at the others and said, "Good luck to you both."
Liu was the most nervous, but Musaki was calm, cool and collected about who's gonna be the front-runner or the runner-up. Either way for him, it's all good.
"Our second place winner goes to..."
*drumroll*
"Xing-Fu Musaki Ko-Kanji Bushido-Akio Meng Cheng Xi-Wang."
The entire crowd was stunned and shocked to hear that Musaki went in second place and it even shocked Liu Shang the most when Musaki was the runner-up, but the only person that was okay with that was Musaki himself. And when he received that second place ribbon, he just took it all in stride and just accepted whatever's gonna happen next.
Some of Musaki's cousins and his friends were completely shocked that Musaki was the runner-up, even Arizona was the most stunned of all people, but when he saw that Musaki was fine with it, he seemed to turn from shocked to understanding.
And as Musaki looked at the crowd, the crowd stares at him back with so much sympathy that he lost. But as he smiled towards them, he said, "I wanna say a few words. Like I said before, even if I don't win, it's still any honor to be here that I made it this far and I already feel like I am a warrior...at heart. You guys giving me support and even more...being there to root for me, that's good enough of a victory for me."
Those words touched people's hearts knowing that Musaki can take whatever happens to him and Oak Sung could see that time in the Jade Palace made him see a positive perspective on life and he couldn't be more proud of his grandson more than ever.
Then, he went up and said, "Excellent wisdom, Xing-Fu. Let this be told for everyone here today. My grandson has already come out a winner."
And with that, he was gonna give out the first prize gold ribbon and he said, "And the first place winner is..."
*drumroll*
"LIU SHANG!"
The entire crowd went in crazy cheering droves when they heard that Liu Shang is the winner and for some reason, Liu could not believe that this was happening and as everyone cheered for him, the young lion didn't seem to think that this is real. He'd hoped that it was Musaki, but apparently...he won the entire freakin' tournament. As he looked at Musaki, he could see him clapping for his friend and with a smile, Musaki said, "Congrats, man. You're the skilled winner."
Liu Shang was still shocked and numb from this reaction, but he figured out that this is really happening. As Oak Sung gave him the first place golden medal, the elderly panda looked at the young lion and said, "Congratulations, young lion. You are the winner of this kung-fu competition."
Liu was definitely humbled, but he also felt like he was in his happy place for the first time he received that medal and all those years of slim chances were being demolished because he finally accomplished something huge...at such a young age.
Also, Oak Sung added, "Liu Shang is not only the winner of this competition, but at 14, he's this year's youngest winner!"
Suddenly, confetti, streamers and fireworks came bursting out of the sky to celebrate this epic win and Liu Shang basked in that stream of glory that he greatly accomplished for so long and it was something he would most likely dream for.
Later on, Liu Shang walks out of the Rai Song Stadium with his life completely changed, but as he looked at his medal, he began thinking what if Musaki had won instead of him. Did he really deserve it? Everyone had such high hopes that Musaki would win and when it was told that he was in second place, Liu felt like he took it all away from him, even though it's not the case at all.
"Congrats, man."
Just then, Liu looked from behind and he sees Musaki standing there with a smile on his face and the young lion comes up to him and he wasn't sure what to say. It was like he didn't expect any of this to happen before and he asked, "Why me? I'm like barely known here and...I never knew this would come out. Me being the winner and you in second place."
Musaki chuckled softly and said, "Look, Liu...you have the greater skills. Everything always happen for a reason. Maybe this is one of those reasons."
"Yeah, but...you deserve it more than I do. I'm just a young lion from out of nowhere that left home for this." Liu said, softly.
Musaki got down to Liu's level and he asked, "Remember when you told me you wouldn't pass up an opportunity like this despite everyone else's objections?"
"Yeah."
Musaki smiled and said, "You proved everyone else wrong. You're the winner you always wanted to be. You just followed your heart and did what you set out here to do...even though you're 14 years old. All your skills got you to where you are now and all you can do is just be proud of yourself and be grateful to your skills. I know for a fact that you wouldn't trade this talent for anything in the world."
Then, Liu looks up at Musaki and still felt like he took Musaki's victory from him and he said, "I still think you deserve first place."
"Hey, I'll take what I can get. As I've said before, whatever happens happens. And I'm still honored to be here, doing my family proud. And it shows. Besides, I've already won."
Liu looked at him confused after hearing Musaki saying that he already won and he asked, "What?"
"I won the best freakin' opportunity of a lifetime and to be able to be appreciated and supported for my efforts...what more could I ask for? It's the best victory win I ever got. But more so...the friendship I endured along the way."
Musaki stuck out a paw to give Liu a handshake and he asked, "Friends forever?"
Liu looks at him and despite being an unexpected winner, nothing would get in the way of their friendship they formed in a short time and he gladly shook his hand and turned it into a hug as they embraced each other and said, "Forever. Thanks for believing in me."
"Anytime. Just be grateful for this experience as I am." Musaki said.
Suddenly, both of them went back to the stage and they were both cheering for both Liu Shang and Musaki and even though they cheered for Liu, Musaki got the most support from the other side of the crowd and Oak Sung came by and said, "Even though my grandson is the runner-up, he is still the 20th bloodline for participating in this competition right next to his father."
"Sakamoto Bushido-Akio, may he rest in peace." the entire crowd said.
"I can see the future holds bright for both our winner and our runner-up and both of them are warriors in our valley. Let's congratulate our winner for their efforts, skills, stamina and also...their abilities."
As the remaining finalists got around Liu Shang and Musaki, all they could do is bask in the glory knowing that they've made it this far and for Musaki, he felt like he's already a winner and that he's proud of himself for coming this far.
And Musaki could hear someone saying something on his mind that would be given a huge boost in him.
'Well done, my son. I am very proud of you.'
It was his father's voice in his head and he knew that he had made his parents proud of how he's come this far in a long way.
'Thanks, dad.' Musaki thought.
Did you expect that to happen? I kinda came up with that idea earlier this spring because Musaki can take whatever life's thrown at him and that he'll take everything in stride and of course, Musaki would always congratulate others and still be friends with them, which is the point in this story. There's more coming up!