Some first impressions are really important...sometimes.

Chapter 2: First Impression

Shifu went in front of the kids and he said, "Welcome to our kung-fu summer camp here in the Jade Palace. For the next four weeks, each of you will be taught by our seasoned masters and we've got two new counselors this year; Musaki and Arizona. And I expect each and every single one of you all to do exactly what they say."

As Shifu kept talking, Lazarus was completely anxious to know who's he gonna be taught with and he takes a deep breath and bit his lower lip and Kenji looks up at Lazarus and he could tell that he was definitely nervous and he winked at him to ensure that everything's gonna be fine.

Musaki looks over all the kids and he could believe the majority that came out of there and that really made him feel a huge amount of anxiety that this is his first task. Monkey looks over at him and he smiles at him while giving him a thumbs up that he'll do great as a counselor.

One thing Musaki immediately noticed is that one of the kids took off his glove and realized that he has only a prostectic arm and he was curious to see why he would need it and as he watches him set the glove back in, he figured that something was definitely up.

Shifu clears his throat and said, "The younger kids...go with Tigress, Viper, Mantis and Monkey will handle the teenagers, Crane and Po will round up the other younger kids, Musaki will be in charge of the kids ages 8-14 and the rest of them will be with Arizona. Half of them will be in the training hall while the others will be in the courtyard. Any questions?"

Kenji stuck out his hand and Shifu answered, "Yes?"

"Yeah, what's for lunch?" Kenji asked.

Most of the kids were laughing while Lazarus rolled his eyes at that response and Shifu quickly replied, "Noodles and dumplings. Any other questions?"

Lazarus stared at Kenji for a while and he whispered, "Not a good first impression."

"Aw, come on, Laz. Lighten up a little bit." Kenji whispered.

"If there are no further questions, we must proceed." Shifu said.

The younger kids went with Master Tigress and she looked very uncomfortable around them while the others were used to being around them, including Arizona. Musaki followed the 8-14 year old kids (Lazarus and Kenji too), on their way to the courtyard and he wasn't sure how to start it off with and then Monkey pops in and said, "Just tell them what the basis of kung-fu is and then show them your moves afterwards."

Musaki quickly nodded his head and instilled that in his head and as he got to one area of the courtyard, he looks at all of them and he said, "Hey, guys. I'm Musaki and this is definitely my first time teaching all of you. Before we start off, would any of you like to introduce themselves to me?"

Surprisingly, everyone introduced themselves to him one-by-one and made it seem a little smoother, but he knows rallying up the kids would be a lot of work and he has it cut out for them and after everyone was finished introducing themselves to each other, he said to them, "Now that we all got our names introduced, I'm sorta new to the counselor thing. How many of you guys have been going to this camp?"

A few of them raised their hands and one young fox went in and said, "We've had several new counselors here every summer and most of them started out like you, so we're used to them."

Musaki suddenly felt like that would be a little confidence boost that none of the kids would make fun of him and then he asked, "And how many of you guys are first timers?"

He looks up and there were about 7 hands that were raised that ensures that there are first-time campers there and then he asked, "Does anyone know what kung-fu is?"

"It's about fighting and getting to save China so you can get the girl." one bunny stated.

Most of them were giggling and laughing at this and Musaki clears his throat and said, "Okay, settle down, guys. The first two you mention, it is about fighting and saving China. As well as getting the girl...not really what it's all about. People tend to think that it's just fighting, which at times is true...but it's not like that at all. It also means excellence of self, being the best you can be."

Lazarus raised his hand and he asked, "What does it take to be the best you can be?"

"There are five traits in order to be the best kung-fu master; there's patience, courage, confidence, discipline and compassion. It's not always about feet and fists, fighting bad guys and bragging about strength. It's more of respecting the art form of China to do some good." Musaki answered.

Most of the kids were drawn to Musaki's answers and when it came time to start off the moves, he was ready to show them a few of them. He started off with a basic stance and did a high kick and when the kids were mesmerized by it, he encouraged them to try it.

Some of them did well, but the others stumbled through it and Musaki immediately comes to them and correct them in the most calming way possible. His patience and willingness immediately gave the students some respect for him as they kept going. Musaki showed them some other moves that he used and Lazarus was a little anxious about trying it out and it immediately caught Musaki's attention and he said, "Is someone getting a little nervous?"

Lazarus slowly nods his head and Musaki comes up to him and he said, "What if...what if I mess up?"

"You won't. And even if you do, just remember...it's only the first day. You'll do great." Musaki added.

Lazarus takes a deep breath and he's gained what little confidence he has and tries to emulate what move he learned from Musaki and as he did that basic stance, it deeply impressed everyone around him, including Kenji. Kenji suddenly burst out a big 'WHOO!' which caught everyone's attention and everyone stared at him for a sec.

Kenji didn't realize that everyone was staring at him and he chuckled nervously and said, "Sorry. Just...rooting for my bud."

"Well, keep it down next time." Crane added.

Kenji nods his head and turned his attention to Musaki and he said, "My bad."

"Just don't distract everyone else, okay?" asked Musaki.

"Gotcha."

Musaki turns his attention to Lazarus and he said, "That was an excellent stance. Good work."

"Thanks..." Lazarus said.

Over the course of the morning, Musaki completely taught his students every move he used...just small parts of it and some caught on and some still struggled to get it right, in which Musaki completely assisted them as quickly as possible and has already gained acceptance even though it's his first day as a counselor. He looked at all of them and said, "You all did amazingly well! Great job on your first day, though."

All of them bowed to Musaki and he bowed back to them and soon enough, the gong rings and the young fox said, "Time for lunch."

"Already? Well, all righty, then." Musaki said.

At the kitchen

All of the kids were sitting down and chatting while they were eating in one side of the kitchen while the others sat down and ate at another spot and Monkey went over to Musaki and he said, "Saw you handling these kids when we went to the courtyard. You've done pretty good on your first day."

"Yeah, thanks. I guess I might've learned something." Musaki said.

Monkey nodded his head in agreement and said, "Like I said, you can do anything you set your mind to."

Musaki sees Arizona heading his way towards the others and he asked, "So...how did it go?"

"Really good, actually. The younger kids are definitely the best group of kids I was able to teach with. Even at a young age, they were really wise beyond their years but was still teachable." Arizona explained.

"So there were no issues?" asked Crane.

"Well...there was one where one little pig shoved down a little bunny and I was quick to settle this down. I told him to either apologize or I can report this to Master Shifu. And I'll be honest with you guys, he saw that I was really serious and he apologized." Arizona said.

Most of them were surprised at how Arizona handled this situation and sensed that there was a little bit of a disciplanarian in him and Viper said, "First day and you set them straight. Impressive."

"Well...babysitting Musaki's cousins helped a lot."

Musaki chuckled softly at this and he said, "They're not that unruly...when it comes to the younger ones."

Po walks over to the rest of the kids and he asked, "You like your noodles?"

Most of the kids can't get enough of it and Po could sense that they liked it that much and he chuckled softly and said, "There's more where that came from."

In comes Tigress walking over to the others and she had her eyes on Musaki, seething a little about how he was able to handle his students on the first day and she said, "I saw the way you were handling those kids and I want to know how you did it."

"Did what?" asked Musaki.

"Not get angry at them when they mess up." Tigress replied.

That sorta rose an eyebrow on Arizona and he immediately asked, "What did you do to them?"

"What do you mean? I taught them a certain basic stance and three of them fell down like five times, five of them didn't go the direction I went with and one even stomped my tail, which is a big mistake. So I disciplined them...and all of them were crying." Tigress explained.

"You lost your temper, didn't you?" asked Viper.

"Well, how else was I supposed to deal with it? That's why I want to ask Musaki how does he handle it so well so I can use it next time."

Musaki looked at her and he said, "I would, but then you still wouldn't get it."

Meanwhile...

Kenji gobbled up mounds of dumplings and noodles and Lazarus looked at him like he was about to be put in a chokehold for eating too quickly and Lazarus said, "Kenji...there is like enough for everyone."

Kenji swallowed them whole and said, "Dude, you know I'm a very quick eater. It's a lot better than what they served back in Japan."

Lazarus continued eating and then Kenji went in and said, "That move you did...it was huge! I'd completely hit the mountaintop...that's if it doesn't hit me first."

"Yeah, I know."

Kenji looked up at Lazarus for a bit and recognized that look on his face; that worried and unsure look and he said, "Listen, Laz. We've been friends for a long time, right?"

"Yeah, since both of us are amputees." Lazarus answered.

"And does it even matter if anyone knows that you have one-arm?" asked Kenji.

Lazarus lets out a big sigh and he said, "I've seen how these masters work with only two arms with their kung-fu. Me, I only have one. I just don't think I can handle that kind of rejection."

Kenji looks up at Lazarus and he drops his ears, puts his tongue over his nose and crosses his eyes, which makes Lazarus laugh a little bit and he said, "You're goofy, Kenji."

"It's a gift, Laz."

Sounds like Lazarus is a little nervous about his one arm. There's more coming your way!