Disclaimer- I do not own Kung Fu Panda. Though Jack Black voicing a fat panda is pretty funny.
Author's Note- Finally! My inactivity won't be as long as a week, but I might not post for a couple of days.
Shifu's candle in his window had been extinguished so they left the Jade Palace in ease. Crane took flight and followed Tigress who jumped from side-to-side down the lengthy staircase. Mantis rode Monkey who ran beside Viper, who slithered down the stone. Po, on the other hand, had tripped and now tumbled down the stairs.
"Wooooaaahhhh!" Po literally bounced the whole way down. His face kept hitting the polished rock and Po felt like his nose was broken. Monkey snickered behind his hand and pointed to Po. Tigress rolled her eyes, apparently too 'advanced for immaturity'.
The feline skidded to a halt and let out a little sigh. Crane, then Monkey and Mantis, and finally Viper arrived at the bottom of the stairs. Po rolled down, picking up speed, until Tigress stopped him with her foot. She didn't say anything but smiled wryly. She continued toward the city, lanterns leading the way.
They arrived at the Red Dragon restaurant and shoved their way through a massive, murmuring crowd. Heads turned to stare at the six in awe. Po liked being the Dragon Warrior and all that, but sometimes the attention he received was a little too much.
"Coming through, watch out please, coming through..." Tigress warned the civilians. Fence posts prevented the crowd from bursting into Master Han's business. A couple of antelope dressed in blue kept pushing the crowd away. They had small metal whistles and greeted them.
"The Furious Five! Dragon Warrior! It is an honor to have you here! We weren't expecting you, did Master Shifu send you? I'm Officer Yan." Officer Yan spoke a bit hurriedly and shook their hands. They stole glances at each other when Officer Yan mentioned Shifu. Luckily, Crane still had the papers and presented them to the talkative officer.
"Okay, great! Hey, Shou! I'm taking them inside!" Officer Yan pointed to them. Another antelope, presumably Shou, nodded to Yan and he showed them inside.
The outside of the Red Dragon looked completely normal, but the inside was a complete mess. Tables and chairs strewn everywhere and there was scuff marks on the once-flawless walls. Monkey stopped to observe a large kitchen knife deeply embedded in the wooden wall. Po gave a little gasp as he spotted mysterious red streak marks on the ceiling.
"Our healers have found out that first, Master Han was hit on the skull, fracturing it, then stabbed, straight through the heart. He hasn't been dead for very long. His killer could still be around. " Officer Yan was standing in front of a mangled figure. Tigress knelt down and stared at the person she had just gotten to know the day before. Her forensics training came back to her and she called the others to help her search. The scratch marks on the walls and ceiling indicated that Master Han had put up a fight. Viper found the master's crutch, sliced in half, lying in a corner. Though she excelled in her skill of detective work, Tigress couldn't extract much from the crime scene. Unfortunately, Officer Yan had told them that there had been no witnesses and the murder had been done in the evening.
"This killer is very intelligent, I can barely get any worthy evidence from this. Let's leave." Tigress sighed. The frustration was obvious in her monotone voice. Po was first out of the doors, happy to be getting away from the dead body. They pushed through the crowd again and walked through the fairly empty streets. When they were alone, Crane pulled out something from his satchel.
"I found this inside Master Han's teacup." Crane pulled out what seemed like a normal leaf. It was long and green and the edges were a bit uneven.
"What's that?" Mantis asked.
"It's poisonous. When consumed it causes hallucinations and blurry vision. Too much and you're dead. The killer must have poisoned him and then fought Master Han when he was weakened." Crane said with distaste. Viper's face blanched at the inhumane prediction.
"What a coward!" Tigress snarled.
"What is it?! Tell me!" Mantis asked again.
"Atropa belladonna, part of the Solanaceae family." Crane replied, as if this was common knowledge.
"That tells me nothing! What is it?!" Mantis was almost screaming.
Tigress let out a low growl. "Deadly nightshade. And Crane, put that back in your pouch." Crane obliged and carefully tucked the dangerous leaf into his bag. Viper gave the nightshade a wary glance and scooted away from Crane.
"Hey, um, Tigress?" Po asked suddenly.
"Yeah?" Tigress replied.
"Where the heck are we?" Tigress glanced at her surroundings. She didn't recognize where she was. It made her uneasy, not knowing stuff.
"We might have taken a wrong turn. I can get on the rooftops to see where we are." Monkey offered.
"No, we-" Tigress stopped. Her eyes followed a swift figure turn a corner. "There!" The others didn't need to be told this was the murderer. He obviously knew he was being followed and picked up his pace. Po was surprised how slim the assassin was. The figure had some kind of staff strapped to his back and he kept glancing back at them.
"Split up! We have the advantage here!" Tigress smiled, showing rows of sharp teeth. "He won't get away now!" The assassin veered to the right and jumped on to the curved, tiled roofs. Crane tried to push him off, but he had to give the killer's weapon a wide berth. The figure now sped across rooftops, getting farther and farther away. Viper noticed he was heading toward the towering pagoda in the center of the city.
"He's headed toward the pagoda!" she exclaimed. Tigress gave her a quick nod and shifted her position. They were catching up to the figure and they watched him start to scale the pagoda with amazing coordination and agility. He glanced down at them and narrowed his eyes. They had surrounded the pagoda; they would would chase him to the top and then he would have nowhere to go. He dashed up the side, the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior close behind. The killer was nearing the top when he pulled out something black and round. Crane's eyes widened as he recognized the device.
"Bomb!" His shrill cry echoed across the rooftops. His friends were way too close and his warning was too late. The figure aimed and threw the explosive at a lantern hanging on the pagoda. There was a deafening explosion as Crane felt his wingtips being seared and five familiar shapes go hurdling through the cold air. The tower had caught fire and was starting to fall. The assassin clung on and Tigress caught his eye. She could of sworn he had smiled. The full moon shone behind him, giving him an eerie look. And with a sudden movement, the assassin, the person who Tigress had been so close to catching, disappeared.