Disclaimer: I do not own Kung Fu Panda or its characters... Kung Fu Panda is the sole property of DreamWorks Studios... I only own this story ;)
Zhen's Eleven (The Ultimate Dragon Warrior Heist)
By: JpFan102504
Zhen sat in the lotus pose, underneath the Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. She has been living and training in the Jade Palace for a few months... The young Corsac's sensitive ears twitched when she heard something. She tried to concentrate on her meditation, but struggled to ignore the sound.
"Could you please stop making that sound? I'm trying to be one with the universe!" The former thief opened her eyes and looked around for the source of the noise, but saw nothing... She rolled her eyes. "Okay, Universe... Inner peace, here I come... Ready or not..." She retook the lotus pose and closed her eyes, focusing on the flow of the universe. Suddenly, she sensed her attackers. Zhen leapt into the air and dodged the simultaneous attacks from Monkey, Crane, Viper, Tigress and Mantis. She landed on one of the branches of the peach tree, her nimble and agile small fox frame allowing her to outmaneuver the furious five.
"Good job, Zhen..." Po, congratulated his pupil. "But your technique is still a little unrefined and sloppy." That earned a playful pout from the Corsac. "C'mon, Po! I'm doing my best..." She smiled and hopped down. "I appreciate the constructive criticism, though."
Tigress and the other four warriors left to go back to training, leaving Po and Zhen alone. The panda smiled at his student. "You can go ahead and give me my money pouch back. I know you lifted it from me." He smiled knowingly. "Kung Fu Masters shouldn't have sticky fingers, Zhen... We believe spiritual wealth is more important than physical monetary wealth." The panda lightly chided. Zhen nodded and handed it to him. "I guess old habits die hard... I'm trying to do better... You're still an easy mark..." The vixen smiled at her master.
Po rolled his eyes. "Let's get to work..." He led her to the training hall, where the Furious Five were training. "What's today's lesson?" Zhen asked with a little excitement. Po just chuckled at his pupil's enthusiasm, glad that Zhen has really grown into the role of Dragon Warrior in training. "Learning the flow of both your enemies and your allies... It is essential for any warrior, especially the Dragon Warrior... you must be able to sense the flow of energy in all situations, from combat to something as commonplace as eating dinner... understand?" The panda asked her. "So, like... feeling the flow of things?"
Po nodded affirmatively. "That is why I have you meditating... to better atune you to the subtle energy transfers that ripple through the universe and all living things." Zhen nodded, but to be truthful, she was really hoping today's lesson would be more Kung Fu related, she was eager to hone her butt kicking skills and prove her worth to her master. She really hoped if she could get good enough, it would convince the ever skeptical Master Shifu to approve of her. Ever since Po chose her, Shifu has acted like she was still the criminal from Juniper City, like she was still working for her adoptive mother. It really hurt her , because the rest of the Furious five and especially Po, have given her a chance to grow into her best self. But not Shifu... It kinda pissed her off, to be honest. Being denied his trust, it dug into her heart and made her feel undeserving of Po's endorsement and advocacy of her. Did she deserve his belief in her? Did she deserve to be the universe's pick for Dragon Warrior?
If Shifu had his way, she wouldn't be anywhere near the Jade Palace, or the title of Dragon Warrior. She found herself clenching her fists, her ears lowered as tears formed in her eyes. She felt Po place one of his gentle, but large, strong paws on her shoulder. "Is something bothering you, Zhen?" The panda asked with concern for his friend. Zhen shook her head to clear her self conscious thoughts. "Just... thinking... I'm ready for the lesson you have prepared..." Po could see through Zhen's words and see the pain behind them. "Talk to me..."
Zhen felt hot tears running down her cheeks. Instead of answering, she pulled her hood up and ran from the training hall. She ran down the steps of the Jade Palace, she felt like a coward for running with her tail between her legs, no pun intended. She reached the bottom and sat down, pulling her knees to her chest as she cried. How could she live up to Po's legacy? A street rat like her didn't deserve the title of a legendary martial arts master. Much less the title of protector of the Valley of Peace. She was still the scared fox cub barely surviving on the streets of Juniper City.
"What will it take to convince that grumpy old squirrel that I've genuinely changed? I am trying so hard to show how good of a person I can be." Zhen took a couple deep breaths to center herself. "It's Shifu, isn't it?" Zhen heard Po's tentative tone of voice, the panda having followed her. "I know the feeling of being rejected by him... in fact, he treated me much worse than he's treating you..." He sat down next to his student. The Corsac rested her head against Po's side, her hood still up. "Maybe I'm doomed to always be mistrusted... seen with skepticism... First rule of the streets, trust no one..." She said sadly.
Po shook his head vehemently. "No, Zhen... that's the Chameleon's way of thinking. It's not who you are on the inside..." He said with utter conviction and belief in her. "Shifu's opinion of you doesn't matter... if he can't see the wonderful person you're blossoming into, that's his own loss. You are destined for greatness. Destined to be a hero, to save innocent lives and act as a symbol of hope for the people of the Valley." There was a hint of nostalgia in Po's voice. Zhen chuckled. "You must've really loved being the Dragon Warrior before Shifu made you choose a successor... I feel guilty for taking that from you." She admitted with guilt ridden eyes. Po smiled reassuringly. "You didn't take anything from me... I'll always be the Kung Fu Panda, regardless of if I'm the Spiritual Leader of the Valley or the Dragon Warrior. I'm still the same Po. There is no secret ingredient, Zhen... the essential essence of being the Dragon Warrior is that it's just you. That being true to yourself regardless of adversity and challenge is enough to be worthy of everything that the Dragon Warrior stands for. It's you, Zhen... just you. You don't need to be some perfect bastion of Righteousness. It's okay if you make mistakes. We're all just people who sometimes slip up."
Zhen felt her spirits being lifted. "Damn... that's some grade A Oogway wisdom. you're getting pretty good at that." That got a hearty laugh from Po. "Guess you're right. It's a good look on me, isn't it?" Zhen nodded in agreement. "Feeling better now?" Po asked her. Zhen nodded and hugged him. "Yeah, I do..." The two walked back up the stairs to the Jade Palace. They saw Master Shifu standing there. "Po... Fox." He regarded Zhen with cold indifference. Po bowed, Zhen rolled her eyes. "Yes, Master Shifu?" Po asked the red panda. Shifu paced in front of them. "We have a situation... a message from Gongman City... a crime syndicate is planning on stealing a very dangerous artifact from the Gongman City museum..." The elderly master explained seriously. "The artifact in question is called a Bewitching Bell... it's capable of stealing chi, kung fu powers, magic fr both people and objects, and mind controlling people. It stores that power inside itself until an individual uses a very specific spell to release that power into themselves, making that person stronger..."
Po frowned... "And if this crime syndicate gets it?" Shifu's face darkened. "They will be able to steal all the Kung Fu in China... and use it to enslave everyone." Both Zhen and Po looked horrified. "We can't let them get it!" She vocalized with urgency. Shifu nodded. "That's why we will steal the Bewitching Bell first! Zhen... you wish to prove yourself... as the Dragon Warrior, you must stop this crime syndicate. You and Po must steal the artifact first... your skills in thieving would be very helpful." Zhen was surprised to be trusted with such a task, but she couldn't fail her first official mission. This was her specialty.