Follow That Hippo
The Lion Guard went about their morning like any other, paroling the Pride Lands as they watched for signs of danger. Only this time, they kept their eyes peeled for Janja and his clan.
"Any chance they just went back into the Outlands?" Bunga questioned, rubbing the back of his head.
"Wishful thinking, Bunga," Kufu scoffed, glancing at the honey badger.
"They're here somewhere," Kion stated, looking around as he sniffed the air trying to track the hyenas.
The Guard kept quiet as they continued to patrol when suddenly cries of panic got their attention, followed by an animal screaming, "Hyena attack!"
"That sounded like it was coming from the watering hole," Beshte noted.
"Come on Lion Guard!" the prince ordered, taking off toward the overlapping screams.
Once The Lion Guard arrived, they saw a group of adult animals huddled together on a large stone slab; three zebras, a pair of giraffes, Mbuni the ostrich, a female elephant, and a female baboon.
"Everybody, calm down!" Kion yelled as he and the Guard came to a halt. "Who saw the hyenas? Where are they?" He asked, looking around the area.
"Over there," gasped the female baboon, pointing to a patch of tall grass, "In the grass!"
The grass patch started to move, putting the whole Guard on alert.
"Hyenas!" Kion called out, stepping forward. "We know you're in there!" He glanced back to the rest of the Guard and motioned for them to spread out. "You're surrounded, hyenas!" The Guard's Fiercest growled, hunching his body in preparation to pounce.
The grass rustled and two baby animals jumped out. "Don't hurt us," chirped the baby ostrich, Kambuni.
"We're not really hyenas," the baby baboon, Gumba, pointed out.
"Uh, yeah," Fuli rolled her eyes. "We can see that."
Kion sighed in relief. "Why were you trying to scare everybody?" He asked the pair.
"We weren't," Kambuni answered. "We were just playing Lion Guard."
The Guard's Strongest chuckled, "Playing Lion Guard?"
"It was our turn to be the bad guys," the baby ostrich added.
"It was all Mtoto's idea," Gumba added, pointing to his friend.
A baby elephant backed up into another patch of grass as the Lion Guard turned and looked in his direction.
"Are you Mtoto?" Kion asked the young pachyderm, who nodded in confirmation.
Kufu glanced at the egret on his shoulder. "Wanna go ahead and give the all-clear, Ono?"
"Affirmative," Ono took off from his shoulder. "False alarm, everyone," he informed the adult animals, still huddled together in panic, "No hyenas here."
Shingo the giraffe snorted. "Kids," he rolled his eyes.
"Really," scoffed Thurston as he trotted off.
Kufu looked at the group of baby animals. Besides Kambuni, Gumba, and Mtoto, there was also a baby zebra, a baby mongoose and a black leopard cub.
"So you kids were just pretending to be the Lion Guard?" Kufu asked, a smile crossing his muzzle.
"Oh, yeah!" chirped Kambuni.
"We all pretend to be our favorite members," the baby zebra, Kwato, added.
"Like Mtoto's always Beshte," Gumba pointed out, making the Elephant blush.
"Really? Me?" the Guard's Strongest grinned at the elephant, "Poa!"
"Who pretends to be me?" Bunga asked enthusiastically.
"Gumba does," answered Shauku the mongoose.
"Shauku's always Kion," followed the black leopard, Kivuli, who glanced from the mongoose to the Lion Guard leader, her ears and tail perked up when her eyes landed on Kufu.
"Kivuli's always Kufu," Kambuni giggled, seeing her leopard friend's wide eyes, "Only because she thinks he's cute"
"Kambuni, shut up," Kivuli told her ostrich friend with gritted teeth and blushing red.
"Heh, looks like you're a big hit with girls, Kufu," Kion teased his friend with a chuckle.
"Ha, ha, very funny," Kufu said while rolling his eyes in amusement.
"I'm always Ono," Kambuni continued, "And Kwato's always Fuli." She gestured to Kwato as the baby zebra stomped his hoofs and stood straight.
"OK, even I have to admit that this is cute," Fuli admitted to which the others agreed.
Although the prince would never admit it out loud, he did think it was pretty adorable that the young Pride Landers liked to pretend to be him and his friends before clearing his throat.
"Well, little Lion Guard, this isn't the best time to pretend to be hyenas," Kion informed.
"I saw Janja and his hyenas sneaking into the Pride Lands yesterday," Ono added, circling the Guard before landing by the prince's paws.
"And they're still around here somewhere," Fuli followed.
Kufu nodded in agreement. "So you can see why everyone got so scared earlier."
Kambuni lowered her beak. "We never meant to scare anybody."
"We won't do it again," Kivuli added, "Promise!"
Mtoto walked up to Beshte, staring up at him in awe. "Hi, little guy," Beshte greeted. The young calf didn't say anything, he just continued to stare and smile. "Uh...did you want to ask me something?" The Guard's Strongest asked.
"Uh..." Mtoto stuttered, before rambling off a bunch of questions. "How's it feel to be so strong? What's it like to fight bad guys? Can you really knock down a tree with your head? How's it feel to be a real-life hero?"
"Oh, well, I'm not really," Beshte corrected. "It's the whole team, not just me."
"Hey! Maybe the real Guard could play Lion Guard with us!" Mtoto grinned, looking back at his friends.
"Yeah! Yay!" the rest of the baby animals cheered, running to their favorite member and begging them with overlapping voices asking, "Please?"
"Can we, Kion?" Bunga asked with a grin and Gumba hanging on his shoulder.
Fuli had a slightly annoyed expression on her face as Kwato rubbed against her fur. "Do we have to?" She groaned.
"Eh, Kion?" Ono questioned as Kambuni stared down at him with her wide, green eyes.
"It's your choice, Kion," Kufu told his leader as Kivuli looked up at him with stars in her eyes which made him chuckle.
Kion chuckled lightly. "Sounds like fun," he said, glancing at Shauku, latched onto his foreleg. "But with Hyenas on the loose, we need to stay sharp, maybe some other time." The Guard's Fiercest carefully removed the mongoose from his leg, looking back to the rest of his team. "Lion Guard! Time for some training!" He announced.
"Aw, OK," Bunga huffed, taking Gumba off his shoulder and setting him on the ground.
"Sounds good to me," Fuli sped off after Kion, leaving Kwato in a dust cloud.
"See you around, little ones," Kufu smiled, giving a pat on Kivuli's head as he followed after Fuli and Kion, with Ono flying above him
"Well, I'd better get going too," Beshte agreed, looking to Mtoto.
"Aw, can't you stay just a little longer, Beshte?" The baby elephant asked. "Please?" his blue eyes widened.
Beshte couldn't help but smile at his new little buddy, and felt bad he had to leave. An idea popped into his head. "Mtoto, how'd you like to come watch us train?" He asked.
"Poa!" Mtoto sighed, repeating his hero's signature catchphrase. "That'd be awesome!"
Beshte grinned and led his new friend after the rest of the Guard.
"We need to be ready to chase down Janja wherever we find him," Kion said as he paced back and forth in front of his four team members.
Fuli stretched her limbs. "I'm always ready." She chuckled with a grin.
"So am I," Kufu agreed.
"Hey, guys," Beshte greeted, joining his friends. "Sorry, I'm late. I, uh, invited Mtoto to come along." The baby elephant stood next to the hippo with a wide grin.
"OK," Kion gave a small smile. "Well, we were just about to run an obstacle course."
"Poa!" Mtoto exclaimed, accidentally bumping into Kufu who braced himself on the rock pile beside him, which in turn, knocked Ono to the ground. "Can I run it, too?" The elephant asked
"Sure, I guess," the Guard's leader agreed. "Stick with him, Beshte." He said to the strongest member before looking to the keenest of sight, "Ono, keep an eye out for hyenas while we're running this one."
"Affirmative," the egret groaned, taking to the sky. "The sky's probably the safest place to be." He added under his breath.
"Everybody, follow me!" Kion ordered, running down the path. He jumped onto a few boulders, standing on the largest one, "Boulder jump! Go!"
Fuli was the first to leap over the boulders and Bunga yelled out, "Zuka Zama!" as he jumped over the largest one that Kion was perched on.
A smirk crossed Kufu's muzzle as he ran for the boulders, leaping off the first two and as he jumped over Kion with a flip, he then slapped his paw against Ono's wing in mid-air before landing on all four paws without a stumble.
"Nice one, Kufu!" Bunga cheered, slapping a high-paw with his lion friend.
"Showoff," Fuli huffed with a roll of her eyes.
"Hey, Kion made me The Slyest for a reason, Fuls," Kufu said with a smirk.
Mtoto tried to jump the boulders but ended up tripping and falling over his trunk.
"I usually just run around 'em," Beshte informed as he trotted beside the young elephant.
The next run on the course was crossing a small river.
"You're gonna love this one, Fuli," Kion chuckled as he and the cheetah stared at their reflections in the water
Kion ran across the water in a few strides. Fuli smirked and took a few steps back, before running and leaping over the river, landing right beside Kion.
"You'll do anything to stay dry, won't you?" Kion chuckled with a raised eyebrow as he looked at the cheetah.
"You know it," the Guard's Fastest agreed.
"Alright, you two love birds, let me show you how it's done," Kufu called out as he took a few steps back before running and jumping over the water with a flip before landing in front of Kion and Fuli, giving them a smirk. "How's that for skills?"
"I have a feeling this training is just turning into a competition between you and me to find out who's the best," Fuli said dully as both Kion and Kufu chuckled.
"Zuka Zama!" Bunga yelled, jumping right into the water with a loud splash. He landed on his stomach, barely submerged. "Huh, not as deep as I thought," he added, slightly disappointed.
Mtoto happily walked through the water with his trunk held high. As he came towards the opposite shore, he tripped on his trunk and ended up inhaling some water. Mtoto lifted his trunk and sprayed the water, accidentally showering Fuli and Kufu, while Kion ducked to avoid the splash. The cheetah went rigid as she was soaked from ear to claw, while Kufu stood still and blinked.
"I'm sorry!" Mtoto apologized.
Fuli's eyes narrowed into a glare. "It's OK." She said with gritted teeth. "It's only water."
"At least it's not mud," Kufu pointed out.
"Told you the sky was the safest place to be," Ono chuckled as he flew above the two soaked felines. In retaliation, Kufu and Fuli shook out their fur, purposefully splashing the egret with the excess water.
"OK," Kion cleared his throat, looking at everyone else. "Why don't we try something totally different?" The prince looked around and spotted a large rock pile not too far away, an idea coming to mind. "Let's run a stealth surround drill."
"Yeah!" Bunga agreed. "Where we practice sneaking up on bad guys and surround them." He punched his right fist into his left palm.
"Haven't done that in a while," Beshte noted.
"Sounds good to me," Fuli agreed.
"Let's do it," Kufu added with a smile.
"I always ace this one," Bunga bragged to the young elephant standing beside him.
"OK, I'll go to the other side of that big rock pile," Kion told the rest of his team. "The rest of you try to sneak up, without me seeing or hearing you. Ono?" He looked to the Guard's Keenest of Sight. "Keep watch for hyenas while we're running this one."
"Affirmative!" Ono saluted, taking off.
"You guys know the drill," Kion added, looking to Bunga, Fuli, Beshte, Mtoto, and Kufu.
"Wait till you're out of sight, then try to surround you," the brown-furred lion cub finished. "We know what to do, Kion."
The Guard's leader gave a smile and ran towards the rock pile, leaping over a few of the smaller stones before disappearing into the tall grass.
Kufu stepped forward. "OK, guys here's the plan: Fuli and I will approach from this side." Kufu motioned to the right. "You two go in from that side." He glanced to the left.
Bunga rubbed his palms together. "Kion will never see me coming," he chuckled, running alongside the left of the rocks.
"But he might smell you," Fuli chuckled, she and Kufu shared a glance before running off along the right side. The two felines hunched low in the grass.
"I'll go high, you go low," Kufu whispered, glancing up at a tree nearby that he could easily climb without Kion seeing him.
"OK," Fuli nodded in agreement, speeding off while the lion cub ran for the tree.
Kion looked around, scanning the area for any sign of his friends. A small rustling caught his attention and his head whipped in that direction. Then, he felt a paw on his shoulder and turned to see Fuli, who just sat there and smiled.
"Hey, Ki, how's it going?" Fuli said with a smirk.
"Dang! You're good at this Fuli," the Guard's leader praised.
"I know," agreed the Guard's Fastest with a small smile and a small blush on her cheeks.
From behind a large rock, Bunga chuckled as he prepared to attack his best friend.
"Zuka Zama!" the Guard's Bravest yelled as he tackled the lion prince, sitting on his back while the lion was flat on his stomach with his paws sprawled out in four directions, "Gotcha! Ha, ha!"
"Bunga, what happened to sneaking up on me?" Kion asked, looking at the honey badger as he jumped off his back.
"Eh, I got tired of that," Bunga shrugged, "Running right at ya's more my style."
"Now that leaves Kufu and Beshte," Fuli noted.
Kion turned and looked up at the tree nearby, trying to see if he could catch the slightest movement. He knew Kufu had a knack for climbing and that was always his favorite way to sneak up on others. What he didn't know was that Kufu wasn't in the tree at all.
Kufu's tail flicked as he dug his claws into the soft dirt. He could see his friends through the blades of grass and a smile crossed his muzzle. In a flash, he took off, charging straight for Kion.
Before he could even blink, Kion was tackled from the side and pinned to the ground. He looked up to see Kufu standing over him with a proud smile.
"Booyah! Got ya, Kion," Kufu laughed his paw dead center on the prince's chest.
"Yeah, you did," the Guard's Fiercest agreed with a roll of his eyes. "Now, get off me." He grunted as he pushed him off.
"Nice one, Kufu," Bunga high-pawed him again. "That was un-Bunga-lievable!"
"Well they don't call me The Slyest for nothing," Kufu bragged as Kion shook the dirt out of his fur.
"OK, now you are just showing off," Fuli said while rolling her eyes "Maybe next time, you and me go One-on-one to see who's really the best in the team."
"Oh, I'm sorry, was that a challenge I'm hearing?" Kufu asked while smirking at the cheetah. "Well, if that's the case, then challenge accepted."
"Alright, you two, break it up," Kion said as he got in the middle of his two friends. "Now, the only one left is..." he was cut off when Beshte ran towards them.
"Beshte?" Kufu raised his brow.
"What's wrong?" Fuli asked.
"It's Mtoto!" The Guard's Strongest answered, frantically. "I can't find him anywhere!"
"I'm right here, Beshte!" Mtoto called from the top of a rocky slope. "I was just sneaking..." He lost his footing and slid down the slope, using his trunk to grab hold of a small branch sticking out between two rocks.
"That's not gonna hold for long," the Guard's Slyest noted.
"Hang on, Mtoto!" Beshte called, running towards the slope. "I'm coming!" He stopped at the bottom, just in time for Mtoto to land on his back, but since it was at a high speed, the baby elephant just bounced off the hippo and landed on Bunga.
"Mtoto, are you okay?" Kion asked, worried the young animal might've gotten hurt from the fall.
"I think so," Mtoto answered.
Beneath him, Bunga groaned. "I'm OK, too," he informed in a strained voice, trying to free himself from under the baby elephant.
"Mtoto?" Beshte questioned. "Why didn't you stay with me?"
"I wanted to show you I could do a good job sneaking up on Kion," the young animal answered, standing up, thus freeing Bunga. "Sorry, I messed up." He sighed.
"We're just glad you're not hurt, Mtoto," Kufu said with a smile.
"But I think it's time for you to head home," Kion advised.
Beshte nodded in agreement. "I'll walk you." He smiled at his young friend.
"OK," Mtoto sighed. "Bye, everybody." He waved with his trunk before following Beshte.
From the sky, Ono scoured the Pride Lands, looking for any sign of Janja and his clan. "Hmm," the egret muttered, focusing his eyes. "Still no sign of Janja and his hyenas, better tell Kion." Ono circled and headed back to where he last left the Guard.
As soon as the egret was out of sight, a very familiar hyena poked his head out of a thick bush.
"I don't think he saw us," Janja said as he, Cheezi, and Chungu walked out of the bush.
"Ouch!" Chungu exclaimed as he was hit in the face by a branch. "Watch it!"
"But he could still hear us, Fur Brain!" Janja said while rolling his eyes.
"Heh, yeah," Cheezi laughed. "They don't call Ono 'The Ears in the Sky' for nothing."
"That's not what they call him," Janja told the two hyenas.
"Uhh, they don't?" Chungu asked.
"Ugh! Come on," Janja groaned as he, Cheezi, and Chungu ran off and tried to avoid being seen by Ono, and as they were sneaking around the Pride Lands, Janja heard something.
"You won't get away from me, Janja."
"Huh, someone call my name?" Janja asked as he, Cheezi, and Chungu poked their heads from the bush and then they saw Mtoto who was now back with his friends chasing a little hyrax, and seeing the baby animals made Janja smirk evilly. "Hey, boys, look what we have here?"
"He, heh, appetizers," Chungu snickered.
"Yeah, bite-sized," Cheezi said while licking his lips as the three hyenas followed the baby animals.
"Great job on the obstacle course, guys," Kion praised his three team members. "Now, time for some speed training." He said as Fuli, Kufu, and Bunga all got into their prepped running stances. "On your mark, get set...Go!"
Bunga was the first to take off. The two felines waited a few breaths before running after him, creating a small dust cloud that obscured the honey badger's vision. When the dust cleared, Bunga stopped at the rock that marked the finish line.
"Whoo! I can't believe I won!" Bunga laughed.
"Um...Actually, you didn't." Ono corrected, pointing his wing at Fuli and Kufu The cheetah sat up straight and cleaned her paw, while Kufu was only slightly winded. "Fuli won, with Kufu being a close second."
"Did you really think you were faster than me?" Fuli asked Bunga with a raised brow.
Bunga rubbed the back of his head, "Well..."
"As long as you're all faster than the hyenas, I'm good," Kion noted. "Speaking of hyenas, Ono!" He looked to the bird perched on the rock. "Could you take another look around?"
"You bet!" Ono gave a nod and took to the air.
"Oh, and maybe look for Beshte while you're up there?" The Guard's leader added.
"Good idea," The Keenest of Sight agreed. "He should've gotten back by now."
"Yeah, I mean, how long can it take to walk a little elephant home?" Kufu wondered aloud sharing a look with the rest of the Guard.
"I'll see what I can see," Ono took to the sky and searched the Pride Lands for the Guard's Strongest.
Meanwhile, Beshtie was speaking to Thurston, Shingo, and the female baboon with the latter complaining about the hyenas lurking around the Pride Lands.
"What's the point of living in the Pride Lands if we have to run from hyenas all the time?" Thurston complained, "I mean, really."
"Don't worry, the Lion Guard is on the job," Beshte reassured the zebra. "We'll find those hyenas and chase them back to where they belong."
"I'm gonna get you Janja," Mtoto said as he and his friends continued chasing the hyraxes.
"You too, Cheezi and Chungu," Kambuni followed as the baby animals didn't notice Cheezi and Chungu sticking their heads out from a nearby bush.
"Wait, are they really chasing us?" Chungu asked.
"I hope not," Cheezi said worriedly.
"No, Fur Brains, they're playing pretend," Janja told them as he poked his head out from the bush. "But it's about to get real, c'mon." He ordered as they continued to follow the little animals.
The baby animals continued to chase after the hyraxes until they went into a pile of rocks.
"They got away," Mtoto said as he and his friends took a couple of deep breaths. "So, what do you guys wanna chase now?"
"I got an idea," Mtoto and his friends turned around and saw Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu right behind them. "How about we chase you?" Janja said with an evil smile.
"HYENAS!" The baby animals screamed as they all made a run for it.
Just then more, hyenas jumped out from the bushes and they all started chasing after the baby animals with two hyenas chasing after Kambuni, Shauku, and Kivuli; and two chasing after Gumba and Kwato; and Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu chased after Mtoto.
Meanwhile, Ono was flying through the air to see if he could find out where Beshte was, but as he was looking for their hippo friend, he saw the hyenas chasing the little animals.
"Hapana!" Ono exclaimed in shock.
"Ono, what is it?" Kufu asked, hearing the panic in the bird's voice. "Is it Beshte?"
"No! It's those baby animals from this morning!" Ono corrected, swooping down and hovering in front of the rest of the Guard. "They're being chased by Janja's clan!"
"Those stinkin' hyenas!" Bunga raised his fist.
"Going after poor, defenseless kids," Fuli said in disgust. "that's crossing the line in my book."
"Yeah, Janja's reached a new low," Kion agreed through gritted teeth.
"Let's go save those little ones," Kufu voted, stepping up beside Kion.
"Till the Pride Lands end...Lion Guard defend!" The Guard called out as they followed Ono across the plains.
Meanwhile, Beshte was still trying to reassure the three animals that everything would be OK. "Seriously, there's no reason to be afraid," Beshte told them. "The Lion Guard has everything under control."
"Hmph! Maybe not for them, but zebras happen to be the most delicious animals in the Pride Lands, and the hyenas know it," Thurston said to which Shingo scoffed. "It's true, deal with it."
Beshte was about to speak again until he heard a familiar cackle and he turned around and saw Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu chasing Mtoto to a river.
"Oh-no, Mtoto!" Beshte said in shock before rushing towards them.
Mtoto ran for his life trying to get away from the hyenas, but then he screeched to a halt when he saw that he was about to head into the river, turning around to see Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu approaching him.
"Aww, where you going, little buddy? Looking for help?" Janja taunted, "It's no use, nobody's coming. Which do you prefer, boys, legs or trunk?"
"I like the ears, they're chewier," Chungu said as Mtoto gave an unamused look when he said that.
"Chewy ears, that sounds funny," Cheezi laughed, "And delicious."
Mtoto looked around in a panic as he saw that there was nowhere to escape, fearing that this might be it, but then Beshte rammed into the Hyenas and knocked them away from the baby elephant.
"Beshte, you came for me," Mtoto said as he was happy to see him.
"Sure I did," Beshte said with a smile. "You can swim, right?"
"My mom hasn't taught me yet," Mtoto answered.
"Then, hop on and hang on," Beshte said as Mtoto got on his back and the Guard's Strongest went into the river and swam away as Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu got up.
"What do we do, now?" Cheezi moaned.
"Follow that hippo!" Janja ordered as the three hyenas chased after Beshte and Mtoto.
The sound of the hyena's laughter grew louder as the Lion Guard closed in on their location.
"I see the little zebra and baboon!" Ono alerted. "They're being chased by two hyenas."
"Hang on, Gumba!" Bunga yelled as he jumped on Fuli's back.
"Huwezi!" Fuli exclaimed as she sped off to save the pair.
"What about Mtoto and the others?" Kufu questioned as he and Kion ran after Ono.
"I don't see Mtoto," Ono relayed, his eyes zeroing in on the young ostrich, black leopard, and mongoose. "But I see Kambuni, Kivuli, and Shauku! Two more Hyenas are chasing them, and they're heading for the river!"
"Let's go Kufu," Kion glanced to his friend, who gave a firm nod. The two cubs picked up speed, their eyes set in narrowed glares.
Kwato panted as he kept running with Gumba on his back. "They're getting closer!" The young baboon screamed, looking over his shoulder at the two predators gaining on them.
"I'm going...as fast as...I can!" Kwato gasped.
Just as one of the hyenas was about to pounce, a blur of blue fur jumped on his back, covering his eyes with his hands.
"Sorry hyena, but dinner plans have just been canceled!" Bunga laughed, as the hyena ran off in a different direction, slamming into a nearby tree.
The second hyena skidded to a halt and was then pinned to the ground by a blur of yellow and brown. He looked up into the narrow emerald eyes of the Guard's cheetah, who bared her sharp teeth.
"I'll teach ya not to go after defenseless kids," Fuli snarled. The hyena beneath her let out a whimper and flattened his ears.
Kwato's purple eyes were wide with awe as he grinned, while Gumba was jumping up and down on his back in excitement.
"That was amazing!" The two boys cheered as the two hyenas ran back to the Outlands yelping.
"Whoa!" Kambuni screeched as she skidded to a halt near the river's edge. Kivuli and Shauku stopped on either side of her. The three kids turned around and saw the hyenas closing in on them.
"The little ones are always easy," chuckled the buck-toothed hyena as he advanced on the young trio.
"They sure are delicious, too," his stockier friend added with a laugh.
"Not today, hyenas!" Kion and Kufu growled as they leaped over a boulder and stood in between the hyenas and the three kids.
"Leave them alone!" Ono squawked as he dove down and pecked one of the hyenas with his beak.
Kion and Kufu took one step forward, letting out low growls and baring their teeth. The two hyenas exchanged a glance and turn-tail and ran away with high-pitched whines.
"You little ones alright?" Kufu asked, turning to face the young trio. His eyes were softer now and he had a small smile on his muzzle.
Kivuli's eyes widened and she ran to nuzzle against Kufu's leg. Kambuni rubbed her cheek against the top of Ono's head and Shauku latched onto Kion's foreleg, letting out a content sigh.
"Thanks for saving us," they chorused.
"It's what we do," the three Guard members replied, smiling.
Meanwhile, Beshte was swimming through the river with Mtoto on his back, trying to get away from Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu who were running after them.
"C'mon, boys, we're catching up to them," Janja said as they ran past Beshte and Mtoto.
"Hey, they passed us," Mtoto pointed out, "Maybe they are just going in the same direction." He theorized before seeing Janja and Cheezi standing on tree branches that were in front of them, "Or Maybe not."
"Mtoto, duck," Beshte told him as Mtoto ducked just as Janja and Cheezi were about to pounce on him, only for the two hyenas to bump into each other and fall into the river. Beshte then looked ahead and saw Chungu standing on another tree branch.
"Here, dinner, dinner, dinner," Chungu snickered evilly.
Beshte then grabbed the tree branch with his mouth and launched Chungu in the air and then he fell into the water.
"Whoa! That was awesome," Mtoto exclaimed excitedly.
"The current's slower through here. I should be able to make better time," Beshte informed the little elephant. "You're almost home, Mtoto."
"Uh-oh, Beshte, look!" Mtoto said as he used his trunk to point at what he saw to which Beshte looked ahead and saw a bunch of sleeping crocodiles in their path.
"Looks like we're in Makuu's territory," Beshte said as he recognized the crocodiles.
"What do we do now," Mtoto asked.
"I've got an idea," Beshte said.
Fuli, Kwato, Bunga, and Gumba joined up with Kion, Kufu, Kivuli, Kambuni, and Shauku
"Anyone see Big B and Mtoto?" Bunga asked, looking around.
"When we all split up, I saw Mtoto run down the river," Shauku informed, looking up at Kion.
In the distance, they all heard Janja laugh, followed by a cackle by Cheezi and Chungu. Before the lion prince could say anything, Ono flew into the air and let out a gasp.
"I see Mtoto and Beshte!" Ono announced. "They're surrounded by Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu as well as a float of crocodiles."
"That's not good," Fuli noted, glancing at Kion and Kufu.
Kion nodded in agreement. "Ono, you're with me." He looked at the egret before his eyes moved to the remaining three members. "Kufu, you take Fuli and Bunga and deal with the hyenas."
"You got it, Kion," Kufu nodded in confirmation.
The Lion Guard followed Ono to where Beshte and Mtoto were, with their young animal friends following behind them.
"Ready for stealth mode?" Beshte asked to which Mtoto nodded.
Beshte then went underwater and Mtoto stuck his trunk out of the water, and they both slowly made it through the crocodiles, but then one crocodile opened his eyes and saw Mtoto's trunk and let out a growl as Beshte resurfaced, and he and Mtoto saw that they were surrounded by crocodiles.
"So much for stealth mode," Beshte said as the crocodiles approached them. "Let us through, Makuu, we're just passing by."
"You two are in my territory, hippo," Makuu told the Guard's Strongest. "And anyone who enters my territory is fair game." He added as he and his crocodiles approached the two.
"What do we do?" Mtoto asked nervously.
Beshte tried to think of something until he remembered. "Hey, Mtoto, remember that trunk trick you did while training with us?"
"Oh, yeah," Mtoto smiled as he remembered. He then put his trunk in the water and inhaled some water before spraying Makuu in the face. "Take that, meanie."
"Nice shot!" Beshte praised before he swam away from the crocodiles, with Mtoto on his back, spraying water at the reptiles with his trunk. When they came closer to shore, they saw Janja and his two subordinates waiting for them.
"Aw, ya came back," the hyena leader chuckled. "And you brought your little friend."
"Wrong, Janja!" Kion corrected as he and the rest of the Lion Guard showed up. "He brought all his friends!"
Bunga, Fuli, and Kufu charged ahead, knocking Chungu, Cheezi, and Janja into the water, giving Beshte the room to get on dry land. Kion jumped onto a few crocodiles, who were getting too close to shore, then landed on the dry ground next to Beshte.
"I sure am glad to see you guys!" The hippo exclaimed, smiling at his friends.
"I'm just sorry we couldn't find you sooner," the Guard's leader replied.
"Better late than never, right, Big B?" Bunga nudged the hippo with his elbow.
"You said it, Little B," Beshte chuckled.
"Uh guys, it appears we had an audience," Ono informed, landing on Beshte's back.
The Lion Guard turned around and saw their young animal friends staring at them with wide eyes. The young animals erupted into cheers and ran to their favorite member, cuddling up against them.
From the water, Makuu and his crocodiles let out low growls as they swam after Janja, Cheezi, and Chungu.
"Swim, Fur Brains!" Janja shouted over Cheezi and Chungu's yelping, "Swim!"
Kivuli let out a giggle as she stood by Kufu. "You know, they'd stand a better chance if they just got out of the river." She noted, looking up at the Guard's Slyest
"You got that right, kid," Kufu agreed. "But I'm not gonna tell 'em that." Everyone let out a laugh.
"So, I just kept spraying 'em right in the face while Beshte swam like the wind!" Mtoto informed as he and his friends walked back towards the watering hole with the Lion Guard.
"You kids had quite an adventure today," Kion noted with a chuckle, "And you know what?" He shoved his paw into a small mud puddle. "I think you've all earned the Mark of the Guard." He placed his paw on Mtoto's shoulder, giving him a muddy version of the marks the real Guard members had.
"Wow!" Mtoto sighed as he stared at his mark.
Kion was suddenly flanked by the other five animals all shouting, "Me next! Me next!" He cast a glance to Kufu and Fuli, who were in a fit of laughter. The prince obliged the young animals and gave them each their own marks like Mtoto's. The six young friends all stood around and gazed at the mud-print marks on their shoulders.
"You know, Kion, with Janja and his hyenas out of the Pride Lands, we've got nothing else to deal with today," Kufu noted, sitting next to his best friend.
Kion looked to his right and could tell what Kufu was thinking by the look in his eyes. "You do have a point." He agreed, glancing at the rest of the Lion Guard.
"Seriously?" Fuli asked with a raised brow.
Bunga grinned and jumped in the air. "C'mon Fuli, it'll be fun!" He exclaimed.
"I guess," Ono shrugged.
"Poa," Beshte sighed.
The Lion Guard walked over to their young friends. "So, do you little ones still want us to play with you?" Kufu asked with a smile.
"Really!?" squealed the six youngsters.
"Sure," Kion shrugged.
"This time, we'll be the baddies and you can be the Lion Guard!" Bunga suggested.
"That'd be awesome!" Gumba laughed.
Fuli let out an exasperated sigh while the little animals continued to cheer in excitement.
"OK, little Lion Guard, ready?" Beshte asked.
"Ready!" they answered in unison.
The six members of the Lion Guard let out playful laughs and ran into the tall grass.
"Till the Pride Lands end, Lion Guard defend!" The six young animals shouted as they chased their idols through the plains. The air was filled with cries of laughter and fun, like any normal day in the Pride Lands.
To be continued...
A/N: And that was Follow The Hippo, and man, it has been a long time since we've worked on The Sly Lion series. I apologize. It's just that it's been a while since I've watched The Lion Guard, but I promise the next chapter won't take as long as this one while also working on The Ninjago Yin and Yang series, and we hope you all enjoyed this chapter.
Up next: The Lion Guard meets a Bird with a very special talent
Here's the Cast List:
Max Charles as Kion; Caleel Harris as Kufu; Joshua Rush as Bunga; Diamond White as Fuli; Atticus Shaffer as Ono; Dusan Brown as Beshte; Justin Felbinger as Mtoto; McKenna Grace as Kambuni; Elsie Fisher as Kivuli; Jacob Guenther as Shauku; Lyon Luke Mathias as Kwato; Jacquez Swanigan as Gumba; Andrew Kishino as Janja; Kevin Schon as Chungu and Thurston; Vargus Mason as Cheezi; Blair Underwood as Makuu; Beau Black as Hyena 1; Dee Bradley Baker as Hyena 2; Phil LaMarr as Shingo; Russi Taylor as Female Baboon.