The Lion Guard: Bongo the Slyest: The Most Slyest Adventures

by Fanficteller

Kion, the prince and the Fiercest of the Pride Lands, leads the new but disordinary Lion Guard formed up from his friends, Bunga the honey badger, Bongo the wild dog, Fuli the cheetah, Ono the egret and Beshte the hippo, to protect the Pride Lands and defend the Circle of Life from the threats of the Outlands and the troubles within the kingdom. (Season 1)

1. Never Judge Hyena By Its Spots

AUTHOR'S NOTE: And here we go! Here we continue from where we were left in THE LION GUARD: BONGO THE SLYEST: RETURN OF THE ROAR. Follow the Lion Guard's adventures as they adjust to their new lives as the defenders of the Pride Lands' and the Circle of Life.

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THE LION GUARD: BONGO THE SLYEST
NEVER JUDGE HYENA BY ITS SPOTS

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It has been a less than month since the formation of the Lion Guard under the leadership of the Prince of the Pride Rock. Their reputation as an disordinary Lion Guard in the history of the Pride Lands became quickly well known and the Guard's team bond kept growing stronger each passing day.

Today was a sunny day in the Pride Lands and everything looked pretty silent and peaceful. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case today.

The flock of tick birds flew up from behind of the rolling hills of green, before being followed by the stampeding herd of oryxes, who fled with terror in their faces as they were being chased relentlessly by hyenas.

They were led by Janja, an evil hyena leader, who had made it his goal to intrude into the Pride Lands to have whatever animals he wanted and as many animals as he wanted for meal without caring of the Circle of Life. He was followed by Nne, who shared his leader's who shared his leader's menacing ideas and dreams for endless supply of food out of the Pride Lands' residents. The other two hyenas, a crazy hyena Cheezi and large but dim-witted Chungu followed the two, ever loyal to their leader even if they didn't always understand many of Janja's schemes.

"Come on, fellas! It's lunchtime! And I'm starving," Janja said as he led his clan after the oryxes.

"I'm always starving," Chungu said.

"Not today, you're not, you big oaf!" Nne said. "From today, you won't even know what starvation means." he joked.

Cheezi let out an insane-sounding, wheezy laugh at the former's joke.

The herd's chaotic stampede fitted well for the hyenas, because in the chaos they could pick any and quite many of them off easily. Janja licked his chops greedily, savouring the smell of fear in the antelopes they'd caused.

However, the hyena leader's pleasure was soon to be ruined when Kion's sudden sharp voice ringed out across the field.

"Hyenas!" Kion shouted, causing the four hyenas to skid to stop when they saw the Lion Guard emerging out of the dust cloud caused by the stampede, blocking their way.

"Hey!" Chungu complained.

"Don't tell me. The Lion Guard." Nne said annoyedly.

"That's right, hyena!" Bongo called from his spot between Kion and Bunga.

"I thought I told you to stay out of the Pride Lands." Kion said, approaching the hyenas with the glare.

"Did ya' now?" Janja asked with the mad grin. "My stomach keeps forgetting."

"His stomach forgets." Chungu repeated with a chuckle, "That's a good one."

"GOOOOOOOO!" Kion yelled, his mark flashing as the clouds above him began to mass up and the thunder rumbled, letting the hyenas know what will happen if they didn't leave at this instant.

"Oh no." Janja gulped, as he and the rest of the hyenas tensed up.

"Tactical retreat?" Nne asked hopefully from Janja.

"Tactical retreat." Janja said with the nod, before the four hyenas took off.

Cheezi giggled, before the crazy hyena made noises at Nne who looked at him with the raised brow.

"Him having no sense of humor?" Nne questioned, to which Cheezi nodded. "Yeah. That cub indeed got no sense of humor." the hunchbacked hyena dryly remarked.

Kion them turned to his Guard. "Lion Guard! Calm the herd! Bongo, you're with me! We'll deal with these guys."

"Fuli, you know what to do." Bongo said, as he and Kion darted after the hyenas.

"You got it, guys." Fuli said with a nod before she turned to the rest of the team. "Okay, I'll run to the front and try to calm down the ones in the front. Beshte. You calm down the ones in the back of the herd. Ono and Bunga, the middle."

"You got it, Fuli." Beshte said wuth the nod.

"Just get me close, and I'll take it from there." Bunga said and climbed on Fuli's back. Fuli nodded her head at the honey badger and braced herself.

"Huwezi!/Zuka Zama!" Fuli and Bunga shouted as the cheetah dashed after the stampeding oryxes, followed by Beshte and Ono.

###

Back with Kion and Bongo...

The prince and wild dog pup kept chasing the four hyenas across the savannah and all the way to the border between the Pride Lands and the Outlands - which was a swift and coursing river separating the two territories - to make sure that the villains go and stay there where they belong.

"We're leaving already?" Chungu questioned. "But what about lunch?"

"All of the sudden I'm not so hungry," Janja said.

"Not so hungry?" Nne repeated, puzzled. "And yet you said you were starving!"

Cheezi whined in agreement.

"Just run, fur-brains!" Janja shouted.

The hyenas ran across the hollowed trunk to the other side of the river. The trunk groaned and cracked ominously under the fours' weight, prompting the hyenas to quickly cross the river in order not to get caught by it if the trunk would all of the sudden break under their feet.

Kion and Bongo, however, were too far to hear the trunk's groaning and cracking and too focused on the hyenas to pay attention as they ran onto the trunk and stopped in middle of it, watching as the hyenas ran into the gorge.

"That's right! Back to the Outlands! Now!" Kion shouted after them.

"And STAY THERE, YOU STINKY SAVAGES!" Bongo barged hatefully after them.

However, before the two could even move, the trunk began to groan and crack even louder under the prince's and the wild dog's weight, making them to gasp and look down at their paws with worry.

"Uh-oh!" Bongo gulped.

Before the two could even move either back or across, the trunk then gave in under their weight and snapped into splinters from the middle, plummeting the two into the water with the splash.

The two resurfaced almost immediately and took a hold of a piece of driftwood, coughing and spluttering the water out of their mouths as the river whisked them away.

"Hang on, Kion!" Bongo said, before the wild dog began to let out a hooting sounds "Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!" to alert the rest of the Guard.

###

Back with the others.

The rest of the Lion Guard had successfully calmed down the oryxes.

"That's right. Easy there," Beshte said soothingly as he waslked beside the herd. "You're all okay now."

"Yeah! Kion and Bongo chased those hyenas back into the Outlands." Bunga said.

Fuli raised her brow when she realized that Kion and Bongo weren't back yet. "Hmm. They should be back by now. What's taking them so long?"

Fuli's ear then perked up as he caught a distant sound coming from the direction of the Outlands, though not from the direction where Kion and Bongo went.

"You guys heard that?" Fuli asked from others.

"Heard what?" Bunga asked obliviously.

Beshte was quiet for a moment as he listened too. "I can hear it too. Sounds like a wild dog's call. But is there any other wild dogs nearby aside of Bongo?"

Fuli was certain that it was Bongo's call, but why he would be calling like that. She uickly craned her neck up to look up at Ono. "Ono, check on Kion and Bongo"

"Affirmative!" Ono said and flew towards the Outlands. He used his vision to scan the area between the Pride Lands and the Outlands for a moment, until he caught the flash of gold, red and brown clinging to the driftwood as they drifted down the river between two territories.

"Hapana!" Ono gasped and swiftly flew back to the others. "Everyone! Everyone!" he shouted, panic rising in his voice, "Kion and Bongo are in trouble!"

"Lead a way, Ono! C'mon!" Fuli told to everyone and the Guard set off to follow egret as he led them to Kion's and Bongo's direction.

They soon arrived to the river, where they instantly spotted Kion and Bongo

"Kion! Middle B!" Bunga shouted with a gasp.

"C'mon!" Fuli told them as the Guard gave the chase after their friends.

The Guard was now racing against time, trying to catch up with their friends before they were swept too far out of their reach. Unfortunately, the current was too fast.

Both Kion and Bongo could hear their friends calling for them, but couldn't respond as they were too busy navigating the rocky river while hanging on for dear lives.

"Hang on, Kion! We're coming!" Bunga called before the honey badger dived into the water after his friends.

"Little B, don't! The current is too strong!" Beshte tried to warn him.

He wasn't wrong there, because Bunga only got himself taken away by the current.

Without hesitation, the hippo jumped in himself and quickly pulled a soaking wet Bunga out of the current. "Thanks, Big B," Bunga said, gasping for air.

"Ono, keep pace with Kion and Bongo!" Fuli called as the cheetah raced alongside the river.

"Affirmative," Ono said before flying to Kion and Bongo who were still clinging on the log.

"Ono!" Bongo gasped, seeing their egret friend swooping down towards them before hovering above of them.

"Hold on, guys. We're coming to help." Ono said, until he noticed a dreadful sight right ahead. "Oh no! Kion, Bongo, look out! Rocks dead ahead!"

Both the lion cub and wild dog pup narrowed their eyes to see what they were heading towards, and gasped with dread upon seeing a maze of sharp and pointy rocks jutting out from the water.

"Siamini!" Bongo gasped.

The prince and the pup tightened their grip on the log as their ride became much rougher as the current kept ramming them against the rocks, until the third crash caused Kion to lose his grip from the log and he got tossed into the water, submerging the lion cub.

"KION!" Bongo gasped in horror while still clinging to the log.

Bongo took a deep breath and dived underwater, swimming like a mad after his friend and leader until he caught up with him and grabbed from his scruff with his teeth and pulled him up to the surface.

Once they both resurfaced, Bongo began swimming against the current the best he could and as fast as he could to get to the closest piece of land he could find while pulling Kion with him by his scruff, eventually finding one such from the Outland's territory.

Bongo climbed to the land and quickly pulled couching and panting Kion out of the water, before they both collapsed to the ground from the exhaustion.

The Guard stopped running when they saw Kion and Bongo safe on the shore.

"Kion! Bongo! Are you okay!" Fuli called to them from the Pride Lands' side.

Both Kion and Bongo stood up and shook the water off their furs.

"A little wet!" Kion said, couching up more water. "But we're okay."

"Yeah! But not very eager to go through that ride again anytime soon." Bongo said dryly while pushing some water out of his ear with his paw.

Ono then landed beside Kion and Bongo. "But Kion, Bongo, you're all the way out here in the Outlands," Ono said, raising both eyebrows in worry as he looked up at the tall rocks.

"We can see that, Ono." Kion said.

Bongo meanwhile eyed a rocky trail in the middle of the gorge, which gave him an idea. "If me and Kion follow that trail up there, it'll take us to upriver where the current isn't too strong."

"You two are gonna walk through the Outlands?" Ono gasped.

"Well, we don't have much of a choice. We definitely cannot cross the river here. The water's way too rough." Bongo pointed out.

"But don't worry about us, Ono. We'll be fine." Kion said. "Besides, we know the place where we'll get safely across the river."

Kion and Bongo then turned to the rest of the Guard.

"Lion Guard! Meet us at Flat Ridge Rock. We can cross the river there!" Kion said.

The others looked pretty confused. "Flat Ridge Rock?" Fuli repeated doubtfully.

Obviously they had no idea how to get there from here.

"Oh yeah! I know exactly where that place is." Bunga said immediately with a wave of the hand. "Follow me." He took off, and Beshte and Fuli quickly ran after him.

"Yeah, yeah. Sure he knows." Bongo said to kion with knowing smirk.

Kion shared the thought with Bongo before turning to the egret by his side. "Ono, you better go with them. Make sure Bunga really does know where Flat Ridge Rock is," he said with a small chuckle.

"Affirmative." Ono saluted before flying off after the rest of the Guard. "Guys, wait up!"

And as soon as Ono was gone...

"Well, Kion, looks like it's just you and me against the whole Outlands." Bongo said, not afraid of the Outlands a one bit.

"Looks like it." Kion acknowledged. "Let's just hope we don't run into any of the locals here while on our way to Flat Ridge Rock. Especially hyenas."

"The faster we're out of this hyena-infested place the better." Bongo admitted with disgust.

Kion and Bongo then began hopping along the rocks and ledges up to the rocky trail and then began to make their to the upriver, unaware that a pair of deep blue eyes were watching them from the shadows.

###

In the Pride Lands, while on their way to the Flat Ridge Rock, Bunga had led the rest of the Guard into the forest, walking backwards while waving his arms around, impatiently beckoning his friends to move faster. "Come on guys! We don't want Kion and Bongo waiting at Flat Ridge Rock, wondering where we are."

Bunga then turned around. "Ah-hah!" he exclaimed before his face fell at the sight of the road ending to the abundant vegetation. "Ughh..."

"What's wrong, Little B?" Beshte asked as the Guard stopped.

"Uh, nothing." Bunga said quickly, giving them a rather nervous smile.

Fuli quirked her brow at the honey badger. "Bunga? are you sure you know how to get to Flat Ridge Rock?"

Bunga scoffed at this. "Pfft! Of course, I know! It's..." the honey badger's eyes darted around for a moment before he chose the next road out of random. "Uh... this way!"

Thought unsure of Bunga's choice of the direction, the rest of the Guard followed him nevertheless. But no longer than a few minutes after Bunga led them into completely another direction, he ended up into another dead end and stopped abruptly when he realized that, making Fuli to bump into Beshte, knocking Ono off his back and onto his snout.

"Bunga." Fuli said in annoyed disbelief.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Bunga quickly corrected himself with the wave of his paws. "It's this way."

Bunga took a sharp left turn, leading the Guard to the leading the Guard to a less used and partially overgrown road. But the honey badger managed to stop himelf just in time when he realized that he almost stepped on the red cobra, Ushari, who was sleeping on their path.

Ushari stuck his tongue out and then opened his eyes, aware of the intruders of his peace. He lifted his head up and opened his hood in a threatening manner, shooting daggers at Bunga for disturbing his slumber. "Going somewhere, Bunga?" he hissed with the crowl.

"Nooope." Bunga said, stepping away from the grumpy reptile. "It gotta be this way."

The Guard was now exchanging a wary, doubtful glances with each other, as Bunga stopped to look around, trying to figure out which way to go. "well it's gotta be one of these ways." he said to himself.

"Too bad Kion isn't here to lead us." Beshte admitted.

"Bunga? Do you even know where we are?" Ono asked doubtfully.

"Sure! Uh..." Bunga said, looking down at his feet awkwardly. "We're lost."

Everybody let out a heavy sigh. This was going to take longer than they expected.

###

In the Outlands, Kion and Bongo were walking down a deep and somewhat dim ravine. While they never had been in the Outlands before, they knew that it was a very bad place. So the two friends stayed in full alert all of time and warily surveyed their surroundings for any sign of trouble.

Bongo's head then jumped up, alerted when he heard some pebbles falling from a higher ledges near them, giving the wild dog a thought that something or someone was watching him from above.

"Kion?" Bongo whispered, loud enough for the prince to hear, making him turn to him. "I have a feeling that we might be watched."

"Quite riiiiiiiiii-ght!" called a femine cocky-sounding voice directly from above them.

Kion and Bongo looked up to the direction of the voice and saw a fairly small and slim spotted young hyena with purplish-tinted gray fur, a dull pinkish-orange underbelly, a short and bicolored tail; the same as her fur and underbelly, two smaller spots fleck her face on either side, darker stripes along her neck as well as a streak along her spine, large deep blue eyes that were encircled by darker fur, and a long purple mane with deep stripes running through it and a lock in the front leaning toward her nose.

"Surpise!" se said with a narrowed glare and her lips were twisted up into a malicious smile.

Both Kion and Bongo let out a wide-eyed gasps, making the hyena let out a deep cackle.

"Didn't know I was up here, did ya two?" she taunted and jumped to the lower ledge right above of them.

"No, I..." Kion stammered, before he and Bongo narrowed their eyes and hunched low, bracing themselves for the fight.

"Nah! We already got a wind of you being up there a whole time, you sloppy-footed hyena." Bongo said with the fierce growl.

"Yep, I'm a hyena alright, Spots. You wild dogs are so clever!" the hyena teased. "Though I'd rather prefer myself "on-purpose-sloppy-footed hyena."

The hyena then turned to Kion. "And what about you, Kion - Leader of the Lion Guard."

Kion gave the hyena a puzzled look. "You know me?"

"Just by reputation." the hyena clarified. "The marks on your and Bongo's shoulder are a giveaway, though." she added with a laugh.

"Wait! You know me too?" Bongo asked, a bit surprised.

"Why, of course. A new Lion Guard made of a lion, honey badger, wild dog, cheetah, hippo and egret. That's a quite disordinary, don't you think?" the hyena said.

Narrowing his eyes again, Bongo took a closer look of this hyena and took a couple sniffs to find out if there was any familiarity with her. "Hmm. You're not familiar. Any chance that you're part of Janja's clan?"

"Janja?" the hyena said, clearly sounding offended, before she replaced it with the smirk and eye-roll. "Yeah, that was good one, Spots."

The hyena then jumped down in front of the two. "What are you two doing in the Outlands? Not exactly your territory."

"What do you even care?" Bongo asked with the scowl.

"We're going to Flat Ridge Rock so we can get back to the Pride Lands." Kion replied defiantly. "If that's ok with you, hyena."

The hyena frowned in annoyance at the way Kion spat out the word "hyena". "First of, the name's Jasiri. And secondly, if you two are headed back to the Pride Lands, you're going the wrong way." the hyena, Jasiri, informed.

Kion and Bongo rolled their eyes. "Uh-huh. And we're supposed to trust to the word of stinky good-for-nothing hyena because...?" Bongo asked offensively.

"Because you two are in my territory, Spots, and I want you two out of it." Jasiri said fiercely, glaring daggers at them, Bongo particularly for his insulting words.

"Good." Kion spat, "We want out of your territory. C'mon, Bongo. Let's go."

"Gladly. Better somewhere else than trapped here with this flea-bag." Moto said with the scowl at Jasiri, turning with Kion to walk away.

Jasiri chuckled at the two with the eye-roll. "You're still going the wrong way."

But neither Kion or Bongo paid her no heed, so Jasiri went to follow them.

###

Back in Pride Lands, Ono flew overhead of the woods after having suggested to use his keen sense of sight to lead the Guard out of ther. He then descended down to rejoin the rest of the guard when they emerged out of the woods.

"Thanks for getting us out of the woods, Ono." Beshte said gratefully.

"No prob." Ono said, landing in front of the hippo. "Though I don't know where to go from here since I've never been to Flat Ridge Rock."

"Neither have I." Beshte said.

"Me neither." Fuli said.

All three of them then glanced at Bunga.

Then they all looked at Bunga, who gave then a very sheepish look. "Well, it's gotta be around here somewhere," Bunga said, before the honey badger surveyved their surroundings.

"All I see are grass trees and zebras," Beshte said, spotting the zebra herd grazing nearby.

Fuli groaned in frustration. "Ugh! I can't believe that we don't know where to go. We're the Lion Guard! This never happened when Kion was around." she said, annoyed.

"Easy Fuli." Beshte said soothingly, "We just need to ask someone for directions."

Fuli scoffed at this. "Like from whom?"

"Hello, Lion Guard." said a voice that belonged to a zebra named Thurston, the leader of the nearby herd, who trotted towards the four animals. "I couldn't help but overhear. You need directions."

Fuli quicked her brow at this particular Zebra, doubting even he could know the way to the Flat Ridge Rock, though Bunga was all too eager to ask them.

"We do!" he admitted. "Do you know where Flat Ridge Rock is?"

"Flat Ridge Rock, eh?" Thurston said, mulling it over. "Is that near Ukuni Woods? Or Big Springs?"

Fuli pursed her lips while trying to keep her cool. "We don't know where it is. That's why we're asking you."

"I see... well that's too bad because... I'm not sure where it is." Thurston admitted, earning "you gotta be kidding me" look from Fuli, though Thurston paid no mind to it. "Now, where was I going?" he asked, looking to the side.

"Uh, maybe back to your herd?" Beshte said.

"Oh yes, of course! Thank you." Thurston said before trotting back to his herd.

"Zebras." Ono sighed, shaking his head. "Heads so in the clouds that they never know where they're going."

"Wouldn't that be exactly what Bongo would say? You know how he takes the zebras?" Bunga told them in matter of factly.

"And we're not even closer of getting to the Flat Ridge Rock!" Fuli sighed impatiently.

"Hey!" Beshte said as an idea crossed his mind. "We can go ask Mbeya the rhino. He knows the Pride Lands like the back of his horn."

This made Fuli smile when they were finally making some progress. "Great! Any idea where we can find Mbeya?"

"Well this time of the day, Mbeya usually hangs out at the watering hole" Beshte said.

"Yeah!" Bunga said with a fist puno in the air. "Watering hole here we come!"

Bunga then began walking to the direction he picked out of randonm again, smiling cockily, prompting Fuli to stop him by grabbing from his mane.

"Ono?" Fuli said as she put Bunga down and turned to Ono. "Why don't you lead this time."

Ono was all too happy to accept Fuli's suggestion, noting to himself to never let Bunga to take the leader role ever again for he never picks a right directions, just a wrong ones simply out of random choices. "Affirmative. Follow me."

Beshte and Fuli followed started following Ono, except for Bunga who went back the wrong way.

"This way, Bunga." Fuli said, giving him a warning look before continuing.

"I was just taking a shortcut." Bunga defended.

"Yeah, right. Sure you were." Fuli scoffed. "And where would've your shortcut taken us this time? Right into the patch of thorn push?" she added sarcastically.

###

Back in the Outlands, Kion and Bongo were climbing up a steep rocky slope deep within the heart of the Outlands. Bongo then looked back and, much to his annoyance, found Jasiri standing on the higher ledges, smiling coyly down at them.

"Still following us?" the wild dog bemoaned. "Piss off!"

"Yeah. Don't you have anything else to do?" Kion questioned.

"I would have." Jasiri shrugged. "But you're still ignoring my advice."

"About going the wrong way? Huh!" Kion scoffed, rolling his eyes, before he and Bongo stubbornly continued onward, hopping up from rock to rock. "We're pretty sure that I'm almost at Flat Ridge Rock."

"Maybe so." Jasiri agreed with another shrug as she casually followed them along the rocky trail. "But you can't get there on this trail."

"Oh, yeah?" Kion challenged, as he struggled to climb on top of the cliff. "Why is that?"

"Don't listen to her, Kion. She's only trying to toy with us." Bongo advised as he pushed Kion up with his head.

Jasiri then hopped precariously on a series of boulders much more gracefully than Kion and Bongo did till she was standing casually on top of the cliff next to the two.

The hyena smirked deviously, as if knowing what something what either Kion or Bongo didn't and didn't feel bad at all about what was going to happen next.

"Because the trail ends..." Jasiri said, pausing to wait till Bongo finally pushed Kion on top of the cliff. "Here."

"What?" Kion said, taking absentmindedly a step forward... right towards the edge of the cliff! "WOW!" the prince gasped as he lost his footing and slipped off the cliff, falling all the way down and landing into a thorn bush, effectivelly getting himself stuck, and meowing aloud in pain as he got prickled by the thorns all over his body.

"KION!" Bongo gasped in horror and hopped on top of the cliff, peering carefully down to see Kion mangled in the thorn bush. The wild dog's eyes narrowed into angry scowl and he turned towards Jasiri. "HEY! WHY DID YOU... Huh?" Bongo barked, only to realize that Jasiri was gone.

"Well, why don't you go down and help your friend, Spots?" Jasiri's voice asked from behind his back. Before Bongo could've react, Jasiri nudged him closer to the edge, causing Bongo to slip off the cliff as well.

"HYENA!" Bongo barked as he pummelted down.

But unlike Kion, Bongo ended up only to roll downhill, grunting and yelping all the way down to the bottom, until he skidded to stop on top of the huge flat-topped boulder right next to the bush Kion was trapped.

"Hevi kabisa! Bongo! Look out!" Kion shouted worriedly.

Shaking his head, Bongo looked dizzily up and saw Jasiri climbing carefully down the slope towards them. "Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-haa! Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-haa!" the hyena cackled menacingly as she gracefully landed on the same boulder as Bongo did.

"Gotcha now." she growled, fangs bared.

###

Back at the Pride Lands, the most of the Guard was waiting by the river bank of the Watering Hole while Beshte was waiting for Beshte was asking Mbeya for directions.

"Ugh." Fuli groaned, starting to get annoyed that it was taking so long from Beshte. "How long can it possibly take to ask for directions to Flat Ridge Rock? They've been talking forever." she growled under her breath.

"Beshte does like to talk." Bunga pointed out in his hippo friend's defense.

"Yes, but I agree with Fuli on that part." Ono said, feeling exactly same as Fuli did. "Perhaps I better go talk to him."

Ono then took off and flew to Beshte and Mbeya as the two were deep in a conversation.

"...when you get to be my age, you never know what might happen." Mbeya said.

Beshte laughed, as if finding something what Mbeya said very amusing, and was just about to respond until Ono interrupted, perched on Mbeya's horn. "Sorry to interrupt, Beshte, but we have to meet Kion and Bongo at Flat Ridge Rock." the egret reminded.

"Oh, yeah!" Behte exclaimed. "Guess I better be going. See ya later, Mbeya."

"Later Beshte." the old rhino said tiredly.

Beshte waded through the water, he was met by the other members of the Guard, plus Ono who landed next to Bunga.

"So? What dod he said?" Fuli said eagerly.

"You won't believe it." Beshte chuckled, remembering the conversation. "Remember that heatwave we had yesterday?" the hippo said.

"Yeah. I remember. It was hot." Fuli said. "Now, what did Mbeya say?"

"He forgot to cover himself in mud," Beshte said, laughing at it.

"Why would Mbeya want to cover himself in mud, Big B?" Bunga asked, not really getting it.

"That's how rhinos avoid sunburn. And not just rhinos but the hippos as well." Ono said knowledgeably, "Common knowledge, really."

Fuli, feeling the fur in her neck bristling, let out an impatient sigh. "I meant, what did Mbeya say about directions?"

"Fuli, you don't need directions to cover yourself in mud." Beshte said with the chuckle. "You just find a nice mud puddle and roll in it!"

Fuli was now starting to lose her cool that her left eye was twitching. "Argh! Not directions for mud bathing! Directions on how to get to Flat Ridge Rock!" Fuli snapped, gritting her teeth. "How long it took from you to ask that simple question?!"

"Oh yeah! The directions to Flat Ridge Rock!" Beshte said, quickly remembering why they came here in the first place. Beshte was about to answer, until his ears and smile dropped when he realized something. "I forgot to ask." he admitted in embarrassment.

Everyone let out a synchronous groan.

"Too bad Bongo ain't here. He'd never forget something like that." Bunga sighed.

"Ugh! I've had it with these ridiculous delays!" Fuli sighed. "There must be someone around here who knows where Flat Ridge Rock is!"

"Hey, guys!" called the voice, making the Guard to turn to see Tamu walking along the river bank towards them with the smile.

"Oh! Hi, Tamu!" Beshte greeted.

"Hi, Beshte. It's so lovely to see you all."" Tamu greeted sweetly as she stopped next to Fuli. "I was just heading to the Watering Hole to have a drink until I saw you here as well. So I decided to come to say "hi"."

"Well, "hi" to you too." Fuli said dryly.

Tamu made a quick headcount of the members of the Lion Guard until she realized that at least two members were missing. "Wait a sec? Where's Kion? And Bongo?" she asked with the frown.

"Well, we had a little run-in with the hyenas that were visiting us this morning." Bunga said.

"And Kion and Bongo got caught by the river when they drove the hyenas out of the Pride Lands." Ono added.

"And now they're both stuck in the Outlands' territory." Beshte admitted as he got up from the water.

Tamu's ears perked up and eyes went wide at these dreadful news. "What?! Kion and Bongo stuck in the Outlands?! Oh, my... this is terrible! That's a very bad place!" she said, almost panicking with worry for what might happen to them, especially to Bongo, while they're there.

"Kion and Bongo have given us a instructions that we must meet them at the Flat Ridge Rock where they can cross the river." Fuli further explained. "The only problem is we don't exactly know where it is. Not to mention about being led into the wild goose chase," Fuli said, glaring at Bunga, who chuckled sheepishly. "Or spending, what, forever listening Mbeya about covering ourselves in the mud instead of asking simple directions." she added, glaring at Beshte, who shrunk down in embarrassment of his mistake.

"Ah, I see what you mean." Tamu said with the nod, paying a knowing look at Bunga but a more sympathetic one at Beshte.

Fuli's ears then perked up when a thought crossed her mind, before she turned to Tamu. "You don't happen to know where Flat Ridge Rock is? Do you?" she asked.

"Sorry, Fuli." Tamu said, shaking her head apologetically. "I haven't been there myself before, so I don't know."

"But I knoooooooow." called a sing-song voice behind the Guard.

Each member of the Lion Guard and Tamu all simultaneously grimaced in annoyance when they recognized that voice, and hoped against hope that it was just their imagination.

"Please, tell me that's not who I think it is." Fuli growled through her gritted teeth.

"Don't count on it, Fuli. Because it definitely is him." Ono sighed.

"Ugh! Siamini!" Tamu sighed with the eyeroll, while quoting one of Bongo's catchphrases.

The Guard and Tano reluctantly turned around to see Moto and his friends Mafu and Konda trotting downhill towards them, each one of the lions wearing a snide smirk on their faces.

Ever since Kion's and the Lion Guard's first victory over hyenas, as well as involuntarily humiliating Moto and his friends by sending them flying into the mud pool with his Roar, Moto had made it his goal to get under Kion's and his friends' skin as much as he can and whenever he sees the opportunity to do so... even having been occasionally trying to deliberately thwart the Lion Guard's attempts to carry out their duties with sabotage.

And at worst, he has even been trying to make all the animals see that Kion is not better than Scar, but exactly like him as his current successor as the leader of the Lion Guard. He has even tried to use Kion's Roar of the Roar as another excuse to prove this, even claiming that sooner or later, one way or another, Scar's legend will repeat itself.

"Moto... Mafu... Konda..." Fuli growled through her gritted teeth as she glared up at these three bullies.

"What are you three doing here!" Bunga asked, annoyed by the presence of these three good-for-nothing troublemakers as well.

"We were just about to pay a visit at the zebra herd to, you know, have a little fun with their youngsters. You got any problem about that, Lion Guard?" Moto informed, getting into their faces as if daring them to challenge him.

"And maybe, well, you know, have a little snack with them." Mafu added with the sinister chuckle, before licking his chops.

"I think that you mean by "fun" that you were going to pick on the zebra foals." Ono said knowingly, frowning accusingly at the three lions. "And by "having a little snack with them" I think you meant having one of them for a snack."

"More or less." Moto replied indifferently. "After all, as lions, we are the Kings of All Beasts, and other animals are meant to serve us. We just give them a little reminder of that either easy way or the hard way."

"You should know better than to abuse your species' power and strength against other creatures in the Circle of Life!" Ono protested with the glare.

"Hey, Moto! Look! This little chicken thinks he's so smart and knows about everything." Konda laughed as he lowered his head down just above of Ono's.

Moto and Mafu bursted into a mean laughter, to which Konda joined soon after, earning an annoyed frowns from the Guard and Tamu.

"Hey! Leave Ono alone!" Bunga demanded as he stood by Ono.

"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size?" Beshte questioned, frowning at the three of them.

"Or what?" Moto said, giving them a challenging flare, first to Bunga. "What are you gonna do, hedgehog? You're gonna lead me into a wild goose chase into the patch of thorn bush? Huh?"

"Hedgehog? Hey!" Bunga complained, offended.

Moto paid him no further mind before he turned to Beshte. "And what about you, hippo? What are you gonna do about it? Oh, right! You don't know, because you just forgot what you're gonna do about it. Maybe you should get Rafiki to check on you with your amnesia issues."

Mafu and Konda bursted into another fit of laughter, making Beshte to frown at them even more, offended by their words.

"Knock it off, Moto!" Tamu said, standing up for Beshte's defense.

"Ugh!" Moto said, mock-flinching and stepping away from Tamu. "Keep away from me, you scabby mutt! I don't want your fleas in my fur."

"I don't have a fleas!" Tamu barked, offended.

"Then you must have gotten them from your boyfriend, Bongo!" Moto claimed. "Since when was the last time that flea-bag has groomed his fur?"

"He's not my boyfriend!" Tamu denied, his cheeks blushing furiously.

"Uh-huh. Sure. And that's a red soil on your cheeks." Moto said, noticing the blush on Tamu's cheeks.

"Why you...!" Fuli growled, bracing herself to attack Moto for insulting her friends, but Moto only waved his clawed "finger" at the cheetah.

"Uh-uh-uh-uh-uhh, cheetah. I wouldn't if I were you." Moto said, before he held out his paw and protracted his longer and bigger claws at Fuli as a demonstration of his superior power. SLASH! And to further deprive Fuli her winning chances, Mafu and Konda braced themselves, ready to defend their friend and leader if Fuli did so much as to pounce on him.

"You might be fast, but physically weak compared to the lion such as myself... let alone against the combined strength of three lions together.

Fuli growled and was ready to pounce on Moto anyway, likely not caring if it was three against one. "Don't Fuli! These jerks aren't worth it." Tamu said as she jumped between of Fuli and the three bullies.

Moto then retracted his claws before looking around as if looking for somebody. "Say... where's your leader and the other flea-bitten mutt?" he said, as if he didn't already know.

"None of your business!" Fuli snapped, still bracing herself for the fight.

"They're just lost. And we're looking for them right now." Beshte explained, without revealing to the three lions from exactly where.

"Lost in the Outlands. And we're gonna meet them at the Flat Ridge Rock." Bunga informed rather unabashedly.

"BUNGA!" Fuli, Beshte and Ono exclaimed simultaneously, as they all felt that Moto and his friends did not need to know any of that.

However, the damage was already done.

"So... your little fierce leader and his pet are lost in the Outlands." Moto said, though sounding very unsympathetic towards the situation.

"Likely crying for their mommies." Konda added. "Mommy! Mommy! I'm lost! Lost! Come to me, mommy! Don't leave me in this place! Mommy!" he added, immitading Kion's voice and pretending to be him lost in the Outlands, crying for his mother, before finishing it with the mean snicker.

"And likely hungry." Mafu added, sitting down and holding his fat belly with his paws to make everybody see his point. "Too bad because there's not much anything to eat."

Moto then growled in disgust and waved his paw around in dismissive manner. "Well, who even needs that wanna-be Scar Junior? He's gone there where he belongs, back to amongst of those repulsive hyenas. Pride Lands will be better off without him."

"That's not true!" Bunga protested.

"We need him here! Both him and Bongo!" Beshte protested as well.

"And he's not Scar junior! He'll never be like him! Ever!" Ono said in Kion

"Listen up, you three!" Fuli growled, before turning away from the three bullies. "We're not wasting our time here listening to you three's gossip about our friends. We're going to the Flat Ridge Rock now. Good day!"

Fuli was about to leave from the Watering Hole, followed by Ono, Beshte, Bunga and even Tamu - feeling that she needed to be there for Bongo, and not wanting to be left alone with these bullies - But Moto quickly ran in front of them, blocking their path.

"What's the hurry, cheetah?" Moto said, grinning at Fuli as he got into their face, forcing the five animals to step back. "Didn't you guys just say that you have no idea where the Flat Ridge Rock is?" he reminded.

"What about that?" Fuli questioned irritably.

"Well, unless you have five got something wrong with your ears but," Konda said, as he thought about it for a moment. "I remember Moto saying to you that he knows where the Flat Ridge Rock is."

"And that you needed directions there?" Moto added.

"Well, yeah." Bunga admitted.

"What you about that?" Fuli asked with the quirked brow.

"Well, if only you ask nicely, and I mean, nicely, maybe me, Mafu and Konda can lead you straight to the Flat Ridge Rock." Moto proposed. "With our help, you'd get there a lot of faster without wasting anymore time than you already have."

Fuli, Tamu, Ono, Bunga and Beshte exchanged glances with each other as they thought about this over. Sure they needed to get to the Flat Ridge Rock to meet up with Kion and Bongo there, but the proposed offer coming from someone like Moto sounded too good to be true.

"You'd actually help us to get to Flat Ridge Rock?" Fuli questioned suspiciously.

"Why would you help us?" Bunga asked, suspiciously as well. "Didn't you just said that the Pride Lands is better off without him?"

"Yeah. What's in it for you?" Tamu questioned, believing that there must be some personal reason why Moto would bother to help them.

"I have my own reasons." Moto told them. "Such as to brag in his face how his own paw-picked Lion Guard couldn't find their way to the Flat Ridge Rock without my help."

The Guard and Tamu frowned at the lion suspiciously, knowing full well that there was an ulterior motive for Moto to lend his paw to help them.

"And what if we refuse?" Fuli inquired, not really liking or wanting Moto and his friends accompanying them to the Flat Ridge Rock.

"Nothing." Moto replied. "You're all too free to refuse my help if you want, but that way you'll just end up wandering lost here and there without the chance of getting to the Flat Ridge Rock. Or you can just rely on your stinky friend taking you just from one wild goose chase to another, or to your absent-minded fatso friend who finds boring chats with the old people more interesting than finding your friends." he sneered, referring to Bunga and Beshte who both gave Moto a deep frowns, offended by his insultive remarks.

"Make your choice?" Konda encouraged snidely.

Fuli exchanged glances with his friends again, entering into a silent discussion with them. Although she wouldn't admit it, Moto's words had actually gotten to her, for she had had enough of wasting their precious time on wild goose chases or time-consuming conversations, and she just wanted to get as fast as possible to the Flat Ridge Rock without further delays. However, while she definitely didn't want any help from Moto or his friends in their search for the Flat Ridge Rock, they just happened to be in a desperate need for the directions. And since Beshte had failed to ask them from Mbeya and Moto had for some shady reason offered to lead them there, they were a quite low of options.

Reluctantly, the Guard and Tamu came to only one solution, even if it didn't mean they needed to like it.

###

Back in the Outlands, Kion was flat on his back in a thorn bush and watched helplessly as Bongo stood protectively between him and Jasiri.

Hunched low, the pup bared his fangs and growled warningly as he and Jasiri, who remained casual and a rather smug, began to circle each other on top of the rock.

"I've had enough with you, hyena!" Bongo growled, annoyed with the smug smirk Jasiri was giving him.

"Well, haven't you heard, Spots? Attack in anger, you'll never win." Jasiri chuckled.

Bongo let out an angry barking and lunged at Jasiri, who swiftly dodged under the wild dog pup's attack, much to Bongo's surprise. He landed on his feet behind Jasiri and tried to turn around to attack her again, but Jasiri used her hind legs to kick Bongo in the stomach, knocking him against the wall and leaving him momentarily.

Jasiri laughed triumphantly. "And you were supposed to be the Guard's "Slyest"!"

With Bongo out of the way, Jasiri towered over trapped and helpless Kion with a nefarious grin on her face, making Kion's eyes wide in horror. He tried to struggle to get free, but realized that he couldn't even move without the thorns prickling him even more.

"Hold still." Jasiri mocked. "This won't hurt at all."

Kion closed his eyes, bracing himself for the worst, with the single tear nearly escaping from his eye from the fear he'd never see his friends and loved ones again.

Bongo meanwhile quickly shook the dizziness out of his head and picked himself up, glared venomously up at Jasiri, and and sprung forward to defend his friend.

But when nothing happened, Kion slowly opened his other eye to see why... before he opened both of his eyes wide open from surprise of what he saw.

Bongo too skidded to a sudden stop when he saw what was happening, which left the pup totally puzzled.

Jasiri wasn't attacking Kion. Intsead, she was plucking the branches off the bush from around the prince with her teeth before spitting them out one by one.

"Huh? What are you doing?" Kion questioned in confusion.

Jasiri rolled her eyes at the prince's question. "Well, what does it look like, silly? I'm getting you out of this thorn bush. If you'd just hold still..." she said with another branch in her mouth before spitting it off.

"Only to attack him later on then, huh?" Bongo said accusingly as he walked next to her, shooting a scowl at the hyena.

"Yeah." Kion said in agreement. "Why would you helping me? You're a hyena."

Jasiri groaned with another eye-roll towards the two's naivety to the world. "What is it with you lions and wild dogs to think all hyenas are bad?"

"All the ones we've met are." Kion said defensively.

"Yeah! Like Janja, Nne, Cheezi and Chungu, and the rest." Bongo listened. "We've a daily run ins with these four."

Jasiri gave them another chuckle. "Well, obviously, I'm not like them." she said, before biting another branch off. "For one thing, they're all males, which means that they're foolish."

Both Kion and Bongo gave her a deep offended frowns for that last remak.

"No offense." Jasiri added rather hurriefly.

"Not all males are foolish." Kion said in his own and Bongo's defense. This only made Jasiri to snicker hilariously.

"Says the male lion, flat on his back and stuck in a bush." she fired back and laughed some more. Kion looked at her with a raised eyebrow and finally, realizing that she had a point, a half-smile pushed its way onto his face.

Jasiri then turned to Bongo. "Hey, Bongo? Mind to give a little paw? I don't know how long Kion with last being prickled by those thorns."

Bongo, however, didn't move a muscle to help her but kept eyeing her warily, very hesitant to trust her no matter how good-willing her attempt to help Kion out of the bush was. Jasiri seemed to notice this and temporarily ceased pulling the branches off and turned to Bongo.

"C'mon, Bongo. What such of sly wild dog like you got against us hyenas?" she asked almost in a flirting manner.

"Pretty much everything what I've heard of your kind." Bongo replied, never taking his eyes away from Jasiri.

"Nah! No, you're not, Spots." Jasiri denied, knowingly. "I bet your low opinion of us is more than just biased on what you've been told by others."

"And your point is?" Bongo inquired, though not really interested.

"Well, I dunno. Maybe your mother was very biased with her views of us too and..." Jasiri said.

However, at the mention of his mother by Jasiri, Bongo's eyes flared with rage and he got in Jasiri's face, baring his fangs and barking at her so ferociously that Jasiri jumped back in surprise. Even Kion was shocked by Bongo's sudden outburst.

"DON'T YOU DARE TO MENTION MY MOTHER, HYENA! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK OF HER AFTER WHAT YOUR STINKY KIND DID TO HER!" Bongo barked.

There was a moment of silence following Bongo's outburst as the wild dog pup stared Jasiri down, while both Jasiri and Kion stared at him with taken aback looks.

"I beg your pardon..." Jasiri said softly, sounding more of curious rather than fearful, even if Bongo's outburst had startled her.

Bongo breathed heavily and looked away from Jasiri down to his paws, his angry expression turning to saddened and near-tearful one.

"My mother... she... she was killed... killed by hyenas when... when I was younger... right in front of my eyes." Bongo recalled miserably, turning away from both Jasiri and Kion as a single tear escaped from his eye and ran down his cheek.

Kion looked at Bongo in surprise. He did know that it was difficult for Bongo to handle from an indirect mention to a direct topic of conversation about his mother the whole time they had known each other, but he never imagined it was this deep. The prince then shot a glare at Jasiri for bringing that up, making Jasiri purse her lips sheepishly.

"I... I didn't know..." the female hyena said in defense.

Bongo wiped the tears away with his paw and turned back to Jasiri with the scowl. "Well, now you know! But what do you care? You hyenas don't care about anything but constantly inflicting pain and suffering to other creatures while filling your bottomless bellies." he accused, his voice full of hostility.

Jasiri scowled defiantly at Bongo right in the face for his reason to hold such a vast grudge against her kind because his mother was victimized by one of her kind, to the point of holding her whole species as responsible for it.

"Let's just get Kion out of the thorn bush, okay?" Jasiri suggested, deeming it best to cut this topic short and get back to what she was doing.

Jasiri then resumed plucking the thorny branches off from around the prince without another word. And after a moment of hesitation, though for the sake of Kion, Bongo joined her in freeing Kion from the bush, though keeping his distance from the hyena all of time.

###

Back in the Pride Lands, Guard and Tamu had accepted Moto's offer to help and allowed the lion trio to lead them to the Flat Ridge Rock.

However, none of them were too thrilled about the path Moto had led them into, which went through the forest near a dense stream, with the flies buzzing all over. However, Moto had insisted that this lead straight to Flat Ridge Rock, so the Lion Guard and Tamu were forced to use it.

But while the Lion Guard was wading in the muddy water, Moto, Mafu and Konda had all hitchhiked a ride on Beshte's back, not really keen to get their own furs or paws wet or stained in mud.

Beshte felt quite annoyed when Moto was relaxing partially on top of his head, even deliberately hanging one of his paws over Beshte's face, partially blocking his eyesight.

"Things would certainly go a lot better if Kion were leading us." Ono sighed. "Or Bongo showing us a better directions."

"Yeah. But you gotta love all these flies!" Bunga said dreamingly, before he slapped his paws around some flies and licked them into his mouth, to Fuli's and Mafu's disgust.

"Ugh! Yeah, gotta love 'em." Fuli muttered sarcastically.

"I think I lost my appetite for a while." Tamu muttered in agreement.

"Eww! What's with the honey badgers eating bugs?" Mafu questioned, resisting the urge to puke.

"Moto, are you positive this leads to Flat Ridge Rock?" Fuli questioned warily. "Or did you took us this way to make our travel there a lot of harder on purpose?"

"More or less, cheetah." Moto replied indifferently. "But yep, this leads directly to the Flat Ridge Rock."

"But why did you even led us this way anyway?" Ono questioned.

"To harden you guys up, so that you'll be ready when we get there." Moto asnwered.

"Ready for what?" Beshte asked, looking up at the lion.

"Ready to drive that Scar Junior and traitor Bongo out of the Pride Lands for good." Moto said, shocking everyone. "No doubt they have decided to follow his grand uncle's paw prints by associating with the hyenas and is at this very moment rallying Janja's clan to invade the Pride Lands."

"No! Kion and Bongo would never do that!" Beshte said in denial.

"And neither would Bongo! He even hates hyenas more than anything!" Tamu protested.

"I beg your pardon. What did he say?" Bunga asked, having been all too focused on eating flies that he had missed everything the others have said.

"You just made that all up to tarnish Kion's reputation!" Fuli accused Moto angrily.

"You wanna bet?" Moto challenged. "Prove me wrong when we actually find that traitor prince and his little lackey associating with the hyenas out there."

Before Fuli could've said anything back, Ono, who had flew above the canopy of the forest to scan the savannah behind the woods, flew back down to them.

"Everyone! Everyone!" he called. "There's a ridge ahead with a flat rock on top of it! It's gotta be Flat Ridge Rock!"

"See? What did I tell you?" Moto said, giving the guard "I told you so" look.

"Then we're almost there!" Tamu said, smiling happily. "Are Kion and Bongo there already?"

"Not yet!" Ono replied. "They must be still on their way."

Bunga then let out a whoop. "Then what are we waiting for?! Zuka Zama! Kion and Bongo, here we come!" he hollered wildly and leapt into the water, splashing both water and mud onto Fuli, much to the cheetah's annoyance.

Fuli then decided that enough was enough. "This time, I'm leading the way." she said, stepping forward. "Comin' through."

With that, Fuli sped off, kicking up dust in her wake.

The rest of the group stared dumbfounded as the cheetah quickly vanished until she was no more than a speck of yellow in the distance.

"Boy, is she really in hurry." Konda remarked sarcastically.

Bunga, Beshte, Tamu and Ono glanced at each other, before the foursome, with Beshte still carrying Moto and his friends on his back, ran after her.

"Fuli, wait!" Bunga called. "How can you lead us when we can't keep up?"

As they ran, Tamu scowled at the three lions still lying on Beshte's back. "You three can hop off Beshte's back now. We're no longer wading in the water or mud. And you're just weighting Beshte down and slowing him down."

"Why should we?" Konda said, lazing down. "We like it up here."

"Yeah. Running just ain't my thing, unless I'm running after out next lunch." Mafu agreed.

"And besides..." Moto said, lying his head down over his crossed paws. "Ain't Beshte the strongest in the Pride Lands? Sure he can ran a long distance while carrying three lions lazing down on his back."

"Yeah, sure." Beshte muttered under his breath, already panting.

###

Backi in the Outlands, Bongo and Jasiri had finally managed to free Kion from the thorn bush, with Bongo helping to pluck the remaining branches from his coat.

Kion then turned to Jasiri, but didn't appear particularly grateful towards the hyena. "Thanks... I guess." he said bitterly.

Jasiri gave him "you gotta be kidding me" look. "You guess?" she challenged.

"Well, yeah! You could've told me the trail ended before I went over the hill." he argued.

"Yeah! You set him up to fall!" Bongo accused.

"Well, I already tried to tell you two you were going to wrong way, but somebody didn't listen." Jasiri teased. "And besides, I couldn't resist the opportunity to see the leader of the Lion Guard rolling down a hill." said Jasiri, laughing.

Both the prince and pup rolled their eyes, before letting out the defeated sigh. "Okay, okay, okay. You had your laugh. Now we're lost. Since you know the Outlands better than we do, can you tell me how to get to Flat Ridge Rock?"

Jasiri turned around and pointed at the trail in the distance. "Just follow that trail. It should take you to Flat Ridge Rock, and back to your beloved Pride Lands."

"Thanks." Kion said, giving the hyena a small nod before he and Bongo began walking towards the trail.

However, the second his put his paw to the ground, he let out a wince and a small gasp of pain.

"Kion?" Bongo said, worried for his friend.

"It's nothing." Kion said softly and kept going, though a sharp jolt of pain shot his paw up upon every contact it made with the ground.

"Wait..." Jasiri said, noticing this as well. "You're limping." she announced, he tone somewhat worried.

"I'm fine." Kion said quickly. "Just a little sore from the fall. I can handle it."

"What do you even care about it?" Bongo added sharply. "It's your fault he got hurt in the fall."

Jasiri pursed her lips and pressed her hears agains tthe back of her head, feeling guilty.

"Hey! Wait up!" she called, running after them before they could hobble too far away, making Kion and Bongo turn to her.

"Now what?" Bongo questioned, not really keen to have her around them any more than needed to.

Jasiri stopped near them. "Okay, tell ya what. I only wanted to prank you, not to get you hurt, Kion. And since it's kinda my fault that your hurt, I'll stick with you two until you can see Flat Ridge Rock."

Kion hesitated, looking very doubtful, while Bongo frowned and shook his head slightly, telling Kion not to accept.

However, Kion thought it over a moment before conceding. "Okay. I mean, if you want to."

"What I want?" Jasiri challenged with laugh, "I want you two out of my territory. Nothing's changed."

"Yeah?" Kion shot back. "Well, we too."

"The sooner the better." Bongo added, irritably grumpling over the fact that they needed to hang out with the hyena longer than what he'd liked.

With that, Jasiri began lead them in the path she knew would lead out of the Outlands.

###

Back in the Pride lands, Bunga, Beshte, Ono and Tamu - with Moto, Mafu and Konda still lazing on Beshte's back - grunted, sighed and panted wheezily out of exhaustion after running/flying across the whole savannah in order to keep up with the incredibly swift cheetah. The three animals felt like they were going to pass out any time soon as they made it to the top of the hill, with Ono, who seemed a little winded, resting on Tamu's back.

"Keep it down in there, will ya! We're trying to take a nap!" Konda demanded rudely, making the Guard members and Tamu groan annoyedly at the three lazy cats.

When Bunga pushed away some leaves, they were greeted by the sight that frustrated the weary travelers even further: Fuli was sitting on the flat rock, not the least bit winded, casually licking her front paw and cleaning herself up.

"FULI?!" all four animals gasped, making Fuli notice them.

"Hi guys. What took you guys so long?" she asked with the teasing smirk. "I even had time to clean up."

Tamu looked up at Fuli in wide-eyed disbelief, until she lowered her head down, struggling to stay up with her tired shaking legs. "Remind me to never again race with cheetah." she requested, before her legs gave out from underneath her and she dropped rather unceremoniously onto the grass beneath her.

Beshte gave Fuli a look. "Uh, Fuli. Usually Kion wouldn't go so far ahead that the rest of us have trouble keeping up." he reminded kindly.

"Yeah. Even Bongo would be patient enough to wait up for the rest of us." Bunga said, out of breath.

"Oh." Fuli said, just now realizing her mistake. "Sorry, guys."

"See you, guys?" Moto said smugly, interrupting them. "It was here, just like I said it would."

As the rest of the animals joined Fuli at the rock, with Ono flying off Tamu's back and landing next to Fuli on the rock, Bongo took a closer look at the rock.

"Wait! This is Flat Ridge Rock?" he asked.

"Well. unless there is something wrong in your eyes, honey badger..." Moto said as he hopped off Beshte's back, landing next to Bunga, making the honey badger to look up at the lion. "This rock is pretty flat and it is on the ridge."

"Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!" Bunga said, nodding very confidently. "I know this place! I've been here hundreds of times. You know there's a great shortcut we could have used." he bragged, earning a glare from Fuli, Ono, Beshte and even Tamu.

"BUNGA!" they groaned in unison.

Bunga looked at everyone innocently. "What?"

Moto rolled his eyes as Bunga. "Honey badgers. They don't even know whether their heads are in their bottoms or their tails on top of their shoulders."

Mafu and Konda then jumped off Beshte's back, allowing the hippo to have some rest at long last. However, the three lions then stepped on top of the Flat Ridge Rock, with Moto rudely slapping Ono off with his paw, making his shout, before pushing Fuli out of his way.

"Ow! Hey!" Fuli shouted, glaring at the three lions for their rudeness.

"Now that we got you here..." Moto said, before he rested on top of the Flat Ridge Rock. "Me and my pals can lie down and relax after so much of the hard work."

"Hard work?!" Tamu questioned in disbelief. "We're the ones here who worked all along, while you three did nothing more but lazed on Beshte's back!"

"Yeah!" Bunga said, glaring up at the lions while pointing his claw up at them. "We we're looking for that Flat Ridge Rock, so it is our Flat Ridge Rock, and it is our right to rest on it."

"Then come and try to get it, smelly thing." Konda said, before he rudelly kicked Bunga back with his hind leg.

"Hey!" Beshte complained. "That wasn't nice thing to do!"

"Oh, what are you gonna do about it, hippo? Stop flat on top of us with your over-sized bottom?" Konda added, making him and Mafu burst out into the laughing.

This earning the two of them an annoyed glared from Beshte, Bunga and Tamu.

While his friends were teasing the rest of the Lion Guard, Moto was the only one who looked far into the Outlands, searching with his eyes for both Kion and Bongo. The lion then sniffed the air a bit and grimaced in disgust.

"Hmm... this part of the Outlands happens to be Janja's territory. We better keep our eyes peeled for the hyenas and their Scar Junior leader and his pet... and then STRIKE ON THEM when they least expect it." Moto instructed to both Fuli and Ono, who göared up at him. "I will take Mr. Scar Junior head on while the rest of you handle his minions."

"Moto, we're telling you, there is no way Kion and Bongo would have anything to do with the hyenas." Ono said, trying to reason with the lion though it was obvious that he will not listen to him.

"And if you pounce on Kion just to satisfy your own spite against him, I'll pounce on you and I don't care if you're bigger and stronger than I am." Fuli growled threateningly.

"And I'll bite off your tail..." Tamu threatened, standing by Fuli's side while glaring up at the mean lion. "if you try to lay any harm on Bongo on my watch."

"Fine." Moto said with the shrug and without paying any glance at them. "Let them invade the Pride Lands with their hyena army as you please. But don't come crawling back to me complaining that I wasn't right when we have another tyrant on the throne of Pride Rock."

The Guard and Tamu growled at Moto's shallowness before looking out into the Outlands, wondering what was keeping with Kion and Bongo.

###

Back in the Outlands, an unlikely trio of predators from three different species was still walking down the path leading from the Outlands and into the very edge of the Pride Lands.

On the way, they run into an insect who sat chirping on a nearby rock when, suddenly, a chameleon snatched it into his mouth with its tongue before running off.

"See that? That's the Circle of Life for you." Kion said, glancing at Jasiri.

"Wait. You think I don't know about the Circle of Life?" Jasiri asked in disbelief and sounding offended.

"Well..." Kion said with the shug. "you are a hyena." Again the word hyena came out of his mouth as if it were toxic.

"And the hyenas don't care about the Circle of Life. All they care about is filling their bellies as much as they like and nothing else." Bongo pointed out with the half-glare.

This time Jasiri was having enough with the two's biased views of her and her kind, so she glowered down at the two with an uncharacteristic fury in her eyes.

"Look, Bongo." she said coldly. "Just because a hyena killed your mother doesn't mean we're all the same, so you should know better than to accuse the entire species for the crimes of one single individual. How many mother hyenas do you think the wild dogs have remorselessly killed in front of their children, thus earning their prejudiced hatred for the same crime?"

Bongo was speechless at this, and he couldn't really find the words to say anything against this, allowing Jasiri to turn her cold glare at Kion.

"And Kion, I'm well aware of Janja's Clan being greedy and prefers to eat more than their share, but most hyenas respect the Circle of Life." Jasiri explained as she walked ahead. "Some of us take only what we need to survive so that the Circle of Life won't be disrupted, while others are rather the clean-up crews, picking up after all the sloppy eaters." she added, turning back to the two. "For example, we hyenas eat whatever you lions and wild dogs leave behind from your kills to keep the spread of diseases at bay."

Kion and Bongo looked at her in surprise. "Oh, guess we never really thought about it like that."

Jasiri laughed again. "Of course not. You think hyenas, lions and wild dogs are so different. But we're not. We're more similiar than you two think. Sisi ni sawa."

"You're saying we're the same?" Kion asked with a raised eyebrow, before shaking his head. "No. I don't think so."

"Yeah. Nuh-uh! We are not the same." Bongo agreed.

Kion
You think that life is one big game

Bongo
You joke, you laugh, you take no blame

Kion & Bongo
We're telling you, there's just no way that we're the same

Kion and Bongo walked around the stone Jasiri was sitting on before the two turned their backs to her. Jasiri only rolled her eyes at the two's naivery before hopping off the rock.

Jasiri
You've got to look past what you see

Try not to judge so easily

She walked up to Kion and Bongo, circling around of them and nudging them both slightly with her shoulder.

Believe it or not you're both a lot like me

Say believe it or not you're a lot like me

With that, she made a dramatic leap to a ledge jutting out from the rock wall.

Sisi ni sawa means we're the same

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

She then hopped from the ledge and over Kion and Bongo before continuing to follow the trail. Kion and Bongo, looking confused, slowly followed her.

Kion
We hear what you're saying

Bongo
But you need to explain

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Jasiri led them to the puddle and indicated them look into it.

Jasiri
At the end of the day, we're like water and rain

Sisi ni sawa we are the same

Both Kion and Bongo looked down at their reflection, trying to figure out what exactly makes them similiar with Jasiri with the raised brows, before turning to her, as Jasiri was dancing along the trail by quickly moving her legs..

Maybe I laugh

You bark and you purr

But take a look under the fur

Deep in our hearts, it's what matters for sure

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

While following the singing hyena, Kion began to think that maybe she or most of the hyenas weren't so bad after all, with even his lips cracking up into a warm smile. Bongo, however, wore a neutral look on his face, finding it difficult to decide whether he should still hate her or should he heed to her word that the hyenas were not all bad.

Jasiri
Since we three know a higher call

Like every creature big and small

Racing down the trail, Jasiri in the lead, Kion in the middle and Bongo last, they came up to the trail of ants crawling over the boulder and stopped to look at them.

The Circle of Life should be what's guiding us all

The Circle of Life will guide us all

Sisi ni sawa means we're the same

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Bongo
Though we got our spots

Kion
And I have a mane

While Jasiri and Bongo were showing off their spots, with Kion flicking the tuft of mane on top of his head, the animals began to understand that they weren't all that different. Even Bongo regained his smile out of enjoyment, thought still remained neutral with Jasiri.

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Kion, Bongo and Jasiri stopped by another puddle to look at their reflections.

Jasiri
At the end of the day, we're like water and rain

Sisi ni sawa we are the same

Kion, Bongo & Jasiri
Sisi ni sawa we are the same

Jasiri was again doing some quick-footed dance with her legs, and this time, Bongo and Kion joined her.

Kion
Never thought that we see eye to eye

Bongo
Can't even imagine why

Jasiri
It's very easy if you try

Bongo
Still to us, they're brand new thoughts

Kion
Not to judge hyenas by their spots

Jasiri
Sisi ni sawa

Sisi ni sawa means we're the same

Bongo
Forget about the past

Kion
When there's nothing to gain

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Jasiri, Kion and Bongo then slid down a steep slope one by one, before all three of them skid to stop by a third puddle, where Kion and Bongo look down at their reflections.

Kion, Bongo & Jasiri
At the end of the day, we're like water and rain

Sisi ni sawa we are the same

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Jasiri then hops on top of them both, before all three of them stand side by side, Kion in the left, Bongo in the middle and Jasiri in the right, looking at their reflections together.

Kion, Bongo & Jasiri
Sisi ni sawa means we're the same

With Kion's lead, Bongo in the middle and Jasiri in the rear, the three are walking zig-zagging to the left and right in the row.

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Kion, Bongo & Jasiri
Forget about the past

When there's nothing to gain

Chorus
Sisi Ni Sawa

Kion, Bongo & Jasiri
At the end of the day, we're like water and rain

Sisi ni sawa we are the same

with Jasiri's switching to Bongo's by the vibrations caused by the leaf, and Bongo's switching to Kion's by the vibrations of the second leaf. Jasiri then playfully splashes water over Kion, before Bongo playfully nudges the hyena into the puddle and Kion hops into the puddle, splashing water around, before the three animals run off.

Sisi ni sawa we are the same

Jasiri
Sisi ni sawa we are the same

###

After traveling the trail some time more, they were getting now close enough that they could almost see Flat Ridge Rock in the distance. However, Jasiri suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and sniffed the air, becoming very tense.

"What's wrong?" Kion asked.

Bongo also sniffed the air and became instantly very alerted. "Hyenas. Janja's."

"Yes. We're in Janja's territory now." she said grimly, looking around.

Hearing that, Bongo raised a brow suspiciously at Jasiri. "Jasiri? You didn't...?"

Jasiri chuckled, knowing what Bongo meant. "Don't worry, Bongo. I hadn't led you into a trap. You see, me and Janja go a way back and we don't get along." she then turned to look up to the cliffs. "But don't worry. Flat Ridge Rock is right over there. Just a little further and you're almost home."

Kion smiled at this. "Asante, Jasiri. Thanks for your help."

"Well... thanks... for taking us back home... Jasiri." Bongo said, unable to help it if he felt a little awkward to thank a hyena for her help.

Jasiri nodded them with the smile. "Sure. Bye, Kion! Bye, Bongo!"

Kion and Bongo then began to climb up the cliff to get to the Flat Ridge Rock while Jasiri turned on her heel to return home the same way she had come.

"Hey, Jasiri?" Kion called, making Jasiri turn back to him. "If you ever need my help, you know where to find us." the prince offered.

Jasiri, however, laughed at this as if it was some funny joke. "Help? From a lion and a wild dog? That's a good one." she snickered before going on her way.

"Okay." Kion said, shacking his head slightly, as he and Bongo when on their way too.

"I'm not surprised. She's both a hyena and the Outlander. She can take care of herself." Bongo said, neutrally confident in Jasiri's abilities to survive on her own.

Jasiri continued walking through of Janja's territory, looking warily around of her and hoping to get back to her own territory without alerting Janja or his clan about her presence or else she'd be in a lots of trouble.

Suddenly, Jasiri was alerted by some peddles that fell from higher cliffs behind her, making her jump back in surprise and turn around to see if there was anyone behind her.

Realizing that she might have been spotted, Jasiri attempted to turn around and leave while she could, only to find herself face-to-face with a very foul-mooded Janja.

"JANJA!" Jasiri gasped, stepping back.

"Well, well, if it isn't Jasiri." Janja said smugly, "Thought I told you to stay off our turf."

Jasiri held her ground and glared back at the bigger hyena. "Just passing through. So move. Or do I have to move you myself?"

However, Nne, Cheezi and Chungu then appeared from behind the rocks to their leader's side, backing him up, snickering as they did.

"Big talk, coming from someone who's all alone." Janja snarled confidently.

"Okay. I'll take another path." Jasiri shrugged, turning around.

However, her eyes went wide and she let out a small yelp in worry when she saw the rest of Janja's clan, Tano, Sita, Saba, Nane and Atisa emerging growling from behind the rocks, blocking her way and leaving her trapped in middle of the clan.

Swallowing any fear she felt in her veins, Jasiri turned back to Janja with the mocking smirk. "So, you figured out that the four of you didn't stand a chance again me."

"Come on, boys. Let's remind Jasiri what happens to someone who wanders into our part of the Outlands." Janja said as he led his hyenas to surround the cornered female hyena.

"These all the hyenas you got Janja?!" Jasiri asked, bracing herself to fight. She knew that she could single-handedly deal with most of the enemy hyenas... but the whole clan? She'd be torn apart!

However, unbeknowst to her or her attackers, her voice had reached to the ears of two certain allies nearby as they were half-way of their way up to the Flat Ridge Rock.

"Jasiri?" Kion said, recognizing her voice.

"What's going on?" Bongo asked with the frown.

The two stopped their climbing and made their way to the cliff overlooking the trail they had used to get here, only to gasp from shock upon seeing Jasiri being cornered and attacked by Janja's whole clan.

"Hevi Kabisa!" Kion gasped.

Bongo's eyes went wide from horror, as if the situation down there had all of the sudden reminded him about something.

Kion was then about to go down there to help Jasiri just like she had helped them. "C'mon! We gotta hurry!"

Kion slid carefully down to the ledge just beneath of them, but stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed that Bongo wasn't following him.

"C'mon, Bongo! We've gotta help her!" Kion ordered, but then saw himself that Bongo wasn't moving a muscle to follow him. "Bongo?"

However, though initially believing that Bongo felt hesitant and maybe even reluctant to lay a paw to help their new friend, Kion was taken aback by seeing Bongo having closed his eyes tight shut and was gritting his teeth, swinging his head left and right and letting out a small yelps and whining as if he was in immense pain.

"Bongo?!" Kion said, concernedly, and climbed back to the ledge Bongo was and stood right by his friend's side, while the pup was wiping his closed eyes with his paw as if he had got something in his eye. "Bongo? What's wrong?"

Bongo then dropped down, flat on his stomach to the ledge they were standing on and put his paws over his head. "No! No! No! No, don't! Please! Leave her alone! Please, leave her alone! Don't! Please! No! No! No! Mother! Mother! NO!" he whined.

FLASHBACK

In the ravine, deep within in heart of the terrible place that wasn't anywhere in the Outlands, but in a lot of worse place that neighboured the Pride Lands, the Elephant Graveyard, where the dead land was littered the rotten skulls and carcasses of the long dead elephants, including this ravine, where the tight space was illuminated by the red glowing geysers.

Across of the ravine was running a female wild dog with abnormally pearl-white coat with a slightly grey-tinted underbelly, face and stripe between her ears and a peach-tan spots with a darker toned linings, and her eyes were bright sky blue and her paws were dark brown. She was carrying in her mouth a small wild dog infant by the scruff in the neck, whose appearance bore a strong resemblance of Bongo.

It was likely Bongo as an infant, while the white and "golden" wild dog was likely his mother.

Bongo's mother appeared to be running for her life while trying to take Bongo safely away from this terrible place.

She looked behind her over her shoulders, seeing the menacing hyena-like shadows reflecting from the walls around them as their oners were chasing them, their haunting laughter echoing in the ravine.

THEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE!

Infant Bongo looked around in fear: the world around him was fiery orange, yellow and red, fiery geysers were erupting all around of them with such of ferocity that startled him, and the fiery light casted the terrifying shadows of the dead elephants corpses that stared down at him. Not to mention about the hyenas' glowing eyes staring at them evilly from every dark corner, from behind of every rock, from inside every gap and the cave in the walls, even from inside the elephant skulls.

And when the geyser erupted right next to him and his mother, three hyenas popped their heads through of the fiery steam.

"BOO!" the lead hyena in the middle, one with a couple of scars across her left eye, cuple other scars running across the left side of her mouth and huge chunk of her right ear missing, shouted with the spooky voice.

"AGH!" infant Bongo yelped, scared by this jump scar performed by the hyenas.

"THEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE-HEE!" the hyenas laughed, before the lead hyena snapped her fangs at Bongo's face, only for her mother to pull him away from the hyena's reach.

Bongo's mother continued running as the hyenas' shadows kept chasing them along the floor and the walls all over, until she reached to the end of the ravine, a dead end, where the shadows had them cornered and surrounded.

However, not willing give up with her baby's safety at stake, Bongo's mother hurriedly began to climb along the boulders and ledges of the stone wall to the top of the cliff at the same time as the shadows of the hyenas reached the end of the ravine.

Reaching to the top of the cliff, Bongo's mother put Bongo gently down to the ground as she began to pull herself up, while the hyenas' laugher intensified down in the ravine.

Suddenly, much to Bongo's shock, his mother was dragged by her hind leg back into the ravine!

Her mother tried to pull herself back up with all her might, but it was no use as it was like the entire hyena clan joined in pulling her back down, leaving her clinging with her claws for dear life from the edge.

"Mamma! Mamma! Mamma!" Bongo cried, eyes welling with tears out of fear for her as he tried desperately pull his mother back to the edge, but it was hopeless against the might of the hyena clan that kept pulling her mother away from him.

Bongo's mother and infant Bongo then locked their widened eyes with each other: Bongo's welling eyes were filled with horror and fear for his mother, while his mother's eyes were filled with fear for not herself but for her pup, but also with an utmost love for him and relief that at least he might survive from this even if she didn't.

"It's alright, sweetie. It's alright. No matter what happens, mommy loves you always so much." was all Bongo's mother could say to him.

"Love you too, mamma." Bongo whispered with the shaken voice.

His mother gave him a one last warm and affectional smile, one that Bongo will remember forever since this night.

And then, Bongo's mother was gone when the hyena clan forcibly pulled her off the edge and down into the ravine.

Horrified, Bongo ran to the edge and looked down, as his mother's shadow fell in middle of the hyenas' shadows, who all lunged at her all together from all sides, tearing her apart, in front of her son.

"NOOOO!" Bongo cried as he watched helplessly as his mother was taken from him. "MAMMA! MAMMA!"

END OF THE FLASHBACK

Bongo then snapped out of it, eyes shot wide open and panting heavily.

"Bongo?!" the echo of Kion's voice called. "Bongo! Can you hear me?! Bongo?! Bongo?! Bongo?!"

Bongo didn't respond to Kion calling his name. Too caught by the horrors of the flashback of the day when he lost his mother to the hyenas. He even still saw in his eyes the red-illuminated Elephant Graveyard in the place of the Outlands, with the hyenas' shadows reflecting from the walls, and hearing their haunting laughter in the air.

Kion, however, knowing that Jasiri was running out of time, had no choice but to cuff the wild dog pup across his face with his paw, hoping to snap him out of it.

"OW!" Bongo yelped, turning to Kion with puzzled look over his face, while rubbing his right cheek with his paw. "Kion? Whatta...?"

"Bongo?" Kion cut him off. "Are you okay?" he asked, worried.

Bongo didn't respond again, but instead shook his head to get it clear and looked frantically around, trying to quickly catch up where they were or what was happening.

After a moment, he saw that they weren't in the Elephant Graveyard but in the Outlands, right above of the trail Jasiri had led them to the Flat Ridge Rock.

However, the memory of Jasiri quickly brought him back to the present, and he swiftly turned to Kion.

"Kion? Where's Jasiri?" he asked frantically.

"Down there!" Kion said, nodding down into the trail. "Surrounded by Janja's clan!"

Upon hearing the peril their new friend, and a first friendly hyena they had met, was in, Bongo looked down into the trail, and his eyes narrowed into a glare, before he pushed himself back on his feet.

"Then let's go, Kion! We need to help her!" Bongo said, determinedly

Kion was literally taken aback by Bongo's sudden willingness to help Jasiri, despite his strong grudge-holding-turned-neutrality towards her and the hyenas in general.

"Bongo? You said that Jasiri can take care of herself because she's the hyena and an Outlander, and now you're all too willing to help her." Kion pointed out, slightly puzzled by the sudden chance in Bongo's mannerism. "What changed your mind about that?"

Because..." Bongo started, his eyes flaring. "No one should suffer the same fate in the teeth of the hyenas just like my mother did. Not even Jasiri, despite her being one of their kind."

Kion smiled at his friend, all too glad that he wasn't going to let his grudge against the hyenas or his neutrality towards Jasiri to stand in his way. "So are you with me?" Kion questioned.

"Till the Pride Lands' end." Bongo responded.

###

The hyenas closed on cornered Jasiri, wearing the malevolent grins on their lips.

"Okay! Who's first?" Jasiri dared them.

Nne snickered. "Wanna make a pick? We got a lot of hyenas here." the hunched hyena countered, before turning to Cheezi. "Cheezi? Wanna be first?"

Cheezi let out an insane laughter before he attempted to tackle Jasiri, only for the female hyena to head-but him back hard, forcing Nne to duck as Cheezi hit into Sita, knocking the him down and ending up getting tangled with the fellow hyena.

Jasiri laughed confidentially. "Who's next?" she taunted.

Nne growled and lunged at Jasiri, but she stepped out of the hyena's way, before grabbing a hold of his mane with her teeth and pulling him around her, before tossing Nne into Tano, knocking them down as well.

Jasiri smiled. Maybe her chances weren't so bad after all. "Next?" she dared.

Annoyed, Janja ordered Chungu to attack her. A large hyena approached her, chuckling, until Jasiri began to snap her teeth ferociously at his feet and face.

"HEY!" Chungu squealed, startled by Jasiri's ferocity that he stood up on his hind legs, only to fall back and onto Saba.

Having enough, Janja charged at her and managed to take her by surprise, tackling her down and pinning her to the ground, backed up by Nane and Atisa.

"Enough playing around!" Janja growled, preparing to kill her, until a shadow fell over him.

"JANJA!" Kion's voice called, making the hyena leader look up in confusion.

All the hyenas, Jasiri included, looked up to see Kion and Bongo standing against the sun on top of the cliff, glaring down at Janja.

"Till the Pride Lands' end, LION GUARD DEFEND!" Kion and Bongo said in unision, with their marks flashing, powering up the two, before they leaped down in front of Janja.

Kion swatted the hyena off Jasiri with his paw, while Bongo landed onto Nane's head, pinning him down, before kicking Atisa in the face with his hind leg, knocking him away.

Janja grunted as he hit the ground, before looking up. "Kion? Bongo?" he called, confused to see them here.

The two stood protectively around of Jasiri, allowing the female hyena to stand up. "What are you still doing here?"

"We're here to help." Kion said.

"Whether you like it or not." Bongo added, giving Jasiri a knowing smile.

Jasiri was taken aback by this, until the three quickly went back-to-back, ready to defend each other and themselves from Janja's Clan as they approached them from everywhere.

"If you say so." said Jasiri, shrugging. "But I've got them right where I want 'em!"

She quickly proved this by scooping some sand in her paw and threw it into Sita and Saba's eyes, making the two hyenas yelp in surprise, before Jasiri kicked them away one by one.

"Yeah, I can tell." Kion said before he swatted Chungu away with his paw, while Jasiri turned to recovered Sita and growled fiercely at him, making the hyena back away with the whimber.

Bongo was circling with Atisa, both of them sizing each other while letting out a fierce growls, before Atisa lunged forward in attempt to bite Bongo, who ducked it and moved behind him.

"Hey! Nane! Over here!" the pup taunted, before blowing a raspberry at the thuggish hyena, who angered by this lunged at Bongo in attempt to bite him, only to end up to bite Atisa in his bottom as Bongo stepped out of the way just in time.

Atisa yelped in pain, and turned to angrily growl at Nane for his mistake, only for the pair to fail to notice Bongo performing a donkey-kick in their faces, knocking them both over their sides.

Kion jumped to the wall befopre bouncing off, landing onto Nne's back and pinning him down. Tano growled at him, before Kion cuffed him across the face and then knocked him back with the uppercut. Then Kion head-butted Cheezi away as he charged at him.

Kion then glanced at his friends, seeing Bongo rolling in the ground with Chungu on top of him before the pup kicked him off with his legs, while Jasiri swatted Saba down with her paw, before looking at Kion.

"Kion! Behind you!" Jasiri gasped.

"Watch out!" Bongo warned.

Kion turned around and saw that Nne was trying to have Cheezi, Chungu and Tano to attack him in numbers. However, Bongo attacked Cheezi, grabbing from his tail and then throwing him into Chungu, knocking them away, while Jasiri skidded to Nne and kicked him away, before tackling Tano, pinning him down.

"Nice moves, guys." Kion praised, only to see Sita and Saba approaching Jasiri from behind, ready to attack. "Wow! Jasiri, look out!" Kion warned, before he quickly pushed her out of the way and delivered a powerful head-butt to Sita, knocking the hyena out cold and leaving himself dizzy.

Saba tried to take an advantage of Kion's dizziness and attack him, only to get clawed in the snout by Bongo, which forced to hyena to retreat with the whimber.

Kion then shook his head clear just as Jasiri stood back up between him and Bongo."Thanks. You're not so bad yourself, for a lion and wild dog." she complimented back.

However, the three lowered their ears when they saw Janja's whole clan coming at them again.

"Uh oh. It looks like we're cornered." Kion said worriedly as they backed.

Regaining the control of the situation with sheer numbers, the hyenas surrounded the trio from all sides and pushed them against the wall, with Janja stepping in front of his clan, cackling how the things were in their favor.

"Got you now." Janja cackled hysterically, with his whole clan laughing with him.

"Kion! We're surrounded and outnumbered! You know how we can survive from this, right?" Bongo said, hoping that Kion was thinking what he was thinking.

"A way ahead of you." Kion responded, before he blocked Jasiri as she was about to attack. "Jasiri, you and Bongo get behind me! Now!"

Jasiri looked confused. "What? Why?"

"Trust me." Kion said.

"Better listen to him, Jasiri." Bongo said as he knowingly withdrew behind his friend.

Jasiri looked at them both blankly, before she rolled her eyes and obeyed. "Can't believe I'm trusting a lion." she muttered and withdrew behind Kion, leaving the prince to stand alone against the whole clan.

"I'm warning you, Janja! Leave now, before I'll make you all to leave!" Kion warned.

Jasiri turned to Bongo. "Why Kion thinks he can beat them all on his own?" she asked.

"You'll see." was Bongo's only reply, deciding to leave it as a surprise for her.

"Don't know why you and Bongo are in the Outlands helping a hyena, Kion. But it's the last thing you're gonna do." Janja snarled, chuckling evilly before turning to his hyenas. "Get 'em, boys."

The hyenas approached them, ready to go straight at them.

"Cotcha now!" Chungu sneered.

"Yeah! You can't escape from us this time!" Nne cackled.

Cheezi let out another insane laughter.

But before the hyenas could attack them, the wind around them began to pick up at fast rate, which Jasiri noticed, looking up with slight fear of what was happening. The hyenas noticed this too, and remembering from the last time, they knew what was coming and immediately backed away from the three.

Kion's eyes, and his mark, flashed fiercely, before the prince opened his muzzle wide open and unleashed his Roar, with the five Lions appearing in the clouds, roaring with him. Seeing this, Jasiri's eyes went wide from amazement.

RRRROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!

###

At the Flat Ridge Rock, while the Guard, Tamu and Moto's gang were waiting for Kion to arrive, they all were startled the loud echo of Kion's Roar coming from the wide canyon in the Outlands, not to ofar from them, and saw five cloudly Lions in the sky right on top of that spot.

"What's the kerbubble?" Beshte asked, startled.

"That was Kion's Roar! Coming from that canyon right over there!" Ono said, pointing his beak at where the Roar echoed.

"But if Kion's using his Roar... at Janja's territory... then that means..." Tamu said, putting two and two together.

Bunga let out the gasp, knowing what this could mean. "Zuka Zama! Kion and Bongo are in trouble!" the honey badger said and jumped over the ridge and into the Outlands.

"C'mon!" Fuli shouted as she sprung after Bunga, followed by Ono, Tamu and Beshte.

Only Moto, Mafu and Konda remained behind to watch Lion Guard running into the Outlands for Kion's aid.

"So... what shall we do now, Moto?" Konda asked from his leader.

"Can we go now to pick a zebra for a lunch?" Mafu asked hungrily. "These rescue missions are the Lion Guard's job, not ours."

However, Moto had another thoughts than just simply leaving here. "No. We're not leaving here just yet. I want to see what kind of company our little Mr. Scar Junior has been with during of his suspiciously long stay in the Outlands. His father would love to hear such of news. C'mon!"

With that, Moto jumped off the Flat Ridge Rock and ran into the Outlands after the Lion Guard, while his two minions looked him go with hesitation wrapped over their faces.

"Ohh! Do we really have to go into the Outlands?" Mafu questioned, both out of boredom and fear.

"Don't want to. But I guess that we just should go." Konda said wiuth the shrug, before he and Mafu jumped off the rock and bolted into the Outlands.

###

As Kion kept Roaring, the power of the blast sent Janja's whole clan flying back, until its members ended up to be tangled and piled up over each other, with Janja in the bottom of the whole pile.

"Ugh! I hate that Roar." he groaned groggily, before he looked up and whimpered, seeing Kion standing tall in front of him, giving him and burning glare as a warning. "C'mon, boys!" he ordered.

The hyenas then untangled themselves and fled the scene, rather quickly vanishing out of the sight behind of the rocks and corners or into the caves, while Bongo and Jasiri walked up to Kion's side, with the latter laughing a rich, booming laughter.

"Look at 'em go!" she said, chuckling. "That is the funniest thing I've ever seen!"

The trio then shared a good laughter at the enemy hyenas' hasty retreat.

"Okay, that 'Roar' thing, that is definitely something we don't have in common." Jasiri said, turning to the two.

"Yeah, but who cares?" Bongo countered. "We saw you in action, proving me right about you being capable to taking care of yourself just fine."

"Yeah. You don't even need the Roar." Kion agreed.

Jasiri grinned. "You know, I never thought a lion and a wild dog would help a hyena." she admitted, before bumping the two in the shoulders, knocking them away a bit, surprising the two a bit.

"Well, not all the lions are alike either." Kion replied shrugging it off.

"Yeah. I guess the same could be said about us wild dogs as well." Bongo added.

The hyena smiled bashfully at the two, especially Kion.

"Hey! I can see them!" one voice called from the canyon behind them.

"They're over there!" another voice called.

Cocking a brow in confusion, Jasiri turned towards the source of the voices, and it didn't take long before the Lion Guard and Tamu appeared around the corner, skidding to stop upon seeing their two missing friends.

"Kion! Middle B!" Bunga called, happy to see his friends were alright.

"Bongo!" Tamu called, happy and relieved to see him. "Bongo, are you alright?"

However, the Guard's and Tamu's eyes then landed on Jasiri and were rather shocked to see Kion and Bongo with the hyena, and none of them looked too pleased to see her.

Fuli was first to hunch low and growl threateningly at Jasiri, while her mark flashed in her shoulder as it enpowered her. Though initially shocked by this, Jasiri quickly recovered from it and hunched low, growling back at the cheetah.

Tamu bared her teeth as she stood by Fuli's side, growling at Jasiri as well, while Bunga held his fists up, ready for the brawl, and both Beshte and Ono stared the female hyena down, with all three's own marks flashing.

"Back off, hyena!" Fuli growled and stepped towards Jasiri, ready to attack, while the hyena braced herself to fight if needed be.

"Leave our friends alone!" Tamu demanded, stepping in to back Fuli up.

Before the situation could escalate any further, Kion and Bongo both stepped in the middle of the girls. "Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Take it easy! She's a friend." he said reassuringly.

"Not a bad hyena! A friendly! Friendly hyena!" Bongo assured, looking directly at Tamu.

"Huh?!" Tamu gasped with the quirked brow, taken aback by such of claim. "A hyena? A friend?"

"What?!" Fuli gasped, dumbfounded as well as she straightened her posture. "She is?"

Even Jasiri was taken aback that both Kion and Bongo were calling her as their friend. "I... I am?"

"Definitely." Kion assured with the smile.

"Undoubtedly." Bongo added with the nod.

Bunga, who as well looked thoroughly confused, approached Kion. "But she's a hyena." he whispered into Kion's ear.

Tamu then approached Bongo to confront him. "Are you and Kion sure about this? Remember what you lost because of her kind, Bongo." she said, nodding her head at Jasiri.

"Yeah, we know, but not all hyenas are like Janja." Kion explained. "Most of them are good and even respect the Circle of Life. And Jasiri here is one of them."

"And I learned from her an important lesson, that I shouldn't judge her entire species for my loss because of another one of her kind. It wasn't her fault, but some other hyena's." Bongo said.

Without the Guard's, Tamu's or Jasiri's notice, Moto, Mafu and Konda came around the corner right behind Beshte. Mafu and Konda were shocked to see the prince being with the hyena, while Moto was shocked to hear Kion claiming that there are good hyenas who respect the Circle of Life. Unable to believe that, Moto glared up at Jasiri like an low insect.

"Really?" Fuli said, her lips curving up into a smile.

"A friendly hyena who respects the Circle of Life? Get out of here." Tamu said with the chuckle, unable to decide whether or not she should believe them.

"No, it's true." Bongo said, realizing Tamu's thoughts. "She got us through the Outlands."

"And... uhh... she helped me out of the thorn bush I got stuck in after I fell off the cliff." Kion admitted, sounding a little embarrassed over that incident.

Fuli of course was the first one to burst into a laughter after hearing that. "You? Fiercest of the Pride Lands? Got stuck in a thorn bush?"

"Flat on his back, if I may add." Jasiri added with the smirk.

"Oh, I should've seen that!" Fuli wheezed through laughs.

"Anyway, even if they didn't had to, Kion and Bongo saved me from Janja and his clan." Jasiri said, looking gratefully at the two.

The Guard took a moment to consider this. It was unbelievable that a hyena and lion plus wild dog, a natural enemies, would help each other. But at the same time, if Kion and Bongo trusted Jasiri, then why shouldn't they too.

"Well, any friend of Kion and Bongo's is a friend of ours." Beshte declared.

Kion was pleased to hear that. "You should've seen her take on Cheezi, Nne and Chungu. She was fierce."

"One hyena against the whole clan, and she single-handledly defeated, what, way more than even half of them!" Bongo added.

Jasiri felt flattered by the prince and the wild dog pup.

"A friendly hyena who helped a lion and a wild dog, and who respects the Circle of Life?" Tamu repeated, giving Jasiri a blunt look, before she changed it into a sweet smile. "I think I can live with that one."

"Yeah. I think I'm liking her already." Fuli said, tilting her head as if praising Jasiri.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Kopa's voice said, making everyone to turn to him and his friends. Kion and Bongo were shocked to see the trio of bullies here with the Lion Guard.

"Who's that?" Jasiri asked.

"More likely, what are they doing here?" Bongo questioned.

Tamu grimaced in awkwardness of the situation. "Moto offered to show us the way to Flat Ridge Rock... something we didn't want to accept unless we had to."

"And what are you three still doing here?" Fuli asked with the narrowed glare.

"To see whether my suspicions were true. And here it is!" Moto said, gesturing his paw towards Kion and Jasiri in contempt. "Just like his granduncle, he has made the friends with the hyena, the enemy of the Pride Lands! With this and the Roar, he is becoming even more like a Scar every passing day!"

Everybody, including Jasiri, gapped at Moto in shock, before their eyes narrowed in a disdain towards the bully.

"You, miss..." Moto said, pointing a clawed finger accusingly at Jasiri. "are nothing but a filthy lying hyena with no place in the Circle of Life!" then he turned to Kion. "And if you believe her lies, then I see through of you, Scar Junior! You may have fooled everybody else, but not me! I know exactly what you're planning."

Any member of the Guard was about to give him a piece of their mind, but Jasiri beat them all to it.

"What do you even know about the Circle of Life?" she questioned, making Moto to turn to her. "Or are you just so blind and just so shallow that you can't see the goodness in anyone else, like Kion and the Lion Guard here does, with the little nudge of course, except in yourself, which I can see as petty and false belief when I look at you."

Angered over this, Moto bared his teeth and took a step towards Jasiri as if intenting to attack her, but one by one, Kion, Bongo, Fuli, Bunga, Tamu, Ono and Beshte stepped in to stand up for Jasiri to Moto and his friends.

"You know? She has a point." Ono said in agreement. "Didn't you said, Moto, that you and your friends were going to pick on the zebra foals before running into us?"

"Not to mention of having one of them for lunch." Tamu recalled.

"And you even claimed that as lions, you are above of everything and everyone, and that all the others should learn their place." Fuli reminded.

"And that's called the abuse of your species' strength and power." Beshte agreed.

"And you didn't do anything but lazed all the way up to the Flat Ridge Rock." Bunga pointed out, even if that was pretty petty compared to anything else.

Jasiri let out a chuckle. "See? While Janja and his clan is giving us hyenas a bad name, you're doing exactly the same to your own species."

"You filthly little...!" Moto growled and prepared to pounce through the Lion Guard to Jasiri, but was stopped by Bongo who got in the way.

"Get our of here, Moto! You're finished here!" the pup demanded. "And even I can see that Jasiri is better than you can ever be."

"Yeah?" Moto challenged. "Well, have you forgotten what her kind did to your mother? By befriending with one of those who killed her, you have betrayed her memory!"

Bongo's eyes went wide and they flashed with rage at the mention of his mother in such of way by this bully. "Don't go there, Moto. I'm warning you." he said with the low and cold voice through his gritted teeth.

"Uh, oh." Bunga said with the smirk, knowing what was about to happen.

"Well, I bet that your mother would look upon you from beyond the grave with such of disappointment that..." Moto said, pointing his clawed finger down at the pup, until he was cut off when Bongo lunged forward with the fierce bark and bit the bully in his finger.

"AHHHH!" Moto roared in pain and stepped back, holding up his paw to see the finger Bongo had bitten, seeing it having been turned red and swollen.

Mafu and Konda looked upon this in shock, while the Lion Guard, Jasiri and Tamu smiled proudly at Bongo, who held his head high as he stared down on Moto and his friends.

Hissing in pain in his finger, Moto decided to retreat from the scene with his friends, to lick his wounds and mope over it, but not before glaring back at the Lion Guard, Jasiri and Tamu.

"This isn't over, Lion Guard! Mark my words, you'll be sorry for this!" he swore, before he turned to Jasiri. "And I better not see you showing your face in the Pride lands, hyena, or you'll regret it." And finally, he turned to Kion. "And just you wait till your father hears about this, Scar Junior!" he threatened, before vanishing from sight.

With them gone, Bongo turned to everybody else. "You know, Jasiri... I think I hate those three way more than what I initially hated you and your kind." he said.

Jasiri scoffed. "Hard not to believe why."

Everybody then shared a good laughter with each other.

###

Back in the Pride Lands, the Lion Guard, Tamu and Jasiri them made their way up to the Flat Ridge Rock, where the most of the Lion Guard then began to walk back to the Pride Lands, while Kion and Bongo stayed behind with Tamu and Jasiri.

"Sure is glad to have Kion and Bongo back to show us the way again." said Bunga. "Even if they are walking behind us."

Overhearing Bunga, Bongo let out a scoff. "Sounds like the guys had their own share of the misadventures during of our absence."

"You have no idea, Bongo." Tamu agreed, with the affectional nuzzle against his right cheek, making the wild dog pup blush furiously.

"Well, I better get back to my territory." Jasiri said to Kion and Bongo. "I'm sure your Roar won't scare off Janja forever."

Kion scoffed. "If only."

Jasiri chuckled. "Bye, Kion. Bye, Bongo. It's been fun meeting you two. You as well, Tamu."

"Yeah. It was nice to meet you too." Tamu agreed. "Though it's gonna take me a lot of time to get past the shock to find Bongo having found a friend from a hyena after the loss he suffered."

"Yeah, me too." Bongo agreed with the shurg, before turning to Jasiri. "But I'll keep it in my mind not to blame every single hyena I meet for the tragedy I experienced."

"I'm glad to hear that." Jasiri said.

"And don't mind about Moto. Leave him to our concern." Kion added.

Jasiri chuckled again. "Well, I'll be off now." she said, before she turned to start walking back to her territory.

"Hey, Jasiri! Wait!" Kion called after her. "Maybe we'll see you again sometimes?" he asked hopefully.

"Not if I see you guys first!" Jasiri said with the smirk, before she hopped off the rock and down into the Outlands.

Kion, Bongo and Tamu looked down into the Outlands to see her making her way back to her home.

"Hmm. she was nice... for a hyena." Tamu said.

"You know, maybe it's a good thing we have an ally like her in the Outlands." Bongo pointed out.

"Yes." Kion agreed with the smile, hoping that they would see Jasiri again some day, before he, Bongo and Tamu ran after the rest of the Lion Guard.

"Hey, guys! Wait for us!" Kion called.

THE END.