Hunter arrived at The Hēilóng Tavern not long after, with it being in the Valley of Peace. He entered to find it fairly busy, although not packed due to its remote location. He saw the Chih Kuans sitting at one of the tables further in, resting their wings and letting them heal, having likely sent a letter to their Clan to bring reinforcements and be aware just in case any more bandits appeared at the Thread. At least he hoped they had. Hunter walked over and dropped the necklace on the table in front of Master Qǐzhòngjī, who jumped a little having not heard Hunter approach. "Wow! You're quiet." he observed, looking at the necklace taken from the bandit leader, inspecting it closely to make sure it was what it seemed. "You did it... Your reputation is understated." Master Qǐzhòngjī said in slight surprise with a shake of his head, taking out a pouch of coins and handing it to Hunter. "I apologise in advance, as there is only ¥500 in there. I thought we had more stashed away here. Instead, I have written to the rest of the Chih Kuan instructing that you are to be granted a favour of your choosing at a time of your choosing, the small scroll that confirms it is in the pouch with the coins. I hope it is sufficient." Master Qǐzhòngjī bowed his head in shame at not living up to his promise of the reward.
Hunter chuckled a bit at that. "It's more than enough, don't worry." he said to the Cranes before turning to leave the Tavern and trek back to the Palace. Often he found favours more valuable than Yuan.
Master Qǐzhòngjī, after slight hesitation, called out. "Hey, Hunter." Hunter turned around at being called. "Stay and have a drink on us. It's the least we can do for your services." he smiled to Hunter, who nodded in agreement, sitting down at the table with the Crane Clan members, ordering a beer for himself.
...
:Later at the Jade Palace:
The Five, Po and Shifu all met up in the courtyard of the Jade Palace, having all rounded up what was left of the bandits, of which there were few and locking them up in the jails. Shifu had asked around, and apparently the new batch of guards supposed to help with guarding the Valley from threats not worth the Five's time had been infiltrated by the bandits, allowing them to take over. Guards had been reassigned from different villages in the Valley to support the one at the foot of the Palace which had been taken over. The Five, Shifu and Po also made sure to assist what citizens they could with repairing their shops and homes as well as promising them it will not happen again under their watch. Shifu looked to everyone. "Tigress?"
She answered succinctly with a respectful bow. "The Southern Valley is clear of bandits, Master. I also scouted out the Thread of Hope, and some of The Chih Kuan Crane Clan were flying overhead at the time. I waved them down and they told me that some of their members were ambushed and had their wings broken, but... The Hunter helped them and they're safe now." she informed Shifu with slight hesitance, who nodded at that.
He chuckled slightly then. "Hmm, as I would have expected of someone who had Master Oogway's trust." Shifu noted. "Viper?" He looked to her for her report.
She bowed her head and did as instructed. "The Eastern Valley is secure, Master. I found some fleeing bandits and made sure to hand them over to the guards. So to speak." Viper chuckled a little at her accidental slip of the tongue due to not having hands.
Shifu nodded with a slight smirk on his face, finding some humour in her words as well. "Mantis, Crane?" he turned to the next two.
"The North is clear." Mantis nodded to Shifu.
Crane agreed with Mantis at that. "I did some overhead scouting and found no evidence of bandit activity." he said to his Master in addition.
Shifu turned. "Monkey and Po?"
Monkey fist bumped Po at that. "We found some bandits in the West, Master. We made short work of them." Monkey told Shifu with a small grin at their victory.
Po nodded to Monkey. "Kicked bandit butt! We also asked the citizens if they needed anything, but other than a severe lack of autographs, they seemed to be fine." he informed the others.
Shifu gave a nod in content at their combined reports. "I made sure the village at the foot of the Palace is clear. All is well in the Valley now." He gave a sigh of relief. "It still worries me how we became so blind to their plight." Master Shifu spoke thoughtfully as he looked off into the distance.
Po also looked guilty at that. "There were exceptional circumstances, Master. But I agree, we should have at least checked in. I... We will make sure it never happens again." He looked to the Five, who all nodded in agreement with his words.
They all turned and began to walk back inside the Hall of Warriors. "What now, Master?" Tigress asked Shifu, who placed his paws behind his back as they went inside.
He took a deep breath in at finally having gotten rid of the threat to the Valley so they could focus on other things. "Now we wait for The Hunter. Hopefully he should arrive shortly." Shifu stated to the Five as they all stopped in the middle of the Hall to talk and wait.
Although Tigress looked as though she had something on her mind... She decided to voice her thoughts. "Master, how do we know we can trust this... 'Hunter'?" she asked Shifu.
He chuckled slightly, Tigress' protective and fiery side coming out in force. "You know what Master Oogway said about him." Shifu pointed out to his student. "We've seen how capable he is for ourselves, and we have Oogway's word for if he can be trusted with such an important task." he told Tigress, who still didn't look entirely convinced.
Mantis smirked at that. "Why don'tcha ask Viper? She's had some 'one-on-one time' with him." he laughed before being flung into a pillar by a flick of said serpent's tail.
Viper was looking away innocently, as if not paying attention. "Hmm, what was that Mantis?" she asked in a sweet voice.
Mantis grumbled as he pried himself from the pillar. "Nothing..." he managed to say to her as he fell back to the ground and walked back over to the group, rubbing his head.
"It's rude to talk about someone behind their back." Came Hunter's voice as he stepped out of the shadows of the Hall of Warriors, which made some of those present jump in surprise, Tigress and Shifu excluded.
Shifu cocked his eyebrow at that. "How long were you there?" he asked Hunter.
Hunter chuckled a little bit at the question. "A few minutes." he stated with a shrug, stepping out into the light of the Hall now. He saw Tigress eyeing him with suspicion and cocked a brow in response before looking around the room as if looking for someone who was missing from the group. "Where is Master Oogway? Usually it's him I meet with." he asked the Masters, all of whom were shocked he hadn't heard the news about their Master...
Shifu's ears flopped a little then in sadness. "Master Oogway has ascended from the physical world." he told Hunter who took a step back at hearing that, for once his eyes displaying some form of strong emotion instead of the slight shifts usually seen.
There was a pause as Hunter processed the information. "...I see." Hunter spoke sadly at the news.
Crane found it odd he continued wearing his mask even in the safety of the Jade Palace, and was eager to change the gloomy subject... "Why do you still wear your mask? Do you not trust us?" he asked with a tilt of his head.
Mantis shrugged in response before Hunter had a chance. "Maybe he's just ugly." he chuckled, earning a glare from Viper at his mean comment, which he flinched away from.
Hunter thought about making some excuse or just saying he didn't want to take it off, but as it was he was in no position to disrespect his hosts. Hunter did indeed take down his mask, revealing a smooth face, although did not remove his hood. His muzzle or snout... Well, he didn't have either. He had a nose instead. It was a little bit on the longer side while his lips held a slight frown on them when resting and were light pink in colour. He had no fur, scales or feathers, but wasn't a rhino or pig either... They didn't know what he was exactly.
He looked at the Five, who were all looking at him oddly, likely trying to figure out what type of animal he was... His gaze fell to Tigress, although she still had quite a scowl she was also wondering what he was... She found herself remembering something... But Tai Lung sprung to mind once again. That wasn't right, she felt... It was something else... Maybe she once met someone like him before briefly...
After waiting for a few seconds with an unrecognisable look in his eyes as he looked at the Five, Hunter decided he was just delaying the inevitable at this point. Somehow Oogway's death made what he had to do all the more difficult. Hunter looked down then and he got to his knees, taking the Scroll out of his Sailor bag and presenting it to the Masters. Shifu's eyes widened at that as he quickly took the Scroll from The Hunter and looked it over. "The Prophetic Scroll of The Masters! You found it! How? How did you know?" he asked, astounded that Hunter had seemingly found it without knowing of its disappearance.
Everyone looked to Hunter as his gaze was fixed to the floor. "I didn't... I stole it." he admitted, his posture slumped unlike usual, since he usually carried himself proudly like a warrior generally should.
The groups' faces all turned to shock and bewilderment at what he'd told them. Tigress growled furiously at that and darted forwards, grabbing him by the neck and holding her fist ready for an attack, unsheathing her claws at the ready for a seemingly deadly strike. "I told you Master! I told you we couldn't trust him!" she snarled viciously at Hunter. However, looking into his eyes, she felt something... Something she'd felt before... "What kind of freak are you?" Tigress let out a feral growl as her eyes narrowed.
For his part, Hunter looked completely unphased by Tigress rearing up for a lethal blow and grabbing him by the neck, although something flashed through his eyes briefly when she asked what kind of freak he is. Shifu looked saddened by Hunter's apparent confession as he began to speak again. "I know you hate me and you have that right. But allow me to rectify my mistake before you pass judgement on me." He said to the Masters, his tone displaying sincerity and a genuine want to right his wrong.
Shifu sighed and looked at him. "How so?" he asked.
Hunter looked at Shifu, past Tigress who still hadn't released her death grip on him. "I know who has The Sword of Heroes." he told them, and Shifu nodded to Tigress who put her claws away and released his throat from her vice grip, which apparently didn't have much effect on him anyway. "Let me retrieve it for you."
Shifu held his hands behind him while still holding the scroll. "Before I decide whether to allow you to do this, answer me this question: Master Oogway trusted you. Why did you steal these things?" he asked Hunter, wanting to know why he betrayed the trust of his old Master.
Hunter answered Shifu gladly, still with a hint of shame in his tone. "I stole the Sword of Heroes as a matter of settling a debt." he stated to the Masters. "I owed a... Steep debt to The Ladies of The Shade, who had helped me out some years prior." Hunter explained to everyone. "I didn't want to steal it, but I pay my debts. In lieu of payment for the act, I told them I'd do it in exchange for wiping my debt with them. Saw it as my 'out'." he told everyone, most of whom softened their expressions a little apart from Tigress.
Viper was the first to speak up in response. "That makes sense. If I saw a chance to get out of debt to those I may not want to be in debt to, I would have taken it." she pointed out.
Po shook his head in realisation then. "Wait, if this was just after Kai's attack then that's impossible! The Ladies started finding honest work after we last saw them!" he exclaimed to everyone in disbelief.
Mantis smirked widely then. "Looks like they've gone back to their more 'shady' dealings." he laughed at his own joke.
Hunter grumbled at that. "If this is the kind of treatment I can expect, I may as well commit Seppuku..." he said mainly to himself apparently at the terrible joke from Mantis.
Shifu hummed thoughtfully at Po saying about the Ladies. "It looks like they may have reverted to their old ways." he pointed out to Po, feeling that Hunter was being truthful in his words about why he illicitly acquired the Sword. "And the Scroll?"
Hunter gave a deep sigh at that. "That one... That's harder to explain." he admitted. "After stealing the Sword, I prepared to leave The Jade Palace, this was just after Kai's attack when you were all... Indisposed." Hunter confessed, a string of sorrow and regret in his eyes. "Before I could leave, I heard something call to me. I thought someone might be in trouble." he said to everyone.
A scoff came from one of the Five. "And you decided to play at being a hero while simultaneously being a criminal?" Crane asked sharply, his words clearly barbed as he spoke them.
Hunter scoffed at that. "Call me what you will, but I am not without morals. If someone needed my help I would not have left them to die." He spoke to Crane, looking at him with a sharp look in response to Crane's own sharp words. "I heard the voice coming from below the Moonpool. I climbed down through the hole made by Kai and found nothing. Just your vault and the Scroll. I had this... This intense and urgent feeling to take it." Hunter looked to his own paws/talons/whatevers like they were traitors. "I just... I couldn't help it. Decided it would act as a trophy for the time I robbed the Jade Palace. Even though I technically cheated." Hunter stated his reasoning, or lack thereof, for taking the Scroll from the Palace in the first place as he looked down at the floor then.
Everyone seemed a bit annoyed at that, and rightly so... "So you're not just a murderer and some kind of mutant, but a thief?" Tigress scoffed at him, grabbing him by his black top and pulling him towards her a little, peering down at him with a deathly glare.
Monkey shook his head in disdain. "It is shameful. The Sword may be understandable, as you were honour-bound to steal it, and stealing it back would right the wrong. But this?" He had a sour look on his face.
Po looked disappointed at the confession and shook his head as well. "Such a shame you sunk so low as to steal from us."
Shifu however looked rather perturbed by what Hunter had told him. "You said you heard it calling?" he asked, receiving a nod of confirmation in response. "Did you open it?"
Hunter ashamedly nodded once more, much the chagrin of the Five and Po. "I did. But I never read it." he informed Shifu, who opened and closed his mouth, seemingly even more shocked and surprised than he was before.
Mantis noticed this change in demeanour first. "What are you thinking, Master?" he tried to get Shifu's attention.
Instead of answering Mantis, he simply looked at Tigress. "Let him go." he ordered calmly yet firmly.
Everyone gasped and looked to Shifu. "Master?" Tigress asked, her grip loosening a fair bit in surprise.
He looked at her sternly then to match his tone. "You heard me, Tigress." Shifu reiterated. Said Master then turned to and scowled at Hunter, throwing him to the floor and backing off a little. Hunter remained kneeling before them as Shifu approached while looking extremely confused by what Hunter had told them. "You have my permission to seek out and retrieve the Sword of Heroes while I decide on how to act upon your... Confession." he told Hunter, but held up a hand. "With the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior accompanying you."
Hunter seemed like he wanted to argue against it, but he bowed to Shifu's wishes both figuratively and literally. "Yes Master Shifu." he agreed with the demand.
Shifu sighed at that. "You may spend the night at the Palace, and tomorrow you may begin your journey to retrieve the Sword." he decided and turned to seemingly put the Scroll back in its place, walking out of the room.
The Hunter then stood up to his full height as Shifu left while Tigress turned to him, her expression filled with rage and vitriol. "If you try anything, I won't hesitate to end you." She warned him seriously.
Hunter's expression didn't shift at all as he responded. "Noted."
Po couldn't help himself after that and giggled a little excitedly. "Do you kill bandits like that often?" he asked Hunter, wondering how many exciting stories he had of his exploits.
Hunter scoffed in return at that with a shrug. "It's just yet one more killing to The Man With No Name." he stated offhandedly when Po gasped in excitement and his face began to beam.
Viper then slithered around to see if Po was okay. "Po? You good?" she asked him as he practically had stars in his eyes.
The Dragon Warrior looked like he was about to burst. "No way! The Man With No Name?!" He exclaimed as Hunter sighed at that. "The Partisan?!" Po squealed in fanboyish excitement at recognising just who Hunter was now apparently.
Hunter turned to walk away then. "Knew I shouldn't have fucking said anything..." he grumbled to himself, shaking his head as he began to leave the room just as Shifu had already done.
Po looked to the Five who were looking at him confused. Po seemed more than glad to elaborate. "He's like a legendary travelling warrior, or some say Demon . Legend says he appears if you are pure of heart and are in need of help." Po spoke in a mysteriously spooky voice, repeating what he'd heard. "If you're not pure of heart then he's a mysterious omen of death!" He elaborated a bit more on the apparent legend surrounding Hunter. "But it also says he's cursed to wander alone forever. Getting close to him can get you killed." Po ran his finger along his throat in emphasis. "He's also known as The Nowhe-" Before Po could fully finish, Hunter had spun around with enough sharpness to send a ripple through the airwaves in the room, causing all to freeze in place.
Hunter glared at Po with daggers in his eyes. "No one calls me that." He spoke in a dangerous voice.
Po held his paws up in a show of surrender to his insistence at that. "Ooookay. Noted." he chuckled nervously at being the focus of The Hunter's wrath currently.
Still with a sour look but finding Po's acknowledgement good enough, Hunter then smoothly turned back around and walked out of the Hall of Warriors without a second glance back or another word to anyone. He simply grabbed his backpack resting against the wall next to the door as he walked out of the door.