Happy Tears -- Chapter 2

The following fic was created by me, Mike 
Allen.  However, I do not own any of the 
characters that I am using.  That honor 
belongs to the honorable Rumiko Takahashi and 
any and all companies to which she has sold 
the rights.  So, please do not sue me.

The Thief.

*********************

A short figure, dressed in black, made its 
way stealthily into the kitchen of the 
temple.  Covering the thief's face was a 
kerchief that was tied over his mouth.  He 
had been able to scale the wall of the temple 
and make it past all of the guards.  It was 
time to get what he had come for, some food.  

These monks are supposed to be something 
special, he thought as he entered one of the 
pantries.  Bah, I haven't met any group as 
good as the amazons.  Compared to them, this 
is like taking candy from a baby.  

Cautiously looking around, he made sure that 
no one else was in the area.  There was one 
entrance to the room.  He was in it.  
Completely deserted, the room was square and 
filled with shelves of food.  He opened his 
pack and started to make some of their food 
his own.  He froze as he heard a throat clear 
next to him and light suddenly filled the 
pantry.

"Most impressive, my son," the monk chuckled. 
"However, if it was food you want, we 
normally serve it at sunrise and sunset.  You 
see, training takes up the day.  At night, 
most of us sleep."  The monk had a round, 
happy face.  His shaven head only accentuated 
his heavy eyebrows and made his smile even 
warmer. He wore a simple black robe.  Holding 
a lit lantern in his right hand, he was 
smiling and looking down at the diminutive 
thief.

"WAAH!!"  the thief yelled and looked at the 
monk who had appeared at his left shoulder.  
I've got to get out of here!  He thought in 
panic.  

Trying to trip the monk with a leg sweep, the 
smiling monk simply jumped over his leg.  
Using the speed of the Chestnut Fist, he 
tried to knock the monk out.  The monk 
swayed, dodging every punch never even having 
to move his feet or  lantern.  In 
desperation, the thief started to build up 
his chi to blast the monk.  

"I'm sorry, but that would cause too much 
damage, my son,"  the monk said shaking his 
head.  Doing nothing more than reaching out 
and touching the thief,  the monk caused the 
thief to fall at his feet unconscious.

Gong ong ng .  Gong ong ng  . Gong ong ng . 
Gong ong ng . Gong ong ng

The ringing of a gong woke the thief up.  He 
shot up out of the cot he had been placed in 
and stood next to it looking around wildly.  
He calmed down a little when he saw he was 
alone.  The room he was in was roughly 10 
feet by 10 feet.  The walls, floor and 
ceiling were of rough-hewn stone.  There was 
an arrow slit in one wall that allowed 
sunlight to shine into the room.  The only 
furniture in the room was the cot he had been 
in and a chamber pot.  There was a wooden 
door opposite the arrow slit.

He started to move towards it, when it 
opened.  He saw the monk from the previous 
night.  "Good morning, my son,"  the monk 
smiled, "It is not often that we are blessed 
with night-time visitors at our Shaolin 
temple.  What is your name and age?"

"My name is Happosai and I'm seventeen," 
stammered out the young thief. "How did you 
do that trick?"

"Do what?"  the monk asked in mild confusion.

"How did you appear next to me like that last 
night?"  Happosai asked again.

"Oh, don't you know, young one?  It is said a 
Shaolin priest can walk through walls. Looked 
for, he cannot be seen. Listened for, he 
cannot be heard. Touched, he cannot be 
felt(1),"  the monk answered, "I must say 
that you yourself are not without some 
skills."

"They weren't good enough,"  Happosai 
muttered aloud.  With a little fear, he 
asked, "What are you going to do to me?"

"Well, the true question is not what I am 
going to do to you, but what is it your 
destiny wills to happen next in your life?" 
was the cryptic answer given to Happosai.

"If you aren't going to send me to an 
Imperial prison, may I stay here awhile?"  
Happosai asked hopefully.

"If that is your destiny," the monk said with 
obtuseness, "stay and learn.  Otherwise, 
follow your path from here." 

"I think I'll stay.  What is your name?"  
Happosai asks.

"I am Master Kan,"  he replied, "if you will 
be staying, you need to join the others.  As 
you have some skills already, we will need to 
determine whether you are a student or a 
disciple.  Follow me."  Matching actions to 
words, the master turned and left the room.

Master Kan led Happosai to the dining hall.  
Here he saw a large number of students eating 
their breakfast.  They ranged in age from 4 
years old to their middle twenties.  All wore 
a high collared black shirt and black pants.  
Surprisingly, there was an equal number of 
male and female acolytes.

"You'll fit right in,"  Master Kan stated. 
"You already wear black."

Happosai waited, unsure of what to do or say.  
After a moment, his new master told him to go 
and eat.  He sat down near some other boys 
that seemed close to him in age.  No one 
spoke.  Unnerved by the quiet, Happosai 
turned to the boy on his left next to him and 
said, "Hi, my name's Happosai.  What's 
yours?"

The boy sitting next to him looked at him and 
said, ""I am Caine. I am called many names, 
but I have chosen 'Caine.'"(1)  He then 
turned back to his food and began eating 
again.

Happosai thought Caine's answer was a little 
weird, but decided to ignore it.  He felt a 
nudge on his right.  Looking there, he 
noticed a short boy standing beside him.  He 
was smiling.  "Don't mind him.  He does have 
a lot of names!  Grasshopper, bug, pest, 
Master's pet, most of us don't bother with 
him.  He's always with Master Po.  My name's 
Chingensai, how'd you get here?"

"I decided to spend the night, last night 
while traveling by," Happosai answered 
quickly.

"Yea, me too.  I was traveling by about two 
months ago when Master Ho caught me," 
Chingensai laughed.

"If one's words are no better than silence, 
one should keep silent."(1)  Caine said to 
them disapprovingly.  

"Yea, you do that,"  Chingensai said 
dismissing Caine as he sat down next to 
Happosai.  "You know, you're the second 
person I've ever met that is my size."

"You're the first for me,"  Happosai said 
happy to be talking to someone friendly.  
"Your name doesn't sound Chinese, it sounds 
Japanese.  Are you?"

"Yea, does that mean anything to you?"  
Chingensai said warily.

"Not much, I'm half-Japanese," Happosai said.  
"You said I'm the second person your size 
that you've met.  Is the other one here?"

"Yea, his name is Lukkosai.  He's been here 
almost a year, now,"  Chingensai said.  "He 
was caught trying to steal from the temple," 
he paused and with a wry grin continued, "Can 
you imagine?"

"Ha ha, I think I'd like to meet him."  

"Finished with your breakfast, Happosai?"  
Master Kan was not asking. "I'm happy to see 
that you are.  Come, it is time to find out 
whether you are a student or a disciple of 
the arts."

Happosai followed Master Kan to a large room 
where six masters sat in a semi-circle.  
Three were male and three were female.  The 
room was lit by hundreds of candles placed in 
almost every available spot.  Master Kan 
walked Happosai to the center of the room and 
asked him to stand and answer all of the 
questions to his best ability.  He then took 
his place at one end of the semi-circle.

Master Kan then told Happosai, "Please answer 
the questions as well as you can.  We are 
merely trying to assess where you are in your 
spiritual journey." 

It started easily enough.  "Who are you?" 
asked one of the masters.

"My name is Happosai," he answered.  

"That is but a name, I asked not for your 
name, I asked who you are.  Again, who are 
you?"  the same master asked again.

Sweating a little, Happosai gave the masters 
a brief review of his life.  

"So, you don't know who you are.  Can you 
explain what filial piety is?" (2) another 
master asked.

"Filial Piety.  Filial Piety is the taking up 
of troublesome affairs from your elders and 
giving food and drink when available with 
true reverence,"  Happosai extemporized.

"So, you aren't completely ignorant.  Tell us 
about cowardice," (2) a female master asked.

"To see what is right and not to do it is 
want of courage," Happosai answered.  

"Very good, young one.  Can you tell me a 
reason one should be cautious?" (2) another 
asked.

"So you won't get caught,"  he answered a 
little too quickly.

 "To be able to judge of others by what is 
not in ourselves;-this
may be called the . ?" (2) a pedantic master 
asked.

"Skill of judgment?"  Happosai asked 
hopefully. 

"No, my son, it is the art of virtue," the 
master answered his own question.

The questioning continued throughout the 
morning.  Happosai was asked many questions.  
Some he knew.  Some he didn't.  Most of the 
questions left him unsure of what was even 
asked.  

When it was over, a kind looking woman came 
and took him to a small courtyard.  She 
explained that it was used as a martial arts 
training area.  She was of average height 
with long silvery hair that reached to her 
waist.  She wore a white gi belted with a red 
sash.  The sleeves of her gi had light green 
stripes on them.  Happosai could tell by the 
way that she moved that she was a very highly 
skilled martial artist.  Her most 
distinguishing feature was a small mole that 
lay next to her right nostril.  

"My name is Master Ho.  I have been assigned 
the task of ranking your martial skills," she 
said pleasantly to him.  "Attack me."

Before attacking Master Ho, Happosai looked 
around the area.  It was small for a training 
area, maybe 20 feet by 20 feet.  The floor 
was covered in sand, the walls were unadorned 
stone, bearing scars from many previous 
battles.  

Having been trained by Amazons, Happosai knew 
better than to not go all out against her.  
He jumped at her trying to surprise her with 
a kick to her head.  She smiled and bent to 
her right.  As he came within her reach, she 
reached out with a chopstick and threw him 
into a wall.  

As he slowly got up and looked at her, he 
noticed that she was glowing a very light 
green.  Oh damn, she can generate a battle 
aura, he thought to himself.  He decided to 
shift tactics.  This time he slowly inched 
closer and closer to Master Ho.  When he was 
close enough to strike, he tried feinting a 
leg sweep to force her into the air where she 
wouldn't be able to dodge him.  When he 
feinted, she stood her ground.  Having 
already jumped into the air to catch her, 
Happosai was wide open.  She reached out with 
her chopstick and barely tapped him on the 
chest.  The next thing he knew he was picking 
himself out of the wall again.  How is she 
reading my moves?, he wondered as he started 
to near her again.  

Master Ho stood looking at him and smiling.  
"I am ready, attack me."

"I'm going to make you move this time!"  
Happosai yelled in frustration.  This time he 
attacked using every bit of speed he could 
muster.  It was like trying to hit air.  
Whenever he tried punching, she seemed to 
flow away from where he tried to land his 
blows.  When he tried kicking, she would 
merely step back out of the way, wait for the 
leg to go past and then move back into her 
original position.  Finally in desperation, 
he tried to get her in a bear hug.  As he 
moved in to wrap her in his arms, she merely 
chuckled and with her chopstick laid against 
his right wrist, threw him again into the 
wall.

He stood up slowly.  After putting everything 
into that last attempt, he was sweating 
profusely and very tired.  Gamely, he started 
forward toward where Mater Ho was standing.  
She was as fresh as when they had started.  

"You have done well.  Not many are able to 
make me move at all.  Prepare to defend 
yourself," she said as she moved forward and 
met him.  

His eyes widened in shock as he noticed that 
she left no tracks on the floor.  He tried to 
prepare for her onslaught.  She moved with a 
sinuous quality that was beautiful and 
deceiving.  He was completely unable to read 
her moves.  Happosai had never fought anyone 
of her caliber.  He felt that even the elders 
of the Amazon tribe would not have been able 
to defeat her.  For every blow that he 
parried, she got in five.  Every blow he 
attempted in defense, was parried and 
counter-punched.  In short, he was beaten 
unconscious in very short order.

When he came to, the first thing he saw was 
Master Ho sitting next to him.  She looked at 
him, smiled and said, "Congratulations, most 
challengers aren't able to attack me a second 
time, even fewer are those that can defend 
against me at all.  What little I saw of your 
style shows a strong Amazon influence, am I 
right?"

"Yes, Master,"  Happosai said.  He was 
stunned.  Here he was the best fighter of his 
generation and he had been humbled by two old 
monks in less than one day.  "What style do 
you use, Master Ho?" he asked as humbly as he 
could.  

"I use the Dragon style.  It uses chi for its 
strength.  I shall teach it to you, if you 
wish to make the journey.  We have determined 
that you have the knowledge and skills of a 
disciple," she told him.  "Master Kan told us 
of your attempt to use a chi attack last 
night.  I defeated you by being able to read 
what you were going to try in your chi.  Did 
you know that you were showing a battle aura 
during our little session?"

"How were you able to build your chi up so 
quickly?" Happosai asked.

"I have found my center and my strength.  
Since I know what they are, I can call upon 
them anytime.  To find your center and 
strength, I can point the way, it is you who 
must discover them." Master Ho answered him. 

"Thank you, Master,"  Happosai said and bowed 
to Master Ho.

Several months passed, Happosai and 
Chingensai became fast friends.   Happosai 
was very happy to find that Chingensai was 
also considered a disciple.  This allowed 
them to pick the work detail they preferred 
and decide when they would study the martial 
arts and the philosophical works required to 
become a monk.  They chose to work in the 
laundry.  For them, the act of ironing became 
a personal meditation, especially if they 
were ironing something belonging to one of 
the prettier female disciples.  

Philosophy, especially Chinese philosophy, 
was nothing Happosai had ever been interested 
in.  He spent his study time reading the 
ancient manuscripts that described and showed 
the various styles and techniques utilized by 
the Shaolin monks.  He also started 
researching how Master Kan and Master Ho had 
been to  disable him with a touch.  He found 
that there were points on a body call Shiatsu 
points that could be used for many different 
purposes.  He found a mention of a temple in 
Japan that had a fully illustrated map which 
described all of these Shiatsu points and how 
to apply them.  Upon reading this, he knew he 
now had a second reason to go back to Japan.  
His revenge upon his father would always be 
primary.

Taking to his training in the Dragon style 
like a duck to water, Happosai soon was able 
to defeat all of the other disciples.  
Chingensai, who also used the Dragon style, 
was able to keep up with him, but never was 
able to beat Happosai.  Impressed by both of 
her students, Master Ho began helping them on 
their search for their centers and strength. 

"Happosai, Chingensai how many times do I 
have to tell you that you will know when you 
have found your center, because you will feel 
completely balanced?"  Master Ho said in 
exasperation.  The three were in the same 
training area that Happosai had been tested 
in.

"Master, I can balance myself on a single 
finger!  What else do I need to do?"  
Chingensai asked.

"I mean balanced emotionally, spiritually and 
physically!  If you cannot find your centers 
and strengths inside of yourselves, your 
centers and strengths will be imposed upon 
you."  Master Ho tried to explain gently.

"In other words, if we don't get it 
ourselves, others will choose it for us?"  
Happosai asked.

"Yes, my son,"  Master Ho smiled.  

"Well, I wish they'd hurry up and tell me 
where they are,"  Happosai said without 
thinking.

SLAM

"Master, why did you throw me into the wall?"  
Happosai grunted in pain.

"If you let others impose upon you, the pains 
of their choosing you will feel,"  she said 
as she left the training room.

"I think she was pretty upset with us, don't 
you?"  Chingensai asked Happosai.

"Nah, she just wants us to understand 
whatever it is she's trying to teach us.  
Say, Chingensai,  why don't we try a little 
training exercise tonight?"  he said.

"Sure, what do you want to do?"  

"Well, why don't we sneak into the women's 
bathing area and see what we can see?  If we 
can get away with it, we'll have proven that 
we've learned something.  If we get caught, 
we can apologize," Happosai said with a 
mischievous grin.

"Sure, I'd really like to see that green-eyed 
girl, what's her name?"  Chingensai was 
hooked.

"I don't know, is she the one with the hair 
to her rear and dimples?"  Happosai asked 
back

"Yeah!" 

"I don't know her name either.  I hope we see 
her,"  Happosai laughed.

That night, they were caught.  The women who 
caught them didn't appreciate the fact that 
the two disciples had been watching them 
bathe.  Happosai and Chingensai were both 
beaten severely.  They just smiled and took 
their punishment.

The next day, while ironing, they both 
noticed that their strength and vitality came 
back.  They both realized, with sinking 
feelings, that their strength came from 
ironing women's clothes.  During their 
training session with Master Ho, they both 
finally were able to harness their chi to 
properly use the Dragon techniques.  Happosai 
was able to actually hit the master.  

"It seems that your little journey last night 
taught you something,"  she said to them.  "I 
hope that whatever it is you learned is 
something that will help you gain the mastery 
you both are working towards."

Looking at each other and trying to hide 
their smiles, they both bowed and said, "Yes, 
Master."

After she left, Happosai and Chingensai 
celebrated.  "Now that we can control our 
chi, let's learn that disappearing act the 
monks like to use."  Happosai suggested.

Chingensai thought that the monks must use a 
combination of chi and physical props to seem 
invisible.  Happosai disagreed.  He insisted 
that it must be chi-based alone.  Master Kan 
would never have been able to hide the light 
of a lantern behind a prop without Happosai 
noticing it.  They couldn't agree which way 
was the correct one, so they both worked on 
their separate ideas.

Happosai began by trying to build up his chi 
while not letting others around him notice.  
He began by trying to strengthen chi as he 
normally would.  He found, much to his 
disgust, that all of the monks of the temple 
and the disciples of chi-based martial arts 
could all see his chi.  Knowing it could be 
done, he tried meditating and building up his 
chi while in that state.  He discovered that 
there was another sort of chi, a cold chi.  
He would later learn that cold chi was based, 
not on emotions like hot chi, but on one's 
mental focus.  The most effective focus for 
himself he found was women's underclothing.  
It didn't matter what it was, as long as a 
woman had worn it next to her skin, it worked 
for him.  It took Happosai two weeks before 
he was able to generate cold chi.  

Generating cold chi was a giant step for 
Happosai, but he still needed to do something 
with it.  The next step was to begin 
expanding it and trying to touch others chi 
with his.  He began meditating in the largest 
meditation hall of the temple.  Here, he 
could generate his cold chi and slowly 
manipulate it closer to those around him.  
Eventually, he began trying to connect his 
chi with those around him.  At first, whoever 
his chi touched were shaken out of their 
trance.  He kept at it and eventually learned 
how to synchronize his chi to the rhythm of 
the one he was targeting.  Once he was on the 
same wavelength with his target, his chi was 
able to intermingle with theirs without their 
noticing.  Learning to send and manipulate 
cold chi took Happosai six month, he was now 
ready to try and make suggestions to his 
victim.

He made sure to always synchronize with a 
student or a disciple.  He never tried to 
merge with one of the monks.  He felt they 
were too knowledgeable to mess with that way.  
He found that once his chi was harmonized 
with someone else's, he gained a general 
sense of what they were thinking and 
planning.  Actually, it was enough so that he 
was able to intuit what they were going to 
do.  He realized that this must have been 
what Master Ho had done to him when they 
first sparred.  He remained focused on his 
goal.  He began by suggesting minor things to 
his targets; thirst, hunger, tiredness.  He 
was surprised at how well it worked.  He 
tried prompting them with more difficult 
ideas.  Ideas such as: they were hot and 
needed to take off their clothes, they needed 
to go urinate and were already in the 
facility, they were naked in front of 
everyone.  The sort of practical jokes most 
eighteen year old males find hilarious.  They 
all worked.  Finally, he was ready for the 
big test.  He was able to suggest to someone 
that he was not there.  They were unable to 
see or hear him until he broke his own 
concentration.
He found that he could split his attention 
between five people and still make them 
believe that he wasn't there.  It took 
Happosai an additional three months to master 
this.  

Chingensai had been riding Happosai hard.  He 
had perfected his version of invisibility 
after only eight months of time.  He didn't 
need to get as deeply involved with someone 
else's chi to distract them.  Making them 
look away and not remember why, he would then 
jump behind his prop and make them not notice 
it.  Once perfected, they found that they 
enjoyed spending their evenings in the 
women's bath.  They found that the thrill of 
voyeurism was intoxicating.  It was so 
stimulating that they began taking souvenirs 
from the bathers, usually some small piece of 
underclothes that was easily picked up and 
hidden.  They rationalized what they were 
doing as training.  By doing this, they were 
able to overlook any problems regarding 
either the legality or propriety of what they 
were doing.  In addition, they were two 
eighteen year old boys whose hormones were 
waging a successful campaign against their 
brains.

Once their techniques were developed, they 
would never have been found out if they 
hadn't captured another boy trying to sneak 
into the bath.  When questioned as to why 
they were in the women's bath, they could 
only smile and say it was for their training.  
All three of them were sent away from the 
temple the next day.  

The boy's name was Lukkosai.  Happosai and 
Chingensai both knew him from the temple 
because he was as small as they were.  They 
were mad at him for spoiling their fun and 
were going to leave him and travel together 
until he used his magic ink tablet to draw 
some butterflies.  The butterflies caught the 
eyes of the other pedestrians and Lukkosai 
quickly amassed enough money to feed himself 
for a week.  Happosai and Chingensai decided 
they wanted to be his new friend.

They all wanted to continue studying martial 
arts.  Where they were, the Hunan province, 
there weren't any major cities.  The closest 
city to them was Chongging in the Sichuan 
province.  For lack of a better place to go, 
they decided to go there.  They were 
disappointed when they got there because they 
weren't able to find any jobs.  While they 
were very accomplished martial artists, no 
one would even give them a chance to prove 
themselves.  Most just laughed and asked them 
if they wanted to become circus clowns or 
some such.  They were unable to find any work 
that they felt suitable for martial artists 
of their caliber.  To keep their skills up, 
they decided to become thieves.  
 
They stayed together for six months before 
they decided to separate.  Chingensai wanted 
to go to Tibet so that he could learn some of 
the famous Tibetan martial arts skills.  
Lukkosai felt pulled to Beijing to try and 
make his fortune.  After stealing Lukkosai's, 
magic ink tablet, Happosai began a meandering 
journey towards Hong Kong.  It took him five 
years to reach it.

Enjoying himself, he wandered from town to 
town and village to village.  As he entered 
each town, he made a point to find out who 
the best fighters were.  He would then spend 
a few days studying them as they worked out.  
If he saw that they could show him something, 
he would barter with them to trade some of 
their techniques for some of his.  He also 
continued studying all he could find about 
Shiatsu points and chi techniques.  

It was during this period when he started his 
collection of women's unmentionables.  He 
found that the more items he had, the more 
energy and mental focus he could bring to 
bear in any situation.  He didn't care if 
others thought his habit perverted; he had 
found his center and power and it was women's 
underwear.  

He also had become addicted to the thrill of 
being chased.  Women didn't normally notice 
him, but they noticed him when he stole the 
panties, pantaloons, girdles or hose off of 
them in the street.  He loved the excitement 
and thrill he felt when he was eluding a 
large crowd of women all shouting for him.  
The more he took and the larger the crowd, 
the more energized he felt.

He was twenty-four years old when he entered 
Hong Kong.  The people in the city were 
celebrating the Chinese New Year  As he 
walked into the city, he saw parades, people 
partying and fireworks exploding everywhere.  
He stopped and watched as a fireworks vendor 
made some small firecrackers.  Happosai was 
fascinated with what the man was doing.  He 
never knew that it was so easy to make 
fireworks.  

"Is that all you have to do?" he asked the 
vendor.

"What?  You mean pour some gunpowder in a 
pile and then roll it up in some paper?"  the 
vendor replied with a question.

"Uh-huh"  Happosai nodded and grunted.

"Not at all.  Making fireworks is a very 
precise and creative art.  Why the beginnings 
of my art go back 4,000 years, to the very 
first Emperor!  Would you like to buy some?"  
He asked Happosai.

"Yes!"  Happosai eagerly said.  He had just 
thought of something to try, and if it 
worked,  he would have a wonderful new 
technique!  

He quickly bought the firecrackers and moved 
to an alleyway.  He lit a firecracker and 
immediately inserted it into the weapon space 
the Amazons had taught him about.  He lit 
another one and waited for it to explode.  
After it had exploded, he reached into weapon 
space and retrieved the still lit 
firecracker.  He threw it away before it 
exploded.  "YES!"  he yelled in triumph.  A 
new technique and I created it!  I'll call it 
`Happy's Bouquet Bomb.'

He ran back to the vendor.  "Do you need 
anyone to help you?  I'd like to learn what 
you do."  He asked excitedly.

"I don't know.  I couldn't pay you much," the 
vendor said looking him up and down.  "How 
about you work for me and I'll give you room, 
board and a yuan a week."

"Alright, I'll do it,"  Happosai agreed.  He 
looked forward to learning the secrets of 
gunpowder and fireworks, sure that he would 
be able to make himself several different 
types of bombs to fight with.

"My name is Xian Xu, you start selling and 
I'll start making more.  You can watch me 
until I think you're ready,"  Xian told him.

He worked with Xian for a little less than a 
year.  As the next New Year's Day approached, 
Xian let Happosai go.  

"I'm sorry, Happosai.  There's just not 
enough business to keep you on,"  Xian told 
him, sadly .  Happosai had been a very good 
student and worker.  Xian had explained how 
to make and work with gunpowder to Happosai.  
Happosai had always asked the right 
questions.  He had been very safety 
conscious.  

For his part, Happosai was ready to go on.  
He had learned everything he could from Xian.  
In addition, he now had a ready supply of 
bombs ready and waiting to be used.  

He decided to stay in Hong Kong at least 
until the New Year's Celebrations were over.  
He didn't really get a chance to party or 
steal panties during the previous year's 
celebration, having just started working for 
Xian.  

Happosai was on the roof of a store when he 
first spotted two Shaolin monks.  He thought 
he knew them.  One of them was blind like 
Master Po.  He wasn't sure about the other, 
but he looked very similar to that Caine 
suck-up.  With nothing better to do, he 
decided to watch them and see where they were 
going.  

After being followed for an hour, Master Po 
stopped, smiled and waved at Happosai.  
Happosai jumped to the ground and joined 
them.

"Master Po, Caine I haven't seen you in a 
long time."  Happosai said happily.  "How did 
you know that I was up on the roof, Master 
Po?"

"Never assume that because a man has no eyes, 
he cannot see," (1) Master Po laughed.  "What 
are you doing here?"

"I was watching the crowd and the fireworks.  
It's much less crowded and you can see much 
more on the roofs."  Happosai explained.  
Looking at Caine, he asked with some concern, 
"Caine, are you in a trance or something?"

"Oh, I am fine.  I was remembering when first 
we met."  Caine answered

"Well, I'm going to do some more people 
watching, see you around!"  Happosai jumped 
away and back onto a convenient roof.  He 
started watching the crowd again.  He let his 
attention wander away from the monks, they 
were who he thought they were after all.  

He began watching an official procession 
force its way through the streets.  They were 
escorting someone in an Imperial carriage 
somewhere.  He decided to have some fun and 
make some money following them.  With all of 
the commotion caused by the soldiers and the 
carriage, he was able to easily pick the 
pockets of many men and feel up many of the 
ladies in the crowd.  

Suddenly, he heard a scream of rage.  He 
looked and saw Caine throw a spear at the 
carriage.  Po was dying at Caine's feet.  He 
had been struck down by one of the soldiers 
guarding the carriage.  The soldiers rushed 
Caine, but Caine beat them back and quickly 
started running away.

Happosai jumped back onto the nearest roof 
and followed the chase.  At one point, the 
soldiers trapped Caine in a dead-end alley.  
Happosai drew from weapon space a Happy 
Bouquet Bomb and dropped it onto the 
soldiers.  They were all knocked unconscious.  
He quickly motioned for Caine to join him on 
the roof.  

When Caine got on the roof, Happosai said, 
"Follow me."  He turned and ran off knowing 
Caine would follow him to where he was 
staying.  Arriving at his destination, 
Happosai flipped over the edge of the roof 
and into his room.  He quickly moved out of 
the way as he knew Caine would soon follow.

As soon as Caine was in his room, he asked in 
a whisper, "What happened?  How did Master Po 
get killed?"

"One of the soldiers came up and told us to 
move out of the way.  Master Po was moving, 
but not fast enough for the soldier.  He ran 
the master down.  I have disgraced my 
teachers and the holy temple by my act of 
retribution," Caine said quietly and with 
remorse. 

"What do you mean?  Po never harmed anyone or 
anything in his life.  What you did, Caine, 
was illegal but honorable.  You meted out 
justice to the one responsible for Po's 
death," Happosai tried to lift Caine's 
spirits.  "Now, what are we going to do with 
you now?"

"What do you mean?  I must go back to the 
temple and face the masters there.  They must 
be told of what I have done," Caine 
responded.

Happosai looked at Caine and thought for a 
moment.  Then he said, "Caine, I can get you 
out of Hong Kong.  I have lived here for a 
year and know where to go to avoid notice.  
Will you be able to get back to the temple by 
yourself?" Happosai offered.  

Caine answered, "I am a Shaolin monk.  I will 
be able to travel to the temple.  I do accept 
your gift.  Without a guide through Hong 
Kong, I would have some difficulty leaving 
quickly.  What of you?  If you are seen with 
me, the authorities will surely come seeking 
you, my friend."

With a smirk, Happosai said, "The authorities 
have tried many times to catch me.  They 
haven't succeeded yet and they never will.  I 
have been meaning to go back to Japan and 
visit my ... family for a few years now.  
Helping you will give me another reason to 
leave."

The next day, Happosai led Caine through the 
underworld of Hong Kong and safely out of the 
city.  They quickly parted ways.

"Good luck, Caine.  Don't let them catch 
you,"  Happosai said to him as he started 
off.

Looking back over his shoulder, Caine said, 
"If it is my destiny to reach the temple, 
then so I shall, for a man's destiny is 
written before he is born.  It is the freedom 
given us to follow it."

Happosai pondered that for a moment.  He 
shrugged and turned to re-enter Hong Kong.  I 
always hated that philosophical mumbo jumbo, 
he thought to himself.  

*******************************************

(1) A direct quote from the pilot movie of 
"Kung Fu"
http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/9015/kftos.htm

(2) The Tao of Vince_Martial Arts, The 
Confucian Analects - 
http://www.nettally.com/nurvis/

*******************************************

I haven't changed this one from when I last sent it out.  
I felt that it might be needed when you read Chapter 1 and
3 ( I hope! )

As always, any type of comment is welcome.  The constructive and/or
positive ones will even be acknowledged!

Mike Allen
http://home1.gte.net/allenmk/