The Perfect-level Kung Fu master

"This should be the place, but there's nothing here except a soccer field!" Seeing the light from his Tag settle on this area, Joe looked around in frustration.

Huh? Why is this different from the original story? I remember Etemon using a trap to restrain all the kids here, then sending a Greymon over to pick a fight. That was what caused Agumon's mistaken digivolution. So why hasn't Etemon done anything now that everyone's already beneath the goal?

Looking at the utterly still electronic scoreboard in the center, Zhou Zhu suddenly seemed to realize something. His calm expression as he watched from the sidelines instantly darkened.

The reason Etemon hasn't followed the original story...

It might be because I had Wisemon test his strength on him earlier!

With Wisemon around, Etemon would never send a Champion-level Greymon to its doom without being absolutely certain of success, much less try using traps on the kids.

Right now, Etemon's probably too busy hiding from us to do anything else...

Damn it. One tiny action actually had such huge consequences!

"Why don't we look somewhere else? You can see this whole place at a glance. There's nowhere to hide a Crest." After searching everywhere without success, Joe was already growing impatient.

"Yeah, let's find somewhere to eat first. I'm so hungry..." Gabumon agreed, looking exhausted too.

"Yay! Food, food! I didn't get enough to eat earlier. We left all the food for Agumon!"

Mimi wholeheartedly agreed. If Joe himself wasn't in a hurry to find his Crest, what reason did she have to stay here?

So it really is happening...

Is the hurricane stirred up by those butterfly wings still growing? If Joe leaves now, Gomamon's Perfect digivolution will probably be ruined outright. No, I have to stop this!

I really don't want to face that vicious monster Apocalymon...

"Wait, don't leave yet. Think about how Tai got his Crest. There's still one place we haven't searched." Watching everyone turn to leave, Zhou Zhu finally couldn't help speaking up.

"Huh? What are you talking about, Zhou Zhu?"

Joe was utterly bewildered by Zhou Zhu's reminder. What about Tai's Crest? What did that have to do with his situation?

"Oh, right! I found my Crest in a wall. Joe, could yours be inside one of the nearby walls?" Zhou Zhu's reminder instantly brought back Tai's memory of finding his own Crest.

"Huh? That's right! Tai has a point!"

Sora agreed wholeheartedly. After all, they had searched everywhere they could. Apart from inside the walls, there was nowhere else the Crest could be hidden.

"Now that you mention it, we really haven't checked the nearby walls carefully! Sorry for the trouble, everyone, but could you help me look again?" With this unexpected turn of events, Joe's dejected spirits rose once more.

"Okay! The sooner we find it, the sooner we can find somewhere to eat!"

With that, T.K. joined the search party, holding DemiDevimon in his arms.

"Ah... We're eating again? But I don't feel like eating anything right now..." At the mention of food, Agumon instantly wilted.

My stomach's still so bloated. I can't fit anything else in...

Tai, however, paid no attention to Agumon's complaint.

"Here! The reaction's strongest here!"

After a careful search, Joe finally fixed his gaze on the paving slabs beneath the goal on the soccer field.

"This has to be it. It's right underneath here. Let's lift these slabs together!"

Looking at the increasingly brilliant light from the Tag in Joe's hand, Tai got to work as he spoke.

"Okay, I'll help too!"

"Me too!"

Finally, through everyone's combined efforts, Joe's Crest was successfully revealed.

"So this is my Crest? This is great! Gomamon can digivolve to Perfect now too!" Looking at the Crest fitted into his Tag, Joe was every bit as excited as Tai had been earlier.

Only when he saw the Crest and Tag on Joe's chest did Zhou Zhu breathe a sigh of relief.

Just as he had expected, the entire process had been completely uneventful. Etemon hadn't come out to cause trouble at all...

Having found Joe's Crest, the children set off once more across the endless desert.

"Sora, are you okay?" Looking at the exhausted, listless Sora, an equally tired Biyomon asked with concern.

"I'm okay. Just a little tired!"

Between the scorching weather and the road stretching endlessly ahead, Sora felt not only physically exhausted but also a little lost.

"Matt, are you okay?"

Up ahead, Gabumon also looked worriedly at Matt, who was sweating buckets beside him.

"I can still manage. What about you, Gabumon? Are you really okay wearing all that thick fur?" Looking at Gabumon's fur, Matt recalled the time Gabumon had taken it off.

"I'm fine..."

Gabumon actually didn't feel much discomfort from the fur. After all, he always wore it.

"T.K., are you okay?"

At the very back of the group...

DemiDevimon politely voiced his concern, but showed no intention whatsoever of getting off T.K.'s head.

"I'm okay, DemiDevimon..."

Though he was exhausted, being with his brother and DemiDevimon was enough.

"Say, Zhou Zhu, don't you feel tired at all? We've been walking for so long, but I haven't seen you sweat."

Utterly exhausted, Tai finally noticed something different about Zhou Zhu beside him.

"Oh, you're right! Zhou Zhu, you really aren't sweating at all! How do you do it?" The worn-out Mimi looked as though she had discovered a whole new world, circling Zhou Zhu and examining him curiously.

"Don't ask. If you do, the answer's Dragon Country Kung Fu."

Heh, it's just a little heat. I'm a powerful being with the physical abilities of a Perfect-level Digimon! Of course, I definitely can't tell you that outright.

"Kung Fu?"

The Digimon partners had no idea what that meant.

"Kung Fu! Like Bruce Lee's?"

Hearing this unexpected answer, Mimi immediately thought of that Kung Fu master from the Dragon Country!

"Kung Fu can actually do that?"

Seeing that Zhou Zhu looked no different from usual, Izzy's thirst for knowledge was stirred once again.

I wonder if our Japanese Bushido can achieve that kind of effect... No wonder I couldn't beat this guy those last few times. So that bastard Zhou Zhu learned real Kung Fu from the Dragon Country?

That explains it. No, once I get back, I have to find a master and properly study our Japanese Bushido.