The Dragon Warrior Tournament is the unofficial name given to a significant event that took place in Kung Fu Panda. It was a public event designed to select a member from the Furious Five to receive the Dragon Scroll, as well as the title of Dragon Warrior. The tournament was first announced by Oogway and took place at the Jade Palace's arena.

History[]

Background[]

One day, Oogway received a vision that Tai Lung, a former student of Shifu's who turned evil and was incarcerated in Chorh-Gom Prison, would soon escape and return to the Valley of Peace to claim the Dragon Scroll. When he summoned Shifu and informed him of the situation, the red panda panicked, but Oogway calmed him and informed him of what must be done: the time had now come for the Dragon Warrior to be chosen. When Shifu asked him who would be worthy of receiving the Dragon Scroll, the artifact crucial in gaining such a title, Oogway told him that he didn't know. In order to find out, the pair of them arranged for a tournament to be held that very same day, with the Furious Five as the competitors.

As part of the preparations, the palace servants were sent down to the village to stick up posters informing the villagers of the coming event. Everyone in the Valley of Peace traveled to the Palace Arena to watch the tournament. As the palace servants made the final preparations for the arena, Oogway informed Shifu that whomever he chose would not only bring peace to the Valley, but also to Shifu himself. Shifu didn't have much time to wonder what Oogway had meant before the tournament began.^[1]

The tournament[]

Not everyone in the Valley of Peace came to watch the event. Po, son of noodle shop owner Mr. Ping and an immense fan of kung fu, was hampered both by his obesity and a noodle cart he was forced to bring, and so was unable to reach the top of the steps in time before the arena doors closed. When the desperate Po began banging on the doors, the large drums being beaten by the servant pigs drowned him out. As Shifu, acting as announcer for the tournament, began his introduction of the Furious Five, the panda rushed to a nearby open window, climbed up, and was barely able to see through the opening and witness the Furious Five make an impressive entrance.

Unfortunately for the delighted Po, a gust of wind from Crane's wings caused the window to close, hitting Po in the face and blocking his view. However, the panda was undeterred, and when Shifu announced the beginning of the first battle, Po spotted a small crack in the doors and was able to watch Crane, the first warrior to battle, face off with a machine known as the Thousand Tongues of Fire. Before the actual battle began, a pig on the other side of the door suddenly moved in front of the crack and blocked Po's view just as the machine fired dozens of fireworks. Luckily for Po, Crane flew high up above the arena and so the panda was able to witness the fireworks flying toward him. In complete awe and wanting to get a proper view, Po stepped backwards. He took a step too far and tumbled down the steps again, losing his view of Crane. By the time he got back to the top, the battle was over. Though disappointed, Po was not willing to submit defeat and so began searching for a way in.

Throughout the tournament Po made several attempts to gain entry into the arena. On the first attempt he attempted to punch through the door, resulting in a pained fist. On the second attempt he tried to pole vault over the wall, only to end up slammed into the wall instead. On the third attempt he tried to catapult himself over the wall with a tree, gaining only a smack in the nose when the bent over tree suddenly sprung up, and then a sore head when the tree bounced back and hit him on the skull. As a result of these failures he missed the battles of Viper, Mantis and Monkey. After the end of the fourth battle, Po seemed to give up and sat down at the top of the stairs, his back to the arena. At that moment, Shifu announced the final competitor: Master Tigress, leader of the Five and Po's favorite. As Tigress prepared to face Iron Ox and his Blades of Death, Po pulled on a larger tree with the intention of catapulting himself into the arena. When sprung into the air, Po managed to catch a glimpse of Tigress before falling just short of the roof and landing in a fireworks cart.

Before Tigress could begin the battle, Oogway lifted his claw into the air, and a hush fell over the arena. Oogway announced that he sensed the Dragon Warrior among them, and on Shifu's signal the Furious Five gathered in the arena as Shifu announced that Oogway would now choose the Dragon Warrior. Desperately unwilling to miss the most important part of the event, Po spotted the fireworks he fell in and got an idea.

As Oogway slowly made his way towards the Five lined up in the center of the arena, Po quickly tied a dozen fireworks to a nearby chair with the intention of flying into the arena. Just as Po sat down in the chair and lit the fuse, Mr. Ping arrived and was shocked to see what Po was doing. Po stopped his father from trying to blow out the fuse, telling him that he was going to see the Dragon Warrior. Not understanding why Po was so determined, Mr. Ping brought up that Po had finally had the "noodle dream". Po revealed that he had lied, and followed with a long and loud declaration that he loved kung fu. Noticing that the fuse was almost finished, Po prepared himself, but nothing happened.

Deeply disappointed, Po fell forward onto the ground, the chair still stuck on his backside. Sympathetic, his father offered that they get back to work. Po was about to concede when the fireworks suddenly went off. As an astonished Mr. Ping looked on, the panda was propelled into the wall before the fireworks changed direction and sent him flying upwards, high above the arena in a display of fireworks to the audience's delight. Eventually the charred and blackened chair disintegrated, and Po plummeted down into the middle of the arena, briefly knocking himself out.

When Po came to, he found himself surrounded by the surprised Furious Five, and right in front of Oogway's pointing claw. Shocked and embarrassed, Po apologized, explaining that he only wanted to see the Dragon Warrior. Oogway, on the other hand, found this unexpected occurrence very interesting, while Tigress, who was standing right behind Po, confusedly asked if Oogway was pointing at her. Oogway confirmed that he was in fact pointing at Po, and to everyone's amazement, proclaimed him the Dragon Warrior.

As a flabbergasted Po was carried off in a palanquin while the audience cheered, an outraged Shifu protested to Oogway that he was certain the panda was not the Dragon Warrior who could defeat Tai Lung. He added that Oogway had been about to point to Tigress and the panda falling in front of her was an accident. Oogway replied that there were no accidents, and stayed by his decision.^[1]

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