Cobra Kai: Under the Cobra Emblem

"What kind of information?" Johnny asked Terry, his curiosity mingled with unease about what he might hear.

Terry, calmly sorting uniforms for his students, replied, "I wanted to help however I could. So, I looked into your background before my nephew started training under you. Unfortunately, I came across your story."

"What's it to you?"

"It doesn't matter to me, but I won't let my nephew be ruined by just anyone who might exploit his talents for selfish goals. You and I, we've both been oppressed by certain individuals before. Believe me, I wouldn't be telling you this if I hadn't seen how things have evolved. But your son seems very attached to Daniel LaRusso. You might want to be careful about the ideas he's planting in your son's head."

"Robby?" Johnny was caught off guard. He'd recently reached out to Robby, offering him a place to stay now that he had a steady job. Terry's words, however, left him unsettled.

His son? With Daniel LaRusso?

Johnny had already learned about Daniel's attempts to counter Cobra Kai's influence and his intentions to contact the owner of a prominent supermarket chain. However, Daniel's plans had been thwarted when the establishment was purchased by Max, who subsequently handed over its management to his uncle, Terry.

For the sake of his students, Johnny had no intention of playing Daniel's games. He refused to squander the little respect he still had for him—respect that was now completely gone.

"Your son approached Daniel's company looking for a job. But it seems his real intentions are to get closer to Daniel to hurt you," Terry explained.

Terry wasn't proud of his past. He'd tried to change for Max's sake, but he knew he wasn't the ideal person to share this with Johnny. Still, Johnny needed to know. If anything went wrong, it would tarnish Cobra Kai's reputation and potentially reignite their old, seemingly endless feud.

The mindset of Cobra Kai's students needed to be focused—not just on improving as fighters, but as people.

Terry was here now, committed to becoming a sensei who would teach alongside Johnny while maintaining the principles Johnny had introduced.

"Damn that kid…"

"Be careful how you handle this. One wrong move, and Daniel will push your son even further away. But you still have a chance to bring him back—to where he belongs. Not to someone who's still afraid of what Cobra Kai can do to their students."

Johnny remained silent for a moment before saying, "I'll take care of this myself."

"Go ahead. If you need my help, don't hesitate to ask."

"Yeah, that's not happening," Johnny retorted. He wasn't about to depend on someone else that easily.

…

Miyagi-Do Karate

"Since you've expressed interest in learning the karate my sensei taught me to defend myself, there are a few rules you need to understand," Daniel said with a smile. For the first time in a while, he was genuinely happy to have a student.

He'd wanted to counter Johnny and the growing wave of Cobra Kai's influence. But without students and without the support of his own kids, he had felt powerless.

This changed when one of his part-time employees—someone who happened to be close to his daughter—expressed interest in learning.

Daniel didn't need a crowd of students to defeat Cobra Kai. He believed that, just as he had in the past, one student would be enough to dismantle the harm Cobra Kai could bring to the Valley.

"Karate is only for defense," Daniel emphasized, hoping to instill the philosophy in Robby.

Robby nodded, absorbing the lesson. But as he focused, he noticed someone in the distance.

"Sensei, there's someone else," Robby said.

Daniel turned to see a young man standing at the entrance, smiling.

"Do you teach karate here?"

"How did you find out?" Daniel asked, intrigued by the stranger.

The young man stepped in, taller than Robby, and said, "I did some research on Cobra Kai and found out you beat them twice years ago."

He held out his phone, showing Daniel a video of Max fighting in a recent tournament. The clip displayed Max relentlessly knocking out opponents, showing no mercy.

"Cobra Kai seems bigger than ever now. You'll need strong students. That's why I reached out to a few friends who are also interested in learning karate." The young man smiled, but behind his expression lurked a deep-seated grudge.

His name was Joey Quinn, and he'd long regretted not challenging Max during a critical moment in his past. After being overshadowed by Max's talent, even losing his trainer Georges St-Pierre's focus to him, Joey was consumed by a desire for revenge.

He wanted to crush Max—and he planned to do it in the upcoming Valley tournament.

"Well," Daniel began, "we don't teach karate for revenge at Miyagi-Do. But I can show you a thing or two that can counter what they teach at Cobra Kai."

Daniel needed students, and now that they were knocking at his door, he wasn't going to waste the opportunity.