Hidden in the Shadows

Chapter 1: The Proposal

A/N: So here's yet another plot bunny that has bitten me and won't let go. I really have a good feeing about this story and am very excited to start writing it. I originally wrote this story before, but things never seemed to work, so I deleted it. Now I've decided to bring it back under a different name and with a different plot. I will say that if you're looking for a romance story, this is not it. If you're looking for a good action and adventure story, then you've come to the right place. I would also ask anyone who does review to please not request that I write specific things. I have a plan for this story, and I'm sticking to it and doing it my way. Thank you. I hope that you enjoy this ride with me. This story takes place in the Nickelodeon universe in season three just after "Battle for New York." After that, it's pretty much going to be my own thing.

Disclaimer: TMNT and all related characters belong to Nickelodeon. I only own the plot, Edele Farrelly, and any other OCs not associated with TMNT.

Summary: While doing research for a book series about ninja clans, Edele Farrelly is led to the Foot Clan to seek answers. But when a former recruit of the Foot Clan ends up dead, Edele gets in way over her head and wonders if she'll ever get out alive.

You may have heard about ninja clans existing long ago. Many of you may have seen movies about ninja clans and ninjas in general. But I'm here to tell you the truth about all of it. I'm a writer, and while I was doing research for a proposed book series, I ended up learning more than I bargained for about a certain ninja clan in New York City. It caused me to get in way over my head and taught me about a war that has existed for centuries about two rival clans in Japan that have carried that war over here to America. I know you may not believe me, but this is all true.

This is my story.

22222

I sighed as I stopped the DVD I had been watching. None of these were giving me ideas about how to go about my book series. They were all cheesy, and they held no value. I put the DVD away and tried to think of what I could do. The Internet was a good place to look, but I was the type to want to really get in the thick of things and learn more about what was going on in the ninja clans. Then again, there probably weren't any left in the world, so where did that leave me?

Suddenly, the phone rang, and I picked it up. "Hello?"

"Edele, it's Sharon," the voice on the other end said.

"Hi, Sharon," I said. "What's up?"

"Did you watch the DVDs I gave you?"

I sighed. "Yes, and they don't really help me with what I want to do," I replied. "They're just too cheesy."

"Well, I was thinking that maybe instead of doing something about ninja clans, maybe you could do something about students in a dojo," she suggested.

I brightened. "That does sound interesting. I suppose I'll have to look and see what dojos are around New York."

"I've got the perfect one," Sharon said. "It's the Chris Bradford Dojo over on Seventh. I'm sure someone down there can do an interview with you."

"Great," I said. "So, maybe I could do a series about a group of dojo students who run into a ninja clan they believe is dead."

"Sounds good to me," Sharon said. "You better go down there and see what they'll say."

"Okay, thanks, Sharon," I said. I was happy she had suggested the idea to me, and it made me feel better about this whole thing. I packed up some stuff and headed down to the Bradford Dojo.

22222

As I approached the dojo, I could see that students were taking a class. I quietly opened the door and stood by to watch. The students all moved in a unified formation as the instructor called out various moves in Japanese. I was amazed at what they could do, and it made me excited to get to work on the book as soon as possible.

After calling a halt to the practice, the instructor looked my way. "May I help you?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm Edele Farrelly," I replied. "I'm an author working on a book series about dojo students, and I was wondering if maybe I could interview you and some of your students for my book." If this worked, it would be a piece of cake.

The instructor's eyes turned hard. "We don't grant interviews here," he stated. "If you are here to sign up for a class, then you may join us. But if not, then you must clear out."

"Could I speak to Chris Bradford?" I asked. After all, he owned the dojo and would probably grant me an audience.

"No, Mr. Bradford is not available to speak to you," he answered. "Please leave."

I wasn't one to give up to so easily about any of this. "Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot," I said. "The interview won't take long, and I'd be happy to wait until class is over before interviewing anyone if you're worried I might interfere with the lesson."

Once again, his eyes hardened. "I think I made myself perfectly clear," he replied. "You seem to have a hard time following instructions, so maybe we'll have to make you."

At a motion of his hand, some of the students converged on me, and I knew I had to get out of there before they hurt me. I turned and fled from the dojo, running as hard as I could. What kind of dojo was that? It certainly wasn't accommodating by any means. I headed home and tried to plot my next move as that certainly didn't work.

22222

Back at the dojo, the instructor ordered his students back in formation for more practice, but he was mad. How dare that woman come in there and ask for an interview? Who did she think she was? He knew that if he'd let her in, she would be exposed to all of the secrets of the Foot Clan, and that couldn't happen.

Someone stepped into the room, and the instructor turned to see Rahzar, formally Chris Bradford, enter the room.

"Who was that?" Bradford rasped.

"Some woman who wanted an interview for a book," the instructor answered.

"Did you send her away?" he asked.

"Yes, but I think we need to keep an eye on her," the instructor said. "If she comes here again, we may have to take drastic action."

Bradford leveled a glare at him. "Do whatever you have to do to keep her quiet," he said.

22222

"So how was the interview?" Sharon asked me.

"I didn't get to interview anyone," I answered. "I guess this just isn't the right time to go with this. Maybe I should try for a new angle."

"No, I think this will work," Sharon insisted. "Maybe you could try to go there again after classes are over."

I shook my head. "That instructor was very clear that he didn't want an interview with me at any time."

"Well, then I guess you could always just do research and go from there," Sharon said.

"I guess so. Thanks for talking to me, Sharon. I'll do my best to try and work on a draft soon."

"Take your time, honey," Sharon said.

I hung up and decided that I needed to go out and clear my head. The night was cool as I made my way out and almost bumped into someone standing at the entrance to my apartment building.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," I apologized.

"No worries," the young man said. "I think I can help you with what you need."

I was startled. "How do you know what I need?"

"I heard about someone coming to the dojo who matched your description," he replied. "I heard about how the instructor declined to interview you. But maybe you can interview me."

"Are you a student of the dojo?"

"No, but I was once," he said. "My name's Hiroshi Ishiyama."

"Edele Farrelly," I introduced myself.

"Would you like to go somewhere to eat?" Hiroshi offered. "I'd like to talk to you about my time at the dojo and something that not many would believe."

I nodded. "Yes, I would like that very much. But how did you know about what happened today?"

"I have contacts inside the dojo who pass on information," Hiroshi said. "I can't say much out here, but I know of a place where we won't be disturbed."

"Lead the way," I said. I knew I should have been freaked out by this man, but my thirst for information was too great, and I wanted to get started on my book.

Hiroshi led me to noodle shop called Murakami's. It was fairly deserted save for the noodle chef who was working in the back. He turned as we came in.

"Ah, welcome to Murakami's," he said. He was an older gentleman who wore sunglasses, which led me to believe he was blind. "How may I help you?"

"Two for dinner please, Murakami-san," Hiroshi said.

Murakami nodded and led us to a table that was further back from the restaurant where we would have privacy. He handed us menus and asked us what we wanted to drink. Hiroshi ordered sake and I ordered a Coke.

"Do you know him?" I asked Hiroshi.

"Yes, Murakami-san is a very fine man," Hiroshi said. "I have been coming to his noodle shop for a long time now."

After our drinks arrived, we placed our orders. Hiroshi ordered miso soup while I ordered pizza gyoza because it sounded interesting.

"Ah, that item is very popular," Hiroshi said. "I'm not sure why as it's not real Japanese food."

"Well, it sounds good to me," I said. "So, how long were you a member of the Bradford Dojo?"

"I became a member at fifteen," Hiroshi answered. "I was an unruly kid with no respect for authority, but I had skills. I wanted to learn to fight, so I joined the dojo because I admired Chris Bradford and thought he could teach me what I wanted to know. At first, it seemed harmless enough, but then I realized that there was more going on than just a dojo for teaching students basic ninjutsu."

"What was going on?" I asked.

"They were training us to fight as an army," Hiroshi replied. "We served under a man named Oroku Saki who also was known as The Shredder. He is master of the Foot Clan, an organization that originated in Japan."

I gasped. "You mean there's a real ninja clan out there?"

He nodded. "Yes, there is. The Foot Clan in Japan was at war with a rival clan known as the Hamato Clan. They battled for centuries, and the war remains to this day. Saki came here after he received word that his old friend turned enemy, Hamato Yoshi, was in America. Shredder confronted ninjas who were turtles, but they fought in the same style as Yoshi which led him to believe that Yoshi was teaching these turtles how to fight."

"You mean men in turtle costumes?"

Hiroshi shook his head. "No, I'm talking about real mutants," he answered. "I don't know how they were mutated or what happened, but it turns out Yoshi was mutated into a rat. Shredder's whole aim has been about destroying Yoshi and the turtles he teaches."

"Did you fight these turtles?" I asked him.

"Yes, and they are very good warriors and very skilled."

"What made you leave the Foot?"

"Word came out that some of us were being replaced and that we were to be killed on the spot. I managed to escape and hid out on my own. I still have spies within the dojo who report to me about things. My whole goal is to take the Foot Clan down and expose them for who they really are."

"Wow! And here I thought all of the ninja clans were extinct," I said.

"Well, they aren't," he said. "I hope that this will be good material for your book."

"Oh, I think it will be though I'll change things around a bit."

"Actually, maybe you could help write a book about the Foot Clan to expose them," Hiroshi suggested. "I think it would be a good idea, and it will give you more notoriety than a fake book series would do."

"I don't know if that would be a good idea, but I'll think about it," I answered.

"Good," Hiroshi said.

When our food arrived, the talk turned to other subjects. I told him about how I had lived in New York most of my life and how I went to Ireland to do a book about Irish culture. I moved back to the States after my sister, Keely, disappeared and continued writing. When my brother-in-law was kidnapped, I took care of his niece for a spell and then again when he disappeared a few months later.

"Sounds interesting," he said. "Did you like it in Ireland?"

"Yeah, but I felt I needed to come back after my sister disappeared," I replied.

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know. All I know is I received a call from her husband saying that she was gone and he was in New York with my niece. I knew I had to come back to the States, so I did."

"That must have been awful," Hiroshi said.

I nodded. "Yes, it was. I wanted to ask you something though. I know there are ninja clans who have killed. Have you killed anyone?"

Hiroshi nodded. "Yes, I have, but I'm not proud of it," he said. "A lot of us did when we were in the Foot. Oroku Saki had no regard for human life, and he still doesn't. With him it was kill and do anything to achieve his means."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said. "But at least you've repented of what you did."

"Yes, but you still can't escape your past no matter how hard you try," he said bitterly.

"And you hope that by exposing the Foot Clan you'll be undoing the wrongs you've committed?" I asked him.

"Well, you can never truly undo those wrongs, but I hope that by exposing them, I'll be able to redeem myself in some small way. I really hope you can help me, Miss Farrelly."

"Please, call me Edele," I said.

"I'm glad I was able to meet with you," he said. "We'll have to meet again to discuss more of the secrets of the Foot Clan."

"Are there ever so many?"

"Yes, tons," he replied. "But for now, I'm full and should be heading out. May I please have your number so I can contact you in the future?"

I nodded and gave it to him. "I just hope my editor will be on board with this idea."

"I'm sure she will be," he reassured me. "Well, it was a pleasure having dinner with you, Edele. I hope to be in contact with you soon."

"Likewise," I said.

He paid for the dinner though I protested that I wanted to help out. Then he smiled and bowed to me before leaving. I thanked Murakami-san and left myself so I could go back to my apartment. I had a feeling things were looking up for me as far as my book deal went.

22222

Hiroshi smiled as he left Murakami's and took his usual route home. He was very happy to be possibly working with Edele Farrelly. She seemed like a genuine person who really wanted to get to the bottom of things. As he was taking his usual shortcut, he was stopped by some very familiar figures.

"Hello, Hiroshi," one of them said. "So nice to run into you today."

Hiroshi glared at the men surrounding him. "What do you want?" he demanded.

"We want your head for what you did," the leader said. "You have betrayed your Clan and must pay the consequences."

"Shredder is lying to you," Hiroshi said. "He doesn't care about you. The Foot needs to be exposed for who they really are, and I intend to do just that."

The leader smirked. "Not if we can help it," he replied. With a motion of his hand, the rest of the soldiers converged on Hiroshi.

Hiroshi took up a stance and immediately started defending himself. He dodged a katana strike by one opponent and delivered a swift roundhouse kick to him. His next opponent came from behind, but Hiroshi grabbed his arm and flipped him over, causing the man to land on his back. Another opponent charged him, but Hiroshi delivered a few different pressure points, rendering the man unconscious. The leader tried to come at him, but Hiroshi delivered pressure points to him as well. He smirked, satisfied with his victory, but it was short-lived as he felt teeth sink into his shoulder. He turned and saw the mutant fish named Xever smiling in satisfaction at his handiwork. Hiroshi had no time to react as the poison consumed his body, and he slumped to the ground as darkness consumed him and his life ended.

One of the soldiers who was still conscious came up to Xever. "Well, that's the end of him," he stated. "What do we do now?"

"Find the woman he was with," Xever answered. "She may be dangerous, and we need to make sure she does not go through with her plan to expose the Foot."

The man bowed, and he and his comrades carried the unconscious forms of their fellow soldiers back to headquarters. Yes, Edele Farrelly needed to be dealt with before she ruined everything for them. She couldn't be allowed to live.

A/N: And that's the end of the first chapter. I hope that you enjoyed it. I really am happy to be writing this and excited about it, too. Edele is April's mother's sister. In the show, it said that April was living with an aunt, but it was never specified if it was Kirby's sister or her mother's sister, so I made Edele be that aunt that she was staying with. Also, Edele talks with an Irish brogue because of being over there for a few years while writing her book about Ireland. Anyway, feel free to leave a review and have a shelltastic day.