Hey all, this is the sequel to Turtle Against the World, so please read that first if you haven't already done so. :D

This is thanks to raphfreak, for suggesting I do a sequel and for beta-reading this chapter for me. You rock, dudette! ;)

DISCLAIMER: Still don't own them - but they're top of my list for Santa! ;D

It had now been near on two years since Raph had left home, and yet the rest of the family still felt his absence as strongly as if it had only been yesterday.

When setting the table for dinner, somehow someone always set a fifth place for the absent turtle, and they still bought Christmas and birthday presents for him, which were now sitting in a corner of his bedroom, awaiting his return. They were still expecting their brother to come back to them – not one of them allowed themselves to consider that he may be gone forever. They had caught glimpses of him several times; always sensed him watching them when they were out on patrol, and even found Christmas and birthday presents left for them just outside the Lair.

Yet, despite their exhaustive efforts, they had never managed to find out where he was living now, or been able to talk to him. At first, Donny had hoped they could track Raph down using the signal from his shell-cell, but they had soon discovered it abandoned in a sewer tunnel; clearly Raphael didn't want to be found. It was now almost Christmas again, and they were all beginning to hope that perhaps this would be the year Raph would come home.

Mikey was absent-mindedly flipping through the TV channels while he waited for Donny to return with his repaired games console, which had had an unfortunate accident involving a couple of shuriken, thrown by an annoyed Mikey after he failed to pass the next level of his game for the twelfth time in a row. He was about to switch the TV off when he landed on a news channel. Usually, he didn't watch the news, but something about the story caught his eye. There on the screen was an image of a Purple Dragon tattoo. Mikey quickly turned up the volume, to hear the female news reporter saying,

"…in an alleyway by an abandoned apartment block. It seems there was some sort of gang altercation – numerous bodies were found. Most had been stabbed using some sort of three-pointed weapon, which forensics experts are currently trying to identify.

"Raph!" Mikey breathed, before yelling, "Hey guys! Come look at this on the news!" Leo, Donny, and Master Splinter rushed to the living room – it had to be something really interesting to make Mikey watch the news! The reporter continued,

"…however, the most surprising victim was a large male, who has been identified by an anonymous source to be the leader of the infamous Purple Dragon street-gang: a man known as "Hun". His mutilated body, wounds seemingly inflicted by the same three-pointed blade, was found several yards from the site where the other victims' bodies were found."

"Hun is dead?!" Leo was shocked.

"Three-pointed weapon?" Donny was considering. "Guys, you don't think – could it be Raph's sai?"

"C'mon, dudes, its gotta be Raph!" Mikey whooped. "And he's taken down Hun and dozens of Purple Dragons!"

"My sons, please be quiet! I am trying to listen!" Master Splinter's face was creased in concentration as he tried to hear what the news reader was saying. The three turtles quickly fell silent, Mikey still bearing a huge grin on his face.

"…FBI did find a blood-trail leading from the crime scene, but were unable to track down the perpetrator. The NYPD are asking anyone with any information to contact them as a matter of urgency. In other news, NASA launched the shuttle…"

"A blood-trail? Guys, if it really was Raph, it sounds like he's hurt – maybe we should go look for him?" Donny asked, wishing the woman had said how much blood there had been.

"But surely if he's hurt, he'll come home anyway?" Mikey said.

"Maybe Mikey, but this happened last night, right?" Leo asked, and Mikey nodded in response. "So, if Raph was coming back, surely he'd be here by now? Maybe Don's right –"

"My sons, perhaps it would be a good idea to search for Raphael. I will wait here, in case he should return while you are out."

"Hai sensei." The three turtles bowed respectfully. Just as they were about to leave, Leo's shell-cell started ringing.

"Hello? April?"

"Leo, did you see the news?"

"Yes, April. We're just heading out now to investigate, and look for Raph."

"That's what I'm calling about. We had a break-in last night –"

"April, can we talk about this later? How about we drop in when we're done searching?"

"No, Leo, you don't understand! I think you're really going to want to hear this."

Leo sighed. "Alright, April. What is it?"

"Like I said, someone broke in last night. They got in through the bathroom window, which we'd accidentally left open. The odd thing was, they only stole medical supplies, like bandages and antiseptic creams. There was also some blood on the floor. I've only just put two-and-two together after seeing that news report!"

"So, you're saying Raph came to your place to get medical supplies?"

"I think so. There was a bit of blood around, but we cleaned it up earlier, before we found out about the gang fight. I'm sorry, Leo."

"Don't worry, April – if Raph was there, we should be able to find something. We'll be there in a couple of minutes, okay?"

"Of course it's okay, Leo. See you soon." They disconnected the call, and Leo put the shell-cell back in his belt with a heavy sigh.

"What's up, dude?" Mikey asked, knowing immediately from his older brother's facial expression that he had just found out something crucial about their missing sibling.

"That was April. She said Raph took some medical supplies from her place."

"Did she see him? Is he still there?"

"No, and no, Mikey. He just took the stuff and left."

"But surely there'll be a blood-trail we can follow, or something?"

Leo shook his head, "Casey and April cleared it up. They've only just realized it could have been Raph, after seeing that report on the news."

"How are we gonna find him now, Leo?"

"I don't know, Mike. But we sure as shell will find him and bring him home."

Please review and let me know if I should continue with this! Thanks. :D