Chapter 3: A Friend's Concern

A/N: Yay! I'm finally back! Sorry I took so long, but school was keeping me busy. Gotta love college life. I really want to thank you guys for reviewing. It gave me the motivation to continue this chapter, even though I almost gave up on it. Before I thank my reviewers, I want you guys to say a prayer for my former high school classmate Brandon. He is suffering from a viral infection and bleeding ulcers. After surgery, he was doing fine, but he spiked a fever and is now in serious condition. I'll keep you updated once I know more. This has been on my mind since Sunday when I found out. So, please pray for him. I'm really worried right now. And now, I must thank my loyal reviewers. Thanks to: Mikey's Kunoichi, RedRebel84, Dr.JNHardy, Mac, shellsboy24, innocent-rebel, and Pi90katana. You guys rock! Thanks a million!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Turtles. If I did: 1) The Turtles would be at home in the present 2) They wouldn't be saying "It's Ninja Time!" every time they fight 3) No Cody Jones 4) No Constable Biggles and 5) No lame villains like Triple Threat. Man, he's lame. Turtles are owned by Eastman and Laird. Usagi and Gen are owned by Stan Sakai. Enjoy the story and no flames!

Miyamoto Usagi looked at the letter Splinter had written. He was very concerned about what the rat had written concerning Leonardo. Usagi knew his friend was in trouble, and he also knew that Leonardo needed his help.

At this moment, Gennosuke came over to see what Usagi was looking at. "Is it a bounty for someone's head?" the rhino asked. "We could make good money if we capture the fiend." He rubbed his hands together greedily.

'No, Gennosuke," Usagi responded. "It is a letter from Splinter-san. He has invited me to come to their home for a tour of their city."

"Excellent!" Gen said. "I believe I will go, too. I have always wanted to see this city of theirs."

Usagi hesitated. He didn't want to take Gen along, but he felt that it would be a good distraction. He only hoped he could talk to Leonardo and get him to open up. "Very well," he said. "We will leave tomorrow."

Leonardo put the blindfold on and listened as the bags swung back and forth. He concentrated on the sound and began the exercise. As he did, he could hear his brothers talking about him. Don't listen to them, he told himself mentally. Focus on what you have to do. Yet, he couldn't help overhearing what they were saying. He heard Raph's anger and Don's worry in their voices. Then he heard Mikey's philosophical speech about how they should leave Leo alone because he was shouldering the responsibility for all of them. Leo was grateful to his little brother for pointing this out, but he didn't think Mikey really understood. They had no idea what he was going through. I'm doing this for you, he thought. I have to protect you from harm. I almost got you guys killed. As he finished this thought, he threw his katana away with a flick of his arm. It struck Raphael's punching bag dead center.

"My bag!" Raph gasped. Then he got mad. "That's it!" he cried, trying to get to Leo, but the others held him back. "You've had it, Psycho Boy. You hear me?"

Apparently, Leo did hear his brother, but chose to ignore him. That's when Splinter appeared and admonished the red-clad Turtle, telling him to calm down because they were receiving guest. Then a portal appeared, bringing with it Miyamoto Usagi.

"Usagi!" Mikey and Donnie cried, rushing over. They were so happy to see the samurai.

Then Gennosuke came out of the portal. The Turtles weren't too thrilled to see him, which was made clear by Raph. Then Gen greeted Casey, who was visiting the guys, by calling him a monkey in Japanese. Casey wasn't too happy with that and decided to leave.

Leonardo was happy to see his friend, but Usagi could tell that something was troubling the Turtle in blue. Still, he decided not to press the issue just yet. Leo asked whether Usagi had used the Battle Nexus to come to the Lair.

"No, Leonardo-san," Usagi answered. "An old friend showed me how to summon the portal to this world." Then he and Gen expressed their eagerness for touring more of New York.

And so, they set out. As the Turtles showed the samurai and the bounty hunter the city, they noticed how surprised the two of them were at certain things. Mikey even offered them a hot dog, but Usagi was still confused as to what the treat was made of. Usagi was amazed at the size of the city, but admitted that he missed the open fields of home. Gen wasn't listening to this speech and didn't even pay attention when Usagi addressed him. He was thinking of something else.

But even amidst Usagi's admiration for the Turtles' world, he noticed that Leonardo didn't accompany them to some of the sights. This troubled the samurai, and he decided that he needed to talk to his friend about what was troubling him.

The next morning, Leo got up early to do some training. He had made this his habit after their final battle with Shredder. He felt that the more he trained, the less likely he would be to fail. But this morning Leonardo wasn't alone as he discovered Usagi sitting in a lotus position.

Leonardo tried to keep the anger out of his expression, but he couldn't help being mad he had no privacy. "Usagi!" he said in surprise. "I didn't think anyone else would be up this early after last night."

"I wanted to speak with you alone, Leonardo-san," Usagi replied. "Your eyes betray you. They show me the oppressive burden you choose to carry."

Leo was surprised his friend was so perceptive. "Someone has to carry it," he responded softly.

Usagi raised an eyebrow (A/N: No, not the People's Eyebrow) skeptically. He didn't believe that Leo needed to carry this burden. The Turtle in blue could see his friend's skepticism and decided to break the awkward silence.

"Up for some sparring?" he asked. Usagi responded by unsheathing his sword.

As they sparred, Leonardo decided to reveal his burden to Usagi. "My family needed me, and I couldn't save them," he explained. "I wasn't good enough."

Usagi felt pained hearing his friend speak like this. "I can understand your pain and anger, Leonardo-san," he said. Then he revealed how his master was cut down right by his side. "It was my duty to protect him," he continued. "I failed, too." His voice was filled with sadness as he recalled that memory.

Leonardo was shocked. Usagi had never talked about his past when they met at the Battle Nexus, or when Leo had been transported to Usagi's world. 'Usagi, I-I'm sorry," he stuttered. "I didn't know."

Usagi smiled at his ninja friend. "Failure. Fear. In the lives we lead, these things are inevitable," he explained. 'How we deal with them, that is the true test of our character."

"I know," Leo said. "It's just that I—" He was about to reveal what really troubled him when Mikey came barging in from upstairs announcing that Gen was gone.

As they searched the city for the bounty hunter, Leo was worried. What if the humans found him? He heard Usagi ask about how they would find Gen, and Mikey answered that they would just follow the screams. Just then, they heard a woman screaming. The Turtles and the samurai hurried to the source of the noise and found Gen standing outside a shop in some funny clothes with a policeman in front of him, gun drawn.

"Should we intervene?" Usagi asked. Leo vetoed this and ordered Don to call Casey for backup. Don handed the phone to Raph so he could do the honors as Casey was probably asleep and didn't like being woken up so early.

In no time at all, Casey came and coaxed Gen to get on his bike after Mikey and Raph made a diversion for the policeman. Suddenly, as they were about to leave for the Lair, a cloaked figure appeared. He had already thrown some sharp objects at the ladder Raph and Mikey were on, causing them to fall. Luckily, they managed not to fall to their deaths.

'Who are you, stranger?" Usagi demanded.

The figure then removed his cloak to reveal that he was a very large warthog. Leonardo had no idea who this was, but Usagi did.

"Kojima!" he gasped. "It can't be!"

Then Kojima revealed that Usagi, Gen, and Leo were on Lord Hebi's list along with Lord Noriyuki. But before Kojima could do anything, Raph and Mikey leapt up, ready to defend their brother and their friend. This didn't bother Kojima as he took out two smoke bombs.

"Look out!" Usagi cried, but it was too late. Kojima threw the bombs and they exploded, throwing Raph and Mikey back.

'No!" Leo cried. He saw the roof cracking. "Guys, the roof! Move!" he warned, but they couldn't. Raph and Mikey disappeared in a pile of debris.

Leo couldn't believe this. He'd failed them, just as he had on the ship. He watched as Donnie tried to take on Kojima but was thrown against the wall of the roof. Leo was mad! No one attacked his family and got away with it!

"Leonardo, tread carefully," Usagi warned him. "Kojima is a skilled weapons master in my world."

Leonardo didn't care about that. This bastard had attacked his family! "In your world maybe, but not in mine!" he cried. He proceeded to attack the assassin, which led to a heated battle. It was Kojima against Usagi and Leo. The tides turned when Kojima blew a powder in Leo's face.

The powder stung and blinded him. "Usagi, I can't see!" he cried frantically. He tried to rub the powder from his eyes. He had to find his brothers. He had to save them. He couldn't fail. He could hear Usagi battling with Kojima, trying to protect his friend. When Leo regained his sight, he saw Kojima looming over Usagi, ready to finish him off.

Leo spotted one of his swords lying in front of him. A rage like he had never known boiled within him. No one would hurt his friends. "No!" he cried, lunging at Kojima and knocking him down. "YOU LEAVE MY FRIENDS AND MY FAMILY ALONE!" The ninja got ready to attack Kojima and was joined by his brothers and Usagi. Kojima continued to challenge them, claiming he would beat them. He was so absorbed in gloating that he didn't see Leo coming at him to deliver a hurting blow. The assassin fell to the ground, unconscious.

Back at the Lair, Usagi and Gen were getting ready to depart. Gen was boasting that he felt they could get a good bounty on Kojima and that Usagi would probably cut him in.

"I would like to see more of your world," he declared. "I hear there is a city I would like to visit. I think they call it Las Vegas."

"How about in a hundred years?" Don whispered to Raph, who chuckled at the thought.

"Thank you for visiting, Usagi," Leo said. "It's always good to see you."

Usagi put a paw on Leo's shoulder. "Leonardo, you must let go of this burden you carry," he said. "A true Bushido warrior accepts that which he cannot change."

Leo closed his eyes as if in pain. He knew that the samurai was right, but he didn't understand. Leo had failed his family again. He was no good. Today's battle was proof of that.

"I appreciate your concern, Usagi," he said politely, trying to keep the anger from his voice, "but I will decide what I can and cannot change. I wish you a safe journey, my friend." He bowed to Usagi and left for the dojo. Then he heard Splinter thank Usagi for coming, saying that he had hoped Usagi would reach him. Usagi wished Splinter good luck and departed.

Leonardo didn't listen as Mikey wailed the loss of his Silver Sentry comics. He went to the dojo and began to train more. He had to, or else his family would be killed. They just didn't understand him. Even Usagi had no idea what he had gone through. He was so upset with himself. You failed, a voice told him. You're not a good leader. But little did Leo know that his behavior would cause him not to help his family, but to hurt one of the ones he loved the most.

A/N: Well, that's my chapter. The People's Eyebrow is something the Rock used to do. It isn't a wrestling move, but he'd raise one of his eyebrows. It was cool. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please read and review. Sorry for the lack of dialogue, but I wanted to create some depth to this chapter. Hope you liked it. See ya!