Hey, guys! Calmoose here! I just wanted to let you guys know that there will also be some differences both minor and major between this chapter and the original episode. So enjoy!
Tales of the TMNT: Kagayakei! Kintaro (Translation: Shine, Kintaro!)
The group was now in the high parts of the mountains, with a light snowfall. The Turtles and Usagi were now wearing their kasa hats as well as winter coats made of hemp and straw. Kintaro simply kept what he was wearing.
"Why isn't anyone carrying me? Someone should be carrying me," Kintaro complained, loud enough to echo throughout the mountains, "I'm cold, and I'm tired, and I'm hungry! Ugh."
Usagi closed his eyes, his patience with the boy quickly waring thin. As they kept moving up the mountain, Kintaro kept whining.
"This is unacceptable! I hate walking! Long-eared, either carry me or build me a carriage, I demand it!" Kintaro told Usagi.
The holy child was slowly trying to climb up a small ledge. Leo was about to turn around and help, but Usagi stopped him and signaled him to continue with the others. Nodding, Leo did what he said.
"You will never find you center by being self-centered, Kintaro-sama," Usagi told him as he helped him up the ledge, "Do not expect your true power to come from being a boastful brat."
"You don't tell me what to do! I tell you!" Kintaro retorted, "Now use your long ears and listen when I say, 'be silent!'. One day, I'll be strong enough to move an entire mountain!"
"We could use that right now," Raph spoke, pointing to a large boulder blocking their path, "Looks like there was a landslide."
"It's gonna have to move," Donnie said before turning to Kintaro with a small grin, "Well, here's your chance, small fry. Let's see you move the 'mountain'."
"Ha! Stand aside, peasants!" Kintaro boasted, tossing his axe on the ground and walking up towards the boulder.
The rest of the group watched from behind, Donnie and Raph both had smirks on their faces while Leo, Usagi, and Mikey simply remained neutral.
The holy child pressed his hands against the rock, eyes closed. He then let out a yell as he tried to push the boulder, but was failing miserably.
"Did you see it move? 'Cause I sure didn't." Raph laughed sarcastically as Mikey bent down to more closely observe the young pug while Leo watched with slight sympathy. He believed that Kintaro was destined for greatness, just not yet.
"My paws are cold," Kintaro grunted, still trying to push the boulder, "I can't get a... Good grip!"
Kintaro soon slipped and fell face-first onto the ground. Raph continued to laugh at this and soon Donnie joined in.
"Hey! What happened to your 'great strength', Golden boy?" Donnie questioned, using air-quotes.
"Your foul stench poisoned me!" Kintaro growled as he got up.
"Hey lighten up, Raph. The kid tried. That's something." Leo told the red clad turtle.
Leo looked to Usagi who nodded at him. The Rabbit Ronin walked up to the holy child, gently lifting up Kintaro's head so the boy could see what the ninja was about to do. Leo stepped up to the boulder, observing it, looking for any possible weak points, when Leo spotted a thick tree on the edge of the cliff, keeping the boulder stable. Leo and Usagi looked to each other before nodding. And with a quick slash of his katana, Leo cut the tree down, resulting in the boulder rolling off the cliff.
Kintaro looked in shock at this while the other turtles gave a knowing smile and Usagi looked mildly impressed.
Leo then sheathed his blades before turning to Kintaro.
"Sometimes strength isn't enough." He told him.
Kintaro seemed to take that to heart as they began walking again.
As the group moved on, Leo stopped and turned his eyes to small cave above them. Call him crazy, he had a feeling someone or something was watching them. Shaking it off, Leo adjusted his hat and ran off to catch up with the others.
Turns out, his instincts weren't wrong.
About three had passed, and the small snowfall had now become a raging blizzard as the group continued to trek up the mountain. While moving through the deep snow, Raph slowed down to catch his breath, feeling the climb was a lot heavier than he thought when he noticed a rope tied around his waist. He looked back to see Mikey on the other end of the rope, lying down and relaxing in the snow while letting the red clad turtle drag him all the way. Raph wouldn't have at any of that as he swung Mikey in the air like a rag-doll with the rope. Leo and Donnie attempted to stop Raph from tossing Mikey down the hill while Usagi and Kintaro simply watched them.
The group continued on, tying themselves together with rope as struggled past the snowy cliffside's and the harsh winds that blew yonder.
Soon the blizzard cleared as the group approached a wooden sign and a small rock, both of which had Japanese writing on them The wooden sign read, 'Straight ahead' While the stone sign read, 'Sky Budda Temple'. Donnie was the first to walk across an icy pond as he slowly tip-toed across the ice, only for the ice to break, causing Donnie to sink into the water. Mikey soon came along and instead of helping, he jumped on top of Donnie's head, causing him to sink deeper into the pond.
As Raph helped Donnie out of the pond, Leo kept himself with Usagi and Kintaro, as the blue clad turtle had a lot on his mind. Ones including the on being killed by a certain evil wolf and others dealing with the freezing cold.
The group soon reached another cliffside. "We have made it. The high pass of the Haha Naru Yuma." Usagi informed them.
"We made it, boys." Leo sighed in relief.
"At least the hard part's over." Kintaro said, wiping a bit of sweat off his forehead.
"No. The hard part is before us," Usagi corrected, directing their attention below, "The Sino Hinedae, the Decent of a Thousands Screams."
"Whoa, that is a loooong way down." Mikey said.
"We're so high you can see the top of those clouds." Leo spoke in surprise.
"I'd hate to be the unlucky sucker to fall down there." Raph pointed out.
"Can't be that bad," Mikey spoke up, rubbing his seemingly invisible nose, "I'll find out how far down it is." He then spit into the canyon.
There was a moment of silence until the wind blew the spit back up, causing it smack into Raph's face, causing him to yelp in disgust while Mikey laughed. Raph growled before tackling Mikey, causing them to land on the edge and nearly fall off before Donnie caught them.
"Hey, do you two wanna fall?" Donnie asked rhetorically to his startled brothers.
"Quit messing around," Leo told them, "C'mon, Usagi's getting ahead."
The group was now moving across a narrow ledge, with Usagi at the lead, Kintaro dragging his axe while following him followed by the Turtles.
As they continued, Mikey spotted something on an ice pillar in the distance. His narrowed as he looked closer. His eyes widened in fear as he saw it Jei!
"Donnie, Donnie, look," Mikey said in panic, shaking Donnie while pointing towards the ice pillar and nearly knocking the purple clad turtle off the cliff, "It's him, Jei! He's out there!"
Donnie looked to where Mikey was pointing, but saw nothing.
"I don't see anybody, Mikey. You need to relax." Donnie said, trying to calm his little brother down.
"He was out there, Donnie! I'm telling you, bro! He. Was. Out there!" Mikey insisted.
"No, I think you're letting this place get to you," Raph stated as he walked up to him, "There's no one..Out...There," Raph looked to see a giant cloud form into Jei's face. Raph's eyes widened seeing this before turned to Mikey with a scowl, "Dang it, Mikey! Now you've got me hallucinating!" Raph said, slightly beating Mikey's arm with his fists.
"No, dude, the huge Jei in the clouds just now? I saw it too!" Mikey exclaimed with a fearful gulp.
"What were seeing doesn't matter," Leo called out from ahead of them, unfazed by these visions, "Jei might be messing with our heads somehow, but he doesn't control us anymore!"
Meanwhile in the front, Usagi had heard the whole conversation. "I have heard rumors that Jei is immortal," Usagi said, "Even he is killed, he can live on."
"Don't be like those superstitious fools, there just afraid." Kintaro discharged.
"And yet their courage has saved your life," Usagi pointed out. He then stopped and turned towards Kintaro. "Instead of judging them, you should have compassion for them. When you understand others, their strength can become yours."
"I don't need anybodies strength! I'm plenty strong myself!" Kintaro retorted before nearly slipping off the edge of the path. He pulled himself up, hugging his knees and whimpering.
"If you are so strong, perhaps you should stop being such a chicken." Usagi told him.
"Chicken?! I'm the greatest warrior in the land!" Kintaro exclaimed, standing up before getting into a heroic pose.
"Then you must prove it, young one." A familiar voice said ominously, alerting the whole group.
The group tensed as they listened the voice's forbidding chuckling, echoing throughout the mountain.
Suddenly, a group of cat-like, most likely Neko, people appeared out of the snowy cliff side, dressed from head to toe in white ninja garb.
"I knew someone was watching us!" Leo exclaimed, reaching for his katana.
"Wait! Hold it!" Mikey called out, "Their wearing white! So maybe their good ninja."
He then turned to one of the Neko ninjas, holding out his hand, "Hey ninjutsu bra." Mikey greeted cheerfully, only for the Neko ninja to swing at him with his sword, causing Mikey to yelp. He took a few steps back, lifting up his coat to reveal his missing arm.
Raph and Donnie gasped in horror at the site of this.
Thankfully, Mikey's arm popped out of his shell, revealing that he had managed to avoid the deadly swing, to which the orange clad turtle giggle in relief.
"So for the record, bad ninjas." Donnie stated, taking out his bo.
"Get 'em" Raph yelled, drawing his sais and charging for the nearest Neko ninja, only for the Neko ninja to disappear into a pile of snow.
Another one came out from behind Raph, swinging his sword at him, only for the red clad turtle to barely block the attack before kicking him away.
Donnie stood his ground, blocking several attacks from one ninja before batting him away. Another ninja faded into the snow, trying to attack Donnie from behind, but Donnie saw this coming and easily smacked the ninja.
Leo and Usagi stood back to back with Kintaro in between them as the ninja turtle and the samurai rabbit were blocking and slashing at their opponents.
Just then, a neko ninja leaped down from a cliff edge, trying to get Kintaro from above.
"Oh no you don't!" Leo stated, taking a big leap into the air and kicking away the ninja.
But by doing this, Leo had left Kintaro vulnerable to a Neko ninja approaching him.
Kintaro's eyes narrowed as he stood his ground, taking his axe in hand, ready to fight off the ninja.. only for him to yelp in fear as he dropped his axe and tried to run away.
As Kintaro ran, a Neko ninja quickly grabbed him.
"We have the boy! We must hurry!" the cat ninja yelled.
"No!" Usagi shouted.
"Kintaro!" Leo gasped.
However, before they could try to stop him, the cat ninja tied Kintaro to a thin piece of rope before tossing the holy child of the cliff.
"They got Pugtaro!" Mikey yelled, jumping down to catch him while Donnie knocked another ninja back.
Usagi ran down the mountain as fast as he could, slashing any ninja who stood in his way.
As for Mikey, he continued to jump down the cliffs before a Neko ninja tried to attack him from behind. But Mikey grabbed the ninja by the arm, flipping him over his shoulder and over the cliff. But to his dismay, the cat ninja managed to right himself, using his claws to grab onto the cliffside. He then threw a grenade like object towards Mikey. With the explosion being strong enough to knock Mikey the cliff.
"Mikey!" Donnie shouted as his baby brother screamed while falling to his doom.
Thinking fast, Leo attached a piece of rope to a sturdy rock before jumping off the cliff, using the rope to swing in and catch Mikey.
"I gotcha!" Leo said.
"Woo! Thanks, Leo!" Mikey thanked as they swung to other side of the mountain pass with Raph and Donnie quickly joining them.
Meanwhile, Usagi clashed with another Neko ninja before knocking him away. The cat quickly recovered, throwing a grenade at Usagi.
"No!" Usagi screamed before the grenade exploded.
The explosion was loud enough for Raph and Donnie to hear as they helped Leo and Mikey up the cliffside.
Usagi had managed to stab his sword into the side of the mountain, preventing him from falling.
Kintaro screamed as he fell before the cable finally reached its limit and went taut, instantly breaking Kintaro's fall.
"That was close." Kintaro breathed. He then heard a snapping sound from above him. He looked up and to his horror, he saw the cable that was holding him was beginning to break.
"Ah! Usagi!" Kintaro cried before the cable finally snapped.
Kintaro screamed in a high pitched tone as he began to fall.
"Kintaro!" Usagi yelled.
Wasting no time, Usagi jumped off the cliffside, reaching out for the holy child. By some stroke of luck, Usagi managed to catch Kintaro as they landed roughly on the other side of the mountain pass.
Kintaro breathed heavily, still shaken up from his near-death experience, as Usagi helped him up.
"You did well, Usagi," Kintaro thanked with a small smile. But his smile dropped almost immediately, replaced by a firm pout, "Not that I needed your help 'cause I didn't!"
Usagi simply ignored him as three more Neko ninjas came their way. The rabbit ronin quickly grabbed Kintaro, tracing the surface of the cliff with his blade before jumping over a small gap to another cliff. He then hit the side of the cliff as hard as he could with the hilt of his katana.
This caused a large vibration throughout the mountain, causing the cliff of ice the three Neko ninja were standing on to collapse, making them fall to their doom.
The Turtles quickly approached them from behind.
"Are you two alright?" Leo asked.
"We are fine, Leonardo-san." Usagi replied.
"Didn't sound like a thousand screams to me." Raph smirked while holding Kintaro's axe as the group gazed down into the fog below.
"It's okay, cats always land on their feet." Mikey said cheerfully.
The group turned around and continued on their journey. However, Kintaro hissed in pain as he clutched his ankle before limping after the others.
A few hours later, the sky was now pink, indicating that the sun was slowly setting.
The group had managed to reach a clearing at the top of the cliff. As Donnie attended to Kintaro sprained ankle, the others looked forward to see their destination in the distance.
"The Temple Palace of the Sky Buddha." Usagi muttered.
Suddenly, it seemed as though the clouds themselves were alive as they took the shape of dragons flying in the sky. The sight of this caused Leo, Raph, and Mikey to gasp in both wonder and fear while Usagi tensed up, reaching cautiously for his blade.
Once some the clouds cleared, Usagi turned to the Turtles, "It will be dark soon," He explained, "We must keep moving if we are to make it by nightfall."
Meanwhile, Donnie was trying to patch up Kintaro's ankle in a small cast, only for the holy child keep complaining and moving.
"Ow! You clumsy reptile! That hurt!" Kintaro complained as he kicked Donnie.
"Yeah well, it wouldn't hurt if you'd sit still," Donnie retorted, "I'm trying to help you."
"Well you're failing! And causing me untold pain, knave," Kintaro said angrily, "I WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD CHOPPED OFF!"
Of course, a certain orange clad turtle laughed, thinking it was all a joke. Despite himself, Donnie couldn't help but smirk at Kintaro's threat.
"Aw, I love Kintaro's threats," Mikey said as he walked away with Donnie, "Your pure comedy, little dog dude."
Kintaro's face comically turned beat red in anger, "I am not funny! I am impressive!"
Leo couldn't help but feel sympathy for the young pup. He then turned to Usagi.
"Usagi-San, allow me to protect your young charge for a while. Give you some rest." He requested.
"I appreciate and accept, Leonardo-san." Usagi replied, bowing his head before joining the others.
Leo then turned to the holy child, whom was sniffling in sadness. However, it didn't take him long for him to notice the blue clad turtle.
"What do you want?" Kintaro questioned.
"Only to walk with someone who I think is pretty brave." Leo answered.
Kintaro was taken aback by this.
"What do you mean you think I'm... I'm brave?" He asked, confused.
"I saw you on the mountain. You held your ground and tried to fight against the ninja. That was pretty impressive Kintaro." Leo replied with a small smile as he walked ahead.
"It was?" Kintaro quietly questioned before a small smile came across his lips, "I mean, of course it was! I was born to be a hero after all."
Leo simply chuckled, "Hm, sounds interesting, tell me more."
It was dusk now as it began to snow again as the group walked up the stone stairs leading to the temple. Kintaro had gone back to Usagi while Leo stuck to guard the rear of the group.
As the walked, Leo couldn't help but feel that something or someone was watching them. Leo quickly brushed away his thoughts as they continued on.
After what seemed like countless hours, the group finally reached the bridge that was across from the entrance to the palace. The palace itself was well-structured and beautiful by feudal Japan standards, with three different floors in the main temple. The outer palace walls were lit up with small orange lanterns.
The Turtles and Kintaro panted with exhaustion while Usagi was not bothered in the slightest.
"Finally, we are here." Usagi said, looking around the palace.
As the group walked across the bridge towards the entrance of the palace, they began to notice something was a bit off. The temple itself was very quiet, and the courtyard was filled with a sort of eerie fog.
"Hmm, there should be warrior monks guarding the entrance," Usagi said, "Let us be cautious."
But immediately after he said that, Mikey rushed into the courtyard, laughing all the way.
As the fog cleared, the group noticed that the courtyard was completely empty, not a soul in sight.
The courtyard was very large with a few sakura trees as well as a couple creepy statues.
The group then noticed a man kneeling in front of some kind of scroll while chanting quietly in Japanese.
"Uh, excuse us, sir? We're looking for the high priest?" Leo called out.
The stranger turned around to reveal it to be non other than Jei himself!
"Greetings, my warriors." Jei said.
"Jei!" Usagi scowled.
"Thank you for bringing the Golden boy to the temple for me. After all, it is the only place where I can preform the ritual of the new dawn." Jei stated.
As if on cue, a loud thump came from behind the group. They turned around to see it was Sumo Kuma!
"Shall I destroy them, master?" Sumo Kuma asked.
"Destroy Usagi," Jei ordered, "The Turtles may still have some use for me."
He then took his spear in hand and lunged towards the Turtles who drew their weapons and tried to fight of the wicked wolf.
As they delt with the evil sorcerer, Usagi fought Sumo Kuma. The large bear to hit Usagi with his kanabo but missed.
Meanwhile, Kintaro simply ran away, too afraid to fight. He hide behind a small stone as he watched the battle that ensued.
Usagi used his katana to block Sumo Kuma's kanabo. However, he quickly realized that Sumo Kuma could easily overpower him. Switching tactics, Usagi redirected the kanbo, getting behind Sumo Kuma and flipping him onto the ground.
He then turned his attention to the Turtles, who were still fighting Jei.
As the Turtles attacked, Jei managed to block their attacks and knock them back with ease.
"Excellent," Jei stated, "You have more than proven your worth."
"Our worth?" Leo questioned.
"Do you really think I truly gave up my control over you? No. How do you think I have been spying on you all this time?" Jei explained as the Turtles looked in shock, "I have been watching through your eyes."
Jei then reached into his kimono, pulling out the four turtle talismans. A sense of struggle came over the Turtles as they clutched their heads, trying to resist Jei's control.
But ultimately, it was a futile gesture, as they're eyes went completely white, indicating they were under Jei's spell again.
Jei chuckled, "Now, turtle ninja, destroy Miyamoto Usagi."
Wordlessly, the Turtles faced Usagi, picking up their weapons as Usagi stood ready.
The Turtles then rushed towards the rabbit ronin, attacking him with everything they had.
Usagi was quickly overwhelmed as the Turtles kept hitting him with several punches and kicks before he was knocked down by Donnie and Mikey.
While on the ground, Usagi reached for his katana, but it was stepped on before he could do anything. He looked up and saw Leo, raising his sword, about to end the rabbit ronin's life.
"Usagi! Nooo!" Kintaro shouted.
Leo swung his sword to deliver the killing blow, when something unexpected happened.
Usagi stared in shock, seeing Kintaro standing in front of him, with Leo's blade shattering into several pieces as soon as it made contact with Kintaro's chest!
"What?!" Jei questioned in complete shock and disbelief.
As if things weren't shocking enough, Kintaro's body glowed a blinding blue light as he floated into the air, taking a meditative stance.
"Jei, release them from your power, evil one." Kintaro spoke in a commanding voice.
In response, Jei simply pointed his spear at the holy child, silently signaling the Turtles to attack him.
Leo threw a punch which Kintaro easily caught.
Raph tried to stab him with his sai but the Kintaro simply grabbed his wrist.
Kintaro then spun them both around before throwing them into a wall.
Mikey tried to hit him with his nunchucks, but Kintaro dodged each strike with ease before he punched Mikey right in the chest. Hard.
Donnie rushed towards the holy child, his aginata blade out, ready to impale him, but Kintaro jumped over the blade and kicked Donnie square in the face, knocking him out.
Just then, Sumo Kuma appeared, now wearing nothing but his blue mawashi. Sumo Kuma roared at Kintaro, only for him roar back. The two charged at each other, grappling for a moment before Kintaro threw several palm strikes towards Sumo Kuma's chest. Then, in an inhuman show of strength, flipped Sumo Kumo over his shoulder.
Usagi was in shock and awe at what he had just witnessed. So much so that he almost didn't notice Kintaro approaching him.
"Are you alright, my friend?" Kintaro asked, concerned.
"You did it." Usagi said, proudly.
Kintaro gave a small smile towards his friend.
But suddenly, a set of black chains wrapped around his body tightly.
"Even your great strength cannot break this enchanted chain, Golden Boy." Jei said, holding his spear close to the bound Kintaro's face, making him whimper in fear.
Usagi slowly stood up, "Hold on, Kintaro. I will-"
"You will do nothing, Ronin," Jei stated, "All that has happened is as I intended it. I wanted you and the Turtles to teach Kintaro humility, compassion, and courage to release the boy's power. You have transformed him into the perfect vessel... for me."
"For you? Than it is true!" Usagi gasped.
"Yes, I am immortal, having traveled from body to body for many years," Jei revealed, "But the Golden Boy's body will be the most powerful of them all!"
Grabbing his katana, Usagi tried to attack Jei, but before he could, a series of stone pillars sprang up from the ground, knocking him back.
As the pillars continued to rise, they seemed to take the shape of a stone ceremonial table. Jei walked up towards the pillars placed Kintaro onto the table.
"Oh gods of the new dawn, hear me," Jei shouted into the skies, "To serve you for eternity, grant me the power to move my soul into this new form!"
As Jei began chanting the spell, the skies turned a bloody shade of red as thunder and lightning could be seen and heard for miles.
Meanwhile, the Turtles slowly began to stir, revealing their eyes to be normal instead of their white mindless ones.
"Ugh, I was feeling really evil there for a minute." Mikey groaned, holding his head.
"I think we were hit so hard by Kintaro's spiritual power..." Donnie began.
"He smacked the evil right out of us." Raph finished, catching on.
"Yeah, but Jei doesn't know that," Leo whispered, forming a plan, "Put your evil eyes back on and follow me."
The others nodded, putting their second eyelids over their eyes to pretend that they were still under Jei's control.
Donnie and Mikey, still pretending to be under Jei's control, grabbed each of Usagi's shoulders, holding him down.
"Yes, hold him, my disciples. But do not finish him just yet," Jei commanded as Leo and Raph slowly approached him, "Let him bare witness as your master ascends to power!"
Usagi looked up as Leo pointed his katana at him. Jei body shook as his soul began to come out of his body. Jei's spirit crawled over to Kintaro, causing him to struggle even more against the chains. Pulling out a small tanto knife, Leo winked at Usagi with a small smile, causing the Rabbit Ronin to blink in confusion. In a split second, Leo turned around, throwing the knife at Jei. The knife impaled Jei through the chest, causing his soul to retract into his body, stopping the ritual.
"Treachery." Jei muttered.
Seizing their chance, the Turtles charged towards the wicked wolf, weapons drawn. But Jei used the chained Kintaro as a weapon, knocking them away before slamming the holy child into the ground as if he were a piece of trash.
And the sight of this made Usagi very angry.
"You monster!" He shouted, enraged.
Jei simply laughed as the Rabbit Ronin got up and grabbed his katana.
Letting out a yell of anger, Usagi charged at the Jei, swinging his sword relentlessly at him, but the Wicked Wolf deflected each strike with his spear. Usagi swung his katana, intending to take the sorcerer's life, but Jei dodged, instead causing the Rabbit Ronin to cut down a thick wooden pillar. The two continued jabbing and swinging at each other while also dodging and parring their attacks as their heated duel led to the bridge of the temple. Usagi thrust his sword towards Jei, but the Wolf jumped above it, kicking the katana out of his hands, knocking Usagi down.
"It ends hear, Usagi!" Jei stated, "No blade can stop me! No mortal can stop me! I will live forever!"
Suddenly, he heard a yell as Leo came charging towards him, his katana in hand.
Jei blocked his attack as went on to duel the blue clad turtle. Jei swung his spear but Leo parried it, stepping on his foot before swinging his sword at the Wicked Wolf. Jei parried the swing, thrusting at Leo again, but Leo flipped over him, swinging his sword at Jei in mid-air. But the sorcerer blocked it as the blue clad turtle landed. The two continued to block and parry before Leo managed to knock Jei's spear out of his hands. Jei threw a kick at him but Leo rolled under it. He then jumped up and stabbed Jei right in the chest! But to his shock, Jei simply sneered as he hit Leo with hard uppercut, knocking of his kasa hat as Leo fell to the ground.
With the katana still in his chest, Jei walked over to where his spear had landed and picked it up. He then walked over to the fallen Leo who was only now recovering. Jei stood atop him, pointing his spear at Leo's throat.
"How?" Leo questioned in disbelief.
Jei simply chuckled, "Foolish child. I'm hundreds of years old, and have trained with the greatest teachers in Japan," Leo looked to Usagi who was also now recovering, "How could you possibly-" But before he could finish, Leo kicked Jei in the nuts. Hard.
Jei's eyes widened at the sudden rush of pain. Dropping Kintaro and his spear, Jei fell to his knees as he held his aching balls. Leo flipped back onto his feet as he gave a small smirk.
"Oh yeah? Well I'm sixteen. And I learned this from a rat." Leo said taking a stance.
Jei was unable to defend himself as Leo hit him with a barage of quick punches and kicks before knocking him into one of the railings of the bridge. As Jei slowly stood up, Usagi found the strength he needed as rushed towards Jei, grabbing the Leo's katana which was still imbedded in his chest, and pulling it out while also flinging Jei over the other side of the bridge.
"Noooo!" Was the last thing they heard Jei say as he plummeted to his doom. Leo and Usagi looked over the side of the bridge, and though they could not see it through the cloudy abyss, they faintly heard a painful yowl quickly followed by a sickening crack.
Jei was defeated, for good.
The other three turtles soon approached the bridge.
"Did you hear him land? I didn't here him land." Mikey said.
"I don't think your going to." Raph told him.
"Leonardo." Usagi said, handing Leo's sword back.
Leo and Usagi then bent down, helping Kintaro to his feet while also unwrapping the chains on him.
Once they did that, Kintaro surprised the two them by hugging them.
"Thank you, my friends." He told them.
"All is well, Kintaro. You are safe now." Usagi said, rubbing the holy childs head while Leo patted him on the back.
"Come on, team," Leo spoke, "Let's get inside."
Later on, the sky had now turned from an evil red to a pleasant blue. The darkness gone, the danger had passed. It even began to snow.
The Turtles, Usagi, and Kintaro were facing Such Kumo, whom was now awake, "Forgive me, my friends," Sumo Kuma spoke, "I too was enchanted by the wizards evil. I am grateful that you freed my temple."
"Your temple?" Donnie questioned in surprise.
Sumo Kuma smiled and nodded again, "I am head monk of the Temple Palace of the Sky Buddha," He explained, "Now that Jei is gone, I will send for the return of my fellow monks so that we may attend and protect Kintaro, the Golden Boy." Sumo Kuma bowed in respect towards the holy child. The Turtles turned to face Kintaro.
"I am thankful to you turtles too. Especially you, Leonardo. I am forever in your debt." Kintaro smiled, bowing in gratitude.
Leo smiled at this, "Thank you, my friend." He said as he bowed
"Aw yeah! See? I told ya Pugtaro was a good dog! Up high, little pup!" Mikey cheered, raising his hand to give Kintaro a high-five. Unfortunately, Kintaro was to short to reach for his hand. And after a few failed attempts to reach his hand, Mikey finally relented.
"Okay, okay. Down low." Mikey said, lowering his hand so Kintaro could smack it.
"Um, we still have a problem, guys," Donnie pointed out, "How are we going to get home?"
"Spiritual power brought you here," Sumo Kuma answered, "So it is the key to your return," He handed Kintaro his axe, "Kintaro, you can make the way."
Holding his axe, Kintaro closed his eyes. Focusing all the spiritual power he could muster, Kintaro swung his axe, creating a large white rift.
"This doorway will not last long." Sumo Kuma warned.
"Then it's time to go," Raph said, "See ya, Kintaro. You did good." He ruffled Kintaro's hair as he walked through the portal.
"Take care, Kintaro." Donnie spoke as he followed.
"Catch ya on the flip side, awesome rabbit dude. Later, Pugtaro brah." Mikey said, following Donnie and Raph through the portal.
"Goodbye, Usagi-san." Leo told Usagi.
"Goodbye, my brother." Usagi said as the two bowed to each other.
But before Leo could go, he felt someone hugging his leg. He looked down and smiled to see it was Kintaro.
"Thank you for helping me through this journey, Leonardo," Kintaro told him, "Even when I didn't want it. I'll miss you."
Leo bent down and hugged him back, "Your welcome, Kintaro. And I'll miss you too." He then stood up and patted the holy child fondly on the head.
And with that, Leo walked through the portal. And in a blinding flash of light, the portal disappeared.
What was left in its place were the four turtle talismans Jei used to summon the Turtles.
Usagi walked over, picking up the four talismans before heading out of the temple. With his mission now complete, it was time for him to leave.
As he put his kasa hat and coat back on, Kintaro ran over to him.
"You don't have to go, ronin. You could stay." Kintaro said, hopping for him not to leave.
"I must go. There are others. Innocents in need of my sword," Usagi explained, "But, if you ever need me, I shall return. Goodbye, Kintaro-sama."
The Rabbit Ronin continued across the bridge and into the snow, ready for whatever new journey would come next.
"Thank you, Yojimbo! Sayonara, Usagi!" Kintaro said, waving goodbye.
And so, Usagi roamed the snowy land once again, with the turtle talismans tied to katana to remember them by. He tipped his hat down, revealing a small smile. He departed further into the snowy regions to ensure his code of honor the samurai code of Bushido on aiding those in need of his service.
The End.