Ch.7: Search, Catch, Return
The seven pairs split up to search for the seven Pythors, using tracking devices to track them down.
Skylar and Paleman found Romeo Red just in front of a flower boutique. He had laid down a cape he had borrowed from Hero Blue over a puddle on the sidewalk and is helping some blushing/giggling girls across it with a flirty smile.
"Okay," Paleman said to Skylar, "so how are we gonna catch him?"
"The only way I can get his attention," she answered, walking up to the sidewalk. Paleman understood what she plans to do.
"Be careful, Skylar." The Orange Ninja then stepped onto the sidewalk just a yard behind Red, who had just finished helping the girls across the covered puddle. She then gave him a whistle before dropping her handkerchief onto the ground on purpose. Red turned and smiled when he saw her before slithering up to her, picking up her handkerchief, and handing it back to her. Taking it, she gave him the "come hither" gesture and pursed her lips for his. He then leaned forward to kiss them…only for Skylar to hold up her Pristal piece and let him kiss it instead. When he did, he glowed into a red silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed rainbow colors. Skylar then turned to Paleman and can sense his surprise despite his invisibility.
"What? You didn't expect me to actually kiss him behind Kai's back, do you?" She then walked off to return to the Bounty with the still surprised Paleman following after her.
With Kai and Zane, they spotted Nutty Orange in the park entertaining some kids in a birthday party. They tried to catch him, but he kept on dodging them with back flips and cartwheels. The kids only laughed at them, thinking it's all part of the show.
"Hold still, ya big nut!" Kai yelled, running to tackle him to the ground. But Orange only jumped out of the way with a laugh, causing the Red Ninja to fall into a mud puddle. The kids laughed hysterically as he then spat the mud out of his mouth.
"You have to admire his agility," Zane stated he made a sharp turn. When he did, his Pristal piece fell out of his pocket and onto the grass. Orange's eyes sparkled when he saw it.
"Ooh, shiny!" He then reached out to touch it. When he did, he glowed into an orange silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed rainbow colors. The Red and White Ninja stared with surprise as the kids cheered, thinking it's the show's "grand finale".
"Uh, that was easy," Kai stated. Zane only nodded in reply before picking up the Pristal piece so the two of them can get back to the Bounty.
With Nya and Jay, they had found Mellow Yellow in a fitness center teaching tai chi to some middle-aged people.
"Okay, so how are we gonna catch him?" Jay asked.
"What about that little guy you built?" Nya asked. The Blue Ninja snapped his fingers in reply.
"Stealth-O! I knew bringing him along was a great idea!"
"Time to test that baby out," his girlfriend replied with a wing and a smile. With a nod, Jay reached into his backpack and pulled out a little contraption. It looks like a miniature moon rover topped with a robot arm. He then settled it down at the doorway and got out a remote control as Nya gave the robot arm their Pristal piece.
"Activating stealth mode now," Jay said, pressing a button on the remote. When he did, the little rover became invisible. Guided by the remote's camera, the Blue Ninja guided the little bot into the Taichi room. The Stealth-O robot worked as perfectly as he hoped; it's so quiet that even Yellow couldn't hear it. Carefully, Jay directed the robot over to the yellow Pythor and just behind him.
"And now," Yellow directed his students, "as we move back in, we breathe in…find our center…and breath out…" As he exhaled, the invisible robot poked him with the Pristal piece. When it did, he glowed into a yellow silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed rainbow colors.
"Yes!" Jay cheered. "We got 'im!" As he then directed the Stealth-O robot back to him and Nya, the students were in awe by what they saw.
"Whoa…did you dudes see that?"
"He must be some kinda magician, man."
"I…guess they must be hippies too," Nya replied with an arched eyebrow as Jay took the robot and Pristal piece and before they left for the Bounty.
With PIXAL and Chamille, they found out that Clean Green was in Ninjago City's five-star hotel, the Shining Shuriken. They entered the ballroom to find that he has single-handedly straightened out the entire room nicely for the upcoming wedding reception it's holding.
"Of all the Pythors we have to retrieve," Chamille sighed as she watched Green dust off the bride and groom's seats, "I get stuck with the neat freak."
"I calculate that we can use this 'neat freak's' OCD to our advantage," PIXAL stated with a bit of thought. "Do you have your lipstick with you?"
Meanwhile, Green had just got done polishing the champagne glasses to crystal clarity when he heard PIXAL's voice.
"Oh, dear. I seamed to have gotten lipstick all over my lucky crystal." He turned to see PIXAL and Chamille nearby, and PIXAL was holding a crystal covered with lipstick smudges in her hand.
"Oh, you poor dear," he replied, taking pity on her and slithering up to her. "Here, let me clean it for you." PIXAL then handed the crystal to him with a grateful smile, and he took it into his hand. But when he touched it, he glowed into a green silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed rainbow colors.
"Huh, whadya know?" Chamille replied as the Pristal piece fell into PIXAL's hand with ease. "It worked."
"Let's get back to the Bounty and get our Pythor back," PIXAL said before rushing out of the ballroom. Chamille then followed after her with one thought on her mind.
Lipstick: Never leave home without it.
With Karloff and Dareth, they had found Hero Blue outside of a jewelry store, where he'd just caught a couple of thieves and turned them over to the police. Karloff got an idea and challenged Blue to a wrestling match, which the blue Pythor happily accepted. As the two of them wrestled, Dareth attempted to touch the Pythor with the Pristal piece…which is easier said than done.
"Dareth, sometime today would be nice!" Karloff called as he and Blue rolled to the right.
"I'm trying," Dareth panted as he chased after them, "but you're moving too fast!" He cried out with surprised and ran to the left with the wrestlers rolling after him.
"Well, jump him or something! Karloff doesn't know how much longer he can hold him!" He and Blue then started rolling to the right again with Dareth looking after them in shock.
"Are you kidding me?!"
"DARETH!" The honorary Brown Ninja flinched at the outburst before sighing in defeat.
"Aww, man…" He then leapt forward and dog-piled on the wrestling pair. Blue suddenly began glowing into a blue silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed with rainbow colors.
"Huh," Dareth replied with surprise. "Well…that was easy."
"Yeah," Karloff groaned from under him, "now will you please get offa Karloff?!" Dareth quickly did so, and the two of them hurried back to the Bounty.
With Cole and Tox, they had found Smart Indigo at the Ninjago City Medical Institute. He was with a handful of professors and some students, carefully mixing together a few chemicals until one beaker's contents turned pale pink. With an eyedropper, he extracted a bit of it before applying it upon a volunteer's ingrown hair with one drop. They all watched as the hair shriveled up like a blade of grass in the desert sun and fell off. Even the volunteer was surprised because it didn't even hurt.
"So as you can see," Indigo said to the awed students, "by combining the right harmless chemicals and the most necessary nutrients and vitamins…"
"Wow," Tox replied with wide eyes, "a medicine that gets rid of ingrown hair painlessly? Think he can come up with one that'll cure acne permanently?"
"Tox, focus!" Cole hissed at her. "We gotta get him into the Pristal shard."
"Yeah? And how are we gonna do that, genius?" Cole then thought about it as he leaned against the door through which they're watching Indigo. He then glanced at the door again…and it hit him like a ton of bricks!
"I got it!" he cried, grabbing Tox's wrist. "C'mon!" He then pressed himself and Tox up against the wall right next to the door.
"What are you doing?!" Tox demanded quietly.
"Shh!" he hissed back. "Just trust me and get that Pristal ready." Rolling her eyes, Tox got the shard out and held it up on standby. They held still at the sound of clapping, a sign that he's done with his lecture. They then waited a bit more before the door opened. And just as Indigo slithered out…
"Now! On Cole's signal, Tox shot her arm out and hit the indigo genius with the shard. The two of them then watched as Smart Indigo glowed into an indigo silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed with rainbow colors.
"Huh," Cole said with a smile. "What do you know…it worked." Tox turned to him with disbelief.
"You mean you didn't think it would?"
"I was relying on a hunch," he answered with shrug. She just rolled her eyes with a groan before grabbing his arm.
"Come on," she muttered, dragging the surprised Black Ninja after her back to the Bounty.
And with Lloyd and Shade, they've found Shy Violet at the Ninjago City Zoo. A group of people (plus two or three cameramen from the news) were gathered around the tiger pit, watching as Violet helped one of its rare white tigers give birth to three snow white cubs, all of them beautiful and healthy. When the operation was over successfully, they all applauded for him as the zookeepers thanked him. As the TV reporters delivered the news of this momentous event to the cameras, Shade and Lloyd made their way to Violet, who had just gotten out of the pit through the back door. Upon seeing him, Lloyd rushed over to him.
"Violet!" Upon hearing the Green Ninja, the timid Anacondrai turned to him fearfully. He then tried to slither away, but Lloyd was too quick for him as he made a high ninja jump and landed in front of him.
"Violet, just hold on a minute." Seeing that he has no escape now, Violet hung his head down in defeat.
"Alright, Lloyd…go ahead and do it so that you can punish Pythor for robbing you of your father.
"Violet, I'm not putting you guys back together to punish Pythor," Lloyd explained. "I'm putting you back together so I can apologize to him." Violet blinked at those words.
"You…You are?"
"Yes. I had no idea I was making him feel bad because I was so busy trying to cope with Dad being gone. But since you've told me what was bothering Pythor, I can tell him that Dad's sacrifice was not his fault and that I'm sorry for making him feel that way."
"I…I had no idea," Violet replied. "I…I'm sorry, Lloyd. I…I was just…"
"I know, I know," he replied calmly as he took out his Pristal piece to him. "But once we fix this mess, I'll be able to fix the previous one." Violet nodded with a small smile.
"Thank you." And he touched the crystal. When he did, he glowed into a violet silhouette before getting sucked into the stone, which then glowed with rainbow colors.
"Well done, Lloyd," Shade said to him with a smile.
"Thanks, he replied. "Now let's go get our Pythor back." And the two of them hurried back to the Bounty.