Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago.

Do you like being kept in the dark and having no idea on what's going on? It's the point of this fic, after all! Enjoy.


Chapter 8: Cotton Drifting: Lies


Izumi Takano and Takashi Arima were killed…all that's left are the two sacrifices…

"Dammit!" Kai slammed his fist against the wall.

"Calm down, Kai." Lloyd sighed. "Maybe he's lost?"

"I highly doubt it. He's pretty old, so maybe he's just wandering around." Nya stated calmly.

"I don't know about that, Nya. Sensei Wu wouldn't just leave without telling us." Zane said, furrowing his brows.

"What? Are you saying it's Oyashiro's curse?"

After Nya had said that, the rest of the ninja went silent.

Wu, being a part of the Garmadon family, left for a meeting in one of the shrines past noon yesterday. And the meeting ended after sunset. No one's seen him since.


Nya walked around her bedroom, staring out the window as the cicadas cried. Five years in a row, huh? She thought, remembering the curse and each year's victims. Takashi and Takano died right after I saw them. She shuddered at that thought, especially since she might have been the last person to see them before they died.

Nya slowly walked out of the bedroom, strolling past Cole who seemed to be in a hurry. Once their eyes locked for just a moment, a quick thought raced through her mind. Cole and I entered the ritual tool shrine… we might disappear soon…

Sighing, Nya stepped out into the training grounds, taking a deep breath as she closed her eyes. Once she pried them open, she gasped the second she saw Lloyd on the floor several feet away from her.

"Lloyd!" Nya exclaimed, walking over to him and helping him up. Lloyd himself looked distraught and teary eyed.

"Hey, are you hurt?" Nya asked, a look of concern in her eyes.

Lloyd looked at her, forcing a smile as he wiped his face with his sleeve. "No. I'm fine, Nya."

"Okay…" She still didn't believe him. Lloyd suddenly took a step closer, prompting Nya to take a step back.

"Hey…" He started, blankly staring at her. "Did you do anything bad on festival night?"

Nya froze. Does he know? The wind blew through her hair, neither of them speaking for a whole minute. Lloyd still stared at her, whereas Nya looked away.

"Nya?" Lloyd broke the silence. He stepped back then smiled warmly. "Sorry. That question was just so sudden. Forget it." He began walking away.

Shaking her head, Nya faced him. "W-wait, Lloyd!"

The green ninja stopped dead in his tracks, turning around dreadfully slow. Their eyes locked once more, making Nya far more anxious.

I really want to tell him everything, but he's the next head of his family. He'll never forgive me. Nya thought.

"On festival night," Lloyd began, grabbing Nya's attention. "I heard a cat snuck into the ritual tool shrine."

A…cat?

Lloyd continued. "The cat saw what's inside and got really scared. It ran away while shivering and trembling…"

"What should the cat do, then?" Nya asked, her voice shaking.

Lloyd didn't answer.

Nya said, "The big dogs watched the cat enter the shrine. They're all asking it whether or not it snuck in."

Lloyd smiled. "Don't worry. I'll protect the cat. Maybe the dogs just didn't understand the situation. I'll do my best, so it'll all be okay." He winked.

Suddenly frowning, Lloyd said, "Nya, I think we should stop with our games for a while. The black cat is upset over something, and should be left alone for a while."

Black cat? Is he talking about Cole? Nya thought to herself.

"Nya," The blond called out to her. "If the mistaken dog tries to bite the scared cat, please let me know."

The samurai felt uneasy once she heard those words.


Later that night, Lloyd, Zane and Cole weren't at the monastery. Cole and Lloyd had to leave, because, apparently, a meeting was going to take place soon. Lloyd had also asked Zane to stay over at his house, for some reason.

Nya lay in bed, her mind flooded with many thoughts, which she wished she could forget about. Maybe I shouldn't have told Lloyd. He spoke as if he was there.

The phone in her room began ringing, startling her.

"Hello?" She answered.

"It's Cole." The familiar, robust voice was heard.

"Cole…Thank goodness you're okay. Oh, and I'm sorry I spoke to you the other day like you were to blame."

She heard Cole sigh. "Well, if you regret it, then I'll forgive you." He replied. "Look, if anything happens to either of us, we have to tell each other, okay?"

"Got it."

"I…I can't believe Sensei Wu just disappeared like that."

"Yeah…" Nya couldn't help but think about the curse again.

Cole took deep breaths. "What should I do? Yesterday, I told him everything we did that night…!" Cole's voice quivered. "I shouldn't have…It's all my fault!" He sounded frantic and scared.

Nya's eyes widened. "No. It's not your fault, Cole." She tried to sound reassuring, but ultimately failed.

"It is!" Cole exclaimed. "He disappeared right after I told him! Killed because I told him…!" Cole took shallow breaths as he began panicking.

"He got killed because I told him everything!"

Nya's heart stopped beating for a full second. Cole told Wu everything…

"Killed because I told him…" Cole continued mumbling in a very frightened manner.

…and Wu disappeared…

"Killed because he found out!"

Nya told someone…She told Lloyd…

"Killed because I told him everything!"

Lloyd…Oh, God…Lloyd! A quick image of his bloody corpse shot through her mind.

"Cole…" She started. "Me too…I also told Lloyd." She began trembling, barely able to keep her hands still as she held the phone. "Lloyd…!" She said once more.


On the same night, Nya, Kai and Jay agreed on searching for Lloyd and Wu. The three of them ran around the neighborhood, asking several villagers about Lloyd when they had the chance.

The three stopped in front of Lloyd's house.

"This is Lloyd's house?" Nya asked.

"Yeah…" Jay answered.

"Hey! Jay! Kai!" Cole ran up to them.

"Cole! You finally made it." Kai said. "Come on."

They went over to the front door, and they weren't surprised to find it locked.

"Dammit…" Kai cursed under his breath. He began knocking on the door loudly, but, of course, he got no answer.

"What?!" Everyone heard Jay's shriek. He was talking with several villagers.

"Cole!" The blue ninja ran up to him. "She-she disappeared!"

"Who?" Cole asked, dreading to hear his teammate's answer.

"Yumi…Miyazono…" Jay said, frowning. "No one has seen her."

"N-no way…You're kidding, right…?"

"I'm not. Let's just continue searching for Lloyd and Sensei Wu. We'll search for her later." Jay said solemnly.

"Hey," Kai stepped back to get a good look at the house. "There're windows on the second floor. Maybe they're unlocked."

"Guys," Cole appeared from behind the tool shed, holding a metal ladder. It was only natural for him to know where that was. He's been friends with Lloyd for a very long time.

"I'm gonna go get some help. I'll also check the main house." Jay announced.

"I'll come." Kai said, before he and Jay disappeared behind a set of trees.

Cole placed the ladder against the front porch, allowing Nya to climb. Once she was almost at the top, she looked down at Cole, who gripped the ladder to keep it steady.

"Jay said something about a main house?" Nya stated.

"Yeah. It belongs to the current head of the Garmadon family. Wu…" Cole replied.

"And…" Nya gulped. "You mentioned a girl named Yumi…"

"Yeah…Her parents fell off a cliff due to the curse. Her older brother, Jirou, went missing the next year. Her older sister, Rei, also happened to go missing the year after that." Cole lowered his head.

"It must be hard for her." Nya said with a sigh.

"She's cursed." Cole's sudden and firm tone startled her. What?

"Col-"

"I said she's cursed!" Cole looked up at Nya. The look in his eyes…she didn't even recognize him. The only thing she knew was that the person before her wasn't Cole.

Cole shook the ladder once, almost causing Nya to fall off. "Cole!"

"Yumi Miyazono is cursed! Both of her siblings worked so hard just for her, but they got erased!" Cole shook the ladder much more violently this time. "That damn Lloyd…He involved himself with her too much, and he vanished! It's her fault…It's all her fault! It must be…It definitely must be…" His muscles stiffened as he began breathing faster.

"Cole! Calm down!" Nya said. However, Cole ignored her, and continued.

"Nya! Cole!" Once they both heard Kai's voice, Cole stopped shaking the ladder and stepped back, not looking up at Nya. Jay and Kai appeared with two other villagers.

"We got a key." Jay held it up.

"Ah, good save." Cole said, seemingly relieved. He looked up at Nya and smiled warmly. "Right, Nya?"

What the hell…? This…This isn't Cole. It's not him at all. Nya thought.

The four teammates searched the entire house. They checked every single room for anything that could give them a hint on Lloyd's whereabouts. Much to their dismay, he was nowhere to be found. Nya, Kai and Jay continued looking around, even through the cabinets and fridge for a clue.

After an hour of searching, Nya stepped outside, walking away from the house as everyone continued searching. Yomiya is stunning at night…I guess I never had time to take a look.

Cole and Jay went towards another part of the village to look for Yumi.

Lloyd…She fell to her knees. "Is it my fault you disappeared?"

"Nya?" A voice from behind her spoke. She didn't need to turn around to confirm that it was Kai. "Are you okay?" He continued.

"It's my fault!" Nya said, tears already blurring her vision. She wrung the hem of her shirt, feeling the fabric crinkle under her grasp.

"Nya…" Kai crouched down next to her, rubbing her back comfortingly. "I think we should leave now."

"It's my fault they disappeared." Nya's restrained voice bothered Kai. That was it. She couldn't hold back her tears anymore.

"Why do you think so?" Kai asked.

Nya shook her head, afraid to tell her brother, for it could cause his disappearance.

"I know you care about us all, and I know it's not your fault." Kai said with a reassuring smile.

Nya's eyes widened. "You know?" I never told Kai.

"Don't worry. You think I'll vanish too, huh? Well, I won't." He smiled again.

Kai…She looked up at him. How…?


Nya and Kai were walking around the village the next day. Jay and Zane hadn't come back yet. The former was off somewhere right after their search for Lloyd, and the latter hasn't shown up in a while. I hope they're okay. Nya thought.

"Where's Cole?" Nya asked.

"He's been searching for Sensei Wu ever since he disappeared. I guess he's tired now." Kai replied with a shrug.

"Where could the rest be?"

"I have no idea."

"I talked to a grocery store near Lloyd's house. The owner said he recalls Lloyd and Zane coming to buy some stuff yesterday, including a lot of tofu."

"Really? Well, remember when we looked through Lloyd's house, I made sure to check everything?"

"Yeah…"

"I peaked inside a pot on the stove and miso soup was in it."

"So?"

"You put tofu in miso soup at the very end, meaning Lloyd and Zane never finished making the soup. And I looked in the fridge and found some untouched dishes for two. They all happened to be wrapped up. You know what that means, right?"

"Lloyd and Zane never had dinner. They just packed everything for some reason. And it was all of a sudden, too."

"They were probably going to eat around seven. Hey, remember the empty soy sauce bottle on the dining table?"

"I remember. Lloyd keeps a huge soy sauce bottle in one of his cabinets, right?"

"Yeah. I checked, but I didn't find it."

"Huh…So, could that mean they went to get some sauce from a neighbor or something?"

"And, maybe…Lloyd was late as he did so. And Zane went to check up on him."

"That's it, I guess. I can't think of anything else." Nya sighed.

"Nya Hatake!" A familiar voice called out to them. Not too far from them, Detective Sawabe stood in front of his car.

"What does a cop want with you?" Kai asked his sister, who shrugged in response.

Nya said, "He wants to talk to me. You can go ahead." Kai nodded and left.

"Come on." Watari opened the car door. "Let's chat in here."

After they were both seated in the cop car, Nya began with asking, "How's the investigation?"

"Um," Watari chuckled. "Which one? There's a lot."

"All of them." Nya said sternly.

"Well, we found nothing concerning Takashi and Izumi's case."

"What about Wu from the Garmadon family? Did you find anything?"

"We did find something interesting. On the morning the day he disappeared, which was two days ago, he secretly saw a doctor at a hospital outside the village."

"Doctor?" Nya tilted her head to the side.

"Yes. And, apparently, he didn't want anyone to find out. On his way back, there was a train accident, so he went to the meeting at the shrine the moment he returned."

Nya paused for several seconds. Her heart slammed against her chest once she remembered what Cole had once told her. She thought back on her conversation with him over the phone. He specifically said, "What should I do? Yesterday, I told him everything we did that night…!"

When…when did he tell him? Nya thought. Wu disappeared two days ago. The day he disappeared, he was at a hospital, then he directly attended the meeting…then he vanished.

"Yesterday, I told him everything we did that night…!" His voice rang in her mind.

When did Cole tell him?

As if on cue, the cicadas began crying.

"Nya? Nya?!" The cop's voice snapped her back into reality. "Look, kid, I don't think you're the culprit. I know the four of you snuck into the ritual tool shrine on festival night. It was a rumor by the next day. And you should be interrogated for trespassing. Just tell me…what did you see in there? Everyone says that whoever sneaks in there gets killed. So, did you see anything?"

Nya gulped. "Just a lot of old torture tools."

"Anything else?"

"No."

"Strange. I just want to know how you're safe when the other three were harmed."

"Hold on. What do you mean by 'the other three'? There's Takashi, Izumi and…"

Watari chuckled dryly. "Takashi and Izumi died, remember? And Cole went missing."

Nya felt numb once she heard him say those words. Cole is missing. Could I…be next? She couldn't control her trembling hands.

"Only you are unharmed up until now. Lucky, I'd say." Watari said.

Cole went missing…That means I'm next.


Later that night, Kai and Nya were back at the monastery. Kai was showering, leaving Nya alone in her room. She stared down at her hands as she tapped her foot anxiously.

The phone rang, and she reluctantly answered. "Hello?"

"Oh, Nya? It's me. Cole…"

Cole?

"Lloyd and Wu hadn't been found yet, right?"

"No…"

"Nya…" His voice cracked. "…don't feel bad. We'll find them, right?" It was hard to believe he began crying after saying that.

You…You're not Cole…Nya thought. Just…who are you?

"Cole," Nya started. "When did you tell Wu everything? You know, he was at a hospital."

"I know he wasn't feeling very well. He looked ill."

"Then which hospital did he go to?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know. But, Nya, why does it matter?"

Nya grit her teeth in frustration. He didn't know the hospital, so meeting him there wasn't possible…Wu barely came back in time because of the train accident. To make it in time for the meeting, there's no way he'd have any time for Cole.

"Cole? When did you tell Wu everything?"

"Nya, why are you asking me this?"

"There's no way you would've been able to meet him that morning. Did you attend the meeting? Wait…you didn't. You didn't go…Cole, I was told you went missing…Please, if anything I said was wrong, tell me!"

She heard Cole's cries from the other end of the phone. "Cole! Please! Listen, you didn't see Sensei Wu. If you had seen him, it would've been after his meeting. So, you saw him right before he went missing or, in other words…right after the meeting!" Nya realized that she'd been yelling.

Panting and slumping forward, Nya only heard Cole crying. However, she realized he wasn't.

"Cole?" He was laughing. He was the whole time. "Cole!" A shiver ran up her spine as Cole laughed like a maniac, as if he actually found this funny. "COLE!" Tears streamed down her face as he continued laughing.

Beep, beep, beep. The line went dead.


Note: I somehow ended up confusing myself…Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!