Chapter Twenty-Nine

Rocky did a series of backflips to evade being kicked by Tum-Tum. He landed cleanly on the ground and immediately dropped to his back. Tum-Tum leapt up and crossed his legs, driving his knees down towards Rocky's chest. Bringing up his arms, Rocky crossed them over his chest, absorbing the brunt of the blow.

The wind was almost knocked out of him. Having his youngest brother drop onto him when he was still overweight was one thing. Having his youngest brother who managed to become fit and know as many wrestling moves than Rocky would've ever become comfortable with, was painful. Especially with his bony knees and legging digging right into his arms, forcing said protection, right into his sternum.

Rocky knocked Tum-Tum backwards with an upraised force of his arms, only to have an arm wrapped around his neck and have his bodyweight flung around in a swirling vortex that made his stomach suddenly slam to the side, causing nausea to wave over him. Rocky blinked his eyes open, mentally working out how to bring himself from Tum-Tum's grasp around him.

Tum-Tum's arm was around his neck, but Rocky's body was parallel to the ground, held up by his feet planted firmly on the ground and his back resting against Tum-Tum's upraised knee. Very similar to the game he and his brothers used to play, that they roped Emily into when they were younger. Where they'd rest their backs on the seats of chairs, their feet on the ground, heads resting on each other's laps, and had to keep themselves up when the chairs were taken away. A game that usually left them collapsed into hysterical laughter as they tried to stay up, but in that moment had Rocky facing some of the most discomfort he ever felt with a knee into his spine.

His mind raced, working up to figure out what it was that'd get Tum-Tum off him. Then he caught a glimpse of Tum-Tum's face, saw the amused glint in his eye that he was able to pin his eldest brother, and figured it out. Use Tum's excitement against him. Rocky allowed himself to grow limp, allowed his body to collapse in the center so that his butt hovered just above the ground. He brought up his hand and tapped Tum-Tum's wrist.

In a second, Tum-Tum's grasp started to loosen around Rocky's neck, and Rocky used that moment to strike. He slipped his head out from Tum-Tum's grasp and extended his arms above his head. He grabbed Tum-Tum's wrist with his both hands, and in a flurry of movements, twisted around so that he had Tum-Tum kneeling on the ground, crying out in pain as Rocky twisted his arm behind his back.

"Okay, okay, okay! I give!" Tum-Tum cried. "I give, let go!"

Grinning, Rocky released Tum-Tum's hand and backed away so that his younger brother could get back to his feet. Tum-Tum scowled, all but pouting as he rubbed his shoulder. Then crossed his arms over his yellow gi. Rocky pulled at the collar of his own green gi, wiping sweat away from his shoulder, and stepped back. Without prompting, the two turned and pressed their hands to their sides, bowing low to each other, then turned and bowed to Colt and Mori, who watched the sparring match.

"Good job, Tum-Tum," Mori said, his voice strong as it carried over the backyard. He drummed his fingers over the top of the cane he grasped towards his chin in both hands. "You're really coming into your own fighting style. I am pleased to see that it is treating you well." Tum-Tum nodded, the grin that stretched across his face made it to his eyes. Mori then turned to Rocky, frowning ever so slightly. "You're going to face tough battles in life, Rocky. The toughest will always be when you have to face your brothers. You need to keep your wits about you when it happens."

Rocky frowned, placing his hands on his hips, mulling over his grandfather's words. He ignored the look of confusion Tum-Tum shot Rocky out of the corner of his eye. Ignored the way a fleeting smile came to Colt's face from where he saw next to his grandfather, waiting for his turn to spar as well. "Yes, sir," he replied dutifully. He cleared his throat, an obvious change in his demeanor as he looked to his brothers. Tum-Tum and Colt looked back at him and nodded subtly.

Rocky licked his lips. "Grandpa," he said slowly. "Do you remember how I was telling you about Harding?" He lowered himself into the seiza position—with an erect sine and his legs and feet neatly tucked beneath him. Beside him, Tum-Tum did the same and Colt moved into the same position beside his grandfather as well. While it wasn't something he and his family did very often, it was mainly used for the more traditional, formal occasions, but they'd been taught it was a respectful way to sit in the presence of their elders.

Especially when that respect was being shown toward their grandfather.

Mori nodded silently. His gaze turned to the side, looking wistfully over the flowers that gently waved in the breeze. He took in a deep breath, then shifted his gaze back to Rocky. He lifted his hand and waved it, motioning for the boys to relax. Immediately, all three boys removed themselves from the slightly painful position and stretched out, waiting for their grandfather's words of wisdom.

"You've been training under me for a long time," he said slowly. "Ever since you all could walk. And I've seen you grow into as great young ninjas as I've seen you become great young men." He shrugged, looking his grandsons in the eye. "I'm not sure there's much left for me to teach you."

Colt was the first to protest. "That's not true, grandpa. There's always something you can teach us."

"Yeah!" Tum-Tum agreed. "You make learning so much better than anything the teachers could do in school."

Rocky smiled to himself. The smile faded almost instantly. Knowing what his grandfather was getting to but not quite saying. He remembered his conversation the last time he had one-on-one time with his grandfather. Where he first tried to breach the topic of Jack Harding and what was happening around them.

"Rocky, you know this burden isn't yours to bear alone," he added, voice turning serious. "Colt and Tum-Tum are older, you should trust them more."

"I do trust them!" Rocky frowned, hearing how earnest his voice was. "I don't trust anyone more than I trust them. I don't think I could." He removed his hat and raked a hand through his hair. "I just…I want them to be okay."

"When you're gone, you mean?"

Rocky nodded, licking his lips.

"It's not like you won't be back."

"The way everyone's talking about it, it's like I'll be gone forever. And now that Jack is here…I don't know."

"You've taken care of him before." Mori looked at Rocky out the corner of his eye. "If I remember correctly, you boys were sneaking out of my house all the time to meet that girl…to help you to face him."

"Jo, yeah." Rocky smiled. "But…things were easier then. This is different."

"How so?"

"Because…because there are higher stakes. Because there's a lot we don't know. When Harding was around before, he was just using his land to dump. What does he want now? What people is he going to hurt now? Is he out for revenge? Has he changed? What are we supposed to do—"

"—You know the answer to that!" Mori frowned.

Rocky waved a hand. "I know, don't strike first. A ninja never strikes first." He clenched his hand into a fist, long enough for his fingertips to turn numb. "But he struck first tonight, grandpa."

"Do you know that for sure?" Rocky's silence was Mori's answer. Mori placed his hands in his lap and was silent for a long time. For a moment, Rocky was sure his grandfather had fallen asleep. But, finally, he said, "Just as you can't strike first, you can't act as if you know everything others are going to do."

"But grandpa, you always tell us to be prepared, to get in the mind of our opponent. To always be two steps ahead. How can I do that if I don't act like I know what the other person is going to do?" All at once, Rocky was transported back to when he was first leaning martial arts, when he worked through the confusing oxymorons that were told to him. Be quiet so your opponent doesn't hear you, but scream your kiais as loud as possible. Each lesson growing more confusing as time passed.

Or maybe that was the point.

Mori smiled. "That's one of the great mysteries of being a ninja," he remarked. "Of knowing which path to follow."

Rocky shook his head, erasing the memory before it went too far. Before it went to the part of the conversation he tried to block from his mind. The truth that he hadn't said to younger brothers, wanting their grandfather to say it first. The truth that seemed to haunt him daily. Nevertheless, he waited quietly as Mori settled himself into his seat, tightening his grasp along his cane.

"I'm glad I have your approval, Little One," Mori said with a smile. That same twinkling smile he always showed when around his grandsons. "I'm glad you've been enjoying my teachings."

"Well, that's what we wanted to talk to you about," Colt spoke up quickly, cutting off his grandfather. "With everything that's going on with Harding…we think there's something you can help us with. The Jacksons…they need some help." Colt's eyebrows furrowed together when he noticed Mori's smile widen, lowering his chin. "You know about that?"

"I know a lot, Colt," Mori replied. He lifted his chin, shook his head just slightly, lifting his gaze to just above their heads. "I know a lot about them that you don't know. That I don't feel you should know unless they bring it up themselves." Colt opened his mouth to protest. "Just as I'd advised of you for your parents over the years. They've had lives before you and continue to have a life you may not know of. There's no reason to judge when you don't have an idea of what that life is." He pursed his lips then shook his head. "These old bones…I don't know if I can help you the way you want me to."

"What does that mean, grandpa?" Tum-Tum asked quietly.

"It means, if you want to help your friends, I think you should be the ones to teach them ninja, not me." Mori spread his hands when Colt, Tum-Tum, and even Rocky all had a simultaneous outburst. "I've taught you everything you know, and you continue to improve as the days go on. The only way to improve even further, than from continuously training, is to train others. That's the mark of a true teacher."

"Well, duh!" Tum-Tum blurted. Then cried out in pain when Rocky and Colt both reached out and hit him at the same time. Rocky swatting him on the arm while Colt reached out his foot and struck him in the shin. Tum-Tum's eyes widened defensively. "I just meant we know what teachers do. We sit in school all day every day and—"

"Shut up, Tum," Colt hissed.

Rocky stayed silent. He had a feeling he knew what his grandfather was going to say next. That it was probably a good idea if he was the one that lead the ninja training. He knew the most, wanted to learn as much as possible, had the experience…everything he'd ever heard from his parents when the dreaded comment, "Why can't you be more like your brother?" or "Why can't you be more like Rocky?" managed to rear its ugly head and make things worse for him.

Mori looked at Rocky for a solid moment while Colt and Tum-Tum continued to bicker. Finally, Mori got to his feet and said, "I'm always behind you whenever you need help. I'll always be there for you boys. But, I think, this is one fight you're going to have to face yourselves." He shook his head. "And that fight will come to you sooner than you think if you don't get ready for school. Your mother in a bad mood is one thing I don't ever want to face."

Rocky laughed and got to his feet. He watched his grandfather move inside the house then turned to his brothers, folding his arms over his chest. "Guys, I think it's okay."

Tum-Tum scowled. "You think it's okay that Colt wanted to sell me for a quarter?"

Rocky lifted his eyebrows. "You told him that?"

"No, I told him we tried to sell him for a dollar but I had to keep lowering my prices," Colt shot back sarcastically. Tum-Tum made a sound of offense, prompting Colt to shrug. "It's not my fault you're not worth a dollar."

"Actually, I think we started at fifty cents, raised it to a dollar, then dropped it to twenty-five," Rocky teased, maliciously enjoying the look of horror that crossed Tum-Tum's face. Rocky fist-bumped Colt before saying, "I'm just kidding, Tum. And anyway, I meant, I think it's alright if we taught the Jacksons ninja ourselves. It shouldn't be too difficult, we've been doing it for years and even helped teach Amanda a little of what we knew."

"You really think Grandpa doesn't want to help us?" Tum-Tum asked quietly. Hi stone quickly shifting the mood of the conversation. "Is he okay?" Rocky ducked his head, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"He's fine," Colt reassured him. "Just getting older. It's not going to be much longer until we can beat him in a fight. And, anyway, it's probably a good idea if we handle all of this ourselves. He probably doesn't believe us anyway." Rocky gave him a look. "Come on. If mom and dad believed us, don't you think they'd do something to help rather than say we can't hang out with them?" He placed a hand to his chest. "I don't know about you, but dad bursting into MedoCal like that was embarrassing."

"I'm glad your reputation is more important than everyone who Harding is poisoning," Rocky said sarcastically.

"Don't be a jerk, you know it's not. I'm just saying we haven't had dad's support before, why would we have it now? Just like always, we're going to have to handle this ourselves and I'm prepared to do that."

"Okay…but how are we going to teach them ninja without mom and dad finding out?" Tum-Tum's face screwed up. "We still have baseball practice until the season ends, there's school, mom's checking we're keeping up with our classes. I still have wrestling—"

"—We'll have to meet them again," Rocky interrupted. "Like we did last night." He thought about the day at the ice cream parlor, where they'd been attacked. "I don't think it'll take too long for them to learn. Not if a five foot three girl can take down a guy more than twice her size."

Colt nodded slowly. "What do you think grandpa meant?"

"About what?"

"That he knows more about them than he can tell us."

"What he said. That he probably knows more he can't tell us. Probably the same things that mom and dad know but won't tell us." Something in the back of his head started to niggle at him, something that Emily had told him before. "But that's not important now. They're in as much trouble as we are, and we just have to trust them." Colt and Tum-Tum looked skeptical. "Trust me then."

"You know we do," Colt reminded him. He stepped up to his brother, placing a hand on his shoulder in a rare moment of sincere solidarity that Rocky was sure would be nullified by a joke or a sarcastic comment within minutes. "We always do. But you have to trust us, too."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That's you're starting to act more and more like dad every day."

Colt dropped his hand from Rocky's shoulder and went into the house. Tum-Tum ran after him, shouting that he wanted to take the first shower, shoving Colt out of the way as he did so. He sighed and followed them into the kitchen, closing the sliding glass door behind him. He lifted his chin in a nod to Jason, who sat at the table, hunched over a large plate of pancakes.

"Miss. Douglas, I know you're worried about me, but I don't think I can eat anymore," Jason was saying as Mrs. Douglas flittered about, gathering her things for work that day. She stopped long enough to present her cheek for Rocky to plant a kiss on, then kept moving.

"Perks of living in a house full of boys, Jason," Mrs. Douglas said with a small smile. A strained smile, Rocky noted. "There's always someone around who's going to eat what you don't." She pointed toward the ceiling, at the sound of running water moving through the pipes. "Leave it long enough and I'm sure Tum'll get to it."

"I'll take it," Rocky offered. "If I don't eat now, I won't have anything until lunch." He looked at his watch, then looked up to see his mother giving him a disapproving frown. "I meant because Em's going to be here soon and she hates to be late."

"Yes, we wouldn't want to keep her highness waiting," Jason said sarcastically, pushing his plate away. Rocky swooped in and picked it up. He turned to Mori, who sat quietly at the counter, sipping at a cup of coffee. "It was good talking to you, Mr. Tanaka."

Mori nodded in response. Mrs. Douglas bid goodbye to the family and slipped out the door. Rocky moved to his grandfather's side. "What were you and Jason talking about?" He asked, cutting into a piece of pancake. He kept his eyes on the clock above the oven. "I can't remember the last time you guys had a conversation."

Eyes still closed, Mori said, "He doesn't have many people to listen to him."

"Grandpa, I listen to him all the time."

"His parents are always gone?" Rocky nodded. "Other than you, who else does he have to listen?"

"I see what you mean."

Silence stretched between them for a few minutes. Mori opened his eyes and spoke once more. "I can't help but worry, Rocky," Mori replied. He leveled his gaze at his eldest grandson. "I sense a great amount of unease from you. Of hesitation. Is what was bothering you before, still bothering you?" Rocky shook his head. "Lying—"

"—I know, lying poisons you," Rocky interrupted. He noticed the irritation on his grandfather's face for interrupting and quickly apologized. "Sorry, grandpa. I just mean…I'd hoped by now you would've told Colt and Tum-Tum what's going on. I don't like keeping it from them."

"You can tell them if you'd like," Mori said.

Rocky shook his head. "It's not for me to tell."

"I didn't think you would."

"Sir?"

"The day of names ceremony, I named you Rocky because you're levelheaded. You know how to keep your cool. You're solid as granite rock; always know how to calm yourself down and work your way through any situation. I've watched you grow up, Rocky. And no matter what has come your way, I've seen you hold onto the same thoughts. Even when you were a baby, a young toddler trying to work out his building blocks and shapes, you were calmer than a lot of other young ones your age. You always figure out the best way to go about things and I believe you'll figure it out in this case as well."

Mori got off his stool and disappeared upstairs.

Rocky watched him go, sighing.

He'd figure it out? Sure. How was he going to figure out how to tell his best friend that he was sure Harding was targeting him?

A/N: Woohoo, things really pick up with the next chapter! Action, suspense! Mayyybe a time jump? I wanted to really go into the 3 ninjas and the Jacksons burgeouning freindship within this story but realized that with what I've presented so far, it wouldn't make much sense and would more likely have to be left for the sequel. But, you guys, things are starting! There were a couple of low-leveling chapters (okay, most of the story) but everything will be revealed! And...the ninja tournament will come back! :)

Cheers,

-Riley