It was soon nighttime as Chip and Nick were still reporting the scavenger hunt.
"Good evening, scavenger hunt fans, this is the moment we've been waiting for!" Nick announced. "Five minutes left, three teams in the running for the most tastylicious cake of them all."
"And one of those teams is the Delightful Children who have come from nowhere with 2200-bamillion points and the lead!" Chip added. "Looks like that cake is as good as theirs!"
"Again..." Nick and Chip added with an unfortunate groan.
"There! Over there!" A voice called out.
The Delightful Children soon grabbed the scoreboard as they joined their best friends, a redheaded boy and a blonde girl: Kingsley and Queenie Morbuxaplenty.
"HEY!" Nick yelled, breaking out of his Howard Cosell impression. "WHAT GIVES?!"
Chip glanced down at the list. "...It's on the list, Nick."
"Don't worry," Numbuh 1 declared as he stood with LJ and his friends. "They still don't have enough points to win!"
"Holy comeback, Nick!" Chip exclaimed. "Numbuh 1 has evened the odds!"
"And you can add this to our score!" LJ declared, holding up Father's pipe.
"THAT'S FATHER'S PIPE!" exclaimed the Delightful Children.
"And worth eleventy-gamillion points!" Nick added.
"Putting Numbuh 1 and his friends in the lead!" Chip concluded.
"GIVE THAT BACK!" The Delightful Children demanded as they tossed out the scoreboard at Numbuh 1 and the others.
Numbuh 1 and the others dodged it before the scoreboard went flying and soon attacked a Ferris Wheel and it fell to the ground, smashing into pieces.
The smoke then cleared to reveal a very dazed Toiletnator. "Oh... I gotta ride that one again!" he then called out.
"All right, guys back to the park we-" TJ told his friends before gasping with them.
"Whoa! What the heck happened here?" Vince asked.
"I think we might be a little late." Mikey said to the others.
"That's it," Queenie glared at Numbuh 1 and the others as she had jetpacks pop out from behind her back and she soon flew in the air. "You guys are dead meat!"
"Says who?" Chrissy rolled her eyes.
"SAYS ME!" Queenie glared as she shot right back down and lunged for Chrissy and the group, slamming down on top of them, making a huge crater in the ground while the Delightful Children tackled Numbuh 1.
"Nobody, and I say, nobody, bugs my pals, you schnooks!" LJ declared as they all ended up aboard a ride called the... 'DROP-A-LOG'.
And so, both groups grappled as they rode up and down the river.
"The cake is OURS!" The DCFDTL proclaimed. "And we'll NEVER let you have it!"
The boat then suddenly slammed down, making the Delightful Children fall back suddenly and they ended up in a dark tunnel.
"Rainbow Monkeys, Rainbow Monkeys, oh-so-very round and super chunky, Bringing love wherever they go, Everyone's part of a big rainbow!~" The voices sang as they entered the tunnel. "Oh, red and orange, and pink and blue, Rainbow Monkeys, Rainbow Monkeys, we love you!~"
The groups soon made it out of the tunnel and there was a flash photo at the end of the brawling.
"Wow! Now isn't that a nice memento of today's game?" Chip smiled as he looked at the photograph with Nick and The Toiletnator.
Suddenly, the three got splashed as the logboat passed them down the stream.
"Yippee!" The Toiletnator cheered once he realized what he and the others were soaked in. "Toilet Water!"
"Eww!" Chip and Nick complained and grimaced.
Both groups continued grappling, until Numbuh 1 saw that the Delightfuls had grabbed his S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. during the fight.
"It's OVER, Nigel Uno!" they declared. "You and your friends are FINISHED! Now, say it."
Numbuh 1 turned his head away. "No."
"Say it!" They demanded. "IT'S THE END! SAY IT!"
"I... I can't." Numbuh 1 replied.
"WHY NOT?!" The DCFDTL exclaimed as a signpost labeled "Welcome to NEW JERSEY" was coming up overhead.
"Because... THE KIDS NEXT DOOR WILL NEVER END!" Numbuh 1 declared, leaping into the air and clinging onto the signpost.
"And on that note, this is where we get off!" LJ declared as he pulled out a grappling gun. "Everyone else, grab on!"
The others clung to LJ as he fired the grappling gun onto the signpost, pulling them to safety... And leaving Queenie and Kingsley inside the logboat, of course.
"NOOOOOOO!" The Delightful group cried out as they were sent away at a high speed as Numbuh 1 and his new colleagues made it out in time. "Nooo..."
"We got bigger problems." Kingsley spoke up.
"What is it?" Queenie demanded.
They soon all saw the horror as a track was missing and they were zipping downright that way with a giant toilet down below. The Delightful group screamed as they were flushed away and the Delightful Clones seemed to be melted away from existence while Kingsley and Queenie were drenched in toilet water.
"I always wondered how those guys went to the bathroom together." Numbuh 1 smirked as he held onto Father's pipe.
The rest of the tracks soon began to fall apart.
"Whuh-oh!" Chrissy gulped. "We might be next if we aren't careful!"
Nick, Chip, and the Toiletnator ran for their lives as the tracks were crumbling to pieces. Fortunately, LJ and Akito combined their energies to create a protective energy shield around themselves and their friends so that they wouldn't get crushed or hurt... And Numbuh 1's fist emerged from the rubble, clutching Father's pipe.
"We have a winner!" Nick exclaimed. "Numbuh 1 and other members of Sector V!"
"Congratulations, Numbuh 1," exclaimed Numbuh 74.235 as he picked his nose. "We knew you'd be victorious!"
"...Um, thanks? I think..." Numbuh 1 replied nervously, as he shook Numbuh 74.235's hand.
Suddenly, the booger began to spread over the both of them, teleporting them both away.
"Hey, what the?! Let go! AAAUGH!" Numbuh 1 cried out.
"...Did anyone else see that?" TJ asked the others.
"That's impossible!" Gretchen cried out before grimacing. "Not to mention a bit grotesque."
"It had to be possible, we all saw it." Spinelli remarked.
"Hey, uh, at least you did a decent job for new recruits," Akito said to the Recess gang. "I figured you'd be members one way or another."
"Heck yeah," Vince replied. "It's been that way for a long time for us, even if Gus is new among our group."
"Well, I'm definitely sure that you'll make great KND operatives," LJ replied. "Now, that just leaves the question of where exactly Numbuh 1 went."
"Hmm... Let me see if I can track down his ki." Akito replied as he paused briefly and held onto his head.
LJ and the others watched, waiting silently for Akito to make the connection.
Finally, Akito's eyes flew open. "Everyone grab on." he told his friends, who followed suit. In the blink of an eye, the group flickered, then vanished.
Suddenly, they reappeared inside a canyon, where Numbuh 1 was nearby with Numbuh 74.235, and his parents.
"The ship is waiting, Numbuh 1," smiled the bucktoothed scientist. "It's time."
"I don't believe this...!" LJ exclaimed, shocked beyond comprehension. "...And neither will Zofia and Felicity."
"The cake..." Numbuh 1 gasped as he looked at something very large and extraordinary. "It's beautiful!"
"Oh, that's not the cake!" Numbuh 74.239 replied as he took out a tiny cupcake with a cherry on top before biting into it. "This is! Omnomnomnom..."
The rest of the group sweat-dropped at that.
"It may be small, but it's their best one yet!" Numbuh 74.239 then told the others.
"But if that's the cake, then what's that?" Numbuh 1 asked as he pointed at the lovely sight from up above.
"A spaceship of course!" Numbuh 74.239 rolled his eyes like it was obvious before he walked off. "Now come on, we don't have much time!"
"Time?" Numbuh 1 asked as he followed the redheaded boy. "Time for what?"
Zofia was soon shown with a certain bespectacled blonde boy before they looked over with smiles.
"Zo? Richard?" LJ's eyes widened.
"We heard about what's been going on, so we left Mr. Dewey for the day and decided to stop by." Zofia smiled at her younger brother.
"Well, it's about time you two showed up," LJ replied. "And at the climax, no less!"
Finally, Numbuh 1 was getting very short on patience. "Numbuh 74.239, will you please tell me what exactly is going on around here?!" he asked.
Numbuh 74.239 grabbed Numbuh 1 by the shoulders. "Don't you get it yet? You've been chosen to join the Galactic Kids Next Door!" he exclaimed. "Only one kid from every planet's picked and you're it! You leave immediately!"
"Leave?!" asked Numbuh 1. "But-" he was instantly cut off by a group of KND scientists dressing him in a white spacesuit with a red stripe. "...where am I going?"
"Out THERE!" Numbuh 74.239 exclaimed. "You don't think Earth is the only place where adult tyranny needs to be fought, do you? Why, on some planets, children have 37 parents instead of just 2!"
"But, why do you need me?" asked Numbuh 1. "I've never been to another planet!"
"That's the point!" Numbuh 74.239 exclaimed. "You're a blank slate! We need kids like you to learn about planets that have been infected!"
"Infected by what?" asked Numbuh 1 and LJ at the same time.
"By adulthood," replied Numbuh 74.239. "The horrible truth, Nigel, is that adulthood is a disease, sweeping the universe at an alarming rate! Without galactic-level operatives, more and more planets where kids rule will fall! By joining us, you won't be saving a neighborhood or even a planet from adult tyranny. You'll be saving the universe!"
LJ looked on in shock. "Adulthood... A disease...?" he asked.
"Surely that has to be a bit of an exaggeration." Richard shrugged.
"I... I understand..." Numbuh 1 soon said bravely as he accepted the opportunity. "Just tell me when I'll be back."
"Back?" Numbuh 74.239 replied. "Oh, you can't ever come back!"
"WHAT?!" LJ and Numbuh 1 then yelped.
"But what about my family?!" Numbuh 1 asked. "What about my friends?"
"Your friends can't ever know, aside from this group," Numbuh 74.239 informed as LJ and the others were witnesses, but they weren't the only ones. "I know it's hard, but Earth people just aren't ready to know about the galactic fight against adulthood. If you honor what your friends are fighting for, you'll make that sacrifice."
Numbuh 1 frowned and bowed his head in dismay.
"But... As for your families... Someone's mother predicted that this would happen..." Numbuh 74.239 replied as he showed Numbuh 1's parents, along with Cherry, Lionel, who had Felicity and Chip with them, as well as their bundle in Cherry's arms, and Lionel held David's hand, Atticus, Mo, who came with Vincent and Estelle, Kimberly's parents, Raul's parents, Manny and Lu Rivera, as well as Aria, Adagio, and Sonata.
"I had a feeling this would happen, so we talked Monty and Hyacinth here about what was happening and convinced them to let us come." Cherry spoke in her dry monotone to her children.
"I came all the way from Auradon," Felicity smiled as she came to LJ. "My friends say hi and hope to see you again."
"After this?" asked LJ. "I'd be more than pleased to tag along."
"Dad? Mom?" asked Numbuh 1. "What are you doing here?"
"We came to see you off, dear!" said Mrs. Uno.
Numbuh 1 was positively shocked. "Mom, you know about all this? About the Kids Next Door?" he exclaimed.
"Well, of course!" Mrs. Uno smiled. "They were nice enough to recommission Numbuh 0 and me to say goodbye."
Now Numbuh 1 was twice as shocked. "You were a Kids Next Door operative, too?!" he asked.
"Only the first girl operative in the 7th age of the Kids Next Door, Numbuh 999 herself!" exclaimed Mr. Uno proudly. "And now you're going to be the first earth operative in the Galactic Kids Next Door. Do you have any idea how proud we are of you?"
"But they say I can't come back!" Numbuh 1 replied. "That I'll never see you or my friends again!"
Mrs. Uno wiped her eyes. "But you'll make all sorts of new and interesting friends up there, dear," she said, getting on-level with her son. "And as for us, you know we'll always be with you," she then hugged her son. "Now run along and promise to stay away from all those black holes and exploding supernovas, alright?"
Numbuh 1 smiled. "I promise, Mom."
"What a tearful family moment." Cherry commented.
"Is your mom sad or what?" Numbuh 1 asked LJ.
"She is, she just shows it differently," LJ replied. "She'd be even more sad if I had to go with you."
"Good luck, Numbuh 1!" Monty soon told his son with a salute. "Show those galactic chaps we mean business, eh, what?"
"Yes, sir, Numbuh-I mean... Dad." Numbuh 1 saluted back before he hugged his father emotionally.
Monty hugged his son right back before letting him go. "All right, off with you now before Numbuh 0 gets all weepy and such..." he then said emotionally as he wiped his eyes before his wife smiled sadly and hugged him. Sonata soon gushed out crying suddenly while Aria looked annoyed and Adagio just felt disturbed.
"It's okay, Aunt Sonata, I'm not going anywhere." Chrissy told the dark blue-haired woman.
"I know!" Sonata cried. "This is just such a tearful moment! They're gonna send some kid up and all the way in space!"
Chrissy reached over and gently patted her blue-haired aunt on the shoulder.
"Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad." said Numbuh 1. "...I love you."
"The ship is waiting, Numbuh 1," informed Numbuh 74.239. "...It's time."
But just as Numbuh 1 made his way towards the walk, he heard some familiar voices.
"THERE HE IS!" Numbuh 5 shouted. "NUMBUH 1, WAIT!"
"Hey!" exclaimed Numbuh 74.239. "Those guys shouldn't be here! SECURITY!"
Several guards came out to detain Numbuhs 2-5.
"No! Just let me say goodbye," Numbuh 1 pleaded. "...Please."
Numbuh 74.239 relented. "...Very well. Just, make it quick." he said.
LJ soon stood with his family and soon reached out a little. Felicity smiled a bit and allowed LJ to hold onto Honey.
"Hello!~" LJ cooed as he carried his niece carefully.
Honey cooed back and waved her arms at her young uncle.
"Am I glad to see you guys," Numbuh 1 smiled at his teammates. "But how on Earth did you find me?"
"It's a good thing you never got past that tracker on the Delightful Children." Numbuh 5 smirked as she poked his chest, making the bald boy reach into his suit and took out something.
"Otherwise we never would've made it in time to say goodbye." Numbuh 2 smiled sadly.
"That's nice of you." Vincent replied.
"H-How did you know I was leaving?" Numbuh 1 asked his teammates.
"Well, science nerds kinda stink at keeping secrets from each other, so I sorta put some stuff together for your trip," Numbuh 2 said as he handed his soon-to-be-former leader a backpack. "I packed all the essentials: Yipper comics, a couple of boxes of chewy pellets, some new 2x4 stuff I've been working on... *sniff* Probably useless to all these galactic guys have, but you never know!" he then said, on the verge of tears.
"I'm sure your inventions will be way better, Hoagie." Numbuh 1 told his best friend.
"I wish we were going with you..." said Numbuh 2. "Everything's going to be new and exciting for you, and everything here is going to be the same... except you won't be with us...!"
"I'll be with you," said Numbuh 1. "Even if I'm a million, trillion miles away. Goodbye, old friend." he put out his hand.
"Good luck, Nigel." Numbuh 2 replied, shaking hands.
"So! What are we going to do tomorrow, Numbuh 1?" asked Numbuh 3.
"Uh...I'm not going to be here, Numbuh 3." replied Numbuh 1 uneasily.
"Oh. Then what about the day after that?" asked Numbuh 3.
"Uh, let me explain, Kuki..." said Numbuh 1.
"Oh, I know you're leaving, silly!" Numbuh 3 replied. "What do you think I am, an airhead or something?"
Numbuh 1 smiled. Even when things looked bad, Kuki always kept her spirit up. Sector V would definitely need that kind of enthusiasm around. "Never for a second." he replied.
Numbuh 3 now had tears in her eyes. "We're gonna miss you a lot, Numbuh 1." she said.
Numbuh 1 wiped his own eyes. "I'm going to miss you too, Kuki." he replied.
Numbuh 3 kissed her former leader on the forehead and walked off.
Kimberly wiped her eyes with a tearful smile as she stood beside LJ as he carried Honey in his arms.
"So... This is then, huh?" Numbuh 4 scoffed as he kicked a stone while having his hands in his pockets, acting like he didn't care. "You're leaving us!"
"Wally, it's not like that." Numbuh 1 frowned.
"Yeah, yeah, I know! You gotta go up and save space kids in Canada or somethin'!" Numbuh 4 turned his back on the bald boy with tears in his eyes before turning sharply. "But what about us here on Earth?! We need ya too, ya know!"
"I guess the Kids Next Door think they need me more out there," Numbuh 1 frowned softly. "Yeah, well, if you need any help, you'll call, right?! 'Cuz you know we'll come runnin' right?!"
"Kinda reminds me of Spinelli sometimes." Akito commented as he stood with Estelle and Vincent.
"I know," Numbuh 1 smiled softly at the short boy with tears in his eyes. "You take care, alright?"
"Okay... See ya..." Numbuh 4 nodded and he soon walked away.
The group soon looked at him.
"Look, I ain't cryin', okay?" Numbuh 4 glared at them with obvious tears in his eyes. "Someone left a bowl of onions in here or somethin'."
"Look at you..." Numbuh 5 smiled. "Best operative on the planet. And to think I had to convince you not to quit this morning!"
"If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be in the Kids Next Door in the first place." said Numbuh 1.
"Oh, please. They would've found you eventually. I mean, these guys did," smirked Numbuh 5. "Look, are you sure you want to do this? You don't have to go!"
Numbuh 1 shook his head with a sad smile. "You know I can't pass this up, Abby; you're only a kid once, right?" he replied, taking off his shades and handing them to her. "So this means you're in charge of Sector V again."
Numbuh 5 backed off. "Oh, no, no, no...nuh-uh-uh-uh!" she replied, vehemently.
"I'm not giving you a choice this time," said Numbuh 1. "Who else is going to take care of the guys?"
"B-But...!"
"Abby, we both know you're the only one on this team with any real common sense," said Numbuh 1. "While I'm screaming that we're being invaded by tiny kid-eating leeches falling from the sky, you're the one telling me it's only snowing. You're a way better leader than I ever was. So lead Sector V." he pushed the sunglasses into her hands.
By now, Numbuh 5 was teary-eyed. "But... It won't be Sector V... Without you." she said.
"It was before, and will be after." Numbuh 1 replied.
Just then, there was a pinging noise from the radar.
"We got problems!" said one scientist. "Father's on his way here, and he looks really mad!"
"Numbuh 1, it's now or never!" announced Numbuh 74.239, as Sector V gave their leader one big hug.
"All right guys, listen up," said Numbuh 1 as he got everyone into a huddle. "Even if we'll never see each other again, just promise me one thing: that you'll never grow up! Even if you're 100 years old and don't remember a thing about our times together, you'll still be a kid at heart, okay? So who's with me?"
One by one, everyone put their hands in the middle.
"2,772!"
"236!"
"218!"
"51!"
"43!"
"5!"
"4!"
"3!"
"2!"
"1!" Numbuh 1 finished, putting his hand in the middle for the last. "KIDS NEXT DOOR! ...Goodbye."
LJ sniffled as he wiped his eyes. "Best of luck, my friend. May the children of the galaxy tell tales of your heroic deeds." he smiled.
Honey cooed and wiggled at that with a small laugh.
They soon heard and felt some stomping.
"Here comes Benny." Cherry rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms.
"NIGEL UNO, I AM DONE PLAYING GAMES WITH YOU, BOY!" Father snarled as he stomped into the room, quite literally aflame. "GIVE ME BACK MY PIPE, THIS-"
However, the room was suddenly empty and everyone was gone as if they were never there, to begin with.
"What's this? ...No. NOOOOOOO!" Father soon cried out in anguish as he was all alone.
Everyone soon came outside and watched as Numbuh 1 took off into outer space.
"So long, old friend," LJ smiled, tears of joy rolling down his face as he watched the spaceship, now a twinkling star in the distance. "Know what, Flick? I think we can definitely make that trip to Auradon."
"The others miss you there," Felicity nodded. "Especially Jay and Carlos. I guess you feel like the little brother they always wanted."
"Well... I'm honored they think of me in such a manner," LJ smiled. "C'mon, then! Let's head on out, lookin' forward to brand-new adventures! Next stop, Auradon!" he declared, raising a fist in the air.
"Queen Mal and King Ben," Zofia added. "Though it seems odd that Adam let Ben become king without him dying."
"Belle and Adam just thought it would be nice, especially since Gabrielle didn't want the throne." Cherry remarked.
"Well, hey, at least he's around to see it happen," shrugged Raul. "Most royals ain't that lucky."
"That's a good point." Zofia then said.
"Also, rumor has it that Ben and Mal are thinking about having kids someday," Felicity smirked. "They seemed to feel inspired after they came over for Christmas to meet their goddaughter."
"I can hardly wait to see them for myself," LJ replied. "Should be an interesting experience, that's for certain!"
Felicity then hugged her younger siblings. Honey beamed in the hug as she was between the hug and sprawled around.
"We'll make a call as soon as possible." Chip decided.
"Thanks, Chip." LJ and Zofia told their brother-in-law.
"And as for you guys, you may not have won the scavenger hunt, but I think you're good enough to be official Kids Next Door operatives," Numbuh 74.239 told the Recess gang. "Especially after we watched footage of you guys saving your school from that wackjob who wanted to end recess for everyone around the world."
"Definitely tender," TJ smiled as he and his friends slapped fives and congratulated one another.
"Good luck, rookies," LJ nodded. "You're gonna do wonders."
"We sure will," Spinelli smirked. "No one will ever see us coming."
"Of course, you'll need some numbers for yourselves," Numbuh 74.239 told them. "Any ideas?"
"Very well, I'll be Numbuh 211." TJ decided.
"Numbuh 216." Mikey decided.
"Numbuh 1918." Gus decided.
"Numbuh 2344." Vince decided.
"Numbuh 7966." Spinelli decided.
"And as for me, Numbuh 3.141592653589793238462643383279-" Gretchen began, only to get cut off due to her requested codename.
"How 'bout just Numbuh 3.14?" Numbuh 74.239 before smirking a bit. "But come see me later... It's nice to see a girl with a brain like that aside from those Nerd Zombies like one girl named Bessie Higginbottom."
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Gretchen replied.
And as the Third Street Kids were on their way to becoming KND cadets, LJ, his friends, and family were on their way to another new adventure. It was a tearful goodbye and a sad ending to the KND legacy without Numbuh 1, but it would also be a happy new beginning for the GKND as everyone hoped to see him again someday and they would. In the future of course.