CHAPTER 15

MICHAELANGELO:

I awoke to the sound of the door being opened, and immediately sat up. I hadn't meant to fall asleep. Rei moaned slightly and turned on her back on the cool tile floor. "Mikey?"

"Shh," I whispered. "S'okay."

She opened her eyes just as Kin appeared at the bottom of the stairs. I hadn't heard the door close behind him. He walked to the other side of the room and looked down at the tray of untouched food as he picked it up. "{You did not eat,}" he observed.

"{Being kidnapped and held in a basement kind of takes away my appetite,}" I shot back at him.

He considered that for a moment, then turned to the stairs. "{Come with me,}" he ordered.

Rei and I exchanged glances as he started up the steps. I stood slowly, hesitating, and pulled her to her feet. She gripped my hand tightly. "What is he doing?" she whispered, her voice streaked with fear. "Where is he taking us?"

"He's not taking us anywhere," I realized. "He's asking us to follow him to an unguarded area."

"Either that or he doesn't want to get blood all over his floor," she replied.

I shook my head. "I he was gonna do something like that, he'd tie us."

The bright sunlight made me cringe. I glanced around the kitchen as he set the tray next to the sink and walked through the living room. "{Come,}" he urged. "{It is okay. You are in no danger; you have my word.}"

We followed him to the front door where he stepped out onto the porch, holding the door for us. I studied him suspiciously. "{Return to your clan,}" he instructed. "{Tell them what we have told you. And choose your side.}"

I stared at him in disbelief. "{I've already told you what they'll do,}" I reminded him.

"{If you will confront Yukio with what I have told you, you will know that I speak the truth.}"

"{Why risk it?}" I demanded. "{Why let us go, when we know where you're staying?}"

He shook his head. "{That does not matter. And I allow you to leave so that you will tell them what I have told you.}"

"{Why let me go?}" Rei asked quietly.

Kin smiled and raised a hand to her cheek. She tensed noticeably. "{We wish you no harm, Rei-san. What would we accomplish by keeping you here? He is obviously not coming for you.}"

"{He hasn't had a chance yet,}" I defended.

"{He has,}" Kin sighed, dropping his hand as he turned to me. "{We left the exact address for him. And even if we had not. Do you expect that four well-trained ninjas could not follow a trail much more obvious than the one that we followed from halfway across the world?}"

I had no answer to that. He sighed. "{Go in peace, Michaelangelo-san. And I hope that you return the same.}"

He bowed, and I returned the gesture, more out of habit than sincerity. "{How will we find you?}" I asked as he turned away. "{If we need to, I mean.}"

He stopped and looked back toward us. "{You will not need to,}" he assured us. "{We will find you. You have three days.}"

LEONARDO:

"We can't just sit here and do nothing," I informed quietly. "We've waited too long as it is. It's obvious that they're not making any demands, and if Yukio truly knows nothing then we have nowhere to look."

"It's a goddamn wild goose chase," Raphael mumbled under his breath.

I wanted to protest, but I had nothing to say. Raph looked up, and our eyes met. "Ask him who Saigo is," he demanded.

I stared at him for a moment. "Who is that?"

"The name on the letter that was left for us. The name next to his. Ask him who it is."

"What good will that do, Raph?" Donatello asked. "If you're so convinced that he's lying, why wouldn't he lie about that, too?"

"Yeah, he'll lie," Raph mumbled. "But he's not good enough to act unaffected by it."

"Raphael, regardless of what, if anything, Yukio has to do with all this, we have to..."

Michaelangelo walked through the front door.

I sprang to my feet in a fraction of a second. "Mike! Where the hell have you been!"

"I..." he started. "I'm fine."

Rei stumbled in after him. She'd been crying. "Are you alright?" Raph asked, rushing to them. Rei hid behind Mike, and said nothing.

"Yeah, we're fine," Michaelangelo answered, casting his eyes down.

"What happened?"

Mike shifted nervously. "I... don't really want to talk right now. Just give me a few minutes, okay?"

We all stared at him in shock. Master Splinter came out of his room. "Michaelangelo," he greeted, sounding as surprised as I felt. "What happened?"

"It's..." he stammered. "It's a long story." Splinter waited. Mike shifted nervously. "I need some time to... gather my thoughts, okay?" he mumbled. "There's no danger. Just give me a little time."

Rei raced up the stairs ahead of him, not wanting to be left alone with us. He kept his head down as he walked away, and left the four of us staring at each other in bewilderment.

RAPHAEL:

I felt him approach long before he said anything, but I didn't turn around until he spoke. "Hey, Raph?"

I glanced at him. A tired expression was on his face, but he didn't look like he'd been crying. "What're you doing up?" I asked. "It's almost three in the morning."

He smiled faintly. "I was gonna ask you the same thing."

I looked back out at the water. "Just thinking," I mumbled. "Not much else to do around here. And I can't sleep."

"Yeah," he whispered. "I know."

I glanced at him. "Mikey, what happened?" I asked, not really expecting an answer, but hoping for one.

"How much do you know?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Kind of the same MO as at the lair. There was a letter in the table. Your name, Rei's, and the other name that was on Yukio's letter too."

"What name?"

"Saigo," I answered.

He stared down at the sand. "It was their sensei," he whispered.

I stared at him. "Whose?" I asked. "What do you mean?"

He was quiet for a long time, staring out over the lake. I waited for him to continue, hoping he would. "They'll be back in three days."

I glanced at him. "How do you know?"

"Because they told me," he whispered, staring down at the sand.

I studied him carefully. "You guys didn't escape, did you," I realized. I wasn't really asking. I already knew. "They let you go." He nodded. "Why?"

"So that... we could tell everyone why they want him."

I considered his words carefully. "Their father?" I questioned. "Why do we need to know that?" He didn't answer. "Or is it Yukio?"

He looked up. "I don't think anybody's gonna believe me," he mumbled. "Especially since... after the other day, I'd... have reason to want to lie about this."

"About what?" I asked.

"But I think if anyone's gonna believe me, it'd be you."

"Believe what?" I pressed.

He shifted nervously. "Can we... walk? I don't want to take a chance of him hearing us."

I studied him suspiciously. "Mike, it's three o'clock in the morning. And if he did come out here, one, I'd know it, and two, he doesn't understand English."

His eyes met mine. "Please?"

I looked down the beach, and realized I had no problem with it. I started walking slowly. He followed silently at my side. "What'd they tell you, Mike?"

He swallowed hard. "They said... it was never their dad they were after. But he's dead because he committed suicide after sending Yukio and Rei to the US."

I took that with little emotion. I didn't want to interrupt him by asking questions. "They want Yukio. It has nothing to do with his father. They want him because he killed their sensei. They're part of another clan and they stopped him from doing something and he came back and killed their sensei and his whole family."

Somehow, I was not as surprised as I felt I should be. "You saying that Yukio's a ninja?"

"He's... They said he's part of the foot clan."

I sighed deeply. Shit, we were harboring the enemy! But at the same time that I dreaded the thought, there was a sense of relief. I knew I wasn't crazy. I knew his form was familiar. "Why hasn't he contacted Shredder?" I asked. It was the one question that had stopped me cold.

"When Shredder came to the US, he left another sensei in charge of the foot. One of his students. Yukio doesn't even know Saki's still alive. And frankly, I'd rather not tell him."

I thought about that for a minute. "So Yukio is three steps away from Splinter," I mused.

"What do you mean?" Mike questioned.

"Splinter taught Shredder. Shredder taught another guy who taught Yukio."

He sighed. "Does it really matter, Raph?"

"Well, it's gonna matter when you're trying to prove this."

He shook his head slightly. "Raphael, I'm not sure I want to prove this." He looked up at me. "Rei is..."

He didn't finish. He didn't need to. I saw the problem. I sighed. "Mike, if what they're saying is true, we have no right to protect him," I informed.

"Rei doesn't believe it's true."

"That doesn't change anything."

"Raph, they're gonna kill him."

I stared at him. "Are you hearing your own words, Mike?" I questioned. "He killed an entire family? And he belongs to the foot clan? Shit, Mikey, these guys are on our side!"

"How do we know it's true?"

"How do we know it's not?"

"We're supposed to protect him. It was his father's last request, remember?"

I closed my eyes and tried to think. "You gonna tell this to Splinter?"

"You think I should?"

"I dunno yet."

"Neither do I."

I considered keeping it from him. I considered what might happen if we were to "accidently" fail in keeping Yukio safe. I realized that Splinter would know exactly what happened. We couldn't lie about that. He'd know. Four of us... well, three... wouldn't fail against two opponents. If we could keep Leo and Don away... I could fail. No, Splinter would know. There wasn't a doubt in my mind. I was a good liar, but it would be too much of a coincidence. "We have to tell him," I concluded.

"He won't believe me."

I sighed. "No, he will. He'll believe that they told you all that. But I don't know if he'll believe them."

SPLINTER:

I listened to the account calmly. When he had finished, Michaelangelo looked down at the floor. "We have three days. Well, two now. They said they'd come back."

I closed my eyes and breathed deep. It was almost too much to believe. I knew that Tang Shiro would not have approved of his son's involvement in the foot clan. But the story made certain pieces of the puzzle fall into place. I looked up and caught Leonardo's stare. "Bring Rei to me," I ordered quietly.

Michaelangelo sprang to his feet. "No!" he cried. "Please. Leave her out of this."

Raphael placed a reassuring hand on his brother's shoulder, and Leonardo left. Michaelangelo's eyes fell. "So their whole thing is that they want to avenge their sensei," Donatello mused.

"And his family," Michaelangelo whispered, eyes closed.

There was a moment of silence. I considered the words with great care. "Master?" I turned my gaze to Raphael. "Do you think they'd have any reason to lie?"

It was not a challenge. He was asking a sincere question. I sighed deeply as I realized the answer. For them to follow him to the United States, their anger was fierce. And if their motive was in any way unpure, they would not hesitate to lash out at anyone who stood in their path, including Michaelangelo and Rei. They were focused, but it was obvious that they valued life. This was not a quality taught by Kan-aka-na-ninjutsu, and it was obvious that they were ninjas. That being the case, it seemed we were on the same side.

"I have little doubt of their testimony," I answered quietly.

Rei and Leonardo stepped through the door. I exchanged glances with him, then with Raphael and Donatello individually, and they left. She knelt on the floor near Michaelangelo, and hung her head. "{You wanted to see me?}"

"{You heard the account of your captors?}" I questioned.

She nodded slightly.

"{Do you believe it?}"

She did not respond. Michaelangelo looked toward her, but she only studied the carpet. "{I do not know what I believe,}" she whispered after a long silence.

"{I would like you to look at something for me, Rei-chan,}" I sighed. "{And tell me if you recognize it. Can you do that for me?}"

"Hai," she whispered.

Her eyes raised slowly as I held out a black throwing star. "Shurieken," she whispered, identifying it. "{Is there something else I should see?}"

"{Do you recognize the symbol?}"

She took it from my hand, and stared at the writing. "{It is my brother's,}" she choked, quietly.

"{That symbol is on your brother's things?}"

She nodded slightly. "{On his weapons, yes. And on his uniform.}"

I sighed deeply, my suspicions confirmed. "{That throwing star was taken from the scene of a battle with the foot clan,}" I informed her. "{It bears Oroku Saki's symbol.}"

She stared at it for a moment, then at me. She began to cry.

MICHAELANGELO:

"{I made a promise to your father. That as long as you were in my care, you would be safe. And that is why I am asking you to leave now.}"

His eyes widened. Rei turned her face into my shoulder. I held her, running my hand lightly up and down her back. "{You condemn me to death!}"

Splinter shook his head. "{You have made your own decisions, Yukio. Now you must live with the consquences.}"

"{How could you possibly believe the words of those two assassins over my own?}" Yukio yelled. "{They kidnapped one of your students as well, remember?}"

Splinter nodded. "{Yes. I do remember. And they returned him unharmed.}"

"{They weren't after him. They were after me. For something my father did!}"

Splinter sighed deeply. "{Yukio, it is not only their account that leads me to believe that you are a member of the foot clan.}"

"{I am not!}" he yelled.

"{Raise your shirt, Yukio.}"

I stared at him, a little shocked at the request. Yukio tensed noticeably, and didn't move. There was a long, tense silence. We all looked to Splinter for an explanation. "{You will not,}" he observed. "{Would you like to explain why?}"

Yukio was speechless. He opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out. "{There is a tattoo, correct?}" Splinter informed. He smiled, a sad but knowing smile. "{Oruku Saki mandated it before leaving Japan.}"

"{How do you know this?}" Yukio growled.

"{You will first explain to me why you killed the...}"

"{I killed no one!}" he interrupted, a very un-Japanese thing to do. Especially when talking to someone of greater authority. He was panicking.

"{Tell me, Yukio, what does your involvement in the foot clan entail?}" Splinter demanded. "{Surely, you put your training to use. Will you lie to me and say that it is for good?}"

Yukio was again speechless. "{I will tell you nothing,}" he finally snapped.

"{Then leave,}" Splinter answered. "{And quickly, for your advesaries will be here momentarily.}"

"{And if I don't?}" Yukio challenged. "{You cannot let them kill me,}"

Splinter sighed. "{I cannot be held responsible if you act against my orders.}"

Yukio looked around the room, searching each of us. His eyes came to rest on me, and he glared in hate and fury. "{Fine then,}" he snarled, turning back to Splinter. "{I will take my sister and we will leave.}"

His words sent a jolt of electricity through my body. Rei tensed, pressing harder to me. She still hid her face. All eyes had turned to look at her. I pulled away, forcing her to look at them. She had to make a decision. Not that I didn't know full well what she wanted to do. But if she couldn't stand up to him, how could she expect me to support her?

She locked eyes with her brother, and I felt her shoulders rise and fall as she breathed deeply. "{I am not leaving with you,}" she managed after a long silence.

He stared at her, shocked. I smiled inwardly, but kept my face emotionless. "{What?}" he demanded.

She swallowed hard. "{I will not live the rest of my life running from ninjas who wish to kill you for things that I don't want to believe you did.}"

Anger flared in his eyes, and he took a step forward. Instantly, Raphael appeared on the other side of Rei. Yukio stopped, and looked toward Splinter. Leonardo and Donatello stood on either side of him. At that point, he realized how outnumbered he was. And any thoughts of attack fled.

"{Leave, Yukio,}" Splinter ordered.

KEN'ICHI:

"{Do you think they will fight?}" Kin asked quietly as we studied the house. We had only been here for a few minutes, and I was not yet sure who was in the house.

"{I do not know,}" I answered. "{It is possible.}"

"{I doubt we can win against all of them.}"

I sighed. "Hai. {We must first talk with their leader, and see where they stand.}"

A feeling washed over me. The haragei training instilled in me sprang to life. "{Do you mean their sensei?}" Kin questioned. "{Or the...?}"

I held up my hand to silence him as I scanned the area. Someone was nearby. Dangerously close, in fact. But there was no sound, and no movement. "{Yukio is not here.}"

I spun around, instinctively reaching for the katana on my back. A dark figure stood a few yards away. "{Who are you?}" I demanded, not recognizing the voice.

"{My name is Leonardo,}" he answered, stepping forward. I could sense his uneasiness. "{We don't wish to fight you.}"

I studied him for a minute, then slid the weapon back into its sheath. I bowed slightly. "Watashi no namae wa Nikko Ken'ichi desu," I greeted.

Leonardo stepped into the light. He looked much like his brother, nearly identical except that he was much more built. I could sense him inspecting me, and allowed it. I had nothing to hide. "{Yukio has left,}" he informed after a moment of silence. I saw movement behind him, and two of his brothers appeared. Michaelangelo was the only one missing. They stayed behind him, and said nothing. "{If you wish to find him, you will have to do it alone.}"

I studied him for a moment, trying to determine his honesty. His voice was emotionless, and hard to read. "{You have hidden him?}" I questioned.

Leonardo shook his head. "{We have asked him to leave, and he has complied. I trust that if you can follow him half way across the world, you will be able to find him now if you are persistant enough.}"

I considered that. We would find him, of course. "{His sister will remain with us,}" Leonardo continued. "{So tell me now if we can expect to see you again.}"

I shook my head. "{We have no quarrel with his sister. Nor with you.}"

"{Then leave,}" he answered quietly. "{And go in peace.}"

I studied him for a moment, and turned my attention to the setting sun. "{When did he leave?}"

"{We were charged with his safekeeping, Nikko-san,}" Leonardo answered. "{And we can tell you nothing. You followed him this far, now follow him again.}"

I smiled. They knew where their loyalty rested. I bowed slightly. "Sayonara, Leonardo-san."

He bowed, but did not take his eyes from me. We left, and did not speak again.

SPLINTER:

"Sensei, can I speak with you?"

I looked up. "Come in, Michaelangelo."

The door opened slightly, and he stepped inside, closing the door behind him. A serious expression was on his face. "Is something wrong, my son?"

He paused, but said nothing. After a moment of silence, he took a step forward. I noted the tension as he swallowed hard. Still quiet, he dropped to his knees in front of me, hanging his head. The movement was deliberate, and I studied him carefully, not entirely sure what his purpose was. My question was soon answered as he bowed low, touching his forehead to the carpet at my feet. I watched him, surprised at the unexpected humility.

"I am sorry, father," he whispered. His voice was barely audible, even to me.

"For what do you apologize?" I asked, shocked.

He looked up, straightening slightly, and our eyes met. "For everything I've done, and everything I've become, in these past few months."

I found myself speechless. He bowed again. "I want you to teach me, Sensei," he continued. "I... I've forgotten everything. But I know you can..." He choked, as if he were beginning to cry. "I know you can teach me. You did it once and I know you can do it again."

For a moment, I studied him. There was no question that he was serious. "Rise, Michaelangelo," I commanded. He sat up. A single tear trickled down his cheek. I smiled as I reached toward him and brushed it aside. I could feel his urge to look away, but he kept his eyes trained on me.

"Why do you ask me this?" I questioned. "Why do you want to again become that which you have been running from for so long?"

He shook his head slowly. "I can't run away from who I am. Even if I wanted to it..." He cut his gaze to the floor, hanging his head. "I'm tired of being afraid, Sensei. Of who I am. And I think... now that I've had some time to think... that I can be me and still not..."

He ran out of words, and looked back up at me. His eyes told me everything I needed to know. By what means, I was not entirely sure, but he had come to terms with himself. He had forgiven his past mistakes, and he was ready now to begin again. I smiled at this realization and nodded slightly. "I will do as much as I am able," I promised, "to help you."

He wiped his eyes and smiled in return. "Thank you, Master."

He stood and walked to the door. When he opened it, he turned back to me. "Oh, there's one other thing, too."

"What is that?"

He glanced into the living room, and took a step back into my room, pulling Rei with him. He pulled her completely in front of him and rested his hands on her shoulders. "You can thank her," he grinned.

She blushed, and lowered her eyes, her hair falling around her face. I smiled. "I thought you should know," he informed. "Since I'm pretty sure everyone else does."

I understood what he was saying, and looked toward the girl. "Come here, child."

Michaelangelo nudged her forward and she nearly tripped. She turned and glared at him before approaching me. I gestured toward my son and he followed her. She bowed slightly as she stopped about a foot away from me. "Splinter-sama," she greeted quietly.

I reached for her hand, and Michaelangelo's as he approached, and joined them. They looked at each other. Rei seemed shocked. Michaelangelo only smiled. After a moment, they looked to me. I took my hands away from theirs. "You two have my blessing," I nodded. "Use it wisely."

For a moment, there was silence. Michaelangelo looked toward the girl he held hands with, and he smiled slyly. Without warning, and caring nothing for the fact that he was in my presence, he kissed her. She squealed in surprise as he nearly swept her off her feet. I could not help but laugh quietly.

Finally, she managed to pull away from him. "Mikey! I'm surprised at you!" she laughed. But I could tell from her tone that she was not.

He spun her to face the door and began to usher her out. "Just obeying orders," he grinned.

He shoved her out the door and into the living room, then turned back to face me. I was still laughing to myself, amused by his boldness. His smile fell, and for a brief moment his expression turned serious. But even so, his eyes sparkled. "Master Splinter?"

"Yes, Michaelangelo?"

"Thank you."

I smiled and nodded slightly, and he disappeared.