Kai woke up to the persistent pull of sunlight streaming through the window. He covered his eyes with a pillow imagining he was back at home, with his family, and that everything that happened so far was a dream. "Kai! Breakfast is ready!" Announced a voice that was not in the least Zane's own smooth, calming tone. The ninja sits up in bed to find that he was still in a room where everything was two times his size. He did not care how comfy it was-he hated it. The cubic dwarf slid out of the enormous bed to the closet that held his clothes.
He cringed at the loose, baggy clothing he had no choice but to make do with. He jumped up to grab them before heading to the bathroom. Ten minutes later he appeared in the dining room where Lloyd waited with a hot serving of pancakes. Pancakes. Cakes so thin and floppy that anyone besides Cole could eat more than three servings of. "Still not sleeping well? I mean, yoki nemura kua*?" Lloyd asked noting the bags sagging from Kai's eyes.
"I will be fine." Kai mumbled in simple English. Just uttering the language left a clandestine taste in the Fire Master's mouth. It has been fifteen days since Kai has woken up to a world not his own. A world where people like him simply did not exist-except in books and the suspicious "TV" that positively stank of sorcery.
After the warrior left, Miss Moreno, he and the kid tried to figure out how he gotten into that confounded box. More importantly, how the box was transported from Ninjago to America. (America? Reminded him of the legendary Princess Ameri who united all the island colonies of Ninjago into a new nation, Unica.) Kai tried his hardest to recall what exactly happened. To evoke nothing more than memories of rising smoke, dark red skies, and heaps of ash. Each attempt to remember resulted in a dizzying headache which blacked him out for five hours at a time.
After struggling through the first three attacks, Lloyd consulted the prophetic powers of yet another rectangular tablet, this time the magic mirror was between the size of the TV and the tiny tablet Kai had no choice but to destroy. (Take it or leave it Lloyd!) The mirror attached to a board covered in alien letters which Lloyd called a "keyboard". Despite the taller boy's emphasis on the importance of not breaking it Kai kept a close eye on it just in case. Finally, Lloyd sat down with Kai to draw out what his "laptop" had to tell him about Kai's condition. The first picture depicted a stick figure bouncing around happily. The fiery veteran could not help but smirk at the character for mimicking Jay's usual attitude.
Sadly, things took a darker turn for Stick Jay as he was suddenly attacked by two menacing stick figures brandishing knives. The next picture showed Stick Jay on a bed as a doctor treated his brutal injuries. The final illustration after that presented an entirely different Stick Jay from the one, he used to be. All it took was seeing a kitchen knife to send the poor guy screaming and hiding himself in a closet. The kid tapped the picture with his strange metal hands and uttered gravely, "PTSD." Before pointing to a despairing Stick Jay being surrounded by broken vials that obviously did not help him in the least.
That was all Kai needed to know that his new mental condition was incurable...
Kai swished his pancake piece around in the honey-like stuff called maple syrup. His languid black eyes reflected in the golden-brown liquid. Was it that bad? What had happened to his beloved homeland? Has he failed as a guardian of Ninjago? Did it hurt so much that his mind could not even bear to face the memories?
The Fire Master gazed around the empty table, feeling like his heart would break into pieces at any given moment. If only his ude no naknodai* and his dear imuta*, were here to partake in the meal. Cole would have eaten twelve of the pancakes by now, Zane would be badgering Lloyd for the recipe. Nya would want some of the syrup on her next supper of rice, while Jay would conceive five new uses for the sticky liquid. Just then something clicked in his brain almost as if he had been asleep until now.
"Wata iro yatiru?!" Kai erupted as he bounced off his chair and zoomed out of the dining room! "Oi! What the heck Kai?!" Lloyd yelped as he hurried after the fire ball hoping he did not have escape in mind. He found the latter scribbling furiously on a sheet before thrusting it at Lloyd. The baffled teen studied it, on the sheet were four boxes with each etched with an elemental symbol. Lloyd's eyes widened in understanding as he recognized the symbols from the gi of Kai's inner circle.
One entirely black with the rock-like symbol of the Earth Master, Cole. Another as white as ice with the wolf head of the Ice Master, Zane. The one after that bright blue stamped with a symbol bearing lightning bolts of the Lightning Master, Jay. Last but not least, a maroon box laced with turquoise emblazoned with the rising phoenix of the Water Master, Nya. Lloyd flipped the paper to behold a sketch of all the ninja being reunited. He held up the paper as he asked, "Find them?"
It was clear from the kid's body language that he understood what Kai proposed. The mini warrior nodded as he declared, "Waschi wo sora mitsukinari.*" Before rushing up the stairs without any regard for their unfinished breakfast. "HEY! You want to find them now?!" Lloyd cried out as he heard thumping in the former guest room turned Kai's room. The teenager let out a huge sigh as he sat back at the table to finish up his food before being swept up in Kai's rescue mission. Well, at least he had one idea where to look...
Back at My Mini Asia, the vendor of the wooden crafts stall could not help but rub his forehead in exasperation. The hefty man opened his eyes as he began slowly, "Let me get this straight. You need to know where the slacker of my brother obtained the box, I sold you. And whether there is at least four more of them in these-" He squinted at the creased sheet in his hand, "Styles. Considering my brother is not the most dedicated to customer service. Would you rather not have me craft similar boxes that come from a trustworthy, non-skeptical source?" He asked the young man he met around two weeks ago. This time accompanied by a small child whose face was covered by a red baseball cap and a mask.
The young man fumbled his shining fingers nervously, well aware of the inconvenient request he made. "Yeah, I admit it would be easier if you created new boxes for me. However, I really, really, really need to know if there are more of them. You see, my mom is an archeologist, and she just came home last week. And she totally flipped when she saw the box I bought. It turned out to be an artifact from some secret civilization she was investigating with a colleague."
Lloyd bit his tongue a little at the absolute lie. Partially because it was dishonest and also because he wished it were true. The man pinned Lloyd with his dark brown gaze as he said, "Does your mother happened to be Miss Misako Montgomery and her colleague Takahashi Yoko?" Lloyd felt his heart dropped into his stomach. "Because Yoko is my cousin, and she is still in Nippon with your mother." The teen swore he heard the hissing of his heart as it dissolved from the liquids of his stomach.
The exposed lad could not bring himself to leave the stall and face Kai. (Who happened to be admiring the katanas sold from a Korean weaponsmith.) How would they locate Kai's friends now? Fortunately, Lloyd was more readable than he gave credit for. Seeing the despairing countenance, the craftsman took pity on the young boy. "You do not like resorting to lies just to help a friend, do you?" Lloyd nodded, "Yeah, it feels... queer. A little twisted inside."
The elder went on, "You do not have to resort to misdeeds in order to achieve good in this world. The honesty I saw within in you when we met, that is a rare gift in a shadowed world like ours. Do not compromise your virtues to face life's challenges. There is always another way, and your find that goodness will be an advantage instead of a hindrance if you trust in it." CRASH! The two jumped in surprise as they turned to face the danger.
Which was only Kai being knocked down by the katana stand. "Oh, for crying out loud Kai!" Lloyd groaned as he hauled up the heavy stand off the cubic dwarf. Then to the Fire Master's utter humiliation, Lloyd picked him up. The scandalized warrior squirmed to break free as his handler returned to the vendor.
"I do not want to send anyone into a panic or have the town end up on the LIVE news. But we really need to track down those boxes wherever they came from. This time the young man was able to look him in the eyes as he explained his situation. The older man smiled as he said, "Then I will be happy to help you. Look in the Southwestern part of the park for a young man wearing a red shirt printed with turtles. Tell him that Yamamoto Ryu had sent you, that is my brother."
Lloyd bowed as best as he could gripping a flailing ninja in his arms, "Arigato*, Ryu-san." The duo then left the market area as they headed for the Southwestern part of the park. After delivering a few swift kicks the kid finally let him go. Lloyd just rolled his eyes as Kai bore holes into him as they soon approached a wide field. Kai sulked along with his injured dignity not paying attention to the- "DOG!" Lloyd cried out. Before a sleek dog pounced onto the mini ninja!
The fireball soon found himself face to face with a multicolored mutt with bi-colored eyes, along with a slobbering tongue positively dripping with saliva... Soon the poor canine found itself flying through the air which Lloyd was lucky enough to catch. A ravenette teen a couple years older than Lloyd rushed onto the scene screaming, "JALUS OH MY GOODNESS ARE YOU OK AND DUDE WHY IS YOUR HAIR WHITE AS AN OLD MAN?!" Lloyd did not comment as he released a shaken Jalus to its owner. Before checking on his smaller friend to see if the ninja was still fine after being pounced upon by the dog.
After checking on Kai and giving him the stink eye, he went to the dog and owner. "Sorry about what happened-" "Arigato, arigato, arigato, watashi no inu o sukuu tame ni!* Anyway my name is Yamamoto Hiroyuki, and this is my dog, Jalus!" The older teen bowed while his cherished pet walked up to Lloyd and licked his hand. "Hi, I am Lloyd and aww! What a sweet little-er, grown dog she is!" "I know right?! She is one of the best things that has ever happened to me!" Hiroyuki grinned brightly. "Anyhow would you like to assist me in teaching her this cool trick?!" "Sure!"
Kai had just wiped off the last of the dog slobber to spot Lloyd as he walked away with the other kid and his mangy mutt. Aghast that Lloyd has forgotten their mission Kai hurried after them. The small group plus the straggler approached a circle constructed of hula hoops planted on short poles. In the center stood a makeshift stage with a pile of colorful balls printed with cartoony stars on the sidelines. Hiroyuki marched up to it with Jalus and Lloyd in tow. Kai could not help but wonder just what Green Bean was getting himself into.
Hiroyuki explained, "We were just warming up with some jumping basics when Jalus saw a raccoon and chased after it." The white-haired teen lifted an eyebrow, "I'm sorry, raccoon? You know they only come out at night. Unless you're talking about Mrs. Delia's rescued raccoon." Hiroyuki's blush indicated it was indeed the same creature. "Yeah, it was and I may have encouraged Jalus to tease him a bit..." "Hey! You're not supposed to do that! For the record, Mrs. Delia loves her coon!"
"I know! But between you and me, a wild animal no matter how tamed is no proper pet!" "And neither were the wolves." Lloyd quipped. Hiroyuki's blush intensified as he bumbled to collect from the pile of balls nearby. "Anyway, want to help me teach Jalus my awesome new trick?" "If you teach your dog to stop chasing people's pets and pouncing on little kids." "Alright I promise! Let's go!"
Hiroyuki bent down to where a small door could be seen which he opened. Revealing a control panel, he flipped one switch which was soon followed by a hiss. Lloyd stepped back in amazement as the stage's surface slowly froze to a rink of pure, glistening ice. "Woah dude! This is so sick! Where you get it from?!" The yellow-skinned teenager asked as he touched the frosty surface.
"You know the old, sweet couple that run the junkyard? They were happy to build it for me after running some errands for them." The ravenette answered as he finished fitting his canine in her set of ice-skating boots. "Wait-your dog can ice skate?!" Lloyd spluttered in amazement as Jalus suddenly leapt onto the stage and began gliding in circles. Hiroyuki smiled proudly as he dumped a dozen balls into Lloyd's arms.
"Nice prosthetics dude, now I need you to throw a ball over Jalus which tells her whenever she needs to perform a flip. Now when I give the signal, I need you to throw three balls over her at once. Got it?" Lloyd nodded and the boy grinned as he began playing "Light of Christmas" on his phone. As soon as the music turned on, Jalus began twirling around like a wild whirlwind. Lloyd threw a ball when she came in range and performed a perfect flip to snag the ball into her mouth.
The two teenagers watched as the mixed breed executed near perfect skating moves on her rink. Her love for skating showing through her shining eyes, wagging tail, and hanging tongue. Jalus slide over to a small basket-ball hoop where she leapt up for a great shot. Lloyd gasped in awe before remembering to throw the next ball. Jalus finished an impressive single axel as she spied another ball coming her way. She flipped once more to catch in and deposit it into her hoop.
The furry skater barked as her owner suddenly threw a hula hoop into the air. The athlete, ready to excel, jumped gracefully through the hoop like a circus tiger. Catching another ball from Lloyd midflight as she did so. She threw the ball through the basketball hoop then spun so fast that she almost levitated off the ground. The four-pawed skater skated sideways to catch a frisbee flung by Hiroyuki. Then she spun speedily again to fling the frisbree clear off the stage.
Kai scowled as he watched the light-hearted scene. What on the First Realm was this kid doing playing with a pampered pooch and some weird kid with turtles sown on his red tunic?! Everyone at home knew that lucky items were always colored red and emblazoned with the Golden Dragon. Representing the prophetic coming of the Ultimate Spinjitzu Master, whenever he showed up that is. Kai sulked as the show-off-of-a-mutt flipped like an over ecstatic apprenticed acrobat to catch the balls. He waited as patiently as he could for the impromptu rehearsal to end, yet it seemed like hours as he mindlessly watched the mutt perform the same tricks over and over as the other two kids cheered like the easily impressed elite girls from Ninjago City. Those ladies never got to see much action considering they were cooped up in luxurious estates training to become a nobleman's bride only to be whisked away to be confined to her husband's home.
Kai shooed away his distracted thoughts as he realized that Green Bean has completely forgotten him thanks to the other kid and his messy mutt. There was only one thing he could do... Meanwhile, Lloyd was having the time of his life with Jalus and Hiroyuki. His mother would never permit any animal, not even a turtle, to enter their premises. Being too overprotective over her precious artifacts and research like always. Also, hardly any of his peers would talk to him let alone hang out with him.
Already this was turning out to be the best day of the summer. He watched as Jalus skate a perfect figure 8 while Hiroyuki whooped her eagerly on. Although the back of his mind nagged at him as if someone was sticking a sharp pole into his side. He could not feel any more jubilant than he felt now. Just as Jalus finished her version of a layback spin, with her left paws' forwards and right paws backwards. Hiroyuki held up three fingers, that was the signal! With a mighty throw Lloyd tossed all three balls high in the air-to be immediately torched into ashes before Jalus caught sight of them.
The two boys were thunderstruck by the sudden fate of the balls. The colorful skater sensed their change of mood and slowly came to a halt whimpering her concern. It was then Lloyd finally remembered why he was the park in the first place. Which was too late for him as a familiar figure materialized on the stage and lit both of his hands on fire. "GYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAA!" Both boys screamed while Jalus stumbled backwards which resulted in her landing on her left side.
Hiroyuki ducked as he sobbed hysterically while Lloyd grabbed Kai. "WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING?! WHY ARE YOU EXPOSING YOURSELF?!" Lloyd beseeched. "Saini ana watobe ime.*" Kai replied. "...And you are just going to shrug it off in Ninjargon. Punk." Lloyd growled as he turned to the other boy to see if his sanity was still intact. He did not want to lose a newfound friend to Kai's antics.
"Hey dude, I'm really sorry about the scare. But I promise you are not in any actual danger from this hooligan of a-" "It happened when I accidentally dropped the match." Hiroyuki murmured. "What?" The whitish blonde was slightly taken aback. The ravenette stood back up as he repeated, "It happened when I dropped a match like a dolt into the box I found. I was besieged by visions of a crimson shinobi* commanding the flames. Trying to drive them back from whatever the firestorm was devouring. I think my jekei* must have sold the last box I had to you."
It was like a bolt of lightning struck Lloyd at that very moment. Not just because he finally recognized the Mr. Yamamoto's brother but also what the last sentence meant. "Please DO NOT tell me... You sold all the boxes." The ravenette rubbed the back of his head sheepishly which indicated that the deed has already been done.
Lloyd slapped his face, "Gah! I am just a bonehead, could you at least tell me who and where you sold the last boxes to?! You see, I have a reason to believe those boxes contained living people. And the little guy you would have been stuck with is solid proof for my theory." He held out the box-shaped, mini ninja for Hiroyuki to inspect. The elder teen scrutinized the figure dressed in kid's clothing, then his eyes met those of proud, flaming obsidian. Realizing right then and there this was the truly the courageous warrior from his visions.
"Huh. I thought he would be taller." Hiroyuki remarked as he knelt down to pet Jalus who returned to his side. "Lucky for me, he isn't" Lloyd grouched. "How did you even break the enchantment on him? I thought he was just a fancy little toy that came with the box." Hiroyuki questioned. "It was an accident; he was thrown into a bonfire, and I think it reawakened him somehow. Considering he possesses the power of fire. I took him home before the police caught wind of his existence.
We are able to communicate through drawing and I learned there are others like him. Ninjas who can command the natural elements like earth, lightning, ice, and water. If you ever bothered to rummage in the other boxes, you would have met them. Although I think your match was not enough to resuscitate Kai. It took a fully-blown bonfire to wake him up." Lloyd explained as he gripped the ninja tight enough to keep him from slipping free.
Hiroyuki absorbed the newfound information as something came to mind, "What a sec, I heard there was a gang break-in at the Roost that resulted in a huge fire. Did the mysterious heroes of the day happened to be you and Kai?" "Yeah..." "Awesome dude! How does it feel to be a hero?!" "Relieved that no one found out, yet." "Oh yeah, I forgot, the whole world would flip and snatch Kai before you can say, Fear is not a word where I come from."
Lloyd almost squealed in delight, "OMG YOU ACTUALLY READ AND WATCHED STARFARER?! ONE OF THE BEST SCI-FI COMIC AND MOVIE SERIES EVER?!" "YEAH, I KNOW RIGHT?!" "AAAAHHHHHHHHH!" For the next ten minutes both Jalus and Kai were almost grilled to death by the unintelligible geek blather between the two Starfarer nerds. Lloyd and Hiroyuki were sharing theories on the cliffhanger from the latest issue when the theme song for Twilight Zonerung from Hiroyuki's phone.
Hiroyuki answered it to be assaulted by a fuming voice laced with listlessness. Hiroyuki listened grimly as the voice ranted on, Lloyd recognizing it as Ryu-san's. Finally, the call ended, and Hiroyuki turned off his phone before facing Lloyd. "That was my brother. Apparently, he caught someone copying his designs and wants me to man the booth while he confronts the copycat. Here, let me send you the info of who and where I sent the boxes to. What's your number?"
Lloyd exchanged contact information which Hiroyuki used to send Lloyd the details. A question came to the whitish-blonde's mind which he had to pry the answer from the ravenette before he left. "Hey Hiroyuki, training Jalus must have been quite a challenge. I mean, it's not like dogs come with remote controls." "Ha! Definitely man!" Hiroyuki chuckled. The green-clothed teen sucked in a deep breath as he prayed, he would not lose this newfound friendship.
"Well despite what your older brother claimed, you do not really play off as a slacker for me." The ravenette paused he glanced up at Lloyd, light brown eyes meeting glowing green ones. "Really? Wow, that means a lot man! If only my brother can see it that way. But he has never been the same since...dad ditched us." Lloyd flinched, knowing too well the same feeling of abandonment from his own parent. "Oh, crumb cake, I sympathize with you man."
Hiroyuki nodded gratefully as he sent the requested info with a ping! signifying the message was sent successfully. He went on, "Ryu pretty much had to take over as the new head of the household. Especially with our okasan's* and imoto's* newfound blindness. I try to do my best to help my family in any way I can. But I am definitely no Senku or Yuzuriha, sadly that's what my brother thinks he needs me to be..." Hiroyuki trailed off as he gave his precious Jalus a fond pat.
Jalus nuzzled his side as he continued, "Even if I lack the academic excellence and craftsmanship Ryu strives for. That does not mean I cannot contribute in other ways. Where Ryu perceives me romping with my dog. I am actually training her to ace any dog competition we enter. And when Ryu sees me on my laptop "wasting my time". I am reviewing all the trivia I know on manga, comics, movies, videogames, sports, and TV shows. For I plan to enter the next Know It All quiz show for this year. I heard this year the subjects are on manga, videogames, and TV shows! And they promised next year's subjects will be on movies, sports, and comics to commemorate their twentieth anniversary."
Lloyd whistled, "Wow. You're studying for this year and next year?! The prize money may be a tidy fortune, but the competition is thicker than Mrs. R's homemade custard." Hiroyuki nodded. "I know, but I am determined to prove my worth. Not as someone Ryu or anybody else wishes me to be. But as myself. Maybe then when Ryu finally sees me for who I am, he'll realize he does not have to do everything on his own."
Lloyd felt inspired by Hiroyuki's determination, understanding, and his willingness to help others while keeping his sense of self intact. The whitish blonde extended his hand towards the ravenette, "Well, after I finish this wild goose chase with Kai, I'll be happy to help you find other areas for your special talents. Hey, maybe you can dog-sit for other people considering how good you are at training Jalus!" Hiroyuki coughed as he confessed, "Actually, that is not possible. Considering my whole family is allergic to dogs which forces me to leave her at my oba's house."
Lloyd cringed. "Oi, that is inconvenient. Well, hope to catch up with you later man. And can you keep Kai a secret?" He pleaded as he started to feel a burning sensation on his wrist indicating the fireball was near the end of his patience. Hiroyuki flashed the peace sign as he turned to leave, "Dude! That is like the very first rule whenever meeting someone hiding a supernatural being! Of course, later Lloyd!" "See ya soon Hiroyuki and Jalus!"
Kai spat at the mutt as she finally left with her nuisance of an owner. However, he could not help but notice the fond and soft expression turtle guy wore earlier. It seemed as if he was talking about family for Kai knew that look himself. The warm tenderness whenever family members talked about their loved ones... Lloyd set the Fire Master back down to scroll through the contact information he received from Hiroyuki.
To discover that one of the boxes were sold out of the country.
Ninjargon Language
Yoki nemura kua = Not sleeping well?
Ude no naknodai = Brothers-in-arms
Wata iro yatiru = What am I doing?
Waschi wo sora mitsukinari = We have to find them!
Saini ana watobe ime = Finally you remember me!
Japanese translations
Arigato, arigato, arigato, watashi no inu o sukuu tame ni!=Thank you, thank you, thank you for saving my dog!
Okasan = Mother
Imoto = Younger Sister
Oba = Aunt
Jekei = Older brother