I do not own the TMNT.
Happy New Years!!!!!
Just to let everyone know, all of the Japanese is correctly translated. However, the ninja sect comes directly from my imagination so don't try to research it or anything cuz you won't find it.
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Peace out!
Lost
Chapter 7
"Do I look that weird?" Mikey said nervously straightening the blankets that he was covered with.
We all sat silently bristling waiting to hear April's response and thinking to ourselves that it better be good and not upset our little brother who was in a fragile state at the moment.
"No Mikey," April said coming back to reality with a jolt, "You look really handsome. I'm going to be jealous of all your new girlfriends."
We all laughed again at Mikey's red blush. I marveled at how quickly his coloring could redden, but then again, he was very pale. We left April chatting with Mikey so as to discuss what Donnie and Sensei had discovered. There was a lot of planning to do.
Donnie and Sensei had discovered that there was a legend of an ancient, very secret, ninja sect that called themselves the Jinchuu. Jinchuu roughly translates out to "Earthly Justice," which is an adequate translation since the warriors combined magic drawn from the earth with ninjitsu skills. Splinter said he remembered his master telling the local children stories of the Jinchuu and their great deeds in the name of justice and honor. Japanese peasants referred to the Jinchuu as the Densetsu, the Legendary, since the clan was strictly dedicated to righting wrongs and protecting the Mother Earth. Downtrodden dreamed of the Jinchuu coming to save the day when local tyrants would cause unhappiness and destruction. The Jinchuu was said to be very dutiful and honor bound.
What was the most interesting, is that the clan could perform a spell called the Sapparishita which could "cleanse" land, water, or people of impurities. Basically, a healing spell. Could this Katsuro be a black sheep of the Jinchuu clan? Could he have perverted the Sapparishita spell that was meant to do good in order to do harm? These were all questions that needed to be answered and Donnie threw himself into researching the Jinchuu to find if there was a way to neutralize the spells or cut off Katsuro's power source while Raph and I went out nightly to tempt Katsuro to reveal himself. So far Katsuro had not come out from hiding, which made Donatello theorize that the Sapparishita was very draining.
A month had gone by since Mikey's transformation and his collarbone was nearly completely healed. Donnie said that since Mikey was only about sixteen, his bones had knit a lot faster than if he had been an adult. Mikey was ecstatic to be out of the restraining sling and had begun some physical therapy with Sensei in the form of morning practices with us, but there was a feeling of tension growing in the lair. Mikey had complained more than once that he was getting irritated with us "babying" him and wanted to resume his place on the team as soon as Splinter said he was ready. This was something I did not want to happen.
We had all agreed before our little brother had awoke that first night that we would not tell him about Katsuro's claim that Mikey would be his "concubine." I didn't know if Mikey even knew what a concubine was and I had no wishes to explain the word to him ever. Mikey would be highly upset about this and as long as we kept him in the lair, he would be safe. Unfortunately, Mikey did not see things my way.
"You have no right to keep me down her Leo! You are not the boss of me!" Mikey screamed at me in the dojo after I denied him a trip to the mall and movies with April.
"Mikey, I am not trying to boss you around. I just think that you would be safer down in the lair. You do not have the same strength in this new form that you had in your old form," I said soothingly trying to smooth my little brother's ruffled feathers.
"That's not true!" Mikey yelled back.
"It is the truth kiddo," Raph interjected, "Ya would be a liability ta us up top. Ya need to stay down here and protect Sensei."
"Stop. Calling. Me. Kid. Or. Kiddo. Raphael," Mikey growled, "Splinter has never needed protection and you know it! I am a trained ninja and have the same rights as the three of you."
"Of course you do Mikey," Donnie said, "However, you are not completely healed yet so Raph does have a legitimate point."
"So you think he's right? Is that all I am to you guys now?" Michelangelo asked as tears filled his eyes.
"What?" Donnie said confused.
"You think that I am a liability?"
"No! Oh, no no no. That is not what we think at all," I said quickly and then flinched back when Mikey turned to glare at me.
"Yes you do! I hate you! This is all your fault anyway!" Mikey screamed at me and ran out of the dojo.
I ran after him but Mikey was always quick and agile and now being more streamlined, he was even faster. Mikey was in his bedroom with the door locked before I could reach him. I heard him sobbing on the other side of the door and could picture him laying on his bed crying into his teddy bear. He was right; this was all my fault.
"Leo. Mikey didn't mean that," Donatello's quiet voice came from behind me.
"Yeah Leo. Mikey wouldn't evah talk to ya that way if I hadn't opened my big mouth," Raph said regretfully.
I turned to face him and saw that Sensei was there as well.
"Michelangelo is young my son," Splinter said, "He is merely flapping his wings against the bars of his cage. Perhaps we should allow April to take him to the mall and the movies."
"I know that he is just upset, but I can't help worrying about whether Katsuro would go after Mikey while he is topside. He is not able to defend himself yet," I said sliding down to sit on the floor while using Mikey's door as a backrest.
"Leo's right," Raph said agreeing with me to my surprise, "We don't know what all this Katsuro has up his sleeves."
"Ningen banji saiou ga uma," Splinter said.
"What?" Raphael said.
"It means all people's affairs are like Saiou's horse; one's fortune is unpredictable and changeable, Donatello said, "The saying comes from an old Chinese folk tale about an old man called Saiou. The story goes that one-day his horse broke down the fence and ran away. When his neighbors heard, they commiserated with him over his misfortune, but he said How do you know this is not really good luck?' A few days later the horse returned, bringing another horse with it. However when his neighbors congratulated him on his good luck, the old man said How do you know this is really good luck?'
Sure enough, some while later Saiou's son falls while riding the horse, and breaks his leg. This turns out to be good fortune when all the young men of the village are ordered to join the Emperor's army. Saiou's son doesn't have to go since he has a broken leg which ends up sparing his life since most of the other young men of the village was slaughtered in battle."
"Very good Donatello," Sensei said, "We cannot imprison Michelangelo. He is a free spirit. His soul will wither and die before our eyes if kept within. Living is taking a gamble with fate. All we can do is try to deal with the different directions life can flow in."
"So your saying if we take precautions, Mikey should be allowed to go?" I asked.
"Yes my son," Splinter said.
"As you wish Sensei," I said with a sigh.
I found myself suddenly laying on my back when Mikey's door flew open. His excited face hovered over my own as the ends of his hair tickled my face and shoulders.
"Really? Does that mean you'll let me go out with April?" he asked happily as his eyes sparkled down at me.
"Yes," I said smiling up at him, "but you are to stay with April at all times. Donnie, Raph, and I will be tailing you in the shadows the entire time. If I find that you are straying an inch from April's side, I'll drag you home by one of those new ears of yours and let Raph tan your backside."
"Yes sir," Mikey said saluting, "Now get out of my room while I change. Oh, and Leo?"
"Yes?" I said getting out of Mikey's doorway.
"I'm really sorry about what I said in the dojo. I don't think any of this is your fault and I don't hate you."
"I know," I said ruffling Mikey's hair, "Now get changed and Donnie will email April to let her know where to meet us."
"Yippee!"
Mikey had become quite a clothes-horse to my surprise and he had a definite flair for fashion. After Mikey finally choose the "perfect" outfit and pulled his hair back in a low ponytail, the rest of our evening was spent tagging after a hyperactive, emerald haired teenager. We agreed that our little brother did follow all the rules to the letter. I had to chuckle about the many times he blushed when a pretty girl came up to flirt with him, the Casanova. There were no signs of Katsuro lurking nearby; however, I felt much better when the four of us arrived home safely without seeming to be followed. Yawning, I thought to myself as I prepared for bed, "What will fate throw at us next?"
To be continued.
Japanese to English translations:
Jinchuu—Earthly justice
Densetsu—Legendary
Sapparishita-Cleanse
Ningen banji saiou ga uma- All human affairs are like Saiou's horse; One's fortune/luck is unpredictable and changeable