Surprise! Here is a preview chapter of my new story, which is nearly completed. Hope you like it ;)

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TMNT 2003: The Noble Warrior

When he overhears his own brothers and new friends blaming him for what happened during their first acolyte mission, Mikey questions his worth both as a ninja and as an acolyte. Will the others make amends with him and support him in his training before it's too late?

Takes place after the episode 'Demons and Dragons'.

I do not own TMNT 2003.

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Part 1-The Truth Hurts

It was warm.

Surprisingly warm, despite living in a temple on a mountain, and the sun was slowly setting which was a sign that the day was nearly coming to an end.

However, for the youngest ninja turtle, Mikey, the day's end wasn't coming fast enough.

He was watching the sunset whilst leaning against a broken wall near the temple.

His cheeks glistened from the sun's light due to being covered with streaks of fallen tears since he left to get some alone time in order to reflect on what had happened during his and the other acolytes' first mission together, as well as the conversation that he just overheard that led to his crying fit.

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Flashback…

Mikey had just finished in getting himself cleaned and refreshed after today's eventful mission, and was now walking down the hallway that lead towards the dining room to join his brothers and the other acolytes for dinner, which was starting in 20 minutes, when he heard familiar voices coming from a room not far ahead of him.

With curiosity taking over him, Mikey approached the entrance and listened in whilst he stayed in hiding by leaning against the wall near the doorway.

"What da shell was Mikey thinkin'!? He had ta act all high and mighty and cause our position ta get exposed!" Raph's voice was heard first and he sounded very angry.

"Indeed, if Michelangelo had just waited until we all agreed on a plan to retrieve the first artefact safely, no-one would have had to risk their lives by using risky moves like the ones that Leonardo and Faragi used to take down our enemies!" Torra said next whilst stroking his beard.

"Yeah, and Leonardo and Faragi almost died from using their attack on those monsters because of what Michelangelo did!" Joi said firmly in agreement.

"Hey, that's not true! What happened with Mikey back there was an accident!" Donnie countered back in defence for his little brother.

"Why did da Tribunal even choose ta bring Mikey here with us in da first place!? Unlike Donnie here, da knucklehead has an IQ dat's da same as a stupid toad!" Raph said, ignoring Donnie's words.

"Raphael! How can you say that!?" Leo scolded his immediate younger brother.

"Oh, come on! Ya know dat I'm right, all of ya do! Where da ya think all dat bad turtle luck was comin' from!?" Raph bit back, shocking Mikey when he heard that from his own brother's mouth.

"I only partly agree with you, Raphael! Even though it was reckless of Mikey to do what he did back there, he's still learning how to properly control his new abilities and overconfidence!" Leo answered defensively for his youngest brother.

"Leo has a point there, Raph; I know that Mikey might not be the smartest turtle in the world, but he's not stupid enough to put anyone in danger!" Donnie said firmly in agreement.

"That's right! Besides, It was our first mission as acolytes…You cannot expect everything to go according to plan on the first try!" Faragi said in agreement.

"Yeah, and I think that you guys shouldn't put all the blame on him for something that was beyond everyone's control!" Adam pointed out firmly.

"You don't know a thing about what Mikey does every day, so you two betta watch what ya say if ya wanna keep yer lives safe!" Raph shouted back in an almost threatening tone, shocking Mikey even more.

"Stop saying things like that, Raph! He's our brother!" Donnie said defensively.

"Not anymore, he ain't!" Raph said harshly whilst shaking his head.

This shocked everyone, including those who were against Mikey, to the very core. Mikey, on the other hand, became tearful as he suddenly felt like he was stabbed deeply in the chest after hearing those cruel words from his own brother, but things were about to go from bad to worse when he heard Joi speak again.

"Well, I for one don't want to be around someone who thinks our mission is all fun and games! It's not just our own lives at stake, but over a billion people on this earth is in danger of being taken over by the Tengu Shredder!"

"Mmm…We should ask the Tribunal Masters tomorrow if they could expel Michelangelo from the acolyte training altogether…" Torra said next, much to the horror of Mikey.

"See? At least some of us here agrees with me dat Mikey is useless…!" Raph said sarcastically as he folded his arms, causing Leo, Donnie, Adam, and Faragi to look at him with a harsh glare.

"I cannot believe this! You three are being very unfair for saying such things about our friend like that, especially when this is done behind his back!" Faragi said furiously, causing Raph, Joi, and Torra to look away with frustrated looks on their faces.

"Alright, enough! It's almost time for dinner, and Mikey might already be there by now, so let's put this discussion on hold and carry on with it tomorrow!" Leo said using his leader-like voice before he and the others stood up and made their way out of the room to head for the dining room.

However, what Leo and the others didn't know was that Mikey had heard everything and ran off a minute before they left, with tears of heartbreak falling from his eyes.

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End of flashback…

That all happened around 2 hours ago, and Mikey had been standing outside alone throughout that timeframe.

He really didn't want to be around anybody right now. He just couldn't, because they might make him feel even worse than he is now if he made an appearance in front of them. There was also the possibility that the others might not want to be in the same room as him due to their grudges towards him.

Then, his stomach suddenly growled in protest due to not being filled, but Mikey ignored it as he was not in the mood to be thinking about food at the moment since he had a feeling that the others might instantly jump on him verbally as soon as he makes his appearance in the dining room.

"Mikey? There you are…!"

The familiar voice of his immediate older brother, Donnie, snapped Mikey out of his thoughts, and he quickly wiped the remaining tears from his face to try and hide any evidence of him being upset.

'I can't let him see me like this…I've already caused enough trouble for him and the others today…' Mikey thought sadly before he took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"Hey, bro…We missed you at dinner…You must've been out here for a while now cos it's nearly bedtime…." Donnie said as he stood next to his little brother at the broken wall.

"R-Really? I guess I lost track of time…and I'm not feeling very hungry right now, anyway…" Mikey replied softly without making eye contact with Donnie, who was surprised and confused at the same time when he heard that unusual reply from his little brother, who was known to never skip a meal in his life.

"What's the matter, bro? Are you not feeling well?" Donnie asked in concern when he noticed that Mikey wasn't being his cheery self.

"M'fine, Donnie…I-I'm just a little tired from today and wanted to come out here and get some air, that's all…" Mikey replied immediately to try and keep his real reason from coming out. Donnie, however, wasn't convinced.

"All by yourself? Come on, Mikey, there must be something bothering you to make you want to skip dinner, which you never do, and come out here all alone without telling anyone…! " The purple-banded turtle said firmly but softly before he spoke again.

"What's wrong, huh?"

Mikey knew that Donnie wasn't going to leave him alone until the truth was completely out, so he closed his eyes and took another deep breath before he decided to speak in a quiet tone.

"Me, I guess…"

"What?" Donnie said with a raised eyebrow.

"Me! I'm the one that's wrong!" Mikey snapped out, and then he continued talking to prevent a surprised Donnie from speaking.

"I had to screw things up and cause my own brother, and our friend Faragi, to almost die in my name during our first mission as acolytes! When I saw Leo like that, I realised that I had once again let everyone around me down…!"

"Come on, Mikey…Everyone knows that what happened was an accident…!" Donnie replied whilst shaking his head.

"They don't really feel that way deep down, Donnie…and you know what; Raph's right…I'm the main cause of our bad turtle luck…" Mikey countered in denial.

It was that last sentence that made Donnie realise something; the only time Raph had said that about Mikey was during the earlier group discussion that his little brother was absent in, which could only mean one thing...

"How much of our conversation did you overhear earlier?" He asked with widened eyes.

"W-What?" Mikey said shakily with wide eyes as he suddenly realised what he had just slipped out from his lips a moment ago.

"Don't play dumb with me, Mikey…You weren't acting like this until we found you missing at dinner not long after me, Leo, Raph, and the others had finished our discussion about your actions…! Now, tell me; how much of our conversation did you overhear?" Donnie said with his arms crossed, leaving no room for excuses.

"I…I heard everything, ok…? There, I said it!" Mikey admitted in a quiet but clear tone.

"Why didn't you walk in and say anything to us!?" Donnie questioned in shock.

"Oh, like anything I'd say would make a difference, Donnie? The first thing that you and the others might do after finding me out would be to scold me for eavesdropping and that what you all said was the truth! Go on, tell me if I'm wrong!" Mikey bit back heatedly.

"I-…Erm…" Donnie tried to think of an answer to counter Mikey's theory, but he just sighed and looked away slightly when he realised that his little brother had made a valid point; there was a high chance that everyone would gang up on Mikey for eavesdropping on their discussion about him, and they would then tell him how right they were about him.

"That's what I thought…" Mikey then said bitterly as he turned away, his shell-covered back facing Donnie.

"Mikey…" Donnie tried to reach out for his little brother, but the young turtle was no longer in the mood to continue with this talk.

"Look, Donnie…I appreciate you looking out for me, but I came out here to be alone and to stay out of everyone's way since I'm just nothing but trouble around them and you…so, please just…go back to the others, and leave me be…"

By the time Mikey finished his sentence, his eyes begun to fill with more tears and he was doing his best not to break into a sob.

Knowing that Mikey was finished with their discussion and was close to getting upset, Donnie had let out a sad sigh and slowly walked a couple of steps away from him before he said one more thing.

"Don't stay out here for too long, ok? The Ancient One told us that it can be dangerous outside at night…"

"Mmm-hmm…" That was all that Mikey could say whilst trying to keep himself together, before he heard Donnie walk away until he entered the temple without another word.

After being left alone again, Mikey sighed before he sniffled and let his built-up tears fall down his face as his frustration grew.

"I don't get it; why would one of my own brothers come out here all worried about me like nothing really happened when, deep down, he's really upset with me!?" He said with confusion developing in his face.

"There's no point in hiding the truth anymore…cos they're right all along…What good am I to them if I just keep ruining everything!?" Mikey then said before he slammed a fist on top of the broken wall in frustration a couple of times.

After taking a moment to calm himself down, Mikey's face darkened slightly as he thought about what he should do next.

"Well…I guess the only thing I can do for them now…is to leave this place…"

With his mind made up, Mikey wiped his face again to remove any stray tears away before he slowly walked back into the temple to head for his and his family's room to start packing.