Mikey and Raph were immediately moved to the infirmary, where the turtles met with Splinter and the Daimyo. The healer didn't look very happy.
- Your brother Michelangelo is in no harm. He just exerted himself too much – He explained – But I cannot speak the same for Raphael. On the surface, it seems no harm is done to him, but on the inside…
- He is hurt badly – Splinter concluded for him – Neji Hyuuga's fighting style concentrate on inner injury. Right now Raphael is suffering for the wounds inside his body, hidden from naked eye.
The rat's tail whipped around anxiously. This was far from what he expected. Splinter hoped that Raphael would heal properly. As for his other sons…
- It's payback time – Leo slammed his fist to his palm – I can't let this drag on any longer.
- What do you want to do, young Leonardo? – The Daimyo asked – You know you are not allowed to fight outside the match.
- We will find out who's the mastermind behind all this – Don answered for him - From what I've seen from them, they don't… look so bad. There must be some kind of misunderstanding.
- Very well, my sons. But you must go together. I do not wish to see any more of my sons end up here, or worse. I will…
The old rat got cut off when he saw his hothead son rose from the bed, flaming mark burnt over his head.
- I… I'll go with ya… - Raph panted.
- That's out of the question, Raph – Leo pushed him back down – You can barely sit up, let alone fight.
- Forget it – Raph swatted his brother away, the red mark continued its travel down his shoulders and chest – I ain't lying around here while ya get yer ass kicked.
For once master Splinter forgave his emerald son's language. The blazing passion pouring out from him just showed how much he cared for his brothers. However, in his condition, doing anything other than rest is fatal. But…
- Look. I ain't feeling any pain, alright? – Raph rose completely to his feet, the mark swirled its finishing touch down to Raph's toes – I've been concentrating on this ever since that girly boy kicked the shell outta me, and look what I got.
The healer put a palm on his plastron, examined him through his power. He turned to everyone with a confused look:
- I… I do not understand. He was severely injured. But now…
- Perhaps it is thanks to this mystic power he possess, healer-san – Ue observed the turtle closely – It boosts the recovery.
- It is your mystic power, young one – The Battle Nexus lord mused – Each one of you has your own special ability that fits your personality most.
Raph turned to Leo, the fire of determination burning in his eyes. The leader could easily activate his own mystic ki to suppress his brother to rest, but he knew better. Even with Don's help, there's hardly a chance he could go against that ninja team when they had to clash. Taking a deep breath, he nodded:
- Alright, you can go. But if anything goes wrong, you'll go back immediately, even if it's mean leaving any of us behind.
- Can't promise ya anything, but I'll do my best.
At that moment, Mikey stirred in his sleep, and his brothers rushed to his side in a heartbeat. Don held his wrist to check the pulse:
- It's weak, but at least his pulse is stable – Don gently settled the arm to Mikey's side – All he need is rest.
- I heard that.
The orange clad turtle peeled his eyes open. He turned to the hothead:
- Raphie… You should stay here… What if those ninjas come back…?
- They gotta walk over me ta hurt ya, bro. And I need ta get ta them first before they get ta ya.
- But…
- No 'but'. Just rest! Everything will alright.
The younger turtle knew he couldn't shake Raph's will once he set his mind on something, so he could only squeeze the emerald hand and whisper:
- Bring me back a souvenir, ok?
Raph felt the corner of his mouth curved up a little. Leave it to Mikey to lift their spirit. Still, the heavy atmosphere lingered when his eyes trailed off to the wound on his little brother. All the mystic power granted him were speed and stealth, not the kind that could be used against a frontal attack. The other boy, Rock Lee, rivaled him in speed, but in strength, the difference was like heaven and earth. He needed to be avoided, or taken down, at all cost.
:::
Three shadow figures faded in and out of the dark under the moonlight. The inn that Neji's team was staying was not far from the Daimyo's castle. But in order to reach the infirmary where the turtles were supposed to be and to avoid being seen, they decided to take the longer route around the other side. The forest trees shrouded them from the guards, or anyone else that happened to look in their direction.
- I saw them! – Neji announced the moment he activated his Byakugan – They're on the move. That way!
Tenten and Lee quietly dashed after him on the ground while he jumped from branch to branch, covering the whole area with his eyes. Without the chakra in the turtles' bodies, all Neji saw was the blurry ki emitted from them, and so was everyone else. What puzzled him was how close those creatures were to the Daimyo without harming him when he was in the infirmary. Taking their strange power into consideration, he doubted the lord's army could pose any threat against them. They could take over this Battle Nexus realm without much difficulty, or achieve whatever goal they wanted. So what's preventing them? And most importantly, why was the Daimyo's ki so close to them without reinforcement? Neji needed to confront these turtles, to answer all these questions. What troubled him most was his sensei's reaction…
…
- I need you to tell me something, Gai-sensei! – The Hyuuga asked the moment they returned to the inn.
- Anything, my youthful student. – Gai gave him a thumb up and a sparkling smile.
- Did Hokage-sama tell you anything more about these turtles?
The reaction was almost instantly. Gai's body went rigid, his eyes widened twice their normal size, then just as fast as it came, he went back to his normal face.
- Nope. The information in the mission briefing is all I know – the taijutsu expert answered flatly.
Neji didn't buy any of it the first time he asked. Gai-sensei was obviously avoiding him. But drastic times call for drastic measures;
- Gai-sensei, as leader of this team for this mission, I order you to reveal any information regarding our targets.
- I cannot.
Neji couldn't be any more shock, and he wasn't the only one. Lee yanked him by the shirt:
- Neji-kun, apologize to sensei immediately! How dare you speak to him with such disrespect?
The Hyuuga boy didn't say anything. He observed his sensei a moment longer, then lightly bowed:
- I apologize for the rude behavior. You are dismissed, sensei.
With a curt nod, Gai turned and walked away.
- What's wrong with you? – Tenten crossed her arms – Lee's not the only one shocked. Care to explain?
- Of course – Neji said with a half-smile – Think deeper! Why did he react that way? And why didn't he force us to complete the mission right away? Where is his normal enthusiastic?
His teammates were lost to his words. Tenten and Lee were still angry at him for the way he spoke to their sensei. Neji went on:
- He couldn't answer me because my order only carries my authority as leader for this team, Jounin at the highest, which means someone with higher status than me forced him to keep silent, the ANBU… or Hokage-sama.
Without stopping to see the shock in his audience's faces, he continued:
- As for the mission, he didn't push us because that is not the true objective. He wants us to figure out the true goal, hidden behind the assassination of those turtles. If you want proof for what I said, follow me tonight…
…
- I'm really confused here – Tenten whispered to her green teammate – I know Neji-kun really want to solve this mystery, but can he do that without going head on to these creatures?
- I believe his decision was correct, Tenten-san – Lee answered with his eyes still looking forward – I felt the same when I fought Michelangelo-kun. He's not a bad person… turtle. Everytime we traded blows, the determination to protect his brothers vibrated from him to me.
- Well, I hope you guys know what you're doing. The last thing we need here is…
- TENTEN! LOOK OUT!
Neji shouted from somewhere above them, but it was too late.
An explosion erupted from the ground right in front of the girl, knocking her flat on her back. Lee skidded to a stop only to find a net sprung up from below, encased him dangling in mid-air. Neji concentrated chakra to his hand and cut off the rope, dropping the boy in green. When they turned around looking for the kunoichi, she was gone.
- Neji-kun, what's happening? – Lee yanked Neji's shirt – Where is Tenten-san? How could you not see these traps?
- I… I didn't see them – Neji was also shocked at his own answer, while Lee slowly released him – There's nothing around you until a second before that explosion. Something blocked them from my Byakugan.
Focused all the chakra he had into his eyes, Neji thoroughly scanned the area. The darkness surrounding them revealed nothing, but his other senses told him that there's something lurking around. Something that had no ki, but full of evil desire and it was it that took their friend away. One thing the Hyuuga boy was sure: the kidnappers were not their assassination targets.
- Lee-kun – Neji slowly spoke, his voice a tad of fury – We need to talk to those turtles.
:::
- Are you sure you're alright? – Don asked Raph as he caught up to the emerald turtle.
- For the hundredth time, I'm fine, brainiac!
They've snuck out the castle using the back gate. With Raph's information on Neji's eyes and Don's tip of where they stayed, Leo had formed a plan to confront these wicked ninjas. Knowing that Neji could see them coming a mile away, he didn't bother with fancy tactics, just concentrated on maintaining his mystic power, in case they were forced to fight. Just to be sure, Leo had form the formation to give Raph the best protection and put him between himself and Don, ignoring Raph's grumbling all the way from the infirmary. Raph's body was healed nicely thanked to his power, but it's better to not take any risk. They had discovered the unique ability that Raph and Mikey possessed, but for Don and Leo, it's still a mystery, but if it came to worst, they just had to unleash their power at full force.
- Do ya think we can turn into dragon like this? – Raph suddenly asked.
- If you want to announce them and the mastermind behind all this where you are, then you're welcomed to try – Leo retorted – But I doubt any of us can do that, not without the amplification amulet.
- Don't hurt ta try, though. Just feel better fighting them in that form rather than this. Can't believe I say this, but I'd like ta fight them as a dragon rather than a turtle.
- We fight as turtle just fine Raph – Don frowned – And we've got your back, so just take it easy.
The hothead didn't say anything, but he suddenly spun on his heel, lunged himself at Don and knocked him out of the way right when something fell on him. All three immediately gathered around, weapons, readied for whatever came their way. Leo charged his power to the maximum, illuminating the small area they were in. The faint light pushed away the darkness enough to show that they were not alone, that there's something lurking around, waiting for the chance to strike.
- I know this feeling – Don tightened the grip on his bo – It's the shadow assassins. Raph, be careful! They can merge with the shadow.
Only Leo and Don had encountered these dark creatures, but that didn't seem to be much help in their situation. If Leo's sense was right, then they were surrounded by at least thirty of them, overwhelmingly outnumbered. However, they were not who they used to be the first time they came to the Battle Nexus.
- Concentrate on the mystic power, guys! – Leo held his katana steady in front of him, the blade shone with overflowing blue ki – We can take these assassins.
- Who are these goons? – Raph swung out his sai aimlessly, feeling nothing but air – Are they the one attacked ya, Leo?
- Yup. That's them – Leo deflected away a weight chain coming at him.
Daggers, arrows and other unknown projectile weapons fired at them from every direction. Raph's sais were almost useless to cover him, so he focused on the power, and the weapons just bounced off him like table tennis balls. Don spun his signature weapon, creating a shield against whatever the assassins threw at him, and Leo just simply allowed the reflex in his body took over. The dark creatures grown weary after a while and decided to reveal themselves. One of them emerged from the space in the middle of the three brothers, and he kicked Don right out of the circle.
- Donnie! – Raph yelled, spinning on his toes and rammed his fist to the enemy as he sprung after Don.
Leo was left to deal with a hurdle of shadows coming at him. He didn't want to use the remaining katana of his, since the one got shattered by his own power could not be repaired by the blacksmith of the Daimyo. Sheathed the sword, the leader turtle channeled his ki to his arm, causing the lightning mark on them to flicker, and before he knew it, the mark sprang to life as visible electric surging from his shoulders to his fists.
- This should be interesting… - Leo mumbled, and struck the ground in front of him, right when the assassins closed the distance.
The effect was almost stunning, ground cracked to giant boulders under his feet, releasing a shockwave at the dark creatures, blowing them several feet away from the blue clad turtle. The moment they landed hard on the ground, their bodies evaporated into thin air. Leo could feel the presence in front of him faded as the shadows retreated, but the ones behind him were still there, chasing his little brothers. Wasting no time, Leo dashed after them…
Raph stood tall in the middle of the circle, with Don bumping his shell to him. The assassins had done well to separate them from Leo, and after a long time maintaining the mystic state, Raph could feel his stamina draining from him. But neither he nor Don gave up.
- I take it that these bozos are behind all this – Raph grunted.
- No doubt about that. They probably set the ninja team up against us. All we have to do now is to beat the confirmation out of them.
- Now yer talking my language.
The both lunged to opposite direction, right where the enemies were. Raph knocked down two in front of him, jumped up and gave a split kick to take out another bunch before they closed in on him, but when he spun around to punch another one, something clamped down on both his wrists.
- Take this one, he is not fully recovered yet – One of the assassins ordered.
Don could only hear Raph screamed his name before everyone around him vanished, including his brother. Blood drained from his face when all he saw was an approaching Leo, and a piece of paper fluttering in mid-air. Both of them read in horror its content:
You will do well to kill each other in tomorrow's match, or your friend and brother will never see the light of day again.
From not too far away, two pair of eyes also stared down at a similar letter...