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NMNT Season 3 Chapter 13: Across the Universe Part 2
-The Battle Nexus, late afternoon-
Just a ways away from the arena, Usagi's portal appeared out of thin air as the five brothers and the rabbit samurai stepped out. Our heroes then took a good look at their surroundings.
"The Battle Nexus," said Leonardo.
"We made it," said Donatello.
"Did I not assure you I would bring you to this honorable place?" Usagi asked, "My sensei, Master Katsuichi, taught me the ritual for entering the realm of the Battle Nexus and I have made this journey many times."
"Well, let's not waste any time. We have to get to Ultimate Daimyo as fast as we can," said Naruto. The others nodded in agreement as they began walking towards the arena.
-The Arena's Inner city, sometime later-
As the gang entered the inner city, they began to notice something strange.
"Call me nuts, but doesn't this place come off as a little too quiet?" Raphael asked.
"I share your same feeling of suspicion Raphael-san, but then again I have never been here when the Battle Nexus Championship was not in progress and I assume neither have you," Usagi replied as the group reached the main pagoda palace. As they approached the main entrance to the palace, the nagging feeling of suspicion came back in full force.
"Don't know about you guys, but if I were an all-powerful tournament host ruler, I'd at least have some guards at my door," said Michelangelo. Everyone silently agreed as they entered.
-Ultimate Daimyo's throne room-
The gang opened the doors as slowly and as silently as they could and to their relief, they found both Ultimate Daimyo and Gyoji. But to add to their already growing suspicion, there was not even one guard posted in this room. Gyoji then spoke.
"My lord," he said, "it is Miyamoto Usagi, he has come to see you."
Ultimate Daimyo (whose appearance did not put the group at ease, for he looked weak and frail as if a good hard punch was all that it would take to kill him. His face also did not help matters for his beard, which used to be neat, now looked unkempt and scruffy) lifted his head and opened his eyes.
"So dark, no use," he said with barely a whisper.
"Surely you remember Usagi, he has come with all five of Hamato Splinter's pupils," said Gyoji.
All six then knelt on one knee and bowed their heads.
"Honored Daimyo," Leo spoke, "We have come to ask for your help." They then stood up as Leo continued, "Our father, Master Splinter, is in trouble."
Ultimate Daimyo only stared into nothing with a sullen look on his face.
Gyoji then replied, "Please Leonardo, continue; tell the Daimyo everything."
"It...was Drako and your son," said Leo.
"They're still alive," said Don, "well, if you could call it that. You see, the two of them merged somehow, combined together to form one being."
"Sort of an, Ultimate Drako," said Naruto.
"He separated us throughout time and space," said Leo, "And-and that's why we're here, to ask you, most honored Daimyo, to please use your war staff to help us find and retrieve our master. If you do, we will forever be in your debt."
"You five would forever be in my debt?" Ultimate Daimyo scoffed, "You would all put yourselves in my service? What would you all do for me? Would you return to me my son? My son that you all took from me! My son that you all and your friends and your master killed!"
The group of six just stood there, not knowing what to say as their eyes widened at the sudden outburst.
"I will help you," Ultimate Daimyo said sarcastically as he stood up from his throne, "I will help you learn the meaning of pain and loss as you rot in my dungeon! Guards, seize them!"
The group of six were standing in shock as from out of nowhere, several palace guards surrounded them, pointing their weapons and standing at the ready.
"Lock them in the dungeon forever!" Ultimate Daimyo bellowed.
The group of six then all looked amongst each other and silently confirmed what they planned on doing as they took out their weapons and stood in a fighting position. The guards then charged in and attacked. The group then fought back as they all either kicked the guards into the walls, knocked their weapons out of their hands or tripping them before slamming them to the ground. However, with each palace guard they took down, four more took their place.
"We're startin' to get outnumbered here!" Mikey yelled as he roundhouse kicked a guard into two other guards.
"And I do not wish to create serious harm with these honorable warriors!" Usagi exclaimed as he kicked away another guard.
"Easier said than done," Raph grunted as he slammed two guards to the ground simultaneously.
"Then let's get outta here and re-think all this," said Naruto as he uppercut some guards in the air before leaping up and kicking them back down.
"You five lead," said Usagi, "I will follow."
Naruto then took out several smoke bombs and threw them to the ground. Everyone in the throne room became disoriented.
"Stop them!" Ultimate Daimyo bellowed, "Do not let then escape!" He then felt weak as he groaned and sat back in his throne.
As the smoke dissipated, the guards saw a giant hole leading to the outside in one of the paper doors. Several of them then peered out and saw nothing but the cascading waterfall beneath them.
"We're roughly four-hundred feet up in the air, there's no way they could've survived that fall," said a guard.
"We must still be sure of it, come on," said the lead guard as they went to continue their search.
Unbeknownst to the guards however, the group of six came out from behind one of the waterfalls as they began to climb back up to a different part of the pagoda palace.
-Ten Minutes Later-
The group stealthily climbed through a window as they entered into an empty hallway.
"I am beginning to think hanging around with all of you is turning me more ninja than samurai," said Usagi.
"What are you talking about Usagi?" Don asked with a smile, "This is half the fun."
"But still, to be sneaking around like this..."
"We don't have time to dwell on whose path of the warrior is the right one," Leo interrupted, "Right now we have to focus on stealing the Daimyo's war staff."
"But what about the Daimyo?" Naruto asked, "Seems to me like that guy isn't himself somehow."
"I hear ya bro," Mikey agreed.
"I concur, clearly he is under some sort of spell," said Usagi.
Just then a guard's voice could be heard down the hall to their left, near some stairs.
"Double your search; check this wing and report in."
The group then became instantly quiet as they snuck away into the shadows.
-Ultimate Daimyo's Throne room-
Ultimate Daimyo was sleeping like a rock one his throne as the doors slowly opened while the group of heroes crept inside. There they saw not only the sleeping Daimyo, but the war staff standing upright on the wall next to his throne. The group then snuck up as quietly as they could, pausing only when Ultimate Daimyo groaned something in his sleep.
"My son...my son," he groaned sadly. The group then pressed onward and made a beeline for the war staff. Leo was just about to grab it when Gyoji appeared before them.
"Splinter's pupils?" he said.
"Gyoji," said Leo, "We don't want to hurt you."
"But we have to have this war staff," said Naruto.
Gyoji then made a *shh*-ing gesture and said "*Shh*, I wish to help you. Take the war staff and follow me."
Leo did and the group followed the ghostly apparition out of the throne room and into the adjoining room. Gyoji then stopped and turned to address the group.
"I have witnessed the malaise that has befallen my master and I have heard your story Masters Leonardo, Naruto, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo. Something is not right; something must be done. And I will help you do it."
And he waved his fan and made a glowing, transparent circle appear.
"Use the staff and concentrate on your missing father," he said, "Call him to you and the staff will do the rest."
Leo then looked to his brothers, who all gave him a nod of reassurance. Leo then had a look of confidence as he held the staff towards the circle, shut his eyes and concentrated hard.
"Master Splinter, where are you?!" he thought as loudly as he could. Something then tried to appear in the circle, but for whatever reason, it disappeared from view. Leo then breathed hard.
"Try again Leonardo, I am confidant you will be able to do it," said Gyoji.
Leo then shut his eyes and concentrated again.
"Master Splinter, say something if you can hear me!" Leo though hard. Again another shape came into view, this time more defined. But again, just as quickly as it appeared it disappeared. Leo breathed hard once more.
"Perhaps your brothers should come to your aid. Grab the staff with one hand and concentrate along with your brother," Gyoji suggested. The other four did as they were suggested as they grabbed the staff, shut their eyes and concentrated with Leo.
"Master Splinter!" they all cried out in thought. Just then a very clear view if their master came into view. He was in a dungeon, bruised, beaten and hanging by his arms on some iron shackles.
"Why, that is the dungeon," Gyoji said with some surprise, "in this very castle."
"Master Splinter, NO!" the brothers cried out.
"Concentrate pupils of Splinter and you will be able to free him and bring him here," said Gyoji.
The brothers then began concentrating even harder as Splinter (and only Splinter) began to delve in and out of transparency.
However, their concentration began to slip as Splinter became less and less transparent.
Gyoji encouraged them, "Do not give up, try to save your master."
But it seemed no matter how hard they tried, it was of no use as Splinter slipped out of their control. The brothers then let out the breath they were holding.
"We just can't do it," said Leo lamented.
"It's like somethin's stopping us," Raph said with a look of despair and disbelief, "I mean I could just feel him right next to us."
"It is not your fault," Gyoji consoled them as he gently took the war staff out of Leo's hands, "Someone very powerful is blocking your attempts and is enjoying watching you suffer thus."
"What?" Naruto asked as he and everyone else snapped out of their sadness and into shock.
"Enjoying it very much," Gyoji said as his voice became distorted and familiar at the same time, "Relishing your pain and frustration! Taking pleasure from your absolute IGNORANCE, HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!"
He then smiled a most sinister smile as everyone eyes in the group (Usagi included) widened in shock. Gyoji then turned into Ultimate Drako as he continued laughing at their despair.
"HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! We have enjoyed watching you in despair pupils of Splinter!" he exclaimed menacingly, "as we enjoyed torturing your rat master! And bringing Usagi here was an extra gift to us!"
Everyone in the group either scowled or ground their teeth in anger.
"You will rue the day you returned to our Battle Nexus!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed.
"The Battle Nexus will never be yours!" Usagi proclaimed loudly as he and everyone else took out their weapons and leapt right at their foe with the intent to strike him down. Ultimate Drako quickly reached behind himself and pulled out the time scepter as he combined it with the war staff and fired one continuous beam that froze the heroes in place.
"Pathetic creatures," he sneered, "I command both the Daimyo's war staff and Lord Simultaneous' time scepter. I am a GOD!"
And he waved both weapons and sent the heroes away.
-Someplace else-
On a red colored planet on a plateau surrounded by an occasional black, leaf-less tree, the six heroes appeared from out of nowhere.
"Aww man, could it get any worse?" Mikey asked. Immediately his question was answered by an army of mutant pig-warriors.
"You just had to ask," said Raph as he smacked his brother upside his head, "again."
"Usagi, we're sorry we got you into this," said Naruto.
"We just didn't anticipate this kind of mess," said Don.
"Do not say such things my most trusted nakama," said Usagi, "I shall stand by you all until the day I die."
And this the battle began.
-The Battle Nexus, the Final Round Coliseum-
Ultimate Drako gleefully watched through a transparent circle the heroes' predicament.
"Soon they will all die," he said as he waved the war staff and brought forth Ultimate Daimyo and Splinter.
"Now, no more distractions, they will now suffer horribly as they receive a very cruel and painful death!" he exclaimed. He then walked over to Ultimate Daimyo and said, "Fist the Daimyo will perish and then the rat!"
However, something unexpected happened. Ultimate Daimyo groaned and said in barely a whisper, "My son, I can hear your voice. Come back so I can never lose you again." Then he drifted into unconsciousness while keeping his look of melancholic despair.
"Father?" said Ultimate Ninja.
"Is that sentiment I hear in your voice?" Drako interrogated rather harshly.
"He looks so...frail," Ultimate Ninja counter-argued.
"Do not soften on me now; he will be dead at our feet," Drako retorted.
Unknown to them, Splinter began to awake.
"Must he?" Ultimate Ninja asked, "We have all we want. We have power, we have the War Staff; he is no longer a threat. He is old and weak; we could let him live in exile."
"We haven't come this far to simply let the Daimyo live," Drako growled, "He must suffer, he must pay! All must pay! starting with him!"
"NOOOOOOO!" Splinter cried out as he leapt up and onto the war staff.
"I will NOT let you harm him," he said angrily.
"Fool!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed as they began slamming him on the ground repeatedly, "have you forgotten so soon who is the master here?! We command this power!"
All of a sudden, the war staff began to glow as Splinter shit his eyes and concentrated hard.
"What?! He has activated the war staff?! NO!" Ultimate Ninja shouted.
"My sons," he cried out in his thoughts, "Hear my voice and come to me! MY SONS!"
-The red planet-
Back at the battle, the pig warriors were being cut down to size left and right in all directions as the group of six worked flawlessly together to bring down the enemy and return them to the ground from whence they came.
However, just as they were about to take down another group of ten pig warriors, (they were preparing to launch Naruto and Leo right into them with their weapons and ninja tools out) the vast army of pig warriors just stopped in their tracks and disintegrated back into the ground all at once.
"What the hell is goin' on here?" Raph asked in slight alarm.
"I have no idea," said Don.
Just then they all heard Splinter's voice call out, "MY SONS!"
Then all of them (Usagi included) became transparent as a green swirling vortex appeared above their heads with sucked them all in before disappearing.
-The Battle Nexus, the Final Round Coliseum-
The green swirling vortex then appeared before the two opposing forces of good and evil as the group of six appeared standing in the same positions from before.
"Hey look," said Naruto, "We're back in the Battle Nexus."
"So we have," said Usagi.
Just then, right across the arena, they saw Splinter being slammed by Ultimate Drako as he shouted, "What did you do?! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
"Looks like Master Splinter managed to get us back, now let's help him!" Leo commanded. The others nodded as they charged in.
"Damn you rat!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed angrily, "Let go!" Unfortunately for him, since he had become fixated on Splinter, he failed to notice the six pairs of legs all flying towards his torso as he grunted in pain when all twelve legs struck him, thus making him let go of the time scepter and the war staff. The six heroes then pinned him down with all their might.
"The War Staff! The Time Scepter!" he exclaimed as he shook off his captors, "No, NO!"
"We have to keep the time scepter out of his hands!" Don shouted as the six heroes all got up. He, Mikey, and Raph then all made a beeline towards the time scepter while Naruto, Leo, and Usagi assisted Splinter in keeping the war staff safe. At that moment, Ultimate Drako got up and saw his predicament.
"Yo douche-bag, lookin' for this?" Raph taunted as he, Mikey and Don held the time scepter perpendicular to the ground. At the same time (behind Ultimate Drako) Splinter, Naruto, Leo and Usagi grabbed hold of Ultimate Daimyo's war staff and held it in the same position.
"You damn fools, there is no way you can defeat us!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed, "you don't have the power to use the war staff OR the scepter!"
"Perhaps not," Splinter retorted with a defensive growl (with a scowl to boot), "but you will never get your hands on them again, this we swear!"
All of a sudden the war staff and the time scepter began expelling tremendous amounts of bright red and blue cackling energy which took everyone by surprise.
"What the hell kind of sorcery is this?!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed with a mixture of fear and alarm in his tone.
"What the shell is going on here Master Splinter?" Mikey asked loudly.
"I do not know," Splinter replied back in an equally loud tone.
"This should not be POSSIBLE!" Ultimate Drako exclaimed, "You so not possess the power!"
Just then everyone was enveloped in a white light and, in a flash, were all transported back to Ultimate Daimyo's throne room. But their ordeal wasn't over yet as long, black, tentacle-shaped shadows grabbed Ultimate Drako by his limbs and pulled him apart until he was separated back into Ultimate Ninja and Drako respectively (screaming in terrible pain as the process happened).
Just when the two thought they were finished, they looked at their bodies and saw in horror that they were turning to stone.
"I don't understand," Drako growled in alarm, "HOW COULD THIS BE! NO, NO, NNOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
And with the final scream, he was turned completely to stone.
Ultimate Ninja had a bit more time as he cried out, "Father, PLEASE FORGIVE ME!" And with his last word, he too was turned completely to stone. Then the two turned to dust and ashes.
Ultimate Daimyo, who was back to sleeping in his throne, grunted a bit as he mumbled,"My son," before drifting back to sleep with a look of despair on his face. The two weapons then stopped putting out energy.
Naruto looked at the war staff and the time scepter with a look of confusion and awe as he asked, "Okay, will someone tell me how we all did that?"
"I...I truly do not know Naruto," Splinter replied as he looked at the war staff.
Just then there was a bright blue flash of light as Lord Simultaneous appeared floating above them.
"It's quite simple really," he said with a smile as he called back the scepter, "It's like I told your sons here when I met them the last time, this Time Scepter has a mind of its own. It read everyone's thoughts, weighed good against evil, and set everything right with a little help from the war staff."
He then looked between the dust and ashes and Ultimate Daimyo and sighed. "What a horrible mess," he said as he floated down to the floor, "No one ever learns; I get so tired of cleaning up after assholes and megalomaniacs, which in retrospect are the same type of people." He then looked at Ultimate Daimyo who, at that moment, shed some tears from his sleep as he muttered, "My son."
Lord Simultaneous then faced the group of heroes and said, "Let me show you the true and good powers of the Time Scepter, controlled by the right hands." He then froze everything in time except himself and the group of heroes as they all levitated up into the air.
"I suppose the first thing I should do is bring back everyone that that asshole sealed up in time and space," Lord Simultaneous said as he waved the scepter and bright forth all of the REAL palace guards before putting them back in their proper places. With another wave, he brought back the real Gyoji and placed him next to Ultimate Daimyo on the left hand side of the throne. With another wave, he trimmed Ultimate Daimyo's beard.
"By the way, he wasn't under a spell, he was just really depressed. But now I've made him right as rain again," he said.
With another wave he brought back Ultimate Ninja back, not as a man but as a very young boy.
"Now to tweak their memories a bit, and put that war staff back where it belongs," he said as he waved the scepter again, "as we become invisible to them."
And he made himself, along with everyone else, transparent as he gave a final wave and said, "Now, let's sit back and watch the magic happen."
The world around them unfroze as young Ultimate Ninja shook his head from side to side and opened his eyes as he ran to seek comfort and protection from his father.
"Father, father," he said in a fearful tone, "I had the most horrible nightmare."
Ultimate Daimyo groggily opened his eyes as he protectively hugged his son and replied, "My son, do not cry. I too had a horrible nightmare." He then turned his attention towards Gyoji and said, "Gyoji, bring us some hot tea."
"At once your highness," Gyoji replied as he bowed his head and left to go do so.
Ultimate Daimyo turned his attention back to his son as he said, "Don't worry; it is going to be alright."
Up above, the group smiled at the warm reunion taking place. Lord Simultaneous then turned to face them and said, "Alright, now it's time to put you all back where you belong. I'll be fixing temporal anomalies for the next two days."
Leo then turned his attention towards Usagi and said, "Usagi, thank you." And the two bowed to each other.
"My friends, it is truly an honor being your friend," said Usagi.
"Until we meet again, Usagi-san," said Splinter.
"See ya," said Naruto.
And with that, Lord Simultaneous transported them away before heading home himself.
-The Lair-
The five brothers and Splinter all flashed in the entertainment center. Just then, they all heard a voice behind them.
"Ah, there you are," said Casey, "For a second there, I thought you were all playin' hide-and-go-seek, ninja style."
"Eh, something like that," said Raph.
"Casey, let's just say it's good to be home," said Naruto.
Okay, time to answer the all-important question: Why the heck didn't I adapt the "Same as it Never Was" episode? It's one of the fandom's favorite episodes, easily in their top five.
Well it's simple, that episode and the events that transpired are never addressed again. It never made a long-lasting impression on Donatello's character, it's never brought up in flashbacks, there are no call backs to it, nothing of significance is brought to the table. And of course it's not just that episode, the same goes for Raphael's Planet Racers crossover episode and Michelangelo's Superhero Alternate Universe episode. None of their episodes contribute to the overall story, so they automatically become filler in my book.
Trust me when I say that it pains me to not adapt "Same as it Never Was", but the fact of the matter is is that the ideas introduced go nowhere for the rest of the series.
A now for another bit of bitter news: as of October of 2014, the uncut and widescreen version of Turtles Forever has been removed from YouTube. Unless someone uploads it again (or someone gives me a link to it on another video sharing site), I'm going to have to adapt the version that aired on TV. Now luckily, I've found a website that lists the eight minutes worth of footage that was cut and the dialogue that goes with it so hopefully everything will still go smoothly when I adapt Season 7's Back to the Sewer.
Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, so please leave a review.