Chapter Sixty-Seven
Conflicted
Back at the main conflict with the Yakuza, Monalisa continued to fight Boss Kodama, each striking with their weapons but never backing down.
Tyroth meanwhile rose into the air, his mana covering his body as the faced the Yakuza Assassins who aimed their guns at him.
Tyroth had used that opportunity to get the gunmen and women to focus on him so his parents and the Knights could get to safety.
He knew he could use his power as well as his strength to take down the gunners, but he knew if he used his full power, he risked causing collateral damage as well unwanted attention from the public.
All the while, everyone watched from the side-lines.
Raphael wanted to go and help his mate, but Donatello and Michelangelo held him back.
Raphael was unable to sign since his brothers were holding him back, so he just fought against them and tried to speak yet all that came from his throat were hissing and wheezing sounds.
"No Raph!" Michelangelo cried "You'll only get yourself killed!"
Raphael turned to his younger brother.
'Abandon Mona?" he mouthed so his younger brother could read his lips 'Never!'
He tried to break free, but Donatello and Michelangelo continued to hold him back.
Sephie cradled her bleeding arm as she watched her mate as well as her sister in spirit.
"She's gonna get herself killed!" Amber said in a worried voice.
"Isn't there anything we can do?" Kate asked.
Sephie bit her lip as she looked for the others then she saw Sarah, Jack, Sharky, and Heather on the other side of the road from another alley and Jack was waving at them.
Amber also looked up then she saw her phone ring and she snatched it up seeing Jack's name on the screen.
"Jack?" she asked looking at them, "Are you and the others okay?"
"We're fine Amber!" Jack said "But we ran into that Vigilante! The Huntress!"
"You what?" Amber asked her eyes widening and everyone looked at the marine iguana.
"She fell into the Alleyway! Or rather she jumped!" Jack said "We're sure she was responsible for the distraction! When that gunman fell off the roof!"
Richard and Erica looked at each other as they remembered the tribal woman who have saved them.
"You mean you saw her?" Amber asked "Were you able to catch her? Or talk to her?"
"Regrettably no." Jack replied, "Sarah and Heather tried to chase her, but she escaped."
"Damn!" Amber cursed then she looked at her brother keeping the gunmen occupied and Monalisa fighting Boss Kodama.
Tyroth was still hovering and keeping his mana glowing as the gunmen were pointing their guns at him, many had emptied their rounds into him, yet others held back seeing how the bullets were not affecting him.
"How come Tyroth's not doing anything?" Michelangelo asked as he looked up at their friend.
"If he does anything dangerous like he did at the Foot Headquarters or when he defeated Vulstrun, he'll cause damage to the City!" Donatello explained "And I wouldn't be surprised if the gunfire has drawn attention yet!"
"Then we'll need to get out of here!" Amber growled then she turned to her phone.
"Jack! We'll have to discuss that Huntress later, but right now Tyroth and Monalisa need assistance!"
"Right!" Jack replied, "But how are we going to get in there to help?"
Sephie glared and looked at Amber.
"I got an idea!" she said and took her bow then she turned to Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael.
"Guys!" she said, "With me!"
The three turtles looked to the gecko who gestured with her head to follow her.
"Be careful Sephie!" Amber said nervously as she watched.
Meanwhile Monalisa continued to fight Boss Kodama, they had been fighting for a white with their blades, but then Monalisa saw an opening and she opened her fan slashing Boss Kodama across the face then slashed his chest before kicking him back into a wall.
Boss Kodama gasped as he felt winded then looked up to see the Lizard Lady walking over.
"You fucker." She hissed as she gripped her fans.
Boss Kodama glared and shaking off stars he stood up to face Monalisa.
"Bitch!" he said.
Monalisa glared but before she could approach the Yakuza Boss and strike with her fan, a blade appeared blocking her blow and she looked to see Hanako standing there scowling at her.
"Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" she mocked and pushed Monalisa back.
Monalisa gasped as she saw Hanako and glowered as she saw the woman who had muted her husband and had tortured and tried to kill her daughter.
"Hanako? Arashi's whore?"
"His Cherry Blossom, actually!" Hanako replied licking her lips then glared.
"I see Black Mamba failed to kill you!" she spat.
"I don't die easily!" Monalisa snarled.
Hanako held up her own swords and Monalisa held up her fans.
"Ready for round 2?" Monalisa asked.
"Gladly!" Hanako spat and she struck at Monalisa, yet the Lizard Lady opened her fans and caught the sword before closing it and wrenching it out of Hanako's hand.
Hanako cursed and got ready to fight again yet an arrow appeared and knocked her other blade out of her hand!
As that happened, she saw Sephie appear with her bow and arrows drawn with Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo behind her.
Raphael spun his sai and snarled as he saw the woman who had stabbed him in the throat and rendered him mute.
Hanako at the same time stared at Raphael and her eyes widened.
"You live!?" she cried "What I did should have killed you!"
Raphael gritted his teeth and hissed.
'You didn't!' he mouthed yet no sound came from his mouth and Hanako soon realised that the stab wound she gave him might not have killed him but disabled him.
It was then she smirked.
"So, giving the silent treatment, are we?" she mocked yet she jumped back as Monalisa went for her with her fans.
"You slag!" the Lizard Lady screamed.
Hanako did a backflip as she avoided Monalisa's attack and landed next to Boss Kodama.
"We must leave!" she hissed as she searched in her pocket and pulled out a couple of small pellets.
Boss Kodama looked to Hanako with narrowed eyes, but the woman just looked at him and mouthed 'Trust me!'
Boss Kodama glowered but he nodded and placed his finger on his earpiece and said "Retreat!"
As that happened the Yakuza assassins stopped firing at Tyroth and quickly moved away from the edge of the rooftops they were standing on.
Tyroth looked around as that happened then looked down to see Monalisa, Sephie and the three turtles staring down Hanako and Boss Kodama.
Hanako then turned to the two lizard women, the turtles, and the dragon as he flew down.
"This isn't the end Freaks!" she spat then threw down the pellets causing a smoke bomb as well as flashes of light that choked as well as blinded them temporarily.
Monalisa, Sephie, Tyroth and the three turtles coughed as well as blinked and as they recovered, they looked around only to find the area empty.
"Damn to the Nine Hells!" Tyroth snapped as his eyes blazed "They got away!"
Monalisa glared.
"Cowards!" she shouted.
Sephie reached out to her sister in spirit, but as she did, she heard the familiar sounds of sirens.
"Cops!" Donatello cried.
"Cheese it!" Michelangelo shouted.
Sephie grabbed Monalisa's arm and pulled her away and Tyroth glowered as he looked at the rooftops then followed the others, feeling furious as he followed the others back to the alleyways.
Once they arrived back in the alleys, Tyroth saw his parents.
"Mum! Dad!" he cried "are you alright?"
"We're okay!" Erica said, "If not a little shaken."
Richard nodded in agreement.
"What happened?" Tyroth asked.
"Let's get back to Mutopia!" Amber advised "We can ask the questions then!"
Tyroth then heard the sirens getting closer and he nodded.
"Very well!" He said, his voice still deep with anger "then let's go!"
Meanwhile, Pandora after she had managed to escape from Sarah and Heather had found a manhole in another alleyway to get down into the tunnels and back to Mutopia.
She didn't stop moving as she knew that her scent could be picked up by Jack if he was able to catch up in time.
She was so high on adrenaline after what had happened, and she tried to calm down as she knew she had to be calm and keep her head together as well as focus on fixing her wounds.
The hybrid was starting to feel slightly dizzy, yet she didn't know if it was the come down from the adrenaline and near death topside or from her wounds, but she couldn't stop and she knew the Knights and her family would return to Mutopia and she needed to be back before them.
After ten minutes, Pandora soon found the tunnels leading to the sanctuary, after all the years she had spent walking through them, she knew them almost like the ones back in New York.
Dodging the cameras and finding the entrance, she ran in and straight to her room in the residential quarters.
No sooner did she arrive in her room than she quickly stripped off her disguise and hid it under the bed hoping to wash it later and she inspected her wounds in the mirror.
They both stung like crazy, yet they weren't as painful as before as she once again thanked her lucky stars that she had her mother's quick healing being part salamander.
Both had stopped bleeding and were starting to clot, but she thought she should bandage them to avoid any suspicion.
She had also gotten the list she had swiped from the thug she had killed, and she planned to look at it once she had washed up, so she quickly slipped it under her pillow.
Wiping off her Tribal make-up, she put on her dressing gown and grabbed some towels before heading to the washrooms to get herself showered and clean, and to make sure there wasn't anything in her wounds that would cause them to get infected.
The hybrid soon made it to the washroom and thankfully, most residents were already up or still in their rooms, and she hoped she would get some private time as she got herself cleaned.
Luckily when she arrived the washroom was empty but there was steam on the mirrors showing it hadn't long been used so she quickly stepped into the nearest cubicle and started the water sighing as she felt the hot water run over her hair and onto her body.
As she washed herself down with shampoo, the Hybrid felt her heartbeat slow down and she started to relax as the events began to come back to her, tracking Tyroth's parents' kidnappers then attacking them and freeing Richard and Erica, then causing the distraction to help Tyroth, the Knights and her family.
She felt proud of her actions, even if it did almost cost her, her life, but she had made that promise to help her friends and family since loyalty was her strongest attribute.
After a while, Pandora slid down and sat on the floor of the shower letting the water run over her and she hugged her knees to her chest thinking about what she had done.
"I should be proud for what I did, but I took such a risk! Even if I did save Tyroth's parents and helped him out."
"Then why are you beating yourself up about it?"
Pandora opened her eyes and looked around.
"You did well tonight, You saved your Uncle Tyroth's parents and you caused the distraction so they had a chance against the Yakuza assassins! And you shouldn't be ashamed for performing a service, and now you are aware of the activities of the woman you seek to hunt down and kill!"
Pandora looked up at the ceiling as she thought about it.
It was true, she had helped her uncle, the knights, and her family even though they didn't know it.
"I took a huge risk." She whispered, "A deadly one, but I did it because I swore from the day, I wished to be a ninja that I would protect my family, even though I broke the rules."
She looked at the running water and closed her eyes before resting her head on her knees, tears coming to her eyes as she thought about everything that had happened.
The water from the shower continued to fall on her almost acting as it was soothing her as she was lost in her thoughts.
Yet her peace didn't last long as she heard someone enter and the hybrid almost jumped out of her skin.
"Hello?"
Pandora soon recognised Sonia's voice and her heart leaped to her throat.
"Shit." She thought to herself.
"Hello? Anyone here?"
Pandora quickly stood up.
"Sonia?" she called.
"Pandora? You in there?" Sonia called in "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine!" Pandora called in a panicked tone "I just….ahhh Crap! Got a bit of soap in my eye!"
"Pandora?" Sonia called in "You sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine!" Pandora called back "Honest!"
She splashed herself a few times then stopped the water, then wondered how she was going to leave the shower room without Sonia seeing the still open and angry wounds on her arm and side.
She then saw the gap in the curtain and had an idea.
"I'm alright now Sonia!" she called "Can you pass me my towels?"
She reached out her hand from behind the curtain and she felt the chameleon place the towels in her hand and she quickly pulled them in.
From the other side, Sonia was standing in her nightie with a couple of towels and her toothbrush whilst looking at the shower curtain.
She had heard Pandora muttering to herself, yet she couldn't hear everything as she was behind the curtain and the water was drowning out her voice.
Despite Pandora's behaviour appearing normal, the Chameleon couldn't help but feel that her cousin was hiding something.
Yet she wasn't sure how to confront the hybrid nor how to gather any evidence, if there was any.
After a few seconds, Pandora emerged wrapped in her towels, her large one wrapped around her body and the smaller one over her shoulders.
"Hey Sonia!" she said with a smile.
"Hey Pandora." Sonia replied, yet there was suspicion in the Chameleon's voice as eyed the hybrid "You sure you're feeling alright?"
"What makes you say that?" Pandora asked.
"Oh nothing." Sonia replied quickly "It's just…after all you've been through, you were so angry, and such, now, you seem like yourself, in a way?"
Pandora frowned.
"Isn't that a good thing?" she asked, "Just earlier Freya and Loki were saying they were happy to see me normal again!"
Sonia winced a little.
"Oh no!" she cried "Of course it's good! I just well, you know, I just get concerned about you."
She placed her hand on Pandora's shoulder, and as she did, she brushed some of the hybrid's wet hair away.
As she did that, she noticed something on Pandora's lower jaw near where her ear would be if she had any, as being a reptilian humanoid girl, she lacked proper ears.
She couldn't be certain, yet it looked like something brown coloured.
Yet before she could ask what it was, Pandora patted her shoulder.
"Thanks Sonia." She said, "I do appreciate your concern, I'm gonna go and get dressed and I'll see you for breakfast later."
"Oh sure! Yeah!" Sonia said with enthusiasm then watched her cousin leave the washroom.
Sonia frowned as she watched her leave, then she walked over to the cubicle Pandora was using and she saw that by the plug hole there was some red and brown stains.
"What's that?" she thought as she stared at it, then thought hard again as she remembered the brown part on Pandora's face.
"Something's not quite right." She thought "I'm sure Pandora's hiding something, but what?"
The Battle is over, Hanako and Boss Kodama esaped and the Knights and the Hamato Clan have been forced to retreat! What will happen when they return to Mutopia and hear Richard and Erica's account of what happened?
At the same time, Pandora has returned to Mutopia, once again without being seen or noticed, yet Sonia has found her in the washroom and has her suspicions! Will she follow up on them?
Well, you'll just have to wait and see!