Before they know it, they were in some kind of land with grass fields. "I still don't get how you got that group of nut jobs to do everything you say." Kai said.
Jay immediately jumped in front of him to make him stop. "Uh, the League of Jays aren't 'nut jobs.'" He replied. "They're fans. And they're awesome."
"Just cause they're fans doesn't mean they're not nut jobs." Gewuji said as she, Lloyd, Cole and Nya came out of the cabinet.
"Oh, you're just jealous because-"
"Can we focus for a second on the reason we're here?" Nya interrupts her husband.
"To get one of the three keys we need to unlock the final arcade cabinet and get into Unagami's Temple?" Geoff asked.
"Right." Kai replied. "What were they called again. The, the key things?"
"Keyblades?" Gewuji asked.
"Key-Tana." Someone with a masculine voice replied, correcting her, and they all turn to see a middle aged man with long hair done up in a very large ponytail and a beard, wearing a white tunic, black pants and black tabi boots.
"Oh, hi." Nya said, surprised to see him here before she, Lloyd, Kai, Cole and Geoff disperse their hoods before Geoff stood forward.
"What is your name, honourable samurai?" He asked.
"I am terrible." The samurai simply replied, a little depressed. "I was a guide. It was my duty to lead adventurers such as yourselves through this land."
"Uh, it's not anymore?" Jay asked.
"I have failed too many masters." He turns to a field of katanas stabbed into the ground. "To my endless shame."
They all look at each other before Nya stood forward. "Well, we would be honoured to have your help, humble samurai." She said.
"Yeah, because we really have no clue what we're doing." Kai said. "I mean like none."
"Retard." Geoff muttered.
"Don't worry, buddy, we've lost plenty of fights too." Cole said. "But you can't let it get you down, right?"
Lloyd approaches the samurai. "I'm Lloyd." He said, introducing himself. "What's you're name?"
The samurai looks away a little. "I..." He tries to think of what to say. "...am Okino."
"Nice to meet you, Okino." He started to introduce the others. "That's Cole, Gewuji, Kai, Nya, Geoff and Jay." Kai and Gewuji were the only ones who don't wave when introduced.
"I am honoured." He kneels before them and holds his sword towards them. "Allow me, humbly, to pledge my service."
"Oh, gee, that's really not-" Nya was soon cut off when Okino moved towards her.
"I, Okino, Samurai, pledge to serve you and do all in my power to protect you and guide you to the Key-Tana." He kneels before them again.
"Thanks, Okino, that's-"
"Just out of curiosity, when you said you had failed all your previous masters, how many are we talking here?" Gewuji cuts her brother off.
"Two or three?" Kai asked.
"Guys." Nya muttered to them for their rudeness.
"What?" Gewuji asked. "Kai and I can ask that, can't we?"
Okino heavily sighs and points to the field of katanas on his right. There were so many stabbed into the ground, that it was completely impossible to count. "Oh, yeah." Jay said as they were all looking in shock.
"Okay, so a few." Lloyd said. "But this time will be different, right, Okino?"
He immediately stood up. "Yes!" He replied. "I swear it!"
"Lead on, Okino. We trust you."
Okino sheathes his sword and points to a path to his left. "This way! Into the Forest of Discontent, and then beyond. Past the Cliffs of Hysteria, and finally, the Maze of the Red Dragon." Everyone looked at each other with determination before facing Okino, and he takes off with the seven Ninja following him. As the cabinet was still open, Cloaked Character peeks out of it before backing away as the cabinet closes.
Down the path, Okino leads the Ninja down it before stopping. "Forest of Discontent?" Geoff asked. "Why do they call it that?"
A rustling sound was heard, making turn to see big thorns approaching. Okino unsheathes his sword before moving around and twirling to strike a few, with one embedded to his sword as he landed. "What was that?" Cole asked, nudging Lloyd and Gewuji aside.
"Thorns of Discontent." Okino replied, turning to face him, raised his sword, and the thorn slides off the sword, completely in half.
"It came from those bushes!" Lloyd said, pointing out to some black bushes before summoning his sword, activates and swings it before poising. "Let's spread out. Eight targets are harder to hit than one."
"Good idea." Cole replied.
"I got the bush in the middle." Gewuji said, summoning and activating her cinquedea.
"I'll take the one on the left." Nya said, summoning and activating her kama before summoning her hood.
"I'll take the one on the right." Jay said, summoning and activating his kusarigama.
"I'll hang back and make sure no bushes are following us." Kai replied, summoning and activating his sword, earning unamused glares from the others. "What? I have one life left, remember?"
"Okay, on three." Lloyd said, summoning his hood as Cole and Geoff summon and activate their weapons before summoning their hoods. "One, two, three!"
Lloyd, Jay, Cole, Nya, Geoff, Gewuji and Okino charge at the bushes while Kai nervously stayed where he was. "Ninja vs. bushes, epic!" Jay said before Kai reluctantly charges.
The bushes soon fire thorns at the eight, who move through them, dodging or striking some as they do so before Lloyd swung his sword, sending a wave of energy which the bush on the right, causing it to burn in digital flames. Geoff barrel rolls to avoid some thorns before swinging his naginata, sending a wave of energy which the bush on the left while Cole swung his scythe, sending a wave of energy which the bush in the centre, both immediately going up in digital flames. Once the fires were extinct and smoke left the bushes, Cole disperses his hood, throws his scythe in the air and catches it. "Wow, these new weapons are really awesome!" He said before turning to the others, unaware that the remains of the bush on the right managed to fire a thorn. "That was-" The thorns immediately struck him in his back, causing him to scream in pain before disappearing. Okino was completely shocked by it as he moved forward a little and knelt down.
"Cole!" Jay called out in shock before Cole respawns behind Okino, still screaming, surprising everyone before stopping.
He started to breathe heavily as Okino turned to face him. "It got me." He opens his health board display to show him now on three lives. "It got me!" He closes it as the others disperse their hoods. "Aw, I just lost a life!"
"You must be careful." Okino said to him. "In this place, all things, any flower, tree, or beast seek to destroy you." They all soon whimper. "Even the ground beneath cannot be trusted." Okino started to advance as the Ninja look at the ground with concern before they resume following Okino.
Further into the forest, it was now dark as they move along the path. "Wow, it's dark in here." Gewuji said, a little scared.
"Hang on a sec." Jay replied, briefly stopping to open his display, slide along the menu until he came across a torch and touches it. The display soon went away and two unlit torches appear in his hands before the torch on the right lights up. "There, that's better."
He throws the unlit torch towards Geoff, who quickly moves back to catch it, failing to notice a red roach before he steps on it and screams in pain before disappearing and Gewuji quickly caught the torch. "Geoff!" She immediately ran over to where he once was in complete shock.
Geoff soon respawns next to her as he still screamed before stopping to open his health board to see he now only has two lives left. "Crap." He muttered before closing it and shook his head.
Gewuji soon lights up the torch before noticing a giant plant similar to a mouth with giant teeth, which hisses at her, causing them all to gasp in fear. "Great, now I can see what I'm looking at and it's even worse." Cole sarcastically said.
"Well, worse for me is that I'm at two lives now. What did I step on?"
"A Spike Roach." Okino said. "Almost too small to be noticed. Lost 89 masters to them. So, always be careful."
"I'll keep that in mind."
They eventually continue on. "So tell us about the Key-Tana, Okino." Nya said to him. "You said it's in a maze?"
He soon stopped and turned to them. "Aye!" He replied. "Guarded by a fearsome beast. A dragon!"
Everyone just looked at each other. "We've faced plenty of dragons before." Lloyd said.
"Not like this one. They say its teeth can rend any armour, its breath can melt steel, and its scales are impervious to even the sharpest blades." He turns back around to resume walking while the Ninja were a little concerned before they move to catch up.
Nya lags behind a little, until she rushes toward them, jumping over a giant tree root, only to end up landing in a pit with teeth around it, immediately becoming half submerged in it before screaming as she sunk. Everyone turned to her, completely shocked as she sunk. "Nya!" Jay said, throwing his torch aside to try and grab her left hand as Cole comes to her right.
"Hang on!" He said before he grabs her right hand, and they try to pull her out, only to end up losing their grips and fall back.
"Get me out of here!" Nya yelled as she was soon completely submerged in the pit.
Lloyd tries to grab her, but trips as the teeth close in and sink into the pit while Okino sheathed his sword. "Shit." Lloyd muttered as the pit suddenly belched, and the teeth emerge, followed by digital smoke caused by the burp as Lloyd got up before Nya soon respawns next to him, shocking him.
Nya opens her health board to see she had lost her first life and was now on three. "What the hell was that?"
"Swamp-teeth." Okino said as Jay and Cole sit up.
"Swamp-teeth?" Nya repeated out of shock as the teeth sink back into the pit.
"Even the ground cannot be trusted."
Jay and Cole get up and Jay picks up his torch. "I'll say one thing. Milton Dyer has a twisted imagination." She turns to walk down the path to follow Okino with the others following suit.
(A/N: I only added the ending of I Am Okino, because the episode felt like more of an origin story. Plus, you saw Gewuji in her (reluctant) avatar outfit. I originally wrote her having her gi, but changed it last minute)
