Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In New York City, a bunch of car horns were honking, when the camera suddenly panned down to a manhole, and then zoomed into the sewers, before stopping at a dojo with multiple mats and a large bonsai tree growing in the center in an underground lair built from an old subway station. Inside the dojo, there were six humanoid turtles, each wearing a different colored mask, sitting across from each other on three separate mats. A turtle wearing a red mask faced another turtle wearing a purple mask on one mat, then two female turtles with freckles, one wearing a white mask and the other pink, did the same on another. On the farthest mat, a freckled turtle wearing an orange mask and a turtle wearing a blue mask each took a fighting stance while kneeling down on one leg, the blue masked turtle having a katana being his back. The two turtles then stood up, as the orange masked turtle prepared two nunchucks behind his back and the blue masked turtle prepared his katana. The blue masked turtle gave a war cry and charged at the orange masked turtle, who charged back.

“Oh, yeah!” The orange masked turtle cheered, before jumping over the blue masked turtle. “Michelangelo is on the move!”

“You don’t know what to do.” Mikey taunted the blue masked turtle as he twirled his nunchucks.

The blue masked turtle kept trying to attack Mikey, who jumped and dodged to get out of the way.

“I’m here, I’m there.” Mikey joked. “I can be anywhere.”

He ducked as the blue masked turtle took another swing and missed, before appearing in front of him.

“How do you stop what you can’t even see?” Mikey asked jokingly.

He charged at the blue masked turtle again, but his brother hit him in the stomach with the pommel of his katana, causing Mikey to drop his nunchucks. Mikey then rolled forward before feeling the pain and collapsed on the floor of the dojo.

“Like that.” The blue masked turtle replied.

“Good one, Leo.” Mikey said weakly.

On the middle mat, the white masked turtle whipped out a pair of Tonfas, beat them together, and took a fighting stance, as the pink masked turtle took out a Kusari-fundō and twirled it around.

“Now remember, Elisa, don’t just charge blindly into battle.” The white masked turtle advised, speaking in a surfer dude accent.

“Yeah, yeah, I got it already, Cath.” Elisa replied dismissively, speaking in a rather rough, tomboyish voice.

With that, Cath charged at Elisa, who whipped her Kusari-fundō and whipped her sister’s weapons out of her hands, like Indiana Jones. Elisa then put her Kusari-fundo away and pounced on her sister, pinning her onto the mat like a wrestler. “How’s that for an improvement?” She asked.

“We’re getting there.” Cath answered. “But maybe we need to start talking about not pouncing your siblings after you beat them in sparring.”

On the mat on the far right, the purple masked turtle was twirling a Bō staff around while standing in front of the red masked turtle, who was unfazed. The purple masked turtle then stopped, while the red masked turtle cracked his neck.

“All right, Donnie, put down the staff, and nobody gets hurt.” He told his brother.

“Uh, you said that last time, Raph, and then you hurt me.” Donnie reminded him.

“Yeah, but less than I would have.” Raph retorted playfully.

“Yeah, right.” Donnie scoffed, not believing him.

He then tried to hit Raph, who kept ducking and dodging to avoid the staff. Donnie tried to swing his Bō again and shut his eyes, but when he opened them, he saw that it was gone. He then saw Raph standing behind him with Donnie’s Bō in his hands, before Raph twirled it around briefly and used his knee to break it in half.

“Should’ve dropped the staff?” Donnie asked nervously.

“Should’ve dropped the staff.” Raph replied.

Raph then twirled the broken halves of the Bō in his hands before using them to beat Donnie’s shell.

“Okay, okay. Ow!” Donnie cried, dropping to the floor. “I’m down! I give!”

Elisa then cleared her throat as she approached Raph, who dropped Donnie’s Bō and got out a pair of Sais, as Donnie crawled his way over to Mikey, who was sitting on a mat on the other side of the room. Mikey then stuck his tongue out at Donnie, but put it back and pretended to be innocent when he looked back at him.

“Let’s make this quick, Raph.” Elisa said. “Regardless of who wins, one of us has to face Leo.”

Elisa brought her Kusari-fundō back out and twirled it around while making karate movement noises.

“Remind me again why I’m wasting my time with this twerp?” Raph asked himself in annoyance.

Raph put his Sais underneath Elisa’s Kusari-fundō and knocked it out of her hands. He then sent a powerful kick that sent Elisa flying across the room, before she hit against the wall on her shell and fell to the ground on her chest.

“Dang, Raph!” She exclaimed, impressed. “Way to borrow a move from the Elisabetta playbook.”

“That’s what worries me.” Cath, who was sitting on another mat, muttered under her breath, before Elisa joined her and sat down next to her sister.

Raph then walked over to the mat Leo was on. They each knelt down on one knee before they looked at each other.

“Onegai shimasu.” Leo wished.

“Whatever you say.” Raph rolled his eyes.

Leo then pointed his katana at Raph, who brought his Sais back out. He then tried to send a slice at Raph, but he blocked it. Raph twirled his Sais around, before he charged at Leo, who kicked him back. Leo lunged at Raph and knocked one of his Sais out of his hands, sending it flying against the wall Mikey and Donnie were sitting in front of, before it fell onto the floor. They both charged at each other again, and following some slashing sounds, Raph used his remaining Sai to knock Leo’s katana out of his hand, and then put it under his arm. He then threw Leo across the room, pinning him to the floor. Leo moaned in pain as he clutched his sore wrist, and then Raph stood over him.

“Nice try.” He scoffed.

“Ya me!” A voice came from the other side of the room.

Raph and the other turtles turned their heads to see a gigantic humanoid rat named Splinter wearing a maroon kimono and carrying a jade green walking stick making his way towards them. Leo joined his five siblings as they sat in front of their sensei, and then he bowed respectfully at him. (Cath sat on Mikey’s left, while Elisa was between Leo and Raph.)

“You all did very well.” Splinter commented.

“But I did better.” Raph interjected.

“This is about self-improvement, Raphael.” Splinter told him. “It is not about winning or losing.”

“I know, Sensei.” Raph said cockily. “But I won, and they lost.”

Splinter then got behind Raph and poked his neck with his finger, making him groan in pain.

“But what’s really important is that we all did our best.” Raph quickly spoke. “Good job, everyone!”

Splinter then let go of Raph and chuckled to himself, amused by his own joke.

Later, the family was sitting at a table in some sort of kitchen, eating dinner, which consisted of algae and worms. Leo scooped some worms into his mouth with some chopsticks, as Cath sat at the head of the table poking at her plate. Raph sat next to Leo and shoveled the worms into his mouth with the chopsticks, and Elisa did the same, except she lifted her whole plate and gobbled her food right down. Donnie looked at his plate quizzically, before picking it up and eating some of it and then gagging, as Splinter calmly lifted up a worm with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. Mikey then walked up to the others stirring something in a pot with a spoon.

“There’s a little more algae and worms left if anybody wants it.” He offered. “Anybody? Anybody?”

“No, thanks.” Leo said.

“I couldn’t eat another bite.” Cath lied.

“I’m good.” Raph said dismissively.

“I’m trying to watch my weight.” Elisa claimed.

“All yours.” Donnie said.

Mikey walked up to the table carrying a cake behind his back. “Well, I guess no one left room for…cake!” He said, bringing out the cake, which had a single candle on top of it, from behind his back and setting it down on the table.

“Oh, wow.” Elisa awed.

“It is a cake!” Donnie exclaimed.

Raph wiped some of the icing off the cake with his finger and tasted it. “Made of algae.” He said plainly.

A worm then crawled out of the icing and slithered across the cake, before crawling back in. “And worms.” Cath added disgustingly.

“What’s the frosting made out of?” Leo inquired, pointing at it.

“You don’t wanna know.” Mikey advised, before he lifted the cake up. “Happy Mutation Day!”

“Happy Mutation Day!” The others cheered.

“Ah, yes.” Splinter sighed happily. “15 years ago today, our lives changed forever, and we became the unlikeliest of families.”

“Tell us the story, Master Splinter?” Mikey asked.

“Michelangelo, I have already told you it many times.” Splinter laughed.

“Please?” Mikey begged. “Please?!”

Raph then got up from behind Mikey and put a hand over his mouth.

“Please, it’s the only way to shut Mikey up.” Raph begged.

“Ah, very well.” Splinter said, as his six children listened in. “Many years ago, when I was still human…”

(Flashback)

A human Splinter, Hamato Yoshi, walked out of a pet store carrying a terrarium with six turtles in it.

I was leaving the pet store with six baby turtles…

“That was us!” Mikey said, interrupting the story.

“Yes. Don’t interrupt!” Splinter scolded.

Mikey then popped down from the screen as the story continued.

As Yoshi walked down the sidewalk with the turtles in hand, a man walked past him and bumped him on the shoulder, making him suspicious.

I passed a strange man on the street. Something felt off about him.

A few minutes later, Yoshi had followed the man to an alley, where he saw him trading a canister of ooze with another man.

I decided to follow.

Before the first man could give the canister to the second man, they both heard a squeaking noise, and turned their heads to see Yoshi, who had stepped on a rat, and then they both approached him.

“Go no further.” The second man spoke rather sinisterly.

“This place is a place where you are not allowed to be in this place.” The first man explained.

Two more men then appeared behind Yoshi.

“We have been seen in this place by you.” The second man added. “So this is not a place that will be left by you.”

Yoshi sent a kick at the two men that were behind him, as the first two charged at him. He then punched them both while keeping his turtles out of harm’s way. During the scuffle, the men had dropped the canister of ooze, which fell onto the ground and smashed open, causing Yoshi to drop the turtles, who then fell all around it. Yoshi screamed as he mutated into a mutant humanoid rat, while the six turtles gained human-like characteristics.

(Flashback ends)

“That was the beginning of our life together.” Splinter explained as he held up the canister that had turned them all into what they were today. “It was the mysterious substance in this canister that, in a way, gave birth to us all.”

Mikey took the canister from Splinter and hugged it. “Mom!” He sighed happily, cradling it in his arms as his five siblings looked at him.

“Okay, Mikey’s weird.” Elisa said, disturbed.

“So, Sensei,” Leo said, wanting to change the subject. “Now that we’re 15, I think we’re finally ready to go up to the surface, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Splinter answered.

The Turtles all cheered.

“And no.” Splinter quickly added, causing the Turtles to moan in disdain.

“Aw, come on, man!” Raph facepalmed.

“Lame!” Mikey complained.

“What a rip-off, dude.” Cath griped.

“I hate it when he says that.” Elisa sighed.

“You have grown powerful, but you are still young.” Splinter told his children. “You lack the maturity to use your skills wisely.”

He then turned to Raph and Elisa and spoke to them. “Some more than others.”

As he got up and walked off, Donnie asked. “So, Sensei, isn’t that just no?”

“Yes…” Splinter replied. “And no. Wisdom comes from experience, and experience comes from making mistakes.” He turned to his children as he spoke.

“Aha!” Donnie understood. “So in order for us to gain the wisdom, we have to make the mistakes.” He deduced. “So we can go!”

“No.” Splinter said, not convinced.

“And yes?” Donnie asked hopefully.

“No!” Splinter answered sternly.

“Oh!” Donnie groaned.

“Sensei, we know you’re trying to protect us, but we can’t spend our whole lives hiding down here.” Leo explained.

Splinter scratched his whisker-like beard, realizing Leo had a point, and thought about it long and hard. He then looked back down at his children, who were on their knees in front of him giving him the puppy dog eyes. (Elisa was between Leo and Mikey, and Cath was on Donnie’s right.) Finally, he sighed as he made up his mind.

“You may go.” He relented. “Tonight.”

The Turtles cheered again.

“High three!” Mikey shouted as his siblings lifted their hands and touched his.

Later that night, Leo was watching his favorite show, Space Heroes, on the TV in the living room. In it, a spaceship known as the Dauntless was under fire by an unknown enemy, and on the bridge stood three people: the ship’s captain, Captain Ryan, his loyal assistant, Mr. Crankshaw, and a green-skinned alien with a blue gem in his head named Dr. Mindstrong.

“Mr. Crankshaw, status report!” Captain Ryan reported.

“Status?! I’ll give you the status!” Crankshaw exclaimed. “We’re gonna blow up in two seconds!”

Ryan then slapped Crankshaw to calm him down.

“Thank you, Captain.” Crankshaw said, rubbing his cheek.

“Gentlemen, I have a bold and daring plan.” Ryan began to explain.

“There’s no time for hesitation. My orders must be carried out without question!” Leo quoted.

“Aye, sir!” Crankshaw and Dr. Mindstrong said on the TV.

“You know this show is stupid, right?” Raph asked, as he had heard Leo.

Leo turned to see Raph and Elisa sitting on some steps, reading comic books.

“Space Heroes is a great show.” Leo argued. “And Captain Ryan is a great hero. Someday, I am gonna be just like him.”

“Well, you do like to hear yourself talk.” Raph said, not looking up from his comic.

“So, we’d say you’re well on your way.” Elisa finished.

Mikey, Donnie, and Cath then came running into the room.

“It’s go time!” Mikey declared.

“We can finally go up to the surface!” Cath shouted happily.

The others smiled as they all ran to their bedrooms to get ready.

Donnie spun his Bō around, took a fighting stance, and then spun it again before striking a pose.

Cath then spun her Tonfas around, held them both above her head, and then crouched down with her knees bent as she posed at the camera.

Raph then twirled his Sais, knelt on one knee, and then brought them up to his face with a smirk.

Leo then got out both his katanas, did some slicing moves, and glared as he took a fighting stance.

Mikey then twirled his nunchucks around a few times, before the front end on one of them turned into a Kusarigama. He then swung it around as the camera transitioned to Elisa.

Elisa got out her Kusari-fundo, twirled it, threw it up in the air, and caught it in her hands. She then pointed it in front of her mirror, before leaving her bedroom.

About five minutes later, the Turtles were standing in front of the subway station’s entrance as Splinter paced in front of them. (Elisa stood between Mikey and Raph and Cath stood between Leo and Donnie.)

“You are going up to a strange and hostile world.” Splinter told his children. “You must maintain awareness at all times.”

“Hai, Sensei.” The Turtles all said.

They were about to leave the lair when Splinter added. “Stay in the shadows.”

“Hai, Sensei!” The Turtles repeated.

“Do not talk to strangers!” Splinter ordered.

“Hai, Sensei!” The Turtles said, but they were starting to get annoyed.

“Everyone is a stranger!” Splinter added harshly.

“Hai, Sensei.” The Turtles said half-heartedly.

They made it to the barriers when Splinter called out. “Make sure you go before you leave! The restrooms up there are filthy!”

“Sensei!” The Turtles groaned.

Splinter sighed. “Good luck, my children.” He wished.

“This is gonna be so cool!” Elisa grinned.

“I am so pumped!” Raph smiled.

“Surface time, dudes!” Cath smirked.

“This is gonna be epic!” Mikey said happily.

The Turtles excitedly jumped over the barriers and ran down the tunnels.

“Look both ways before crossing the street!” Splinter called, but sighed once his children were out of earshot.

In an alley, Leo lifted up a manhole cover and peered out of it. Once he determined the coast was clear, he moved it off and he and his siblings all climbed out. The Turtles stood there and stared in awe at the sights around them, while Cath was more unnerved at the graffiti on the wall. Elisa then looked to her right and saw a homeless man sleeping on a mattress with only a newspaper covering him, causing her to cringe in disgust.

“It’s so beautiful.” Mikey let out.

“‘Beautiful’ doesn’t begin to describe this place.” Cath said sarcastically.

As the Turtles walked out of the alley, they continued to look around at their new surroundings.

“The city is just full of possibility.” Leo said as they were walking under a scaffolding. “There could be an adventure around this corner.”

He then walked underneath another building. “Or this one.” He added. “Or this one!” He finished as he peered down another alley, where a cat meowed. “Okay, there’s not, but there could be!” He assured.

Donnie walked past an electronics store when something caught his eye. “Look at all the computers!” He awed, before looking further into the window. “Is that the next generation cadmium processor with quantum encryption?”

“I honestly have no idea what you just said, dude.” Cath said as she walked past Donnie.

“I don’t know, Donatello.” Raph said sarcastically, walking up to him. “Is it?”

“It is!” Donnie confirmed excitedly once he saw what he was looking for.

“Guys, guys!” Mikey called, pointing at something. “Check this out!”

He then looked through the window of a fortune teller’s shop with a giant glowing hand. “A hand made out of light!” He exclaimed, before the hand turned off and an eye within it turned on. “Now it’s an eye made out of light.” He gasped softly, before the hand switched back on. “Now it’s a hand again!”

The light kept switching back and forth between the eye and the hand. “Now the eye’s back again!” Mikey gasped. “Now the hand!”

“That’s just a sign, Mikey.” Elisa giggled.

Mikey turned from the store window and looked at her. “I knew that.” He shrugged.

“Come on, genius.” Raph said, grabbing Mikey by the ear.

“But I wanna see the hand and the eye again!” Mikey whined as Raph dragged him away.

The Turtles were now standing in the middle of a street. (Elisa was on Leo’s right, between him and Elisa, while Cath was on Donnie’s left.)

“So where to next, brah?” Cath asked Leo.

The Turtles then heard the sound of a moped approaching them. They watched as a delivery driver for a place called Antonio’s Pizza stopped in the middle of the street, and then he stared at the six turtles.

“Huh?” He asked, confused.

The Turtles all looked at the deliveryman with shocked or sheepish expressions, then Raph made a scary face and growled at him, causing the deliveryman to scream and drive away. One of the pizzas came loose and fell off the back of his moped, but he didn’t seem to notice.

“That was kind of fun.” Raph chuckled.

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to scare him, dude.” Cath said disapprovingly.

“Cath’s right.” Leo agreed. “We’re too exposed out here.”

He then gestured to a nearby rooftop. “Come on.” Leo said as he walked over to the building.

The others ran after him, but Mikey stopped in his tracks and took the pizza box with him.

On top of the building, the six Turtles were all crowded around the pizza box. (Elisa stood across from Raph and Cath was between Mikey and Donnie.)

“Pizz-a?” Mikey read, mispronouncing the word ‘pizza.’

“It says ‘pizza’, brah.” Cath corrected him.

“Do you think we should open it?” Donnie asked unsurely.

“Careful!” Leo cautioned. “It could be dangerous.”

Raph then opened the box, revealing a large cheese pizza topped with pepperoni.

“I think it’s… food.” Donnie assumed.

“Well, duh!” Elisa scoffed. “But what kind of food?”

“It’s not like any food I ever saw.” Raph remarked.

“Well, who’s gonna try it, dudes?” Cath asked.

“I will.” Mikey offered, reaching down and grabbing a slice. He then maneuvered it to his mouth and took a bite.

(Mikey’s mind)

Mikey’s brain was so overwhelmed by the flavor that it exploded.

(Reality)

Mikey greedily gobbled down the rest of the slice and let out a satisfied belch, when he saw his siblings staring at him.

“Uh, yuck.” He lied. “You guys wouldn’t like it.” He then grabbed the box. “I’ll take the rest.”

“What?” Donnie protested.

“No way!” Cath argued.

“Nuh-uh!” Leo said.

“Back off!” Raph snapped.

“Save some for me!” Elisa called.

They all grabbed the pizza box and each took a slice or two, in Elisa and Cath’s case, and then shoveled them into their mouths.

“I never thought I’d taste anything better than worms an algae in my entire life, but this is amazing!” Raph exclaimed happily.

“Dudes, are you kidding?!” Cath asked. “This is way better than worms and algae!”

“Yeah, it’s real food!” Elisa agreed heartily.

“I love it up here!” Mikey yelled to the sky.

A few minutes later, the Turtles were all running across the rooftops throughout the city. They jumped down from a building onto another one, while Leo leapt over a water tower, all of them whooping and cheering. They then stopped on the edge of the building and stared at the New York City skyline. (Elisa was on Raph’s right, while Cath was between Donnie and Mikey.)

“All right, guys, it’s getting late.” Leo told his siblings. “We should probably head back home.”

“Buzzkill!” Cath groaned.

“Lame!” Mikey moaned.

“What a rip-off.” Elisa griped.

“Come on.” Raph sighed.

The others turned and were about to walk off, when Donnie saw something. “Guys, look at that!” He gasped, pointing.

“What is it, Donnie?” Elisa asked.

The others then looked down at where Donnie had pointed. They saw a half-bald man with red hair and a beard walking down the sidewalk with an orange-haired teenage girl with a yellow headband in her hair. The man was wearing a black jacket with a greyish-blue shirt underneath, grey pants, and brown boots, while the girl was wearing a yellow short-sleeved shirt with a long-sleeved black shirt underneath, blue jean shorts with black leggings, black knee-high socks with light blue stripes on the top, and black shoes. Donnie felt his heart start racing as he was entranced by the girl’s looks.

“She’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.” He said dreamily.

“Isn’t she the only girl you’ve ever seen?” Raph asked, snapping Donnie out of his lovesick trance.

“My point still stands.” Donnie shrugged, like his siblings couldn’t care less.

They then heard the sound of tires screeching, and saw a van park right in front of the man and the girl that had passed them.

“What?” The man asked as the driver stepped out.

Six other men then opened the back door and jumped out, wearing business attire, while the driver wore a simple white undershirt.

“What is this?” The older man asked as the four other men approached him, while keeping the girl back.

“We gotta save them!” Donnie gasped.

He was about to jump off the building when Leo stopped him and grabbed his shoulder.

“Splinter’s instructions were very clear.” He reminded Donnie firmly. “We’re supposed to stay away from people.”

“And bad bathrooms.” Elisa added.

“Don’t get me started on the bad bathrooms, dudes.” Cath shuddered.

“I thought you wanted to be a hero?” Raph asked Leo confusingly. “Since when do heroes ask for permission?”

“He’s got a point, brah.” Cath agreed.

“They don’t.” Leo retorted. “But-”

“Well, I say we go for it!” Elisa said as she jumped off of the building, followed by the others, leaving Leo alone. Leo sighed, but followed his siblings as he jumped off as well.

On the street, the seven men were leading the older man and girl over to the van.

“Help!” The girl cried as the older man was thrown to the ground. One of the other men then lifted up the older man and threw him into the van.

“Hey!” Raph shouted, as the other man turned to see Raph standing in front of him. Raph then punched the man in the stomach, knocking him back, but he was unfazed.

“Still standing, huh?” Raph asked mockingly. “No problem, I’ll fix that.”

He got out his Sais and twirled them, when Leo was thrown into him.

“Watch it!” Leo snapped.

“You watch it!” Raph snapped back.

Leo jumped over the man Raph was facing, when another came up in front of him. He then punched the ground, but Raph jumped back to avoid it. Raph then blocked another punch and somersaulted back, but hit Donnie, who had his Bō out.

“Watch it, Donnie!” Raph grunted.

Donnie then blocked a third man’s attacks with his Bō, before striking him in the face with it, to no effect. He then whacked the man in the chest with his Bō, knocking it back. Mikey somersaulted away from a fourth man and twirled his nunchuck, but accidentally grabbed Raph’s Sai with it. Raph then ducked out of the way as the second man approached him, before charging right back at him. Elisa twirled her Kusari-fundo as she dared a fifth man to come at her, while Cath hit a sixth with her Tonfas, but he didn’t flinch. Leo then rolled out of the way as the first man tried to punch him, when Donnie accidentally struck his katanas with his Bō. Leo got back up and ran towards the men, but accidentally stabbed Raph in his shell.

“What the-” Raph began when the second man knocked him to the side.

Raph grabbed the third man under the arm with his Sais, like he did to Leo earlier. He then tried to pull him down, but the man wouldn’t move.

“Aw, come on!” Raph cried in annoyance.

The third man then punched Raph, who landed on his chest, while Leo kept jumping to dodge the first man’s attacks, when he suddenly backed up into the first man. He then performed a double jump kick to knock the two men back, but was punched back by the first man.

“Hey, cut it out!” The girl shouted as the fourth man carried her off. “Stop! Ow!”

Donnie turned back when he heard the girl scream. “Huh?” He muttered.

He then threw his Bō at the man, causing him to let go of the girl, and then Donnie caught her.

“Gotcha!” He said.

The girl looked up at Donnie, who smiled at her, and she screamed as loud as she could, making Donnie scream loudly in return. He then dropped the girl, who inched away in fear.

“No, no, no!” He insisted. “No, don’t worry. We’re the good guys.”

The girl screamed again as Donnie stepped closer.

“It’s okay.” Donnie assured.

The girl turned around and gasped as she saw two of the men approaching her. Donnie offered a hand to the girl, but Mikey accidentally hit him in the face with his nunchuck.

“Whoops.” He winced as Donnie growled at him. “Sorry.”

He then pointed in front of Donnie and shouted. “Watch out!”

The fifth and sixth men kicked Donnie into Mikey, knocking them into some garbage cans. Donnie quickly got back up when he saw the girl tied up and gagged and watched as the van’s back doors shut.

“They’re getting away!” He cried as the van drove off. “They got the girl!”

“You just jabbed me with your sword!” Raph yelled at Leo.

“Well, I didn’t know you were gonna land where I was stabbing.” Leo retorted as they ran off after Donnie.

Cath and Elisa followed their brothers, leaving Mikey behind. He got up and tried to follow, when he saw one of the men that was accidentally left behind.

“You think you’re tough, huh?” Mikey asked, bringing out his nunchucks. “You think you’re tough enough to stand up to my hot nunchuck fury?”

He then twirled his nunchucks around and took a fighting stance, before jumping around and still twirled them, but the man just stood there and didn’t say anything. Finally, he caught one of Mikey’s nunchucks and yanked it out of his hand, much to Mikey’s surprise.

“I see.” Mikey let out. “Well, then…”

He then ran away screaming in the opposite direction of his siblings, but the man ran after him. Mikey ran down an alley until he reached a dead end, as the man approached him. Mikey then panicked and put his other nunchuck in sickle mode.

“Stay back!” He warned, slicing the man’s face, who stumbled back before falling onto the ground on his chest.

“What the…” Mikey asked, confused.

He then carefully approached the man and rolled him over on his side with his foot, only to find a robotic skin underneath.

“That is just all kinds of wrong!” Mikey exclaimed, horrified.

The robot’s body turned off, and then Mikey looked down to see a brain in the stomach area controlling the robot. It screeched at Mikey, who screamed, before latching onto his face with its tentacles. Mikey ran around as he tried to pry the brain away from him, but to no avail. Finally, he succeeded, splattering it against a wall as the brain fell to the ground. The brain then ran away as Mikey caught his breath, before running to find the others.

“Guys, guys!” He exclaimed once he found them. “You’re never gonna believe this!

“What is it, dude?” Cath asked.

“That dude I just fought…” Mikey panted.

“Yeah?” Elisa asked.

“He had, he had a brain!” Mikey explained.

“We all have brains, Mikey.” Leo deadpanned.

“In fact, every creature has ‘em, brah.” Cath added.

“Not every creature.” Donnie corrected.

“Even in our chests?!” Mikey asked, clutching his heart.

“No, Mikey.” Leo answered. “Not even in our chests.”

“You’re not listening to me!” Mikey snapped, before Leo slapped him. “Did you just slap me?”

“I was calming you down.” Leo replied.

“Why would that calm me down?!” Mikey retorted.

“I think he’s delusional.” Donnie assumed.

“Wait.” Cath said, pushing past Leo and Donnie. “Did you say this brain was in this dude’s chest?”

“Yeah!” Mikey answered honestly as he started walking. “Just come with me, I’ll show you. I’m telling you, the big guy was a robot and he had a freaky weird alien brain thingy in his chest!”

The other five looked at each other skeptically as they followed Mikey.

“You gotta believe me!” Mikey insisted.

“I’m not sure we do.” Raph said, unconvinced.

“Oh, yeah?” Mikey challenged when they got to the alley. “Well you’ll change your tune when you see that he’s-”

But when the others caught up with him and looked down the alley, they found it to be completely empty.

“Gone?” Mikey finished.

He then looked back at his siblings, who stared at him disapprovingly. Raph shook his head at Mikey as they walked off, while Mikey took one last look down the alley where he saw the robot.

Back in the lair, the Turtles were sitting in the dojo, explaining to Splinter their first trip to the surface. (Elisa was on Mikey’s left and Cath was between Leo and Raph.)

“And so your inability to work together allowed them all to get away?” Splinter asked, not happy once he learned the whole story.

“Well, maybe if I didn’t have to waste time arguing with hero boy, I could’ve saved them!” Raph argued, gesturing to Leo.

“Hey, if you hadn’t gotten in my way, I could have done it!” Leo argued back. He then turned to Donnie. “And you went flying off on your own!” He scolded. “How smart was that?”

“Yeah!” Cath agreed. “I know you got a major crush on that girl, but that gives you no excuse to take off on your own like that!”

“Well, it would’ve worked out great if somebody hadn’t hit me in the head with their nunchucks!” Donnie snapped as he turned his head at Mikey.

“That’s what you get for goofing off instead of training most of the time.” Elisa teased.

“Oh, yeah? Well…” Mikey began, trying to come up with a good excuse. “None of this would’ve happened if…”

“If what?” Elisa asked.

“Somebody hadn’t trusted us to go up there in the first place!” Mikey blurted out, unaware that he was referring to Splinter.

Splinter stopped dead in his tracks as the others glared at Mikey.

“Dude!” Cath scolded.

“Oh, geez.” Mikey muttered, realizing he just dug himself deeper. “Sensei, I didn’t mean to-”

“No, Michelangelo.” Splinter interrupted. “You are right.”

“I am?” Mikey asked.

“You are?” Cath and Elisa asked, confused.

“He is?” Raph, Leo, and Donnie asked, just as confused.

“You six were not fully prepared for what was up there.” Splinter explained. “I trained you all to fight as individuals, not as a team. And as your teacher, and your father, the responsibility for that is mine. Perhaps in another year, we can try again.”

“What?!” Elisa and Cath exclaimed.

“Another year?” Donnie asked in shock. “Has everybody forgotten that two people were kidnapped tonight?”

“They may have another day, but not a whole year!” Elisa argued. “We have to do something now!”

“Come on, Sensei!” Cath begged. “Just give us another chance, and we’ll show you that we can work together as a team.”

Splinter glared at his children.

“You weren’t there, Sensei.” Donnie argued. “You didn’t see the way that girl looked into my eyes.”

“Could you please stop thinking about the girl?!” Cath asked angrily.

“My point is, that girl was scared.” Donnie continued, ignoring Cath. “And she’s counting on me-all of us-to save her!”

Splinter thought for a moment, before walking over to an old photo of him as a human that was sitting on a shelf, along with a woman and a baby. He looked at it closer as Donnie’s words sunk into him.

“Yes, you must save her.” He finally said, facing back to his children.

“I agree, Sensei.” Leo agreed wholeheartedly. “But in that fight, we weren’t exactly a well-oiled fighting machine.”

“Some worse than others.” Elisa joked, pointing at Mikey.

“Hey!” Mikey said, offended. “Well, at least you and Cath were better than the rest of us against that robot with the brain thingy.”

“Knock it off, Mikey.” Cath sighed, rubbing her forehead.

“Yeah, give it a rest.” Raph agreed with Cath.

They all looked back up at Splinter, who scratched his beard.

“If you are to fight more effectively as a unit, you are going to need a leader.” He told them.

“Can I be the leader?” Leo asked eagerly, raising his hand.

“Why should you be the leader?” Raph asked.

“Because he watches that stupid Space Heroes show.” Elisa teased.

“It’s not stupid!” Leo snapped at her.

“Being a hero is a lot different in real life, dude.” Cath piped up.

“Anyways, I should be the leader!” Raph argued with Leo and Elisa. “I managed to kick both your butts!”

“Hey, I’m smarter than all of us put together!” Donnie chimed in. “It should be me!”

“No way, it should be me!” Mikey argued.

The others stared at him.

“I don’t really have a reason.” Mikey explained. “I just think it would be neat.”

“Well then, I should be the leader.” Elisa argued. “I’m not as smart as Raph, but I’m twice as strong!”

“Is that so, Little Miss Rageaholic?” Cath challenged. “Anyways, it should be me, since I’m the most cautious.”

Splinter opened the door to his room and turned to his children. “This is a difficult decision.” He said. “I will meditate on it.”

He then stepped into his room and shut the door, and after less than two seconds came back out.

“It’s Leonardo.” He decided, before shutting the door again.

The Turtles all looked at each other. “So, that’s that.” Cath shrugged as Raph hung his head down in defeat.

“No hard feelings, right, Raph?” Leo asked.

“Stick it in your shell.” Raph grumbled as he got up and stormed off.

The following night, the Turtles were standing on top of a roof, waiting for the robots who kidnapped the older man and the girl to show up.

“Explain to me one more time what we’re doing here?” Mikey asked in a whisper, making his siblings groan.

“Mikey, we’ve been over this a hundred times.” Leo told him. “That building has the same logo as the van that was used to kidnap the family.” He pointed to the logo on the building below them as he spoke. “So, if we wait here long enough, the kidnappers will eventually show their faces. And when he does, we’ll make him tell us where they took them.”

“And then we got ourselves a van!” Mikey cheered, pumping his fist.

Leo facepalmed. “Just hit the guy I tell you to.” He told Mikey.

“Will do.” Mikey replied, giving Leo a thumbs-up.

Leo then turned to Raph. “Are you sure this is gonna work?” Raph asked skeptically.

“Trust me, they’ll be here any second.” Leo assured.

“Now I see why Sensei made Leo leader.” Cath remarked.

“You don’t have to rub it in.” Elisa snarked, as she had heard her.

After a couple hours, the van still hadn’t shown up. Mikey was playing finger football with Donnie, but accidentally hit him in the face with the paper. Donnie was then seen jumping rope as Mikey took a nap, but his snoring annoyed Elisa, who was trying to meditate, as Donnie then tripped and fell over. Later, Raph was playing “I’m Thinking Of” with his siblings except Leo.

“Okay, I’m thinking of something green.” Mikey said. “Ga-reen, Ga-reen.” He repeated, putting a little emphasis on the word “green”.

“Is it Raphael again?” Donnie asked, uninterested.

“Man, you are so good at this!” Mikey commented.

“We’ve heard the same answer before, dude.” Cath said.

“What is this, Brother Bear, where the moose play I Spy and each get the same answer?” Elisa asked.

Leo didn’t move from his spot, as he was still looking in the alley for the van to show up, when his siblings got up and rejoined him.

“Give it up, already.” Raph said to him. “The guys aren’t gonna show.”

“We have to be patient.” Leo said calmly.

“No, you have to come up with a better plan, ‘cause the six of us sitting here on our butts with our thumbs up our noses…” Raph argued.

“I don’t think they’d fit.” Mikey pointed out, thinking Raph meant that literally.

“…Is pointless.” Raph finished.

“You sure about that, Raph?” Leo smirked.

“They just showed up, didn’t they?” Raph asked rhetorically, seeing the van pull up into the alley. “I should’ve complained two hours ago.” He muttered as the driver stepped out.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a bold and daring plan.” Leo quoted. “There’s no time for hesitation. My orders must be carried out without question.”

When he was finished, he saw that his siblings had already jumped down from the roof. “Uh, guys?” He asked. “Guys, wait up!”

He then jumped down and joined his siblings as they surrounded the driver. (Elisa was between Donnie and Mikey and Cath between Donnie and Leo.)

“All right, buddy.” Raph advised. “We can do this the easy way, or, my vote, the hard way.”

The Turtles then got out their weapons as Donnie spoke. “Yeah, look at it logically.” He added. “There are six of us, and only one of you.”

“What you gonna do?” Cath asked.

“At this point, you might as well give up and go home.” Elisa suggested.

The driver, however, got out a laser blaster and fired at the six Turtles, who yelped and ducked out of the way. They jumped up and landed on a fire escape, and then Raph glared at his three siblings.

“You three just had to say it, didn’t you?!” He snapped.

The Turtles jumped back down and saw the van driving away.

“He’s getting away again!” Donnie exclaimed.

“Oh, no, he’s not.” Leo assured as they ran for the roof.

The Turtles leapt and jumped over the rooftops until they intercepted the van, and then Raph jumped onto it. The driver made a hard left down the next street, throwing Raph off and into a wall, where he hit his shell. The others kept leaping and running until the driver saw them through the rearview mirror. He looked at his blaster, picked it up, and continued firing at them as he kept driving. Mikey, Donnie, and the girls jumped down, while Leo continued running. He then threw a shuriken at the van, hitting one of the wheels and puncturing the tires. The van swerved as it hit a lamppost, before it landed on its right side as it came to a stop.

“Now we’re getting somewhere.” Leo smirked as he watched from a rooftop.

The Turtles then hid behind a wall, and Leo made some hand gestures signaling to the others what to do.

“I don’t know what any of that means.” Raph whispered, mockingly copying Leo.

“Go around back.” Leo clarified.

“Ohhh…” The others understood.

“Why didn’t he just say so?” Mikey asked.

The six Turtles then stepped out from behind the wall and carefully approached the truck while holding their weapons. Raph and Mikey walked around to the back, and then Raph opened the back door. A canister full of ooze, similar to the one that mutated Splinter and the Turtles 15 years ago, rolled out of the back, before it stopped at Mikey’s feet.

“Mom?” Mikey asked in shock.

Chapter Text

The other Turtles gathered around Mikey as he looked at the canister of ooze that fell out of the back of the truck (Elisa was on Mikey’s right, while Cath was on Raph’s left.)

“Whoa!” They all exclaimed.

“So, that’s the-” Leo began.

“Mutagen that turned us all into what we are now.” Donnie confirmed as he held the canister in his hands.

“I can’t believe it.” Elisa said softly. “We actually have the mutagen that mutated us and Splinter.”

“Then let’s drink some!” Mikey said excitedly.

“What?” Raph asked, shocked. “Why would you do that?”

“‘Cause if you mutate a mutant, you get a super mutant!” Mikey argued.

“Not true, dude.” Cath pointed out. “I doubt that mutagen will give us superpowers, let alone make us stronger.”

“Or it could turn us into piles of goo and we fall onto the sidewalk.” Donnie said sarcastically.

“Either way, it’s an improvement.” Raph joked.

“Guys, this is huge.” Leo told his siblings. “Whoever kidnapped those people are somehow connected to what happened to us 15 years ago.”

“How is that possible?” Donnie questioned.

“For alien robots, anything is possible.” Mikey said, ominously.

“Would you cut it out already, Mikey?” Elisa demanded. “There’s no such thing as alien robots!”

“Oh, yeah?” Mikey challenged.

He walked over to the driver, who was still reeling from the crash.

“Well, if there’s no such thing as alien robots…” He began as he picked the driver up. “How do you explain this?!”

He tried to pull the driver’s face off to reveal a robotic body, but it wouldn’t come off, confirming that the driver was real.

“Ah, ah!” The driver cried. “My face!”

“Man, this mask is glued on tight!” Mikey grunted as he tried to pull harder.

“Mikey, stop!” Leo shouted as he stepped forward. “That’s not a mask!”

Mikey looked at the driver again and chucked him back. “Okay, then.” He relented. “He’s in the clear. But those other guys were totally alien robots!”

“Enough!” Raph snapped, having enough of this. “It’s time we got some answers.” He then picked up the driver by the arm and started asking him questions. “Who are you, and what’s going on?”

“Name’s Snake.” The driver answered. “And I got nothing say to you hideous freaks.”

“Oh, well, that’s ‘cause you haven’t gotten to know us yet.” Raph smirked as he brought Snake up close to his face, before throwing him over to his siblings, as Mikey and Donnie caught him.

“See, we were just regular guys until we got hit with a little of this.” Raph continued as he showed Snake the canister, before opening it.

“Raph, what are you doing?!” Cath demanded.

“Playing a little game I like to call: ‘mutation roulette’.” Raph replied jokingly. “Now, you could turn out handsome like me, or you might end up ugly like Mikey over there.”

“Hey!” Mikey snapped, offended.

“Are you demented, brah?!” Cath exclaimed. “You can’t just pour that mutagen onto an innocent human!”

“Nobody’s innocent yet, Cath! They just haven’t had the chance to make fun of us yet.” Elisa argued, before turning to her brother. “Do it, Raph.”

“Gladly.” Raph smirked. “So, are you feeling lucky?”

“No, please!” Snake begged, as Raph began to pour the mutagen from the canister. “I’ll tell you anything! Anything!”

“Raph, please stop!” Cath pleaded.

“Not until he spills the beans!” Raph snapped.

The mutagen almost reached Snake’s face before he finally cracked. “Okay, okay!” He shouted. “They call themselves the Kraang.”

“Who is this ‘Kraang’?” Cath asked curiously.

“I don’t know that much about them.” Snake explained. “What I do know is that they’ve been grabbing scientists from all over the city.”

“There.” Raph smirked as he tilted the canister upright again. “All butter.”

“Well, that worked pretty good.” Leo commented.

“Of course it did.” Raph smiled.

“Yeah, but we scared the poor dude half to death.” Cath pointed out. “He’s incredibly lucky he didn’t turn out like Mikey or worse.”

“You know I can hear you, right?” Mikey asked. “I’m right here.”

“What do they want with these scientists?” Leo asked.

“How should I know?” Snake asked rhetorically.

Raph held up the canister of mutagen and shook it threateningly until Cath lowered his arm.

“All I know is that they’re taking them out of the city tonight, but I don’t know where!” Snake answered hastily.

“This is awesome!” Donnie smiled. “That girl’s dad is a scientist.”

“So the old dude is the girl’s father.” Cath mused. “Who knew?”

“And I’m a scientist, too.” Donnie giggled. “I bet she is totally gonna like me.”

“Ugh, are you ever gonna let that go?” Elisa asked in annoyance.

“Yeah, I don’t think you’re her type.” Snake told Donnie bluntly.

Elisa then pushed Snake and pinned him to the ground with her foot. “Zip it, you snake.” She advised warningly. “I wasn’t talking to you.”

“Where are they now?” Leo demanded as Elisa took her foot off of Snake and her siblings surrounded them.

About an hour later, the Turtles were standing on a rooftop as Leo held out a telescope to search for the Kraang’s van, while Mikey and the girls kept watch over Snake to make sure he didn’t get away. Mikey got out one of his nunchucks and twirled it around in front of Snake, who simply put his hand on his forehead and looked away in annoyance. Leo zoomed in his telescope as he saw a helicopter on a helipad, and then saw three of the men who presumably worked for the Kraang holding laser blasters.

“There’s gotta be, like, 20 of them down there.” He observed.

“Yeah, and that’s just the ones we can see.” Donnie added.

“All right!” Raph grinned as he got out and twirled his Sais. “An all-you-can-beat buffet!”

“Now, hold on a minute there, Raph.” Cath advised, grabbing his shoulder. “We can’t just rush in there blindly.”

“She’s right, we need a plan.” Leo agreed, making Raph frown.

“Why?” Raph questioned.

“Think, you shell-for-brains.” Donnie told him. “There are innocent lives at stake. If we screw this up, we’re all goners.”

“Then we won’t screw it up.” Raph strained.

“Yeah, you kinda make that hard to believe, dude.” Cath snarked.

“Boy, I could sure go for some of that pizza right about now, huh?” Mikey asked, causing the others to turn to him. “What?” He asked defensively. “I can’t be the only one who’s hungry.”

“Mikey, where’s the guy we told you to watch?” Elisa asked through gritted teeth.

“Oh, you mean Snake?” Mikey clarified. “Oh yeah, I let him go.” Mikey then realized what he just said and gasped.

“You what?!” The others exclaimed.

“Oh, geez.” Mikey winced.

They then saw Snake trying to make a run for it, and then he jumped off the roof.

“Get him!” Leo ordered.

Snake made his way down a fire escape when the Turtles followed him. When they made it onto the street, Leo, Raph, and Cath took off one way, while Elisa, Donnie, and Mikey ran over to a wall.

“Maybe he went over the wall.” Donnie suggested.

“We’re on it!” Mikey and Elisa said together, using their respective weapons to create a rope to allow them to climb over. Elisa then hoisted Mikey up, and then he grabbed the rope and swung over the wall, only to land on some rubbish on the other side, causing him to cry out in pain. Donnie and Elisa winced as they heard dogs barking on the other side, but thankfully they couldn’t see them attacking Mikey.

“Ow.” Mikey groaned. “I don’t think he went this way.”

With the other three Turtles, they were currently chasing Snake down another sidewalk. They stopped near a wall and then looked around for any sign of him. Leo then looked down the alley where Mikey first saw the Kraang and gestured his head to it. Raph looked down, but couldn’t see him, as Snake was hiding behind a dumpster. He and Cath then nodded at Leo, who nodded back.

“Oh, great.” Leo said, pretending. “We let him get away.”

“How could you, Raph?” Cath said slowly.

“Whoa, whoa, now! Leo’s the leader.” Raph argued. “That means he let him get away.”

“Not helping!” Leo gritted.

“What?” Raph asked honestly. “I’m not trying to help.”

“Okay, okay, you want me to lead?” Leo asked. “Fine. We go back to the lair, gear up, and at midnight we drive Snake’s van right up to the gate. They’ll think we’re him, and we’ll cruise right on in.”

“And then we bust some heads?” Raph asked.

“Sure.” Cath answered with a strained smile, still playing along.

“I love a happy ending.” Raph smiled back as they walked off, unaware that Snake was listening from the shadows.

Later, in the Turtles’ lair, Donnie had a pair of goggles over his eyes (and mask) as he moved a blowtorch around, as he was working on something in his lab. He turned the blowtorch off, then took off his goggles as he looked at his creation, which was a Shuko spike. He then put his goggles back on and picked up his blowtorch to continue working on it.

“I know you’re a little worried about me.” Raph’s voice sounded out. “Look, I’m not gonna lie to you.”

In the kitchen, Raph was talking to someone or something. “We’ve never gone into a fight like this, and I don’t know what’s gonna happen.” He continued. “But you don’t have to worry. I will make it back.” He assured as he began to tear up. “I love you, man.”

Raph was actually talking to his pet tortoise, Spike, who was chewing on a leaf of lettuce.

“Aww.” Mikey gushed.

Raph turned angrily to see Mikey and Elisa sitting at the table watching him.

“Are you talking to your pet tortoise again?” Elisa asked teasingly.

“No!” Raph angrily denied. “Who said I wasn’t?”

“That’s adorable!” Mikey said cutely.

“Shut up, before I crush you!” Raph snarled, jumping over the table. Mikey screamed as he and Elisa ran off. “I’m gonna shellac the both of you!” Raph yelled as he chased them.

In the dojo, Leo was trying to plan out how to infiltrate the Kraang’s base. He had a metal nut in the center, a pencil and two chopsticks formed in a triangle as the walls, and was currently holding an eraser, which represented him and his siblings. There was also a marble, dice, and button on the carpet, representing the Kraang’s soldiers.

“I think this plan is gonna work.” Leo smiled to himself, putting the eraser down, when Splinter came up behind him.

“No plan ever survives contact with the enemy.” He quoted. “It is how you react to the unexpected that determines if you and your siblings succeed.”

Leo stood up and turned to face his father. “Sensei, do you think I’m ready for this?” He asked.

“Leonardo, I made you leader for a reason.” Splinter answered honestly, touching his eldest son’s shoulder.

“What is that reason?” Leo inquired.

“That is for you to discover on your own.” Splinter replied.

“There’s so much riding on this.” Leo explained. “What if something goes wrong?”

“Failure is a possibility every leader must face, Leonardo.” Splinter told him, before frowning. “It is something I had to face in Japan during my final battle with my enemy, the Shredder.”

(Flashback)

The shadows of Hamato Yoshi and the Shredder were seen fighting each other in a dojo, as the woman and baby from Splinter’s photo watched in fright, as the baby cried.

Years ago, Oroku Saki, as Shredder was called then, had been my friend, but the love of a woman came between us.

Yoshi produced a pair of Shuko spikes as Saki readied his claws.

He could not accept it, and his jealousy turned outward into a vengeful attack.

Saki then sliced one of the candles with his claws, and then the candle fell on the floor, starting a fire.

And while he could not defeat me that day, my world fell and crumbled around me…

Yoshi watched as he saw his dojo burn all around him. He reached out from the debris as Saki walked away with the baby in his arms.

…As the battle took the life of my beloved Tang Shen, and I lost my baby child, Miwa.

Yoshi cradled Shen’s lifeless body in his arms and mourned her as he watched his dojo burn down.

(Flashback ends)

Splinter held onto the tree’s trunk for support, still traumatized by that memory.

“But that’s my point, Sensei.” Leo pointed out. “You lost everything.”

“I lost many things.” Splinter said sadly. “My family, my home, my name.”

Leo looked at his Sensei sympathetically.

“But I gained many things as well.” Splinter continued. “Like the six of you.”

“Don’t worry.” Leo assured. “We can handle this.”

They then heard Mikey scream, as he ran past them with Raph still chasing him.

“Get back here!” Raph yelled while holding a wooden spoon.

Leo and Splinter just sighed and shook their heads.

The next night, at the Kraang’s base, the girl was pounding on the door of her cell, which she shared with the older man.

“Hey, you can’t keep us in here like this!” She yelled. “We know our rights!”

The Kraang’s soldiers, however, didn’t hear her or didn’t seem to care.

“I don’t think they care about that, April.” The man, who was April’s father, Dr. Kirby O’Neil, told her sadly as he sat on a bench in the corner of their cell.

“We can’t just sit here.” April argued. “We gotta do something!”

“Like what?” Kirby asked.

April smiled as an idea came to her mind.

(Outside the cell)

“Oh, my stomach!” April moaned, catching the attention of a guard, who walked down the hall to the cell where she and her father were held. He looked through the window and saw April on the floor clutching her stomach.

“The pain is unbearable!” April cried, faking it.

The guard opened the door to the cell, and then Kirby snuck up behind him, but he turned menacingly to him, causing Kirby to flinch. April then jumped at the guard and tried to pull him to the floor, but he just stood there and didn’t move. She then bit his shoulder and tried to punch him in the face, but still to no avail. The guard grabbed April off of him, set her down, and then stepped out of the cell as the door closed, before walking off.

“Well, I guess we can just sit here.” April said to her dad.

At the base’s front gate, Snake and two other men were on guard duty, each holding a blaster in their hands.

“They’ll be here any minute.” Snake told one of the guards.

“Kraang, are those who are coming to this place coming to this place?” The first guard asked the other.

“I lack that knowledge, Kraang.” The second guard replied. “I will inquire of Kraang about that knowledge.”

Snake began to get frustrated and growled as the second guard said. “Do you have the knowledge if those coming to this place are near this place, Kraang?”

Snake got fed up and turned to the other two guards. “They’re turtles!” He snapped. “Call them turtles! ‘Are the turtles here?’”

One guard who was standing on top of the wall with two more then pointed at something. “There are lights of a vehicle which contain that which you wish us to call the turtles coming to this place which you wish us to call here.” He reported to Snake.

“What are you talking about?!” Snake demanded.

He then turned to see a white van approaching them, as the Kraang prepared their weapons. The guards began to fire at the van, but it wouldn’t stop. Snake and some of the guards then ran out of the way as the van got closer, and then it drove right into the gate, exploding once it did. Snake got back up and saw a canister of mutagen flying towards him. The canister smashed once it hit his body, and then Snake screamed as he began to mutate. The other Kraang then checked the van for any signs of the Turtles, but found nothing, as they noticed that the van did not have a driver.

“The ones coming to this place are not in the vehicle bringing them to this place.” The second guard said to the first one.

“Then in what place are the ones called the turtles?” The first guard questioned.

The Turtles in question were climbing the wall into the base, using Shuko spikes to scale it. Mikey turned back to see the Kraang observing the van’s wreckage, the Turtles having used it as a decoy.

“Wow, luck thing that van showed up to distract them.” He remarked.

“Yeah, the one we used as a decoy to distract them.” Cath corrected.

Donnie sighed and facepalmed at his younger brother’s stupidity, but accidentally hit himself with his Shuko spikes. “Ow!” He moaned in pain.

“That was the plan, Mikey.” Leo explained. “We knew Snake was hiding in the alley, so Raph, Cath, and I made him think we would be in the van.”

“But we weren’t in the van.” Mikey said, confused.

Leo just shook his head, unamused. “Just keep climbing.” He told Mikey.

“Can do.” Mikey replied as he followed after Leo and the others.

Meanwhile, inside the base, more Kraang robots were patrolling the halls, with another two in their human disguises lagging behind, when they turned around and noticed a ceiling vent falling down behind them. They then looked up and saw the Turtles standing above them, and then Leo and Raph jumped down. The two Turtles sent a series of chops, punches, and kicks at the guards until they were down, and then the others jumped down and joined them, as Leo got out his katanas and Raph got out his Sais.

“Wow, I’ve never seen anything like this.” Donnie awed. “They’re using a metal alloy that I don’t even recognize.”

“Gosh, a metal alloy that you don’t even know about!” Raph said sarcastically. “It boggles my mind.”

“Dude, you wanna talk metallurgy with me?” Donnie asked. “Bring it.”

“I don’t, and-” Raph began.

“Guys, focus!” Cath reminded them. “Rescue mission, remember?”

“Right.” Donnie sighed, blushing.

“Sorry.” Raph quickly apologized.

Mikey took the lead as the Turtles continued sneaking down the hallway, when they saw the Kraang robots standing in front of them.

“Whoa.” Donnie whispered in awe. “Alien robots.”

“Alien robots, huh?” Mikey asked him. “Hmm, where have I heard that before? Oh, yeah! I’ve been saying it for hours!”

However, the Kraang robots had heard the Turtles talking and saw them, before firing their blasters. The Turtles jumped and ducked to avoid their blasts, before charging at them with their weapons drawn. Leo and Raph slashed two robots with their weapons, while Mikey and Donnie whacked two more with theirs. Cath then whacked one to the side with one of her Tonfas, and then Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around the head of another, before popping its head off. Donnie then grabbed one with his Bō and threw it into another one, as Raph stabbed another two in the head with his Sais. Leo then sliced off the head of a fifth robot with one of his katanas and used the other to slice a sixth in half, before his siblings gathered around him. The Kraang in the robot’s body then squirmed its way out of the hole, before it snarled at the six Turtles, causing them to scream. Mikey then whacked it with one of his nunchucks, making it dizzy.

“See, see?” He insisted. “It’s a brain thing!” He then held the brain up and showed it to his siblings. “I told you, I told you! But did any of you believe me? No! Because you all think I’m just some kind of bonehead!”

“Okay, Mikey, we believe you.” Elisa relented. “But you don’t have to rub it in.”

Suddenly, the brain woke up and bit Mikey on the arm, causing him to scream in pain. Mikey yelped as he tried to shake it off, before he threw it against the wall and into a control panel, setting off an alarm. The alarm echoed throughout the base, attracting the attention of all the robots patrolling the hallways. The brain then got back up and crawled away.

“Mikey!” The others shouted.

Mikey turned to his siblings and saw them glaring at him.

“Okay, but I was still right about the brain thing.” He weakly defended himself. “You gotta give me that.”

Leo then saw the shadows of more robots approaching them. “Let’s move.” He told the others.

“Move where?” Raph questioned.

“Yeah, we got robots coming from all directions.” Elisa argued.

Donnie then looked up at the ceiling. “I think those are power conduits.” He identified, pointing at them.

“Oh, that’s really interesting!” Raph said sarcastically. “Thanks for sharing, Donnie.”

“Meathead.” Donnie said under his breath. “The conduits are all converging that way.” He then pointed down the hall. “Which means that whatever is going on in that direction is important!” He explained angrily.

Donnie then walked off, followed by Leo, who gestured with one of his katanas with a playful smirk, Cath, Elisa, and Mikey.

“You got spanked.” Mikey laughed, pointing at Raph.

Raph then grabbed Mikey’s hand and began to squeeze his finger.

“Ow, ow!” Mikey cried. “Mercy!”

Raph followed the others, and then Mikey sucked his finger in his mouth to soothe it, before following Raph.

“Not cool!” He moaned.

The Turtles kept running, until Donnie noticed the cell where April and her father were being held. He looked through the window and saw April and Kirby staring at him.

“I found them!” Donnie called to the others.

However, he saw more Kraang robots running towards him, firing their blasters.

“We’ll hold them off!” Leo said as he got his katanas back out. “Cath, you help Donnie pick the lock.”

“You got it, dude!” Cath understood.

Cath began to crack the code for the lock as Donnie turned to April and Kirby.

“Don’t worry.” He assured through the window. “My sister and I will get you out of there in a second.”

“Okay, giant lizard-thing.” April said, a bit skeptical.

“Actually, we’re turtles.” Donnie corrected. “And my name is Donatello.”

“And I’m April.” April introduced herself.

“April, huh?” Donnie blushed. “Say, that’s a pretty-”

Cath then elbowed Donnie in the gut. “Donnie, the lock, remember?” She asked impatiently.

“Huh?” Donnie asked. “Oh yeah, right, the lock! Sorry.”

Cath then removed the panel to the lock as Donnie looked into it.

With the others, Mikey jumped and twirled his nunchucks at the robots, knocking them to the floor.

“Brah, I don’t mean to rush you, but hurry up!” Cath prodded, as Donnie tried to connect two of the wires.

“Hey, it’s not that easy trying to pick a lock with these hands, you know!” Donnie argued, holding up all six of his fingers.

Raph noticed Donnie and Cath were still working on the lock as he kicked another robot away. “Oh, for the love of-” He groaned. “Get out of my way!”

He then got out one of his Sais and stabbed the panel until it was broken, but accidentally opened the door on the other side. April and Kirby gasped as they saw more Kraang robots approach them. By the time the door on Raph’s side opened, the Turtles saw April and Kirby being taken away again.

“No!” April cried. “Help!”

The Turtles ran after the O’Neils and out of the base, when Leo noticed that the door was still open.

“Raph, get the door!” Leo instructed.

Raph made his way to close the door, when a lone robot ran up to him just as he closed it. The robot reached out to grab Raph, but he ripped the robot’s arm off and kicked it back in, before using the arm to bar the door shut.

“That’ll hold them.” Raph said to the others.

His siblings simply stared at him.

“What?” Raph asked defensively.

“You got one seriously twisted mind, dude.” Cath let out, unnerved.

“Thanks.” Raph smiled, taking it as a compliment.

“No!” They heard April’s voice yell out. “Let me go!”

The six Turtles looked up to see two Kraang robots leading April and her father away on a platform above them.

“Let’s get them!” Leo said to the others, but before they could get to them, they were confronted by a giant green plant/praying mantis/vine-like mutant creature with two pincers for claws, and his heart was in the center of his neck.

“Uh-oh.” Mikey muttered.

“That is so wrong.” Cath gagged, trying not to puke as she caught a glimpse of the horror before them.

“You did this to me!” The creature roared at the Turtles.

“Us?” Elisa asked defensively. “What did we do?”

“You drove that truck at me, you spilled that mutagen on me!” The creature hissed. “And for that, you will pay!”

“It’s Snake!” Leo gasped, recognizing the creature’s voice. “He mutated into a giant weed!”

Snake squealed and growled at the six Turtles, who slowly backed away.

“That’s weird.” Mikey muttered, turning to Raph. “You’d think he’d get mutated into a snake.”

“Yeah, you would, if you were an idiot.” Raph shot back.

“But his name is Snake.” Mikey argued.

“So?” Raph asked, confused.

“You don’t understand science.” Mikey told him bluntly.

Snake lifted up one of his feet and stomped it onto the ground, getting Mikey and Raph’s attention.

“I’ll crush you turtles!” He snarled.

“Uh, would it help if we said it was an accident?” Donnie asked nervously.

“And we said we were sorry, dude?” Cath asked hopefully.

Snake, however, roared and snapped his claws at the Turtles.

“Uh, I’ll take that as a ‘no’.” Cath let out.

Snake then lashed out one of his vine arms at the Turtles, who all jumped to avoid it. Leo then jumped up and sliced his left arm with his katana, causing Snake to spill slime all over the ground.

“Eww, eww!” Mikey grimaced. “Don’t let it touch me! Don’t let it touch me!”

He backed up and got out of the way of the slime before it could hit him, but a single shot landed on his leg.

“Ah, it touched me!” Mikey screamed.

“Oh, grow up, Mikey.” Elisa groaned, rolling her eyes. “At least it’s not toxic.”

However, Snake’s left arm regenerated, and then he snapped it at the Turtles while grinning menacingly.

“It grew back?” Donnie asked in shock.

“That shouldn’t be possible.” Cath said in disbelief.

“Oh, no fair!” Elisa whined.

A hovering noise caught the Turtles’ attention, and they looked up on the roof to see the Kraang robots carrying April and her father over to a helicopter to escape.

“Donnie, Cath, go!” Leo instructed.

“We’re all over it, Leo.” Cath assured as she and Donnie put their weapons away, and then Leo hoisted them both up onto the roof. They then ran towards the helicopter as it began to take off.

On the ground, the others were trying to fight Snake, who kept slashing his arms at them, to no avail. Mikey tried cutting off Snake’s arms with his Kusarigama, and then Leo did the same with his katanas, but they kept growing back. Snake knocked them both back as he laughed, before Raph charged forward and sliced through his legs with the Shuko spikes, only to get slime all over them.

“And, yuck.” He said, throwing the Shuko spikes down.

Elisa then got up behind Snake and tried to wrap her Kusari-fundo around his legs, but he spread them apart and snapped her chain.

“Well, that didn’t work.” She sighed as she picked up the remains of her weapon.

Raph and Elisa looked up at Snake, who threw his right claw down at them, but Raph grabbed it and pulled him to the ground, and then kicked him in the head. He and Elisa then walked off, but Snake shot out a tongue from one of his claws and used it to grab Raph and Elisa, throwing them at Leo and Mikey, who caught Raph, but Elisa was then thrown into them, sending them all flying back.

“Snakeweed is really powerful!” Mikey exclaimed as they got back up.

“Snakeweed?” Raph asked in confusion.

“Yeah! His name was Snake, and now he’s a weed.” Mikey explained. “So-”

“We get it, Mikey!” Elisa snapped. “But that’s not the most pressing issue here.”

“We just have to hold him off until Donnie and Cath get back.” Leo told them, stepping forward.

They then turned and saw a bunch of Kraang robots running out the back door.

“While not getting shot by alien robots.” Leo quickly added.

“With brains!” Mikey pointed out.

“Give it a rest, Mikey.” Elisa sighed, shaking her head.

The four Turtles were now cornered by the Kraang robots on one end and Snakeweed on the other. (Elisa was behind Mikey and in front of Raph.)

(The roof)

Donnie and Cath climbed onto the helipad just as the helicopter took off with April and Kirby in tow. Donnie then got out his Bō, ran towards the helicopter with a shout, put his Bō down, leapt into the air, and grabbed the skids while holding onto them with his right hand, then swung up to grab with both hands, but struggled to hold on.

(The base)

Leo and Mikey were fighting the Kraang robots while Raph and Elisa dealt with Snakeweed. Raph leapt up and punched Snakeweed in the jaw, then Elisa used her Shuko spikes to slice off his arms. Leo and Mikey jumped out of the way as two more robots fired at Snakeweed, who then swatted them and the Turtles away. Leo and Raph landed on their chests while Mikey and Elisa landed on their shells.

“So, what’s the plan again, chief?” Raph asked.

“I’m working on it!” Leo assured, as Snakeweed then grabbed him and hung him upside down. Leo then saw the power conduits and got an idea.

“The power conduits!” He realized.

“What Leo?” Elisa asked.

“Are we really gonna start talking about that again?” Raph asked in annoyance.

“Perfect. Raph, Mikey, Ellie!” Leo called, putting his katana in his mouth and signaling to them. His three siblings nodded as they whacked Snakeweed in the legs with their weapons, causing him to let go of Leo, who then sliced his arm off for the umpteenth time.

(The helicopter)

Donnie was still holding on to the skids when the door opened, then a Kraang robot leaned out and glared at him.

“Oh, good!” Donnie exclaimed sarcastically. “For a second there, I thought this was gonna be too easy!”

The robot then fired his blaster at Donnie, who swung under the belly of the helicopter to move out of the way, and then he swung up towards the robot and kicked it in the face while holding a shuriken in his foot. He then grabbed the robot by the legs and threw him out of the helicopter, but the robot kept firing at Donnie, as April lost her balance and fell out, holding onto the outside for support.

“Hold on!” Donnie assured frantically. “I’m coming!”

April then lost her grip and fell towards the helipad, forcing Donnie to let go and jump down. Cath then jumped up and caught April in her arms, before she and Donnie jumped off the roof and landed on the ground.

“You okay?” Cath asked.

April, however, was more concerned about her father. “Dad.” She panted, looking up at the helicopter as it took off with Kirby still inside.

(The base)

Mikey, Elisa, and Raph ducked and dodged Snakeweed’s arms, before they turned and saw more Kraang robots standing behind them, aiming their blasters at them. They then made rude faces at the robots, causing them to fire, but they ran out of the way and the blasts hit Snakeweed instead. Snakeweed backed up into a generator, which Leo leapt on top of, as Donnie and Cath witnessed the battle.

“What are they doing?” Donnie asked.

“Leading that thing to the power generator, by the looks of it.” Cath analyzed, seeing Leo get out two Shurikens.

“That’s incredibly stupid and dangerous!” Donnie exclaimed, before an idea came to mind. “Or brilliant.”

“Or both!” Cath smiled, turning to Donnie.

Leo then threw the shurikens in Snakeweed’s back, who roared in pain as he turned to face Leo.

“Hey, come and get me, stink-weed!” He taunted.

Snakeweed tried to smash Leo, who jumped off the generator and dared the Kraang robots to shoot him, which they did. Their blasts then hit the power generator, electrocuting Snakeweed and causing an explosion, sending pieces of weed flying everywhere. Leo then grabbed April by the hand as the Turtles made their escape, while the Kraang robots looked at each other, then at Snakeweed’s lifeless body.

“Kraang, the ones in this place are not in this place where they were.” One of the robots reported.

“The ones are called turtles, Kraang.” A second robot corrected him. “They are dangerous to what we are doing in this place and other places.”

“Yes, I am knowledge of that.” The first robot replied. “The Turtles must be eliminated from all places.”

The brain in the robot’s belly purred with a grin as Snakeweed’s heart started beating again and his skin briefly regained its color, meaning he was still alive.

Later, the Turtles and April were all resting on a fire escape, as April sat on a window ledge to an apartment, thinking about her father. (Elisa was on Leo’s right and Cath was on Donnie’s right.)

“Are you gonna be all right?” Donnie asked, approaching her.

“I guess.” April sighed. “My aunt says I can stay here as long as I want, but I’ll be a lot better when I track down the creeps who took my dad.”

“Won’t the police help?” Leo inquired.

“Funny thing.” April laughed sarcastically. “When you tell them your dad was kidnapped by alien brains in robot bodies, they don’t take you all that seriously.”

“I hear that.” Mikey agreed.

“April, I promise you we will not rest until we find him.” Donnie swore.

“We won’t?” Raph questioned.

“No, we won’t.” Leo replied sternly, nudging Raph’s shoulder.

“Thank you, but it’s not your fight.” April said sadly.

Cath then approached April and put her hands on hers. “Yes, it is.” She insisted firmly. “We got you into this mess, we’ll get you out of it.”

April perked up briefly and smiled thankfully at her new friends, especially Donnie. Donnie blushed and sheepishly backed away before joining Leo, Raph, Elisa, and Mikey on the rooftop. Cath then let go of April’s hand as she stood up.

“Remember, April, if you need anything, give us a call.” She told her.

April nodded as Cath joined Donnie on the rooftop, then followed after the others, but Donnie stayed behind and waved goodbye to April, who waved back. The two Turtles then jumped and ran across the rooftops, while April climbed into the room and shut the window.

Later that night, in the lair, Leo was sitting in front of Master Splinter in the dojo, having explained to him their failed attempt to rescue Kirby. To his surprise, however, Splinter was pleased.

“I am impressed, Leonardo.” He praised his eldest son. “You have proven to be an effective leader under the most difficult of circumstances.”

“Thank you, Sensei.” Leo smiled. “And I think I figured out why you made me leader.”

“Oh?” Splinter asked, confused. “And why is that?”

“Because you sensed inside me a true warrior’s spirit that could forge us all into the heroes we are destined to become.” Leo explained.

“No.” Splinter answered.

“No?” Leo questioned. “Then why did you make me leader?”

“Because you asked.” Splinter explained.

“That’s it?” Leo inquired. “But you seemed so certain you were right.”

“As a leader, you will learn that there is no right or wrong.” Splinter explained. “Only choices.”

“So, you could have chosen any one of us?” Leo asked.

“Yes.” Splinter answered.

“Even Mikey?” Leo asked.

“No.” Splinter laughed. “That would have been wrong.”

“Everybody!” Mikey called. “Come here! We made the news!”

In the living room, the Turtles were watching a news report of their adventure to the surface and first battle with the Kraang. Raph and Elisa sat on the steps, while Cath sat on the mat next to Donnie and Mikey, as Splinter and Leo walked in.

“A report of-get this-ninjas in New York.” The newscaster, Carlos Chiang O’Brien Gambe, said. “Don’t believe me? After residents reported a disturbance, the police recovered this.”

The TV screen now showed one of the shurikens Leo threw at Snakeweed. Donnie, Mikey, and Cath smiled at each other.

“For Channel 6 News, this is Carlos Chiang O’Brien Gambe, saying hi-ya!” Carlos signed off.

“This is awesome!” Mikey exclaimed happily. “We’re gonna be famous!”

“You must be more careful.” Splinter advised. “The ninja’s most powerful weapons is the shadows. Being brought out into the light is a dangerous thing.”

“Relax, Sensei.” Raph assured. “It’s just one little news story. What’s the worst that can happen?”

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, Japan, a battle-scarred man wearing silver Japanese-style armor was sitting in a chair in a skyscraper as he watched Carlos Chiang O’Brien Gambe’s broadcast about the Turtles from New York on a video screen, while two ninjas stood on either side of him.

“Ninjas in New York. Don’t believe me?” Carlos asked on the screen. “After residences reported a disturbance, the police recovered this.”

The footage stopped and rewinded on the shuriken.

“Recovered this.” Carlos’ voice repeated, before the video stopped entirely.

The man narrowed his eyes as he inspected the Shuriken closely.

“So, my old enemy is in New York, and training his own army.” He deduced, noticing the Shuriken’s familiar symbol. “At last, I can finish what I started so long ago. Prepare my jet.”

The ninja standing on his right acknowledged the order and walked off, as the man stood up and grabbed a helmet, before putting it on.

“I’m going to visit an old friend.” He declared, revealing himself as Oroku Saki, AKA the Shredder.

Chapter Text

The six Turtles were standing on top of a roof, waiting for the Kraang to show up so they could get a lead on the whereabouts of April’s father. In the apartment below, a man named Vic was watching something on TV. Donnie held out a telescope and looked into it, but saw no sign of them.

“Anything?” Leo asked.

“Nothing yet.” Donnie replied.

Mikey, who was laying on his belly on a glass window, poked the top of Raph’s head with his finger. Raph, who was relaxing, tried to swat Mikey’s finger away from him, but Mikey kept poking him, causing Raph to become angry. Cath and Elisa, who were watching, giggled at the sight. Eventually, Raph got so fed up that he grabbed Mikey’s finger with his hand and crushed it, making Mikey yelp in pain.

“Guys, when ninjas are on surveillance they are supposed to be silent!” Leo reminded them in a harsh whisper.

“Sorry, Leo.” Mikey apologized. “I’ll scream quieter.”

He then gently tapped Raph on the head, then Raph grabbed Mikey’s hand and threw him onto the roof, before he picked up Mikey and held him in a headlock.

“Say it.” He dared Mikey.

“Raph, be quiet!” Leo scolded softly.

“Not until Mikey says it.” Raph replied as he began to choke Mikey.

“Raphael is all-wise and powerful.” Mikey let out.

Raph then grabbed Mikey tighter and squeezed his head. “And?” He asked.

“And he’s better than me in every possible way.” Mikey added.

Raph then let go of Mikey, who gasped for air, but then elbowed him in the back and pinned him down. “And?” He added.

“And I’m a lowly worm beneath his feet, who isn’t fit to live on the same planet as him because he’s so amazing and I’m a dirt clod.” Mikey told him, annoyed, before Raph licked his finger and held it above Mikey’s head, making him gulp.

“And?” Raph pressed.

“And in the history of the universe there’s never been-” Mikey began, before Cath and Elisa ran over to them, and then Cath pulled Raph off, while Elisa helped Mikey up.

“Okay, you two, that’s enough.” Cath chided.

“You okay, Mikey?” Elisa asked him as Raph walked over to Leo.

“We’re wasting our time.” Raph sighed. “The Kraang aren’t gonna show up.”

“Have a little patience, will you?” Leo asked.

“Trust me, guys.” Donnie assured. “They’re gonna break into that lab tonight.”

“And how do you know, brainiac?” Elisa asked skeptically.

“I have reliable intel.” Donnie answered.

“Intel?” Raph inquired.

“Or did April tell you?” Cath asked Donnie.

“You mean your girlfriend?” Mikey asked teasingly.

“She’s not my girlfriend, Mikey!” Donnie snapped. “She’s a girl, who’s a friend, whose dad got kidnapped by the same aliens who are gonna break into that lab, and we’re gonna stop them.”

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.” Elisa snickered.

“Or we’ll sit out on a cold roof all night for no reason.” Raph argued.

They then heard the door of the roof open, and out stepped Vic.

“Hey!” He called to the Turtles. “What the heck’s going on up here?”

The six Turtles blinked awkwardly at the sight of him.

“What, are you playing dress up?” Vic asked them.

“No, sir.” Leo assured nervously. “We were just-”

Vic, however, looked past Raph and saw that his satellite dish was broken. “Which one of you slimy green ham shanks busted my satellite dish?!” He demanded angrily.

“Uh, he did it.” Elisa answered, pointing at Raph.

“What?!” Raph asked, shocked and angry, before turning to Vic. “And who are you calling ham shanks?!”

“I don’t even know what that means.” Donnie said, scratching his head.

“Oh, they’re cuts of meat from a pig’s lowered legs that are often cured and smoked.” Cath explained, as Donnie looked at her baffled. “What? I can be smart as you, too, you know!” She told him.

“Does it matter?!” Raph asked her angrily. “I just don’t like what this guy is saying to us.”

He then prepared to reach into his back to take out his Sais, when Leo and Elisa grabbed him by the wrists.

“Now’s not the time, Raph.” Elisa told her brother.

“Yeah, let’s go.” Leo agreed.

The Turtles began to walk off, but Raph continued to stare at Vic as he insulted them some more.

“That’s right, you spineless cream puffs!” He mocked. “Listen to your mommy.”

Raph got out his Sais and pointed them at Vic in anger. “Hey! Watch it, buddy!” He said threateningly.

“Oh, no!” Vic said sarcastically. “I didn’t know you had salad tongs!”

“Salad tongs?!” Raph asked, offended.

He then tried to run at Vic, but Leo, Donnie, and Cath held him back. Leo and Donnie grabbed his arms while Cath held him by the shoulders.

“I’m not gonna take this from some greasy, pit-stained slob with a comb-over!” Raph snapped.

On the street below, the Kraang had now shown up and were robbing the lab. Six robots were loading a van with canisters of mutagen when they heard Raph’s yelling, and then they all looked upwards towards the roof.

“You calling me ugly?” Vic asked. “Seen a mirror lately, circus freak?”

“Raph, stop it!” Cath urged.

“Raph, don’t!” Leo warned.

“You want a piece of me?” Vic dared.

“When I’m done, a piece of you is all that’s gonna be left!” Raph snarled.

Leo and Donnie then pulled Raph back before he was struck by laser fire. The Turtles turned to see the robots aiming their blasters at them.

“Kraangdroids!” Leo gasped, as that was what they were calling them now.

“Holy Toledo!” Vic exclaimed.

“Way to blow our position, Raph.” Leo snarked at him as the Turtles got ready to fight them. The Kraangdroids then fired their blasters at the Turtles.

“Scram!” Was all Leo could say as they jumped out of the way to avoid the blasts.

They then charged at the Kraangdroids, while Vic ran for the door and hid behind it as he watched the Turtles fight.

“Holy cow.” He remarked, as he got out his phone and started to record them. “They’re some kind of… Kung Fu Frogs.”

Raph then ran at a Kraangdroid and knocked its blaster out of its hands, before kneeing it in the face a couple times and throwing it on the roof, while Leo kicked a second back. Mikey then knocked a third in the face with his nunchucks while Cath whacked a fourth multiple times with her Tonfas. Donnie then batted a fifth away with his Bō as Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around a sixth’s head and then popped it clean off.

“Keep going, Kung Fu Frogs!” Vic called as the remaining Kraangdroids ran away.

This caught the Turtles’ attention as they turned their heads over to Vic.

“This is pure gold!” Vic grinned, holding up his phone.

“We’re not frogs, you idiot!” Raph snapped.

“Yeah, and it’s not Kung Fu!” Donnie corrected him. “It’s an ancient Japanese battle art!”

“Guys, he got us on video!” Leo told them.

“What?!” Elisa exclaimed as Raph growled at Vic.

“Not for long he doesn’t.” Raph sneered before he ran at Vic, who then slammed the door in Raph’s face.

“I’m gonna make a fortune off of this!” Vic laughed as Raph recovered.

“Fire truck and police cars are en route.” Cath reported as she heard sirens in the distance. “ETA 30 seconds.”

“Let’s move.” Leo said as the Turtles made their getaway.

“Wait!” Raph argued. “We have to find that guy and break his phone! And his face!”

“Now’s not the time, Raph.” Elisa told him as she followed the others.

Raph sighed in anger and followed after her before the police and fire department arrived.

In the lair, the Turtles were on their knees in front of Master Splinter, who paced in front of them, not happy with their failed mission. (Elisa was on Raph’s right, while Cath was between Donnie and Mikey.)

“Not only did Raphael alert the Kraang, but you got caught. On video!” Splinter scolded, turning to Raph.

“Sensei, he was the angriest, nastiest guy you’ve ever met!” Raph reasoned.

“Except for you.” Mikey joked.

Raph then punched him. “Ow!” Mikey yelped as he backed off.

“You should’ve heard the insults this guy was throwing at us, they were so... insulting!" Raph explained.

“Oh, I did not realize he said mean things. Of course, you had no choice but to jeopardize your mission!” Splinter retorted sarcastically.

“Burn.” Mikey remarked.

“You are ninjas. You work in the shadows, in secret.” Splinter explained as he continued to pace. “This becomes difficult if there is proof of your existence in high definition!”

“Look, we know where this guy lives.” Raph said. “All we need to do is find him and shake him until the tape pops out.”

“Oh, there’s no tape.” Donnie cut in. “Video phones use flash memory and-”

He stopped his explanation when he saw Raph glaring at him.

“Not a good time, dude.” Cath said. “Let’s not anger Raph further.”

“Anger is self-destructive.” Splinter told Raph.

“I always thought it was others-destructive.” Raph admitted half-jokingly, half-sarcastically.

“Raphael!” Splinter shouted, having had enough of his insolence. “Stand up.”

Raph did so, while Mikey took the opportunity to tease him some more.

“Somebody’s in trouble.” He grinned.

Later, in the dojo, Raph stood in the center of the main mat while his five siblings stood around him in a circle, each holding a bow and an arrow with a suction cup at the end. (Elisa was between Mikey and Donnie and Cath was between Donnie and Leo.)

“Evade the arrows.” Splinter ordered Raph.

“No problem.” Raph smirked, thinking this was going to be easy.

“Hajime!” Splinter commanded.

The others each fired an arrow at Raph, who dodged them with ease, and then Splinter caught the last one, Donnie having fired it.

“Ya me!” Splinter instructed as the Turtles stood at ease. “Again, except this time, Leonardo, Donatello, Catharina, Elisabetta, and Michelangelo, insult Raphael.”

“Wait, insult him?” Donnie asked, unsure about this.

“Yes.” Splinter answered.

“And he can’t fight back?” Donnie asked again.

“No.” Splinter confirmed.

“I’m feeling pretty good about this plan.” Donnie chuckled, turning to Cath.

“Same here, brah.” Cath grinned.

“Hajime!” Splinter commanded.

The other five eagerly circled Raph.

“You move like a bloated buffalo!” Mikey mocked, before he fired.

“I do not!” Raph argued as he dodged the arrow.

“Uh, yeah, you do.” Elisa countered as she fired, and then Raph dodged again.

“And you’re always whining.” Leo added. “‘Poor me, nobody understands me.’”

“Well, you don’t understand-” Raph began, but was interrupted when Leo’s arrow hit him on the shell.

“And…” Donnie paused, trying to come up with a good insult. “Oh, yeah! You don’t keep your back straight when doing omote kote gyaku!”

Another arrow landed on Raph’s shell.

“And you’re ugly!” Donnie added, firing another arrow.

“And smelly!” Elisa added as she fired, this time hitting Raph.

“And gassy!” Mikey added as he fired again and hit his older brother. “Bullseye!”

“Stop it!” Raph growled, now even more angry as the arrows were now hitting him.

“Oh, you talk so tough, but inside, you’re just a scared little baby!” Leo mocked as the Turtles kept firing on Raph.

“Who needs his bottle?” Donnie asked.

“And his diaper changed?” Mikey added.

“Want me to sing you a lullaby, dude?” Cath asked mockingly.

“What’s the matter, Raph?” Leo asked. “Gonna cry?”

“I am not gonna cry!” Raph snapped as he kept getting covered with arrows, before the last one hit him on the forehead. Mikey, having fired it, then sighed happily.

“I wish this moment could last forever.” He relished.

Raph, now covered in arrows, angrily stood up and threw his Sais to the floor.

“You know what? Forget this!” He snapped angrily. “This is stupid!”

“Aw! It didn’t.” Mikey whined.

Raph then walked over to Splinter and stood in front of him.

“Ninniku seishin is the ability to endure insults with patience and humility.” Splinter explained. “You cannot be a true ninja until you have mastered it.”

Two arrows plopped off of Raph’s head, and then Mikey laughed at him, but Raph flinched at Mikey, making him step back nervously.

“Understood?” Splinter asked sternly.

“Hai, Sensei.” Raph relented.

“You must get that video back.” Splinter instructed. “Using reason, not force.”

Raph sighed as Elisa looked sympathetically at him, for she knew that this wasn’t going to be easy for him.

The next night, Vic was walking down the street away from his apartment, talking to somebody on his phone, who was skeptical about his story about watching the Turtles fight the Kraang the night before.

“That’s right, I swear on my mother’s grave that these guys were frogs and they knew Kung Fu!” He explained frantically. “You can’t tell me that’s not worth something!”

He then saw the same six Turtles jump down and land in front of him. “I’ll call you back.” He told his friend, before hanging up.

“Lay one finger on me, frog, and I’m calling the cops.” Vic threatened the Turtles as they stood in front of him.

“We’re not gonna hurt you.” Raph said, straining, trying to keep a lid on his anger.

“Then what do you want, freak?” Vic asked rudely.

“We got off on the wrong foot last night.” Raph explained. “Some things were said, and, well, we would just like that video back.”

The Turtles all grinned nervously, while Vic raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. Leo then nudged Raph’s shoulder to get him to say something else.

“Please?” Raph asked reluctantly.

“What are you gonna give me for it?” Vic demanded, still not interested.

“Give you for it?” Raph questioned.

“Well, I figured I’ve got you over a barrel, so you’ve got to make it worth my while.” Vic explained.

“I’ll make it worth your while.” Raph said calmly, before he exploded. “I won’t take your head and smash it against the-”

Leo then stopped Raph by grabbing his shoulder. “Okay, okay, thank you, Raphael. I will take over.” He told him as Raph crossed his arms and looked away.

“So, what are you looking for?” Leo asked Vic.

“A cool mil ought to cover it.” Vic replied.

“Mmm-hmm, Mmm-hmm.” Leo nodded. “A cool mil of what?”

“A million dollars.” Vic revealed, making the Turtles’ jaws drop.

“But we don’t got that kind of dough!” Cath exclaimed.

“We do have some Canadian quarters that fell through the grate.” Mikey piped up.

“Not helping, Mikey.” Elisa scowled, shaking her head.

“Look, I can make serious money off this thing.” Vic explained as he held up his phone and the video he shot of the Turtles. “And if you don’t wanna pay for it, then I’ll hold on to it until I find somebody else who does.”

“That’s it!” Raph snapped, grabbing Vic’s wrist and flipping him onto the street. “Hand over the video, or so help me, I’ll kick your lazy butt all the way to New Jersey!”

Leo then heard the sounds of a familiar van approaching them, the Kraang having watched the debacle while robbing the lab again.

“Guys, the Kraang!” Leo exclaimed as the van got closer.

“Raph!” The others cried as Raph saw the van approaching him and Vic.

“Look out!” Leo called, pushing Raph and Vic out of the way before the van could hit them. The two Turtles got up and saw more Kraangdroids commandeering a truck, which had its headlights on.

“Let’s not let this one get away.” Leo said.

Raph nodded before he turned and saw a nearby oil drum. He then picked it up and threw it at the truck, which then swerved across the street before it crashed into a nearby building.

“Well, that was easy.” Raph smirked.

Several Kraangdroids then piled out of the truck and started firing their blasters at the Turtles.

“Okay.” Raph admitted. “Maybe not as easy as I thought.”

The Turtles then got out their weapons and charged at the Kraangdroids. Raph ran along a wall before kicking two Kraangdroids, while Elisa used her Kusari-fundo to whip another’s blaster out of its hands. Cath then rolled under two more and used her Tonfas to trip them up, before doing a double split kick, knocking them back. Donnie then whacked a sixth with his Bō as Mikey attacked a seventh repeatedly with his nunchucks. As the Turtles continued fighting the Kraangdroids, Vic got back up and tried to crawl away with the evidence, but Leo kicked an eighth Kraangdroid, which hit him, sending Vic flying, and then he landed in the back of the truck. Raph then turned to see Vic about to upload the video on his phone.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” He shouted as he walked towards him.

“Raph, what are you doing?!” Leo demanded, blocking another Kraangdroid’s attack with his katanas, before knocking it back. “Get back here!”

Raph ignored Leo and continued to march towards Vic, when a ninth Kraangdroid knocked Leo down and began kicking him repeatedly.

“Raph!” Leo called desperately, but Raph still didn’t listen to him.

Vic was about to crawl out of the truck when he saw Raph approaching him.

“We’ve got unfinished business!” Raph snarled.

Vic backed up as Raph got closer.

“You give me that phone right now!” Raph demanded.

Before Vic could answer, three Kraangdroids blocked the back exit of the truck, trapping them inside. The Kraangdroids then got into the front seat and drove off with Vic and Raph in tow.

“Raph’s in the van!” Leo shouted as he and the others began to chase after the truck.

Inside the truck, Raph repeatedly kicked and punched the three Kraangdroids and stabbed the third’s blaster with one of his Sais, which blew up in its face, electrocuting the robot. One of them managed to get Raph in a headlock, but then Raph bit it in the arm, forcing it to let go, and then elbowed it back, before turning back to Vic.

“Let’s get out of here!” Raph told him, offering a hand.

“Forget it!” Vic snapped. “You lizards don’t wanna buy my video, maybe these guys will.”

“Raph!” Donnie called. “Get outta there!”

He reached out his Bō to Raph, who then bent down towards Vic and got in his face, as he and the others kept running.

“Listen, you idiot!” Raph snapped, grabbing Vic by the arm. “Frogs are not lizards! And we’re not frogs!”

The Kraangdroid grabbed Raph again and threw him out of the truck, causing him to crash into the others.

“So long, froggy!” Vic waved mockingly, laughing.

He then turned to the reactivated Kraangdroids. “Thanks for the help, guys.” He said to them. “Have I got a deal for you.”

He then showed them the video of the Turtles. However, the Kraangdroids simply stared at him.

“So, are you all triplets, or what?” Vic asked confusingly.

The three Kraangdroids then approached Vic menacingly. Back on the street, the Turtles recovered, as Raph looked up to see Leo glaring down on him.

“Nice, going Raph.” He said sarcastically as Raph got back up.

“What did I do?!” Raph asked defensively.

“What did you do?!” Leo asked angrily. “You left the five of us in the middle of the fight to yell at somebody!”

“Leo’s right.” Cath agreed as she walked up to them. “We could have stopped those dudes, but now, thanks to your temper, that dude with the tape-”

“Again, technically, it’s a flash-” Donnie began again.

“Donnie, not now!” Leo snapped at him, making Donnie shut up.

“Is in the hands of the Kraang!” Cath finished. “How are we gonna find them now?”

Donnie, however, then noticed something and he, Mikey, and Elisa bent down on their knees in the street.

“Look, the truck’s leaking!” Donnie called, inspecting a trail of mutagen that leaked throughout the street.

“All right!” Leo said happily. “We can follow the trail to their hideout.”

“And then bash some bots!” Raph added, but his smile faded when he saw Leo and Cath scowling at him. “What?”

“We are going to bash some bots.” Leo clarified. “You are going home.”

“What, are you kidding?!” Raph exclaimed.

“No, Raph, we’re not.” Cath said calmly yet sternly. “Your anger is becoming a liability to us on these missions.”

“Come on, guys, are you really gonna let Leo power-trip like this?” Raph asked his siblings.

Donnie, Mikey, and Elisa looked at each other, then back to their hotheaded brother.

“I think Leo and Cath are right.” Donnie said, agreeing with them.

“You gotta learn to control your temper.” Leo told Raph. “Until then, we just can’t trust you.”

He then turned around and began to walk off, followed by Donnie. Cath didn’t say anything, but simply glared at her brother before following them.

“Sorry, Raph.” Mikey apologized as he followed them, leaving Raph and Elisa alone in the street. Elisa shook her head at him as she began to follow their siblings, but then Raph took out his Sais and threw them to the ground in anger, before he ran off, which Elisa noticed.

“Hey, guys?” She called. “I’ll catch up later.”

She then walked away from the others and followed Raph back to the lair.

In the kitchen, Raph was griping to Spike, who stood on the table eating a leaf of lettuce.

“Who does Leo think he is?” Raph complained. “So what if Cath thinks I have a temper? I’m still the best fighter we’ve got. In fact, if anything, my anger makes me a better fighter! You understand me, don’t you, Spike? Chew on your leaf if you understand me.”

Spike took another bite out of his lettuce.

“Yeah, I thought so.” Raph smiled.

“I understand you too.” Splinter’s voice sounded out.

Raph yelped and looked up to see Splinter entering the kitchen.

“Oh! Seriously, you gotta knock or something.” Raph said.

“So do I, Raph.” Came Elisa’s voice as she walked up behind him.

“Elisa?” Raph asked, surprised. “What are you doing here? I thought you were with the others.”

“Well, I was worried about you, so I thought I’d follow you home.” Elisa explained. “Although I’ll admit, your temper has gotten out of hand recently.”

“Now you’re taking their side, of all things?!” Raph exclaimed.

“I’m not taking their side!” Elisa assured frantically. “I just want to help you, that’s all.”

“Perhaps I can help.” Splinter offered. “Raphael, Elisabetta, let me tell you both a story.”

“Sensei, I’m not really in the mood for a story.” Raph said.

“Spike, chew on your leaf if you are in the mood for a story?” Splinter asked him.

Spike then took another bite out of his lettuce.

“Very well.” Splinter nodded.

“Might as well get comfy, Raph.” Elisa told him as she sat down next to him. “This could take a while.”

“When I was a young man, I fell in love with a woman.” Splinter began.

“Oh, hey, is it that late?” Raph lied, pretending to look at the time as he got up.

“Sit!” Splinter ordered, and Raph reluctantly obeyed.

(Flashback)

Her name was Tang Shen, and I was not the only one who loved her.

Years ago, in Japan, Yoshi was leaning against the railing of a building as he and Shen stood by a stream, before they smiled at each other.

There was another man competing for her attention-Oroku Saki.

“Shredder.” Raph hissed as a silhouette of Shredder appeared over Saki’s head.

Saki was now shown shouting at Yoshi the same way Vic shouted at the Turtles in the present, and they were now in front of Yoshi’s dojo.

One day, he insulted me in front of her. He called me many things.

Lightning flashed and thunder crashed, and then rain poured down, as Yoshi struggled to maintain his anger while Shen stood behind him.

I felt I could not let those insults go unanswered.

Yoshi finally lost his temper and attacked Saki, sending him to the ground, while Shen looked on in shock. Saki, however, smirked as he wiped his mouth, and then Shen hugged Yoshi to calm him down.

I lost my temper. And over time, our rivalry festered into hatred…

Yoshi glared at Saki as he walked away, before the scene shifted to the two of them fighting in Yoshi’s dojo.

…Until Shredder sought to finish me…

Yoshi watched in horror as his dojo crumbled around him, and then he held Shen’s lifeless body in his arms as he watched it burn down from the outside.

…And I lost my beloved Tang Shen.

(Flashback ends)

As Splinter finished his story, Elisa stared at her father in shock, jaw dropped, while Raph felt sorry for him.

“But-but it wasn’t your fault.” He reasoned. “Shredder insulted you. You had no choice.”

“No choice?” Splinter questioned, before turning to Raph. “I could have chosen to ignore him. I could have chosen to let his words wash over me, like a river over stone, but I let him anger me. It was I who made his words into weapons.”

“But if you hadn’t lost your temper, you wouldn’t have lost everything.” Elisa argued.

Splinter sighed heavily. “We all must make choices in life, my daughter.” He said sadly. “That was the choice I made.”

He then walked over to Raph and set a hand on his shoulder. “Now tell me, Raphael, which decision will you make?” Splinter asked him.

Splinter then walked off, as Raph began to take in the lesson of the story, ashamed of his behavior.

“What do you think, Elisa?” He asked, turning to her.

Elisa sighed. “Raph…” She began. “I know I can lose my cool as much as you, but you take it way worse. I’m going to help the guys. Join us after you’ve thought about it.”

She then stood up and walked off, leaving Raph alone to gather his thoughts.

Meanwhile, the others were following the trail of ooze to the Kraang’s new base. Donnie ran across the street, while Mikey jumped down from behind a dumpster, as they all hid behind a wall and saw that the trail stopped in front of a warehouse.

“We’re here.” Leo whispered.

“Are we really gonna do this without Raph?” Mikey asked quietly.

“After how he acted, I say we’re doing just fine without him.” Cath scowled, trying not to think about him.

“Cath’s right, we can take them.” Leo assured.

“I don’t know…” Mikey muttered. “It just feels like something’s missing.”

“Hey, guys!” Elisa called quietly, running up towards them. “I hope I’m not too late.”

“What took you so long, dude?” Cath asked.

“I just had to take care of a few things before joining you, that’s all.” Elisa lied. “But I’m here now.”

“Well, better late than never.” Donnie smiled.

“Now, come on, let’s go.” Leo told them as they began to move out.

The five Turtles began to scale the wall, before the camera shifted to them leaping down the stairs to a room filled with crates.

“Spiders.” Mikey whimpered, seeing a spider weaving its web.

The Turtles kept looking around for any sign of the Kraang or Vic, but found nothing, when Donnie smacked Mikey in the head.

“Ow!” Mikey yelped. “You don’t have to keep doing that.”

“There was a spider on you.” Donnie claimed.

“Well, there’s a spider on you, too!” Mikey countered.

“No, there isn’t.” Donnie defended, turning around.

“Come here, you punk!” Mikey said as he pounced on Donnie.

“Knock it off!” Donnie exclaimed as Mikey hit his head repeatedly. “Ow!”

“Hey, guys!” Cath called, getting their attention. “Keep it down. Do you want us to get caught?”

Mikey and Donnie stood up and followed after her, though Mikey held his hand up at Donnie warningly. On the floor above them, the Kraang were interrogating Vic, who was tied to a chair with a rope, about the video of the Turtles he still had on his phone.

“The image that is the image on this phone is pleasing in the eyes of Kraang.” One of the Kraangdroids said. “This is true. Kraang is looking what is known in Earth terms as ‘handsome’ on this phone.”

The five Turtles hid behind a stack of crates as they watched the interrogation.

“Well, you guys drive a hard bargain.” Vic told them. “Tell you what, I’ll drop it down to $500,000, and you can keep the phone.”

The Kraangdroids kept looking at the video, ignoring Vic’s offer.

“Okay. $400,000.” Vic offered.

“This is our fight with the creatures called the Turtles.” Another Kraangdroid said.

“The usefulness of this will be proven usefully with the more watching of this.” A third Kraangdroid added as they looked at the video again.

“Also, this is being a good image of Kraang.” The first one said as he watched himself firing at the Turtles with two blasters.

“We should be showing the image of Kraang to Kraang.” The second Kraangdroid told the first, as Elisa quietly wrapped her Kusari-fundo around the chair and started pulling Vic towards them. Vic turned back briefly to see the Turtles behind him.

“We’re gonna get you out of here.” Leo whispered.

“What about my phone?!” Vic demanded.

“Shh!” Cath shushed him. “Keep it down.”

“Don’t tell me to keep it down!” Vic growled at her. “I ain’t leaving here without my phone!”

However, the Kraang’s attention turned towards the Turtles, making them forget about the footage on the phone and turn towards them.

“Stop the one that needs to be stopped!” The lead Kraangdroid ordered, as two readied their blasters and aimed them at the Turtles.

“Stop!” They both commanded.

“Remind me again why we have to rescue this guy?” Donnie asked as Elisa sighed.

The Kraangdroids started firing at the Turtles. Leo, Donnie, Cath, and Mikey decided to fight them to buy Elisa some time, but Vic was still being uncooperative. Vic then saw his phone on the floor and tried to reach out for it, but Elisa yanked him back towards her with her Kusari-fundo before he could.

“Hey!” Vic complained.

“Sorry, sir, but I can’t let you get that phone.” Elisa apologized.

Vic tried to move the chair back, but Leo kicked the phone away with his foot, albeit by accident.

“Come on, let me go!” Vic demanded, but his chair fell over and he fell to the floor with a thud.

“Welp, guess that gives me more time to help the others.” Elisa shrugged as she wrapped her Kusari-fundo up. She then glared down at Vic and said to him. “We’ll deal with you later.”

As Elisa ran off to help the others, Vic inched across the floor to reach his phone, which landed underneath a vat of mutagen, but it took him a while. Finally, he managed to reach his phone, then flipped on his back and reached out to grab it.

“Got it!” He cried happily, while also grabbing the spider Mikey saw earlier.

However, he didn’t know that he was under the vat of mutagen, and then a stray laser shot hit the vat, breaking it and spilling the mutagen all over Vic, who then screamed as he mutated. The Turtles and Kraangdroids stopped fighting when they heard Vic scream.

“Kraang, go look at the place where the thing that makes the noise is, and tell us what thing makes that noise in that place.” The Kraangdroid ordered another one.

The second Kraangdroid nodded as it carefully stepped into the corner where it broke the vat of mutagen, only to be thrown back. The brain that crawled out of the exosuit and crawled away, as something roared in the corner.

“I don’t like the sound of that.” Mikey gulped.

Vic, now mutated, then jumped out from behind the corner and roared at the Turtles and Kraangdroids. He had four spider legs on his head, along with six red eyes on his head and sharp fangs. He was red and black all over and had mutagen dripping from his mouth, fangs, and claws.

“I don’t like the look of it either!” Mikey exclaimed.

“Make that two of us, dude.” Cath agreed, shuddering.

“Now look what you’ve done to me!” Vic accused. “I’m hideous!”

“Don’t worry.” Leo assured. “The six of us can handle him.”

“Okay, this might be a bad time to point this out, but you’ve already sent one of the six of us home.” Donnie reminded him.

“And right now, I wish it was me!” Mikey whimpered.

“This is all your fault!” Vic snarled as he stepped closer towards the Turtles. “I’m gonna rip all your little heads off!”

“All right, guys, prepare to dish out the mighty wrath of justice!” Leo declared.

“Seriously, brah? Just yell ‘get him!’” Cath deadpanned.

“Okay, then.” Leo replied. “Get-”

Vic then knocked Leo into a stack of crates. Donnie charged at Vic with his Bō, but he blocked it with his spider arms, and he was knocked back. Cath tried to hit Vic with her Tonfas, but he easily blocked them. Mikey then tried to whack Vic with his nunchucks, but they had no effect on him, and he was forced to jump back when Vic tried to pounce him. Elisa spun her Kusari-fundo and threw it at Vic, wrapping it around his spider arms, but he easily broke it.

“Oh, terrific!” She groaned, before picking up the remains. “That’s the second Kusari-fundo this week!”

Leo tried to sneak up behind Vic by running at him, but Vic snarled at him. He then jumped out of the way of his spider arms and tried to slash him again, this time succeeding, before rejoining his siblings.

“Is that all you’ve got?” Mikey dared.

Vic responded by spitting a mucus ball from his mouth at the five Turtles, which landed in front of them and melted the floor.

“Okay, so this dude spits acidic saliva too?!” Cath exclaimed in disbelief.

“Now I’m actually kind of grateful he destroyed my Kusari-fundo.” Elisa squeaked.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes,’ then.” Mikey gulped.

Vic kept spitting the mucus balls from his mouth, forcing the Turtles to run out of the way to avoid getting hit. No matter where they tried to run, Vic kept appearing in front of them and tried spitting his acidic mucus balls at them, but they kept attacking him, until finally they were cornered. Mikey then threw an oil drum into Vic’s mouth, but he spit it out and kept chasing them. The Turtles then felt the floor beneath them creaking as a result of Vic’s acid, before they fell through the floor and landed in the room below.

“We’re no match for Spider Bytez!” Mikey realized, having decided to start calling Vic that now.

“‘Spider Bytez?’” Leo questioned as the Turtles got back up.

“Because he’s a spider, and he bites?” Mikey asked nervously. “So, I thought-”

“Yeah, we got it!” Cath yelled at him.

“Yeah, we know!” Elisa snapped.

Spider Bytez then landed in front of them, making the Turtles scream and try to run, but he blocked their path each time.

“This bug is fast.” Leo realized.

“Yeah, spiders aren’t actually bugs.” Donnie pointed out. “They-”

He was interrupted when Spider Bytez grabbed him with one of his spider arms. Spider Bytez then threw Donnie against a crate, before Elisa rushed at him while carrying the remains of her Kusari-fundo. She tried hitting him, but he squeezed her with his spider legs.

“Man, we could really use Raph right about now!” Elisa moaned as Spider Bytez threw her next to Donnie.

“Playtime’s over, frogs!” Spider Bytez sneered.

He spat another acidic mucus ball at them, and was about to finish them off when they all heard a voice, and saw that Raph was standing on the floor above.

“Wow.” Raph remarked as his siblings and Spider Bytez looked up at him. “I didn’t think this guy could get any uglier.”

“Raph!” Donnie, Mikey, and Elisa exclaimed happily.

“Well, I think you’ve been punished long enough.” Leo told him.

“So why don’t you join us and lay the smackdown on this dude?” Cath asked.

“Gladly.” Raph smirked as he took a fighting stance.

“Hey, it’s the Kung Fu Frog with the salad tongs.” Spider Bytez taunted.

“Hey, it’s the stupid loudmouth who’s about to get his butt kicked.” Raph retorted, unfazed.

Spider Bytez spat another mucus ball at Raph, but he dodged it, and then rolled around the others spitting more mucus balls until they fell through the floor to the lowest room of the warehouse. Donnie then got up and saw that they were over a pool of mutagen.

“Uh, let’s not fall through this floor, okay?” He told the others.

Back with Raph and Spider Bytez, the latter was insulting him some more, but the former remained unfazed thanks to Splinter’s teachings.

“Dance for me, frog!” Spider Bytez sneered, before firing more mucus balls at Raph, who jumped back to dodge them. “Watch me turn your little friends into frog fries. I’ll be sure to serve them up with your salad tongs!”

He jumped through the hole he made in the floor, but then Raph followed him and cut his thread, making Spider Bytez fall onto the floor of the mutagen room with a thud. He then got back up and roared at Raph.

“Aw, froggy thinks he can stop me.” Spider Bytez mocked. “Ribbit, ribbit. What’s that, tadpole? Are you too scared to leap off of your lily pad and get the warts knocked off of you?”

Raph, however, ignored him and took a deep breath. “Like a river over stone.” He quoted, remembering Splinter’s words.

He then smirked as he charged at Spider Bytez and sent a flurry of kicks and poking attacks at them, while Spider Bytez jumped back and was angry that his insults didn’t work. He then reached out his spider arms at Raph, who blocked them with his Sais, causing him to spit one of his own arms with his own acid. Spider Bytez moaned in pain as he stepped back slightly, before he looked at his wound, and then back at Raph.

“That’s some Kung Fu, frog.” He admitted.

Raph smiled as his siblings jumped down and joined him. (Cath was on Mikey’s left while Elisa stood between him and Donnie.)

“For the record, we’re not Kung Fu Frogs.” Elisa corrected him. “We’re Ninja Turtles.”

They then all charged at Spider Bytez, who lashed out his spider arms at them, but he was no match for them. Mikey then slid down one of his spider arms and kicked Spider Bytez in the forehead, while Raph and Donnie both punched him, knocking him down. Spider Bytez then got back up and saw his phone, but Elisa crushed it under her feet.

“Oh! My phone!” He cried.

The Turtles surrounded him again, but Spider Bytez knew that he was outnumbered.

“You guys are gonna regret this!” He swore, before he climbed up out of the room and escaped. The Turtles followed after him and climbed up out of the warehouse and onto the roof, where they saw Spider Bytez leaping across the rooftops and away.

“Aggh, he got away!” Elisa cursed.

“Relax, sis, he’ll be back.” Cath told her.

“And if he doesn’t, I know a nice black widow that’d be a great mate for him.” Donnie joked, causing the Turtles to laugh.

“Good work, Raph.” Leo complimented, before looking sheepish. “I just want to say-”

“You don’t have to apologize, Leo.” Raph told him.

“I wasn’t going to.” Leo replied.

“Oh, good.” Raph said, relieved.

“And I’m sorry for flipping out on you earlier, brah.” Cath apologized. “That was way harsh of me.”

“Aw, don’t worry about it, Cath.” Raph reassured her gently. “I deserved everything you and the others said.”

Raph then turned to his younger sister. “And Elisa, thanks for helping me.” He said.

“With what?” Elisa asked, confused.

“For helping me calm down.” Raph answered.

“Thanks, Raph.” Elisa smiled. “By the way, nice job back there.”

“Yeah, Raph, not bad for a bloated buffalo.” Mikey joked, before turning around and walking away, but then Raph smirked knowingly and tackled him.

“Okay!” Mikey yelled as Raph wrapped him in another headlock. “Raphael is all wise and powerful!”

“And?” Raph asked.

“And he’s better than me in every possible way!” Mikey added as he flapped his arms.

Leo, Donnie, and Cath all watched with amused smirks while Elisa shook her head, unamused.

“Guess that means things are back to normal for Raph.” She sighed.

Chapter Text

Inside a dojo, a muscular man wearing a helmet was kneeling in the center of the room, when a ninja who wore the same symbol as the Shredder appeared and snuck up behind him. He then raised a katana at slashed it at the man, who caught it with his hands before he stood up and kicked the ninja back, sending him flying into a wall. Another ninja then jumped up and tried to stab him, but the man jumped back as the katana lodged into the floor, then a third ninja appeared and tried to stab the man with a dagger, but didn’t even touch him as the man grabbed the third ninja and threw him to the floor. The man punched the third ninja in the face just as the second managed to pull his katana free, only for the man to kick him to the floor and grab his sword. The man looked around the room and saw the three ninjas he had defeated laying on the floor moaning in pain, before he threw the sword to the floor, when the door slid open and Shredder and a Brazilian-American man named Xever stepped in. The man stood in front of Shredder and bowed before him.

“Master Shredder.” He said.

“I trust my greatest pupil has been using that time wisely?” Shredder assumed, as he had been training his second-in-command, Chris Bradford, to fight the Turtles.

“I have assembled an army of ninjas.” The man, who was revealed to be Chris Bradford, assured. “The Foot Clan awaits your orders.”

“Excellent.” Shredder grinned. “Because I’ve discovered a new enemy in New York, Hamato Yoshi.”

Xever tossed a photo of Oroku Saki and Yoshi onto the floor in front of Bradford, who picked it up and inspected it.

“Hamato Yoshi is alive?” Bradford asked as he looked at the picture, then back up at his master.

“Yes, and he is training an army of ninjas of his own.” Shredder explained. “Finally, I will finish what I started so many years ago. I want them all wiped out!”

“I will not fail you, Master.” Bradford swore as he put the picture down and bowed at Shredder.

“I know, but to be certain, you will be working alongside Xever.” Shredder instructed.

Xever spun a knife in his hand and grinned at Bradford, who was not happy to be paired up with him.

“I don’t need help, especially from this street rat.” Bradford sneered.

“Are you sure about that, rich boy?” Xever asked mockingly.

“Any time you want to test me.” Bradford replied, getting up in his face.

“I am not interested in your petty rivalry!” Shredder snapped. “Xever is familiar with the dark underbelly of this city. You will work together.”

“Don’t worry, Master Shredder. We will find Splinter and his disciples and destroy them.” Bradford told him.

Xever scoffed at Bradford, who glared at him and left the dojo, kicking the third ninja back into the floor on the way out.

Meanwhile, in the city, the Turtles were racing each other across the rooftops.

“Yeah!” Mikey cheered as they jumped from one building to the next, as he was at the rear.

“Hey, check this out, guys!” Donnie shouted, jumping onto another building before landing and striking a pose.

Mikey then did the same thing as he landed in front of Donnie, who clapped. Elisa then stopped when she got to the ledge, fell from the building, but kicked her feet against the wall to give herself a boost, and then landed in front of her brothers. Cath then did the same thing as Elisa and landed behind her sister. Leo and Raph were last, and like Elisa and Cath, they stopped when they got to the ledge.

“Top that, turtle chumps!” Mikey called out to them.

“Cause nobody beats me!” Elisa taunted.

“All right, guys.” Leo smirked as he took a few steps back to give himself a running start. “Check this out.”

He then did a serious of backflips until he leapt off the building, before landing with the others.

“Whoa.” Mikey awed.

“Ha!” Elisa scoffed. “Let’s see Raph do better.”

“Cute, kiddies.” Raph snarked, cracking his neck. “Real cute.”

He then charged off the building and lunged at his five siblings, who all screamed as Raph knocked into them, sending them all back. Raph laughed to himself as the others got back up, unaware that two Foot Ninjas were watching them.

“Hey, what was that for?” Donnie asked, as the Foot Ninja ran off. “You didn’t do any flips.”

“Oops.” Raph smiled innocently.

“This isn’t a game, Raph!” Cath scowled. “This is a nightly training run.”

“Cathy’s right.” Leo agreed, but was interrupted when they heard a creaking noise. The six Turtles then hid behind a wall and got out their weapons, ready to fight, but when they emerged, they found that it was only a cat mewing.

“Don’t give up, Leo.” Raph told him condescendingly. “You might actually win this fight.”

Mikey then pushed his way past Cath and Leo as he got closer to the cat. “Aww! It’s a little kitty.” He gushed, picking the cat up and holding it in his arms, before petting it and checking its collar. “And its name is-”

“Mittens!” A voice called, presumably its owner.

“Good guess.” Mikey said, thinking Mittens said it, but then realized that cats didn’t talk. “Wait, who said that?”

“Uh, he did.” Elisa answered, pointing to an open window, where a man was calling out for Mittens.

“Mittens?” Her owner called again.

“That must be the owner.” Cath assumed.

Mikey then took Mittens and carried Mittens over to her owner.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Donnie called.

“Whoa, hey!” Leo exclaimed.

“Mikey, wait!” Raph shouted.

“Mikey, don’t!” Elisa warned.

“Get back here!” Cath shouted.

“What?” Mikey asked innocently. “I’m returning Mittens to her owner.”

“Are you an idiot?” Raph asked. “Wait, let me rephrase that. You’re an idiot!”

“That’s a bad idea, dude.” Cath advised.

“Yeah, you can’t just show yourself in front of a human.” Donnie agreed.

“Why not?” Mikey asked.

“Because they’ll freak the heck out!” Elisa exclaimed. “That’s why not!”

“No, they won’t.” Mikey assured. “I’m not so scary.”

“You’re an ugly, green mutant armed with ninja weapons.” Raph told him truthfully.

“Look, this guy’s gonna see that I’m just a regular cat-loving dude like him.” Mikey argued, stroking Mittens’ chin, who purred. “Next thing you know, we’ll be best buds. This is gonna be awesome!”

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.” Elisa muttered.

“Hey, I can prove it!” Mikey argued, having heard her, before he jumped off the building.

“No!” Donnie shouted.

“Don’t!” Leo warned.

“Wait!” Raph shouted.

“Get back here!” Cath yelled.

“Mittens!” Her owner called again, as Mikey landed on the fire escape and handed Mittens to him.

“Hi.” Mikey waved. “Here’s your-”

“An ugly, green, mutant freak!” Mittens’ owner screamed.

“But I got your cat!” Mikey argued, holding Mittens in front of him.

“Help!” The man called frantically. “He’s got my cat!”

“Dude, chill!” Mikey assured. “I’m just-”

Mittens then turned to Mikey and hissed at him, and then began scratching his face. Mikey yelled as he tried to get the cat off of him, before he landed in a garbage can in an alley, as the others watched from the roof above, Raph and Elisa facepalming. In the alley, Mikey crawled out of the garbage can rubbed his head as his siblings landed in front of him. (Elisa and Cath were both on Donnie’s right.) Mikey then stood up and looked away, embarrassed.

“Someone want to help me with this?” He asked nervously.

He then bent down and revealed Mittens, who was attached to his shell. Cath sighed as she walked up and pulled Mittens off of her brother, and then threw the cat down the alley.

“Face it, Mikey. Humans will never understand you.” Raph told him. “Heck, we don’t even understand you.”

“In fact, I don’t think they’ll ever understand us.” Cath added. “We’re all so… different.”

Mikey sighed in defeat. “Yeah.” He muttered, but then looked up and gasped as something caught his attention. “But I bet that guy would!”

The Turtles all looked up and saw a billboard promoting Chris Bradford’s Martial Arts Expo, which was taking place in New York for one week.

“‘Chris Bradford’.” Leo read.

“‘The martial arts superstar’?” Elisa questioned. “I’ve heard of him. He has a whole chain of dojos across the country.”

“He’s your soul mate?” Leo asked Mikey seriously.

Mikey then got out one of his nunchucks and twirled it around. “We’ve got so much in common.” He grinned.

“Would you please stop standing like that, brah?” Cath asked in annoyance.

Mikey’s smile dropped as he stood upright. “We’ll have a little less in common, but still a lot.” He corrected, then pointed back up at the billboard. “And look. He’s in town for a martial arts expo. Maybe he’ll show me his secret kata, the Death Dragon. And I’ll show him my secret kata, the Secret Kata.”

“Catchy.” Donnie remarked.

“Oh, really?” Elisa asked. “And what is this ‘Secret Kata’?”

“Uh, I don’t know.” Mikey replied. “But check it out!”

Mikey then tried to do the Secret Kata, but ended up doing some silly movements instead. “But don’t tell anyone you saw that.” He advised when he was finished.

“No problem.” Leo replied.

“I won’t have to.” Elisa added. “Because it was ridiculous!”

“Face it, Mikey.” Raph said, boldly stepping forward. “Chris Bradford is the last person on Earth who would want to be friends with you. Well, tied for last, with everyone else on Earth.”

“Except us.” Elisa interjected, trying to cheer Mikey up after seeing how down he was.

On the roof above them, several Foot Ninjas were eavesdropping on the Turtles’ conversation. Two ninjas then swung down on two pieces of rope behind Mikey, but Raph saw them, and before they knew it, they were completely surrounded by Foot Ninjas.

“Ninjas?” Donnie questioned. “In New York?”

“Other than us?” Cath asked as more Foot Ninjas appeared in the alley.

The Turtles got out their weapons, ready to fight, while waiting to see who would make the first move. A Foot Ninja threw a shuriken, which lodged itself into Donnie’s Bō, then six or seven more charged at the Turtles. The screen split into six-Leo, Mikey, Elisa, Raph, Cath, and Donnie-showing the six Turtles’ eyes, as Raph blocked one Foot Ninja’s katana with his Sai. He then kicked it back before he dodged another, and then kicked a third into two more. A sixth and seventh then tried to sneak up behind him, but Cath knocked them both on the head with her Tonfas. Mikey then kicked a Foot Ninja away with his Nunchucks, while Elisa did the same with her Kusari-fundo, then Leo and Donnie each blocked an attack from two more with their own weapons. Donnie repeatedly moved his Bō around to avoid the Foot Ninja’s katana slices, before he whacked him on the head. Leo then kicked the Foot Ninja into some garbage cans, when he smiled as he came up behind Raph.

“Why are you so happy?” Raph asked Leo, both annoyed and confused.

“It’s just nice to finally be fighting people, instead of robots, or aliens, or weed-monsters.” Leo replied.

“Yeah, but I don’t think your noggin’s on right, Leo!” Cath cried. “These guys are trying to kill us!”

Chris Bradford then landed in the alley in front of the three Turtles, although they didn’t know it was him, due to Bradford having his helmet on. Bradford then walked up to Leo and punched him in the face, sending him flying into a wall, and then Leo landed on his chest. Cath then ran up to Bradford, but he back-kicked her into the same wall, and she landed on top of Leo on her shell, but then rolled off of him. Raph then blocked his face with Sais, but Bradford kicked him away towards the others. Donnie then leapt up with his Bō over Bradford, who grabbed it and knocked Donnie against the wall, before he fell into some more garbage cans. Elisa then threw her Kusari-fundo at Bradford, but he caught it and used it to pull her towards him, then grabbed her by the throat and slammed her into the ground. Mikey then put his nunchucks in Kusarigama mode and twirled it around, before throwing it, but Bradford caught it and pulled him towards him. Mikey cringed, thinking Bradford might do something similar to him or worse than his siblings, but he didn’t.

“Who are you?” Bradford asked.

Mikey jumped back and escaped from Bradford’s grip. Leo then sliced Mikey’s chain with his katana, freeing him. The Turtles and Bradford then heard the sounds of a police siren in the distance. Seeing the police cars approaching, Bradford and the Foot Ninjas disappeared, and the Turtles fled the scene just as the police arrived.

In the lair, Leo was explaining to Master Splinter their encounter with Bradford and the Foot Ninjas.

“They’re leader was crazy good, by which I mean he was good and seemed a little crazy.” Leo told Splinter. “Besides, he had all these guys with him. It-it wasn’t a fair fight.”

“What do you mean, ‘fair fight’?” Splinter asked Leo.

“A fair fight.” Leo answered. “You know, where either side could win?”

“So a fair fight is a fight you could lose.” Splinter surmised, not understanding Leo as he walked towards him.

“Well, yes, but-” Leo began. “Well, what I-what I mean is-”

“You don’t want to assure your victory.” Splinter said.

“No, I do.” Leo argued. “But-”

Splinter used his walking stick to swipe Leo off his feet, then put it to his throat as he pinned him to the ground.

“Ow!” Leo cried. “Hey!”

“Was that fair?” Splinter asked.

“No!” Leo answered in pain.

“Did I win?” Splinter asked.

“I see your point.” Leo moaned.

“Seek victory, not fairness.” Splinter quoted, taking his walking stick off Leo’s throat.

“Hai, Sensei.” Leo understood.

Splinter then grabbed Leo’s hand, allowing him to pull Leo up. Splinter walked away as Leo continued to think about the fight. Later, in the living room, Mikey was reading a martial arts magazine while sitting on a bean bag chair, Raph was doing pushups with his Sais, April was reading a magazine while sitting on the couch, Cath was reading a medical book and sat next to April, Donnie was on his laptop, and Elisa stood next to Mikey while she looked through his magazine.

“Whoa, that’s rad!” Mikey said.

“What’s rad, Mikey?” Elisa asked.

“Take a look at this.” Mikey answered, turning the magazine around to show Chris Bradford on the cover. “Man, I wish me and Chris Bradford were friends!”

He then began biting the magazine, before he leaned back in his seat, laughing happily.

“Mikey, you already have a human friend.” April laughed, putting down her magazine to look at him.

“I do?” Mikey asked stupidly. “Who?”

“Me!” April replied.

“April, you don’t count.” Mikey said to her, hurting April’s feelings. “We saved your life, you have to like us.”

“Now, hold on a minute there, dude!” Cath scowled, putting down her medical book. “We saved April’s life because she was in trouble, and now we have to repay her by rescuing her dad from the Kraang!”

“Still, it’s too bad there’s no place for freaks to meet people where no one can see how hideous they are.” Raph teased him.

Cath threw her book at Raph, who dodged it, as Mikey and April began to think.

“Wait, there is.” April realized. “The internet! Hey, Donnie, can I see your laptop?”

Donnie stopped what he was working on, which was looking at a photo of April messily eating pizza, as he closed his laptop and looked at April. “Uh, yeah, sure!” He replied hastily, closing out the photo before handing his laptop to April.

“Check it out.” April said as she began working on it. “There’s a website where you can make friends with anybody online.”

“Sweet!” Mikey grinned, sitting next to April, before he pushed her out of the way and started typing. His eyes then lit up once he got to the website and saw Chris Bradford’s profile. “Ohh, Chris Bradford’s on here! He’ll be my first friend!”

Mikey then pressed a button to send a friend request to Bradford and leaned in close against the screen, waiting for a response.

“Mikey, people don’t always respond immediately-” April began as the laptop started beeping. “But sometimes they do.”

Mikey gasped happily that Chris Bradford accepted his friend request. “No way!” He smiled. “Chris Bradford has accepted my friendship! I have a friend!”

“Yeah, whoopee.” Elisa cheered sarcastically.

“Thanks, April!” Mikey thanked, hugging her.

He then threw Donnie’s laptop in the air as he got up and walked off.

“Where are you going, dude?” Cath asked.

Donnie then gasped and jumped to catch his laptop before it smashed on the ground.

“To hand out with my new friend, Chris Bradford.” Mikey replied.

“This guy’s famous.” April said. “He probably has thousands of these ‘friends.’”

“And guess who’s number 5,286?” Mikey asked.

“You?” Cath asked rhetorically.

“Daniel Ramirez!” Mikey replied eagerly. “And I’m right next to him. Later!”

He then ran out of the lair as April, Donnie, Raph, and Elisa watched him.

“Well, this ought to be interesting.” April remarked sarcastically.

“Should we go after him?” Donnie asked.

“Eh, he’s gotta learn somehow.” Raph shrugged as he kept doing his pushups.

“Maybe someone should…” Cath suggested.

“Tag along with him to make sure he doesn’t get into any trouble?” Elisa finished. “I’m all over it.”

She then followed after her brother.

Outside a dojo called Rock Bottom Boxing Club, Chris Bradford was locking up for the night. He walked down the sidewalk when he saw two feet dangling behind him, then Mikey jumped down from a building and giggled excitedly.

“What up?” Mikey called, getting Bradford’s attention. “Hey, I’m-”

Bradford threw a knife and then a dagger at Mikey, who dodged both of them.

“I’m being attacked by Chris Bradford!” Mikey exclaimed in horror, before his expression turned to excitement as Bradford threw a shuriken at him. “This is so cool!” But his excitement faded as Bradford kept throwing Shurikens at him.

“No, wait!” Mikey screamed as he dodged them. “We’re friends!”

“What?” Bradford asked as he prepared to throw another shuriken at Mikey.

“We’re online friends.” Mikey told him. “You accepted me, remember?”

“Oh.” Bradford said as he put the shuriken away. “Of course. Nice to meet you.”

Bradford reached out his hand to Mikey, who eagerly shook it with both hands.

“Uh…” Bradford muttered, pulling his hand back. “Won’t you come in?”

Mikey eagerly followed Bradford, unaware that Elisa was watching them from the shadows.

Later, the Turtles were currently searching for the Foot Ninjas that had attacked them the night before. Leo and Donnie stood on top of a roof, trying to find them.

“They must have been watching us from here.” Leo deduced. “The perfect place to stage an ambush.”

“That wasn’t very fair, was it?” Donnie asked.

“It’s not about fairness.” Leo argued. “It’s about victory.”

“Okay!” Donnie exclaimed. “I’m sorry.”

“And then, and then Chris Bradford put on his hakama.” Mikey explained to Raph and the girls about his encounter with Bradford. “Man, that guy can rock a hakama!”

“I know, Mikey.” Elisa sighed. “I was there. I saw you.”

“How’d you know?” Mikey gasped. “Were you following me?”

“Uh, truth?” Elisa asked. At Mikey’s nod, she then said. “Yeah. I’m telling you, Mikey, something seems sketchy about this Bradford guy. You’ve been talking about him non-stop for the last three hours and won’t shut up!”

“You’re just jealous!” Mikey accused. “You just can’t admit that you were the ‘R’ word.”

Raph, Cath, and Elisa all stared at him, then each other, confused. “Eh?” Raph asked.

“‘Rong?’” Mikey said.

“Actually, ‘wrong’ starts with a ‘W,’ Mike.” Cath corrected him.

“Anyways, if none of you want to talk about my friend-” Mikey argued before he jumped up and landed between Leo and Donnie. “I’ve got two other siblings that do.”

“Actually, I’d rather talk about something else.” Leo said.

“Like, the concept of the silent ‘W,’ perhaps?” Donnie offered.

“Fine.” Mikey sighed. “Heh, I’ll go talk to a guy who likes to talk about Chris Bradford more than anyone else.”

“Lemme guess, Chris Bradford?” Cath asked, sighing.

“Yeah!” Mikey smiled as he headed off.

“Elisa?” Leo asked.

“I’m on it.” Elisa answered as she followed after her brother.

Meanwhile, at the Rock Bottom Boxing Club, Bradford was punching and kicking a punching bag in a dojo, when he heard Mikey’s voice.

“There’s my best buddy in the whole world!” Mikey called as he and Elisa walked up to him.

Bradford sighed, before putting on a fake smile as he turned to the two Turtles. “Michelangelo, Mikey, the Big M! How you doing, buddy?” Bradford said, trying to sound cheery, before noticing Elisa. “Who’s this?”

“I’m his sister, Elisabetta.” Elisa explained, introducing herself. “And I followed Mikey to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

“Don’t worry, Elisa.” Bradford lied assuringly, Mikey having already told him all about her. “I’ll make sure your brother is in good hands. Isn’t that right, Mikey?”

“You betcha, Chris!” Mikey agreed. “Chrissy B-”

“Uh, Mikey, ‘Chrissy’ is a girl’s name.” Elisa pointed out.

“Okay, fine, but I’m still working on a nickname.” Mikey assured. “Ooh! How about Rad-Brad?”

“You know, I was just thinking.” Bradford said as he scratched his chin. “How we’re such close friends, and now your sister wants to be one, too…”

“Hey, I don’t wanna be friends with anyone!” Elisa defended. “Not until I know their true character.”

“Anyways,” Bradford went on, ignoring her. “There’s so much about you two that I don’t know yet.”

“You think we’re close friends?” Mikey asked hopefully. “Elisa too?”

“Of course!” Bradford smiled.

“Remember, just being a friend until we know what he really is.” Elisa said.

“Now, with that out of the way, tell me everything about you.” Bradford said to Mikey.

“Please don’t say we’re turtles, Mikey.” Elisa said mentally.

“Well, where to start?” Mikey asked as he began to think. “Ooh! I named all six of my toes!”

“How… interesting.” Bradford let out, before Mikey lifted up his foot and put it up in his face, startling him.

Elisa facepalmed as Mikey began listing his toes’ names to Bradford. “There’s Stubby, and Joey Nails-”

“Oh, that’s-that’s fascinating.” Bradford said as he set Mikey’s foot back down. “But I was thinking more about you and your sister’s impressive ninjitsu skills?”

“Hold up.” Elisa said under her breath. “How does he know we practice ninjitsu?”

“You two must have an incredible sensei.” Bradford told Mikey.

“Oh, he is the best!” Mikey bragged, before doing a handstand and lifting up his other foot. “Now meet ‘the Stinky Triplets’!”

“Okay!” Bradford gagged as he pushed Mikey’s foot away from him. “Who’s hungry?”

“Me!” Mikey said happily. “I want pizza! Do you like pizza?”

“Yeah, sure.” Bradford lied, deciding to go along with it.

Mikey dashed up and hugged Bradford. “Whoa. We have so much in common.” He said.

Bradford gulped, realizing this was going to be harder than he thought, then he was seen sitting on the edge of a billboard with Mikey and Elisa as they looked over the city, except now it was daytime.

“Isn’t this great?” Mikey asked, holding a slice of pizza in his hand. “Blue skies, pizza, a couple of friends just hanging. It doesn’t get any better than this.”

“Yeah, great.” Was all Bradford could say as he turned to Elisa, who appeared to be in deep thought about something. “Elisa, you’ve been awfully quiet. Is something wrong?”

Elisa snapped out of her thoughts and looked over at Bradford. “Uh, no, Mr. Bradford, sir.” She replied. “It’s just, I’ve never seen the city in the daytime before. It’s so beautiful.”

“Right.” Bradford said. “Since we’ve all gotten so close, maybe you could tell me a little more about your other siblings?”

“Huh?” Mikey asked, before swallowing his pizza, which he was eating. “Oh, yeah. We’re pretty tight. But sometimes, I don’t think they respect me.”

“They’re not the only ones.” Elisa muttered under her breath.

“Uh, I can’t imagine why.” Bradford said as Mikey gobbled down the last of his pizza slice.

Back at Bradford’s dojo, he was now showing Mikey and Elisa some kind of sword that was hanging above the wall in his office.

“Cool.” Mikey awed. “Look at that katana! It looks old.”

He then climbed up onto the shelf so he could get a closer look, when Elisa pulled him back down.

“Mikey, look don’t touch, remember?” Elisa asked.

“Yes, yes, it was built over 400 years ago.” Bradford explained, before he gave a weak chuckle. “But getting back on topic with your sensei-”

Mikey then took the katana off the shelf when Elisa wasn’t looking. “Look, Rad-Brad, I’d love to tell you, but there are just some things that we have to keep secret.”

Mikey then unsheathed the sword and began to fool around with it, when Elisa grabbed his wrist and took it out of his hand, making Bradford sigh in relief.

“What did I say about no touching Mike?” Elisa asked him sternly as she put the sword back in its holder, then back on the shelf.

“But we’re friends.” Bradford said as he walked towards Mikey. “And friends share their secrets, don’t they?”

“Not unless we have too.” Elisa replied.

“Are you saying that you want to show us your secret kata, the Death Dragon?” Mikey asked excitedly.

“Tell you what. As a show of my trust and friendship, I will teach you the Death Dragon.” Bradford offered.

“All right!” Mikey cheered.

“Oh, boy.” Elisa sighed.

“But, in exchange, you must swear not to tell or show it to anyone.” Bradford added.

“I promise I won’t show or tell a soul.” Mikey swore, raising one hand up while holding another on his chest.

“So will I.” Elisa said, although she crossed her fingers behind her back.

Back In the lair, Mikey and Elisa were showing their siblings the Death Dragon move Bradford taught them in the dojo. Donnie seemed excited, while Leo and Cath were concerned, as Raph leaned against the tree, unimpressed.

“And then he kicks, and twists, and sweeps the leg!” Mikey listed, as he knocked Elisa off her feet, who then got back up and did the same to him, and Mikey also got back up. “The Death Dragon.” He and Elisa then struck a pose.

“That was amazing!” Leo smiled.

“Yeah, it’s a devastatingly effective and complex technique.” Donnie analyzed.

“I don’t know about that dudes.” Cath said, concerned. “I got a bad feeling about this.”

“I’m with Cath on this one.” Raph agreed. “Besides, even Mikey could learn it.”

“A-Thank you.” Mikey smiled as he bowed, before realizing what Raph just said. “Hey!”

Donnie’s computer beeped, then Mikey dashed over to it. “It’s Rad-Brad!” He said as he began typing.

“‘Rad-Brad?’” Cath asked.

“Mikey’s nickname for him.” Elisa explained, causing the others to go. “Ohhh…”

Mikey then sent Bradford a message. “He wants to get together for a little b-ball with me and Elisa.” He told the others. “Can’t wait to find out what the ‘b’ stands for!”

“Where’re you going now?” Cath asked as Mikey and Elisa walked off.

“Sorry, guys, this is ‘human friend’ stuff.” Elisa explained. “You understand, right?”

Mikey then popped back in and said. “Oh wait, you don’t.”

He then followed Elisa out, as the others turned to each other.

“And I thought Elisa was smarter than that.” Cath mused.

“Ah, who cares?” Raph shrugged. “When they find out they’re wrong, I’ll be ready to watch them grovel.”

Meanwhile, in Bradford’s office, Xever had taken the katana Mikey played with earlier off the shelf and put it in his holder, before taking it out and slashing it with a smile.

“The freaks are on their way.” Bradford, who was working on his computer at his desk, explained. “The trap is set.”

“Pretty weapon for a tough guy.” Xever remarked. “In prison, we made our own weapons.”

“I’ll keep that in mind if I’m ever stupid enough to wind up in prison.” Bradford told him condescendingly.

Xever scowled at Bradford, then stabbed the katana into the floor and stormed off.

In the Turtles’ dojo, the others were practicing the Death Dragon Mikey and Elisa showed them earlier. Leo sent a kick at Raph, who blocked it and jumped up when Leo tried to sweep him from underneath.

“Wait, I think I got it.” Leo grinned.

Splinter walked in and gained a shocked look on his face when he saw his two eldest sons practicing the Death Dragon.

(Flashback)

Saki performed the Death Dragon on Yoshi perfectly while sparring with Yoshi in his dojo.

(Flashback ends)

“Where did you learn that?!” Splinter demanded angrily.

“Mikey and Elisa learned it from their new friend.” Leo explained as he helped Raph back to his feet.

“The man who taught them that kata is no friend!” Splinter explained. “It comes from the Shredder.”

The four Turtles gasped in shock upon hearing that.

“Shredder?” Donnie asked.

“You mean Bradford is one of his students?” Leo inquired.

“He must be.” Splinter surmised.

“So Bradford was just pretending to be Mikey and Elisa’s friend so he could get to you.” Leo deduced.

“Ohh, what a relief.” Raph said sarcastically. “Everything makes sense again.”

“I cannot believe how stupid Elisa was.” Cath frowned, shaking her head.

“Mikey and Elisa are in trouble!” Raph realized once he got what they were talking about.

“Well then, let’s go, dudes!” Cath said as they ran out to search for their siblings.

At the Rock Bottom Boxing Club, Mikey and Elisa were searching for Bradford.

“Rad-Brad?” Mikey called.

“Hello?” Elisa called. “Anybody home?”

“Raddie-Braddie?” Mikey asked as they stepped into his office, only to find it dark and empty.

“I got a bad feeling about this, Mike.” Elisa gulped.

“Are you planning a surprise party for us?” Mikey called out, unaware that Bradford was standing right behind them. Mikey yelped as he and Elisa turned around to see Bradford in his armor.

“I hate it when I’m right!” Elisa moaned.

Mikey and Elisa backed away nervously as Mikey bumped into Xever, who was also standing behind him. They both gulped and looked at each other nervously, unsure of what to do next.

“Tell us what you did to Chris Bradford right now!” Elisa demanded.

“Yeah!” Mikey agreed. “Or else you guys are gonna get a serious-”

He was interrupted when Bradford tried to punch him, but he jumped back. Mikey began to fight Xever while Elisa fought Bradford. Both turtles jumped and leapt back to avoid their respective enemies, but then Xever kicked Mikey into Bradford’s punching bag. Elisa caught Mikey before he could land on the floor, and then they both found a place to hide as Bradford laughed.

“Haven’t you figured out who I am?” He asked the two turtles.

“Uh, not really.” Elisa replied rhetorically.

“Should we though?” Mikey asked innocently.

Mikey managed to grab Bradford by the arms, then he kicked him in the face, but Bradford knocked him back into the punching bag. He then kicked Mikey on the ceiling.

“Nobody hurts my brother like that!” Elisa snarled, sending a kick at Bradford, who blocked it and then threw her into her brother as Mikey landed on the floor on his chest, while Elisa landed on top of him on her shell and rolled off.

“We’ve already met face-to-face,” Bradford sneered.

“No.” Mikey said quietly. “It can’t be.”

“I’m afraid so, Mikey.” Elisa sighed.

“Are you…” Mikey began. “The guy with the cat?”

Elisa facepalmed. “No, you dummy!” She hissed. “It’s Chris Bradford!”

“The pink one is right.” Bradford confirmed, taking his helmet off, and then Xever joined him.

“Rad-Brad?” Mikey asked, shocked. “What?”

Bradford and Xever grabbed Mikey and Elisa and began tying them together.

“I thought we were friends.” Mikey said, heartbroken, as Bradford tied the knot and Mikey and Elisa were shown sitting on the floor, tied back-to-back. “I introduced you to all of my toes.”

“Okay, your toes is the least of our problems right now, Mikey!” Elisa snapped, before sighing. “Although, I’m not entirely blameless. I broke my own rule about trusting Bradford too quickly, and now he knows everything about us!”

“You actually think someone like me could be friends with a couple of freaks like you?” Bradford asked mockingly. “Pathetic.”

Mikey felt his heart shatter when he heard those words.

“I say we get rid of them.” Xever suggested, gesturing to the katana on the shelf.

“Nothing would make me happier.” Bradford smirked as Elisa and Mikey gulped fearfully. “But we need them alive. It’s all part of the trap.”

“Trap? What trap?” Elisa questioned, before it hit her. “Oh, no! We’re just the bait to lure the others into the trap!”

Bradford and Xever then walked out of the room and shut off the lights, while Mikey felt awful about being used.

“Rad-Brad?” He called out hopefully, but Bradford had already left.

Meanwhile, the others were running across the rooftops, hoping to get to Elisa and Mikey in time. They stopped in front of a skylight, and Leo, Raph, and Cath all fist-bumped each other as Donnie landed beside them. Donnie then blew some bubble gum, before taking the gum out of his mouth and handing the used wad to Cath, who then put it on a pencil attached to a pen compass and used it to cut a hole in the skylight big enough for them to fit through. The four Turtles climbed into the dojo and saw Mikey and Elisa being guarded by several Foot Ninjas, before they climbed through. They then slid down using four ropes, when the Foot Ninjas heard a katana being unsheathed. The four Turtles then charged at the Foot Ninjas and easily defeated them, while Mikey and Elisa looked up happily as a Foot Ninja landed in front of them.

“Guys!” She exclaimed in relief.

“That was sporadic!” Mikey yelled happily.

“Shh!” Leo and Raph hushed as Donnie and Cath both facepalmed.

“That’s not what that means!” Donnie whispered.

Leo then used a knife to cut Elisa and Mikey free. They both stood up as Leo patted Mikey’s head and Cath patted Elisa on the back.

Back on the roof, the six Turtles jumped from building to building, then jumped down a manhole back into the sewers, unaware that they were being watched.

“Perfect.” Bradford said to himself as he watched Cath close the manhole cover through a pair of goggles.

“We’ve got them.” Xever said as Bradford smirked and more Foot Ninjas appeared behind them.

In the sewers, Mikey and Donnie hid behind some drainage pipes as Bradford, Xever, and the Foot Ninjas jumped down. They then slowly made their way down the tunnel, but Raph grabbed one of the ninjas and pulled him back. Cath and Leo then grabbed two more and pulled them back, and so did Mikey and Elisa, while Donnie roped a sixth ninja and pulled him up, just as Bradford, Xever, and the remaining Foot Ninjas approached the drainage system, before Bradford noticed that some of their ninjas were missing. He then touched Xever’s shoulder, getting his attention, who turned around and also noticed that some of their soldiers were gone. Bradford looked around in confusion, and then their remaining ninjas disappeared. Xever got out a flare torch and held it up to see all their ninjas tied up and hung to the ceiling.

“Show your faces!” He called out.

And the Turtles did exactly that. Leo, Raph, and Cath swam out of the water, holding their weapons, while Donnie, Mikey, and Elisa appeared behind them.

“They’ve trapped us!” Xever gasped.

“Take them down!” Bradford ordered.

Xever threw the torch in the water as he and Bradford began to fight the Turtles. Bradford tried to punch Leo and Raph, who jumped and dodged to avoid him, while Cath remained by the pool. Donnie tried to whack Xever with his Bō, but Xever blocked it with his feet, then grabbed Donnie by the shoulders and flipped back, causing him to kick Mikey by accident. Xever then threw Donnie into Elisa, causing them both to crash into Mikey, who had just got back up.

“This guy ain’t like anything I’ve ever seen.” Elisa panted. “He’s good.”

The three younger Turtles then turned to see their three older siblings in trouble. Bradford had punched Raph across the floor when Leo and Cath snuck up behind him, but Bradford caught both Leo’s katana and Cath’s Tonfa, and then kicked them both back. Raph had gotten back up and tried to catch them, but the combined wait of both his siblings knocked him back on the ground. Donnie snapped his fingers at Raph, who gave him a thumbs-up as they all ran off. Both parties led Bradford and Xever across the water, then Mikey and Elisa wrapped Bradford’s arms with their respective weapons as they got to a pipe. Donnie then whacked Bradford on the knees, and then Mikey punched him, knocking him on his back. Raph and Cath both tried to whack Xever with their weapons, and then Leo tripped him up when he tried to escape. Xever backed away from the three Turtles nervously and Bradford did the same, only to see that they were now heading into each other.

“They knew we were following them.” Bradford realized.

“That’s right.” Mikey sneered.

Bradford tried to punch Mikey, who caught his fist and punched him back, and then Elisa performed the Death Dragon, sending Bradford off his feet and crashing into Xever, who fell onto the ground on his chest, and Bradford on his back. Mikey then turned to Donnie and Cath, who were standing by a valve.

“Hit it!” He called out to them.

Donnie and Cath both turned the valve, then a gush of water swept Bradford and Xever away.

“Well, that didn’t seem very fair.” Raph remarked as they watched Bradford and Xever getting flushed down the sewer.

“No, it wasn’t.” Leo agreed.

“But at least they’re all ‘washed up.’” Elisa joked, before they all laughed.

“High-three!” Mikey cheered, as his siblings hit their hands against his.

Back in the lair, the Turtles were all eating pizza, while Splinter simply sat across from them and stroked his beard, having felt uneasy since his children defeated Bradford and Xever.

“Um, Sensei, aren’t you hungry?” Donnie asked, noticing his unease.

“I fear we are celebrating too soon.” Splinter said.

“Too soon?” Raph questioned.

“Sensei, we flushed those guys down the sewer.” Cath assured. “There’s no way they’ll be coming back now.”

“Shredder knows I am alive.” Splinter told his children. “And worse, he knows about all of you.”

“No thanks to Mikey and Elisa.” Raph muttered, only for Cath to nudge him with her elbow, telling him to keep quiet.

“This is my worst nightmare come true.” Splinter sighed.

“So it’s not over?” Leo inquired.

“Oh, no.” Splinter answered. “It is just the beginning.”

The four Turtles look at each other nervously, when Raph heard Donnie’s laptop beeping. He then turned to see Mikey on Chris Bradford’s website, while Elisa stood behind him.

“How’re you doing, guys?” Raph asked, walking up to them, before sitting on the desk.

“This is all my fault.” Mikey sighed.

“No, Mikey, it was mine.” Elisa told him softly. “I should’ve been more cautious and stopped you when we tried looking into that Bradford guy.”

“And I should’ve known better than to make friends with a human.” Mikey sighed, burying his face in his arms.

“Hey, don’t be too hard on yourselves.” Raph reassured them.

“So, it’s not our faults?” Mikey asked.

“Of course, it’s both your faults.” Raph replied sarcastically. “If you tell the others, I’ll beat the green out of both of you.” He then put a hand on Mikey’s shoulder. “But, you’re both cool with me.”

“Bradford didn’t think so.” Mikey muttered.

“Well, that’s because he’s a psychotic killing machine.” Raph said. “You both deserve a way better friend than him.”

“You mean, like each other?” Elisa asked as she and Mikey looked at each other.

“Something like that.” Raph answered as he got up and walked off.

“You know what, Elisa?” Mikey asked.

“What?” His sister asked.

“Raph’s right.” Mikey realized. “I should’ve done something I should’ve done a long time ago.”

“And what’s that?” Elisa asked.

Mikey then pressed a button on the laptop, and a big red ‘Unfriended’ appeared on Bradford’s profile picture.

“Unfriend Chris Bradford.” Mikey replied jokingly.

“Good one, Mikey!” Elisa laughed. “Oh, man, it feels so good to get some revenge.”

She pushed Mikey out of the way and also sent an ‘Unfriend’ request to Chris Bradford. The two then high-threed each other.

Chapter Text

In the dojo, Splinter was meditating when he heard Mikey’s voice.

“Guys, guys, get in your spots!” He called.

“All right, Mikey!” Raph’s voice shouted. “But this is the last time!”

Splinter’s eyes shot open before he stood up, then he walked into the living room and was shocked at what he was seeing. Mikey was standing on top of a huge ramp, skateboard in hand, preparing to jump over the others, who were laying on the floor on their chests. (Cath was on Raph’s left, while Elisa was on Donnie’s right.)

“But don’t clip me this time!” Donnie yelled at him.

“Or me.” Elisa added.

“I ate too much cheese.” Leo sighed.

“And now the kid goes for the world record!” Mikey announced. “He will attempt to jump five mutant turtles!”

“I can’t believe he talked us into this ridiculous idea.” Cath muttered.

“Booyakasha!” Mikey cheered, skateboarding off the ramp.

“What is going on in here?” Splinter demanded, making the others stand up.

“Sensei?!” Leo gasped.

Mikey, however, forgot to stop and crashed into his siblings, sending the Turtles falling on the floor, Leo, Donnie, and Raph on their chests, Mikey and the girls on top of them on their shells.

“How many times have I told you not to skateboard in the lair?” Splinter asked, standing sternly in front of his children.

“None, Sensei.” Mikey answered.

“I shouldn’t have to tell you!” Splinter snapped.

The Turtles then got up. “You’re right, Sensei.” Leo said, as he and the others glared at Mikey, who looked away in shame. “We definitely should have known better, and we deserve to be punished.”

“Eh, some.” Elisa added quickly, trying to sweeten the deal.

“And what do you think would be a fitting punishment?” Splinter asked, walking up to Leo, before looking him in the eye.

Leo looked over at the others. Mikey and Cath were thinking, Donnie whistled innocently, and so did Elisa, while Raph buried his face in a comic book.

“Well, uh, we—we should…” Leo began, unsure of what to think. “Clean up our mess?”

Splinter folded his arms as he glared at Leo, unimpressed.

“And then…” Leo trailed off.

“Think about what we did and try to correct our behavior?” Elisa finished.

“Yeah.” Mikey said.

“Sounds about right.” Raph agreed.

“I’m game.” Cath agreed.

“Wouldn’t want to do too much.” Donnie said.

“What about being grounded for a week?” Splinter suggested.

“Oh, I’m not sure that’s necessary.” Leo assured.

“I’m cool with the thinking.” Mikey agreed.

“Really, that’s not necessary.” Donnie reasoned.

“Yeah.” Cath agreed.

“Maybe next time?” Raph offered.

“Please?” Elisa asked hopefully.

Splinter frowned as his glare intensified. “You’re all grounded for a week!” He declared, his decision final.

The Turtles all groaned in defeat. And to add insult to injury, the ramp then fell over and crashed as soon as it hit the floor, creating an even bigger mess.

“Uh, we’ll clean that up, too.” Elisa said.

Later, the Turtles, except Donnie, were sitting miserably in the living room, trying to find ways to stave off their boredom. Elisa was meditating, Mikey was trying to entertain himself by reading a comic book while he laid on the couch as Leo sat beside him, Raph was pacing, and Cath swung herself on the tire swing over the pool, but none of them were working. Raph was groaning loudly as he paced.

“Could you stop groaning, brah?” Cath asked. “It’s giving me a headache.”

“Gah!” Raph groaned. “This bites!”

“I know.” Elisa sighed, opening her eyes. “I can’t believe we’re all stuck down here for a whole week.”

“And it’s all Mikey’s fault!” Raph accused.

“Me?” Mikey asked innocently, sitting up and putting his comic down. “What did I do?”

“You know what you did, dude.” Cath replied plainly.

“Guys, guys!” Donnie called, running into the room.

“What is it, Don?” Cath asked as she and the others got up and gathered around Donnie.

“You gotta check out what I just made.” Donnie told them.

“This is how bored I am.” Raph said to Leo.

“Well, what is it this time, an electric sponge?” Elisa asked derisively.

“Very funny.” Donnie scoffed. “So, remember the other day when I was scrounging around in that military junkyard?”

“No way.” Cath gasped. “What were you doing there? What did you do there?”

“Well, I found an incredibly advanced A.I. microchip.” Donnie explained. “Made from—and get this—Self-assembled chain-linked copolymers!”

“Eh?” Leo asked.

“That’s my favorite kind of copolymer!” Mikey said excitedly, not getting what he meant.

“Mine too!” Donnie squealed.

“And in English?” Raph asked, confused.

“What Donnie means is he’s found an advanced microchip with artificial intelligence that assembled itself.” Cath translated.

“A-Thank you, Cath.” Donnie grinned. “Anyways, I used it to make this.”

He got out the device from behind his back, which was a silver circular device that had a “play” button, “stop” button, “pause” button, “fast forward” button, and a “rewind” button.

“Whoa.” The others said in awe.

“What is it?” Elisa asked, intrigued.

“The most advanced music player in the world.” Donnie explained. “I call it the Turtle Pod, or T-Pod for short. Now, who wants to try it?”

“Ooh, I do, I do!” Mikey said eagerly, raising his hand.

“Of course you would.” Elisa deadpanned.

“Mmm, okay.” Donnie shrugged, handing the T-Pod to Mikey, who put the headphones in and started it.

“You’re really gonna plug that advanced piece of military technology directly into Mikey’s head?” Raph asked, concerned about Mikey for once. “What if it melts his brain?”

“Raph’s right.” Cath agreed. “I mean, have you even tested it yet?”

“Well, no.” Donnie answered. “And even if it does, who’d know the difference?”

As soon as Mikey pushed the “play” button, he screamed as the music blasted in his ears.

“What?” Donnie asked. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s polka!” Mikey exclaimed. “Make it stop! Make it stop!”

Cath walked up to Mikey and pressed the “pause” button, then walked away.

“Thanks.” Mikey smiled, before the T-Pod started playing hip-hop music. He then got to his feet and danced to the beat as his siblings watched.

“Donnie, did you even put a ‘remix’ button into that thing?” Cath asked him.

“Uh, did I mention that it was a work in progress?” Donnie asked sheepishly.

“I’m gonna take that as a ‘no.’” Elisa snarked.

“All right, that’s it.” Raph said, having seen enough of this. “I gotta get out of here.”

“Where are you going?” Leo asked. “We’re grounded, remember?”

“I don’t care.” Raph said dismissively, picking up his skateboard. “I just gotta get some air or I’ll go stir-crazy!”

“Oh, yeah!” Elisa agreed, also picking up her skateboard. “I know a sweet spot where we all can skate.”

“Did someone say skate spot?” Mikey asked eagerly. “I’m totally in!”

“But what’s Splinter gonna say?” Leo inquired.

“‘I don’t know what’s going on, because they snuck out while I was asleep.’” Raph said, mockingly imitating Splinter’s voice as Elisa chuckled.

“Oh, that’s priceless!” Elisa laughed at Raph’s lousy imitating of their father.

“Yeah, real mature.” Leo said, unamused. “But I’m your leader, and as your leader, I say nobody’s going.”

“Well, as your followers, we’re going anyway.” Raph countered, really not in the mood for one of Leo’s lectures.

“Well, as your leader, I am going with you.” Leo then said.

“Oh, really?” Elisa challenged. “What for?”

“To lead you away from…bad stuff.” Leo finished, sounding confused at what he just said.

The polka music started blaring in Mikey’s ears again, making him scream and drop to the floor.

“What’s wrong?” Leo asked as the others crouched down near Mikey.

“It’s back to polka!” Mikey complained. “We’ve got to get some more tunes on this thing.”

Cath sighed as she pressed the “pause” button and the music stopped.

About five minutes later, the six Turtles were all running across the rooftops, each with a skateboard on their backs.

“So, where is this skate spot, Elisa?” Raph asked her.

“How should I know?” Elisa asked. “The whole city is basically our skate spot.”

Mikey was at the back, still playing with the T-Pod, before he jumped from building to building while riding on his skateboard.

“Hey, Donnie!” He called. “Thanks for all the new songs!”

“Wait, what new songs?” Donnie asked, confused.

“Keep it down, you guys!” Leo whispered.

Donnie jumped up to Mikey and landed on his shoulders.

“What the…” Donnie let out, as he saw several new songs being downloaded onto the T-Pod, even though he and Mikey didn’t even order them. “It’s got thousands of songs and it keeps downloading new ones every second!”

“So?” Raph asked, skating beside them.

“So I didn’t program it to do that.” Donnie explained. “It’s reconfiguring itself somehow.”

“Maybe it could be a side effect of that copolymer you used to make it with?” Cath suggested, as she had jumped up to join her brothers.

“That’s it!” Donnie gasped. “The chip!”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s awesome!” Mikey cheered, jumping off of the building and landing next to Elisa.

“Guys! We’re ninjas, remember?” Leo asked them. “We move swiftly and—more importantly—silently!”

Leo then fell from the building and crashed through the roof of a greenhouse. Leo yelped as he jumped from table to table, until he saw a beehive at the end.

“Beehive!” Leo screamed.

He then ran out of the window and fell down a fire escape as his siblings watched him, before he landed on some garbage bags.

“That wasn’t very silent, Leo!” Raph called from the fire escape.

Finally, they all arrived at the skate spot Elisa mentioned earlier, and stood on a roof that was across from it.

“Check that out.” Raph whispered. “Good job scoping it out, Elisa.”

“Thanks, Raph.” Elisa smiled.

“Now, let’s grind it.” Mikey said as he continued playing with the T-Pod.

Donnie then noticed an African-American man wearing a pink sweater and covered in silver armor walking in the street below them. “Who the heck is that guy?” He asked.

“I don’t know, but he needs a beatdown.” Raph answered.

“Hold on, Raph.” Leo argued. “We don’t know that he’s gonna do anything wrong.”

“Oh, really?” Elisa asked. “And where do you think he’s going, Leo?”

“He could be on his way to… church?” Leo replied.

“What kind of church accepts a dude wearing powered battle armor?” Cath wondered.

“A really awesome one.” Mikey answered, still looking at the T-Pod.

“Look, it’s my call.” Leo told the others. “I decide who gets a beatdown.”

He then saw the man using a makeshift laser to cut open a steel door.

“That guy needs a beatdown.” Leo decided as the Turtles jumped off the roof.

The man’s laser stopped working, so he hit his armor a few times to get it to work again, but to no avail.

“Are you kidding me?” He asked. “Awww, come on…”

He then kicked the door, but it still wouldn’t budge, before he tried to lift it up as the Turtles landed behind him.

“Stupid shutter!” The man groaned.

“That’s just kind of sad.” Donnie remarked.

“Yeah, I don’t know if we should pound him or buy him an ice cream cone.” Mikey whispered.

“Oh, we’re pounding him, all right.” Elisa snarled as Leo got out his katanas and pointed one of them at the man.

“Halt, villain!” Leo declared.

This caught the man’s attention and he turned around to see the Turtles standing behind him.

“‘Halt, villain?’” Raph questioned. “When did we start talking like that?”

“Seriously, bro, that’s the best you can do?” Elisa asked.

“We’re heroes.” Leo argued. “That’s—that’s how heroes talk.”

“You will feel the fury of my powered battle-” The man began before he gasped in shock. “Holy cow! You guys are turtles!”

“That’s right.” Leo confirmed, before striking a pose. “We are the turtles of justice!”

“Wow, just—wow.” Elisa remarked.

The man then charged at the Turtles, who drew their weapons and jumped right at him, except Mikey who stayed back.

“Wait!” He called, getting his siblings and the man to stop. Mikey then put the T-Pod in his belt before grabbing one of his nunchucks, then got it out and spun it around.

“Okay, now I’m ready.” He said, before charging at the man along with his siblings.

Mikey jumped over the man and hit him in the head with his nunchuck, before landing behind him. Donnie then jumped over him on his shoulders and then Raph sliced some of his wires with his Sais, both riding on their skateboards. Leo then skated towards the man and sliced off parts of his armor, while Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around him. Finally, Cath tripped him up with her Tonfas, before accidentally knocking him into a window, triggering an alarm bell. Raph then pointed to a dumpster and opened it, before turning to Leo, who nodded. The Turtles then picked the man up and threw him into the dumpster.

“You’re not the first to ever throw me in the trash!” The man snarled at them. “But I swear you will be the-”

He was cut off when Raph closed the dumpster’s lid. The Turtles then heard police sirens approaching.

“Uh-oh!” Cath gasped. “Here come the po-po!”

“Come on, let’s make tracks!” Elisa said.

“Let’s go!” Leo said as they all jumped up a fire escape just as the police arrived. Two officers looked down the alley to find that there was nobody down there.

Elsewhere, the Turtles skated over to a manhole cover and jumped down it before Donnie came back up and closed it. The Turtles then made their way back to the lair by swimming in the water, but knew they had to be extra quiet because Splinter was still asleep. Leo was the first to emerge, followed by Raph, Cath, Elisa, Mikey, and Donnie.

“All right. We made it home!” Raph cheered.

“Shhh!” Leo hushed. “Keep it down.”

“Why?” Raph asked.

“It’s 2:00 a.m.” Cath explained. “Splinter is still asleep.”

“This is epic.” Mikey cheered softly. “We sneak out and come back without getting busted.”

“It is not epic!” Leo argued. “This was a really bad idea.”

“No, it wasn’t.” Raph argued, jumping and resting on the couch. “We got out there and stomped that sleazeball. So, what’s the problem?”

“Yeah, it doesn’t get much better than that.” Elisa agreed.

Mikey then felt his belt and noticed that the T-Pod wasn’t there.

“Oh, no…” He muttered.

“What is it, Mike?” Cath asked.

“Uh, nothing. Nothing at all.” Mikey lied.

Meanwhile, in the dumpster, the man climbed out of it and noticed the T-Pod lying there in front of him. He then grabbed it and looked at it, before plugging it into his armor. Suddenly, a red light flashed as the T-Pod began upgrading the man’s armor into a full-blown armored suit, causing him to chuckle evilly.

The next morning, the Turtles were practicing in the dojo, but they were all tired from the fight last night. Raph rolled across the floor while Leo yawned from lack of sleep.

“Knees higher, Leonardo!” Splinter instructed as Leo tried to do a handstand, only to fall on his face. Mikey then landed beside him.

“Extend, Michelangelo!” Splinter called as Mikey rolled off. Elisa then tried to tackle Mikey, but fell asleep on top of Leo.

“Wake up, Elisabetta!” Splinter called as Elisa snorted awake and crawled away.

“Raphael, you call that a koho tenkai?” Splinter asked as Raph rolled in front of him. “Because I do not!”

Donnie then landed on his face while Cath landed on her back as they tried to tackle each other. Eventually, Splinter had enough.

“Ya me!” He shouted, jumping towards his children, who knelt down on one knee in front of him. (Elisa was between Leo and Mikey and Cath was on Raph’s left.)

“Is there something wrong, Sensei?” Cath asked.

“Yes.” Splinter answered. “Is there something you want to tell me?”

“Something we wanna tell you?” Mikey chuckled nervously. “Nope.”

“You all seem tired.” Splinter told them.

“We’re not.” Leo said dismissively.

“Definitely not.” Elisa assured.

“Wide awake.” Donnie added.

“Fresh as daisies.” Raph added.

However, Mikey yawned and fell face first onto the mat, and Splinter wasn’t convinced.

“So you would not object to a little…randori?” He asked them, bringing out a wooden shinai, making the Turtles gulp.

Six bright colorful flashes later, the Turtles were all laying on the mat, Leo, Donnie, and Cath on their sides, Elisa, Raph, and Mikey on their chests, groaning in pain.

“I hope you have learned, Turtles, that truth isn’t the only thing that hurts.” Splinter explained sternly, putting the shinai away, before dismissing them.

An hour later, Leo was watching Space Heroes, which showed Captain Ryan and his crew scavenging on a planet when Mr. Crankshaw came up to them.

“Captain Ryan! The rebellion is growing!” He reported frantically. “We have to get off this planet!”

“No!” Ryan refused.

“But, Captain-” Crankshaw argued, before getting slapped.

“I said no!” Ryan said sternly.

“We may have started this rebellion by accident, but by the rings of Nebulon, we are going to finish it on purpose!” Leo quoted.

“Aye, sir!” Crankshaw and Dr. Mindstrong both said.

Raph, who was reading from a bean bag chair, said to Leo. “Seen this enough times there, chief?”

“Would you—shh?” Leo shushed him. “This is the best part.”

Before the episode could continue, a news broadcast was shown on the TV.

“We interrupt this program to bring you breaking news.” The announcer said.

“Oh!” Leo groaned.

“We’ve receiving shocking footage of an assault on the TCRI office complex in Brooklyn.” A news reporter said as Leo cringed at what he was seeing. The man they fought the night before was wearing an upgraded and enhanced version of his armor, throwing desks and chairs around, before glaring at the camera.

“At last, I will have my revenge!” He declared.

“Who—who are you?” The reporter asked nervously as the camera zoomed in on the man.

“You’ll never know!” The man sneered. “I’m the thing that haunts your nightmares! I’m the nameless shadow who-”

“Baxter?” Another man asked.

“Who?” The man, whose name was Baxter, asked in confusion.

“Baxter Stockman?” The other man clarified.

“No!” Baxter Stockman denied.

“Hey, everybody!” The other man called. “It’s Baxter Stockman!”

Raph stood up and joined Leo, when the others came into the room.

“I think his name is ‘Baxter Stockman.’” Raph said as they watched the broadcast.

“Is this because I fired you?” The voice of Baxter Stockman’s (now former) boss asked.

“That copy machine was already broken when I-” Stockman began innocently, before looking menacing again. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“And his armor looks even more rad than before!” Cath exclaimed.

“Yeah, and that means he’s even more dangerous now.” Elisa pointed out.

“But how did he upgrade it so fast?” Leo wondered with a hand on his chin.

Stockman then punched the camera that was filming him as the scene turned to static, but before it did, the Turtles caught a glimpse of the T-Pod Donnie created the other day, which was being used to power his armor. The others turned their heads to glare at Mikey, who had the decency to look sheepish, and then Donnie and Cath walked up to him.

“He has the T-Pod?!” Donnie asked angrily.

“Is that what you were hiding from us, Mikey?” Cath demanded.

“Oh, um…” Mikey murmured. “Yeah. I might have accidentally dropped that thing during the fight.”

“‘Accidentally?’ You just gave him a means to upgrade his armor!” Elisa scolded. “What the heck, man?!”

“Nice going, Mikey!” Cath shouted. “This is all your fault!”

“No, it’s Donnie’s fault!” Mikey argued.

“How can this be my fault?” Donnie asked accusingly.

“You know I can’t be trusted with nice things!” Mikey argued.

“Oh, Mike…” Elisa groaned, rubbing her head.

“Just digging yourself deeper, dude.” Cath grunted.

“So the A.I. chip is upgrading his armor the same way it upgraded the T-Pod?” Leo deduced.

“It looks that way.” Cath said.

“And if it keeps going, there’s no telling how powerful he’ll get!” Donnie explained.

“Which means we gotta stop him before he does.” Elisa said determined.

“No.” Leo said sternly. “This is going way too far. We have to tell Splinter about this.”

“What?” Raph asked. “That we turned some nutjob into a supervillain? Do you know what he’ll do to us for that?”

“Raph’s right.” Cath agreed. “We’re in enough trouble as we already are, and that randori lesson kinda proved it.”

“Look, we beat Stockman once, we can beat him again.” Donnie said. “We just track him down, grab the T-Pod, and get back here before Splinter knows anything.”

“If my opinion counts for anything, Donnie’s right.” Mikey agreed.

“Hey, thanks, Mikey.” Donnie smiled.

“But it doesn’t.” Cath scowled, still not happy with him for losing the T-Pod to Stockman.

“Didn’t think so.” Mikey shrugged, not caring.

That night, the Turtles were running across the rooftops, until they arrived at an abandoned factory, where they saw Stockman sitting in a makeshift chair through the skylight.

“I’m not Baxter Stockman.” He said to himself. “I am the Baxman! No, no, I am…I am the Suitinator! Aw, that’s terrible! Captain…Punch You Hard! Gah! Why is this so difficult?”

Unknown to Stockman, the Turtles were watching him from above.

“I kinda liked ‘The Suitinator.’” Mikey admitted.

“Shh!” Cath hushed. “Keep it down, brah!”

But it was too late, as Stockman heard them, and turned to see the Turtles surrounding him.

“You guys again?” He asked.

“All right, Stockman.” Leo said. “Nobody wants to hurt you.”

“We don’t?” Raph asked in confusion. “Did I miss a meeting?”

“We’ll talk about you missing our strategic meetings later.” Elisa told him.

“We just want the T-Pod.” Leo explained.

“Give up my source of power?” Stockman questioned as he stood up. “Why? So you can laugh at me again? Throw me in a dumpster?!”

“Sounds good to me.” Raph growled, charging at Stockman, who punched him across the room and into a wall.

“Raph!” Elisa cried, before glaring at Stockman. “Nobody does that to my brother!”

She wrapped her Kusari-fundo around Stockman’s arm, who then yanked it back and punched her in the stomach, sending her to the floor. The others then charged at Stockman as they saw their siblings drop. However, thanks to his new, advanced super armor, Stockman was able to make quick work of the other four Turtles, throwing Mikey and Donnie against the walls with both his arms and knocking Cath out of the way when she tried to whack him with her Tonfas. Leo tried to slice off Stockman’s armor arms with his Katanas, but they instantly regenerated into cannons, much to his shock, before Stockman laughed.

“What the-” Leo gasped, before the detached arm latched on his face.

“Get it off, get it off!” Leo yelled, trying to yank it off of him as he ran around.

A head appeared out of the arm and saw Raph and Donnie emerge from the rubble. It then fired its laser at them, but the two Turtles jumped and ducked out of the way to dodge it, before it shot their weapons out of their hands. The arm then shocked Leo and chased after Donnie and Raph, still firing.

“Lasers!” Donnie exclaimed. “Run!”

Mikey then emerged from the rubble and glared at Stockman. “Hey, Stockman!” He called, rolling in front of him and putting his nunchucks in Kusarigama mode.

Elisa then got up off the floor. “Hey, wait for me!” She complained, twirling her Kusari-fundo around. “I want in on this, too!”

They both wrapped their respective weapons around Stockman, but he was unfazed. He then spun around, sending the two Turtles crashing into each other.

Elsewhere, Donnie and Raph ducked for cover behind a pile of debris as the arm kept firing its laser at them.

“So, what now, genius?” Raph asked him.

Donnie then saw a reflective mirror in front of them, figuring they could use it to deflect the blasts. He and Raph held the mirror up as the arm fired another blast. The laser flew all the way across the room until it blasted the arm in half, freeing Leo.

“Thanks, guys.” He groaned. “Now, come on, let’s go help the others.”

Before they could, they saw Stockman approaching them, twirling Mikey and Elisa in his hands, with an evil laugh.

Leo, Raph, and Donnie picked up their weapons and charged at Stockman, while Cath finally rolled back and rejoined her brothers. Stockman then through Mikey into Raph, then Leo sliced off his Kusarigama. He then threw Elisa into Cath, while Donnie produced a blade from his Bō and sliced her Kusari-fundo, but Stockman then grabbed it and crushed it in his hands.

“Hey!” Donnie yelled.

He looked at his wrecked weapon and tossed it aside, and then the others joined him, before Mikey charged at Stockman.

“Mikey, wait!” Cath called, but he didn’t hear her.

Stockman charged back as the others joined Mikey, then an explosion went off inside the building. Stockman then emerged from a wall, victorious, carrying the beaten and battered Turtles in his right hand. He then walked to a dumpster and threw the six Turtles in it, in the same way they did to him.

“Foolish turtles!” Stockman laughed. “Did you really think you could defeat me?”

“Well, yeah.” Mikey replied.

“He was being sarcastic, dude.” Cath told him.

“Silence!” Stockman commanded. “All my life, people have laughed at me. The other kids in school, my co-workers, the woman who fixes the copy machine! I mean, how was I supposed to know you don’t pour the toner in the top?”

“Way to hold grudges, man.” Elisa remarked.

“Quiet!” Stockman snapped again. “But when they behold the power of this suit, they won’t be laughing anymore! They’ll tremble in terror!”

However, the T-Pod upgraded the armor again, causing Stockman to scream in pain as he grew twice the size of what he initially was while the Turtles watched.

“What’s happening, Don?” Cath asked.

“Stockman and the T-Pod.” Donnie squeaked. “They’re…”

Cath gasped as it soon hit her.

“Evolving?” Elisa asked.

“No, merging.” Cath gulped.

“They’re becoming one single entity.” Donnie explained.

“The Stockmanpod.” Mikey finished as a red light glowed down on them.

The Turtles crawled out of the dumpster and ran away screaming, while Stockman chased after them.

“The Stockmanpod’s right on top of us!” Mikey screamed.

“Stop calling him that!” Raph snapped. “That’s a stupid name!”

“Split up!” Leo ordered. “He can’t follow all of us at once.”

“No way!” Mikey argued. “He’s gonna follow me!”

“Why would he follow you?” Leo inquired.

“Are you finally gonna take responsibility for the T-Pod ending up in his hands?” Elisa asked.

“No, they just always follow me all of a sudden!” Mikey retorted.

“Stop being paranoid and just do it!” Leo snapped.

Raph and Elisa turned right and headed down another street, while Stockman kept chasing the others. Donnie and Cath then turned down a street on their right, and finally Leo down another one on his left, leaving only Mikey as he kept running straight.

“See?! I told you he was gonna follow me!” Mikey screamed as Stockman kept chasing him. But no matter what Mikey tried, he just couldn’t shake him. Mikey then saw a pizza delivery boy and some pizzas tied to the back of his moped.

“Pizza?” He asked. “All right!”

He jumped over the moped and grabbed the boxes of pizzas just as Stockman closed in.

“I’ve got you now!” Stockman sneered.

“Oh, yeah?” Mikey sneered back. “Well, I’ve got…hot cheese!”

He opened he box and threw the pizzas right at Stockman, obscuring his vision. Stockman stopped and angrily wiped the pizzas off of him, then turned to see that Mikey had vanished.

“Is that the best you’ve…” He began, only to find that none of the Turtles were there, causing him to growl in fury.

In the sewers, the Turtles had made their way back to the lair, except the lights were turned off.

“Shh, guys, quiet.” Leo told the others. “You’re gonna wake him up.”

“I’m not making noise.” Mikey assured.

“Don’t tell me to be quiet.” Raph snapped quietly.

“I wasn’t going to.” Elisa argued.

As soon as they stepped in, the lights came on, and the Turtles gasped when they saw Splinter standing right in front of them. (Elisa was between Leo and Raph, and Cath was on Mikey’s right.)

“Aah, Sensei!” Leo gasped.

“And where have you been?” Splinter asked.

“Nowhere.” Raph lied.

“We’re grounded, remember?” Elisa told him.

“How did you all get so hurt?” Splinter inquired.

Leo hid his wrecked katanas behind his back. “Oh, that!” He said.

“We, um, we got hit.” Cath lied.

“By a bus?” Mikey added, smiling nervously, only for some of his teeth to fall out.

Splinter rose an eyebrow, not buying it.

“Hit by a bus?” Donnie asked quietly, bending down towards Mikey.

“That’s the best excuse you can come up with?” Cath hissed.

“Well, what else was I supposed to say?” Mikey argued. “Meteor, cow, flying building?”

“Enough!” Splinter snapped, getting his children’s attention.

This made the Turtles stand up straight.

“Tell me what happened.” Splinter said calmly.

“Time to come clean, guys.” Cath sighed heavily.

“Fine!” Elisa said.

In the dojo, after the Turtles had explained everything to Splinter, he was standing in front of them as Mikey recapped their latest encounter with Stockman. (Elisa was on Raph’s right, while Cath was between Mikey and Leo.)

“…And then I threw hot cheese in his face and ran away!” Mikey finished his explanation.

“Very resourceful, Michelangelo.” Splinter said, his tone dripping with disappointment. “But I’m still highly disappointed in you all.”

“Yeah, we know.” Elisa sighed.

“The first rule of being a ninja is ‘do no harm.’” Splinter explained. “Unless you mean to do harm. Then do lots of harm.”

The Turtles closed their eyes and hung their heads in shame, knowing they were responsible, until Leo spoke up.

“You’re right, Sensei.” He said, before opening his eyes. “I guess we did make a mess of things.”

“Yeah, we really screwed the pooch on this one.” Cath sighed in guilt.

“So, what do you think would be a fitting punishment?” Splinter asked.

“We need to clean up our mess.” Leo replied without hesitation.

“Yes. You must stop this…Stockmanpod.” Splinter agreed.

“But, Sensei, that guy’s already kicked our shells.” Donnie argued. “And now he’s even more powerful than before.”

“How are we gonna stop a guy like him?” Elisa asked.

“I know!” Raph said. “I’ll just hit him really hard!”

“Without a plan, dude?” Cath scoffed. “Yeah, good luck with that.”

“Catharina is correct.” Splinter agreed. “Brute force is not always the answer. You must rely on your ninja training.”

“Excuse me, Sensei, but ninjas never had to go up against guys in armor.” Mikey said.

Splinter glared at Mikey, who then saw a samurai warrior on Splinter’s door.

“Oh…” Mikey said in realization as Elisa and Cath facepalmed. “I mean, ninjas always had to go up against guys in armor.”

“Nice save.” Raph remarked.

“Sensei, what was their secret?” Leo asked.

“They understood that you do not fight the armor.” Splinter explained. “You fight the man inside.”

The Turtles understood this before they all looked at Mikey, who was confused as to why there were looking at him.

“Why are we all looking at each other?” He asked innocently.

The next night, the Turtles, except Mikey, were standing on a rooftop, waiting for Stockman to show up. (Cath was behind Donnie, while Elisa was behind Raph.)

“Are you sure this is gonna work?” Donnie asked Leo.

“Like Sensei said: ‘don’t fight the armor, fight the guy inside.’” Leo quoted. “And one thing we know about bad guys, they love chasing Mikey.”

“Guys!” Mikey called from the street below. “Stockmanpod’s got missiles!”

He jumped onto the roof just as the missiles got closer.

“Missiles?” Elisa questioned.

“Could be another side effect of the T-Pod upgrading his armor.” Cath deduced.

The Turtles all dodged to avoid the missiles, before they blew up a nearby water tower. Mikey used his nunchuck to hold on to a cable and saw Stockman standing right below him. The others then circled around Stockman twirling Kusarigamas, or in Elisa’s case, her Kusari-fundo. They tried pulling Stockman down when Mikey jumped down.

“Ha!” Mikey laughed. “Now who’s trembling in terror?”

But the Turtles’ Kusarigamas weren’t strong enough, as Stockman easily broke free. He then picked Mikey up and threw him into a nearby building.

“Mikey!” The others cried.

“That’s it!” Raph snarled. “You are so going down!”

The five Turtles all charged at Stockman, who charged back. Donnie used his Bō to vault himself up and kick Stockman, while Leo and Cath tried to hit him with their respective weapons. Raph tried to poke Stockman with his Sais, and then Elisa whipped him with her Kusari-fundo. Raph stabbed Stockman, but then he punched him into a wall.

“Raph!” Leo cried.

Leo and Donnie jumped at Stockman, who grabbed them with his arms and spun them around, before throwing them into Cath and Elisa. Leo and Donnie almost fell from the building, but Raph grabbed them both by the hands, and then the girls helped him pull them up.

“We’ve got you.” Cath said.

The Turtles recovered to see Stockman standing over them menacingly.

“Any last words?” He sneered.

“Just one.” Leo retorted. “Bees!”

“Bees?” Stockman questioned.

“Bees!” Mikey yelled, swinging down on a cable holding the beehive in his right hand, before throwing it at Stockman. The beehive was lodged into Stockman’s viewport, and then Stockman screamed as the bees swarmed around in his cockpit.

“The T-Pod!” Leo exclaimed once it was exposed as Stockman had his back turned.

The Turtles all charged at Stockman, each of them attacking him once with their weapons, causing him to fall off the building and onto another one below. Stockman, his face swollen from all the bee stings, then looked up to see Leo looming over him, and then Leo used his katana to stab the T-Pod and pull it out. Stockman climbed out of his now-deactivated armor and stared at the six Turtles.

“So…We’ll call it a tie?” He asked nervously.

“Wanna call it a tie, Raph?” Leo asked.

Raph grinned as he cracked his knuckles. “Not yet.” He replied.

Raph then grabbed Stockman and threw him into another dumpster.

“No, no!” Stockman cried as he was thrown in.

“Now it’s a tie.” Raph smirked, before closing the dumpster.

The Turtles all whooped and cheered as they headed for home.

Back in the lair, the Turtles were discussing their successful mission to Splinter in the dojo. (Cath sat between Leo and Mikey and Elisa sat between Donnie and Raph.)

“You all showed wisdom and great skill in defeating the Stockmanpod.” Splinter complimented. “I am proud of you all.”

“Thank you, Sensei.” Cath smiled.

“Does this mean we’re not grounded anymore?” Leo asked.

Splinter thought for a moment before he said. “Yes.”

The Turtles all smiled at each other, then back at Splinter, whose face went back to being stern as he got his shinai back out.

“But first…Randori!” He announced.

The Turtles all screamed and ran away in fear.

Chapter Text

Inside a warehouse, the Turtles were fighting the Kraangdroids, who were firing their laser blasters at them. Leo and Raph jumped around in all directions to avoid the blasts, before joining Donnie and Cath in running away from them.

“Keep moving.” Leo informed the others. “Don’t let them surround you. Failure is not an option.”

“Technically, failure is always an option.” Donnie corrected him.

“Yeah, it’s quitting that’s never an option.” Cath said in agreement.

“You know what else is an option?” Raph asked, running alongside with them. “Slapping you! Well, maybe Donnie.”

“Uh, guys?” Cath asked, seeing three Kraangdroids in front of them.

The Kraangdroids fired at the three turtles, who jumped out of the way, Raph and Cath to the right, and Donnie to the left. Donnie then saw Mikey about to run into some more.

“Mikey!” He called. “On the right!”

“Your right or my right?” Mikey asked confusedly.

“Mikey!” Elisa called out to him. “Your left, Donnie’s right!”

“Ohhh…” Mikey let out in realization, then he and Elisa jumped around to avoid them.

Donnie got out his Bō, then jumped up and tried to hit one of the Kraangdroids in the face with it, but it had no effect.

“Are you kidding me?!” Donnie asked, exasperated. “I hate this thing!”

The Kraangdroid then turned to face Donnie, but Raph stabbed it in the head with one of his Sais, then tackled it to the ground.

“Nice work.” He remarked sarcastically. “When we’re done here, there’s a marching band that needs a majorette.”

Donnie looked a little hurt at Raph’s statement as he stared at his Bō, but the nearby sounds of blaster fire caught his attention, forcing him to run. Leo jumped up, pressed his feet against a support beam, and slashed his katanas at a Kraangdroid, then Raph leapt up from another beam and stabbed another with his Sais, then Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around a third’s head and popped it clean off. The brains in the Kraangdroid’s bodies all crawled away as a fourth turned to its commander.

“Kraang, the present is being a positive time to be the testing of the energy cannon,” It advised.

Two more Kraangdroids moved away two large steel doors, and then a giant silver cannon with tank treads rolled out of it, which Leo saw.

“Everyone, stand your ground!” He ordered, as his siblings gathered around him. (Elisa was between him and Donnie, while Cath was on Raph’s left.)

The cannon began charging up, taking back Leo’s statement.

“On second thought, run!” He screamed.

“You don’t have to tell me twice!” Elisa yelled as they all scattered.

The other five managed to avoid the cannon by jumping around in all directions as the Kraangdroid controlling it tried to fire at them, but Donnie wasn’t so lucky, as it managed to not only blast a hole through the wall, but it also destroyed his Bō.

“Oh, come on!” He complained.

“Dude, your weapon just exploded!” Mikey laughed, pointing at Donnie.

Donnie then heard the cannon charging up again, forcing him to duck and cover behind a crate as it tried to shoot him.

“How am I supposed to fight advanced alien technology with a stupid stick?!” Donnie exclaimed angrily.

He then ran off, while Leo, Raph, and Mikey destroyed three Kraangdroids, then Cath and Elisa destroyed two more, Cath beating hers with her Tonfas, when they saw the cannon and more Kraangdroids approaching them. Donnie rejoined the others as they gathered together, as the Kraang cornered them. (Cath was between Mikey and Donnie and Elisa was between Leo and Raph.) They all braced themselves as the Kraang aimed their blasters and the cannon at them.

“Kraang, destroy those who call themselves the Turtles when that which is the signal is the signal that is given by me!” One of the Kraangdroids instructed the tank driver.

Leo then saw a forklift behind them and threw a shuriken at it. The shuriken bounced along the walls of the warehouse before it smashed the controls, causing the forklift to grow out of control and knock the Kraangdroids, and the tank, over. The brains crawled out of the androids’ bodies and slithered away, allowing the Turtles to make their getaway by climbing out of an open window.

“Dumb luck.” Raph told Leo once they were safe.

“Wasn’t luck, my friend.” Leo assured. “And ‘dumb’ had nothing to do with it.”

They then heard Donnie straining, and saw him struggling with one of the android bodies that was left behind, as he was trying to carry it out of the window.

“Hey! Give me a hand with this thing.” He called.

“What thing?” Cath asked.

“Just help me!” Donnie exclaimed as Elisa and Raph ran over and helped him pull it out, as they were the strongest.

Later, the Turtles were heading back to the sewers, Donnie, Raph, and Elisa carrying the body with them (Elisa was carrying it by the legs, behind Donnie and Raph.)

“And we’re carrying this thing because why?” Raph asked.

“Don’t you want to understand how these things work?” Donnie asked him.

“I know how they work.” Elisa replied. “You shake them and break them until the brain pops out.”

“True, but what Donnie is saying is that there could be more to these robots than meets the eye.” Cath argued.

“Exactly.” Donnie agreed as he picked the body up. “And that’s your guys’ problem. You two never think things through.”

“Hey! I think things through!” Elisa defended, before looking at her siblings. “Don’t I?”

Leo opened up the manhole, then Donnie dropped the body down it, but it wouldn’t fit, so it was stuck in the hole.

“Is it supposed to fit like that?” Raph asked.

Donnie kicked the body a few times, but it still wouldn’t go down. Eventually, Elisa cracked her knuckles and pushed it down hard with her hands, then jumped down the hole, followed by the others. Cath then popped back up and closed the manhole up.

Once they made it back to the lair, Mikey sat on the ledge over the river entrance while eating a slice of pizza, while in the living room, Leo was polishing his katanas, Raph was playing with Spike, Cath was reading a medical book, Elisa was meditating, and Donnie was observing the body, while April sat beside Donnie in a bean bag chair while looking at her laptop.

“This technology is lightyears ahead of anything I’ve ever seen!” Donnie explained, but April wasn’t paying attention.

He then ripped out a piece from the body and showed it to April, who didn’t even bother to look at it.

“Do you know what this is?” Donnie asked.

“No,” April answered, still focused on her laptop.

“Neither do I, but I can’t wait to find out!” Donnie exclaimed happily.

Splinter then walked over to Donnie, carrying a new Bō to replace the one Donnie lost.

“Look, Spike, Donnie’s got another stick to break.” Raph teased, stroking Spike’s chin.

“With all due respect, Sensei, I can’t keep fighting alien technology with a 6-foot staff.” Donnie explained, before turning to face Splinter. “I was hoping to upgrade my weapon.”

“Hmm. A 7-foot staff?” Splinter assumed. “Interesting.”

“No, I mean using modern technology.” Donnie clarified.

“Ah, a solar-powered staff.” Splinter realized.

“I’m serious, Sensei.” Donnie insisted, getting annoyed.

“I know.” Splinter replied. “And yes, you may upgrade your weapon.”

“That’s totally unfair!” Donnie complained. “You can’t just-” He then realized what Splinter had just said. “Wait, did you just say yes?”

“Ninjas have improved their arsenal for centuries.” Splinter explained. “We are masters of adaptation.”

“That is great!” Donnie said giddily, standing up. “‘Cause with this technology, I will be invincible! What should I make? Electric Sais? Multi-shot shuriken? Plasma swords?!” He giggled. “I just gave myself goosebumps.”

He then jumped down towards April and flexed his muscles. “You wanna feel, huh?” He asked.

“Pass.” April replied.

“But remember, technology is a means, not an end.” Splinter advised. “It is you who must prevail in battle, not your weapon. Combat is not a video game.”

Donnie took the body and walked off with it to his workshop. “That’s it!” He gasped in realization. “I’ll turn combat into a video game! Thanks, Sensei!”

He then shut the door, while Cath and Elisa looked bewildered, Cath looking up from her book, then looked at each other.

“Aren’t you gonna stop him?” Elisa asked her sister.

“No.” Cath replied. “This is something Donnie has to learn on his own, even if he has to learn the hard way.”

She then went back to her book.

The next day, Leo and Raph were playing a hockey video game, while Mikey was napping on the tire swing above the pool, Cath and Elisa were sparring, and April was sitting on the couch, still looking at her laptop, when she received a notification on it.

“Hey, guys!” She called. “Check out this post I got.”

Cath and Elisa walked over, while Leo and Raph were still focused on their game.

“Hang on, April.” Raph said as he turned to her. “I just have to destroy Lame-onardo.”

He turned back to Leo, then both of them pressed some buttons, until Raph pressed the buttons on his side of the machine hard, destroying Leo’s hockey player and winning the game. Raph then stood up and did a little victory dance while Leo also stood up and glared at him, unamused at his foul play. Raph then stood by Leo by resting his elbow on his shoulder, then smacked him away before he walked off.

Cath and Elisa then sat down on either side of April.

“So, what’s up?” Elisa asked.

“I set up a message board to collect unusual sightings around New York.” April explained, showing them what she was working on. “People send in pics, videos—I also get some stuff that may help us track the Kraang and find my dad.”

She zoomed in on the video she saw.

“Like this video of a gas explosion.” April explained, playing it, showing a Kraangdroid walking out of the smoke.

“That’s it?” Elisa questioned. “A Kraangdroid?”

Hearing that made Mikey wake up in fright. “Where?!” He yelled.

He then fell into the pool with a yelp, while Leo and Raph joined their sisters around April, who showed them the video again.

“If there are other Kraangdroid activities somewhere around the city, the Kraang must be up to something.” Cath deduced.

“You’re right, Cath.” Leo agreed. “We’ll check it out tonight.”

“Why not now?” April asked.

“Because it’s daytime.” Cath explained. “We can’t let anyone see us in the daytime.”

“Good point.” Elisa admitted.

April closed her laptop and stood up. “Well, I can.” She argued.

She was about to leave the lair when Leo walked in front of her, stopping her. “April, think about this.” He told her. “It could be dangerous.”

“You know what else could be dangerous?” April asked rhetorically. “Standing between me and my father.”

She gave a hard stare at Leo, who backed off and let her pass.

“Okay.” Leo conceded.

April gave a satisfied smirk and walked off, while Leo stared at her as she left, hoping he made the right decision.

Cath, on the other hand, was staring at the door to Donnie’s workshop, as he hadn’t come out of it since the night before, and she was starting to get worried about him.

Later that night, a Kraangdroid was walking towards the warehouse, while April was spying on it from an alley while hiding behind a dumpster.

“Okay, Kraang-creep…” April whispered as the Kraangdroid pressed some buttons on a keypad, opening the door, then went inside. “Lead the way.”

She then ran off to tell the Turtles.

Meanwhile, in the lair, Leo was watching Space Heroes, Raph was feeding Spike, Mikey was eating pizza, Cath was pacing outside Donnie’s lab, and Elisa was meditating. Leo stared intently at the screen as the episode started, which showed Captain Ryan, Mr. Crankshaw, and Dr. Mindstrong exploring an uninhabited planet.

“What do you make of this, Dr. Mindstrong?” Captain Ryan asked.

Dr. Mindstrong held his scanner up and scanned the planet’s surface, finding no traces of life anywhere.

“This is very disturbing, Captain.” Dr. Mindstrong explained. “Sensors indicate-”

He was interrupted when a flying alien, which resembled a cross between a bug and a bat, flew towards him and landed on his head, then put him under a mind control spell.

“Everything is fine.” Dr. Mindstrong said in a trance-like voice.

“Great galaxies!” Ryan exclaimed.

“Captain, what’s happening?!” Mr. Crankshaw asked.

“Dr. Mindstrong’s been taken over by the Cortexicons!” Ryan said.

Leo gasped as he continued to watch the episode.

“What do we do? What do we do?!” Crankshaw panicked, before Ryan slapped him.

“There’s only one thing we can do. Dr. Mindstrong must be destroyed!” Ryan decided.

Leo’s eyes widened as he watched the laser blasts on the screen, removing the alien, but killing Dr. Mindstrong in the process.

“What a hero.” Leo let out.

Suddenly, the lair started shaking, as the four Turtles heard thunderous footsteps. Elisa opened her eyes and fell over, while Mikey closed up his pizza box and hugged it in fear. Raph turned his head slightly to see a metallic silver and gold turtle robot walking towards them, before its mouth opened, then it spoke through a microphone.

“Take me to your leader.” It said with Donnie’s voice.

“Leo, it’s for you.” Mikey called with a deadpan expression.

Leo walked up from behind Mikey and noticed the robot. “What is this thing?” He asked as Raph and Elisa stood up and joined them.

Donnie then walked out of his lab with Cath in tow, Donnie carrying a remote control that controlled the robot. “I think we should let Donnie do the talking, brah.” Cath said.

“Thank you, Cath.” Donnie said. “Ladies, Gentlemen, and Raphael…”

Raph gave Donnie an offended look.

“This is the future of ninjitsu.” Donnie explained.

“I always thought the future of ninjitsu would be taller.” Raph quipped sarcastically.

Mikey walked up to the robot. “Awww, he’s so cute.” He gushed. “Coochie-coochie-coo!” He then scratched its chin.

The robot, however, reacted defensively and brought out a wide variety of weapons, including lasers, machine guns, rocket launchers, and even a baseball bat, hair dryer and a fire extinguisher, making Mikey step back in fear and fall on his back.

“Sorry about that.” Cath apologized.

“Yeah, Metalhead doesn’t like being tickled.” Donnie explained with a laugh.

“Metalhead?” Raph questioned.

“What else does he do?” Elisa asked.

“Wait till you see him in action.” Donnie replied with a smirk.

Later, inside the warehouse, a Kraangdroid walked around, then ran into another one, while April hid behind some crates to avoid being seen as she listened in on their conversation.

“Is that which is the unstable mutagen ready for using in the experiment that Kraang is being ready to begin?” The first Kraangdroid asked.

“The unstable mutagen will be tomorrow unleashing in the water supply.” The second Kraangdroid reported.

April gasped slightly as she turned back around. “The water supply?” She questioned. “Oh, no.”

“Many infected humans will mutation.” The second Kraangdroid explained. “This is being a good way to perfect the mutagen to the point of perfection.”

April looked back at the Kraangdroids and pushed the crates so she could get a better view. However, she accidentally knocked over a fire extinguisher as she did so, which then fell and clattered as it hit the ground, alerting the Kraangdroids to her presence. She then crawled away and hid behind another crate as the first Kraangdroid approached to investigate the noise. It walked over and picked up the fire extinguisher, but didn’t notice April, much to her relief.

“Think ninja.” April said to herself. “Think ninja.”

She then saw a window nearby and got an idea, but covered her mouth to avoid making any sounds. The Kraangdroid threw the fire extinguisher away, then began marching closer towards her, when another noise caught its attention. It turned to its left, but didn’t see anything, before marching towards the window. There, it saw it open slightly and walked closer to it. April then snuck up behind the Kraangdroid with a metal pipe, then charged at it and hit it in the head with it, but it was unfazed and turned to April, who hit it again, knocking it out of the window. April panted, then sighed in relief, before dropping the pipe and running off.

Back in the lair, Mikey was still crouched down in front of Metalhead, and was now making funny faces at him as Donnie told the others what Metalhead could do.

“Isn’t it cool? I reverse-engineered him from the Kraangdroid.” Donnie explained.

“Okay. Why?” Leo asked.

“So Metalhead can handle the dangerous stuff while we stay out of harm’s way.” Donnie explained.

“You’re sending robots to fight in our place?” Elisa asked. “Because if you are, I still think I have better odds fighting on my own.”

“I think what Donnie means is, Metalhead will do all the heavy lifting while we just sneak off and do whatever stuff is that ninjas do.” Cath clarified. “He didn’t say anything about replacing us.”

“Oh, I get it.” Raph realized. “This is for wimps who are too afraid to fight.”

“No, it’s for wimps who are too smart to fight.” Donnie argued, before realizing what he said. “I mean—never mind.”

Mikey then tapped Metalhead on the head. “I like it.” He smiled. “Metalhead. Why, you ask? Because he’s got a head and he’s made of metal!”

“Yeah, we get it.” Leo groaned, facepalming.

“I don’t need a toaster fighting my battles for me.” Raph argued.

“Me neither.” Elisa argued, agreeing with Raph.

“This is ridiculous, Donnie.” Leo said. “It takes the whole point out of being a ninja.”

“It’s exactly the point of being a ninja.” Donnie argued. “We adapt.”

“I don’t think that’s what Leo meant, Don.” Cath deadpanned.

“Of course it’s what he meant!” Donnie argued. “Now, watch this? Attack the drone. Give it all you’ve got.”

“Are you sure?” Leo asked unsurely. “I don’t want to break your toy.”

“I do!” Raph said rudely, pushing past Leo, before stepping up to Metalhead.

“So do I.” Elisa agreed, also stepping up with Raph. “This bucket of bolts isn’t gonna replace me in battle.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Cath whispered to Donnie.

Raph and Elisa both stood in front of Metalhead, and then Donnie pressed a button on the remote. Metalhead’s eyes lit up, before Raph and Elisa charged at him with their weapons. Raph then jumped from the ceiling and tried to stab Metalhead with his Sais, but Donnie pulled a switch to make Metalhead stop his attack by placing his hand out in front of him and grab Raph’s Sais, surprising him and Elisa. Donnie then pulled another switch, and then Metalhead threw Raph onto the floor on his back, before throwing him back and fourth repeatedly. Metalhead then tossed Raph forward into the lair’s entrance, before he turned and saw Elisa charging at him with her Kusari-fundo. Donnie pulled down on the switch again, making Metalhead stop her attack with both his hands, and then he tossed Elisa into her brother. Donnie began chuckling to himself, before he heard Leo and Mikey yelling, and saw them jumping down from the ceiling. Leo and Mikey both tried to hit Metalhead with their respective weapons, but Metalhead still wouldn’t budge. Donnie then flipped the switch again, causing Metalhead to grab both Leo and Mikey’s weapons and bash them into each other. Metalhead then stepped on Leo’s foot, causing him to scream in pain, before kicking him across the room and into Raph and Elisa, who just got back up. Donnie ducked as Leo was knocked into his siblings, before Metalhead turned his head around and saw Mikey standing behind him. Mikey yelped as Metalhead picked him up and punched him across the room into the others. Donnie smiled victoriously while his siblings, except Cath, were lying in a heap, groaning in pain, before Donnie and Cath approached them. (Elisa was between Raph and Leo.)

“I kicked your shells!” Donnie bragged. “And I didn’t even have to use the laser cannon!”

“You have a laser cannon?” Elisa inquired.

“Not the point.” Donnie replied. “Face it, guys, with this thing, I’m invincible!”

“Maybe, but you’re also becoming entitled.” Cath argued, turning to her brother. “You can’t have Metalhead fight all your battles for you. What if he turns against you?”

“How can you say that, Cath?!” Donnie asked in an angry and hurt tone. “Besides, Metalhead won’t turn against me!”

“I’m not saying he will!” Cath argued frantically, waving her hands. “I’m just saying that sooner or later, you’re gonna have to step up and fight on your own.”

“Like this.” Raph said, taking out one of his Sais and using it to knock the remote out of Donnie’s hands.

“Hey!” Donnie complained as the remote skidded across the floor.

He then made his way to grab it, but Splinter stopped it with his foot and looked down at Donnie.

“Sensei, I was wondering if I could take Metalhead for a spin tonight.” Donnie requested.

“You may.” Splinter accepted.

“That’s totally unfair! You can’t just-!” Donnie complained, before realizing that Splinter meant yes. “Wait, what?”

“You have created this new weapon.” Splinter explained as he observed Metalhead. “We must see how well it works.”

“Well, that’s great.” Donnie smiled, standing up. “Thank you, Sensei.”

“But it is a test only.” Splinter said firmly, turning back to Donnie. “Do not take it into combat.”

“No problem, Sensei.” Donnie promised, holding a hand on his chest.

Splinter gave a satisfied nod, then walked off. Once Splinter had left, Raph asked Donnie. “You’re taking it into combat, aren’t you?”

“Totally!” Donnie giggled, picking the remote back up.

“Oh, boy.” Cath mumbled.

Later that night, Leo ran across the rooftops, while Mikey used his nunchucks like a zipline and landed beside him, followed by Raph and the girls. Donnie stayed behind in the lair, however, as he was controlling Metalhead, who jumped from the rooftop and landed in front of the others with a thud, then ran towards them, before stopping as steam came out of his ears.

“Should we double back?” Leo asked.

“I think there’s a car alarm he didn’t set off.” Cath said as she looked around in worry to see if they were followed.

“I kinda like it.” Raph admitted, bending down so he was at Metalhead’s level. “It goes nicely with all the sirens and cries for help.”

“Whose side are you on anyway, Raph?” Elisa asked, annoyed.

(The lair)

Donnie was watching the others through the TV, which he was using to see his actions while controlling Metalhead, while wearing a headset on his head.

“Oh, come on.” Donnie scoffed. “You guys are just jealous ‘cause you’re out there in the cold and I’m here eating Mikey’s last slice of pizza.”

He took the last pizza slice out of the box and moved it to his mouth.

(The rooftop)

“Hey!” Mikey complained.

He then tried to punch Metalhead, but ended up hurting his hand instead. “Ow!” He cried.

“Hello?” April’s voice called, making the five Turtles turn to the noise.

“Keep quiet!” Leo shushed. “Somebody’s coming.”

The five leaned over the side of the building and saw April walking into an alley looking for them.

“Guys, it’s me.” April called.

“April!” Leo cried in relief.

The five then jumped down and landed all around her. (Cath was between Leo and Raph and Elisa was on Leo’s left.)

“Guys! I was just looking for you.” April explained as she turned to them, while Metalhead also jumped down from the building, but landed in a dumpster instead. The dumpster then fell over, and then Metalhead kicked it open and crawled out, while April stared at it bemused.

“Still, it’s stealthier than the real Donatello.” Raph joked.

“What the heck is that?” She asked.

“Metalhead.” Elisa answered. “He’s Donnie’s latest—and so-called ‘brilliant’—creation.”

“Catchy name, huh?” Mikey asked. “It was all his idea.”

“Donnie built him so he could have him fight in his place while he stays behind at mission control.” Cath explained.

“Oh, sorry, April.” Donnie apologized through Metalhead’s speaker, but it was kind of loud, making his siblings and April cover their ears. “I’m still getting used to the controls.” He then put the speaker away. “Whoops. Megaphone button got stuck.”

“Guys, we gotta do something.” April told the Turtles. “The Kraang are gonna poison the city’s water supply with mutagen!”

“The whole city will become a disaster area!” Leo realized.

“And there’ll be mutants everywhere!” Donnie finished.

Cath gasped at that, as she was the team’s medic. “All those poor, innocent people…” She cried softly.

Elisa walked up to Cath and squeezed her shoulder with her hand. “Don’t worry, Cath, we’ll stop them.” She assured.

Mikey, however, became excited at the idea. “Wow. Think of all the mutant friends we can make.” He said, hugging Metalhead.

“Are you morbid, Mikey?!” Cath snapped as she and the others glared at him.

“Well, excuse me for being a ‘glass-half-full’ kind of guy.” Mikey said, offended.

“Let’s go!” Leo said as they all ran off.

“Yeah, the Kraang don’t stand a chance!” Donnie agreed, but Leo held a hand out in front of Metalhead, who then stopped. “What?”

“Donnie, I need you to hang back.” Leo told him.

“Why?” Donnie asked.

“Because Metalhead is too clumsy.” Leo explained. “He’ll just get in our way.”

“Clumsy?” Donnie questioned.

Metalhead then raised his arms out, knocking over some trash cans.

“I think that proves Leo’s point, dude.” Cath sighed.

“I did that on purpose to emphasize my point.” Donnie argued.

“You’re not coming, Donnie.” Leo said sternly, his decision final.

The others then took off and Metalhead lowered his head, but April patted him on the shoulder.

The other five Turtles jumped from rooftop to rooftop, trying to find the warehouse the Kraang were using the night before. Despite being told not to come, Metalhead and April decided to follow the others anyway, looking over a building for any sign of them. Metalhead turned his head at April, but then turned it away. He then turned back, but then turned away again after Donnie saw April looking at him funny. Donnie then looked at April a third time and decided to make some conversation with her.

“So, you like heavy metal?” He asked with a nervous laugh. Seeing April wasn’t laughing, he cleared his throat, embarrassed.

Meanwhile, the Kraangdroids were patrolling throughout the warehouse, looking for any sign of the Turtles, who were looking down on them from a beam on the ceiling.

“Looks like a Kraang picnic down there.” Leo observed.

“Ready to bash some bots?” Raph sneered grinningly.

“I’ll say I am.” Elisa smirked, cracking her knuckles.

“Destroy some droids?” Leo asked, punching his fist into his palm.

“I’ll say I am too.” Cath replied with a grin.

“Clean some closets?” Mikey asked.

The others looked at him confused.

“Uh, I meant to say crash some Kraang?” Mikey corrected himself.

The five jumped down from the beam, and then Leo and Raph sliced two Kraangdroids with their weapons, while Cath and Elisa destroyed two more.

“Booyakasha!” Mikey yelled, landing on another two Kraangdroids, before he started punching them repeatedly. Raph then grabbed Mikey and dragged him away to the others, as they then peered out from behind a corner to see what the Kraang were up to. They all rolled behind some oil drums, before stopping, when one of the Kraangdroids came back to life, alerting them to the Turtles’ presence, then passed out. The Kraangdroids all aimed their blasters at the five Turtles and began firing at them, forcing them to jump in all directions to avoid the blasts.

(Outside the warehouse)

April and Metalhead saw the whole fight from the rooftop, before the lasers stopped, then started again, as Donnie looked at her again through Metalhead.

(The lair)

Donnie looked at April on the TV.

“Look at her.” Donnie said dreamily. “She’s so beautiful.”

He then got up from the couch and walked closer to the TV. “On this monitor, she can’t tell I’m staring.”

April, however, heard him and told him. “You do know that’s not muted, right?”

Donnie panicked and fell on his back.

(Outside the warehouse)

“Of course!” Donnie laughed nervously. “If it was muted, you couldn’t hear me joking.”

(The lair)

Donnie facepalmed himself after he said that, before pressing a button on the remote, revealing that Metalhead wasn’t muted.

(Outside the warehouse)

“Man, I hope she bought that.” Donnie hoped as he spoke through Metalhead’s speaker.

“That’s the megaphone.” April said bluntly.

“I know!” Donnie said rhetorically, turning it off, before looking back down at the warehouse.. “So, how do you think the fight’s going?”

Before April could answer, a stray laser blast knocked them back.

“Ahh! They’re everywhere!” Mikey screamed. “Run!”

“I’d say not great.” April answered.

(Inside the warehouse)

The five Turtles all backflipped and hid behind some crates, but then found that there was nowhere else to run, and the Kraangdroids were closing in on them fast.

“Leo!” Raph yelled as they jumped away. “We’re running out of-”

“Room!” Cath finished as she and Elisa joined their brothers.

“We’re trapped!” Leo exclaimed.

“Oh, I hate these episodes!” Elisa moaned.

“Wait!” Mikey exclaimed. “Maybe they’re the ones who are trapped, huh?”

He peeked his head out from the oil drum, but quickly lowered himself when a laser blast almost hit him.

“No, it’s us.” He corrected.

The Kraangdroids looked up as Metalhead jumped down from the ceiling and landed on some of them, then turned to the others.

“Donnie?” Cath asked in confusion.

“What are you doing?” Leo demanded. “What is wrong with your arms?”

“My hands aren’t on my hips?” Donnie asked.

“No!” Leo yelled, not caring if the Kraang heard him, while Raph and Elisa both facepalmed.

“Sorry. Forgot to press B.” Donnie apologized sheepishly.

The remaining Kraangdroids surrounded Metalhead, before firing their blasters at him, Donnie knowing that he was in trouble. The others watched as Metalhead endured every blast the Kraangdroids gave him, when suddenly, their blasters ran out of firepower.

“Now it’s my turn!” Donnie announced, before Metalhead retracted his left hand, and then a laser took its place. “Eat hot laser!”

Metalhead then fired the laser like a machine gun, which hit some of the Kraangdroids, then turned to the others.

“You want some of this?” Donnie laughed, before Metalhead turned and fired at them.

(The lair)

Donnie was rapidly mashing buttons on the remote as he watched the fight through Metalhead’s sensor, but was starting to get cocky.

“Yeah, baby!” He laughed madly, before pressing another button.

(The warehouse)

Metalhead then activated his rocket fist, which flew all around the room and punched some more Kraangdroids, before he retracted it back.

“Hey, Raph and Ellie!” Donnie called mockingly. “How does it feel to be shown up by a toaster?”

“Okay, okay, you got me.” Elisa admitted, while Raph grumbled. “Metalhead’s actually pretty cool.”

“Burn!” Mikey mocked.

“Yeah, I thought that was a good one.” Donnie chuckled, not noticing that the Kraangdroids were sneaking up behind Metalhead.

“Donnie!” Cath cried, seeing them.

“Behind you!” Elisa screamed.

“Huh?” Donnie asked, confused.

“No, burn!” Mikey yelled, pointing.

“Oh, right.” Donnie realized.

Metalhead turned around and used his flamethrower on the Kraangdroids. However, one still remained activated and recognized Metalhead.

“That thing which does violence at Kraang used to do a violence for Kraang!” The Kraangdroid realized, before powering down.

The brain then crawled out of the exosuit and over to Metalhead, who was now firing his machine gun around the warehouse. The five Turtles then noticed Metalhead firing his laser at them and ducked out of the way to avoid it.

“Dude!” Mikey complained.

“Watch where you’re firing that thing!” Elisa snapped.

“Oops.” Donnie apologized sheepishly. “Sorry, guys!”

“Donnie, watch the friendly fire.” Leo advised through gritted teeth.

(The lair)

Donnie was still watching Metalhead’s actions through the TV.

“And here’s some for you!” He shouted, firing Metalhead’s laser at more Kraangdroids. “And here’s some for you! And, oh yeah, I saved a little for you, too! How’d that taste?”

(The warehouse)

Donnie was so obsessed with defeating the Kraangdroids, that he didn’t notice that he accidentally fired the laser at some propane tanks. The tanks exploded, sending Metalhead flying into a beam, before landing on the floor. Metalhead’s antenna then came loose from his head, as electricity sparked out of it.

(The lair)

The TV now read “lost signal,” much to Donnie’s confusion and dismay.

“No!” Donnie cried. “I lost the control signal!”

He then saw the brain crawling up to Metalhead and became worried. “What’s that Kraang doing?” He wondered.

(The warehouse)

The Kraang attached itself onto the head of Metalhead, as electricity shot out of it, then tried again. Metalhead stood back up, his eyes now a sinister purple, now under the control of the Kraang.

(The lair)

“Uh-oh.” Donnie gulped, before speaking through his headset. “Uh, guys, if you can hear me, you might wanna run!” He explained frantically.

(The warehouse)

“Why?” Elisa asked.

Cath, who was tending to Mikey, then saw something looming over them. “See for yourself, sis.” She said, pointing.

The others turned to see Metalhead standing in front of them, before he started marching towards them.

“The ones that which are called Turtles will now be called Turtles that are destroyed!” Metalhead declared menacingly.

Mikey sighed in relief. “I was really afraid at the beginning of that sentence, but then I sort of just lost interest towards-”

Metalhead then brought his laser out again and aimed it at Mikey.

“Bull roar.” Elisa snarked at him.

“Okay, now I’m afraid again!” Mikey squeaked fearfully.

(The lair)

Donnie heard Mikey screaming through his headset, then tried to get Metalhead to stop by fiddling with the remote, but it was no use.

“Oh, come on!” He complained, before crouching down to get a closer look at the console. “Maybe if I can override-”

Splinter then approached Donatello from behind and put a hand on his shoulder. “Donatello.” He interrupted.

Donnie stopped what he was doing and looked up at his Sensei.

“The time for games is over.” Splinter told him.

Donnie looked at Splinter, then the remote, and then knew what he had to do. He threw the remote away, removed his headset, and stood up.

“You’re right. My siblings need me.” Donnie said, determined.

He was about to run off to help when Splinter stopped him. “Wait!” He called, bringing out the new Bō Donnie rejected earlier. “Here!”

He threw the Bō to Donnie, who caught it and then twirled it around. He then bowed at Splinter slightly, who bowed back, before leaving the lair.

Meanwhile, at the warehouse, the others were charging at Metalhead, who was firing his laser at them, now with their weapons back out. Mikey threw one of his nunchucks at him, but only succeeded in knocking his laser back, then he and the girls stood in front of him, while Leo and Raph landed behind him.

“Give him everything you’ve got!” Leo ordered.

“Right!” Elisa and Cath said in unison as Mikey and Raph nodded.

The five turtled jumped and each tried to hit Metalhead with their weapons, Leo slashing his katana, Raph trying to dig his Sais into his body, Cath whacking him with her Tonfas, Elisa wrapping her Kusari-fundo around him, and Mikey beating him with his nunchucks, but it was no use, as Metalhead seemed indestructible.

“It’s not working!” Cath cried.

“He’s gotta have a weak spot.” Leo reasoned. “Find it!”

“How are we gonna do that?” Elisa inquired. “Donnie’s the one who built him!”

“Stay back!” Mikey called as the girls did. “This always works.”

He then kicked Metalhead in the groin, but due to him being made of metal, it hurt Mikey’s foot instead.

“Ow!” Mikey yelped, hopping on one foot in pain. “Well, usually.”

Metalhead then punched Mikey across the room, before doing the same to the others. The five Turtles looked up at Metalhead as he glared at them menacingly while leaning back against the wall, then some Kraangdroids walked up behind Metalhead and aimed their blasters at the Turtles.

“Now Kraang will destroy you.” A Kraangdroid declared as the Turtles got back up. (Elisa was between Mikey and Raph and Cath was on Leo’s right.) “Which one of you wants to be the first to be destroyed by Kraang?”

“Me!” Donnie shouted, as his siblings then looked up and saw him jumping down from the roof, before landing in front of Metalhead and twirling his new Bō around again.

“Donnie!” Leo exclaimed in relief.

“Banging entrance, dude!” Mikey cheered.

“Took you long enough.” Elisa huffed.

“You guys deal with the droids.” Donnie told his siblings. “I’ll handle Metalhead.”

The others nodded and ran past Donnie and began fighting the Kraangdroids, and then Donnie went face-to-face with Metalhead.

“It is the maker of the tech which was the tech that was of the Kraang.” Metalhead said in the voice of the Kraang that was controlling him, as Donnie gripped his Bō, ready to fight.

“Come on!” Donnie dared, twirling his Bō around once more. “Gimme your best-”

He was interrupted when Metalhead launched his rocket fist at him, making him yelp and run out of the way to avoid it. Donnie then knocked the fist away with his Bō like a baseball bat, sending it flying back at Metalhead, but he was unfazed and glared harder at Donnie. Then Donnie whacked Metalhead repeatedly with his Bō, but like the others’ weapons, it had no effect, before Metalhead brought out his laser again. Donnie avoided the blasts by dodging them, when a stray blast struck his Bō, snapping it in half, breaking it.

“Not again.” Donnie groaned.

Metalhead’s eyes then opened, then he fired them at Donnie, which were actually bombs. Donnie jumped out of the way as the bombs hit a support beam, before exploding, then Metalhead fell on his back. Donnie then peered out from behind an oil barrel and saw that the ground beneath the beam was starting to crumble, giving him an idea to further weaken it and have it land on top of Metalhead.

“Yeah, that might work.” He nodded to himself as he got up. “Hey, Kraang!”

The Kraang controlling Metalhead fired the laser at Donnie, who ran and dodged it before crouching down.

“The one who is called your mother wears the boots that are made for combat!” Donnie called tauntingly.

“The comment that is made by you shows ignorance of Kraang!” Metalhead retorted, before putting the blaster down. “The ones known by you as mothers-”

“Just come and get me!” Donnie snapped.

Metalhead fired more bombs from his head at Donnie, who dodged them and charged right at him, then jumped over him as he fired his laser at him, before the beam fell over. Donnie landed behind Metalhead and held the broken half of his Bō in front of him as he closed his eyes and braced himself for the impact. When Donnie opened his eyes, he saw that his Bō was lodged into Metalhead’s chest, impaling him and killing him.

“Booyakasha!” Donnie cheered.

“Sounds weird when he says it.” Mikey remarked as the others finished off the last of the Kraangdroids.

“Sounds even weirder when you say it.” Raph retorted, pointing at Mikey.

“That which is the revenge will be had on those who call themselves the Turtles.” Kraang sneered, before detaching itself from Metalhead and latching onto Donnie’s face.

“I got this!” Elisa cried, twirling her Kusari-fundo around.

She then sliced the Kraang’s tentacles off, freeing Donnie, then the brain slithered away pathetically as Elisa put her weapon away, then turned around and helped Donnie up as the others gathered around them.

“Nice job, bro!” Mikey complimented.

“Way to go, Donnie.” Leo praised, making Donnie smile.

“Yeah, not bad.” Raph admitted. “Except for that part where you built the thing in the first place. And the part where it broke.”

Donnie’s smile dropped as Raph went on. “And the part where it tried to kill us!” Raph snapped. “And the part-”

He was interrupted when Cath nudged him with her elbow. “Okay, that’s enough!” She snapped, before stepping up to her brother. “Good job, Don.”

Donnie’s smile returned as they jumped and leapt up to the roof, then left the warehouse.

Later that night, the Turtles were back in the lair. Raph was playing a video game on an arcade machine while Mikey, Leo, and Elisa watched, Leo looking nervous, when Raph suddenly lost.

“Oh, so close to my high score.” Leo said mockingly as Raph growled in frustration.

“Don’t worry, bro, you’ll get him next time.” Elisa assured, patting Raph on the back.

Donnie, meanwhile, was sitting morosely in the living room while working on something with his Bō, still depressed over Metalhead’s destruction, when Splinter and Cath came in and turned to him.

“Hey, Donnie, you okay, dude?” Cath asked, concerned.

“What troubles you, my son?” Splinter asked.

Donnie sighed, then dared to look at them. “I feel like this is all my fault, Sensei.” He said sadly.

“What makes you think that?” Cath questioned.

“I thought I could improve my battle style by having a robot duplicate of me take my place, but I was wrong.” Donnie sighed.

“You are responsible, yes.” Splinter said sympathetically.

“Yeah.” Donnie sighed.

“Responsible for destroying the mutagen?” Splinter questioned. “Responsible for saving the people of this city? Responsible for defeating the advanced technology that you built using only ingenuity, bravery, and a stick?”

“Remember, Donnie, you may think that you don’t play a vital role on the team, but you’re the brains behind every operation.” Cath encouraged her brother. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. You shouldn’t let one failure define you.”

Donnie smiled as he stood up and faced them. “Thank you, Cath.” He said, before turning to Splinter. “And thank you, Sensei. Maybe you’re right.”

“I am.” Splinter nodded in agreement.

“I guess with proper training, there’s nothing better than a wooden stick.” Donnie admitted, accepting the weapon he had, before picking it up and twirling it around, except now it had a tomahawk missile attached at the end, much to Splinter and Cath’s concern. “Except a laser-guided, missile-launching wooden stick!” He immediately contradicted himself.

However, when Donnie slammed his Bō against the floor, the missile started shaking, beeping, and buzzing, catching the others’ attention.

“Is it supposed to do that?” Cath asked nervously.

“No…” Donnie answered, just as nervous, although it was obvious that he was lying, before turning to the others. “Run!”

Leo, Raph, Elisa, and Mikey all ran for it before the missile could go off, with Cath lagging behind as she was at the rear.

Chapter Text

Inside the dojo, Mikey and Donnie were warming up for a sparring session. Mikey did some various stretches, starting by touching his toes repeatedly, then stretched from side to side, before Donnie got tired of waiting and took a fighting stance. Donnie then sent a kick at Mikey, who jumped up to dodge, before he landed back down and tried to punch Donnie, who then blocked it with his hand. Donnie then flipped Mikey and threw him across the room, but Mikey landed on his feet perfectly, and then he laughed at Donnie.

“Dude, what are you doing?” Donnie asked, annoyed and confused. “You don’t defend against seoi nage with backflips!”

“Why not?” Mikey argued as he stood up as Donnie walked over to him. “Backflips are where it’s at!”

“The best defense is to roll along my back, then take me to the ground and put me in an armlock.” Donnie explained, punching his fist downward into his palm, before he began to think. “Unless, of course, I counter with a-”

“Hey, man.” Mikey interrupted. “You can’t take the fire out of a--hi-yaah!” He then did a backflip before making a rude face at Donnie by sticking his hands on either side of his head. “Dr. Flip-enstein!”

“I don’t even know what that means.” Donnie said, confused.

He then saw Master Splinter step out of his room and walked over to him.

“Master Splinter, what would you do if someone tried to throw you with seoi nage?” Donnie asked as he walked behind Splinter.

“I don’t know.” Splinter replied as he kept walking.

“Come on, you must have planned a response for every attack.” Donnie argued.

“If you think too much about what is coming, you lose sight of what is.” Splinter quoted. “You must be fully in the moment so you can fight without thinking.”

“Why would I want to fight without thinking?” Donnie asked.

“Allow me to demonstrate.” Splinter offered. “Prepare to defend against seoi nage.”

Before Donnie knew it, he was pinned to the floor by Splinter, who held his right arm up.

“Ow!” Donnie cried as Mikey watched, amused. “That wasn’t even seoi nage!”

“No.” Splinter chuckled. “But you thought it would be.”

He let go of Donnie as his son sat up, rubbing his head.

“Now would you like to prepare to defend against a spinning back-kick?” Splinter asked.

“No.” Donnie groaned. “I’m good.”

Splinter walked off, and then Mikey walked over to Donnie, laughing.

“Know what would have worked there?” He asked cheekily, before he got in Donnie’s face. “Back flip!”

Donnie just groaned in annoyance.

Later, Donnie was sketching something in his lab, which was a chart titled “Master Plan: Hang with April.” He used a ruler to measure a line, then drew it with a Sharpie. He then drew several more lines, representing the route to the places he wanted to take April to, and was about to draw another when he was interrupted.

“What you up to, Donnie?” Leo’s voice asked.

Donnie gasped, realizing he’d been found out, before he looked up and saw his siblings standing around him, making him sigh in relief. (Cath was between Leo and Mikey and Elisa was on Raph’s right.)

“Just putting the finishing touches on my master plan.” Donnie explained as he went back to drawing.

“Master plan?” Raph questioned.

“Yeah, to get April to hang out with me.” Donnie explained after he drew another line.

His siblings laughed thinking he was crazy.

“Seriously, dude, you really think April’s gonna go out with you just like that?” Cath asked after she stopped laughing. “You’ve barely even known her for the past four weeks!”

“Well, how else am I supposed to spend time with her?” Donnie asked rhetorically.

“Try this: ‘April, do you want to hang out with me?’” Leo suggested teasingly.

“Yeah, you see, it’s not that simple.” Donnie argued.

“Not that simple?” Elisa questioned. “All you gotta do is just ask.”

“Well, I have to prepare for every possible response to maximum my chances of success.” Donnie explained, gesturing to the areas he drew on his chart.

“Aw, that’s so romantic!” Mikey teased.

“Yeah, real smooth there, Romeo.” Elisa chortled.

Donnie picked up the chart, then put it on a board, and rolled it in front of his siblings.

“Thank you, Elisabetta.” Donnie said sarcastically, before he began pointing to the activities he planned to do with April on the paper with a stick. “See, for instance, if April says she can’t because she has homework, then I will suggest an informal study session and serve healthy, brain-stimulating snacks.”

“Well, what if she says she can’t because you’re a total nerd?” Raph asked sarcastically.

“Ah, that’s this thread here.” Donnie replied, pointing his stick to the black line he drew. “I will list my many non-nerdy qualities and suggest activities that will highlight my coolness, such as skateboarding or shark wrestling.”

At that moment, April came running into the lab, carrying her laptop.

“Guys!” She called.

“Yah!” Donnie yelped, quickly flipping the board over so she wouldn’t see his chart, which he then replaced with a Space Heroes movie poster.

“Hey, hey, Ap—hey, April.” He said casually, waving as she walked past him.

“You guys gotta check this out.” April explained, standing between Leo and Raph, before opening her laptop, as Donnie walked over and stood behind her.

“Renowned neurochemist Dr. Tyler Rockwell has been reported missing.” A newscaster explained on the computer. “I spoke with Rockwell’s colleague, Dr. Victor Falco.”

Dr. Victor Falco, who was a scientist with black hair with grey streaks on the sides, then appeared on the screen.

“I hadn’t heard from him in days, so I stopped by his lab.” Dr. Falco began. “The place was a mess and he was gone. I fear the worst.”

“Police say they have-” The newscaster went on, before April turned to the Turtles.

“So?” Raph asked, not seeing the point of it all.

“So the Kraang have been kidnapping scientists from all over the city, including my dad!” April explained. “Maybe that’s what happened to this Rockwell guy.”

“Or they may not be connected at all.” Leo deduced.

“There’s only one way to find out.” April argued. “We should go to that lab and look around.”

“April’s right.” Donnie agreed. “We should go check it out.”

However, his siblings, except Cath, showed no interest in going, perceiving that he was using this as an excuse to spend time with April.

“What’s that?” Donnie asked. “You guys are busy? Guess it’s just the two of us, April.”

He roped an arm around April as they walked off, but before they could leave, Cath stepped up.

“I’ll come, too.” She offered. “Somebody’s gotta look after you, bro.”

“Great…” Donnie muttered sarcastically through gritted teeth as the three left the lab.

“I bet that wasn’t on his flowchart.” Leo scoffed, flipping the board back over, showing the chart again, before he looked at it. “Whoa. It is!” He pointed to a crudely-drawn picture Donnie drew of April and him searching for clues, while he and the rest of their siblings were drawn in a square outside of the one Donnie and April were in. Elisa then walked over and saw it too.

“Yeesh, that is spooky.” Elisa commented, folding her arms.

Inside an old apartment building, Donnie, Cath, and April looked through a window on a door to what appeared to be a laboratory. The light on the side of the door that was in the apartment turned green, then it opened, showing Donnie crouching down with a chip in his hand, having used it to open the door.

“There isn’t an electronic lock out there my digital lock pick can’t crack.” Donnie bragged quietly.

“Smooth!” April whispered with a smile, making Donnie giggle.

“Guys, focus!” Cath reminded them. “We’re supposed to be investigating a scientist’s disappearance, remember?”

“Oh, right.” April said, embarrassed.

“Right.” Donnie blushed.

April took a flashlight and turned it on, then she, Donnie and Cath stepped into the lab and looked around. April waved the flashlight around, showing empty test tubes and chemicals spilled all over the floor, before stopping it on a trail of liquid that was under a chair.

“Wow, this place is a total wreck.” Donnie commented.

“I’d hate to be the dude who has to clean up this dump.” Cath remarked.

April then shined her flashlight on an empty cage that was ripped open.

“Ugh, he must have been experimenting on animals.” She groaned.

“That’s awful!” Cath gasped quietly.

The three then looked at an empty chair that was in front of them.

“Either someone was up to some secret research, or they were a renting space to one freaky dentist!” Donnie surmised.

Donnie and Cath then walked over to a desk, before Donnie picked up a piece of paper that was on it, but it was so dark, he couldn’t read it, while Cath opened two drawers, before a bright glow in the second one caught her eye.

“Uh, Donnie?” She asked. “I think you’re gonna wanna see this.”

Donnie carefully lifted the piece of wood in the drawer, then April took out a canister of mutagen from the drawer, before Donnie closed it back up.

“Mutagen!” Donnie exclaimed quietly.

“Why would a scientist want mutagen?” Cath wondered.

Suddenly, the three heard footsteps, and then April looked up to see Dr. Falco, who was holding a ladle in his right hand, walking up behind Donnie.

“Donnie, look out!” April cried.

Dr. Falco tried to hit Donnie with the ladle, but Donnie took out his Bō and blocked it, and then pinned Dr. Falco to the ground with it.

“Donnie, get off of him!” Cath shouted, pulling her brother off, while April walked over to a light switch and turned on the lights.

“Dr. Falco!” April gasped.

Dr. Falco screamed when he saw the two Turtles standing above him. “What are you?!” He asked fearfully.

“Relax.” Donnie assured. “We’re not gonna hurt you.”

Cath then helped Dr. Falco up. “I am so sorry about that.” She apologized. “But my brother tends to get a little…carried away.”

“We’re here to help.” April explained, walking over to Donnie.

“What do you know about Dr. Kirby O’Neil?” Cath asked Dr. Falco. “And why do you have that mutagen stored within your desk?”

A few minutes later, Dr. Falco was sitting down at a table with April, Donnie, and Cath standing in front of him.

“I’m sorry.” Dr. Falco told April regretfully. “I wish I knew something about your father, but I don’t.”

“So, what can you tell us about this?” Donnie asked, holding the canister of mutagen.

“Some shady corporate goon paid Rockwell a lot of money to experiment with it.” Dr. Falco explained.

April pulled out her phone and showed Dr. Falco a picture of the Kraangdroid’s disguised form.

“This the guy?” She asked.

“That’s him.” Dr. Falco confirmed.

“The Kraang!” Donnie gasped.

“I don’t believe it!” Cath exclaimed.

“Well, I wanted no part in that stuff.” Dr. Falco assured them. “Who knows what kind of monstrosities could result?”

He then realized that he was talking two giant mutant turtles and turned to Cath and Donnie. “No offense.” He added.

“None taken.” Cath assured.

“Some taken.” Donnie replied.

“Is that what was in that cage over there?” April asked, gesturing her head over to the empty cage. “One of his…monstrosities?”

“Can we ease up on the M-word, please?” Donnie requested.

“Yeah, brah, not every-” Cath stopped herself short when she saw Donnie staring at her. “Creature is classified that way.”

“That’s where he kept the monkey he was experimenting on.” Dr. Falco explained.

“Whoa!” Donnie gasped.

“Well, whatever it was, it sure didn’t like being cooped up in there.” Cath noted.

“Rockwell didn’t treat it very well.” Dr. Falco explained.

“Maybe the Kraang didn’t take Rockwell.” April realized.

“Yeah, maybe the monkey went berserk, busted out of that cage, and dragged him off.” Cath reasoned. “Or worse…”

“Thanks, Dr. Falco.” Donnie said. “But we gotta get going.”

The three then left.

Later that night, April, Donnie, and Cath were walking in the streets, trying to find Rockwell with what little information they got from Dr. Falco.

“So, how do you suppose we’re gonna find Rockwell without any leads?” April asked Donnie.

“Well, maybe we’ll know more once we have a look at his flash drive.” Donnie replied as they kept walking.

“Maybe it has something that Dr. Falco didn’t tell us.” Cath said.

Unknown to them, a mysterious figure was watching them from a rooftop, before it jumped onto a fire escape.

“What flash drive?” April questioned.

“The one I swiped off his desk.” Donnie replied, showing it to April.

“Nice!” April smiled.

“Yeah.” Donnie smiled back.

“Leave it up to Donnie to stay one step ahead.” Cath smirked, patting her brother’s shoulder, making Donnie blush.

“Well, keeping cool under pressure is the hallmark of a-” Donnie bragged, before the figure jumped down and landed in front of them, which was a monkey with purple pants and shackles on his wrists and waist.

“Uh, Donnie? I think we may have found our lab monkey.” Cath gulped.

Donnie nodded as he turned to April. “April, get back!” He ordered as he and Cath got out their weapons.

“Careful, you guys!” April cried. “That’s a dangerous mutant!”

“Make that three of us!” Donnie retorted.

Donnie then twirled his Bō around multiple times and tried to hit the monkey, but he kicked Donnie back, making him drop his Bō. The monkey then picked the Bō up and sniffed it before throwing it to the side.

“Donnie, are you okay?” April asked.

“I’m good.” Donnie assured, before glaring back at the monkey. “I don’t need a Bō to kick your butt!”

He then charged at the monkey bare-handed, while Cath snuck up from behind with her Tonfas ready. Donnie sent a punch at the monkey, but he jumped up and hung onto the fire escape to avoid it, and then jumped back down again. Cath then tried to hit him with her Tonfas, but the monkey flipped and jumped back to avoid her, before Donnie threw some shurikens at him, but the monkey ducked to the side, and the shurikens lodged themselves into a steel door. April watched the fight in horror as she saw her friends losing.

“Guys?” April asked in concern as Donnie and Cath got back up.

“We’re fine.” Cath assured.

“We were just trying to figure out his timing.” Donnie added. “He is gonna regret-”

The monkey then punched Donnie, knocking him into Cath.

“And that.” Donnie added.

The monkey tried to punch Cath, but she blocked his punch with her Tonfas. “And that.” She grunted.

“You’ve got a lot of regrets, monkey!” Donnie snarled.

The monkey then picked both Donnie and Cath up and threw them to the ground, landing on their shells. Donnie and Cath opened their eyes and gasped to see the monkey about to pounce on them. The monkey then landed on top of Donnie and started whacking him in the face repeatedly, but Donnie held his arms up in front of him to protect himself. Cath rolled to the side and tried to whack the monkey with her Tonfas, but the monkey grabbed it with his hand and threw her at April’s feet, before picking Donnie up and throwing him at his sister. April crouched down near Donnie in worry as Cath got up and crawled over to them as the monkey approached them from behind. April stood up and nervously backed away from the monkey, while Cath stayed with Donnie. The monkey then grabbed April and roared in her face, but then April put her hands on his and stared at the monkey in the eyes, calming him down slightly.

“It’s okay.” She assured. “Everything’s going to be all right.”

The monkey set April down and grunted slowly.

“What?” April asked. “What is it?”

The monkey suddenly became feral again and roared again, before climbing up the fire escape and jumping to the rooftops. April watched as he left, before she remembered Donnie.

“Donnie, are you hurt?” She asked worriedly, crouching down near him as Cath checked up on him.

“Just my pride.” Donnie replied. “And my internal organs.”

“He took a lot of damage from that monkey’s attack.” Cath informed April. “We need to get him back to the lair pronto.”

April nodded as she and Cath lifted Donnie up and held him by the arms, and then they walked off.

In the lair, Mikey, Elisa, and Leo were watching TV, while Raph was playing with the pinball machine, when they saw April, Donnie, and Cath return, April and Cath holding Donnie by the arms. The Turtles had a look of shock on their faces as they got up and ran over to their injured brother.

“Whoa, what happened?” Raph asked.

“Donnie and Cath just got beat up by a lab monkey.” April explained.

The four Turtles looked amongst each other.

“Donnie more than me.” Cath corrected. “So everybody give us some room, that includes you, April. Leo, get me an ice pack; April, a blanket; Elisa, come and help me.”

Leo nodded as he ran to the kitchen, while Elisa took April’s place in carrying Donnie, and then April left to find a blanket. Both sisters led Donnie over to the couch, Donnie groaning in pain all the while. Mikey fluffed up one of the pillows on the couch, then Cath and Elisa gently laid Donnie down, before Leo and April came back with an ice pack and a blanket, respectively. Cath pulled the blanket up to Donnie’s neck as he held the ice pack on his head.

“Cath, is Donnie gonna be okay?” Leo asked.

“For a mutant Turtle, he’s remarkably strong.” Cath replied.

“Yeah.” Donnie groaned. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

“In that case…” Leo began, before he, Raph, Mikey, and Elisa started laughing, finding the situation of Donnie getting beaten up by a mutant lab monkey funny. Cath and Donnie didn’t laugh, Donnie because he didn’t think it was funny, while Cath glared angrily at her siblings for being insensitive towards Donnie’s injuries.

“You got beaten up by a monkey?” Raph asked, laughing.

“Oh, man!” Elisa chuckled. “That is hilarious! And you’re supposed to be the smart one!”

“In front of your own girlfriend, no less!” Mikey wheezed. “How embarrassing!”

“She is not my girlfriend!” Donnie snapped, sitting up, but winced as he still felt the pain in his body, forcing him to lay down again.

“Come on, dudes, show some compassion!” Cath snapped. “That monkey was a vicious mutant!”

“Yeah, I’m sure he went bananas!” Leo joked, as the four of them laughed again. “Oh, no, no, no, no, no. He went ape!”

Seeing Cath and April’s stern glares, the four quickly stopped laughing.

“No more monkey puns.” Raph told Leo, making a “cut it off” gesture as Leo nodded.

Donnie laid back down as April put the ice pack back on his forehead, as it had fallen off, while Cath stood up and let April take over.

“Are you laughing at him because he’s hurt?” April asked angrily.

“No, we were laughing at him because he said he was hurt by a…monkey!” Mikey argued.

“That doesn’t make it any better, brah.” Cath scowled.

Mikey, however, didn’t care as he and the others laughed again.

Later, Donnie sat by the river entrance, with his left arm in a sling, thinking about what his siblings said.

“I just don’t get it.” He said to himself as he looked into the water. “I mean, I’m a highly trained martial artist. How could I lose to something so mindless?”

He swatted the water with his free hand as Cath and Splinter came over to him to see if he was okay.

“You are very intelligent, Donatello.” Splinter told him. “But in a fight, you cannot be up here.”

He pointed to his head as he said that.

“Sensei’s right, Donnie.” Cath agreed as she sat down next to him. “Sometimes, you think too much, and that’s not good during a fight.”

“But I just don’t understand how you can fight without thinking.” Donnie argued, still not getting it.

Cath helped Donnie stand up as they both faced Splinter. They then saw Mikey strutting over to them, listening to music on his headphones while dancing to the beat.

“Observe.” Splinter told Donnie.

When Mikey got close enough to Splinter, he tried to punch Mikey, but Mikey dodged it by ducking under him. He then tried to chop Mikey, but he did a backflip, before trying to punch him, but Mikey caught Splinter’s punch with his hand. Donnie and Cath stared in surprise as Splinter released his fist from Mikey’s grip and turned back to them.

“You see?” Splinter asked. “Michelangelo does not think.”

Mikey took off his headphones so he could listen. “Thank you.” He said, thinking it was a compliment.

“You’re welcome.” Splinter replied.

Mikey walked off, but then Splinter tripped him with his tail, sending Mikey flying onto a bean bag chair.

“You must find the space between your thoughts and learn to live there.” Splinter explained. “That’s what Michelangelo does.”

“True, but Mikey’s got a lot more space between his thoughts than I do.” Donnie argued. “And so does Cath.”

“At least I’m a lot smarter than Mikey.” Cath pointed out.

Mikey then picked something up off of the floor. “Ooh, a pepperoni!” He exclaimed happily, before eating it.

“See what I mean?” Cath asked.

“Yes, well, Michelangelo has his challenges too.” Splinter said. “And so do you, Catharina.”

Cath put a hand on Donnie’s shoulder. “Donnie, you’re smart, in your own way.” She told him gently.

Donnie pondered about what both she and Splinter had said.

On the couch, April was reading something on her laptop when something caught her eye, making her gasp.

“Guys, I think I found something.” She told the Turtles.

Mikey and Leo, who were sparring, Donnie and Cath, who sat down watching them, and Elisa, who was meditating, all turned to her. They then all gathered around April, except Raph, who was reading a comic book, and then put it down so he could pay attention.

“What is it, April?” Elisa asked as she, Leo, and Donnie sat down next to her.

“These notes are hard to follow, but it looks like Rockwell was able to modify the mutagen.” April explained.

“Is that even possible?” Cath inquired.

“Yeah, why would he do that?” Leo asked.

“I’m not sure, but he thought he could use it to create a neurochemical that would temporarily give someone psychic abilities.” April explained, showing the Turtles a simulation of a needle being injected into a man’s brain, before a soundwave emerged from his forehead.

“Meaning?” Raph asked.

“That monkey Dr. Falco and Rockwell were experimenting on, he was probably a psychic from that serum they injected into him.” Cath clarified.

“Not necessarily.” April argued. “It was more like he was reading our emotions. After all, he was only hostile when Donnie and Cath were hostile.”

“Hey, I didn’t know he was hostile, brah!” Cath defended. “I was just defending myself!”

“Yeah, well next time I’ll be sure to think friendly thoughts while I’m beating a little sunshine into him.” Donnie swore, punching his fist into his palm, but winced when he realized that it was still sore. “Ow.”

“Okay, we need to track him down before he attacks someone else.” Leo decided. “Let’s go up to the surface, spread out, and search.”

“How are we gonna stay in contact?” Raph asked, pointing out the obvious.

“I have a little something that might help.” Donnie said, standing up, but once again winced from the pain and sat back down.

“I’ll take it from here, bro.” Cath offered, standing up. “Ladies and Gentlemen—and April—”

Donnie was a little miffed that his sister was referring to his crush by name.

“I give you…” Cath began, before bringing out a shell-shaped device resembling an iPhone. “The T-Phone!”

“Brah, I’m in charge of naming stuff.” Mikey said, offended that Cath was stealing his schtick. “I would’ve called it… The T-Phone.”

The others deadpanned at Mikey for his redundancy.

“I just said that.” Cath said sarcastically.

“Yeah, but not the way I would’ve said it.” Mikey complained.

Raph then smacked Mikey on the head.

“Ow!” Mikey yelped as he was knocked out of the way.

“So what’s so special about it?” Elisa asked as Cath handed everyone their new T-Phones.

“The T-Phone is a much better improvement over the T-Pod Mikey ‘lost.’” Cath explained, sending Mikey the stink eye as she said that last part.

“Are you ever gonna let that go?” Mikey asked annoyed as he rubbed his sore spot.

“No!” His siblings and April all shouted in unison.

“Anyways…” Cath went on. “The T-Phone gives us much clearer communication, both on an international level and an intergalactic level, so we’ll always stay in touch.”

Donnie then scooted over to April with his T-Phone in hand. “And April, if you give me your cell number, Cath and I can patch you into our network.” He suggested.

“Sweet!” April said with a smile, taking it. She then pressed some buttons onto the phone, before giving it back to Donnie, who laughed giddily.

“Ha! See that?” He bragged to his siblings. “I just got her number.”

“Her number’s on the fridge, you dork.” Raph told him as Elisa rolled her eyes.

Donnie facepalmed himself with his good hand after he realized this.

The next night, April and the Turtles, except Donnie, who had to stay behind in the lair because of his injuries on Cath’s orders, were searching the streets for the monkey. April ran down through Chinatown as she got out her iPhone and put it to her mouth.

“Guys, someone just spotted the monkey on Bleecker.” She reported as she stopped.

“Got it.” Elisa replied into her new T-Phone, as the screen split into two, showing her on the left and Raph on the right. “How are you doing, Raph?”

“I think I’m hot on his trail.” Raph, who was standing on a rooftop, reported, before jumping down and doing some backflips.

The split screen disappeared as Raph ran along the rooftop.

“Mikey, the monkey is headed your way!” Leo informed Mikey urgently through his T-Phone.

Raph then stopped and saw the monkey jump down from the awning of a jewelry store onto another street below.

“I’ve got eyes on him.” He informed the others. “He’s headed south on Delancey!”

“I’m on Houston!” Cath said from another rooftop, before she spotted the monkey running through the streets. “I’ll try to cut him off!”

She then ran along the rooftops as she followed after the monkey, but couldn’t see him anywhere.

“Where’d he go?” Cath wondered.

The monkey was hiding behind the wall of a building, out of view of the Turtles so they couldn’t find him, then climbed up a fire escape.

“He changed direction.” Leo realized, before he called Mikey.

On another fire escape, Mikey was playing a game on his T-Phone when he got Leo’s message.

“Mikey, the monkey is heading your way!” The message said.

Mikey panicked and almost dropped his T-Phone, but quickly caught it as he saw the monkey turning left onto another street.

“I’m on it!” Mikey said determinedly.

He then jumped down from the fire escape and hopped on his skateboard as he chased after the monkey. Then he got out his Kusarigama and threw it at the monkey, but the monkey dodged it and it accidentally wrapped around a lamppost instead. Mikey screamed as he crashed into the lamppost, before falling on the ground on his back.

Raph jumped down from a building and chased the monkey through the streets, but he was too fast, jumping over walls and swinging from lamppost to tree, making it impossible for Raph to keep up with him. Leo then jumped down and joined Raph as the monkey ran down a side street, accidentally crashing into Mikey, who happened to be skating by.

“Whoa!” Mikey exclaimed. “Watch it!”

He then raced after the monkey, but the monkey quickly got away.

The five Turtles and April then regrouped under another lamppost in an empty street. (Elisa was between Mikey and Raph, while Cath took Donnie’s normal spot between Raph and Leo, since Donnie wasn’t with them.)

“Anybody see where he went?” Leo asked.

“I got zilch, brah.” Cath reported.

“Nada.” Elisa shook her head.

“I thought he went that way.” Raph claimed, pointing to his left.

“No, it was this way!” Cath argued, pointing to her right.

“Here, monkey, monkey, monkey, monkey!” Mikey called as his siblings started arguing.

April then walked over to a nearby dumpster and opened it, finding the monkey inside. He had his hands over his head as he panted heavily, and then April reached her hand into the dumpster and offered it to him. The monkey took April’s hand and slowly climbed out of the dumpster, before it closed, and then Mikey wrapped his Kusarigama around the monkey, catching him.

“Ha-ha!” Mikey laughed. “Gotcha that time!”

“Great, we got the monkey. Now what?” Raph asked.

“Yeah, we’re not getting any closer to finding Dr. Rockwell.” Elisa agreed.

April slowly approached the monkey, but he roared in her face, and then April looked into his eyes, making her realize that the monkey was Dr. Rockwell.

“Actually, guys, I think we’re a lot closer than you thought.” She told the Turtles, turning to them.

“What?” Cath asked. “How?”

“I think this is Dr. Rockwell!” April said, gesturing to the monkey.

The five Turtles stared at April and the monkey in shock.

Later, April and the Turtles had taken Rockwell back to Dr. Falco’s laboratory. Inside, Rockwell was strapped to the dentist chair, screeching and howling madly, when Dr. Falco injected him with some kind of needle, calming him down slightly.

“There.” Dr. Falco sighed, before throwing the needle away. “That should calm him down a little. Poor Rockwell.”

“Is there any way to get him back to normal?” April asked hopefully.

“I wouldn’t even know where to begin.” Dr. Falco replied as he stroked Rockwell’s head. “But I’ll see if there’s a way to give him some semblance of a normal life.”

April and Cath looked at each other skeptically.

Back in the lair, April, Cath, Donnie, and Mikey were sitting around the kitchen table, while Leo stood at the end of it, thinking. Mikey was playing a game on his T-Phone, while Cath was talking to Donnie about what they learned about Rockwell as Donnie, whose arm was now fully healed, was working on his computer.

“So you’re saying that monkey really is Rockwell?” Donnie asked, although he wasn’t really paying attention.

“That’s what we found out, brah.” Cath answered. “And would it kill you to stick your nose out of that PC once in a while and actually talk to me?”

“Well, excuse me!” Donnie said offended as he turned to Cath. “Since I’ve been sidelined no thanks to that monkey injuring me, I thought I’d be useful by helping you find a lead on how Rockwell was mutated into that monkey in the first place.”

“And what did you find?” Cath asked.

“So far, nothing.” Donnie replied.

“Great.” Cath sighed. “So far, we’re not much closer to finding April’s dad.” She then turned to April with an apologetic look on her face. “I’m sorry, April.”

“It’s okay, Cath.” April assured. “We’ll find my dad. Eventually.”

They then heard Mikey groan after losing a life on one of the levels on his game.

“Man, this asteroid field is tough.” He muttered to himself. “I just can’t beat it.”

“Ignore him.” Cath advised April. “He’s just still trying to figure out the T-Phone’s features.”

April nodded in understanding.

Raph and Elisa then walked into the kitchen, each carrying a pizza box over their shoulders.

“Pizza’s here!” Raph called.

“So come and get it while it’s still hot!” Elisa added as they set the boxes down on the table.

The others opened the boxes and began eating the pizza, but Mikey was still focused on his game. However, he soon caught a whiff of it, stopped playing, and leaned over the box Raph set down.

“Must eat pizza.” Mikey drooled, but then he continued playing his game. “But can’t stop playing.”

He rapidly switched back and forth between the two things, trying to decide what to do first. “But must eat pizza.” He said. “But can’t stop playing! But must eat pizza!”

Mikey screamed in agony over his indecisiveness, before he dove into the pizza box face-first. He scooped a piece of pizza into his mouth, then quickly chewed on it and swallowed it as he continued playing his game, as Leo, Elisa, and April watched.

“Well, that’s one way to eat pizza and play a game at the same time.” Elisa let out.

“Again, April, we’re sorry we hit another dead end in our search for your dad.” Leo apologized.

“No need to be sorry.” April assured. “Everything we learn about the Kraang is just another piece of the puzzle.”

“Yeah, but psychic research?” Leo questioned as he put a hand on his chin. “This is one weird puzzle.”

“Tell me about it.” Elisa sighed. “Good thing Cath and Donnie are the brains of our family.”

“True.” Leo agreed.

Splinter then walked over to April. “I am curious, April.” He said. “How did you know the monkey was really a human?”

“I don’t know.” April replied honestly. “Sometimes I just get a feeling about things.”

“A feeling?” Splinter inquired. “Hm. Interesting.”

He then walked off, and then Leo and Elisa noticed that Donnie was still working on his laptop.

“Hey, Donnie, how come you’re not eating?” Leo asked.

“What?” Donnie asked, before turning to his siblings. “Oh, I’m not hungry.”

“But you have to eat sometime.” Elisa argued.

“Sorry, it’s just something’s been bothering me.” Donnie explained. “Falco said that Rockwell was experimenting on a monkey, but then Cath said that the monkey was really Rockwell.”

“You weren’t there.” Elisa pointed out. “So how can you know?”

“Well, according to these notes, he never had a monkey in his lab.” Donnie explained.

“What?” Elisa asked as she walked over to Donnie and leaned into his computer screen.

“Yeah, he was just using samples of monkey DNA.” Donnie explained, showing Elisa a screen with monkey DNA and a picture of a monkey next to it.

“We’re still not following you.” Leo said, confused.

“If Rockwell didn’t have a monkey, then what could have broken out of that cage?” Cath asked. “That’s what Donnie is getting at.”

“Then it must have been Rockwell!” Raph realized.

“Which means that Falco put him there and he’s been lying this whole time!” Donnie confirmed.

“I can’t believe it!” Cath exclaimed, feeling betrayed. “This whole time!”

“Well, then, what are we gonna do about it?” Elisa asked as Donnie and Cath looked at each other, both thinking the same thing, and then Raph looked at Elisa, who then looked at Leo, who then looked at his brainy siblings.

Meanwhile, in Dr. Falco’s lab, Falco approached Rockwell, who was now asleep in the chair, and was holding another needle. Falco injected the needle into Rockwell, who screeched and howled in pain.

“Oh, stop struggling, Tyler.” Falco said unsympathetically. “You were always so dramatic.”

Falco then injected another needle into himself, this one containing some kind of psychic serum. He then laughed evilly as his psychic powers began to manifest. However, he then turned to see the six Turtles standing in front of him, looking mad at him for lying to their faces, especially Donnie and Cath. (Cath stood between Donnie and Mikey and Elisa was on Raph’s left.)

“All right, Falco!” Leo said accusingly. “We’ve had enough of your-”

“Do not say ‘monkeying around.’” Raph interrupted, expecting a pun.

“I wasn’t going to.” Leo insisted.

“Yes, you were.” Falco argued, approaching them.

“It’s over, Falco!” Donnie snapped, pointing at him.

“Yeah! We know what you did to Rockwell!” Cath agreed. “So why don’t you just tell us the truth?”

“If you think I mutated him, you’re wrong.” Falco said innocently, but the Turtles weren’t falling for it. “I merely used him as a guinea pig.”

“Well, it didn’t work.” Mikey scoffed. “You turned him into a monkey!”

Donnie, Cath, and Leo looked at Mikey bemused.

“The psychic neurochemical I extracted from his mutant brain is changing me.” Falco explained evilly. “Your minds are opening up to me!”

“So this was your plan all along.” Donnie realized.

“Of course.” Falco confirmed arrogantly. “No man can defeat you when you know his every thought.”

“Oh, really?” Raph countered sarcastically. “Then you must know I’m gonna smack-”

“Smack the white of my lab coat?” Falco questioned, like he knew what Raph was going to say, catching him off-guard, before he chuckled evilly. “How humorous!”

“It’s like he knows our every thought!” Elisa exclaimed.

“Ah, it’s just a lucky guess, that’s all!” Raph growled, before charging at Falco, who released a wave from his brain, slowing time down briefly. He then moved out of the way before Raph could kick him, and then time sped up again.

“Whoa!” Cath and Elisa exclaimed in unison.

“What?!” Raph hissed.

Falco then dared Raph to come at him again. Taking it as a challenge, Raph charged at Falco again, sending multiple punches and kicks at him, but Falco kept dodging Raph’s attacks, before stopping for a minute to tsk cheekily at Raph. Raph then tried to kick Falco again, but Falco snuck up behind Raph, took one of his Sais out of his belt, and hit him in the face with it. He then kicked Raph in the face, sending him rolling across the floor to the others, knocking him into Mikey, Donnie, and Cath, who all fell to the floor with him. Leo then snuck up behind Falco and tried to slice him with his katanas, but Falco effortlessly dodged them. Elisa then tried to hit him with her Kusari-fundo, but Falco caught it and spun her into Leo. The others got back up just in time to see Falco easily besting their siblings in combat.

“Whoa!” Mikey exclaimed in awe. “It’s like he’s a psychic!”

“He is a psychic, shell brain.” Donnie said sarcastically.

“He literally just said that a minute ago.” Cath pointed out.

“Oh, yeah.” Mikey realized stupidly, before he began imitating Falco. “I kinda tuned out when he did his whole ‘I’m evil, blah, blah, blah’ thing.”

Cath facepalmed at her brother’s stupidity.

Falco kept dodging Leo and Elisa’s attacks, but both Turtles were relentless. However, so was he, and he then blocked Leo’s katana’s with Raph’s Sai, before yanking them out of his hands. Donnie, Cath, and Mikey ducked as Leo’s katanas were lodged into the wall, then looked at each other nervously at the close call, before getting back up. Elisa then came charging at him with her Kusari-fundo, bur Falco once again used Raph’s Sai to yank it out of her hands, before knocking her into Leo, sending them both to the floor as the others watched.

“How are we going to defeat him if he can read our minds?” Donnie asked.

“Think, Donnie!” Cath urged. “Remember what Splinter told us!”

“Yeah! We just have to fight without thinking.” Mikey told him. “No prob. I’m good at this.” He then realized what he just said. “Wait a minute, how do I fight without thinking?” Then he started to panic. “Oh, no! Now I’m thinking about not thinking!”

Falco then snuck up behind Mikey and whacked him on the head with Raph’s Sai, knocking him out.

“A man who can read minds is unstoppable.” He sneered as he approached Donnie and Cath menacingly, who slowly backed away. “Once I dispose of all of you, no one will be able to stand in my way.”

“We’ll see about that!” Donnie retorted as he and Cath both got their weapons out.

Falco used his psychic powers again, slowing Donnie and Cath down, and effortlessly dodged both Turtles’ attacks. He then threw Raph’s Sai at Donnie, who then used his Bō to knock it out of the way. Falco then grabbed Donnie’s Bō and hurled it briefly, sending Donnie flying into the wall, making him drop it.

“Donnie!” Cath cried, before turning back to Falco and glaring angrily at him. She then tried to whack him with her Tonfas, but Falco grabbed one, then used it to knock her back, making Cath drop her other Tonfa. Cath sat up slightly as Falco loomed over her and Donnie, who groaned in pain.

“I really must admire those complex brains of yours.” He complimented sarcastically. “You two must come up with so many ideas. Too bad I can see them all coming.”

After Donnie and Cath got back up, Falco then asked Donnie. “By the way, do you really think you have a chance with April?”

“How do you know about that?” Cath snarled. “That’s none of your business!”

Donnie, however, ignored Falco, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath as he remembered what Splinter taught him. “I can do this.” He said to himself. “Just have to fight without thinking.” He then said “No thinking.” repeatedly to himself.

Falco envisioned multiple holograms of Donnie appearing around him, giving him the idea of what he was going to do, before he laughed evilly.

“Don’t think, just do.” Donnie told himself as he opened his eyes.

He then smirked to himself as he charged at Falco directly, much to Falco’s shock. Falco tried using his psychic powers again, but it was no use, as Donnie had cleared his mind and was acting without thinking. Donnie then kicked Falco into the wall, but then Falco charged back at Donnie, who punched and kicked him into his lab table. Falco got up with a snarl as he turned back to Donnie, before he tried to punch him, but Donnie flipped over him and pushed himself off the wall with his feet, sending a flurry of punches at Falco, who crashed into the cage where he kept the monkey that he used to mutate Rockwell. Falco’s psychic powers diminished and he turned back to normal, before falling unconscious. Donnie then picked up his Bō and put it away, when Cath came up beside him.

“Donnie, that was amazing!” She cheered.

“Yeah, Donnie, nice work.” Raph complimented as he and their siblings surrounded him, Mikey carrying the canister of mutagen he got from the drawer in Falco’s desk.

“Ha! What’d I tell you about those back flips, huh?” Mikey asked, expecting an “I told you so” from Donnie. “Pretty cool, huh?”

Donnie rolled his eyes in annoyance.

“Well, now that we have the ooze,” Cath began, changing the subject, before taking the canister from Mikey. “Let’s see what Falco knows about the Kraang.”

They then turned back to interrogate Falco, but saw that he was gone, having regained consciousness and escaped without them noticing.

“Falco’s gone!” Donnie exclaimed as the six of them ran over to where they saw him last.

Mikey then turned to Rockwell, who was still strapped to the chair. “What do we do about him?” He asked.

Donnie and Cath simply walked over to the chair, and then they both undid the shackles, freeing Rockwell. Rockwell ran over to the window and opened it, before turning back to the Turtles, sending them a grateful look, which they returned with smiles. He then hooted something which they couldn’t understand.

“What’s he trying to say?” Elisa asked.

“I’m no psychic, but I think he’s trying to say ‘thank you.’” Cath explained.

“I was thinking the same thing.” Donnie said in agreement.

Rockwell then jumped out of the window, and the Turtles watched as he disappeared into the night.

“Um, if he reacts to angry thoughts, is New York City really the best place for him?” Raph asked.

They then heard a car horn honking.

“Hey, monkey!” The driver yelled at Rockwell. “Get out of the-”

A bunch of screeching sounds were heard, not just from Rockwell, but also from presumably some other cars that were in the road, making the Turtles cringe.

“I’m sure he’ll be okay.” Leo assured.

“Yeah, ‘cause he’s not our problem anymore.” Elisa agreed. “Come on, let’s go home.”

The others nodded as they walked off.

Meanwhile, in the dojo, Splinter was discussing with April her mysterious ability to tell that Rockwell was really the monkey, April sitting across from Splinter on one of the mats.

“April, it seems that you have a rare gift, a sensitivity I have trained my entire life to develop.” Splinter explained.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get it.” April assured, thinking it was only a temporary thing.

“I did!” Splinter argued. “It just took me a long time.”

“Uh, that’s nothing to be ashamed of.” April said.

Splinter groaned in annoyance, then took a deep breath before he spoke again. “What I am trying to say is that I would like to train you to be a kunoichi, a female ninja.” He explained.

“But aren’t Cath and Elisa female ninjas?” April questioned, confused.

“That is different.” Splinter argued. “To be a kunoichi, you would need to train in the art of ninjitsu that focuses on infiltration, espionage, and assassination. Do you accept?”

“Wow!” April breathed, amazed at the possibilities she could do as a kunoichi. “That’s quite an honor. And I do accept it.” She then thought for a minute about something. “But wait, if I do this, does that mean I can kick everybody’s butt?”

“We don’t believe in using our abilities that way.” Splinter told her firmly.

“Oh—oh, yeah!” April realized. “Me neither. But I could, right?”

“Yes.” Splinter smiled, before looking stern again. “But I warn you. It will be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. It will drain you mentally, physically, and spiritually.”

“Well, can’t be worse than high school.” April shrugged.

She then stood up and walked out of the room, while Splinter sighed to himself, hoping he made the right decision.

Later, after the Turtles got back, Donnie stood casually outside the entrance to his lab, as he was going to try once again to ask April out on a date.

“Hey, April.” He said, leaning against the wall as she walked past, but then stopped to turn to him. “You, uh, wanna hang out tonight?”

“That sounds great, Donnie, but I can’t.” April declined politely. “I’m training with Splinter to be a kunoichi.”

“Oh.” Donnie understood.

He popped briefly into his lab to look at his chart.

“If training with Splinter—ah!” He mumbled to himself.

He then popped back out, before clearing his throat.

“Well, then. Maybe we can train together sometime.” He suggested.

“Sounds great!” April accepted, liking the idea.

She then walked off.

“You see?” Donnie asked Raph and Elisa, who were watching the whole thing, moreso Elisa, as Raph had his face buried in a comic book. “My flowchart is awesome!”

He then laughed victoriously, his arms raised happily, while Raph and Elisa both rolled their eyes in annoyance.

Chapter Text

In Shredder’s lair, Chris Bradford knelt before his master, who was not happy with him for his failed mission to kill the Turtles, nor was he pleased to also learn what they looked like. Shredder stared out the window into the city, before turning to his pupil.

“Hamato Yoshi’s disciples are… Turtles?” He questioned. “And yet they managed to defeat you?”

“Not just Turtles.” Bradford corrected as Xever walked into the room. “Human-sized Turtles. Four boys and two girls. Trained in ninjitsu, and I almost had them.”

“Till you led us right into their trap.” Xever argued, kneeling down next to Bradford. “If you’d let me take them down when I wanted-”

“Then we’d never find Hamato.” Bradford countered, glaring at Xever.

“Silence!” Shredder commanded.

Bradford and Xever stopped arguing and looked up at Shredder. Shredder then walked down towards them and glared at them, Bradford specifically.

“You were such a promising student.” He told Bradford in disappointment, before bringing out a pair of twin blades from his gauntlet, making Bradford nervous. “I expected much more from you.”

Bradford gulped as Shredder pointed the blades at his throat. “Sensei, give me another chance.” He begged. “I will not fail you again.”

Shredder glared harder at Bradford, before lowering his gauntlet and sheathing his blades, relenting.

“No, you won’t.” Shredder assured, before turning to Xever. “Xever, you are in charge.”

Xever smirked with pride, while Bradford was shocked.

“I will not take orders from this gutter trash!” Bradford growled.

“Is that so?” Shredder inquired, bringing out his blades again.

Bradford quickly changed his tune. “Unless you want me to, Master.” He said.

“I’ve already put the word out on the street to watch for the Turtles.” Xever explained. “And when I find them, I’ll peel them out of their shells and drop them at your feet.”

Satisfied, Shredder turned around and walked back up to sit on his throne. Xever then turned around and walked out of the room, followed by Bradford, who was still not happy that Xever was put in charge of this next mission.

Meanwhile, April was standing outside a movie theater, while the Turtles stealthily checked the area to make sure they weren’t followed, which irritated April.

“You guys want to speed it up a little?” She asked, annoyed.

“Are you saying turtles are slow?” Donnie questioned, as he and Cath popped out from behind the ticket counter.

“‘Cause they are.” Cath said.

“That’s a hurtful stereotype.” Mikey said offended as April turned to him, Elisa, and Raph.

“Well, it is the truth.” Cath insisted.

“Trust us, April.” Leo assured, leaning against the wall. “We are better off keeping a low profile. We find people treat us better when they don’t know we exist.”

“Sorry.” April apologized.

“Still, it’d be great if we’d get a little credit for the good we do.” Elisa huffed.

“Well, I’m just so excited to get you guys out of the sewer for a change.” April explained as Donnie kept looking.

“What are you talking about?” Raph questioned. “We go out all the time.”

“Yeah, but tonight you’re gonna do something besides hitting people.” April argued.

“And what would that be, brah?” Cath asked.

“Like, say, maybe trying this new noodle place I found?” April suggested.

“Aww…” Raph groaned, not really looking forward to this.

“Don’t worry.” April reassured them. “You’re gonna love it.”

“And you’re sure we’ll be welcome?” Donnie asked, unsure about this.

“Oh, yeah.” April nodded. “Mr. Murakami doesn’t care what you look like.”

“That’ll be a first.” Elisa muttered under her breath.

“In fact, he won’t even know what you look like.” April explained.

“Why?” Cath asked.

“He’s blind.” April said.

“Awesome!” Mikey smiled, while Cath was concerned.

Raph then whacked Mikey on the head, and then Cath did the same thing for his insensitive comment. Mikey rubbed his head as he glared at his two siblings.

“I mean, for us, obviously.” He corrected himself.

A bunch of grunting and glass shattering noises caught their attention, and then the Turtles and April looked to see a noodle shop being robbed by thugs.

“Hey, what’s going on over there?” Elisa asked.

“Whatever it is, we should probably check it out.” Raph suggested. “Come on!”

The six Turtles and April walked towards the noodle shop, when April stopped and immediately recognized it.

“Oh, no!” She gasped, fearing for the safety of Mr. Murakami inside.

The seven then ran in for a closer look and saw the thugs trashing the shop some more.

“Who are those creeps?” Donnie asked.

“The Purple Dragons.” April explained as the camera showed three thugs with dragon tattoos, wearing dark clothing, and one of them with a purple bandana on their head, making a mess of the shop inside, while the owner, Mr. Murakami, who was an elderly Japanese man, stood behind the counter.

The bandana-wearing Purple Dragon then picked up a Maneki-neko on the counter and threw it across the room, shattering it, before the scene cut back to April and the Turtles.

“They think they own the streets around here.” April scowled.

Inside the shop, one of the Purple Dragons, this one with a black sleeveless shirt and a goatee, approached Mr. Murakami from behind and poked him on the shoulder. Mr. Murakami then picked up a cutting board and used it to whack the thug away, knocking him against the counter. His two buddies laughed at him, angering the thug, who then dashed up to Mr. Murakami and karate-chopped him in the neck, knocking him to the ground. The thug then picked Mr. Murakami up by the throat before dropping him again, as his buddies continued to wreck the shop.

Outside, the Turtles and April saw the commotion and were getting ready to fight.

“So much for not hitting people tonight.” Leo sighed.

“Oh, well.” Raph shrugged with a grin.

“At least we’re getting some action in, am I right?” Elisa asked, but then noticed her siblings’ disapproving stares, except Raph. “Right. Bad idea, Elisa.”

Mikey then walked up to the door of the shop and kicked it open.

“Booyakasha!” He shouted as he and his siblings rolled into the shop, before striking a pose. (Elisa was between Mikey and Raph and Cath was between Raph and Donnie.)

The three Purple Dragons stared at the Turtles, confused.

“All right, let him go.” Leo demanded. “You don’t want any trouble.”

“We, on the other hand, do.” Raph sneered.

“Whoa!” The man with the goatee, whose name was Fong, gasped in surprise. “Those guys were serious. There really are giant Turtles!”

“You’ve heard of us?” Mikey asked mockingly, before turning to his siblings. “Dudes, we’re famous!”

“Not the point here, Mikey!” Elisa pointed out.

“Yeah, that’s bad!” Donnie said in agreement.

“Stay focused, dude!” Cath told him harshly.

“Oh, right.” Mikey sighed as he went back to his pre-battle pose.

“Whatever you are, this neighborhood is ours.” Fong warned the Turtles. “So why don’t you go slithering back to the ocean you came from?”

“Actually, we’re freshwater turtles.” Donnie corrected as he put a hand on his chin. “I suspect that we’re derived from the Diamondback Terrapin, but it’s possible we’re a common box-”

“Don!” Elisa interrupted.

“Not the time, dude.” Cath scowled.

“Get them!” Fong ordered.

The other two Purple Dragons, Sid, who was the bandana-wearing thug, and Tsoi, who also had a goatee, as well as a mustache, charged at the Turtles. Tsoi ran towards Leo while carrying a sledgehammer, but Leo ducked, then Mikey jumped over him and kicked Tsoi, knocking him into a wall. Tsoi growled as he jumped from the wall, trying to hit Mikey with his sledgehammer, who dodged, and then Raph and Elisa jumped up and began to fight him. Before he could hit them, Raph and Elisa both poked Tsoi in the eyes, each one with their fingers, knocking him back, making him fall to the floor and drop his sledgehammer.

Donnie and Cath were then shown facing against Sid. Cath kicked Sid in the face, knocking him back, and then Sid tried to punch Donnie, who ducked and then did a leg sweep, knocking Sid off his feet. As Sid continued to fight the two Turtles, Mikey snuck up to the counter and saw a bowl of ramen just sitting there. He looked at it in wonder, when Sid was knocked over to him, but he knocked him in the head with his fist into Donnie, who then kicked him. Sid was knocked and kicked back by the two Turtles repeatedly, before he clutched his stomach and fell to the floor.

As the Turtles and Purple Dragons continued to fight, April crawled across the floor behind the counter to help Mr. Murakami, who was knocked unconscious. April crawled over to him and gently shook him, when she popped up and saw Tsoi about to hit Mikey with his sledgehammer, while Mikey was eating the bowl of ramen, oblivious to Tsoi sneaking up behind him. April picked up a pot lid and threw it at Tsoi before he could hit Mikey, who finally noticed him as Tsoi hit the floor.

“Huh? Thanks, April!” Mikey said, giving her a thumbs-up.

“You’re welcome.” April replied as she picked up Mr. Murakami and led him to the door. Mr. Murakami finally woke up, but then April saw a bowl flying towards them.

“Duck!” She cried, pulling Mr. Murakami down before the bowl hit the wall, and then leading him out of the shop as Tsoi was kicked into the wall again.

Donnie repeatedly dodged Sid as he tried to whack him with a frying pan, while Leo confronted Fong behind the counter, who was wielding a butcher’s knife. The two circled each other, then Leo dared Fong to come at him. Fong swung the butcher knife, but Leo knocked it out of his hands, then punched Fong into the counter twice, before Leo kicked him onto the counter, knocking him into the wall and making him dizzy. When Fong recovered, he saw Leo in front of him, who picked him up by his shirt and got ready to punch him. Fong winced and closed his eyes, making Leo hesitate, before he lowered his fist and let go of Fong.

“Huh?” Fong asked, confused by Leo’s mercy.

“Get out of here.” Leo hissed in a warning tone.

Fong shoved Leo out of the way as he hopped off the counter.

“Come on.” He said to Sid and Tsoi, before touching their shoulders. “Let’s go.”

Sid and Tsoi stood up and walked out of the shop, then Fong sent the Turtles one last glare before following them.

“This ain’t over, greeny.” He taunted Leo as he ran off.

“‘Greeny?’” Donnie questioned. “Really?”

“I’ve heard of lame insults, but that one’s just ridiculous.” Elisa shook her head.

“I wonder how many brain cells he put to work into that one.” Cath mused, crossing her arms.

Raph, however, wasn’t happy that the Purple Dragons got away, and was even more unhappy that Leo allowed them to escape.

“You just let him go?!” He asked Leo in anger and disbelief. “What the heck was that?”

“They weren’t exactly a threat.” Leo reasoned. “They’d had enough.”

“Dude!” Raph exclaimed. “They were beating up a blind guy! There is no ‘enough.’ Now they’ll think we’re wimps and we don’t have the guts to finish the job.”

“As much as I’d hate to agree with Raph, he’s right on this one.” Elisa admitted. “Nothing justifies robbing and striking a blind person.”

Cath stared at her sister in disbelief.

“What? I can be smart, too!” Elisa defended.

“Wow. That was great, you guys!” April cheered as she led Mr. Murakami back into the shop once they confirmed that the Purple Dragons were gone.

“Thanks, April.” Donnie smiled modestly. “Did you see when I caught the one guy and flipped him onto the counter?”

Mr. Murakami sat down on a stool as April turned to Donnie.

“Did it look cool?” Donnie asked. “I bet it looked cool.”

“The coolest.” April replied.

“You didn’t see it, did you?” Donnie asked, as he could tell that she was lying.

“No, I did not.” April answered, making Donnie sigh in defeat.

“My friends, I’m indebted to you.” Mr. Murakami told the Turtles. “Please, allow me to make you a meal. Free of charge.”

“I think we can allow that.” Raph accepted, before turning to the others. “Right, guys?”

“Right!” His siblings agreed unanimously.

“What is your favorite dish?” Mr. Murakami asked.

The Turtles all knew the answer to that question. “Pizza!” They eagerly answered in unison.

A few minutes later, Mr. Murakami was hard at work behind the counter, trying to make the dish the Turtles requested. He had various pots and pans on the stove that were heating up, then picked one up and shook it briefly and put it back, before adding some seasoning into another. He then flipped a cutting board up, sending some dough flying into the air, before slicing it with a carving knife. The dough then landed back on the cutting board, cut up into pieces. Cath, Donnie, and Mikey watched while sitting at the counter, amazed.

“Murakami-san, that was awesome!” Donnie commented.

“You’re like a ninja, but for food.” Mikey added.

Mr. Murakami then placed six plates down in front of the Turtles, who looking at them questioningly.

“Hai! Douzo.” He announced. “Pizza gyoza!”

“Pizza gyoza?” April questioned.

The Turtles stared at their plates, while Elisa picked at hers. (Cath was at the end on Donnie’s right and Elisa was at the other end on Raph’s left.)

“What’s gyoza?” Elisa questioned.

“Oh, gyoza is a type of Japanese dumpling, but unlike the Chinese dumpling, it focuses more on the filling than the dough.” Cath explained.

“Tabemasho.” Mr. Murakami told the Turtles.

Elisa shrugged as she picked a gyoza up with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, and then the others followed suit. Their eyes became blank and popped off their heads, and then they appeared back on as they were instantly won over by its flavor.

“Mmm.” Leo hummed.

“Wow!” Raph exclaimed, impressed.

“Delish!” Mikey smiled.

“You said it, dude.” Cath smirked.

“It’s like I got a one-way ticket to Flavorville.” Donnie said.

“Same here, Don.” Elisa agreed as she continued to wolf her gyoza down.

April, who was sitting across from Donnie, then lifted up the bowl Mikey ate from earlier during the fight with the Purple Dragons.

“This is really good too, you know.” She told Donnie.

“Yeah, but not as good as this!” Elisa argued, shoving another gyoza into her mouth.

The Turtles continued to dig into their meals, when Leo suddenly remembered something and turned to Mr. Murakami.

“Uh, Murakami-san, do the Purple Dragons come around a lot?” He asked.

Mr. Murakami sighed. “Yes.” He answered. “They demand protection money but I refuse to pay.”

“That’s awful!” Cath gasped.

“They will surely return.” Mr. Murakami sighed sadly.

“Well, they wouldn’t if somebody hadn’t wimped out.” Raph said, glaring at Leo, who looked down in shame.

Mikey, who finished his pizza gyoza, noticed that Leo still hadn’t eaten all of his and snatched them from him using his chopsticks. Leo noticed that his pizza gyoza was gone and turned to his right to see Mikey chewing on it. Leo sent Mikey a glare, but Mikey didn’t care and kept on chewing, before he swallowed it and sent Leo a sheepish grin.

Later, in the lair, Mikey, Donnie, and Elisa were lounging about in the living room, Elisa playing a handheld video game, while Mikey and Donnie were both reading a comic books, and Leo was aggressively punching and kicking a practice dummy that was over by the river entrance, still mad at himself for allowing the Purple Dragons to escape. Cath stood by him and watched in concern as Leo kept kicking and punching the dummy repeatedly.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Cath yelled, walking up to Leo and restraining him. “Don’t you think you ought to ease up a little, Leo?”

“She does have a point, you know.” Raph agreed as he popped out from behind the dummy. “I think this guy’s had enough, Leo. You’d better let him go.”

“I get it.” Leo sighed. “You’re making fun of me for not mercilessly pummeling a helpless man.”

“Yes, I am.” Raph replied. “You showed weakness.”

“No, he’s not.” Cath argued in Leo’s defense. “If you recall, he was merciless, too.”

“Yes, I am.” Raph insisted, poking Leo’s stomach, which annoyed him. “Leo showed weakness. Those guys are merciless, and they only understand one language.”

“Chinese?” Mikey asked innocently, looking up from his comic.

Raph then jumped over to Mikey and got in his face.

“No. Fists.” He replied sarcastically as he clenched his fists, then he grabbed Mikey and threatened to punch him.

“What about feet?” Mikey asked, lifting his foot up and wiggling his toes.

Raph sighed and let go of Mikey. “They understand feet.” He said.

“Uh, no they don’t.” Elisa cut in, pausing her video game.

“Yeah, that would make them bilingual.” Donnie added, making Raph turn to them.

“Argh!” Raph growled, putting his hands on his head. “The point is we can’t go soft on them.”

Elisa opened her mouth to say something, but closed it when they heard Splinter enter the room.

“To show mercy is not soft.” He quoted as he approached them. “It is a sign of true strength.”

“But, Sensei, they’re criminals.” Raph argued. “Criminals that Leo let get away. This is war!”

“A Daimyo of the 16^th century once said, ‘in times of peace, never forget the possibility of war.’” Splinter quoted. “‘In times of war, never forget compassion.’”

Raph was confused by Splinter’s statement. “I’m guessing that guy lost a lot of wars.” He muttered to himself.

Provoked by Raph’s comment, Splinter decided to take a more direct approach. He lifted his walking stick up and pointed it at Raph’s face.

“You see?” Splinter asked Raph. “Mercy.”

He then swung his stick into Raph, hitting him in the chest.

“Ow!” Raph moaned. “Okay, look. Compassion is great. But the Purple Dragons are not gonna leave Murakami alone.”

“So we’ll track down the Dragons and make sure they got the message.” Cath said, having heard the whole thing.

“And if they didn’t, we’ll send them one.” Leo sneered, punching his fist into his palm. “Special delivery.”

“Was that meant to sound tough or stupid?” Raph asked Leo.

“How are we gonna track someone down when we can’t talk to anybody?” Donnie asked.

“Yeah, New York City’s home to over 8.3 million people.” Elisa agreed. “It’ll be impossible to find where the Purple Dragons are!”

The Turtles and Splinter looked amongst each other.

“I think I have an idea.” Cath said, breaking the silence.

The following night, a man was sweeping the outside of his store with a broom, when April tapped him on the shoulder, getting his attention. April made sure no one else was around before speaking to him.

“I’m looking for the Purple Dragons.” She told the shop owner.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The shop owner shook his head.

“Don’t worry, I can protect you.” April whispered. “I’m an undercover cop.”

“You look like you’re 16.” The shop owner argued.

“I know.” April conceded, leaning against a fish stall. “I’m really good at this.”

Suddenly, the stall gave way and all the fish spilled out onto the sidewalk.

“Whoa!” April gasped.

She then looked back at the shop owner and grinned nervously.

“Let me see a badge.” He told April.

“Are you crazy?” April asked. “I can’t carry a badge. That would blow my cover.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” The shop owner shrugged as April smirked.

Meanwhile, the Turtles were standing on a rooftop overlooking a tattoo parlor named “Old Chinatown Tattoo Company,” having received the information from April on their T-Phones.

“April said this was the place.” Leo said to the others.

“A tattoo parlor?” Elisa questioned.

“Cool!” Mikey said eagerly. “Can we get tattoos too? I wanna get one of my face on my face.”

Mikey flipped his hand up as his face temporarily changed to the one of his 1987 counterpart, then flipped it back down as the face disappeared.

“It’ll be like I’m wearing a mask and the mask is me.” Mikey reasoned.

The others stared at him bemused.

“I just blew your minds, right?” Mikey asked with a smirk, crossing his arms.

“You know they use needles for that.” Donnie pointed out.

“And we’re not here to get tattoos, dude.” Cath reminded Mikey.

“Can it, dorks.” Raph interrupted. “There he is.”

The six Turtles leaned over the side of the building and saw Fong exiting the tattoo parlor. Fong then turned left and walked down a street, as the Turtles followed him while jumping over the rooftops. They eventually followed Fong to a fortune cookie factory, and watched from a rooftop as he went inside.

Inside the factory, Fong walked up a set of stairs towards the second floor, where Bradford, Xever, Sid, and Tsoi were. Sid and Tsoi sat at a table, while Bradford and Xever stood away from them. Fong walked past his buddies and approached Bradford and Xever.

“We saw that gang of turtles you were looking for.” He explained. “And we’ll tell you where, for a price.”

Suddenly, the Turtles burst through the window and got out their weapons, before they landed and faced Bradford, Xever, and Fong. Sid and Tsoi stood up from their table as they faced the six Turtles.

“Freeze, dirt bags.” Leo hissed.

Bradford and Xever then walked past Fong and stood in front of the Turtles.

“Uh-oh.” Leo gulped.

“I think we can find them ourselves.” Xever told Fong with a smirk.

Mikey immediately recognized Bradford and gasped. “Oh, man. This is awkward.” He muttered. “It’s Chris Bradford, my ex-friend!”

“Mikey, he was never your friend to begin with!” Elisa snapped, before turning to Xever. “And it looks like that other guy is with him too.”

“The name is Xever.” Xever introduced himself to the Turtles as he brought out his knife. “So you don’t forget, I’ll write it on your shells…”

Xever got out another knife and twirled them both around, then stopped as he held them both up with an evil smirk.

“With these.” He finished.

The two sides started fighting, and Sid was kicked away from the action, landing on a crane hook, which hung him up by his jacket. Sid flew all around the room, before he landed on the fortune cookie-making machine on his back, then fell to the ground.

Back on the second floor, Fong tried to sneak up behind Leo, who dodged his attacks and kicked him into a wall. Fong ran into the wall face-first, then turned around as Leo pointed one of his katanas at him.

“You’re making me sorry I let you go.” Leo sneered.

Xever then rushed forward and slashed his knives at Leo, who fell down the stairs to the first floor, crashing into some boxes.

“Leo!” Cath cried, rushing down the stairs to help him.

Leo then saw Xever jumping down from the second floor to attack him again, but then he rolled out of the way under a conveyor belt. Xever then landed on the conveyor belt on one hand and kicked Leo in the head repeatedly with his feet, making him dizzy. Raph and Cath then jumped down and tackled Xever, pushing him out of the way. Xever threw Cath off of him and tried to push Raph into a wall, but Raph landed on it and jumped down and landed on the conveyor belt, before twirling his Sais and striking a pose. Xever looked back to see Leo and Cath also standing behind him on the conveyor belt with their weapons ready. He twirled his knives around a couple times as he got ready to fight them.

With the others, Mikey tried to run away from Tsoi, who tried to hit him with his sledgehammer. He dodged it a few times, then jumped up onto the fortune cookie mascot statue and blew a raspberry at Tsoi. On the second floor, Donnie and Elisa were both fighting Bradford. Donnie tried to whack Bradford with his Bō, but Bradford dodged it repeatedly, then knocked it out of Donnie’s hands before kicking and punching him a few times. Elisa threw her Kusari-fundo at Bradford, but he caught it with his hand and pulled her closer, before throwing her onto the ground next to her brother. Mikey saw his siblings getting defeated and glared at Bradford as he lifted Donnie up. He then twirled his Kusarigama and charged at Bradford, but Bradford sensed it and blocked it with his hand, then grabbed Mikey as well and jumped down with them from the second floor onto the first.

Suddenly, dozens of Foot Ninjas burst through the walls on either side. Leo, Raph, and Cath gaped as they saw them come through. Leo then looked around and saw that he and his siblings were surrounded by Bradford, Xever, and the Foot Ninjas.

“Turtles, fall back!” He ordered.

“We’re giving up?” Raph questioned, shocked and angered by Leo’s order. “Again?! Are you kidding me?!”

“Yes!” Leo answered sarcastically, putting his katanas away as the Foot Ninjas started throwing shurikens at them. “It’s all part of my hilarious ‘let’s all live’ routine.”

“I’m all for that.” Cath agreed. “We barely survived these clowns once before.”

The three then jumped up to the second floor, followed by Donnie and Mikey. Elisa recovered and saw her siblings making their escape.

“Hey, wait for me!” She called, running after them.

The six Turtles jumped out of the same window they came in, and Xever got there just as they escaped.

“Hey!” He yelled angrily. “Stay and fight, you cold-blooded cowards!”

Back in the lair, the Turtles were sprawled out all over the living room. Leo, Donnie, Mikey, and the girls laid on the couch, while Raph sat down in a fetal position by the dummy Leo was punching the other day, all of them exhausted from all the fighting they just went through. After a few minutes of silence, Raph spoke up.

“Man, could that fight have been any more embarrassing?” He griped, before he stood up and began punching the dummy lightly.

“Sure.” Mikey replied. “We could have been hit in the face with pies.” But he quickly shut up when he saw Raph growling at him.

“It’s called fighting smart, Raph.” Leo reasoned, standing up and walking over to him. “The Purple Dragons have Bradford and Xever on their side now. Last time, we barely beat those guys.”

“Yeah, because they’re willing to fight to the finish.” Raph argued, marching up to Leo. “The only way to beat them is to be just as ruthless as they are.”

“Raphael, this Xever can cross lines that you won’t.” Splinter said, walking up behind Leo. “This may make him dangerous, but it does not make him strong.”

“But Xever wins fights.” Raph argued. “Isn’t that what matters? And he never shows anyone mercy.”

Raph crossed his arms indignantly, while Leo began to think about what both Splinter and Raph said, feeling uncertain.

Meanwhile, at the factory, Fong was being beaten down by Xever, who was furious at him for leading the Turtles to their hideout.

“Please, please!” Fong begged. “I helped you find the Turtles, didn’t I?”

Xever picked Fong up by the shirt. “Idiota!” He snarled. “You led them to our hideout.”

Xever then smashed Fong’s head through the mascot statue, face-first, when Bradford walked up behind him.

“So much for your street connections.” Bradford scoffed, leaning against the conveyor belt. “You really think these common hoodlums can tell us anything useful?”

“They’d better.” Xever growled, before pulling Fong out of the statue. “Where’d you see those turtles?”

“The east village!” Fong explained desperately. “Some old man’s noodle shop. Murakami’s. We were roughing him up and they jumped in to protect him.”

“Oh, did they?” Xever sneered, before dropping Fong, who crawled away, and then turned to Bradford.

“Big deal.” Bradford scoffed. “How are you going to make sure the Turtles don’t get away again?”

“Easy.” Xever replied with a smirk. “I’ll give them a reason to stay.”

Later, April was pacing outside Mr. Murakami’s noodle shop, waiting for the Turtles, who then showed up and landed behind her. (Cath was between Donnie and Raph and Elisa was on Raph’s right.)

“April, what’s wrong?” Leo asked.

“It’s Murakami.” April explained, leading them into the restaurant, which was completely empty, save for a knife that was lodged into the wall, with a piece of paper hanging on it.

“Sweet!” Mikey grinned. “Free knife.”

Cath then whacked him on the head. “Not the knife, dude!” She scowled. “The note.”

Donnie ripped the note out from the knife and began to read it.

“‘No more running. If you want the old man, meet us on the roof of the fortune cookie factory.’” He read.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Raph asked.

“Yeah, let’s bust on over to that factory, kick ninja butt, and save Murakami!” Elisa exclaimed.

“Not so fast.” Leo argued. “Think, guys.”

“Now there’s two words that don’t go together.” Donnie whispered to Cath, who chuckled.

“This is obviously a trap.” Leo reasoned.

“And Murakami’s the bait.” Cath added.

“Well, what choice do we have?” Raph argued.

“Yeah, we can’t just leave Murakami all alone.” Elisa agreed.

Leo suddenly smiled, knowing the answer. “Maybe we do need to think more like Xever.” He said.

“Finally!” Elisa let out in irritation.

“But Master Splinter said-” Donnie tried to argue.

“I know.” Leo interrupted. “But Xever crossed the line dragging Murakami into this. He’s got to learn that we can cross that line, too. No more Mr. Nice Turtle.”

“Yes!” Raph cheered, pumping his fist, happy that Leo was finally seeing his side. “I never liked Mr. Nice Turtle.”

“Me neither.” Elisa grinned as she and Raph cracked their knuckles.

Later, the Turtles were standing on a rooftop outside the same tattoo parlor they saw Fong walk out of last night.

“Okay, he’s strong, so speed and stealth are essential.” Leo reminded the others. “Okay, everybody know the plan? Mikey?”

Raph, Donnie, Cath, and Elisa all nodded, while Mikey hesitated before giving Leo his answer.

“Yes.” He said.

“Are you sure?” Leo asked slowly and carefully as he and the others turned to him.

“Yes.” Mikey repeated with a smile.

“Then tell me what it is.” Leo told him, just to make sure he was paying attention.

Mikey thought it over a bit before answering.

“Umm…” He began, before drawing a blank, as he couldn’t remember what the plan was. “Maybe you should go over it again one more time?”

Leo, Donnie, and Raph all groaned in annoyance, while Cath and Elisa both facepalmed.

Later, Bradford, out of his armor, stepped outside an athletic club, when Raph suddenly landed behind him. Bradford turned to him, but then Leo jumped down and landed on top of him, pinning him down. Cath and Elisa also jumped down and pinned Bradford by the arms, to make sure he wouldn’t get away. Mikey then came over with a rope and Donnie some duct tape, and then Mikey tied it around Bradford while Donnie slapped a piece of tape on his mouth. Mikey then pushed Bradford up slightly, so he was kneeling on a garbage can lid, and then Raph threw the rest of the garbage can over Bradford, trapping him. The three eldest Turtles then wrapped a bunch of chains around the can, before Leo put a lock on it, so Bradford wouldn’t get out.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the other side of the line.” Leo said proudly.

“Now I’m definitely gonna need a tat.” Mikey joked, causing Raph to punch him in the arm. “Ow!”

As Raph and Mikey tried to carry the trash can with Bradford in it away, they realized it was pretty heavy, making it hard.

“Dang, this sucker’s heavy.” Raph grunted, trying to keep a good hold on it.

“Here, let me help.” Elisa offered, grabbing the trash can on one of its sides, before the three Turtles set off. However, after their first step, they accidentally dropped the can, which rolled into a wall.

“Sorry.” Mikey apologized sheepishly.

“Stop apologizing!” Elisa snapped.

“Sorry.” Mikey apologized to Raph.

“Don’t apologize to him.” Raph argued.

“I mean, sorry I didn’t drop you harder!” Mikey corrected, yelling at Bradford.

“There you go.” Raph smiled.

“Much better.” Elisa nodded in agreement.

Later, Leo ran down another street while Raph, Elisa, and Mikey followed, rolling the trash can, rather than carrying it.

“Cozy in there?” Raph asked Bradford mockingly.

Bradford could only mumble in response, since his mouth was still gagged.

“Good.” Elisa grinned. “We hope you’re getting too comfortable in there.”

Once they stopped behind a building, the six Turtles peeked out from behind the wall and saw Mr. Murakami hanging from a rope over a ledge on the roof while Xever stood above him.

“Uh-oh, you guys, look.” Donnie said quietly, pointing up.

“Dude, Xever’s a jerk.” Mikey mumbled.

“Even worse than Bradford.” Elisa agreed.

By the time the Turtles made it to the top of the roof, Xever and the Purple Dragons were waiting for them.

“We’re here, Xever.” Leo told him as Donnie and Mikey set Bradford down. “Now, let the noodle man go!”

“Sorry, there’s been a change of plans.” Xever apologized sarcastically.

Six Foot Ninjas jumped up onto the roof in front of Xever.

“Bogus!” Cath complained. “You trying to pull a fast one on us?”

“Calm down, Cath.” Leo told her, before turning back to Xever. “Actually, there’s been another change of plans.”

He gestured to Donnie and Mikey, who nodded and flipped the trash can over, before ripping the chains and lock off of it, releasing Bradford.

“I love it when a change of plans comes together.” Donnie smiled.

“You let our friend go, and we’ll let your friend go.” Leo explained to Xever.

Xever, however, only laughed, confusing the Turtles.

“He’s not my friend.” Xever sneered.

Bradford’s eyes widened, shocked at Xever’s betrayal. The Turtles then glared at Xever as he walked over to Mr. Murakami and started to cut the rope.

“Uh, we’re not kidding.” Leo insisted, but his plea fell on deaf ears as Xever continued to cut the rope. “Okay, s-stop or we’ll toss him!”

Xever stopped and turned to the Turtles briefly. “Go ahead.” He dared, unfazed by Leo’s threat. “It’ll save me the trouble.”

Xever continued to cut the rope, when Leo decided to bring out their secret weapon. “Uh, Raph, Elisa?” He asked.

Raph and Elisa glared angrily at Bradford, who glared back at them, as Raph held him over the ledge.

“Aw, crud.” Raph sighed.

He then tossed Bradford back onto the roof.

“That’s what I thought.” Xever sneered. “Attack!”

The six Foot Ninjas leapt into action, and then the Turtles got out their weapons and charged back at them. Mikey dodged an attack by one’s katana, then jumped down the fire escape, before wrapping his Kusarigama around the Foot Ninja’s leg and pulling him down. Another Foot Ninja jumped down, but Elisa jumped down behind him and yanked his spear out of his hands using her Kusari-fundo. The ninja then turned to face Elisa, who kicked him in the chest with both feet, sending him falling onto the street below.

“Thanks, Ellie.” Mikey said.

“Anytime.” Elisa replied.

The two then got back-to-back as they fought the rest of the Foot Ninjas. Back on the roof, Raph jumped around a Foot Ninja, before kicking another two down, and jumped onto a billboard next to Leo as they continued to fight them. Xever got out a whole bunch of daggers and threw them at Leo and Raph, but they noticed and dodged them. Cath and Donnie then whacked a few more Foot Ninjas off the roof with their weapons when they tried to attack them, before they fist-bumped each other. Suddenly, more Foot Ninjas showed up and ran towards them. Leo jumped down from the billboard and began fighting them, while Raph kicked several more away, before deflecting more of Xever’s daggers with his Sais. As the Turtles continued to fight the Foot Ninjas, Fong snuck up behind Leo and tried to slice him one final time, but Leo saw him charging at him and kicked him, sending Fong to the ground, making him drop his knife, before pointing his katana at him. More Foot Ninjas crawled up the building, and then Bradford, having gotten himself free, grabbed Xever by the arm.

“How could you be so sure they were bluffing?” He asked.

“I wasn’t.” Xever replied as Bradford let go of him.

Bradford scowled as the Turtles continued to fight the Foot Ninjas, until they were surrounded by them.

“All right. Let’s settle the score, pond scum.” Bradford sneered as he took a fighting stance.

“Can’t we talk this out?” Elisa asked hopefully.

“Yeah, we’re the ones who didn’t want to throw you off the roof.” Donnie argued. “It was all Raph’s idea.”

“What?!” Raph exclaimed.

Bradford then charged at the Turtles, trying to punch them, but they all dodged, Mikey jumping up, and resumed fighting the Foot Ninjas. Bradford punched Donnie, sending him flying against the billboard, and then Mikey and Elisa charged at him twirling their weapons. Mikey jumped on Bradford’s back, but he caught one of Mikey’s nunchucks with both his hands and then kicked him into Donnie. Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around Bradford’s arm, but he lifted it up and threw her over to her siblings. Raph then looked at Mr. Murakami and saw the rope beginning to break. He tried to run over to him, but Xever appeared behind him and kicked him down.

“Raph!” Leo cried, before he was kicked by Bradford, landing on his chest.

Bradford tried to stomp on Leo, but Leo rolled away just in time, while simultaneously defeating three more Foot Ninjas. Xever managed to avoid the ninjas Leo defeated and kicked him hard, followed by Bradford punching him, then they both hit Leo together, sending him rolling over to his siblings. The exhausted and beaten Turtles struggled to get back up as Bradford and Xever loomed over them.

“See, Bradford?” Xever chuckled as he brought out his knife. “That is how you catch Turtles. And next, I’ll show you how to filet them.”

“You’d never have caught them without me, and you know it!” Bradford argued, pointing at Xever, unaware that Fong was watching them from the billboard.

“Oh, yes.” Xever sniggered. “What would we have done without your brave leadership from inside the trash can?”

Fong then noticed one of Leo’s dropped katanas, wondering what he should do. Eventually, he went over to the katana, picked it up, and threw it down to Leo, who smiled thankfully, while Fong simply folded his arms and looked away.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me…” Xever began, turning back to the Turtles. “It’s time to cut these Turtles into little pieces.”

Leo then pointed his katana at Xever. “I don’t think so.” He sneered.

He then jumped up and sliced a nearby water tower, causing it to topple over, sending water splashing all over Bradford, Xever, and the Foot Ninjas, who were swept away. The rope holding Mr. Murakami up then broke, but Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around the building and then jumped down and caught Mr. Murakami, saving him.

“I got him!” Elisa shouted.

“Nice save, Elisa.” Leo complimented as the others smiled.

Elisa smiled back at them, before looking down at Mr. Murakami. “Okay, Murakami-san, just don’t look down.” She advised, before correcting herself. “Uh, I mean, listen down, or whatever.”

As the others helped pull them back up, Leo looked over at Fong, who was standing on another rooftop. Fong noticed Leo looking at him and quickly ran away. Leo smiled softly, thinking there might be some good in Fong after all, despite his flaws.

Back at Mr. Murakami’s noodle shop, he was making more pizza gyoza for the Turtles as a sign of gratitude for saving him.

“Accept this token of my gratitude.” He told them, giving the Turtles a whole bag of pizza gyoza. “Pizza gyoza!”

“Awesome!” Donnie smiled, taking the bag. “Thanks, Murakami-san.”

“You’re welcome, Turtle-san.” Mr. Murakami replied, before bowing at the Turtles, who bowed back at him.

“Wait, how did you-?” Cath began, wanting to know how he figured out they were turtles.

“I do have other senses.” Mr. Murakami explained. “Touch, smell.”

The Turtles looked amongst each other, before Mikey lifted up his armpit and sniffed it.

“You don’t think we’re weird and scary?” Leo asked.

“You saved my life. Who am I to complain?” Mr. Murakami said.

Mikey simply walked up and hugged Mr. Murakami, who simply smiled.

In the lair, the Turtles and Splinter were eating the pizza gyoza Mr. Murakami gave them.

“Just try one.” Donnie told April, offering her a piece of gyoza. “Sometimes things that don’t seem like they go together actually make a great couple.” He then realized what he said and corrected himself. “I mean, food.”

“Fine.” April sighed, relenting.

She took the gyoza as Donnie put it in her mouth, then chewed on it before swallowing.

“Whoa!” She exclaimed happily. “These are amazing.”

She then snatched Donnie’s plate from him and began to eat the rest of them, much to his dismay.

“You kids showed your strength today.” Splinter said, proud of his children.

“Yeah, but we almost got beaten.” Raph argued.

“Again.” Elisa muttered under her breath.

“Your strength was mercy.” Splinter explained. “That is why the Purple Dragon helpedyou.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, Sensei.” Elisa admitted. “I guess it does pay off to be a nice guy sometimes.”

Leo then leaned in close to Raph. “Well? Say it.” He said.

“Okay, okay.” Raph sighed. “You were right.”

“Ahh.” Leo sighed happily. “There, see? That wasn’t so-”

“Your wimpiness might not be totally useless.” Raph joked.

“Oh-ho. I’ll show you who’s wimpy.” Leo laughed, taking it as a challenge. “No mercy!”

He then tackled Raph, and the two soon got into a wrestling match. Elisa watched them and got ready to intervene if necessary.

Meanwhile, in Shredder’s lair, Bradford and Xever were kneeling before Shredder, who was sitting on his throne, enraged with them for their failure.

“This is unacceptable.” Shredder growled as he glared at his two subordinates.

“Humble apologies, Master Shredder.” Bradford apologized.

“I swear, next time, we will-” Xever began.

“Enough!” Shredder snapped, before standing up and walking past them.

“I shall deal with Hamato Yoshi’s disciples myself.” Shredder said calmly.

Bradford and Xever stood up as Shredder walked off, before the scene froze.

Chapter Text

During the daytime, April stepped out of her aunt’s apartment building, thinking about her father. She walked down the steps of the building and turned left, then made another left down an alley, when she heard a whooshing sound, making her stop and look around, wondering what it was. The whooshing sound came again, and then April looked up and saw a bird-like mutant standing on the rooftop, screeching. April panicked and ran down the alley, then turned right, as the bird mutant followed her. She then noticed a bank down the street and turned and then ran into it, then sighed in relief, thinking she lost the bird mutant. Suddenly, the bird mutant swooped down and tried to grab April, only to crash into the glass window. It was a half-man, half-pigeon hybrid, it having the body of a man and the head of a pigeon. April stepped out, as the pigeon mutant got up and starred at her while cooing, before it turned around and flew off.

“My life has gotten really weird.” April sighed, shuddering.

Meanwhile, in the Turtles’ dojo, Leo and Raph were sparring as Elisa watched, when Donnie and Cath came over, each of them carrying a bowl of small egg-shaped smoke bombs.

“Hey, guys, check it out!” Donnie called as Leo and Raph paused their training to look at them. “We are about to take our ninjitsu to a whole new level!”

“Cool.” Leo grinned, before he swept Raph under the leg, sending him to the floor on his shell.

“Well, what’d you make?” Elisa asked, facing her brainy siblings.

“Last night, we figured out how to make…” Cath began, before taking a bomb out of the bowl and handing it to Donnie, who then through it on the ground, disappearing in a puff of smoke. Leo and Raph looked around until they saw the smoke appear behind them, and then Donnie emerged.

“…Ninja smoke bombs!” Donnie finished.

“Whoa.” They both let out, impressed.

Donnie then walked over to them.

“Now, to make them, we carefully drill two holes in an eggshell without cracking it, slowly blow out the contents, wait for the inside to dry, then pour in flash powder and seal both holes with wax.” Donnie explained as an accompanying montage of blueprints showed how he and Cath made the smoke bombs.

“Say what?” Elisa asked, confused.

“Were you not paying attention, dude?” Cath asked her sister, annoyed.

“Um, not really, no.” Elisa answered honestly.

“Blah, blah, blah, science, blah, blah.” Raph said dismissively, making a talky-talk hand motion. “Do it again!”

“We can’t.” Cath replied.

“What we’re trying to say is, they take a long time to make.” Donnie explained plain and simple.

“Ah.” Elisa nodded, now getting it.

“So use them sparingly, got it?” Cath advised her siblings.

“I’m making breakfast!” Mikey called from the kitchen. “Who wants omelets?”

“Omelets?” Donnie questioned, before it hit him. “Mikey, don’t!”

Mikey then appeared in another puff of smoke, his face covered in black soot, carrying a bowl full of smoke bombs, thinking they were real eggs due to their shape.

“Uh, I think that was a rotten egg.” Mikey groaned as he coughed up some of the smoke.

“Those aren’t eggs, Mikey.” Donnie shook his head, annoyed at his younger brother as Leo laughed and pointed at him, and so did Elisa, while Raph also shook his head, unamused.

“They’re ninja smoke bombs.” Cath explained, annoyed. “And I think you just found our missing extras.”

“I did?” Mikey asked as his eyes went wide. “Shut up.”

He took out another smoke bomb and threw it to the ground, then appeared sitting on the branch of the bonsai tree.

“This is the best day of my life!” Mikey exclaimed happily, taking out some more bomb and throwing them, teleporting all around the dojo, including hanging upside down at one point.

“Mikey, stop!” Donnie cried.

“We have to save those for battle, remember? They’re not toys!” Cath shouted.

Mikey threw down one last bomb and appeared behind Donnie, who facepalmed, and Cath.

“I love you, guys.” He smiled, wrapping an arm around each of them, before giving Donnie a kiss on the cheek. “Seriously.”

Before Donnie or Cath could scold Mikey for his recklessness, the Turtles suddenly heard April’s voice.

“Guys!” She called, running into the lair. “Guys, you’ll never believe what just happened to me.”

She sat down on the couch as Donnie and Cath approached her.

“All right, April, calm down.” Donnie assured.

“Are you okay, brah?” Cath asked concerningly.

“I am being hunted…” April began, panting, before she caught her breath. “…By a giant pigeon!”

Raph laughed thinking she was joking, while Leo crossed his arms and Mikey and Elisa both glared at Raph, causing him to stop and look serious again.

“Come on, I can’t be the only one who finds that funny, right?” Raph asked defensively.

“It’s not funny, Raph.” Donnie argued, defending April as he and Cath helped her up.

“Yeah, there’s a creature out there who’s trying to hurt April.” Cath said sternly.

“Don’t you mean, my April?” Donnie asked defensively, but after one flat stare from Cath and April, he quickly changed his words around. “I mean, our April. Of course, our April. That’s what I said.”

Cath just sighed in annoyance.

“This is serious.” Mikey said, before taking another smoke bomb out, as he was still holding the bowl. “I’d better go get Splinter.”

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s really necess-” Elisa began, but Mikey threw the smoke bomb before she could finish her sentence. “And you’re already gone.”

Splinter then appeared in the living room, in the exact same spot Mikey vanished.

“Michelangelo said you wanted to see me?” He assumed.

A few minutes later, April was telling Splinter and the Turtles about her encounter with the mutant pigeon, while Raph wasn’t paying attention, as he was reading a comic book. (Elisa and Cath were both between Mikey and Donnie.)

“His talons were razor sharp.” April explained. “He would have torn me to pieces if he hadn’t slammed into the glass.”

Raph laughed again, but quickly stopped when he saw April, his siblings, and his father glaring at him sternly. “Oh, really?” He asked. “Is it just me?”

Splinter then poked Raph in the back of the head with his stick. “Raphael! Clearly April is upset.” He chided his son.

“Yeah, dude, stop being so insensitive.” Mikey scowled.

“How would you like it if that was you out there?” Elisa asked, before turning to April. “Sorry about that, April. Can we get you anything? Maybe a tissue?”

“No, I think I’m okay.” April politely refused.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get her a tissue.” Mikey offered, before throwing another smoke bomb and disappearing again. He then reappeared on Cath’s left. “We don’t have any tissues. Can I make you some soup instead?”

Before Mikey could throw another smoke bomb, Donnie grabbed his arm to stop him from doing so.

“Stop it!” He snapped, taking the smoke bomb off of Mikey’s hands, then turned back to April. “Don’t worry, April, we won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Donnie’s right.” Leo agreed. “We’re gonna set a trap for this pigeon-man and make sure he never bothers you again.”

April smiled gratefully.

“Well, I know what we can use as bait.” Donnie said.

“Bread crumbs!” Mikey cut in, jumping down in front of Donnie, who looked at him weirdly.

“Pigeons eat bread crumbs.” Mikey defended.

“I meant April.” Donnie clarified.

“You’re gonna let him eat April?!” Mikey asked in shock, standing protectively in front of April. “I thought you liked her!”

“Yeah!” April shouted in agreement, though she was a bit put off by Mikey saying that Donnie liked her.

“Whoa. I didn’t know Donnie could get that dark.” Elisa said, disturbed.

“To be honest, neither did I.” Cath admitted.

“No, I meant we use April as bait to lure the pigeon-man to her.” Donnie elaborated, making his siblings sigh in relief.

“Don’t sweat it, April.” Donnie reassured her. “We’ve got your back.”

“All right, mighty mutants, let’s do this.” Leo said determinedly, punching his fist into his palm.

“‘Mighty mutants?’” Raph questioned. “What, ‘dancing dorks’ was already taken?”

Leo hung his head before they all ran for the exit with April in tow, when Splinter suddenly stopped them.

“Wait!” Splinter called, stopping his children and April in their tracks, and then they turned to him as he approached them. “We do not yet know what you are facing. Perhaps you should study your enemy before confronting him.”

“With all due respect, Sensei, it’s just a pigeon.” Leo argued.

“What you know is dangerous to your enemy.” Splinter explained. “What you think you know is dangerous to you.”

He then poked Leo in the chest for emphasis.

“I fear you are all becoming too overconfident.” Splinter explained his worry.

“Sensei, in the last couple of months, we’ve taken down giant spiders, mutant plant creatures, alien robots, and an army of ninjas.” Leo assured, listing the enemies they fought with his fingers, though he had to use his hand to count extra, since they only had three fingers on each hand.

Mikey and Donnie high-threed each other, while Cath and Elisa fist-bumped, and Raph winked with a confident grin to back up Leo’s claim.

“Maybe we’re not overconfident.” Leo continued. “Maybe we’re just that good.”

The Turtles and April left the lair, while Splinter shook his head in annoyance and worry, still thinking his children were getting overconfident in their abilities.

Meanwhile, in Shredder’s lair, Chris Bradford was trying to pet Shredder’s dog, Hachiko, who was growling at him, representing Shredder’s continued aggravation with him and Xever for failing to defeat the Turtles.

“It’s okay, Hachiko.” Bradford assured, kneeling down in front of the dog as Xever watched. “I’m not gonna hurt you.”

He then reached a hand out to pet Hachiko, but Hachiko bit his hand, making Bradford pull his hand back.

“Ow!” Bradford cried, rubbing his hand from the pain.

Shredder then appeared behind Bradford and Xever.

“He is not pleased with you.” He scowled at Bradford, making Bradford stand up, and him and Xever to turn to their master. “Nor am I. I entrusted you both with the task of destroying Splinter and his loathsome Turtles. I spent years molding you in my image, teaching you my darkest secrets, and you shame me with your incompetence.”

Xever chuckled at Bradford’s lecture, only for Shredder to turn to him almost immediately.

“And you!” Shredder sneered pointing at Xever, before getting in his face. “I should have left you to rot in that prison where I found you.”

He then marched up the steps to his throne.

“The Turtles have been lucky so far, but it won’t last forever.” Bradford argued, thinking they could still beat them.

“The next time we meet, I promise you-” Xever began, before Shredder cut him off.

“Enough!” Shredder snapped, turning to them, silencing Xever, before sitting in his throne. “I am weary of your excuses. I will now destroy the Turtles myself.”

That night, April stood alone in an alley, trying to draw out the pigeon-man per Donnie’s instructions.

“Here I am, walking around in the big city.” April said casually, acting. “All alone! Oh, I sure hope no crazy pigeon-man sneaks up on me. That would be the last thing I’d want.”

“What are you doing?” Donnie asked, popping out from behind a dumpster.

“You wanted me to be the beat, right?” April reminded him. “I’m being the bait.”

“That’s not how bait talks.” Donnie argued.

“How do you know how bait talks?” April fired back.

“I know bait doesn’t talk back.” Donnie said flatly.

“Ooh…” The others let out in amusement, coming out from their hiding places, Leo and Elisa inside the dumpster, Mikey on a fire escape, Raph underneath a sewer manhole, and Cath from behind the dumpster with Donnie.

“Oh, no, you didn’t.” Mikey joked, wagging a finger at Donnie.

They then popped back into their hiding places as Donnie chuckled nervously at April, who glared at him in annoyance.

“Just… act natural.” He told her sheepishly, before backing away slowly.

April sighed in irritation, but did what Donnie told her.

“Here I am, acting natural.” She said half-heartedly. “Just totally defenseless against any, I don’t know, hideous mutant pigeon-guy who might happen to be upon me.”

Said mutant pigeon saw her from another rooftop, and then swooped down. April miserably walked off when she heard squawking, and turned to see the pigeon-man flying down towards her, causing her to scream in terror. However, before it could grab her, the pigeon-man was suddenly shocked by an electrical device, fired by Donnie, and then the Turtles except Donnie came out of their hiding spots and pinned the pigeon-man to the ground.

“Now!” Leo ordered as they each held the pigeon-man close to the ground, Leo and Raph by the arms, Cath and Elisa by the back, and Mikey by the legs.

“Okay, okay!” The pigeon-man cried. “Uncle! Uncle! Jeez Louise!”

Donnie then came out, walked up to April while holding a taser in his hand, and stood beside her.

“And you said I wasn’t good bait.” April joked.

“Okay, start talking, pigeon-man.” Leo said to him, although he was no longer holding him down.

“I have a name, you know!” The pigeon-man argued.

“Yeah, and we just don’t care what it is.” Raph replied.

“It’s Pete.” The pigeon-man, now named Pete, said offended.

“Why were you trying to hurt April, Pete?” Leo demanded.

“I didn’t want to hurt her.” Pete swore. “I was just bringing her a message.”

“A message? From whom?” Cath inquired.

“From her father.” Pete answered.

April gasped. “Let him up.” She told the Turtles.

“What was that, April?” Elisa asked. “I didn’t hear you.”

“I said let him go!” April shouted.

“Okay, okay!” Elisa relented as she and the others got up. “You don’t have to yell.”

April then approached Pete, who now stood upright. “Where is my father?” She asked him.

“We were both guests of the Kraang.” Pete explained. “They poured some ooze on me and turned me into this!”

“Oh, that must’ve been horrible.” April said sympathetically. “Being turned into a pigeon.”

“Actually, I started out as a pigeon.” Pete corrected.

“You mean, you’re not really human?” Cath asked.

“No.” Pete shook his head.

“Told you the bread crumbs would’ve worked.” Mikey muttered to himself.

Just then, Pete grabbed Mikey by the shoulders and pulled him in close. “You’ve got bread crumbs?” He asked excitedly, searching Mikey all around, hoping to find some, but Mikey didn’t have any.

“Um, my father?” April asked, wanting to focus on the task at hand.

“Oh, right.” Pete realized, letting go of Mikey, who landed on the ground with a thud.

“Ow!” Mikey cried, landing on his head.

Pete handed a phone to April, who then pressed “play” and watched a video message from her father.

“Something terrible is about to happen.” Kirby spoke on the video. “And I don’t know what, but it’s extremely important that you get out of this city as soon as you can. Save yourself. Remember, I love you.”

The message then ended. April hoped the phone would play more, but that was all it had, making her more worried for her father.

“I love you too, daddy.” She sobbed softly, holding the phone close to her.

“Do you have any idea what he’s talking about?” Leo asked Pete.

“I’m just the messenger.” Pete assured.

“So that’s it?” Cath asked. “Another dead end.”

“We have got to get you out of the city.” Donnie told April.

“I’m not going anywhere without my dad.” April argued.

“But you heard him.” Donnie said back to her. “Something terrible is gonna happen.”

“Donnie’s right.” Cath agreed. “We gotta keep you safe, brah. We don’t want anything to happen to you too, now do we?”

“I don’t care!” April snapped. “I’ll find my father, whatever it takes.”

Cath and Donnie looked at each other, then back at April, seeing she was being serious.

“We’d better hurry. We don’t have much time.” April said urgently.

Leo then turned back to Pete. “Can you tell us where the Kraang are holding him?” He asked.

“I can, but it’s gonna cost you a lot of bread.” Pete replied.

“Oh, come on!” Elisa complained. “What are we, a bakery?”

“We’re talking about actual bread, right?” Leo clarified.

“Yeah.” Pete nodded. “Sourdough.”

“You serious, Leo?!” Elisa exclaimed, not believing what she was hearing, but Leo stared at her, making her sigh. “Ugh, fine! How much?”

“It’s settled, then.” Leo smiled, glad Pete was on their side now.

“Let’s roll!” Mikey declared, using another smoke bomb, much to Leo’s annoyance, unaware that a bunch of Foot Ninjas were watching them from the rooftops. The Foot Ninjas watched the Turtles, April, and Pete disappear, and then they silently ran off.

In Chinatown, Bradford and Xever were searching for the Turtles. Xever picked up a snakehead fish from a tank, which belonged to the owner of the shop April asked for intel on the Purple Dragons just last week, and then he and Bradford looked at it.

“That’s the ugliest thing I have ever seen.” Bradford said, disgusted. “Present company excluded, of course.”

Xever then tossed the fish back to the owner, who struggled to grab it, but managed to get a hold of it, then took it over to a cutting board.

“So, we have a problem.” Bradford said.

“No, you have a problem.” Xever argued with a smug grin.

“We’ve both failed Master Shredder.” Bradford pointed out. “Can’t you live with that shame?”

“If I had the opportunity, I would crush those Turtles like bugs!” Xever growled, clutching his fist.

Bradford’s phone then rang, making him take it out and look at it, and what he saw and/or read made him smile.

“What is that?” Xever asked.

“Opportunity.” Bradford smirked as the owner cut off the head of the fish with a butcher’s knife.

Meanwhile, the Turtles and April arrived at the building where Pete told them April’s father was being held, and they were all standing on the roof. Donnie stood on top of Mikey’s shell as he pushed the fan open, finding a hatch they could use to sneak in and surprise the Kraang.

“Piece of cake.” Donnie smirked.

“Let’s do this!” April grinned.

She was about to run forward when Leo grabbed her by the shoulder, stopping her.

“We need you to wait here, April.” Leo told her.

“Are you crazy?” April asked. “My dad’s in there!”

“Along with who knows how many Kraang.” Leo argued. “This requires stealth and mobility.”

“Just leave it to us, the pros.” Elisa assured cockily.

“I can’t just do nothing.” April argued desperately.

“That’s just it, you won’t be doing nothing.” Cath assured, walking up to April and handing her a rope. “Here, just hold onto this rope, and when we give you the signal, jump down.”

April looked at the rope with reluctance, then back to Cath. “Okay.” She sighed, defeated.

Donnie then jumped down the hatch, followed by the others, Cath going last.

Inside the Kraang’s secret hideout, a Kraangdroid was standing guard, when the Turtles landing on the floor and rolled behind some crates and oil drums. However, Mikey fell on his shell and was within eyesight of the Kraangdroid, but before it could fire on him, Cath jumped down and landed on its back, then beat the Kraangdroid with her Tonfas until it went down. The Turtles got back up and continued walking down the hallway, and then Raph hit Mikey on the head for his boneheaded move before following the others. Mikey rubbed his head as he followed Raph, then Leo held a hand out in front of his siblings, stopping them, and shushed at them. He rolled out, saw another Kraangdroid standing in the middle of the hall, rolled up to him, and sliced him with his katanas, then motioned for the others to follow him. Eventually, they reached a room with a blue console and saw two more Kraangdroids entering as the door opened, with a third working at the console. Elisa bashed the two Kraangdroid’s heads together, and then Raph threw one of his Sais at the third, sending it to the floor. The brain inside the third Kraangdroid snarled at the six Turtles, but then Leo punched it, knocking it out, allowing the Turtles to enter the room.

“Donnie, Cath, hack into the system and see if you guys can find out anything about the Kraang’s plot.” Leo instructed.

“You got it, dude.” Cath assured, holding up her thumb.

“Raph, you’re with me.” Leo ordered, turning to Raph. “Elisa, recon the area. Mikey, you stay with Elisa.”

“Hold up, why do I gotta babysit Mikey?” Elisa complained, not happy with having to look out for her youngest brother.

“Hey!” Mikey snapped, offended.

“I don’t want him, and I’m in charge.” Leo answered.

“Hey!” Mikey whined.

“Well, then just have Raph take Mikey.” Cath suggested. “‘Cause I’m not watching him.”

“Over my dead body.” Raph scoffed.

“No, over my dead body.” Elisa argued, getting in Raph’s face.

“Okay, you know what? I’m starting to think nobody wants to be with me.” Mikey observed. “Fine then, I’ll just go off on my own.”

He threw another smoke bomb, but ended up inside a closet, which he then climbed out of.

“Yeah, that’s a closet.” Mikey chuckled nervously as Elisa facepalmed.

“Have fun, you two.” Raph teased as he and Leo left the room.

“Come on, Mikey, let’s go.” Elisa sighed, heading to the door, but Mikey wasn’t with her. “Mikey?”

“Whoa.” Mikey awed as he saw the many buttons around Donnie and Cath. “What’s that button do?”

He made his way to push it, but Donnie grabbed his hand before he could.

“Don’t. Touch. Anything.” He told Mikey firmly, crushing his hand.

Mikey chuckled nervously as Donnie let him go, and then Elisa dragged him out of the room by his bandana.

In the hallway, Leo and Raph found Kirby’s cell, and got their weapons out in case they had to fight more Kraangdroids. Inside the cell, Kirby was sitting miserably, when he heard Leo’s voice.

“Mr. O’Neil?” Leo called quietly. “Are you in here?”

Kirby got up, looked through the window of the cell, and saw Leo standing on the other side.

“You’re one of the Turtles who rescued my daughter.” He said. “Is she okay?”

“She’s fine.” Leo assured. “She’s right outside.”

“You mean she’s still in the city?” Kirby asked with mild shock. “That girl is stubborn.”

“Yeah, we’ve noticed.” Leo replied, ripping out a console next to the cell, trying to get it to open the door and free Kirby.

Elsewhere, Elisa and Mikey kept a lookout for anymore Kraangdroids as they ran down another hallway, but Mikey didn’t seem to be too happy about it.

“Come on, Mikey! Stay focused!” Elisa hissed.

“But I wanted to look at the pretty buttons some more!” Mikey whined.

Elisa sighed, feeling like this was going to last for a while.

Back in the control room, Donnie and Cath were trying to find the button that controlled the cells, but weren’t having much luck.

“To be honest, dude, I kind of liked it better when we had Mikey in here pestering us.” Cath admitted, starting to miss her youngest brother.

“Yeah, this is actually getting a lot less fun without him.” Donnie agreed, for he was starting to miss Mikey too.

He then pressed a button on the console, which then beeped, making his and Cath’s eyes light up.

“Yes, we’re in!” Donnie laughed happily.

“All right!” Cath cheered.

However, what they saw next wasn’t very pleasant.

“Uh-oh.” Donnie gulped.

“This doesn’t look too good.” Cath squeaked.

At Kirby’s cell, as Leo continued to pick the lock on the console, Raph decided to pass the time by talking to him.

“So, since it’s taking Leo forever to pick that lock…” He began, glaring at his brother.

“I’m working on it!” Leo hissed, fiddling with some wires.

Raph ignored Leo and turned to Kirby. “Maybe you can tell us what the heck’s the deal with this whole Kraang thing.” He said.

“They’re aliens from another dimension.” Kirby explained. “When they came here they brought the mutagen with them.”

“Why?” Leo inquired. “What’s the point of turning people into monsters?”

“Or monsters into people?” Raph asked, wanting to know that as well.

“Because the mutagen didn’t work the way they thought they would.” Kirby explained. “Apparently, the physical laws of their universe are different from ours.”

“So they’re grabbing scientists to help them modify the ooze!” Leo gasped, realizing this was the Kraang’s plot all along.

“Wow! Took you long enough to figure that one out.” Raph mocked. “How’s that lock coming?”

Leo stopped working to glare at him.

Meanwhile, Elisa and Mikey were still doing recon for more Kraangdroids, when they saw Donnie and Cath come up to them.

“Guys!” Donnie called, almost crashing into them.

“Donnie, what’s wrong?” Elisa asked in concern.

“No time to explain!” Cath said urgently. “We gotta find Leo and Raph, take April’s dad, and go!”

“This way!” Mikey shouted, pointing down a hallway as the four Turtles ran off.

Back at Kirby’s cell, Leo had almost gotten the code for the lock cracked, but it wasn’t easy without Donnie or Cath’s help.

“So what do they want the ooze to do?” He asked Kirby.

“I wish I knew.” Kirby sighed, for he didn’t know the answer to that question.

Donnie, Cath, Mikey, and Elisa peered out from behind a corner, and then Donnie and the girls ran up to them, while Mikey stayed behind the wall.

“Leo, Raph, we gotta get outta here now!” Cath exclaimed as they stopped in front of them.

“The Kraang have planted a mutagen bomb downtown.” Donnie explained urgently. “They’re gonna use it to disperse the ooze over half the city!”

Elisa then noticed Kirby still in the cell. “So you’re April’s father, huh?” She asked.

“Uh, yes?” Kirby replied nervously, dumbfounded at seeing almost all the Turtles who helped April over the past month standing before him.

Donnie then pushed Elisa out of the way so he could talk to Kirby. “Oh, hi, Mr. O’Neil.” He said modestly. “You’re daughter’s pretty nice.”

“Bogus, dude! You’re really going over that again?” Cath scowled.

Donnie then realized what he just said. “Uh, did I say pretty nice?” He asked sheepishly. “I meant really nice! Really, really nice!”

“Okay, listen, we have to disarm that bomb.” Leo told the others as he held two wires together. “Now, if I can just get this stupid door open…”

“Have you tried this?” Mikey asked, pressing a button on the wall.

“No!” The others cried.

An alarm started blaring, making Mikey grin nervously as he took his hand off the button.

“And that’s why no one wants to be with you!” Raph growled, poking Mikey in the stomach.

“Got it.” Leo said, having found the correct wires, opening the cell, and then Kirby stepped out, just as a squad of Kraangdroids came running down the hall.

“Uh, guys?” Elisa asked, noticing them. “We’ve got company!”

“Let’s move!” Leo shouted, he and Donnie holding on to Kirby as the Turtles ran away from the Kraangdroid’s blaster fire.

They all took cover behind some boxes and crates, and then Raph slapped Mikey in the face. Leo then made some pigeon calls to the ceiling to get April to drop the rope.

“What are you doing?” Raph asked in annoyance, before calling up to April. “April, throw us the rope!”

“Dad!” April cried, seeing her father with the Turtles.

“April!” Kirby yelled, relieved she was all right.

April threw the rope down, and then Raph kicked an oil drum into some Kraangdroids. Elisa then used her Kusari-fundo to knock another Kraangdroid back. Kirby looked at the blaster the Kraangdroid dropped, and then looked back to see that there were more of them still coming, knowing what he had to do.

“Mr. O’Neil, what are you doing?” Leo asked as Kirby made a dive for the blaster.

“Get outta there!” Cath cried.

Kirby picked up the blaster and started firing it at the other Kraangdroids.

“Save my daughter.” He told the Turtles. “Save the city.”

The Turtles were shocked that Kirby was staying behind.

“No! We can’t leave you here!” Cath cried, tears in her eyes. “We’ve come too close for April to lose you again!”

“Just go!” Kirby screamed as more Kraangdroids started filing in.

“Daddy, no!” April cried, reaching out to him.

Kirby fired the blaster at the Kraangdroids with a war cry of vengeance.

“Go, go!” Leo told the others.

The Turtles began to climb the rope, first Elisa, then Raph, then Mikey, but Donnie and Cath lagged behind as they stared at Kirby.

“Come on, hurry!” Leo called as he began climbing.

“But we can’t just leave him behind!” Donnie argued.

“We don’t have any choice!” Leo shouted.

“I’m with Leo on this one.” Cath admitted reluctantly. “At this point, it’s us or them.”

Donnie sighed and reluctantly began to climb the rope behind Cath. When the Turtles got to the roof, they saw Kirby being tackled by a Kraangdroid, while another aimed its blaster at him, ready to take him back to his cell for re-imprisonment.

“No!” April cried as the Kraang forced her father back up and led him away.

She then jumped down and hugged Donnie, crying into his chest, heartbroken that she had found her father, only to lose him again, as Donnie hugged April back with a guilty expression to comfort her. Cath then walked over sympathetically and hugged both of them, feeling just as guilty as Donnie for failing to save April’s father. After a minute, the three separated from the hug.

“We’re really sorry, April.” Cath apologized.

“But we’ll try again, and we’ll get him back.” Donnie promised her.

April looked up at Donnie in sadness.

“We promise.” Cath finished, putting a hand on April’s shoulder and squeezing it softly.

April put her hand on top of Cath’s and squeezed it back.

“Come on, we gotta go.” Leo said as he, Raph, Elisa, and Mikey ran along the rooftop.

April, Donnie, and Cath followed after the others as they jumped down the building.

At the Wolf Hotel, the Kraangdroids were guarding their mutagen bomb, which was set to go off in eight minutes.

“Kraang, in how many time units knowns as minutes will the device containing the mutagen that will be spread over the place known as New York be detonated?” One Kraangdroid asked another.

“Five.” The second Kraangdroid replied, pressing some buttons that presumably controlled the bomb.

Suddenly, the second Kraangdroid was shot in the head by an arrow, Raph having fired it. On another rooftop, the Turtles, except Leo, were firing arrows at the Kraangdroids, so it would be easier for them to sneak onto the roof and deactivate the bomb. Donnie then fired another arrow, followed by Cath, then Elisa. Mikey was already on the roof of the hotel, but he fired another arrow anyway. Leo then sliced the last Kraangdroid with his katana, before his siblings joined him on the hotel roof.

“Okay, guys, it’s all up to you.” Leo said, turning to Donnie and Cath.

Cath took off the panel, and then Donnie began working on it.

“Uh-oh.” Donnie let out.

“‘Uh-oh?’” Leo questioned as they and their siblings popped into view. “Donnie, you said you and Cath knew how to do this.”

“I didn’t count on a design this complex, Leo.” Donnie argued.

“They’re aliens from another dimension.” Leo pointed out. “What did you expect? A big round ball with a lit fuse that said bomb?”

He made a circle motion with his hands as the word “bomb” appeared on the circle, and then it blew up.

“No, but this-” Donnie began, before Cath shoved him away.

“We just don’t want a repeat of what happened at the Kraang’s hideout.” Cath argued. “That futuristic technology was way too much, even for me.”

Raph then pushed Leo away. “Boy, I sure hope this argument goes on for another four minutes and fifteen seconds.” He said, slapping his sister on the head.

Cath and Donnie were now both looked at the wires that controlled the bomb with nervous expressions on their faces, while the others watched with apprehension.

“Careful.” Leo gulped.

Donnie snapped his head at him, then turned back to the wires.

“Watch out for those wires.” Raph advised.

“You guys aren’t helping!” Cath snapped, glaring at them.

“What if we just push this button?” Mikey asked, reaching for it, only for Elisa to smack his hand away.

“I think you’ve pushed enough buttons for one night.” She said with a glare as Mikey rubbed his hand.

“Hmm.” Donnie hummed, trying to find the correct button to turn off the bomb.

“Guys, you’re gonna have to speed this up.” Leo told them.

“I cannot work under all this pressure!” Donnie exclaimed, getting frustrated.

Suddenly, a clanking sound was heard, and then Leo turned to see where it was coming from, and he wasn’t happy to see who it was.

“Um, that might be a problem.” He said.

The Turtles turned to see Bradford and Xever standing on a billboard. Leo, Raph, Elisa, and Mikey all got out their weapons and rushed to confront the two men, while Donnie and Cath stayed behind to deactivate the bomb.

Bradford and Xever jumped down from the billboard onto the hotel roof and began to fight the Turtles. Xever tried to pin Mikey down, but Elisa kicked Xever off of Mikey, and then Leo ran after him.

“You guys picked a really bad time for this.” Leo said as he blocked a kick from Xever with his arm, then Xever rolled back.

“Oh, sorry for the inconvenience.” Xever apologized sarcastically. “When would you prefer to breathe your last breath?”

He then tried to kick Leo, but Elisa held up her Kusari-fundo in front of her to block it.

“How about never?” She asked. “Does never sound good?”

“If that thing goes off, it’ll wipe us all out!” Leo tried to warn them urgently.

“I’d rather perish with honor than continue to live in shame.” Bradford said, trying to slice Raph and Mikey with his katana, only for Elisa to wrap her Kusari-fundo around it and yank it out of his hands.

“Since when do you talk about honor, when your master speaks of no such things himself?” She asked him.

“You don’t know anything about my master!” Bradford snapped.

He then charged at Elisa, but she headbutted Bradford, knocking him back slightly.

Raph then turned to Donnie and Cath, who were still working on the bomb. “Will you two hurry up and defuse that bomb?!” He asked impatiently. “We’re dealing with a couple of nutjobs here!”

“Be quiet!” Donnie snapped, infuriated.

“We’ve almost got it.” Cath assured, speaking much more calmly. “We just need more time.”

“Time is something we don’t have!” Elisa yelled as she and Raph tried to run from Bradford.

Xever then kicked both Leo and Mikey, knocking them back, as Bradford then picked Raph and Elisa up and threw them over to their siblings. Xever then jumped up and tried to kick them, but Raph and Elisa ducked and rolled out of the way, before the three glared at each other in a split screen-Xever on top, Elisa in the middle, and Raph on the bottom. Xever then tried to kick Raph repeatedly, but Raph blocked each kick with his Sais, before he and Elisa both jumped up onto the bomb. Bradford and Xever then charged at them, but then Mikey swung his Kusarigama at Bradford, who was unfazed. Bradford then grabbed Mikey and shoved him into some iron bars, then raised his katana to kill him, but Mikey dodged it and blocked it with his nunchucks, and then Leo came up from behind Bradford and tried to attack him, but Bradford blocked Leo’s katanas with his own and knocked him back. By now, Donnie and Cath managed to narrow down the wires to just two.

“Okay, down to two wires.” Cath said to herself.

“Now the only question is, which one to cut?” Donnie asked himself as he held them up. “Black or green?”

“Go for the green!” Mikey called, before he was punched again by Bradford.

“Eh, it could be worse.” Cath shrugged as Donnie carefully cut the green wire with a set of pliers.

Donnie and Cath closed their eyes and looked away, but the bomb completely turned off, much to their relief.

“Guys, guys, Mikey was right about something for once!” Donnie laughed happily.

“That’ll have to wait, Don.” Cath told him. “The others need our help.”

“Oh, right.” Donnie realized as they got out their weapons and joined their siblings in battle.

Bradford and Leo locked swords with each other, and then Bradford kicked Leo back into Mikey and was about to finish them off, when Donnie jumped down and kicked Bradford in the face, then whacked him with his Bō. Meanwhile, Cath ran up the bomb and rushed to Raph and Elisa’s aid. Xever tried to kick Cath, but she blocked it with her Tonfas. She then tried to whack Xever with them, but Xever blocked them with his arms and punched Cath back. Bradford and Xever tried to continue fighting the Turtles, but stopped when they saw that they were both cornered by the Turtles with their backs to each other.

“You are worthy adversaries, but the fight is ours.” Leo said heroically as Mikey and Elisa both banged their fists. “Lay down your weapons and go home.”

“Never!” Xever snarled as Donnie pointed his Bō at him.

“You don’t have a choice.” Leo warned, pointing his katana at Bradford. “You’ve lost.”

“If I’m going down…” Bradford began, before looking down at the mutagen bomb. “I’m taking you with me!”

He then stabbed the mutagen tank with his katana.

“No!” Donnie cried.

“Don’t!” Cath screamed.

A gush of mutagen then poured out of the tank, sending Bradford and Xever falling off the rooftop. The six Turtles then jumped down and tried to go after them, but they couldn’t see Bradford or Xever anywhere. With the city safe, the Turtles decided to return home.

“So to sum up, we kicked the butts of the Kraang and Shredder’s top henchmen while defusing a bomb and saving the city.” Leo said happily.

“That’s pretty much it.” Elisa smiled.

“Yeah, we’re not overconfident.” Raph agreed.

“We’re just that good.” Leo winked at them.

The Turtles high-threed each other, but their celebration was interrupted by a booming voice from the distance.

“Your skills are impressive.” Shredder remarked, stopping the Turtles in their tracks.

The six Turtles then looked up to see Shredder standing on top of another rooftop. Shredder jumped down onto the roof of the Wolf Hotel and landed in front of the Turtles.

“But they will not save you.” Shredder sneered.

“Oh, man.” Donnie gulped. “Do you think that’s…”

“The Shredder?” Cath finished nervously. “I think it is, dude.”

“Well, he’s definitely a shredder.” Raph quipped.

Shredder slowly approached the Turtles and stopped just a few feet in front of them.

“There is undoubtedly a fascinating story about how my old nemesis came to teach ninjitsu to six mutant turtles.” He told them. “Perhaps I will let one of you live long enough to tell it.”

“Not a chance!” Elisa growled.

“If you want to, you’re gonna have to catch us first.” Leo dared. “Mikey?”

Mikey proudly walked up carrying another smoke bomb. “So long, sucker!” He grinned, throwing it down.

However, instead of smoke, the bomb simply landed on the ground with a wet splat, as it was a regular egg, since Mikey had used them all up, causing his siblings to glare at him angrily.

“Um… oops?” Mikey chuckled nervously. “All right, that one’s on me.”

Shredder then brandished his claws from his gauntlet and charged at the Turtles. Raph charged at him, and the two tried to slash each other, until Shredder kicked Raph into the Wolf Hotel sign, electrocuting him.

“Raph!” Leo cried as Raph fell to the ground, unconscious.

Shredder then tried to punch Leo, but missed, as Leo blocked his attacks with his katanas, until Shredder pounded him into the ground and kicked him away.

“Leo!” Cath cried, rushing over to him to see if he was alright.

“You’re gonna pay for that!” Elisa growled, jumping over her brother.

She then blocked Shredder’s claws with her Kusari-fundo, and was about to wrap it around Shredder. However, Shredder caught it as she threw it, then pulled Elisa into him and kicked her in the stomach hard, knocking her down. He then picked Elisa up and threw her over to Raph.

“Elisa!” Cath cried, rushing over to help, but Shredder smacked her to the side. Cath tried to charge back at him, but Shredder grabbed her by the neck, making her drop her Tonfas, and then chokeslammed her into the ground.

Donnie rushed forward and tried to whack Shredder with his Bō, but Shredder caught one end of it, then hit Donnie in the face with the other end, before punching him in the face. Mikey threw his Kusarigama at Shredder, wrapping it around his hand, but then Shredder pulled him close and kicked him back, though Mikey was able to throw some shurikens at him before he fell off the roof. Shredder peered over the building’s ledge, wondering if he truly finished Mikey, when he was suddenly ambushed by Leo, Donnie, and Cath, forcing him to step back.

On top of the billboard, Mikey and Elisa worriedly checked on Raph, who didn’t seem to have any damage yet. Raph’s eyes opened, and then he looked up at his siblings and smiled at them. Mikey and Elisa smiled back, relieved that their older brother was all right.

Back with the others, Leo jumped at Shredder, who caught him and shoved him aside. Donnie then tried to whack Shredder from behind, but his Bō broke as soon as it made contact with his helmet. Donnie then yelped as Shredder picked him up and threw him into Leo. Cath jumped over Shredder, then tried to whack him with her Tonfas repeatedly, but he kicked her over into Leo and Donnie. The three Turtles looked up worriedly as Shredder loomed menacingly over them. Shredder got out his claws, but Raph and Elisa both jumped down, screaming, and landed on him. Raph tried to punch him, but Shredder threw him over to the others. Elisa then tried to wrap her Kusari-fundo around Shredder’s neck, but he caught it with his hands and shaked her off roughly. Mikey wrapped his Kusarigama around Shredder’s arm again, then jumped down, pulling Shredder up into the sign. Shredder screamed in pain, but used the claws on his other gauntlet to slice the chain, causing a large portion of the “W” on the sign to fall off. Mikey screamed as the sign portion fell down on top him, causing his siblings to worriedly rush over to him, but due to their injuries, lifting the rubble was kind of difficult. However, they managed to lift it slightly, allowing Mikey to climb out, before setting it back down. Shredder then sliced the chain again, freeing himself, and then jumped down and glared at the Turtles, who got their weapons back out, ready to fight, glaring back at the Shredder furiously. The Turtles and Shredder jumped at each other, but Shredder defeated the Turtles easily, one by one. Leo clutched his chest in pain, before Shredder grabbed him and pinned him against the wall, trapping him with his claws.

“Tell me where Splinter is, and I promise your demise will be swift.” Shredder offered, bringing out a katar blade from his gauntlet and pointing it at Leo’s neck threateningly.

Suddenly, the sound someone gasping for air caught Shredder’s attention, causing him to let go of Leo and investigate what it was. Shredder looked and saw a mutant red snakehead fish, who was actually Xever, climbing back up onto the building, before flopping in front of him, and he was struggling to breath.

“Help me…” Xever panted weakly.

“What is this?!” Shredder asked, baffled.

This gave the Turtles the opportunity to escape. Cath helped Leo up, while also being mindful of her own injuries, and then the six Turtles slowly backed up and jumped off the building.

A giant mutant humanoid dog then joined Xever, which was actually Bradford, who was mutated into an akita dog, except his right arm was smaller due to Hachiko having bitten his arm.

“Xever?” Shredder asked in shock. “Bradford?”

He then turned to see that the Turtles were gone.

“Huh? NO!!!” Shredder screamed in anger, furious that he had the Turtles right where he wanted them, but somehow they managed to escape his grasp yet again.

Once the Turtles made it back to the lair, Cath patched everyone and herself up, and they all sat in the living room with April, lamenting their failure. Leo entered the room to see his siblings and April in despair. April sat in a fetal position and buried her face in her knees, as Donnie and Cath looked at her sadly, regretting that they couldn’t save her father. Raph shoved the arcade machine in anger, but winced, remembering that Cath told him he should take it easy, since their injuries would take at least a few days to heal, so he just sat down in the same position as April. Leo sighed miserably, just as Splinter walked in.

“You were all very lucky.” He told his children.

“Well, I think we define that word differently, Sensei.” Raph snarked.

“Yeah, ain’t that the understatement of the day.” Elisa sighed.

“Few have ever faced the Shredder and survived.” Splinter said.

“He was just so fast.” Mikey moaned.

“Our attacks didn’t even phase him.” Cath added.

“Yeah, it was like he was everywhere all at once.” Donnie finished.

“You were right about us being overconfident, Sensei.” Leo conceded, realizing Splinter was right earlier. “There are some things we’re just not ready for.”

Splinter put a hand on Leo’s shoulder. “Perhaps. But that no longer matters.” He reassured his eldest son. “It is clear now that the Shredder is a problem that will not go away. So prepare yourselves, my children, because as of this moment…we are at war.”

The six Turtles all looked at each other, knowing now that there was no going back, and knew that they would stop at nothing until the Shredder was defeated.

Chapter Text

On a misty night, the Turtles were stealthily sneaking around the city, before running down an alley.

“Shredder could be anywhere.” Leo informed the others as they hid behind a wall. “Stay frosty, guys.”

“FYI, frost can’t accumulate unless it’s below freezing, except during a process called radiative cooling-” Donnie began, much to the annoyance of Raph, Mikey, and Elisa.

“You think he’s got an off switch somewhere?” Elisa asked.

“Maybe.” Mikey shrugged.

Raph then smacked Donnie in the head.

“Ow!” Donnie yelled.

“Found it.” Raph joked as Mikey and Elisa chuckled, while Donnie was annoyed.

“Dudes, shut up!” Cath scowled. “Or the Shredder’s gonna…”

“Find the six pathetic Turtles who only have seconds to live?” Shredder’s voice finished. “Too late.”

“Wouldn’t wanna be them.” Mikey chuckled.

“We are them!” Raph pointed out as he and the others got out their weapons.

The Turtles looked around for any sign of the Shredder, who suddenly appeared behind Mikey and grabbed him by the shoulders. Mikey screamed as Shredder pulled him back into the mist.

“You guys hear something?” Elisa asked, having heard the screaming, but couldn’t make out what it was.

“Nah.” Cath shook her head.

One of Mikey’s nunchucks then rolled at Donnie’s feet, making him turn back to where Mikey was last seen, then he saw Shredder.

“Mikey!” Donnie cried, before seeing Shredder.

He then charged at Shredder and tried to whack him with his Bō, but Shredder blocked it with his claws, then pushed Donnie back, snapping his Bō in half. Shredder then kicked Donnie backwards in the shell as the others glared at him.

“I got him!” Elisa assured frantically.

She wrapped her Kusari-fundo around Shredder’s arm, but he pulled her in and kneed her in the stomach, before tossing her behind his back.

“Raph, Cath, take him down!” Leo ordered his remaining two siblings.

The three remaining Turtles charged at Shredder. Leo blocked his attacks with his katanas, while Raph and Cath ran along either wall, before Raph jumped down with his Sais, only for Shredder to punch him in the chest, before punching him multiple times in the same spot sending him flying back through the mist.

“Raph!” Cath cried as her brother disappeared, before glaring angrily at Shredder.

She then jumped down with her Tonfas, only for Shredder to kick her in the head, sending her to the ground, leaving Leo to face Shredder alone.

“No!” Leo cried as Cath went down.

Suddenly, the sky became red as Leo looked around nervously. He then gasped as Shredder appeared behind him, laughing menacingly. Leo put his arms up, ready for an attack, only for Shredder to slice him in the face. Leo landed on the ground and slid back into the wall, then looked back up at Shredder fearfully.

“There is no place you can run, no place you can hide, where I will not find you!” Shredder sneered grinningly. “You think you are ready to face me?”

Leo screamed in fright, but before Shredder could deliver the killing blow, Master Splinter suddenly woke up in his room screaming, revealing that the whole fight between the Turtles and Shredder was just a nightmare. Splinter sat up panting, wondering what the dream meant, before taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

In the living room, the Turtles were preparing for another trip to the surface.

“Come on, let’s go!” Raph cheered, picking up his Sais.

They were about to leave when Splinter walked into the room.

“Where are you going?” He asked his children.

“Heading out for our evening patrol.” Leo answered.

“There will be no patrol!” Splinter said sternly.

“Sensei?” Leo asked, confused and concerned.

“Last time you fought the Shredder, you barely escaped with your lives.” Splinter explained seriously.

“Yeah, don’t remind us.” Elisa sighed.

“Though to be fair, we did get overconfident that time.” Cath argued.

“But Sensei, next time, we will be ready.” Raph assured Splinter.

“Yes…” Splinter agreed, before grabbing Raph and pinning him by the arm. “Because you will stay down here until you are ready. No patrol, no games, no rest! There is onlytraining!”

He then threw Raph back over to the others as Leo and Mikey caught him. The six Turtles stared at their Sensei as Splinter walked off, worried about his behavior.

“Whoa, dudes, what’s got Sensei all freaked out all of a sudden?” Cath whispered.

“I wish I knew, Cathy.” Donnie whispered back.

“That means now!” Splinter called as the Turtles sighed and walked to the dojo.

A few hours later, all the Turtles were in the dojo training as hard as they could, but they, especially Mikey, were starting to feel exhausted.

“More, Sensei?” Mikey asked, panting.

“Yes, more!” Splinter answered harshly.

Donnie, Elisa, and Mikey all charged at their three older siblings, then Leo, Raph, and Cath caught them and flipped them onto their backs, but because they were tired too, they didn’t have the energy.

“Leonardo, Raphael, and Catharina, there is no intention in your strikes!” Splinter told them. “Do it again! We will practice all night if we have to.”

“We have been practicing all night.” Donnie pointed out as he and Cath got back up.

“Yeah!” Cath agreed. “Look at Mikey, he’s basically zoinked out from all that training!”

She then gestured to Mikey, who was fast asleep on the mat.

“Pizza, mmm.” Mikey snored.

“Wake him up!” Splinter ordered Raph.

“Gladly.” Raph smirked, crouching down near Mikey and cracking his knuckles.

“Uh, Raph, I don’t think that’s such a good-” Cath advised.

Raph then picked up Mikey and flipped him again.

“Oh!” Mikey groaned, now wide awake.

Suddenly, Mikey sat up and screamed. “Ahh! Shredder’s here!”

“Relax, dude.” Cath sighed. “Shredder’s not here.”

“Yeah.” Leo said, putting a hand on Mikey’s shoulder. “You were just having a nightmare.”

“Aren’t we all?” Raph asked sarcastically, only for Elisa to elbow him to be quiet.

“Oh.” Mikey said in relief as he stood up.

“Sensei, can we rest for a second?” Donnie panted.

“Rest?” Splinter questioned. “Hmm. The Shredder will not rest until you are all dead!”

“You can’t be serious!” Cath exclaimed. “We’ve been training for weeks without a break! We need some sleep, some R&R, you know?”

“Oh, like Leo doesn’t?” Raph asked, walking over to his eldest brother. “Since when have I seen him take a break?”

“You’re right, Raph.” Leo said. “I don’t take breaks.”

“Ah, well, then, I’ll give you a break.” Raph sneered, preparing to punch Leo.

Splinter then dashed towards his children and knocked them all to the floor, Mikey and the girls on their chests, Leo, Donnie, and Raph on their backs.

“If I were the Shredder, none of you would be breathing right now.” He told them. “Understand?”

Mikey then fell asleep on Leo’s shoulder, causing him to push his youngest brother away.

“Perhaps a brief rest is in order.” Splinter admitted. “We will resume later.”

The other five Turtles sighed in relief and collapsed onto the mat in exhaustion.

Later, Leo was practicing his katana moves in the living room while watching Space Heroes. Raph sat on the couch reading a comic book, while Elisa laid down next to him, too exhausted to meditate. In the episode, Captain Ryan and his crew were being confronted by an army of giant red and black robots, with one of them shooting Ryan.

“Ahh!” Ryan cried, putting his hands to his head in pain. “The Panicons hit me with an anxiety ray! Ahh! Ohh! We’re all gonna die! And I think I left the food replicator on! The ship might burn down!”

A purple-skinned alien who was another member of Ryan’s crew then came up to him.

“Get it together, Captain!” He snapped. “You’re our leader, so act like one!”

Knowing what he had to do, Ryan slapped himself in the face twice to calm himself down, nullifying the effects of the anxiety ray.

“I’m sorry, Grundch.” Ryan sighed. “That was the anxiety ray talking. I’ve got it. I’ll use the thermal charge.”

Ryan then took out a grenade and threw it at the Panicons as he and Grundch shielded their eyes. However, Raph then threw a shuriken at the TV, turning it off.

“What?” Leo complained, before turning to Raph. “Hey, what are you doing?”

“Oh, sorry.” Raph apologized sarcastically as Spike climbed onto his shoulder. “It was Spike’s idea. He said Space Heroes is too stupid for him.”

“That’s saying something, considering he hangs out with you all day.” Leo argued.

Spike then climbed off of Raph and took a bite out of his lettuce.

“Nice going, Leo.” Raph scowled. “You made him angry, so I’m gonna mop the floor with your face!”

“All right, Raph, cool off.” Elisa said, getting between them, now fully rested.

“I can help with that!” Mikey called offscreen.

Elisa and Raph turned to see a water balloon flying at each of them, which then hit both their faces, Mikey having thrown them.

“Dr. Prankenstein strikes again!” Mikey cheered, holding two more water balloons in his hands.

Raph and Elisa then towered over Mikey in a rage, with flames burning behind them.

“Dudes, you should see the look on your faces right now!” Mikey chuckled, oblivious to the situation he just got himself into. “You both look so mad! Especially you, Ellie!”

“Don’t call me that!” Elisa snapped at Mikey calling her by her much loathed nickname.

Raph then turned to Spike, who was still eating his lettuce. “Okay, Spike. You’ll like this show.” He said.

“It’s called ‘Does Mikey Bend That Way?’” Elisa snarled as she and Raph cracked their knuckles and marched towards their youngest brother.

Mikey then screamed and ran off, with Raph and Elisa chasing him.

“Come back here you!” Elisa yelled as Leo watched them.

Meanwhile, in Donnie’s lab, Cath and Donnie were both working on something. They were building some kind of go-kart, except it had much larger wheels on the back. Donnie moved a welding torch down on one side, while Cath stood above him and held two parts into place, allowing Donnie to weld them together, when the others walked in.

“You two are still working on that go-kart of yours?” Raph asked.

“Yep.” Cath replied, still focused on holding the two pieces together.

“And it’s not a go-kart, Raph.” Donnie corrected him, before getting up and showing his siblings (except Cath) the blueprints. “It’s an all-terrain patrol buggy with detachable sidecars.”

“Dude, Splinter’s been training us hard enough.” Mikey pointed out. “You gotta find a way to relax.”

“We all deal with stress in different ways, Mikey.” Leo told him, taking the blueprints off of Donnie.

“Yeah, and this is how I deal.” Donnie explained.

“Actually, now that you mention it, I think I do need to clear out my chakras.” Cath recalled, walking out of the lab, getting odd looks from her siblings. “What? It’s how Ideal.”

She then walked off as Mikey got up behind Donnie.

“Oh, yeah?” Mikey asked cheekily. “Well, this is how I deal!”

He threw another water balloon from behind Donnie, who turned to him, none that pleased. Donnie took off his welding mask and threw it onto the ground, before he started chasing Mikey angrily, screaming in rage all the while.

“You’re next, Leo!” Mikey called jokingly as Donnie chased him off.

“I’m glad Cath missed that.” Elisa sighed. “You know how she is when she gets angry.”

“Dr. Prankenstein makes house calls!” Mikey yelled as he and Donnie ran past. “Especially to Cathy!”

That made Raph, Elisa, and Leo worried.

Meanwhile, at the Purple Dragons’ hideout, they were playing some kind of card game at their table, when they heard a knock at the door. Fong gestured to Sid to answer it. Sid got up, walked over to the door, and opened it, seeing April wearing a jacket and a hoodie while holding a pizza box, disguised as a pizza deliveryman.

“Hey.” She said in a Brooklyn accent, before clearing her throat. “Did uh, somebody order a totally delicious pizza?”

“No.” Sid answered, shaking his head. “Beat it.”

“You sure?” April asked, scratching her head. “I mean, the guy who paid on the phone gave me this address, or was it a block over? I’m so confused.”

“Oh, that pizza.” Sid realized. “Yeah, that’s us.”

He snatched the pizza box from April, shut the door, and walked back over to the table, not noticing there was a device underneath it.

(Outside)

“Hey, check it out!” Sid called. “Free pizza!”

April then took out her phone as she listened to the device as she walked off.

“Gotcha.” She smirked.

Back in the dojo, Leo had gathered his siblings for another training session. (Cath stood between Donnie and Mikey and Elisa stood between Donnie and Raph.)

“All right, hoko no kamae.” Leo ordered.

All but Raph got into position, holding their arms above their heads, while Raph crossed his arms.

“Raph, hoko no kamae!” Leo repeated.

“Hoko no way!” Raph argued. “It’s bad enough Splinter’s driving us into the ground. Now you, too?”

“We have to keep training, because, right now, we don’t stand a chance against the Shredder.” Leo insisted.

“Yeah, and he’s up there somewhere, waiting for us!” Mikey added, speaking in a ghostly voice, before he realized what he just said. “I just freaked myself out!”

“I hate to say it, but the fact that we’ve been laying low is might be the only reason we’re still alive.” Donnie admitted, realizing that Splinter was somewhat right earlier.

“Exactly.” Cath agreed. “So until we’re ready, we’re staying down here.”

“Aw, man! I hate waiting.” Elisa whined.

“Not for long, you don’t.” April said as she walked into the dojo.

“How do you mean, April?” Cath asked, confused.

“That’s no longer an option.” April explained, waving her phone in front of her. “I think you should listen to this.”

Later, in the living room, the Turtles and Splinter had gathered around April to listen to the message she recorded of the Purple Dragons.

“We’re meeting Shredder tonight.” Fong said on the tape. “He’s got a plan to destroy the Turtles.”

“How?” Sid inquired. “He doesn’t even know where they are.”

“He says they’re in the sewers somewhere.” Fong explained. “And that’s all he needs to know to wipe them out.”

The message ended as the Turtles and April looked at each other worriedly.

“Our home is no longer safe.” Splinter realized. “The Shredder must be stopped.”

“How can we stop a plan we don’t even know?” Leo asked.

Mikey then snuck up behind Leo and tried to throw a water balloon at him, only for Leo to throw a kunai at it, popping it, much to Mikey’s dismay.

“Aw.” Mikey whimpered.

“We have to go topside and find out what they’re planning.” Raph suggested.

“Raph’s right. It’s the only way.” Elisa agreed.

Outside Shredder’s lair, the six Turtles looked out from an alley and saw the Purple Dragons enter. Leo jumped down, then motioned for the others to come out of hiding.

“That’s the place?” Elisa asked.

“Looks like it.” Leo answered.

They then huddled up closer to each other to get a better view.

“Donnie, you’re crowding me.” Raph scowled, as Donnie was standing to close to him.

“Me too.” Elisa added, also feeling Donnie breathing down her neck.

“Sorry.” Donnie apologized, backing away, before accidentally knocking over a trash can, making Mikey yelp in alarm. Mikey jumped up slightly, accidentally hitting both Raph and Elisa on their chins.

“Sorry.” Mikey apologized as Raph and Elisa rubbed their chins while glaring at Mikey. “All that Splinter talk about how we’re not ready has me thinking maybe we’re in over our heads.”

Raph then hit Mikey on the head. “You’re always in over your head.” He said sarcastically.

“I’m saying now we all are!” Mikey argued. “And that scares me.”

“It’s okay to be scared, Mikey.” Leo assured, putting a hand on his youngest brother’s shoulder. “Raph and Elisa sometimes get scared too.”

“I am not scared.” Raph argued.

“And neither am I.” Elisa insisted, trying to mask the fear in her voice.

To prove it, Leo gently tapped Raph on the head, making Raph yelp in fear. Raph panicked slightly and calmed down before growling at Leo, who simply chuckled in amusement, so did Elisa. Suddenly, the Turtles heard a growl and saw Bradford appearing in front of them.

“You should be.” Bradford snarled.

“Bradford!” Elisa exclaimed.

“Rad-Brad!” Mikey cried.

“Look what I found.” Bradford growled. “Six soon-to-be-ex-turtles.”

“I’m sure glad it’s okay to be scared now.” Mikey squeaked as he and the others backed away nervously.

“You can say that again.” Cath gulped.

“This is no time to panic.” Leo told them, bringing his katanas out, before Bradford huffed a little. “Okay, maybe a little.”

The Turtles all got out their weapons and got ready to fight. (Cath was between Mikey and Donnie, while Elisa was on Leo’s left.) Bradford dragged his left arm along the ground, scraping the pavement with his claws.

“He keeps getting taller!” Mikey exclaimed.

“Then I’ll cut him down to size.” Leo said, before he dashed forward.

“Leo, wait!” Cath called, but he ignored her.

Leo leapt up and tried to slash Bradford with his katanas, but Bradford blocked the attack with his right arm and pounded the ground with his left arm. Leo then stepped back just in time and did a backflip, landing in front of his siblings.

“Uh, on second thought, let’s stick together on this one.” Leo corrected.

“You know, for once, I agree with you.” Elisa said as they all began to fight Bradford.

Bradford pounded the ground again, but the Turtles got out of the way. Raph tried to poke Bradford with his Sais, but it had no effect, as Bradford had some kind of protective wood on his right hand. Donnie then rushed forward and hit Bradford on the chin with his Bō, but Bradford was unfazed and tried to punch them, but luckily the two Turtles jumped out of the way just in time. Elisa wrapped her Kusari-fundo around Bradford’s left arm, then Cath jumped down and tried to whack his right arm with her Tonfas, but Bradford reeled his left arm back, before swinging Elisa into her sister, sending the two girl Turtles flying into the other side of the alley. Leo then jumped up and tried to stab Bradford again, but he blocked it with his wooden right hand, then moved his face out of the way when Leo tried to kick him, and then Leo jumped out of the way before Bradford could grab him. Mikey then swung on some power cables using his nunchucks like a zipline, before he jumped off and tried to kick Bradford, but Bradford smacked him back into Donnie, sending them into some trash cans, as Cath and Elisa rejoined their brothers.

“This is hopeless!” Donnie cried.

“Yeah, that mutagen probably made him even stronger now.” Cath moaned.

“Keep your head in the game.” Leo told them.

They then got out of the way as Bradford tried to punch them.

“I just want to keep my head on my body!” Donnie claimed as Bradford inched closer to them.

“Come on, what are we retreating for?” Raph asked rhetorically, before he charged at Bradford.

“Raph, wait!” Elisa called.

Raph ignored her and tried to attack Bradford, who tossed him into a dumpster. Raph lifted the lid up and climbed out.

“That’s a good reason.” He relented.

“Mikey, smoke!” Leo ordered.

Mikey got out a smoke bomb, but lost his grip and accidentally dropped it. The smoke bomb shattered on the ground and set off a tiny cloud of smoke.

“What was that?” Raph asked.

“I’m stressed!” Mikey defended. “So excuse me if my aim’s a little off!”

Bradford’s growls soon got their attention as they and the rest of the siblings turned to him.

“How hard is it to hit the ground?” Raph asked, taking another smoke bomb and throwing it. However, instead of hitting the ground, it fell down a sewer grate. Raph and Mikey watched as the smoke bomb fell into the sewer, Raph on his knees, and landed in the water.

“Not so easy, is it?” Mikey asked.

“Okay, we’re all a little stressed, but we shouldn’t let that stop us from getting away.” Elisa said, bringing out a smoke bomb of her own.

However, when she threw it, it didn’t break.

“Oh, great, now I think I’ve got it too!” Elisa groaned.

“Oh, will you guys just-” Leo began annoyed, before he took out his own smoke bomb and threw it, allowing the Turtles to disappear. Bradford looked around in confusion once the smoke cleared, before he walked off.

When the Turtles made it back to the lair, they were all sitting miserably in the living room, Donnie looking at his computer—The boys were all on the couch, and the girls were on the floor. Leo looked up to see Splinter standing in front of them.

“We couldn’t take him.” Leo sighed.

“We failed.” Cath sighed, almost ready to cry.

“Yeah, Dogpound was just too powerful.” Mikey sighed in agreement.

“Dogpound?” Leo asked.

“Really?” Elisa asked.

“What?” Mikey asked defensively. “‘Cause he’s a dog, and he pounded us into the-”

“We get it.” Leo interrupted. “I don’t see how we’re gonna get close to that meeting now.”

“Well, maybe we just need to find a new place to hide.” Donnie suggested, showing Leo a Florida timeshare plan he found while surfing the web. “I hear the sewers in Florida are nice this time of year.”

“You mean leave our home?” Elisa asked shakily, not looking forward to the idea.

“No!” April said adamantly, jumping down between Donnie and Leo and shutting the former’s laptop. “I’m not letting you guys give up.”

She then stood up and walked between the Turtles and Splinter. “I’ll spy on the meeting.” She offered.

The Turtles and Splinter were shocked by that.

“What?” Elisa asked.

“No way!” Raph exclaimed.

“Nuh-uh.” Mikey shook his head.

“No, April!” Cath cried.

“You can’t.” Donnie said sternly.

“Forget it.” Leo finished.

“Absolutely not!” Splinter denied.

April sighed, but knew it was the only way. “I can do this.” She told them, before turning to Splinter. “You’ve been training me to be a kunoichi.”

“For a few weeks.” Splinter corrected her.

“What other choice do we have?” April asked. “Shredder’s gonna attack your home, and we need to find out how, and I’m the only one who can do it.”

The six Turtles looked amongst each other, realizing she had a point. Splinter then sighed as he looked away, relenting.

The following night, April approached Shredder’s lair to infiltrate the meeting, once again disguised as a pizza deliveryman, while the Turtles raced across the rooftops and watched her from above.

“I don’t like this.” Donnie said as they stopped.

“Me neither.” Mikey agreed. “I mean, giving the enemy a free pizza? Pssh, never a good idea.”

Raph and Elisa looked at him weirdly.

April knocked on the door, and a Foot Ninja answered it and opened it up.

“Hey, did somebody here order a totally delicious pizza?” April asked.

The Foot Ninja immediately slammed the door, and April ran down the steps, then she hid in an alley and took out her phone.

“Looks like the Foot Clan are smarter than the Purple Dragons.” She reported to Leo.

“They’d almost have to be, wouldn’t they?” Leo asked rhetorically. “Thanks, April. You did your best.”

April then heard the church bell ring, giving her another idea how to infiltrate the meeting.

(The rooftop)

“At least we’ve still got the pizza.” Mikey said.

“Oh, I’m not done yet.” April laughed, before she hung up.

“Wait, what is she doing?” Donnie asked as the Turtles saw April throw the pizza into a dumpster and walk up the steps to a nearby apartment building.

“Not the pizza!” Mikey cried, dismayed at seeing it go to waste. “She’s gone rogue.”

“Will you shut up about the pizza?” Elisa scowled.

(The apartment)

April knocked on the door, and then the shop owner answered it, as he lived there.

“May I help you?” He asked.

“Sir, I’m with the Firefighters Association, Local 94.” April explained, briefly showing him her school ID. “We’ve received reports of some faulty wiring in this building, so mind if I have a look-see?”

“Well, I don’t think-” The shop owner began, but April pushed past him before he could finish.

“Thanks.” She said, entering through the door.

(The rooftop)

“She’s so cool.” Donnie gushed.

“Cool?” Cath questioned. “If by cool, you mean hardcore, than yeah.”

The six Turtles then watched April climb up the fire escape to the top of the building. She then climbed up onto the railing as she got ready to jump.

“Be careful, April.” Cath wished quietly.

April suddenly looked down and became nervous, since it was a long way up from where she was. Taking a deep breath, she jumped from the railing, and landed on the roof of Shredder’s lair, but then lost her balance, forcing her to hold on with her hands. She then pulled herself up and rolled up onto the roof, then crawled through an opening in the church window. There, she saw Dogpound entering and approaching Shredder’s throne with Fong and two Foot Ninjas, while Xever entered through the water entrance and swam up to join the meeting, as Dogpound and Fong kneeled before Shredder.

“Listen carefully.” He told them. “The five of you will hijack a tanker truck in Houston in approximately 15 minutes.”

As Shredder was explaining his plan to his subordinates, April got out her phone, set it on record, and held it up in front of her, so the Turtles got all the details.

(The rooftop)

“The chemical is extremely rare, so you will not have another chance.” Shredder’s voice said on Leo’s T-Phone.

“Chemical?” Raph questioned. “What chemical?”

“How about we listen and find out?” Donnie suggested.

“How about I break your shell with my knee?” Raph challenged.

“No need for that, dudes.” Cath scolded them.

“How about you three shut it for a minute while we try to hear Shredder’s evil plan?!” Leo hissed quietly.

“…Which will destroy them once and for all.” Shredder finished. “Now, go!”

The transmission then ended.

“We missed it!” Leo scowled. “Oh, great. Nice going, guys.”

“But April’s still inside!” Cath realized.

“We’ve gotta get her out!” Donnie said urgently.

He was about to jump off the rooftop when Leo stopped him by grabbing his shoulder.

“No!” Leo argued. “If we rush in there, we put her at risk. We wait.”

“Leo’s right, Donnie.” Cath agreed.

Donnie frowned, feeling helpless.

As Dogpound, Fong, and three Foot Ninjas left Shredder’s lair, April jumped down the fire escape, before calling Leo again.

“I’m gonna hitch a ride, see where they go.” She informed him.

“No, you’ve done enough.” Leo argued over the phone. “Now, get outta there!”

Unfortunately, Dogpound heard April talking to Leo and growled.

“Bradford heard you!” Leo gasped.

“April!” Donnie cried.

“Run!” Cath screamed.

April gasped as Dogpound approached her, then the Turtles jumped down from the rooftops. Dogpound then threw April into a van, next to Fong in the passenger’s seat, bound and gagged.

“Buckle up.” He sneered, putting a seatbelt on April and closing the door as the van drove off, before he hitched a ride by jumping onto the roof, as the Turtles ran after it, but they weren’t fast enough.

“No! We’re too late!” Donnie moaned as the van drove out of sight.

Leo then tried to call April on his T-Phone. “April!” He called frantically. “April! Are you there?”

“She’s not gonna answer, Leo.” Donnie told him.

“So then, what do we do now?” Cath asked.

“We gotta get April out of that van, but Dogpound’s in there, and we’re not ready to fight that guy!” Leo panicked. “Aw, Splinter was right! We should’ve stayed below.”

“Leo, this isn’t the time to panic!” Elisa told him. “Just tell us, what is the plan?!”

“I don’t know!” Leo cried in despair.

Raph sighed, knowing there was only one way to snap Leo out of this. “I can’t believe I’m about to say this.” He muttered. “‘Get it together, Captain! You’re our leader, so act like one!’”

Leo stood up, realizing that Raph was right.

“You’re right, Raph.” He admitted. “That was the anxiety ray talking.”

“What, that’s it?” Elisa asked, disappointed. “You’re not gonna slap yourself like Captain Ryan did in the episode?”