Moon woke up in a place, confused. She was without her mask and had a bandage around her neck.
Looking to the side, she saw a glass of water, which she quickly drank due to her dry throat.
"You woke up! That was quick," - said a familiar girl as she entered.
Moon stared at her, remembering.
It was this girl that Lord Garmadon wanted her to kidnap, and the sister of the Red Ninja.
"You know, what you did was really stupid," - the girl scolded her seriously.
Moon stood up, though a little dizzy.
"Oops, oops! You can stay lying down, you lost quite a bit of blood and it looks like you don't eat well. So, stay there and I'll get you some food, okay?" - Nya, the girl, asked, raising an eyebrow. - "I'll take that silence as a yes." -.
(But I'm not hungry. I need to find Llyod) - Thought the Purple Ninja.
She looked at herself and realized that she was no longer wearing her ninja uniform, but instead, some casual clothes that were comfortable for resting: black sweatpants and a simple purple shirt.
Moon saw a slipper next to her and put it on.
"The girl must have changed me," - she murmured as she got up.
Moon wouldn't obey anyone except Llyod and Lord Garmadon, after all, she was their servant.
Opening the door, she came face to face with the black ninja.
"Ah!" - There was silence. - "Nya told me you were awake, I didn't think you'd be standing up so soon... Given your condition," - he looked to the side.
Moon decided to ignore him and continue her search for Llyod, not using her aura for that, as she didn't feel the need.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" - Cole frowned and was indignant about it. - "Nya told us you should be resting!" -.
Cole stood in front of her, and whenever she tried to get around him, he would step in front again.
"Get out of my way," - she murmured softly.
"No." -.
o0o0o
"Thank you, Zane, I'm sure she'll love your cooking," - Nya thanked with a plate in hand.
"You're welcome. How's her injury? Why would she do something like that...?" - Zane asked, looking somewhat confused.
"From what Jay said, before she cut herself, she asked: 'How much should I spill?' and Llyod was suspecting betrayal. I think... It's her way of showing loyalty," - Nya theorized.
"She used that with Lord Garmadon...? That's absurd..." - Murmured the White Ninja.
Then they heard Cole's scream, and he was thrown in front, destroying a door and crashing against the wooden wall.
"She... isn't weak," - he murmured, groaning in pain and closing his eyes.
The others quickly approached. Moon was facing the door with her fist raised, and her eyes glowed for a second.
"Moon!" - Llyod smiled worriedly when he saw her standing.
"Young- I mean, Llyod," - she finally spoke, walking toward him.
"You... You're okay? Shouldn't you be resting?" - He asked, a bit nervous.
"No, I'm fine. I'm waiting for new orders," - she said, bowing as she always would.
"Moon, you don't need to do that anymore... I don't want to be your master anymore, I want to be your friend," - Llyod exclaimed, leaving her confused.
However, the Purple Ninja didn't say a single word for a moment, thinking.
"Alright, but I'll still follow the last orders that your father, Lord Garmadon, gave me," - Moon said to him, returning to her normal stance.
Soon, all the other ninjas and Sensei Wu gathered there. Cole was still rubbing his stomach due to the slight pain.
"Purple Ninja," - Moon didn't even need to turn around to know who called her. - "Or better, Moon." -.
"Sensei Wu?" - The other elemental ninjas were confused.
"Wu..." - She clenched her fist tightly.
"I thought I'd never see you again... Since... Well... You know," - he seemed a bit hesitant to speak, and sadness briefly passed through his eyes.
"Past is past, what matters is the future," - she stated, with no specific emotion.
"I understand..." - He sighed, already knowing it would be a bit complicated.
o0o0o
"This game is a bit complicated... But fun!" - Llyod pressed the buttons on the controller furiously.
Sensei Wu had asked them to cause some trouble and spread rumors to teach them a lesson.
"How about trying, Moon?" - Llyod offered the controller to her.
Moon took the controller and played... She did incredibly well for a first attempt.
Now it was time to make the ninjas mad and get them to jump to conclusions.
"Hey, Kai. Cole beat your record. You should've seen it, it was unbelievable!" - Llyod exclaimed with a smile.
"Oh, you must be talking about Sitar Legend. This is Fist Face 2. No one beats me at my game," - he said, convinced.
"Could be. See you," - Llyod turned to leave with Moon following him.
"Ah? Cole!" - Kai became irritated when he saw that there was no save and he really had beaten his own record.
o0o0o
Cole was now messing with his soba, his culinary achievement.
"Purple Soba, my culinary achievement. If the recipe isn't followed exactly..." - He tried it and didn't like the taste very much.
"By the way, I saw Jay seasoning things. I told him to stop, but he said he was helping with your cooking," - explained the platinum blonde. - "Bye, Cole." -.
Cole spat everything out because of the horrible, strong taste.
"Jay!" - He shouted the name of the Blue Ninja angrily.
o0o0o
Jay was checking his robot and pressed a button to turn it on.
"Nah," - He put on his helmet and grabbed his nunchucks. - "Let's make things easier. Level two, okay?" - He pressed the button with a smile.
Instead of going to level two, the robot was set to level nine. Llyod whistled.
"Hey Jay, I saw Zane trying to fix your robot earlier today. Isn't that your specialty? See you later, bro." - Llyod went up the stairs.
Moon was watching this with an attentive gaze.
"Wait. What?!" - Jay tried to turn it off, but it wasn't working. - "No! Zane!" -.
o0o0o
Zane was still in his pajamas and went to get the clothes they washed. Llyod approached with Moon.
"Good morning, Llyod, Moon," - He said, smiling. - "What brings you here on this lovely morning?" -.
(Uhm... The ninjas seemed so happy a few minutes ago, it even feels a little sorry...) - Thought the Purple Ninja.
"Kai asked for his ninja clothes. He said he washed them with his white clothes," - Llyod rummaged through the basket of clothes and picked up Kai's. - "Here they are. Thanks," - he waved before leaving.
o0o0o
"Wasn't it enough to have the highest score? You had to rub it in my face?" - Kai complained to Cole.
"Do you know how long I spent doing that? Three days! Three days!" - Cole was indignant.
"It's a matter of common sense. Don't mess with a man's robot!" - Jay said, pointing to Zane.
"How can I scare someone with this? Look, the color is pink!" - He showed his ninja suit.
Sensei Wu arrived and shook his head negatively as he watched them argue. He opened a door that showed Llyod laughing with all the crime evidence... And Moon was by his side.
Llyod began to laugh maliciously.
"Did you do this?!" - The four ninjas exclaimed at the same time.
"Guys, I'll be the first to—" - Cole started to approach.
Moon stood in front of Llyod to defend him.
"Do nothing!" - Sensei Wu interrupted him. - "I asked them to do this for today's lesson. I wanted to show the destructive power of rumors and how jumping to conclusions only causes problems. Did you at least try to find out if the accusations were true?" - Sensei Wu asked.
"Ah, no offense, Sensei... But let me draw this conclusion: today's lesson was boring," - Cole said, frowning.
"Yeah. Why not teach how to paralyze your opponent with one finger? Or how to tell if a man is lying just by looking at him?" - Jay asked, a bit irritated.
"Because not all lessons are about fighting! And I lost my lesson book," - He sighed.
Kai looked to the side and saw the book. He approached and picked it up; Llyod was with it.
"Are you looking for this lesson book?" - Kai lifted it.
"It was the perfect plan until you all showed up to ruin everything! And—" - Kai interrupted him by closing the door.
"If you're done, I need you on the bridge. We still have a snake problem to solve. Over and out," - Nya said through the speakers.
"Living with the son and pupil of your arch-nemesis is one thing, but now bringing my sister here?! Seriously! I thought this was something for the ninja headquarters!" - Kai complained, irritated.
"That sounded so sexist," - Moon murmured softly.
"You know I can hear you, right?" - Kai seemed regretful now for saying that. - "Over and out." -.
o0o0o
They all gathered on the bridge.
"The last time we saw Pythor, he stole the tomb map and now wants to open the last two serpent tombs," - Nya said, looking at the map.
"Don't even mention it!" - Llyod lowered his head.
"Pythor is the greatest threat. If he finds the tombs before us, with his intellect and the four tribes freed, who knows what he'll do," - Sensei Wu reminded them of the worst of the serpents.
"But it could be anywhere. Without the tomb map, it's like throwing darts at a map," - Jay exclaimed, frowning.
"Great idea. Why not?" - Nya threw darts that stuck to the computer screen. - "These two points are the tombs of the Hypnobrai and Fangpyre," - she approached.
"Show off," - Kai muttered.
Nya threw one last dart.
"And this is Pythor's tomb. After thinking about why the tombs are placed in these exact three spots, I discovered a secret pattern," - Nya picked up a lantern and lit it. - "If you notice, the three of them are aligned with Ninjago's serpent symbol," - the lantern showed this.
"So the last two tombs must be here and here. Aww, you're so smart," - Jay approached and praised the Red Ninja's sister.
(The Blue Ninja has a crush on her) - The Purple Ninja easily deduced; it was pretty obvious.
"Did you still have doubts?" -.
"It's a waste of time. Kai and Jay, go to the Venomari tomb. Cole and Zane, go to the Constrictai tomb. And take this, in case you find Pythor. Good luck," - Sensei Wu commanded, handing the flute to Cole.
"What am I going to do?" - Nya asked, curious.
"Yes! What are we going to do?" - Llyod tilted his head slightly.
"Nya, I need you here and make sure Llyod doesn't get into more trouble," - Wu said, looking at the girl.
"Yes, Sensei..." - Nya crossed her arms.
The Purple Ninja was about to leave, wanting to go after the serpents on her own, to settle things with Pythor.
"And you too, Moon. You'll stay here until you recover," - Wu noticed her trying to sneak out.
She sighed softly and turned around.
"Alright..." -.
"Let's go, everyone, snakes to fight," - Cole said excitedly for a good fight.
Soon, all the ninjas left for their missions.
"Where are you, Pythor?" - Sensei Wu took one last look at the map with his sharp eyes. - "What are you up to?" -.
Moon left the room; she didn't intend to go after the serpents... At least not for now.
"Moon, we need to talk," - Sensei Wu said, following her.
She didn't say anything but turned around.
"It's been so long since we've seen each other... Since... Well... You and... Your former Sensei disappeared that day. You haven't changed a bit," - Sensei Wu said with a nostalgic tone. - "What happened back then?" - .
Moon looked down and closed her eyes.
"Sensei Aaron! Don't go! We have to protect the Heart of the Jungle, the Kingdom!" - Moon's voice was desperate and breathless.
"Moon... Forgive me, but... From this day on, I am no longer a hero of the Kingdom, nor a Ninja. I will betray the Kingdom and flee, and you can no longer stop me." - Aaron spoke in a dark tone and threw his scepter.
"Sensei!" - Suddenly, a bright light appeared, blinding everything.
"Goodbye, my dear student." -.
Moon suddenly opened her eyes.
"What happened that day will remain in the past, it no longer matters." - She declared, almost spitting venom.
Sensei Wu sighed, already knowing how she felt. The feeling of abandonment and betrayal was written all over her face.
"Tell me, Wu," - This caught the old man's attention - "How do I unlock my True Potential?" -.
"You must overcome the obstacles within yourself. Only when you conquer them will your heart be free to unlock your True Potential." - Sensei Wu explained to her, and she became somewhat thoughtful.
"Thank you." - She bowed and turned to leave. - "If you'll excuse me, I'll go train." -.
"No, young lady. You still need to rest and eat properly." - He tapped her on the head with his staff.
Moon muttered a curse under her breath and rubbed the spot where she was hit.
o0o0o
The ninjas returned from their mission, which had been a failure, and Kai was still delirious due to the venom from a different type of serpent.
Now they were all having dinner.
"When we were almost done for, that giant robot appeared—!" - Jay started.
"Samurai. It was a samurai." - Zane said to him.
"A sam... what?" - Lloyd looked confused.
"Samurai. The highest rank of warriors. They protected the nobility and served with honor on the battlefield." - Sensei Wu explained.
"It was about 30 meters tall, armed to the teeth!" - Kai started going off - "Ah! Look at Sensei's beard! It's moving with the snakes!" - Kai murmured to Cole.
Everyone looked at him strangely.
"Okay, okay. Let's not let the mysterious samurai overshadow what really matters. All the snakes are loose, and if Pythor manages to gather them all, the legend says the Great Devourer will consume the land, and ehh..." - Cole didn't know what else to say.
"Great Devourer?" - Nya looked confused.
"Ah! Whatever it is! It's a can of worms I don't want opened." - Cole said, slightly terrified.
(The Great Devourer? I think I've read about it somewhere) - Moon thought.
"Ahhh, it's all my fault! If I hadn't opened the first door, none of this would have happened!" - Lloyd lamented.
"We can't change the past, but we can shape the future. At least we still have the Sacred Flute with us, so—..." - Sensei Wu gestured.
"Then... about that." - Jay tried to start explaining.
"Pythor kind of stole it..." - Zane wasn't sure how to tell Wu.
"The last Sacred Flute... is gone?!" - Sensei Wu was in shock, he sighed - "You five are the last hope of Ninjago." -.
"Sensei Wu, you're not counting on her—" - Cole was interrupted by alarms.
"The cold visor detected something! This means the snakes are near!" - Nya explained to everyone.
"Oh no! In Ninjago City?!" - Everyone rushed to the bridge.
"How many are there?" - Jay asked.
"Looks like all of them." - It seems the venom was starting to wear off for Kai.
"Pythor must be trying to unite them." - Zane concluded.
"Go! We can't let the five tribes unite!" - Sensei Wu ordered.
The ninjas left, and Moon stayed behind.
"Go ahead, Moon... Just take it easy," - Sensei Wu told her hesitantly.
Moon didn't listen and left, using Spinjitzu to put on her Purple Ninja suit.
o0o0o
The ninjas were jumping out of the flying ship one by one.
"Stay safe, Lloyd," - That was all Moon said before jumping.
She was enjoying the wind before grabbing her Golden Staff and activating her vehicle, a jet, flying down to the ground smoothly.
When she landed, she deactivated the vehicle mode before touching down, rolling into a somersault to land on her feet.
(Ninjago City) - Moon looked around, just as impressed as the other ninjas.
"I've heard so many stories about this place." - Kai said, raising his eyebrows in surprise.
"The biggest city in all of Ninjago! I've always dreamed of being here!" - Jay exclaimed in surprise.
"I also always wanted to be on a billboard here." - Cole said with a smug smile beneath his mask.
"You too?" - Jay looked surprised.
"Yeah, me too." - Kai glanced briefly at Moon, as if waiting for a response, before furrowing his brows, irritated.
"Well... It's not too bad." - She didn't know what to say.
"Yeah... But before we forget, where are the snakes? Shouldn't we be in the middle of a huge snake meeting?" - Zane asked.
Moon looked around for a moment before closing her eyes and trying to sense them with her aura.
Looking down, through the underground, she saw a massive aura being displayed.
"I found them." - She murmured, walking with her eyes still closed toward a manhole cover.
"Man, this is creepy." - Jay whispered to his friends.
"The snakes are underground in Ninjago." - The Purple Ninja explained.
"Ugh. I hate snakes." -.
o0o0o
The ninjas managed to reach the meeting and observed as Pythor tried to convince the snakes to unite.
"There are so many snakes." - Cole was surprised.
"What are we going to do?!" - Jay asked.
"I... I have an idea." - Moon said, looking over there.
"Yes, why not?" - Zane asked her.
"The power of rumors is a powerful thing." - She summarized in a way that the ninjas understood.
"Ah! I can't believe I'm agreeing with the girl who kidnapped my sister." - Kai muttered under his breath and rolled his eyes.
The ninjas were about to put their rumor plan into action.
"Sounds like a great plan, but you know the Hypnobrai are going to mess it up!" - Kai said, smiling mischievously beneath his mask.
"Who said that?!" -.
The Hypnobrai were already getting irritated.
"They can't bite my butt!" - Jay said, which confused the Constrictai.
"I bet they drink their own venom!" - Cole said with an excited grin.
"All that digging has replaced your brains with dirt!" - Zane said, hiding.
"I remember that there's only one Anacondrai! Where are the others? Can we even trust him?!" - Moon exclaimed in a rougher voice.
This caused more intrigue and distrust among the snakes.
The ninjas fell back for the moment, but the snakes lost track of them and began to capture them. Moon was with Jay. Cole, Kai, and Zane were captured.
The Blue and Purple Ninjas were about to flee, but Jay was captured.
"Run!" - Jay ordered to Moon, who turned and ran.
She hid from the snakes behind a giant purple poster with a man playing a guitar.
"This might be my chance." - She turned to leave but stopped for a second.
The ninja began to question herself. She should help Lord Garmadon destroy the ninjas, be loyal to him as a form of repayment.
But she felt a feeling take over her chest.
"Feeling of abandonment and betrayal..." - She murmured, closing her eyes.
"Sensei Aaron!" - She found herself in a dark place, with nothing around - "No!" - She tried to find a way out.
She tried everything: running, jumping, using her other powers, screaming until her voice almost gave out... but nothing worked.
The only thing left was to sit and wait, hoping someone would free her.
"Why did he do this?" - Silent tears fell from her face.
"No!" - She opened her eyes with a fierce determination - "I will not be a cowardly traitor like him! Never!" - She turned and began forming a plan to save the ninjas.
"SSSo one eesscaped... That Purple Ninja," - Skales said to Pythor.
A snake opened a door, revealing the tied-up ninjas.
"Search every corner. She's a ninja, stealthy, and you'll never find her if you don't pay attention!" -.
"Look! A Purple Ninja!" - The snake pointed to the ceiling.
Moon was swinging from a rope.
"Go, Purple Ninja!" - The other ninjas cheered for her.
Moon knocked out some snakes before reaching them. She grabbed her staff and cut the rope.
"Let's go, we have to get out of here," - She said, turning around.
"You're not going anywhere." - Pythor seemed confident, surrounded by so many warrior snakes - "You will be defeated here, Ninja," - He hissed at her, sticking out his tongue.
"No." - She said firmly.
"I bet you were thinking of abandoning these ninjas. I've spent enough time getting to know you, Moon," - Pythor laughed - "What made you change your mind? What are your plans?" -.
"I wouldn't be surprised if she really did that," - Kai rolled his eyes.
"No, Pythor, you don't know me that well," - She threatened, stepping closer - "Once, someone abandoned me, betrayed me. I will never be like that person... I won't abandon anyone." - She looked at the ninjas - "Go, I'll hold them off." -.
"But-" -.
"Go!" - She raised her voice.
The ninjas swallowed hard but left.
Moon put her staff on her back and clasped her hands together, spinning an Aura Sphere and throwing it at them, causing an explosion. The ninjas managed to escape.
"Let's go!" - Jay called out to Moon.
"That's running away... like a coward," - Pythor spat venom.
"I'm not a coward," - She said, turning her back to him - "I didn't abandon anyone, nor did I betray them... I am a Ninja." - Her body started to glow - "I won't let you get what you want so easily, Pythor. I won't be defeated today, maybe not tomorrow, it may not be soon, but I will defeat you." - Her body glowed brighter and turned neon blue, becoming transparent.
She closed her eyes and then opened them, generating a wave of aura that knocked out the nearby snakes and caused some damage to the more distant ones. She threw an Aura Sphere at Pythor.
"She unlocked her True Potential!" - Zane exclaimed, surprised.
After that, all the energy faded, and Moon felt weak but managed to escape to join the ninjas.
"Let's go!" -.
The ninjas successfully escaped the snakes.
o0o0o
Moon wasn't in the dining room with the others for dinner. She was already wearing a pajama that Nya lent her, lying on a bed in the room she would be sharing with her. The mattress was extremely comfortable.
"The food was great. Are you sure you don't want anything?" - Nya asked, entering the room.
"No. But you need to be careful where you store this." - She pointed to the Samurai helmet.
"How-!" - Nya quickly grabbed it, shocked.
"Don't worry, I won't tell." - Moon said, lying back down.
"Why?" - Nya raised an eyebrow.
Moon looked at the ceiling.
"To focus on what I did when I kidnapped you... Also, girls should stick together. This world of fighting isn't easy for us... because of our gender." - Moon summarized - "But know that... you don't need to prove anything to anyone... You're a warrior, and you don't depend on anyone, Nya. I'll help you with that." -.
Nya stared at her in surprise, wondering why she would want to help her when she could have handed her over.