Out of The Blue

Chapter 3: Respect

By Azure Turtle

Disclaimer: Frost, Boko, Kimara, and Tenryu are my own created characters. Please do not use them without my permission. All TMNT characters belong to Peter Laird, Kevin Eastman, and Mirage Publishing.

I’m just a fan who wants to express my enthusiasm for the TMNT through fanfics. Please don’t hurt me.

Tenryu, Frost, and Kimara quickened their pace to catch up with Boko. Frost kept glancing side to side, taking in his surroundings. There were large mountains of trash and rubble all around them. Columns of old tires marked the path that they walked on. Fires burned brightly in large metal barrels, creating strange shadows that danced on the piles of garbage. The young turtle was nervous about meeting the head of the New York Foot. He had heard many frightening stories about Oroku Saki, and he hoped dearly that the man wasn’t as heartless as some people described him to be. I cannot wait until this mission is over. I miss the clean air of the mountains, and the peace and tranquility of the forests…

“This place disgusts me,” Tenryu said to no one in particular. “And it smells.” The bonfires were obviously using trash as fuel. This created a putrid stench that stung the nostrils of all four of the foreigners. Tenryu grimaced. It was one of the worst headquarters he had ever laid his eyes on. Even some of the lowest mobsters he worked for had a decent place to conduct their business.

Kimara silently agreed with Tenryu. So this is what it’s like to live in a dump. I hope I never end up in a place like this. She noticed that something was gnawing at Frost’s thoughts. His expression was unreadable, but he was obviously worried about something. The kunoichi shrugged it off. He’s probably not too keen about the smell.

The trio reached Boko while he was talking to five individuals dressed in black and purple. Frost recognized the uniforms immediately. They were Foot Soldiers.

“Who are you again?” one of the soldiers asked.

“For the second time,” Boko gritted his teeth in annoyance, “My name is Boko, and I’m a member of the Japanese branch of the Foot clan. I’ve brought the three fighters that Master Shredder requested. Now let us through!”

The Foot Soldiers exchanged looks, their expressions hidden behind their masks. The one in the center spoke up. “We haven’t been informed of you or your friends. I’m sorry, but you better leave… or else.”

“Or else what?” Kimara slowly stepped forward. “What are you going to do to me? Hurt me?” She was getting irritated being in a junkyard, and she was tired from all of the traveling. Kimara was starting to become more than a little grouchy. A fight might help her feel better, and she patiently waited to see how the Foot Soldiers would respond to her challenge.

The sentries were completely caught off guard by Kimara’s words. They stood still, silently gawking at the kunoichi. A few tense moments passed before they recovered from their confusion. “Very well. If you won’t leave, we’ll throw you out.” The five of them readied their weapons and slowly began to walk towards the intruders.

“Finally… I get to have a little fun,” Kimara mused. “Stand back. I can handle them on my own.”

“I don’t think so. I’ve lost my patience, and I need something to vent my frustrations on.” Tenryu cracked his knuckles and stepped forward, joining Kimara. He didn’t even bother taking out his knife. I’ll slay these weaklings with my bare hands.

”Fine, be my guest,” Kimara responded with a bit of annoyance. “But don’t get in my way.”

Frost stood his ground and decided to remain neutral in this situation. He felt compelled to help his fellow clansmen, but at the same time, he did not want to anger his new companions. After all, Kimara and Tenryu were going to be his allies in this mission.

“Stop! All of you, stop it at once!” Boko jumped in between the two angry groups. “You’re all on the same side!” Boko tried pleading, but it didn’t work. He was pushed aside by an angry Tenryu.

Suddenly, a loud grunt echoed through the cold, night air. “Nnngh!” The Foot Soldiers immediately stopped advancing, and lowered their weapons. The four intruders looked around them, wondering where the noise came from and who made it. Before they could ask questions, a bald Japanese man stepped forward from behind one of the piles of garbage. He didn’t look very pleased. In fact, the frown on his face seemed like it was permanent.

“I am Tatsu,” the bald man said. His voice came out harsh and gritty. “I am second in command of the New York Foot Clan. Master Shredder is indeed expecting you, but your arrival was not announced to our soldiers. I apologize for the misunderstanding, but Master Shredder wished to see you first before informing the rest of the clan.” He folded his arms across his chest and glared at his present company.

Frost gazed at the man, a little intimidated. Tatsu wore black and purple garments, with the emblem of the Foot Clan sown on his chest. This was no ordinary uniform. He must be speaking the truth about his position in the clan, Frost silently deduced. It certainly sounds like he has plenty of authority. Frost prepared to bow towards Tatsu, a sign of respect that was customary when meeting a higher ranked officer for the first time. However, he didn’t get his chance since the bald man swiftly turned around and began walking away.

“Follow me,” Tatsu called over his shoulder.

Frost was surprised at Tatsu’s abrupt departure. How odd… While training in Japan, the higher ranked officers always demanded respect. Soldiers who did not pay this respect were punished severely. I wonder why it is different here…

Boko threw his hands into the air as a gesture of relief. “Finally! Someone with a little sense!” He followed on the heels of Tatsu.

“Consider yourselves lucky that you didn’t have to fight me,” Tenryu addressed the group of Foot Soldiers. “Now get out of my way.” He roughly shoved one of them to the ground and walked away, laughing. The Foot Soldier stood up and growled.

Kimara shook her head in amusement. “Don’t worry about him, boys. He’s got a little attitude problem. But hey, maybe we can get together and play later on.” She chuckled and flaunted her “assets” before departing from the scene.

The Foot Soldiers didn’t know what to make of their visitors. They watched Kimara walk off, swaying her behind to purposely grab their attention. They completely ignored their other visitor, who was still standing behind them. Frost didn’t move an inch as he continued to analyze the New York Foot. I cannot believe that these men did not bow their heads in remorse for their mistake. In Japan, if a Foot Soldier were in the wrong, he would quickly apologize and bow his head until forgiven. These soldiers, however, do nothing of the like. They did not ask for our pardon, even though they were mistaken for attempting to attack us. Is there no honor in the New York branch?

“Hey you! Aren’t you supposed to be following Master Tatsu?”

The blue turtle quickly dispatched the web of thought that was being spun in his mind. “Yes, of course,” he answered. He pulled his cloak tightly around his head and quickly walked past them to catch up with the others.

After Frost had left, one of the Foot Soldiers spoke up. “Did you see that? He looked just like one of the freaks that we fought a few months ago!”

“Yeah, but he was blue. What the hell do you think is going on?”

“I don’t know, but I hope Master Shredder hasn’t lost his mind. I wouldn’t trust anything that even comes close to resembling a giant turtle…”

Meanwhile…

“Listen, punk… I’m in no mood to listen to your bullshit excuses. Tell me what you know about the Foot. Now.”

A young man, dressed in ragged jeans and wearing an old leather jacket trembled under the glare of Raphael. The turtle had his sais drawn, and they were dangerously close to the man’s throat.

“C’mon, spit it out. You know something, and you’re not telling me…”

“I swear, man! I don’t know nothin’ about the Foot!”

“But you run with the Purple Dragons, don’tcha? That symbol on your jacket proves it. I know your gang used to have ties with Shredder and the Foot. Now, I’m gonna ask you again…”

“Raph, this guy doesn’t seem to know anything. He’s already close to wetting his pants.” Leonardo sighed and folded his arms in annoyance. He and Raphael just prevented three members of the Purple Dragons from breaking into a small jewelry store. The one Raphael was holding at bay was the only guy left. The other two were lying on the ground, face down. Dead or unconscious, it didn’t matter now.

“Shut up, Leo,” Raphael snapped back. “I’m not gonna be convinced until he’s shitting bricks. Tell me what you know about the Foot. No lame excuses this time, or I’ll cut off your balls and shove ‘em down your throat.” In an instant, Raphael’s sais flew from the man’s throat and stopped a few inches away from the man’s groin.

“Raph! Stop it!” Leonardo began to angrily advance towards his brother when the horrified man suddenly began babbling.

“Okay-okay-okay! The Foot was behind that big bank robbery a week ago! That’s all I know!”

“Are you sure?” Raphael narrowed his eyes.

“Yes! I swear! Oh God, please don’t hurt me! I wanna have kids someday!”

“All right, I believe ya.” Raphael placed his sais against his plastron, which were secured by the brown leather belt he wore. The frightened man sighed in relief and wiped the sweat off his brow. “But I don’t think someone like you should be having any kids.” Without warning, Raphael kneed the man where the sun never shined.

“Oh SHIT! That fucking hurt, you sonuvabitch…” the man fell to the ground, grabbing his crotch and screaming in pain. More obscenities escaped his lips as he lay on wet cement, curled up in the fetal position. Raphael grinned as he watched the man writhe in pain.

“Damn it! That was totally uncalled for!” Leonardo walked up to his brother and spun him around, so that they were facing eye to eye. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he hissed.

Raphael shrugged, but he continued grinning like the Cheshire Cat. “C’mon, Leo. Ain’t it obvious? I just did the world a favor by making sure that this scumbag doesn’t produce little scumbags.”

Leonardo was absolutely enraged at Raphael’s actions, but his brother continued. “Besides, he gave us the info. we were looking for. He’s worthless now.”

“Are you insane? Splinter always taught us to never use excessive force!”

“Yeah? Well Splinter never had to deal with an asshole like him.”

“Why do you always go against everything he teaches us?”

“Because, it’s in my nature. I’m the rebel in the family. Or did you forget?” Raphael’s voice dripped with sarcasm. Leonardo was about to continue berating Raphael, but his brother turned around and began heading back towards a manhole cover.

“Where are you going?” Leonardo demanded.

Raphael stopped and turned around. He gave Leonardo an icy look. “Home. Or would you rather have the two of us continue patrolling the streets while Donny and Mike stay up and wait for us?”

Leonardo gritted his teeth in frustration. He’s right… Our shift is over. We should be heading back home and getting some rest. Besides, I’ve had about enough of Raph’s reckless actions. He released an almost inaudible sigh. Sleep sounds good right about now, especially since we’re both edgy. Mike and Don will take care of the rest.

Even without getting a verbal response, Raphael knew that Leonardo agreed. He could tell from the expression that his brother wore. It was a tired expression that proclaimed “fine, you’re right.” Raphael walked over to the manhole cover, looked around to make sure no one was watching, and slowly moved it aside. Police sirens were wailing in the distance, making them hurry. The two of them hopped in and closed the sewer after them. They trudged through the water and muck without saying a word to one another. Both were lost in their own thoughts and worries.

Back at the Foot Headquarters…

Tatsu lead the small group to the entrance of a large two-story building. “Wait here,” he commanded. “I shall announce your arrival to Master Shredder.” Tatsu turned around and entered the building, leaving the others standing around outside.

“He certainly likes going straight to the point, doesn’t he?” Kimara smirked.

“Yes, he does…” Frost answered. He was still lost in thought over the amazing contrasts between the New York Foot and the Japanese Foot.

Boko looked about before deciding that a small stack of tires would make a suitable chair. Tenryu stood still, his arms folded and his eyes scanned the area. There was a giant clearing in front of the large building; it was in the shape of a circle, defined by the various mounds of trash that surrounded it. Tenryu’s eyes darted to a rather small building that stood on the left of the much larger one. It was one-story high, and it looked like it was no bigger than a single room. However, this tiny building was heavily guarded with six Foot Soldiers, all of whom seemed to be warily watching Tenryu and his allies. I wonder why such a small building would need so many guards, thought Tenryu.

He turned his attention to another building, which sat on the right of the main building. In a few minutes, a Foot Soldier appeared from that building and began walking over to the tiny one. He stared at Tenryu and the others but said nothing as he passed by. Once the lone soldier arrived at his destination, one of the six Foot Soldiers on duty left his post and headed to the same building that his ally had just exited.

A changing of the guards, Tenryu observed. That building over there must be a barracks of some sort. But what’s inside the smaller one? What could possibly be so important that it would need six Foot Soldiers to guard it? Tenryu also noticed that there were several sentries who watched over them from the various mountains of garbage.

Kimara decided to break the silence by getting to know her teammates a bit better. “So Frost, exactly how did you get into the Foot Clan?”

The blue turtle raised an eye ridge at the kunoichi, a little surprised by the question. “I joined the Foot Clan after my parents were murdered during a bank robbery.”

Before Frost could say any more, Boko cut into the conversation. “I’ve been his guardian and his teacher since his parents died.” The little man snorted. “And if it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t be alive and he wouldn’t be such an elite member of the Foot. He should be grateful that I even bothered to make something out of him.”

Frost lowered his head sadly and Kimara gave Boko a hard stare. “I wasn’t talking to you.”

“You should be talking to me. Frost never has anything good to say.”

Kimara clenched her fist as she struggled to control her anger. “How would you know? Do you even talk to him?”

“I only talk to him when it’s necessary. He’s my student. Nothing more.”

“How could you say that after you’ve spent so many years with him?” Kimara was quickly approaching her boiling point. “You cold-hearted bastard!”

Boko’s eyes widened in fear as Kimara towered over him. “I should do Frost a favor and kill you.”

“Kimara, wait!” Frost grabbed her by the arm and slowly pulled her aside. “Please, do not harm him,” he whispered.

“But he talks about you as if you were the dirt under his feet!”

“I know,” Frost continued, keeping his voice down. “But he is the nephew of the elderly couple which took care of me. Boko was right when he said that he took me under his wing. I was too young to take care of myself when my parents died. Without him, I would have perished a long time ago.”

“Frost, I don’t know how you manage to live with such a sorry excuse for a man.”

“It is difficult. It has always been difficult, but I have no choice. He is the only family I have.” The sadness was apparent in Frost’s dark, brown eyes.

“I sincerely hope things get much better for you…” Kimara gave Frost a quick hug. “A good kid like you shouldn’t have to put up with so much abuse.”

“Frost!” Boko yelled angrily. “I don’t know what you’re telling that witch, but keep her away from me! Do you understand?!”

Frost turned around and bowed to Boko. “Hai, Sensei.”

Kimara glared daggers at Boko. “Consider yourself lucky that Frost is here to prevent your demise… for now.”

Boko didn’t have time to respond to Kimara’s threatening gaze as Tatsu came back out of the large building and grunted loudly. He folded his arms and looked at everyone present, making sure that he had their complete and undivided attention. When Tatsu was certain of this, he made his announcement. “Master Shredder is ready to see you.”

Tatsu re-entered the building, with the small group shuffling in after him. Frost was amazed at his new surroundings. The entire first floor of the building was a large dojo, complete with training dummies, padding on the floor, and weapons lining the walls and corners. At least their dojo is noteworthy. Frost smirked slightly.

At the end of the dojo was a black spiral staircase. Tatsu lead the group to it and told them to wait in front of it. The bald man stood at the base of the stairs, turned around, and faced the others. “Nnngh!” Tatsu grunted loudly. In a matter of seconds, heavy footsteps could be heard descending from the floor above. The metal staircase shook slightly with each step. Boko grinned like a madman, but the other three nervously held their breath in anticipation of meeting Shredder for the first time. Frost fidgeted slightly, Kimara raised an eyebrow, and Tenryu scratched his chin.

Suddenly, a foot became visible from the top of the staircase. It seemed like an eternity of suspense until the rest of the man became visible, and his appearance shocked all three of the fighters. Shredder’s eyes were focused on them as he reached the floor of the dojo. “Ah, so these are the warriors I have been waiting for.”

Shredder’s voice was powerful but very frightening at the same time. It sent chills down the spines of those present. Only Tatsu seemed unaffected by this. Shredder wore black clothing except for a dark purple cape, which trailed behind him. However, it wasn’t the color of his clothing that shocked his visitors. It was the armor that he wore over the clothing. Shredder’s body seemed to be covered in sharp, metallic spikes. They glistened dangerously in the dimly lit dojo. His ankles, forearms, and shoulders were well protected by the spikes. Even without any weapons, Shredder was armed by two particularly long blades, which extended from his forearm and went past his fists. One punch from this man could easily be fatal. He also wore a metal helmet that protected his entire head; the only place that seemed vulnerable to attack was his eyes. Those eyes were fixed on the fighters before them, analyzing and scrutinizing every detail.

The leader of the New York Foot had such an intimidating presence that Kimara was at a total loss for words. She stared at him in awe. That idiotic Boko was right for a change. Shredder doesn’t look like a pathetic weakling at all. He is a terrifying monster, and endless power seems to surround him…

Frost trembled slightly upon seeing Shredder before his eyes. Never had Frost ever seen such sight. The armor Master Shredder wears is frightening. Such armor does not even exist in Japan. I sense that this man is much more powerful than I had first imagined, and the armor he wears makes him almost invincible. The armor is scary, but that evil glint in his eyes is even more unnerving…

Tenryu’s mouth hung open a bit. He was quite surprised by Shredder’s appearance. The mercenary took a deep breath and studied Shredder from head to toe. I have to admit, this Shredder is unlike any clan leader I’ve ever seen. He’s a little intimidating, but I wonder if he’s as skilled as everyone claims him to be. Shredder has already failed once before.

“Master Shredder!” Boko shattered the silence with his shrill cry. “It is an honor to see you again.” He raced up to Shredder and greeted him with a very low and respectful bow.

“Yes,” Shredder nodded slowly. “I am pleased that you recruited some of the best fighters Japan has to offer.”

“Anything for you, Master.” Boko bowed again.

Boko quickly retreated to stand next to Tatsu, while Shredder stepped forward to address his guests. “Now then.” Shredder began to slowly pace back and forth. “Before you introduce yourselves to me, I want to discuss something. You will receive the money I have promised each of you once this mission is finished. However, if the mission fails, you will not receive a single penny from me. Is that understood?” He paused to gauge the reactions of the fighters. All three nodded silently. “Good. Starting right now, you are no longer under Boko’s command. You are under mine. You will follow my orders without any arguing or any questioning. If my orders are disobeyed without good reason, I will brand you as a traitor and have you killed. Is this understood as well?” Shredder paused once again to wait for the fighters to respond. After a few tense seconds, all three nodded.

Oroku Saki let out a low, sinister laugh. “As long as my rules are obeyed, you will all become rich and your lives will be spared.”

Frost gulped nervously as his greatest fears were confirmed. It seems like Master Shredder is warped with hatred. He truly is heartless…