RWBY: TMNT

Chapter XIV

Splinter made his way through the Ha'shi.

Leonardo had his legs held in a split position by two cement bricks, which lifted him far off the ground. An egg rested on his head, which he struggled to balance, along with the two eggs he held on chopsticks in his hands.

Raphael stood with one foot on a unicycle, struggling to sew a rag.

Donatello stood on a rotating platform, using two ping pong paddles to paddle a ping pong ball from one to another.

Michelangelo held onto the arms of a spinning chair, his legs high in the air.

"11 hours in the Ha'shi," Splinter said. "Are you sure none of you want to tell me where you were last night?"

"How you guys holding up?" Leonardo asked.

"I ain't breakin' if Donnie ain't breakin'," Raphael said.

"Experiencing intense nausea but not breaking!" Donnie said. Splinter used his tail to spin the platform faster.

"I totally got this, guys!" Mike said. "You don't gotta worry about me!"

Splinter turned to Leo.

"Leonardo," he said. "I am most disappointed in you. You are the eldest of your brothers."

Leo had a clear look of guilt on his face, but he didn't lower his head. As horrible as he felt for failing to follow simple orders, he wasn't about to break.

"I'm sorry, Sensei," Leo said.

"Are you sure you don't want to tell me where you were?" Splinter asked.

Leo shut his eyes, guilt stinging beneath his plastron. He hated lying to Splinter, but he couldn't tell him what had happened.

"Fine," Splinter said, turning around.

"Guys?" Mike said. "I'm in the zone! There is literally nothing that could break me right now!"

Suddenly, Splinter set a box of pizza on the table in the middle of the room.

Mike immediately felt his arms starting to give up on him. "Starting to break..."

"Of course, you've all tasted the 5-cheese pizza," Splinter said. "But this... cheesemongers have speculated its existence for centuries. Da Vinci's original masterpiece. I submit to you..." He pulled open the box, revealing the pizza. "Novantanove Formaggio, the 99-cheese pizza!"

Mike's jaw dropped, and his arms started to shake even more as the smell of the pizza came to his nose.

"It's not possible," Mike said.

"Mikey, it's a trap!" Donnie said.

Splinter lifted a slice from the box, and began to approach Mike. "Shall I list the ingredients? Cheddar... Provolone..."

"Mikey, don't you do it!" Leo ordered.

But Mike was shivering in fear the closer the pizza came to his lips.

"Asiago," Splinter continued.

"Keep it together!" Donnie said.

"Taleggio..."

"I don't even know what that is," Mike whispered.

"Mozzarella, of course," Splinter said.

Finally, Mike couldn't hold it in anymore. "Okay, okay, okay! We left the lair because the Foot were taking hostages and we totally kicked butt, and there was this girl named Weiss Schnee who took our picture!" He gasped for air. "But we took care of it!"

"Idiot," Raphael grumbled.

None of the turtles noticed Splinter's immediate shift in attitude, an expression of shock appearing on his face, which quickly turned into one of fear.

"Oh, no, my worst fears have been realized," he sighed.

"Don't worry, Master Splinter!" Leo tried to reassure him. "Donnie erased the picture! We're not in danger!"

Splinter spun around to face Leonardo. "No, it's Weiss Schnee who is in danger!" He didn't notice Mike snatch the slice of pizza from his hand. "Find the girl! Bring her here!"

"But, sensei," Donnie said, "you said to not go--"

"Find the girl!" Splinter cut him off.

"Find the girl..."

Splinter spun around, glaring at Michelangelo as he saw him standing up straight, holding the pizza slice.

Mike looked at him with widened eyes...