Ninjago: Rise of the Snakes

Chapter 7: "Tick Tock"

      The Ninja were all watching  a watch as Zane broke his breath-holding record. "Ten minutes! He just broke his own record. The guy's inhuman!" Kai said, looking from the watch to the water. Meanwhile, under the water, Zane sat on the ocean floor. A fish swam by, and Zane petted it, before he finally resurfaced. When he did, the Ninja all cheered for him.
      "Amazing!"
      "We're not worthy."
      "I broke the record?" Zane asked, reaching for (Y/n)'s hand. 
      "You destroyed it!" She replied, pulling him up onto the bounty.
      "Okay, okay. Is anyone thinking what I'm thinking? We've been training for so long, I don't think we can get any better. Just think about all we've accomplished." Jay boasted, as the team thought back to their greatest achievements. Kai ran across a path of burning hot coals. Jay spun around on metal rod, during a lightning storm. Cole started adding more weights to his barbell, and even had Nya and (Y/n) on either side as well. Finally, (Y/n) is now able to single handedly beat all four of the boys, plus Nya in hand to hand combat.
      "The question should be raised. Perhaps we have reached our full potential?" Zane said, as the group headed inside to find Wu.
"Well, every morning I do five hundred push-ups."
"Five hundred? Ha, try a thousand."
"Hahaha, I do a thousand and one."
"What is this, amateur hour? Sounds like my warm-up. Sensei, what does look like if—"
      The team all stop their rambling, when they see Master Wu putting away a katana. Instantly, they bow in respect of their Master. 
      "Our apologies, Sensei. We've interrupted you." (Y/n) said, apologizing for the group. Wu only sighed.
      "I'm sorry if I've been distant lately. My mind has been elsewhere since Lloyd has gone missing. What can I help you with?" He said, turning to his students.
      "Sensei, what if we've done enough training? What if we've reached our True Potential? What if we're ready?" Cole asked.  "Hm. You might have reached peak physical condition, but you've yet to reach your inner potential. In each and every one of us, there are obstacles that hold us back. Only when you conquer that fear will your heart be free. Only then will you reach your True Potential. Only then will we have a fighting chance to stop the from releasing the Great Devourer." Wu replied.
      "There's more to the Great Devourer than you've led on, isn't there, Sensei?" Zane asked. "I too have obstacles within my own heart. There's a story I've never told you." Wu said, preparing to tell them all a story. "Long ago, when I was a young boy, Lord Garmadon and I were more than brothers. We were the best of friends." He started, but was interrupted when Jay spoke up.
      "Wait a minute. Now, I know you two were brothers, but really? The King of Cruelty the Doer of Destruction, the Captain of Chaos, and you two were friends?" He asked, slightly in disbelief. "Please, no interruptions." Wu said, as be continued telling his past. "You see, he did not always have a wicked heart. One day, I lost this very katana. Knowing our father would be mad, my brother told me to go retrieve it. But I refused. He told me not to put off what can be done today and went to get it himself. When my father found him, he was very ill, for he was bitten by a legendary snake that would grow forever as long as it consumes. A great evil had found its way into my brother's heart, for the snake's venom could turn the purest of things wicked." Wu said, explaining how his brother became evil. "The snake is the same one the Serpentine want to reawaken today. It is the snake that took my brother away from me. " He added.

      "So the Great Devourer turned your brother into the Dark Lord?" Kai asked, processing what he and his friends were told.
      "That's awful!" (Y/n) commented.
      "It was all my fault. You five have finished your training. You must now focus on stopping Pythor from collecting the Fangblades. But never lose focus on the obstacles that lie within each of your hearts that holds you back from true greatness. Unlock your True Potential." Wu informed.
      "But how are we supposed to do that, Sensei?" Zane asked him. "It is up to each of you to discover. Now I must go on a personal journey of my own." Wu said, standing up and heading to the door of his room.
      "Where are you going?" Jay asked.
      "To a place you cannot follow." Wu answered.
      "If you're going for Lloyd, the City of is filled with hundreds of Serpentine. You'll never do it alone." Cole stated.
       "I am going to find someone who can be of aid. The Serpentine have united and grown stronger and we will need all the help we can get." Wu responded. With that said, the Ninja dropped him off at the edge of a mountain, before going to look for the Fangblades themselves.
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      Meanwhile, Pythor was also trying to find the locations of the Fangblades.
      "It says nothing about where the four Fangblades are hidden. Have our ancestors left us nothing? Where are they?" Skales asked him.
      "This, here. This must be a clue. 'When five fangs unite as one, the path toward the Devourer has begun.'" Pythor said, reading a prophecy. "Yes, when the five tribes unite. We've done all this. It means nothing. If you don't find out soon, the others will begin to ask questions, and soon they will start to think you don't know what you are doing." Skales stated, annoying Pythor. "I know what I'm doing, fool. I'm trying to unleash the Great Devourer. Legend spoke of a map showing exactly where the four Fangblades have been buried. There must be something around here. Keep looking." Pythor said, as he continued to look for another clue.
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      The Ninja were now in a village, hanging up posters that said 'Missing Fangblade'.
      "Oh, this is silly." Zane complained.
      "You have any better ideas?" Cole asked him, holding a stack of papers for (Y/n) to hang up.
      "Hey, maybe Sensei is gonna go get the Samurai for help!" Jay said, startling Nya, Kai, and (Y/n).
      "The Samurai? I'm sure she's—" (Y/n) elbowed Kai. "I mean, he's busy looking for the Fangblades as well." Kai said nervously.
      "Uh, is everything all right?" Cole asked, suspicious of his friends.
      "Yeah, of course. Why wouldn't it be?" (Y/n) replied.
      "One hundred percent. We're not hiding anything." Nya added. Suddenly, Zane sensed the Falcon's presence, and dropped some of the posters he was holding. 
      "Hey, weirdo. You're making a mess of my store front. Yoo-hoo! You got a problem?" A store owner said to Zane. Zane only dropped the rest of the posters and walked away. This angered the Store owner even more. "Maybe I should teach you a lesson on manners." The store owner said, approaching Zane. Luckily, the other ninja stepped in.
      "I'm sorry, sir. Sometimes our friend is in another world." Kai apologized nervously. "He's littering all over the place!" The store owner complained.
      "We'll pick it up. So sorry." Cole said, giving the store owner another apology. While Cole and Kai picked up the posters, (Y/n) and Jay walked over to Zane.
      "Zane, what's going on?" (Y/n) asked her friend, leading Zane to point to where the Falcon was perched.
      "Ah! It's the Falcon! Oh, my gosh! Every time we follow it, it leads us to good fortune." Jay said, excitedly. Kai walked over to Nya and handed him the posters.
      "Head back to the Bounty and wait till you hear from us." He ordered.
      "But where are you going?" Nya asked her brother. "We're gonna follow the bird. Who knows, it could lead us to the first Fangblade." Kai answered, before he and the other Ninja followed Zane and the Falcon. After a while of running after the bird, Kai noticed how far away from the village they were. "I guess good fortune is really far away." He said, as they continued running. They later came across a mountain, and started climbing it. However, Jay stopped on a branch, panting for air.
      "Keep going. I'll...I'll catch up later." Jay said, and the others continued running. It isn't long, however, before Cole stops.
      " I'm good. Just...just taking a breather. Uh, I'll meet up with you shortly." Cole said, signifying for the others to continue running, which they do. About an hour or so later, Kai speaks up again.
      "Good thing...we're in...peak...physical...condition. Gosh, that bird just keeps going." He said, through pants, before stopping. He then noticed a sign and pointed it out to Zane and (Y/n). "Hey, what do you make of this?" He asked them. Zane read the sign to see that it said 'Beware of Treehorns.'
      "I am not familiar with a Treehorn." Zane informed.
      "Me either."(Y/n) commented.
      "It's probably just some wild squirrels, heh. Well, don't lose him. I'll wait for the other guys to catch up." Kai said, seeing that the Falcon was still going, and Zane and (Y/n) continued to run after the bird.
      "Where are we going, my mysterious friend?" Zane asked the bird. Suddenly, it fell out of the sky and twitched, sparks coming out of it. Zane went to pick it up, and saw something interesting. "You're a...a robot?" He mumbled.
      "Zane! watch out!" (Y/n) cried suddenly. Zane put the Falcon next to a tree, and looked around, seeing a Juggernaut.