Wu and Red sat in the former's quarters facing each other. Both were on the floor with their legs crossed.

"How much do you know about the dark arts, Sensei?" the latter questioned.

"Far more than you may believe," he lowly responded. "In Ninjago, there are two prime elements passed down from my father, the First Spinjitzu Master. The power of creation, where the powers of the ninjas spawn from, and the power of destruction. Your magic is sort of like a third party to this. It is not an element, but so close to that destruction potential it almost seems like it. Which is why it is very, very deadly.

"Even if you don't intend to use it in such a way, it is dark magic. It's prime utilization is immoral. You can manipulate it to do and create anything and everything you desire. You just need to learn the ability to.

"If you remember our first conversation when you came aboard, I said that the dark arts use both elements of creation and destruction. When you fully master those aspects, you will be a force so unstoppable no one who isn't a student of mine would dare to challenge you."

Red listened intently, intrigued by his words. Truly, could he be so feared?

He'd be lying if he said he didn't love the idea. He didn't want his past training to be for nothing. And now, joining with a resilient force, he was able to become even stronger.

So with a newfound determination, the man nodded. "Then I am ready to start."

¤ ¤

Nya walked the halls of the Bounty alone. Even though the muffled sounds of everyone rang around her, it felt completely silent to her.

Now that Scarlett was a ninja and no longer on the sides like her, she was once again alone. Even her brother, who had just shown up out of the blue, was being trained by Sensei.

She wasn't jealous or anything. She constantly told herself how she never wanted to be a part of their "boys club," like ever. It sucked that not only Sensei wouldn't be around much, but the one person she quickly became close with was taken from her so easily.

She was definitely being a little dramatic, but still.

Nya couldn't interfere with the ninjas' affairs, that much was sure. They were working in a completely separate league, as the ninjas were training each other.

Maybe, possibly maybe, she would be able to train too in another way. It's always better with two, anyway.

She walked toward the room that Red and Wu were in. As soon as she arrived, she heard their voices.

"Excellent work. It may not seem like much, but progress has been made. Do not fret; tomorrow we will continue."

"I understand. Thank you, Sensei."

Their teacher was the first to walk out, holding his staff as usual. He nodded toward her, seeming to know exactly what it was that troubled her.

"Make sure not to exert him too much, Nya. I need him to be at as full strength as possible tomorrow."

She tilted her head a bit. "Really? Is it that overwhelming?"

It looked like he wanted to tell her something, but Red had walked out of the room at that second. "Oh, hello Nya."

"Hey..."

Wu instead kept his statement brief. "It is always important to save up energy, no matter the kind of training." And he walked away.

It was just the two of them now.

Nya found herself staring at the man who she discovered was very nicely built under that jacket he took off for the day. His dark colored tank fit his form perfectly, with no sleeves to reveal broad shoulders and muscular arms.

Red blinked, utterly oblivious and wondering why she began staring. "Nya? Is everything okay?"

It took another second, but the samurai vigorously shook her head to bring herself back. A hint of pink crossed her cheeks as she tried to save herself some embarrassment.

"Sorry! Just got lost in thought, I guess." She grabbed the ends of her hair to fiddle with them in hopes of changing the topic. "How did training with Sensei go?"

"Eh." He nonchalantly shrugged, quick to dismiss what bothered her. It was safe to say he didn't even notice. "It could have been worse. We spent a lot of time talking about the arts itself, so I was able to get a better feel for it. That helped a lot... I never knew such things about the powers I have."

Nya smiled. "Yeah, Sensei is pretty wise. He's been in this world for a lot longer than a lot of people ever have."

Red did the same. "So I've heard. What are you off to do, now?"

"Well... I was hoping you'd be able to help me out a little. The others are gonna be training for who knows how long all day, and I don't know what else to do. I'd like to train, but..."

"Your options are limited. I understand. I can train with you, if that's what you'd like. Or is there anything else you'd like to do?"

"Hmm... let's train." A sort of wicked smile creeped up her face at the sudden idea that she was specifically instructed not to do. "I wanna know what that magic's all about. It's different from the others' elemental powers, right?"

"It is, yes." He lightly shook his head. "But I'm afraid I have to decline on that one. Sensei instructed me not to use my magic until tomorrow. For the sake of not over exerting, I guess."

Her shoulders slumped. "Aww, man..."

"However," Red thought of something else. "He didn't say I couldn't train physically. To tell you the truth, I only know how to box. I don't know your guys' way of the ninja or whatever you call it. If I'm to be with you all, perhaps it would be better to hone my physical skills."

"Oh." Nya perked her head back up. "Yeah, the way we fight means we're pretty well-rounded in everything. How long have you been boxing for?"

"A few years. I've had some specialized training, so I like to think I'm strong enough." He softly smiled. "I won't be a lost cause, at least."

It wasn't exactly what she had planned, but she didn't mind teaching one bit. She felt like an instructor herself.

So they made their way to the ship's deck. While it was previously occupied, it was empty now.

Nya examined the open area. "Well, at least we'll have some space to ourselves. Not that much is needed, but it works out better."

"Are you sure? No matter what style you're fighting, I feel like the more space you have, the better," he countered. "You always want to be moving around. At least that's what I've learned, anyway."

"I see. Well, let's see it then."

"See it?"

"I can only help you if you show me where you're currently at." She held her hands up, familiar with the method of holding for your partner. "Go ahead. As if these were pads."

Red blinked. "Um... are you sure? I'm used to one of us having gloves at least."

"Go ahead! What, do I look weak to you?"

"No, I suppose not..." As to not start an argument, he let it be. "Okay, but let me know if it's too much."

With that, he punched her right hand with his; a powerful cross, her hand practically flew back. Her face scrunched into a brief wince. She'd be lying if she said she underestimated his strength a little.

But the second he had released that fist, her left hand chopped down into his neck. He flinched, his head twitching to the side.

"Jeez, that hurt," Nya started, waving her hand a little. "That's nice form, but Sensei would tell us that's wide open."

Without giving him a chance to recover, she rolled forward and quickly got on her feet in a second. She sent a kick to his back, knocking him on his knees.

"I always felt like boxing was just brute force. No flexibility behind it. Yes you use your entire body, but not the way it should be used."

From below her, Red muttered, "I see..."

Nya walked back to his front side. "That punch did hurt, though. I'll be sure to use some padding next time."

He didn't let her get another word out as he lifted his head. The man's left knee slid forward an inch as his right foot lifted and planted itself on the floor. He grabbed the back of both her knees and pressed his entire head into her waist. With an extreme force, he pushed his head and pulled his hands back, causing her to squeal as she was in the air for a split second before falling on her back. All this took about three seconds.

Before she could stand, Red slid both his legs over her body and sat on her. Nya fiercely blushed, utterly confused.

"Huh?"

She began lifting her arms to prepare her escape. However, he used that to his advantage and grabbed her right wrist and forced it around her neck. He used his left hand to grab said wrist and pull her up. Once she was in a sitting position, against her will, he slid back over behind her and forced her on him as he sat back, hooking his legs inside hers and planting his feet on the ground.

He squeezed so she couldn't move. He then put her in a headlock, also squeezing. He kept his body calm yet firm, making sure to allow her no space for escape.

Nya couldn't help the severe redness in her face. One, due to the fact that she couldn't fucking breathe. It had all happened so fast, her hands had started trying to pry him off her neck. And two, she was so unfamiliar with the position they were in.

It didn't bother Red in the slightest, as he had done things like this hundreds and hundreds of times with both men and women. Nya, however, had not. Her body was touching his in every way possible. Every way.

"I forgot to mention," Red lowly spoke, practically whispering in her ear, "I grappled, as well."

"I... can see that..." Nya was no quitter though. She needed to find a way out no matter what.

Squirming her body did not help at all. In fact, it only seemed to make his grip tighter.

That's when other voices got louder and louder the closer they got.

"You did well today, Lloyd. Sorry for the lack of action... but once you work with either Cole or Kai, you'll get much of that."

"That's okay. I know you have to be well-rounded to be a good ninja, anyw... um, hey guys? What's going on?"

That's when Red and Nya -- well, to the best of her ability -- whipped their heads to the side, finding Lloyd, Zane, and Jay standing at the stairs of the deck. The latter bored his eyes into the man's, one step away from pouncing on him.

"Yeah... what's going on?"

"Ah," Red released his grip on her, getting to his feet. "We were just practicing. I had asked her to show me how to fight like you guys, since I'm only a boxer."

He held his hand out to her, ready to help her up. "She's very good."

After catching her breath, Nya smiled as she took his hand. "You're pretty good... but I didn't tap out."

"Maybe you should have. Choosing to stay in a position like that could really end up hurting you."

"I wasn't willingly staying like that, asshole."

Jay clicked his tongue, crossing his arms over his chest. "Okay, watch out for Red... got it."

"How did training go for you, Lloyd?" the samurai asked.

"Pretty good," the ninja in green enthusiastically answered. "Zane worked on my elemental powers today. So far, I'm able to summon them all. He said next time I worked with him, we'd see how long I can use them for before I tap out."

"It's still a work in progress, but it helps a lot that Lloyd is already disciplined. It will be far easier to train him in both his elemental and physical prowess," Zane confidently continued. "Scarlett, however, is a little more complicated. Not to belittle you, Lloyd, but we will need to pay a bit more attention to her."

"Nah, I understand. Do what you guys gotta do." He then turned to the two again. "How'd your training go, Red?"

"It was alright. Most of it was Sensei informing me on how my magic works. With this, I can not only destroy, but create." As he spoke, a mist of dark magic rose from his palm. "According to him, anyway."

Though still a little suspicious of him, Jay uncrossed his arms. "And you don't know how you got those powers, right?"

Red shook his head. "I can only assume I was born with them. The scientists did say they were suppressed, after all."

"Well, all you can do is work on that. All of us." Nya began walking back toward the stairs with a slight smile on her face. "Come on. I wanna see how Scarlett's been doing all day."