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Talia's remembered her mother once saying: "Never make promises you can't keep." At the time, Talia did not understand. Before that line of advice, Talia always thought that promises were unbreakable; you could never turn your back on one. Her mother calmly explained that making a promise was like playing with fire— the good intentions behind the promise would keep you warm for a little while, but if you were not careful, a blazing inferno of disappointment would consume you in its path. When Talia thought about that comparison, she seemed to realize that was probably the reason why she never heard a "I promise. . ." sentence from her parents. In her parents way of thinking, actions spoke louder than words. Not only that, but it was also connected to how even with all the money her family had, they still could not give her everything. If she were to be honest with herself, Talia thought her parents were doing her a favor; it was not like she needed any of the lavish goods most people desired.

Priya agreed to reveal the location of the warehouse, but not before telling Talia to promise that a) she would not tell anyone else about this and b) to stop pursuing for answers in fear that Talia's life would be in potential danger.

Outwardly, Talia gave her word. Inwardly? She broke it by telling April as soon as she and Priya went their separate ways. This was not something Talia thought she could keep to herself. Also, as much as Talia appreciated that Priya cared for her well-being, being asked to quit looking into this mystery was simply out of the question. How could she stop knowing that she knew her mother's murderer? That he was out there somewhere?

If there was a chance that she could find him and dig up everything her mother did prior to her death, she could not ignore it. She couldn't.

***

"This is a stealth-mission only," Leo reminded his brothers in the dojo. Everyone already had their ninja suits on, but they were only waiting for their father to give them the green-light.

Mikey, who was stretching, smiled and squealed, "Oh my god, can you believe this is our first ever serious mission? This is going to be so much fun!"

"All we're going to do is break in and find anything that is of use to us. If we encounter any Foot ninjas tonight, we won't engage, but retreat."

Raph stopped sharpening his sai to look at Leo and ask, "What makes you think The Foot might pay a visit to the warehouse?"

"If our hunch is correct that the warehouse is the birthplace of Genesis's dirty business deal with Shredder, then The Foot could go back and try to get rid of the evidence. Of course, assuming at all that they haven't done so already."

"Oh, so no fun, then? I like this mission already." There was a dripping edge of sarcasm in Raph's voice.

"Did you forget the last time we fought up against one? There were five of us, and yet we still had difficulty overpowering he or she!"

"The only reason why they retreated was because they knew they couldn't take us down all at once. Our skills are on the same level as theirs— maybe even better."

Leo shook his head. "Even if we technically 'won' the fight, I still don't want to take any chances. What if he or she brings more comrades to the party?"

"Whoever they were, it was like they knew every offense and defense trick in the book," Donnie remarked. "They must have an amazing Sensei— that Sensei being Shredder, obviously."

Raph frowned. "I didn't realize we were complimenting the enemy here, Donnie."

"Hey," Donnie lifted his hands up in defense. "I'm just calling it like I see it."

"On the topic of manpower-" Mikey moved on to doing the splits— something he was extremely proud of for mastering it first than his siblings, "-Nee-Chan ain't coming with us?"

His brothers exchanged looks. They had actually informed their sister of their findings, but they never received word that she would be tagging along. The brothers couldn't say they were surprised. It was fair to say that out of everyone, Miwa was less invested in ninjitsu. Even before she moved out, she would occasionally miss out on valuable training sessions. Some might say she was a bit behind than everyone else. In the end, she was able to hone her abilities, but it was always something she would deem insignificant than school and work.

Raph shrugged. "She hasn't said anything, but it's not like we need her or anything," he said. "Besides, if we're not going to do any fighting should we encounter The Foot like Fearless-" he eyeballed Leo mockingly, "-says we will, then Nee-Chan doesn't have to come with us."

"Does anyone else feel like she's sort of disconnected from us?" Mikey wondered, scrambling up to his feet. "That she's somehow withdrawn?"

"Mikey, Nee-Chan is a grown woman," Raph pointed out. "Whatever she does isn't something for us to worry about. You probably feel that way because she she stopped living here two years ago."

"No. . . that's not it," Mikey frowned, like he had something on his mind. "Something is up with her."

"Like what, exactly?"

"I dunno, but my ninja senses are never wrong."

"Wouldn't be the first time, huh?" Raph was hoping Mikey's ears would pick up the irony in his tone, but they didn't.

"Look, guys," Leo intervened in the conversation. "We can't worry about Miwa right now. If she's not coming with us, then she's not coming with us."

Privately, though, Leo shared Mikey's gut feeling. He wasn't sure when he started noticing that something was going on with his sister, but it was a feeling he couldn't help but indulge in. He couldn't say for certain if his father thought the same thing, too, but one thing he (Leo) definitely knew: Miwa's behavior had changed.

Leo had to think about his sister later when he heard the sound of the shoji opening and then closing. Him and his brothers straightened their postures and lined up horizontally as they watched their father approach them. The quartet could feel the anxiety and excitement in their stomachs.

Yoshi faced his children, momentarily basking in his pool of pride once seeing how far they had come. He couldn't deny he felt such a way; after years of bitter work, the results were worth it.

"Since it will just be the four of you venturing on this mission," Yoshi started to say, "remember: you are ninja. You must stay alert at all times and remain hidden in the shadows— for it will be your greatest advantage. We do not know yet what you will find, but always expect the unexpected."

"Hai, Sensei," his children said.

"Good luck, my sons. May you come home safe and sound."

Another nod from his children. They strapped in their weapons and prepared to leave the dojo. When Leo was about to follow his brothers, Yoshi stopped him by grabbing his shoulder and turning him around. Leo asked, "What is it, Sensei?"

Yoshi stared down at his son with such a complex expression, Leo wasn't able to anticipate what he was going to say.

"There was a reason why I never took you all outside for a training exercise, so be careful out there, Leonardo. Watch out for your brothers," Yoshi said, strengthening the grip on his son's shoulder.

If Yoshi wanted to add something else, he didn't. Leo sensed this and just nodded, giving one last bow of his head before departing. His father didn't have to remind him to keep his brothers out of harm's way; he already had that goal set long before his father said anything.

***

One could've driven to the warehouse, as it was the most convenient way possible, but other than the night they saved Talia, the brothers never had much opportunity to put their true skills to the test. There was no better time than tonight to further improve their training.

The brothers jumped from rooftop to rooftop. By now, pretty much everyone were either sound asleep in their beds or too preoccupied with their nightly activities, so there was no need to worry about alerting someone. As ninjas, the brothers were masters in the way of stealth.

Mikey did a series of backflips and other crazy acrobatic moments, feeling the wind slap against his suit and mask. He felt like he was flying; the feeling was exhilarating. He wasn't sure if he ever wanted to stop. "Dudes, THIS IS EPIC!" he whooped and flipped above Donnie, landing in front of him.

Leo wanted to facepalm. As he ran, he only turned his head to face Mikey and scolded, "Mikey, the way of stealth also requires silence."

Raph suddenly smirked from under his mask. "You sure about that, Leo?"

"Um, yes. When have you ever heard a ninja successfully infiltrate enemy territory with noise?"

"Okay. If you say so."

Leo frowned. "Wait, why are you saying it like that— ahh!"

Because he was distracted, Leo didn't know that he had reached the end of the rooftop him and his brothers were on. To avoid falling, Leo had to be on his tippy-toes on the ledge, his upper body bent forward and arms flailing for balance. He managed to remain upright, but the laughter coming from his siblings didn't go unheard.

Leo's cheeks flushed as he grumbled, "You guys are not funny."

"I dunno, that didn't seem very silent to me," Raph snickered.

"Man, I should've taken a picture," Mikey grinned.

Donnie chuckled. "You're right, Leo. Ninjas are experts in the way of stealth."

Leo rolled his eyes. Typical. "Just keep moving, you guys."

"I agree." Mikey nodded. "Last one to the warehouse takes out the trash for a whole week!"

Everyone but Leo got a head start. Leo sighed to himself, thinking: Way to set a good example, Leonardo. He ran off to catch up with his brothers.

It took a little longer than expected to reach the docks, but the Hamato siblings finally did so. No one seemed to be around, with the water gently making waves the only source of sound, but the quartet still didn't trust the silence coiling the place like a snake. Blending in with the shadows, the brothers silently treaded their way across, weaving through several shipping containers. They only stopped until they found Genesis's warehouse.

The brothers couldn't hear anything from inside, but as far as they knew, the Foot could be waiting for them. When Leo noticed the front entrance, he observed that not only was a lock and several chains piled loosely on the ground, but also there were remnants of glass, too; he looked slightly upwards and surely enough, there was a security camera with a shattered lens. There was no way in hell that Genesis, who guarded her secret work with Shredder with her life, would ever leave her warehouse unlocked and unmonitored so that curious civilian would waltz right in.

He grabbed his brothers' attention and pointed to the evidence. Raph and Mikey nodded, while Donnie was left feeling disappointed. Somebody got here first and picked the lock? And managed to destroy security footage? It wasn't fair.

Leo made a couple of hand signs as a way to communicate, to which Raph frustratingly whispered, "I. Don't. Know. What. That. Means!"

"Use the fold-up windows to climb inside," Leo whispered in response.

"You could've just said that," Mikey shrugged.

The brothers scaled up the brick wall and, like Leo said, easily opened the window where they entered one by one. They squatted on the wooden ceiling beams, staring down into pitch darkness. It was heavily contemplated whether they should land down or not, but they had work to do, so the quartet jumped off.

"Now what?" Raph asked.

"Start looking," Leo answered. "Anything that could be helpful, consider it."

The four took a section of the room and start searching. Empty lab tables were planted in rows; cardboard boxes full of gloves, lab goggles, beakers, flasks, and other equipment used for science experiments were dotted in different corners; the whiteboard was scrubbed clean of whatever was written on it. It looked like some kind of experiment took place here.

With Donnie, he checked every single box to check if there was anything of value. His dissatisfaction grew when he had to turn away every box he found. Come on, Genesis. Suddenly, he saw it: one last box stranded away from its crew. This had to be the one.

Suddenly, he heard a noise not too far from where he was standing. It sounded like an echo, as if someone had banged something against a wall of metal. Donnie's eyes hardened. He slowly reached for his bō staff and approached the stack of loaded crates.

Donnie pressed a small button on his staff, causing one end to protrude a blade sharper than a thousand knives, effectively turning his weapon into a naginata.

Weapon in hand, he crept behind the crates and lifted his naginata high in the air, ready to attack whoever it was.

But something else was waiting for him: the barrel of a gun, pointed at his face.