Chapter Text
Randy Cunningham, the legendary Ninja of Norrisville who had protected the city from arcane evildoers and technological abominations, was preparing himself for what would be the greatest trial he had ever faced—and he wasn’t going to lie… he was scared.
“Come on, Cunningham, you got this!” exclaimed his lifelong best friend.
“I can’t, Howard, I’m scared!”
“You’ve beaten the Sorcerer, McFist, and Julian. You can handle this!”
“…Alright, I’ll do it.”
Randy Cunningham was preparing to ask out the girl he had a crush on…
The purple-haired boy was thankful his parents weren’t home. It would’ve been just a little… humiliating for him.
“I don’t get why all the drama, Cunningham. Didn’t you say you two got closer over the summer?”
“Well, yeah… but as friends! What if she thinks I’m, I don’t know, a weirdo?”
“You are a weirdo.”
“Yeah, but… ugh, forget it. I shouldn’t ask her out anyway.”
Howard instantly realized the real cause of his friend’s hesitation, and he immediately knew who was to blame—his nemesis, the…
“The Nomicon,” the redhead muttered with stress as he narrowed his eyes. “What did it say?”
“‘Love can be your greatest strength… or your downfall.’”
“So what? That dumb book said the same thing about friendship, and look at us. Besides, what could happen? The Sorcerer? Some ancient monk, or I dunno, McFist? He left you alone as soon as the Sorcerer disappeared. Stop thinking like a Shoob, Cunningham.”
The Ninja reflected on his friend’s words. No problems had shown up during the summer break. Honestly, he’d spent the whole time playing video games and learning new Ninja moves in case of another attack. Now that he was in tenth grade… what did he have to lose?
“Alright, I’ll do it. I mean, what could go wrong?”
He turned on his phone and scrolled through his contacts. For a moment, he noticed the Nomicon glowing with a reddish light. Turning his back on the ancient book, he decided to just call while staring out the window.
“Hello? Who’s this?”
“Uh, hey There.” He cursed himself—why did he come up with that nickname? “I wanted to ask if you’d like to go out… you know, as friends. I mean, if it were in another way it’d be weird—not bad weird, just weird… you know, weird.” he stammered nervously, and he could swear he heard his friend facepalm in the background.
“Really!? I mean, yeah… sure. What day would it be?”
“Well, I was thinking maybe…” Before he could finish, his eyes froze on the window.
Through the glass, a pink-and-cyan glow lit up the sky, forming a pillar of energy that seemed endless. Seeing this, the Ninja of Norrisville could only mutter before hanging up:
“…I’ll call you later.”
The pillar of energy illuminated the heavens with intensity. From her confinement, the Sorceress had decided to fully regain her power. Behind her, the portal she had emerged from pulsed ominously.
At last, she would have her revenge. At last, she would rid herself of this body she so despised. It would all end here, in the courtyard of Norrisville High.
A puff of smoke erupted several feet in front of her. There stood the one who had imprisoned her and ruined her life.
“Ninja…” she spat the name like it was the vilest poison.
“Amanda, how are you? It’s been a while. Got a haircut?”
“I’LL KILL YOU!”
The witch wasted no time, launching blasts of chaotic power. Each attack missed its target, her monsters quickly dispatched by the Ninja’s fists and explosive Ninja balls.
The Ninja was frustrated. Just when he’d worked up the courage to talk to the girl he liked, a crazy witch had to show up. Still, at least he could vent his frustration on her.
He dodged another blast, and suddenly his whole body glowed with a bluish hue.
“…What? How?”
“When what?” he replied with a grin.
A blast of icy wind struck the Sorceress before she could dodge or retaliate. The Ninja leaned casually against the massive block of ice encasing his opponent.
“Didn’t see that coming, huh? I’ve been training and learning new Ninja moves. Not to brag, but you’re not even competition anymore.” He crossed his arms confidently, not noticing the cracks spreading rapidly through the ice. “And look, I know you’re evil and all, but couldn’t you at least have waited until tomorrow? Or, I don’t know, never? I mea—”
The massive ice shattered with a furious scream. The villainess unleashed curses entirely unfit for a kids’ show as the explosion sent the Ninja crashing into Mr. Delagado’s car.
“I’ll rip out your eyes and make you eat them!”
“…This is gonna hurt tomorrow…” the Ninja groaned as he got back on his feet.
“For you, there is no tomorrow!” she shrieked, launching another blast that missed and blew up Delagado’s car.
“Ninja Dodge! Ninja Dodge! Ninja Dodge!”
“Stop calling your moves out loud, it’s ridiculous!”
“Can’t hear you, Ninja!”
With one final leap, he hurled a smoke bomb into the Sorceress’s face, stunning her. Just as he lunged for the finishing strike, the Ninja of Norrisville was pierced by one of her chaotic blasts.
“At last! I’ve waited centuries for this!”
But her joy was short-lived. Her opponent vanished into a puff of red smoke. Confused, she glanced around—until she felt a tap on her shoulder. The Ninja stood behind her, grinning mockingly.
“WHAT!? HOW!?”
“Told you—new skills,” he quipped, delivering a punch that sent her flying toward the portal.
The Sorceress recovered quickly, but too late. A wave of fire surged at her, slamming her into the portal. She clung desperately to its edge with one hand while gathering her power with the other.
“I curse you, Ninjaaa!” she howled, unleashing all her magic.
“Ninja Dodge!” He evaded easily. “You missed.”
“No… I didn’t,” she said with a wicked smile.
“Enjoy your new home!” were her final words before the portal swallowed her whole.
“New home? What do you mean by tha—”
By the time he realized, it was already too late. A portal opened at his side, its force so great that he stabbed his sword into the ground to resist. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. The last thing the Ninja of Norrisville saw was the swirling glow of that cursed spell.