Diaval still isn't quite sure how he ended up in the woods, wandering along behind four turtles who hate his guts, with a backpack full of supplies on his shoulder. Leonardo walks ahead of the group, his face set with confidence.

"We've mastered our weapons, stealth, and hand-to-hand combat, but we haven't achieved the very first of the eighteen ninjutsu disciplines," he says. "The seishin syuyou, or 'spiritual refinement.' All true ninjas must master it."

"Hey, who says we're not spiritually refine—" Michelangelo burps loudly, making the other turtles spin to face him. "—ed." He clears his throat and taps his chest. "Whoa. Heh. Must have been—"

He belches again, staring ahead completely wide-eyed. Before he can say another word, Diaval's foot catches on a root and he faceplants. All four turtles glance at one another, then at the cloaked boy as he stumbles to his feet and brushes himself off without a word.

"Okay, you win," Michelangelo says with a shrug. "Let's get refined."

----------

Night falls, much like Diaval down flights of stairs. The farmhouse is quiet and every window is dark save for one, where there's the dim glow of a lamp shining within. Destiny kneels over her Space Heroes backpack, tucking away supplies as silently as possible.

She pulls the zipper shut and stands, hoisting the bag onto her shoulder. She shuts off the lamp and heads into the hallway, stealing down the stairs in full stealth mode. She reaches for the doorknob, the taste of adventure crowding her senses, and a groggy mumble of a voice freezes her in place.

"Wolfie? Where're you going?"

She looks up the stairs to where Casey stands at the height of it, rubbing his eyes as a yawn stretches his face. He's definitely just woken up, if the mussed look of his hair, the wrinkled t-shirt, and boxers are any indication to such.

Destiny purses her lips and shifts in place. "I'm just...going out," she says.

"Uh huh," Casey sighs. "Going out on that journey with the others?"

Her face flushes with colour and she crosses her arms over her chest, the zipper of her jacket jingling softly in the air. Casey starts down the stairs, his sleepiness still not enough to mask the teasing smile on his face.

"I know I said I'd wait," she says as the boy reaches her. "I thought I'd be fine, but..." She swallows and shuts her eyes, her throat tightening. She shivers. "The nightmares came back."

"So...you're going after them for a nightmare?" he asks. "That's a bit much, wolfie."

"Not for them," she retorts. "Leo said the spiritual journey could help me heal." Her eyes brighten and her tail starts to wag as she steps closer to Casey. "The nightmares could stop, I could be like...like who I was before."

He doesn't say anything for a moment, then he exhales. "I don't know, wolfie. I mean, change is a part of life, right? Maybe you should get used to it."

"I have to try," she nearly whispers. He purses his lips and she sighs. "And...if I go, you'll be alone with April."

His eyes widen, then his lips curl upwards. "Cool, we could use some 'us' time," he says.

"I'll be back within three days," she says as she twists the knob and opens the door to the cool night air. She salutes with her free hand. "See you, Casey."

The door closes behind her and Casey's smile drifts away like a leaf on the breeze. He runs his hand through his hair, taking in a deep breath as he turns back to the stairs.

----------

The next two days creep by. The turtles and Diaval wade through rivers, climb trees, forage for food, train, hunt, meditate, practice, build fires, and fashion shelters from whatever they can. Diaval just manages to keep up, always lagging behind the group in some way, and although he's clumsy and relatively silent on the conversation front, the wildlife likes him the most and he's the best at hunting smaller game. Because of this, the turtles deal with his other setbacks.

They may not like him, but they like the food he provides.

As the third day dwindles, the five teenagers sit in the treetops, eyes shut and their breaths even. A squirrel scampers onto Michelangelo's shoulder and drops an acorn into his open palm, earning the faintest of smiles.

The wind picks up and the leaves of the trees start to whip around them, soaring into the sky. The turtles look up as the star-filled curtain of darkness seems to rumble and open up in a vortex of swirling red light.

"Aah! It's happening!" Michelangelo shrieks. "AHH!"

He flails, promptly falling out of the tree and crashing into the ground with a groan. The other three turtles drop down next to their brother and Diaval floats towards the ground, albeit it's a jerky and staggered descent and when he lands on the ground, one knee buckles and he has to right himself.

The boys look around at the dark trees, searching for some sign that the spiritual aspect of their journey is about to begin. Leonardo's eyes widen as he notices a majestic stag standing a few feet away from them, its dark eyes fastened on them without so much as a blink. He recognizes the animal from when he saw it while hunting a few days ago.

"Whoa," Leonardo whispers. "Guys, look." He points, but the deer is already gone. He blinks and looks around once more, frowning. "It was the same deer. I think it's been following us."

"It's probably laughing at the five dumb mutants lost in the woods," Raphael says with a smirk.

"Actually, in the Shinto religion, deer are considered messengers of the divine," Donatello points out. As he speaks, a tall deer-like creature steps out from behind a large tree. "Maybe it means we're on the right path."

The boys promptly notice the strange animal. Diaval readies an arrow in the blink of an eye as the three younger turtles shriek.

"MUTANT!"

"No, wait! It's not a mutant!" Leonardo argues, but his three brothers are already lunging at the deer-creature.

Michelangelo whoops and leaps at it, but it dodges and sends the young turtle into a tree. Donatello swings his bō staff, but it again sweeps out of the way. He jabs left, but the blow is avoided. Right, still no luck. Left again and he only ends up hitting Raphael in the gut.

Diaval slowly lowers his bow, his lips parting as his spine tingles. It doesn't have a desire.

"Guys, stop!" Leonardo shouts.

Donatello shouts and tries to hit it again as the deer appears in front of him. This time, he ends up smacking Michelangelo over the head.

Donatello's expression twists with fright as the deer flutters around him, the turtle pivoting wildly in a desperate attempt to follow its movements. As he spins, the edge of his staff hits Raphael. Eyes blazing, Raphael turns and pounces on his younger brother. Donatello flails and fights back, tumbling away as they keep wrestling. Michelangelo stumbles to his feet, but the tussling turtles smack him down and soon enough, the deer isn't even around anymore and they're left with three turtles who're only focused on pounding each other.

"Stop!" Leonardo repeats. They keep struggling with each other, making the blue-masked turtle's eyes narrow. "I SAID STOP!"

The fighting freezes. Raphael's fist meets Donatello's head once more. Michelangelo holds his head, utterly confused.

"Whoa, dudes. It's gone," he whispers.

Leonardo frowns and searches the surroundings in vain from his spot, but the creature is indeed gone.

----------

A fire crackles, casting eerie shadows over the tree trunks as the turtles and Diaval settle down before they sleep.

Michelangelo roasts frozen pizza slices on a stick, his eyelids drooped. Raphael yawns widely and Donatello sighs as he fiddles with his inactive t-phone. Diaval stares into the flames, methodically poking at the point of an arrow. Leonardo looks at each of his companions before letting out a heavy sigh.

Without a warning, the fire in front of them turns blue. Their mouths fall open as the flames arc upwards, forming a giant pillar that illuminates every angle of their bodies. When the flames whip away, all this remains is the ghostly form of Master Splinter.

The turtles gasp collectively. "Master Splinter!" Diaval does nothing but stare.

"Watashi no musukotachi yo," he greets them.

"It can't be..." Raphael whispers.

"Are you, like, a ghost?" Michelangelo squeaks.

"My spirit has become detached from my body, but that body still lives," Splinter says, his arms folded behind his back.

Leonardo stands up, his face overwhelmed with emotion. "You're...alive? Where are you, Sensei? Let us help you."

"You cannot yet. There is much you must overcome. If you cannot find your inner, spiritual strength, you will not stand a chance against the Shredder," the mutant rat says gravely, looking to his eldest son.

"But Master Splinter, my leg injury, it...it's physical," Leonardo stammers, looking at his feet. "Until I heal—"

Master Splinter places a hand on the blue-masked turtle's shoulder. "We choose what holds us back and what moves us forward," he says as Leonardo gazes up at him. Splinter releases him and returns his arms to their previous place. "You will all learn this. Each of you must journey out alone to face your spiritual adversary." He looks to Raphael first. "Raphael, your temper is like a fire that you must learn to focus for power."

The red-masked turtle bows his head respectively, his face set in the same emotional sort of shock as his brothers. Master Splinter turns to Michelangelo as a firefly flits past the young turtle's face.

"Michelangelo, your mind is overrun with distractions," he tells his fun-loving son. "Learn to be strong and calm, like the forest."

Michelangelo nods, determined. The firefly moves past, but the turtle's baby blue eyes don't pull away from his father. The rat Sensei switches his soft gaze to Donatello.

"Donatello, you rely too much on your mind, and not on your body," he says. "Be strong, like the mountain."

Donatello nods, putting away his t-phone as he presses his lips into a thin line. The same air of confidence and determination that settled over his brothers comes over him.

Splinter's attention falls on Diaval for a moment. Diaval swallows and looks away, shutting his eyes and waiting. Nothing comes. When Splinter's voice rings out next, he's not speaking to Diaval.

"Leonardo." He looks to the leader in blue, a hidden eagerness in the boy's eyes. "You must be the leader in body and spirit. Be like the wind. Let nothing weigh you down."

Leonardo's eyes cast downwards briefly. He closes them, taking a deep breath before nodding once in response. Master Splinter straightens up, his ghost-like form almost flickering above the light of the blue fire.

"Sleep now, my sons, for your greatest trial awaits on the spiritual plane. For the challenges you face there will be just as deadly as those you face in the real world." His voice echoes out as the flame engulfs him once more. "Be warned."

The fire returns to its soft orange glow as the sound of his voice fades out. Michelangelo's eyes remain big and dewy as he looks to each of his siblings. Leonardo stares at his lap, the words replaying in his head.

"Your sensei is alive," Diaval whispers, startling the others. He hasn't spoken for most of the quest aside from muttered grunts. Diaval doesn't look away from the fire. "He is alive."

"Dude, he didn't give you a quest," Michelangelo says, tilting his head. "That must mean you weren't meant to be here."

No one says a word. The reappearance of Splinter has silenced any qualms they hold against Diaval. Not one turtle wishes to make a snide remark of any kind and Diaval notices this.

"Get some sleep, guys," Leonardo murmurs. "Some of us need it."

No one argues, every boy settling in to sleep. Diaval leans against a tree trunk, his eyes closed and arms crossed loosely over his stomach. When the only sound in the air is that of even breathing, the archer's eyelids flutter open and he stares up at the canopy high above.

His throat tightens and he tightens his arms, squeezing himself gently. "Just...wanna go home," he mumbles, his eyes starting to itch.

A stick snaps outside the ring of light keeping the boys warm. Diaval's head snaps upwards and he stares ahead, squinting as he tries to make out anything within the trees. A clump of ferns rustles as a unintelligible shape passes through them. Diaval stands up, snatching his bow and inching his way around the fire. He shuffles towards the noise, his hand poised to snatch an arrow at the first sign of danger.

He halts right before the circle of light that the campfire creates, his breaths coming out choppier with every second, heart pounding. Deeper in the trees, a silhouette shimmers into view, one that looks like a woman in a flowing white gown. Diaval's face slackens slightly and his feet move towards the vision without him realizing it.

As he gets nearer, the woman's features come into more focus. Her hair is long and the colour of ebony, her lips red and her skin flushed with pale pink. She's beautiful and Diaval can't look away or make himself stop following her, even though he can't sense a desire coming off her either.

She beckons to him with a gentle smile before turning and practically gliding through the trees. Diaval wanders after her, hardly stopping to notice that his feet haven't caught on a single root or clump of dirt anywhere.

He enters a small grove clumped with tiny trees and he instantly ceases movement. The woman's form flickers and flames appear at the base of her dress, licking upwards bit by bit. She turns to the stunned nineteen-year-old, another calm smile lifting her lips as the flames climb higher.

Diaval opens his mouth to speak, but only a breathless squeak passes his lips. The woman is completely engulfed in the fire within another couple of seconds. A rush of hot air sends Diaval's cloak billowing out behind him, the smell of ash and iron assaulting his senses, and he throws his arm over his face.

The wind stops. His ponytail falls back onto his shoulder and his cloak drapes around him again. He carefully peeks over his arm.

Standing where the woman once was is now the shimmering blue form of Master Splinter, watching Diaval closely with an unreadable expression. "Diaval Crow," he greets. "Come closer."

Diaval obeys. "Y-Yoshi," he responds. He stops right in front of the mutant. "Don't...don't understand."

"I felt that perhaps, it was best for you to be alone when I spoke to you," Splinter says. "My sons are still wary of you and your intentions." The rat tilts his head slightly and Diaval lowers his bow to the ground. "Why did you come on their journey?"

"Didn't want to. Did it for Destiny, that's all," he mumbles.

"You went somewhere with people whom you don't like, all because someone else told you to," Splinter clarifies.

Diaval purses his lips. "Mhm." There's a pause. "Yoshi, why're you here? What d'you want from...m-me? Can't take back what's happened."

"Do you remember what I said to you when you accompanied Destiny home for Christmas?" Splinter asks. "I told you that I did not hold anything against you for what you have done to me in the past. I am not like the Shredder."

Diaval flinches slightly, a shudder rolling through his body. "M-Mhm."

"Thus, I am not here to take anything from you, punish you, or seek vengeance. I am here to help you."

"Not worth it."

A blue flame bursts at the bottom of Splinter's cloak and Diaval jumps, tripping backwards and landing hard on his butt. The rat continues to look down at him, a wise power burning in his gaze that keeps the boy silent.

"Diaval, you are like metal. Your body is strong, yet within, you are easily melded and shaped by the heat of what others demand," Splinter says. "Plant your feet, find the strength that you lack in your heart, take charge of your own destiny." Diaval can't make himself say a single word. Splinter tilts his head towards the sky. "My time is fleeting and there is one other that I have to find. Go and rest, child. You will need it."

There's another burst of light and blue flame and Diaval shields his eyes against the glare. When his eyes snap open next, he's sitting next to the turtles' campfire and the fifteen-year-olds are sleeping soundly around him. His bow is at his side.

Exhaustion hits him in a wave and he slumps, asleep before his head touches the ground.

----------

Destiny feels like she can't breathe, but how else is one supposed to react when their supposedly dead Sensei appears in their campfire? The wolf mutant can't do anything but stare at her teacher with tears starting to build.

"My daughter, you have chosen to try and complete your own seishin syuyou," Master Splinter speaks.

She takes in a shaky breath, a tear rolling down her cheek. "Are...are you a spirit?"

"My body still lives, but I have become detached," he replies with a light smile. "So...yes." Her heart clenches and she lowers her gaze as the tall rat watches her. "You realize that you are not a kunoichi?"

"I don't care. I need to find some way to get back to normal," she retorts. "By any means necessary. If you disagree, if you came to stop me, I'll just find some other way."

She shuts her eyes, inhaling deeply. The wind rustles around her, the sweet scent of pine and earth filling her nose. The heat of her campfire is still present against her skin. She expects to open her eyes and find that she's alone. She almost believes that she's hallucinating because of bad berries.

"Destiny," he speaks, surprising her. "You let your past control your mind. Destroy the demons within and become strong and pure, like the river."

Her wild green eyes latch on Splinter in an instant. "Sensei..."

"Your spiritual adversary will test you. It will be difficult, far more difficult than anything you have ever faced. Fashion a new weapon, a new outfit, and emerge from your quest as a new person. Good luck, Destiny."

With that, he's gone, and Destiny finds herself alone again.