Rise of the Red Ninjas

by Rise of the Red Ninjas (retail) (epub)

  ‘But I do care,’ I whispered.

  ‘I know you do,’ she said, bluntly, ‘which is why you should go tomorrow night.’

  There was no use arguing with Zoe. She was just like her mum.

  ‘Alright, I’ll go,’ I said. To be honest, there was a small part of me that was happy about the decision, but don’t get me wrong – I still wasn’t looking forward to it.

  I was the last one in the room before the bell rang. Zoe and Brayden were in the middle of a conversation as I dropped my book bag next to my seat.

  ‘But who could’ve tipped them off?’ Zoe asked quietly.

  Brayden shrugged his shoulders. ‘I don’t know. Didn’t you see it? There were like, tractors and chainsaws and stuff. Gavin was running around like he owned the place.’

  ‘No,’ Zoe said. ‘I was in the gym playing volleyball. I knew I should’ve walked the track.’

  I joined the conversation. ‘Yeah, the whole hideout is gone.’

  ‘Everything?’ Zoe asked, shocked.

  ‘All of it,’ I said. ‘It’s not like there was much to begin with, but it doesn’t matter because it’s been completely flattened.’

  ‘Do you know who told Gavin?’ Zoe asked.

  ‘No,’ I said, ‘but I might have a clue.’

  Brayden sat up straight. ‘What? You mean you know who exposed the hideout?’

  I shook my head. ‘Not exactly who, but I think I know which group might have.’

  ‘A group?’ Zoe asked. ‘Oh great, not another pirate takeover I hope.’

  ‘No, it’s much worse,’ I said, leaning closer. ‘Yesterday, I was investigating a lead I had—’

  ‘A lead?’ Zoe said. ‘Are you some kind of detective now?’

  I ignored her comment and continued. ‘The other day I saw the kid in red and chased after him.’

  Brayden chuckled. ‘Uh, yeah. That happened on Monday. Everyone knows that.’

  ‘No, I saw them again on Tuesday. I chased after him, but lost him when he disappeared into a classroom.’

  Zoe frowned. ‘Go on …’

  ‘So yesterday, I checked out the classroom when no one was there,’ I said. ‘I found out there’s another ninja clan at this school, a red ninja clan.’

  Brayden gasped. ‘No way,’ he whispered.

  ‘Of course there is,’ Zoe sighed. ‘Buchanan can’t just be a normal school with normal kids who don’t form secret societies of ninjas or plan crazy pirate takeovers … I wonder if there’s still time to open enrol at another school.’

  ‘What should we do?’ Brayden asked, seriously concerned.

  ‘I don’t know,’ I answered, tapping my fingers on the desk. ‘I haven’t thought that far ahead yet.’

  ‘What about your speech yesterday?’ Brayden said. ‘The one you made in gym class?’

  ‘What speech?’ Zoe asked.

  Brayden answered too quickly for me to say anything. ‘He basically said he was done with everything.’ Brayden looked back at me. ‘Are you saying there’s still a chance at having a ninja clan at this school? I mean, not the red ninja clan, but your ninja clan?’

  ‘I’m willing to bet that if you just did nothing,’ Zoe said, ‘then this whole thing would just blow over.’

  ‘I’m thinking that too,’ I said.

  ‘But you can’t do nothing!’ Brayden whispered. ‘Now that you know something bad is going down, you have to do something! Don’t you have a responsibility to? What’s that famous saying? With great responsibility comes great power? Is that right? I think the first astronaut said it or something.’

  Zoe’s jaw dropped. ‘Wow, you are so wrong about that quote, it’s not even funny. It’s sad.’

  I shrugged my shoulders and looked at Brayden. ‘Zoe might be right. Maybe the best thing to do … is nothing.’

  Brayden folded his arms and sunk in his chair. ‘Fine then. Don’t do anything about it. I guess we’ll just see what happens when the red ninja clan takes over the whole school.’

  I felt a chill run down my spine but did my best to ignore it. Brayden was really upset about this, but I thought that with time, he’d come to appreciate the decision to leave it all alone. Maybe not today. Maybe not in high school. But someday in the future …

  Yeah. He’ll totally do that.

  I walked the track in gym again, but this time I actually walked the track. The demolition crew was still there, but they were mostly just cleaning up after themselves. The wooded area that we used for our ninja training was surprisingly smaller than I thought, so I was a bit taken back at how quickly it disappeared.

  Zoe walked with Brayden and me. She hadn’t seen what all the hype was about, but wanted to. The rest of gym was spent making boring small talk about the weather.

  But now I was waiting for lunch to start in the lobby of the school. Students with a high GPA were allowed to take their lunch into the library if they wanted to do some extra studying or research something on the computer. That’s where Zoe was at the moment.

  Brayden was supposed to be around. It was possible he was in the lobby somewhere, but because there were so many other kids waiting to enter the cafeteria, I didn’t see him.

  As soon as the bell rang, students crammed through the doors of the lunchroom, forming a line so they could get their food. From the smell, I think they were serving taco pizza.

  I waited at the back of the crowd until they were all through the door. Then I took a seat on one of the benches in the lobby. Eating alone wasn’t awful – at least today I brought a sandwich.

  Reaching into my bag, I grabbed the brown paper sack I packed this morning, but before I could pull it out, I heard a bunch of shouting come from down the hall.

  ‘Don’t let him get away!’ shouted a boy.

  ‘Cut him off, sir!’

  ‘Freeze right there, mister! Ain’t no way you’re gettin’ away this time!’

  About fifteen metres away, I saw someone turn the corner and start tearing through the hallway towards me. Behind them was Gavin and his two hall monitors. They were in hot pursuit of someone that looked like a shadow.

  Their footsteps grew louder as they all sprinted as fast as they could. My heart started racing when I saw who the hall monitors were chasing after. It was a ninja, but not one of the red ones – the ninja was wearing black. And I bet it was my black uniform they had.

  As the ninja approached, he didn’t swerve or anything. I guess he thought he was just gonna plough through the lobby unnoticed?

  Gavin and his hall monitors were still a ways back so I jumped forward, hoping to catch the kid that’d been making my life so miserable this week.

  But all of a sudden, somebody else jumped in front of me. They moved so quickly that all I saw was a red blur. I heard a loud thump as I watched the ninja get tackled to the ground by …

  The kid in the red hooded sweatshirt!

  My mind went nuts trying to understand what it was that I was seeing. The kid in red was supposed to be the one in my ninja uniform running from Gavin, but instead I was watching the kid in red wrestle with … who?

  I kept my distance as Gavin and his hall monitors approached. The mysterious kid’s red hood was up and over his face, just as it always had been, so I couldn’t see who it was. Just the other day I saw him putting up a copy of my note! I knew he was guilty and the one who stole my book bag, so who was he chasing?

  ‘Thanks,’ Gavin said, catching his breath.

  The kid in the red hoodie stood and dusted himself off. The hall monitors grabbed the ninja’s arms and brought him to his feet.

  ‘Not a problem,’ said the boy in red.

  Gavin paused, taking a step backwards when he looked at the face under the red hood. ‘You…’

  Most of the kids from the cafeteria had their faces pressed up against the tinted glass walls, absorbed by what was taking place in the lobby. A few of them even left their place in line to come out.

  The kid in red lifted his hand up, waved to the other stude
nts and turned slowly.

  Who was under the red hood? It was killing me that he wasn’t turning around so I could see!

  And then finally, the boy in red grabbed the sides of his hood and flipped it backwards. He turned around and looked at me with the coldest eyes I’d ever seen. It was Wyatt.

  If you heard a small pop, don’t worry. It was just my brain exploding.

  ‘Hello!’ Wyatt sneered.

  Several of the kids watching gasped loudly. It was like one of those moments from a movie.

  I couldn’t speak, mostly because I couldn’t breathe. Last month, Carlyle said Wyatt was going to return, but I didn’t think it was possible. How can someone come back to a school they were expelled from?

  Wyatt spun around and ripped the black mask off the ninja. My knees suddenly grew weak. The ninja Gavin was chasing after was my best friend – it was Brayden.

  ‘Looks like we’ve caught our thief,’ Wyatt said, bluntly.

  ‘It wasn’t me!’ Brayden shouted as the two hall monitors held him in place.

  Gavin didn’t move. ‘What’re you doin’ back at this school?’

  ‘Am I not welcome here?’ Wyatt asked.

  Another voice came from the crowd. ‘Of course you are!’ said a short boy wearing a grey suit as he stepped forward. It was Buchanan School’s president. ‘Wyatt is a friend and student here at Buchanan.’

  Gavin stood at attention. ‘But, sir,’ he said, ‘Wyatt was expelled from Buchanan at the end of the first week.’

  The president wagged his finger back and forth. ‘That’s not true. He was never expelled – merely suspended for a short period of time.’

  ‘Suspended?’ Gavin asked. ‘But everyone said he’d been expelled.’

  ‘Nobody actually said anything,’ the president replied. ‘Teachers won’t comment on a thing like that, and when they don’t confirm or deny anything, everyone assumes the worst. It’s a backwards system, I know. Nobody’s allowed to say anything so that it doesn’t spread gossip, but the lack of saying anything is what actually creates gossip.’

  I decided to speak up. ‘But it’s been two months! Nobody gets suspended for two months!’

  Wyatt nodded. ‘Yes, it has been awhile, hasn’t it?’

  ‘Explain yourself!’ I shouted.

  Wyatt lifted his hands as if he were surrendering. ‘Easy now. I was suspended for the maximum time – two weeks. After that, my parents decided to see how I’d do if I were homeschooled … needless to say I drove them crazy.’

  The crowd laughed at Wyatt’s joke.

  Gavin folded his arms and planted his feet.

  The president put his arm around Wyatt and spoke to the crowd. ‘Wyatt did a good thing today! He rescued the school from the petty ninja! I think that’s enough to redeem the boy in everyone’s eyes, isn’t it?’

  I wanted to tell everyone about how Wyatt stole my book bag at the beginning of the week, about how he photocopied my note and hung it up all over, about how he wore my ninja outfit and caused chaos … but I didn’t say anything. I didn’t need any more attention than I’d got already.

  I looked at Brayden but said nothing.

  ‘I just wanted to help,’ Brayden said, staring at the ground so it wasn’t obvious he was speaking to me. ‘It wasn’t me in the school paper. I know there’s more going on in secret, and I just wanted to uncover it for the whole school to see.’

  ‘How very noble of you,’ Wyatt said sarcastically.

  ‘If I solved this case,’ Brayden continued, ‘then the school would know the truth – that it’s not the black ninja clan that’s the problem.’

  ‘Take him away, boys,’ said the president.

  The two monitors pulled Brayden away. Gavin hesitated, staring daggers at Wyatt, but finally turned and joined the hall monitors.

  ‘Show’s over, guys,’ the president said. ‘You can all go back to your lunch now.’

  I watched as Brayden was taken into the principal’s office. I think I felt the ground shake as the door was slammed shut.

  Everyone else filtered through the cafeteria doors. Wyatt brushed his hand down his red hooded sweatshirt and glanced at me. With a smirk, he headed my way. This was the kid that beat the tar out of me in the first week of school. He was the kid that stole money from the student food drive and tried to frame my cousin for it. And now he was the kid that stole my backpack and killed my social life.

  I realised at that moment … I was afraid of him.

  Wyatt extended his hand towards me. ‘Sorry about all that stuff in the first week of school.’

  I stared at the back of his hand and remembered how he used it to hit me. Then I looked into his eyes. ‘You won’t get away with all this.’

  His eyes narrowed as his smirk grew wider. ‘I think we already have,’ he said.

  ‘We?’ I asked.

  ‘You didn’t think Carlyle was done with you, did you?’ Wyatt asked.

  I said nothing.

  ‘Together,’ Wyatt continued with his hand still extended, ‘we’ll make sure your defeat is final, but not before a little bit of punishment first.’ And then he nodded at the window of students still watching us. ‘If I were you, I’d shake hands with me. You don’t want to be the bad guy here, do you?’

  I paused, thinking. It was like he was challenging me, and all I had to do was take his hand and accept the challenge. I clutched his hand and squeezed.

  He shook once and let go. Stepping through the cafeteria doors, he didn’t look back.

  I could feel my face getting hot as I clenched my fists, but I felt a pinch in the hand that was just touching Wyatt’s. When I opened it, a folded piece of paper fell to the floor. Using my foot, I kicked it sideways, pushing it open so I could see what it was.

  I sighed, realising it was the original copy of my note to Faith. I already knew Wyatt was behind this week’s terrible events, and he knew that I knew, but what he wanted to show me was that he didn’t care.

  ‘So you just let Gavin take him away?’ Zoe said as soon as she walked into homeroom.

  I knew she was talking about Brayden.

  ‘What could I do? He got himself caught!’

  ‘You could’ve at least said something.’

  ‘Brayden knew what he was doing.’

  Zoe shook her head. ‘I thought you two were best friends? It sounds like he was trying to help you!’

  I sat forward in my desk. ‘I told him I wasn’t going to do anything about this. I said it wasn’t worth fighting over because any action I took would just make it worse!’

  ‘Funny,’ Zoe said. ‘Even your inaction has caused trouble.’

  ‘No,’ I said. ‘Wyatt caused trouble.’

  Zoe nodded. ‘I heard about that. That’s all anyone talked about yesterday. He saved the school from the dreaded ninja … who happened to be Brayden.’

  ‘I don’t want to say that Wyatt is an evil genius,’ I said, ‘but it sure seems to look that way.’

  ‘He’s just lucky,’ Zoe replied. ‘The story kids are telling has Wyatt wearing a red hooded sweatshirt. They call him the ‘Red Shrouded Hero’.’

  ‘Hero?’ I whispered, angry.

  Zoe leaned closer. ‘He caught the ninja everyone was after! You know how people can flip their opinions of someone in a heartbeat. It’s almost like kids want him to be good! Who doesn’t love a redemption story?’

  I took a deep breath. ‘I don’t know what to do about this whole thing. I’m not really in the mood to get punched in the face again. I’m far too pretty for that.’

  Zoe paused, snickering. Then she changed the subject. ‘Skate party’s still happening tonight whether you want it to or not, you know.’

  ‘Figured that,’ I said. ‘I’ll have to get through the day first. TGIF, right?’

  Zoe stared at me. Finally, she asked, ‘What’s TGIF mean?’

  I shrugged my shoulders. ‘I dunno. I thought you’d know.’

  ‘Weirdo,’ she said, smiling.

  W
ith Brayden possibly in detention and the rest of my ninjas keeping a low profile, I had nobody else I could count on for help, except for Zoe. The threat of the red ninja clan was real, but she’d never believe me unless she saw it with her own eyes. ‘Do me a favour?’ She raised her eyebrows.

  ‘Meet me in the lobby before the end of lunch,’ I said. ‘Around 11:45?’

  ‘Why?’ she asked. ‘Are you planning something terrible?’

  I shook my head and laughed. ‘No, nothing like that. I just … I need your help. There’s something I need to show you.’

  Zoe took a breath. ‘I don’t think anything good has ever come after that sentence is uttered.’

  ‘Just trust me,’ I said.

  The rest of the morning was uneventful, which to me was a good thing. Boring was safe. I was alone again in the lobby, having eaten my entire sandwich on the bench outside the cafeteria. I kept staring at the spot where Wyatt tackled Brayden. I’m not sure why.

  ‘So I’m here,’ Zoe said.

  I jumped, bumping my head against the brick wall.

  ‘Easy, tiger,’ she said.

  Rubbing the back of my head, I said, ‘You scared me. I must’ve zoned out.’

  ‘Right,’ she said, glancing over her shoulder. ‘So what is it you wanted to show me?’

  I got up and started walking away from the cafeteria and down the hall.

  ‘The other day I caught Wyatt hanging up a copy of my note, except at the time I didn’t know it was Wyatt.’

  Zoe wasn’t surprised. ‘I know. You told us in art.’

  ‘I chased after him down this hallway,’ I said, pointing farther down the corridor. ‘But when he rounded the corner, he disappeared.’ I stepped around the corner and approached Mr Lien’s classroom door. ‘He disappeared into this room.’

  Zoe stepped forward and grabbed the handle of the door. She pushed it down and once again, it wasn’t locked. ‘Did you go in? What happened?’