Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was an entire month after the whole ordeal with the Ninja Tribunal. The Hamato family was slowly settling back into their normal lives, well, as normal as things could be for them. Their lives started to become more peaceful since most of their enemies were defeated. Nobody knows why but apparently after the Battle with Tengu Shredder, Bishop decided to back off, and the turtles haven't heard from him since. Not that they were complaining, considering every encounter with him always dealt with him trying to get a sample of their DNA by trying to slice and dice them. Meanwhile, Hun was still in charge of the Purple Dragons. Not that they were a threat in the first place, but after literally saving the whole planet on multiple occasions, dealing with them was hardly a struggle. If anything the turtles sometimes preferred fighting them sometimes. Finally, Karai was still in charge of the Foot Clan after the defeat of Utrom Shredder. If it was a couple of months ago, the turtles would have been more than worried about leaving her unchecked, especially after she destroyed their home. But, she played a key part in helping defeat Tengu Shredder, and was willing to push aside her pride to help her former enemies. In fact, she actually was more than willing to back off from the turtles, seemingly turning over a new leaf and was willing to become an ally. Something about the experience seemed to have changed her for the better. Besides, even if she was still plotting revenge, Leo had more than made sure to keep her in check when returning from Japan, and if the opportunity were to ever arise once again, the blue clad turtle would be more than willing to remind the assassin of their promise.

Speaking of Leonardo, the young warrior seemed to be dealing with a dilemma that was far greater than saving the world. The turtles were packing their bags and were making plans to go to Second Earth. The Battle Nexus was soon to be starting up again, and the turtles were all excitingly preparing. In all honesty, the turtles had forgotten it was getting close to that time again, despite eagerly awaiting the next tournament since they first participated. Trying to prevent the end of the world will do that to you. The only reason they remembered is because the Daimyo was nice enough to send a letter, inviting them to his home to relax and sightsee a couple of days before the Battle Nexus began.

As the turtles and Splinter were packing, the youngest and most energetic of the bros came in with a loud declaration. "Hope Second Earth is ready for the return of-" Mikey cut himself off before putting a hand up to his ear, and gesturing towards his brothers to finish his sentence. They all regretfully agreed.

"The reigning Battle Nexus champion." They all said in unison, dejectedly.

"Thank you, thank you, you're too kind!" Mikey said, waving his hands in the air like was in a parade.

"Keep it up, 'champion', and you'll see how much kindness I've got.'' Raph said while cracking his knuckles with a glare. If looks could kill, Raph would have been the champion before the match even started. Leo put a hand on his shoulder, signaling him to calm down, to which Raph fortunately agreed.

"Raph's right Mikey, hurry up and finish packing, or else you won't have time to even bathe in the glory." he said.

"You're right sorry Leo. Besides, I bet you're just as excited as I am.'; Mikey said with an innocent yet mischievous grin. Leo narrowed his eyes.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked. Mikey looked at him like he was genuinely disappointed.

"You know, because of a certain someone. A certain samurai perhaps." Mikey said, putting extra emphasis on that last part. Leo made a face that looked like a light bulb went on in his head. 

"Oh yeah, it has been a long time."

"Yeah, I bet you're reeeeaaalll excited to see him, aren't ya." Mikey said, drawing out his words. Leo knew what he was trying to get at.

"Well yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Leo asked, genuinely confused. It took everything for Mikey to not facepalm himself.

"I'm just saying, when I brought up the Battle Nexus, the first thing you asked was if Usagi was going to be there. That doesn't mean anything to you.''

"Usagi is a respected warrior, and and amazing fighter. Not to mention he saved my life when I was poisoned." Mikey still wasn't convinced.

"You sure that's it bro?" Mikey pressed further.

"What's with all the questions Mikey? I don't see you asking Raph about his friendship with Traximus." Leo said defensively.

"Leave me out of this." Raph yelled while staying focused on what he was doing.

"I'm just saying bro it;s been a long time since you've seen him. I figured you'd be more excited." Mikey said dejectedly. At that, Leo looked down with a frown.

"It's not that I don't want to see him Mikey. It's just that the last time we saw each other wasn't on the best of terms." he said quietly, yet it was loud enough for everyone to hear, and they all stopped what they were doing. Memories came flooding in all at once for the Hamato family, none of them pleasant. When Leo last met Usagi, he was in a much darker place, not knowing how to come to terms with his PTSD or depression. Usagi had been called in to help, but all Leo did was drive him away. Mikey made a face that showed he immediately regretted everything he said.

"Bro, I'm sorry, I didn't even realize." he said, which was then followed by a smack on the head by Raph. 

"What's new, shell for brains." Raph said. Leo was brought out of his not so pleasant trip down memory lane when he felt Master Splinter put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He smiled gently at him.

"Do not despair my son. If the bond between you and Usagi could be broken so easily, I wouldn't have invited him to help. I'm sure if you simply talk to him, everything will be fine." At that Leo smiled.

"Thanks Sensei, I'm sure you're right." Leo said before returning to packing his bag. A half hour later, the turtles and Splinter were done packing and were about to head through the portal. Splinter said the enchantments, which caused the portal to light up. As they all entered one by one, Leo was the last one as he was hesitant. With a deep breath, he clutched his bag and made his way through the portal.

Chapter Text

The turtles and Splinter stepped through the portal to find the Daimyo waiting for them, along with his son, Gennosuke, and Usagi. The Daimyo was the first to greet them.

"Hello, my friends. It is so good to see you." He said cheerfully.

"The feeling is mutual my friend. We are honored to be here." Master Splinter replied with a bow. The others did the same.

"Been a long time." Gennosuke said. Usagi was next his friends, he greeted them all accordingly with a bow, and with a wave. He then noticed Leonardo awkwardly standing a little bit behind the group, as to try not to stand out too much. The blue clad turtle was fiddling with his hands, and his eyes were looking at every other direction but Usagi's. 

"Hello Leonardo. It is good to see you.'' Usagi said with a smile, and wave.

"Hey Usagi. It's good to see you too." Leonardo responded with a nervous smile.  He still didn't make any attempt to move forward. He didn't know what to say after everything that happened. Luckily, the Daimyo cut in.

"Where are my manners, please follow me to the guest rooms where you can set down your bags, and then by all means go out and enjoy yourselves. You came all the way here after all." Daimyo said cheerfully. He brought them over to the guest rooms, where they all set their stuff down, and then split up to go do their own activities. Master Splinter stayed behind to talk with the Daimyo and enjoy a cup of tea. Raph and Don went with Gennosuke to explore the town. Mikey went to go visit the hall of champions to see his statue, as well as go visit his adoring fans, and Leo begrudgingly went with Usagi on a walk through the forest to find a quiet private spot to spar. Usagi told the Daimyo and Gennosuke where they were going in case anyone was looking for him in case of emergencies.

The village had been busy with food stands, and advertisements for the Battle Nexus. It was to be expected with the most popular fighting event of the season. Usagi was talking to Leo about his past travels, bandits he had stopped, and all kinds of endeavors, while Leo was simply giving half-hearted responses. He didn't really know what to say to Usagi. Know matter how hard he tried, he couldn't block out the events of their last meeting. But what made him even worse was that Usagi was acting as if nothing ever happened. It made Leo feel even more guilty than he did before as he reflected on their last encounter. Leo would never be able to forget about that day. How he pushed his best friend away cause he let his anger get the best of him. Usagi might have seemingly forgiven him, but Leo wouldn't blame him the samurai still had some resentment for what happened that day.

"Leonardo?" Leo snapped out of his thoughts, and turned around to see that Usagi was calling out to him, with a bit o a worried expression.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"I said this is a good spot...for sparring?"

"Oh, yeah. Sounds good." They had stopped at a spot in a forest not too far from the village to make it easy for a villager in need of assistance to find him, but was secluded enough so that he and Leo could spar in peace. In no time at all, the two warriors quickly began their sparring match. It felt like old times, as it had been a while since the time of them had sparred against one another. While Leo was undoubtedly enjoying himself, he still couldn't stop the bad memories from rising. Did Usagi hate him? Was he trying his best to be respectful for the sake of his brothers and sensei? Would if their friendship was damaged beyond repair. Usagi could tell he was troubled, because his attacks lacked his usual force.

"Is something troubling you Leonardo-san?" Usagi asked, going in for another strike.

"I'm fine." Leo said parrying the attack.

"Are you sure, you know you can tell me anything my friend."

"It's just, you're so calm.'' Usagi went in for another barrage of attacks, and Leo continued to block.

"Calm about what?" Usagi asked, that same worrying expression reappearing on his face.

"It's just that I don't understand how you can forgive me so easily, especially considering our last encounter." Leo said hesitantly. Usagi stopped in his tracks, and sheathed his swords. He then went to sit down, and patted a spot on the grass, signaling for Leo  to sit down next to him. Leo sheathed his swords, and went to sit down next to his friend.

"I never got the chance to properly apologize for my actions last time we met." Leo sighed before continuing.

"I'm sorry Usagi. I was so obsessed with not letting down anyone that I couldn't see that I was letting down everyone. I pushed away my family and friends, including you. Could you ever forgive me?" Usagi saw the extreme remorse, and put his hands on top of Leonardo's.

"You were already forgiven, my friend. I know you were going through a difficult time back then. To be completely honest with you, I was hurt, and a little bit angry, not at you, but at myself for not being able to help you at the time, and for that I am truly sorry. What matters now though is that you've come back to us."

"You don't have to apologize, Usagi. It was my fault." Leo replied. Usagi chuckled at that.

"Always thinking of others. It is one of your most admirable traits, and one of the things I like most about you." Usagi said, followed by a smile. Leo felt himself starting to blush.

"Thanks, and I've missed our talks. I don't know why but my head always felt clearer when talking and sparring with you.'' Leo looked down and saw that they were still holding hands, which caused him to blush even harder. He abruptly ended their conversion by getting up, and acted like he needed to stretch.

"Why don't we start heading back and join up with the others." Leo suggested.

"Ok.'' Was all Usagi said as he got up. He proceeded to head back the way they came. Leo hoped he didn't hurt his feelings again. As they walked back, Leo couldn't stop the new feelings that were entering his head. Every time he thought about Usagi he couldn't help but smile, and the blue clad turtle didn't know why.

'What's going on?' he thought. He felt happier everytime he was around the samurai. It wasn't a bad thing to Leo. He just wished he knew why. Suddenly, Leo and Usagi stopped in their tracks. They felt a dark, and mysterious as if a presence was watching them. They checked their surroundings, and had their hands on the hilts of their weapons just in case. After a few seconds of waiting, nothing happened, but that didn't calm either of them.

"You felt that too right Usagi?" Leo asked.

"I did, Leonardo-san. What do you suppose it was?"

"I don't know, but whatever it was, it's gone now. We should hurry back though."

"Agreed."

Unbeknownst to them, a dark and shadowy figure was watching them from the trees.

"Don't you worry my friends." The figure said in a creepy tone. "You'll know who I am in due time. You all will." He let out a laugh before disappearing in the shadows.

Chapter Text

After Leo and Usagi finished with their sparring session and headed back to the village, they reunited with the others. They headed back to the Daimyo's manor where he treated them all to dinner. It was fun for everyone as the turtles all told stories of what they had been up to. They told stories about training with the tribunal, and defeating the Tengu Shredder. They left out most of the bad parts, more for their own sake rather then their friends. Usagi would tell them about his travels, and the enemies he would deal with. After dinner, Gen brought up the suggestion of taking them to a bathhouse, and everyone delightfully agreed. Splinter once gin stayed behind with the Daimyo and let them have their fun. When they arrived,the turtles were in awe at how beautiful it looked. The best part was that this particular hot spring was exclusively for Battle Nexus participants. Mikey had been the most excited when it came to stuff like this.

"I've never been to a hot spring before, I bet it's gonna be great!" Mikey exclaimed, which was quickly followed by a flick to the forehead by Raph.

"Calm down ya goofball. Some people come here to relax." Raph said.

"That doesn't mean I can't get excited. And besides, this is a bathhouse for Battle Nexus participants, and I'm the-" the rest of the group simply groaned and didn't even bother hearing what Mikey had to say. They simply made their way into the bathhouse, apart from Gen who parted ways with the group because he wanted to find some nice sake to enjoy.

A few minutes later the turtles and Usagi were all sitting in a pool with hot water. For the turtles this was a delight. Around the time that they had been invited to participate in the Battle Nexus it was around mid-winter back in New York, which was also their least favorite time of the year given that they were cold blooded. It was even more of a treat when they got to experience the magic that was a sauna. This was sort of the opposite for Usagi. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy the nice, warm feeling of the sauna, it's just that his giant coat of fur made it so that he got hot very quickly, and could barely stay I  there for more than 10 minutes.

"Excuse me my friends, but it's if I get out now." Usagi said.

"No problem Usagi." Donnie said. Usagi walked out of the room saying he was gonna get something to drink which left the four turtles by themselves. Mikey took this chance to slide closer to Leo, and had a mischevious look on his face. Leo cocked a brow at him while looking confused.

"So... how was your little 'sparring match' with Usagi?" He asked, putting air quote around the words 'sparring match. 

"It was fine, why do you ask?" Leo responded, looking as clueless as ever. Mikey wishes he would learn how to read the signs. 

"Was that all you guys did?"

We also talked." Leo doesn't know what it was about that statement that was so intriguing, but suddenly that got the attention of all three of his brothers. Now they all chose to get closer to where Leo was sitting. The blue clad turtle was starting to feel claustrophobic.

"Talked about what?" This time Donnie was the one who spoke up.

"Well at first he was telling me about his travels. Then, I apologized about my behavior last time, and that was it." Once again Leo feels like he missed something because he noticed some disappointed looks on his brothers faces. 

''What is it?" He asked.

"Are you sure that's all you talked about?" Mikey asked, looking like he was waiting for a certain answer of some sort. Leo raised an eybrow.

"Yes. What's going on you guys? If you're worried about my friendship with Usagi, I already told you that we made up." To Leo's surprise that answer didn't seem to satisfy his brothers, because they're faces were still filled with disappointment. 

"Look bro, we're glad that you made up with Usagi, but we were kind of hoping for something else." Raph said.

"Hoping for what?" Leo asked.

"For you to admit your crush on him dude!" Mikey blurted out. Leo looked stunned 

"Wh-what? I do not have a crush on him." Leo said. The rest of the turtles were not convinced.

"Come on Fearless, it's pretty obvious you like the guy." Raph said.

" I do like him, as a friend." Leo responded.

"Oh really, then answer us this, do you feel like your friendship to Usagi is the same as Casey or April?" Donnie asked.

"Well no, but that doesn't exactly have to mean anything." Leo said, although he did see what they were getting at. While he considered himself good friends with Casey and April, he would be lying if he said wasn't wary of them when they first met. With Usagi, however, it was different. When they met Leo found that it was much easier to talk to him, and they had a lot in common, but Leo still thought his brothers were being delusional.

"Listen bro, you're better than all of us when it comes to ninjitsu, and being all stealthy, but when it comes to you're own feelings, you're completely clueless." Mikey said. Raph and Donnie nodded in agreement.

"Look, I appreciate you guys looking out for me, but you don't know what you're talking about." Leo said before storming out of the sauna. As he walked away he noticed Usagi sitting on a bench near the sauna room with some drinks for them. The samurai looked over and invited him to sit next to him. 

"I hope you and your brothers are enjoying your stay here in our world. I know that the last couple of times you were here were not exactly peaceful." Usagi said. 

Leo cringed at the memories. The first time they came here Leo almost died from being poisoned, and then the second time he came to 2nd earth was because Drago sent him here, and he helped Usagi defeat Lord Hebi.

"They weren't all that bad, I mean I had fun, you know, besides the whole poison thing." Usagi chuckled at that.

"I agree, and I had fun sparring against you in the last Battle Nexus." 

"Same here, and I hope we get to go up against each other again." They both reminisced on their first fight against each other. Leo remembered how fun it was fighting Usagi. Whenever they started it felt like they were lost in their own little world. Leo laughed at the memory. He then looked at Usagi and immediately started blushing again. He didn't know why he always did that when he looked at the samurai. He backed up a little and Usagi looked concern.

"Are you alright Leonardo, are you not feeling well? Your face is all red " He then put a hand up against Leo's forehead. "You also appear to be burning up as well." Leo's eyes went wide at the sudden contact.

"Yep I'm fine, must've of been in the sauna too long!" He forced a chuckle.

"Yo, lovebirds!" Le and Usagi turned around to see Raph, Mikey, and Donnie staring straight at them. Donnie and Mikey were making kissing noises at the two, while Raph just stared at them,or more specifically Leo, with an unimpressed look on his face with his arms folded.

"Real mature you guys. Also we're not lovebirds!" Leo shouted before turning back to Usagi. "I'm sorry about this. I'd promise that they aren't usually like this, but that'd be a lie." Usagi simply chuckled at the brother's antics. 

It was late into the night when they returned back to the mansion, and they all settled into their rooms for the night. As Leo laid in his bed, his mind constantly wandered back to thoughts of Usagi and the talk he had with his brothers. The friendship he had with Usagi was definitely different than the one he had with April, and Casye. Plus he was so essy to talk to. Leo then began to think of their numerous conversations in the past. Whenever he spoke with Usagi, he found himself stuttering, and his thoughts would always become a jumbled mess. Even during his darkest times when he struggled with his trauma and his PTSD,and he felt like he was trapped in the darkness, Usagi felt like a beacon of light, even for a short moment. Leo needed more time to think, but the Battle Nexus was tomorrow. Maybe he'll talk to Usagi before the competition, but for now he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.