June 19th, 5:07

The hearse pulled into the driveway of the suburban house. A group of men and women dressed entirely in black looked at the vehicle designed to carry the deceased sadly. A woman towards the front seemed to be a bit worse for wear as she broke down into tears, which from the looks of it had been happening lately. A group of teens, two girls and one boy, were also beginning to tear up but tried to stay strong. This seemed to be easier for some more than others as the tallest girl followed the adult woman and broke down into tears.

The group began to get into some cars, the woman and teens climbing into the same car. As the last person got into a car, the hearse backed up and began to drive away. The rest of the cars followed the black car as they made their way to the funeral of the person they missed so dearly.

In the house next door, Howard looked out of the bedroom window, looking confused. "What's happening out there?"

"Oh, my neighbor's dad died last week. It was really sad. Yeah, my mom invited the whole family over last weekend for dinner as a way to help out," Randy said as he looked away from his reflection in his mirror.

"Man that stinks," Howard commented, looking away. The two stayed in silence for a moment before changing the subject. "So, show me what you got."

Randy rolled his eyes at his friend's comment but chose not to comment on it. Instead, the teen turned around and held his arms out, gesturing to his current outfit. He was wearing a pink satin shirt, tight black skinny jeans, and a pair of meticulously polished leather dress shoes.

"Nope, absolutely not!", Howard said, waving his arms and averting his eyes from his friend.

"Aw come on, this is the eighth outfit you've had me try on! What's wrong with this one?" randy cried indignantly.

"Oh nothing," Howard began, picking at his nails. "I'm sure you and Theresa will have a great time at the disco. It'll be psychedelic."

Randy mumbled under his breath, seeing his friend's point but still angry he would have to change again. Slipping his right arm out of his sleeve, he began to carefully move the left sleeve over his cast. Once he was done, he did the same for his pants, being careful not to mess with the cast on his right leg.

Randy still couldn't believe how lucky he was. When you really thought about it, he could have severely injured beyond recovery, like being paralyzed or… Randy shook his head, deciding not to think about that. But besides the broken arm, shattered kneecap, 3 cracked ribs, broken nose, and severe concussion, he got off with only a few scratches. He was even luckier that people believed a building had fallen on him and no one put together the Ninja had sustained the exact same injuries.

Really though, his injuries were worth it so that everyone was safe. The Tengu and the Ninja were both gone forever, trapped in the Nomicon where neither the bird nor the mask would have any effect on the outside world. His work was done; the Ninja was truly no longer needed. The teen's smile grew at that. While a month ago he may have felt depressed at knowing he was no longer able to be a hero, Randy now knew it meant that the world was going to be a better place for the people he promised to protect. He was being a hero by giving up on being a hero, and that was okay with him.

Norrisville was still under construction from the Tengu's attack, but the citizens had mostly settled back into their regular routines. People were enjoying their summer vacations thus far, behaving like everyone hadn't been under the threat of mass genocide a few weeks ago. Besides the occasional visit from government agents or out of town superhero, it was back to being the same old Norrisville. Well, minus the evil sorcerers and crazed billionaires.

Randy pulled his new shirt on his head and straightened it out, before showing Howard his new outfit. He was now wearing a red collared shirt, a pair of dark blue jeans, a thin black jacket, and some converse. Howard whistled, apparently liking the outfit. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Randy grinned at the praise before looking at his watch. His eyes widened when he saw it was 20 minutes from six o'clock. "Oh my juice, the movie starts in 20 minutes! I have to go!"

Howard laughed at that. "Yeah, can't upset the old ball and chain, right?"

Randy rolled his eyes but smiled nonetheless. After the Tengu was defeated, Theresa had been administered to the hospital for her burns. Luckily, she made a speedy recovery, and a day after she got out of the burn ward she and Randy had begun dating. If he was honest with himself, no longer being the Ninja would have been a lot harder to deal with.

"Whatever man. You doing anything fun tonight?"

"Yeah, me and Debbie are going to the Game Hole. Going to teach her how to play Grave Puncher."

Randy raised an eye conspiratorially at his friend. "Oooh, I see love is in the air tonight."

Howard scoffed at that as he began to climb down from the top bunk of Randy's bed. "Trust me Cunningham, that will never happen for a number of reasons."

"Okay, okay," Randy said conceding, but still not sure why Howard was so defensive about it. Eh, a conversation for another time.

Howard and Debbie were actually adjusting well to the new group dynamic. Though at first, they had shared an animosity towards one another, they had bonded while visiting their friends in the hospital and making sure they didn't do anything stupid while recovering. Things still were a bit uncomfortable at times and they did argue, but at this point it was relatively harmless.

As Randy fixed his hair a bit, Howard was about to jump off the ladder when he accidently knocked the former ninja's backpack off the bed. The satchel hit the floor, opening up and causing the Nomicon to slide out.

Both boys stopped what they were doing and looked at the ancient book for a few moments. Then Randy walked over and picked it up. He smiled sadly as he ran his finger over the formerly red lines, no longer feeling it pulse with energy as it once had. Once the mask had been banished, the magic that powered the Nomicon had seemed to be cut off, rendering the book just that: a book. No longer would it shloomp Randy in during the day to teach him a new power or an important life lesson. Randy sighed, knowing that his adventures were truly behind him.

Howard stepped off the ladder and tentatively walked over to Randy. Warily, He put his hand on the boy's shoulder and gave him a sympathetic look. "You okay, Cunningham?"

Randy stared at the Nomicon for a few more moments before he let out a small smile. Though he knew he had no connection to the Nomicon anymore, he swore he could see a phrase be formed in front of his eyes. When the Ninja is no longer needed, the Ninja shall lay down his sword. "Yeah Howard, I am." The ginger let out a smile also, believing his friend's words.

Randy then sighed, setting the book down on his desk. "But I won't be if I miss my date. Believe it or not, Theresa can get pretty crazy about time."

Howard laughed at that as the two friends made their way out of Randy's room. "Oh, like you aren't. Are you forgetting when we went to the petting zoo in fourth grade and-"

"You promised you would never bring that up again!" Randy shouted as they walked down the hall, their voices fading away.

The room was still for a moment. That is, until the 800-year-old book began to shake slightly. It began teetering closer to the edge before it stopped and began to glow, changing from the dull gray color to a lively red. The lines pulsed for a moment before it faded one last time.

And that is it! It has taken me one rewrite and one year, but The Final Battle is finally finished. I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who has favorited and reviewed over these past months; you guys are the reason this story was made and why it was finished. Thank you all so much.

I hope you all enjoyed the story, and until next time…SMOKEBOMB!