On day one of their ninja training, Arin and Sora sneak out to experience the Crossroads Carnival, a yearly celebration of all the cultures of the merged realms, only to get caught up in shady dealings.
Tropes:
- Blatant Lies: Lloyd insists he and the ninja would never have disrespected Master Wu by running off, a lie so blatant he immediately backpedals and admits is untrue.
- The Blind Leading the Blind: It's pretty clear for all his eagerness, Lloyd has no idea how to mentor, and is just basing everything on what Wu would likely do, but without the understanding of how that works.
- Chekhov's Lecture: Sora's explanation on proper mechanical maintenance.
- Continuity Nod: Dorama says there's something particular about Whack-Rats that make them ideal for what he's using them for, presumably because they're video game characters brought to life.
- Epic Fail: Lloyd apparently manages to burn his tea. Even he has no idea how.
- Funny Background Event: When Kreel declares "Targy" is the only person she calls a friend, her goons share a look, clearly hurt by this comment.
- Insistent Terminology: Kreel doesn't have minions. She has goons.
- It's All About Me:
- Kreel thinks the prize money for the race belongs to her because she would have won if not for sudden dragon in the way. However, she does have some slight empathy for those she cares about, such as Targy.
- Dorama has been abducting Whack-Rats and using them as living fuel for his magic, just so no-one can upstage him at the carnival. Arin even points out there's no shame in no longer being the most popular show, but Dorama doesn't care, because those other shows wouldn't be his.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Kreel insisting Lobbo "stole" the prize money is wrong (and completely divorced from reality), but where she isn't wrong is pointing out he wouldn't have won the race at all if Ryu and the Claws hadn't gotten in the way and knocked her down.
- Lampshade Hanging:
- Sora questions how exactly the obstacle course is meant to help anyone become a ninja when deadly obstacles courses are not typically a feature in real life.
- Lloyd tries imitating Master Wu's method of giving his students until he finished his tea, before admitting he has no idea how exactly that works.
- Manly Facial Hair: In order to imitate his uncle, Lloyd's trying to grow a beard. He hasn't succeeded. He really, really hasn't succeeded. He has grown one (1) hair, and it takes some intense staring from Arin and Sora to even notice it's there at all.
- Recognition Failure: The two kids at the Crossroads shrine don't recognize Lloyd as the Green Ninja, even though he's unmasked, wearing green, a ninja outfit and carrying a sword. One kid almost looks like she's got him, until it turns out she thinks he's more like Master Wu.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome:
- The mechanisms of the monastery have gotten all broken down because like any mechanical device they need proper care and maintenance, which is not Lloyd's area of expertise at all. In fact, he didn't even realize they needed maintaining in the first place.
- Lloyd's spent... however long it's been since the Merge all on his own, so as he discovers his social skills have started to get a little rusty.
