“Sneaking…sneaking…sneaking!” Quinn called out in a sing-song voice. “Sneaking! Sneaking! Sneaking? Sneaking!”

The red-haired little boy was returning home from a late afternoon errand to the nearby market, and the sun was already starting to set. He darted from shadow to shadow as he made his way through the rapidly darkening neighborhoods, moving quickly despite the large bag of onions hoisted over his shoulder.

Quinn, fancying himself to be a ninja, was more-or-less dressed the part: not only was he wearing a black jumpsuit with matching shoes, but he also had an impressively long, red scarf that stylishly trailed behind him as he jumped and ran. His orange socks, while not exactly subtle, did match the trim on his sleeves.

And, of course, he made sure to announce whenever he was performing a special ninja technique.

“Ninja Skill: Hide!” Quinn declared as he ducked behind some garbage bins.

A Yamper trotted up to a nearby lamppost and sniffed it. The dog Pokemon then raised its hind leg; the front of its black-and-white pawprint-patterned diaper puffed out and discolored. After a few minutes, the canine finished, trotting away contentedly.

“Phew, that was a close one!” the ninja boy said as he exited his hiding spot. “Another win-ja for Quinn-ja the ninja!” He continued onward, stopping every so often to set down his cargo and rest his arms.

In truth, his house wasn’t that far from the market - it’s why his mom sent him on the errand to begin with. If he had been going directly home, he would be there by now - but he was taking the scenic route this time, so he could sneak in extra ninja antics.

As the last of the sunlight turned to a dim orange glow on the horizon, Quinn’s house finally came into view. All he had to do was cross the busy, two-lane road that ran in front of it.

The young boy tightened his grip on the grocery bag, leaned forward, and prepared to run. “Super Ninja Skill: Sprint!” He declared as he started to dash.

Quinn had only managed to take two steps before he was yanked backwards by a firm tug on his scarf. He fell back, landing hard on his cushioned bottom; the bag of onions hit the ground next to him with a dull thud.

Before the boy had time to properly process what had happened, a large truck came barrelling down the road, passing by mere meters in front of him. He yelped, scrambling away from the street, before running against what felt like someone’s leg. He looked up.

A young man looked down at Quinn. “You need to look both ways, kid!” he said sternly, his voice somewhat muffled by the dark cloth covering his mouth. “You okay?”

Quinn stood up, eyeing the man cautiously. His mom had warned him of stranger danger, but this person had just saved his life. Moreover, he just felt…safe. Quinn couldn't think of any other way to describe it.

“Uh, I think so,” he replied. Quinn reached a hand down to the seat of his jumpsuit, feeling his now heavier pull-up.. “I think I had an accident, though.”

“Smells like you had one,” the man muttered, waving a hand in front of his face. “Anyway, better than the accident you could’ve had.”

Quinn rolled his eyes. “You sound like my dad.” He then looked at the ground. “Well, from what I remember ‘bout him, anyway…”

The stranger looked uneasy at this, but said nothing.

Quinn looked back up at the man. “Thank you for saving me.” His brow then furrowed, and he looked into the alley his savior had been hiding in. “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“You’re a keen kid, that’s good,” the man replied. He leaned down close to Quinn and whispered, “You can’t tell anyone, but I’m on a top-secret ninja mission.”

Quinn now really noticed the stranger’s outfit: he wore a black jumpsuit similar to his, with matching gloves and facemask; a long, black scarf trailed from his neck, touching the ground.

The boy’s face lit up. “You’re a real ninja?!”

The man nodded. 

A shadow shifted in the alley behind the ninja, and Quinn took a step back, pointing. “Watch out, there’s something behind you!”

The man nodded again, then called over his shoulder, “Come on out, buddy.”

A green, fairy-like Pokemon fluttered out of the alley, coming to a resting hover by the man’s right shoulder. The Pokemon wore a thick, fluffy cloth diaper underneath a black lace-up cover. “Celebi!” 

“That’s Onion,” the man said, pointing a thumb to his Pokemon partner. “He’s a super special Pokemon who came all the way from the future to help me with my ninja mission.”

“Oh man, that’s so cool!” Quinn said, his face breaking into a big grin. “I wanna get a Pokemon an’ go on secret ninja missions, too!” He then looked down dejectedly, kicking his foot against the ground. “I wish I was a real ninja. All the kids at school make fun of me for dressing like one all the time…”

The man bent down, putting a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Kid, you can be whatever you want to be. If you want to be a ninja, then go ahead and be a ninja. If it makes you happy, and it doesn’t harm anyone, then who cares what the other kids think? No one asked them!”

Quinn looked up, a hopeful smile on his face.”Yeah!”

The man stood up. “Well, I should be going. Onion and I need to finish our mission.”

“Wait!” Quinn said, holding up a hand. “Can I go with you? I wanna do ninja stuff!”

The man shook his head. “Sorry, this is a super-secret mission for only me and Onion.” He then ruffled the boy’s messy hair. “But don’t worry, I have a feeling you’ll be going on all sorts of cool ninja missions in no time.”

“Aww, okay,” Quin pouted. “Will I ever see you again?”

The man thought for a moment before responding, “You could say that.”

The boy cocked his head in puzzlement, but before he could say anything, the man pointed at the bag of onions on the ground.

“Hey, Quinn, you should hurry up and take that home. Your mom and sisters are probably wondering where you are.”

“Oh yeah!” Quinn said as he reached down to pick up the fallen groceries. His eyes widened, and he looked back up. “Wait, how did you know - ?”

Both the man and his Pokemon were gone without a trace.

“Whoah…” Quinn muttered in awe, “Ninja power…” He grinned, picked up the groceries, and ran home, making sure the road was clear first, of course.