"It started as an impulse, an impulse and nothing more. The impulse to have a drink, to taste the subtleties on the tongue and lose himself, if just for a moment. There was nothing wrong in wanting something, in feeling the desire, as long as you didn't give into it." Everyone has their limits. One turtle finds out that once you cross the line, it's not to easy to go back.

"He ghosted his fingertips across the white of the silk. He tangled his fist around it, gripping it tightly. Then he let it fall from his fingertips, smoothing it down, as if nothing had ever happened. The silk was smooth, without a wrinkle, without an inkling or hint of its rough treatment. It was perfect. It was unmoved." What happens when a warrior is pushed too far?

"He saw nothing but bullets now. Bullets and darkness that seared his skin, and left scars that he nursed well into the night, when the burn of whisky tore his throat and the tears tore his cheeks. He threw the whisky away, the glass shattering on the ground, into a million pieces. That would stain the carpet." SAINW. Nights get cold when you are alone, and all you want is warmth.

"There in the trenches, the green so dirty and torn it was barely recognisable. When Gai was breathless and injured. But he was determined, and there was a hope, a stronghold against the fear, a shield against the dark." What happens when a comrade is lifeless and all the colour fades from your world? What happens if the shield against the darkness is no more?

"Left to right. Down. There was nothing but cold. A piercing cold and numbness that spread through his middle, across each broken muscle. His hand grew slick, and for a moment, all that Neji could think of was all of that blood. Not long now. Keep silent. Keep silent. He would not die with dishonour." Hyuga Neji's resolve.

"The future was shiny and bright and full of the kind of peace that they had only every dreamed of. They were free, free to walk in the streets without fear, without judgement. It came at a great cost. Missing. Parts of their lives were missing." The darker implications of this passage of time, and a look into each of the turtles minds.

"Some people called it an obsession, but what did they know? What did they know about the burning feeling deep within his heart that chilled everything else to stone. Nothing else mattered, nothing else could matter anymore."