Spy for a Spy

*“How do you think they found out about your little alliance? Someone in your circle of trust is a spy.”*

— Nya to the ninja

**Spy for a Spy** is the fifth episode of the fourth season of *Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu* and 39th episode overall. It aired on March 23, 2015, in the United States on Cartoon Network.

## Synopsis

*The Ninja have created a secret alliance of elemental fighters, Cole has found Zane, and Nya goes undercover within Chen's kabuki to figure out the man's nefarious plot.*

## Plot

In Chen's factory, Cole works with Karlof (master of metal) and the recently-eliminated Chamille on making fortune cookies. Surprised at seeing the Earth Ninja so happy all of a sudden, the Master of Metal questions him. Cole explains that now that he's found Zane, he is attempting to break out. He slips a note in one of the fortune cookies saying what his condition is to the ninja, and places it on a dish piled with fortune cookies for a banquet Chen is hosting. Karlof tells Cole that if he does escape, to come back and rescue him, which Cole hurriedly agrees to do before giving out the cookies. Despite a close call, the cookie makes it past the guards without any suspicions.

Meanwhile, Nya and Dareth are outside Chen's Palace. Nya attempts to go in but is stopped by Dareth, who disguises her as one of Chen's kabuki, so she can get in undetected. Nya is amazed by his work and questions how he changed her clothes as he says that a "master doesn't reveal his secrets."

As it turns out, the banquet is being held for the eight remaining competitors who have made it to the second round. Chen served all the fighters exotic food which made Lloyd suspicious at first, but Chen tells him to lighten up. He also congratulates Shadow for his impressive victory against Tox. The masters discuss their current standpoint, while Griffin Turner states he attempted to enlist Shadow, but he refused. As the fortune cookies are brought in, Chen demands to have them brought to him, while Clouse reminds him of the competitors' whispering, revealing they have a spy feeding them the alliance's information. As Chen decides to take action, he puts the fortune with Cole's message back. He rises and tells the remaining eight that he knows that they have a secret alliance and that the Tournament is about stealing everyone's powers.

To crumble the alliance, Chen lies and tells that whoever wins gets his Staff of Elements. Lloyd, disgusted, reveals Neuro had read Clouse's mind, though Neuro denies it after being glared at by Clouse. This, combined with Griffin saying Lloyd just wants the staff for himself, is enough to weaken the alliance. Jay states the ninja now need proof to fully convince everyone while being pestered by kabuki until one is revealed to be Nya. After telling Jay she knows what happened between him and Cole, she tells the ninja that she and Dareth are undercover and that one person in their group must be a spy if Chen managed to find out about their plans. Skylor approaches them and gives Kai the fortune with Cole's message, surprising everyone that Cole had managed to find Zane, and making Kai glad to know he can trust her. Jay questions who the spy could be, while Lloyd becomes convinced it's Shadow and glares at him.

Back at the factory, Cole initiates his plan: to cause havoc by eating the food. The Cultists attempt to recapture him but aren't able to. Cole uses noodles as a makeshift rope, but it rips, causing him to fall on Zugu. Cole is thrown into a cell, though the reveals later that he had taken Zugu's keys. As he enters Zane's cell, he wakes him from his dream of the Titanium Dragon. Cole frees Zane and they escape. Unfortunately, the guard realizes that Cole has gone missing and raises the alarm. Nya gets to the spellbook and takes away page 149 of the book. Clouse enters his quarters as well and notices a white marking on the cover of the spellbook. Clouse's pet is released and chases Zane and Cole. Luckily, Zane and Cole escape by using exploding shurikens, which Zane had.

In Kai's quarters, all the fighters are gathered to find the spy. Garmadon suggests they show their backs to determine who the spy is since the one who has a snake tattoo on their back would be considered as part of the cult. Eventually, it comes down to Skylor and Shadow, the former attempting to stall and guilt trip Kai until he says he trusts her. Just before she does show, Griffin notices Shadow attempting to escape, who states that he isn't their ally or the spy, and he'll do what it takes to get the staff. Lloyd's attempt to stop him results in Jay's leg being crushed. As Shadow escapes, Neuro brands him as the spy, while Kai attempts to apologize to Skylor, who shows him her back without a tattoo.

In the caves, Cole learns from two guards that the imprisoned Elemental Masters will pay for his escape, just as Zane locates the exit. Cole, remembering his promise to Karlof, tells Zane to leave alone, as he was imprisoned long enough. Zane however, chooses to stay. Meanwhile, Dareth blows his cover and is chased and caught by Chen's guards. Nya also blows her cover but escapes into the forest after a brief fight with Clouse.

In the throne room, Chen asks his spy if Nya was captured. It's revealed that the spy is Skylor, who hid her tattoo from the ninja using Chamille's Form. She informs him of Cole and Zane's escape and calls him father, to which they cackle at the thought of the ninja being disbanded forever.

## Appearances

### Characters

* Auto
* Chen
* Chope
* Clouse
* Cole
* Dareth
* Eyezor
* Garmadon
* Guard #1
* Guard #2
* Griffin Turner
* Jay
* Kai
* Karlof
* Lloyd Garmadon
* Neuro
* Nya
* P.I.X.A.L.
* Shade
* Skylor
* Zane
* Zugu

### Creatures

* Anacondrai
* Titanium Dragon

### Items

* Book of Spells
* Fortune cookies
* Staff of Elements

### Species

* Anacondrai
* Elemental Dragons
* Humans
* Nindroids
* Oni/Dragon/Human hybrids

## Trivia

* A 2018 minifigure pack later released Nya's kabuki variant in physical form.
* The Hageman Brothers have stated that this was a "Tough episode to track" and agree that it would have benefited from more action.

## Cultural references

* The episode title is a play on the phrase "an eye for an eye."
* The intro of the song Dareth listens and dances to on the disguised D.B. Express sounds very similar to the song "Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry.

## Continuity

* Skylor is confirmed to be Chen's daughter, as well as the spy. It is also revealed that she absorbed Chamille and Neuro's powers.
* Zane is confirmed to have lost his powers, which was theorized in "Only One Can Remain."
* Cole references his time meeting the Anacondrai serpent, which occurred in "Only One Can Remain."
* Tox is revealed to have been eliminated, having battled Shadow and lost. However, the battle was not shown. This is the first and only instance of an off-screen two-on-two battle in the tournament.
* Nya disguises herself as a kabuki to infiltrate Chen's Palace, unknowingly replicating the strategy used by the ninja in *The Search for Zane* to sneak back into the palace after leaving for a while to look for the Ice Ninja.
* This episode marks Shade, Kapau, Chope, and Eyezor's first speaking roles.
	+ Because of the former three speaking for the first time, Andrew Francis, Alessandro Juliani, and Ian Hanlin join the voice cast as the respective characters.
* According to the Ninjago website, the skull on the table with the spellbook actually belonged to the late king of the Underworld, Samukai.
	+ The skull may have belonged to Samukai, but not actually his own. This is emphasized by the skull's shape and the fact that Samukai's entire body exploded.
* The ninja find out that Cole managed to find Zane, which he did in the previous episode.
* At the beginning of the episode, Cole is heard whistling the *Ninjago* theme again.

## Errors

* Mr. Pale wasn't in Kai's room when everyone was checked for tattoos, yet was apparently implied to have been checked.
	+ While he may have been invisible, it is likely an animation error.
* When Dareth paints Nya's face with make-up, her neck and a few places on her face are still yellow, but in the next scene, her entire face and neck are white.
* When Eyezor asks Chope and Kapau what they were doing, when they reply, their voices are swapped. This also occurs for the next lines.