Ooookay, time to put this locomotive in the roundhouse! Last chapter, just a bit of a nostalgic little wrap-up. Time and universe permitting, though, I really hope to do something like this for Season 5 too. A big thank you to everyone who's been reading and commenting! ^_^
The title is Rolling Stones, by the way. Sappiest song ever, but pretty.
Darkrainbow: Thanks for the review! Well, like Kai said, I think it's a "game time" thing. The masks let both them and their enemies know that they're getting serious. Althoughhhhhh, sometimes I gotta wonder about the logic of it. Back in Episode 48, they kept their masks on while entering Sensei Yang's temple, but took them off when they entered the library. Why the action ends specifically when you enter the library, we shall never know. XD
Angel Star Ninja: Thanks! The Lloydille one-shot is under construction, by the way. ^_^''
LeNinjagoFanGirl: Glad you enjoyed it! For the masks, same as Darkrainbow's reply; for the yelling "Ninja-go!", maybe it's like a battle cry? It might be especially useful during Spinjitzu by increasing the power of the move—like yelling "Hai-ya!" in karate. I've heard it really does increase the force of your blows.
The sun was close to setting, and the ninja were training on the deck of the Bounty. Eager calls and the clashes of weapons rang out through the slanting sun-scented light. Wu sat atop the wheelhouse, sipping tea and watching them. His eyes were faintly troubled.
Now was a poor time to start second-guessing himself—seriously, the worst—but it was inevitable that he would start to doubt eventually. He had always been warned not to meddle too much, not to interfere with the hand of Fate. Even the wisest could not be right every time; trying to control events to suit his own idea of a "good future" would make him hardly different from his brother, trying to recreate Ninjago in his own image. It was not the place of one man to run the world.
So he worried a little, sometimes, about all the changes he had orchestrated. At times he thought perhaps he may have meddled a little too much, drawing together four young men, then a fifth, and pronouncing them the defenders of their homeland.
But what could he have done? Ninjago needed protection. It needed heroes, a force to rise against evil; the very prophecies foretold it. Wu told himself that he had merely been the instrument of Fate, setting the stage for the prophecies to fulfill themselves, ensuring that the world did not suffer and fall. That couldn't be very bad meddling, could it? On behalf of Ninjago he had no regrets.
And of course, the lives most deeply touched: the five ninjas', their families'. Their entire life paths had been completely diverted by the Sensei's call to arms. That was meddling, undeniably, controlling other's fates. Whatever became of them, the good, the bad, the brotherhood and the love and the enmity, that was all Wu's fault. It was mildly terrifying.
But this evening, he looked out over the multicolored flashes of motion on the deck and considered the alternative. Suppose he had never called the ninja together? Where would they all be now?
Zane. Zane he felt the fewest qualms over. The Nindroid had lived a detached, lonely life before he joined the team, wandering from town to town, never becoming close to anyone. Even after he first found his memory switch, he could not name a single friend from his wandering days; nobody bothered to reach out to a cool, soft-spoken, slightly weird stranger who was always just passing through. But as a part of the team, Zane had found acceptance. He had gained a family who accepted his quirks—a little teasing aside—and he had found out the truth about himself, found his father, found PIXAL. None of that would have happened if Sensei Wu hadn't called on him all those years ago. His sacrifice to defeat the Golden Master had been painful, but he'd be the first to tell you he never regretted it for an instant.
Kai, the most hotheaded of them all. Forever a devoted slave to his passions, both good and bad. How long would he have tolerated the blacksmith job? Drudging away at a grimy forge day after day, churning out plowshares and doornails? Not Kai, no. He would have lost patience soon, plunged off into some irrational search for adventure, and probably gotten himself pointlessly killed. His sister would be left devastated and forever unaware of her potential instead of blossoming into the capable, confident samurai she was today. Kai himself would never have had the steadying influence of his friends, would never have learned to temper his fire for the sake of others.
Cole. Wu had to admit, he could comfort himself more on behalf of others than of Cole himself. As a member of the team—for a long time as its leader—the earth ninja was always rough-and-tumble. He didn't hesitate to tease his teammates, call them by a vast catalog of nicknames, roughhouse, and generally keep things lively. It was always affectionate, though, and in a lot of ways it helped him be a better leader. Being close with his teammates allowed him to perfectly tune battle plans, and the others, with their wide-ranging mix of temperaments, were much more willing to follow someone familiar and jokey than a stern, authoritarian leader. But Wu couldn't shake the uneasy suspicion that Cole, if he hadn't become a ninja, could easily have become a bully. His boisterous energy would need little excuse to spill over into cruelty, leaving him friendless and maybe even feared. But charged with leadership, he was able to channel that energy into protecting and guiding his team—and with that he did a fine job.
Jay. Admittedly Sensei Wu felt guilt about him the most often. He was a little high-strung, and the stress and danger of the ninja lifestyle sometimes seemed too much for him. He could have lived a much more peaceful life as an inventor or helping his parents around the junkyard. But then, an inventor's life was a hard one—even the most successful lived hand-to-mouth, always struggling to come up with the next big thing as each successive invention lost its novelty. Jay's self-confidence was shaky enough even as a highly trained ninja with command over forces of nature; the constant failures inherent to tinkering would have broken his spirit. At least now he had a name, a purpose, and a group of friends he could depend on—to bolster him up when he was panicking and to put up with his quirky humor when he wasn't. Wu still fretted over the days or weeks that must be chipping off the end of Jay's life every time giant snakes or invincible stone armies rampaged through Ninjago, but he at least hoped that Jay was living this life to the fullest.
They all were, hopefully. And that wasn't very bad meddling, was it? They all did so well in their current lives. Even those many times when they tried to take up other jobs, they always ended up gravitating right back to their roles as ninja. Maybe their gathering really had been Fate all along, and Wu really was just its messenger.
The Sensei settled back with a sigh, pouring himself another cup of tea, and watched darkness slide gradually over the shifting forms below. Either way, for Ninjago's sake and for theirs, he was at peace.