It had been a year since the death of Lloyd, and almost the same amount of time since Harumi's adoption. While Garmadon hadn't known about her powers, the discovery left him and The Ninja in shock. Knowing that the reemergence of the powers could signal the return of some of Ninjagos greatest enemies, The Ninja trained Harumi to harness the power that their fallen ally once possessed. Little did they know, the monster who had been destroyed by Lloyd still persisted within the digital realm, ready to sink its teeth into the new Green Ninja . . .
"Hah! Take that!"
The small, sharp voice ran out across the room. Harumi stood victorious over her opponent, holding her personal knife within her grasp. The Deepstone edge gave it a green hue, so Harumi nicknamed the weapon "Jades Blade." However, Nya, Kai, and Jay, who were monitoring the battle, looked unimpressed at the battle. Harumi had beaten Dareth.
"No! Please! No more! Why can't any of you train with her!?" Dareth complained, pinned to the ground by Harumi's shoe. Dareth foolishly believed it'd be an easy fight, so long as he grabbed the biggest weapon her could find. However, when the giant battle hammer he got landed on his foot, it was an easy victory.
"No offense to either of you, but I'd rather be doing anything else. We've taught you basically everything we know Harumi. And I dont get why Wu thinks letting you beat up Dareth over and over counts as training." Kai said, looking with a grin at Dareths defeat. Nya walked over to him, as Harumi got off of Dareth.
"Kais right! You've gotten pretty good. Though there's still a lot more to learn!" Nya said optimistically, helping poor Dareth up. Dareth shakily stood at attention, just incase Harumi demanded another training match.
"I've been taught by everyone else a lot. But I haven't gotten much from you. Is there anything you can teach me, Nya?" Harumi asked, sheathing Jades Blade, and sitting down for a moment of rest.
"Sadly, I don't have any elemental powers. I guess there's a lot of support work I could tell you about, but you couldn't possibly be interested by any of that.." Nya said, her voice dropping, her disappointment apparent. These days, Samurai X was held in high regard, but hadn't seen much coverage since the days of The Serpentine's reappearance in Ninjago.
"That's not true! Surely you could teach me some-" Harumi was cut off
"You guys haven't answered my question!" Dareth said, annoyed that it had only been half answered a couple seconds ago.
Kai laughed. "I'm sorry Dareth. But as The Brown Ninja, it's your job to do all the stuff we don't want to do!" He said jokingly, patting Dareths head, as if he were an insubordinate child.
Jay looked confused. "Hey! I didn't know I could dump my chores on Dareth! Oh my god- I need to get Zane and Cole. They need to hear this!" However Kai stopped him before he could run off to interupt Wus meditation.
"I'm kidding! Besides, Zane and Cole are meditating with Wu. Something about those weird smoke visions Wu used to get."
"Huh? What's wrong with Uncle Wu's visions?" Harumi asked curiously. This was one of the only times where its validity had been called into question.
"He doesn't know. Usually he can get some useful information out of them. Now all he sees in them is, well, smoke." Kai said angrily. He didn't care much about having to explain every little thing to Harumi.
"Calm down Kai. Remember what Wu said about your temper?" Nya reminded him, which set Kai off on yet another rant. Ever since Lloyds death, Kais ego turned into a contempt for almost everything and anything. Everyone noticed the change. But they were too afraid to call him out.
"I don't have a temper for fucks sake- I mean-" Kai coughed, taking a deep breath in. "Yea, ok. 'Blah blah blah, to control the fire within you, you must not let it control you, blah blah blah.' It's just stuff I've already heard Nya!" Kai complained, as Harumi yawned.
"I'm tired. Can any of you drive me home?" Harumi said, before correcting herself. "Wait- none of you can drive- sorry, i'll just go ask Uncle Wu. Bye!" She said, running out of the room. Kai angrily punched the nearby wall.
"Prick! Of course none of us can drive! We don't have cars! It's like she's trying to find new ways to remind us that she's Wu's favorite."
"Easy Kai." Said Nya. "She's not making anyone look bad. She's just used to asking us for support. Besides! She's Wu's niece. Well, step-niece at least."
"It was enough having to train her in all our powers. But it's given her an ego."
"Hah! Look who's talking Kai?" Jay said. Just then, Cole and Zane entered the room.
"Kai, I swear, if you tricked Harumi into doing all your chores again, I'm telling Wu." Cole said angrily, having seen her pass by in the hall. She gave them a wave, before entering Wu's room.
"Trust me. I'm definitely not getting away with that again. Wu never gives us a break. It's like there is something bugging him. I havent worked this hard ever!"
"I agree. Wu had been rather grumpy ever since his visions stopped working. Though you still haven't told us why Harumi's leaving." Zane said.
"She's just tired. Nothing to worry about." Nya said, as the group of six started talking. While Nya and Dareth weren't actually ninja, the group that formed around Harumi's training starting to become their new normal.
Meanwhile, back in Wu's quarters, Harumi opened the door. Wu was sitting on the floor, with his eyes closed. The smoke in front of him hid his face and hat, as Harumi stepped closer, closing the door. She and Wu had a strange bond. While she saw him regularly, she found it hard to connect with him. He could be very distant at times, and often spoke quietly, which is where they found common ground. When not being trained, she would meditate alongside him. It eased her nerves, and let her unwind after a long day. "Uncle Wu? Is everything alright? Kai said your visions are failing."
Wu looked up from his meditation, smiling. "Nothing you need to be concerned with, Harumi. How goes your training with The Ninja?"
"It's been well. I've learned a lot about my powers. Kai is still a bit angry when it comes to it, but overall, it's alright. Still! You can tell me about the vision thing. Oh and- could you call my dad? It's getting late." Harumi said, her disjointed thoughts all coming out one after another.
"Of course. As for the visions, they are quite the complication on things. The visions let me see events through the lens of the what-if. Futures that might or might not occur, in any particular way. They've only halted once before, when I was almost killed by The Devourer."
"Oh." Harumi said. She didn't like how casually Wu and the other ninja talked about The Devourer. She wanted to tell them to stop, but did not want to anger them. "Well, what does that mean?"
"Something bad is in our future. I can already tell." Wu said, walking past Harumi. "In any case, we should get you home. I'll call Garmadon over."
Wu proceeded to call Garmadon, as he arrived to pick Harumi up. It had been a successful day of training. On days where Garmadon wasn't teaching his own class, Harumi would be sent to Wus Academy. She would have plenty of days to unwind and take a break, but she enjoyed a good challenge. Harumi waved goodbye to her uncle, getting into Garmadons car, as they started driving home.
"So Harumi! How was today's training?" Garmadon asked eagerly. He was very interested in her progression as a ninja, and any struggles she might need help with.
"It went well. I'm worried about Uncle Wu though. His visions aren't working like usual, and he's afraid something bad will happen, like when they faced off against The Devourer." Harumi said worriedly, looking out the window.
"He mentioned that last night when we were talking on the phone. That stuff has always been unpredictable. I wouldn't worry about it." Garmadon replied.
Harumi looked down. While sitting next to Garmadon, she kept thinking about The Devourer. And the philosophy it had ultimately created, after killing her parents. She knew the conversation would happen eventually, so she decided it would be now. "Dad, I've been thinking about The Ninja. And… I'm concerned."
"Why's that? They seem fine. And we haven't seen any real signs of danger recently."
"Do you remember why I was in the orphanage? Why my parents were dead?"
"The orphanage said you were the survivor of The Devourers rampage. That your parents were never seen again. Why do you bring it up?"
"I remember that day as the day I lost faith in The Ninja. The Ninja who couldn't be bothered to take anything seriously after their own friend sacrifices himself. Save for Kai. But, well, he has his own problems."
"Harumi, we've been over this. Absolute power isn't comparable to that of The Ninja's ability to stop the threat. I likely wouldnt have been able to defeat The Devourer had they not trapped it. They saved more lives then-"
"This isn't about that anymore. How many people do you think died in The Devourers attack? How many people were victims of Serpentine ambushes? Of Skulkin? Or possessed by The Dark Lord himself? People who can't come back, no matter how strong any of us get. You of all people. Who lost his son to all of this. Why don't you understand?"
"That line of thinking will bring more destruction than any of us can imagine. If The Ninja weren't around, there would be nobody to stop threats from killing people in Ninjago."
"What threats? The Ninja practically handed Samukai the weapons, couldn't stop Lloyd from opening the tombs, failed to defeat both The Devourer and Overlord by themselves, and nowadays stand about wasting time, while larger threats build up."
"While I agree that The Ninja often become complacent, they provide protection to the weak. They can just be a bit blind to the consequences of their actions."
"People like that don't deserve power. When you were Lord-"
"Enough Harumi! I told you time and again that whatever 'Lord Garmadon' did must never be imitated. You're worrying me a lot. Please. If there's anything I can do to-"
"You always say that when you're losing an argument." Harumi snapped back.
"That's enough backtalk. When we get home, I want you to go straight to bed."
"No! You listen to me. What are you gonna do when Ninjago falls into chaos again? How many people will you and The Ninja let die?"
"That's the cost of war Harumi. I didn't survive this long for you to tell me how I should act. You've been so fixated on Lord Garmadon. Sometimes I wonder if you ever wanted to believe there was ever a difference."
"There is. I know you- er- he- had evil in his heart. But if he hadn't had the strength to do what needed to be done, The Devourer would've killed him, The Ninja, me, perhaps all of Ninjago."
"He did it out of revenge." Garmadon tried to reason, but Harumi wasn't having it.
"That still doesn't mean we will waste our time seeking absolute power. For if we do, we will become consumed by it. I understand what you mean, but please." He said sternly.
That made Harumi both mad, and sad. Disappointed in him, and disappointed in herself. "Dad.. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so disrespectful. I love you so much. And i'm grateful for everything you've done for me and Ninjago. Im sorry."
"Its ok Harumi. Just- please. Try and think through what you say before you say it. I love you too. Is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"
"No." Harumi said. She had already made the mistake of saying too much. Why bother doubling down when she knew she would lose?
Garmadon and Harumi drove for another hour back to their home. Wordlessly, Harumi exited the car, storming through the door, through the halls, and into her room. She was tired. Tired of having to live up to the expectations Lloyd left, tired of Garmadon not seeing her side, and tired of the nightmare that plagued her every waking moment.
She jumped on the bed. Staring up at the pictures she used to draw of Garmadon. She had drawn fewer and fewer ever since her training started, but she fixated on one of the ones she had drawn right after being adopted by Garmadon. One of them, Garmadon, and Misako, in front of their home. She stood on her bed, pulling the picture off, leaving ripped paper and tape clinging to the wall. She stared at it with a look of both disdain, and sadness. She was beginning to question what the point of training was, if she would just end up disappointing everyone?
She reached for a pen, a red one, and opened the cap. She looked upon the smiling face of herself within the picture, and crossed over it in red. She wasn't happy, not like that. She loved her life, but felt such disdain for it. It carried nothing but scoldings and pointless lessons. Something that plagued her mind. She started crossing out each of the things that made her feel happy within the painting. She crossed out the flowers, the sun, the clouds, the home, and eventually, Misako. She was about to cross out Garmadon, but she couldn't.
Instead, she stabbed the pen straight through his face. She slashed the paper with the pen, ripping it to shreds with tendrils of red ink and hatred. She couldn't tell what she was ok with destroying anymore. But she knew then and there, she wouldn't be able to change Garmadons mind on the issue. Let alone anyone else's. That Ninjago would lose more and more people to The Ninjas incompetence. And on that day, she made a promise to herself.
"... As long as I live, I will destroy every single threat, every creature, everything and anything to stop Ninjago from suffering. Garmadon might've forgotten what power is worth, but I-"
She looked down at the painting she destroyed. And realized that it was not the work of anyone else, but her own. She destroyed it. Her. Only her. She began to cry. But unfortunately for her, nobody could hear her over the ominous hum of crickets in the distance. Leaving her alone with conflict in her eyes, and shame in her heart.