WARNING: There will be some spoiler alert for Tekken 8's Story Mode, "The Dark Awakens", so if you haven't played the game, go and check out.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Tekken franchise. It belongs to Katsuhiro Harada, the Tekken Project team and Bandai Namco Entertainment.
Kazama Shrine, Yakushima
Having defeated his father, Kazuya Mishima, and eliminated the Devil Gene, Jin Kazama was finally able to put an end to the war that he had started and free the world from the Devil Gene's influence. Throughout his journey, he had been able to confront his past mistakes and make amends with his Devil self, using that power protect those around him. With his mission fulfilled, Jin decided to head back to Yakushima one more time before starting a new chapter in his life.
Upon making his way through the mountainous forest of Yakushima, Jin was able to reach the abandoned Kazama Shrine, where he resided alongside his mother, Jun, during his youth. The last time he was there, he had to travel there alongside Xiaoyu and Lars to purge himself from his inner demons. Confronting his devil self on a plane of his own subconscious, Jin realized that he was done rejecting it and acknowledged that he needed to make peace with his past actions and that the devil had been protecting him all along. His newfound control of his powers, along with the encouragement of a premonition of his mother, helped him in purifying Kazuya and himself from the Devil Gene and freeing the world from its influence.
Standing still on the forest with his bag on left hand, Jin looked around the forest, reminiscing about his childhood with his mother, training with her in the Kazama Style Martial Arts, and recalled the advice she gave him that would follow him throughout his life.
"The Kazama Style exists to protect those precious to you."
These words kept repeating in his head as he remembered all of the battles he had fought over the last seven years; From seeking revenge against Ogre for killing his mother to starting an international war to awaken Azazel to confronting his father and confronting his past sins.
Even after all these years, Jin still couldn't forgive himself for not protecting his mother from Ogre's attack that fateful night. He still remembered trying to fight off against Ogre to protect him mother, only to be overpowered by the fighting god, and waking up to find him mother disappeared and their house destroyed.
"Run, Jin!"
"Mother, stay back!"
"Noooooo!"
Jin was reliving that fateful day as he was looking at the old shrine. The painful memory of losing his mother came back to haunt him and he knew that if he could truly move on, he would need to make peace with her mother's death.
"You've grown so strong, my son..."
These words interrupted Jin's thought bubbles, as he recognized that voice, having heard it while he was fighting off against his father. Jin then turned around and saw someone he couldn't expect to see again. Standing in front of him, the woman wore a white, collared button-up dress with flowing sleeves, black patterned panel on at the back and silver embroidery along the sleeves, shoulders and down the sides of the dress, white gloves, a black corset belt, black pants and black flats with white socks. The woman also had long hair with bangs that framed her face, similar to Jin, held by a white ribbon, and brown eyes. Jin instantly knew that woman who stood besides him, as he recalled seeing her in a vision during his final fight with Kazuya, but he couldn't believe what he was seeing right now. If his memory served right, his mother, Jun Kazama, was dead. She was killed by Ogre, but how could she be standing in front of him? Was this another vision?
"Mother?" Jin said, lost at words at what he saw.
Jun approached her son, who couldn't believe that she was still alive, and pulled him into an embrace. "It's alright, Jin. I'm here now."
Feeling his mother's embrace, Jin hugged her back and began sobbing on her shoulder, as he couldn't fight off the tears and needed to release all of his emotions. All he ever wanted was to be his mother and protect their homeland. For many years, he had thought his mother was killed by Ogre and that event shaped into becoming the man he was today, but she was now alive, comforting him and assuring that everything was alright. It became clear to Jin that this was not another vision, but it was real.
He was finally reunited with his mother. That was all he wanted.
And that's the end of the story. I am so happy that Jun came back to life in Tekken 8. Originally, I envisioned her to be Unknown and be the final boss, similar to Tekken Tag Tournament 2, but the more I think about it, the more I realize, it just doesn't fit the story's themes. However, the explanation behind her return kinda doesn't make sense, as her going through spirit-induced coma for seven years is unbelievable, but I loved her encounter with Jin near the end of the story mode and Jun's ending was heartbreaking, so I figured how their reunion would be like after the main story mode.
And with Reina being set up as the new threat, it would be amazing to see Jin, Kazuya and Jun team up together to take her down.
Let me know your thoughts on this story and I hope you enjoyed it. Stay safe everyone and take care.