Unanimity | Ninjago AU

Epilouge

*several months later*

Kai's POV

There is a sea of black, swarming around me and eating me up from the inside out. Up on the stage, my master's white and gold casket lies, his lifeless body inside.

He made it very clear that he wanted to have a small burial. He didn't want it to be broadcasted all over Ninjago. Instead, he wanted it to be a celebration of his life for only the people he cared about.

There are twelve seats on the lawn in front of the stage. Five are for us five ninja that he trained to save Ninjago. Four seats are for four of the girls that his lessons directly impacted, girls that he agreed to take in during the last moments of his life and give some of his wisdom to. Two are for his older brother and sister in-law, the two people there with him while he passed. The final seat he requested be there long before his death. He said that it was for a long lost student if he decided to show up.

Garmadon stands on the stage in a black suit behind a podium. He rearranges the papers in front of him before he starts to speak. "My brother was always far more aware of what was happening around him than I was. The morning of his passing, as soon as he woke up, he looked at me and gave me a small smile. 'It's time,' is what he said to me. That day, he wrote me a letter, a note to read at this time. It reads as follows, 'My dearest ninja, you five are the greatest achievements of my lifetime. I got the pleasure of being able to train you from that team that carried me up the mountain and a little boy with a candy addiction to a team of ninja who I know will continue to do remarkable things for Ninjago in the future. I have come to love you over the years as if you are my own sons. Part of me is happy that I am going to pass while you are all out on a mission. I don't think I could have handled saying goodbye to you all. It would not have been a goodbye, just a temporary farewell. Do not fret though. My passing will be a peaceful one. I am sure if it. By the time this is being read, it will be several days after my passing. Where am I now? I am in the departed realm with your parents now. I am at peace.'

Wu was an honest, loving man, and while he did not bear any children himself, he left a legacy with you all that cannot be overlooked. He lives on not only through you five, but also through his elemental power of creation . He passed it on to the nindroid that allowed for him to stay in the comfort of his own home and around his family through the use of her medical skills during the final month of his life.

My brother never wished for his burial to be a sad time. Instead, he wanted it to be a time for him to be remembered, and remembered he shall be. Kai, would you like to come up to the stage?"

With my paper in my hands, I wipe the tears that leaked out of my eyes away. I walk up to the podium, the moment really setting in as I look out at everyone. I clear my throats before I begin.

"When I met Master Wu, I was a scared, lonely sixteen year old mourning the loss of his father. I had nothing in life left; both of my parents were dead, and my sister was missing. He found me and brought me to a new family. He helped restore purpose in my life, and for that, I'll always be beyond grateful.

As a Sensei, he taught me many valuable lessons. My favorite out of them all is that the best way to defeat your enemy is to make them your friend. I had always thought that the best way to go was pure firepower, but that was before I saw what peace could do, what friendship has done. That lesson has brought me to my best friend, my sister, and my girlfriend. That lesson was the key to saving Ninjago last time. Even though Master Wu was too weak to lead us on our last major mission, his teachings still guided us. They'll continue to do so in the future.

There won't be a single day that we don't think about him, that we won't wish he's back with us again. The only thing that is keeping me sane during this time is that I know he's happy where he is now. He's free of all of the evil in Ninjago. He's at peace."