Later that day, as Kai went to rest in his room, Xavier had returned to his room to look over the documents he had been poring over before, hoping to find something new now that he had time away from the problem. Before, he had mostly written off the maps as useless because they didn't directly convey any information, but studying the geography and placement of this world and getting a new perspective through that might prove to be useful at some point later on.
For starters, studying the map revealed that the world was effectively one giant Pangea-sized continent, arranged in a manner which brought to mind a dragon: Xavier recalled both from his guiding orb and from Wu's story that the world of Ninjago had been created whole cloth by the power of the First Spinjitzu Master: such a thing wasn't impossible to believe, considering Xavier had just been thrown in a fictional world that defied logic, but to wrap his mind around that fact, that everything he saw was shaped by the power of one man, who simply disappeared or died one day, was a bit difficult to grasp. Xavier made a mental note to try and find out more information about that later, and looked over the details of the map itself, seeing what was of interest to him: Metalonia, a section of the world which accounted for most of its metal exports, located in the mountains towards the (literal) tail end of Ninjago, and the Holy City of Domu, a heavily religious city which held the biggest Library of Ninjago. The library in particular might have useful information he didn't yet have access to, though Metalonia's industry might be useful to get a look at as well. From what he had read, Metalonia's culture was also very unique in the context of Ninjago, likely due to its relative geological separation.
Another interesting tidbit which caught Xavier's eye when reading was how technologically distant different areas were from one another. It seemed areas which were further away from the main urban center of Ninjago City were more technologically stunted, aside from Metalonia due to its trade with Ninjago. The majority of the world in turn was closer in structure to Feudal Japan, with very sparse technology interspersed throughout. He supposed that made sense, considering how spread out and large the continent was, but still, he couldn't help but feel there was something deeper at work.
Xavier continued to muse over his documents, having become completely engrossed in the study of his documents. However, a sudden noise broke his focus and startled him into standing up. Listening for the source of the disturbance, he heard it move upwards into the roof, and seemingly moving towards the courtyard. Xavier went running outwards to check on what was occurring, only to find himself face to face with a trio of black robed, genuine ninja, fighting Kai.
"A little help here Xav?"
Xavier sighed and ran into the melee, charging one at random and throwing a punch. Unfortunately, the target was more skilled than expected, ducking and slipping through his punches with an almost robotic precision, and it was all he could do to keep dodging. Most of his training had been with the bo staff or based around evading, so Xavier didn't have the combat capability yet to do anything but stay on the defensive, and he began to panic a bit. As he narrowly sidestepped a side kick, Xavier steeled himself and focused his mind on surviving at any cost.
"No!"
Xavier instinctively planted his feet and blocked the punch that came his way, before stepping forward and throwing a left hook with the full momentum of his step placed into it. The black clothed ninja stepped back and dodged the strike, but even as his attack missed, Xavier felt an intense energy well up inside him that seemed to propel all his movements, something in his head telling him to strike. Xavier went for a spinning backfist, and found himself literally spinning as a burst of energy erupted around him, a spinning twister of rusty silver every whirling around as the world around him slowed. His strike connected cleanly, sending the ninja he was fighting flying back into the wall, leaving them groaning on the floor. As Xavier was about to go help out Kai however, he heard a voice coming from the inside.
"Enough!"
Xavier turned to see Wu appear from the doorway of the monastery, holding a staff in hand. As he surveyed the damage, the three ninja rose to their feat, only to bow to the old man, though they looked just as confused as Kai and Xavier did. After a moment of silence, Kai was the first to speak.
"These are your students? Then this was a test, wasn't it?"
One of the ninja seemed agitated by this statement, and pointed accusingly at Kai and Xavier.
"I wanna know too! You didn't say anything about these two. And you taught the redhead how to use Spinjitzu before us? That's not fair!"
Wu narrowed his eyes, looking in Xavier's direction with an alarmed look on his face.
"Is this true, Xavier? Did you use Spinjitzu against my students?
Xavier was about to speak, before being interrupted by the ninja he had struck. This one sounded odd, like their mind wasn't entirely there, and yet he spoke with a clarity you wouldn't expect of someone who had been struck hard enough to send them to next Wednesday.
"It is true Sensei, I was struck by him using Spinjitzu. I must admit it was quite the unexpected move, but it was effective nonetheless."
Wu gave Xavier a stern look, pointing at him with his staff.
"You cannot be so reckless when you fight! To use Spinjitzu is a gift not many receive, but to abuse it will lead nowhere!"
Xavier grew angry at this scolding tone, and the way that Wu had deceived him. If it wasn't for the fact that the other three students were right there, he would have yelled at him for being reckless by sending them to fight, but he did not want to start the fight between them again. Even so, he glared angrily towards Wu.
"I didn't know these were your students! How was I supposed to know I needed to hold back against them, I was in the middle of almost getting skewered by weapons!"
Wu's gaze softened a bit, and the Sensei sighed and spoke again more calmly.
"You misunderstand… I do not say this because I believe you are dangerous, but because it is a lesson that each of you must learn once you achieve it for yourself. Spinjitzu is a powerful art, but one that should be used wisely. I have seen what abuse of it can do, and I only warn you because you have become the first to unlock its secrets. I do not mean any insult."
Xavier opened his mouth to respond, before stopping and staying quiet, still angry but also processing the advice Wu gave him. Wu seemed genuine, and he wasn't sure how to react to the situation for a second. After a moment of silence, Xavier sighed and relented, bowing in apology. Wu nodded in implicit acceptance, before turning towards Kai and the other ninjs, who were looking uncomfortable at the entire situation.
"As for you four, I apologize for this deception, but Kai was right in his assessment. The reason you four have been chosen to work together is that each of you hold skills and talents that are in line with the four elemental properties. Kai holds a flame-like passion that propels him forward, and he is skilled on his own."
Wu suddenly had a bright golden tornado erupt from him, and spinning into the four, the ninja were suddenly changed into new clothing, with colors that reflected a different element for each one.
"Jay, Master of Lightning. Cole, Master of Earth. Zane, Master of Ice. The four of you together hold the power to defeat any foe. Together, you will be capable of handling the challenges which Lord Garmadon will send your way. Have faith in one another, and work as a team, and there is nothing you can't do."
The ninja all seemed to be mollified by this bit of flattery and bowed once again to their Sensei. Jay, the one Wu had given the blue suit, still looked unsure.
"What about the other new kid? What are they here for?"
Wu frowned, evidently a little exasperated by the amount of explaining he had to do, but he took it in stride.
"Xavier is a friend of Kai's from his home village, but he is very talented in his own way, as you have seen for yourself. I hope that this scuffle does not taint your view of one another, as you both were only doing what you felt was right."
Xavier decided it was probably best to be nice to the ninjas, seeing as from what he understood, they were all capable protagonists in their own right. Offering a handshake, Jay accepted it warily.
"It's nice to meet all of you. Sorry about that misunderstanding, but I'm glad we could all move on from it. No hard feelings?"
Jay, Zane, and Cole all looked toward one another before taking off their masks and giving grins. Now that he could see them without their masks, he could get a better look at each of them. Jay had messy brown hair, with a light dusting of freckles across his face, and looked like he was upbeat, if a bit uncomfortable with the situation. Cole was the tallest, being a lot more tan and muscular than the rest of the ninja, evidently being the most grounded. Zane, the one with the blonde buzzcut was a bit harder to place, as he was the one whose expression was the most difficult to read, but he seemed to have no hard feelings about being hit with Spinjitzu. Cole went to pat Xavier on the back, evidently not mad at all about the extra member.
"Don't worry kiddo, we're all cool with it. We can take a lot of punishment."
Zane nodded, agreeing with his fellow.
"It is all in the past, and I see no reason to hold grudges about it. It is as Sensei said, we all were doing what we believed was right."
All of the ninja now seemed to be in a much better mood, and Xavier admitted privately that it was good to be able to have their support: he felt a lot more secure knowing they were all on the same side. As the group began to converse however, Wu coughed and tapped his staff on the floor, grabbing everyone's attention.
"Well, now that you are all acquainted, I believe it's time for everyone to head to sleep. We have a long day tomorrow, so get ready to head to the site of the first golden weapon. It is good to see you all getting along, but let's not sacrifice rest, hm?"
The ninja and Xavier bowed respectfully, each returning to their rooms. Xavier felt a bit of a weight lift off his shoulder, anxiety that he hadn't even realized was there, and he wasn't sure what had changed. Maybe it was the fact he learned Spinjitzu, but he felt much more confident now, and heading back to his room and bed, Xavier found himself having the most peaceful sleep he'd had in a long time.