Morros' POV:

YN looks at me questioningly. "So, this back door thing.."

"It's quite simple, really. Nobu knows, don't you, Nobu?"

Nobu nods.

YN looks from him to me. "Explain.."

I smirk at her teasingly. "I'd rather not."

YN frowns in annoyance, then creates a small dagger and takes a step towards me.

I raise my hands defensively. "Okay, okay. I'll talk!"

She smiles sweetly at me and sheaths her blade, attaching it to a loop on her belt. "A wise choice, Morro."

I keep a wary eye on her dagger as I quickly reply. "Essentially, someone in the Cloud Kingdom can grant a Ninjagian access here, if they want to. It works in reverse, too."

She looks disbelievingly at me. "Really? That's it?!"

I grin back at her. "Yes, that's about it, princess."

She glares at me. "Don't call me princess."

I smile. "Sweetheart, then?"

There's a twinkle of amusement in her eyes as she answers me. "I'll allow it."

Nobu interrupts us. "Now that that's settled.."

"Yes?" I ask.

"We're nearly at the entry point to Ninjago. You'd better start preparing yourselves."

YN concentrates, and the dagger morphs into one with deepstone. Then she holds out her hands. In the left, she creates a bola-type weapon that's weighted with lethally-spiked deepstone. In her right, her favourite staff emerges, gradually elongating until it's full-length, embedded along its entirety with the same aquatic rock as the dagger and bola.

And me? I summon my twin swords into my hands, and check that I still have Lloyds' Aeroblade.

"I'll be honest with you, YN. I'm not sure that these swords will be effective against ghosts." I tell her.

"Let me." She loops the bola around her waist and places the staff on the bottom of the skiff. Then she takes hold of my swords and closes her eyes. Veins of deepstone begin to spiral downward from the tips of my weapons, running down towards my hands. I yelp, not wanting them to touch me. YNs' eyes flick open, then snap shut again. She shakes her head and mutters darkly to herself, something about me being a ninny. I let it pass, since I know that she's just worried about how the other ninja are faring in our absence.

"There! It's done, and you're still here."

"Sorry about that, sweetheart. Only I don't want to go back to the Departed Realm just yet."

"You think I don't know that, Windy?! You didn't really believe that I couldn't control it, did you? I know what deepstone does to ghosts. Besides, you're far too valuable for me, I mean us, to lose."

I smirk at her, her slip-up didn't escape my notice.

"We're here. If you please.." Nobu motions for us to exit his vessel. YN picks up her staff as I step out, and I hold out my hand for her in order to help her disembark. She hesitates.

"For the love of the First Spinjitzu Master, YN! Take my hand!"

She gives me a small smile. "You're cute when you're flustered."

"You're repeating what I told you, now?"

She winks at me and takes hold of my hand. I help her out and she jumps down beside me.

"Thank you, Morro." She says to me grudgingly.

Nobu waves his hand, and a swirling portal appears before him. I walk over to him and lower my voice. "Nobu, does YN l-l-. Sorry. Does she love me?"

Nobu avoids making eye contact with me and raises his voice. "You must go, friends, before it is too late to stop Bansha." YN nods and walks towards us.

"Please, Nobu..." I whisper desperately.

He looks worriedly at what I assume is my scroll.

"What? What is it? What will happen-?"

"If she favors you, you'll know soon-" Then the ink on our scrolls begins to turn black, and Nobu gasps. "Go. Now!" He pushes YN and I into the portal. The last thing I hear him say is, "If it isn't already too late..." And then YN and I are flying out the other side of the gateway.

I'll be at 3000 reads soon for this book, so I have something special planned to celebrate, that I hope everyone will like!