Way of the Departed

Way of the Departed is a could-be-canon spin-off of Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu. It was originally released on October 29th, 2017. Cole is the focus Ninja of the installment and Lord Clouse is the main antagonist.

It is intended to be a midquel between the Master Trials arc and the Oni Trilogy arc. It focuses on Cole discovering the origin of his ghost scar.

It is preceded by The Hands of Time and followed by Sons of Garmadon.

Plot Summary
Cole discovers the origin of his ghost scar and more about the ancient and dark magic that Sensei Yang used to create Airjitzu, known as Edo Magic.

Characters

 * Alyce - N/A
 * Cole - Kirby Morrow
 * Claire - N/A
 * Clouse - Scott McNeil
 * Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
 * Kai - Vincent Tong
 * Jerahn - N/A
 * Karlof - Scott McNeil
 * Kodokuna Yang - Michael Donovan
 * Lloyd Garmadon - Sam Vincent
 * Milo - N/A
 * Misako - Kathleen Barr
 * Nuckal - Brian Drummond
 * Nya - Kelly Metzger
 * P.I.X.A.L./Samurai X - Jennifer Hayward
 * Ronin - Brian Dobson
 * Seleil - N/A
 * Wu - Paul Dobson
 * Zane - Brent Miller

Locations Visited

 * Endless Sea (dream)
 * Tomb of the First Spinjitzu Master
 * Ice labyrinth
 * Ninjago
 * Temple of Airjitzu
 * Nom
 * Fire Temple
 * Underworld

Chapters

 * WotD #1
 * WotD #2
 * WotD #3
 * WotD #4
 * WotD #5
 * WotD #6
 * WotD #7
 * WotD #8
 * WotD #9
 * WotD #10
 * WotD #11
 * WotD #12
 * WotD #13
 * WotD #14
 * WotD #15
 * WotD #16
 * WotD #17
 * WotD #18
 * WotD #19
 * WotD #20
 * WotD #21
 * WotD #22
 * WotD #23
 * WotD #24

Continuity
While the novel is not canon to the television series, it does offer some possible explanations and additions to the main storyline.


 * As explained in Chapter 21, Airjitzu draws on Edo magic, which is a dark form of magic, which is why the ninja don't use it after The Hands of Time, with the exception of once in Prime Empire, which was digital, meaning no magic was involved.
 * In Chapter 6, Zane makes note that summoning Elemental Dragons has become harder for the ninja to achieve. He theorizes that this has to do with the loss of Master Wu (presumably because the Ninja were constantly afraid they wouldn't be able to find him,) but is for the most part unsure. This helps explain why these dragons don't appear as of Sons of Garmadon, though it doesn't explain why they don't use them after Wu returns, or why Wu doesn't use his own dragon.
 * Yang's students had names and lived in villages that were destroyed by Edo magic during their imprisonment in the Temple.
 * Three have been named so far; Jerahn, Alyce and Milo.
 * Jerahn is the ghost student that Cole called "Chuck."
 * The novel suggests that Chen and Clouse manipulated Krux and Acronix after the Serpentine War into going against the Elemental Alliance and informed them where the eggs of the Great Devourer were. This was originally a scrapped idea for Season 7.
 * In Chapter 22, Ronin is said to have a family with a wife and a daughter. He also says that Clouse threatening their safety is the reason he kidnapped Zane and P.I.X.A.L..
 * This is the first mention of Wojira and Cole's mother, both of whom would go on to have more prominent roles in the following seasons.