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Shadow Clan Village

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"Jeno!! Xiaojun!! It's so good to see you again~!!"

Out of the four that arrived to the village together, only Jeno and Xiaojun knew the man that had just hugged them right at the entrance.

"Takamori-hyung~!"

"It's really nice to see you again too hyung~"

"Oh! And who are these two~?"

The man asked upon seeing Jeongho and Jonah.

"I'm Jonah Lyee. I'm Jeno from another dimension. It's a pleasure to meet you"

"I'm Lee Jeongho. I'm dad's son. It's nice to meet you hyung"

Jeongho and Jonah respectfully introduced themselves to the older.

"I think I brought Jeongho here a few times when he was still very young. But he hasn't been back here since then so he doesn't remember. And he's grown a lot since the last time you saw him, so I can understand if you don't recognize him"

Jeno explained.

"Oh! Now I remember~! Wow, you look just like your father now~. And I bet you're just as powerful too~. How old are you now?"

"I'm fourteen now"

"I see~. I can tell just how powerful you are at such a young age~. And what's your story Jonah?"

"Wel...I was abandoned by my parents and left to fend for myself. I was on my own for a while until I was found and taken in by an evil shinobi clan. They taught me everything they knew, but after I grew up and reached the rank of Jonin, I killed off the entire clan and my parents after I hunted them down. A lot of things happened after that, but Jeno saved me and now I'm good"

Jonah smiled a bit, not wanting to give the older the wrong idea about him.

"That must've been really hard for you, but I'm happy to see that you made it through that. Hopefully our clan can be more of a family for you than they were"

"I really appreciate that hyung"

"Oh! But where are my manners~? Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Takamori Osamu. I used to train Jeno and Xiaojun before they left our clan years ago. It's a pleasure to meet you both~"

The older male smiled.

"Follow me into the village~. Yongjin and Seoyeon should be where they usually are~"

Takamori didn't hold them up any longer and eagerly led them into the village.

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Shadow Clan Blacksmith

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Jeongho was the first to run into his grandfather's workplace, eager to see him again after so many years.

"Grandfather~~"

"Jeongho~. It's been ages~"

The boy happily hugged the older, who was luckily taking a break from his craft.

"Don't forget about me dad~!"

"How could I possibly forget you Jeno~?"

Jeno ran in after Jeongho and nearly jumped into his father's arms as he hugged him.

Xiaojun and Jonah walked in after, really shocked to see the sudden change in their behavior. Jonah was surprised to see how enthusiastic Jeno's father was acting, despite how intimidating he looked.

"Oh? It seems I have two sons now? And it's good to see you again too Xiaojun"

"It great to see you again too sir"

Xiaojun smiled and bowed to his elder.

"I'm Jonah Lyee. I'm Jeno from another dimension. It's nice to meet you sir"

Jonah politely bowed as well, wanting to make a good first impression.

"I'm Lee Yongjin, Jeno's father. I work as a blacksmith here in the village, and this is my humble workshop. What brings you around these parts?"

"We brought Jonah with us so he could meet you and mom"

"I see. Would you two like to join the family hug?"

Yongjin calmly smiled, offering them to join the hug with one open arm.

"Sure~"

Xiaojun immediately joined the hug, but Jonah seemed a bit hesitant.

"Am I really worthy to be considered part of the family, or even to be called your son..?"

He asked, staring down at the floor.

"He was abandoned by his parents at a young age. He's never really experienced having a real family, other than his team members"

Jeno explained to his father.

"I see.. Jonah, listen to me. Your parents may not have treated you like a son, but that doesn't mean we won't. As far as I'm concerned, you're still our son, even if you're from another dimension. And since we'll always consider you our son, you're free to call me dad, or just hyung if that makes you feel more comfortable"

Before he could say anything else, Jonah ran into Yongjin's arms, breaking down his walls even more.

Yongjin only smiled and embraced his second son in their group hug.

"Thank you...father.."

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Shadow Clan Training Hall

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"Hey mom~! We're here~!"

"I hope we're not intruding grandma~"

Jeongho and Jeno had Yongjin, Xiaojun, and Jonah following close behind them, but they nearly got hurt the moment they entered the training hall.

They saw a woman sparring with a male shinobi, and watched as she deflected all of the Kunais he threw with one of her blades. Though some of them flew in other directions, others flew towards the five of them.

"Star Platinum!!"

Jeongho called on his Stand, knowing that it had the fastest reaction time of the four of them that had Stands.

Star Platinum used nothing but it's bare fists and incredible speed to deflect all of the Kunais to ensure they didn't hit them.

"Whoops! Sorry about that!"

The woman apologized to the group upon noticing them.

"Honestly honey, this always happens whenever Jeno comes to visit..."

Yongjin sighed, trying to hide his amused smile.

"Jeno~. Xiaojun~. You came back, and with Jeongho this time~"

She happily greeted the three, quickly sheathing her blade before approaching them.

"Oh! And you look just like Jeno. You're not from around here, are you?"

She asked, gently moving a piece of Jonah's hair out of his face.

"No..I'm not"

"His name is Jonah Lyee. He's a version of Jeno that's come all the way from another dimension"

Yongjin explained to his wife, resting a hand on the younger's shoulder.

"Really??! We have another son then~? That's such delightful news~. I'm Lee Seoyeon, Jeno's mother. I'm the strongest kunoichi in our village, and I run our humble training hall. You can call me mom, or anything you're comfortable with~"

"You and father are so nice in this dimension... I'm glad that Jeno got to grow up with such loving parents.."

Jonah smiled a bit, holding Seoyeon's hand.

"He was abandoned by the versions of us in his dimension. He's never experienced the love he should've received from parental figures"

"I see... That's just terrible.. But you don't have to worry about that as long as you're here. We'll show you all the love and care that you should've received"

Jonah nearly cried when Seoyeon hugged him, but he held back his tears and let himself relax in her embrace.

"...Thank you...mother.."

"Guys! I have something for the four of you~!"

Takamori ran with a few things in his hands as he rejoined the group.

"We've been meaning to send these to you, but now's a good a time as any~. We have these official headbands for you, if you want to consider rejoining the clan~"

He eagerly explained, unwrapping one to show as an example.

"These are actually really cool looking"

Jeongho took one to examine it, and almost instantly took a liking to it.

"What are we risking if we rejoin the clan hyung?"

Xiaojun asked, wanting to ensure their safety.

"Absolutely nothing~. The only thing you'll reap from joining are the benefits. You already have the benefit to come visit whenever you want, so there's one. You'll get to have access to any weapons in our village, and we'll teach you new techniques that we've mastered over the years. Ever since Norinaga was executed years ago, we've made a much better name for ourselves, so you'll get benefits for having our clan's name under your belt as well. We'll also be able to help you in any future battles that you might need assistance with. Those are the only benefits right now, but you'll get more as time goes on~"

"Will we have to start over from the lowest ranking?"

Jeno inquired.

"Not at all! You can continue right where you left off. The same goes for Jonah too~. You can start off right at the highest rank of Jonin. Or if you want to, based on your level of power and experience, you could easily join the ANBU of our village. They're considered the elite shinobi, and perform high-ranked and dangerous missions. They're primarily known as our assassination division to greatly help those in need, and with your skills, that should come easy. If you decide to join that rank, we'll outfit you with your very own porcelain animal mask of your choice, in order to distinguish yourself from other shinobi and to conceal your identity. You'll also get a set of standard ANBU uniforms that come with one of our very own Ninjatō katanas that straps onto your back, and you'll be marked with a special signature spiral tattoo on your left shoulder"

Jonah did his best to hide his excitement, but they could all see how eager he seemed to join.

"What ranking would I start at?"

Jeongho eventually became interested in more than just the headbands.

"Normally, someone your age would start out as an Academy Shinobi or a Genin, our lowest ranks. However, given your new experiences and honed skills, I'd say you're worthy to be dubbed a Chunin~"

"I see. Can we wear the headbands anywhere we want?"

"Sure thing~. There's no limit to just wearing them on your head~"

"I'm in~"

"So am I. And I'll be happy to join the ANBU division"

Jeongho and Jonah both agreed to join, leaving Jeno and Xiaojun to make a decision.

While Takamori gave the two their official headbands, Jeno and Xiaojun considered their options. The only reason they had avoided rejoining the clan and getting Jeongho involved was out of a lack of trust.

Based on what they had experienced in the past, they never wanted to rejoin them and just decided to keep their regular ties with them. However, they knew that they didn't go through as much as Jonah had, and knew that if something happened, they would have a strong ally on their side.

Additionally, they both wanted to be there for Jonah and Jeongho to keep them safe if anything went awry.

"...I'll rejoin the clan"

"So will I"

They both finally agreed to it.

"I'm so glad to here that~. If the four of you would like to stay just a bit longer, we can have a little celebratory dinner before you head back home~"

Takamori cheered as he gave the two their headbands, causing Jeno to smile.

"We'd love that hyung. Thank you"