Contract Search In Search of More Friends! [Dual Contract Search]

[Senju Akio]

There was a noticeable bounce in Akio's step as he and his new friend Kiriyomi headed into the forest. 'Yeah, I guess this is a much safer place to travel than that other Forest' The sunny young Senju thought to himself as he continued along a path in the woods. His footfalls had become noticeably more silent as he'd continued his training as a shinobi and he hoped that it would let the two of them find some new forest friends to meet. "Come on Kiri! There's bound to be all sorts of plants and animals out here in these woods! We're bound to make some new friends in no time!" Akio said excitedly, the words coming out in as much of a shout as a whisper can be.

"It's so much more fun to look for forest critters with a friend." The jubilant Senju boy added, his face donning that characteristic smile he had a reputation for wearing. Today was another great day. In fact, it had been one of many in the first few months of his academy training. The air was nice and crisp, the forest was alive with sound, the sun was shining, and a gentle breeze shook the leaves of the canopy overhead, causing patterns of silhouetted flora to paint the ground in dancing shadows. 'Yeah, this is a good day. I'm feelin' lucky!' Akio thought, his eyes focusing on the path ahead and his bright white smile never leaving his lips.

[WC: 246 .:. Post 1/5 .:. Total WC: 246/1500]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Following along a little more slowly, but no less quietly, Kiriyomi lets Akio take the lead on their trek today. He'd never been in this forest before, much preferring the safety of the one closer to his home and the woods around the training grounds. They were comfortable and safe in their predictability, whereas out here anything could happen. Despite walking on a clear path that had been well traveled before, Kiri had out his leaf cutter ant, Ayame, who was marking their path with an X on various trees that they passed by. On the boys back was a large backpack, filled with the essentials for going out into the woods alone: water, blankets, a spare change of clothes, some matches, and of course a few bentos packed by his mother for the boys to enjoy when they stopped to take a break.

"Are you sure it's safe out here? I hear a bunch of weird noises, what if there are wild bears out here that are going to attack us? Or rogue shinobi from another village, looking to take a few hostages? I'm starting to second guess coming out-" Kiri stops dead in his tracks as a beautiful butterfly flutters across the path, almost glowing in the sun. Wings the color of pink rose petals lined in a bluish gray, it captures the Aburame's attention and he loses his train of thought as he watches it dance through the sunlight trickling down through the canopy above. Kohara, his flying ant, pops out of the boy's hair and goes to give chase. Kiriyomi reaches out to grab the ant before he can get away, but narrowly misses as both insects fly off further into the forest and off the path. "Wait! Akio, help me, Kohara is going to hurt this pretty butterfly! We have to stop him!" Without waiting for a response, he darts off into the trees.

[WC: 318 - Total WC: 318/1500]

 

[Senju Akio]

Akio hopped along the forested path, cheerful as a chipmunk as he and Kiriyomi continued deeper into these woods, which would have been far safer than the Forest of Death that was enclosed within the walls of the Village Hidden in Leaves. "Are you sure it's safe out here? I hear a bunch of weird noises, what if there are wild bears out here that are going to attack us? Or rogue shinobi from another village, looking to take a few hostages? I'm starting to second guess coming out-" Kiri had asked, nervously stating the possible dangers that awaited them within the confines of the forests that existed outside the protective walls of the village. "Ahh, we'll be fine! This forest is way safer than the forest of death. Do ya really think we might meet a bear though? That'd be so... cool!!!" Akio replied with excited anticipation, his whisper growing into a more enlivened tone.

As the two continued, a rosy-hued butterfly crossed their path, drawing Kiriyomi's attention. As the Aburame pointed it out with his body language, Akio couldn't help but grin and watch on himself as it fluttered beautifully through the partially shaded forest. However, the peaceful scene wouldn't last as Kohara had other ideas. Noticing this, Akio's Aburame companion suddenly reached out to grab at Kohara and yelled, "Wait! Akio, help me Kohara is going to hurt this pretty butterfly! We have to stop him!" In a flash, the young insect-lover dashed off the path and into an unknown part of the woods. Akio didn't ask questions, springing into action himself and catching up to ask Kiri, "He wouldn't really hurt her would he?" Akio's eyes looked serious and like his friend, he picked up the pace to ensure that the potential tragedy Kiri mentioned would be avoided. He couldn't imagine his little buddy Kohara would hurt somebody that wasn't threatening the head of his colony, but it wasn't a risk that was worth taking, especially when, as a kikai ant, he was strong enough to easily tear through a simple wild butterfly.

[WC: 350 .:. Post 2/5 .:. Total WC: 596/1500]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi infused chakra into the soles of his feet and took to the trees, jumping from one branch to another to keep track of Kohara and the butterfly. They were moving surprisingly fast, and with their size, it would be very easy to lose them in this part of the forest that was getting more and more dense with every passing second. "You'd actually be surprised, Kohara is very protective of me! He doesn't really like any other insects getting too close to me, because he's afraid that they're going to be poisonous! I accidentally got bitten by a brown recluse a few years back, and Kohara has been on edge ever since!" He yells over his shoulder, trusting that Akio would also take to the trees to get a better vantage point.

I knew that I shouldn't have let Kohara out today! Akio even said that he wanted to look for new bugs and other animals. How could I be so stupid and careless?! Now some poor butterfly is going to get hurt and it's all going to be my fault! Tears roll back off of his face as the image of a ravaged butterfly flashes through Kiri's mind, and he is even more determined than ever to catch up to Kohara. Knowing that he is sturdier than a normal ant, Kiri lifts a finger and infuses it with chakra. Waiting until he has a clear shot, he releases his Wind Slash to cut down between the two insects below, hoping to throw the ant off of its hunt.

Instead, Kohara believes this is the butterfly's doing, and there is a murderous gleam in his eye as he lowers his head and gnashes his mandibles. Oh, there would be retribution for daring to get near his colony. This flying carrier of death would regret ever flapping a wing in Kiriyomi's direction!

[WC: 312 - Total WC: 630]

 

[Senju Akio]

As Kiriyomi explained just how dire the situation was about to be for that poor butterfly, Akio tensed his budding muscles, letting his natural energy flow through them as he utilized the Fleeted taijutsu technique to power his athletic ability and quickness to heights that no normal ten-year-old would hope be able to achieve without the use of chakra and shinobi skill. He zipped past the disturbed earth that was blown into a clean slice by Kiriyomi's wind-based jutsu and dove out with both his hands cupped. Thankfully, Kohara's attention was so focused on the butterfly that was to be his prey that he didn't notice the surging Senju's hands forming a sphere of palms and fingers around the little carpenter ant. 'Uh oh...' Akio thought, realizing that he was very likely to be the object of the little guy's rage in the innocent butterfly's place.

Grimacing in anticipation of the shooting pain to come, Akio was pleasantly surprised to find that Kohara seemed to lunge, then come to a stop within his enclosed grasp. Kiriyomi was right about him remembering the young Senju's scent. "Thanks little buddy." He whispered to his cupped hands, waiting until the butterfly had fluttered well out of sight before finally opening them to free the Aburame's stalwart ant companion. "Whew, that was a close one." Akio said as he flashed a smile toward Kiri. However, after looking around, he realized that the path they had originally started on was nowhere to be seen. "Uhh... Kiri... Where are we? Do you remember which way the path was?" The Senju boy asked, his bright green eyes scanning his surroundings but unable to discern exactly where they came from. The butterfly had taken a surprisingly chaotic and meandering path and he'd gotten turned around in the thrill of the chase.

[WC: 307 .:. Post 3/5 .:. Total WC: 903/1500]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiri was about to dive for Kohara, but saw Akio swoop down and scoop him up instead. Trying to shift directions at the last second, his feet get tangled up and he pitches forward off of the branch he was leaping from. Crying out, he falls to the ground and the impact knocks the breath from his lungs. Lying there wheezing, he looks up to see that Akio had successfully managed to grab the flying ant, and was whispering to him inside of his cupped hands. Kiri closes his eyes, thankful that he didn't have to witness an innocent butterfly be torn to shreds. Pushing himself up off the ground and trying to regain his breath, he looks around as his friend asks if Kiri remembers which direction the path was.

His face pales, looking down at Ayame who was clutching onto his shirt tightly so that she wasn't thrown off during his fall. Oh no... I forgot to have her mark our path, because we were in such a rush to catch up to Kohara. What do we do now? Kiri sets his backpack down and begins digging through it, looking for a compass. He had to have remembered one; what sort of idiot goes exploring without the basic essentials? But, to his dismay, the compass is nowhere to be seen. "Akio, I think we're lost. I forgot to leave a trail and I don't have my compass. The trees here are so densely packed I can hardly see the sun, but perhaps we could try to climb up to the canopy and see if we can find which direction the village is in? We couldn't have gotten that far off the path, could we have?" His hands start trembling as panic begins to set in, breaths quickening, and his eyes squeezing shut as if trying to will himself away from the situation at hand.

[WC: 316 - Post 3/5 - Total WC: 946]

 

[Senju Akio]

As Akio lets Kohara go flying back to his colony leader, he notices Kiriyomi slip as he was bounding through the branches and take a rough looking fall. It could have been a terrible injury had they not been tough-as-nails shinobi trainees. "You okay Kiri?" Akio asked, a look of genuine concern on his face as his new friend coughed for a moment before catching the wind back in his lungs. He couldn't help but notice, however, that Kiri looked nervous as he answered Akio's question about whether or not he knew the path back. "Akio, I think we're lost. I forgot to leave a trail and I don't have my compass. The trees here are so densely packed I can hardly see the sun, but perhaps we could try to climb up to the canopy and see if we can find which direction the village is in? We couldn't have gotten that far off the path, could we have?" To this, Akio simply smiled, scratching the back of his sandy blonde hair as he replied. "Ahh, I'm sure we'll be fine. We didn't go too deep in. But that's a really good idea Kiri! Let's hop up to the treetops and take a look!" Akio said, and without hesitation started leaping up, limb by limb.

Birds that were resting in the protective shade of the forest's canopy were shaken into flight as the nature-loving young boy bounced up the tree. "Sorry for disturbin' your nap time little guys!" Akio yelled excitedly. Truth be told, the wood shinobi loved climbing trees. And before long, the sunny Senju had summited the towering beech, hanging onto the thinned-out tip of the tallest vertical branch, swaying slightly in the breeze that waved through the whole forest. "Ah! There's Hokage Rock!" He said, calling over to Kiriyomi. "Yeah, we're not too far." Akio had started, however there was still a considerable distance of wooded terrain between them and the village and there was no assurance that the path that they took would be easy to traverse like the game trail they'd followed up until this point. "We've probably got a little ways to go though!" Akio said optimistically. Depending on how dense their decided path was to be, the trip could take a normal non-shinobi civilian hours to trek. But the two of them were no usual children, they were ninjas, and this wouldn't be much more than a glorified obstacle course. "Let's make it fun!" Akio exclaimed, planting his feet against the vertical branch, getting ready to take off. "Let's have a race to the forest's edge!" He said with a wide grin on his face before beginning to count down. "Three... two... one... Go!" And with that, he began bounding from branch and trunk along the unknown path.

[WC: 465 .:. Post 4/5 .:. Total WC: 1368]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiri reaches out a hand and lets Kohara land on an outstretched finger, admonishing him for taking off like that. "What were you thinking?! You could have gotten hurt, or you could have hurt that poor innocent butterfly! I know you were just trying to protect me, but I'm training to be a shinobi now. I can handle myself." The ant sheepishly hung it's head and tapped out an apology on the tip of Kiri's finger, and the boy lets out a sigh. "It's okay, I'm just glad that we were able to catch up to you. The only problem now is getting back to the village." As Akio rushes up into the shaded canopy above, the Aburame starts packing things back into his backpack carefully. He quickly checked on the bentos, assuring himself that they weren't ruined by all the jostling, before placing them at the top of the pack. He was beginning to get hungry, perhaps they could stop somewhere on the way back and have lunch.

Grateful to hear that they weren't too far from the village proper, Kiri puts his bag back on and stretches his legs. This was way more work than he expected it to be, but if he was being honest, it was a lot of fun. Having friends definitely pushed you out of your comfort zone, but what was wrong with that? He was really glad that Akio had cleared up the whole "detention" debacle, though Kiri had absolutely no desire to go into the Forest of Death any time soon. That sounded like it would be asking for trouble. As he got lost in this train of thought, Kiri barely registered that Akio had come down and said that they should have a race. Before he could open his mouth to protest, the Senju boy had already taken off, leaping through the trees. Grumbling to himself, Kiri jumped to the nearest branch and raced after his friend, shouting out to the boy's back, "This is so unfair! I have this heavy backpack to worry about! You're going to beat me!"

[WC: 349 - Post 4/5 - Total WC: 1295]

 

[Senju Akio]

Akio was smiling, his sandy blonde hair rushing backwards in the wind and revealing his tall forehead as he dashed through the forest laughing. He dipped through some trees, rising up higher and higher as he leapt off branches like he was ascending steps. However, the 'race' didn't last long and just as he was about to stop to offer to take some of the weight off of Kiri's shoulders, he was left awed by the gorgeous clearing that he was now overlooking. Staring down from the branches, there was a strange haven hidden within the confines of these thick forests that would've remained invisible and undisturbed had the pair of shinobi-to-be not accidentally gotten lost and found themselves taking an unexpected path. "Wowww...." Akio uttered, completely wonderstruck by the beautiful sight. "Kiri! You gotta come see this!" Akio called back to the boy who could not have been far in his trail. All that was left now was to see what wonders might await the pair of new best friends within this odd clearing of natural beauty. Only fortuned would tell!

[WC: 183 .:. Post 5/5 .:. Total WC: 1551]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Watching Akio moving through the trees as naturally as if he'd been born of them, Kiri feels a sense of awe. His friend was almost one with the forest itself, climbing the branches effortlessly. Perhaps one day, he could accomplish a task similar to that. For today, though, Kiri felt much safer sticking to the lower branches and falling a little behind as the weight of his pack grew heavier the further he went. Panting by the time he caught up to Akio, and about to ask for a break, he hears the boy call out to him. Mustering the last of his strength, Kiri jumps up onto the branch alongside Akio. What he sees before him takes his breath away.

A small glade opens up before them, emerald grass glistening in the sun. A light breeze sets the blades dancing, a soft whispered sigh reaching the boys. Small pockets of flowers poke up from the ground, in an assortment of colors. Over there is a patch of blue, soft as the sky above. To the left of the clearing is a grouping of yellow, glowing as warm as the sun. Kiri's favorite is the smattering of orange along the edge, shifting in the breeze like a small flame. "Wow, this is beautiful! I don't know about you, but I don't think we should waste this stroke of luck! I'm really hungry, and Okasan packed us bentos, so we should head down there and have lunch before we head back! Should I have Ayame mark a path for us, on the way back to the village, so we can return here later? It's so peaceful here, maybe this could be like our own secret hideout! I'm sure nobody else has found it. I bet it's even prettier at night with the moon shining down between the trees. We could pack some sleeping bags and lay out under the stars!" Kiri sighs happily, and his eyes glaze over as he begins to imagine all of the other wonders the forest holds. He couldn't wait to explore even more!

[WC: 347 - Post 5/5 - Total WC: 1642]

 

[Shinrya Kitsune]

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