by Ashitaka leapt from branch to branch, nearing Konoha with every stride. At one point, the trees were too far apart so he had to land on a boulder which filled most of the clearing. He made to leap off it without breaking his pace -and didn't. The soles of his moccasins held fast to the surface he'd landed on without the help of his chakra, and his momentum nearly caused him to faceplant. He was just starting to think that could have gone worse when the "boulder" started moving. One end of it rose up to reveal the head of a slug the size of the Administration Building, which then turned around 180 degrees to regard him with an open-mouthed expression he couldn't read.
"GOOD MORNIN', Y'ALL!" greeted the burbling peal of thunder escaping from its mouth. The force of the creature's voice nearly bowled Ashitaka over, which was no mean feat considering his size, strength, and the fact his feet were still stuck to it. Given his strictly skyward view and the amount of time he'd been traveling, he could guess with some confidence that it was definitely after noon. When he regained his balance again, he quickly covered his ears as he saw that it was about to resume speaking. "I'VE BEEN WAITIN' FO- Oh I'm terribly sorry, I'm bein' loud ain't I? Sorry about that. Hope I didn't scare ya. Anywho, yer lookin' at the guardian regent of this here forest, Katsuyu! Pleased ta meetcha!"
"I am Prince Ashitaka of the Senju." the young man replied as he bowed formally, not sure how he'd get out of this situation without appeasing this god of the land. He got the distinct impression he'd seen it somewhere before, but prophetic fever dreams facilitated by intense medication and surrounded by a barrage of emotional trauma didn't lend well to memories. "What can I do for you?"
"Well ya see, Princeling, as it happens, you're one of Lord Hagoromo's Chosen! I'm gonna teach you how to be a Sage! It's actually super easy, there's only two steps: 1) learn how to gather the ambient chakra of the natural world, and B) sign a contract with a Sage Beast, like me!"
"Oh, well if that's all... would you mind putting me down so I can get started?"
"Sure thing, kid!" the slug burbled happily, then split into two smaller but still giant slugs and leaving an empty space between them for Ashitaka to fall through. "Ya know, y'all don't seem all that impressed about the past five minutes of talking to me."
"Sorry about that. I've been through a lot." Ashitaka replied as he summoned a half dozen clones, every pair of which began drawing chakra from a different natural element: the air, a couple nearby streams, and the earth below. The Senju himself closed his eyes and slowed his breathing as he collected it from the plants in his general vicinity.
"Astounding! I've never seen a newbie gather Senjutsu chakra so smoothy and naturally! You sure have some talent for this!" Katsuyu rumbled as it reformed into a single entity and loomed over Ashitaka and his clones, observing their progress.
"This isn't my first time around this bend," Ashitaka replied, opening one eye to look up at the behemoth as he continued collecting. "You mentioned having some kind of contract for me?"
"Oh! Right! That... to be honest, I didn't expect you to get so far so soon!" The slug extended some kind of tentacle from its abdomen and prodded him in the center of his forehead with it. "There you go! You can start storing your unused chakra for the day in that seal, and then you can use it later! Anywho, you look like you've got a handle on things, and I can't exactly follow you back to town, so y'all have a nice day now, and I'll just be... in the general area until you need me! Don't be a stranger ya hear?"
"Right um... good bye, then, Katsuya-dono." Ashitaka replied with a bow and watched the giant slug merge back into the landscape before dismissing his clones and quietly walking away in the general direction of the gate through which he'd left the city.
[Exit to Konoha Northern Gate]
"GOOD MORNIN', Y'ALL!" greeted the burbling peal of thunder escaping from its mouth. The force of the creature's voice nearly bowled Ashitaka over, which was no mean feat considering his size, strength, and the fact his feet were still stuck to it. Given his strictly skyward view and the amount of time he'd been traveling, he could guess with some confidence that it was definitely after noon. When he regained his balance again, he quickly covered his ears as he saw that it was about to resume speaking. "I'VE BEEN WAITIN' FO- Oh I'm terribly sorry, I'm bein' loud ain't I? Sorry about that. Hope I didn't scare ya. Anywho, yer lookin' at the guardian regent of this here forest, Katsuyu! Pleased ta meetcha!"
"I am Prince Ashitaka of the Senju." the young man replied as he bowed formally, not sure how he'd get out of this situation without appeasing this god of the land. He got the distinct impression he'd seen it somewhere before, but prophetic fever dreams facilitated by intense medication and surrounded by a barrage of emotional trauma didn't lend well to memories. "What can I do for you?"
"Well ya see, Princeling, as it happens, you're one of Lord Hagoromo's Chosen! I'm gonna teach you how to be a Sage! It's actually super easy, there's only two steps: 1) learn how to gather the ambient chakra of the natural world, and B) sign a contract with a Sage Beast, like me!"
"Oh, well if that's all... would you mind putting me down so I can get started?"
"Sure thing, kid!" the slug burbled happily, then split into two smaller but still giant slugs and leaving an empty space between them for Ashitaka to fall through. "Ya know, y'all don't seem all that impressed about the past five minutes of talking to me."
"Sorry about that. I've been through a lot." Ashitaka replied as he summoned a half dozen clones, every pair of which began drawing chakra from a different natural element: the air, a couple nearby streams, and the earth below. The Senju himself closed his eyes and slowed his breathing as he collected it from the plants in his general vicinity.
"Astounding! I've never seen a newbie gather Senjutsu chakra so smoothy and naturally! You sure have some talent for this!" Katsuyu rumbled as it reformed into a single entity and loomed over Ashitaka and his clones, observing their progress.
"This isn't my first time around this bend," Ashitaka replied, opening one eye to look up at the behemoth as he continued collecting. "You mentioned having some kind of contract for me?"
"Oh! Right! That... to be honest, I didn't expect you to get so far so soon!" The slug extended some kind of tentacle from its abdomen and prodded him in the center of his forehead with it. "There you go! You can start storing your unused chakra for the day in that seal, and then you can use it later! Anywho, you look like you've got a handle on things, and I can't exactly follow you back to town, so y'all have a nice day now, and I'll just be... in the general area until you need me! Don't be a stranger ya hear?"
"Right um... good bye, then, Katsuya-dono." Ashitaka replied with a bow and watched the giant slug merge back into the landscape before dismissing his clones and quietly walking away in the general direction of the gate through which he'd left the city.
[Exit to Konoha Northern Gate]
