[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Today was the day, one that Mairusu had dreamed of for what seemed like an eternity and at some points felt unobtainable and a bit pipe dreamish but through all the doubt and uncertainty the boy had kept sight of his goal. What was it, exactly? Finding the Snake Sage and getting her to train him. Well, asking her, but there was no way she'd say no, right? He was already a pretty promising genin but aside from a proclivity for raiton hadn't really found his niche yet. Granted, he was still a very young thirteens years of age so it wasn't like there was a pressing issue but everyday he hadn't went to find the sage his fellow genin (and even a rather ambitious academy student) were catching up to him, and that was something he wasn't going to stand for.

So there he stood, the edge of the dense Konoha forests staring right back at him. From what rumors the boy had been able to gather over the last few months it seemed that the woman made her home very deep in the forest, which, being a snake lady and all made sense; they weren't the most social of creatures and being anywhere near the hustle and bustle of the village probably didn't sit well with her. Hmm, Mairusu enjoyed the sights and sounds of his home day in and day out and he hoped that the sage wouldn't force him to move away as part of the training but... if that's what it took then so be it. Besides, it'd be cool as hell to come back after a few months with a whole bunch of new techniques to show off to his friends.

With one foot in front of the other the boy would begin his trek into the forest, unsure of where exactly the woman lived but figured that if he walked far enough into the woods that he would start seeing signs of life... hopefully. Thankfully his adventurous spirit prevented this from being Mairusu's first foray into the forest and getting lost on more than one occasion had helped him get a bit better with directions so in the event that the boy gave up his search he more or less wouldn't have a problem finding his way out, but that was a last last last resort as his focus was solely on finding the sage and doing whatever he needed to convince them to teach her.

Though the trees that reached far into the sky were hundreds of years old there always seemed to be some new stuff to see every time Mairusu took a trip into these woods. Some bird or critter he hadn't seen before, a colorful plant that he knew better than to touch, and the sounds... for all that the trees blocked out they kept in an equal amount. Bird calls, woodland creature shrieks, the wind rustling through miles upon miles of leaves, it was an experience. Alas, it only helped to pass the time as the boy continued his trek with still no signs of a person in sight. He knew it wouldn't be easy but would it have been too much to ask for the woman to leave some general directions? Eh, whatever, he had only been walking for a couple hours and if he couldn't handle that then there was no way he'd make it through sage training. Then again, he really didn't know what kind of training the sages did but he knew they were powerful and that was the important part.

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deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

In the depths of the forest there was a boy. That boy had been walking for an awfully long time. Longer than most dared to before they got hopelessly turned around. He'd walked so far, in fact, that the forest had more or less closed behind him. Air would be stiffer against the deep age of the oaks around him. Grass a dark green from lack of sunlight. And walk and walk he did.

Maybe he'd notice it after a while, or maybe her feet were too quiet. After all she knew precisely where to step in her home to make the least bit of noise, to avoid the baby plants springing to life on the shrubbery floor. But she'd be there right behind him as he peered into the dense wood, looking. 

Kasumi had to ponder what he was looking for, all the way out here. Most shinobi who marched to seek their glory and fame from fighting the Sage often did so with the grace of an elephant. Kazuto had done so by damaging her trees, though they'd done nothing to him. The little Hyuuga boy had done it very nonchalantly and thought he had been quiet. He had not. Inari? She was different and she had intrigued the Sage. A calm and cautious soul. Dying probably helped.

But this boy? Well he had yet to make an impression on her... but mostly because his back was turned and he had yet to say hello. Kasumi crossed her hand behind her back and joined the lad in his looking. Curious.

"What are you looking for~?" she'd ask, breaking the silence that deafened the tall trees to the sounds of nature, seemingly squinting not at the boy but at the forest itself - as if the trees would answer for him.

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

It had only been hours but the search felt like an eternity. The air had become stale --fresh, maybe-- with the complete lack of human interference in this part of the forest, the thick canopy of foliage blocking out a good bit of sunlight giving everything a darker and slightly sinister feel to it. Was the boy scared? Of course not! It was just a bunch of trees... and some sounds that he had never heard before... and a sinking feeling that everything was just getting a bit more cramped. But that couldn't have been a thing, right? It was just his eyes playing tricks on him, yeah, being in an unfamiliar place just had him on edge a little bit.

But then... a voice. Eyes widened as the boy quickly turned to see the source: a woman mere inches away from him. How long had she been there? Was she following him this entire time? "Yo what the hell?!" Mairusu yelped as he tried to take a few steps back but fell over in the process. His eyes were glued to the.. woman? Her ridiculously pale skin that was the polar opposite of the genin's sun kissed covering mixed with her red eyes gave an appearance more akin to a monster than any kind of woman he had seen before. Besides, who would be all the way out in the middle of the woods other than a monster or...

His mouth would form words yet no air would pass through his vocal cords. He was trying to ask questions but there was nothing! The woman he had heard so many stories about, the woman who was said to possess strength equal to Kage, could that have been who was standing before him? Well, there was only one way to find out. "Are.. are you the Sage?" The boy would ask, eyes still wide but more so out of amazement than shock. Granted, if this lady wasn't the sage then there were a whole host of other problems that Mairusu was about to have to deal with.

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WORDS ● Arimura Kasumi ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

Aaaaaaand he fell. Onto his ass and away from the woman. Surely she didn't look that scary? That said. When she was within the depths of the forest Kasumi didn't quite apply the aesthetics like she did within the Village. Most saw an ethereal, well to do woman: silky red hair, kohl lined eyes, purple lipstick and well maintained skin even though she wore no shoes as if mud and dirt couldn't stick to her. 

Aside from the tattoos on her skin which still glowed a residual blue, reverberating against her blue toned skin like seals, the woman was anything but well dressed, hardly like the legend of her name lived up to. Still she wore her dark robes and had no shoes, but her robes were stained with dark red (blood from hunting) and mud, fingernails were dirty and her hair was a messy nest of orange. If Mairusu paid attention he'd notice little grubs and sticks in her messy hair. A small bird hiding behind her hood and nesting in her hair. 

Hermit Sage at her finest, it seemed! 

Not that she seemed to mind. The boy tried to form words and instead looked like a fish trying to breath. Kasumi couldn't help but raise a brow. So shinobi were idiots! Or... maybe she did startle him. Didn't feel bad though. Arms crossed over one another as the boy asked her if she was the Sage. Her nose turned slightly up as she turned half away, dubious about why he'd ask her without introducing himself first. Where were his manners? 

"No. The Sage has a forked tongue and slithers in the marshes. I'm just a hermit," she huffed, teasing the boy and not at all being upfront about her identity. She wasn't a bragging kind of woman, nature gave her her powers, they were not hers to 'own'. 

"Were you abandoned by your parents, little fish?" again with the teasing, "only I assume you have to be lost to be all the way out here."

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

He had always been taught that it was rude to stare, especially without speaking, but standing, er, sitting, before this unkempt woman made it difficult to look away. Maybe out confusion, perhaps a little fear, or maybe it was the sticks poking out of her hair or the dirt and other stains on her robes, or maybe it was the lack of shoes. Whatever the case, the last thing Mairusu expected to run into was some old woman sneaking up on him in the forest. Well, not old old, but old to a teenager.

He watched as the woman huffed while not really answering his question. Was there a difference between a sage and a hermit? Could she really have just been some random vagabond living all alone out here? Anything was possible but what were the odds? The lady's description of the sage didn't seem too far off from the rumors he had heard about them: snake like appearance and movement and all that, and this woman didn't really look the part to be honest. She didn't look like bathing was a thing she did let along harness the power of snakes.

Getting to his feet, the genin would take a moment to dust off the back of his shorts as he listened to the woman ask if he was lost. She wasn't wrong, per say, but until he gave up on the search only then would he admit to not really knowing where he was. Besides, he had only been walking for a few hours so the village couldn't have been all that far away. "No they didn't abandon me and no I'm not lost. I'm looking for the Sage so I can ask them to train me..." His voice trailed off towards the end of his reply as the realization of speaking his goals aloud to some random hobo in the middle of the forest dawned on him.

"I don't suppose you might know where they live since you... seem to be familiar with these parts of the woods." He tried to word it as nicely as he could but there was only so much sugarcoating the boy could do.

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WORDS ● Arimura Kasumi ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

Kasui would tilt her head to angle it towards Mairusu. So he was looking for the Sage? For her? How quaint. So was he and every other soul who got lost in the forest, it seemed. She didn't mention the fact that if he walked any further forward he'd end up tangled in brambles with thorns longer than her fingernails. Instead she wrapped her fingers against her crossed arms in thought. 

"Are you sure you aren't lost? You have this awfully gawking expression on your face, isn't that what lost people do?" 

She, of course, was hinting that she'd cottoned on to his staring and was subtly saying to stop. But Kasumi never said things too directly... it wasn't at all Sage-y if she wasn't the least bit confusing and irritating. She got the impression her mere presence irritated the lad. 

Kasumi scratched the side of her mouth in thought as she looked up at the trees, evidently thinking hard. 

"Hmmm. The Sage..." she pondered, "I've heard of them. I couldn't tell you what they look like though, except that they're a snake. Do they have a person head? Or is it a snake head and human feet? Perhaps we can find them together.... if you make it worth my while." 

Kasumi smirked as she looked down at Mairusu. 

"Make me laugh and I'll help you find this mysterious Sage with my old hermit knowledge..."

Granted she didn't look old. Almost sixty she may have been but her appearance spoke of a woman in her mid thirties at most. Did she even act like an almost sixty year old? Who was to say!

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Brown hues would cut away upon noticing that the woman was not so subtly talking about him, though could she really blame him --or anyone-- for trying to figure out what was going on with her appearance? Granted, that still didn't excuse his manners but she must have known that walking around with twigs sticking out of her hair."Er, sorry." He'd reply. There was a small inkling that perhaps this woman could have been.. no, there was no way. There was perhaps one too many coincidences given his purpose for being in these woods, and she did seem to at least know a little about the Sage but... nah, couldn't be her.

The answer to his question was... less than helpful. She didn't even know what form they took let alone where they lived, though it did bring up some interesting questions. What would a sage look like? How much influence would the animal they were dedicated to show? While the woman standing before him was a little creepy in her own right it would be a completely different story if he had to take tutelage from a talking snake head; the thought sending a small shiver down the spine of the genin. But then... an offer was made.

She would agree to help him out in exchange for making her laugh. Laugh? LAUGH?! Visible confusion and a tad bit of annoyance crossed the boys face as he tried to figure out if the woman was truly serious. Mairusu was ready to simply walk past her and continue searching alone but if the woman really could help him then he couldn't really say no. Besides, there was only so much sunlight left and the last place he wanted to be was in this forest at night.

But what would he do in terms of making the woman laugh? He didn't know anything about her or her sense of humor so it was gonna be tricky to find a joke that landed. "Um, I'm sure you could make one hell of a bird house with all those twigs sticking out your hair." In any other situation Mairusu would have bursted out laughing as it was a pretty telling joke, though at her expense. Hopefully she found it funny because otherwise he'd probably have to fight an old lady in the middle of the woods.

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WORDS ● Arimura Kasumi ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

Joke launched. Joke failed. The Hermit didn't unfold her arms, nor did she laugh like they had bargained. Instead she raised an eyebrow, lowering her hood just slightly so the boy could see the bird already nesting in her hair, it cheeped at the sudden shift of her hood. To her he had just stated the obvious and that wasn't funny. 

"It's not funny if it's already true," she pouted and stuck her nose up in the air as she raised her hood back up and crossed her arms again. Kasumi let out a huffed sigh before eyeing the boy back up. Maybe there was a way he could make her laugh after all. Not that he'd be happy with it. 

"You're a shit comedian, little fish," she pouted before pointing directly into the forest behind him. On the other side of the leafy trees were heavy bushels that had thorns in them. Not enough to hurt but definitely enough to get one stuck if they tried to push through to the other side, getting fabric nicked and stuck like a web. Not that he knew of course. 

"Run along before I change my mind, that way, head north-west enough and you'll come across a Hut in the clearing. Supposedly the Sage resides there from time to time. It's about a ten minute walk. Maybe you can come up with some good joke material while you're walking."

Kasumi crossed her arms again. 

"Well what are you waiting for? Shoo!"

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Tense may have not been the right word to describe what he was feeling while waiting to see if the woman would laugh, but he wasn't certain about it and that made him nervous. Unfortunately, as the woman titled her hood down Mairusu could see that she wouldn't need sticks to build a bird house if they could just use her hair instead. Well shit. "Yeah like people just keep birds in their hair on the reg." He'd offer as retort, a hint of annoyance in his voice. Sure, it wasn't the greatest joke ever told but what were the odds that the one time he told a bird joke the person would already be playing host to one?

Alas, even with the joke not landing the woman was still going to help him out and outstretched a hand to point him in the right direction. So he had been close all along! Finally, he'd be able to ask the Sage for training and really begin the process of becoming a great ninja. "Eh, not like I'll need 'em. I doubt they'll ask me to make jokes in exchange for help." He replied before turning around and beginning to make his way towards the bushes. To think: in just a few short minutes he'd be face to face with the sage and hopefully beginning his training.

Excitement took him over unfortunately as sharper eyes would have maybe seen the myriad of thorns that were waiting on the other side of the bushes, alas Mairusu was too preoccupied with the prospect of meeting the Sage that he didn't notice until multiple twangs of pain began to prickle him all over, his clothes snagging on them as he struggled to free himself. "Aye what is this? Damn thorns, this shit hurts!" He exclaimed to no one in particular but silently cursing that hobo of a woman for her shitty directions.

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WORDS ● Arimura Kasumi ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

Oh the rudeness of the boy! Kasumi watched with mischief in her eyes as the boy up and turned and walked away without so much as a thank you! And even insulting her bird nest. As he snarked that the Sage would hardly ask him to make a joke, Kasumi smiled to herself. She didn't stop him from marching off into the thorns and she'd wait less than a minute to hear him yell. 

The woman would lower her hood, place the bird nesting in her hair on the tree. It'd take off into the sky, in the direction of her Hut, wait for her there. Nature had always been odd around Kasumi, always followed her, always knew she would go to great lengths to protect it. 

Hood would be righted as the Sage placed her hands together and moulded the chakra running through the tattoos across her body. She'd walk, slowly, chakra emanating off of her pressing the shrubbery down with its sheer weight. And then, just as she walked through the wooded area towards the thorns catching at the lads side, she'd release her hands and allowed the chakra that allowed her to tap into Sage form to burst off of her. It would do no damage to the lad except to blow the thorns from him and shove him rather unceremoniously through to the other side and into her clearing. 

She'd follow, slowly, jewel atop her head more or less fusing with her forehead, red eyes turning golden and purple scales marking across her forehead and cheeks. Quite the opposite of Hermit. Bushy hair was still messy, but the burst of chakra had blown clear the debris. 

If Mairusu was still on his ass, he'd find a foot come to press down heavily on his chest like a stone weight and its owner peering down at him with unimpressed eyes.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are a very rude child?"

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

A clearer head would have told him that struggling against the thorns would have only made things worse but in his bewilderment it was the only thing he wanted to do. If he could only get an arm or leg free then the rest would come soon after. With a huff the boy would stop moving as he wondered why the woman would lie to him, and send him into a bush full of thorns no less? Had his joke been that bad? It couldn't have been that bad, and if she really didn't want to help him find the Sage that was all she had to say.

Before the boy could try his hand at struggling free from the thorns again a powerful shock wave would blow him clear of the foliage and into an opening in the forest, its sheer force knocking the wind from his lungs and dazing him for a few moments. "Ugh what the hell was that?" He groaned before feeling a heavy foot on his chest, looking up to see an actual monster hovering above him. Golden eyes, scales... it was the Sage! But where had they come from? It was then that Mairusu took note of the orange hair, the same color of... that woman! Granted, it wasn't full of twigs but what were the odds of two women in this forest having such ridiculously colored hair?

Eyes would widen at the realization that he had found the target of his search and didn't put two and two together sooner. As she commented on his rude behavior the boys eyes would cut away again, hands gripping at her ankle trying to lift the foot that was surprisingly heavy. "Hard to apologize... when you can't... breathe." He hoped that would be good enough reason to get her off of him but considering how their interaction had gone up to this point she probably wouldn't move until he told another joke.

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WORDS ● Arimura Kasumi ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

Yanked back off his feet unceremoniously, Mairusu was too stunned to react to the woman looming over him and pinning him to the floor. An eyebrow was raised as he still gave sass, but it was enough to intrigue her. 

The natural chakra coursing through her body released, relaxing her eyes from golden back to red, the scales disappearing from her skin and jewel becoming a separate entity from her forehead. She didn't move her foot straight away, instead she tilted her head and placed her hands on her hips as she watched the lad struggle. 

"Hm," she looked up around the clearing as if forgetting the lad was there, pressing harder on his chest idly -- not enough to cause him damage but definitely enough to cause him discomfort. Or... more discomfort. And then the Hermit was smiling back down at him. She lifted her foot just enough that he could breathe and communicate. 

"Tell me a joke and I'll let you up."

Oh yes. She was fucking with him to the extreme, a Sage wouldn't ask for a joke right? Right?!

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Try as he might to move the woman's foot off of his chest Mairusu still being a bit dazed from the earlier shockwave wasn't allowing him full access to his faculties; even as the natural chakra dissipated from Kasumi it was still a struggle to and ultimately fruitless effort. He was mad at himself for for not noticing the signs earlier --and maybe a little embarrassed for not being nicer to the woman-- though stomping on a little kids chest seemed a petty way of taking revenge.

Just as Mairusu began to think that this may have been his end the pressure on his chest would lessen slightly, enough for him to take a much needed deep breath, but not enough for him to squirm his way from under the woman's weight; she was surprisingly heavy. Again she would ask for a joke, this time in exchange for moving her foot completely. "What? Are you crazy?!" The boy would respond, a slight twinge of anger in his voice. What kind of sick person tormented kids and continually asked for jokes? Alas, it didn't seem like the woman was in any rush whatsoever to move her foot which left the genin with not too many options.

A disgruntled sigh would escape the boy as he racked his brain for another joke, specifically one not steeped in the anger he was feeling towards Kasumi. "Fine, whatever. Uh... what's a snakes favorite school subject?" A small pause to let the woman ponder. "Hissstory." He'd reply, tongue flickering akin to that of a serpent. Hopefully it would be enough to sway the woman because if not... more drastic measures would need to be taken.

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WORDS ● TAGGED ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Arimura Kasumi]

template by punki of adoxography

my heart beats in patters to a broken sound

i'm a free animal, free animal

A snakes favourite subject? Well. Snakes didn't at all have favourite subjects. It's hardly like she'd witnessed Manda pouring over a science book in his spare time. What kind of riddle was this? The woman would look down at Mairusu with a confused squint. She was many things, knowledgeable about the way of the world, powerful beyond most would ever accomplish, but a pro in social settings? Nada. Kazuto had asked her if she paid a mortgage on her hut and the woman had to ask what a mortgage was. Yusuke had called her odd for talking to the spiders in the loft rather than just squishing them because they were messing up his bar. 

Society was not her forte. Snakes were! And she knew snakes didn't have favourite subjects to study! And she was about to tell Mairusu precisely that when he answered his own riddle. 

Hissssstory? 

It didn't register in the Sage's mind until the lad beneath her foot wiggled his tongue like a snake. And...

She'd laugh! A hearty chuckle as the joke hit her funny bone. 

Her foot would be removed, giggling at the pun and seemingly forgetting that Mairusu was enraged at her pinning him to the ground and playing the old bamboozle on him. But then she'd turn, either as he was lying there or he was getting up. 

"Snakes don't wiggle their tongue like that! It's like this!"

And with the exclamation her own tongue would protrude and ripple just like that of a snake and it wasn't at all like a human tongue, thanks to the body modifications made to her by the Snake Sennin. Of course it had the capacity to be a human tongue, when she wasn't altering it to show what a real snake's tongue did. 

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Hearing the woman laugh was simultaneously the best and worst thing Mairusu wanted to experience right now. He hated himself for having to tell jokes to procure his safety but maybe it would be the 'in' he needed to achieve his goals. As the woman turned away in the midst of her chuckle fit the boy would scramble to his feet before she came to her senses, his face turning into a grimace as he noticed the large, dirty footprint in the middle of his shirt. His attention would turn back to the woman as she corrected him with a demonstration of her own with a tongue that definitely didn't belong to a human; if there had been any doubt left that she was the Sage it was all but gone now.

Well now what? Was he just supposed to ask the woman to train him? Would she ask for another joke in exchange for tutelage? Did she even train people? What annoyance the boy held was quickly being replaced by nervousness. He wasn't normally one to beg but this was different. This was the sole reason he asked to not be placed on a traditional genin team and there was so much riding on the outcome that taking 'no' for an answer just wasn't an option.

"So hey, I was wondering if you would um... take me on as a student?" Mairusu asked, his heart rising to his throat as signs of nervousness began to show up on him all over. A bit of sweat here, a little fidgeting there. This was easily the most nerve wracking thing he had ever done in his short life and he had no idea what the outcome would be.

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WORDS ● TAGGED ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style