Square One [Travel]

A week had come and gone since Lucian had met with princess Tehniyat, for that was her name he found out. In that week the Nazar boy had spent considerable time learning about the Church of the High Lady. Tehniyat's letter of introduction and recommendation had opened more than a few doors. Books, interviews with holymen, he had done it all. Unfortunately, his apprenticeship at the Church had yet to be accepted. Apparently it was contingent on the return of Tehniyat's uncle. Unsurprisingly, considering his royal ties, the man held considerable power in the Church itself. Thus, with the wayward uncle having not returned from his mission to Amegakure the onus fell on Lucian to go after him.

The mission Tehniyat's uncle had been sent on was not necessarily a military one. Rather, Lucian learned, he was acting as a chaperone of sorts for two Hoshigakure genin. Interestingly, the two genin were not completely unknown to Lucian. In talking with the mission command of Hoshigakure he found that the two genin were the two he had worked with to quell the riot, Ash and Rei Sun. Those two quirky kids, who were apparently twins, had been sent to gather information on Amegakure, Tehniyat's uncle had been sent to watch over them. The whole thing seemed to be a run of the mill mission to Lucian, but he would investigate further nonetheless.

All this led up to where Lucian was now, casting a backward glance at the outskirts of Hoshigakure. It did not hurt to leave the village as it had his home, but he did feel something looking at the almost archaic architecture. It wasn't sadness, no, rather it felt as if he was missing something or perhaps forgotten it. Of course, he had forgotten nothing; he double and triple checked what he was taking with him before departing that morning. No, it felt more like he was leaving behind a good friend. Yes, that was it, a good friend.

As for what he had remembered? It was not much, but it was enough. In his right hand he held the Shakujo he had been given and in his left he held nothing. Over his shoulder was what looked like a burlap sack or, as Lucian liked to think of it, a canvas bag. Therein lay food for about two weeks of travel, better to be safe than sorry. Hanging from said bag were two large calabash gourds filled with water. One would be hard pressed to identify Lucian as a shinobi, at best he looked like a traveling monk. This was all intentional on Lucian's part, of course. Better to look like something other than he was, thus the lack of hulking metal puppet by his side.

Lucian was not too certain what to expect on this trip, but he doubted he would need to puppet anyway. He was, more or less, just going to check up on three people who had been out for a bit too long. He then figured he'd tag along with the trio until they had completed their mission and make the trek back. At worst the whole affair would probably take about a week and half. A real quick in and out mission; he'd be back in Hoshigakure within a fortnight perhaps with the rank of chuunin. For the first time since Lucian had left Funkagakure things were really starting to look up.

And so with a single step and an eye to the horizon Lucian began his journey to the land of Rain. This would be a first. Instead of cutting through Yukigakure and freezing to death the Nazar elected to take a different route than the one he had coming from Kumogakure. Instead of cutting through he would skirt around the land of snow. For one the travel would be much easier and he could see a different part of the world.

Thankfully Lucian was not alone on his journey. Originally he had set out by himself, but he quickly found a small family, the Satos, who were going the same way he was. The Sato family consisted of two parents in their thirties and a child about twelve years old. They were actually moving to be closer to an aging grandmother near Amegakure. They took with them all they owned in a wagon pulled by a large ox. Lucian and the family had not spoken a word to each other until it was clear they were both going the same way.

He learned that the father, Sei, was a prominent woodworker and the mother, Mei, was once a teacher, but she now was out of work to help raise her child, Kimiko. Kimiko was not too talkative at first. She snuck looks from inside the wagon at the bald Nazar. However, slowly Kimiko opened up and began pelting Lucian with questions about where he came from and why he was bald. The Nazar boy naturally answered and eventually shared stories he had been told as a child. This back and forth went on with Lucian walking beside the wagon and Kimiko bouncing around the wagon until the sun neared the end of its arc and cast long shadows of twilight across the land.

Soon it became too dark to travel along the road safely, clouds obscured the stars and the moon was new. Naturally, not wanting to wander off the road the group stopped. Sei and Mei were nice enough to allow Lucian to stay the night with them, so they started a fire and went about making dinner. Both Lucian and Mei had quite the time working together to cook what the group decided was some of the better stir fry they had ever had. This time Sei set about telling stories after dinner accompanied by Mei on what looked like a lyre. The two were quite the pair and it was plain to Lucian that the family was happy together.

The night passed quickly and all slept soundly. In the morning the group had a touch of light breakfast and were off. Just before midday the group went their separate ways. Lucian deeper into Rain country and the Satos down towards Konoha. Once again Lucian was on his own. Oddly being by himself forced him to cast his mind back to Taios. He had no seen the hulk of a man since he left Kumogakure. And here, as he was a stones throw away from Kumogakure, he almost wanted to see if he was still there. The two had left Funkagakure together and now they had drifted apart, it was odd. One day he resolved to see him again, one way or another.

Just past noon a turn in the weather told Lucian he was close. A gentle drizzle blanketed the land and the plains slowly transformed into tall trees. The tree themselves did not look tropical, but they looked old and full of life. Perhaps this is what a swamp looked like Lucian idly wondered. The ground underfoot was a bit muddy. It was not like the sludge that he had encountered around Kumogakure, but it still felt slimy and the air smelled of moisture. In all his surroundings felt like some strange cross between Hoshigakure and Funkagakure's climates.

For about an hour more Lucian wandered deeper into the drizzle until at last he stopped. Nearby there was a small inn. The small inn he found was run by an old man and his cat. The inn had perhaps three rooms, all of them empty. Lucian of course took the old man up on the offer. he would rest here for the night and search the area in the morning.

[Instant travel from Hoshi to Ame 1283/1250, speed stat is 75]

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