Pilgrimage in a Haunted Forest [Open]

"You used to visit the shrines in town all the time. I'm worried about you."

The sheer vitality of the Tachibana Reserve makes maintaining paths incredibly difficult. The stone path walked by academy student Tane and her middle-aged aunt Nao is already almost lost to moss and grasses after being tidied just a few months prior, softening their footsteps through the peaceful outer boundaries of the dense forest. The older woman tall and hearty, dressed in an olive yukata, her hair braided black and skin tan. Tane bears an obvious resemblance to her, save for being short for her age and having younger tastes in fashion. The jogger-like trousers she's wearing say one of two things - very in tune with foreign fashions, or shinobi. Tane's instinct to be inconspicuous in dress and pay homage to her roots fall apart when it comes to pants - you'll pry pants out of her cold, dead hands. 

"It's not because I don't want to, Oba-san," Tane says, voice hushed, gaze steadfastly at her sandals. "It's... school." Silence hangs in the air for a long few moments, and when Tane glances up Nao's expression is tensing in a way that the girl cannot read. 

"I know, I wasn't... I'm sorry, Toshino," Nao says, lost for words of encouragement. What could she say? Even at her young age, Tane is very aware of the festering political schism between her chosen career and her culture. On the inside, her aunt wrestles with her own biases. They would walk together in a tumultuous quiet if not for the chattering of nature all around. 

"Is it really okay for me to visit shrines? If I've been practicing?" Tane finally asks outright, evading directly naming ninjutsu. Nao sighs. 

"It's... a debate. Nobody agrees whether jutsu is inherently unclean," she says. "But that's on a scholarly level. On the level of most people you'll ask on the street... no. It isn't." Nao frowns at Tane's hurt expression - it wasn't the answer that she wanted to hear, was it? Oh, and scowling like this at her own mistake likely isn't helping either. Her face softens. "I'm not saying it's RIGHT, Toshino. But... oh, you already know," she says with a soft sigh. "That's why we're here. Somewhere a little less full of scared, judgmental people... and you even know that the folks who built it are friends! It's safe. You'll see." 

"Whatever. Sure. I'll just get eaten by a tiger, much better." Tane's tone is short, but her aunt doesn't fall for the bait. She's confident. "This way." 

Nao directs Tane up a side path, and the two navigate a narrow bit of rocky overgrown hill, climbing to a level bit of clearing. The bright early morning light filtering through the trees dots the mossy rocks beneath their feet with a wandering rash of light. The student's eyes follow them along the ground, and then up - and she gasps in wonder. Every time she comes to this forest it has a new way to surprise her.

A slab of bright limestone bursts from the earth maybe some fifteen meters tall, but its size is dwarfed by the tangle of trees that infest its every nook and cranny. Moss and roots crisscross the stark bright surface, leaving the white to sandy hues of the rock beneath peeking through like little motes of light. The trees are like the rest of the forest an eclectic mix of species, bark ranging from near black to wine to tanned to white, but all inheriting the will of the desert to cling to any anchor and never let go. 

It's only after Tane drunk all of that in that she recognized the shimenawa rope hanging peacefully between two particularly strong bits of root, and then beneath that, a shamefully tiny little roadside shrine at the base of the rock. Like the path, nature is doing its best to reclaim it, even though given the age of the forest itself the shrine could not have been here for terribly long. 

"Who built this," Tane asks, stepping slowly forward. "This place was made by a shinobi, I thought everyone was afraid of it!"

"It's hard to hate something so good for you for long," Nao replies. "Besides! Even if you're scared, it's only polite to greet your new neighbours." Tane steps up to the shrine and reads the dedication to its kami. Below that is a smattering of small stacks of ryo, flowers, and even a small carving of a tiger.


[771]

Kuniko was walking with calm and measured paces through the Tachibana Wildlife Reserve on his way to pay respects to his fallen comrades. The last time he was here with the young master, Ayato, he had spotted a small shrine in the forest which was the ideal place to lay his offering. It was a beautiful sunny day, though only smaller shafts of direct sunlight seemed to reach the twisted roots of the trees. 

The young shinobi was dressed in his usual muted purple hakama. He had his long, straight, black hair hanging down today so it blew gently in the breeze. His pale skin appreciated the cover of the tree tops above. His pupiless eyes betrayed his otherwise calm and peaceful demeanor, as they searched the forest for any signs of danger. He didn't plan on journeying far into the forest, so he calmed himself by thinking that he would use his Byakugan if he could not find a shrine soon.

TWC: 162

[EXIT]