A private toast, to new horizons

It had been a very long few months since Chiharu had finally decided to leave his family and strike out on his own. He’d never even dreamed of having such a crazy start to his career as a lone shinobi, but here he was, significantly richer and significantly more experienced than he’d expected to be at this point. It was an odd feeling, knowing he’d already faced multiple life-or-death situations. Not that he should be surprised, really. The life of a village-less shinobi was far from easy at the best of times. Having chosen to be a shinobi guaranteed that he would have to fight, and fight often.

At least he was getting a lot more used to his Naginata and Wakizashi. His two main weapons never really left his side, and he preferred to keep it that way. Best to always be ready for an attack, even though he was hardly more than chump change to any of the stronger rogues at the moment. He was just glad he was still relatively unknown, given just how distinctive all his pink and purple was. Though he supposed the eye-catching color would help him make more of a name for himself when he was ready.

Luckily, the events of the casino in Tea had proved to be far less vexing than the events of Snow, though he was still wary of the bigger man he’d confronted in there. The guy was weird, no doubt about that. Akaime and Ban, at least, were refreshingly professional and competent. He wouldn’t mind running into either again, though he doubted they’d cross paths for a while. After all, he was a wanderer, and both of them were village shinobi from two other villages. They weren’t likely to stray too far, considering neither was above the rank of chuunin. He definitely wasn’t going to visit Kirigakure or Ketsuekigakure anytime soon.

Having successfully managed to exit the casino no worse for wear, he made the choice to move on. Rather than going to Fire, as his companions from Snow had done, he’d instead chosen to come to the borders of the Land of Forests, a small island country surrounded by several other smaller countries. The place was probably a lot safer for him than the mainland was, no doubt. Being so close to so many major villages in Tea had sent a bit of a panic deep into his bones. Most villages were hardly going to care about a random villageless shinobi, but plenty of Missing-Nin tended to flock to the bigger countries as well. He didn’t think he could take on most Missing-Nin, just yet.

As the boat docked on the shores of Forests, though, he felt himself relaxing at least a fraction. He might be able to find himself a home base here, a place to build up his resources and make something of himself. Ryo could buy a lot, and he had more than enough to establish himself, or so he hoped. He could probably do a lot with this money, right? He was sure most shinobi didn’t exactly have the kind of ryo he did to spare, and could still build up some pretty secure little nest eggs. He was going to do the same. Forests was a lot quieter than Tea, especially with no casino in sight. There were people milling about the docks of the place he’d found himself in, but it didn’t have the same hustle and bustle of the thriving strip of land. It was rather interesting to watch, all things considered.

It took some time before the boat was properly docked and ready to allow him to disembark. He could’ve just as easily jumped over the side with his things and skipped the waiting process, but he was interested to see how it all worked. After all, he may just end up finding himself using boats as a method of travel more often if he were to set himself up in one of the many small countries on the big island. He’d definitely need to still visit the mainland often enough.

Eventually, he was finally given the go-ahead to leave after giving the crew a thank-you for their willingness to ferry him so far. Stepping off the gangplank with his Naginata across his back and his Wakizashi at his side, he was immediately ready to begin exploring. First, though, he was going to find himself a nice hot meal. Once he’d paid for his food, he’d go set off to survey the land.

Finding a cheap ramen stand to eat at was surprisingly easy. He’d half expected to find mostly places serving seafood, being in a port town. After all, seafood was the specialty of any good port, even smaller ones like the one he’d landed in. Still, though, he quickly paid for his cheap bowl of tasty noodles and broth, sitting down at one of the benches nearby to scarf the food down. He’d received an odd look from the vendor at the sight of him, but he wasn’t surprised.

After all, how often would a town like this get to see a real shinobi carrying such large weapons, let alone one as brightly coloured as him? He was sure that if it weren’t the middle of the day and most people working or in school, he’d be getting stares from a lot more than just a lone ramen vendor. He was used to it by now, though.

Sighing in delight as he slurped down his ramen, he watched the small town around him. He definitely needed to establish some connections in this port, though he doubted this would be the place where he set up. Too easy to get to, given the fact that anybody with a boat could easily get to the town and any land nearby. He’d need to go further inland to find a place, preferably a lot more remote than his current location.

Befriending the sailors and the vendors here wouldn’t be a bad start, though. He’d need all the connections and information he could get, especially in a place he’d never been to before now. Finishing his ramen, the young man stood up, returning the bowl to the ramen stand and looking to see if any stores popped out. Surprisingly enough, a few minutes of wandering proved to be fruitful when he came across a bookstore. Another unusual find that he couldn’t wait to check out. Stepping into the tiny shop, he made a beeline for the front desk, where a bored young woman stood. “Sorry to bother you, but would your store happen to carry any maps? I’m new to the country, and would like to avoid getting lost while I’m here.”

She didn’t verbally answer him, instead yawning and pointing to a small table stacked neatly with folded maps near the desk. Thanking her, he immediately grabbed for one to scan, carefully ready to note down the locations of all the settlements that were there, as well as any major landmarks he’d need to know. This place really was a jackpot! After dumping a handful of coins on the desk, he exited the store. It was time he got to work finding a place to settle in for the night so he could go out looking tomorrow.

[Exit to Forests Country]

WC: 1218
Claiming 263 Words towards https://www.narutoroleplaygame.com/t53285-shimi-daikon-skill for a total of 2,000/2,000
The remaining 955 words towards https://www.narutoroleplaygame.com/t53312-shimi-daikon?highlight=Shimi+Daikon Breaking Bud for a total of 955/2,000
12 stat points, going to strength.

Approved