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| - Standing in front of the mirror, was muscular blonde-haired man, who was indeed carrying a large scroll upon his back, and wore a gentle smile upon his face, giving off a sense of compassion and warmness. With his stuff packed, the man exited his home, cheerfully sent away by his wife and children, each who were not concerned in the slightest for his well being; each one knowing that the latter would return from his journey safely. For several hours on end the latter, known to the world as Sannoto, continued walking through this forest. Despite the fact that he walked through such a place countless times, this sight completely mesmerized him and warmed his soul; to the point where he personally felt connected with every living thing in the area, down to the motionless trees which shielded him from the sun's harmful rays, and even down to the small ladybugs which he essentially leaped over to avoid stepping on. With this, one could suggest that he didn't get too far from his home, and it wasn't too late for him to turn back, but he knew that he had to continue with this journey. After a few more minutes, Sannoto reached a grasslike plain, which was illuminated by the blazing rays emitted from the heavens themselves. With such a sight, the Senju male decided that this would be where he took his break, as even the strongest of shinobi did need to relax and enjoy a meal once in a while. Opening his scroll, he released a basket full of food which his wife and daughter prepared for him; ramen noodled with small chunks of pork and vegetables, along with a small side of Shimp-Fried Rice, his favorite meal ever. "She really does love me!", he exclaimed to himself, his tone thick with excitement as he quickly stuffed the food in his mouth, devouring the meal in a matter of minutes. Afterwards he picked up the picnic basket and sealed it back into his scroll, considering it would come in handy later, and once more proceeded on his way across this large, beautiful, compelling plain. Out of the forest, training all day in the warming rays was none other than Ryuka Kitaima who was beating up a rock. After all day in the rays, he decided to head to back to hotel and get sake to drink. "Man, this forest is confusing, why not put signs around here?" said Ryuka as he wandered towards a stream. Eventually Sannoto's endless wandering guided him to a small stream, which was filled with wonderful aquatic life, who simply were riding along the stream's current, essentially taking a journey of their own; just like the Senju. "Beautiful stream! Only if Asami was here to see this. She was always fond of aquatic life. These fish would leave her speechless..", the latter rambled on, before cupping his hands and dipping them into the stream, filling them with water. Once he confirmed that he had enough water to quench his thirst, which he had gained after eating his lunch, he lifted his hands to his mouth, taking sip after sip of the water. "Ah, that hit the spot! I guess I must have forgotten how dry Asami's cooking is", Sannoto said to himself, chuckling a bit before noticing another creature standing alongside the stream. Odd enough, this creature was another human, and humans were scarce in this area, considering a large majority of people can't successfully guide themselves through the large forest. What is he doing here?, he pondered, observing the specimen with a careful eye, taking in every little detail of his outward appearance. Though, he soon realized that watching him wasn't going to give him any answers. Seconds later, the blonde-haired male slowly began walking over to Ryuka, gathering a smile on the way; the most natural smile that he could form to be specific. In situations like these, he simply wanted to demand answers, but even he realized that tactics like that weren't going to work. He needed to befriend the man, and had to kindly get him to talk. That was the better plan after all. Without warning, the latter's walk ended and he stood before Ryuka. "Hello, stranger! I usually don't see anyone around here!", Sannoto said, his voice thick was unreal excitement. "Are you lost or something?" "Yes as a matter of fact, I am. Are you lost too?" replied Ryuka as he was a little creeped out by his smile. "Ah, so that does explain it..", he whispered to himself, his smile fading from his visage for a split second before returning. "For me, I am not lost. Though, I am willing to help you the nearest town. To be honest, I'm heading that direction myself", Sannoto explained, looking west. The sun was slowly setting, falling underneath the horizon. Though this was a wonderful sight to behold, this also meant trouble, as the rays from the sun were the only thing lighting there path, and Sannoto didn't want to travel with a stranger at night. "Alright. If we're going to get to town, we need to do it quickly. So, simply follow me and we should get halfway to the nearest town before the sun goes down. After that phase, we'll simply have to improvise. I'll probably end up thinking of something", Sannoto said, taking off towards the north, leaving a small dust of smoke behind him. "Hey, wait up!" said Ryuka as he took off towards the north direction. "Man this guy is impatient, reminds me of someone else I know." He caught up to Sannoto in little time, wondering where the shinobi was heading to. The Senju stopped abruptly, his gentle smile now turning into a concerned look. "This isn't good. This isn't good at all..", he mumbled to himself, his eyes moving from one side to the other. "Looks like we're lost man. The stars are hidden tonight. I don't know what for though. Usually, the stars are out by now, but they seem to be a little late..", Sannoto said, turning to face Ryuka. "So, I guess we can camp here for the night and then we'll go to the town in the morning. Sounds like a plan?" "Yeah, I guess that sounds alright. Speaking of which, what is this place and who the heck are you?" asked a curious Ryuka. "Who am I? Don't worry about that though, I'm not going to harm you. Trust me on that one. But for this place, I don't know. I'm assuming that it's simply a random field, why?", the Senju asked, his face reflecting his state of confusion. "Well for one thing, you seem to know this area pretty well." said Ryuka as he was drinking his miso soup that he just heated up. "You sure you don't come here often?" he asked. "Oh, well that's because I live not too far from here. My wife and children reside in the forest of the Land of Origin. We moved their after I retired as a shinobi, though I do help out old friends once in a while. You know?", Sannoto said. "Ah, I do know. I was visiting here to Gingagakure to see the sights. I come from the Land of Chasms, one heck of a nation. Friends, Family. You know?" said Ryuka as he continued drinking his soup. "Oh, I see. Well, I was originally born in Konoha. I'm pretty sure you know what village that is. I took part in the Third and Fourth Shinobi world wars. And now, I'm writing. It's a nice life. I'm sure you understand..", Sannoto said, taking a seat down on the grass. "So your an author huh? I'm currently reading a book called "The Asending Colors". It quite an interesting book. So, what books do you write?" asked Ryuka. The Senju man smiled, as the book that Ryuka was reading was his book; a tale about Minato and Kushina, to excellent shinobi who died long before their time, simply to preserve balance in the world. "Well, they aren't really good books to be honest. Just simple tales about shinobi. Nothing special. But how do you like that book? I've never had the chance to read it myself.." "It's quite interesting. I've heard this book was a best seller and I decided to buy it. The tales of the shinobi in here are quite amazing and when I have the time, I read this. I'm nearly halfway through the book." said Ryuka as he continued reading while drinking his soup. "Ah, I see. The two shinobi in that book were excellent people. They risked their lives in the end to save the shinobi world from destruction. The man in that book is a hero, a true hero..", Sannoto said, looking up at the sky, before looking back at Ryuka. Seconds later his opened widely, as he simply just revealed the ending to the book, despite the fact that he just claimed he never read it. Truth is, Sannoto was actually the author of such a novel, and was the reason he left his home; to go and collect some payment for his novel. "Dude. Don't spoil the ending on a book that I haven't finished reading. And how would you know what the ending is, I thought you said you hadn't read this book before." asked Ryuka, pissed off by the fact that Sannoto spoiled the ending. Sannoto burst out laughing, before regaining his calm demeanor. "Sorry for that. I was just caught up in the moment. Please forgive me. But the truth is, I was the one who wrote the novel. I just wanted to hear your opinion!", Sannoto exclaimed. "Well I guess thats alright, but your going to have to pay me back somehow." said Ryuka as he continued reading his book. "Pay you back?", Sannoto questioned, his tone thick with confusion. "If you mean buy you lunch, then sure I guess..", he jokingly stated. "I mean a battle. But not now, it's getting late and I have to sleep." said Ryuka who finishes reading. "Whoever loses has to pay for the winners lunch when we get to the nearest town. Deal?" he asked Sannoto. The Senju male smiled, his face lit with a light of excitement. "A battle? Well, I haven't had a battle in quite a long time now. A friendly one is what I meant. Fine, we shall have a battle! But, make sure you have enough money to buy me lunch. Since I'll be the one winning after all", Sannoto said, lying down onto the ground a few seconds later. The grass was soft, despite the fact that it was cut relatively low to the ground. It made a perfect bed. "In your dreams hippy. I'm gonna win this." smiled Ryuka. "Hope you have enough money to buy me lunch, cause your going to need it." said an enthusiastic Ryuka as he lays on the grass and falls asleep.
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