The moon shone brightly along the path which Koharu walked on with a steady pace. The sounds of crickets chirping and the distant croaking of frogs filled the forest. She had a stick she ripped off of a tree in one hand to help guide her path and a small jar in the other. The young woman was steadily making her way to her favorite spot in the entire forest. Koharu had seen a lot of the forest but no spot managed to wow her the way this one had. It was a wonder she had even managed to remember it after all of these years.

Clear nights like these were always her favorites. There was very little time the young huntress lately got to call her own with all of her preparations for the fall season. So her plan was to savor this moment of relaxation she had tonight. Koharu slowed her pace as she came to the hill which would take her up to her sitting spot. She abandoned her walking stick and ran full speed up the hill. On top was a level grassy field overgrown with dandelions. The area was lit with fireflies floating gently by. This is what Koharu came for. Giddy as a child, Koharu opened her jar and began to chase the blinking creatures all about the field.

She caught several before stopping to observe them in the jar. They looked so cute as they blinked their lights at her. If she believed in wishes Koharu would've blown one of those dandelions and wished for this moment to never end. The silence of the forest and the nostalgia of catching fireflies was just what she'd needed after a long, long day. Koharu sat down in the tall grass still observing the small bugs in her jar. She poked holes in the lid prior to arriving so that the fireflies would not suffocate. The young huntress was tempted to take them home but, alas they would die before morning. She learned this the hard way as a small child so infatuated with the creatures she decided to try and keep them. The next morning she was filled with overwhelming sadness as she gazed at them unmoving at the bottom fo her jar.

Koharu cringed at the memory and opened the lid of the jar releasing the small creatures. She would definitely catch some more later. The young woman stared out at the grassy field and wished she would have brought Tsukiya along. The great white dog would have loved this but alas he couldn't be bothered to leave his bed. She harrumphed at the thought of her lazy hound and looked up at the starry sky. It was almost midnight if she was guessing correctly. She truly should have been in bed herself but Koharu just needed a little bit of time to relax. It felt like there was always something bothering her. She sighed and lay back in the grass and looked up to the clear night sky.

---

WC: 508

Kennnosuke was having another restless night. He lay there, wide awake in his room. It was too late to train, as it would be rude, but he couldn’t just lay there anymore. Rising to his feet, he dresses himself in his normal fashion, but he threw a hooded cloak over his shoulders and instead of tucking his sword into his sash, he tied a string around the hilt and threw it over his shoulder. He stepped out of his small room, threw his hood up and moved quietly across the Kimura Compound. Once in a clear area, he leaps up onto the roof tops and switftly moves across the village. A nice walk in the forest is what he needed in his life right now, so that’s where he headed.

Before long he was clear of the village walls and he moves across the trees, leaping branch to branch across the forest. His mind drifted, he replayed his training, wondering what he could of done better and what areas he was excelling in. He was a strong fighter, good battle strategy and some pretty powerful jutsu for being a Genin. He knew what he needed to focus on and in the days that would come he would train to be better. Between the Chunin exams and this mysterious mask and note he received, he had much to do and little time to do it. But nothing could be done under the cover of darkness, so a little time to himself is what he needed right now.

He is brought back to his senses by the sound of running feet. He stops suddenly and scans the area for someone running. He spots a female running up a hill near by and watches her for a moment, his hand reaching up for the hilt of his sword. He was worried at first, that she was in some kind of trouble, but after watching for a few moments he realized she was alone and safe, so he let his hand drop. He quietly moves closer to her, watching as she joyfully catches fireflies and once collected into a jar she sat down and studied the fireflies. After a few moments she opens the jar and releases the glowing bugs and lies back in the grass. Kennosuke debated on leaving her be, but at this time of night it could be dangerous and he had no idea whom this girl was. He backs himself as far as he can on the tree branch and after a short running start he leaps from the tree he was in and sails into the field near the girl. He hits the ground gracefully, although not as quietly as he had wanted and rolls across the ground. When he stops, he is in a low crouch, his hood still up over his face. ”It’s dangerous for a girl like you to be out this late by herself.” He says, still held in his low crouch, his body hidden under his cloak, but his head tilted slightly to the right.

WC:520

Koharu tried to find as many constellations in the night sky as she could as she lay back in the grass. She rose her finger to the sky and traced out the ones she could see plainly. She had found the little dipper, the big dipper, and Ursa Minor this way. She then tried to find some of the harder ones this way but it hadn't worked in her favor really. The young woman closed her eyes for a second taking in the sounds of the forest at night, The crickets still chirped and the frogs till croaked their late night songs. Strangely enough, she could even hear a bird's call in the distance. Koharu relaxed into the sound until she felt an eerie feeling. She had a feeling as though she was not alone. Koharu stayed laying as she was and looked all about as much as she could whilst staying in that position. It wasn't long until that eerie feeling came to fruition and the person causing it made their appearance.

Koharu sat up immediately to see the figure rolling towards her in the grass before propping up in front of her crouched with their head tilted to the side as though they were confused. The person's body was cloaked and she could not clearly make much about them out due to this which put Koharu on edge. When they spoke she narrowed her eyes at his statement.

"A girl like me?" She responded, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

Koharu could identify the voice as male rather easily and put some distance between herself and the speaker by scooching backward in the grass and then standing. Now that she had an idea of their gender she tried to size the figure up with her eyes. She still couldn't gain much though.

To some extent, Koharu was genuinely confused by that question. How could he tell anything about her? Was this one of those clan things she had been hearing about more often. Another part of her was angered at the assumption. Koharu knows these woods as though they were the back of her hand. She grew up in them. So her response while obviously quite rude was justified in her own mind.

"What are you doing out here at night?" The huntress shot back at the crouched figure. She felt a little bold in saying such but if anyone were to not be safe here she would think it to be him. She was taking his statement a little too literally. This could have been the product of her already being irritated by her day's work though. The one night she wanted some peace something just had to go awry. She hoped that this could end without any kind of conflict so she tried to assume a stance that wasn't threatening.

In an attempt to make herself feel more secure Koharu shot the cloaked man a question. "Um also," She would start "Could you remove your hood?"

---

WC:508
TWC: 1,016

Kennosuke made no attempt to move at first, he merely watched and listened to the girl before him. While he didn’t know anything about her it appeared that she didn’t wear wear a Forehead protector anywhere on her so it was fairly safe to assume she was not a shinobi and it was also a safe assumption that a normal person could find unwanted danger in this forest at night. Be it bandits or animals, all sorts of things could happen. He realized perhaps too late, his sudden appearance, the way he was currently holding himself and his words could all be taken as he meant her harm, and once she asked for him to remove his hood he let out a soft chuckle.

“Oh, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t even think that you might think I meant ill intent.” He says as he slowly raises his hands out before him so she could see he had nothing in them and then pushes back his hood, revealing his mane of black hair and horned forehead protector. Raising to his feet he smiles awkwardly toward the girl and places a hand on the back of his head. “I’m Kennosuke, a shinobi from the village. Was out for some fresh air and I heard you running, thought you might be in trouble so I came to make sure you were safe.” He drops his hands to his side and looks around at the tall trees that surround them. “I didn’t mean any disrespect, but this forest holds many dangers under the cover of darkness is all.”

He decides to shut up at that point as he felt he was rambling slightly. This girl probably thought he was crazy and he honestly couldn’t blame her if she did. Now silent, he watched the girl, hoping that she believed him and didn’t think he was some crazy person or that he intended to do her harm.


WC:323
Total:843

The man, Kennosuke he had called himself, raised his hands conveying he meant no harm in the statement. it was true Koharu had jumped the gun a little bit. The stress of her life recently made her very susceptible to some mood swings. Koharu muttered out a sorry to the young man and offered a half smile in an attempt to smooth it over. True to her awkward nature though, it may have appeared as more of a grimace.

When he pulled back his cloak Koharu couldn't help but take notice of his odd forehead protector. While she had seen the symbol enough to know it meant Konoha, the cloth that held it looked scaly. It also had little horns peeking out of it. On closer inspection the man himself was odd. He had long dark hair and in the moonlight, she was not certain but Koharu swore she could make out scars on the side of his face. Koharu made a face at him and then slowly descended back into a seated position on the grass.

She felt she didn't need to be afraid of him but rather he would be a good source of information. Maybe it was the full moon's fault but the young huntress was feeling rather talkative.

"You shouldn't worry much about me. There's little this forest could throw at me that would surprise me. My name is Koharu by the way." Koharu paused and looked out into the forest's dark expanse. No, it wasn't the forest that surprised her but Konoha itself did. The last time she had entered the city as a young child was... traumatic to say the least. Sometimes she would feel bold and want to try again. To brave the city. To go to the library. To just feel normal? Normal was a strange concept for her as she had read about in books, seen it on the television, even listened to it on the radio. A girl living with a wolf in a cabin was anything but. These things she wanted to would make her feel normal. But the noise caused her anxiety so great that even before she could get close she would turn back and say tomorrow.

"What's Konoha like now?" Koharu asked with the thought of visiting once more buzzing around in her head like a swarm of angry bees. She wanted to try to venture out into the city again. Maybe things have changed for the better. "It's been a long time since I was there."'

She looked wistfully at the dandelions. If only things were easier and she could just stroll right into town and talk to whoever without feeling judged. Another thought struck a cord in Koharu's mind. She looked at the shinobi next to her and wondered if the question would come off too invasive but she wanted to know about clans. In her mind, they were much like a pack formed for protection but the information seemed personal. Surely you couldn't just ask someone what their clan was, right? Dependant on the young man's responses Koharu would decide whether or not he seemed open enough for her to ask.

---

WC: 540
TWC:1,556

Kennosuke stood still as the girl before him studied him, and now that he could see her a bit better under the moon light he returned her gaze with equal interest. She looked to be around his age, with brown hair that was fell in jagged layers to her jaw and a sharp facial strutcure with high cheekbones. She was cute, Kennosuke had to admit. But that was neither here nor there. She returned to a sitting position before she spoke, obviously believing that he was who he said he was and that he harbored no ill will toward her. He listens to her speak, saying that there wasn’t much that the forest could surprise her with, and then introducing herself. She asks what Konoha is like and Kennosuke shrugs slightly before sinking back down to a crouch before flopping backwards onto his butt and kicking his legs out in font of him. He might as well be comfortable if he was going to have a late night conversation with this girl. His emerald eyes scan the area around them, not that the darkness would tell him much. Yet another time he wished his clan's Dojutsu had awoken within him, the ability to see heat signatures in the darkness would be a great help.

“It’s nice to meet you Koharu. Unfortunately have always lived in Konoha, so I don’t have much to compare it to. The only real thing that is new I think is that Konoha is offering aid to the refugees from the Sand.”He leans back on his hands and looks up at the clear sky. He didn’t think much of her question, it seemed harmless. “You aren’t from the Village? What brings you out here then?”He asks, returning his gaze to the girl that sat near him. They were fairly close to the village and to stumble upon someone who didn’t live within seemed odd to him, but he didn’t exactly get a threatening vibe from the girl. Regardless, he would keep his guard up, just in case she became a threat to him or the Village.

WC:350
Total:1193

WC Usage:1175/1193 Train RT from D-0 to D-3
18 discarded