Fire Red hair danced in the sunlight as Satoshi stepped forward. Today would start his mission to go find senjutsu and learn it. He had rumors to go on, but little else. That was okay though, he needed a break from the regular life anyway. Light skin and dark clothes that bore the Kanetsu clan crest on it are what he was wearing as per usual. He knew that not every ninja that made this journey returned, but he wasn't nervous. Being a Jounin had taught him to trust himself and go with his gut. This time his gut was telling him that this was the path he needed to be on. He moved casually as he strolled toward one of the many mountain ranges that resided on the outskirts of the country. He looked down to see Shiroimono walking beside him. She was a loyal companion and Satoshi was lucky to have her at his side. Her tall stature and grey fur were enough to scare most on sight. She wasn't dangerous though unless you made her be.

The trek to the rumored area was about 2 days journey. He knew that if he needed to get there faster he could, but there was no reason to rush. The would obvserve the scenery as they walked with Shiroimono watching things as she passed. She may be a ninken, but she was still cautious. Iwa had multiple enemies that would nothing more than to get their hands on the Kekkei Genkai of his clan. He would die before he let that happen. Or let the secrets of the Inuzuka clan be spoiled. He had too much to protect. A few hours had passed and the sun was just starting to hit it's peak. He couldn't wait to get there and he had literally just started. He knew of a town not to far off the path that he could stay at tonight intead of sleeping in the wild. Hours passed with nothing of note happening. It was literally just road, some animals and not much to look at. Parts of the nation were just like this. Regardless, he still had to push forward to his destination.

As he walked he wondered what kind of sages these creatures would be. The description said fur and fangs, so he was hoping for some type of wolf creature. That sounded fun and would make having Shiroimono around even better. Bear or something else would be fine, but he couldn't help but wish. Suddenly, as he was lost in his own thoughts, he looked up and realized that the sun would set soon. He would walk up another few kilometers before turning and heading towards the town for the night. It was just a little out of the way, so he didn't mind. Just like he predicted, it didn't take him long and they were there by sunset. He immediately started looking for a place to stay. Luckily, there was a place that sold rooms for one night. He walked in and moved towards the counter. "Can I help you?" The man was rather nice. "I just need a room." He put the ryo on the table and the gentleman handed him a key. "Room 5." Satoshi nodded in thanks before heading that way. Down the hallway and into his room he went, looking around for a second as he entered. "Not bad." He said honestly expecting worse for a town this small. Shiroimono jumped in the bed and Satoshi went to go clean up. A quick snack from his bag was the only step left before He got in the bed. A few hours of sleep was long overdue after a day of travels.

[628]

Crimson eyes popped open as Satoshi rose from bed with Shiroimono beside him. He yawned a bit before finally getting out of bed. Like a zombie, he droned over to his clothes and started to get dressed. His usual black and red attire with the Kanetsu symbol on it. He grabbed another snack, this time a premade box of stuff from home. he scarfed it down pretty quick and grabbed the rest of his stuff. Shiroimono was hot on his trail on their exit out of the building and back onto the road. The detour was not far and it didn't take long for their stroll to get them exactly back where they wanted to be. Large rock formations and mountain ranges covered the area. Most of them showed little in the ways of potential off of Satoshi's first glance. With a sigh of determination, he pushed forward, allowing his companion to walk ahead of him just in case a scent came up. She was a better tracker than him, despite his own considerable skill.

Hours seemed to go by as they walked endlessly. Luckily the area that the rumors were about wasn't far now. Shiroimono seemed to act strange as they continued forward, like she was hesitant about finding out what it was. This only confirmed his suspicion that something was out here. "Lead the way." It was a simple command and his words brought an immediate change to the large animal's posture. He smiled as she braced herself and moved forward at a faster pace. Satoshi kept pace as they continued to increase speed. Their ability to move in unison was near perfect after their training in Konohagakure, so he wasn't worried about her. As they moved forward, an odd smell filled the air and you could hear the patter of something in the distance. The rocks in this area seemed more bare and deserted. Shiroimono's shoulders were low and she obviously didn't like what was coming. The hair on the back of her next was standing tall as her teeth showed in the sunlight.

Satoshi focus as he saw a pack of animals cross over the peak of one of the crests and made a direct line towards the Iwagakure ninja. "Don't worry, we'll be fine." He spoke calmly to her as they approached faster, bowing as soon as they came near. "I didn't mean to disturb you" He said with a kind voice as they stopped dead in their tracks and stared. Shiroimono was directly beside Satoshi at this point and looked as if she would kill on command. The largest of them present walked forward and spoke in a rugged tone. At first Satoshi was surprised, but he knew that some animals could gain the ability. The wolf was deep red colored with black eyes. "What do you expect to get accomplished by wondering around out here? Follow us." He finished speaking and then they took off like a pack of jet fighters. The duo responded by darting after them, making sure to at least keep pace with them. This was getting odder by the second.

They passed a few more large sections of rock before going into an area that looked different there was a huge ravine that had horrible sounds coming from it's center. The wolf they were following stopped, but the others continued and immediately ran down in it via a worn path. "You have been warned, If you pass this point, you are dedicating yourself to training." Surprised that they already knew so much, Satoshi nodded. The wolf nodded back before taking off into the ravine. Shiroimono followed and Satoshi pulled up the rear. Some of the fits were a little close for comfort, but Satoshi managed to squeeze his way into the last hole, which came out into an odd type of oasis within one of the huge mountains. "This mountain is blessed, and so we don't have to leave until we want to. Enough about that though, I'm sure you want to speak to the master. He's up there." The wolf nudged his head towards a ledge that help three wolfs. The biggest was standing tall in the middle. That was definitely the big man in the group. Well this could go great or really bad.

Poor Shiroimono didn't really like the situation, but she had to deal. The wolfs weren't being aggressive towards her and they were actually getting treated pretty nice. She followed as Satoshi approached the leader. Up a leaning rock he climbed to reach the platform. He bowed, as did Shiro, before waiting to be addressed. It was the wolf's house after all. He could admit that he was a bit nervous about how this conversation was going to go. It was time to find out.

[818 + 628 = 1446