The Norseman finds the vanished Hokage

"Hail the Valkyries!" Taichi yelled as he walked into the tavern. A few hours had gone by since he had been allowed back into the village so he figured it was time he grabbed himself a drink. Merrily, he walked up to the bar and he greeted the bartender standing behind it. "Hello, sir! I would like a bottle or two of your strongest whiskey please!" Taichi said as he set a stack of Ryo onto the bar before the one tending it. 

The bartender smiled and handed him two bottles of whiskey before taking some of the ryo off of the stack and placing it in his cash box. Taichi took the two bottles and he looked around at the patrons within the bar, looking to see if there was anyone interesting enough to have a night's worth of drinks with. If there was, he would jump to his feet and approach them with a bottle in each hand!

Wan wrote:-Earlier that morning-

Wan had trouble sleeping the last few nights. He was sure that Fu would easily notice the amount of stress and anxiety he was under easily by looks: the bags under his eyes alone being a key indicator of how tired he had been. Recently he had begun staying away from the woman for these reasons, not wanting her to grow concerned with his well-being since there was a much larger issue for them being there. He wouldn't dare let his flaws get in the way of them getting transplants, so the last two nights have been composed of self-isolation as he began to get himself together. The young Lord had recently sent a letter back to Konohagakure announcing his long-term departure, and today he would do the same but in a more...unusual pattern. As he sat on the side of his bed his knee was propped up higher than the other, using his thigh as a table that perfectly fit a scroll big enough for writing a message on. In the privacy of his room, he scribbled away, the Hokage hat he had taken fro the office of Yensung sitting to his left on the countertop of the room as he would occasionally glance over at it.

 'To whom it may concern' is how this letter started, an indicator that it had no true destination once it reached Fire Country, simply wanting to be seen and viewed by anyone who might find it's contents worthy of being read. 'Wind Country speaks as it's asked. There is very little that makes it out of the desert in secrecy, much being discovered by the locals themselves before high-ups are informed. A man bearing the hat of the Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato has been killed, a younger boy slaughtered in cold blood during his departure from the village by a man known as Nike. It's been rumored that the man is a defect from the Hidden Mist, hoping to use the death of the Leaf's figurehead as a catalyst for returning to Kirigakure unharmed. Word also has it that he plans on visiting the leaf soon for whatever reasons, wild talk that maybe he plans on destroying it for the greater cause of re-earning Kiri's respect but who truly knows. We in Wind Country just found it in our hearts to let you know of your Hokage's demise before months went by without hearing from him. We've to gather his belongings and included them alongside this letter. May your heart's burdens be lifted during these troubling times.'

Didn't take him much time to write the letter since he knew exactly what he was gunning for during its creation. A simple message back to Fire Country explaining that Wan had been killed on his way from Sunagakure, leaving the nature of Fu out on purpose to allow for them to keep a level of anonymity without having any form of backstory to go behind it. The Senju wanted it to be known that he was killed by the unknown, only knowledge being on his murderer was his name being 'Nike' and that he was a rogue ninja from Kirigakure. A small way to stir the pot of tension between the two villages. If Konohagakure was to be destroyed following the arrival of this letter then it would be safe for the country to assume that it was at the hands of Kirigakure, or at least a returning member of their ranks who wanted something to return home with. Wan wanted to make sure that the tension between the two countries stayed at an all-time high, regardless of if the village were to be destroyed or not he wanted to invoke the thought that the Hidden Mist had everything to do with the death of a Hokage as well as the destruction of a great village. As he finished up the letter he sealed it away tightly, closing it as he wrapped it twice with twine before sticking it inside his satchel, hoping to make the delivery for it to be sent out today. He packaged the Hokage hat within a small container as well, sending that along with a small amount of Ryo alongside the letter to better give off that Wan had 'died'. After all was prepared he fully jumped out of bed, taking to the showers of the Inn as he changed clothes and got ready for the day ahead.

Wan wrote:-Present that day-

The Senju known as Wan was walking from a postal stop within Sunagakure after dropping off a letter and a few other goods to be shipped under an alias other than himself. Everything seemed to be going as he planned, looking around as he stood in the position he reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter. Standing still the Senju would produce a cigar from his pockets and place it between his lips, following behind the actions with a flick of his lighter as he ignited one end of it. He took a pull and relaxed briefly, exhaling the smoke from his mouth into the air as he continued to look around him. It seemed as if the size of the village never dwindled, new faces being seen every day as if the village was simply producing new people from some hidden cloning chamber. A key indicator that the world around him was thriving, at least in comparison to places he had been before. Wan began to walk throughout the streets of the village with no true destination for the day. He had done all he planned on doing, so another chance to rest and relax was now on his empty plate. Continuing on he began to get small whiffs on a presence he had not quite known or at least seemed to be nearly forgotten. He would stop every-so-often during his walk and just stand in place, looking around as he tried to pinpoint who or what the chakra signature was coming from. He could 'feel' it and felt as if it was one he knew, but he couldn't grasp a distinction on it like the ones he had remembered.

He did his best to locate it, following it as a child would when playing Marco-Polo or a game similar: just keep going closer to however strong you feel it. He eventually came across a tavern, a rather busy one at that as the sounds of laughter, drinking, and conversing boomed from within the building as he stood outside of it. He was positive that the chakra he was feeling out was coming from inside there. It drew his interest strongly that he was quote-on-quote 'chasing the unknown', but the fact that he wanted to know who this mysterious signature was is the reason behind him tracking it down. He stepped inside the doors of the tavern, taking a few looks around ad the crowd when the corner of his eye began to focus on one an individual. Directing his full attention to the spot he noticed a man with features he had only seen once during his travels through Wind Country. "That hair..." he would think to himself, examining the white-as-snow skinned man who was sitting at the bar having drinks. He could see the man's right cheek from where he stood, a marking along it causing Wan to have flashbacks to his earlier days in Wind Country, back when he faced a strange man who turned up to be an Uchiha in a desert temple. The eyes of the man were not red as the one before, but Wan knew that the Uchiha could transform between their normal eye and the Sharingan pattern at will.

He was more-so concerned with rather this was the man from before or just a true look-alike.

Wan casually approached the bar, his hand wrapped around the strap on his satchel as he kept his chakra to normal levels, wanting to not give off any indication of him being a shinobi or ninja in practice. Just wanted the ideal present of a teen coming to grab a drink, that way if this truly was the man before then the man would know it based on Wan's appearance rather than how strong his chakra made him seem. "Mind if I have a seat?" he would say, hoping to lock eyes with the man after catching his attention with his question. Wan would pull the stool of the bar from up close to the counter, making enough room for him to walk around it and sit on it, keeping his attention on the man he sat in front of. He would place his bag on top of the counter. "If I'm intruding your personal space I apologize. I'm looking for an old acquaintance, one I haven't seen for many months since my initial arrival here. You wouldn't happen to be an Uchiha, would you?" Right then the Senju would be keenly paying attention to body language. Wan would hope that the last question would catch the man off guard, unsure of whether this was the man he once met before or not but if by chance the man was hiding his true identity for whatever reasons he would know that it was the same one since it would be undoubtedly impossible to lie about who he was when Wan knew that the man he fought against before was an Uchiha.

The Senju looked at the two bottles of whiskey on the table, assuming that they were purchased for by the man. He reached into his pockets and pulled out a small amount of Ryo, setting it beside the man as he reached over and grabbed a bottle and uncorked it, pouring the liquor directly into his mouth and swallowing without the need of a cup. He was sure the following conversation would be an interesting one, eager to reconnect with old feelings and an old 'friend' if this truly was the person he was seeking.

[WC: 1,669]

The Norseman sat at the bar, trying to find someone to drink with. The majority of the ones within the bar seemed to be duds, just a bunch of sad looking sods, so he decided that he would crack the bottle open and he would just start drinking on his own for now! He turned towards the bar and he tilted the bottle back, leaning back in the stool after feeling that smooth whiskey cascade down into his throat.

The Norseman had only had the chance to sip from the bottle that was next to him until he found him. The very one that he had been searching for when he had visited that village hidden within that dense forest. The child didn’t seem to have aged a day, only a smidge taller and maybe a bit more distinguished, even if only by a little. “Wan!” The young Norseman yelled out, his signature platinum hair reaching the top of the stool and his blue vest that he had also been wearing on the day that they had first met, he was sure that Wan would have noticed and recognized upon seeing him.

Wan walked up to him and set his money on the counter, Taichi loudly scoffed as he made a waving motion, having Wan take his money back. “No, no, I got you my friend! Come and sit down, I have a few questions for ya. You were the exact person I have been looking for. Heard you had become Hokage,” Taichi was sure to whisper the part about Wan becoming Hokage so he wouldn’t bring any unwanted attention to him, “and when I went to look for you, they told you left!” The Norseman took a swig from his bottle before finishing his sentence. “Why you out here?” Taichi would hold onto his bottle as he would wait for the man to respond, singing the praises to the Valkyries with a cheerful hum.

Rubbing his hand across his face from left to right he'd remove all traces of the loose Whiskey on his pallet, chuckling slightly to himself as he learned of the man he sat beside. It was indeed the same one from that day, the first Uchiha the Senju had even met. The man had changed, Wan surprised at how destiny seemed to completely reverse the two's look at life. The spikey-haired jolly man seemed calmer than the first time they met, give, or take the only interaction the two had ever performed was a fight for their lives. Wan was young, the event happening nearly a year ago back when he was first beginning to make a name for himself in Wind. These small flashbacks of how he first met the Uchiha helped him understand how he now met the same man. Wan himself used to be as jolly as this, liquor never needing to be a catalyst for the mood of the boy at one point in his life. Now he had grown a deep and descendant thought to rid humanity of all sufferings. He tilted his head slightly to the left, his hair hitting his shoulders as he took another drink from the bottle.

"I'm surprised that fate has brought us both here. What do they call you nowadays, friend? You seem as if you've found your path." He would take a gentle smile towards the man, not wanting to straight-up admit he didn't remember the name of the Uchiha. Wan realized the guy knew exactly who he was, even that he had become Hokage. It was true that the Senju was making a name for himself throughout the lands, but he didn't remember ever formally exchanging names during their battle. It didn't truly matter to him anymore. All he currently was concerned with was the current status of the man he was enjoying a few drinks with. He wanted to know more about where he had been and what he was currently up to, just as he figured his old friend would want to know of him."I'm no longer a true holder of the title Hokage. That village was nothing more than a flower pot hiding the worms of rot. Came home in search of more knowledge and connections." He would take another drink from the glass, placing the cup back down on the bar has he leaned his arm along the table. "What have you been doing since we last spoke? I can assume this isn't your first visit in this village as well? It's a lot to learn of within the walls of Sunagakure, you know." he would ask, finally deciding to pour a glass of the liquor instead of drinking waterfalls of it from the bottle. He would place the bottle down on the bar and pick up the glass, taking a drink from it as he waited to hear about the man's day.

[WC: 436]

Taichi leaned against the bar as the two ninja drank their whiskey. Taichi hung onto Wan's words, being interested in where life had taken the fellow Wood user. Taichi knew that this one was the Hokage, a title that the Norseman figured had a massive meaning to it. There was no way that being a leader to an entire village would be so easily given, so Wan must have grown vastly in his power since the fight that the two had so long ago. When Wan had mentioned the fact that he was no longer the Hokage, this left the Norseman in a bit of a confusion. "Why would one just leave their post like that?" Taichi thought to himself. To have such an honor, Taichi thought that it would be a feeling of such pride. It would be a feeling that you would never want to let go. While Taichi long ago had such a huge problem with the village system, he did always want to know just what it was like to be revered by so many, to be respected by a group of his peers. 


Taichi listened to the albeit short reasoning that he left the village. Being so curious as to what had happened to this individual, he seemed so much different than before, so much more solemn, depressed even. Taichi continued to listen to the man speak, wanting to show his respect for the friend from long ago. Wan had asked the Norseman what they call him now. Taichi didn't really know how to respond because he hadn't really talked to anyone. He wasn't famous by any means, really quite the contrary. Nobody knew who Taichi was and that is the exact way that taichi would like to keep it. The whole point of being a criminal was to ensure that nobody knew it was you committing the crimes. While he was sick of the criminal type lifestyle, he was still one so his identity needed to be quite hidden for him to be able to function within other societies. 




The once fiery child asked Taichi if this was his first visit, and the answer to that was no. He had been here several times since Wan had last met with Taichi in that temple on the border of the Sandy country. Taichi remembered that time very well surprisingly. Taichi was with that child, what was his name? He couldn't remember. Taichi had left the child at the Inn for a little while when he heard stories that there had been someone lurking around the temple. Taichi originally figured it was someone trying to defile them. But when he arrived he saw that child, full of spunk from what Taichi could remember. Eager to learn, eager to live. This was not the same person, this was a man who seemed to have been battered down by life. Beaten by his circumstances, this was someone that Taichi wanted to bring back. For the fire that child had was still inside of him. He just needed a little help to bring it back to how it once was.


 "Flower pot hiding worms of rot, eh? You speak as though you have lost that light. The fire that once roared inside of you. I still remember the day we met, out in the borders of the sands. You were exploring one of the temples, a curious one from what I remember. You were eager to live in this world. You were having a hard time in your home village, I believe you said it was underneath an overhatang of sorts. But even though you were despised by the very village you were in, you still had a smile on your face. Still excited about what the world had in store for you. Tell me, friend. Is that flame gone? Or is it just waiting to be stoked so it can once again roar?" Taichi would speak with a tone that was new even to Taichi. He knew that he had changed, but to be the one to actually try and bring someone back from the depths of a rut within their own life? That was something the Norseman would have thought unimaginable only a few months ago. 

"I believe it still lies within you, dormant. That is how I was for so long, almost my entire life. I lived as nothing more than just a shell of a man. Drifting day by day, just feeling the weight of the world crush me. Killing my will to be happy, destroying my will to live. But I was saved, I was saved by the Valkyries. Never again will I live that way. Never again will I allow this world to weigh me down!" Taichi spoke with such confidence, that he invigorated even himself. He knew that the words he spoke were true. He wanted nothing more than to share the feeling with Wan, maybe he was in need of the same type of treatment.

He took a very hard swallow from his glass, slowly letting the whiskey go down and burn on its way as he cliched his lips. He chuckled after hearing Taichi ask if his light had faded. Such dreams of a better tomorrow were long gone from the eyes of the proud-born Senju. The two of them both were aware of the circumstances concerning their past, but it seemed as if two of them decided to follow different walks of life during their ventures into the open world. "I can not build my faith on the principles of fading light. What I desire is a Light that never fails." His dreams of pursuing greatest through means of respect no longer mattered. To truly achieve peace Wan believed you needed to have control. "Whatever inside me needs rekindling deserves to see it's own opinion played out first. Not many take on the primitive teachings of Shinobi anymore." His tone was neither exact nor loud, only in a manner that fully enforced the way he felt about the questions asked. He didn't have much faith in finding a direct way of living, however, he did favor the old teachings of Shinobi that required them to show just how capable of an individual they were. Wan believed that growth in power was greater than growth in knowledge to an extent, that being that eventually, knowledge will become neutral in its growth. However, there is no true skill cap on ones' potential through their raw power.

Taichi went on to tell Wan about how he was saved by forces known as 'Valkyries'. The Senju had never heard of such beings, unsure if they were summons or true God-like spirits as those who roam the universe. Wan had foreign knowledge on spirits and the universe prior, meditation being the main thing he would do to get him through his days in the deserts of Wind Country. He and the Uchiha both seemed to have lost their life at some point, however, they both were found by two different calls to life after their separate interactions. The man vowed to never return to the life he once lived, Wan fully agreeing as he soon would nod his head after hearing everything from the Norseman. "I vow the same to myself." he would speak, nodding his head in agreement as he picks up his glass and finishes the shot off. "This world shall never weigh me down either. I will be one who lifts it."

"So how is it that we both have not seemed to found a true place of residence?" he would ask, assuming that Taichi also did not have a true village or home he pledged loyalty to. "I only became Hokage a month ago, finding out that they were being taxed nearly all of their earning by Kirigakure showed why they were unable to live up to the name of a Great Village anymore. Have you heard anything about that?" He would wonder if Taichi had any knowledge about the Great Villages or the subjugation of Kirigakure himself. Wan was someone who had become keen to keep up with world news, making sure that anything that might involve him directly was never given the chance to approach him in silence. "Has this new way of living for you attracted others, or was it here long before you and I probably existed? I'm just curious about if you've had a chance to establish a home for yourself unlike many missing ninjas of these days."

[WC: 588]

The Norseman took another swig of his whiskey while he listened to the man speak beside him. He spoke on how he could not build his faith on the principles of fading light. He desired a light that never failed. Taichi understood that concept, he too desired something that would bring him back to the world and out of the horror show that was his life for the majority of his existence. "Primitive teachings, eh?" Taichi thought to himself. Hearing Wan say that he vowed the same for himself and Taichi raised his bottle, toasting to such a commitment to oneself, "I'll drink to that, my friend! Hail the Valkyries!" Taichi yelled as he took a large swig from the bottle he held within his hand. 

Wan then turned from responding to asking questions of his own, and they were good questions. Wan asked the Norseman why it was that they had not yet found a true place of residence. This question made Taichi think for a moment, he grinned as he remembered the giant mountain. The mountain in which the beautiful voice had once called to him. "Actually, Wan. I know of a place that would be more than the perfect place of residence. The lands are beautiful, snow capped mountains. The lands below are perfect for crops and the wildlife there seem to have no end. The mighty mountain on the northern end of the island reaches for the heavens above, as if to be a meeting place for the gods of the world. That is where I want to live, that is the place that I want to call it home." Taichi had a small tear well up in his right eye, which Taichi let run down his cheek and fall onto his bottle. 


"That place is the place in which I heard the calls, the beautiful song of the Valkyrie queen. I have yet to earn her name, but one day I pray she allows me that courtesy." Suddenly a thought crashed into Taichi's head. "Wan...You should come with me! Maybe you can be one of the blessed ones that are given the gift of hearing the voice from within the mountain!" Taichi was so invigorated that someone else may join him in his quest to spread the truth of how their world had been created. 

Wan had talked about the horrid taxes being levied on the village of Konohagakure. Taichi, being fully aware of the villages, had not known that the two villages no longer looked to each other as allies. "No. To be honest I wasn't aware. Well good, I hope both of those villages burn." The Norseman's face would quickly turn to a more stern and fierce look, shortly before returning to it's more jovial state. He would at one point in his life care about the destruction of both institutions, but Taichi didn't any longer. He wanted nothing more than to return to his mountain, so he could hear the melodic voice as it echoed throughout the mountains.

Taichi heard the question about the beginnings, whether or not the way of living was here long before Wan and Taichi had been on this Earth. Taichi's eyes widened as he began thinking about the beginnings of the world. Taichi wrapped his arm around Wan's shoulder as he began to speak and explain. "Wan, I want you to envision a complete void in the universe. This is where the beginning takes place. Two realms made from the primordial forces being Ice and Fire. As the two continued to grow closer to each other, slowly melting the Ice and revealing the very first being, Ymir. 


Ymir was the very first being, the very first of the Jotunar race, the Frost Giants. This Frost giant slept, and as he slept the primordial force of fire began to make Ymir sweat, the droplets of sweat is where the very first of the Aesir had formed. The Aesir were gods that were all powerful. In an act of rage and jealousy, one of the Aesir, known as Odin killed Ymir, and he used the remains of Ymir to create the very planet that we are standing on right now. The mountains being his teeth, his blood were enough to fill the oceans, and so much of the world had been created from such a potent and powerful source." 

Taichi finished his explanation with another praise to the Valkyries as he swigged another gulp from his bottle. "So yes my friend. I have found myself a home and I think you should join me." Taichi would keep his arm around Wan's shoulder as he rose the bottle into the air and yelled a toast to his newfound friend, Wan Senju!

"Hmm. I'll make a toast to that one." He would raise not a glass but his fist to the man's bottle, knuckling Taichi's liquor after having already drunk 5 or 6 shots. It was still a sign of acceptance as he agreed to travel to the mountains the Uchiha spoke of, a soon to be home and providence backed by the grace of the Gods themselves. He was not at first truly amazed by such a prophecy at first; he having pursued Konohagakure for the same reason at Taichi. Wan felt as if there could be more to this place that was spoken so long as there was a will to make it. After all, he knew that there was never any true way of succeeding in life, one must be able to adapt and progress greater than themselves only. You cannot truly expect to do combat with someone you do not know before. If they were going into this country back on the faith of these Valkyries he also knew they would need to constantly improve their means of strength, whether it be their prowess or the might of their one-day shinobi branch. "I have a proposition for you as well, my friend." the Senju would say, resting his right arm back down along the counter as he continued their dialogue in the bar.

"If there is to be a home for those like us then people like us will soon come, correct?" he would say this to Taichi in a lesser than concerned manner, already knowing the answer as he simply wanted to see if he and the truth-spoken man were on the same page of them eventually growing the ranks of the territory in which they were to claim. "I have one with me who is Young and Gifted, as always. She is a monster hunter of the Tailed Beasts, or at least she will soon be as I continue to monitor her progression. Her name is Fu, and I'd need her to remain alongside me if we were to continue from this point." Wan would make the request short yet confidently, sure of the fact that bringing an extra set of well-disciplined hands would come in handy to the project. "If there is anything in the world that we will need an abundance of, it'll be money and knowledge." he'd say just loud enough for the two of them to hear, talking as the two would soon wrap the conversation up and conclude the best route afterward. "We can all travel together from Sunagakure after me and her finish establishing connections here. It's not going to take much longer."

The Senju would take one last sip from his glass, the waitress walking by asking if he wanted something else. He would politely tell her 'No', the woman smiling as she reached over and grabbed his glass for him, taking it away as he began to wipe any form of debris from his clothes. "Thank you." he would say slightly slurred to her as she continued along with her job, redirecting his gaze from her back to Taichi as he waited for the answers to his questions. Whatever would be said would be fine with the young lord, ready to begin the same journey he once pursued: The different ends of the same snakes he would refer to it as.

[WC: 555]

Taichi hung on every word that the former Hokage spoke. Every word seemed to align perfectly with his very own ideals. This man was one that Taichi could feel as though they could most certainly become allies, hell maybe even friends. Taichi was reading far too much into the situation, this was of course their second time meeting. But it was odd, just how fate brought them together yet again, even when they were so far apart. Taichi was happy that he had possibly found himself an individual that would see the world as he did. 

Taichi heard that Wan had a proposition for him, which he was vastly interested in. He leaned in to ensure that Wan had all of his attention. As he heard that name, a very familiar name he leaned into the bar with his side. He grinned, which then turned into a chuckle. As he chuckled, he told Wan to give him one second as he walked over to one of the booths that was in the corner of the bar. He grabbed a woman whom he had thrown a coat over to disguise her from someone who may have known her, and made it seem as though she was sleeping. 

"This is the Fu you are speaking of, right?" Taichi leaned Fu onto the bar, using branches he created from the wood under the bar to hold her up in place. "Wan I have to tell you that I am concerned about this one. She blinded herself and then tried to use a pointed attack during our spar. She did not come up with any type of deterrent from my own attack. We will have to work hard with this one, but I know she has a lot of potential." Taichi would laugh hardily and drink the last drop of whiskey within his bottle. 

"Well Wan. I think you and I, and your friend here, have a lot of work ahead of us. When you have finished setting up your connections, I want you to meet me at the mountain. I have a place that I need to go before I go there, I need to visit the village Kazangakure to try and bring another individual along with us. You can go there with me first should you care to, if not, meet me in Snow country. I will be able to find you as I have now memorized your chakra signature. Using a few of my sensory techniques, I will be able to travel wherever within the world you are." 

Taichi then handed Wan a map that showed Kazangakure. "This is where I am going to be going from here before I go to the mountain. As I said, should you care to join me, you would be most welcome. If not, then I will see you within Snow country. The mountain we are going to is quite difficult to find among all of the other mountains, so we will need to travel inland together. That is, of course, you begin to hear a siren's call." Taichi's eyes would glow with adoration as he began thinking of the melodic voice that had led him to the mountain for the first time all that time ago. "If you hear the voice, follow it. Don't question it, just follow and you too shall find the mountain and be seen as worthy enough from the gods themselves. Do you understand?" Taichi would slam his hand against the bar in excitement. 

Taichi would then turn to the woman that was being held up by the bar. "I shall leave this woman for you if you are familiar with her. I hope to see you in Volcano, brother. Don't worry, she will come back to us in the next couple of hours." Taichi walked out of the bar, wanting to go to the library before he left the village, hoping he would find something on Odin, or at least the Valkyries.

TWC: 2773

+575 towards Earth Flow River (Completed) (Previous Progress)
+1875 towards V7 Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings Technique (Completed) [Max Stat Discount applied]
+323 towards V7 Temple of Nirvana (323/1875) [Max Stat Discount applied]