Shinobi Isekai: Round Three

I Walk Through the Valley

Kokuo pawed at the barren earth beneath her hooves. In her time as a weapon of war, she'd seen the mindscapes of three different humans. This one was the worst, she thought, and she couldn't help but long for her home range in the Land of Grass. Maybe, if she'd been sealed inside someone from the plains, the confines of her seal wouldn't be so desolate.

Her latest prison was a young child, and, yet, his mind was a drought cracked canyon, a pathetic excuse of a river running through bland grey stone. The sky was frozen in perpetual twilight, neither, nor moon, nor stars to light the way. It was a reflection of his sense of self and she used to it to convince herself he wasn't the sort she wanted to meet, regardless of how lonely she was. It had been a long time since one of her siblings called for her, though she had the feeling one or more were nearby. She hadn't noticed how reliant she was on Son Goku's faint presence until he disappeared from her range. It wasn't the first time he'd done so, but he didn't come back this time. For so long, she wallowed in the unending darkness of her prison's mind, kicking herself for not reaching out to him, herself. Though they were often in range of each other, they learned early on that communicating across seals was the swiftest path to having their seals examined and maybe even changed.

She walked through the canyon, her hooves kicking up dust as she approached the river. Her prison was back in range of Son Goku's, so she could once again sense her younger brother. And one of the elder three. When was the last time Choumei was in range of her? Why was his prison together with hers and Son's? Were the humans at war again?

There was no point in asking such questions, she knew. No one was going to answer them. Her seal served as a solid wall between her and the world outside it. If she wanted to know anything, she would need to reach across the seals to one of her siblings, but the knowledge wasn't worth inviting human scrutiny.

She shook her head and sighed. This was a far cry from the herd life she'd lived on the plains.

A rogue wind had dust billowing in the air and she closed her eyes against it. What was this? Was her prison going through some kind of turmoil? Was the barren canyon going to become a dustbowl? Was it puberty?

KOKUO!

What?

She lifted her head, squinting as she tried to look into the heart of the windstorm. She could have sworn...

Kokuo! Yes, it was Choumei. The giant insect was flying right for her, three sets of wings kicking up so much dust she could barely make out his silhouette. I'm coming!

Oh, dear.

She stumbled back in a last minute attempt to avoid her brother as he barreled right for her. All those wings couldn't stop him in time and he collided with her, sending them both tumbling into the trickling creek. Kokuo's hooves kicked out at the open air as she lay on her back, her brother quickly scrambling off of her so she could roll over. His wings were now damp, so he wouldn't be flying anywhere, soon.

Choumei? Why are you here?

To see my baby sister, of course! The insect pulled himself up to his full height, balancing on his central tail as his red orange wings fanned out to dry. He was a magnificent sight. The last time she saw him, he was little more than a grub. Insects underwent more extreme changes over the course of their lives than any other creature, so that made sense, in a way. Still, it was hard to wrap her head around her memories of her brother and the fully grown beast before her. When he'd spoken with her to share strange, cryptic information, it had been with his voice only, since he was 'occupied with other matters'. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed something moving on his left shoulder, a flash of red crawling on the armored chitin.