Yukari's Story

Yukari looked around and remembered the directions her father had given her before he had sent her off to the village from Hana Valley. She walked straight to the temple and could already feel her temper starting to simmer. This was not gonna be a day she would smile about at all. She entered the temple and noticed 2 dogs had already arrived and placed themselves on their pillows. One, a male it seemed, was wagging his tail looking like he was about to implode from excitement and the other, a female husky, was lying down looking bored out of her fur. Yukari rolled her eyes and entered the temple smelling the incense immediatly. Slightly spicy without being overpowering on the nose, possibly cinnamon or cherry flowers.

Yukari walked along the line of pillows and found hers at the end of the row. Under her name was her family crest, a paw with the kanji for Legend engraved into it. Yukari sighed and turned the pillow over with her paws and nose so the crest wasn't visible anymore. She then sat down facing forward and staying alert as she ha been taught to. She would look like she was ready to pounce at any moment with her tail resting on the floor and her eyes fixated forward onto the Platform. She was sitting so close to it and she was sure her father had requested this exact seat for her which only helped her temper to rise. The ogs in the background mumbled to each other after Yukari had sat doown.

"She sat on the pillow with Haruka's crest on it.".

"It must be his daughter. She is specially trained as a warrior."

"She turned the pillow over. Is she saying her duty as a warrior is more important than family?"

Yukari growled as the mumbling kept going on. All this gossip made her irritable. It was all so utterly useless and yet these dogs seemed to cling to it as if thir life depended on it. She stopped her growling as the mumbling died out or at least got more quiet. She stayed in her alert position as she waited for someone else to enter and for the welcomng ceremony to start. Yukari could feel she wished for it to start soon so she could go back to training her abilities and perfect hr aim completely. It was still about a quarter of an inch off leaning to the right side.

Yukari looked to the door as a small dog entered and yipped. The little female was obviously a spoilt furball used to maintaining her claws and not perform labour. Was she even suited for a warrior? Yukari let out a slight sigh figuring it would take´that pooch some getting used to, especially because the german shepherd husky mix expected to train and get her fur dirty. Another dog entered, a male this time covered in scars. Yukari tilted hr had and immediatly admired him. He was a pittbull and he looked like he was ready to defend anything. He looked like a real warrior in complete contrast to the rest of the motley crew. The male akita and the pomeranian pooch both kept on talking and teasing the pittbull causing Yukari's temper to snap. She narrowed her eyes and glared at the 2 dogs.

"How about you both remain quiet instead of yip-yapping away about things that are not required for you to survive in this world?" she said. "Be concerned of yourselves instead of sticking your muzzles in the matters of others unless you are seeking to get hurt by someone someday" she said and looked towards the podium again. All of this gossipping was really annoying and appearently no even her fellow warriors were above it. Yukari would have to train really hard to set an example and hopefully inspire the others to train just as hard, not that it was going to be easy. On the other hand Yukari loved a challenge. It always presented an oppoertunity to outshine her father, Haruka.

Yukari's little outburst had caused the dogs present to mumble again and Yukari could only imahine what they were saying this time. Babbling about her being rough, not like her father, harsh towards her fellow warriors and so on and so forth. Yukari rolled her eyes and kept awaiting the arrival of the princess. She was looking forward to meeting the princess and couldn't wait to protect her from evil forces and hopefully show the world she was not her father, but she was better. Yukari had her mission and she was not about to allow herself to fail or let anyone slow her down. Not even a warrior like herself.

The pitbull’s ears lifted when Mizuki chimed a greeting. He could feel her energy and even though her voice was shrill and harsh, there was warmth in it. If his tail wasn’t docked, he would have had one to wag. Instead, his little nub wiggled a little.

Yeah, are ya too shy to come and search for your name or something?

That had caused his tail to go still. The pitbull regarded the Akita coldly. If dogs could frown, he would have. Takeshi might have thought that he was being funny, but Nobu didn’t. If he had been next to him, he would have bit him in the face, but the Akita had confirmed his suspicions. The placards did have the dogs’ names on them.

Princess Fuse may not have minded where he sat, but the dogs who were supposed to sit on those pillows would.

The dogs then got into an argument over him. One was trying to sympathize with him as though he were some pitiful pup. Nobu’s snout wrinkled as he growled, “I don’t need this…”

The pitbull walked out of the house with his teeth bared like a bulldog. The dogs that had been talking about him earlier began snickering to each other to see him come back out.

Rejected already.

I saw it coming.

Nobu snapped his head to his left, glaring wildly at the gossip hounds. The hounds gazed back with their ears flat and tails between their legs. Nobu snorted and resumed his walk back toward the bridge. These dogs thought they were better than him, and it pissed him off.

Yukari watched the events play out before her small yellow eyes. The pittbull with the many scars scowled and left the room obviously offended having the small spoilt pomeranian follow him to get him back. ~Seeking his approval... superficial~ Yukari thought and stretched. A warrior couldn't be friends with everyone. By default there would be people disapproving of them and as wariors it was their duty to turn their back on them and not give a paw-print about their attitude. They had a job to do afterall. Yukari heaved a sigh and snapped out of her line of thoughts. Now was not the time to go over her lessons at all. Now was the time to pay attention and wait for the princess. Sh twitched her ears as she heard a voice speaking up.

"If he can't handle a small joke then he's better off not becoming a warrior"

Yukari looked to the akita as he was still running his mouth. Slowly ice formed around his muzzle and the female husky, whom had kept herself silent, spoke up and told him to shut up. Yukari instantly gained respect for the female and nodded gently. If dogs could smile, Yukari would have flashed a faint one, but as she couldn't her eyes eased up a little instead. "Well said" Yukari said to the husky and stretched her hind legs backwards one after another. She had been travelling for a few days and the sudden motion of just sitting down had caused them to fall asleep. She looked over to the akita and tilted her head gently. So the husky had ice powers evidently. Yukari wondered for a few minutes what powers the other dogs possessed. It would be interesting to know, definetly. Yukari sighed again and looked back onto the podium. Hioefully everything would be sorted out when the princess arrived. If not things wouldn't start off very well.

"Welcome everyone. Thank you all for coming."

Yukari looked to the princess when she arrived and imediatly bowed her head in respect. "Princess..." she mumbled to herself and kept quiet while the ceremony started. She had waited for this moment and it was finally here. The initiation ceremony had started. She looked up and awaited the rest of the ceremony hearing a thumping sound against the wooden floor. The akita's tail was trying to dent the floor boards but at least he had the manner to sit on it so he wouldn't damage the property of the Satomi house.

"I see you're happy to be here,"

The princess seemed amused with the akita which obviously was lucky for him. Yukari would have snapped his tail off for not being able to control it when it was needed. Who knew what he would be like under a mission where they needed to hide and his tail went hay-wire like it just did now. He would blow their cover and compromise the mission, thereby the safety of everyone starting with the princess. Yukari blinked and regained her focus on what wa important. The ceremony and of course the floating orbs. Yukari looked to the coloured orbs and nodded hoping she would be granted one she would connect with easily.

"Hm...so there are only three of you?"

The princess murmered after taking a look at the 3 and Yukari could understand her disappointment. None of them were close to becoming full-fledged warriors, not even herself, and 2 had even left. Yukari looked to the door where the pittbull had ryn off through and been stalked by the little pomeranian pooch. She took a deep breathe and looked to the floor. "If I may speak, princess. One, a male pittbull, left and another, a pomeranian female, went to retrieve him, I believe" she said expecting to be punished for speaking without permission. A punishment she would gladly take, but somehow she felt she needed to explain why only 3 dogs were present.

Outside the temple in Kusa village a black Kai Ken dog barely out of his puppy-years was roaming arund the town sniffing and searching for something. He was looking for the temple but whenever he tried to ask someone he eared himself a growl and no contructive answer. If one paid attention to what he was saying, they would soon figure out it was because his explanation of his situation turned into him trying to get a date with the dog he was asking for directions. Naturally he was only speaking to females. After ruining his chance at finding his way again Hiroshi heaved a deep sigh. "I'll never make it to the temple at this pace" he mumbled as he started crossing a bridge. As he crossed it he spotted 2 other dogs. A pitbull that looked like he had been a victim to a band of angry cats with the many scars he wore and a small pomeranian that looked a little out of place with how well-maintened she was. Hiroshi nodded to himself and walked over to them. Just as he got near they walked away. Hiroshi, out of his self-proclaimed lady-killer instinct, followed them and soon found himself in the temple.

Hiroshi stumbled forward and looked to what he pressumed was the princess. "Your highness... I'm..." Hiroshi suddenly found himself unable to speak what he wanted to but instead humbled himself down. "I'm late... My apologies... But I want this... I want to be a warrior and serve you... Serve everyone... Please let me become one. I won't be late again, I promise" the young kai ken whimpered as he sat down on the wooden floor and bowed his head in shame. This beautiful woman had no reason to give him a chance but deep inside he still hoped she would.

Yukari looked backwards to the black dog that had entered and was now pleading his case. She was happy at least one more was here but wasn't sure wether the princess would allow him to become a warrior or not. She seemed fair but there were still traditions to uphold, rules and of course a certain standard that needed to exsist. Yukari decided whatever the princess decided to do, she would have her reasons to do so and it was not Yukari's place nor her right to doubt and question them.

Hiroshi bowed to the princess after she had spoken and took a seat on his assigned pillow. He was happy he had one otherwise he would have, once again, made a complete fool of himself. Then again, the situation og him not making a fool of himself was very unusual so maybe this was negative somehow in some odd sort of karma-ish kind of way. Hiroshi loooked to the other dogs and saw the little pomeranian from the bridge. She was a warrior too appearently and she was cute. Very cute and not just because she was small and fuzzy-looking.

Yukari gave the pomeranian a quick look before turning her focus back onto the princess. She gathered the pomeranian was grateful but Yukari just did what she had to do. She wasn't looking out for anyone in particular or trying to get them inside despite leaving the temple. Not that she would show anyways. She was rather curious though as to why the pomeranian had left the temple to search for a stranger. Wasn't her duty as warrior more important? Yukari shaked her head and felt slightly confused and maybe somewhere under her fur a little jealous of the pomeranian. She obviously had a lot of guts to do something like that and expect to still become a warrior when she came back and whimpered. Yukari couldn't tell if it was real guts or just arrogance, but whatever it was she wished she had it too.

"These bandanas bear the mark of the Satomi House. Keep them on at all times, and everyone will know who you are. These satomi power orbs will give you strength."

The princess said. Hiroshi looked to both the badanas and the orbs with amazement in his eyes. This was truly amazing and he would recieve one of those and get to wear it proudly like a tiger making all the ladies swarm to him like ants to sugar and he would sweeten up their everyday lives bwing that amazig warrior. Hiroshi watched as one dog after another was called up to the podium and recieved their bandana and orb. The princess said a few words to them as she magically fastened the orb to the bandana and Hiroshi felt honoured to even witness it and proud he would have one too.

Yukari heard her name being called and she got up from her pillow leaving the crest still unseen from when she had turned over the pillow. She could hear the mumbling and whispering and several mentions of her father's name. She heaved a light sigh and bowed to the princess after standing up on the podium. She presented herself humbly and awaited the princess' words whatever they would be. She decided no to gaze at her orb until she was alone. Instead she would respect the princess by giving her 100% of her focus while the ceremoney was going on. Once it was over and she had a moment alone, she would inspect her orb and admire it.

Yukari kept her head bowed as she recieved her bandana and orb and listened to the words of the princess hoping to find some sort of magic wisdom in them that she could use later on.

"May your honesty and discipline help guide you throughout your journey"

Yukari blinked. Honesty and discipline... She was disciplined she knew that much... Honest... she wasn't too sure about that one but maybe that was one of the many things the princess could see in her that was hidden to herself. YUkari ept wondering as she walked off the podium.

Hiroshi watched as the female germa shepherd husky mix got her black gear. Curious really. Could a warrior be all black? Wouldn't that suggest she was evil and perhaps working for Orochi? He shaked his head and decided not to speculate. Afterall he was an all-black dog and he certainly was not working for Orochi. Quite contraire. He was aiming to become a warrior and hoped his name would be mentioned as well.

"He's not here anymore"

A female said. Hiroshi looked to his side and saw a female husky. He admired her fur for looking very smooth and beautiful though he snesed a little coldness in her voice. She obviously cut right o the chase, based on her tone of voice. Hiroshi decided in his own mind that he was gonna warm her up with the passion that was burning in his chest and gave life to his fire-power.

"Hiroshi"

This time the princess was speaking and what a wonderful word. Though it sounded very familiar to Hiroshi. The dog blinked and shaked his head snapping out of his daydreams. The princess had spoken his name and he was off to Lala-land surrounded by female worshippers including the princess. The black Kai-ken stood up from his pillow and rushed to the podium. On his way up the stairs he managed to stumble over his own paws and hammer nis muzzle into the wooden floor. "Ow..." he whimpered and rubbed his nose with his paw while sitting. So much for fixing the already bad first impression. Maybe this whole deal was a bad idea...

Yukari looked to the black Kai-Ken after she had seated herself still not checking her orb out at all. She tilted her head as the young black dog rushed to the posium and managed to muzzle-dive into the floor as if it was made of treats or high-end ox steaks. The youngling whimpered and Yukari heaved a light sigh. This one would need a lot of training, starting with eye-to-paw cordination followed by not displaying pain to anyone, not even allies.

Hiroshi felt the bandana being tied around his neck and opened his eyes as his orb lit up while being fastened to it. He kept his head down in shame from falling in front of the princess as she spoke her words to her.

"May your bravery and geniality help guide you throughout your journey"

Hiroshi noticed the princess paused before she spoke and Hiroshi could feel his courage and happiness drop dramatically. The princess was disappointed in his performance, it didn't take a genius to figure that one out. He slumped onto his pillow and bowed his head in shame from making a fool of himself and disappointing the princess on the first day. After he had sat down the princess spoke again.

"Thank you all for offering yourselves as warriors today"

After the ceremony Hiroshi remained on his pillow still bowing his head in shame. He was so utterly heartbroken because of his performance at the ceremony that he was ready to just lay down an be devoured by insects or small demons. He had managed to be late first of all and when his name was called he had chosen to kiss the floor boards and even whimper in front of the princes like a puppy. Hiroshi poked his orb with his paw and sighed. Maybe he wasn't fit to be a warrior. The princess didn't seem to think he was though she didn't say anything about it.

Yukari stood up and bowed to the princess showing her respect before she walked outside and stretched her legs. She looked around lookking for a nice cool place to lay down and relax but ended up walking back to the temple and sat down on the porch observing the villagers in Kusa Village going about their buisness after the ceremony. She let out a yawn flashing her shiny sharp teeth as she started to wonder if there was some sort of shrine or tribute to former warriors. If there was she should definetly pay it a visit to show her respect and to have a boost of inspiration and enthusiasm, though she was sure several dogs of her linage would be there as well.

Hiroshi looked to the german sheperd husky mix that left the room. Was she really that arrogant? Leaving before the meeting was ajourned? How could she do that? It was so disrespectful to the princess.

"Your first mission is to head towards Kamiki Village. There's a lot of talk about strange things happening there"

Hiroshi lifted hs head and looked to the princess. "Kamiki village..." he mumbled and looked to the others. The only other male in the group seemed very much excited for the assignment and Hiroshi could very well understand the feeling though he still remembered, thanks to a nose that still hurt, that he had made a fool of himself at the ceremony. He got up an followed the 3 other dogs outside onto the porch where the Akita talked to the german shepherd husky mix.

"Hey Yukari, before we left the princess said we should head towards Kamiki"

The akita said looking at Yukari. She lifted her head and nodded. "Alright" she said and got up on her 4 paws. She shaked herself and nodded. "An order is an order" she said and was a little sad she wouldn't have a chance to look for a shrine for former warriors. She sighed and looked to the akita and nodded in respect. "Thank you for filling me in" she said waited for Takeshi to walk first as she poked the porch floor with her right front paw.

Hiroshi looked to the akita and german sheperd husky mix and waited for them. He moved closer to the 2 females and smiled deciding they should get to knoe each other, especially now that the male akita was gone. He sat down by the females and looked to them, especially the small pomeranian. "So... why did you 2 sign up to be warriors?" he asked trying his best not to start hitting on them as he knew this would only make him seem like a even bigger loser than he already looked like.

Hiroshi looked at the small pomeranian as she spoke about her reasons for becoming a warrior. Her voice was high-pitched but to Hiroshi it was somehow also very soothing. He really was a weird dog when things came down to it, but that was not what worried him at that moment. He was more worried about making her hate him.

"To be completely honest, I joined so I could get a better paw at fighting. Sounds a bit selfish, but I've had a bit of a rough past where knowing how to defend myself would've come in handy"

The little fuzzy pooch said. Hiroshi fought a sudden urge to nuzzle the little dog lovingly to reassure her and promise her to protect her whatever it took. He smiled and nodded at the little female and tilted his head as she spoke again.

"What about you?"

Mizuki asked and gave Hiroshi a little smile that made him very warm inside. "I grew up hearing about the warriors and they were always my heroes," he said and nodded. "I've never been really god at anything, so when the chance came I naturally signed up right away to become a warrior. I want to be someone's hero too" the kai ken said and shot out his chest looking proud though he quickly became humble again and looked down. "I don't think I'm doing so good so far"

Yukari looked to Takeshi as he grinned and looked around until he spoke. The german sheperd husky mix looked to the akita and tilted her head as he spoke asking if they could stop by a merchant stand to get something to eat before he started walking. "Breakfast sounds good" she said and felt her own stomach agreeing with that statement. "I vote yes on that" she declared and followed the akita to the rest of the group.

Hiroshi looked to the 2 dogs that arived and heard them speak of breakfast. "Food? I'm definetly in" he said and ran in circles getting exited. He hadn't eaten all day because he was so nervous and now that everything was over and done with he was ready to eat a pile of bones the size of Mount Fuji.

Angel gave a little squeak when she was unexpectedly snagged and tossed onto the larger dog's back. It took the ball of fluff a moment to get her barring, but soon she was giggling and wagging her tail. "It's nice to meet you, Nobutoshi!" She announced happily. Angel had never ridden on the back of another dog before, but it didn't take long for her to lay down and get comfortable.

The new view was so distracting that Angel almost missed Nobu's question. "Oh! Orochi and his minions mostly.. but any baddie that threatens Nippon should be taken care of! Don'cha think?" Angel added the last bit as an after thought, tilting her head and looking at Nobu.. or at least looking at the back of his head. Assuming -everyone- knew about Orochi, Angel didn't elaborate on the demon.

The tiny dog was quite enjoying the right Nobu had decided to give her. Her tail wagged the whole time the walked. However, she was eventually distracted by a group of dogs heading down the dirt road with bandannas and glowing orbs. "Are those the warriors?! They are aren't they?!" Then the white dogs ears and tail drooped. "Does that mean Angel's to late...?" Angel had gone from her normally happy self, to super excited, then to sad in about two seconds flat.