The Huntress

Epilogue

In the Shizuka Plains, Dakuhosu grunted in frustration as he received a summons. Why the hell was Katsume calling for him before the sun has yet to rise? Odd... Not surprising, just odd. Katsume is a bit of an insomniac, but it was still unusual for her to bother him at this hour, especially if they are to set out at dawn...

Must be important.

The large ebony beast huffed and lunged to stand from his lying position beside his mate. Looking over his herd one last time before accepting the summons, he vanished.

A plume of smoke made his arrival apparent, but when the cloud cleared, it revealed a sight he hadn't seen in years; Katsume, with flushed complexion and tear-stained cheeks, needed no words to tell him how much she'd cried. Was still crying. Her honey-brown eyes pleaded at him in the moonlit meadow, the willow tree they'd often napped under together in his peripheral. He'd known she had been putting off her farewells, and it seemed she'd finally mustered up the courage. A bit last minute, he thought, which didn't give her or her friends much time to process the departure. But maybe that was her intention.

Daku's keen ears heard a strangled whimper sound at the back of her throat and he sighed. "Come here," he said in his gruff voice, so gentle that it surprised Katsume enough to widen her eyes just a bit. The simple words forced a choked sob from her as she rushed and wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his thick noir mane.

He let her hold onto him, let her soak his mane and shiny coat in her tears, allowing her to let it all go. Just as he used to do when she was young and she'd grip his mane tightly in her smaller fury-marred hands. There were times in the past when she needed comforting but wouldn't say it outright, she never really did. But he always knew, could always feel the shift in her aura.

Unlike the toads of Mount Myoboku, the Equus residing in the Shizuka Plains don't rely on a physical contract, but through creating a type of bond through chakra and soul. It is quite difficult and requires immense training and control of one's chakra, which he knew Iroha drilled into her for good reason. To prepare her to intertwine her chakra with an Equus in the heat of the introductory battle...or die by their hooves.

Papa Grande was bonded to the "Old Bat", as Katsume calls her, for nearly half a century. Katsume...she was her inheritor of the bond. Unheard of, but possible. But that didn't mean that the bond was just given over to her. Blood played no factor. Inheritor is just the title, he knew Katsume earned the bond he shared with her. He witnessed her grit and loyalty, and he wouldn't have accepted the bond had he thought her unworthy.

The beast laid his massive head over her shoulder, pressing her close to his wide chest as she gripped his neck tighter. He could feel her pain, the guilt that weighed on her heart. Her soul. He had half a mind to scold her for waiting until the night before to tell her friends she was leaving, to tell him especially-the Scarecrow. But he understood. Despite her mind denying it for the sake of her heart...he could feel her love for the silver-haired ninja.

"Katsume..." he said as he nudged her back a bit. She wiped her tears with the heel of her palm and sniffed, looking up at his horizontal pupils. Daku inhaled and spoke in a gentle tone, lowering his head so he was at eye level. "I can feel your turmoil. These people are your home...leaving it-them-is not easy." A shift of his weight. "But you have a personal mission that you must prioritize if you are to protect the peace you've found. You know that, and that is why we must leave. Your people love you, they'll understand. If not now, then eventually."

Katsume nodded silently. She knew he was right. She knew of her duty and the task at hand. The mission she hadn't divulged to anyone but Daku, and the research she'd done in secret and will continue on her two-year journey.