A traveler without a destination!

[Paroxysm]

“Huh,” Kano shrugged. “Isatso?”

The man waved Chen off as he started heading to wherever it was he was going; Kano, after all, had nothing more to really say. In fact, he was going to get back to work, leaving Chen to his own devices and more importantly, to his food.

There were still plenty of hours in the day to get work done and now, at this point, the rest of the villagers, who weren’t out in the fields, would begin their routines, children would do their chores, and women would begin preparing their own food, for their families. The only exception would be the small man from earlier, who, ever since the initial confrontation, would be sitting at the entrance of his hut, staring off into the distance. He would actually remain here, all day, and never once move from the spot. It was a form of meditation for him, although it most definitely broke away from the tried practices. It was soothing to simply sit still and be, and the villagers never expected him to help out with the day-to-day work. He had a different kind of job, although it would never be spoken in the open.

Regardless, should Chen ever feel the need to find this man, who apparently caught his interest, he need only look about the village for a short time, before Man-san became visible. It didn’t matter when Chen decided to seek out this person, either. He wouldn’t retreat into his hunt until very late in the evening or was called inside by his sister. For now, though, Chen was free to enjoy his food in solitude, as the villagers would shy away from where he headed, not out of fear, or hate--but because they had work to do.

[Shin]

Chen appreciated the chance to be alone, there were still many things he wanted to do that required his solitude. First was first though, he removed the small pack he carried with him. It held nothing more then basic supplies, tools for cooking and the such. Chen didn't waste anytime in preparing his campsite, he carried water from the stream, cut the vegetables and fruit and proceeded to cook his meal.

By no means could Chen be considered a cook, he merely cut up vegetables and dropped them in the boiling water. Once that was ready he ate like king, or at least to him it seemed that way. The meal tasted delicious and it didn't take long for Chen to devour nearly everything he grabbed from the storehouse, though he was smart enough to pack away a few things for later.

When he was finished eating, and cleaned up the area he had been using, Chen took the time to meditate by the waters edge. It was relaxing and very much needed by the young monk, he cleared his mind of thoughts and simply reflected on the happenings of the day and what fortunes it had brought him.

By the time he finished the sun would have started it's decent and the men of the village would no doubt be on their way back to eat after a hard days work. It was at this time that Chen decided to wander through the village, he didn't have a particular destination in mind but kept his eyes open for Man-san.

Eventually and by chance Chen found his way near the man, walking around the corner of one building to see him sitting at the entrance to his home. "Hello." Chen said with one of his customary smiles as he walked closer to Man-san. "I wanted to thank you for earlier today."

[Paroxysm]

As Chen approached he would find Man relaxing calmly at the entrance of his house, his head propped up by his palm, which was, in turn, propped up by his elbow resting lazily upon his leg, which was bent, and folded atop the opposite. His clothing from earlier had already been changed and he was now wearing a yukata, it was a grade above the other villager’s clothing, it was made from the same material, of course; cotton, but it was finer and even looked new. Once he noticed Chen’s appearance, he instinctively reached his free arm back to ensure the entrance to his home, nothing more than a curtain, was properly closed.

“Thank me?” He questioned, looking up towards the larger man. There was no surprise in his eyes and his innocence was obviously faked, and that fact wasn’t concealed in the slightest. At most, he was perhaps playing with Chen. “Why, sir, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Despite pretending to not know what Chen was referring to, the man, called Man, spoke with a high class tone, each word was pronounced in the most refined, and respectable way imaginable.

As Chen closed the distance between the two, he would, assuming he had a sufficient sense of spatial awareness and spiritual awareness, feel an almost invisible weight around himself and Man, in fact; it was as though there were a solid wall between the two, but that was not entirely true. If he had moved forward, nothing would stop him, but there was something there.

Feigning ignorance, Man did not press on the subject, he didn’t continue speaking, or offer anything near hospitality to Chen. He merely sat there, looking up at the stranger, his eyes focused intently, as if in study. It would be for Chen to pursue further conversation.

[Shin]

Chen didn't know what would possess the man to deny helping him earlier, it had been a selfless act, one that demanded he be thanked for it. Since Man-san was taking no effort in concealing the fact that he was lying Chen made no effort to conceal that he didn't believe him. Actually, Chen continued as if he hadn't heard the man at all.

He didn't walk any closer but he did bow in respect to Man-san. Chen was a very traditional individual and being raised in a monastery had definitely imprinted a different set of morals and beliefs then your average person. Lying, no matter how harmless, was not tolerated, It would be better for a person to simply say that they did not wish for the gratitude.

Chen didn't walk any farther then he had to and so he only vaguely felt the spiritual energy that he assumed came from Man-son. It struck Chen as odd that someone with such a potent spirit would be sitting here, though he didn't question it. Every man has their own path, he reminded himself.

"Regardless." Chen said with a shrug. "You have my thanks."

Not bothering to stay any longer then he needed to Chen bowed once again and turned to leave, headed back towards where he had decided to make camp for the night.

[Paroxysm]

Night had settled upon the cozy, make-shift village without much of a fight--a day’s hard work had been had and many of the villagers were exhausted, but all of their work was good for the soul; disregarding the fact that it improved their life. Indeed, Chen would find the area devoid of noise, save for the ambience of the woods, bugs, animals, and the like. However, despite the solitude and comfort of the wood, around a mile away from Chen’s current location, the surface of a pond rippled ever so slightly, this pond had been fishless for years, it was one of the reasons the village had not settled in the area, but there was a bigger reason … The beast had made this pond its home, it was a terrifying animal, both powerful, and graceful. The sight of it had scared dozens of warriors and at one point, it had even been worshiped as a God, an animal spirit that was paid tribute when anybody was unlucky enough to pass by, however; these practices were long forgotten. The village had settled away from this area out of superstition, but the fear was not misplaced--the beast was real.

As if on some mysterious cue, a fountain of water shot forth from the surface of this pond, this isolated body of water, and a blur of movement was all that could be seen as the water fell back down--subject to gravity. However, this blur would continue moving, as if having a goal of its own, a trajectory so precise that there were not even a few degrees of error, it was on a razor’s edge, this thing, and it was not slowing down. It would be at this point that the wood Chen had taken to camping inside, near the creek, would become increasingly louder, in fact; if Chen had been asleep he would now be forcefully awakened; it was so loud.

Chen’s first sight, regardless of whether he had been asleep or awake, would be a group of squirrels, small, furry rodents that should have long since retired at the top of trees. More would join this group, several running down trees near Chen, but they did not pay him much attention--not yet, anyways. They were preparing for something, something big.

A few of the things squeaked nervously to another, which in turn squeaked to one opposite itself, which repeated the squeaking, and so a communication was established; smart, these things. Eventually the squeaking would stop, a thundering roar slamming into the ground, a scarred, grey body flopping atop broken twigs, dead leaves, and dirt. Several small squirrels quickly leapt away from the thing, others, however; were not quite so lucky. Blood had been drawn and the thing seemed to go into a frenzy, slits just near its head moved, as though trying to draw air, but none could be had. It did not stop, though. It didn’t even seem to be suffering from suffocation, this beast, and it was obviously aquatic.

The rodents regrouped several feet away from the thing, off to Chen’s side, who would no doubt be alarmed at this point, perhaps wondering if he was still asleep, or what exactly the villagers had fed him. He would maybe even remember the warning he was given about the animals acting weird and aggressive.

The beast’s eyes, naturally red, but also running crimson from spurts of blood that had came from his devoured enemies; narrowed upon Chen, assuming the man to be an ally of the squirrels. This thing should not have been able to move upon land, yet it did, and it was fast. A dorsal fin cut through the air as it seemed to leap from the ground and shoot through the air like a missile towards Chen, the squirrels squeaking amongst themselves seemed to try and warn the man, but would they be fast enough--quick enough--and Chen open minded enough to realize that this was no dream?

Strangely enough, no one from the village seemed aware of the situation, despite the noise, and the obvious thundering boom of the beast landing upon the ground. What was Chen in store for?

[Shin]

Chen enjoyed the peacful night, the cool air felt good on his bare chest. He sat deep in meditation, focusing intently on himself. He flexed each muscle independantly, wiggled each toe and finger, he could feel every heart beat in his body. Chen sat like this for a long while, it would be impossible to tell if he was still meditating or if he had fallen asleep sitting up straight.

The sounds of the woods becoming increasingly louder would draw Chen from his deep meditation, a look of annoyance clearly spread across his features as his eyes scanned the woods. It was until the small rodents came into view that he became aware that something was wrong, he watched them intently, watched as the showed an intelligence that he previously thought such small animals incapable of.

What happened next brought Chen from a look of a annoyance to one of pure shock. Chen was careful not to move, he even held his breath, as the aquatic like beast, eyes like the fires of hell, stared down Chen making his skin crawl. He was a target, he knew that instantly and when the beast shot forward, rocketing towards him there wasn't much Chen could do.

Luckily for Chen his training took over, he laid flat on the ground as the beast sailed at him. His hands reaching to either side and grabbing his hook swords, bringing them up infront of him in an attempt to gut the beast as it either sailed over him or landed ontop him.

[Paroxysm]

A valiant effort if ever there was one, after Chen’s body had dropped to the ground, and his swords were brought up; a sudden jerk would be felt, the blades had made contact, scratching alongside the underbelly of the creature, but it did not have quite the effect that Chen was hoping for. In fact, the aquatic beast seemed to barely notice, as it continued moving, stopping just short of a few trees, where its powerful tail smacked hard into the things, shattering them like twigs, and the creature turned back to face its earlier target.

Razor sharp, saw-like teeth seemed to gnash inside of the creature’s mouth; where bits and pieces of squirrel could still be seen. If Chen hadn’t quite connected it yet, this was not a normal creature, this was the opposite of normal, indeed; the creature was much larger than a man and seemed to float within the air, as though it were still in water.

Eyes narrowed and nostrils flared, the creature looked about, noticing the small animals were beginning to reestablish communication, and that Chen was still on the ground. It was now that the creature wiggled in the air, feeling the wounds that had been inflicted when it crossed over Chen’s body; it wasn’t pleased by this, no; not at all.

Lowering its snout, the creature seemed to turn its focus back on Chen, where it prepared to thrust itself again, but not before Chen could stand. This thing had honor, it wasn’t about to rip through a man who was on the ground.

[Shin]

Despite all of his training, all of his preparation, and all of his fights Chen had never seen a creature such the one before him. All of his opponents, everything he trained against had at the very least had a human physique and he eyes the thing with obvious fear and amazement.

He had rolled to his stomach after the thing flew over him like a bat out of hell and seeing it was waiting for him to get up he did so, slowly. Trying to discern what manner of creature it was. It seemed more intelligent than your average animal, but it was too soon for Chen to say for sure.

Once on his feet he held both hook swords out defensively in front of him. After all the thing had just shattered a tree with its tail!! And did so with what looked like ease, Chen could accomplish a similar task but only after he had time to prepare and focus, even then it hurt like hell!

He would let the thing make a move first, Chen wasn’t about to attack what he didn’t understand.