In no way, shape or form do I own Okami. Character designs, personalities, and other such things belong to the creator of a great video game series called Okami. Some characters may change slightly (Like Issun's and Amaterasu's size for the sake of convenience) and the scenarios are slightly different… because this is a fanfiction… doi.
Thank you, and enjoy.
Long ago, in a forest untouched by time, the emperor went with his royal guests on a hunting trip when they saw a falling star, coated in a red tail, shooting towards the ground. The star was pursued by three very evil looking monsters and their gang of unholy followers. They chased the star all the way to the ground right in front of the royal hunting party.
The men in the midst of demons, were frightened. This excited the demons and they attacked. From the crater jumped a spirit wolf, its white fur tainted by red blood. Despite its injuries, the wolf fought off the monsters until it collapsed.
The Emperor did all he could to revive the wolf but its wounds were too grave. The wolf would pass and, as it did, the gods wept. The wolf was later given a shrine by the gods in the forest, the crater turned into a pond for all life to drink from.
No one knew where the wolf had come from, and it was so mysterious that the legend of it died with the poor creature, only an inscription on its memorial gave a clue. "To protect the weak and mend the broken, selfless sacrifice unbound for all at a price most high."
The legend was not to be brought back… until the wolf would be called upon again.
Oina Scribe, Ishaku
Enter, Issun. A young man, a traveler, a fugitive from his own home. Not that he had done wrong, he just fled from his duties to live the simple and carefree life of creating beautiful spectacles and chasing beautiful women. Today, he would be going to the Takura Village to pick up some supplies to aid in his journey.
He was short for his age and wore a rice hat and a cloak to conceal his sword. In these times, travelers had to be armed, there was no way around it. The monster population had grown exponentially and only a fool would ignore that fact and parade about without defense. There was a time that was not so dangerous but that was long ago, when the gods were praised far and wide.
BAH! Gods. Issun would have mocked. It wasn't that he didn't believe in them, his heritage was highly spiritual, its just that he was never given a reason to have faith in them or trust them. If the gods did exist, they were fat and lazy for not helping the world.
Issun tightened his traveling cloak more tightly around himself as he walked into town, the wind was picking up.
In a sacred forest, known to travelers to be a haven for the gods and spirits, something stirred. The forest, elsewhere was peaceful and the animals went about their business. Anyone passing through would remain oblivious to the new divine presence growing deep under the very ground where the magnificently tall trees grew. A goddess was awakening.
The spirits that called the forest home could sense the stirring beneath them and grew excited, every plant and tree livened considerably until even the rocks seemed unable to contain their excitement. Out of a tree came forth a beautiful spirit, the guardian of these trees. She came to greet the arrival of the long awaited goddess.
The spirit was soft and had a peachy completion with a curvy body and beautiful hair. She was clothed in a cherry blossom pink kimono with a sash as green as tree leaves hung over her arms. She was indeed fitting to rule over the forest and its inhabitants, yet not one prone to fights or combat, her protective reach could only go so far, and she needed help.
She floated down to the ground and to an old shrine with a tall arch and a statue of a large, celestial wolf. Something troubled the spirit, there was very few offerings made to the statue of the godly wolf, this would make her job harder. People simply didn't believe in gods anymore, they felt in control of their own lives and destinies, but this weakened the gods, even her, considerably. She hardly had the strength to perform her task.
She stretched out a hand and placed it just above the ground near the statue of the wolf. Summoning her power, a bright light shone from the palm of her hand and onto the ground where the grass began to bloom into flowers that grew progressively larger with every passing second. At the center of the growing garden, a huge, white bud with crimson designs on its petals grew. From inside the flower glowed a light and the form of a wolf could be seen from within. Slowly, the flower bloomed, filling the area with light until it died. As the light faded, the wolf awoke. It yawned a great yawn as if it had been sleeping for a long time and gave a big stretch.
"Amaterasu, we need your help. Every day the world grows darker. In your absence from the land of the living, dark things have been happening. They are even effecting this ancient place. Please, Amaterasu, we need you now." The spirit said.
The wolf, Amaterasu, didn't seem to be listening. In fact, it hardly seemed awake quite yet. The wolf looked around groggily, surveying the forest as its eyesight went in and out of focus. It shook its head and looked up at the spirit, who seemed to be talking about something important.
"…And demons are running rampant! You, Amaterasu, must go out and shine your divine light on the world. Only then will the darkness recede. Of course, your long sleep and battle with the demons one hundred years ago have left your magic in pieces but we of the forest did our best to preserve them elsewhere so Orochi would not take them. You must travel to find them, though. The only way we were able to keep them out of the hands of evil was to hide them. You will do fine." The sprite said, though a bit uncertainly.
Amaterasu didn't seem up to the challenge quite yet. In fact, it looked like a shadow if its former glory, like an ordinary white wolf. How could Amaterasu do anything in this current state of being with no celestial powers? The future seemed bleak but this was the only hope.
"Go, Amaterasu. I haven't the strength to stay for long. Please, o greatest of guardians, please save us all. I hope my pleas have not fallen upon deaf ears. If you do not stand and fight, there is no hope for anything…" The spirit faded into flower petals and blew on the wind through Amaterasu's fur, waking the wolf further. The familiar scent wafted up its nose and the wolf perked up a bit, wagging its tail once.
Amaterasu followed the scent on the wind down a path, pausing once at the shrine where a statue of itself stood. The wolf stared at it for a moment, then looked at its reflection in a nearby spring. Its ears fell a bit in understanding. Another familiar scent went up the wolf's nose, a comforting one that might have made its heart ache if it could remember what its was. On one of the flowers by the shrine, the scent lingered. The flower did not look like it was placed there, more like it had traveled through the power of nature from somewhere. The area was prone to flooding, being a lowland valley nestled between large hills.
Amaterasu stared at its crimson petals, its head cocking to the side as the wolf tried hard to remember but nothing came to mind although the wolf felt a tugging at its heart. The smell of the familiar wind drifted back, beckoning to the wolf, who stood up and walked through the forest path. The scent became more faint as the wind blew harder, forcing the wolf into a run to follow. The breeze lead the wolf out of the forest and into the wide open plains that stretched beyond. Free from the confines of the forest, one could soar with the wind.
As the wild creature's heart began to pump more hard, it woke up completely and felt the joy of life and excitement of adventure again and soon, the wolf was taking its own path to its own destiny. Exactly where that path would lead was anyone's guess, but the wolf didn't care. For the moment, it forgot about its duty and the smell and everything else. Nothing really mattered right at this moment. Amaterasu was alive again.
Meanwhile, back in the village, Issun was enjoying a meal in the presence of a pretty, and thankfully ignorant, young lady who seemed very interested in the mysterious traveler that sat before her. Issun, of course, kept his hat low to hide his face. Girls loved mystery.
"Where is it that you come from?" She asked.
"Oh, yah know… far away." Issun smiled.
The girl found this infatuating and Issun couldn't help but grin quite stupidly under his hat. Before he could get further, he was grabbed under the arms roughly by two much larger men and forced onto his feet, his food spilled all over the floor.
"HEY! What's the big idea here? You spilled all the grub!" He protested in outrage as they pulled him away from the mess and the beautiful girl. Girls usually found him somewhat of a pervert so this was a rare occasion indeed. For it to be taken away from it was more than he could bare.
"What do you think you're doing? Lemme go!" Issun shouted. The two men threw him off of the walkway into a puddle of mud almost instantly. Issun was quite angry at this point and itching for a fight. Just then, the middle aged man that owned the restaurant walked out.
"Get out of here, we don't want your kind!" He said gruffly and angrily.
"What the-?" Issun began to protest.
"My son saw your sword, swordsmen aren't welcome in our village. Get out!" the man said adamantly. This was beyond suspicious and Issun stood, not bothering to rid himself of the mud.
"In case you haven't noticed, gramps, there's a monster infestation going on out there, only an idiot would go out unarmed." Issun said smartly. "Besides, I'm no swordsman or samurai. I'm Issun, the wandering artist."
"Sounds kinda fruity to me." One of the men that pulled Issun out said. This enraged Issun. First, they ruined his meal. Second, they ruined his night with a girl. Third, they insulted the worst thing that Issun could think of, his trade. He was passionate about his work and an insult on it was an insult of his very soul.
"Say that again and you'll get a face-full of my sword, Denkomaru!" Issun pulled out his sword and pointed it directly at the man.
Fifteen minutes later, he had been escorted out of the village by a crowd of angry villagers and was sitting on a rock, his pride damaged. I suppose I'll have to stay the night outside again, Issun thought to himself. The idea was not pleasing.
Monsters and the like were always more dangerous at night, in their element. Issun could handle it but that would mean another cold night with very little sleep. All he really wanted was some warm food, a soft bed, and a pair or two of large breasts to keep him company. He let out a sigh and thought for a moment. What was really bothering him was what the man had said. Swordsmen are unwelcome in there, why the heck is that…? Did they have a run in with a rouge? Sounds fishy to me, and I know fish. He decided to sleep on this, there was nothing he could do now except find a tree to settle in.
When he found a suitable one, one that was tall enough for most stronger monsters not to climb, he hoisted himself through the branches and up to nearly the top and settled down to rest.