Ryu dashed toward the entrance of the Kokiri Forest. No one ever really wanted to enter this forest. True, it was a beautiful place but there was always something about it that seemed unworldly. A supernatural, foreboding feeling that sends chills down your spine. Only the immortal Kokiri children would live here. As Ryu entered, he searched for the sage who possessed the power he so desired. When he first entered he saw a small Kokiri standing at the entrance. He had dirty blond hair that completely covered his eyes and had the traditional green attire and cap. The young boy quickly ran up to him, curious of this new entity that had appeared before him.
"Hello Mister. Are you… a Hylilian?" The boy inquired. Ryu looked down to this boy, who was less than half his size. "You mean a Hylian? Yes, I am. I am here on business of my own. Tell me. Where is your leader?" Ryu figured that the Forest Sage would be the leader of her people just like all of the other sages were.
The boy rolled his eyes. "Oh. You mean Mido? Yeah, he's in his house. He's not pleasant to be around. He's ESPECIALLY obnoxious to non-fairy folks. One time there was a kid who lived here and didn't have a fairy and Mido just tried to make him miserable. Dunno what 'business' you've got goin' on, but I'd leave Mido alone if I were you."
'He?' Ryu thought. 'I thought the Sage of Forest was a girl. Hm. No matter.' Ryu looked back down at the child and sneered. "I don't care how pleasant this guy is. And I'm sure that a kid with no fairy has nothing to do with what I'M after. Now tell me where the leader of the Kokiri is."
The Kokiri boy just shrugged off Ryu's rudeness towards him and just pointed in the direction of Mido's house and told him that it was right across from the shop. Ryu walked directly to where he was told he could find the leader.
He looked at the sky above as he walked. The sky had become dark and covered in rain clouds. It wasn't raining yet but it soon would be. Rain always meant trouble for him when he traveled but he had to admit that, with the surrounding of the forest, he imagined the rain being… soothing. Ryu found it odd that he would think of the rain in such a positive way. 'I've never thought of the rain as a good thing… Not since…' He abandoned his train of thought when he came to the hollowed out tree to which he was directed.
He walked in the house but the second his foot laid down on the wooden floor of the house, a giant clay pot flew right towards his head. When it was just five inches away from his head, with his conditioned reflexes, he drew his sword at unfathomable speeds and cut the jar into 20 pieces. Ryu gave a piercing look in the direction from which the jar was thrown. He saw a Kokiri with the same clothes as the boy he had met before. But this one had his hair more combed back and you could see his blue eyes… which were staring at Ryu with defiance.
"What do you want?" Mido shouted, not at all intimidated by the awesome show of skill that Ryu had just portrayed. Ryu cocked an eyebrow and a small smirk came upon his face.
"Ah… You must be Mido." Ryu took a step forward, keeping his sword unsheathed. "What I want is your power. Give it to me now or I shall take it from you by force!"
Mido completely misinterprets this. "Oh, I see. You want my incredible leading abilities and all the respect I get around here and how much everybody likes me, is that it?" Mido arrogantly spoke, putting his hands on his hips and cracking a cocky smile. Ryu obviously wasn't amused.
"No, you fool. I just want that-"
"Well, if you want me to show you how to be like me that badly, then how can I refuse? Alright, I'll do it! Heheh. I'll be your master and I'll show you what it means to be in charge. You must be thrilled."
"…"
"Okay, then! First thing we have to do is get you a fairy. No one will ever like you if you don't have a-"
Mido stopped talking when Ryu quickly brought his sword to Mido's throat.
"LISTEN TO ME YOU LITTLE BRAT! I'M ONLY HERE FOR YOUR SAGE POWER! Give it to me at once!"
Mido's eyes were as wide as saucers now.
"S-s-s-s-sage power? Wh-wh-what are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me. It's true that you will never die of old age but a fatal wound would still end your life just as easily." Mido honestly had no idea what he was talking about. But he had to talk his way out of this mess somehow.
"U-um… Y-you said sage power right? I… don't really know what that is but if any one has power it would be the Great Deku Tree sprout. When this forest was over run by monsters the Deku Tree sprout grew and with his power he returned the forest to normal…" Mido said trying to have as much composure as one could with a sword to his neck. Ryu looked carefully in his eyes to see if he could catch a hint of deceit in them. But for the most part he appeared to be truthful. Ryu sheathed his weapon and turned to leave. Before he left he looked over his shoulder and told Mido that if he was lying he'd go through unexplored realms of pain. Once Ryu was gone the now pale-faced Mido fell to his knees trying to absorb everything that happened while catching his breath. He didn't dare breathe while there was something so sharp to his throat.
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Ryu strolled off into the forest again, in search of this Deku Tree sprout. The skies were still heavily covered with storm clouds but the first rain drop hadn't yet hit the ground. With the advice given to him from the children of the forest, he found the Deku Tree sprout. Ryu wasn't very impressed with what he saw, but he approached this… whatever it was, regardless. The small tree opened his eyes and looked at the young traveler. "Hello there. I'm guessing you're not here to sightsee, am I right?"
Ryu cast a skeptical look on this would-be tree. "No. No, I am not. Who are you? No, WHAT are you?"
"Well, I'm the Deku Tree Sprout. As for WHAT I am… Well, that's difficult to answer. I am what you see."
"What I see? Hmph."
"Hm? What is it, young wanderer? Haven't you ever spoken with a tree before?"
"Not too many… The leader of the Kokiri told me that you had a special power… I'd like to know what it is. And don't tell me that the only power you have is the power of speech."
"Powers? Well, I'm sort of a new born. I've only been above ground for a couple of months now, so I'm not yet as strong as the Deku Tree who resided here before me."
Ryu looked behind the Deku Tree Sprout and saw a giant, rotting tree that must have been what the sprout was talking about.
"As for what I can do now, I can keep fiends away from the forest. No monsters will ever be able to gain access here as long as I'm around!" It smiled wider.
Hmph. If that's all you can do then there's no way you're the Sage of Forest." The sapling gave the boy a quizzical look. Ryu turned and began to leave. "That boy WAS lying to me." He thought aloud. "Well, he knew what would happen if he did."
"Sage of Forest?" The Deku Tree sprout asked. "You mean Saria?" Ryu stopped dead in his tracks and turned back around to look at the silly-faced tree. His attention was completely focused on what it was going to say next. "Saria, you say…? Do, go on…"
The young sapling looked at the stranger, completely oblivious of his true intentions. "Well, she's always in the Lost Woods. If you're looking for her then-"
Without warning, Ryu took off in a mad dash toward the Lost Woods. The Deku Tree Sprout just watched him run away from where he was. "Hm… That was odd."