Kokari brought Issun and Amaterasu to his hut on the lake shore. Issun had to help carry the basket because it was too heavy for Kokari to lift. When they made it to the hut, they were greeted by a very tall and wild looking man who introduced himself as Karude. He was dressed in a brown bear skin like his son's and he had a hat made from a whole bearskin as well. He was a thoroughly frightening man of the forest and he made Issun very uneasy. They soon found out that Karude was a very pleasant man when he welcomed them into his home with open arms.
The inside of the hut was much smaller that it appeared on the outside due to tools for hunting and gathering other food and things that one would need to have to live in a forest. Despite the lack of size, it was infinitely better than sleeping outside. It was warm and comfortable.
While Karude cooked, Kokari made the decision to go to bed without supper. He was too worried about Ume to eat. Amaterasu seemed to take pity on the boy and curled up next to him while he slept to keep him company. When the fish and rice were cooked, Issun set a plate down for Amaterasu to eat. He knew that someone with an appetite like hers would not appreciate a missed meal if she could help it. Karude poured Issun some sake while he sat back down by the fire.
"I worry about that boy sometimes…" Karude said quietly so he wouldn't wake Kokari. "Ever since we found Ume, he's gotten less responsible. All he ever used to do was dote after that dog. He never goes out and does anything excited; he's too worried about Ume getting hurt. He's lost his boyish sense of adventure completely… but now that he's run away, Kokari refuses to do anything but look after him."
Issun gathered that Kokari hadn't told his father what had really happened but, being something of a rebellious child in his day as well, he said nothing about the truth. He just sipped his sake quietly and thoughtfully.
"Maybe Ume ran away to escape from the curse." Karude wondered aloud.
"The curse?" Issun feigned innocence once more.
"The forest was cursed not too long ago. I wouldn't wonder if it went away just before you passed through. It had been progressing slowly but steadily through these trees in an attempt to swallow up everything." Karude explained.
"Why did it go away?" Issun asked. "Something with enough power to curse a forest just doesn't disappear…"
"The demons pulled it back, most likely. Only the gods know why they did or what they're planning by doing it." Karude muttered darkly.
Amaterasu raised her head from the fish at the word "gods". Issun tried discreetly to get her to go back to eating her fish in case Karude noticed.
"Days are indeed getting darker. I was going to go up to the capital to report everything to the new task force. The queen established it while the king was ill; they handle all kinds of problems that people have with monsters and curses, or at least they try to. These sorts of things have been on the rise and they don't have the power to deal with them… I hear that they'll be calling on the special task force any day now. That should put those monsters right."
"Why go all the way up to the capital for the sake of a cursed zone that's gone now?" Issun asked, sipping more sake.
"It's not just the cursed zone. Very sinister things are going on in this forest and its putting every passing traveler at risk." Karude said. "The very few of us that call this place home can tell the difference between what's normal and abnormal here and avoid trouble, but the passing merchant wouldn't be so lucky," Karude said.'
"What's been going on?" Issun asked, itching with anticipation and excitement.
"Sometimes, when I go out early in the morning to find some breakfast, I find bodies by the Tsuta Ruins… Human bodies." Karude said slowly.
Issun and Amaterasu exchanged quick looks and then refocused on Krause's explanation.
"The number is increasing to the point that it has me deeply concerned. Sometimes there are pools of blood but no body at all… but the victims are always missing their heads." Karude explained.
"Their heads are gone?" Issun exclaimed. He looked back at Amaterasu excitedly. "Remember what the old dead monk said? I think we're on the right track here…"
Amaterasu woofed under her breath and wagged her tail. Things just got a bit more interesting.
"That spider queen hag won't have it so easy for much longer…" Issun grinned mischievously.
The next morning, Kokari awoke from his bed and looked around his home. His father had left already to visit the few people that lived in the forest and perhaps talk to a traveling merchant. Issun and the big white wolf weren't there either. Perhaps they had left already. Kokari was sad about this, he liked the two of them and they hadn't even bothered to say goodbye. He couldn't be bothered too much, though. He had to get back to work finding the key to save Ume. He grabbed his fishing pole and ran outside.
"Good morning, Kokari!" Issun called to him from the island happily. Kokari couldn't believe his eyes when he saw what they were doing. Issun had tied some string and a hook to Amaterasu's tail and had it sitting out in the water. Every time Amaterasu wagged her tail, which was quite frequently, the line would move and the bait would dance along the surface as if it were alive. The fish seemed to really like it because they already had a small pile of fish at their side.
"You guys are going to help me?" Kokari asked, his eyes tearing up again.
"Yeah! There are a lot of fish in this lake, a team is more efficient." Issun said with a smile… he wasn't really doing too much work.
Kokari nearly started to cry again. Issun's kindness was more than he could bear at the time. "Th-thank you both so much…!"
"Don't worry about it." Issun said nervously, not wanting to have to watch him cry again.
They fished into the high afternoon. The sun was directly over top of them and particularly hot today. Issun had retreated to a tree on the shoreline, physically exhausted from the heat and the labor. Kokari and Amaterasu kept at it.
"We should call it quits; I doubt the fish will want to bite in this hot weather…" Issun groaned.
"I can't give up now, Ume is counting on me!" Kokari said, as determined as ever. Amaterasu sat at his side, looking quite warm but she never looked like she was about to leave. She was losing some attention, though. She looked into the water and suddenly, as she stared intently at its surface, something tugged at Kokari's line.
"UH! I got something, it feels huge!" Kokari hung onto the pole and shouted. No matter how much he dug his feet into the dirt, whatever was pulling on the other side kept forcing him closer to the edge of the water. Amaterasu grabbed Kokari by the back of the shirt and tried to hold him on the shore.
"Hang on, kid!" Issun shouted while jumping to his feet and running through the water and grabbing Amaterasu's tail. "Don't let this one go!"
Kokari pulled the rod as hard as he could while the combined strength of Amaterasu and Issun dragged him and the line backwards. Suddenly, a huge fish broke the surface of the lake; it was as big if not bigger than Amaterasu herself.
"Gods in heaven…!" Issun exclaimed as the fish almost flew from the air. Amaterasu released Kokari and raised her blade to perform a small Powerslash. The hit from her technique shattered a few of the tough scales of the fish and left it stunned enough for them to haul it on land.
"I can't believe it… I did it!" Kokari exclaimed happily.
"Yup, you did. See what you can accomplish when you put your mind and spirit to something? Nothing can be accomplished when one's heart is not working with their head." Issun said, smiling at Kokari.
"Thank you, Issun." Kokari said with a bow, making Issun feel both immensely pleased with himself and slightly embarrassed.
Amaterasu barked and scratched at the inside of the fish's mouth with her paw eagerly.
"Don't do that, it might bite you." Issun gave her a light smack on the butt. Amaterasu stopped and flattened her ears apologetically.
Kokari leaned over and looked into the fish's mouth. "There's something in there."
"Can you pull it out?" Issun asked. Amaterasu cocked her head. She was just told off for messing around with the fish's mouth but Kokari was just asked to do it.
Kokari put his hand inside the fish's mouth and pulled out a teardrop shaped glass object as big as his own head. Inside the object was a symbol of a sun.
"I-it's the ruins key!" Kokari exclaimed.
Issun climbed onto Amaterasu's back just as she snatched the key out of Kokari's hands and ran.
"Where are you going-give that back! I need it to save Ume!" Kokari shouted as he ran after them, or tried to. He wasn't nearly fast enough to catch up with Amaterasu.
"Good work, Ammy. We can't let a kid get hurt on your watch. I hardly doubt that that spider witch would hesitate to take a good bite out of his flesh if they met up." Issun patted the side of her neck and hung on while she transported them to the ruins door. Issun climbed off of Amaterasu and took the key from her mouth. He inserted the key into the hole on the door and took a step back. A flash of light ran all the way up the crack between the doors and then disappeared when they began to open up.
"We're in." Issun grinned back at Amaterasu mischievously.
They entered the ruins. The first thing that met their eyes was a path that lead to a lake and a very strange statue that stood a mile tall. It looked like a strange monster of sorts. The statue stood on an island that stood out of the water a few feet on a bank. Water ran into a small cave by the stubby legs of the statue. The water, however, looked a very unhealthy shade of deep purple and gave off a smell of decay. The plants in the area looked very sick from the water.
"That's disgusting, look at that water. I doubt that lily pads will stay healthy in this…" Issun walked over to the lake shore. He had to cover his nose with his hand because the smell was so bad from up close. Amaterasu was having a very hard time with her sensitive nose. She kept scratching at her muzzle and whining.
"We should try to find the source of this crap as soon as possible, for everyone's sake…" Issun said.
Issun stood up and looked around for any way that they could head in. Along the small lake and across some dying tree roots was a tunnel entrance.
"That's our best bet, over there." Issun pointed to the tunnel. "It's not like we can go anywhere else…"
The two of them hurried into the tunnel. Through the short tunnel was a very empty room with dead plants littering the floor.
"This doesn't look anything like a curse, but I'm sure that something powerfully evil is behind this…" Issun knelt down and held up a dead flower. Amaterasu cocked her head at his unintentional display of compassion for nature. Something caught her eye; it was green and not dead. Above them, sitting on a ledge, was a very large pink blossom with healthy green leaves. It looked somewhat magical; due to the fact that it was the only living plant in the room and that it was giving off a faint glow in the dim room.
"What is it, Ammy?" Issun looked up at the blossom. "That thing reminds me of Sakuya somehow… it's the same shade of pink as her kimono."
Amaterasu suddenly grabbed ahold of Issun's pants. A green vine shot out from the blossom and wrapped itself around Amaterasu's middle, pulling her up on top of the blossom on the ledge. In front of them was a doorway that lead to some stairs.
"What the-…?" Issun exclaimed shakily, still in shock about the ride. "…Did your Greensprout power do that…?"
Amaterasu set Issun down and walked over to the stairs.
"I love our little conversations." Issun said sarcastically before following her.
They walked up the stairs and then came into a large room. In the far corner was a large flower bud with semi-clear leaves. Inside the exotic pink-ish bud was a glowing sphere.
Issun walked closer to it to get a good look. Suddenly, something lashed out and caught him on the side of the face, cutting his cheek open. He fell to the ground and rolled out of the way just as a muscular leg came down right where he had just been laying. The leg belonged to a creature that had a similar build as a turtle, the bud on its back with arms, legs and a head… but it was obviously more agile and humanistic than a turtle. It gave a ferocious roar while standing on its hind legs.
"Bud ogre…!" Issun jumped back to Amaterasu's side, drawing his sword and taking an attack stance similar to Amaterasu's. The bud Ogre roared again and the bud on its back opened slowly. The spherical fruit in the bud shot at them, and another grew. It was a rapid fire attack but Issun and Amaterasu were more than capable to counter it. Issun easily sliced the fruit in half when they came close to him, adding a bit of unneeded flare with a few jumps and spins.
Amaterasu charged up a Powerslash and aimed it just below the fruit. The shockwave of the attack sent the fruit back at the ogre, hitting it on the head. Stunned for a moment, the ogre swayed on its feet with its bud still opened. Issun ran over and slashed the beast's back, which he assumed was its weak point considering the bud that it used to protect itself. A splatter of green liquid and a roar told Issun that his hunch was correct.
Suddenly, the ogre reached behind itself and pulled off its thorny tail. At its tip was a spikey ball that looked quite menacing. Issun barely managed to dodge the ball as the ogre swung it around its ugly head and at Issun. The ogre swung it again, Issun back flipped to avoid the attack. He landed on his hands in a handstand and then used his feet to skid to a stop.
"This guy's tough…" Issun said, backing up to Amaterasu's side. Amaterasu had a go next. She dodged in between each swing of the creature's tail until she was right beside it. She swung her sword once and knocked the creature on its back. It struggled and shrieked loudly, unable to move or defend itself while Amaterasu hacked away at it. Finally, it used some momentum to give Amaterasu a kick square to the jaw. She went spiraling across the floor and the ogre rocked itself back onto its feet.
"We're going to have to take him together!" Issun shouted after Amaterasu, who looked very angry about being kicked in the face. She growled her agreement and prepared for attack. Their next move was planned almost telepathically. Somehow, the two could understand what they had to do just by exchanging glances with each other.
From opposite sides of the room, Amaterasu and Issun charged the beast, their swords ready for the kill. Not ready to give in to death, the creature swung its tail around again, thrashing it at Amaterasu and Issun. As the tail neared Issun's head, he bent backwards and went into a slide on the ground, never once losing concentration in his attack. Amaterasu launched clean over the whip and came at the creature from above. The bud on the ogre's back prevented it from being seriously wounded, until Amaterasu jerked her head backwards as if pulling on something with her mouth. In a burst of flower petals, the bud opened up, exposing the ogre's already wounded back.
With almost perfectly synchronized strikes, Amaterasu and Issun attacked. Once under the ogre, Issun stabbed his sword through its stomach while Amaterasu cleaved it from above. The affect was nothing short of spectacular and highly effective. The ogre stopped and fell to the ground, its body leaking green liquid. Issun put his sword back in its scabbard.
"Not too shabby." Issun said with a smile.