Paws of Blood (Open)

[★Ryuujin★]

The black maw rose to the crisp, night air, slightly parted to aid in getting every scent the nose could. There was one scent the ninja dog was trying to pick up in particular, one that already ran smoothly over his tongue. The coppery blood of a boar. Licking his maw, Kurogane swung his sword over his shoulder to sit at an angle on the harness on his back, blood from the same boar he was tracking dripped from its tip. It wasn’t often that Kuro got out to train or hunt alone. He still wasn’t sure how he managed to talk Fai into staying behind this once, and he was certain the Kishu would disobey his wishes and would be stalking behind him shortly. Everyone needed their alone time, he had to make the best of his while he could.

He gently padded down the hill, continuing to head away from the Koga village. Most would say that wandering around wasn’t safe, especially at night. But this didn’t worry him any. First off, he was a ninja – escape or battle was easy, and Kurogane enjoyed battle – often looking for it for himself, just for fun. Secondly… he had a sword. Who would try to pick on him with a big, pointy object on his back that most canines had no clue how to wield.

Kurogane hated showing off, and he didn’t have much of an ego, he hated to strut and show off… except for when it came to strength. That was one of the main reasons he had come out. It had been awhile since he had taken Ginryû out, and the sword had let him know. He heard it crying out to him, begging to feel the slick, cool feeling of blood dripping down its long blade – and Kurogane was more than happy to quench its thirst. Besides, he was hungry, and what he didn’t consume of the boar he was hunting, he would bring back for the rest of the Koga clan to feast on.

Sploosh.

Sploosh? The thought crossed Kuroganes mind with slight disgust as he looked down, his maw filling with an almost overwhelming coppery taste. Blood. Lifting his paw out of the puddle of blood, he shook it gently, trying to shake the blood off as he looked around. The boar was around here somewhere, its pained cries were slowly getting louder – as well as a rumbling. He looked back into the puddle of mud, the full moon shining brightly in the center, ripples making their way to the edges from its silvery form. Red eyes narrowed as the ripples became more frantic, he knew what was going on.

The boar was charging him.

Hunkering down, Kurogane growled softly, tilting his head to prepare his maw to grasp the hilt of his blade. His eyes widened suddenly as the boar seemingly came out of nowhere DAMN! Having no choice, He pushed against the ground, soaring above the boar into a tree above. With a sharp and clear shing, the blade rang as he drew it again, glittering in the moonlight.

Turning around, the boar cried out in anger and charged the tree, slamming into it in attempt to shake Kuro. Digging his claws into the bark, and lowering himself, Kurogane made the boar unsuccessful. Another cry of anger and frustration from the creature as it reared. Lifting his head, Kurogane leaped down at this opportunity, his sword making his mark down the side of the boar it had not yet touched. The moment he touched the ground, Kuro swung around, slashing at the board hind legs before skillfully leaping away, avoiding the stomping.

This was too easy. If the boar kept its anger up like this, it would die in no time. Whipping around, blade ready for another strike, Kurogane suddenly paused. Something else had caught the board attention, and it was wildly rampaging toward it. “NO!” He muffled out a yell around the swords hilt and dashed after the beast.

[shadow]

Skahmikaze was making his daily rounds of the Kai territory, and as usual, things were in check. Fresh scents of dogs wandering through the area didn't concern Ska. No, he was fine with guests so long as they didn't disturb the sacred land that he so valued, but to be honest, he was growing board and lonely out here. Despite the fact that many dogs wandered through here, Skah rarely had any encounters with them for more then a few moments at a time.

The Dalmatian mix trotted toward the lake at the center of his home, sniffing the air for any signs of an aggressive predator that might sneak up on him while he stopped to quench his thirst. Thankfully, no one seemed to be around, which was all normal. The only things that really stopped at this lake that were dangerous were boars, and perhaps the occasional dog that was up to no good, but really, Kai had been abandoned long ago.

Skah took a few hefty gulps of water, the winter chill of the liquid sending a chill down his spine. Skahmikaze was really not meant for the snow, and he hoped that it would soon subside. Thankfully, the days had been growing longer, a sure sign that spring was around the corner.

And then, a sound made its way to Skah's ears; a cry of some sort. It sounded... frustrated. And then, there was the all-to-familiar sound of a wailing hog.

"Oh, well great," Skah sighed, not even bothering to turn around and face up to the boar that was charging for him. Instead, he kept his ears pricked for the right moment when the boar would be just close enough to...

And then he sidestepped, causing the giant pig to miss Skah completely and go crashing into the ice cold waters. Skamikaze wrinkled his nose at the scent of the poor creature's blood. It would be dead soon. Someone around here had been on the hunt.

"Hm," he said thoughtfully before jumping into the water after the creature. Though it was cold and made his paws numb to the bone, Skah knew that taking down the pig would be simple in this situation. They were clumsy swimmers, and even clumsier when already injured. Skah, on the other hand, had been hunting boars for all his life, and was quite a strong swimmer. As far as he was concerned, this was merely putting the boar out of its misery and saving the meat before it sank to the bottom of the lake.

Within a few moments, Skah had finished the pig off, and, grabbing its thick skin in his maw, pulled it back to shore where it would not go to waste. He picked himself out of the icy-cold-water, and gave his fur a grateful shake before shivering. His visitor was staring at a bit of a distance, looking positively unamused.

"Hello stranger," Skah called, hoping to lighten the mood by being his usual kind and polite self. "Were you the one hunting this boar? He's all yours if you can pull him out of the shore!"

Skahmikaze let out a smile from ear to ear, knowing that the rather large dog before him, carrying a sword and all, could most likely lift the giant piece of prey out of the shallow lake. He seemed muscular, something Skah lacked. At least, he thought, he had the pride of his linage to give him extra emotional strength when needed, but in normal situations, he was about as helpless as a miniature poodle in terms of muscle.

[★Ryuujin★]

Quickly giving chase to the Boar, Kurogane snarled. What had the boar seen that could make him rage away from the one who was actually hurting him? Ground travel was going too slow for Kurogane’s likings and perhaps, if he went into the trees, he could cut off the boar and kill it before it met its mark, whatever it may be. Leaping forward, Kurogane landed in a crouch before pushing against the ground and shooting up into the tree above. Landing in the branches, he dug his claws into the bark, pushing off of it and onto another branch. Continuing this pattern, Kuro soon found himself above the boar, easily keeping its speed.

He could easily land down now and cut off the boar, but something stopped him. Up ahead was a spotted dog, the boar’s mark, and it wasn’t moving. “Move dammit…” He muttered around the silver hilt. Gripping his claws deep into the bark of the last branch, Kuro stopped, getting ready to yell at the spotted dog, but the spotted dog had their own plans. Moments after he stopped, the dog side stepped and the boar crashed into the water.

“… interesting.”

The dog wasted no time in finishing the boar off, even dragged it to the shore. Leaping down from the branch, Kurogane stood in the old path of the boar, red eyes focused on the dog as he shook the water from his pelt, and even spoke to him. It was a friendly tone, and his words held no anger or annoyance in them. This surprised Kuro to a certain extent.

"Were you the one hunting this boar? He's all yours if you can pull him out of the shore!"

Closing his eyes, Kurogane swung the blade around to sit at an angle in its harness across his back. “Evening… Yes. He’s mine.” He kept his tone as kind as he could, to return the strangers favor as he padded forward toward the boar, licking blood from his maw. “I suppose I should thank you, for finishing my kill.” Wrapping his maw around the hind leg of the boar, Kuro dug his paws into the bank and pulled the giant creature out, slowly, but out.

Turning to the other male, Kurogane smirked, “Sorry he charged at ya, I suppose I got him rather ticked. You’re not bad, for a spotted, what’s your name?”

[shadow]

“Sorry he charged at ya, I suppose I got him rather ticked. You’re not bad, for a spotted, what’s your name?”

"Nah, it's all alright," Skah responded, his voice calm despite having been insulted lightly by this stranger. A flare of anger rose inside of him, but it was his last intention to start something. He was a host, and unless Kurogane was threatening him or his territory directly, there would be no need for fighting. "Boars are common around here. I've learned to deal with them from my father and mother."

Skah paused, a smile making its way to his maw, "I'm no ordinary spotted dog sir, I'm Skahmikaze, the grandson of Hook, the Ohu warrior. It's my duty to protect the sacred land of Kai along with the rest of my family..." Skah trailed off, remembering that no one remained here aside from him. Still, he supposed that it was irrelevant. What mattered now is that he was there, and someone had finally stopped by to ease the loneliness in this forsaken land.

"What's your name?" Skah asked. "Do you need a place to stay for the night? I'm glad to offer a paw to any friend."

The wind picked up, sending the smell of the downed boar over the horizon, and this caused Skah to grow a bit concerned. At this time of year, many predators were hungry enough to try and steal someone else's prey, and something as big as this pig could attract a bear, or something worse, though Skahmikaze shuttered at that thought. "Ah, my fur is much too short for this snow."