WAB: Prologue

Two Years I had been in Tanigakure, sussing out our newest ally. The Village Hidden in the Valleys was an odd adjustment at first. Not because of any animosity on the part of Lord Toritaka, mind you. Even he recognized that his Heir, Torimune's, attitude toward my team during the Chunin Exams had been completely out of line. It was more in terms of geography and attitude that I was talking about. See, until recently, Tanigakure had been a Hidden Village in the true sense of the word in that it had barely been integrated into the wider network of trade and diplomacy between Hidden Villages. It had been scrupulously neutral in almost all affairs that concerned the Shinobi Villages of the Elemental Nations, merely sending teams to a Chunin Exam every so often and largely keeping to River Country.

What this had meant was that very few people knew where, precisely, Tanigakure was. Only a few merchants were licensed to trade directly with Tanigakure, which meant that the bulk of the Village's goods came in through intermediaries. It also meant the Village's Location had to be carefully Hidden. It turned out that Tanigakure was largely built up around the Source of the Kahaku River, a minor tributary of the Shinju River that wound its course from down from its source the Matsu Mountains to the Great Yamatai Lake, and down through the Izumo Plain, where the Ruins of the Original Imperial Capital of Yamato stood on the Plain of Izumo at the Lakeshore, before joining the Shinju around twelve miles south of the Capital near Mount Kōseki where they would flow together into Hanguri Gulf and the Sea. Of course, the source of the river was a mountain spring in the Matsu Mountains, bubbling up from a cavern in a valley there.

What this meant was that Tanigakure's architecture was not only highly traditional but built in a valley along the Kahaku River and into a mountain cavern near the River's Source. There was a lot more verticality and underground construction here than I was used to, not to mention how water walking was essential in some parts of town if you did not want to be forced to wait for the various passenger boats that periodically ferried people to and from locations around the city. Kawabune-style river boats were often in use as methods of public transportation in cities in River Country, which stood to reason as most of the country was crisscrossed with rivers, not just the Sanju and it's tributaries either. It seemed Tanigakure was no exception.

The people here too had been interesting. They were quite a bit more formal than folks had been back in Konoha. I could barely get the Embassy Staff to call me Choji. Almost everyone else would default to Akimichi-Sama, or at best, Akimichi-Dono. It certainly put an interesting perspective on what had gone on between Torimune and my team at the Chunin Exams. Torimune's group had been rude, true, but then we'd escalated by calling them assholes, and that was a thing that just wasn't done here unless you absolutely thought the object of your insult was completely unworthy of your attention. Here if you wanted to insult someone, you generally had to veil it in flowery language. It was like something out of an Old Tale about the Imperial Court, back before the Coming of the Obsidian Empress. Imperial Etiquite was alive and well in Tanigakure, it seemed and that had been quite the adjustment for me early on.

However, my the middle of my first year here, I'd managed to get a handle on it and start doing the actual job I'd been sent here to do. Mostly, this involved hammering out trade agreements and smoothing over mutual defense concerns. However, when I wasn't doing that, I was supposed to be evaluating Tanigakure's Reputation for Bukijutsu, Kenjutsu, Taijutsu, and Summoning. The former was a longer, more drawn-out process, involving give and take on a macro scale. Tanigakure had large amounts of Chakra Conductive Metals that Konoha Wanted Access to, for example, and Lord Toritaka wanted discounts on medicines in return for access, which was an agreement hammered out over the course of two months of negotiations. Mutal defense was a lot easier since we had a standard, alliance-wide system for that involving military access provisions and basic defense plans that Tanigakure had largely already agreed to in principle by joining the Konoha Bloc.

As to the latter reason for being here, well, as soon as I got the hang of how life worked here, I managed to put an apology together for Torimune. It had taken him a while, but somehow, the haughty heir to the Toritaka Clan had warmed up to me and invited me to exchange pointers with him and his teammates. This formed the basis of a cultural exchange, through which I was able to not only learn the basics of some of the Bukijutsu, Kenjutsu, and Taijutsu Styles of Tanigakure but also figure out how suitable an ally they were. The answer seemed to be that Tani would be an asset on the battlefield, and could be trusted to keep to their word so long as you didn't insult them. If you did insult them, they would become obstinate and belligerent and you would have a bad time, but if you didn't do that, they would be some of the best direct combatants you could have fighting by your side. The trick was in knowing how to handle them.

As for combat capabilities? Tanigakure, it turned out, tended to skimp on Genjutsu training, outside of ways to detect and disrupt them. Genjutsu was largely seen as a cowardly way to win battles here, and the Shinobi of Tanigakure were a lot closer to Samurai that utilized Ninjutsu Techniques than what I was used to from Shinobi. I hated to say it, but Tsunade had been right about my skillset being perfect for this posting. I barely had any skill with Genjutsu myself, and while a large section of Tanigakure's Ninjutsu Arsenal tended toward Suiton (Water Release) Ninjutsu, which I was famously terrible at, an equally large amount of their repertoire involved Doton (Earth Release) Ninjutsu. Unlike back home, Katon (Fire Release) was a Rare Affinity here, while Raiton (Lightning Release) and Futon (Wind Release) were more common than in Konoha. They had a decent amount of troops too, six thousand that they would admit to, though I suspected that number was actually closer to seven thousand, more than enough to dissuade invasion from the two major villages to either side of them.

Of course, troop numbers and ninjutsu were nice, but they weren't really what I was interested in. No, I wanted Bukijutsu, Kenjutsu, and Taijutsu Styles. I picked up the basics and some Genin-Level Techniques of Usagi-Ryuu Soujutsu (Rabbit-Style Spear Fighting), Toritaka-Ryuu Kyudo (Toritaka Clan Style Archery), Yotogi Chikarafuku-Ryuu Tetsubojutsu (Yotogi Clan Power Strike Style Club Fighting). I even learned two forms of local Taijutsu. First was the Kawa-To-Dōkutsuken (River and Cavern Fist) which was a defensive style that emphasized flexibility and counterattacks. The second was the Sandai Dōbutsu-Ryuu (Three Great Animals Style) which mimicked the movements of Falcons, Pangolins, and Rabbits to varying degrees. It was all very interesting, though I had to give up knowledge of my own in exchange, swapping the Knowledge of Akimichi-Ryu Sansetsukon (Akimichi-Style Three-Section Staff), along with Mokusei Uchikudaku-Ryu Tetsubojutsu (Wooden Crush Style Club Fighting) Niulongquan (Twisting Dragon Fist), Utau Haru Kenpo (Singing Spring Kenpo), Sea Country Tinbe Rochin, and the Nenchaku-Ken (Sticky Fist). I felt it was worth it, though.

Honestly, I learned a lot while in Tanigakure, and not just about how Tani fought, but also how they thought and acted. I even gained a few friends here. Toritaka Torimune had warmed up to me significantly. Usagi Choji and Yotogi Okitaro had done likewise. I was fairly sure that I could call all three of them friends, even if our summons wouldn't ever really get along. Apparently, Iniheishi hadn't forgiven Torimune's Falcon, Takamichi, for the cracks he'd made at his expense during our bout in the Chunin Exam Preliminaries, while Chojo's Rabbit, Haru, and Okitaro's Pangolin, Senzobashi, had too much loyalty not to stand by Takamichi in solidarity. I found the whole thing kind of awkward, but then, the minds of summons worked differently than those of people. For all their similarities to us, they were still closer to Yokai than most creatures.

Unfortunately, though I enjoyed my time in Tanigakure, all good things must come to an end, and I found myself summoned to the Tower of Tanigakure to meet with Lord Toritaka, the Head of Tanigakure, two years into my posting there. . .

XXXX

The Tower of Tanigakure was all the way back in the Cavern District, near where the source of the Kahaku River bubbled up from deep underground. Accordingly l, you had to either know how to Water Walk or take a Kawabune to get there. This ensured that it would be difficult to assault by most Genin, as the average Genin did not learn to water walk until they were at least a year into their term as Genin. Most didn't learn until they were ready to become Chunin, as it was considered a Chunin-level skill in most Villages not named Konoha, Kumo, or Kiri. It was, I felt, a good choice for a defense, though it did ensure that you would get a better class of Shinobi attacking the Tower if it came down to it, though I supposed it wouldn't much matter if the Tower was under assault, since at that point, the rest of Tani would have been taken regardless.

The Tower itself was imposing. Rather than the round, inviting, shape of the Hokage Tower of Konoha, with its warm red roof and tan stucco walls, however, the Tower of Tanigakure was a more traditionally imposing fortification. Carved out of a platform of living rock on the other side of the cavern lake that was the source of the Kahaku River, the walls were made of dark stone scribed with seals for structural reinforcement, while the tiered, dark blue-shingled, roofs of the Tower gave the impression of shadows. Shika would have a field day assaulting a tower like this, as would most Nara. Anyone else, not so much. The floor plan was simple but well-constructed. Square floors arranged in seven tiers, each with a field of view good for raining destruction down upon an advancing enemy force with Jutsu, Arrows, Shuriken, and Kunai.

As I entered through a doorway set into the living rock, I nodded at the gate guards on duty in their Lamellar Armor and Happuri-style Forehead Protectors. The standard uniform of Tanigakure was a lot more heavily armored than the Konoha one was. They gave my own clan a run for their money in terms of armor and that I could respect. As I made my way over to the Office of Lord Toritaka, I passed by several other guards posted at various places as sentries, alongside a number of Older Shinobi that had been put into administrative roles. That was another thing to admire about Tanigakure. Their Shinobi didn't ever fully retire but would take administrative work part-time when they got too old for the field so that younger Shinobi didn't need to waste their time with desk jobs.

Eventually, I made it to Lord Toritaka's Office. Here, a Kunoichi sat minding the door. Toritaka Tsubame, Jonin of Tanigakure and the daughter of Lord Toritaka sat vigil as secretary and bodyguard. She was Torimune's Elder Sister and one of the Elites of Tanigakure, comparable to someone like Asuma-Sensei. Her silver hair was something that sometimes cropped up in the Toritaka Clan, and was supposed to be a sign that the Kami favored you. It was just too bad that succession in the Toritaka Clan was male-only preference because she would make an excellent Village Head from everything I'd seen. She was considered a Mistress of Toritaka-Ryuu Kyudo and even Hishōtaka-Ryuu Kenjutsu (Soaring Hawk Style Swordsmanship) which I hadn't been allowed to do more than witness a demonstration of, as it was a village secret. She was also the only person to consistently call me Choji-kun here, which was nice.

"Tsumbame-sama." I bowed.

"My, my, Choji-kun. So formal today." Smirked Tsubame.

"Every day is formal here in Tanigakure." I grinned, straightening.

"True, but you usually don't go that far along with it. At least not with me." Mused Tsubame.

"It seemed like a good time for formality. I've been summoned." I opined.

"Yes, but you can still call me Tsubame-nee-san, you know?" Pointed out Tsubame.

"Even when summoned?" I questioned.

"Especially when summoned." Nodded Tsubame.

"Do you know what this is about, Tsubame-nee?" I queried.

"The latest trade caravan from Konoha came in with a passenger. I think you're being recalled." Informed Tsubame.

"Oh. I didn't expect to be recalled so soon. I would have thought I'd have one more year here." I frowned.

"Only Father and the new Ambassador know the specifics, so you'll have to ask them." Remarked Tsubame before I could ask.

"Then I think I'll do that." I agreed.

"Good. They're waiting inside." Nodded Tsubame.

"Right. In case I don't see you. . ." I started.

"You're still planning on competing in the War God's Tournament this year, right?" Asked Tsubame, cutting me off.

"Yeah, why?" I questioned.

"Because I'll be competing. If you attend, you'll see me there." Answered Tsubame.

"Right. I guess I'll see you in Iron Country, then?" I queried.

"And Torimune. He'll be competing too." Confirmed Tsubame.

"Right. I'll see you both there, then." I offered.

"Stay safe, Choji-kun." Responded Tsubame.

And with that, I headed inside. Lord Toritaka's Office was rather spartan and small. A desk, a single scroll rack, and a few places for Lord Toritaka and a small number of guests to sit. Lord Toritaka himself was seated at his desk. His beard had gone gray with age and his bandana covered up a head that was full of yet more gray hair, but his lined, weathered, face bore shrewd, blue, eyes that seemed to gaze right through you. Oddly enough, he wasn't alone but accompanied by someone familiar. I'd recognize the cocky grin and shaggy brown hair of my Cousin, Inuzuka Kiba, anywhere. The large, snoring, ball of white fur at his feet had to be Akamaru. Had Konoha decided my Cousin was going to be the next Ambassador to Tani? That was an interesting choice. Yeah, let's go with interesting.

"Kiba? They sent you to be the next Ambassador?" I asked.

"Psh, that's not the kinda work I'm good at, Cuz, you know that. They sent Neji, something about needing a cool down from the work he's been doing. I'm technically your escort back home. Well, me and Akamaru here." Grinned Kiba.

Akamaru just made a chuffing noise and rolled over in his sleep, much to everyone's apparent annoyance, even Lord Toritaka's, who seemed to be frowning at having to have his carpet cleaned of shed dog hair in the near future. Of course, I hadn't missed the hidden meaning behind Kiba's answer. I knew what Neji had been doing the last time I saw him. He and Shino had been tapped to fill vacancies in the ANBU Force. That was a lot of assassination and infiltration work. No doubt a nice diplomatic posting in an allied Village would be a cushy break from that sort of work. Neji was always a bit tightly wound, after all. Tsunade must have figured on giving him a rest with this posting so he didn't snap.

"And where is Neji?" I questioned.

"He's already back at the Embassy, going over the place with those eyes of his. We grabbed your stuff and sealed it up while we were there." Shrugged Kiba.

"Indeed. You may consider your mission here as Ambassador from Konoha successfully completed. I have already sent Tsunade-Dono my compliments for your conduct here. In fact, it has been so good that I am offering you a boon before you leave." Intoned Lord Toritaka.

"That's most generous of you." I opined.

"Indeed. Is there anything you would like?" Queried Lord Toritaka.

"I wouldn't mind a training manual for the basics of Hishōtaka-Ryuu Kenjutsu." I mused.

"That is a Village Secret. I would need something substantial from you in exchange." Frowned Lord Toritaka.

"If you have Chakra Ink and Sealing Papers, I can offer you something that might be a decent trade." I hedged.

"What would that be?" Asked Lord Toritaka.

"A Seal that will make you immune to all but S-Rank Genjutsu, the Roku-Ten Kokoro no Yoroi (Six-Point Mind Armor). I understand that's something of a weakness of yours." I offered.

"Damn, Cuz, you don't do anything by halves, huh?" Chuckled Kiba.

"You know I don't." I smirked.

"If this works, I will give you Manuals for intermediate and advanced forms of all the Taijutsu Styles you learned as well as basic, intermediate, and advanced forms of Hishōtaka-Ryuu Kenjutsu." Agreed Lord Toritaka.

Soon enough, Chakra Ink and Sealing Papers were brought forth and I began to write out the Six-Point Mind Armor, infusing it when I was finished. After a brief consultation, Lord Toritaka sent for Neji, and when he arrived, demanded he be hit with an A-Rank Genjutsu. After a bit of prodding, Neji cast the Nehan Shōja no Jutsu (Temple of Nirvana Technique) on Lord Toritaka, who had stuck the finished seal to his forehead. When he didn't fall asleep from Neji's Genjutsu, Lord Toritaka declared that good enough and had me pump out two more versions of the seal for his Seal Masters to study. An hour later, Kiba, Akamaru, and I were walking out of the Tower of Tanigakure with Manuals for up to the advanced forms of Hishōtaka-Ryuu Kenjutsu, Sandai Dōbutsu-Ryuu, and Kawa-To-Dōkutsuken. As we headed out of Tanigakure, Kiba couldn't help but grin, slugging me in the shoulder.

"Missed those balls of yours, Cuz! Things've been pretty boring without you around." He chuckled.

"Good to see you too, Cuz." I grinned. A low growl from deep in Akamaru's throat drew my attention to him and I shook my head.

"Yeah, yeah. You too, fuzzball." I sighed. Akamaru yipped at that, though given his size now, it was more of a yap.

Then, with no more words being said, we broke out into a run, heading northeast for Konoha and home. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here's the start of the Sequel to Autumn Road. I'm probably going to be slow-playing this one for the foreseeable future, with one or two story updates a month, similar to what I'm doing with Jungle Boy. I figured you guys have waited long enough for this though.

Choji's mostly made political connections during his time in Tanigakure but has also traded pointers for Taijutsu and Bukijutsu styles with the heirs of the Big Three Tanigakure Clans, and has even managed to trade his Six-Point Mind Seal for manuals for their Secret Kenjutsu Style, mostly because it covers their big weakness. Tani Shinobi suck at Genjutsu for cultural reasons and have a difficult time dealing with it accordingly. While he may catch some flak for this, the fact that Tani is an Ally, a Minor Village and that their best Shinobi are Asuma-Level instead of like, Kakashi or Gai-Level, mitigates the risks of that somewhat. Besides, it's Choji's secret to do what he wants with, not Konoha's.

At any rate, the next chapter will be Choji learning about what's been going on back home from Kiba. I'll also have images and a Ninja Info Card for Choji out before then, too.

Stay tuned. . .