Hōkō:

  Living on a tree... How absolutely outlandish to anyone else's ears.

  Even if there were folks who craved to extend their lifespan to virtual eternity, the old Wolf's method was often seen as too much of a laborious task to end up depriving yourself of many pleasures of the world. When was the last time Hōkō sank his teeth into a freshly-hunted meal? Or stretched his limbs to the fullest? Those have become as reliable as limp snakes with twigs as bones. The tree made all the work regarding his limited mobility and integral sustenance.

  Although his situation had a lot of upsides - longevity, communing with all the flora in a vast radius, and the lack of basic need for food and, by extension, taking a piss or a dump for centuries, there was a single reason that made it ALL worth it.

  "KEH KEH KEH!" the Baku cackled. "BEHOLD, FOOLISH GIRLS! THE MIGHTY GENTō HAVE PLUCKED THESE FLOWERS OFF THE GROUND!!!" He proudly presented a small-sized begonia plant filled with lime green buttons.

  The Amikiri clapped with the same pacing as a woodpecker who swam on a black tea cup. "Excellent, sir! I knew you had it in you!"

  The Human, Stella, imitated a flatulence sound with her stuck-out tongue. "We cleaned up, like, THIS amount!" Her thumb pointed at a respectable pile of unwanted vegetation she and her packmate gathered over the hours. Her cocky, prideful grin was only matched by her partner's, who was almost bouncing with glee. The vitality of the youth is a matter of great envy for the Wolf elder.

  "Yup!" Lien agreed. "Earth magic is quite easy when you take the initial step!" She had no idea what to do with her feet, hopping and prancing all over the place. "We! Won!" She hugged her packmate so hard Stella's eyes almost popped out of her skull.

  "Excuse me?!" Gentō put his tiny hands on his hips. "There wasn't talk about competition!" He confidently stroked his chin. "If it was, I would've taken this predicament more seriously and put you in your place..."

  The Human then broke into laughter so hard she clutched her stomach. "S-Sure..." She resumed giggling, followed by the pup rolling on the ground while laughing. Even the Amikiri couldn't hold off a chuckle. How sad.

  "You can keep chattering all you want!" Hanaken, the big, red Oni, carried a stack of begonias half the size of Hōkō's pego tree. "I'm still winning, regardless." She proudly smirked while throwing the pile at their feet.

  "Yeah, yeah. We all know you're the toughest bitch around." Stella huffed.

  "She's not even a Wolf," Lien whispered.

  The Oni laughed, a thunderous sound that threatened to form an earthquake. "You know it!" She flexed her biceps. "You got a LONG way until you can even impress me, little rats."

  Stella's mouth went agape with indignation. "Listen here, Grandma!" She pointed a finger at the red brute. "I'm not leaving Pantsti without a rematch! And trust me, I WILL knock your big, ugly teeth out!"

  Hanaken chuckled, shaking her head. "I am so scared..." She opened her arms dramatically. "Please, do! I hope you won't break a leg before I can draw a little bit of blood first..." She snickered wickedly.

  "First!" The Human raised her middle finger at the Oni. "Second! I won't just knock your teeth! Prepare to have your arm-"

  "HEY! LOOK WHAT I FOUND!" Lien shouted, claiming everyone's attention while carrying a dead possum by its tail. "It smells just like you, Ms. Ogre!"

  Hanaken gritted her teeth, her eyes flashing in yellow. "EXCUSE-"

  The Human held both hands placatingly, then pointed at her own eyes and made a crossing gesture with her arms.

  The Oni's eyes returned to black as her expression softened. "Oh." She stroked her greyed hair bun and recomposed herself. "I am an Oni, pup."

  "Oh..." Lien's face neutralized. "Yeah, Mom said I shouldn't get you two mixed..." She stepped closer to the bear-sized woman and sniffed. "Your smells are so similar, though..."

  Kreef hovered between them. "I'm not sure it's dead. Possums playing dead to avoid being eaten is their whole schtick."

  "Really?!" She shook the poor mammal with excitement. "I've never hunted these guys before!" She lifted it close to her nose and sniffed, quickly cringing and gagging at its foul smell. "They sure are convincing!" she said before flinging it at the woods like a sack of garbage.

  Hōkō giggled at the silliness unfolding near him. This was one of the reasons that shaped his path to tutelage for the subsequent generations. The subtle differences in the personality and dynamics between his students and the village's inhabitants throughout time were subjects of great amusement for the white canine. This particular bunch was the most peculiar - a grown Baku, Oni, and Amikiri, followed by a blind pup and his first, if not only, Human trainee!

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  "You five have done a remarkable job!" he communicated telepathically. "You are deserving of a good, long rest."

  "Can I get some shut-eye on the tree after lunch? I've got too used to sleeping with someone near..." Stella voiced while arching her back.

  "No problem!" He beamed as his eyes basked in the lime green and white rows of flowers almost pruned to perfection, with a few blemishes sprinkled throughout. Regardless, the exercise was not a gardening lesson, so it was irrelevant. "Don't take too long, however. I have a class on the 15th."

  Stella saluted in response while Hanaken impatiently tapped his foot on the ground. "When's my turn to eat anything other than pego fruit?" the red brute questioned. "It's tasty and all, but I need MEAT!" A thin streak of drool coursed down from her wrinkly, rough lips.

  "Don't worry, pal!" The Human tapped her abs before strutting towards the village with her packmate. "I'll save ya a bone or two." She snickered mischievously.

  The Oni scowled while sitting under the pego tree's shadow. "Bite-sized hellion."

  "Are you sure you want to sleep there?" Hōkō asked.

  Stella carelessly lay on a branch of the tree he called home, her feet slowly dangling in the air. "No problem, man," she reassured. "After I realized I could fall from much higher than that and feel almost nothing, it took only a couple of days to master the art of tree-sleeping."

  "That's true!" Lien copied her packmate's action on a branch of the opposite side. "We can stand perfectly still for hours!"

  The... Curses... What was their team name again?

  The Trouble Troop wasn't as daring, however. The Baku and Amikiri rested soundly on their immense companion's abs. The elder wondered how soft they were. It has been a long time since he... touched anything other than the inner workings of the pego tree.

  Oh, well... This was but a frivolous matter. The elder Wolf manipulated the inner core of the mighty plant to push him upward so he could have the best view of his glade. Only a mere thought of his and the vines and rogue begonias shriveled and recoiled back to the soil, where their organic matter would be better utilized.

  Stella groaned in relief as she stretched her arms. "So..." She turned to the rising Wolf head. "Why did you stick yourself in there?"

  Hōkō cackled at the question. "Immortality, an endless supply of sustenance, being a living security system... What's not to like?"

  The girl shook her head. "Yeah, but you are basically stuck there forever. I don't know about you, but I prefer trying my luck with whatever god is there to greet me on the other side..."

  The elder smiled at the remark. "You got a point there, child." He watched a flock of blue jays passing by, almost imperceptible amidst the sky. "I suppose this old coot is also searching for... penance."

  "Oh?" Stella sat on the branch. "What does that word mean?"

  "It means I want to make amends for my ancient missteps." He laughed bitterly. "Oh, and how ancient they are..."

  The Human girl kicked her feet in the air. "Anything to do with the war?"

  The white Wolf tilted his head at her. "A very astute observation, young one. I know Kaku disclosed some details to you in their home..."

  She nodded. "Yes." Her lips twisted into a teasing smirk. "What do you NOT know about me, you creepy old dog?"

  "You tell me. There are repressed memories of yours even I can't put my claws on." He mischievously snickered before sobering. "On a serious note, my greatest mistake was not taking the threat of that war earnestly until my people were too deep in it." He grimaced. "I was a great warrior once. Thought I should leave my family and packmates behind if I truly desired to become the strongest under the heavens!"

  "And you did it?" Stella questioned.

  "In a way..." He sighed. "Twenty years of dedication and practice with the most experienced masters at the elemental paths plus twenty more pushing my components to their limits by my lonesome in the most secluded corners of the Earth. I've even extended my lifespan far beyond what was possible for any Wolf..." He trailed off, looking down at the Trouble Troop.

  The Human shuffled closer to the tree trunk and the elder's head. "And then...?

  Hōkō remained silent for a minute. However, Stella never pressed him further once. Perhaps she understood him better than he gave her credit for...

  "I-I..." he stuttered. "...went back for my village. Thought I'd see my family's descendants, at least, but..." More hesitation. "They were either missing or dead because of the war..."

  Stella let out a loud sigh. "Crap."

  "Indeed." He had no mood to berate her cussing. "I tried everything I could to tip the scales in our favor, but it was too little too late." He shook his head. "After we were stuck here, I realized my skills and knowledge would be put to good use if I lived through my kind's next generations, which was impossible to do on my own." A branch near him twisted and tapped on the tree trunk. "Hence my choice to commune with all plant life in Pantsti. What use is freedom for my arms and legs if we're not truly free?"

  "Fuck... Dude..." Stella gently caressed the branch as if Hōkō could feel her touch. Well, it was the thought that counted. "I'm sorry for bringing this up and... the crimes of my ancestors and whatnot..."

  Lack of grace with words aside, the elder could sense the girl's remorse as genuine. "You're just a clueless child, born long after all that tragedy..." He locked his gaze on hers. "Besides, you lack the venom they carried all those centuries back. In fact, I'd say your soul is as pristine as a pup..." He grinned.

  Stella broke into a loud giggle. "Oh, that's-" She clutched her tummy. "That's... so funny!"

  Hōkō tilted his head again. "Why's that?"

  She sobered. "Come on." Her voice carried a lamentable amount of conviction. "There's no way I have a pure soul. Not with the shit I pulled over the years." She started counting on her fingers. "Lying, stealing, almost killing some folks to survive..." She shivered at the memories. "It's a terrible world out there... You guys might be luckier than you think..."

  "Perhaps..." Hōkō muttered. "But answer me this... Have you ever done these crimes with anything other than survival in mind?"

  Stella opened her mouth, but her resolve failed halfway through, rendering her mute and shyly gazing at the slumbering trio.

  "I'm not saying you're as pure as a newborn child. But you're as far as a bad person as you can possibly be. The actions forced upon you by external factors aren't a good metric for judging your character." the elder explained.

  Stella remained silent. As long as she took his words to heart, it was fine by him.

  ...

  ......

  She broke the pleasant silence. "Lien got quiet, didn't she?"

  Suddenly, the familiar snoring, which dwarfed a bear's bellow, echoed through the vibrating leaves.

  The girl shrugged. "That tracks."