Niwatoko: The Elder Tree

Chapter 1: The Journey Begins

"Your son is sick? It must be hard on you and Nora."

"It is, she doesn't know yet but it would crush her. She's only 15 and Tsubasa is 6. He will die at 16."

"I'm so sorry! Is there a cure?"

"No, but according to the books, there's a tree called The Elder Tree that might be able to save him. The only problem is I have no way to go get it." This was a conversation between Nora's mom and a friend about her brother, Tsubasa's, illness. He would die at the age of 16 and Nora couldn't stand by and watch. She had decided to adventure out and find this Elder Tree. She went out into the woods and began to train her body to try and get strong enough to venture out into the unknown world. One day, she discovers a mysterious rock. In the world of Niwatoko, this is known as an enhancement rock, it gives the person who touches it first a supernatural ability. She developed the ability Seigo No Ora, or Aura of Justice. This allows Nora to manifest her will into an invisible force and wield it as a weapon. After a month of training, she decided to tell her mom she was leaving to go find the Elder Tree.

"You can't! You are only 15 and it's a mere rumor! I'm not letting my only daughter risk her life!" Nora's mom cried.

"I have to try! I can't sit by and watch Tsubasa slowly lose time in his life. My baby brother will live a successful life, I'll make sure of it." Nora yelled.

"I won't stop you...but please be careful." Nora's mom sighed.

"I will, I'll be back before you know it." Nora smiled.

"I knew you would one day venture out. You remind me so much of your father Nora. He always left on adventures for money. He's the reason we have so much money. Speaking of money, take 15,000n Tsuka." Nora's mom gave her money. Tsuka was the currency of this world and 1 Tsuka equaled 1 dollar.

"Thanks, mom..." Nora shed a tear, realizing she was leaving her home. She hugged her mom, tears streaming down her face but her will didn't waver. She was dead set on saving her brother. He ran into the room.

"You are leaving?" He asked sadly.

"Yup, sorry squirt! I'll be back soon though so wait for big sis!" She smiled and rustled his hair. He nodded and hugged her leg since she was much taller. Nora was 5'3, she had long, dark purple hair and violet eyes that gleamed in the sun. She wore a black hoodie and jean shorts and was rather fit from her month of training. She waved and said goodbye and left the house.

'Alright! First I need a way to quickly get somewhere so I should head to the next town over and purchase some transport!' Nora thought as she headed through the forest. The next town, Earthcliff, was only 30 miles away which seemed far but Nora had increased her stamina significantly so it was no sweat for her. She eventually arrived in the town. It was a nicer town than hers and had lots of buildings and pretty lights. It had also turned night by the time she reached town so she would need somewhere to sleep. She wanders around before seeing an alleyway.

'I don't want to but I can't find a hotel...' She enters the alley and sits down.

"Who are you?!" Nora jumped as a loud voice was heard from the darkness of the alley.

"Nora Masayoshi! Former resident of Joshi Village and currently journeying the world, looking for the Elder tree, you?" Nora asked the stranger who was a bit shocked.

"Osore Yosutebito." He emerged from the darkness, expecting her to run in terror. 

"Cool name! Why are you in this alley?" Nora asked.

'She must be new in town... she did say she was from Joshi Village after all.' Osore thought.

"Well...the townsfolk are afraid of me. I can't buy any housing here, much less do I have money to afford it. Well, not everyone is afraid, some of the people call me a loser and pretty much bully me." He explained.

"That's awful... I'm so sorry Osore." Nora said sincerely.

"Don't say sorry. It's my fault for being a scary-looking guy." He said.

"No! You did nothing, anyone who judges someone on appearance is as good as scum." Nora said. Osore was taken aback by her words and his heart thawed out.

"W-Wow... no one else has ever thought like that before." Osore said. He moved more into the light of the street and Nora could see him now. He was about 5'7 and wore a hoodie like her. His face was covered by his hood, dark sunglasses, and a mask covering his facial features. He also wore long black pants and most of his pale skin was covered.

"You look so cool!" Nora squealed. She was a huge fan of goth culture as she read about it in books before.

"Thanks. I like your style as well." He said and she blushed.

"So sweet! You hungry? I'll buy you a meal if you show me somewhere to eat." Nora said. Both their stomachs growled. Osore accepted the deal and brought her to a nearby tavern.

"Wow! A real tavern! We don't have one of these in Joshi." Nora sat at the bar and Osore sat next to her. People began to scoot away and avoid Osore. Nora noticed this and smiled.

"Osore, what would you like to eat?" She asked. People gasped as she was talking to the town reject.

"Just a salad, I don't eat meat." He said.

"A vegetarian? Wow! I've never met one before!" She looked at him with stars in her eyes. Osore chuckled a bit before his eyes widened.

'I'm...happy? It feels like it's been years since... wow... this girl is amazing.' He thought. Nora ordered Osore a salad and ordered herself a steak. The food came and they began chowing down. Nora had learned to be refined and use excellent manners from her mom but she wasn't here right now. Nora picked up the steak and tore it with her teeth. She devoured it like a beast and some were left on her cheek.

"Hey, you got a little something." He wiped her cheek.

"Hey! I've seen this in books, you are hitting on me, right? I don't know Osore, it's a little sudden but give me some time to consider it." Nora said dramatically.

"Eh...I was just helping you out. I admire you a lot but I'm not interested in dating at the moment." Osore laughed a bit. Nora also began to laugh.

"I'm pretty dumb sometimes, sorry!" She laughed. Suddenly, two guys walked up to them.

"Hey Osore, who's the hottie?" He asked.

"H-Hey Jack..." Nora could instantly tell he was uncomfortable.

"Yeah Osore, why didn't you introduce us?" The other guy said.

"I-I didn't think we were good friends Jake." Osore muttered.

"Cause we aren't but a girl like this needs a man who can take care of her, not someone like you." Jack laughed.

"Hey, dickhead! Osore is more of a man than both of you combined! Don't bully my friend! Seigo No Ora!" Nora pushed them away with her willpower. They both growled and ran at her. Osore had seen enough and pulled out his knife, Fear Fang. The knife in total was 10 inches long, 6 inches of blade, and 4 inches of handle. It also had mysterious purple symbols on its steel. Suddenly, the two boys had terrified expressions on their faces. 

"Please don't hurt us!" They screamed.

"Leave now, or I'll kill you." Osore's upper body muscles had suddenly grown and he was now very muscular. Nora's jaw dropped. Osore was just like her and had touched an enhancement rock.

To be continued...