Chapter 3

Dawn came by in a flash, to the Sanya's surprise Kira was first up undoubtedly going for a morning training session. Before he could reach the training grounds though he was intercepted by a small group of youths discussing something. When they saw Kira they wanted to congratulate him on joining the selection, unfortunately no one in his family could have predicted this outcome.

"Hey Kira ready for the selection today?" the boy at the head of the group asked, his hair had clearly been combed the same as the others among his group, they also wore a full cloth tunic and they were all specially tidy. This was the complete opposite to Kira who was only wearing his usually raggedy lower hide tunic and his hair was less than presentable. He looked at the boy at the head of the group with slight confusion and asked with curiosity, "What selection?"

"You don't know?, the selection for marriage were all in it." another boy said while he and the rest of the boys were slightly confused. Kira looked down for a second and tried to think of any mention but he failed to recollect on anything from the previous day.

"It was your father who suggested the selection to solidify an alliance I heard." the boy at the head added on seeing Kiras confusion.

"I don't know anything about any marriage or selection but thanks for the heads up." Kira finally looked up and said to the group before quickly walking past them before they could say anything else. 'Damn that old man, I'm sure he never told me on purpose.' he thought while heading towards the training grounds.

Once he arrived a familiar face greeted him, a boy who looked only slightly older than Kira his hair had a slight silver tint to it which shined in the light and his dark body more toned than Kiras. The young lad stood in front of Kira with his long black hair tied back into a pony tail was Kira's older cousin, the eldest son of the current chief, Kiba.

"Kira, I knew I'd find you here." he said with a bright smile to which Kira replied casually, "Kiba, I'm guessing your here for this selection?" and Kiba nodded. Upon confirming that Kiba was indeed here for that reason Kira sat on a rock and Kiba sat on the rock opposite him. "So did you know that we would have to take wives?" Kiba immediately asked Kira still composing his smile.

"No I found out just now, seems my dad didn't want me knowing." Kira replied with a look of frustration. "haa. Those damn geezers, well I'll tell you now not to cause a ruckus." Kiba sighed and spoke with his smile now gone from his face. Kira was surprised at how calm Kiba was about the situation and couldn't help but let it show since Kiba was a like himself that he loved to train and he also aspired to become a great warrior.

Noticing the confusion on his cousins face Kiba smirked slightly before asserting his stance on the marriage, "Look at it this way my dear baby boar, to start this war which you and I both want we will have to connect the two tribes and if that takes one of us marrying then so be it. That being said it will be one marriage," when Kira heard his last words he started to understand what Kiba was getting at while he continued, "Now we both know that were not as appealing in terms as looks compared to people like Kai for example so we have nothing to worry about." Kiba said and a devilish smile appeared on his face. "However when it comes to what all tribes consider most important, the selection will likely be decided on strength and Kai isn't the best. It will be a little tricky when succession comes around if the alliance falls to say one of the outer families."

When Kiba finished speaking Kira looked at the ground then looked back towards Kiba's eyes and spoke with a grudging tone "So we should wipe out the competition and then throw the match."

"Correct, now I won't force you but remember that we are some of the few that still value to nature of war. Others may choose to be consumed by the bigger tribes or even the men from outside the forest." Kiba said with a more serious face and stood up without letting Kira give his answer.

Once Kiba had left Kira was too preoccupied to train and instead went home where he was greeted by his mother and sister who made up an excuse to groom him, which he did not refuse or question as he already knew the true reason and was still deciding on what action to take.

The morning preparations for the meeting between tribes proceeded without any problems, Kira didn't question anything and continued as normal surprising his brother who was certain he would have figured out what was going on however Kira didn't even respond much to what was going on around him and soon they were atop their mounts and on their way to the Blue Lotus Tribe's territory.

The mounts they rode where giant boar, however they were not your usual boars since these were magic beasts one of the reasons the Frost Tusk Tribe got it's name as during it's establishment the first ancestors fought a giant magical boar for the right to the territory they now own and many were lost fighting it. The fight lasted three weeks and even then the giant boar nicknamed 'Frost Tusk' since it's attribute was ice and it's tusks were able to emit frost from it's tips. The giant boar is told in legends to have stood at 10 feet tall and had the speed of a wolf while still supporting it's immense power and weight, it's four tusks it had were each respectively three feet long making it's attacks even more brutal. After the many days of battle Frost Tusk grew uninterested and left never being seen again even after 200 years, the tribe then took the name Frost Tusk to honour the great boar and it's strength.

The mounts used now were lesser magical boars who stood at 6-7 feet tall on all fours towering over most men and usually lacked the ability to use any innate magical abilities. They had thick brown fur coats and around four or six tusks sticking out the sides of their jaws. Even the weakest magical beasts can crush a humans bones with little resistance and the boar species was on the stronger side making their bite capable to crush even rocks with ease. To acquire these beasts it's tradition that the young men of the village at age 12 will capture one with the help of their parents.

Kai and Kira were both accompanied by their father to capture their own however Kira being unsatisfied with the boars available he decided not to capture one, Kai on the other hand managed to capture his mount, which he later named Munchy for it's greedy nature, with relative ease and has strengthened his bond with the mount through many years of hunting together.

Kai and Kira rode atop Munchy and made their way through their territory, picking up other youths from the nearby villages who had been selected. The whole trip over passing by each village Kira was silently going over what Kiba told him and had finally came to a decision and in good time as it approached midday, they were now entering the territory of the Blue Lotus, immediately they were approached by the nearby hunters with their weapons out and the caravan of warriors did the same.

"What are you doing here, men of the Frost Tusk?" one of the hunters asked with his weapon pointed at Katsu who simply scoffed and look down from atop his mount at the brave young hunter who dared to aim his weapon at him.

"We are here to discuss with your chief, I am Katsu and I am representing my brother Chief Kantu." he spoke with a clear rumbling voice.

The hunters looked at each other after hearing that they were here to discuss as they were certain they were in their territory for a more hostile reason. The hunters eventually lowered their weapons and the warriors of the Frost Tusk Tribe did the same. "Come we will take you to the chief."

The group made their way to a large village, it was larger than the main village in the Frost Tusk territory since the Blue Lotus only consisted of one village. This was because the Blue Lotus Tribe was in the territory swarming with Lotus plants of different varieties most being poison and the land they need to grow is not suitable for a village to be built without destroying them. The Blue Lotus tribe are known for their alchemy and witchcraft which resulted in their reliance on the Lotus plants so they had no choice but to build on already clear land. Their manpower wasn't a match for the Frost Tusk tribe or any of the other tribes however their witchcraft and alchemy was enough for them to compete.

Upon reaching the village many small huts with runes or images painted on them surrounded the outer perimeter, likely where witches or alchemists worked. The deeper they went into the village the larger the runes on the buildings got and the stronger the magical pressure rose becoming almost suffocating to people who rarely use magic like the warriors of Frost Tusk, only the veteran warriors were unaffected.

When they reached the centre they were greeted by the large hut which the chief and their family reside. "Wait while I inform the chief." The young hunter who guided them said before disappearing into the hut. The group waited outside for a few minutes before the hunter reappeared with two large men who wore only a their cloth tunic shirts and pants, the men had furious expressions as they walked toward the group.

"What business do you have to discuss with our chief pig." the man on the right said directing his murderous gaze at Katsu to which he responded with a mocking smirk and jumped down from his boar, a giant thud could be heard as the giant of a man landed on his feet startling the nearby village folk.

"I am here to speak to the leader of the Blue Lotus tribe, I have nothing to discuss with you weaklings." he said uncaring that he was in the middle of another tribes territory with no easy route out. The other warriors of the Frost Tusk tribe knew this too and began to get chills fearing that the fearless nature of their leader may kill them right here and now. Only the veterans and a few braver youths including Kira and Kiba remained unfazed some even getting excited.

As the two men heard his disrespect towards them they clenched their teeth and went to unsheathe their blades however before they could even reach them they heard a loud voice from inside the tent which stopped them in their tracks.

"Stop you morons!" the deep loud voice bellowed and released magical energy from each word which only amplified the overbearing authority it carried causing all the nearby onlookers and even some of the warriors to flinch and lower their heads. The two men stopped and returned inside the large hut while the young hunter snapped out of his daze and quickly led the group inside. Only the youth from the selection and three veterans, one being Katsu entered the hut while the rest stayed outside with the mounts.

The large room inside was lit with torches and it appeared that the chief and and many other warriors of the tribe were having a feast as the place stunk of food and alcohol, the room had tables going all around it facing inwards towards the centre of the room where the group now stood, many families inside and many strange runes covered the walls. Katsu and his group under the gaze of the many men and women inside made their way towards the chief who was surrounded by his most trusted elders and their families as well as his wives and kids.

The chief of Blue Lotus was also a giant of a man similar to Katsu and his brother Kantu, his skin was of a snow white complexion and he had a scar across his face, he was already bald and his beard was a silvery blue colour both his skin and hair was shared throughout the tribe making them unique amongst the tribes of the forest.

Katsu upon reaching the chief stared at him with a wide murderous smile angering some of the warriors who were watching the scene and scaring many of the women and children who were seated near the chief, however the chief himself only smiled back with an equally murderous smile speaking with an eager tone and placing his hand on his axe beside his chair, "I was told you came here today to discuss, however if it's a fight you want I don't mind a rematch." to which Katsu scoffed and replied while lowering his threatening smile "Unfortunately I am here to discuss something that may lead to our unification in the future." Katsu's gaze shifted from the chief towards the young women next to him and then to the young men beside him.

Everyone in the hall listened with curiosity as to what he meant however the chief quickly understood what he meant by that and put on a contemplating expression before finally speaking, "So, who are you attacking and what will we get from this unification?"

Upon hearing the chieftains willingness to hear him out Katsu put on a friendly smile before beginning his discussion about the unification of the two tribes.