Dirge of the Black Wolf

[Wolf of the Falls]

As the crimson haired man stepped into the wilderness knowing this place like his own body slowly shapes moved in from the trees before flanking him until a white wolf with red markings and an olive wolf with tannish beige patterns both emerged from the brush circling around him before the white wolf paused biting his sleeve. Axel came to a stop and smiled small petting her head and scratching her ears. "It's okay Hime, we're done."

She whined low looking down sadly while the olive wolf stopped looking back worried. Following Hime's whine a large horse sized wolf with blonde tufts of fur, burnt orange fur tone with black streaks through it before nudging him with his head a show of compassion from the great wolf. A sad smile played on the Inuzuka's face as his pack was there for him at the end.

"Sorry for the pause, she meant a lot to them too." Axel spoke softly before rubbing the back of his head looking back at Loden as Exccel moved ahead with Rey leading the path while Hime stayed at his side all of their tails down. After making a bit more head way Axel glanced over to the man. "Um about earlier I didn't mean to imply your motive was business, I've been out of the loop for a while, my apologies."

[The Doctor]

Carrying the items from before Loden walked with Axel, just a step behind allowing him to lead. He kept the same speed, walking slow, allowing Axel to take in what had happened. He was quiet, while trying to read the poor man. He was profiling the man. He was not doing it in the sense of harm, but the Doctor was a master in psychology and simply wanted to help. Perhaps it was the fact that he was a Doctor that lead him to at least try.

He then noticed the flanking motions but noticed nothing peculiar towards the young man Alex. Out popped two wolves. One was white with red markings, the other was olive with tan beige patterns. Eyes narrowed within the helmet though could not be seen. He did however tilt his head. Loden was indeed an Inuzuka, so he wondered if the man was one himself.

"It's okay Hime, we're done."

The white one whined, which made Loden suspect if perhaps the man was in fact an Inuzuka. Then came out the large horse sized wolf. It was an odd one as it looked more like a tiger towards Loden. He watched as they began to mourn.

"Sorry for the pause, she meant a lot to them too."

Loden just stayed quiet and allowed them to continue.

"Um about earlier I didn't mean to imply your motive was business, I've been out of the loop for a while, my apologies."

Loden did not want the man to continue with doubt in this conversation so he raised a hand slightly. "Quite alright, take all the time you need, but I must ask. Are you Inuzuka?" he asked in a curious tone. The Doctor had not spoken to an Inuzuka, at least a human Inuzuka for some time. "I ask because I am also Inuzuka, or was Inuzuka," he said calmly, bringing his hand down to his side.

[Wolf of the Falls]

"Oh, yeah actually born and raised here in Waterfall, my parents were killed by stone shinobi just before me and Hime became ninja though, grew up with my aunt and uncle after that. They taught me pretty much everything about being an Inuzuka. It's why these dorks are with me." Axel said softly a bit more mirth filling his voice as he tried to cheer up his dogs while his hand never left Hime's head, though Rey's tail wagged a bit.

"How do you mean you 'were' an Inuzuka? Not to judge just curious." The Inuzuka inquired looking over to Loden curious. The man was a mystery and while Axel was wrapped up in his own issues he didn't mind This Stranger as company, it was almost like having an imaginary friend.

[The Doctor]

Loden listened to the story being told about the young man. He marked that his parents were killed by Stone Ninja, which may cause one to look down on them if he met them, though he could not confirm. It seemed however he had a pretty decent life since he was raised by Inuzuka. He assumed his aunt was the keeper of the family however due to the normal social hierarchy of Inuzuka families. He noticed the pups were still down. It seemed they were close to the woman.

The Doctor thought about his pups and realized they never actually been close to anyone other than the Doctor. He never brought significant others to him. They were essentially just part of his world. A shame, and something he thought to change at some point in time, especially if he finished one of his projects for them.

Axel asked what he meant on the term "was". He thought back for a moment. What he was going to say was truth, and something that did happen to the Doctor Himself, but not as Loden. "Under interesting circumstances and a unique father, I was partially raised by a small tribe of Inuzuka in the southern provinces of Land of Sound." he continued before stopping just momentarily. "Land of Sound is known for its population acceptance towards those who are different, such as beast men, and bloodlines, however the lower you go towards the Land of Fire ideals change. My tribesmen were wiped out by a Lord who tallied favor towards the Lords of Fire. My closest friends hid me beneath the ground while they sacrificed themselves." He sighed softly, giving a piece of information about his real self.

He obviously left some things out like how he got there, why he was there, and what happened afterwards but the question pertained to "was" an Inuzuka.

[Wolf of the Falls]

"I'm sorry to hear that... It may sound like sentimental nonsense but if they cared enough to protect you believe they're still your pack, you didn't do anything that would have one of our clan look down on you so hold onto that name for them." Axel mused softly more lucid about emotions at the moment as he said the last part with a genuinely warm smile. He didn't know the man's whole story but he hoped he gave him the slightest bit of comfort from the tragedy that befell him.

"I've been to Sound before, I met with the kage to treaty on behalf of a coven witches. She was young and kind, she accepted my strange abilities and powers more openly than I did heh." Axel couldn't help but chuckle a bit so scared after the horrors that haunted him had been silenced. While the pain was still there, it seemed like a mountain was chipping off of him with each step revealing a lighthearted person he hadn't been since Rosalie disappeared, since he was taken.

"Oh if you want to see." The young-looking man spoke before slipping an arm of his jacket off letting it fall open and his Taki headband gleaming in the low light as Axel showed a series of delicate stitches that ran down the back of his arm stopping at his wrist. Slowly about three inches of stitching unfastened revealing gleaming black wire that slowly slithered out only reaching about 6 inches out like tendrils before returning inside and restitching the 'skin'.

[The Doctor]

"Mmm" Loden responded to the first comment of Axel while within his helmet.

"I've been to Sound before, I met with the kage to treaty on behalf of a coven witches. She was young and kind, she accepted my strange abilities and powers more openly than I did heh." the man said.

Loden made a note of that in his mind. He was a citizen of Sound after all. It had been some time since he spoke to the Kage of Sound. Actually he has yet to meet the current Kage of Sound, but he could probably find a way to see this meeting if the Kages took proper precautions. His position went back to Axel, staying inside the conversation as there was something "interesting" he had mention. Something about powers.

"Oh if you want to see," the young man continued before slipping his an arm of his jacket off.

Loden turned his attention and looked closely. Eyes narrowed within the mask. It was something he had not seen but for the life of him could not remember what it was. "Is that some kind of Creation Ritual?" he asked curiously before looking up to face Axel. Sure Loden was in fact knowledgeable of Creation Rituals, however what happened to Axel may not necessarily be classified as one. It could be Augmentations which was something he took the conscious decision to step away from.

"I'm familiar with Creation Rituals but this evades my knowledge," he continued with a soft sigh. "I take it this was painful to complete," he again continued allowing curiosity to take over. He suddenly had a plethora of questions due to him being a Doctor.

[Wolf of the Falls]

"I'm not highly knowledgeable about that kind of thing honestly, it was what a group of scientists did to me a long time ago, I was kidnapped cloned and it was attempted multiple times and as far as I know I was the only success." Axel mused, far less turbulent about his abduction considering her razed the facility. The Inuzuka started to go through his jacket for a moment before pulling out the ledger that detailed how to perform the ritual and handed it off to the man. The words 'Bringer of Cthulhu' scrawled across the front while it was relatively worn over the past few years but everything inside still able to be made out.

"I don't remember any pain myself but the people who were working on it weren't the ones who performed it on me, it was done in the village with a trained medical physician. However when I went back for revenge I found twenty grotesque clones of myself." Axel spoke soft remembering the facility he had escaped from. "They were all pained, maimed, and twisted, all in pain. I put them all to rest."

[The Doctor]

'Cloned?' Loden thought to himself. He turned to the man once more and scanned him up and down. He pondered on how far they were able to make progress to that. Loden himself thought about this practice mainly for self preservation if there was ever a need, however decided this would not be ideal as there could be consequences down the line. He however felt bad for the man. It seemed as if hardships plagued his life. Then a question popped in his head.

"Cloned? So do you believe that you are not the original?" he asked curiously. It was not out of disrespect but out of curiosity even though it may be a touchy subject. "Actually, you don't have to answer that. It does not matter, you are you with your own experiences, your own trials, goals, successes, and failures. That cannot be taken away," he said, after realizing his question.

He turned and saw the ledger with the words "Bringer of Cthulhu." This peaked Loden's curiosity once again. He graciously accepted the item and flipped it open while making sure nothing leaked out.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," he replied, commenting about having to take down his own clones. This was exactly why Loden, as the Doctor never went forward with the experimentations. He would want something that had no life in it until the moment he himself died.

He began flipping through the pages, reading here and there, but nothing too significant as of right now as it was rude to dive in further. "Honest question, why hand this to me? This seems to be a record of your experimentations. If this fell in wrong hands would it not cause a repeat?" he asked curiously giving a wave of the documents while carrying them in both of his hands.

[Wolf of the Falls]

"I've thought about it a lot. I still don't know if I am or not but it really doesn't matter, the people who knew Axel or gone or are inconsequential to me now. Ace and Rose are gone, Shiki is two-faced, Never heard from the witch again. So at this point I am me. Not much else." Axel responded rather simply. There was a time when he broke down with Rosalie before she vanished scared of the same thing but she reassured him that his feelings made him real. "I appreciate your care though."

"In all honesty, I have a feeling you wouldn't let that happen. I also just dont want it weighing me down anymore." The Inuzuka responded simply as they made their way through the valley and along the forest. "Honestly after carrying so much stress for so long I just wanna relax."

[The Doctor]

He was somewhat surprised Axel was opening up to him. He did not expect an answer, but it seemed he came to the same conclusion that Loden said. He is who he is.

The names rang through his head. He first mentioned Ace, Rose, Shiki, and a Witch. He tilted his head as he began to go through his memory banks.

Loden closed the files and slipped it into his coat and nodded with the response. "I'll make sure this does not fall into the wrong hands," Loden said, somewhat speaking as the Doctor. It was an honor to gain such information and the Doctor did not wish to allow such information to be let loose, especially when it has been kept for so long.

"The names you mentioned," he said before stopping, placing a right hand under his chin. "You are the lover of Rose. You also said 'If anyone was available you would not have received the request.' You mentioned you were with the Kage to create a treaty with a coven of witches. The only coven of witches I know strong enough to broker a treaty within different countries would be the Copwt Mnbwaa (Skill: Culture: Copwt Mnbwaa). All of this allows me an inference that perhaps your social standing in this world is quite high," he continued slowly putting his theories together. "I would suspect (Skill: Local History, Every Country), Ace might be the ex Leader of Snow? Am I correct?" he stopped to look up at the man placing his hands down to his side. "Shiki, there are many with that name. I can think of one who is known to have issues with a Village, and he was an ex-member of Cloud who owned a combat school. It was later disbanded after he left. Rumor has it he left to the Village of Sand." He stopped once more thinking on the witch. "Need more information on a Witch." He finished before looking at the man. "Sorry."

He apologized. It was out of habit he tend to do from time to time as the Doctor.

(Just confirming information really. I do have high skills and if anyone has issues with this knowledge being known let me know).

[Wolf of the Falls]

"Once upon a time maybe, now I'm a relic. Shiki was in Cloud before he became the Kazekage I remember that, we took the Chunin Exams together along with the witch Loki, the two of them were an item last I knew." Axel responded looking back at him and waving off his apology. "Don't worry about it."

The young man paused for a moment along the edge of a river they had now been following as he looked at the water. Something about this man was interesting and the fact that he absorbed and broke down all the things he said like it was simple. "The gate is coming up just ahead. If you don't mind me asking have you been a ninja or have any desire to be one? seems like you've got a good head on your shoulders. Waterfall could use a good leader."

[The Doctor]

Loden made mental notes of what was said. Shiki, Cloud Ninja who turned Kazekage, then the witch Loki who was an item with Shiki. An interesting combo. He saw Axel waving his hand at the apology. A Soft chuckle escaped Loden from within the helmet.

He stopped with the young man as Axel looked at the river. Loden looked at Axel carefully. He didn't sense any malice so Loden was calm and relaxed. Then Alex spoke. He brought up some interesting questions.

"The gate is coming up just ahead. If you don't mind me asking have you been a ninja or have any desire to be one? seems like you've got a good head on your shoulders. Waterfall could use a good leader." Axel asked.

Loden thought about this for a moment. Silence filled the air as the running water echoed through the skies. He nodded as he came to a response. "I own a home in Seisui (Capital of Waterfall Country)," he said stopping for just a second. What he said so far was true, he did own a home in Seisui. "I am not a Ninja, however it is something I have been interested in for quite some time," he continued, again speaking completely truthful. "I also agree, Waterfall could use a good leader. Now this is just speculation on my part but there are rumors floating about that Waterfall has not have a stable leader for some time. Years in fact," he said answering the non question.

[Wolf of the Falls]

"That's about right, we haven't had a good leader since Rosalie disappeared, she held us together, frankly I've lost a lot of love as well in these times." Axel spoke softly rubbing the back of his head feeling bad for thinking that but not able to really help it either. The information that he had a home in the country made him nod a bit acknowledging that he appreciated the land at least since he lived here from time to time.

"If you wanna take a crack at it, take my place. Considering what you showed me you could probably put something together to pass as me, you can even take my body if it'll help." Axel thought about his words which sounded morbid but Loden hadn't judged him yet and if anything maybe he needed to shed this skin. In the moment he started to hand over his jacket while his stitching slowly came free along his arms before his back to slip out if the man would use it for his own purposes.[/blockqquote]

[The Doctor]

"I understand," Loden said, commenting about losing a lot of love in these times. It made sense. From what Loden gathered he lost a lot of loved ones and endured some hardships. He just hope he did not lose faith in life completely.

"If you wanna take a crack at it, take my place. Considering what you showed me you could probably put something together to pass as me, you can even take my body if it'll help."

These words ran throughout Loden's head. He looked down didn't seeing him move while he contemplated on this thought. He did want to help the Village as it would benefit his own goals, and honestly taking the identify of another man, a man established would be even more beneficial due to Loden being new. This would also allow the Doctor to use a network pre-established. Only downside would be any pre-established enemies the man has.

He thought about it long and hard, not seeing the man handing over his jacket. He looked up and saw the stitching to slip. A hand extended out. "No need, an appearance is easy, personality is much more difficult." He said calmly as began to control the censors of the Full Body Corset through his helmet. The gears and mechanics began to twist, turn, and alternate, slowly changing the body structure. "Are you sure about this?" He asked curiously slowly reaching for the Jacket. "You know it is strange to trust a stranger. Are you sure you are not acting out of pure emotion? In fact I have a question myself, what will you be doing?"

When Loden finished asking, the suit completed its process. There standing in front of Axel was a version of him almost mirrored. The suit Loden was wearing was a device that twisted, turned, and even changed the clothing to make it look like another person. Only difference was Loden wearing his original jacket while he held onto Axel's jacket with his hand. This was one of the true abilities laid within the Doctor.

[Wolf of the Falls]

Axel watched his frame shift around and change becoming a copy of Axel's own fit physique which impressed him admittedly, he could become what he imagined but not so... flawlessly. Curiously he looked up at Loden as he asked if he was sure about trusting this stranger and that it wasn't just out of emotion. The question made his gaze fall as he did think about it critically before nodding and looking up at him. "I may be acting out of emotion, but it's because I've had to silence my hearts for a long time and now I don't have to stay on track. It is more than that though, like I said you have a good mind and that is enough for me to trust the village to you, it needs someone who can bring it together."

"One of the last pieces is in here." Axel commented before clicking his teeth and within a moment Rey and Exccel were around them in the brush. In his jacket was his Waterfall headband set in the inside like a badge and after Loden took the jacket Axel would continue to unstitch until a large mass of wire would slip out and the glow vanishing from his eyes as the skin and cloth crumpled before being drawn inside the wire gently as it slowly took form into a wolf between the sizes of Exccel and the other two with softly glowing red eyes. "I have one thing I need to handle but afterwards I'll return here and stay in the village with our pack. I figure it'd be prudent to keep around for any refreshers or occurrences that come up."

"So you wanna hear a story huh?" With those words the four wolves laid down on the soft dirt and Axel's voice reverberated from the black wolf just the same as before as he told his story, repeating the experiences as kage and after, of Rosalie and Ace, Gunnr, Shiki, Loki as well. Every detail passed over to the best of the Inuzuka's ability as they sat and spoke.

//OOC timeskipping for brevity's sake, I'll still be in the village after the fact if something comes up anyway lol

[The Doctor]

(No worries, I'll make a small post to speed it up).

Loden listened to the man while looking like him. He examined the Jacket to see the headband inside. It was as if the headband was a badge of sorts. He looked up seeing the skin remove of the man, noticing the true power of the man. Slowly the man known as Axel Inuzuka transformed into a giant wire wolf. Perhaps showing off since Loden did something similar.

"I have one thing I need to handle but afterwards I'll return here and stay in the village with our pack. I figure it'd be prudent to keep around for any refreshers or occurrences that come up." Axel said.

Loden nodded and slowly sat down on the ground while the wolves around did the same. A smile came from his face. It was a nice thought to be in a "pack" again. He had pups himself but he never considered it as a Pack. Perhaps some change was needed.

He sat there quietly and listened to the story, trying to gain the knowledge necessary for the future.

[Wolf of the Falls]

It was a long while later before Axel concluded his talk with Loden explaining that he had been searching the lands for the past few years trying to look for Rosalie and including his run in with the white haired girl in the land of stone that would be sending a gem for him.

"That's about everything I suppose. If you're ready we can head into the village." Axel tied up his lengthy exposition of his life before he and the wolves got up stretching and awaiting the man's attention and any comments before heading along towards the gates if there was nothing else left. If there was though he would stop and await him.

[The Doctor]

Using his techniques of a memory palace the Doctor slowly stored this information away. The Doctor's memory palace was a place he was extremely familiar with and very large. He stored some information about a white haired woman in the land of stone who would be sending a gem for him. This was information needed just in case.

"That's about everything I suppose. If you're ready we can head into the village."

Loden, looking like Axel slowly stood. "Understood, I'll follow your lead, since I don't know where I'm going," he said heading with Axel to the gates.

-Exit with Axel and pups-