Chapter Text
Once upon a time a boy wished to become king, for the current one had become a tyrant who did not understand the needs of his people. He struck out from his family’s farm and soon came upon a hound that was lying on the side of the road. As he passed it raised its head weakly, and asked in a human’s voice for some help. The boy paused, and asked why he should help the dog.
“If you help me then I shall help you,” the hound said knowingly. “When well I am the best of hunters. Should you aid me in this time of need, I will be your knight when you succeed in your quest.”
The boy gave to the dog his meat and water, and gathered more on the way, as the dog trotted along behind. Its coat became thick and glossy, its teeth sharper than anything the boy had seen before.
As they walked they came upon a river, startling a flock of cranes into flight. One remained behind, trapped in a fisherman’s trap.
“Boy, I see you have one companion already, so you must have some kindness in your heart. A cruel man wishes for me to be his wife, but I have no desire for him. Help me escape and I shall be your advisor, and you will lose no wars.”
The boy, who trusted the dog, freed the crane, who shook herself off and nodded.
“You have been kind, and I will fulfill my debt. When you have need of me, call for the cranes.”
She flew away and he was slightly disappointed, for a journey with only a dog for company was not entirely pleasant. They soldiered on despite it.
They came upon a forest and began to walk through it. Suddenly the hound lunged ahead and struck a viper who had been hiding in the long grasses and brush.
“Ah, so you have caught me.” She hissed. “The king you seek to remove has heard of your acts, for people speak of your kindness to the populace, and thus he sent me to strike you down. I am not a willing servant, and he keeps a collar about my neck to prevent me from biting him. If you help me remove this, I will be your assassin and none will stand in your way.”
The hound barked to warn his king of the viper’s treachery, as just because he could trust two people twice, that did not mean that the third person held only good will. However the boy did not heed this warning, and cut loose the collar from the snake’s neck. She jumped and the boy had to hold back the hound from attacking her.
“I will travel with you, and strike down the king so that your knight need not.”
So they traveled to the capital and the boy gained an audience with the king, who up close looked like a tired old man with a flock of advisers around him like vultures excited for the dead. The boy felt a brief moment of hesitance before the viper hissed her cue, and he and the dog lunged for the kill. The three of them hit him at once, so it would be difficult to say who had truly done it.
It came to be that the boy was king next, with an incredibly loyal knight, the wisest possible advisor, and an assassin who was known and yet not known. He ruled for some years in peace before another child came along to challenge his claim to the throne. It is in this way that Konohagakure passes the crown not from father to son or mother to daughter, but instead ruler to chosen heir, never of the same blood as the last ruler.