Eizaburou

The salmon on Eizaburou’s head has its own reputation in The Heart of the Forest. The locals say it’s a tribute to the river, a lucky charm for catching fish, or just a very silly hat. They see the ever-present strawberry milk and decide Eizaburou is harmless, a gentle soul lost in daydreams. Most were surprised when the seasoned explorer Nuriko took any notice of them at all. But Nuriko didn't see a daydreamer. Nuriko saw a chimp who spent hours mapping the river’s eddies, not for fish, but to understand its flow. They saw focus that the constant singing and dancing of the forest couldn't break. When Nuriko offered to teach them the art of traversing the wild, Eizaburou simply nodded and followed. The villagers still talk. “Probably teaching Nuriko how to find the juiciest berries,” they say, and smile.