40-41-42-43 Vegetarian wolf
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They set off and went on their way. When they reached near the herd of zebras, Noghreh Naal found a spot to rest, and Kakooti approached the herd leader. When he found him, he said, “I have an important message from Noghreh Naal for you.”
The herd leader asked, “What is this important message?”
Kakooti moved closer and whispered in the leader’s ear, “It’s a very important matter, Chief! Noghreh Naal needs to speak to you privately.”
According to their previous practice, Kakooti delivered this message with such seriousness that the leader was completely convinced.
He asked, “Where is Noghreh Naal now?”
Kakooti replied, “He’s nearby. We chose a quiet place where we can talk comfortably.”
The leader said, “Then if it’s so important, let’s hurry and go.”
They went and found Noghreh Naal in a lush, valley-like area. Upon seeing the herd leader, Noghreh Naal immediately got up and approached him.
The leader asked, “What important thing did you want to tell me, Noghreh Naal?”
Noghreh Naal looked around and then moved closer to the leader, speaking very softly as if he were afraid someone else might hear him. He spoke in such a way that even Kakooti couldn’t make out his words.
He said, “Chief! I have a plan that can save the animals of this jungle from being hunted by the hunters!”
The Chief asked in surprise, “Really? What plan?”
Paghandeh was also unconsciously speaking softly with him.
Noghreh Naal paused for a moment and then said, “But I want everyone to know that I came up with this plan.”
Paghandeh replied, “Don’t worry, Noghreh Naal. I will tell everyone that you came up with this plan.”
Noghreh Naal said, “That’s why I wanted to ask you to gather the other herd leaders so I can present my plan in front of them.”
The Chief said, “It can’t be done like this. I won’t do it until you tell me.”
Noghreh Naal replied, “I can only explain a little about it.”
Suddenly, Paghandeh said loudly, “Why are you talking so quietly? No one here can hear us.”
Noghreh Naal continued to speak softly, deceiving the Chief into thinking he had an important and significant plan. Of course, he was somewhat justified in this.
He said, “We need to be very careful, Chief!”
Paghandeh was being influenced by Noghreh Naal’s performance. According to the plan, while Noghreh Naal was speaking with the Chief, Kakooti was supposed to move back and turn away, as if he were watching the surroundings to ensure no one was eavesdropping. All of this convinced the Chief that the matter was important. The goal was to persuade the Chief to take Noghreh Naal to meet the other herd leaders. This event could serve as a significant launching pad for Noghreh Naal’s fame and reputation in the jungle.
The Bigfoot, completely captivated by Silver Hoof's performance, asked in a soft voice and a whisper, "Okay, at least explain the plan a little."
Silver Hoof whispered back, "It's a plan called the win-win game. It means both parties can come to an agreement without any conflict arising."
The Bigfoot asked in surprise, "Really?"
Silver Hoof remained silent and stared at the chief.
The Bigfoot said, "If that's the case, then it could be a good plan."
Silver Hoof replied, "So, is it accepted? Can you help me present my idea to the leaders of the herds?"
The chief nodded.
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The leader of the zebras approached each of the herd leaders and invited them to hear a very good plan to end all the crises in the jungle. The leaders of the buffalo and bison accepted, but the deer and gazelle declined, stating that due to the opposition of the buffalo and bison to their decision to fight, they would not participate in the leaders’ meetings until further notice.
As a result, the meeting was formed with only three herd leaders and Noghreh Naal. The bison said to Noghreh Naal, “You better make sure that the plan you have is worth bringing us this far. Otherwise, it will cost you dearly and be detrimental to your herd.” His threat was serious.
Noghreh Naal cleared his throat and said, “Friends! Listen carefully as I present to you the brilliant idea that has come to my mind to solve the problems of this jungle. First, I must tell you that Sheba’s decision to fight the hunters may seem like a good decision at first glance, but as you surely know, this decision is fraught with dangerous consequences and may lead to the opposite result of what they expect.”
The wrinkled ear was quite pleased with Noghreh Naal’s words.
He said, “Well said! What a young zebra, yet experienced and mature!”
The Bloodshot Eye, seeing that the wrinkled ear was praising Noghreh Naal, immediately felt jealous and said, “I wish a single hair of yours was on Sheba’s head, young zebra!”
Noghreh Naal cleared his throat again and said, “Thank you!”
He continued, “Friends and elders of the Emerald Jungle! What would you say if I told you that I have a plan where the hunters will no longer need to hunt in this jungle?”
The Bloodshot Eye, the wrinkled ear, and Paghandeh hummed in response, and the Bloodshot Eye said, “Is that even possible, zebra?”
Noghreh Naal cleverly replied, “You haven’t heard my plan yet! If you hear my plan and then see that it’s impossible, then you can say whether it can be done or not!”
The wrinkled ear said, “I wish the leaders of the deer and gazelles were here to hear this important news.”
The Bloodshot Eye said, somewhat annoyed, “It’s still unclear what his plan is. Let’s wait and hear the plan first!”
Seeing the silence that the Bloodshot Eye had deliberately created to hear the final word, Noghreh Naal gathered his thoughts and said, “To be honest, my plan is that we agree with the hunters not to hunt us, and in return…”
He paused, then continued, “In return, for this favor they do for us, whenever one of the herbivores dies of natural causes, we will take the carcass to the hunters.”
Noghreh Naal fell silent and looked at the herd leaders, who were deep in thought. Then he said, “Look, friends and elders of the Emerald Forest! I have estimated and realized that on average, we lose three to four of our dear herbivores daily due to old age, natural death, and sometimes illness. They die in remote corners of the forest, and most of those carcasses end up being eaten by vultures. Why? Because vultures can fly and find the carcasses quickly. I think that if there were no vultures, the hunters themselves could find the dead animals. If this happened, none of the hunting animals would hunt anymore. Why? Because their bellies would be easily filled, and hunting is hard work. It requires a lot of energy and focus. But if their food was easily found, they would never hunt. Instead, they would roam around the forest and find their food, which would also be easy to locate.”
Noghreh Naal fell silent again, as the leaders were listening intently to his words.
He continued, "In my opinion, the phenomenon of the emergence of hunters has developed throughout the history of animal life. In ancient times, when animals died, some animals began to eat the carcasses. First, the vultures appeared, and the phenomenon of scavenging was born. Gradually, scavenger animals became accustomed to eating meat, and their stomachs adapted to this food. They could no longer eat grass. Because of this, they started killing other animals to fill their bellies.
He paused for a moment and said, “I believe that if we herbivorous animals try to always let the hunters eat our dead, they will forget how to hunt. Because hunting is a skill that must be learned in adolescence. If for several generations the hunters have free and easy food available, I think by the third or fourth generation, they will lose the skill of hunting and gradually turn to eating fruits. After a few more generations, once their stomachs are fully accustomed to eating fruits, they will also develop the ability to eat grass. In this way, by implementing this plan, we can guarantee that carnivorous behavior and the ugly phenomenon of hunting will be eradicated from nature forever for several more generations!”
As Noghreh Naal finished speaking, the herd leaders, who were greatly pleased by his words and the philosophy he had explained about the emergence of hunting, suddenly began to praise him.
The Bloodshot Eye kept saying, “Well done, zebra! Well done, zebra!”
The wrinkled ear said, “Hail to you, dear Noghreh Naal. You are truly a savior while some are seeking war and mischief!”
Paghandeh also said, “Well done, my son! You bring pride to the zebras. You have elevated the herd; well done. What beautiful words you spoke! Well done!”
The meeting concluded, and it was decided to take a break and reconvene in the afternoon to make necessary decisions. The buffalo, in response to the wrinkled ear’s question about whether they should inform the deer and gazelle, said, “No. Let this great honor be ours alone!”
Silver Hoof happily shared the good news with Kakooti. Kakooti was thrilled and said that you had come up with an incredible plan. This way, the hunters could eat meat, and no other animals would be killed. Then he said, "I just realized what a win-win game means."
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Chapter Five: The Bridge
In the afternoon, Noghreh Naal went back to the herd leader to attend the meeting of the jungle leaders together. On the way, the herd leader never tired of praising and admiring Noghreh Naal, saying that his actions had brought honor to them in the jungle and that from now on, zebras would gain significant respect in the forest, and he went on about this at length.
At the meeting, Noghreh Naal stated that he intended to be present when they met with the hunters and presented their proposal. The Bloodshot Eye also said that this was his right. “You made this constructive proposal, and you should be there to defend against any issues that might arise!”
However, the Wrinkled Ear asked, “How are we going to communicate with the hunters? What if they attack us?”
The Bloodshot Eye replied, “Don’t worry about that, Wrinkled Ear. We’ll take our best guards with us.”
Paghandeh asked, “So who is going to go and set up the meeting with them?”
Everyone fell silent. No one had anything to say except for Noghreh Naal.
Noghreh Naal said, “Well, I’ve thought this through.”
Wrinkled Ear, who was growing fonder of Noghreh Naal as time passed, excitedly asked, “What do you have in mind, dear Noghreh Naal?”
Noghreh Naal replied, “The fox is the only animal that lives among us and also among the hunters. We can ask the fox to deliver our message to the lion.”
Once again, everyone admired Noghreh Naal’s intelligence, and in response to his suggestion, they entrusted the task to him.
Noghreh Naal happily went to find his friend Kakooti. He found him and shared the good news. Then they set off together to find the fox so he could send their important message to the lion.
43
Finally, after two days of searching, they found Khakestari talking to an old giraffe. They waited for Khakestari to distance himself from the giraffe. Once that happened, they rushed over to Khakestari and asked him to wait. Khakestari stopped and asked, “What do you want, zebra? What do you two zebras want with me?”
Noghreh Naal said, “I have been tasked by the leaders of the herds in this jungle to send someone to deliver a message to the lion. If you accept this task, I will give you the location of a fat, old rabbit’s burrow.”
Khakestari thought for a moment and asked, “What message?”
Noghreh Naal replied, “The message you need to deliver to the lion is that the leaders of the herds have something important to discuss with him and would like to meet and talk.”
Khakestari pondered Noghreh Naal’s words again and asked, “Well, what important thing do the leaders of the jungle have to say to the lion?”
Noghreh Naal said, “I don’t know that. They didn’t tell me what the important matter is. They just instructed me to find someone to do this for them.”
Although Khakestari felt tempted by the promise of the rabbit, he held himself back and said, “I’m not who you think I am.”
Then he turned and walked away.
Noghreh Naal ran and stood in front of Khakestari. Khakestari stopped as well. Noghreh Naal said, “Why? Aren’t you friends with the lion? Everyone in this jungle knows that you associate and are friends with the hunters.”
Khakestari replied, “That was back when these events hadn’t happened in the jungle yet.”
Noghreh Naal asked, “What difference does it make now?”
Khakestari replied, “It seems you don’t understand what’s happening. Sheba is going to form an army soon and attack all the hunters in the jungle. I’ve decided to keep my distance from the lion, wolf, and hyena. I no longer have any relations with them. Now do you understand the situation?”
Noghreh Naal said, “Look, fox! I’m about to become the leader of the zebra herd soon. After that, I’m going to reach bigger and more important places in this jungle. I promise you that when I reach the position I deserve, I will repay you for everything you do!”
Khakestari, playing the role of the zebra to extract as much accurate information as possible, mocked him, saying, “Oh! So you’re going to set up a whole organization soon. Are you planning to form a rescue group like Sheba?”
Upon hearing Sheba’s name, the zebra frowned and said, “Don’t mention Sheba. What does that fool think? Can she stop the wolf, lion, and hyena from hunting? Do you really think a carnivorous animal can just stop eating meat?”
Khakestari was taken aback by the zebra’s words. It was the first time he had seen someone speak so boldly against Sheba in these past few days. He was gradually becoming convinced that the zebra was indeed the envy he had been looking for.
He said, “Of course, a carnivore can’t just stop eating meat. I really liked what you said, zebra.”
Noghreh Naal immediately replied, “Look, fox. I presented a plan to the leaders of the jungle that would allow the hunters to always have meat while ensuring that no animal gets hunted anymore.”
Noghreh Naal suddenly fell deep in thought. Without realizing it, he had said something he shouldn’t have. He frowned, and it was clear that he was upset with himself.
Khakestari closely observed the zebra’s body language. Now, Noghreh Naal had to figure out how to manage the blunder he had just made.
He said, “Listen, fox. I like you. It’s clear that you have both courage and intelligence. You are useful. I want to reach great heights of success with you, and in the process, you’ll achieve a lot too, as long as you appreciate the opportunities.”
Khakestari said, “You mentioned you have a plan that allows the hunting animals not to be hunted while still being able to eat meat?”
Noghreh Naal grimaced again and said, “Of course! A new plan filled with peace and tranquility for all parties involved.”
Khakestari replied, “You’re either a foolish dreamer or a genius.”
Noghreh Naal immediately said, “The second option is correct, fox. It’s in your best interest that we get to the point quickly. You’re missing out on great benefits.”
Khakestari felt he had played Noghreh Naal enough to pique his interest. Even if this zebra was a foolish and crazy one spouting nonsense, he was still one of the best options for gathering detailed news for the mission.
He said, “Alright, zebra. I’ll give you a chance. If you can prove that you’re not rambling and that you genuinely have a mission from the herd leaders to find someone to deliver a message to the lion, then I’ll cooperate with you. But there are a few conditions.”
Noghreh Naal asked, “What conditions?”
Khakestari said, “One is that you get a guarantee from the leaders of the jungle that if Sheba or anyone else fights the lion and the others and succeeds, they won’t have anything to do with me.”
Noghreh Naal replied, “Agreed. We’ll go to them right now, and they’ll give you the mission, and you can set this condition for them. I’m sure they’ll accept.”
With this statement, Khakestari became more convinced that Noghreh Naal wasn’t just playing him. It seemed he truly had a task from the herd leaders to appoint him to deliver a message to the lion.
He continued, “The second condition is that after I complete this mission for the jungle leaders, you will help me catch twenty rabbits.”
This condition was quite heavy for Noghreh Naal. However, his ambitions allowed him to commit any treachery or crime.
He said, “Ten rabbits.”
Gray said, "Fifteen. If it's less than that, I won't accept."
Silver Hoof had to agree. He said, "Fine. Fifteen rabbits. But make sure this doesn’t slip out of your mouth to anyone."
Gray replied, "Do you think you’re dealing with?"
Silver Hoof said, "I just wanted to put my mind at ease."
Gray added, "Of course, that's fifteen rabbits excluding the old rabbit you promised."
Silver Hoof said, "I know."
Gray remarked, "I just wanted to make sure."
