Steaking with the Steward [open]

[Takahashi Aki]

The Steward was impressed with the combatants and their displays of skills. One might go so far as to say that the mechanical man had a form of pride in his combatants. Two out of three of them would go onto the next phase of the tournament. The Steward was most curious with the final moments of the final battle during Azusa's final match. The other combatant had shielded everyone, and protected them from the onslaught. That was a noble action in itself, but the individual in question seemingly transformed at the end into something else. The Steward was a keen observer. His eyes were sharp and were usually able to pick up patterns.

He had closed his eyes and he held up his index and middle finger against his temple while he awaited his meal to arrive. Surprisingly enough the Steward had actually made two bets during the tournament as well. The first bet he placed on a Sound participant who demolished Akkuma quite soundly. The second bet was on Azusa herself. Both bets came back and with a little extra yen. It was not a major bet he placed, but it was something. With his winnings he decided to indulge himself and any Suna nin who would come with him for a 'steak' dinner. To anyone who knew the Steward for any large amount of time, they knew he was thrifty and frugal. This meal was going to be neither of those things. Steak was a cut of meat. It came in various shapes and sizes. There was a particular cut he was going to order which was called a T-bone. The Steward understood that it was the bone of the deceased bovine that was in the shape of a T. It was one of the more expensive cuts, and thus many of these cuts would be ordered.

The Steward was wearing his formal wear once more. He sat at the head of the table, and awaited company to come in, whomever it should be. His mechanical hand would reach for the menu to see what else he could order for his ... no ... Katuso's troops. The former Kazekage knew this was a long time coming, and that his time as leader of the village was going to be put to rest. He led Sungakure through several difficult times, and while they were not unscathed, they were very much functional.

 

[Tomomi]

Earlier in the day, another individual had given up on the battlefield known as the Hisashī Zenshōsen Arena as I moved onto the third round of the World Martial Arts Tournament and would be scheduled to face the Sound representative that easily demolished Akkuma with little to no effort according to the reports and rumors that had surfaced within hours of his match against her. Unfortunately for me, I had not been able to see how the other match-ups had gone as I had been mentally and physically preparing myself to go into combat against the Medical Sennin of the Hidden Leaf and it was not in my nature to sit in the crowd and scout out the other combatants when I had my own job to do which was to win this tournament and make my village and my family proud of me. In other words, scouting and not preparing would not be a good thing at all which is why I avoided deviating from my schedule that I personally planned.

However with the fighting done for the day and the publicity dying down, I was finally able to get some personal time to myself to explore this fascinating country and take in all the sights and sounds that it cared to offer. For this evening, after carefully cleaning my armor and body prior to heading out, I was wearing an elegant, yet stylish, kimono that was catching the eyes of many passersby that were walking in the same streets as I. Some of them would approach me knowing who I was and asking for me to sign something for them or take a photo with them since I was somewhat of a celebrity in Tea Country considering I was in the tournament and would hopefully come out on top proving to everyone that the Byakko Clan truly housed the best combatants in the world. It was a nice change of pace than what I was traditionally accustomed to in my home country, but I still missed the hustle and bustle of my home and my family. I could only hope and pray that they were all doing well and were safe and sound from any threats from the Daimyo, the Cabal, the Sovereign, or any sympathizers for these groups or individual. Of course, I knew in my heart that they were, but there was always that small, little part that was worried.

In any case, I would continue strolling these streets window-shopping and stopping whenever someone wanted something from me. Eventually though, I would stumble upon a nice restaurant that seemed to radiate the same elegance as myself and would notice a familiar face at a long table within the establishment. From the looks of it, it was Takahashi Sousuke, the former Kazekage of my village and a good friend, and he was dressed rather fancy which was quite unlikely of him for his upbringing in our village. Nevertheless, he did need to set a good example in a foreign nation as did everyone that came from our village so it was not far-fetched to see him dressing differently. However seeing him alone in there made me have a feeling that it would be an excellent time for me to make a surprise appearance and to enjoy a nice meal with a good friend of mine and soon-to-be partner back in our home when this tournament was over.

Thus, I would approach the entrance and have a nice, young gentleman open the door for me prompting a bow from myself as I headed to the waiting area. Once there, I told the staff that I was from Sunagakure and wanted to speak to Sousuke after informing them of who I was. As soon as they knew my name, they would smile and welcome me as one of the waitresses would escort me to my former boss pulling a chair out for me to sit in when we arrived at our destination and wishing me a good meal. In response, I would simply nod with a smile and scoot my chair in, which was right beside the 9th Kazekage's, and simply address my friend: "This is a rather fancy place for you to be in, Old Friend. It isn't natural of you to be making a special appearance in a 5-star restaurant like this, but it is good to see you out and about enjoying this interesting country like I, myself, have been doing."

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OOC:

• Let's have some fun, Sousuke!
• MFT: 745 Words

 

[Takahashi Aki]

The Steward was in a place of simplicity. There were no machines, there was very little tech as it were. This was one of those things that irked the man. He wanted to very much bring this very restraunt up to speed in terms of dining services and little machines to help out the chefs. The Steward was a man who helped people. He helped repair machines, he made machines, but there was so much far too it than that. Maybe it was the fact he was disconnected from the tech that made him have this weird itch. He was allowing the waiters and waitresses to attend to him. It was a different experience. Yes Sousuke had been to restaurants before but not quite like this one.

Kyuji took a seat next to Sousuke. The medical nin addressed the Steward about the place in question. He made a shrugging gesture. "Not overly no."<i></i> Sousuke spoke with a slight pause, "Sometimes ... one wants to try something different."<i></i> He leaned in a bit. "This ... coat is still an armour of sorts. The scales aren't something easy to come by but are still tough enough. The epaulettes are made out of traditional Takahashi Steel."<i></i> There were few things that the Steward could not weaponize or turn into a defensive object. It was that sort of thinking that he was trying to turn off in his head right now. The Steward leaned back into the chair. The chair wasn't the comfiest, but it was doing what it had to. The Steward could have made a more comfortable chair, but at least these ones were better than the ones in the arena. By the Ancients, those were not comfortable. "Yamataru I do not think will be joining us. He's still ... tending to himself. I think he wanted some alone time to himself."<i></i> Sousuke spoke bringing up the tournament. He rubbed the front of his nose with the palm of his hand. "Both you and Azusa have been doing quite well so far. Truly the superior display that I was advocating for."<i></i> Sousuke was calling back to his speech

The Steward made a waving gesture of sorts and the menus were presented. He would open his menu which was large enough to cover his entire face as they were quite tall. "I honestly have no idea what to order. Nobu once told me, if you're going to have a red meat, you should entertain it with red wine or a red ale. Then he said if you're going to have chicken or fish go for something lighter. Suffice to say ... I should have brought Nobu to this. He knows his wines and beers, and all the other like as he is a ... well cultured man. I don't suppose this is the sort of thing you are practiced in ... are you?"<i></i> Sousuke lowered the menu and Kyuji could see Sousuke raise an eyebrow as he made his inquiry.

 

[Tomomi]

Within moments of being seated and making a general statement to our 9th Kazekage, he would return a response to me that was quite prompt and right to the point. His comment, while being unusual for him to speak of, was not incorrect in the very least as it was never a bad thing to try different things especially when you were visiting a foreign nation that was being a courteous host to your own village and others as well. However, a comment like that from my old friend still caught me off-guard as a surprised look would show on my face before giving a simple, gentle smile and responding with a simple comment: "You are not wrong, Sousuke. It never hurts to be open to new things even if it takes you out of your comfort zone." As I said this however, I could think of quite a few different situations where I would not like to be in them in the very least nor have to even attempt to try something new since some things were simply too uncomfortable or made me uneasy. But, that was typical of any human-being regardless of them being pure-human, a demigod, or a robotic-like individual. Regardless, the point was a fair one for Sousuke to offer and we would simply allow it to go on its merry way since there was no point in over-analyzing it.

Once a moment or so passed, my friend would lean forward in his chair and begin to speak of his coat and how it was designed with Takahashi steel and still an armor of sorts. Of course, I would give him a respectful smile and nod as he mentioned this, but this was neither the time nor place to be discussing things like this especially since we were in a foreign country and there could be and likely were ears listening and eyes watching from everywhere. One simply needed to act natural and not expose many of their secrets since they could be used against them down the road especially if the Sound representative in the tournament did not win the entire thing even though she was the favorite to win among the betting groups. But, there were two shinobi from the Hidden Sand still and both of them were more than capable of winning the entire thing if Fate was on their side and their opponents had a slip-up or two. It was a long road ahead, but so far Aikayume Azusa and I were doing just fine for ourselves and our village. One from the Hidden Sand could only hope the finals pitted my old apprentice against myself and that is what I wanted so badly.

In any case, Sousuke would lean back into his chair a few moments later and mentioning that the drunk, Yatamaru of our village, would likely not be attending this meal as he was more or less licking his wounds from losing in the opening round. It made sense in all honesty as losing in this tournament would be quite demoralizing for your village, but especially yourself as you would have your ego deflated if one had it and likely second guess yourself in the future when your village desperately needed you. In any case before I could comment on my fellow shinobi likely not coming, Sousuke would turn the subject directly to the tournament and comment on how well my former apprentice and myself had been doing thus far. It was honorable to be praised by the 9th Kazekage, but I had to wonder what our current 10th Kazekage thought about everything thus far. Was he proud of his shinobi? Did he want to see more? Was he thinking of possible promotions in the future? As was everything in life, only time would tell truthfully.

Moments after he spoke, the menus would be brought to us which were quite large in comparison to us. Usually when I ordered out before, I would be able to see clearly over the menu as I was over six feet tall. However since the incident, I had become only a few inches taller than five feet and I was a female now which still left many with unanswered questions including myself which I hoped I could get addressed when I returned back to the Hidden Sand. But, my focus was not on my identity as a person right now as I was focused on winning this tournament first and foremost since I traveled all the way to Tea Country with Lady Aikayume Hinoka and did not want to go home empty-handed. In any case, I would hear Sousuke ask me if I knew anything about the alcoholic beverages that were on the menu and I simply would shrug my shoulders and say: "I have no idea honestly, Sousuke. While I should know about these kinds of things since I am part of the Toroano Clan overall and the Byakko Clan exclusively, our cooks order everything and prepare it without too much involvement from us. However, it never hurts to have some red wine to celebrate accomplishments in life like my win over the Leaf Medical Sennin."

After a pause between us, I would continue speaking: "I appreciate your generous comments about my performance thus far in the tournament. However, you have not seen anything yet as I am not finished yet. I am hoping that the finals pit the psuedo-head of the Toraono Clan against I so the whole world can see how elegant the shinobi of our village are and we can put on a great show for you. However, rest assured, I will be in the finals regardless and I will be winning this tournament. After I win, I would love to have a spar with you and a meeting with our current Kazekage. But, let's not jump too far ahead as I still must defeat two more opponents." Yes, I truly did appreciate his support towards me and the bond that we made over time, but there was still more that I wanted which would likely come with time. My primary focus right now was this tournament and secondarily everything else. I needed to win this tournament for so many people, but I needed to truly win it for myself as I needed to prove to myself that I was still a capable fighter and able to be a valuable asset to my village after being beaten around like a rag-doll that night that I went after my former apprentice to try to save her from herself.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

The Lord Steward was a man of a schedule. He was always used to doing things that was inside of his circle of what he considered to be the normal. This social gathering was something very different. In a way it was a smaller version of the holiday party he would throw at the Kazekage tower. The difference? This was in a foreign state. Some could see this as a show of wealth. Wealth meant power. The Steward was a modest man, but ... once in a while, or once in several years it would be considered healthy to have this sort of treat. Sousuke would indeed order several bottles of red wine. Kyuji spoke of the medical sennin in Leaf that she had defeated, "Yes that was a curious one. The medical sennin reminded me a medical ninja I had met from Mist. I would have described the medical sennin in Leaf to be a trimmer woman. Both of them had white hair, but very different personalities."<i></i> The first of the bottles arrived. The waiter offered Sousuke to try the wine. A small glass was poured for the man to taste. Sousuke in a rare show took hold of the glass and swirled the contents about. He had seen Nobu do this many times before. He watched the red liquid swish about in the glass before he sipped. He swirled the contents in his mouth before swallowing the wine. His lips smacked as he tasted the wine. This was one of those dry wines, which was preposterous in nature because wine was a fluid and not a solid. He would nod his head. The waiter would leave and Sousuke would pour himself a much larger glass of wine, and then one for Kyuji and for the others.

"If you sparred with me, then you'd have to explain to the hospital that you're the reason why I'm back in there again."<i></i> He spoke with a deadpanned expression. "Ah yes. My former boss told me to hit him, so I did. That is why his nose is now cracked."<i></i> He added with a hint of humor, but only a hint. Sousuke knew full well who Kyuji meant when she spoke of the psudeo-head of the Toraono clan. Kuro did in fact resign. It was an odd moment because Kuro had sent one of his bodies deep into Sora to combat the Daimyo, and was present at the same meeting before himself, Katuso, Roku and Kazuki.

The first set of apetizers arrived which was a foreign meal. It was a cut of beef that was bacon wrapped. The meat sizzled and certainly did smell good. The meat was skewered. The Steward offered it to Kyuji first, then took one for himself. He raised his glass. "To your health, and your impending victories then."<i></i> He toasted her.

 

[Tomomi]

Once more, I would listen to the 9th Kazekage of Sunagakure speak in response to my comments. He started with a comment regarding the similarity of a shinobi from Water Country that seemed to resemble my opponent from the Leaf's Medical Branch: Tsukasa Mikasa. While it was an interesting comparison that he offered between the two of them, it was not one that interested me entirely considering that woman took the fight as a joke and refused to fight me even though she was in a tournament to showcase our skills. It was a rather peculiar situation considering if I had not been a medical shinobi, she allegedly would have fought me, but she would not lift a finger against someone that was in the same branch as her from a different village; I found the thought process illogical considering the circumstances that she and I had been in, but she could and likely was dealing with the backlash from her village for forfeiting.

In any case, my dear friend would continue to speak addressing my challenge to fight him with a slight hint of humor in his response. It was true that two shinobi of our caliber would likely have each other sent to the Hospital due to our injuries and it understandably would look quite bad if the Medical Chief whom was supposed to heal and restore someone to health was the culprit for the injuries. However, it would not be unheard if I would do that considering our village needed to be prepared for any and everything that could and likely would be thrown at it in the future. It was true that we had survived numerous attacks, but one could not put down their guard and rest easy knowing that there were likely others out there, both man and not, that wanted to have a piece of us likely externally and internally. Nevertheless, it was good to see the former Kazekage having some fun while being out in this foreign nation.

While I wanted to respond promptly to him, I would have to wait as the first batch of appetizers would come out for us and they looked absolutely delicious as one could see clearly on my face. Before I could chow down on some of these skewed meats, Sousuke would offer a toast to my health and my impending victories which I would nod without taking my eyes off the meat as I rose my glass as well and carefully tapped our wine glasses together. As soon as that was done, I would munch into this foreign meat and it was absolutely delicious as it tingled my taste-buds and made me crave more of it.

Before I continued to chow down though, I would look over at Sousuke and simply say: "This skewed food is quite tasty. It has a nice flavor to it and the texture runs smoothly on my tongue while my taste-buds tingle with excitement for more. However, dear friend, I must say that if this appetizer is quite tasty, I must wonder how the main course and desserts will taste." I would take a moment to take a sip of this fine, dry wine that had been poured for me and it tingled my throat as it went down. Everything in my life was going so well right now, but while it was nice, there was something regarding the former Kazekage that I needed to know. To address him, I would take the stick that had been used for skewing and point it at him while addressing him with my tone changing ever so slightly to a more serious one: "As for you though, have you recovered since I last saw you in the Hospital fully and been following my orders. Or, do I need to give you a lecture and watch you more closely so you do not deviate from your path of recovery?"

I would return the stick to my plate and proceed to eat another one as I awaited his response.

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OOC:

• MFT: 673 Words

 

[Takahashi Aki]

There was a long pause from Takahashi Sousuke as he was asked if he was taking doctor's orders. There might have even been the flushing of cheeks, ever so slightly if one looked hard enough. It would have been temporary. "I will take the lecture."<i></i> He proposed. He considered if it was bad table etiquette to showcase his mechanical eye. Yes pulling out an eyeball and showing circuits might be disgusting to come and perhaps quite graphic. The other face wounds healed quickly, if only because Tama didn't, there would be an angry mob of people on him considering the damage he had done. "I would prefer to have my privacy ... the lecture will suffice."<i></i> He answered with a strange confidence which resonated in his voice. He would take the sewer twirl it for a moment, then bite off a chunk of meat. "Lecture at will then."<i></i> Was that a joke? It seemed like one. The Steward, being silly? Preposterous. That was a first. Perhaps it was because he was the host to this dinner.

Sousuke had kept things quiet about what happened in the Grand Palais. It was an awkward situation. Ryuu Tama should have had the book thrown at him and multiple life sentences in the Grand Palaisis. This did not occur under the Steward's watch. While there were a few dead, it were gang members or leaders that had a large notoriety in the distract. If hard pressed, Sousuke may have considered talking about it. His eyes shifted over as large platters of meat arrived. It was a very large cut of beef that covered the platter in its entirety, and somewhat spilled over the platter. His eyes were quite wide and filled with surprise. He would look to Kyuji with an expression of not being entirely sure of what to do. It almost seemed as if he had met his match, at least in terms of cuisine."I suppose ... this is the main course then. No sides, just ... a very large cut of meat. Triple A. Raised to a precise number of days, butchered, and then cooked into this ... perfection?"<i></i> His metallic hand would reach for the fork and knife. "I just realized..."<i></i> He paused for a moment. "This is probably highly offensive to a vegetarian or a vegan ... at least judging from those present. There are none of those present."<i></i>

 

[Tomomi]

A smirk would surface on my face as I listened to our ever-so-interesting 9th Kazekage attempting to be witty and act like a normal human being even though I knew that it was somewhat out of his league. Oh, he was funny to put it mildly and I would have chuckled if I wasn't eating more likely than not. But at the same time, his comments towards me asking for me to give him a lecture with that joking demeanor were frustrating. If we were in a different time and place than this elegant restaurant having a delicious meal, he would have gotten a long-winded lecture for sure, but I shrugged it off and continued to eat these delicious meaty skewer objects since they were mouthwatering. Yes, the main course would come out being steak, but these skewers were just too damn good and frankly, I was too absorbed in them to hear Sousuke's last few comments. Oh well.

As the plates were put down in front of us however, I would finish my last skewed meat leaving the sticks on a plate to my side and change my focus to this nice sized piece of beef in front of me. It looked absolutely delicious and my mouth was watering as I grabbed the cutlery that been rolled up into a napkin earlier prior to my approval and began cutting and consuming this meat. As my eyes had told me, my mouth confirmed that this beef was absolutely delicious and I could not stop as I took another bite and another and another. I would not stop until all of my plate was empty as I pushed it away and looked over at Sousuke afterwards simply saying: "This was good unlike you with your doctor's orders. But, we can wait until after we are back in our home country for me to scorn you about it. What else does this place have that is delicious, Sousuke?"

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OOC:

• MFT: 326 Words

 

[Kazu]

A loud crash could be heard from the back of the kitchen. Followed by the sound of stifled yells. Followed, then, by un-stifled yells.

”For the last time, sir, get out! You can’t come in this way! Sir? SIR?! SIR, I’M TELLING YOU YOU NEED TO LEAVE!”

The doors to the back kitchen slammed open, startling several of the guests, and most every waiter. A familiar face would make its appearance: Yatamaru, the drunkard of Sand.

”Tha’ heck?” Yatamaru blinked once, then twice, as he realized a few dozen pairs of eyes were locked right on him. ”Dis ain’t tha’ loo.” What Yatamaru was doing looking for a bathroom was anyone’s guess (especially considering it had been years since he’d ever needed to use one of those), yet the statement seemed to shock the head chef trailing him into submission. Stupefied, seemingly unsure how to deal with the situation before him, the chef simply stood there, mouth agape, staring at the worst disturbance to befall his restaurant in its many many years of culinary excellence.

Reality slowly closed in on the poor chef. He realized that everyone was staring, and desperately began damage control. ”Ladies and Gentlemen,” he said, turning to his various customers and patrons with cheeks redder than a rare-cooked steak, ”I sincerely apologize on behalf of the entire restaurant. A complimentary bottle of wine will be brought to you all — please disregard any-”

”Oi!” Yatamaru stirred from his confused and drunken pondering as he spied two familiar faces. ”Shoushuke! Akushin!” With far more poise and balance than should have been possible, Yatamaru strolled over to the table where his (former) superior and (former) fellow contestant sat, completely ignoring the wishes of the befuddled chef. People whispered as he passed, shooting the disruptor nasty looks, but Yatamaru paid them no heed. He had never cared what people thought of him before, and he certainly wasn't about to start now.

"How'r you two doin'?" Pulling a seat out for himself, the mechanical man deposited himself into the cushioned chair and pulled himself in towards the table, almost knocking over the wine in the process. Fortunately, he'd been going easy on the liquor tonight — otherwise, things might not have gone so smoothly. "Shorry I couldn't do mush bettar than I did in the tor-nuh-mint, Shoshuke. I knu you wash eshpectin' more, an' I tried, really, buh tha' Leafie punk wash pretty good..." Turning his attention to Akujin, Yatamaru's face grew somber for a moment. "You's besht be doin' yo'r besht, ya heer?" Then, the somberness gave way to a jubilant smile. "I dun' wan' no one elsh takin' wah righ'fully belongsh to Sand! Ya can do it, ya heer? I belief in you!" Yatamaru reached for one of the glasses Sousuke had poured out earlier, then took a great gulp of fermented grape, not even pausing to observe wine-drinking-etiquette. "Oh man, thash gooooooood!"

The head chef had seemingly given up on controlling the uncontrollable. Incredibly, as one of the waiters walked past the table to distribute the aforementioned complimentary wine bottles to the various disgruntled dinner guests, Yatamaru had the guts to wave him down, stating simply, "Hey! Where'sh our free bottle?" If looks could kill, Yatamaru would have dropped dead on the spot.

 

[Tomomi]

As I awaited the response from the 9th Kazekage of my village, an unforeseeable individual had barged out of the kitchen seemingly completely drunk as he always was. That individual that I spoke of was Oda Yatamaru, the puppet-user of the Hidden Sand that had fallen in the first round of the tournament against the Leaf shinobi known as Maki if I could recall correctly. Regardless, he had not managed to continue and likely had disappointed our former leader and his village in the process simply because having all three of us from Sand would have been the most ideal situation. As for the current situation, he likely was embarrassing him again as he was making a large scene and being completely out of control unfortunately.

In the whole ordeal, free wine was being given out for Yatamaru's commotion which was fine. However, the drunk deciding to venture towards us and have a conversation was not as I was willing to be around him in our home country, but I was not going to taint my reputation in a foreign country when we were supposed to be representing and setting a good example for our village. Thus, I would give a simple bow to them both and say: "Gentlemen, I am sorry but I forgot about something and I need to head out. I appreciate the meal, Sousuke, it was delicious and as for you, Yatamaru, I will want to talk to you when we are back in our home country." After I said what I did, I would rise from my seat and head out the door and back to my room where Lady Hinoka and I were staying. Truthfully, I had nowhere to be but I did not need to stick around in there with a drunk that was going to make no sense and just cause more drama than it was worth. Unfortunately, it seemed I would have to talk with Sousuke at a later date about things.

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OOC: Topic left due to inactivity.