The Tea Party [Open]

[Saotome Asami]

Kurosawa was experiencing a tourism boom. For a short time, shinobi from all corners of the world had gathered to see battles for the ages. The smartest amongst them were taking advantage of the opportunity. Some were trying new wares and wonders, while others tested their mettle against foreigners. At least one young lady had attempted to organise a gathering of sorts. That was the only logical reason why she would be sat alone at a table, host to enough fancies to feed three families. The table itself appeared to be of foreign design. It was actually made up of two platforms, and while the lower functioned as an ordinary table, a second, smaller disc of glass had been installed above it. With a slight reach of the hand, any guest at the table could rotate the layer, and with it, move any of the dishes around.

It didn’t take much to understand it was, at the very least, an upper-middle-class establishment. The kind of place the young adults of the well-to-do went for a coffee. Pastel colours and calligraphy adorned the exterior; once the curious were close enough, the intoxicating aroma that was freshly baked goods drew them through the doors. From the lass’ position at the northern end of the table, she was positioned to see anybody entering or exiting – and, more importantly, to silently greet them as they appeared.

She expected at least one shinobi to accept her summons. After all, she’d spent the better part of a day designing, copying and hanging up invitations around the city. She’d placed quite a few of them around buildings gaining a lot of foot traffic, but just as many had been placed in what she called ‘shinobi spots’. Dark alleys, behind buildings, unmarked trees on the city outskirts… The girl liked to think it was a sign of her budding skills, to be able to identify spots the average citizen would pay no mind, and use them to her advantage. She was only interested in the soon-to-be and current shinobi of the lands, and so they would find:​

[spoilername="The Invitation"]

The address, date and time were also provided.​

[/spoilername]

It was no surprise that the name was unfamiliar to most. The organiser of the event held nothing of note beyond, perhaps, a great deal of confidence. It was one of the greatest lessons she had learned from her mother: ‘fake it ‘till you make it’. She had heard far more eloquent pieces of advice from the woman, but that made it no less useful. What were the odds that anybody would see the poster and assume it was the work of one daring academy student? The wrong conclusion was exactly what she was counting for, and the offer of free snacks could only sweeten the deal (unfortunately, she was unable to find a merchant shady enough to give alcohol to a minor). For what it was worth, she had made an effort to dress for the occasion – her sundress was far too light to wear in her mountain home, but for one special occasion, she allowed herself to look a little more presentable.​

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

Akagi had come to Kurosawa with the full intention to gather information on a missing loved one. However, he had become recently overwhelmed with his task and actively began seeking out something to do with his spare time. Since he had tagged along with all the other Suna students as a assisting supervisor to make sure nothing went awry. He had taken an interest in meeting students from other villages, to see how they carried themselves and such. Luckily for Akagi, he happened to stumble upon an invitation while making his rounds throughout the sketchier parts of Kurosawa seeking information. The invitation had looked well-made and a bit above Akagi's pay grade, but funds were not a problem after beating down a escapee from an asylum.

Having went back to his temporary apartment where most of the Suna students were staying, Akagi decided he would need to come somewhat presentable. This wasn't necessarily a struggle for the boy but he hadn't a clue he might be going somewhere where he needed to where something nicer than a long sleeve shirt and sweatpants while packing for the trip to the Land of Tea. After a brief period of searching, Akagi had found a coat and a black shirt to go underneath. Not wanting to waste anymore time Akagi would quickly put on a pair of slacks that he had expected to wear to the celebration ceremony after the tournament to at least guise his true intention of being there. With this Akagi headed off to the specified adress.

Arriving at the desired location with a few minutes to spare, Akagi would hope that he knew at least someone that was coming, as he expected there to be quite a few do to the invitations quality. With this he would head inside the rather fancy establishment. Noticing as he entered a rather inciting aroma, he would close his eyes and inhale. Exhaling as he opened them to see only one other person at the table he assumed was where people attending the party would gather. Speaking to the girl at the northernmost end of the table, "Is this everybody?" His tone was sarcastic as he would associate the person who invited everyone to be the girl.​

 

[Senju Shizuka]

“Should I wrap it up?” The lady behind the counter wanted to know. “Yes, please.” Shizuka replied with obvious enthusiasm. The little gift she had picked for Asami wasn’t anything special, but she still hoped that the older girl would like it. When the box was slid toward her over the counter she gave the dark haired owner of the shop a wide smile. “Thank you!” Now it was time to hurry toward the assigned spot. She didn’t want to be late for the tea party. That would be quite impolite.

Finding the weather quite warm, she had chosen a light, soft pink dress with sleeves reaching a bit past her elbows. For something extra she had put a white ribbon in her hair to keep some of the locks from falling into her face during the consumption of tea later on. Alright, she wasn’t sure if it was too much, and felt slightly uncomfortable wearing something so 'impractical' while being amongst potential enemies, but the idea of tea with some snacks soothed her mind. After her little adventure with Oushi and Yosuke, it was better to keep a low profile for the rest of the stay. Appearing girly, friendly, fragile, and with an interest in tea parties seemed like a good cover to the ten year old. Aside from that there was Asami organizing the whole event. From the little Shizuka knew about her, she was quite pleasant.

With the pastel green box in her right hand, she entered the (hopefully right) establishment and felt relief when her eyes fell on a familiar face. Lost in her excited wave toward the girl, she realized a little too late that the guy standing in front of her wasn’t blocking the entrance for fun, he was attending as well. His comment had made that clear.

“This.. is definitely not everyone.” Chuckling, she slipped past him with a little nod. “Senju Shizuka, nice to meet you.” And then she gracefully floated toward Asami, hiding the little box behind her back in case she hadn’t noticed it yet. With both of them being future kunoichi, she doubted that to be the case, but couldn’t help herself.

“It looks nice in here,” It did, she liked it. Somehow the place left her feeling certain that the tea would be nice, and the company wouldn’t be too loud. “Here, I’ve gotten you something small.” Placing the gift onto the table in front of Asami, she smiled once again, then let her eyes scan the table. There appeared to be no name tags anywhere, which she thought to be normal considering the invitation she had found wasn’t directed at anyone particular. It did have her wonder what would happen should more people appear than there were seats. But those were worries Asami would deal with should they occur. Shizuka had no doubts there.

After picking a spot, and throwing a curious look toward the tall guy. She subtly tried to figure out if Asami enjoyed the beige, scented candle. Plum and figs, the woman had explained her when she had smelled at the sample in the shop.


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

She watched and waited. Fortunately, new faces arrived before her doubts could settle in. The first, she assumed, was for her – most locals would know to try a little harder to dress nicely if they were visiting a well-to-do business. The boy in the door was therefore either didn’t know, or didn’t care. Perhaps the former, since he stopped to savour the scent of the place. That was fine – she wasn’t in a rush, and he hadn’t come alone anyway. Her smile grew as she saw a face she recognised. Asami almost looked too excited, or relieved that somebody had actually followed the invitation.

“Well, you’re just a bit early… Not that there’s anything wrong with that.” As any good host would, she rose from her seat and… gestured for them to join her? She still had a bit to learn about etiquette, but it was the thought that counted in this case. “Shinobi do like to surprise, so the start time is probably flexible.” It was fairly true, but also a good cover. If her attempt at bringing shinobi together ended in failure, she could always claim everybody else was running late. “It was still nice of you to take the time to show up on time. You too, Shizuka…! You look like you’re enjoying the sun just as much as I am.” Her eyes moved from the boy to the girl to the girl’s hands, hiding behind her back. A curious glint appeared in her eyes, but she said nothing of it. “Go ahead and take a seat. Help yourself to some snacks. I asked for the tea to come right on time so it would stay hot for longer. …Oh!” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I almost forgot.” She extended a hand to the stranger, hoping he would move to the table if he already hadn’t. “I’m Asami Saotome, from Kumogakure. This is my little doing… Obviously.”

Whether or not he accepted the gesture, she sat down shortly after, only to receive a gift from her friend. “Eh? For me?” She narrowed her eyes at the present, confident that she hadn’t asked for anything. Still, to start off the occasion by rejecting an offering was probably a poor choice, and she hadn’t given Shizuka any reason to spring a trap on her, right? She sure hoped so. “Well, this is new. A surprise, but a really nice one. You didn’t have to, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate it.” Enough chit-chat, her inner child said. No sane kid turned away free stuff, but a true lady had to handle it with dignity! Her attempt to open the box was deliberately slow and gentle, but her reaction was as most would expect. She kept a pleasant look about her as she picked up the candle, turned it around to get a better look, brought it closer to her nose to sniff…

Damnit. That last part wasn’t very ladylike, but she hoped nobody would notice. Besides, she had to know – buying somebody a normal candle would have just been weird. “It smells fruity! In a nice, gentle way… If that makes sense. Describing smells isn’t my strong point… But it’s very kind of you, still. Thank you, Shizuka. This’ll be great for making my room a little more homely.”

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

As Akagi had entered and spoke, a girl slipped past him nodding her head before she introduced herself, to which Akagi responded, "Nice to meet you." Shizuka's attitude towards Akagi wasn't rude or harsh. This confused him at first since nearly every girl in Sunagakure he met told him he was beneath them in every way, aside from Mika and Kyuji-sensei. As Akagi was in shock the host had continued with formalities before Akagi chimed in after she spoke on him taking time out of his day, "It's no big deal, I needed a break anyway." Letting the host continue as she introduced herself and raised her hand.

Akagi would continue to her and return the handshake with a firm grip from his right hand, to which they might notice that his hand's bandage. Speaking to her as he shook, "My name is Mitsunari Akagi, from Sunagakure." After shaking her hand she would sit down, Akagi would follow suit in the seat nearest to him. Now watching the two girls banter about a present Shizuka had brought Asami. This gave Akagi time to take a step back from the situation and figure out who he was here with.

His recognized that the Shizuka girl might have been a tad younger than Akagi and Asami, given her stature. However, Asami looked possibly older than himself, which prompted Akagi's next question after Asami finished thanking Shizuka. "So are you two still in the Academy or are you Genin?" Akagi assumed that since Asami and Shizuka knew each other they both most likely lived in the same village.

After asking his question Akagi would rest his elbow onto the table, supporting his head on his hand. Not knowing what to expect from shinobi from other villages, Akagi was excited to see what was to come of this gathering.

 

[Uchiha Izura]

[POST RESERVED]

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Whether Asami actually liked the little gift or simply acted like she did in order to please the younger student, and thus for politeness’ sake, the latter would probably never know. It’s why Shizuka hoped for the best, and kept the warm feeling she always got when offering someone a gift close to her heart. On some level it made her happy to give out presents, so doing so always lifted her mood. Like an excited kitten she had followed Asami’s motion when she had been unpacking the candle, but now her green eyes were aimed at the young man.

“You’re welcome, I thought it to be refreshing yet elegant, it kind of reminded me of you.” Nodding, with eyes briefly darting to her friend, she then turned every bit of her attention to the -handsome- Sandie. Never before had she met anyone from Sunagakure, so she took some time to study him. As if he was a very rare specie, one she couldn’t simply pounce and devour, because it had to be treated with care.

“I’m still a student,” Offering a disarming smile, she let Asami answer for herself in case the girl wanted to appear like a Genin. Should she choose to lie Shizuka would definitely play along. In fact, it wouldn’t even be odd, Asami looked older and held herself in a certain way which was reminiscent of adults at parties. Unnatural to Shizuka, but apparently quite fitting for the other girl.

“one from Kumogakure.” Bravely flashing her white teeth, she didn’t mean to come across as threatening, only happy and proud about her village. While her family’s branch originated from the Leaf, she was Cloud through and through, just like her parents.

“What about you, are you still a student?”


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

The meek smile reappeared. “...Still a student. For now.” She saw no reason to start off a relationship with needless lies, but there was a hint of something in her voice. Regret, disappointment, or just a bitter edge? Whatever it was, it was gone when she continued. “That’s why I think it’s important to try and learn new things. About other shinobi, about other villages. There’s a lot to get from that, don’t you think?” She turned to Shizuka for a moment. Try as she might, she couldn’t stop her cheeks from betraying her. The slightest shades of red showed themselves. As she continued, she reached for a biscuit; holding it gave her a reason to keep a hand close to her mouth, partially hiding the blush.

“Sunagakure? Wow, that’s so… warm.” She took on a contemplative expression for a moment; it didn’t take long for her to realise that she wasn’t making much sense. “I mean, maybe not compared to here… If you tried to wear a dress like mine in Kumogakure, you’d just end up sick. Then again, I guess the storms wouldn’t make you want to wear a skirt. Or something like that. …What’s it like?” She leaned forward in her seat a little – too much at first, before she reared back an inch. “The village, I mean. The academy. I guess it must be really different from ours.” She narrowed her eyes for a moment. “Then again… I guess we’re not supposed to talk about that stuff.” Finally, she brought the pastry to her mouth, taking a small bite out of it. If there was any doubt about the quality of the food, the blissful face she showed should have erased it. “Oh, and these are just lovely. I have to find out how they make these before we get back home. …My mother runs a few bakeries back in the village, so I try to keep an eye out for her.”

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

As the two girls informed Akagi that they were still students, he reached into his coat, pulling out a shiny metal. A closer look would reveal it was actually a headband with the Sunagakure hourglass in the middle. Akagi would briefly smile as he spoke answering Shizuka's question, "I graduated from the Academy not too long ago." Placing the headband onto the table, resting face up, he would then turn his attention to the girl who appeared older, Asami.

As she spoke, Akagi was reminded of a girl he knew once before, one that had wanted to travel and meet other shinobi, but never got the chance to. With a nod Akagi would agree to her ideology of meeting others. The conversation diluted to talk of Akagi's homeland, which he was very fond of, its warmth was nostalgic while its wind carried the frequent smell of home. He would rest his head onto his hand while watching Asami, noticing how she had held the biscuit close to her mouth without taking a bite, not thinking anything of it he continued. "You can wear just about anything you like around my village. The heat blends with the wind, making certain days a paradise that is warm but cool. However, there are some days where it can be blisteringly hot." Lifting his hand out from underneath his head Akagi would use his hand to emphasize his words, "It's fine to talk about this kinda thing with friends I'd say." Akagi would warmly smile as he continued, "The Academy is pretty simple, we have a training ground, classrooms, an underwater sea. Just the usual kinda stuff. How about yours?" Giving them time to respond he would follow up by saying,

"I know a girl back home whose parents ran a bakery, she is quite lovely." Akagi reached for a biscuit as he realized his folly. Thinking to himself, "Why did you say that? Everything was fine and now you probably sounds like you are in a relationship with Miu! To those looking at him he would seem distant for a brief moment with his arm outstretched across the table. "Anyways! Most shinobi have a cool special thing about them, I always thought it was cool when I was sparring or on a mission that an opponents special jutsu or skills were displayed." Akagi would finish reaching over and grabbing the biscuit from the plate, raising it to his mouth with a very light blush dotting his face. "Do you two have anything like a special jutsu?"

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Fully agreeing about the weather being quite bad back at home Shizuka nodded while Asami painted the picture of their birthplace. In fact, there were many things that bothered her in Kumogakure but the ones she liked easily outweighed them. Home was home, home, with its grumpy skies, rocky mountains, and biting winds, was still the best. Of course that didn’t mean she wasn’t interested in hearing about other places, or visiting them. Otherwise she would have stayed faraway from the ship to Tea and anything related to it.

“Congratulations,” she snuck in the comment with a smile before continuing to listen to the older children. It seemed that aside from foreign lands she would learn about her fellow student as well. The bakeries weren’t a topic the two had touched before, and Shizuka curiously eyes her friend while wondering if she could make all sorts of delicious cookies and pastries.

“Ours is similar, just with snow and storms instead of scorching heat, I guess.” Following their example she took a cookie, slowly chewing on it while leaving Asami the time to explain more details about their way of life or the classes they took should she want to. By the time that was out of the way Shizuka thought to see movement at the edge of her vision. Perhaps it was the tea. She didn’t turn away from her conversation partners, and knew that she would soon know if the warm beverage was about to arrive.

“I wouldn’t call anything I know special, but then again I don’t know what you’re capable of, so perhaps we just have different styles.” Having taken a break from her cookie to throw in some of her thoughts regarding his question, she then proceeded to slowly consume the snack. After that, she found herself a piece of fruit. Sweet, yellow, juicy melon. Using one of the little knives she carved out little pieces to pick up with the fork next to her place. That way she wouldn’t end up with juices running down her cheeks and chin.

Being as hungry as ever, she already knew that one of those sandwiches would soon become her victim. Perhaps more than one, if they would stick around the place for a longer period of time.

“Do you have some sort of special jutsu, perhaps?” With him being a genin she expected him to, but didn’t really think that he would tell about it. Even while this place was a neutral ground and the tournament a friendly event, she couldn’t help but to assume that everyone involved had their own plans and tricks. Maybe even some of the children. He wore a forehead protector, which made him suitable for ‘real’ missions in Shizuka’s eyes.


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

A headband. The girl quirked an eyebrow. At least she could say her preparation had gone to some use; they had one shinobi in attendance. A junior shinobi, but one nonetheless. “Well done.” Was that the right response to somebody that had sold their life to their village? Was that even how it worked in Sunagakure? “An… underwater sea, though?” Either he was confused and meant ‘underground’, or the village was a lot more interesting than she had been led to believe. Either way, the boy was succeeding in holding her attention.

Once she took another bite out of her pastry, she saw fit to continue. “It’s a lovely treat. You’ll never go hungry – in fact, I have to make sure I don’t eat too much, or else I’ll get sick of the stuff.” If there were any implications of romance, they were lost on her. She rarely found herself worrying about the love lives of others, especially boys she barely knew! “Not many people have that opportunity, but then… most people in Kumogakure aren’t chosen to become shinobi either. One person can’t have all the luck.” She still smiled, even if her words implied that she wasn’t entirely comfortable with her predicament.

Fortunately, the subject shifted again soon enough – to special jutsu and beyond. Again, she showed a hint of confusion. Neither of them had learned any curious skills? “Ah… Most of what I’ve learned so far is very situational. Definitely not things to be used in the middle of a store.” For a student that went out of her way to avoid half her classes, she knew she was well beyond her peers in a few areas, and that was before her ‘special talents’ came into the picture. She was sensible enough to realise, however, that telling the two she occasionally saw dead people was not the best small talk. “I suppose…” She raised her free hand to hover over the table, and with a moment’s pause, a marked paper tag materialised at her wrist, slipping into her awaiting palm. Had she been wearing her casual attire, the ofuda tag would appear to slide out as if she was a magician in training; without the sleeves, the illusion was dispelled, and there was no doubt hers was the work of ninjutsu. Sure, shinobi were meant to be secretive, but what was the harm in a student showing off some jutsu? It wasn’t like she even wanted to graduate!

“I’m not sure what it says. Really.” The markings on the tag were familiar and foreign; clearly inspired by the written common language, but too stylized to be legible. “There might be more to it than I know right now… But I know it helps to cast jutsu, at least. It’s pretty useful for training, but… I haven’t tried to test it out in a fight.”

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

Accepting both of their congratulations with a nod he listened attentively as the conversation went on. He would later cringe as he had misspoke underground, replacing it with underwater. However, this wasn't far from the truth, his extensive research into the Undersea had revealed a small patch of dense salt concentration that could be interpreted as an underwater sea. "Not underwater, my apologies. I meant to say underground, although it has a small patch of water that is more dense than the rest making a small body of water sink to the sea floor."

As the conversation moved away from details on the academy and onto Akagi's previous question about abilities, the older girl seemed to have something to display. A marker tag with markings on it that manifested onto her wrist that slipped to her palm. It was quite intriguing seeing another physical manifestation aside from Ren back home. "Interesting." Akagi was use to seeing spiritual techniques from Sunagakure and rarely ever saw someone with the ability to physically manifest something. Following up on the girls demonstration and the question asked by the younger girl, Akagi would pick up his headband while speaking, "I was pretty lucky in all honesty when it comes to something special. I haven't met a single person that has the same ability as me, but I would love to just to understand it better." With this Akagi would toss his headband to the other side of the table, waiting for the brief eclipse of time when the headband would land in the opposing seat, he would simply vanish out of thin air from his seat.

Without a noise, had the two directed there attention to where he had thrown the headband, he would now be holding it, placing it into his coat pocket. "I don't even know what it is that I do. I just kinda, warp." He would raise his hands as he spoke in a confused gesture.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

In her moment of studying the forehead protector -which were always fascinating for her- she had missed the whole underwater slash underground sea confusion. By the time her brain had caught up Akagi was explaining a bit about it. To think that there was a body of water somewhere among the sand had her wondering why the water wasn’t seeping away. Perhaps she would have to attend one of those geography classes at some point, as about things like these when she got the chance to.

Keeping quiet she watched her friend reveal something mysterious. A trinket which helped her deal with chakra, it seemed. Immediately she found herself bowing toward the tag to get a better look. With slightly widening eyes she studied it, wondering if she would be allowed to touch it, but didn’t ask because there was a stranger around. Maybe another time, when they were alone, she could get a better look on the markings and what the tag was made of.

“That’s cool. Has it been in your family? Or did you buy it somewhere?” Unsure how else she might have gotten it, Shizuka curiously waited for more information regarding the almost magical item. Of course ideas of it having a seal on it were already taunting the young Senju’s mind. Myths, legends, and fairy tales made her excited to try to decipher the writings on it, but right now wasn’t the time. So, she turned to Akagi who appeared to have his own magic tricks.

For a brief moment she thought to have hallucinated him changing places, but then he ‘explained’. A vague summary of what he did, one word. Warp. She blinked in return, unsure if he had moved so fast she hadn’t noticed him doing so, in which case he was messing with them, or him actually having some sort of ability to.. teleport?

“Can you do it with things? Or .. only your own body?”

Shifting to have a better look at him, and being able to keep an eye on him all the time, she then realized that she was the only one without anything ‘extra’. In fact, she suddenly felt really common. It wasn’t a very warming feeling - her expression turned a little more blanc. Eyes showing a bit less excitement toward the tricks and skills of the two shinobi nearby. Something in her stomach stirred, trembled even, and the green eyed girl returned some of her attention to one of the nearby sandwiches.


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

Interest in her little trick was enough to bring out a more confident smile, even if it was brief. She turned the tag back and forth in her hand, revealing a blank underside. “I didn’t buy it. It’s just… one of those things that started happening while I was training.” She wisely left out some of the other tricks, such as the occasional child ghost and an odd sense of balance in the world. She was too young to be declared insane. “All I know is that some distant old relatives loved to mess with this kind of stuff. I’m the first one in a while to show any talent for chakra… That meant I didn’t get a choice when it came to being a shinobi.” A wistful voice drew to a close as her ‘gift’ shimmered out of existence.

Her hand moved back to a neutral position as Akagi stepped up for show and tell. Without so much as a single handseal, the boy teleported! She had to admit, it was a lot more visually impressive than making paper. He’d caught the attention of a few patrons, most of whom were wondering what witchcraft they had witnessed in the corner of their eye. “…Oh! That’s new.” She didn’t bother to hide that she was impressed; she knew fast movement was easily accomplished with body switching jutsu, but she had never seen anybody do it on a whim – without a target to switch with. “Very useful for your job, right? Throw some weapons in a fight. They can dodge, and then you just end up behind them. Stuff like that. I bet nobody’ll see it coming.” She nodded at her own appraisal, allowing herself a slight sense of pride.

She wasn’t absent enough to miss Shizuka’s shift. ‘Right… She can’t show off her jutsu out here, can she? If she has anything worth showing...’ Asami kept up her smile as she picked up a bite-sized cupcake, hovering it in front of the girl’s face. “And of course, Shizuka is good all around…! Got more sense than more students I’ve seen, and a heart to match.” ‘Wait. That’s a terrible compliment. Who wants to be the team heart?’ One eyebrow twitched as she went for the save. “Being born funny is great and all, but my mom always said what you make of yourself is the most important part.”

[MFT]

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

Feeling a slight warmth to his cheeks as the two girls would praise him, he would raise his left hand to scratch the back of his head as he smiled, "It is probably the most essential skill that I bring to the table when it comes to missions.
" He would lower his hand, sitting down in the new seat before warping across the table to his seat prior to his earlier display. He was now seated and began to answer Shizuka, "I can like mangle things, but I can't move items at will."

It was true, his skill was constrained to his body, as he could only warp to and from places. Along with only being able to teleport his body, he also could only travel up to thirty feet. However, if Akagi used this ability too often it often times makes him zone out, day dreaming and such. "The only drawback to using it is that it makes me zone out, like I pass out but my body keeps moving." He didn't know how to describe what it was like, "The best way I can explain it is if you just close your eyes and than open them, in a completely different room without any memory of being there."

After he had spoken Akagi would listen to Asami about Shizuka's personality. Akagi was confused, he hadn't ever really thought about his own personality, he just assumed he came off as an average joe. When she spoke about her mother telling her a mantra it struck a cord in Akagi's heart, his mother used to reassure him of things whenever the Maelstrom was still a danger.

He would speak on the matter once he gathered his thoughts, "I guess anybody's personality is just the result of everything said person has accomplished." He would place his head onto his hand as he finished speaking.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Oh, right.. she hadn’t bought it. Somehow the trinket had manifested out of thin air. If that wasn’t out of the ordinary then Shizuka didn’t know what was. She really wanted to poke Asami about what it did, how it worked, or how she thought it to work, and its potential origin. Perhaps this was a family trait, like the Mokuton she was capable of. That would definitely be cool. Now that she thought about it she realized that there were many things she didn’t know about Asami. There was a chance the girl’s family was into seals of sorts. Yes, something like that would easily explain the trinket.

Shizuka’s eyes widened, she shifted a bit closer to the arm, but then found herself being roughly pulled back into the reality of the tea room. “I eh.. “ Good all around? Had Asami just called her average?

“Thanks,” she smiled, unsure how else to react. Her eyes were back on Akagi and his appearance on the other side of the table. Man, did she envy his special technique. So, she set her teeth into that rather than exploring the topic of personalities.

“Mangle? Do you take a piece of them with you then? Or.. are they just being twisted in space?” Blinking, she suddenly found herself fairly excited again. There was no time to sulk about being less special than the other two kids when they could be performing experiments!

“I have an idea.” She announced, gracefully reaching out for a sandwich while getting up from her seat. “Try to warp the sandwich to your plate,” putting it on one of the empty dishes destined for any late newcomers, she studied it with the eyes of a hawk.

Would a piece of it remain? Would all of it be a mess? Would something go missing?

No matter what would happen, she was pretty sure that it would be interesting.


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

Had she heard that right? Mangle? It sounded a bit violent, but then, she shouldn’t have expected anything less from the military. Her smile faltered for a moment nonetheless. Violence wasn’t something she had ever been too keen on. “Mmm… Well, these things do get better with practice, right? At least, I hope so. Who knows? Maybe one day you’ll retire and be a delivery man instead. Get people’s packages halfway across the village in ten minutes or less…!” A feeble attempt at humour was enough to return life to her lips. That, and realising her words had kept Shizuka’s spirits up. There was no way for her to know they had been misinterpreted, but she looked happy enough, so that would have to do.

She reached under her seat and withdrew her handbag; within that, she found a few more pieces of paper. Each of them had been marked, but the telltale signs of a fuuinjutsu seal were much easier to recognise than whatever she had pulled out before. She tried her best to avoid making a show of it (though it was easier said than done when their party was so small) as she placed a paper flat on the table and began placing some of the food around the markings’ edge. She'd ordered fancies for close to a dozen people, so she was able to carry out her task and leave plenty for the two to eat or toy with.

Clearly, there were experiments to be had, and she didn’t intend to let her ‘work’ interrupt it. She did, however, have a purpose in trying to summon shinobi to the room. One student and a genin were the best knowledge base she was going to get, from the looks of it. “There is, er… One thing. Besides testing sandwiches, I mean. I hope you don’t mind me asking.” She gave pause; when she spoke again, her voice lost more of its cheer, and her eyes gave way to a bittersweet expression. “Does this… make you happy? This job, I mean. Being a shinobi. If you had the choice before you signed up, would you have chosen differently? Would you do it now?” Her gaze strayed from the two as she spoke, knowing from experience how such conversations usually ended. Kumo-nin rarely entertained the notion of ‘giving up’ or rejecting the shinobi life, even if it was clear some of her classmates took no interest in it… Herself included. In the academy, such talk was quickly stamped out, but a desire to hear what others – especially foreigners – felt about it was a big reason why the three of them had met.

 

[Mitsunari Akagi]

"To be completely honest, I don't understand the nature of the ability, all I know is that it disorients opponents." Looking to Asami after answering Shizuka's question, Akagi scratched the top of his head, "Practice helps in all aspects of being a shinobi, from form to execution. Even when you are running packages for the village practice comes into play. Akagi let out a slight laugh before returning to Shizuka who had prepared a sandwhich for him to target.

"In all honesty I would be happy to demonstrate, but we can't do it in here. It has a really big radius and I don't want to mess this fancy place up. His neck was becoming stiff from shifting so much to answer all of the questions, but he was happy to have the attention of other students for once. Shifting his eyes to Asami, who had begun to talk about a rather sensitive topic, "Ask away." Akagi took a deep breath in as he listened closely to her question.

His hand moved from his head to his side as he exhaled, breathing in once again for his explanation, "Despite its cliche, I am not a shinobi because I want to fight villains or threats across the world, I have my own personal convictions that I can only accomplish by being a shinobi. Although, I can't say I don't like it. I have met many good friends and mentors." Slightly wincing for a moment before continuing, "The only regret I have was not starting sooner.
I could have saved my mothers life." It was a soft topic, but Akagi could tell Asami might be questioning where she fit into, and he felt like this was a perfect time to drop some emotional bombs for effect.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Distracted by the idea of a teleporting sandwich it took Shizuka a moment to give up on the idea, or rather to admit that Akagi was actually right. Testing it out here might be a bad idea, but at least she had tried to get him to do it. Picking it up from the plate she bit into it. If it wasn’t destined to travel through space then it would have to be happy with finding a new home in her stomach.

Chewing on her sandwich she swallowed right on time to voice a somewhat awkward ‘I’m sorry to hear that’, then she absentmindedly stared at the table between them. Of course she wanted to ask why he was so sure that he would have been able to save his mother. The fact that he was a genin had her wonder if he was so sure in his abilities or whoever had murdered the woman had been a mere bandit who lacked any actual skills and had used pure muscles to deal with her. Cutting steel also came to mind, those cowards forming the street scum frequently used knives to harass civilians.

Shizuka felt her hand tighten into a fist, but managed to hide it beneath the table. It was her turn -she felt- to speak about what she thought of their current life-styles. ‘Being a Shinobi’ had been so clear to her not too long ago. She missed those times. If only Siu hadn’t planted odd thoughts about the way the Cloud worked into her mind, this question would have been a piece of cake to answer to. Well, in a way it still was, however, should she voice her opinion the wrong way it would be considered quite tactless.

“I can’t say for sure because .. I can’t call myself a kunoichi just yet, but .. I did pick this way of life because it felt, and still feels, natural to me. I’m sure that it’s complicated for many, the choice or lack of it, it’s just that I wouldn’t know what else I would be doing if not going to the Academy.” Nodding, she returned to her sandwich.

Was there anything she was really good at that she was missing out on? She had no idea and doubted that she would ever know.


**

 

[Saotome Asami]

Fair enough, Asami supposed. There was no need for the three of them to risk getting thrown out of the establishment thanks to some botched witchcraft, especially when he wasn’t confident that he could control it. Perhaps with practice and a lot of luck, they would meet again in a location better suited for showing off.

As the two gave their answers, she continued her preparations. A trio of marked papers were placed in front of her as Akagi spoke of his own personal goals. “…Well, you’re honest. That’s more than I can say for some people.” How many people could openly admit to selfishly pursuing their own goals? “And I’m sorry to hear about your mother.” She paused for a moment. There wasn’t much she could confidently add on to that without prying, which meant it was just as awkward for her as it was for Shizuka. She turned her attention to the girl and heard her response as well. To her friend, there were no other clear options besides the one she was given. It was as good a reason as any, but neither of them helped her much. She’d had a path set out and footsteps to follow in. If chakra never forced itself into her life, she would still be studying, well on her way to an education in business. The best she could say for her predicament was that she was keeping her family safe. Bricks started finding their way through windows shortly after she declined to enlist, and while she could never prove it was a threat from shinobi…

She sighed mentally. It wasn’t quite the same as wishing one could save a person that was already lost. Their reasons were appreciated, but not quite what she could learn from. “You both have good reasons. If you have the passion or a reason, then you’ll find a way to make the rest work out…! …At least, that’s what my mother says. She has a lot to say.” The apple never fell far from the tree. “I’m… still working on the reason.” Hopefully, the understatement would make her inner turmoil sound less severe than it felt. “But I don’t have much of a choice, so what does it matter? One will have to come eventually, or…”

Her eyes fell to the table. After another awkward moment’s pause, she pressed a finger to the centre of a sealed paper. A little chakra activated the markings, sealing many of her assorted snacks into a convenient storage space! She repeated the procedure for the other two papers as she went on, completely changing the subject. “Anyway. This was fun. Insightful. I hope you don’t mind if I take these with me. There’s more than enough for you two if you want to stay, but I was expecting a lot more than two people, and the food shouldn’t go to waste. Even a city like Kurosawa’s going to have some people struggling for their next meal.” She stowed the scrolls back into her bag under the table and picked it up as she stood. “I should be getting a move on. It was really nice to meet you both, Akagi and Shizuka. Hopefully this won’t be the last time. …Oh, and I’ll make sure I use this tonight.” She took her candle and let it rest in her bag too. With everything packed, she took a step back, showing her glowing smile one last time. “Take care of yourselves, please, and enjoy the food!” With that, she set off, out of the establishment and off to parts unknown.

[MFT]
[Thread left unless interrupted.]