There was a brief pause between them as he said his last few words, indicating that a gift should be something the gift giver wished to convey to the recipient. With this imperfect world around them, it was always a difficult process to relay how one truly felt with actions and even words, for the thoughts and feelings a person possessed were far more complicated than they could actually put in to words. In Seiryū’s mind, that was how he saw the world. For as much interacting as he often wishes to do, his tendency to go back to his shell once he was to close was indicative of that. He doubted he’d ever be able to explain his thoughts and reasoning behind performing such an action, one that could be seen as cowardly, but his reasons would always remain his own. They would always be a difficult concept to explain, though he never had to explain it to anyone thus far, but the thought always lingered in his mind. Seiryū’s meeting with Mari tonight brought him no such thought, for the probability of meeting her outside of this year’s Chuunin Exams favoured in them never crossing paths again than it did; though he wished that they could meet again. It was not that he wanted to avoid any future interactions with the blue-eyed female, but rather taking in to account the size of their world and countless amounts of people inhabiting it.

Seiryū caught sight of Mari edging towards a counter with numerous petite objects, none which he had eyed too closely, though that had been applicable to the entire shop minus three specific items; the Gyūki plushie, the plushie he had purchased for Mari, and the wind chime that had brought upon a whole array of thoughts. She had spent less than a minute there, having picked out an item and exchanging ryo with the clerk before turning back to face Seiryū.

“Seiryū-kun... I have never been very proficient at buying gifts for other people, perhaps it is because I have often never had someone I could give a gift. Though, I believe you are right, that gifts convey what feelings someone has for another person. So… I hope you can understand my feelings with this. Hopefully, you will accept it.”

His eyes peaked down, taking look at the object in her hand. The chain which indicated the item was a necklace due to its length, though it appeared that it would weigh absolutely nothing due to how thin the links of the chain were, making the silver appear as a blank slate of snow. Gold had caught his eyes, though he knew for certain it wasn’t real gold or silver due to this being a souvenir shop, nor would he want Mari to spend much on him, in fact he’d have preferred her not to get him anything. Thin and long, in terms to their relative size, the three cylinders would hang from the chain, a miniature wind chime in comparison to the real thing. At first, he made no move to take it from her; simply letting his eyes absorb the image entirely, taking in the chain, charm, her hand, and then her person. His personal number of gifts received increased by one, though the actual figure was still within the single digits and below three. His life never allowed him to have such a luxury, at least not until today.

A genuine smile graced Seiryū’s lips, accepting of the gift she had bought for him, even if he didn’t need one. He’d make note of this occasion, for it was something he’d consider… special. There was no thoughts of him avoiding this meeting, for he figured this would be there one and only meeting, unless the slim likelihood of them running in to each other ever occurred again. Him not accepting her gift would not only be rude, but be untrue of his wants. Slowly, his hand reached out towards hers, the one which held the chain. The ringing of the chimes echoed in Seiryū’s ears like the previous sounds of the larger chimes. While the necklace would be impractical to wear on missions required of him to remain quite, he appreciated the gesture, while trying to completely absorbs the meaning behind the gift. At first, his fingers lightly touched her skin, hovering just above them as he reached for the chain. His index and middle finger would softly lift up the chain, letting it fall on to his own fingers. Seiryū’s grasp on the object was infinitely tender, almost as if he was afraid of breaking the item with even the slightest of force. Moving it so that the necklace dangled directly in front of his eyes, his purple orbs went to meet Mari’s blue ones. “Thank you.” The words escaped him quietly, as if he had simply whispered the words out loud. While Seiryū couldn’t fully grasp the meaning she was trying to convey, he tried his own interpretation of it, for even the most fleeting wind would cause them to chime, just as their meeting had started. Something as simple as listening to a street performer had led to… making a new… friend? He wasn’t sure if they could even call each other that, but they weren’t exactly strangers or acquaintances either.

After a few seconds ticked by, Seiryū went to put on the necklace, letting it rest against the outside of his shirt. The chimes released a light sound once more as the bounced off his chest before settling there and not producing another sound. “Is there anything else… you wish to get?” He asked, though he’d let her get whatever else she required for herself, knowing one gift was enough for today – tonight. With her answer, Seiryū would wait if she needed some more time, attempting to finish off the rest of his takoyaki. “Where to next? He’d let her decide once more, knowing that each second that passed was another second closer to their departure. It was just a simple matter of time before Seiryū’s stomach would be sated and the energy he had left draining away from his body, ready to recharge with an indefinite amount of time.

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“I do not know. I have nowhere else I wish to go, specifically.”

The provided answer gave Seiryū a slight insight to how the rest of the night would play out, even if he already had clued in on what was going to occur no matter the situation. For starters, the night was beginning to draw to a close, at least that’s how he current saw things. As much as he enjoyed Mari’s company, he didn’t truly wish to occupy her time more than he already had, though the exchange of gifts gave way to the feeling that she didn’t mind his company, like he did hers. Their time so far, while short, certainly was proving to become memorable, with both of them having a physical object that directly related to the course of actions they had taken tonight. While the objects were not a direct representation of the events, they both symbolized the meeting in which occurred between Seiryū and Mari. Even if they parted ways now, the necklace and the plush toy would likely be significant reminders to each about this particular meeting. All things considered, there didn’t seem much to do when one took in to account how late it was truly getting, especially on a night when Seiryū wished to avoid loud noises in particular.

The sound of a stifled yawn made his ears perk, his attention returning to his companion. Perhaps that could be taken as a sign for their night to conclude, for them to part their separate ways and call it a night. For once they lulled themselves to sleep; a new day would arise, and filled with as much wonder as the previous one. Even if he wished to continue on with the night, he could only assume that Mari was slowly falling to the song of sleep, one that wouldn’t stop until her eyes rested. Seiryū himself would likely be awake for another hour or so before his remaining energy would drain, and the need to rest would call upon him. Perhaps, just that simple sign from Mari, even if it was unintentional, would be enough for them to call it here, for he couldn’t see any other method in which to aid such a thing. Caffeine would only do so much, and even that he figured wasn’t the best option available, as sleep itself would provide them with the best available answer. Of course, that meant departing ways and while wholly expected, it wasn’t something he was eager to do, as company was better than nothing, but there wasn’t a situation in which he pictured that their adventure would span more than ten more minutes.

“I suppose our adventure is coming to an end.” Seiryū supplied with a light tone, implicating that he figured them parting ways now would allow them to do whatever they needed to do. For Mari, likely sleep. “I didn’t know I was boring enough to put you to make you tired.” Inserting a bit of humour before the inevitable, Seiryū’s eyes twinkled with their earlier mischief. As for what he was going to do, perhaps wandering aimlessly for a few more minutes before he decided to pack it in and rest for the next day. Knowing the likelihood of meeting again after today was drastically low, it only felt right to do a more… normal farewell, compared to his usual dismissals about meeting another time. “Well, it certainly has been a pleasure meeting you.” With a smile, Seiryū’s words flowed out easily, even if he was unused to having to do so on prior occasions, though beyond that he was lost. What was it that friends said to each other when they would likely not see each other again. Feeling it best to simply leave his words for what they were, he’d await Mari’s response before making his way… to do whatever he sought out to do, which wouldn’t accumulate to too much on this particular instance.

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I believe we can wrap it up now, its been enjoyable. I'm also stumped on where to take it from here on, so concluding it may be best.

“I would say the same, Seiryū-kun. I… thank you for spending your time with me. The musician, takoyaki, and the toy, this night shall not be something so easily forgotten.”

Taking her words for face value was something he could easily picture himself doing, for Seiryū would have a physically representation of their time together, a constant reminder of this meeting between two complete strangers. While the object, to anyone else, would hold no significance, Seiryū assumed that this night would be a constant reminder to him about the item, whenever he chanced a glance upon the item. The necklace itself was foreign to him, this being the first time in a long while that he had an item to call his own and it not having any practical use in his day to day life. Accessories weren’t something Seiryū sought after, nor found the need to own or wear, but perhaps here he could make an exception, even if it would be slightly out of character for him. He already knew that he’d at least keep it safe, though wearing it on a constant basis was yet to be seen, for he just couldn’t see himself doing such for some reason. But, regardless, Seiryū would make sure not to lose it.

“I wish you the best. And if it is not too farfetched of an idea, I hope we may see each other again.”

He could easily say the same for Mari, for he would easily wish her the best… with whatever her goals in life were and for becoming a better shinobi, through other means beside the Chuunin Exams. As far as meeting each other once more, while he certainly wouldn’t mind such an instance occurring, Seiryū wouldn’t get his hopes up for such a meeting, believing that the chances of such happening wouldn’t be for quite some time. Their occupation as shinobi certainly wouldn’t help in that case for death and uncertainty were practically written in with the job description, knowing that it would likely occur one day and there was no avoiding it. As she bowed to him, as a sign of a farewell, he returned, even if such things weren’t really in his nature.

“Perhaps… one day.” Seiryū smile was strained, believing that the likelihood of it happening was slim, but he wouldn’t shoot down her wish outright. By vaguely alluding to it, Seiryū figured that was the best way to go about addressing that aspect. Rather, he found it simply best to focus on the present and if their paths happened to cross in the future… well, that would have to be dealt with when that time came. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be as enemies, but who exactly knew what would happen with the world they lived in and the careers they trailed after. “Mari-chan, I hope you had a good night.” Seiryū responded for his last few words, the last ones that would pass between them for whoever knew how long. One day, they may run in to each other, though Seiryū wouldn’t be counting on it happening… at least in the near future.

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