Dragging his gourd behind him, Mizuto followed the lizard slowly as it crawled along the endless dunes of Kaze no Kuni. "I'm gonna get you, you little bastard", he whispered slightly to himself. Dropping the strap of his gourd of sand, Mizuto jumped at the thorny lizard, hoping to get a hold of it. Instead, the lizard shot out of Mizuto's reach. Plopping on his belly, Mizuto spat sand out of his mouth. He searched the area, until he spotted his target lazing on a rock. It turned it's head, with a fresh stream of water running down it's bearded, thorny maw. Yawning, the lizard flick his tongue, and disappeared.

Widening his eyes, Mizuto began to cuss loudly. "I've been following a hallucination again!?". Since the exams, he had began to see this lizard more and more, until it seemed to be haunting his life like a silent phantom. When he awoke in the morning, the same lizard would be waiting on his bed. Mizuto could still imagine feeling the weight, and the prickly thorns on it's belly, and yet it would disappear as soon as he reached to grab it. Pulling himself to his feet, Mizuto slowly wandered back to his gourd and slipped it on.

Casting a look around, Mizuto sighed. "Everytime I see him, I find myself someplace else." Indeed, Mizuto was no longer in his home, where he had first tailed the lizard. In fact, he had only a faint idea of where he was. Eying a cactus, he noted the large flower blooming on it. "I've heard of this place; it's the Meeting Cactus. I must be pretty close to the village." Deciding it would be a good time to train anyway, he tore off his vest to reveal the small, lighter shirt underneath. He then began a very light warm-up to loosen up his muscles.

Sili walked slowly through the desert, the bottom of her robe dragging on the sand, gathering dirt. Her hands were together in front of her with the sleeves connected; she held them together gently, her right hand resting in her left's palm. Sili smiled lightly as she walked, looking around the barren landscape for any hint of water. Thirsty. She licked her lips and breathed in deeply through her nose. Thirsty, thirsty. Sili wasn't actually thirsty, in fact she had just used a technique a little earlier to drink her fill. She merely felt the heat of the desert and, for some reason, interpreted it as that. So much sand. I wonder where it all came from? And with all the wind around here, why hasn't it all blown away? Why is it all the same color? Are some grains larger than others? I bet so. Where's all the water? I'm thirsty... Sili's vision drifted up to the sky in search of clouds. There were very few, and even those were awfully thin. I wonder if clouds get thirsty? Or sad? I've heard people say they cry, but that's just misinterpretation I think.

As she continued walking aimlessly, pondering this and that, Sili noticed several figures ahead. As she got closer, she saw that one was a young man, several were cacti, and one was a guard resting on the floor. Sili's eyes widened and her smile lifted a bit. She kept her casual pace as she approached him, Excuse me? Do you live out here? It's awfully dry, are you thirsty too? Sili continued breathing deeply, taking in the desert air and savoring its unpleasantness. She waited for the boys response patiently as she stood still and concentrated on her breath

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Brushing his hands of thorns, Mizuto kicked himself for his stupidity. 'Yeah, that was smart, Mizuto. Let's use a cactus for a pull-up bar, great idea." Pulling them out, Mizuto looked around. Through the desert haze, Mizuto could only make out the shapes of solitary cacti. Checking his hands, be reached into the pockets of his pants. Pulling out tape and a flask, Mizuto began to wrap his hands to ease his pain. Setting the roll of tape back into his pants, he took a long drink of the alcohol. Screwing the cap back on, Mizuto could swear a cactus was moving in the distance. Watching the shape, he lost interest very quickly. Sitting down, he began to do sit-ups in the sand.

"Excuse me?", Mizuto heard from somewhere behind him. Sitting up, Mizuto craned his head to spy the newcomer. A black-haired woman stood above him on an errant sand dune, looking down at him. "Do you live out here? It's awfully dry, are you thirsty too?". Mizuto smiled.

"No, I don't live out here, do you see my home anywhere?". Taking his flask out, Mizuto took a drink while he watched the woman. "If you're a mirage, I'd like to be told now. The only people that are around here are ninja, bandits, and mirages."

Only joking, Mizuto clammed up when he noticed the lack of a hitai-ate on the girl. Scrambling to his feet, Mizuto snatched his gourd and put it on his back. "Wh-where's your headband?" Knowing most ninja would have one, and not believing the woman to be a mirage, Mizuto began to sweat even more, this time not from the desert heat. 'I'm in a bandit ambush, aren't I', he thought to himself. He had heard stories of beautiful women appearing in unlikely areas, to make skilled ninjas drop their guard. Then, bandit's would attack and slaughtering the ninja. "If you're a bandit, you better back away right now!".

Sili looked around with a little confusion. I don't know what your home looks like. She said pleasantly, smiling once again. The boy standing before her was about her height with relatively short brown hair. His skin seemed to have a glow about it from the sun, though his eyes gleamed through with vibrant color. As he began accusing her of being a mirage, Sili looked down at her robe and lifted each arm in turn, observing the cloth drape off each. Mirage? Am I a mirage? How could I tell? If I'm his mirage, would I still be conscious? I don't know... Sili's smile dropped as she began puzzling herself with questions, her eyes darting around her body and then around the desert. But... I've lived long before meeting this boy. Maybe those memories are false? Maybe he made up an entire back-story for me and now I'm enacting it. As the young man continued, noticing she didn't brandish a headband and then accusing her of being a bandit, Sili looked up decidedly. She breathed out heavily and then looked at him, still somewhat puzzled. Well...I can't exactly say whether I'm a mirage or not. I could be, I guess; though I'd like to think I'm not. But I can tell you I'm not a bandit, just a wanderer. With that, Sili placed her hands back together in her sleeves and smiled again, content with the conclusion she had arrived at.

I've traveled many of the lands around here. I have to say this isn't my favorite environment, Sili's expression dampened, slightly ashamed that she had any favorite at all, but it's interesting. Where's all the water, by the way? I haven't seen a pond or a stream or anything in miles. Does nothing live here? Sili continued breathing deeply, eyeing the young man and wondering what he was doing in such a place. I'm Sili, who are you? What are you doing here? Why do you have tape on your hands? Sili stepped closer with every question, noticing his hands just before asking the last one and giggling.

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"Well...I can't exactly say whether I'm a mirage or not. I could be, I guess; though I'd like to think I'm not. But I can tell you I'm not a bandit, just a wanderer." Mizuto watched as the woman placed her hands together and smiled. Mizuto was unsure if she was telling the truth, but he had learned of a large number of wanderers emerging as of late. He understood it was a possibility. "
I've traveled many of the lands around here. I have to say this isn't my favorite environment," and Mizuto knew that shouldn't be a surprise to him. "but it's interesting. Where's all the water, by the way? I haven't seen a pond or a stream or anything in miles. Does nothing live here?"

Mizuto grimaced. "Half a mile to the north, you will come upon Sunagakure no Sato, and you can find your water there." Glancing towards his flask, Mizuto noticed he had dropped the item in his panic. Walking towards it, while keeping his eyes on the woman, he snatched it up."Here," he called back, "the only water you will find is in the cacti around you." Sipping the drink, he placed the flask in his pocket.

"I'm Sili, who are you? What are you doing here? Why do you have tape on your hands?". With every question, the girl drew a step closer. Tensing, Mizuto stepped back as well. "I am Mizuto of the Sabaku clan, and what I am doing here is none of your business." Rubbing his hands, Mizuto blushed. "And, uh, my hands were damaged in training."

"Now, if I may ask, what is your business in Kaze no Kuni, Sili-san?". Rubbing his hands, Mizuto waited for an answer.

Sili looked past Mizuto to the meeting cactus as he mentioned the water. Sili had only just heard of cacti from another young man she met just recently. He was the one who pointed her in the direction of Sunagakure no Sato actually, though she never expected it to be IN this dessert. I guess its name makes sense then. Hm... After she asked him her question, laughing a bit at how the boy backed away from her, Sili knelt down and sifted through the sand. The boy introduced himself and told her he had been hurt during his training. Sabaku? Why does that sound familiar? I definitely haven't been here before. Maybe their clan resides somewhere else as well. She found a rock in the sand and picked it up. It wasn't too smooth, but the shape was perfect for her purposes. As she stood back up, the boy questioned why she was there. When she was standing straight, Sili looked off to the side and thought for a moment.

Well, I haven't been here before. So I wanted to see it. Sili looked back at him with a smile, then stepped to her left a bit and cocked her hand back. She swung it in an arch in front of her chest, crossing to the left. As it swung forward, she released the stone directly towards the cactus she had been looking at. The stone dented the cactus enough to puncture it, and a thin stream of water began flowing from it. The stone bounced back from its target as Sili's arm reached the left side of her body. She opened her hand as the stone flew back into it, and Sili caught it as fluidly as it was thrown. She walked up to the cactus slowly and bent over so her face was level with the tiny hole. Her hand rose up to it and promptly flicked out her finger, plugging the hole. Hm. Sili then unplugged it and cupped her hand against its trunk, being sure to press gently enough not to hurt herself. She drank the little water she could gather and then wiped her mouth with her sleeve. She noticed some of the thorns had been pressed down or otherwise snapped off in one section of it. Sili turned around to the boy, I can't imagine what animal would be foolish enough to press down on these thorns like this. They must have been pretty desperate for water...

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