Ameryuu walked into her favourite restaurant, hoping to have a nice, filling meal before heading back out to training. Her hair was still damp from her quick shower an she was dressed in a simple white yukata instead of her usual gear. She reached a hand up to massage her shoulder. It had been aching since training and she silently wished she had a medical appointment so that the doctor could loosen up her muscles. She was so tense.

Her heart sank into her stomach (which was woefully empty) as she saw how crowded the room was. Every table seemed to be full and the usual staff were rushing around trying to fill orders like madmen. Ame lamented her fate and wondered if she could just wait for a table to open up. Judging by the amount of people there though, she highly doubted it. Then she spotted a lonely little table in the corner of the room and brightened. Just what she needed.

She rushed forward, carried by the momentum of her stomach and not much else. She didn't even notice the person already sitting there. Ame squeaked in embarrassment as she turned the corner to face the table. She hadn't expected anyone to be sitting there.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I thought this table was empty. I just saw how full the restaurant was and I was really hungry. Nevermind, I'll go now!" She said, bowing slightly. Just as she turned however, her stomach gave an ominous and very audible rumble. Her face flushed red.

---

*260/2000*

Kumogakure, the village hidden by the clouds. Ryder had never been here before but with his traveling ways it was bond to happen at some point. Always bouncing place to place, living on his wits and determination and a bit of luck he had mad it this far in search of, something. Answers to why his family was slaughtered, as well as a place to call him. Ryder had stepped foot into the village just a few hours ago and his nose dragged him to a small restaurant to fill his gut, the only problem was, he had no money but he ordered food anyways, he could always pay them back later, or just run.

Ryder was sitting in the back of the restaurant, the staff running this way and that way trying to fill orders and sit the incoming flood of people, most of those orders were his own. In just the short time he had been at his location he has had, four orders of raman, two beef cabbage rolls, five rice balls, six beefs on a stick and some pork fired rice; and he was just getting started.

Ryder was mid-bite when he heard a small, soft voice. He looked up to see a small girl wearing a white yukata, her hair still wet, and a slight blush on her cheeks as he spoke. Ryder didn't catch most of the words, but just enough to get what she was saying. As she started to turn around Ryder, someone clumsily reached over the table, laying partly on he, grabbed her hand to stop her from leaving. "No, ah, it's ok, stay, sit." He heard her stomach growl and smiled slightly. "Sounds like you are hungry anyways. Ryder looked down realizing he still had her hand, and was still laying on the table, he blushed slightly and let go returning to his seat just as another order of food arrived at his table. "Names Ryder."

Ame stared down at her hand, currently in the hand of a boy. She truly believed that if any more blood rushed to her face she would faint right then and there. Coming from a conservative family had left her with very little interaction with people outside of the clan compound. Now some strange boy was holding her hand and telling her to sit down and eat. She barely registered him mentioning his name.

"O-oh, thank you very much. My name is Ameryuu. Most people just call me Ame though," Ame sat down tentatively, and nervously smoothed back her hair. If someone from the clan were to see her the news would be spread around like wildfire. Her carefully cultivated persona of courtesy and kindness would be done for. She simply had to rely on luck and her family's disdain for normal food to carry her through.


She turned to the boy, trying to figure out if she'd seen him before. He certainly hadn't been in her academy classes, nor did he seem familiar from the older nin of the village. He held a certain melancholy air about him that she recognized well. Ame smiled softly, "Ryder-san, I've never see you around Kumo before. Are you travelling through? Or are you becoming a permanent fixture?"

---

*221 words ~ 481/2000*

Ryder took a bite of rice nodding to her name saying it softly to himself as if not to forget it. "Hm? Oh no I'm not from here, I'm not even from anywhere anymore. He thought a little about her question, settling down in one place would be nice, but he had grown so used to always being on the move, being in a single place would change everything. It be harder to find answers, he be an outsider, but on the other hand, he could focus on training, and have friends. His eyes went to hers and he smiled slightly. I couldn't tell you to be honest, I might stick around if the reasoning is good.

Ryder brought his eyes down to his food again, but looked at her slightly taking in more of her appearance. She wasn't as small as he thought at first, he was only a few inches shorter then himself, and her hair was a dark blue that almost matched her eyes. Where she looked like a well behaved and manned person, Ryder was the complete opposite. He had spiky pink hair that made it look like he just woken up, and his eyes were like black coils straight from the ground. As his for clothing, a sleeveless, gold trimmed black waistcoat often left open and untucked, exposing his bare chest, white knee-lengthen trouser, a thick wristband on his left wrist, black open-toed sandal and the white scale-patterned scarf, all made him look like a poor outsider. Ryder shock his head slightly pushing the thoughts from his head before looking back up at her. I take it, this is your home village? Are you a shinobi? It was easy to tell the girl was sigh, Ryder on the other hand was far from the most shy, he was very upfront about most things.

Ame considered his question carefully. Some of it was easy to answer. She was most certainly a shinobi, no doubt about that, but could she really consider this suffocating place home? She wasn't sure anymore. She played off her doubt and laughed quietly. "Yes, I've lived here my entire life. I'm only ever out of the village on missions but," her breath caught in her throat, "When I do leave, it's as though I'm free. Sometimes I wish I didn't have to come back." Her voice was barely above a whisper as she uttered her last sentence.

She glanced at the boy out of the corner of her eye, noticed his unusual and raggedy attire, the messy hair. He seemed far more alive than she did, with her quiet manners and well-groomed appearance. She was suddenly jealous of him, for getting the chance to travel and explore. She couldn't blame him for her problems however, so she brushed the jealousy off and took a deep breath.

Ame finally noticed the extensive number of plates and platters across the table and her eyes widened comically. "Did you really manage to eat of of this food by yourself? I mean, you must be tired after your travels but I think I would have exploded had I attempted to eat as much." 

---

*227 words ~ 708/2000*

Ryders eyes never left hers as she told him about how she sometimes doesn't want to come back. Ryder couldn't even consider ever wanting to leave if he had a home, but he also didn't know her story, many shinobi leave their village. Traveling has its perks, but it also has a lot of down sides. Hard to stay connected to people you meet, not mater how amazing they are. He smiled slightly taking another bite of food. When you leave, you will find yourself aching to come back, even if your life isn't the greatest, it's still your home.

He looked at the stack of plates and bowls, and smiled a little. Ah yea, I eat a lot. I use a rather large amount of energy by traveling, training, and fighting, my body also runs about twenty degrees hotter then most. I could eat for hours and not gain a pound. He pushed over his last few plates of rice, beef and broccoli. Ryder sat back putting his hands behind his head looking around slightly. To call it busy was an understatement, but it be perfect for running out on his bill. He once again found himself watching the girl in front of him. She was the complete opposite of him, meaning she wouldn't dine and dash, not knowingly anyways. Ryder smirked closing his eyes coming up with a plan to solve all that in a matter of seconds.

Ryder leaned forward and opened his eyes to put his gaze on her one final time. When you're done eating, would you like to get out of here? I'm not sure whats around here, but I've heard of hot springs, training grounds, and all that, im sure you know more.

Ame contemplated his words. True, Kumo was her village, her home. She had friends here as scarce as they were. She had her team and her sensei. Her younger cousin Homaru would miss her, she was sure. Besides, getting away from her clan would be next to impossible after the fiasco that the can heir had caused, so she was probably better off leaving well enough alone.

She ate quickly, but with grace and care. It would not do to ruin her yukata and present her mother with anything less than a perfect garment. Her stomach was soon satisfied and she noticed that Ryder had stopped eating as well. His question startled her.

"Oh, well I don't know. I did tell my mother I'd be back after a quick lunch but-" She looked down at her hands, resolve washing over her in waves. "You know what? Why not? There are lots of cool places to visit around Kumo. I can give you the grand tour."

---

*167 words ~ 875/2000*

Ryder smiled when he got his answer, now the next thing on his little to-do list, was getting out of here and fast. Great. Ryder stood from his seat and moved around the table in a slight rush taking her by the hand and bring her to her feet. Without letting go he started for the door. Just one more thing. He gave her a devilish grin. Don't stop running. As almost on que, the table they were just on caught on fire, a small flame that wouldn't do any lasting damage or spread an further from the table it self. As the staff run towards the table to put out the flames, Ryder tightening his grip on her hand and took off running out of the door pulling her behind him. Ryder moved through the streets taking lefts and rights, for about three blocks before coming to slow walk.
And now, I'm lost. Ryder looked at her finally letting go of her hand and gave her a small wink. Bet you never done that before. He put his hands behind his head, keeping his eyes on her as if no one else was around, but at the same time all his other sense were taking in information. Where to now?

Ame blinked, staring at Ryder in utter disbelief. He had just neglected to pay for his meal, set the table on fire, practically kidnapped her and then fled through Kumo in a bid to escape being found out. A smile spread across her face. "That was the craziest thing I've ever done. I can't believe we did that. Ha, I can't believe I did that and am not collapsing out of guilt right now. What a rush." She laughed with abandon, glancing around to see just exactly they'd ended up.

Somewhere in the civilian district for sure. Some people were giving Ryder odd looks as they walked past, and her even odder looks for being with him. She looked up, as in Kumo looking up always gave one a proper marker to tell where things were in relation to one another. "Oh, we're not to far from the Thunder Temple. It' dangerous if you don't know what you're doing, but cool if you do. We should probably skip any bars for now."

---

*179 words ~ 1054/2000*

Ryder smiled when she started to laugh about his little, deed. To her it was craze, to him it was pretty tame, kinda get used to it when most of your coin goes to things needing to travel. Ryder lowered his arms and crossed them over his chest watching her. This was the first time he spent time with anyone, without it being a fight, or spar, and running from the police of a village, he couldn't help but smile. Ryder noticed the looks, and he was used to them, didn't matter where he was he always got the same ones, the thing that annoyed him was the looks they were giving her. "I take it by the looks you are getting, either you're an outcast, or you are part of a respected family." family

Ryder looked up as she did, trying to figure out what she was looking at, but it was lost on him. When he looked back down he started to walk, his eyes trailing her figure, he was a guy after all. He did a slight jog to catch up to her side putting his hands behind his head as he always did while walking. What? Bar fights to tame for you? Or are you trying to keep your rap sheet down to only a few crimes before sunset?

Ame paused, a slight grimace passing over her face before she schooled her features. "I am a part of the Ryuzoji Clan. We are more feared than respected to be honest, but that is to be expected considering the fact that out Clan Head recently killed his own wife and his son went Missing-nin in the process. We've been protecting this village and it's people for generations, but the leaders are hungry for blood, and the people know it."


She turned to him for a moment, the breeze picking up and whipping her hair around her face, making his open shirts ruffle. She stared for a moment before looking away, sure the tips of her ears were red. She hurried to answer his second question. "I've been to the Sky Bar a few times, but there isn't much for a girl to do when she's fifteen. Of course once you start heading down the path to trouble you may as well do it right. Come on, let's see if they serve drinks at two in the afternoon." They probably did. Shinobi came in and out at all times of the day. She led him right up to the elevator doors that would take them up to the top. "After you."

---

*217 words ~ 1271/2000*

And the kage of this village just lets that happen? Ryder couldn't help but shake his head, it didn't matter where he went, everyone place was the same, killing was a natural part of the world now, just as a dog chasing a ball is natural. It was easy to tell it was a touchy subject to say the least, so he didn't bother to ask many question about her clan, not now anyways.

He smiled slightly at her comment about the path of trouble. Didn't you know? I don't walk the path, I pave it. He followed her towards the elevators doors that slowly slide open revealing the small room that would lift them up. Ryder had one very, boring and stupid weakness, he got motion sickness very very easily. If it was man made, and it moved, it would make him sick. He sighed dropping his arms to his side and walked in, placing his hand against the door so it wouldn't close. "Come on, let's go stir up some trouble. He gave her another devilish grin, Ryder always seemed to get into trouble, i didn't matter if he went looking for it or not, it was part of his, charm.

Ame grinned at Ryder, curious as to why he'd seemed apprehensive of the elevator at first. Still as many times a she had been to the Sky Bar she'd never dared trying to pull off being old enough to drink. Heck she'd even gone there for missions. Forehead protectors would get you anywhere, but she had never bothered. Something about Ryder made her want to just do whatever felt right.

"You know, I think you're a bad influence. If it wasn't for you I'd still be at home, probably practicing my kenjutsu or in the middle of a tea ceremony. Now I'm about to attempt getting alcohol, as a minor, at two in the afternoon. I have to be dreaming." She glanced at him again and felt pacified by his warm smile.

---

*139 words ~ 1410/2000*

Ryder looked at her grinning still at her words. Well, who wants to do all that? Tea and kenjutsu will always be waiting, but you said it yourself you never do things like this, and we're just getting started! Ryder smiled quickly went away as the door closed and the elevator slowly started to rise. After about the fourth floor he started to feel the effects and was leaning in the corner of the small boxed in area. At the seventh floor and was crouching holding his stomach. Probally should of told you of my motion sickness. Ryder let out a small chuckle. He could fight wild beast, rouge nin, face off against a large group of fighters and not even be a little scared, but put him into a moving man made object, and it was good game. By the time they hit the fourteenth floor Ryder was sitting back head leaned against the wall, eyes closed in a full on motion sickness comma, at this point he wasn't even aware of what would be going on around him.

As the elevator slowed and made it's final ding, Ryders symptoms quickly went away. He reached up grabbing the bar to help steady himself to his feet, giving her a small reassuring smile that he would be fine. Ready to get into some trouble? The doors slide open and the smell of the heavy drinks hit him. Without missing a beat he walked passed her grabbing her hand and dragged her out not wanting to be in the death trap any longer. Ryer stopped walking, his hand still gripping hers, his eyes wandering from corner to corner, taking in the scene. It wasn't to busy, but then again it was only two in the afternoon so why would it be. Ryder looked at her letting go of her hand. So lead the way my partner in crime.

Ameryuu nodded, pulling Ryder into a dark corner.  She dipped her fingers into her obi and pulled out a disguise kit. She applied a quick coat of lipstick, and two flicks of mascara. She pulled down the collar of her yukata, adjusting her obi for a tighter fit. "There we go. If we're lucky they'll mistake me for my cousin Sina. She always goes around dressed like this. Well she's a bit curvier than me but..." Ame shrugged and pulled Ryder back out onto the dancefloor.

The glass floor pulsed softly with the glow of the under lights and Ame nodded her head to the beat. She felt at ease in the familiar sounds of the club. She crossed the scarcely populated room and sat down as the bar. She waited for Ryder to make his order first, as he looked much more convincing than she did.

---

*150 words ~ 1560/2000*

Ryder watched her as she put on some make up to hide who she was, a small smile playing on his lips. Once she was done he looked at himself in mirror that lined the wall, he didn't look of age, but then again, he's gotten drinks before. He shrugged and followed her again, looking at her figure once more. She said she wasn't as curvy, but it wasn't as if she didn't have them. With a smile he pushed the thoughts from his head and joined her at the bar as if hes done it a thousands times.

Ryder waited until the bar tender walked over before speaking. I'll take a glass of rum and coke. He looked at his new found friend and then back at the bar tender. He didn't figure her for a drinker, so if she wanted a drink it have to be on the fruity side to make it go down easier. And a sex on the beach for my friend here. The bar tender gave them both and odd look, but in the end he made the drinks for the two and slide them across to them. Ryder nodded and took a sip of his before looking at her. "So what other trouble can we get into?

Ame looked at her drink in slight apprehension more due to it's name that anything else. She felt a sudden wave of doubt hit her and thought about the consequences of getting caught. Well it was do or die now, and for all intents and purposes she was going to let go for once and have a little fun. She could worry about repercussions later. The first sip was slight and Ame was surprised to find that it wasn't as bitter as she had expected. Her next sip was slightly bigger and she actually smiled a bit. It was a sweet, pleasant taste, with just a hint of bitterness underneath it all. "This actually tastes pretty good."


She angled her body more towards Ryder, leaning against the bar and swirling the drink in her hand. "Well I've never been much of a trouble starter or co-conspirator as such, so as for more ideas I'm out. We could go run around and cause trouble for the monks over at the temple, but they'd be pretty likely to fry you then and there. Other than that we could just wander around for a bit. The civilian part of town is pretty crowded in the afternoons so we could get away with just about anything."

---

*218 words ~  1778/2000*

Ryder watched her take a few sips of her drink and smiled whens he said she liked it. I thought you might, it's a pretty smooth drink next to some of the other choice I could of gotten you. Ryder finished his drink and a somewhat large gulp and let out a sigh. His eyes wandered around a bit before going back to Ame when she moved her body towards him. I'm sure where ever I go I'ma case some kind of trouble, it tends to follow me around a lot. Ryder stood from his seat and put his hand on the small of her back, whispering in her ear so the bartender couldn't over hear. I'll be right back, I'ma, create an exit Ryder walked off whistling a early happy tone for what he was about to do.

After about five minutes alarms started to go off and the sprinklers system went off dosing the whole room in a cold water. The bartender and other staff started to usher the few people inside the bar towards the flight of stairs to get them out of the building, not really sure what set off the alarm. Ryder returned taking Ame by her hand once more. You're village is unlucky today, I mean, a garbage can caught fire in the bathroom, it was crazy! Ryder rubbed some soot from his face and moved between the small crowd of people, leading her close behind. It took a little longer then taking the elevator, but they made it outside without being caught by anyone, yet. Ryder turned and smiled at her slightly. Ok tour guide where to next?

Ame blinked as she was promptly doused by the club's sprinkler system, ushered towards the exit by the bartender and pulled through the grumbling crowd. "You set a garbage can on fire." It was sad more to herself than anyone else. Most of her thoughts were turned towards the fact that he had made her leave her drink behind. "When you said trouble tends to follow you you were right." She snorted, the corner of her mouth twitching up a bit.

"We should get down to street level first, and judging by how green you looked on the way up I think that the stairs are going to be a more viable option." She tugged him along and down the winding staircase, careful not to trip. It was a long way down. She breathed in the crisp afternoon air and hummed, looking around for some inspiration. "Hm, maybe we could-" She never finished her sentence. Her passive sensing range pulsed softly and her eyes swivelled to find the face of her cousin Homaru, staring at her wide-eyed from just across the street. He turned and ran as soon as she noticed him. Ame cursed under her breath. She knew she could catch up with him easy, but she was reluctant to leave Ryder behind to fend for himself. "Come on. I have a rogue cousin to catch."

---

*229 words ~  2007/2000*

Ryder smiled running a hand through his hair pushing the water from it. He looked around a bit at the confuse looks before his eyes went to hers, and then noticed she was looking at someone. Following her line of sight he looked at who she said was her cousin just as he started to run off. He smiled turned a bit wicked at her mentioning they had to catch him, now this was fun to him. Steam started to rise from Ryders body as it heated up turning the water to vapor. I'm all fired up! Without even so much as waiting for her Ryder took off down the street after her cousin like a bat out of hell. He dodged and weaved around people who tried their best to get out of the of the mad shinobi with pink hair and fire in his eyes. After a few seconds Ryder jumped into the air and continued to climb and jump over things to get a birds eye view of the one they were chasing. come on kid, just wanna talk!

Ame rushed after a - was he smoking? - Ryder, apologising to the people he had pushed out of his way as she went. Her yukata wasn't the most maneuverable outfit but she made do and attempted to catch up to both her cousin and her friend. Instead of following Ryder up onto the roofs she continued going along the streets. Luckily for her her cousin was only an academy student, so he wasn't near fast enough to evade her. "Homaru wait! It wasn't what it looked like!" "Like hell! I'm telling your mom!" 

---

*96 words ~ 2103 total*

Ryder looked down and spotted the young boy and smirked a little. Lat chance kid! After hearing his threat to tell Ame's mom Ryder figured it was time to end this. Alright, you asked for it. Ryder did a fed hand signs and a burst of flames appeared next to him, the ball of fire formed into a copy of himself; a Fire clone. The clone grabbed onto the real Ryders arm and spun around like an Olympic sick thrower and tossed Ryder through the air and then disappeared moments later. Ryder was now soaring above Hamaru. Alright one, more time! Ryder formed another clone, this one right above himself, the clone and Ryder twisted slightly in the air so the bottoms of their feet were touching. Using the real Ryder like a plat form, the clone used all his strength to jump, the effect of this caused Ryder to shoot down towards the ground right on top of Hamaru. The clone like the first disappearing after the act was completed.

Ame gasped as Ryder landed on top of her cousin. Her pulse was racing frantically, and she surged forward, reaching out a hand to help Ryder up while taking stock of Homaru's condition. He had been knocked out cold, and the electrical signals in his head were frantic in trying to repair the damage. Ame pulled the boy closer and picked him up, struggling slightly under his weight. She turned to Ryder. "Well, that was impressive but somehow I feel like people are going to be talking about this for a while." She glanced down the street and at the various staring civilians and a few curious shinobi. "I can play it off as a training accident and tell Homaru he was dreaming." She said this more to herself than anyone else.

---

*133 words ~ 2236 total*

Ryder took her hand and got off the boy and to his feet putting his hands behind his head looking around at the people, their eyes were now on them. Ryder gave them a slight shrug and looked back down at the boy. He seems kind of like a brat, no offense. Ryder took the boy from Ame and tossed him over one of his shoulders, not really feeling the effects of the weight. Let's go drop him off at home before word gets to your family before we deliver the body Ryder gave her a slight nod telling her to lead the way, since he didn't even know where they were after the run, but they had to be closer since the boy was trying to get back home to tell on Ame

Ame nodded, silently leading Ryder forward. He seemed to have no problem with carrying Homaru and she was grateful. She now had the problem of getting the boy back into the compound. "Yeah, he means well of course. He was still young when things started going wrong in the clan so I don't blame him. Besides, he's covered up for me when I go out of village to train." She smiled at Homaru's unconscious face affectionately. 

The compound was its usual bustle and Ame stopped Ryder as they neared it, taking the boy back. "Thank you for carrying him. I really appreciate it. All I have to do now is tell the guards my story and everything should be fine. I'm guessing you don't want to be mentioned?"

---

*133 words ~ 2369 total*