Kenshin nodded to Gattsu after they had seated around a table.

"I'll let you order, I'm fine with whatever."

Well, that was a mistake. i should probably just order a platter, so we dont eat this man out of house and home.

Smiling as the waitress approached the lively table, she asked the question we had all been waiting for:

"What can i get for you today?"

Almost as soon as the words left her mouth, Gattsu began fighting through his salivation.

"Got anything made to feed 8?"

After a brief moment pondering, she retorted back about a few different platter options, and the two finally settled on a mixed meat special.
The waitress walked away, hips swaying as she walked, back around the bend to the kitchen to relay the order back to the cooks.

"So, I guess we should all learn how to use the bow then. Seems like a fairly logical choice. With the same notion, i guess Iro should show us all how he uses his spear too. More knowledge tends to be useful."

The conversation kept the evening livelier, and allowed them to feel more accustomed to their new allies.

These people seem trustworthy enough, should be fine to keep them around. Id hate to see the two have to fight each other though.

"One of you guys, could you remind me to stop and grab some writing supplies after this? I need to get a couple of journals to store ideas."

Gattsu stood waiting expectantly, figuring one of them was likely to do the same.


[WC 1781 + 282 = 2063]

"Yea, I think learning bows would come in handy too. Maybe I could give you some lessons on spears too Nobuya."

"Really? That'd be great, Iro! And while we're at it, I could show you some of the sealing jutsu I've been working on!"

Referencing the spear training, Kenshin posited, "It's not a bad idea. Learning that would give you an option in case someone closed the distance and I couldn't stop them. Plus having us be able to swap positions would help as well."

Wow, it really seems I'll learn a lot more on this team, or at least a wider variety of things, than I thought. This could actually be pretty fun. I wonder if Gattsu will be joining us too.

At the suggestion of Iro, we found a pork place pretty close by. Following Kenshin-sensei, we walked in and sat down at a table with plenty of room for food near the back of the restaurant. Kenshin said that we could order whatever we wanted, so as soon as the waitress came, Gattsu immediately ordered a meal meant for eight.

I know he was fighting pretty hard, but is that all for him, or is it for the table? I know its probably for all of us, but should I order my own thing now?

I waited to see what Iro and Kenshin would do, but the waitress seemed satisfied that the order was for the table after they had settled on a mixed meat special.

Oooh, I know I said I could eat some pork, but a mixed meat special might include calamari, if I'm lucky. It's sometimes not grouped in because its seafood and not considered one of the traditional meats, but this is Kiri, and we do love our fishing.

Gattsu spoke up.

"So, I guess we should all learn how to use the bow then. Seems like a fairly logical choice. With the same notion, i guess Iro should show us all how he uses his spear too. More knowledge tends to be useful."

So he is going to join us for bow training!

"By the end of this, I might as well just have a whole scroll dedicated to weapons. Each fight, I'd just have to pull out a 'weapon of the day.'" I joked.

"One of you guys, could you remind me to stop and grab some writing supplies after this? I need to get a couple of journals to store ideas."

"Yeah, sure. If you're going to Mr. Renjiro's shop, I might actually join you. I need to get myself some new scrolls."

When the waitress returned with our food, I was disappointed to see there wasn't any calamari specifically, but there was some salmon which I not-so-subtly brought over to my side of the table. I'd let the others have some if they wanted it, of course, but I was definitely having at least a bit.

"Thank you for the food!"

WC: 508
Total WC: 3908

After everyone had chimed in, it seemed that they were all going to take some lessons. That was perfectly fine with Iro. The more practice he got the stronger he would become. They all walked into the place and sat down with the waitress walking up pretty quickly. Gattsu ordered a meat special or something, which was fine. Iro wasn't a picky eater. He leaned his spear against the wall beside him as he relaxed a bit. Now was the time to soak up the win.

Gattsu and Nobuya started talking about going to get some stuff, but Iro didn't really get involved. He wasn't much of a note taker. He smiled as soon as he saw the food. Nobuya immediately went for the salmon, but Iro was quick. He got a couple of pieces and put it on a separate plate for himself. Salmon was his favorite as well. He then added a few more things before digging in. The food was as good as he remembered and he was pretty hungry. He would continue being silent as he ate. He just had bigger fish to fry at the moment.

[194 + 2499 = 2693]

Gattsu ordered the food and it looked amazing. Next training session could be bow lessons or spear lessons, plus they had a mission to do as well, so it looked like they had a busy week ahead of them. Kenshin didn't get much on his plate as he relaxed and ate casually. He listened to the small talk between his Genin and he enjoyed it. THe more they hung out and got along, the more potential they had as a team. "So let's say tomorrow we can get out there and start some bow training." Kenshin said with a smile. He'd have to borrow some bows to use, but that was fine.

He would wait and sit as they finished up their meals. It was starting to get late and he needed to prep for tomorrows training so it was about time to break it up. "As fun as this is, I have some stuff to go do. I'll talk to you three tomorrow in the same spot in the training area." He spoke calmly as he waved and walked out the door with a better mood than he had expected when he woke up that morning.

[201 + 2419 = 2620
Endurance D2 - > D3 750/750
Endurance D3 - > C0 1000/1000
Strength D2 -> D3 750/750
120 Words left over ]
[Exit Thread]

"So let's say tomorrow we can get out there and start some bow training." Kenshin said, smiling as he spoke.

"Sounds like a plan"

As they finished their food and conversations, the genin and their sensei had finally arrived at the time to say their goodbyes.

"As fun as this is, I have some stuff to go do. I'll talk to you three tomorrow in the same spot in the training area."

As Kenshin waved and left, the three genin were left to their own machinations. It was only a matter of time before the three could truly call themselves a team, but they seemed to be getting along well enough for the time being.

"Alright, looks like it's about time for me to head out. Old lady is gonna kill me if im not back before it gets too late. might even make me sleep out back again. You guys have a nice night, ill see you tommorow."

I cant wait to learn all this new stuff. Should work out great for getting stronger, if nothing else.

Smiling happily, Gattsu got up and made his way out of the diner and into the night, fading off with the lights and people roaming the streets at dusk.

[WC 2063 + 224 = 2287]
[EXIT THREAD]

Training using WC: Endurance [D-0 -> D-3] for 2250 WC

Smiling as Iro took some as well, I started digging into the salmon. It was pretty good, and I had some smaller portions of the other meals as well. All in all, I ate less than the others, but I was pretty much stuffed by the end. When everyone had finished their meals, one by one people got up and left.

"As fun as this is, I have some stuff to go do. I'll talk to you three tomorrow in the same spot in the training area."

"Alright, looks like it's about time for me to head out. Old lady is gonna kill me if im not back before it gets too late. might even make me sleep out back again. You guys have a nice night, ill see you tommorow."

"Alright, but remember the thing about the writing supplies you wanted!" I called out after him. Soon, it was just Iro and me left. I got up, grabbing some of the few leftovers to put in a small box.

"Well, looks like we better be heading out too. See ya tomorrow, Iro! And thanks again for agreeing to train us how to use spears!"

And with that, I set off. This had been a fun day, and I couldn't wait to see how training tomorrow would go. I winced as I felt a bruise in my arm send a pang of pain throughout my body.

Probably no messing around with sealing tonight, might just wanna go straight to bed. Still, before I forget, I do want to go to Mr. Renjiro's shop. After all, what's a sealer like me to do without my precious scrolls?

I chuckled to myself as I walked through the streets. It was late at night, but Mr. Renjiro usually would just be cleaning up the shop until he closed when he went to bed. He was pretty old, and he loved his shop, so he was there most of the time.

I walked in, ringing the small bell that was attached to the door.

"Hey Mr. Renjiro! It's just me, Nobuya! I brought you some food!" I called out.

Because of my fondness and eagerness for experimenting with fuuinjutsu, I needed a good number of scrolls, and Mr. Renjiro owned the shop closest to my house. I had been in here enough times to get to know him a decent bit, and I've found him to be a pretty nice, but quiet, guy.

As I picked out the scrolls that I wanted (he'd just acquired some with a cool dragon design that I liked), I told him about my day and my new squadmates while he ate the leftovers I had brought from the restaurant.

"So far, they seem pretty nice. Gattsu's really polite and Iro's really forthcoming. He seems like he's got a lot of stuff he's working through though. Still, he's exceptional with a spear and he even offered to teach me! I don't know how good I'll be, but we're gonna be training with weapons tomorrow. Everything's just happening so fast, you know?"

Mr. Renjiro just smiled in response and slowly nodded his head. He didn't usually comment, but he always made sure to listen very intently when I spoke.

"And speaking of tomorrow, I have to go and get to bed soon, you know how I can oversleep. Well, goodnight Mr. Renjiro!"

"Goodnight, Nobuya."

I paid for my scrolls and headed home. It was time for this pretty-packed day to end.

WC: 600
Total WC: 4508
2250: Dexterity D->D-3
2250: Endurance D->D-3
Remaining WC: 8
[EXIT THREAD]

Everyone slowly started to go their own ways after their meal. Kenshin was first, followed by Gattsu and then Nobuya. "No problem, see ya!" He waved as everyone left. Iro got up and decided to head out as well. He had a full day ahead of him tomorrow and planned on taking full advantage of it. He got up and started to move as a man walked in the door. His eyes got narrow as he recognized the village hidden in the snow's symbol around his leg. The man scanned the room and his eyes found Iro. He immediately walked briskly up to him. "Are you Iro Hozuki? The son of Strafe Aisu?" The man asked in a kind of tone that said friend not foe. Why did he want to know?

"Yea, I'm Iro. Why?" Iro spoke clearly as his left hand clutched his spear. The man smiled, which threw Iro off comepletely. "We have your father. He was found and brought to us. He was partially unsealed, but we need more help to unseal him the rest of the way." He spoke carefully. "Why haven't you told the village sooner?" Iro's face was torn between happiness and anger. "We didn't know who he was until he was identified recently. The ice was thick." His honesty was apparent and that cooled Iro down a bit. "I understand, I just need to know where and how to get there." Iro was ready to see him again. He was fighting back tears already.

"I'll lead you there whenever you like. I would bring friends though, this will be a tricky seal to break." The man nodded and then pointed to a hotel for travelers. "I'll be there. Let me know when you are ready to go." Iro nodded back "I'll discuss it with my squad tomorrow and give you an update. Thank You!" He was genuine as he turned and headed back to his house. Was he really going to see Strafe and Momaru again? It was time to get to the bottom of all of this.

[354 + 2693 = 3047
Dexterity D0 -> D1 750/750
Dexterity D1 -> D2 750/750
Dexterity D2 -> D3 750/750
Strength D0 -> D1 750/750
47 Words Left]
[Exit Thread]