"I'm sorry if I frightened you, that wasn't my intention."
It was the first time he spoke to her and that in a particularly calm tone. His words helped making her feel less anxious.
Even if he happened to be someone of high status, he didn't seem to be bothered about her tattered clothes or her dirty backpack. He's a man, what did you expect?, her inner voice commented sarcastically. The thought sent a light shiver down her spine, but she shook it off at the same moment. Now that she was on her own, she should finally let go of all her fears, especially her uneasiness around men. And she could defend herself just fine, couldn't she?

The man went on, telling her that he had seen her walking through the gates and thought she might need help. He also stated that she didn't come from Kumo, to which she had two possible explanations. First, he, in fact, was someone of higher social status, knowing a lot of people in the village. Or secondly - and this might be even more plausible - she had stood out with her shiny hair and the clothes of a vagrant. Or had he caught a glimpse of her shinobi headband, which was half hidden by her tattered coat? If only her hood hadn't been ripped off by that last bandit she'd run into. She always used to hide under it perfectly.

Then again, who was she to complain? After all, she needed some help and the man, Bokuden, as he told her, offered her exactly that.
When he outstretched his hand, she hesitated for a second, but then accepted it with a shy smile. Her hand looked terribly fragile and small in his own; had it always been like this? The thought was stupid, she knew, but it reminded her of her growling stomach.

"Bokuden," Misoka repeated softly, withdrawing her hand. "My pleasure. I am Misoka." Even though he told her not to be nervous, she still found herself to be extremely polite and in that sense, socially distant. Her whole childhood, her mother used to teach her how a Karisuma lady should behave. She could try all she wanted, but her subconscious couldn't quite forget all those lectures.
As a consequence, she felt embarrassed of her shabby clothes, in which she had just walked into Kumo like a stain on white paper.

"Excuse me... Bokuden." She looked up into his eyes for the first time. "Could you tell me where to find a market and... um... maybe a shop where I could buy some new clothes?" The fact that she was also looking for a place to stay or at least spend the night, she deliberately left out for now.
Her words were already embarrassing enough, making her drop her gaze shortly after, her cheeks burning.
At least you've got some money so you can't be that poor... you're just homeless, she thought in an attempt to make her feel a tad better.

OOC: I don't know, shall we change the posting order slightly? So like, after Misoka -> Bokuden and then Jishin and Nagare? Because there are basically two "groups" at the moment xD

[OOC: Alright, I guess that makes sense. So from this point on it will go Jishin>Nagare>Misoka>Bokuden. That cool with everyone?]

As Bokuden introduced himself to the woman he noticed Nagare depart from the corner of his eye. "Maybe he went to go check on Horui?" Bokuden thought to himself. Nagare's absence was short lived as he returned moments after he had walked away, supporting Horui as they returned. Horui appeared ill, whichich Bokuden surmised was from the street vendor food he had eaten just before. "I guess he has a weak stomach," Bokuden mused to himself before turning his gaze back to the mystery woman.

The woman hesitantly accepted Bokuden's outstretched hand and introduced herself in return. It was nice to have a name, but Bokuden was still a bit disappointed that Misoka was still avoiding eye contact. He had hoped that his words would have helped her come out of her shell a little bit, but he had no such luck. His worries would be dispelled, at least momentarily, as she finally raised her head to meet his gaze and speaking of her own accord. She was looking for the market district, she said she needed to buy new clothes. Bokuden hadn't really noticed how worn her clothes appeared until she mentioned it. By the look of things she had traveled quite a distance to get here and it obviously wasn't for the tournament.

"I'd be more than happy to show you to the shopping district, Bokuden answered. His response was briefly interrupted by a loud grumbling which seemed to be coming from her stomach. "But by the sound of things there seem to be more pressing issues. Bokuden said jokingly, pointing down at her stomach while he spoke. "Satomi and I were actually just about to go and get lunch before we ran into our friends, you all should join us. We were on my way to one of my favorite restaurants in town, and it won't kill your stomach like that gyouza you ate earlier Horui. Come on, follow me it's not far from here. Bokuden used his hand to motion to Jishin, Nagare, and Horui to follow him as he took a few steps forward. He then stopped and turned back to Misoka and offered her his hand again, motioning his head as if to say "This way".

((OOC: Sounds fine.))

As the two began to approach Nagare felt it best to go off an find his twin, leaving Jishin to stand about and watch as Bokuden spoke to the vagrant, " Yeah, I suppose I'll stand here and look antisocial." she had little interest in speaking with the lass, really she hadn't wished to speak with Bokuden either, but it seemed the day was forcing her into social situations. For the most part she couldn't hear what the two, Bokuden and the vagrant, were talking about as there were far too many people chattering out and about due to the festival, and it seemed for the moment she was still unnoticed by the two. The thought of bailing on the group came to her mind, alas Nagare returned with Horui before she could. She promptly looked over to the sickly Horui chiding him, "Never eat festival food, vendors never wash their hands, along with the fact that the food's usually prepared improperly.", hopefully he'd learn to avoid the stuff from that point on.

Jishin did manage to catch Bokuden inviting the group to lunch, being rather hungry and wishing to avoid Horui's situation, she begrudgingly accepted his invitation following as the grouped moved away from the crowd. Still she wasn't exactly thrilled to be out and about with a vagrant, the woman had not-so-surprisingly little sympathy for the misfortunes of others, hopefully she wouldn't be the type to wail about her misfortunes.

Jishin chastised Horui as the two came back, telling him to stay away from festival food. He thought about it for a moment, and decided that it wasn't worth it; he heeded her advice and avoided any more food from the festival. Horui's unsettled stomach pained as Bokuden proposed that they all go to lunch together. Nagare found himself famished, having not eaten in a while, and Jishin accepted, so he found all the more reason to accept the suggestion, too. "Yeah, I'll come too." Horui nodded, implying that he would come as well, but he knew he would have neither the appetite nor the ability to eat anything else after the not-so-safe meal he had just polished off.

Nagare and Horui began following Bokuden, Satomi and the foreign girl toward their next destination. Upon closer examination, Nagare found the girl was quite anxious, avoiding eye contact and acting very antsy. It was still beautiful, in a way; not to his tastes, as he preferred stronger partners in relationships, but beautiful nonetheless. It couldn't hurt if they made her feel welcome, seeing as she was a bit like a lost duckling in a new place. The worst it would do was give them a sense of satisfaction from helping another being, which wasn't bad in the least.

Lunch? Restaurant? She should join them? And who was Satomi?
Completely taken aback for a moment, Misoka could only open and close her mouth in surprise, not capable of saying anything yet. Plenty of different thoughts raced through her mind, most of them questioning the trustworthiness of the man. They didn't know each other, she, in fact, looked like a vagrant and still, he had just offered her to go eat lunch with him?

Before Misoka had the chance to reply anything at all, Bokuden already walked on, straight to the two people she'd spotted before.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could also see Bokuden reach out his hand, but she pretended not to notice. Holding hands with a stranger? It seemed wrong to her, especially because it was usually viewed as romantic gesture in Japan. Her cheeks flashed red for a second. After all, they weren't romantically involved or anything...

"This is most kind of you. Thank you very much for having me," she said politely - not really necessary since she was already following him anyway. Seems like I accepted the invitation.
Hopefully, it had been the right thing to do.
And then a warm surge of gratitude filled her heart. The more she thought about it, the more she actually looked forward to a nice conversation with other people. The last two months, she had lacked company anyway.

They stopped in front of Bokuden's friends, one of them a tall, very well-toned young woman, the other a lean young man with glasses. And wait, there was a third person next to them... someone who looked exactly the same as the other boy. Misoka blinked. Twins? Still, there was something off with the third guy... he seemed transparent if she could say so.

Misoka quickly averted her gaze, bowing her head once more to all three of them.
"I am very pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Misoka. I hope I won't be a bother."
Her voice was still soft and part of her anxiousness returned. Being in a new place always seemed to make her nervous. She didn't want to expect too much of their meeting - of course, it would be great if she could find some friends while she was here.

While they were following Bokuden again to the restaurant, Misoka sneaked a glance at the woman. She was pretty and held great posture, at the same time giving off a rather sinister vibe like nothing could touch her. Somehow Misoka felt reminded of Gin-sama, Suna's Kazekage and her former sensei. She had always admired her inner and outer strength.

"So.. um, may I ask: What are your names?" Misoka smiled, still a bit hesitantly, but she felt her nervousness beginning to fade. Her gaze wandered across the three people before lingering on the woman for a moment. "Are you Satomi? Bokuden was mentioning that name.." She looked to Bokuden as if for reassurement.

Very exciting conversation you're making so far, the girl sarcastically thought to herself. But for now, she couldn't think of anything else to say.

In response to Bokuden offering her his hand to lead her to the restaurant, Misoka averted her eyes as if to pretend she didn't notice him. The faint blush that overcame her face signaled that she was uncomfortable with the idea of holding his hand, perhaps because of the romantic connotation that it carried traditionally. Bokuden never really thought much of the opinions of the general population, he mostly believed the to be beneath him anyway, so the thought of what the action of taking his hand might imply never really crossed his mind until he saw her blush. It seemed a trivial thing to him, but if she was uncomfortable with it then he would respect her wishes and withdrew his hand.

As they began to proceed towards the restaurant Misoka thanked Bokuden for inviting her, maintaining her very formal tone. "I guess she still hasn't warmed up to us yet," Bokuden thought to himself. If he were to be honest, Bokuden was a bit disappointed with Misoka's formality. He didn't fault her for being formal and most people would probably think him crazy for wishing a person was less respectful towards them, but he had spent his whole life being treated as a sir. The reason, well... part of the reason he kept his surname a secret was to get away from all of the political correctness and hand greasing involved in his family's affairs. He replied to her thanks with a silent smile and a nod of approval.

Misoka then turned to the rest of the party and introduced herself, again bowing and being very formal. Part of Bokuden was glad that it wasn't just him. As they continued walking Misoka seemed to muster the courage to ask the rest of the group their names, including asking Jishin if she was Satomi. Bokuden couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle at the thought, but did decide to clarify the situation. "The woman you are speaking to's name is Jishin, Misoka. Satomi is walking right beside you." Bokuden said with a slight chuckle and pointed down to his feet.

"I'm Satomi," His wolf companion explained, "Pleasure, I'm sure."

Jishin couldn't help but sneer as Bokuden offered his hand to the vagrant, of course the woman responded via turning him down, which anyone in their right mind would have. It was a silly move on his part. It almost seemed as if he didn't realize the implications of an action, one that typically implied the two were courting each other. A minor faux pas on his part, but one none the less.

Soon after the vagrant was introducing herself with a bow, stating her name as 'Misoka', a good a name as any. Jishin didn't return the bow, nor did she return an introduction; instead, she stared with pursed lips, scrutinizing her behavior. The vagrant, Misoka, was obviously uncomfortable with the situation, signs of insecurity peaking through her meek and overtly pedantic diction. As of that point she wasn't exactly impressed with the young lass, not that many people impressed her.

As the group continued on their way, she began to wonder where the would-be vagabond in their group was from, and what brought them to the land of lightning. She didn't seem to be too terribly threatening, but that was the mark of a brilliant Shinobi, to be able to disguise their power and intentions; however, in this case it seemed that whatever intentions she had were benign. In fact, she couldn't really say if she was a Shinobi or not.

Misoka then proceeded to ask each of the members of the group their names, her gaze tarried upon Jishin as she asked if she were Satomi, Bokuden's animal companion. Before Bokuden could introduce Jishin, she immediately and poignantly replied with, "No." her vision fixated upon the woman, azure eyes staring at her.

It seemed that Bokuden had neglected adding in her surname, though when she thought about it she had never given it to the man. "Dākuchairudo, Jishin." Speaking her name with particular emphasis upon her clan name, as if it were to hold weight, as if the vagrant was to know what the name meant. Outside of Kumogakure the clan was fairly unknown, most of the stories of their tendencies had fallen to the ages, still there were a few who remembered the tales. "Your surname?" An authoritative tone was held through her question, almost as if the question were more of a demand.

There was a thick tension in the air surrounding everyone. Horui didn't notice at all, seeing as he had a whole string of nausea-related distractions, but Nagare felt very awkward. The girl asked for their names kindly, but still in a shy and anxious tone. She thought that Satomi was Jishin. Bokuden went on to correct her, but Jishin cut in first, replying with a simple "Dākuchairudo, Jishin. Your surname?" Nagare giggled a bit, but shut himself up immediately.

Bokuden continued, explaining that Satomi was the little wolf who seemed to go unnoticed by the girl. Satomi didn't look very pleased with the situation, either. So, two women against the vagrant, one man who was being nice to her, and Nagare and Horui were neutral in the matter. Seemed interesting enough. Nagare realized he had been thinking to himself for a few seconds, then, and looked up into the girl's pearl blue eyes. "I'm Sōseiji Nagare." he said politely, then turned his attention back to the sickly Horui who clung to his shoulder tightly. He was breaking out in a cold sweat due to his nausea, and it was a sad sight.

Misoka inevitably got the feeling that she must have done something wrong, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Maybe the words she'd spoken? But all she did was ask for their names... Still, the cold glare the woman gave her left no doubts about her hostility. "No," came the simple answer to Misoka's question and she felt taken aback for a moment. Oh yeah, she got the message - The woman was not quite pleased to talk to her.
The clothes, Misoka thought to herself. This must be it. Surely, not everyone was as tolerant as Bokuden.
Said person turned to her and shook his head slightly,"The woman you are speaking to's name is Jishin, Misoka. Satomi is walking right beside you." He let out a quiet chuckle when Misoka's gaze automatically went to the white wolf.
"So you're Satomi! I'm sorry..." She felt a bit embarrassed, but then her lips curled into a slightly amused smile. Memo to myself: Never play games of luck. A 50% chance and you get it wrong. "That was a bad guess, I suppose."

Jishin cut in once more, still as impolitely as before.
"Dākuchairudo, Jishin." Misoka didn't miss the proud tone in her voice. She searched her memory for the specific surname... she couldn't shake the feeling that she heard it from somewhere before. Dākuchairudo... And then it hit her. When she was eight years old, there was this man who came to Suna and warned several people of the Dākuchairudo clan. "They eat one's heart." Misoka shuddered at the memory of his words. She wasn't sure whether he had meant it literally or not. Perhaps his friend had just been rejected by a Dākuchairudo, therefore she'd 'broken' his heart.

Misoka kept her gaze on Jishin as though she could find the answer just by staring at her. It was impolite and she was well aware of that, but on the other hand, Jishin didn't seem to care much about politeness anyway.
"Your surname?"
The sudden question took Misoka by surprise. She hesitated, only for a second, though, before replying in a calm tone,"It's Karisuma."
It was no use trying to hide her surname from them; this would make her even more suspicious. Perhaps no-one of them had heard of her clan anyway as it had lost a lot of its popularity. Some only knew about the nice bachelorettes you could have in exchange for money. Female Karisuma shinobis had been reduced to the minority.

The boy beside Jishin was next to introduce himself. He seemed neutral to her, which was definitely better than Jishin condescending to her and the wolf being a bit offended.
Misoka nodded to Nagare with the hint of a smile. Beside him was his twin, not looking too well. She thought of saying something to him, but then feared to offend him by doing so. He didn't seem to want to talk to anyone right now.

So she decided something else: Over the short time she'd spent with the group, she realized that politeness wouldn't get her anywhere. It only kept her at a social distance and while she couldn't deny that she still needed some time to warm up to them, she chose to take the first step into that direction. Dropping the suffixes and behaving more like her real self.

However, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to dissolve the tension in the air anymore. Jishin had only thrown a glance at her and obviously decided to dislike her. And well, the woman seemed to be very influential... Hopefully, she wouldn't incite the others to turn on her, too.
Misoka looked to her feet, suppressing a sigh. Mabye my communication skills have become stunted in the two months of keeping silent.
How did you make people like you?

"So.. um.. to which restaurant are we going actually?" Misoka's gaze went up again, a wide smile across her face. Screw all that worrying and formality, she was keen on being more herself now. It couldn't get any worse, right?
"I'm starving!" She let out a quiet laugh which soon turned into a cough. Granted, she was still a bit nervous around them for letting something like that slip.
Way to rub it in their faces that she was a starved vagrant! Well done!
She tried to keep a fake smile on her lips, but it looked more like a grimace.
Oh, please let them be at the restaurant soon...

"Sorry, I should have mentioned a bit sooner that my partner is a talking wolf," Bokuden laughed while placing his right hand on the back of his neck, "It probably wasn't fair to expect you to know that. Jishin, however was far less kind in her exchange with Misoka. Bokuden wasn't all that surprised, given that it took their entire first meeting just for her to introduce herself to Bokuden. If she was already introducing herself, even if it was rudely, it had to be a better starting point than Bokuden and Jishin's first meeting, right?

Misoka seemed to hesitate upon hearing Jishin's surname. The name definitely was known in Kumogakure, but he was curious as to how much an outsider knew about the clan. Hell, the clan was largely misunderstood even within their own village. Most of what was circulated about them now were horror stories and rumors based more off fear than fact. Misoka could of course not have any idea who the Dakuchuraido were, Bokuden imagined most would pause after hearing Jishin's harsh tone. Jishin then demanded Misoka's surname, it was phrased as a question, but the intent was clear. Bokuden had no intention of asking her to divulge that information so soon, after all he had no intention of revealing his surname himself. "It's Karisuma," Misoka replied calmly.

"Karisuma, huh? So then the headband I saw earlier was a Sunagakure shinobi forhead protector after all," Bokuden deduced in his head, "She's a ways away from the desert."

After all of the introductions were out of the way, Misoka finally appeared ready to initiate conversation for a change."So.. um.. to which restaurant are we going actually?I'm starving!" The embarrassed and uncomfortable look on her face right after she said that seemed to imply that she regretted speaking so freely.

Not wanting to leave Misoka to endure a possible awkward duration of silence after she had finally started to tone down the formality, Bokuden answered immediately. "So am I," Bokuden answered, directing an approving smile in Misoka's direction, It's a kaiseki place I frequent, it's actually right around the corner. Bokuden continued to lead the group to the restaurant. A few steps into the walk he turned his head to Misoka and stated in a low voice, "Don't worry too much about Jishin. She can be a bit rough, but as far as I know she is a good person. At least you're doing better than I was when we first met, she didn't tell me her name until hours into our first meeting. Bokuden smiled and hoped that his words could provide Misoka some modicum of comfort. He had not known her long, but Jishin didn't seem like the kind of person who was interested in people liking her.

As they approached the restaurant, Bokuden pointed out the building they would be entering. The outside of the building was largely unassuming and to the uninitiated most likely looked like nothing special. As they approached the door Bokuden got out in front a bit in order to hold the door for his party and allow them to enter before him. Satomi waited until the rest of the group had entered the building before walking towards the door herself.

"Bokuden," Satomi said in an alert tone.

"I know," Bokuden replied, the smile now gone from his face, leaving behind only a pair of frigid and emotionless blue eyes, I noticed him a while ago. I'll take care of it. Satomi then entered the establishment with Bokuden following closely behind.

Despite the mundane outside appearance of the restaurant, the interior was very well decorated and much more spacious than one would have thought upon seeing the outside. The restaurant itself probably seemed more like a lounge. There was music playing. The speakers were mostly placed near the bar and dance floor as to not disturb the dining area from where the music was loud enough to be audible, but not to drown out conversation. The lighting was slightly dim, with individual lighting fixtures brightening up each individual table, seating area, and the bar, but no large overhanging light fixture to illuminate the entire floor. The crowd was mostly young, the majority of them being in their late teens to mid twenties. The entire place gave off a very trendy, modern vibe rather than the more traditional milieu of a high-end Kaiseki restaurant. The layout was rectangular and the tables were located on an elevated level that overlooked the large square dance floor in the center of establishment. There was a bar located on the dance floor level as well. The center was mostly empty at this time of day as the music was kept at a lower volume until night time where the place became less restaurant and more lounge.

Bokuden was on a first name basis with pretty much the entire staff and most of the regulars of the restaurant and did not need to instruct the hostess as to where they would like to sit. There was always a table reserved for Bokuden on days that he made it known he would be stopping in. His preferred table was a semi-circular booth located towards the back end of the restaurant in a nook in the wall. From the table the entrance of the building was clearly visible, because Bokuden always preferred to be able to watch the door whenever he was eating. There was an adjustable light fixture hanging above the table providing more or less lighting depending on the patron's desire and a curtain that could be pulled back to cover the section for added privacy, a feature Bokuden did not use often, most likely because of his own paranoia and almost compulsive need to "watch over his own shoulder". Bokuden always preferred to sit in the center of the booth, but insisted that the rest of the group choose their seats before he would take his own.

Karisuma? She racked her brain thinking what she knew of the clan as the two engaged in a sort of stare off, aside from the fact that they were based out of Sunagakure, and that they had some Doujutsu or other, nothing really came to mind. Once again she boisterously looked over the seemingly itinerant Misoka, obviously she wasn't just some odd drifter; she was a Kunoichi, and one far from home. Her immediate thought was that Misoka was a deserter, but seeing as that she had little actual evidence of this Jishin decided not to accuse her of such a thing, well at least not yet. "Sunagakure no Sato is quite the ways from here." Her proclamation was actually nearly as bad accusing her in the first place, the inflection in her voice echoing an obvious distrust of the derelict, Misoka.

She smirked as Misoka proclaimed she was starving, of course Jishin couldn't help but chime in a bit, "I would imagine so, you look rather emaciated." the smirk removed itself from her face, obviously her statement was more of a blatant insult, rather than a backhanded observation. If her distaste hadn't been made evident by that point, it had certainly been solidified in her statement.

Really, she didn't know why she felt such a distaste for the woman, or other people for that matter. Her attitude obviously hindered her from making friends, yet she persisted with blatant insults. She was trapped within her own antisocial proclivities, though in truth they didn't really bother her all that much, if the girl could withstand her barrage of general disdain there was a fair chance that they would manage to get along, or perhaps become friends, well in a sense of the word. Trouble was, most people couldn't.

Jishin's eyes lingered upon the vagrant, watching closely as Bokuden began to speak to her; unfortunately, she didn't catch much of the conversation with the exception of her name being uttered. No doubt they were talking about Jishin's demeanor, Bokuden probably attempting to assuage the drifter. Jishin looked over toward Nagare rolling her eyes, wondering if he had caught any of what they had said. She assumed Bokuden had said something along the lines of: "Don't worry about her, she's just an ass.", though it was probably worded a bit more eloquently than that.

Soon after the group arrived at the restaurant, the exterior of which was rather lackluster. Bokuden held the door for the rest of the group, Jishin was of course the first to make her way inside without so much as a 'thank you' for the kind gesture. There seemed to be music playing from the bar and dancing area, and a rather fair amount of people were seated about the restaurant. As far as the decorum went, she felt it to be conspicuously modern, avant-garde, the whole place was a bit too trendy for her tastes.

Bokuden lead the way to their table, gesturing for the others to choose their seats before he chose his. Jishin stood off to the side, she personally preferred to sit toward the end of the booth, as to not be surrounded by others. She took a few brief moments to look about the area once again, it seemed that there were a good bit more people than first seen, leaving her with a feeling of mild unease. She could never really get comfortable in the presence of so many people, there always seemed to be a feeling that someone was covertly staring at her, that people were commenting about her clan. In most cases her assumptions were fairly correct, but it seemed on this particular one that no one had noticed her hazy-yellow sclera, or the faint smell of iron she exuded, telltale signs of the Dākuchairudo.

"Looks like they get a fair amount of business." Vocalizing her observation, hopefully it was the food that brought the people there, not the trendy decor.

Nagare entered the building behind the others with the burden of holding Horui up. He took the first seat on the right side of the table and placed Horui in the seat adjacent to him. Boku said something about Sunagakure and commented on the girl's clan. Karisuma? Nagare had never heard of them, and honestly had no interest unless they had an extremely rare or powerful kekkei genkai or maybe kekkei tota. He helped prop Horui up in his seat, since the poor guy looked like he was dozing off.

"So, Misoka. What brings you to Kumogakure all the way from Sunagakure? Must've been something important." he said this with genuine interest, inclining him to be nicer. Hey, it couldn't hurt; being nice could only help him build relationships, which he needed more of. He wasn't the most social person but he was trying to be.

Horui, half dazed and now exhausted, still wondered about the food in this restaurant that Bokuden liked so much. It had to have been decent if he liked it that much, and Horui couldn't help but be hungry after his body rejected just about all of the food from the last week. It wasn't the wisest idea with his stomach in its current condition, but it was well worth it, in Horui's terms, due to his love of food in general. He couldn't pass up an opportunity for a good meal with friends. His stomach gurgled painfully as his thought process grinded.

It didn't surprise her that Jishin wasn't missing a chance to humiliate her. With a sly smile, the taller woman commented on Misoka's frailness, that smirk shortly after turning into the grim expression she usually wore. Just what am I doing wrong? Misoka wondered, clearly disappointed.
They walked on for a bit when Bokuden suddenly turned around to her, an encouraging smile on his lips. He then told her in a low voice about how he and Jishin had first met and how she hadn't been the nicest to him, either.
And somehow his words really helped cheering her up. So this is just her way of talking to others!
"Thank you," Misoka said honestly and smiled. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see Jishin glaring at them, but after Bokuden's encouragement it didn't affect her as much anymore.

----
The restaurant was .. breathtaking. At first, Misoka could only stare in awe at the beautiful interior decoration - there was even music playing, a dance floor and a bar! Still amazed, she followed the others to a semi-circular booth where Bokuden waited for them to sit down. Jishin was the first to take her seat (toward the end of the booth) and let her gaze wander. 
"Looks like they get a fair amount of business."

Misoka sat down next to Nagare's twin, throwing a side-glance at him. He still seemed to be sick or something and she realized he had been silent all the way to the restaurant.
Then she heard Nagare raise a question.

The girl flinched. "Oh, um..." This was unexpected. And then again, not so much... of course they would be curious what had made her travel all this way to Kumo. But what should she say? The truth? A half-truth? Avoid the question? Totally at a loss for words - while she was racking her brain for the best answer she could give - Misoka started fidgeting with her long sleeves. An absolutely unnecessary thought crossed her mind: Jishin would certainly throw in some nasty comment about her strange behaviour.

"You see...," Misoka gave it a try. "I'm having some trouble with my clan so I had to leave Suna." Her eyes darted between the people she had just met, not daring to look at any of them for too long. Realizing what her words could suggest, she quickly shook her head, blurting out,"I got permission from the Kazekage! I'm not a missing nin!" The same thing she had told her cousin back in Konoha. I'm not a missing nin. She always held on to that thought, that fact - She hated betrayers and she never ever wanted to be one of them - abandoning your own hometown! No, she had enough dignity in her not to do that.
Someday, she would come back. See her father and friends again. Someday...

Misoka was quick to shake off the gloomy expression on her face and gave them a half-smile.
"Don't worry, it's nothing serious." There were two things which seemed wrong about her statement. First, why would they worry about someone they had only recently met? Come on, Nagare's question was probably raised out of politeness or to make him look a bit more interested.
And second, it was definitely not 'nothing serious'. This issue, however, she had to solve herself.

"By the way, is there going to be some kind of festival in Kumogakure?" It was probably the best way to change the topic. After all, everyone was proud of their village's special events, may it be a tournament or just some funny festival.
Misoka looked from one face to the other; once again she was afraid some of them might see through her facade if he or she only met her gaze for a bit longer.
She hoped they would gladly accept the new topic and explain to her what that sword-fighting was about.

As the rest of the group took their seats Bokuden took his own at the end of the booth. He was seated next to Misoka and opposite of Jishin, who herself was seated next to Nagare. Horui was seated dead in the center of the table while Satomi jumped into a high chair that had been brought out and placed at the head of the table opposite of Horui. Bokuden carefully leaned his katana against the side of the table where Satomi was seated and turned his attention to the rest of the group who had begun conversing. Nagare had asked Misoka what had brought her to Kumogakure, a fair question and one that obviously brought up some strong emotions in Misoka judging from her reaction. The inquiry obviously made her uncomfortable as she began to fidget with her sleeves and darting her eyes between the group, unwilling to maintain eye contact. To her credit she mustered up the courage to surrender some information about her situation. She said she was having trouble with her clan, a sentiment that Bokuden more probably anyone else in the group could understand.

A waitress came around to the table and began pouring water around the table as Misoka continued her explanation. Immediately after claiming that she had to depart from Sunagakure, Misoka frantically shook her head and exclaimed that she was not a missing nin. She also claimed it was nothing serious, which was obviously untrue. Minor issues don't force you to flee your village, but she made an attempt to change the subject by bringing up the festival, so Bokuden thought it best not to pry any further. He was not particularly inclined to interrogate Misoka and was even less so as he was preparing to enjoy his meal, but he could not assume Jishin and Nagare would share the same sentiment. Even more so he understood the sentiment of having issues with one's clan. As he took a drink from the glass he held in his right hand Bokuden took on a more serious tone than he had shown up to this point. What is between Misoka and her clan is her own business and we should respect that. No more shinobi talk at my table. While we are here, what we are outside of those doors means nothing to me. What we are in here is a group of friends enjoying a meal. Nothing more, nothing less.

Upon finishing his last sentence the smile returned to Bokuden's face along with the more personable tone he had been using previously. Now, about the festival we are having, Bokuden said as he turned to face Misoka with the a faint smile, "It's-". Bokuden was interrupted by a dagger flying and sticking point down into the table right in front of him. Out of instinct Bokuden immediately turned his head to look in the direction from which the dagger came and saw the silhouette of a man scurry out of the door. As he looked back to the table in order to make sure no one was injured Bokuden realized that he had accidentally shattered the glass he was holding with his grip. Tucked right beneath the dagger on the table was a slip of paper that simply showed the kanji mark that read "challenge". Bokuden immediately snatched away the dagger and paper hoping none of the had gotten a good look at what was written on the slip. Bokuden then stood up from the table and grabbed his katana. There's something I have to take care of. I'll be right back. The tone in his voice and look in his eye were now distinctly colder than anyone in the group had ever seen them before. As he gripped his sword tightly in his left hand he took one step towards the door before turning back to the table. Stay here.

After a few moments of movement the group had found itself situated at the table, Jishin chuckled a bit as Satomi had been propped up in a highchair, the wolf was absolutely adorable. Her laugh was interrupted as Nagare asked a pivotal question, why the woman had left her home, immediately she stifled her laugh looking toward Misoka, waiting for her response. As expected the vagrant fumbled with her wording for a few seconds, much to the aggravation of Jishin. She allowed a short sigh to escape her lips as Misoka fumbled about, tripping over her own words whenever possible.

Of course she eventually managed to explain, albeit vaguely, why she had left her village, claiming that she was having issues with her clan, and afterward stating that they were nothing serious, which was clearly a blatant lie. Someone didn't remove themselves from their home for nothing serious. Jishin began to open her mouth, to call the vagrant on her blatant lie, but to be silenced by Bokuden who tired of Shinobi-ly conversation. Taking a sip of the water which had just been given out, she decided that it didn't particularly matter why she was there, she stated that she had permission from her Kage to leave, so what difference did it make? She wasn't doing anything illegal. "Well, not like it's any of my business anyway." Shrugging her shoulders, she once again took a sip of her water.

Suddenly the conversational flow was distorted when a dagger flew toward the table, Jishin's eyes immediately darted to where the blade had been thrown from, wondering what the Hell had just happened. Unfortunately, it seemed she hadn't been quick enough to spot the assailant, only finding their shadow. Still slightly confused by the situation her vision returned to the others, scanning over their reactions, and noticing Bokuden had crushed his glass, pieces of glass littered the table, adding to her wonder, his reaction was a tad bit abnormal. Before she had a chance to get a better look at his hand, as to check for injuries from the glass, he grabbed the dagger from the table and promptly stood, proclaiming he had to go do something, and that the group should stay put.

The situation became a bit clearer as he spoke, clearly the dagger was meant for him, and now he was going to deal with whoever threw it. "Go get 'em, killer." She had little intention of following the man to see what he was up to, or what the Hell had just happened, obviously the whole situation was directed at him, she was just a bystander. Best to keep it like that. Taking another sip of her water she attempted to gauge how the others felt about this occurrence, assuming that they would be gung-ho about following Bokuden and investigating what was going on. -- If that were the case, she would be perfectly fine holding down the table.

Between all of the idle talk that Nagare listened to as it droned on, a dagger found its way to their table, planting a spot in the direct middle. Good aim, Nagare thought to himself. His eyes fluttered to the general direction the dagger flew in from, and the suspected thrower, a nervous looking man, scurried away from the doorway ahead. Nagare blinked, turned to sickly Horui (who had fallen into a slumber), then turned to Jishin, whose blue eyes shimmered with nonchalant bliss. Misoka still had an awkward expression on her face, and Bokuden immediately pounced out of his seat, running after the man and leaving a pile of broken glass from the one he had just smashed with his hand from rage.

Nagare, now left in peace and quiet, gauged his options. Nobody else seemed to be too eager to follow Bokuden, and he figured that Bokuden was the type who could handle himself well in battle. Jishin calmly called out after the sprinting Genin, "Go get 'em, killer." in a satirical tone. Nagare laughed for a moment, just from the simple sarcasm in her voice, before really considering going after Bokuden, just to make sure he was okay.

Nagare took a step out from his chair, standing tall over the rest of the seated patrons, who seemed completely oblivious to the attack on their table. He stopped before making the next step, realizing he could just wait to see if it was serious. He would only go if Bokuden needed back-up, and with that settled, he sat back down, scanning his menu casually as he commented "Eh, Boku should be fine. He's got a sword and stuff." He was starving at this point, hopefully the waiters at this restaurant didn't take long...and hopefully they didn't mind the broken glass either. He wasn't paying for that crap, as far as he was concerned. Without further notice, he activated his heat mapping technique to follow Bokuden's and the mysterious man's heat signatures.

---

Nagare's Chakra - 110/125:

The flying dagger startled Misoka. Instinctively, she reached to one of her kunais and followed Bokuden's gaze, spotting a man hurrying out of the restaurant.
It was only then that Misoka also noticed the shattered glass. The next moment, Bokuden had already stood up and excused himself. He obviously wanted to teach the dagger-thrower a lesson. Still, the whole situation seemed strange. Without a doubt, that dagger was meant for Bokuden, not to hit him, though, but to deliver a message. There had been a piece of paper attached to it, but Misoka hadn't gotten the chance to throw a glance at it.

With Bokuden gone now, the awkward tension in the air thickened. Part of her felt tempted to follow Bokuden: One, to see what was going on and two, to escape any more embarrassing conversations with the rest of the group. Apart from that, she definitely wanted to thank him later. Because of his words, no-one chose to pry any further and Jishin left her alone, at least for the most part.
Misoka felt it was fairly easy to warm up to Bokuden. He seemed to understand her and tried his best to make her more comfortable around them.

Granted, Nagare was nice, but at the same time, she got the impression that he wasn't at all keen on making any new friends. He resembled Jishin in a way: Both of them were more the serious types and liked to keep to themselves, judging from their behaviour so far. Or even more so, there was something else going on between them... The way Nagare paid extra attention to everything Jishin was saying and seemingly approved of it had Misoka wondering.

Then Nagare stood up, well before sitting down again. "Eh, Boku should be fine. He's got a sword and stuff."
Misoka nodded. "Yeah." The silence that followed her short reply felt heavy on her shoulders. Two words repeated themselves in her mind: Say something! Say something! Anything to break this awkward silence!
I'm sure they don't like me... Okay, this thought didn't exactly help her.
At that moment, she caught Nagare scanning the menu card. Hoping they wouldn't roll their eyes at her words, she suggested hesitantly,"Let's order then, shall we?" 

Once more, her gaze went into the direction Bokuden left. Why would someone throw a dagger at him? And what had been written on that note?
She looked back to the others, a slight smile on her lips, and then quickly turned her attention to the menu. This would give her something to do.

As he walked away from the table Bokuden was relieved to see that none of the other members of the group were following him out of the door. "I can't let anyone else get involved in this. Family business after all," Bokuden said to himself as he walked away examining the note that he had snatched off of the table. Even Satomi stayed behind at the table, Bokuden having given her explicit orders not to get involved during the week of the tournament. Upon stepping out of the door Bokuden was immediately greeted by the sight of a tall man, considerably taller than even Bokuden, standing just a few meters away. 


Leaning up against the fountain located in the plaza outside of the restaurant with his arms folded the man called out to Bokuden, "So you're the one I was told about, huh? The Ryuzoji brat. I have some business with you." The man's deep raspy voice seemed to scrape against the air as it traveled. A closer examination of the man was more than enough to deduce the intentions of this stranger. By Bokuden's estimation he stood at about six feet six inches tall and his muscular body was riddled with scars, most of which seemed to be blade wounds, everywhere visible from his forearms to his bald head. On his back he carried 5 swords of varying shapes and lengths which were sloppily arranged in some sort of makeshift weapons rack made with leather straps. This man was obviously a swordsman.


Bokuden knew full well what "business" the man had with him, but decided to play along with his little game anyway. Bokuden gripped the handle of his katana and inquired, "And what business would that be?" His raised eyebrow and emotionless stare told far more than his words could, as did his reaching for his sword. Both parties here knew exactly what this was. "If it's about the tournament, I don't compete in preliminary rounds. A designated arena can be found at the entrance to the village among about a dozen other places." 


The man grinned as he reached onto his belt removing a sack of ryo and tossing it to a man standing off to his right. It was the same man who had been following Bokuden since the village gate and the same one who threw the dagger. The man had a scarf covering the bottom portion of his face, but a glance was enough for Bokuden to recognize who it was. "Looks like your information was good. Here's the payment we agreed upon," The large man said as the masked man scurried off. Bokuden could have easily taken down the fleeing man with some shuriken, but decided against it. If that was who Bokuden thought it was then he would be dead soon anyway. "You shouldn't take your eyes off of your enemy kid," The man said as Bokuden glared back in his direction to make sure he was not planning a surprise attack. Although the man had not moved, a second man leaped from out of the fountain with some gauntlet looking device on his arm that launched a volley of kunai at Bokuden as the man pulled a string. Bokuden swiftly drew his sword and twirled it rapidly to create in improvised shield which deflected the incoming projectiles. "Not bad," The man said applauding Bokuden's swordsmanship, "It looks like what I've heard about the Ryuzoji wasn't just talk after all. But... we're just getting started."


Suddenly a man wielding a chained kama leaped down from the roof of the building behind Bokuden attempting a downward slash. Bokuden sensed his presence the moment he entered Bokuden's sensory zone and easily side stepped the attack. His rest was short lived however, as the bald man had charged forward at Bokuden preparing a diagnal swing with the largest sword from his back. Bokuden used his own sword to block the strike, but was still sent sliding back several feet from the weight of the greatsword. "So this is how it's going to be, is it?" Bokuden said to himself in a low voice before preparing himself for the next move.


Back in the restaurant Satomi was staring down at the table anxiously, not saying a word the whole time. As people began noticing the fight going on just outside the restaurant a crowd began to flood outside and less courageous customers observed from the windows. As the crowds performed their social recon on the fight they had almost began narrating it. "What's going on? That Ryuzoji boy was challenged to a fight for the kenjutsu tournament. What? There was a Ryuzoji here? Why didn't anyone tell me? Defeating one of them guarantees you a spot in the next round of fighting. Three versus one? That hardly seems fair. They aren't even using kenjutsu, they should be disqualified. Isn't this against the rules or something? The rules change against a member of the main family. Defeating one of them guarantees you a spot in the finals. Ryuzoji clan members are also forbidden from declining any challenge during the tournament. He should be okay though, right? These tournament matches are referee'd to prevent fatalities. There are no referees nor rules during a challenge with a member of the main branch including those that prohibit killing. For all intents and purposes they are death matches.

Her eyes lingered upon Nagare as he stood, but to immediately sit back down stating that Bokuden could take care of himself, to which she nodded silently. It seemed at that point a bit of a crowd had begun to gather around the windows of the establishment looking out toward a fight, which apparently had just began, Bokuden's. Most seemed to be babbling about how three men had just initiated a battle with a member of the Ryuzoji, battling Bokuden. "He's a Ryuzoji then." She stated nonchalantly, the fact wasn't exactly stunning, nor did she particularly care. "Their clan started this whole festival. They like to prance about with swords fighting morons, claiming that they're defending their honor, or that's how I understand the situation." Bokuden hadn't been able to explain the festival before he went off, in his absence Jishin decided to shed a bit of light on the situation, in her usual caustic manner.

Taking her forearm, Jishin wiped most of the glass and water from the table, pushing it all onto the ground beside the table, she assumed the staff would come and clean it later. "Let's" She replied as Misoka stated that the group should order, quite hungry herself. Taking her menu card in hand, perusing through it.

Nagare pinpointed his order casually with a smile, genuinely excited to try the food. He also found something that Horui would like, too, just in case he awoke from his nauseated slumber. Satomi was sitting straight up in Bokuden's seat, her ears perked up, listening closely to the ramblings that ehoed through the eatery. People had formed a border around the inner rim of the building, all desperately looking iut the window at a skirmish. Nagare, whose Ninjutsu was still active, knew it was Bokuden based on his unique Raiton chakra that left him with a slightly more palpible heat signature. He calmly sipped water from his oddly unbroken glass, while Jishin swept the remnants ofthe not-so-lucky glasses off of the table, leaving it clattering on the floor nearby.

Misoka and Jishin seemed to still be scanning their menus decisively, and Horui was snoring at this point, so Nagare turned in his seat to get a visual of Bokuden's status in the match. The mass of obese and obnoxious people that blocked the windows and entrance left him without a possible way to do so, so he just kept feeling the battle with his chakra. One...two....three combatants, all fighting Boku at once. He seemed to be holding up fine, blocking hits and dealing his own with that katana of his. Based on the whispers from the masses, saying the word fatality like it was a taboo, even if their fight was a part of the Ryouzoji tournament that Bokuden was bound to familially, he still had a chance of dying. Nagare coughed and sipped his water again, still staying back until he was absolutely needed.

Ryuzoji... The name was whispered and called out everywhere. Plenty of people had gathered around the windows of the restaurant, commenting on the fight that was going on outside. When someone stated that it was a death match, Misoka raised her head, trying to get a look through the windows herself. However, there were too many people crowded there and unfortunately, they were not transparent.
Jishin showed no particular interest towards Bokuden's match; she only explained how the Ryuzoji Clan was known for bragging about their sword-fighting skills. Therefore, defeating one of them guaranteed you a spot in the finals.
Both Jishin and Nagare stayed calm so it couldn't be so bad, right? If Bokuden was in any danger, they would surely jump up and come help him straight away. They were friends, after all.
Satomi, however, seemed rather anxious, all the while listening to the people talk.

After some time, Misoka finally chose to ask the question that was hanging on her tongue.
"Will he be okay?"

At the same moment, a waitress came to them. "Are you ready to order?" The smile spread over her face faded when she accidentally stepped on the shards scattered across the floor. "Oh," She exclaimed in a slightly irate tone. "You dropped a glass."

"He'll be fine!" Satomi snapped back at Misoka's question. Satomi paused for a moment as she realized how rude she had been to the girl, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lash out at you. Bokuden is strong, he can take care of himself." Satomi knew her words to be true, but she could not help but shake this nervous feeling. She was Bokuden's battle partner, she just didn't know how to behave while leaving him to fight alone.

Bokuden halted his slide back by slamming his left palm into the ground below him, increasing the resistance and slowing him down until he finally stopped. "Three against one, is it? Their forms are sloppy, but they seem to have some skill wielding their weapons," Bokuden thought to himself as he sheathed his katana, "Best not to let this drag on for longer than it needs to. Sorry everyone, it looks like I have to deny you your show." Bokuden assumed a crouching position on one knee and began weaving a sequence of hand signs. Realizing he was attempting to perform a ninjutsu, Bokuden's assailants charged forward all at once but were too late. Bokuden expelled a large amount of Mist from his mouth, robbing his opponents and all spectator's of their sight. Bokuden then placed his left hand on his sword, using his thumb to push the handle of the blade from its locked position in the sheath, "Now, how do I want to do this?"


Inside the restaurant the crowd of spectators became irate as their view was blocked by Bokuden's mist. "Hey what happened? I can't see!" "Oh, Come on! You've got to be kidding me, the fight just started!" "What's with this fog?"

It seemed that Bokuden's animal companion was a bit uneasy with the whole situation, bellowing that he would be fine in response to Misoka's question. Jishin felt little reason to worry about the situation, chances were that even if he were not "fine" he wouldn't allow interference in the match, she knew she certainly wouldn't allow further interference, pride and all that good stuff. Her focus still rested on the menu, as if the situation warranted little attention, though she did manage to catch a bit of what the crowd was prattling on about, a fog had enveloped the battle field. The show had been cut off, it seemed.

A waitress then approached their table, immediately speaking of the broken glass on the ground in a slightly exasperated tone, clearly displeased that someone had broken a glass, "One of the spectators knocked it over." a boldfaced lie, but she had no intention of paying for Bokuden's broken glass, and lying about it seemed the path of least resistance, though it was a bit out of character for her, she wasn't much of a liar. As far as ordering went, she was more than ready, having no interest in waiting for their comrade to return, "Yes, I suppose I'll be ordering the Chef's special. Well, two orders, starving." an absolute mass of food, two multi-course meals. She'd always had quite the appetite, it went with her metabolism.

Taking a sip of her water, Jishin looked over toward the crowd who still seemed enamored with the battle, sighing lightly. The whole thing was a disgrace, forcing a confrontation in the middle of a crowded area, an obvious cry for attention. -- Though the whole damn tournament was the same, whole situation was shameful. At least someone had enough sense to block it from view with a jutsu.

A waiter approached Nagare with a smile, and asked for his order. Nagare smiled back, and his vermillion eyes flashed in the light as he said, "I'll have the Seafood Donburi, with a side order of Nigiri Hamachi." he handed the menu to her, and looked over to Jishin. The woman had ordered two Chef's specials. What was she thinking? Satomi had just snapped at Misoka about Bokuden's ability to handle himself in a fight, and he remembered that he was outside. Looked like the food had distracted him. He turned in his seat again, and looked through the window (or what he could see of the window, between the obese spectators), and all he could make out was a few swords and some flashes of light. Bokuden must've been fine, so Naga just quit watching, as it was futile anyways. Horui snored a bit, and Nagare sat back in his chair, awkwardly twiddling his thumbs.

Oh... okay then. No more questions about Bokuden or anything concerning him or that fierce battle he was having outside. Right, just order and not worry the least bit - it was none of her concern anyway, was it?
Misoka let her gaze drop, unable to conceal her hurt and slightly irritated look, though. Yeah, sorry for asking, she thought, not fully taking Satomi's apology. Of course, your master is the best of the best, I should've known this from the first sight!
In contrast to her sarcastic thoughts, Misoka was smart enough not to start a useless argument now.
"It's okay." She feigned a smile. "I didn't mean to doubt his skills."
The waitress was taking the orders in the meantime and looked at Misoka questioningly.
The young Karisuma nodded, quickly flipping through the menu card once more. "I'm having one okonomiyaki, please."

After that, the waitress flashed them one last smile and went off to get their dishes.
What now? Misoka didn't quite know what to do or to say so she just took a sip of her water, waiting for Bokuden to return.