“7:50 am. Ten minutes to go,” Bokuden thought to himself as he turned a glance over to the clock on the wall of the café in which he was seated. After the waitress placed his coffee down on the table in front of him Bokuden returned a kind smile her way before informing her that he would need no further assistance at the moment. He inhaled deeply as the aroma of freshly ground coffee beans surged through his olfactory senses, one of his favorite scents. It was just what he needed to wake him up, it was a special day after all. This was his first scheduled meeting with his first assigned squad since he attained the title jounin and joined the ranks of the elite shinobi of Kumogakure. Although he did somewhat dread being out and about this early in the morning Bokuden chose this time for a reason. It was a first test of sorts. Reliability was an essential quality to have if one hoped to ascend through the ranks of the shinobi of Kumogakure into a leadership position and a part of being reliable was being punctual. Although he would likely never ask his squad to assemble this early again he wanted to force them to overcome to unpleasantness of interrupted sleep and show that they are serious about their work as shinobi.

He had briefly glanced at the dossier on each of his students, but did not bother looking at pictures of them or reading in detail. Surprises were more fun anyway. This introduction would be a proper one, not an empty attempt at “going through the motions” as he listened to his squad regurgitate information that he had already read. Bokuden closed his eyes as he took a sip of his coffee, savoring the smooth flavor of the blend. He had chosen this café as their first meeting location as a squad almost exclusively because they made some of the best coffee in the village, the café also being one of his personal favorites. Bokuden did not find the prospect of jumping straight into a combat test to be an appealing one. These were genin, there would be plenty of combat in their futures, there could be no doubt about that. Instead Bokuden wanted to have a casual meeting where he could get a better grasp of each of his students’ personalities and their aptitude for this line of work. Besides, at least a part of him wanted his students to like him, at least for a day. There would be ample opportunity for him to earn their disdain through rigorous training later, but for today he wanted them to meet not as shinobi, but as sensei and pupils.

He had seated himself at the table near the furthermost wall of the café, allowing him to see everyone as they entered the café. The table was relatively small and square with one chair on each side. Bokuden chose the seat with its back facing the wall, purely out of habit, leaving three seats open for his three students, one directly across the table and one at each of his sides. Bokuden sat patiently with his sword leaned carefully against the table and awaited the arrival of his students as he sipped his coffee.

Miho was up all night gazing at the weapon her father was fighting with. She left it the same like it was at that moment she took it from the Deadly Blade's dead hand, never cleaned it or repaired  it. The cracks and blood on its metal remindeded every story that had happened then as well as the path that Miho has chosen to pursue. Despite the fact that the time was flying so fast, she almost had no sleep, but that's just how she was, never gets tired and only a couple of hours of sleep is more than enough for her. The morning came in no time.

Miho walked down the stairs and headed out of her house closing the door by forse, close to smashing them. She was living alone in a huge house, however she didn't need anyone else there, was more than comfortable just by herself.

After some minutes had passed, Miho entered the caffe that was appointed to be the squad's meeting place. She took a look of a place making a sulky face, the place looked really nice and safe, that bothered her. However, her irritation was put at easy as soon as she spotted her sensei. He seemed a tough and serious man, just the way she likes them to be.

After deciding that she didn't want to wait and investigate any longer, Miho swayed her hips right to sensei and sat in the seat that was in front of him. She leaned towards him and curved a seductive smile on her face.

"So, who knew that my Sensei appears to be such a fascinating man."

It seemed that she wanted to say some more things, but her eyes locked on the sword that was leaned towards the table. Miho's eyes changed and the sword now reflected in them.

Masayo heard a slow pace of footsteps in the hall. She knew who it was, Renji. Of course it wasn't hard to know since he would wake her up at 7 am. The conversation they had last night made it clear that she would be on time and ready like always. Masayo had already calculated how much time she would be needing for this morning.

Yesterday 10 pm, the young girl looked outside to the grass swinging and dancing as the wind choose the music and rythm and the moon controlling the light. "Renji, You should calm down." Masayo brought her gaze to Renji, her non-biological father. Her fingers were tangled in each other and her elbows kept them up. The head of the tanned girl lay on the hands of her own as she was looking straight at her favorite person on the planet. "By now you should already know that I don't really care about the rules but I will always be on time if my higher ups ask me to be. You disappoint me, Renji. I really thought you would at least know that much by now." Her eyes closed as her sentence was finished. Her head lifted itself up and a sigh came from her parted lips. "I like seeing you is such a confused way. It makes me feel... rather smart. And Renji please if i did not return down stairs before 7 am tomorrow morning. Come and wake me up. We don't want to be late now do we?" Renji is brown eyes couldn't stare away as the young girl was turning her back to him to get some rest. "Good night, honey." Renji said while still a bit in shock of her little chit chat. "She sure got a bit arrogant..." The make said with a sigh while walking on the stairs to also return to his beloved bed.

As Masayo heard the footsteps very close. Aperantly, her thinking about yesterday made everythong around her silent or invisible. "Renji, don't bother to knock. I know you are there and one minute too late. That means i'll have to leave the glass of orange juice for tomorrow. Thank you very much. " Her feet were kicked out of bed and she slowly walked to her closed. "Renji, i know you are still there. Go and have breakfast already." Masayo was irritated by the thought of someone just standing behind the door. She sway the bandages around her and made sure they hung perfectly. She went to the mirror and did the usual things with her hair. Finally she heard Renji going back downstairs. "Good boy!" Masa shouted behind him as she opened the door to also go to the dining table.

"So Masayo, when will you go again?" Renji asked just to remind her. The Yamamoto looked at him in a way that said 'Are you for real?'. A disappointed sigh left her lips and she quickly ate the rest of her food. "In 10 minutes i have to leave since the trip takes up about 20 minutes." She said while pushing her seat back and standng up. "I'd like to chit chat but i need to get ready now. " Masayo ran upstairs to get her backpack with her money in and brushed her teeth. No cloak was needed for today since it was pretty warm outside. "I'm leaving." She shouted as she stepped outside. The girl's eyes looked at the clock and read 7:46 am. "Perfect." She mumbled to herself.

When she arrived where the meeting was held she already saw a blond girl sitting in front of her sensei. Masayo could tell what she was trying to do just by the looks of it. "A shy person would never sit right in front of an unknown person. They would sit at the sides and wait. So she isn't shy, huh? Good..." Masayo told herself out loud and some people took notice of her talking to herself. Her feet moved toward the pair as she sat at the left side. Masa noticed the girl staring at probably sensei's sword. Masayo could not conclude anything else other than her teammate was also a bukijutsu user.

"Girly, shouldn't you introduce youself before you get to hit on your sensei." Obviously she heard what the blond girl said. Masayo wasn't the person to say such thing but she was just testing the girl like she was her labrat. Of course she wanted to see her sensei's reaction as well since she couldn't really tell much about him other than this serious aura that was floating around him. "Well then, i shall start introducing myself. I am Masayo from the Yamamoto clan."

The crispness of the cool morning air always served as a source of pleasure for Ryuzoji Miyako. It was a daily occurrence, seeing as they lived in Kumogakure, where the sun never could truly bestow it's warmth to the lands. Always the morning person - with an unnecessary set bedtime - she had gotten out of the house at six thirty, as quietly as every other day to avoid waking her mother. Today especially, she couldn't afford to be delayed and show up disheveled; the meticulous part of her wouldn't be able to swallow it down. 

Getting ready meant putting on her usual training outfit, wrapping her signature red scarf loosely around her neck before sliding her sheathed katana through a strap on her right side - an indication that she was generally left-handed when it came to wielding the bladed weapon. Food was of no particular concern to her in the morning, but still she grabbed an apple on the way out, shutting the door quietly behind her before embarking on a morning walk before the predetermined meeting time with her new team. 

'Team Karma ...' It was quite the curious name, to say the least. And depending on how one deciphered it, it could be either a befitting name, or one which stood merely for laughs. Of course, the major determining factor would be how well the team performed as a whole - something that Miyako both dreaded and anticipated, conflicting emotions which she drowned down with a bite of her apple. Needless to say, she was a quiet and reserved person, one who didn't necessarily dislike the company of others, but definitely was not used to it yet, being quite the solitary person even through her years at the Academy.

Her walk continued in such a way, with her mind wandering through various thoughts as she absentmindedly picked at the fruit until it was worn down to the core. It was relaxing, almost a form of meditation in which she withdrew herself from the physical world and focused only on her thoughts. Eventually, an hour passed - almost without her knowledge - and automatically she began heading towards the inner village, where they were to meet inside a coffee shop. A delay occured in the form of a weaponry shop, where Miyako couldn't stop herself from taking a quick peek inside in hopes of treating herself to the magnificent view of newly forged weaponry, and by the time she finally stepped through the door of the coffee shop, the chiming of the bell sang in harmony with the sound of the clock's minute hand striking twelve, signalling that she was nearly a minute too late. 

Pale blue-gray eyes immediately settled on a trio gathered inside, gaze lingering on first, the blonde hair girl who seemed to be sitting rather close to their team leader for a first meeting, then the other girl whose bandaged top struck her as rather odd, and finally, on their sensei - Ryuzoki Bokuden. A hand reached up almost automatically to tug at her scarf - an act of nervousness that she only shows once in a while. Although she had been aware that her the heir to her clan would be their team leader, it was obvious that she still wasn't completely prepared for the actual meeting with the son of the man her father had planned to assassinate so many years before. 

Feet moving on their own towards the group, she dipped her head in a general greeting, but didn't utter a word, for fear of interrupting whatever previous conversation that existed before she arrived. Her eyes flickered over to the unoccupied seat to Bokuden's right, and she moved to carefully pull out the chair, seating herself quietly to minimize any unnecessary sounds.

A few more minutes passed as Bokuden waited for the arrival of his squad, giving him time to order a refill for his coffee. As the waitress finished pouring his drink Bokuden heard the bell on the entrance door ring, signifying that someone had just entered. Looking up from his cup he then dismissed the waitress and shifted his gaze over to the entrance to the café, taking note of a woman who had just walked it. She was tall and lean with blonde hair and wearing a skin tight black outfit. There were slits on each side of the outfit, exposing a large amount of skin from her waist tapering off down her thighs, and the neckline was a deep plunging V extending all the way down below her navel, revealing a fair amount of cleavage as well. The black material hugged tightly hugged her curves, causing Bokuden to trace the silhouette of her body with his eyes as she stood at the entrance, unmoving. She appeared to be taking a look around the café with a displeased look on her face, but that changed as she looked over in Bokuden’s direction. She proceeded to strut her way over to his table, swinging her hips back and forth like a pendulum, before taking a seat in the chair directly across the table from him. Bokuden raised an eyebrow as the woman leaned forward over the table and spoke, "So, who knew that my Sensei appears to be such a fascinating man."

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Bokuden thought to himself, although the expression on his face never wavered, “This girl is in my squad? She’s a genin? This looks like she is going to be… difficult to handle.” Before he could speak in response Bokuden noticed her eyes staring straight at his Chokuto which he had leaning against the table. In response, he grabbed the sword and slowly pulled it up to him, holding it up vertically at face level and forcing her to look back at him. “See something you like?” Bokuden asked playfully with a slight smirk.

Immediately after he spoke the entrance bell sounded once again, prompting Bokuden to shift his gaze in that direction immediately. There he saw another woman, this one staring in his direction as well. As she began walking towards his location he began sizing her up as well. Her green eyes cut through the café while her long raven hair, which was worn up with a red bow, flowed beautifully as she walked. She was tall, though not as tall as the first girl to have arrived, but was more curvy. Bandage wrappings seemed to be the only thing covering her generously sized breasts and keeping them in place, resulting in minimal bouncing as she made her way to the table, but extended only as far down as her slim waist, exposing her mid-rift. As a bottom she wore a long red skirt which hung loosely off of her hips, slivers of her tanned skin peeking out through the wrapping. “When I was told I would be assigned a squad of gennin I figured I would be watching over some cute kids fresh out of the academy, not two grown women,” Bokuden lamented in his own head as the newest arrival took the vacant seat to his left, “I think Reika might be trying to kill me.”

"Girly, shouldn't you introduce yourself before you get to hit on your sensei," the woman spoke as she sat down, much to Bokuden’s amusement. He threw a smirk her way before she continued, "Well then, i shall start introducing myself. I am Masayo from the Yamamoto clan."

“Yamamato? You’re an advanced element user then?” Bokuden asked as he leaned his sword back against the table. Before she was able to answer, Bokuden heard the entrance bell ring for the third time and he immediately turned to see what he fully expected to be the final member of his squad. A feeling of relief surged through Bokuden as a small girl walked through the door, hopefully sparing him from the nightmare of having to deal with three women that looked like the first two. She seemed hesitant to approach the table although she had obviously seen them, tugging a bit on her scarf before slowly making her way over to the group. She bowed her head slightly as a way to greet the group silently before taking the vacant seat to Bokuden’s right. “She’s a quiet one then?” Bokuden mused to himself as he watched his final student to arrive as she quietly took her place at the table.

Bokuden took one more sip from his coffee before placing the mug down on the table and addressing his fully formed squad, “Well then, it appears as though we are all here now. Welcome to the Anti-personnel unit, Squad Karma. My name is Bokuden and I am the jounin assigned to act as the squad’s leader and mentor to all of you. I’d like you all to properly introduce yourself to the squad and tell me what you hope to achieve by joining the ranks of the shinobi of Kumogakure. You were all assigned to this squad for a skillset you possess or a potential seen in you by your instructors at the academy and the village officials and it is my job to help you master your skills and guide you to reach that potential. However, I would first like to hear from each of you personally. I didn’t bother reading the dossier that was sent with each of your files, I’ll be able to tell what I need to know based off of this meeting today.” Bokuden stopped speaking for a moment and motioned with his arm for the waitress who hurried over and placed menus in front of each of the students. “But first,” Bokuden continued, “I’d like to make sure we all have had breakfast. It’s far too early for me to be handling official business on an empty stomach. Place your order and then you may proceed to speak. Order whatever you would like, it’s on me.” A confident smile grew across Bokuden’s lips as he shifted his gaze around the table once, making eye contact with each of his students, and awaited the first one to speak up.

Miho supported her head with an arm while sitting by the table and staring at the sword. She looked quite careless and relaxed and when the Sensei asked if she saw something she liked, Miho turned her head to him and their eyes met.

“I do now.“

Miho winked while the seductive smile thing was still on her face.  She was insane and brave enough to get in a flirty mood with her own Sensei. Suddenly the bell rang giving a sign that someone came in the cafe. Miho turned her head to the side to take a look at the person who has just come in. It was a girl and she was approaching  the table they were sitting by.  Miho heard that something was said to her, but she was too much of preoccupied with examining the Sensei‘s sword, thus, she couldn‘t tell what the exact words there were.  When the weapon was taken from the sight, Miho took a good look at her team member. The girl seemed interesting and Miho was investigating her features silently for a moment. The girl had a pretty face, nice and long hair, a really great figure, seemed a bit older than her.  From the first impression, Miho thought they should get along. Was she wrong? Time will show.

“I am sorry, I got spaced out a little.“

She apologized right a way, as thought the normal person woul do so. However, the „being sorry“ part was purely  fake, but for once in her life, Miho made the right choice to put her rude self aside. Why bother creating some conflicts if they will have to work in team together anyways. Besides, she doesn‘t know these people yet, so sees no point in letting them know her as well.  As long as she will be entertained by it, she will play nice and polite girl.  

Well, the three of them were already sitting and waiting for the last membet to come, but the waiting didn‘t last long. Soon the bell rang again and another one girl came in the cafe. She approached the table reluctanly, seemed as being scared of something or maybe just nervious before the first meeting. All of that was not for Miho to think about. She just kept wondering about the abilities of that sword all the time. And of the man of course.

As soon as the last member of the team sat down, the Sensei started his introduction. All of that talk sounded like a big „Blah-blah-blah“ to Miho. She was just following his lips pretending to listen carefully, but in her head she kept imagining him sitting there shirtless or fighting in some rough figth with that shiny weapon he had. Fighting shirtless of course. No need to admit, the girl has some wicked imagination.  The only things Miho had caught from his talk were something about him wanting to know what his student expect from the project of being in a squad. The moment the Sensei was done speaking, he threw his gaze at Miho. Maybe that was because she was the first to come here and meet him. Miho didn‘t get lost, she crossed her both hands onto the chest and curved a devilish smile. The normal person would introduce himself first.

“ My name is Misha, I hold the clan name of Kyouki. I wanted to join the squad in order to become a better shinobi.“

Okay, the nice and polite introduction, which sounded as plain as moon and sun. The fact is, that the biggest  part of it was a pure lie. Why to bother telling the real motivations though? The fact was that the manner in which Miho introduced her clan name was sending a message that something devilish is going on in her head. She threw that name out loud as if she would be very proud of it, proud of those cruel things her people did to the villagers some time ago.  And to tell the truth, Miho really was.

After making her fake introduction Miho went into her head again, as it was the other girl‘s turn to introduce herself. Miho didn‘t order anything either, because she didn‘t hear how the Sensei was offering a threat. Miho regreted she didn‘t catch the Sensei‘s name though. However, as long as her own introduction was over she relaxed even more and the image of shirtless Sensei appeared in her head once again.

Masayo didn't get to know much about the other two after her little tease so she just sighed in a bored way. The only reaction she got was a small smile from her sensei, nothing much was achieved with that. A bit later the blond girl spoke up to apologize that she did not listen. As if Masayo could be fooled that easily by her words. She was after all, how Renji would called her, a genius. She could just see that someone lied by the bodylanguage they were sending out and this girl wasn't even trying to lie at her best. The urge to make a comment was almost too much to control for Masayo, she wanted to get back to badly but since this is the first day they ever met she would keep it down. Just a bit of course. The raven had a smirk on her face when she smelled the good morning coffee of her sensei. What she would do for a good sip of coffee right now, especially if she didn't get hers in the morning due to Renji being too late to wake her up.

Her thoughts of the smell of the morning coffee was disturbed by the bell of a new customer coming in the show. A swift move was made to turn around and look who it was. That person could be the last teammate of Masayo and of course she was curious what kind of person it would be. It was a rather young girl that walked in, she took direct notice of the three. Masayo saw her looking in their direction and with that she knew it was her last partner. She girl was rather young and small. She rufled her scarf as she came in. By her body lauguage Masayo could already tell that she was a shy girl. The somewhat distant female walked to the table and sat at the right of the team's sensei, not talking on interupting the three. Masayo didn't like shy people at all and she liked to tease with them. So far she had one serious sensei, one flirting machine and a shy little girl. Squad Karma would definatly entertain her but if they would be good shinobi? That is a whole other story one has to experience by seeing it with their own eyes.

Bokuden had explained Squad Karma and what kind of squad it was. Not that Masayo needed that information but it's always a fun thing to know more. He asked the why question. Why would they want to become a shinobi and why choose a squad. Those questions were answered first by the blond one. "Those were vague answers. I would like to know my team mate better since i have to rely on you and trust you with my life." Masayo explained in a arrogant way. Renji was indeed right, she became more arrogant these days, but what can one do about it now? "To give a good example of a well explained answer, I shall tell you my reasons and motivations. As you might know or not know, i am Masayo Yamamoto. I do have a extra element due to my clan's abilities. I rather just call it another element and not an advenced element, Sir. Why i joined a squad can be answered in a simple way. I like to know more about this world. I would like to unravel all its mysteries and secrets. And being in a squad or just being a shinobi sure helps with that." The raven finished just as the waitress came to the table. Masayo didn't need to have a meal but coffee surely wouldn't hurt so she ordered one. Her hands were searching in her backpack for her wallet.  She found it and lay it on the table. She wanted to be ready to pay for her coffee as soon as the waitress asked for it, but since she already left after taking everyone's requests, Masa had to wait a bit longer.

The introduction provided by their team leader served as a minute source of relief for Miyako, as it disproved her previous fear that she had interrupted a conversation with her untimely arrival. As soon as Bokuden began to speak, her attention narrowed until she was focused intently on his every word, though occasionally her gaze flickered to her team mates to observe them as casually as possible. The blond girl seemed to be fascinated with Bokuden – only she seemed as though she was fascinated with all but what he was saying. The raven-haired girl seemed to be more in control, as her answer later would prove. And their sensei … As he spoke, Miyako tried to decipher his character simply by observing the way he spoke, but unfortunately, judging character never was her forte, seeing as she spent more time alone than socializing with others. But still he appeared to be decent on the surface, getting right down to business but yet able to keep the mood light. His confession that he hadn’t bothered to read every little detail on each of the genins struck her as an appalling detail, as she would have thought that any team leader would make it his business to dive into the entire history of his students. Though an astounding detail, a part of her began to logically argue his reason for doing so, and as his words cycled through, she found herself admiring him for doing such a thing.

When he paused to wave the waitress over, Miyako bit at her lower lip, mind hurriedly trying to come up with the right way to introduce herself. What did she hope to achieve by joining the ranks of the shinobi? Surely she couldn’t simply throw out that her reasons for everything was so she could do the bidding of her mother? Although this was generally true in all aspects of her life, it was something that outsiders couldn’t understand. And her reason for wanting to be a part of the shinobi of Kumogakure … She had long since come to terms that this was something she herself wanted as well, the second thing she had ever wanted for herself – the first being her father’s katana.

The menu placed before her pulled Miyako out of her musings, the surprise that their squad leader was offering them a free meal momentarily erecting a block in her thoughts. Suddenly finding her gaze locked with Bokuden, her eyes widened a tenth of a fraction before she dropped her head to look at the menu, the ever stubborn strands of hair in front of her face shielding her expression from view. It was in this position where she listened in on Miho’s introduction, looking – but not really seeing – the words on the menu in her hands. Through the simple statements that were given Miyako confirmed that the blonde had not been paying thorough attention, as the question had been why they wanted to join the ranks of the shinobi, and not why they wanted to join a squad. By answering vaguely that she wanted to join a squad in order to become a shinobi, the topic suddenly became generic.

Immediately after Miho’s introduction, Masayo jumped in to criticize the first girl’s introduction, voicing out Miyako’s own thoughts that the answer was, in truth, vague and not at all what anyone wanted to hear. It seemed as though the older girl was off to a good start, but again, the topic shifted to her reasons for joining a squad rather than the ranks of shinobi. Pondering this, she suddenly realized that the conversation had gone quiet, signalling that it was her turn to speak. Whispering to the waitress that she didn’t want anything, she lifted her head once more to face her squad. Letting out a puff of breath – which resulted in the hair in front of her eyes to sway – she concluded that the only way to get through this was to speak the truth, which meant saying whatever came to mind.

“I’m Miyako –“ Realizing that she had started off too softly – even more so than usual – she tried again, still quiet but slightly more audible. “Miyako of the Ryuzoji clan. The reason I aspire to be part of the shinobi ranks is …. “ Here she paused for a bit, rearranging words in her head before voicing them out. “To help shape and protect a world where there is a lack of internal conflicts between those who should be as closely knit as family, a place of coexistence and peace. And I - I hope this can be achieve by learning and training with everyone.” Cheesy answer as it was, as she uttered these words, she realized just how much they rang true in her life, from her family’s past to her present situation. After her introduction, she lapsed into a silence, using all her willpower not to drop her gaze or deepen the pink shade in her cheeks.

“My name is Misha, I hold the clan name of Kyouki. I wanted to join the squad in order to become a better shinobi,“ the blonde introduced herself, breaking the momentary silence. Bokuden watched her with an uninspired and stoic look as addressed the group, his sapphire gaze unwavering. It was a terribly boring answer and also one that had no chance of fooling Bokuden. After the way she behaved before the rest of the squad had arrived, did she really believe that she was just going to be able to play the “good girl” role with him? Bokuden however, had no intentions on calling her out on it. This was what he wanted to see from this first meeting; personality traits and not just empty words. If she chose to hide information from her squad at first that was her prerogative, but he would be extracting the information he needed from each of his students soon enough.

A voice of criticism shot over from Bokuden’s left as Masayo had apparently been less than enthused by Miho’s introduction and insisted on demonstrating the “proper” way. "To give a good example of a well explained answer, I shall tell you my reasons and motivations. As you might know or not know, i am Masayo Yamamoto. I do have an extra element due to my clan's abilities. I rather just call it another element and not an advanced element, Sir. Why I joined a squad can be answered in a simple way. I like to know more about this world. I would like to unravel all its mysteries and secrets. And being in a squad or just being a shinobi sure helps with that." Bokuden threw the same expression to Masayo as he had to Miho, his icy blue pupils looking in her direction from the corner of his eye.  “Quite the confident one, isn’t she?” Bokuden noted to himself, “Something tells me I might have to play referee for these two at some point. They’ve known each other for less than five minutes and are already starting. Conflicting personalities I suppose.” Masayo did seemingly take Bokuden up on his offer  as she ordered a coffee, but apparently she wasn’t listening when he said he would be paying. Bokuden raised an eyebrow as he pulled out her wallet and placed it on the table. With his left hand Bokuden proceeded to nudge the wallet back closer to her as he spoke, “Put that away, I already told you anything you’d like is on me.”

A short silence fell over the table as the rest of the group awaited their final member to speak. “I’m Miyako –,” she spoke in an almost inaudible hush before projecting a bit more “Miyako of the Ryuzoji clan. The reason I aspire to be part of the shinobi ranks is …. “ Another brief pause followed before she continued with her introduction,  “To help shape and protect a world where there is a lack of internal conflicts between those who should be as closely knit as family, a place of coexistence and peace. And I - I hope this can be achieve by learning and training with everyone.” A noble answer to be sure, and one that Bokuden responded to with a slight smile and a nod of acknowledgement. Bokuden was originally hesitant to take on a shinobi from his own clan given the strained relationship he has with the clan’s leaders, but Miyako didn’t seem to be like the rest of them. Maybe Reika knew what she was doing when she assigned him this squad after all.

“Well, if no one is going to take me up on my offer then I suppose that you all get a rain check on that meal I owe you.” Bokuden said casually and with a reaffirming smile.  He then took another sip of his coffee and placed the mug down on the table before interlocking his fingers, leaning a bit forward as he rested his elbows on the table, and addressing the squad. “However, there is something you should be aware of about this squad,” Bokuden began, the smile on his lips fading into a look of neutrality and his eyes narrowing a bit, “Due to recent events in the shinobi world the five villages have been forced to… adjust. As such the squads that you have been assigned to are not meant to be a purely sensei/pupil relationship. These squads are part of a special wartime ordinance by Lady Reika to help ensure Kumogakure’s preparedness for potential threats, lest what happen to Kirigakure or the Deadlands happen here. I am here to teach you yes, but with any luck there will come a time where you three are no longer my students but rather my colleagues. In that scenario, this squad may be reformed at any time in which our services are needed. This is the Anti-personnel squad and I was selected to be its leader because my talents make me particularly well suited to lead this squad to serve its primary function… erasing potential threats to the village from existence. You were all assigned to this squad because it was believed that you may possess a greater aptitude for our line of work than your peers, a belief which I will be testing myself. However, if any of you don’t think you are capable of this speak now and I may be able to have you transferred out of the squad, but I may not be able to offer you that same deal at a later date.” Bokuden stopped for a minute to allow his words to sink in before he spoke again, “So what do you think? Ready to join Squad Karma?”

Miho was still sitting there relaxed and careless even though Masayo did criticize her. Normally, she hates being criticized, yet now she somehow remained calm and cold. Masayo did have the point in saying those words, teammates really should gain some trust for each other. Miho listened to her teammate‘s introduction carefully and even though one could think that this sounded quite arrogant, Miho quite liked it, maybe because she was like that herself. Miho rolled her eyes a little, but her voice was calm, relaxed and even quite silent. Maybe that was because she was bothered mentally by the pressure to reveal herself. She was not that type of person who just throws her personaly in words to other people, she likes to leave that aside and let them decide by themselves.

“It is not for you to judme me, and even more likely, not for you to trust me in person. I came here to do some job, not make friendships, however, if the trust is the issue, I can assure you that as long as we have some serious bussiness together, I will not be that brat who lets people down or lets any of personal matters get in the way. I apologize I am not revealing my motives, but my real path is the one that I stick to alone.“

Miho wasn‘t sad or angry, wasn‘t even irritated, that she had to talk that much about herself. Maybe that was because for the first time this day the real she was talking. Despite the fact that Miho coudn‘t stand that, she gave some guidelines about herself after all. After her little interruption it was the time for the third member to talk. The girl appeared to hold the clan name of Ryuzoji, the one Miho has heard about, the name of the great lightning people. That was quite impressive for Miho to hear and this information made her wonder. Who would have though that such a shy and nice girl could posses such powerfull skills like all of Ryuzoji have. Miho was staring at her, the girl really got her attention. She was already making some plans in her head about asking Miyako to tell all the secrets of controlling lightning in order to be able to adjust those to her weapons later.

However, some minutes later the whole line of Miho‘s thoughts were interrupted by the Sensei. While making some plans so much, she almost forgot how amazing he looked. The moment he spoke, her wild imagination was turned on again. Men were so seductive at times. Miho changed her sitting position in a while in order to force herself to concentrate on what the exact content of the speech was. She curved a devilish smile again, when the Sensei informed that their squad is not the ordinary type with the student – sensei relationship. The thing that more serious bussiness will be involved made her smile even more. That didn‘t last long though, as she started wondering. Some time ago, her people were the ones who were wiping out the shinobi from the lands of Kumo and now she, an heir of the leader, will have to help them instead of following her clan‘s path. “Shall this be an interesting game. With even more interesting ending to it.“ When the Sensei was done explaining the question followed his speech which reguired to be answered. Miho was the one to speek first again, she just couldn‘t help herself, but flirt a little in invisible way.

“Hey, Sensei, we all had just met and you already are having some doubts about us? We might consider that as a little insult here.“

"It is not for you to judme me, and even more likely, not for you to trust me in person. I came here to do some job, not make friendships, however, if the trust is the issue, I can assure you that as long as we have some serious bussiness together, I will not be that brat who lets people down or lets any of personal matters get in the way. I apologize I am not revealing my motives, but my real path is the one that I stick to alone.“

A satisfying smile could be seen on Masayo as the blond had finally reacted with her real inner self speaking, just what Masayo wanted to happen. Even if making herself seem very cocky and arrogant was the only way to that goal. The words that came from the girl her throat made Masayo her lips shave in a wide smile. She finally got what she wanted from the beginning of this meeting, honest words and the truth from her team mate, Miho. Now her the next thing to do was to get the shy girl to tell the reality of her motivations.

Masayo looked at the girl with her green hued eyes. Her eyelids were resting on the inner dot of her eyes. A smile was still playing on her lips. The hands of the Yamamoto were held up by her elbows as her fingers were tangled in eachother so her chin could lean on it. Her eyes still not looking away as she was concentrating on the youngest girl of the team. Masayo began to think, that girl really was the youngest of the group and yet was a genin liie the other two. It was quite sad to see two fully grown women and one girl with the same abilities. Masa her smile was now shaped in a more curious one, wanting to know her little story. Would it be bigger then Masayo's motivation? Or would it be a lie like Miho's? Either way, she was all ear when the petite girl began to talk. At first it was a bit silent but then she spoke up a little. Masayo lost concentration when she heard the name Ryuzoji fall. Her eyes and eyebrows formed a serious expression just as her smile disapeared. A small frown was made with her forehead as her brain started to think. A Ryuzoji? Wasn't their sensei a Ryuzoji too? Or did she just imagine it? No, Masayo was certan that Miyako said Ryuzoji and that her sensei was a Ryuzoji was true as well. So they were related.

All the questions in Masayo's mind were roaming around and made it unable to listen to the rest of Miyako's motivation. Unfortunatly for Masa, she had loved to get to know her better. Oh well they probably had to spend a lot of time together so she would come to know it eventually.

"Sorry but i didn't quite get last part. I zoned out for a second. Would you mind repeating it for me Miyako?"

With another thought Masayo wanted it to know now and not later on since what she might say could have a great influence on how the raven might act around her. She asked in a polite way not to make the little girl scared or uncomfortable, even though Masayo wasn't that good with feelings, she still tried. A smile was stitched on the Yamamoto's face as she was waiting for the reply.

"Sensei? May you inform us about your motivations? Why did you become a shinobi and are you planning on achieving a higher rank?"

As she was waiting Masa saw Bokuden shoving the wallet back to her. She hears him say that it was his treat but who might now, maybe he'll ask a favor later on since he paid for it.

"Sensei, please, let me pay it. I don't like the feeling when i drink with someone else his money really. So why don't you just pay for yourself and i just pay for myself. Besides, i don't know you very well so you could always ask a favor for this drink."

A smile with both eyes closed was given to her sensei. It was quite an honest smile, she wasn't used to the feeling of giving an true smile. Bokuden began to give more information about Squad Karma and what its goal and duty was. Masayo knew the basics of the squad but she liked the detail he gave them. Then a question was given to the three genin. Would they accept the challenge of Squad Karma and the duty of protecting the village or would they chicken out? Masayo was ready for it. She had never been scared of the duty of a shinobi and she know what the risks were.

"Sir, it would be an honor to join Squad Karma."

It was beginning to appear quite obvious that Team Karma definitely needed some time to get used to each other, if the exchange between Masayo and Miho could be of any clear indication. Miyako made a mental note to avoid getting pulled into any future squabbles, but still she made sure to tune in to Miho's response to Masayo's criticism. It was rather interesting to hear each girl's input to the discussion of how trust should be built up within the team, and whether the revealing of personal information could contribute to that. Personally, Miyako considered herself a fence-sitter in this situation; revealing too much information right off the bat may serve as a sidetrack further down the road, and trust itself could be built solely during missions and training sessions, but at the same time, part of her did want to learn more about her team mates before entrusting her life to them.

The amount of attention she was receiving during her little speech made her uneasy - even during her time at the Academy, she was rarely called out to answer a question and, in the event that she was, little attention would be truly paid to her response. But as she spoke she could sense the gazes of the other three on her, and although it was Miho who she could see most clearly - seeing as she was sitting directly across from the other girl - it was Bokuden who her blue-gray gaze flickered to first, anticipating backlash for revealing something that hinted so heavily on her family's history. Instead, it was a small smile and nod that she received, the tiny gesture allowing her to feel as though her answer truly did have some worth.

"Sorry but i didn't quite get last part. I zoned out for a second. Would you mind repeating it for me Miyako?" It wasn't until Masayo's voice broke through that she realized she had dropped her gaze to the table again. What did the other girl want? For her to repeat herself? Saying it the first time had taken quite the effort already, seeing as the contents of her introduction were quite taboo to Miyako, who had responded with something other than her usual generic response that her mother had drilled into her. She wasn't ashamed of her answer, yet to be asked to repeat it as though it were a test made the girl waver in uncertainty. "I - "

She was saved when Masayo turned her attention towards Bokuden, and, letting out a breath, she attempted to sit up straighter. It was pathetic, to let herself appear weak on the first meeting. Mouth setting in a determined expression, she looked back towards Bokuden as he began a more detailed description of what their squad was for. The information regarding the tension within all five shinobi villages came as no surprise, but Mikayo's attention was caught when it was explained that they were expected to be both a squad with students and teacher, and an on-call attack team for the Raikage. This was unheard of for a new genin squad from what Mikayo knew, and for a moment, her usually empty eyes gleamed with a look of anticipation.

“So what do you think? Ready to join Squad Karma?” With both Miho and Masayo's confident answers, Miyako - for once - didn't want to be outdone. Becoming a part of Team Karma would undoubtedly bring about massive changes in her life - changes that she was determined to embrace, whether they be positive or negative.

"I, too, am honoured to be a part of Team Karma." Her answer was quiet as usual, but this time her words rang with a strength that she had never experienced before.

The exchange between Miho and Masayo did not do much to inspire confidence in his students’ ability to work together as they were now. That however, is something that could be taught, so Bokuden didn’t pay too much attention to it. He did however turn his attention back to Masayo who was still insisting on paying for her coffee, even going as far as to insinuate that he might try and use a cup of coffee to try and get something out of her later. “Hmm,” Bokuden scoffed at the notion, “Ask for a favor in exchange for a cup of coffee? Do you think that little of me already? There were no strings attached to my offer, I promise you that. If nothing else, think of me as a man of my word.”

Bokuden took another sip of his coffee as he intentionally avoided Masayo’s first series of questions which inquired into Bokuden’s mind. These were still genin, they weren’t ready to hear the full brunt of Bokuden’s life. Maybe someday he would allow them a glimpse into his word, but certainly not today. What he was more concerned with was how they would respond to what he told them about the squad and their reply to his invitation into the team.

Miho was the first to speak up. Bokuden wasn’t surprised. She had already more than shown herself to be perhaps the more bold and forward of the group. “Hey, Sensei, we all had just met and you already are having some doubts about us? We might consider that as a little insult here.“

“Hmph,” Bokuden smirked at Miho before answering her, “I have no doubts about you at all. I want to know if you doubt yourself. But judging from your reaction, I’ll assume you want in."

Masayo and Miyako both spoke immediately after, expressing their desire to remain in the squad as well. "Sir, it would be an honor to join Squad Karma," said Masayo confidently, but confidence seemed like it could be expected from her. "I, too, am honoured to be a part of Team Karma," said Miyako, her voice still soft, but ringing with a determination that she had not displayed since her arrival. Bokuden was honestly a bit surprised that there were no objections, not even any hesitation, in accepting their positions as members of Squad Karma.

“Then if we are all in agreement, we can make it official,” Bokuden said with an amused grin, “You are now all operatives of Kumgakure’s anti-personnel unit, Squad Karma. Welcome to the team. Any questions?” Bokuden looked at his squad and prepared to clear up any lingering concerns they might have as he signaled the for the waitress to come over once again, paying for his and Masayo’s coffee and dismissing her before Masayo could object once more.

After each member of the squad confirmed they really wanded to participate in the project, the sensei made it official by summing everything up in one sentence. However, the meeting wasn't over, the question folloved his talk again. Miho wasn't planning on asking anything in particular at first, but something was bothering her from inside. Something that triggered the faster circulation of her blood the very first second she approached that table he was sitting by. Miho leaned over the table a little, to get a little closer to the sensei and her new team members, she also didn't want to be loud.

"I would like to inquire about your baby."

The words came half-silent and those were addressed to the Sensei. A baby was reffering to the sword he took here to this meeting and seeing how other team members didn't bring their weapons with themselves, that was the only thing that cought Miho's eyes. A normal person would inquire something about the training that will be coming up in some time or about the experience on being a high rank ninja, but none of that really mattered to the girl. Her eyes were solely staring at that sword  and there was nothing she could do about that. That was in her blood.

"Hey, I wonder, whose creation is this, Sensei?"

Despite that fact that she knew she was stepping in a quite intimate space by inquiring about such a personal thing, but she still hoped that one weapon user would understand other's curiousity.

"I should have brought my babies as well."

Maybe if she did, she wouldn't be so distracted by that other thing and it would'n be so obvious for her teammates that Miho is some kind of a weapon freak, who even misses her chakrams while they are away and does it in that manner almost like a woman misses her lover who is gone to the war. However, as far as the curiousity is concerned and the essential urge to collect certain things, this thirst could be an advantage while in the battle. Some people just goes for things they desire no matter what means they are using to get them and to say the truth, Miho was no exeption.

Masayo noticed Bokuden paying for her drink. As much as she wanted to protest the money was already given to the waitress. But she wouldn't let it pass that easily. Her feet sneaked closer to the weapon that was probably his since it was lay close to him. She slowly poked her foot against the sword to make it drop.

"Come one. Just drop."

Finally the sword fell on the ground with a loud thud. Just as everyone was looking to the source of the racket. Masayo quickly moved her hand to the pocket of Bokuden. With the money between her fingers she slowly slided the money is his side pocket and retreated her hand back. A grin could be seen on her face and her eyes had a certan shine in them of achievement.

"I said i would buy my own coffee...".

Still she wasn't just sure if Bokuden had noticed or not. Of course she hoped he didn't feel a thing but Madayo could be wrong. The three others looked back up and hopefully didn't see anything different.

A bit later Miho moved closer to the three others. Was she about to tell something important? What would it be? Masayo saw how she was lurking at Bokuden's sword all the time. She apperantly should't get her eyes of it. How comic, at first she couldn't take her eyes of the wielder and now at the wielder's weapon. Masayo's lips shaped in another smile as her nose hung just above her fresh coffee she would pay for. The aromas were now entering her nose via her nostrils.

" Hey, I wonder, whose creation is this, Sensei?"

Miho spoke with a low voice as if it was something important. By the looks of it, Miho was not just a weapon wielder but also addicted to weapons? Masayo her intrest wasn't amuzed any further so she leaned back into the seat. Because the three were still listening intensly, Madayo decided not to make a comment of any sort. She would just let out a sigh and take a sip of her coffee.

Her lips and the cup were brought together by her hand that moved closer. She could already smell the scent of the fresh coffee beans in her hot drink. She let the liquid slide in her mouth onto her tongue and then into her throat. It gave a warm and cosy feeling inside. A feeling she had always loved about drinking something hot or just warm.

Masayo took another look at the three examining their faces once more. The first person she looked at was Miyako who sat in front of her. Her face expression looked curious but it was hard to see behind her shy look and the scarf didn't do any good exposing her face. Masayo her eyes rolled to Bokuden, her future sensei. A serious man, who insists on paying for one's drink. A wielder a a weapon, so a bukijutsu user. When she was thinking about bukijutsu she wondered if Miyako was one as well. She didn't get to hear her talk about since she almost didn't speak. Masayo thought a lot of suprises would come from the small girl. Her eyes switched from her sensei to the blondine at the table. A curious girl when it comes to swords or just weapons. A bukijutsu user as well, and a flirtagious one at that. Seeing how she looked at the only weapon around the table it looked like she missed something, but Masayo could not figure out what. A noisy bell brought the raven out of her thinking mode and almost let her cup fell by the racket. Whit blinking eyes she looked from person to person on the table. It seemed like nothing interesting had happened when she zoned out for a while.

A thrill ran through her as Bokuden formally welcomed them to the team. Even if the squad only consisted of four total members - much less than the number of pupils in a class - it felt much more like a collective group, the presence of a seemingly reliable leader a source of comfort. Several questions floated through her mind, but she dismissed them, figuring that most of them could be answered through later meetings - especially after their first training session together. It seemed as though their team introduction was drawing to a close, and it was clear that they were to begin with all three original genins - whether someone would back out or be replaced would be revealed in time.

Between the end of Bokuden’s talk and the beginning of Miho’s oddly-phrased question, the ever-observing Miyako spotted the subtle fight over paying the bill between Bokuden and Masayo. Being seated right across from Masayo, the falling blade definitely caught her attention, but her gaze flickered back to Masayo just in time to see the older girl removing her hand from Bokuden’s jacket. Her brows furrowed – what exactly was the point of going to such an extent simply over a bill? If any attention had been paid to the conversation earlier, it had already been established that their squad leader was offering to pay for any offer they placed, and to argue against that was more of an insult than allowing someone else to pay. And then the conversation turned stranger with Miho’s metaphorical reference to Bokuden’s sword. Miyako had a passion for all bladed weapons – that much she would admit without even a moment’s hesitation – but she would never refer to them as anything but beloved weapons. Blinking in bewilderment, she continued to tune in to the conversation, hand instinctively reaching to check on her own katana, still strapped to her right side, but hidden under the table because of her short stature.

“Sensei … you said that we were assigned to this squad for a skillset or potential that we may possess. Is Bukijutsu one of these qualities?” It turned out that there was one question that couldn’t wait for later – her sudden question surprising even herself. Through what she observed – seeing Bokuden’s katana and Miho’s reference to her own ‘babies’ – it seemed as though the greater majority of them were sword-wielders, and if Bokuden confirmed her thoughts, that would mean Masayo was one too.

“Well, if nothing else this girl is persistent,” Bokuden thought to himself as he reached down to pick up his sword which had slid off of the table, noticing Masayo slipping money into his pocket, “However, this is starting to get annoying.” Bokuden would let it slide for now and didn’t so much as look Masayo’s way after she pulled her hand back.  How could he fault her for trying to go about something stealthily as a shinobi? She of course was defying him and picked a target whose skills were far beyond her own at the moment, but still. He appreciated the effort even if the intent was irritating.

"I would like to inquire about your baby. Hey, I wonder, whose creation is this, Sensei?" Miho spoke up, fortunately breaking the silence that lingered as he awaited his students’ questions. “My baby?” Bokuden said with a bit of a puzzled look. He was sure he didn’t have any children… at least none that he knew of. He immediately traced the direction of her gaze down to his chokuto that he had leaned back up against the table. “You’re referring to my sword?” Bokuden inquired although he already knew this to be the case, “Her name is Suiko-tenno. She’s one of several swords that are passed down through my clan’s main family. It was forged in Tetsu no Kuni by the samurai legion’s smiths. This particular sword has been passed down for, I’d like to say, a little over the last half century. It was originally wielded by my grandfather to put down a rebellion within the clan.”

Bokuden turned his head as he heard a less projected voice coming from his left, shifting his gaze down to meet his student’s. “Sensei … you said that we were assigned to this squad for a skillset or potential that we may possess. Is Bukijutsu one of these qualities?” Miyako asked. “Aren’t we the observant one?” Bokuden replied casually, “Yes, all of the members of our squad are weapons users. Although it was not a requirement it was preferred that members of squad Karma have some competency with weapons. It is part of the reason why I was selected to lead the squad in the first place. It just wouldn’t seem right to have a shinobi who was not a practitioner of bukijutsu to teach weapons users, and so I’m here.”

“You sure you have nothing to ask, Masayo?” Bokuden asked as he turned his head to face her, “Now is the time to clear up any confusions and express any concerns. After we leave this café today I will consider you all shinobi of Kumogakure, not just new genin.”

As soon as Miho got her answer that the sword was wielded in his own clan she calmed down a little and the thrill has goten away. She was impressed though, that there were many others clans at that time who were skillful artisans in making weapons. Miho started wondering how come those had survived and yet her own clan was wiped out from the ground of Kumo. Maybe the cruel behavior in general done the job.

As time was passing by Miho got pretty bored and yawned a little. She wasn't paying attention at any questions or answers again. No one of the team, except the Sensei, has brought their weapons to show. That was a disspapointing thing for her, because now she was curious with what kind of things she and her chakrams would have to work during the battle. She leaned over the table again and spoke in the half-silent voice.

"Hey girls, as Sensei has already introduced his baby here, shouldn't we introduce our weapons as well? In order to have a success in the battle together, we have to now how each of us work with our weapons, as I can see all of us are wielders of those. In the case if help is needed or in the case if we would like to create a combo movement, this information is essiantial."

Yeah, Miho was all technical when it comes to battle. Feelings that are felt during the fight, painful past that is remebered during the fight or other emotions and people that are involved, none of those personal things are concidered to matter to her. Miho is quite stone-hearted, but could you blame her for that? She already was born with that trait in her blood.

As Masayo only had interest in her warm coffee she did not hear that much about het sensei's weapon. It might be usefull but she just lost interest. Her eyes were focusing on Bokuden himself. What was it with this guy to talk so easily about his weapon, his baby?  He revealed too much too fast. Masayo wants to get to know everything by herself and not share her knowledge with anyone, except if crimes are involved. She liked to know what they did not know. She likes to feel that she was in control with the knowledge she has gotten until now. And someone explaining thing without even a bit of hesitation just pushed her buttons. How can someone be so careless to just let half strangers know about your beloved sword? A sigh escaped her lips one more and she lay her cup back onto the little plate that was given with it.

Her sensei then asked if she had any questions at all. Masayo indeed had but her dear teacher didn't answer them before. Of course she could try it again and so Masayo did.

"Since you insist, let me repeat my last questions that you ignored last time, Sensei. What are your motivations and are you planning on ranking up more?"

With her legs crossed, leaning forward and a grin on her face, she had asked the questions again. He might not tell her that but at least she tried. If her sensei wouldn't say it now. She would find out anyway, it is just a matter of timwe

She noticed Miho heading closer again. Was she going to say something again or was it just to put her cleavage in a more noticing way for Bokuden? Masayo soon found out that it indeed was her asking something, but this time not to their sensei but to the students.

"As for me, i am not saying anything about my weapon only what kind of weapon it is. You won't see the rest up until our first training where i could finally show her. So my dear weapon is a rapier. How about yours?"

Masayo wasn't to keen to tell everything with words even though she was quite good in talking, but the main reason for that is that she wants people to learn it by themselves. Than it is for them to figure it out correctly.

Hearing Bokuden's answer to her question, she pursed her lips and nodded - she had guessed as much. With Bokuden introducing his weapon and the entire conversation turning down that path, Miyako couldn't help but wonder how training was going to be like, especially with the heir of her clan - a specialized Bukijutsu user - as their instructor. From what was shown so far, Bokuden appeared to be a serious, yet warm person, completely different from what Miyako had learned to expect from anyone of the head family. But every person here was bound to have a different face once they appeared on the battlefield, weapon in hand. There was no telling how their squad leader would be once they started training, and although she was eager to finally put her skills into action, she couldn't deny a mix of apprehension as well.

"Hey girls, as Sensei has already introduced his baby here, shouldn't we introduce our weapons as well? In order to have a success in the battle together, we have to now how each of us work with our weapons, as I can see all of us are wielders of those. In the case if help is needed or in the case if we would like to create a combo movement, this information is essiantial."

Miyako shifted uncomfortably in her chair, suddenly feeling as though they had been sitting here for way too long. She didn't see the point of dragging the conversation out by discussing their weapons - if they were going to train within the next few days anyways, it would all be revealed. She couldn't deny that she was a tad curious as well, but such information would be revealed shortly, so why bother asking when most of them didn't even have their weapons at hand to show off? Her right hand continued to linger on her blade, and with a shielded interest she listened as Masayo revealed that she used a rapier. That fact intrigued Miyako, as she had never tried using such a slender, two-edged weapon before. When Masayo concluded with her question, Miyako looked up at Miho, wondering if the question was directed to her or the other girl. She wasn't too keen on answering herself - after all, her own weapon was similar to that of their squad leaders, and unlike the others, her blade was still nameless, the result of a reason she would never share.

"Since you insist, let me repeat my last questions that you ignored last time, Sensei. What are your motivations and are you planning on ranking up more?" Masayo asked, seemingly a bit perturbed at Bokuden’s intentionally passing over her question the first time. She crossed her legs and glared at Bokuden with a confident grin as she awaited his response. Well, if she was going to persist with this he probably was going to need to give her some type of answer.

“To be honest I’m not sure if a group of genin are ready to be entrusted with that kind of information,” Bokuden said in a snarky manner, “I’ll tell you what, Masayo. Since you seem to be an information hoarder of sorts maybe we can cut a deal. Whoever succeeds in the training we will be doing tomorrow, I will allow to ask me one question. Any question their heart desires and I will answer it truthfully. IF you can prove to me that you are up to the task, that is.” With a confident smirk Bokuden looked around the table at each one of his students, “But whoever should fail tomorrow must perform a single task for me to be assigned at a later date. Deal?” Bokuden added the last remark to provide them a small modicum of comfort, but they didn’t really have a choice in the matter.

Miho also spoke up after hearing Bokuden’s brief introduction on Suikko-Tenno, "Hey girls, as Sensei has already introduced his baby here, shouldn't we introduce our weapons as well? In order to have a success in the battle together, we have to now how each of us work with our weapons, as I can see all of us are wielders of those. In the case if help is needed or in the case if we would like to create a combo movement, this information is essential."

Masayo wanted no part of that and shot down the idea immediately, surrendering only the information that her weapon of choice was a rapier. Miyako also still seemed too reserved and said nothing as her eyes danced back and forth between her katana and the squad. Once it was clear that neither of the two other squad members were ready to share that information Bokuden quickly interjected, “That was a good thought Miho, well done. I admire that you taking initiative in arranging formations and attack patterns with your squad mates… but let me worry about that for now. This meeting was meant more as a brief introduction rather than a full debriefing, the real meeting starts tomorrow.” Bokuden stood up from his chair and adjusted his coat before turning to face his students once more, “Our first official training session will be tomorrow at 10pm, after sundown at the lake just outside of the city gates. I hope you girls are ready.” Bokuden then picked up his sword and began making his way around the table, but not before stopping behind Masayo and pulling out the money she had slipped in his pocket. Non-chalantly Bokuden tugged gently on the back of Masayo’s bandage top, creating a space just large enough for him to tuck the folded bills in. “You’re going to have to try harder than that if you want to pull one over on me, but I appreciate the effort,” Bokuden said sarcastically before looking over to Miyako and continuing, “I understand that you’re shy, but you are going to need to get yourself mentally prepared to open up to us at some point. But I’m glad to have you on my squad.” The final student to bid farewell to was the first to arrive, the one who sat directly across from Bokuden, and the one that seemed most likely to get him into trouble, Miho. “And you,” Bokuden continued with a playful and devilish grin, “Behave yourself. This is only day one.” And with that Bokuden exited the Cafe, leaving his squad behind to prepare themselves for the fun that awaited them just one evening away.

[Exit Thread]

Miho was listening carefully for the information she was eager to know, but none of the girls really shared something interesting about their weapons. Miho now realised that the teammates wanted to be able to trust each other, but none were actually willing to reveal themselves in order to do that. However, something did caught her attention, using rapier seemed an impressive idea for her, but untill she will not see that herself, she cannot judge anything.

The time was passing and it seemed that the meeting is going to end soon. Suddenly the Seinsei stood up and took his coat for leaving. He already had his first impression on his students, so stopping by each of them said a little comment. It seemed that he was pleased with both Masayo and Miyako, but when Miho's turn came, Sensei just ordered her to behave herself as she would be the worst. Hell, she hated orders. Instead of saying something back, Miho winked with her devilish eyes and kept silent.

"Oh, I WILL be your worst nightmare."

As Sensei was already gone and the time of their training was agreed, Miho saw no point in staying here for any longer. Of course, they could stay there and chat for a bit about their lives and stuff, but Miho didn't think that those girls were of that type. At least she wasn't. Thus, she stood up and said her goodbyes.

"I'm off then as well, see you all tomorow, looking forward to our training!

She moved her feet, but stopped near the doorway as if she had forgotten something.

"By the way, Masayo, a rapier? I'm quite impressed!

She made a devilish smile for the last time and finally left the cafe.

[EXIT THREAD]

A bit later it seemed that Miyako didn't let anything know of her weapon, not even what kind it was. Masayo thought it would be kind of like their sensei since they were from the same clan, but than again she could be wrong. She did of course understand why Miho would like to know about their weapons for techniques and teamwork, but if the training was against each other than it would be in their disadventage. So she could also understand Miyako's silent but thoughtful answer. Or was she just too shy to tell? If that was indeed the case, Masayo will do no reasoning for her and just let it be. It then won't bother Masayo anylonger.

It seemed Bokuden refused to give a real answer once more, but than he wanted to make a deal. Masayo was glad about that and agreed with a smile. Now she would at least try her best to win that one question. But what if she lost? Than she had to do what Bokuden says. Not that she will lose but there is always a possibility. Well, she couldn'tback down now, she had already gave her approval for the

Suddenly, Masayo felt a finger creeping in the back of her bandaged top. After that she felt a paper like material. 'You gotta be kidding me...Why can't a person pay their own drink?' Apperantly, Bokuden never understood what 'independant' meant, but this time Masayo would let it slide since who might know what he was going to plan tomorrow. Maybe he would even punish the Yamamoto just because she wanted to pay. Their sensei gave everyone a different goodbye, but the last one that was given to Miho, made Masayo laugh silently. Masayo wanted to give comment but she kept it shut. She didn't want to ruin this comic moment.

As Miho left, she stopped and turn around to say her last words to Masayo. Masa was quite confused because what she said was a compliment. She wasn't used to getting them at all. As Miho now walked out of the door the only two that sat there were Miyako and Masayo. The raven didn't see any point in staying longer so she shoved her chair back and stood up, but not without saying goodbue to the oh so silent Miyako. Masa her hand was raised to her forehead in a military position to say goodbye.

"Miyako, I'll see you tomorrow!"

[Exit Thread]

Miyako couldn't help the spark of interest at Bokuden's challenge, even if she had no particular personal question that she wanted to ask at the moment. It was quite ingenious of Bokuden to avoid Masayo's question like that, and by promising to allow one personal question, it served as a helpful source of motivation for their training session as well. The thought of Bokuden being a generous squad leader was immediately dismissed as he added his little threat, and the fact that he didn’t specify what the consequence of failing tomorrow’s task was even more unnerving.

She eventually settled for the silence as her answer, not quite ready to show her weapon yet. To her relief, the end of their little first meeting was signalled when Bokuden stood up, giving them the details to tomorrow’s mission. “Our first official training session will be tomorrow at 10pm, after sundown at the lake just outside of the city gates. I hope you girls are ready." Miyako’s breath caught in excitement. Finally, her very first training session with her new squad as genin. Mentally taking note of the time and location, she realized that whatever this training would be, it was to be limited to just their squad, as shown by the late hour and secluded location, away from the public eye. Ready to leave herself, she stopped just before standing up, watching as Bokuden concluded the little conflict over paying the bill with Masayo. A flicker of amusement went through her – of course, it was to be expected of Bokuden to be able to sense Masayo’s little trick. But then their squad leader turned to her and Miyako stiffened in surprise, pale blue-gray eyes meeting Bokuden’s pure blue ones.

“I understand that you’re shy, but you are going to need to get yourself mentally prepared to open up to us at some point. But I’m glad to have you on my squad.” At Bokuden’s comment, she bit her life and nodded, fighting the urge to shrink back in her seat. It was one of the first times someone had paid her enough attention to openly commented about her shyness, and although she was embarrassed, she also found herself in awe. Perhaps being in a group really would do her wonders in terms of changing the way she was. Lost in her thoughts, she completely missed the exchange between Bokuden and Miho, and didn’t even notice that both had left until Masayo called out a goodbye to her. Standing up herself, she offered Masayo a tentative smile and replied, “Yeah, I’ll see you then.”

[ Exit thread ]