It didn't matter. Her feelings, her dreams, her idea of a happy life spent with people she loved. It was all just an illusion. Why had no-one prepared her for this? Why had her father made her believe she could choose her own path for 15 years?
A cold breeze sprang up, blowing through her hair as she walked toward the entrance of the Sky Bar. One more month. No, not quite, she'd been staying at Bokuden's house for over a week now. And still, she wouldn't even need a day to choose between her father's life and her own freedom.

The bar was a popular place, like Bokuden had told her. Crowded with young people laughing, dancing and just having a good time. For a short moment, Misoka stopped in her tracks, unsure whether she should really spend the evening here. Was this the right place to be sulking? A wave of anger washed over her. Come on, she knew better than that. She hated to feel sorry for herself and show weakness this way. She hadn't come here to cry about how unfair her life was. This would be just... plain stupid. She was here to take her mind off these things she would deal with later. Oh, and try to get rid of her terrible pessimism.

"Sake, please." She ordered after taking a seat at the bar.
"Are you 16 or older?"
Misoka looked up. She would turn 16 in a few months, but she didn't want to argue now. "Ah...no, never mind. I'll have a-"
"Haha, don't worry. You look like you need one." The barkeeper cut her off with a smile and started pouring sake in a small cup.
Misoka watched him half-heartedly while her mind wandered. Truth was she wasn't used to alcohol so she shouldn't go overboard. And on a different note, she hoped Bokuden wouldn't be disappointed about her leaving. She had left him a message that she would go to Sky Bar tonight so he shouldn't be worried. Somehow, thinking about Bokuden... hurt. In a way she didn't quite know how to describe. Or she just didn't want to dwell on it any further. This was dangerous. She had said so before, when they were dancing at the banquet.

"There you go," the barkeeper said sweetly and gave her the cup of sake.
"Thank you." Her lips curved into a faint smile as she took a sip. It tasted lukewarm and extremely dry. She grimaced.
The barkeeper laughed. "Don't worry, it gets better after a while."
"If you say so..." she mumbled, but put the cup down for a moment and looked around, watching the happy, drunk and lustful faces of the people here. Well...happy would be a good goal for tonight, huh?

pre-timeskip; aka: "short arrogant kenji"

A mid tempo rhythm was exciting the sky bar. Many people were out on the dance floor. The blue haired shinobi was joined in the middle of the dance floor by two women who were sandwiching him. Kenji's attention was stolen by a lady who's beauty had caught his attention before. The two women he was dancing with were quite attractive, but Kenji decided to join the familiar lady that was sitting at the bar. Misoka, I didn't think I'd see her here, she looks a little down, I should at least say hi. Kenji was now standing beside Misoka not acknowledging her yet. "A sweet tea Sir." "Have it for you in a second" The bartender didn't exaggerate, almost instantly he was sliding a tall glass of sweet tea chilled with cubes of ice. Kenji took a seat and proceeding to take a small sip from his beverage followed by a satisfying sigh. Now looking at Misoka, Kenji greeted the young lady; "Don't tell me you don't remember me; how could you forget the guy who tried to kill a precious squirrel." Kenji was only kidding, he knew she hadn't forgotten the brash shinobi with teal hair. Kenji's nose began to twitch as he could smell the alcohol in Misoka's beverage, he smiled, "I see you're still enjoying Kumokare Misoka, but don't enjoy it too much now" Kenji said glancing at her cup of sake,"how much longer wil you'll be staying in village hidden in the clouds?"

"A sweet tea, Sir."
That voice sounded familiar. Misoka blinked in surprise, throwing a sideways-glance at the young man beside her.
Shortly after he had received his order, he turned to her with a smile. Right! It was Kenji, the boy she'd met on her second day in Kumo.
"Don't tell me you don't remember me; how could you forget the guy who tried to kill a precious squirrel."
She couldn't help it: A soft chuckle escaped her lips as she recalled their first meeting and how she'd scolded him for threatening a defenseless animal.
"How could I forget, Kenji?" Misoka replied with an amused smile. "It's great to see you again."
And it really was. Someone like Kenji always knew how to lighten up the mood. An ability she could definitely need at the moment.
She followed Kenji's glance towards her cup of sake and blushed ever so slightly. "Um... I don't usually drink." Then she cleared her throat to answer his next question, trying hard to keep her voice steady.
"Well... I'll be staying in Kumo for roughly three weeks, then I need to return to Suna."
A big lump formed in her throat and all she could think of was that she wouldn't go home. Not like she'd always thought she would one day.
Quickly, she took a sip of sake, still shivering slightly at the horrible taste. How long did it take for that drink to 'get better'?
"So... what brings you here? Do you like bars?" Misoka asked casually, trying to make a bit small talk, but rather because she wanted to change the topic as quickly as possible.

She listened closely, concentrating on his words rather than returning to thoughts about her beautiful future. Kenji was right. This bar seemed like fun or at least everyone else was enjoying themselves. There were all kinds of people here: the dancing queens and kings, the drinkers, couples... the list could go on and on. Question was: Which category did she belong to? Drinkers? Surely not with that dry sake.
"Okay," she said, throwing Kenji an almost challenging look. "So what does the bar have to offer?"
That was the moment that she couldn't care less about what Kenji would show her as long as she would have a truthfully happier expression on her face. Once again she reminded herself of the reason why she'd come here: to forget, at least for one evening. To loosen up. To laugh.
She would achieve none of that if she kept sitting at the bar, sipping her sake with the longest face you could make. Perhaps, she should call herself lucky for meeting Kenji here. A carefree, loud and last, but not least, arrogant - there was really no denying of it - boy who knew how to throw jokes at the right moment. Her lips curved into a slight grin. Yeah, he was not that bad.

[OOC~Forgive my music selection, it was the first thing to come to mind. XDD]

Kenji's song as he dances in the center of the dance floor, ends when he leaves the circle:

"Can you feel that?"  Kenji said looking at the welcoming Misoka, referencing the increasing activity of the bar, catalyzed by the captivating music. Kenjii had amazing coordination and his agility made him a phenomenal dancer. Kenji reached his right hand out to Misoka. She wanted him to show her what the Sky Bar had to offer, he would do just that. He led her to the dance floor; the beat from the song dropped, and Kenji made his way to the center as Misoka watched Kenji put on a spetacle for her enjoyment. The people made a circle giving the blue haried boy, who was no stranger to the bar space. Kenji spun around and danced, moving rhythmically to the music. He waved his hands around, captivating the club with his glove's shiny surface and performed a few acrobatic feats, that to him were as easy as walking. He then walked to the rhythm of the music back to Misoka, as he did the circle formed by the club broke as they cheered and everyone was now gliding and swaying to the music.

The song was ended short and replaced with this one that plays for the rest of the post:

Kenji was laughing as he made his way back to the her. It was a short display of his playful nature, hopefully once she saw him so casually dive into the heart of of the bar, she would find it easier and feel more comfortable just... being silly. He looked her up and down, "You've got the physique... but do you have the rhythm?" He smiled as he teased slightly, a new song replaced the previous one Kenji was dancing to, this song had a constant up tempo, it was sure to send the club in an absolute frenzy. Kenji looked around then back at Misoka, "Show me what you've got. Unless you're scared?" He put the palm of his hand up facing her(wearing glove of reflection) allowing her to see her reflection, "You look a little scared to me, what do you think?"

She followed Kenji to the dancefloor, letting her eyes wander across the young people jumping up and down and singing to their favorite songs. The music roared in the air. Misoka could practically feel every thump of the bass permeating her skin. Now she knew that she had never been on a real dance floor before. The small clubs in Suna she had gone to every now and then were nothing compared to this.
Before Misoka could say anything, which wouldn’t have been audible anyway though, Kenji walked over to the DJ and whispered something in his ear.
Another song came up shortly after and everyone cheered for it or, no, for Kenji.
The blue-haired boy had placed himself in the middle of the dancefloor and started moving to the rhythm like crazy. At first, Misoka couldn’t believe her eyes – the dance looked embarrassing and funny at the same time - , but she soon had to admit to herself that Kenji was really talented. She wasn’t the only one who noticed: A group of girls screamed his name (they seemed to know him as well) and when the dance was over, everyone clapped for him.  
Somehow Misoka felt the burden of all her previous heavy thoughts lighten. Was it the music filling her ears? The way Kenji had so much fun dancing to the rhythm? Or the other people whose loud happiness was contagious? Probably a combination of everything. What really mattered was: It worked.

As Kenji returned, he gave her a smirk, remarking on how she looked a little scared.
Misoka blinked in surprise, but soon decided to play along. Her pride wouldn’t let her decline this challenge anyway. Narrowing her eyes, she called out smugly,”Scared? I don’t think so.”
Without another word, she walked past him to the DJ and requested her own song.
“Step back, please,” she then said to the crowd who immediately made room for her. Misoka knew what she had in mind, but she just hoped it would work as well as she imagined it.
The moment the music reached her ears, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. And then she started spinning like she had done so lots of times before in combat, building up chakra in her legs and releasing it as flickering flames.
The faster she moved around in her little fire dance, the easier it seemed to become. At one point, she actually found joy in the crowd’s cheering and her feeling of embarrassment vanished. This was a game. Nothing serious, just having fun. She was just goofing around. And it felt great.

When the song came to an end, she bowed to the crowd playfully and couldn’t help but laugh. How did she end up dancing in front of so many people? Okay, now it was official: Tonight, she just didn’t care.
“So…” With a wide grin, she walked back to Kenji. Truth be told, she felt a bit lightheaded, but it didn’t bother her. “What’s next?”

The song (xD):

Kenji watched in awe as Misoka stepped up to the challenge without hesitation. She walked to the center of the dance floor, she was slowly becoming more relaxed and then BOOM! She starts spinning rapidly generating flickering flames from her legs. Oh, she had the rhythm alright, she let the music dictate her movements; it seemed like she was having... fun.

Kenji shook his head in attempt to remove the puzzled look from his face and replaced it with a grin. Misoka was walking back in Kenji's direction; the crowd was cheering for her. A gleeful expression was on her face and she wasted no time, What's next? The music was still playing, and after the show Misoka and Kenji put on, everyone got out of their seats to share in the fun. Kenji shot a glance at the empty bar and turned to Misoka with an mischievous grin on his face.

Follow me. The two arrived at the empty bar, Looks familiar doesn't it... Kenji said with a smile. The bartender walked over, Kenji explained, My friend and I would like to play a game--- The bartender interrupted, Game of Thrones. He began to smile then said, Two drinks coming up. Kenji didn't know if she was familiar with the game... Do you know how to play? Even though the two of them were having a great time, Kenji still didn't know that much about Misoka, and vice versa. This would be a fun way for them to get to know each other better.

[haha your post cracked me up xD let's just pretend for a moment they've got TVs xD]

Game of Thrones? One of her favorite shows? Misoka didn't quite know what game he meant. Perhaps, he was referring to a specific scene... and then it hit her. That episode when Tyrion challenged Bronn and Shei to a drinking game! This must be the reason why the bartender came back and placed two alcoholic drinks in front of them.
Misoka sat down and asked,"So you make an assumption about my past? If you're right, I have to drink. If you're wrong, you drink. And then it's my turn. Hmm.." She should feel nervous or refuse to play in the first place. But all she did was say,"Alright, let's see if you're a good judge of character."
And so it started.

[ooc~XD]

"So you make an assumption about my past? If you're right, I have to drink. If you're wrong, you drink. And then it's my turn. Hmm.." Kenji nodded, so she knew the game, but would she agree to participating... ,"Alright, let's see if you're a good judge of character." Kenji smiled and looked at the drink in front of him.

Kenji had his chin up and tapping it with his index finger, he remembered Misoka's response to the question he asked her at the durian tree, about if she had a boyfriend or not, "She said it was because her clan was very possessive over their female members." Kenji smiled as he absorbed all the information he already knew about Misoka from observation and their earlier meeting. "You've never backed down from a challenge." Kenji proposed as she so willingly answered Kenji's dance battle request, was it a prideful action or her wanting to mix things up. Kenji was interested if she was indeed a prideful and brave person, it would be contrary to his current view of her, which was that she was meek and reserved. Even if he was wrong there was still a chance she was prideful, but he thought it an interesting assumption either way.

An amused smile played upon her lips when she heard Kenji's statement. Never backed down from a challenge, huh? She thought back to all the situations when her pride had kicked in, giving her courage to accept any battle. Since she was usually shy and reserved on first meetings, though, many people liked to underestimate her.
Misoka had her eyes locked on the glass in her hand, waited for one more moment and then took a sip. The red wine felt hot in her throat. "Not bad," she said afterwards and smiled. "Although my pride put me into trouble more than once. But I don't like being underestimated."

Regarding Kenji closely, she murmured,"My turn." What did she know about him so far? He was very convinced of his combat skills; his interactions with Bokuden had proved that. Then she remembered how he had soon tried to seclude himself from the conversation and sat down to have a snack. This seemed to go against his cheerful and outgoing self tonight. But she knew how complex a human's personality was: The way people acted didn't only depend on their character, but on the circumstances as well.
Then there was that strange girl who he claimed to know from his childhood.
Misoka kept all information in mind before her lips parted. She was going for a wild guess, but no risk, no fun. "Your clan has always been proud of your combat skills."

Not proud of him? Misoka raised an eyebrow, but chose not to comment on his statement. He didn't seem too comfortable talking about his clan.
After he had taken his sip of wine, a short pause followed. She regarded him curiously, wondering what he was going to say next. And still his words took her by surprise then.
"You sometimes regret being so beautiful."
The baffled look on her face slowly changed into a thin smile. Clever. "You realize this is a risky assumption to make, don't you? I doubt many girls would be unhappy about being beautiful, but..." She raised her glass. "...I'm weird enough to drink on it." Not going into detail on the reasons why, she took another sip of her drink, watching Kenji closely. "I'm impressed. You're good at this game."
I should stop playing, she thought, slightly alert by the look on Kenji's face. He was curious and cunning enough to work his way around to her chamber of secrets. ..Before the alcohol gets the better of me.
But then she told herself to go one more round. "You..." For a split second, she hesitated, knowing very well that she was about to change the direction of their game dramatically. "...killed your first man before you were twelve."

"You...killed your first man before you were twelve." Kenji had a serious and solemn look on his face, Actually it was a woman… I’m kidding! I didn’t kill anyone before the age of twelve. Kenji continued to laugh. Now he had to admit, he was indeed a shinobi and killing was a byproduct of the occupation, but he couldn’t help but to be amused. I became a shinobi only recently, my clan doesn’t condone shinobi hood. However, just recently they have reconsidered their dogma. They now slightly get involved with shinobi affairs, but there are massive restrictions. I am the… second I believe to become a shinobi from my clan. Now, I’m not saying you have to be a ninja to kill someone, but yeah, I didn’t kill anyone before I became a shinobi.



Kenji pushed his drink away, if we continue to play this game I don’t think you’ll be able to stand up straight and I’m too sober to allow such a thing to occur. This is the end of the tour for now, too much of the sky bar in one night can be extremely dangerous. He paused, I had a great time with you, and hopefully we can do this again soon. He put down some ryo for his and Misoka’s drinks. I don’t want to make the mistake of underestimating you, if you fight as well as you dance I’m sure you’ll be fine, but do you want me to accompany you back to your place.

Misoka smiled and shook her head no. Kenji gave a slight nod in return and exited the sky bar.