Seedy People

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It's winter in Fang.

Heavy gray clouds paint the sky, and the cobblestone streets are dappled with slushy, half-melted snow. The temperature is just above freezing, with a chilly breeze in the air. Not far down the street, the market streets bustle even in the cold of winter, dominated by this town's greatest claim to fame - seafood. Heaping piles of salmon, crab, eel and oysters fill the air with a distinct fishy tang - that only intensifies when you leave the market and go nearer to the docks.

Kekkonmon, with its quaint narrow streets and open-air markets, is best known as a peaceful, romantic retreat. Inoshishi had come here with the expectation that there'd be few missing-nin in such a peaceful place to compete with. She had been correct... but that also meant a relative lack of demand. Clients were able to be selective, and that usually left the awkward, socially hapless Inoshishi with empty pockets.

She needs... somebody to work with. Somebody who knows how to talk to people. The trouble, then, is that you need to know how to talk to people to get a decent partner.

Inoshishi had noticed Ember, of course. She's not particularly observant, compared to other shinobi, but it's hard not to notice Ember. Inoshishi heavily suspects that she is a kunoichi, but she second-guesses herself. Inoshishi watches, briefly, from where she leans against the wall across the street. She's dressed cozily, maybe even a little too warmly for the weather, a faded and torn checkered scarf draped around her shoulders. Her broad-rimmed hat has collected a bit of the snow that was falling earlier, indicating that she's been outside for a fair while. As usual, her poise and manner of dress aren't particularly ladylike - Ember's mistake is easy enough to make.

Ember catches her watching... and then stands up and strides out of the restaurant.

Inoshishi huffs in frustration, rolling her eyes and slouching slightly against the damp stone behind her. She hadn't even done anything this time! She hadn't had the chance to screw up! "Whatever," she mutters, rubbing at her eyebrows under the wide brim of her hat. She takes a deep breath - okay, relax. Walk back those thoughts. Be professional and mature. Being observed by a stranger, as a missing-nin, is never encouraging. Ember is acting perfectly reasonable under the circumstances, Inoshishi tells herself, and she lifts her head up again.

She dips into an alleyway and scrambles up the side of the wall, stretching out her arms once she reaches the roof - before darting forwards and hopping to the next building, following the woman at a leisurely pace. This at once communicates that she is also a shinobi, and that she is intentionally making little attempt to hide. The next time Ember catches a glimpse of her following behind on the low rooftops, she raises her hand in a quick 'stop' gesture, palm out.

[Tree Climbing/Surface Walking used, -1 AP.]
[484]

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Hiroaki had been conversing with a pirate in an alleyway. "A hundred ryo or no deal.", stated Lorenzo the pirate. Hiroaki shook his head at the man's offer. Lorenzo grunted at the man and tugged at the hilt of his cutlass. "A hundred ryo or no capability of making future deals, savvy?", the pirate revised. Hiroaki's eyes locked onto the man's in tension. Neither of them made a move except for the rising and lowering of their chests from their nervous breathing. "-keep following me like this we're going to have a problem!", a shout came from the rooftops. Lorenzo and Hiroaki pulled their blades free and aimed it at each other's throats.
     
A smile crept across both of their faces. Hiroaki left out a big hearty laughter. 'This bastard almost had me for a second', he thought. Lorenzo put away his cutlass and Hiroaki followed suit with his katana. The pirate put his arm on Hiroaki's shoulder. "Ahaha, I could never charge a fellow dreamer", he shouted. The hand on Hiroaki's shoulder moved down to his arm. The two tugged out their agreement before Hiroaki required his arm back to cover one of his fitful coughs. "You have your deal. Now you might want to see what lass is cryin' in distress. You never know if she will be a pretty one, aye?", he told Hiroaki. He turned his back. "As for me. I have enough back home, ahaha.", he said taking his leave. 

Hiroaki smirked at the man's back. 'A pirate, huh.', thought Hiroaki. He had traveled a good portion of the world, but not much by sea. He leaned back against the alleyway wall and turned his attention to the rooftops. "Throw down ten ryo if you need aid, or twenty ryo if you are wasting my time", shouted Hiroaki jokingly. 

OOC:

(WC: 304)

Inoshishi makes an annoyed noise in her throat. Academically, she is aware that she is acting highly shady, but it still grates on her to be so distrusted. Missing-nin always have to be so flighty...

Then Ember settles into that shaky, novice fighting stance, and a pang of guilt shoots through Inoshishi. She'd been operating under two theories: one, that Ember isn't a shinobi, which has been ruled out. The second, that Ember is a shinobi and much more experienced than Inoshishi is... which also seems to have been ruled out.

Inoshishi slowly settles herself down into a seated position at the edge of her rooftop, and holds up both hands in a placating gesture. "I just need someone to work with," she calls. "If you wanna leave now, I'll stay put right here..."

This was a mistake. She'd sat on a bunch of slush and now her butt is cold. She's making a fool of herself on multiple fronts. Then someone starts jeering from below, and Inoshishi immediately begins to snap back - "I'll pay you thirty to fuck off and d--" but she cuts herself off, voice trailing as she squints down at the newcomer from under the brim of her hat. He's leaning back against the wall like some kind of cool guy. How old is he, sixteen...? It's always hard for her to tell. In any case, likely too young for her to feel all that good telling him to fuck off and die, even if he's much better armed than she is.

Inoshishi awkwardly stares at him for a moment before turning her attention back to Ember. She really isn't enjoying shouting at one another from across the rooftops like assholes. It tends to attract attention. It's already attracted attention! Pointy attention!

[296]
[TWC - 780]
[Welcome Hiroaki! n__n Apologies for Inoshishi's cool reception.]

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When he heard one of the women talking about needing someone to work with he shook his head. 'Guess they don't need me', thought Hiroaki. He wanted to make sure this was the case though. Lorenzo was wise in telling him to check up on them as he could potentially make a profit off of this whole situation. "Hey, you s-", he began. Hiroaki had been cut off by a sound of a splash and a girl laughing. The two of them seemed fine to Hiroaki he guess. Hiroaki, whose back was still against the wall had let out the tension from his body. That's when he heard it...

'Thirty to fuck off and die, huh', thought Hiroaki. He knew that was what the brat on the roof was going to finish with. Hiroaki stood squarely on his two feet with his katana drawn. "Go ahead and say that again, you brat!", he shouted. He could hear the second one on the rooftop commending the first. The veins on Hiroaki's forehead began to spread, showing his anger. The two girls wouldn't be able to see this detail however, as his long hair covered it. "I swear! Let's settle this like m-", he ranted. This time he was interrupted by the owner of the house they were on who had bluntly told them to get the hell off his roof.

Hiroaki had missed the man saying that he was hiring people for a job until the second woman had asked if he wanted in on the mission. Hiroaki shook the anger out of his head and slowly let his body relax without letting down his guard all the same. "When have I-", he coughed, "ever declined an offer that involved money?", he said rhetorically. Hiroaki recalled his obligations to the restaurant he works at. "Ah, but...it has to stay around these parts, of course. Also, I'd like names. I'm Hiroaki.", he finished. He usually didn't care for other peoples business, but they weren't the one's that would be throwing the ryo at him so he felt he could ask.

(WC: 325 | TWC: 629)

OOC:

Ember's encouragement draws a few more choice insults to Inoshishi's mind, and she leans forward where she sits, looking quite tempted to take Hiroaki up on his offer. Before she can make any decisions she will regret, the presumed owner of one of the buildings steps in, and she settles back with a roll of her eyes. Then she removes her own hat, feeling suddenly self-conscious about it next to the man's ridiculous getup, running a hand along her buzzed hair and taking a deep breath. Their heckler looks like he's calmed down a smidge at the prospect of a mission, so she should probably be... mature, or whatever. Successfully patch up one bad first impression, the next thing you know strangers are waving swords at you...

"Yeah, I'm in," she calls. She lets herself slip off the roof and lands on her feet with a gentle thump, giving a quick look up at Ember to encourage her to follow. "Sorry for being rude," she adds with a sidelong glance to Hiroaki, crossing her arms defensively with a guarded, appraising look. Allegedly, these matters go better if you are 'cooperative' and 'pleasant'. He's also armed, which means that he's faring better out here than she is, given that Inoshishi has had to sell all of her weapons to afford to eat.

"Call me Inoshishi." They're a long ways from the clan's stomping grounds, so hopefully, none of them will give her too much fuss for only giving a family name. She taps her fingers impatiently where they rest on her arm, giving their suspicious-looking potential client a pointed staredown. "You don't look like you're going to want to talk about this out here," she says bluntly. Truth be told, she's also kind of tired of the cold and wet.

[299]
[TWC - 1079]

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