Ramen on My Mind[P; Taro, Saito, Amikiri, Hiroshi]

Morning tended to come fast while one was sleeping, especially when that sleeping included non-stop dreaming or worst nightmares, Otoko had become more accustomed to the latter. This was different however, usually the nightmares came at night, as the name suggested, but this one came midday during an afternoon snooze. He rolled over to check the clock and saw that he hadn’t overslept for his meet up with Taro, Saito, and Amikiri; they were other genin Otoko had met in the Academy.

Turning his head towards the side of his closet he slid out of bed and stumbled to the doorway grabbing his typical garb, strapping it all on and preparing to set out for the ramen rendezvous. Hopefully his favorite ramen shop wasn't going to be too busy at this time, he figured the 5’o’clock meeting time was early enough to bypass the crowd and ensure them a big enough table.

Now ready to head out he’d make his way to the front door of his new apartment, unlocking the door before exiting into the slums of Hoshigakure. As the genin walked he would lean his head back and take a gander at the sky following the rays of the light peaking through the clouds from the sun. He took a deep breath in and soaked up the beautiful weather, while it was cloudy out the clouds were scattered and the weather seemed perfect.

While it was an unusually early time for the boy to head to dinner, his stomach grumbled like he hadn’t eaten all day, which was possible due to Otoko regularly forgetting to eat throughout the day. As he passed through the outskirts of Hoshi City square, he paused for a moment to take in the sights and sounds, listening to the children laugh as they played tag while their parents watched with smiles on their faces. He turned back to the path ahead of him, the smile on his face from the wonderful weather was now gone and a slight frown took its place. His stomach’s growling began to crescendo as the smell of fresh made ramen bowls began to fill the air, his stomach seemingly took control of him and propelled him forward into the threshold of the restaurant.

When he entered there were only a few other people in the restaurant, he didn’t recognize any of them but one stood out from the rest, he had spiky red hair and teardrops underneath his eyes. Otoko walked over to what he estimated was the largest table here, which seemed perfect for four people, maybe even five if any random people decided to show up and join. A waiter approached the table and handed him some menus which he spread around the table for anyone to grab. He didn't need to look at the menu as he already knew what he wanted and ordered it every time he was here. Before the waiter turned to walk away, Otoko pleaded to the waiter, “ could I please get a cup of black coffee?” The waiter nodded, reassuring him that the request would be completed. He pulled out a book from his pocket and began reading to pass the time while he waited for the others to show up.

WC - 542

The dark haired Hyuuga awoke from his slumber. It wasn’t a weekend, so of course, that meant he had to go to work. The Hyuuga headed down to his job at a local grocery store. It was quite boring, especially compared to some of the off jobs, especially due to many of them being in foreign locations, he had handled as a shinobi. Before he left for work, he threw together a sandwich to eat for lunch. It was quite simple. Two slices of sourdough, some ham, and a slice of cheese. In Amikiri’s opinion, the meat to cheese ratio was key. Cheese was a strong ingredient, so one should never add too much. Meat, while flavorful and great, did not have nearly as strong of a flavor as cheese did.

Now that his lunch was prepped, the Hyuuga got into his work uniform. It consisted of white, crisp, ironed pants and a blue, half button shirt. It wasn’t extremely uncomfortable. Though, the dark haired man knew he would have to pick a new shirt soon. He wouldn’t dare define himself as big, but he had been putting on some mass. Clearly swinging around a six foot weapon, which he dubbed a “swordspear,” for practice built muscles.

On his way to work, the Hyuuga stopped by a bakery quickly. Looking at the options, and more importantly the prices, he simply decided on a bagel. He was trying to save some of his income, even though he had two, to send back to his family in the countryside. Afterall, that was the reason he did all of this.

Amikiri’s day at work went by pretty normally. Stock shelves, find time to eat some of his bagel, stock shelves again, deal with the occasional annoying customer, do even more stocking of shelves, eat his sandwich, and, big surprise, finish the day by stocking some more shelves.

Eventually, at four in the afternoon, he got off work. He told his boss he had to get off work an hour early and his boss, a bit annoyed, accepted. The reason for this early absence was that Amikiri had to meet up with some people. They were other shinobi whom Amikiri had seen at the academy sometimes. Due to Amikiri being a little further in age than they were, they only had brief overlap at the academy. But Amikiri had seen them enough to know their names.

He headed home, wanting to get out of his work uniform before he met up with them. The Hyuuga was not ashamed of his job, in fact his hard work was something he took pride in. It simply was just a matter of trying to keep his work clothes clean. Noting the sun still being in the air and the nice weather, he decided to dress a bit light today. He decided to mix it up a bit in terms of color today. Amikiri threw on a pair of blue jeans and a burnt orange shirt. He grabbed a red flannel from his closet in case it got colder later into the night. The Hyuuga put on and made sure his black leather boots were tied thoroughly tight. They came up to only about crew length, so they were a nice mix of stability while not being too limiting for his movement. He looked in the mirror before heading out. The dark haired man noticed the dark hair on his chin seemed to be growing a little thicker. The Hyuuga was happy about that. He had been trying to grow his beard for a long time now and it was finally turning out good. The man had finally gotten past the stubble stage.

Anyway, not wanting to be late, the dark haired Hyuuga headed out the door. He made his way through the city streets. Eventually, at only a couple minutes after five, made his way into the restaurant. It was a ramen place. The Hyuuga enjoyed ramen and it generally was pretty cheap, so that was even more reason to like it.

He opened the doors and surveyed the scene. Looking across the room, one person in particular caught his eye. It had been a couple of years since he had seen him at the academy, but he recognized something very distinct about him. It was Otoko, wearing that hat. He always did and the Hyuuga never knew why. He saw that the boy was reading. The Hyuuga made his way over to the table, took a seat next to Otoko, and with a bit of cheer in his voice, said, “Hey, are you by any chance Otoko? I think I’d recognize that hat anywhere.”

After saying that, Amikiri started looking over the menu. He didn’t usually eat out much, so it would probably take him a couple minutes to figure out what to get.

WC: 808

Taro Sarutobi, clad in his ripped tank shirt walked briskly through the winding streets of Hoshigakure, his destination fixed in his mind. He was on his way to meet his new teammates, at a ramen restaurant located in the inner village hidden in the stars. The sun was setting, casting a warm glow across the rooftops, and the smell of food wafted through the air, making his mouth water. His dark brown hair was filthy with the dirt of the mango orchard. After a hard days work he'd forgotten to take a shower before heading out. Dipping into a near alley with a couple barrels of recycled rain water, Taro pulled a rag from his bag and dipped it into the cool water washing his face.
The burns on his upper chest and arms were visible as he checked the condition of his clothing. He sniffed under his arms and grimaced. With a quick scrub under each arm he was satisfied he could pass as presentable. Ramen shops smelled good, so maybe no one would notice...

As he neared the restaurant in the alley, Taro slowed his pace and scanned the area for any signs of danger. Being a shinobi, he was always on high alert, ready for anything. Luckily the village was well protected, but "you can never be too careful," he could hear his grandfathers words echoe in his mind. After the house fire Taro would always have a little sense of dread deep within him. He grew up with this feeling since he was 4 years old, so he was used to it, but every now and then he would take a quick mental break to remind him that he was alright and to keep moving forward.

The restaurant was nestled between two other buildings, its red lanterns and wooden exterior giving it a cozy, inviting feel. Taro made his way inside and was greeted by the familiar smell of boiling broth and the sound of chatter from the patrons.

Looking around, Taro spotted his new teammates sitting at a table in the corner, and he made his way over to them. Otoko and Amikiri greeted him warmly as he took a seat opposite them. Taro could sense their excitement and energy, and he knew that they were eager to get started on their first mission together. But first things first: Ramen! As he sat down the waiter asked what he'd have and Taro replied with the daily special, extra spicy and a second egg, with a mango milk tea.

After the waiter left Taro smiled, "Evening lads! This place is awesome right? Who picked this place? Was that you Otoko? You sly son a gun, how you been?" He reached over and smacked the shoulder of Otoko. "Why the long face mate? The coffee too bitter? Don't stress, a big bowl of noodles and meat will perk you right up.

Taro turned his attention to Amikiri. "I've seen you around the academy, pretty skilled from the looks of it. What're you drinking? Are we just waiting on Saito?"

Taro could tell they both were skilled shinobi, and he knew that they would make a formidable team. With his mind at ease, Taro felt a sense of optimism about their future missions together, knowing that they would face whatever challenges came their way as a united front. He raised his glass, "To our bright shinobi future!"

WC 569

Saito was right on time for the day, his lists made sure of that. He was getting ready to meet for ramen with some people. He wanted to look nice like always so he made sure he washed up fully and put on clean clothes. He did not want the day's grime and sweat to make him look bad to others. After he got cleaned up he did one last look in his mirror and made sure his hair looked good and proceeded to leave his house.

The walk was not too far from his home. As he walked he could not help but pull out his itinerary for the day out of his pocket. He had made up time earlier in the day so he did do a little extra training today. While he was not a big fan of the end of the list just saying “5pm Ramen meeting”. He wanted an end time or something after but he knew from past experience meeting new people it was better to not over schedule yourself, it could come off rude. He had learned that lesson before so he always made sure to leave plenty of time for new people. He did feel anxious; he hoped that they would just be at the Ramen shop for the night and not move to a new location. New locations were rough because he never knew if what he was wearing would be a reasonable outfit, he had to do a little research before going to a new place. Luckily tonight was scheduled at a Ramen shop he frequented enough that most if not all the workers knew him.

He could see the ramen shop, Saito made sure the itinerary was firmly in his pocket, though losing it would not be the worst thing since this was the last thing on it. He walked in and already spotted the group he was joining. He felt a little ashamed realizing he was last to arrive. He caught the server that had just left their table and asked for his usual to be brought out whenever the rest was brought out. He made his way to the table and gave a polite bow before sitting. It seemed like he just missed a toast.

“Sorry for my tardiness. I am Saito Hyuuga” he gave a polite smile. He was not sure if they remembered him so a polite reminder is always good.

Saito looked at each person at the table smiling and taking in each person and what they were wearing. Of course the hat of Otoko was there, it was always there. He felt like it was always there regardless of the venue or time. Saito could not judge; he was sure at least some people knew he always had at least an itinerary in his pocket, maybe even some lists.

Saito lingered a little longer on the other Hyuuga because he was least familiar to him.
Saito had always somewhat kept to himself, his daily plans and lists kind of made it hard to meet new people let alone hang out often. Saito knew that was a downfall but the pros of having a plan always outweighed all the cons, at least in Saito's opinion. The only other Hyuuga he was close to had died in the revolt. He did not linger on it, it had happened Years ago and he had healed since then. Though he never got close to any other Hyuugas but that seemed like it could change.

Saito had sat next to Taro, Saito thought he caught a whiff of something but was not too foul and quickly dissipated with all the ramen around. Saito was not even sure he smelled anything at all. Which was good since Saito had a sudden alarm in his head go off worrying he had just smelled himself. Saito knew Taro had a mango farm, he actually tried to keep some of the mangos in his house at all times. They were a great snack and easy to prepare so even when he snacked on them, scheduled or unscheduled, it did not mess up his plans for the day.

Saito did note that he felt that he was the most presentable but he made sure he did not show it on his face. That did make him feel good and relax just slightly knowing that he was not underdressed or even worse smelled bad.

Saito put his hands together above the table in a polite way, that is just how he waited for food and drink. Saito waited for someone else to talk, he had not planned this event so he had planned on taking a back seat until it started going at least. He felt it may come off rude if he began talking and asking questions right off the bat.


WC:  808

The sound of his black sandals scrapping on the peddled streets made his presence known as he moved through the city and to the shipyard.  His pack of cigarettes was resting in his back pocket; his left hand gave the lighter a flick.  A gentle floral aroma wafted from the cigarette, thin strands of smoke wafting in the wind.  As for his attire, he'd opted for a black and white kimono that was a little more well-worn than his typical taste.  Still, beggars need to be choosers, or however that saying went.  The hair of the Hiroshi was pulled back tight and low, showing off the features of the battle-hardened warrior he viewed himself as.

He walked into a bar. Not that kind of bar; it served ramen, a ramen bar. That was Hiroshi's favorite food. To wash it down, he ordered the usual dumpling ramen with chicken and a cup of finely brewed sake. His recent work inside the village walls had proven lucrative enough to make him afford a meal occasionally. On one of the benches, a weird fellowship began to amass. A joker dressed in a cowboy hat, a samurai, a martial artist in a gi, and someone dressed up like a knight.

"What is this the beginning of a joke? "Hiroshi thought and made his way toward the group, sake bottle at hand.

"Hey there," Hiroshi said to the cowboy, wondering if he'd receive a tip of his hat. "You look like you are having a laugh. I could use one! May I join you?" If they humored his request, Hiroshi would find an open seat on the bench and introduce himself. "I'm Hiroshi," he said, sipping his sake. "What brings you all to the City Square? Are you adventures on a quest to defeat an evil sorcerer who's been terrorizing nearby villages?" He would ask only half-jokingly.

[WC: 311]

Otoko looked up from his book when an unexpected presence took a seat next to him. He had a tendency to get lost in his books when he was reading something we really enjoyed, which was the case with almost every book he read.

“Hey, are you by any chance Otoko? I think I’d recognize that hat anywhere.”

Otoko nodded at the familiar face. “I am! It’s good to see you again Amikiri!”

He looked up at his hat and smirked, if he had any sort of unique feature it really was his hat and he took pride in it as it was given to him by his father before he passed. Although he was a couple years older than Otoko and they never really ran in the same circles, Otoko rarely ever forgot a face. As his newly arrived company began to peruse the menu, Otoko took the chance to put his book away and ensure he wasn’t rude to his renewed acquaintance.

Another presence neared the table seemingly bounding with energy and exuberance. As quickly as this new wave of energy arrived at the table he had placed an order for himself and then shot what felt like a rapid firing of questions that Otoko didn’t really have time to answer and could really only nod and smile along. The smack to the shoulder was a nice little wake up call, if the coffee hadn’t done its job yet then that surely did, but Otoko wasn’t bothered by it as Taro hadn't really changed much since their academy days and he had come to expect this from him.

After Taro got done placing his order the waiter turned to Otoko and raised his eyebrows as if trying to pry an order from Otoko’s lips.

“I will have a bowl of your miso ramen with some chashu pork, please.” Otoko nodded his head to the waiter in thanks and smiled. He then raised his coffee to cheers with Taro and took a nice long sip. The coffee was good today, but he wished it was slightly stronger.

As the cheers subsided, a presence that seemed to be almost the exact opposite of Taro, broke the silence, “sorry for my tardiness. I am Saito Hyuuga.” Otoko smiled and nodded at yet another friendly and familiar face.

“How goes it Saito?”

Shortly after Saito arrived, someone who Otoko was not expecting approached the table. It was the red haired guy that had caught his attention earlier when he entered the establishment.

“Hey there.” The unfamiliar man spoke in a seemingly friendly tone. Otoko tipped his hat at the stranger, almost like he was expecting the gesture.

“Hi Hiroshi, I am Otoko, this is Amikiri, that is Taro, and that is Saito,” gesturing to each of his friends.

Otoko began taking a sip of his coffee when Hiroshi started talking about some evil wizard terrorizing villages. He leaned into the table with a questioning look on his face.

“Are you serious? Is there an evil wizard that needs to be taken out?” Otoko waited in anticipation for a response.

WC - 517
TWC - 1059

Amikiri perused the menu, trying to figure out his food for the night. First things first though, he decided he’d start by getting a beverage. A waiter walked by and Amikiri requested if he could have a glass of water. The waiter nodded and smiled, saying that he’ll be back with it shortly. Amikiri sat there for a second lightly tapping his fingers on the table. He wasn’t too concerned about the environment around them, the inner city of Hoshigakure was pretty safe. The Hyuuga didn’t have his Great Spear with him at the moment, but if worse came to worse, his basic ninja tools could do the job.

At this moment, the black haired Hyuuga saw another person enter the restaurant. This person in question made their way over to the table where Amikiri and Otoko sat and joined them. It took the Hyuuga a second to recognize the boy but, after a bit of time, Amikiri recognized him as Taro. Similar to Otoko, he had seen him a couple times before, but their age gap had minimized any time they would have seen each other at the academy. Taro greeted the group, saying “Evening lads! This place is awesome right? Who picked this place? Was that you Otoko?”

The Hyuuga nodded in response to that, showing his agreement. The location was pretty nice and seemed pretty cheap. The atmosphere was great and, while the Hyuuga disagreed with the architectural style, had to compliment his observed sturdiness of the structure.

Taro’s dress style was quite interesting. He sported a ripped shirt which Amikiri thought was quite informal and inappropriate for the scenario they were in. However, as much as Amikiri disagreed with his dress, the Hyuuga thought that this could be a sign of a hardworking man. Though, a hardworking man should take the time to maintain himself.

The Hyuuga then noticed Taro looking towards Amikiri, with the Sarutobi saying, “I’ve seen you around the academy, pretty skilled from the looks of it. What’re you drinking? Are we just waiting on Saito?”

The dark haired Hyuuga worked through his questions one at a time, saying, “Thanks for the compliment man. I haven’t been there that much recently, but work calls me there from time to time. You know how it is.” Responding to the underdressed man’s second question, Amikiri slightly shook his glass of water that had just arrived, claiming, “It’s good for your health. It’s important to stay hydrated.” Answering the last question, the Hyuuga, not fully remembering a person named Saito, “I don’t know that much about a Saito fellow. I certainly know the name, but I can’t match a face or person to it.”

Saito then raised a glass, saying, “To our bright shinobi future!” The Hyuuga joined on this toast, but a little more quietly than the others. The City Square held quite a few religious establishments and Amikiri would prefer not to have too many people know about his side job as a shinobi. If someone saw him here and at his workplace, there was a slight chance he might get fired.

Regardless of this though, Amikiri saw in the corner of his peripheral vision a new figure approaching. This one seemed dressed in the opposite way of Taro, as he had clean hair and the rest of his appearance was very well kept. This new face got close and gave a polite bow to the group before apologizing, “Sorry for my tardiness. I am Saito Hyuuga.”

Amikiri quickly remarked, “It’s fine. This is just a casual meetup. At least, I think it is.” As Saito took a seat, Amikiri scanned him up and down. The Hyuuga clan name drew Amikiri’s interest and Amikiri noted the distinctive eyes of an inactive Byakugan. Saito sat down next to Taro, which would put him across the table from Amikiri. Amikiri extended his hand to the other Hyuuga, trying to initiate a handshake as well as saying, “It’s nice to meet you Saito. My name is Amikiri.”

Now that it seemed a solid group of four had formed, Amikiri turned to Otoko, asking, “So anyway Otoko, what is the point of this meeting? You were here first, so I assume you organized this.”

Only seconds after the Hyuuga asked this question, a new face appeared. Amikiri noticed that Otoko seemed a little surprised by this man’s appearance. Amikiri said, “Sure, we’d be happy to have you here with us.” Amikiri was also surprised by the appearance of this man. Specifically, in his looks. The man towered over Amikiri though as Hiroshi moved to sit down, Amikiri noticed he was a similar height to Otoko. Amikiri, though it didn’t matter much, quickly realized that he was the shortest one here. Most interestingly though, was Hiroshi’s age. All the other ninjas were a couple years younger than Amikiri but Hiroshi seemed to be at least five years older than Amikiri.

Hiroshi joined the group, asking, “Are you on a quest to defeat an evil sorcerer who’s been terrorizing nearby villages?” Otoko immediately shot back with a response, seeming to take this seriously.

The Hyuuga was able to understand that Hiroshi seemed to be joking and Amikiri responded, in a joking manner, with, “Yep. He’s been up to no good and we’re here to stop him.”

WC: 836 (all dialogue written by other player’s has been removed from this)
TWC: 1644

Devouring the recent dumplings that were just delivered at the table, Taro chuckled with a mouth full at Hiroshi's comment. Swallowing he said, "Defeat an evil sorcerer? Well, technically speaking, most if not all of us here are sorcerers," Taro said, with a grin.

He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. "I mean, think about it. We all know some form of ninjutsu, which is essentially casting magic. We can disappear into thin air, summon beasts to do our bidding, and even control the elements themselves. If that's not sorcery, I don't know what is."

Taro continued. "I don't think we're really the type to go on some grand quest to defeat an evil sorcerer, though. We're more like the behind-the-scenes, sneaky types. The ones who take care of things quietly and efficiently, without anyone ever knowing we were there." With a grin he looked over Otoko. Quickly wrapping his arm around his shoulders so that his hand could easily reach his bare neck, pretending his thumb was a knife.

He paused for a moment, winking at the rest of the members of the table, he released Otoko, sitting back down. After taking a quick gulp of his drink he slammed the cup back down on the table, raising a clenched fist, "But who knows? Maybe one day we'll come across some cheeky bloke who fancy's himself as an actual evil sorcerer. And when that day comes, I'll be ready with my ninja magic to take the wind out of his sail!"

Looking for a good laugh from the group, Taro felt a sense of warmth and camaraderie with the people around the table. As a sign of good will to everyone, Taro pulled out a small package of freshly dried candied mangoes from his family's orchard and placed it in the middle of the table. He hoped that this small gesture would show them that whether they thought he was funny or not, they could not deny that he was friendly.

[WC: 339]
[TWC: 908]

Saito was barely able to get the words “It is going well” to respond to Otaku, when the other Hyuuga extended their hand and introduced themself. Saito politely shook Amikiris hand. “It is always nice to meet another Hyuuga.” Saito had met new people in group settings and not everyone always shook hands and had a proper introduction. Saito preferred proper introductions so he took a mental note of how Amikiri handled the situation.

A new man had walked up to the table and made a joke and while Saito understood it was in good fun he could not help but to feel like he was the butt of the joke. That being Saito liked the semi-formality after the joke asking to join rather than just sitting. Saito had expected the man just to sit, after all he was carrying a bottle of sake. Saito nodded when Otaku introduced each of them.

Saito remained quiet. There was a lot of new information for his brain to take in, he was meeting new people, a new Hyuuga at that. The only reason he was not in full overload was because he had already been to this particular place so he had less to focus on and to take in.

Then Taro went in with his interpretation of shinobis as sorcerers which was just a weird argument to make and kind of made Saito embarrassed to be associated with him at all. Though Saito could not help but let a little grin grow on his face, it was absurd after all but the conviction he spoke in you could not help but to have a small laugh.

Saito grabbed a freshly offered dried mango, it would be rude not to but also he knew they would be good. He also wanted to show that he was not too stiff in his ways and show his support of Taro.  

Saito, while still unsure if there was any sort of agenda to this meeting, was having a good time. He was glad that he had not scheduled anything after. It had only been a few minutes but Saito had a feeling this might not be a short meeting, or night even. Saito knew he would start loosening up shortly as he was even now starting to relax as he began to get accustomed to everyone and everything.  

WC: 393
TWC: 1201