The morning sun ascended over Saffron as the commonfolk stirred and wandered into the streets. Rice farmers tended their crop, traders set up kiosks, and people roamed aimlessly, ignoring the dangers of the world beyond. Just beyond the log barricades, wild Pokémon assaulted the weak, bandits pillaged the traveler, and wars waged, but the citizens of Saffron seemed to care not. For now, at least, the great Shogun's castle that towered at the center of Saffron cast an umbrella of protection over its people; they had naught to worry for, they thought, so long as that castle stood strong.

Guardsmen at the gates changed posts, those having taken the night watch now off to rest before performing their duties once again the following night. Patrols kept a close eye on those of the different Clans who entered, their goal to prevent the war from entering Saffron. Yet there were things that evaded even them. Small Pokémon would occasionally sneak over the walls or through the gates for a bite of food when such was difficult to find in the outside world. Produce merchants would find their inventory slightly less than their last count, or an oran may have a chunk missing from it.

In the alleys, children who idolized the Shogun's samurai played war. Others played alongside Pokémon or helped their parents in the rice fields. At the training grounds, the Shogun's personal warriors repeated rigorous routines to keep themselves ready for battle should the need arise. Alongside these warriors were powerful Pokémon, performing similar exercises to train for war. Some sparred, others tackled exhausting obstacles. For those few who took note of these goings on, it was a grim omen of things yet to come.

But such was easily overlooked when the crisp morning breeze carried sakura petals so gently across the scene. The early sun's orange glow accented the painted-over glaze that encompassed the world that morning. Saffron looked as though something out of a dream on such a day that seemed ripe for adventure... or maybe just relaxation. Or perhaps...

CAW! CAW! CAW!

William furrowed his eyebrows and turned in his bed at the grueling sound of the flying type outside his uncle's house. The desire to sleep in easily overcame his desire to wake up, so he tried to ignore the screeching sounds. It didn't necessarily help that something was bumping against his ribcage every time he turned in his sleep. He could already guess what it was, given the roundness and size of the object headbutting onto his body. It was about the fifth time he turned that he decided to deal with the problem. Opening up one of his eyes, he saw the blue perpetrator.

"Wy, naut naut naut naut, Wy, naut naut naut naut."

Taeru was outside of his Pokeball and decided sleeping right next to him was ideal. Granted, William didn't know whether the Pokeball was a good place for Pokemon to rest in. It was a recent invention meant to carry Pokemon around. Whether or not the Pokemon within the Pokeball was truly comfortable resting inside was unknown to him. Was it cold inside the Pokeball? Was it hot? Did outside factors affect the internal mechanisms of the Pokeball? Many questions were unanswered, but sleep was more important to William at the moment. Regardless, that didn't ease the annoyance William felt at the given moment. Slightly getting up from his bed, William grabbed Taeru's head.

"Get off," He said in a tired tone as he shoved Taeru off the bed. The Bright Pokemon rolled off the bed and bounced on the floor, and let out a "Wynaut" every time he bounced. Despite the forceful eviction from William's bed, the Pokemon still seemed to be sound asleep. Seeing that all threats to his slumber were now all gone, William tucked himself back to sleep. Slowly the sweet embrace of rest dragged him back in. He was going to rest for a few minutes before-

"OI! WILLIAM! GET YOUR ASS UP AND HELP PREPARE THE SHOP!"

Right... William almost forgot that sleeping was forbidden at this time of day. He stared blankly at the wooden ceiling of his room before throwing off his blankets and getting up from his bed. "SHUT IT, OLD MAN! I DON'T NEED TO HEAR YOUR VOICE EVERY MORNING!" William yelled back. Getting up from his bed, he quickly dressed up and looked over to the still sleeping Wynaut. How the small Wynaut could still be sleeping despite all the noise was beyond him. William wasn't going to be who had to be suffering in the morning. "Get up," William growled as he nudged Wynaut with his foot before leaving his room.

Wynaut slowly got up and rubbed its 'eyes' with its ears before noticing William leaving the room. It slowly followed William, yawning along the way.

Coming out of his room, William surveyed the area. His uncle must have been in the back forging some items, given that he couldn't see the old man anywhere. With a frustrated sigh, he went out to exit the shop. "Let's go get something to eat, Taeru. I'll open the shop later," William said as he opened the door. He wasn't going to start the day on an empty stomach after all. There wasn't much food left in the storage and William didn't feel like cooking today.

Taeru saluted as they left the store.

"Phew... so that's it, then?" the man asked himself as he approached the village gates. He was certainly... a sight to see. His style of dress probably looking almost alien to the local people. Caspian had arrived some three days ago at the Vermilion Port, and after what he had seen there and from what he could see of Saffron Village, things were incredibly different here than back home. Clothing styles of Kanto seemed to make heavy use of silken robe-like tops and sandals that looked to be made of wicker straw. His own clothing, made mostly of wool, cotton, and especially his boots made of leather made for an extremely - almost alien-like contrast. And while the people at the port were a bit more accustomed to the sight of foreigners, he wondered to himself how the people deeper in the region would take to him.

"We're here at last, Flurrie. Saffron Village." he said, seemingly to no one as he didn't appear to have any company with him, "If what I've heard is true, then this village is quite the trade center." He wasn't certain how true that assertion actually was. He had learned the village was built at a rather central location within the region, with four major traveling routes stretching out from in all four cardinal directions. Such a location surely made for an excellent trade economy... or so he had reasoned. Caspian continued his way up the southern route on the approach to the gate. Two guards stood watch just outside it.

"Well met, sirs!" he greeted them politely when he was close enough, "Just a humble trader, as you can probably see." he gestured to the loaded pack he carried in addition to the loaded handcart he pulled behind, "I've some rare goods I've brought with me from overseas, I'd be delighted to do some business here in Saffron... if I may?" and that was the pitch. Hopefully, his promise of exotic goods was enough to grant him entry through the gate.

But then there was some small movement coming from Caspian's cloak, and for just a fleeting moment, the guards would catch a glimpse of his partner, Flurrie. She was a Vulpix, but with a bright fur coat, white as snow. And pale, blue eyes to match. Like nothing they would have ever likely seen. But just as quickly as she had poked her head out, she instantly buried herself back underneath Caspian's cloak when stared at for too long.

"Please forgive my Pokemon partner. She's so very shy, you understand, she doesn't do too well around prying eyes. But she's perfectly harmless, I assure you."

The mention of his partner reminded Caspian of the other very strange thing he noticed about this land. It seemed everyone was allowed and able to have Pokemon Partners. Vastly different from how things worked back in Kalos. Still though, it made for an interesting change of scenery from what Caspian was used to. And it would probably make for a good story to tell to his mother and father once he eventually returned home. A land where seemingly everyone could have a Pokemon? He wondered if they would even believe him.

Sun rose above the village, calling human and pokemon alike to rise and face the trials of the day, just as it had done every other dawn since their first.

Well it did/had done so for most of them anyway.

For a certain houndour this whole raising with the dawn thing was quite new, what with his kind being nocturnal and all. For his new owner it certainly didn’t seem like something she was planning on doing, the giant woman simply rolling over in her room in the Ryokan (inn) in response to the sun peeking its way in through the curtains.

Sanzoku had held off from catching her own pokemon for a long long time. Her bandit clan hadn’t exactly had the resources or know how to build the newfangled pokeballs. They relied on guts, brawn and foolhardiness to get through, just as their ancestors had, and although she had left them behind, for a long time that was something she had stuck to, and proudly too.

It had been a mark of strength to stand alone on the battlefield when so many others relied on their partners to see them through the day, but recent events had made her rethink this point of pride. To have the strength in a changing world to protect those who had otherwise fallen. To have a companion who wouldn’t leave your side. Both things she wished to have, and so, at the age of 37, the woman had finally acquired her first pokemon.

Initially she’d been weary, and had intended to only let the wild beast out of his ball when she needed him. This resolution had lasted all of a day, which is why the houndour she had caught just beyond the city on a recent night, who was now named Marrow, was perfectly free to clamber up onto Sanzoku’s futon and start licking her face to get her to wake up.

The sell-sword grunted at first, and then her eyes snapped open and her body tensed for violence, only to see and feel what was going on and relax, all in a fraction of a second

”Bleh, down boy, down” she lightly told the mon, gently pushing his head away from her face. Then she sat up slowly, giving Marrow time to scoot down to sit in her lap, looking up at her while panting with his tongue hanging out curly while she wiped her face dry and fully came to her senses. Then she looked down at him with a stern look that quickly relented.

”Ach, I can’t be mad at you about this can I, you cute little thing” she said, smiling down at the mon and giving him a pet and a scratch behind the ear before asking ”So what is it you want, hmm? Food? Outhouse? Just want to go out into the sun some more… oh,” she seemed to only take in the fact that it was morning at that point and then continued ”Or were you just letting me know the sun was up? Good boy. We have lots of training ahead of us today after all”

She gave marrow another little pet and then gently scooted him off her lap so she could actually get ready to face the day. She stood, stretched and flexed to get some of that stiffness out before getting properly dressed. She tossed on a komono, leaving her armor packed up because she wasn't exactly expecting trouble in the capital. Still you couldn't ever be 100% sure you’d be safe and so the sell-sword strapped her Kanabō to her side as both a precaution and signal of her occupation. True, she could break the average mon or human with just her hands, but her trick weapon never hurt to have on hand.

On the other hip went a pouch containing some of her money (the rest was surreptitiously buried out in the wilds) and a few personal items. Last things last she slipped her eyepatch over her old wound, gave her hair a quick and futile brush with her fingers and then she was done.

Now dressed and ready she hauled her pack containing all her possessions up in one arm, leaving nothing behind in her room at the inn, not even the empty bottle of sake from last night, and then exited it to go tramp through the corridors with Marrow padding along at her heels.

First item on both of their agendas: breakfast!

For that they headed for a communal dining area found in the inn, the sell-sword sliding open the door to it, politely getting out of the way of a quite intimidated looking traveling merchant who was just about to rush out that very same door in-order to let him out first, and then heading inside herself to get some grub.

The room was adorned with several long low tables with cushion based seating, which currently housed a half dozen travelers and a few of their pokemon, all chowing down their first meals of the day. The newbies gave her looks inline with the rushing merchantman, but the regulars simply gave her a wave, a nod or other simple greeting and then got on with their days. Serving them was a lady named Ikoma, along with her two meter long Furret. Upon seeing Sanzoku enter the woman smiled and gave her a polite nod before saying “Good morning Sanzoku! The usual for today as well?”

”Hello hello Ikoma, that’d be grand thank you!” she replied with a warm smile as she settled down at one of the few remaining empty tables and plopped her gear down beside her. Marrow sat himself down beside her, very much looking forward to the still novel prospect of having grub served up on a platter, while Ikoma sent her own pokemon off to get his and Sanzoku’s breakfast.

The two women traded a few pleasantries and then in swift order the sellsword’s usual order arrived, consisting of a hefty portion of rice with an equally hefty portion of fermented soybeans for protein, an assortment of steamed vegetables as a side and a much much smaller portion of rice and sausages for Marrow. All of this came in carried on the back of the long, long Furret, who with practiced ease scampered through the room and parked himself next to the table without spilling a grain of his nutritious cargo.

”Ah there we are, thank you for the meal!” Sanzoku told the pokemon, something she would not have done a short while before.

She unloaded Marrow’s dish for him first before piling her own onto the table and finally giving the Furret a pet between the ears as thanks. Then woman and houndour tucked into their breakfast together.

Having no time critical time commitments, the pair of them noshed their way through their meal at a leisurely pace, gradually fueling up for the rest of the day.

"Finally awake, huh?"

A voice greeted Ryuji. It was the one driving the carriage. It was a big gruff-looking man with a well-polished chainmail with an embedded crest of their village's symbol in the middle of it.

"Uh, my head." Ryuji slowly opens his eyes, feeling a bit groggy, aching in pain every time he moves, hands tied up, still processing what happened last night.

The last thing he remembered was a night of booze and gambling then everything got fuzzy. The next thing he knew he was sitting beside some group of beaten-up bandits inside a cage, all tied up with a Tarous pulling it, and a bunch of samurai escorts on each side, slowly traveling in a path road god knows where it's heading.

Bewildered, the ronin looks around in search of answers.

He looks up to the clouds only to see his Pokemon companion Mori circling above the bright blue sky, surveilling the wagon as it travels.

"Caw caw caw caw" The black bird screeched loudly in the air as if it was laughing. Ryuji can tell that his mischievous partner in crime is mocking him for his misfortunes way above the sky.

Rightttt.... I remember now. I was in an inn last night, about to get compensated for a job well done by my employer. We had booze and were about to call it a night until a group of bandits shows up trying to rob the place. To make matters worst, their rival was there.

...and so was the bandit's rival's rival. There were 3 groups of low-live scums inside, sharing the same room! Talk about unlucky, what are the odds of that ever happening?

Things got intense and quickly turn into an all-out brawl. Bodies flying everywhere, pokemons and human alike. it was utter chaos! The night ended with the shogun's military force showing up to break up the mess, arresting most of the ones involved. To make matters worst, my employer fled with my money and didn't get paid in full. Ryuji sighed as he recalls the event last night and the shitshow he had gotten himself into.

"So..uhmm.. have any of you seen my spea.. i mean fishing rod?" The ronin spoke, awkwardly breaking the silence around him.

"Can it worm! you're not allowed to talk!" The one driving the carriage yells. From the way he carries himself and the way he dresses, He must be the head chief of this division of samurais.

"I think you got it all wrong, I'm the victim here, they're the ones who tried to rob me, so if you could just lemme go, I'll understand this must be a huuuge misunderstanding.." Ryuji said, trying to weasel his way out.

"Not the way we see it when we arrived, you were enjoying beating one of the bandits to a pulp, I must admit you got some fancy move for a common troublemaking bandit." The chief spoke.

"I'm telling you I'm not a bandit." Ryuji said.

"Yeah, yeah.. tell em to the shogun in Saffron village, He's the one that will decide your fate, You'll be lucky if he decides to clean out the dojo there as your punishment." The chief scoffs as the carriage approaches the village.

Ryuji deeply sighed and didn't talk to avoid digging his grave any further. The wandering ronin always wanted to visit Saffron village and meet the Shogun, but not in the way he'd least expected it.

William's eyes flitted around the town as he scanned for any open restaurants during this time of day. Despite staying in the village for several years, William didn't like any of the restaurants in Saffron Village. It was partly attributed to his noble upbringing and being a little picky in his food. The taste tasted bland to William, and he would always complain to the chef as if there was something wrong with the food. That's why he preferred to cook his food. The only time he would shop at a restaurant was to get a treat Taeru wanted to have.

"Taeru, what did I tell you before? Walk-in a straight line," William said grumpily as he glared at Taeru. Taeru, who was wobbling and spinning around for fun, saluted at William, "Wy!" before continuing his wobblings. A sigh escaped from the merchant's lips and pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn't have any energy to spare to scold the jovial Pokemon.

Finally, William's eyes caught at Ikoma's Inn. One of his uncle's clients booked a room there, if he remembered correctly. They went under the name 'Sanzoku?' One of their clients suggested their shop to her, or was it the other way around? Either way, her commission was about to be done later in the morning, so William figured he could drop by at the Inn to inform her while he was out. It'd be two birds, one stone, getting food, and talking to his uncle's client.

Entering inside the Inn, he went over towards the dining area to get breakfast over with. That's when he finally remembered what Sanzoku looked like just by staring at her back. When he first saw Sanzoku for the first time, he had never felt so small in his life. She was way bigger and had a massive frame. It was also the first time that William had to look up at his client to maintain eye contact. Regardless of Sanzoku's intimidating presence, William still called her an ogre when he met her.

"Taeru, over here," William gestured with his head before heading over to Sanzoku's table. Taking a seat right next to Sanzoku, he looked around. "Oi, Ikoma! Get me something sweet," He yelled out to the lady. While some might be taken aback by his loud behavior, others who would know him got use to it. While it was slightly to deal with someone like William, he ultimately didn't cause any trouble as he as he wasn't provoked. He turned to Sanzoku, "Hey, your commission is about to be done later in the morning. Be sure to pick it up on time."

"If there is any problem with the item, be sure to come back and inform my uncle about any problems you may have." With that out of the way, William turned to look at the servers. He didn't feel obligated to continue any conversation with Sanzoku, nor did he want to.

Taeru walked up to find Marrow eating at his treat. Despite the type disadvantage, Taeru didn’t seem to be too bothered and waved at the dark type with his ‘ears.’

Having left the Viridian Settlement behind a long while ago, Shaakira el-Akbari could see Saffron Village along the horizon. This was supposedly where the so-called "real money" was; judging by the rumors that she heard along the way, fellow merchants had had a lot of success, especially niche merchants such as Shaakira was aspiring to be. Soon, Shaakira herself would be among them. Her excitement was building just from the thought of it alone. She couldn't wait to get there.

Shaakira's recently evolved Akeeta, however, couldn't wait for the go-ahead to rest up. It had been forcing itself to pull an encumbered wagon with it for miles now, and was beginning to lose its strength as the day wore on. Shaakira's smile vanished momentarily as she looked back, and she saw how the poor Parasect was fearing with towing the caravan along.

"I'm sorry, Akeeta; I guess I overdid it after all..." Shaakira realized, "We're almost there though, just a little more to go."

Akeeta was not amused but, supposing there was nothing for it, it kept going.

...

Eventually, the two of them had made it to the west gate. There were two guards there, sternly watching over it. Shaakira thought nothing of it at first, but as she and Akeeta got closer to the gate itself...

"Hold it!" the first guard held his palm out in front of Shaakira, "We need to search your caravan before you enter."

Shaakira obliged for the moment, and took the time to relinquish Akeeta of its harness while the guard signaled for his partner to go around the back and take a look inside. Akeeta was skeptical of this second guard; he was sure taking his time back there and Akeeta didn't like it. It raised its claws and rushed to try and fend this guard off but, seeing that the first one had gripped his Pokeball and was about to throw it, Shaakira clambered her way in front of Akeeta to protect it from whatever was about to go down.

"Wait, NO!! Please, don't hurt it," Shaakira pleaded with the guard, "It's only trying to protect my wares."

"From what? A mandatory search?" the guard queried in a grizzly tone; he'd since returned the Pokeball to his belt, but he folded his arms as his brow furrowed, and looked down on Shaakira, "Seems to me like you have something to hide back there..."

"Wha-? N-no, I..." Shaakira's nerves were now starting to waver, "There's only perfumes back there. I assure you, th-that's all I have."

"You realize how easy it is to slip a bottle of poison or the like in among one's supplies?"

"Why would I...? I couldn't possibly... L-look, I don't want to hurt anyone; I just... I-I..."

"Ugh, good grief..."

The guard shook his head in disappointment. It was obvious, to him anyway, that Shaakira was yet another foreign traveler who didn't understand the way things worked in Saffron Village. And to some extent, he'd be right. She didn't understand what was going on, nor did she understand why this was happening to her, of all people. Supposing he'd best get this over with, the guard moved off to one side and looked over toward the back of the caravan that was in the middle of being searched.

"Well? Anything suspicious?" he asked his partner.

At the southern gate, the less experienced of two guards jumped back and let a small yelp at the sight of a snow-white Vulpix popping its head out and then back inside of the traveler's cloak. His outburst was met with his superior's swift elbow jabbing at his ribs, giving him another reason to yelp, though he thankfully understood the reason and kept his response to a grunt.

The senior officer observed the place the blue-eyed face had been only a moment ago. "If I'm not mistaken, that was a Vulpix, but not like one I can recall having seen. Where did you--? You know, it's none of my business. We get a lot of folks from all over who show up here in town to do business. We just need to inspect your wares, make sure there's no contraband. You know, poisons, easily concealed kunai, the like. Unfortunately with this war waging all around us, one can never be too careful."

The officer's Farfetch'd nodded and gave a, "Far," as if affirming his partner's statement. It was quite prideful and poised for a Farfetch'd, its leek propped against its shoulder like a spear.

"Kimura!" the supervisor barked. Immediately, his subordinate stood at attention and quit massaging his ribs.

"Ye-yes, sir!" the lesser guard responded with a wince.

"Inspect this good man's wares, if you've finished playing the fool. I'm sure he's ready to find lodging."

"Yes, sir!" Kimura repeated, and he went about his duties, his Sentret companion following at his heels.

As the superior returned to his post, he heard his Farfetch'd growl a drawn out "Faarrr." He followed his partner's gaze to the treeline only just in time to notice the rustling of foliage and a patch of light fur disappearing within.

"Keep an eye on that, if you please, Kanegi," he said, and the leek-bearing duck gave a so-serious-it's-comical salute and fixed its stare on the treeline. While he waited on Kimura to finish up, he watched the barely-there dirt road with one eye shut, and as he felt the sun slowly rising into the sky, a Tauros-drawn convoy came into view on the horizon. "Look sharp, Kimura! We'll have more company soon. Hurry with this fellow so we can take care of the next."

"Yes, sir! Mizuno, sir!"

Mizuno sighed as he massaged his temples. This new recruit was enthusiastic about his post, sure, but Mizuno was unsure of whether Kimura would make it.

The sun rises. Yasashi rises with it. Her duties for the day were sparse; she'd outgrown her traditional lessons, outpaced the tutors of swordplay- and had left the Archery instructor stupefied since childhood!- and had frequently been tasked with attending the Shogun in his daily duties to learn what it meant to be Samurai. To learn what it meant to lead.

Years flashed by in the blink of an eye. Routines. Regimens. Lessons. So much to learn. So much to prove. So many whispered threats. So many sly insults, coy phrasings on the edge of challenges, backhanded compliments- so much to burden. Suffering fit for the Lady of Cinnabar Volcano. But in that same blink, the new dawn was welcomed. These long memories discarded. A new breath drawn.

She cleansed herself and donned her armor; plain samurai armor bearing the Shogun's colors and insignia, with the Hanabi crest kept secondary to those markings as befits her role as a ward of this castle. The ritual of caring for her Katana, Wakizashi, and Tanto were in short order; then the stringing of her Yumi bow; then it was to the stables to visit with Ajairu.

A morning routine of years habit.

She strode to the stable, courteously acknowledging the nearby peasantry, and approached Ajairu's stall. She knelt down beside the ponyta and leaned in, nuzzling into its face with her own. She ran her hand over its fiery mane, appreciating the pokemon's trust in her; these flames had never harmed her, but would sear anyone else who dared approach the Monster.

"Have you been good, my friend? Did you let the stablehand brush you down like he's supposed to?" She looked over to the side at the relevant peasant, confirming with him that the task had been seen to, before she looked back to Ajairu and continued; "I can take you out today. Stick by my side and keep calm, or I'll have to return you to your pokeball. Is that fair?"

The horse stamped its hooves and pranced, nodding and neighing. Yasashi laughed and produced an apple from the saddlebags nearby and held up to Ajairu, who vigorously gnawed at it and crushed its entirety in his mouth in the name of devouring the delicacy. Shortly thereafter the woman and her flaming steed were permitted exit from the Castle, and descended into the village proper.

Their patrol today was a lighthearted one, though she was well familiar with extended guard vigilance's and ranging patrols at the behest of the Shogun to keep eyes on the surrounding area. Going around the perimeter of the village, she was to check in with the guards stationed there and see to the changing of duties and the handling of shift transitions for the dawn. She saw the night patrol off, and welcomed the dawn guard to duty. Succinctly, it all went off without a hitch.

Just as she was beginning to relax and approach the local inn in search of a morning meal, however, a guard approached in haste.

"My Lord!" They declared, bowing to Yasashi. "There is a disruption at the Western Gate, there are suspicions over a merchant's cargo!"

Yasashi resisted a sigh, and maintained her dignified smile. She shifted her posture, remaining straight backed, but twisting her torso to give this man her full profile and attention.

"I will handle it personally, return to duty." She soothed his frantic nature with firm words, then looked to Ajairu and rubbed the Ponyta's head affectionately again. "Ajairu, stretch your legs. I'll meet you over there."

She watched as the steed pranced around her in a circle, then whinnied and cantered off ahead of her. She followed suit, laughing to herself privately as she watched Ajairu march as if on parade through the village all on his lonesome. And so it was that the Western Gate suddenly had a strange guest;

The lone Ponyta, Ajairu, prancing upon approach. This caught the guards' attention, causing them to briefly disregard Shaakira.

"Drat, it's the Samurai's horse."

"She's never far behind, act smart."

"Aye."

The exchange was in immense haste and with utter disregard to Shaakira's presence, but immediately there was a change in the behavior of the Guards.

"Just perfumes, ma'am?" One declared as if he had not just been accusing Shaakira of more. "Apologies, but Shogun's orders. Every cart searched for contraband, you understand."

The other guard, hand on the pokeball on his belt, suddenly struck a rigid posture then bowed deeply; Lady Hanabi had finally arrived, and taken ahold of Ajairu's reins. She briefly cast her gaze over the scene, before addressing the bowing guard;

"At ease, what appears to be the holdup?"

"There are, ah, suspicions, ah, my lord, over, ah, the contents of this merchant's, ah, caravan. My lord." Despite her words to calm down, he remained bowing and spoke falteringly. Yasashi appraised this behavior quietly, then looked to the other guard.

"Speak up, good man, was there an issue in the search?"

"Yes, Ma'am, the Monster." He declared in an even tone, much more reasonable in mannerisms than the seemingly panicking fellow. "It attacked us upon attempting the search."

"Ah." Yasashi turned to face Shaakira at this point. "Your companion. It is protective of you, it seems. I can understand that, I'm quite protective of Ajairu here myself- though he is hardly my own champion. You should cherish a pokemon willing to protect you and your possessions like that. I apologize for any disturbance you faced, if you will please permit this man."

She suddenly grabs the bowing man by the shoulder and hoists him to an upright position.

"To finish the search, I would gladly escort you into the town myself. I am the Lady Hanabi, Lord under the Shogun. Times of war stress us all, and we should always do our best to handle ourselves with civility and politeness."

Her tone was even and soothing, but the frantic guard looked even more panicked as she spoke. With Shaakira's consent, he would finish the search- exponentially faster than his companion had been.

---

---

"By all means, inspect away, good sir." said the smiling Caspian with a welcoming gesture. He was obviously expecting this. Local authorities at the Vermilion Port performed a similar inspection of his cargo when it was unloaded from the ship. They'd offered similar reasons about the conflicts becoming a cause for increased security. Well, Caspian's goods passed the inspection at the port and so there was no reason to think they would not do so again here at the Village Gate.

While waiting, Caspian fished a blue-colored berry from his personal satchel and held up toward his shoulder. The scent of the Rawst Berry was quite enough to entice Flurrie into showing herself once again. Only this time, she stayed in view whilst happily munching on the treat, "They're her favorite treat." he explained to the guardsmen, "I've had to come up with some rather creative ways to use them in cold or frozen treats. The Vulpix where she comes from are said to be the ice type, the exact opposite of their fire type counterparts elsewhere."

Kimura, the guard performing the search, would in the meantime find only an assortment of cakes and pastries originating from Caspian's homeland of Kalos - in addition to a small variety of dark brown beans for making coffee drinks. These were the popular delicacies of the Kalosian Towns and Cities. Here in an unfamiliar land, Caspian hoped to sell them as exotic goods.

"Ice type, you say?" asked the superior guard, Mizuno, "I'd guard her closely then, if I were you." he said solemnly, "A Pokemon like her is no doubt going to catch the eyes of people, including those who might think to steal her from you."

"I've finished, Sir!" announced Kimura as he returned to his original spot, "I believe he's clean."

As the two guards unlocked the gate for Caspian to enter, he gave a thankful look to Mizuno, "I appreciate the advice. I shall have to stay on my guard, it seems. I hope you two come to visit once I've opened up shop!" and with that, the Southern Gate slammed shut behind them. Caspian and Flurrie both took in the surroundings. Despite being called a village, the place was rather large and bustling. People milling about on their daily business and routines, and even some Pokemon as well that accompanied some of them.

"Let's find us some lodgings first, Flurrie." he told the Vulpix, while giving her ears an affectionate scratch and rub, "Then I'll see about whipping you up some proper breakfast, okay?" this elicited a eager little bark from the white Vulpix. But after this she began to notice some of the heads that were turning to stare at her and hid herself in Caspian's once again.

"Honestly..." said Caspian with a small sigh, "...we really must work on that shyness of yours."

And the merchant started off, pulling the cart behind him. He intended to make for the center of town where the businesses and inns were likely found. The closer he got the more murmurs he heard about some sort of commotion going on at the West Gate. But he mostly just shrugged that off, assuming it wasn't his place to involve himself in foreign affairs.

---

Mornings in the city should be calm. No threat of raids or rampaging Pokémon, minimal threat of waking up to a knife at one's throat - granted, Rokuto was tucked away safely in the castle, much to his displeasure, but one could never be too careful. Still, the rapid scuffling noise that he awoke too was far too close to be the antics of an overeager servant. As the boy shot up alertly in his futon, he was greeted not with an intruder but a large puff of purple that fidgeted and vibrated in the corner.

"You better not be chewing holes in my clothes again," Rokuto wearily groaned as he rose to his knees for a better look at what the venonat was doing. While not quite mischief, its claws scraped frantically across its face and antennae in a sort of preening gesture, sending wisps of purple dust descending to the ground beneath it.

Pulling a blanket over his mouth to avoid breathing any of the poisonous refuse in, Rokuto finally stood to shoo his Pokémon away. "Ugh, you're gonna kill someone - do that outside. Back in the ball," He ordered with the bug-type's Pokéball brandished. Poyo offered nothing to defend itself, and it merely tilted curiously and gurgled in response before complying. At least the thing knew how to listen. Unfortunately, Rokuto was left with the challenge of getting poison powder out of a tatami mat.

Ugh, whatever; the servants could handle it. If the Shogun's men were so insistant that he stay in the castle, it was the least they could do. As Rokuto made his way out of his room and into the mazelike corridors of the castle, he immediately scanned the area for one of the castle staff. Petty or not, he didn't want some housekeeper ending up sick because they blundered into his room with a broom unprepared.

"Can you do me a favor? Tell whoever cleans my room to be careful when they're sweeping; there's venonat dust everywhere," Rokuto offhandedly mentioned to the first servant he passed. He lingered just long enough to ensure the man understood, then quickly went on his way. The earlier he could vacate the castle, the better; it was hard to put on a convincing act when half the town had witnessed him leaving the Shogun's palace an hour earlier. Luckily, he could stuff a wig under his haori easily enough.

Rokuto ducked out of the gates at the tail end of a samurai's procession under the veil of a wide-brimmed hat, then made his way immediately to the inn. Not for the food, but to catalogue any new travellers that lingered in Saffron. Anyone he recognized would surely be of interest to the Shogun - and spirits knew, Rokuto needed all the help he could get ingratiating himself to the man - but more importantly, it told him exactly who to avoid when a visitor fumbled in bearing Viridian Clan heraldry.

The inn itself was as it always was; a few merchants already in a rush to attend their business, a passing warrior or two seeking their next client, and of course, that machoke of a woman that Rokuto had seen around town lately. The boy settled on a cushion across from the monster in question, hoping her outlandish stature would draw lingering eyes away from him. It wasn't until he heard a vaguely familiar voice that Rokuto realized he'd miscalculated. The assistant - or nephew, apparently - from that shop where he'd commissioned a new grappling hook was right there. Normally it wouldn't bother Rokuto in the slightest, but that purchase was a bit hard to justify for an ordinary traveller. Then again, this guy didn't seem like the type to ask many questions.

"Oh hey, you're that guy from the shop!" Rokuto enthusiastically pointed out, suddenly wide-eyed and eager in contrast to the sullen expression he'd nursed all morning, "D'you know when your uncle - I think you said - will be finished with that climbing gear? The order was for Rintaro." At least this would save him a trip to the market today to check up on the status of his order.

---

@AThousandCurses

”Good morning to you William! Rude as ever I see” the sell-sword said cheerfully to the merchant apprentice, grinning down at him as if his attitude was some grand joke that she found very amusing.

”Ah yes that… I most certainly remembered that!” Sanzoku replied convincingly to the information supplied to her about the status of her order. She would have remembered it eventually. Probably in the afternoon.

”Anyway, I’m sure everything will be fine and dandy with my new kit, same as everything else I’ve gotten from your uncle. Guy’s great at what he does” she said as she gave her trick mace a pat before turning to look down at her mon with a hint of concern when she heard him growling at Taeru while standing defensively over his meal.

”Ach, don't be like that little Marrow, he ain’t gonna steal your grub, and even if he does, I can just buy you some more” she told her mon while giving him a reassuring clap on the side. The houndour looked up at her for a moment and then, suitably reassured, dropped his defensive posture and gave Taeru a little yip of “dour!” in greeting and an attempt to mimic the Wynaut’s wave with his own short doggy ears.

”Good boy” Sanzoku praised Marrow while giving him a little scratch behind his false skull, before both of them turned their eyes to check out the stranger joining them at the table. Stranger to Sanzoku anyway, it looked like William and this Rintaro knew each other. Business wise anyway.

”Climbing gear huh? You don’t look much like those spelunking folks who seem to think being up to their eyeballs in zubats is a grand way to make a living” she said loudly and nosily to the man with strange purchasing habits, before wandering of on a tangent ”Not that there's anything wrong with it, I just can’t stand the agile flappy buggers myself. Once fought a guy who had a whole swarm of the things in his back pocket. A right pain in the neck that was. Literally, ha!”

”So anyway, what’s the gear for huh?” she asked, getting back to the point and then paused and thought to herself for just long enough that he might get the impression she was suspicious before she unintentionally dispelled that notion herself by saying ”Oh! Are you heading west? I’ve crossed the range that way once or twice, it can be quite the challenge if you don't prepare or the weather is bad. Looks like you’ll have the one half of that you can control yourself sorted if that’s the case, so good on you” and making it clear that she was mostly just very chatty.

---

@Scribe of Thoth@AThousandCurses

William rolled his eyes at Sanzoku's friendly welcome. He would never understand how a brute like her could maintain a smile with her background and face. She's probably seen dead bodies as often as people considering the small scars he could see on her, not mentioning that she has an eye patch. "That's good," He finally said after a pause.

The furret came with William's order of red bean buns, though it seemed less than pleased when serving him rather than others, and quickly ran back to fetch more orders. He took one of them and set the rest on the ground for Taeru to eat as he took a bite out of the bun. "Bland as ever," William mumbled as he continued to chew on the bun. It was beyond him how Ikoma was still in business with her cooking skills. Taeru, who didn't seem too perturbed by Marrow's growling, seemed happy that the houndour's gestures until he noticed the buns set right next to him. Immediately, Taeru inhaled them, grabbing them one by one with his ears.

Though, it seemed his peaceful breakfast couldn't go uneventful as another person decided to join in the conversation. A slight scowl formed on William's face, and he shot a 'the hell do you want' at Rokuto. His expression softened as he slowly realized the man in question was, in fact, a customer of his. "Rintaro?" William said as he went into deep thought. The name seemed unfamiliar to him, though he did remember many people ordering climbing gear not too long ago. He took out a book and flipped through a few pages.

"Ah, Rintaro," William said, nodding after confirming the purchaser. "I'm in charge of crafting it, but it'll be a little delayed since I have to man the shop by myself. I apologize in advance for that." The main problem was him and his uncle. William was still learning how to improve the Pokeball after learning how to create it, so he spent less time working on the commissions. His uncle was a problem because he always made him go on meaningless errands. "It should be done sometime afternoon," William said after estimating the time when the commission would be finished.

His facial expression quickly into a scowl as he turned to Sanzoku.

"And, I'd appreciate it if you didn't but into my customer's business, Sanzoku." William was practically seething now. The business between him and his customer, Sanzoku, had no place or said in it. The connection between buyer and seller was a private relationship, which William, as a merchant, highly valued. "Whatever he wants, does, or buys is up to him. Now mind your own business, okay?"

---

@Scribe Of Thoth@DracoLunaris

---

Himaru watched the sun rise from her mother's old fortune teller's stall. Normally she wasn't awake this early, however she was in need of a bit of extra coin so dusting off the old stall was the easiest way to do so, and the earlier she got started the more coin she could make. It wasn't often she set up shop, maybe once every few weeks. So when she was set up there was usually a steady stream of business throughout the day.

CRASH! Himaru turned around just in time to see that Zen, her partner Haunter, had decided today was the day he was going to be a mischievous pain in the butt. It seemed the pokemon had decided that knocking over one of the crystal balls was a fun activity this early in the morning. With a deep breath she walked over the the now shattered orb looking toward the shadow she knew the pokemon was hiding in. "That isn't very Zen of you." She couldn't help but chuckle at her own horrible joke as she started cleaning up the mess. "These aren't easy to get you know, and this is the third one you have broken since I took over." The pokemon eventually came out to help pick up the shards.

Himarua had considered getting a pokeball for Haunter but it had stuck with her mother as a Ghastly with little to no problems so she had ultimately decided there was no benefit to having one. She figured the contraption would only make Zen more mischievous and harder to keep a handle on when out. At least with it out and about he could blow off some steam by helping her with the more...showy parts of fortune telling. Giving him a job usually calmed him down enough to not terrorize her customers. After the mess was cleaned Himaru stood back up and grabbed the spare crystal ball she kept for emergencies. She would still need to get a new one later in case this one broke as well. Though it would take her a while to find and afford one.

It took her about an hour to set up and by the time she was done the sun had since risen and people were going about there daily business. There were already a few people outside the stall when she finally opened it up to customers so she got to work right away. Most people wanted simple palm or card readings. So it was more or less an easy morning. Some customers were people she knew, others were passing merchants. These individuals were her favorite to get, it was about the only perk to running her mother's old stall, the number of new people she met was greater than if she was simply cleansing homes of spirits or bad energies. She hadn't had much time to people watch but she had caught gossip of a foreigner entering the village, a man with a strange white Vulpix. She hopped the man would stop by her stall at least once while he was in town. Getting to meet him would likely prove interesting.

After about an hour or so her stomach growled and she realize that she and Zen had yet to eat today, so she temporarily closed her stall and headed toward the nearest Inn, which so happened to be Ryokan. The Inns always had the most interesting people so they tended to attract Himaru to them the easiest. She entered the Inn, ordered some food with Zen floating along behind her, and found herself a seat where she could people watch. There was an interesting bunch at one of the tables two people she didn't quite recognize speaking to William though she was too far to hear what they were talking about, she assumed business. After a few moments of sitting her food was delivered. Though it turns out she apparently hadn't been paying enough attention to Zen who had decided to scare the furret who brought out the food. Luckily it was after there food had been placed on the table. The creature scurried back to the kitchen and Himaru was left to scold her partner once again. He, ignored her and began eating his food and Himarua couldn't help but roll her eyes as she too began eating.

---

---

A new dawn arrives.

The warmth of the morning sun was in full display.

A company of foot soldiers cast a tall shadow upon the land coming from the south road.

The sound of synchronized marching along with a rickety old wheel wagon and the clomping of a Tauros' hooves was fast approaching.

The Bannermen on each side hoist their flags signaling their lavish arrival into the village.

"Look lively men, were about to approach the village" The night patrol has returned, ending their shift, and was about to turn in led by their Captain, a minor character vaguely known as the "Chief".

The vehicle halted for inspection. The Chief looks straiight ahead and gave a sharp salute to his higher-ups in front of him as the other footsoldier did so as well.

"Morning Captain Shinobu and Captain Jiro, I-i didn't know you were scheduled here at this post...." The Chief fumble upon his words upon seeing the son of the most respected samurai in their village.

"Err anyway, we finished our daily patrol, so far no incident of pokemon attacks within the locals has been reported within our reach." The chief wasted no time to deliver his report - Straight to the point as always.

"As for the distress call of one of our scouts in Vermillion port, well here are the apprehended lawbreakers who were involved in the bar fight last night.." He tilts his head, pointing in the direction of the indisposed bandits inside their cages.

"From the looks of it, they're a new generation of bandits, one being with the red cape as their leader.. I suspect we are dealing with the rising of a new bandit lord." The chief pointed out the ronin. "He put up quite a fight amongst the rest, I have to call in two of my best guys just to restraint him." He added.

"B-b-bandit lord? Oy, You can't just throw slanderous names like that, I barely know these guys, let alone being a bandit...so how about you free me from these cuffs and discuss this over some breakfast- ya?" Ryuji can't help but intercept in their discussion, rattling his shackles with a smile, making them notice his presence, trying to lighten the mood.

It's bad enough being thrown into a cage for the things he didn't commit but being falsely accused as some sort of a tyrant menace. That's just too much. And where is Mori in all of this? well, the blackbird was in no rush in rescuing his master. Quite the opposite really, the mischievous Murkrow finds it amusing and was enjoying every second of it, perched high above somewhere near the saffron gates.

"So what you wanna do these thugs? I request we seek passage to have the all-mighty shogun in our audience to deal with this, if necessary" The Chief simply ignores Ryuji's remark and continues to do business, hoping to get some resolve.

Suddenly, hooves could be heard clopping towards the west gate, and in response to this, both the guards had changed their tunes completely. Shaakira could only guess that someone important was coming this way. Perhaps the Shogun himself? Or perhaps his right-hand man, or lady if that was the gender they had. In any case, now that she wasn't under so much pressure, Shaakira took the chance to calm herself down. She'd likely needed to not be so nervous when this Shogun/right-hand man or lady arrived at the scene.

"Just perfumes, ma'am?" the first guard asked for clarification.

"Yes, that's right," Shaakira replied, opting not to question the sudden change of tone.

"Apologies, but Shogun's orders," the guard stated, "Every cart searched for contraband, you understand."

But Shaakira still didn't understand; the subconscious shaking of her head made that perfectly clear. This was the guard that just accused her of trying to smuggle in something dangerous and harmful. And Shaakira was supposed to ignore that in its entirety, just because he may have had to answer to the person who was on their way here? And furthermore, was that search really necessary? Why could they not just trust a simple merchant who meant no harm to anyone? Was it honestly too much to ask of these guards?

...

Sure enough, what seemed to be the Shogun's right-hand lady arrived. After a brief exchange between her and both the guards, who reported what had transpired to her (bias included), the lady approached Shaakira.

"Your companion. It is protective of you, it seems," the lady noted, "I can understand that, I'm quite protective of Ajairu here myself- though he is hardly my own champion. You should cherish a Pokemon willing to protect you and your possessions like that. I apologize for any disturbance you faced, if you will please permit this man to finish the search, I would gladly escort you into the town myself. I am the Lady Hanabi, Lord under the Shogun. Times of war stress us all, and we should always do our best to handle ourselves with civility and politeness."

"Uh, please, there's no need for you to apologize," Shaakira assured Lady Hanabi, "If either of us should have to apologize, it should be me. Had I realized it'd acted so hastily sooner, then..."

Furious by the accusation, Akeeta slashed at thin air, bringing its claws towards its claws towards itself each time. Just from the snatching motions it'd been making, Shaakira could tell what it was trying to convey, but still...

"Not everyone's a burglar, Akeeta. Well, I hope not, at least..." Shaakira bent down to make proper eye contact with the smaller Parasect, "The point is, humans are much more complicated creatures than you guys are, and in truth, more than a handful of us are actually well-intentioned. I get that you need to make a rapid decision sometimes, and you have good instincts; I should know, you saved me more times than I'd care to count. But this is one of those situations where you need to take your time."

Akeeta glowered a little, but it looked as though it came to a silent understanding.

Meanwhile, the guards had taken the opportunity to search Shaakira's caravan. They did prioritize speed with this next attempt, but it still had an acceptable level of thoroughness to it. With that, the guard that'd originally halted Shaakira reported to Lady Hanabi, the second one bowing alongside him.

"She's clear to enter, Lady Hanabi," the first guard reported, his long bow still in conduct, "Please, forgive any transgressions we may have made."

---

Ugh, so much for not being questioned. Then again, one could afford to be nosy when they were the size of a fucking tree. Rokuto certainly didn't look like someone who regularly ventured into the mountains, but neither did he look like someone that scaled fortifications in his spare time, so at least he had that going for him. Still, that didn't leave him very many excuses that were likely to satisfy her.

Naturally, Rokuto let none of his exasperation with the woman show on his face, and instead lowered his gaze and offered a bashful chuckle at Sanzoku's prying. The nephew came to his defense, at least, but Rokuto doubted it would help. The very idea that there was a secret to be kept typically pushed people over the threshold from curious to suspicious.

"It's- It's fine, really," Rokuto stuttered with his hands raised placatingly in response to William's outburst, "I'm heading north to Mount Moon; I wanna see if those magic sky rocks up there are real or just a silly fairy tale." He'd seen one before, up by Cerulean Bay, but the mechanics of these 'moon stones' actually falling from the sky seemed dubious. If it wasn't just a traveller's story, it was probably the work of some powerful Pokémon and Rokuto had no desire to get anywhere near its domain. They didn't have to know that though.

Turning back to William, Rokuto bowed his head in thanks. "And you don't have to rush if you're busy, I'll be in Saffron for a while anyway." The longer he took, the better, actually; Rokuto was stuck in town at the Shogun's whim, and only Celebi knew when the man would stoop to utilizing a shinobi with questionable allegiances over his own trusted men. It would be ideal to have an excuse keeping him in town than coop himself up in the castle because the townsfolk started recognizing him.

Speaking of suspicious, Rokuto needed some food in front of him if he intended to blend in for much longer. Otherwise he'd have to milk the giant lady for conversation, and that sounded like a recipe for disaster if she got curious on him again. He waved the server over hesitantly and fumbled out an order, tacking on an extra helping of fruit for Poyo's sake. Not that he was particularly keen on letting it out of the Pokéball around his food - or a houndour, for that matter - but with the way he'd seen venomoths chew through fabric, a hungry venonat was the last thing he wanted around his lovely collection of disguises.

Maybe he could be a homeless beggar next time he switched up his persona if it became a problem.

---

@AThousandCurses@DracoLunaris

It wasn't long after the man with the Vulpix had passed through the gates that the Tauros-led convoy arrived in his place. Captain Mizuno set Kimura about inspecting the cart. The chief of the group hastily mislabeled the trainee Kimura as a captain, and requested direct audience with the Shogun as one of the prisoners boldly asserted that he was no bandit.

"As I'm sure you understand," Mizuno explained, "the Shogun is a very busy man. Even one such as myself would have difficulty with appointing a direct audience, especially for a case of common banditry when we have a civil war on our hands. We shall see if we can't get them appropriately imprisoned for now at the very least." He tapped his foot in impatience. There didn't seem to be that much that should require inspection, yet Kimura still hadn't finished yet.

"Kimura! Hitomi!" Mizuno barked. "You finished with that inspection?!"

"Just wrapping up, sir!" Kimura replied.

Hitomi responded with a, "Seeen-tret!" of its own.

"Let's get the chief moving then. He's got places to be-"

"FAAAAARRRR!" Kanegi squawked, and it didn't take long for Mizuno to realize why.

With impossible speed, a lithe, feline creature pounced from the woods and struck the Tauros and cart in one strike, launching the beast of burden, splintering wood, and demolishing cages. Kimura and Hitomi were among the victims thrown by the impact, Kimura saved from a potentially lethal claw by his armor, though at least one of the convoy's guards wasn't quite so lucky, and lay face-down in his own fluids. Standing ferally over the banquet before it was a Persian at least three times average size, its eyes seeming to glow with a vivid red as bright as the gemstone atop its forehead.

Mizuno and Kanegi wasted no time in readying their weapons and lunging at the great cat, but were batted away like playthings. It was going to take a coordinated effort by more than just two to fell such a beast.

---

---

This has to be one of the worst mornings Ryuji had in his entire life - And boy, he had plenty.

Everyone near the south gates is either food or a chew toy for the feral Persian that appeared out of nowhere. The village is under siege by this beast.

Mori can't sit idly any longer knowing that his master is now in grave danger. Quickly thinking, the blackbird swoops in and snatches the keys of one of the soldier's side pockets in one fluid motion and hands it over to his trainer.

"Took you long enough," Ryuji smirks and freed himself from his cuffs and bailed at the last second where his cage got destroyed and everyone got swatted by the rampaging feline.

The ronin scoots away in the line of fire between the beast and the saffron's soldiers. He should run, he really should but instead, he's contemplating about it. Ryuji can't help it but there's a nagging feeling he should help. Perhaps his past samurai teachings are getting the best of him.

"Eh, fuck it.." He muttered.

Ryuji searches around from the debris of his former decimated cage and found his trusty Naginata beneath the weight of the injured Tauros on the ground. He focuses and sets his sight on the rampaging cat.

Being a former member of the "Brave Bird" samurai faction. It's only fitting Ryuji uses flying-type techniques and speed to match the towering Persian.

With nimbleness and finesse, Ryuji uses acrobat: He dashes and a flurry of strikes from the tip of his spear hurled at the feline's limbs and torso, bobbing and weaving as he gains momentum from each of his attacks.

"Mori, use mean look" He commanded while striking fast. The crow flew right behind him, leveling itself in front of the cat's head.

Upon getting the Persian's attention, The cat and the blackbird met their gaze for a brief moment. The murder of one emits a dark chilling aura that would instill fear to those who stare back at its cold yellow eyes. Taking away its agility and the ability to flee.

A deadly combination of locking the beast in place and away from the village gates.. Hoping to maim with each strike, mowing it down, just enough to get some reinforcement to fend off this feral foe.