Yamada Kiyoku
All around, people of all shapes and flavours were bustling about the village of Hang Yi. They were festival-goers, mostly people who had seldom so much as set their eyes on this small, unassuming village. They had come from all across the land, just in order to see this one, transient glimpse of peace. A break from the horrors of war, from the exhaustion of hard work, and from the mundane things that seemed to fill every passing breathe of their boring lives.
In this crowd, a passerby likely wouldn't be noticed for more than an instant, forgotten as one walked past and moved on to the next little pocket of joy on the list. It was the perfect place for her, the maid in red, who danced completely unnoticed straight through the great gathering of people. It was the ultimate, most unfailing disguise. She was a part of the crowd, so it would not be strange for her to go anywhere, or look at anything in particular. She could travel, unseen, through any part of the village without being stopped. It was ideal.
During her jaunt through the streets, she took note of many things, but none of them were apparently relevant to her mission. Still, she committed every detail to memory, watched every face for signs of danger, listened in to all sorts of interesting conversations, and eventually arrived close to her destination having heard and seen everything.
There were several individuals already waiting outside of the building, likely awaiting for admittance by their most lovely host. They had been called here, for what reason they did not know, but they were expected to come and meet with the Elder of the village for something very important.
Naturally, Kiyoku arrived a little early, so that she could position herself close to the group in such a way that her presence wouldn't be questioned. She stood nearby, occupying her body by sweeping the ground close to the house's gate. It would not be strange for a servant to be here at this moment, and until it was time to go in, it was likely that nobody would guess that she was actually a member of the party of warriors.
...
Some time passed, and a servant opened up the doors to the Elder's house, quickly briefing the group on what they should do. Following the woman's instructions, Kiyoku nonchalantly follows her through the doorway and into the house, giving a slight wink and a wave at the evidently inexperienced servant girl in front of her. While they were starting to walk down the hallway, Kiyoku took the time to begin talking in a slightly hushed voice to the other members of the group, in an attempt to get a feel for them and their personalities.
"Wow, this is kind of exciting, isn't it?", she whispers in an excited tone.
Her expression was an unwavering, cheerful smile, and everything from her body movements to her style of walking seemed to point to her being a particular kind of person. She seemed a carefree, unprofessional girl, the sort who could not possibly fit in with the collection of warriors she was surrounded by.
Well, in this scenario, standing out couldn't be helped. There was no point in trying to remain hidden, now that she had already joined the group openly. She would just have to go along with it, for now.
