[IC] The War for Baji (open)

[Wei Phoenix]

Was good to see the group moving along after that ordeal. Now was the planning phase, they had to execute everything perfectly. One wrong comment could break out a war between Ru and Shima. One wrong action in their borders could cause their lord a slew of problems and resources. He kept his inner ramblings to himself as Metou spoke until she advised him to warn Ru of the ki witch, which was the opposite of what they were told to do. "Whoa! No, we can't do that, none of us can talk about what just happened. That crazy psycho killer wench knew a lot of intimate things about us. She's probably having us tracked right now. She told us not to mention herself or her mother. I think they wish to remain anonymous and telling anyone about them would mean only their death and her anger for us. If we really want to heed their warning and keep others and ourselves safe then we have to keep our mouths shut about our source." Jiang was getting more and more pissed off as he thought about this entire situation. It was going to get dark and bad before it got better.

[Lekkuen]

Takumi didn't interfere in the disagreement about the ki witch, him never knowing how to handle events and situations that involved her. If they did as she said without question it would almost certainly backfire, it had been 200 years and no one knew what exactly the ki witch wanted. With that still in his head, he went over a few things about Ru mostly about their focus on and history with martial arts and their different ancestry. Beyond that there wasn't much info to tell outside of Lady Ru's reputation for not following what most consider proper custom and that she would rather fight then serve guests or drink tea. With all that explained they continued moving towards Ru, the group continuing their discussion on the proper plan of action and if they should tell Ru about the Ki Witch or not . Knowledge such as that would have a pretty big change on how Ru and others treated the situation and the decision to tell them or not was one that would have a large effect on the journey. Eventually they arrived in Ru just as evening was turning into night, with guard changes occurring and people lighting the torches around the village. It as winding down, but some people were still outside of their homes and of course places for traveling were always open, with more than a merchants hanging about to avoid traveling at night. Since raids and attacks on Ru were uncommon it was a pretty safe place for travelers to stop in and the people were pretty friendly to those that didn't try to cause trouble. The Naji were still around, with some of the Princess's soldiers helping with guard duty and a few hanging around the Inn, their banners resting against walls around the village but not actually placed anywhere specific or in official position.

[Xartarin]

"I have no intention of respecting the wishes of a tempermental psychopath sponging off her mother's power, nor anyone who lobotomizes men and makes them their slaves, or any charlatan who maintains their power through ridiculous rumors," Metou said back to Jiang, wishing she had said it in a less harsh tone the moment it came out of her mouth, but since she was already on a roll, she continued. "I admit the Ki Witch is dangerous, but that's all the more reason we must be honest with the true dangers associated with our quest if we are to make business with Ru in good faith, if they help us they deserve to know who's involved."

As long as she was being this snippy, Metou figured she might as well drive the point home. "Besides, rolling over for a wolf won't make them any less hungry," Metou said, "If you think doing every single thing the Ki Witch asks us to do will end with anything but a piece of bone wedged in each of our skulls, you're naive. When she turns against us, we don't want to be alone against her. Think, there's no reason she'd want her involvement in our affairs to be a secret if these thieves could supposedly destroy or control the island, she would be a hero. She needs to be a secret because she's using us."

[Kitsune]

Yuudai had been listening to the group argue over telling people about the Ki witch or not, a rather big thing if what had happened before was anything to go by. "The fact that she is helping us if we keep silent is a boon we should not toss away. However if the time comes then we can always just use her name as some kind of last resort, more so as we start collecting relics. Use her instead of her using us so to speak." It seemed the most logical to her, after all it was more a weapon than they had before and simply blowing it the moment they could would do them little good.

That was the only thing the half oni would say on the matter before the group reached Ru, where her mind was taken up with other things that she held in great importance. "I'm going to grab something to eat." With that she was on the hunt, stalking the streets in search of her pray, or well just down the road in a small open food stand. Stilling down at one of the open stools she tapped her hand on the counter "Hey, I will take the specialty dish you have on sale." Feeling small bumps against her she looked down to her arm where small mushi were bumping against her wounds, which she dismissed with a wave of her hand.

[Wei Phoenix]

The stopped right outside of Ru while the debate was getting heavy. He understood everything that she was saying, but felt as if she wasn't looking at the big picture. Disobedience only endangered all who they were connected to and could even mean their own deaths. "Those are exactly the reason why we should follow and do as they say for now. You saw Takumi's reaction to her, you saw what she did and if her mother is even more powerful then what chance do we or Shima have? If Naji is wary of their actions then why would a lesser clan like Ru be willing to deal with them? Right now, we have to just play along. She wants to remain anonymous, that is what she wants. She will maintain her anonymity by killing off those who know of her involvement. There will be razed villages left in our wake as we travel, heralding the involvement of crazy psycho killer bitch's mother. We are being watched and if you disobey her now then she may very well target our own clan to teach us a lesson. Can you live with the loss of Lord Shima because you wanted to defy someone else?"

Knew exactly what kind of situation they were in, he knew how far this rabbit hole would travel. Baji didn't know all of the players, what the endgame was or any other specific details, but the situation was frighteningly similar to his previous life. Now wasn't the time to unload all of this on them, especially in front of the Ru village. He turned his back to the gate and kept his voice down so only his allies could hear him. "I am begging you, and the rest of you to trust me on this one. For now, let's keep this thing quiet. They're not going to attack us if we disobey their command, they will hurt those around us, they will burn this place to the ground, attack our families, hurt Shima himself. Even if you don't believe me, if only this seems to have a sliver of possibility happening if we run our mouths now then that should be enough to keep quiet and play their game. I don't intend in being their pawn until my death, but right now we should research our enemy before we defy them. So please, keep this quiet for now, let Takumi and I speak with Ru and I promise that I will come back with her as an ally to Shima." This group barely trusted him or respected his words, but this was one time where he was hoping that they would follow his advice. He, himself was also hoping that he wasn't leading them down the wrong path. Jiang was trying to make the best decision for everyone's survival, and he prayed that he was the right one, instead of Metou.

[Xartarin]

Jiang had brought up some good points. Although Metou had no intention of keeping quiet about their mysterious interloper indefinitely, she could see the logic in waiting a while before mentioning it to anyone. Especially considering how worried Jiang was about the well-being of others if they told it. Metou was skeptical that the Ki Witch could see inside a private meeting with the leader of Ru as well as she could dig up information about a few hired hands, but it was better safe than sorry.

Metou sighed a little bit in preparation to concede her point. "You're right, I suppose we could play things safe for now," Metou said with a touch of bitterness. "I may not be convinced the legends about her are entirely true, but she does hold considerable power for us, so I suppose we have no choice but to do as she says."

After Yuudai had already left to grab food, Metou glanced over into the town they had reached. "Did she say which group she would be assisting?" Metou asked. "Well, I suppose we should all get going anyway. Who wants to help me pursue the lead that woman gave us?"

[Wei Phoenix]

Jiang Baji was glad that Metou saw things his way and he humbly bowed to her. "Thank you very much." He then stood up and looked into the direction that Yuudai was heading. "She's being too much of a loner to be honest. I worry for her, she was humbled by the enemy and refuses to let us in and help her get through that awakening. I would suggest going with her and pulling her back into the group, letting her know that she's not alone. There is usually music played around food so that may be the best place to start anyway." The Dog stretched his limbs to loosen up and get ready for his meeting with Ru. He quickly combed through his hair and worked on a few potential poses to strike in front of her. Baji knew exactly how to handle negotiations with this woman, it would probably be the easiest one for him.

"Takumi, feel free to accompany me or them, after your briefing on Ru, I think I can woo her to our side." Jiang walked towards the guards at the gates of Ru and presented the Seal of Shima, kneeling before them and addressing them. "I am Jiang Baji, The Dog of Shima have come with my allies from Shima. I seek an audience with Lady Ru, to warn of her the impending danger sweeping our land and seek her assistance in preventing said tragedies."

[Lekkuen]

Takumi went to follow Jiang who immediately went and tried to get an audience with Lady Ru, showing the emblem and stated his purpose. While normally that would be enough be taken to her, this time the guards weren't allowing it. "Lady Ru is currently dealing with representatives from Naji and would prefer not to be bothered. We have also already spoke to a man from Shima anyway, he and her already came to an agreement. He is staying at the Inn right now, a neko in strange armor. Maybe talk to him, because our Lady won't be seeing anyone outside of Naji until the morning." The guards suggested Tetsuya, and explained a little on what was going on. It was getting late and they had special guests, so seeing Lady Ru wasn't going to be easy for a clan who already spoke to her that day.

"Hmm, I wasn't aware Naji was visiting Ru today." Takumi said with a raised brow, it not being a normal place they would visit outside of Ryuu Naji trying to push his nation idea. "Is it just one of the nearby Naji villages come to trade?" He asked one of the guards with a curious tone.

"No, they seem to be from the Naji capital. Don't know the full details but it is one of the princesses."

[Mogtaki]

Gin didn’t know what was happening anymore or what he had become involved in but he was certainly finding it hard to understand how all of this was happening and why some witch or whatever was getting involved. It seemed unfair to him that someone from the outside would try to involve themselves in their quest, even if those who stole the relics were just petty thieves. He saw nothing in this woman that was a redeemable quality when she was just snobby and saw herself big compared to those without a mother like hers. It made him pretty mad but also confused, probably because he had no idea what a Ki Witch even was. Witch was usually a bad word for an ugly woman to him so all he saw in her mother was she was probably hideous, cheering him up a little bit.

This Ru place was awfully appealing once arriving there, but he was mildly worried that he might get lost from the others. They had been happy enough to bring him along, sure, but whether they believed in him was another thing. They could easily ditch him here and carry on with their journey if he so much as looked away. It was probably something he feared the most when it came to finally having friends, except said friends didn’t like him in the first place and they ditched him. This journey was really important and he understood that, but that didn’t stop the others from thinking he was useless and telling him to go get something before leaving him behind. There was too many fears to account for at this point, he had to just forget about them if he was going to be a good teammate for them and not worry about a possible betrayal.

Only partially listening to Jiang he only just noticed Yuudai had gone off somewhere, his worry immediately kicking up when she was the only other one like him. Getting a little nervous now he was alerted by the fact Jiang was now dragging Takumi off to see the Lady Ru, making him feel incredibly nervous. He shouldn’t follow them, but Takumi was technically their leader so he should fallow; however, he was just a blacksmith and held no value in that kind of meeting. Frowning in confusion he slowly rubbed his head, hearing the suggestion to go after Yuudai. Gasping, Gin immediately looked to Metou and moved closer to her, not wanting to lose her whatever she decided on doing. His desire to take the lead was absolutely nil, pointing him towards the desire to instead become a follower for now and not let his paranoia get out of hand.

[Wei Phoenix]

Jiang wasn't aware of any neko in strange armor being a representative of Shima. He's only been there for two months, so there was a chance that he didn't meet him. Still, there was the chance that he was an impostor, or enemy trying to throw a wrench in their plans. "We do not know of a neko in strange armor serving as a Hero of Shima. You may have an impostor in your town. Did his have a tint of purple in it?" Even if this neko was an ally to Shima, Baji still wanted to speak with Ru himself and understand whatever terms that have been agreed upon. He highly doubted that this mysterious neko was given the knowledge that they received hours ago. "I humbly ask that you at least send word to Lady Ru of our arrival. We have information that concerns the safety of herself and your entire clan. If we go ignored then misfortune and terror may befall your lands soon and this is not a threat from us. We have come to help Ru just as much as we seek Ru's aid. Tell her, that I promise that this won't be a boring meeting, and that I will not take up her entire night." Baji always had a hard time accepting no as an answer, and given the information that they were given earlier, he wasn't going to let this go just so easily. He was going to make sure that these people were prepared for what is coming.

[PaulHaynek]

As the group made its way to Ru, a small argument regarding the Ki Witch erupted but it was settled that it was a problem that will be dealt with later. Kenji, who did not voice his opinion for he was currently neutral about the omnipotent Ki Witch, thought this was a wise choice. Their and the Witch's interests align so it would be bad if they fall out of her favor. By that time the group had reached Ru at the onset of night.

The village was about to go to sleep but some were still wide awake, ready to entertain the night life. Yuudai suddenly broke off the group as Jiang planned to meet with Ru's leader with Takumi and Metou declared she was to search for the ally with an instrument with a companion. Worry was expressed about Yuudai's lonesome and Jiang asked someone come get her. No one has decided to do so yet so Kenji stepped forward. "I shall go get Miss Wakahisa. Or at least try my best to." It was also the perfect chance to return the shirt.

With that, Kenji walked to the direction where Yuudai headed. In time he found the half-Oni, sitting down on a food stall with a meal about to be served. The Yang was a little nervous. He could meet women in formal meetings but not on personal levels, he simply did not have enough experience in that matter. He could size a decent chance that he was getting a punch to the face after this yet he went on forward.

"Hey." Kenji let Yuudai know he was there. He then took a seat beside the half-Oni and also ordered. "Do you have ramen, sir?"

Kenji let a few moments pass before pulling something out of him. It was Yuudai's shirt and immediately handed it to her. "You... left this back in the forest. I'm not sure if you left it there on purpose but..." As he talked, Kenji spotted a wound on Yuudai's that was attracting unattractive creatures. That was unacceptable to the Yang.

Kenji, in a quick move, grabbed Yuudai's arm with his hand which then glowed light green. The wound would then soon close up and start to feel better, relatively speaking. Kenji just intruded on the half-Oni and he knew that. "You can punch me later. Let us not cause a commotion in a street in public."

[GambolMuse]

"Thank you princess, it really is an interesting power. Just... Maybe don't show it off so much?" Tetsuya suggested, smiling slightly. He wasn't really anything special so why did he warrant seeing something so unique? If the wrong people caught wind of this or saw it then it could spell trouble for Eri, but then she must already know that. To Lady Ru he offered a smile, giving a nod of his head, "Thank you too, Lady Ru. I'll let someone know as soon as I find a place, don't worry. And thank you for the discount too, I appreciate it." Just as well he should get a discount, he hardly had a lot of money to throw around. There was a small stipend given to him by Lord Shima and then his own savings, which hardly amassed to any kind of fortune. It should be enough for a bit of traveling, though sooner or later Tetsuya figured he'd have to earn money somehow too.

Thankfully getting back to Ru proper wasn't too difficult, nor was finding an inn. Just to avoid getting into anything the Neko avoided places he'd visited earlier, opting instead for some new spots. No harm had been done really by his questioning but he'd rather be safe than sorry; having some drunk who was miffed over being asked a bunch of stuff break into his room didn't sound all too fun. The one he had finally settled on sat along one of the walls of the town, standing on its own in a fairly open space of land with all sorts of little plants decorating the otherwise barren lawn. It was a bit small and maybe the cheapest one he could find, but then Tetsuya didn't need luxury. He had spent the night before reaching Ru sleeping beneath a tree, so anything at this point would be preferable.

The old man running the inn was a bit stingy when it came to negotiating cost, even when Tetsuya told him about what Lady Ru had said. It wasn't until he managed to find a guard and have the man corroborate his story that he was given the discount, unable to help but smile a little smugly as he trotted past the innkeeper and to his room. His accommodations would be about as simple as you could get, with little but a bedroll, a dresser and a small table adorning the simple tatami-mat floored room. There was a set of doors leading to the courtyard outside, but he doubted he'd spend much time there. After some fiddling and getting his armor off, Tetsuya began wandering around the inn a bit, hoping to find a place to take a bath; walking around in that armor a lot could make you stink quite a bit, after all.

[Kitsune]

"Hey."

Yuudai took a look back to Kenji for a moment as he came up and sat down beside her "Hey" She responded in kind to his words. It was at that point that her own meal was place in front of her, the assortment of noodles, meat and egg smelled lovely to her nose as it bathed within the broth. She started to eat in silence at first, her method of eating was informal but not a slurp was heard as not even spec of food was ever wasted so she was far from messy.

She did stop to eat when she heard Kenji offer her shirt back, and with a smile she placed the bowl back before taking it from him and slipping it back on, only having noticed the lack of said shirt just now. "Thanks, I had forgotten to pick it up. Would have been a bother if I had to buy a new one." Well she did not mind going around in only her wrappings but most people were embarrassed by it, such as the stand owner who had a blush across his cheeks the entire time she had been sitting there, but like her shirt she did not even bother to notice such things.

Grabbing a hold of the bowl once more she brought it up to take a big gulp of broth, but stopped when she felt her other arm being taken a hold of. Glancing over to Kenji shewas not going to say anything until he spoke, her hand lowering the bowl a little "Do I really feel like the type of person to do that?" She sounded half confused but also sad by that little fact. She knew she looked like the type with her build and out of the norm muscles given the overuse of ki around, more so for women, but she had sort of hoped she didn't look like a thug at least. "Either way, thanks. I can go back to where I dropped my sword now"

[Lekkuen]

The guards still weren't letting Jiang see their leader, his words about an imposter and possible threat to their land didn't change anything. They had their orders and it would take much more than simple words to change that. "Sorry but we follow Lady Ru, no one else has authority that matters here. And her orders are clear, so if that man is an impostor than you should go handle it yourself as it is a Shima problem and not a Ru one. And unless there is proof of an immediate threat to us, you will have to wait until morning to speak to her."

Hearing them speak Takumi shrugged before turning towards Jiang. "Maybe you should see about the guy claiming to be from your clan. Trying to force them to see Lady Ru could offend her as well as the Naji Princess she is with, and now wouldn't be a good time to damage relations between Shima and Naji. The princesses aren't as forgiving or kind as their father can be towards clans that turned down their proposition." He couldn't decide for Jiang but he suggested what he felt would be the best use of their time, until they could think of a way to get Ru to see them. He was worried about some important Naji deal going on, especially since the rest of the clan wasn't informed of things. He would normally assume it was about the war, but with the Ki Witch hanging around he feared she may be involved with Naji once again.

[PaulHaynek]

"Do I really feel like the type of person to do that?"

Yuudai

The words. The tone. Kenji messed up and he knew that. "Ah! No... What I mean is..." The Yang sighed. There was no salvaging the situation. "I have no excuse. Please forgive me, Miss Wakahisa." With the bowl served to him, Kenji wanted to dunk his head into his soupy meal and drown.

Some moments passed with the two enjoying their meals, at least one of them. Kenji was still a bit guilty about what he had said but he knew that nothing good will come out of brooding over it and so tried to get his mind off of it. The rift of silence between him and Yuudai was not helping that. He needed a new subject to talk about. "Miss Wakahisa, you are the adoptive child of the Legendary Youkai Mystic Kyuki Wakahisa, yes?" He asked knowing fully what the answer was.

"How lucky. To be family with a person who has legends surrounding her. You are likely to be in the pages of history because of that. And if we are successful, you're place in history would be assured." Kenji said. "Now that I think about it, it would make for a good story."

"Yuudai Wakahisa. The child of the Legendary Kyuki Wakahisa, travels across Baji to save Shima, her home, and the rest of the Isles." Kenji continued, not knowing that announcing their mission in public was a bad idea.

[Wei Phoenix]

They were met with more rejection as Baji spoke and it was upsetting him but Takumi advised him to let it go and investigate the possible impostor. He put trust in all of Takumi's political and foreign advice. "I understand and I apologize if I offended you or your lady's word. I humbly ask that inform her of our presence at her earliest convenience and I will personally investigate the possible Shima impostor." The two moved past the guards respectfully and started their search. "We should probably check the local inns since it's late at night. I suggest we start with the cheapest one. If he's not who he says he is then he wouldn't probably want to stay in the smallest one to avoid attention. You ready for this Takumi?! Jiang and Takumi, prowling the night for liars, allies and clues!" Probably not the best idea to shout that out and he wrapped his arm around Takumi and pulled him in as they walked side by side. "A neko in strange armor, how hard can that be to find? Oooh! How should we play this? Good town guard, bad town guard? Surely we won't pose as Ru guards out of respect. Maybe I could be a drunkard with a vendetta against Shima, or you could pose as a son of Shima!" Jiang struck a new pose every time he came up with a new idea and stared at Takumi with such excitement and glee in his eyes, hoping for some positive feedback.

[Lekkuen]

Takumi quickly pushed Jiang off of him, not wanting anything to do with whatever silly plan he was thinking. What he was saying sounded like something straight out of one of the foreign novels and comics that merchants sometimes have with them. Regardless he wasn't there to bond with him and would rather focus on gather info related to his job as a guide, and if he needed to get any new maps of the region due to clan changes. "No, I'm not going to do any of that. How about I ask some of the Naji guys where he went, they would be keeping an eye on anyone unusual since the princess is with them. If you'd rather keep it a secret than at least ask a guard which area he went into and start from there. My job isn't to help solve Shima problems though, so I'll give you needed info that will help with the journey but that is about as far as it goes." He wasn't friends with the others and didn't have any clan connection with any of them. He didn't wish harm on them but found his job easier when he wasn't close to those he was guiding, made it easier to quit or run away if things got too out of control for him to handle. Though with the Ki Witch being involved he did wonder if he would even be allowed to quit, he may know too much to not see the mission through at this point. She was someone he imagined would be impossible to truly run from, and since no clan in his region would fight her such a thing wouldn't change any time soon.

[Kitsune]

Lifting her arm from Kenji's hold after it had healed she gave it a once over and looked rather impressed by the result "At least magic has its uses" Again she used a tone when she used the word magic but prevented herself from doing so, after all he had used it to heal her. "As for how I look, don't worry many people do. They think I am dumb and brutish despite who I was raised by.?" She started gulping down what remained within her food bowl.

"I wont lie, I am lucky to have such a mother, don't tell her that by the way. History will hopefully remember me, but I would like it to be for my own deeds you know?" Placing down the bowl she pushed it towards the stall owner so he could take it away."That being said you can just call me Yuudai you know, It is easier on the tongue" Her mother and her did have a odd last name after all. "That being said even that women thought I was some dumb brute didn't she?"

She sounded confused when she mentioned the women "Honestly I was not paying attention to her. No clue why she started blabbing on like that" She was much more focused on the fight that could had been "Shame I thought she looked fun to fight, I was clearly wrong though." She had not been paying attention to the womens words at all when she had lost her cool. "Eh either way we can talk about it later if it was important, and about you too. For now though?" She went to stand up and move from the stool "I need to head back to where the battle took place. I forgot something." She peered up to the darkening sky "I will make sure to be back before night. Without anyone else it is a simple run."

[Xartarin]

Metou smiled as Gin approached, showing that he wanted to go with her to find their lead. After all that discussion on whether or not they wanted to trust the woman they just fought, it would be severely disappointing if she would have to brave the consequences of that information by herself. She was glad it was Gin coming along, as he seemed potentially more even-tempered than the rest, and she hoped that this would be at least one person they wouldn't end up fighting.

"Alright Gin, it's time we look for our travelling woman," Metou said as the others were running off. With Kenji chasing after Yuudai and Jiang taking Takumi to seek an interview, it looked like Gin and Metou would be the only ones left to find their mysterious musician. After the others took off, Metou followed suit, though at a much slower pace.

"Our informant told us that in this region there is a travelling woman with a foreign instrument who can inform us on what is happening with the relics of other clans, which suggests to me that they're being targeted as well," Metou recapped as she walked with Gin, mostly for her own benefit, as her memory wasn't as good as it once was and she was behind the woman when she was speaking. She also took good care not to mention the Ki Witch now that they were in a crowd. "She likely makes her money on donations for playing music. We're most likely to find her in a public square, an inn, or a pub."

Metou started walking in a direction she vaguely remembered a market or public square being in, plus she generally assumed such a thing would be a straight line from the town gates. Since it was the middle of the day, Metou assumed that to be the most likely place she would be. If this woman was simply out and about around the city, shopping or seeing the sites rather than performing, Metou feared it would be unlikely they'd ever find her.

[Wei Phoenix]

Sighed heavily when his ideas were shut down by Takumi. Baji listened to his suggestion and seemed to be the easiest and most simple plan to finding the unknown neko. Still, he thought it would've been cooler if they worked together to pull some some cool ruse to pull this guy out and find out who he really was. "I suppose it is best to do this the easiest way, but we're going to have to learn how to improvise and make things up on the fly as our travels continue. You'll never know when it'll be needed or if we will have to act undercover!" Jiang then brought his thoughts back to Ru, herself since he would be seeing her sooner or later. On the outside, he was as eccentric and goofy as always but deep down he was truly determined to win her favor, help save her village and strengthen the bond between Shima. "So yeah, let's see what those Naji guards know, and in the mean time...Tell me more about Lady Ru! Is she strong, is she beautiful, do you think she would like me?!" Then his mind went to the other villages and clans near and far and his eyes began to gleam and beam. "Are there other beautiful clan leaders for us to meet in our days to come?!"