(D1, EM) Open Path

[Seppun Yuzu]

As soon as Lady Sun blesses the land, the young Yuzu makes his prayers and goes off to train in a place where others wouldn't bump into him by accident. Having walked the walls the other day, he found out a perfect stop to practice his kata and techniques without anyone actually looking to learn the secret ways of the Miharu.

[Kakita Sakura]

Looking, no. But that doesn’t mean Yuzu is undisturbed, for after a time he hears footsteps- and soon afterwards, the source comes into view around the walls. Sakura, accompanied by her servant, Nanami.

“…a Seppun, Kakita-sama.”

The soft whisper as soon as the servant sees Yuzu is enough to get Sakura to bow deeply. “Ah- my apologies, Seppun-sama, I was merely catching some fresh air before the morning's event.”

[Seppun Yuzu]

Always on the edge for a potential assault, as his paranoid school technique so demands, Yuzu interrupts his training as soon as he hears the approaching steps to get ready to strike. Finally understanding there was no immediate threat, his hand moves away from the saya without anyone actually noticing.

Then, he provides a bow, greeting with his juvenile voice that is still finding its proper tone, "Fresh air is good. Lady Sun has been kind and warm. I hope Inari-kami has been likewise generous. I am Seppun Yuzu, Governor of Chisei. Please, treat me well."

[Kakita Sakura]

Sakura tilts her head, before nodding. "This one is Kakita Sakura, Seppun-dono. Inari-kami has indeed provided this morning- to you as well?"

There's no sign of tenseness to her at the stance- of course there is not. But the daisho the blind samurai carries indicates- she is capable of defending herself. "You have found a fine place to practice your kata, Seppun-dono."

[Seppun Yuzu]

He blinks a bit at the deference in treatment. He does enjoy it, even if it doesn't show.

The boy replies, "Indeed I have." Then, he double checks Sakura and her servant for another moment to sink in the visual information. He adds, "Quite spacious and not so crowded as the dojo is becoming, from what I've saw yesterday. Bonus: I get some fresh air, too."

Looking to his gear nearby, he says, "I've been giving some onigiri from the inn servants.I was planning to eat some after training."

[Kakita Sakura]

Sakura pauses, tilts her head. “It would be a lovely place to take a snack after training as well, Seppun-dono.”

Don’t assume, even if he is offering to share.

[Moshi Shizuka]

A lovely place for a snack, indeed. And what could make a snack better, but music!

...or something like it.

From inside one of the nearby towers, a loud, plunky, TWANG! rings out followed by what sounds like a deep feminine voice running through vocal scales.

A moment of silence. Some quiet twangs. A young woman's face peeks out from around the tower entrance.

"Ah! Samurai-sama, good morning. How does this cloudy day find you?"

[Seppun Yuzu]

Sakura pauses, tilts her head. “It would be a lovely place to take a snack after training as well, Seppun-dono.”

"It doesn't have the pretty things one would find in the garden, but it brings some good silen-"

TWANG!

"Ack!" He cringes as the loud sound resonates from the wall.

"Ah! Samurai-sama, good morning. How does this cloudy day find you?"

Looking up to the source of the noise, the young Guardsman puts a hand on top of his eyes to have a better view of whomever was at the tower. He wrinkles his nose a bit, and replies, "This morning started serene. Come near so we don't have to shout around, please."

[Moshi Shizuka]

The head cants curiously. "As you wish. I'll be there momentarily."

Momentarily turned out be subjective, but eventually Shizuka presented herself out from from where she had been sheltering in the tower from the early morning drizzle. She carried an umbrella, closed as it was unneeded, in one hand. In the other was a bag from whose cinched opening projected the head and tuning pegs of a shamisen.

Shizuka dressed for the weather, which is to say she wore a more vibrantly colored kimono so as to stand out against the dreary conditions in her clan's oranges and browns. A display of seasonally appropriate flowers was painted upon the fabric, with subtle inclusion of centipedes among the blooms.

"Good day to you both. I am Moshi Shizuka, please take care of me." Shizuka greeted the pair with a polite bow. "My apologies if I distracted you from your practices. I was preparing to greet the Sun."

[Seppun Yuzu]

TWANG! Goes Yuzu's eyes as Shizuka appears.

He tries, but nature just doesn't allow him to move them away from the Moshi as she approaches –– for some hypnotic reason that never happened to him before. The similarity of her build's description and the Centipede's famous landmark escape his lips with a, "Moving Mountains."

Then, he tries to add context before any double entendre is perceived too bluntly, "By the Moving Mountains of the Centipede... as they say. I've heard tales that the Centipede has moving mountains. I mean, on the map. People often mistook its place in some maps. As if it moved. Centipede having many legs and all... that."

He clears his throat and bows, "Good morning as well. No need for apologies. I am Seppun Yuzu, Governor of Chisei. Please, treat me well."