[ml1201]

Tucking the note into her pocket, she continues on her way back t the village. She makes her way over to the hut where the elders and her father are. They are already gathered together, so they must have found out some more about Akira.

"I see you're back Yusa, how did things go?" Her father keeps his face blank but she can see a trail of sweat on his face.

"It turns out that the target was Akira Koga of the Koga clan." Her father covers his eyes since hearing this confirmed his fears.

"Did you kill him?"

"No, not once did he try attacking back, even after I had injured him. All he did was prevent me from attacking him more. He claims to have left the clan officially, not as a rogue. And as a Koga, even if he was a rogue, any attack should have resulted in retaliation. Not only did he not retaliate but he also let me tend to his wounds from my attacks." Her father sighs in relief, then looks up at her like normal.

"It's good that he doesn't hold a grudge against his, he is the adoptive son of the leader of the Koga clan and just like you has been tried to be an assassin since he was a child. I don't want you to go anywhere near him again. I'll have another mission for you in a few days."

"...Father, I won't be taking anymore missions." His eyes and the eyes of the elders go wide in shock, "All I've ever done was fight and kill since I was a child, and I'm tired of it."

"What could you possibly do besides that? That's all you know!" One of the elders is furious at this remark from her. She turns and glares at her.

"That's because no one ever taught me about anything else, they just wanted to turn me into a weapon. I've been jealous of my sisters for years because they were allowed to do something other than kill people at your beck and call. Meeting Koga today made me realize I don't have to bow down to you and take orders like a dog. And there are other ninjas that are almost as good as me."

"Where would you go? You'd have to leave the village and everyone knows you as a murderous demon. There will be those out there who want your head."

"If they try to kill me, I'll just kill them, simple as that."

Leaving without saying anything more, Yusa goes back to her home, gathers up what few possessions she has besides weapons she thinks she'll need, then leaves the village. As she leaves she hears the others asking if she's gone rogue or something, all of them stepping back and away from her. Ignoring them she makes her way back to the village, taking refuge in the tree outside of Koga's room, keeping a weapon ready as she drifts off to sleep.

[CycloneKira]

Akira wakes up a little earlier than usual. He makes the bed and puts it back in the closet. He then takes his katana out of his bag and starts practising with it. He still keeps it with him, purely to practise and keep himself fit. For about fifteen minutes he practises, swinging it forward, then to the sides.

He finally puts it back and goes to the balcony. The village is just as picturesque during the day as it is at night. He spots someone sleeping on a tree not far away. It is Yusa. He smiles as he sees her face fully for the first time. For a ninja as skilled as her, she has quite a fragile-looking face. It is pretty in a way, he thinks. He looks at her a little while before going in to take a bath.

[ml1201]

Opening one eye sleepily she sees Akira getting up and beginning to practice. She's glad to see he at least keeps up his training since it can save his life and all. She continues to lay on the branch while he trains, then when he goes back inside she sighs.

"You can't make me go back father." In the branches above her stands her father, looking down on her.

"I trained you so that you could be the heir to our clan since we couldn't have a son. I've raised you as if you were my son and I will not allow you to leave."

"So you're saying I have to kill you to leave? Father, I'm leaving because I'm tired of killing people, and not in the sense that I can't tolerate it or anything. I just want to do something more with my life then just kill people for the rest of it. And you could have trained one of our cousins to inherit, not me. my aunt has plenty of boys that you could have trained."

"What possibly could you want that you didn't already have? No man is interested in you because of what you were trained to do unless its a ninja, and even then it would have to be one that can best you which none of the boys in the village can."

"Which means you can't make me go back. I'm leaving the clan for good and I'll try to find my own path in life. Try to stop me and I will kill you father." Getting up and grabbing her stuff she jumps down into the shadows of the trees and slips into Akira's room to wait for him.

[CycloneKira]

Akira slips into the hot spring near the elder's house. The warmth of the water almost feels welcoming. He loses himself, not worrying about the rest of the world. His mind wanders as he thinks about Yusa. Her situation is really not that different from the one he himself faced a week ago. They are both the best ninjas of their respective clans and they are both sick of killing without reason. The difference is that he left and she hasn't. He wonders if the note he wrote to her helped her realize something, if not inspired the idea of leaving.

He sighs and gets up, gets dressed and makes his way back to the village elder's house. He is pleasantly surprised to see Yusa in his room. He bows. "Good morning, Yukiyama-san. To what do I owe this pleasure?" He smiles at her.

[ml1201]

"Don't call me that, my surname is not the same as my clan name. And I prefer to be called Yusa anyways. And I've left my clan and I was wondering if it would be alright if I traveled with you for a bit. I have some normal clothing, but not much. And as you already know I'm a pretty good hunter, so even if I have to trade in game to get better suited clothing for travel I will. I just hope you don't mind me tagging along since I have no where else to go..." Blushing some she doesn't look at him, quite embarrassed about her situation.

[CycloneKira]

Akira blinks in astonishment as he is faced with this new situation. Not a problem, exactly. Just a situation. He studies her as she goes on about it. Finally, he sighs. "Listen, I haven't exactly dealt with other people in a friendly fashion before, at least not for long. So if you really wish to travel with me, you have a right to know that I know next to nothing about this world. I myself am in the process of learning about it." All this is just an excuse to try to get her away from him, he knows. Not that he doesn't want her around him. It's just that he is still not sure about himself and does not think he can take responsibility of another person. If she begins travelling with him, he's not sure. "Are you absolutely sure you want to travel with... me?" He finds himself getting a little embarrassed and stops talking.

[ml1201]

Not looking at him she's quiet for a few moments, then sighs and gets up, "I figured you knew more than I did since you've at least been on the road a few days compared to me just hunting. But if I'm going to cause trouble for you I can just try on my own then..." Grabbing her bag she hoists it onto her shoulder. Yusa waits a moment before she starts heading out through the garden towards the tree line.

[CycloneKira]

Akira tries to stop her. "Wait," he says, briefly wondering why he even said that. "I didn't mean to..." He sighs. "It is true that I have learnt something after leaving my home, but I'm not sure that you will like this style of living. If you are sure that a somewhat nomadic lifestyle will suit your taste, then you are welcome to join me. The company of a like-minded person will do us both good, I am sure." He smiles at her, hoping she understood.

[ml1201]

Turning back to him she raises a brow, "After the lien of work I've done do you honestly think I can stay in one place without feeling like a caged tiger? I'd rather wonder around instead of staying in one spot. That is at least until I get tired of that anyways." Coming back towards him she sets her stuff on the floor before facing him but not looking at him.

"Would it be alright if I used the baths first however?" She blushes a bit since she was still wearing her clothes from yesterday. She didn't bother getting clean, she just grabbed her stuff and left. Not to mention there were some spots of blood from when she injured Akira on them. And people seeing that would not be a good idea.

[CycloneKira]

Akira is startled a bit when she comes back and puts her stuff down on the ground. "Of course," he says when she asks if she can use the baths. She has to or else she'll scare the townspeople. Especially with the dried blood on her clothes. "I've got some clothes in my bag if you'd like. They might be a little big but you might want to use them for the time being."

He shivers at the idea of traveling with a strange woman. It's ironic. He, who has felled famous assassins with one blow is shivering at the idea of spending time with a woman. He hides a smile as he thinks of this.

[ml1201]

They'll do better than what I've got for the time being. Until I can trade in some of the fancier clothing that I have. To think that they were used for assassinations as well, by pretending to be a wealthy women when I wasn't." Shaking her head at the folly of men she takes the clothes Akira offers her and stealthily makes her way to the baths. There she cleans herself as quickly and as quietly as possible so as not to draw attention to herself. Returning quickly she bundles her old clothes up and sticks them in her bag.

"When we get to a town I'll see about having some of the clothing tailored into something else. Like turning the shirt into a shawl or something. At least this way they won't got to waste. I have some money of my own so I can help with expenses. Well, I'm ready to go when you are, but I think it would be best to meet up again at the edge of the Eastern part of the village. I think the people here would question as to why I was leaving your room with you otherwise."

[CycloneKira]

Akira smiles as she accepts the clothes and disappears with them to the baths. He sighs and sets about packing his bag. He thinks about what she said. She dressed up as a wealthy woman on her previous missions, huh? Interesting, he thinks. Well, she won't have to do that anymore.

He smiles as she returns. "As you say," he says and nods in agreement. "Why don't we meet up there in, say, an hour? I have some last-minute work to finish."

[ml1201]

"I'll keep my eyes peeled for you then. And just be on the look out for ninjas from my clan, they might try to force me to come back...and they might challenge me to a duel." Sighing she shakes her head, quickly leaving and leaping up into the trees. Heading to that end of the village she makes herself a hiding spot over looking to road so she can see when Akira leaves the village. She knows that there are several males in the village that were always reluctant to fight her, but if her father promises to make them the clan leaders if they force her to marry them or something, she might have to at least severally injure them if not kill them. Yusa only hopes that after a while they would just leave her alone.

[CycloneKira]

Akira takes her leave and sets out, after thanking the headman, who seems visibly surprised at the sight of him. Nevertheless, he ensures that his granddaughter gives him some food for his journey. He walks around town, simply for the pleasure of wandering, when he spots a little store in the corner. Walking into it, he finds all kinds of clothes for women. His mind immediately thinks of Yusa. He calls on the shopkeeper and looks at the clothes. He walks out of the store with three new dresses for Yusa. Now she won't have to tailor anything, he thinks. He walks to the end of the village to the East end, where he was supposed to meet Yusa.

[ml1201]

From her spot in the tree, Yusa sees Akira begin making her way towards him, but there's something more pressing going on.

"Yusa, we're here to take you home, and the man who can successfully do so will be your husband. That's what the chieftain has promised the men of the clan." Sighing she looks up to the three ninjas in the trees above her.

"I'm like to see you boys try, I'm fed up of being a ninja and just want to be left alone." Before she's even finished talking she's jumping away from them and further down the road. She throws some stars at them and leaps down to the road. The three of them surround her, but she seems more focused on the one who had spoken. Drawing her blade she makes a dash for him, ducking as he grabs for her. Swinging up her blade he smiles as he dodges it, but that grin quickly turns to shock when he realizes that she got him with one of her poisoned needles.

"Now, if you don't want him to die I suggest taking him back to the village. That's a poison unique to my family." The other two ninja look nervously at her and how her face is completely blank, and decide its better to return to the village empty handed and with them all alive.

[CycloneKira]

Akira reaches the agreed meeting place on time, to see two men carrying a third one, walk away from Yusa. He walks up to her, brushing his long hair back with his fingers. He prods a thumb in their direction. "Was that... your handiwork?" he asks, his tone jovial. "Poor souls..." He looks in their direction briefly before turning back to her.

"So, I was in town, and I bought these for you," he says, showing her what he bought. "I hope you like them. I just thought they'd be enough to get you started, before you go to buy any more." He looks at her, hoping she'll accept.