A Samurai in a Ninja Village

[hikaru]

=Hikaru=

"This path I walk....Though I am fallen...."

"Well, I always wanted to see other places....." came the listless voice of an ex-Samurai and discharged officer of Tetsu no Kuni. Hikaru had come to Konoha to get his wounds treated and get some proper clothes, both of which, he had done. Hikaru now sported a green outfit with a half-skirt, armoured gloves and boots, and a black and red Samurai mask. A great farcry from his old samurai robes or armour. Hikaru took a seat next to a large tree, one of the many in Konoha. He considered himself lucky that Samurai didn't have a system of eliminating 'traitors' or 'deserters' that the Hidden Villages seemed to favour. After all, Konoha would never let a 'criminal' into their village.

Hikaru held his sheathed sword in front of himself, his masked face stony in expression as he got absorbed in his thoughts. 'I've been exiled, disowned and probably stricken from my clan's records....'. Hikaru set his sword down next to him, the 'fallen' blade his only companion on his painful journey to Konoha. That little journey was an experience in his own right, having to fight off bandits, low rank Nuke-nin and wild animals with only one arm and one eye. Eventually he had reached the Hidden Village of Hi no Kuni, and had his wounds treated. He had been told that he still had an infection and he'd still be weak for quite a while.

Hikaru had rented out a small apartment in the business district earlier, but now he needed some way of getting some real income...which was troublesome since he was a military man, and Konoha would never hire an exile, let alone a Samurai. Hikaru let out a soft sigh, his mask disguising his look of semi-hopelessness as he leaned back into the trunk of the tree he was sitting next to.

"Really screwed things up didn't you Hikaru?" he asked himself sarcastically.

"...A Red Blade of Hell, I will never stop being...."

[meiyoakaruiuta]

The day had gone by almost painfully slowly, even though it really wasn’t that far into the hours. It had just become noon, yet the time from three in the morning until now could have taken days, if you were in the position of a bored teenager with nothing better to do than practice music and finish school work. Her siblings were far from town along with Akarui’s mother, and her father was currently discussing business with a group of men from a very far away place, though her father wouldn’t allow her to know much more than that. She didn’t mind though. Most of his business was kept private, and he never spoke about it at home.

Stepping outside, Akarui brushed her hands across the sides of her bright yellow dress, feeling the rough stitching lightly scrape at her small hands. The same color of sunshine yellow was the color of the bow that was tied in her hair, with a thick band a large bow. Her hair was lightly curled behind that. Yellow was a favorite color of hers.

Wondering across the town, she stopped at a few shops, picking up a few items here and there, a bright orange set of marbles, a new set of coloring pencils and more bow, though this was cross-crossed orange and mint green. Though she enjoyed shopping for items, she was careful not to go over board, her father being liable to punish her for such waste of money. Though they had plenty, it wasn’t often she got to buy more than the essentials.
Stepping onto a path, she wound her way around town until she found something, or rather, someone that caught her interest. A man wearing a mask, talking to himself. Though she didn’t catch what he’d said, she stepped a bit closer, clasping her hands behind her back, standing a few feet in front of him, her wide, blue eyes cast down at him.

”Hello sir. How’re you?” she asked, her head tilting to the side a bit, a few stray strands of hair falling into her face for a moment before she absently brushed them away. It wasn’t ever day that you got to find someone like this person. He looked like he could be a ninja. He probably was, seeing as she was in a ninja villa. Her curiosity only intensified as she realized she’d never seen him around while delivering to her family. Perhaps he was a ninja from another town… perhaps she shouldn’t have approached him.

[/blockquote]

[hikaru]

=Hikaru=

"This path I walk....Though I am fallen...."

Hikaru stared at the sky for a good while until a soft, childish voice broke him out of his ponderings. It was a young preteen or teenage girl, clearly not a Ninja, as all the Shinobi he had encountered all wore some outfit that permitted easy movement of some kind....and they wore those odd sandals too, something Hikaru never really understood.

Smiling at the girl, Hikaru shifted himself into a non threatening posture, he did have a sword after all, and a civilian girl might feel threatened by someone like him, even if he was sitting down. He had to admit, though, that the girl seemed to be the type to not get scared easily, surprising him, since all the females in this village who were her age, Kunoichi or not, all seemed to be the 'damsel in distress' type. 'I actually wonder how Konoha solves that little problem' Hikaru quickly thought to himself as he thought of something to say to the girl.

"Oh, hello there, I'm very well, I'm just enjoying the weather that your village has, it's a lot different to what I'm used to, but it's very nice". Grinning, Hikaru stood up to his rather impressive full height and bowed himself, if his parents taught him one thing, it was how to be polite. The next part would be tricky, since everyone he had met in Konoha so far was very much a supporter of village unity, and him being an exile made him feel, out of place.

"My name is Hikaru....I'm an..." Hikaru paused, and winced slightly, a bit unsure of how to say the next part. Deciding to just tell the truth, as it was not right to lie to someone he had only met, let alone lie to a child, he continued. "...Ex-Samurai of Tetsu no Kuni, uh, what is your name, young miss?" Hikaru sounded uncomfortable admitting his 'circumstance', but he quickly brightened up, children usually had bright, happy personalities, and Hikaru often helped take care of his clanmate's kids, happy to help.

"...A Red Blade of Hell, I will never stop being...."

[meiyoakaruiuta]

She’d supposed that he’d be like all of the other sword-carrying people; always glum and unhappy about one fact or another, always striving for revenge or a way to regain respect. Though it was possible he was something like this, it didn’t seem like it now. She was even so lucky as to receive a smile, another rarity from someone such as he looked. Of course, there were those carefree fools, as her mother called them. In Akarui’s opinion, they were a nice break from all of the seriousness that arose when having nins in the family, always thinking over plans or trying to remember that fighting technique.
She was a bit jealous though. She never really had anything to occupy her thoughts. Perhaps this new person might be something of that sort, to take up some of her time. Though, what person would want to waste time on her?
Pushing back these negative thoughts, she returned his smile.

”Yes, we do have nice weather most of the time. I enjoy it myself.” A good conversation starter. Perhaps this man was just as smart as the next ninja, but of course, was he a ninja? Her answer came quickly enough.

An ex-samurai. That wasn’t your usual cup of tea, but of course, she didn’t suppose that it was unusual. That’s what she got for living in a ninja villa. Odd characters were amenable to pop up here and there. It was probably a perk of her fathers, as he often was out, studying the people around the town. That was were she’d gotten her fondness for learning about people, and where her childish curiosity had taken seed.

”My name is Meiyo Akuari Uta, though you can just call me Akarui. It’s a pleasure to meet someone so rare in our town! I’m curious, do all samurai carry swords such as yours?” she asked, pointing a thin finger towards the blade that he carried. She’d have to return home to and ask her father about these people. She’d heard of them, of course, but to meet one was definitely a new experience in her book.
His blade was odd.

[/blockquote]

[hikaru]

=Hikaru=

"This path I walk....Though I am fallen...."

Hikaru smiled a bit wider at the little girl -now identified as Akarui- as he thought of how to answer. Apparantly she hadn't heard of Samurai, odd, but Samurai were fairly rare in the larger nations, so he supposed her ignorance was justified. Hikaru stood a little straighter at her inquisitiveness, feeling happy to talk of his heritage, even if he could no longer say he was a part of that heritage anymore.

"Well, Akarui, it's a pleasure to meet you too" Hikaru winced as a jolt of pain flared in his left arm, the wounds there not having fully healed yet. Hikaru didn't let it show, but instead kept his attention on the girl. He was a bit surprised when she asked if all Samurai used swords, but he supposed it was because she wasn't used to seeing Samurai. Hikaru laughed a little, a warm chuckle, though rough from his slightly damaged voice.

"Why yes, all Samurai do use swords, though where I am from, the Samurai traditionally use two short swords. However, and I never understood it much myself, they also, again, traditionally, carry four swords". Hikaru had been careful to say 'all Samurai', and not 'we Samurai', as he was not a part ofthe Samurai corps anymore, and had no right to call himself as such. Hikaru chuckled again, but his laughs became a rather pained series of coughs. Hikaru had his wounds treated, but the Medic-nin at the hospital said it would be better for his body if they let his lacerations and cuts heal naturally. Knowing Akarui would likely get scared, Hikaru held up a hand to show he was alright.

Realising he had dropped his sword, Hikaru quickly picked it up, gave it a once-over, and, with a dramatic flourish, slipped it into the loop attached to his belt, keeping it snug against his hip. Hikaru grinned sheepishly, his embarresed expression easily seen through his mask, and then tried to placate any worries Akarui might have had about him.

"Don't worry about me, Lil'-Aka, I'm fine, I've been through a lot worse" Hikaru smiled at his cover-up, not realising he had just made up a nickname for her on the spot, not even realising he had said it.

"...A Red Blade of Hell, I will never stop being...."