A Delightfully Unexpected Tea Party

[ruriko]

Shiro sits cross legged before a low table sipping sake and and enjoying the nice breeze blowing through the room.

Ruriko runs her fingers through her wet hair, fixing her ribbon into it in a perfect ponytail once more. Water still dripped off her as she made her way into the Tsurugami compound. She glanced around, and spotted the man from the training grounds. Ruriko bounds up the toward the tea house and enters politely. "Um, Hiya Shiro-san." She said as she grinned broadly.

Shiro looks up from contemplating his sake to see the bright youth standing. He says with a great grin on his face "Come and join me Ruriko-chan, I was just having a drink". Motioning to a seat across the table from him has asks "What can I get for you, juice, tea, perhaps a nice snack ?"

Ruriko takes the seat that Shiro offered, moving with a grace seldom seen by a child. "Oh, what kinda snacks do you have?" She asked timidly, her stomach growling in displeasure from not eating since before she started training the day before.

Shiro says "We have everything from chips to meat. Though it looks like you might be a tad bit more hungry, how would you like some onigiri " Shiro drains the sake from his glass and sets it gently on the table .

Ruriko nods, a sly smile creeping upon her lips. "Yeah...onigiri sounds tasty....." She blushed as her stomach growled once more. "Um...I kinda forgot to eat..." She stammered, still embarrassed that she managed to not only mess up once, but twice in the same day in front of someone in the village she just met! She fidgeted in her seat to get a little more comfortable, then fixed her haori, in a way befitting a lady, just as her mom taught her.

Shiro sighs and shakes his head slowly "You really need to take better care of yourself, you are at an age where you shouldn't just be sleeping under trees and forgetting to eat." Picking up a small bell off the corner of the table and rings it "Oh and what was it you wanted to drink ?"

Glancing curiously about the room, Ruriko nods absentmindedly, "I know...I just...am used to it." She stated matter of factly. She glanced curiously at the decorations of the tea house and smiled, "I think the decorations are cute." She snapped forward as she realized her host was asking her what she wanted to drink, and blushed. "Oh, um...whatever is easiest." She mumbled.

A girl who appears to be in her late teens appears and asks "Yes Shiro-sama, what can I do for you?" Shiro thinks for a moment before replying "Kaori-chan if you would be so kind as to bring us some onigiri and tea it would be most appreciated" Nodding the girl walks briskly away. "So Ruriko-chan, how was your walk here, manage to find it ok ?"

Ruriko smiled sheepishly, "Well, I am a little knew to the village..." She shrugged. "So I guess about as well as I could I guess...." Her hands fidgeted in her lap as she looked down at them, "T-thanks for inviting me over.." She gestured toward the compound, "It's even bigger than I thought it would be..."

Ruriko shrugged nonchalantly, "I think maybe a few weeks..." She seemed to be thinking hard, and counting in her head, "Um, I'm not exactly sure...but about that. I'm staying with Shu-sama and Emi-chan."

Shiro grins widley "Ah, such premonition as to be able to pre-empt my next question. I was beginning to fear that maybe you lived outdoors. So what brings you to our fair village ?" Shiro leans forward and rests his head in his hands which are propped up on the table.

Ruriko smiles uneasily, "Well, I'm looking for my father...he.. disappeared from my village and well..." She took a deep breath and began to tell Shiro about her travel. "When I found my dad missing, I decided to go after him, I wouldn't know whether or not he was in trouble, and I had to help him." She slumped in defeat. "Well, I didn't find him and ended up being poorly prepared to navigate the forests. I didn't bring a compass or anything." She paused, brushing a loose strand of hair off of her cheek. Ruriko continued, "Well, I ended up getting lost, and ran out of food. Shu-sama and Emi-chan found me, and brought me home." She sighed, "I promised them I'd become a genin here in order to pay off my debt to them."

Shiro scratches his chin lazily with a finger "That is quite a task to take upon yourself. I don't suppose you" notcing Kaori had returned with the tea and onigiri, he says "Letme hold that thought for a minute" Motioning to the serving girl he continues on as she comes in and sets out the dishes "As I was saying, I don't suppose you have any previous ninja training ?".

Nodding, Ruriko smiled, "Yeah, a little bit." She reaches forward and delicately grabs one of the onigiri and takes a bite. Once she swallowed she elaborated. "My father was a ninja in the Village of Mist, he trained me mostly." She hesistantly took the cup of tea, and sipped it, then placed it back in front of her, being sure not to be messy.

Nodding to the girl, Shiro says "Thank you Kaori-chan, that will be all" Taking an onigiri off the plate he nibbles at it a bit before pouring himself some more sake and taking a slow drink. "How far did your father get in your training, and did he teach you to specialize in any ninja tools ?"

Ruriko took another eager bite of the onigiri. "Yep...my mom taught me tools...mostly the basic ones, like Shuriken, and she taught me the Kusari-gama." She took another sip of tea, and hiccuped. "Scuse me...anyway…the other stuff I learned was mostly endurance...and a few jutsu." She smiled, her eyes shining brightly, as she realized for the first time, she was talking to someone that wasn't family or Emi-chan that took an interest in what she had to say.

Shiro raises an eyebrow at the mention of a kusari-gama "What was it you said earlier 'A brutal beating is the best way to wake up in the morning'? That certainly sounds like it would build endurance." After taking another sip of sake and savoring it's taste he throws in "You know, I'm also a Kusari-gama user."

Ruriko giggles. "Oh yeah? Maybe you can show me something I haven't learned yet, cause I still have alot of years to go before I'm as experienced as you..." She smiled and daintily took another bite, finishing the onigiri she had in her hand, and then took a small sip of tea. "I don't exactly have one right now though...when I left I didn't exactly have time to pack my room...."

Shiro winks at the girl "Had to sneak out of the house did you, sounds like quite the adventure. " Taking a bite out his onigiri he chews it thoughtfuly and swallows "I don't know, my style of using the kusari-gama is rather unique, and to tell the truth, brutal. I'm not sure if it would suit a girl such as yourself."

Ruriko grins, "You have no idea...my father trained in the old style of the Academy in the Hidden Village of Mist...." She shuddered, "I remember some of the things he told me wasn't pleasant..." She spun the tea in the bottom of her cup absentmindedly and brushed her eye with her other hand. "Well, my father thought the new academy was soft....to say the least."

Shiro nods "Ah that explains a lot about your father, graduate of the old academy is he. Then perhaps you could learn from my style." Taking up the cup of tea before him, he inspects it for a second before taking a sip. "How good is your ninjutsu use ?"

Deciding to show Shiro her ninjutsu, Ruriko of course must introduce it, "Well," Ruriko starts, stretching out her legs really fast, she moves her hands in a perfectly executed Souken Mizu no Jutsu. "Suitton: Souken Mizu no Jutsu." She finishes it off, letting the water she shoots out of her mouth into the garden out side the tea house instead of getting everything soaked. "I'd love to learn your style," Ruriko said, smiling sincerely. "Also, I can do some other jutsu pretty well, but usually I need a target, if you don't mind, I can use that tree." She suggested, pointing to one near to the tea house. Ruriko bows, "If you don't mind Shiro-san."

Shiro sips his tea "Spitting is unlady like.” Ruriko smiles, "Of course, but I wasn't taught that by a lady, I was taught that by my dad." Shiro sets down his tea and scratches the back of his head "I don't know, you won't damage my tree will you ?" Ruriko shakes her head, "Naw, only give it a trim, and some water." Shiro studies the girl closely and nods "Go ahead then."

Ruriko nods, and without further adeu, performs her next jutsu with finesse considering her age, "Suitton: Kasui Mizu no Jutsu!" She shouts, the water leaps to life, shooting the spikes through branches around the tree, taking them off with precision, giving the tree a softer appearance, but without any damage to the trunk. Water drips down the leaves that were untouched as Ruriko closes her eyes, breathing out softly, then opening her eyes, she smiles. "See. No harm done."

Shiro claps his hands once then clasps them together. "Very good Ruriko-chan, very good. I must say I am impressed, when I was your age all I could manage were fireballs the size of small frogs that would fizzle out after ten feet."

Ruriko curtsies, "Thanks, although I hate to say I lack at effective taijutsu." She blushes crimson. "My dad disappeared before those lessons...he said that a body had to be strong before one learned taijutsu, and a mind sharp to learn genjutsu and ninjutsu. So..I was mostly just kicked around to the ground until I couldn't move anymore...it was preparation for taijutsu.".

Shiro says "I can't say I agree with your father's teaching methods, but he was right about a body needing to be strong and the mind sharp." Shiro brushes himself off, stands up, goes to a small cabinet in the corner and starts to rummage "I never saw much use in learning taijutsu myself, I have always been a ninjutsu specialist." Finding what he is searching for he returns and sets a small wooden bowl filled with hard red candies in the middle of the table "Want one, they are rather hot though, so be careful.”

Ruriko nods, "Thanks!" She says as she reaches for one of the red candies. She pops it into her mouth cautiously, and savors the flavor in her mouth. "Th-ith ith good." Although hot, she continues to suck on it before crunching into it as soon as she could, and swallows it. "Yummy. Where'd you get those?" She asks curiously.

Shiro gestures to the candies "Oh these, I got them while on a mission in the fire country." Shiro takes a candy and pops it into his mouth "So where have you been on your travels ?"

Ruriko nods. "Thats so cooool." She glances down nervously, "Well, I kinda just got lost in the forest for a long time...I was heading to the sand village, but without a map...." She trailed off. "Oh, but can you tell me about your travels? I love stories!" She says enthusiastically.

Shiro reaches under the table and brings out a thick leather bound book. "Here it is volume 1 of 10 of the stories of my travels 'There and back again:by shiro" Ruriko's eyes light up, "Oh wow! C-can I borrow it?" She asks eagerly. She reached out her hand to the book and began to open it. "I love reading." Shiro grins "I can't really think of any stories that would interest you off the top of my head, but if you give me a day or two I'm sure I can think of some." Reaching down to sip his tea some more he notices it is empty so carefuly pours himself some more "Need more any more tea? So your father was heading to the sand village ?"

Ruriko nods. "Okay! I can come back later for some stories!" She glances down at her now empty tea cup. "Um...yeah.. more tea sounds good." Ruriko nodded to the comment about her father. "Yeah, but I dunno if he even made it...".

Shiro, while pouring more tea for Ruriko says "You know I'm orginally from the sand village. Really not that great a place, can't see why your father would be interested in it." After finishing pouring the tea he sets the pot down "Do you know why he went there ?"

Ruriko shrugs. "I dunno, I just overheard him and some messenger sent by the Mizukage." She takes a sip of her hot tea and almost burns her mouth. "Um. I don't really why he was s'posed to go though...I just know it's dangerous."

Shiro thinks for a moment before saying "Hrmm, I don't remember hearing that anyone important has died recently. Maybe is on some sort of long term mission to infiltrate it or something like." He shrugs and continues "Well whatever it is, it doesn't concern me. And I know you probably don't want to hear this, but you should make sure you don't get involved either."

Ruriko nods her head reluctantly. "But I have to make sure he's okay at least. It's why I'm training here now. I have to be strong enough to help...or at least to make sure he's okay."

Shiro says "That's right you need to put your effort into becoming a genin now. If you ever want to train feel free to drop by, I'm sure there is someone here who wouldn't mind helping you."

Nodding slowly, Ruriko says, "Okay, I'd love to do that, I really need all the help I can get if I'm going to become a genin soon." She smiles, "Oh...how old are most of the people who take the genin exam here?"

Shiro picks up his tea and sips from it "Most are around your age, when they attempt to take it. Though there are some that couldn't pass it till they were ten or eleven."

Ruriko takes another sip of her tea, blowing on it first. "Oh my...I need to work alot harder then! Emi-chan will never forgive me..."

Shiro chuckles "I'm sure she would be willing to forgive you if you do your best on it."
Ruriko smiles. "I guesso, but I wouldn't forgive myself."
Shiro smiles and says kindly "Learn and fail while you are young. The price of failure when you are old is much too high."
Ruriko blinks, soaking in what Shiro said. "Well...If you don't fail when your young, you're that much better off when you're old..."
A mischievious grin crosses Shiro's face "How would you like some sake?"
Ruriko giggles. "Oh right! Thats why I was s'posed to come over anyway. Never had any before."

Shiro nods "Very well then" getting up he crosses the room to the same cabinet as before and gets a choko from it. Sitting back down at the table Shiro pulls a bottle from a wooden bucket filled with water beside him and pours it into the cup. "On days like today, chilled sake is best." he says as he sets the cup down before Ruriko.

Ruriko peers at the cup curiously and sniffs it. "It smells like poison...." Picking it up she glanced at it curiously, and shrugs. "Oh well, you only live once." She mutters and drinks the whole cup in one gulp.
Ruriko coughs and sputters as she finished it. "Ewww..that doesn't...." She stops mid sentence, and licks her lips, "I knew it was a poison....I can't feel my lips...."

Shiro laughs "I suppose it is something of a poison, and it does take some getting used to. Like I said earlier though, nothing better for waking up then to have some in the morning."
Ruriko coughs again. "Eehc. I can see why. That stuff is...." She pauses for a second and shakes her head. "I feel kinda light headed...."

Shiro says "Odd, I didn't think this one was all that potent." He pours himself some and takes a drink of it. "Hrmm, must be letting it go to your head, quite litterally."

Ruriko giggles. "Naw...I think I just...havn't drunk it before...maybe it's like spicy things...you eat too much and they get less spicy...." She shifts in her chair uncomfortably.

Shiro grins "Are you saying you want more ?".

Ruriko shrugs. "Meybe more might help it not work as much on me...." She shrugged. "Kinda like when you build tolerances to poisons...I'm not dead yet....so...."

Shiro nods cheerfully and pours and fills Ruriko's cup "This time don't chug it, make sure to taste it.".

Ruriko nods. "Okay..." She hesitantly takes a sip, and makes a face. "Ewww. It still don't taste better..." She continues to sip at it as she looks up at Shiro, wondering exactly how much of this poison will kill her, or debilitate her, she's just hoping she can make it home.

Shiro shrugs "Maybe it is an acquired taste, why don't you have anoter onigiri? Say, did your father ever teach you the use of poisons ?"

Ruriko nods. "Yeah, that sounds good." She blinked her eyes once again, "Yup...I learned a few things about em...mostly just what to put on my blades to make people pass out...or die."

Shiro says "How would you like to learn poisons in addition to Kusari-gama ?"

Ruriko smiles widely. "Yeah..I'd love to learn that." She giggles. "Wow...this stuff isn't so bad anymore." She says as she takes another sip.

Shiro smiles "See you just had to get into the spirit of things."

The day becomes night as Ruriko and Shiro continue to talk about the most unusual things....soon Ruriko is fast asleep in the same seat she'd been in the whole night.

[Gatz]

Awarded RPP to Ruriko for her post.