A Fleeting Glance {Musashi}

[Kiyomi Kato]

Her head was lowered and muscled body crouched, similar to that of a cat waiting to spring. Her large, amber eyes were narrowed, and they tracked the movement of one man, a skinny, goofy looking human whose slouched posture and slightly glazed eyes belay his immense strength and prestigious skill. He wandered with an air of self confidence through almost deserted side streets, enjoying what little was left of the dying sunlight, taking a stroll to make the most of the agreeable early evening temperatures. Luckily for her, the same self-confidence and want to relax had left him near blind to the world around him, and he had not seen the female shadow he had, the woman that stalked a few feet behind him, running across walls and roofs.

As he turned down a darkening back alley, Kiyomi leapt forward, throwing her lithe body into nothingness. She hung there for what seemed like forever, air rushing past her face, tousling her dark hair and blowing it wildly about her stern features. Then the hard surface of another roof rushed up to meet her, and she landed gracefully, knees bent, propped up by an outstretched palm. She remained in the position for no longer than the blink of an eye, throwing herself forwards, sprinting across the slight slant in the roof, keeping both pace and eye contact with her target. She would not lose him, not before she had taken her chance.

Reaching the edge, she brought herself to a sudden stop, somehow catching herself before she fell the ten or eleven feet it was to the floor. She would have easily survived such a thing, but it would have perhaps given her away, and she wished to retain the element of surprise. As she scanned her surroundings, making sure she had an escape route should she need it, she noted the man she was following had come to a rather abrupt halt. He was looking around, head whirling, as if he was trying to find something. Leaning back quickly, Kiyomi took a deep breath. She knew he hadn't seen her, but equally, she didn't want to risk letting him. It would be a terrible thing, and one that would mess up her plan of action. Taking a deep breath, she tried to compensate for this new happening.

Something had clearly alerted the man, something that she didn't think could be her. However, whatever it was would mean he would most likely remain a little more attentive, thus making it more difficult for her to go unnoticed. She would have to finish this now, or continue with greater care than before. Weighing up the options, she decided on the second. Here was not the place, there were still too many people. Slowly poking her head out, she looked down from her vantage point. Luckily, he had moved on, walking slowly once again, drifting to an unknown end. In Kiyomi's hands, that end would come before he possibly knew it.

Ready to move once more, she leapt up, staying lower this time, and began to follow him once more. She would not get seen. She would complete her mission. But then her focus faltered. Her mind went blank, and her eyes were drawn away from the man she was meant to be hunting. A face in the crowd stuck out, one she though she recognized. The defined jaw line, the serious eyes. Was it Musashi? Oddly, her heart seemed to skip a beat, and she felt a little weak at the knees. What was happening to her?

Turning her head back to where the man had walked moments before, he was gone. Nothing but an empty space. Cursing, Kiyomi wondered what had come over her. Why had she stopped? Why had she been so tempted to stare at someone who may or may not have been Musashi?

[Kensei Musashi]

Wandering through the streets of the city, the young samurai held an air of peacefulness about him, a calmness about him that remained untouched by the people around him, despite the fact he carried a sword. Nothing about him spoke of anything remotely similar to an attack but instead there was a gentle, subdued aura about him. It was slightly odd, in any case - though it wasn't like people were capable of sensing something like ki or whatever someone wanted to call it, when standing around someone, one could generally get a feel of some kind of atmosphere. A child would have an innocent, peaceful atmosphere about them - a bloodthirsty murderer bore a heinous killing intent that frightened those who felt it. Musashi? His was gentle, never making a show of itself, a serenity that was undisturbed and quiet. He blended in with the people so well without people recognizing him simply because he hadn't done a thing to attract their attention.

"Ah... I need to get some plums, I haven't had any in a while. Hopefully the shopkeeper still has some left..." he mused to himself, his eyes drifting along the path as they searched for a vendor who possessed the treats he desired so much. Today they had gotten through a fair amount of training back at the dojo, so he had allowed them to finish up early today for their hard work. Indeed, they were all very much skilled warriors and fine men. So with their training finished early, he had decided to head off into the town to fetch the groceries he needed for his humble abode, which were not too far from the village center. It was as he walked along however that he had suddenly felt something bump against his shoulder and at once he stopped, looking back to see a man who'd just bumped against his shoulder looking back towards him. He was older than Musashi was, at least middle aged, and his dark hair was pulled into a topknot. The man felt... Different, to the rest of the people around him, though Musashi couldn't quite place his finger on it.

"Ah, my mistake. I do hope you'll forgive me, I'm in a little bit of a hurry. Do you mind if I ask you a question?" the man asked politely, stepping closer to Musashi. Seeing no reason to deny the man a favor, Musashi smiled back and nodded, turning back to face him.

"I don't mind. What is it you need?" Musashi asked him, raising a brow.

"Well, I was hoping I might make my way to a certain place - I need to meet up with an associate not too far from Senkawa Bar, do you know where that is?" he asked, to which Musashi nodded before raising a hand and beckoning him to follow.

"Just follow me. I can show you where it is..." Musashi trailed off, not knowing the man's name.

"Nishio will do".

"Nishio-san it is then" Musashi replied, proceeding to walk down the street with the man following him, unaware that the man's intentions were a little bit darker than he had envisioned, despite his warm personality.

[Kiyomi Kato]

Kiyomi moved like the wind was at her heels, as if she was being hounded by demons. Her head turned frantically, desperately searching for the man she had lost. What had she done? How could she have been so foolish? Why had she been so distracted by Musashi, or rather, someone that could or couldn't have been Musashi? A face in the crowd had dragged her away from her mission, left her frozen in her place for a good few moments, giving the man she'd been stalking time to escape, had he been aware of her presence or not. She had hindered her own task, and she berated herself inwardly for it. If she failed to murder this escaped criminal, the usurper against the Emperor, she deserved whatever punishment it was her master would give to her on her return to the palace.

She leapt from one building to the next, doing her best to move stealthily, though the desperation in her speed made it difficult. How fast had the target moved? The second he was out of sight he was gone. It didn't help her that there were tens of side streets he could have taken, even passed quickly into a building, effectively blocking him completely from view. She had no choice but to move faster.

Half-way around the square, and she had still had no luck. The alleys remained almost empty but for a few shady people looking into the square, market stalls packing up for the day, and she wondered how she would ever find him. In the time it had taken her to search, he could quite literally be anywhere, and the longer she spent searching, the further the chances of finding him diminished. Beginning to think that she should perhaps give up and take whatever punishment was given to her, she stopped dead when she heard a familiar voice in the alley below her. Narrowing her eyes, she knew it to be the man's she had been following earlier. She had spent days shadowing him, and she could pick his voice out in a room full of talking others. Smiling to herself, relief washing over her, she bent over the edge of the roof, drawing a kunai as she did so, ready to end this game of cat and mouse...

But her relief was short lived. A few feet in front of the man, walking with his head held high, was Musashi. She gulped. What on earth? Did he know her target? Were they...could they be...working together? Her mind raced. Things did not add up. Did her samurai friend know how dangerous the man behind him was? She bit her lip, unsure of how to continue. She couldn't kill in front of Musashi. She thought of before, in the garden, when he'd opened up to her, told her everything he'd done, and she'd explained nothing about her own life. She couldn't let him know she'd kept that from him. He'd think she was a monster, and worse, her cover would be blown. But equally, she could not let the man live, especially not when he could threaten someone she felt...attached to...and she knew, deep down, that she may not get another chance. Decisions...decisions.

It was as she thought that everything went wrong. The kunai that she'd drawn had, it seemed, loosened on of the others, and in her moment of indecision, the freed weapon dropped from her hanging body, falling rapidly to the ground, hitting the floor with an all too audible clang. Eyes widening, Kiyomi was too amazed for a moment to move, and could only stare at her target, occasionally glancing at Musashi. She prayed she could recover herself, prayed that she could do something to stop this ending horribly.

[Kensei Musashi]

As he and the man walked along, Musashi hadn't suspected a thing of the man he was guiding, not aware of the man's true nature as an escaped criminal. He wasn't in charge of the prisons, so he wouldn't know about the men who were held there, which made him vulnerable. As he strolled along leading the man to where he was trying to get to, it essentially made him something of an unwitting bodyguard for the enemy - if someone attacked him, he'd mistake him for an enemy attacking an unarmed man and stop him, while the real escaped prisoner ran off on his own. Musashi, in a way, was being used without realizing it. Although, while he didn't suspect the man of foul deed, something about him did seem a little off. He couldn't put a finger on it however and so chalked it up to nothing but overreacting nerves. After all, as a Samurai, he was always on guard - knowing that an instant was all it took to kill, he remained steadfast and constantly alert so as to make sure he could fight back.

However, that was when it occurred - as they passed through a space, he heard a clang hit the ground and at once Musashi turned around, his hand tightly taking a grip of his sword's hilt and drawing it halfway out, ready to draw it fully if an enemy made an appearance. His eyes sharply darted around as he tried to catch the source of the clang, until his eyes turned themselves downwards as he gazed towards what appeared to be a shinobi's knife - a kunai. He stared, studying the knife and judging it before turning his gaze back upwards in an attempt to see who was there. As he stared up, he caught sight of someone up above, standing on the rooftops - a feminine figure who, unfortunately, was little more than a silhouette against the high sun of noon, making it difficult to make out any specific features even as he narrowed his eyes in an attempt to see better. Who was it? An assassin, an enemy of the Emperor who had decided to come for the life of the Emperor's protector? He didn't rule out the possibility.

"Musashi-san... Who is it? What's going on?" asked the man, feigning ignorance. So it appeared they had sent someone after him. Well, he was lucky he ended up meeting a swordsman like Musashi - with hope, he had some skill to back up his wearing a weapon openly in these times. Although, the sight of a missing pinky confused him - who was this Musashi? The name seemed familiar, but he couldn't figure out why. Was he a famous swordsman? He cursed his time in prison - he'd need to catch up with the times when he met with his 'associates'.

"There's someone up there, an assassin most likely. There only appears to be one - however, that they managed to close in on us this easily means they must be skilled. Unfortunately, I can't just climb up after her - if I did, I'd be left open and she could kill us. She'll be able to escape easily if she's up there. She was smart picking the high ground" he remarked, unaware of the assassin's identity. The prisoner grumbled - it seemed he couldn't just deal with her here and now, unfortunately.