Misunderstandings <Zhy, Earth Kingdom>

[kasen]

"I demand retribution! I demand justice! And you, Colonel Shinu are in an excellent position to deliver that very justice!"

The Colonel sighed and tried again to explain the situation to the volatile Admiral Shen Liang. It had been a long day ever since the high-ranking official had shown up at the gates to the Fortress the Colonel guarded, yelling and spouting all sorts of nonsense. Shinu had eventually deducted that somehow Shen Liangs son had been killed and wanted the Yuu Yan to chase after the 'unforgivable miscreant'.

"Admiral, while the death of your son is unfortuanate, I'm afraid that I can't do much for you. The Yuu Yan are not a group of shirshu to be sent out after a petty criminal."

The Admiral was nearly livid with rage, his bearded face fit to burst. "After this man killed my son, he then went to another establishment and got into fights there! Then, he went and stole the gold and robes of the noble, Hui Changming, one of the patrons of the Yuu Yan, if I remember correctly."

Shinu raised an eyebrow. He had heard no such thing.

"How are you sure this man is the same? He could be different people-"

"This man is an Igni, Colonel Shinu! It is hard to mistake those markings anywhere!"

Shinu sighed. This would go on forever if he let the Admiral rant on, as he did, explaining the affadivits he had collected, the eye-witness accounts and testimonies, even producing a few written records of the incidents.

"Admiral Shen Liang!" The Admiral quieted, his face still red. Shinu bowed. "The Yuu Yan will be happy to avenge the death of Shen Zihao. We will discuss the price of our work later, but now let me brief a team on the mission."

The Admiral nodded, pleased and slightly confused at the sudden turn of events. Shinu descended down into the training grounds, exiting the meeting room. Shaking his head, the Colonel went to the barracks, quickly finding the room that held the Shushou. He opened the door and looked inside, seeing Kasen and a few other Yuu Yan playing a simple game.

"Rise!"

Shinu waved a hand, indicating for the young warriors to sit down.

"No need for formalities. Ketsuri, may I speak with you?"

Once outside, Shinu related the incident to Kasen, who raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"We're to be errand boys?" He asked, knowing that the Colonel would not see his question as an act of defiance.

"Well, the Igni has caused some trouble. I'll give you a full report tomorrow, but I want you to gather a team of four, including you. A Saburi and two Kyuuga should suffice." Shinu said, almost appologetically.

Kasen shrugged then bowed to the Colonel.

"As you command."

The next day saw Kasen, Heishi, his roommate and the Saburi, along with Isau and Teruo, the Kyuuga ready to move, outfitted in light travel gear, complete with hooded cloaks and packs across their shoulders that served to hide the quivers along with holding their supplies.

Shinu nodded at them, watching as they harnessed a quartet of Kimodo-Rhinos for the journey. He handed a scroll to Kasen, who read over it briefly before looking at his team, glad that they had neglected their makeup. It would make traveling incognito much easier - it was more for intimidation than anything else.

"Return once you have the Igni."

"Understood." Kasen gave a motion to the other Yuu Yan and they all quickly mounted the Rhinos. Kasens hand raised and then fell, the signal for the Yuu Yan to head out. Shinu watched the dust fly as the Rhinos stampeded across the paths.

"What a waste of time." He muttered, turning away and going back into the large Fort. "At least Ketsuri will get the job done."

[iikagen]

Spreading his arms out wide, Iikagen looked at his reflection in the calmly-flowing stream as he evaluated his new robe. The garment was of the finest silk and stitched with patterns of scarlet and ebony down the length of its sleeves. It really was quite the piece of artwork, but on the simple islander it was simply too short. The voluminous sleeves barely touched his wrists and the bottom hem of the robe hardly reached his ankles though it was meant to sweep along the ground.

The Noble he'd stolen it from was simply too small, and that rendered all his custom-taylored clothing worthless to Iikagen. He spat once into the water, breaking up his reflection with a ring of ripples, and walked away from the bank of the stream.

An ostrich-horse stood a sort ways downstream, lapping up several mouthfuls of water. Iikagen stopped when he came to the base of a tree where he had piled his recently-acquired valuables and picked up another set of robes. They were almost all black with a gold trim, and he held them up toward the ostrich-horse. "What do you t'ink, Birdy?" he asked, using the nick-name he'd given the stolen mount and not bothering to hide his slight accent, "This'd make a fine blanket for under your saddle." Birdy looked up from his drinking, stared blankly at the islander for a moment, and then went back to guzzling down the fresh stream water. Iikagen shrugged and smiled. "You right... It's not your color at all."

The Igni laughed to himself as he scooped up the pile of dress robes on the ground and stuffed them into the small trunk in which they'd originally been packed. He lifted the decorative trunk over his head, turned, and heaved it into the stream with a splash, startling Birdy slightly. "Well, maybe a shorter man... or woman; t'ey all looked like dresses to me... will be lucky enough to find t'ose before t'ey sink." He dusted his hands off and whistled sharply for Birdy to come to him as he took a seat against the other side of the tree where several other fancy items were piled.

He picked up a slightly smaller chest filled with a hefty sum of gold coins and come necklaces. Iikagen grinned as he fastened a heavy golden chain around his neck. He glanced up at Birdy as the Ostrich-horse approached him and sat down a few paces away. "Too much?" he asked, holding up his hands to accentuate his new jewelry in concert with the silken robe he had yet to take off. Birdy grunted and stared off into the distance.

Iikagen sighed. "I value your input," he told the creature, unsurprised that there wasn't a response, as he put aside the chest under his travelling pack. The islander put his hands behind his head and reclined a bit further, making himself comfortable. The last week had been quite draining... But oh-so fun!

His first night on Earth Kingdom shores he'd managed to involve himself in a fight in the Fire Nation controlled port city he'd arrived in. With no small encouragement from Iikagen's "Cultural misunderstandings" a few soldiers in the tavern had sought to evict him from the building. It was only his right to fight back! A smile crossed his face when he thought of the state he'd left the men in. He'd knocked two men out, broken the hand of a third, and hit a particularly arrogant young soldier with a heavy dose of sleeping poison. Two days later, after he'd gotten tired of walking, he accidentally set loose a farmer's entire stable of ostrich-horses and managed to find a companion in Birdy. And then, the next day he'd come across a Fire Nation Nobleman travelling for the coast with an entourage of four firebenders as well as his wife and child. That day had been particularly fun, as it had been a while since Iikagen had met a challenge.

The Igni sighed and decided he deserved a nap. "Wake me if some one tries to steal my stuff," he told Birdy as he let his mind drift away. It wasn't really necessary, considering how light he slept, but it amused Iikagen to think that the ostrich-horse actually cared.

[sekar]

"TOMO I NEED ANTISEPTIC!" Bellowed Sekar as he walked around in his new hospital. He arrive almost a month ago, and Admrial Shen Liang gave him the rather spacious compond for a medical facilities.

"I heard great things about your parents, Dr. Praagi. Toya was genius. I hope you won't let me down."

That was almost a month ago when bedraggled Sekar winded up at the Fort. Since then Sekar gained two new workers and his four were always at his sides. The new attendents were bubbly teens. Bulan and Amala. Amala gossiped alot and Bulan seemed spacy but other then that. They spoke to Sekar with almost a tone of reverance.

Sekar has changed as well. He has put on some weight. Slept regurally, and has a mustache with his goatee. His long black hair that gave him the nickname of "Raven Healer." was tied in a bun and was regurally trimed. Sekar was in better health.

"Sensei! Here is the medicine, and oh a man came in. With a body." Tomo said giving Sekar the drug, Sekar lifted an eyebrow.
"Eh? Why?"
"I don't know, I think he need an autopsy." Sekar sighed and called for his most trained nurses. "Motoko, Yuka I need you." Yuka and Motoko join him in the back room and Sekar shut the door. A shaky soldier gave him a notice.
"Colonel Shinu want you do autopsy on Admiral Shen Liang's son. Shen Zhiao." Sekar sighed deeply.
"I see, is my service paid?" The courier nodded and handed Sekar a bag of silver. "He said he wants to know the cause of death by night fall." Sekar made a formal bow as the messenger left.

"Poor thing, so young, at least twenty-two. Yuka can you hand me my scissors, Motoko my scapel." The nurses gave Sekar his tools as Sekar got on aprone and tighen his gloves. He took out a pair of tweezers pick up a dart that was concealed in the man's side. Sekar dropped in a tray, he would have to analyse the posion later. He knew the death was posion. He could tell by the dilated pupils. And the secreations on his lips.
Sekar began the tedious work of decuction as he found out the the posion seized up the man's lungs and he suffocate. He took out the liver and disected on a table near the body and took out soultions from it with a needle.

Yuka piped up. "I know what posion Sensei. Amaoqu, it's used a sedive but, never for death." Sekar look at the dart. "Isn't this dart a little primitive for Main Landers? This looks like an Igni dart." Sekar was putting the pieces together, as he looked at soultions and the posion.
"I see, now. He had a sevear reaction to the sap of the Amaoqu tree, his body couldn't process. So his lungs seized up and well...." Sekar sighed as he took some ink and paper.

"Yuka! You take care of embalming, I'll write the report." Sekar lit his pipe and walked to his study.

and I bet that Igni is still out there.

[kasen]

Two days after they left the fortress, the group arrived at the village where it had all started. They were in their full Yuu Yan gear, makeup, light supplies, heavy gold and sharp arrows and minds.

They had left their Kimodo-Rhino's in a Fire Nation barn, gaurded by soldiers, satisfied that they would be in good hands. Kasen and Heishi had briefed the younger Kyuuga, and they had prepared themselves for the stakeout. Kasen had decided to trail the man, tracing his progress from the tavern where he had first caused trouble.

A stampede report and an irate patron later, the Yuu Yan had caught the trail of the Igni, Heishi having no problem tracking and predicting the mans movements. Kasen led the silent procession along the tree tops, the lithe archers having no troubles keeping up with the Shushou. Suddenly Kasen held up a closed fist and he and the rest of the Yuu Yan stopped, rustling a few branches

Kasen dropped the dark damp ground, inspecing a few ostrich horse tracks. he nodded at Heishi, who dropped down beside him.

"What do you think?"

"Less than a day old, deep. Meaning either a lot of cargo or a heavy man."

"Or soggy ground." Kasen supplied. Heishi looked at his commanding officer.

"Why ask if you already know?"

"A second opinion is always valued." Kasen said, and stood up to hoist himself up the tree he had recently vacated. Heishi sighed and followed after the Shushou. The two Kyuuga looked at each other, their eyes wide. This wasn't their first mission, but Isau and Teruo always marveled at the skills the higher ranks of the Yuu Yan possed. Training took over their awe and they followed Kasen and Heishi as they took off through the dense branches.

Kasen stopped, holding up a fist again. This time, his face was creased as he surveyed his surroundings. He then jumped a few trees back to were Heishi stopped.

"He's there. I want you and Teruo over on the other side of him so if when he runs you two can corner him. He has one back to the river." Kasen said, not needing to explain anything more to the Saburi. Heishi nodded and he motioned for Teruo to follow him.

Kasen stood and Isau quickly jumped onto his branch, the elder archer already stringing his bow and loosening the steel nets that would be used to capture the Igni. Isau followed suit and within two minutes the archers were ready to go. Kasen heard a faint birdcall in the distance and nodded to Isau.

"You know what to do." He said, looking over to the clearing about twenty yards away where the Igni was, out of earshot. "Now we're going to do it."

[iikagen]

In his mind, Iikagen's thoughts were drifting thousands of miles away. The soft babble of the stream was replaced by a nearly unforgettable memory of the sound of ocean waves. The islander had listened to the rythmic sound of breaking water for nearly every hour of every day for most of his life, and it wasn't hard to bring that soothing sound to mind with stunning accuracy.

Eyes still closed, Iikagen arched his back to stretch his stiff spine and extended his hasnds far over his head. He'd been napping for nearly an hour and felt fairly rested and ready to continue his travels, though he couldn't bring himself to stand up. Birdy stirred slightly and got to his feet before taking a few steps away, presumably heading for another drink. Iikagen cracked an eye open to regard the ostrich-horse, but wasn't particularly alarmed. He figured that his stretching had disturbed the creature and didn't think there was any imminent danger.

[kasen]

Kasen was now only ten feet from the Igni. He had already knocked two arrows to his bow, and attached to them was a medium-sized steel net. He had read in the report Shinu had given him that this man used some sort of chained range weapon.

The arrows flew, the heads of the weapons digging into the dirt above the mans head. More arrows flew after, pinning the net tighter and securing the Igni to the ground by the robes that he still wore. As Heishi and Isau continued to shoot at the man, Kasen jumped down from his tree and ran over to the Igni, knocking another arrow to his bow as he ran.

He stood over the elder fire citizen, him mind running over the details his report had given him. Tall, with Igni tattoos, stolen ostrich horse. It didn't take a genius to figure out Iikagen was the man they were looking for. Heishi dropped out of his tree, making sure that Isau and Teruo stayed in the branches, their arrows trained on the Igni.

"You're surrounded." Kasen said as Heishi went through the things on the ostrich-horse. "We will not hesitate to kill you if neccesary. Our orders are to bring you back to a fort on the northern end of the Kingdom, where you will be tried for murder, stirring up malcontentment and destruction of property, including livestock." Kasen paused and his amber eyes narrowed.

Heishi looked over at the pair and couldn't help but stick in a joke. "Want to run? It'll be a contest. You're legs against our arrows."

[iikagen]

At the first twang of a bowstring Iikagen's arm instinctively raised. His forearm was angled almost vertically and it covered his face along with most of his chest. There was a sudden feeling of impact as the net slammed into his raised arm and he was pushed back against the tree. However, he'd managed to keep the net at about elbow's length from his actual body, and as the arrows pivoted to dig into the sides of the tree he was leaning against, there was a small pocket of room. Shifting his arm, he pushed ther net over and behind his head as he tried to get up, but another arrow shot forth from the woods and pierced the sleeve of his stolen robe.

He cursed and started to reach for the shaft of the missle with his free hand, but yet another arrow pierced the robe near his opposite hip and forced him into a tight seat against the tree. At that point, the Igni realized that to struggle would to be invite his own death. These arrows were meant to restrain, not kill... Moving around would only increase the likelihood of attackers missing their nonlethal marks.

Two more arrows nailed the hem of robe at his feet to the dirt, and finally a pair of nets criss-crossed over his chest to secure him tightly to the tree. One of them was digging uncomfortably into the side of his neck, but he forced himself to ignore it and kept his face perfectly composed as a quartet of archers revealed themselves from their hiding places. One of them quickly stated the obvious, referring to Iikagen's situation, and then read off a list of charges and declared his arrest. The pinned Igni looked over the men carefully, sizing up their abilities with the trained eye of a veteran warrior.

"Want to run?" a slightly younger archer asked him, apparently thinking himself witty. "It'll be a contest. You're legs against our arrows." The young man smirked, and Iikagen returned it with a wide grin of his own.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," he said in nearly perfect speech, beaming at the archers, "As much as I'd love to have a footrace with your arrows, I think you must have me mistaken for some one else... As far as I know, I haven't murdered anyone. And if you can't tell from my robes, I am a wealthy land-owner of these parts, and would appreciate if you would let me go back to my wife and child so I can show them how to beat the servants until they behave properly."

Off by the stream, Birdy seemed completely oblivious to the entire situation and was simply grazing on a patch of grass.
Iikagen tossed the ostrich-horse a hurt look for a moment before resuming his grinning at the Yuu-yans.

[kasen]

Of course the man would play innocent. No one wanted to be taken into custody by anyone, and the Yuu Yan were a particularaly notorious group to be captured by. Kasen didn't believe a word that the Igni said. It was obvious that this was the culprit, and there was nothing that Iikagen could say that would change Kasen's opinion of that.

Using clothing to verify identity? Total fraud. Not to mention that trying to use empathy by directing comments at a wife and child would only serve to solifiy Kasens mental affirmement that this was the man they were looking for. That tattoos were a dead giveaway, and Kasen didn't really need to go any deeper than that to know the truth.

"Spare me the aesthetics." Kasen said, drawing the bow back tighter as he aimed at the mans throat. "I don't want to hear them. You are now in our custody. If you try to run I will shoot you."

Kasen nodded at Isau, who stepped forward and removed the net quickly, popping out the arrows and tucking them neatly in his quiver. The Kyuuga quickly patted down the Igni, finding the chain weapon and the rubies held in a small belt.

"What should we do with these Shushou?" Isau asked, looking to Kasen. The elder Yuu Yan glanced at the precious stones then at Iikagen.

"That would depend on our friends behavior."

[iikagen]

"Pardon," Iikagen spoke up, raising two fingers on his right hand to try and get the Yuu-yans attention as he was being searched, "but those things actually belong to me... Please try not to lose them." He smiled benevolently and shift his leg, scratching the top of his other foot with his toes. The archer handed the chain and the money pouch over to another of the men and ordered him to stand. The Igni obliged and pushed up with his legs while leaning back against the tree, bending himself up into a standing position. The archer before him raised an eyebrow at the unnecessary method of getting to his feet, and Iikagen merely grinned.

"I'd also like to point out that I was telling the truth earlier when I said I hadn't murdered anyone," the foreigner reminded his captors. "At least to my knowledge... Any of our little cultural misunderstandings was dealt with nonlethal force, I assure you." The other of the younger archers seemed to tighten his grip on his both, and Iikagen could tell quite easily that the young man would have liked nothing more than to plant an arrow in his bald head. He looked directly at that young archer and grinned. "But don't worry... I have no intention of running. If you wanted to kill me, I'm sure you wouldn't have brought the nets. I'll just come with you to your fort where I'm sure we can sort out this whole messy thing once and for all... I have nothing but faith in the Fire Nation's justice system!"

By the end of his sentence Iikagen was practically beaming at the Yuu-yans, showing off a dazzling smile. In truth, the Igni would have liked nothing more than to take his chances with a frenzied fight then and there. As sudden burst of motion from the crafty islander could likely incapacitate one, or even two of the closest men if he moved fast enough. He could probably even take down the remaining two if they were foolish enough to try and restrain him by hand. But no... These men were professionals... Their uniforms bespoke of an elite corps, and the way they pinned him to the tree with layer upon layer of arrows suggested that they did not take chances. If he tried to fight, those that escape the first attack would step out of his range and punch him full of holes with their deadly arrows. Complacency equated to life while to resist would bring about his death.

The choice was clear to the self-serving Igni. He would bide his time and wait for his chance to present itself. Or, if he got too bored, he would simply create his own opportunity.

[sekar]

Sekar brush moved up and down in brillant strokes, as he painted out the characters for the report he had to send to Amrial, he finally finished with the closing details as he signed his name and handed the notice to a very lazy looking red-ribbon hawk. "Wake up you over sized feather duster. I got a letter." The bird took the letter and took off, Sekar shook his head as he got up and stretched, he took out the pin for his hair and let it fall down in a black casecade. The Raven Healer was done for the day.

The smell of sweet potatoe soup hit the man's senses as he traversed down the hall for dinner. "Tomo? Are you cooking to night?" He asked,
"Nooo, This is Sarumi dinner is almost done." Sekar snagged an apple and crunched on it as he walked down the halls to see the patients, and noticed that they all had their meals and most were looking better.

Sekar sat down at his study and looked over his journals sipping his meal as he tried to find information about that Igni, "Hrmmm nothing." Sekar took his pipe and lit it as he closed his book. He too was healing. No longer was he gaunt and waxy like the dead, but much more healtier. He closed his eyes and blew out a puff of smoke.

This job is gonna get weird I just know it

[kasen]

Heishi's eyes narrowed as Iikagen taunted him. He was on the other side of the man, his bow drawn as taunt as Kasens as he kept his arrow trained on the Igni. Kasen looked over at the Saburi, who nodded. The elder Yuu Yan then looked over at Isau and Teruo, who were securing the things they had taken from the man onto the ostrich horse.

"We will take you to Quyen Huo and from there to the Fort were you will be tried." Kasen said, only reitterating what he had already said. "Your possesions, if they are yours, will be returned if you are found innocent. Until then, I would ask you not to bother us about them." Kasen said. Isau stood at attention, about five meters away, as Teruo finished fastening everything to the ostrich horse. It would be used as a pack animal for Iikagen's things until they got the Kimodo-Rhinos back at the Fire Army controlled city of Quyen Huo.

Heishi reached into his own small pack and got out a length of tough hempen rope. He went behind Iikagen and quickly tied the mans hands tightly together. Then, dipping his hand into the nearby stream a few times and making the rope wet, he ensured that the bonds would be near unbreakable. The hemp would constrict, not to the point of pain, but without enough room to let the mans hands twist.

"Those should keep you." Heishi smirked, stepping away from the man. Kasen resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He would give Heishi a talking-to later. The boy needed to remember that he could still be beaten. The Igni was dangerous, and now captured.

Heishi pushed Iikagen towards the road as Kasen ordered the Yuu Yan to form ranks. Isau and Heishi were to the Igni's left and right, while about four meters behind them Teruo led the ostrich horse and Kasen held onto his bow tightly, ready in case Iikagen made an unwanted move. It would be no problem to incapitate the man this far away. The target was easy, and the distance gave Kasen enough time to react.

'Too easy.' Kasen thought as they began to march. No wonder Shinu only spared four of us.

[iikagen]

Iikagen suffered the indignities of being bound with not only acceptance, but apparently amusement. That wide grin never left his face, and as the Yuu-yan began to work the rope into an intricate twist Iikagen commented, "Ah, the Square Knot... You boys sure know what you're doing!" He recieved a sharp tug on the final tie of the knot and then a shove forward for his remark. Iikagen continued to grin and allowed himself to be led toward a trail that would take them back to whatever fort the Yuu-yans came from.

Iikagen took a few moments to evaluate the formation they had him marching in and concluded that there would be no chances for escape in the near future. He was stuck walking with the four archers for now. He sighed, but smirked immediately after when he realized it just meant a day or two's worth of mental torture for his captors.

"Are you really going to make me walk the whole way back?" he asked, his voice a slight whine. "I've done nothing but walk for the past week and my feet are starting to get sore... Perhaps we could stop every hour and one of you can rub them for me?" Iikagen could literally hear Heishi's teeth grinding.

At least this side-trip would be entertaining.

[kasen]

Behind the Igni, Kasen could see Heishi's jaw working as he struggled to contain himself. The elder boys eyes narrowed. Heishi needed to control himself a bit more, he still acted like a child sometimes. But he was a very good archer, and a loyal friend. Hearing the man talk Kasen really did roll his eyes this time, listening to Iikagen remark about his feet.

"Did you forget how to ride your ostrich horse then?" Kasen called up to the Igni as the mount gave a cry. "It seems like you need some time to get your stories straight, rather than time for a spa treatment."

Isau and Teruo bit their lips to hide their smiles but Heishi merely glared at the road ahead of him. He didn't like being treated like this! The Igni was getting on his nerves, and that was never a good thing to get on with a Yuu Yan.

This might be fun, if Heishi doesn't kill the Igni before we get our beasts back.

A few days of travel later.

"Get me away from this man!" Heishi hissed as Kasen came to relieve him from gaurd duty. "I will kill him I swear!"

Kasen smiled and patted the Saburi's shoulder. "We're in the suburbs of Quyen Huo now. Less than another day and we can ride in comfort back to the fort and leave this piece of bait out for Colonel Shinu and Admiral Wolf to take care of."

Heishi snorted and walked over to where his pack was, quickly unstrapping a bedroll.

"The sooner the better." The Saburi muttered.

Kasen nodded and sat across from where Iikagen lay. One more night and then they could ride on their Rhinos for the rest of the trip. One more night.

[iikagen]

The march had been relatively uneventful, though Iikagen had been able to keep himself entertained along the way. He mostly passed the long hours of walking by engaging in one-sided conversations with his captors. He would randomly go off on trains of thought, speaking as though he was unaware no one was listening, and often he would take the dead silence as a witty response. At one point he'd even turned to Heishi and asked if he was a lady's man.

By the time night fell, the Yuu-yans had set up a small camp with a warm fire lighting the small area on the edge of some woods. Iikagen had been bound at the feet as well and told to remain seated against a tree on pain of death. Things were somewhat peaceful for a few minutes after the camp was set up, but then the Igni has asked the youngest Yuu-yan for a drink of water.

"Could you pour it for me?" Iikagen asked Heishi, "I'm still a bit indisposed..." At which point he opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue expectantly.

Heishi's reply came in the form of a splash of water as he dumped the skin's contents on the Igni. The islanders blinked the water from his eyes and smiled at the young man.

"My eternal gratitude, Master Heishi," he had said to the archer, earning him a grunt of annoyance.

Iikagen passed the remainder of the night making a symphony of clicking and popping noises with his mouth, simulating quite accurately the sounds of a drumline. The tune was entirely original and sporatically shifted in tempo and rythm, but was reminiscent of the type of music that he had grown up on. Across the fire, he could see the Yuu-yan's leader watching him closely while two of the others slept and the fourth one was watching him from somewhere else out of his vision.

He eventually managed to get some sleep, though it was more of a reverie. He was in a state of complete relaxation, and yet total alertness. Morning seemed to come all too soon, and though he was perfectly ready to resume march, he made certain that the archers had to literally beat him with sticks to get him to "wake."

[kasen]

"Not again!" Heishi said, dragging the Igni from his laying down position to a sitting one only to have the man fall over again. "This man is infuriating! Why can't he just wake up like a normal human being and walk?! If he would just wake up now we could get into the stables and get our mounts and be back to the fortress before nightfall. But no!"

"Heishi, calm down." Kasen said, laying a hand on the younger Yuu Yan's shoulder. Heishi took a few deep breaths and regained his composure, remembering all the training and all the missions from the past. Kasen smiled slightly and went around the camp, making sure that every last trace of their stay was erased. Teruo was scattering the ashes while Isau double-checked the bonds on the ostrich horse. Heishi, however was still glaring at the Igni, kicking him every now and again to get him to wake up, although the kicks were not very hard and not meant to hurt.

Kasen rolled his eyes and realized that the two Kyuuga were waiting on Iikagen. He sighed and turned to the Igni, rummaging in his pack and bringing out a strip of dried meat.

"Wake up without making us turn you into a pincushion and you'll get an extra ration of food." Kasen tempted, waving the meat in front of the mans nose. He was still tied up, the hempen bonds freshly changed last night.

"C'mon Igni. One more day of travelling and you'll never have to see our pretty little faces again, alright?" Kasen said jokingly, trying to get Iikagen to wake up without to much more effort or overspilling tempers.