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Blood and Secrets (Legend of the Five Rings)

Saori slowly closes her mind to the kami, whispering thanks to the spirits. No matter how many times she does this she is never left feeling anything less than humbled, and now is no different; but she can't ride the feeling like she normally would want to do.

"Yes, Hida-sama," she whispers, exhaling. The shugenja-ko opens her eyes, and gingerly passes the knife back to the doshin, touching it as little as possible. "They never say anything not of import - it's just that they fundamentally do not see the world like mortal man. So some things may be, ah, lost in translation."

Saori shakes her head. "Regardless, if I understand correctly then what happened is, the... killer, he was a young man, still a teenager. He acted in a rage, and had a body fit for physical labor. This was a crime of passion almost certainly. Which begs the question..." Her eyes flick over to the doshin and there is a new steel behind the clear, river blue.

"I'm certain you would have already given this matter thought, but I must ask again. Do you suspect anyone might have harbored any strong negative feelings toward Joufu-san?"
 
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@Rook

Shin stared at Saori with wide eyes, his mouth hanging open at the display of power she had just manifested in conversing with the murder weapon. The young man's face had a faint tinge of red around the cheeks, which faded quickly as he shook his head to clear it. Even still, he stuttered as he tried his best to answer the Crane Samurai's question.

"We're not aware of any such things, Samurai-sama," Matsui said, saving his compatriot further embarrassment. "With everything happening here and in the rest of the region it has been difficult getting people to focus on giving testimony. But if this truly was a murder done in anger, then perhaps his fellow workers at the brewery might know something? They would most familiar with the specifics of his life."

Before Matsui had the chance to say anything more he was cut off by the door sliding open to reveal a portly man with balding hair. He might have been fit once, but age had left its mark about him both on his body and the lines around his face. The man looked about in confusion at the crowded room, his brow furrowed and one hand resting near his obi.

"And what's happening here? Matsui? Shin? I was walking back from my rounds and the whole office was shaking like... Oh," he said, trailing off as he finally noticed the strangers present were Samurai. He gave a sharp inhalation and bowed quickly down to the waist. "My apologies, Samurai-samas. I hope I haven't interrupted anything of importance."
 
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"Worry not, doshin-san," Saori says. Poor thing. "The rumbling is nothing you need worry about; I but communed with the kami of the knife that Shin-san holds. You have interrupted nothing. Indeed, I am glad to see you!" She smiles gently at the man. "If you have a moment, I would greatly appreciate it if we could ask you a few questions."
 
@Rook

"Of course, Samurai-sama," the Doshin says as he straightens. He gives a quiet sigh in response to Saori's congenial attitude, presumably relieved he is not going to be punished for some transgression. As is proper, however, he keeps his eyes lowered so as to not meet the Crane Samurai's gaze. "My name is Bondo. If there is anything I can help you with, please ask it of me."
 
"Tell us before we start, Bondo-san. Where is your jitte?" Saburou asks while raising an eyebrow, having spent some time examining the newcomer. Unlike Saori, his face reflects no emotion whatsoever.
 
@EtchedSteel

The Doshin blinked in surprise at the question, then looked down at his obi. Indeed, he held only one jitte at his left side, while at his right there was a tonfa. It was a perfectly serviceable weapon for law enforcement, being less lethal than a blade and legal for a peasant to wield, but it was still strange for a Doshin to carry instead of the traditional sword catcher.

"My jitte, Samurai-sama? Oh... yes," Bondo said with a grimace, looking back up while still keeping his eyes respectfully downcast. "One of my neighbor's children snuck into my home and stole it, likely thinking it was a toy. The little scoundrel lost my jitte somewhere outside of town and can't remember where he dropped it, so I've had to make do with this for now."
 
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Such a shame...

@Winged Knight

Saburou nods, seemingly satisfied with such an answer though he doesn't express it. A sign of he not wanting to poke on the subject any further. "Esteemed Bondo-san, we're here by command of Miya Anshou-sama to investigate the several cases of disappearances across the region. We had asked your peers about the particular case of the murder ocurred at the brewery a month ago, and we'd appreciate if you tell us what you know about the case."
 
@EtchedSteel

"What do I know about the murder at the brewery? Do you mean Joufu?" Bondo asked, his face scrunching up in thought. "I wasn't heavily involved in that particular case, really. Shin-san was the one who looked over the body."

"I've told them what I know already, Bondo-san," Shin piped up, having since recovered from the display created by Saori's communion with the kami. "And showed them the murder weapon."

"Ah, there you have it then," Bondo said. He sighed and gave the assembled Samurai a wan smile. "My apologies, Samurai-samas. I'm afraid I don't know any more than that, myself."
 
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@Winged Knight

"I see." Shizuka hums thoughtfully, "Perhaps we should ask around town then." She turns to the rest of the group and arches an eyebrow, "That would be acceptable, yes?"
 
Saburou exchanges a thoughtful glance at his peers, arms crossed. "I see no issue on the matter. Unless there's something more to add, I think we're done here."
 
An hour passed, the clouds parting to reveal the sun reaching the zenith of its journey throughout the passage of the day. Such was the time it took to question the citizens of Jouzousho on the knife. To stop and reveal the murder weapon to each individual in the town was an arduous task, to be sure. This was no proper city, but neither was the village small. Hundreds of people made their home here, living out their lives. But a Samurai's existence is duty. A task had been given, and they would see it complete lest their honor be sullied.

So it was that they went about their task will all due diligence, asking anyone they could find if they had any knowledge about the knife and where it might have come from. None of the inhabitants of the village interfered with the investigation, of course, but their responses were almost universally unhelpful. Again and again the Samurai received no response to their questioning, the revelation of the knife receiving nothing but confused and disturbed stares from the peasantry.

Until, finally, their search bore fruit.

"That's my knife!" a young woman approaching her middle years exclaimed as the Samurai showed it to a married couple. She walked over swiftly, a sullen looking young man trailing after her with a bundle of vegetables in his arms, and the couple being questioned took the opportunity to bow and excuse themselves. "Please forgive me for shouting, Samurai-samas, but I heard someone was asking around about a lost kitchen knife and I thought..." She trailed off as she saw the cooking implement, her eyes widening. "Is... Is that blood?"
 
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Saori resists the urge to introduce her palm to her head with great force, pushing down her annoyance to salvage the situation. "That is to say... well, there really is no gentle way to put it," she smoothly intercedes in a mild tone, "but Matsu-sama is correct, yes. That is indeed blood. It was used to end a life. We have been looking for the owner in hopes we might begin to put together a picture of who would do such a thing, and when they might have acquired your knife."

The shugenja-ko glides forward. "Tell me; what are your names?"
 
"My... My name is Kairi, Samurai-sama," the woman says, her eyes going as wide as they could go. Her breathing picked up as the continued, her panic becoming more and more obvious. "Oh Fortunes, this is terrible. I lost that knife a little over a month ago, but I didn't connect it with a murder!" She put a hand over her mouth. "Was it... Was it Joufu? The Doshin don't think I killed him, do they?"

"I'm Ota," the young man said softly, looking toward the woman and putting a hand on her shoulder. "Mom, you need to calm down."

"I am calm!" Kairi all but shouted, turning to him. Her mouth was raised in a mix between a grimace and a hysterical smile. "Who says I'm not calm? We just have Samurai here holding my kitchen knife and it has blood all over it and..." She rubbed a hand through her hair, tears forming at the edges of her eyes. "Oh Fortunes, what are we going to do?"
 
"Kari-san." Saori speaks softly with deliberate emphasis, allowing a gentle smile to grace her features. "I must ask that you attempt to calm yourself. The Doshin believe no such thing and I can see from your distress you speak from the bottom of your heart in expressing your worry. Fear not."

She looks over her shoulder at the boy, pursing her lips imperceptibly. It doesn't look like the woman will be giving good answers just yet, so she opts to ask him instead. "Ota-san. Do you have any idea who could have stolen your mother's knife?"
 
"Right... Yes, that's good," Kari said, her breathing slowing down to something far more manageable as her voice lost the crazed edge it had been gaining. She gave Saori a shaky smile. "I apologize, Samurai-sama. I'm not sure what came over me." She put a hand to her head. "Oooh, I feel dizzy."

"I have no idea who could have taken it," Ota said, his brow furrowing as he scowled. He tightened his grip on his mother's shoulder, supporting the woman as she swooned. "I haven't seen that knife in weeks."
 
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"Perhaps you didn't, but if what you say is true then why you look so tense?" Saburou remarks after spending a while observing the peasants. He raises an eyebrow. "You have seen this knife after it disappeared, heimin-san, and what I wonder is why didn't you say anything to the Doshin so far."

His left hand then gets dangerously close to his daisho as the Lion smiles. It's not a nice smile.

"Now please, tell us what you know."
 
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@EtchedSteel

Ota flinched at Saburou's words, paling noticeably at the implication held within them. This only deepened further when he saw the man lay a hand on his sword. He was a peasant, and the man confronting him was a Samurai. The space between their positions was obvious. Should Saburou wish it, he could cut down Ota where he stood. There was no denying this truth.

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Ota responded perhaps a touch too loudly. He pulled on his mother's arm with his free hand, the other tightening around the basket holding the groceries. "Come on, Mom. We need to get home."

"Ota," Kairi hissed quietly as her son began to drag her away. "Stop being rude to the Samurai! Do you want to get yourself killed?"

"I don't want to stand here and just take these accusations," he growled, anger warring with fear in his eyes as he glanced at the assembled Samurai. "They're just saying we're at fault because it's your knife!"
 
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"Correction, young one," Shizuka narrows her eyes, "My esteemed friend here is saying you know more than what you're sharing." She straightens up to her full height, towering over the rest of the group. "Now, if it's merely a misunderstanding, you could just tell us the truth. That would make it easier for everyone, no?" The tall Crab crosses her arms and waits.
 
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Fool boy. You're going to get yourself hurt... "Lying is inadvisable, Ota-san," Saori adds gently, "and you have not been excused from our presence. If you know something it would be good to tell us."
 
Ota took his hand off his mother's shoulder, his breathing quickening as his eyes darted from one of the Samurai to another. The young man's surly expression deepened to a full grimace, and as he barred his teeth he seemed almost more like a wild animal than a person. He clutched his basket of groceries, full of millet and radishes, so tightly that his knuckles whitened.

Then he threw it at Saburou as hard as he could and bolted down the street.
 
Saburou in turn has seen the peasant's intention from a mile away, and is fast enough to arch his torso at the last possible moment. The basket filled with veggies misses it's target by inches, and flies away.

Whatever good mood the Lion had is now gone, and clenching his teeth he's about to start chasing down Ota with blade in hand.
 
[placeholder, Saori KNOCKS A PEASANT THE FUCK DOWN WITH THE WIIIIIIIIIIIND. will fill in when I'm awake]
 
"Ota!" Kairi screamed as Saori moved past her, hands reflexively coming to her heart as fear gripped her. "Ota, stop!"

Ota didn't respond, and would never have the chance. He had gotten barely twenty paces away before Saori's entreatings toward the kami were heard. The wind coalesced around her hands, and for a moment there was the sound of whispering laughter... Right before the buffeting wave of air shot forth and slammed into the young man's back.

He cried out as he was taken off his feet, twisting over once before collapsing to the ground. He hit the earthen street hard, unable to restrain a grunt of pain as he fell awkwardly onto his shoulder. He groaned where he lay, and sluggishly attempted to rise.
 
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He barely manages to get his hands under himself before the weight of a somewhat angry Matsu berserker on his back forces him back down. With some force, she plants her knee in the small of his back and twists his arms behind his back, holding them both there with one hand before using the other to hold his head down.

Despite this, Kimiko is still smiling as she talks to the boy under her knee. "You really shouldn't have run, you know."
 
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