Description: In the wake of his Neo-League fight with Rainbow Mika, Daniel Jack has confronted unfortunate details about how he appeared to the world around him now. No longer in his flashy Zoot Suit with his swaggering presence, the detective was government dull. The detective was boring in his technique, and while effective, it didn't sell tickets. With his Chief furious and the detective being shunted to his next challenge, he briefly considers to drop everything... until a familiar young lady reenters his life...
Where are you going, Daniel Jack?
The question hangs over the Agent of Interpol's head like a veil. The setting was the Rio International Airport, the major airport of, to no surprise, Rio De Janeiro. The detective had finished up his fight with the number one contender of the Neo-League, the hottest new star Rainbow Mika. Daniel Jack has been earning quite the reputation for himself in the public fighting eye.
That he beat women.
An Interpol Agent was always on parade. But after ripping apart Rainbow Mika with dilligent, efficient Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu, Agent Little had shown once again that 'efficient' wasn't want the people wanted. Just like his fight with Gertrude. Or with Hitomi. Watching an older, grim-faced government employee dispatch adorable fighters with clean, precise strikes was not just boring. It was offensive.
And frankly, Daniel Jack was tired of it.
His phone had finally stopped ringing. The chief probably is sending special agents to track down Daniel, and start acting on his insubordination. But right now, Daniel Jack just didn't care. He was sitting on a bench, in between flights, in between gates. He was just in thought, ocassionally taking nips from his hip flask. He couldn't stop thinking about what Rainbow Mika said to him, before she succumbed to her injuries. The injuries HE brought upon her.
'IF YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT THE CROWD, THAT MEANS ALL YOU CARE ABOUT IS HURTING PEOPLE!'
Strolling into view, a familiar stranger toting a vintage looking suitcase bearing various stickers in front of her; both hands gripping the handle as legs jostle the case in her hurries, half jogging over toward the Interpol Agent.
"Daniel! Ohaaai-yo!"
The name and the greeting both growing on her, it just fit her personality and rolled out of her mouth naturally, East meets West, it was fun to say. This exuberant young woman, she looks a little different with her hair pulled back into a ponytail via a hair tie, and for some reason a plain white hachimaki adorning her forehead. She ignores the mood surrounding the Detective and stands before him smiling and lively, dressed in denim jeans and jacket; a navel exposing belly shirt It's a far cry from the cute SNF mandated dress he had last seen her wearing.
"It's good to see you."
If there were a Geiger Counter capable of detecting weaponized enthusiasm it would probably be clicking away in overdrive as the girl stands over Daniel Jack smiling. Seating herself on the bench beside him without so much as a by-your-leave or chance to object on his part. The trunk sitting at her feet tucked between her legs, the airport security and signage both warned people to be careful with their luggage even inside the airport.
Oh no.
The jovial cry bursts out. Not just any cry. A familiar cry that cuts the jaded detective down to the bone. He looks up from his whiskey flask, just in time to look at an exposed belly. Casting his glance up to her face, Daniel Jack just winces for a moment. Biting his lip, he takes a last nip of the flask before screwing the top back on.
Hitomi.
In other words.
The start of all of these problems.
"Aaaaaahahaha. Hiii." Daniel starts, before regaining his composure. "Erm, Hello... Hitomi." He states, remembering the name. "Fancy seeing you here. I... I am just waiting for my flight." Daniel didn't even know what his flight was, anymore. He eyes the trunk. Daniel's trunk was on the plane. If she had her luggage... "You must be just flying in to Brazil then." He states, idly. "You coming here for faimly, for business, or maybe another figh..."
Daniel Jack just shuts his mouth.
"Mm! it's fortunate I ran into you. It's a BIG airport."
The odds against just spotting someone in a large terminal like this had to be astronomical even if they stood out, a chance meeting unlikely unless it was fated. Hitomi glances down at her trunk and across at Daniels own lack of luggage, her fingers toy with the handle and the luggage tag offhandedly. She answers his questions cheerily, but with some time spent considering, ordering her thoughts perhaps but answering immediately as soon as Daniel cut's short, the flow of conversation continuing relentlessly.
"Not family, It feels like it hasn't been long since I left home yet. There's just something I really wanted to see, nothing beats travelling!"
She surreptitiously looks him over, head to toe in the more boring looking suit, it was a far cry from that couture orange suit he had worn for the Saturday Night Fight, but as was her own outfit at the time, neither of them were sure to look as they did in /real life/. She switches gears and carries the conversation into new territory with no respect for the art.
"You're not going out celebrating yet?"
The cell phone dug out of her pocket *breeps* with an screen press and a couple of swipes; A text message appears on screen; an automated notification? It lists a fight, outcome and shift in the rankings. Daniel Jack: ranked number two in the league. Was it good news? It hardly seemed to match the mood at present.
Daniel was shooting up the ranks, wasn't he.
Honestly, Daniel Jack hadn't really noticed too much about the rankings. He was doing pretty well, wasn't he? The Agent of Interpol just mulls on it. He had a few titles he had earned, a few competitions he had won before. But he never thought of himself as the kind of person who was a competitive martial artist. Number 2 in the Neo-League.
How did he end up like that?
His fights with Zach was damned close, and he actually enjoyed that fight. But his fight with Ibuki... he heard nothing from it. It wasn't one-sided, but the wily ninja certainly outplayed him. But the Chief didn't praise him. He just sent him to the next match. And then the two girls, which is where his disgusting reputation was being born. The purpose of the Neo-League, as told to him, was to prove that Interpol weren't a bunch of assholes.
So far, he was doing poorly.
The detective's expression was troubled. But he was listening. He didn't know why this young lady would even talk to him. She was the one who started this, indirectly. The young karate girl, that crossed paths with Daniel Jack as part of a Saturday Night Fight. What was supposed to have been an entertaining fight, transformed to the young lady apologizing to Daniel for getting her face stomped in. Daniel Jack didn't even hold back. Why would he hold back.
"Why should I celebrate?"
"I was humilated." Agent Little gradually deflates, staring ahead into space as the man just rants. "It was a one-sided match where I once again pummeled a young lady in a boring way. My Chief is pissed, the public hates me, and now I am getting shuttled off to try it again, probably. I don't even know how this ends. My boss just keeps sending me to fight in this league, until I prove something that he won't even put an end goal on. I beat a girl, I get yelled at and sent to the next fight. I lose to a girl, I get yelled at and sent to the next fight. I am just so... damned tired of this."
Daniel Jack just sighs.
"Just so damned tired."
"Daniel... Is that what you wanted out of the fight? "
That too soft utterance is almost lost in the hustle and bustle of the airport. She had fought Interpol Detective Agent Little and his style was not flashy, (Even if his dress sense had seemed to be) He did not appeal to the crowds, his focus had been entirely on her. That style was based on efficient, painful and debilitating blows; she had felt the wounds, aches and pains afterwards that were testament to technique. She KNEW he was uncommonly strong but no idea just how much stronger than she was.
The smile fades until it's nearly extinguished, to maintain it insincerely was against her character and even holding the faint smile she still wore took some effort. There was a profound disparity here, between the art he practiced and the goals he was seemingly demanding of himself.
Hitomi had been caught and struggled through a match with Rainbow Mika, one where the wrestler had made her doubt herself, demanding she live up to a foreign ideals arbitrarily imposed by the professional wrestler, another's ideals; someone else's opinion. It didn't matter if it was Mika's, It didn't matter if it were Hitomi's -- Those were neither things which should matter to Daniel. Seemingly silenced by the oppressive atmosphere now hanging over the pair she asks quietly, almost afraid of the answer she may recieve.
"Daniel, ..why did you learn your art? Who was Daniel Jack that devoted his life to it?"
There were as many reasons as there were people, but there was a multitude more to stop learning. As the daughter and heir to a family dojo she had seen many faces come and go, hundreds who were not willing to walk the path for more than weeks, some years. There were reasons beyond counting to stop; Focus on other aspects of their lives like their family, their money and health. Could someone really become so strong without it being their love and their passion keeping them moving forward?
Why did Daniel Jack learn his art.
He doesn't even notice the people passing by. The question was so clear now, being asked aloud by the young girl. He just stares ahead, taking a deep breath in, before exhaling. This was something he had an answer to. Looking back over to the young karate expert, he nods solemnly. "I know why I am a fighter. I know why, well, how I got here." Daniel leans back in the bench, leaning against wall, staring at the ceiling. He wiggles his mustache, before finally, he answers.
"I'm a fighter because of Metro City."
"It was almost a decade ago. I was a fresh Kansas boy, moving over to Metro City to find new work as a private detective. That was when Metro City was had the gangs taking over. I was used to handling myself one on one. Fights, and dealing with dumb gangsters. You know, the one-two, duck and weave stuff." The detective mimes out the simple boxing moves, before dropping his hands down. "Well, when Metro City when to hell in a handbasket, some of the old gangsters I put in broke out. And I ended up having to fight five gangbangers at once. I got the ass beaten out of me, kid. I thought I was gonna die."
"So I left Metro City."
"I went to Southtown. I wanted out of that hell hole, you know? Because it kicked my ass. It chewed me up, and spit me out kid. A man of 20, getting beaten nearly to death. I went to Southtown, because that's the only place that really had work for a detective like me. And finding work was hard there, kid. You wanna know what happened that changed things, though? I got my ass kicked by an old man."
"That old man was Ryuhaku Todoh."
"He is the man that introduced me to all this. To Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu. I studied Todoh-Ryuu while in Southtown, for the last 10 years, mixing it in to help me defend myself as a detective. And it worked. It took me a while, but I was their greatest student, second only to the sensai's daughter, Kasumi, and of course, her father. Did you know that match we had together was in my old apartment? Where I used to work out of Gedo Street. Those the days when if I ended up fighting anybody, they'd probably kicked my ass.
And that's why ending learning how to fight, kid.
"That's why I know how to fight, like I do. Because I didn't want to be laying down in a gutter ever again. I didn't want to be left for dead in a dumpster ever again. You know, a while back, I ended up fighting a giant mummy god. Thing. And he thought I was a bug, an insect, barely worth any notice as a fighter. And that's what I'm used to. Just being a guy, who knows a martial art nobody cares about. That's what frustrating me the most right now. When I step into the professional fighting ring? The tournaments like this? I shouldn't be winning like that. I've never won like that before, against real professionals. I beat up criminals, not artists." The detective pauses a moment, before burying his head in his hands.
"What have I turned into?"
"It sounds like you've been through a lot."
It was an adult conversation, one she wasn't really qualified to judge on or even comment on. She just tries to comprehend it; Where Daniel had said he came from is difficult since she had no ever actually even seen those parts. The only piece of the story she can relate to well, perhaps -- is the mention of his time studying under his Master. She digs deep into her own memories, it's not easy to find something similar. It's right there on the surface.
"You probably learned enough to protect yourself a long time ago. And you worked hard enough to become the greatest student who hadn't studied in that dojo their whole lives. They were probably really impressed by you."
It's a comforting voice, there is more than a twinge in her heart as she speaks but it's a gentle tone relating experience, something personal to her? To have someone come into your life and just - surpass all expectations; force you to try to stay ahead or to catch up. She wondered how the girl Daniel mentioned felt as she reaches out to place her hand on Daniels shoulder.
She knows she is just a kid, it hasn't even been a month since her father acknowledged her as strong enough to leave the dojo and walk her own path for a time. The heir still has the responsibilities of returning someday and taking over the Dojo, they relied on the students more than anyone else did.
"Maybe your Master was doing what he was doing trying to shape you for his granddaughters sake as much as your own. Everyone is selfish to some degree, we all want things out of Life. Rainbow Mika want's to delight the crowds with her fighting, sometimes the things she says.. are kind of hurtful."
Did Hitomi actually know something about that match, had it even been broadcast yet?
"Even me, Daniel. You possess great power. We must fight again someday."
It's the return of the super cheerful Hitomi; she didn't mean right now, the hand on his shoulder is trying to comfort him but there is absolutely no grudge held against him, in fact as perhaps the strongest person she knows she measures herself against him. Next time - next time would be different. She might even feel guilty for how she feels but she cannot help it. The desire to prove herself to him and against him is part of her nature.
"You have no idea, kid."
That was the first response from Agent Little. He had gone through a lot. A lot of regrets, a lot of sorrows, and a lot of mistakes. Of course, as she talks about her dojo, relating her own experiences against the detectives, he reflects on his time at the dojo. Going from a mere student, to a teacher of his fellow students. He had outgrown most of the criminal lowlifes of Southtown. Hell, maybe that is why he became a world detective. Southtown was just too small for him. Memories drift to the feverish dreams of the Underworld, and he hastily makes sure to note that while Southtown was too small, there were places certainly too big for his talents to catch up to.
"They probably are."
He never even though about what it meant for him to become so strong to that dojo. What it meant to be one of the strongest students of Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu. Originally, the driving force of the school was competition against Kyokugen, and raising money for the financial security of the school. Daniel earned that financial security, and as for the competition against Kyokugen... the detective narrows his eyes for a moment.
Kyokugen Karate.
He quickly glances his eyes back to Hitomi. Kyokugen Karate. She was a karate practitioner. So was Gerterude. The detective carefully recalls their fights. The fight with Hitomi.... wasn't as huge of a gap. And with Gerterude, she simply made a mistake that left her karate easily exploited by the detective. Karate. He had so much experience training against Karate, that he had fine-tuned his art to destroy it. The comparison to the fight between Zach, or even Ibuki highlighted that despite his reputation of being 'too tough,' he wasn't anything exceptional against a martial artist who wasn't Karate. That was the problem. He was just really experienced at fighting Kyokugen Karate, and in turn, that extended to all of karate. Daniel Jack breathes a sigh of relief.
"You are right Hitomi. I shouldn't let her words get to me."
The detective suddenly seemed to relax. "Like, I will be honest with you, kid. I felt -awful- when you were apologizing to me in our last fight. I heard hell from my boss about that whole thing. But you seem like a real sweet person. I'll still feel awful, but I know it is because you care." The older man leans over a bit, trying to catch a glimpse of the tags on the trunk, before leaning back upright. "Want me to tell you a secret? You know why I really enjoy competitive fighting? Like, why I really enjoy it?"
"Meeting people, Hitomi."
The detective puts his hands behind his head. "It's like being an ambassador of Todoh-Ryuu, you dig? Winning and losing is important, but I want to know the person I am fighting. If the Chief wasn't putting some kind of crap on me about this league, I might even be enjoying the Neo-League just from meeting all kinds of people. A wrestling bimbo. A teenage ninja. An elegant noblewoman. A jarhead with psionic powers. And now, as I am noticing more and more, someone pretty important."
"You, Hitomi."
Daniel Jack nods at the young lady, who had shown up. "Thank you, kid. You've really helped an old man figure out what he's doing with his life. At least now I know what I am doing all this for. It isn't just to keep an old fart at headquarters happy. I guess that means now when I beat the snot out of one of the kids in the league, I won't feel bad about it." The agent of Interpol pauses, arcing an eyebrow at the young German lady. "Hang on a second."
"Aren't you in the Neo-League, kid?"
Hitomi had thought it was going well. Daniel was speaking little and appeared to be thinking deeply, she gave short sharp nod of approval as he agreed he should not let Rainbow Mika's words get to him! That was enough right there; they had been harsh and unfair. As he continues on to speaking about his fight with her though the returned smile slips in favour of a look of surprise, souring as she transitions through bewilderment into almost horror.
The tone had shifted to deliver a critical strike right between the eyes. Hitomi does seem to progressively wilt almost comically as Daniels relays his feeling and experience of their last match. A further stage as he lists the repercussions; having had his employer yell at him apparently! Even though he had handily won? Adult life was complicated. Her head tips downward as she twiddles with the affixed tags, a little lost for words and starting to feel a blue herself. Maybe she could do better next time, Idiot! this was no time to get depressed you need to-.
She peeks up and cocks her head sideways in reaction to Daniel leaning closer out of nowhere and for unknown reasons; looking down at her luggage, the tags fumbling around in her fingers, Familiar seeming? They're the target of his gaze but she can't really see what he was looking for. She looks right back at him questioningly, pleased and yet intrigued by his posited question. Why DID he enjoy competitive fighting?
And there it was, Meeting people. It was one of the things she enjoyed most as well. It's a relief as the whole atmosphere seems to change with him stretching his arms back behind his head. Even the tone he uses and atmosphere around them seems much lighter as he regales her with his Reason.
Ah-hah-uah, Daniel c W-wrestling bimbo? A ninja? A jar - head? and even a Noble woman? She didn't even know where to begin there and thusly feels safest leaving it alone. She can appreciate the rest of the sentiment, representing your art and --
"-eh? --- EH?"
SHOCK!
She hesitates in nodding the first time but brightens exponentially and affirms it with a second more emphatic nod. The whole time tunring red in embarrassment but she's beaming despite the fact she doesn't recall actually saying anything profound or really helpful. A Lucky break maybe?
Hang on a second? Uh-oh was could be coming now?
"Mm! I am. I have had a couple of matches so far. With uh, Yuri Sakazaki and Rainbow Mika."
It's cheerful an answer, she had had fun in those fights and respected both of her opponents. One a Kyokugen Karate practitioner and the other the Neo League's #1 head of the leader boards. Though, she had made no mention of her own ranking in the league was she even in the Top Twenty?
Daniel Jack raises his eyebrows.
"Oh." He states flatly, with a hint of competitiveness on his lips. "So Baby Sakazaki is in the competitive leagues now, huh?!" The detective states with a surprisingly hint of scorn. "It seems that Kyokugen is trying to make it big. Well... we will see how far she gets. I won't mind getting my head torn off for utterly embarrassing HER in front of ever-"
"Oh, I'm sorry Hitomi.'"
Daniel Jack snaps out of it. "Don't mind me. The Kyokugen-Todoh rivalry runs deep. Her older brother gave my dojo hell. So." He begins, gradually standing back up from the bench. "You are in the Neo-League. You must be doing solidly." The detective deduces out loud. "You're too modest, kid. If you'd have lost a few fights, you'd have told me." He puts a smirk on his face, Daniel's whole presence being... relaxed now.
Hitomi really did take a weight off his shoulders.
"Well. It sounds like that you and I will be fighting again in the future. " Daniel adds, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I got some advice to give to you, if you keep competing in the league. Ibuki is agile, don't try and chase her down. Try and catch her when she comes to you. And if you face someone by the name of Zach Glenn, he is either a current marine, or ex-marine. He has fast, aggressive takedowns, and uses psionic powers with his attacks. But even if you feel like you are being overrun, he overextends himself. Try and take advantage of that." Daniel Jack was old enough to be a mentor on these things.
It was the least he could do for the help Hitomi gave.
It looked like there was indeed some history there, Daniel Jack raises his eyebrows and the deeply rooted opinions of the rival Kyokugen School begin to spill forth. Hitomi's own eyebrows climbing higher still until they vanish behind that ever present fringe of light brown hair. Baby Sonozaki? Yuri had indeed seemed rather young but the two girls were very similar to one another, even taller than Hitomi if she tried picturing her. Baby? How old was she?
Inter-school rivalries were usually healthy or even necessities if that kept both schools strong and competitive. She recalled a story her mother once told her of two such schools in Japan that had developed their proposed backstories in secret; but based on a disagreement over the fictional history that was the setting for this rivalry it became the reason for their fierce conflict instead.
There were all kinds of schools!
Hands in her lap now she raises one to scratch at the back of her head, Ponytail bobbing and weaving as she does so and embarrassed once again. Would she really have mentioned losing either of those fights if she had? That's some uncanny insight on his part and she softly and awkwardly laughs in lieu of any kind of idea how to respond.
"Ah-ha-haha-hah."
She ceases as he lays a hand on her shoulder as though muted. Clear bright blue eyes look up into his as he begins to impart his advice, he acknowledged that they would fight again someday, perhaps someday soon. No! focus! It's practical and efficient stuff; the same way that Daniel fought. He broke down their styles and he offered her the hints she might need if she ever faced those two.
Ibuki ...and Zach Glenn. Ibuki sounded like a japanese word so perhaps she was the Ninja, or maybe the Noblewoman.
It was a reassuring. She never even knew much beyond the other fighters name until she was standing opposite them. Seeing the physique, tentatively feeling them out. There was never a strategy she was using beyond pitting her strengths against theirs and observing how they fought at the time. It would have been to little too late against a fighter like Naoko-chan.
"I will remember, thank you Daniel!"
A good student was always willing to learn, absorb whatever they could that would help them grow; especially if opportunity presented itself and experience could be imparted on willing ears.
"No problem, Hitomi."
Daniel Jack walks around to her trunk. He understood that, with the other opponents, he had only the reason to be an ambassador of Todoh-Ryuu. But when Kyokugen is involved? The only offering is war. Besides, if he beats up Takuma's daughter, he might even draw out the old man himself, if not his brother.
THAT would be a fight worth going for.
With a heave, he pulls the trunk from past her. "So, where are you headed? I missed my flight, so I can help you load up to where you are going... or was it coming, Hitomi. I can't for the life of me remember." The smirk on Daniel Jack's face spreads.
"Where were you going again, kid?"
"Hah? Au-waau-- thaaa-aah? "
The jaw works without her managing to actually produce any coherent words, she looks up at him with her brain frantically instructing her to fight or at least flee with some dignity. He already has her case in hand, it dangled there mocking her. She looks about for any avenue of help or escape but find none so conveniently placed.
The scene playing out as food and cups are hurled into the fountain arena, Daniel Jack just walks over to his suit jacket; Picking it up. The girl in the crowd with her hands with cupped around her mouth yelling encouragement yet jostled and voice completely drowned out by the crowd. He wasn't looking, and she just couldn't escape the press of bodies and hurling limbs no matter she was trying desperately to catch up.
Even when she had finally found him she had watched for a time, back pressed to a wall and not sure how best to approach. Tying the hachimaki around her head for a little something extra, confidence or spirit in this case.
"Not until tomorrow. Then it's right back to Japan."
In the present she squirms a little while still seated, a child caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing and wondering just how much he knew. Heels clicking together as she explores the new leg room and then likewise makes to stand.
"But shouldn't we be trying to find you a new flight? ..What about your work?"
Smooth.
"Oh no, no no no, kid."
Daniel Jack clutches her trunk tight, his face neutral. Puffing up his cheeks a bit, he raises a finger in the air, shaking it at the young German lady. "Oh no. See, what I need you to do, if not worry about me. See, you know how I beat up Rainbow Mika?" He withdraws his finger, and reaches into his suit jacket. There, he pulls out his phone. Pushing the button to light it up, he shows the missed calls and left messages on it.
There were a lot of them.
"My Chief has been trying to call me since that fight, kid." Daniel Jack begins dryly. "And well. I've blown him off. Because this whole thing was kind of a load of crap. And once I start talking with him?" The detective tucks his phone back into his suit jacket, patting it once. "I'll figure out where my new flight will take me. which is the good part. The bad part? He is going to blow up at me."
"Hard."
"And let me tell you this, Hitomim you don't want to be anywhere near when that happens." Wiggling his mustache, he looks down to the gates, shaking his head. "No, the best use of my time is helping YOU get where you need to go, kid. Besides. Uh." The detective pauses, casting his eyes up at the ceiling. "If I tell the Chief I was helping the girl I beat up earlier, he probably won't scream at me as much.
As much.
The signs of it are ever so slight as Daniel raises his finger, shrinking in on herself; just a little at first. Hands clasped together in front of her arms just seemingly hanging together at arm's length and alternating between furtive glances up at him while speaking and breaking eye contact to look away, at the cell phone when he presents it to her she looks hard. It was an awful lot of missed messages.
She reaches up to the back of her head after a soft sigh and undoes the knot, pulling the hachimaki free of her hair with one arm and letting it fall to wind around the arm rather than fall to trail on the ground, she toys with it even while folding it in half and gives her head a shake so her hair settles back mostly in place.
"I- have a room ... at the Sea Horses Grand."
They had offered her a surprisingly good rate when she made inquiries about when the Neo League match was scheduled to start, if fact she had still been planning on staying there until her flight tomorrow but it just felt incredibly awkward right now. Probably the place Daniel Little least wanted to even think about and she was bringing it up.
"I thought I might get some dinner first though."
Pitiful, but she's still trying to be considerate even if not 'worrying' about him.
"Well then, how about I treat you to some dinner?"
Daniel Jack wasn't surprised that she was coming in. If she was coming out, then she wouldn't have her trunk. It was far too big for a carryon. As for returning to the Sea Horse Hotel... he was unaffected. The raw memory of making Rainbow Mika eat slate was not heavy in the detective's heart anymore. Hitomi helped him with that. Besides, the worst thing that would be there would be a few angry fans. It was Brazil though.
How angry could the fans get?
The detective heaves up the trunk, carrying it on top of his shoulder. It was partially strength, partially balance that kept it steady. And Daniel Jack was all about steady. "Until I give my Chief a call, I got no where to be. And the best place for me to be right now," He gives Hitomi a little wink. "Is with you." He pauses a moment. "To keep the chief from getting too mad, of course."
Of course.
There is a momentary pause before she starts grinning and nodding affirmatively. Hitomi's mood lifts at the prospect of actually eating out, somewhere in a wholly unexplored city AND country; Still being a student however she was also happy someone else was offering to pay for dinner.
She finishes folding the cloth in her hands as though she were being timed even while still nodding, tucking it away in one of the pockets of that denim jacket. The two of them probably made for an odd looking duo in any number of ways. The Eagle emblazoned across the back of her jacket; all denim, belly shirt and bare skin and he with his government issue grey suit but that doesn't even factor.
Hoisting and carrying the trunk on his shoulder she just laughs, it was such a casual gesture that didn't quite fit the image presented the boring suit projected. She can't help now but think of suit he wore in the SNF match as it comes to mind again. She rushes around him to start walking backwards, leading the way toward the exit while walking backwards and talking excitedly. Arms behind her and forward leaning while doing so making her look all the younger, looking even more excited and exuberant as she starts leading the way and matching his pace.
"Mmm! Then we should make the most of your free time before he does catch you. What should we even try?"
She was half-kidding with the attempted joke. Really though she did like to travel, see new places and make new friends. Today even all at the same time!
Friends took all kinds.
Daniel never expected a crazy old Japanese man to be his mentor. He never considered a one armed bandit to be his friend. And a kid like this, who had every right to be disgusted with him, wasn't. As he hefts the trunk over his shoulder, catching stares from some of the other travelers, Daniel Jack just was vaguely aware of them.
He had a lady to take care of first, after all.
"I am thinking... steakhouse." Is Agent Little's response to Hitomi's musings. "I know for a fact that there is one within the hotel itself; But if you want to see more of Rio, I know there is one that is popular with ex-pats about 3 blocks away." The detective keeps an alert stride as he walks along, casting the occassional glance to his younger companion. "It might be dangerous though, going through the city at night, and the day before your fight, too." The detective suddenly gives a teasing grin to his younger companion.
"You think you could handle any trouble coming your way?"
Turning back to face the right way as she walks, before she bumps into someone she gradually reduces the distance between them, turning to talk back over her shoulder whenever she answers.
"There is two of us so it's only half as dangerous each. ...I don't have any fights though!"
No scheduled fights and she was planning on going home tomorrow. On the day Rainbow Mika and Daniel Jack were scheduled to fight their Neo league match? She answers the question unreservedly. But her thoughts have already turned to -- a steak house? Would it be like those giant quantities they supposedly served in America? Steak houses in Germany however weren't small on portion sizes, how relative was it?
It had been an expensive investment travelling as far as she had on her own dime so to speak. For the chance to see this matchup, two fighters she was actually somewhat familiar with. If things hadn't happened as they did she would probably have gone home again with little more than exchanging a hello with either of them even if they got to see she was there.
All from a girl humming happily as she walks; Wondering what the Steakhouse in question might have on its menu. If that disaster hadn't struck and she hadn't followed him? No-one might have known she was there.
"I'll watch your back."
She flexes a bicep in a less than threatening manner. It could be the smile, or the whole girl in general.
"No fights then?"
Daniel Jack smirks. "Well then, we can take as much time as we like." He watches her as he continues past the gates, on their journey back to Rio. The cost of the investment for Daniel to come was... all on the UN's dime. He was technically a rogue agent right now. But there were good ways to go rogue, and bad ones.
Hitomi was a good one.
The detective felt brighter and brighter with each step. As the fact of the matter was, the young martial artist's optimism was infectious. Far from it was Daniel totally jaded; he would just say he was old. As his partner bounces along, the Agent of Interpol considers. Maybe he did need a partner. Someone to help even him out, someone to help him from getting too old sometimes. He picks up the base, not wanting to let her get too far ahead of him. As the pair begins to leave the airport, to head out to the wild city, he finally responds, a smile on his face. "That's great kid. If you got my back..."
"Then I'll have yours."
Log created on 18:10:26 12/18/2014 by Daniel, and last modified on 18:52:53 12/20/2014.