Description: The cross-promotion between Hibiki Dojo and the Twilight Star Circus has paid off handsomely! But it's working so well the circus ran out of Saikyo fliers, and that just won't do...
It's an exciting time to be in the Hibiki Dojo!
Well.. Sort of.
There's really only one particularly excited person within the place and that's none other than assistant teacher Himeko Kashiwagi whom is absolutely pumped to finally have a team assembled for King of Fighters! However, this doesn't mean she can slack on getting the current students up to snuff- And in this case 'Up to snuff' means preparing some awesome kata for them to demonstrate.
Naturally, it isn't completely practical.
Himeko is clad in her usual pink gi, headband tied about her head and a whistle in her mouth with the very important job of directing the line of students in front of her going through a seemingly random demonstration of kicks, poses, punches and chops.
*FWEEEEET* Goes the whistle.
"YAHOO!" or "HIYAA!" reply the students, who honestly mostly seem to be going along with it because damned if the bookworm's positive attitude rather catchy at this point.
Of course, it helps to have a cute face.
The Hibiki Dojo's class rolls have expanded quite a bit over the past few months, with a lion's share of the new students coming from the rough-and-tumble Gedo District. Well-accustomed to a life of violence, these students had been ushered towards Hibiki Dojo as a way to break the cycle they were born into, to seize control of their destiny and smash it in the face with a cry of yo-yahoo!
Two such students have been able to juggle their school demands with not only Sensei Kashiwagi's firm discipline, but also part-time jobs at the Sleeping Dragon restaurant. Touji, the dishwasher with fiery red hair, has proven to be one of the Dojo's more promising students as of late, his feral smile a stark contrast to the rigorous tasks he's been forced to learn. He keeps his mouth shut unless he's asked a question -- and then usually proves why he keeps his mouth shut.
Saya, on the other hand... The hostess with cobalt blue hair is a fiery, sassmouthed terror who has given everyone -but- Himeko a hard time. Loud, brash, and stubborn, she's had to be set aside several times in the past -- mostly because she's managed to learn control over her tempestuous aura. She's rough and undisciplined -- and it's only because the Rumble In The Streets tournament showed her that she -could- hurt someone without a guiding hand that she's even consented to attending the dojo after the tournament.
Right now, the two are behaving well, following directions. But that's when the dojo door slides open, and in walks someone they could give claim to knowing.
Kinda.
Honoka Kawamoto, star juggler of the Twilight Star Circus, steps inside with a small advertising circular in her left hand, and a purple yo-yo in the other. Flicking the yo-yo idly, she slides the door shut with her shoulder, and steps inside. (Barefoot, because that's how Japan rolls, yo.) A rose-colored jacket clings to her lithe form -- the star juggler looks -very- unprepared for combat in the dojo. Aside from the distinctively floral color of course. Merely a curious bystander for now, she stays quiet, not wanting to disturb the session in progress...
She did have an appointment to speak with someone about advertising, though it's quite possible the message was not passed along.
Well.. It is certainly possible that the message wasn't passed along but it would be a complete shock to Himeko since she considers herself a pretty organized individual. You know, so long as it doesn't come to her appearance- she seems to have semi-bedhair forever.
Himeko has found Saya to be a handful for certain, but if there's one thing she excels at, it's warding off the local 'haters', if you will, and the assistant teacher always tends to turn a blind eye to it. And Touji was so very close to being asked to join the team but, frankly, he just isn't a high enough belt rank. Well, that and it has been near impossible to get him to even entertain the idea of wearing a costume so there you have it.
*FWEEEET* "HIYAA!" *FWEEET* "NO PROBLEM!" The kata completed, Himeko lets the whistle fall from her mouth as she claps her hands twice. "Excellent work, everyone! Lets take five before we start sparring! And don't forget that there are still positions open for the Cheer Reading team, so sign up if you're interested, all right?"
Which is met with silence. The pun alone seems to be enough to deter volunteers, even if the concept of being official cheerleaders for the No Brand Heroes isn't the worst idea. Seven seconds of that silence passes before she laughs it off with a weak chuckle. "R- Right.. Just on the wall, so.. Yes." At that point she turns around to catch sight of Honoka, in which her brows raise and eyes widen in obvious recognition. "Oh! Hello!"
The pun draws pronounced disgust onto Saya's expression -- much of it may be an obvious show for her badass persona. Not uncommon for her to react in such a fashion, but it's not like she's -really- mad, after all. She bows to Himeko along with the rest of the class, before stepping away to grab her sports bottle.
Touji is a smidge more perceptive, however: he noticed the newcomer, and squints at her for a moment. It seems he recognizes the circus star, but as he manages to catch Honoka's eye, he appears to have realized his mistake. "... E-eh, Saya, wait up," he stammers, running off to catch her.
The juggler turns her eyes to Himeko, smiling brightly as she winds her yo-yo back into the palm of her hand. "You seem to have your hands full here, sensei." She bows respectfully -- like it or not, she -is- a guest here at the dojo, and Himeko deserves the respect. "Our circus has been pretty busy with the cross-promotions -- our guests have been scarfing up the coupons y'all left us with. I was told you had more...?"
With a cordial smile, Honoka tilts her head to the side. "Oh, that reminds me... I heard a rumor you were looking at assembling a team for the King of Fighters, is there truth to that?"
Himeko glances over her shoulder for a brief moment before she gives her full attention to Honoka and actually seems surprised yet again; this time by the bow. She very quickly returns the gesture. "O- Oh no," she protests as she quickly waves her hands, "You can just call me Himeko, there's really no need to be so formal, honest." It's too flattering and embarrassing!
That said, the mention of the coupons gets a bit of a less humble reaction from her and she's positively beaming with her hands upon her hips, "*Swag*! I had a feeling it would ever since I posted that promotional video on 2chan! Have you seen it? 'Dan, Dan Daaaaaaaaaaan~! o/~'."
Holy crap is she proud. In reality it was probably a complete coincidence.
Following that, she puffs up, seeming even more proud of herself. "So 'someone' started a rumor, huh? I guess I can let you in on the secret just between you and me- I *have* formed a team for King of Fighters already. And I have a pret-ty high profile celebrity on it at that. Mmmmm-hm."
Oh, right, more coupons. She'll remember that later. "How about yourself?"
Miss Kawamoto rubs the back of her head with embarassment, smiling sheepishly. "H-Himeko, then. And you can call me Honoka, naturally..."
The sheepish smile is a suitable expression for Himeko's mention of the promotional video as well. "Th... They all kind of blur together for me, you might have to jog my memory on that one in particular. But yes, all the ones I've watched have been great!"
In all honesty, Honoka can only remember seeing two -- and only out of the desire to believe the first one was just a fluke.
As Himeko continues fluffing herself up, Saya and the other students occasionally filter back through. A few students recognize the circus star for who she is -- pointing, whistling, making gossip. Saya just sips from her water bottle, murmuring something quietly to Touji as she looks in the general direction of the two King of Fighters entrants.
The Ainu woman, for her part, runs her fingers through her silky raven-and-rose hair with amusement. "I knew I liked you from our very first encounter. Always en pointe! Though... which celebrity? Surely, it wouldn't be Miss Yuri Sakazaki, hmm?"
A playful expression works its way across her features as she looks to the circular in her arms. "And yes... the circus is putting forth a team as well. Any opportunity to bring business, you know how it goes..."
"Oh sure, I bookmarked a bunch of them on my phone, let me show you!" Himeko replies, far more than happy to show off her promotional art. Promart. However the moment she pats her outer thigh, she realizes her gi pants don't have pockets and so her sentence ends up finishing with, "... lllllaaater."
%As the students get a bit noisier, Himeko glances over her shoulder again, but something else clicks. Coupons! "Ah! Touji-san, could you go to the supply room and bring the box marked '135BB9', please!" then back to Honoka with a wide grin still plastered on her face. She's pretty confident Honoka will recognize him once he's up close and is eager to see her reaction. But that grin steadily falls down to a line face. Yuri Sakazaki, huh? If that was a joke, she isn't laughing. In fact she's silent.
DEAD SILENT. "..."
With a crisp shout of "Hai, senseeeei!" Touji dashes off into the supply room. Saya sips her water, asking another of the students a question -- which, from the way she points, suggests she's asking about Honoka. Once receiving an answer, Saya laughs it off...
The Twilight Star juggler -had- intended the mention of Miss Sakazaki as a gentle jab, but once she sees Himeko's reaction, she holds up her hands apologetically. "Oh, no, I... I didn't mean it like that, haha..." It's just that she'd figured the birds would be two of a feather...
She bows at the waist, a long and formal apology. "But no, I... have no idea of the rest of your team." As she rises, her cheeks are flushed red, her embarassment plain as day. "And, honestly, best of luck to you! I'm hoping to meet you in the final rounds. You gave me quite the challenge in our battle, I am looking forward to a rematch!"
Right around that time, Touji returns with box 135BB9, just as asked. "Sensei..." He gives Honoka a raised eyebrow, though his skepticism fades after a moment. "Huh, you're from that wackjob circus."
Honoka flashes him a carefully measured smile. "... That's me."
"Mnnngh, no no, I should be the one apologizing," Himeko replies once Honoka drops into another bow. "It's just.. Ugh, it's really baffling- For the life of me I just can't understand the connection! But it's my fault for taking it so personally. One of my goals is to make the practicality of this dojo and the impracticality of theirs crystal clear. Sorry." She twists her lips a bit as she pokes her pointer fingers together. "A- Anyhow, the members are a surprise for now buuuuut I'm working on a trailer for it, so once it's done I'll send it to you early!"
"Oh! Thank you." She accepts the box from Touji once he arrives, and is just about to hand it to Honoka when she ends up so surprised by his reaction that she ends up dropping the package of coupons. Her cheeks burn red, and her jaw goes slack, but once the shock wears off she raises her whistle up to her lips.
*FWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET*
"Touji-san! You- You don't say things like that to our guest! Fifty push ups!" Beat. "Please!"
So much for fishing for information -- Honoka may have to find some other means of determining the matchup. The Sakazaki dojo is clearly not involved, that much is patently obvious.
The juggler shakes her head dismissively, but isn't keen on extending the Japanese ritual of humbly accepting blame. One cycle is enough, she figures, and just accepts the apology at that. "Success in battle proves it's viable, right?" The Hokkaido native doesn't press the point much further; it's clear Himeko is -quite- passionate about it.
Honoka does move to cover her ears once it becomes obvious the whistle will be blown. -Wow- that's loud -- the Ainu woman's eyes screw shut from the sound. Was that -really- necessary, she wonders; one eyelid opens tentatively to ensure the aural onslaught has truly ended.
"Oh, no," she disclaims, as Touji instantly drops to give his fifty. "It's... it's alright. I mean, we have our own style of performance, just the same as yours, right?"
Honoka crouches down, picking up the package of coupons with a curiously neutral glance on her face. Touji burns with anger, but keeps his silence. And Saya...
Well, Saya's snickering to herself, because of course she is.
Himeko gives a dismissive wave of her hand then holds up a pointer finger as if about to start a lecture, after the whistle falls from her mouth. "It's never that simple, actually, anything can be viewed as 'viable' in the beginning. A wise man once told me 'even a broken clock is right twice a day'! He also said 'Huh. I never realized it was called a ladel; grandma always called it a yadel'." She clenches her fists with fire in her eyes. "And we're no yadel!"
.. Right.
Following that bit of 'wisdom', and clearly finding her whistleblowing to be the right tool for the job, she shakes her head. "I appreciate your leniency, I do, but the number one rule of taunting is to never taunt what you do not understand!" A firm nod before she crouches to pick up the box, then hand it over. "Here you go!"
Honoka Kawamoto fights opponents with an eclectic fusion of escrima, judo, and juggling props. She does not need any particular convincing with regards to making a given style 'work', per se. But neither does she begrudge Himeko for insisting that Saikyo-ryu has a ways to go before it's accepted as a martial art for people the world over, in the same vein as Jeet Kune Do or kenpo might be. "No yadels indeed!" she laughs, good-naturedly, accepting Himeko's help with the package of coupons.
Still, the advice about 'never taunting what you do not understand' is -quite- pertinent advice. "I'll commit that to memory," she resolves with a smile, wrapping both arms securely around the box -- even bowing once -again- out of politeness. "Thank you!"
"Best of luck in the tournament, Himeko!"
Not long afterwards, Touji the ever-diligent finishes up his push-ups. Saya has managed to control her snickering, and the pair is ready for their next lesson from their sensei. Though, Touji -does- pass an eye to the nearest clock. "Ugh," says Touji, "How long were you two gonna yap it up, anyway... dinner rush is about to start at the restaurant..."
Saya's hands have already gone to her ears.
Log created on 23:26:03 05/28/2016 by Natsu, and last modified on 02:38:55 05/30/2016.