Description: Actually this scene does look largely complete, don't know why it went unpublished. Ibuki and Rust at the Southtown Village.
It's a lovely afternoon at the Southtown Village mall, students from Taiyo hang about after school and families walk up and down the paved streets that stand between the shops. There is the mumbled coversations of dozens of voices talking about whatever the day has brought them, making plans to meet up, or saying bye before they head home. In this mass of confusion stands a girl in a white t-shirt and a pair of stylish denim jeans with little swatches of pink fabric sewn onto them.
"Mouuuu, I wish I could get that!" Ibuki whines to no one in particular as she stares at a pretty nice looking blouse and a cute little violet beret on a mannequin in one of the store windows with a sigh she steps back from practically pressing her face against the glass, "Maybe next time I'm here." She pouts as she turns away and begins her window shopping again, it was somewhat fun for her but somewhat sad as well to get to be able to look at all these things she'd not mind having, "Ooh! I like that!" She murmurs at display of jewlery in one window with thin golden necklaces.
Everyone's got something to do after school. Hang out with friends, study, work... or go buying things. It's inevitable that at some point you will be venturing into that wide, wild world of capitalism. Such is the case with a particular late thirty-something foreign schoolteacher.
Through that window, a man with a particularly awful combover that may or may not be a THREAT TO ALL GOOD TASTE EVER gets in a shouting match with a clerk over something or another that's hard to hear from outside. A magazine gets slammed down on the counter, followed by a clerk bowing their head. It ends the argument, if not to the satisfaction of the foreigner.
With a loud grunt, he heads out the door of the shop. Peculiarly, he has a length of rusted pipe thrust through a toolbelt as though it were some sort of sword or another. It's a peculiar detail. He flexes his right elbow as he comes out the door to the storefront where a certain school-age girl is admiring a particularly great blouse.
"Figures they'd... they'd discontinue something like that a week before I'd go and buy one," he mutters out loud. Now what's he gonna do, he wonders.
Ibuki's attention is caught instantly as she overhears the shouting match inside she peeks in and widens her eyes at the man with the combover...it...it...was so uncool and stood out sooooo much!!!! It screamed at her both as a teen-aged girl and as a ninja with its wrongness. As he turned to leave the shop Ibuki's eyes were instantly drawn to the rusted pipe and her mind instantly began trying to work out its purpose, maybe a weapon perhaps or a measuring tool?
As he comes out of the store and mutters to himself the teenager shuffles her feet a little as she desperately tries not to look at his combover. Her own overly curious and good nature gets the better of her after a moment, "Umm...what are you looking for sir? Maybe I can help you find it." She smiles trying her best to be respectful and maybe calm the man down a little bit by being helpful.
The man is content to grumble out loud and otherwise provide convenient exposition for the eavesdroppers, no matter how vague and (likely) pointless the overall plot he may be referring to! He rubs his head with his left hand as the young girl addresses him.
"Whuh... oh, uh, you were overhearing that?" He turns with a blank expression on his face. He's a tired man, the weariness on his face evidence of a good long day's work... wherever he works, anyway. His right knee makes an unpleasant creaking noise.
"It's, uh... it's not a big deal. I didn't mean to make a ruckus or, or anything." A shouting match so loud people outside the store could hear him? Hopefully they won't go shouting to the high heavens that they didn't carry what he was looking for!! (Then again, he is oft the natural prey of homicidal teen-aged girls.)
He clears his throat some, left hand still on his head. "Just one of those days. One of those days."
Ibuki puts her hands on her hips as she patiently waits for the older man in front of her to regain his focus from whatever odd fairy tale like imagining it has gone off to, well she assumes fairy tale like as he's a foreigner and their imaginations were different right? Either way he finally noticed she was talking to him and replied!
"Sorry! I didn't mean to." The dark haired girl looks slightly embarrassed now because it seems she shouldn't have butted in though she notes the weariness of his feature and easily picks up the sound of the unpleasant creaking in his knee. Inclining her head to the side she purses her lips, "Are you sure sir? I mean if it upset you that much, I'd be happy to help you if I can? It'd make your day better right?" Internally she's trying to determine exactly how old this guy is!
"Well hopefully your day gets better somehow!" Another smile is given with her cheery reply.
He's in his late thirties, but he sure carries himself like he's at least a decade or two older. Either way, there is no mistaking this man in any form as being a ninja spy of any conceivable possibility. (Maybe.)
"Ehh. Well, I appreciate it, but," his voice starts to trail off. His throat is rather dry, maybe he should stop and get himself some bottled water or something (America's favorite pastime - forgetting the existence of tap water).
He starts to look off to some of the other stores and people passing by, wondering just what he should do with his day.... but wait! An idea crosses him. He holds up a finger with his left hand. "Uh, if you aren't in a hurry. I've been, I've been here for... two years? Two and a half." He starts as he returns eye contact. "How do I explain this, uh. I'm looking for a kind of, a kind of fabric. It's... sorta like, uh, sorta like," his voice trails off as he finds himself at a loss to describe this. Maybe he's a little dim? "Sorta like... imitation fur. Yeah! Imitation fur."
Instinctively, he starts rubbing the back of his head again. "I haven't been around this part of town much," he gestures broadly with his right arm, "would you know any place that's good for that?"
The ninja training is telling her to be cautious despite all appearances but for the moment he doesn't seem to be hostile, so Ibuki pays her instincts no mind at all, though unconsciously she's making copious notes on how to assassinate him if it becomes necessary.
As she starts to get the feeling he's going to brush off her offers of help, "If you're sure." Beginning to turn around and rejoin the crowd she stops when he holds up his finger and she gives him a look of curiousity as she waits for what he has to say.
Once he asks about the fake fur a thoughtful look crosses her features before she finally responds, "I, hmm, I think I saw some in a dress shop I was browsing through a while back...there was a thick fur coat there, I think it was imitation mink. Would that help you out at all?" Her brown eyes blink a couple of times as she waits for his answer.
"Er... yeah, that might do it!" He replies with a certain degree of haste that the rest of himself seems to lack. He's not a quick-moving fellow at all, which might be owed to his joints. He might just be the easiest possible assassination target Ibuki could ask for, if it ever comes to it. (Maybe.)
"Thanks, uh, thanks," he says the second one a bit louder as a passing crowd drowns out his voice. "I'll give that place a try, where's it at?" He asks - the look on his face doesn't seem terribly hopeful. Eager, maybe? But not hopeful.
"Oh! Good, I'm glad it might help." Ibuki's reply is smooth and quick and while the man doesn't look to be in the best shape or anything, her training has taught her never to underestimate anyone until proven that they aren't a threat, i.e. dead! But for now she's trying to be helpful.
Listening as best as she can as the crowd passes she shakes her head, "It was no trouble!" She waits a moment for the loud group of people to pass before she speaks up again, "Oh it's just down that way!" She looks down the street from the direction she'd been coming from, "Well, let me just show you!" She takes a step towards the store and waves him on, "Follow me." She turns and maneuvers through the crowd slowly to stand in front of the dress shop she'd seen the coat in.
"That so? Great, I'll--" He responds a little slowly, slow enough to be cut off by her inviting to show him which way to go. He follows at a sluggish clip, with the usual apologies and niceties for moving through busy crowds. Man, it's picked up out here all of a sudden, he wonders if there's an amazing sale going on all of a sudden. Maybe if he's fortunate it'll be an amazing sale on bottled water. He could go for like three bottles of them.
Another loud popping noise from a joint (his shoulder) serves as a fine enough flare signal if he's somehow lost between the crowds before actually getting there. A wince serves as a secondary reminder of just how much he wants to simply sit down and gobble up potato chips again after the day's stresses.
"Hey! That, that the place?" He calls as he draws closer after the young girl.
Ibuki tries to keep her pace slow so that she can be followed through the crowds but it's not exactly easy to go super slow through the crowd without making it worse on yourself! So she does get ahead of the man after a while. She makes sure to stop in front of the store and wait patiently though while her eyes wander the goods she can see from the window.
When he breaks through the crowd she waves him over and nods in reply, "Yep this is it! There should be a display near the sale racks, I think there were a couple coats still on the rack." A quick smile and she points inside, "Hurry up, see if those coats are what you're looking for."
The man follows after and takes a good look inside from the doorway. Could this be what he's looking for? Hmm, he's not sure if these people may actually be the ones he's looking for, all things considered. That they might exactly have what he seeks is something of a long shot.
"Thanks for, for showing me." The man starts to dig through one of his pockets with his left hand, getting out a bunch of coins that total to about 300 yen after a bit of fussing to even get his own hand out of said pocket. The pants fit fine! The pockets are too small for his hands.
"Actually, uh, this sort of thing I'd have to ask for as a, uh, special order." He seems to be at a loss as to how to describe what this thing he's looking for is like without saying it outright, but he holds out the spare change to the young girl all the same. "I won't keep you, bet you got a lot to do today."
The girl looks on as he checks the store out before he turns back to her and thanks her, "No problem, hopefully they have something that can help you or maybe point you to the right place." As he starts to dig through his pocked Ibuki takes a moment to figure out exactly what he's doing, "Oh that's not necessary!" She shakes her hands in front of her.
"Hmm?" Considering what he asked for and the special order comment an idea begins to form in the Ninja girl's head about what he is possibly after though she's not sure and lets it go, "Well good luck, finding it!" She eventually takes the offered bit of change and decides she'll use it to buy a couple pieces of candy later as a treat from her sudden windfall, "Thank you!" Bowing she straightens up and turns to rejoin the crowd at the mall.
The older man sees Ibuki off with a wave and meanders along up to the counter. Some words are exchanged, though they are faint - but not in the volume of intentional whispers. The clerk expresses a little confusion with a tilting head and a query over a phone.
The man with the strange rusted length of pipe runs a hand over his head with a hopeful look on his face. The clerk, after a time, merely shakes their head and bows a few moments later.
A prolonged sigh follows. A man's afternoon ends in failure.
Log created on 23:46:03 03/24/2010 by Rust, and last modified on 10:48:28 10/20/2014.