Dumplings, swords and other mishaps... [Epic]

[Master Game]

Kouka Shinpan. A small rural town somewhere near the east province of Kaminari no Kuni. It is exactly what you would expect for a town of such little reputation as itself. The hustle and bustle of the mid-day is quite apparent but nonetheless a soothing reminder that things were normal, at least on the surface. Kitchen-size yakotori bars and sushi restaurants lined one particular block. Busy streets and people were interwoven between saloons, market-squares and pachinko parlours. Some of the privileged youths were loitering around and about, looking for some fun but not any trouble. A couple old to middle-aged labourers could be seen pushing or carrying their goods to the market-square from their farms on the outskirts, while hawkers peddled their wares openly. All in all it was your average rural town.

But even average towns had things they were famous for. Nflm would find her presence in Kouka Shinpan a result of her attraction to certain rumours that a very famous blacksmith resides in this town, a blacksmith capable of crafting the type of prestigious weapon she sought after. Amatsumara was his name. Not much is known about him, with the source of his fame mainly being the circumstance of many legendary weapons being found on battlefields long after the last drop of blood had been spilt with the same tiny signature of the talented weaponsmith being found on them. Hagashi-Banchi, was the block the young lady had been told his shop was. Specifically plot Ichi no Hachi was where she was told she could find him. The sun was bright out, and showered warmly the inhabitants of Kouka Shinpan with hot beams of solar energy that put both a smile on faces and a scowl on them.

Xango

[Deleted]

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[Master Game]

Nflm knew her destination. Even though she was in a foreign land, it wouldn't be particularly hard to find out where she was currently and where she was meant to be. They were plenty of street signs indicating which blocks were which. The elegant feline would find it quite easy to slip in-between the hustle and bustle of the township and navigate here way through Kouka Shinpan, in her pursuit of Hagashi-Banchi.
The black cat, after following the signs as she navigated, would come across Hagashi-Banchi after no more than twenty minutes of prowling about.

However, Hagashi-Banchi was not the residential area that some may have made it out to be. After she passed the initial sign, a rugged-looking block of shops of the "non-conventional" type, mixed in with some bars, shady inns and abandoned buildings, would come into view. The townsfolk around this side of Kouka Shinpan seemed also of the "non-conventional" type. The poverty here was more ripe than the previous places Nflm had visited, and it those who loitered about all shared the same hardened visage and glazed look in their eyes. Unnerving it was for the mentally unprepared. But none of that truly mattered, just that this was definitely the place the black cat had to be.

If the black-cat continued to proceed, she would most likely catch several plot numbers on the buildings she passed. Plot Ichi no Hachi was getting closer. Eventually, the golden(rusted and dull) plot numbers would be seen.

Amatsumara's Dumplings...

A dumpling shop. Rather unexpected, as one would expect the address to belong to a metal-workshop, a smithy or any forge. Well, if Nflm were to look at it closely the number plate definitely would read Ichi no Hachi. It was now up to her to decide hw to proceed from here on out.

SPOILER: Click to show

OOC-

Hehe, sorry for the long wait. Kinda got way too caught up in the x2 event and its chaos. Got my focus though, so I hope we can finish this epic without any trouble. Also, if you've any questions at all you can just leave me a pm.

[Deleted]

matsumara...." She would purr loudly, to anyone within earshot, over and over, a meow-accented and cutesy sounding rendition of her normally impossible voice.

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[Master Game]

A towering, broad-shouldered figure was hunched over a sizzling fryer in a dank, yet sweet smelling kitchen place. Messy it was, with used utensils, plates, bowls and other kitchen items scattered almost haphazardly around the cramped area. A large bowl half-filled with thick dough sat arbitrarily on the table closest to the fry-cook. The man would would grunt, before using his wooden spoon to scoop another serving of the dough and deposit it into the boiling-hot fryer to create another more dumplings. The room adjacent to this one, the so-called restaurant had its customers dine in. Nothing special about it, just more cheap wooden furniture and some tablecloths, with a short counter containing a register, a pad of paper and pen, and half-drunk cup of coffee.

The head-chef(and only chef for that matter) was performing his daily ritual of preparing as many dumplings as he could before rush-hour. Which for Amatsumara's Dumplings was usually in ten minutes from now.

Christ! Kasuga, the idiot, calling in sick when rush-hour's about to start.

Amatsumara the fry-cook knew this was going to mean he would have to man both the cash-register and fryer at the same time. The hard-working brute of a man wiped a couple beads of sweat from his forehead as he continued to fry a batch of dumplings.

So frickin hot! Those AC-repair fuckers did quite some bullshit of a job!

"Amatsumara's Dumplings" was at best a three-star establishment, but for all those who dwelled in and around Hagashi-Banchi it quite very well served the low standards of the citizens. It was around this time that the man would hear the soothing, feminine call from outside.

"Huh?" Amatsumara would take ten more seconds to finish off that batch of dumplings, before drying his hands off with a hand-towel and proceeding to leave the kitchen and walk towards the entrance to find out who was calling him.

I wonder who it is, calling me in such er familiar tone! Sounds important... but if yer calling me out so casually yer probably not.

The harsh man would scratch his beard in curiosity as he gently kicked open the front door. He stood upright, eyes roaming about for any sign that a human being had just been there. Gritting his teeth, the hulk spat on the ground after confirming there wasn't any person around. He then turned around abruptly and shut the entrance door.

Christ! Calling me out of ma shop just to pull this stunt? Ugh, if that idiot Kasuga was here he'd be the one dealing with this.

From there Amatsumara would storm back to the kitchen and begin frying more dumplings furiously, not just as a result of his frustration but desperately wanting to make up for lost time before rush-hour comes.

[Deleted]

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[Master Game]

Amatsumara continued to make fried dumplings with renewed vigour. It would soon turn into rush-hour, but Amatsumara the fry-cook was feeling confident. He'd prepared quite some amount of dumplings already, meaning he was ready to take on the small horde of hungry and impoverished inhabitants of Hagashi-Banchi.

"Ayy Amatsumara! Eight fresh ones please, been working my arse off in the fields all day."

"Hehe, how's it going mate? You gonna slip yer old pal a discount or what?"

"Well well, you remember the deal Amatsumara? You're paying back what you owe in dumplings."

"Amatsumara dear, A dozen for the me and the kids."

The valiant head-chef got to work, running around the whole establishment, frying, serving and collecting revenue. This would continue over the space of a two hours staight, and as time dragged on, the fry-cook would be feeling more and more fatigued. Time would pass, with the invisible black cat not discovering anything peculiar or out of the ordinary. There were no trap doors or secret compartments, however there was something painfully obvious. You see, "Amatsumara's Dumplings" had two floors. In the floor above the ground level, only accessible by a narrow stair-case in the far side of the corridor that connected the kitchen and dining area of the restaurant, Amatsumara lived. It consisted of a small room which was the fry-cook's living-quarters and... well, things the feline would have to discover herself. The burly man would sigh in relief when rush-hour seemingly passed and there were not any customers pooling in. What remained were the few still eating in the dining area. Amatsumara collapsed unto the chair behind the counter with the cash-register. The one-eyed giant was thoroughly exhausted having not done such a workout in quite some time.

Good lord...

The man stretched, then began staring up into the ceiling in semi-vegetative state. This eyes were distracted, but the head-chefs ears were as sharp as ever, he didn't need sight to detect anyone trying any funny business. There was no one who could beat his senses, especially to do a dine-and-dash. So why was there an invisible creature a few metres away. It had been following him since rush-hour began, the fry-cook had only noticed it because it left minor ripples in the air and made nearly unnoticeable sounds whenever it walked to follow him. If the man wasn't so goddamn tired, he would be bothered, maybe even unnerved by this.

The laid-back man smiled, before a customer wanting to pay caught his attention. He'd deal with the invisible tiny creature later, perhaps it would even go away by itself.

[Deleted]

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[Master Game]

Amatsumara's living quarters has far too a messy and cramped compartment for a giant of a man such as he to be living in. In the 5m x 5m cubic area, boxes, clothes, papers and some novelties were strewn about in an awkward fashion. The floor was so piled with books and cardboard boxes that there was little room to actually move about. One could just so barely wade through the sea of junk to reach the single bed by the left side of the room. Adjacent to it by the top left corner, there was a simply door, with just enough space in front for one to enter with little trouble. An even tinier bathroom lied within.

If the black cat continued her snooping she wouldn't find much of interest, other than a few cookbooks and recipe scrolls. Returning to ground floor of the restaurant, Amatsumara would be just about done with the last customer of mid-day. Amatsumara's Dumplings was far from closed, but now that rush-hour was over it would be some time before the place would be in full-swing again. The hard-working head-chef plopped himself back on the chair at the register, yawning. For a moment he thought like firing Kasuga, the stubborn teenager that handled the cash-register, but he knew he couldn't keep this up for the rest of his life.

Would save me great deal of money though, that overpaid brat...

Stretching his arms, the hulking brute of a man would once again notice the invisible shape.

Hmm, as much as i'd like to take a nap... there'd probably be trouble if I left it alone.

Amatsumara would then stand up from his seat, take a short trip to the kitchen to fetch two dumplings in a paper plate and return. If the invisible creature which the one-eyed man guessed was a quadruped was still around, he'd sit in his chair and place the paper plate full of dumplings on the ground.

The seated fry-cook would then make expressionless eye contact with the "creature". Amatsumara was now curious about this camouflaged blob. Surely it couldn't resist one of Amatsumara's succulent fried-dumplings? That is, assuming it can eat such food to begin with.

[Deleted]

matsumaraaaa.....thank you very much!" She would smile with the kittens face, and observe the man's reaction.

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[Master Game]

My oh my... a talking cat.

Amatsumara eyes widened with an expression of sparkling amusement seldom seen on his chiselled, gruff visage. The towering man's lips contorted in a confused fashion, wanting to say something yet not being able to get any discernible words out. He wasn't quite expecting this outcome.
The man cautiously let one of his massive palms wonder over to the the fur-ball, noticing the ryo buried inside and instantly picking up on why. Collecting the ryo and the plate Amatsumara wouldn't be sure on how to receive the cat's gesture and words of gratitude.

"Uh, no problem." The eye-patch wearing hulk's voice grew a little more timid and high-pitched, a habit he thought he had dropped a long time ago.

"So... what brings you here?" Amatsumara couldn't express with words how silly he felt at the moment, engaging in conversation with a small, adorable feline. but technically she was a paying customer now, it was his duty to treat her with good hospitality.

[Deleted]

irst things first, Human Amatsumara the Sword-Maker. I know you but you don't know me!" She smiled and quivered ever so slightly, before her kitten body would slowly become larger. And larger. And larger.

"I am Shango! You are Human Amatsumara, Sword-Maker." She said, indicating a paw that had suddenly become much larger as a means to point at first herself, and then the shopkeep. The cat form shimmered, taking on a golden glow of light that fluttered serenely and harmlessly up from her flesh as it altered, and she took on a form not altogether unlike her 'Saber' alter. It was a form identified in the Land of Water as, the 'Demon of the Bloody Mist'. Once her transformation was complete, Shango kneeled before him, looking up into his eyes as she continued.

"I must acquire the 'Shark Skin' Sword. Will you help me, Amatsumara-san?" She asked patiently, observing him with even greater, if not outwardly visible, scrutiny.

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[Master Game]

Amatsumara's eyes widened as the magical cat answered him. A mixture of shock, anger and lastly regret bubbled up inside the giant man's core. What did she just say to him?

Amatsumara the Sword-Maker...

The words ran him through like a well-sharpened sword. Amatsumara felt the depression welling up inside of him, and was now visibly distraught.

"I am Shango! You are Human Amatsumara, Sword-Maker." The fry-cook had just noticed how big the black cat had suddenly gotten. Strange, it seemed it was transforming. Amatsumara suddenly stood up, wanting to face the creature more boldly and in a semi-aggressive way. He wasn't liking this situation one bit.


"No." The one-eyed man's veins bulged as his muscles tensed in slight frustration. "I am NOT a Sword-Maker or whatever, I am a chef at the sweet-smelling "Amatsumara's Dumpling's" shop. Whatever it is that you want or are looking for, you've got the wrong place."

Amatsumara was now trying to calm himself and deal witht this situation with a cool head. He didn't know where this strange creature had gotten information that a Sword-Maker lived her, but he had to get her out. He wasn't going to deal with any nonsense today.

But before the towering form of muscle and mean-looks could say anymore, the unnaturally large cat creature him was suddenly wreathed in an almost-aristocratic glow of golden light that shimmered about the air and into the man's eyes. By the time that man had finished wiping them, standing before him was seemingly the true form of the cat creature. Amatsumara was quite frankly speechless, sure he'd been around the block quite a few times but he'd never seen such a creature in all his days. Whether it was her mythical visage or celestial-looking body, it left Amatsumara uncertain on how to react. It wasn't that he found her beautiful or appealing, he was just stuck in a state of quandary from the strangeness of it all.

[Deleted]

hat happened?". She would not entertain his claims to be the wrong individual, but hoped that whatever situation had caused his change of heart was not too painful for him to discuss.

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[Master Game]

Amatsumara girt his teeth and her retort claiming that she didn't have the wrong place, his temper was certainly flaring up again like unstable volcanic reaction. But the bubbling pot of rage and frustration inside him would suddenly freeze. "What happened." She had just asked him. The giant of a man bore a lost expression, eyes sulking in regret and staring off into a far space. For a couple of seconds he just stood there, unmoving, not being to form any words and simply painfully reminiscing with the past.

"Look. Just forget about it, I can't help you." Amatsumara's eyes suddenly darted over to the windows, slightly panicked. "You'd best leave."

[Deleted]

[/a], which moved itself over to the wall near the window, braced against it. From the weapon itself, Shango's words would drift into Amatsumara's ears, "Used up too much energy. Have to rest now. Let's continue our discussion tommeowrow...Amatsumara-san." And with that, the sword would fall to the ground in a loud clatter, before settling into stillness. No more words would come from the blade.

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[Master Game]

A piercing silence permeated through the area. Suddenly, but slowly a figure would open the wooden double-doors of Amatsumara's Dumpling shop. The stranger was clad in a patchwork leather doublet, dark and baggy trousers made of poor-quality cotton tucked into almost knee-high leather boots. It was a man with beady, brown eyes that were almost sunken into their sockets. A bald head with a strange-looking tattoo etched unto it like a rune reflected a few rays of sunshine coming in from the open door. The unfriendly man contorted his mouth into a thin-lipped scowl.

"Hey Sumara, I heard a few words... who were you just talking to just now?"

Amatsumara, resisted the urge to gulp and quickly spewed an answer before further silence could make him seem suspicious.

"Ah, Terran. Don't mind me, just talking to myself."

"Really, is that so?" Terran's cold eyes would scan the room unconvinced, slowly but steadily, taking in any detail.

"Hang on, what's that thing doing over there." The bald-headed man indicated the large sword on the ground. The suddenly timid-looking fry-cook gulped, it was the one that the strange woman had just inexplicably morphed into.

"Oh I, it's um, actually Hanzo's latest order! Yes yes, I just finished it."

"Huh, for real? Seems like a lot different from your usual designs."

"Well er, I kind of er, wanted to change things up a bit, you know make your boss's personal order special."

"Aye, I hear you." Terran would take few steps towards the second window on his right, where Sword-Shango had placed herself. Weaving his way through the cheap dining tables and chairs, the shady man would cautiously pick up the blade and then inspect it, running his finger along its sharp length with his eyes already-deeply enthralled by it. Then, the man would turn his snake-like gaze back at Amatsumara who almost visibly flinched. Taking the chair closest to the register where the head-chef was stationed, he would sit down on it backwards, in such away that the back rest was touching his chest yet he was directly facing the trembling man.

"Well, I have to say you've gotten this order completed preeety fast." Terran's eyes roamed over the long blade once more.

"I'll be over again with some of the crew to collect it." Terran's pupils suddenly flashed back towards Amatsumara intensely.

"Don't look so down, Hanzo will surely be pleased." The man said in a snarky, sinister voice. He then got up and handed it back to the fry-cook. "Anyway, customers or not, it shouldn't be out in the fucking open. Don't want people to get the wrong idea about your profession now do we?"

Amatsumara shook his head slowly.

"Good, now I'll be off. Might wanna polish that before I return, thing's got to be extra-presentable for our boss." Terran began to move towards the entrance, his stride swift and imposing.

"However..." The roguish man suddenly swivelled backwards to face Amatsumara once more.

"If I find out that you're forging for anyone other than "The Three-legged Crows", sorry won't be enough to save you."

Terran's stern gaze at that moment almost sucked the life out of Amatsumara.

"They'll be no second-chances, you know what happens if you violate our deal."

And then without another word, Terran had disappeared out of the door.

Amatsumara slumped to his chair in utter defeat. His head lulled up and the man closed his one good eye.

I'll fucking kill you someday. You and that entire shit-brained crew of yours.

[Deleted]

matsumara-san. If they are holding someone you love, or threatening something you need, I will kill them all for you." She had met many people like Terran before. She liked killing them.

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[Master Game]

The chef sighed ruefully, he'd gone and done it alright. Well, there wasn't any use in keeping anything from Shango, for he'd already roped the poor creature into this. Making sure there was no one around and speaking in a voice far too hushed for any observer to pick up, Amatsumara told her what he knew.

"Ah, The Three-Legged Crows, sons of bitches indeed but most call em Yatagarasu. They're a gang who started up little more than a year ago. Most don't know how they did it, but the fiends quickly rose to immense power, defeating rival gangs and asserting dominance over even the town miltia. They upset the balance alright, their skirmishes placed them into an even higher position in Kouka Shinpan and I lost a lot good customers. I was weaponsmith as you might already know, but once Yatagarasu had conquered all and their name spread terror throughout Kouka Shinpan, they begun to target me. I sold weapons to the town-militia as well as some of the gang's rivals who they had already crushed are were about to. They targeted me not only because of my popularity and prestige in weapon-making, but they wanted to make sure no one within Kouka Shinpan would be able to oppose them ever again.

Fuck, they offered nicely at first, but even now I don't regret spitting in their faces and blatantly refusing to sell exclusively to them. But devils like those don't except no for an answer. They raided my old store afterwards, took what they liked and destroyed the rest. Furious, I gathered what gear I could and made a beeline for their base. You see, I was trained not only in creating weapons, but using them too. But I was fool to think just me could take 'em all on. Must've been the rage and adrenaline. Long story short, I underestimated them and they fucked me up."

Amatsumara subconsciously put a hand to his eye-patch. "I lost this eye that day, but that wasn't my greatest lost. They kidnapped my own son who I was living with at the time. His mother died a while back so it was just him and me for most of his life. Since then, they've been keeping them at their hideout, forcing me to create weapons for them free-of-charge, in exchange they don't kill Hattori my boy."

The large man broke into another sigh. If Sword-Shango had eyes to see she would be able to notice the tears running down Amatsumara's face.

"Life's been... shit. At the very least I sell dumplings now and they allow me to see the lad once every two weeks. He's only eight, yet they're holding there in that forsaken place, probably teaching him how to steal or kill people!" The large man was losing control his emotions quickly. If things didn't change, some passerby would notice him in his ranting off madly to a sword.

[Deleted]

ou have shared many secrets with me, Amatsumara-san. And so, I shall share secrets with you, in turn." She hoped the shift in conversational direction, along with her tone and the temptation of the subject matter, would distract the Sword-Maker long enough that his voice might quiet to hear her continue. "I can grant you the power to save your son. Cut. Slash. Rend. Shred them all. I can give you your revenge."

The voice would lower ever so slightly, each successive word fading until it was almost a whisper, aimed to subconsciously quiet the man's temper as his active mental focus was drawn into comprehending her words. "And in return. The Samehada. The Shark Skin. We will destroy them. Cut them. Kill them all. And then. You will craft the blade." It was said as if it were both a question and a command, and the strange colored metal adorning the blade that was Shango's body would begin glowing with unearthly violet light, rippling waves, humming patterns of energy clash and whirl. 

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