Hikari huffed at Seiji's reply and pouted, her eyes flashing purple for a moment before returning to their natural blue color, as if to remind him that she could use the Issekigan to find whatever information she needed. "I am not a sadist." she pouted playfully. "You should know well enough by now to know that I would never condone such things, nor do I need them." she crossed her arms and frowned a little before brushing it off and focusing on Asami when she dismissed herself.<br/><br/>She grinned at the two boys as they looped their arms around her neck. "Did you miss me?" she asked with a playful, if somewhat coy, tone. The smile was replaced by an innocent, somewhat sad, sidelong glance at the older boy. It wasn't like she had<span style="font-style: italic">actually</span>abandoned them, she'd simply taken a hiatus of sorts. At any rate, she hadn't wanted to leave them behind and she'd missed them, although she couldn't very well admit that.<br/><br/>For the most part she had focused solely on training, but she'd taken a solo mission here or there when there was one nearby and Lady Tsunade sent word to her asking for her assistance. It wasn't the same working alone. She'd fared just fine, but somehow it had been a bit lonely. Once upon a time she would have preferred working alone. Less chance of getting attached to someone and then losing them. She couldn't lose anyone else. What the hell had they done to her to make her actually desire to stick with a group, knowing the risks? She had no answer to this question so she dismissed it.<br/><br/>"Kozue sounds good to me!" she chimed in with a bright smile. She didn't really care if it was a bit pricier than their usual joint, it was a special occasion, after all. She was back and the group was back together again. That was certainly cause for a celebration of sorts. At any rate, she wasn't terribly picky on where they ate, as long as the food was good and she had some company, she would be happy.<span style="font-style: italic">Wow. Who would have ever guessed that I'd be the one actually wanting company?</span>she mused to herself before tossing a glance at Seiji when he asked about her training.<br/><br/>"It was<span style="font-style: italic">amazing</span>!" she beamed, putting particular emphasis on the latter. "You wouldn't believe all of the different things I learned! And she didn't just teach me about Ice Release, either. Actually, I mastered all of the Ice Release techniques she taught me pretty quickly, but she insisted I stay and learn more, so she taught me quite a few water and wind techniques as well." she carried on happily, clearly excited about all she had learned, though she hesitated just a little before informing them just how long ago she had actually finished learning what she had initially set out to learn.<br/><br/>"All of that only took about six months. I spent the rest of the time creating and learning some new techniques of my own, with her guidance, of course. You<span style="font-style: italic">have</span>to see them sometime!" she grinned, bouncing happily as they walked, hoping they would understand why she had stayed away for so long, even after completing the tasks she had originally set out to complete.<br/><br/>Once they reached the restaurant and were seated she spoke up again. "What about you guys? How did you fare while I was gone? Anything exciting?" she paused and leaned against the table and eyed them carefully, although this gesture was purely for fun, "Any significant others I should know about?" The question was purely teasing and the mischievous glint in her eyes gave that away if her playful grin didn't. She actually was a tad bit curious, but she expected that she knew the answer, so she likely wouldn't have asked in serious conversation. But it was so much fun to tease them.