Kiriko nodded politely, and with a bow calibrated to a room full of equals, allowed, "I will leave you to your preparations for your journey, then." Her yojimbo slid the door open for his mistress and waited patiently; the Isawa maiden bracketed her final instructions with a brilliant smile. "I will await your return here. Remember that you are the Empress' justice; if your road to and from Shiro Matsu is not altogether straight, it is neither unexpected nor inappropriate." With that, she withdrew, leaving the samurai alone in the parlor with the box of jade tokens and the silk-wrapped daisho.<br/><br/>[ OOC: Common knowledge of Rokugani geography -- the ancestral home of the Matsu family is a remarkably austere fortress that lies in the northern foothills of the Spine of the World Mountains, a range which more or less bisects the country running northwest to southeast. Toshi Ranbo lies on the same side of the mountains as Shiro Matsu, so travellers from the one to the other do not have to cross via one of the mountain passes, but though rivers and roads follow the run of the mountains the journey is progressively more difficult the deeper into the foothills one goes. The journey is exclusively through Lion Clan territory, and there are certain to be villages to stop and take rest at along the way. Barring any delays along the way, by foot the journey will take a couple of weeks; by horse or pony, about half that time.<br/><br/>You're at a point now where what you want to do next is more up to you than me, so take it and run with it.<img alt=":)" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" title="Smile    :)"/>]<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>