Maki shook her head and chuckled, "You wouldn't be the first, Tashi."<br/><br/>"...And you won't be the last." She added, "Trust me when I say it's... not worth getting too upset about. There may come a time when you must abandon someone you love for the sake of the mission." She had to wonder what exactly her relationship with Keiji was... if not love, a damn good chance at it some time in the future. Although such a thing was impossible, not with war on everyone's minds.<br/><br/>"Me?" She said, offering up her hands with a shrug, "I don't have any special bloodline or techniques. My knowledge, and the techniques that I have acquired, that is what I will contribute to future generations."<br/><br/>The older woman smiled, running a hand through her hair, "By the looks of it, you'll have plenty of practice."<br/><br/><hr/><br/>The old woman eyed Jun skeptically over her shoulder as she turned away, "Eehhh, very well." With that growl of a reply finished, she went back to collecting spent dishes, grumbling discontentedly to herself. For sure, the Kunoichi wouldn't be getting this kind of attitude in her normal guise.<br/><br/>Suzume bowed politely to the old woman and then turned to Jun, leaning forward and taking the puppy Xexen in her arms, "We'll keep watch from outside." She whispered with a smile and a sultry little wink. They went off, sparrow kunoichi and wolf together to the alley outside.<br/><br/>Jun was served some tea by a young waitress, likely an effort to entice her into more expensive fare. She sat there for awhile, as did Yasuo, and the man as well. He seemed to take an interest in her, subdued as it was when his other 'guests' vied for his attention.<br/><br/>It was almost unnerving, they must have been under some sort of compunction. Only a wealthy Daimyo so old and unseemly could keep a young woman's attention like that... not some wandering traveller on his way through town. But a ninja? A ninja with the power to simply<em>trick</em>the weak-willed into love and lust. She caught his eye, but he seemed to be one not without guile or subtlety. He watched her intently through two dark-rimmed glasses banded around his head in leather straps.<br/><br/>He stroked the thin hairs upon his chin before a young girl's hand went to his cheek, and he turned to her with a smile as he tapped his fingers onto the table for more tea.