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Who: Ashiko and Itachi
Where: An inconspicuous little village in the Land of Rice
When: April 15
Notes: A friendly encounter. Sort of. Mostly, he's just happy she's alive.

'Perhaps you should take it easy, Ashiko-sama,' a few of the lower-ranked servants had suggested, meek and worried. 'It was such a stressful situation. You deserve a rest.'

Honestly. It was as though they didn't know her at all.

Ashiko could never be happy cooling her heels, even if the alternative was being away from her master's side. Since the caravan debacle he had elected to keep a low profile, which meant that Ashiko's little errands resumed, with more frequency than ever before. Otogakure had no shortage of skilled medical ninja, not the least of which was her esteemed Danna-sama, so it wasn't as though she was even on the mend; she had been patched up as good as new by the day after their return, and had only her own bruised pride to pain her.

She didn't care that Orochimaru had stabbed a person through her, really; she was upset that she had hindered her master to the point that he had even had to do such a thing in the first place. It was a similar sentiment that had kept her from using her scroll to make contact with any Konoha shinobi. How exactly did one broach such a strained social situation? 'My master and I are in good health, I hope that none of you were fatally poisoned after we defended ourselves from your highly unwarranted attack,' seemed ill-put.

But even Ashiko could nurse a grudge, if one on behalf of her master.

The woman sighed softly and ducked into the inn and tavern that would be her lodgings for the night, sliding into the last available booth and leaning back against the old, lacquered wood tiredly. She was in the pink of health, but the weather and the long hours she had chosen to undertake had worn her out for the day.

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Itachi could tell himself his trip through Oto purely work. He did need to keep an eye on the area, but he couldn't deny there was a little personal matter involved.

He'd been more than a little surprised when his tea friend from Oto had turned up in the middle of a mission gone wrong. Despite Ashiko's sudden switch from a sweet civilian girl to someone who was working with a hostile village. Still, Ashiko was a civilian as far as Itachi could tell.

And maybe Itachi was worried. If she hadn't gotten healed, there was no doubt Ashiko was dead. Going through Oto didn't mean he'd find her even if she was alive. This wouldn't tell him anything if he didn't see her.

As he came out of his room and into the main room of the inn, Itachi drew up short. He was, of course, the unassuming Iori Ishida here. Had Ashiko seen him during the fight? Had she made the connection? That was something he needed to know.

Itachi was thankful he didn't have to approach Ashiko circumspectly. He walked straight up to her and smiled.

"Ashiko-san!"

"Oh my," Ashiko opened her eyes and straightened her posture in one fluid motion, offering up a serene smile. "If it isn't Ishida-san. I was wondering when I might bump into you next." It wasn't the most subtle nod to the frequency with which their paths crossed, but she was tired. Tired, and a little cross with the idea of a foreign shinobi lurking around her master's country in the wake of recent events.

But that was hardly reason to be impolite or turn him away.

"Won't you join me? It's practically tradition by now." She gestured to the unoccupied side of the booth, her dark eyes lingering on his hair. Black was hardly a rare color, really, and neither was the length, but it brought to mind the glimpse of the masked ninja that had sortied with her master she had stolen before the world had exploded in white and then pain.

"How have your...travels been, since we last spoke?" Ashiko asked, doing her best to muster up energy and interest.

"If we have become such good friends as to have a tradition, perhaps you could begin calling me 'Iori'?" Itachi suggested with a slightly dampened smile. It was obvious Ashiko was tired. It was in her posture and her words, but Itachi sat down anyway, frowning.

"Are you feeling well? Would you like something to eat? I think it's probably my turn to treat you," Itachi allowed himself to look a little flustered as he dug around for his wallet.

"...Iori-kun it is, then." She laughed a little at that, warmth seeping into her expression. Even if it was a front, even if his real name was something completely different, it had been a long, long time since anybody had called Ashiko their friend. 'Colleague' was common, sometimes 'superior', but by and large 'acquaintance' was the most frequently used label.

"You really don't have to," she insisted, leaning across the table to place a stilling hand upon his own. the weak light of the tavern glinted richly off of the enameled hair comb of the day, perhaps highlighting her next words. "I've told you before; Danna-sama takes excellent care of me."

Kun? Well, he had asked for a more intimate address. Itachi highly doubted he would ever call Ashiko anything less than "san." He was sure that he'd slip up if he tried.

"Thank you." Itachi let his grin slip crooked, then made bold to place his hand gently over his fingers. "You have told me that many, many times, Ashiko-san, and I don't doubt you." I saw the man stick a sword through you myself. I saw how he takes care of you.

"But I've had a recent windfall of good luck, so please allow me to share it with you. Luck shared is luck doubled, after all." Itachi found it all too easy to slip into the babble of his persona. One day he out to break out in inane babble in Konoha to see what people did. "And I rely so much on the good will of others usually, just being a travelling scribe and very poor doctor as I am, it makes me feel less like a nuisance to society as a whole to pay for someone else's meal. I got paid in eggs last time I wrote someone a letter. They were very good eggs, but carrying eggs is very awkward, you know. Gods forbid you break one open all over your pack..." Itachi made a disgusted face.

"Aaah, sorry, I'm rambling again. I've decided if I'm ever set upon by bandits, I will just talk at them until their eyes glaze over and make my escape." Itachi nodded seriously and wondered if he were a little nervous about this.

"...you always laugh when you lie like that, you know."

Oops.

Ashiko closed her eyes briefly, sooty lashes falling to his the glint of self-recrimination that flashed by. She left her hand where it was, though, partly because she was tired and partly because it felt nice to hold somebody's hand instead of leashing herself to propriety. That was a poor thought for a Kuzuryu to have, and she would likely feel ashamed in the morning, but for now his hands were cool and calloused from a life of strife, murder and subterfuge and steady.

"Egg yolk and white can be quite a pain to get out of cloth, if you don't wash it immediately. The scent, too, is quite a hindrance." She continued on conversationally, as though she hadn't finally bumped into the proverbial elephant in the room that was his true identity and profession.

Itachi stilled only a little. Did she know? She knew he was more than what he played at being, Itachi had been sure of that for a while, but did she know he worked for Konoha? The only thing worse than that would be knowing he was an Uchiha. Her master had fought him in close quarters and seen that he had the Sharingan, so if she took back news that her little spy was the man from the recent fight, Itachi could be walking into a trap next time he traveled through Oto.

In fact, he could have just walked in to a trap.

Itachi kept the smile on his face. "Then I should say I'm sure you think he takes good care of you, but different people have different ideas of how to take care of those around them," Itachi suggested lightly.

"Oh, the pack was ruined. I had to throw it away." How was she going to play this. Itachi realized he might have to kill her or take her with him, which would turn into a huge fuss. Killing her would be easiest. Yet, he was still slightly concerned about her slip. She wouldn't slip if she were helping set up a trap for him, would she?

"That's just silly," Ashiko actually wrinkled her nose at him. "Danna-sama sees to my every need, ensures I can protect myself, and takes great pains to keep me in the pink of health." She drooped slightly at that last point. "...though I don't always make that easy for him. I caused Danna-sama a great deal of inconvenience not too long ago," she confided. It wasn't sensitive information, only her own shame, so she had no trouble parting with it.

"The point is," she continued, shaking off her momentary funk. "Danna-sama is the greatest kind of master a Kuzuryu could hope to have. By any measure, he takes excellent care of me. Oh." She glanced up at his face, briefly, then squeezed his fingers. "If your worried about your village or lord or band or whoever it is you serve, don't. Iori-kun is the very picture of discretion. I'm just very good at identifying possible threats to Danna-sama; the Kuzuryu clan originally served nobles, after all, so identifying shinobi where they aren't meant to be is something drilled in during childhood."

She paused, thoughtful. "It's a pity about your pack. I was intending to sample the sake here, tonight. If you buy the tea, I wouldn't mind sharing that with you, after. If you have no objections, at least."

Well.

Probably not setting him up to have him captured, if she were going to be like that about it. Still, did she really know who he worked for? He'd always known letting her go free and continuing to interact with her when she knew he was a spy of some sort presented a risk. The problem would be if she ever decided to act on that knowledge, or discovered he was more than just a spy, but the heir to an important clan with a nice bloodline limit that could be removed from him and bestowed on someone else.

It unnerved him to have her say what they had both so gently danced around for years.

"It's a bad idea to have sake on an empty stomach, so let's make it tea and supper," Itachi suggested as he waved down a server before Ashiko could protest.

"Then I get to pay for dessert and drinks." Ashiko insisted. Granted, she wasn't sure if the dessert here would be anything good, but it was the principle of the thing. Tit for tat. It was especially important that she leave on even footing, as she wasn't sure if finally broaching the subject of true professions would scare her friend off for good.

She refused to let the twisting tendrils of regret take root, however. Accident or not, it was something that was always going to happen. Even Ashiko could only act oblivious for so long.

To the server, she flashed a pretty smile and requested the normal fare for such an establishment—something with rice, and pork, as the village wasn't close to a river, and some sort of greenery. Ashiko tried not to pay too much attention to the actual dish descriptions, because if she knew exactly what she was meant to be eating she would end up critiquing it against what she herself would cook.

Edited 2014-04-15 20:59 (UTC)

Ashiko always got the servers attentions faster than Itachi did, but he had a habit of trying not to be noticed.

"I guess that sounds fair," Itachi admitted, trying to return to his normal easy chatter. "Though, really, if we are friends then we shouldn't keep track of who owes who what. Nothing ruins a friendship like keeping track of debts--or so I've been told. The monks never had much money, but that seems to be a pretty common sentiment." Itachi smiled widely before he cheerfully ordered food.

"If I can say so, Ashiko-san, you seem a little troubled today." Itachi lowered his voice a little.

"Well, true enough." Ashiko hid a smile behind her sleeve, half out of amusement for the mention of the 'monks', and half out of embarrassment. She hoped she hadn't offended him; likely she hadn't, but in truth he was a hard man to read.

She knew that she couldn't say the same for herself.

"I..." She paused, then sighed. "I am...very tired today, Iori-kun. There was an incident that caused my poor Danna-sama some trouble, and I found myself rather caught in the thick of things." Ashiko looked down at the table for a moment, shuddering delicately at the memory of the oxen. "Danna-sama came to my aid, and then was further troubled. So I have been trying to make up for my short-comings as much as possible by running errands."

Itachi wondered if she meant he had been further troubled by stabbing through her or the healing afterwards. Itachi wondered how good the healing had been and if Ashiko had a scar, not that there was any chance he would ever get to see.

Itachi leaned forward, arms braced on the table. "Ashiko-san, I have learned recently that pushing yourself too hard in the hope of making up for a previous blunder rarely ends well." Was everyone but him going to mope about that mission? It made Itachi think his priorities had been warped by growing up in the war. He had an entirely different way of thinking than most people, it seemed.

Itachi suddenly felt tired, because he realized he wanted to comfort Ashiko. That was dangerous, and it was sad that he actually had made something of a friend here with their off little relationship that would likely end with Itachi killing Ashiko for what she knew, or Ashiko selling him out. Caution dictated it was really time to follow Ashiko out of town and leave her anonymously dead somewhere, which made Itachi feel a little sick. Better that then turned into ANBU for questioning.

"And I'm sure," Itachi went on. "Most of your short comings are your own modesty playing mind games with you. You practically glow when you talk about your Danna-sama." The man who stabbed you. "Surely no one could have a better servant."

"True." Ashiko heaved a sigh, raising the hand not occupied with his to rub at her eyes. "Very probably, I am being counter-productive. But I feel like I have to do something, because doing nothing was what contributed to the sick comedy of errs that arose. I feel as though I got off far more lightly than I should have." She didn't even have a physical mark from the misadventure, because her master was skilled and she was an extension of his vanity.

Her fingers slid down, down her throat, down the fold of her kimono, pausing on her chest, just over where the sword slid through her flesh. It had been a clean strike, made by the man who knew every in and out of her anatomy; nothing vital had been hit, and no bone had been scraped. Compared to the pain from the sudden trampling, the stabbing hadn't hurt at all. The poison on the blade had been quickly counteracted, but the burn of embarrassment remained.

Ashiko had been, if only for a split second, a hindrance to her master. And for that split second, she had wished for death as an alternative.

"Danna-sama is..." Her lips curved into something warm, and sweet, and devoted, but her eyes were still and thoughtful. Her fingers squeezed Itachi's so slightly that it couldn't have been a conscious decision. "Danna-sama is what I open my eyes in the morning for, and why I draw breath. And to him, I am his...his doll. I keep things running smoothly. That's what a Kuzuryu is for. We're meant to be the best servants. I can only hope I am doing the name justice, because I am the only one left to do so."

Edited 2014-04-16 02:57 (UTC)

Itachi had never doubted Ashiko's devotion to her master, but now he realized the extent of it. He'd always admired her devotion, but one's devotion had to be carefully bestowed on someone who deserved it. He couldn't force his standards on her, and he knew she would no more betray her master than he would ever betray Konoha. As much as part of him might wish to remove Ashiko from someone who would stab her through, she would never stand for it.

She would never be the same again.

"Ah, I've had that feeling a time or two myself, actually, but I'm selfishly glad you got off lightly. The road's been very bare of charming conversationalists, and by tongue was withering away from lack of nourishment," Itachi chattered happily a she patted Ashiko's hand and realized he was still holding it.

Itachi didn't bother saying he had no master but himself. They both knew it was a lie. Nothing he said would change her devotion to her master. He saw that. Danna-sama was her purpose, and a purpose left to one by family was potent, more so when you were the only one left. Itachi suddenly wondered how old Ashiko was. Younger than him? Most likely.

"Well...I've never had a servant or been one, but I think you're a great one." Itachi squeezed her hand, then seemed shocked that he was still holding her hands. "Oh! Sorry! That was rude of me..." Itachi snatched his hands back to his side of the table.

The Kuzuryu of old had been able to switch masters when a more suitable daimyo rose to power through vicious court politics, but that was one trait that her grandfather had neglected to instill in her before his death. It would take the death of the man himself for Ashiko to properly switch allegiance, and only after a long, intense period of mourning. She didn't have the freedom to choose to follow him into death, and sincerely hoped it would never come to that.

It was part of why she had chosen to follow after a man seeking immortality, after all.

"Thank you for the sentiment; I enjoy our talks as well. Encounters with Iori-kun and people like you are far more enjoyable than the more...usual ones I find myself caught in." Most usually because the ninja she met helped her get away from the leery louts she seemed to attract like flies. "I actually spent a night with a cute pair not too long before the trouble started, and unfortunately they ended up caught in it."

She blinked at his sudden exclamation, then muffled a laugh behind her sleeve and withdraw her hand with a small pang of regret. "Hardly. It was actually a little comforting, so thank you for bearing with it for so long. I rarely have the opportunity to do anything like that, so it was...nice." She looked away as the tea was delivered and the first cups were served, wrapping her slender fingers around the simple cup instead.

A cute pair who were involved in the trouble? If it were Oto-nin, surely she would know how they were fairing and wouldn't have phrased it like that. She certainly hadn't met him anywhere, so that meant she's met either Hinata, Adela, or Sasuke. Itachi had to fight down the urge to bit his thumb. Why was she telling him this? Of course, if she didn't know he had been in the fight, what would be the harm in making conversation? It certainly made her seem sympathetic to ninja from other countries, so maybe it was supposed to put him at ease--if she knew he was a ninja at all.

Itachi didn't think he'd thought this hard about a conversation with Ashiko since they had first met.

Itachi flushed, partly in truth. Blushing without cause was an interesting skill. "I--there was no bearing involved! I just didn't want to seem too forward, I mean, holding your hand in a public place like this--" Itachi's embarrassed speech was snapped off as the waitress returned with their tea and food, a funny look on her face.

"Thank you." Itachi sounded almost too relieved.

"You're adorable, Iori-kun." Ashiko shook her head a little as she took up her chopsticks, shooting him a warm, amused glance. "You don't have to worry about that at all. I was the one who started it, I think. You're never anything less than an absolute gentleman. It's quite refreshing, really. And if anything, the publicity only cut down the number of men who intend to approach me before I turn in for the evening."

She took a sip of tea, and marveled at how much of a pick-me-up speaking with a friend could be—though admittedly at this point it was more teasing than talking. "You seem a little on edge tonight, though that might be my fault. Is anything else troubling you?" Phrasing it that way gave him an out to dance around the issue of his allegiance, which hopefully would help matters.

Cute or not, he seemed ruffled. And if that wasn't just a part of his scribe ruse, she might have something to worry about. Ruffled ninja were very rarely a good sign.

Adorable? Itachi allowed himself to look something between pole-axed and incredibly embarrassed. He hoped Ashiko was teasing and didn't actually mean what she said. At least she was saying it about Iori instead of him.

"Well!" Itachi cleared his throat and picked up his chopsticks. "Well, at least there's that." He took a bite of food to consider what he was going to say. Did he compliment her dance of bluntess with his own hints, or play it utterly safe. Did he see what he could draw out of her?

"I...am a little upset to hear you were in some trouble." And perhaps upset to realize he was upset by the thought of Ashiko being injured, no matter where her allegiance lay.

"And I was offered a permanent place in a very nice temple that could use a good scribe," Itachi added suddenly. "Which would put an end to my wandering days." If she thought this might be her last chance to catch him, what would she do? Their game, he realized, had probably gone on far too long now.

"I have been considering it."

"I guess it's best that I never really went into detail about my normal travels, then," she mused, munching through a new mouthful. This was far from the first time she had been hurt, or involved with something a woman like her probably shouldn't have been. Better to spare him the distress.

"Oh." She blinked at that sudden turn in conversation, and was hit by a rush of emotion that was probably obvious to someone with the training he likely had. The most prominent was relief, because if he lingered in their borders after the recent dust-up, Orochimaru would likely have seen him thoroughly taken out of the picture. The second was guilt, because friend or not she shouldn't be happy about a possible nuisance to her master surviving. The rest was a muddle of confusion mixed with a pinch of sadness.

It was rather draining, this friendship thing.

"That's probably a good prospect," she said, at length. "It's...It's good to have somewhere to call home. Security is invaluable as you get older." 'You won't be safe here for much longer' she didn't say, and actually didn't feel guilty for the unspoken warning. It was nothing he probably hadn't surmised himself, after all. "I will miss seeing you though, I think."

...

She...hadn't meant to say that, and took a long sip of tea to hide her surprise.

Itachi watched the play of emotions wash over Ashiko. He didn't know if it made him feel better or worse that this wasn't just a string of casual meetings to her. It didn't matter as much as it seemed to at first blush. Itachi had just heard her profess her devotion for her master, and even if she were hinting at more than friendship, it would never be something she's abandon or even think of betraying her master for.

"Ah, I'm not as young as I used to be, and the road is never very charming in the winter," Itachi admitted. Especially when you went far north or into the mountains. "But the thought of being shut of in a monastery again is suffocating. I suppose I could put it off, but it's a very nice place by the ocean, and I've always like living near water. Being able to see for miles makes me feel at peace." Actually Itachi hated the ocean with an odd passion, considering he'd only seen it once or twice. Open spaces made him paranoid.

Itachi carefully weighed his next words. He smiled. "I will miss seeing you as well. No matter how many new friends one makes, the old ones will always hold a special affection." If this was their last meeting, he might as well be a little ridiculous.

"You can't be much older than me, if that, so mind the commentary, Iori-kun," she chided, trying to pump some levity back into her voice. "And it's a pity, but I don't think I'd be able to visit; aside from the fact that it's a monastery, I can't swim. Danna-sama doesn't like me straying too far near ports." That was half-true, really. She couldn't swim, but Orochimaru only kept her away from ships, rather than shores.

Something inside of her was oddly soothed by the reciprocal assurance that she would be missed. Normally, such an admission would be either faintly flattering or slightly annoying, so she figured that this new, peaceful feeling was a strange facet of friendship.

"True," she mused, glancing down at her bowl, now half-empty. "Very true. I have a penpal I write to from time to time, and while his missives are always amusing in one way or another, since he rose to his current station, face-to-face meetings are all but impossible. But...let's talk about something more uplifting, shall we? I have been advised never to drink while depressed."

"Oh, I could always teach you to swim. Everyone should know how to swim. What if you fall into a stream or something and drown, and then where would your Danna-sama be?" Without a very valuable servant. Itachi babbled easily again. "Really, though, I'm older than I look." Itachi nodded solemnly and took a sip of tea. It didn't taste as good as it should.

"I have only ever been told not to drink," Itachi admitted. When he'd jumped the ranks so young, it had been seriously impressed on him by many people while his comrades would trash their livers, he should not. He'd never really liked the idea of drinking anyway. "Now, that sounds like something from a tale or a play--the maidservant trading letters with the...the...young lord of some land thinking they'll never meet, and then they do and it's instant love."

"Older than twenty-one? Forgive me, Iori-kun, but I highly doubt that." She mulled through another few mouthfuls, seriously considering the matter. "...I suppose I should learn, sooner or later. I actually lived by a lake as a child, but Grandfather rarely let me stray too far from the house. He was largely bedridden, and worried when I was out of sight."

She took a sip of tea and promptly choked on it when he spoke up again. Her normal, elegant demeanor was abruptly shattered as she sputtered, coughed delicately, and promptly dissolved into sweet, helpless laughter. It persisted for a good few minutes even and she tried to muffle it beneath fingers and sleeves, and the sound transformed her. She looked younger, somehow, choking out giggles in the merciless grip or mirth.

After a brief spell, she regained control of herself and passed a hand over her pink cheeks. "I...f-forgive me, Iori-kun. That wa-ha!...that was un-unkind of me. To both you and O-Obito-sama—" She squeezed her eyes shut and her shoulders shook with suppressed laughter again before she reigned it in once more. "...suffice to say, w-we have met. And though he is quite—quite a good man, he is...n-not exactly 'destined meeting' material, even by my standards." She wiped her eyes and giggled again.

"Then I should teach you, as a going away gift!" Itachi demanded, latching onto the idea. It wouldn't be hard. ~~And he could easily kill her if he decided that he needed to.~~

Ashiko had a wonderful laugh, and Itachi didn't think she'd ever laughed so freely in front of him. It pleased him more than it should, but he wondered who her penpal was that she should laugh like that. Itachi was taking a bite of his rice when she said his cousin's name so carelessly. He almost choked.

Itachi felt suddenly cold. What did this new connection mean? Did she really write letters to his cousin, or was this a threat? Could she be a threat to Obito? Surely Obito would be careful about writing her letters, if he actually did. Itachi didn't know what to make of this, but it unnerved him even more.

He really should probably kill her.

"Ah, that's too bad Ashiko-san," Itachi sighed. "I was hoping that when I told people about you, I could give you a fairy-tale ending."

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