Vardaen wrote:Kyo, the priestess of the shrine waves off Gensai's last comment, "This is a shrine that draws Rōnin to it from all over the empire. You are hardly the worst looking one of your caste to come here." She stalks over to Supai, "I don't know how many times I've told you Supai, leave the visitors alone.
The monk lifts his hands in a gesture of apology, "I apologize Crane-san, I didn't know you meant every visitor. I thought you only meant the rich ones who made monetary donations to the shrine." It’s impossible to see the monk's face, but you are certain he's goading her on.
She narrows her eyes at the basket headed monk, "If you weren't wearing that ridiculous hat I would slap you for that comment. Get out of my sight Supai, now."
Gensai watches on with owlish puzzlement as the
miko and the mendicant engage in what appears to be a recurrent quarrel between the two of them.
If I didn’t know any better I’d have mistaken them for an old married couple, muses the rōnin wryly.
Vardaen wrote:The little monk stands up and bows to Gensai, "My apologies if I was bothering you Gensai-san, if you would care to speak I'll be in town, perhaps at the White Stork Garden where they are more welcoming." He then tucks his flute into his sleeve and pads off down the path on near silent feet.
“Not at all, Supai-san. Your company was most welcome and a refreshing breeze to this weary soul,” replies Gensai with a pleasant smile. Seeing Supai off with customary Shinseist blessings and the vague possibility of meeting again in the near future, Gensai turns his drawn gaze fully over to Kyo in quiet scrutiny.
Vardaen wrote:Asahina Kyo watches him leave then turns back to you, "He's nothing but a beggar and a nuisance. Don't let his calm composure fool you into thinking he's some sort of wise man. I've watched him fleece a half dozen travelers under the guise of some helpful monk." She walks over to the stone he was sitting on and dusts it off with a wave of a fan as if clearing out any bad karma he might have left behind. "I am Asahina Kyo, keeper of the Shrine, feel free to leave an offering inside for the ancestor spirits." She's curt and to the point with Gensai.
Gensai frowns inwardly at Kyo's scathing remarks on Supai’s purportedly larcenous nature, having encountered no indication of the sort from his initial interactions with the komusō. Her acerbic remarks briefly remind him of one of the various no-nonsense sensei of his youth, and the bulk of their lessons ending with the punitive sting of a bamboo rod to his back or posterior for his flippant behavior.
Considering himself having matured a great deal since those delinquent years and seeing no reason to disbelieve or antagonize the priestess outright, the rōnin gives an even nod. “
Arigatō, I will take your assessment of him under advisement. As for offerings, I’ve already made them. I pray that the Seven within find them to be acceptable gifts.”
Gensai looks up to the sky, then behind him at the
torii marking the entrance to the shrine grounds. “I suppose my business here is concluded.” He turns back to face Kyo once again. “Before I depart however, perhaps you could enlighten me with knowledge of this shrine and the spirits of the men and women venerated within it?”
The shugyōsha looks at the ground thoughtfully. “I have crossed paths with many people on my travels who have told me of this place, but I never sought out the story behind it until now. I thought it prudent to reserve such inquiries for the keepers of the shrine themselves, so that I may hear the unsullied truth of this tale, free from embellishments and falsehoods.”