[ml1201]

"Who ever said I was a lady?" She smirks back at him, smiling sheepishly when they get to the counter. He obviously wanted to pay for their stay, and it would be rude of her to stop him from doing so, or at least she thought that was how things worked. Or was that a thing a couple did? Her face turns a bit red at the thought of having Akira as her partner, he was good looking after all but he'd probably prefer a woman with less...fierceness than her own. Or she would think so if what he said last night was really just drunken talk. Thinking about it she sighs, a bit depressed that she missed her chance to ask him about it.

[CycloneKira]

Akira smiles back at Yusa. He is relieved that everything is fine between them despite his stupidity from last night. He then pays the man at the counter, bows to him and turns to Yusa. "Let's go," he says and leads the way out.

Once outside, he turns to her again. "So, what all did we decide to get?" he asks. "Food, water, a whetstone, umbrellas and some medicine. Is there anything I missed?"

[ml1201]

"Hm...we'll probably want some kind of tent and flint for making a fire. The tent to keep the rain off of us. I don't know about you but getting drenched can easily make people sick, and I'd proffer not to sleep on wet ground. They will probably will have them in the same area as the umbrellas if not the same shop."

[CycloneKira]

Akira nods his head. "All right then," he says. He takes out the money in his bag and hands it all over to Yusa. "Here, keep this with you. I need to go get some more, seeing how we're going to be spending quite a bit before leaving this place. You can buy the supplies in the meantime, and I'll catch up with you later in the day."

Getting money is just an excuse. He needs time alone to think, and for him, hunting is a way of doing that.

[ml1201]

"Alright if you're fine with that." She takes the money from him and starts getting the supplies. With all the added things she has to get a bigger bag, so she just sticks her own inside of that one and puts the tent gear around it. She does get some looks from people as she walks down the streets, what with how much stuff she's carrying most people are surprised she's not dragged down by the weight of it.

[CycloneKira]

Akira nods and sets off in the opposite direction. He manages to kill three huge boars and goes back to the same butcher he had gone to two nights ago. The butcher is quite happy to see him and the boars he has brought with him. He pays Akira a generous amount of money, for which Akira thanks him politely before leaving.

He goes about looking for Yusa, thinking along the way. His head is relatively clear, and he should be able to act normal around her now. As he walks, he spots her carrying a load of stuff and goes over to her.

"Let me help with that," he says and smiles as he takes some of the bags she's holding.

[ml1201]

"Thanks, I had to get some more bags so that we could carry all our supplies and equipment." Taking off a couple bags she hands them to him, "So do you think you got enough money to last awhile?" Adjusting what she's carrying now so that it sets better she begins walking towards the way out of the village.

[CycloneKira]

Akira chuckles. "Yeah. It should be enough to last two weeks at least." He swings some of the bags over his shoulder and looks at her. "How about you? Are you done shopping or do you want to get something else before we leave?" He wonders if there is anything they might have missed.

[ml1201]

She thinks for a moment as they walk, then shakes her head, "As far as I know we should be set for traveling. Just wondering, have you ever set up a tent before? This one is set up a bit differently than a regular tent, but if you know how to set up a regular tent you should be fine setting up this one. Do you know to fish so that we can save on our supplies? This way it lasts a bit longer."

[CycloneKira]

Akira listens to her and nods. "Yeah, I can do both of those things," he says. He has set up tents before, and he usually went and fished for his family, back when he was living with them. He was often commended on bringing the biggest fish in the lake. Akira supposed it was his good luck.

He turns to Yusa and smiles. "I also remember promising to teach you how to cook something simple," he says. "Maybe I can teach you how to make that fish that my mother used to make."

[ml1201]

Her eyes sparkle when he remembers about his promise, "Are you sure you can do it with the fish around here? They are different from the ones where you're from. Some of the fish are really strong too, swimming up river to lay their eggs." She dances around gleefully a bit as she walks with him, excited and eager to learn new things. "Alright then, so when we make camp I can show you how to set up the tents and then you can show me how to make the fish dish."

[CycloneKira]

Akira raises an eyebrow at her question and is about to answer it, but is saved by her statement. He smiles widely as he sees how excited she looks at the prospect of learning how to cook. He thinks she looks rather pretty in that state.

He almost points out that he has in fact set up tents before, but not wanting to burst her bubble, he smiles. "It's a deal," he says cheerfully as he walks - or tries to walk - normally beside her.

[ml1201]

Realizing she's off setting his pace, she blushes and returns to normal walking. "When I was little my mother used to take me on strolls into the mountains. I don't really remember them too much, but everyone always said I was really happy when I was with my mother on them. Apparently she always got sick easily and walking in the mountains always made her feel better. Which is odd considering she was a ninja too. Though I think she mostly just did information gathering instead of actually fighting."

[CycloneKira]

Akira listens to Yusa talk about her mother and smiles. It sounds a little like what him and his father used to do. Of course, not that Hiroki Koga was ill or anything. He simply enjoyed the fresh air, and his adopted son's company.

"Well, who wouldn't like a nice, calm stroll in the mountains?" he says. "My father and I used to do it too, all the time." He chuckles a little as he remembers it. "He taught me some basic survival skills while we were on these walks. Like how to keep a fire going even in the coldest of winter nights."

[ml1201]

"Very true, and that will be handy knowledge in these parts. Winter can be pretty harsh. Not to mention the occasional flooding." She leads him through the mountains, having walked these trails dozens of times as a child and still remembering them. Finally they reach the top of one of the smaller peaks, looking our over the green expanse before them. Getting close to the edge Yusa looks out at the view, tears falling from her eyes. "From here on out I've never been this far from my village, and this was also the spot me and my mother last came to before she died. So it feels like I'm leaving a piece of myself behind..."

[CycloneKira]

Akira follows her up the mountain trail and admires the view from the top. It is breathtakingly beautiful. He looks at Yusa, who seems to be getting nostalgic. He looks at her a little sadly before putting an arm around her.

"I don't think you should think about it in that way," he says, smiling a bit. "If this is the place your mother took you to before she died, then I would say that you are keeping all your memories with you and at the same time, you're moving on with your life." He looks around him. "It really is a beautiful place, I must say."