Let's Play a Game (Open)

Darkness enveloped the land, the kind of darkness that managed to creep into your life and never seemed to quite leave you. There was the chill that would get so deep into your skin it seemed as though it was a part of your person, and a dampness that kept you in a constant state of feeling like you had just gotten out of a cold shower. Many people would think that Kiri was a depressing village due to all of these reasons, but Takezo always enjoyed it. These things always reminded him that he was alive, which was something he still counted himself lucky for. If it wasn't for the ANBU finding him eleven years ago he was positive he would be dead, or worse, a sex slave. He still remembered the awful things that they did to him when he was a small child, and they filled him with rage. He was kidnapped when he was four years old, so he still had faint memories of his mother and his sister. He had never met his father, but he was sure that he wouldn't know him if he did. He was either dead or as good as such, since he had left his mother with her two children when they were so young.

Try as he might, Takezo was surprisingly high spirited and he seemed to have little room for spite in his heart. He had been introduced to his life's calling when he was eight and being formally introduced to training by the ANBU. It was almost unheard of for a child so young to skip the academy and be trained to be a hunter nin, but that was exactly what had happened, Takezo never really getting a real childhood anyway as it had been stolen from him by the men whom had kidnapped him. He had enjoyed the training and had thrived in the position he was in, quickly becoming an agent and eventually one of the ANBU Captains. He was charged with protecting the Mizukage, and he was proud of the responsibility he had. There was one unfortunate thing about what he had been through, however, and that was that he had never really had time for socializing. He didn't particularly know how to do that, but as he sat at a table alone in a pub thumbing through a deck of cards, he hoped someone would join him.

The pub was nice enough, called "The Pier" it was situated along the waterfront, of course. Takezo liked that it was a little bit more private, as there weren't often many people in here. There were six small tables, and Takezo liked to pick the one in the corner, sitting in his usual garb of armour and his domino style mask. He didn't know why he wore it, but he was sure people had wondered it and he had just simply never noticed that he was being asked about it. His black hair that would not be tamed was simply pushed back on his head, spiking in areas which drove him crazy. He used one of the decks of cards that he always carried on him, several of them having small seals of chakra on the faces that were invisible to most, though Takezo and any other Fuuinjutsu specialist could see them easily enough. As he was shuffling the barman came over to him with a drink and nodded. "Your drink, Mr Kensai. On the house, of course."

"Thank's Ryu, that's greatly appreciated." He smiled his trademark half smile and nodded to the man, taking a sip of the ale and looking towards the door. Hopefully someone interesting would walk in and want to play...

Strafe walked down the street with a bit of a smile on his face. Momaru, the gigantic arctic lion strode by his side as he wave to people he knew on the streets. Something about this village seemed like one huge family, or at least in his eyes. His children were both safe at home and it was time for him to get out and do something adult for once. His first thought went to drinking, and of course at that very moment he passed a pub. He would stop, causing Momaru to stop a few steps ahead of him. "The Pier" was the name of the place, and it looked nice enough. He turned to his long time friend with a smile and spoke. "I'm gonna get a drink or two. Feel free to do whatever, I could be a while." He spoke friendly to the lion as he crossed the street. He opened the door and entered, looking around to see the place was rather empty except for one lone man with a deck of cards in his hand. Strafe would nod and walk over immediately, knowing that it must be odd for a stranger to walk over like they had been friends for years.

His deep blue hair and ocean like eyes seemed equally brilliant against his light skin. He wore a white shirt with the family crest on the back, bright blue pants and blue shinobi sandals. On his back sat two staff of distinction. Both incredibly powerful, they were called the Staff of Hurricanes and Raidachi. One of them was one of the seven legendary swords from this village, showing the man's significance. "Hey, mind if I join you? No one should have to drink alone!" He would wait for an okay before taking his seat. Ryu brought him cocktail that tasted like pineapples as he tipped the man generously. He would then turn his attention back to the man in front of him, his curiosity beaming at the oddest time. "Care to play?" He asked looked at the cards in his hand. Of course, he didn't know which card game the man would want to play, but he was a quick learner, so he didn't mind. He would wait for his response at this point, as he didn't want to overload the poor guy with questions.

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