At the Market

[Insomnian]

Naoko made his way through the small crowd amidst a market in Iwagakure, inent on buying groceries for his family. Due to the factor of them living out beyond the village, he had to make regular visits to stock up on food. Although he enjoyed the city, it was a hassle to have to come out so far for the necessities; not to mention all the interesting stuff he could spend his money on instead of bulk amounts of dried milk and beans. He made some extra money by selling precious metals or shiny rocks that he finds around his house while working, these past weeks he collected what he believed to be an uncut chunk of emerald, about the size of a marble. Other than that, minimal amounts of copper and tin he found could be sold to metal workers for an extremely cheap price; several of local clerks greatly appreciated Naoko's supply, however minimal it was.

Carrying several cans of dried food and the like within his duffel bag, he ducked under the curtain of a small restaraunt that was built into the stone. As he sat down on the rubber bar stool, he took notice of the delicious scent of his favourite food; Honey glazed pork barbacue. Naoko was always sure to stop by this particular store for that exact purpose, being a regular customer, the owner always knew exactly what he wanted by the time he saw Naoko. Raising a hand and smiling towards Naoko indicated that he saw him, and would begin preparing his dish as soon as he could.

Placing a hand on the stone table, Naoko felt the grit and dust under his palm, moving it back and forth. The feeling of dirt and the scent of earth was better than silk and flowers to Naoko, shutting his eyes he took a moment to absorb all the feelings around him; the sounds of the bustling city, the heat of the cook's work, and the sensation of stone all encompassing him entirely for a moment.

Always one to rely on instinct rather than thinking things out entirely, Naoko was quick to act when he heard a commotion behind him. Turning from his seat and stepping past the curtain, he could see two people wrestling over an object in the middle of a circled crowd. He immediately made his way over to the group of people and pushed his way through, what he saw surprised him. Two children of about 8 years of age were rolling on the ground, scraping at an object. Naoko grabbed each of the boys by the collar of their shirts and raised them in the air; fear, anger and shock taking them over.

"Quiet! What's the issue?"
One of the children opened his palm, and a small diamond ring was witin it. The band was golden, high quality, and the diamond was a very clear cut oval shape. The two boys went on to explain how they had seen it on the ground
and bothed dived for it, crashing heads and starting the fight over the object. Naoko set them down and confiscated the ring, sternly. "I'm sorry you two, but this is lost property, and picking it up could be considered stealing. This is a valuble object, and I'm sure it's owner is very concerned. This could be someone's wedding ring, for all you two know."

Both children seemed somber now they realized the possible importace of the ring; they were most certainly sorry for their actions, thought Naoko. He sighed, and knelt down to their height. Pulling a small amount of money from his pocket, he devided it into two piles and put in in their hands. "Here,now you both have a little money. That's fair right? Go buy yourselves some candy or something, and thank you for cooperating."

The children smiled and ran off in separte directions, and Naoko sighed. Making his way back to his food, he fondled the ring in his hands; contemplating what to do with it. He could attempt to find it's owner; but who would be truthful? Anyone could say the ring was theirs....

He ate silently, thining the situation over a hot plate, his mood much more serious than when he had entered the shop.

[CorgiBro]

A dry heat filled the air, providing warmth for the citizens that went about their days as if the weather left them unfazed. Few clouds skittered across the sky, blessing the village with shade for some brief moments as soft winds offered a pleasant chill. People chattered all around, drowning out one another in the myriad of voices as they all melded together in a chorus of white noise.

These were the things that the young genin noticed as he made his way through the busy streets. He had been walking around for most of the day, nonchalantly weaving through and around those in his way, careful not to bump into anyone and wary of thieves. It helped that no one would plan to rob a young and seemingly defenseless boy, but he was the prime suspect when things went missing. An age discrimination that was understandable, but it still hurt nonetheless when he would be falsely accused. Situations like the one mere meters ahead of him didn't help his cause.

As he neared, whatever had happened resolved itself, but there were people still looking interestedly at the now empty area. A circular area devoid of people could still be seen from the conflict, which opened up a line of sight to a nice little sit down place. Before he could give it more than a thought, his stomach growled and his legs forcibly pulled him to the establishment. Though he had never seen the place before, there were a few patrons in there so it obviously wasn't horrid if they hadn't barged out already.

He took his chance as he entered, finding the shade refreshing as he took a seat next to someone significantly taller than him. Other seats were vacant, but this was the one closest to him, so he sat.

"Excuse me sir, what d-," he began, interrupted by the succulent scent of the dish to his right. Instantly he could feel the saliva build within the dark confines of his mouth and managed to spit out, "I'll have what he's having," towards the man behind the counter.

[Insomnian]

Naoko jumped slightly when he heard the voice beside him. Being lost deep in thought, he had lost track of the world around him, and had to gather his bearings for a moment before he could return to real life. He turned and smiled softly to the boy, who he was noticeably taller than. "Smells good doesn't it? I always stop by here whenever I'm in town to buy this dish specifically....it's great, the cooks here always treat you more like dinner guest than customers."

He slipped the ring down into his pocket and fondled it; he looked the boy up and down and noticed the Iwagakure headband on his belt and his smile widened. Naoko didn't recognize the boy from class, he guessed he must have been a couple of months older to have graduated ahead of him or something.

"I see you're a shinobi like me! I graduated not but a few days ago...don't have any missions under my belt, but man, I'm really excited! I mean, I'll probably jump into missions in a few days...once I get a team, haha. I haven't been asigned one yet. It's just this really exciting thing you know? I mean, I'm a Shinobi! This is something I've worked at since I was 7...and I'm finally there. Great feeling right?"

[CorgiBro]

Daisho's head furiously nodded at the taller boy's remarks. Such a sweet, but pungent aroma still invaded his nostrils and caused his stomach to growl once more. With a chuckle, the man behind the counter handed the smaller boy an identical plate, which was only picture perfect for a few moments before he began digging in. Through some noisy bites and licks of his fingers, Daisho listened to his newfound companion, delighted to meet another genin his age. Not wanting to be impolite, he awaited the other boy's finish before wiping his mouth and hands, having already gone through half the plate.

"Yeah! My name is Takeda, Daisho," he introduced himself, offering his hand for a shake. He exposed his pearly whites in the form of a large grin before shifting to a face of surprise.

"Wow!" he exclaimed, holding the vowel for some unintended exaggeration. "You're super tall!"

He had never seen a kid his age that was as tall as the one sitting before him. Daisho had seen others who were obviously taller, but no one around his age at this kid's height.

[Insomnian]

Naoko munched his food down with one hand, shaking Daisho's with the other. Multitasking, he nodded while shoveling the meal into his face. Setting the chopsticks down for a breath of air, and to reply, he sighed with a smile on his face; and a slight amount of barbecue sauce on his cheek. Wiping his mouth with his arm, he began to speak, completely forgetting about the expensive object in his pocket, and the moral dilemma behind it.

"I'm Ine, Naoko, awesome to meet you Daisho."
He beamed, a little too excited. That's how he always got whenever he met someone new, if there was one thing true about Naoko, it was that he loved making friends.
The feelings from being in Iwagakure, combined with the fact that he was a Shinobi now put him in an extremely good mood.
"Haha! Yeah, I am pretty tall. My dad's a big guy too though, Taijutsu's something I was born to do I guess....I'm alot stronger than most people too, that's probably my best asset. By the way, I didn't see you in my graduating class, how long have you been a shinobi?"

Naoko relaxed slightly and fondled the ring in his pocket, it was something he'd deal with later. He wondered if there was some sort of lost and found....he could just drop it off and not have to worry about it, but then again....someone would probably just pick it up, even if it wasn't theirs. This could be someone's wedding gift, it wasn't right. The ring needed to be returned but...he couldn't think of a way to get it back. If there's nothing he could do...might as well keep it right?

[CorgiBro]

Still in awe at the comparatively massive body of Naoko, Daisho simply nodded as he too scarfed down a few pieces of pork. It had a rich flavor and soft, tender texture that just made him crave more. Not realizing that he also had a glass of water that was sitting next to his plate, he took a few gulps just to wash down whatever improperly chewed food he had resting in his esophagus. He didn't need the extra hassle of worrying about it while he talked with his new friend.

"Well," he started, wondering if he had simply overlooked him while at the academy. Then young Daisho realized that there was no way he could've missed the relatively gargantuan person at any point. Perhaps they did graduate in the same class, merely in a different section or some strange mishap. "I graduated a few months back. I've been training quite a bit and I really really want to reach Chuunin soon," he finished, sharing his rather ambitious aspirations. So far he hadn't really trained his body for mental or physical strength and stamina, and had only expanded his repertoire of Suiton techniques. He hadn't thought of fixing that anytime soon, but knew it would be essential if he wanted to rank up.

Daisho opened his mouth to ask a question of his own, but was interrupted by a clattering of metal and a series of gasps. Whipping his head back he saw that at a stand not too far from where the duo sat, a slim thief had just escaped the clutches of the vendor. Immediately he heard a, "Stop that thief!" and nearly sprang into action. He was confident that he could catch up at some point, but he didn't want to leave his new friend behind.

"Wanna come help?" he asked, almost challenging the boy to come with him. Before he could receive a proper answer, he ran off in a hurried sprint, turning the corner with the thief in view. If the two hurried, they would be able to easily tail the criminal.