Byakujutsu 2021.05.24

Caius had waited for those of KOSHU to leave before making his way back to his motorcycle, carefully removing as much soil as he could from the atractylodes they came to gather. The plants were then cut at the base, the stem and leaves discarded as the roots were shoved in a bag and into a side compartment on his bike. He then rode all the way to the Ruby Sea, paying passage across the water to the port city of Kugane. He had his contacts in the region, making his frequent travels less of a headache; a Pure-blood Garlean was never welcomed otherwise, defected or not.

He didn’t waste time once he was back at his clinic, drying the roots efficiently [thank you magiteknology] as he prepared the rest of the components. It took the remainder of the day and well into the night for the medicine to be completed, in the form of a finely grounded powder, and divided into individual doses. The first doses were sent to the Uranami Onsen to be distributed to anyone afflicted with the Haimushi yokai, while the rest were given to agents of Hagane-kai to be distributed in the city under the guise of ‘Miracle cure’ merchants.

It’s only when his part was done that the doctor allowed himself some rest, but not before receiving the visit of the syndicate’s wakagashira. As the door of the clinic opened to let in a lone Hyur in black garb, Caius simply motioned to the empty chair in front of his desk. “I only have black tea to offer and it’s getting cold.” The doctor stated, pointing at the nearly empty teapot resting beside a few open books. “Black tea at this hour?” The visitor - Katsuro - mused as he took the offered seat. His crimson gaze rested on the man before him. “Sleep would be a far better option. But then again… I know you. You won’t rest until you know everything is in motion.” The Garlean snorted as he lowered his cup to rest on the desk. “And I dare hope that’s why you’re here. I did my part but the distribution is in other's hands.” Sitting back, he leaned into his chair while a hand rose to massage the bridge of his nose. “I’m getting too old for this. Or to deal with your… friends? For lack of a better word, really. I know you don’t consider them friends per say. You don’t let people ‘in’ that easily.” The sharp blue-gray gaze of the doctor shifted to Katsuro as his hand fell down into his lap. Katsuro had to smirk at that. “Our agents are already moving out to distribute the medicine so you can sleep easy tonight. And you know why I’m dealing with them. We’ve forged a good alliance, a reliable link between the east and the west. I will not be the cause of such a partnership breaking.” “It’s more than that, however.” Caius replied. His tone of voice betrayed how tired he was but his gaze was as sharp as ever. “They’ve removed themselves from the yakuza but you still treat them as such. The only difference is that there’s no one ‘above’ you within KOSHU anymore, not in a yakuza sense. Yet you watch over them, as a father over his children. Otherwise, I have no clue why you’d even tolerate them.” An amused smile appeared on his lips. He was right of course, and Katsuro shook his head in defeat. “If you’re too old then I can at least tell you, you never lost your sense of observation, Thanos. I think… I’ve been through enough shit alongside them to at least feel a sense of kinship. When they were still linked to the yakuza, Dusk-sama asked me to watch over them and that’s a sense of duty I am unable to shake off. They are, of course, annoying, childish, scatterbrained, inexperienced, poorly trained, bothersome and irritating but… I’ll watch over them regardless.” Thanos couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. “You said ‘annoying’ three times. And though I share in the sentiment, at least they managed to get the job done. Their hearts are at the right place, their brains well… let’s not go into that.” He added, clearly jesting. “Do know, however, that if this second ‘job’ becomes too much, we can place another liaison in your stead within KOSHU. Yuu is already quite invested with them, even if he’s only a kyodai. Tamashi could also take on that mantle, despite being Hagane’s favorite agent.” Katsuro shook his head again. “Iie, I’ll be fine. I’ve worked my way up their hierarchic ladder and it’s a trust I won’t betray. Besides, I don’t spend that much time at the onsen. I have my own work here. As long as Lord Hagane can ‘save’ me when I’m asked to sell fucking kites and other nonsenses, all will be as it should be in the damn universe.” The doctor stifled a laugh. “I’ll also keep that in mind. I’m his senior adviser after all. Well then, not to be rude but I find keeping my eyes open to be more difficult by the minute. Not even an entire pot of tea could stir wakefulness in me at this point.” That being said, Thanos pushed himself up, stretching some to at least relieve some of the soreness of so many hours of work. He grabbed his coat from the back of his chair and put it on. It was rare to see the doctor with a tie undone and his sleeves unbuttoned and rolled up. But here he was, exactly like that, even his impeccable hair seemed a bit ruffled. Thus Katsuro quickly pushed himself up as well, ready to leave the clinic. “Get

Iki yubi

2020-04-27

One night in Gridania was enough for the shinobi. His mind was in turmoil and his injuries, while not completely healed, would not hinder traveling back to Shirogane via aetheryte. A mild case of vertigo maybe and a need to rest, but he’d manage. The others had already made their way back and it took much convincing for Lady Quillsong to do the same. In the end though, he wasn’t sure if she had listened or merely took a room at the inn. Still, his mind was set on traveling back to be by his master’s side and so he did. As expected, aetheryte travel took a toll on his already weakened body and the first thing Katsuro managed as he materialized in familiar lands was to vomit bile by the side of the road. At least none were around to see him in this state and thus he slowly made his way to the estate and into the headquarters of Hagane-kai. His goal was to first aim for the bathroom to make himself more presentable but alas, luck had other ideas. The sliding door to the Chantry of Shadows - Hagane’s work office - opened and the man himself stepped out. “[By the Kami, Katsuro! You look like you came back from the Seven Hells themselves. Come, you need to sit down.]” Katsuro tried to protest but he soon had an arm wrapped around him for support and was led inside the Chantry. The familiar place and the sense of security he always had when entering this room soon made him realize how tired he really was. Thus he let himself be guided to a cushion and he gladly sat, trying his best to hide the fact he was injured, though his right hand went instinctively to his left side when a sharp pain flared through his body. Something, of course, that didn’t go unnoticed by his master.

A moon ago...

The Chantry of Shadows was packed, a rare occurrence indeed. Hagane-dono sat at his usual spot behind the low Hingan desk, with Kuro-Hebi at his right, sitting seiza. The Kumicho looked upon his lieutenants with no small amount of pride before shifting his ardent gaze to the others in the room. Some were survivors of a time long past, while others were fairly new. But all were loyal and resolved to make the Feng Huang Ying rise from it's ashes. And the time was now.

"[Some of you remember our homeland and the bloody war we waged. We lost, but yet we survived. Hiding amongst the shadows, biding our time. To those who answered my call when I left Hingashi behind and sailed for new shores, I give my humble thanks.]" Ujitoshi began, his voice betraying his pride and joy at what they had accomplished in the past Epoch. "[Today, I summoned you here to convey one single message; we're going home.]" 

The Raen let that last sentence sink in. A low murmur rose in the room as none wanted to be ‘that guy’ who'd shout out their surprise. The few silent ones - Katsuro and Thanos - had an unreadable expression on their visage; because they knew… Knew of what price had to be paid to obtain that ticket back home.Ujitoshi let the whispers die down before continuing. “[However… We find ourselves with a new boss. No, I’m not going anywhere nor am I stepping down. It’s common practice for smaller ‘families’ to join bigger and more powerful ones. Thus we’ll serve under the Kami no Nai as soon as our headquarters are moved to Hingashi and I'll remain Kumicho of the Feng Huang Ying, or should I say the Hagane-Kai, for I'd rather leave our old name in the past, less we resurrect some hostilities. The Kami no Nai are providing us with land they already own and construction of The Camellia, that will serve as our base of operation, is already underway. I assure you, none will lose their job despite the Black Pearl being no more, you’ll simply be attributed other tasks at The Camellia.” The kumicho took a pause, looking upon those sitting in the room. There were many masks of uncertainty, as was expected. They had pledged their lives to him, entrusted him with their dreams and hopes. And now he was telling them they had to serve another. Someone they didn’t know and that could easily crush them.

"[I'm aware the changes will bring their lot of insecurities but we are resilient and I have faith in you all. Preparations begins now. By this time in the next moon, we'll be back in our homeland! I will bring all my lieutenants up to speed and they'll direct you in the tasks that will be required to travel back to Hingashi. You are dismissed. Take this evenings for yourself as the spa is now officially closed for business.]” Everyone got up and left but for Ujitoshi’s lieutenants. They remained quiet until the room was emptied and Uij got up to his feet. He stretched a bit before relaxing his pose; those were his most trusted after all - Katsuro Wakahisa, Thanos lux Caius, Sun Hyeon and Mariko Tsubaki - and protocol wasn’t necessary when not in public. The Raen’s gaze first went to his second in command, whom he knew would be the most reluctant about this whole ‘project’. “[I know what you think of all this, Katsuro. And any apology will never be enough. They’ll test you, you most of all. But you’re doing this for me and our syndicate first and foremost.]” All eyes went to Katsuro, who remained silent until he was ready to lift his eyes to meet with his master’s gaze. “[I’m aware, my Lord.]” He could never, despite his rank and the many years in service of Hagane, address the Raen as anything below deep respect. “[I just wish it would be otherwise. That we’d manage to get back home by our own means. But I can also see quite clearly this is an opportunity we couldn’t miss. What were the chances of us returning to Hingashi so soon after our self-imposed exile. I will not fail you, my Lord.]" 

Ujitoshi nodded and gave a reassuring smile to his shinobi. "[My goal is to eventually buy the land back so we'll regain some form of independence.]" The Raen then turned his attention to the elder in the room. "[To you most of all, my friend, I owe an apology. With the spa, you could devote your time to the civilian side of things and not have to bother with our darker side. It was never my intention to drag you into syndicate's affairs.]" 

The elder, Sun Hyeon, smiled at the Raen and shook his head dismissively. "[The Black Pearl is steadily losing profits as the Camellia becomes more lucrative. It was bound to happen, that we moved to Kugane or not. I'm no fool Uji, and I was fully prepared for the change. Besides, there's no reason for my job to change so dramatically. I can work alongside Mariko and supervise the civilian employees of the Camellia, just as I did for the Black Pearl. And I hope to think you'll still need someone to tend the garden.]" 

"[Nothing is ever dramatic with you, Hyeon. Give me another epoch and hopefully I'll have a sliver of your wisdom by then.]" The old man chuckled and Ujitoshi couldn't help but smile back. 

"[Mariko, I'll leave you to prepare your staff for the move. A few of your operatives will remain in Ul'dah, as Osai-dono wish to keep a foot in Eorzea and I couldn't agree more. We have business partners here and I aim to keep them.]"

The petite woman bowed her head to the Raen. "[This won't be a problem. I already know who I'll assign for this task. I'll make sure they are provided with living arrangements as they'll be working from here more permanently.]" 

Ujitoshi nodded at the woman before turning to his last lieutenant, the Garlean doctor, Thanos.

"[This leaves you and me, old friend.]" 

Thanos chuckled and crossed his arms before his chest. "[I foresee many long hours of overtime, bent over piles of paperwork. At least the clinic will be closed and I'll advise my regular patients. I hope you have a hefty stock of black tea, Uji. Because we'll certainly need it.]"

Ujitoshi scoffed at that, clearly amused. "[I'm way ahead of you.]" He gave a toothy grin to the doctor before turning his gaze on all his lieutenants. "[Thank you, for you continued support and devotion, for the syndicate would not have survived without you. This is a new chapter of our history. Let's make it a hell of a good one!]"

The four lieutenants bowed to their Kumicho before retiring for the night. Tomorrow, preparations would begin and it was bound to be a busy moon indeed.

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OOC As of already a month (because it was FfxivWrite2019 and I had no time lol) the Feng Huang Ying - now renamed Hagane-kai - has moved back to Shirogane. As mentioned previously, the Black Pearl Spa is no more but in its place was built the Camellia. You are free to use the establishment for RP. It’s manned by NPC but I can also be contacted via Discord  Kuro#6868 if you want someone to interact with (both from the Camellia or from the syndicate).

Happy Nameday to two of my men!