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F4 thatdamnedninja December 5 2008, 16:39:11 UTC
The days always passed by faster than the nights, but this was bordering on ridiculous.

Was it all because she’d fallen asleep after breakfast? Geez. Yuffie let a long sigh as she trailed into her room, rubbing the back of her neck. That couldn’t be it! She’d barely even gotten started, and now it was over! She hadn’t even managed to see Sagara!

Woah, woah! The thief shook her head, as though doing so would send that traitorous thought flying straight out of her ears. It wasn’t like she missed the guy - she’d only seen him just last night! She just… She’d just been looking forward to proving that yeah, she was the kickass one, and therefore she had totally won that pillow fight. Yeah. That was it.

After the chat she’d had with Mizuho, though… Sagara being unable to accept his failure was the least of her problems. Ugh. Yuffie flopped on the edge of her bed, pulling her tray of food closer. Her current and more pressing problem was Rude. A little more viciously than necessary, Yuffie speared a piece of chicken ( ... )

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 7 2008, 04:40:13 UTC
“Nope; I was wearing something’ different. This-” she dropped the shorts onto the bed, pout giving way to a bemused smile - “is from, like, a year ago.”

There definitely wasn’t any stuff in the pockets, but she could fix that soon enough. She was the Great Ninja Yuffie! Putting stuff in her pockets was what she did, especially when the stuff was somebody else’s - and, as always, if she could steal it, it deserved to be stolen! Just like back in that store with all the candy.

When Sen announced that she hadn’t gotten anything back, Yuffie made a sympathetic ‘aww’ sound. “That sucks.” She couldn’t quite help laughing at the idea of the Landel’s uniform being immodest, though. “Wait, you call this stuff immodest? It’s practically a sack!” An easy to move around in sack, but a sack nonetheless. And speaking of sacks… Yuffie’s giggles died down, and she turned a slightly hopeful gaze on her roommate. “Y’don’t mind if I change in here, do ya? I can make it quick!”

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 7 2008, 05:00:28 UTC
So that wasn't it. Somehow, those behind this place could apparently still access Yuffie's world in some way, allowing them to bring in clothing. Or at least duplicate it to the extent that she couldn't tell any difference - and if there had been one, Ayumu was fairly certain she would have noticed after that rapid inspection. So there had to be a way back somehow. She refused to believe otherwise.

"This?" Ayumu plucked at her top with a look of distaste. "It...clings far too much. And it's nothing like what I wore at home." It didn't hide nearly enough, for one thing. For all her protests, it wasn't the "modesty" of the outfit that bothered her so much as what else it could reveal.

She shook her head in response to the last question, though, waving her hand a little in a dismissive gesture. "No, no, I'm not worried about it. We do have to share a room, after all, and I'd not want to deny your good fortune in having familiar clothing to wear."

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 7 2008, 05:50:34 UTC
“For me, it’s the lack of pockets. And the slippers, gawd; ya probably couldn’t even get a grip on a cheese-grater with those things!” Even as she spoke, Yuffie was turning to face her bed. She didn’t even wait for Sen to finish saying that she didn’t mind; she was too eager to be back in normal clothing again to care about little things like patience or politeness.

“What kind of stuff did you wear back home?” Yuffie asked, quickly stripping away the boring grey uniform, underwear and all. Wutai and Japan seemed to be pretty similar, but the stuff with naming order had proved that there were some differences… not that it really mattered. The young thief was just insatiably curious.

She wasted no time in slipping on the various pieces of her new-old outfit, savouring the feel of the small layers, the freedom of movement, and the materials.

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 7 2008, 16:50:29 UTC
A grip? Apparently she and her roommate were thinking along the same lines when it came to their clothing options, which made Ayumu wonder just who Yuffie was. Perhaps there was even more reason why she was friendly with Himura's group, which meant even more reason for her to be careful.

Ayumu politely averted her eyes as Yuffie began to change, taking advantage of the opportunity to remove the coat from her closet and slip some pens into its pockets, while unobtrusively sliding some others under her clothing. Once that was done she twisted her hair into a knot at the nape of her neck and used a pair of pens to anchor it in place, as though that was the only reason she'd pulled them out of the drawer.

As for her clothing from back home, it rather depended on what she was doing at the time, but still. "Oh, well..." She paused as though uncertain how to describe it. "It was, well, kimono. More than one layer and, I guess...nothing like this."

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 7 2008, 17:37:40 UTC
“Traditional stuff, then.” Yuffie wrinkled her nose, straightening from where she‘d been tying her shoe-laces. She could hear the sound of fabric rustling as Sen moved around, but she didn’t pay much attention to it. “My old man practically lives in his Uwagi… I mean, sure, the layers make it totally easy to hide all sorts of stuff, but they’re so much harder to move in!”

Wearing that kind of stuff in Wutai wasn’t quite so bad, not that Yuffie’d ever admit it to her Dad‘s face. But over in the Eastern continents, especially when she was working? Nah, not a chance; you couldn’t get any more impractical.

The only thing left to put on was the headband, and that didn’t take very long at all - her movements were fluid and sure as she tied it into place; she didn’t even have to think about it, having been wearing headbands since she was a little kid. “I guess I’m just pretty used to the Eastern style clothin’, though,” she added offhand, sweeping the two long trails of material back over her shoulder. With the movement, she did a ( ... )

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 7 2008, 19:18:59 UTC
"So that is what people wear in Wutai? Normally, I mean." Clearly Yuffie was an exception of some kind, if she was familiar with the clothing but wore that kind of thing. Describing it as 'Eastern style' seemed strange, though, considering that it was more 'Western' to her point of view. Even if she'd never seen any Westerners wearing the likes of that.

However, once again they were thinking along the same lines. Yuffie apparently judged her clothing on utilitarian grounds, such as ease of movement and the ability to store or hide objects. And while she wasn't exactly muscled, she was definitely toned - a warrior of some kind? Not a swordswoman, Ayumu didn't think, not with that build, and the way the girl moved wasn't quite right.

She blinked at Yuffie's dramatic display, tilting her head to one side a little. "It's certainly less...grey. And boring," she admitted, thoughtfully. "It's quite unusual, though. What did you do before you came here, that required such clothing?"

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 7 2008, 20:25:25 UTC
Yuffie made an affirmative sound, nodding with no small amount of enthusiasm. “Yeah, normally.” She made a sweeping gesture with her left arm, an odd little half-shrug, before reaching up to scratch her cheek. “Wutai’s a pretty traditional place.” Or, at least, it should be. Yuffie herself wasn’t exactly the traditional type herself, but Wutai would never lose it’s pride and identity, not if she had anything to do with it.

Arms swinging casually by her sides, she sauntered back over to the closet. “It’s functional and cute.” With a grin, she started digging around; before she left, she wanted to grab a few pieces from her candy stash… and the gardening claw. Damn Sagara for making her lose the lawnmower blade! The claw was so clumsy and… ugh ( ... )

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 7 2008, 20:52:12 UTC
The head of intelligence and espionage.

Ayumu didn't know what the "W.R.O." was, but that title right there was enough to raise alarms aplenty. It couldn't just be coincidence that she'd been assigned to a room with someone who would give herself such a title, not considering her own duties back in Kyoto. But if not, then - to what purpose?

And now she had the situation to consider. She was in a room alone with a self-proclaimed spy, and one who was affiliated with Himura's group. If Yuffie were removed from the picture now, would it be an advantage or a disadvantage for her side? There just wasn't enough information to know that for certain, plus she had the truce Okita had mentioned to consider.

It also wasn't certain just who would win in a fight between the two of them, especially if Yuffie had some of the same training she did, and that was entirely possible. The girl might act like...well, like she did, but she clearly wasn't weak. Or stupid. There was no point in provoking anything right now, that was definitely certain ( ... )

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 7 2008, 22:13:30 UTC
Sen’s reaction - Yuffie had been watching for it out of the corner of her eye - was nothing unusual, and so she didn’t dwell on it. Instead, she just grabbed the candy, slipped it into one of the many pockets on her belt-pouch, and retrieved the gardening claw.

“You bet I am!” she replied, with casual pride. “I don’t usually call myself a spy, though. I mean, it sounds pretty cool n’ all when you say it, but…” She nudged the closet door shut with her foot, inspecting the makeshift weapon in her hands critically. “…I prefer ninja. Goes with the heritage, y’know?”

The gardening claw wasn’t exactly useless; used in the right way, it could do a helluva lot of damage… And Yuffie hadn’t been just boasting when she claimed to be a jack of all trades, either - she was multi-talented, and incredibly inventive when it came to resources, whether for weaponry or otherwise. She could make the claw work for her, but the question was: did she want to ( ... )

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 7 2008, 23:13:40 UTC
No ninja Ayumu had ever met would dress like that. More importantly, though, no ninja she'd met would openly declare themselves to be a ninja in front of someone they had just barely met. And the situation in Kyoto, the entire mission she was supposed to be working on right now, was due to the fact that one person had spotted Susumu and realized what he was.

With that thought came just the tiniest crack in her facade, just the barest hint of unidentifiable emotion visible in the tightening of her eyes. It was a weakness she almost instantly caught and corrected, inwardly berating herself for the slip. This is why you don't let yourself feel anything, Ayumu. That's how you get caught.But. Yuffie was either lying, suicidal, or a complete idiot. Ayumu would withhold judgement for the time being on which it was, but no matter what, she was not to be trusted ( ... )

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Re: F4 thatdamnedninja December 8 2008, 05:08:08 UTC
The ninja in question had given up her inspection of the claw, and was now twirling and flipping it idly between her hands. The movement were as smooth and sure as when she’d been tying her shoelaces, so well practiced that she didn’t even have to pay attention. Good thing, too; she’d just seen something much more interesting.

Yuffie’d glanced towards her roommate again, once again checking for a reaction, only to see something completely different from what she’d been expecting in Sen’s eyes. She couldn’t put her finger on what the emotion was, and it lasted for barely a fraction of a second… but Yuffie had been dealing with people and their masks for years now. And, she thought wryly, my own.

Still, she smiled. Pretended she’d seen nothing. “Going out with an old friend,” she replied, meandering vaguely in the direction of her desk. “He practically begged for me to go with him - I wasn’t gonna say yes, but I’m a sucker for those in need… and somebody needs to babysit, right?” She heaved a sigh, as though to say ‘look at all the ( ... )

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Re: F4 tostepforward December 8 2008, 07:34:28 UTC
Given what Ayumu could see of Yuffie's actions, her deftness in toying with her makeshift weapon, it was entirely believable that the girl had the training she'd claimed. It was clear that she needed to report to Okita as soon as possible, if she could find a moment's privacy to speak to him, or get an unobtrusive message to him on the board. The more time she spent in this place, the more Ayumu realized she didn't know, and that was becoming quite dangerous.

Whether or not Yuffie had caught her momentary lapse, she wasn't certain; the girl didn't react to it at all, but then she wouldn't have in a similar situation. Normally, at least. Hope for the best and plan for the worst, then, she thought, idly shifting her weight a little so that she felt the press of one of the pens she had hidden in her waistband. Just in case ( ... )

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