Time is Money (Kyoki)

Beep, beep, beep. "Bloody hell, what time is it? Oh shit!" Woken up by the annoying sound of his alarm Ichigo realised he overslept. He rushed out of bed, put on his clothes, ran downstairs to the kitchen where he devoured his breakfast and finally left the house. He had spent the night before drinking and playing the guitar, basically his usual routine. Once he got into his music he would often lose track of time, which is also the reason why he stayed up late and didn't wake up in time. So much to do and so little time, so the Drunk had to hurry if he wanted to get all his errands done. 

Ever since his father's health started to go backwards it was up to Ichigo to help out at home. Not only did he need to do his fair share around the house, but at their shop as well. After all, his father was a blacksmith. With his mother being a music teacher it was where he had found his two passions, not counting the alcohol. Blacksmithing and music, both entirely different things but he loved them equally. Whenever he had a bit of free time he would grab his guitar and play some tunes. The Drunk learned how to play from a young age since it had always been his dream to become a musician. 

But now with the situation they were in he had to focus on more important stuff, which is why he was out running errands. It seemed like today wasn't going to be the day either where he would find a moment to do some training. He had promised himself to take things more seriously and to focus on improving his skills since he was lacking in that area. Ichigo knew he had to maintain his training if he ever wanted to become a shinobi his parents could be proud of. But for now his main focus was on something else. Once he would be finished with his errands he might find some time to practice, depending on what or who he might run into. 

(WC: 354)

On his way to the convenience store Ichigo found himself wandering around close to the river. The Drunk wasn't that big of a fan of water, certainly not if he had to drink it, but even he was able to appreciate the scenery. He could see why people enjoyed playing in the water. Water does not resist. Water flows. When you plunge your hand into it, all you feel is a caress. Water is not a solid wall, it will not stop you. But water always goes where it wants to go, and nothing in the end can stand against it. Water is patient. Sitting close to the river was a young girl with beautiful long hair. 

Staring at her own reflection in the water the little female shinobi seemed rather bored. Young kids these days were full of energy, so she might have become annoyed by the fact that there wasn't anything she could do with all of that energy. Her index finger tapping the side of her right cheek was the main sign of her boredom. Ichigo couldn't remember the last time he was bored. He would always find something to do, whether it was working, playing the guitar or simply paying a visit to his favorite bar. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to get bored once in a while, being as busy as he was wasn't that great either.

The Drunk was about to continue his stroll, only if it wasn't for the loud splash he heard. Looking over to check what had happened Ichigo noticed how the young girl had fallen into the water. Rushing over in case the little girl didn't know how to swim he noticed to his own relief that she was doing just fine. Her long hair drenched she seemed completely unfazed by the incident. The Drunk would slowly walk over, noticing nobody else was bothering checking out what had happened. The tall shinobi would address the young female as he noticed she was looking more lonely by the minute. "Everything alright?" he asked while reaching out his hand to her, in case she needed help getting up. 

(WC: 357, TWC: 711)

Standing in front of Ichigo was the small girl, completely drenched from falling in the water. The Drunk could notice she was beginning to feel the effect of the cold water as she started shivering, her teeth vibrating against each other. Personally he didn't mind the cold, it would help him wake up and feel refreshed whenever he needed a quick boost of energy. But of course it would be bad for your health if you didn't warm up in time. Ichigo wanted to avoid the girl getting sick, so he grabbed his sweater and put it around her, hoping it would help her fighting the cold. "Here you go, that should be better" he would say with a gentle smile.

The tall shinobi wondered how the young girl had ended up by the river all by herself. Maybe it was out of boredom, or maybe she needed some time to think about some things she had on her mind. It wasn't really up to him to pry but he couldn't really leave her freezing to death either. Fortunately it seemed that she started to warm up as she was able to finish a total of three sentences. It was rather funny to hear, her shaking voice as words started to come out. "I expect nothing less from a shinobi of Kumogakure to survive a little bit of cold water" he would reply smiling. 

But with that he still didn't know what she was doing up there, so he decided to be the first one to mention the slightly awkward situation they were in. "So I'm assuming you didn't come out here to swim? Something else been troubling you?" His question wasn't too personal and yet showed some interest at the same time. Since he was the older one he felt some form of responsibility over the younger people. He wasn't really the prime example for the younger generation but he would at least try to help out where he could. 

(WC: 331, TWC: 1042)

Kyoki shook her head in response to his generosity, which she had refused to take the mans sweater. "No need, I feel better now" She isn't much of a person to care about people being overly polite. Despite the chattering of the teeth she would, almost feel the warmth coming back into her body. Kyoki shook her hair and body away from the rest of the water that remained on her hair, and skin as if she were a dog. Kyoki fixed her hair back to the way it was, perfectly long and a sight to be seen. Kyoki made sure to get the left over water from, out of her sandal before, putting them back on her bare feet. 

"If you want to know thaaaaaaaat badly...I'm bored! There's nothing for me to do! It sucks that I have no one I want to play around with...Oh, have you heard about any rumors? I've picked one up on my way here, regatding some strange noises coming from those mountains" Kyoki finished venting out her frustration, before pointing south, with her small index finger. It was a way from the village, but wasn't too far of a travel.  "I want to check out the rumors some more and get info about them! I do enjoy a little bit of creepy adventures!" Kyoki's face of frustration and sadness would, soon be turned into anticipation and excitement. She would expect the kind and older stranger to entertain her. She wants to go out into the mountain ranges and check out some rumors. It'll help cure the boredom inside of her, but he could simply deny a hefty request. "So what's it gonna be?" Her arms were crossed and ready to seek out an answer from him. 

WC: 295 
TWC: 768

As expected, the little girl was bored. Not that she tried to hide it, no it was made quite obvious how she felt. "Well aren't you a cheeky little brat." Ichigo would listen as she started talking about some rumors she picked up somewhere. According to whoever it was that told her those rumors it seemed strange noises could be heard coming from the mountains. Starting to feel like he was in some kind of scary movie he decided to hear her out first before he would respond. "I see, I see." He would nod as the little kunoichi had finished speaking. 

"So you're saying you want to go check them out to see if those rumors are true." He knew he heard her talking how she enjoyed creepy adventures but the fact that she asked Ichigo to come with her showed that she wasn't feeling to sure about going alone. He wasn't really sure if now would be the time for him to go on Kyoki's little adventure, but he couldn't really say no when he noticed how happy and excited she got thinking about it. And it wouldn't really be responsible of him if he let a young girl go somewhere alone, at least not in a place like the mountains. You could never be too sure you wouldn't run into something dangerous. 

"Alright, alright. Calm down little one. You win, I'll go with you." With a bit of luck they would get home before dark and he would still have time to run his errands. He would wait until she was completely dried up before they could take off. "But under one condition, if we run into something dangerous you let me handle it. I can't let a young girl get hurt, can I?" Ichigo wasn't much of a reassurance when it came to stuff like this but at least he knew he had to take responsibilty. "Now, show us the way" he would say as he would let her take the lead. "Oh, and call me Ichigo from now on." He remembered he hadn't given her his name yet. 

(WC: 353, TWC: 1395)

Ichigo was only a few meters behind of Kyoki, taking in his surroundings that were far more beautiful than he had first imagined. He had never really taken the time before to truly enjoy the beauty of the village. Usually when he was out he never paid attention to what was going on around him unless it was really hard to miss. Like a certain little girl falling in the river. The Drunk preferred minding his own business and would only get involved if the situation would require him to do so. It was the same with how he met Kyoki. He could have chosen to ignore her but it wouldn't have been the right thing to do. 

The path they were walking on was clear and green. So far there was nothing out of the ordinary. No weird noises, no strange creatures. He would begin to wonder what the chances could be of them running into something, or someone. If he remembered correctly the rumors told about a voice calling out to people which caused them to hallucinate. Something was off about that story but he wasn't one to judge without checking it out. The source of these rumors could hardly be taken as evidence since they didn't know who was spreading them.

The two of them had arrived at the beginning of a hill and right before they would start the climb was when Kyoki would ask about Ichigo's opinion on the rumors. "It's the first time I'm hearing this. To be completely honest I'm not a big believer of these kind of things." He could hardly imagine there would actually be a ghost of some sorts, calling out to people and making them hallucinate. There had to be some sort of logical explination. Hell, maybe none of it would turn out to be true. But he noticed how happy the little girl looked on their quest for ghosts.

"Who knows, maybe it's just some animal." Ichigo would then take the lead as he went ahead and climbed up the hill. He made sure Kyoki stayed close and didn't fall behind in case they would run into something. As they climbed higher and higher Ichigo noticed how they were the only ones on the path. It looked like the rumors had taken their toll as no one dared to travel on this way. People probably got afraid and wanted to avoid finding out what was causing those strange noises. Which wasn't the cause for Kyoki. "You seem awfully excited about all this. Have you always been interested in these kind of things?" After he asked his question Ichigo continued walking on the path, wondering what they would find. 

(WC: 450, TWC: 1845)

Their walk didnt stop as her sight met the hill and an upward path, which would lead them in the mountains. Trees looked larger in her eyes and covered most of the sun with its elongated branches and green leaves, accompanying them. Her eyes stayed peeled as if she was a guard on night duty. Kyoki wanted to be able to find the slightest bit of change in their atmosphere, as they continue to ascend up the hills and away from the crowded village of kumogakure. Kyoki could almost feel her legs being two times their weight. She found herself on a trying to drag her small legs, to continue their adventure. Kyoki noticed that Ichigo decided to take the lead, though it didnt bother her. But, she wouldnt be oblivious of his intent of trying to be a knight to a girl he just met. Kyoki hoped on and off of small rocks inbeded within the earth, as the two walked.

"I do have a knack for this sort of stuff. Used to get told scary stories all the time, though my mom would pause because i have a sibling whos a big chicken when it comes to horror stuff. Kyoki shrugged, as she felt delighted that Ichigo asked about one of her odd interests. "What about you? Do you have any interesting things you are in?" Other than being a pain in my neck of course. Kyoki would attempt to ask about Ichigos hobbies, while making a soft comment on the side.

WC: 254
Twc: 1383