Raijin’s muscles were sore from the day before. They ached in places he forgot he could ache, right down to the bone. So much so that he almost wanted to stay in bed, but he knew there was truly only one way to get the ache to go away. So, the man kissed Sedna and the pups’ heads as he headed out for another quick spar. Once he arrived, he did a few quick stretches to limber himself up, he didn’t need Sedna getting mad at him for a pulled muscle, before issuing a call for a sparring partner to help him work out the kinks in his muscles.

"Speech"

Was it a real smart idea to hunt a meal for the Kaicho before he met with him? Probably not, he wasn't exactly ready to be out and about, but he wanted to make a good impression on the man that allowed him in to recover. Usagi seemed convinced that he was good to stay, but Kunai wanted to be sure on his own. They also probably wanted to know why he was here if they hadn't already figured it out. To put it simply, Kunai was nervous. Every day he spent in his den was another day he was using valuable resources and wasn't doing anything to replace them. He imagined that it left a sour taste on the Kaicho's tongue, perhaps something a fresh meal could fix.

Usagi had left long before Kunai ventured out and he wondered if he should have told him, but knew he would've only made him rest more to recover quicker. The guilt was getting to him though so he waited for the smaller man to leave before sneaking out and wandering around the maze. It would be an understatement to say that he was lost, but a call nearby caught his attention. It didn't take him long to find the man that searched for a sparring partner, whom he hoped he could just ask for directions out of the maze.

"I'd spar with you if I could, but can you show me out of here instead?" he asked before realizing it probably sounded strange. Why would someone within the pack need to find an exit? Shouldn't they know where it is? The chimeras brows furrowed as he backed his thoughts up and explained what he hoped was a little better. "I'm sorry, I'm Kunai. I've been recovering from pneumonia and I'd really like to stretch my legs and hunt before meeting with the Kaicho."

"Speech!"

TABLE & CODE © SKELLE 2022

A young wolf responded to him, one he’d yet to meet. Tojo-kai was seeing a surprising amount of new faces these days, but he didn’t mind it. Raijin was a sociable wolf by nature, and while his cousin was anything but, the Genji man was more than willing to cover that base. The man seemed to be around his oldest son’s ages, and as he took a whiff to verify he had the markings of the Kai on him, he detected unmistakable traces of Usagi. Still, that didn’t mean much. Even if the grumpy Shima took after his uncle Hattori in attitude, he was still a member of the pack. Perhaps the bi-colored man had come across Usagi before coming across Raijin.

He asked if the koi man could show him out of the maze, something the Taicho thought nothing peculiar about. It took a while to learn the layout of the maze, so if he was new there was no surprise he was turned around. Still, he nodded in understanding at the explanation. “Of course. It’s nice to meet you, Kunai. My name is Genji Raijin. The maze can be really confusing if you’re new, it took me a while to get it figured out and I still have to go on a wild goose chase to find my own pups sometimes when they take a wrong turn,” he replied, his lips turned in an amused grin and his golden gaze glinting with affection as he thought of his youngest litter.

The man walked toward Kunai, indicating with a nod of his head for the orange and black man to follow him. They wove through the bamboo, going right and left in intervals until they finally reached the outskirts of the maze. “Usagi, who it seems you’ve met, put markers near the tops of the bamboo at the turns to help my youngest litter find their ways around. You kind of have to cram your head up to see them, but they’ll lead you to all the important places in the Maze if you look hard enough.” It was a kind thing the man with the gloomy exterior had done. A small sense of guilt always pinged in his chest when he glanced up at the markers, seeing how considerate his eldest boys were to their half-siblings when he knew they both harbored some resentment toward him for not being in their lives when they were young.

“Mind if I join you?” he asked Kunai.

Intel 1/3

"Speech"

"Nice to meet you," he responded with a nod. At least he wasn't the only one lost in the maze, though he would expect puppies to. At least it was normal to get lost so easily, though it did little to make him feel any better about it. He hoped it wouldn't take him too long to learn the maze, but he supposed if the meeting with the Kaicho didn't go well then he wouldn't need to learn the maze. He tried not to think about that, focusing instead on getting out of the maze so that he could provide and offering.

His chin tilted up when the older man mentioned the markers Usagi had put up at the top of the maze. Why hadn't he told him about those? He prevented himself from frowning any further than he had in that moment and looked back to the man while he spoke. "That's good to know, thank you," he said, walking alongside him as they worked their way through the maze towards its exit. He hadn't expected the man to ask to come along, but he supposed it was probably for the best. "Sure, I trust that you know the better hunting grounds then?" He questioned, mismatched gaze looking back over to him again.

"Speech."