It's past the ring itself, on solid ground, that she'd finally stolen away to take a nap. Too dark to sort out her next move upon arrival, and she'd been far too tired. Kiriko had enough energy to hide herself away in the underbrush, the tall reeds and brackish plants along the beach. It seemed safe enough, after all. Hell, after all this time, she was still sleeping with one eye open. When things had gone sideways back home, it was all she could do to run. Her brother had been by her side then, but they'd gotten separated-- that was for the best. An irritating creature, talking far too much and slowing her down. If they wanted to survive they needed to be fast, they needed to be efficient. Frankly, Katsuo had been neither of those things. For now, Kirko is on her own. Blessedly alone.

Dangerously alone.

First light was creeping in from the east. She needed to move, but where was she going? As soundlessly as she could, the girl stole to the water's edge. Carefully washing the sand from her coat in the shallows, shaking herself dry. A soft sigh. This would be good enough for now. Not wanting to expend the energy to catch fish, she turned her attention to the crabs that scuttled in the shallows. Good enough. Swiftly, in one fell swoop, the woman scooped one up in her jaws. A crunch, and the thing went limp. Repeating the gesture one more time... two large, fresh crabs was enough for breakfast.

Carefully, she settled down in the scrubby sea grass to eat her breakfast and come up with some sort of a plan. Was it safe here? It seemed that Kiriko would live the rest of her days looking over her shoulder. May as well get used to it. Always aware, always alert.

Tojo held no dominion over the Ring, it was neutral territory and thus wolves were free to come and go. They sometimes did, but very few wolves ended up pressing this far into the depths of Auster. It was wild and unknown in this region, but there were always signs of life if one took a moment to just look, to pay attention to the world around them. He couldn't say he was overly surprised to see a koi wolf lingering here, having her fill of the ocean's bounties. Directionally wise, it made the most sense for koi wolves to arrive on the east coast of either Boreas or Auster. But he knew that was not always the case, that journeys were not always smooth sailing, as was his.

The koi wolf moved then, seemingly having not noticed him as he lingered at the edge of the ring, moving to take shelter in the shrubs at the centre of the Swallet. For the most part he left strangers be, but koi were...well his kin, in one form or another. Why were they all coming here? What drove them away from the homeland so many held dearly in their hearts? Hattori knew his story, but what of this one? And how would it end?

He stepped closer then, making no move to mask or quieten his steps.

"Hello." He greeted in the deep rumble of their native tongue.

let's stick together just a little bit longer Footsteps. She heard them, but it took Kiriko a moment to figure out exactly where they came from. Her gaze was quick, scanning, darting-- there. How had she not seen him before? The man was massive and, more concerningly, koi. She hadn't gone far enough. Did he know? Would he know? Would he have heard? As long as she didn't let her lineage slip, she should be able to get out of this one unharmed, and maybe with more information. Inwardly, Kiriko steadied herself. She looked the larger man over once, carefully, from her distance. "Good morning," the words in her native tongue, still a balm to her senses. Though her guard was still up, there was no reason she couldn't be polite. Ever-observant, taking in the strange man and the world around both of them. Who was he, and how long had he been away from their homeland? Who was he, and what was the reason he'd gone? What was this place, and what was he to it and it to him? Too many questions. All Kiriko could do now was give a demure smile, and maybe a comment on... the weather? No, she would let him make his move, this time around. It would be safer for her this way.

The woman was polite and amiable but Hattori sensed an edge of hesitancy around her, as though the red of her eyes was watching her far more closely than most would. Her caution was noted but Hattori saw no reason to think on it for too long, some people were naturally more on edge around those they didn't know well, everyone's nature was their own, he supposed. Still, the longer the silver of his gaze remained on her the more he felt as though as though something was familiar, or perhaps off about her. Few kois had such vivid reds like she did, like freshly shed blood.

"What brings you here?" He asked, leaving the question open-ended. Broad, with lots of room to manoeuvre, to respond in whichever way she saw fit.

let's stick together just a little bit longer He questions, but it doesn't feel too invasive. Not yet. The man was making conversation, and it was in Kiriko's best interest to allow it. She'd had plenty of time during their escape to plan her story as well. How long had this man been away from home? Did he know of the uprising? It would have been easy to pass off her initial cover to someone from far away, but her luck had been poor. Kiriko's first encounter here being another koi, and to think she'd gotten far enough away. "Times of uprising will always create refugees," this isn't a lie. She'd been raised in court, and had her mother's looks and charm. The look in her eye was something soft, far-away. Just melancholy enough, and with enough sincerity to really sell her story-- Kiriko hoped. There were parts of her that were genuinely homesick, too. That would help. "Forgive my manners, I am Kiriko," a common enough name that she'd be safe to remain under it. A soft smile playing on her lips, and a bit of charm to color the way she moved, the way she engaged with him. That had to be enough, or so she hoped. Manners, grace, charm. She had it all, as long as she remembered to show it. Some training is hard to shake, even through the paranoia that had come to color her day to day lately.

Times of uprising? Nihon had times of peace like any other nation, but it too had strife like the rest. When he left he knew things were dangling off the edge, the cusp of change drawing ever closer, but he wondered how bad it had truly gotten. What had happened in his absence? If nothing else this was a chance to know and learn. He considered her words for a moment longer, knowing something had happened just not what.

"I have been absent for quite some time, what happened?" He pressed, wishing to know more. And then she supplied her name, notably without a last name. Perhaps she did not have one...but the vivid markings on her coat truly suggested otherwise. His lips pressed thin. "Hattori." He said, watching her reaction carefully, if she was indeed a somebody she would recognise his clan's name, note the weight it carried. Or at least it used to, for all he knew.

let's stick together just a little bit longer He didn't know. Well, he didn't know or he was doing a good job lying about it. Still, it's enough to convince her to relax, even if just a fraction. He didn't know, which meant that maybe this place was far enough to offer some sort of safety. If news traveled this slowly, maybe there was hope for this place after all. Kiriko offers soft, thoughtful eye contact as she speaks, her words clear and tone gentle-- too gentle or the words she speaks. "The emperor has been overthrown, the clans have gone to war trying to determine who will take over." Kiriko narrowly escaped the bloodshed the violence in the process. His name. He's Iga, and that... it makes her feel almost safer. Maybe safer than it should. They didn't discriminate based on bloodline, they would take in anyone who could learn how to fight. Sell swords. Dangerous enemies, dangerous friends, and Kiriko wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of their blade. The girl bowed her head in greeting, in respect for a moment. "I am sorry to be the bearer of bloody news." She speaks softly, a seriousness coloring her tone. How would he take the news, after all?

Hattori knew things were tumultuous in Nihon, there was always conflict in some form or another but to hear that- it had his brows furrowing deeply indeed. He could already think of the names of leaders and clans who would be vying for the throne, rallying their forces to seize what they thought could be theirs. He knew that Iga, in whatever state it now was in, would be vying for the throne as well. Better armed than most, but brute force would not guarantee victory, there were so many cards sprawled out on the table. So many vectors and vectors, things that could go wrong, shift things from bad to worse. Had he hands they would have been pinching the bridge of his snout.

"It is not surprising." He said, noting that she did seem disturbed by these turn of events. Perhaps she'd had a personal stake that had been knocked off the board? "Nihon has always been and will always be a land of change. Is that why you are here? Did you lose?" He pressed, a rather pushy question to be honest. But with markings like that surely she'd been on the board somewhere.

let's stick together just a little bit longer Maybe there is comfort in his lack of surprise. Political unrest wasn't uncommon, and when the king was a tyrant well... it was bound to happen. Kiriko has nothing kind to say of her father, should she be driven to speaking of him at all. No love lost in the spiked heads of dead emperors. Still, there's no telling if this place was truly safe. While the man before her was Iga, what was to say he was the only one of their sort here? Maybe there were others, those who would be far less neutral should they find out. "There's no losing when you have no clan to fight for," the admission comes without bitterness. Kiriko is a bastard. It's the hand she's been dealt, and she has no bitterness or shame in that regard. "There's safety in numbers, of which I had none. I wasn't going to risk being taken as a slave, or worse, so I fled." Well, that wasn't entirely true. If Kiriko had bee caught she would have been killed on sight. Her parentage had been among the worst kept secrets, both the girl and her twin brother likely had a price on their heads. Still, Hattori didn't need to know that. She remains as demure as she can manage with the grim subject hanging between them. "How did you end up so far from home?" It's an innocent question, and a genuine one. That, and Kiriko would be pleased to shift the spotlight off of herself.

Hattori hmmed, it was wise of her to flee, lest she get caught in the crossfire. No one cared who got caught in the middle, it would all be worth it in the end if they emerged victorious. It had always been like that in Nihon during times of unrest, but Hattori admittedly thought it was a needed sacrifice in exchange for times of prosperity. That change wasn't always a bad thing, even if didn't feel like that from the start.

He sensed her question was one of deflection, angling the conversation towards him to shy away from the truth of her situation. As uncomfortable as it may be.

"Similarly to yourself. In a time of unrest, I thought it best to move on." Following his words from earlier, did that imply he'd lost as well? Perhaps, he'd lost his Iga birthright but had gained something just as valuable, in his opinion: Tojo-kai. "Tojo welcomes wayward koi like yourself." Hattori pointed out, leaving the choice up to her.