Ryozan nodded at Matsuka's retort about a ramen stand being a bad place to set up an ambush. She was clearly well-versed in the art of war, and was definitely worthy of her rank of jounin, but Ryozan was beginning to enjoy this hypothetical duel too much to just let it rest at that. Besides, now he had the feeling that she was pretty firmly opposed to the Empire, if not an outright rebel. Why would a supporter's fingers need to be a mere flick away from opening a summoning scroll just from being in the presence of one holding an imperial document? It revealed hostility toward the empire, and was far from a submissive posture to take. She certainly fit the demeanor of a rebel. Still, Ryozan decided to continue with the hypothetical scenario: "You are assuming of course that said backup is not [i]in[/i] said ramen stand." That didn't come out right; it didn't sound nearly as ominous in his head. Fortunately a quirky old man arrived to diffuse some of the tension.

Ryozan recognized the man as Takeo Watanabe, a highly distinguished shinobi in Konohagakure, as well as other parts of the world; the leaf symbol carved into his shoulder guard made his identity unmistakable. What surprised the young jounin, though, was that such a distinguished figure would make such a lewd comment. "With all due respect sir, you are mistaken," he said, not at all flustered since it was pretty obvious that he was just trying to tease his friend... his [i]friend.[/i] The gears were turning now. If Matsuka was allied with the rebels, and Takeo was her friend, it was likely that he would be a rebel as well... or at least unhappy to see someone with an imperial scroll. Was he one of those who would be happy to put a blade in his side? Being surrounded by elite jounin was a bit more than he had bargained for; perhaps now was the time to take Matsuka's advice and tuck the scroll away... No. It was too late for that now. A shinobi like Takeo would easily see such a reckless move. Doing nothing with the scroll would be the least suspicious thing he could do now. Well, that and taking another bite of ramen.