[center][h2]Shokatsu Yu[/h2][h3]Sunswept Plains — Riverside[/h3][/center]
"I... You know, fair's fair," Yu said, shrugging and shaking his head as he stared at the riverside. "Big fish are just more of a nuisance than anything; it's the sword I'm worried about..."

Walking closer to the deeper end of the water, the swordsman stared downwards for a few moment and, after seeing that the fish wasn't rising to the surface to chase him off, drew his own sword before simply releasing it into the river. The younger boy stared at Yu in baffled confusion as the Blademaster took a step away, but after a few moments, the sight of that very same fish that had chased him away from the weapon earlier [i]leaping[/i] out of the river and away from his sword left him even more confused.

"Hm. I guess my angle was a bit off...? No, if I had a bit more speed there..." Yu mused to himself before turning back towards the boy still staring at him in shock. "One half of the problem's done; hurry up before that thing comes back, okay? As much as I can chase that thing around, moving that sword underwater's surprisingly difficult..."

His words seemed to shock the boy out of his apparent trance, and with a nod he dove back into the water. However, when he returned without the weapon and with an irritated look on his face, Yu couldn't help but be curious about what the issue was now.

"...It's stuck," the boy spoke before diving back down to try again. This time, however, he returned with the weapon in hand, bare steel slightly warped, chipped, and rusted but otherwise intact.

"The sheath's still down there, but this is still fine," the boy said, placing the weapon off to the side as he dragged himself out of the water fully. "Thank you, mister..."

"Shokatsu is fine," Yu said, looking at the sword and the boy intending to carry it back. "Uh... You sure you want to be carrying that sword back like that the whole way, though? I don't know where your home is, but..."

To this, the boy seemed to realize the issue present in actually bringing the weapon back home, and crossed his arms in a mix of irritation and contemplation.

"...We could bring it back to your place come tomorrow?" the swordsman suggested, glancing at the sun in the sky as it continued to set. "Don't know where you live, but if you're able to make it all the way here and feasibly make it home, then it can't be too far, right?"

Of course, it was up to the others to decide if they wanted to detour in the first place, but... Well, hopefully the two girls would be done with their bath soon enough to be able to make a call on that matter.

[@Sho Minazuki][@VitaVitaAR][@Rune_Alchemist]
[hr][center][h3]Sen Rynta — Sanctuary[/h3][/center]
With entry into the village not being an option, the group of travelers would be left with little recourse but to set up camp outside of its walls. There were a few other groups of travelers there, it seemed, who had fallen victim to the same problem that they had, but at least their presence meant that they wren't alone in their exclusion.

The spot that they had chosen, amusingly enough, seemed to be one right next to what seemed to be an older man who was resting against a tree. With a rice straw kasa upon his head and a simple cotton shirt and pants, he seemed oddly out of place near what was otherwise a very Western-looking townscape, but for the most part the others seemed to pay him no mind as they spoke with their traveling partners. He seemed to remain silent for the most part, his hat tipped over his face to hide it from the remaining sunlight...

At least until he suddenly rose to his feet, startling those nearby. There was a brief pause as the older man turned to look towards the group, his face still somewhat hidden by his hat, before he let out a sigh.

"Aah... Sorry 'bout that. I thought I felt something off just now," he said, his deep and somewhat gravelly voice somewhat familiar to the players nearby for some reason. "Need to go check the source of that out tomorrow..."

As to what 'that' was referring to or who this person was... That would be left to those present to ask and find out if they so wished.

[@Hammerman][@Operator Luna][@A Lowly Wretch]