The appearance of an interloper was not something Tianshi had expected. It was often the way of the common people to keep their heads down and carry on with their business in such situations. Some might have considered such cowardice, and yet the nomad would not tarnish their sacrifices with such misguided words: their difficulties were beyond the reckoning of those who would rattle sabers and puff their chests with bravado. Difficulties which would only be made worse if they drew the ire of the soldiers who oppressed them. 

Perhaps that was what made the young man who approached him stand out so well. Despite being a small, slight fellow, he had the courage not only to make his presence known to the soldiers, but to directly contradict Tianshi's own words in encouraging *him* to stand down. Whether it was from some sort of misguided sense of patriotism, or a like-minded desire to avoid conflict, he could not say. But he could not allow the brave young man to interfere in his work. The longer he occupied the troops outside the establishment, the more time to escape those who might be within their sights. With a sternness in his brow, Tianshi's parted to retort toward the young man's words, and yet they seemed to die upon his lips as his eyes followed another encroacher making her way through the crowd. 

[color=708090]"Amitabha..."[/color]

It was often said that the Air Nomads knew nothing of conflict, owing to the sanctity afforded to oaths of pacifism and their dedication to peace. An erroneous thing to believe. For one to strive to avoid conflict—and indeed, to de-escalate it—one needed to have a solid understanding of the flow that led those to clash against one another. The young woman carried herself in such a way that even a pacifist could see the trouble to come, like a storm brewing far over the horizon. When that storm crashed against the rocky shores by the fishery... it was almost inevitable that a fight would be had. Turning with grace, the towering monk bowed his head towards the young man who had interrupted him earlier.

[color=708090]"A thousand pardons for this, young man, but may I ask a favor of you? Please, hold this."[/color]

The heavy sack of grain that hung so easily from his shoulder swung about to hang, instead, before the pale youth. It was Tianshi's hope, of course, that the safety of such precious food be preserved. Whether the young man accepted it from him or not, however, it mattered little. The sound of earth breaking beneath foot and shouting indicated that he had little enough time to argue about tender morsels of rice. If the boy did not accept the sack, it would drop to the ground all the same.

And without its weight in his hands, Tianshi was free to contain the collision unfolding before him. His eyes snapped back to the young woman, brandishing her sword as if the scabbard did not still hang from its blade. He watched carefully as tensions reached their boiling point, and fate turned against them, a boulder hurdling through the air. He was already in motion as it soared forward, even as the girl danced around it and charged the man. It was neither of them he concerned himself with, however. In the span of a heartbeat, he was gone from where he once stood. The wind at his heels carried him into the path of the earthen projectile.

A resonant 'clap' followed as he caught the boulder with his unoccupied hand, the muscles of his arm tensing as he dissipated what energy remained behind it. His fingers were as iron as they gripped along its craggy exterior, lowering it to the ground from which it came. There may have been a battle unfolding, but the location of such a reckless battle was not lost on him: there were still people all around the marketplace, and rarely did stones care to slow for civilians. Much as the wind had carried him to intercept the stone, it carried him into the fray, the imposing monk positioning himself opposite the soldiers and the young woman. Unlike his initial approach, however, his staff came to rest in both his palms, fingers wrapped around it as he brought it to bear.

[color=708090]"I urge you to reconsider your actions! All of you! There is no need for this situation to spiral out of control and devolve into unchecked violence. No one else needs to be injured over this matter."[/color]