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Ashes in the Breeze (Japanese Inspired 5e in-character) (nsfw)

Jihi hesitated, unsure whether to tell him the truth or not. He would have to learn eventually, obviously, but something in her wanted to lie, to hold that advantage over him for as long as possible. It took a moment for her better judgment to overcome her instinct.

No, tell him now, she thought. If he can't accept it, it's better to know now, instead of when he's face to face with Mita.

"We've already been up the mountain," she said, moving her head to indicate Kiyoshi. "We found the source of the sickness. A tengu, but he looked...I thought he was sick. He said his partner helped the mountain and its creatures and even the crops in the village, but once they met, his partner started losing their magic. He thinks the village paid you to kill the first tengu. He knew your name. I wondered how he knew your name, but I didn't figure it out until you told me the tengu offered to turn him into once of them. He..."

Jihi closed her eyes at the memory, feeling the lump rise in her throat again. She took a moment to push it back it down before she continued speaking. "He was so sad. He said he'll leave the village alone if we bring you to him." Jihi opened her eyes, her gaze meeting Juzaburo's. "I don't know what he wants you for. He didn't say he wanted to kill you. If he tries, I won't let him. But you have to face him."
 
Juzaburo stared at Jihi for a moment unsure of what she was trying to tell him at first. The tengu was who? He furrowed his brow then it finally clicked. "The tengu is Mita?" He asked tentatively but he knew that's what she meant. "He's the… source of the sickness?" He wasn't exactly sure what that meant. Mita must be angry at the village or specifically him. Juzaburo opened his mouth to ask Jihi more questions but that wasn't going to help any more now that he knew. Closing his eyes he drew a deep breath in and let it out in a huge sigh. Opening his eyes he looked at Jihi. "I'm ready, will you take me to him?" He asked as he stood up. Turning to the bow on the wall he took it down. "I don't plan to fight but I can't die before I meet with him." He explained, wether that meant he didn’t trust them or that he was afraid of any other dangers in the forest it was hard to tell. "I'm ready when you are." It seemed at this point he was ready to be done with it.

If there wasn't anything else Jihi would like to do, the group can make their way up the mountain quite easily. Sunset is approaching.
 
"Thank you," Jihi said, relieved, when he agreed to come. She knew he wasn't coming for her sake, but she was grateful nonetheless. She hesitated when he took the bow off the wall, worried, but decided he had good enough reason to take it. She still didn't know what happened to Naosuke, but he had disappeared and she didn't think Mita had killed him. There were plenty of other dangers outside the village.

She was facing the sun when she exited Juzaburo's house, and low enough in the sky to catch her straight in the eyes. Jihi squinted, then pulled her straw hat on her head, holding its lip down to protect her eyes as she stepped into her sandals. It might be dusk before they reach Mita, and night before they return to the village. If so, Jihi won't suffer from the darkness too badly, but Kiyoshi and Juzaburo will have to rely on her to move about safely. Her hand drifted down to the nunchaku tied at her waist, the light touch reassuring her that they were still there.

Jihi led the way, first returning to the blighted fields on the outskirts of the village before following the stream back up the mountain to Mita's cave. Once the cave entrance was in sight, she stopped and shrugged the backpack off her shoulders before turning to face the two men with her.

"I'm going to talk to Mita-san alone first," she said. "I'll tell you when I'm ready for you to come in. Be careful, it's getting dark."

With a solemn nod, she turned and approached the cave entrance, getting down on all fours to wriggle through the watery tunnel.

Acrobatics roll to enter the cave: 9

A very wet and uncomfortable minute later, she had still made no progress. Sheepishly, she returned to he two men, wiping noxious river water out of her eyes. Looking at Kiyoshi, she asked, "I got stuck again. Can you push my fat butt through the entrance?"
 
Juzaburo and Kiyoshi both followed Jihi up the mountain. Kiyoshi's shuffling gradually was transitioning into a stumble closer to the end of the day as he put himself behind Jihi and in front of the hunter. Juzaburo carried his bow on his back and brought a quiver of a handful of arrows. Kiyoshi grumbled to himself the whole hike up the mountain, presumably complaining to himself.

Once at the cave entrance, Kiyoshi looked at Jihi as she announced she would be going in alone. He raised an eyebrow, hinting at his concern. It seemed he didn't really trust the tengu/Mita or Juzaburo. But perhaps Jihi wanted him to stay with Juzaburo to keep an eye on him. He watched as Jihi failed to get through the rushing water of the cave entrance. A wet Jihi returned requesting help from Kiyoshi. Trudging with her to the entrance, he took her pack from her and set it aside. "Might be easier without this weighing you down." With that Kiyoshi helped Jihi through the cave entrance, pushing her through, yes he did cop a feel of her butt. But was he too drunk to notice? Maybe.

The cave was like before, but with passive perception, Jihi could hear a sloshing. Like liquid being poured into another liquid.
 
Kiyoshi attempted to take Jihi's back, but she wrapped her hand around one of the straps and held fast. "No! I need that."

Jihi took the bag off, but held it to her chest. "I'll hold it in front of me when I go through the passage, so it won't make it any harder for me to fit, but I can't leave it here. I have a plan."

She didn't mind Kiyoshi copping a feel, if it was even deliberate. It would be hard to avoid it while pushing her through the entrance, and anyway, she could at least give him that much after dragging him up and down the mountain and around the village all day long. Once inside the cave, she stood up, feeling the water dripping off of her, and looked around.

Some of the other youths in her hamlet had believed she could see perfectly well in the dark, but that wasn't actually true. Her superhuman senses only reduced pure darkness to twilight; she could see well enough to move around without tripping over or bumping into things, but the darkness could still conceal much from her. Jihi walked cautiously forward, following the sloshing sound, trying to spot Mita or anything else in the cave.
 
As Jihi made her way into the cave, she'd start to notice the dim fire light in the larger cave ahead. Rounding a corner she'd spot the tengu, Mita, dumping a pot of some sort of slop into the water of the cave lake. It was the pot that Jihi had seen earlier brewing something awful. Placing the pot back over the fire, Mita began throwing bits and pieces of animal into the pot along with some other ingredients from a pouch on his hip before citing an incantation. Suddenly he looked up and over to the entrance. "Who's there??" It asked frantically. But as it's human-like brown eyes focused, it spotted Jihi. "Oh, it's you." It seemed much more calm than before. "Did you bring the hunter? Or did they convince you to kill me, the village."
 
Jihi gazed into those eyes for a moment, more human than her own. It seemed so obvious now. How had she missed it before?

"I brought Juzaburo-san, but we need to talk first," she said. She knelt on one knee, placing her backpack on the cave floor. Reaching inside, her hand dug through her other supplies to the bottom, finally pulling out the metal urn. It was heavy and solid, sealed securely with wax and tied shut with twine just in case, but she held it as carefully and gingerly as fine glass.

"These are the ashes of my mother," she said softly, looking down at the urn for a moment before up at the tengu. "She died just a few days ago. I'm taking her ashes back to her home. I've never been there...she came a long way to birth me at a hamlet not far from here. Raiders came to us, and...and she protected us. Alone. I saw her fighting them, but I didn't help. I didn't think I could, but...I could have."

She felt hot tears in her eyes and scrunched them shut, turning her face away for a moment. When she opened her eyes again, the tears rolling down her cheeks, she was looking down at the urn. "I should have."

She looked back at the tengu. "I know it's not the same, but I loved her. I loved her more than anyone else in the world. I thought she'd be there forever, and now she's just...not. She's gone. So I...I..."

A sob escaped her lips, and she tried to pull back from the feelings, at least enough to get the next words out. This was important.

"The village didn't hire Juzaburo-san to kill your partner. Most of them don't even know he did it. Shiroma-sama didn't ask him to do it, he thinks the village is cursed because of it. Juzaburo-san did it because he thought your partner lied to you. He thought your partner killed you, Mita-san. I know that doesn't help with the pain, but you have to know that."

She blinked the tears out of her eyes, her voice steadying. "I won't let you kill him."
 
Mita watched Jihi as she spoke. He watched as she pulled the urn from her bag. A heavy burden for her to bear alone. He felt her sadness, her grief as his face twisted into a somber look. A shimmer in his eyes as if about to cry. Jihi had been through something similar, she was telling him she knew how he felt. Then a shift, his facial expression returned to the one before. She knew his name and who he was. "How did you find out?" He muttered. She announced that she wouldn't let him kill Juzaburo. "If you found out… then does he know?"

Mita started to pace. Long gangly limbs lumbering in circles. "If I can't have revenge then how can I make it up to my partner for not helping?? For hiding as Juzaburo confronted them? Like you said yourself, there was a chance I could help… but now I can feel like I'm doing something for them." The tengu hissed. "What makes you think you can stop me if I wanted? I'm strong now-" Mita cut himself off abruptly. He calmed, pacing ceased and he looked over at Jihi, perhaps finally understanding. It seemed although Mita was a tengu now he was a hybrid, something between human and tengu. Perhaps the most human thing about him still was his emotions. "Fine, I won't kill him. But I want to speak with him alone."
 
Insight roll to gauge if Mita really won't kill Juzaburo: 5

Jihi hesitated, trying to pick apart Mita's words. She couldn't tell if his promise not to kill Juzaburo was genuine or not. Her mind raced. I won't let you speak with him alone. Could I convince him? That just means he won't say what he needs to say. What if I snuck up on them and listened without them knowing? No, he'll probably speak with him in the cave, and I can't get through the passage without making noise. What if...

There was nothing she could do. She would have to trust him. She nodded, then knelt down and stowed the urn back in her backpack. "I'll send him in here. Me and the swordsman will wait outside."

She turned and started towards the cave entrance, then hesitated. Looking back over her shoulder, she said sheepishly, "You may have to give me a push."

Once outside, however long it took, Jihi returned to Kiyoshi and Juzaburo. Her gaze turned to the setting sun on the horizon. The day was ending. She only hoped something else was ending, too. If not, it would be a cold and ugly night.

"He'll talk to you," she told Juzaburo quietly. "He says he won't hurt you, but he wants to speak to you alone."
 
Mita's eyes traced Jihi through the darkness as she made her way back to the entrance. Following her, he watched her exit. It didn't take much effort from her part to get out of the cave, the more difficult part was getting in. But the tengu was prepared, albeit a bit apprehensively, but prepared to give Jihi a helping hand through the opening.

Kiyoshi and Juzaburo were facing each other, staring each other down as if playing a match of shogi in their heads. Both of them looked over to see Jihi approaching. "Fine." The hunter responded. He approached Jihi and took his bow and quiver off his back. He shoved them into Jihi's arms before heading towards the cave entrance. He turned back to Jihi, pausing for a moment. "You're far too kind." Then he proceeded to gingerly climb his way into the entrance.

Moments passed and the sun set. Before any torches or lanterns could be lit. Jihi would notice a number of fireflies as they began to glow dimly in the forest around them. Soon Juzaburo would emerge from the darkness holding a torch that he had lit inside the cave. "Girl, he wants to talk to you." If Jihi decided to go back into the cave Kiyoshi would certainly help easily.
 
Jihi was so surprised at the bow and quiver being pushed into her arms that she almost missed Juzaburo's comment. It was only a second later that she looked up at him, confused, but by that time he had already turned away and was entering the cave. How could someone be too kind? The village could have starved if she hadn't done something, she couldn't have just walked away. Or was he being sarcastic? If so, what did she do?

She made a mental note to gauge his emotions as they went back down the mountain and tried to forget about the comment, but continued to bother her until she saw the fireflies emerging around her. The pinpricks of light were calming, and she took a deep, slow breath, feeling the stress flow out of her. The beauty around her wasn't concerned with Mita and Juzaburo's drama. It would continue regardless. No matter what happens, the sun will rise tomorrow, and life will go on.

She looked back to see the brighter light of Juzaburo's torch. She was somewhat surprised that Mita wanted to talk to her alone. She handed the bow and arrows back to Juzaburo, started to walk towards the cave, then paused.

"Come on," she said, turning back to Kiyoshi and waving for him to follow. She wouldn't even bother to try getting through the passage alone. Once Kiyoshi had helped shove her through, she continued to the dark cave until she found Mita.
 
Mita was standing in the cave, not really doing anything. The fire was still lit but the pot had been set aside. He had a somber look on his face and perhaps was feeling a bit contemplative. As Jihi entered the cave, he slowly turned his head to look at her. His eyes looked tired. "You've brought the hunter to me, though I was planning on getting revenge, I thought of what you told me. I decided not to kill him. We talked. But more importantly you held up your end of our deal. I'll stop poisoning the water." He hung his head as if he was perhaps a bit disappointed in himself.

"I'd like to give you something. For being so kind to me and so trusting." He looked at Jihi once more before stepping towards her. Reaching into the sack on his hip he pulled out a small, leather bound book. It was unassuming and featured nothing on the cover or back. He held it out for Jihi to take. "It's a spell book. I was quite fascinated with magic so I bought it from someone awhile ago, I wasn't capable of magic till I was turned into a tengu. But… I don't really have use for this anymore. Tengu have a different way of casting spells. Perhaps you'd be able to use it." As soon as Jihi took the book, he would back away. Kicking some dirt onto the fire he would extinguish it. Jihi would be able to see well enough to find her way out but Mita disappeared into the dark.

Outside of the cave Kiyoshi waited for Jihi. The fireflies seemed to be attracted to him but he kept drunkenly swatting at them. Though he never once hit one, no matter how hard he tried. Taking his gourd he emptied the last drops into his mouth before shaking it and banging the side. Juzaburo was nowhere to be found.
 
Jihi listened silently as Mita spoke. She maintained eye contact at first, but she looked down at the book as he handed it to her, taking it in both hands. She turned it over in her hands, inspecting the front and back, until the light of the fire went out.

"Thank you," she said, looking back up. "...Mita-san?"

Jihi looked left and right, but Mita was nowhere to be seen. The cave was dark, cool, and silent. More peaceful than before, perhaps, but lonely. "I just wanted to say...I'm sorry this happened to you."

She secured the book in her backpack before leaving, ensuring it was protected from the river's water. Emerging, she saw Kiyoshi waving at fireflies, then turned her eyes up to the sky. It was already night, and while descending the mountain would be a lot faster than climbing it, it would still be well into night before they returned to the village. Shiroma would definitely be asleep by the time they got back. She'd have to see him in the morning. She reached into her backpack as she approached Kiyoshi.

"Here," she said, holding out the remainder of the sho she got from the innkeeper. "Your half of the reward. Let's head back to Horozawa. Do you know if eight mon will be enough to find a bed for the night?"
 
Kiyoshi peered at gold through the dim moonlight. "You could've waited till you got paid." He muttered but took the coin anyway. He wasn't about to give up drinking money. Kiyoshi heard Jihi's query about 8 mon being enough for a bed. "Sure, if you wanna sleep in a hostel with a buncha other people." He stumbled through his words. Bumbling down the mountain, the surprising thing was that Kiyoshi didn't fall once. "Come on." He grumbled beckoning Jihi to follow.

Stumbling through the village, Kiyoshi made his way back to the inn/bed and breakfast Jihi had stayed at previously. Bumbling through the door, he was greeted by the receptionist, who received him with an apprehensive look. But she would light up at the sight of Jihi, if she followed. "Room for two…" he'd mutter.

"Okay, two sho-" she was interrupted by Kiyoshi handing her a handful of gold coins. A couple of which fell and bounced off the floor. "Bring booze and food." He grumbled.

"Right then… right this way." The receptionist led Kiyoshi to the rooms in the back after he kicked off his sandals. Not as nice as the one Jihi had stayed in but nice enough relatively. The inn wasn't as busy at this time of night but a couple of patrons shuffled around the halls perhaps heading to the bath or to their room. Upon entering the room Kiyoshi would immediately flop onto the floor, the floor shook as his body hit the tatami.
 
Jihi returned the receptionist's look with a smile of her own, but was slightly taken aback when Kiyoshi paid for a room for two. The implication was clear. She thought back to that morning, when the very first thing Kiyoshi had expressed to her was an assumption that they'd fucked the previous night. Clearly, he was interested. The question was, was Jihi?

She thought about it as they approached the room. She didn't dislike him. He'd been nicer to her than she'd expected, and she did find him attractive. That wasn't unusual; she found most people attractive by default.

He said to bring booze and food, she thought. I have until we finish a meal to decide. It did not even occur to Jihi that he could violently force himself on her. While she as aware of the concept, obviously, she'd never worried about it in her hamlet, where everyone knew each other and such a betrayal couldn't happen without consequences.

Jihi watched Kiyoshi flop onto the tatami, then shrugged the backpack off her shoulders and set it out of the way in the corner. Stepping over to him, she dropped to her haunches and looked him in the eye.

"Have you been drunk all day long?" she asked, somewhat incredulous. "I thought I liked to drink, but I do other things, too. Don't you do anything else?"
 
"Hmm?" Kiyoshi leaned back on his palms and crossed his legs. "Oh, yyyeah… all dayy." He managed to say with minimal slurring. "What do you mean? I do plenty of stuff…" he paused and looked up at the ceiling perhaps contemplating. "Like… drink and do… jobs? Yeah, like I did a job today with you." He nodded to himself. "But what else is there to do besides drink? I guess there's talking to people, that's always fun… ya know I just wake up and do stuff." He waved his hand dismissively.

Soon after Kiyoshi stopped talking, the door slid open and one of the inn's servers entered carrying a table, a huge bottle of sake and cups."Finally!" Kiyoshi let out as it seemed he was more interested in the alcohol than anything else. He snatched the bottle out of their hands and immediately took a drink. "Uhm, your food will be ready in one moment." The server bowed and exited, sliding the door shut. Kiyoshi ignored the cups and held the bottle straight out to Jihi without a word as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve. It was pretty clear that Kiyoshi was sloshed at this point but chose to keep drinking.
 
"I don't mean jobs," Jihi said. "That's work. What do you enjoy? Things you do because you like it, not because you have to do it to live. Just drinking and talking to people?"

Talking to people was something, at least. Jihi liked talking to people, too. She was going to expand on that when the server entered with the sake. She managed to smile and thank the server before Kiyoshi chased them off. When offered the bottle, she took a big drink, forgoing the cups as well.

She didn't bother putting the bottle back on the table, just handing it back to Kiyoshi. She hoped the food got here soon. She didn't like to drink on an empty stomach, and she hadn't eaten since that morning. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until forced to count the seconds until the meal arrived.

She dropped from her haunches into a sitting position, her legs still up close to her chest, but leaned back slightly on her hands. She looked at Kiyoshi crookedly. Maybe he wasn't planning to fuck her; he looked like he might pass out from the alcohol pretty soon.

"You're a traveler, right?" she asked. "Do you have a home? How about friends? Is there anyone special to you?"
 
"I enjoy drinking." Kiyoshi grumbled in response as he took the bottle from Jihi, reiterating what she already knew. Tipping the bottom up he took a swig from the bottle and then handed it back to Jihi. "Traveler yeah, vagrant to most and despicable ronin to some. What do you mean special to me? I have myself and my sword that's all that's special to me." He let out a belch and removed the sword from his waist and set it aside. He was swaying gently like a tree in the wind.

Finally the door slid open once more and two of the inn's employees quietly stepped in. Each one held a tray of food, similar to the feast Jihi had enjoyed previously. They placed the trays onto the table opposite each other, then quickly bowed out of the room closing the door. Kiyoshi scooted closer to the table and instead of sitting opposite Jihi, he sat on side to her right. He started to dig in like a starving wolf. Either he was too drunk or didn't care, but he certainly had a lack of table manners when eating with another person.

The whole time while eating and drinking, sharing the bottle with Jihi. He kept glancing at Jihi quizzically, like the drunk gears were turning in his head. He would continue to talk to Jihi but after he was done eating he'd toss his chopsticks onto the tray and lean back onto his palms.
 
"It just seems lonely," Jihi said, taking another drink from the bottle. "This is the first time I've ever left my home. I'm traveling alone, but when I'm done, I'm going to go back and be with the people I love. You don't want something like that?"

She leaned forward to get a better look at his face and felt her head swim. The alcohol was affecting her already. "I don't even know why you'd get drunk if you had to do it alone."

She was happy for the food when it arrived, plucking bits with her chopsticks around Kiyoshi's long arms. Her table manners weren't much better than his, but she tried to avoid getting in his way. Nevertheless, her skin would brush over his more than once, or her body would press against his.

She continued to pick at the food once he was done. She was well buzzed now, and felt a burp escape her lips before she knew it was coming. She covered her mouth, looking at him sheepishly, before speaking. "So. Where are you going next?"
 
"I don't have anyone or anyplace to go back to." Kiyoshi mumbled, but he didn't really make eye contact with Jihi as she leaned forward. Another drink and he handed the bottle back to Jihi, he was clearly swaying now. The small burp didn't even register with Kiyoshi at first. He shrugged in response to Jihi's question. "I dunno, maybe the big city, I hear they have a lot of booze there." He mumbled. A long pause, then a loud and prolonged burp came out of Kiyoshi. "That's how you burp. Just let it out, I don't care."

It looked like he was on the verge of being black out drunk if he wasn't already. Suddenly he leaned into Jihi, perhaps he was just falling over. Hand fell/slid onto her thigh. At this point either on purpose or he realized what he was doing, he looked up at Jihi and gazed directly into her eyes. His head tilted just so slightly to the side and he leaned in slowly in a direct trajectory to her lips. Then he stopped, face close to hers. Then in a very drunk fashion, boldly asked Jihi, "wanna fuck?"
 
Jihi matched Kiyoshi's gaze, biting her lower lip slightly. She did want to...but he was just so drunk. If they did, he might not even remember it in the morning. Given what he'd said when they first met, that may not be unusual for him, but Jihi still didn't feel comfortable with it. It felt like a violation, even if he'd initiated it.

"You don't want to fuck me," she finally said, pushing him gently but firmly away with one hand. "I've been splashing in poisonous river water. So have you! What if we still have it on our skin?"

She stood up, straightening her clothes. "Wait here for a second. I'll be back." She moved to the door, then turned and pointed at Kiyoshi. "Don't fall asleep."

She swayed slightly as she walked, but she wasn't as drunk as she was last night and could navigate the building easily. "Excuse me!" she called out to one of the inn's employees, holding her remaining money. "I want to rent a bath, just for me and my friend. Will eight mon be enough?"
 
Jihi pushed Kiyoshi back and fell over like a tree with shallow roots in the wind. He flopped back onto the tatami, perhaps too drunk to keep himself up. Sitting up on his forearms he looked at Jihi. At first with a look of confusion, like he couldn't put the pieces together on why she wouldn't just say yes. Then at the mention of the stink water, he looked at his arm for a second and took a sniff. Then he watched as Jihi stood up, he furrowed his brow as she told him not to fall asleep. Of course in his mind he didn't intend to.

Out in the hall the inn employee shuffled quickly up to Jihi as she called out to them. "Yes? … oh a private bath?" They nodded and realized who Jihi was. "Oh, you're the girl who put the show on! Yes, normally it is 8 mon but for you 4 mon will be enough." They smiled at Jihi, then once given the money, they bowed deeply. "One moment and your bath will be ready. You may proceed to the private bath when you're ready." They bowed once more before shuffling away quickly.

In the room Kiyoshi was sprawled out on the floor. At first it looked like he might've been asleep but after he took a swig from the bottle of sake that wasn't the case. He was staring at the ceiling, perhaps if he would've been alone he might've passed out there.
 
"Onetwothreefour..." Jihi handed over the money and smiled, slipping the remaining coins back into her pocket. "Thank you!"

She turned on her heel, too quickly, and had to throw out a hand to brace herself before slamming into a wall. Returning to the room, she found Kiyoshi on the tatami where she left him. She was afraid he'd fallen asleep until she saw him drink. She stepped into his field of vision, looking down at him for a moment before swinging a foot over his torso and dropping to her haunches, squatting over her midsection.

"Let's give the sake a break," she said, taking the bottle and setting it aside. "Time to get you - uff - cleaned up..."

Jihi grabbed Kiyoshi's kimono by the lapels, straining to lift him to his feet. Assuming she could (probably with his help), she helped him to the private bath, pushing the door open with her foot as she struggled with his weight. Once inside, she closed the door after them, then gave Kiyoshi a mischievous smile.

"Look at you," she said, her eyes traveling the length of his body. "What a mess. I guess it can't be helped. I'll have to lend you a hand."

She slipped her hands under the lapels of his kimono, her palms stroking over his chest for a moment, before she slid them over his shoulders and down his arms, spreading the kimono and slipping it off his shoulders. "Time for a bath," she said quietly. "Take your clothes off."
 
Kiyoshi watched quietly as Jihi squatted down over him. Then the bottle was yanked out of his drunk grip, he tried to swipe it back, but his aim was off as he waved his hand through the air. He was also much slower than he thought he was. A grumble emanated from his throat until he was pulled up by Jihi first to a sitting position then he managed to get his feet underneath him as he stood up, wobbling as he did. "I can.. walk." He muttered but much of his weight was supported by Jihi.

Kiyoshi was effectively dragged into the bath by Jihi and one the door closed he stared at her as she looked him up and down. Her hands slipped into his kimono, palms running over his chest, feeling him. Shrugging his shoulders he helped the kimono fall off down to his waist. He flashed Jihi a cheeky grin. Then doing as he was told began to undress. First the kimono, undoing the sash that held it closed he let it fall to the floor. Then his pants as he untied them and pulled them down. His body was lean, muscular, perfect for swinging a sword but with a bit of a gut. Scars dotted his body, evidence of being slashed, gashed and stabbed. Then finally the loin cloth fell to the floor as he stood in front of Jihi nude.
 
"Mmm," Jihi hummed approvingly, brazenly admiring Kiyoshi's body for a moment. He was strong, but soft enough to squeeze around the midsection. It reminded Jihi of one of the boys back home. She'd never seen scars like that before, though, which was exciting.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" she asked. "Get in the bath. I'll be right there. Just don't drown, I don't think I'm strong enough to save you." Before Kiyoshi could even turn away, she was removing her coat. She had nothing underneath, and made no attempt to cover herself as she folded the coat in her arms. Crossing the room to a corner, she bent down to place the coat carefully in place before she hooked her thumbs under the waist of her trousers and slid them over her hips and down her legs. She kept her back to him as she stepped out of her pants, then bent over again to fold them and set them aside with her coat. She had nothing underneath her clothing, and turned to face Kiyoshi as she removed her black hair ribbon, letting her white hair fall freely over her back and shoulders.

She walked to another corner where the soap and washcloth were located. She made no attempt to cover herself and, indeed, stretched her arms over her head gratuitously as she walked. Kiyoshi had been a good boy and deserved a show. Collecting the soap and washcloth, she slipped into the bath, sighing in pleasure as she felt the warm water. After multiple trips up and down a mountain and around the village, that felt good.

"Now, let's get you nice and clean," she said, moving closer to Kiyoshi and soaping the washcloth. She approached him from the front, but moved around behind him, her free hand tracing up the side of his body as she leaned in close to whisper in his ear. "Just relax and leave ev-ery-thing to me."

She pressed her back to his front and draped one arm over his shoulder, letting her free hand linger on his chest. Her fingers teased one nipple as she ran the washcloth over his body, starting with his shoulders, then down his arms, returning to soap up his chest before drifting downward. She sank lower behind him, until her face was barely above the surface of the water, so she could reach his legs. The washcloth rubbed over his belly before descending to his cock, gripping it through the fabric and giving it a few firm strokes before gently wiping over his scrotum, then continuing down one leg. Her free hand replaced the washcloth on his penis, stroking him slowly but continuously as she wiped down one thigh, then the other. Only at that point did she rise back up, both her hands leaving his body so she could soap up the washcloth further.

"How's that so far?" she whispered in his ear, subtly rubbing her body against his back.
 
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