Hida Ryozo v. Hiruma Zeshin =>
Ryozo initiates the grapple. Ryozo manages to maintain the grapple. Zeshin reaches deep inside for strength and still manages to be pushed out of the ring as Ryozo employs his greater chi. Ryozo wins in 3 successive rounds (3 grapple checks).
Horse Race - Finals
The final course goes around all the Tent City, and over an obstacle course. There are 4 competitors. Shinjo Hansi, Mohiro Rega (the yojimbo of Morito Fume), Soshi Jubai & Seppun Zhei. While all the competitors are good, it isn't hard to figure out that the other 3 while better and had faster horses, allowed Seppun Zhei to win. It would be bad etiquette to appear better than someone of the Imperial Families.
For each of the contest winners, the Unicorn offer 5 Koku.
(Winnings for the group)
Archery - Isawa Hisa
Jiujitsu (Open) - Ichiro Mikio
Swimming - Isawa Hisa
Sadane - Agasha Koro
Calligraphy - Agasha Koro
For the Sumai contest, Hida Ryozo wins a Gaijen Riding Steed, Saddle, Stirrups and Bridal for the horse.
For the Horse Race, a famous Unicorn poet, Nakao Yuminori watched and wrote a poem in the classic Rokugan style about the competition and the exploits of its champion, Seppun Zhei.
After the Tournament finishes and everyone is packing there things, here is what happens in the downtime. (Roleplayed with Lauren).
The next morning he meets with Morito Fume, and they say their goodbyes. Typical pleasantries are exchanged. Fume does say one thing, "Remember it is better to ask your lord for forgiveness, than to beg their permission. A true follower of Bushido takes decisive action. We as men need to take hold of our own destiny."
Koro finds Ujina Ise, and brings her to the tent of Horiuchi Shem-Zhe. Toritaka Hoshiko stands as a yojimbo to Koro. Also present is Isawa Hisa. The guards at the front of the tent usher them in without announcing them. Shem-Zhe and Koro speak pleasantries for a few minutes. Shem-Zhe, then verbally recalls the conversation and the favor Koro had asked on behalf of Ujina Ise.
She was asking for admittance to the Horiuchi Shugenja school. Shem-Zhe then asked Ise-san what her goals were. She did say she wanted to one day found the first Shugenja school for the Hare Clan. Shem-Zhe offers tea and other foods for breakfast while polite conversation continues. Everyone there after a while realizes they have spoken of many things, but Shem-Zhe has spoken little except to ask more questions. Once the meal is done, he pours himself some tea and ponders his thoughts in silence. "Ise-san, Show me!"
Ise-san looks confused and then after a few moments begins the motions of a prayer to the Earth Kami. Shem-Zhe interrupts her, "No, I said Show Me." She is now ever more confused and looks to Koro to see if he understands Shem-Zhe's command, which by the look on his face, one of contemplation and puzzlement, she guesses he does not. Shem-Zhe speaks up, you want to be a teacher, and I see you have talent in speaking to the Kami and a connection to Earth and Fire, but you have not shown me you can teach. Try again. Try it like I am a member of one of the Imperial Families and no nothing about the Kami." After a few minutes of Ujina-san teaching about the ways of the Shugenja and Kami, Shem-Zhe says, "I cannot accept Ujina Ise as a student of my school." Ise-san seems to be near to tears. "But I will take her on as my pupil." This draws a confused look from most everyone (except Shem-Zhe who is smiling). "To accept you into my school would be revealing the secrets of the Unicorn Clan Cipher for the transcription of spells and other personal communications. You would also be privy to the secrets of my clan. By your own admission Ise-san, you do not intend to be a vassal of the Unicorn, but remain loyal to your own clan, something I admire. You were honest about your intentions, and I appreciate that. I will show you the ways of Earth, and how to teach."
(NOTE: Toritaka Hoshiko (Kate) correctly assessed what Shem-Zhe was doing, as did Isawa Hisa (Mike Cahill) and why he wouldn't admit her.)
Shem-Zhe asks is there anything else that Koro wants or needs? Koro asks him about Morito Fume, and why he was scared of the most honorable daimyo of the Unicorn clan? "The tale of Fume is the tale of the Ox Clan itself. They used to be Unicorn's, did you know that? Shinjo Morito not so long ago led a large group of men and women loyal directly to him, on a charge across Dragon Lands, to Northern Phoenix Lands, seizing a castle and lands there, and held them from all attackers for 12 years. For this audacity and boldness, the then Emperor, Tutori I, gave Shinjo Morito and his followers that land. He also named them the Ox Clan, with Morito as their family name. The Ox preach about taking destiny into their own hands. But that is not their whole tale. The rest of it goes back to other events involving the Unicorn." Shem-Zhe finishes speaking and does not elaborate any further.
Now that this is concluded, "Ise-sama, please gather your things and be back here promptly." "Magistrate Agasha Koro-san, I now have a small favor to ask of you. One of your duties as a Magistrate is to write travel papers. I have discovered I need to travel to Phoenix lands in the very near future, with Ise-sama and my small retinue. While I am sure I could get the required travel papers for Phoenix lands once I arrived there, in short amount of time, you could speed along my journey by writing some for me now. Do not worry I can acquire what I need for the other lands I must travel through by other persons."
Koro is a little shocked; he had not revealed he was a magistrate to Shem-Zhe. But he does promise to deliver the papers before he leaves the festival grounds. Shem-Zhe turns to his servants and orders them, to pack up, they will be leaving in 2 hours. This did set a time much earlier than what Koro had planned, so he knew he must write the travel papers quickly. "I will send the travel papers for you and your group with Ise-sama when she returns."
After the appropriate pleasantries and dismissal, everyone exits the tent. Waiting outside are 3 Mantis.
Hoshiko's hand strays towards her tetsubo but she waits for the Mantis to speak.
They bow very respectfully. "Forgive us for not seeing you properly, where you are staying, but thought speaking directly to you immediately was more important. I am Yoritomo Bokkai. We want to apologize for the actions of many Mantis you have encountered these past few days. Myself and my companions, as well as many more that are here disagree with actions taken by members of our clan. We do not condone their actions and will not take responsibility for them, but want to extend our sincerest apologies for any offense (he is looking at Hoshiko directly when saying this) that members of the Mantis clan may have done, and hope you do not judge all of us by the actions of a few?"
Koro speaks, "We accept your apology, and are glad to hear that there are honorable men among the Mantis."
Hoshiko and Koro realize this was the Mantis Bushi who they saw in the distance beyond the courtier when he was speaking to the judges just after the loss by Yoritomo Oda. "There is a division among the Mantis, and I am saddened to see that some others are bringing an internal conflict in my clan, out for everyone to see,"
Hoshiko bows courteously to the Mantis. While present Hoshiko memorizes the faces of each of the men before her. As Koro has already spoken Hoshiko chooses to forgo further words.
Hisa asks the Mantis who he could see to obtain more arrows for his bow. One of the Mantis steps forward, "I had not realized that you were Isawa Hisa, the winner of the archery contest. Please accept these arrows." The man takes the quiver off his back and offers it to Hisa. The quiver contains ten Tsuruchi arrows. Hisa accepts the quiver and pronounces a blessing of the Kami on him.
Koro returns to his tent and has to go through his notes on how to right travel papers. After doing so he brings everyone in to his tent to explain that they are traveling east from here. Koro mentions that we may need to go to the new imperial city though he would really rather not do so. The other possibility would be a journey to the old imperial city. On the way we'll be travelling through lion's lands. Hoshiko suggests obtaining travel papers from a Lion magistrate before leaving the City of the Rich Frog.
Mikio returns to the tattooist and exchanges pleasantries for a few. Mikio offers his thanks and payment to the tattooist. He further offers to spread the word of the tattooists' skills and that his work will be seen every time Mikio steps into the ring.
Mikio asks for directions to a jewelers to which the tattooist offers a series of labyrinthine directions with some pretty good landmarks. Mikio takes his leave of the tattooist and heads to the jewelers, a cousin of the tattooist.
There are two guards at the jewelers' entrance. They are dressed in the colors of brown, black and greys, with no clan mons that could be seen, they are most likely ronin, the only unusual thing to note is that their light armor is very well maintained. They eye Mikio as he enters but do not stop him.
Mikio greets the jeweler politely who asks how he can help. Mikio describes who he was sent by and what he his looking for - a pendant in the shape of a tetsubo made of jade but a simple tetsubo with jade accent would be acceptable. The jeweler explains that he would need a template to work from to create the basic pendant. The other problem is that since the fall of the imperial city the Shogun has sent out a call for large amounts of jade and his people have been purchasing it. Mikio realizes that his plans may need to be placed on hold.
The jeweler mentions a cousin near Otasan Uchi, the fallen imperial city, who may have access to the jade that Mikio would like. Mikio indicates that he would be grateful for the mans name (Merchant Bob).
Mikio obtains directions to a kimono maker from the jeweler and heads in that direction. Mikio is able to obtain a few kimonos and hakama and some other basic supplies. He also manages to obtain a small quantity of various inks and dyes for his scrimshaw.
Mikio goes in search of other scrimshaw supplies. He decides to start with the horns. Mikio finds them around readily available and has a vague memory of them being used for signaling in Badger lands. He's able to obtain a fair quantity of various horns. After which Mikio takes his supplies back to the tent and then goes in search of the Ichiro Dojo.
Mikio stops and asks the guards at the gates to the City of the Rich Frog for directions. The dojo is pretty much in the middle of the city, a nice looking structure with a tori arch. Mikio taps a gong outside the door. A man pokes his head around the door frame and greets him, Ichiro Mikio-san. Mikio looks puzzled and asks if the guard recognizes him. Mikio is reminded that he was in the Sumai tournament. Mikio nods and follows the guard.
Mikio offers a koku for the clan. The servant takes the donation and thanks him for offering yet more this month. Mikio is puzzled by that and asks how often he has been making donations. The servant looks over the records and says two years. Mikio is confused. He explains that there was an accident a few months ago and that he has lost his memory. He has come to the Ichiro dojo to pay his respects and see if anyone there remembers who he is. The servant nods and asks Mikio to wait while he gets the sensei.
Mikio waits and is greeted by the sensei. Mikio asks if they can speak privately. The sensei explains that he keeps nothing from his servant. Mikio begins to explain his accident and his recovery. The sensei raises an eyebrow when Bayushi castle is mentioned. The sensei leads Mikio further into the dojo and rearranges some shoji screens. They sit and Mikio accepts tea. The sensei explains that he met Mikio two years ago but that he hasn't seen Mikio since. He calls his servant in and asks who has been dropping off Mikio's payments. The servant explains that he's been trying to remember since Mikio asked.
Looking through some scrolls he discovers that a magistrate has delivered a payment in Mikio's name every month for the last year, this is a different magistrate than the previous year. Mikio asks if the current magistrate is a local magistrate. The servant say no he doesn't know who she is. The previous magistrate was an imperial magistrate. Mikio asks if the servant knows what kind of magistrate has been making his payments recently. The answer is no the servant didn't want to overstep himself. She is an attractive woman who doesn't wear armor. Mikio asks if they would deliver a message to the magistrate next time she comes through. They agree.
Mikio pens a brief message to the unknown magistrate:
"I travel with Agasha Koro and seek to speak with you as soon as possible." He leaves a small scrimshaw carving of a lotus blossom with the note.
From there Mikio thanks the sensei and his servant for their kindness and returns to the tent to pack up his belongings. Mikio has approximately two koku left.
Koro lets us know that we will be leaving. We will be heading east through Lion lands towards the Imperial City. We are looking for a man by the name of Kasuga Raikaru. Hisa recognizes this as a name of the Tortoise Clan. The Tortoise Clan has imperial connections.
We leave Unicorn lands and enter Lion lands. The trek is much the same as before. We are periodically stopped and have our papers checked. We eventually leave Lion lands and enter what is 'officially' Dragon Lands at the city of Toshi Rambo. The imperial legions are posted here.
We are outside of the city proper in the merchant areas. The Toritaka in our group find this area impressive as, ten years ago, this district didn't exist. It's opulent and but very defensible.
Miko suggests to Koro asking the gate guards if the person we're looking for has arrived as we're supposed to meet him. Mikio remembers Merchant Bob that the jeweler had mentioned. He's supposed to have some connection with the Tortoise clans due to where he conducted business. Mikio turns and walks to the nearest jeweler.
"Konichi-wa, Jewler-san. I'm looking for Merchant Bob who I was told could put his hands on some jade." The jeweler points out that an imperial edict is needed to purchase jade at the moment. Mikio obtains directions to the local caravansary. It's three stalls over and several blocks that way.
On the way, there are a fair number of food stalls. There are even a few Unicorn stalls selling meat on a stick. (Does Koro stop for pork?) We manage to find the caravansary. It's not quite a guild or teamsters union but it's almost as organized. There are a large number of pessant laborers here that are tattooed individuals.
Hisa decides to get established in an inn and asks the innkeeper where the Tortoise elders are located. The clan elder is in the Imperial city itself but there is a high concentration around the trading groups. The innkeep recognizes the name Koro is looking for but can't recall anything past that. He suggest seeing the quarter-master at one of the trading group. Hisa waits for the rest of the party gets organized. Hoshiko follows Koro, Horuto is conned into going by the promise of drinks.
After half an hour, they manage to find the quarter-master of the trading group Hisa was directed to. He is a shaven head man, with lots of tattoos. Hisa asks if the quarter-master knows the man we're looking for. The man is harried, doing several things at once. A servant comes up with a scroll, the quarter-master signs off on it, reaches over and pulls a ladle out of a bucket, drinks some and splashes the rest over his head. "Forgive me, who was it you were looking for again?"
Hisa repeats the name, Kasuga Raikaru. The quartermaster thinks for a few minutes and then recalls a delivery made to the North Hub Village to a man of that name.
Hisa thanks him for the information and asks after a good place to drink. The quartermaster asks how much they want to spend, and once is told then suggests an inn. Hisa performs a blessing of the water kami (Casts: Reversal of Fortune - Water Spell) for him in thanks him again. The group retires to the inn suggested.
Shortly after their arrival a man enters, speaks with the innkeeper and then leaves. Everyone notices this and is a bit suspicious. After a few minutes, the innkeeper brings over a jug of quality sake and explains that it is a gift from the quartermaster for the blessing Hisa performed.
Mikio is still out and about talking to merchants, asking about Merchant Bob. The reaction he gets is a little odd. They call him Crazy Bob. Last they heard Bob was still out at Otosan Uchi. Not a good place. Mikio asks if they recognize the name of the other person that we're looking for. Sadly, they don't. Mikio goes in search of the inn where everyone is staying so he can drop off his gear. Eventually he finds it, drops off his gear and gets a bath. The innkeeper agrees to have Mikio's armor cleaned. After his bath Mikio goes in search of food.
That evening Horuto goes in search of a 'game of chance'. He finds a game with a Dragon and proceeds to play. While it seems that the dragon may have been setting him up to lose Horuto pulls off the win in the end. From there he goes in search of a geisha house. Through the course of the evening Horuto finds that the man we are looking for is an unsavory individual that she has not seen him in a few years.
The next day...
Koro decides, since the man we're looking for isn't here, we're travelling on. After a brief discussion we decide to head overland across the Lion roads to Otosan Uchi. The patrols we come across aren't as tense as we had encountered before. Hisa meets an off-duty Lion with personality at one of the road houses. We don't manage to make any friends but we don't make any enemies either. The discover that the Lion are currently not at war with the Crane, thus the atmosphere on this border is not tense at the moment.
During the morning some of the Lion are willing to spar with us. While they do not have heavy weapons like a Tetsubo or Dai-Tsuchi, a few have No-Dachi.
Mikio & Hisa asks for some instruction on kyujutsu. One of the Lion stands in front of the target, takes his stance, and says, "Whenever you are ready." This shocks everyone, but they soon discover this is a technique that bushi knows, to defend against ranged opponents. Mikio & Hisa spend the morning receiving pointers on their kyujutsu skills as the Lion dodges, deflects or catches arrows, while the other practices shooting at various targets.
Over the course of a few days we make our way to Imperial Lands. One morning we'd been travelling for two or three hours, round a bend in the road and see a village in the distance, this is North Hub Village. (Map Location A5).
5 XP for the evening.