jikan_network | [video] un: matsukaze

[Not everyone is a natural at public speaking— the samurai in the video makes it clear he's counted among the many that struggle with this with the way he shifts after he turns the video on, almost pulling his leg up into a more casual sit, before resettling into seiza. He smiles but it's hesitant, guarded.]

Hello. Some of you may be seeing me for the first time— I'm Kaedehara Kazuha.

I wanted to make an announcement and an offer. I recently acquired a license to conduct blade-making business here in Nippon. As the last successor of the Isshin Art, it's my duty to my ancestors to restore our traditional smithing practices.

[He doesn't have this all as well planned out as he hoped, as he pauses after, his eyes lowering thoughtfully, somewhat hesitant.]

Some of the techniques cannot be replicated with the materials usually available in Nippon and I am admittedly inexperienced, though I hope to prove myself through skill. I plan to experiment utilizing the local magics and hopefully, eventually kizuna.

...I do not take commissions currently. However, I am offering free restorations, reforging, and other services on existing weapons, in exchange for being given time to study your weaponry.

Thank you.

[He smiles at the camera, bows a little in gratitude, then shuts it off.]

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[Oh! A familiar face. Kazuha smiles brightly at Cloud, though the offer takes him a bit by surprise.]

Thank you. I would be in your debt, Cloud.

[But he's not inclined to decline said offer. Still, such generosity is worth some small talk. After all, it's been a bit of time since the housewarming.]

It has been some time. It looks like you've settled in quite well.

[ Honestly? While he has his own fighting style, and what he undertakes now is under a different art entirely, the young samurai was never far away in his thoughts when thinking of what helped spark this path. A friendly yet informative duel had done a lot to settle in the blond's mind. His own expression softens, not quite as bright as Kazuha as he settles into the small talk right back. ]

Surprisingly... [ He shrugs. ] Life in Nippon is nowhere near what I'm used to back home. Finally saved enough to move out to my own place.

[Let's be real, Kazuha would be happy to kick his ass again, maybe show him a thing or two about hitting people with a sword art made for breaking swords. It's useful information, and the samurai looks fondly back on that sparring.

He might like fun little combat duels a little too much.]

That's wonderful to hear. I hadn't begun living indoors until I had lived in Nippon for several months, though I understand most are eager to settle into a home. Have you chosen a place in the western or eastern kingdom?

[ Unaware of the samurai's penchant for traveling far from home, Cloud's curiosity is piqued. ]

Not even back in Inazuma? [ For a family of blacksmiths, he would think that he would have a place to stay... But then, that's his ignorance asking such a question. Cloud wants to understand. Regardless of how he answers though, ]

Over west, out in Kyoto. It's just a down payment, but once I get a license for myself, I won't hafta count on so many odd jobs.

Haha. [No offense is taken at the questioning at least.] My clan used to be subservient to the Kamisatos, but the Kaedeharas have long since collapsed and my ancestral home repossessed during the war. I make my home all of the earth, with the sky as my blanket at night, and go freely wherever the wind leads me.

[A lot of words to say he's a homeless wanderer in Teyvat. He doesn't seem to mind though, smiling brightly at Cloud still.]

Kyoto as well, hm? If you find yourself to the south in Wakayama, please feel free to visit.

[ So they're knit with the Kamisato Clan too... More pressing, however, is that Kazuha so nonchalantly speaks of losing his own home during a war. The only war he can think of, that he's been made aware? ]

The Vision Hunt Decree?

[ Regardless, he's glad that it's passed over, and that the Raiden Shogun has since loosened her stance in more ways than one. Yet still, this man continues to wander. The way he describes it though...it doesn't sound sad in the slightest. If anything, there's a sense of liberty to his words. Which is why his expression doesn't falter so much upon taking it in. ]

Mm. Found a smaller house around the same neighborhood as the Kamisatos. [ So there's familiarity there! ] I will. I just passed through Wakayama while doing a job with someone from Teyvat.

[ Sure, the Traveler may have made a myriad of connections with people, but he couldn't just go and assume everyone knew Aether! ~~Assume this, Cloud. Save yourself the time and assume this. KFJLDHSA~~ ]

Mm, so you know about that.

[Though it was a dark time in his life, filled with pain, loss, fear, and suffering, it's past him now. His time since then in Nippon and away from his homeland in Liyue since the war have helped calm some of the storm it had made in his heart.

He's not surprised that Cloud knows about it though. It was hardly a secret that the Inazumans here have recently experienced civil war.]

Yes, I had to flee Inazuma as I didn't want to be arrested. I'd become a fugitive that would have been executed for treason during the war, should the Shogunate have captured me.

[A much different position than what Ayaka and Ayato were in, though he just smiles and folds his hands together, resting one of his forearms on his knee as he pulls his leg up.]

Did you? I live to the very south in Shingu, though I have been through the Northern Wilds... I do not recommend it, even for seasoned warriors. Was this companion someone I might know?

Mm. Between Ayaka and an oni named Itto, I got the gist. Getting the equivalent of your ambition taken from you... [ At least. That's how Eula described a Vision. Rather than trail on it for too long, Cloud simply shakes his head with a gentler breath. ] Glad it's over now.

[ He doesn't quite realize it, watching Kaedehara as he shifts on camera, but as he settles down and listens, Cloud's finding himself relaxing further in kind. Enough so that while he doesn't mimic the samurai, he's fallen out of his seiza posture in exchange for letting his legs set to one side, leaning against his hand. ]

You can say that again... [ Meaning that...yyyeah the Northern Wilds weren't gonna be a place he visited any time soon. ] Could say he's a fellow traveler. You know a guy named Aether?

Yes... It was a very dark time in Inazuma. Though it is in the past now, many did not live to see the end of it. I find their sacrifice inspirational. My homeland will prosper under the new peacetime.

[Perhaps stories of his time at war were best done in person rather than over the network, so Kazuha just smiles, a rather light expression for someone who just confessed to having been considered a treasonous rebel.

They have that in common though, don't they? Really, they should swap stories. He certainly wants to know more about Cloud.]

Oh! Yes, Aether and I share a deep friendship. He's someone I will easily trust with my life and inner thoughts.

Good...

[ It's only been a few months, but his connection through stories and the people of Kazuha's world has only continued to deepen with the passing days. He may have his own responsibilities and journey to undergo back home, but in a way, the time he's made here has turned these people and the land he walks a home away from home. If the Vision Hunt Decree were still in effect and he had some way of helping, Cloud would have easily passed it off as some mercenary's offer. For the right price, he'll fight for the side that needs him most.

~~Even if that payday never comes.~~ ]

He sure knows how to make an impression. [ A beat. ] Then again, I still owe you back from our duel.

[ Which meant that Cloud may be making a return trip to Wakayama sooner than later. And not just for another clash. The Kaedehara Clan shared a connection with not only the Yashiro Commission especially, but the head clan of it.

[video] un: matsukaze

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