[Day 10 - Early Evening] The Showdown

[Bayushi Kazushi]

Kazushi raises an eyebrow, then shakes his head.

"Where information is concerned," he says with a sigh, "every lost moment is costly in the extreme. What can be uncovered, must be, and with agents of the opposition still in action, control of the narrative must be established. After all, we want this to be the story of a triumphant if costly rescue, not of a blow struck against the governor's inner circle that raises questions about security, do we not?"

(OOC Note: Insensitive + no Void remaining means Kazushi's not going to be able to be eased off on emotional grounds.)

[Yasuki Honoka]

Kazushi raises an eyebrow, then shakes his head.

"Where information is concerned," he says with a sigh, "every lost moment is costly in the extreme. What can be uncovered, must be, and with agents of the opposition still in action, control of the narrative must be established. After all, we want this to be the story of a triumphant if costly rescue, not of a blow struck against the governor's inner circle that raises questions about security, do we not?"

(OOC Note: Insensitive + no Void remaining means Kazushi's not going to be able to be eased off on emotional grounds.)

"What we need now is compassion, Bayushi-san. A plea I have made in as polite a manner as possible. However, if my hand need be forced," she would straighten her posture, giving her a subtle ability to lay her hand for a calming touch of Crabbo, the plush, at her side. "You are a visitor here. A visitor whom deals in fashion trends, and clothing. Whatever aid you might be able to offer the magistrate, I am certain Kuni Junpei will call for you if he needs. However, until such a time, I demand you vacate this premises. Should you wish to persist, you must do so with the full authority granted by Kuni Junpei. Whom I will be certain is aware of what I have asked of you should you bring him forth," she says, sternly.

There is a little shake to her shoulders that only seems to find reinforcement when she feels Hiroto stand behind her. Discretely, the man was ready for what he could sense was coming but Honoka was too focused to notice herself. Hiroto's eyes were not on Kazushi, or anyone other than that of the signals he was noticing from the body of his charge.

(OOC: All good! Just know Honoka's escalation of demand is all done with love!)

[Bayushi Kazushi]

"That is...a choice," Kazushi says, his tone flat, "although given the information uncovered in independent investigations, I do not believe it to be a wise one. The offer is rescinded, then - you can be assured that our information will be made available to the public, in its entirety and without bias. Good evening."

Kazushi turns on his heel and heads off toward Kiyoshi and Hinata to see how his colleague is coming along.

[Kitsune Kiyoshi]

Himata's wounds had diminished, but not healed fully. Kiyoshi had reserved some healing incantations for the magistrate and the others.

[Yasuki Honoka]

The threat implicated in Kazushi's words brought Honoka's blood to a boil. Even Hiroto wasn't prepared for her to suddenly step forward so quickly. So when what happens next happens...

"Bayushi Kazushi-san, I will remember this. You will not-" she shouts, words fall off as the energy leaves them and her, like going to sleep. Hiroto isn't so fast to catch her discretely so when Honoka collapses from the stress of it all. There is an arc to the way her body falls, but Hiroto is still able to skid through dirt on his knees to catch her before she meets any harm and is lowered to the ground softly.

[Kitsune Kiyoshi]

Kiyoshi moved quickly to aid the Crab, but soon determined that what she needed most was rest. That was likely true for many of those involved.

[Bayushi Kazushi]

Kurumi's hand is on her sidearm again as she interposes herself between the fainting Crab and her employer.

"See that she doesn't forget this," Kazushi says to Hiroto. "She has answered my colleague's courage and my offer of assistance with hostility. Were she not in such a state, and were my champion not injured in the process of saving her life, such ungratefulness would be met with steel. Instead, I will choose to be forgiving. I would suggest you remove her from this place before I am given reason to change my mind."

[Yasuki Honoka]

As Honoka lay in Hiroto's arms, his hand goes to his sidearm. Ready to defend himself, and his charge, with his life if need be. Unlike Honoka he was trained for this type of stress, and was ready.

"Tell her to lay her hand off her weapon immediately," Hiroto would say grievously. "Remember where you are."

Hiroto would not allow his eyes leave Kurumi, and would shoot her dead if the threat persisted. Kurumi was not samurai, and would not be afforded a second chance.

***
OOC: At this point, others will surely intervene.

[Yasuki Umiko]

"Yasuki Haruto-san?" Sorato asks with surprise. "So he wasn't with... ah... them?" A look over his shoulder at the injured criminals being rounded up. Despite being unsure about how Haruto ended up in this state, however, Sorato is not at all confused about how to assess an injured patient. He drops to his knees, pulls on gloves from his kit, and begins assessing Haruto and taking steps to slow the bleeding and address shock. "More help is on the way, Haruto-san. Just hold on, we've got you. Umiko-sama took good care of you."

A quick glance at Umiko in a spare moment doesn't reveal any obvious injuries, and Honoka said she and Umiko were uninjured, but it's hard to tell... "Umiko-sama, none of that blood is yours?"

Hands full, he doesn't have much attention to spare for the assembled Scorpion or Kuni Sumie, though he probably would have a hard time contesting Sumie's accusation of being more lame than Doctor Badass if he had heard it.

((Fluff healer stuff since it's after day change!))

"No, he's not," Umiko would say firmly on the matter, biting her lower lip from anything else out of personal interests. She supposed the murky matter of the Temple might have made Nagisa's group and the Temple seem like one and the same group. Well, that's a matter she would have sort out with the magistrate and her sister at another time.

Umiko looked at her hands, perhaps only now bothered that they were covered in blood. This seemed almost poetic in a sense. "...No..." she would say at the question, but not sounding sure herself.

Haruto would be easily healed by the kami's blessing, despite not being a believer himself, and having some rather questionable conflicts with it. Thankfully, the kami didn't discriminate here.

"Everyone, please!" Umiko would call out in protest at what was transpiring. She had had enough of the high tensions of the day. Whatever it was about, she had enough authority to put this matter to rest. Questions about it would have to wait another day.

***
(Yes, fluff heal is fine!)

[Kuni Junpei]

Junpei would step over after the arrest of Yasuki Nagisa, frowning faintly at the high tempers that were boiling over. "I do believe I have authority over this investigation and would appreciate people who weren't directly involved in the events that transpired to step aside, preferrable to keep separate from each other. Thank you for your assistance with the injured, but I will be questioning everyone individually on the matter, starting with Yasuki Umiko-sama here. Do not remove yourselves from the scene just yet, if you were involved. This is indeed now a crime scene."

He gestured to the row of vehicles in the distance. At least, the regional magistrates were able to respond to the noise if they weren't here for his original purpose. "This is a matter in my office's hands."

Junpei and his yoriki would be taking the testimony of everyone involved, accepting any personal contributions and information on the matter. Overall, he will be stepping in to put order in the now legal proceedings.

[Bayushi Kazushi]

As Honoka lay in Hiroto's arms, his hand goes to his sidearm. Ready to defend himself, and his charge, with his life if need be. Unlike Honoka he was trained for this type of stress, and was ready.

"Tell her to lay her hand off her weapon immediately," Hiroto would say grievously. "Remember where you are."

Hiroto would not allow his eyes leave Kurumi, and would shoot her dead if the threat persisted. Kurumi was not samurai, and would not be afforded a second chance.

***
OOC: At this point, others will surely intervene.

"ENOUGH!" roars Kazushi, pushing Kurumi aside. For her part, she does remove her hand from her sidearm.

"My colleague has risked his life to defend yours, and your charge's. I have made an offer of assistance, only to be met with hostility. When my bodyguard does the job she is paid for, reacting when someone threatened me, she in turn was threatened. We have done nothing but try to help, and this is how we are repaid. That is too much. Steel will be the only answer for this."

[Yasuki Honoka]

Honoka, during the climax of all of this, was slowly coming to back from unconsciousness. Held up by Hiroto who lowered his hand from his side to help sit her up. Honoka looks around, at Umiko, at Kazushi, at Junpei, suddenly everyone was around and everything was so heated. She remembers stepping forward after Kazushi but what then??

Honoka's eyes are misty and unfocused, and her head lolls a bit while she struggles to process what is going on. Finding her body too weak to sit up as quickly as she wishes she could. However, Hiroto wouldn't force her down but at least inspire her to remain sitting against the ground. Making sure to keep her steady.

Honoka would just look about at everyone, clearly a bit confused and in no shape for an argument.

[Kuni Junpei]

Junpei took another step between the two, thanking him that he had a bit of a taller physical stature to go with his authority status. "Everyone, I believe that we might have had a bit of a focused hearing issue on the matter with very alert minds, but again, it would be very appreciated if we take a step back after this heated situation, so that cooler heads may provide their objective testimony on the matter. Now, I do see there is a matter that a yojimbo is acting in response to a hand placed on a weapon here by a servant under your employ, Bayushi-san. Surely, both guards are a bit on edge here when the active danger was quite active more than a few moments ago. As you see, I now have the scene under control, especially with regional aides on the way."

He clapped his hands together, looking at both parties for their final answer. "Now, I will ask both of you once more. Is this a matter merely over a simple misunderstanding on the general safety of the scene, which I have now proved to be pacified, or is this a wholly different matter? Surely, it must be the former, and we can mutually move on."

[Bayushi Kazushi]

"My bodyguard was responding to an apparent threat," Kazushi says, "but largely that is correct. I am prepared to put aside the unpleasant way in which I have been treated, so long as the threat to myself and my employee has been removed."

[Bayushi Hinata]

The Scorpion bushi remained seated against one of the crates. As Junpei steps in and his boss eases he lets go of a breath he hadn't noticed he was holding. His hand let go of the saya of his katana, and he snaps the safety strap on his magnum back into place as lets his head slide back against the crate. A deep breath is interrupted by wincing as he feels another sting on his stomach.

Not quite in tip top, shape, though he is thankful to have been saved from Sumie ealrier, that would be enough for a few days.

[Yasuki Honoka]

While Junpei spoke, Hiroto helped Honoka slowly to her feet. He didn't wish to, not so fast, but Honoka was insistent on it. Once she rose to her full height she would direct attention to Junpei, her voice weary and soft, "Please forgive that I do not bow, Kuni Junpei-san. I am.. advised against such a course of action, rather strongly. I am satisfied with the care and protection of your honored office," she would say, and look to Hiroto over her shoulder.

"As Yasuki Honoka-sama says, our care is in your hands," he says, and bows deeply.

"Bayushi Kazushi-san," Honoka would say, still soft. "I thank you, for what you have shown me here today," she says sincerely, but not honestly.

She would turn to Junpei, "I would also like to apologize for my absence which caused the need for Yasuki Hiroto-san to act in my stead. Had I been present, I may have been able to assure him of my safety in your care. He is an honorable man, and a dutiful one."

[Kuni Junpei]

Junpei narrowed his eyes for a moment before giving an accepting nod to both the Scorpion and Yasuki. "Very well then, Bayushi-san, Yasuki-san. Thank you for putting the matter aside. However, I believe I will need to hold Yasuki Honoka-san and Yasuki Hiroto-san with me to verify as to why they were involved in the situation."

The magistrate vehicles moved up the driveway and led up toward the temple, parking themselves just in front of where Umiko's car was parked.

He would gesture toward the vehicles. "Everyone not involved in what directly transpired here, please place yourself past those vehicles while the crime scene is cordoned. Everyone involved, please remain where you are for questioning and testimony. If you wish to submit any findings, my office on Friendship Street will be more than open to receive them."

[Bayushi Kazushi]

Kazushi kneels down next to Hinata again.

"Let me know if anything comes up," he says. "Despite certain troubles..."

He very pointedly does not look in the direction that the magistrate was directing Honoka and her yojimbo.

"...you did a damned fine job here today. These guys have had their plans wrecked and have been driven out of hiding, and that's a lot. Now get some rest."

With that, Kazushi heads out in accordance with Junpei's order, checking around the perimeter for any signs of where the escaped conspirators may have gone, or anything they might have left behind. As documented elsewhere, he'll be there until morning.

[Yasuki Honoka]

-tag-

"Thank you, Kuni Junpei-san," she says, then shakes her head a little. "Thank you Kuni Junpei-sama, you are a credit to your station, and in your time and leisure I will be ready to answer all questions."

Honoka was then guided toward a place to sit down. However, before Kiyoshi would fully depart the duo would approach him. Hiroto hanging over her like a steadying presence in the same way a parent might a child walking for the first time. She was probably fine, but the man was nervous after everything transpired.

"Thank you Kitsune-san, I needed to say this before you left. Hiroto-san informs me you rushed to my side. Before you depart, I wished to thank you," she said, and carefully bows to the man in respect.

(Kiyoshi will also receive one of those spa day passes Honoka bought her rescuers on D11, to be turned in for use at his leisure)

[Kitsune Kiyoshi]

"I could do no less, Yasuki-sama." He returned the bow. "I recommend rest for both of you, and Yasuki Umiko-sama, once you are able to depart. Tomorrow will be a busy day, but I am certain tonight has been difficult and stressful."