[D0 Rat 13 3124] Let the commerce commence!

[Kaiu Ryosei]

He knew little of the history at hand here but he cleared his throat softly after taking a sip of his water.

"Well I am a recent transplant here in Nakahana but I trust that the new leadership has a good plan for righting the ship as they say. I mean the island's reputation was one of the reasons I came here. Surely others are still drawn in by the reputation. I'm sure before long this place will be better than ever." He told as a half truth, yes the reputation made it attractive as a place to set up shop but the recent downturn in business and forecasting had made it his decision. He was able to get the shop for a good price as the old owner went out of business. When he heard about the change in leadership he had predicted a significant chance for an increase in commerce if only because of the news buzzing around, even more of an increase should the new governor actually do well. But he kept his long winded musings to himself and shared the shirt and sweet version to the other.

[Suzume Hitomi]

"Maybe finally we can stop saying 'Umiko-chan is from this island, you know?' whenever we see her on the informator." Asataka couldn't help but murmur some semi-unrelated commentary after he had a few sips from his social lubricant. The beer really hit the spot, especially when it came to observing the proceedings here and making it feel less like 'work'. "Kind of surprised that it's not Yasuki Umiko-sama taking up the position of governor, but Yasuki Ayame-dono instead. In my conversation with Keitaro-dono, that was going to be the original plan. She'll do fine, I'm sure. Still, kind of shocked, really. "

That was all quite surprising to Hitomi. Not the sort of gossip one tended to hear at street level, and surprisingly quiet these past few years that she'd been here. But then, nobody had really seemed to expect the governorship to shift just yet.

She has no intention of getting on the wrong side of Crab political shuffling, but while the old magistrate was being so open..."I think a lot of us were a bit shocked that Yasuki-sama retired without as much warning as might be expected." Her eyes are wide, as she sips her sake, considering the idea that survival may have been foremost in the previous governor's mind when he retired.

He knew little of the history at hand here but he cleared his throat softly after taking a sip of his water.

"Well I am a recent transplant here in Nakahana but I trust that the new leadership has a good plan for righting the ship as they say. I mean the island's reputation was one of the reasons I came here. Surely others are still drawn in by the reputation. I'm sure before long this place will be better than ever." He told as a half truth, yes the reputation made it attractive as a place to set up shop but the recent downturn in business and forecasting had made it his decision. He was able to get the shop for a good price as the old owner went out of business. When he heard about the change in leadership he had predicted a significant chance for an increase in commerce if only because of the news buzzing around, even more of an increase should the new governor actually do well. But he kept his long winded musings to himself and shared the shirt and sweet version to the other.

"I came here only a few years back because the resort reputation of the islands draws the sort of clients looking for my rather niche materials. I can hope Yasuki Ayame-sama has ideas to draw more of that crowd back." Truth be told, she'd found this place a bargain compared to more popular resort destinations, but if it became even less popular, that would prove to have been a poor gamble.

[Yasuki Taraka]

Taraka took a moment to appreciate the appropriateness of the location of the meeting., Business was a gamble, after all, and while people liked to console themselves that it was a matter of skill like hanafuda, there was no small amount of hoping the pachinko balls of tourists fell into the slot. Or if you preferred nautical references they all wanted to sail atop the waves, not sink beneath them. Well except for the Kuni. At his age, he had little to lose and was going to sink sooner rather than later.

Taraka turned her sake cup slightly, thinking on things.

"Well, unless Yoritomo-san is hiding either the governor or her karo in a secret compartment for a PARTICULARLY dramatic reveal where they explain exactly how they are going to lead us all to prosperity, we can really only speculate."

She smiled a bit at the Yoritomo.

"Barring that, perhaps we might presume on Yoritomo-san to share her insights into matters, given her expertise in entertainment and travel? She might have a better idea of what's really going to bring the tourists in." she requested.

[Boogiepop]

Kuni Asataka

Nobody asked for his commentary but Asataka was the sort who was likely going to share it anyway. "Keitaro-sama was a fine governor," he said with a casual shrug on the matter. The inflection of fine wasn't to say that he was better, but someone that Asataka didn't see changed. Then again, he wasn't a merchant patron and didn't really care about things such as profits, even if it affected the health of the province as a whole. He could be comfortable with Nakahama City turning into a shanty town.

"Of course, some hermit Crabs moving into abandoned shells might see some improvement," he murmured as an aside, giving a momentary glance at Ryosei. "At least, in looks."

"That wasn't in the books for at least another 10 years, not an official number or anything," he said to the Suzume as he finished his beer. There was a moment he was going to raise his hand like he was ordering at an izakaya by habit, but stopped himself for two reasons. One beer was probably enough, and this wasn't an izakaya, much to his chagrin.

"Being a widower for a while will make you do things, I guess," he gave a shake of his head, offering a reason. It's not like he was going to mention age, considering that the previous governor was younger than Asataka by at least a decade.

Asataka couldn't help but glance around at the idea that the governor could be hiding around here. Likely a joke, but considering all the possibilities was a witch hunter requirement. He let out a chuckle with a dismissal wave. "Funny but unlikely. Last I heard, the governor was at the Pink Lotus and the karo was at the public works office."

[Yoritomo Yakura]

Yakura continued pouring drinks, and sneaking one more shot.

Oho, how interesting. "I am sure there were valid reasons." She murmured, before taking a small break from her duties as hostess. "Alas no Yasuki-san. I offered, but apparently the cupboard smelled too much of spices." She hid a small smile. She wasn't sure how the magistrate would take such a joke, but nothing ventured, nothing gained after all.

[Yasuki Taraka]

Crab noises

Taraka considered the mood of the room as she took up her refilled cup. Between the economic woes and the head magistrate, people seemed to be rather tight-lipped. The Sparrow and the magistrate were certainly talkative, unsurprising and surpringly in their respective cases. But this was meant to be a place where the future was discussed, not sullenly drank away.

So she set her gaze upon the man with the cup of water.

"You know, as you are a recent transplant, Kaiu-san, I haven't gotten a chance to visit your business yet. Could you tell us more about it and how things are going?" she asked. "I'm sure I'm not the only one interested."

[Boogiepop]

Kuni Asataka

Asataka offered the Yoritomo hostess a momentary frown. It was a joke, by his estimation, but he wasn't so amused about it.

Now beerless and not entertaining another, he considered his other options. He patted his blazer for his cigarette case. With Eriko married off, he was student-less. It wasn't like anyone was around anymore to dissuade him. However, with some restrained exercise, he thought better of it. The case had a single 'round' he hadn't replenished for a while. Instead, he pulled out a recording device he kept for interviews and notes and set it in a corner to keep 'watch' of the proceedings for him. He would pick that up later before the end of the night.

Without making a further fuss, he excused himself to use the lavatory.

/effective exit