Reo gets a ring

Reo walked along back to his home. Supposedly they were getting a transfer student from…was it the rock village? Reo wasn’t sure, but he was actually excited about the prospect. It would mean a new training partner for him…well, it would be good just so long as he wasn’t annoying. Maybe if he was like himself. Stern. Dedicated. Thoughts only for training.

Yes. That would be good. In his mind, Reo pictured training against a version of himself. Someone who was his equal in all things – even in their desire for silence.

With that, Reo drifted into a sort of haze as he walked and got lost in his memories.

[Post 1: 110 words]

Reo bumped into the man without realizing it. Being an Academy Student and one who specialized in Taijutsu, Reo was a sturdy individual for an eleven-year-old child. As such, Reo managed to knock both the grown adult male in front of him and Reo himself onto the ground during their fall. Jewelry clattered everywhere as they fell. It didn’t make much noise as it landed softly in the sand.

“Oh! I’m sorry!” Reo blurted out as he stood up and began to try to gather all the jewelry up for the dazed and confused man on the ground in front of him.

[Post 2: 102 Words]

The man was wearing normal clothes. Baggy white pants which wouldn’t collect much heat and would allow air flow to occur. He was covered head to toe in a cloak – but that wasn’t unusual in the desert. The sun shone so brightly that it could be difficult to keep oneself from getting burned if you didn’t cover up from head to toe. Reo didn’t follow that principle. He had darker skin which made burning less of a concern, so he wore traditional monk garments (which did cover a large portion of his body). Yellowish tan pants and shirt with an orange sash tied around the middle covered his body with a matching cloak on top. Unlike most in Sunakagure, Reo kept everything from his neck up completely uncovered.

[Post 3: 128 Words]

The man got up and began to help Reo pick up the jewelry which had scattered throughout the sand. “Oh, oh my. It’s no problem little one, but there is a precious piece of jewelry here that I do not want to lose. “ The man muttered – almost as if he was talking to himself – as he picked up the jewelry alongside Reo.
Eventually, Reo deposited the jewelry he managed to pick up in the sack which the old man had been carrying it in and turned to go on his way. “Oh! Young man! Would you care to join me for tea?”

[Post 4: 103 Words]

“Oh, umm…I shouldn’t. I should be training.”

“It’s my treat as thank you for not scampering off after this incident. You didn’t have to help me, you know?”

“O-okay”

With that, Reo began to follow the old man. He wasn’t entirely sure that he had made the best decision, but the old man seemed gentle and kind enough. He wouldn’t come to any harm here, surely? They walked along in relative quiet, with Reo growing more and more anxious as he walked. He wasn’t scared – per se, but he was nervous. If this person had set this all up then he would be falling into a trap of some kind. That wouldn’t be good. No. Not at all.

[Post 5: 118 Words]

The old man pulled to a stop in front of a worn-down shop with the sign “Hidatsi’s Jewels” on the front of it. “Well, here we are. I’m Hidatsi, by the way!” Hidatsi opened the door, allowing Reo to step int oth e shop. It smelled musty and dust – or was that sand – flew through the air. If it was sand, then there was a disproportionately large amount of sand in this room. It took a lot for one to think there was sand in the air when they were used to sand being everywhere. You just kind of ignored it at some point.

[Post 6: 104 Words]

“I’m sorry my place is so dusty. You see, I’ve fallen on hard times. That’s why the jewelry that you spilled was so impotant to me. There are two pieces in there that matter more than the others. One is a jade ring said to have been owned by the Sage of Six Paths himself – surely you’ve heard of him.” Hidatsi said in all but a ramble. Reo hadn’t heard of this Sage, but he wasn’t about to say that to this stranger. “The other piece, well that is even more valuable but I’m afraid to talk about it here. You see, this piece is being wanted by numerous groups of people. If they heard I had it before I could secure a buyer…well, it would be the death of me and my shop. It took quite a lot to secure this piece, after-all.”

[Post 7: 144 Words]

Reo took the information in as he was guided to the back room – which was slightly nicer and had significantly less dust floating through the air. There was a chair and table, which Reo sat at while Hidatsi made the tea.

“Were both pieces of jewelry picked up?” Reo asked politely. He didn’t know what else to say and didn’t want to push any further. The man had made it clear that he didn’t want to talk about whatever this other piece of jewelry was.

“Oh yes. Yes, indeed. I have a few leads on a buyer, too. I probably would have secured one already but I have been very careful in moving the jewel. Thieves are dangerous, you know.” Hidatsi said as he sat down with a pot of tea. It smelled delicious, but Reo couldn’t identify what spices were being used. He wasn’t that great at sniffing through things such as that. His family normally preferred basic teas. Black, for instance.

[Post 8: 163 Words]

A shuriken flew through the air and cut open the bag of jewels that was hanging at Hidatsi’s side. The jewels spilled onto the floor as af igur began to dash across the floor. The figure wore sand colored clothing – as if it was meant to act as camouflage. Luckily, Reo was an expert. Okay, he wasn’t. He was an Academy Student who happened to notice the man’s movement. Either way, Reo kicked off his chair and dove into the man – hitting him squarely in the stomach. The blow forced both of them to fall to the ground and crash into a cabinet across the floor. Hidatsi, meanwhile, began to sift through the jewel.He ignored most of the pieces but appeared to be looking for the two specific pieces that he had mentioned previously.

[Post 9: 134 Words]

As if on cue, he held up one of the pieces of jewelry – an emerald looking ring. No, it wasn’t shiny enough for emerald. Jade? He continued sifting until he found another piece of jewelry. This one, though. This one he didn’t hold up. Instead, he stuffed this one into a seam in his clothing before backing against the wall.

Meanwhile, Reo threw a punch at the thief. The thief merely smiled and pushed Reo. Reo’s eyes widened as his body was thrown upwards, slamming into the ceiling above. The thief leapt upwards and ran out of the room before Reo smashed into the ground below.

[Post 10: 106 words]