The Day of Thunder

[Jiyo Sora]

"And clean living."

[Kichi]

"Fresh air and exercise, " Kichi added.

[Ukyou]

" You're all the worst," Ukyou griped with a half hearted glower at the three.

[Nanzi Ai]

Ai blinked, this must be one of those man things Dojihime mentioned.

Was there a joke she missed?

[Wu Zhe]

Wu Zhe raised an eyebrow, seeming to have missed something as well

Heh, it happens

Now that the fire was ready he began boiling some water in the first of the two pots

''I take it the y'all have seen how things are down south. How is it?''

[Jiyo Sora]

"Bad. Got bloody a time or two on the way here."

Sora worked his jaw around.

"Not a situation we can kill our way out of, whatever some of the more... decisive types seem to think."

[Nanzi Ai]

Ai listened but did not offer her thoughts yet, content to see how others saw the current situation.

[Ukyou]

"Certainly not by going after whatever is found casually," he mused more seriously. "You can't kill a tree by cutting off the leaves."

[Nanzi Ai]

"Certainly not by going after whatever is found casually," he mused more seriously. "You can't kill a tree by cutting off the leaves."

"Chopping it down seems prudent, but finding the roots has proven fruitless and the invasive trees are everywhere," she offered.

"Perhaps you have greater wisdom on this subject?"

[Wu Zhe]

''When the wind bellows and the clouds thunders the oak shall tremble while the reeds dance'' Zhe muttered has he prepared rice

[Ukyou]

"Chopping it down seems prudent, but finding the roots has proven fruitless and the invasive trees are everywhere," she offered.

"Perhaps you have greater wisdom on this subject?"

''When the wind bellows and the clouds thunders the oak shall tremble while the reeds dance'' Zhe muttered has he prepared rice

"Indeed," Ukyou agrees with a grin. "It seems as though the wisdom you need lies in your number in the end."

[Jiyo Sora]

"Which is cryptic-monk speak for, 'all will be revealed in time.'"

[Nanzi Ai]

"Which is cryptic-monk speak for, 'all will be revealed in time.'"

Maybe father was right about them... she considered mentally. Still she preened and responded, "Then I shall seek patience and wait for the moment when Destiny calls."

"Thank you for the lesson, Ukyou-sensei."

[Kichi]

"It's probably more like, 'Here's what I can give you without potentially ruining your chances by messing with things too much,'" Kichi offered.

[Ukyou]

He sighed. "Or that, indeed."

[Kichi]

"You make things too much of a hassle sometimes, Ukyou-sensei."

[Wu Zhe]

''I am unsure if that is really a hassle though''

The rice finished, Zhe put the pot aside and brought the second one on the fire. With a large wooden spoon the dragon scooped french amounts of a yellow substance, butter for those in the know, and dropped them in the pan twice or thrice.

''I was always told that advice can be dangerous so it would make sense to rely on riddles instead.''

[Ukyou]

''I am unsure if that is really a hassle though''

The rice finished, Zhe put the pot aside and brought the second one on the fire. With a large wooden spoon the dragon scooped french amounts of a yellow substance, butter for those in the know, and dropped them in the pan twice or thrice.

''I was always told that advice can be dangerous so it would make sense to rely on riddles instead.''

"Someone gets it," he sighed.

[Jiyo Sora]

Sora chuckled at that.

"And of course, annoying monks who speak in riddles can hardly be accused of being too pushy."

[Ukyou]

"Indeed." He sat back with a sigh. "We're guides, not masters, and that gets harder the more you know. Plus, we're mortals just like anyone. We know what we know and make the best decisions we can with it. My friend is better at that than most, but he's been wrong before. So it's better to give a hint and let people make up their own minds. Plus, people can find solutions we could have never expected. Look at the Nezumi and closing the portal."

He gave a little scowl. "I hate being this blunt."