Starring:
Date: November 28, 2012
Summary:
Along her travels, Soen discovers a stand-alone stall, set up away from the markets.
"The Lone Vendor"
Kirigakure Marketplace
He's travelled far and wide across the rivers and mountains, but finally, FINALLY, Goh had arrived in Kirigakure. With the latest promotion exams going on, the blonde pickler had decided that setting up shop and selling his goods in such a popular locale would be a fantastic idea.
After trying to negotiate for a stall in the food stands and marketplace however, he hit a snag. To Goh's dismay, there were no spots left to set up shop! All had been taken up by either full time locals, or travellers who had arrived before he.
While many would give up at this stage, Goh was determined to see his stall setup. So, he had found a neat little space on Shippuu Avenue. Not too far from the busy sounds of people buying things in the actual marketplace, actually. Though still far enough to not be declared within the actual markets.
So now he finishes up his prep of the stand. Three temporary walls made of cloth with a similar cloth type roof. A rug on the ground, which Goh sits upon, and some sealed ceramic pots in front of him. All with the kanji symbol 'PICKLE' inscribed on them.
"This is a great idea!" He calls to no-one in particular. "Genius. I have no competitors here." No customers either. Though that doesn't seem to be bothering him. >_>;
Soen walks down the street with an open umbrella resting on her shoulder. She wore the mask she usually wears while out in public. It was plain white with the symbols she used to communicate along with what they meant. It didn't help entirely, but it had proven to be a little useful. While she was about to take a path to avoid the noisy marketplace Soen's attention is grabbed by a lone vendor set up away from the chaos. She lifts a brow and walks over to the stand to inspect the wares. Any shop that decided to go somewhere quieter deserved at least one customer. She glances over at Goh for a moment before quietly pointing and shrugging at one of the pots then signing to him. 'What is pickled?' She was trying to improve her social interactions with others by attempting to play a game of charades to get them to understand what she meant.
Fortunately for Soen, Goh had travelled far and wide for the better part of a decade now. He had dealt with humans of all sorts, including those who are blind and deaf. Heck, he had even dealt with people whom he secretely questioned were even human! So when Soen approaches, peering at the pots, and then signing the question, the pickler doesn't miss a beat. It's as if she had talked quite normally, to be honest.
"Excellent question!" He cries in excitement, perhaps pumped that he has a customer to work with. "These are my legendary pickled vegetables." With arms folding across his chest, a devlish smile creeps across his face. "Have you not heard of them? My, you're in for a treat. My name is Goh, and I'm the best pickler in the whole wide word. My vegetables are craved from people from every way of life. The rich, the poor. Even some shinobi like to use my pickled vegetables on high risk missions! Just to keep them going." He lifts a hand to his cheek, as if he feels guilty. "It's pretty difficult being in such high demand, you know. That's why I setup shop here out from the main marketplace. Didn't want to be mobbed by the people." >_>;
"So! The question remains. Are you keen for some of my amazing pickled vegetables? I have everything from the mild pickled carrot," He gestures to one ceramic pot at the end of the rug. "…to the strongest flavour of all time, my special and exlusive pickled ginger. Bit of a warning with that one. It will make you pretty awesome."
Soen blinks at Goh for a moment since there's not a moment of hesitation when he answers her. Seems she's finally found another person who was fluent in sign language, and he didn't even have to glance at her mask. She removes the mask to reveal her face and places it at her side as she listens to Goh talk. He was a little loud, but one loud person was better than a group of loud people. She signs to Goh to introduce herself 'Soen, it is a pleasure to meet you.' She glances at the pots as some of them are introduced. She never really had any pickled vegetables before and wasn't exactly sure whether or not she'd even like pickled vegetables. She smiles a little timidly before signing again 'Which would you recommend? I have never had pickled vegetables before, and I'm afraid I am at a loss for which I should buy.'
"It's nice to meet you too, Soen. The pleasure is mine. Hmm. I get that question a lot." Goh replies, peering at Soen's face as she reveals the mask. "My, aren't you a pretty thing? I guess wearing the mask would help people understand the signs. Sucks that you have to wear it around though." He frowns a little, before waving a hand, opting to pass it over. "It's actually a good question, and I as an owner can usually tell quite a lot about a person based on what sort of pickled vegetable he or she purchases. Are they adventurous? Bold? Exciting? Timid? Shy? Careful? All traits that you can tell based on what you buy." He smirks.
"No pressure."
"If I might ask, are you from around here? I only ask because most of my dealings with the Kirigakure ninja end up… er, sorta violent. I'd like to know ahead of time if you're going to be punching me in the face."
Soen blushes at the complement and scratches the back of her head nervously before signing 'Thank you, but it's alright. I am used to having to wear a mask.' She tilts her head curiously and looks back at the jars when Goh goes on about how you could tell a lot based on what someone purchases. Could you really be able to tell all that just based on what vegetables you decided to buy? She had her doubts that he'd be able to tell anything based on what she bought, she had no idea what she'd like afterall. She looks back up when he asks where she's from and signs to him. 'No. I hail from the Land of Snow. At least I used to. I've had to spend many years traveling in a..misfit caravan, and I've only just recently managed to escape. I am staying here while I perfect my signing. You do not have to worry about me punching you in the face.' She silently chuckles at that before returning her attention back to the jars. She points at a jar containing pickled peppers and signs 'How much for that one?'
"Five coins should be fine for that." Goh replies, sliding the pickled pepper forward so Soen can pick it up. "Land of Snow? Hmm… Well, I'm glad that you have found some nice people to help you perfect signing." He doesn't say what sort of person he thinks she is by purchasing the pepper, either forgetting that he made the comment or opting to just keep it to himself.
At this moment, another creature makes itself known. A large salamander, perhaps six feet from head to tail and three feet high, trundles up next to Soen. It then passes her, walks next to the rug with pots on and settles next to Goh. "Hey Wanpo." The pickler greets the creature. "This is Soen. Traveller from the Land of Snow. Sort of on her own, so we're being super friendly." Wanpo turns about to look at the female, before opening its mouth to speak!
"Mornin', doll." It speaks in a very deep voice. This could be surprising to Soen, unless she has encountered smart animals before. "Nice to meetcha." The salamander finishes. It then turns back to Goh. "All the stalls are booked out, bud. Not a thing open for days." The blonde reels his head back, sighing dramatically. "Man, these exams are way more busier than I thought they'd be!" Scratching his head, he looks back to Soen. "How have you found the exams? Sure makes this place hectic, huh?"
Soen reaches into a pouch and retrieves the coins before handing them over to Goh and taking the pot curiously. If she didn't like them then Jynn would probably eat them, at least she hoped he would. She didn't really know whether or not he liked pickled vegetables. When the creature approaches she blinks at it a little confused, that was a really big salamander. Then Goh began talking to it, perhaps a pet of some sort. What does catch her off guard is when it actually speaks to her. She smiles faintly and signs to the salamander. 'Morning, Wanpo. It is a pleasure to meet you.' She looks between the salamander and Goh as they speak to each other. She looks over at Goh when he actually addresses her before signing. 'I have found the exams interesting to say the least. It has brought others from other villages that I have yet to visit, and it makes me look forward to when I begin traveling again. The noises I could do without though.' She shakes her head slowly and shrugs faintly before adding 'There are downsides to everything sometimes.'
"Not a fan of noise?" Goh queries, a smile still on his face. "That's fine. Everyone has their little quirks." He nods a bit. "Some of the different clans from the hidden villages can be pretty wild, especially if you haven't come across them before." He rubs his chin. "I mean, there's this one clan in Konoha, and… uh, maybe I shouldn't say anything." He coughs. "I used to be one of the founding Jounin in Konoha. I left years ago though, and am a wanderer myself. If you ever need any special tips or tricks, don't hesitate to ask." He snaps his fingers.
"Oh! How stupid of me. I should totally throw you an invite to Jump. Erm…" Reaching inside his jacket, he seems to feel around for something. Grasping it, he offers forth a small piece of paper. "Here's an invitation with directions to a guild for us wanderers. Made up of ex-shinobi, samurai, but mostly just regular travellers that take delivery jobs. Provides contracts, housing, security and all sorts of neat stuff. Not to mention you get to share some pretty crazy stories. Nothing forcing you to join of course, but thought I'd spread the word a bit."
Soen shakes her head faintly at Goh's question and smiles softly as he talks about himself. She does seem a little interested when he mentions Jump and tilts her head to the side as she looks over the piece of paper handed to her. After pondering something for a few moments she tucks the paper carefully away in her pouch and signs to Goh. 'I will be sure to consider it. It seems interesting. As a traveler there are not many jobs the villages are willing to hire me for which makes coming across money difficult. I have to pay a lot for parchment to communicate with others.' She nods at Goh in confirmation before motioning over to Wanpo and signing. 'If you do not mind me asking, how is he able to speak?'
"What do you mean?" Goh asks curiously, tilting his head. "With his mouth?" He looks at Wanpo quizically, as if it's a trick question. Wanpo on the other hand seems to get the question. "You dope." The salamander says bluntly. "Not every animal can talk, you know." Goh sweatdrops a little, rubbing his head. "Oh… Yeah. Heh, my bad." Wanpo shakes his head a little bit. "Ignore him, doll. Goh has a summoning contract with the salamander. All across the world, humans are able to forge contracts with all sorts of creatures. Usually they are smarter than the typical animal, and are able to speak your language."
Goh nods. "Anyway. Regarding Jump, that's one of the main reasons wanderers like to be a part of it. Myself included. Getting work from the ninja villages is tough. Especially when everything is so tense. But Jump has a system where it takes contracts. Just instead of the… assassin type requests that the villages get, they're more delivery based. Or get the cat out of the tree. Or help my vegetables grow. Usually they're like that, anyway."
"But to go back to your other question, yeah, I have a contract with the salamander. Most of them can talk well. But they also help me out when I'm in a pickle. Maybe one day if you're lucky, you'll forge your own contract with some animals."
Soen chuckles silently and shakes her head at the two's interaction before nodding in understanding at the salamander. She looks back to Goh and signs to him 'While I have done my share of that sort of work recently I would prefer the sort of missions you speak of. They are a lot less work, for the most part, and do not require as much control. I must admit that I lack control with what abilities I do have, and that proves to be troublesome in some situations. Would I need to sign up to join the group, or am I allowed to just show up whenever I please?' She smiles faintly when he mentions she may be able to forge her own contract one day and shrugs before signing once again. 'Perhaps one day, that would prove to be very interesting.'
"Well, I guess you have to join in order to take the contracts and work on offer. However, you're certainly not forced to live there. Look at me for example. I'm in Kirigakure right now. Some of the other members I barely see. They sort of drift in, take the newest job, then drift out and hit the road for another few months. But it's always there to be home if you need it to be." He shrugs a bit. "There are some missions that come through which are combat based. Our ex-shinobi or samurai take them. Even rarer, some really high risk missions come through that only certain members are allowed to take. There was one recently that came up that asked us to take out the whole organized crime syndicate that's in Fuuma Alley." He frowns. "Tough stuff. Anyway, that's far removed from the standard jobs on offer."
He leans forward, propping his head up in cupped hands. "What do you mean, lacking control? Abilities? So you do have training in some things after all? Ninja? Samurai? Something else maybe? Or top secret?" He leans back again, prepping some new pickled pots on the rug. "Unfortunately Jump isn't a combat school, so dunno how much it can help you out with that. But I might be able to give you some pointers."
'I will be sure to visit and work on whatever paperwork I may need to do. And as I said before, small jobs for me until I am less of a liability.' She stares at Goh rather blankly in thought as she silently debated on how much more he should know. Finally she signs to him 'I have had some training as a shinobi from my adoptive father.' Her hands stay in place and her eyes soften as she thinks back on that subject, but she does continue. 'I am able to defend myself when I need it, but I do not believe I will be able to do anything on my own for some time. I appreciate the offer of training, but I am unsure whether or not you would be able to help me. There are not many who know much about my abilities. I am sure you could be able to help me with some basic things though.' She smiles softly in appreciation at Goh before looking turning to leave. With a wave, she heads on her way.
