[Day 1, Late Evening, open] Open Air

[Isawa Junpei]

"Oh! Yoritomo-san, Ichiro-san, Isawa-san. Pleasant evenings to each of you."

Junpei allowed his conversation with Choukichi to fall by the wayside in favor of striking one up with both the Mantis and the Daidoji. "What are you working on?" the Phoenix asked bluntly, edging just a touch closer to spy the sculpture, though, only half so given the moonlight.

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi lowered his eyes. "It's a...memorial of sorts. Part of my pennance for my part in the mess with Dageki." He passed the statue up to his friend. "It's him, at least externally. I only ever really knew him in the one context, so I suppose the secondary elements are a little speculative."

[Isawa Junpei]

"Oh, do not say his name, Daidoji-san," Junpei spoke with a gentle cajoling. "We do not wish for his spirit to become lost as it begins its travels to Meido."

He gave a solemn smile. "I saw his prowess during our training with Isawa-gunso, but aside from then I never got to know the man. I didn't even hear about the incident until today, actually. Such unfortunate business. May his next life be better for his noble service to the Emperor."

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi bowed his head. "Hai, and may those he will have left behind recover quickly from their grief, knowing that our time apart from the Wheel is short, and that the next cycle comes swiftly."

[Isawa Junpei]

"May he learn the lessons of this life as well," Junpei added pointedly. "It is a tragedy to lose a life, any life, but especially one as competent as he. Still, without giving judgment or pity, he took his life in his own hands. May he be at peace with his decisions and his passing, free from regret and fear."

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi fell silent. His other ideas on the situation are not fit for prayers. Instead, he looks up into the stars, his eyes clouded with memory.

[Isawa Junpei]

He gave a moment of silence and performed a series of gestures and generic chants meant to drive away the spirits of the dead.

"Let's turn our minds away from maudlin affairs and onto something far more positive, namely our good fortune to finally be on our way. I hear we're headed to some port far to the south. Does anyone know anything more than that?" Junpei's eyes fell to each one of the samurai in turn.

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi shook his head in the negative.

[Ichiro Yakusoku]

Yakusoku frowns at the mention of Dageki. Looks like she wasn't going to be taking his beating. No, instead, the ship was losing one of its best crewmen. "I don' like to think much on where we've come from or where we're headin'," the Badger replies neutrally. "Like keepin' my focus in the now so Suitengu-kami doesn't find me inattentive and drop surprises in me lap."

[Yoritomo Choukichi]

Choukichi pipes up, happy for the change of subject.

"The coral islands, they are a set of archipelagos off the coast of the ivory kingdoms there. There's a small settlement used as a staging area mostly for my clan, but the imperial fleet has some interests there as well."

[Isawa Junpei]

Junpei knew next to nothing about geography aside from maybe the very basic layout of the empire. The Sea of Sorrows and what lay beyond were something he'd never even contemplated, and so, his ignorance was in full force as he said, with no small amount of inarticulate shock, "T-The Ivory Kingdoms? We're going to the Ivory Kingdoms?"

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi inclined his head. "It would seem so. How interesting."

[Isawa Junpei]

"Not exactly the words I might have chosen," The Phoenix's mind was going as fast as lightning compiling each and every possible worry it could think of and pushing it to the forefront of his thoughts. Primary among his concerns were whether his prayers to the kami would work at all in the foreign land (or seas). Magic was a fickle thing and so were the spirits, the capricious air kami most of all.

[Daidoji Fuichi]

"Oh, I should imagine it will be dangerous and exciting as well. I wonder if the kami are different there? Will they respond to the same prayers, or shall we have to innovate?" I'll have to ask Isawa-sama.

[Isawa Junpei]

His priestly compatriot shrugged, "I haven't the slightest idea. It could very well be that there are fewer spirits in gaijin lands, or maybe they're as savage and uncivilized as the places they inhabit."

[Daidoji Fuichi]

Fuichi grinned. "I can't wait to find out."

[Isawa Junpei]

"I'll admit, it's exciting to think about, I just hope we're not spending a great deal of time there. Honestly I'm beginning to get confused by this whole excursion. First the Sea of Sorrows and now this? It's as if we're being gotten rid of." He waved away and initial protests, "I know, I know, it's all part of our training, but it's hard not to feel like we're being shipped off to some, literally, god-forsaken, place."

[Yoritomo Choukichi]

"My great grandfather told me you can still call on the kami there, I don't know if it will be the same as it is here though... We'll probably be there a few months I wager, it's such a long trip that only going for a few days would seem like a waste."

[Isawa Junpei]

"I suppose we don't have much say in the matter. Training in the Ivory Kingdoms..." he just let the thought trail off still trying to grasp how much of an ordeal this was going to be whether for a few days or a few weeks. Honestly he couldn't even get his head wrapped around why the Ninth Legion even had interest in foreign lands. Hadn't emperor's way back barred interactions with the gaijin?

[Yoritomo Choukichi]

"It's a long trip for a training exercise, but that means it will provide a lot of opportunities to learn and better develop our skills to serve the legion."

Choukichi at least, does seem a little excited about their destination, not particularly concerned about the length of the voyage.