Doji Kusanagi's room is almost exactly as you remember it:  small, unadorned, frugal--excepting, of course, the blood spattered across the room and his corpse.  The slain Crane commander lays flat on his back--eyes closed--behind the far side of his table from the doorway, his bloodied blade lain across his chest.  Kusanagi was stabbed twice, once through his throat and once to his chest, piercing his heart.  It would have been a quick, merciful death.

OOC:  Investigation/Notice checks for further information
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:03, Wed 11 June 2008.

When she arrived, Sakura wasted no time in looking over the scene. She didn't seem to be particularly concerned with the presence of death in the room; rather she seemed consumed by her duty to uncover the murder.

"Don't disturb anything" she said almost absentmindedly, "We'll be bringing others here later."

Unknown to the others, she was looking for signs of the Lying Darkness' involvement. She would also look for signs of Scorpion involvement, however that would evoke a different reaction from her.

[Perception/Investigation(Notice) 36. (I mis-toggled the die-roller, adding 3 for the emphasis instead of 4).

12:51, Today: Daidoji Sakura rolled 35 using 7d10+3, dropping the 4 lowest rolls, rerolling max with rolls of 6,4,9,4,2,7,(10+6)16. Perception/Investigation(Notice)+Void.]

 Kedo has no idea why his ward is going to the private chambers of Crane commander of course, but his reaction when they step through the threshold is all that could be asked for, a slight widening of his eyes and the dropping of an impassive expression over his features that suggests a measure of distaste for the initial impressions his sense provide.

 But it would seem wise to learn what can be learned and so he steps away from the door and takes up station beside it, musing already over the positioning of the body and the wounds that mark it...

 ...For either thrust would have been certain to be lethal, yet to strike whilst he was still at his table suggests that the assailant was not noticed, or not noticed as a threat.
 It could therefore be that the blood on the blade is his own, wiped there by a loyal servitor determined that he should not go into the afterlife without blood upon his sword, or there might be more to this scene than meets the eye.

 Somewhere in the midst of these musings his eyes cease to see objects alone and start to perceive events, seeking not the signs of the involvement of anyone in particular, but rather to unlock the shape of things that unfolded here.

 ---

 18:04, Today: Kedo rolled 29 using 7d10, dropping the 3 lowest rolls, rerolling max. Perception & Investigation, with Void.

[Private to GM: I've assumed that I've managed to meditate or perform a tea ceremony at some point in the long empty hours fo the day. Either way I'd not be out of void, but it saves me having to keep track, if that's alright? ^_^]

Doji Minako stood outside the room, not to disturb Sakura and Kedo with their investigation. Crime scenes were not her area of expertise, she wanted to help but decided to just follow the flow until her skills were needed.

There are some things that can be observed even without investigative training, but given the context of the murder, they make no sense.  The corpse has obviously been straightened with care, laying, not as it fell, but as one prepared for a funeral pyre.  The teapot is out, filled with leaves and water and still warm from what you can only assume was his final preparation, but the cups have been returned to their places.
[Private to Daidoji Sakura; Kedo: the stab wounds to Kusanagi's body were made with a short blade, like a tanto or aiguchi; despite the blood spatter across the room, there is none visible on the table; the blood on Kusanagi's sword has not simply been smeared there, it was clearly used to cut someone]
[Private to Daidoji Sakura: there are droplets of blood on two of the tea cups, indicating that they were in use at the time of Kusanagi's death; there is no sign of poison or shadow magic present, indicating that the element of surprise was enough to do him in]
[Private to Kedo: that makes sense ^_^ full void then, minus what you've just spent]

 The evidence makes perfect sense - evidence always does, the trick for the mind seeking to determine it is to work out what that sense is, to relate it to the events that have taken place, and from that to refine little gleaming nuggets of truth.
 It's a lot easier said than done of course.

 Kedo moves a little to the side to shift his perspective, but carefully avoids touching anything other than the floor in the process as he remarks, "It would appear as though the honoured Crane was slain with a short stabbing blade, one seemingly designed for the purpose. Not all of the blood is his - although he was struck twice, lethally it seems he was nonetheless able to draw and strike - and perhaps, from the volume of blood, to kill."

 And this said, he does move forwards just a little, carefully picking his way between bloodstains with his eyes upon where his feet fall to press the back of one hand very lightly against the teapot... "Warm." he muses before carefully tilting back the lid to look inside.

 Tea enough for one... or tea enough for two?

 ---

 01:29, Today: Kedo rolled 24 using 4d10, dropping the lowest dice only, rerolling max. Perception and... Tea Ceremony?.

"Two" Sakura replied, "There are blood spatters on two of the teacups, indicating that they were in use at the time Kusanagi was killed. I suspected the same type of magic we saw on the road, however I suspect that surprise was the primary element here ..."

Sakura looked around the room briefly and noticed that Minako stayed outside the room.

"Minako-San" Sakura told the courtier, "would you please go the the Dragon and ask Kitsuki Ryoma and his associates for assistance."

"Someone else was here" she said to no one else in particular, "that means that, somewhere, there is testimony available."

"Satoru-San*" Sakura asked respectfully, "What do you make of this."