It was an extremely varied group that gathered at the Red Tailed Nest at the invitation of  Doji Naomi. The Red Tailed Nest was one of the many places of business the Crane had commandeered in the city of Mura Sabishii Toshi for their own use--not that others were unwelcome, just that the Crane occupied most of the seats.

Other than Doji Naomi herself, her betrothed Kitsune Shoji, and his brother Kitsune Daichi, also present were the Ronin Kedo and Yuudai, the Crane Asahina Byako, and the Dragon Agasha Masuyo. It was a gathering that drew looks--but not stares, never stares from the oh, so polite Crane--and not a few quiet and not so quiet murmurings. Some of that may have been for Yuudai and Kitsune Daichi, who had distinguished themselves in the Test of the Badger, or for Agasha Masuyo, who's reputation among the Phoenix preceded her, but most likely it was for Asahina Byako and the Ronin Kedo, both of whom had played a part in the Siege of Toshi Ranbo--and not a small part either.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:57, Tue 20 Mar 2018.

The Dragon Shugenja needs to do nothing flamboyant, as her outrageously colorful clothing and impressively colorful tattoos do a fantastic job of that for her.  She looks around as she travels with her companions, nodding her head and smiling to the Crane as they pass them.

"What a lovely place this is."  She may be a bit socially dense, but she is fairly sharp of eye.

She leans towards Asahina Byako and the Ronin Kedo, pausing in her stride to do so, possibly nearly causing a pile up of moving bodies.

"Seems you two are quite the celebrities!"

"It seems so. I hope it doesn't cause Shoji-san any trouble. Anzu and Daichi-san would be completely upset if it did, I'm sure."

Byako tries to get the procession moving again by gently prodding Masuyo back into motion.

"I'm starved Masuyo-san. The sooner we get to our seats, the sooner we'll get to eat!" she says with a wink and smile.

A soft chuckle, and the wink and smile are returned, with a quick bow at the end.

"My apologies, Byako-san.  I will cause your constitution no further harm."

She moves then with almost astounding agility, threading her way to the table, then moving slightly to one side.  She moves in some ways like a warrior, a monk.. or a madwoman?

She grins.  "No troubles, yes?"

"None yet, I think!" Byako takes her place as well.

Masuyo drops into a cushion on the other side of Byako of her ronin friend, almost like a child would sit.

"Excellent!"

She looks around the table, then seems to smile at something over Byako's shoulder a moment... though there is apparently nothing there.

 For his part, Kedo isn't really dressed for the Red-Tailed Nest - oh, he's presentable enough for a camp and he's not wearing armour (indeed, he's almost never seen wearing the pearl-grey suit that he's carried on his back from one side of the Empire to the other - mindful that a war harness should only be worn for war) but his garments are those of a simple wave-man, painstakingly repaired and starkly plain.

 The swords at his hip are fairly nice mind you, but that's only to be expected.

 The eyes do not go entirely unrecognised however, and when Masuyo remarks upon them he offers a small, apologetic smile and answers "I fear that rumour has run ahead of fact... My efforts to enter a bath-house earlier were greeted with similar... Commentary." in what can only be described as a thoroughly abashed fashion.

 That... well, that didn't go entirely smoothly.

Masuyo grins feral at Kedo for a moment in reply, then speaks loud enough for anyone to overhear that wishes.

"Oh... I could use a bath, and it is a great opportunity to show off all my ink.  Care to join me after dinner at the same one, Kedo-san?"

She pulls up her left sleeve a bit more.. the woman's skin appears to be mostly covered...

 "I should welcome the opportunity... Although I fear that there will be some small difficulty locating a suitable house... For some reason there was no space to be found in the local ones when I asked." Kedo answers, which can probably be put down to his most famous visit to a Crane bath house having resulted in his jumping naked into the women's section and a dozen dead bodies.

 It's complicated...

Another grin from the shugenja.

"I am certain we can find something suitable..."

Teeth flashed in a smile directed towards Doji Naomi as guests arrived, "Thank you, Naomi-san.   I couldn't have put this together without you."

Kitsune Shoji gleamed as he met eyes with the arriving guests and found them already in good spirits and conversation.  There was a lot riding on the evening for the Fox - the tournament was an opportunity for the minor clans to make friends.  Certainly Shoji was happy that Daichi had won the first event and the gifts of the Badger, but he couldn't help but think that the evening's festivities (the chance for the Fox to host some of the other competitors) was the real prize.

Shoji himself had seen to much of the food preparation... for the Fox this meant mostly gathering as opposed to preparation the surrounding hills lending their bountiful sansai to the keen eyes of the Kitsune.  Impossibly crisp vegetables found themselves mixed with a dozen varieties of mushrooms and sweet berries.  These were only appetizers, of course.  Courses of fresh fish and other surprises remained in reserve waiting for the fashionably late to arrive.

The decor found the best of both worlds - Crane elegance and Fox produce.

Barely through the entrance the guests find themselves approached by servants offering refreshments - a variety of fresh fruit juices mixed with awamori; non-alcoholic beverages available upon request.

Shoji stood aside Naomi watching the guests enter.

"Asahina-sama."  A bow.
"Agasha-sama."   Another bow, deeper due to Shoji's lack of familiarity with the eye-catching Agasha.
"Kedo-sama."  A third bow, deeper than one would expect for a ronin but still respectful of the hero of Toshi Ranbo.  "Will Ikoma-sama be joining us this evening?" Shoji asked hopefully.  The Lion was never without a story.

A dozen feet away, the largest Kitsune labored, staring intently at what appeared to be something of a centerpiece for the occasion.  At first it appears to be something of a sculpture of an oversized bonsai in the middle of the room.  Closer inspection revealing that it was complex and organic - an assembly of weathered woods that had been harvested from the forest and shaped into a wooden installation.  The art-form unique to the Kitsune, a localized take on ikebana.  That Daichi moves blocks of wood the size of boulders with little effort reveals his strength, the arrangement his artistry.

Upon hearing voices voices of the guests Daichi paused, turning to acknowledge them offering bows to each of the guests.  A thoughtful glance toward the Asahina who had helped him earlier, a lingering glance at the eye-catching Agasha, and a welcoming but wary glance toward the ronin.