"Very impressive," Nakanobu said. "I've carried goods near the Wall, but never when there was an attack."

"I did encounter much, just some goblins during a patrol in the cursed lands," Kasumi said.

"Still, every bit helps," Nakanobu said.

"I suppose," Kasumi said. "Ghastly little things.'

"That was a good beginning," said Jiro.  "...and now, we deal with Scorpions and criminals.  At least with the Goblins, it's clear who the threats are."

"That's the truth," Nakanobu said.

"How about you tell us about yourself, Nakanobu-san," Kasumi said.

"Not much to tell," Nakanobu said. "I learned my trade from my father, and worked with my brother until he chose to settle down.  I travel between the villages near the Wall and the northern end of Crab lands, and make a specialty of local foods."

"And done well enough by it, I hope," said Jiro.

"Well enough, certainly," Nakanobu said. "Enough that I can pass it down to my own son, although I need to find a wife first."

"I'm sure it won't be difficult. I'm sure many would want to wed the son of a successful merchant," Kasumi said.

The chatter continued idly until they reached a larger village in late afternoon. "We can stop here; there's a small guesthouse you can stay in," Nakanobu said.

"Ah, good," said Jiro.  Riding an oxcart wasn't tiring, as such, but still, a chance to stretch out properly would be good.

"Let's get a room and then we can practice," Kasumi said.

"Agreed," said Jiro.  He wondered what the locals would make of it... well, he was Hida.  Practicing combat arts should be something they understood, from one of his kind.

They soon arranged a small but well-appointed room.

"I'm certainly looking forward to learning under, Jiro-sensei," Kasumi said with a polite smile.

"All right," said Jiro, and he began putting his gear away first.  Best not risk damaging something accidentally.

"When you're ready," he said when he was done.

"I'm ready, but shouldn't we do this outside so we don't damage the room?" Kasumi asked.

Jiro looked around at the paper walls.

"You are wise," he said.  "Let's go."

Kasumi followed him outside.

"All right," said Jiro.  "You can actually use some footwork from swordplay, and even some hand movements.  Let me show you..."

He began to demonstrate some basics of grappling and striking.

"That seems easy enough," Kasumi said.

Jiro nodded.

"You'll want to figure out how to use your size to your advantage," he said.  "...I can't really teach you that."

Kasumi nodded.

"What happened to not taking it easy on me?" she asked in a teasing voice.