Chapter 62: Arc 2, - 40: The Stroke of a Brush
'The Split. This place isn't as extravagant as High-Town, but it's not Old-Town either. This is where the Swivelling Blade is supposed to be.'
Jotou's hood covered her eyes from the morning Sun, walking past the people who strode with haste from place to place. The house she stopped at seemed to be the right address.
The public seemed to be nowhere near this plot surrounded by trees that gnarled up beyond the roof—the doors to it wide and of a darkened wood, like a dojo's.
Screen windows of white, framed in the same wood. Red and gold leaves crisped as she approached up the short stairs.
'I tried to get the best sword I could from that pile... A bit dull, but at least it doesn't look broken. I hope he'll teach me.' She knocked on the sliding wooden door.
"State your business," the voice of an old man echoed till the door.
Jotou faced the wood, "Hi, I'm Jotou Howllett. I was hoping to talk to you about learning how to fight with a sword. You may also know me as the Thundering Blade?"
A pause was her response, before, "Come inside." Jotou slid the door open and stepped into the polished wood floors and walls. An earthy scent hit her senses.
Mild dawn light shined into the vast room that had two extra layers of floors to the sides. A massive screen door was open on the other end, to an open space.
Doorways led to other rooms to the sides of where she entered, but the sight of a man on the raised flooring to the left caught her attention first.
He sat, cross-legged, in his black hakama-like garment with a white top. He had a paintbrush pinched delicately—a table was set with various tools on top of it. His fuzzy hair had greyed, brown eyes focused on his work.