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The Beautiful Shibuya River (open)
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 12, 2018 3:56:33 GMT
Ah, the beautiful Shibuya River. Oh, how unique its flow. Oh how special its smell. How amazing it must be to be able to claim you can walk on top of a river in the middle of summer.
Okay, maybe the Shibuya river wasn't a sparkling, raging river of infinite beauty and splendor. Maybe even the term 'river' was being overly praising of it. The Shibuya 'River' was a skinny garbage dump, once much greater but has lost its way.
Exactly how the young man observing it feels about himself. While not tall, the twenty-something-year-old man's thin nature made him appear stretched out or squeezed. Grey sweatpants and hoodie with ratty shoes make up most of the man's weight. Okay, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it is how the red-headed man feels. "Didn't take myself for a philosopher," he mumbles, stroking his small beard, "but I can see life reflected in this poor river. Wonder if anyone cares about my random thoughts. Maybe I could write these down, though probably not worth it."
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Post by Leith, Veemon, and Shoutmon on Jul 13, 2018 3:14:20 GMT
"What do you think? You wanna go?" That was Veemon's question to Leith as the pair walked past the Shibuya River. Naturally, that reminded Veemon of the little expeditions he and his partner had begun to embark on recently. No dice for the little blue digimon, though; Leith already had an excuse not to go.
Leith raised the black and blue D-3 on his wrist to his mouth as he whispered to it, "First off, not through there. Who knows when we'd find our way back? Besides, you know how Dad is when he doesn't have his sunflower seeds."
"Um, no, I don't. You won't let them see me, remember?"
"Just trust me then." It was at that point when Leith and, by extension, Veemon were just wandering past the 'philosopher' staring glumly into the river. Leith would have loved to stop and ask if the guy was OK, but his Japanese still wasn't on conversational level yet. That was why he just frowned a little and watched him out of the corner of one eye hidden behind long, curly brown hair as he walked on by.
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 13, 2018 4:11:09 GMT
The redhead continues on his monologue, but trails off as he notices he was not alone any more. He doubt this person was here to 'admire' the 'beauty' of the Shibuya river with him; he was likely just another passerby.
Wait... was that passerby talking to himself? Was he mumbling under his breath like a crazy person, having a conversation with himself that was hard to understand? Was he now watching him inconspicuously?
That passerby... was just like him! The man in the hoodie waves over to Leith, then beckons him over. "Hello? Are you okay? You seem confused or concerned. Is everything all right?"
Wait... what was that device in the passerby's hand? Was it some kind of communication device, like a weird cell phone or a walkie talkie? The hoodie guy slowly facepalms. "You... were talking to someone else, weren't you? I'm sorry. I just thought... never mind."
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Post by Leith, Veemon, and Shoutmon on Jul 13, 2018 4:50:56 GMT
Oh, boy. This was problematic. Some dirty, rambling stranger was ranting at Leith in a language he didn't know. Instantly, the young man dropped his arm from his mouth and instinctively held the arm, and the digivice attached to it, in front of him defensively. "Whoa, easy, guy. I, uh..." He gulped as the man slinked away, apparently disappointed by whatever he'd seen, leaving Leith just looking stunned. So he addressed Veemon again. "Why do I feel like I should be calling the police?"
"He's not hurting anyone!"
"I wouldn't put it past him to jump in the river with a few rocks in his pockets. Looks like he's thinking about it, too."
Good thing Veemon was already Leith's unpaid interpreter. He couldn't say anything while the stranger was so close, but Veemon then informed him, "Actually, he asked if you were OK and said you looked confused. He also noticed you were talking to me, but I don't think he knows what I am."
Leith had to snicker at that. "You're telling me I met two different Tamers at the mall, two more at the park, but the weird guy by the Shibuya River, where the portal is, isn't one? Now that's the real shocker."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2018 5:09:27 GMT
Blake Ukirama was also at the river. He also held his D-3 in front of him, talking to Renamon. "This river. Why would they allow this?" He spoke inside the device. Blake sighed and looked at it. "I think most people don't seem to care about the environment. Back at the U.S, they push the term 'REDUCE, REUSE, AND RECYCLE' but, it doesn't really affect much." Blake explained.
"Huh." Renamon thought. It was surprising to him since, back at the digital world, it's mostly beautiful. Blake kept on walking down, disgusted by how nobody did anything about it. He decided to switch his point of view to something else but, instead of something, It was someone.
He suddenly saw Leith and somebody else that seem to be starting to have a conversation. "Wow. Haven't seen him for quite awhile after the mall." Blake spoke. Renamon heard him with also saying something. "At least there's something to take my mind off of the river." Ren said that sounded a bit giggly but, Blake couldn't tell.
As Blake gotten a little bit more closer, he called him out. "Leith! Long time no see!", waving. Blake still wonders who is the other person.
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 13, 2018 5:32:39 GMT
The more the red-haired young man in the hoodie tries to talk to Leith, the more he realizes there is some kind of communication barrier. Perhaps he was trying to talk to a foreign tourist? He sounded American, after all, and the words were definitely a different language than Japanese. Maybe he could talk to him a different way.
"My... name... is... Ginjiro. Gin-ji-ro." He gestures to himself. "I am Ginjiro. Do you have... a phone?" He pulls out a simple black smartphone from his pocket and shows Leith, then points at him. "We can... use them... to talk..." He gestures at his mouth, then mimics typing, "by text." Maybe he would get the hint, and they could talk via translation apps and texting. Of course, it was then that he realizes he could talk to him by using the translation app by itself and showing him the translated text, and make things faster. The second facepalm of the day.
Ginjiro enacts his plan, typing into a translator app the message that he tried to just tell him, and shows him the result: My name is Ginjiro. Do you have a mobile? You can use them to speak in text.
Good. The service seems to have worked. Would he have to do the same for this other newcomer? Or maybe he could translate for him, as the two seem to be friends. "Hello! Do you understand Japanese?"
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Post by Leith, Veemon, and Shoutmon on Jul 13, 2018 16:12:39 GMT
Oh, right! Of course Leith would never leave the house without his phone, and as a newcomer to a foreign country he had to have a translator app for when Veemon couldn't reveal himself. Right. Stupid me. As Leith opened up the app he thought, Sorry, Veemon. Don't take it personally. So Leith typed what he wanted to say and prayed the translator was actually a good one.
My name is Leith. If you're thinking about taking a dip in the river, I should warn you you're just asking for every disease known to man... or something even crazier.
To himself Leith had to snicker a little, as he knew a little something about the river this Ginjiro didn't. But it was only then he turned to Blake. Great... the troublemaker is back. At least he was outwardly civil. "Hey, what goes on? How's, uh, you know... your newest friend?"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2018 0:31:25 GMT
"Doing pretty fine, considering. How're you doing including your OTHER friend?" Blake asked Leith with a link.
He then looked at Ginjiro for a split-second to switch is perspective to Leith. "Wonder why he's talking him. Or did Leith start the conversation first." Blake thought to himself.
"I'm wondering if this Ginjiro has the same opinion as I do." Renamon thought from inside the D-3. "Maybe Blake could be wrong and most people do want a place that isn't like what he described. I don't know.." He thought once again.
Blake turned to Ginjiro and nodded. "はい、確かに"(Yes, Indeed) Blake spoke to him. It was his first time talking to someone from another country. Besides, a few bystanders, vendors, he didn't really interact much with anyone. Who knows what type of beef they got with an american? They could jump to conlcusions but, he has a good feeling about the guy he was talking to now.
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 14, 2018 21:04:09 GMT
Good, talking via translator seems to be working. Ginjiro lets himself relax and half-smile as the communication barrier is cracked. "I am glad to see you Leith. Do not worry, I will not swim or walk on the river." He removes his hood, allowing his very shortly-trimmed red hair to breathe, and the shadow of his hood no longer shades his grey eyes. "I hope this is not a rude question. What brings you here?"
The other man appears to speak Japanese. How fortuitous! That would make things a little less awkward, hopefully. "Good, because I don't speak English" Ginji chuckles softly. "Welcome to the beautiful Shibuya River. Is that your friend? It seems he already knows the dangers of swimming in the water here - if you could call anything related to this 'swimming' or 'water." --------- Meanwhile, in another part of town, a cardboard box sneaks around like one of those stealth games. So far, no exclamation marks are raised.
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Post by Leith, Veemon, and Shoutmon on Jul 15, 2018 0:18:25 GMT
We've met once. This kid almost got the both of us arrested. As Leith's phone read that off in Japanese, he made eye contact with Blake out of the corner of his eye. As for what brings me here, the honest answer is nothing. I'd just be passing through if some stranger didn't have a thing for staring into dirty rivers and holding conversations with passing strangers.
Since Leith's translator was taking every verbal input of Japanese it received, he understood what was said about the danger and had to add, As for the dangers of a swim... you have no idea.
Leith then turned to Blake. "V's good. You wouldn't believe some of the things we've been through since we last met. He's, uh... he's really grown on me. And I'm talking both figuratively and literally." Leith punctuated that last statement with a knowing smirk as he shared that thing he expected Blake to understand but 'Ginjiro' not to.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 15, 2018 1:02:08 GMT
"I see what you mean." Blake winked at him. "Do you want to hang out for a bit? Maybe give our other friends some "leg room"? He also said. He turned to Ginjiro. In Japanese he spoke. "Well, I met him once in a mall and I guess we it it off from there. Though we didn't really develop our friendship.
"Also, are you sure it's beautiful. I see people say that a lot but, all I see is trash. Do they even care about the environment anymore? Because, sooner or later, Shibuya may be contaminated with this "water" if we're not careful." He added. Renamon was a bit more excited, despite not expressing it from inside the D-3, when he heard Blake talking to Leith. Still, he wonders about the other person if he has the same thinking as he does. I mean, the river could've been clean if people didn't decide to use it as a trash bin of sorts.
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 15, 2018 2:17:51 GMT
"Almost had arrested you both?" Then this guy is trouble, isn't he? Well, too late to decide not to talk to him, but he was curious at the very least. "What had happened?"
Ouch. Burned. Perhaps Ginjiro was a bit odd, pulling aside random strangers to talk about a polluted river. He was in an odd mood for some reason. He knew this wasn't proper social etiquette, and yet he did it anyways. Oh well. "I am sorry for disturbing you." Hopefully Leith would accept his apology.
Now it was time to talk to the troublemaker. For this, he doesn't need a translator. "Well..." he says, stretching out the word. "I meant that it is kind of an ironic beauty. I know that sounds pretentious, but I mean it. It is sad, painful, and disgusting... but it kind of encapsulates a lot of what's wrong with some groups of human behavior. Not that I wouldn't mind it all being cleaned up. I'd like it to be regularly beautiful, clean, non-toxic. There are good people out there that are either being lazy, caught up in other stuff, or do not know of the plight. I'm the first two, haha." ------ The box watches from a distance. That rambling human... is he the one? He does not appear to have a Digivice... yet? And the other two seem to have Digimon somewhere...
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Post by Leith, Veemon, and Shoutmon on Jul 15, 2018 2:37:51 GMT
Alright. I'm not made of stone. Leith recognized a sincere apology when he saw one, and he knew just enough Japanese to accept one even without a translator. "Sinpai naiyo." To Blake he then addressed, "It's probably better that it's dirty and disgusting - and I'm an environmentalist. But if the water was clear enough so see through, then the you-know-what would be visible. But, yeah, I know V's been anxious to get a little more 'free time' since he can't do much around here." Leith casually looked down at his digivice as he spoke to Blake, and that was why he noticed the digimon within it frantically waving his arms and generally looking like he wanted to be noticed. Oh, boy. That can't be good. So both could clearly understand, Leith used TTS for his next statement: Give me a second.
Once Leith had gotten far enough away from the pair for privacy, he asked his digivice, "What is it?"
"I sense a digimon close by!" The Tamer knew better than to doubt Veemon's senses, to his credit: already twice before he had demonstrated his sense was reliable. So the young man instantly changed modes from social to on-task.
"Where?"
"That way!"
Leith followed Veemon's point, but there was nothing plainly visible to him that looked like a digimon... but the young man is fairly certain that a upturned box lying there wasn't before. For confirmation, the boy asked, "Vee, do you know if that box was there before?"
Veemon was quick to respond, "I know for fact it wasn't! I was looking there when we walked by it!"
"Well..." Leith looked over his shoulder at Blake and the potential witness. "...Screw it. I don't appreciate being stalked, and there might be more important stakes here than one witness." That was how Leith began to start slowly sneaking toward the box, taking care to lighten his steps and try to be inaudible to whatever may be beneath it.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2018 0:59:52 GMT
"Leith?" Blake thought to himself as he saw him go towards a strange looking box. He was going to say something else until, he heard a beep from his D-3. In Japanese he said to Ginjiro "Stay there for a second.And, please don't follow as it's been awhile since I met Leith. Something could be up." He said to him. Blake then starts to go over to where Leith was.
"Blake, I sense a digimon. It could be where Leith and Vee are." Renamon said to Blake out of the D-3. He didn't know why he called Leith's Digimon ,"Vee" But, he thought it was a good nickname, His tamer thought otherwise.
"Vee? What type of a nickname is that?First off, I don't think you should call him by a nickname as of right now. Second, I would rather call him, Veon. Vee AND Mon.Shorten it and, it's like Veon Vee sounds like someone you would call a girlfriend."Blake rebuttled. Though he does like it but, he has to keep a low profile. For his own sake.
If Renamon was in his physical form, he would just shrug as he wouldn't care. Blake slowed down a bit and was currently behind Leith. "I think this what Renamon is talking about. The digimon is probably inside that box." Blake whispered to him, not realizing that he already knows that.
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Post by Dee and Ginjiro on Jul 16, 2018 1:54:21 GMT
Ginjiro smiles slightly as Leith accepts his apology in Japanese. He must have learned basics in order to be polite. He quickly responds with his phone: "Thank you for your kindness." He knew there were good people out there!
There were also weird people out here. He was one of them, but it seems that Leith and Blake were also some of them. They are eager to leave Ginjiro, which he completely understands. But it seems to be a temporary thing, and in a suspicious way. "Um... sure... go ahead...?" Guess it was back to staring at the 'water' some more.
The box appears to know it is being followed. It 'walks' away at the same speed as the approaching humans, speeding up when they do. It really does not want to be caught, though it never tried to outrun Leith or Blake, merely keeping the same distance from them.
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