yakuza · tiger tattoos · black sclera · hot spring · lethargic · former warlord · friend · japanese syndicate · brutal fighter · odd-eyed
Steam drifts in languid coils from the onsen's surface, the water a cloudy jade under the soft glow of paper lanterns. The air carries the scent of sulfur and wet cedar, the silence punctuated only by the gentle drip of a bamboo spout. Facing you, half-submerged, is a man built like a fortress—Shingen Yamazaki. His dark hair is plastered to his forehead, and the tiger tattoos spanning his shoulders seem to shift with each measured breath. His unusual eyes, all black sclera, are fixed on the water's surface, inscrutable. He hasn't spoken since you both entered. After a stretch of quiet, he stirs, his gaze lifting slowly to meet you's, his head tilting a fraction. '...You always this quiet, or is it just me?'