2025-12-16: Canvasing
- Log: Canvasing
- Cast: Tamaki Uchida, Shinjiro Aragaki, Kazusa Motojima
- Where: Shujin Academy, Aoyama-Itchome, Tokyo
- OOC Date: December 16, 2025
- IC Date: Sunday, August 26, 2012 (Midday)
- Summary:: Tamaki and Shinjiro are investigating the recent Joker Killer attack, looking for clues. Kazusa happens to show up with her brother Kazuhiro in tow, looking to retrieve something from the school. The four of them briefly chat about the attack.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki stands at the street in front of Shujin Academy in her usual pinstripe business attire, scowling at her notepad and tapping a pen against her chin.
The Joker Killer had struck here recently. Given how she's involved in the investigation to find and stop him, she's here to try and find any hint of a trail that she can. She's here to survey the area for ingress and egress points. Finding eyewitnesses to interview is better done by first determining who was present, but there's a chance she may get lucky and run across them here.
Her scowl deepens. There was that recent video he had dropped, too, where he had identified several of her contacts by name. That's definitely worrisome. He didn't mention the targets at this incident, either. Was there maybe some other way she could have known beforehand?
(There is if she were more willing to cough up, nya~.)
And it's not like she's idling the hours away otherwise. When this incident occurred, Tamaki was making good on her promise to help Tsubasa out by investigating Eiji's Palace! She only has so many hands, she can't be in two places at once!
As her frustrated thoughts reach a boil, she slaps a hand across her forehead and drags it down her face, then shakes her head to try and reset herself mentally.
Tamaki looks up from her notepad and tries to re-examine the area, as well as see who's about ...
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro Aragaki heard about the attack, and so he's investigating. Tokyo isn't a usual haunt, so he's here alone. He's in his Peacock Silk-designed red leather coat with faux wolf trim, a very nice piece of clothing that he takes immaculate care of (within reason as a Persona User).
He's unarmed, at least, adjusting his beanie as he approaches Tamaki, seeing her near the street. "Yo, Uchida," he greets her.
And then, stepping closer, he gets into casual conversation range. "Guess we're here for the same reason. Find anything new?"
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
EARLIER, AT THE MOTOJIMA HOUSEHOLD
Kazusa stuck her head into her brother's door. She stood about 5'2", with a slender gymnast's build, long straight black hair, and dark purple eyes. She was dressed in a pink halter top, and skinny black jean, with pink nail polish, several silver bracelets on each writst, and light makeup. Her expression was stern. "Hey, Kazuhiro."
Kazuhiro's room was a little messy, but not too bad. Sports paraphernalia lined the walls. Kazuhiro was a year younger than her, and about 5'7". He had short, messy hair and was currently dressed in baggy jeans, a red t-shirt, and a sleeveless hoodie. He was reclined on his bed, listening to music from a small stereo as he scrolled through his phone. Hearing his sister, he sat up to look at his older sister, offering a relaxed smile. "Hey, Kazusa-nee. 'Sup?"
Kazusa crossed her arms. "I'm going shopping, and I need you to come along and carry my bags." She said it in a voice that left no room for discussion. Almost as an afterthought, trying to keep her voice casual, she added, "... and we're stopping by the school on the way."
The younger sibling sat more fully up, studying Kazusa's expression curiously. She was just barely leaning against the doorway, her arms crossed. He regarded her for a moment and then smiled again. "Hey, sure. Sounds like fun."
Kazusa gave him a short nod. "I'll buy you lunch. Be ready in half an hour." She turned and left.
"Gotcha," said Kazuhiro, going back to scrolling through his phone.
NOW
Kazusa's walking up the sidewalk at a brisk pace, with Kazuhiro trailing slightly behind. She's looking around herself as she approaches, and thus she spots something that doesn't belong--two somethings, in fact. She studies them for a moment, then without talking to Kazuhiro heads right for Tamaki and Shinjiro.
"Excuse me," she says with a demanding, tone. "What are you two doing here?"
Kazuhiro just strolls up behind her. "Hey, sorry. What my sister meant to say was, we're both students here, but we don't recognize you. Do you need any help?"
Kazusa just jabs Kazuhiro's side with her elbow but keeps looking at Tamaki and Shinjiro expectantly, waiting for an answer.
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
"Aragaki-kun!" Tamaki happily gives a wave and clasps her hands together at the sight of the boy, and her scowl temporarily retreats as she shifts into a more sociable demeanor. She chirps, "Nice coat!" before the fact that it's still late summer crosses her mind -- isn't he sweltering under that getup?! -- though this thought, too, joins her scowl wherever it went behind the cheerful front she puts on.
Seeing him here would be unexpected in most other circumstances, but the same could be said for Tamaki. She nods, confirming his guess. "Seems like we are. I can't say I've found anything new, but I'm just taking stock of the facts right now, mapping out the area to see what routes he could have taken ... if he got here through mundane means, that is."
After a beat, she holds up a finger and corrects herself. " -- truth be told, I do have some new insights on how disparate parts of the overall puzzle may fit together, but that's from a more ... zoomed-out view. I'm zoomed-in right now." She would explain more now, but ...
Kazusa and Kazuhiro have approached. Tamaki glances to Shinjiro before she turns to them and responds, "Ah, I'm a private investigator" (Apprentice private investigator, but shhh, who's counting.) "looking into an incident that occurred here several days ago. My agency is based in Aoba Ward, but the person of interest has struck in several areas, including this one."
She nods at Kazuhiro and readies her notepad and pen. "If you know anything about what happened, would you mind giving me your account? It's okay if you don't know."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro doesn't *seem* like he's sweltering. He might be magic.
"Gotcha. Mind some company? I've got some pretty deep insights into him myself. It's unlikely he walked here," he admits, knowing Quite A Bit.
And then two teenagers show up! As Kazusa is demanding, he squints, trying to recognize where he's seen her from, but he doesn't immediately place it. Instead, Kazuhiro is more reasonable, so he lets Tamaki take the lead for a moment.
"I'm investigating the same incident," he says, deflecting from 'why'. If they assume he's another PI, so be it. "If you can give any information, that'd be cool."
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
"Whoa, cool," says Kazuhiro casually. "A ladyu detective, that's kinda hot. What kind of cases do you normally cover?"
Kazusa lets out a frustrated noise and jabs Kazuhiro in the side. "Geeze. Take this seriously, will you?"
Kazuhiro laughs and rubs the back of his neck ."Sorry, just calling them like I see them."
The elder sibling rolls her eyes as she looks back to Tamaki. "So you're based in Sumaru."
Kazusa crosses her arms. "I wasn't here," she says archly. "But I heard plenty about it. Word gets around."
She looks to Shinjiro for a moment, frowning in thought as she studies him. "... don't you go to Gekkoukan? What are you doing playing at detective?" She looks Shinjiro over one last time before shifting her attention back to Tamaki. "At least you have a nicer coat now." To Tamaki she says, "You got any proof you're an investigator?"
Kazuhiro looks to Shinjiro with a smile. "Hey, man. Awesome coat. Aren't you dying in this heat, though?"
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki beams up at Shinjiro. "Not at all! Please, join me!" 'Fake it 'til you make it,' so they say, and Tamaki's mood has now genuinely turned around.
At the mention of the Joker Killer's methods of movement, she leans in closer to Shinjiro, with her writing implements in hand and a keenly-interested glimmer in her eyes. "Oh? Do tell." (If not now, then sometime.)
She takes Kazuhiro's compliment good-naturedly, if unseriously, and bursts out with a boisterous laugh. "Haaahahahaha! I appreciate the kind words, kid, but c'mon, knock it off. Any more of that and the ref will have to give you a red card."
"As for what cases I usually cover, this one's an outlier. The big three categories I get finding missing persons, trailing someone whose spouse suspects of cheating, or trying to find the hidden financial assets of people or businesses. Past those, sometimes the requests get even weirder, as people want us to investigate ghosts or rumors in Sumaru."
Tamaki fishes around in her bag for a small folder, then opens it up and presents its contents to Kazusa. "Here. The Kuzunoha Detective Agency's public safety board registration approval." Copies of the paperwork, at least, as well as photographs and names of Chief Todoroki and Apprentice Investigator Tamaki Uchida. "It's smart of you to ask, the industry's full of scammers and sleazebags. A few years back, Japan passed some laws that rightly hold us a bit more accountable, otherwise any old schmoe could just set up shop as a 'private investigator'."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
"When we're not in public," Shinjiro tells Tamaki.
But, with the compliments to Tamaki, he's too busy figuring out who Kazusa is as she mentions his school. "Oh, it's just you." He thought she was important for a second!
"I have a personal connection to the case," he says dismissively, before turning over to Kazuhiro. "Not at all. It suits my needs, and it has vents to help in the hot weather, thanks to Peacock Silk's leatherworker."
Wait, *he's* a Peacock Silk client? (Yes.)
He glances over at Tamaki's documents. Damn, she has everything...
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazuhiro laughs good-naturedly as he's rebuked by Tamaki. "Got it, investigator-san. Sorry."
Kazusa just rolls her eyes a little at him.
Kazusa gladly accepts the folder and the documents within, giving them a serious look. And then, without asking permission, she slips her phone out of her pocket (it's brand-new, and Motojima-branded!) and snaps a few select pictures. She snaps the envelope shut and gives it back to Tamaki. "Shujin has a reputation to maintain. And I'd hate to daamge it, Uchida-tantei."
"Ghosts? You really let people waste your time with something like that?" She's still conviunced what she saw a few weeks ago couldn't have been a ghost. Even if she doesn't know how to prove it.
She gives Shinjiro an unimpressed look. "You know, I could make it a lot harder for you to find out anything if I wanted. So if I were you I'd remember to be more respectful."
Kazuhiro shakes his head a little, nudging his sister. "C'mon, Kazusa. This sounds like it's serious, don't you think?"
Kazusa looks to Kazuhiro and just scowls a little. But then she does a double take at Shinjiro as he mentions Peacock Silk. She quickly tries to school her expression into sterness again, but not fast enough.
"Whoa, Peacock Silk? That's amazing," says Kazuhiro. "That means it's one-of-a-kind, right? Pretty rad... and yeah, vents sound like a totally smart move. You know Kazusa-nee's been obsessing over that place for forever."
The older sibling makes a choked-off noise and turns to give her brother a hard shove. "I have not been-- 'obsessing' over Peacock Silk!"
Kazuhiro just laughs a little and rubs his arm a little. "Oh, my mistake then."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Behind Tamaki's smiling face, there's a nervous line of thought that's frantically running a mile-a-minute that goes something like Oh god oh god is this good enough proof are they buying it why did I choose a career path which is scrambling to regain any semblance of respectability in this country as scandal after scandal happens due to lax regulations --
Kazusa's suspicion and desire to guard Shujin's reputation in the face of a private investigator may very well be warranted.
She flinches as Kazusa takes photographs of her documentation, but doesn't protest. She has no issues with the photos being taken, she just found it rather sudden. At the very least, should Kazusa investigate further, the paperwork will check out.
Tamaki clears her throat, then gives Kazusa a slight bow as she takes her folder back. "Of course; I understand completely. Please, feel absolutely free to hold me accountable to the standards you require."
She extends a hand to the side as she continues. "Well, looking into ghosts is just shorthand for it, it's more about providing the client with a sense of security. It's finding a mundane, rational explanation for something that initially seems to defy explanation. It isn't a waste, in my opinion. Besides, we charge hourly, so it's worth our time, at least!"
Granted, those 'ghost stories' hold some actual sway over reality within Sumaru, but ... well, it's best not to press on that outside of the front gates to Shujin, lest she sound like she's well and truly lost it or that she deserves the poor reputation that her profession has.
She uneasily glances between Shinjiro and Kazusa and their tension. "Come now, please try to get along, at least for the time being. This is a serious matter." She smiles at Kazusa. "I'd be very grateful for any help you're willing to give. Any information would be of use."
At the mention of Peacock Silk, her smile widens. "Ohhhh. I've had a piece commissioned there, myself, though I don't have it with me today. I just recently found out that one of its employees even attended the same high school I did! Though, um -- we weren't close."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Kazusa threatens Shinjiro. Normally, he'd take this pretty poorly... but Tamaki's there, and also is trying to get them to get along, so he acquiesces, even if he doesn't *need* her help. "I don't want to fight."
The ghost story topic is often demons, Shinjiro knows, so he doesn't say much. This girl's not resonant... just another normal person they have to deal with for information.
"Yeah, Kikuchi, their leatherworker, did all of it. It was a pretty cool process," he says about the Peacock Silk to Kazuhiro.
But, about the information... "This is a pretty worrying case, too. So ending it would help a ton of people."
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa is definitely trying to protect Shujin's reputation. But she's also trying to protect her own reputation, too. If she gets caught out talking to the wrong person, well... that reflects poorly on her.
She will definitely check the registration number later, though.
Tamaki invites her to hold her accountable. Kazusa's reply is simply "I will."
Tamaki's explanation about finding rational explanations for ghosts... actually does make a lot of sense. "Hmm. Well, as long as you aren't wasteful of your clinets' time."
Shinjiro isn't here to fight, and Tamaki asks them to get along. Kazusa crosses her arms. "Fine. All I know is some of the students got attacked, and an ambulance had to be called. So if you need something to look into, you might want to start with that."
Kazusa's expression goes surpried when Tamaki also admits she's a client of Peacock Silk's, though it's a more subuded reaction this time. "Oh. Well, it's surprising how connections like that pop up, isn't it?" She's trying to play it cool, but she is burning to find out more information.
More information from Tamaki, at least. Shinjiro she's not so sure about.
"Hey, that must've been pretty cool to see--and she did all of it?" says Kazuhiro. "That fur's a pretty nice touch, too." But Kazuhiro quiets down again when they actually talked about what happened the other day.
"Yeah, I haven't heard more than that, either," he adds. "School's out right now, so the news travels a little slower."
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Tamaki grins at Kazusa. "Of course, of course! We live and die by our reputation, so it's of utmost importance that we set expectations by providing an initial estimate that's both reasonable and low-cost, and that we strive to meet that estimate. Ask around, and I'm sure you'll find any number of glowing testimonials about us~." Tamaki's own little trick here is that she doesn't bill for work she does during the Dark Hour.
"Nagisa-san was the one who worked on my piece. She's also the one who was apparently my classmate." Tamaki shifts her weight to the other foot. "Some weird stuff was going on at that high school, though, and we never crossed paths." She gives Shinjiro a meaningful glance at that.
She turns to Shinjiro again after Kazusa relays what she knows. "Ahh. I think we knew that much already, but thank you all the same. I certainly can't fault you for that."
She smirks at Kazusa's mention of 'connections.' "It's a small world, let me tell you." (Oh, if only Kazusa knew that Rin is one of Tamaki's clients. Not that that'll have any relevance.)
Tamaki briefly steeples her fingers, then lowers her hands as she becomes a little bit more somber as she speaks. "As for the piece itself, there's an old practice sabre I used in my high school fencing club. It's of some sentimental value to me, so I'd wanted to do something with it as a final sendoff to that chapter of my life and make it more of a ceremonial weapon than a functional one. I had asked that its hilt and pommel be decorated with gemstones. Amber, mainly, since it's a project of preservation, you see."
She places her hands behind her and offers the siblings and Shinjiro a plaintive smile. "I'm quite grateful to her for the work that she did on it."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro listens to their information... he does nod, taking out his own case notebook, writing down something, even if it's not new info. Tamaki's meaningful glance is met with a head tilt - he doesn't know which high school that'd be! "They're all weird," he says, case in point.
But then, when Kazuhiro responds... "I didn't see her actually make it, but there was a whole process to planning it. And yeah, she did."
Tamaki mentions her sword, and he nods. "It's good to remember where you came from." Even if he's not sure about sending it off...
And then, he turns to the two Shujin students. "Thanks."
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Tamaki brings out the sales pitch--and it's not a bad sales pitch, all things told. But Kazusa's response is simple: "I'm not looking to hire a private investigator, Uchida-tantei."
Nagisa... The look on Kazusa's face makes it clear she's filing that tidbit of information away. Though at 'weird stuff' happening at Tamaki's high school... Kazusa's gaze slides over to Shujin.
Kamoshida's Change of Heart definitely counts as 'weird', for a start.
But they already knew what she had to share. "I'm not surprised." She probably could go track down more information... if she had the motivation to do so.
(Kazusa would be surprised to learn that of Rin. Kazusa also might not know her name.)
Kazusa's interest is actually piqued by Tamaki's story, though. "... they were willing to work on a weapon?" She tries to make it sound dismissive, but she's actually interested.
Kazuhiro, with a little less carefree attitude, does slightly less to hide his true feeling. "That sounds like a really nice way to honor that memory, Ichida-tantei."
Shinjiro didn't get to see her making it. "Oh, but the planning process was probably cool, right?" There's that carefree attitude again.
At the 'thanks', Kazusa just gives Shinjiro a silent nod.
Kazuhiro, on the other hand, says, "Welcome. If you want, I could ask around a little bit."
Kazusa shoots her brother a look, and Kazuhiro looks at her with a questioning expression. Kazusa just shorts softly in disgust and looks back to Tamaki and Shinjiro. 'Are you really going to go through that extra efforT?' 'Why not?' 'Hmph. Do what you want.'
<Pose Tracker> Tamaki Uchida has posed.
Sales pitch?! That wasn't her intent! -- it usually is, but it wasn't this time! Oh, no, things have gotten to the point where she can't turn it off. Tamaki clears her throat and laughs it off. "Of course not, I was just trying to ease any concerns you might have about us potentially 'wasting' our clients' time."
Shinjiro says that all the high schools are weird. Tamaki curls a finger over her chin. " -- you know, I have to admit, you have me there. They are all weird. Weird stuff happened at both Karukozaka and St. Hermelin where I attended, they've happened at yours ..." Aaaaand Tamaki takes keen notice of Kazusa's glance towards Shujin. Yeah, they've happened there, too.
At 'I'm not surprised,' Tamaki gently smiles at Kazusa. "Still, there's value in knowing that the story is consistent and we're not getting a bunch of conflicting reports. So, thank you very much for your cooperation."
Tamaki waves a hand at the mention of them working on a weapon. "Haha, oh, just the hilt and pommel, mind you, and only decorative elements of it. Nagisa-san's specialty is more in accessories. I don't get the feeling that she'd have been willing to work on the actual bladed part of it or anything, nor pay any care to the parts that make the weapon functional for its intended purpose."
"Like I said, this was ..." Her smile fades a bit. " -- this was just a way to remember an old friend and try to move on with my life." After a beat, she meekly adds, "The practice sword isn't the friend, to be clear. An old classmate."
She does brighten up a bit at Kazuhiro's comment. "I'm glad you think so, too."
Kazuhiro offers to ask around a bit more! Tamaki reaches into her bag again and pulls out a business card. She offers it to Kazuhiro, and grins. "That'd be great, thank you! If you hear anything, please let me know!"
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
"Yeah, it was," Shinjiro tells Kazuhiro casually in return. "She's very good at her job."
Kazuhiro gets a grin as he offers to help Tamaki, though Shinjiro turns over to her instead. "I should probably be meeting up with my contact. I'm assuming it's a dead end, but I'll hit you up as soon as I can to trade more information."
Tamaki's better at the 'walk the beat' anyways. He's more intimidation and dealing with thugs...
And Kazusa gets one last glance. He'll remember that threat, even if his face doesn't betray him.
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Even if it wasn't, Kazusa just has that kind of resting snide energy. She doesn't like her time being wasted, either. "Of course. I'm sure you're very professional."
Kazusa would never admit anything weird happened at Shujin, not to someone who wasn't already a student there.
They have an image to maintain, after all.
Consistency! Kazusa nods to the explanation. "Of course."
"... I see." So not an armorer. That's... honestly a little relieving, in a way. "How fortunate for you that she's so versatile, then."
Kazuhiro takes the card with an easy smile. "Sure thing. I'll let you know."
"I need to be going. Good luck with your investigation." Kazusa... does not sound very hopeful or well-wishing with her delivery. She gives Tamaki a nod, and Shinjiro a look, before turning and heading towards the school.
"Annnnd I gotta go with her," Kazuhiro says with an apologetic smile. "But really, good luck to both of you." He sounds more sincere, at least. He turns and quickly heads after Kazusa.