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Shinzu had a pretty good idea. One person guarding the city was a good idea. Batsu felt as though between he and Shinzu, he himself would be the better choice to stalk the bandits down. He was stealthier and was a long-ranged archer. Not only that, he could use his medical ninjutsu and act like someone who wanted to help... just in case.

Batsu took the headset from Andou and placed it into his bag. He then crouched down onto the floor of the hotel room. "I have no issues with Shinzu's plan. I just think Shinzu should be the one to guard the village entirely. He's the stronger one when it comes to hand-to-hand combat. Meanwhile, I could get a view of the city from above and watch the city. I'll report any suspicious activity and it will also allow me to tail the bandits when they make their move. As long as we keep talking to each other, we'll succeed." Batsu shrugged.

'Some people never change', Shinzu thought with grin as Andou described what he had planned for the night. No problem there, Shinzu could handle himself just fine , unless the bandits appeared in overwhelming numbers, which wasn't likely, not the first night at least. He stood up and stretched slightly, even giving out a small yawn. "Yeah, I reckon I'm ready to eat." Shinzu said happily, as if he ever turned down free food.

Andou blithely ignored Batsu's comments and the three followed the girl through the corridor and up two flights of stairs. He didn't know about the others, but it soon became clear to him that they were not going to the communal dining room. But of course, they were dining with the mayor! Still, Andou kept his wits about him. There was something odd about the whole situation but he couldn't put his finger on what.

The mayor was already sitting down at the table when the three arrived. From what they could see of him, he was a rather stout man, wearing a fine yukata and sporting a shaved head. His ears were comically long and his earlobes were massive. His expression was easygoing and almost fatherly. Immediately, Andou bowed. "Excuse us for making you wait," he said inoffensively although it wasn't the sincerest tone you could get out of Andou.

"Oh no, it's all right!" the mayor replied heartily, waving at them to sit. "Come, we have good food for all of you. Maya, the first course, please."

At this, the girl straightened up and said, "Yes, sir! Right away!" She then left the room.

"You'll have to excuse us in turn for our hospitality!" the mayor continued. "I truly apologise that we could not have given you a better set of rooms. But if you solve this problem you are free to return anytime to the best accommodation, fit even for a king!" he said grandly and gesticulated at the air around him just to make the point.

"No, that's perfectly all right," Andou assured him. "Our accommodation is excellent for our purposes. Please don't worry about it." Of course it was excellent for his purposes. If things went as he thought they would Andou would be able to have three beds for the night! Most likely they wouldn't but it was worth hoping. "Anyway... we were hoping if you had any more information on the whole situation. Information is gold, you see." Fortunately Andou had the sense not to quote too inanely when around town leaders and other important people. "Plus my team also have a few questions for you too about the town geography and tactics."

"I can answer those question," the mayor said in a sudden serious tone. Then he brightened up. "But first, the food!" As if on cue, Maya poked her head through the door before opening it for another, older woman behind her. "This is miso crab soup, the finest crab that money can buy. Tuck in!" The mayor was so jaunty and excitable that Andou couldn't refuse. In fact, it almost seemed like an order.

Shinzu eyed the mayor for just a second, for the moment he was living by the creed that every soldier follows when in an iffy situation: 'Act kindly, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet.' Regardless he sat down at the table, opposite of Batsu. The food looked ok, though a little too high collar for Shinzu's tastes, he awaited Andou before he began eating. Someone had to be the test dummy, right? So why not the man who wasn't going out on a mission this evening?

Batsu looked down at the food and solemnly bowed. "Itadakimasu..." he said in an elegant manner before he uncovered the bowl, cupped it into his hands and took a sip. The soup was very tasty and he tried to put it down. Unfortunately he couldn't resist the urge to take one more sip. He then swallowed and set the soup back down on the table without it making a single sound. He then turned to the mayor and flashed a polite grin for a brief moment. "Sir, your cook is very experienced. The food is delicious!"

Andou was too busy sampling the sushi to care about what was going on right now. The wagyu beef was decent, but perhaps a bit over-grilled. Then again there were those people who liked to have extra well done beef either due to preference or health concerns or whatever. Andou thought that people who did it for the latter were kind of silly, since beef was edible raw - and if you worried about raw food, what the hell were you doing eating sushi? He was currently tasting the sea urchin and passed his tongue over it several times as he chewed. What a pleasant creamy flavour. This was top grade uni for sure.

"Ha ha! I will make sure to send your compliments to the chef," the mayor said genially at Batsu's compliment. "I'm just happy that you're enjoying it, sonny."

He listened to Shinzu's questions and thought for a moment. "The highest point of town would probably be the Bird's Post. It's a bit outside town, on the edge of some woods. Kids go there to play during daytime but nobody goes there during the night as the forest can be dangerous. My aides can naturally bring you there, of course. And as for your second question, they come from all over.

"Everyone's been a target of the raids. I have a feeling the raiders circle the village. But if you ask me I have an idea of just who exactly is conducting them. I just can't prove it." A dark shadow passed over the mayor's face at this moment.

"It's the miners," he declared. "We used to buy from them a lot," he continued explaining. "Then they ran out of ore. But they still wanted money. Of course, I refused." He waved a hand around. "This was all about half a year ago. Then, 3 months ago, those raids started. It's too much of a coincidence.

Shinzu nodded as the Mayor spoke, taking a bite of the beef in the process. As the Mayor explained the highest point in town, Shinzu looked over to Batsu to make sure he was paying attention. As far as Shinzu could tell he was, which was good, he'd be the one in the Bird's Post, not Shinzu. What the mayor said afterwards did not sit well with Shinzu, they surrounded the city? If they went in from every direction, and then attacked everyone, he couldn't be everywhere at once could he? They'd have to change up thier plans, probaly by splitting the village into two halves, one for each Genin.

He should've guessed that fingers would be pointed during this meeting, but Shinzu didn't and was thus caught off guard. "We shall see Mr. Mayor, at the time everyone is a suspect, except you villagers of course." Shinzu said, talking as delicatly as he could, so as not to offend the mayor in anyway. "Where are the Miners based? We'll be able to question them then." Shinzu said. This was beginning to feel too much like police work to Shinzu, which was something no Ninja in Kiri had ever been trained for. Such things where handled by the various civilians living in the village.