Tsume stared hard at the mats, glaring where one of them had been torn in some long-ago spar. "It's not--" She stopped, unsure what she was going to say. "It doesn't matter--" She stopped again, chewing on the inside of her lip. "I was just surprised. Kuromaru must have misread my scent."

She looked away, shoulders hunched as she braced her hands on the bench. Ryouma was close enough that she could brush his thigh, if she stretched her fingers out--

Which she didn't do.

She wasn't unhappy that he and Kakashi were having sex. She was sure that Ryouma was still chasing tail all over HQ, and that didn't bother her. It was just -- it wasn't the first time. There was something there, and she wanted it.

She didn't want it. She didn't. Connections meant people started asking things, wanting things, pushing for more -- she didn't want that.

And she wanted it so badly she could taste it.

All her confusion settled. It wasn't Kakashi -- it was the connection. Well. That was easy enough. Very simply, she couldn't have it. From somewhere she found a humorless smile and looked up at Ryouma, purposely relaxing again. "It doesn't matter. It was just a long week, with more surprises than not. I wouldn't have thought that you and Kakashi--mitebite, I wouldn't have thought that Kakashi... And Kuromaru has been going on about puppies." She rolled her eyes. "Spring."