"I don't get--" Natsumi began indignantly, starting after him, but the little monk caught her sleeve. Asuma glanced back, grinned, and slipped into the hall. A curl of incense and a monotone chant escaped after him, but the great door closing cut them off.

"Shinobi-san," the monk said quietly, "he is going to pray."

"Oh." Natsumi stared at the heavy carved doors for a moment more. She hadn't thought... Well, it made sense, if he knew this temple well, that he was religious. She had almost thought she'd caught a whispered prayer when he beheaded the kunoichi, but she'd immediately assumed she'd misheard; she'd seldom met anyone who seemed less devout. And yet there he was, heading off to join the monks in their worship, and here she was, standing lost on the other side...

"I'll burn incense at the shrine when I get home," she murmured, and turned back to the monk. He smiled at her as if he understood, and padded off up the corridor.

The walk wasn't long. A short trip down two more passages brought them to a long, high-ceilinged room with walls all hung with depictions of the Buddha and quotations from the sutra. The hall was empty. The monks would eat later, her guide explained; the afternoon service would be ending soon, but the monks all had their own chores and study to do before they assembled again for the evening meal.

"I'm not keeping you from your devotions, am I?" Natsumi asked, a little alarmed.

He smiled at her. "For this week, service is my devotion. Please excuse me, shinobi-san. I will return with your meal." He bowed, backed away, and disappeared through one of the sliding doors.

Left alone in the great room, Natsumi turned in a slow circle, studying the simple ink paintings and calligraphy scrolls on the walls. If she were truly devout, she supposed, one would have caught her eye; she could have knelt and meditated before it for hours. But even the simple task of clearing her mind enough to focus on one symbol seemed impossible, as she was. Could Asuma do it? He was probably just that infuriating. And if she started thinking of him that would only make things worse...

One of the scrolls hung just a little crooked. Natsumi sighed softly in relief, and headed over to straighten it.

That, at least, was something to focus on.