With Himura and his friend gone Ayumu found it somewhat easier to regain control once more. For the moment her anger turned inward, becoming shame for her rash and foolish actions. It was for good reason that a ninja must avoid emotional attachment; her flaw had led to the undoing of a great deal of work, with even more potential repercussions in the future should Himura decide to spread word of what had happened. It was a betrayal of all she had been taught, of who and what she was, and it would take considerable effort to atone for it.

She drew in a breath, willing at least an outward calm before she reached to accept her weapon back again. "My deepest apologies, Okita-san," Ayumu said, with a bow. "My actions this evening were inexcusable. It will not happen again."

As she straightened again she slid the skewer back into its previous place of concealment, her voice taking on the detached tone of an official report. "Susumu was brought here this afternoon as a visitor. He claimed, however, that he was not in fact Yamazaki Susumu, as the real Yamazaki Susumu fell in battle against Choushuu forces in the year 1868."

And the information had been sufficient to unsettle her in a way that nothing should have been able to do. If nothing else it was a sign that she needed to eliminate the weakness she had allowed to grow under Tetsunosuke's influence; he was not here, and she had other people to think of besides herself.