Kunimitsu picked up the next in his stack of birthday cards, and smiled faintly.
This one was bound to be amusing.

Dear Buchou,

Happy 40th. Heard you passed the Park Ranger certification; congratulations.
Hope bears don’t eat you.

On that subject, finally got Sengoku to sign on, and Lucifer says mountains
no problem to add. Are you sure you won’t come?

Cheers, Echizen

Kunimitsu chuckled softly.

"Is that one from Echizen?" Uriel asked from the couch, sipping his
tea.

"His annual campaign speech, yes," Kunimitsu answered. "Do you
happen to know how he secured Sengoku for the afterlife?"

"If that’s the redhead," Uriel sighed, "Echizen seems to have
maneuvered him and Raphael into proximity at the last Australian Open. They
had quite the lively chat, from what I hear. Raphael came back smirking so
hard Barbiel made him sleep on the couch on general principles." He
shook his head. "For such a straightforward person, Echizen can be very
cunning."

Kunimitsu pulled over a sheet of writing paper. "Echizen has a very good
sense of people, once he’s had a chance to judge them on the court."

Uriel leaned back. "These people are still your friends. Are you sure
it wouldn’t be better to join him, rather than going through me?"

"If Echizen doesn’t have goals to meet, challenges to overcome, it won’t
be good for him," Kunimitsu returned, absently, as he wrote.

Echizen,

Thank you for your good wishes.

Mountains are a fine addition; they’ll make a valuable training location.
I’m sure the domain will do well, with you thinking so far ahead.

Tezuka

"Besides," he added, folding the paper, "I enjoy your company,
and you can use my help more than Echizen. In the end, I expect he’ll be
pleased that I’m next door, as it were, and not interfering with him."

"And it isn’t, after all, as if you won’t be visiting," Uriel suggested,
smiling.

Kunimitsu sipped his own tea, quite calmly. "Of course."

End