Open to everyone because he didn't bother to seal it

[problemdaimyo]

I've received reports that some noodles have been arriving with an abnormal taste to them. This is a serious issue, and therefore if anyone has encountered strange tasting noodles, or witnessed strange or suspicious activity involving the transport or handling of noodle shipments, please send what information you have to the Land of Noodles at the soonest possible opportunity, so we can correct this!

Also, if you were to encounter a strange shinobi who requested the opportunity to spar with you, what would be your response?

Comments

[morningpeacock]

I would spar with them! If they seem like a respectable and powerful shinobi, I am always interested in good competition!

And I cannot say I have noticed anything weird with the noodles. Perhaps the spices cover that up. Should we be concerned about poisoning?

[problemdaimyo]

Perhaps one day such a traveling shinobi will challenge you, then. In the spirit.of mutual improvement.

The spices do not cover up flavors! Any spices added to Land of Noodles product before shipment or within the nation are used to enhance their natural flavor and bring out new, exciting flavors, never to obscure. Have you witnessed behavior which might indicate attempting to disguise natural flavor?

No, there are no reports of poisoned noodles.

[morningpeacock]

Perhaps so! I look forward to the day!

I have not been watching the incoming shipments. You should check with the gate guards and some of the villages along the route. Surely they have seen something!

[problemdaimyo]

It seems like a good day to look forward to.

It is our hope that alerting many to the problem will help to increase the flow of information from the unknown witnesses to the noodle investigators!

[incubi_abel]

It depends on who the strange shinobi is and how much of a diplomatic incident it might cause.

[problemdaimyo]

A friendly spar should rarely cause incident.

[incubi_abel]

[Abel's back twinged with the memory of how a friendly spar could go.]

It only takes one wrong move to turn a friendly spar into a battle.

[problemdaimyo]

[He's had no such encounters!]

Ah, but lines well laid out ahead of time would prevent such a thing.

[incubi_abel]

They would have to be well laid out, and that might make it less of a sparring and more of a teaching.

[problemdaimyo]

That depends entirely on how well the participants take advantage of the limits!

[incubi_abel]

Sparring and teaching are two different things.

[problemdaimyo]

The differences can be defined by the matter of the participants

[abileunaspada]

[ What in the... Okay, this is weird.

She has no idea that this is the same guy who was talking about his long hair, so Adela doesn't really bother doing much except minimizing her identification so that just the name 'Adela from Konoha' shows up on the reply message. ]

What do you mean 'abnormal'? I'm guessing you don't mean that they're just stale or got mold from faulty shipping or something like that. Do they just taste weird?

I don't think anything like that's happened where I am, though.

[problemdaimyo]

A strange consistency or taste, unnatural to the Land of Noodles' usual product. Not something as simple and easily avoided as aged noodles.

Perhaps then the incident isn't so widespread.

[abileunaspada]

I see. Was it really worth messaging everyone you could reach about it, then? I understand if the batch was threatening to poison someone or something, but otherwise it's just a mild quality control failure isn't it?

[problemdaimyo]

The Land of Noodles does not have quality control failures.

[abileunaspada]

[Big sigh.]

It could happen to anyone. It happens in my uncle's weapons' forge too. It's not common, but sometimes poorer than standard products make it out. It's a mistake that can easily happen.

[problemdaimyo]

Nevertheless, this is not that case. The issue is rooted in tampering, not simply a mistake.

[abileunaspada]

I see. Are you looking into where the tampering is happening in the manufacturing? There are people better to ask about that sort of thing than Ninja from various villages...

[problemdaimyo]

It's been determined that the tampering is taking place outside of the Land of Noodles. Of course we lack the forces to patrol the world in the search of these tamperers, and thus we must look to you, fellow shinobi and noodle enthusiasts, to find this culprit and bring them to justice.

[abileunaspada]

[Noodle enthusiasts...]

This has happened more than once then? If it's a one time thing it's not a huge deal, but I can see the issue if it's reoccurring.

[problemdaimyo]

[Don't deny it.]

This tampering has been on multiple recent occasions. Were it one alone, we would trust our own forces to find and apprehend the culprit before damage could be done, but this is an urgent situation.

[abileunaspada]

[She will deny it. Seriously, she doesn't even eat noodles all that much.]

Is it really that big a deal if some noodles just taste a little funny?

[problemdaimyo]

[She must have inferior noodles, then.]

Is it a big deal when a blade doesn't cut, and a kunai won't go where it's thrown?

[abileunaspada]

Yes, but people don't get killed over noodles tasting a little strangely.

[problemdaimyo]

If only that were so.

[abileunaspada]

How many people have died because their noodles tasted a little different than usual?

[ Yeah yeah she's not impressed... ]

[problemdaimyo]

That's information too sensitive to share, I'm afraid. Know that noodles are not to be taken lightly.

[abileunaspada]

[ And it's happened again. This guy is just giving her a head ache. She sighs and refuses to answer anymore, at least on that subject. Man, she hopes she never has to work with this idiot... ]

[problemdaimyo]

[...But what about the Incident in the North?? It happened! She could look up text books.

Noodle textbooks.]

[abileunaspada]

[ No.

She really doesn't care.

At all. ]

[problemdaimyo]

[....Even if he sent her the book for free?]

[abileunaspada]

[ Oh hey. Good kindling for the forge. ]

[problemdaimyo]

[Heathen.]

[abileunaspada]

[ Nya nya nya nyah nyah. ]

[problemdaimyo]

[One day you will eat noodles for every meal, and you shall understand the gravity of noodles.]

[abileunaspada]

[ Yeah no thanks.........

Not that she'll have a choice soon enough. ]

[shunshinoshishi]

The strange taste in noodles has only been brought up in one of the noodles shops here. Upon further inquiry it was discovered that said strange taste was due to the owner's misuse of fresh products; they were selling products well past their expiration date.

We haven't had any such incidences anywhere else, as far as I know. For the most part, this is likely due to the fact that our restaurants make their own noodles. [ ouch. ]

As for sparring with a stranger; it depends. I'd indulge if I wasn't needed anywhere else at the time. How strange are we talking, though?

[problemdaimyo]

[....Their own noodles? How tacky.]

It was possible to tell they were off, with such inferior noodles?

Strange as having never met them before.

[shunshinoshishi]

Of course. They were both off as well as inferior to what we already have.

[ Hah! ...But eh. How about we stop lying, Shisui? He adds the following as an afterthought: ]

We also import some of your top brands, however. There has been absolutely no issue with the standard of quality there, I assure you.

Oh. I had hoped you meant strange as in having more than the usual set of limbs or something to that degree. It would have made for a more interesting spar. Regardless, I would still spar with them if I wasn't pressed for time.

Why do you ask?

[problemdaimyo]

They would be inferior to the Land of Noodles' noodles. It must have been a terrible experience to also be off. Unless they were better when they were off...

Ah! Fortunate. Then wherever the compromise is, it hasn't affected the traffic to where you are. [Wherever he is.] Where is this?

Research! It is good to know these things before asking.

[shunshinoshishi]

The ones that were off were from the Land of Noodles.

This is Konoha. One would think you'd know who you were addressing your correspondence to.

...Before asking a stranger to spar with you? Are you the shampoo lady?

what is this shampoo you speak of, don't change the subject

[problemdaimyo]

Then the ones from the Land of Noodles were off?

To address this to Konoha alone would imply we suspected the village of the crime. This message is for all shinobi who might have witnessed the crime.

Am I what?