"Yeah, man. I did." He offered Romeo a wry smile. "She gave me a smack to the back of the head for tellin' her you deserved to know what things are gonna be like in Tokyo. That whole she-ain't-her-own-person thing. I been there. I got a body count that'll rival almost anyone on my planet. And even if I wanted to say no, I couldn't."

He shrugged and stretched out his arms.

"Tseng could'a told me to shoot Rikku in the face, yoto. Or threatened to do it himself. You don't think she's got the same thing goin' on right now? She's walkin' into somethin' dirty for the good of I-don't-even-know, and she does want you to go with her, I think. More'n you know. But shit, man, it's gonna take more work than 'I'd learn Japanese if I had to,' zoto. You ready for that? Is she?"