Astute
Unsurprising to his alluded ex-occupations, Obi held an impeccable grasp on battle situations. With his swift reconnaissance, silent presence and not to mention his astounding memory for detail, Obi had almost full control of all situations even before the event or altercation happened. Many a time, as situations seem to exacerbate, or plans went awry, Obi magicked up valuable information like a magician pulling a trick out of a hat.
However, what surprised Zen in a way that he shouldn't have been, was the fact that Obi was a good diplomat. In fact, not just good, he was a marvel at this expertise. Obi held a cheerful demeanor that charmed most if not all, also he was tactful in his words-quick to please yet in an intellectual manner. Furthermore, for all his distaste for propriety and formality, he was strangely suited for it when called for it. He balanced it gracefully even, with his casual appearance which endeared him to the common folk while retaining his elegant speech. He was able to play the part of a royal's aide, with his intelligent words, wit and most notably politeness. It actually wasn't hard to tell, as Obi was always addressing him as Master and the most gentlemanly when treating Shirayuki.
He was most useful for not only interrogation but also negotiation.
Zen remembered an incident clearly, whereby their party consisting of himself, Shirayuki, Mitsuhide, Kiki and Obi was sent to rectify a fief which was exploiting the people's taxes. When they were riding through the village, they saw many places of poverty: old houses about to fall apart, children and adults alike on the streets. The people there were not happy and mostly indignant of their plight, things almost took to a bad turn when the people started to gather and confront them. However, as Kiki and Mitsuhide were geared up to at least face an attack of sorts, Obi basically flitted over to the villagers. Taking in his hand some perfume from a stall set-up, he inhaled a whiff and enthusiastically beckoned them over.
"Master, this will be a good present for Shirayuki, it's smells heavenly. Maybe some of the palace staff may want some too? They were complaining of the humid weather and this can be used as a air freshener, it's so much like spring!"
Zen immediately caught on to the seemingly whimsical actions of his messenger, beckoning over the stall owner and ordering 10 dozen bottles to be packed for them to bring back for the palace. The crisis was averted as the villagers saw them to be more than royalty who came to remedy their plight with sneers and empty words instead. Therefore, Obi's senses were highly attuned and receptive to such situations were apparent and hinted his shady and less-than-glorious past.
Afterwards, when they arrived at the lord's castle, Zen was met with condescension and dismissal. Shirayuki with her friendly and exuberant demeanor managed to throw the man, Lord Hibiki off kilter while his aides managed to stare him down into at least serving them with a modicum of respect. Obi managed to sweep his formal dress coat and address the lord with a respectful yet threatening manner. His eyes glittered with an dangerous aura, as he presented the intel he gathered of the lord in a formal and flat manner. And then he suddenly switched over to his usual persona, speaking in a cheerful tone of how he could remedy the lord's personal problem of the bandits hounding his house for money with the threat of his people's lives.
Lord Hibiki was caught like a deer in headlights. His jaw was agape while a blush creeped onto his high cheekbones, mortified with his incompetence and stunned into silence. Obi then went on to lay out the lord's options in a highly persuasive and meandering manner, bringing the lord to attention and almost compliance. When the lord regained his composure and was about to ask for more details, Obi timely passed the reins back to Zen to assert his authority and his thoughts on the matter. This was done so smoothly and subtly that the earlier tense atmosphere was dispelled and almost forgotten.
The matter was solved simply with Zen's swift and logical solutions to the lord's problems, chiding the lord for his unnecessary pride and stupidity in handling the situation. Kiki subsequently provided the necessary paperwork, tidying up the last of the matter. As such, Lord Hibiki was suitably humbled and grateful for the party's intervention. They then digressed into more casual matters and the matter they solved faded to the back of their minds.
What that wasn't forgotten, however, was the party's appraisal of Obi's astute handling of the matter. As the servant he was, he held himself in check of his position while impressing on the other figure of authority his master's dominance with his own recognized skills. The lord's change of attitude was so apparent and unexpected that it shed light on Obi's way of words, rapidly targeting yet subtly prodding the target's intended response. Thus, he showed his hand at manipulating the situation with his words and not only his battle wit.
When asked about how he handled the situation so well, Obi just gave his usual shoulder shrug before starting to ramble jovially again, "I just did what I could. It's actually quite easy, as you have noticed Lord Hibiki was actually hiding behind a haughty front, his household also seem rather sparse...thus he must have also been a victim of some sort… Also...Lord Hibiki bought the local's perfume so he must have good taste...By the way, master do you think the perfume is ready for collection? Let's have lunch first, Little Miss are you hungry?…"
The rest of the party boggled by Obi's transition from insightful revelation to some of his more inane comments, just agreed heartily while amused smiles were painted on their faces as Obi's animated conversation started sweeping them up into his own tempo again.