17: Katsura
.
.
It's busy in the mall, but Gintoki easily finds Katsura. But then again it's hard to miss the line of not-so-patiently waiting children that leads up to a man in a red suit, and a giant…er…Elizabeth in an elf costume.
"Oi, Zura," Gintoki shouts over the noise of whining children. "Are funds so tight you're taking a job as a mall Santa?"
"It's not Zura, it's Katsura! I mean…Santa Claus." He pauses to readjust his fake beard. "And this isn't just a job for money, Gintoki. This is a special reconnaissance mission to reconnect with the youth of Edo."
"Connecting is right," Gintoki mutters as a boy uses his knee as a punching bag.
Gintoki would never be sentimental enough to state the real reason he's here, or to tell Katsura that he knows all the other Joi members have gone home for the holidays and left him alone. Or that Otae's dojo is quickly filling up, and it's always nice to have a few more friends around this time of year.
No, Gintoki just nonchalantly picks his nose and flings the booger past Katsura's ear. "Well, if you ever get tired of babysitting these brats, we could always use another instructor at the dojo. Just for a few days," Gintoki says. Then he stretches his arms and slowly walks away.