Beginnings [Samajima]

[Kazumi]

With a pleased smile, Tsubaki gave Naoki a nod of affirmation. SHe then gestured towards herself, and then trailed her finger in the air to her right, indicating the row of planted seedlings along the road to her right. She then made a similar gesture towards Naoki, except she looked behind her and across the road to the other side of the path where similar seedlings had been planted. She then turned back to Naoki, clasped both her hands together to her chest and gave the younger girl an appreciative nod.

Reaching up, she pulled some of her ponytail bound hair back behind her shoulder and crouched at the walkway's edge once more. One by one she went down the row, lightly grasping and tugging each sport that had burrowed out of the ground, and in each spot that showed no stem she dug her finger into the dirt to pluck out the seed. Each time she did so she set the unfortunate plant or seed into her left hand, collecting them for identification at a later point by her parents.

The process was quite boring and monotonous, but the Koizumi girl did not seem to mind as she silently made her way foot by foot along the side of the path. Unless she was disturbed or otherwise distracted by Naoki, this would continue on for an entire hour before foot traffic along the path had finally begun to pick up. If Naoki had managed to survive this long, she would hear the other girl standing up, leaning her torso back to strech her spine out some before she began to walk over to meet her temporary helper.

 

[Samejima]

The genin gave a playful salute of understanding as Tsubaki gave her the nod, and walked over to the indicated side of the path to begin work on the sprouts. There were several sprouts that were dead, though the first one was the hardest to decide for. Hrmmmm... It feels like it might break but what if it was actually still alive? And what if I pull on it too hard while it was still alive? This one seemed a little easier to pull out but I have no idea how it might feel? Uuuugh this is nerve wracking. Okayokay, ya never know until ya try right? Lemme give this a liiiittle tug... She put a small amount of force into it, like how one would pull at something which would slip free of its surroundings as if it had no attachment to any of them, and it came free just like that. The sprout was one of the dead ones it seemed, as there were no visible differences at the very least. Hmm... So the dead ones just slip free, okay. What about this one...?

The process continued with minor lags, and as Tsubaki finished her side and approached Naoki she got somewhat self-conscious - she hadn't gotten through half of the sprouts, though any spots without a stem had been dealt with, fistful of seeds and dead sprouts in the genin's right hand. Naoki hadn't been used to being in a crouching position for so long however, so as much as she wanted to keep going with the prodding and plucking where necessary, she too stood up and stretched her spine out a little, having heard Tsubaki's approach. She turned and asked, "Done already? You're on a whole 'nother level, onee-san!"

 

[Kazumi]

In Tsubaki's right hand were two small cloth bags held loosely shut by undrawn strings. She took them both and widened the opening of them both as she held them out for Naoki to look into. One seemed to hold seeds while the other had roots and sprouts. She then reached up, holding the one with the sprouts in her mouth as she widened the opening for the seed pouch for Naoki to put her collection into. Once complete she would proceed to the next, allowing Naoki so slip those inside as well.

Drawing both strings right, she dangled them both in her right hand before proceeding to gesture for Naoki to follow. While the streets were not crowded, a few individuals passed by each minute, one which had happened to pass right behind Tsubaki as she turned to lead Naoki off. With a bump she accidentally turned and stepped into a blonde and well dressed middle aged woman. Tsubaki reeled back a little, looking surprised and embarrassed as she proceeded to bow down in apology for the mistake.

"Watch where you are going child," the woman said in a rather displeased manner, even though Tsubaki only stood an inch or two shorter than she. Noticing Naoki standing a few steps behind Tsubaki, the woman paused and then gave a small bow of her head towards the shinobi before she turned and walked off, muttering unflattering comments about the stupid girl getting in her way. Tsubaki kept her head bowed down until the woman had made it a modest distance away before she stepped forward and turned back to Naoki, giving her an apologetic bow of her own.

 

[Samejima]

Naoki watched as the drawstrings were drawn shut after sticking the dead plants (rest in peace planties) into their respective bags. She didn't often get to witness the shadows of these things whenever she saw them, and it was interesting to watch how the shadows just flowed as the strings were drawn and the bag was secured. She wondered what it would have been like to keep noticing shadows like that, and how she'd gotten so used to not knowing where everyone's shadow was. Maybe I should sit upstairs and watch people's shadows move sometime... Those things are weeeeeeird

She reached out her hand a little as she saw that Tsubaki was turning straight for someone walking along behind her, and nodded as she was given one by said middle aged woman. Recognizing her from the tone of her voice and eventually registering the creases on her face, Naoki waited until she was out of earshot before turning to Tsubaki... to find that she was giving Naoki a bow for some reason. "Hmm? Whatcha bowin' for, am I done for the day or something?" she asked, and in the same breath continued, "That's Fujiha-san, she's known to be pretty mean to the younger ones... A lot of 'em just call Guchi-baa because she complains so much," she snickered, clearly finding this more amusing than she should have. "I helped her out once with the bread she had to knead, she was sick that day and her kids were out on a mission. Helped with some soup too, and I'm pretty sure I cook well!" Naoki seemed to be rather prideful, in a joking sort of way. "Suna's full of warm folks, but stay outta the Grand Palais if at all possible... And remember the shopkeepers' names! It'll go a long way in terms of sweets~"

She paused a bit, smiling awkwardly for some internal reason. Shoot, I ran my mouth off again! This is exactly what happens when I try to finish something and fail, I always get so nervous gosh. "A-anyway, I'll follow you after finishing everything here, there's just a few sprouts left so..."

 

[Kazumi]

Tsubaki gave Naoki a confused look, as if she didn't understand why Naoki thought her apologetic bow was odd. She had embarrassed herself, and she was a shinobi so it was proper to give them a wide berth of respect when even the slightest hint of dishonor or embarrassment might have occurred. One can never be too careful around people who wield the sorts of powers that Shinobi to afterall.

After Naoki explained that she would catch up later, Tsubaki firmly shook her head and gestured for Naoki to follow after her anyway. She would return later and finish up, and Naoki had likely done ten or twenty times the amount of work that Daisuke would have. He was well intentioned and tried to help out, but his attention span was not the greatest and he was still quite young after all. With another firm gesture for Naoki to follow, Tsubaki turned and walked her way down the path, taking occasional glanced back towards Naoki to make sure the shinobi was following.

The way back would be made in silence, of course, aside from any ramblings or unanswerable questions that Naoki decided to post along the way. Thankfully the trip was not a long one and within a few minutes they arrived outside a somewhat large building that seemed to have been fully constructed, it looked like a shop, though there was no indication of what it was before they stepped inside.

A rush of cool air greeted them, as Tsubaki let out a slightly audible breath of relief. She disliked the heat of the desert quite a bit, and if it was not for times like this where she could take respite from it, she would have wanted to live underground. It was eerie down there, living in the cavernous skeleton of some long deceased creature, but at the very least it was much cooler than up here on the surface at midday.
[spoilername="Interior"]

[/spoilername]
The interior of the store looked quite modern compared to the majority of the buildings underground. IT seems the village officials were making extensive effort to make the surface presence of the village as attractive as they could. Though the fact that they brought in a clan for the sole purpose of beautifying the area was likely proof enough of that. The layout resembled a storefront, spacious and sleek, though many of the surfaces were bare. Those that were not contined a wide variety of beautiful flowers, their scents mixing and filling the air conditioned room in stark contrast to the harsh exterior.

Vases both empty and full stood atop some shelves and on the floor, making it quite apparent that the shop was not yet intended to host customers. The family was quite busy fulfilling their contract with the village to spend much time with their personal business after all. Curiously there was no sign of anyone running the store, though that too was not surprising with all things considered. This left Naoki and Tsubaki alone in the storefront as the latter took a few moments to bask in the refreshing cool air.

 

[Samejima]

Something important to tell me I guess? Ooh, maybe she's getting a notepad or something she writes on. It feels strange to understand someone just by gestures though. Does this get any less... She struggled a little for the word, but could only come up with 'awkward' as they walked inside what appears to be a store. A very shiny store. Whoooooa! What sorta place is this? I don't think I've ever seen a shop that looks so... Like... Simple? But nice! Hmm... The beginnings of an interest in interior design sprung up in the genin as she took in the area, coolness of the air accentuating the feeling of cool she already got off this place. "Is this... a flower shop?" She walked around a little, trying not to touch any of the flowers and failing miserably as she went and stroked the petals of every other cluster she walked past, unless stopped early on by whom she presumed owns this place as she hadn't given the existence of Tsubaki's parents much thought. "Woo, just my luck that I'd already have usable eyes when you guys got here... Flowers are pretty~"

If she hadn't already been stopped from touching the merchandise by Tsubaki, upon which she would have sheepishly gone "oh, sorry" and grinned good-naturedly before continuing, she turned to Tsubaki and asked, "So, what'd you bring me inside for? Something to do? Or taking a break?" She looked around, and didn't see much of a seating arrangement. Maybe the rest area was somewhere in the back?

 

[Kazumi]

Glancing back behind her, Tsubaki nodded with a hint of a smile as Naoki asked about the flowers. The comment on flowers being pretty actually elicited a slightly audible giggle from the young woman as she walked deeper into the storefront. Stepping around a counter she knelt down, disappearing behind it as she began searching through the shelves near the cash register for something. She held up a finger above the counter indicating for Naoki to hold on for one second while she searched.

It only took a dozen or so seconds, and when she stood back up she had a stack of paper squares in her hand of a variety of colors, sticky notes! Popping the lid of a pen she also found off in her mouth, Tsubaki began to quickly write something on the pad. A few seconds later she turned the pad around and showed the writing to Naoki. Despite the speed of her scribbles and the fact that she was holding it in her hands, the writing almost looked to be of a calligraphic quality. "I wanted to get some paper, to take a break in the conditioned air, and to offer you an early lunch or possibly breakfast for your assistance." The writing was somewhat small, having to fit it all on a sheet only a few inches from side to side, but it was crisp and very legible nonetheless.

 

[Samejima]

Ooh! Was that a laugh? Naoki noted that the girl's giggle had a slight... lilting quality to it. She'd never heard that sort of variation before, and her own grin widened as she understood that she'd managed to make someone laugh this early in the morning. Curious to see what Tsubaki might have been searching for, she craned her neck a little before remembering she could use sound to see what was going on anyway, and that the sounds of the searching was actually giving her a somewhat clear picture of what was going on. It seemed to be a notepad? Ah okay, I guess it was still pretty tough to communicate with just gestures. Wonder what her handwriting looks like. Must be pretty though, if she can't talk. I wonder why though, it seems like she does have a voice, so why doesn't she use it? Hmm... Maybe she doesn't like it or something?

Any further thoughts on why one might dislike their own voice was cut short as Naoki read the words on the notepad and nodded to show her understanding. "Ahh, don't worry about me, I had breakfast early this morning. Kyrinchor eggs are surprisingly filling, I can understand why the parents eat them... But it's still pretty off-putting, hahah..." Naoki made a little half-grimace at the morbid joke she'd made for no apparent reason, mentally facepalming herself. In an attempt to at least salvage her image as a non-creepy, non-weird and 100% regular blind girl who can navigate via sound and happens to be a complete chicken despite being in the battlefield a lot of the time. "There were a few more out there, so if you wanted to eat for now I can go finish those up!"

 

[Kazumi]

The species didn't seem to sound familiar to Tsubaki, if her expression was to be believed. Perhaps it was a Wind Country bird? How any animal survived out here was still a bit of a mystery to her. She knew how some plants could, of course, but animals? Letting that thought drift off with the wind, Tsubaki peeled off the top note, sticking it to the countertop before she began to write another. "A snack then? I can't simply not give my thanks for your help. I would have been out there for twice as long had you not came by."

Tsubaki gave Naoki an appreciative smile, taking a moment to get lost in the younger girl's eyes before she again snapped back to attention with a distracted jolt. She paused a moment to await Naoki's response, but realization struck her and she hastily began to scribble more words down before showing them to her assistant. "This is out shop, by the way. Make yourself at home!" Once Naoki looked to have read it, Tsubaki would give her an eager smile and a nod before gesturing to the room with her pen holding hand.

The building certainly did not smell like any other place in the village. Flowers were not things that were often sought out in these harsh environments, and aside from some plants which had grown accustomed to the underground living, flowers and other greenery were a rarity on both the surface and underground of Sunagakure. It was, at least for Tsubaki, a wonderful respite from the plain and often musty smells she had experienced underground, the floral mixture of scents wafting together in a sensual cacophony of aromas.

 

[Samejima]

A snack did sound rather nice. Denying a further offer would probably be rude too, the more she thought about it. That was why she was going with it, had nothing to do with suddenly needing to eat more than she usually did. It was somewhat concerning, but she figured she could just keep eating candy so it wasn't too bad. "Oh, um, I'll take you up on that offer then... Thanks!" Naoki gave Tsubaki a big big grin in gratitude, along with a tilt of the head as she was given a stare for some reason. She really is pretty though. It's weird that I'd feel I've seen her someplace, in color even. Maybe she was in the Scroll Locker when I was digging around trying to find books on clans?

She decided to test this theory, since it was the only other reason she might have had if she had indeed seen this girl before. Otherwise it would've had to be some form of deja vu, since there wasn't much of a chance that she might've passed by while Naoki was doing one of her training sessions outside of her room. She would've heard the motion and ceased immediately, and the ceasing would have been quite a memorable point in time as it would've been the first time she's had to stop due to- oh wait there had been another. Still though. "Alright~" she started, putting her hands behind her on a countertop and lifting herself onto it. She made sure to try and pick up any cues Tsubaki might have given to suggest that it wasn't a good thing to be doing, sitting randomly on people's countertops, but unless she picked up on one (and it would likely result in her just apologizing briefly and continuing with the following words after quickly moving into a standing position back on the ground) Naoki would ask, "By the way! Been to the Scroll Locker yet?"

 

[Kazumi]

With another adhesive note stuck to the countertop, Tsubaki began writing down another note. She paused for a few seconds before continuing to write the last half. "The Scroll Locker? Is that a bookstore?" It also could have been the library for all she knew. Shinobi were rather old fashioned in many ways. Using scrolls instead of books seemed to be popular among the shinobi, but she understood a thing or two about tradition, even if she did not usually care for the notion.

With a shake of her head, she confirmed that, whatever the place was, she had never visited it. Then she held up a finger and gestured for Naoki to wait for her as she turned and stepped back around the corner, walking through an open doorway towards the back of the building. The soft sound of footsteps could be heard as she made her way upstairs, going on the hunt to locate her guest something to eat.

 

[Samejima]

"Ahh never mind, just that there's a lot of old stuff down there, history and whatnot! Sorta cool too since it's, well... Kinda in disrepair... Ohh okay," she said, in reply to the request to wait as a snack was brought down. Well that was a dead end. I guess it was just deja vu? Naoki swung her legs on the countertop, before remembering that they were likely to be eating on the countertop itself and swinging herself off there. Still, there's this feeling... Like she helped me a bunch at some point. What is it...

Her thoughts traveled to the recent past, close to when Tsubaki may have arrived. There was that time with the drunkard at Adagaeshi... And I think I managed to accidentally collapse a section of the Scroll Locker while trying to get my sight back for a bit. There were a few times when I needed help from the instructors about some techniques I was having trouble with, and I think I recently sprained my wrist again while trying to pull off the Raging Beast of the West... Was a medic though, and I remember what she looked like. Hmm... None of those situations bar the Academy visits would really have been a regular spot for someone like Tsubaki to be at. And if she was helped by someone who didn't talk she'd definitely remember-

Wait. Why did she remember Tsubaki, or whoever looked like Tsubaki, saying something to her? Something about... being safe? And what had been happening before that... It was like, a lot of water. The sea? Or the Undersea maybe...? No... It was moving, pretty violently, lots of waves and all that stuff. Thunder! There was thunder too, and I remember having the wind knocked outta my lungs... By this time Naoki was wondering when that might've happened. She hadn't swum out at sea in months, possibly a year. Where else could she have experienced something she fully knew was something she hadn't done in awhile?

 

[Kazumi]

Her hunt kept Tsubaki distracted for a good few minutes. She was thankful neither of her brothers were here to further embarrass her. Daisuke had already done quite enough today in his best effort to make a fool out of her. She was a little annoyed that her mother wasn't here though, she would know what to get for a snack. After a time though she made her way downstairs with a plastic bowl containing a half dozen chilled crisped rice balls.

She liked these quite a bit, but she had no idea if that sort of food was something that appealed to the locals. Shinobi probably were used to eating like kings with the amount of money they raked in with their business. Jobs came in from across the country, ranging from small to large, and she knew the large ones likely payed more money than her family could have dreamed to make in an entire year. Though, she technically did not know that exactly, but the stories were quite clear on how rich shinobi were!

Stepping out from the back, Tsubaki raised the bowl for Naoki to see as she crossed the threshold into the storefront. Unfortunately, a broom from when one of the household had been cleaning earlier had fallen down sometime ago, and while she stepped over the obstacle with one foot, the other's toe caught clear on it as it tried to pass by. So, within the span of one moment, she went from hurrying to deliver the snacks she found, to sailing towards the ground as the plastic bowl and the chewy delicious snacks soared from her hands.

 

[Samejima]

With no time to think, Naoki dashed forward and caught Tsubaki as she was falling, almost pushing the girl back into an upright position as she backstepped to catch the bowl of snacks. Whoa whoa, okay... She ended up catching it by the skin of her teeth, just about the edge of her right hand's fingertips with her left hand holding onto the countertop. Noooononononono not good, not good It was all up to luck at this point, any shift in the wrong direction would be disastrous to both the snacks and her self-confidence as the self-proclaimed agility buff. Okay, calm down, stay steady, what do I need to do? I need to bring the snacks down to a stable surface. Let's just caaaaarefully bring this down... The momentum of the bowl had been absorbed from the earlier catch, fluid motion having reflexively countered it as it landed in her hand. The bottom of the bowl was now being very slowly lowered from the tips of her fingers to her palm, where it might be easier to carry, and that hand was being lowered in turn to rest the bowl with a little too much care on the countertop.

Ohhh that was a close one. "Are you okay?" Unless it seemed like Tsubaki was about to lose her balance once more due to the random push back upright, in which case Naoki would hold a hand out to try and catch her this time, once she'd ascertained that the other girl was perfectly stable (and possibly somewhat miffed after having been pushed instead of just caught) she'd ask, "Umm... What are these? Can I have one?" with a small grin. She'd likely pick one up and start chewing on the chewiness if given the ok, since she really was somewhat hungry at this point. It might've just been the excitement talking though.

 

[Kazumi]

From one moment to the next Tsubaki went from falling forward, to being shoved backwards. Had her feet been in any better position she might have been able to steady herself, but her front foot's heel caught on the broom and Naoki's helpful shove caused her to quickly fall backwards. In the span of two scant seconds her outstretched flailing hand caught onto Naoki's as she somehow managed to push Tsubaki, catch the food and then catch Tsubaki's hand. Looking more that a little freaked out over what just transpired, Tsubaki straightened herself up and looked away from the younger girl.

Continuing to avert her eyes for a few seconds she coughed in subtle embarrassment before she turned and gave Naoki a deeply appreciative bow. She likely would have been okay without Naoki's assistance, but she probably would have bruised something from the fall. Biting her lib as subtly as she could manage, the Koizumi nodded after Naoki asked for the snacks. After the shock of what just happened quickly faded, she recalled exactly what had just transpired. She didn't even see Naoki move except for just a split second. She had never seen a shinobi perform before, were there more even faster than she was? That was hard to believe and the fact that this girl looked to be a little younger than her in addition to that? Suddenly Tsubaki began to Give out a soft breathy giggle for no discernible reason.

 

[Samejima]

Ahh man that took a lot outta me... What'd they call it... adrenaline? Naoki seriously doubted she would be able to move that fast had she been in a regular sparring situation... Battle though, possibly. I don't even know how I managed to like, figure out things so quick! Man that was cool though, like time kinda slowed down for a sec... Is there a time jutsu or something? I could always try to learn genjutsu too, like that training session thing... She would try and remember to look into how she could keep the effects of adrenaline, or replicate it, later on. For now... Ooh... oooooh I like these~ The genin's eyebrows rose slowly in happiness as she savored the taste of the recently saved munch nuggets, as she'd taken to calling them due to their munchiness and the fact that they were, well, nuggets of munch. She giggled, and heard another, breathier giggle along with hers. Ah, there it is~ Ahh I wanna try and make her laugh some more...

Nyam, nyum... kinda sticky? Sticking a bit to the roof of my mouth... Once she'd swallowed the visible remnants, she tilted her head and began making smacking sounds from her tongue actually sticking to the roof of her mouth. It soon stopped being sticky, she finally decided to ask, "How's thish mayde? Shorta stickeeee~" Naoki started giggling again, and if it were made apparent or she realized that she was being weird, she'd stop immediately and straighten up, clearing her throat and going, "Y-yeah um... where'd this come from? It really is qui- ow!" She bit her tongue? I bit my tongue?! She hadn't done that since the last time she had her mother's tuna casserole, which was likely the only way she'd eat fish without too much of a fuss.

 

[Kazumi]

Seeing Naoki's reaction to the treats elicited a smile from the girl, edging from one grin to the next. She took a moment to survey the area before she found her pad and pen sitting on the counter top nearby. Taking a few more careful steps, she made her way over to it and picked the pair up before she began to scribble down something for the other girl. "I do not remember the exact name. A variety of rice crisps. I am glad you enjoy them, you can have the rest of that bowl. You can consider it payment for your assistance from earlier; I will need to think of something more appropriate for your help keeping my face and the floor from having an intimate encounter." As she finished writing, she took a moment to read it before handing it over to Naoki.

She leaned over and rested her hand on the table as she looked over and watched Naoki enjoy her reward, raising a warding hand if offered. She was not feeling that hungry after all, and it would be rude to take back that which she offered. SHe only hoped that her mother didn't mind, but she was rather sure it wouldn't be an issue. As the moment passed she felt that odd lightheaded sensation in her head as she tried to stifle a yawn, though was only half successful as she hid it behind her free hand.

 

[Samejima]

It was at this point that Naoki realized that she couldn't read, as she awaited a response from Tsubaki. Gotta focus again... It took somewhat less time, but she was still standing there for a good minute and a half as she attempted to see things again. "Sorry, just gotta... take a bit of time..." she explained, squinting at the pad held up in front of her and holding it closer to her face to try and read it. "Rice... crisps? Umm... okay! Thanks~ Where'd you get these from by the way? I kinda think I might want more for Oriza-san... And don't worry about it, I'm happy to help haha! Especially if it leads me to new snack discoveries, yepyep."

Naoki didn't take much notice of the yawn, just that it was somewhat late in the afternoon... She'd heard that power naps helped but the training she was going through didn't exactly allow her time to sleep between her body's cells waking up and the nap's recharge times. She didn't dwell on it though, and instead, "Oh, if you want to take a rest I can try to do some things around the place... Finish up the sprouts outside, or if there were things you needed to have carried upstairs?" She wasn't sure what else she could do at this point, and if the girl was tired she'd want to have the good sense of leaving her be when she needed her sleep.