Escort Return

[Miraku]

It had taken them a bit longer than Raku had originally anticipated, due to the younger ones, but it had still been a pretty easy journey, taking some of the more desolate back roads to avoid any conflict, or questions regarding the escort in general from other groups or patrols. Raku wanted this to be quick and easy, and it taking longer than he first thought made it slightly bothersome, but he didn't mind too much, as it was kind of an important mission if it meant further peace between the two countries. As they got close the the village, Raku let out a deep breath, almost a sigh of relief that things had gone without a hitch.

"Well, it seems we're pretty much here." Raku said facing his head to the side slightly so his voice could travel back to others slightly behind, though still looking ahead as he could see the gates within viewing distance. It had been a pretty quiet trip overall, other than talking about where they were or other such things, there wasn't much to talk about, other than whatever the younger ones had been talking about among themselves. Raku hadn't paid too much attention to their conversation as he hadn't really been involved and they were just talking by themselves. The weather had been good to them as well. Maybe slightly chilly once in a while for the leaf shinobi's liking, but Raku had definitely grown used to the climate. They had been traveling north east, so going further north meant colder climate. At least there was some sun out from behind the clouds giving a little warmth to the air around them though, hopefully keeping everyone a little warmer.

As they got to the gate, Raku slowed down, no longer running along as they had been; running at a slower pace the whole way to make sure everyone kept up, but they had finally made it. As they approached the gate, Raku called out, "Oi, Open up. The escort team is here." Of course, he didn't need to yell that, as they would be greeted by someone momentarily, but he was feeling a little bored, and figured it would give them a head start if they needed to notify anyone about their return. Raku stepped towards the gate stopping not far from it as he awaited someone to show up and greet them and let them inside, as the others would stroll up behind him as well.

[Topic Entered with Hoshi, Kikei, Kaji, Umashi, Tatsuo and Sara hopefully ]
[414 WC]
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[Shouyu Hoshi]

Shouyu was running along at an even pace, the adults were clearly faster, even if it seemed like they were jogging, Shouyu broke into a light sweat trying not to slow down. He would occasionally look back at the team and see how they were doing. Shouyu also noticed that they took a different than before. He wondered why at first, but considered keeping the question to himself, and so he did. Shouyu trotted along. As they passed through the mountain terrain of the North, one could feel the air chilling to the bone. Shouyu had not quite adapted yet, and received goosebumps entering the area.

Raku exclaimed they had pretty much arrived, and Shouyu could agree seeing the environment to be familiar once more. The gates were within view, and Shouyu sighed in relief, though still breathing heavy. Shouyu would participate and listen in to the conversations all the young ones would share, throwing in his two yens every now and then. Raku began to slow down, and so did Shouyu, still breathing heavily desperately trying to recover his breath. Well they were finally here and Raku called out for assistance, Shouyu just plopped to the floor sitting cross legged. His breathing slowed but was still heavy, inhaled deeply, held it, and exhaled slowly feeling very relieved. He would then lean back and place his arms behind him a bit to post himself up.

"Well, this trip was longer than expected. Could sure go for some Karaage and Ramen. Yuuuummmm."

 

[Kikei]

The trip back seemed to take much longer than the trip to the port but maybe that was because Kikei had remained silent for most of it out of frustration with her kohai. His tact seemed none existent and his constant talk about how they were to stay at his home just irritated her to know end as well slightly confused her. After all she assumed he meant it as the village was his home but you could never really tell if he meant it as they were to stay with him at his house. The temperature raised and lowered but she felt fine having living in the region all her life. Not to mention her abnormally high stamina meant she could keep a steady pace for hours if need be but then again being able to go for hours and actually keeping up were to very different things which is probably why she was at the back of the pack.

Their arrival at the gate was quickly announced by the team leader and all that the young girl could think about was how close to being done with this she was. She could spend the rest of the day at home drinking coffee in peace and relaxation. Of course she was completely neglecting the paper work that would follow the ending of her first mission. None the less the day was surely only going to get better from here on out. Of course her day could also take a drastic turn for something more exciting yet stressful but that was neither here nor there at this point in time.

“Finally…..back home I hope we don’t get stuck waiting long for someone to clear us for entry.” She stated as she dropped down to the floor and sat in a very un-lady like way and waited for the situation to unfold.​

 

[Okada Kaji]

The screeching cry of a bird of prey echoed along the spacious canyon known as Dragon Tooth Pass. Narrow walls of stone reached as high as the eye could see, up to a misty white sky. It was a magnificent sight by all accounts, one that marveled the likes of Kaji as he jaunted along a winding trail with old and new companions alike. It seemed as if hours had passed since the leaf shinobi and their cloud allies began their journey, and in that time they ventured from the seaside lowlands of Port Cirrus, to the fortified borough of Kumogakure.

While a majority of the party chose to travel by foot in a whirlwind sprint, Kaji followed along at an even gait riding horseback. The trot of Kukki’s hooves drummed along the stony earth with a rhythm that was like music to Kaji’s ears. To put it simply, Kaji enjoyed adventuring abroad, and this journey was no exception. His olive-green orbs were scanning about, becoming attuned to the beauty of the north and the mysteries hidden within the pass. The rider hardly gripped the mare’s reins as Kukki kept pace with their fellow travels; she was playfully attempting to nip at their backs, and nudged whoever had the most trouble keeping up.

Before long the group reached the landmark portal of the Hidden Cloud homeland: glorious gates crafted from the mountain itself, mighty and strong. Kaji instantly recognized it’s fortification, an admirable design similar to the cliffside barricades of Titan’s Keep. Leading their charge was Raku, who came to a stop first, and defined their arrival with a relieved tone. Kaji let out an impressed whistle as a trotted to a slow stop behind the party, his eye-line still pointed up and onward to the small metropolis beyond the gates. “And here I always thought they were exaggerating,” Kaji admitted as he spryly dismounted from the horse’s back. “Your village looks incredible.”

As his comrades took a moment to catch their breaths from the racing arrival and awaited the reception by the guards, Kaji took the moment to set out a granola treat for the horse as a reward. He then relinquished her summoning, and she vanished in a burst of interplanar steam. “Alright then... shall we report to the big boss or is a tour in order first?” The hero abroad then revealed his dossier, which contained one well-traveled passport.

- WC403
- Kaji has come.​

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[Seijin]

Kaji seemed to take the words right out of Umashi's mouth, but thankfully, he saved Umashi the need to actually make the exclamation. Pulling down the hood that protected his face from the weather, Umashi took in the whole of the picturesque scene as he folded his arms and grinned. Leaning back on his own horses saddle, he took a mental note of the gates in order to express to his own gate keepers a few methods that he thought were well done by the Kumogakurians. Thankfully not the last person to make it to the gates, Umashi looked behind him as he saw the rest of the party take in what they all were now being awed by. As Kaji asked the question that needed to be asked about what they were to do, Umashi also made a mental note of the man's leadership capabilities. He took his job seriously and that, Umashi could appreciate. It was that sort of dedication that would serve the village well going into the future. That and well . . . get them through many doors so to speak in the current span of time.

OOC: Topic Entered

 

[Tatsuo]

Despite Tatsuo's whole body being sore from the battle they had just the night before, he was able to keep up with Kaji for the most part. He was still pretty embarrassed and was consciously ignoring and avoiding the other children in their party. However he would respond in full to any conversation Kaji may have begun while there. He really wanted to talk about what happened last night, how did Kaji get so strong? He didn't think it'd be wise to ask right here, who knows how secret Kaji wants to keep his abilities.

[Topic Entered, sorry for short post.]

 

[Kagetsu Yuii]

Few climbed the Dragon tooth pass without alerting the gate guards of Kumogakure, and the small profession of Leaf and Cloud ninja were doing nothing to hide their passage. As such, Yuii was alerted by her main-branch shinobi long before they arrived at the gates and she, in turn, was able to alert Ayumu and Junko so that they could be present on their arrival. It was not every day that another Kage travelled from the safety of their lands to visit, and Kumogakure could afford to show some etiquette in return for his efforts.

It was oddly quiet for mid-day guard duty, with only of men offloading crates at record speed under the watch of a clipboard-wielding Chuunin and a group of weary chuunin already through the gate checkpoint. Yuii watched from the sidelines simultaneously bored and excited for the day to come. No one wrote about all the boring waiting when it came to historic meetings between Kage, and she was learning a hard lesson. The energetic woman consoled herself with the fact that she had the honour of guarding Ayumu through any of the proceeding meetings he might have with the Hokage, a job normally reserved for their absentee Anbu Sennin. Given that she would have worried herself sick about her far too laid back Kage in any other circumstance, Yuii counted that as a win. The main branch sennin figured the conversations could be interesting too and she didn't have to complete any painful paperwork for the duration of their visit either, so all around Yuii was jubilant but still bored.

She nearly tripped over her own feet with excitement when two of the gate guards signalled the escort had arrived. "No need to shout," Yuii chided, slipping out from the small gate the standing guard opened for her, "They can hear you in the Asphodels." The blue haired woman peered at the village blended group. It was good to see that Ayumu had picked a suitable group to send as an escort, and ever better to see they all seemed to be getting along. She only knew Hoshi of the trio, but he was a good-natured kid for an energetic chatterbox. And were those horses? Half loaded mountain ponies got sour over the climb, so it was a wonder to see full sized mounts with adult men aloft just trotting along like it's been having a leisurely walk through a daisy field. Yuii was impressed.

Well, it didn't look like they were too dangerous. That was all she had come out to check. "Raikage-sama is waiting beyond the gate. Wait a moment," she chirped before vanishing back beyond the door to join her Kage and fellow Sennin. That was when the monolithic main gate began to rumble.

"Are they worth all this?" she questioned rhetorically, taking her place at Ayumu's left as the massive gates creaked, groaned and shook its way open with painstakingly slow progress. There were few occasions that called for this level of honour, and Yuii had to wonder if the Kage of their chaotic brethren to the south was worth such fanfare. The gates would not be opened fully, the sheer effort to move the behemoths of stone was beyond imagination, but enough space would be created for two men to walk comfortably abreast. The shogun himself had only been awarded space for three.

 

[Tsuyoshi Junko]

Sitting at his desk, Junko finalized the last few of his files involving kumos stone treaty relations and the building of the joint hospital. He was assigned to leave the village soon to go to sand and in that time, he'd also take care of all the negotiations with stone. In addition, he picked up another task dealing with Kiri. So yeah, the medical sennins hands were pretty full, but as always, he made things work.

Entering the office, Junko's medical assistant came in with a few files in hand. She was giving a run down of the status of the hospital, the bloodline anatomy department, and the harvester division. Listening, Junko nodded. He was making sure everything was in order before his leave. In fact, he was even leaving a list of things to do and personal instructions in case of emergency during his absence which was signed and snapshotted by his assistant.

"Okay, everything seems to be well." Junko said standing to his feet. The estate was already good to go and Junko was confident that Yoshi could take care of things during his absence.

"Umm, Sir."

"yes?"

"I have a message for you. Apparently you're needed at the gates. Konah approaches."

"What's the status?"

"Based on communications, theirs no threat. They're coming as invited visitors. Personally escorted by kumo shinobi."

"Okay. I shall head there then. Hold down the fort until I get back." Junko said before leaving the office.

Making his march to Dragon tooth path, the temperatures got even colder as usual. Junko wasn't phased though. After spending your entire life in such a cold place, you grow accustom to the deadly chills that traveled down your spine. Making his way through the cliffs, Junko could hear the yelling of the gate guards as the gates were being open. Coming to a brief stop on top of a cliff, Junko observer the large group at the gates.

It was interesting indeed. Especially after konoha was once nothing. Based on Junko's contact with stone though, Konoha were allies of stone and stone actually helped leafs revival. Not too long ago, Junko was having the discussion of leaf with Ayumu. Only thing Junko could do now was see how things played out. Now, the only question was, did Ayumu want Junko to leave during such a time? Only one way to tell right?

Moving from the cliff, Junko dropped to the roof of a watch tower, and from the watch tower to the ground below. Landing softly, Junko moved forward to stand by the Raikage and his fellow Sennin as the gates had finally opened. "Good to see you two. Junko would say before giving his leader and brother in arms a fist bump and a quick jokingly wink to Yuii. "Ayumu, shall I delay my travels?" Junko asked before the meet and greet would commence.

As the meet and greet would commence Junko would introduce himself if Ayumu didn't decide to take care of it, give out his firm hand shake with his smirk, and extend his chatter if Necessary or if Umashi wanted to chat.

Topic Entered

OOC: ^_^ big big topic... and I figured Junko wouldn't get any play time really. So I'll only post when needed.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

If the reports coming in from the escort group were accurate, they were likely to be arriving today. Ayumu had been at his desk for the majority of the day as usual, but far less efficient than he was normally. He couldn't help but ponder about the shinobi of Leaf that were to be arriving. This would be his first meeting with foreign shinobi since becoming Raikage, and it was to be a meeting with the Hokage himself. Further compounding the intrigue, this was the village and regime which had just recently wrested control of their home back from the Daimyo with the help of Stone. Now they had come to Cloud, giving little insight for their purpose in doing so beforehand. What had they come for? Ayumu was very interested to find out.

Eventually the call came that the group had been seen on approach to the gates. Ayumu got himself to a stopping point and set down his pen, standing from his desk. The trip to the gates wasn't long when taking to the rooftops for speed and riding atop a trolley or two along the way. Arriving at the gates, there was no commotion just yet but only a couple of minutes passed before Ayumu heard a call come from the other side asking for the guards to open up. Yuii was already on location and could be heard taking charge and instructing the guards to open the gates. Ayumu took a breath as the gates creaked and began to open. It wasn't often that they were truly fully opened. Usually just enough space for the usual travelers was made without swinging them wide open. For the Hokage and his entourage, they were given more space than most. As Junko arrived Ayumu reciprocated the bumping of fists and shook his head. "Only if you feel it necessary. I'll leave that call up to you. Your business with the other village is important as well," he said before turning to face the gates.

Ayumu nodded at Yuii's comment as she came through the gates first, expecting the others to follow. "Gotta make a good impression, right?" he said with a grin. His expectations were exceeded as several more people filed through the gates, Cloud and Leaf shinobi alike, some on horses and others not. The stable hands at the gates would approach to take the horses to the stable nearby where they would be fed and able to rest. The group would find Ayumu standing in the middle of the road leading into the city from the gates. He was dressed in the black uniform with his two swords at his hip. He had opted to forgo the Raikage robes and hat, which he really only wore when someone forced him to. Anybody particularly observant might notice the signet ring on his hand which displayed the symbol for Raikage. Ayumu scanned the group with a smile as he waited for them all to enter before addressing them. He noted the Kumogakure shinobi who had acted as escorts successfully- he'd have to thank them later for a job well done.

"Welcome, Hokage and shinobi of Leaf. I am Kogami Ayumu, Raikage of this village," Ayumu introduced himself. He gestured to Yuii, the one who had greeted them first. "This is the Sennin of our Main Branch, Kagetsu Yuii," he said before gesturing next to Junko. "And this is Tsuyoshi Junko, Sennin of our Medical Branch," he said, completing the introductions. "We're happy to welcome you to Kumogakure as our guests," he announced, looking at each of them individually for a moment before moving to the next. It was at this moment he realized something unfortunate. He had no idea which of them was the Hokage! Well, that could be easily rectified, even if it were a bit awkward to do so.

"You'll have to forgive me, given this is our first meeting, but I must ask... which of you is the Hokage?" he asked with a sheepish grin. Ayumu had his suspicions of which one it was, but it was better to ask and not guess. Presumably the Hokage himself would step forward or someone would introduce him. From there they could proceed. Ayumu would approach to shake the Hokage's hand if he was not too cautious to accept the gesture and abstain if he wasn't open to it.

"We've guides here that will take you or anybody you wish to your lodgings, if you're tired from your journey, or offer tours if you'd like. Kumogakure team, you're free to re-enter the village and take a well earned break," Ayumu suggested, giving the escort team the go ahead to take off. Perhaps the Leaf and Cloud shinobi would go together, Ayumu wasn't sure how well they had been getting along. He'd leave it to the Hokage if the man wanted to let his people go into the village on their own or if he wanted to keep any with him, or if he himself wanted to go and rest before the two kage spoke further.

"We can speak now briefly or later, whichever is your preference. I leave it up to you," he added.

 

[Yaku]

'If I can get him alone,..I should tell Shouyu I am sorry and give my name.'

That promise stuck with her since they left the port town. If any time she had that capability, she would. The trip was a long one, certainly at some point she would.

---

They had finally reached the large oddly broken mountainside that housed the gates to Kumogakure. The young girl, even after all that travel still seemed oddly energetic and fresh as a rose. She managed to keep pace with everyone, even passing and falling back from time to time trying to spark a conversation with several members. How she did it would be a mystery to most, but she had her ways. The faint radioactive aura eminating from her helped against all manner of the elements. Though the band she traveled with soon enough might have consider themselves lucky if they were able to bear children if the trip was much longer, shame it was a faintly researched topic. Even the boy with his own Byakugan, if he chose to use it, might have been surprised by her methods, though he would easily discover this secret. The question would be would he understand the why, would he realize they were related, in some distant family member long forgotten?

They ventured into the broken mountain, as it rose high into the sky, the wonder of how long it most likely took to break the mountain in order to make an easy shortcut to the village. Sara walked up to the wall face, feeling the jagged edges, recognizing the fact that this wasn't made by an earth based jutsu. It wasn't smooth enough, the roughness pointing to force being placed upon it.

She was now far behind her group, playing catch up as the gates already opened revealing three figures. She slowed down and walked the rest of the way, regrouping with the others to avoid any entanglements. As she rode up on the group, her eyes glistening as she looked the three dead on, listening as she would discover whom they were. Though she was already in mid-stride to speak as the Kage finished his words having missed them, she let out a loud whistle that echoed so well just as he finished, than spoke aloud not knowing better, "That is a mighty gate to be sure. Must have taken quite a few to widdle the whole mountain down to create."It seemed a shame to tear asunder such. Still...it caused a cool effect. Wasn't nearly as impressive as that lake with the statues though having read it's singular past.

The stranger that she barely recognized the voice of, was the one whom spoke before. Now talking about lodgings and such. A secondary escort, after the first had brought them this far? 'Man they sure love escorting here.' "Very cordial."

 

[Miraku]

As they approached the gates, commotion began behind the scenes, as everyone caught up and awaited acceptance into the village so the group could continue what they were doing and get everything sorted out. Raku smirked a bit as Kaji commented on the village, seemingly awestruck by everything he was seeing. Raku knew it was different from other villages, coming from another village himself. "It's certainly something worth seeing for yourself." he replied, seemingly feeling pride for his allegiance to Cloud, it was odd to Raku. He had always missed Mist, but having lived here for so long, this was also home now, and he was beginning to realize it was something to be proud of.

The gates had already began to open, and before Raku could answer Kaji's question, he realized it was answered for them right before their eyes. Their arrival was even bigger than Raku first thought. Never had he seen the gates to Kumo open so far as they were being opened in that moment. The Raikage himself and two of the Sennin were standing there awaiting them in order to greet the Hokage and his group. What started out as a friendly meet up out in Lightning Country had turned into a huge ordeal for the village, and Raku was feeling completely out of his element. He was never one for politics, or important meetings and procedures. He loved what it all stood for and the outcome of such things, but they were a little over his head. It was probably why he'd never rise any further in the ranks that he had so far; he would be in way too far over his head to handle anything like that, that's why people like the two Sennin and the Raikage were in the positions they were in.

"Seems that you guys get to meet the boss first." Raku said a little quieter than normal in a joking manner to the group he had traveled with, finding it slightly funny that Kaji's question had been answered almost immediately for him purely by the situation and not by any kind of decision being made on their part. Although they were a decent distance away, mumbles of talking could be heard among the thee waiting behind the gates for them, as Raku began to approach with the group, the voice of the Raikage could be heard aloud, speaking to the Konoha shinobi as he introduced himself and the two Sennin, welcoming them to the village.

Walking in and stepping aside for the moment to let the Leaf Shinbobi file in, Raku realized Ayumu was in the same situation he and his group were when they first met up with the Leaf group, in that he wasn't sure what the Hokage looked like. It seemed silly at first before this realization since Raku knew the identity, but once the clarity of the situation kicked in he understood much better. Although he could easily speak up, he knew better, and decided it best to let the Konoha party introduce themselves.

Oddly this was the first time Raku had ever been so close to any of these three, even though they were his Raikage and Sennin. He had never actually had the chance to speak to them face to face before. Probably because as he though earlier, he wasn't much for politics or things of that nature, that he had never needed to interact with these important figures of his village. Of course it was known who they were because of their status among people in the village, but it certainly felt odd to be in such a situation after such a long period of time. Hell, Yuii was his Sennin, and he hadn't even talked to her before. Maybe that was a sign he was doing his job well that he had either gone unnoticed, or there was never a need for him to be spoken too. It didn't really matter to Raku which of the options it was, he was satisfied either way.

Ayumu continued to speak after introductions about having guides and places for them to stay while they're here, and then turning to the three shinobi from Raku's group, addressing them, mentioning they were free to enter the village and take a break. Raku looked to the two that had come with him and gave them a nod, reassuring them they could leave if they wanted to, as he wasn't sure exactly how close they had gotten with the leaf nin they had been conversing with throughout this trip. Though Raku wanted to stay, at least for a few more moments to see the outcome after Ayumu gave them the option to speak now or later about business. Raku wanted to know what their decision was, whether it was because he was nosy, or because he had a bit of a liking to these shinobi from Konoha. Keeping his mouth shut for now, he waited to find out what Umashi's plans were as whatever he decided, that's where his group would likely go. If they wanted to speak somewhere more private at a later time, Raku could at least offer to show them around or whatever, on the off chance that the Konoha group would prefer to stick with some people they knew already than be shown around by someone new.

[894 WC]
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[Seijin]

One couldn't help but to be highly impressed by the display that Kumo put on. Like a charging of the very air that they breathed, Umashi suddenly was more invigorated than he had been before and this in turn grinning a little too hard. To imply that he lived for moments like this would be an understatement, but with the Raikage having introduced himself and nobody else exactly pointing him out, Umashi got off of his horse and decided to introduce the team.

Loosening his riding cloak and taking off his riding gloves as he approached, a trained eye might notice the peculiar way in which the joints in his left hand moved, it was almost as if they weren't bound by the normal tendons and ligaments that one might expect. Crossing the distance between them very quickly, Umashi stopped short of breaching the Raikage's personal space. Reaching out to shake the Raikage's hand, Umashi didn't take the moment for granted and gave a warm smile. "Thank you for having us, I'm the Hokage but you can call me Umashi." In the back of his mind he wondered if that was too formal but he rolled with the moment and turned to introduce his team.

Starting with the lady first, Umashi motioned with his hand at her, then the boy, then the man. "That's Yaku Sara, our Chief of Medicine, err, Medical Sennin according to your customs." Still getting used to how exactly Konoha rankings worked himself, Umashi couldn't help but to mentally drift off on a tangent about the actual definition of the word and title Sennin versus what people commonly used it for. Getting back to focus though he pointed to the young boy next. "That's Ranna Tatsuo, our food fighting champion two years running!" Umashi never got tired at poking fun at the young boy but he let the chuckle escape from his mouth only as long as it took for him to motion towards Kaji. "And that's Okada Kaji. He's a mind reading demon who's sole purpose in life is to kill anybody who thinks that my jokes have gone a bit too far." His face dead-panning, Umashi's eyes nervously looked from left to right to see if anybody was feeling a bit humorous. Quickly clearing his throat, Umashi got a touch more into his leadership role and straightened up a bit. "I jest, Tatsuo is one of our up and coming youngsters and Kaji is one of my personal guards."

Noting a familiar face, Umashi turned to Junko and put a hand to his chin and stroked it. "Are you the same Junko that I met way back when in Iwagakure? You never told me that you got promoted my good man. Congratulations, you could have mentioned that in your letters you know!" Shaking his head, but smiling all the same, Umashi turned back to the Raikage, Ayumu. "While I'd love to go directly into meetings and all, I'd like to give my team some much needed rest. That and I need a really stiff drink. These mountains of yours, while good for picture taking, are far too harrowing for my nerves." Being a seafarer by birth, Umashi definitely wasn't joking when he mentioned his uneasiness about the mountain cliffs. If ever his ship was sinking, he could simply swim his way out. Get spartan kicked down a ravine and you were simply a goner.


OOC: It didn't occur to me until yesterday that folks might not know exactly what Umashi looked like. Here's the link to my mini-profile.

OOC #2: Sara officially promoted to Med Chief aka branch leader of the Medics. It was a forgone conclusion due to other IC topics but this is the first instance of Umashi mentioning it publicly.

 

[Okada Kaji]

Kaji stood by with a lax energy about him, though his attention shifted wisely between Sara and Tatsuo, especially the boy. He was expecting the boy to eventually say or do something that would innocently embarrass their party. Kaji remained in top form despite the long ride. He was wisely poised to do anything from quiet an outburst to taking defensive action if an accident of some sort endangered his leaf or cloud allies.

As Umashi provided the group of Leaf Shinobi proper introductions, Kaji stood between Tatsuo and Sara pat their shoulders softly, and he made a small, forced grin to imply how chummy the Leaf Companions were. While their friendship wasn’t exactly a lie, Kaji rarely acted like the friendly type. He was attempting to present an amiable image for the Leaf Companions in order to curb any harsh first impressions imposed upon them by their present company.

“Congratulations Sara, those are certainly some big shoes to fill,” Kaji told the sable-eyed girl before patting her on the head. “You must be incredibly skilled if Lord Hokage expects you to train a student as dense as Tatsuo…” Somewhat unexpectedly, the Hokage had just launched her into an important placement within the fabric of the Leaf, and she was deemed the new Medical Chief. Unaware that she had only passed her latest medical exam recently, Kaji had little reason to doubt whether the placement was a good idea or not… It wasn’t exactly unheard of for children to be deemed prodigies at an early age. He added a “Good luck” with a smile, and his eyes cut over to Tatsuo. “And you might be under Sara’s watch now, but don’t think I won’t be making you practice your wood-style chakra molding while we’re here!” His eyes narrowed and his voice lowered to a grim whisper, “you’re going to be producing full-grown oak trees by the time we return to Konoha.” He then slapped Tatsuo on the back stiffly and made an awkward Cheshire grin towards their new acquaintances. Three silvery mithryl teeth spanned from his right incisor to the bicuspid, shimmering in the daylight and contrasting his pearly white teeth in a rare showing.

Then the Hokage’s introduction mentioned his vigilant guard Kaji, who made a respectful bow when the attention briefly came to him. His grin became a crooked smile when Umashi made a somewhat applicable assertion about Kaji being a mind-reading demon, though Kaji couldn’t exactly disagree with the joke. While he was not really gifted with telepathy, his opportunistic intuition often placed him ten moves ahead of a given situation, and it seemed as if he often knew just what to say or do. “Lord Raikage, your shinobi who came to escort us have done an exemplary job, and were most accommodating,” while Kaji did address their head honcho, his attention was scattered between Raku, Hoshi, and Kikei, who proved how hospitable the cloud could be long before they arrived at Cloud’s gates. “You all were a pleasure to travel with, and I’m proud to consider you comrades to our party, and to the Leaf. Thanks for your aid.”

WC523
Edit: Fixed grammatical error.​

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[Tatsuo]

Tatsuo let out an indigent sigh as Kaji called him dense. He was already in a bad mood and the continued mocking was starting to really get to him. He tried to let things like these slide, but little kids would be little kids. With a mischievous grin he looked to Kaji, his eyes closing and he putting on a cheery smile. Turning his attention to Yuii, he looked to her and said "Oh so you're the blue haired beauty that Kaji-Sensei spoke so highly of, he said you were two were dating right?" he said crossing his arms, looking back to Kaji. "Ya' know you've got pretty good taste boss, she is quite a looker." he said attempting to nudge Kaji with his elbow. "Man I swear I must've heard him talk about you the whole trip, he really is into you." he said, smiling to her but before turning to Kaji showing him a quick smirk. He crossed his arms, nodding his head and getting ready to avoid the potential blow which Kaji might inflict. This was just the beginning of the payback he was planning to get, the lightest of it being on Kaji, since, well he kind of liked him at least.

 

[Shouyu Hoshi]

The gates begun to rattle open and rather wide too. Shouyu was surprised. He let every one beside Kikei go before him, and he smirked at her evily. He filed in to the right next Raku and realized he was standing before Yuii and Junko, and someone else he never seen before.

It was his own Raikage, immediately Shouyu bowed his head before returning his gaze. It was the first time he ever seen this man. He hoped one day to defend him with his life, and not only him but the entire village from a shadow without a name. His eyes would have been fixated on the man intently, if ever he would look to Hoshi he would notice he'd be looking him in the eye.

He did give the go ahead for him to leave, but Hoshi awaited the leaf's response before deciding to go. The Hokage dismounted his steed and began talking, Shouyu's gaze adverted in his direction. He seemed to have known Junko and that astonished him, and would allow for some interesting conversations with Junko later. He suggested his team should rest and his companion, introduced as Kaji began to speak. He realized, the girl's name Sara, during the trip she resonated a familiar chakra but he subsided that and would save it for later.

His full attention on Kaji his eyes widened and began to shimmer at his gratitude of their escort service. Shouyu felt proud that he did good at such an important mission, he rubbed his eyes and smiled at Kaji, and looked over to Sara with the same. He'd gaze at her and the smile would fade and give her a head nod. Shouyu took the initiative to begin walking away but he walked right up to the Raikage.

"Hey! I'm Shouyu Hoshi Tsuyoshi, Genin of the Hidden Cloud, and someday, I'll become YOUR bodyguard, you can bet on that!

He the boy pointed at the Raikage his index finger barely being able to reach him at all standing at 4'9, but he did so with a boyish smirk and clenched that same hand into fist as his completed his statement with a fervent head nod. He looked to his right at Yuii who was to the left of the Raikage and smirked and then looked to Junko and gave a big smile with a thumbs up winking with his left pale eye. Before he departed he turned back to the Leaf Shinobi.

"See ya around... Comrades!!!"

He gave a large grin and turned around to dash away into the inner village zones. Although he felt a menacing chill down his spine.

[topic left]

 

[Kikei]

Sitting upon the floor she watched as the massive construct slowly opened up just wide enough for two people to walk between them at a time. She may have never seen such things in reality but it wasn’t enough to leave her in awe as it did the others at least not at first it was when it stopped and two men came into view that Kikei was stricken by awe because one they both had amazing fashion sense and two one wore a suit. Of course the woman he had ordered for the gates to be opened was also good looking but her attire was just so tacky she wasted her potential. Then again this all played into the theory that the young girl had started to ponder about if all ninja’s had to be attractive to be a ninja. She stared from her seat on the floor.

The scene played out as one would expect between a meeting of dignitaries, lots of handshakes and introductions and fancy words about peace, yet no real substance to back up said claims at least not yet. It was then she noticed Hoshi had made a mad dash for the Raikage and introduced himself. Even so far as claiming to be his next body guard, such things were quite embarrassing and caused the young girl to hide her face in shame of her fellow cloud ninja. It was then she decided she would just stay quiet and talk only if spoken too.​

 

[Kagetsu Yuii]

Yuii bowed in greeting when Ayumu said her name, happy to stand quietly beside her Raikage and beam happily when her little escort team received a wave of praise. That was her branch, always surpassing expectation. The Main Branch Sennin was not very well versed in politics despite her branch containing the bulk of Kumogakure's ambassadors and she knew better than to open her big mouth just then.

Which was why she was mortified when Tatsuo disrupted the adults talking and addressed her directly.

"Eh, me?" Yuii squeaked, eyes widening. Who has said what when? No there was a mistake, Yuii didn't know any fire country shinobi like Junko seemed to. The poor woman wasn't even allowed to leave the village for lack of vacation days and Ayumu's harsh travel ban!

"Uhm, no, that is... " she stuttered, waving her hands weakly in panic and trying to plead her case. Teasing or not, this was not the time or place for weird conversations like this. If he was one of her students she would have shoved a half dozen cookies down his throat and sat on him until he could and did apologise, but he was not and this was not the time for mild child abuse. "You must be mistaken," she protested one last time pulling her woollen scarf up to obscure the lower half of her face and shuffling ever so slightly behind Ayumu.

Luckily Hoshi swooped in to deliver his own out-of-place spunky kid distraction. She massaged the bridge of her nose as her two-time student declared he would one day be Ayumu's bodyguard. He had a lot to learn before that day came, like tact and how to keep his mouth shut.

She let Hoshi leave without reprimand if only because his outburst equalised the moment and her shouting at him would have caused more harm than good. Remembering how very dense Hoshi could be, it was unlikely telling him off just once would really make the kid understand what he had done wrong anyways. She would be sure to schedule a whole day towards drilling that lesson in with, perhaps, some cliff side climbing and a ten stone weight backpack. "Tsuyoshi, huh?" she muttered under her breath, side eyeing Junko above her scarf. That was new.

Spoiler

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

Ayumu's suspicions were confirmed as Umashi stepped forward as the Hokage. The man rattled through the names and titles of his own party, the most surprising of which was the Medical Sennin whom looked no older than the Genin that Cloud had sent with the escort team. He didn't know how Leaf made their choices for such a position, but that little girl must have been pretty impressive to have been chosen at such a young age. Fortunately, Ayumu managed to conceal is surprise as Umashi continued on. Ayumu chuckled at the mention of the food fight champion and the mind reading demon, glad to see the Hokage wasn't all business. It would've been hard to get along if he was.

The mention by Kaji of his satisfaction with the Kumo guides broadened Ayumu's smile for a moment as he looked to the team and nodded proudly. With the introductions out of the way, they could all be friends now, though it seemed that Umashi was already familiar with Junko. They had, apparently, met in Iwagakure. It made sense. Ayumu recalled when Junko had gone along with Saito to the village in order to make friends much as they were doing now.

As Ayumu suspected, the group was tired from the road and not prepared to talk just yet. Ayumu couldn't blame them- the road here was a bit rough for those not accustomed to it. He hadn't expected to jump right into diplomacy when they arrived, he simply wanted to be there to greet them when they did. Now that that was out of the way, they could head into the village. A block of rooms had been reserved for them at the Otani Kumogakure, a hotel often used for lodging when foreign diplomats came to Kumogakure. The digs there were as nice as any in Kumogakure, with rooms more like studio apartments and an on-site onsen, so the shinobi of Leaf would be made very comfortable during their stay.

"I figured as much. As I said, we've already prepared lodgings in the Otani Kumogakure. You should be able to unwind pretty well there. It's in the Susukino District, where we Kumo-nins go to have fun, so you'll definitely be able to find that stiff drink and a bite to eat, too," Ayumu replied with a nod. At mention of this, a couple of shinobi approached. "They'll take your group there whenever you're ready. Enjoy yourself, we'll talk tomorrow," Ayumu continued, gesturing to the two shinobi who would act as guides.

Ayumu's eyes flicked briefly over to the younger Leaf shinobi as he spoke up, clearly attempting to get back at the older man for his earlier comment. He singled out Yuii, suggesting that Kaji had somehow known about her in advance and had been gushing about her the whole way there. Ayumu chuckled, mainly at Yuii's response as she bashfully assured the young shinobi that he must be mistaken, unprepared for that kind of attention at such a meeting. "Please refrain from including our Sennin in your fantasies, kiddo. Show some respect, eh?" Ayumu said in her defense. 'She is a Sennin, after all. That means only I'm allowed to mess with her,' he thought, just before Hoshi marched right up and asserted himself as the next object of Ayumu's attention.

The Genin introduced himself while pointing his finger at Ayumu, ensuring him that one day he would be Ayumu's bodyguard. Ayumu raised his eyebrows in slight surprise, unsure what to say as Hoshi glanced at the two Sennin and then said farewell to the Leaf shinobi before departing. Ayumu scratched his head, laughing sheepishly at the display the boy had just put on in front of everyone. It seemed that Leaf and Cloud both had young willful kids in their ranks. "That was interesting. I guess I've got that to look forward to as a bodyguard some day," he said, glancing at the departing Genin. He cleared his throat awkwardly before continuing.

"At any rate, I'll let you all get to your hotel and get settled in. Farewell for now," he said, giving a wave and turning to leave. His intention was for Yuii and Junko to follow him, but if they decided to stick around for any reason that was their prerogative. Ayumu had to get back to the tower. If he was going to set aside time for diplomatic talks, he needed to get some extra work done today so clear the time in his schedule. If he didn't, he was doomed to fall hopelessly behind.

[Topic Left - Leafies may assume they've been guided to a swanky hotel in the entertainment district and given free reign to explore.]
[MFT]

 

[Okada Kaji]

At first, it seemed as if everything was going according to plan. The Leaf shinobi and the Cloud made friendly introductions, with their respective Kage leading the exchange. The group of shinobi made a colorful cast, set to perform in the telling of a story that would be retold for generations to come. Legends of the past and future, who came together to forge new bonds, and create a greater future for the Shinobi World.

But then Tatsuo had to open his mouth.

The unexpected outburst sent the blood rushing to Kaji’s head, clearly noticeable as reddened blushing, and the nervous twitch of his left eyebrow. At first, he seemed frozen by the embarrassment, as if the frigid winds of the north had finally gotten the best of him. According to Tatsuo, Yuii was indeed the apple of Kaji’s eye and the main attraction of his part in their adventure. He fabricated this story unexpectedly to spite his sensei, and left the man just as puzzled as the women he incorporated in his mischief.

This was truly Kaji’s first time setting eyes upon Yuii, let alone hearing the mention of her name. His embarrassment only worsened when he focused on her, considering what impact this had on her first impression of him. At least Tatsuo wasn’t far off from his tastes, or so Kaji considered albeit reluctantly. But he did not lock onto her hypnotizing azure eyes for very long, as he could feel the others glancing at him with mixtures of humor and intrigue. If he truly were a mind-reading demon, he figured he would have been bombarded with accusations of being a hentai then, but an intervention from the Raikage quickly restored order and lambasted Tatsuo for his foolery.

“No one asked you to start playing matchmaker,” Kaji scolded Tatsuo, rather lightly compared to what he would have said if the occasion were more appropriate. He would certainly deal with Tatsuo later, but for now, he had to play it cool. “S-sorry about that, Lady Kagetsu,” Kaji confessed with a nervous, but sincere tone. He took a few paces forward and became a blockade, sliding in front of Tatsuo. He became a wall of flowing black fur from the stubby brat’s perspective. “Oh geez… Kids, right? They really let their imaginations fly sometimes. Especially this one: he’s a real— handful.”​

<i></i>

 

[Yaku]

The Kage took his exit and Sara really had to jump into the fray. She looked at the would be ANBU Kaji, noticing certain oddities. "Way to play it stoic like all clairvoyant one. By the way, you're as red as a tomato. Not very good at hiding your TRUE feelings huh." Sara walked onwards and passed him, speaking her words loud enough so all could hear. "Guessing this gentleman told you tall tales of her, huh? You truly are beautiful, I can see why he was so ecstatic to come to Kumogakure miss Kagetsu Yuii. Greetings, Tsu...Tsu yoshi Junko wasn't it." She headed towards them and waved lightly, now standing a few feet from the two sennin. They did know each other it seemed, him and Kaji, it could be assumed he had. She looked at both of them, taking in their physical and a few chakra anomalies.

"I uh, I suppose I am your leaf counterpart. I am Yaku Sara." Sara gave a slight bow to both, being towered over by all in attendance to a degree. Judgement was being passed, though she too was trying to act stoic before them. She was a little, a lot nervous, having being given the position, and now trying to compare and compete with whom she considered her superior at this second. She currently felt inadequate for some reason, though it seemed to be going good so far. 2 minuets into the new job and she hasn't made a mess of it yet.

After she said her first sentence, she put her full attention on Junko,"It is a pleasure to meet you. Um, I...I know it is a lit..ttle late right now, and we don't KNOW each other, um, that well, and maybe you-all do things a little, um, differently here, and we will be around for a while and, um.." 'Going smooth so far!' She felt some tension, 'but I should just come out and say it' "Could I ask you to escort me around some of your medical facilities tomar'row?" She turned her attention to both, trying to not let Yuii feel left out, " Possibly discuss you teaching methods in Kumogakure? About some of the things you do around here on an average day?" 'Hey, that came out okay. Maybe they, especially he, can show me how to do my own job?' She smiled, beaming as she looked into his eyes having gained some confidence after her run on. This was her opportunity.