The Art Of Leading [Private]

[Megumi Tanigawa]

Nestled between the forestry of the hidden leaf, slightly absorbed through tree and fence. A small manor in comparison to the other larger clan homes was the house of the Tanigawa. Hidden around the forestry and décor of the courtyard, where the clan stalwart mechanized automatons. These guardian where clothed in leaf ninja garb of their past ancestors as a sigh to all that even in death a Tanigawa never leaves their family.

Megumi as the acting head of her clan paid her respects to her ancestors and keep their avatars well maintained and clean. Starting from the first of her house to the last. Even though she respected and help her traditions strongly with her, seeing her parents and close relatives faces never got easy. Staring at her parents as they looked back at her, she wonder how they thought of who see had become and if they were proud of her. Wiping the wetness from her eyes and staining her pink kimono that she wore for family gathers and clan meetings. Putting her feelings aside she would tend to her family and keep to the shinobi traditions, as a shinobi does not cry. The crickets began their nightly consort as the sun began to rest. Saying goodbye to her family, she had to prepare dinner for herself and her grandfather.

Walking through the orange tinted courtyard, Megumi would look to the simple yet serene sight of the forges and kilns that sat around signifying their pride in their craft. While it might not be what other clan are use to but to a Tanigawa their art was their heart and soul and bared it to the world.

Sliding the door open and removing her shoes. “ Grandfather I'm back I'll get dinner on after I clean up”. She would hear a grumble from the door of her grandfather's room, he was most likely busy with his work or impatient for dinner.

As she washed her hand and took out all kinds of spices and vegetables, fruits and a protein, she was not sure if she wanted fish or chicken today. Leaning over from the kitchen and jokingly yelling at her grandfather's door. “ Hey you old fool, what do you think chicken or fish”!? Hearing a deep rough voice aged from hard labor and smoking, “ I just want food girl, does not matter as all your cooking taste the same terrible. Never finding a husband with your cooking”! Megumi would shake her head as she went back to cooking, “ You would never give me away anyway”! More grumbles would echo from the doorway, as he had no comeback for the truth.

 

[Megumi Tanigawa]

Plating and putting the finishing touches on the food. As she set the food down on the table see would call out to her grumpy roommate, “ Old Man your foods ready”! Hiding her giggling from her comment, the sounds of rustling and various items hitting the floor. If their was one thing that her grandfather was never good at it was being organized and picking up after himself.

With the door sliding open and the old man finally making his way to the table. Her grandfather towered over her tiny frame and his wrinkled face creased as he looked at his disrespectful granddaughter. “ I told you never to call me that, i taught you to respect your elders”. Sitting down and rushing off some saw dust he had on his shoulder he pick up his chopsticks, but before he could dig in Megumi stopped him. “ I would call you grandfather but you never respond to it while your working”. Pointing at the sink to at least wash his hands, “ Wash up before you eat, don’t want you to get sick”. Her stout grandfather who had been weakened from time and illness grumbled as he got up to clean himself up, “ What does it matter i’m already sick, not like a cold is going to make me worse off then i already am”. Megumi would roll her eyes as she knew where this was going.

As he sat back down he looked at his granddaughter with a serious expression. “ We all know i’m not going to be around for much longer, i’ve taught you everything i know. I’ve almost put the finishing touches on my guardian, soon you won’t be the acting head of the family and you will become the head. I don’t want my granddaughter dying and taking her clan with her because she wants to make her family proud. Were already proud of you”.

Taking a few bites of her food as she listened to the same spiel over and over again. Putting her chopsticks down. “ We are a ninja clan, your parents were ninjas, you and my grandmother were ninja and my parents were ninja. We are ninjas of the leaf, what because we have dwindled in the past years makes it okay for us to hang back and repopulate! I am not just a incubation chamber or some tool for our clan's future, i will lead just as you and our other heads have lead before us”!

Her grandfather would slam his hands down on the table and look at his granddaughter with fury. “ I will not have you make the same mistakes my son and i did”! Even though he commanded respect with his tone of voice, you could see the wetness in his eyes as he did not want to lose what was precious to him.

The room got quiet as Megumi looked at her grandfather that cared deeply for her and was broken from the loss of his wife and son, all he had left in the world was her. Placing her tiny almost frail looking hand atop the meaty claws of her titan of a grandfather. Wiping his tears he would go back to eating and seem to be done talking for the day.

Looking into her grandfather's piercing blue eyes she would smile and pat his hand. “ Don’t worry i’ll make sure that i’ll stay alive and restore our family back into what it once was and even better than it was before”. Her words did not seem to reassure him. “ What are you going to restore it with that shrimp that you brought back here”. Megumi let out a small laugh as it seems he was feeling a least a bit better. “ Maybe what do you think of him, me maybe a bit shy, but he’s sincere and fights for the leaf with as much believe in the will of fire as us”. Taking a few more bites of his food he would think back on his meeting with the boy. Rubbing his bushy grey beard he contemplated his answer. “ Well he is much more well mannered the you are, and he’s from a decent clan, even if the Gushiken are just muscle bound fools”. Megumi cuts in to tell him that most likely has has blood relation to the Nara. “ Does not matter, as he is treated as a Gushiken”. Taking a drink of his beer, “ I like him, but it’s not my place to decide what do you think of him”?

Megumi would now be the one to pause and think about her thoughts and feeling, however she did not have a bread to strock. “ While he is sweet, i don’t think i love him in that sort of way. He’s kind, but he is fairly timid and shy. He feels more like a goofy little brother than someone i would marry”. Megumi and her grandfather would talk about the future and what she had planned, as the eat and finally spent time together as a family instead of yelling and ignoring each other.

[Topic Ended]