Yukorite, Chekome, and Mayori stared at Natomi as he knelt on one knee in front of them.
"I should banish you for insubordination."
"Why haven't you, Master? You didn't seem too hesitant when it was your own son."
"Are you challenging me?"
"I am simply stating that keeping me here is ridiculous."
"It would only be ridiculous if you were doing something bad." Chekome said, glaring at her husband.
"Then why was Tsume banished?"
"Because he is an abomination to the Kayoshi Clan! The fact that you are helping him is only being permitted because my wife has some background control." Yukorite snarled. "I have given you leeway on many things I should have never done. You are walking a tight rope with this act of direct and blatant going against my orders."
"Well, the problem was that he was dying."
"Then why didn't you take him to the Laota Clan, where he is supposed to be going?!"
"THE LAOTA CLAN IS TWO DAYS AWAY!!!" Natomi screamed, standing up and looking down on his master and superior. "You may be able to throw away your son for something he had no control over, but I have watched that boy grow up since he was born and he is like a son to me as well. Maybe it's the Laota in me, because our clan is aptly named 'The Clan of Refuge', but to let a man such as Tsume be left to die for something he couldn't even help; it is unacceptable to me. I would rather have been banished with him than for him to have had to deal with what he dealt with by himself. And it could have been anyone that the enchantress threw that stuff on."
"And would you be so enraged about them if that were the case?"
"Depended on who it was and even if I wasn't angry, I'm sure someone in their family would have tried to help them, just like Takuma tried to do."
Chekome looked at her husband, still wanting to smack him for not telling her the truth in the first place (probably avoiding all of this in the long run) and then turned back to Natomi.
"How long did you say he needed to stay?"
"Woman, who is the leader of this clan?" Yukorite snarled under his breath.
"I'm not sure anymore." She said just as menacingly. She looked back at Natomi and smiled. "Again, how long does he need to stay?"
"Well, the least one week and the most two weeks. One for recovery, for sure, and the other so that I can send a letter to let the Laota and inform them of Tsume's situation as well as a place to get ready for him to stay with his children."
"Can he be sent without the letter?" Mayori asked.
Natomi looked at him but he looked back at his master and the wife.
"He can but the Laota aren't quite as cooperative when there isn't a proceeding letter of introduction so that they can make available a house for him as well as give him a job."
"He's a ninja, isn't he? What other job can he do?" Mayori said.
"The Laota only use their own kind for shinobi. Any ninja using the Laota as a refugee village cannot be used as shinobi for the mere fact that some ninja are there because they were on trial for murder. No matter if the rumor is true or not, if they allow outside ninja to fight and they really are killers, the Laota will be tarnished."
"Alright then, I will let him stay for two weeks but there are things that will be done because of this. One, you will deliver the letter yourself. You said it takes a week, I'm assuming that is for someone to take it, wait for it to finally get where it needs to go, and then come back. Two, when you return, you will be whipped for two weeks counting down from fourteen all the way to one. And third, you are demoted. You will do grunt work and petty missions instead of accompanying me and the other elite ninja on great tasks. Do you understand?"
Natomi bowed. "I understand, sir."
"Good. Now, I don't want to see you again until you have approval."
Natomi bowed. "The only time you'll see me is when I need your signature. Is that alright?"
"Yes, that's fine."
He left and Yukorite pinched the bridge of his nose.
Chekome got up and glided past him.
"Where are you going?"
"Well, I think I would like to see my son before he has to leave for good and I think I want to play with my grandchildren."
"Those aren't grandchildren! Those are... are things made of myth. You saw what it did when he was in the river! You saw-"
"It was late at night. Goodbye, Yuko."
She left and Yuko crossed his arms.

*****************

"Do they always get angry when they're not on the right breast?" Tsume asked, watching Satuya greedily wrap his mouth on his preferred side.
It looked like Satuya preferred the right side and the right side only.
Inoue laughed. "Yes, especially Satuya. He's very picky."
Satuya looked at Tsume but continued to suckle. Tsume played with Kisola in his lap as she blew spit bubbles. He played with her feet and even though it really hurt him to sit up the way he was, he enjoyed playing with his daughter. She seemed to enjoy the attention.
"It will be lonely without you, Tsume. Maybe we can visit you in the Laota Clan."
"No, you would be banished too, I'm sure. No need to risk it." Tsume looked up and smirked a little. "Still can't hide his presence. Then again, maybe I just know it so well..."
Inoue looked up as well. "He's a little idiotic thing."
Tsume laughed. "Why do you say that?"
"He thinks that avoiding you is the best answer to everything that's happened. He's only hurting himself... and you."
Tsume smiled a little. "Takuma is only lashing out because Natomi is getting to do everything-"
"That is not true."
Takuma's voice startled Tsume and he jerked, causing his stomach to tighten and he winced.
"Takuma..."
"Don't think you know me, Tsume. You know nothing about me."
"I know plenty enough, my friend." Tsume said quietly. "I know that I hurt you and you deserve to be very angry."
"I'm more than that. I'm so pissed that I can't even look at you. If it weren't for this conversation, I wouldn't have spoken to you either. You are dirt upon the ground I walk on. I spit on you, trod on you, and run all over you. You are meaningless."
As much as those arrows of hate went through Tsume, he had always been an extraordinary ninja and so, his feelings could not be seen nor detected. He just smiled as he clapped Kisola's hands together playfully.
"Then at least as a road I can still be under your feet to guide you whenever you need. All you have to do is look under your nose."
Takuma made a noise and ran off. Inoue made a face at Tsume.
"That wasn't nice."
"How is that? It's the truth. I would be there for him... whether I am a road, a fly, a cockroach, or a lowly pebble. As long as I am something, then I am still there and as long as I am there, I will be with him."
Satuya made a small noise and Inoue smiled, wiping his mouth.
"These children are lucky to have a father like you, Tsume."
"No... they're not." He said, picking up Kisola so they could trade.

**************

Takuma ran and then ran smack into Chekome.
"Takuma."
"L-Lady Chekome..."
She turned her head and reached out to touch his face. He pulled back and wiped his own frustrating tears.
"Don't... I'm crying because I'm angry."
Chekome smiled. "I see."
"Stop mocking me, please. I've had enough already."
Chekome cupped her hand under his chin.
"Takuma, I did raise you. You would think I knew you a little better."
"I am a warrior now."
"That may be true but some shinobi warriors never get the hang of hiding their emotions. It takes them years and years to perfect it. You are not of shinobi birth and though you were taught the ways, you were not raised to abide by them solely. You have a sensitive heart and that is not wrong; it just means that in order to be taken seriously and not read easily, you must train harder to make your emotions less shown out here and more so in here." She pointed to his heart. "You take out your frustrations by practicing and if you and Inoue get married, sex works too."
Takuma blanched at her and she smirked.
"Why do you think Yukoite is so angry as of late?"
If his mouth could get wider, it would have. She closed it for him.
"This is where that practice should come into play. Don't get discouraged, Takuma, it will come with time. Now, I'm going to see my grandchildren!" she said, doing an odd skip-jump that he wasn't expecting.
At least someone was happy about the babies.