From Fangirls to Ambassadors
Scarlette's POV
Smoke-like mist curled off the writhing water, joining the white mass that hovered mere inches above the undulating waves. Visibilty was near-zero, save for slivers of gray light that cowered among the misty fangs in the gaping maw of the sky. Our ship, large enough to make the five of us - including our captain - comfortable, even under the unsettling conditions, held surprisingly steady. We bobbed in the water, lifting and falling with the heartbeat of the beast sleeping in the depths below.
So I'd returned to the ocean at last, it seemed.
Hibiki Sensei had surprised us yesterday, explaining so care-freely the momentus task he'd set before us. Our mission (here, Ari would like me to make some spy reference I'm absolutely loathe to comply with) was to accompany Sensei on a pilgrimage of peace to the Village Hidden in the Mist, where we would meet with the Mizukage and discuss a possible alliance for future security. It was a mission, he said, to give us precious experience in the politics of Shinobi and the aspects of the guarding that came with them.
I stared out at the presently-calm ocean, elbows propped up on the metal railing keeping me from plunging into the icy water. Shades of gray and milky, translucent white. No colors bled through the veil that seemed to encompass our tiny universe we'd been thrust into.
Ari and Violet were chattering excitedly somewhere behind me, anticipating what our meeting with the Mizukage would be like. I wasn't anxious per say; but the meeting seemed troublesome. I wasn't sure how long Mei Terumi had been Mizukage, and I wasn't sure just how the Mist Village had changed since the days of Yagura's Blood Mist Village.
It felt suspicious to ask Sensei about another Village's Kage, at least, such knowledgeable questions. Being "foreigners" we weren't supposed to know things about other Kages' reigns. So we were, essentially, walking in blind. Not to say we were unprepared. Hibiki Sensei was guiding us, after all. I could only hope he proved to be capable in times of crisis, if the need arose.
The boat ride was uneventful, much to Ari's dismay. She was eager for Ninja to fly from the water and engage us in a hot-blooded battle.
No such thing occurred, or was likely to occur.
So she and Violet found ways to pass the time that didn't disturb the other passengers or myself--
No. I can't even write that without feeling the need to be violently ill. In truth, they were obstrusive and loud and distracting, like any other moment of their lives.
I watched through slitted eyes as they jumped the railing and swam through the fog, feet splashing only lightly on the water's surface, their glimmering chakra casting faint shadows over the waves. That same chakra allowed me to keep track of them as they chased one another through the white, their shrieking laughter deadened and ominously mundane.
I almost wanted to join them, but the sensible voice (modeled after Aunt and Uncle and their severely Christian ways) warned me falling in with my sisters' behavior could be detrimental to the health of us all. My feet remained on deck, though pushed on my toes, perched as though ready to fly at any moment.
Ari and Violet eventually returned to the ship, in a flurry of limbs and chilled water and smokey mist that wreathed around them like demonic auras. They claimed, between intakes and exhales of precious, precious oxygen, that some monstrous thing was out there, ready to snare us in its merciless tendrils. I didn't bother trying to calm them down; it would have been a wasted effort. Instead, I simply pointed, and their heads snapped instinctively in that direction.
Out of the mist walked a lanky figure, something cradled in their hands. Ari's jaw dropped and Violet squealed in relief. Hibiki Sensei leapt lightly up onto the railing and crouched down, his hand outstretched towards Ari. "I went looking for you two!" he frowned, waggling the finger of his free head sternly. "We're technically in enemy waters, since the treaty hasn't been signed yet. I love you girls, but I won't take this from you on such an important mission. Value your lives more. Oh and Ari?" His usual vibrant closed-eye smile replaced the flinty expression. "You dropped this."
He spilled her water logged headband into her hands. She laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. She looked up at Sensei, mouth open to say something (some stuttered apology, most likely), when she paused, her eyes widened to the size of softballs and trained on Sensei's hair. Air let loose a torrent of laughter, so forceful her knees buckled and she collapsed on deck, unable to stop herself.
Violet smiled prettily, rocking back on her heels, and even I was reduced to giggles, one hand over my mouth coyly.
Sensei's beautiful snow-white hair, when wet, plastered to his head, then curled up at odd angles that resembled Albert Einstein shocked with enough electricity to kill an elephant.
His mouth dipped into a pout and he ran a hand over the ruffled locks, only serving to electrify them further. He obviously knew what he looked like, yet not a trace of embarrassment marred his face. I admired him all the more for it; I myself had enough trouble dealing with the embarrassment that came along with being related to Ari and Violet. "It's rude to laugh at your elders, girls," he said seriously, head turned away from us somewhat.
"Elders?" I raised a brow, recovered from my minor lapse in concentration. "You're hardly our elder, Hibiki Sensei, what with you only being four years older."
"Y-Yeah!" Ari piped up, lifting her head from where it had been pressed to her knees. "You're barely old enough to be our Sensei out all! It's a miracle we listen to you!"
"The why do you?" Sensei asked simply.
The three of us were at a loss for words, it seemed. Just what was it that drew us to this angelic man? We'd met people as kind and caring as him before; Temari and Lee fit the categories well. He wasn't the most attractive man we'd ever seen (I personally considered Kakashi to be handsomer, or would, if he ever removed that damnable mask). Yet none had earned our respect so quickly, nor had anyone captured our full attention so easily.
"I think..." Vi's brow furrowed as she thought. But her terse expression cleared away like storm clouds revealing the sun and a happy-go-lucky smile beamed at Sensei with all the charm of a fairy. "I think we follow Sensei because he doesn't consider himself above us, and he treats us more as equals than students, even though we still have a lot to learn. That's what makes Sensei perfect for us, don't ya think Ari, Scar?"
The look Ari and I exchanged said it all: Violet was absolutely right. If she acted like this all the time, she may not have earned herself the title of "Goddess of Airheads" from Kankuro weeks back. Though, that title may have had more to do with how Kankuro saw our sister than her real actions. Whatever the case, it fit her normal personage perfectly, but was utterly lacking when faced with the current Violet.
That is, until she randomly flipped backwards, landed on the wheelhouse, spun around and threw her hands into the smoke-clouded sky with a shout of, "I'm Queen of the World!"
"Her and her damn DiCaprio obsession," Ari muttered under her breath. I agreed with a faint, unamused sigh.
Titanic this was not, so long as no icebergs appeared suddenly in our path.
Violet's POV
The Mist Vilage was full of mist.
"No shit, Sherlock," Ari snorted when I mentioned this to her. Seeing my anime-tear filled eyes, she frantically waved her hands, saying, "Wait, wait! I didn't mean it like that, Vi! I... Ah, crap. Just... stop with the tears already!" She threw a hand over her face, refusing to look at me.
I giggled and hugged her quickly. "It's ok!" I chirped, releasing her. I twirled around and skipped ahead, eyes roving around constantly to explore all the unfamiliar things the Village had to offer. Besides the mist, it seemed a lot like Suna. People milled around stalls, haggling for a better price; kids played Ninja in the street; and the occasional masked Shinobi would look out from the shadows, silently observing the goings on of the Village.
....Ok. Maybe that one was a little creepy. But! I didn't mind it, because we had a mission!
Ari, Scar and I followed closely behind Hibiki Sensei as he moved through the Village. Ari asked if he knew where he was going and, after laughing at how Scarlette scolded her by pinching the back of her neck, he said, "Mm, I do. Promise! I've been here on recon missions before, so I know the Village almost as well as I know Suna!"
"Sensei, have you met the Mizukage?" Scar asked. She sounded almost hesitant, which wasn't like Scar at all. Usually she was full of confidence and didn't mind whatever question she had to ask. I pouted, thinking about Kiri's Kage. Mei Terumi was another favorite of Ari and me, though, because she lacked screen time, she wasn't very high on the list. Her fights with Aoi over marriage always had us cracking up, though!
"Indirectly," Hibiki answered, waving a hand. "My ANBU squad was positioned in Iwagakure to watch while Kiri tried to make a treaty with the Tsuchikage, similar to what they're doing with us. It failed. Miserably. The Tsuchikagi is a grumpy old guy stuck in his ways, and he didn't even consider the benefits of being allied with a Village as powerful as Kirigakure. But anyway, Mei Terumi was there, obviously, and while I didn't speak to her, I got a pretty good judge of her chracter." Sensei chuckled. "She's definitely interesting, I'll give her that."
"Ah, about that." Scarlette quickened her pace until she was walking side-by-side with Hibiki. "Why is it that three Genin and their Sensei are representing Suna during this kind of event? Wouldn't an elder be more suited to the task?"
"They're all busy trying to decide who should replace the Kazekage," Sensei replied. "Besides, we're showing Suna's best side with the four of us! We're the out-of-the-box thinkers, and the most understanding of other Villagers, being from different homes ourselves. And don't you think we're the best looking side of the Village, too?"
Hibiki Sensei definitely knew how to flaunt his sexiness.
Scar continued her questioning with Sensei, both of them a few steps ahead of us. The gap kept getting bigger, though, as the crowd around us thickened. Soon, I had to stand on my tippy-toes just to see Sensei's white head bobbing through the sea of people.
Ari snagged hold of my arm, keeping me close. She must have realized how easy it was to get lost here. We'd already lost Sensei and Scar!
"Damn," Ari mumbled, running a hand through her violet-blue hair in frustration. She looked around, searching for an opening in the crowd, then sighed. "Look, we gotta get back to Sensei, otherwise they're gonna meet Mei without us! And you know how much I wanna rile her up with stuff about marriage! We just gotta...." She trailed off as her eyes seemed to lock on something behind me. "Holy shit!" I just giggled when she literally flew over the people blocking her way, with me in tow.
We landed just in front of a small book stand and I instantly saw what had made Ari freak out so much. Sitting among the other, less colorful books, was the story of Icha Icha Paradise in all it's orangy glory. Ari pounced on it, like I knew she would. My sister had had an obsession with the series ever since she saw Kakashi giggling like a school girl while reading it. She'd tried to find it in Konoha and Suna, but they were always sold out for some unknown reason (Ari said it was because all the pervs lived in our favorite Villages).
"Hallelujah! I finally found one!" she cackled, raising the book above her head like a trophy.
Then it disappeared from her hands.
I followed the nearly-invisible chakra string back to Scar's scary form; the look in her eyes made me gulp audibly. She was mad! She was really mad! The volcano is gonna blow! I mentally squealed, diving at Ari in a fearful hug. We held each other, practically shaking, as Scar's glaring gaze raked over us.
Slowly, she appraised the book in her hand, the other placed on her hip. "If I find that either of you have read these books, you will die." She stated each word clearly, making sure we understood just what spooky thing she was gonna do to us if we disobeyed. Ari and I nodded mutely. Satisfied, Scar's murderous aura vanished, and she contently thumbed through a few pages of the book. "Honestly, I don't care for the graphic nature of this novel, but the plot was rather compelling."
Ari nearly died of shock. "You read it?!" she demanded, eyes bugging from her head.
Scar raised a pencil-thin eyebrow quizzically, like she was asking what had made Ari so upset. "This book, however good I find the plot, is still complete and utter smut. And you, Ari, are not capable of looking past the erotic current to appreciate the creative sub-current. You're simply too immature. You as well, Violet," she added, glancing at me. I smiled; she was right for sure!
"Still Scarlette, you have to be eighteen or older to even purchase these books." Scar lifted her gaze as nimble fingers plucked the little orange book from her grasp. Hibiki Sensei stood over her, smiling at her indifferent face. "Who'd you get to buy the books for you?"
"I did it myself," she said, shrugging. "The shop owner seemed to think I was a petite adult. I simply didn't correct him."
Hibiki Sensei mumbled something about having a talk with Suna's shop owners, before he snapped the book shut and carefully placed it back with the other identical copies. "Come on then," he grinned, waving a hand for us to follow. "We'll be late to the meeting if we don't hurry up. And you do not want to see an angry Mei Terumi."
As we took off for the Mizukage's residence, I heard Ari mutter, "Oh yes I do, Sensei!"
Ari's POV
You don't understand how freaking ecstatic I was to be in the Mist Village. Mei was badass with her duel kekkei genkai and I freaking loved her and her mood swings with Ao. I realized I might be signing my own death warrant by provoking her, but that was a risk my diseased mind was willing to take.
The Mizukage's mansion was simpler than I'd thought it would be. Maybe it was because the Kazekage mansion was so ginormous and grand, but I'd thought there'd be a little more style to the place. But nope, it was just a pretty two-story building in the center of town, shrouded in mist that hid its cool ocean-blue coloring.
Two Kiri Ninja were stationed as guards on either side of the door, both wearing bandages around their mouths like Zabuza. (The feels, man, the goddamn feels!!) They studied us gratingly as we approached, though it didn't seem to bother Sensei so much.
"Evening," Hibiki Sensei greeted them amiably, all smiles and sexiness. "We're the party from Sunagakure, here to speak with the Mizukage. I've got the papers here somewhere..." He took a minute to fish through his various weapons pouches, subtly showing off his array of Ninja tools, before he produced a miraculously unwrinkled scroll that he unfurled before the Kiri Ninja's eyes. "Yup, this is it. It clearly states that we mean this Village no harm, and that the only reason we're here is to talk peacefully. Is this proof enough for you guys?"
They stared at us. Just stared.
And stared.
And stared.
And I swear I was two seconds away from shouting, "Screw it!" and Sand Hurricane-ing my way into the place, when the guy on the left nodded brusquely and opened the door for us. I sent him my best death glare as I passed him; he didn't even twitch, dammit. I needed to be scarier!
Another Ninja bowed to us in greeting and led us around the mansion. Towards the back, behind a curtain bearing Kiri's symbol, was the Mizukage's office. It was a little like Pain's, except brighter and less death-y and shadowy. The color scheme of the whole Village was blue, I swear to Kami, including this place. Dark blues, light blues, those weird in between blues with a billion names no one bothers to remember. Blue. Everywhere.
Even Mei Terumi, sitting behind her desk, was dressed in the stuff. Now, I loved my hair color, but so much blue was really getting to me. I felt even edgier than usual, wanting to jump up and down like a deranged rabbit, I was so restless. I didn't do well with sad or depressing, as you might've guessed, and blue was easily the most depressing color ever. Even more than black, in my opinion.
"Greeting, Lady Mizukage." Hibiki Sensei bowed respectfully to the leader, and we followed suit, not wanting to piss her off. That would come later.
Mei looked up, a vibrant smile claiming her lips as she noticed us. "You've arrived a day early," she said, standing from her seat. "The ocean must have been calm."
"Very," Hibiki agreed. "We had a very favorable journey here."
I didn't know why, but even with the dull words and lack of obvious sexiness (apart from Sensei's normal self) I felt like they were flirting or something. Not like I knew anything about flirting, except from what I read in fanfiction. But still. Some weird shit was going on here.
"Allow me to introduce myself first. I am Mei Terumi, the Fifth Mizukage of Kirigakure," Mei said as she walked out from behind her desk to stand in front of us.
"I'm Hibiki Kudo, Jonin of the Sand. These are my three Genin, Scarlette, Arianna and Violet Hayes." Sensei pointed to each of us in turn, and Mei's smile grew.
"Sisters on the same team, hm? How interesting. Though you're all younger than I'd thought you'd be. The Sand must really be in a disarry after.... recent events."
I felt my hands clench involuntarily. My jaw clamped shut, my teeth grinding against one another. Was she trying to piss us off? She was obviously dissing the Sand right then! I wanted, more than anything, to snap out some retort, but Scarlette gently uncurled my fingers and stepped in front of me. "We're qualified Shinobi, despite our age, Lady Mizukage," she said calmly, her words strong and sure. "But we thank you for your concern over the state of our Village. I'm grateful to report that things are well and that we're recovering at a rapid rate." Her smile was brilliant and fierce, offering no sympathy to anyone who dared to challenge her.
I heard Mei chuckle. Chuckle, of all things. Damn her.
"You, Scarlette, have caught my interest. Sharper than your Sensei, are you?"
Hibiki only glowed with pride for my smarty-pants sibling. He didn't look the least bit peeved that she'd stolen his spotlight.
"Not at all," Scar responded, her voice soft yet commanding. "I'm merely a reflecting of Sensei's teachings."
That was total bull, since Sensei hadn't taught any etiquette or shit like that, but we weren't gonna tell Mei that any time soon.
Mei smiled. "Well, I'll keep that in mind." She gestured towards the door. "Shall I show you your rooms? You'll be staying in the mansion of course. But since I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow, and because it's already late, I suggest we have our meeting tomorrow."
And Sensei said we'd be late... Liar!
"That's a good plan," Hibiki smiled. We were all about to exit through the curtained-off doorway, when someone burst in, totally killing our awesome vibes.
But I was cool with it, cause the guy was Ao.
"Lady Mizukage, I was just informed that we have visitors--"
"A little late, Ao," Mei sighed, narrowing her eyes. "You really should have told me about this earlier. The guests made it here all on their own. Do you know how rude we must seem to them for not greeting them upon their arrival?"
"Uh..." I mumbled, frankly a little nervous to add any input. The air between these two crackled with tension. I'd forgotten how poorly they got along most of the time.... "We're really not upset about that...."
I was ignored, of course. Bastards!
"I'm sorry, Lady Mizukage." Ao looked anything but apologetic at this point. His one eye (the other was covered by a plain black eyepatch) was narrowed in obvious irritation. "It was all that damn Chojuro's fault, since it was his responsibility to--"
"Don't blame others for your mistakes, Ao," Mei cut in like a chainsaw. "It's unbecoming."
Even Hibiki was getting a little uncomfortable in the middle of this catfight.
"My mistakes?" Ao repeated, incredulous. "In my day, Ninja didn't hesitate to fulfill orders. They knew they didn't have time to waste, so they hurried up and did what they were meant to. People these days need to be pushed into hurrying along."
My mouth twitched into a smirk. Oh, I'd been waiting for something like this to happen.
The air around Mei grew chilling and murderous intent rolled off her in massive waves that nearly knocked the rest of us off our feet. Her face shadowed, she stepped forward towards Ao. "People shouldn't be rushed," she snapped, her tone as icy as the rest of her. "Just because a Ninja is nearly thirty years old doesn't mean she has to settle down. Thirty is above marrying age!"
Ao cringed, sweat dropping as he stepped back, trying to escape, noe doubt. "I-I didn't mention anything about marriage, Lady Mizukage--"
"Stop pressuring people, Ao!"
And she proceeded to beat Ao up, with us watching with varying reactions. Sensei was stunned into silence, Scar was muttering under her breath, face-palming to the extreme, Violet just giggled up a storm and I.... C'mon, guess. What d'ya think I was doing? Anything? Anything at all?
No?
Hehe.... I was being epic, of course. And I did this by laughing my ass of, pointing at the feuding Mist Ninja and shouting, "You show him, Lady Mizukage! Kick his middle-aged ass into next week!"
Needless to say, I enjoyed myself a lot. And I didn't have bring up the subject of marriage by myself, which saved me from possibly dying. So it was totally a win-win.
"Kick him in the family jewels, dammit!"
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