When Rain Falls: Chapter 11 – Things Return to Normal: An Arranged Marriage?!
Disclaimer: Everything, other than my own characters, belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
Kotone's legs felt like wet noodles as she moved toward the Hokage Tower. Her training was going far better after her ankle healed, but Toko had upped the amount of squats after she did 100 on each leg consecutively. Now she had to hold a squat on one leg for a longer time period, much like Takumi's training. However, the results were already starting to show.
"Kotone-chan!" Kaori waved from her spot with Toko and Takumi. Kotone waved back to her friends as she moved to stand near them. They all watched as the new Hokage, a busty blonde named Tsunade, accepted her position and proclaimed that she would protect the village. Kotone had bumped into the woman already because of her family's newer standing in the village. She had personally dropped by the store to see why the Third Hokage made such a bold move in accepting their request. Apparenty she was satisfied after meeting the young trio who made up Team Toko, as Naruto had recently dubbed them.
She had also healed Kotone's ankle to perfection, her mother and sensei had missed a small crack in the bone that had caused her pain in her increased training regime. Kotone was impressed by the woman and considered her a wise choice for the Hokage given her knowledge of healing jutsu and her stature as on the three legendary sannin. Though Kotone was surprised that the white haired man Naruto left with was also a legendary sannin and an old friend of Tsunade.
"Amazing! A female Hokage! She's the first, right Takumi-san?" Kaori asked, her eyes sparkling with inspiration.
Takumi nodded and was impressed with her knowledge of Konoha's history. "She's the granddaughter of the First Hokage. Her knowledge of medical ninjutsu is unrivaled and she's also impressive in combat. It's because of her that four man teams are required to have a shinobi with healing talents."
"Wow! I wonder if I could learn healing ninjutsu?" Kaori pondered the idea sincerely, though Kotone, Takumi, and Toko all agreed instantly that it was impossible. Her explosive delivery of chakra would do more damage than good.
Though it did occur to Toko that if her team wanted to continue to work together one of them would need to learn healing ninjutsu. Now that they had all strengthened the basics they were missing, and would likely continue to in their off time, they could resume training their stronger abilities to feel and see the differences. She could see either of her remaining students train in healing, though she favored one for the task over the other.
"Oi. Training time, let's go!" Toko called out. Her students all cringed at the thought of what awaited them, though they were pleasantly surprised when she ended up taking them out for lunch at the BBQ house Kaori and Kotone had been to once before.
The following day, Kotone and Kaori were walking around while Toko and Takumi went to collect the scroll for their first mission when they bumped into Naruto's team discussing something in a side street.
"Eh? Naruto-kun?" Kaori asked in a hesitant greeting.
"Oh! Kaori-chan! Kotone-chan!" Naruto waved to them, though the two remained cautious. "Hey! Hey! Kotone-chan! How hard is it for people to notice your wires?!"
"Eh? My wires?" Kotone held up her gauntlet after pulling up the sleeve, "Pretty hard. A high level shinobi would probably notice my chakra first, but a single wire would go unnoticed by most I guess. I've never really tried it."
Naruto and the gang looked at each other before nodding. "Help us!"
Kotone and Kaori felt like they had chosen to greet the trio on the wrong day. They felt less tense after Naruto explained the situation to them, though they were still confused.
"Wait, you mean you've never seen his face? I knew he wore the mask a lot, but always?" Kotone raised an eyebrow in disbelief.
Kaori nodded, agreeing with her teammate, "He has to take it off to eat, right?"
"We tried that already, but stupid Ino-pig got in the way," Sakura growled at the memory of their team just blocking the view entirely.
"When you asked me about the wires, I didn't think you meant someone like Kakashi-sensei. Toko-sensei is one of the only people I've met that can detect my wire fields without being able to see them. I imagine it wouldn't be much different with Kakashi. He seems like he's pretty strong, right Kaori?"
"Un! Him and Toko-sensei would likely be of the same level based on their chakra levels. Both are also considered 'copy-cat' shinobi!"
"Really? You've been doing your research lately, Kaori!"
"Takumi makes me when we're not training."
Kotone let out an 'ah' sound, knowing Takumi was trying to influence their young teammate to be smarter and more like him.
"Aww, so it won't work?" Sakura asked, her face turning to a pout.
Kotone sighed and rubbed the back of her head, "I mean, I could try, but I don't promise anything."
When they practically pushed Kotone into his path, the white haired girl realized it was a poor decision to try and trick Kakashi. However they all had such cute pouts on their faces, except for Sasuke. If only she had looked to him to resist her urge to help those younger than her.
"Oh! Kakashi-sensei!" Kotone called out when he neared her.
"Eh? Kotone?" He looked up from his book.
"Can you help me with something? Toko-sensei went to the Hokage's office to get our next mission, but I wanted to show her a new way to use my wires. Can I get your opinion?"
"You want my opinion?"
"Well you're the first sensei I've bumped into. I would've taken any high level shinobi's opinion. If you don't want to, that's fine! I'll just go find Gai or Asuma instead!" Kotone turned to leave though Kakashi sighed and stopped her.
She started to manipulate a single wire toward his face when Kakashi let out an knowing sound.
"Using a single wire to ensure subtlety. I'm not sure when it will be useful, but it is hard to notice your chakra," he observed, though his visible eye said he knew.
Kotone averted her gaze, a twitching grin on her face, "Is that so? Well I'll just have to practice I guess."
He waved as he walked off and Kotone let out a deep sigh as she shrugged to where Naruto's team was hiding. Takumi found them shortly after her failed attempt.
"Kaori! Kotone! We have a mission! Let's go!"
"Sorry Naruto! Looks like we're out of time to help out! Maybe next time!" Kotone said before leaping across the rooftops to follow Takumi, Kaori fast behind her.
"So we're going to escort a noble's daughter back to Konoha?" Kotone asked once they were out of the village.
"That's what it says. She's from a nearby land and has business in the village regarding an arranged marriage. It's considered a C-Rank if we safely escort her. It's worth a decent amount though," Toko explained casually as they retained a running pace.
"How long will this one take?" Kaori asked curiously.
"Likely a few days. The land we're going to is pretty close, but with a civilian in our company on the way back it will take one day to get there and two days to get back. Three days I'm assuming. That's without trouble," Takumi detailed.
Takumi was right that the trip there was easy, but the trip back made Kotone hate children with privilege.
"Patience, Kotone-chan," Kaori whispered when her teammate broke the stick after she ate her dango. The woman they were escorting had required three breaks already. They enjoyed a lavish meal courtesy of her father in gratitude for their acceptance of the mission. But this was crossing a few lines with Kotone.
"Can't we find a nice inn somewhere! I'm tired!" The young woman called out. Her voice wasn't unpleasant to the ear, just annoying after how many complaints she had.
Toko glanced to her while sipping her tea. She put the cup down and shook her head. "No. We need to get halfway at least if you're to make the meeting on time."
"I told my father I didn't want to go through with this! He's had me attend ten marriage meetings in the last two months! All of them were ugly old men! I refuse!"
"That's not my business. My business is making sure you get to Konoha unharmed. Though if you complain anymore I might consider letting a bandit take you away."
Kotone, Kaori, and Takumi jolted at the light threat from their sensei. It was pitiable, being forced to endure arranged marriage meetings with men she had no interest in, but it wasn't their fault. Clearly her father wanted a lifestyle for her that she was opposed to.
Kotone sighed when the girl started to cry over the threat. Her complaints grew and she started to throw food at Toko.
"Oi! If you don't like this next one you should talk to your father. If he won't drop the marriage thing, then ask him to let you pick some of the men. That way you at least get to see a picture first. But you might like the next guy, you don't know."
"You don't understand! I don't get to choose anything!"
"My mother teases me about liking boys, but she's from a family that had a tradition of arranged marriages. She broke the rules when she married my father, but she's considering it for me. I don't know how you feel right now, no, but I also know that if you father loves you, he will want what's best for you. Maybe he's sending you so far this time because he found a better guy."
The woman sniffled, her long black hair danced as a breeze passed through. Toko chuckled at Kotone's personal admittance that her mother was likely going to try to decide her marriage when she was of age. However she agreed with Kotone in that her family would consider her opinion. The woman they were escorting clearly had a loving father, but they had bad communication.
"I agree. Based on what my teammates have said, the men of Konoha are more attractive than our original village," Takumi reassured with a devious smile.
"Really?" The girl hiccuped.
Kaori nodded, "It's true! Though Toko-sensei could speak for the older men better!"
The other two teammates nearly burst into laughter at Kaori's phrasing. All she had meant was men older than they were, but it sounded like Toko was far older than she looked.
"Hmm. There are some attractive men in Konoha. I don't know about any noble's sons or whatnot, but the shinobi are pretty handsome," she admitted with a smirk. Clearly Toko hadn't wasted any time in admiring her new allies. A thought that caused Takumi and Kotone to grin considering their sensei had the worst luck with men. She was strong and witty, but her brain was the most frightening part about her. Her memory was endless and she only had to see something once in order to memorize it. Whenever she had gone on a date or saw the guy's house she would recall in terrifying detail what she enjoyed.
The woman nodded, though she still seemed uncertain. It was comforting that there were likely better options for her in Konoha, but she took solace in the advice about talking to her father if it didn't go well.
"Oi, oi! Kotone-chan," Kaori waved her over when they resumed their trek back. They needed to hit the halfway point before nightfall, but they were already running behind.
"Eh? What is it Kaori?"
"Is it true Hotaru-sama is going to try to arrange a marriage for you?"
"Ah. It's possible. She saw me talk to Neji the other day when him and Tenten visited the shop. She was pretty quick to try and see if I liked him. I know she just wants me to be happy, but she'd never force me into anything!"
"Really? Neji-san?"
"Eh? That's the honorific you use for him? Everyone else get's a less formal one usually. Other than Takumi, that is!"
"He's from a pretty prestigious clan so I assumed he'd be used to formalities. Am I wrong?"
Kotone thought back to how Neji reacted when she called him without an honorific. "You might be right, Kaori. I'm just casual with everyone except parents!"
"That's right. You are really respectful around parents or other adults aren't you?" Takumi asked as he recalled how polite she had been around his mother despite her disdain for shinobi with bloodline limits. The hate for those born to clans ran deep in his mother's mind. So much so that she still didn't like Kotone despite her constant respectful behavior.
"It's how my parents raised me. I treat friends like friends and people worth respect with respect. If I thought a parent or adult wasn't worth respect I would probably be less polite."
They reached the inn shortly after nightfall due to the delays by their esteemed guest. She apologized and offered to pay for the stay as well as the use of the bathhouse. Toko glanced at her team before agreeing. They hadn't been treated to something like that in a while.
"Sorry, Takumi. You'll be on your own for a while," Toko said as they all departed their rented rooms for the bath.
He shrugged and smiled wider than normal, "I could use the time alone to relax finally. I'm surrounded by you three constantly so a break will be nice."
Kotone stuck out her tongue at Takumi as he turned to enter the men's side of the bath while they entered the women's side.
Wrapping towels around themselves they entered the bath and relaxed. Kotone let her hair out of its usual braid and it was afloat in the water around her. She leaned back against the stones and let out a happy sigh at the feeling of her legs relaxing.
Kaori glanced between her and her friend's figure with a pout, opting to duck her mouth under the water to hide her frustration. Though her envy didn't go unnoticed by her sensei or their guest.
"You're still young, Kaori," Toko teased with a grin, though her own figure wasn't too shapely. Her rigorous training left little to no fat on her body. Instead she was slender with a flatter chest, but Toko never saw that as an issue given her indifference to the opinions of others about appearance. She kept her hair in a short but flared out bob and her figure wasn't curvy, but she wore figure hugging clothes to accentuate what she had.
Kaori blew bubble in frustration, still noticing that Kotone's towel hugged her firmly. The guest giggled at the envy despite the three years Kotone had on Kaori. She could remember being like Kaori and envying every older woman she saw who had a slight figure. Though Kotone wasn't particularly large in any area, she had enough to draw some attention.
"So what will you do if you don't like your next meeting?" Kotone asked after a few minutes of silence.
"Hmm. I'll likely stay in Konoha to discuss political matters with the heads of state before I request and escort back to my father. Regardless of whether or not it goes well I will have to return home at some point. Though I imagine if I send my father a letter saying I like this one, he'd come right over with his full guard to meet the man himself. I'm still not comfortable with the idea of getting married."
"Un. That's reasonable," Toko responded. "It's a commitment of a lifetime. It's even harder to maintain when you don't get to properly know your spouse beforehand. But it's how you approach it that matters. Like Kotone said earlier, her mother might try to arrange her marriage one day, but that's something she'll deal with then. Take it as it comes and you'll be alright."
"Wow! Toko-sensei, you really gave some reasonable advice. No angry yelling or orders for just handling it. You were calm too!" Kotone grinned and tilted her head to dodge the wet towel her sensei had flung at her.
"It's true though, Toko-sensei! That was very reasurring!" Kaori agreed, finally moving beyond her envy.
"You're my students. She's a guest. I'm not going to treat her like you three unless she does something stupid."
"I guess that's fair," Kaori conceded. Kotone simply went back to relaxing while Toko and the guest got out for the night. Kaori dawdled closer to Kotone when other women came into the bath. It wasn't long before the two young girls got out of the water and ready for bed.
After everyone ate and went to bed, the guest of the evening started to gather her things. It wasn't until she got to the hallway that she realized she was caught.
"I had a feeling you'd try to run out in the night," Toko sighed and moved her cool gaze toward the other woman, her pine toned eyed catching the moonlight in a dangerous glare.
"I didn't want anyone else involved, but I can't make it to Konoha. If I get all the way there the man I love will abandon me! We agreed to meet tonight near this inn, that's why I delayed so long –"
"So that we wouldn't get to any other establishment down the road. Listen, I figured when you conceded to the advice a 15 year old gave you without any resistance that something was off. If you run off do you know what will happen?"
"Yes! I'll be free from a life I don't have any control over!"
"Wrong! You'll get my students in trouble back in Konoha. We're originally from Ame, but thanks to the Hokage and the Council, we were allowed better lives. If I let you run out on this mission we will be marked for our inability to serve the village. Suspicions will grow regarding my students. Your father will personally try to mark us for losing his beloved daughter. If you leave, you're letting everyone else take the fall for your selfishness."
The woman cringed, her bangs dipping past her eyes as she glanced back to the door where the others were sleeping.
"I thought you weren't going to treat me like your students," she reminded Toko.
Toko smirked, "Unless you did something stupid. This is stupid. So you have a man you care for, then you should have told your father in the first place. He loves you and likely would've at least met him. But this man won't wait forever I imagine. You have to make a choice tonight."
The woman straightened and walked past Toko, ignoring the dark stare she had fixated on her. She broke out into a job when she got outside.
Toko remained awake for the rest of the night, waiting for her team to awaken. It wasn't until the door opened, however, that she realized she had made the right choice in allowing their guest to choose.
"I'm sorry!" she said between pants. She was dripping with sweat and had to put her hands on her knees in order to catch her breath, but she was there.
"What about your friend?" Toko asked, trying to be discreet in case her students were waking up.
The woman caught on and lowered her voice, "I told him that I needed to follow through this time. And if he respected me, he would've gone to my father to request my hand. He left after that without another word."
Toko nodded, "Let us hope Konoha has something better to offer. For your sake."
The trio of students opened the screen that separated their portion of the room, grogginess flooding their eyes. Kotone yawned before asking about the guest's apparel to which both the adults just shrugged. They both ignored any further questions.
The rest of the trip went without issue other than some extra complaints from the daughter of the noble to draw Kotone into an argument. They stopped just inside the gates of the village to part ways with their charge.
"Kotone, Kaori, Takumi. Thank you for escorting me. I appreciate the risks you shinobi take when it comes to nobles and civilians. I wish you the best of luck with your training and advancements," the woman bowed, her elegant robes having been donned again for her meeting.
Toko nodded and turned to leave, "I have to make sure she gets to the Hokage Tower, but you three can have the rest of the day off."
"Okay!" Kotone and Kaori cheered while Takumi just smiled.
"Should we get something to eat?" Takumi suggested before walking into town. His female teammates followed after him quickly.
AN: So this ended up being a little filler like, but I realized Toko hadn't said or done much other than in the training scenes. I wanted people to get the feel for her like people got a feel for Kakashi originally, it took a bit of time to get to know ever aspect of him. A lot of it without his team present and that's definitely part of Toko's personality, she doesn't act entirely true to her nature around her students so it was fun to get to show a tiny portion of it. It should get exciting next time! Looking at a touch of a jump in time to avoid more filler, but an interesting arc is on its way!