"My daughter has been kidnapped."

Enyo paced the room back and forth with his hands behind his back. Nagisa sat on her knees in the middle of the floor as the three male elders of the clan sat on cushions in the front. It was early in the morning, only a little after the fisherman would go out to sea. Nagisa remembered the previous night's events on a constant replay in her mind and absentmindedly dug her nails into the palms of her hands.

Enyo stopped moving directly in front of his oldest daughter and she could feel his burning gaze on her but she couldn't look up to see it. "Not only did you sneak your sister out past her curfew, but you also failed to protect her. It is your irresponsibility that caused all of this mess."

"Da-" The female finally looked up, only to be met with pure anger and disappointment. Clearing her throat from the pause, she tried to continue. "Chief Enyo, I-"

"And you dared to say you wanted to be clan head. How could you be so careless?"

Nagisa stayed silent while her father continued his rant and lecture. His words went in one ear and out the other as her only focus was on her sister. In the midst of danger, she couldn't even move. He was right that she failed to protect her, however it wasn't like she knew the infamous kidnapper was going to show up on their property. No outsiders had access to her family's shore and docks.

"I will interject here, Chief Enyo. The head family has been reduced, so now we need to focus on repopulating as soon as possible." One of the elders spoke.

"Repopulating? Mizuko isn't dead, so we need to focus on finding her first." Nagisa stood up from her spot on the floor. "That bird kidnapper thing carried her off. It didn't-"

"Nagisa, stand down." Enyo cut his daughter off curtly as the elders began to murmur amongst themselves. "I apologize for her rudeness."

The main elder started the conversation again, turning his attention to Nagisa. "The Land of Sea Daimyo has already contacted the necessary assistance. You will escort them to their living arrangements as their hostess and return to your duties for the clan."

"They should be arriving later on today so you need to finish the preparations." The last elder added. "This matter is now out of your hands."

Nagisa narrowed her eyes. "This is my little sister that we're talking about. I have every right to go out and look for her. Escorting the 'necessary assistance' is not my job!"

Suddenly, the violette found herself looking at the side wall and her cheek was stinging in pain. Dumbfounded, she held her cheek and turned her head to look at her father.

"Stop acting like a child and do as you're told. You will be a hostess and nothing more. Failing to follow the elders' instructions will result in further disciplinary action. Are we understood?"

"...Yes sir."

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Nagisa sat at the main pier of Saburo Island, her feet dangling over the clear blue waters as she looked out at the horizon. The 'necessary assistance' the elders were talking about were supposed to be arriving on the next boat. Apparently the Sea Daimyo had spoken to Kirigakure, so they were sending three shinobi to take care of the job. How this arrangement came to be, she didn't understand. It was common knowledge that Saburo Island didn't associate with killing machines.

"Miss Uchiumi! What a surprise to see you out here today." The older lady who had spoken to her yesterday appeared. "It's nice to see you not working for a change."

Nagisa chuckled softly as she leaned back into her palms. "Someone close to me said I needed to take a break from my routine."

"Well that person is very smart. At the rate you were going, you'd blink then look back and wonder where the time went." The woman laughed with her. "You're only young once so take the time to enjoy yourself. I'll be on my way now so you can relax."

Once she left, Nagisa frowned as she sat up. Unfortunately, relaxation was a luxury she couldn't afford. What was her sister doing right now? Was she in pain? Was she feeling sick again? The fact that she couldn't even set her eyes on her sister right now was unsettling enough. How could the elders and her father think that she would let this go without a fight?

A loud horn sounded in the distance and the violette focused on the ship that was starting to appear. Within the next thirty minutes, the large vessel had docked and the passengers started to vacate. Families reunited with their loved ones and sailors frequented the stands for souvenirs and food.

"This wasn't the vacation island I was picturing.. That son of a bitch lied to me."

"Well it's a good thing you're here for your job then, isn't it?"

Three men were the last to exit the ship, their Kirigakure hitai-ate gleaming in the sunlight. The first one who spoke was on the burly side with short dark brown hair and a full beard. The one who responded to him had a smaller muscular build and sported shoulder length blond hair that was tied back in a loose bun. They were all taller than her, but the tallest one who hadn't said anything donned spiky dark blue hair with bizarre pale blue skin to match.

At the sight of the shinobi, the residents of Saburo Island quickly began to disperse. Many whispered amongst themselves and side-eyed the newcomers whilst more bold individuals crossed their arms and directed irate glares in their direction. It was astonishing to witness how quickly such a friendly environment could grow so cold.

"Aren't we supposed to be meeting someone here?" The first man spoke again, blatantly ignoring the islanders.

As if on cue, Nagisa stepped towards the men and cleared her throat to get their attention. "Welcome to Saburo Island. On behalf of my home, we thank you in advance for your assistance. My name is Nagisa Uchiumi and I'll be your hostess during your stay."

"Now this is more like it! I thought this place was a bit lackluster, but I've finally seen the light." The man grinned and placed his arm around the female's shoulders. "Well Nagisa, I'm Shigeru Fukushima. Once I save your island, you becoming my wife will be more than enough payment for me."

Nagisa immediately moved out of his reach, biting her tongue before she could express her inner thoughts. "You can address me as Miss Uchiumi, thank you."

"Life is more tolerable when you ignore him." The second man piped up as he rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the welcome, Miss Uchiumi. My name is Hitoshi Wada."

Nagisa nodded before turning her attention to the last man. "And you are?"

"My name is Kisame Hoshigaki. Thank you for your hospitality."

"Alright then, you can follow me. The residence you'll be staying at is on the other side of the island. We'll be going there on foot."

Shigeru frowned. "You're not serious, are you, princess? We couldn't be stationed anywhere closer?"

"You're welcome to sleep on the docks if that's what you prefer." Nagisa turned to look at the man with a sweet smile. "And, once again, you can address me as Miss Uchiumi."

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"Thank you again for coming to Saburo Island. If you need any additional assistance, please send word and I will do my best to accommodate." The Sea Daimyo bowed his head with respect before beginning to leave. "I've already notified the Mizukage of your arrival. Please let me know as soon as the problem has been eradicated."

The three Kirigakure nin sat in the head house of the Uchiumi clan. They'd just finished meeting with the daimyo as well as the clan head and elders, who debriefed them of the issue that was going on. To them, the problem was very cut and dry. Stake out the land, kill the culprit, and leave out. The only hole in the operation was that they had to track down the missing individuals too.

"Miss Uchiumi will take you to your lodging from here." Enyo nodded to the men as he and the elders still had business to discuss. The sliding door to the room opened and Nagisa stood patiently as the shinobi walked out. As soon as they had exited the room, she closed the door, not bothering to acknowledge the other men in the room.

Nagisa led the group to her clan's guest home, which was closer to the shoreline. There were enough bedrooms for each of the men to have their own, along with the basic necessities. The modest dwelling was obviously not up to Shigeru's standards as he upturned his nose at the rural aesthetic, but nonetheless, he immediately went off to figure out which bedroom was the largest.

"If you need anything, you can use this wireless radio or come to the main house. My room is the furthest on the left." She reported before turning to leave.

Hitoshi raised an eyebrow. "You live in the clan head's house as a hostess?"

"Why wouldn't I? I'm Chief Enyo's daughter."

"Oh… That's cool..." He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed, but she wasn't phased. It wasn't like he was supposed to know that off-hand; the information wasn't advertised.

Nagisa looked between the three males once Shigeru came back. "I'll be back tomorrow to tell you everything I know. Have a good night." With that, she left to sneak into her room before her father could catch her and try to talk to her.

Shigeru whistled lowly. "Getting to live next to a hottie like that? Sometimes this job does come with perks."

"We're not supposed to succeed together. We have our own mission inside the mission." Kisame looked out the window at the calm sea waters. "Whoever eliminates the problem first gets the reward."

"Wouldn't it be easier if we gather information together then go our separate ways?" Hitoshi suggested. "Personally, what you do with the information is none of my concern but it saves unnecessary hassle."

Shigeru let out a scornful laugh. "In case you didn't notice, the townspeople aren't too keen on new people roaming around. Especially nosy shinobi from the Bloody Mist like us."

Kisame looked back at the two shinobi. "It'd be better for you if we didn't become close." Walking past them, he headed upstairs to go to bed for the night.