Kamishirasawa Keine's position in the village was a rather unusual one.

Compared to the other cast of characters that lived in Gensokyo, she wasn't as old. Here in Gensokyo, one's species decided how long one would live. In general, Youkai live longer than humans while most humans could barely live up to a century. Her circumstances landed her in a unique spot. Being half-human half Youkai, she could expect herself to live life alongside other non-humans. So, yes, she had the firsthand experience of watching the people she grew up with grow old and eventually perish. It was hard at first, but… she got used to it, she supposed. Due to having lived alongside the humans in the village for a long time, the people here trusted her regardless of her hybrid status. They had even go as far as consider her the village's official guardian.

The were-Hakutaku strolled through one of the many streets in the village with people greeting her upon recognizing her. It wasn't hard. Between her style of clothing, hair color, and… distinct choice of headwear, people could easily spot her at first glance. She didn't mind the attention. Not at all.

Currently, she was making her way to the village chief's residence. A message arrived at her school bearing news of her summoning. It was not strange for her presence to be requested, as the Chief's residence doubled as the village's Administration Office. Although calling it an office would be inaccurate, as its main function was the Chief's – and their family's – place of dwelling and a gathering spot for certain people if need be. What's strange, however, was the manner in which she received said message in the first place.

"Um… Hawk-san, are you sure that you have the right person?" Perhaps the reason why people had been staring at her wasn't for the fact that she's a rather famous figure within the village. Perhaps it's due to the fact that she had a hawk perched on her hat. It might not be a big hawk, but the added weight was making things awkward and heavy up there.

The avian creature let out several sharp squawks as if it had understood Keine's question. Its head tilted in a manner that most birds were known to do, as its literal hawk-eyes stared at the owner of the hat it was currently perched on top of. Keine sighed. She could take the bird off her hat, but that would risk it scratch and possibly peck her. The distance between her school and the village's Administration Office was a short one… by flight, at least. She would fly if she could, but the village had a strict No-Flying restriction ever since some Youkais and some humans got too rowdy and started a Danmaku battle causing significant property damages. If she decided to fly anyway, it'd set a bad example to the locals here.

Thankfully, aside from the constant stares here and there, the walk wasn't unbearable. The bird was well behaved and she got used to it being perched on top of her hat rather quickly, and the Administration Office was not that far from where she's at right now. Eventually, she reached her destination. Again, like she said, it was more like a private residence rather than a dedicated office building. There were two guards stationed in front of the gates leading to the property, two of which she knew very well. In fact, it didn't take long for one of them to recognize her. They were dressed in guardsmen uniform which consisted of a kimono, a pair of trousers, armguards and shin guards, a straw hat, and were also armed with spears. They also had additional accessories worn to help them cope better with the cold temperature. These two men were guardsmen under the village's employment and their main job is to patrol the village and keep the peace if it's necessary.

"Keine-sensei!" One of the guards greeted the woman in the title everyone knew her as.

Her other duty in the village was the teaching of Gensokyo's history, although history was not all she's teaching. It was a struggle managing a school and teaching at the same time, but she was sure that the effort put through educating the children would have a long-lasting benefit to the village in the long run. The school building itself was a fairly recent addition, but she'd been called Keine-sensei for as long as she could remember it. The guards who greeted her were her former students, and so were a high majority of adults in the village. Great, now she's self-conscious about her age…

"Tadano-kun. Hirano-kun." Keine greeted the two men. It might seem weird to refer to them as such considering that they were both grown men, but it wasn't strange at all for her since she'd known them ever since they were little. Students of her, in fact; and it's not like they really mind it. Quickly, both of their gazes landed on the bird still perched on top of her hat, but it seemed that it wasn't the strangest thing they'd seen considering that they didn't bring it up in conversation.

"Sensei, the Chief's inside to see you at the usual spot." Tadano, the shorter of the two, told the woman. "And, um, there are also other guests inside."

Now that's interesting. "Do you know who?" Keine asked the guard. But, from the way he was looking at her, it seemed that he too was uncertain.

"One of them's the Hakurei shrine maiden and two other men," Hirano told her. "As for the two men… we've never seen them. But from the way they're dressed, they're outsiders I reckoned."

Outsiders? Well her day had just gotten even more interesting. An Outsider was a term used to refer to people from the outside world who found themselves in Gensokyo. There were cases of people from the outside world wandering into Gensokyo, most commonly hikers or people who got lost, but it's something of a rare occurrence. When it came to dealing with outsiders, the common course of action was to guide them into the Human Village where it's safe. From that point on, they're free to decide whether or not they'd rather stay or leave. If it's the former, then they'd be directed here to the Administration Office. If it's the latter, they'd be guided to the Hakurei Shrine where the shrine maiden who worked there would see to their return to the world outside.

So, naturally, having both a group of outsiders and the Hakurei shrine maiden in any other place than the Hakurei Shrine was a bit of a head-scratcher.

Keine was allowed into the building. The traditional design was reminiscent of the ones found everywhere else in the village, so it's nothing to write home about. She made her way to the usual place where she would meet with the Chief, which actually happened to be the backyard. Normally, one would meet in the living room or an – pardon the pun – office, but the Chief had told her on many occasions that they found it suffocating to be coped up in a small space. While she agreed that it could get rather suffocating having to spend the majority of one's time in a closed-off space, it had led to people eavesdropping on conversations a few times in the past.

"…and like I told you before, it's just not possible."

"Argh… see it from our perspective, shrine maiden-san. Normally, we'd be glad to accept these two fine gentlemen into our village here. But due to certain circumstances, the people had been on edge and the presence of two outsiders would only further exacerbate things."

Two people were currently locked in an argument. One of them was a rather young girl dressed in red and white, carrying a prayer rod with white paper talismans tied on one end of it, while the other one was an older woman – not by much – dressed in a rather fancy set of clothes. These were the Hakurei shrine maiden and the village chief respectively, and currently, it seemed that they were in the middle of a discussion that was beginning to turn sour. Keine didn't have time to properly observe the two strangers standing next to the shrine maiden, as she was called upon as soon as they noticed her.

"Ah, Keine-sensei!" The village Chief greeted her in a raised voice, her gentle almond-shaped eyes appeared to be strained; indicative of someone who had been holding herself back for a while. Keine's eyes wandered off to the shrine maiden next, finding her with her arms crossed and a look of complete indifference on her face. She sighed, knowing what most likely had happened.

"Chief-san," Keine greeted her former student, "Hakurei no miko-san," she also greeted the shrine maiden. The village Chief looked happy that she was here as if a great burden had been lifted off her shoulders, while the shrine maiden showed no sign or whatsoever. "What seems to be the problem here?"

"It's…" The village Chief struggled to fully explain herself as if her tongue had gotten tied like a ribbon. "I think it will only be appropriate if we discuss this inside."

"So, let's start from the beginning if you two gentlemen wouldn't mind…"

They were now properly situated in the guestroom where discussions like the one they were about to have were normally held. It seemed that the situation was more serious than she thought if the Chief was so concerned about privacy and had to relocate them here. They occupied the tatami mat-lined floor, sitting in their position of choice. As the host and owner of the place, the Chief was seated dogeza style. Keine did the same, and the shrine maiden too. The two men, however, had different ways of settling down; especially the blonde one as he had his legs crossed, while the one with the black hair – and owner of the hawk shikigami – was not seated at all, preferring to lean on the while with his arms crossed.

It seemed that the blonde one was the designated speaker of the two, seeing as he was ready about to speak. "Very well," the man started in a deep, controlled voice. "Allow us to introduce ourselves first. I am Uzumaki Naruto, a Sennin by species and profession. The man with me is my best friend and fellow Sennin, Uchiha Sasuke. Pardon him, but he doesn't speak much, so I'll be the one who does most of the talking."

"I am Kamishirasawa Keine, protector of the village and a teacher at the local school." Keine played curtesy and introduced herself as well. Seeing as the Chief and the shrine maiden had been introduced to them before, they didn't bother introducing themselves again. "Now, if you don't mind, would you kindly begin telling us as to how you've landed yourself in Gensokyo?"

A smile formed on the blonde man's – Uzumaki Naruto-san's – face. A friendly smile, one completely devoid of ill intent and thoughts. She'd even go as far as to say that it was a kind one. "We're looking for a place to call home, you see. Our old one was… a great place, don't get us wrong, but we felt like we're no longer needed there." Ah, that made sense. She thought that it might've been a case of being spirited away, considering that Outsiders were involved. But, as it turned out, these two men were actually Sennin – Sages by species – and were in search of a new home.

Keine was still confused, however. "Then, what are you doing with the Hakurei shrine maiden?" She thought it was appropriate to ask that question, seeing as it's probably the strangest thing that she'd been observing.

"They appeared right in front of my shrine while I was in the middle of my lunch." The shrine maiden cut inserted herself into the conversation. She had taken a few small sips from the mug of tea that had been served for them, but somehow managing to still look rigid and stiff. "You-know-who dropped them off at my place and I decided to bring them here since they asked for the nearest human settlement."

"I… see," Keine responded, taken aback by the information. She had not thought that a certain gap Youkai was involved.

"And regarding you-know-who," The shrine maiden spoke up once again, "it seems that they're acquaintances."

"Oh?"

"Yes," Naruto confirmed, catching on the double-speak. "We're, uh, acquainted with our mutual friend. Rather, they're the ones who introduced us to Gensokyo. Our benefactor, essentially." He settled for the term, seeing as it's probably the most accurate one he could think of.

Maybe it's because of the rush of information she'd been receiving, but her head was starting to hurt a little. Keine had lived long enough to know that nothing good ever came out with the gap Youkai involved. Although she knew that the gap Youkai would be the last person on Gensokyo to be plotting of its demise, it might as well be that way with the number of headaches she often caused people. But, from what little she'd learned from the conversation, the problem was not exactly on their end, but rather the village.

"Then, what is the problem?"

"It's regarding the recent protests, Keine-sensei." The village Chief briefly answered. "Things are already restless with the usual group of Youkai wandering about, think about what would happen if two new Outsiders suddenly appear?"

Suddenly, things started to make sense. The Hakurei shrine maiden, who appeared to have finished her tea, spoke up, "I don't think two outsiders appearing in the village is that big of a deal? Granted, they're not exactly humans…"

"Normally, I'd agree with you Shrine Maiden-san," the Chief sighed, "but with how vocal some groups have been getting lately, I think it's in everyone's best interest to limit the number of non-humans to a minimum; if not for the sake of maintaining peace for the time being."

"This… group you're referring to, it's 'them' isn't it?" Where her face showed nothing but indifference before, it now displayed an avatar of disgust and restrained frustration. It was clear as day that whoever 'them' was, they weren't held in a favorable manner by the shrine maiden. "If it weren't for the fact that I'm not exactly allowed to lay my hands on the regular folks here… ah, forget it, it's not my problem until becomes one." The shrine maiden let out a grunt that conveyed her irritation in an unlady-like manner. "Let's just hope it doesn't come to that, right Chief?"

"Certainly." A resolute nod and a firm response of confirmation were given by the village Chief. It seemed that whatever was going on in the village, it's on the brink of escalating further.

"I guess the village's no good," the shrine maiden then continued, "I can't exactly house you both at the shrine."

"I think I have an idea."

Everyone looked to Keine. She had a smile on her face, and she looked like she's sure of whatever idea she had just come up with.

The school teacher turned to the two men. "It's not going to be the safest place to stay at, but I have the feeling that the both of you can handle yourselves just fine." She received a nod from Naruto and a blank but intense stare from Sasuke, the latter of which unnerved her. "A-Anyway, you have been briefed about the way we handle conflicts here in Gensokyo, have you not?"

"Hm?" Naruto tilted his head sideways, his eyes blinking owlishly.

"…" Sasuke diverted his gaze away, retreating further into his own inner world.

"..." The Hakurei shrine maiden also looked away, but for a whole different reason.

Keine sighed, a look of disappointment crossed her face. She turned to face the shrine maiden, who was trying her best to find the ceiling interesting. "…please straighten yourself and do your duties properly, Hakurei no Miko-san."

Whistling an innocent tune, the red-white shrine maiden had no words to say.

It's interesting that [仙人]sennin (the species) is translated differently in Naruto and Touhou. In Touhou, it is translated as Hermit, while in Naruto it's translated as Sage. They mean the same thing, but the usage is different between the two franchises. Furthermore, Sage [賢者] as a title is pronounced as kenja which translates to Sage or a Wise Man. So, it's prudent to note that whenever Naruto or Sasuke introduced themselves, there's a high chance that they're referring to their new species. Although in Naruto's case, it could be confusing as he was a legitimate Sage (the title) during his time as a human.

Oh well, I'll worry about this later.

Trivia: This chapter was meant to be published along with chapter one, but I decided to cut it in half since I want to avoid having a chapter exceeding the 5-6K words mark.