"I'm telling you, I need to speak to Senju Tobirama or Uchiha Izuna! They'll know who I am!"
"Listen, we don't have time to deal with you, just go back to wherever you came from."
"I have to speak to them! Aroka left with them, they must have come here! Please just let me in, I need to make sure she's ok!"
The guard sighed, begrudgingly signaling for his counterpart to find one of the leaders. Sometimes he wondered if this job was worth it.
Tobirama, having been informed of the two outsiders asking for him at the gate, suspiciously headed for the entrance to see what was going on.
As the two in question came into view, he saw that one of them was a plain, older man in shinobi attire, on guard and unmoving. The other, however, was a much more familiar face; a brown haired woman pacing back and forth, mumbling something to herself and seeming quite nervous. She glanced up and spotted him, ceasing her steps and waving excitedly.
"Senju-sama! Thank goodness you're here! Is Aroka with you? Is she alright?" her eyes wide with concern.
"She's fine. Why are you here?"
"You all left without a word! I'm supposed to be with Aroka whenever possible, I was scared half to death when I found out she was gone! Please let me see her!"
Tobirama glanced at the man next to her questioningly.
Noticing this, Mila was quick to explain how he, Omasu, was a shinobi from their clan and had come along to make sure she got there in one piece.
Tobirama examined him briefly before motioning for them both to follow him. The guards opened the gates, allowing the two Imada clansmen into Konoha.
He lead them through the unfamiliar streets, already busy despite the sun having risen not an hour ago, and soon arrived at the Senju compound. Passing through a number of halls, he stopped in front of a door identical to all the rest. Cautiously, Mila turned the handle and pushed the door open. Opposite of them lay Aroka, sound asleep, though she wouldn't be for long as Mila dashed across the room and shook her frantically.
"What? What's happening?" she glanced around groggily, blinking a few times. "Mila? What are you d-" She was cut off by a tight hug.
"How could you leave without telling me? I was worried sick!"
"O-Oh, I'm sorry, I asked Toru to tell you. I thought you might like a break."
"How was I supposed to enjoy a break when I thought you could be in danger?!"
"I wasn't in any danger, I'm fine, see?"
Mila frowned, standing up and storming out of the room.
"Hey! Wait!" Aroka stumbled out of bed and ran after her. She hesitated as she passed by the doorway, glancing at the man who had accompanied her friend before scrambling off.
Aroka followed her to a garden, reflexively retracting her chakra as she entered. Unfortunately, that meant she could no longer see where she was going, with only Mila's line as a general guide.
"Mila?" she called out, one arm outstretched in an attempt to avoid crashing into anything. "Please don't be upset with me! I'm sorry, I should have told you, I didn't mean to make you worry!"
She listened for a reply but there was none. Frowning in concern, she was about to call out again when she felt a tug on her arm, pulling her back a few steps.
"You were about to walk into a pond, you know." Mila huffed, a hand on her hip.
"Hey, I'm sorry for not telling you sooner, please don't be upset," she pleaded, hands clasping her friend's.
Mila huffed, "Just because you can see the future doesn't mean everyone else can too. Next time you'd better tell me before running off with your Prince Charming again."
"Hey! What are you talking about?"
She chuckled, shaking her head, "I didn't say anything!"
Aroka pouted indignantly before linking her arm with the brunette's. "I'm glad you're here, Mila. The village is great, you're going to love it."
"I'd better, it took us forever to get here, I've never been so sore," she laughed, rubbing her shoulders.
Aroka's smile faltered for a moment and her eyes focused on something unseen. "Why did he come with you?"
"He volunteered. You know I never would have asked him."
"Was there no one else around?"
"I was focused on chasing after you, I didn't want to waste time tracking down another shinobi and convincing them to help me."
Aroka's lips pressed into a thin line. "Forget it, how about we go take a look at the street markets? See if we can find anything interesting!" she offered a slight smile, tugging her out of the garden.
Knock knock
"Come in!" Hashirama called, leaning back in his chair.
Tobirama stepped into the spacious office, shutting the door behind him.
"Tobirama! How timely, I was just about to send for you."
"What for?" he took a seat in front of the desk, noting the troubled look on his brothers face.
"News from our scouts. They've noticed unusual activity in the surrounding forest these past few days."
"What kind of activity?"
"There were some reports of faint chakra trails, too weak to follow but apparently belonging to the same group as before. But that's not the interesting part. They've also found dozens of tiny holes in the ground with an unknown white substance coating the walls. They all form little twisting tunnels underground, seemingly in random directions."
Tobirama paused in thought, "Could they be insect burrows?"
"If they are we've never seen them before. It might be nothing but I'm having some people look into it just in case."
"I'll see if Aroka knows anything about it. As for the chakra trails, I'll join the patrol tonight and see if I can trace them."
Hashirama nodded approvingly before suddenly seeming to recall something.
"I almost forgot, you came looking for me. Did you need something?"
The younger Senju shook his head, "Just some news you might want to know. Mila and an Imada shinobi came looking for Aroka this morning."
"What?" Hashirama blinked incredulously, "You mean they're here?"
Tobirama nodded, "They only came to ensure she was safe, I don't expect them to cause any trouble."
"Are they still at the compound? I should go welcome th-"
"You have work to do."
"But Tobiramaaaa, what kind of Hokage would I be if I didn't greet our friends after they travelled so far to visit our beautiful village?" he whined, silently praying that the heavens might smile upon him. It seems the stars were aligned that day as his brother simply sighed and muttered a "fine."
"Yes!" he cheered, a little more excited than Tobirama thought was reasonable for a man of his position, before racing out of the room like his life depended on it.
Aroka shuffled down the unfamiliar hallway carefully, tracing the smooth wooden railing as she went along. She had left Mila in her room to rest, she was tired after such a long journey and had fallen asleep only moments after closing her eyes. She didn't seem to be upset anymore, thank goodness. With that off her chest, now the seer was off to find something to eat. Where did Tobirama say the kitchen was again?
"Aroka."
The woman stopped and scanned for who the voice belonged to before quickly landing on a name she loathed to even look at.
"What do you want?" she shot distastefully.
She watched the line approach hers at a cautionary pace. Her hands clenched at her sides.
"How have you been, Aroka?"
"I'm not interested in small talk. What do you want?"
The man sighed and paused briefly, "You've grown since the last time I saw you. I hope you've been well."
Aroka sneered and stepped past him, only to find an arm blocking her path.
"You're always like this, won't you speak to me just this once?" he all but pled.
She remained silent, a frown still plastered on her face.
"You know, I never thought you would leave the village. I was surprised when that servant girl told me you-"
"She has a name."
"Ah, of course, I'm sorry. I was surprised to hear you had left without a word. I was worried, it's dangerous out here."
"What? Did you expect me to come and ask for permission? From you? Not a chance," she sneered, pushing his hand aside and stepping past.
"Aroka!" He grabbed her arm and forced her to face him, not noticing her wince from the tug. "Can't you see I'm just watching out for you? Why can't you stop and listen to me? I can't change the past but at least I'm trying to make amends, please just listen and we can make things better!"
"I don't want to make things better, I want you to leave me alone."
"You-!"
"Omasu-san! It's great to have you here!"
The pair turned to see both Senju brothers standing just a few feet away. The Imada man, Omasu, quickly released the younger girl and bowed respectfully.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Hokage. It's an honor to be in your great city."
Aroka scoffed stepped away, brushing past the brothers without a word.
Hashirama watched her retreat before glancing at his brother, whose glare had not left the Imada shinobi since they arrived, and nodded for him to go after her. Tobirama, knowing the Imada wouldn't appreciate losing one of their few shinobi, opted to oblige, shooting the man one last glare before turning and heading down the hall Aroka disappeared to.
Fortunately, it didn't take long to catch up to the seer, though she had somehow found her way into a completely different sector of the compound that he was sure she didn't know she was in.
"Aroka." He put a hand on her shoulder once he reached her, turning her around. He could still see a trace of a frown on her lips. "Did he hurt you?"
"I'm fine," she said, not quite meeting his eyes.
"What happened?"
"It was nothing, don't worry about it."
"Tell me the truth."
"It's ok, really, don't worry about it," she turned to walk away but was stopped by two hands on her shoulders.
Tobirama recalled the Imada shinobi had a grip on her arm when they had stumbled into the scene, and were it not for Hashirama stopping him he would have snapped the man's hand off right then and there.
He gently lifted her hand and pushed down the sleeve, revealing a large red handprint on her forearm. In a flash of rage, he turned on his heels and stormed back in the direction he had come, fully intent on crushing the man that dared leave such a mark on her.
"Wait!" Aroka rushed after him, managing to block his path. "Please don't."
"He hurt you," he stated, staring down at her as if she had forgotten.
"He didn't mean to, there's more to it than that. Please trust me, just leave it alone."
He narrowed his eyes in suspicion; she was hiding something. He made a mental note to find out more about it later but, at least for now, he would let it go.
"Are you ok?"
Aroka smiled in relief and wrapped her arms around him eagerly, "I'm fine. Thanks."
The Senju sighed before hesitantly returning the hug.
…
"Can you let go now?"
"No."
