To Mutsuko,
I am happy to her that you have taken a liking to Konohagakure and we hope you will continue to represent us well.
Everything here in the Land of Iron is quite the same, it has been a rather uneventful few weeks. The council has been noticeably anxious however, mostly due to concerns over our relations with neighboring shinobi countries. As of right now, though, it is not a pressing issue.
As you must know, your family misses you dearly, especially Gyukudo-san and Maho-san. They are still very worried about your safety but hopefully they will settle down soon. Kunio seems to be concerned as well, and though he prefers to keep it to himself; I have seen him practicing his swordsmanship into the late hours of the night. As much of a hard worker as he is, this is unusual even for him. Unfortunately, the Hokage has limited your written contact to strictly political purposes, essentially only allowing letters to and from my direct subordinates and I. I understand it must be difficult to be separated from your family and friends, but rest assured I will do everything in my power to change this policy. In the meantime, please be patient and cooperative with the Leaf, it will help us negotiate for better terms.
Hopefully you have made some friends in your new home; it's good to connect with others your age. I recommend you try and learn some skills from them, particularly the ones not taught in your classes, and sparring is an excellent way to test your abilities against those of your peers.
That being said, please try to minimize the injuries; it won't be good for our image if you send someone to the hospital. And for the sake of my old heart please remember that you may not challenge anyone to a death duel. Best case scenario, they take it as a joke, but I would prefer not to have a repeat of what happened with Tobio-san.
Aside from these few warnings and updates, there is nothing else of note that I have to tell you, so I will end this letter here.
Take care and train hard,
Sincerely,
General Mifune
I folded the paper and dropped it into the little tin box where the first letter lay. I sighed and smiled just a little; despite the news that I wouldn't be able to write to my friends back home, I took comfort in knowing that I hadn't been forgotten just yet.
I knew my parents were worrywarts but even I didn't realize how restless they would be after I was gone. And Kunio sounds pretty worried too, I really hope he doesn't work himself too hard; he already trains enough as it is and any more might damage with his health.
I breathed slowly and stood from my seat on the bed. I needed something to clear my mind. Swiping Atoyamai off the wall, I automatically sent some chakra into the blade, the reflective shell solidifying just as I hauled open the front door and stepped out into the cool autumn air.
Another month had passed in the blink of an eye. Time is a slippery thing. It was hard to believe that I had been in Konoha for over two months already. Over these past few weeks, I had been sure to make plenty of time for Atoyamai, we always practiced by the forest near the lake: the very place I was heading to now. Determined not to fall behind my friends back home, I had converted my lunch breaks into training sessions. I wasn't sure if I was improving but at least I knew I wasn't getting worse. I used my free time after classes to train too, though I didn't have much of that, seeing as it was always dark out by the time culture class was over.
There really wasn't much for me to do outside my classes, it was the same schedule every day: class, training, training, class. It was getting a bit tiresome. I really hoped something exciting would happen soon, maybe that would mix things up a bit, but for now I was fine with lying in wait.
Winter was fast approaching and the leaves were in their final stages of reds and yellows. The chill in their air had a slight sting to it now, I was beginning to mourn the passing of the days of good weather. I wonder if winters in Konoha are any better than the ones back home. I certainly hope so.
"Mutsuko-chan!" A shout made me flinch. I stopped walking and looked towards where it had come from. Of course, it was none other than the blonde ball of energy: the one and only Naruto.
"Back already?" I asked as I glanced at the pinkette who was trailing behind him. His team had been on a three-day mission to some town to the east of Konoha: something about food reserves going missing if I recall correctly. They must have gotten back not long ago; it doesn't look like he's cleaned up yet.
"Yup! We finished early! It was a really boring mission, I hope old man Sarutobi gives us a higher rank one next time." The sound of a stomach growling made him fall silent. "I haven't eaten all day! I'm super hungry! We should all go get some food!" He grinned excitedly. I frowned and tightened my grip on Atoyamai: this really wasn't the best timing.
"I'm pretty hungry too." Sakura added, smiling cheerfully at me. "You should come with us, it'll be nice to talk to another girl after a mission with this idiot."
"Hey!"
I groaned internally. I couldn't say no at this point. Curse my kindness and good manners.
"Sure, where are we going?" I smiled stiffly.
"Ramen!" He shouted without the slightest bit of hesitation. "Ramen! Ramen!"
"No way!" Sakura objected. "We should go to an actual restaurant."
"But Ichiraku's is an actual restaurant!" Naruto wined. Sakura shook her head and turned to me.
"How about a cafe? I know a good one nearby." She suggested, ignoring the pouty blonde poking at her.
"Sure." I agreed. All I was really concerned about was how in the world I was going to keep anyone from noticing the camouflaged sword in my hand. At least these two don't seem to have spotted it.
"Great! It's really close, follow me!" The girl took off into the marketplace where the crowd was growing by the minute. Naruto and I glanced at each other before hurrying after her, trying not to lose sight of the pinkette.
"Here we are." Sakura grinned and pulled us both into a large, double layered restaurant that was obviously bustling inside.
We were brought up to the second floor and seated at a small, low-set table near the wall. As we sat down, I casually set my sword in front of my cushion seat, making sure to place it in the shadow of the table.
"The food here is anyways good." Sakura commented while flipping through the laminated menu.
"They don't have ramen..." Naruto mumbled glumly, staring at the pages in disappointment.
We soon ordered our food and were now waiting patiently for it to arrive. At least, I was trying to be patient. If I was sitting in a chair, my leg most definitely would have been shaking anxiously. I felt like I was committing some sort of crime by bringing a katana into a building. Back home, it was custom for samurai to bring only short blades indoors, especially at restaurants or offices. You were supposed to leave your katana behind as a sign of good will towards the owners of the building. And on top of breaking that tradition, I wasn't even supposed to be bringing the weapon anywhere near this many people. If old man Mifune found out he would flip.
Thankfully, a waitress came over with a tray of our food just a few minutes later.
"Enjoy your meal." She bowed slightly before going to tend to the next table.
All three of us said our thanks and started on our food, Naruto being the quickest to get the first bite in.
"So how has training been? Did we miss anything important?" Sakura asked as she broke her chopsticks.
"Not really, just going over what we've learned already. A couple of the more complicated jutsus have some people stuck." Of course, by 'some people' I meant me, myself, and I. Some of my classmates couldn't do them well either but I flat out could not get them to work.
"That's good, I'm glad we don't have to catch up on much." She nodded gleefully.
"Yeah... Um, how was your mission?" I was trying to keep the conversation rolling, maybe that would help me seem less nervous.
"It was great! The town we went to was really pretty and it had the cutest little shops too! They were selling food and toys and fans and jewelry..." I tuned her out after that. I'm sure it wasn't anything important but that wasn't why I stopped listening. I felt someone staring at me. They were sitting to my right, probably a couple tables away at most. I frowned internally and tried to ignore it, telling myself that whoever it was didn't pose a threat and that I didn't need to worry about them.
But the feeling kept creeping back.
Fifteen minutes had passed before Naruto suddenly shot up from his seat.
"Oh! I just remembered Sakura-chan and I need to meet Kakashi-sensei for something." He realized aloud. Sakura seemed to stiffen.
"Right!" She gasped, glancing at a clock on the wall. "And we're supposed to be there in five minutes!" She jumped up. "Sorry Mutsuko-chan but we need to run, see you in class tomorrow!" The two of them slammed some money down on the table and bolted out of the building.
I blinked at the suddenly empty seats in front of me. Well that was... unexpected. But it was a good thing for me anyways. I separated out enough money to pay for my meal and set it on the table before pushing myself off the ground, subtly grabbing my sword on the way up.
I made my way through the jumble of people, slipping down the stairs and out the door in record time. I turned away from the loud streets and started towards my training spot.
I reached the lake and stopped at the edge. Sitting down, my eyes rested on the water. It was still, not a single ripple.
"You can come out now." I called.
"You've been following me for a while now, you must be tired." There was a rustling sound before I suddenly felt a presence behind me. They remained silent. "I'm curious, what exactly do you find so interesting about me? Or do you stare at everyone when they go out to eat?" I questioned flatly.
"You have a sword with you." The voice was female, probably around my age. "As a member of the Konoha Police Force, I have the responsibility to investigate any possible threats to the public." The stranger took a few steps forward. "What reason do you have for carrying a weapon like that around?" She demanded.
"So my illusion wasn't good enough..." I mused. "That's unfortunate. As to why I carry it, that's a secret." I grinned teasingly.
"I'm warning you, do not bring that thing where there are other people around. If someone gets hurt, things will get messy for you." I nearly scoffed, was this girl trying to threaten me? I stood up and turned to her, my eyes narrowed.
"Back in my country, those are fighting words." I said lowly. "Is that what you want? A fight?" I challenged, unblinking. The girl frowned, contorting her otherwise pretty features.
"I will let you off with a warning. Don't let this happen again." She stated, promptly turning and beginning to walk away before disappearing.
She's smart, I'll admit, cleverly flaunting that Uchiha Clan symbol on her back. She was trying to intimidate me.
The corners of my mouth twitched downwards,. No doubt I'd be seeing her again.
"How was your weekend?" I asked as we were walking to my first class of the day. "Done anything interesting?"
"I'm sure you can answer that yourself." My unnamed friend replied.
"Come on, I'm sure you get to go on all sorts cool missions." I prodded, peering up at the familiar clay mask.
"I did. Before I was assigned to babysit you." I gasped in feigned offense.
"I'm hurt!" I cried, earning a light chuckle from the man.
"What about your weekend? Surely you've explored another part of the city." He reasoned. It was true, ever since I've been here I had spent good chunks of my weekends discovering new places in Konoha that I hadn't known before. My adventures so far have led to restaurants, trails, and gardens that I wouldn't ever have come across otherwise. Too bad I didn't have much time for that these past two days.
"A little, but I was a bit preoccupied with being harassed by strangers." I huffed indignantly. This seemed to catch his interest.
"And who would ever dare harass Shiromori-san?" He asked mockingly. He was quickly met with a punch to the arm.
"Shut it! And I'm serious! Don't the police know that Atoyamai is here? That one girl clearly didn't, trying tell me I can't bring him out in public..." I mumbled irritably.
"An Uchiha was bothering you?" He asked in a surprisingly concerned tone. "The police do know that you have your sword and there is certainly no rule against carrying those in public." He thought aloud.
"That's what I thought! I don't know why she was following me in the first place." I shook my head angrily.
"Can you describe the person?" I blinked in surprise.
"Um, well she had long brown hair, a bit darker than mine. She was pale too, wore a purple sleeveless shirt. I don't know, she didn't really look like Uchiha." I paused. "You don't need to do anything, nothing really happened anyways."
"I won't. I was just curious." He assured me.
"Good to know. Well there's the academy, I'll see you after class!" I waved and dashed towards the building in the distance. I had my fingers crossed that the teacher wouldn't be that creepy old man again.
I entered the Leaf Police Headquarters, nodding to my fellow clan members as I passed. I headed straight towards a certain office that I knew she would be in.
I knocked and pushed the door open after hearing a 'come in.'
"Oh hey, what are you doing here? You don't usually come to visit." The brunette stood from behind her small desk and smiled. "Sit." She gestured to the chair opposite her. I took the seat obligingly and she made an odd face. "Is... there something wrong? You seem a little off." She frowned. I decided to be direct with her.
"Izumi, did you confront Shiromori Mutsuko this past weekend?" She froze, then her frown deepened.
"Why does it matter to you?" She sneered. It was out of character for her, she was usually quite polite.
"It matters because any issues between Mutsuko and the Leaf could cause problems for us. The deal is still very fragile, it could easily be negated if the samurai learn that someone, especially a member of the police force, was threatening their diplomat."
"I didn't threaten her." Izumi defended. "She was carrying a weapon and I had probable cause to see what she was up to."
"You knew she wasn't up to anything, besides, plenty of shinobi carry kunai and shuriken on them, are those not weapons too?" I challenged. Her grip on her chair tightened.
"That's not the same thing." She stated through grit teeth. "Look, I know that you're assigned to protect her and all, but you don't have to look at the details, no one's going to notice. Nothing happened between us. If you just leave now we can both forget anything ever happened." She offered. Now it was my turn to frown.
"Izumi. We cannot afford to have any problems with Mutsuko. She has to feel safe here or the deal-"
"The deal should never have been made!" She shouted. "I don't know what the Hokage was thinking, we're not gaining anything from it and our military reserves are being depleted. No matter how you look at it, samurai don't belong in Konoha. We all know it, I'm only doing what's best for us."
I closed my eyes; I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Izumi, always the quiet, kindhearted girl, was spouting blind hate without a second thought.
"Regardless of what you think of the agreement, you must act in the interest of our clan and our village, and that does not include targeting our key connection to the samurai world." I stood and turned to leave.
"Shisui, I'm only telling the truth and you know it." She stated. I stopped, glancing at her over my shoulder.
"No. What you've done is wrong and you know it."