Juno had believed that Tazuna's village was large and rather stately, despite the slightly run-down look caused by their recent economic troubles. There had been several two-story homes, a robust main street market, and no homes built with the clay-and-straw-thatched methods so common outside the capital cities of her homeworld. Though many of its citizens had been turned onto the streets due to poverty, evidence of the land's former wealth had been evident in the town's architectural bones.

Or, so she had thought.

Now, staring in wonderment down the main street of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Juno could see that she had been mistaken. The Land of Waves was a veritable slum in comparison to the vibrant city before her.

In the back of her mind, Juno registered Kakashi speaking to the two guardsmen stationed at the village entrance. He appeared to be arranging her ability to be allowed within the village limits. Juno probably should have been paying more attention to what they were saying, but the sights and smells were too distracting.

The buildings were a blaze of colours and a haphazard hodge-podge of architectural styles. It was as if a legion of crazed builders had been let loose on the same tract of empty land and been told to build to their hearts desire. There was practically none of the 'traditional' style of building that she was used to. Everywhere she looked, there was smooth concrete, shingled tiles, painted wooden slates, brick, plaster, and materials she wasn't sure she had the names for. Some buildings looked as though they had started off short and squat, but then had four or five additions put on each with their own distinct style.

And the smells. Like most towns and cities, the street leading into Konoha was lined with all sorts of small businesses. Drawing her particular attention were the myriad food vendors and restaurant stalls. From where she stood, Juno's nose could detect the delectable smell of deep-fried food. But also smoked fish, freshly baked buns, the spice of a slow-boiling broth. She kept one hand delicately perched on Asa's flank as he perched on her shoulder. If she didn't pay attention to him, he'd surely make his way into one the nearby stall of brightly coloured fruit and dried peppers to sneak off with a snack. She didn't particularly want her first afternoon in the village to be spent dealing with the fallout of his kleptomania.

The denizens of her new potential home also drew her eye. People walking along every direction going about their business, wearing enough variety of clothing styles, cuts, and designs to make her head spin. If Juno thought that her airbending tattoos would make her stand out, she was mistaken. From where she stood, she could see no fewer than half a dozen people with face-markings, brightly coloured hair every shade of the rainbow, and outfits that made Naruto's orange jumpsuit look tame.

She could see that many of them wore the same outfit as Kakashi, clearly a standard uniform for shinobi. She saw quick movement from the roof-tops nearby as some of the ninja forgoed using the streets to a method of transit a little less pedestrian. Few of the people down below reacted to this sight, so Juno figured it must be a regular occurrence for a place calling itself a 'ninja village'. The sight reminded her a little of monks using air gliders to get around the temples.

"Juno!"

She dragged her eyes away from the sights of the village to see Kakashi and the two guardsmen looking at her expectantly. It was clear that he had been trying to get her attention for some time. Feeling a bit sheepish – and probably appearing about as observant as a rock – Juno meandered towards them. "Sorry, what was that?" She said.

"I said, Izumo and Kotetsu need to know your family name for your temporary visa." Kakashi replied.

"Oh." Juno said. Entering the village required a lot more paperwork than she would have thought. "Ah, I don't have one of those."

"Not a problem." said either Izumo or Kotetsu. Juno was ashamed to say she hadn't been paying attention when they had been introduced. "A lot of foreigners don't come from clans or major family lines. Often we just use the name of the land they're from as a placeholder. Where were you coming from again?"

"Err…"

"Just put…'Soyokaze'" Kakashi supplied after a second, clearly not wanting to get into Juno's strange origins with the two guards.

Juno wrinkled her nose slightly. Though it was no doubt an appropriate name, she wasn't sure she liked the implication that her airbending skills were anything less than fearsome and awe-inspiring. Still, she figured 'gentle breeze' was as good as anything she could have come up with. She gave Kakashi a bit of a stink-eye, and his own crinkled at her in amusement, pleased by his little joke.

In a few more moments, Kakashi had things wrapped up with the guards. He approached where the three remaining members of their team had been loitering. The kids had been chipper that morning, excited to be coming home after their first long mission away. It was clear that they were anxious to be on their way, each of them fidgeting with impatience. As Kakashi came nearer, they all gathered around.

"Alright you three. I'll be taking Juno over to the municipal office and then to Hokage Tower to debrief the mission. You'll have the next three days off to yourselves before we resume training and taking missions." His eye crinkled with a smile. "Make the most of your time, you've all earned it."

Thus released, the three kids each made their ways off in different directions. Before she got too far, Sakura turned around to address Juno.

"Juno-chan, once you're done speaking with the Hokage, you should come over to my house for dinner. My mom and dad would just love to meet you, and my mom's cooking is better than anything!"

Juno blinked, then smiled as warmth suffused her chest. "That sounds great Sakura, but how will I find where you live?" she asked.

The question seemed to stump Sakura for a moment, but then Kakashi interrupted, "I'll bring you by there once we're done."

Sakura grinned and waved goodbye before disappearing into the throng of people on the main street. Kakashi and Juno made their way along the same avenue at a slower pace. The going was slow, as Juno found it difficult to resist the temptation of stopping to peer into store fronts and inspecting the various foodstuff and merchandise that caught her eye. Pausing at one colourful street food vendor's stall, she turned her best turtleduck eyes on to the silver-haired jounin, who merely sighed before buying her a small dish of fried dumplings.

She took a big bite of one and nearly jumped out of her skin when the hot filling burst into her mouth. She frantically fanned her hands at her face and tried to suck in air to cool her scalded tongue.

"Hot! Hot!" She panted. Kakashi just shook his head slowly at her antics.

"Are you sure you're considered a bigshot where you're from?" He queried dryly, as she hopped from one foot to another in a bizarre hot-dumpling jig.

She just flashed him a closed lipped smile as she continued to chew her snack, choosing not to dignify that with an answer.

Soon enough, they found themselves outside a large white-washed cylindrical building. The sign above the door identified it as the 'Konohagakure Municipal Office'. The front doors, which Juno was amazed to see were made entirely of glass, caused her to jump back in surprise as they slid open magically at their approach. Kakashi had to call her further into the building when she lingered to test how they worked by walking up to, then away from the doors, watching in amazement as they opened and closed with a near-silent 'woosh' each time.

She jogged to his side at the receptionist's desk with a wide smile. "Wow, you guys have some pretty amazing stuff here! How do those doors work exactly?".

At that, the woman behind the desk looked at Kakashi with one eyebrow quirked as if to ask Where'd you pick this one up, then?

Juno chose to ignore the woman's judgemental attitude. She figured there would be many similar reactions to her seemingly plebeian knowledge of 'modern' amenities, but her sense of curiosity was stronger than her desire to appear 'normal'.

"Look, let's just get you set up with your paperwork and do the debriefing, then you can learn all about the exciting world of electricity, hydraulics, and motion sensors." Kakashi replied. He was leaning against the desk, for once without his precious book hanging in front of his nose. Juno just sighed in acquiescence. She should probably be more grateful that he was taking time out of his day to help her get set up in the village. She was sure he was just as eager as the kids had been to go home and unwind. But there was just so much to learn.

"We have some classes at the community college for people immigrating from rural areas to help them adjust to the modern way of living here in Konoha," the receptionist supplied, handing Juno a few brochures. Juno brightened, and quickly re-categorized the women from 'judgemental' to 'wonderfully helpful' in her mind.

They spoke to the receptionist at length, filling out form after form. They had forms for everything it seemed. Forms for individuals without worldly goods, forms for individuals without funds, no she was not clan affiliated, no she was not a political refugee.

At the end of it all, Juno was the proud new wonder of a temporary visa, a fully-furnished short-term rental, and a bank account full of a small amount of funds supplied by the office.

The receptionist tucked the manila folder containing Juno's information into a large filing cabinet and had her stand in front of a screen for her 'I.D. photo.' Juno just stared blankly at the point on the wall the woman directed her to look at and nearly jumped out of her skin at a sudden flash of light. With a few, efficient movements at her desk, the woman briskly slid a small card towards her.

Picking it up, Juno was astounded to see her perfect likeness staring back at her. Her expression was slightly startled, and she had a few wayward strands of hair sticking up at the back of her head that she hadn't known about. Juno reached behind her to smooth them down and turned to pay attention to the last few instructions.

"Now, all this paperwork is just setting you up as a temporary resident. We'll need permission from the Hokage's office before we can get you applied for a permanent visa and instatement with 'shinobi' status. Just get them to send us the forms within the next three days and we'll get it all taken care of on our end too." She smiled sunnily at them, cheeks dimpling. "Just be sure to carry your temporary visa on your person at all times until then. All that's left to say is 'welcome to Konohagakure', Miss Soyokaze".

Juno returned her smile and bowed shallowly, thanking the woman for her time. Kakashi helped her gather up the forms and brochures Juno had been supplied and they exited the office together.

The sun was now past its zenith, the visit to the office taking a little over an hour. They decided to stop and eat lunch on the way to Hokage tower. Kakashi took her to a nearby restaurant, and they both ordered bento boxes to eat at the patio, with some fruit on the side for Asa. Juno felt oddly proud to pay for her meal with her 'own' money. The tender, flaky, teriyaki salmon was cooked and seasoned to perfection, and Juno savoured the lightly steamed vegetables after a few days of travelling rations.

Chewing thoughtfully on a mouthful of rice, Juno's mind turned towards the conversation ahead of her. This wasn't even close to being the first time she had ever visited a foreign leader, and though she wasn't well-schooled on the specific etiquette of this world, she wasn't too worried about accidentally making a spectacle of herself. She was, however, a little concerned about how this Hokage was going to take her story. She was well-aware of how far-fetched it sounded.

Swallowing her food, Juno took a moment to address her companion. She and Kakashi were seated under a shaded table in a secluded corner of the restaurant's outdoor patio. She had angled herself away from him so that he could remove his mask to eat privately. She made a show of stretching her arms above her head and slowly turning to face him fully, giving the nimble-fingered ninja plenty of time to make sure his mask was in place before she looked at him.

"So, any advice for this meeting we're going to have?" she queried. She rested her chopsticks on the lip of the bento box and leaned back in her seat.

Kakashi had already finished his own meal, and was quietly regarding the slow parade of people passing in front of the restaurant. He returned the wave of a man walking by, taking some time considering the question. After a moment, he replied, "Be completely honest. He'll know if you're lying or holding back. Don't worry too much about whether or not he'll believe that the story is true. He's been around the block enough that he knows the world isn't always what we think it is."

Juno nodded and looked away. She sensed the weight of his gaze on her.

"Don't worry, he's a fair man. With my testimony about your actions in the Land of Waves, he'll be sure to consider you favourably. He'd be a fool to pass on such a powerful asset for the village."

Instead of reassuring her, Kakashi's assessment only made her feel apprehensive. Although the altruistic actions of team seven had endeared her to them and won over her trust, she couldn't yet say the same for their military leader. She was worried that she would find him cold and calculating, merely measuring the worth of individuals based on their usefulness to him and the village. She hoped that her apprehension was unwarranted, but knew that she would find it impossible to work for a man whose morals she couldn't trust. This conversation would be as much of a test for the Hokage to prove himself to her as it was for him to believe her story and accept her into the village.

Juno scooped Asa up off the table, causing him to squawk at her for interrupting his grooming session, and draped him across her shoulders as they rose from their seats. Once they left the restaurant's patio area, it only took a few minutes to reach the entrance to the Hokage's tower.

It was a trio of large red round buildings several stories high. They were framed by a brace of trees and a backdrop of the infamous Hokage mountains. Juno had heard all about the carved faces of the previous Hokages on the trip to the village. They were certainly an imposing bunch from her vantage point, which Juno was sure was the whole point. It was amusing to think of the stern faces covered with colorful doodles from Naruto's 'awesome prank'.

Once they entered, Kakashi quickly signed in at the front desk, and they were directed upstairs to wait in the seating area outside the Hokage's office. Juno was surprised to find the decor in the tower to be quite austere. There were none of the ostentatious displays of wealth that were all too common in many of the palaces and homes of the political and cultural elite she had visited in the past. The chairs in the waiting room were plush and comfortable, and there were some paintings of rural landscapes dotting the walls, but beyond that, no decorative suits of armour, elaborately designed furnishings, or gilded sets of dressers. It made her feel a little more relaxed. Her upbringing with the monks had always made her feel a little uncomfortable with such things.

It didn't take long before a masked individual opened the doors to the office and silently gestured for them to enter. Juno took a bracing breath, and rose to follow Kakashi inside.

The inside of the office was similar in style to the rest of the building. It was a rounded room, rather plain with the exception of the large windows covering the back wall. From here, it was easy to see a rather stunning view of the village, stretching off into the distance.

But Juno wasn't there to enjoy the scenery. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the man seated behind the square wooden desk. He was older, probably late sixties to early seventies, dressed in gleaming white robes and a wide-brimmed hat. His hands were folded under his chin, and he was regarding them silently with dark, calculating eyes. In the few seconds it took them to stand together facing the desk, Juno was sure she had been assessed, categorized, and labeled with deadly accuracy. She wondered idly where she came out from that assessment.

She followed Kakashi's lead and stood at attention just in front of the desk, waiting to be addressed.

"Well, Kakashi, we all know about your truancy issues when it comes to mission schedules, but returning over a week late from a simple C-ranked escort mission is pushing it, even for you." The Hokage stated, voice even behind his folded hands. Juno shot a glance at her companion, who was sheepishly rubbing his hand at the back of his head.

He cleared his throat, "Well, this time there were some things out of my control. The situation changed and I made the decision to adjust the mission parameters." He gestured towards Juno. "To summarize briefly, we added a temporary external asset to the team and handled an A-level threat. We neutralized the threat, the missing-nin from Kirigakure, Zabuza Momochi who was in the employ of Gato, from Gato Company."

"The shipping magnate?" the Hokage interrupted briefly, hands still poised in front of his face. He showed no other outward reaction to Kakashi's statement, besides a longer speculative look towards Juno.

Kakashi nodded, "The very same. The company was actually largely a front for his drug and smuggling operation, and he was using his monopoly of the shipping industry to enforce his stronghold on the Land of Waves, rendering him more of a dictator than a businessman."

At that, the Hokage leaned back on his chair. He was silent for a moment, digesting Kakashi's words. He then nodded his head towards Juno, "And this, I suppose, was your 'external asset'?"

"Yes. May I introduce Juno Soyokaze. She was instrumental in bringing down Gato, his thugs, and Momochi, securing the safety of the citizens of the Land of Waves."

Juno folded her fists in front of her chest and bowed low at the waist, a greeting usually reserved for leaders of state.

The Hokage bent his head cordially in return. "As the leader of the Konohagakure shinobi forces, may I extend my heartfelt thanks for assisting team seven with their mission." Formalities observed, he turned to face Kakashi once more. "I assume Miss Soyokaze's presence here means there is more to your story than you have said. You'd better give me a run down of the whole mission, and spare no detail."

Kakashi nodded and took a deep breath. "Well, it all started when we were attacked by two enemy chunin while escorting Tazuna to the Land of Waves…"

In a little less than an hour, the whole tale had been recounted.

Kakashi did most of the talking, with only a few brief interruptions from the Hokage. Juno was familiar with practically all the details of the mission she hadn't been privy to, with a few exceptions. One being Kakashi's version of events from when she came clean about her true identity.

"I'll admit, I was skeptical when I heard about her supposed origins," he admitted "But I used the standard T&I tactics to assess her story for falsehoods. She was able to provide consistent, specific details about her homeworld and personal background over the course of the week, and didn't display any of the usual facial or physical tells that indicated lying." He shrugged. "Either she is the best liar I've ever met, she's insane, or her story is true. I chose to believe the latter."

He was avoiding her eyes as he said this. Juno didn't blame him. She honestly wasn't sure how she felt about hearing he had used some kind of sneaky ninja interrogation tactic on her without her knowing. She had thought that he had believed her story out of hand when it had been first discussed. Now she realized that it had been very naive of her to do so. Under the nonchalant mein, Kakashi was still a senior ninja warrior. Believing far fetched stories from random strangers probably wasn't what he learned in ninja school. Still, she couldn't help but feel a little stung by the realization that their early interactions had been fueled by a clinical desire to see if she was telling the truth.

He continued, "Her unusual abilities, demeanor, and lack of knowledge of common information about our world all support her story. She also proved to be a trustworthy and dependable team member when we were dealing with Gato and his thugs."

He quickly finished the rest of the debriefing. Juno couldn't help but notice that his portrayal of her actions during the mission made her appear very heroic. His obvious desire to paint her in a good light went a long way to sooth her sour feelings towards him.

Just before finishing, Kakashi made one glaring lie.

"The rogue ninja, Zabuza Momochi, his protege, Haku, and Gato were all terminated during the battle. We disposed of their bodies in the usual way before wrapping things up with Tazuna."

Juno very carefully did not react to his words. They had discussed beforehand that Kakashi would be keeping Haku's survival between team seven. For obvious reasons, his existence in the land of waves coming to light would seriously hamper his ability to remain with Tazuna's family. The Village Hidden in the Leaves would feel compelled to take advantage of the powerful 'asset' and try to bring him into the fold. As a group, they had decided that Haku was better off staying away from the ninja life.

Thus concluded, Kakashi fell into silence. They waited patiently on the Hokage, who was contemplating their story while lighting a pipe. After a few perfunctory puffs, he straightened in his chair.

"Well, I'll admit that's certainly one of the more interesting mission briefings I've heard in awhile." He said, face betraying no strong emotions that Juno could identify. Her guts were roiling with butterflies at the lack of reaction. Did he believe Kakashi? Did he notice the lie about Haku? Could she stay in the village?

He turned his gaze towards her. Though she carefully schooled her expression into neutrality, Juno could feel sweat gathering in her palms. She was glad that Kakashi had been the one to lie to this man's face. Though he was elderly and rather diminutive in stature, he exuded a powerful aura that she found no difficulty in admitting intimidated her.

He finally broke the silence. But it was not what she had been expecting.

"Miss Soyokaze. I can only express my greatest sympathies to you in response to the struggles you have faced. Although I cannot speak for those you have left behind, I would like to offer you my most profound gratitude not only for helping Team Seven, but also for your sacrifice and efforts displayed in the line of duty for your people. Because they are not here to do so themselves like I'm sure they would want, please accept my deepest thanks."

Then he stood. And bowed to her.

Juno was stunned. She swallowed thickly around the sudden lump in her throat. She instantly understood how this man had come to secure the loyalty of the village. With a few short sentences, he had cut into the quick of her. It helped her make her decision.

When the Hokage rose from his bow, she offered one in return.

"Thank you, most esteemed Hokage." She cleared her throat, then raised her eyes to meet his. "Your gratitude means more than I can say. It has been very difficult…", she took a breath, "...very difficult to deal with. I hope...it is my hope that I find a new place to call home. Kakashi suggested that this village may be such a place."

"Did he now."

Kakashi spoke up on her left. "I thought Juno's actions more than warranted her a place in our village. She's strong, capable...and a good person."

They waited. The Hokage seemed to be mulling it over. Finally, just as Juno felt she would burst with anticipation, he spoke up.

"Very well. You may stay in the village. Tomorrow, we will meet at training ground four so that your skills in combat may be assessed. If your skills are to my satisfaction, I will grant you a probationary status as a shinobi of the leaf. If not, you may remain as a civilian." He stood and walked to the window behind his desk, looking out. "You may leave. Best of luck, Juno Soyokaze."

They both bowed, though he was facing away from them. He waved a hand, shooing them off. They left the room in silence.

Juno's heart was so full. Outside the office, she turned to face Kakashi, a huge grin on her face. "It worked! I'm so relieved...looks like you'll be seeing a lot more of me!" She snagged Asa by the arms and spun him around. She missed the soft look on Kakashi's face as he watched them.