A/N: Okay this is my first time using my own character and I'm kind of nervous but please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions!

I've chosen names and stuff for but feel free to insert your own specifics and characteristics instead! I don't own all the characters, just the ones I came up with.

Also, this gives me big Mulan vibes. I've been watching it repeatedly for the past week. Ok bye please don't judge me bye.

KANA POV

I closed my eyes, sensing everything around me. The waves rolled gently against the shore, the lapping sound as I used it as my tempo of the motions. Each stance was done fluidly and slowly, emphasizing each pose and the flow of my chakra. Grandmother had always drilled it into us that to be able to quickly carry out these very same stances, they must be done slowly in practice.

My staff was familiar in grasp as I rotate it around my body, the wet sand beneath my feet giving way to my weight. Mother always made it clear that she believed it was improper for the eldest daughter of the prestigious Aikawa family to be training on a beach, barefoot, with my dress, hiked up to my knees to make it easier to move. This never discouraged me because only my father and I knew of the extent of my abilities and as long as my mother never found out, my secret would be safe. The truth was that there had been countless times that I had snuck out onto the battlefield and helped the warriors of my clan. As part of the main branch of the family, it was looked down upon for females to be trained for combat and were instead prepped for marriage alliances and etiquette, which was boring enough to kill me. Training myself physically and using the abilities I had been born with were the only times I truly felt like myself and not some shogi piece for my mother to move across the board. Don't get me wrong, I loved my mom very much but I also know that she was a stickler for tradition.

I could tell my sister was coming to get me before her sandal even hit the sand. While Chinami and I were close in age, we were alike and not alike at the same time. We both had the same tan skin from being out on the beach so much and blue eyes like the ocean. These were trademark features of the Aikawa family, making us recognizable anywhere we go. But Chinami's eyes were paler, like a shallow pool of water whereas mine had been described as when light shines directly into the water, almost electrified. Koshiro always teased me and said that it made my eyes look like they were going to fall out because of how big they looked but mother always reprimanded him. But still, I was always self-conscious of my eyes and how badly they stuck out in comparison to my sister. When her hair was straight and fell perfectly, mine was wavy and uncontrollable, forcing me to always have it tied back in a tight ponytail. Where I was a sow's ear, my little sister was a silk had always been praised for her good manners and naturally quiet demeanour and while I always wished I had inherited that from mother, I never let that get in between my sister and me.

"Kana!" my sister called as she made her way towards me, lifting her skirts to not get sand in them. "Father sent me to fetch you! Oh, Kana, you'd better fix your hair before going to see him. I took a peek into his study and you'll never guess who I saw!" she chirped as she took hold of my staff so that I could untie my skirt before following her to the stone path that took us to the back of our house.

"You're right Chi, I don't think I'll ever guess so why don't you just tell me," I smiled as I took out my hair and began to attempt to run my fingers through it.

"I think it was the leaders of the Senju clan! I eavesdropped a bit before going and it looks like he's almost settled an alliance." Now that was news to me. I knew from my talks with Father that our clan's isolation had been taking its toll on our bonds with the other strong clans in the land of Fire. The Uchihas and the Senjus had been warring for many years, even before I was born. The special Jutsu of the Aikawa family and our large reserves of chakra had led to us being peacekeepers of sorts in these battles, protecting the villages that were in the way and providing protection in a way. We were known across the Five Great Nations as a family masterful in water release jutsu as well as jutsus that manipulated chakra itself. This allowed our warriors to bring up chakra barriers, which came to be known as the Aikawa Wall. Not only could the warriors use it defensively but offensively too. For this reason, we excelled at taijutsu as well, extracting chakra with each contact we had with their opponent or even inserting our own chakra to place them in a genjutsu. Every warrior had their own portion they excelled at but they usually fell within those boundaries, I myself secretly included.

I wished Chinami goodbye before standing in front of my father's study alone, calling out to let him know that I was present. At his beckoning, I entered to see him seated at his desk, with two men sitting opposite him. I almost doubted Chinami on what she said because these two men looked so different I couldn't believe that they were from the same clan. One had red armour and tan skin with long dark hair that fell past his shoulder like a curtain. The other had pale hair, almost the same colour as his snow-white hair. As my eyes moved up from his blue armour, they stopped dead in their tracks as they were met by crimson eyes, surveying me with an analytical glint in them.