Chapter 2 - A Stranger and a Familiar Face
Mizuki stood in her new unfurnished apartment. She was officially granted citizenship a couple days ago so she set about starting her new life here. When the receptionist, who's name she later learned was Mai, came to find her and give her the good news that she was granted a probation period she was ecstatic. Since she had no guarantees that she would be allowed to live here for good, she spent most of the time exploring the village and the surrounding forests. It was a welcomed change of scenery. She loved Kiri, she really did, but the constant rain and cloudy skies was pretty depressing not to mention chilly. But here, it was so sunny and warm and she was lucky that she came in time to see the beautiful sakura trees in full bloom.
All was good except for the horrendous meeting she had with the Hokage where she made a positive fool of herself. She was laying on her bed in the hotel room when there was a knock on the door. She opened it to find a shinobi with brown spiky hair partially covered by a bandanna and a senbon hanging from his mouth.
"You're Mizuki?" He asked in a bored tone.
The girl in question nodded. "The Hokage wishes to see you in his office."
Mizuki felt her heart beat quicken in anticipation, today was the day that decided whether she was going to be staying or packing up and heading home, it was a good reason to be nervous. The shinobi led her to the building and wished her luck before sauntering off into the streets. She gave Mai a nervous smile, who gave one of reassurance in return, before heading up the stairs.
Before she could let the nerves get to her she knocked meekly on the door. It was a wonder how the Hokage had managed to hear her but she clearly heard his invitation to enter. She pushed the doors open and saw an attractive...very attractive, man sitting behind the desk wearing a set of white robes. His silver hair stood up seemingly unaffected by gravity. A dark mask covered the majority of his face but Mizuki didn't need to see the other half to know he was good looking. His left eye had a semi-long scar running through it. Like many others in the shinobi world she knew about the infamous Hatake Kakashi but she had no idea he had become the Hokage!
"Good morning, how are you?" He greeted politely. Mizuki's eyes widened, momentarily forgetting why she was here in the first place.
"G-good morning, Hokage-sama. I am well, and yourself?"
Mizuki could see the outline of a small smile beneath his mask. "Very well, thank you. Please, take a seat." He said, gesturing to the two chairs positioned in front of his desk. She tried to muster all the courage she had so she could hide her nervousness. She calmly took a seat in the soft chair and folded her hands in her lap to prevent them from shaking.
"How are you enjoying your stay at the village?" He asked.
She gave him a small smile. "Very nice. I'm liking the weather here a lot more than in Kiri."
She felt her breath catch in her throat at the sound of his deep chuckle.
"Well I hope that's not all you like because you're going to be staying here for a while." He said, giving her his signature closed eye smile.
Mizuki's jaw dropped. "Really!?" She screamed but soon blushed in embarrassment at her overenthusiastic outburst. "I-I mean I am honoured. Thank you for allowing me to stay, Hokage-sama."
Kakashi laughed under his breath. Although the woman before him was 25, she had the personality of a child it seems, not that it bothered him.
"No need to thank me, I'm sure the village will do well with your addition. You wrote in your application that you want to work at the hospital?"
Mizuki nodded. "Yes. N-not to brag or anything...but I am skilled in medicine a-and I am a fast learner. I know I will be an asset to the village."
Kakashi leaned back in his chair and regarded the girl with an amused smile. "I have no doubt what you say is true. Actually, I recently spoke with Tsunade about you. She speaks highly of you, I'm sure she appreciates your interest and dedication in joining her ranks. Have you ran into her yet?"
Mizuki shook her head. "No, sir. I've been spending most of my time exploring the village since I wasn't sure if I was going to be allowed to stay or not so I didn't want to jump ahead of myself."
Kakashi nodded, somewhat impressed with her self-awareness. "You don't have to worry anymore, you are officially a citizen of Konoha now. Congratulations."
Mizuki reached her hand out to shake his. She was so over the moon! There was so much to do, she thought. She had to find an apartment...and get some furniture...and get groceries...and move her stuff out of the hotel...and so much more!
She let her excitement take over her. Kakashi became mildly concerned when the blonde woman started to bow over and over again to him.
"T-thank you, thank you so much!" She repeated over and over, getting up from her chair. In her excitement she didn't realize where she was stepping and her foot ending up catching on one of the chair legs. Kakashi watched wide-eyed as Mizuki tripped and landed face first on his floor.
"Are you okay?" He asked with concern. He walked around his desk intending to help her up but she was already back on her feet rubbing her nose.
He sweat dropped when Mizuki abruptly backed away from him continuing to bow and apologize for being so clumsy. He tried to reassure her that she didn't have to apologize so much but she wasn't listening.
Suddenly, Kakashi opened his mouth to warn her of the door that she was fast approaching but it was too late, she backed up hard into the door smacking her head on the hard oak. Now instead of nursing her nose she moved her hand to the back of her head, rubbing the spot where she smacked it. She felt her face flare with heat, completely embarrassed with herself.
She squeaked, wanting to get out of there as fast as possible. Kakashi watched with distress as she opened the door to let herself out but ended up walking into it. He could see her red face drop a shade darker. She didn't bother saying anything that time, instead she just rushed out of his office.
Kakashi rubbed his forehead. 'Well...that could've gone better.' He thought.
That was the most embarrassing ordeal she had ever been through. Fortunately for her she hadn't run into the Hokage since that horrid experience. She honestly thought that he would reconsider her citizenship after that.
Although she didn't run into him, she did run into someone familiar. Just yesterday she was out at the market to pick up some groceries when she heard a loud commotion at the neighbouring alcohol store. She quickly paid for her groceries and left to see what was happening.
She peered through the window and was surprised to see her old teacher! With her arms full, she clumsily opened the door and ran up to the fuming blonde.
"Shizune! What is this geezer talking about you telling him to cut me off?" Shizune cowered in fear of her angry lady with a scared Tonton in her arms.
"Well...I-" Whatever excuse Shizune was going to give was cut off by an elated scream.
"Lady Tsunade!"
The angry sannin and the panicked assistant turned towards the new voice.
"Mizuki? Mizuki!" The sannin said loudly. She walked right up to the girl and lifted her up into a tight hug. The poor girl started to squirm uncomfortably as she was suffocated by the older blonde's large chest. After what seemed like an eternity, Tsunade let the poor girl go. Mizuki dropped the groceries she was holding and placed her hands on her knees, gasping for air.
She coughed. "L-Lady Tsunade, i-it's so great to see you again!"
Tsunade laughed boisterously. "It's great to see you too, kid. I'm so glad you decided to accept my offer. I heard from Kakashi you were granted citizenship?"
The younger blonde nodded happily. "Yep! Got it a few days ago. I'm just settling into my new apartment." She explained, gesturing towards her groceries that were now scattered across the floor.
"That's good to hear." Tsunade bent down to help Mizuki collect her fallen groceries. "How about once you're done, you come find me at the hospital and we can get started on your application."
"Sure!"
Once everything was neatly in the bags again, Tsunade handed them back to her former student.
"I'll see you soon." She nodded and turned towards her assistant who noticed the change in her lady.
Mizuki watched with wide eyes as the tough old woman started yelling at her assistant and the shopkeeper again about whatever it was they did to invoke her wrath. Mizuki backed away slowly towards the exit and dashed out the door lest the woman, for whatever reason, decide to get mad at her too, though she knew that would never happen.
The day after seeing her sensei again, Mizuki decided to spend most of her time getting the place set up. The sooner she settled in the sooner she could apply for that job. The money she saved and the generous gift from her grandparents would only last so long, so the sooner she got the job the better. A couple days ago she went to the local furniture store and ordered several pieces of furniture: a new bed, a small dining table, a couch, coffee table, TV, and a dresser.
The shopkeeper had most of what she needed but some had to be ordered. He notified her that she would be receiving all her deliveries today. Some employees would be assisting her in moving everything into her apartment, much to her relief. She had purchased a small vacuum and other cleaning materials to wipe down the whole apartment before she started decorating the place. Soon, the place was going to feel like home especially after she put up some cherished photos of her family and friends.
By late afternoon she had finally finished decorating her new home and it was perfect. It was a rather small apartment but it was cosy and she loved it. She looked at the clock that hung on her wall and noticed it was only 4 pm. She knew that Tsunade was still at the hospital so she decided to pay her a visit. Maybe if Tsunade wasn't too busy then she could start on the application.
Mizuki grabbed her purse and keys then left for the hospital. When she stepped into the hospital she was in awe, it was much bigger than she remembered, it appears they had done some renovations since she was last here. She smiled to herself, if she got the job she knew she would love it here. Mizuki walked up to the receptionist and asked her if they could direct her to Tsunade's office to discuss the job application. The young man behind the counter pointed down a hallway and told her the directions to find Tsunade. Before she left, he wished her luck.
Mizuki made several turns around the long hallways but finally found the office with Tsunade's name printed boldly across the front. The door was slightly ajar so she could peer through the small crack. Tsunade was sitting at her desk reviewing some documents and writing down some notes. Mizuki quietly approached the door intending to knock but Tsunade's voice stopped her short.
"Come in Mizuki, I wasn't expecting you this early." Said Tsunade, putting her pen down.
Mizuki pushed the door open further and smiled sheepishly at her. "Sorry if I disturbed you."
Tsunade waved off her concern and told her to take a seat. Tsunade opened her drawer and pulled out a manila file folder, she slid the folder towards Mizuki. The girl took the folder and opened it to see several sheets of papers. She looked through them as Tsunade explained more about the application process.
"I just need you to fill out those questions so we can find the best area of work for each successful applicant. If you pass the initial screening phase the second is a test. Either Shizune or myself will oversee the test which will require applicants to successfully perform 2 types of surgeries. If you are successful we will review the application information to make a final decision. Is that clear?"
"Yep!"
Tsunade smiled at the young woman. She had no doubt that Mizuki would pass with flying colours, afterall she did teach her all she knew. Tsunade remembered the meek little 20 year old that had joined her training program all those years ago. She was impressed by the girl's incredible chakra control and ability to learn quickly. The one thing that she needed to fix though was her confidence. One could not be a good medic if they weren't confident, their teammates and patients would suffer for it.
Over the years, Tsunade had kept up with Mizuki's progress. On the rare occasion that she went to Kiri, she would visit Mizuki at the hospital. On several occasions she had observed the young woman work without alerting her. She was proud to see she had evolved into a self-assured medic and was even more proud to learn that she had developed her own medical techniques. Since Mizuki hailed from Kiri, she had a natural affinity to water nature which was arguably one of the best for developing effective healing techniques.
When Tsunade heard from Kakashi that Mizuki had applied for citizenship, she knew that she had to give the girl a position. Her skill and passion for learning was simply too good to pass. The application was simply a formality and the test she was going to personally administer was to specifically make her use a new technique that Tsunade heard she had recently invented. She wanted to see the technique in use with her own eyes. The chief surgeon at the Kiri hospital had told Tsunade that the new technique would create a gel like substance that could replicate a person's veins, tendons, and nerves. The purpose was to temporarily reattach limbs of injured shinobis so they could be transported back to a major health unit for proper medical care. A jutsu like this would have shinobis greatly that have suffered complete or partial amputation on the battlefield.
When Tsunade heard about that, she was impressed. A technique like that was no easy feat to accomplish, which is why it was still not perfect. The test was really a way for Tsunade to observe the basic concept of it. She would later work with Mizuki to perfect the technique. During Tsunade's many years of travelling before taking her place as the Hokage, she had come across a small village near Bear country where a surgeon was attempting to do something similar to that. However, it was a complete failure because the jutsu had actually accelerated the decomposition of the limbs. They were better off just shoving the severed limb in ice and rushing the victim to a medical unit.
If this technique was a success, they would have to launch a massive training campaign to provide this new knowledge to medics from other countries. It only made sense that after their new alliances, knowledge this important had to be shared. Even if they were not close allies, it was her duty as a medic to help the greater good.
While Tsunade was musing about her young student, Mizuki had finished completing the application and handed it back to Tsunade. Tsunade grabbed the folders and flipped through the pages quickly to see if the application was completed properly.
"Great. Everything looks to be in order. I'll contact you once I have made a decision, I am waiting for the application deadline to close before Sakura, Shizune and I go through them. So, how are you settling in?" Tsunade asked, putting the application back in her drawer for later.
"Very good, actually, all my furniture just came in earlier today so I'm all settled in!"
Tsunade gave Mizuki a small smile. "I'm really glad you decided to come here, Mizu." Confessed Tsunade using the nickname she gave to Mizuki when they were alone.
"Me too, Tsuna." Replied Mizuki, using her nickname for her sensei, which she would never dare to use in public. If anyone outside of them heard Tsunade's nickname, she was sure her sensei would pummel the one who overheard it then pummel her for saying it in the first place.
"Well, now that that's all sorted I have to get back to work, Mizu. How about we meet up for lunch tomorrow and you can catch me up on all that I've missed?"
Mizuki nodded while picking up her purse. "I would love that! Should I come here?"
"Yes, come by around 12:30 and I'll take you to a favourite place of mine."
"Okay, see you tomorrow sensei."
"Have a nice night, Mizu." Said Tsunade getting back to her work. After the girl left her office she chuckled lightly to herself. It had been so long since she was the girl's teacher and even then it was only for a short time but the term had stuck, not that she was complaining.
Tsunade picked up her pen, thinking to herself how proud she was that all her favourite students grew up to be such wonderful and confident women. It felt akin to a mother seeing her baby girl growing up.