"Kameko." Jun poked his head into the room she was staying in. "Do you have plans to attend the festival? I hear that people are supposed to dress in traditional clothing. You know, yukatas and the like."

She looked up from the book in her lap. She hadn't originally intended to go to the festival, but after having been invited to attend by the Hokage, she couldn't seem to find a reason not to go. It would been seen as rude at this point if she didn't.

"Is that so?" She asked. She looked at the page of her book one last time and closed it, deciding that there was no point in continuing reading it at the moment. "I don't have a yukata, only traveling clothes." Perhaps they should go out to buy one? She didn't want to look so… foreign if she was to attend the festival.

"Ah! There is where you're in luck. Here, catch." Jun tossed the gently wrapped package he had carried in with him. Kameko looked at him, puzzled as to what this could be for. "Happy birthday, Kameko. We're going to have fun at the festival." With that, Jun took his leave.

She shook her head at her own self. She never forgot her birthday, she just didn't feel the need to bring it up when it came around. It was silly of Jun to get her something, she was only turning fifteen, nothing to celebrate. She could only assume that it was a yukata, basing off of the conversation they just had. Shrugging, she opened the package.

The yukata was floral patterned like most of them. The background color was black with flowers of varying species and shades of pink cluttered on it. The obi that would accompany the outfit was a darker shade of pink, matching the shadows in some of the flowers. Simple, like her. Jun was being considerate, not getting her a yukata that shared any colors with her mismatched eyes; she definitely would have refused to go then.

She decided to read her book again. Tomorrow was still quite some time away.

She had never worn a yukata before. She had no idea how she was supposed to put one on. But who could she ask for help?

It was to her fortune that Jun stopped by to see her when she was standing around with the formal wear, trying to figure out how to put it on properly.

"I thought you might need help," he said from the doorway. He had already gotten his own Yukata on. It was a simple charcoal gray, no noticeable patterns on it. The obi he had on was simply a sky blue, a nice contrast to the dark gray. "The woman at the shop showed me how to properly put it on, let me help."

Jun was a fast learner, he always had been. She always envied him for that, even though she had always been ahead of him with most things in her life. With deft hands he helped her put the yukata on, sliding her arms through the sleeves and adjusting the length to match her height. He then tucked the right side of the garment in, holding it in place while wrapping the left side over it. Holding the cloth in place, he took one of the koshi-himo from his mouth and tightly tied the loose garment in place. He adjusted the bulky cloth, then tied the second koshi-himo, looser this time.

"I need you to turn around," he said as he picked up the obi still laying on the bed. She turned for him and he wrapped the obi around her twice, making sure the himo ends were poking through, and tied the obi into a traditional bow. "I don't know how to make it fancy, but at least it's done, right?" She turned back around to face him and gave him a smile and a nod.

"Thank you, Jun." He just nodded a 'you're welcome' and left her to do what she needed.

She slid into the traditional shoes and did her hair up as best as she could. It wasn't magnificent, but it would do.

"Lady Hokage, it's a pleasure to meet you," Isao greeted himself to the woman, dressed in her light grey and dark green yukata. Isao himself had simply settled for black, including his obi. They had run into Tsunade at the festival, followed by her assistant Shizune, also adorning a black yukata, but with a purple obi tied around her waist. Kameko wasn't too fond of the color, but kept her tongue on the subject. "And what an honor it is to be able to partake in this joyous time of year. The festival is beautiful."

Isao was commonly known for flattering everyone that he met, but he wasn't lying when he said that the festival grounds were beautiful. Paper lanterns of many colors were strung up over the town, stalls lined the streets with games and food and everything in between. Kameko didn't think that she would have time to visit everything even with the three days she had to enjoy the festival.

"Thank you, Sir Isao. All of the villagers here and myself pride in this festival, even the Suna residents who visit us for this event are proud of it and the bond it grows every year." Tsunade was like many of the people back at her home, straight to the point and open. Her feelings were still mixed about that. "If you would allow your students to venture on their own, I have a few matters I wish to discuss."

Isao turned to the two and nodded, signaling for them to do as they pleased. "Meet back at the inn. Don't stay out later than you know would make me worry." With that said, he joined the two women and began to walk down the street.

Jun looked around excitedly, not sure what to pick first. He then looked at her, seeing if she had any preference. All she did was smile and shrug, allowing him to drag her along to the nearest food stand to taste whatever goodies they had.

It wasn't long after they had been left alone that a girl came to them. Her hair was short and pink, pinned back with accessories to look more formal for the festival. Her yukata was a creamy yellow with cherry blossom branches decorating it.

"Excuse me, would you happen to be Isao-sensei's students?" She smiled a friendly smile to the pair as they nodded. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I'm a student under Lady Tsunade, she asked me to show you two around the village for the festival. You must be Kameko," she said, offering her hand as a greeting.

Kameko shook hands with her and mumbled out a 'yes' before the girl introduced herself to Jun.

"It's funny," she started. They had walked down the road, leading to a place called Ichiraku Ramen. She said her teammate enjoyed going there often when he was still here. Like Kameko and Jun, he was also on a journey learning new things from his master. "Lady Tsunade told me that you were related, but your eyes are different colors." She turned to face them, lifting a questioning brow. "It's not uncommon for relatives to have different eye colors… but from what I understand your bloodline only has red as the natural eye color."

Kameko decided that the girl was too curious about things. She just looked away, trying to keep her face out of Sakura's eyesight, ashamed of the deformity. Jun glanced at her from the corner of his eye then addressed Sakura's question.

"While that's true, this subject is a… sensitive one. Neither of us would be comfortable discussing it. My apologies." He dipped a small bow before speaking again. "Is this the place you wanted to bring us?" He looked at the small building, taking in its features.

"Oh no, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have asked something like that."

She wasn't sure if Sakura had continued speaking or not. She and Jun had walked through the open doorway while she stayed behind. She was embarrassed now, she didn't want to be around the girl any longer, and so she went on her way to find some other activity to do.

She heard of him again when she ventured to a pond near the village. It was quiet over here, away from all of the noise and the villagers. More importantly, away from the questions. She was only easy with being asked questions by those she felt deserved to ask them.

She sat by the water's edge, not too concerned about whether or not she would get her yukata wet. She didn't plan on attending either of the two remaining days of the festival. It was no fun to her after the first time, which wasn't such a success in the first place. Reflective surfaces weren't always the best option to stare at for members of her clan, but sometimes it was preferred when they wanted to be alone in a sense.

She was just starting to lose focus of her surroundings and begin the trance when she heard the talking.

"It's a shame he decided to not come with us."

"I know. I really think he would have enjoyed it."

She had only heard the voices for the first time yesterday, but they were easily recognizable in the quiet of the night.

"Do you think he'll come tomorrow?"

There was a pause before the girl's voice responded. "I doubt it. He's trying, but it's still hard for him."

She shouldn't be hearing this conversation, she decided. She stood up, fully prepared to return to the village with the blaring sights and sounds. The pair of siblings, however, spotted her when she stood.

"Hey, it's that girl from the meeting."

"She has a name, Kankuro."

"I know that."

"Then act like it." Temari slapped his shoulder, nudging his yukata loose. Her yukata was a lavender, covered in a smoky effect to give it more depth, the obi a plain white. Kankuro's was a dark blue, plain and simple, with a black obi.

"Now I have to readjust it…" he complained.

"Kameko," Temari called out.

She paused and looked at the pair. "Yes?" She replied.

"What are you doing out here by yourself? Aren't you worried about being alone?" Temari seemed to be acting as a stand in older sister for her. All Kameko could answer with was a shake of her head. "Well, why don't you walk with us for a bit? We can get to know each other some, that way we can welcome you more warmly when you come to visit our home."

It didn't take long for Kameko to figure out who did most of the negotiating. She herself couldn't see anything wrong with taking a walk with the siblings. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt."

She returned to her room early that night. Isao and Jun had yet to return, but she was drained of energy and so needed to return. The Temari and her brother Kakuro had treated her to some dango and asked numerous questions.

What's your village like? Do you get many visitors? What about your family? Tell us about them!

They too had been informed about her family's bloodline carrying the red eye trait, the trait that signified that they were born with the kekkei genkai. The one that turned the color deeper and colder, transforming the blood red to deep purple when activated.

When they asked about that was when she had decided that she was tired and needed rest. She politely thanked them for the food, repaying them the spent money, and departed their company.

She fell asleep quickly that night, not bothering to wait for her companions to return.