Naruko rubbed her eyes as she reluctantly sat up. She took a look over at the clock and saw that it really was just shy of 8 in the morning.
Naruko could help but let out a yawn. She hadn't had a very good sleep last night, and it had nothing to do with where she was sleeping or the quality of the futon.
Instead, the problem lay in her upcoming auction tonight. She could not help but worry, which stopped her from sleeping well.
Naruko was sure that she would have bags under her eyes and hoped that Medios wouldn't be too angry at her. Maybe she could get a nap during her spa session.
Naruko laid back down. She knew that she wouldn't be able to sleep again now that she had woken up, but she also couldn't do anything in case she woke Fujikaze Yukie up.
Naruko couldn't wait to get back and talk to Setsu. It felt like ages since she had seen her, but it had only been a day or two.
It dawned on Naruko that it would no doubt be a long time after today before she would see Setsu again.
Naruko pulled the bedding to her like a large body pillow feeling a little melancholy. In the last month, her life had changed many times, not that she regretted leaving the village.
She had been able to walk around serval villages and the capital of the country of fire, and she had done so without everyone sending her looks of loathing, hate or disgust.
Naruko was shocked at how much brighter and nicer her days felt without all those looks. The only person she missed was Teuchi-san, who was one of the only people to treat her nicely.
Naruko also guessed that some of the ninjas weren't that bad either, but it wasn't like they treated her well; they just ignored her. Which was only marginally better than looking at her as if she was evil incarnate.
"You are up early?" Fujikaze Yukie said making Naruko jump.
Naruko looked over at the bed to see Fujikaze Yukie yawning as she sat up.
"Nervous about tonight," Naruko said.
"Oh right," Fujikaze Yukie said, sounding embarrassed.
"You should get a shower. We only have an hour before you need to be on set," Naruko reminded.
"Right, of course," Fujikaze Yukie said, jumping out of bed.
"Can you get me some clothes out," Fujikaze Yukie asked as she walked into the washroom.
"Will do," Naruko said, getting out of the futon.
Naruko packed the futon away and pulled on her clothes from yesterday. They were still clean, as she had only really worn them for four or five hours.
Naruko walked over to the wardrobe and started looking through clothes. Naruko wasn't really sure about fashion, so she ended up picking clothes that were very similar to what Fujikaze Yukie had worn yesterday, just in different colours.
With the clothes placed out, Naruko stood and waited for Fujikaze Yukie to finish her shower. Thankfully Fujikaze Yukie either didn't like long showers or was rushing to get showered today.
As it only took her fifteen minutes before she was out of the shower and walking back into the room, drying herself off.
"Thank you," Fujikaze Yukie said, seeing the clothes on the bed.
Naruko was surprised at how fast Fujikaze Yukie got changed into the clothes, something that Fujikaze Yukie noticed.
"I will be getting changed into costume and having my make-up done on set," Fujikaze Yukie explained.
"Ah, that makes sense. You have everything?" Naruko asked.
Fujikaze Yukie took another look around her room and picked up her purse. "Yep, let's go."
Naruko nodded and took another look at the clock to see that it had just gone 1 minute past 9 leaving them an hour to get to the movie site.
"Is it far away?" Naruko asked.
"No, or I would have gotten a closer hotel. It's a ten-minute walk, maybe a bit longer," Fujikaze Yukie said.
"Okay," Naruko said as she started observing people around them.
Truthfully Naruko didn't have much training in bodyguarding and very little practice. The academy did have a few lessons on bodyguarding, but it was more for when you were escorting merchants, not famous or rich people.
But some of the things were still applicable, like keeping her eye out for people acting in a strange manner or people following them.
"Do you know your way back?" Fujikaze Yukie asked Naruko.
"Yes, we didn't go that far away, so I still remember the way back," Naruko said.
Once they arrived at the movie set, Fujikaze Yukie bid Naruko goodbye and said that she would see her at the auction tonight.
Naruko gave her a smile and said goodbye before jumping onto the roofs and quickly returning to Medios manor. Naruko jumped down and landed in front of the door.
As she went to open the door, it slid open with Alexia standing on the other side.
"Come on, we are short on time today," Alexia said, waving her into the manor.
"Sorry," Naruko said as she entered the manor.
Alexia led her through the manor, past her and Setsu's room, and into the changing room for the indoor bathroom.
"Right, get undressed. I will take your clothes away and just follow what the people in the room say," Alexia said to Naruko.
"Are you not coming with me?" Naruko asked nervously.
"I will be coming in and out, but I can't give you a spa treatment or any grooming," Alexia said as she motioned for Naruko to strip.
Naruko nodded, stripped down, and handed her clothes to Alexia, who left the room with them.
Naruko slid open the bathroom feeling apprehensive.
"Come on in," a soft and welcoming voice said, making Naruko step into the room.
Naruko was shocked to see five other girls in the room, and it took her a few seconds before she noticed that one of the girls was Setsu.
"Lady Medios thought you would feel more relaxed with your fried here," two of the girls said, walking over to Naruko.
Naruko couldn't help but smile at the thought that Medios had given for her.
"My name is Irina Nakama, and this is Airi Koniyuki, and we are responsible for your preparation today," Irina said, smiling warmly.
"Err, right, so what's first?" Naruko asked.
"First, we need to get rid of the hair," Irina said, looking at Naruko, making her blush in embarrassment.
"This way," Airi said, leading Naruko to the shower section.
"How was it being a bodyguard?" Setsu asked.
"It was okay, but I didn't think anything would happen in the capital of the country of fire," Naruko replied.
"Right, let's get your hair tied up so it's not affected by the treatment," Aria explained as she started to bunch Naruko's hair into a ball.
"Treatment?" Naruko asked.
"Most noble women use this cream as it's more effective than a razor and doesn't have the chance of cutting you," Irina said as she started to rub the cream up her legs.
Irina and Aria covered every nook and crease from her feet to her neck with the hair-removing cream before they took a step back.
"Right, stay like that for 4 or 5 minutes, and then we can wash it off," Irina said as they both washed the cream off their hands.
Naruko watched as Irina was getting some bottles from next to Setsu, and Airi was running the shower and checking the temperature of the water.
"You can wash her off now," Irina said to Airi.
Airi pointed the shower head at Naruko, and the cream immediately started to wash off, leaving her legs perfectly bare. Once all the cream was gone, Naruko had no hair below her neck at all.
"Come sit, and I will wash your hair," Airi said, patting at stool where she wanted Naruko to sit.
Naruko shifted, still getting used to the feeling of having no hair on her body at all but walked over to the stool and took a seat.
"Your hair is a really pretty colour," Airi said as she pulled it loose from the bun she had put it into.
"Really, almost everyone in my old village hated it," Naruko said, remembering the names people used to call her.
"Then they are stupid. It's a lovely colour," Airi said as she ran the shower head over her hair.
Naruko blushed but smiled at having her hair complimented. After all, it was something that she had gotten from her mother.
Airi started to rub a thick liquid into her hair and massage it into her scalp.
Naruko closed her eyes and relaxed, allowing herself to enjoy being pampered. Naruko wasn't sure how long she was sitting there enjoying her massage, but it was long enough for her to zone out.
And so, when Airi washed the shampoo out of their hair, she jumped quite notability. "Sorry, I should have warned you," Airi said, sounding a little embarrassed.
"It's okay. I shouldn't have zoned out like that," Naruko replied.
"Feel free to zone out. The entire point is to make you relaxed and beautiful for tonight," Irina said as she walked over.
"Right, let's get you clean, and then we can move on to giving you a full body massage," Irina said, motioning for her to stand up.
"Do you have a preferred scent?" Airi asked.
"Err, no, not really," Naruko said she had the money to be picky about the scent.
"How about something floral, then?" Airi asked.
"Sure," Naruko agreed.
Irina and Airi grabbed a sponge, lathered them with floral body wash, and started cleaning Naruko from head to toe. Then used, the showerhead to wash the body wash off.
"Okay, now we will use a body scrub, and then we have a body cream," Irina said, picking up a tub and taking a handful of the stuff inside before handing the tub to Airi.
Naruko jumped as Irina used the scrub on her back but did her best to not move around too much, even if the scrub was a little uncomfortable.
"Sorry, can't really warm it up," Irina said apologetically.
Both Irina and Airi scrubbed Naruko's body down with the scrub before washing the scrub off her body.
"Don't worry, the body cream will soothe your skin," Irina said, having noticed Naruko fidgeting.
"Do I have to use that often?" Naruko asked.
"No, you use it once a week anymore will make your skin over sensitive and cause irritation and redness, and you should use a body cream or butter after," Irina instructed.
"Right, let's get you dried off, and then we can do the body cream," Irina said as she picked up a soft towel and gently dried Naruko off.
"Right, lay on the table face down, and we will start with the body cream," Irina said as she left to put the towels into the washing basket.
Naruko walked over to the table next to Setsu and lay down on it. Thankfully, it wasn't cold and was comfortable and had a cut out for her face so that she could lay completely flat.
"This is going to be cold," Airi warned.
Naruko did her best not to jump as she felt Airi start to rub the cold body cream into her legs. At some point, Irina came back and started rubbing the cream into her back.
Naruko decided she would just relax and enjoy the massage and closed her eyes. The two women didn't seem in a rush and spent a long time rubbing the body cream into every part of her back.
"Please turn over," Irina said, breaking Naruko out of the relaxed trance she was in.
Naruko let out a sigh and turned around, keeping her eyes closed.
"I will apply a face mask, and then you can relax for the next few hours," Irina promised as she started to cover Naruko's face in a thick cold paste.
"You sure im not going to look like a swamp monster? I do want someone to buy me tonight," Naruko asked.
"I promise your skin will look and feel amazing," Irina promised.
Naruko relaxed. It wasn't like she could refuse after all, and she doubted that Medios would lower the chances of her selling.
"Just someone and not a certain person?" Setsu teased.
"Oh, does she have her eyes set on someone?" Airi asked.
"So I have heard. So spill Naruko," Setsu asked.
"I spent yesterday morning with Lady Yoruichi and her brother Yūshirō and the afternoon with Fujikaze Yukie," Naruko replied.
"The recently famous actress?" Airi asked excitedly.
"Yes," Naruko replied.
"Did you get an autograph?" Airi asked.
"No, it didn't really cross my mind to ask for one," Naruko said, a little embarrassed.
"Aww," Airi said, disappointed.
Naruko jumped as she felt Airi's hands run up her belly and brush her breasts. She was glad that she was wearing a face mask, and they wouldn't be able to see her blush.
"Right, all done. We will see you both in an hour," Irina said.
"See you in an hour," Setsu said as Naruko heard her make herself comfortable.
"Have you been meeting anyone?" Naruko asked Setsu.
"Nope, Mistress said I won't be sold for a while yet. You got Kunoichi lessons at the academy and learned most of what a concubine or wife of a noble would be expected to know," Setsu explained.
"What do you need to learn?" Naruko asked.
"Flower arrangement, tea ceremony, noble culture and behaviour," Setsu said.
"I don't really know that last two," Naruko said, a little embarrassed as she didn't really pay attention to the Kunoichi lessons.
"You are being sold as a ninja or bodyguard, though," Setsu shot back.
"I guess so, but I think I will still be Yūshirō's Concubine, though," Naruko said.
"Lady Yoruichi seems really laid back, so I doubt it will matter, and you can still learn," Setsu said.
"Do you think we will see each other again after today?" Naruko asked quietly.
"I don't know. I hope we will," Setsu said, sounding upset.
Naruko fell quiet already, feeling sad.
"Right, let's get that mask off," Irina said as she walked back into the washroom.
Naruko yawned and blinked as she got used to the lights again.
"Did you have a nice nap?" Irina asked.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep," Naruko said, stretching.
"No problem, at least you won't look sleepy during the auction," Irina said cheerfully.
"Right, come with me, and we will see what Mistress has picked out for you to wear and do your make-up," Irina said, helping Naruko to her feet.
"What time is it?" Naruko asked.
"Three in the afternoon. The auction starts at 5 and lasts till 7," Irina explained.
"Is it normally so short?" Naruko asked.
"It is when it's slaves for nobles. Slaves for nobles are very expensive, so most don't meet the grade. You will probably be the most expensive due to being able to be a bodyguard."
Naruko followed Irina out of the washroom and into the corridor. They walked a short distance to another room and entered it. NAruko was glad to see that there weren't many people in the room.
Just Airi, another girl she hadn't seen before and Medios.
"Mistress," Irina said, bowing, which Naruko copied a second later.
"Right, let's get her clothes picked out, and then we can do her make-up and be on our way to the auction," Medios commanded.
"What type of clothing will I be wearing?" Naruko asked.
"A Furisode. I have lots of designs, so we will be able to find one that works for you," Medios said, gesturing for Naruko to take a seat in the only free chair.
Naruko watched, shocked, as the girls went about pulling out many different kimonos, all with different styles and patterns. Naruko had never seen so many before.
Naruko sat there as the girls would hold the kimonos next to Naruko for Medios to judge, and soon there was a small pile of possibles and a larger pile of rejected styles and colours.
"Do we have time to try them all on?" Naruko asked.
"No hold them up again over her body," Medios said, gesturing for Naruko to stand.
"Hmm, try the floral ones," Medios commanded.
The girls picked up the three kimonos and held them out for Medious to inspect.
"What do you think, Naruko?" Medios asked.
The girls turned around to show them to Naruko.
Naruko at the one on the far left and ruled it out. It was too bright for her tastes, and the one in the middle didn't really catch her eye either, with the pattern seeming too busy.
"I like the far left. It's still simple but eye-catching with the sakura flowers," Naruko suggested.
"Okay, let's try that one on and see how it looks," Medios commanded.
The girls nodded, and two of the girls started putting the tabi socks on her feet as the last girl picked up the Susoyoke and passed them to one of the girls who had finished putting the socks on her feet.
Naruko then stepped into the Susoyoke as the other girl guided Naruko's arms through the hadajuban. Naruko did her best to stay as still as possible, knowing how many steps were involved in wearing a kimono.
It took the girls dressing her another ten minutes before they had gotten all the preparation clothing on Naruko and perfectly aligned before they picked up the actual Kimono.
Naruko let out a sigh as she slipped her arms through the Kimono, and the girls centred the collar seams. Soon she was tightly wrapped in the Kimono, and one of the girls was wrapping the obi sash around her waist and tieing it in place.
"Hmm can you spin around," Medios asked Naruko.
Naruko nodded and slowly turned around, letting Medios get a good look from all sides.
"It looked very nice on you. Right make-up and hair, and then we can be off," Medios commanded.
Naruko sat back down as Irina went to work applying make-up to her face as the other two girls styled her hair and added a large white flower.
"Done?" Naruko asked.
"Yes, let's go," Medios said, standing up.
Naruko stood up and gave the three girls a polite bow, and walked behind Medios.
Medios led their way out of the manor and into a wheelhouse that was far more eye-catching than the one they had rode in from the village hidden in the leaf to the capital.
"Right, let me give you a rundown on how the auction will go," Medios said, taking a seat.
Naruko took the seat across from Medios and paid attention to what Medios was about to tell her.
"The auction will start with the girls walking onto the stage, and the auctioneer will describe each girl and their origins. Then they will list the girl's skills and a ranking from poor to expert.
As this is being explained, pay attention to your behaviour and demeanour as the buyers will be watching you, and if you look distracted or uninterested, they will not look well on it," Medios explained.
"Okay, I can do that. Anything else?" Naruko asked.
"You may be asked to do the clone jutsu to prove you have some ninja training, but that should be all. Then people will start bidding on you."
"What happens after the auction?" Naruko asked.
"After the slave seal around your neck will be transferred to your new owner, and you will go back to their home," Medios said.
Naruko nodded as she looked out the window.
As they drove along, Naruko could feel the worry building in her chest, and she started having a hard time sitting still. She was also worried that some stranger would end up buying her even though Lady Yoruichi had promised that she would buy her.
The wheelhouse soon came to a large stone building with a sign saying auction house on it. It was very none descript and didn't have the word slave anywhere.
Then again, maybe it sold lots of different things and not just people.
It thankfully didn't seem very busy, with only ten or so people standing outside.
"Right, let's go in. We managed to get here a little early, thankfully," Medios said, stepping out of the wheelhouse.
Naruko noticed that as they stepped out of the wheelhouse, the people outside the auction started paying attention to them. Most seemed to get bored or not find what they were looking for and went back to whatever it was they were doing before.
Naruko followed behind Medios as they entered the auction house. Instead of walking up to the reception, Medios walked over to a small desk to the side.
"Medios, it's been a while since I have seen you." the man at the desk said, greeting Medios.
"Oh, new merchandise?" the man asked, seeing Naruko standing behind her.
Naruko felt her eye twitching at the disgusting way the man said and looked at her.
"Ya, here is her sale information," Medios said, handing over a file to the man at the desk.
"Okay, go in back," the man said, waving Medios though as he looked through the fine that Medios had given him.
Naruko quickly followed Medios, not wanting to be near that man for any longer than she had to be. The back room was thankfully quite nice, with comfortable-looking seats and tables with some snacks on them.
It also seemed that she wasn't the only one for sale today as there were another 5 girls in the room dressed in kimonos and around her age or just a bit older.
"Take a seat with the other girls while we wait. It shouldn't be too long before the auction starts," Medios said, giving her a push towards the other girls all sharing a table.
Naruko took a nervous swallow and walked over to the table before taking a seat as gracefully as she could.
It was easy for Naruko to see that the other girls were very nervous. Most of them were picking at the snacks but not really eating, and none of them were talking to each other.
Naruko thought about trying to talk to them but seeing how nervous they were, she just leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes, waiting for the auction.
The wait felt like years, but Naruko knew that it was less than an hour, maybe only half an hour. Not that the wait helped the other girls calm down.
In fact, as time went on, the worse they seemed to get, with most of them tapping their feet in worry.
Medios walked over to Naruko. "Come on."
Naruko got to her feet, as did the other girls, who all followed behind what she guessed were their owners.
"We are last to go, so just watch what the other girls do," Medios whispered into Naruko's ear.
One by one, the other girls were called onto the stage. Naruko found herself tuning out the voices as she watched. It wasn't till people started biding that Naruko started listening again.
The first girl sold for 90,000 Ryo, an amount of money that shocked Naruko. She had never had seen more than 1000 Ryo at any one time before.
"You will sell for far more her only good selling point was that she was proficient in dancing," Medios whispered.
Naruko looked up at Medios disbelievingly.
The next girl sold for slightly more at 110,000 Ryo, and the two girls after that was around the same, with the max being 180,000 Ryo.
Naruko took a deep breath, calming herself down, knowing that she was next to be called onto the stage.
Naruko tried looking into the crowd to see if she could see Lady Yoruichi and her brother Yūshirō or Fujikaze Yukie, but the bright lights pointing at the stage made it a pointless endeavour.
"And last, we have Naruko Uzumaki," hearing her name Naruko walked onto the stage, her heart beating out of her chest.
As Naruko walked into the stage, she was surprised at how many people were in the audience. It was like a sea of faces, and all of them meshed together.
"Young Naruko here is 12 years old and has a good grade in cooking, tea making and flower arrangement and a passable grade in dancing," the announcer read out, gaining her attention.
"She also has a large amount of chakra and knows the basic three ninjutsu. Miss Naruko can you show the clone jutsu, please," the announcer asked.
Naruko nodded and performed the seals for the clone jutsu, and in a poof of smoke, another identical clone of Naruko appeared next to her.
Naruko tried to listen to what the people in the crowd were saying, but it all sounded very distant.
"The starting bid will be 200,000 Ryo. Do I have any takers?" the auctioneer asked.
Naruko did her best to not let the shock show on her face at the starting price.
"Okay, number 12. Do I have anyone for 210,000?" the auctioneer asked.
Naruko stood there as the price slowly raised as many people were bidding for her.
Soon the bidding calmed down and seemed to be between three people.
"Okay, I have 310,000. Anyone for 320?"
"I have 350,000 with number 12. Anyone for 360?" the auctioneer asked.
"No? Okay, then sold to number 12."
With the last sale done, Naruko walked to the back room to Medios.
"350,000 may be the biggest sale in the month," Medios said, giving Naruko a warm hug.
"What now?" Naruko asked.
"Now we meet your buyer," Medios said as she led Naruko out of the back room and into a nice room.
Naruko took a seat nervously, waiting for the person who bought her to walk through the door. And when they did, Naruko hoped it would be Lady Yoruichi and Yūshirō or Fujikaze Yukie.
But she wasn't sure if either of them had 350,000 Ryo on them to have been the ones to buy her.
Naruko wasn't waiting long as her head and eyes snapped to the door as she heard someone opening it.
The moment Naruko saw them, she burst into a large smile.
Lady Yoruichi and Yūshirō walked through the door, looking pleased.
"Oh, it seems your little concubine is happy to see you," Lady Yoruichi teased her brother.
Yūshirō blushed but had a small smile on his face as well.
"Lady Yoruichi," Medios greeted.
Behind Lady Yoruichi and her brother, a man wearing the auction house uniform walked into the room and closed the door.
"You have brought the slave contract, correct?" the man asked Medios.
"Of course, this isn't my first time," Medios said, pulling a scroll out.
"Excellent, this is the banknote minus our fee, of course," the man said, handing it over to Medios.
"Come here Naruko," Medios called.
Naruko stood up, a little confused, and walked over to Medios.
Medios pulled out a slip of paper that looked like the same one she used to apply the slave seal around her neck.
"Kneel for me," Medios asked, and Naruko did so.
Medios pressed the slip of paper on the slave seal around her neck and applied chakra. Naruko gasped as she felt like ice had been poured down her neck and squirmed.
A few seconds later, the ice-cold feeling faded, and Naruko shivered, feeling cold.
"Do you have a slave seal, or do you wish to buy one?" the man asked Lady Yoruichi.
"We have one write the receipt, and you can leave," Lady Yoruichi said.
The man seemed surprised. "You sure if she runs away, then we are not liable," the man reminded Lady Yoruichi.
"The receipt," Lady Yoruichi said again, holding out her hand.
The man just nodded and wrote out the receipt, and had both Lady Yoruichi and Medios sign it before standing up and leaving the room.
"These are for Naruko. They contain basic seals and information on the bloodline abilities of the Uzumaki," Medios said, handing over a sealed scroll.
"Thank you. Next time you are in the land or Iron, let me know, and I will host you," Lady Yoruichi said, smiling.
"Right, I must be off. It was nice doing business with you again, Lady Yoruichi," Medios said, standing up.
"I hope you enjoy your new life Naruko," Medios said as she walked past the still-kneeling girl and leaned down, giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead.
Naruko still had a happy smile on her face.
"I will thank you, Lady Medios," Naruko said thankfully.
Medios gave Naruko one last smile before she left the room and closed the door behind her.