Shikaruto stepped off of the boat, which was now docked in the harbour of Kaminari no Kuni. Walking down the wooden pier, he almost jumped as his feet first touched the ground of the Lightning Country. Even the earth felt different here; it was more hard, and unforgiving. The first thing Shikaruto noticed was that the sun was shining. So much for the extreme weather, he thought bitterly to himself, annoyed somewhat that there wasn’t a thunderstorm raging on, like he had expected. The Lightning Country was not without it’s positives, however. The coastline was jagged and beautiful, and there were numerous rivers connecting to the ocean, as far as Shikaruto could see. Over the horizon, Shikaruto could see mountain ranges of varying heights. Some of the mountains were snow peaked and others were not. Despite the sunshine, it was a little chilly by the coast, so Shikaruto wanted to set off as soon as possible.

He started to walk down the path away from the pier without a word, hoping his teammate would follow him. They were headed towards that treacherous mountain range over the horizon, for they were going to have to pass through it if they wanted to reach Kumogakure no Sato. This was the part of the journey Shikaruto had not been looking forward to. There wasn’t enough interesting environment to distract him from the walk, and he got the feeling Matsunaka wouldn’t exactly want to kill time with him either. As they trekked through the mountains, all Shikaruto could think about was reaching the village. They walked for hours, sticking tightly to the trail so they wouldn't get lost in the unfamiliar country, until finally they came across a single path, which spanned across a large drop to the bottom of the mountains. Shikaruto peered over the edge, and saw the fall was about one hundred metres, and the path itself was only around three metres wide, with no barricades on either side, to protect them from falling. This was not a welcoming entrance to the village. Not that he had expected one.

After a moment of hesitation, Shikaruto began to cross the narrow path, which was about fifty metres in length. He didn't want Matsunaka to think he was scared, so he avoided looking at how close he was to the edge. On the other side, he could already see a number of Kumogakure shinobi, who were obviously standing guard over the village. Keeping his gaze friendly, he made eye contact with them as he finished crossing the suspended path, trying hard not to look down, so he wouldn’t get the horribly shaky feeling of vertigo. Once he had crossed the path, Shikaruto noticed that the village gates were the highest point of Kumogakure no Sato. Behind the Kumogakure shinobi, Shikaruto noticed a small crack within the mountain face, which looked like a rather uncomfortable entrance to the village. Shikaruto turned his attention to the village shinobi which were stood in front of him. The gates to the village were open, so Shikaruto assumed the shinobi must have seen him coming and known why he and Matsunaka were there.

As he further analysed the situation in front of him, he saw that one of the female shinobi was in fact from Kirigakure no Sato, as her headband hung loosely from her right wrist gave her away. Her legs were covered in thin black sheer, which hugged her body. She wore a loose blouse on her top half and had a golden sash tied elegantly around her waist, framing her hips and her legs. The sash itself fell behind her, hemmed and embroidered with golden threads sewn into elegant designs and symbols. Golden embroidery hugged her sides etching down her curves, over her bust before meeting at the small of her back, which was exposing, showing the small concave of her spine. There was a black tattoo on her shoulder and a singular scar which dragged down her side like a perfect seam. Apart from these two features, the rest of her soft, pale skin was flawless. Her hair was snowy white and fell just past her shoulder blades, with a single scarlet bead fixed in it while her short bands were parted by a zigzag pattern along her scalp; a signature trait of the Kaguya clan. She had scarlet dots upon her forehead as well as scarlet eyeliner around her dual toned eyes, one a vibrant blue and the other a deep shade of green. Shikaruto also noticed that she had piercing holes in both her ears and nose. The kunoichi of Kirigakure’s gaze was fixed upon a Kumogakure shinobi, who seemed to have just greeted her.

The Kumogakure shinobi looked awkward as he rubbed his neck, standing in front of the Kirigakure kunoichi who obviously surpassed him in years. This shinobi, unlike the Kirigakure kunoichi, wore loose clothing and his pale skin was almost indistinguishable from the white bandages that were wrapped around his body. The two shinobi looked very similar, as the Kumogakure ninja also had white hair, pushed back by his Kumogakure forehead protector, and red markings on his forehead and eyelids. He also had a similar tattoo upon his chest, although the ink was a different colour. It was obvious just from looking at them that these two shinobi were from the same bloodline, despite the difference in Hidden Villages. Behind the Kumogakure shinobi stood another kunoichi, also from the Village Hidden in the Clouds. She seemed to be watching the interaction through her aqua eyes with interest, although Shikaruto couldn’t tell for sure. The black dress she wore squeezed her figure in all the right ways, and her legs were covered with long socks which reached her mid thigh. She also had white hair, with a red rose protruding from it. Does everybody around here have white hair? Shikaruto thought incredulously to himself.

Scattered around the scene were also several Kumogakure shinobi, stood by their posts. They seemed to be watching the meeting unfolding before them with an air of interest, yet professionalism. Shikaruto analysed all the information presented to him in a few moments, allowing himself to enter the area without a word, not wanting to interrupt. He would wait for one of the shinobi to engage him first. The two older women looked to be much more experience shinobi and Shikaruto knew that as one of two Genin representing Konohagakure no Sato, he had to be on his best behaviour.

Matsunaka remained behind Shikaruto as they waited for the others to acknowledge their presence, although Tetsu walked ahead of him and kept flank with Shikaruto himself. Unsure of how to take such a change in relationship, Shikaruto ignored it. He watched the Kirigakure Jounin with specific interest, as she seemed unsure how to react to the Kumogakure Genin’s behaviour. He seemed nervous, but upfront. Shikaruto could easily identify with her, as it was easy to not feel like oneself, especially when so far away from home. “Yes, it’s a pleasure,” she smiled, before turning to face Shikaruto and Matsunaka. Her eyes lingered over them both for a moment, then she stepped back a few paces, integrating herself with the Kumo shinobi. Her gaze still fixed upon them, Shikaruto noticed that she paid specific interest to Matsunaka, which didn’t surprise him, considering they were clan mates, after all. She reached up and rubbed the back of her head, before addressing them.

“You must be from Konoha,” she stated, her voice calm and steady. The younger Kumogakure shinobi looked from Tsurino to Shikaruto and Matsunaka. He squinted his eyes, then walked over to them, a spring in his step. “From Konoha?” he repeated, his eyes alight with childlike curiosity. As he reached them both, the Kumogakure shinobi shook Shikaruto’s hand. “Munenori Kaguya, at your service.” He introduced himself by his forename first, Shikaruto thought to himself. Maybe the way we do it is habitual of Konoha? Leaving these thoughts for later, watched as Munenori greeted Matsunaka, impressed by the distance they had travelled to be there. Munenori fixed his clothing with a smile on his face, before returning to stand with the others.

“Tsurino, Kaguya,” the Kirigakure shinobi introduced herself, and Shikaruto found it odd how she also spoke her first name before her last. “I am glad we all have seemed to arrive at the same moment.” she added, before folding her arms across her chest. As silence descended upon the group for the first time, Shikaruto sensed movement from behind him, that was too far away to be Matsunaka or Tetsu. Turning around, he saw Yoroi approaching from across the bridge, easily identifiable by his turquoise hair and red markings underneath his eyes. Unlike the last time Shikaruto had met him, Yoroi was wearing some sort of fur coat which covered his body almost entirely. He walked across the bridge and straight past his fellow Konoha Genin without so much as a glance at them, but it was obvious from his rigid expression that he had noticed them. Wondering what he could have done to upset Yoroi since their last encounter, Shikaruto didn’t greet him, but instead watched as he approached Tsurino. “Excuse me, but did you say that you were from the Kaguya clan of Kirigakure?”

The change in Tsurino’s stance was almost immediate. Yoroi’s voice seemed calm, but Shikaruto could tell he was trying too hard to mask some hidden emotion of anger. Even from behind, Shikaruto could see how tense Yoroi was. Tsurino’s tone changed as she replied, “Yes, that is correct.” she said, her voice more formal and a lot less welcoming than it had been before. “Who are you? And where are you from?” Tsurino asked bluntly in return, sounding icy. Before Yoroi could respond, Munenori broke the tension in the atmosphere by complimenting Yoroi on his outfit, “You know, that’s a pretty cool helmet you got there. So cool looking. But, yeah. Come on...” He trailed off, realising his babble was probably not appropriate for such a formal gathering of clans. Munenori winced in pain as he pulled a bandage up on his arm that was slowly slipping down his skin. He tried to cover the pain, but Shikaruto could still see it.

“I am sorry for breaking up this little...” The Kumogakure kunoichi’s voice hesitated for a moment, as if she were not pleased to have so many foreign ninja in her village. “Family reunion, but I would like to have your attention please!” Shikaruto eyes fixed upon the older Kumogakure Jounin as her eyes pierced every figure before her, even those of her fellow shinobi. “I see that luckily all of you have arrived safely, which is good news. Welcome to Kumogakure; I’m sure we’re all aware of the purpose of your visit, so I won’t dwell on that too much. However, I will make it clear that should any problems arise, the instigator will be dealt with swiftly and harshly.” Shikaruto could almost feel the weight of the threat in her voice, and he knew this was not a woman to be messed with. He shifted nervously on his feet as she continued. “I will be accompanying Lady Tsurino around the village, as a foreign Jounin deserves to be hosted correctly.” Shikaruto wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but he left it for analysing later, as simply too much was happening right at that moment. “Other than that, have fun!” The kunoichi said, tilting her neck at them all.

Shikaruto sighed a breath of relief, now that the threat had passed, although its intentions still lingered in the air. He watched as the two kunoichi conversed, the Kumogakure-kin pulling back her hair as she spoke. Munenori smiled and clapped his hands together while he rolled his shoulders, pulling all attention on to him, which was unusual for a shinobi of his age. “Alright. If the Kaguya members would follow me... I will be your...” he paused, obviously searching for the correct word to use. “Escort-like person throughout the time you spend here. And if you have any questions; want to know where to eat good grub, where the training area is; I’m your guy!” Munenori turned and walked into Kumogakure no Sato through the gates and there was a lot of movement. Unsure of what to do, the Kumogakure kunoichi was Shikaruto’s saving grace, as she approached him and said, “Your clan member will be meeting you later, I do recall him telling me. So don’t feel too bad, alright?” She winked at him and patted Shikaruto’s head softly, then turned and walked off after Munenori.

With all the Kaguya gone and the Kumogakure kunoichi gone, Shikaruto was left alone at the gates of Kumogakure, with only the village guards for company. Unsure of what to do, he walked up to the gates of Kumogakure and waited there, sure that the village guards would approach him and tell him what to do next, or his fellow clan member would come to collect him. Shikaruto wasn’t best pleased that he was the odd one out, but there wasn’t much he could do, except wait patiently to be saved from such embarrassment.

Topic Exit~