Open Shenanigans? Perhaps. Maybe, even.

[Shinrya Kitsune]

Like most other days, Kitsune had been deeply occupied with handling paperwork and boring meetings that were necessary to keep the bureaucracy of the country running, and in turn, the country itself running. But now, she was off duty, well, as off duty as one could be as the leader of a country anyway, and she had decided to head into the entertainment district and potentially find herself something to eat, maybe catch a movie in one of the cinemas, or perhaps some live entertainment. She hadn’t decided yet, so who knew what the afternoon, evening, and night ahead of her held in store.

Maybe she’d shoot a message to Rei about that dinner Kitsune’d offered a while back. Though Rei might be as busy as Kitsune, what with the recent restructuring of the Main Branch she’d proposed and that Kitsune had greenlit. Eh, what’s the worst that could happen, Kitsune decided, and used her new electronic eye to quickly type out a text detailing what she was up to, her location, and asking if she wanted to join up, and send it to Rei. In the meantime, hm. Window shopping perhaps? Yeah. Window shopping sounded nice right about now.

So Kitsune found one of the high-end clothes retailers located in the entertainment district, and decided to go browsing their collections, although for suits she’d never pick something off the peg. Always bespoke. And she’d always pick Oxfords, over Brogues, but when she wanted something comfortable, she’d probably pick a pair of formal looking slip-ons., because let’s be honest here, who has the time for laces, right? After a while of browsing, and some shopping which she had sent to her mansion, she was once again back outside in the clear midday light, considering her next point of action.

 

[Tamashi Seto]

After that little incident at the pharmacy, he and his seven feet tall bodyguard, Sunako went on their way. His first thought was to return home of course, to give the antibiotic's to his second eldest sister, but the more he walked through the crowded streets of Kumogakure with his intimidating bodyguard, he soon found himself attracted to the entertainment district after getting one of his bright idea's, to buy his fiancé a new kimono. Like him, she was nobility, so she could effortlessly buy a kimono If she wanted, but for some reason, perhaps out of love or something, he could never be entirely sure with women, he knew she absolutely loved it when he surprised her with a gift. She was always pudding in his hands when he did something like this for her, not that he minded, though It did always make him wonder why a female samurai in training would want feminine things in the first place. He waved away those thoughts from his mind however. No point in pondering things he may never understand. Upon arriving to the shopping segment of the entertainment district, he came to the decision to get Shizu a white kimono after remembering her fondness for tea ceremonies, but he wasn't sure entirely what clothing store to go into, especially for women. He had only spent a year in the village in his entire life and that was almost entirely spent on the academy before graduating. That essentially made him a out of touch outsider by all means but he didn't mind. There was always Sunako he could ask, but considering she was always wearing her body fit, black suit and her thigh high, black colored combat boots, he very well doubted she knew anything about femininity or fashion for normal women. As he began to window shop, gazing into the countless windows for anything promising with his towering bodyguard at his side, the thought of asking Yui and her family to make him a kimono did come to mind since they were renown tailors within his clan, but he feared they would take too long to sow something special for him, so he dismissed the thought from his mind.

Regardless, amongst his search for something worthy of his Shizu, he eventually found himself ready to give up when someone of interest peered into his sight from the edge of his eyes. That lithe build, those deep purple eyes, their beautiful, red hair, and that form fitting suit, his eyes widen in disbelief. He couldn't believe it, It was Lady Raikage herself. For a moment, he froze in place, his crimson eyes taking a glimpse from afar. Never in his wildest dreams had he ever thought he would meet the Raikage, let alone in a place such as this. He had heard many stories from his eldest sister and the numerous clan veterans, portraying her as a brave protector of the village, but those stories didn't do her justice. Not only was she strong, having the same eyes as his eldest sister, but she was equally beautiful. The two even sported the same hair color & figure. That momentarily made him question If there was any relation between the two, before suddenly shaking his head in an attempt to remember where he was and what was happening. When he came to it a few seconds later, he pulled himself together before coming to a decision. Allowing his foolhardy nature get the best of him like usual, especially around women, he was going to try luck with Lady Raikage for "training" purposes. He was sure someone of her caliber could give him a "few" pointers. Having made up his mind, he began weaving and sidestepping through the crowd with Sunako following behind, albeit keeping to a distance. As they drew closer to the Raikage, she batted a eyebrow, sighed and nodded her head. She was sure this wasn't going to end well. When he finally found himself in the presence of the Raikage, he immediately made a slight bow as a show of respect before deciding to run his mouth like the idiot he was, and with a suggestive grin no less!

Tamashi Seto
"Wow Lady Eleventh! Your even more beautiful in person! The stories do not do you justice. You must be the beauty of Kumogakure."

Surely with what he had just said, that was more than enough for her to smack him or worse, since she too had the Sharingan, but he had already considered the risks. As he always said, nothing ventured, nothing gained, and there was surely enough to gained here If he played his cards right. Keeping to his smile which could mean a million things or just one, obvious one, he continued.

Tamashi Seto
"Lady Eleventh, I'm sure your quite busy, with many prospects often bothering you, being the crimson goddess of Kumogakure, but It would be my greatest honor If you indulge me for a bit. I would very much like the honor to take you out and"

Before he could finish, probably for the best after all, the massive, macular woman standing behind him suddenly slammed her right fist into the back of his head, causing Seto to pop down a inch before rubbing the back of his head with his own right hand. He shifted his head over his shoulder and looked up at the towering giant that was his bodyguard with a surprise expression.

Tamashi Seto
"Ouch! What was that for????"

With a lifted eyebrow, Sunako crossed her arms firmly while staring him down with a icy cold expression.

Sunako
"Show some respect. You know better..."

Looking even more surprised, Seto kept staring up at Sunako, meeting her amber, feline like eyes with his crimson eyes. He couldn't believe Sunako had done that. Wasn't she going to keep her distance? He gave her a order, so why did she break that? He didn't know but he was going to find out!

Tamashi Seto
" I know that! That's why I'm gracing someone as beautiful as Lady Raikage with"

Again, Sunako cut him off before he could finish, much to his disdain. His cheeks puffed somewhat as his bodyguard gave him the cold shoulder.

Sunako
"I don't care how you find the Raikage. Know your place aldready!"

Her words dug deep into his flesh but that didn't mean he was going to stop now just because his Kishi didn't approve his actions. It wasn't as If he had any malicious intent here, he just, well you know, wanted to get some pointers from a older, beautiful woman. What did she think he was trying to do? Make a score or something? If that was the case, than he couldn't believe it. He already had someone, and besides, Lady Raikage was far out of his league as someone could get, besides being too old for him. It wasn't his fault he liked having friends that just happened to be women....or maybe he was, he didn't care. He shrugged at her response but before he say anymore, she continued, still icy as ever.

Sunako
"Just because I'm honor bound to serve you as your servant, that doesn't mean I'm going to allow you to play the role of a imbecile now."

Ok, that was uncalled for and she knew it! She never protested before? So why would Sunako start now? He rolled his eyes as she kept going. This turn however, as If to repair any damage that was caused, she turned to face the Raikage and spoke up, albeit this time with a softer tone, though sarcasm could be heard as she finished.​

Sunako
"Apologies my lady. It would seem my idiotic lord is still..."immature" in some aspects."

He puffed his cheeks again but said nothing. For a few moments, he gave her the stink eye before returning to his normal, confident self. His crimson eyes peered past Sunako's massive, body builder body and looked to meet the Raikage's deep purple eyes. It was time to see If he get murder boned or not. Third time was the charm right?​

 

[Toraono Michino]

Two weeks had passed since the restructuring had commenced. For the first time as the leader of the general shinobi army, Rei found herself incredibly busy. When she took over the role a lot of the work was set into an autopilot mode by having various trusted, and powerful, members run specialized parts of the military with some oversight. After the failed Rebellion attempt and the losses that it resulted in, the shinobi general found herself far more short staffed than before. Her restructuring was not only a fully hands-on job that saw her oversight even during the entire week worth of funerals held for all the recently deceased, but a necessary precaution to keep another rebellion from happening. Or another Tenouza Calamity. The fact that so many Tenouzans had managed to infiltrate key positions without anyone flagging the activity, or that the recent rebellion was lead by one of their own, told Rei that everything needed a fresh slate. It would no longer do to just methodically memorize every single shinobi in the army, she needed to know their every movement. She needed someone to police the police. The first sub-branch in her part of the army that was burned to a cinder and recreated was the Kumogakure Intelligence Operation. Every single last original member of the previous spy branch was demoted, had their tongues sealed with a curse mark to keep their silence regarding any secret intel they were privy to, and had them removed from Kumogkaure all together. Rei had them all moved in groups of seven across the five new jurisdictions of the Arcadian Judges in the country and kept under a close eye. At least one of them was a traitor, and instead of wasting resources weaseling them out, the Sennin opted instead simply replace the entire branch with people she knew would be loyal. The perp would eventually make their move in at least a year’s time. It also wasn’t like she was keeping these people under some fancy house arrest either. As far as they knew, she had just forced a retirement on all of them and moved them out into really nice land holdings as a precaution in forming a new spy branch in the military. Each ex member had a generous account to pull from to live on and a home with a great deal of the money being pulled from her own clan’s funding. Thankfully, the Ryuu had a pretty tight market on the country’s cabbage supplies.

However, that was just the start. She still had to contact the Guild and barter them into joining the military to train her soldiers on how to fight the supernatural. The Judge System was still in the very early days of running, and court proceedings were happening at least every day now that the country was back up and running properly. The lithe 6’4’’ woman was leaning back in the incredibly padded desk chair, half-napping, half-considering her next move. She had turned the lights out an hour ago, and the only lighth shining at all was from the warm glow of the computer monitor that took up nearly a fifth of the work desk. The sound of a ping from her computer monitor jolted the Sennin out of her trance, forcing her to sit up as she nearly fell out of the chair. After a quick read, Rei allowed a smile to finally grace her face for the first time in weeks. It had been…well, years since the two friends had enough time to actually go out and do something. The Raikage was always busy with Raikage things, and Rei had been busy up until the last half-year or so mastering her new-found chakra. Hell, she was still doing that. With the end of her last battle the woman found she could actually compress her muscles down into a smaller form, giving her back the body she had before “awakening”; the only difference was white hair and size. Of course, while she had back a more feminine look she was still dense as a boulder, and landing from high places without chakra cushions still absolutely cratered the ground. To think she used to be a tiny 5’4’’ girl who’s only strength was machinery.

“Zenny,” the Sennin said after flicking on the intercom to reach her secretary.
“Yes’m?”
“I’m taking the rest of the day. Push back sending the Guild that letter until I get back. I’m going to go…get some ideas.”
“And the KIO?”
“Keep me updated on my cell. I won’t be wearing the earpiece tonight, so if something drastically calls for my attention, you know how to reach me.”
“Oooh, big date boss?” the secretary teased.
“Oh by the Kami, no. Not this month, anyways. Too busy. I’m just going to go say hi to a friend and get some drinks.”
“Oh, well then tell the Raikage I said hi.”
The box clicked off before Rei could reply, a flush in her cheeks as she realized that Kitsune was probably the only person she called “friend” and people were starting to catch on that Dr. Ryuu didn’t have any other friends. She squashed down the mild frustration at her secretary. Kitsune was more than just her friend. The Raikage was the only person in the entire village she actually trusted and…well, Rei wasn’t exactly a social butterfly. The Sennin had her moments and occasionally went out clubbing or drinking but those were always done with certain intent. Kitsune was the only person she just, genuinely enjoyed being a fellow human with.

Twenty minutes later Rei found herself tracking down her friend. Getting ready for a night out wasn’t even much of a ritual now as it used to be. Back into her old clothes, all she needed was a quick shower and decide an outfit. She went with the slacks, white button down, black tie, and dress shoes. Over it she wore a light dark blue trench coat and fluffed up her purple-dyed hair. It took the Sennin all of about five minutes in total, and really it might have taken longer if it wasn’t for the sheer bloodlust. Her purple eyes darted to roofs nearby and saw Jounin-level shinobi gathering nearby that looked conspicuously like the Raikage’s hidden bodyguard. The doctor casually followed them to find the red-haired leader being accosted by some guy and his…whoa. Now that was a woman. Built like a brick house herself, Rei for the first time in her life actually felt a ping of jealousy in regarding looks; because the giant of a woman next to the guy looked nearly as muscular as Rei could get and just…held it so much better.
Just from standing there a second standing in awe of the man’s bodyguard, the Sennin quickly gathered what was going on and quickly stepped out into the open near the three. She held up her hand as if in greeting, but had her two middle fingers held up while curling the pinky and index; the thumb was still stuck out. It was a message to the Raikage’s bodyguard to stand down. There was no need to get uppity right now, and besides, she really wanted to see how this would all go down.

Dr. Ryuu couldn’t recall the last time someone had the steel huevos to actually hit on the Raikage.

 

[Shinrya Kitsune]

Kitsune turned to face the youth that’d addressed her, and called her a *checks notes* Crimson Goddess of Kumogakure, and raised an eyebrow as, well, it wasn’t exactly unusual for anyone to butter her up with flattery – not that it worked – but it wasn’t often it came from a youngling barely out of the academy, she assumed, and as such she almost dismissed it out of hand, but when he was interrupted halfway through a sentence by a muscular tower of a woman, she couldn’t help but try to suppress a chuckle, resulting in an amused looking Kitsune standing across from the youngling Seto and his… Nanny? Bodyguard? Who knew.

”Oh don’t worry about that, I’ve dealt with worse at the academy” Kitsune said, chuckling a bit ”I must admit that it’s not every day I meet someone with the proverbial steel balls to address me directly like that, even from nobility. It’s quite refreshing, though I do believe introductions are in order, wouldn’t you say?” she added, expecting the pair to introduce themselves, as they clearly already knew who she was. Sadly, Kitsune hadn’t yet had time to work more on the facial recognition software she’d planned to install into the artificial eye implanted in her skull, so it wasn’t operational in the slightest yet.

Only a little bit afterwards, Kitsune spotted a familiar purple head of hair and associated hand waving, so she of course waved her over. It surprised Kitsune, that the usually towering Sennin had opted to go incognito for the day, quite interesting. Maybe Rei would know the youth, assuming Rei kept on top of every single shinobi going through the academy and potentially into her branch.

 

[Tamashi Seto]

Well....he wasn't murdered, laying on the ground as a corpse, nor being hypnotized to go away sooo....This must be a sign! A sign, where he could continue his shenanigans! What good fortune, because he wasn't anywhere close to being done, though that probably couldn't be said for the Raikage. Of course, that didn't matter when he heard her chuckling, as well as her response, that only caused him to raise his voice in opposition, for better or for worse.

Tamashi Seto
"Hey...I meant what I said Lady Raikage! I wouldn't lie. A woman like yourself should be respected and admired in all regards, not just by the strength of your jutsu or by the strength of your eyes. Beauty in on itself is a strength, but I'm sure you know that better than me."

Standing with confidence, be beamed his crimson eyes at the Raikage, showing no fear whatsoever. From what he had heard, he knew full well what she was capable of, but that wouldn't deter him from getting the experience he needed, nor the advice she could provide him with, although in her mind, he was sure she was thinking more on the lines of him wanting to be trained by her. Wel, she couldn't be anymore wrong! He already got his face smashed in on a near daily basis by a S-rank kunoichi, he didn't need the "RAIKAGE" of all people to do that. He was sure someone like her was too busy to deal with the likes of him. That didn't bother as much as other people might have of thought, as he was already used to it by his father and his eldest sister, who were all strong in their own right. No one had the time to train a Genin, let alone anyone in the village, so that's why he had his bodyguard train him...or well, more like beat the crap out of him. It was painful, sure, but he got more experience in sparring with her than he ever did at the academy or by taking lousy D-rank missions, had he ever been assigned to a Genin team in the first place, but he was sidetracking himself. Remembering that his most fabulous, divinely beautiful, village leader was asking to introduce himself, he decided to correct himself, well mostly, as he made another show bow to show his respect towards the Raikage.

Tamashi Seto
"I apologize Lady Raikage If I offended you in any way, but I meant what I said, and I'll take what you said as a compliment. As for the who, you can just call me Seto my lady. I'm but a mere servant of the people, and here besides me is Sunako, a Kunoichi in my service. She functions as my eyes and ears since I'm not capable like you yet my Lady."

As If that was her cue, Sunako nodded her head, as to confirm what he said as true but said nothing else, as her attention was drawn elsewhere, who unknowingly to him, was keeping a eye on Ryuu Rei, who was keeping herself at a distance for whatever reason. As for him however, once the formalities was done, he rose his head and smiled at the Raikage. He spoke in his usual carefree, confident tone as he got somewhat close to the Raikage.

Tamashi Seto
"Now that that's out of the way, you think you could give me a hand Lady Eleventh? As I've said before, your a beautiful woman Lady Raikage, no doubt one of the most beautiful in the land, so you probably be able to help me out better than anyone else here. I promise I won't take up much of your time, I swear, I just need some...tips shall we say since I don't actually live here in the village."

Hearing him from behind, the towering giant behind him nodded her head and rolled her eyes but said nothing as she remained ever viligent. As for him, he was eagered to hear the Raikage's decision. It wasn't every day he ran into a beauty like her, and It wasn't like clothes shopping was his forte, especially in this place, which seemed more alien to him than any place near home. Regardless though, It was his current mission, and he was going to try his hardest to complete it, even If It resulted in him questioning his sanity or being yeeted by a certain beauty. Some things were worth the risk...​

 

[Toraono Michino]

Rei beamed at Kitsune as she waved her over, a friend recognizing a friend, but she couldn’t help but feel part of that was to get her out of whatever situation the crimson haired beauty had stepped in. As the Sennin slowly strolled up she could feel Seto’s brick house of a bodyguard eying her movements. The Main Branch leader simply looked up and locked eyes with the beast of a woman and held the contact until she decided it best to look away; if indeed she did. Rei didn’t used to be the kind of woman who enjoyed a fight or a good spar, but after countless funerals and a rising frustration of her duties…she couldn’t help but feel something of a challenge in the Genin’s bodyguard. The challenge probably would have stood too, if Rei hadn’t broken the eye contact first because of Seto’s perfumed words of flattery.

Because they cracked her right up.

A mirth of laughter she hadn’t felt in literally years came boiling over as she clutched her sides. This man regarded the Raikage with such reverence that Kitsune might have well been a moon goddess in his eyes. Rei, a friend of the immortal since she was a teenager, could not see the woman in the same lights. Yes, the leader had a stark beauty to her that Rei was jealous of sometime as she was bit of a tomboy who wished she could be a tad more “girly”, but science left no room for gender identities. At least, not the kind of science she had been involved in for the greater deal of her life. So to hear Kitsune be described as a “crimson goddess” just, sent Rei.

“I…you…” she sorted between laughters, then laughed even harder that such a grotesque noise came from her own lips, “Please stop, you’re killing me here…” Tears were starting to form at the corner of the Sennin’s eyes as she used one hand to keep holding her stomach and the other to hang on Kitsune’s shoulder to keep her from falling over. Ye gods, was she just hit with a genjutsu? Was this guy really that serious about trying to woo the woman? Through her tears of laughter the scientist tried to get a better look at the person pitching and not the giant bodyguard and finally the face clicked.

“Tamashi Seto! They finally let you out of your homestead to come kick it with the cool shinobi?” Rei said as her laughter turned to barely controlled giggles. She didn’t know a lot of the Tamashi residence or Seto himself, but she was aware of the handful of Genin who kept to themselves and land holdings rather than post inside of Kumogakure. It was understandable in the wake of chakra washing across the land that some of the old nobles would send their children to be trained after suddenly awakening to power they had jealously viewed for years. It was twice as understandable that they’d want those same children to return to their homes after training was done, too. Missions could still get out to anywhere in Lightning easily and it wasn’t like the old clans didn’t have a close eye on them anyways.
“Kitsune,” the Sennin said turning to look back at her friend with a impish grin, “You should take this one with us tonight! Imagine how fun that would be!”

Little moments like this where Kitsune was more her friend than her boss where the moments Rei lived for.

 

[Tamashi Seto]

Once the encroaching danger was recognized as one of the legendary Sannin, Sunako's shoulders relaxed, signifying her acceptance of the Sannin's presence as she slowly made her way over to her friend. Her amber, feline like eyes remained however, keeping their focus on the target as they approached, even as she shifted her head to advert Sunako's gaze. Like any true veteran, It was difficult, If not downright impossible to lower your guard completely, as previous experience and instincts wouldn't allow it. Regardless of her paranoia or the responsibilities that dictated the actions she would take, she saw no reason for the Sannin to pose as a threat, even with their similarities in power. Of course, the pipsqueak she served had no knowledge of this, nor the potential danger she posed, and If he did, It was pretty obvious to everybody nearby he was far too gone at the moment to notice or say otherwise. Maybe he surprise her, but he doubted it. She just wanted this entire situation to end, but she knew this mess of a day was only beginning...

Poor little Seto was still expecting a response from the Lady Raikage when a woman suddenly appeared out of nowhere and began laughing like there was no tomorrow, and begging him to stop no less. He tilted his head in confusion, not entirely sure what she meant, or even who she was for that matter. It took a few seconds with his gazing, red eyes for It to click in place, due to the woman's shades, but once It did, his eyes tore open in shock. That short purple hair, that tall, lithe stature and of course, that iconic light, dark blue trench coat was all he needed to know It was Lady Rei, one of the fabled Sannin, and a personal friend of the Raikage, If he heard right from his mother. Aside from that however, what were the chances he run into two women he looked upto? Not only were they supremely strong like his eldest sister, but they were equally beautiful as well. It was such a crime for these women to be blessed with such beauty and not be respected for it. If this was the case, and It so had to be since, at least in his own mind, through countless observations he had made, he had come to the conclusion that the men in this village had either zero care or interest in women, especially ones that were beautiful such as these two. He could only guess It must have eventually left a negative mark on the women who lived here. What other reason could It be that a beautiful, strong woman here couldn't take a compliment? Did they prefer to be called ugly or something? He didn't have an answer for this very serious problem, but he knew he had to make up for it in any way he could, that a man could admire a woman's beauty while still being a gentlemen. He would most definitely have to to show his "appreciation" for the beauties he was blessed with today. While Lady Rei wasn't wearing one of her iconic speed suits she was known for, instead wearing something more akin to formal wear, the complete opposite to his ebony black yukata underneath his brick red samurai plate, she would not be spared from his assault! No matter how tom boyish she looked, he knew better beauty came in forms, and she was no exception! Such a outcome however, only caused him to smile with confidence as his crimson eyes continued to gaze down the laughing beauty, who looked as If she was about to fall to the ground at any time. Nonetheless, a certain degree of shock could still be heard as he opened his mouth to speak.

Tamashi Seto
"Lady Rei??? Is that really you? Wow! It's not every day I get to stand in the presence of two fine, beautiful women could lay waste to a entire army! The great kami spirits must have blessed me today for sure! Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I'd run into the two beauties of Kumogakure on the same day."

Having made his opening move, If you could even call it that, stood there with his head held high. He was practically giving off a sense of pride and accomplishment, or so he thought. To anyone else though, he probably was no better than a clown, an amusing clown to be sure, but a clown nonetheless. Like everyone else nearby that could overhear him, or better yet see the show unfolding with their own eyes, his bodyguard was no exception. Immediately overwhelmed by his stupidity, Sunako could do nothing but shift her attention elsewhere from the buffoon she was forced to serve. Closing her eyes, Sunako subtly shook her head in annoyance, making a expression that screamed the vibe "Just....fucking...stop already." for anyone who was brave enough to look. For everyone other than Seto, It was plain as day to see. Oblivious to the fact that his bodyguard wanted to send him into the ground due to being the fool he was making himself out to be, he kept his attention on the Sannin, who was now only mere giggling, as compares to herself only a few moments prior, where she was ready to hit the ground laughing. His left hand was sitting on his hip when the fabled Sannin teased him about being released from his homestead prison. As a consequence, he joined in on her chuckling as his confident smile turned to a sympathetic one.

Tamashi Seto
"Yeah...but it took some convincing on me and my older sister's part. Being heir and all, my old man always being overly paranoid about my safety when it doesn't It include training. I mean...yeah, I get it...but still....it's really annoying sometimes. It is even necessary? Because Lady Eleventh here prevented the civil war from breaking out between the clans. Doesn't help either that Shizu is particularly overly protective of me when it comes to my bell being. Trying to get her consent is like talking to a brick wall sometimes. You may succeed, yes, but more times than not, the brick wall will just end up squishing you."

Unknowingly following Sunako's lead from minutes prior, he closed his eyes and momentarily shifted his attention towards the pavement below as he made a long, disappointing sigh.

Tamashi Seto
"While I understand the principle well, having my own ​

responsibilities I must attend to, my father cares for clan and village politics far too much....So much so, he allows it to consume pretty much his entire life. Don't know about you Lady Eleventh, or you, Lady Rei, but I have no intentions in becoming a stick in the mud like him who can't be bothered to enjoy the finer things in life, even If it's only once and awhile."

Harsh words to be sure, but he meant every word he said, and It wasn't as If he didn't have any hope that one day, his father would learn to loosen up a bit. He just hoped It would occur before he would be laid up in his death bed. That said, even though he understood duty well, having his own responsibilities within his own clan's lands, he couldn't possibly understand the responsibilities and sacrifices a leader like his father, Lady Rei or Lady Eleventh had to make on a daily basis, or the consequences that would occur If they faltered. Still, that didn't mean they had to work themselves to death, or so he thought. He would perhaps find out one day, but today wasn't that day, especially when his eyes picked on Lady Rei's rather impish grin. He couldn't help but join in as well. Raising his eyebrows in a suggestive manner and his hands sitting now firmly sitting on his hips, his confident tone returned, though this time, a certainly degree of sultriness could be heard in there as he spoke.

Tamashi Seto
"I concur! Lady Rei got the right idea! And besides, as I'm sure your both well aware, It is a gentlemen's duty to entertain two beautiful women such as yourselves in a respectful, elegant manner! Anything less would prove dishonorable, or worse, be shameful. You can say whatever you want about me Lady Eleventh, or Lady Rei, but I would never do anything so dishonorable as act as a deviant or some pervert. Only those with no shame would stoop to such levels."

He stood there still with a smile. He doubt either one of them were expecting that to come out of his mouth, or maybe they did? He didn't know but again, he met every word. What Lady Rei suggested sounded like fun, but most importantly, he get all the training he needed, not to mention the amount of shenanigan's they could get upto. While there was no doubt in his mind they took their duties very seriously, he was sure they relaxed just as much when they didn't have to work. After all, sleeping and watching TV boring at home is boring. Of course, he couldn't know that for certain, It was just a gut feeling he had. As for his bodyguard though? Well, she just trying her hardest to ignore the entire ordeal, as If she wasn't even a blip on the radar. Besides for being smashed through tree's and having boulders getting thrown at him during "training" with her, he couldn't say he had ever seen Sunako relax before, so If he managed to drag her along, It would certain be a first. Once the idea settled in his mind that he might be accompanying three beautiful women on a night of the town, he just couldn't help himself but make a mischievous grin. Oh this was definitely going to be fun, and in more ways than one...​

 

[Shinrya Kitsune]

Kitsune, who was easily amused by antics like these, chuckled a bit, but restrained herself to that unlike Rei who were barely containing herself from rolling around laughing. ”Well, I definitely don’t mind giving you some pointers in the matter of training, Seto-kun. We can figure something out there, most definitely.” she said, not wanting to dash the hopes of the youngling. Rei also let slip the younglings family name, and that did stir a bit of a memory, though Kitsune couldn’t put her finger on why exactly. But given that the kid had himself a bodyguard, his family was either noble or just straight up rich.

Supporting Rei from falling over from laughing too hard, Kitsune patted her on the back ”Well you aren’t wrong on that one. That could be fun. But I assume that Miss Sunako would have to be okay with it.” she said, and then directed her gaze to the bodyguard, but then Seto spoke about what’d happened in the past with the civil war and Kitsune felt the need to correct the record ”Now now, Seto-kun, preventing the civil war from breaking out wasn’t solely my doing. I had my sennin with me as well. Team effort and all that.” she explained and gave Rei another gentle pat on the back, as it was safe to say that without Rei’s support, it likely wouldn’t have happened at all.

A thought occurred to Kitsune ”So, an idea occurred. I don’t know about you three, but I’m starting to feel a hunger setting in.” she said, giving each of them a look ”How about grabbing some food, hm? There’s a great takeout place not too far away, that happens to serve a mean gyros. Great for a quick bite.”

 

[Toraono Michino]

Seto was a guy Rei had never encountered in the Village before. She, of course, rarely encountered him in general due to the fact that his family rarely made the trip up to Kumo themselves when they could just send a retainer. Even when he was graduating from the Academy, she barely remembered seeing him in the line-up. Non of that really mattered though, because Seto, himself, was something she had never encountered as far as a personality went. He reminded him of self-assured bards or the romantics from those old cheesy romance novels she used to adore when she was but a small sickly child locked away from the rest of the world. The book, “Genjutsu of Love”, was just as worn out as her old advanced calculus book. He had an air about him that Rei had never thought actually existed but here it was again: reality being stranger than fiction.

“Well, no offense,” she started as the youth relented his caged days in the clan holdings, “but your father sounds like an absolute bore. That said, I’m sure he has his reasons. Being a Clan Head is rather difficult, and I can only imagine having a surplus of money and notoriety attached to that money makes it that much harder. Can’t go sullying the…uh, whatcha’ call it? Honor? Yeah that. Makes people do things to seed a certain perception. I mean, I get it! I’m the head of my own clan, and we do have some money from having a tight corner on the cabbage market…but, yeah I do what I want.” Rei then kinda snickered again, hiding her face a little in embarrassment,
“I mean, that said, we are just a clan of farmers with some weird fancy history.”

The Sennin was able to relent in her laughter, though she could never wipe off the smile, as Seto relaunched from his melancholic mood into trying to woo her and the Raikage again. Being called a “beautiful woman” was a term she had legit never been told before; not even by her lovers. It was always “strong”, or “stalwart”, or that time one guy had called her “a sexy dommy mommy,” but never just outright beautiful. She didn’t know how to react because that certain mark of image was something she laid down at the feet of her friend, Kitsune; ]she was beautiful. Everything about that woman was top notch, at least as far as Rei’s beliefs in how a proper female should look. The doctor veiwed herself pretty damn far away from that, and showed it through both her own dress style and general tomboy attitude.

“Gyros? I don’t think I’ve ever had gyros before. Is that the one where they put the sliced lamb on that flat lookin’ bread? White sauce? Smells…zangy? Sounds like it could be fun, but, do they have drinks? I came out to get hammered, not stuff my face,” she reminded her friend as an embarrassingly loud growl of her stomach reminded her she hadn’t eaten for at least eight hours,
“Um…that said, I think I could do with a bite.”

[MFT = 500+ WC]

 

[Tamashi Seto]

Hearing his crimson goddess response, his eyes blinked twice and he stood there in absolute silence, momentarily confused, than suddenly, without warning, the young genin rose the tip of his left index finger until It was pointed firmly against his brick red, do cuirass. "Wait...you thought..." Quickly removing the tip of his index finger from the surface of his do chest piece, he than proceeded to point at the Raikage, specifically her chest, as he continued to speak up in a somewhat surprised manner. "I was...." Giving off the impression he didn't quite know what to say, awkward silence soon fell upon them as he stood there detached , as If he was in a trance. A few seconds later however, and the genin ended up bursting into laughter, crossing his arms frantically over his chest, his eyes remaining dormant in the moment.

Tamashi Seto
"Oh no no no no no no! I meant shopping! I already get my face smashed in enough as it is! I don't need you hypnotizing me too with your transcended eyes now!
Unable to stop himself, he laughed on for several more moments, taking a page out of the Sannin's book who had just been laughing few minutes prior. When he finally calmed down with a tear still in his eye, he continued, albeit a bit less ecstatic that he had been before. He wiped away the tear with one of his black gloves as he spoke. "But even If I was, I'm sure someone of your station would be far too busy to deal with the likes of someone like me. Even the village itself and it's system don't have enough time for me. I can't very well expect the crimson goddess that is our leader, have the time of day to train someone like me, a Genin, in any "official" capacity. Besides, I'm more than content with something like this anyway. Life's too short in our line of work to spend all day, every day training or working....but do I know? I'm only a dumb kid."

Despite what he said, he held no malice in his tone of voice. It was simply a fact, a truth, and there wasn't much else to say on it other than he was one of many who fell through the cracks of the system. He was pretty much used it by this point anyway. His father was constantly busy with political affairs, his mother...did...well, whatever she did in private with scrolls, his fiancé was constantly training and studying, taking her future role as the matriarch of the clan much more seriously than he ever took his own, and the rest of his family was no different, especially his eldest sister who constantly on ANBU assignments, leaving him quite frankly, alone with no one besides Sunako and the people he had befriended here, in the village and those within his clan's lands. That probably explained a lot about who he was and how he acted, though he didn't want to think about it too much. Sunako on the other hand, while she may seem tough, and quite imposing on the outside, no doubt due to her amazonian, muscular like body, and stern face, she had a much more caring demeanor than she often led on, akin to a mother tending to her flock, although she would never admit such a thing, even when caught in the act.

As the conversation continued, with Lady Rei stirring the conversation in the direction that all four of them should hang out, Lady Eleventh concurred, but only on the condition that his bodyguard, Sunako would allow his participation. Despite hearing the question, as It was impossible not to, due to her large, furry feline like ears that granted her a far greater perception than a normal human, It went unanswered initially, though someone with perceptive eyes could pickup on the subtle cue's from her ear's twitching. Like any trusted bodyguard, she was so engrossed with her duties that she had been silent during the entire ordeal, seemingly showing little, If any interest in the conversation, as she continually scanned the area like a hawk looking for it's next victim. If he knew Sunako, and he did, he knew nothing would escape her feline eyes. When she finally spoke up several moments later, she shrugged her shoulders as she spoke up with little interest.

Sunako
"As long as my liege doesn't act like a imbecile that won't bring dishonor or shame upon him or his house, there's not much I can do. He's entitled to do and act however he pleases. I'm his bodyguard my lady, not his nanny."

He sighed upon hearing her comment. While he knew she wasn't trying to be rude or anything, especially while in the presence of individuals like the Lady Raikage and her Sannin, but It didn't help the situation one bit, not with her head shifted in the opposite direction of their conversation.....and she frequently called him rude? Did she not know that perhaps she was indeed a hypocritic? Because she was making it pretty obvious right now, at least as far as he was concerned at the moment. For some reason, it left a sour taste in his mouth, but that quickly changed when Lady Eleventh decided to "correct" him on his comment about the civil war, which had the opposite effect then what the Lady Raikage was probably expecting.

Tamashi Seto
"Well, yeah sure, but don't sell yourself short Lady Raikage! There's a reason we have a crimson goddess leading us."

Having spoken in a mostly serious tone, If not toned back for more casual conversation, he stood there with his arms resting on the top of his kusazuri plates that hanged freely from his lower waist. As expected of skirt armor, they hid his hips from view. With a slight grin on his face, he might have had more to say on the manner but before he could do so, possibly due to the Lady Raikage's good fortune, he found himself cut off when Lady Rei drew his attention, causing him to shift his head in her direction. When he heard her talk about clan affairs, starting with his father "probably" being a buzzkill, he rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

Tamashi Seto
"Yeah...tell me about it...and my mother doesn't say or do anything unless It somehow pertains to my training on court etiquette."
Sighing again, he momentarily stared at the ground beneath his feet before looking back up at the Sannin. He have her his full attention as she attempted to justify his father's behavior. She certainly wasn't wrong, as he did live with the man, and he did treasure his clan above all else, even Shizu who he kept close to his heart. He just wished he wasn't so stern and uncaring all the time. It didn't help either that no matter what he did, his father would never acknowledge him, let alone praise him, unless of course, It was to slanter him, or worse, punish him. Given the fact his father was a warrior who took his responsibilities very seriously, he supposed he couldn't be surprised by the incredibly high expectations his father had for him. Would It kill him though to smile though? Or at least act happy? He sighed internally at the thought, before being brought back into reality, when he heard Lady Rei mention she herself was a clan leader, albeit one of farmers. Looking at the woman with a somewhat confused expression, he attempted to speak up in a sympathetic tone. His right hand once again sat rested on his hip. "I uh.....don't actually know that much about the income of my clan's land down south....Shizu...uh...I mean my fiancé, is the one who actually handles that stuff. I've offered to help of course, but she prefers to do things on her own If she can. That said, from the limited tutelage I've been given on the manner, amongst other things, I do know my clan makes a quite a bit from farming and mining due to how rich the lands down south are. There's also sake distilling by the farmers, kimono tailors, the mentorship the veteran ashigaru samurai provide and something about "enchanting" blades with chakra?" Looking momentarily perplexed by his own words, he shrugged his shoulders and tilted his head. "I have no idea what that's about. Whenever I ask, I'm hushed away like it's some big secret or something." The last part of his response annoyed him, more so than the part where his father was a old stick in the mud. He really didn't understand the big deal. It wasn't as If the clan was killing people for their chakra right? Than infusing said chakra into the blade of a sword....right? Ehh, probably not....wait, no, that was impossible! His clan was a large clan of samurai warriors, not cliché villains.

Regardless of his thoughts on the manner, he found himself snapped back to it when Lady Raikage mentioned something about grabbing something to eat, something called a gyro. Upon returning the stare, he looked puzzled a bit. What the hell was a Gyros? A sandwich? Flat bread? He had no idea. Anything past traditional cooking besides fried food was beyond him. Once he heard Lady Rei comment she had never had one either, she proceeded to ask the same question that was sitting in his head. He chuckled a bit however when he heard her mention she wanted to get hammered like most adults often wanted to. He guessed even a legendary Sannin wasn't immune to getting drunk while off the clock. Such a response however, only caused him to eye her from the edge of his eyes, all the while presenting her with a sly smile.

Tamashi Seto
"Well there is that new saki distillery that just opened in the village, though I'm sure we can probably get saki anywhere."​

Normally, he be totally against being with someone who wanted to get drunk, since most drunks he had met were cheating scumbags who deserved to have their throats slit, but he he had little, If any doubts that Lady Rei was anything like that. He didn't know her personally but, well, rumors and stories do get around. Most of them he didn't really get, especially about men not wanting a "piece" of her. He didn't understand it all. Why wouldn't a man want a strong and independent woman? It was quite simply something he couldn't comprehend. I mean really, he couldn't even imagine being someone who was the opposite of that, even If they made it up with their intelligence. When he heard Lady Rei's stomach growl like some beast lusting for food, he chuckled again before he diverted his attention between the two. "Getting something to eat does sound good, even though I have no bloody idea what a "Gyros" is. I haven't ate anything since morning, so I hope it's good!" While his own stomach didn't growl, he could definitely feel the cold, emptiness within his stomach. He supposed It was time to change that. Hopefully whatever this "Gyros" was good. Nothing was worst than getting something to eat, only for it to taste horrible...

 

[Toraono Michino]

Rei had never had the pleasure of enjoying or gyro. Most of her food lately had been protein bars and coffee. Lots of coffee. The idea of an actual meal delighted the Sennin's brain as well as the chance to finally unwind a little. She wasn't known as a heavy drinker, but when she did drink it was in such excess to make one believe that it'd be impossible to kill her with poison; which was probably also true. Her metabolisim was something of a miracle in the way it could break down anything she ate or drank. Sometimes she wondered if the Akimichi clan's blood ran through her veins, inherited from some ancestor long ago; her clan were farmers after all.

Yet before they group of village superstars could get moving, a high pitch ringing in her ear alerted the sennin. Gently reaching up to touch the nigh invisible communication device she said not a word as an agent on the otherside gave a report severe enough that only she could handle it. Specific instructions had been left to make sure she wasn't bothered tonight; but there was little she could do. The information streaming in was vital for the village and required the Master's Touch; or else all of her planning might well be for naught.
"I have to go," Rei said suddenly with a weary expression and a sigh, "I can't give out details openly but," she turned to look the Raikage in the eye, "It's a matter of extreme importance." That sentence was a rarely used sentence from Rei until she started rebuilding the Main Branch. Yet it's use always denoted just exactly how important the task was, and was her way of telling Kitsune that if she didn't personally handle it things could go tits-up. What that thing was would be a story for another day. Hopefully one with alcohol involved this time, and not the usual tea....

She gave a simple bow and took a step backwards, her image vanishing nearly as soon as she did.
[Topic Left]
[OOC: I've been holding this up long enough. Ran out of brain steam...wow, well over 2 months ago. Ain't gonna keep clogging this line up until I get the inspiration to write proper again.]