Blogego897

Author's Note : The whole reason I did a missing scene was to ask a damn question, and I forgot to ask it. So, double update this week!

Saved by Behance. Maneki Neko Neko Cat Kitty Cats Art Sketches Art Drawings Desenhos Halloween Japanese Pop Art Design Tattoo Tattoo Flash Art. Explore the r/femboy subreddit on Imgur, the best place to discover awesome images and GIFs.

Does anyone really want more bedtime stories? They'll probably not be about Natsumi anymore, but more like the Nara clan trains at night thing to develop the clans a little more. And, additionally, does anyone want full delves into the different clans in the first place?

TenTen's day out with Natsumi

As far as she could see, TenTen rather lucked out with her genin team.

It wasn't the best team ever, but it also didn't seem like they would end up as a bad one either.

Hyūga Neji might be a little too pretty to possibly be human, but she was somewhat sure that was just because of his clan. The guy was practically perfect, as far as being shinobi was concerned. The fact he was stiffer than a kunai and about as conforming as a steel sword was just something she had to learn to tolerate. For those that got caught up in his pretty face and nearly perfect hair, they were almost all turned off due to the boy's arrogance and superiority streak he put no effort into concealing.

Rock Lee, though he might take his hero-worship of their jōnin-sensei a bit too far, was at least very polite. If he did end up copying their sensei to the point of trying to become a mini clone of the ninja, well… TenTen was sure there could be worse things Lee could've fixated on. Hopefully he'd end up as a less intense version of their team's jōnin team leader.

They worked well together, mostly, and TenTen decided that her genin team could be different shades of awesome if she really wanted to help her fellow genin actually click somehow.

Therefore she rather liked, or at least tolerated well, her team.

The point she really wanted some help on was their jōnin-sensei.

TenTen didn't really know what to make of the man, honestly.

Maito Gai was… probably a few arrows short of a full quiver. He was an impressive jōnin taijutsu master, a veteran of the Third Shinobi War, and impressively well connected somehow, true. He was also clad in enough green spandex to pop an unwary person's eye out and seemed to have no other volume other than 'booming loud shout' sometimes, but he was a jōnin shinobi and therefore allowed his quirks.

On the other hand, the YOUTH! thing was a little… weird. Not to mention the bowl cut, orange leg warmers, or what she was sure were impossibly shiny teeth.

The man was also polite to a fault, and how he could be so and a ninja at the same time confused her. Even Hatake Kakashi-sama, her jōnin-sensei's apparent best friend, was nearly a complete asshole as far as the young kunoichi could see.

Why they were friends was beyond her ability to understand. She attributed most of it to the last war and ignored it for the sake of her sanity, truth be known.

She had nearly had the jōnin pegged down, mostly, then he would do something that threw her off a bit.

Like a few days ago, when he took her aside and asked if she wanted him to answer any questions she may have about a kunoichi's role in shinobi life.

To be perfectly honest, he actually picked her up and moved them over three clearings from their team's usual meeting spot then asked. TenTen appreciated his tact, his voice easily carried pretty far and the topic wasn't something she wanted either Neji or Lee to know about it being discussed. However, he was male and she wasn't really that comfortable with the idea of asking him her questions.

TenTen didn't have a whole lot of options, though. She was civilian born, which she had long since learned to mean there weren't any shinobi in her immediate family who could help her if she had questions or issues. That also meant she wasn't quite as lax as most ninja raised kunoichi about gender roles or her modesty, something that would just take time to become comfortable in spite of if ever talking about the topic with her jōnin-sensei again.

Since Gai-sensei had shown a sense of tact that had thrown off her understanding of him, she explained that if she had to ask she would appreciate if he could find a kunoichi for her to ask questions of.

He didn't take offense, which she hadn't been worried about in the first place, or even reminded her there may be times she couldn't put off talking to him about something, which she knew full well, but simply informed her that could be possible if she minded waiting a few days before getting any answers to her questions.

TenTen had agreed, mostly because he was being understanding about her hang-ups about talking to him over this topic… and she wanted to see what kind of kunoichi her sensei would know well enough to ask for something like that.

It was horrible, mean, and a little petty of her. Gai-sensei was a jōnin shinobi of skill and some renown, he probably knew a lot of women both in the shinobi corps and outside it.

Her curiosity wouldn't let it rest, though.

Worse, when the team met up this morning, they only did an hour of training before Gai-sensei announced they were going to meet someone. That had made TenTen slightly self-conscious about the whole thing.

Gai-sensei was pretty fanatical about training, and to cut it short just for her insecurities…

Then the kunoichi his sensei somehow knew ambled into the winter-barren Training Grounds Sixteen.

Long-sleeved Nara clan jacket, a katana slung across her back, and mismatched eye coloring?

How did Gai-sensei know the Nara clan's Lady?

'Gai.'

'Sensei! It is always a glorious day when you grace me with your Youthful presence!' He boomed out while almost bouncing in place, gifting the mildly amused kunoichi with a fond and shiny grin.

TenTen nearly face planted in the dirt. This was Gai-sensei's jōnin-sensei?

'And, as always, if you grow any damn more I'll remove your bloody kneecaps.' Natsumi informed him just as cheerfully, if not as loudly. 'You're tall enough, stop it.'

Pretty Neko Cracker

The shinobi's grin grew slightly, oddly enough, but then he made it all the stranger when he actually moderated his tone a little for his next statement. 'Sensei, have you given any thought that maybe we're not growing more but you might be shrinking?'

She came to a complete stop, staring at the taijutsu master she had apparently trained. '…Gai, would you care to play tag with Tsuyoshi? It's been so long since he had a nice chase… I think a few hours will do you good.'

'Err… sensei-'

'Too late, I'll take care of your gakis for you. Have a nice run.'

In a move TenTen missed entirely, the Nara slit her thumb somehow and slammed a hand on the ground. The billow of smoke was easily dissipated in the open air of their training grounds, and the massively large Leopard blinked up at Gai first then back at his Summoner. 'Natsumi-sama?'

'Play a little with Gai for me, Tsuyoshi. He's being naughty.' The kunoichi informed him with the pleasant if bland tone the Nara clansmen were well known for. 'Off you go.'

The Leopard, Tsuyoshi, sniffed at her lightly then turned a very frightening look on Team Ten's jōnin-sensei. His muzzle barring a large number of rather long and sharp teeth as he probably tried to grin at the very green shinobi. Gai-sensei, who hadn't lost his grin at all, beamed back before bolting with all the speed he had, a few hundred pounds of very large feline hot on his heels.

'He's been hanging out too much with Kashi-chan… or Ibiki.' The kunoichi mused almost to herself as the strange duo left the clearing, closing the gap between her and the three genin. 'Hello Team Ten. I was really only supposed to take TenTen-chan for the day, but apparently you're all coming with me.'

'Natsumi-sama.' Neji greeted her politely, as if she hadn't summoned a massive cat to chase off their jōnin-sensei. 'May I ask why you are here?'

'Nope. And seriously, Ne-chan, you know better.'

Pretty Neko Cracked

TenTen gaped at the gall the kunoichi had to call her prickly and prideful teammate that, then about passed out when the young Hyūga grimaced and obediently rephrased his greeting.

'…Sumi-ba-chan, it is good to see you again.'

'What the hell?' She blinked at the strangled sound of her own voice, but even if she hadn't intended to say anything the sheer weirdness of what was going on kept her talking. 'No, seriously. What. THE. HELL?How do you know her, Neji-san? What was that? With the cat?'

'Technically, it was a Leopard. They don't like being called cats.' The Nara's Lady interjected lightly with a shrug, pressing the slightly bleeding digit into her mouth.

Her usually overly formal and very self-contained Hyūga teammate actually sighed when the older kunoichi seemed content to leave it at that. 'There is this thing, you see. It is called the twisted family tree, and by that she is my ba-sama.'

'Chan.'

'My ba-chan.' Neji repeated, only slightly irritated at the correction. 'I tried to stop calling her that when I joined the academy, she has since refused to allow it.'

Which didn't really help TenTen out much, truth be known. Besides, she was pretty damn sure there wasn't any connection between the Hyūga clan and the Nara one other than the fact they were both Konohagakure no Sato shinobi clans. At least something like that would've been taught in the academy, or even mentioned once or twice.

'About the twisted family tree, by the way, your team has just made it worse.' Natsumi informed him with a measure of gravidity the younger kunoichi didn't understand.

'How? It has been less than a year.'

'Lee-kun's an orphan.' She shrugged, tipping her head back and rolling off more information that just confused the poor girl. 'By the same jōnin-sensei legal ward rights that started this whole mess, Lee-kun would actually be Gai's legal son. Then since Gai became an orphan before the age of sixteen and while he was my principle student, it makes your teammate my grandson. By a different set of shinobi legal rights, you all are siblings in a way and therefore my own grandkids that way too. Which doesn't take into account the other, thankfully only semi-legal, links the Hyūga clan still has to the rest of that twisted mess and the rest of us.'

TenTen blinked at her, at the suddenly very pale Neji, then turned to look at her other teammate.

Who, she realized, had yet to make a sound since the kunoichi strolled into their training grounds and effortlessly chased off their usually over protective jōnin-sensei.

Rock Lee was staring at the Nara with very, very shiny eyes. 'Baa-sama?'

'I'd prefer chan, kiddo.' Natsumi informed him calmly, as if she hadn't just explained how he, and the rest of them, got adopted into the strangest legal mess TenTen had ever heard of. 'You can even call me Sumi-baa-chan if you want. Come on, there's still a few more the lot of you should meet.'

(ooo000ooo)

Nara Shikamaru, recent graduate of the academy and fellow genin, listened to his mom explain what they had guests over for.

Then the Nara heir sighed heavily at Neji, who strangely went even stiffer. 'You had to make it worse?'

'It wasn't my fault. It's Gai-sensei's.'

The younger Nara had his mother's very strange and pale eye coloring, but physically tanner and male if shorter due to his young age, and he huffed before shaking his head at TenTen's usually prickly teammate.

Neji acted as if he was slightly ashamed, in a very stiff Hyūga way, and it wasn't even his fault.

She was in the middle of wondering when the hell the world would make sense again.

They were standing in the Nara clan head's home, apparently discussing a semi-fictional family tree. Neji was treated more as a distant relation than a guest, in a clan that wasn't the Hyūga one, and apparently the rest of Team Ten had the relations to not be closely watched for being in a shinobi clan compound. This had apparently been going on for years, both Neji's treatment by the Nara clan and said fictional family tree.

Lee was of no help, he was way too dazed and daydreaming about something. Probably waiting for the moment he could ask Gai-sensei if the whole semi-legal family tree thing was true.

TenTen wondered if this was her punishment for wondering about her sensei's possible love-life. Instead of maybe a kunoichi he was sweet on or another friend of his, she somehow managed to get his jōnin-sensei who decided to adopt them all.

'Whatever, want to play a game of shogi?'

'Maru-chan… be nice and take your other nephew along.' Natsumi informed her eldest son cheerfully, balancing the five-year-old Shikaina on one hip as she beamed at him. 'I've got to talk to my granddaughter. Shoo.'

TenTen was a little sad to see the littlest Nara didn't have her mom's unusual eye coloring. After you got used to it, it was kind of cool.

'You get way too much amusement out of that thing, kaa-chan.' Shikamaru informed her drolly. 'One might think you sit around and plot out how to snare the rest of the village up in that mess.'

'I do no such thing, and you know it. I merely ensure when we get new members they know where they fall in it.'

'Which means you sit there, plot it out, and cackle over it.'

'Very true. Hey, take your imouto with. She's due for a nap.' The elder Nara set the little girl down, who faithfully tottered over to her big brother and snagged hold of his hand. 'I'll send Akira over to fetch you when I've got lunch made if we're too long.'

'Fine.' Gesturing for Lee to follow, the Nara heir led his little sister and Neji off into what seemed to be a study. 'Come on, they're going to talk about girly things.'

'Yes, because katanas are so girly.' Natsumi spoke loud enough for her voice to follow her children, and apparently her grandkids. 'Come on, TenTen-chan. You look like you could do with some tea.'

Meekly, she did. Aware that demanding answers from the jōnin probably hadn't been the best impression she could have given, and wow would that be embarrassing to recall later, the young kunoichi just slid into one of the Nara's kitchen chairs and watched her apparent grandmother make tea.

'The twisted family tree thing is only as real as you want it to be, to be truthful.' Natsumi informed her without ever turning to look at her, taking down a canister of tea leaves from her cupboards. 'It's less of a real thing and more of a very technical, if slightly legal, joke. Most of the connections you'll come across are all only there in case of the worse, like mission injuries that render you unable to decide for yourself. That way there will always be someone with a vested interest in ensuring you have the best of any options. For you, so long as Tatsuo-san is still alive, I'm not really your baa-chan.'

TenTen would never admit how relieved she was to hear that. 'Ano… you know my tou-san?'

'Yes, he and my kenjutsu shishou made my katana.' She placed a pot of green tea on the table and gave the younger kunoichi a cup. 'You might have heard of me before, because I knew you well before Gai asked me to do this.'

It really only took a few moments of thinking about it, because this was a slightly notorious kunoichi who was gossiped about a lot and her dad had only made one katana for the Hatake clan she wasn't too sure who owned at the moment. 'You were the honorable Hatake Sakumo-sama's student?'

'Yep, which is where the family tree joke started from. While I was taicho's student he and Eri-kaa-chan had Kashi-chan, and he asked me to help her out a bit while I was still learning from him. Long story short, we used the ninja student-ninja master legal tie in a way that wasn't strictly legal at the time. That created a bit of a loop-hole when the actions I took on the Hatake clan's behalf were confirmed by the clan head later on. Who, at the time, had been deployed when I stepped in as the senior kunoichi of the clan even if I was actually of the Nara one legally.'

That did explain why both she, her son, and Neji treated it as if it was a real thing. It could be, if needed. Like any tool, it was just one more in the arsenal shinobi kept sharp to protect themselves. A very strange one, but useful nonetheless.

That also meant… 'Can I see your katana? Please?'

Natsumi hadn't set it down when she entered her own home, and TenTen only belatedly realized she had been waiting for her to ask. That was long after she finally managed to see the full blade, the only chakra absorbing katana her father had ever made.

Unless Kakashi-sama decided to try his hand at helping her dad forge one, there would never be another.

With her own chakra she tested the blade, feeling how it would respond. It passed through the metal as if it was just part of her own arm, slowed only by the distance it got from her chakra network. TenTen had expected it to show wear that said it's wielder was a suiton jutsu user at the very least, which made her wonder if she could feel rust developing with her chakra senses or not, but it really only felt like a newly forged blade to her. 'That is so cool.'

'If Aina-chan decides she doesn't want to use it, it'll go back to the Hatake clan's armory after I'm gone. In that eventuality, though be aware she might just decide to use it, Kashi-chan would accept that you have a right to it and might let you use it for your own kunoichi career. Taicho helped your otou-san forge it, after all.'

'I couldn't-'

'I insist.' Natsumi spoke over her, looking slightly bored really. 'Maru-chan decided he didn't like the feel of it, and that leaves only Aina-chan as any possibility I can pass it to my children… so far, at least. If you can and want to, and it's unclaimed, there isn't a reason for you not to.'

Slowly returning the unblemished katana back to it's sheath, TenTen thought about that before insulting her hostess with another refusal. It was only an eventuality, if her rather cute daughter didn't want to use the sword. In that case, it would be a crime to allow the blade to sit unused for another generation or two before someone else picked it up. 'Alright.'

Rolling her eyes, the older kunoichi reached into one of her chūnin vest pockets for a slip of paper. 'Alright then, now for the not so fun stuff. Questions? Gai said you were rather firm that you had some.'

The younger was instantly curious about the seal, which was probably for privacy in a household with a few young shinobi within. Fūinjutsu was something she had been hoping Gai-sensei would introduce to the team, but he seemed more intent on getting their teamwork up to snuff. Since this was his jōnin-sensei, and she was both an fūinjutsu and kenjutsu mistress, that mean he had to know some.

However, that was for another time.

'One of tou-san's other customers made it sound as if I might be taking seduction missions for the village right after grad-'

'No.'

TenTen blinked at the abrupt answer, peering up from her teacup hesitantly. 'That's it?'

'Seduction is actually a branch of the ANBU black ops Divisions. They handle any Seduction missions, and those are all volunteers. Unless you really want to, you'll never do a seduction mission.' Natsumi bit her lip and thought about it a bit more, then shrugged. 'The only time any kunoichi could be pulled for something like that is if the jōnin-sensei and or team leader said okay, and those missions that need a non-ANBU agent for are usually child molester assassination requests. For bait, honestly. Even then he, she, and or it would never get close enough to touch you even if Gai gave a green light to use you. And that would only happen if every genjutsu user who could hold a realistic image for two seconds had all been mysteriously killed off or in the middle of other missions, and every kunoichi who could even remotely fit the description of the needed bait were dead or spoken for. Which wouldn't happen at all, because Gai can use genjutsu himself and would probably go in your place anyways.'

'Oh.' She internally vowed to do something to make up for her initial and rather bland indifference to her jōnin-sensei. Gai-sensei was awesome.

'We've come a long way since the Warring States Era, TenTen-chan. You will not have to do anything you're not physically ready for just to survive. That was the reason the Hidden Villages were founded, so we can protect each other.'

The Nara's Lady didn't seem to care if TenTen needed a few minutes after that, she actually seemed rather content just to have company as they drank tea.

'So… the, uh… the birth-control…?'

'Tsunade-sama's hormone controlling pills? Yes, they will keep you from bleeding every month unless you take the counter dose or let them wear off yourself. So long as you take one about every three days, you probably won't get pregnant either.'

'Probably?'

'Well… I know a kunoichi that should have been on it and got pregnant twice before she had her ability to have kids removed. But Tsume isn't exactly the best at recalling when she has to take her meds.' Natsumi informed her with a smirk. 'Kuromaru's better, actually, and he's not even human.'

TenTen blinked up at the older kunoichi. 'Who's not human?'

'The alpha of the Inuzuka clan's ninkin, Tsume and her nin-dog Kuromaru.'

'Oh… ah, okay.'

'There is a bit of risk to it, so you know.' She tacked on after another moment. 'The longer you're on the hormone therapy treatment, the greater the likelihood you might have issues conceiving when you want children. For most kunoichi, that's not a problem because they don't have specializations where they risk their body's integrity. Close-combat kunoichi tend to have even more trouble, even I did and I'm more short-to-mid range than close-quarters. I actually know a kunoichi, retired tokubetsu jōnin tai user, who could only have one due to the hits she took to the abs. She's perfectly happy with her one, but you should plan accordingly and take only the risks you know and accept the consequences of.'

How do you plan for something you didn't even know if you wanted? TenTen frowned thoughtfully, but all she really wanted from life was to learn some fūinjutsu and maybe spar with this kunoichi using katanas one day.

'TenTen-chan, you don't have to ask all your kunoichi questions today. Your sensei and tou-san can get a hold of me if you need me, and we could even make this a weekly or monthly thing.' Natsumi informed her after they had finished off the tea. 'Gai should be nearly done tiring out my Leopard, and the boys will be hungry soon. Is there anything you need an immediate answer to right this moment?'

'Err… my…' Embarrassed, the younger kunoichi crossed her arms over her chest.

'Are they bouncing?'

'Yes?'

Natsumi looked rather amused. 'Right, I'll have to take you shopping then. Let me feed the horde, and inform Gai that I'm taking you, then you and I can go get a few more kunoichi and make an afternoon of it.'

'Sorry…'

'For what?'

'Taking up your time? For being difficult with sensei and making you step in because you're a kunoichi and he's not?'

The Nara snorted at her as she started peeling up the paper she had placed on her kitchen table. 'Please. Any female worth her salt wouldn't talk to Gai about feminine issues unless he was the last option available. Since he's not, you did what I'd expect any young woman to do. Besides, I was the one that asked your tou-san to send you over to us and I told him we'd take care of you. You wouldn't make me a liar, would you?'

'You… are… no liar, sensei! Yosh!' Gai-sensei panted out as he stumbled into her kitchen, an equally tired Leopard slinking after him. 'That was… very fun, my friend. We should most… definitely do this again… to keep us both Youthful!'

Tsuyoshi gave a gravely purr as he staggered into the shade offered by the table. 'Let's, Natsumi-sama doesn't get in very many fights anymore.'

'I'm retired, thank you both.' Natsumi interjected, pulling a bowl out of somewhere and filling it with water for the massive feline. 'I don't do more than spar on occasion. And murder unholy masses of paperwork, but that's a given.'

Gai allowed himself to slump into one of the kunoichi's chairs, seemingly noting TenTen only just then. 'MY MOST YOUTHFUL STUDENT! HAS-'

'Inside voice, Gai.'

The jōnin shinobi coughed. '-has sensei aided you as you needed?'

'Mostly, sensei.'

Natsumi poked her jōnin-sensei in the head a few times even as she handed him a glass of water. 'I want her to visit once a month, and I'm still stealing her for the rest of the day to take care of one last thing. Your other students are with Maru-chan and Aina-chan, and Lee-kun is going to be taught the Mesuji style taijutsu. Yes?'

'Hai, sensei.'

'Minato will put this down as a D-rank mission, replacing TenTen-chan with Maru-chan. Have him pay you as such around dinner.'

Gai frowned, a little confused. 'Sensei?'

'You're watching my kids, more specifically Aina-chan, while I help TenTen-chan.'

'We could do no less, sensei!'

'Damn straight.'

TenTen snickered slightly. Maybe, if she ever got jōnin as a rank, she might possibly get her own genin team and introduce them to her own jōnin-sensei. This was fun to watch.

Lee, probably alerted by their jōnin-sensei's loud voice, practically burst into the kitchen with the energy he had been curiously missing for most of the morning. 'SENSEI!'

'INSIDE VOICES, please.'

'My apologies, Nara-sama…' the genin trailed off when he got a very pointed look from the retired jōnin, 'err… baa-chan. Sensei? Is it true?'

Gai glanced between his old jōnin-sensei and his student and lowered his glass. 'I take it you found out about the family tree then, Lee-kun?'

TenTen's bushy browed teammate buried his face in one green clad arm, in a motion copied from when their sensei got a little over-emotional. 'Yosh, sensei. But is it true?'

She had yet to figure out if that was just dramatics or if they did cry that much.

Gai gave his mini-me an overly shiny smile, a thumbs up, and a broad wink. 'I am most joyous to be able to confirm it, Lee-kun!'

Natsumi leaned over to TenTen, hiding her mouth behind the back of her left hand. 'He once tried to copyright that pose.'

'Even better! Your most Youthful baa-chan has given permission for me to instruct you in her family's taijutsu style!'

'Eeh? Isn't baa-chan a Nara?'

'I wasn't before my marriage to Shikaku.' Said Nara informed the miniature of her old genin student with a shrug. 'Gai, since he was legally my ward for a few good years, has kindly agreed to keep the Mesuji style in use for my kaa-san. Since she died not too long after I was born and I prefer my katana. Now we would like you to take it into the next generation and pass it on once you have a student of your own. Or a kid, but since student is more likely to happen first…'

Lee lunged for the kunoichi, hugging her around the middle. 'I will be your best grandson, baa-chan! Thank you for the faith you hold in me to carry your family's legacy on!'

'Honestly, at the moment, you're my only grandson. I have a granddaughter, but she's in Suna and I don't get to see her.' Natsumi spoke, almost to the wall instead of to the genin as she patted his back with a measure of aplomb TenTen was slightly jealous of. 'So since I can see you whenever I want, you're already my favorite.'

She then, after bracing Lee with an arm firmly keeping him against her stomach, spun and pointed a finger in her son's face.

'Don't. Even. We do not need another Gai-Kakashi friendship.'

Shikamaru actually lost his bored look for an alarmed expression. 'Okay.'

TenTen pricked her metaphysical ears. Shikamaru knew how that friendship happened?

(ooo000ooo)

'Actually, the only fūinjutsu Gai has is his Summoning Contract. He's got the memory for the standard patterns, but his natural creativity didn't transfer well to paper… to say the least.' Natsumi informed TenTen as she led them to her father's forge.

Uzumaki Kushina, and how unreal was it that a newly graduated genin kunoichi was hanging out with the Yondaime's wife, nodded a few times. 'I recall you telling me about that. Poor tree, I don't think the other half ever grew back.'

'Instead, have him give you the standard patterns for now and practice tracing and using them. If you really want fūinjutsu as a specialization, and we'd love for you to pick it up honestly, something can be arranged with one of the users looking to get their mastery.'

'Really?'

'I really should get mine, there's no point in hiding my skill anymore with what we did to the Uchiha clan compound, so you might just be my student in a few months.' Kushina gave her a bright grin, twirling to walk backwards and either keeping track of her surroundings with her kunoichi skills or trusting the other two to do it for her. 'And we'll put a few more kinks in that twisted tree.'

TenTen, for all the insecurities she started this day out with, decided this had been one of her favorite in her genin career. The shopping thing hadn't really been that much fun, much to Kushina's apparently eternal disgust, but it turned out Natsumi didn't really like clothes shopping either. Instead, she used most of the time the fiery redhead had been picking out things for her to try on to pick the Nara kunoichi's brain about fūinjutsu.

Which eventually led into a few hours wasted at a paper and ink merchant both older kunoichi knew well, outfitting TenTen with enough ink and chakra absorbing paper for her to try her hand at sealing.

She did feel a little bad, because the paper and ink were expensive and they had already spent a bit of money on her in the clothing merchant's shop, but both of them had brushed her off when she tried to protest. As apparently tempting another female fūinjutsu user was worth more than a few hundred ryo to them.

Natsumi frowned suddenly, looking up to TenTen's home and her dad's blacksmith shop. 'I probably should have done this before, but TenTen-chan? I need the name of whatever idiot told you that you might do seduction missions right out of the academy.'

An ear-splitting crack informed the younger kunoichi that the Yondaime's wife had been using chakra to walk backwards and not hit anything, because now that she was instantly irate she lost control over it and it split the cobblestones under her ninja sandals. 'Who did what?'

'Hime.' The Nara's voice was a little flat as she spoke, but the redhead did smooth her angry expression. 'Obviously, that's not done anymore. Not for the last thirty years. But whoever tried to tell you that is attempting to seed mistrust or crack your faith in the village, kiddo, and we need to know.'

That sounded worse than TenTen had thought it had been. She had assumed the old biddy had just been trying to scare her. While it had somewhat worked, and gave her all sorts of worries, did it really mean what Natsumi was saying?

'Oshiro Megu-san, Natsumi-sama.' The choice was taken out of TenTen's hands when her dad spoke up for her. He hadn't been happy when his daughter had become upset, but the woman had been a customer at the time so he just ensured TenTen never had to deal with her again. 'And may I say I am delighted my daughter has found her way to you.'

'You could have told me yourself, Tatsuo-san, or Kashi-chan. We would've kept an eye out for her sooner.' She rebuked gently, mock frowning at TenTen's dad. 'We'll take care of it if it is anything.'

'I was waiting for you to come to the shop yourself, Natsumi-sama.' Tatsuo returned with a wry smirk. 'So I could introduce you two.'

Gaping, the younger kunoichi watched as her usually very formal dad, at least when he was dealing with customers, tease the Nara's Lady.

Apparently, Natsumi wasn't yet done tipping her world view over on itself.

A hand settled down on her head, and TenTen was distracted from her dad's conversation by Kushina kneeling down and looking her straight in the eye. 'You do understand that will not happen, right?'

'Hai, Kushina-hime. Sumi-ba-chan already had that talk with me.'

'Good, next time inform your sensei. It might not seem like much, or just spiteful without cause, but it might not always be. Either way, it is disruptive and dissent sowing in the kindest terms. Therefore it does need to be addressed.' The Whirlpool Princess huffed, giving the back of her friend a fond if annoyed look. 'You'll have to excuse Natsumi if she's being a bit suspicious or overreacting, but she really doesn't like it when someone attempts to harm her precious people. And since you're Gai's, that makes you hers as well.'

It was kind of nice, actually.

Like having family in strange and weird, if high ranked, places.

'It's fine, Kushina-hime. I understand.'