Off to Suna to see the Sands. [P. Invite.]

Haru couldn't believe this was happening, taking on a secret mission for the former Raikage who'd killed countless people and torture just as many. While it was in the grey area of his stand by orders, the Hokage had the right to call for him if there was need, not to mention the fact that with Kumogakure no Sato apparently being unstable it would be a risk to send any of the current ANBU forces out for something like a possibly pardoned missing ninja. The second part of this was helping deal with the Jounin Exams in order to make sure that nothing bad happens to those Konoha nin trying to take part in the exams on foreign land. 

He leaned against the wall next to the village gates waiting for the rest of the team to arrive. He knew from what the Hokage Kurisu had told him, none other than the Hokage's son and wife would be going with them. He was curious about the fact that Kurisu said, "You'll know one of them." but regardless he didn't mind dealing with this after all that time being isolated away and he'd never been to Suna before. Assuming those coming with him would start to show up he'd greet each one with a simple hey there and or hello.

Ari would turn up at the meeting spot with her usual assortment of gear and taking her usual transformed appearance. While performing missions or anything outside the village, she preferred people couldn't recognize her as the Hokage's wife. However, she did plan to tell her team mates her identity, since they had to be trusted enough with such knowledge for her to accompany them. Seeing the man they were supposed to meet with according to Kurisu's explanation, Ari raised her right hand and waved with a smile, talking when she got close enough to avoid unwanted ears from prying. "You're our mission leader for this right?" Unsure of whether or not she was correct, Ari could only assume the first person to arrive would be leading the mission. "Sorry if you don't recognize my current appearance..." Ari muttered before inching a bit closer, "I'm Ari, Kurisu's wife, I just don't like strangers to recognize me when I'm going on missions." 

Shifting her eyes from side to side, she moved back and placed both her hands behind her head. "I trust Konoha itself, but you never know who's lurking around the gate, right?" Not knowing who Haru was specifically, Ari talked more than usual during this interaction, hoping he'd converse with her and reveal the kind of person he was.

Kasuga had been weary about the whole mission thing since he had been ran ragged the past few weeks, mission in and missions out it seemed like he was doing more than his usual load since he had taken a team. Now his father would have him meet someone at the gates so that he and a few others could travel to Suna for something. Not one for asking questions, he threw on his Jounin Vest and some shorts just in case because he knew that suna was hot," Got everything but my weapon, but it should be good seeing Uncle Koroshi after so long," not smiling in the slightest, he summoned onto his back his Yamato Orochi and strapped it down before jumping out of his window and heading towards the gates. With haste he made it towards the gates, looking around until seeing a lone man and his mother over at the gates, he walked over slowly and gave a nod to his mother while tying his head band loosely around his neck," This must be the mission leader then? Kasuga, and hello mother," giving her a slight nod he would move over towards the gates after hellos had been exchanged and waited.

Risako grumbled about this whole situation as she packed a second change of clothes. As was decreed by Kurisu, she was to meet with a team at the Village Gate, from which they were to travel to Sunagakure for a mission of some sort. Knowing the desert heat would probably get to her, she wore a lighter outfit than her usual shinobi attire, this consisted of a pair of off white shorts that fell just below the knee, a white long sleeved shirt over a thinner undershirt, and her flak jacket over it all. Her shoes were the only unchanged variable; a pair of calf high gray sandals. Her aim was to travel light, so the only heavier gear she would bring would be Mako’s sword, which was strapped to her back over her armor. Her facemask was pulled down around her neck, as it was unnecessary for now.

Double checking her pack she counted four bottles of water, a change of clothes, and some books she had recently purchased to keep her entertained in case it would take a while. The pack would be slung over her shoulder, and over the sheathe for Mako’s sword (the sword was still in a position where she could pull it out if need be,), and she would then leave her apartment.

Arriving at the scene, her silvery eyes would recognize Kasuga from a distance, but that was about it. The other two who were standing around seemed to be total strangers, and Konoha was a big enough place that it was possible. “Hrrm.” It was bad enough going to a foreign Village, but going to a foreign Village with mostly strangers as her travelling companions? That was pretty lame. “Hokage’s orders I guess,” she’d think to herself.

As far as greetings went, she’d just nod to the two strangers once she got within talking distance, stating her name and rank.

Suppressing her yawn, Ayumi leisurely walked down the street. As per usual, she had her weapon pouch equipped; her ninja headband was tucked neatly in the weapon pouch. If instructed so, she would put it on. Fixing her slightly ruffled, dark hair, the girl rubbed her eyes, wiping the tears which formed. She had just woken up from a nap. After the trip to the Hokage’s office, she had grown slightly sleepy. In addition, he was sending her off to Suna along with a group of shinobi, so she may as well charge up her energy and ward off the sleepiness by taking a nap, right? It was a win-win situation, don't you agree? Suppressing another yawn, her sleepy orbs eyed the surrounding area as the kunoichi sped up her pace. She had a feeling that she was going to be late. She probably was already late.

Arriving at the gates, the girl was greeted by familiar faces. 'Oh nice.' Further inching closer towards the group, Ayumi froze upon laying eyes on a certain familiar face. 'Haru..?' Her face went rigid for a split second as the girl clenched her teeth. Reverting her then rigid face back to her usual poker face, she would greet the group of people whom she assumed would be her team mates, “Uh, sorry for being late. I’m Ayumi." Oh great, she was indeed late.

Haru wasn't sure what to expect from the team that he'd be taking with him to Sunagakure no Sato, with the Hokage's wife and son showing up first the main concern was being addressed first. Neither seemed act like they'd be a risk, though he felt as though there was something going on with Kasuga, Ari seemed to be alright if just a little paranoid. "Yup, that's me, Haru Glory. Also, don't worry I've been busy for a while so I probably wouldn't have recognized anyone anyways." he'd respond while also greeting the two. 

Next would be Risako arriving, with Haru raising up his right hand and giving a simple wave while also saying his name as he'd done with Ari and Kasuga. His attention couldn't help but go back to Kasuga, something in Decaforce was causing him to notice something slightly negative inside of Kasuga. 'Well I guess the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree?' he'd question to himself, even with the feeling he decided not to harshly judge those close to Kurisu just yet, after all he had always believed in second chances so perhaps even someone as horrible and despicable as Kurisu could change and have a family. 

Finally came the surprise that Kurisu had foreshadowed for him, Haru immediately recognizing one of the genin who had been on the team Haru one led which included Navi. "Hey Ayumi." he wasn't sure how to deal with the situation, especially since he'd basically vanished without a word to anyone. Personal thoughts came up of wanting to ask how she'd been and of course what had happened to Navi, neither of those things would be professional for the mission at hand. Relying on Echo's ANBU training that Haru went through he kept himself in check, ignoring his thoughts and focusing on the task at hand. 

Turning his back to the team Haru would look out the gate. "Alright team, let's get going before it gets too late." with that he'd start walking out of the village to go to Suna assuming that the rest of the team was ready and followed.

Ari could see initiating a conversation with Haru would be tricky, but so long as he could clearly define their tasks and lead the mission successfully, it didn't really matter. When Kasuga arrived Ari excitedly acknowledged his presence. "Heyyy son, so we're already going on another mission together. I'm sorry my attention's been divided from you; I hope you've been getting along with your brother and sisters though." Ari hugged her son briefly, concerned about whether they might be separated during the mission. Quickly recovering from her momentary worry, she stepped back and looked over Kasuga once more, patting his left shoulder and turning to face the new arrival. It happened to be Risako, unfortunately Ari hadn't revealed her transformed appearance to the girl yet. However, it would be revealed soon enough. Ari walked over to Risako and placed her left hand on the girl's shoulder, squeezing it briefly in exactly the same fashion she did at Mako's funeral.

"I hope you've been coping okay since I last saw you, if you want to talk about anything we'll have time during the mission." Ari smiled reassuringly while shaking Risako's shoulder, again with the same gentle touch she had at the funeral before pulling her hand away. When Ayumi arrived there was a slight pause in Ari's movement while she spent time trying to remember her face. She knew they'd met briefly sometime recently but couldn't place when. Deciding to pretend she remembered the girl, Ari quickly greeted her in a friendly manner. "Hello Ayumi, I'm Ari, it's nice to see you again." While her greeting was far more reserved for Ayumi, Ari clearly didn't know her as well since she was unable to remember when they met. However, without much time for thinking about it, Haru announced it was time to go. Ari would stay beside Risako if it seemed like she wanted the support, otherwise she would return to Kasuga's side while leaving the village.

His eyes went to Haru as he finally knew his name, but nothing clicked in his mind as far as he knew," Well if he had just came back into duty that would explain why I have not seen him...," thinking to himself, he stood in his position crossing his arms and waiting in silence as the other two arrived. One would be Risako which he had last seen at the proposing of his father to his mother and the other...he vaguely remembered. Switching his eyes to his mother he smiled and waved a hand," Its nothing bad those twerps need all the guidance they can get between you and Kurisu. As for them...Well the Hokage thought it was necessary for me to lead them as a squad so...that went well," not really wanting to give the specifics of what happened on that day he chose to keep it to himself. A brief smile erupted on his face as he hugged his mother and patted her head gently before hearing it had been time to go. With one good look back at the village, he kicked off of the wall he had been leaning on and followed behind the rest in silence.

After returning the man’s wave she made a mental note for his name as her hands made their way to the safety of her pockets for a nap. Out of the other two strangers, she had at least met the Hokage’s son on more than one occasion, so he wasn’t a totally unfamiliar face, just an unfamiliar person. The woman was a complete stranger to the Chuunin, at least as far as she could remember, and her approach was met with some vaguely uncomfortable body language. 

As the stranger’s hand was placed upon her, the girl’s shoulders and back would tense and her eyes would peep at her from the corner of their sockets, her head pointed forwards with the rest of her body. Something about the gesture seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it, “Uhhhm. Okay,” is what Risako would say in response to the attempt to console her. For what, she wasn’t totally sure, as it could be any number of things. The most prominent thing that came to mind was Mako… A train of thought that had been shelved since the final moments of the funeral. Well now that the creepy vibe had been set, her body would remain tensed until Ayumi had come along, and Ari had revealed her name. 

Wait. “OH,” she thought. All at once, the few negative feelings she had towards the stranger were replaced with relief and the notion that it’s be in her interest to apologize for being standoffish. Though she would wait until they set out, and things got settled. 

Following behind Haru and to the side of Ari, Risako would exit the village that she so loved. For the next however many days, life would be nothing but foreigners, sand, and heat. With her hands in her pockets and the village at her back, Sunagakure was her destination. 

Once they had made it out, if no one seemed like they would talk, her attempt at apologizing to Ari would come.

The girl came to a stop as Ari approached her. As the woman introduced herself, Ayumi presented the Hokage's wife a small smile along with a quick nod. Being a girl of few words, she deemed that a nod alongside a smile would be a good enough reply to the woman. Hopefully she didn't come off as rude or disrespectful. Speaking of Ari, she had a feeling that the Hokage's wife had looked different compared to that one time she had met her, but technically speaking, that brief occurrence between the two had been a while back. Maybe her memory was just fading and she wasn't able to remember things as well anymore. Looking over, she could see the Hokage's son and Risako, two people whom she had briefly met at some point during the past month or so. Overall, she didn't know any of them, with the exception of Haru. A small, inaudible sigh escaped past lips. She didn't expect to meet Haru so suddenly. 'Why now?'

The girl stared off into the distance as Haru greeted her. Slowly bringing her gaze back, the girl eyed the man and gave him a curt nod. How awkward. It felt weird to see him after years of absence. A part of her wanted to speak up and ask him how he had been. A part of her wanted to ask him questions regarding certain past events which in her opinion needed clarification. Her stubbornness and reluctance to speak however got the better of her as she shut down the thoughts and faced the gates. As orders were given out, the girl would trail behind Risako. She had somehow made up her mind and had decided to ignore the sudden appearance of Haru; after all, he wasn't obliged to explain himself. Releasing another inaudible sigh, the girl would disconnect herself from the real world and began her journey to Sunagakure.