Blood-Splattered Cherry Blossoms

This village was still a small one, yet. Nobody in their right minds would recognize Sakuragakure as a shinobi village, or him a kage. But it was growing, and doing so at a rapid pace. They had already garnered the interest of a few new shinobi, and a good many of the defences needed were at least started on. He could pay for a lot of things, with the kind of money he earned. But these things were not enough to guarantee a successful debut into the world of shinobi, really. Simply having a handful of trained shinobi would do him no good in that regard. What he needed were alliances. Most of the major villages would write him off, so he didn’t even consider them a possibility. There were the missing nin he had befriended, but they were unlikely to settle down for a distant friend they only vaguely knew. Instead, he thought of a separate route.

There were whispers of a group that had set themselves up in hot springs, one that seemed to be headed by former Kazekage Mizuki Ohta. He’d never met a single one of them… but something told him, they were his best choice for allies. The major villages wouldn’t be able to support him, nor would they want to. But a woman no longer attached to any village just might hear him out.

Sitting at his desk in his temporary small office with a sigh, the young man got to work penning a letter to the woman in question. He hoped she would hear him out, but if not he would have to come up with a backup plan. It wouldn’t do for his village to be so weak against so many major villages. Many villages had been making big plays lately, and he didn’t like it one bit.

”To esteemed former Kazekage Mizuki Ohta,

I hope this letter finds you well. I am aware it may be odd to be contacted out of the blue like this by someone you don’t know, but I have a proposal of a sort, for you. If you are amenable, I would like to exchange some details via letters, but the main bulk of my reason for contacting you is best left to in person negotiations.

My name is Chiharu Misaki, and I am the first and founding kage of Sakuragakure. We are a relatively new village, so I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of us. It was a rather spur of the moment decision for everyone involved in the village’s founding. I would like to meet you, if you have an interest, though I cannot travel at the moment, regrettably. If you agree to meet me, my messenger will escort you to our location. I’d rather not reveal it in this letter, mail can be intercepted, after all. I am eagerly awaiting your response, and hoping that we may be able to meet at some point soon.

Signed,

First Hanakage Chiharu Misaki.

It was short, and skimped on details, but he could also send further letters if she ended up needing more information to agree. Carefully slipping the letter into an envelope, the thing was sealed with the newly designed seal of the village. The messenger he had chosen for this task was standing outside his office, and so the handing over of the letter was a quick affair. He had a few instructions for the man, though. ”I need this brought to Mizuki Ohta in the land of hot springs. If you cannot track her down, find out where her organization resides and bring the letter to them. They will know what to do.” he instructed, heterochromatic eyes studying the messenger before him.

The messenger nodded his acceptance, and he was off, heading through the streets of the Kanzakura district towards the village gates. Finally, Chiharu let out a breath. He hadn’t even realised he’d been holding his breath, at this point. Were potential allies always so stressful to contact? He supposed they must, and his inexperience showed in this regard. He supposed he would just have to wait and see.

WC: 689

The chill of early morning burned off her heated skin as she moved through the motions of her morning warm up - leaving steam to rise into the slow dawning courtyard. Holding a 3 foot staff in her hands she flowed through moves that promoted coordinated footsteps and balance, swinging the staff with each twist and footfall. From onlookers it looked like a strange dance through water as the limbs flowed with grace - her eyes remained closed and the byakugan active as she trained herself to use the moments of stillness to scan her surroundings instantly before blindness with movement overtook the eyes’ ability.

Having not been born with the ability, nor having anyone to teach her its finer points, she made do with training what she knew it could do. Each time her body stilled the world around her opened up in a flash; the world within a mile of her visible in values of gray and she forced herself to see completely before moving into blindness again. The dummies arranged around the courtyard were moved daily with different details added to them that she challenged herself to notice.

On what felt like the sixtieth flash into the world she noted a moving presence through the veil - darkness, another stance - the flight path of the creature was directed toward her. Another press into darkness - her focus now on the space that she had noted its approach; a bird flew toward the veil and subsequently got snatched up by its power to be dragged to the ground. Halting her movements she opened her eyes to stare into the direction of the messenger bird - was it a message from Tanbogakure already?

Dropping the staff into the ground she sank into the earth before it had a chance to fully settle into stillness - seconds later she was standing in the middle of the veil in front of the flutter heartbeat of the creature caught on its mission. Stooping to gather the bird into her hands she soothed its frantic flailing at the sudden hands that grasped it, only stilling as her fingers stroked its head as she turned to enter back into Yugure. On the other side she removed the message tied to it and released the bird into the sky, where it settled on a nearby tree.

Scanning the message her face shifted from interest in expected news to a stern expression as her eyes moved across the page. Sakuragakure… Raising her eyes from the page she scanned the surrounding silence with wariness before folding the paper and sliding it into her pocket as she slipped back into the earth and rose from the floor of her own room. Striding over to the desk she snatched up the pen and dragged over a piece of paper before her sprawling handwriting flashed across the page.

“To the first Hanakage Chiharu Misaki,

You take great risk in contacting me at all you know. More than odd it is brazen to be contacted in this manner, and while I have many questions for you, I admit my curiosity outweighs my initial reaction to find you and anyone else who knows how to contact me without my consent and ensure they not be able to reiterate that to anyone else.

I will give you credit though, in vagueness, a valued skill in politics that you should continue to hone. A proposal that I know nothing of its contents though is a lot of nothing to ask me to venture to an even more unknown place. Brazen and new to a throne, you have nothing from me but my interest. Send a letter in return outlining more of this proposal and we can arrange a meeting.

Signed,

Leader of Yugure - Mizuki Ohta.”

Finishing with a slash of her signature she folded and sealed the letter with a wax stamp of Yugure’s symbol - eight arrows pointing out from the center. The bird that sat at its perch in her room, ready for such moments, sat still as she attached it to it’s leg and spoke in a quiet rage filled voice. “Return to the village called, Sakuragakure, and deliver this to Chiharu Misaki… flee from anyone else who tries to grab you.” The bird stared for a second longer before launching into the air, her eyes watching its departure with simmering disdain. Perhaps she was wrong of this place but only time would tell - of its people and leader she knew nothing but she would be sure to gather what she could of them. Maybe even a new face was in store for her - that thought settled her simmering as she finally loosed a sigh and flopped into the chair she had yet to take.

wc 787

When the bird finally returned to him, some time after he’d sent it out, Chiharu nearly jumped out of his skin for how fast he snatched up the note attached to the bird’s leg. Mismatched eyes scanned the short letter with interest, widening at the contents of the letter as he read. He had garnered the interest of the woman, but how to keep it? He needed to get his point across without making it too obvious. If others caught wind of this before the details were hammered out, it could spell disaster for them. Thinking about it for only a moment, he grabbed a fresh sheet of paper and a pen to write out a new letter.

“Esteemed former Kazekage,

I apologize for my brazenness, but there is only so much that can be revealed in a letter if I want this to stay a secret. To put it quite simply, my village is relatively unknown. We do not have much presence in the shinobi world as of yet. We haven’t officially been revealed to the world, and thus, have not made a successful debut into the world of shinobi. However, I feel as though you may be able to help me with some of these things. Your experience alone speaks volumes to a new leader, and you are the only one who may yet listen to my plea.

I will not beg, since I do have that much pride to my name, but I do ask that you consider a meeting.

Signed,

First Hanakage Chiharu Misaki.”

The letter was short, but the implications would hopefully be enough for the woman he was corresponding with. She was clearly not unintelligent, which alone was a blessing and curse at the same time. Regardless, he could only hope for now. Sealing the letter with the same wax seal from before, he attached the letter to the new messenger bird’s leg and sent it off the same way he had before.

WC: 329

Having multiple failed attempts to respond, the pile of crumpled balls of paper at her feet only growing as the night hours waned - Mizu sat staring at the blank page in front of her. The letter of response from the Hanakage memorized at this point as she began yet another attempt at a reply. In the past she had been a master of words - spinning her web of manipulation and lies into every sentence written or spoken with ease; but that version of her had died so long ago. All she was able to convey was true emotion and the emotion at the forefront wasn’t acceptable.

She was continually hung up on the emotion of irritation - while the honorific was meant to be respectful - being called Kazekage only brought bitter memories to the surface. Images of faces she had set firmly at her back only to be brought to the front forcibly by the title, even when she was for Sunagakure she disliked the title. Titles in general were more of an abrasion, a rough grit sandpaper to the skin - moving through it though she began.

“Hanakage Chiharu Misaki,

My experience speaks volumes to a new leader, to be as brazen as you, this has hung me up for days now. My experience is riddled with failures known to the world, if only my overreaching desires for a homogenous world was as known. Though I failed my people as a figurehead I possess the ear of a sympathetic leader. With that in mind and the fact you are coming to me with such sensitive information I will concede to my curiosity with heavy caution. I will not leave my home again with what I’ve seen blooming in the world, but my second in command Arantima will meet your messenger to be escorted to your village. From there he will be able to safely forge passage for our formal meeting.”

Pausing in her writing the variables of sending Arantima out in her stead worm through her thoughts - handling him is something that takes time and patience and-

Stop. The thought was halted in its tracks, he isn’t a petulant child, he can and will handle this as carefully as he must. Putting the tip back to paper she continued, eyes narrowing.

“I will advise your messenger to keep their wits about them and their personal space broadened, do not crowd him and trust that he will react respectfully. Once he arrives and vets you as non hostile he will be instructed to immediately leave to retrieve the retinue. Name your place of congregation and he will be sent.

Leader of Yugure - Mizuki Ohta.”

Placing the quill and picking the paper up to scan her still drying words several times over she would accept that it was the best she would get. Folding and sealing it with the same seal as before she would attach it to the same messenger bird as before and send it off with the identical command. Watching it go from her seated position - the biting feeling of pieces not falling fast enough gnawing at her as it went.

His anticipation had been steadily rising the entire time it had taken to send his letter and await a response. It had already been some time, and a response had yet to arrive. Was it simply taking a while? Or had his last hope lost interest in him and what he wanted? He could only hope it was the former. He wasn’t aware of the struggle his recipient had gone through in answering him.

By the time the response had actually arrived, a fair amount of time after he had sent his out, his nerves were at an all time high. What did the woman he was in contact with have to say to his bold proposal? He could only hope it was good things. With slightly shaking hands, the weaponry user opened the letter, trying not to tear anything in his haste to read it. Then, he began to read, and the shaking only got worse. He’d… done it? He’d actually gotten a meeting with Mizuki Ohta? He hadn’t expected her to actually agree. Seeming to not stop in his trembling, he picked up the pen and a fresh sheet of paper to pen his response.

”Mizuki Ohta,

You do not know how much this chance means to me. I am a new an inexperienced leader… but it does not take much to begin caring for the people under one’s care. With their interests in mind, you’ve given me a great boon by agreeing to arrange a meeting. As such, I will do my best not to delay. Please send your representative to the land of forests, where mine will meet up with him. From there, he will be safely escorted back to the village. He will not be able to get in on his own- we have methods of deterring outsiders. I will ensure my representative remains respectful throughout this process, and trust yours will do the same.

Regards,

Hanakage Chiharu Misaki

WC: 324

EXIT
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