Namika smiled to herself as she approached the docks. Considering that kirigakure was the shinobi village of the nation, which was composed of islands and waterways, the village had numerous docks. From the large shipping docks to the smaller docks on various beaches. This dock, built out into a recreational beach housed mostly recreational boats and the like. Boats that might take you charter fishing or diving, or just for a nice fun ride. This made them less crowded than any of the main docks. Namika loved a good time out on the ocean. Nothing was more fun. Rather than just traipse around the beach with many of the tourists, she had decided to just start swimming from the docks. Besides, the docks attracted some of the more curious animals. Otters and sea lions often played around the docks. Much to the annoyance of some people, and animals. Peoples dogs would often become vexed when a playful otter teased them by climbing up, and escaping into the water, or swimming back and forth under the wood and emerging, like some perverse game of whack-a-mole where the dog had no hope of actually winning. While playful otters could be an annoyance, the sea lions could be a bigger menace. A few small boats had taken damage from groups of them resting on their decks. People who set on the docks and fished might even have their catch stolen, although as most of them were recreational fishermen, the story they took home was often a good exchange for a fish.

Regardless, Namika wasn’t a vexed fisherman or tourist. She was here just because she wanted to swim, but didn’t want to walk through the crowd at the beach. It wasn’t that she disliked tourists or wasn’t social, but rather didn’t want to just wade into the water. Diving in was more fun. She didn’t want to splash in the shallows with kids or less experienced swimmers. It was more fun to dive right in. And that was the plan. To this end She had dressed appropriately, in a somewhat modest 2 piece swimming set. It wasn’t a super revealing bikini like some girls wore, but she preceded it that way. It covered just enough to give a hint of modesty.

At her heels was Tatsuo, a juvenile dragon-otter. Why he was called that was abundantly obvious to anyone who looked at him. He stood 3 and a half feet, paws and shoulder, and 4 and a half feet long. These proportions, and his wolfish body stance could be confusing at first, but regardless of them, he was clearly an otter. His tail and heavily webbed paws definitely set that tone, but his face was his most obviously otter characteristic. As for why his species were called “dragon-otters”, one need only to look at him to see. Where otter ears should be were a set of scaled fins, which were each composed of 3 long bony “spikes” and a muddied blue scaly webbing between them. Spikes wasn’t quite the right word to describe them, but it was close enough. They almost looked like finding fans in a vague way. In addition to the ear-fins, at the end of his long furry tail was a large horizontal can as well, composed of 6 supports and the same blue scaled webbing. This fan made the tail a powerful swimming tool, much like a dolphin or a whale’s tail, yet as agile as an otters. This made Tatsuo somewhat imposing and startling for any unfamiliar with the rare species.

Regardless of this, Namika stroked his head lovingly as they strolled down the docks. They walked together with an easy grace that gave away a deep bond between the two, as was common among ninja and their Seijutsu pets. Insulting Tatsuo was as smart as insulting an Inuzuka’s dog. Namika stopped briefly and looked around, her long blue hair wafting slightly in a light sea-breeze. Her hair was held back by a bright, but slightly dark, set of blue-green horns. They started above her ears and curves back, then down and around her ears, ending in a forward point. They were grooved and barbed, with several prongs, one of which, at the back, curves upwards gently. The color, and more importantly, grooved and barbed form of them gave them the look of polished coral. This matching set of horns wasn’t her only unusual trait, as one glimpse of her eyes made clear. For her eyes were a luminous gold. For anyone with much Experience in the ninja clans of Kirigakure, this gave her away as a member of the old and wealthy Sangotatsu clan, which was said to be descended from a sea-deity, not to mention sea dragons. This would have been even more obvious perhaps had she not been in a swimming outfit, as her clan tended to dress in rich silks. It was not only those traits that might catch the eye, but her pose and grace. She had the sort of easy grace that was often associated with wealth and nobility. There was no slouch to her walk.

Namika smiled widely as she reached the edge of the docks, and giggles slightly. Her easy smile and laugh betraying the proud posture and grace in an interesting contrast. She sunk into a sitting position, and her set stirred the water. However the water barely had time to ripple far before Tatsuo, with a mischievous look, liked her fully across the face and dove in before Namika could retaliate. ”Hey! Don’t make me come in there!” Namika yelled playfully, giggling somewhat childishly. In response, Tatsuo floated atop the water on his back, in the typical otter way, and lifted his tail, extending the fan-like sail, and lashing it downwards, creating a huge splash and spraying water everywhere. That mischievous smile still on his ottery face.

Word Count: 982

The sun itself was at the peak of the sky giving a good balance of warmth and protection to the civilians that decided to go out to the docks this very day a place where Burittsu never dared to go until this today. He only wanted to familiarize himself with the area just in case in the future if there was any missions that would require him to venture out and probably set sail at sea for a while the warmth of the sun itself was enough to cause the shinobi to break out but not fully begin to sweat. Each step he took upon the dock was a feeling of warmth bearable but not one of his favorite pastimes but indeed he needed to grow accustomed to the heat if he ever wanted to excel further in life. He wore a black cloth around his head and a black scarf no shirt but walked around in black parachute pants each step he took the sound of clapping would be simply heard from his sandals as if he was on vacation from being a shinobi. Revealing his feet his hair glowed a bright blue in the sun as his eyes glowing a bright blue itself in the sun giving him the easy appearance of standing out amongst the crowd in any occasion. Placing his hand over his eyes acting as a shade to lessen the bright rays of the sun he only began to wonder where to begin as he only saw civilians leaving the area with empty handed or with fish as for those who were ready to set off onto their own adventure out in the water.

”Hey! Don’t make me come in there!”

The words reaching the ears of Burittsu only caught his attention as he looked around quickly and carefully only to spot a young female in a rather incredible outfit as he quickly walked through the docks. Taking a little jog only to reach the source of the cry he realized it was indeed a young female before he could even say anything he was only greeted by a large splash of water that cooled him off from the heat of the sun but also caught him by surprise. A little smirk appeared on his face as he gave off a chuckle actually entertained by the fact no one was in actual danger or needed help but a girl and her extremely interesting pet studying it was none that he had seen before. It was something about this shinobi that reminded him of another he met not so long ago he paid great attention to the color of her hair but what also they both had in common was the horns upon their head it had seem the two females most likely belonged to the same clan. He only hoped this one was not as timid as the other instantly afraid of him but even if she was most likely the pet she had would not be afraid and probably do it’s best to defend her.

“Well that’s a relief I believed someone needed help and was in danger at least everyone is safe and fine.”

With a smile on his face he only continued to study the female vastly but what caught his attention was the fact that such a pet was able to cause a great splash remaining focused upon it only allowed him to remember such amazing strength from an animal. Especially one of that size he did not question it due to the fact this was a world where shinobi fought endless battles and wars for a country that one day would forget their names if they did not do something absolutely amazing. The smirk remained on his face for a little longer as his skin began to dry off rather quickly and the heat began to return to him.

“Do you mind if I can get another splash of water? I tend to get hot a bit faster than others..”

WC: 670

Namika scowled in playful mock-outrage as the splash drenched her in water, glaring at him as if angry. Granted, she was dressed for swimming and had every intention of getting wet. So it wasn’t as if Tatsuo had drenched some rich silks or anything. Besides, Namika was the playful, cheery type. Tatsuo knew this too well to take her mock-anger seriously, and just floated there daring her to come after him. Namika sighed mentally. If it came to a race above or below water, Tatsuo would win. He far outstripped her in every physical term. That needed to change and fast. She was too fresh as a genin. She needed to get to work training, but considering she had barely been a genin for a little over a weak, her weakness wasn’t surprising. Still… she was disappointed in herself. She would catch up to Tatsuo, she promised herself. Soon she would be able to keep up with him! Hopefully even beat him. Soon!

But Namika was pulled from her reverie when someone spoke behind her. It was a strange man, stranger than many perhaps based on appearance. He had brown toned skin. Whether he was simply very well tanned, or simply brown she wasn’t sure. He had navy blue hair which seemed brighter in the sun. That was one commonality between them though. Not many had blue hair. And often those that did had eyes it. Namika however was simply born with blue hair. It was perhaps part of how she had gotten her name. “Namika” which meant “wave” or “flower of the wave”. That said she preceded not to think about that. She wasn’t quite confident enough to think she lives up to that name. Though few would believe that. Raised by a wealthy merchant family, she had been trained and taught to show confidence and grace. Though much to their annoyance, Namika’s playful and childish nature clashed with this.

”Yeah, everything's fine, just came here with my best friend and partner to have some fun.” Namika smiled playfully as she turned towards him. His clothing was a bit of a mystery too. He wore a black scarf and pants, not perhaps a good color if it got much hotter. No shirt either. But, guys didn’t need a shirt, especially not if he planned to get wet at all. Besides, her modest 2 piece swimsuit showed some skin as well. The man spoke again then, asking for more water. He had perhaps not even finished his sentence before a slapping sound of Tatsuo's tail came again, spraying water all over. Clearly Tatsuo was only too happy to oblige. More water came splashing over her, and since she had turned to face the man, her long blue hair was soaked as well.

A smaller splash proceeded that as Tatsuo dove underwater, his tail raised and whipped downward as he dove, once again sending a large splash outward at them, sprayed her right in the eyes as she was turning towards him in reaction to the first. ”Hey!” Namika yelled, a slight giggle afterward betraying the mock outrage of her tone. But Tatsuo wasn’t done. He emerged right under her dangling feet, grabbed them, and dove. Namika let out a startled yell and was pulled off the dock and underwater. Namika grabbed a breath before her head went under and took a half second to prevent herself underwater. ‘Fine then!’ Namika though, and grabbed his tail as Tatsuo let go. As partners, Namika and Tatsuo knew each other well enough that Tatsuo knew he could roughhouse without Namika getting too angry. But, the man above didn’t know either of them. How would he interpret the dragon-otter yanking her underwater, let alone Namika not having re-emerged yet? Namika however was in no danger. Her clan was able to hold their breath far longer than normal people. And Tatsuo needed air too. This was just her friend playing rough, but still just play.

Word Count: 666
Total Word Count: 982+666=1,648

”Yeah, everything's fine, just came here with my best friend and partner to have some fun.”

Indeed the words from the stranger was like a riddle at first to Burittsu but he soon realized the best friend and partner she was referring too was the animal itself. It did not take long before he could sum up the fact that this was no normal pet or owner most likely both shinobi. That explained a lot to the shinobi. Before Burittsu even had a chance to think about what he requested earlier he was instantly blessed with another splash of water he simply enjoyed the fact that he felt the cool water douse the heat from his body. Thinking about it a great deal of amount he was once again cut off by the action of this so called “partner” as once more began to splash about with no remorse.

”Hey!”

The sound of the voice only brought concerns to Burittsu as he swiftly watched the body of the girl quickly get dragged beneath the floorboards of the dock into the depth of the water. Indeed it caught his attention but he simply decided to look over into the darkness of the water and await for the results no matter how long it took. He wanted to assume that as her partner the animal would not actually put her life at risk but test her limit and if she was in fact a shinobi she needed to go through the countless torments of what could actually happen if she ended up being captured.

“Interesting..I’ll be up here..Waiting for your return..”

Sitting upon the exact spot she sat upon he crossed his legs so the same fate would not occur to him just like it did the girl. Looking upon the water he only saw his reflection as he continued to look deep into the darkness of water awaiting for some sort of response to pierce through the darkness. Either the pet itself decided to betray the master due to the fact it longed for its actual freedom or the owner itself had no choice but to kill her trusty partner deep underneath the water where no one could lay eyes to judge her on her actions. Seemingly bored as his skin once began to dry off in the sun he assumed he should worry about the female but it felt best to act like he cared instead of jumping into something out of his element and activate a trap that could be set by the enemy.

Gazing out towards the water he watched as it appeared to shine and sparkle due to the sunlight bouncing off the surface. It only memorized the male into a deep train of thought placing his hands underneath his chin as he looked out and about in deep thought about the future of the village. But mostly once more on his mind the thought of a best friend he had one time as he still wondered about where did he go off too and why didn’t he leave no clue for Burittsu. Well he only hoped that his friend went out in search instead of somewhere six feet underneath the earth dirt rotting away to the very corpse that only gave Burittsu quite an angered look on his face. Hope was the only thing that was there for him now hope that he would one day reunite with his comrade and share stories of the good times they had and one day grow old and lead the new generation forward with incredible stories of the missions they embarked on. With a deep sigh as his eyes burned into the distance his mind was lost to the fact that he must find his friend one way or another he needed to know the outcome instead of sitting in the darkness till it’s too late. Only wondering who would help him through the dark times in his future as he looked over his shoulder to retrieve the answer he has been asking himself. No one stood behind him as he looked forward once more only to also gain another answer.

“The new generation of the shinobi world.. Speaking of shinobi I assume she’s dead by now so sad she seemed nice..”

WC: 715

Namika, holding onto Tatsuo’s tail, was pulled deep underwater. Fortunately, alone with the golden eyes, horns, pointed nails, and extended ability to hold their breath ,Sangotatsu members boasted perfect underwater vision. Water was never an encumbrance to her eyes. So as sthey dove deeper, Tatsuo pulling her along, she could see every rock, every fish, and every underwater plant. The sea was quite beautiful really. Especially when you could see clearly. The water was somewhat deep, considering it was a dock, and boats don’t easily dock in shallow water. That said, being a recreational dock it wasn’t nearly as deep as the big kirigakure docks. After all, those needed to accommodate huge commercial ships. Tatsuo drug her down to the bottom before dislodging her with a simple twist of his tail. He swam around her smugly, asserting his dominance in the water. Not that he needed to. Namika was painfully aware of how much physically stronger Tatsuo was. But… Soon… soon he would need to keep up with her!

Unfortunately, Namika had barely heard what the man had said as she had been dragged under. She may have clear underwater vision… But water still distorted sound. No superior underwater hearing for her. A school of fish swam by, and Tatsuo took off after them. Namika seized her chance and his in a bed of seaweed, grabbing rocks with her hands and prying her feet under more to keep herself low. Namika sank as low as possible and worked on keeping her heartbeat steady and low, consuming as little of her oxygen as she could. Tatsuo returned, fish in his mouth still moving, only to find Namika gone. Namika closed her eyes… calm… expend no energy… another minute ticked by as Tatsuo swam around. Then she felt the Dragon-otter grab her and yank her out playfully, swimming around smugly again, though not quite so confident and smug as before. But… Namika was running out of air. So she began the swim up. It didn’t take long.

Namika’s face broke the surface just in time to hear him voice his though that she was dead. Namika blushes awkwardly and scratched her head. ”Sorry about that… Heheheh…. I kinda forgot you might be worried… my clan has an affinity for water, so I can hold my breathe longer than normal. Sorry…” Namika shrugged slightly, and turned her head down slightly. Just then, Tatsuo decided to pop his head up and muzzle her, seeking pets that Namika was only too happy to give. ”Don’t worry… Heheh…. He just likes to play rough sometimes… but he knows my limits… I wasn’t in any real danger...I know most ninja partners are more… mature I guess… but he’s only a pup. He has a lot of growing to do. Well...so do I… I guess we’ll just have to grow together!” Namika finished speaking mostly to Tatsuo, and stroking his wet fur. ”I am just a genin…” Namika spoke quieter that time, as if half to herself as much as to anyone else.

Namika shook her head and concentrated some chakra into her hand, and placed it on the surface of the water. It took control she was still developing, but most genin knew the supernatural walking technique right? After a moment she heaved herself into a standing position, her feet planted firmly on the surface of the water. ”Oh! My apologies for my lack of manners, I am Sangotatsu, Namika.” Namika stood with her typical perfect posture, no slouching, the slight air of dignity at odds with all that had just happened.

Word Count: 609
Total Word Count: 1,648+609=2,257

little smirk made it’s way on his face as it a large burst of water seemed to make its way to the top revealing the head of the female she seemed one without breath or probably on the last bit of it. She seemed tired but the male did not move knowing that the water with such a beast she considers a partner was still being haunted he knew the animal was around somewhere and he only hoped it remained friendly. But none of the less if a second later had passed knowing Burittsu he would have dared to travel underneath the surface to rescue the young girl thinking she actually needed it. He wanted to give her a good piece of information and something to boost her confidence probably a speech he only sat there without moving for a while as he only listen to her explain herself and her comrade. All this was tuned out by Burittsu as he watched her pat the fur of her dear friend indeed all seemed well with her until something interesting caught Burittsu’s attention as he watched her voice lower and her body figure gave out a different sign.

”I am just a genin…”

The words itself just sparked a flame of anger that sparked inside of him upon the outside his facial expression and body language did not change as he only awaited for her to continue on with whatever she was feeling deep inside. What gave him a bit of hope for this shinobi was how she attempted to master the skill of using chakra underneath their palms or feet allowing them to walk on water or walls. She indeed was doing good by herself balancing her chakra to a good point as now she captured the attention of the Chunnin once again. Trying was the only thing that Burittsu enjoyed watching a lot of people do it gave him hope that the new generation will be strong and not some weak entertainment for the other shinobi. His attention snapped back to the female as she indeed had one more thing to say to the male. ”Oh! My apologies for my lack of manners, I am Sangotatsu, Namika.”

Standing up the wooden boards of the dock he bowed to the female as he himself took a step off the dock falling on top of the surface of water causing a ripple to occur from beneath him. He stood about the height of six foot but neither the less the height never mattered to him as he thought to himself about words of wisdom to pass down it was really hard for a person like him. Thinking to himself he did not know where to start except from where anyone should giving a smirk on his face he looked down at the female and placed his hand upon her head. “The rank that is given to you means nothing.. We are shinobi you have more value than a title we are more than weapons..As for the partner you keep around he can only be as strong as you can so be sure never to look down or grow quiet when presenting the rank you are given.. I never gave a speech before but I am Yuki Burittsu and you are going to be an incredible shinobi one day you and that incredible partner you have..”

The grin remained on his face as the sun did heat up his skin but the happiness he had deep inside of him seemed to protect him all his words were true even though he was not the leader type. Removing his hand from her head he simply looked at the creature giving it a thumbs up as he kicked water upon it. “What do I gotta do to get a splash i’m burning..”

WC:640

Namika sighed softly to herself as the man, soon to be revealed as Burittsu. He had a point about her rank, but… it wasn’t that easy for her. Her family had never wanted her to be a ninja. They had been hoping for her to be a great diplomat and socialite, to marry up and help raise the family even higher on the ladder. They weren’t content just being wealthy merchants. They wanted more. More power, more influence, and more prestige. And ninja we're rarely social high fliers. Yeah her clan had ninja for sure but, Her family hadn’t wanted that for her. So she was always under high expectations. Of she was to be a ninja she had to grow powerful and fast, earn game for the family that way. They wouldn’t be satisfied any other way. But that was far easier said than done. She couldn’t just suddenly be a jounin or kage, suddenly be a famous warrior. Her family had a mix of high expectations and high pressure to succeed, and yet seemed down on her at the same time. Her childish, cheerful nature angered them, even more considering they couldn’t beat it out of her. She didn’t want to be like them. She wanted to be happy, have fun, learn, grow stronger, and all that stuff, yes, but have fun doing it. Be herself not some miserable unsatisfied grump. For all their ambitions did they ever get any lasting contentment? Not really, the thought of the greener pastures up the ranks kept them from enjoying where they were.

Sorry about that, Heheheh…. I’m under a lot of pressure to succeed, so it’s hard to be content with where I am when everyone expects me to soar through the ranks, being honor and prestige to the family, etc. I want to enjoy the ride and have fun as I zx and learn… Everyone else wants me to suddenly be epic and awesome. That's not how I am though. No one’s ever happy anyway if their ambition keeps them from enjoying the present… But… Well…”

Namika scratched her head awkwardly as she spoke. She wasn’t sure she should be saying this to anyone else. But… she wanted to explain her attitude while saying it, lest he not understand how she could say her rank quite like that. It wasn’t that she was meaning to belittle herself over over being a lowbie as ninja go, but...well hopefully he understood now. That was all Namika could hope for anyway.

Tatsuo looked up at Namika and nuzzles her leg encouragingly and went back to splashing, smacking the water with his tail and swimming around. Tatsuo emerged once again, and sent another big splash washing over Namika and probably Burittsu, before settling down and swimming on his back, and finally taking the fish from his mouth and beginning to actually eat it, looking particularly otterish in the process. ”ummm… Sorry if that’s an unpleasant sight… if your…. Erm… squeamish I can ask Tatsuo to go swim under the dock while he eats it… I know some people can’t stomach seeing an animal eat it’s catch… I guess it’s one thing to eat a steak, quite another to see a cow being eaten by a bear…” Namika was somewhat sure Burittsu was a ninja based on what he had said… and she imagine most ninja had a strong stomach, but… Best offer him an out of he didn’t want to see that. That said, Namika wasn’t about to tell Tatsuo that he couldn’t eat the lunch he had caught himself. ”Thanks by the way… For what you said…” Namika blushes slightly and gave a smile.

Word Count: 622
Total Word Count: 2,257+622=2,879

Even as she explained her reasons to the male it indeed open his eyes to how parents could be he felt the urge to huge the girl as he wished he could only tell her the truth he indeed began to think about his next moves carefully. Due to the fact that he was not such to give out to personal feelings but he quickly found himself doused in water. Which simply gave him an excuse to rub his eyes before she was able to tell what was tears and what was the water that was splashed upon them feeling the cool relief of the water made him happy on the inside. He only wrapped his arms around the female giving her a quick hug to remind her she was not alone in this world that had bad days and good days. The hug was a short brief one but it got to the point showing her that he did in fact understand where she was coming from even if he never been in that type of situation in his life before. Looking down he could only hear the crunching of the fish that seemed to be snatched up by her trusty friend he watched studying how it ate its prey in such amusement as he chuckled and leaned in closer. Sliding his hand underneath the surface of the water he quickly pulled up sending a rain of water towards her pet splashing it back.

“Interesting team you both make.. Both know so much about each other the best part about having someone who knows so much about you.. They can show you so many other paths to travel the good and the bad..Keep your eyes open you learn something every second of this thing we call life.”

He only looked around with amazement as his mind began to wonder what type of life she must have had before she embarked on the path of the shinobi. Probably one where she wouldn't have to wake up to the fact she killed the day before or lost a comrade in battle or even experienced a near death situation. The feeling of telling her to run back to her warm bed and family members made him feel great as if he saved a life this was his chance but deep down inside he knew she chose the path herself. As his heart beat on as if it was a pattern going on inside playing with emotions he only held back his opinion ready to face the fact that the day if she does die in battle or even suffers any life changing injuries he would only feel the guilt deep inside. As his skin dried his mind continued to wonder to the possibilities but all this was just a plot set up by his brain to give in and try to push her out back to her comfortable lifestyle he could only answer with a smile that appeared on the outside.

“Keep trying and keep on pushing to the limit i’ll be right here in your corner. No matter what this path you are on stay on it no matter who you end up losing or gaining in the process the future is what you make of it take advantage. It has been nice meeting you if you ever see me or need me simply look where the temples rot and mother nature took over.”

His smile was warm and real as he turned around heading back to the docks lifting himself over and began to walk away back to the village with the warmth of the sun on his back he felt his heart itself began to grow heavy. As if what he did would not haunt him in the future he only hoped she would grow stronger together with her companion and the two would live past the battles and one day retire and have family which she can tell her stories and great adventures too. Each step he took was heavier than the last as his mind only was focused on the outcome of all the new shinobi indeed they all chose this path due to free will but also their goals in life he only hoped the choices were right.

“Good luck little one..”

WC: 717
Total WC: 2,742
~End Of Thread~