[GRADED]A Fresh Mind [closed]

[TyDie]

"Hizashi, Rika

Your frequent trips to the Scribes library have not gone unnoticed these past few years. I would like to personally thank you for spending so much time studying our materials. It's people like you that motivate the Scribes to continue their unfaltering search for knowledge, for the benefit of all. If it's not imposing, I would like to meet you personally, and discuss a topic I believe you will take a great interest in.

Hoping to see you in a few days,
Lead Archivist Henrin, Kiyori."
The scroll had arrived in Rika's mailbox a couple days ago. It was handwritten too, and judging by the similarities between the bulk of the message and the signature on the bottom, the entire thing was written by a single person. That could only mean that it had been written by the Lead Archivist herself... But what did that mean? Was Rika in trouble? Did she damage a book or scroll? Or maybe she had left something out and it had ended up becoming lost? Or was this a good thing? Who knew, but either way Rika was called to appear before Kiyori at the Scribes library, in her personal office.

What would the young Hizashi do?

[Kabu]

"Hmm.. I wonder what this all could be about." Rika mumbled to herself, reading through the letter once more as she walked through the sandy streets on her way to the Scribes library, desperately hoping that she hadn't done anything wrong. She made sure to put everything back in its proper place when she was done and she would never ever even think of damaging a book. So maybe she wasn't in trouble, but why would the lead archivist herself go to the trouble of summoning her otherwise? She was wracking her brain but couldn't come up with much of anything. Oh well, she had learned over the years that it was best to look on the bright side. Who knew, maybe this meeting would end up being beneficial to her in some way. Or maybe some new books had come in that she would be interested in. It could be anything, really.

And so with positive thoughts in mind she soon found herself at her destination, taking a deep breath to try and calm her nerves before knocking on the door. "Hizashi Rika here to see the lead archivist."

[TyDie]

Rika would find herself before the steps of the Scribes library, a gigantic building made of hardened stone and sand, rising three stories high. The doors, as always, were wide open, and let out into the first floor archive. The floor was covered in shelves of varying size and width, containing hundreds upon hundreds of scrolls, books, manuscripts, diagrams... truly a wondrous wealth of knowledge, on any number of numerous topics. However, to the right upon entering was a small side room, and within this office was Kiyori's secretary and companion: Dasu, Kyoko.

"Oh, good morning!" Kyoko, the young pale skinned woman would rise from her seat, clad in her beautiful Kimono, and give a deep bow of respect to Rika before rising and continuing to speak. "Welcome, Rika I take it? Kiyori-sama is expecting you. Please, right this way." Kyoko would then move around her desk and to Rika's right, through a small door, while motioning for Rika to follow. The two would rise up a series of stairs before arriving at the third floor and exiting out a small door, which lead them out to the main floor again. This floor too was clad in shelves lined with all sorts of knowledge, albeit these scrolls were not available to the public yet. After all, Kiyori had not gone through and memorized them yet.

Moving past the shelves, Kyoko would lead Rika to two large double doors, made of a dark stained wood. Kyoko would open the door without announcement, not really thinking about what was going on on the other side of the door. She only managed to open the door a few feet before both of them would hear a female voice cry out. "Wait, hold on a second, im right- AHH!" The sudden sound of a person falling down and various pages and books hitting the floor could be heard, and as Kyoko opened the door the rest of the way, the two would find Kiyori, the young Henrin archivist, surrounded by fallen scrolls and papers. She was rubbing her hip, having clearly fallen down off of a ladder that was toppled over to the side.

"Oh no! Mistress Kiyori, i'm so sorry! Is there-" Kiyori held up a single finger to Kyoko, silencing the young girl in an instant. "I'm fine Kyoko, don't worry about it. Just... goodness, knock before you open the door please? I would've thought you'd learned that with me and Arata..." The young Dasu's face went bright red with embarrassment, finally stammering out her reason for intruding on Kiyori. "T-t-this is R-rika-san Kiyori-s-s-sama." Kiyori sprung to her bare feet in an instant upon finally noticing Rika, pushing off of her hands to get back to her feet before extending a hand to the young genin. "Oh my, im so sorry! I didn't even see you! Welcome, please have a seat!" Kiyori would point Rika to a desk made of the same darkened wood as the doors, with a large window behind it that allowed her to look out towards the village itself. "Thank you Kyoko, you can leave us for now." The still blushing Dasu gave a nod and bowed before leaving, shutting the doors behind her before shuffling off.

"Such a sweet young woman... clumsy as a sack of potatoes though. NOW THEN!" Kiyori clapped her hands together as she rose her voice in excitement, shifting around the table and kicking around a few pages on the floor before taking a seat behind her desk, the large window behind her allowing in sunlight that touched her tattoos gently. The tattoos seemed to glow ever so faintly in the sun's warm light, and Kiyori's joyous attitude would only serve to brighten up the room even more. "Thank you for responding to my message so quickly. I'm Henrin, Kiyori, the Lead Archivist of this wonderful library. A pleasure to finally meet you."

[Kabu]

As she walked through the library with Kyoko, Rika found herself instantly put at ease, a smile finding its way to her face as she took in the sights and sounds, or lack of in the latter case. In a lot of ways the library felt like her home away from home a place she could go to truly relax. Surrounded by such a wealth of knowledge and entertainment just waiting to be discovered, who wouldn't feel completely at peace? If this had been any other day she would likely have been a visitor, surrounded by books and notes or even just sitting at a table soaking up the very peaceful atmosphere. And with any luck there would still be time for that later, but right now she had important business to attend to. The lady in charge wanted to see her and she was nothing if not punctual.

That said, after passing through yet another floor that she hadn't even known about, leading to the young genin sadly realizing that it was likely full of information that she couldn't yet access, they quickly seemed to reach their destination, Kyoko opening a door only for a woman to call out, followed by the sound of a sudden crash, the sound causing Rika to wince a bit. Hopefully whoever it was, was okay... That crash sounded like it would have really hurt.

It soon became apparent that the person whom they had intruded on was the very same that they were looking for, Rika tilting her head in slight confusion at the exchange between Kiyori and Kyoko. Part of her wondered what that had been about, noting that it seemed to be very embarrassing for at least one of them, but she decided to pay it no mind, grabbing Kiyori's extended hand and giving it a quick shake before heading over towards the nearby desk, looking around at the room upon taking her seat, still feeling perfectly at ease. She had expected an office to be much different, to feel cramped and oppressive but this room had a bright cheery vibe, one that seemed to stay even as it became time to get to business, perhaps due in part to its main resident, whom the young genin realized was quite beautiful, a beauty emphasized by the sunlight washing over her.

"Hizashi Rika. It's a pleasure to meet you as well. I've honestly been wanting to meet with you for quite some time, but I never thought that it would go quite like this. I would never have thought I would receive a letter from the lead archivist herself for a personal meeting." she responded to the introductions with a smile, no longer at all worried about what may come.

If anything the mood made her so much more curious. She definitely wasn't in trouble so just what was it that she was called for? Honestly.. some part of her was hoping that she could be of some help to the library but that was unlikely... Right?

[TyDie]

As the two settled in for their talk, and Rika examined the room, she'd find the walls of the office littered with - you guessed it - tons of shelves of books and scrolls and such. "Please forgive the mess, i'm trying my damndest to get all this stuff out there on the shelves, but it's a never ending battle yknow? Having to go through and memorize each and every piece of paper that goes through this building... Rewarding, but incredibly tiring. It's nice to have an entire library of random information stored in my noggin though!" Kiyori smiled cheerfully, practically bouncing in her seat with energy and happiness as she spoke before finally settling as Rika responded.

"Yeah, I like to write those kinds of letters and summons personally, to help remove the air of mystery and authority surrounding me. I mean, I do have an almost unsurpassed degree of authority regarding the scribes, both as the Lead Archivist and as a Jounin, but I don't like people to treat me that way. I prefer to maintain a casual, humanized impression. But I digress!" she had trailed off into another tangent, a typical thing for the woman to do when she gets excited. With a small shake of her head Kiyori recentered herself on the conversation at hand, her black and red eyes focusing in on Rika.

"So as I said in my letter, your frequent presence here hasn't gone unnoticed Rika. In fact, by my count alone, I can recall 274 visits in the past few years. And that's just the times i've seen you personally, so it goes without saying that you know the scribes library incredibly well. We'll get to my proposal in a few moments, but first i'd like you to tell me a little bit about yourself. And I refuse to ask anyone to do something that I myself am not willing to do, so that's how we'll work this; you do what I ask of you, and i'll do the same. So you first! Gimme a little bit of history surrounding you Rika. What are your likes, your dislikes? And it doesn't have to be strictly ninja stuff, although if you want to talk about your shinobi career and skills that's fine too. Feel free to start wherever you want"

She wanted to get a feel for Rika as a person, and this was the best way to go about it in her eyes. There was no need for ulterior motives with someone like Rika, who so clearly shared her same penchant for knowledge and learning. This was why she liked scouting frequent visitors to the library; She knew just how deep their passion went.

[Kabu]

"Hehe, I have gotten to know it pretty well over time." Rika couldn't help the slight blush that crossed her cheeks at the mention of all her library visits, sheepishly scratching her cheek in mild embarrassment. Even in the midst of her slight embarrassment however, she didn't miss Kiyori's mention of a proposal, which in itself left her very curious, as well as the request for her to talk about herself, which turned her mood to one of proper excitement, her eyes lighting up at the prospect of getting to know one another. She had been told time and time again that she needed to calm down but really, she wasn't any good with formal meetings. Situations like this where she was allowed to freely speak as much she wanted were where she shined, and typically where her true nature shone through at its brightest.

"Well, I love learning new things almost as much as I love my mama, books, and puppets, and I absolutely hate when people just leave things lying around. Like, how am I supposed to work in peace if my work area isn't completely tidy, ya know?" she began, taking a brief pause to collect her thoughts before continuing. "I also love watching the birds. And... one day I want to join them. Ever since I was just a little girl I've wanted to fly." she continued, excitement seeming to overtake her as she stood up from her seat and pointed up towards the sky, stars in her eyes and a smile on her face. "My dream.. is to improve my skills with puppet building and one day build a flying ship! One that I can use to maybe hunt treasure and help in m other goal, to one day become a scholar of sorts." she concluded, taking her seat once more upon finishing, not seeming to pay any mind to her own boisterous behavior even as she visibly calmed down and relaxed, silently waiting for a response, any response.

[TyDie]

Kiyori leaned back and relaxed in her chair, watching the young girl go about giving her answer to the young Henrin's question. Kiyori was a very empathic woman, so as the young genin stood from her chair with motivation and excitement, explaining her dreams, her loves, her desires, her goals, she couldn't help but get just as excited as she was. She leaned forward looked up at the girl, her eyes glistening with vicarious joy as the girl regaled her. Once she was done and had retaken her seat, Kiyori smiled gently at the young girl. "That was incredible Rika, your drive is practically tangible! I got excited just listening to you, i'd be more than happy to help you reach these goals in any way that I can! Now then, I believe it's my turn hm?"

Kiyori looked up to the corner of the room, her hand rising to her chin as she hummed in thought for a moment before snapping her fingers. "Alright, cool! So, I love to learn and understand, my curiosity is pretty much unquenchable. The subject matter isn't really important either, anything new is exciting to me. This curiosity of mine compliments my Doujutsu quite nicely; i'm not sure how much you understand about the Henrin, but our Doujutsu allows us to memorize anything we see with completely perfect accuracy. I could tell you how many rocks were on the ground in a particular training ground 12 years ago, if I saw it with my Doujutsu active. As you can imagine, this makes my job as Lead Archivist a dream come true; pretty much every piece of paper you've ever read here is stored up in my noodle."

She pointed to her eyes again as she mentioned the memorization as part of her job as Lead Archivist. "Of course, this is done just in case something goes missing or is destroyed. I can recreate the work by memorization. That way, we never lose anything." She suddenly paused, realizing she had delved a little too far into the intricacies of the organization. This wasn't about the scribes, this was about Kiyori. "Ahem, sorry. I get sidetracked pretty easily. Now then, I admit to having some pretty lofty goals... At first i just wanted to be the best shinobi I could be, and serving as Lead Archivist let me assist Lord Kazekage Hito-sama in ways no one else could. I was ecstatic... After coming home with these though..." Kiyori pointed to her tattoos in reference before standing, walking towards the large window of her office to gaze out upon the village. "Things changed a bit, and I spoke with Hito-sama. His words resonated with me... One day, I want to serve our village as he did. I want to be Kazekage."

Kiyori let out a deep breath, her arms crossed behind her as she looked to the people below. Her heart swelled with happiness and pride, a single tear forming in her eye. "I love our people more than life itself. I want to express that love in every way that I can, as much as I can." Kiyori turned to face Rika once more, wiping the tear from her eye before sitting down in her seat once more. She fanned herself with one hand, trying to calm the tears that had been forming. "Oh my, sorry about that. I get pretty hyped up. Now back to you: What are your skills Rika? I understand you're a genin, so I don't expect you've explored much past basic academy teachings yet. But you mentioned puppetry; do you have a puppet? Tell me a bit about your shinobi talents." Kiyori tilted her head in eager anticipation, ready to be regaled once more with the same charisma Rika had displayed earlier.

[Kabu]

Rika almost couldn't believe what she was hearing as Kiyori first praised her dreams, and then spoke of her own goals. She admittedly didn't understand a lot about what the Henrin could do, so hearing about that, as well as what the duties of the lead archivist entailed, was amazing in itself but it was something else that really caught her attention.. Kazekage? She was talking to someone who wanted to become the very embodiment of the sun god? Her eyes practically sparkled with a mix of enthusiasm and admiration as she listened to Kiyori speak, very carefully paying attention to every word. It took everything she had not to squeal like a little girl. Doing so was very tempting, but she didn't want to interrupt, she was just far too enthralled.

Once it was over, she managed to keep herself calm, though it was clear with the way her eyes sparkled that she was very excited. Though now it seemed that it was her turn again, and she knew exactly what it was that she had to say, especially as Kiyori asked about her puppets. "Well, I've put a bit of practice into Fuuton, as well my clan's own fusion release, but most of my practice has gone towards learning puppetry, though I also want to try learning something like Fuuinjutsu in the future to be able to carry around my puppets more easily." she began, taking a deep breath. "As for that, I do have a puppet. His name is Minotaur. Mama gave him to me but he was all broken down so she helped me to fix him. Now he's even better than he was before. I also have a bunch of ideas to build my own puppets from the ground up. she excitedly continued, admittedly feeling a bit disappointed with herself for having forgotten both Minotaur and her sketchbook at home, as she desperately wanted to show them off.

"Though mama says that I should find a new place to work. She says that my bedroom isn't a good place for puppet maintenance, even if I put all my stuff away. Can you believe that?"

[TyDie]

It was nice to see that Rika was empathic enough to relate to Kiyori's powerful emotions... It was a trait that she valued heavily in almost anyone. She didn't want mindless drones, she wanted real people with real thoughts and feelings to work with her towards a goal shared by her, not work for her for her own goals. Support, not obedience. That was how she preferred it. And so far Rika was showing herself to be well equipped to her criteria. But it was important that she know how to be a shinobi too. Sharing a goal meant nothing if the person couldn't help push towards that goal. But she had hopes that Rika would be all she wanted her to be in this respect as well.

Sure enough, Rika's explanation of her talents and abilities put her concerns at ease. The girl was clearly skilled in various forms of ninjutsu, even claiming to be an avid puppeteer; a feat not normally seen in young genin. Kiyori let out a small whistle, a show of how much Rika's skills had impressed her. "Well i'll be, that's pretty incredible Rika. I'm not used to seeing such young shinobi with such diverse skillsets. When I was your age, I was pretty much only into Taijutsu. As Henrin, it's kind of our specialty. We have our own style even. But as I grew, ninjutsu became much more interesting to me. I began to delve into Doton and Fuuton. And then, well, the tattoos influence things a bit too..."

She hadn't explained it in detail yet, but she had referenced them at least once already. And no doubt Rika had noticed that they weren't normal tattoos... She let out a small sigh before closing her eyes, and in an instant her tattoos began to glow vibrantly with golden yellow light. "A while back, on my return trip from Konoha, I slipped underneath the sands into some long forgotten temple dedicated to an ancient sect of Yuumagure followers. I was down there, in complete darkness, for a month... I had to practice what little I knew about Katon just for a light source. In the antechamber, I found an ancient altar, and I was drawn to it like a moth to flame. I touched it, and... here I am. All inked up with the power to control light itself. Hiton, as it's referred to by our allies in Konoha. It was a whole ordeal, I had to explain myself to their Kage and learn how to properly use the power from their Awai clan."

Once again she closed her eyes, and the tattoos faded back to black. Her eyes opened once more, and a small smile found it's way to her face. "Oh, and I also know sand style too... That kind pales in comparison to the whole 'blessing of Her Light' thing huh?" She gave a small laugh about it, clearly it was normal to her by this point. "So... your room isn't a good place for puppet maintenance huh? That's a bummer... But I think we have some open space around here you could make use of." She gave a small wink to her, clearly trying to entice her into asking more about the offer of a workspace.

"But of course, that can come later. For now, one more question: What are some of your fears? Being a shinobi, we put ourselves in harm's way pretty often. Surely there's some things out there that scare you. And that's completely natural, so there's no need to feel embarrassed about it. This just helps me get a feel for what kind of shinobi I think you'll be, based on comparisons with hundreds of other shinobi that I've got stored up in my brainmeats. So relax and answer honestly... What are you afraid of?" The question came out slightly more seriously than the others, Kiyori leaning forward on her elbows and watching the young girl closely for her reactions, both verbal and physical.

[Kabu]

Having begun to feel a tad bit antsy from just sitting around and chatting, Rika lightly began swinging her too short legs back and forth, the motion helping to put her a bit more at ease. That wasn't to say she wasn't listening however, as she was hanging onto absolutely every word that Kiyori spoke, her admiration only growing with every word. How many people could actually have enough trust from a village's higher ups to actually learn their secret techniques firsthand, regardless of the circumstances? And also how many people could gain some mysterious power and end up embracing it rather than seeing it as some kind of curse? This woman was slowly becoming more and more amazing in this young girl's eyes.

She was soon however distracted by the offer of a new working space, head tilting as Kiyori winked at her. She was clearly being tempted.. and it was working, it was working very well. Having a bigger space to work with was definitely an enticing offer. As much as she loved the isolation, her bedroom could get pretty cramped at times with her tools and materials, not to mention finding places for her projects themselves. Really it was a miracle that she still had room to sleep in there.

Before she could respond to that however, it seemed that Kiyori had more questions for her, this time asking about her fears. This time she had to stop and think, brow furrowed and finger tapping against her bottom lip as she thought over her own experiences and things she had been told by her ma and others. "Well.. I dunno if I'm afraid of it but blood makes me woozy if it's more than a little trickle, though seeing it at all makes me uncomfortable. I also am absolutely terrified of mice." she said, pouting at the thought of the little pests, a pout that quickly enough turned into a frown at the next thought to cross her mind. "What I'm most afraid of though is losing the ability to fulfill my dream. If anything were to happen, or it turned out to be impossible.. I just don't know what I would do." she continued, a bit more quietly than before.

"So, what about that workspace? Where is it? How much space? What's the catch?" she suddenly piped up after a moment of silence, her energy seeming to be coming right back to her as she rapid fired questions. Sure her mood had been brought down a bit, but she had never really been the type to stay down, and she just couldn't hold it in much longer. She very much needed to know.

[TyDie]

Kiyori had to stifle her chuckles as the girl before her mentioned fears of such mundane things, such as blood and mice. She had asked for her fears and she was being honest with her, it would be rude to laugh about it... despite how much she wanted to. However her final fear was a bit more relateable, causing Kiyori to lean back in her chair with her hands clasped together over her mouth in thought. "I understand that fear completely... dreams are what get us out of bed in the morning. They're what keep us going through our trials and tribulations. Without them, what are we? And the death of a dream... man, that can be worse than true death sometimes. I can thankfully say I've not had to go through such turmoil." But that could always happen to her. There were a myriad of things that could happen to her, things that could ruin her... Sachiko's coma as a result of Shishire was one of the most recent ones, but what if something happened to Arata? What if something happened to the village?

letting out a small sigh, Kiyori looked to the ceiling as she pondered her own fears and worries. "I suppose my biggest fear would be... ostracization. One day, the things that I want to do to and for this village may make enemies of others within the village. If that list of enemies grows too large, and I end up villainized by the very people I swear to protect, I'm not sure how I would handle that. To be hated by the people you love, to be tossed aside by the people you only want to serve... I think that pain would destroy me. Oh, and spiders. Spiders suck." Kiyori's somber explanation of her greatest fear ended on an oddly comical note as she mentioned her fear of spiders, mostly inherited by those spider-woman hybrid creatures she had fought in the ancient sunken temple. She concluded with a small chuckle, but was immediately stunned by the sudden energy of Rika and her billion questions.

"Woah woah, slow down girly! You're definitely interested, that much is for sure... Alright cool, so let's talk business now. I think I've got a pretty good read on who you are and what you want to do, and I think that your skills would make you a valuable ally to have. So here's my proposal; I'll be happy to give you the space and materials necessary to work on whatever you wish. simple tools and devices, full blown puppets, even flying machines. And in return, you'll put your skills and abilities to work for the Scribes library. There's no end to the tasks I have on my to do list, and anyone that I can delegate tasks to eases my stress just a little bit more. Of course i'm not going to send you head first into an ancient crypt for weeks on end... yet anyway. Being a genin, you'll most likely be performing less intensive tasks, like keeping in touch with some of our nomadic allies and talking other libraries into combining their inventory with our own. Maybe i'll send a team out to handle a slightly more dangerous mission, but I digress... These would be some of the things I would ask of you. But on top of getting your own workspace out of it, you'd be assisting the library's growth, which ultimately would mean more knowledge at your fingertips. So tell me Rika... would you be interested in becoming a Scribe?"

Kiyori tilted her head in curiosity and anticipation, eagerly awaiting the young girl's response to her proposal now that it was all out on the table.

[Kabu]

For a moment, Rika simply blinked as Kiyori made her proposal, unable to believe what she was hearing. It was just a moment however before her eyes lit up in a mix of fascination and absolute joy, this practically being a dream come true, even as unbelievable as it was. Her own workspace and an opportunity to work with the scribes? There was absolutely no way that she was going to turn down any part of that. She had thought for sure that they wouldn't look to recruit a mere Genin, but she was so very pleased that she had been wrong about that.

And so, her excitement having been given time to peak in her shocked silence... "I would absolutely love to!" she excitedly shouted, falling silent only as she took a moment to collect herself. "This has been kind of like a dream of mine, in a sense. I've often found myself thinking that since the library has been so good to me, that it would be nice if maybe I could one day return the favor by helping out whenever needed, whether directly with the scribes or otherwise. There's absolutely no reason for to me refuse, and even if there was I would never turn down such a wonderful opportunity." she continued, this time being a bit more calm though still clearly very pleased at the opportunity that had just been given to her.

"I would be lying though if I were to say that the thought of a better workspace didn't help to draw me in as well. I think ma will be satisfied with that too." she added after a moment's silence, blushing in slight embarrassment, though she did still manage a small smile. "But that said, being able to help ease someone's burdens, no matter how large or small the task, is even a very big benefit as well. Only good things can come from this arrangement between us."

[TyDie]

Kiyori smiled happily as the young genin before her accepted her offer to become a member of the prestigious library to which she had devoted much of her own life and career to. "That's wonderful Rika, i'm so happy that you've accepted! More than that even, you seem downright happy to be a part of the Scribes, a quality that i'll not soon forget. Or ever forget, for that matter. Yknow. Eyes and stuff." She laughed a little at her own silly observation before rising from her chair and moving around the desk to Rika's left. She'd then extend a hand to the young genin, a formal shake between the two was what she was after. And after doing so, Kiyori would give a small nod to Rika before moving for the door, expecting her to follow.

"I'll guide you back to Kyoko downstairs and she'll have some paperwork for you to sign and fill out, just official documentation of your intent to serve with us here at the library. Once that's done, You'll be official Rika. I couldn't be happier to have you with us. But I warn you, it's not going to be a walk in the park. I'm going to have great expectation of you, you'll have to be at the top of your game. Still, I think you've got it in you to be a great shinobi, and I think you being with the scribes will do a world of good." As she spoke, Kiyori would lead Rika back along the same path Kyoko had lead her through before; along the top balcony, past the unsorted books, and down the stairs to Kyoko's office. Kiyori would give a small knock on the door, and a still flustered voice would call out in response. [color=87cefa]"Y-yes?"[/color] Kiyori would then slowly open the door, giving her secretary and friend a playful glare.

"that's how you knock on a door Kyoko." She spoke with a clear tease in her voice, poking a little fun at the young Dasu, who clearly did not appreciate it. "I said I was sorry!" The girl was practically in tears, embarrassed by the fumble from earlier, and Kiyori could only chuckle before approaching her and offering a small hug, which Kyoko accepted. "Relax girl, I'm only teasing. I've had a lot worse than a bump on the butt, believe me. Now then, Rika has decided to join us. I'd like you to prepare her paperwork and, after she's done, show her the workspace we had prepared for her, mkay?" Kyoko gave a small sniffle as she backed out of the hug and nodded in understanding, a smile present on her face alongside the embarrassed blush. "Good. Alright Rika." She turned to her newfound ally and gave a bow of respect and farewell to the young genin. "I'm off to continue my duties. My job is never done after all... But hopefully having you here will help with that. I'll see you around, Rika-san!" With that, Kiyori would walk back through the door the two had just entered through, back up the steps and back to her office.

"What a wonderful woman. She once saved me from what I thought was certain death... I'd do anything to help her, but she assures me that this is enough for her. Alright Rika, just a moment." Drawn from her thoughts by the task at hand, Kyoko set to work pulling files and papers out of drawers here and there, putting together a pile of about a dozen papers that Rika would need to read through and sign... The less fun part of signing up for something like this. But it'd all be worth it; after all, she would get to help the scribes fulfill their goals, and in doing so fulfill her own dreams. That was worth fighting for, wasn't it?