Why me?

[Trusted Grader]

"Master Yuuto, a letter has been sent to you" Inpa, his first servant rocked up to Yuuto and handed him a letter, the insignia was rather unusual for the ones that he usually received, it had the Kawazaiwa sign stamped on it.

"Kawazaiwa? What do they want with me?" Inpa shrugged as she watched Yuuto open the letter, his curious face quickly turned into a frown and then shifted over to contemplation.

"What does it say? If I may ask..." Inpa would´ve never asked any other member what a letter designated to them said, except for Yuuto, he always seemed to treat servants as if they were his equals.

"I... I am being summoned to discuss an arranged marriage..." Inpa smiled as she thought this was great news for the young Karagata, but Yuuto continued to frown as he wasn´t pleased that he had not been consulted, he´d still go through it but being left out in the open made him feel like a pawn in a game he had no choice in.

Seeing as his cousin had set this up with another family caused Yuuto interpreted it as Shinjiro being hungry for power yet again, a sigh escaped his breath as he slowly rose from his comfortable sitting position, he got dressed in his finest robe with the help of Inpa, rolled the letter and then placed it inside his sleeve. See, unlike the other Karagata, Yuuto had been handed a great leeway due to his born status, he was to be considered something akin to a prince, which was the reason why he got so much flak when he was younger.

He was the prince that refused to fight, in a clan that respected strength, in fact, it hadn´t been until he finally became an official Sword that he finally earned his family's respect as there was only one Karagata outside of the head of the clan that could truly oppose Yuuto, not counting his father in this as well.

A sigh rolled out of his breath as he continued to make his way toward the Kawaizawa compound, why was this deal proposed? Who would this truly benefit in the long run? Did the Karagata actually need more power or are they just creating more drama that could have untold consequences in the future? See, Yuuto and Shinjiro were thought to be immortal, but even the boy knew that there were probably limits that they hadn't encountered yet, what would happen to the family the day Shinjiro passed away? God forbid, would their enemies try to come for them as it would be an open season?

It was unknown at the moment and Yuuto never liked the sensation that things could change at any moment, he was never the violent guy so for him, peace was the optimal goal, but for his cousin, war and power seemed to be his end desire, to the point where had forgotten to teach his own daughter what the word innocent meant...

A third sigh, but this one was stopped mid through as he pulled his breath in right as he knocked at the Kawaizawa front gate. Three heavy knocks before taking a step back. Let's hope that this goes well...

[Tsedas]

The compound of the Kawazaiwa Family. Not as grandiose as the Karagata compound to be sure given their status was higher than the Family that was in charge of food production, but still a sight in and of itself. As Yuuto knocked upon the front gate, the door swung open after only a moment, one of the many servants of the family standing straight backed as they pulled the heavy wooden door aside. Sitting the renowned face of a Seven Swordsman, they bowed their head and gave a formal greeting. With bowed posture they shifted aside and gestured the man through the gate. Once through, they would rise and close the wooden door before asking the reason for their visit. Upon being given one of the main family's names, they would gesture for them to follow and that their arrival was expected.

Within the compound, a girl was quietly playing under the watchful eye of her mother. The woman leaned against a post on the patio as she watched her daughter with a small smile. The treasure, the light of her life, the reason for anything she did now. A brief kiss of wind ruffled the veranda and caused the woman and brush some of her red hair away before a servant arrived and mentioned a visitor. Turning to her daughter, the woman rose from her perch, "Ayeka, I have a meeting to attend, be a good girl while I'm gone."

The girl gave a big grin, one of her baby teeth already missing as the woman leaned down to kiss her daughter on the head. The servant stated he would watch the little girl until the woman's return before informing her of the guest's location in a meeting room. Nodding, Kawazaiwa Sagi, adjusted her kimono and pulled it gith and secure. Sliding the door to the room open, she stepped out and made her way down the hall. Her appearance was a stark contrast from her usual attire. The kimono elaborate and well made, the colors and designs complimenting her figure and features but not betraying a sense of modesty. She didn't feel the need to use wiles or seduction for this meeting, not like the one with her previous Karagata visitor.

As she arrived, she placed well manicured fingers into the groove and pulled the door aside. Beyond was a simple room with a low table, cushions, a small set up for one to prepare tea or drinks, and if they desired it they could open the paper screen doors to give them a view of the garden outside. Stepping in, Sagi closed the door behind her before pulling something she had one of her shinobi contacts make for her. Setting it against the door, she walked around the room and placed five more talisman just like it. One in each corner and one on the garden door for a total of six fuuinjutsu talisman. Forming a hand seal, the seals all glowed before the room was shrouded in a barrier that would dampen noise escaping the room from prying ears.

Walking over, Sagi bent her knees while tucking the back of her kimono against her legs, folding herself down into a sitting position on the cushion opposite of Karagata Yuuto. The man she had summoned, the name she had been given by Karagata Shinjiro, the potential groom that would never be it seemed. As she sat, she smiled at him, her green eyes taking in his features before she gave him a brief bow. "Welcome Karagata Yuuto, I suppose you'll be most curious as to the contents of the missive I sent you. Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Kawazaiwa Sagi. Would you care for something to drink, I suspect this conversation might go on for some time."

[Trusted Grader]

Yuuto was taken back by the compound, sure it wasn´t as lavish as the Karagata but that didn´t matter, he was a fan of beautiful architecture and seeing as the Kawazaiwa were the farmers of the bunch they knew a thing or two about gardening. That was Yuuto´s first impression of the compound, not the servant that opened the door and closed it behind them, no, it was the beauty that drew the eye wherever he looked, Inpa was less impressed but did her best to not draw too much attention.

He could tell that she felt some type of way due to her not having been allowed to bring her weapon to the meeting, as Yuuto didn´t want to intimidate the Kawaizawa, or at least that´s what they made it appear as for Inpa was the paranoid out of the two and had forced Yuuto to allow her to bring their weapons within a scroll, that way if this was some sort of trap then they would at least have a fighting chance of escaping, Yuuto had assured her that this was very unlikely to happen but knowing Inpa he allowed her to store the weapons.

Either way, the two shared a glance that forced Inpa to start smiling and not draw too much attention to herself, which was hard as she tended to dress like a street fighter and walk around bare feet. Luckily he had managed to convince her to dress a bit more appropriate as the duo wanted to present themselves as best as possible.

Once they were led to the meeting space, he would turn to Inpa and gently nod, much to her disapproval, as this meant that she was relegated to waiting outside. "You know the code." Inpa nodded at Yuuto before exiting the room and closed the paper door behind her. Yuuto were to stomp on the ground three times if he was in trouble, but he did not expect violence to occur, especially not in this fine room.

Yuuto folded his kimono and sat down right as Sagi entered the room, he was taken back by her appearance as he had not expected her to be so... voluptuous, Yuuto took a deep breath and shook the thoughts out of his head and solely focused on Sagi´s green eyes, and sometimes he would shift is focus to her red hair, all in order to distract himself from her figure.

Yuuto cleared his throat after he bowed back. "I would love some tea." Yuuto folded his arms together and smiled as he leaned backwards. "Well, then luck must be on our side for I have time today." Yuuto gave a slight head tilt as he took a sip of the warm tea. Hm? What else to expect from people that work the plants. Of course their tea would taste better. This was the type of quality tea the Mizukage got to afford everyday, so he would make sure to savor this moment.

[Tsedas]

The eyes that wandered over her figure for the briefest of moments would find the Kimono did little to hide those curves but it's simple design made it very easy to leave plenty for the imagination. While she had pulled it tight to her body, it was more in an attempt to keep the valley of cleavage the man could lose his arm in from being a distraction. The end result? the kimono sash was holding that robe in place, hanging on for dear life as she moved about the room and set the sound dampening seals before taking her seat. As he'd stare into those eyes, they'd shine like precious stones, the glances to her hair like staring into vibrant flames. It was when he spoke of liking some tea, Sagi would set her hands upon her lap and rise back to her feet. Making her way over to a table stationed on the side, she began preparing the tea for them, steeping high quality leaves to make a black tea for the two of them.

The oxidized tea was removed from a brick that was wrapped in leaves, the flavor profile deeper and holding a stronger bit of caffeine while also promoting a healthy heart. While fresh tea leaves were pleasant, this particular batch of black tea was one she'd made herself almost a year ago. "Tell me Yuuto, was the missive a blind side for you or did Shinjiro actually manage to make time to talk to you?" She asked while filling two cups and setting them on a tray. Bringing them over to the table, she knelt down and set a cup in front of Yuuto before setting one where she was to sit. Rising up, she took the tray back to the side table and set it aside before returning to the table.

Kneeling down once more, she bent at the waist slightly while a hand slid down the back of her legs to smooth out the material and prevent it from wrinkling or trying to bunch up. Last thing she wanted to do was have her kimono fall into shambles and give this man an eye full. Resting herself down on the cushion, she straightened her back while sitting seiza with her hands coming to rest in her lap. She looked over Yuuto and took the young man in before meeting his gaze as he took that first sip of tea. "Tell me what you may known, and I'll fill in the gaps. Then we can be on the same page of what's to be discussed."

[Trusted Grader]

Yuuto looked down at his own cup as he tried to regain focus, he was not here to ogle at a woman and knew better to make her feel uncomfortable, even though she didn´t seem to be that type of person to take offense if someone checked her out. No... Don´t think like that. Yuuto sighed in silence, this was making him very uncomfortable as he was trying his best not to disrespect this woman but she seemed to not really mind the way she presented herself, albeit he could tell that she at least put some effort into not revealing herself too much to the boy.

He managed to work his blush away as he truly didn´t want to look at her with any lust, this was supposedly a serious meeting and he wanted to treat it as such. To him, respect meant a lot and he was here to show that he was a gentlemen after all.

Yuuto waited a couple of seconds before taking another sip as he need to make sure that the cup wasn´t poisonous, after all, one couldn´t be too sure in a world filled with ninjas and spies. Paranoid as well? What´s going on with you today. Yuuto smiled as he continued to look into the cup and took another sip. This is really good. The young adolescent placed the cup down as their eyes reconnected. "What is there to talk about? I am a knight of the Kirigakure no Sato, a Seven Swordsman of the Mist, but I will always be a Karagata first. If my family needs me to do something, as much as I dislike it, I will follow orders and try my best to keep a cherry mood."

This wasn´t a lie but there was parts that was missing, such as, was he truly okay with the idea of being married of to a stranger? Was it truly okay that he wasn´t in on the loop? He mentally shrugged but still struggled with his true internal feelings about this, Sagi had managed to sneak past his defenses and placed him against a proverbial wall. A sigh rolled out of his breath as he closed his eyes and looked down.

"Truth be told, I know nothing." He said as he looked away from Sagi, he didn´t like the fact that he was keep out of the loop, it made him feel weak, like before, before he enrolled into the Seven Swordsmen and finally earned the respect of his family. He found himself by the edge once again wondering what his actions were for if he didn´t earn their respect and trust.