[Closed] The Teeth of the Cogs

[Tsedas]

A storm was releasing a proper deluge upon Kirigakure, dark clouds making the midday sky look like night as they blotted out the sun. The rain broke the heat and chilled to the bone but it did little to determine a lone figure walking the street to their destination. Her full figure was garbed in revealing clothing that provided temptation for the eyes to wander and thanks to the ran was clinging to her body as she strode forward with purpose. Her green eyes full of focus and fire as her red hair clung to her head, neck and shoulders. Kawazaiwa Sagi was soaked to the bone but the chill of the rain seemed faded to her, thoughts whirring through the motions as she continued to calculate he plans.

Her haughty cousin decided to make her purpose in life to be an obstacle, she'll deal with her in time. Her uncle decided to be a stubborn fool with short sighted vision for the future, she'd deal with him in time. Shinjiro was an impetuous child masquerading as a man, she'd deal with him too in time. For now they were the opposition and she would need to figure out a way to keep tabs on them in time. Now she was enroute to the Kaguya compound to meet with their clan head and deliver her Uncle's love letter warning. If she had to guess, the Kaguya head would become another obstacle as well.

'I'm just going to deliver his warning and leave. I've no need to waste time here when I have more important things to tend to. Besides, if he has questions I'm sure he and uncle can have a sit down.' Brushing stray hairs from her eyes as water pelted her from on high, Sagi continued on and furrowed her brow. 'Still, I'll have to move swiftly if I wanna get the ball rolling. I'll need to have Counter plan A and B ready to go when the time comes in the event that they decide to be barbaric fools and just try to kill me. I think the little squid and my bothersome cousin are the only pig headed fools stupid enough to rush to that option.'

As she arrived at the entryway of the Kaguya, Sagi raised a closed fist and pounded it against the doorframe a few times to ensure someone could hear the knock over the heavy rainstorm. There she waited for someone to answer as she pondered the things required to move her plans into place and begin consolidating herself as a suitable replacement as head of the family. Killing the old man wouldn't ensure she'd take his place, the leader wasn't chosen by blood relation after all. But that means that Kazuha wasn't a shoe in for the position either and she'd have to work just as hard to put herself in a position to thwart Sagi's plans. Still, better to over estimate her opponents than to underestimate them. It would give her the ability to be prepared for whatever they might try to throw at her.

[Ace Trainer]

Rain in Kirigakure was not uncommon, storms swept upon the island often, and heavy rains like this were soaked up by the swamp and filled the massive lake that Kirigakure sat on. The Kaguya compound was one of the largest in the shinobi ring, not due to the size of the clan, but because the Kawazaiwa converted farmlands into a compound as part of their deal with the clan all those years ago. The large mansion the Kaguya head lived in was a bit gaudy, overly decorated, large walls with gorgeous ornamental design. It was all over the top, especially considering the reputation of the clan.

She would rap on the door, and would find with surprising quickness that it would swing open. Greeting her with a wide, toothy smile was Kaguya, Sesshoumaru himself. Answering his own door? He wore a silken robe, simple clothes under it. Despite being in his own home, his face had make up on it still, a full face to include the traditional markings of his clan and red eyeliner styled to slim his eyes. His skin was flawless. The light from within his home spread out over him, he'd take a step back, "Ah. And whom do I owe the pleasure.", his voice was sultry. He was at least a half foot taller than Sagi, though he seemed even taller from his perfect posture. Taking another step back he'd gesture for her to come in.

"Please. No need to soak...", he said, his eyes scanning her body without any attempt to hide it. A gorgeous man of prestige, it was certain Sesshoumaru was one who got whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. As Sagi entered the foyer, she'd find she was in quite a grand room, with tall arcing ceilings and overhead lighting, but she'd likely also notice there was no furniture. The room was bare, save doorways into other parts of the home. How unusual. The walls, stark white, hard ornate gold etchings along their edges, giving them a somewhat regal but still plain appearance. His eyes locked onto her, Sesshoumaru waited expectantly - just who was this before him?

[Tsedas]

The door opened and a man stood on the other side. This man matched descriptions she had heard about the clan head but she found it a little odd that the clan head would answer his own door let alone be waiting beside it in that moment. 'No, he wouldn't be waiting. Not unless this was planned...' The expression on Sagi's face was not a happy or inviting one, but given her drenched appearance it could easily be chalked up to being caught in the bad weather. When he asked who was calling upon the household, Sagi placed a hand upon her chest. "Kawazaiwa Sagi, born and bled to the family Kawazaiwa."

After her introduction, he bade her enter and she hesitated for a moment before doing so. The water had forced her hair and clothes to cling to every aspect of her body, her revealing attire little more than a second skin at this point. The difference in the air around her made the kunoichi suppress a shiver from the tingle that crawled up her spine. Glancing at the rather unfurnished interior, her eyes shifted back to the man as she noted his elevator eyes roaming her form. "I'm here to deliver a message to Kaguya Sesshoumaru... You match his description but I will not assume I'd have the good fortune to knock on the door as he was wandering by."

As she spoke, she let her mind go through the possibilities of why the man himself would be at the door waiting to answer. She could only assume this was because of Ichase or perhaps Kazuha's meddling. Soaked to the bone, the red haired woman pondered if this meddling was going to have to accelerate her time tables. If that was the case, she'd need to figure out how to pursue interests that would turn the Kawazaiwa to favor her soon rather than later. The furrow to her brow remained as she tried to brace for her meeting to turn south like any other encounter with another living person these days.

[Ace Trainer]

"Ahh..", he said in response to her introduction, the words rolling out of his mouth like honey. "Well, Kawazaiwa, Sagi, born and bled to the family Kawazaiwa, I am indeed Sesshoumaru, born of the Kaguya, bled for the Kawazaiwa, Head of the Kaguya Clan.", his lips spread into a wide smile as he turned his back to her, taking several long strides across the room and leaning on a banister connected to a large staircase. Crossing his arms, he watched her carefully, letting silence hang between them for a moment.

"Deliver a message?", he finally asked. His eye brow raised, and he suck on his teeth. "You strike me as more than a messenger. A present perhaps.", he smirked, then lifted a hand to his chin, rubbing it as he seemed to think, clearly not interested in hearing her message just yet. "Not good fortune. I do not keep slaves or servant in my home. I prefer my...independence.", he was coy, and his tone was playful like a fox playing with food. "It affords a level of privacy that is not easily matched in Kirigakure. Especially when you have born and bled Kawazaiwa showing up your home in the middle of a storm with messages that cannot simply be delivered by a messenger.", another toothy smile.

Hmm.

What a curious arrival. "Very well then, Sagi, born and bled for the Kawazaiwa. What is the message you have to deliver to Kaguya, Sesshoumaru?"

[Tsedas]

His smile and way of talking only led credence to what she had suspected. Watching him move over to the bannister and lean against it, she remained in the entry way where one would leave their shoes, her body dripping from the rain as she blinked an errant drop away from her eyes. "And what makes you suspect I don't have other things to do and this was merely something to do while I was out on business?" She asked plainly, her expression watching him like a hawk as he made his jester like performance before her. She hadn't expected to be delayed by her cousin's display of ornery passion at being a thorn in her side otherwise she could have been attending this meeting dry as a bone.

As he asked for the message, she reached up a few fingers and brushed some of her bangs aside, the hair still sticking to her skin. "The Karagata seek to claim your clan by force, best to prepare yourself. That is the message." She stated plainly and bluntly, repeating the exact words Ichase gave her to give to the man. Observing him, she waited to see what he'd have to say, chances are it would be some over dramatic act of surprise or some feigned ignorance. 'This clown probably already knows everything, knowing Uncle. Not my problem, I have more important things to handle after I'm through here. First I will need to get an umbrella.'

[Ace Trainer]

”Oh…”, he made a thoughtful sound , ”That is most interesting.”, he brought a hand to his chin, his brow furrowing together as he weighed what Sagi was saying. By force was a mighty thing to say. Indeed, that brat Li had “defected” from the clan for lack of better terms to join the Karagata, so the choice for the family to make more drastic moves was unsurprising. ”Well, dear Sagi, I appreciate the message. This is…telling information.”

He dropped his hands, standing back up straight and walking towards a door on the opposite wall. It seems I will be needed to begin precautions. Perhaps having slaves and servants will be necessary. Thank you for the warning”

He’d reach the door, opening it, seemingly indicating an end to the conversation and then he would stop, pausing in the door way. Though…, he’d pull the door back closed, looking over his shoulder. This certainly seems like important information to pass. I would expect Ichase-sama would have sent for me to meet in his quarters over such a warning. Tell me, dear Sagi, what do you think of this warning?, his lips spread into a wide vampire smile.

[Tsedas]

The shift in his demeanor brought a brief end to that jester performance as he seemed to become more what she had anticipated of a clan leader. Sesshoumaru might play the fool but he was anything but and it was telling. Still, his coy wording betrayed the hand he had been dealt already. Sagi watched him before reaching up to brush her matted red hair behind her ears as she watched the man head for a door and open it. As he paused, he turned to her with one final question and a smile that made her restrain her facial muscles from going into grimace.

"Important messages like this, surely it explains the presence of a Kawazaiwa and not some simple courier or servant. As for Ichase calling upon you," Sagi merely spread her hands out to the side as she continued on. "I was asked to deliver the message instead of a summons." Sagi did have a point, there was a reason she was there to give him the message, but she had done as the old man asked and gave his little whispered nothings to the Kaguya clan head. With her message given, she lowered her arms breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth. "Warnings are called warnings for a reason, certainly not something to be underestimated in Kirigakure."