looking for a friend(team only)

[Mist]

A bird cawed as it flew on a nice day. However this was kirigakure also known as the village hidden in mist. The day had mist like any other. However todays mist was more clear and less thick than the norm. This was usually considered a nice day to some of the village people. The bird set its eyes on the sight of a tree on the edge of a small pond. The bird cawe and lowered itself to land on of the the tree’s branches. The bird softly landed to find somebody else occupied the tree. It tilted its head to find a human boy sitting at the trunk of the tree. The bird hopped left and right. It cawed unsure if it should leave because of the human.

The boy looked up. His amber eyes staring right into the eyes of the bird. The bird was small about 4 inches. The bird was covered in light blue feathers. The boy smiled at the bird. The boy had blue grey skin and was glad to see another creature similar in looks to him. He held his mouth nclosed though. The boy was special than other humans. He is what some may consider half shark. Its more complicated but those are the simplest of terms. His looks, feel, and smell are slightly different so animals tend to feel awkward around him or approach him differently. He noticed this his whole life. However if teeth are just like a sharks. Nice sharp and pointy teeth which can easily scare off animals. So he only talks to animals after he feels they trust him. The boys name was Tsuyu. A member of the hoshigaki, a clan of shark people.

Tsuyu was eating berries from a box. He had packed the box to take out sort of like a picnic. He was picknicking by himself. He had no friends because just like how he can cause animals to feel awkward and scared with him the same was for humans. He would like to have friends however is too shy to approach new people. He backs away or runs from others when approached. He vowed to stop being so shy but it isnt easy. He threw some small berries on the ground away from him. The bird noticed the berries he threw on the ground. The bird spread its wings and glided down. The bird stared at Tsuyu at first. Then began to pick at the berries. If only making friends was this easy. He was supposed to be meeting new members of his team eventually but he wasn’t sure when. This was the spot however so he showed up early. He watched the bird enjoying its company.

[Tha Brute.]

A gray and dreary mist hung low inside the village. Kei took a deep exhale as he woke up. His eyes ached as he awoke from his room. When he looked out his window he sighed deeply. Another day, another challenge. He slipped on his clothes, and opened his door.

In the dining quarters he found a note. It was written in his father's penmanship. He smiled. "So he's done with another mission, huh? And what does he decide to do? Grocery shopping." Kei said flatly. Well, at least he knew his whereabouts. The adopted teen took a bite out of a ripened pear and headed out the door. He decided that he would train in a park. The park had a pond which he would use as an open water source. Yet, he also had other motives; besides meeting the Mizukage, Kei had not really become acquainted with anyone in Kirigakure. This was especially troubling because he was an extrovert; one who desired company.

He walked a quarter of a mile into the public park. Despite the overcast appearance of the morning, the weather was quite humid on this day. Either this could be a real annoyance to Kei, or he could make a positive out if this situation. "Well, I can always try that 'Hidden Mist' technique I've been having trouble on", Kei thought aloud. When he took two steps into the park, he heard the caw of a crow. He stopped in his tracks immediately.

On the surface lay a variety of unique flowers, only found in the land of Water. They formed a sort of path, leading up to a tall and gigantic tree, that bent itself outwardly to the left direction. Underneath the leafy clouds that they called tree branches lay a boy. He looked to be in his mid teenage phase; relatively young and near Kei's own age. He appeared to be slim, and muscular.His skin was a dark blue with a tint of gray. His eyes were shining a coppery glint. They were unnerving, even intimidating to some others. As Kei scrutinized this boy, he raised an eyebrow. On his neck were the gills. He knew who he was: a Hoshigake.

Kei had heard tall tales of these kinds of specimen from both his teachers at the academy and his step father. Yet, he was company. So he bluntly yelled, "Hey! Do you plan on meditating there by yourself?"

[Mist]

(OOC:oh btw its not wing gardium leveohsa, its wing gardium leviosa! lol jk but what I mean is Hoshigaki has an i at the end so its not spelled hoshigake. Tsuyu is light blue and I never said the bird was a crow lol. other bird besides crows can caw lol)

Tsuyu really didn’t have any plans for the day. He realized this as he watched the bird eat the berries he threw. He noticed how the bird had a habit of poking at the berry before eating it. As if it was testing to see if the berry was safe to eat. Tsuyu thought about plans for the day as he watched the bird. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt to have a casual day. He should have a break every once in a while. He continued to smile while watching the bird. He figured he could always train the next day. It wouldn’t be much of a harm. Today was a nice day for relaxing.

The bard chirped at him. He looked over at the bird. It seemed he went into a bit of a daze as he went into thought. The bird chirped again. He noticed the berries were all gone. The bird wanted more. He chuckled as he grabbed a couple more berries. He gently threw them at the bird. The bird seemed happy as it began its peck and eat routine. Birds are intelligent creatures so he knew. It didn’t surprise him that the bird knew he would have more or give more. This happens every once in a while. He liked to go to places to feed birds, ducks, the occasional squirrel. Not every animal would accept his offers. However he was happy each time one was brave enough to.

Every time an animal went close up to eat his treats Tsuyu felt a little bit more human. As he watched out a human males voice called out nearby. This spooked the bird he was watching. The bird made a frightened sound and quickly flew out. For some reason Tusyu reached out his hand to the bird as if to say “No don’t go”. He retracted his hand. Tsuyu noticed the bird only had one berry left to go. Well the bird would have left him anyways. It was a matter of time. He only would’ve liked it to have lasted longer. He turned around to the source of the sound. It was a teen male but older then himself. Tsuyu thought about the boy’s question. Did he not want Tsuyu there? It was only to be expected.

Tsuyu packed up his box and got up. He looked at the boy the reverted his look away. Unable to look fully. He tried to veer his eyes to the boy.”N-no I wasn’t. He backed away slowly. He grabbed his box from the ground with his left hand. With his free hand he pulled over the hood from his sleeveless hoodie over his head. He liked having something to cover his head to he wouldn’t freak out other people. “I-im sorry. I didn’t mean to….inconvenience you .” Tsuyu isn’t a stutterer but he stammers when nervous at times. “I’ll take my leave. This way I won’t be a bother to you. he said politely. With that the shark boy turned around and walked away.

[Tha Brute.]

OOC: I should know that haha. *smacks head*

IC: Kei caught a closer look at the boy. He seemed to be holding out berries in his hand. Then he would drop them on the ground. A bird descended downward to the ground, bending its head. Its beak picked up a dark purple berry, swallowing it. At that instant, Kei began to see a look of relaxation and relief on the Hoshigaki's sharkish face.

Then Kei had to shout out. The bird took off and flew away, out of fear. "I did it again", Kei sighed. Then he heard the Hoshigaki's voice quiver. "N-no I wasn't", he replied nervously. He also uttered another word. What was it? Inconvenience? That was a tough seed of a word to swallow for Kei.

As he was swimming around this thought, he noticed that the boy had gotten up. He appeared to be leaving. "Ah crap", Kei said to himself. He had to do something. Even though Chunnin exams were a while away, he had to find someone to team up with. Even if this person was shy. Kei was also feeling lonely, and needed someone to talk to.

"Hold on! Don't leave yet!" Kei yelled, as he quickened his pace, trying to keep up with the fleeing shark-human hybrid. He needed to think of something to say quickly, as he was already making a terrible first impression. "I was just stopping here to train and think. There's definitely room for two. Please...stay." He grit his teeth as he said this, almost grinding them. Kei hated to sound whiny in front of people, especially people that didn't quite know him yet. With a pear in his hand, Kei pulled out another bright green pair and held it out. He took a bite of his. With his mouthful, he stammered "Would'ja care for a morning bite?" He bit his tongue to keep him from saying another sarcastic remark. Hopefully, he would at least get on a first-name basis with the boy.

[Corvus]

Today was... a beautiful day. The sun was shining. The skies were clear. And the thermals were strong. Akiko, a young child of not yet even 13, and appearing barely five, soared through the blue morning skies on large pure white wings extending each a full six feet from her back, powerful muscles beating the wings against the air. The chill wind wove it's fingers through her hair as the warm sun warmed her tiny back. Her coat was freshly washed and once again a bright sunny orange. Her eyes a unique green with a touch of blue. And her hair was the golden color of ripe wheat, tousled by the wind and a little longer than she normally kept it.

Akiko banked to her left and tucked in her wings, nosing down into a dive. The wind rushed past her as she descended, gaining speed. She began at a sparse 10,000 feet up, and she descended fast, her eyes closed, wings closed tight around her body. 9000. 8000. She only picked up speed as her altitude vanished, heading down like a rocket. 7000. 6000. She reached terminal velocity. The wind, the forces of drag, tore at her flesh and feathers; a punishing sensation and an exhilarating trip.

She entered into the fog layer that surrounded the village. And the better part of the island. As the air pressures on her body reached their apex, a brief thought suddenly struck her. She should invest in some goggles, to protect her eyes and allow her to see while doing one of these dives. But the thought was quickly whisked away by the screaming winds and terrific G-forces. Akiko's stomach was back somewhere in one of her feet, and her heart had taken up residence in her other foot.

She felt the air temperature drop while its density rose dramatically as she entered the thick fog. She felt the density reach a certain point that told her she had reached 5000 feet. And she passed it to only 4000 feet. Akiko forced her eyes open, an watched through tightly squinted eyes as the Village's skyline rapidly approached. Just as she passed the Kage's tower, she spread her wings wide and nosed up hard.

The Gs and her own momentum, despite her light weight, pulled hard at her body as her wings sliced through the air; the angle at which she struggled to hold them rotating her to horizontal. A sudden thermal lifted her up, but as she left the pillar of warmer air into the ambient cooler air, she dropped the small distance she had gained. Akiko adjusted her yaw and headed towards the large naturalistic area that was the largest park in the village.

As she entered into the marketplace's airspace, she began to float from side to side while flying forward at incredible speed. She caught as many thermals as she could, reducing the strain on her wings and just being fun besides. At her dangerous high speeds, Akiko approached a pair of buildings too tall to go over and too close for her wings to pass through. But seeing this, she only smirked cockily, already lost in the thrill and the wind of her flight.

With a single mighty flap of her alabaster wings, she gained height, then tucked her wings back in and twisted into a rapid aileron roll. With her spin and her speed, she flew like a large bullet between the buildings, with only inches to spare on either side. And like a bullet, she spun as she flew, keeping her on a straight course between the large constructs.

She shot out of the alleyway she flew through and quickly spread her wings wide, righting herself as she did so. Her eyes were opening wide, adapting to the wind pressure. Akiko, getting well used to her wings, quickly banked to her right, then shifted into an attack barrel roll, flying up and after gaining some height, banking to her left while descending again. That was an attack barrel roll.

.

.

.

It was a lovely day. The sun shone through the mist, refracting beautifully and even forming the occasional rainbow. The birds were singing. And two shinobi had just begun a possibly fateful meeting. Little did they know that their little party was about to be crashed.

Literally.

All was well until a missile, not even 4 feet in length, hurtled through the air and impacted with a small pond, rocking the ground and scattering water into the air all around. As the scene began to settle, a pair of tiny feet, wearing bright orange shoes, stuck just above the water's surface. They kicked futilely, as their owner tried to free herself. . .

What will you do?

[Mist]

As Tsuyu walked away he felt sad. He wasn’t sure why but he felt saddened to leave. Perhaps he wish to stay and talk with the boy. However it isnt easy talking to new people when you easily spook strangers. Tsuyu always thought that if there were people who feel uneasy around a shark human. Then perhaps there would be people who wouldn’t mind and be comfortabke around him. However findning such people is a different story. Tsuyu already started to walk away so it was to late…perhaps. Instead as Tsuyu walked the other boy called out yo him. The boy was asking him to stay.

Tsuyu was never asked to stay before. So he wasn’t sure what to do. The shark boy stopped and turned around. His circular amber eyes staring at the boy. He stood there and listened to the boy. Tsuyu noticed how he was gritting his teeth. He wondered why he was doing this. Was he finding it hard to talk to Tsuyu? Was he making fun of him? The boy then took out a pear and bite into. He offered on for Tusyu. He held out a pear and offered it to him. Tsuyu blushed as he was never offered something by another person. His cheecks turned a slightly darker blue and felt warm.

Tsuyu never saw what he looked like when he blushed. So he wasn’t sure what he looked like. Tusyu stared at the fruit.”You aren’t afraid of me?” he asked. He wanted to know more in depth why he wanted Tsuyu to stay. This was a first for him so it was all new. Tsuyu stared at him. What tsuyu saw was sort of an apologetic look. He wasn’t sure. Tsuyu took extended his arm so he could take the pare.However something unexpected caused him to stop. The ground rumbled and the water from the pond was spraying everywhere.Tsuyu was hit by the water from the pond.

He turned to the pond to find splash of water. As the water calmed down he saw something bright in the water. The bright object was orange shoes sticking out and kicking. He found himself running into the pond. Tsuyu reacted rather then thought about what happened. All he knew was that he saw somebody struggling and needed help."Help me!" He called over to the boy incase Tsuyu couldnt do this alone. Running into the pond he swam over to the pair of kicking legs. He tried to distance himselfso he would get hit. However the leg kicked his forehead quite hard.

Tsuyu tried to ignore the pain in his head as he tried to grab the persons mid section underwater. He was trying to help hoist them around so that the head would be above water. A panicking person wasn’t making it easier but he wanted to help out whoever it was. Even if that person decried his appearance he didn’t mind as long as he did something for another person.

[Tha Brute.]

Kei hadn't regretted spitting out his words, even if he had stifled them through his grinding teeth. The Hoshigaki stopped pacing forward, and slowly revolved. What? Was he that shy that it happened to be this awkward every time he socialized? Or was Kei just that rude? He kept his hand held out, pear resting in it.

As the other boy turned around, Kei noticed the amber eyes of his. They were piercing and fierce, yet the boy's attitude reflected a nervous and shy demeanor. This confused Kei, but he kept a straight face, not shying away from eye contact. The shark boy listened intently to Kei's loud voice. Then something strange happened.

The shark boy blushed. Kei suddenly became conscious of his words. He became worried that he offended or embarrassed him; he hoped he had done neither. Also, his cheeks had blossomed into a deep blue; as dark as the depths of an ocean. Odd, most regular people would blush a rosy red. But he wasn't regular. Heck, Kei wasn't even sure if he was human. This was unnerving to the Kaishin.

Now he averted his gaze. It was just a bit too awkward. He didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable, so he looked down. He noticed the grass sway back and forth, as if in recreation. The silence probably really only lasted ten seconds. Perhaps that was ten seconds too much, for it felt like it was an hour without any sort of noise. Kei's arm was getting tired of holding out his arm with the pear. Yet, he had already potentially made the Hoshigaki feel bad, and he didn't want to further insult him, so he beckoned and flicked his palm forward, inviting him.

The blue bodied boy approached Kei. Kei took in a few breaths; deep breaths. He was ashamed of these thoughts but he said Please don't eat me, with a facial expression to match. Then he uttered a few words in a nervous tone, but not stammering like the previous words he said.

"You're not afraid of me?" were the words softly said by the shark boy.

These words alarmed Kei a little bit. He felt relieved sighing to himself. So he hadn't offended him too bad. But then he thought of a quick response. He didn't want to make it look like he had to think hard about what he was about to say, but how do you respond to a question like that? More importantly, how do you answer that question, to the sender of it? So, Kei quickly responded back with a famous phrase his step-father said. It was also one of the slogans at the local and famed Mist Ninja Academy. "To be scared is to run. To stand up is to endure." These words had hardly any relevance but it was a quick response. But Kei was disappointed so he shook his head and started again. Now it was his turn to stammer.

"Actually. My parents were both artists. They found beauty, interest and awe in everything...different". Kei was careful not to use the word "strange". "And I think you're interesting", Kei continued.

The pair still nestled in Kei's extended hand. The Hoshigaki hesitantly reached for it. But then a loud splash was heard in the pond nearby. "What the..." Kei said to himself. As he turned, he noticed that the Hoshigaki had already rushed to the scene. He saw his new acquaintance reach for something in the pond. His eyes reflected a pair of orange shoes. Kei looked down. Sure enough, a pair of bright orange shoes dangled at the bottom. And connected to those shoes were a short pair of legs. It appeared that...a person was down there.

Kei wasn't sure who, but someone had called for help as he ran to assist.

[Corvus]

With the combined strength of the two men, Akiko's head gradually came loose from the muck with a unsettling sucking sound. With the removal of the force holding her head in place, her two saviors would likely pull her clear of the water before realizing that she was no longer stuck, their full strength no longer needed. Once her mouth and nose cleared the surface, Akiko began to gasp in air to refresh her lungs.

"A-" she spoke through the muck and mud plastered all around her head and shoulders, "arigato..." Akiko wiped the muck from her face. "Arigato gozaimasu."

[Mist]

Helping the person come out of the water wasn’t easy. It was as if they were stuck to something beneath the surface. Or maybe they were struggling too much? The boy who he had met came into the pond to help out. As he attempted to get the person out he heard an odd sound below the water. After that sound it became far much more easier to get their head above water. A few seconds later a head came out with water splashing. As soon as the head came out Tsuyu realized it was a female. He couldn’t tell the age yet. Water was dripping down from her head, along with mud. Tsuyu was relieved that he was able to help her out of the water.

The girl was gasping for air trying to breathe. He couldn’t blame her for it either. But she wasn’t out of the pond yet. He began directing her towards the edge of the bond so they could get out. He was sure that with the boys help he not only gout her out of the water but out of the pond. The girl continued to drip water and mud. It looked like she was almost covered in mud. He was dripping wet as well but he didn’t mind.He walked baa few steps away from the pond. The girl thanked them for helping her.”Your welcome. I’m glad I could help.” he said sincerely with a smile.

He noticed that his box had fallen on the floor. The box it was still closed its food intact. He didn’t realize it but he must’ve dropped it when he rushed to save the girl. He was beginning to feel uncomfortable with a soaking wet hoodie. It was weird even though he was used to swimming since he is half shark. He looked and a little of the girls mud was brushed upon his hoodie. He took the hoodie off. His black shirt underneath lifted a little revealing his light blue stomach. His black shirt dropped back down as got the hoodie fully off. He rubbed his forehead which was still throbbing from her kick. His forehead now showed a darkened bruise where the kick landed. “Are both of you all right?” he asked facing them. He wanted to make sure they were fine as rubbed his forehead. He stopped with with his forehead and looked at them.

[Tha Brute.]

Kei watched a figure emerge from the small pond as the shark boy had reached out into the body of water. When Kei could depict a figure, it happened to be a person. No, it wasn't just a person, it was a child; an incredibly small child. He guessed she...(it was a she, right?) had fallen down into the lake just a while earlier. Kei assumed that she was the one who caused the crash in the lake.

His new friend had tried reached far into the pond, but the girl seemed to be perfectly fine as far as getting out went. When her head poked to the surface, she opened her mouth for air, almost eating the oxygen. The other boy actually had swam into the pond. Natural, Kei assumed as he was part of the Hoshigaki clan. When the girl had finally managed to speak, she uttered a polite and formal thank you. "It's no problem", Kei said with a grin. The other shark boy had revealed a rather large bruise on his forehead as he took off his mud-stained hoodie.

"eugh", Kei said to himself, "Looks nasty." Ironically, the shark boy had asked if he was alright. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just worried about that..." he was careful not to use the word bruise. But he pressed on to more serious matters: "I'm Kei, we actually haven't met yet...and you two are?"

[Corvus]

After she was set down, Akiko, while still trying to catch her breath, started to wash her hands, using the pondwater. Ne~, I need a bath. Her body trembled at the very thought. Once she thought she had enough of the muck off both her hands, she started to wash her face. Though she had already wiped a good deal of it off, there was still a thin layer of mud left, and being covered in gunk was just an unpleasant feeling.

It still wasn't really clean, but at least it looked clean. . .enough. Still unhappy about her current state, she pulled her jacket off over her head and began to work the mud off of it too. "Hm?" Akiko looked around one of her large white wings, "My name? Watashi no namae wa Ayumu Akiko desu ne." She wore nothing aside from a pair of pants under her jacket.

[Molokai]

Taisen arrived on scene just in time to watch the two genin rescue his good friend from her grimy prison. Beaming both because Akiko was still alive and because his shinobi saved her, he approached the group with a poorly-hidden smile of pride on his face. "Great work, guys," he said, his voice oozing pride, "you did well, saving her like that. She gets herself into such trouble sometimes."

The Mizukage left her to finish cleaning herself and addressed her saviors further. Turning to the Hoshigake, he put his hand on the genin's shoulder and said, "You didn't hesitate for a second to jump in after her, and it looks like you even earned yourself a bit of a battle scar. I applaud you for that. I'm the Mizukage, Taisen Kamyuja. What's your name?"

Taisen had already met the other, the one called Kei who was slightly feminine and liked using water techniques, so an introduction wasn't necessary there. Since he helped save Akiko, one of Taisen's favorite people, Kei would receive the same praise as the Hoshigake. But the blue one had both dove in first and came out last, not to mention the fact that Taisen didn't know him, so for now it was he that would get the initial attention.

[Mist]

The girl was safely out of the pond. Tsuyu could tell she was readjusting herself. Well most people would after that situation. She was breathing so she was alright. The boy who he had just met replied that he was fine. Tsuyu was relieved to know everyone is fine. The other boy however seemed to be worried a bit about Tsuyu. He was looking at his face. It took him a few seconds to realize he meant his forehead. Did it leave that bad of a mark? He couldn’t tell since he hadn’t seen it yet. It wasn’t really much of a big deal to him. It would heal over time he was sure.

The girl continued to clean herself. She must be the type not liking to be dirty. He saw something out the ordinary. The shark boy rubbed his eyes as he thought he was imagining himself. He looked back at the girl again. It was still there. The girl had wings attached to her back. They were large but actual wings. So is this why she came from nowhere? Was she actually flying and crashed into the pond. This surprised Tsuyu and it wasn’t easy for other people’s appearances to surprise him. Here he thought he was different. Now he was in the presence of another just as out of the ordinary as him.

This made him happy to know others were out there like himself. The boy had introduced himself as Kei. After all this time they hadn’t even introduced themselves. The girl after continuing to clean herself noticed them. After pulling off her jacket she addressed herself as Akiko. He figured it was his turn to introduce himself. He was ready to say his name when a voice called out to them saying “Great work, guys”. He turned to see man walking towards them congratulating them on saving the girl. He saw the whole thing? He didn’t know other people were around here.

Who was he? Was he just a regular person who just happened to see this? He soon found the man’s hand on his shoulder. He was being praised for his actions. Furthermore the man introduced himself as the mizukage. The mizukage? The mizukage saw this and was praising him. He couldn’t believe this. This was so much and unexpected. Tsuyus cheeks blushed blue again. It was slightly embarrassing but a happy moment. However he simply couldn’t respond at the moment. A bit dazed as all this came onto him. He took a couple steps back Kei. He didn’t know him much but felt comfortable around. “My name is….Tsuyu Hoshigaki.” He said still blushing. He walked behind kei as if to hide from the mizukage. He averted his eyes from the man. He just needed his mind to cool down was all.

[Tha Brute.]

The shark boy nodded back to Kei in response. Kei looked at the girl who had been rescued by the shark boy. The girl had took a while to speak. Then in a formal voice, she spoke after thanking the two, trying to wipe the dirt and mud off of her attire. When what looked to be a sufficient amount of rubbish had been cleaned off, she spoke again. She didn't look like she was all happy with her condition, but she did speak. This time, it was the answer to Kei's question. She removed her jacket as she introduced herself: "My name? Watashi no namae wa Ayumu Akiko desu ne." So her name was Akiko, then.

Kei, however no longer was curious to know what she was called. As she was speaking, she revealed a pair of pallid and brilliant wings on her back. "Wings", Kei breathed silently to himself, "First a shark, now a bird?" His face spoke for itself, not out of rudeness, but out of curiosity and wonder. So, she was obviously the one who had caused the splash in the pond. But this explained how she had done so. Kei nodded, as he pieced her story together. Kei didn't wish to make a bad impression, so he made no comment on her flying expertise.

Then he looked at the shark boy. He appeared to be in a more comfortable and relaxed state; like he was feeling accepted. Well, to be fair, Kei had never rejected him. If only Kei's birth parents had been here. What a beautiful canvas oil painting this would have made. But the Kaishin quickly put these thoughts away, out of his head. His life with that family was over, right now his objective was to befriend, or at least acquaint these people. They were people, right?

Kei opened his mouth, but then he heard a strong voice. "Good work guys", a proud voice called out. That voice, where had he heard it from? It was so empowering...so familiar. So Kei swiveled around to see the frame of the Mizukage, Taisen. He had met him once before, during a training session. Kei remembered that, and he was nervous when he first met him. He was nervous now, actually. Taisen wasn't exactly scary, but he was...powerful. Powerfully intimidating, was actually a better way of summing him up. Yet his voice told Kei that he was satisfied, and he sounded like he was stifling how impressive he thought they were. Not even his professionalism could conceal his feeling.

Quick to respond, Kei got down on one knee, bowing his head and said "It was absolutely no problem, Mizukage-sama." He tried not to be over-formal, because unlike several kages, Taisen was like all his other shinobi. Yet as these words left his mouth, they sounded nervous and he almost stuttered them again. He hoped he hadn't sounded like the Hoshigaki when he had just met him a few moments ago. But then again, Taisen's words weren't just directed towards Kei, if anything they were directed more at the shark-boy. He had actually put in more effort, while Kei just tagged along, after all.

Nervously, the Hoshigaki took a few steps back, even more shy than before. It was almost a re-enactment of what Kei had done wit his first Mizukage-encounter. “My name is….Tsuyu Hoshigaki", the shark boy uttered. So, that's name, huh? Kei thought. Kei rose from his knee-bowing state and nodded forward to Tsuyu, beckoning him to step forward. Then he saw his face. It blushed a deep blue again, and those amber eyes no longer looked fierce. They looked gentle and shy.

[Corvus]

Akiko shook her head to get rid of all the loose water dewing up her hair. It still needed to be washed, but it was at least mud free now. Suddenly, she heard an unexpected voice. Unexpected and very familar.

Akiko looked over her shoulder and saw, approaching their group, one of her favorite people. And a man to whom Akiko owed a great deal. "A-Aniki?" The tiny girl sprang to her feet and ran over to the Mizukage.

"Ohayo Akiki!" Akiko jumped into the air and hooked her arms around the man's neck. Her momentum swung her around him, though her lack of weight likely didn't throw off his balance any. "Genki desu ka?"

[chikarra]

As Chikarra is walking down a small path, he wonders to himself, "I wonder when I will get some new teammates. Hmm, what if I'm too awkward for them? I've never had a friend before so I wouldn't know..." Just then, he saw the biggest splash into a small body of water a good quarter mile away. He could have sworn some living being went flying into that! Almost immediately, Chikarra knew he had to help, for it could well be an animal in need! Bolting to the scene, Chikarra begins to see some people come into sight, and it seems as if they have already tended whatever fell into the water, a girl, it looked like. Chikarra froze there, unable to think of what to do. "Should I approach them? It would be the first people I ever talk to outside my family! Well, other then that one girl.... I don't know! Why cant I be better socially"
Just then he noticed that he had caught one of their attention, since after all, It's pretty strange to see someone sprint towards you and then suddenly stop and stare. Chikarra wanted to run, but he was just frozen in fear, unable to even imagine what these people have in store for him, or maybe, can they be part of a new team, he had to find out, but he couldn’t bring himself to move!

[Mist]

(OOC: We're waiting on you Molokai. I will skip over you if a post hasnt been made in 5 days. That would mean a whole week since the last post was been made. Sorry, but I would like the team to be formed without problems)

[Molokai]

"Akiko!"

The Mizukage wore a broad grin as the winged girl threw herself at him. Spinning her around like she weighed nothing, he came to a gradual stop and beamed. She had been gone for quite a while and he worried about her, but her being here now proved that his worries had been unfounded. Taisen felt fortunate that Kei and the shark boy had been on scene, otherwise the kage might not have been there in time to save his favorite person.

That girl was like a daughter to him, more of a personal ward than a professional one. Of course, her status as a shinobi combined with her extensive medical skills made her a vital asset to the village as well, but mostly he saw her as family. Taisen made up his mind at that moment to reward those who had saved his family at some point in the future.

Gently removing the girl from his neck and placing her on the ground, the Mizukage turned to go and was stopped by the presence of yet another unfamiliar ninja lurking about behind the group. Either Mist was suddenly gaining far more new warriors, or Taisen was a lot further behind than he thought. Making up his mind to remedy this issue, he waved to the guy.

Whoever he was, he was young but quite tall. His height approximately matched Taisen's, although his muscle mass wasn't as impressive. Overall he looked like he had potential, so the Mizukage called him over and decided to set up a bit of a pow-wow session between the five of them. Maybe Mist was about to gain an official team from this little act of heroism.

[Mist]

The blue boy stared at the mizukage as he stood behind kei. He was wondering why of all times he showed up now. His dark blue blush from his cheeks starting to fade. This day seemed to continue to produce new experiences for the shark boy. First he needed to calm down. He took a deep breath hoping that would help him. Kei seemed to signal for Tsuyu to step forward but he didn’t want to. He was fine right where he was. He knew it might have been rude but he simply couldn’t be in the spotlight like that.

Akiko the girl they saved rushed to the mizukage. The mizukage himself did say they knew each other. So it shouldn’t be that surprising. Akiko seemed really happy to see the mizukage however. Jumping up to greet her old friend with a hug. If the girl liked him this much perhaps Tsuyu should be more trusting? Seeing the two interact with each other like that somehow warmed him up a little. He was mind and heart finally starting to settle down.

Taisen had set the girl down. They seemed almost as if family. He turned around. Was he leaving? But he stopped and Tsuyu didn’t understand why. Did he need to say something? The mizukage started waving and the blue boy realized why he was. His amber eyes staring at another new person on the scene. Where were all these people coming from? Tsuyu didn’t want to deal with this. He just was starting to calm down after everything. Another person in the mix would make him freeze up. He felt comfortable around Kei as he was the first person he truly met. But he needed something else to reassure him. Tsuyu started to slowly walk closer to the tree and hid behind it. It might have been cowardice but he indeed felt better.

[Tha Brute.]

When Akiko hugged Taisen, he reacted with joy. Who would have known someone so high on the totem pole cared for even the smallest of genin. Then again, Kirigakure was becoming more and more known for its unity. And Akiko wasn't the average shinobi. At the very least, she was an average shinobi with wings. The Mizukage quickly switched his gaze to something new. Rather, that was someone new. Kei squinted his eyes, and concentrated his sight onto the figure in the distance.

The ninja seemed to be having a conversation with himself. Kei could easily pick out that he was having some sort of deep thought. "What an odd boy", Kei thought out loud. Perhaps he said it a little too loud; he did that sometimes. Whatever, the boy didn't seem to hear him. Besides, Kei was queer in his own ways: He was slightly feminine looking and he had his own frustration issues.

So what was this boy for? Was he also looking to join this new group of friends? More important, were they even friends yet? Whatever the case, Kei seemed to be welcoming towards newcomers. He loved people. And he looked to be more of a human than the others he had met.

Whatever the case, he examined the boy with his inquisitive look. Naturally, he hoped he didn't make his new acquaintance uncomfortable. Yet, at the same time he usually wasn't as conscious of this. The boy was lean, teenage. Hmm, teenage? Yeah, he appeared to be near Kei's age. And he brought himself up with a certain manner. If there was a proper word to describe it, it would be...medical. Not medical as in mental, but medical as in professional, a professional healer. The boy stood at a lanky six foot two.