Border Patrol? [Group]

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Kokoro was late...perhaps more than she had intended to be as she made her way out of the Inukura estate. She had overslept, possibly having drank too much of that addicting plum sake. But now she was running towards the village gates, her mind slightly dazed. The girl was supposed to go on a mission today, apparently with someone new. But that was the only information she got, a little peeved that her village never told her who her partners were for missions outright. She hated surprises especially since they never were good surprises. The dark haired girl would charge through the gates, her eyes looking for any person who looked like a shinobi that could be her partner. The mission today was simple enough, border patrol, as she liked to call it. Kokoro remembered doing this as her first ever mission and it brought back some interesting memories.

Her partner would see that she had chosen to wear her black trench coat over a simple black dress and soft leather high heeled boots. She was particular about her height, given that she felt short against the tall people of her own village. Her wakizashi would be sheathed tightly underneath the belt of her coat and her weapon pouch hidden. Her aquatic eyes and the markings underneath would be the defining features of the Inukura. She sat on the large boulder outside the gates, waiting for her partner. The boulder had probably become her personal meeting spot, since it was the most obvious thing that people would see in the midst of the desert plains. She wondered if this mission would be an exciting one, remembering how she had encountered bandits the first time she did this mission.

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The sight of a beautiful woman made her even more self conscious than she was of her own appearance. She noticed how the woman carried herself, the poise and mannerisms of a woman that Kokoro had wanted but failed so hard to be. In fact, she had given up on that prospect, now simply trying not to look like some homeless person every day. This didn't help with her increase consumption of alcohol which was not something she was proud to admit given her age. She would get up from her seated position to greet her partner, who she now learned was actually a moon shinobi. That didn't bother her at all though, since she had only ever met Kenji...just thinking of his name made her heart squeeze a little. She would shake her head slightly, as though to forcefully shake out the memories.

"Sakuragi Kokoro from Nikkousato," the young woman smiled and was a little surprised as the woman took a closer look at Kokoro. Had she potentially met Sojiro, which would explain the question that she had posed to her. "I'm from the Inukura Clan..." as though that was supposed to be some helpful information. If the woman had met her brother, she doubted that he would have told her about their clan. But it was worth a shot. The way Nariko looked at the markings under her eyes though...it intrigued her. She would then snap out of her thoughts and turn her attention to the mission at hand. "Oh sorry, I couldn't actually remember the meeting place..." she hated being so painfully honest. "But are you ready to get going? I hope nothing too crazy happens today."

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Kokoro could tell that she was being underestimated, possibly because of her lack of sleep. She would have to teach this woman a thing or two about not judging a book by its cover. She gave the woman an incredulous look and chose to ignore her comments. The way Nariko was carrying herself, the way she so apparently seemed more relaxed than what was normal told the Inukura that she was inexperienced as a shinobi. And that was fine...Kokoro would be there to guide her the same way Sojiro and Arashi had been when she first started herself. But she really wished people would just hunbly admit to their weaknesses, their inexperience, rather than taking everything with a grain of salt.

She would walk behind the woman now, her aquatic eyes scanning the surroundings as she walked. Every step was cautious, the traces of alcohol that were evident in her body was replaced by renewed seriousness. She would teach her partner that being hungover or even being drunk would have no affect on her reflexes or her senses, especially her sense of smell. They would make their way slowly to the border of the village. Indeed it was true that the chance of someone or something attacking the village was slim but she would always remember the bandits that she had seen on that first mission she took. People who seemed innocent by appearance could prove to be all kinds of deadly.

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Kokoro would simply walk quietly behind the woman, giving her an incredulous look at she questioned her about her clan. Didn't she just finish telling her that she was part of the Inukura Clan? But then again, many people dismissed things she said on a daily basis, especially her brother, that it wasn't news to her. She knew that from the moment she had met the woman, she had taken an interest to the markings under her eyes. "Inukura Clan. Do you know a man named Sojiro Sakura?" she would repeat her clan name once again, even giving her the hint of her brother's name in case the woman had somehow met him at some point. Sojiro wasn't a man easy to forget and she was sure that if her partner had met him before, it would stick in her memory.

They were still walking when she would remember that she had never even asked the woman her name, much less anything about her. Kokoro also could smell the herbal candy, a passive aggressive way of telling her she reeked of alcohol. Although not sorry the girl would have liked to be able to take a shower or something. She would remember for next time. "I know nothing about you though. Not even your name. Can you tell me something at least?" It made her uncomfortable not knowing anything about her partner even if she was most likely only going to see the woman once, she would like to know who and what she was working with.