Chapter 52:

Fuyōna watched as Kimimaro, Haku, and Koyuki left for their first mission with Kaga. He couldn't help feel like a proud father, and part of him wished it was him taking them on their first mission.

But he knew that the needs of the village outweighed his own. He could think of no one else better suited to become their jonin captain. If Hatsu were still alive, he would have been his first choice, but his death had come all too soon.

Fuyōna shook the thought away, knowing that his friend would not want him to be sad, not after everything they had achieved together thanks to his sacrifice.

He knew that he must cast his view onto the future and prosperity of the village. Knowing that looking to the past would only bring sorrow and doubt.

With that, he stepped away from the large window in his office and sat back at his chair to finish up some remaining paperwork before the plans he had made with Suiren, turns out she had some big news she needed to tell him about.

"Alright! Our first mission!" Koyuki shouted as the four of them reached the village gates. Haku was also excited, and Kimimaro as usual contained his emotion behind a simple smile.

"Right, you three let's head out to the land of hot water," Kaga said, smiling at them.

The three of them nodded to their sensei and followed him, setting off along the path that leads out of the village. Their first destination would be to one of the ports west of the village, it wasn't far, and once there, they would board a ferry that would transport them across the sea onto the border of the land of fire and the land of hot water.

It would only be a few hours journey from there to their next destination, being the noble's estate.

The whole journey would take a day, as the ferry was the longest part of the trip. Koyuki was a chatterbox most of the time, seeming to be the complete opposite of her father in that department.

Haku seemed to enjoy listening to her, although Kaga thought he was just too nice to say anything else. Kimimaro, on the other hand, remained quiet. He liked to watch and observe from a distance. Kaga could tell the boy was a genius in his own right and not just in combat, as he had already excelled in his ability to observe.

"Remember to be on guard once we arrived in the land of fire. The roads are filled with danger." Kaga said, giving his students a warning.

The three of them nodded, taking their sensei's words in without question.

"Yes sensei." The three of them said.

With that, the four of them made the most of their time until the boat arrived at the land of fire.

Haku and Kimimaro were amazed at the sight, after all, they had never been outside of the land of water before.

"Alright you three, let's move out," Kaga said as he started walking down the ramp that had been placed so that the passengers could walk off the boat and onto the shore.

The three of them followed him, making sure to keep up, not getting too sidetracked from the small port town they found themselves in.

"Ok, Haku. Why dont you take this map here and lead us to our destination?" Kaga said, handing the boy the map.

Haku nodded as he took the map. During their time in the academy, the three of them had been taught map reading, along with many other things necessary of a shinobi.

Haku took a good look at the map before he gained his bearing.

"All set?" Kaga asked.

Haku nodded.

"Very well Haku, lead the way," Kaga said.

Haku did just that and set off as the others followed him. Walking to the edge of town they headed to the edge of the land of fire before entering the land of hot water. Once there Haku brought them to a road that would lead straight to the noble's estate.

"Good job Haku!" Kaga said as he lead them to the noble's estate without any trouble.

Kaga walked up to the large front door and knocked, taking a step back as he waited for someone to answer. It wasn't long until an elder man dressed as a butler opened the door, treating the four of them.

"I take it you are here to see the master?" He stated, before opening the door fully for them to enter.

"Yes. Team Kaga, reporting from the village hidden in the mist." Kaga said, greeting the old butler.

"Please come in." The butler said, allowing them inside.

Kaga and the others entered the large house, the butler then showed them to a large waiting room and offered them a seat.

"Please, wait here while I fetch the master." He said, excusing himself from the room.

Kaga nodded as he and the others took a seat.

"Wow, this room is so big!" Koyuki said as she jumped onto one of the large armchairs in the room.

Haku and Kimimaro agreed as they too were impressed.

After a moment the doors opened again and this time they were greeted by the master of the house, the noble who had requested the mission himself.

"Greetings mist shinobi, greetings!" The man shouted as he entered the room.

"I do hope I didn't keep you waiting long." He then said as he took a good look at the ninja standing before him.

"Oh my, what lovely children you have brought along." He then said, looking at Kaga.

Kaga smiled.

"Children yes. But they are also shinobi of the mist and are more than skilled. You have my word."

The noble was a strange man, dressed almost like a clown in makeup, complete with long green hair and a top hat.

"Very well, allow me to introduce myself. I am Huem-Van Benkrihr. At your service." He said giving a bow.

Kaga and the others returned his greeting.

"I am Kaga of the mist. This here is Koyuki, Haku and Kimimaro." He said introducing his team.

"My, how splendid. You may call me Van." The noble said as he sat down, his butler instantly pouring him a cup of tea and placing it on the table next to him.

"How rude of me," Van said, realizing he had not offered them something to drink.

Van then snapped his fingers and his butler started to pour each of them a drink.

"Thank you, Lord Van," Kaga said, excepting the tea, as was the polite thing to do.

"Very well, to business then. Van said after taking a sip of his drink.

"As I requested in my letter to your village. I seem to be having a tad bit of trouble with a gang of rogue shinobi." He said, taking another sip of his tea.

Kaga nodded as he listened.

"They just won't leave my men alone, and have already attacked my trade product three times," Van said, crossing his legs.

"That is where you come in." He then said, looking at Haku with interest.

If the bandits attack, I would like you to kill them... All of them." He then said with an intense look in his eye.

Kaga and the others didn't bat an eyelid at his request. After all, they were mist shinobi.

"That won't be a problem, will it?" Van asked.

"Not at all, sir," Kaga said.

"That is why you hired us, is it not?" Kaga said as he sipped his tea.

Van smiled and gave a cheerful laugh.

"Just as I would expect from you mist shinobi. Very well, I shall make the arrangements! Please make yourselves at home until then." He said, standing to his feet.

Kaga nodded as he stood to his feet to thank him and bid him farewell.

"Thank you for your hospitality. We will not disappoint."

"Thank you. I hope not." Van said before exiting the room.

Kaga and the others watched as he exited the room and the doors shut behind him, leaving them and the butler alone.

"Allow me to show you to your room." The old man then said.

Kaga nodded and the four of them followed the old man upstairs where he showed them to their rooms.

"I hope you find everything to your liking. You shall be notified of the details once the plans have been made, until then if there is anything you need, please see me." He said giving a small bow before he left them alone.

"Wow, look at the size of these beds!" Haku said taking in all the details of the room.

Kimimaro also had the same look on his face as everything inside the room looked expensive.

"Ok you three, get some rest. And dont go wandering off anywhere you shouldn't, understood?" Kaga said the three of them.

Haku, Kimimaro and Koyuki all nodded.

"What about you, sensei?" Kimimaro asked, being observant as always.

Kaga couldn't help but laugh.

"Doesn't miss a thing this kid." He thought.

"I'm going out to scout the surrounding area. Dont worry about me and get some rest, ok?" He said giving them a smile.

Kimimaro nodded.

"Dont worry about us sensei, I'll keep an eye on these two!" Koyuki said, putting her hands on her hips.

"Alright, Koyuki, I leave you in charge." He then said before he vanished, leaving the three of them alone.

Kaga re-appeared atop of the house, mounting the roof so he had a good vantage point to look across the land. There was only one road leading in and out of the estate, with the surrounding land being fields and forest.

Kaga could see that there were other living quarters a little away from the house, he guessed they were where the staff lived. He could also see a large barn and warehouse, with the stables next to it. All in all, Lord Huem-Van Benkrihr seemed to be pretty well off, Kaga thought as he scoped the entire estate.

"The bandits and rogue shinobi have been estimated to be chunin level. Hopefully, that intel is correct." He thought as he looked towards the sunset.

"I guess tomorrow, we will find out." He then said as he vanished from the roof.

Meanwhile back in the village hidden in the mist...

Fuyōna had finished his last duties for the day and decided to head home. After all, he was meeting Suiren and she had already told him she had some big news to tell him.

Fuyōna walked through the streets, greeting everyone with a smile. The entire village was pleased to see him and greeted him with the most respect, bowing to him in thanks for all he had done for them so far.

Fuyōna finally reached his home and opened the door.

"Hello! I'm home!" He shouted, getting no response.

"That's strange, I thought Suiren would be home now." He said as he walked into the kitchen.

Fuyōna noticed a note on the table and picked it up so he could read it.

"Just popped out to grab something for dinner, wont be long! Suiren."

Fuyōna chuckled and headed to the fridge as he took a drink out.

"It sure is quiet without the boys here." He said, as he opened his pop and took a drink, sitting down after wiping his mouth.

Soon after the door opened and Fuyōna could hear Suiren's voice as she walked into the kitchen with a shopping bag in hand.

"Oh, your home!" She said a little surprised.

Fuyōna laughed.

"Isn't that why you left me the note?" He said.

Suiren looked at the note and then laughed.

"Oh that's right, I'm such a scatterbrain sometimes." She said, seeming a little nervous.

Fuyōna couldn't help pick up on it, but decided to leave it be.

"What dd you get for dinner then?" He said as he stood up giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Suiren put the bag down onto the kitchen table and started pulling the bits out of it she had bought.

"I thought I could make us something special tonight." She said as she pulled free of his hug as she started to get everything she would need to make the food.

Fuyōna was certainly surprised now and couldn't hold back the question anymore.

"Suiren, is everything alright?" He asked, his voice a little more serious than he intended it to be.

Suiren stopped what she was doing at his question, not turning around to look at him.

Fuyōna could tell she was almost scared and it made him sad to think that it could be him she was frightened of.

"It's ok Suiren, you can tell me if something is bothering you," Fuyōna said as he placed his hands on her shoulders.

Suiren slowly turned around and looked him in the eyes. She had a strange expression on her face, a mix of joyfulness and worry all at the same.

"What is it Suiren? Fuyōna asked starting to worry himself.

Suiren smiled, but then it faded as she placed one hand in the other.

"It's about what I need to tell you Fuyōna. Its... Its..."

"It's ok, Suiren. Wherever it is. It's ok." Fuyōna said as he looked into her eyes.

"Fuyōna..." She said, looking down before finding her resolve.

"I'm... I'm pregnant." She said, looking into his eyes.

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And that's the end of that!

Merry Christmas everyone hope you had a good one!