Prime Real-estate

"Hey! How y'doing today?"

"Great, how about you?"

"Hey! How y'doing today?"

"Pretty good myself."

"Terrible, how about you?"

"Hey! How y'doing today?"

"I'm doing just fine thank you."

Elbowing Tanaka, I hold my head in my right hand. What have I done? How is every Uchiha greeting him the same exact way? This can't be the progress after months, can it? Is this clan doomed? Chuckling, Tanaka whispers "Don't worry, it's just practice. Once phase one of the conversation succeeds there is a 60% chance of progressing to at least the third phase! Getting far in a friendly conversation depends on how the greeting goes. I would know, I'm actually one of the resident experts on casual conversations."

Watching him closely, I find him earnestly believing himself. It might take a few more months, but at least the 'experts' might become socially accepted. Stepping into the patriarch's office, I glance at the leaving party. Two Hyuga Jounin and an elder between. Definitely not normal. Taking my seat, I watch Jumonji shuffle through a familiar stack of papers. Does anyone in power not have paperwork? Sighing, he slides a paper into a bin next to his desk, "The Hyugas are curious about our little social experiment. I normally wouldn't mind, but they're looking into our involvement with everyone that steps into the station."

Twiddling my thumbs, I nod my head slowly. I was expecting something else. Something like a solution to my housing problem. Maybe a lead on where I could get a place to stay while I find something more permanent. "So far the plan is working well. The other ninja are taking longer to open up to, but civilians seem to be open to the change. It may not be much, but we are stepping in the correct direction" he drones while staring at his ceiling. I really want to install a skylight here. It's not normal to stare at the ceiling this much. "My purpose for calling you is to ask for your observations and opinions on our current progress as well as to solve one of your problems."

This is it! It has to be about my housing issue. Ignoring Tanaka who coughs into his fist, I straighten my back before staring at Jumanji's chin. It's not my fault I can't make eye contact. "First, there is an impact as more people are talking about your clan. It's not all positive, but It's farther from negative than it was before. Second, most of the conversations sound robotic or forced" I flatly state. I really can't figure out how to work him when all I can see is his chin. Licking my lips, I turn right and point to Tanaka, "He's not bad, but he changes topics too quickly. If he fixes that, he'll have no problem in a normal conversation." Turning away from the grinning Tanaka, I eye a conveniently placed glass of water, "Being completely honest, conversation patterns aren't something you need to memorize. Just getting to know a few people and regularly trying to talk with them can fix the current problem. In my opinion, the next step you need to work towards is your clan's relevance."

Finally looking at me, he tiredly motions for Tanaka to take a seat. Did I help him get a promotion or was he really forgotten? Motioning me to continue, he leans forward, arms laying atop his desk. Eyeing his glass of water again, I make a claw with my right hand in front of him, "This. This is your clan right now. You are known for excellent combat potential and the police force. That is it."

Licking my cracked lips, I mimic a wiping motion, "Should the village no longer need the police force, all you have is being an adept combat force. Before you say that the police force is important, think about who and what can replace it. I don't know as much about the village's power structure, but I know you can think of at least three solutions to replacing your police force." Glancing at the glass of water, I ask, "What do you think the solution is?"

Reaching over as he leans back in his chair to think, I quickly grab the glass of water. Winking at the wide-eyed Tanaka, I take a few sips quietly as the patriarch counts invisible tiles on the smooth ceiling. So he might have drunk from it, I'm thirsty! First I've been outside for hours watching others spar. Then I myself spar only to injure myself. Not ideal, but it wasn't bad for practice. A decent walk in the blazing sun to the station doesn't help either. Clearing his throat, Jumonji rambles to himself for a few seconds before spreading his arms out, "Diversify. The next step is to diversify!"

Reaching for his glass of water, I blush as he looks at the empty spot on his desk. Slowly I raise the glass of water until he sees it. Lowering it back down to my lap, I murmur, "Sorry, I was thirsty." I'm sorry, but it's mine until someone cleans it now. I don't mind cleaning it myself, but I still want to drink some. Gazing at me, he waves a hand and an Uchiha appears with another glass of water. Watching me, he raises his own cup slowly before quickly taking a sip.

Placing the glass down before smacking his lips, he opens a drawer and pulls out a binder. Flipping through the pages, he motions for us to get up, "Our conversation was very insightful Miss Aster. Tanaka will take you to what may be your future abode now. I might call you back for a fresh perspective, but I've got quite enough to work with right now."

Nodding, I quickly exit the office behind Tanaka. The moment, I leave the station, I burst into a smile. My own place to live. My own place to belong. It might be a small step in the grand scheme of things, but it really is a huge step forward for me. If I seriously make a few hundred normal explosion tags a month, I can easily pay off my living expenses. Anything I earn in excess is pure savings. Of course, the beginning investment into equipment will be tough, but I'm sure I'll be able to stabilize my finances in no time.

Yelping as Tanaka turns around and slaps something onto my right shoulder, I lightly punch him back. Glaring at him, I wave my right hand in front of him. Grunting, he just points to my shoulder. Gingerly twisting my head around my shoulder, I smile at the crude symbol of pride. I guess I'm part of the clan in a twisted sense. Noticing the transparent yellow fluid seeping out from under the emblem, I look at him in exhaustion. He applied fabric glue to the patch while I was busy fantasizing about having a home. Do you know how hard it is to remove glue from cotton? I need to properly soak this for hours before trying to work it off. Maybe some nail polish remover since it has acetone, but even that is a bit out of my current budget. Looking at it some more, I sigh. It'll slowly become more clear when it dries so it wont be that bad.

Putting a hand on his shoulder, I wryly smile, "Thank you. Now please lead me to my future home." Walking through the sparsely populated back streets, I feel the stares at me much more than the previous times. It might be the fact that I'll be living somewhere in the compound or that I have an Uchiha symbol on my shoulder. Either way, I can't help but smile back at almost each one of them. The first impression is the best impression to build upon. I have to make the most of what I can.

Feeling something off, I suddenly jump to the side as metal clashes against metal. Seeing the sparks fly, I watch as Tanaka parries quite a few strikes before they both stop in a deadlock. One career chunin versus baker's apprentice. All Tanaka does is raise an eyebrow. Pushing away from the deadlock, the other practically growls, "How is an outsider allowed to live in our compound and wear our symbol?"

Ignoring him, Tanaka turns back to me and waves him off, "Don't worry. He's just part of another faction. He might act like this, but he can't really do anything while the patriarch's faction still dominates." Glancing at the frothing youth, I find another man right in front of him, almost touching noses. As the youth falls unconscious, the man turns around with his Sharingan activated, "Even if she is an outsider, we must never fight each other. The clan is only as strong as its individual members."

Looking back at the smiling Tanaka I motion for him to move on. It's not like I didn't expect some resistance. On the other hand, I completely forgot that Tanaka is a skilled adult much older than me currently. Note to self, research genjutsu and how to fight it if not with it. Also, I need to figure out what that feeling before the attack was. A sixth sense? Instinct? The beginning of my budding sensor abilities?

Following him out of the residential area, we slowly make our way to the private training grounds. Even with only a few training grounds being exclusive to the Uchiha, the actual size is massive. Passing through a few hundred yards of forest, he leads me into a clearing. Perfect for an ambush. Also a perfect location for my kind of home. With large trees forming a form of wind break, I can easily start planting common herbs and produce. No high winds to worry about. Almost at the edge of the clearing, a log cabin sits smugly near the edge of the clearing. Almost 3 meters of room from the nearest tree. That should be far enough, but we'll see. Reaching the door, Tanaka turns to me while pushing it open, "The main room with a kitchen area and bed, one full bath, and one work space." My first thought is that the front door needs a better lock. Sure a standard deadbolt works, but no ninja I know will have problems getting in.

Stepping inside, I find a dusty wood stove slightly far from wooden countertop with an inlaid sink. Metal sink. Nice. The wood stove might be a problem. Maybe I'll buy an axe. Pleanty of dead branches around here right? Stepping away from the kitchen side, I approach the bed. Nothing fancy, an off white box spring matress or at least that's what it looks like. Atleast the frame is metal. Poking my head into the bathroom, I grin as I find a decent sized tub. Glancing around the debris, I find quite a bit of sawdust covering the pink finishing. As I'm backing out, Tanaka comes out of the what should be the office space, "The bathroom was added for you not too long ago. It just needs to be cleaned out now. If you walk around back, you should be able to tell the difference in logs." Explains the pink I guess. I'm more of a purple person, but I don't mind pink. I'll put it at the bottom of my to do list. The very bottom.

Stepping into the office space, I scrutinize the bare room. Standard worn wooden floors that also cover the main room and solid log walls. It's dusty, but very convenient. I can just add a counter all the way around with a decent chair. Yeah, a very nice chair. One of those office swivel chairs. Skipping out of the work space, I leave through the front door to find Tanaka waiting, "So how much per month for this place?" Scratching the back of his head, he hands me a folded piece of paper, "Actually, this place is rent free." Taking the paper, I stare at Tanaka. Rent free? Nothing is free. Motioning for me to read the paper, he stuffs his hands in his pockets, "So the patriarch won't be helping you integrate into the clan. The benefits we are providing you will be shown as the war begins. On the other hand, you yourself have to gain the clans respect through your own accomplishments."

Unfolding the paper, I find a stamped missive to the Uchiha tailor to add Uchiha symbols on clothes of my choosing. So life in the clan may be a little rough. I'll be affiliated with the clan, but the clan itself will not accept me without conscious effort from me. Everything I do right will reflect positively on the clan. If I do something wrong, I'll probably just be renounced. If I do something terrible, maybe they might just put me in jail or worse, kill me out right. It's quite simple. Almost fair. Seeing me think through the reasoning, Tanaka gives me a thumbs up, "Think of it this way, free lodging and less dangerous deployment areas in exchange for using your image if you make a name for yourself and some grumpy neighbors in the short term. You might not know, but the Uchiha care for our own when it counts."

Looking down at the lush grass, I nod. So I have a few other options, but none have the space and privacy this one offers. I might be politically tied to a clan, but being sheltered from most cannon fodder missions is a definite plus. Maybe I can pay off the favor in the future. Maybe I can come to like them or maybe I can just wait for their annhialation and inherit the whole compound. Now there's a thought. Knocking on the wood exterior, I smile, "I'll take it!" Handing me the keys, Tanaka starts walking away while motioning me to follow, "You can move in after you graduate. The exterior still needs to be coated to prevent damage to the wood. You'll have to clean the interior yourself, but you can be assured the we'll take care of the structural needs this one time."

Glancing back at the cabin, I scrutinize the roof. It's definitely not old, I'll have to wait to know what they fix. They probably won't add steel sidings. That might be something I need to consider If I plan on staying for a while. Dazing off into the setting sun, I unknowingly leave the compound after parting with Tanaka. Tommorow's a rest day. I should probably catch up with Kushina while I can.