Two Drops of Water

Mizushima Riku was a nosy person. She kept detailed notes on the information she learned about other people in files stashed away in her bedroom, enjoyed overhearing gossip, and liked to people watch. When word about an incident at the front gates began to spread, Riku's ears perked up. She didn't know a lot of the details, but she did know that a man called Hoshigaki Kyoji had been involved and that he was powerful. The blue haired genin hadn't looked into the matter too deeply, content to let the rumor mill do its work in its own time because she didn't expect to encounter such a powerful person.

As such, when the short teen went to find a secluded place to swim, she was completely unprepared to see the man. In fact, when she approached the lake, Riku didn't realize that the person moving about the water was Kyojin himself.

Riku hovered near the shore, debating with herself about what to do. Would it be alright if she got in the water too? Or would it be better to find some place else to swim? She had already taken off her socks and boots, bare feet at the water's edge, toes digging into the gritty sand. Uncomfortable socks were no excuse to be lazy or rude, though.

She could simply ask the man if he minded sharing the lake, but that required initiating conversation with a stranger. Riku bit her lower lip nervously. She'd been spotted. In a moment of brief panic, Riku's lower half liquefied, reducing her already short height by half. Embarrassed at the loss of control over her bloodline, the red-faced genin began to sink even further into the lake water as her body became a puddle of water.

The Hoshigaki enjoyed his small swim time. It brought him to his natural element. His clan had always choose Kirigakure as a home. It was surrounded by water where they were choosing to build their clan district. Kyoji was saving enough money to share with his people. They would soon have a district within the village itself, a place where his clan could live without fear. They would be safe from enemy clans. He did not want his people caught up in another clan war.

Swimming alone, or so he thought. His keen senses was able to to pick up someone coming in. He turned around towards the direction he heard the sound. It was a girl. An Hozuki from the looks as upon being noticed began to transform. Her lower half turned into water and she sunk into the lake itself. Kyoji was submerged but began to rise from the water till he was standing on top of it. His ANBU outfit had been removed save for long black swimming shorts, his top half lay on the ground nearby.

"No need to worry. Only here for a swim." He said to the young one.

When he called out to her, Riku looked at him, face regaining a bit of its usual color. The blue haired teen solidified and pulled herself to her feet. Then, the genin approached the senior ninja, walking across the water's surface a bit shakily. She stopped about a meter and a half away from Kyojin and bowed politely.

"Excuse my intrusion, Hoshigaki-san," the girl said. Her feet shuffled a bit. "Uh, I'm genin Mizushima Riku." A short pause followed while Riku considered what to say. "I came here to swim as well and to look at the aquatic plants and animals."

Now that she had explained herself, Riku wondered what else to say. Speaking to people without a specific purpose was challenging for the short girl with few exceptions. Should she ask if it was alright to stay or would that be redundant? Besides, if she left now that would seem rude. The blue haired genin blinked, realizing she hadn't asked the man his name. She recognized he was a member of the Hoshigaki clan, but that didn't preclude a proper introduction.

The shy teen forced herself to stop fidgeting and asked, "and who are you, sir? I know what clan you're from, but nothing else."

[2]

Details:

The ANBU shark man stared at the young Genin intently. She should've known who he was from the get go, she seemed to be intelligent enough to know him from face value alone. But perhaps she was a newly ordained Genin. She would have to find out his name from another, she would get his title instead. "The Beast of Kirigakure." But after a second, he felt that was unnecessary. "Also I go by Kyoji as well." It was unlike him to change his usual serious tone. But it had been sometime since he had been around Genin. He had been locked away training to be a proper ANBU ninja. "It it my first time meeting a Hozuki. Another native to this land."

Recognition lit up in Riku's eyes when Kyoji gave his title. "So you were the one involved in the incident at the front gate," the blue haired genin stated quietly. Her head tilted to one side, brown eyes big and curious instead of afraid. Some of the tension in her body eased as curiosity began to take over her anxiousness.

"Ah, yes, I am one... in a way." The genin looked away from the man in front of her briefly. "I'm related, you could say," she clarified.

Claiming to be a clan member felt wrong somehow. Even though Riku had inherited the Hozuki teeth and bloodline, she and her immediate family did not live with the clan. Their connection had been established through a marriage with someone who was only half Hozuki himself, and with his death....

It was less painful to distance themselves and start over again. Riku had followed Taji's lead in that respect. Even though her bloodline was a daily reminder of her father's death, Riku did her best not to think of her heritage.

"From my father's side," Riku added as an afterthought. "His mother was from the clan." Beyond rumors of Hozuki lineage, Riku's maternal side had no connection with the sharp teethed family other than through marriage ties.

[3]

There hadn't been a Hozuki shinobi in quite sometime. The shark-man slowly started to rise from the water till he was standing on top of the water. He began to walk towards his stuff on the floor and began putting his uniform back on. He had already been here for to long, and had been spotted by a Genin. Usually this would be a problem, but he was sure the girl would not gossip. She seemed to shy to do so. "Yes that was I at the gates, a terrible time. But it is always good to see the founding clans bloodline still strong. No matter the dynamics of the heritage."

"But I must be on my way. Until next time."

[Exit] (Sorry gtg now that I'm Mizukage I'm all tied up n threads and I need a few to be free)

The other ninja's words stabbed at Riku's heart a little. Her bloodline was tied to loss, not only on a personal level but for the Hozuki clan as a whole. While the details of the small Hozuki population were not something she was privy to, the blue haired teen understood that her ninja career meant something on a scale larger than just herself and her immediate family. How long was it before any other clan members decided to take interest in a new Hozuki ninja running around Kiri?

No words came to mind in response to Kyoji's words, but he kept talking so there wasn't much of an awkward pause.

Riku watched the man rise from the water, head tilted curiously. She followed at a respectful distance, but didn't leave the water once she saw Kyoji gathering his things. The blue haired girl nodded curtly to show that she understood the man's explanation.

On a whim, Riku called after him, "Good luck!"

[4]

[Exit] (No harm done. Good luck)