Heyo!

It has been a little bit and I apologize for that, figuring out this chapter was a bit tricky and my job has opened back up which really eats into my free time as well as my energy for writing. This chapter is shorter than usual but that is more for pacing and just getting the slower stuff out of the way as well as due to the previous lack of free time that I've had. That said I'm still wanted to get something out since this upcoming week I'm going to be extremely busy and I didn't want to delay it when I'm already behind. Anyway, I don't have a lot to say so we can just jump right in. I'll see you all at the bottom as usual!

It was official, she absolutely hated sand.

Not the village mind you, they hadn't even arrived there yet so it was far too early for her to make such judgments. No, she was referring to grainy substance shifting just beneath her feet and digging its way in between her toes, that sand. The coarse, rough, and irritating specks of finely ground earth that somehow managed to get everywhere within moments of its appearance! They'd been walking for less than a day and she was certain by nightfall she'd find grains of it lodged so deeply within her hair that she'd still be digging it out months later for Kami's sake.

It was only years of stoicism that kept her from verbalizing her irritation but her teammates had no such practice. Hinata, who had switched out of her bulky jacket some time in favor of a lighter, cream-colored blouse with long sleeves, was stuck constantly rubbing sand out from her eyes, no doubt the grains being flung through the wind were doing a number on her. Kiba meanwhile had settled for simply removing his jacket and tying it around his waist, leaving himself in a simple mesh shirt that clung tightly to his sweat covered frame. Akamaru wasn't spared either, the poor pup having lost his perch some time ago, panted heavily alongside his master in the scorching heat.

Even Kurenai and Kenji weren't immune to the less than ideal conditions, their sensei was holding up slightly better given her rather light attire and experience but she could still spot the slight sheen of moisture upon her brow that made it clear the raven-haired jonin was by no means immune to the sweltering sun. Takahiro-san wasn't faring much better either and had taken to fanning himself weakly with a makeshift fan made of some extra straw and string he had stored away but that was doing him little good.

How the people of Suna could live like this all the time was beyond her.

"How much farther do we have to go?!" Kiba groaned slumping over as they pushed onwards into the seemingly never-ending sands. "This sucks…" He grumbled practically dragging his knuckles across the dunes.

"We should be there soon enough," Kurenai answered shortly, not exactly feeling in top condition herself though she was handling it far better than they were. "We've been on the move for a good couple of hours now so the village should be coming into view soon." She clarified, internally hoping that was the case so they could get out of this insufferable heat.

The Inuzuka heir merely let out a feeble whine and continued the march. It was all they could really do at this point.

She sighed and downed another large gulp of water, the only slice of respite she had had in this ridiculous situation. She hadn't changed her attire since her clothing was actually suited for the arid lands but even so, she would have given anything for a nice cold bath at the moment. She momentarily wondered if perhaps Suna had their own bathhouse she could visit before swiftly dismissing the idea, she doubted they could afford to waste precious water on such a thing for any reason other than perhaps the nobility. Still, she would hold out some hope if for no other reason than to keep her going.

Their travel continued on for another hour or so in forced silence, the cooking rays of the sun had long ago burned away any desire for conversation barring the occasional complaint or gulping of water. It was a long, tortuous journey that seemed like it would go on forever at points before, at last, the great canyon in which their destination rested could be seen in the distance. Beyond the slight haze created by the oppressive heat, sun-kissed rock formations could be seen towering into the sky and with their arrival, a new wave of energy took their little group. Her pride would never allow her to admit that she nearly squealed at the sight of it. Needless to say, their group was quick to use this newfound burst of spirit to cover the final bit of distance between them and their destination, the towering sandstone gate looming overhead as they were greeted at the entrance by two Suna chunin who were quick to straighten up at their approach.

"Halt," The first of the pair stepped forward, a rather mundane woman garbed in the standard uniform colors of the village which just so happened to be various shades of brown and beige. "State your purpose for visiting." She demanded, eyeing them rather suspiciously, an action that caught Natsumi slightly off guard, while she may not have expected to be greeted with open arms by any means as a foreigner she also hadn't expected such thinly veiled hostility either. Konoha and Suna were allies and while sure that term in the shinobi world often meant very little, it still would have been polite to keep up some measure of pretense if nothing else.

So much for first impressions…

If Kurenai was taken aback by the gatekeeper's less than pleasant tone she certainly didn't show it, instead, she calmly stepped forward and produced a series of papers from her tool pouch and handed them to the guardian. "We're here on an escort mission, our client has business to conduct within your village. All of the proper paperwork should be right here." She explained making sure her movements were slow and deliberate so as to not startle either of the two watching shinobi.

The guard eyed the raven-haired jonin for a brief moment before she quietly took hold of the papers and stepped away, taking refuge in a small booth carved into the side of the gate. While she was gone, her partner, a young-looking man dressed in similar attire to his companion, took care to watch them from out of the corner of his eye. His body was clearly tensed as if expecting some kind of ambush and she got the distinct impression that he was merely waiting for them to take a single step out of line to pounce. Finally, after a few minutes of waiting, the first gatekeeper returned muttering something under her breath and handed back their paperwork.

"Very well, it seems everything is in order." She leveled them each with a stern look. "You are permitted to wander about the village during your stay but if you cause any trouble you will be thrown out, if not worse should you push our courtesy too far…" Her warning hung in the air for a moment making it very clear just what "worse" could mean for them. "Enjoy your stay." She finished switching from serious to dismissive as she returned to her prior position by the wall without even granting them a chance to speak.

The people of Suna were certainly a friendly bunch, weren't they?...

…

Despite the frosty reception from the guards, their group encountered no further trouble upon finally reaching the end of the long road leading into the village interior, a few strange looks here and there from passing civilians who were no doubt interested in the "foreigners" and some cautious glances from the native shinobi but overall nothing quite as grilling as their initial encounter. For Natsumi, the whole experience wasn't all that different from what she was used to within Konoha if she was being honest, only instead of thinly veiled contempt they were instead only subjected to a bit of mild interest and less than subtle suspicion.

What she was saying is that things could be far worse in fairness.

Now that they had arrived at their destination, their job was more or less to sit on their hands and wait until the client's business here was concluded so that they could escort him back to Konoha. It wasn't as if they expected anyone to be foolish enough to try and invade a Hidden Village for one random merchant and even if someone was that foolish, there was almost no way they would make it out undetected. That wasn't to say they weren't going to take their duties seriously but it was hard not to relax just a touch when the odds were stacked so heavily in their favor.

"Takahiro-san, have you been to Suna before?" Natsumi asked, noticing that their client seemed to have some familiarity with the layout of the village as he guided them towards the inn where they would be staying.

He nodded, "I have occasionally had business here in the past so I must admit that I am somewhat familiar with the village but I wouldn't claim to know it like the back of my hand or anything." He shook his head and once again began to lightly fan himself. "I never stay long though because of this damn heat…" He finished huffing in obvious discomfort.

"Have any interesting stories to tell about the place?" Kiba questioned, eager to hear more about the man's travels.

"Can't say I do," Kenji frowned and tapped his chin. "Suna isn't exactly the most… engaging destination to visit." He kept his voice low as he spoke clearly not wanting to draw the attention of the locals with his less than flattering opinions. "Not many attractions for tourists to visit and the less said about the location the better. There isn't much to call people here and I try to avoid coming here if I can help it."

"W-Why do business h-here then? Would it not be better t-to go somewhere more p-popular?" Hinata questioned, as far as she could see doing business in Suna wasn't exactly going to be a strong financial decision and the somewhat unflattering way he described it only reinforced that thought in her mind.

"It wasn't my choice I can tell you that." Kenji frowned and adjusted his hat to keep the afternoon sun away from his eyes, clearly not a fan of the harsh rays. "The man I am supposed to meet with just happens to be here on a separate business venture anyway so we decided that it would be easier to kill two birds with one stone and just meet here."

"He's not from here?" Natsumi raised a brow. "Have you ever met this person before?"

"Not in person, no." He shook his head. "All of our conversations have been through letters as of yet, this will be the first time we meet face to face to hopefully finalize the deal." He explained.

"I guess that's just the nature of business." Kiba hummed, it was weird in his mind to make deals with people you didn't know but then again that's kinda what they were doing right now, escorting some guy they didn't really know just because they were paid to do it. In some ways, it sort of disturbed him but then again he acknowledged that nothing new could get done by just sticking with what you know, or rather who you know in this case.

"You get used to it in time, in my line of work more often than not a new business venture starts with getting a letter from some lord or tycoon you've never heard of and going from there." He shrugged good-naturedly, seemingly not very bothered by the lack of knowledge. "So long as they can prove they aren't some trickster looking to rob you blind it's fine with me."

"That's certainly not an uncommon stance to take." Kurenai nodded, shinobi villages generally operated in a similar manner as well, so long as the money was good and the mission wouldn't do direct harm to the village or its allies than it didn't matter who they worked for. It wasn't always the best system but the unscrupulous nature of it made for good business and consistent customers. It really fell to the individual village to decide what types of missions they would or wouldn't take. Kiri, for example, specialized in assassination jobs whereas Konoha had a preference for protection details or peacekeeping missions.

That wasn't to say they didn't have more than a few skeletons in their closet though.

"W-Where will you be m-meeting with him?" Hinata asked, realizing that the details of the upcoming meeting were not yet known to them.

"He's staying at one of the local hotels called the Oasis, I'll be meeting him there to iron out the details but that won't be until tomorrow morning." He remarked. "For now I think there isn't much to do other than get out of this kami forsaken sun."

"We do need to find a place to stay." Kurenai agreed. "I doubt you all want to go back to camping in the desert after all."

"No thank you!" Kiba quickly declined, crossing his arms.

"Thought so, just don't expect anything too fancy." She warned before taking point, they would travel the streets for about another hour before finally settling on a place to stay. A small motel-like inn by the name of "The Shrews Den", it wasn't a luxurious space by any means but it was cheap and it was still nice enough that they wouldn't be suffering during the rest of their stay.

…

"Takahiro-san has decided to spend the rest of the day recovering from the journey in his room so for now we're pretty much on standby. Since this is your first time out of the village I'll remain here with him and you three are free to head and explore a bit or stay here and rest or if you'd like." Kurenai instructed leaving the choice of how to proceed from here up to them.

"I-I think I'll stay inside," Hinata conceded idly, rubbing at her still slightly puffy eyes. "T-The dry air doesn't really s-suit me." She admitted with a frown not liking that she couldn't really explore the village as much as she wanted to but she needed a break from the burning.

"Akamaru and I will take a short break too, I feel like I could sleep for two days after all that walking." Kiba sighed and Akamaru barked in agreement slumping pitifully to the ground as if to relay his own exhaustion.

Kurenai nodded and turned to her last student.

"I'll head out, the heat doesn't bother me too much and there are some things I read about that I would like to pursue while I have the chance." Natsumi revealed to no ones' surprise, the rest of her team knew that there was little she valued more than new knowledge and so they very much doubted she would pass up on the chance to explore a whole new world so to speak.

"That's fine, just make sure to keep out of trouble. This isn't Konoha remember so try not to draw any attention if you can help it." Kurenai warned. Natsumi wasn't a troublemaker by any means but sometimes her actions didn't take into consideration those around her.

"I understand." She nodded and with her sensei's blessing, she made her way out into the village.

There was so much she wanted to see while she had the chance.

…

"First things first, finding a local apothecary shop."

If she were to get nothing else out of this trip she would at the very least try and get her hands on some of the local medicine or plants that would prove useful for her to experiment with back home. While Suna wasn't exactly bursting with plant life the few bits of flora that did grow there were quite unique and of interest to someone of her talents. There was a species of cactus native to the area that supposedly contained a milky, water-like fluid within it that when ingested cause hallucinations, travelers lost in the deserts often ended up drinking this fluid out of desperation and the mind-trip would lead them to wander on aimlessly until the died of overheating or other less than pleasant circumstances.

She may not have had much interest in illusions but this could be a good way to supplant it. If she could turn the liquid into a gas and maintain its hallucinogenic properties she could very well disable an opponent without so much as lifting a finger in combat. The idea alone fit too perfectly with the preferred method of fighting that ignoring it was impossible.

Finding a decent shop hadn't proven too difficult, the locals were still friendly enough to help point her in the right direction, and in less than ten minutes she had found a quaint little store tucked quietly away from all the hustle and bustle of the market district. The owner of the store, an older man with a rather long beard had greeted her and despite his surprise to see a foreigner in his shop, he had done nothing to discourage her from looking around. She could feel his eyes on her as she moved about the store but otherwise, he stayed silent.

Rows of various remedies lined the walls of the store, many of which she'd seen before but there were still a few unique selections for more local issues. She could see many antidotes for various toxins and venomous creatures which based on her research wasn't too surprising. Suna was known for its nasty critters so it made sense that it wouldn't be difficult to get your hands on solutions to combat and unexpected bite or stings. She'd snag a couple of them just in case the need ever arose.

Moving to the side her attention was caught by a delightful sight, a section off to the side filled with a plentiful selection of plants and mushrooms, her studies allowing her to point out two of the very same ingredients she had been hoping to find during her visit and she practically dropped everything as she rushed forward to inspect the various options laid out before her.

This is perhaps the closest she'd get to resembling a child in a candy store

"Hohoho, you've got a good eye there girlie." She jumped slightly as the elderly owner hobbled over to her side, his fingers gripped tightly atop the curve of his cane, and his bead held contemplatively between his fingers. "It is not often youngsters appreciate anything other than what they can grab off the shelves." He commented.

"Not everyone shares my interests," She relaxed and turned her gaze back to the selection of plants, in particular, a violet-colored flower that would have seemed inviting if not for the forest of prickly leaves growing from the stem. "I didn't expect to find nightshades here… Silverleaf if I am not mistaken."

The old man nodded, delighted. "You are correct, and if you know that I suspect you know what one could do with such a flower."

"If consumed the solanine contained within can cause a variety of unpleasant symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and… unwanted bowel movements." She listed recalling just some of the symptoms associated with it. "The berries produced by it are even more toxic."

"Well done, it's good to see there are still people studying the craft." His eyes twinkled with amusement. "I take it you are interested in poisons then? Not many would know the exact effects without at least some knowledge in that area."

"I dabble." She admitted, not exactly denying the claim but keeping her interest vague. "I just so happen to think there is something to be said about forgoing the flashiness of ninjutsu for something a bit more subtle when applicable."

"If only more people thought like you," He nodded sagely. "Why call attention to yourself if you don't have to, a good shinobi sticks to the shadows and strikes unseen. These days youngsters are too busy trying to make a name for themselves to remember that they aren't samurai."

"I take it you were a shinobi at one point then?" She questioned rhetorically and he nodded.

"Aye, many years ago." He hobbled off back to his seat with a look of fond recollection. "One of the lucky ones they say… got to live to a ripe old age and watch my little brats grow up and start families of their own. Got bored of retirement so I decided to open up this shop in the hopes of still doing some good before I keel over."

"That is commendable." Even with his service complete he still assisted the village in his own way, she very much doubted she would do the same in his position.

"That's what I've been told but the reality is that in the throws of boredom you are willing to do almost anything to ward it away." He tapped his cane and gave a snort. "Besides, I didn't spend all those years studying medicine to throw it all away. My old teacher would smack me upside the head if I did… crazy old bat." He grumbled.

"You were a medic-nin?"

He shook his head. "No, didn't have the chakra control for that sadly but I was trained under the, at the time, head of Suna's medical branch." He clarified. "I may not have made for a good medic but I was skilled at acquiring the resources necessary to make much of what you see around you and in turn, I got more than a few lessons on making remedies and poisons." He explained and she nodded, it made sense for him to learn if he was good at tracking down hard to obtain ingredients.

"You wouldn't perhaps be willing to share some of your secrets would you?"

"Hohoho, not quite~" He gave a mirthful grin and wagged his finger. "You might have impressed me but you're still an outsider, last thing I need is Chiyo-baasama visiting me complaining about village secrets getting leaked out." He muttered, catching her attention with the name… something about it struck a chord in her but she couldn't recall exactly why it seemed so familiar.

Where had she heard that name before?

Putting that aside she nodded in understanding, it made little sense to impart knowledge that could be used against you someday to strangers after all. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained." She shrugged, better to ask and be denied then to never ask at all.

"True enough," He grinned. "But, it's been a while since I've had a nice chat like this so tell you what I'll give you a small discount today. A reward for giving this old man a change of pace."

That wasn't what she expected but she would gladly take it. "Thank you for your kindness." She said bowing respectfully towards the elderly man who merely smiled and waved her off.

"Think nothing of it, feel free to browse to your heart's content in the meantime." He replied, reclining back into his chair and leaving her once more to her own devices, she noted that he'd never introduced himself by name but she didn't press him. Shinobi were a secretive bunch and just as he hadn't grilled her she saw no reason to do so to him.

She would spend the next hour in his shop, occasionally engaging the old man in further conversation as he shared some of his stories with her when she happened upon certain items of significance. It was an almost surreal experience, one that she had never had within her own village since most shopkeepers wanted nothing more than to throw her out as soon as she had paid for her goods and truth be told she enjoyed this little trip far more than she had been anticipating. With a promise to return again soon, she left the shop with more than a few bags in hand and an almost unnoticeable smile upon her face.

Perhaps she had judged the people here too quickly.

With her items in hand, she decided that there was no real rush to make it back to the motel so she could take her time and explore a little bit on the way. With the extra time to think her attention eventually turned towards her general thoughts of the village as a whole as the more she explored the more comparisons she made and the more obvious the differences between her village and this one became apparent.

It would be a gross understatement for her to say that Suna was vastly different from Konoha, the reality was the two villages were almost on complete opposite ends of the spectrum in almost every conceivable way that it almost frightened her. Obviously, the climate and general environment were the most noticeable differences, the arid weather and disturbing lack of flora made everything feel almost muted in a sense… a muffled color palette of yellows, browns, and beige that only dulled the senses, at least compared to the vibrant greens and reds of Konoha anyway. The general atmosphere was also harsher than back home but not in a combative way, rather it was if the people here knew internally that they lived in a difficult environment and yet still strove to master it, there was a sense of underlying defiance to them that she found rather impressive.

If she was honest, being here really put in perspective how cushy the people of Konoha had it, it was a place of few extremes never growing too hot that it was unbearable or too cold where there was ever really a risk of freezing. Their seasons were overall mild, they had plenty of materials to build and expand with and natural resources were abundant. That wasn't to say they didn't have their own struggles but she very much doubted they compared to anything the natives of Suna had to put up with on an almost a daily basis.

Another striking difference she had noticed was that the amount of shinobi that she'd encountered during her brief tour seemed rather low for a major village, at least by her account. Back home there were ninjas everywhere, It didn't matter where you went or where you looked the streets were always full of shinobi at all levels mingling about and wandering the streets. No doubt that constant presence played a large role in why the profession was so popular among children. In contrast, she had spent nearly two hours within Suna's walls and she could count on both hands and feet the number of shinobi she'd seen and she would still have a few digits left over. It was a strange concept to her, how did Suna maintain its position with such a small force?

Granted perhaps unlike in Konoha, shinobi from sand may have just preferred to stay out of sight choosing instead to gather in less obvious places to avoid prying eyes like her own. Secrecy was the name of their game after all. Without seeing them in action she couldn't say for sure but she supposed that Suna could have adopted a quality over quantity approach that could have explained away some of her questions.

So enraptured by her current thoughts she didn't notice the two mysterious figures looking down upon her from atop the sandstone rooftops, their gaze narrowed in a mixture of surprise and annoyance.

…

"What the actual fuck is a tree-hugger doing here?" The smaller of the two figures hissed with irritation, brow eyes narrowed in obvious distaste as they followed the small blonde-haired girl walking along the sand-covered streets of the village. "Like there isn't enough shit to deal with already."

"Hmph, watch your mouth," The second figure, far larger than the first, chastised but their own gaze never left the wandering Konoha-nin either. "This doesn't change anything so there is no point in throwing a tantrum."

"I'll say whatever the fuck I want fatso!" The second figure responded crudely, a sneer upon their face. "And I'm not throwing a tantrum you bastard I'm pointing out the obvious."

"I'm sure our Master expected this possibility, after all, Konoha and Suna are still allies so it makes sense that this might happen." The larger figure crossed his arms and frowned. "So long as we don't draw attention to ourselves this should not prove problematic, you throwing a fit will only undermine our objective."

"Why the hell did I have to get stuck with you on this job, better yet why the fuck did I even get assigned to this?" The shorter figure grumbled lightly and kicked the railing of the roof with annoyance. "Escorting some shithead merchant to oversee some business deal, that's genin level shit!"

"Every village needs trade and supplies Tayuya, if this pans out we'll be in a much better position down the road, and perhaps you'll finally stop complaining about the food too." He grunted. "Besides, you know full well that isn't the only reason we were sent on this assignment."

"I'm soooooo sorry I don't just shovel down whatever someone puts in front of me like your fatass, you'd be happy with pig slop you moron." Tayuya scoffed, brushing a strand of pinkish hair out of her eyes and turning to face her partner. "We wouldn't even need to be here if the Kazekage could just make up his fucking mind already, it's not like he actually has a choice anyway."

Her partner merely sighed and pinched his nose. "This isn't a decision to make lightly but our Master would not have suggested this if he wasn't confident that things will fall in our favor, just be patient." He retorted easily. Having already heard this complaint many times over during their short stay here.

"Damn it… whatever, let's just get out of the sun already I can't fucking stand it here and the heat from your fat is suffocating me." She huffed and without even waiting for a response she began to leap across the rooftops back towards their hotel, leaving her partner to watch her go with a disapproving frown.

"So unladylike…" He shook his head and followed after her, but not before sparring one final glance towards their object of interest. Their Lord would need to be informed about this upon their return, they couldn't afford to take chances and until the Kazekage's loyalty was guaranteed it was better to air on the side of caution.

Orochimaru did not tolerate failure after all.

AN. Chapter Complete!

A little shorter than normal for reasons outside of my control (though not by much in terms of content I promise you) but I didn't want to jam too much stuff in on her first day in the village. Like I said in the last chapter I sped up the journey to have them arrive in Suna much earlier and get their bearings a little bit quicker than having to slowly trudge through the desert then finally make their way over and then have to spend a chapter getting everyone acclimated. This way is just easier. Anyway, let's talk about the chapter because I'm sure you guys have plenty you want to know about. As I said before, this chapter is mostly just getting Natsumi somewhat familiar with the village and getting her thoughts and most of the really interesting portion of it is down towards the end.

#1) Tayuya and Jirobo's presence within Suna:

This is probably the most interesting point of this chapter and it was a point that came to me very suddenly which is in part why this chapter took a bit longer than expected. When I realized that I was working with Suna I knew the obvious choice of characters to meet would have been either the Sand Siblings, Lady Chiyo, or perhaps Pakura if I could contrive some reason for that meeting. While all of those were good… I wanted something that could be a bit more of a surprise for you all.

Given that the Sound/Sand invasion is something that would have to be set up long in advance I don't think it's too unrealistic to have some of the Sound Four in Suna either running messages or putting some subtle pressure on the Kazekage. Now whether or not Team Eight will interact with them… who's to say, they may just be in the background but their presence alone is worth noting.

#2) Is Orochimaru in the village right now and will they be meeting here?:

Nope.

#3) Why didn't we see Gaara or the Sand Siblings?:

I didn't want Natsumi to arrive in Suna and then immediately just run into some of the most important characters there within an hour, it just feels too convenient. I preferred to have her get somewhat adjusted and then have her meeting with other characters. Part of me is even debating on even having her meet Gaara in person but rather hearing about him and leaving their actual confrontation until the exams but that's still just something I am toying with and nothing is set in stone.

That's pretty much all to this chapter, I do want to reiterate that things are going to slow down now that my job has opened back up and I do choose to work a lot more during the summer to help pay for my schooling so I apologize if despite the excess of free time it seems like things are going slow. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and are staying safe! I also heard you all in regards to having my discord open and so I'll do that either after this chapter goes up or a few days after, that'll be posted on my profile page so make it easier.

That's all for today, see you guys next time!