The Inauguration of the Tenth Hokage [All]

[Tensei Kaori]

Takeo's feet pounded the pavement in pre-dawn Konoha as he raced towards his destination. Sure, it was a bit out of the way compared to where everyone else was going, but there were two people in particular he just couldn't risk allowing to miss this.

"Ooooooi!" he called, dashing into Tent Seven without even stopping to catch his breath. "Tsutomegi! Aya-chan! Wake up!" Someone called for him to shut up, but he ignored them. "C'mon, you don't wanna miss this!"

[strangevisitor]

There are instances in life where the timing of events is nigh-unbelievable. This would have been one of them.

Jolting upward in a cold sweat, Utsuro's wide eyes scanned the area. No fire...no destruction and chaos.

"Just an-nother n-nightmare.." He mumbled quietly to himself.

There was, however, Takeo. Scrath the no-chaos.. And he was attempting to rouse himself...and presumably Ayaka-san from their slumber, though logical reasoning as to why was yet elusive.

Perhaps when his heart stopped pounding so loudly he could hear himself think again. "W-wh...Takeo-sama...what're you.."

[Tensei Kaori]

"C'mooonnnn!" Takeo insisted to Tsutomegi. He could hear confused, incoherent mumblings from Ayaka-chan, so presumably she was waking up too. "I promise, this is gonna be good, but we've gotta hurry before people snatch all the good spots."

He paused for dramatic effect, grinning broadly in the half-light. "Don't you know what day it is?" he asked. "The Tenth is taking office today. We gotta hurry if we wanna find a good place to watch."

[strangevisitor]

"O-oh...I see..." He replied, sitting up a little straighter. "But...um....I do not think...that is to say..."

It's not THAT hard!

"Should..I really go? I am....not a member of this village...surely someone else could better appreciate the spot I would take up.."

Not to mention the place is going to be positively INFESTED with Tensei..tch.

[Tensei Kaori]

"Well of course you should go!" Takeo exclaimed, ignoring yet another shhhp/i] from somewhere in the tent. "This is history in the making! Besides, you wanna live here, right? That gives you just as much right as anyone here to see it. B'sides, spots are first come first serve. It's their own fault if they didn't show up early enough."

"Mff... just come, Tsutomegi," came a bleary, half-asleep voice that sounded like it might belong to Ayaka-chan. "It'll keep him from shouting 'til the whole tent's awake."

"Ehh? What was that? Tsutomegi, Aya-chan's being mean to me!"

[strangevisitor]

"Ah...well...I suppose...we could.."

Talk about a rock and a hard place. And in such a position, Tsutomegi took the smart path and merely dodged the statement, shifting to find something half-way close to somewhat-presentable. Ish.

Greaaaaat..

[Tensei Kaori]

"Don't worry too much about what to wear," Uchiha-kun told them as Ayaka sat up and began running a brush through her hair. "Yeah, some people are getting all fancied up, but a lot of them have no choice but to wear whatever survived the war." That was good, because Ayaka neither owned nor felt like putting on something nice. Once her hair was brushed, it didn't take long for Ayaka to get ready, and soon she had slipped outside, watching the gray light slowly brighten. Just how early had this guy gotten up, anyways!?

[strangevisitor]

After a minute or two, he emerged from the tent to join his friends, clad in his least holey shirt and pants, trying to tame his tangled hair with just his fingers.

He only hoped that finding a good spot would include being away from the crowds this event would no doubt draw. "R-ready..I guess.."

[Tensei Kaori]

"Then we're off!" Takeo announced happily, setting a brisk but manageable pace to the ninja administration building. There were already a few people up and about, many of whom were heading in a similar direction. As he had predicted, quite a few people were in normal shinobi wear, others had dressed up, and a surprising number were clad in whatever they happened to have available. The Tensei he caught sight of, of course, were clad in their finest, and any place where more than one gathered turned into a riot of color even in the early morning 'light'.

"A lot of people will be looking for good spots," Takeo explained as he led the way, "but it's early enough that we should be able to find a decent place. If we're lucky, we might even find a good ledge or something to sit on. Otherwise we'll be standing around for a few hours. How do you guys feel about crowds?"

[strangevisitor]

Utsuro paled slightly. Thought whether it was from spotting Tensei out and about already, or at the mention of crowds, the reason was not quite clear. Although truthfully, it was a combination of the lot.

"We...do not do too well with crowds...honestly..I...get nervous....panicky...and that leads to.........arrivals."

Stifling a yawn, Ryuurei surveyed his surroundings. Yes, this would do quite nicely. From this particular rooftop, he would have the perfect view of the administration building, the impending crowd, and the new Hokage.

And when said view was immortalized on canvas, it would make a perfect gift for said new Hokage. He had worked little with Tensei Kaori before her selection, and would probably never from this point on, their interactions limited to those of casual passings and..business. But he knew of her, and she would have his full support.

Settling the large canvas upon the easel, he shifted to the side to peer past it, and pencil in hand, he began to lay down gentle lines of the buildings below. That, at least, would not be changing.

Tiny hands rubbed tired eyes, a stark contrast to the idly-yet-excitedly swinging legs belonging to the same person. Sure, she was still a little sleepy, but Atsuko was excited. She had heard they were 'noggerating' a new Hokage today, and she just HAD to see that.

She had never seen a Hokage noggerated before. Actually, she had never seen a Hokage period, but that was another story entirely! Still, she figured she could see things pretty well from atop this stack of boxes, provided no-one seven or eight feet tall decided to stand in front of them.

But then she could just climb on their shoulders!

Humming quietly as she watched the people gather slowly, she waited. This would make a good story indeed.

[Tensei Kaori]

"Doesn't matter to me," came Aya-chan's still groggy voice after a huge yawn. "Long as I stick close to you guys, right?"

Takeo nodded. "High and dry it is, then!" he agreed, and began scanning buildings for convenient rooftops, ledges, anything. At last they reached the square in front of the ninja administration building, where people were already gathering, and after a moment Takeo spotted an ideal location. It was almost directly across the square from the building: a tiled, rooflike awning hanging out over the windows of some restaurant he'd never been to before. It was closed up in the post-war repairs, so surely the owners wouldn't mind someone sitting up there to watch the action unfold. Besides, if this group didn't claim the spot, someone else would.

"Think you can get up there, Tsutomegi?" he asked, pointing. "From there we can see everything, but we'll be above the crowds."

[strangevisitor]

"I...think I can...yeah.." Utsuro nodded softly. Being away from the crowds was a very good thing. For that alone, he would try at least. Besides. Takeo-sama was right there. If he couldn't do it, he'd help him.

[Tensei Kaori]

"Excellent!" Takeo said happily. "It's all settled, then. Don't you worry, Aya-chan," he explained to their red-haired friend with a wink, "I'll help you up. Just hold onto me - " he put a steady arm around her shoulders " - and we'll be up in no time. Ready, Tsutomegi? Here we go~!"

And with that he was off, jumping to get off the ground and then Flashing to the awning. He landed easily, securing himself with chakra just in case Aya-chan was knocked off balance by the trip, and as he did so looked to see how their other friend was faring.

[strangevisitor]

...He HAD to go with that, didn't he? Ayaka NEVER did well with the Shunshin technique from what he had seen. She could very well be staggering around while he just stood there. On a ROOF no less!

Then again, he could trust Takeo-sama to keep her safe. If she was a little woozy from the shift, he would not let her fall. If he could just finish getting atop the roof before his grip on the wall gave out...

There. Scooting back as far from the edge as he could, hands and feet were planted firmly to prevent any sliding back the way he had come.

"M-made it.."

[Tensei Kaori]

"Not bad, Tsutomegi!" came Uchiha-kun's cheerful voice as he helped Ayaka find a steady place on the roof to sit down. "For all you talk yourself down, you seem pretty used to getting around like a ninja." It was only after Ayaka was settled that Uchiha-kun flopped down on her other, which made her feel a little better. He might not have known she didn't like the Jaunting Thing, but at least he cared to keep her safe while jumping her around from place to place.

Still, it would be a few minutes before her stomach and her head settled down again, so in the meantime she folded her arms across her knees and rested her head on them. Once the world stopped spinning, she could get back to living in the waking world with her friends.