A New Dawn || Kisame

Ch. 4 - All Aboard

The sun's rays darted through Nagisa's open window as morning took its stand. Fortunately the female was already awake, however she was annoyed and for once it wasn't because her tatami mat didn't have any give under her futon. It had been a couple of days, however she couldn't stop thinking about the rejection she'd been served. How dare he tell her no! She was going to show him that she'd be a valuable asset and that he was wrong for refusing her request.

There was a knock on her door followed by a voice from one of the housekeepers. "Miss Uchiumi, are you awake? You're needed in the family meeting room."

"Coming."

Nagisa breathed a sigh before getting herself together for the day. Putting the matter on the back burner for the time being wouldn't kill her. As soon as this summoning was over, however, she was going to track down that shark man and say a few words of her own.

Leaving her room, the female passed by several corridors before stopping in front of the doors to the main family hall. She could hear her father's voice amongst the elders and, immediately, she felt discomfort radiate throughout her entire body. This would be the first time she'd see her father's face of utter disappointment since the incident. Swallowing her hesitation, she knocked on the door and waited for an answer before walking in.

"Take a seat, Nagisa. How are our guests faring?" One of the elders spoke as she closed the door behind herself.

"They're fine." She answered curtly. At this point, she didn't care how they were doing. The only one that hadn't sparked a negative reaction out of her yet was Hitoshi.

Her father wanted to speak about her attitude, however the elder kept talking, always having been the 'straight-to-business' type. "The reason why we requested you was to let you know that you have an arranged marriage meeting today, so you'll need to get ready. Your prospective partner will be here at noon."

"I already told you what I'm going to do. I'm finding my-"

Chief Enyo stood, ready to blow a gasket, only for the elders to cut him off. "I'd suggest you reevaluate your stance. The clan's future is of the utmost importance. Surely you would know that more than anyone else considering you aspire to be the clan head."

Nagisa frowned at the comments. Why was it that no one was bothering to listen to anything she had to say? Why were the elders so hung up on repopulation? Why was everyone's attitude towards her sister so dismissive?

"We expect great things from you, Nagisa, so represent our clan well. You are dismissed."

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

She didn't want to be there and, all in all, she felt a bit defeated.

The makeup was a bit much for her taste. There were one too many pinned curls in her hair. Her kimono was too stuffy and way too hot for the weather. The list running through her head went on and on as she sincerely loathed traditional events. As she walked along the naturous trail, the man beside her carried enough excitement for the both of them.

"Miss Uchiumi, I saw you in your picture, but your beauty in person is unmatched." The male complimented her. She vaguely remembered him saying his name was Fuyu. When they met, he told her that he was a fisherman from Water Country. In her opinion, he was easy on the eyes with short black hair, pale skin, and dark brown eyes.

"Thank you." Nagisa answered politely. He seemed like a nice guy, however she wasn't focused on this meeting at all. It had been a few days since her sister disappeared and it was clear that any source of a trail was disappearing with each minute.

"I heard about your sister, so I know this particular time isn't the best for a marriage meeting, but I don't mind if we start out as friends if that's more comfortable for you." Fuyu stopped walking. "I know the elders were pretty adamant on rushing this, but maybe I could talk to them about possibly postponing and-"