Don't Mess With a Namikaze

Chapter 23

"Alright everyone, the curfew back to the hotel is eight o'clock. We have one week before the chunin exams begin. Enjoy yourselves around the village, but stay out of trouble. You are representing Konoha while being here. For your safety I want everyone to stay in at least in pairs, preferable would be staying in your complete squads. At the very least do not go anywhere alone." Tsume barked out orders, taking over for Jiariya who clearly didn't want the responsibility.

One of the genin boys scowled unhappily, "What about Namikaze? She doesn't have a squad, why does she get to go solo?"

Kagome rolled her eyes at the immature boy who clearly wasn't going to pass the exams with his attitude. Honestly, why did Tsume ever say that she got free reign? She was probably going to get stuck to Jiraiya's side the whole time. She didn't mind too much as Jiraiya was on strict orders from the Hokage to be on his best behavior. Which meant no peeping on unsuspecting women at the hot springs

"Since Kagome does not have a squad she can either tag along with one of your two groups, or she will be accompanied by one of the present Jonin," Tsume told him, sending him a warning look. She let out an annoyed sigh, "Now, we will head over to our hotel first and drop off your things. Then you have free reign to explore the village. Let's go."

They wound their way through the roads and even across a few rope bridges connecting rock peaks. The groups quickly parted ways after dropping their bags into their rooms. Most likely to avoid being asked by Kagome to join them, not that she wanted to. She was a bit tired from the long journey and a simple soak in a hot spring sounded wonderful. Plus, one of the perks of having the sensei she did he always knew where the best hot springs were. She could always bully Jiraiya into giving her a tour of the place later. They did have a week before the exams started after all. Plenty of time to see the sights and do some shopping.

She knew she wasn't getting to the hot springs right away when she saw the look on Tsume's face. Something was going on.

Tsume bit her lip in thought, she had been hoping that Kagome would do something with one of the other groups. They all had a meeting with the Raikage and she didn't know what to do with the lone genin. Should they just leave her in the room with strict orders not to leave? Was the young Namikaze one to follow said instruction? Her train of thought screeched to a halt as Jiaraiya opened his big mouth.

"Wanna meet the Raikage Kiddo?" he asked as he pulled the scroll from the Hokage out of his bag.

Kagome's eyes lit up in excitement, "Really?" She wasn't huge into politics or anything, but meeting another Kage would be a good experience.

"Hey." Tsume tried to interrupt, but Jiraiya plowed on.

"Yeah, the Hokage gave us a side mission. Conversations about upcoming issues." Jiraiya told her.

Kagome nodded in understanding, "Ah, war talk. Sure, let me just freshen up a bit first."

"Wait a minute!" Tsume barked out, "Isn't this supposed to be confidential information? She's just a kid?" She had just learned about the upcoming war a few weeks ago herself.

Jiraiya looked unconcerned, "Oh, yeah, play up on your age. They'll willingly underestimate you. Use that to your advantage." He told Kagome who nodded her understanding before turning to the steaming Inuzuka, "Relax, Kagome's been involved in this since the moment she graduated. She's got a very unique skill set that makes her input useful. The Hokage wants her involved."

"Don't worry about me Tsume-san. I can handle boring political meetings." She tried reassuring the older girl. She had gone to a few meetings with Sesshomaru, well more like he had dragged her along so he could show off his alignment with the Shikon Miko. She had plenty of experience with these types of things, plus the past nine or so months of missions. She had been sent on a few diplomatic missions, which were tedious but necessary. She gave a small shrug, "Can we hit a hot spring on our way back?" she directed the last part to her sensei.