RainingSky

Remember when I said things were calming down....I was wrong they got worse.

Tsukiko felt as if she was back on a street market, back home on planet earth. There were street vendors shouting praising their wares, and people loudly negotiating prices, the scent of fresh morning air and street food filling her nose. She was treated respectfully be the people, as soon as they saw that she came alongside Aoki who seemed to know everyone and anyone by their name. 

The people greeted him the like with the same courtesy as he treated them, but there was a clear distinction, no one touched him, no shaking of the hand no greeting more than a bow, and all ignored Tsukiko except the suspicious look here and there. But to be honest she was bothered little by it, instead she spent her time observing them. How they moved, how they acted, how they behaved. 

Just a bit, it reminded her of Sunday market days at the montreilou in Paris. A skyscraper Hotel where she had stayed once, not the best but at least one could say relatively calm once one reached the eight floor above. The floor with gray black carpets, the windows tripple reinforced, the beds if nothing relatively comfortable, the bathroom minuscule in size. But that being said it was still a good place to sleep and if she did not know she was in France she would sometimes have thought she was half in Africa. 

If nothing it had been close to the metro and from there it had been a short way to the louvre and the Élysée, but still, it had been an experience. Especially the coffee ole. 
She was quite surprised to hear an odd mixture between french and the local languages, she knew it was natural for such secluded places to build their own communities and rules but still hearing someone order something that sounded like a mix between a French baguette and a sandwich which turned out to be filled pancakes made her laugh. 

Aoki nibbling at said package with filling started pointing out people. "Most of us are born commoners, clan Shinobi are a rarity, but almost everyone has some blood of theirs. You see that person over there, in the Uzumaki Ramen, it is Hannah Uzumaki, daughter of a local and an Uzumaki."

"An Uzumaki with a Ramen Store. I should have known it was just a matter of time." she muttered. 

"Yuichi over there he is head of traders, he is one of the few people regularly leaving and organizing everything, if anyone knows something about someone leaving or needing something unusual then it is him. " Aoki explained and nodded. 

"I assume you already asked him the details?" She said, and he nodded. 

"We did, but he says he knows nothing." 

"How trustworthy is that?"

"Relatively, but he would not be one of our biggest outside traders if he was not in possession of quite the proficiency at keeping his mouth shut." Aoki said and Tsukiko received the message clearly. 

When he said he knew of nothing, that may have been the truth, but that did not mean he had no guesses and could know more than he should. 

Topping in her tracks, she pointed at a blue pair of trousers. "Is that.... jeans?" She asked and he nodded.

"Yes, do you want one, I imagine it slightly uncomfortable to always be wearing embroidered Kimonos." 

"No, no, thanks, I was just surprised I had not expected to see one...." She stilled. 

"...in this world, right?" he said, and she felt more than surprised.

"Yeah." 

"While the others know that everyone with your particular Dojutsu comes from far away, I am one of the few who knows more than that. To be accurate, I know that your Dojutsu is not a Dojustu and that your home is a lot further away than most would ever believe, and none of you life your fist lifetime." He stared at her, and his brown eyes just for a second carried glittering green flecks. Her eyes widened. 

"How....?" She asked startled. 

"Quite easy, Chloe he shared his with mine, those machines, Nanites as you call them. Sometimes I see fragments of your world, or at least of how she, he sometimes it gets confusing, saw the world. I did think it was another quirk before I got them, a side effect, I suspect most people on your side believe so too, today I know it is the bare and simple truth." 

"Sometimes the truth can be so unbelievable, she makes the best shield to someone who is sure you are just telling stories." Tsukiko muttered, "Anuk wisdom, she told me once....by now I believe it true more than ever." 

"Mhhh she visited a few days ago, drove our Kage nuts before she vanished with an air kiss and a grin." 

"That sounds like her. How was the baby...?"

"I worry about its future...." Aoki said and seemed to remember something. "Anuk is....unique. She also had a few scratches on her saying they were from someone her cousin, and you would like a lot. A murderous softie with an iron exterior and an Icy lover."