"Haha, no need to be so polite. Since that guy Tachi vouches for you, you must be a good person. Alright, let's not just stand here like idiots come inside and we'll talk more."
Hearing his master's call, the young man realized that Furina and the other really were guests. He quickly stepped aside to clear the way.
"You two young ladies, I'm really sorry about earlier. It's mainly because I couldn't be sure the letter you brought for my master was genuine, so I..."
"It's fine, it's fine. It's your duty, after all. If just anyone could walk in, your master would be annoyed to death."
As she passed by the young man, Furina heard his slightly apologetic tone. She smiled, waved her hand to indicate she didn't mind.
Though he said "talk more," it was really just discussing the weapon Furina wanted to have forged. After all, beyond that, the group had only just met there wasn't much else to chat about.
During the discussion, most of the time it was Fujita Kazu speaking, while Furina only occasionally added a few words to express her general ideas. The details were all left to him to design.
"Alright. If there's nothing else you need to add, I more or less have an idea now. You just need to come pick up the blade after some time."
"That's all?" Hearing his assurance, Furina was a bit skeptical. She had thought it would be a very troublesome process.
"Of course. Who do you think I am? I'm the number one swordsmith in the Land of Iron. Just leave it to me with peace of mind.
As for this waiting period if you two get bored, you can have Chiyo take you around the city for a stroll. That kid should like you quite a bit, heh heh."
After saying that, Fujita Kazu took the initiative to excuse himself, saying he needed to prepare for the forging work. Furina naturally had no objections.
"Hm?"
Back in the courtyard, Furina noticed that Chiyo had actually started playing with Uchiha Hikari. This was quite rare. After all, when facing others before, Uchiha Hikari always had that aloof demeanor that made people hesitate to approach.
Furina was happy to see this change in Uchiha Hikari. Compared to the somewhat autistic ice-queen vibe, she much preferred the other having more friends around her.
So when she saw this scene, Furina didn't come out right away. Instead, she chose to observe quietly from the shadows. But after watching for a while, Furina realized things weren't quite matching what she had hoped for.
Why was Chiyo the one doing all the talking? Uchiha Hikari was basically just answering questions the whole time. Where did the other girl get so many topics from... Whatever at least it was a positive change. There was hope for the future.
"Hey, what are you two chatting about? Can I join?"
After seeing there were no new developments, Furina stepped out from her hiding spot. The moment the two saw her, their eyes lit up, and they quickly came over.
"Hehe, Father just told me to take you two around the city. I was telling Miss Hikari about the places worth visiting here. Since Miss Furina is here now too, let's go!"
"Haha, this waiting time really is pretty boring. Then we'll have to trouble you, Miss Chiyo."
"No trouble at all! I love making friends with other people the most."
Furina didn't refuse Chiyo's invitation. Or rather, after learning she would have to wait a long time, she had already thought about wandering around here. The invitation just came at the perfect moment.
...
"Uh, uh..."
After following Chiyo around the city for a while, Furina finally understood why the other had been so... enthusiastic toward Hikari earlier. She realized Chiyo was a complete face-con.
And as a proper Uchiha, Uchiha Hikari naturally inherited the clan's legendary good looks. The lethality of that toward a face-con went without saying.
Moreover, Chiyo could simp for both guys and girls as long as they were good-looking. She embodied face-ism to the fullest.
After realizing this, Furina felt it was a real shame Chiyo hadn't joined the Akatsuki. If she had, Chiyo would probably be flying high with excitement.
"Doesn't walking like this feel uncomfortable for you?"
Glancing sideways at Chiyo, who was hugging her arm while walking, Furina felt a bit awkward. Wasn't this getting way too familiar way too fast?
And why are you clinging to me the whole time? Uchiha Hikari is good-looking too, right? Back in the courtyard you were chatting her up nonstop how come you're not looking for her now? Sigh.
╮(′～‵〞)╭
"Of course not! Being with you, Furina-neesan, doesn't tire me out at all."
Hearing the answer she had expected, Furina couldn't help but facepalm in exasperation. Fine, whatever after all, she still had business depending on the girl's dad. Might as well go along with this small stuff.
Yeah, that's it. Of course, it also had something to do with the fact that the other was a cute little sister. -(￢∀￢)σ
Suddenly, Furina felt a chill down her back. Almost instinctively, she looked toward Uchiha Hikari and found the other staring at her expressionlessly. The word "danger" involuntarily popped into Furina's mind.
"What are you standing there for, dummy? Let's go, let's go."
Feeling things were turning bad, Furina quickly dragged her little accessory along and took a few steps to reach Uchiha Hikari's side. She pulled the other forward.
"Hey, don't mess around, young lady. You can't just provoke an Uchiha like that."
Originally, Furina quite enjoyed going out to stroll. But this time, she just couldn't enjoy it no matter what.
Clearly, strolling with one beautiful girl is 1 unit of happiness. By logic, with two it should be 1+1=2 double the happiness. So what was with this walking-on-thin-ice feeling? Something's wrong here, right?
After enduring a period that was both painful and happy, noticing the sky gradually darkening, Furina sent Chiyo back home. But just as she was about to leave, she heard fierce arguing coming from inside the courtyard.
One voice belonged to Fujita Kazu, whom she had just met today. The other voice was completely unfamiliar Furina was certain she had never heard it before.
Sensing something had happened, Furina temporarily set aside her plan to leave. Instead, she hid in the shadows with Uchiha Hikari, ready to see exactly what was going on.
Sure enough, not long after, Furina saw two people walk out of the courtyard cursing under their breath. Both were unfamiliar faces she could only tell from their attire that they were samurai.