"Fuuma! Uehara! Pick up the pace!"
Murasaki bellowed out to the people in the crystal blue water of the pool at Gosha academy. The student ninjas have been training in the cool water in the draining heat of Japan. Dressed in official pool wear of dark blue swimwear with the men wearing deep blue shorts and the girls dressed in simple one pieces.
Most of the students have already finished their reps but there are still two students swimming through the water as fast as they could to finish their last reps while everyone relaxed around the pool.
"Don't you two dare stop!" Murasaki's voice bellowed over the chatting students.
The dark blue hair of Kotarou's dashed through the waves of the pool as his feet kicked off the wall for a sharp turn. While Shikanosuke's cap bobbed in and out of the water as he just reached Kotarou.
"That loser is only good for slacking." The girl with short flaming red hair scuffed as she watched Kotarou push himself to try and outpace Shikanosuke. Her teal eyes rolling as Kotarou actually overtook his best friend's pace. Impressive for a human, weak for a taimanin.
"Seriously why did lady Asagi ask the stinky one eye to lead the task force? Idiot couldn't even fight he way out of paper bag." Sighed a blonde haired taimanin. Her dark blue eyes more interested in the ice dagger she made. Flicking it between her fingers as she and her friends sat on the other end of the pool
"Perhaps for appearance?" With her dark hair dried and tied into a bun, Hinata titled her head as she genuine thought of what would cause "Taking in a charity case like him will make the Iwaga clan look good and the Fuuma clan, their rivals, indebted to them."
"Yeah maybe. I can't believe a weakly like that could lead a whole task force." Sakura scoffed. "Hell, I've heard rumors that he even commands Lady Asagi, and Ms. Rin."
"Ha! Bullshit! That dumbass couldn't even lead himself out of a paper bag!" The blonde let out a deep laugh.
"Come on Ino. Don't insult the paper bag like that." The girl with dark long hair giggled behind her hand.
"Yeah Hianta's right." Sakura smirked. "Paper bags can at least make better meat shields than that loser."
"At least Shika-chan has a cute face." The girl with flaming red hair licked her lips like a starving lion as she watched the clan head do his last rep in the water.
"Sakura…your love of small guys is going to get you arrested…" Hianta sighed.
"Fuuma! Uehara! Good work." Murasaki's booming voice made some of the girls turn their heads towards her. Getting a look at Shikanosuke panting as he dragged himself out of the pool. Murasaki nodded her head in approval as Kotarou pulled himself out as well.
"You both shorten your times by a fair amount. Keep it up ok." Murasaki said as she gave Shikanosuke a pat on the back.
"Dwah!?" And nearly made the short young man topple over back into the pool as Murasaki forgot her strength for a moment.
"Oh wow. A whole three seconds." Sakura rolled her eyes. "What a joke right? Hm? You ok?"
"…." Hinata wasn't saying anything as her face became horribly flushed. Bright red with her pupils dilated as they gazed out at something.
"Ah..w-welll…." Ino's words failed her as she followed her friends gave. Her mouth tried to close itself while her cheeks lit up in a blaze of red.
"The heck has you two so stupid looking?" Sakura sighed and followed to where her friend's eyes were gazing.
"!" And her hair caught fire. Unconsciously her taimanin ability activated and her hair turned into a crimson flame that fickler and crackled with heat. Her face matched the color of her friends and they all found themselves staring at the head of the Fuuma clan
"Ahhh….need to keep going." Kotarou mumbled to himself as his hands danced through his wet hair to adjust it.
Attractive men and women in Gosha are nothing new. It may as well be a requirement for being a taimanin to not at least be somewhat appealing to the eye in some way, but it is mainly due to the intense training all taimanin take that.
However, Kotarou seemed to hit every button that nearly anyone would find appealing. Firm strong muscles traced his arms. Large but not comically so, they fit his lithe frame made more for speed than raw power. His broad chest, flexed with the movements of him whipping the water from his face. The veins on his arms throbbed while they moved. His abdomen kept most of the women's eyes glued to him. Hard, looking nearly like a stone as the sun bounced off it, the students let their eyes go over every smooth bump and curve. Following the light scars over his chest and stomach, he has gained from fighting.
Hinata has never been so jealous of water as she followed a trail of it sliding down off his chin, to his collarbone, and gathered in a small pool on his chest.
Ino tried to put the image of Kotarou picking her up in his muscled arms and folding her into positions she shouldn't be able to. But then she saw him stretch, and she suddenly felt the urge to cross her legs and bit her lip from voicing her hungry growl.
Sakura's eyes trailed the single droplet of water as it snaked down the young man's happy trail, following his waist further downwards, and right at his-
"O-oh m-my…." The fire on the young girl's head popped as her nose began to bleed a little.
It seems the 'one eye of the Fuuma clan' is a monster in its own right.
The girls aren't the only ones watching the young clan head walk to the towel rack.
"The things I'd let him do to me…." Noa whispered. The girlish young man, older than Kotarou by a year, kept a ravenous gaze on his captain and fellow student.
"Err senpai?" One of the male students, asking him for advice, spoke up after a concerning amount of drool was leaking from his lips.
"A-Ah right. What was your question?"
'Be careful Fuuma-san….you have more than the girls to watch out for…' The students around Nao thought with worry.
"…" All the girl's eyes, glued to Kotarou watched him walk away as if they were watching a delicious meal pass them by.
"…Anyone else feel like joining the task force?" Sakura asked quietly.
The other girls dumbly nodded their heads.
"Phew…Murasaki is as tough as ever." Kotarou joked as he tried his back next to Shikanosuke, who's eyes had counted all the lustful, drooling faces staring at his best friend.
"What?" Kotarou asked. Titling his head like the stupid, dog he can be at times.
"Nothing. Just wondering if that body of yours should come with a warning label or something." Shikanosuke joked as he continued to dry off.
"Are…you trying to flirt?"
"…" Shikanosuke smiled.
"Ora!"
"Eugah!?"
And kicked his best friend in the shins.
-OOO-
The knock on Asagi's office door made her turn away from her sister to address the person behind it.
"Yes?"
"It's me, Lady Asagi." Kotarou's voice boomed from behind the door.
"Ah come in then."
The young man was greeted with the cheery face of Sakura, the warm smile of Shiranui, and the gentle grins of Rin and Asagi.
While Kotarou greeted them with stacks of binders in his arms. Two under his arm, one in his hand, and the other impressively balanced on his head.
"My apologies for bothering you, but I brought in some notes on the new recruits for you to review."
"Fuuma. I trust your judgment, so you don't need my second option on theses." Asagi said but accepted the binders on her desk none the less.
"I know." Kotarou nodded his head in agreement as took up one of the documents to look them over. "So I already went through in pre-approving most of them. There are just some I think we may need to look over."
With his eyes scanning the paper, Kotarou summarized what he read to Asagi. "Sakura Kusaga. She's from a small clan but she has some good fire skills. Able to set her hair on fire, as well as using fire swords. Her grades are slightly above average and she is a regular combatant on the field."
"Hinata Nigiri. One of the few taimanin's born in the west so her English is good. She possesses nearly the same level of ice powers as Kiara but she can only shape them into weapons. Rather good grades overall, and its known as front liner. Having another one would not hurt."
Kotarou turned the page and continued, "Ino Yoshiguma. A bo wielder with the water arts. Though her physical strength is impressive, she prefers more stealth tactics. Something we need a lot more of so she has my pre-approval. And then there's Mrs. Hatra-"
"I thought she retired after her husband passed?" Rin spoke up with a curious brow.
"So did I." Kotarou nodded with her in agreement. "But she came to me yesterday to request a position."
"Hmm…" The young clan head looked at the papers he himself has gone over many times with a narrowed, befouled brow.
"Something wrong?" Asagi asked.
"Ah well. I know Gosha has a rather high number of female taimanin. But it's a little odd seeing the gender discrepancy so big for the task force…I wonder why?" The young man gained hidden pain looks from nearly every woman in the room at his obliviousness save for Asagi.
Asagi gave a warm smile. "You shouldn't downplay your accomplishments Fuuma-kun. You saved not only Gosha but many of your comrades with your instruction alone. You've pushed past the social stigma your father has left on your clan. There is still a lot you need to do, but even so, you've made great strides and the world is starting to take note."
"Ah well. Ahem." Kotarou turned bright red at the blunt praise. Taking a moment to adjust himself before bowing. "Thank you lady Asagi. Excuse me."
"He may be a mastermind in combat but his social skills are…" Rin sighed. Feeling sorry for every woman who joined the task force. And, strangely enough, her younger cousin who is forced to deal with the oblivious clan head's antics.
"He's an oblivious cutie~." Sakura summed up with a giggle.
"Fu-fu Yukikaze has quite the uphill battle." Shiranui giggled. "Maybe I should teach how I landed my darling. Though…that may be too bold for her~."
"Well I say it's a good thing he is so focused." Asagi said plainly as she looked through the papers. "Makes it easier for our new recruits to join and to keep him on a tight leash. So to speak."
For a moment the room was silent at Asagi's words.
'She's pimping him out….'
Mainly because everyone was thinking the same thing.
"Eh heh…your quite the scary mastermind yourself sis…" Sakura chuckled wearily.
However, ice ran through the taimanin's veins as Asagi's closed eyes smile landed on her. "Hm? What was that Sakura? Something about cleaning your room today?"
"Y-Yup! I'll get right on that!" Using her shadow skills, Sakura ducked into her shadow and left the room.
All the while, the 'oblivious cutie' is none the wiser.