[OP: Passerine-The Oh Hellos]

Shine and Wally walked along the edge of the village where there would be fewer people.

Hanabi has passed on the warning she got from that Eichi kid, but they weren't concerned about thieves or other trouble...though they did spy some signs of the crime life that every big city has somewhere and if you were Wally and used to it, you knew what to look for.

What broke her heart, Shine said to him, was not the crime, but that so many of the children they saw just playing completely unsupervised. War orphans no doubt. Either alone or had siblings or parents who had to work double time now because they'd lost their main provider, and had left the child to look after them self.

"You know I never spent that much time in a place after a disaster unless it was for clean up," Wally said. "And not always then. So I didn't think so much about this part of it. The real fight just starts for a lot of people after the crisis is over. I think World walking is really what brought that more home to me."

"Personally, I could see it, but I could never do anything about it," Shine said questioningly. "At home, I don't have money or skills to do much for people when a  crisis hits. I try, but I feel like I can't reach very far. When I do this job, at least I feel like it's important, even when it's not going so well. I don't feel inconsequential. Perhaps that's not a selfless reason, but it's a part of it."

"I'd by lying if I said I didn't do superhero work partly to feel important," Wally put his arms behind his head. "My other job is solving crime, but you don't get the kudos for it. And it's a small part of it. Catching the bad guys and the people falling off buildings feels a lot more real. So we have that in common."

"Do you think it would surprise the students to know that both of us can feel entirely useless at times?" Shine asked.

"Yeah, but it really shouldn't. I think everyone probably feels that way sometimes," Wally said. "And everyone thinks the gras is green int eh other side. The guys who fight the big battles usually wish they had more personal time with people, and the people who focus on the one on one stuff, usually wishing they could be on the front lines of a fight. No one can't do it all."

"I do think we get to do more of it as DJs then we do as our private life selves," Shine mused. "But we weren't supposed to talk about work."

"But what else are we going to talk bout? It's not like we've had the chance to watch any movies or go to any new local attractions or do anything else but this mission for weeks," Wally said dryly. "So what else do we talk about?"

"Good point...it's all I've been thinking about," Shine admitted. "It would be nice to feel like just a person for a while instead of teacher and DJ."

"At least you've got me," Wally gave her a sly smirk.

"Well, it's some slight consolation I suppose," Shine teased him.

"Ouch," Wally pretended to look hurt.

"Oh you know I'm being facetious. I'd be so overwhelmed if you weren't there," Shine said.

"You say that in every world."

"It's true in every world. How did I do this alone?"

"I've asked myself the same thing about my entire life," Wally said. "No one tells you how much like surviving your life is when you're single, and how much more fun it is when you're not."

"Well, some people seem to think it's more fun to be single," Shine said.

"I feel like they're just trying to have a good time, not do anything really impactful with their lives."

"Oh that's not true."

"Not always, but it's like it's kind of true even when it isn't. Look at Batman, sure he's trying to protect the world, but as Bruce Wayne he's just partying and merging business deals. Nothing's really changing there. So in a way it's true."

"I wanted my life to amount to something when I was single...but I felt like it was way harder to do anything to get there... I can't believe this is our third mission together. Where has the time gone?"

"I know...well I mean at least we don't really age while on the job," Wally said.

"It's been nearly 3 years," Shine countered. "I feel older."

"Oh please, you look great," Wally said. "Mean, I'm the one who's like 30 now...youth really does fly by."

"I'm sure you'll not age too much, you regenerate too fast," Shine tried to be comforting.

"Let's hope." Wally agreed.

Shine laughed. "Still, the pressure...I feel guilty still for being away from Gaara, but I feel like I'm going to get wound so tight I just snap."

"You know what they say about flying and putting on your own oxygen mask," Wally looked around. "Hey, where are we?"

"I think...we must be near the water filtration site of the village," Shine looked around also. "See, that's the river Kurotsuchi mentioned right there."

They saw it flowed in through a hole in the wall.

"Is that safe?" Wally said. "Because if this was a movie, there'd be some sewage based villain inside that somewhere."

"I'd say you watch too many movies but that sounds like something we'd find in this world," Shine rolled her eyes.

"Or a kid's cartoon," Wally said. "Since you don't watch horror movies."

"Do you really miss them that much?" Shine asked.

"No...not really. I'm finding that the nightmares you find world walking are horrifying enough without adding more to it," Wally winced. "But it does give it a lot more context, you have to admit."

"Too much."

"Wah I don I'e Iw shye you can face down grimm monsters and be fine, but a movie about cults is too much."

"Simple: If it's real I can do something about it. Horror movies aren't realistic. They make people dumb on purpose and things happen the way they would in real life. That's what makes them horrifying, it's like a dream where you can't control anything," Shine was on a roll now. "And the animals don't act like real animals. The predators always hunt even if they've already eaten, which real predators don't do. And even a fictional monster would probably not keep going forever without rest or anything, and there's never any power or fight the enemy with guns or fire...so it really frustrates me to watch even if it's not scary."

"Shine, don't take this the wrong way, but you are the person I would have never watched movies with when I was a college student," Wally shook his head.

"Don't take this wrong, but you are the person I would never let pick a movie to watch while I was at any age," Shine replied. "But especially around Halloween."

"Well, this is fun," Wally said ironically. "Arguing about the same thing we always argue about, out at the most boring part of town. We should do this again sometimes."

"Speaking for yourself, I find water filtration fascinating," Shine said, only half kidding. "Actually, it wouldn't hurt to check it out...watch if we need to sneak out of this village for any reason? There's only one entrance, but there's a hole in the wall here...and it's a pretty big pipe." [If you've seen the pipes that drain water from the mountains into cisterns, you know why it's so big.]

They walked up to it to have a closer look.

"Hey, you could fit a person in there," Wally said. "If only I had my fingerprint dusting kit from the lab. Or a blacklight."

"Why?" Shine raised an eyebrow.

"Just to see if someone tried it before."

"But...wouldn't you just see if an animal had?"

"Well not if they had fingerprints," Wally objected. "But you know there would be people using this as a secret exit. I'm sure they have a black market here."

Shine climbed into the pipe. "They don't have a grate over this side, which I would...but maybe on the other side they do."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Wally said.

"No, I'm a lot taller than most of the people here," Shine could stand up straighter. "It's gotta be  less than 5 and half feet wide."

"No way am I getting in there then," Wally said. "You really think that it's worth checking out?"

"WE cma thi far, I just want to see what's outside this Village on this side," Shine said.

"We could just run around it."

"Bae, I have as much reason to want an exit out of here that won't let the guards see us use the gate as a black market dealer would, you never know with shinobi when a secret group could be after you," Shine made her way down the pipe. "And the wall's not that thick, I can't see the other end already."

"Just be careful," Wally called, his voice echoing. "Sometimes they have a secret panel in the bottom of the tunnel."

"There's metal in the bottom..." Shine felt around the top. "But...who knows, maybe...they can basically earth bend, so it's possible."

"You know," Wally leaned on the wall outside. "I'm starting to think we really do watch too many movies. What normal person would do this?"

"Batman would do it."

"That's not normal."

"I'm nearly there." Shine was stumbling to the other end of the tunnel, her boots were high enough so that her feet weren't wet since the water was low right now, but a good rain might have made this more difficult.

This end did in fact have a grate over the pipe...But Shien pushed on it and it flipped like a coin or a hoop on a wire would have, which slid her out the other side of it before she was ready.

"Ah!" She eyed fa iot he stmea outside hta' wa slitl haid that's the vial of course isn it flan ito the EpiPen.

"Shine?" Wally called.

"Out here," Shine called.

A moment later Wally had dashed himself outside and found her.

"Don't worry, no one saw me," he said. "Too fast...huh...well, you're going to need a new set of clothes."

"You think?" Shine said sarcastically, getting up and trying to climb out of the ditch. Wally pulled her up.

"Wow...you're not as heavy as I'd think with wet clothes on," he said, with a straight face. "Are you sure you're eating enough for all the walking we're doing?"

"I'm fine," Shine shoved him in the arm. "I'm just light, you know that...Well, other than embarrassing myself, I did discover that the grate is loose. It turns."

Wally pushed on it with one hand and it moved.

"Huh..." he said. "Why would it do that? Make it easier to clean?"

"Normally they screw in place if that's it," Shine studied it. "And I feel like because I'm taller, my arms hit the right spot to turn it from with more momentum than most people's here would have, if that would have been on purpose or not I don't know. You're stronger than the average person too... So maybe no one would hit hard enough to notice it was loose unless they knew to push on it like that...or maybe it's never checked on."

"But shouldn't they? I mean this is a vulnerable point for her village," Wally said. "And what about other shinobi around this area...someone could just poison the water...You'd think they'd put it underground.

Shine eyed the ditch. "You know, I thought our theorizing was far fetched and just us goofing off, but maybe we were right. I think someone is using this to sneak into the village."

"But they could just be ninjas who the Tsuchikage wants to work super secretly," Wally said. "WE don't know for sure if they're criminals, should we tell him?"

"If we did we'd have to admit to checking it out ourselves," Shine said. "And we have no proof that anyone's doing anything with it. It could just be Stone Shinobi, like you said. I think we're probably do more harm than good if we mentioned it. But it pays to know things. Another possible reason it's loose is because whoever used it last is coming back soon and we had better not be here when they do."

"Gotcha," Wally nodded. "But hey, let's follow the ditch a little. I bet it goes to a mountain."

Shine nodded.

Of course, the land out here also led back into the hoodoo-like rock structures, once you got away from the walled part that had Stone Village in it. The river went through that and the land tilted uphill. Shine said that it came from the north probably, not the east like the Mist Village water sources had.

"Does that tell us anything?" Wally asked.

"No," She asid. "Just tells us which part of the land is higher here. I think it must slope upward from this village to the north and back towards sea level to where the Land of Water is...Which make me wonder if this land ends in cliffs and not beaches. It would make sense, land of Earth and stuff... something to think about if you have to run that far."

"Yeah, but why would I?"

"We didn't think we would in Mist and you had to run the island, I'm just trying to think head," Shine tugged her hair. "Is it bad that we do this in our free time?"

"Actually, playing detective is kind of fun even without a real mystery to solve," Wally pretended to adjust a Sherlock Holmes hat.  "But yeah, nothing really interesting about this."

Shine nodded but suddenly she stepped on something that felt harder than the loose, rocky soil next to the water did.

Bending down to look at it, she picked up what looked like an earring or other piercing ring of some sort.

"What is that?" Wally asked.

"Jewelry, I think," Shine examined it. "Not many shinobi wear jewelry, but the civilians do."

"Makes sense, you could just lose it, so why wear anything valuable on the job?" Wally said.

"Yeah I take off our engagement ring when I know we're going to fight," Shine shrugged. "Anything can happen, don't want to give someone something to steal. though I could probably just summon it back...but does it seem odd that we'd find something that only civilians would probably wear this far away from this Village. And Bakugo and Camie saw someone on our way in."

"But from the other side," Wally said.

"So they can't go around?" Shine asid. "Could just be a trader, but...I keep thinking of the bandits they mentioned. "

"But they wouldn't so close to an armed village, right?" Wally said.

"A village that lost nearly half its fighting force? They might be," Shine shrugged. "Granted, this is not proof, but, I think we'd better not be near this area when we leave. We have to go back the other way anyhow, but we might even want to speed our way through that rock. I feel as if there are people out here we don't want the kids to run into ."

"I'd think they could handle some petty bandits, but if they have weird jutsus, I guess that's different," Wally mused. "I hope this is all nothing, and we're just overthinking it because we've seen it before."

"I hope so...but we know bandits, and they were plenty dangerous," Shine said.

"Yeah...you know that's something we may not want to say that too much inside the villages," Wally said. "We should watch what stories we tell. They'd think we did those crimes just because we know the criminals."

"True...But uh, fighting a talking gorilla may also not be much better."

"Hey, they have talking animals here, it's legitimate," Wally argued.

"Look at the sun," Shine pointed up. "We should get back. Gaara probably has finished by now and I want to hear what happened.

"So soon?" Wally said. "But we've hardly done anything but look around. We should have more fun than that."

"And what kind of fun did you want to have?" Shine asked.

"Your word choice there, Shine, it kinda sounded like something else..." Wally was trying not to laugh.

"Oh...oops," Shine wined. "Why do I always do that?"

"You're too literal, but it's cute, don't worry."

"I'm not that literal."

"If you say so, hey we could go skinny dipping in the river," Wally said.

Shine gave him a look.

"See, you took that seriously, " Wally said. "That's what I'm talking about."

"No, I couldn't believe that was the terrible joke you went to to prove your point," Shine said. "There were so many options."

"I knew that one would shock you the most."

"Are you kidding? I'm way too used to Sheyera and you make those jokes to care about that now," Shine retorted. "I was more worried about you shoving me in the water again for a gag."

"I could do that," Wally picked her up.

"Hey, stop!" Shine pretended to hit him in the back. "Not funny!"

"But honey, you're already soaked, so it's not like it's going to hurt you," Wally stepped towards the water.

"It was cold! Don't you dare actually drop me in there!" Shine cried. "Why do you always do this?"

"Because it's funny."

"Wally!"

"Hey, you could get out of this at any time, so I assume you must like it at least a little bit." 

"I just didn't want to waste the energy."

"Good point," Wally stoned. "Okay, I'll put you down, but don't push me in."

"Would I do that?" Shine asked, innocently.

"I don't think so but now and then you get this oddly mischievous streak and these are my only shoes right now," Wally said. "So nice and easy."

"Actually, Wally, don't put me down yet, you're standing a little too close to the edge of the water," Shine said.

Wally was putting her down as the bank he was on gave away since it was loose pebbly dirt and he was shifting his weight.

It only slipped a few feet, but Shine's momentum kind of pulled him off and they both slipped into the water instead.

It was pretty cold.

"Oh, you weren't kidding, what is this? Melted snow?" Wally sat up. "Ouch."

Shine was frowning at him. "What did I tell you?"

"What are you worried about, you were already wet, I'm the one who just ruined my shoes," Wally said.

Shine splashed him .

"Hey, my face was the only part that was dry!" Wally splashed her back.

"Well, now you know how I feel because my hair is already wet," Shine shivered. "I blame you for this one."

"I take full responsibility," Wally said. "But I'm still getting back at you for that." He kicked his feet in the water like a motor.

"Don't..." Shine tried to get up and backed up. "This is pretty juvenile when you think about it."

"Yeah, have you met me?" Wally said, with a wicked smile.

"Not funny," Shine said. "Hey you don't know what's in the water, come on, there could be parasites."

"It's a little late to be worried about that," Wally said.

Shine shot up and portaled herself onto the shore several feet away.

"So much for not using your energy," Wally called.

"You drove me to it!" Shine said. 

Wally just kicked up more water. "I can still reach you from here."

"This is so not how we're spending our time off," Shine called and then started to run for it.

"Are you kidding?" Wally shot up after her and ran sideways.

"Babe, don't do that, there's rocks--" Shine began before Wally dashed into one and fell to the ground.

"Oops..." he groaned.

Shine folded her arms and stared down at him. "I tried to warn you."

"I forgot about the rocks..." Wally winced. 

"Are you okay?" Shine lowered herself to get a better look.

"Yeah," Wally grabbed her arm before she was ready and pulled her. "This helps."

"I hope you realize that we're going to be both soaked, and muddy when we get back to the compound," Shine said, in a fake tone of resignation. "And the kids are all going to give us funny looks."

"One of them can turn into water, what do they have to judge us about?" Wally said, kissing her forehead anyway.

"I guess, but I can't relax thinking about there being people out here," Shine said. "And I'm cold now."

"Fair enough," Wally stood up. "Maybe that's not such a great idea anyway, but, I had to do something irresponsible so that it would feel like me. All this teaching is really making me turn into some kind of stiff."

"I think you're fine," Shine choked on a laugh. "Oh you are so lucky I find this cute instead of stupid."

"I am lucky," Wally said. "But why don't you just portal us back there? Might as well. Then we don't have to run in wet clothes."

"You could just dry us off but I don't want that experience, so I will," Shine held up a hand. "And if the kids ask, we tripped into the river because we were checking the landscape."

"I think that's basically the truth, right?" Wally winked.

***

"I wish you'd just tell me what happened," Temari said.

She and Momo had been back for some time and had found Gaara and Kankuro at the compound with the others.

Gaara hadn't wanted to tell anyone what happened until the DJs got back, but he seemed quiet and since he hadn't said it went well, they were worried.

"What do you think they're doing?" Shikamaru asked Dabi.

"Shine and Wally?" Dabi said. "I don't know, they are a couple, maybe they're making out somewhere."

"Dabi," Momo scolded. "They behave themselves, you know that."

"All I'm saying," Dabi said. "Is that an engaged couple who has to spend all their time around a bunch of rowdy teenagers talking Bout their dark pasts is going to want some alone time now and then to blow off steam."

"That's gross," Suigetsu said. "I almost forgot that they're a couple because they don't hold hands or kiss or anything, and that's fine with me."

"They do, just not in front of us usually," Momo said. "They have these ideas that it's inappropriate around students to be so lovey dovey... I wish all our teachers had that idea."

She meant Midnight.

"Oh sheesh, Pervy Sage never had that idea," Naruto made it so much worse by commenting.

"I'm starting to think they ran into trouble," Shoto said. "It's been...what, 4 hours? 5?"

"They're fine," Dabi said. "Nothing would stop those two."

"Wait, I think they're here." Karin looked up. "Outside though." She went to the window. "And they're soaked...and muddy...what did they do, go swimming?"

"It's cold outside," Hanabi said.

"I'd better let them know what's going on," Momo said hastily.

She hurried outside.

Shine was heading towards the girls' section.

"Hi...Shine, what happened?" Momo said.

"I fell into a river," Shine said. "It's a long story. Wally and I got a little tired of being serious all the time and I think it showed...normally, we don't do things like that."

"Like falling?" Momo said.

"Like having a water fight--anyway, is Gaara back yet?" Shine said. "We found something I think he might want to know about."

"I hope it was good because I don't think his meeting went well," Momo said in a low voice. "He has said nothing about it, but he talked to Kankuro and they both looked somber."

Shine turned serious at once. "Oh...hmm...Okay, I'll be there in a few minutes...uh... ask Karin to make sure none of the guards are close enough to listen at the windows. Just in case."

Momo nodded.

She didn't see any guards inside the enclosing walls, but they could have been hiding or camouflaged.

Karin confirmed that they were not near enough to hear, but she did say that she thought there were more of them than the day before.

"Why would there be more?" Shoto wondered.

Wally came in. He'd gotten changed fast. "So what's up?" he said.

"Wait for Shine," Gaara shook his head.

Shine appeared shortly thereafter.

"So..." she sat down. "Did the meeting not go well, or did he ask you to prove something?"

"I only wish he had," Gaara said.

Temari glanced at Kankuro, who sighed and shook his head.

"I thought everyone should know what happened, because I'm not currently sure that we won't be asked to leave the village soon," Gaara said.

Sakura's jaw dropped open.

"Asked to leave?" Tenten said. "Why?"

Gaara drew a deep breath. "I should explain what he said first...and what I said..."

* * *

It only took maybe 10 minutes, since it had been a pretty short conversation once it came to the point, but the others felt as if it had been longer for how heavy it was.

"I...I mean it's not so bad, is it?" Wally said hopefully. "He didn't get that mad."

"I think his open concern was worse," Gaara said, unusually unsettled for him. "I have never heard anything like that. He thinks I'm a naive fool."

"Well, he did think that at first too," Temari pointed out.

Gaara looked at her grimly.

"Not helping," Kankuro said.

"What I mean is, he realized he was wrong after a while," Temari said. "And he will this time too...maybe. I mean he has to understand that you would never support this if it was as foolhardy as he said...but how dare he speak to you that way?!"

"I thought she was being a little too magnanimous," Shikamaru said. "That last part was more like her."

Temari glared at him. "Am I wrong?"

"Actually, I agree with you," Shikamaru replied. "I can't believe he spoke to another kage that way... I mean I knew that they talked that way sometimes, but on a peace mission? I would expect him to be more cautious."

"If he can discredit me," Gaara said. "No one will care if he's disrespectful. I just don't understand where I went wrong explaining it all."

The other ninja didn't know how to answer him.

"Well...Shine, what do you think?" Momo looked at her.

Everyone looked at her.

Surely, she would know, they thought.

Shine had her fingers laced together in a somber way.

"Gaara, son," she said. Like a much older woman. "I'm not sure you did anything wrong...this reception is something that many of us get. Even the most renowned scholars of our faith. If you believe something people do not want to accept, they will treat it as laughable no matter how you explain it to them. That's the way people are. Even about stupid things, but sadly about important ones also. If you talked about it the way you did in Mist, then I think the difference was in your audience, not your performance."

"I think I must have gone wrong," Gaara argued. "Because, no one can deny the power of this if they understand it. Still, I thought I was clear."

"No, buddy, I'm sure you were fine," Wally said. "Shine's right, he probably just didn't like it."

"Whether people like what you say or not," Gaara said. "You are always taken seriously."

Shine sighed. "Gaara, that's because people think we're powerful. Not because we're persuasive, always. I mean that works on some people, but only a certain kind of person is impressed by mere reason. Most are impressed by strength. It's unfair, but it's true. Especially here."

"Gaara is strong," Temari insisted.

"Well," Suigetsu spoke up. "I know you won't like my saying this, but, many people might not see him as so strong anymore. Even knowing he's not a jinchuriki now, and he's wanting to make peace. And not to name names, but some people would see that as a sign that he's afraid of war. All this could be seen as a cover for lack of power."

"That's stupid," Temari got angry. "Anyone could see that Sand Village recovered better from the war so far than Stone has. Gaara has no need to ask Stone to go easy on him--"

"Sis, don't yell it out like that," Camie cut in.

"Yes, that might not be the best thing to say so loud when they could hear you," Shikamaru rubbed his ear.

Temari went quiet but she was seething.

"Who could doubt Gaara's sincerity?" Momo said. "I've met few people who are so earnest about what they wish to do."

"I think the Tsuchikage should be able to see that," Shoto agreed. "We've been serving them since we arrived. But we're not begging them for help. We tried to help them, how is that a show of weakness?"

"You don't think like a ninja," Shiakmaru rubbed his neck. "To us, it can be seen as weak to offer help for free. We tried to tell you that."

"So, it's our fault?" Bakugo said warily.

"He didn't say it was your fault," Ino said. "Just that shinobi take things a certain way... not all of them, but maybe the ones here did."

"Do you really think that's why Onoki is dismissing us?" Shine said, candidly. "It's not. If he wanted to believe Gaara, he would have. I think he didn't want to accept something so widely different from his expectations. Again, he's not the same as Mei. And Mei is not the same as most people, in fact. She is the good soil, but this place may be the rocky or thorny soil."

"Huh?" Naruto said.

"It's a parable," Dabi said. "About people who hear the truth and how they respond. Some soil is on the road and birds eat it, which means the devil. Some is on rocky ground and it doesn't take deep root and withers away with time and hardships. And some is on thorny soil and the thorns choke it, which is the worries of the world. Some is on good soil and it yields a huge crop."

"But this can't be right," Gaara said. "Lord Onoki is a sensible man, in his own way."

"Not to be that guy," Dabi said. "But didn't he plan to undermine the alliance before it even started? And use the Akatsuki before that? Does that seem like the wisest judgment to you?"

"To protect his village," Gaara said.

"Are you really defending him?" Shoto said. "He's the one who just rejected what you had to offer. He didn't even consider it fairly."

"He may," Gaara said. "Perhaps he will think about it...but if he remains resolute about it being radical, he won't want us to stay. We must tread carefully. He thinks we're naive...we must show that we aren't."

"Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves," Shine quoted. "I always live by that...but...Gaara, I do not know if that will change his mind. It depends on why he's so against it."

"He may wish to speak to you," Gaara looked at her and Wally. "Would you be willing?"

"I guess," Wally said. "But I don't think I can be the most convincing in my non-naivete."

"I can," Shine said. "But think about it. I am bold and often do not care if I step on people's toes. If his reason for rejecting this is pride, I may not help your case. If it's simply that he thinks we're taken in by something, I might be confident, but, I might not be. I am a little radical. Not the blood shedding kind, but I would die for my beliefs, even if it went against my family and my city and my people...is that something you want him to ask me about?"