"Whoa, whoa," he said, grabbing hold of the reins and doing his best to keep the beast from causing any damage to the jiao, as well as the man sitting on it. After a bit of work, the ox seemed to settle down, and Chishimo let go of the large beast of burden so that he could turn his attention to the man that he claimed was his best friend. "Sagi-sama, are you alright?"
"Yes," Sagi said after a moment's hesitation. "I am unhurt."
Chishimo breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad," he said, his eyes softening with gratitude at knowing his friend hadn't been harmed during this incident. Had anything happened to Sagi, the young Paige didn't know what he would have done.
Just then, Naruto walked up to the pair, interrupting what may or may not have been a heartfelt moment between friends. "While I don't want to ruin your guys' bonding moment, perhaps you could introduce me to your friend," the whisker marked blond suggested.
"Ah, yes," Chishimo's eyes widened as he realized that he had yet to introduce the man who had saved the Daimyo yet. Focusing his attention back on Sagi, he gestured towards the Konoha shinobi, a large smile on his face. "Sagi-sama, this is Uzumaki Naruto, a shinobi who was sent here from Konoha to help us solve the mystery of the Cursed Warrior."
"He shouldn't have bothered to come," Sagi said, the words he used and the tone he spoke in causing Naruto to narrow his eyes. The young Daimyo didn't see this, as he had closed his eyes, but only for a second, and when he opened them his irises had gained the same sharpness as the shuriken that had nearly ended his life. "Let me guess, this was Mōsō's idea?"
"Yes, because he feared for your life, Sagi-sama," Chishimo told his friend of old solemnly, "And with very good reason. If Naruto-san hadn't been here then –"
"Hold your tongue!" Sagi snapped before Chishimo could finish his sentence. The Paige seemed startled by his friend's whip-like response, but was quick to bow in apology.
"Forgive me."
"Wow, you're kind of an asshole, aren't you?" Sagi's head snapped over to Naruto, his eyes widening for a second before they narrowed.
"What was that?" the young Daimyo hissed in a quiet voice that somehow managed to convey his anger much more clearly than if he were to shout.
"You heard me," Naruto said, ignoring Chishimo's startled cry as he focused his attention on the man before him. "This guy right here," he gestured to the Paige standing to his left, "was so worried about you that he not only traveled all the way to Konoha to hire a ninja, but also paid for quite a bit of the mission itself with money from his own pocket."
"Naruto," Chishimo started to say, hoping to stop the blond before he said too much, but Naruto had no intention of listening and was nowhere near finished.
"And yet here you sit, insulting and snapping at someone who thinks the world of you," the whisker marked shinobi continued, his eyes narrowing into a glare. "You have to be one of the most selfish, self-centered, stuck up bastards I've ever met. With a friend like you, I'm not even sure Chishimo needs any enemies."
Sagi grit his teeth as he glared at the blond, his mind teetering on the edge of rage. However, much to Naruto's surprise, he somehow managed to pull himself back and regain control over his emotions. After taking several deep breaths, the young Daimyo of Tori no Kuni sent him a look of indifference, as if their small altercation not even a few short seconds ago had not happened.
"That friendship has been consigned to the past," Sagi said, his eyes closing as he looked away from the whiskered blond. "I have become a Daimyo, the ruler of this country, but he remains a Paige now and forever." Chishimo closed his eyes and bowed his head in depression; it was an act that did not go unnoticed by Naruto, who narrowed his own eyes in anger. "I have risen to great heights. I can no longer be seen with him."
"Che," Naruto scoffed at the Daimyo, "Sounds to me like someone's gotten a big head. You're no leader, just a child with a chip on his shoulders."
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