They separated once inside the village. Tsume kept craning her neck around to see where Raidou and Kuromaru were going, even though she knew.

"It's all right," Aoi said sleepily. "Raidou-san will take care of him."

"Of course," Tsume agreed automatically, and ran faster through the sleeping houses.

The shelter was closed. She went through a window and into the kitchen while the alarms blared, waking the family who ran it.

A man came staggering out of the back rooms, rubbing his eyes and blinking exaggeratedly at her. He shut off the alarm while Tsume set Aoi on the counter and the boy beside her. Tipping back her mask, Tsume rubbed an arm over her face. "Two. She's going to need naturalization classes. If she wants to join the academy later and she doesn't pass for the scholarship program, contact Inuzuka Tsume and I'll see that the funds are paid." She wasn't sure how, yet, but naturalization to make Aoi a full citizen would take an entire year. She had that long to figure it out.

"What about him?"

She glanced at the boy. "He can be naturalized if you think it's best. But he's not going to be a ninja." And that was the only real reason for the process, anyway.

"You should really come back in the morning. We have people who--"

"I'm sure they can sleep here tonight. They've been through enough, they don't need to be moved again. Get the paperwork." What her flat tone of voice and steely glare couldn't manage, the ANBU mask could. He gave it a lingering look and opened a file.

The boy began to sniffle. Tsume wrapped an arm around him, her other hand picking up a pen. "It'll be all right. They'll take good care of you, here. Keep you safe. Raidou and I will check in on you, make sure everything's all right," she soothed, keeping up the babble as she signed her name to papers, one after another.

"We need their histories. For therapy--" the man began.

Her voice was sharp. "We'll get them settled. Find them a place to sleep tonight. I'll give a full report in the morning." She winced at her language: did you report on something like this? He'd called it a 'history.' It didn't matter. She kept signing papers.