Leaves in Our Clouds (Ryoko)

A show of good will, huh? The slightest hint of a smile tugged at the Lady Raikage's lips as he spoke. He'd finally learned to speak like a Kage. The reasoning was brief, to the point, and unattached. And he'd been smart to offer up his own village as leverage. Though in it's current state, Kumogakure was in no need of outside help. Still, that could one day change. The woman pursed her lips, annoyed by the very thought of this. But remembering how ill her manners had been throughout the meeting, she quickly softened. Perhaps the Hokage had earned something for all of his effort. She wouldn't offer up an alliance that she knew would be nothing more than a farce on her end, oh no. That'd just be a waste of her time to uphold. However, she supposed something could be done about the lack of trade between the two countries.

"Hmm," she mused, retrieving a file folder from a nearby cabinet detailing recent trade records. Flipping through the pages, she kept her investigation brief. She merely wanted to jog her memory before carelessly offering anything up to the boy. "I will look into opening the flow of trade between our nations once more." she said, putting the file away and walking back to her desk. "Consider it a show of faith." she said, mimicking his reason from earlier with a near genuine smile.

As the Hokage rose from his seat, she offered a hand for him to shake. "Once again, thank you for making the long journey to Kumogakure." she said, glancing down at the hound. Even as his master shook hands with her, he still looked tense. Good. He'd be a failure of a guardian if he trusted Mei so soon. She had no ill intentions towards Konohagakure, but she couldn't form an alliance with the village due to their relations with Kirigakure. The Mizukage, Kazu, was a thorn in her side. But he was under the protection of an alliance with Konoha, and the Lady Raikage had no intentions of starting a war over her personal qualms with the man.

"Of course," she nodded, gesturing towards the door and stepping out first. There was no point in sending her guard to accompany him back down to the gates. The idiots clearly knew nothing about handling diplomatic relations. Besides, seeing the Hokage to the gate herself meant the boy wouldn't get lost and wander. The last thing she wanted was the eyes of another village snooping around. Especially when those eyes belonged to none other than the Hokage himself.

"Safe travels, Hokage-sama."