Dororo mused over the prone figure before him.
"I thought you had deemed me a fool- not worthy of contemplation. A mere relic of times long past, a man to be forgotten in the rushing sweep of technology. I believe you even told me once. "
"I did."
"This of course begs the question as to why exactly it is you are here on your knees begging for wisdom from a supposed fool."
"Times change. I was blinded by my own superiority. I cannot take back what I said, but I can ask for your forgiveness."
Dororo was silent for a moment.
"You have changed, Kururu."
"Love tends to do that."
Underneath Dororo's mask he began to smile.
"Very well, what is you need to know?"
Kururu began to fidget with his glasses nervously.
"Well, you know that Angol Mois's birthday is tomorrow and I don't know what to give her...She's so simple and pure. I have nothing she could want or need. So I came to you. You understand simplicity and the ways of the world in a way I never will. Please tell me what gift I should give her."
Without warning the blue ninja burst into laughter. Kururu's face burned red in embarrassment.
"Hey! It's not funny! I'm being serious here!"
"Pupupupu! I'm so sorry, it's just that the answer is so simple!"
Wiping away a tear, Dororo walked over to Kururu's side and placed his hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry. When the time comes, you will know what to give her."
Kururu snarled and pushed his hand away.
"I come all the way out here to the boondocks and you laugh and give me cryptic advice!" He yelled to the heavens as he left.
Dororo stood still, his face placid. Koyuki nervously stepped out of the shadows behind her master.
"Why did you stand by and let him leave?"
"He'll thank me later." Dororo replied with a confident chuckle.
--
Kururu stomped into his lab, steaming. If that washed up tree-hugging hippy wasn't going to help him, he'd make his own bleeding present! It would be everything she needed and more! It would be a marvel of modern technology!
Psyched, Kururu sat down at his computer, opened up his blueprint making program and set to work.
Five hours later he was still there.
The only problem with getting a present for Mois... He thought ruefully as he ground his face into his keyboard, Is that she's so freaking simple that I can't really think of anything...But isn't that why I love her?
Kururu screamed in frustration and whacked his head against the keyboard, hoping to stimulate some of his brain cells. That or lose enough of them that he could think on the level of his girlfriend.
--
Hours later Kururu emerged from his lab, hurriedly trying to straighten his appearance as he went. He had finally found the perfect present, but it had taken him most of the time he had. He could only hope that he hadn't missed the party altogether.
And when he stepped into the hallway he felt his hopes dashed into so many tiny pieces. Confetti was strewn everywhere and his companions lay on the floor, stone drunk. With a quiet sigh he nudged a sleeping Tamama out of the way and made his way for the living room. It looked like ground zero for some sort of bomb made out of party food and booze. It was quite evident that Angol Mois's birthday party had come and gone while he was in his lab making her present. Kururu felt foolish and ashamed. While he was so busy trying to think of what to give her, he had forgotten to give what would matter most- his very presence.
Distraught, he sighed heavily and walked outside, hoping that the night air would help him clear his mind. The stars glittered coldly in the distance, admonishing him for his mistake. By their light he spotted a trashcan. He quietly walked over to it and with a heavy heart, he nestled Mois's gift in the garbage. As he turned to go back in, a soft voice called out.
"Kuru-san?"
Kururu rotated as though he was on a turntable, his eyes full of hope. He knew that voice.
"Mois? What are you doing out here?"
"The party was too loud, so I went outside. I think everyone was too drunk to notice. You could say, over inebriation?"
She held out her hand, leaving Kururu's gift bared to the stars. A small spiral of clay, in yellow and orange, connected to a string. It was both simple and elegant. There was no technology in it- only love.
"Is this yours? I saw you put it in the trash, even though it looked like you really didn't want it there."
Kururu smiled. "No sweetheart. It's yours now. I made it as your present, only I thought you wouldn't want it."
Mois's eyes lit up with pleasure. "Wouldn't want it? Are you kidding? It's the perfect present! How did you know I wanted a keychain for my cellphone?"
Before he could respond she reached down and planted a small kiss on his lips.
"You've made this the best birthday ever, Kuru-san."
As she raced into the house to show everyone her wonderful new gift, Kururu felt his knees give from sheer happiness. And as he stared into the sky, the distant stars didn't seem quite so cold anymore.
Somewhere in the darkness, a ninja laughed happily to himself.
--
Heh. Sorry it's been forever since I last wrote. My mom has been hogging the computer and while she constantly promises to get me one of my own, we're so bloody poor that she couldn't even fill that promise without us starving. Haha. Anyway, here is a sort of sequel to Opposites. It took so long because I had a big funny happy-go-lucky plot that did not fit in with the tone of Opposites AT ALL so it took me a long time to muster up the confidence to make a rewrite. I still don't think it's as good as it's predecessor, but then what sequel is?
All characters belong to whoever makes this crap. Not me certainly, because if it WAS me I'd have this sort of subtle sweet thing all over the place. Oh and I'd have more money. Yeah.