There was a commotion, and I watched with narrowed eyes as the bastard and his flunkies walked oh-so-nonchalantly toward my hiding place. Not that I was hiding, just concealing my position.
"I wonder where she is?"
"Heh, not like it matters." Said the tallest male, puffing on his ciggerette. "She's a girl, so she probably couldn't hit the side of a barn from the inside."
"Hey, idiot," Said a short female with eyes that suggested exhaustion, coming to my rescue, unnecessarily, but it was touching, nonetheless. "Don't talk about her like that. Or any other women, for that matter, and put out the freakin' cancer stick. I, for one, do not want to die of lung cancer." She took the little roll of tobacco and smushed it under the heel of her size five industrial combat boots. "Can we just get on with it? The sooner we find her, the sooner I can shoot her and get this thing over with."
"Hey, who gave you permission to take that? And why are you even talking? I'm in charge of this platoon, and I-"
"Are a complete and utter moron, and are just barely passing marksmanship, where I am currently passing with higher marks than even she is, so shut your trap and listen to me when I tell you to stop talking and just look for her, alright?" She was glaring for all she was worth, and I was proud. So much anger conveyed, and not a single curse word. Maybe it IS possible... Whatever.
I focused my attention back on the other team, and decided to take pity on the poor trapped rats. I pressed the send button on my cell, and suddenly the clearing erupted with the ringing of gunfire, and they scattered, confused, running about in the now-closed-in ring of tires where they had so convieniently wandered. I aimed my rifle and picked them off one by one, until, regretfully, the only one I had left to shoot was the female. Then, I smirked, hitting upon an idea. I slid out of my perch and snuck up behind her, then grabbed both of her wrists and pinned her down, sat on her, and held my rifle at her.
"Alright, kiddies, mission failure." I announced, and they all smiled at me.
"Not so fast." Suddenly, they all had their rifles pointed at me.
"Ah, but that's cheating, kiddies, I shot you all." Shin-chan smirked and motioned at them with her hand, and they all opened their jackets to reveal... "Flak jackets? Very nice of you to plan ahead. Who?" They all pointed to Shin-chan, and I stood up and held my hand out toward her.
"I thought of the whole thing, even the fight."
"To throw me off the trail... Did you intentionally wander into my trap?"
"Yes."
"Heh, you're growing up, kiddy." I ruffled her hair. "Alright, I guess I had to call this mission success." I paused. "And with no casualties. You didn't shoot me, you just held me at gunpoint."
"Is that wrong?" She asked, suddenly anxious.
"No, that's better than I could have done, actually. It's always for the best if you can avoid killing someone." She grinned and then ran off, her team following after, except for Sam.
"So, Cate, I-"
"Save it."
"But I-"
"I said save it." I started to walk away, but then he grabbed my elbow.
"Why don't you ever let me finish my sentences?"
"Get out of my way."
"... I was just going to ask if you wanted to go to the beach with us this Saturday."
"No."
"Just go to the damn beach."
... Something tells me this is a very bad idea. "Fine."
"Awesome! Just meet me outside of the Academy by noon on Saturday. I promise you won't regret this!" He leaned in and I dodged.
"..." I walked away.
-x-
On Saturday, I met with Sam and a bunch of other kids outside the school, and we walked to the beach, the others all decked out in various swimsuits and carrying surfboards and umbrellas.
"Want me to carry your umbrella, Cate?" I looked at him.
"What umbrella?"
"You brought one, didn't you? You'll burn otherwise."
"I don't burn easily." I replied. "Listen."
"What?" He sounded a little too excited, so I knew my next words were for the best.
"Forget about me. You're a little obsessed. It's unhealthy. And besides," I shot him a look, "You can't be enjoying getting rejected on all levels."
"I didn't get rejected on ALL levels. You agreed to come to the beach with me."
"Not necessarily. I came because of," I pointed at the beach, which was littered by surfer boys in swimming trunks. "That. Surfing competition."
"Wow, Cate.. You can do anything..."
"No, I don't surf, I hate water. Saiden's in it. I had to come and see if she wipes out."
"..."
"Fuji!" We both turned, and he gasped, to see the normally no-exposure Akira Saiden clad only in a black bikini top and shorts. She grinned and waved, and the odd thought that her dad might cough up a lung if he saw her like that crossed my mind. I smirked and waved back.
"Yo, Saiden." I walked over, Sam tailing me, and untied my shoes, leaving them on the sand by Saiden's normal clothes, and then put my socks on top of my boots. "How's it?"
"Eh. The sun is hot, the sky is blue, the wind is blowing and the waves are big. Paradise."
"Fuji?"
"Hey, Fuji!"
"Hey!" A horde of topless surfer boys all ran over at once, and I sort of wondered how many of them went to the Academy.
"Hey, boys."
"Wanna come take the board for a test ride?" One of them asked. I looked him over. Guy like that, I know what he wanted.
"No, I don't like water." I smirked. "It's really too bad, you're kinda cute." He turned three kinds of red, and the others all just laughed. "So, anyway-"
"Hey." We all looked over at the guy standing behind me, and I lifted an eyebrow.
"What?"
"If you aren't participating in the competition, then get out of the competitor's area." I straightened, and was about to salute and leave.
"Well, sir, I guess I-" Akira pulled me over next to her, smirking up at the guy.
"What she means to say is that she's a competitor." I froze as the guy then got my name and walked away, before spinning around and looking at Akira.
"What the bleeding gay hell, (A/N: ITS SPARK-LAY lawls) Kira? Are you off your rocker?" I asked incredulously.
"What?"
"Don't even fake innocent with me! You know damn well I don't like water and I can't swim!"
"Get over it."
"Over what, the fact that my death looms imminent?"
"Your fear. Get over it, and get better." She said, and her words seemed eerily familiar. "Remember that old hobo we met outside the Rec Center that time?"
"Oh, is that who said it?"
"Yeah."
"I thought it was some Jedi master, or something."
"He might've been..." We stared off into space, calculating the odds that the old hobo was a Jedi master, and then I shook my head.
"That doesn't change the fact that now, I'm gonna die because of you." I said, poking her. "And I don't even have a swimsuit, and I am NOT getting in the water in these pants. They take forever to dry out if they get rained on, much less soaked in ocean water." She handed me a bag and said,
"Go change."
"What?"
"Go. I'll go jack a board for you." She pointed to a building, and shoved me into the dressing room.
-x-Sam POV-x-
I waited outside for her, because her friend, the one with the weird hair, told me to. Suddenly, she walked out in a navy blue bikini top and white shorts.
"SAIDEN, YOU WILL DIE PAINFULLY!" She yelled, and her friend just snickered and ran off. Cate ran off after her, and I heard yelling, swearing, a loud crash, and a cat yowling. Then, they came back laughing and patting each other on the back. Then, Cate attempted to break several sticks and a rock over her friend's head, and her friend just laughed. I sighed. Cate is so beautiful when she's infuriated.
-x-Cate POV-x-
The day passed in a flash, and with me practicing staying afloat on the stupid board in the stupid water off where no one could see me.
When it came time for Kira to go out there, I came back to watch, hoping silently that she would humiliate herself. Then it was my turn.
Time to die in the briny depths of the ocean... I paddled out to the waves, and stood on the board, praying that I wouldn't fall off and die.
-x-Akira POV-x-
I watched her surfing, and was sort of surprised. I had expected that she would've fallen by now. She was... Actually pretty good...
"Aw, no fair..." I whined. "She was supposed to fallen by now and proven that I'm better than her at everything."
But when, after letting out a yelp, she fell off the board, I was already in the water and going after her.
"Cate!" I yelled, then dove under the water and found myself face-to-jaws with a big blue, somewhat familiar-looking shark. I scowled and punched that sucker in the face, then went around it and found Cate. She was unconscious, and the cord that connected her board to her ankle was caught around a piece of coral. I got to work immediately untangling it, and then dragged her back to the shore, where she was set upon by a team of trained medics. As soon as her back hit the sand, though, she rolled over on her hands and knees and coughed up a shitload of seawater. She looked over at me.
"That's why I don't like water, dumbass." She hissed, and then passed out. I was soon to follow her, with a sigh that expressed a lot of my exasperation.
-x-
When I opened my eyes, I was sitting in an arena, and I frowned. This didn't seem right...
"Ah, Gods, what happened?" Wait was that... Oh shit... I looked over and saw Ino.
"C-Cate?" I whispered, and she looked over at me.
"Wha- Oh fuck." She laid her head back. "Well, that's a load. Try to surf, end up as a pig. Genius."
"Oh shut up. I've got pink hair."
"I had it, and now it's blonde." She paused. "At least I'm not flat-chested again."
"Damn, I forgot."
"Heh. Forehead Girl."
"Pig."
"I can be a pig. Oink."
"Hah hah."
"Ino, what's wrong with you?" We both looked over and saw Shikamaru.
"What do you mean? I just got beaten by SAKURA, of all people, and now I find I didn't even really lose, I TIED. I mean, god." She said, closing her eyes and frowning. I lifted an eyebrow.
"Why not just tell the real reason you're upset is because I'm smarter than you, AND because I've got Sasuke-kun on my team." I halted slightly with the suffix, and she smirked at me briefly.
"Okay, okay, I guess you won. Friends?"
"Okay." We smiled at each other, and then hugged. Shikamaru walked away, saying,
"Girls are such a drag." We laughed under our breath, and then she stood up and walked away, and I followed. She was sneaking up on Kakashi? Not gonna work...
"Not going to work, Ino." He said, and she pouted.
"Ah, you're so mean, Moron-sensei." She said softly, and started to turn the other way, and he looked at her over the top of his book.
"... Catie?" She looked back at him over her shoulder and smirked.
"In the flesh, more or less." She said, and I rolled my eyes.
"Baka."
"Dobe." She laughed, and I did too, and then we fell to the ground in a fit of laughter.
"What's the matter with Ino and Sakura?" Naruto asked, and we just laughed harder. I was only laughing because she was, and she was probably only laughing because I was. It happens to us all the time.
Finally, Cate caught her breath and smiled at him.
"Hey, Uzumaki-kun." He gasped.
"Ca-" My hands and hers both slapped over his mouth.
"Don't announce it to the world, kid, you, Moron-sensei, and Uchiha are the only ones who know who we are." Cate hissed. "You want us to get dragged off to Ibiki?"
He shook his head, and we released him. He immediately pounced on Cate, hugging her and telling her play-by-play everything that had happened since she'd been gone. She just chuckled and patted his head, and reacted appropriately to whatever he was telling her, be it him in battle or Sasuke stealing his glory again. I could tell she had missed him.
"Hey, Piggy..."
"Yeah?"
"When are we?" I asked her softly. She paused and looked around.
"I believe that this is the preliminary round of the third part of the Chuunin exams."
"Ah."
"Yes."
"I wish it'd been you two in the fight instead of Sakura-chan and Ino." Naruto said, and sighed. "That would have been hella lot more interesting." Cate whacked him on the head.
"Watch your language, little brother." She hissed.
"How come you get to cuss and I don't?"
"Just do as I say and not as I do, Uzumaki-kun." She said.
"Hmph." He started pouting, and she ruffled his hair.
"Hey." We both turned to the voice.
"What... Erm..." I blinked and leaned over toward Cate. "Name." I whispered and she sighed.
"Kankurou." She responded, also whispering.
"So, Canker sore." I started.
"Kankurou." He interrupted.
"Whatever, Conk-your-toe. What do you want?"
"... I came over here to talk to the blond one. Step aside, ladies." He motioned for us to part, but Cate and I just smirked.
"I am no lady, I am a gentlewoman. There's a difference. I wear pants." She told him, then looked him over. "And you wear an all-black bodysuit. Aren't you from the Sand Village?"
"Yes, and?"
"Are you an idiot? What are you thinking, running around in that weather in that outfit? Do you want to die of heatstroke?" I said, infuriated.
"... You sound like my mother."
"It could be worse." Cate told him. "She could sound like your girlfriend."
"I don't have one."
"Hey, Forehead, good news, the dude in the pigsuit is single."
"Shove it, Piggy."
"And on that note..." Cate wandered away, leaving me with a weirdo in a pigsuit.
"So, er... I didn't catch your name..." He said, looking away, and I quickly swallowed the bile that rose in my throat.
"I didn't drop it."
"Uh... How much does a penquin weigh?"
"Enough to feed the polar bear."
"Have I seen you somewhere before?"
"Yes, that's why I don't go there anymore."
"You wound me."
"Good. Get lost." I went after Cate to give her a stern talking-to. And by talking-to, I mean a ferocious beatdown.
"As if you could, Bitch." She said softly, and I jumped.
"What in hell?"
"I'm a fucking ninja, stupid."
"Whatever." I said petulantly.
"Look, the next match is Lee-kun versus Gaara-san." She said, leaning over the rail. I followed her example.
The proctor went through his spiel, and then backed up and said, "Fight!"
"Bet Gaara wins." I whispered.
"Bet you'll end up rooting for both of them."
Much to my dismay, Akira was right. I couldn't help but to root for them both. I sighed heavily and walked away, my shoulder bumping someone on my way to the bathroom.
"Cate." I turned.
"Uchiha."
"..."
"Well?"
"..."
"..."
"...Hm..."
I looked at him. "I'm glad we had this talk, Uchiha." I said, and he appeared confused. I turned and resumed my trek to the bathroom.
"Would it... Upset you if... I left?" He asked, looking at the wall, and I looked at him.
"Would that make you want to not leave?" I asked, getting a nasty sinking feeling in my stomach.
"Not if I feel it's absolutely necessary." He said, looking back at me, and I looked him in the eyes, unintentionally pinning him in place.
"Then why bother asking? If it won't matter, isn't it better just to draw your own conclusions?" He opened his mouth to say something, but I just walked away. When I got to the bathroom, I stared at myself in the mirror, thinking aloud. "He's already considering leaving..." My hands clenched the counter tightly, and I sighed, straightening. "Operation: Make Him Stay is in effect!" I grinned at my reflection. "Nuthin' to it but to do it!"
"Alright, I won, Pig."
"Technically we both did." I said. "Neither of us gains a thing, Forehead." She scowled at me, but accepted defeat, and we watched the rest uninterestedly. When we were finally dismissed, we all went out to eat together, Squad 7 and Ino and I.
It was relatively quiet, save the occasional comment about the matches, the competition, the weather, the past, anything we could think of to talk about. It was a bit strained, mine and Kira's unexplained reappearance.
"Welcome back, you two." Kakashi said late that night, and Uzumaki-kun raised his glass.
"To my two favorite kunoichi." He said, keeping his voice low. I gave him a approving smirk, then raised my glass.
"To returning home." I said softly.
"To kick-ass ninja moves." Kira said, raising her glass and earning a chuckle from those at the table.
"To comrades." Kakashi said, raising his.
Uchiha raised his glass as well, and we sat quietly, stunned and waiting for his toast. I, for one, was not expecting him to take part in this. "To.. Tolerable kunoichi." He said, smirking, and we laughed, clinked our glasses together, and drank. We continued to talk until Kira decided that toasting would make a great drinking game and ran home to write it down, and Kakashi skipped out on the bill. Uchiha threw some money on the table and left for home, saying he wanted to get home before it got too late, and Uzumaki-kun and I agreed. We parted ways just outside with promises to meet up for training the next day.
I walked to Ino's place.
Who're you? Why are you here? What's going on?
Oh no... Not again...
Jeez, Calm down, Pig. My name is Cate Fuji, and I've temporarily taken over your body. I'll be out as soon as I possibly can.
Who's to say you aren't lying?
Who's to say I am? Look, girl, all I can say at this point is that you just have to trust me.
And why should I trust you?
You really have no choice, do you?
That's a cruddy reason to trust you...
What exactly it is you're afraid I'm going to do? I won't hurt your body since I'm in it, and that would be stupid. I won't take your 'Sasuke-kun' either, since, frankly, his attitude disgusts me.
The attitude sucking is made up for by his broad shoulders, intelligent eyes, and hot ass.
Once again, he disgusts me... Hot ass aside. Besides, even if I did try to steal him away, I'm in your body.
And?
And... He'd only fall in love with you.
Oh. Mkay... Hey, are you as tired as me?
Yeah, actually... I am...
I climbed the stairs, Ino guiding me to her room. I fell onto her bed, and was asleep just as my head hit the pillow.
I found myself in a huge dark room. I looked to my left, and couldn't see the wall. I looked to my right; no wall. I looked up and was startled to discover a giant statue towering over me. 12 figures shrouded in darkness perched on the fingers of its outstretched hands. Voices rang in the silent cavern. The voices lowered, as though I'd been discovered, and they didn't want me to know what was happening just yet.
"When first we tried, it was unsuccessful."This voice seemed somewhat familiar. "When next we tried, the demons were drawn in closer, but with this jutsu, we shall bring them all the way through the veil. Their power shall be ours." I felt anticipation, pride, greed, and approval. Strangely, I felt another emotion that overshadowed these, and I could feel that it didn't belong in this cavern. I sort of flew backward out of the room and began flying over the countryside so quickly that I couldn't have recognized it if I tried. I was being pulled steadfastly toward the feeling of hatred. As I drew closer, the hatred began taking on a heat, burning me. Yet, it seemed that coexisting with the sweltering hatred was the arctic chill of loneliness. I had to know who was feeling these things so strongly, and I drew closer.
"It's you..." I whispered, following him. "I ought to have guessed... There's perhaps one other person it could've been..." I reached out, giving in to the urge to touch him, to make him aware of my presence, to comfort him.
Suddenly, I saw hands flashing through hand seals, felt a huge burst of chakra. I heard someone whimpering, crying, in pain. I was startled when I realized it was me. "Heat, oh gods so much heat please gods kill me its so hot I'm dying my skin is cooking my bones are warping snapping it hurts oh gods it hurts make it stop PLEASE!"
There was a bright flash of light and a loud crack, and my pain ended.
Rayne- Alright, Bella is taking a nap, but is verry happy that WTF got so many reviews.
Cate- and one of them said I would be good with Uchiha. (-_-); and not the hot one, either.
Akira- cuz he is miiiiiine
Cate- stuff it up your *censored* nose with a rubber *censored* hose.