Naruto and its characters © Masashi Kishimoto

Rated T for disturbing images not suitable for you!

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ASHES AND DUST

- 2

Monday meant it was time for Lee to go to work. Lee liked his job enough that he didn't hate going to work. After the strange events plaguing his new home, he was actually eager to go to work, though that didn't mean that he looked forward to it. He liked a good sweat; but he didn't like to clean up after other people's sweat, which was what he did at the "health club" owned by his friend's family. Occasionally, he would sub for one of the trainers who had to take a day off. Otherwise, he would go around the gym with towels and Windex, wiping the sweat off the machines after people who didn't remember to bring their own towels. The good thing about the job was that he had free membership and all the benefits as the other employees. He would quit eventually; he just needed to find a new job before he did. And still, it would be hard to quit. The manager had really taken a liking to him. Lee's shift lasted six hours today. He ran some errands after work and picked up some Chinese food before he headed home. The truth was he was trying to delay going back to the apartment as much as possible. What a weird thing for Lee to do. He had always been a home-oriented person, but now, he didn't even want to step ten feet within Leaf Village.

But he had to go home sometimes. An hour and a half after he got off work, Lee pulled into the parking lot. He had to be very careful with the car, seeing as how it wasn't his car. Neji had been kind enough to let him borrow one of his many, many cars. It was funny when Lee thought about it. Neji and he were at the opposite end of the social class. Neji came from a very honorable and wealthy family. Lee was an orphan. His thought wandered to his neighbor, Hinata. What was her story that she ended up living (presumably) by herself at a run-down apartment? He carried his dinner up and opened his door to a sight he didn't expect. Water was dripping from his ceiling. It was coming out of the ceiling lights, the fire alarm, and the two sprinklers in the kitchen and in the hallway. He stood at the door with a wide hole in his mouth. He put down the Chinese food and assessed the damages. Luckily, water was only coming out of the previously mentioned places, which meant that the majority of the apartment was untouched. He went into the bathroom. His new rugs were wet. He went into the bedroom. His new comforter had a dark pool in the middle, right below the ceiling fan. He pulled some pots and pans from the kitchen and located them under the water source. He checked the time: Tsunade should still be in her office if he was lucky.

He hurried into the management office. Tsunade was clutching a small radio with her hands and shouting for a horse to run faster. She was so into the horse race that she didn't notice Lee walking in and Lee was too polite to interrupt her. He had only known her for about a week, and already he knew that horse races were very important to his manager. Tsunade slammed the radio on the desk and put her head down. Her horse probably lost the race. She glanced up and sat straight when she finally realized that Lee was here.

"Hey you, you need something?" she asked, turning off the radio and putting it back into her drawer. "I'm leaving soon and so spit it out."

Lee ignored her rude attitude. "There seems to be a leak in my apartment."

"Yeah? I'll get a plumber for you in the morning," she said, standing up. She put her purse on the desk and packed up her things. "Is it the tub? I just had the damn thing fixed last month."

"No, it is the ceiling," Lee answered. Tsunade raised an eyebrow at him, like he had just told a bad joke. "Water is dripping from my lights and the fire alarms. And the sprinklers too."

"Huh… That's weird." Tsunade sat down back. She tapped her nails against the desktop, thinking. She pushed her glasses up and said, "Probably a pipe is broken… I don't know anything about fixing leaks… I can try to turn off the water… That should stop the leak." She opened her purse and took out the master keys. "I'll be right back. I'm really sorry about this, you know."

"It is not your fault," Lee said with a weak smile. He walked Tsunade out of the office and accompanied her to the side of the east building. Tsunade checked the water pressure box even though she didn't really know what she was doing. Lee didn't know anything about piping either and couldn't offer any assistance. She turned the rusted valve to shut off the water. Lee took over for her when she shook her hands in pain.

"Arthritis," she said, "Drink your milk while you're young." Lee gave a nod and turned the valve all the way. Tsunade looked over his shoulder and said, "That should do the trick. Why don't we run on up to your apartment and see how it is?"

The water leak had indeed been stopped, but the damages had been done. There were little puddles littered around his place. He sighed, and here he had hoped today would be a normal day.

"Ouch, tough break," Tsunade said as she stepped on a wet spot. The carpet squished under her weight. "I'll get someone to take a look tomorrow. You take care now."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Lee emptied the pots and pans. He grabbed towels to suck out the water in the carpet. He wouldn't want the place to smell like mildew. The kitchen and the bathroom floors were the easiest to clean. His bed was the hardest. He only had one comforter and it was dripping wet. He was hoping that the thick fabric would've held in the water but he was wrong. It had soaked through his sheet to the mattress. He touched the mattress. Even that was wet. He pushed the towel against the springy padding; he felt like he was bouncing on a trampoline. He got as much water out as possible and resolved to laying a clean towel over the wet spot. At least he had enough towels. He put on new sheets and threw some blankets on the bed. He would have to turn up the heat to compensate for the lack of his trusty comforter. He put the pillows back in place. Just then, he heard a sputter. The ceiling fan was spinning. Well, it wasn't really spinning. It seemed to be struck and the motor was jerking left and right. Lee hoped against hope that the water hadn't short-circuited the wirings. Then he thought about it and remembered that he didn't turn on the fan, only the light. Now, Lee didn't know much about electric circuits but he knew that things usually didn't turn on by themselves. He stared up at the ceiling fan and watched its futile attempt to spin. He squirmed when something hit him in the eye. He squeezed his eyes shut at the initial discomfort. Then he blinked out the foreign object. He rubbed his eyes, trying to figure out what had hit him. He glanced up and saw that the fan was moving normally. No, normal wasn't the right word. The fan spun clockwise, but then it stopped halfway, jerked a little, and spun counter-clockwise. It moved like the tumbler in a washing machine. Left and right. Left and right. Left and right. He watched the eccentric moving pattern of the ceiling fan. In the midst of the whooshing of the blades, he heard a soft hissing. He kept his eyes wide, which was a bad move. Grains of sand seeped through the gap of the ceiling. It started out with only a few grains. Then it quickly became a waterfall – or a sandfall to be more accurate. The blades knocked the sand and sent them flying across the room. Lee covered his eyes as he suddenly found himself trapped in a cyclone of sand. Sand paraded around him, abrading his skin. Lee fell to his knees. He kept his eyes close as he crawled his way over to the door. He felt around, using his hands to guide him out of the bedroom. Once he was in the hallway, he opened his eyes and ran into the living room. He took a quick peep at the bedroom. The sand twirled in the air. As if it knew that Lee had escaped from its clutch, the sand slowly died down. The sand fell into a rough shape of a child. Lee gasped as the sand statue turned its faceless head at his direction. Though it did not have eyes, Lee knew that it was staring at him. The statue collapsed in a loud hiss. The sand vanished completely from the bedroom. Lee didn't stay to check out what happened. He pulled open the front door and ran out.

His first instinct was to go next door to Hinata. He pressed the doorbell five or six times. No one answered the door. Lee leaned against the wall to calm his racing heart. Some of the things that had happened in the past days could be explained with logic. A sandstorm in his own bedroom wasn't one of them. He didn't need any more convincing to believe that something was indeed very wrong about his new home. He pressed the back of his head against the wall. There was no way he was going back inside. If he called Neji up, would his friend let him spend a night at his fancy mansion? Neji would probably ask a lot of questions. Lee wasn't about to explain that there might be a ghost in his apartment. Neji would only laugh at him. Besides, Lee wasn't sure if it was really a ghost. Maybe the apartment was just possessed. He broke his train of his thought when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. He braced himself but relaxed when he saw that it was only Iruka. The brunette was playing with his scarf as he stepped into the hallway. It didn't take Iruka much time to notice Lee sitting on the ground.

"Lee? What are you doing?" Iruka came over with a look of concern. Seeing that Lee hadn't moved an inch, he kneeled down and placed a gentle hand on Lee's knee. "You look so pale. Did something happen?"

"I… I think…" How was he supposed to explain to Iruka what happened? He didn't even know if Iruka believed in the paranormal. Maybe his neighbor would call the police and had him sent to a mental institution. "Do… Do you believe in ghosts?"

"Ghosts?" Iruka repeated, taken back. He pressed his lips together and frowned a little. He squeezed Lee's knee and put on a soft smile. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

Lee didn't want to make himself look crazy. He only explained the latest event that happened to him. Iruka listened, sitting on the ground next to him, with a worried look. When Lee was finished, Iruka was tugging a loose thread from his scarf absent-mindedly. He heaved his shoulders and put on a thinking face. He stood up after a moment and held out his hand for Lee.

"Let's go in and take a look," he said, pulling Lee up from the ground. They went back to the apartment with Iruka walking in first. He walked to the bedroom and Lee followed him behind. Iruka stood by the light switch and flicked it on and off a few times. He turned on the fan. It sputtered at first, and Lee winced. Then it moved smoothly and steadily. Lee took a leap back when a thin mist formed at the base of the fan. Iruka bravely walked under the fan. He got on his tip-toes and reached his hand up, waving his fingers through the mist. Lee waited by the door like a timid boy. Iruka checked his hand and looked up at the ceiling. "I think I know what it is…"

"What is it?"

"The leak must have loosened up the dust between the floors," Iruka said. He walked over to Lee and showed him his hand. There was a fine layer of grey dust on his palm. He clapped his hands and the dust scattered. "It's just concrete."

"It was sand," Lee said. He gestured around the room. "There was a sandstorm in here."

Iruka walked to the switch and turned the fan on to the highest setting. The blades whooshed in rapid circles. The concrete dust formed a cloud before it was knocked away by the movement of the blades. Lee stared up at the fan even though the dust made his eyes water. He appreciated Iruka trying to find a logical explanation for what happened. But he knew what he saw and what he felt. Iruka looked over at him and pulled his cheeks to a tender smile. He rubbed Lee's back in a soothing manner.

"It's alright," Iruka said, keeping his steady rub on Lee's back. "Old places can be kind of creepy. You'll get used to it."

"U-Uh… Yeah," was the only Lee could say.

"If you need anything, just come by, okay?"

Lee nodded and managed to show Iruka a smile. He walked Iruka over to his apartment before he returned to his own. He lingered by the bedroom door, glancing up at the ceiling fan. It couldn't just be concrete dust. It just couldn't. He grabbed his pillow and a blanket and hurried out of the room. There was no way he was sleeping in there tonight. He bunked on the couch and watched television until he uncomfortably fell asleep.

Before he went to work in the morning, Lee made a stop at the office. Tsunade was enjoying a cup of coffee and a cannoli for breakfast. She smiled up at Lee as he walked in. She sucked the cream off her finger and put down her sweet treat.

"Don't you worry. I've already called the plumber. He'll be here this afternoon," Tsunade said. Lee couldn't put a smile on his tired face. Sleeping on the couch wasn't in the least comfortable, especially when he was waking up every twenty minutes. His restless night must be apparent since Tsunade added, "Damn, what happened to you? You look like crap."

"Tsunade, I think… I am going to move out."

"Move out? Why?" Tsunade stared at him with surprise. She gestured Lee to take a seat. She pushed her coffee out of the way and put her hands on the desk. "You've only been here for… two, three days."

"I… I do not think this is the place for me."

"You said you love this place." Well, he did, until all the weird things started happening. "Is this about the leak? I know it sucks, but leaks happen. I mean, a lot of things are breaking down around here and I'm doing my best to handle them. Did some of your stuffs get messed up by the leak? I'm really sorry about that, but it's no reason to move out. You're gonna get leaks everywhere you go, I'm telling you."

"No, no, it is not about the leak," Lee said. Tsunade frowned and shrugged her hands. He heaved a quiet sigh. Was it a good idea to tell Tsunade that her apartments were haunted? She might not take it very well. "I do not think I am ready to live alone."

"Oh come on. I know what this is about," Tsunade said, throwing her hands up. She leaned across the desk on her elbows. "What are you, 19, 20 years old?"

"Eighteen."

"Exactly," she said, "of course it's scary to live by yourself. You've never been away from your parents." Lee didn't bother to mention that he didn't have parents. "You kids are growing so fast these days. It's tough. I was twenty-four before I moved out of my parents' house, and it was only because my old man kicked me out. You see what I'm talking about? You're still a kid! You get freaked out by the little things. You hear some noises so you think there's a ghost." Lee frowned; how did she jump to that conclusion "So I'll tell you what, here's what I did when I got my own place. I invited some of my girlfriends over. We had a sleepover, watched some television, had a girl-talk, and everything was fine. You just need to break into your new independence. You hear me?"

"Yes," Lee said, nodding his head. He had been wanting to invite his friends over. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea. Tsunade did have a point. Back in the orphanage, he was always surrounded by other children. He never had a moment of quiet. Now that no one was bothering him, maybe he wasn't adjusting so well to his newfound peace. "Thank you, ma'am. I feel better."

"Good, go get some of your friends and have a good time. But don't make too much noise, alright? I don't wanna have to shut your party down."

Lee thanked Tsunade again and headed off to work. During his lunch break, he gave his two closest friends a call to invite them over for the night. Part of him thought that it wasn't a good idea to involve his friends. The other part of him thought if he had someone with him, maybe he would be left alone. Either way, he wouldn't know what would happen until tonight. His day was a little more exciting since he subbed for an aerobics instructor. He was certified to teach but the health club wasn't hiring another instructor. Even though the manager loved him, he couldn't pull strings to hire Lee. Nonetheless, Lee went home feeling a little more relaxed after a good day of exercise.

He did some last minute cleaning up at the apartment. As he was vacuuming the carpet, the doorbell rang. He hurried to answer the door and was surprised to see that it wasn't whom he was expecting. Kakashi waved his hand at Lee with a smile. "Yo," he said, "Iruka told me you were stressed out so we thought we'd invite you over for dinner."

"Wow," Lee said with a bright grin. "I would love to, but I am expecting company."

"Ah, too bad. Next time then," Kakashi said, waving good-bye. Lee watched the grey-haired man return home and smiled sheepishly to no one. He was actually invited over for dinner. How amazing was that! He resumed his vacuuming duty until the doorbell rang again. This time around, it was his friend, Tenten at the door. He opened the door to find an impatient Tenten standing with a backpack and a sleeping bag.

"What took you so long," she said as she strolled into the apartment. She scrunched her nose. "Oh geesh, Lee! What the heck is that smell? It's like… someone died here or something."

"Please do not say that," Lee said, closing the door. "Thank you for coming."

"Thanks for inviting me. Is Neji coming?" She put down her bags and walked around the apartment.

"He couldn't come."

"You mean he 'wouldn't' come." She picked up the air freshener and sprayed it all around her. "Whatever. We'll have more time to hang." She flopped down on the couch and opened her backpack. "I got something for you."

"You did not have to." Lee sat down next to her. Tenten took out a stuffed teddy bear with a button nose and wiggled its arms. Lee laughed and took the bear.

"His name is Mr. Bear. He's your roommate. Be nice to him, 'kay?"

"Well, nice to meet you, Mr. Bear," Lee chuckled, shaking the stuffed animal's paw. They shared a laugh and Lee put the bear in his room. They had a pizza for dinner and watched an action movie that Tenten brought over. Lee was having a very good time with his friend that he hardly remembered why he invited her over in the first place. Tsunade was right. The atmosphere was livening up by his company.

Tenten pulled the spoon out of her mouth and dropped it into the empty pint carton of her strawberry ice cream. Lee wondered how she could eat so much junk food and still managed to stay in shape. She stood up from the couch and threw the carton away, putting the spoon in the sink. "I'm gonna take a shower, 'kay?" Lee gave her a nod and Tenten disappeared into the bathroom with a change of clothes.

Lee kept the television on as he washed the dishes that they had used to eat dinner. It sure was nice to have Tenten around. She was a fireball of energy and positive attitude. They went to the same school since kindergarten and had been friends ever since. It was no secret in school that Tenten was not the girl to mess with. Sometimes, Lee didn't know what was funnier: the fact that Tenten treated him like a girl or that she acted like a boy. He laughed to himself remembering how Tenten forced him to wear a tutu one Halloween. Lee wore the tutu, but he didn't leave the house. Instead of going to a costume party as planned, they stayed at Tenten's house and watched a comedy and ate a lot of candies. He dried the dishes and put them in the dish washer. He sat back down on the couch to watch the television screen and waited for Tenten to finish her shower.

Lee glanced at the digital clock on the microwave. Worries set in. Tenten had been in the shower for more than half an hour. Not that he knew Tenten's shower habit, but she didn't seem the kind who took long showers. Lee waited for another few minutes, eying the bathroom door. He could still hear the water sloshing from the shower head. He walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door. "Tenten? Are you alright?"

No answer. The water was still running.

"Tenten?" He knocked twice. He heard nothing but the water. He tried the knob, but it was locked. "Tenten? Answer me." He knocked again and when Tenten didn't answer, he knew something was wrong. He dashed to the kitchen and opened the drawer where he kept the spare keys. There were three keys. He took them all and tried them each. He unlocked the door and jumped a little when he saw the tub overfilling with water. The rugs that he had spent time drying were drenched again. But rugs were the last of his worries. Tenten was slumped over the tub with her face down in the water. Lee grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her away. One look and he could tell that she wasn't breathing.

"Tenten!" Lee cried. He put Tenten on the floor and nervously – and shyly – pressed his hands against her exposed chest. He had learned first aid training in the gym and tried to resuscitate her. Tenten coughed and spit a mouthful of water out. Lee took a quick breath of relief. He rolled Tenten on her side, since she was still out of it. He wrapped a towel around her and turned off the faucet before he ran to call the emergency. He came back to carry her out of the bathroom. He found her loose night shirt in her bag and helped her into it. By then, Tenten was somewhat conscious. She glanced up groggily at Lee and mouthed something.

"What is it?" Lee leaned down and put his ear next to Tenten's mouth. Though she said it in a whisper, Lee heard his friend's message loud and clear.

"There is a girl in the bathtub," Tenten said before she lost consciousness again.

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Boyue's Note: When I wake up in the morning and I see all the reviews that I've gotten, it really jumps start my day! So please keep them coming. Before I started writing this chapter, I was feeling very bleh and didn't really want to write. But once I started, I could not stop! I was feeling this chapter and I really like how it turned out. :does a happy dance:

The water from the ceiling thing actually happened in my apartment once. xDD~ It was weird. O.o

Keep reviewing! The more you review, the faster I write. Seriously!

Until next time!

12.27.08