... There is no excuse as to why I have pretty much abandoned my story
But I am very very sorry! I hope no one got to attached to this story, I'm still confused to my spontanous decision to continue this story myself, but it is in fact my holidays right now and I figured hey, why not continue that story you wrote at least a year ago instead of playing 4 hours of the Sims. I will do my best to update I swear! But hey. Really I hope you like this Chapter, its pretty slow so i'll update soonish. Thanks yet again! :)
Disclaimer: I Do not own Naruto or any of its characters, all rights go to Masashi Kishimoto
It took all of Tenten's ability and coordination to stay standing firmly upright and not fall over under the sheer pressure of his gaze. His stare really was something and she couldn't help but apprehensively analyse him, it only seemed fair since he was doing his own scrutinizing of her anyway.
His face was perfectly symmetrical and he had a chiselled jaw line like the male model she saw when she was in Berlin modelling for the Spring/Fall Armani fashion show, he was far more tanner and his hair was a beautiful sandy blonde, but there were still striking similarities between the two. They both carried themselves with an aura of certainty and belief and had both mastered how to look aloof and mysterious. The model also had a black lover who looked just as beautiful in an animalistic way. Tenten inwardly giggled at the thought if they both shared similarities in their sexual preferences.
His up-turned nose gave him a snobbish look but worked in perfect harmony with his high cheekbones. His hair was the deepest natural charcoal shade she had ever seen in her life which was really saying something since she took her morning coffee black His skin was a creamy porcelain colour that made him look like a doll, especially with his glassy white eyes. His eyes were the most striking feature though, Tenten was sure that she'd never seen or will never see someone with those eyes ever in her life.
They were completely void of emotion yet she was sure that there was more to that like the depths of an ocean, you can never know what's lurking underneath the surface. It could be a dangerous dark place or a vibrant vivacious world full of colour. The more she stared the more she was leaning over to the former.
Enough!
Tenten mentally slapped herself and dropped her gaze towards anything but the stunning male specimen standing in front of her, and focused her eyes on the north sports wing that was designed by Jean Nouvel. she focused her gaze on the intricate and artistically placed carvings of the golden clock that was built into the wall with its delicate golden second hand ticking away furiously.
What was she thinking! Tenten mentally scolded herself
She unashamedly stared down a man for at least 15 seconds without any plausible explanation, even though he was looking at her first she could of just as easily diverted her attention to somewhere else and continue walking to her destination.
Actually concerning her destination and her main objective she looked at the stoic teen again and then up at the banner.
So she'd be on a team with this guy? Ah fuck. She doubted if she felt uneasy in his presence when he was standing a mere ten metres away from her she couldn't even think of how she could play a coherent game of Soccer with him on her team. It had been a mere minute that had transpired between the two of them although she felt like she sat through a whole screening of the Titanic. She thought it would only be smart to say something, an apology for the shameful staring, or a friendly greeting to ease the tension that would be able to be cut with a knife. But before she could put any of these thoughts into action Mr Emotionless had already beaten her to the punch.
1. Great! She won't have to stutter something that was barely thought out in under 2 seconds
2. She didn't hear what he said, it didn't register inside her brain although she was pulling and yanking around her head to produce the vital information she had heard only 2 seconds ago but if was futile. She simply did not hear him.
"Ahh?" Tenten rasped out.
3. Fuck.
Ahh? Was that all she could generate? Wow Tenten! With vocabulary that impressive I'm surprised you haven't run for President! She berated herself over and over again. Sure. A double Calculus class, French and Chemistry was tough but it didn't make her that illiterate!
"why are you here?" the voice stated again thankfully, barely audible yet clear enough that she could hear the frustration that was entwined in his tone unaware of her whole vocabulary fiasco.
Tenten tried to wet her tongue which was dry and sticking uncomfortably to the roof of her mouth before she attempted to speak
"Why wouldn't I be here?" she croaked out hoarsely, she winced at how pathetic her voice sounded compared to his smooth flawless speech. Using this as an opportunity to use her slightly numb hands, she dug around in her bags for her Nike water bottle, when she retrieved the valuable bottle he had started talking again
"You're lost? This isn't the Water polo team or Tennis team you know" his eyes furrowed a bit and a little dent formed between his eyebrows.
"Try reading a map. They're surprisingly useful." then he left it at that. His eyes went back to that blank expression as if he lost all interest in her.
Her eyes didn't however; she narrowed them slightly and pursed her lips. She wondered what he was seeing when his eyes widened just a fraction almost nothing at all, but to Tenten it was enough of an indication that he was surprised.
"I got asked to come alright? You shouldn't just assume that because I'm a girl I have no ability or I'm not good enough to kick a ball"
Tenten's voice came out confident and with a little defiance to show that she wasn't easily pushed around. She didn't think he would run away cowardly with his tail behind his legs and she right if by any indication the way he was staring at her with that passive disguised look of disgust that she saw the detectives in NCIS look when they had to look at the mangled beaten up and disfigured corpse.
"New girl, I don't think you understand the importance of the Soccer team. We are made of only the best of the best. We are physically at the peak of school and we don't go easy on the weakest link"
He practically snarled at her, if she had taken two steps away from him she wouldn't be able to hear the malice in his voice but where she was standing it rang clear as a bell. His eyes were dangerous right now, they were a narrowed to rival her own glare but they seemed more intimidating, scarier and far more efficient then her own pathetic excuse of a glare.
"I'm good" She insisted deciding it was best to drop it at that. Although there was all this pent up anger deep inside of her, she wasn't one to throw a tantrum which would make her look childish. So she just took a breath of fresh air and left it at that. He snorted at her surrender and pulled out a phone out of his Abercrombie and Fitch duffel bag and furiously tapped away.
By now he must have written a novel, she thought to herself 5 minutes later. Neji was still going at it, punching the letters in his smart phone with such speed which left her with a burning curiosity as to what he was writing. By now good 25 guys had gathered around the banner and were talking in a friendly manner with each other, they must all be good friends from the previous seasons of soccer that they played. Every single one of the guys looked like pro NFL players, they were all packed with a rippling set of muscles and long lean legs that looked like they could pack one hell of a kick. The only exception to the Athletes was the Fat guy talking with a blonde haired guy and also a brown haired guy. He was pretty much inhaling a packet of chips with such speed it made her sick. Was he the goal keeper maybe? There was no way he could match the others in terms of fitness, but he was here nonetheless which meant he had a talent worth contributing.
"Hey! Brats! Over here!" A harsh snappish voice ordered with such authority even Tenten's BFFL Neji decided to pocket his phone.
The Principal Tsunade was breathtaking, even in her scowling and annoyed looking face. She wasn't beautiful –her eyes were just a bit to beady and her hair to severe and her face much too hard- but she was stunning in a way Tenten couldn't make sense of. The sound of her voice broke Tenten out of her reverie
"Brats! Come on! What do you want me to do, walk you through it like babies? Grab your shit and head to the Caesar Oval!"
Tenten didn't know if she was even allowed to talk like that to students but with such high authority she doubted she could get told off for it, the team didn't seem to care though, packing textbooks, phones and jumpers into their bags and hastily followed the impatient and irritable principal, to be honest she quite liked it, at least the team would be in order and there would be no mucking around at anytime.
The Caesar Oval was large enough that it could've housed a small village, it was simply enormous, the grass was trimmed down perfectly and Tenten was impressed at how well-kept it was. Principal Tsunade was standing right in the middle of the monster oval with at least two dozen soccer balls surrounding her. She began talking before everyone had gathered close enough to hear.
"You all know about the Inferno Dragons. You have all been recommended by your teacher or I have sought you out personally to be assessed to be part of the schools most prestigious team. Congratulation Brats, you are all the schools fittest and well trained athletes, but we are only accepting 15 players. No more, no less. If you don't get chosen you will be recommended for next Year's season, and if you're graduating, that just sucks for you don't it?" Tsunade said without a hint of pity in her voice. The team sweat dropped at how upfront she was.
Starting from now you have precisely 2 hours to show me what skills you possess and if you are good enough to be part of the team. Once chosen you have no time to settle in, we have scheduled a practise match in for this coming up Friday against the Prospect Jaguars. You will play with the desperation and determination as if it was a real match, any issues?"
They were all quiet.
"Good. That's what I thought, now a lap around and then grab a ball and meet me at Station 1 for some basic dribbling skills."
Tenten and the others took off around the oval with a run that couldn't be called a leisurely jog but neither could it be called a sprint. Tenten gritted her teeth thought to herself determinedly that she could do this. She knew she was just as good, she knew she could do it. She glanced across to Neji who was in the middle of the pack trying to ignore the excited antics of the bubbly blonde who was animatedly talking to him. She smirked and felt all the anger that she felt towards him slowly turn into adrenalin which made her that much more determined
Yeah. She'd show this fucker she could do this.
Tenten was in hell.
And judging from the exhausted tired look of her peers she was glad to know that she wasn't the only one. Even Neji had sheen of sweat on his face and his breathing seemed quicker than what would be considered normal. Tenten was proud of herself though for holding out this long, she wasn't the most amazing player on the field, the best would have to be the brown haired kid who she now knew was called Kiba was the best with his somewhat canine instincts that seemed to make him sharper and more brutal with his techniques, unfortunately though, the person that almost rivalled his talent was none other than Neji Hyuga. As much as she hated the guy and loathed him she held nothing but respect for the way he played Soccer. His precise clean and sharp hits were by far the most impressive thing she had seen and he seemed calm and able to be able to see right through his opponents and pass by with such ease.
Tenten herself was proud of her efforts and although her adrenalin was waning, she knew she could get through the last half hour giving it her all. Tsunade didn't seem all that miffed that she was a girl, she wasn't impressed with her and in the hour and a half she had been in her presence she had muttered a couple of 'good kicks' towards her and told her to bend her knees more when kicking the ball. Tenten overall was pleased with her performance and smiled while wiping sweat off her forehead. She could do this she chanted to herself over and over again.
In the middle of her chant a yellow sash was thrown at her and she caught it with fast reflexes, she saw that Tsunade was distributing both yellow and red sashes to the team at random; Tenten was relieved to find Neji was placed on the red team thankfully.
"Listen up! I've been impressed with what I've seen so far. I'll give you all that much. The last part of our training is a match, Red vs. Yellow. I hope you babies aren't too tired because this is the deciding point whether or not you get in the team" Tsunade smiled wickedly as if this is what she lived for, watching teenager's claw at each other for a chance to get on a sports team. What a masochist.
"Ok! Red Team you're starting on the left and yellow the right and you'll also start with the ball. You have exactly 2 minutes to work out positions. So hurry up brats!"
The teams quickly hurried to their respected sides and huddled up quickly. They all agreed on positions relatively fast with Tenten playing Striker and the now very determined blonde kid who she now knew his name was Naruto played midfield. They set themselves up on the field and before Tenten knew it the whistle was blown and the ball was now in play. Tenten's pulse sped up and the adrenalin she felt at the start of the training hit her again with full force. The ball was sent her way and she trapped it and moved without wasting a second. One of the guys from the red team came barrelling towards her ready to crush her into the ground regardless of whether she was a boy or a girl but a sharp and accurate pass to the left wing was enough to save her spine from permanent back injury.
The game went quickly, it was plainly obvious at the 25 minute mark with only 5 minutes to go, neither team was going to give up easily. In fact everyone was so desperate, throwing themselves at the ball and trying desperately trying to get the winning goal. Tenten was no different, few times she made it close enough to score but it had always been taken away by the Fullbacks and sent flying back down field and sent to Tenten's teams Fullbacks who would pass it to the Midfielders who then continued their struggle to win. This continues game of Ping Pong was getting far to repetitive for Tenten's liking.
Naruto had kicked the ball and it was sailing through the air, it was far away but if Tenten made that push for it she knew she could reach it. She defied her bodies limits and hurled herself towards the ball and as predicted she tapped it with her torso and then the moment it touched the well shaven grass she took off. Past Kiba who was defending the centre and past Shino, the reserved Senior who could kick a ball as fast as it would be if it was shot out of a cannon, they were behind her in less then a couple of seconds and she saw it. This was the window of opportunity that she was looking for! She could score from here if she went at least 25 metres further! The fat guy whose name was Choji and was in fact the goalkeeper, intently stared her down. She saw before when Naruto had tried kicking for goal, although his stamina was lacking, his explosive reflexes when it came to having a ball shooting at you was outstanding. His kicks also went a good 50 metres and he was all around the perfect Goalkeeper.
She willed herself to go that tiny bit faster; she was going to make it! she was going to get a goal and -
The ball was whisked away.
It happened so fast she didn't really see it. But a quick whip around to see who had stolen the ball confirmed what she already knew.
Neji Hyuga was tearing down the field so fast it would be impossible to catch up with him at this point. She staggered uncertainty and felt dazed and confused. He came from the left side of her and she didnt know if it was ignorance that caused her to give up the ball or if it was his own undetectable presence. Both probably and she scolded herself for being so foolish. Luckily enough the whistle was blown, indicating that the match was over. Even though it was a draw Tenten had that resigned withdrawn feeling she always got when she lost. Really was there a difference between losing and drawing? the answer was no. In the end no-one came out as a victor which was the whole point of competitive sport.
Tsunade took her place at the middle of the field and was barking orders for everyone to gather around her. Obediently they all followed.
"Good work. It pleases me to see that you little shits are good at what you do" Tsunade announced seemingly unaware of her foul mouth.
"So this is how it's going to work. As good as you all were we can still only accept 15 players. I will go home and make a list of this year's players. Then tomorrow morning, check he notice board in the South Wing of the sports Department. The list should be up and I expect you to be at the match 2 hours prior our practise match. Okay? Now leave, you all smell like shit." Tsunade said dismissively and Tenten wrinkled her nose in agreement. All the combined stenches of sweat were not something she'd want to smell everyday and she hastily went to go collect her bag.
When she was ready to leave she began walking towards the girls dorms but before she could even walk 5 steps someone was in front of her blocking her path.
"The ball is precious. You have to protect it." Neji insisted. He didn't seem to be saying this to be mean, he was saying it cold and unattached as a simple fact.
"Excuse me" Tenten muttered, not in the mood for talking and not in the mood for doing anything else but take a nice long shower and curl up and sleep.
"It was easy to steal the ball, think of it as a part of you. Don't let it happen again in a match" Then with a note of finality he slung his duffel over his shoulder and walked away. Tenten stared at his retreating form.
"Son of a bitch..." she cursed, but inwardly she smiled. Neji just said don't let that happen in a match. He knew she was going to make the team and was giving her a heads up. Something that must of been pride swelled up in her heart and she walked away feeling slightly better than she did before.
When she got to the dorms, she made a bee-line for her room, throwing down her bag and collecting her necessities for a relaxing shower. A bottle of Frederic Malle body lotion, Acqua De Parma shower gel, her yellow La Perla nightgown and a pair of well worn slippers from Peter Alexander. And on a second thought she decided she'd wash her hair and picked up her Serge Normant hair products. She headed to the bathroom which had the nicest lilac scent to it, she'd be happy sitting on the floor smelling it all night long.
If the training session was hell then the shower was heaven without a doubt. The warm jets of hot water seemed to do wonders for her tired aching body and she found herself in complete bliss. She massaged her hair and scrubbed her body clean, wiping away all the grime and sweat that had collected on her body. And after a good 45 minutes she came out of the shower feeling like a new person. She plopped down on her bed and wrapped her sheets around her like a protective cacoon and smiled at nothing in particular. She reflected on her experiences today. She didn't know if she liked the school yet. It was still foreign to her but she knew that she did like it's inhabitants. Well most of them anyway... she though, going back to what had transpired between her and Neji. but overall everyone seemed to have be likeable enough and tomorrow she'd be a little more bolder and make a tad more friends.
tomorrow...
She chewed her bottom lip nervously, tomorrow was the day she found out if she made it in the team or not and despite how nervous she was, she found out that she was just far to tired to care. She sighed and wrapped the caramel smelling sheets around her tighter
I could get used to this... Tenten thought as she drifted off into a well deserved sleep.
Chapter 3 is done! I will try my hardest to get Chapter 4 out there ASAP.
Let me know if you hate it, if you love it! Drop a review either way
Thanks!
Icicle-Pop
